Tag: Me

Thoughts on thursday

Thoughts On Thursday! 29th October 2020

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I am going to try to get back to doing some of these extended question of the days because some answers just don’t fit in a tweet!

You are stuck on an island with no way off and no one knows you are there, what three items do you have with you?

This one is hard because if we are talking a realistic answer of what items am I most likely to have in my bag it would be my phone, my kindle and my make up bag or my Filofax depending what I am doing, or possibly my reading glasses if I remembered to put them in the bag. The reality is none of these make an interesting answer because the batteries would die so quickly they would be of no practical use other than the glasses which I can use to start fires, but as I wear normal glasses too now they are not of any special use.

So let’s try the you can have anything…

The first thing I would want is a solar power generator (because this is a hot island, if not get me off it now), I will need power for the next two items so I will need to be able to keep them charged up.

The second item is my kindle, I have enough books on there to keep me in books for years, the generator can be used to charge it back up It might be a good idea now, as I write this, to download a few survival manuals, but on the positive side my dad did teach me a few bits of DIY and I have watched a few survival shows so I am pretty sure I can make a passable shelter unless there is really extreme weather.

The third item is my computer, now obviously, I have no internet, but I can still write (I would need my wired mouse and keyboard, not the wireless ones to go with it, but that all counts as one right?) The advantage to my computer over than pen and paper is that there is no limit to how many books I can write and I can have them all edited ready for publishing if I ever get rescued from this island. The second advantage is I have Sims 4 on the computer so I have a game I can play on and if I feel lonely I can create myself some friends o a family.

Of course, the really sensible answers would be a tent, a first aid kit, and a swiss army pen knife but hell, who wants to be sensible. drop your three items in the comments

My Books

Torture Charity Anthology

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Time is running out to grab your copy, this book is only available until the end of this month after that it is gone forever, although you may be able to get continued versions of some stories, I confess I am undecided at this point what to do about mine, but it will definitely be the last time you will be able to get all the stories in their original format together,

And if you need another reason to stick your hand in your pocket and buy then remember it is raising money for #AutismUK, as you all know my son is autistic and even though he is high functioning the last six months have been hard. I am lucky that I can manage his issues and we have coping strategies in place, I managed to get help when it was needed but for many others this charity is a lifeline, and we all know that in times where everyone is struggling charities are hit hard as no one has that spare cash to donate.

So don’t just donate, but a book, get it on kindle, read it on Kindle Unlimited and you get a great read and somewhere out there a family gets a helping hand.

mybook.to/Torture

6. Saturday · So it's Saturday

Saturday Weekly Round-Up – 24th October 2020

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A fortnight has passed but I have been busy writing, so let’s see what I have been up to this week…

Podcasts

This week I was really excite by a new podcast! The Minister Of Chance which I invested in as a Kickstarter Audio drama is back digitally remastered as a podcast, the Prologue dropped this week so sign up wherever you get your podcasts or check out this link for more info or follow Dan Freeman on Twitter to keep up with the latest news.

Music

This week I have listened to a little music and have to confess it was an 80’s playlist Spotify put together For me, I have to confess a few of those may have made there way into the playlist for the new book I am writing, mainly happy pop songs at the minute, it is interesting when it is a list someone else puts together how you find yourself listening to songs you had forgotten existed until they are in front of you so here is one…

I find it shocking now to think I could keep up dancing like that all night long lol. If you are on Spotify and want to check out my playlist at the minute it is listed as Christmas love story..

Reading

I have read a couple of books in the past two weeks I wont say too much about them now as I will be reviewing them but I have read the Filthy Trilogy by Lisa Renee Jones,, well the first two parts as I am about to read the third, I have also read Behind Closed Doors By Karen Mossman, one of these resulted in the use of several tissues, guess which one.

Watching – TV

I have actually finally decided to give Great British Bake Off on Channel 4, I watched it religiously what it was on BBC and was not really happy to see it sold off, however, one should not hold grudges and I do like Matt Lucas and Noel Fielding, and have to say four weeks in and I have really enjoyed it so far. And we managed to get through pastry week without a soggy bottom in sight!

