I do solemnly swear

1. That I will not buy another book until my to-be-read pile that is heading for the ceiling goes down by at least three books.

2. That I will not go rooting in any charity shops and come out with a carrier bag full of must-haves.

That I will totally ignore both the above when I am lured by the cover of a crime novel - it's all in the name of research obviously!

Moving on

Well, that’s it then. I’ve now read through the second draft of book two, amended all of the black ink squiggles, tied up the loose ends and now it’s ready to send off to my trusted three readers for feedback. I need to see if they understand what I have written, if it comes across as real, if the clues are there or too obvious. I have two niggles that I know I can fix on the next rewrite but I’m going to see if they pick them up. It might just be that I am too close at the moment.

So, what am I going to do now…?

I’m going to catch up on my reading, my emails (sorry folks if you’re waiting for one). I’m thinking of setting up a website so I’m busy writing ‘stuff’ for that. I’m going to try that old chestnut of short stories…well, I might. I just might have ‘summer’ off too.

Many thanks for all your well wishes too. My CT scan came back clear, which is good because it means that I don’t need any further surgery. What they can’t understand is what is still causing the pain. My last consultant (gastro) took all my scans and x-rays and files to a multidisciplinary meeting and I was ‘discussed’ but I am an unusual case (well, there’s s novelty). They are now back to the original problem of gyny and the original infection that I had still malingering.

But luckily for me, each month, (I wish I could say each week) is getting that little bit better. I still have huge problems once a month but I can cope with this rather than having it all the time. So for now it is suck it and see. I am working full time again, living life again so I’m keeping my fingers crossed that the problem gets easier and goes altogether by the end of the year. If not, it’s back to the drawing board. Women, hmm, who would be one…

Just what the doctor ordered

I've been to Suffolk this week for a few days with the Bloke from Stoke and Flynn. We've all had such a wonderful time, helped by the heatwave. The place we stayed in was amzing. As well as our garden, we had grounds of eight acres to wander round freely and the lanes outside went for miles. There was hardly a car in sight so we could let Flynn off his lead, he was in his element and snored his head off most nights. Yes, we could hear him!


I did do a little bit of work. I edited two thirds of book two, second draft. Well, I couldn't not do with so much peace and quiet and cider and Pimms and anything else to hand.

Flynn was an absolute darling. For a baby he did really well. There were twelve loose chickens which we had to warn him away from . This is him on chicken watch.
















All in all a fabulous time was had by the L-Plate clan!

Tonto Short Story Competition

One of my new resolutions at the beginning of this year was to try and get a short story published. As I have now finished the second draft of book two, I feel that maybe now is as good a time as any.

I know you lot out there have been doing really well with short stories. Really, really well. Whereas me, I have yet to see my name in print.

So to give me a nudge in the ‘write’ direction, I’m going to enter this competition.




















Care to join me? For more details

http://www.tontobooks.co.uk/proddetail.php?prod=Even-More-Short-Stories


I mean, just think about it. You can write about anything.

I made another book

I finished the second draft of book two today.

The bloody thing kept on growing. My first draft, the getting down to it draft, finished with 96,102 words, giving me lots of scope to add as I knew I would have to. I was aiming for approx 110,000 at the end of this draft. I am now just shy of 120,000 and I’m not sure if any of it will be cut. Not bad for five weeks work. I started the second draft on 18 May, had a wobble around 100 pages and also when I got to the middle but then it ‘kinda’ sorted itself out. I’m going to print it all out and take it away with me for a few days next week. The family, Flynn included (ohmigod!) are going to Suffolk. We so need a change of scenery after a stressful few months. Hopefully after that read through it will only need editing rather than developing. Then it can go to be read. I need feedback then as to what works, what doesn’t and as it is a crime thriller, can the reader guess the baddie, did I leave too many clues…

This book has been a marker for me. After a painful decision to scrap my first book and change genres to crime fiction, this is my second book in a series. There’s always that doubt there that you can’t do it again, that book one was a one-off. Writing book two has given me belief in myself again. I have eighteen drafts of my abandoned book. Eighteen! But do you know what, waste not want not as they say. On each of those edits, I learned something else. Something that made it that bit easier to understand for the…ahem…next draft.

Book three in the Mitchell Estate series was already part planned out and I was 8,000 words into it when I started to work with my mentor. Back to that one soon, I suppose. Well, sometime soon anyway, I’m having a well earned break (and a celebratory bottle of Southern Comfort). But then this work needs to be edited again before being sent off.

Does it ever end?

