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My Writing Process.

My Writing Process.

I’ve never met a novelist face to face as my two careers - cooking and antiques - didn’t bring me into contact with artists, unless you believe cooking is an art, which I don’t. So when I started to write, and as I have problems reading, I had no experience of producing a novel. I don’t know how other writers and authors write; all I can tell you is how I do it.

I’ve come across different views on the Internet on writing a novel and there seem to be two main camps: plotters and pantsters. I fall into the second category. I write “by the seat of my pants”. I never had any intention to write, then one night I had a dream and had to write, from that night on I feel I have no option: I must write.

When I write I see the action in my mind’s eye. It’s a bit like watching a video. I then become the character I’m writing about - I live their life for a brief moment in time, I see how they see, I think how they think, then when I change to another character I do the same. Unexpected things happen to my characters. Now, I know that sounds a bit daft but as I am walking along the road as one of my characters, a thought pops into their – my - head. I wonder if all writers do this?

I believe I write in this way because I do not read. I’ve not read anything very much. Even when I was young I bought comic books but only looked at the cartoons. I watched television and on TV the story unfolds as you watch. Sometimes you think you know what is going to happen but you are often caught out.

I wrote my first novel in just over seven weeks, I then found an editor Steph, 

www.edit-my-book.com.

I first asked her to critique my novel not knowing if it was OK or a piece of garbage just fit for the waste bin. After a short while Steph got back to me with mainly kind words. She suggested I cut a big chunk out of the novel - to cut the 93,000 words down by 20,000 words. This was a bit of a shock. But of course she was right: it was too big a sub-plot and it took away from the main story.

After I rewrote the story, Steph copy-edited it, then proofread it and it ended up a better story which I am quite proud of.

I would be interested to know how other writers perceive their writing.

7 Inspiring Lessons to Get Your Book Written and Published

I have only been writing for just over a year now and to discover a new and unforeseen passion at my age has been a revelation. My writing career started with a dream and has progressed rapidly to self-publishing my first novel entitled “A Questionable Hero”. I have also finished my second novel “Consumed By Fire”; this is being edited by a professional copy-editor as I write, and I have also started my third novel “A Path Not Taken”. These are some lessons I have learned along the way.

1. My Biggest Mistake

When I started writing I was full of enthusiasm and thought my friends and family would be as interested as I was. I would write a chapter and email it to a few friends and wait for their input. Then I would re-write parts of the chapter and send it out again. As you can imagine my friends and family soon became fed up and bored, and rightly so. The lesson I learnt is no matter how hard it might be, keep your writing to yourself until you have finished the first draft. Then get people to read it and ask for feedback.

2. New Technology

With the advent of technology at my fingertips, I have found being dyslexic has not been a great hindrance to my writing. With the help of word processors, spell-checkers and then with a good editor and proofreader, I have created a reasonably professional finished novel that I am proud of.

3. Never Give Up

With my background and poor schooling, I have learnt not to give up, no matter how difficult the road is. If you have a dream, pursue it. Try and see a positive aspect in every setback. Also, sometimes, what appears to be a positive step can turn out not to be. So, keep an open mind and believe in yourself.

4. Old Age Is Not A Barrier

I do not know if I am going to be a successful author, but I do know getting older will not stop me from trying, I think in some ways it might be a little easier, as I have more experiences to draw on. I have used bits and pieces from my past in my stories.

5. Read, Read, Read

If you take notice of other author’s advice and I try to, most say reading is a very important part of writing. I am sure they are right, but in my case and others with reading difficulties, this is not possible. I believe as long as you have a good imagination and take a chance you can win through.

6. Self-Publishing

Self-publishing is not hard to learn. There is a lot of help in cyberspace on the Internet. There are hundreds of blogs, writing groups and useful sites to help you get started, and lots of advice on how to publish. Company’s like Amazon and Smashwords make it fairly straight forward to self-publish. It just takes perseverance and the will to push on.

7. Promoting My Novel

For me, book promoting is far harder than writing. I have tried most of the popular social media sites such as Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn, and have been quite successful in attracting followers and likes, but I am not sure if any of this effort has turned into people wanting to read my novel.

Getting noticed can be hard if your book is not in the top echelons of bestsellers lists. There is the possibility it might go unnoticed. In order to address this, I suggest you do as much as you can, using methods such as guest posting at other blogs, and doing virtual book tours. Another way to get more exposure is to sell more books.

Smashwords Interview with Stephen Gane

Interview with Stephen Gane

How did you first get the idea for you novel?

