New home!

I've moved to a new home

https://annalisacrawford.wordpress.com/

The post on the new blog explains it all.

I hope to see you there!

At the moment this is an experiment, but I know other people have moved to WordPress and liked it. To fill it up with content, I might go back and find some old posts to revisit, but there will be lots of new stuff too. 

The new blog can also be accessed through my website. Comments have been disabled here, for obvious reasons.

*stops for one last look around, and to scoop up the random mug that didn't get packed*

Pantsing, planning and NaNoWriMo

This is how I feel, two days before the end of NaNoWriMo.

It's been a challenge, and I'm 12,500 words from the end. I probably won't win, but I'm okay with that. I have a new story that probably wouldn't have happened if I hadn't taken part - I'd have been stuck in a never-ending rewriting/editing rut.

I'm posting today for a bit of a rant... a rant against myself!

I'm a pantser. Always have been. It's not the best way to write, I amble around and spend three years trying to figure out the story I'm telling. Pah. Rubbish. Especially as I then spend another three years rewriting, then giving up and hiding it in a drawer, then pulling it out again.

One new novel every ten years is slow, to say the least.

When I decided to do NaNo this year, I had a week to prepare and thought I might do a bit of plotting. In itself, it didn't go too badly, although the story keeps shifting, new characters are appearing and others have vanished off the page. The beach has been a constant feature, my MC's failing art career has stuck too - although she's still nameless - and there's a shadowy character that might be a dead sister, memory of her mother or a childhood imaginary friend.

And then there's X - the real subject of my rant.

X is also nameless. He started off as my MCs female flatmate, turned into her male fiance and - as of the very early hours of this morning - is her student lodger who bakes chocolate cake. At one point he/she was going to accompany MC on a lengthy road trip, but now the trip has taken a backseat and might just be one night in a Premier Inn to break up the trip to the beach. So much for planning!

It was a good experiment, though - I've realised I can neither pants or plot effectively, so I guess I'll just bumble along as I always have, but with the knowledge that bumbling really is the best way forward 😔

How is/was NaNoWriMo for you?

Are you a regular participant, or was this your first time?

What advice would you offer to me?

A few changes, maybe

I've had a busy week - I think this is the longest I've managed to sit down since last Sunday, so I'm making the most of it by catching up on blog reading.

A work colleague broke his nose last weekend, so I covered a few extra hours which threw out my gym training completely; and I met up with a couple of different friends for a hot chocolate, so I've severely overdosed on sugar and feeling a bit jittery.

However, I kept to schedule on my NaNoWriMo writing, although I might be a little behind now because of some other tasks I've set myself. Yesterday I felt I was just putting random words down, feeling completely bored with the story, and not knowing where it was going. All the ideas I had where either too similar to something I've written before, or too similar to something I've read recently.

But then last night, as I was falling asleep (oh, my writing muse really picks her time!), I had a bit of an epiphany, which I'll attempt to map out this afternoon.

On top of all that, on Friday I had a chat with a consultant-type person about online marketing and promotion. The good news is that what I do is pretty good. The bad news is... all the stuff I don't yet do. So, that's my latest job,

It may mean some changes to my blog, but I don't know yet.

It may mean some changes to how I present myself, but I don't fully know that either yet.

How to Get Published conference

Yesterday, I went to a writing conference. For various reasons, I've written about it on my website, so rather than repeat it, click

HERE

to read all about it, and see yet another dodgy photo of me. Feel free to comment over there, or pop back and comment here. Or not at all... You know, being Sunday and all, you might be way too relaxed...

Well, that's that, then... (A NaNo confession)

I've just signed up to this year's NaNoWriMo event.

It's possible I've gone completely mad!

I'm not sure what happened. I came home from work this afternoon, made a cup of tea, checked my emails, signed up.

Okay, that's not strictly true - I've been considering it for a while, but coming up with some really very good reasons not to: I've got a two day course to go on for work in November, the kids will need me to be available for specific reasons in November, I'm already booking up my days off with hot chocolate dates with friends, I'm going to be an aunt and will want to see lots of the new baby.

