The best bits of 2018

Hello everyone. On this last day of 2018 I should really be doing a review of my year in writing, but I'm not! I'm just going to stick to the highlights. These were having three poems published by The People's Friend and having a poem published in Light Through The Mist Anthology late in the year. I also made a few appearances on the website of Visual Verse and Paragraph Planet. I am not dwelling on the rejections!

On location

Best workshop was the one I attended at CityLit on dealing with negativity/rejection in the writing world run by the most excellent Helen Cox, also the workshop on Flash Fiction by Michael Loveday at the Hastings LitFest.

At present I am editing a novel ! wrote three years ago and recently I went off to do a little research in the area where the house my character lives in is set. I had to clear up a few things that looking online doesn't really sort out. If the place you set a short or novel in is made up then you don't have to worry about this. However, if you set your piece in a real village, town or city then you need to get certain facts right. Of course the writer does have licence to alter some facts to suit the story, but otherwise it is great to have some first hand knowledge of the place you are setting your story in.

This time (because the house is most important) I have floorplans and have enjoyed placing the furniture on the plans! In fact it is so easy to get carried away with the research that it can interfere with the writing. I find I go off in all directions when I find something of interest which probably has nothing to do with the story.

Taking photos when out on location is essential. That's no hardship for me as I love taking photos. It's another thing I get carried away with it.

Wishing you all a very  HAPPY NEW YEAR and I hope you will join me again in the next.