Thursday's Children

Well this is my first Thursday's Children blog entry to talk about
what inspires me to write.  Other people inspire me in many ways.  I guess I've always been very much a people person - it's a bit of a cliche but it's true.  I'm interested in other people, what makes them tick, their worries and fears, their sorrows and joys.  When I'm out and about (usually on the bus!) I find myself looking at other people, registering their features and expressions.  Mind you I tend not to do this too much - people don't like being stared at, myself included!!

But I do find that people who I come in to contact with inspire me to a certain extent when I'm writing.  I don't present a carbon copy of people I know in my work, but I do draw elements of their personalities into the characters in my stories.  I think this is inevitable as a writer - you're always going to bring aspects of people you've met in your life into your writing.

Events that have taken place in my life have inpsired me too.  I won't go into details, but a story I abandoned some years ago was semi-autobiographical.  I would like to return to it at some stage, as although it is personal, I feel the story needs to be told and I'd like to revamp and improve it.

I'd be interested to know what inspires you too.

Here's the linky if you want to join in with Thursday's Children.

Another WIPpet Wednesday

I thought for this WIPpet Wednesday 27th February I would post the next 27 lines on from my last WIPpet Wednesday entry.  I don't have 27 chapters yet; I'm only onto chapter 4!  My story so far is about a woman who's just split up from her boyfriend who cheated on her.  She's feeling insecure and emotionally raw.  So here's the next 27 lines:

        She’d been so determined not to think of him at all, but now here he was intruding into her thoughts again.

‘You’re thinking about him again, aren’t you?’ Melissa’s voice brought her back from the brink.

‘Only a little,’ Anna said unable to keep her voice from trembling.  She flopped down into the comfort of the sofa, trying to swallow the lump in her throat.  Melissa sat down next to her.

        ‘That man is such an arse,’ she said.  ‘I mean really, Anna, I’d never known such an idiot until I met your man.  Hats off to you for picking a corker there!’
         Anna felt the lump lessen a little.  She smiled.  ‘You’re right of course.  He is an arse.’
        ‘Took you long enough to realise it.’
         Anna gave Melissa a playful punch.  ‘I suppose I was refusing to admit what he was really like because I wanted to believe that he was something else.’
       ‘Well you can’t say I didn’t warn you.’
       ‘Yeah, yeah all right.’
       ‘Hey, I’m only saying.’
       ‘I know, I know.’  Anna turned to face her friend.  ‘It’s just going to take me time to get over what he did and what happened.  I know what he’s like, I see that now but we did have some good times and I was convinced – he convinced me – that he loved me.  It will take me a while to get my head around the fact that he didn’t love me, or at least not enough.’
       ‘He did you wrong, Anna.  He cheated on you.’
       ‘He did.  He betrayed me.’

If you want to join in simply choose an extract of your current work in progress and link it to the date, so for example this being the 27th I've chosen 27 lines or it could be an extract from chapter 27 of your work.  You can share your WIP via the linkie on K. L. Schwengel's blog.  Have fun!

Continually inspired

Well I've been connecting with other writers on Twitter for almost a year now and I have to say it's really transformed my writing.  I write much more often and for longer than I used to.  In fact I've already written almost 10,000 words of my current work in progress in little more than a month.  Before I got going with Twitter, I wasn't half as motivated as I am now.  I didn't work as regularly on my writing and I didn't have the encouragement I needed to get going with it.

My husband kept encouraging me to set up a blog, which I eventually got round to doing with his help, but he said to connect with other writers I'd need to scour the internet to find them and link my blog to theirs.  This, however, proved nigh on impossible.  I found a few sites here and there of other authors but their blogs and websites seemed hopelessly out of date or not really relevant to what I was looking for.  Then my sister suggested I try Twitter.  She'd joined it and said it might be a way to connect with other writers. 

I was very happy when (after a false start in which I was apparently followed by a porn site!! - has that happened to anyone else??!!) I began to get some followers on Twitter and began to follow lots of other people myself.  This has made all the difference to me; I now have well over 1100 followers on Twitter and more people follow me every day.  I'm in contact with various writers and we exchange comments via our blogs - I've even met another writer face to face as we found we lived in the same city!  That has proved to be especially helpful.

To sum up I'm so much more motivated with my writing these days.  I work harder on it for longer periods of time and I'm definitely seeing the results.

What's your experience of Twitter and blogging been?

WIPpet Wednesday

Following the lead from my good friend Kate Frost, I've decided to showcase the first 13 lines of my current work in progress - as it's the 13th today - in line with the WIPpet Wednesday rules.  WIP stands for work in progress and the idea is to post a section of your current work in relation to the date.  So here they are:

‘That’s the last of them.’ Melissa looked at her friend with a relieved expression on her face.  Anna grinned back.
      ‘I’m so glad you’re staying,’ she said.  ‘It’s been pretty awful really.’
       Melissa put an arm around her shoulder and squeezed.  ‘Well it’s all in the past now.  It’s a new start for both of us.’
       Anna nodded and followed Melissa from the hallway full to the brim with suitcases and bags into the relative tidiness of her front room.  The world is your oyster, she told herself.  Or the oyster is your world as Elliot used to say.  Elliot.  She frowned. 

The story is as yet untitled, but it's going well.  I've done well over 7000 words since the middle of January, so I'm pleased!  I think things like WIPpet Wednesday are great opportunities to show each other work that we're in the middle of, to share ideas and to encourage each other.  I hope your work is coming along well too - but even if it's not, don't be afraid to share your vision of how you would like your writing to be.

Very Inspiring Blogger Award

Thank you to the very lovely Kate Frost for nominating me for the Very Inspiring Blogger Award!  I have to confess I hadn't actually heard of it before now, but I'm very grateful nonetheless to be nominated.

I've been given some instructions for what I should do now I've been nominated.  So here goes.  Firstly, 7 facts about myself:

1. I was born and grew up in Hampshire.  On visits to Winchester, I would often walk past the house where my literary heroine Jane Austen died.
2. My favourite novel is (you've guessed it!) Pride and Prejudice.
3. I went to university in Winchester to King Alfred's College which has since been renamed as the University of Winchester.  I much prefer the old name; it's a lot more unique.
4. I met my future husband when I was involved in a Norman reenactment society.  We reenacted Norman battles at castles around the country.  I say we - I declined to fight, preferring instead to stand on the sidelines watching dressed as a Norman lady!
5. I moved to Bristol after my husband Ian and I got married.
6. I love living near to Bath - what a wonderful city!  Shame Jane Austen hated it!  The Roman Baths have to be the best historical site I've ever visited.
7. I'm currently preparing my novel for self publication with the help of my husband.

So that's me.  I'm not sure I can follow Kate's instructions to the letter and link to 15 other blog sites, but I'll certainly link to a few.  Here's some I really enjoy:

Sinead McKenna
Martin Lake
Kerry Letheby

I wish you all the best with your writing and hope that you all have people who inspire you to keep on ploughing away at it.