{x-link:http://bardicblogger.wordpress.com/2012/03/09/beowulf-the-wonder-blood/}Beowulf - The Wonder Blood{/x-link}... [More]

{x-link:http://bardicblogger.wordpress.com/2012/02/24/voice-of-the-damned-the-zombie-apocalypse-continues/}Voice of the Damned - The Zombie Apocalypse Continues}{/x-link}... [More]

{x-link:http://bardicblogger.wordpress.com/2012/02/02/writing-believable-dialogue-2-style-choices/}Writing Believable Dialogue - Style Choices{/x-link} ... [More]

Description is something that escaped my writing for a long time. It can be difficult to strike the balance between description and action but without it the scene of your story is absent. There are a few things to remember when writing description: 1. Speed/Pacing Description changes the speed of a scene. It you spend a long part of your scene describing the surrounding scenery your story slows down whereas limited or brief description can speed up or dismiss the extra details. ... [More]

Some days you can feel overwhelmed by a project, worrying about how it’s going and whether it will work out. These are the days to free yourself up. People often emphasise hard work and routine with writing yet it’s also important to have free time and play. Your mind may figure out the problem while you are working on something else. When you are really struggling do something else for a while and then return to it later. This can be frustrating but get yourself back into the ... [More]

Creative writing, particularly with longer projects such as novels, takes a lot of focus and concentration. Not only do you need to be patient but you need to be able to think about the same story for long periods of time. Contrary to what people may think about the brain, focus is not something which you should push yourself to do excessively as this can cause overload and even push you away from writing because your mind has focussed too much on the same thing or on too many things at t... [More]

Timelines can be tricky in fiction. As I’ve mentioned previously it’s easy to get muddled up with your plot when writing in a non-chronological order. So let’s look in more detail about using flashbacks in practise. What are Flashbacks? These are scenes in which the events occur in the past and so they show you a situation or event that has already happened. The reason for using a flashbackis normally to reveal an extra bit of information from the past that has impacte... [More]

Grammar is a great and vital thing in the English language but sometimes it can get confusing. So let’s start with the colon and the semi-colon. The Semi-colon (;) First there’s the semi-colon. I love the semi-colon. It looks great, it serves wonderful functions but I’ve read different explanations of how to use it correctly. Some say it’s okay to use them to clear up confusing lists. E.g. She picked up a few things on her way, shoes, coffee, a green, furry ... [More]

Written, produced and directed by Joe Cornish who is better known as part of the TV comedic duo `Adam and Joe’. I’ve long held the view that British films could be more than what they are. As a sci-fi and fantasy fan, the UK always seemed to be lagging behind when it comes to the genre. The first time I felt this was beginning to change was when I watched Shaun of the Dead. Given that Joe Cornish was the producer, it’s no coincidence then that we see Nick Frost (Shaun of ... [More]

Dialogue that sounds unnatural can alter the entire tone of a story and the reader’s perception of your characters. Most people have watched films or read books where the character says something that seems unrealistic. Writing dialogue for the first time can be tricky. There’s a tendency for beginners to write dialogue in a way that over-explains, revealing everything through the words of their characters instead of their prose. This is an easy trap to fall into. Sometimes ... [More]

New writers seem to love using adverbs. If you read someone’s first drafts or early writings (including my own) you will often find that everyone walks softly and treads lightly and moves stealthily. These extra –ly words are known as adverbs or (sometimes) modifiers. So what exactly does an adverb do? An adverb adds an extra layer of description or judgement to your descriptions. In other words it gives you a bit of extra information to the verb. While they do have their ... [More]

The odd thing about trying to write unique stories is that, in doing so, sometimes the stories become more contrived and less unique. Something that new writers will often struggle with is how to be original. We are bombarded in our everyday lives with a wealth of information, ideas, stories, characters, plots, words, beliefs, values and so on… This throws up a lot of questions for writers: How do we write without being too biased, that is not interfering so much that our vo... [More]

Yay, time for a new blog city prompt. The question is: "If I were free to pursue absolutely any interest I wanted, what would I choose and why?" This is something I've thought about many times in my goal to actually decide upon a career course. My problem is really that I want to do everything (within reason). I would love the freedom to pursue whatever I decided at that particular time. Sometimes I imagine myself being a scholar, studying ancient texts. I have a love fo... [More]

Timelines in novels can be tricky. There can be flashbacks, flashforwards, multiple viewpoints, streams of consciousness and non-linear plots. It’s easy to lose track or make continuity errors when writing stories, particularly in long works of fiction. Some writer’s like to keep track combat this by keeping meticulous records, diagrams, folders etc with all the events in order of sequence. I tried that once but personally it doesn’t work for me as it diverts me from thin... [More]

