Belated Who's your hero bloghop

Once again coming to the party a little late, but I thought I would share with you the person, who inspired me to write. Michelle Wallace and J LCampbell's Blog hop.


Well I used to write my parents letters before I could spell and properly form letters and they would be delighted. This then developed into creating my own little books on anything I could think of as I enjoyed the stories they read to me and my mother was a librarian and instilled  love and reverence in me for books. Then I started writing my own stories...

Over the pat few years my heroine has been my lovely Internet friend, Sharon Luchessi, who was like a surrogate Mum, best friend, confidant and no 1 fan and she would patiently and enthusiastically direct my writing to help me better hone my skills. She was a wonderful person who sadly died this March and my inbox aches its emptiness. However, I still have her in my heart and know she is supporting me still in her happy haven in Heaven.
 
How about you?

Worth a Second Reading?

 Apologies for being away again so long. We've now had 4 bereavements in 13 months, which affected my ability to blog. I do hope I have not missed anything major. You have been fondly in my thoughts.

This weekend I started re-reading the Chaos Walking Trilogy by Patrick Ness and it's proving to be as brilliant the second time around so far. If it's written and constructed well, it certainly stands more than one reading and it got me thinking...

What novels have you re-read and enjoyed just as much 2nd time around?

IWSG tips book

Congratulations to the IWSG Website on its one year Anniversary. In honor of the site's success, the moderators are compiling an anthology and invite all bloggers to submit their best tips in their blog post today.

The purpose of the book is to assist other writers on the journey, so we are looking for tips and instructions in the areas of writing, publishing, and marketing. It can be inspirational in nature as long as you provide a solid benefit. We’ve already received a lot of great entries–mostly in the area of writing–so looking for some good tips on publishing and marketing. Be sure to state which category, add a one line by-line, and permission for us to use it in the book.

Once you have posted on October 1, go to this page at the IWSG site and enter your link. Deadline for submissions is October 2.





My advice would be to switch off your internal editor while you are writing a first draft. There has been many a time I have thought: This is rubbish, no-one will want to read this and then stopped writing. 

Why is this a bad thing I hear you ask?
Because
1. it stifles creativity
2. it stunts your daily writing routine
3. if authors like Stephanie Meyer when writing the Twilight Series for example, had thought this those books would never have become the phenomenal success they became.
I for one am a great fan of them, despite thinking that if e.g. smelling blood was a problem for Jasper et al, then no way would vampires (albeit vegetarian ones) be able to exist in a school where accidents involving bleeding happen on a regular basis (e.g. the paper cut incident in book 2 which causes so much grief.)
4. to be good at something you must have experience and know-how which can only be gained by writing and reading lots.

So what are you waiting for? 

See post below about  reviews for the latest e-book of a blogger who writes and writes and publishes his stuff regularly...

Review Time

I was asked to read and review Milo James Fowler's latest e-read.

You can find it here:

Amazon  & Goodreads

In a city run by a powerful mobster, nobody wants to play the hero. Private investigator Charlie Madison just wants to pay the rent.

When a little girl goes missing and no ransom demand is made, Madison takes the case. Time isn't on his side. After 48 hours, it's unlikely an abducted child will be found in one piece. But Madison's a champion of lost causes, and he'll be damned before he gives up on her--even if it means putting his life on the line.

As the mystery unfolds, Madison learns a bizarre secret that seems too impossible to believe. But it could explain why the girl was kidnapped--and why she might still be alive.

I found it though-provoking and it left me wanting to know more, especially about the character of Ivan.

Read it and see what you think...

Freedom to Fail

 http://www.freedigitalphotos.net/ Since my dad's passing, life is gradually returning to an easier pace of acceptance and peace, so hopefully my writing muse will also return...

'Great creativity comes from freedom to fail' Peter Gabriel






I hope you give yourselves freedom to fail...

The Long Goodbye

Well, the long journey through dementia (diagnosed in 2005) has ended for my beloved father, who is now at peace. 
He is no longer suffering, since he died on the morning of Tuesday 5th Aug 2014.

My husband and I were with him as he passed from this world into Paradise.
We have been comforted by reading the book Appointments with Heaven, by Reggie Anderson, which is very thought-provoking.

We are very sad for our loss yet happy that he has now found peace and joy in Heaven. 

My thanks to all my lovely followers who continue to offer their support and kind words 

during what has been a very difficult few years.

My father was the author of his own book:

The Double think Gospel of the 20th Century Church

August Goals

 www.freedigitalphotos.net 

Has anyone made any goals for August in terms of their writing? 

My goals are to continue not to spread myself as thinly as I have been, while I concentrate on getting through the next few months with family stuff and then there will be time to return to writing and blogging properly in due course.

Until then, I read, knit, crochet and visit my ailing parents.