But, there are some compelling reasons to give it a go:

1. I'm staring at a novel that's just been rejected and wondering what to do with it - I'm not happy with it, but it's been through so many incarnations at this point, I've forgotten what the original point was.
2. Because I've been working on the same novel for most of the year, I think I've forgotten how to write something new. I have no ideas, no characters, nothing even remotely like a plan, plot or vision.
3. I've recently turned my 2012 attempt into a short story that's out on submission - even if I don't win, I might be able to salvage something useful.
4. It's a really good excuse to be lavished with chocolate. I don't drink coffee, so I have to get my caffeine from somewhere, don't I?

So, who's with me? Who's already signed up? Who's thinking about it?

Is chocolate a good enough reason?
Do you have any advice for me?

Another musical guest post

I'm really excited to be featured on Roz Morris's Undercover Soundtrack today. It's a fantastic series looking at how music has influenced the way a writer approaches their novel.

Being different, and not the author of a published novel yet, my post features the songs that inspired my short stories - each of my books gets a mention, so they don't feel left out.

I hope you enjoy reading more about me. I suggest making yourself a hot chocolate to drink while you read it, that's what I'm going to do!

My 5 Reasons guest post

This is the scene I was greeted with as I rounded the hedge from one field to the next on Monday morning.

It was cold, and I'm starting to wonder where I put my gloves at the end of last winter. But, so glorious. Artoo doesn't like me to linger for too long - apparently, walking means just that to him!

I thought it was too nice a photo not to share.


Today I'm guest posting on Tyrean Martinson's blog, sharing my 5 Reasons to Write to Music. I hope you'll pop over and see what my reasons are.

I've got another music-based guest post on the cards next week. Details to follow.

Puts down pen and sighs...

... looks up and sees that it's October!

(I'm cheating with the photos - Hubby's just taken them for me on his walk with Artoo, while I write this, still in my dressing gown!)


About a month ago, I started writing and revising four stories for four very different short story competitions - one flash, one with a huge first prize, one with awesome additional publicity benefits and one with huge prestige.

It was brilliant to work on such a variety of different projects, and a relief to finish one and start the next. The flash was so hard because it was only 300 hundred words, and then I immediately set out to turn a 50,000 word NaNo project from years ago into a 5,000 word short story. I think it worked. I hope it did.

I love sending out submissions. I like the blank space that remains when the email has vanished. I sit and stare for a second, then I gather up all the notes and drafts for that project and file them away - and swap in the next thing.

I wrote a to-do list!

I don't do it often, but in August I wrote a to-do list, and last week I found it. Are you interested? Okay, here it is...

1. Re-start my mailing list. It may surprise some of you to know that you're signed up to my mailing list, because I don't actually ever send it out. My goal was to resurrect it and make it fun. I have not done this... yet.
2. Write or redraft two stories. Boom - wrote four!
3. Work through all my old stories to submit them by the end of the year. Obviously, this is a follow-on from the previous point, but it makes sense, because I have a lot hanging around, and it's fun to re-work something to give it new life.
4. Buy more bloggers books and review them. I realised that I love finding new reviews on Goodreads and Amazon, and figured my blogger friends love it too. So I've been doing this - slowly, but hopefully more when I get into the swing of it.
5. Figure out what to do with my novel. I've submitted a particular novel to many agents, and no one likes it. I love it. Some beta readers said very nice things about it. I'm not going to give up on it, but I haven't figured out my next move yet.

Do you have a to-do list? How's it looking?

Are you getting prepared for autumn?

Cover reveal: Timeless by Crystal Collier

Who-hoo! I'm so happy to be taking part in the delightful Crystal's cover reveal today. Isn't it gorgeous?