Watching – Film

This is an old film, in fact it was an old favourite, however, watching it this time round I am struck that we have a love story that should have actually been a taboo, as it starts with both main characters cheating on their other halves. I know that some people will arguing that if there is nothing physical happening then it’s not cheating but I would argue if you are sneaking around behind your partners back, talking to people you wouldn’t talk to in front of them then you are cheating. I play on computer games and chat to a few people all over the world but there is not a single message that has ever been sent I have needed to hide from my boyfriend, in fact I have shown him quite a few. The thing is this carries on for quite a long way into the film, it’s not as if they just started talking and realised how bad their relationships are. Overall, it is quite a negative film, the big bad megastore does drive the little independent shop out of business, and he never really shows any actual remorse for destroying her business. There were some moments of nostalgia with the dial up modem, the clothes, and the fact you could exist without being connected to social media or be accessible 24/7.  I decided to go with this instead of the tradional trailer as it is closer to my feelings on this film now.

Watching – Netflix

I haven’t really watched Netflix in the last couple of weeks because it won’t work properly via the TV and I am trying to get some writing done on the computer but there are a couple of things coming up I am interested to watch so watch this space…

And that is it for this week, see you all back here next week.

Lazy Sunday

Lazy sunday Vlog #3

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Friday fiction Vlogs

Friday Fiction Vlog #5 – #NanoWriMo18 Week 2

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4. Thursday · Highs and Lows · The Learning Curve · Thoughts on thursday

Thoughts on Thursday – So You Want To Be A Writer Part Two

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If you missed out on the first part of this new series you can catch it here. I know this should have gone out yesterday but technical problems left me frustrated and on the verge of throwing the computer through the window yesterday lol.

So, you finally have an idea for a story, you sit at the computer and begin writing so far so good but then you find the next thing that people say to you.

Well, anyone can write a book, it’s just words.

Now, to an extent this is true. anyone can write a book but let’s look at what actually goes into writing a book that people really don’t understand. First the time! I don’t know about most of you reading this but my WPM (words per minute) have dropped significantly since I learnt to type at school. On a good day, I can type 250 words every fifteen minutes, that means 1000 words per hour assuming the ideas are flowing and I don’t need to stop to think or consult notes. The average fantasy book is 95,000 – 120,000 words this means to write one book you are looking at 95 – 100 hours. Now, there will be people who will look at that and say, well that’s okay you can write a book a month, and yes if you are lucky enough to be able to stay home and make a living writing you might, but most of us still have day jobs to accommodate to fund our writing. Personally, I am lucky to write 5 – 10 k words per week, that means if nothing else happens to slow me down or distract me that the first draft will take three to four months.

It’s only writing down words in sentences, it can’t be that hard!

Yes, I have actually had that said to me, and to an extent it is true, or should that be it is true for the first draft. What a lot of people fail to realise is just how many different edits you do on books, you don’t just write the perfect book, hit send and it is out there in the world. Generally, I edit a book around four times more in some places if it needs it, there are read throughs checking for continuity, and any holes in the plot, there are general grammar and spelling checks. I also use an automated voice reader programme to let me hear it back with helps me pick on things spell check misses, those silly errors where you type on instead of no.

If you are lucky you can afford to pay proofreaders to pick up on some issues, pay editors to fix them, oh, and remember to check what your editor offers, because you may need to hire more than one. If one only does general edits then you need a second to do line edits.  Now, if like me you don’t make enough to pay for all these things, then there is help out there. I use the free version of Grammarly to pick up on some of my mistakes but be advised that it often wants to change things that you want to write for creative effect. Use the word checker on your computer and check the settings to see what you can turn on to help you.

All these edits take time so the chances are if you are doing it all yourself you will be doing well to get out one or two books a year, if you have editors you can maybe get a couple more out, but just words, I don’t think so.

Next week we will look at what happens once, you have a story more or less ready to go.

Lazy Sunday

Lazy Sunday Vlog #2

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You can get Manchester tickets here

Vlog Time #115 – Getting my image together
8. Vlog Time

Vlog Time #115 – Getting my image together

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I don’t know how I managed to add a load of dead air after the video but sorry just switch off after the thank you, actual video is about seven or eight minutes long xxx

My Books

Voices Across The Void Review

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I am going to begin getting the posts back in order next week but I wanted to share this awesome review I got on Goodreads.

