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Jo’s Journal

April Recap and News

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It’s been a difficult month… haven’t they all I hear you say? Well indeed, but this month I had to say goodbye to one of my fur babies. Simba was one of a kind. Abandoned on the doorstep of an empty house along with his sister, Nala, at ten days old I hand fed them despite being warned they probably wouldn’t survive. Well nine years later on… He was diagnosed with inoperable stomach cancer after losing weight and less than a week later, passed over the rainbow bridge as I cradled him in my arms. It’s never easy losing one of your furry family, and we have six more cats and three dogs so I know that this isn’t going to get any easier but Simba was special. I miss him sitting on my keyboard, or my notebook or my mouse mat… he was always nearby. But I’m thankful that he is not in any pain.

So things have been put to one side this month and I have absolutely no regrets about that.

 

I have managed to prepare for the launch of Seasons of the New Moons the introductory book to my series ‘The Luna Legends’. I will be publishing four seasons over the coming months and years, a total of 12 books. There. I’ve said it. In black and white. I shall be revealing the full cover shortly, in the meantime, a peak will have to do.

 

 

 

And I would be delighted if you joined my readers group. As a thank you for signing up, I’ve created a free reading journal for you to record the books you’ve read or want to read. And there are some other resources in there too.

Finally, I continue to practice my drawing and sketching skills on the Procreate app on my iPad. This is a rather grumpy looking rabbit, called Rodney.

 

Ciao,

JoAnna

March Recap

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This month was a little mixed after the euphoria of finishing my draft. I left the manuscript to steep for a while because I was taking a course, and wanted to give it my full attention

The first draft didn’t fair so well. It wasn’t that it was a bad story, it just wasn’t the right story. I had a big AHA moment about the whole series so it changes things in terms of structure. That isn’t a bad thing, it just means I’ve had to take a few steps back.

 

And of course, Spring has sprung and my granddaughter celebrated her 16th birthday on International Women’s day. Our mimosa (the symbol for the day) has almost had it’s day but has been beautiful, despite the snow! I cannot wait to see and hug my family again.

 

 

 

Books Read This Month

Here are the titles I’ve read this month, a more fiction than non-fiction. Any recommendations are welcome!

  • The Night Raven by Sarah Painter
  • Echoes of the Gidat by Eme Savage
  • Mistress of Masks by C Greenwood
  • Blood of Elves by Andrzej Sapkowski
  • Structuring Your Novel (finished up) K M Weiland
  • Beautiful Demons Box Set Books 1-3 by Sarra Cannon – just started.

Stories Published

I decided not to publish any short stories for the time being. It’s not attracting much attention and it takes quite a lot of time. But… I have had book one of the Luna Legends proofed and I’ve sourced a cover – well several to choose from – so I’m going to be launching it very shortly. I’ve also changed the title (it was Wolf Moon) as part of my series AHA moment. All will be revealed. So watch this space.

Goals Update

I continue to make great progress with my goals using the HB90 system. As this blog is published I actually have started Quarter 2 which is amazing and we’ve yet again entered full lockdown as Italy (and lots of Europe) are experiencing the third wave of the pandemic. And don’t mention the vaccination programme. Still, plenty to keep me going.

Goal 1 Writing and Editing

  • Edited Book 1 for publication
  • Plans made for Q2 which included participating in NaNoWrimo
  • Reviewed Season 1 of Luna Legends series

Goal 2 Publishing and Promotion

  • Completed Publish and Thrive Course – which has generated a load of actions and a strategy to go forward.
  • Prepped Book 1 for Publication and sourced a cover

Goal 3 Healthy Writing Habits

  • I started monitoring my mood again and there are more smileys than others
  • Completed the #vss365 challenge every day and published them on Twitter. In fact I’ve managed to complete this challenge for most days of this quarter and penned over 3400 words!

As well as my writing I’m trying to pinch a little part of the day playing around on Procreate, a drawing app on the iPad. I created this, with a lot of help from Art With Flo, for #EarthHour day which also fell on what would have been my Dad’s 87th birthday. I so miss him still.

This month was the hardest yet, a combination of things beyond my control sent me into a bit of spin to be honest. But I’m back at the desk and even more determined to work my way through the mire of being an Authorpreneur. I will do it.

Hope you’ve had some successes this month, would love to hear about them.

Ciao

 

February Recap

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It was my birthday this month and I don’t usually pay much attention, age has never bothered me. Not a lot I can do about it, but I am hurtling towards 60! My darling Simon, pulled out all the stops and cooked a wonderful three course meal. Having him in my life means I have Valentines every day of the year . . .

And we had snow this month, whoopee! But for poor Nell that meant ice balls all over and she wasn’t best pleased. She was booked in for a haircut a few days later.

Books Read This Month

I’m so happy to have my reading mojo back!  Here are the titles I’ve read this month, a good mix of fiction and non-fiction. Any recommendations are welcome!

  • Kingdom – Jo Nesbo
  • Successful Self-Publishing – Joanna Penn
  • Deathmaker – Lesley Buroker
  • Ninja Newsletters –
  • Revision and Self Editing -James Scott Bell
  • The Smudger – Angeline Travena

Stories Published

I’ve been publishing a weekly short story/flash over at My Writer Within for some time now. I’m not sure that I will continue on that level. Perhaps a couple a month. I may consider putting these in my newsletter… I don’t know.

  • The Knot of Isis
  • Angels of War
  • Summer Hat
  • 9 Weeks and Counting – A Good(Expat) Life story

Goals Update

I continued to make great progress with my goals using the HB90 system. It really has changed the way I work and think. All for the good!