I often hear people say that they hate fiction with the f-word. People will say things like `it’s nothing but the F word. It’s all swearing. There’s too many profanities,’ yet is swearing a valid expression within fiction and when does it become too much? Personally, I don’t mind a bit of swearing. I don’t think that it’s always appropriate but sometimes it is more realistic. In fact I find that attempts to cover swearing can stand out even more th... [More]

The Tommyknockers is a book by Stephen King right? One which was adapted into a two-part TV miniseries about the influence of an alien spaceship on the inhabitants of rural town. For many years I assumed that Stephen King had invented the name Tommyknockers but I always wondered if the name came from somewhere else or had more meaning to it. So curiosity finally got the better of me and I looked it up. It turns out that there is some history behind the name: The (Tommy) Knockers - H... [More]

Words of inspiration from the legendary writer "You must keep sending work out; you must never let a manuscript do nothing but eat its head off in a drawer. You send that work out again and again, while you’re working on another one. If you have talent, you will receive some measure of success – but only if you persist." ... [More]

When writing we can often fall in love with our characters and stories, which isn't such a bad thing. This can, however, become a problem if we become so enamoured with our stories that we forget that something needs to be happening for them to be interesting. After all a story is a series of events, a narrative or an experience told from the perspective of one or more characters'. So how can we increase the excitement in a story? How do we make it important for so... [More]

For a long time now, i’ve struggle to find an exact answer for what length each type of fiction should be. each person or organization seems to have their own ideas about this and it can be difficult to differentiate between the options. So how do we know what the difference is between micro fiction and flash fiction? How can you tell if you’ve written a novel or a novella? There are no simple answers but if you’re entering a contest or submitting to a specific publicati... [More]

One thing that you’ll find as you try to progress with your creative writing is that you’ll pick up a lot of `shoulds’ and shouldn’ts: I should write in one genre I shouldn’t write that type of story as it has been done before. I should follow everyone else’s advice instead of my own as they must know better. I should write daily or be quicker/slower/more perfectionist/less perfectionist in my writing/editing. When you start hearing all these... [More]

The writer‘s mind is a strange place. We often go places that others find hard to understand. We live with a nagging voice that says `finish that project’, `write that scene’ as well as an overactive imagination that sees possibilities (and obstacles) in everything and frequently interrupts our day. We may look like we are doing nothing but could be thinking out some scene or dialogue in our head, trying to work out plot points or daydreaming of new, interesting sett... [More]

The writer‘s mind is a strange place. We often go places that others find hard to understand. We live with a nagging voice that says `finish that project’, `write that scene’ as well as an overactive imagination that sees possibilities (and obstacles) in everything and frequently interrupts our day. We may look like we are doing nothing but could be thinking out some scene or dialogue in our head, trying to work out plot points or daydreaming of new, interesting sett... [More]

Chances are a lot of epics did not intend to be epics and instead took on a life of their own as the author realised that he/she needed more time and more scenes in order to complete the story. The concept of writing an epic novel is daunting but it needn’t be. Some people will start by planning their entire series but personally I prefer to create the story as I go along, thinking ahead a little at a time. The only danger in doing this is that you can end up going nowhere or taking ... [More]

PROMPT FOR SEPTEMBER 15, 2011: HOW DO YOU KNOW WHEN SOMEONE IS YOUR FRIEND? It took me a long to time to distinguish between real friendship and acquaintances. Acquaintances are people you know that you may meet with from time to time. They may even sometimes wander into the realm of friendship but a true friend is more than someone you just chat to occasionally. Someone is your friend when: 1. They care about you and you about them. 2. They give and take rather than just take. ... [More]

There are many ways to start a story or novel but when you first start writing fiction it’s very tempting to give away too much history (or back-story) Show vs Tell You’ve probably heard the phrase `Show don’t tell‘. It’s mostly true. I say mostly because sometimes telling can be a powerful narrative tool and can work in some cases, but often, with fiction, it would be better to show the audience more and tell the audience less. Imagine your story is... [More]

Reading inspires empathy. When we read a good story we follow the ups and downs of the characters travelling on their adventures with them. The same applies with writing characters In order to create a good sense of characterization a writer will often learn to engage in a bit of people-watching. No, I don’t mean that you should follow strangers around observing their every move, like you’re doing a field study. As with all things people-watching should be done in moderation.... [More]

Conventions are the norms, the agreed upon rules or scenarios we see in everyday life: Surprise birthday parties, dress-down Fridays, waiting ages for a bus and then two show up at once, spooky noises in the middle of the night etc. Of course, these will occur in Fiction, Television, Films and other storytelling media as but sometimes we can take the norms, use them, adapt them, bend them, sometimes even break them, shattering them into pieces. There’s a few differen... [More]

