Progress on the WIP: #SciFi in the Making.

A busy few days. But I’m now approaching the point where I can actually begin the editing process. So, what have I been doing this past week? Well, I visited 81 different website posts to consult them on various relevant topics. Some of those were just a few paragraphs, others a few pages, with much …

Continue reading Progress on the WIP: #SciFi in the Making.

Looking for the Best Word? Tip #32

Help here for writers, making their work more accessible, interesting, varied, accurate and effective by exploring similar and dissimilar words. The series also allows language learners some insights into the peculiarities of the English language. A good thesaurus provides alternatives for the idea of a word, but not all are true synonyms: context matters. Placing …

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Creating Stories, by Hank Quense, Reviewed.

This writing manual is about making stories; the creative process and the practical work involved in getting the story from mind to page. As a fairly ancient and experienced writer, I’ve come across quite a few books about writing, so it’s difficult for an author to present something new for me. In this volume, Hank …

Continue reading Creating Stories, by Hank Quense, Reviewed.

Looking for the Best Word? Tip #31

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 into some peculiarities of the English language. A good thesaurus provides alternatives for the idea of a word, but not all those are true synonyms. …

Continue reading Looking for the Best Word? Tip #31

Looking for the Best Word? Tip #30

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

The Writer’s Lexicon, by Kathy Steinemann, Reviewed.

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 …

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The House on Sagamore Road, by Cary Grossman, Reviewed.

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 …

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Looking for the Best Word? Tip #29

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 …

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Looking for the Best Word? Tip #28

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

Looking for the Best Word? Tip #27

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

Looking for the Best Word? Tip #26

This series offers help to writers 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 all suggestions …

Continue reading Looking for the Best Word? Tip #26

The Handmaid’s Tale, by Margaret Atwood, Reviewed.

An astounding piece of work. Because this book is a modern classic, it has been much reviewed, discussed and dissected, which probably renders my review somewhat redundant. That won’t prevent me writing in praise of the novel, however. The author describes the work as speculative fiction rather than science fiction, and I understand her distinction. …

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Looking for the Best Word? Tip #25

A series offering writers help to make their work more accessible, interesting, varied, accurate and effective by exploring similar and dissimilar words. It also gives language learners insights into some peculiarities of English. A good thesaurus provides substitutes for the idea of a word, but not all suggestions are true synonyms. Context is vital. Placing …

Continue reading Looking for the Best Word? Tip #25

Sherlock Holmes and the Oakwood Grange Affair, by April Taylor, Reviewed.

Having read, and enjoyed, April Taylor’s other novels, I was eager to see how she would tackle this challenge. It’s no mean feat for an author to contribute a novel to such a well-established, ubiquitous and much-loved series as the Sherlock Holmes collection. April Taylor, however, has managed to combine her own voice with the …

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The Strange Life of Brandon Chambers, by Scott Spotson, Reviewed.

The Strange Life; it says a lot about the book, this title. Intriguing? Yes. Compelling? Yes. You can sense the ‘but’, I suspect. This is a strange book. It follows the life of a young boy of military parents as he grows into adulthood after those parents mysteriously disappear following an accident for which his father …

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