In January...

... I read:

• Home for Christmas by Cally Taylor
• Fairytale of New York by Miranda Dickinson
• Afterwards by Rosamund Lupton
• May I Have Your Attention, Please by James Corden (autobiography)

... I turned 29 so less than a year before I hit 30 - eek!

... I finally caught up with the rest of Britain and finished watching Gavin & Stacey

... Read my first book on my Kindle

... I finished Book 1 and started submitting to agents

... And then started Book 2


The most popular posts at the end of the month are:

• Marian Keyes & Mercy Close

• Christmas Songs Quiz

• Afterwards By Rosamund Lupton

• TV Highlights of the Week

• Birthday & Chinese New Year

• Current Project - Progress

• Christmas Crafts - Foam Snowmen & Christmas Trees

• I Heart Gavin & Stacey (and Richard Osman)

• My Babies Have Arrived

Book 2 - Progress

It is my second week of Book 2 and all seems to be going well. I now have a progress bar on the blog and it is really encouraging to update it each day and see the bar moving, ever so slightly, in the right direction.

I have set the target at 80,000 words for the first draft as this is what I did with Book 1. I ended up falling just short of 80,000 but made up for it in the second draft.

At the moment, it no longer feels like I'm pulling teeth to get the words on the screen but I know there will be times when it reverts back to that feeling. I'm finding it a huge help that I have the scenes already plotted in front of me so even if I am a bit stuck, I at least know what is supposed to be happening (even if I can't find the words to make it sound right!)

I don't feel as connected to my characters yet as I did with Book 1 but that's to be expected. I spent months with Kate and co, getting to know them and their traits. I sort of knew them in the beginning but it wasn't until the end that they were fully formed in my head and I could flesh them out and iron out any inconsistencies in the second draft. I'm hoping it will be the same this time round.

As well as writing Book 2 I am also writing a short story, which I will post on here on Valentine's Day.

Afterwards by Rosamund Lupton

A miracle happened, something that hasn't happened for a few years... I read a book - yes, a whole book - in two days. Not only that but I stayed up until the early hours of Saturday morning to finish it. This used to be a common occurence. Once upon a long time ago, before I had kids, I could race through books like the best of them but not anymore. Or perhaps I can.

I won Afterwards a few weeks before Christmas (so huge thank you to @filmvsbook who ran the competition) but have only just got round to reading it. But once I picked it up, it was glued to my hands. I could not put it down.

Afterwards is not a chick lit book, a genre I rarely stray from but I loved it and was gripped.

The blurb:

There is a fire and they are in There. They are in there. Black smoke stains a summer blue sky. A school is on fire. And one mother, Grace, sees the smoke and runs. She knows her teenage daughter Jenny is inside. She runs into the burning building to rescue her. Afterwards, Grace must find the identity of the arsonist and protect her family from the person who's still intent on destroying them. Afterwards, she must fight the limits of her physical strength and discover the limitlessness of love.

I didn't guess who the arsonist was. There are so many red herrings along the way but all of them are believable so you don't feel you were cheated and lead the wrong way.

I thought the book was brilliant and would urge anyone will listen to read it. I have a copy of Rosamund's Lupton's first novel, Sister, ready to read on my Kindle and have been told it's even better than Afterwards. If so, I can't wait to read it!

Book 2 - Starting Book 2

Book one is finished and in the land of agents so on Monday I started Book 2. I've had the story in my head for a long time and actually wrote it a few years ago. I got to the end and decided it was crap. So I chucked it. This happens to me a lot, which is why one of my New Year's Writing Goals was to not give up like I usually do.

I still think the first attempt was crap but I am sure I can do a better job this time. I've changed the main character so hopefully she will be more likable this time (I really didn't get on with the last one) but I think the main difference is I'm more confident this time round. I know the plot and the characters better this time as I started planning it after I finished the first draft of Book 1, back in August. I'm more prepared this time, which is something I learned from writing Book 1.

I had an idea of what the story was for Book 1 and part way through started to jot down the gist of it, more to help with the synopsis later on than anything. And it went well until it came to the second draft and I ended up rewriting most of the book. So this time I have planned it better.

But that doesn't mean writing it is easier. I sat down on Monday and looked at my notes. I looked at my screen and the keyboard and then the notes again. How the hell did I start? I'd forgotten how hard it is to start a new book but I somehow managed it, forcing my way to around 250 words. The next thing I know, it's an hour later and I have 1900 words.

Cool, I thought. Starting a new book isn't so hard after all. And then I sat down yesterday and it was like pulling teeth. I know where the story is going. I know what needs to happen in each scene but the words just don't want to appear on my screen. Still, I managed another 800 words, which isn't bad. It felt like I'd done 50!

Thinking about it, writing Book 1 was difficult to begin with. So difficult I wanted to scrap the whole thing as I wasn't 'feeling' it. I gave myself until 10,000 words to see how I felt and then I would either continue or scrap. By 10,000 words I was really enjoying writing it and so I continued and finished it.

I must remember that Book 1 was nothing but a blank computer screen once upon a time. So don't give up like you usually do!

Kindle - First Impressions

Back in November, I was debating whether to buy a Kindle or not. I was given some money to buy myself a Christmas present while we were on holiday and in the end I decided to go for it and bought the Kindle Touch (and a lovely pink and orange cover).

I'm reading my first book on the Kindle at the moment (Fairytale of New York by Miranda Dickinson) and I'm just over half way through so what are my first impressions?

