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Writing Toolbox

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I’ve had my nose stuck in NaNoWriMo for this month so have been desperately trying to ignore all distractions… but here are three things that I tripped across during November…

A List – A Complete Glossary of Terms for Fantasy Writers. Whether it’s complete or not I don’t know but it sure has been useful reading and one list that I’m sure I’ll come back to!

A Word – thought it would be a bit of fun to think about words that I could add to my vocabulary toolbox. Though with caution, I hate having to look up words mid read so you need to give some clues to the reader. This month the word is MORDANT – biting or sarcastic in word or manner

A Blog Post – you know last month I shared some random generators? Well Jami Gold has gone one step further and dedicated whole post to them. Great for when things get tough and sticky.

Wolf Moon: Cover Reveal

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No, it’s not the cat, but it’s a good way to get your attention. 😉

This is the current choice of cover for the publication of my first fantasy novella, Wolf Moon. I do have others but a decision has to be made and as I’m knee deep in NaNoWriMo words at the moment working on my second fantasy series, I had to post something…

I changed my mind twice in the space of creating this post! But I believe this one represents the story most. Thoughts, comments are welcome and now I must bury myself in the words once more… Ciao!

 

On My Reading Table

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It’s been busy reading month in many ways… I’m trying to make up for this month, where it’s unlikely I’ll be getting engrossed in other people’s stories. I’ll be watching The Dark Materials instead 😉

The Faerie Games By Michelle Madow – with more than a nod to Hunger Games and Harry Potter, this had me hooked after a shaky start. I knew it felt familiar but didn’t quite get it then. Love the simple style and the nods to some things based in reality which helps to ground things for the reader. Selena, the wannabe fairy really takes up the challenge. She has written loads and I will definitely read more.

Wolf Moon (Violet of Ravenwood) by J.M Taylor – I chose to read this story because it has the same title, Wolf Moon, as my first fantasy novella! I hadn’t known that of course and as mine is a series I probably need to define it as such. But this was a great easy read and written in first person, which is the Point of View I’m hoping to use for my next project 🙂 Looking forward to the next book in the series, but have just downloaded another book from this author, so that’s a good sign!

The Familiars by Stacey Halls – Just loved this tale. Came across it from an episode of Pointless would you believe? It’s a tale of women and witchcraft and is beautifully written. I really connected with the main character, Fleetwood (what a great name!) and her midwife, Alice Gray. Set in the time when women gifted with the skills of nature and childbirth were seen as evil, by the patriarchal society, it provided intriguing insight. And written in the first person, so we see everything through Fleetwood.

Nevernight (The Nevernight Chronicle #1) by Jay Kristoff – This is one of the books that I put down before I finished. I usually try and persevere for at least a third of the book. The biggest problem were the footnotes which were so distracting. They weren’t additional clarification but part of the story so why not write them in the text? It was soooo annoying and this is a book with rave reviews and star ratings which can only back up my views about reviews. Very subjective. The story might have been a good one but I’ll never know and life is too short too waste.

Secrets of the Mechanical Heart by J M Taylor – yes, a second book by this author this month. It’s short and sweet, I’m sure the story could have been longer but it was well written and intriguing. I’m sure that there will be more with this character, Amelia and the legacy left to her by her father of using machines to help animals and humans… kind of steam punk, I think. Really enjoyed the lightness of it.

What have you been reading? Should I add it to my TBR list?

 

Writing Goals: November

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It’s that time of the month again…planning goals for the next four months ahead. November is an easy month, in terms of choosing my goals. But first, lets see how I got on last month *takes a deep breath*

 😉 Sketch out two more Wolf Moon sequels – for development as NaNo project #1 – I decided early on in the month only to concentrate on one NaNo project. As usual, I set myself up to fail before I’ve begun. But I have given some thought to the sequel of Wolf Moon, made a third edit following a Beta Read and planning it’s publication.

 😎 Revisit snowflake for Rainbow Chronicles – this will be my NaNo project and I’ve spent most of the month getting to know my characters, sketching out the world they occupy and having too many ideas!

😛 Schedule responses to #FantasyWiPOctober – the first time I’ve ever completed one of these Instagram challenges and I’ve met some wonderful people along the way, and increased my followers by 200!

So can you tell what my intended goals for this month are yet? There is just one.

✔ Participate in National Write A Novel in a Month Challenge – my umpteenth year and I don’t think I’ve ever been so prepared. So the idea is to write 50k – or more – within the month. I might also use the Flash NaNo Competition as a bit of inspiration but we’ll see.

Writing isn’t about the end product, not always anyway. If you’ve ever dream of writing but think you can’t do it… I say you can. Dare to dream big. All you need is a pen and paper or laptop, a sprinkling of inspiration and a bucketful of motivation and you’ll do it. I know, because I have. Follow your dreams.

And if you are taking part in NaNo and have registered on their site, let me know your username, or send me a buddy request – I’m ‘The Duchessa’. See you on the other side!

 

 

Writing Toolbox

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Here are some of the things I’ve come across this month which are helping me on my writerly road.  A lot of them are to do with preparation of NaNo – have I mentioned that it starts very soon?

A name generator – I’m building an alternative world so looking for inspiration in all kinds of ways. Rangen will generate details for characters, worlds, names, magic… all sorts of stuff and is also a great source for procrastination. Beware!

A website – and oh so much more. One Stop For Writers is run by the creators of Emotional Thesaurus, which is also a must for your bookshelf! I’ve signed up for a month at 9 dollars to help me deepen my characters and world through their very detailed work space which is very intuitive. They have all sorts of ways to flesh out the three dimensional side which is so important for readers to connect with. One of the best subscriptions I’ve made I reckon.

A map and town generator – I know, I’m into my generators this month! But donjon is great fun and gives you some ideas for place names and characters. More procrastination *sigh* it’s a good job I’m not really into these online fantasy games or you would never see me!

And another generator, each of them gives something different. This one is called Medieval Fantasy Generator. Love the look of the maps, you can change the colours and everything. As a very visual person, this kind of thing really motivates me about my world building.

Let me know any tools or tricks or resources that have helped you in your writing.