I had a very bad infection and my doctor prescribed some very strong antibiotics. I am not sure if it was the medication but I had a vivid dream about the beginning of the story. I just had to write. Seven weeks and three days later “A Questionable Hero” was 95000 words long and in it’s first draft.

How has dyslexia affected your life?

When I was a child a long time ago, dyslexia was not well know, so my school days were hell. It was the worst time of my life (so far). Reading and spelling have always been a nightmare for me. I have only read five novels in my entire life as I find it hard going. I read stuff that isn't there and I have to keep going over the same words to make sense of them. I have always had problems knowing my right from my left which over the years has caused a few problems when directing people. Now with word processors that have spell checkers and that dyslexia being recognised it is easier, also the popularity of audiobooks means I can now listen to stories.

What are you working on next?

I have just finished the first draft of my second novel "Consumed By Fire" This novel is No.2 in The Liston Pearce Series. The story is now being critiqued, I will rewrite and correct it. Then it will be edited and proofread. It should be published in the first half of 2015.

Do you find it difficult to write?

No, I find writing quite easy, I do not plan my stories at all. I just seem to become the character I am writing about and react to the situation he or she is in, sometimes I surprise myself when one of my characters does something unexpected.

What is the biggest lesson you have learned writing?

When I started to write my first novel “A Questionable Hero” I made lots of mistakes, the biggest was letting friends and family read each chapter as soon as I finished it. I would write a few thousand words then desperate for someone to read it and give me their opinion I passed it out. As you can imagine my friends soon became a little tired of this especially when I started to edit each chapter as I went along (another mistake). I would email people a chapter or two, then re-write parts and and send it off again. Friends were kind and tried to help but it soon became obvious after reading ten or twelve chapters over and over this was not going to work.
As I am new to writing I thought everyone would be as interested in my story as me but they were understandable not, I would tell friends about the plot and watch as their eyes glazed over with boredom. About halfway through the novel I listened to (on audio-book) Stephen King’s book “On Writing” this put things into perspective for me. So for the second half of the novel I tried to talk less about it, tried not to bore the pants off people with my new found addiction but I still felt frustrated because I wanted to talk about my progress.
This is when I started to feel lonely, not in my life but lonely with my writing. It was a hard lesson to learn but I now know this is for me anyway the only way forward. I have just finished the first draft of my second novel “Consumed By Fire” and I have hardly talked about it and nobody has read it. I am about to send it off to get it critiqued and am more apprehensive about it than the first novel, does it make sense? does the story come together? And it goes on and on.
This is why I feel writing is a lonely occupation but I need to do it. I need to get the stories in my head on virtual paper.

What book marketing techniques have been most effective for you?

I have found marketing my book much tougher than writing it. I am stuck on how to market better.

Where did you grow up, and how did this influence your writing?

I grew up in Bath, Somerset in The UK. My novels are set in Bristol which is 12 miles away from Bath. I have visited Bristol lots of time over the years and it has had a big influence on my writing.

When did you first start writing?

I started writing when I was sixty five years old, so it is never too late to start...

How do you approach cover design?

I try and pick the main points of my novel and incorporate them into the design.

What do you read for pleasure?

I do not read as I am dyslexic so I listen to audiobooks, mostly detective crime stories...

Writing is a lonely business.

When I started to write my first novel “A Questionable Hero” I made lots of mistakes, the biggest was letting friends and family read each chapter as soon as I finished it. I would write a few thousand words then desperate for someone to read it and give me their opinion I passed it out. As you can imagine my friends soon became a little tired of this especially when I started to edit each chapter as I went along (another mistake). I would email people a chapter or two, then re-write parts and and send it off again. Friends were kind and tried to help but it soon became obvious after reading ten or twelve chapters over and over this was not going to work.

As I am new to writing I thought everyone would be as interested in my story as me but they were understandable not, I would tell friends about the plot and watch as their eyes glazed over with boredom. About halfway through the novel I listened to (on audio-book) Stephen King’s book “On Writing” this put things into perspective for me. So for the second half of the novel I tried to talk less about it, tried not to bore the pants off people with my new found addiction but I still felt frustrated because I wanted to talk about my progress.

This is when I started to feel lonely, not in my life but lonely with my writing. It was a hard lesson to learn but I now know this is for me anyway the only way forward. I have just finished the first draft of my second novel “Consumed By Fire” and I have hardly talked about it and nobody has read it. I am about to send it off to get it critiqued and am more apprehensive about it than the first novel, does it make sense? does the story come together? And it goes on and on.

This is why I feel writing is a lonely occupation but I need to do it. I need to get the stories in my head on virtual paper.

   

Connellsville woman, 90, wins writing contest as first-time author

Connellsville woman, 90, wins writing contest as first-time author