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Showing posts from November, 2013

Chasing Kendra - finished revised first chapter

Finally I've revised the first chapter of my novel and put it up for peer review.  I've also roughly completed the second one.  I think I just need to sit back and relax.  I've got about 12 chapters in total and lots of gaps but I'm happy so far. Here is my word cloud for the second chapter. -----------------------------------------------------------  Check out Bigga Day's books on Smashwords.com https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/bigga Apple iBooks https://itunes.apple.com/us/artist/bigga-day/id595585425?mt=11 Barnes and Nobles http://www.barnesandnoble.com/c/bigga-day Kobo http://store.kobobooks.com/en-US/Search?query=Bigga%20Day&fcsearchfield=Author

Copyediting my novel - Chuck Wendig's first step suggestion and finding free only grammer checkers!

So I started to look at my grammer and then I quickly zoned out. However I thought I would keep on and try and find free online checkers. So I belong to Scribophile an online writer's workshop and for now they are promoting a site called. Grammerly.   Well I'm price sensitive when it comes to writing and need things to be free. Anyway tempted I went for a free trial but they want creditcard details so I decided no matter how useful I'm just going to slug it out. http://www.grammarly.com/ Then I found Paper Rater - this is free - which suits me! http://www.paperrater.com/free_paper_grader  and after that is 1Checker . So I guess I'll just plod along doing my edits -----------------------------------------------------------  Check out Bigga Day's books on Smashwords.com https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/bigga Apple iBooks https://itunes.apple.com/us/artist/bigga-day/id595585425?mt=11 Barnes and Nobles http://www.barnesandnoble.com/c/bigga-day

Problems with revising my novel and adopting the Chuck Wendig Plan of how to revise your novel.

So I'm still struggling with editing my novel. I took some time out to have a break doing other things. One of them was moaning about editing on this blog and other was looking at ways to tell the story. Now I realise the problem with my story is I have nothing to say. It's as simple as that.  I don't really have anything to say give I've completed a novel. To write something you must have something to say - well I don't really. So there lies the problem. You can only revise and edit something if you have an aim in mind. All I want is just to complete the novel which I have. So maybe now I just have to figure what the novel is about. So I discovered Chuck Wendig a novelist and games designer  ( Terrible Minds blog ) who swears like a trooper in his blog however has given freely valid and great advice on how to edit a novel. His post called How To Karate Your Novel And Edit That Motherfucker Hard: A No-Foolin’ Fix-That-Shit Editing Plan To Finish The Goddamn Jo

The Art of Styling Sentences: Practice One

So iI've being banging on about not being able to edit so I decided to take it back to basics.  Not wanting to waste paper I've decided to do it on my blog. So I'm looking at something called a compound sentence with a semi colon. Okay I don't recall this in grammer class but so far so good. They rattle on about run on sentences - something I've being accused of but couldn't careless about. And the famous comma splice which also is meaningless.  Oh this is getting boring - it goes on about fragment where I recall all the blue line in Microsoft word telling me about fragments. I'm getting bored now.  Is it a wonder I don't remember my grammer classes as school. Or maybe I've blocked out the trauma. Okay I'm nearly losing the will to go with this book. I want to toss it aside - it keeps bleeting about what's wrong with grammer.  I like I really care! I just want solution, people! This is going to take more time than I have on schedule. I

Editing still not happening in the novel and my guilty pleasures

So I'm still not editing because I get the story together however I've decided to take a break and then focus on sentences. So I've had a huge moan about what I writing but now I'm going to focus on writing exercises.  So I'm going to practise sentences.  Maybe by doing this sometime magical will happen. I also lost my phone in at college but someone found it and handed it in. Editing not happening I'm taking a break here. I'll just focus on the National Novel Writing Month. My Guilty Pleasures Well not I'll need to rate them in terms of shame and guilt and indifference. Waitrose Pea and Wiltshire Cured Ham Soup. Well not so much guilty but it's rather price at £1.99 but it's very tasty.  I'm rather price sensitive so I discovered it when a batch of it was reduced.  I tried to recreate it at home but then just decided it better to get from Waitrose. There is also Tesco's Finest Pea and Ham soup but that tastes a bit too

Romantic novels: What is a writer's blog for(?); Comments on Scribophile; Discovering Scrivener; National Novel Writing Month

