This is my favourite topic!
I’ve written about it in newsletters and blogs.
Essentially, I don’t work like a majority of authors.
For a start, I can’t work in public places as the noise would
disrupt me. As a practising psychologist, my writing happens
every chance I get between patient consultations, meetings
and conferences. I write weekends, early mornings prior to work,
evenings, nights and during holidays. In fact, I’ve not had a break
for a very long time. I enjoy my line of work very much but writing
is my passion. Both fit well together as my day job perfectly fit with
my genre, Character Driven Psychological Thrillers With A Noir Edge.
My writing routine:
Irrelevant of when I work on a book, I always work at my desk in my home
or work office. No disruptions, calls, messages, nothing except what I focus
on there and then. I read through what I’ve written the last time to get a sense
structure, sequence and, most importantly, a feel for the characters and storyline.
Without a flow and prose, points of views and being part of the scenes and dialogues,
my characters wouldn’t come across as intended.
I write in long stretches, so for ex if writing early mornings and late evenings
and weekends and holidays, I always work for at least four to five hours after
which I have a break, an hour’s walk to clear my mind, playing with my cat, Teddy,
who faithfully sits next to me in his old wooden box or in a favourite chair.
I continue working on my book/books for at least another four to five hours,
edit that day’s work and make notes on what to work on, improve and much more
prior to the next writing session. I write biographies of all characters, their interaction,
similarities and differences. My characters drive the storyline so must be satisfied
they come across as real people, relatable and identifiable.
The Swedish part of me is very organised, structured and self disciplined. All of it
helps to keep me ahead of deadlines and time to return to parts of the storyline
and plot that require more attention. You’d be right thinking my characters take
some time to create, develop further and the storyline evolves around them.
It’s the reason I prefer to write a synopsis later, usually when mid through the novel.
Because only then will I know exactly what outcome and tie up loose ends.
I’m Anglo Swedish, my birth place is Malmö, Sweden’s third largest city. I’ve been a performing musical artist when younger, come from a very cosmopolitan
family and background, British and Swedish parents. I’m bilingual and so far lived
longer in the U.K. than my native Sweden. I love writing every chance I get,
love my day job and all the wonderful people I get to meet and counsel.
I love animals and sports, couldn’t imagine a life without literature and am a ferocious
reader, mainly of my own genre, as well as cross reading.
I enjoy long conversations, travelling, lots of getting togethers over Fika ( coffee breaks ) In lovely cafes, parks and beaches, the spectacular scenery and nature in Malmö
and similar places in London.
I communicate well with all kinds of people, carry a notebook when out and about
even on the bedside table in case I come up with new ideas for characters and stories
when asleep! Characters come to me when I least expect it, and premises for
new storylines. I’ve so far never suffered with writer’s block and have many books
just waiting to be written in the foreseeable future. I make notes of new casts
of characters and novels, short stories and blogs. I enjoy socialising with special
people, friends and family, eating and cooking are favourite pastimes.
I’m very grounded, extremely communicative and a good listener.
Quite simply; I love life and have a positive outlook and attitude.
So far, I’ve written five books. Because Of You, We Never Said Goodbye, His Guilty Secret, and One Fatal Night which was published recently.
I’ve also written a short story collection, Who’s Sorry Now?
I’m working on my next psychological thriller, The Matchmaker.
One Fatal Night, set in Norway with an explosive plot, protagonists
I work to a brief plan, write the first couple of drafts and edit after I’ve finished the novel after which I and my editor collaborate on the editing process.
My writing’s very intuitive, the characters come first so must feel the storyline
works for and with them or I’ll change the story while still keeping the initial premise.
I don’t worry about that as long as everything fits with what I intended. My debut novel’s word count is over 140000 words, the others between
50-100.000.
I know exactly the sequence of what must follow each chapter. So no detailed synopsis until mid through the novel, but a very clear
and detailed content for each chapter and, of course, much emphasis
on my characters.
Getting the inspiration when I’m tired after a long day’s work. The isolation of working on my own with no one to discuss ideas with.
Apart from that, writing comes natural to me since I’m very used to working
without company and quite enjoy it. Living with my characters!
