Story settings and the reader's mind

For me the setting of any book if it’s pivotal to the story becomes a character in the story.  The reader has to be able to see the setting in the same way they vision the characters.  This means giving enough description to convey a frame work for that character/setting without being to prescriptive and depriving the reader of the fun of having their own vision of what the person/place looks like. 

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30 things one writer learnt in 2018

At this time, in early January, I’m looking forward to what the new year might bring.  However, it’s always good to look back at the year just gone and see what nuggets of wisdom it left behind.  So here goes:

1. It is possible to have a writing blip.  It’s not that I’ve fallen out with writing it’s just that other things have been going on and the thing that’s suffered most is my blog.
2. How much stuff two people can stash in one kitchen.
3. Those tins at the back of the cupboard are likely to many years out of sell-by.  Our record was 2005
4. You never stop learning as a writer.  I’ve been back over my first book.  Tempted to do the same for the rest.
5. I can enjoy relaxing on the beach (as long as the sea’s warm, there’s a sun lounger and a taverna which brings you coffee).
6. Get those stories out!  They’re no good sitting on my/your hard drive.  For me I’ve got two follow-ups to the first book I published which have been sitting there for a years.  A 2019 resolution?
7. I still don’t like playing golf in the rain and mud.  When you see it on TV they’re always playing in warm sunshine.
8. Sometimes you can’t have too much of a good thing.  In the UK we had a glorious summer, fingers crossed for 2019.
9. Most of the time you can take out the word “that” in your writing – try it.
10. Beware the passive voice.

For the other 20 nuggets of wisdom (or not) follow this link

That very last (honest, I mean) revision - what I look for

I’ve been doing  a lot of revision recently.  On top of finalising the second and third books for Inspector Kirby I am also revisiting my first book, for which I’ve had books two and three sitting on my hard drive for a few years now.  I’m not saying I’m an expert, however, I have got into a sort of rhythm with it.  I write the story quickly.  I rarely go back and tinker until the whole thing is finished (unless I have a eureka moment).  The first few revisions are easy and I find it fun.  I’m assessing the plot, adding interest, finding better way to describe, correcting clunky prose etc.  At some (undefined) point I draw the line on this and go into to polishing mode.  I’ve done that for Kirby and that’s what I’m doing now to that other series, including the one I’ve published (after all it was my first book).  I don’t know if doing so much revision has sensitised me however I find myself, in that last run through, obsessively looking for certain things.

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Who and what influenced me as a writer?

I was asked what influenced me as writer recently.  At first I thought it was an easy thing to answer.  I’ve said before that Arthur C Clarke’s Childhood’s End is what got me hooked on science fiction, the ending blew my teenage mind.  That lead me to reading more Clarke and Asimov then authors such as Greg Bear and Ben Bova.  Also, I grew up  at the time of the Apollo missions and the moon landings.  As a young lad, how could that not captivate my imagination?  Then later films such as 2001, Close Encounters and Star Wars were taking science fiction on the screen from clunky B Movie status to the mainstream.

However, having given my standard answer it occurred to me that these were things that had sparked my interest as a consumer of science fiction, and later fantasy through authors such as Raymond Feist and David Eddings.  However, had they influenced my writing?  In terms of the subject matter, yes.  I have adapted themes that those writers have explored before me (and I presume they adapted from earlier writers).   As for my actual writing, perhaps much less than Imagined.  They may have placed that spark, the desire to write.  However, as to influencing my writing that comes later, from the authors I’ve read just before and while I’ve been writing.

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What's wrong with a nice story?

The prompt for this post was a film I watched recently, Salmon fishing is the Yemen.  I knew it had good crits and it’d been on my “to see” list for a long time.  From the first few minutes to the end I enjoyed it.  It was a gentle tale, with an element of humour and even a bit of romance.  There was some violence, however basically it was a “nice” (and I know as authors the word “nice” is something to be avoided) story well told.

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A writer on location

My latest book is out to agents – fingers crossed.  Although, I won’t be too disappointed if it’s not taken up as I will be excited to see what I can do with it myself.  Early readers have been enthusiastic and reckon it’s more commercial / an easier sell than my normal scifi.  This latest venture is a detective mystery with a supernatural / magical edge.  It grew out of several short stories centred on the main character, an Inspector Kirby.  Once again it shows the value of shorts stories to the novel writer (something I’ve blogged about before).  So, what’s this got to do with me being on location? 

To find out and for the complete blog follow this link

One writer's resolutions for 2017

I do this every year and yes looking back I don’t always follow all my resolutions.  However, at the beginning of the year it’s not a bad idea to review what you did last year (my last blog) and think of what you might like to change / achieve / try in the coming year.  For me writing them down, whether you call them resolutions or not, makes them more than just a passing thought.  So here are mine for 2017

Finish and implement the Slight Edge.

I mentioned this in my 2016 round-up.  It’s a book by Jeff Olsen which is all about doing to those small things consistently over a long period of time that will make a big difference.  Also not giving up on them.  Obviously there is more to it than that, after all it is a book.  However, I admit that over the holidays I have let it slip.  For me it’s all about my profile as a writer and of course selling more books.  I need to decide which of those “small actions” are the ones that are going to make the difference and then stick to them for long enough to tell if I’m right.  At least if I follow the advice I will be taking positive steps and not just letting things drift.

