My previous blog post talked about how long you should be aiming to make your novel. Today I want to talk about the different stages it will go through before you have a final product. Beta Reading This is something I first came across in relation to fanfiction, although since studying my MA I have … Continue reading BLOG: Beta Reading vs Proofreading vs Editing
Lately, I have found myself thinking about the length of books, and with NaNoWriMo coming up, it seemed like the perfect time to discuss what the ‘sweet spot’ was for the length of a novel – particularly debut novels. I currently have on my TBR list three massive books, all topping between 600 and 800 … Continue reading BLOG: How Long Should a Debut Novel Be?
Today is World Mental Health Day, and I wanted to say something. I have thought quite hard about whether or not to share this post. Part of me was worried that it would be seen as attention-seeking, jumping on a bandwagon, or airing my dirty laundry in public. Another part was concerned whether this might … Continue reading BLOG: World Mental Health Day 2018
Happy October everyone! This is my favourite time of year, I love the quality of the light you get on an Autumn afternoon and the chill in the air. It makes me just want to curl up and snuggle with a fire and a nice glass of wine. A good book and a blanket always … Continue reading BLOG: September Round-Up
If I were to tell you about a machine designed to take the basics of a story, then spit it out in whatever genre you chose, you might think I was talking about the computer algorithm which tried to write another Harry Potter book, with delightfully hilarious consequences. Or you might think I was talking … Continue reading BLOG: Synthesising a Bestseller
The 1st September marks one year since I handed in my dissertation and completed my MA. Perhaps the title here is misleading - the news is, there is no news. I had honestly expected to have a job by now – my opening blog in January was optimistic that I would be able to do … Continue reading BLOG: News from the Job Front
Now that July is upon us and the school holidays have started, a lot of people are thinking about heading away to get a break from reality. If you’re lucky, you might get to lounge around somewhere – pool, garden, beach – and read all day. Perfect. My kindle has been an absolute godsend when … Continue reading BLOG: How To Plan Your Holiday Reading
Just over two weeks into Camp NaNo WriMo, I thought I would give you all a State of the Union update. I am not quite on target to reach 50k yet this month – I should be on around 25k by now, but I only passed 21k yesterday. I’m not worried about this. There have … Continue reading BLOG: Camp NaNo WriMo 2018 – the halfway point
I have recently been through a trying time. I was coming to the end of my diary, and discovered that Paperchase, who for two years had given me everything I wanted, had discontinued the style. DISCONTINUED. I was trapped in a mid-year diary spiral after buying one when I started my MA in September 2016. … Continue reading BLOG: Dear Diary
Ever since I was a child, I have loved books. Reading them, buying them, just being around them. That’s why I did an English degree. I had idle dreams of owning a bookshop, or of being a librarian, or being an author, because my naïve mind had no concept of the publishing industry at that … Continue reading BLOG: Working, Writing and Camp NaNo
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