More than Writers

  We have just returned from the Netherlands, where we stayed for two weeks. We went because of my sister’s wedding, which Goldie didn’t know, but she came happily along anyway. Goldie isn’t keen on holidays and packed cars, as the very first time we went on holiday, she returned to the original owners, as she wasn’t old enough to leave the country yet. Goldie was happy enough to see the owners, but not so happy when we left in the loaded car. So since then, she has been very suspicious of loaded cars and the word Holiday. When she is near us, her tail is still wagging, for although she is worried, she loves and trusts us. We might not like editing or what we will think the editor will do to our manuscript, but be like Goldie. We are daily shaped and moulded, by an all-knowing God, so trust the process.   Being kind and a working dog, she tries to help with packing by taking things into the garden to line them up and check their quality. Goldie could probably get a job som...

Image Credit:  Images created in Book Brush using Pixabay photos Do you find it easy to generate ideas for your writing, whether it is fictional or not? I use a variety of methods to generate ideas. I use proverbs and well known phrases as potential themes and titles. I then start thinking about the kind of character who would work best for these themes. There’s my basic outline already (which ties in with my post on Planning last month). I often use random generators to trigger ideas. That is what I’m after here - something to get me started. I like to use those small pockets of time we all get to brainstorm ideas. Sometimes I’ll come up with ideas for titles. Other times, I’ll think of a character and outline why I want to write their story up. I can return to these ideas when I’m back at my desk again.  I like to “rest” these ideas. If they still grip me when I look at them again after a break, it’s likely I can do something with them. The first reader you must lure in to ...

 Does your book title whisper its genre? Here are some books that I have read. Can you tell from the titles what genre they belong to?     Sometimes, it’s very easy to tell a book’s genre from its title but not always. The blurb helps readers out. Sometimes too, the writer’s name gives away the genre.  All this got me thinking. What if a book’s title or its author knocked off interest straightaway? I steer off reading dark and sci fi writings. What of you?   I became twitter friends with Raelle who writes mainly pirate stories. I never knew the day would come when I would have a change of opinion about this writer and her writing until I read ‘Romancing a pirate’! I was truly fascinated and it earned 5 stars!!  I make a deliberate decision when I create my book title to whisper its genre. Do you as well? Here are some names of God below.   Some might be familiar. Which is your favourite and why?     I love El Roi because I un...

It's a joy this Blog to interview Liz Carter on her recently published book, Valuable.  I've learnt so much from Liz and I'm delighted at the opportunity to find out more about how she came to write on this theme. of our true worth.  Many months ago an email from Liz plopped into my inbox asking if I would mind sharing a personal story in the book she was currently writing called ‘Valuable – Why your worth is not defined by how useful you feel’.  This title resonated with me immediately and I felt very honoured to share in it.  I submitted my couple of pages to Liz and as the months went by almost forgot about it, until I received another message letting me know things would soon be happening to prepare for her launch and asking if I’d like to be a prereader.   It was a deep encounter for me from the moment I started reading Valuable .   Liz’s description of being the sick child at school, the weeks off because of illness, the resulting rejections and...

Gloucester Cathedral is famous for its grand Gothic architecture, its stunning collection of stained glass windows and of course Harry Potter’s Hogwarts.  The 225 foot high central tower is visible from miles away as you approach the city.  People travel from all over the world to see it, I once took someone from Japan to see it, she was crazy about all things Harry Potter. All visitors to this rather splendid landmark have their own stories to tell, mine is a little different.  For many years the Cathedral was hidden, as it was shrouded in scaffolding and tarpaulins.  An army of stonemasons worked tirelessly behind the drapes in what seemed an endless task of restoration.  At that time, I worked in construction and knew one of the gifted and dedicated stonemasons, he told me this story to highlight the quality of his work. “I was working way up in the roof space to replace a corbel ( a projection  jutting out from a wall to support a structure above...

 When I looked ahead to this month’s blog I knew I probably wouldn’t struggle to find a subject matter. After all it would be due out a week after our Writing Kingdom Stories Retreat ended. I was confident that I would have lots of material to draw on. Maybe I could write about how to plan and run a Writers Retreat. Or at least what mistakes to avoid in planning and running a Writers Retreat. Maybe I could talk about what we did, and how much fun we had. What was taught and what was shared. Maybe I could wax lyrical about what a roaring success it all was. Maybe I could reflect on what I learnt personally in co-hosting a writing retreat. Maybe I could tell you that we are definitely going to do it all again, and invite you to be a part of it. But I’m not sure I can do any of those things and I am sorry if that is what you were hoping for. Perhaps I will get to those in future writing, but not today. The truth is I am still very much in recovery mode. As I am writing t...

  It’s time for a shameless bit of publicity. Yes, I am one of the ‘authors’, but I don’t stand to earn cash from this announcement, so I think that technically I’m on the right side of the ACW red line. I’m sure you use an online dictionary and thesaurus for your writing. Maybe even one ‘powered by Oxford’, though you probably haven’t noticed. But has it ever struck you as odd that the one dictionary that is the ultimate authority on the English language is absent from the internet, hidden away behind a paywall where ordinary people of modest income can’t see it? Yes, I’m talking about the Oxford English Dictionary, with its wealth of information and powerful search capabilities, which up to now, if you didn’t pay the subscription, you needed to have a public library card to use. But in July this will change. The OED is moving to a new and more powerful website. Its full riches will remain subscription-only (or via library card), but a significant amount of its content will be in ...