Well I'm not so sure about I'm suppose to be writing about. Writing about writing is boring. Okay. So yesterday I went on a massive rant about writing a romantic novel and how most of the heros I've read are twats. Well dickhead to be precise.  I've got a potty writing manner which comes over due to my lack of vocabulary.  That is a challenge in writing believe me. Anyway about ranting and moaning about editing this novel and not wishing to part with cash for the most famous novel revision online course by respected author Holly Lisle - I decided there must be a way. So I remembered I downloaded Scrivener a while back. I was using it for job hunting then stopped using it for some reason. Anyway it's a trial version with 30 days - non conservative use! Now editing is really about making sense of my first draft.  And my story. My first read was okay - I like it. But the characters are shallow. Noah is an arrogant dickhead.  I peer reviewed my first chapter on Sc

Procastination on editing my romantic novel: What I picked up on reading my first draft and issues with my hero and heroine

I'm writing a romance novel. I've completed the first draft and now I'm doing the edit though I spend all my time surfing the internet and googling terms that will make it easy for me. I am procastinating and I'm not sure why.  I'm still thinking and mulling over doing Holly Lisle's course - How To Revise Your Novel but firstly I can't afford it and even if I could I think I'd see procastate over it. I am also mulling over doing another course - a bit cheaper with a tutor and lastly joining a critique website. These are just thoughts and I don't expect to act on them otherwise that will cease to be procastination. So I'm looking for an easy way to edit but nothing seems to come to mind. I think deep down I want a perfect draft and I feel my skills may not be up to stratch. Or I'm looking for a formular instead if trusting my own gut instinct. Characters and romance Romance. Well to be honest I thought it would be a great writing exerc

Stressed about editing my novel

I've decided to  try and salvage a novel I'm writing. It's in the editing process and I'm thinking of taking a course.   I was thinking of taking Holly Lisle's course but that's expensive and it's mostly selfstudy as in there appears to be no tutor guidence. Then again I'm getting a stressed about this process and stress is a trigger for comfort eating.  This means I got and eat lots of cakes and pasties and stuff myself silly. Then I get a feeling of self loathing and feel bad. So I've decided the fun seems to have gone from writing. I've always written for fun but now it seems there is some self-pressure I guess from getting so many 'how to' books on fiction. I don't seem to enjoy writing any more and sometimes that even stretches to reading. So I'm taking a deep breath and going to write for FUN. This means taking pleasure and not getting all 'this is not good enough' about my writing.  I already have career thank

womagwriter's blog: Authors for the Philippines

womagwriter's blog: Authors for the Philippines : Bidding is now OPEN for all sorts of writer-related goodies, in an online auction in aid of the Philippines. All money bid will go to the Re... -----------------------------------------------------------  Check out Bigga Day's books on Smashwords.com https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/bigga Apple iBooks https://itunes.apple.com/us/artist/bigga-day/id595585425?mt=11 Barnes and Nobles http://www.barnesandnoble.com/c/bigga-day Kobo http://store.kobobooks.com/en-US/Search?query=Bigga%20Day&fcsearchfield=Author

The Character Therapist: T3 - Motivation Reaction Units

The Character Therapist: T3 - Motivation Reaction Units : Two weeks ago, I posted on the Rational Brain v. the Emotional Brain . In that post, I mentioned that a person can do things that seem to ou... -----------------------------------------------------------  Check out Bigga Day's books on Smashwords.com https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/bigga Apple iBooks https://itunes.apple.com/us/artist/bigga-day/id595585425?mt=11 Barnes and Nobles http://www.barnesandnoble.com/c/bigga-day Kobo http://store.kobobooks.com/en-US/Search?query=Bigga%20Day&fcsearchfield=Author

womagwriter's blog: Guest Post - Sam Tonge - From Novels to Shorts and...

womagwriter's blog: Guest Post - Sam Tonge - From Novels to Shorts and... : Womagwriter Samantha Tonge 's first novel is to be published tomorrow - Doubting Abbey . Here she talks about her writing journey from n... -----------------------------------------------------------  Check out Bigga Day's books on Smashwords.com https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/bigga Apple iBooks https://itunes.apple.com/us/artist/bigga-day/id595585425?mt=11 Barnes and Nobles http://www.barnesandnoble.com/c/bigga-day Kobo http://store.kobobooks.com/en-US/Search?query=Bigga%20Day&fcsearchfield=Author

womagwriter's blog: Guest Post - Helen Hunt gets competitive

womagwriter's blog: Guest Post - Helen Hunt gets competitive : As I mentioned a little while back, Helen Hunt is soon to take over the competitions column in Writers' Forum. Here she blogs about how... -----------------------------------------------------------  Check out Bigga Day's books on Smashwords.com https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/bigga Apple iBooks https://itunes.apple.com/us/artist/bigga-day/id595585425?mt=11 Barnes and Nobles http://www.barnesandnoble.com/c/bigga-day Kobo http://store.kobobooks.com/en-US/Search?query=Bigga%20Day&fcsearchfield=Author

