Writing groups really help!

Exciting News! 
I am part of a local writing group in Tasmania. We are a diverse bunch of people of all different ages and backgrounds. Many have not been previously published, but now they can say they have! Our 2021 anthology, Ideas Are Like Rabbits is now available online through bookdepository.

click here to see it and order! 

Ideas Are Like Rabbits from Amazon

Ideas are like rabbits from Barnes and Noble

So, you may ask, why the strange title? It's a quote from Australian writer John Steinbeck, who described the process of writing as collecting rabbits which pop up, sometime at random moments: "Ideas are like rabbits. You get a couple and learn how to handle them, and pretty soon you have a dozen."

What's in the anthology?
Lots of short stories and poems from many different writers of all ages! Including some of mine. As an author of children's and young adult books, I have some stories in this collection that have never been published before! Here is a short rundown:

Short stories/picture book texts - 
1. Mr Twigg - about a street where lots of interesting characters live. It's a true story of a real street in England in the 1940s.
2. As a Bird Sees It - a very short story about how it feels to jump out of a plane with a parachute!
3. Crystal - a story about a very unusual girl with Autism.
4. The Secret Box - a little sister falls inside four of the most dangerous fairytales in the world. Her elder sister has to find a way to follow her inside each one and rescue her against giants, witches, wolves and naughty gnomes.

Writing Groups are Fun!
You know what's so great about writing groups? We chat about writing and share information on how to write, how to get published, how to design book covers yourself or through a book designer, how to format your work correctly, how to send to a publisher. We also talk about our own work, helping each other when we get stuck or aren't sure what to do next.

Neverending Stories 
We also write stories together! They are called 'Neverending' stories, in which some of us write a chapter then send it on to the next person, round and round. Eventually we have to decide how to end it. But who knows how long that will take?

order a copy here: Ideas are like Rabbits Amazon

Ideas are like rabbits  Barnes and Noble

Spring into writing! How to keep motivated

 

I have almost finished the first draft of my current young adult novel, Runaway, which is the second in the FLIGHT series and my 14th book. The main character is Sye - a beautiful but troubled dragonkind girl with finely scaled golden skin and wings. She is trying to figure out who she is meant to be, what she is supposed to do with her life since the end of the war. She has a dark past and struggles to be close to people. Then a fearsome creature of legend asks for her help, (well, kind of tricks her into helping him) and they embark on a dangerous quest to the icy north, to Shagrath, the White Kingdom.

I planned this novel for six months, covering the wall of my studio with scene ideas on index cards, a whiteboard with plot stages, numerous A4 sized notebooks on culture, languages, characters and events. I thought I had enough to get me over the line, keep me on track.

But alas! The closer I got to the end the more anxious I became. Because I just couldn't figure out how it ended. That sounds absurd, doesn't it? After all, I'd spent all that time planning the book...

This is nothing new to me. I always reach a moment in the writing of a book where I seriously begin to wonder why I started it! Doubts creep in. But, you know, there are ways around that, so that I can finish the book and be proud of it. Here's my top tips:

1. Sometimes you just need space from your work. Put it aside for a few weeks. Don't think about it, if you can! Sure, if you get a brainwave write it down, but don't agonise over it. Give your brain a chance to think outside the box you have created.

2. Ask for help. I have test readers, marvellous people who read my work and make suggestions, provide feedback and critique. I love it. They see things I can't see. Often, they come up with an idea that just fits perfectly and away I go again!

3. Think of several different endings, no matter how wild. Something will spring from the chaos!

4. Read books of a completely different genre.

5. Watch a TV show that takes you away from your book. Something entirely different.

6. Go for walks and use your phone to dictate thoughts and frustrations. Just by identifying what is not working can sometimes help you realise what needs to change. Walk along the beach, or with the dog at the park etc. Walking helps you think.

So, there are a few of my suggestions!  Don't give up! I will go back to Runaway in a couple of weeks. In the meantime, I have a new book coming out soon with my publisher, Shooting Star Press, https://www.shootingstar.pub/ called Elkwood. 

What's it about? 

Imagine you find out you are a clone of yourself, that you actually died when you were eight years old! And your clone body is starting to change... You can do things no one else can, but there's a price to pay for using this new power...

Brilliant Story Questions for Novel Writing

 As writers we are prone to follow behind the muse, lapping up every drop of inspiration she deigns to let fall from her slender fingers. And then she disappears. Argh! What to do? It appears she's led us up a very interesting path, full of twists and half-obscured objects we cannot resist, but where are we actually going? Thanks to writer Nicole Murphy, I have found Michael Hauge, script writer for Hollywood and awesome, awesome, awesome teacher! (that was a little pathetically worded, I know). There is so much fabulous free advice on his website. Check it out here: story questions for novels. or read below. Michael's website is packed with brilliant ideas, some of which are so simple and obvious, yet we need reminding sometimes and Michael has the experience and wisdom to put it onto digestible chunks.

Who is the hero or protagonist?

Why will we immediately empathize with the hero? In other words, why will we identify with her when she is introduced?

Where is the hero at the beginning of the story, before anything new occurs to get the plot going? What is the everyday life she’s been living, and how does the story show that?

What is the hero’s longing (deep desire he’s just paying lip service to) or emotional need (which the hero won’t admit or is unaware of -- usually this is to connect with others in some way).

What opportunity is presented to the hero at the first key turning point?

What new situation is he placed in as a result of that opportunity? Is it by choice, or is the hero forced into it? What will the hero have to figure out, or adjust to, in this new situation?

What specific, visible goal or finish line does the hero want to reach by the end of the novel – in other words, what’s the outer motivation?

What’s the outer conflict -- what makes that goal impossible to achieve?

What is the hero's greatest emotional fear?

What wound – what painful event or situation in his or her past (usually in adolescence) – led to that fear?

If the novel contains a love story, why is the romance character the hero's destiny? Why did they choose each other, out of all the other people they've been involved with?

What is the hero’s identity – what protective persona keeps the hero from facing and overcoming her emotional fear?

What is the hero’s essence or truth? Who would she be if her identity were stripped away? In other words, who does she have the potential to become, if she’s courageous enough?

What is the hero’s arc or character growth? How does she gradually make the transition from her identity to her essence? What gives her the courage to do that?

What is the story’s universal theme – how does the arc for the hero provide the reader with a prescription for living a more fulfilled life?

What deeper issues – political or social -- does the novel explore?

What are the successful antecedents for the film -- recent, successful novels similar in market demographic, genre, style, tone and/or story, that you can point to and say, "Because those made money, this one will make money."

What is the passion for this project – what do you love about it?

What are the biggest weaknesses in the story right now?

What makes this a novel – why will thousands of people want to spend their time and money to read it?

www.StoryMastery.com © 2010 Michael Hauge

Enjoy!

cheers, Dawn

chivalry for children - courtesy is not dead!

Came across this wonderful story of modern chivalry, taught in schools!
http://blog.templarhistory.com/2010/06/chivalry-for-children-program/

"Others have argued that different virtues are more important, but we teach the kids that courage is the basis of all the other great virtues: If you haven’t the courage to tell the truth when a lie would be easier, you will be a liar. If you haven’t the courage to stand by your friends when others tell you they are not worthy, you will be a traitor. If you haven’t got the courage to be polite when telling someone off would be more fun, you will be rude. If you are afraid to give to those who have less when you have little, you will be a miser. If you haven’t got the courage to try again after you have failed, you will be a quitter."

cheers, Dawn