  Where do you Write? by Rebecca Seaton Writing at home....     I love reading interviews with authors! I’m interested to see which things we’ve got in common and which we haven’t (apart from the million pound deal and film rights, obviously). Approaches and influences vary but am I the only one who’s a little envious of writers with specially built desks and amazing countryside views? However, what is it we really want and need as a place for our writing?       Home is the starting point for most of us, the safe hub we’ll come back to but there are pros and cons. On the plus side, it’s familiar. That isn’t always a good thing though, as that can make it easy to be distracted. It also depends on your circumstances. Family demands or noisy neighbours can quickly put a dampener on things. Why do people wait until we hit our stride in our WIP before waking the baby up or getting their angle grinder out? It’s almost uncanny.    ...

"Will you do bedtime story?" I love being asked this and, during half term week, on holiday with my family, I had the privilege of being asked it a few times. So my nieces and nephews and I would curl up with a book, and share the story. A particular pleasure for me was seeing the way they became absorbed in the narrative, often looking up at me with delight when things were funny, and with empathy when things were sad. (Ok, another pleasure was doing the voices!) I am not usually a fan of reading aloud; the children are an exception. Whenever possible, be it during a talk or event or book launch, if I have a passage that needs reading aloud, I will ask someone else to read it for me. Yesterday, however, I found myself reading aloud by choice. When completing a manuscript, I like to read the entire thing aloud. I find it helps, not least in spotting errors hitherto missed. So I sat in my study by myself and read aloud. I missed the children. I missed the connect...

What are you writing on? No, really. What are you writing on? ‘I’m not writing, Lucy, I’m reading! Otherwise, what would I be doing here right now?’ Ah, true, but I’ll wager there is a chance you are doing some writing. Maybe you’re even reading this when you’re supposed to be writing. Such things have been known to happen in the life of a writer. A little break, a little social media, A little folding of the hands to rest. Apologies to Proverbs, both 6:10 and 24:33. Perhaps you are working on a shopping list on the back of an envelope for your next trip out, a best-selling novel on a computer or an airmail letter by hand. You might be writing a poem on the back of a stone or engraving your autobiography on a grain of rice. Who knows? You might. I certainly don't. But consider this: I’m interested to know not just what you are writing about , but what you are writing on. Why does this matter? 1. It doesn’t. 2. Given 1 (above), let's have a little fun with ...

Firstly, apologies to all fans of The Bard for such terrible misquoting. With that over, let’s get down to business. This is my first post with More than Writers. So you might be wondering, who am I and what am I doing here? I shall try to answer. I'm Natasha. In 2022, I published my first two Biblical fiction novels. It had taken a year to get from completing my first draft to publication, and I could never have done it without ACW. So many people held my hand, encouraged me to publish, showed me what to do, beta read, endorsed and reviewed my books. If you were one of them, you have my heart’s genuine gratitude. Thank you. Due to the genre I write in, I had few choices regarding publishing. Self-publishing it was. Knowing that no-one was going to sell my books except me (and my mother), and never one to do things by halves, I knuckled down on marketing. I set up a website, Facebook page, Instagram profile and TikTok account. I signed up for conferences, giveaways, Amazon ads, pod...

It’s been nine months since I last wrote for the More than Writers blog, and it's a joy to be back temporarily, deputising for Rosalie in her absence. A lot has changed for me personally during that time and it’s also been a season of seeking God more intentionally and in a more time-committed way. Not surprisingly, it has had an effect on my writing, too, and my attitudes towards it. It’s hard not to spend time with God and it not show. (The negatives in that sentence make it cumbersome, but I cannot with all conscience write: it’s easy to spend time with God and be changed!) I have found myself looking at the whole writing process in the light of one simple question: what impact am I making? What do I mean by ‘impact’? If you look at movies and top-selling titles, they are often marketed for their ‘sensation value.’ The premise is a smack-you-between-the-eyes one. A disaster. A crisis. A tragedy. Sure, they have impact – often, quite literally. (Anyone remember the attempt of t...

Father’s Day can be tricky and emotive for some. Writing about it sensitively is challenging.  Forgive me for a slightly recycled post after a challenging week personally, but here are two attempts I’ve made in previous years to take the opportunity Father’s Day presents to celebrate the one perfect Father, whose love is limitless. First, a poem turned into a video by my talented friend, Lois. And secondly a piece I wrote for church one year: Perhaps… Perhaps, on Fathers’ Day, you feel excited, overwhelmed with gratitude for the man placed in your life to defend and protect you, hold you and love you, Pushing you to be all he knows you could be. Perhaps you are looking forward, with eager anticipation, to celebrating him, and hugging him, giving him your gift and thanking him for all he is. There are many good fathers, who model God’s steadfast love in this unsettling world, and for them we’re grateful. Perhaps on Fathers’ Day, you feel the loss more acutely, Of the man who used to...