Writing is definitely something that ebbs and flows. You have good months and bad months. October was very much Stoptober for me. I barely wrote a thing. I blame the lack of Rio-fuelled athleticism which kept me inspired throughout August and September!
Next month is NaNoWriMo, so I can excuse October as the calm before the storm. But I did get up to a few writing activities...
1. Book To The Future - The University of Birmingham hosted the fourth annual Book To The Future festival earlier in the month, which celebrates the spoken and written word. Myself and Katharine D'Souza delivered a talk about self-publishing for the third year running. It was attended by lots of inquisitive aspiring writers.
BTTF will always have a soft spot in my heart. Back in 2013, I attended Katharine's talk and it inspired me to write my first novel. Six months later I published The Sheriff and twelve months later I was Katharine's co-presenter! Check it out next year.
2. Birthdays - Two of my books celebrated their birthdays this month. It is two years since I published Breadcrumbs and one year since I published The Curse of Besti Bori. I honoured the occasion with two self-inflicted interviews, which you can read by visiting the links above.
3. Editing - I also revisited both books with the intention of stamping out any spelling mistakes before their anniversaries. I found quite a few spelling mistakes (oops) but it was a cathartic process. The improved versions will be published very soon.
4. Forgotten - I also wrote a short story for the Birmingham Writers' Group Winter Competition. The challenge is to write 1500 words around the theme of 'forgotten'. Regardless of whether I win, it will make a nice addition to my new short story collection.
So that was October. Here comes November. Bring on the storm!
Next month is NaNoWriMo, so I can excuse October as the calm before the storm. But I did get up to a few writing activities...
1. Book To The Future - The University of Birmingham hosted the fourth annual Book To The Future festival earlier in the month, which celebrates the spoken and written word. Myself and Katharine D'Souza delivered a talk about self-publishing for the third year running. It was attended by lots of inquisitive aspiring writers.
BTTF will always have a soft spot in my heart. Back in 2013, I attended Katharine's talk and it inspired me to write my first novel. Six months later I published The Sheriff and twelve months later I was Katharine's co-presenter! Check it out next year.
2. Birthdays - Two of my books celebrated their birthdays this month. It is two years since I published Breadcrumbs and one year since I published The Curse of Besti Bori. I honoured the occasion with two self-inflicted interviews, which you can read by visiting the links above.
3. Editing - I also revisited both books with the intention of stamping out any spelling mistakes before their anniversaries. I found quite a few spelling mistakes (oops) but it was a cathartic process. The improved versions will be published very soon.
4. Forgotten - I also wrote a short story for the Birmingham Writers' Group Winter Competition. The challenge is to write 1500 words around the theme of 'forgotten'. Regardless of whether I win, it will make a nice addition to my new short story collection.
So that was October. Here comes November. Bring on the storm!