Goal 1 Writing and Editing

  • First Draft of The Fire Walker book 2 in the series Luna Legends – 30,000 words transcribed onto Scrivener, printed. The editing process starts today!
  • 2000 words written or edited for micro fiction, shorts and blog
  • Edited short story (5,000 words) for initial ‘cookie’ to offer readers

Goal 2 Publishing and Promotion

  • Completed three modules of Publish and Thrive Course – which is fabulous!
  • Reviewing and Revising Newsletter for subscribers – if you’re not already, sign up here!

Goal 3 Healthy Writing Habits

  • I stopped monitoring my mood but I may start again as the black dog is never far away. Twelve months of lockdown in some form or other, rising numbers and rollout of the vaccine is slow. But I keep telling myself I have so much to be thankful for!
  • Completed the #vss365 challenge for full 28 days – I’m really enjoyed doing these, they help to warm up my writing muscle and as I’m a very visual writer, I’ve started using images.
  • Purchased a raiser for my laptop and blue tooth keyboard which has helped with my posture
  • I’ve also started listening to podcasts when I’m on the treadmill – it’s such a boring activity but I mix it with yoga, dog walking and getting out on our bikes. At least two activities per day.

 

Still happy with my progress although I did find this month a little more difficult. I think, finishing a draft can leave you a little empty, if you know what I mean. At least that’s how it felt for me, a mixture of elation and sadness. But the hard work now starts with the editing and re-writing. I’ve given my self some time in between to help things mull.

I would love to hear what you’ve been up to this month, reading, activities, eating… the whole shebang.

Ciao

JoAnna Lamb

January Recap

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I haven’t blogged regularly for some time, in fact I’ve not done much of anything for some time now, but things are changing this year. Every month I shall be sharing my wins and losses, hopefully more of the first and I promise to learn from the second.

Books Read This Month

Like many, I’ve struggled with my reading this past year. However, I’m realising that it provides great escapism, so I’m spending less time on reading news and more on books. I’ve signed up to read 50 books on the Goodreads Reading Challenge. Here are the titles I’ve read this month, a good mix of fiction and non-fiction. Any recommendations are welcome!

  • Black Narcissus – Rumer Godden (watched both TV versions over Christmas)
  • Quite – Claudia Winkleman
  • How To Write Dynamic Scenes – Randy Ingermanson
  • Throne of Glass – Sarah J Maas
  • River Magic – M.A.Phillips (my Indie Author Recommendation of the Month)
  • Peaky Blinders The Real Story – Carl Chinn ( I got half way and abandoned it)
  • Blood Rose Angel – Lisa Perrat (could have been written about this last year!!)

Stories Published

As well as regular Social Media posts I try to publish a short story or flash fiction once a week. I decided that I’d rather publish them than submit them to competitions which is time consuming and often unrewarded. Also, this month, I’ve been responding the #vss365 challenge on Twitter which are stories under 100 words, mine average around 40 words. You can find all these stories over at My Writer Within.

  • Mistaken Identity
  • The Decision – a story from The Good(Expat)Life series
  • A Room of My Own – first published in Woman’s Own some years back
  • A Slip of the Tongue
  • Forever Reunited

Goals Update

I started a Quarterly planning system after taking the HB90 course last September. I can honestly say it’s been the best investment I’ve made. I haven’t been so productive in a long time and it’s really given me a boost.

Goal 1 Writing and Editing

  • First Draft of The Fire Walker book 2 in the series Luna Legends – 30,000 words written long hand, in ink over 14 days…
  • 10, 000 words written or edited for flash, shorts and blog
  • Redesigned series aesthetic for inspiration which I may share at some time

Goal 2 Publishing and Promotion

  • Enrolled in Publish and Thrive course (delivered by Sarra Cannon from the HB90 method)
  • Cover art research for the series and book 2
  • Review of Social Media schedule

Goal 3 Healthy Writing Habits

  • Monitored my writing session moods – which are generally good! I just use a simple smiley system in my journal
  • Participated most days in the #vss365 challenge as part of my daily ‘warm up’
  • Daily Morning Pages – before I do anything else, animals willing that is!

I’m really pleased with my focus and sticking to my plans this month, despite it being gloomy in so many ways. One of the main points for my success was to get my writing done first thing, before I do anything else and making a concentrated effort to stay off social media until my words were down on paper.

Hope you’ve had some successes this month, would love to hear about them. And any reading suggestions you may have!

Ciao

 

New Anthology Published Today

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Some of you will know that over ten years ago, I began looking for expat writers like myself, looking for support and advice which they couldn’t get from a more traditional group. Writers Abroad soon emerged and over the decade grew into a thriving online community. Members have come and gone, and most I would like to think, taking something with them to strengthen their writing life.

Today, Writers Abroad launched it’s sixth anthology. All proceeds from the publication have been donated to charities relating to writing or reading in some form or another. This year, the proceeds from Far Flung: Celebrating a Decade of Writers Abroad will be donated to the World Literacy Fund.

The foreword to the anthology has been written by international best-selling author, Peter May who also took part in an interview in one of our magazines some time ago. He has captured the essence of the group with his words and as an expat himself is more than familiar with the nuances of living and writing in a different country.

The publication has stories, poems and articles written by members, both past and present and offers a rich picking from which you can dip into at your leisure.

For a short time the digital version of Far Flung  is available for 99p/99c and the paperback will be available from the 14th November. Enjoy the read!