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Great Opening Lines

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Opening lines are important. Some stick in the mind longer than others and some will mean that short moment in which a reader decides to read on (that all important ‘hook’) … or not. Here are a few of mine.

“Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again.” Daphne du Maurier: Rebecca

“It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must want for a wife.” Jane Austen:  Pride and Prejudice

“Happy families are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.” Leo Tolstoy: Anna Karenina

“It was a queer, sultry summer, the summer they electrocuted the Rosenbergs, and I didn’t know what I was doing in New York.” Sylvia Plath: The Bell Jar

“It was the day my grandmother exploded.” Iain Banks:  The Crow Road

“124 was spiteful.” Toni Morrison:  Beloved

“Mr. and Mrs. Dursley, of number four, Privet Drive, were proud to say that they were very normal, thank you very much.” J.K.Rowling: Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone

What are yours and why?

Writing Passions: Dreamcatchers

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In my series, Writing Passions I’m going to be sharing some of my… well you could call them obsessions I suppose. They are the consistencies I need in my writing life. The first is a fairly recent discovery though I think I’ve always been passionate about what they represent. I’m constantly trying to access that dusty, area in my brain which stores all those dreams I know would make great stories… if only I could remember them! The first of these passions are Dreamcatchers – and cats of course 😎

Dreamcatchers are an ancient tradition that originated with Native Americans. One story is that the idea came from the Ojibwa Chippewa tribe, and that the Ojibwe word for dreamcatcher, asabikeshiinh, actually means “spider,” referring to the web woven to loosely cover the hoop. The legend goes that the Ojibwe tribe considered spiders to be symbols of protection and that a Spider Woman was the spiritual protecter of the tribe, and particularly young children. But as the tribe grew and developed became more dispersed she found it difficult to protect them all, so she developed the dreamcatcher.

The dreamcatcher, hung above the bed, is designed to catch and filter out bad dreams and nightmares as one sleeps. The good dreams get passed down through the feathers and down onto the sleeper it protects while the bad dreams get caught up in the circular web to be emptied or destroyed. I have one above the writing space in my campervan, Bobbus. Along with Pinocchio, a Irish Shamrock and a picture of my dearly missed Dad, Bob.

 

 

 

For me, the dreamcatcher symbolises my process of writing, where it captures ideas – both good and bad – and I attempt to pick out the bits that I think might work in a story, a setting or even just a character. I find the concept an extremely powerful one on a personal level as it fulfils my free spirit and that’s why I chose it to represent me, as an author. I hope I do the concept proud.

 

On The Book Shelf: Writing Craft Books

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This month I’ve decided to share the writing craft books that have changed the way I write and think about the whole process. So it’s a multiple author shout out.

I have read a ton of books related to the process of writing, from generating ideas, to character development, plot outlines and a premise – to editing, rewriting, polishing and publishing. Honestly, I could have filled a small room with them.

Though I can’t say that any particular book, advice or sage words changed my life considerably, I have taken bits and pieces from them and developed my own style. It’s an individual thing, this writing lark, there isn’t just one size fits all. So these are my top four favourite of all time which I would definitely save from fire or flood if need be.

The Morning Pages, by Julia Cameron has to come top of my list. I recommended this book in my tool box last month and wrote a post here about my reasons for using Morning Pages. I refer to this system many times as it’s my kind of daily mantra. Before I do anything else, I pick up a pen and journal and just let spill forth. It could be about writing, or life or whatever is bugging me at that moment. It sets up my day.

 

 

How to Write a Novel using the Snowflake Method by Randy Ingermanson. I’ve read everything there is out there on plot, and this one just clicks with me. Randy uses a very familiar fairy tale, well a mix of them, to demonstrate the steps required to build a story. And, for me, it works every time. I wrote post earlier in the year about using this method…

 

 

 

 

From 2k to 10k Words by Rachel Aaron. Again, this is not a book which shares any hidden secrets on the world of writing. There isn’t a hidden formula, it’s down to the writer to make it happen and the advice here does what it says on the can. What more can I say? I called Rachel out in an earlier post and I think she deserves another shout …

 

 

Writing a Novel in Scrivener by David Hewson. Scrivener is my favourite piece of software. I probably still don’t know more that a quarter of its capabilities but this book is a great start. It provides a place for everything, characters, places, scenes and allows you to move things around easily. I kind of use it like my story bible, along with my paper one of course! Just in case. 😉 and I’ve made a note to write more about my top reasons for using Scrivener so watch this space…

 

 

What books have your read which have had an impact on your writing? Always ready to add others to my shelf so please let me know!