TIMELESS (#3 Maiden of Time) by Crystal Collier #CoverReveal

Book Title: TIMELESS (Maiden of Time #3)

Author: Crystal Collier

Genre: YA Paranormal Historical

Release Date: November 1, 2016

TIME IS THE ENEMY

In 1771, Alexia had everything: the man of her dreams, reconciliation with her father, even a child on the way. But she was never meant to stay. It broke her heart, but Alexia heeded destiny and traveled five hundred years back to stop the Soulless from becoming.

In the thirteenth century, the Holy Roman Church has ordered the Knights Templar to exterminate the Passionate, her bloodline. As Alexia fights this new threat—along with an unfathomable evil and her own heart—the Soulless genesis nears. But none of her hard-won battles may matter if she dies in childbirth before completing her mission.

Can Alexia escape her own clock?

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Crystal Collier is an eclectic author who pens clean fantasy/sci-fi, historical, and romance stories with the occasional touch of humor, horror, or inspiration. She practices her brother-induced ninja skills while teaching children or madly typing about fantastic and impossible creatures. She has lived from coast to coast and now calls Florida home with her creative husband, four littles, and “friend” (a.k.a. the zombie locked in her closet). Secretly, she dreams of world domination and a bottomless supply of cheese. You can find her on her Blog, Facebook, Goodreads, or follow her on Twitter.

Want the first chapter free? Sign up HERE.

ra

Baby Moo's Great Escape

Something a little bit different today, meet this little cuite, Baby Moo...


Book blurb:

Baby Moo has a dream. He wants to travel the world and sing on the stage of the Sydney Opera House! While he loves his home at Sunrise Sanctuary, it hasn’t been the same since a piglet named Nathan showed up and stole all the attention away from Moo. Jealous of the new baby, Moo decides now is the time to make his escape and pursue his dream.
But the world outside the sanctuary gates is not quite the fun and exciting place Moo imagined, and he quickly finds himself in big trouble. Moo's friends Missy the dog and Ruthie the cat rush to help him, and land in some trouble of their own.
Lost and frightened, Moo and his friends must rely on each other to find their way back home. Will they ever see Sunrise again?

Release date: September 8, 2016 from Native Ink Press
Check out Julie's blog for the list of places to buy and add on Goodreads

Julie Flanders will donate $1 to Sunrise Sanctuary, home to Baby Moo and numerous other rescued animals, for each copy sold in September.

Share the news by Tweeting:
Baby Moo's Great Escape by @JulesFlanders is here! $1 will be donated to @sunrise_ohio for each copy sold in Sept.  http://tinyurl.com/gpuomwm

Just a quick note...

... to say that my internet connection is very poor at the moment. I've just had 48 hours without it, and it's randomly come back on. This means I can't visit blogs very successfully - on the few and far between moments I have it, I need to internet bank and send emails with attachments, and all the other things I've come to take for granted.

I've turned comments off, because I probably won't be able to do much with them at the moment. Hopefully it'll be resolved soon - I've tried wishing on eyelashes and crossing my fingers... the next step is to contact a computer guy!

Writers are yellow cars

Every so often, I have a wobble - you've probably been witness to it once or twice: I wonder why I'm even a writer. Because everyone seems to be a writer. Is there really any room for me? I talk to people online, and discover they're writing a book. Or I'll meet someone new in real life, and - guess what? - they're a writer too.

In fact, there seems to be far more writers than readers these days.

#2 son is a budding actor. Today he was telling me about his friends, and they all seem to be part of one acting group or another. As a child, he's drawn to the people who have the same interests, of course - and perhaps acting groups are more prolific for kids these days than when I was at school. None of my friends were actors, and I didn't want to be one - I can't recall any of my non-friends who were actors either.

My husband's first car was a yellow Metro, and I knew how easy it would be to find that car in a multi-storey car park... it would sparkle like a star from a bed of really dull-coloured cars. Until every car seemed to be yellow. Ugh! They weren't all yellow the day before, when we didn't have a yellow car. They were many colours.

Many years later we had an import car - this time, when we met other drivers of the same car on the road, we'd give them a wave. We seemed to be waving an awful lot!

