Unfinished Thoughts Archives - Page 3 of 50

I actually know what’s coming next!

I have so many unfinished stories on my WiP stack, plus a flock? herd? whatever of plot bunnies in my life, sometimes, the hardest decision is what to write next. Actually, I can get epically stuck going through notes and stories, unable to decide what's coming next. Not so this time. I've been …

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2024: A Year for Progress

We made it across midnight and now I have to remember that the year is 2024. I started my morning by cheering that it was sunny and then wondering whether the beginnings and endings I'm usually so fond of retain their meaning as I get older. I've never been one for New Year's Eve parties, but …

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2023: A Year for Experiments or There’s (Some) Method in this Madness

One of my favourite newsletters is sent by Claire Taylor from FFS Media. I owe her my introduction to the Enneagram - all the way back in 2020. And it was the Enneagram which subsequently helped me realise that I was stuck and needed to ask for help. Fast forward to 2023, and one of her recent …

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It’s Rainbow Advent Calendar Time

It's December 13th, which means it's time for me to open the door on the Rainbow Advent Calendar. It's a month-long FB party organised by author Alex Jane that I try to take part in every year - even though I'm the absolute worst at writing to order. Yet with beautiful regularity I sign up having …

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Sunday Snippet: Ben sees something he likes

For today's Sunday Snippet, I've decided to look back at last year's Christmas novel, A Box of Wishes. It's the book I never thought I'd get finished, as it got caught up between first the Covid lockdowns and then me landing myself in a hole. Burnout or stress, I still can't say, but it took me a …

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Sycamore Gap: More than Roots and Branches

Headlines and news items that make me shake my head are nothing new. They come and go, sometimes in a trickle and sometimes in a wave, and I'm mostly resigned to people doing stupid shit I don't have a hope of making sense of. Last night's news took the biscuit, though. The tree growing in the …

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Room to Bloom | Strengths Reflections

I'm in the middle of a Strengths for Writers class and it’s throwing up all kinds of interesting thoughts. I enrolled in the strengths class particularly to improve my writing / book finishing speed, but of course my strengths show up in more than just my writing. And I'm coming to realise that …

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Sunday Snippet: Ryan is an odd duck

Welcome to today's Sunday Snippet, where I'm in the mood to ponder self-care. It's something I'm spectacularly bad at. Part of that is upbringing. I remember two colleagues of my mum's, both childless and both with time and resources to have beautiful hair, nails, and clothes, or to go abroad on …

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Sunday Snippet: Compromise in Action

Time for another Sunday Snippet! I'm working on the next Jack & Gareth stories, but I keep thinking about Gareth's issues in Grand Union Hunt. Not surprising seeing we love our canal walks, especially when the skies are wet and drippy. Mostly, though, because Jack faces very similar problems …

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Looking for a Distraction (or maybe a Hiding Place?)

Welcome to Zombie Week! Our clocks went forward last night, and I'm already dreading the coming week. Moving to summer time puts my internal clock out of whack, and every year it takes me at least a week of headaches and yawning at inappropriate times to adjust to the change. Over the years, I've …

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Guest Post: J. Scott Coatsworth Introduces The Dragon Eater

I'm delighted to welcome sci-fi and fantasy author J. Scott Coatsworth to the blog today to introduce us to Raven, the main character in his latest novel. The Dragon Eater. First in a four-book sci-fantasy series, The Dragon Eater is set on Tharassus, a recently colonised world the humans thought …

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Celebrating Anniversaries

It's Monday, and no wonder that today's post sees me musing about celebrating anniversaries. It's our 31st wedding anniversary today, and we're exploring Anglo-Saxon history and treating ourselves to a delicious Japanese meal. Over dinner, we'll remember places we've visited and things we've done …

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