Starting a New Book

This is always an exciting part of the writing process, but it can be a bit scary too; being stared at by a blank page, wondering if you can pull off a whole novel (yes, even when you've done it several times before). 

That first sentence can be intimidating, but you've just got to go for it and dive into the story. It doesn't matter if the first sentence is rubbish - you're going to go back and edit later anyway. The important thing is to get going and allow the words to flow.

I've recently started Book 12. I'd started to get to know my characters (you can see the tips I shared here) but you can only get to know them a certain amount before it's time to get stuck in. You'll learn new things about them along the way, which is the best part of writing - when your characters start to come alive on the page!

The first characters I met were Cleo and Paul. Cleo Parker is the main character and I love her already. You can see my mood board for Cleo on Pinterest here but here are three things I have learned about Cleo so far:

1. She likes to keep lists
2. She works at a seaside fish and chip shop
3. She loves coffee

Paul is an old school friend of Cleo's. Here are three things I've learned about him:

1. He's a policeman
2. Cleo had a MASSIVE crush on him at school
3. He still has the ability to turn her insides to jelly

Next up is Cleo's grandmother, Cordelia and her new friend, James.

Three things I've learned about Cordelia:

1. She likes to help out in the community
2. She likes to crochet
3. She loves watching reality TV with her granddaughter

Three things I've learned about James:

1. He's divorced
2. He has two children
3. He works at the amusement arcade

And finally, there's Cleo's best friend - but she doesn't have a name yet (you can help out with the name if you'd like. In my next newsletter, I'll be asking my subscribers if they'd like to have the character named after them, so make sure you've subscribed if you'd like the chance to have your name in the book!)

Three things I've learned about the best friend:

1. She works at the fish and chip shop with Cleo
2. She's a single mum
3. She has terrible luck with men

So, that's how the new book is coming along at the moment. I'll be finding out lots more about these characters over the next few months and I can't wait to share Cleo's story with you!