The progress when getting the characters and storylines just right. Feeling my characters emotions, being there in the scene with them,
and excitement when the story turns out just like I planned and intended.
Significantly, holding the book and feeling a sense of pride I Did it!
Getting positive feedback and comments from my readers mean the world to me.
Always write what you want and what comes natural to you.
Don’t follow trends and Never copy other authors.
Your voice and uniqueness are what truly makes you special.
I never read when writing my books and stories for fear others work
will influence me subconsciously.
Having a positive attitude helps a lot too! Oh, and patience!
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Tag Archives: routine
Marieke Nijkamp – My Writing Process.
What you have written, past and present.
I wrote my first book—or what felt like a book at a time—when I was ten or eleven. It was, effectively, fanfiction of my favourite book at the time. It certainly wasn’t a full length book, but once I started, I never looked back. I’ve written books and short stories ever since!
My first published novel was a contemporary YA called This Is Where It Ends, a story about a school shooting. It takes place over the course of fifty-four minutes and follows four teens who all have a reason to fear the boy with the gun. I followed it up with Before I Let Go, a YA murder mystery set in a creepy Alaskan town full of secrets, where one girl is trying to uncover the truth behind her best friend’s death. And now Even If We Break, a geeky YA thriller, but more on that later!
I also write comics and graphic novels, most recently The Oracle Code (with art by Manuel Preitano), a DC graphic novel about a young Barbara Gordon who has to solve the mysteries of a spooky Arkham mansion, all while adjusting to life in a wheelchair. And currently ongoing, Goosebumps: Secrets of the Swamp (with art by Yasmin Flores Montanez), about three girls, one swamp, and a whole lot of werewolves.
And just to complete the line-up, I also write short stories for MG and YA anthologies, and had the distinct pleasure of editing the anthology Unbroken: 13 Stories Starring Disabled Teens.
• What you are promoting now?
My most recent YA, Even If We Break is a cabin-in-the-woods thriller about five friends who plan to spend the weekend together to play the RPG that brought them together one last time. But their friendship has grown strained, there are secrets between them, and this is where the game turns deadly. Even If We Break is geeky, terrifying, and at its core a story about friendships and growing up.
• A bit about your process of writing.
I’m a fulltime writer, and I generally write every weekday. Regular office hours, with the evenings for administration, email, interview questions… and occasionally some gaming! I try to be sensible about keeping my weekends a little freer, because work-life balance is important too.
• Do you plan or just write?
Oh no, I plan, in detail! I’ve plotted books with spreadsheets and flashcards and entire character profiles. These days, I usually create a story bible in advance and a full outline with scene and character beats. It’s quite a bit of work beforehand, but I love it. If gives me a feel for the shape of the story and what needs to happen when. Even if some details end up changing between the outline and the story—or the balance between chapters changes just so.
• What about word count?
A rough idea of word count is absolutely part of the planning, but that also very much depends on what the story needs!
• How do you do your structure?
Chapter-by-chapter, question-by-question.
• What do you find hard about writing?
Writing is incredibly personal, and that’s terrifying sometimes. Whether it’s exploring parts of myself in characters or staying vulnerable to approach the emotional truth of a story, writing can be highly intimidating.
It isn’t easy, but then again, it doesn’t have to be.
• What do you love about writing?
I love stories. I love exploring new worlds. I love taking story threads and weaving them into narrative. Above all else, I love how stories shape us and how we can shape stories. I absolutely believe storytelling is what makes us human.
Even If We Break by Marieke Nijkamp is out now in hardback by Source Books.
My Writing Process Stephen Deutsch
I was born in New York, but have been living in Britain for fifty years! The first part of my career was spent as a pianist, composer and conductor. Many of my works have been broadcast on the BBC, especially as scores for their Classic Serial, but that was some time ago. I live in Dorset with my wife and her garden.
What you have written, past and present.
A late arrival to novels, I had previously written TV plays, some of which were broadcast on the BBC. My first novel, Zweck, a historical comedy about music, was published four years ago. It concerns a fictitious nonagenarian composer who knew everyone and hated most of them. In this novel, the main characters are fictitious but everyone else is real. It is set in the 1970s.
