My life has changed a lot in the past year. I don't have as much time to write as I used to, even though that issue will change by the end of the year. In one way, it's good. I'm concentrating on promotion more, instead of just writing. Where I feel this change most is …
I signed a new book contract.
The week before writing this blog I signed a book contract. It was for an eBook titled Winter Masquerade. At one stage I wanted to expand this book but after reading it for editing, I liked its pace. I didn't want to bloat the story. Someone asked me during the week which of my novels …
Selling Books at a Smaller Con
It's Sunday morning when I'm writing this. We're at Hubcon, the small pop culture con in the Blue Mountains. This is its inaugural year. There are only eight of us in Author Alley which means better sales for our books, compared to the larger festivals where there's more competition. Of course, I'm asking the best …
Looking back at my Writer’s Notebook – Part Four
I'm still not even halfway looking back at my old notebook... But I'll make this my last musings on its contents. One thing that's surprised me straight away is that I originally was going to title the last in the Angel and Actors series novels, Drama Queens and Demonic Beings. So glad I didn't. There …
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Looking back at my Writer’s Notebook – Part One
I filled my first writer's notebook. My friend, Brett, gave it to me as a present for my birthday over ten years ago. It also came with a lovely pen on which he engraved 'The pen is mightier than the sword'. Inside the notebook, he wrote an inscription of which some of the lines are: …
Continue reading "Looking back at my Writer’s Notebook – Part One"
Starting a new novel
I'm at the ideas stage. A couple of months ago I wrote a blog about the research I'll do for this. You can find it here, but basically it's a story set in the 1990's and centres around a group of friends. My husband and I have been casting people we know as characters and …
Stories should have conflict.
Today's blog was sparked by a tweet from Kev St John (@Kev_away) He had given his work in progress to a Beta Reader who didn't like one character because she wasn't a good friend. He couldn't believe this response. This character is supposed to be a bad friend. That was the point. I had a …
I never read my own novels
Someone tweeted "Do you read your own books?" Everyone except me and one other person answered "Yes." One of them said "That's why I wrote them." While I get it, I also don't get it. Sure we write the books we'd like to read, but there's no way I'd sit reading one of my own …
I’m Pantstering a Bit More!
My religion has changed a little. I used to be a devout Plotter. My love for working out what would happen chapter by chapter happened with my second novel, Drama Queens and Adult Themes. Two worlds are described in that story and characters from one realm, the Afterlife, interfere with the lives of an unsuspecting …
I’ve started a new novel…just
For those following at home, you'll know I'm negotiating work life, social life and writing time. Well, I've finally started Winter Masquerade. At time of writing this blog I've completed several paragraphs of the first chapter. I know it's not much, but it's something. I already have the chapter by chapter breakdown and have several …