Would I really want it to?

Flynn's first birthday

I can't believe it. It has flown.

From this

to this

But he will always be my baby.

Through the dark days, he's brought so much sunshine and fun into the house.

Happy Birthday Flynn

Making headway?

I am busy working through the second draft of book two and although, I’m loving it, I am finding it sooooooooo hard. I mean, there are so many loose ends to tie up, so many things to think about that I fear my head will explode.

Book two is based around homeless teenage tearaways, female fatales, living together in a kindof halfway house on the Mitchell Estate. For this draft I have had to research drugs, teen pregnancy, teen alcohol abuse, miscarriage, knife crime, suicide and court injunctions. Some of the programs I watch on the television make the Bloke from Stoke look at me in a very peculiar way.

For example, I watched Tears, Lies and Videotapes. I watched a harrowing film made by a 34 year old heroin addict who filmed his angst, eventually dying (that was one of the most compelling, yet graphic things I have watched and I sobbed my heart out). I watched a series of programs about teen pregnancies, teen alcohol abuse and teen obesity. I’m watching the program tonight on self harm. No wonder I am stressing so much!

After reading through the first draft, I came up with a list of 122 bullet points. Some of them are really simple. Others are really silly. Others, I haven’t got a clue what I meant when I was in reading mode. Here are just a few of them

Book needs to be four months at the most. May – August
Need a better nickname for Squarehead
Page 142 what size will the baby be and how many weeks is she?
Page 154 – too many elevens? Becky was 11 when her mum died. Oh no, she was 7
Page 165 INJUNCTIONS need to find out about them
Page 170 – Paddy never hit Maggie unless they fought together but it would be no more than slaps
Remove Ricky the Rabbit – page 172
Before page 228 chapter 24, Becky and Jess do drugs, Becky has a bad do. Afterwards, Jess confides in her, telling her she is frightened and doesn’t want to turn out like Cheryl, selling her body to feed her habit and dead at 18? This is when Becky and Jess finally become friends
Page 239 need a name of pub
Page 279 can I get Kev with the knife in his hand as a chapter end?
Page 283, Mark’s surname. Have I got two Marks?????? Change one of them
Page 291 is she alive? Can I make this into a chapter end?
Page 333 – Austin needs to say that he dumped the body in the canal
Page 343 but did she? If so, it needs to be altered to remove (look at page 345 printed out)
Page 359 mention all the different bruises and injuries people have

After all that, I then have to show it to people. Once I have made sense of it all, I need to see if others can too. It is easy to write what you know, but do others understand what you were trying to say?

Ohmigod! Does it ever get easier?????

Would you believe it

The Bloke from Stoke has been complaining that there are no rats for Flynn to fetch out across the fields. Maybe this will explain why. This is what he fetched out at the weekend.

No wonder there are no rats. Steve Austin eat your heart out!

Cooking Bacon...

Okay, I may have been away for a while but some of the things that get people to my blog just amaze me. I've just been checking my stats and look what I found as one of the search questions that lead them to me...

Can you cook bacon on hair straighteners?

I mean,

bacon

hair straighteners









????????????????

I am lost for words.

Whoever you are...what were you thinking?

And please, please, please tell me that you didn't!

Back on the Blog

Hello

Is there anyone out there still visiting me after three months away?

The bad news is that I’m still ill. I’ve been back into hospital three times since February, had numerous tests, which I’ve waited weeks for each time and I’m no farther forward except to say that the pain I have is bearable because I am so used to it. I know what is not wrong with me now, after so much poking and prodding. At the moment I am waiting for a CT scan. I suppose by the time I’ve finished I will have had a proper MOT!

The good news is that I’ve managed to finish the first draft of my second book. I must admit sometimes it was a great pain blocker, other times I just couldn’t get on with it. But it stands at 97,000 words after I’ve read it through and I have been pleasantly surprised that there could be another book there in the making.

I love that first read through. For me, it's the best part of the writing process. I don’t know about you but the more I get towards the end, the shorter the scenes get as I rush to the climax (ooh, that sounded so rude!). I find words pouring out of me so quickly, so I just have to get them down. So the first read through is the only time I can read the book as a reader. Yes, I now the clues are there and I know the twists but the first read through I can actually say ‘oh, yeah you got your point across great there’ or ‘what the frigging hell were you meaning to write there’.

Anyway, as my life is still on hold, I know all youse lot out there have been living yours to the full. How are you all doing?

And I repeat, is there anyone out there still checking in? I've got a few things to tell you...