This Months Goals

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First, how did I do with last month’s goals? Not a great deal of progress unfortunately. We’re having our bathroom renovated and have been showering alfresco which is liberating to say the least. The disruption has been distracting, five days a week for the last six weeks but they have done a great job. So I just had to let it all flow…

😎 Write to a prompt for 15 minutes five days a week – well 20 sessions out of 23 isn’t that shabby…

🙄 Look at one writing journal to concentrate my thoughts and hopefully, the others will follow – total fail, is my heart in this I ask myself

😉 Participate in World Building challenge for Rainbow world setting – I did on a superficial level, but lots of the prompt work lead to developing the background so happy…

🤔 Upload my short fantasy story (20k words) The Earth Dragon of Sassi to Kindle – I’m hoping to by the time this blog is published

😥 If possible, edit last four chapters of Wolf Moon – nope, just not in the zone with this…

So this month, brings more distraction. Our once a year neighbours arrive from Rome for the August holiday month; the heat becomes intensive (and has been for the past few weeks) and fingers crossed my granddaughter will be visiting so enough with the excuses…I’m going to concentrate on three things.

🎯 My first priority is Wolf Moon. I need to get those pesky four chapters sorted…. around 8-10k words

🎯 Continue with the 15 minute prompts, which I might utilise to get #1 achieved

🎯 Social Media posts planning for October, I intend to try and keep up to 3 months in advance. It is having a positive effect on my Instagram account, nearly up to 300 followers from around 3 and I’m meeting some fab fellow writers!

What are your plans for this month?

Writing Tool Box

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Every month I share some of the resources I’ve come across and found useful… for one reason or another.

A Book: I mentioned the Morning Pages in last week’s blog, which features in The Artists Way by Julia Cameron. Definitely a must have for my book shelf. And it’s geared to all creative processes, not just writing.

A Website: If you write blogs and social media posts then having access to a professional library of images is essential. At Pixabay, you can find images to suit every post and most of them are free to download and use, but make sure you check first.

A Writing Community: This is a bit of a personal plug… if you are (or have been) an expat writer and want some support why not check out Writers Abroad? I set up this community over 10 years ago and we keep the numbers fairly small so that it’s a more intimate setting. We’re open for membership at the moment.

An App: If you are into travel and writing, Polarsteps might be just what you are looking for. I used if for our last trip to Scotland in May and produce an album as a keepsake. It’s very reasonably priced (the app is free but you pay for albums) and very professional. I’m so impressed I’m going to plot our Irish trip last year!

I’d love to hear if you have any recommendations!

 

 

Morning Pages: 5 Reasons I Write Them

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I’ve been doing ‘Morning Pages‘ ever since I first read The Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron back in 2015. This exercise entails three pages of long hand, free consciousness writing.

I don’t follow every bit of writing advice that’s put out there, nor do I generally give it. What I do is share what works for me. And this does. For the past four years. I’ve had the odd gap and paid for it with a severe case of the wobbles about me, about my writing, and castrophising (a term I’ve nicked from the indomitable Dawn French).

There is nothing to learn, but there is a habit to create. For me, first thing in the morning, in bed when my dreamy sleepy self is still not quite conscious. I just write whatever is on my mind. It’s not meant to be read, revisited, or used for any other purpose than de-cluttering.  Although sometimes I do write down something I need to remember because it’s crowding my head space.

So these are the five benefits I have garnered from doing this very exercise…

  1. Creating Head Space – writing down what first comes to mind helps to clear the cobwebs away. It’s like a regular bit of house keeping for the brain. The thoughts that trouble me, the dreams that scare me and the things that are troubling me just seep away onto the paper. The actual issues don’t go away but I’ve parked them.
  2. Problem Solving – it could be about a life issue, or more than likely sorting out something in a writing project that’s been troubling me. I can write it out, as it were, and as I do I come up with solutions. It’s a great feeling when that happens.
  3. Easily Achievable – 10 minutes it takes me. Simon knows that it’s the first thing I want to do, the animals, well they don’t quite understand but I refuse to let distractions get in the way. First thing before the day begins to control my activities and it’s done.
  4. Improves my Confidence and Self Esteem– not just in my writing life but in all sorts of area’s. I often ask myself ‘what is the worst case scenario’ if something is troubling me and often it’s insignificant and I can forget about it… until it raises it’s head again! When I slack off this exercise, like whilst we were away, my belief in myself dwindles fast, like water going down a drain.
  5. Increases Productivity – I always feel ready to get on with whatever I need to do, it allows me to allocate priorities, set goals for the day and get things done. I’m not saying I never have a day where there is stuff I didn’t get done, but I’ve usually done the important stuff, more often than not that means something to do with writing.

It’s the best bit of daily work out I do… pity it doesn’t help the waist line! 🙂

Pages clarify our yearnings. They keep an eye on our goals. They may provoke us, coax us, comfort us, even cajole us, as well as prioritize and synchronize the day at hand. If we are drifting, the pages will point that out. They will point the way True North. Each morning, as we face the page, we meet ourselves. The pages give us a place to vent and a place to dream. They are intended for no eyes but our own.

Julia Cameron