Something a little different this week. A small insight into the British psyche and an exploration of a two-word phrase instead of a single word. There’s help here for writers trying to make their work more accessible, interesting, varied, accurate and effective by exploring similar and dissimilar words. The series also gives language learners insights …
Continue reading Looking for the Best Word? Tip #30
Are you a lover of words? Do you write? Is language use an issue of interest? If so, you’ll find Kathy Steinemann’s ‘The Writer’s Lexicon’ a veritable cornucopia of expressive words. A thesaurus provides alternatives for the idea of a word. A dictionary gives definitions and, sometimes, origins for those construction blocks we use daily …
Continue reading The Writer’s Lexicon, by Kathy Steinemann, Reviewed.
Whoopee! Hurrah! Gadzooks! And, yeah! The first draft of book 2 of the Generation Mars series is finished. It now stands at 112,061 words, 8,740 more than last week’s total. I actually finished this stage on Monday, but thought I’d wait till today to let you know, since Wednesdays have been my usual days for …
Continue reading Progress on the WIP: #SciFi in the Making.
The second in a projected trilogy, this deeply complex fantasy follows on from Chopin’s Ghost, taking the reader through the next twisting, convoluted maze that constitutes the story. If you haven’t read the first book, I advise you do so. However, the author includes enough detail from that first novel to allow readers new to …
Continue reading The House on Sagamore Road, by Cary Grossman, Reviewed.
First, an apology to regular readers. I somehow managed not to post anything last week. I can tell you I added 2,298 words to the current WIP, resolved an issue with the Student Loan Company for my daughter in Australia, and began constructing a new length of garden fencing. But I’ve really no idea how …
Continue reading Looking for the Best Word? Tip #29
Book 2 of the Generation Mars series now stands at 103,321 words, which is an increase of 9867 on last week’s figure. The novel continues to go well, in spite of a few impediments to progress. I thought I’d have the first draft completed by now. However, along with constant new developments in science and …
Continue reading Progress on the WIP: #SciFi in the Making.
Listed as Teen/YA romance and mystery, this is a book in a genre I wouldn’t normally read. However, I was approached by the author for a review, read the blurb, and decided to give it a chance. I’d actually classify it as fantasy romance, but that’s a personal judgment based on how I view the …
Continue reading Can’t Buy Forever, by Susan Laffoon, Reviewed.
Book 2 of the Generation Mars series now stands at 93454 words in first draft form. That’s an increase of 11,793 on last week’s figure, so advancement continues to go well, in spite of certain personal impediments to progress. Last week, I thought I’d have the first draft completed by this time. However, along with …
Continue reading Progress on the WIP: #SciFi in the Making.
This is the fourth in an occasional series of posts asking sometimes awkward questions. Some topics are trivial, some serious, and others vital. I’d love you to join in any ensuing debate using the comments at the foot of the posts. Enjoy! Why Do We Keep Appointing Leaders? We’re living in pretty tumultuous times, aren’t …
Continue reading I’d Like to Know: Why? #4 Leaders
Help for writers trying to make their work more accessible, interesting, varied, accurate and effective by exploring similar and dissimilar words. This series also provides language learners with insights into some of the peculiarities of the English language. A good thesaurus gives alternatives for the idea of a word, but not all suggestions are true …
Continue reading Looking for the Best Word? Tip #28
A fantastic opportunity provided by Caron Allan on her website. My thanks to Caron for this chance to tell more readers and writers about my writing.
I am so thrilled to welcome Stuart Aken this week who has very kindly agreed to talk about his highly acclaimed and varied work. I’m going to jump straight in because as you will see, Stuart’s got a lot to tell and I didn’t want to cut any of it!
Q1. What kind of books do you write?
It’s tempting to answer this facetiously with ‘Great!’ but I’ll be a little more considered.
My dislike of the cubby-holing and restrictions of genre has persuaded me to ignore it as a guide to my writing. My books tell stories first and foremost. I’m interested in the human condition, justice/injustice, the abuse of Big Business, and the environment, but I’m also fascinated by our capacity as a species to produce wonderful objects, design complex and intriguing theories to explain our world, to love, to hate, to kill and to create. So, I…
View original post 1,673 more words
The follow-up novel to Blood Red Dust now stands at 81,661 words, which is only 7103 extra since last week. Very poor! However, here come the excuses. Spent a fair amount of time sorting, or trying to sort, my daughter’s Student Loan issues, since she’s in Australia and the UK company dealing with this matter …
Continue reading Progress on the WIP: #SciFi in the Making.
Humour with vampires: those who love the genre will really get their teeth into this. (Sorry, unforgivable bloody pun! – And again!) This is a well-constructed short that manages to pack in the conventions of the vampire world. I love the idea of the psychologist treating vampires for their problems. This story is told from …
Continue reading Until Death Do Us Part, by Lynda Hilburn, Reviewed.
Mike Dickenson’s ‘IQ84’ is a timely satire on American values and culture. Written in the style of a humorous pulp thriller, it captures the banality, self-obsession, materialism and superficiality that characterise the USA for so many of us who live in the rest of the world. The recent populist backlash against the establishment that has …
Continue reading IQ84, by Mike Dickenson, Reviewed.
This series offers to help writers who are trying to make their work more accessible, interesting, varied, accurate and effective by exploring similar and dissimilar words. It also provides language learners with insights into some of the peculiarities of the English language. A good thesaurus gives alternatives for the idea of a word, but not …
Continue reading Looking for the Best Word? Tip #27
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Antidote to the Novel
Stuart Aken 