During this Sydney lockdown, something has occurred to me. Over thinking is best done between drafts! I'm writing this on July 21, 2021, and as I'm here at home with my husband, my works in progress have taken a back seat. Usually, I'd be working on the next draft of a manuscript while another is …
Time to rethink my work in progress
I'm writing this during Covid lockdown. The date is the 9th of July 2021 and due to the Delta variant, we're not allowed to leave our homes here in Sydney unless totally necessary. As I've often mentioned in my blogs, I can't write unless I'm alone without distractions. My husband is home with me and …
Writing a dystopian novel in an ever changing world.
I've just finished editing an early draft of Virtual Insanity. This is the sequel to Social Media Central. I was surprised most of it needed few amendments. The chapters where the action takes off and continues to the end of the novel are much more polished than I thought. A few other chapters, not so …
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When a review is not a review
In the late 80s I had a friend who was an abstract artist. His goal was to be a successful painter. He studied art, subscribed to every important creative magazine, and lived in a granny flat that was converted into his studio most of the time. He once explained that the purpose of a review …
Writing about music without infringing copyright.
It's hard to write a novel about 90s rave culture without mentioning music. You have to be careful not to infringe copyright. This has been a real issue with my story set around Sydney's Oxford Street in that era. I started by referencing songs without using their lyrics. Or I'd reference those lyrics without using …
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The IQARUS Book Con
We did a thing. A while back a group of authors decided to put on an online book conference. I raised my hand to help. As this group were in various locations around the world, I couldn't attend the regular weekly Google Meets sessions as they were held in the early hours of Monday morning. …
Writing, Revising, and Editing; My Writing Process – Guest blog by N.D. Neu
M.D. Neu is an award-winning queer Fiction Author with a love for writing and travel. Living in the heart of Silicon Valley (San Jose, California, USA) and growing up around technology, he’s always been fascinated with what could be. Needless to say, he was specifically drawn to Science Fiction and Paranormal stories growing up. He …
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How Covid-19 made me forget how my novel ends
I've been working hard on my novel set in the 90s. After I began the first draft last year, I had to drop momentum because of Covid. You see, I need quiet to write. That's why I often go to the library to work on a project. And the library was shut early to mid …
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Author Readings in a pub
With Covid restrictions lifting in Australia, we got to entertain! The wonderful Sarah (below, right), from the Rainbow Literary Society, contacted me and fellow author, Rebecca Langham, to read at the Stonewall (the one in Sydney). Rebecca had read at one of their events in 2019, and they were ready to follow up with another …
The first draft is when you get your ideas down
I'd heard this many times. Due to lack of a private space to write during Covid, I have one completed first draft and one still being written. I usually have three works at various stages of progress. One at first draft, one at third and one almost ready to submit. But this week I finally …
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