Directed by Daniel Barnz, Beastly is a Fantasy film, based on the novel (also named Beastly) by Alex Flinn. This is yet another film adaptation that I haven’t read the book for but that didn’t stop me enjoying this romantic story. So, everyone knows the Beauty and the Beast story and this film doesn’t hide this fact, but not everyone has seen it done in this way. In this version, the main character, Kyle is cursed by a witch with `ugliness’ in order to teach h... [More]

This weeks prompt at Velvet Verbosity.com is Whimsy. Here’s my 100 Words: Stop the Madness! In spite of everything, whimsy isn’t dead. No I’m not talking about a person with an odd name. I’m talking about imagination. There have been rumours circulating recently that e-book publishers are going to start adding sound effects to e-books. From what I can see on Google, this is already happening. In fiction, this seems to go against what a book is. The point of... [More]

MOST AVID READERS WILL HAVE SEVERAL FAVOURITE BOOKS FROM THEIR CHILDHOOD. I’ve already mentioned a few of mine in this blog, but some still resonate and so I’ve decided to share one of them with you today: The Snow Spider – Jenny Nimmo I didn’t even remember that this was part of a trilogy. I don’t know if I even read the other two books nor do I remember the TV series. What I do remember is re-reading this book several times and enjoying it every ti... [More]

Today's blog entry is a Puzzle Poem over at Wordpress.com {x-link:http://bardicblogger.wordpress.com/2011/09/05/mystery-worlds-within-words-puzzle-poem/}Mystery - Words Within Worlds (Puzzle Poem){/x-link} ... [More]

It’s true that I’m fond of werewolf books but it’s hard to write one that is completely original. This book isn’t one that suffers from a lack of originality at all. The story revolves around Alice White and she’s a werewolf. Not the angsty, running wild through the forest late at night type. No, she locks herself in a basement every month with a big bag of dog food and avoids permanent commitment and keeps to herself. The main character also sees a psy... [More]

IF YOU’RE LUCKY YOU CAN WRITE ANYWHERE AND AT ANY TIME, IN CAFÉS, ON TRAINS, FIRST THING IN THE MORNING OR LAST THING AT NIGHT. If you’re like me doing anything in the morning that requires any kind of thinking is out of the question. When I drag myself out of bed and then sit clutching my morning coffee in the living room, I’m not planning to do anything until my brain wakes up. I am never inspired in the morning. Yet, between the hours of 11pm and 2am, I’m wid... [More]

PERSONIFICATION – GIVING LIFE TO THE INANIMATE 1. WHAT IS PERSONIFICATION Personification is a literary technique that has existed for several hundred years. It is where the writer applies HUMAN QUALITIES to INANIMATE OBJECTS, ANIMALS OR CONCEPTS. To personify something is to `EMBODY’ it. 2. WHY DO WE USE IT? Many descriptions using personification are also metaphors or similes and bring life to an otherwise dull description. They are used to create a sense of feeli... [More]

My entry for this months writing prompt at {x-link:http:www.velvetverbosity.com} Velvet Verbosity :{/x-link} This follows on from the previous entry: {b-entry:732569} THE WATCHER – PART 2 Outside her house she could see someone standing in the rain, silhouetted in the remnants of the dying streetlight. Two eyes watched her. She tried not to think about it but the immovable figure’s presence unnerved her. What kind of madman stood in the middle of a storm? That wa... [More]

It begins with a spark, as most things do. you have an idea for a story and you want to write but you don’t know how to start. FIRST LET’S LOOK AT THE PURPOSE OF THE BEGINNING: The opening of any work of fiction is the part that catches people’s attention. Many people will stop reading if they don’t like the first scene or (like me) may read a few more pages to see if it picks up. Some readers forgive poor starts if the rest of the story is compelling, others... [More]

It occurred to me recently that stories aren’t flat, they are round. They’re 3D images of a world and its inhabitants a rich, deep well of the human consciousness. We read the words and a whole fictional reality forms and draws us into its orbit. All things on Earth that exist in the human mind can be written about and shared and I’ve seen more original flash fiction on the internet recently than I ever knew was out there which just shows me that there are more writers than... [More]

Happy Birthday {r-user:blainecindy} It's your birthday and you have been granted three wishes. What are they? Write about them. Wishing is a tricky business. It requires you to know what you want and we often want several different things. We have wishes, goals, hopes, dreams but what we don't have are the answers to what we should wish for and what will lead us to the best place. At the moment I would wish for three things. In no particular order of p... [More]