If you’re into mystery, suspension, with a touch of scary then ‘Voices Across The Void,’ is the book for you. This book will give you all of that, and some surprise emotions as well.
There were several stand-out stories for me; The Cottage is one of them, this is a story about redemption, closer, and self-evaluation. At least, that’s how I felt when reading it. The Hospital was another; although tragic, it was beautiful at the same time. Finally; The Bluebell Woods, I don’t have enough woods in me to express how this story made me feel, the emotions I felt while reading it surprised, and shocked me a little. I went from fear to anger so fast that I stopped reading the book for a while. I knew that I had to finish The Bluebell Woods just so that I could have some peace, that story stuck in my head! My worst damn nightmare as they say! I cried, became bitter, laughed, and rejoiced finally at the conclusion of the story.
This was a great book; it kept me entertained during the holidays and cold, blustery days and nights. I would read this author again, just to see if she can pull that emotion from me again!

it is always such a good feeling to get good reviews but even better when you know you evoked such strong feelings with your book. If you have not had chance to read this book yet you can find it here myBook.to/VoicesAcrossVoid and remember it is free to read on Kindle Unlimited.

 

Read And Relax – The Book Lovers Subscription
Signings & Events

Read And Relax – The Book Lovers Subscription

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A few weeks ago I told you about taking a chance and reaching out to a book subscription service, well now in a few days next months box launches including swag from yours truly!

So what is Read and Relax, well the best way to explain is to share their ethos from their own website…

Read and Relax is a new subscription site dedicated to keeping second-hand books alive.

The idea for Read And Relax came to me one afternoon whilst I was browsing the internet. I, probably much like yourself, was looking for a monthly book subscription. What I found were expensive offers (which contained more useless merchandise then books). If my book came with anything I would want it to be useful – I hoard enough as it is! As a teacher, I don’t have countless disposable income and therefore I began to reach the stage where I was going to give up – I just couldn’t get myself to part with that much money! That is when Read And Relax was born.

My vision  is to not only provide budget-friendly monthly boxes but to also save second-hand books from the tip hence  supporting a wide range of charities at the same time. As a thank you from me to you, parcels will also include a treat: sometimes this might be something to eat, other times it may be a delicious smelling candle, perhaps a mug to harvest that well deserved tea at the end of the day… to name just a few. Whatever it is, I promise that it will be useful and relaxing.

Alas, on such a budget, I cannot provide the latest book to my customers: but what I can do is hand-pick them novels from charity stores which match their genre preferences. Since starting this service my weekends, and quite happily, have been used to browse shops, read reviews and purchase literature for my followers. I, so far, have received a number of great reviews and just hope that this service is not only what I was looking for, but what you were looking for too. 

Together we can do three things: support charities, revive books and read!

So why does this project excite me, I want to sell my books? Simple, the reason I started writing was I love reading, I love stories and I love books, and now as a self-published author I strive to share my work with people who I think will love it. When you join this subscription service you get to choose the genres you would like to receive books in, maybe you chose the safe options you know you will like and risk the odd book you may have already read or you take a chance, chose an unknown genre. I think of this service a little like trusting a friend to pick your next book for you, and if you get a book you don’t like, you have only spent the same as you might have buying a new book but have the feel-good factor of knowing these books have been purchased from charity shops.

So what have I popped in the boxes, basically, if you subscribe and choose the targeted genres you will receive a swag bag from me similar to those I give away with purchases. However, I know not everyone always has the spare cash to take advantages of these orders  at that minute so what I am willing to do is if you subscribe at any point, either in the next couple of days, or during December, and would like to receive a belated swag pack for your next box if you contact Read and Relax I will make sure that I send extra bags to make sure everyone gets one.

So if you are interested in this great subscription service head over to Read and Relax or follow them on Instagram  

And just remember if you don’t want this subscription for yourself then maybe it could be the perfect gift for the book lover in your family. I am so excited to be working alongside this company and hope to get the opportunity to do so again at a later date.