Google+
This blog has moved. Please go over to this link to see my new website.

Sunday 24 November 2013

Back to Creative Writing School, by Bridget Whelan, Reviewed.

A writing manual that sets out to encourage and inspire, but that also gives the reader tools to use, examples to learn from, and exercises that will help embed the lessons. As a writer of some experience, I generally don’t gravitate toward books on basic technique. I’m pleased I made this one an exception.

Concise, witty, informed and accessible, this is a book that guides would-be writers through the skill sets and pitfalls of creative writing. Bridget Whelan’s writing style is inviting and friendly without straying into the uncomfortable intimacy that a casual approach can sometimes involve. She presents her lessons in small chunks of entertainingly written advice gleaned from experience of writing and of teaching writing students. And she provides exercises that are well thought out and manageable whilst retaining a challenging element designed to make the reader really consider what it is they are being asked to do.

Set out in 3 ‘Terms’, each split into 10 ‘Lessons’, the text takes the reader through those elements of creative writing that most matter. Whilst each subject and topic is dealt with seriously, the writing style allows her sense of humour to come through and engage the reader in a way that makes the whole easily managed.

I particularly liked her sections on humour: in fact parts of it had me laughing out loud. Her sections on horror give a real feel for the genre. The selected samples used to illustrate certain points are always clear and pertinent, showing the best, or the worst, of writing style.


This is a book that will gently and surely lead the would-be writer through the process of approaching and creating imaginative writing. I thoroughly recommend what is an enjoyable, encouraging and inspiring read. And, now, if you don’t mind, I’ll end this review so I can get on with some of the stories that are currently fighting for my attention, having been inspired by this book!
Enhanced by Zemanta

Saturday 23 November 2013

The NaNoWriMo Experience Fulfilled.

In common with many of my fellow writers, I started the project to complete the 1st draft of a novel NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month, which ought to be renamed International Novel Writing Month, except that InNoWriMo somehow doesn’t have the same cachet), is a motivational project aimed at moving the writing along.
during the month of November.

I had a go at this in 2011 and completed over 110k (the official target for the month is 50k), but ditched the result due to an insurmountable flaw in the plot. This time, I used the motivational aspect to hurry me through the final half of the 1st draft of book 3 of my fantasy trilogy. I expected to add about 110k to what I’d already written. But, as so often happens when you write by the seat of your pants, the story took a slightly different turn from that expected and came to a natural end a little earlier. In the end, I had only to complete another 83k words, and I did that on Thursday. The book now stands at around 194k words.

So, my NaNoWriMo experience is complete for this year. This doesn’t mean the book is finished, of course. In fact, it’s only just begun. The real work will come in the editing, which I’ll start in a couple of weeks, once I’ve done other stuff that will let me come to it more or less fresh.

But there’s no doubt that this publicly undertaken exercise does wonders for self-discipline and motivation. At the rate I was writing before November, I’d have been completing the book by the end of December. A worthwhile effort, I think. I’d definitely encourage anyone to have a go. And for those would-be writers who have difficulty completing anything, this is an ideal exercise as it encourages you to just write, without ever stopping to edit along the way.


I strongly advise writers to try this. Too late for this year, of course. But next year might be the time you finally get that novel actually written instead of just talking about it.
Enhanced by Zemanta

Monday 18 November 2013

NaNoWriMo Progress into the Third Week.

The first draft of volume 3 of A Seared Sky: Convergence, is going apace. I started the NaNoWriMo process when the MS was at 111,079 words and it’s now at 181,684 words, which means I’ve averaged 3922 words a day so far during November.

Believe it or not, I’ve lived a life at the same time. It hasn’t been easy, turning out this number of words each day, but the public nature of the target does concentrate the mind and helps prevent prevarication and distractions. I know that, once this draft is finished, I’ll have some serious editing to do. But the story, the essence of the novel, will be complete. I’ll have all the twists and turns in place, all the characters where intended, and all events covered.

Along the way, I’ve had to introduce new characters, of course. I made this easier for myself by creating a list of possible names for future use before I started on book 1. I also have a character template and a collection of around 1,000 assorted photographs of people, so I can hang the description onto an image of a real person. I find this helps me develop the character more fully. Some events have occurred quite unexpectedly, as characters take on more importance than I originally envisaged or as favourite characters get into situations it’s impossible for them to survive. I don’t like killing off characters, but it has to be done, of course.

And now? Well, my guess is that around 20,000 words will complete the book. I’m working on the denouement, putting each of the three groups of individuals into those situations that will close their parts in the story. There’ll inevitably be a few loose ends, with a cast of over 90 named players, but all the main characters will end up with a satisfactory conclusion to their specific tales.

I’m looking forward to the appearance of book, Joinings. FantasticBooks Publishing are currently waiting for their designer to complete the cover design. And the book should be available before Xmas. I’m excited about the publication, of course. But, for the moment, I’ll continue to use NaNoWriMo as a way of ensuring that volume 3 gets completed. At least those who buy volume 1 will then know that they won’t be let down by an author failing to complete a trilogy; something that happens far too often, unfortunately.


Watch this space for further news.
Enhanced by Zemanta

Friday 15 November 2013

Bristol Short Story Prize Anthology Vol 4, Reviewed.

Collections are often a mix of good with poor, but this anthology of prize-winners and near misses is
actually quite consistent in terms of quality. It features the top 3 prize-winning stories along with 17 shortlisted entries to the 2011 contest. As an entertainment, it provides a series of interesting reads.

There are a few too many urban grit stories for my personal tastes, but that doesn’t detract from the overall quality of the offering. Interestingly, many of the stories are written in the present tense, a technique that lends urgency and immediacy to the tales.

Just one of the stories (I won’t name it) was disappointingly peppered with typos and grammatical errors, but one out of twenty is pretty good, I suppose. It does, however, cause the reader to wonder why it made the short list. In general terms, the selection does give some idea of what judges might be looking for when faced with selecting winners for short story competitions. Unfortunately, such hints are notoriously unreliable, since each set of judges seems to have its own ideas of what is or isn’t desirable in short fiction. And even the same judge can change opinion from contest to contest, so very little help to be found by reading the winners.

For the writer who may want guidance about such entries, however, it is clear from the anthology that a degree of literary merit is valued over formulaic or genre specific approaches. Good use of language, well-developed characters and interesting themes seem to win over plot-driven and fast action tales.


In spite of the lean towards urban grit and present tense, I enjoyed this collection and happily recommend it.
Enhanced by Zemanta