My entry for this months writing prompt at: {x-link:http://www.velvetverbosity.com}Velvet Verbosity{/x-link} : The Watcher In the depths of the night there is a random grey creature, pale-faced and ashen. She sits in her car watching the people come and go. Such normal lives compared to her own life.Then she looks again and sees the absurdity of each and every soul on the planet. How we conflict with each other. Never knowing or seeing who or what we truly are. Every time she thoug... [More]

We’re told that storytelling has been around for a very long time, yet that in earlier days it was more formulaic and more geared towards cultural propaganda, especially in the early epics (The Odyssey/The Aenead). We are even told that it was a way of retelling history, keeping alive morals, stories and events yet I think there’s more to it than that. If that’s all true then why do people who have no interest in doing those things have a desire to write stories. So the... [More]

Okay, so I’m relatively new to Lovefilm.com, a postal DVD rental service, but so far it’s been great and well worth the money. Last night was the turn of Knight and Day. This film was directed by James Mangold who also, impressively, has Girl, Interrupted, Walk the Line and 3:10 to Yuma under his directorial belt and is about a young woman (Cameron Diaz) who gets tangled up in the world of a spy (Tom Cruise). As I watched it, I couldn’t help but make parallels with Ja... [More]

People who know me will laugh at associating anything cooking- related with me, But let’s have a bit of fun and pretend. Welcome to the bardicblogger/a thinker never sleeps cooking show. Here on WordPress today we’re going to be making a batch of inspiration. First here’s what you’ll need: Ingredients Stability – Too much chaos in your life, contrary to popular opinion, can actually hinder your inspiration. Sometimes it’s near imp... [More]

Surprise Blog Prompt from {r-user:blainecindy} Are you afraid of death? Write about your feelings on the subject Ooh, ouch. My feelings... Terror, fear, anxiety. I'm afraid because I know that I can't possibly know what will happen. No matter what views I consider on the matter, I know that I can't ever know the truth about what happens. What terrifies me the most is the thought of there being nothing at all. Someone famous once said `Energy never dies, it j... [More]

I once thought that writer‘s block was something that just happened, something spontaneous and unpredictable. Yet for years and years, I have never experienced more than occasional lack of inspiration until the last few years. I wasn’t even sure it really existed. I believed that I was either inspired or I wasn’t and I followed that instinct. I still worked hard of course to improve my writing but I allowed myself to follow ideas and for a long while I didn’t mind the ha... [More]

HERE’S THE BASIC WAY TO REVISE/EDIT YOUR NOVEL Read through a bit at a time and make changes. Repeat several times until moderately satisified (let’s face it we are never 100% satisfied) Okay so it’s not that simple, there is far more to think about grammar, voice, plot, character and much more, but that’s the crux of it. I spent ages trying to work out how to revise my first big novel. I thought it was near impossible at one point to get everything done. I tr... [More]

It seems to me that what suffers in a recession the most, is our hope, or rather our perception of the world. Our viewpoint shrinks, our opportunities and dreams seem further away as if they’re slipping from our grasp, but they aren’t. The world is just as large and there is just as much of the important stuff as there was before. In fact, it’s in the worst times that hope breaks through and we find the true hero within. Remember this, when you have your ups and downs: ... [More]

You try your best, put in a lot of work with your writing and you still feel like you’re getting nowhere. Usually this point of view comes along with stress and frustration. What’s really happening is that you’re beginning to doubt yourself and are probably sorely in need of a rest. Every writer gets times when they believe everything they’ve written is worthless. It’s a fact of life that on some days you can’t seem to get anything right with your work and on... [More]

{b-entry:731735,} Or you can read it at wordpress: {link:http://bardicblogger.wordpress.com/2011/08/17/the-mirror-path-strange-depths/}... [More]

"Trends, like nostalgia, pirouette, returning again and again into our lives." I’ve noticed a few trends recurring this year in the world of fantasy. Granted they’re always there under the radar but I’ve spotted a few patterns in what’s hot this year in books, films and television. So here’s the current breakdown: Going Up 1. Mythical Monsters – Along with sword and sorcery, heroic fantasy and epic fantasy, dragons are making a... [More]

I grew up in an age of stories. Stories that could be read, could be seen on a big screen and could be experienced. One of my earliest memories is of watching films and getting caught up in the action and adventure. I was a big fan of fantasy, even then, especially sword and sorcery. I watched Conan the Barbarian, Red Sonja, Dark Crystal, Labyrinth was a favourite, Willow, Star Wars and everything that had a big story that caught my interest. Yet it wasn’t all fantasy. My mother was a ... [More]