Voice and Genre

I picked up this novel Murder Most Unladylike by Robin Stevens, when browsing the local bookstore and read the first page to see if it was something that was worth purchasing. I was hooked and decided to buy a copy.

I'm only just getting into it and so far I am enjoying this teen novel with its age and genre appropriate voice; that of a young girl confiding her exploits to the reader, as though she were reporting it in her diary or a letter.

Excellent! 



I just read that she completed the first draft as a Nanowrimo in 2011!! Impressive.

Sharing Through Authorship

They say 'Write what you know', which makes me think about the book I have recently been listening to, the audio version of 
At Knit's End by Stephanie Pearl -McPhee. 

As a fellow knitter and having become quite addicted, I can relate to so many things she says about being an avid knitter. 

However, there are some things I can only marvel at and others that make me feel glad that I now know that I'm not the only one who thinks or does whatever she has described. 

So if you ever doubt that what you are writing might not be worth the effort, I would suggest that you think of your potential readership and all the the shared gems and joys your writing may bring.

Sabbatical

I am away from my blog for a while 

searching for my muse. 

In the meantime, if you happen to find it, 
please give it some encouragement, 
and then some 

Pulitzer ,

Costa, 

Guardian, 

Gold Dagger 

or any other prize-winning tips

and then return it to me.

Thank you

HAPPY EASTER 2014 ~ haiku

A cross or an egg
His sacrifice and re-birth

For our redemption

www.fredigitalimages.net

Bank Holiday fun

Chocolate egg-shaped cheer

Its true meaning foiled

Spring is in the air with glorious bird song, sunshine and crisp dry days.

Keep writing...

Unbelieveable! ~ A Song of Lunch

Many of you may remember my post entitled Did you see this?

about a BBC UK production of the amazingly brilliant poem / play entitled

 'A Song of Lunch' 

starring Alan Rickman and Emma Thompson. 

When I looked it up as a DVD purchase I discovered that it is only available as a US import!
I emailed the BBC shop and they effectively replied: 

Can't help you!...  

My response: Unbelievable!

Have you read A Song of Lunch by Christopher Reid?

Mindfulness

There's a  great post on ALPHA & BETA READERs 
at Writes of Passage
Check out Margo Kelly's latest post 
for some great writing process tips

As many of you will know, my life is currently very stressful and emotional, with migraines in the mix. So, in place of traditional Happy-Pill therapy, my GP prescribed

Mindfulness: A practical guide to finding peace in a frantic world (by Williams and Penman) 
The book comes with an audio CD and the voice that guides you through the exercises isn't annoying or intrusive. He (Prof Williams, I believe) sounds a little like Oliver Postgate who narrated, wrote and produced Smallfilms productions with Peter Firmin.

AND apart from the health benefits, it made me think how the activities could be 

applied to us as writers, because they encourage us to 

really take notice 
of

sounds, smells, feelings, tastes, sights 

of a single object or event 

the very things that feed

 descriptive showing  
styles of writing.

Have you tried Mindfulness?

A Poem of Loss

 Hi to all my lovely, supportive followers.  

Just as my mother returns to her nursing home after a 3 week stay in hospital and my father is having a good week at his nursing home, we have more distressing news...

This is my poem, dedicated to my beautiful friend, Sharon Lucchesi 

A rock, a gem! With much love

Your Loss Echoes Through A Silent Inbox by Madeleine Sara
 

My heart senses

Though my mind shuts down.

Good memories fade, as sleepless nights

with heavy thoughts invade.

A virtual silence. Inoperable;

too weak, too ill, to send.

My best friend and virtual mother, both

certainly must end.

Confirmation by envoy, then

the emotional tsunami.

Sadly my dear friend, Sharon, died in the early hours of Tuesday 25th March 2014, California time. She will be dearly missed.

The Dark Ages

Hi all, I'm afraid we've been experiencing more hospital dramas with my parents. Quite a draining process, which has put me in mind of Christy Brown and Joey Deacon.

Does anyone remember these men? 

Both had Cerebral Palsy and were regarded as imbeciles, but neither were intellectually impaired. However, their speech could not be understood by most people.


My father has advanced dementia and is aware that strangers do not understand him, so in hospital he waits for me to arrive, then he opens his eyes and begins to communicate his needs. 

Sadly without my input, my father is treated like the Christy Browns and Joey Deacons of the past.  He may have lost many of his faculties, but he is still an intelligent man.

However, my father won't ever be able to write his own story...

Heavens!

Is it really December since I last posted. Been having more family hospital dramas and trying to finish a birthday present. However, I have also toyed with a possible Flash Fiction Piece for the Lascaux competition.

The prompt is a picture. I wrote a 250 word first draft and have put it to one side for now. 


Will you be entering? 

Or do you prefer to keep such projects on the QT?