Pros:

• It's much lighter than I expected it to be
• But the screen is bigger than I expected (which is a good thing as my eyes are crap)
• I can prop the Kindle while I read hands-free (leaving me free to drink tea and eat cake while reading - yay!)
• Your page is automatically saved
• I do like the fact I can store hundreds of books without running out of room. My poor bookcase can't take anymore
• I thought it wouldn't feel like I was reading a 'real' book but I haven't noticed the difference
• It's so easy to buy new books. If you use Amazon 1-Click, you can buy and download your new book within seconds

Cons:

• It's so easy to buy new books. If you use Amazon 1-Click, you can buy and download your new book within seconds
• The covers are grey and darker grey so no gorgeous shiny, glittery covers
• I must keep nudging it or something because on a few ocassions, I end up pages ahead. With a normal book you would simply flick through until you find your page but with a Kindle you have to tap, wait until it loads, tap wait until it loads... until you reach where you were up to
• I love standing in a book shop, picking up the books, looking at their covers and reading the blurb

All things considered, I do like the Kindle and once you are actually reading the book, there is no difference, apart from being a bit easier on your hands. But I love paper books and their covers too much to ever use the Kindle exclusively.

Book 1 - Reached The End

After months of hard work and three drafts, my book is finally finished. I reached The End last night and without wasting any time (and before I chickened out), I printed out my sample chapters, tweaked the synopsis and sent it off into the land of agents.

Here it is, being printed

And now I am going to celebrate with a cup of tea. Because I am that rock and roll.

Book 1 - Almost Reached The End

The third draft is going well and if I reach out, I can almost reach the end. I'm quite confidant that it will be completed in the next few days or by the end of the week at the latest. Famous last words, eh? Cue disaster that leaves me unable to continue.

The third draft has taken me by surprise because I am actually enjoying it. There were times during the previous draft when I couldn't have despised my book more. It was hard work but it seems to have paid off and I'm finding my book a pleasure again. I will be sad when it's finished. And happy of course. Very happy.

The next step is start submitting to agents. And that's both scary and exciting.

Writing for Charity

I've nicked this from Cally Taylor's blog (sorry, but is for a good cause).

Caroline Smailes is holding a writing challenge for charity.

All you have to do is submit a piece of flash fiction (no more than 100 words) based on a youtube clip.

The stories selected will be made into an ebook, with the money made going to charity.

All the details are here.

Warning - the closing date is Wednesday 11th January so get cracking!

Book 1 - 3rd Draft A Charm

My holiday, Christmas and New Year have passed so yesterday I got back to work on my current project. I've already completed two drafts but don't feel it's quite 'there' yet. The last draft involved a lot of rewriting so I wanted to go through the whole thing again to make sure it all fit and flowed properly. I also wanted to polish it as I was concentrating on rewriting most of the scenes last time.

As I suspected, I wasn't in the mood for turning on the laptop last night. Breaks are great but I find getting back into the habit of writing difficult. I wanted one more day of slouching in front of the tv but I knew I'd feel exactly the same the next day. And the next day and the next day... So i forced myself off my arse and got on with it.

And do you know what? I enjoyed it and was surprised to find that I thought the writing was pretty good. I usually think my writing is crap but I was pleased with what was on the screen. I'm not saying it's the best writing since sliced bread (the Warburtons in my cupboard is a best-selling novelist) but I thought it was good and is the kind of book I'd pick up in the shops.

I'm hoping to have this draft finish within a few weeks and then I can start sending it off to agents.

My Books of 2011

I started this blog in July and since then have kept a record of the books I have read. I remember the days when I could read a book in a day or two, staying up until the early hours to finish it but those days are long gone. Some days it difficult enough to read a chapter and I can barely make it past 10pm now.

Some of the books were older books, a couple of which were on my shelf and I decided to read again. Surf, Sea and a Sexy Stranger was the first Mills & Boon book I've read.

I was surprised to really enjoy The Radleys. It isn't my usual kind of book but I thought it was great and I didn't want to put it down (I can't say 'couldn't put it down' as the kids don't allow such frivolous acts on my part).

I also really enjoyed Miracle on Regent Street and it had my favourite cover of the year. It is gorgeous; not overly sparkly but fitting for the book.

My favourite book of the year was The Woman He Loved Before by Dorothy Koomson. Again, I was surprised to enjoy it so much as it doesn't look like the kind of book I usually choose to read (no cartoon or sparkly cover - I do like to judge even though I shouldn't). I won the book on Deb Carr's blog and I loved it. It was beuatifully written and kept me intrigued throughout.

I've read some great books in 2011 and am looking forward to reading even more in 2012. At the moment I am reading Home for Christmas by Cally Taylor and it's a great read so far. I was laughing out loud while reading it in bed last night - the sign of a great book in my opinion.

I'm also looking forward to reading Miranda Dickinson's books this year as well as Afterwards by Rosamund Lupton, which I also won at the end of 2011. I am also going to finally read my first Jill Mansell book.

Happy New Year & Writing Goals

I hope you all had a fab New Year's Eve, whatever you did. We stayed in (as we usually do, having two kids) and had a Chinese take away which was yummy. At midnight, me, The Partner and the 8 year old gathered on the doorstep to watch the fireworks. There were loads and pretty big ones too but thankfully they only lasted ten minutes or so and not into the early hours. It's a shame the same couldn't be said for all the drunken idiots (not that I was jealous that they'd been out and had a great time...) that passed by the house bewteen the hours of one and three. The best had to be the bloke singing 'Penetration is the name of the game and I want to play the game with you'. And the young lady he was with seemed to find this charming.

As it is the start of a new year, I thought I would set myself some writing goals. I would obviously love to be represented by an agent and land a publishing deal but I can't really control that so I am going to keep them realistic (boring, aren't I?):

• Finish the final draft of the Current Project
• Send Current Project off to agents
• When it's rejected, send it to the next agents on the list
• Start Book 2
• Don't give up like I usually do

I hope you all had a great 2011 and that 2012 will be even better xxx