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What this writer has learnt in 2016

Another year has almost been and gone, zoomed past. I’m sure someone is stealing days and weeks from me and replacing them with vague memories (perhaps there’s a story there.)  Anyway, as 2016 draws to a close it’s time to look back, before looking forward.  So, what have I learnt?  What sage nuggets of wisdom (and some not so sage) will I be taking forward into 2017.  Here goes:

1)  Planning

Earlier this year I paid some money and took part in the James Patterson master class series.  Was it worth it?  Yes, I think it was and one of the main things I learnt is the art of planning.  I use the Scrivener writing program, which is a good start and makes planning a lot easier.  Also, I already had an idea for a novel based on a few short stories featuring (my now) main character.  This was a great opportunity to apply James Patterson’s regime.  So, I spent more time on detailed planning than I have before.  I divided the story into many more chapters than I do normally which worked well.  I played with them, moved some a round, added others and took some out.  All this meant that by the time I came to writing I was confident with the plot.  Reaction by some early readers has been great and I will be publishing early in the New Year.  If you want to read more on the James Patterson methods I wrote a number of blogs on my experience, starting with this one: My writing - I'm going back to basics.

2)  I knew there had to be a reason:  Farting helps reduce high blood pressure and is good for your health.

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Writing - location,location, location.

Recently I’ve been completing my latest project, working title:  Inspector Kirby and Harold Longcoat, a Northumbrian mystery.  The comments from beta readers are good and although there are a couple more to feedback I’ve sent it for proofreading/editing.  Now, if you’re familiar with my other books you’ll know that I write science fiction and as the title of my latest creation suggests, it isn’t.  Yes, it’s a detective story with, as I hope again is hinted at by the title, a supernatural/magical edge to it (it can’t be that straightforward).

This presented me with an interesting challenge.  It is the first time I have used a contemporary location that some people at least will be familiar with.  It also set me thinking that the location is as much a character, as important, in the book as are the people. 

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Is it just me? - Adverbs

I don‘t know maybe it’s an allergy I have, or perhaps it’s more like a food intolerance i.e. when I see a liberal sprinkling of adverbs I become intolerant to them.

For example I began reading a science fiction book two weeks ago.  It started well, I liked the premise and the writing was good.  It soon became apparent that it was going to be a long book (even by scifi standards).  But hey, if it was good, so what?  However, by the time I got 20% in I was becoming irritated with it and by 30% I gave up.  Now there were several reasons behind this.  First was that the story seemed to be going round in circles with people repeating the same arguments and hence the story not getting very far.  Then there were some plot elements that didn’t really make sense to me.  Finally, I had issues with the writing.

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Pluck up courage - it's time for a relaunch

In some ways I’m not sure why it’s taken me so long to make the decision to invest in a book relaunch.  I launched Bleak last November and lots of people (and not just friends) have told me they really enjoyed the book.  And yet, I admit sales have been disappointing, to the point where they have dwindled to almost nothing.  I know basically that could be due to three things: a) the book simply doesn’t appeal. b) the cover, blurb etc. are putting people off. c) marketing.

Now given what I said in the beginning I believe the book is good enough and although science fiction is not everyone’s favourite genre, there is an audience for my book, if I can just get them to take a look at it.

So that means I need to work on b) and c).

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Science fiction writer + holiday = inspiration

The joy of a holiday to me is that I’m away from all those little chores that have to be done and in a world of things I want to do, which I have to admit on holiday is not a lot.  Yes there are places I want to see, otherwise why travel somewhere new?  One or two are must see’s, the rest, well it’s all new and interesting to me.

There’s also that other thing that holidays give you and that’s time.  In my case more time to read. 

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My writing - going back to basics 3)

At the risk of repeating myself I decided that a little help from an author than has sold millions of books world-wide couldn’t do any harm.  So I signed up for his masterclass and committed in my first blog on this subject to keep you posted as to how it goes and what I think of it.  So is it inspiring - yes it is.  Is it helping – yes.  Or at least I think it is.  It is certainly making me think about every aspect of my story telling.  Not so much perhaps the writing, but the story telling.

5 more reasons for writing and reading short stories

Read more of them.  Write more of them.  Short stories are great for all sorts of reasons. Don't view short stories as somehow inferior.  For any writer they are a valuable asset.  My blog: http://wp.me/p3ycbY-1jM 

A writer's resolutions for 2016

A new year and a new set of resolutions. Do I keep to them all? No, but it does help me focus on what I want to achieve as a writer in the next twelve months. My latest blog http://wp.me/p3ycbY-1jC

Writers - read more and wider

Go on! be a devil and try something different.  When it comes to choosing that next book it is easy to stick to what you know. However, as writers there are great rewards in looking a little wider.  My latest blog: http://wp.me/p3ycbY-1iN

Stuck? Writing something, anything, helps

I've been struggling with making progress on the third book in a series I'm writing.  I've come to a conclusion: Writing something, anything, helps.  wp.me/p3ycbY-1eF

Photography is a writer's friend

I have always been interested in photography. However, I didn't appreciate how useful it could be to me as a writer. http://wp.me/p3ycbY-1da

Go on - read some fantasy

Last week I extolled the values of great science fiction.  This week I'm doing the same for fantasy - so go on, put aside those prejudices of 'genre' fiction and read some fantasy: http://wp.me/p3ycbY-1cq

A new writer – Planning (not) for a book launch

In many ways writing the book is the easy bit, at least you have an idea how to do that and where the story is taking you. But with book marketing....My latest blog:

 http://wp.me/p3ycbY-1bN