Where does the time go? Two weeks have flown by and tomorrow is the halfway mark for NaNoWriMo: 25K words! If you are struggling, I recommend you visit the NANO site and watch a pep talk. I particularly liked Neil Gaiman's which dates back to 2007, gave me inspiration then and still does the job now. Plus, you could attend one of my free MIDWAY webinars tomorrow, Sunday 15 November. There are three-time...
The current rage - I'm told - is adult colouring books. I'm sure they provide hours of inspiring, magical enjoyment. I don't have time for such distractions ...
You know how excited kids get, and how they ask you how many sleeps until some event? Their birthday, Christmas, the start of the school holidays ...
During the recent series of Red Pen Launch webinars, I was blessed with the support of romantic novelist and veteran RedPenner, Patsy Collins. With NaNoWriMo less than a week from now, I've invited Patsy to tell us her plans for November. So, Patsy, NaNoWriMo 2015. Will you be taking part? I've not completed NaNo during the last couple of years, and previously I've 'cheated' at NaNo and used it to write 50,000 words of...
The secret of winning NANO - going through that 50K barrier before time runs out on day 30 - boils down to setting goals and meeting targets. On the NANO site, each time you enter your word-count-to-date, a bar chart tells you how you're progressing. If you're on schedule, writing your 1666 words per day, it's good to see today's column above the target line. If you're slipping behind, it can...
NaNoWriMo fast approaches and it's crucial, before I start writing for real at midnight on 31 October, that I make some decision on tense and voice. First question: which tense to use? Past or present? Past tense would be the easy option. It's the natural way of telling a story - something that happened in the past, recounted now. Using the present tense can create a sense of immediacy. It can...
Before I write - and also during the writing process - I make notes to myself about any research I need to do, and additional information I'll need. I create a list of questions I'll need to answer. For Safari Supper, one such question is: 'How will the murderer kill the victim?' For now, I am assuming it's going to be by poisoning but, to arrive at a plausible method, I...
Hoorah! The powers that be have opened the doors at NaNoWriMo 2015! The first step - if you are new to NANO, is to Register: choose a pen name and write your author bio. Here's what mine says. Then complete as much detail as you can for your 2015 novel. While there’s a large international community of Wrimos via the NaNoWriMo website, you can also meet up and write with other Wrimos in...
September has gone and it won't be long before NaNoWriMo opens its doors for this year's participants. This weekend I'm gearing up to taking the next step in the planning of my Safari Supper novel. My story arc offers me an outline of the chapters - assuming I decide to present my story in chronological order. I'll certainly aim to write it in that order - and decide later precisely how it...
What a Carry On! The character who organizes the Safari Supper is central to my story. Although she may not be the main character, she's important to me. Her husband is also a key player, as a foil to her and for the role he plays in the distribution of wine to the hostesses. I might need the poison to be delivered via the wine - haven't decided yet! While other characters...