So, perhaps there aren't a limitless numbers of writers oozing out of gaps in the walls or cracks in the pavement. Perhaps, by being a writer, I just notice them more.

This post is brought to you from a really boring bus journey this morning

No story goes to waste

Having fun on Seaton Beach, Cornwall with Artoo

After working hard on You. I. Us. and turning a novella into a novel for most of this year, I'm now looking back at some of my older stories and wondering if I can create something amazing out of them.

I do this on a fairly regular basis, with various levels of success. One of the stories from You. I. Us. - Redemption - was based on a story I wrote around 1997. The actual story bore no resemblance by the end of the re-write, but it kick-started me, and allowed me to tell the story I'd wanted to initially. Sometimes I find my own improvements as a writer enable past stories to be revitalised in a way that I could never imagine.

I'm currently attempting this process with two stories at the same time. One is basically a piece of description that I'm hoping to squeeze a plot out of, and the other is the first part of my 2012 NaNoWriMo novel.

But I'm going through the whole spectrum of writing within one page. I'll write a sentence I think is perfect, then another which is rubbish, then I'll decide the whole idea is a waste of time, then I'll sweep right back to writing something brilliant again.

This makes it really hard to know if I'm actually writing anything that's any good. In fact, the original title of this post was "How do you know if you're writing a good story?" but that sounded like I was going to give advice and actually explain, rather than appeal for help myself.

(If you've been reading this blog for any length of time, you'll know giving advice isn't my forte!)

As far as I can tell, from my own experience, you know when you get that gut-feeling. I've had it many times, and I'm usually right. Which should mean that when I don't have that feeling I should give up, right?

But I won't. Because I'm stubborn.

How do you decide which projects are worth the effort?

Have you ever shelved a story and gone back to it?

___________________________________________________________

In other news, You. I. Us. has been getting some really great reviews recently. Thank you to everyone who's taken the time to leave a review on Goodreads or Amazon.

Whenever I get a good review, I treat myself to some chocolate - and you should know how much I like chocolate by now, so I really appreciate it on a whole new level.

Me and the Doctor

I've been quiet this week, because I've been away. First we stopped off at a very normal and grown-up National Trust property, then we went to the Doctor Who Experience in Cardiff. If you're ever in Cardiff, it's well worth a visit. We spent almost three hours there.

I thought I'd share some photos, because I know some of you are just as big a fan as I am! (Some of these are blurred, and I'm in a few of them... sorry, on both counts.)

Clara's display and TARDIS tribute

Davros

The TARDIS from the 70s and 80s -
with the all-important hat stand

The Silence

Me with Eleven, kinda

The TARDIS of Nine and Ten

Some random baddies and the Face of Bo

I really thought I was acting
nonchalant here. Turns out I was
just smiling a lot!

River Song's outfits

Man Booker time again

It's Man Booker longlist time again, and it looks like a good one.

I was a little uninspired by last year's list, but this year I already had some of the books on my TBR list, so I spent time today adding a couple more.

I hadn't realised it was being announced today until one of my friends on Facebook - the owner of Salt - shared the news that another of his authors had been included, Wyl Menmuir for his book The Many. I wrote about Salt's story in 2012 when Alison Moore made it to the shortlist. You can read my post here - it's an inspiring story in itself.

I love the Man Booker Prize, because I'll be winning it when I'm 56 (it's been a long standing conviction since I was 17, I might have mentioned it once or twice).

Every year, when the prize rolls around, it makes me super focused on my writing. I've been a bit aimless (again... *sigh*) since I finished my WIP at the end of last month, so today I started re-reading a novel I've been submitting to agents, and decided to refresh it. None of the agents have been interested, so it's probably a good time to have another go at it. Beta readers have given it thumbs up, so it might be just a case of jiggling with it and trying again.

It can't hurt, right?

At the moment, I have chopped up/taped back together scenes strewn all over my floor, and I'm fending Artoo off with my foot. So, it's probably time to get back to work.