Job hunting: Three Reasons Not to Ask For Feedback When You Don’t Get The Job

I'm not a fan of asking about feedback to improve my interview performance however it seems to be the thing but this article is worth a read on it. http://opportunitiesproject.com/2011/04/26/three-reasons-not-to-ask-for-feedback-when-you-dont-get-the-job/ -----------------------------------------------------------  Check out Bigga Day's books on Smashwords.com https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/bigga Apple iBooks https://itunes.apple.com/us/artist/bigga-day/id595585425?mt=11 Barnes and Nobles http://www.barnesandnoble.com/c/bigga-day Kobo http://store.kobobooks.com/en-US/Search?query=Bigga%20Day&fcsearchfield=Author

Neil Webb - illustrator: Agony Aunt column - the last straw

Neil Webb - illustrator: Agony Aunt column - the last straw -----------------------------------------------------------  Check out Bigga Day's books on Smashwords.com https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/bigga Apple iBooks https://itunes.apple.com/us/artist/bigga-day/id595585425?mt=11 Barnes and Nobles http://www.barnesandnoble.com/c/bigga-day Kobo http://store.kobobooks.com/en-US/Search?query=Bigga%20Day&fcsearchfield=Author

Draw Adrian, Draw!: Close Your Eyes...

Draw Adrian, Draw!: Close Your Eyes... : Close Your Eyes. A collection of A3 giclee prints are now for sale at the Eastwing Shop . More illustrations at   www.adrianvalencia.com Adrian Valencia is my favourite illustrator so check out his site! -----------------------------------------------------------  Check out Bigga Day's books on Smashwords.com https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/bigga Apple iBooks https://itunes.apple.com/us/artist/bigga-day/id595585425?mt=11 Barnes and Nobles http://www.barnesandnoble.com/c/bigga-day Kobo http://store.kobobooks.com/en-US/Search?query=Bigga%20Day&fcsearchfield=Author

Byron's Club: Byronic Hero Influence

Byron's Club: Byronic Hero Influence : Lord Byron’s creation of the Byronic hero has been greatly used during the course of his life to ours. T... -----------------------------------------------------------  Check out Bigga Day's books on Smashwords.com https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/bigga Apple iBooks https://itunes.apple.com/us/artist/bigga-day/id595585425?mt=11 Barnes and Nobles http://www.barnesandnoble.com/c/bigga-day Kobo http://store.kobobooks.com/en-US/Search?query=Bigga%20Day&fcsearchfield=Author

Kathy Writes Books: Time For Review - Rocking My Revision

Kathy Writes Books: Time For Review - Rocking My Revision : According to Cathy Yardley's Rock Your Revisions , the first thing to do, after at least a two-week cooling off period, is to perform ... -----------------------------------------------------------  Check out Bigga Day's books on Smashwords.com https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/bigga Apple iBooks https://itunes.apple.com/us/artist/bigga-day/id595585425?mt=11 Barnes and Nobles http://www.barnesandnoble.com/c/bigga-day Kobo http://store.kobobooks.com/en-US/Search?query=Bigga%20Day&fcsearchfield=Author

womagwriter's blog: Short Stories and How to Write Them

womagwriter's blog: Short Stories and How to Write Them : I'm delighted to announce publication of my second How To book - Short Stories and How to Write Them . Now available from Amazon as a... -----------------------------------------------------------  Check out Bigga Day's books on Smashwords.com https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/bigga Apple iBooks https://itunes.apple.com/us/artist/bigga-day/id595585425?mt=11 Barnes and Nobles http://www.barnesandnoble.com/c/bigga-day Kobo http://store.kobobooks.com/en-US/Search?query=Bigga%20Day&fcsearchfield=Author

NaNoWriMo- National Novel Writing Month - my novel synopsis

Former model and reality show star Deanna Jones was used to attention but now has fallen on hard times.   She works as a dancer/stripper but one look from bad boy NBA player Zak Lucas sets her on fire. Zak is the original bad boy player used to beautiful women falling at his feet but there is something about Deanna that gets under his skin and haunts his mind. Zak reckons there is only one cure for that and that is bed her! -----------------------------------------------------------  Check out Bigga Day's books on Smashwords.com https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/bigga Apple iBooks https://itunes.apple.com/us/artist/bigga-day/id595585425?mt=11 Barnes and Nobles http://www.barnesandnoble.com/c/bigga-day Kobo http://store.kobobooks.com/en-US/Search?query=Bigga%20Day&fcsearchfield=Author