What have you been up to?

What gets you motivated to write? Do you even need motivating as much as I do?

Visiting Crystal

I'm over on Crystal Collier's blog today, taking part in her Writerly Wednesday feature. Decide which of my facts is a lie for a chance to win a signed copy of You. I. Us.

In other news, it's hot. The UK is sweltering under a heatwave - although it might already be over by the time you read this. At least I work in an air conditioned gym!

Laptop woes and holidays

Good morning! It's good to be back. You might not have noticed my absence, but I have been very aware of the lacking of blogging, networking and laptop in my life over the past week.

Such a long week...

Laptop woes

I had grand plans when I finished my blog tour of visiting all the people who'd commented on my blog and replying... But my laptop went away to be serviced. I waved it goodbye last Monday evening and waited. Then I vacuumed, and cleaned the bathroom, and washed the windows, and  gave the box of You. I. Us's a proper home.

Holidays

Then I went away for the weekend.... Yay! I went on a trip with my dad and sister to Bletchley Park, the Duxford Air Show and Milestones Museum in Basingstoke. I promised myself I'd take lots of photos, and then didn't. So, to illustrate my weekend away here I am, looking very scared, in front of the bar used in The Imitation Game, in a display at Bletchley... Ready?

Even though my New Year's Resolution was to take a selfie a day for the year, I'm obviously still very bad at taking them.

But this is one of the better photos I took, apart from this one, from the air show... Taking photos of planes is really hard. You should have seen the calamity of me trying to catch the F-22 fighter jet!

More laptop woes

We came home on Sunday evening, and I was still without my laptop. On Monday, I wandered the house, watched telly, read a book, wrote some notes for a new flash fiction, and went down into town to buy a mop.

Reader, there was no mop! I bought a duster instead.

My laptop didn't come home until late yesterday - Tuesday - evening. It was a harsh eight days (and I was away for four of them!)

But, I'm back!

And because I've done very little marketing in the past eight days, I'll just leave this here...

Find the book in all these places:

Amazon // Barnes & Noble // Book Depository // Kobo // iBooks // Nook

And add to your TBR list: Goodreads

Blog Tour: Day 15, finishing with Christine

It's been three weeks, ladies and gents, fifteen blog posts and countless comments, (plus three hot chocolate dates with friends and family - including one today!- and a completed round of edits for my WIP) and I've finally reached the end of my tour. Thank you all so much for sticking with me. I've enjoyed every second.

Huge thanks go out to the fifteen bloggers who made the tour a success with their fascinating and thought-provoking questions.

I'm heading to Christine Rain's blog today to discuss the most important element of a short story.

I'll leave you with one final picture of Artoo, and my leg - this is the view I had for most of the England v Wales game (the game we won during our Euro campaign) when he couldn't understand why I was watching telly instead of taking him for a walk.

Blog Tour: Day 14, shipwrecked with Stacey Bryan

It's been a busy day for me today - not only has Stacey Bryan shipwrecked me on a deserted island with a villain, I've been signing books at my local library.

In fact, as you read this, I'm still there, probably packing up. There will be photos to follow, probably next week when I've had a chance to breathe.

I couldn't find a picture of the library or a deserted island -funnily enough, I've never taken a photo of either! Here's a picture of St Michael's Mount just off the Cornish coast. Quite an easy place to escape from, due to being able to walk there and back during low tide.

Blog Tour: Day 13, being arty with Nicola

It's raining today. I had plans to go to the gym and be really busy, but I've woken up with really sore wrists and a headache. So I think I might take a relaxed day and read a book that I want to review for one of my author buddies.

While I hide from our weather, my blog tour is heading to Germany to visit Nicola Burgraff's Blog to talk about art.

This is a sunny photo to combat the rain. I'm not sure why I took this photo - it's just the end of my road - but apparently all photos can be useful eventually.

Here's another shout out for My Facebook Page and You. I. Us. Goodreads Page.