What you are promoting now.
My most recent novel, Champion, is a true story, a novel of persecution and heroism during the Second World War. It is based on the stories of two men from different worlds, both struggling in the febrile atmosphere of Nazi Dominated Europe.
The first is Herschel Grynszpan, dark haired, slight, with deep-set eyes. He is an undocumented Jewish adolescent living in Paris. He receives a postcard from his parents – recently bundled from their Hanover flat, put on a train and dumped, with 12,000 others, on the Polish border. Enraged, Herschel buys a gun and murders a minor official in the German Embassy. The repercussions trigger Kristalnacht, the nationwide pogrom against the Jews in Germany and Austria, a calamity which some have called ‘the opening act of the Holocaust’.
Intertwined is the parallel life of the German boxer, Max Schmeling, who as a result of his victory over the ‘invincible’ Joe Louis in 1936, became a poster boy of the Nazis. He and his movie-star wife, Anny Ondra, were feted by the regime – tea with Hitler, a passage on the Hindenburg – until his brutal two-minute beating in the rematch with Louis less than two years later. His story reaches a climax during Kristalnacht, where the champion performs an act of quiet heroism.
A bit about your process of writing.
I try to write every day. Usually I write in the morning and revise in the afternoon (often something I had written some days before – one chapter might be revised several times, even in the first draft). I try to read every word out loud, to get the sense of the rhythm of the words. This is especially true for dialogue, which I really enjoy writing. You can tell so much about a character by the slight variations in their speech patterns, not the ums and ahs, but the choice and order of the words they use. I like to feel that when the book is finished, I had written, read and weighed every word.
Do you plan or just write?
Both. I normally have a plan, but once that scaffolding is in place, I let the characters do the writing themselves. It depends on the story. In Champion, the events unfold as they actually happened, so I didn’t need to work out a plot structure. In the historical novel I am now writing, Dallas, fictional characters set in a real historical time and place, The structure is fluid, but to some extent needs to fit into the chronology of actual events. It isn’t set at the time of Kennedy’s assassination – I was at the parade, but didn’t witness the shooting. A story for another time.
What about word count?
Horses for courses, really. Zweck was a heavyweight, coming it at 120,000 words. Champion is leaner and meaner, only 80,000 words.
What do you find hard about writing?
Starting. It is a new problem every day. It’s easier to encourage myself to edit a previous chapter than to begin a new one. There are various subterfuges and helpers I can use to get started. Dictating some random thoughts onto a recorder can grease the wheels. A blank page is less terrifying if it contains even the smallest thought, the shortest sentence. Then you feel like going on. I also use a software package called ‘Scrivener’. This allows me to enter text, import web pages, and most importantly, to see and change the shape of the entire book as it develops.
What do you love about writing?
Almost everything. Each book, each situation teaches me new things. And of course the internet makes researching both pleasurable and far less tedious than it used to be – especially as I don’t live in a large urban area with libraries, etc., at my disposal. Sometimes, when researching a particular item, I accidentally find something else, which can liven up what I am writing. And the act of writing itself, passing the time with my characters, is immensely pleasurable.
Advice for other writers.
Whatever your style or genre, literary fiction or mass market romances, my advice is always to write as well as you can. Write every word. Spot clichés and either remove them, or turn them on their heads. For example, ‘You make a happy man very old’ is a great twist on a sclerotic saying. The best advice I can give is to enjoy what you are doing, do it every day, and while doing it forget everything else.
The Best Exercises For A Pert Bottom
Pert bottom exercises by British Military Fitness Instructor
Want a perfect bottom like Pippa Middleton? Then all you need to do is master the squat. The squat is commonly known as the “king of exercises”. It is a fantastic exercise; it targets all the muscles in the legs whilst also adding some strength and stability to the abdomen and lower back area and really targets the core. The squat also gets a large amount of upper body muscles engaged too. Here are just a few benefits to show why everyone should be including squats into their training routine.
Increase strength & power
Squatting should be one of the fundamental exercises for anyone looking to increase their strength. They have been proven to significantly increase lower body strength and power. This can have a whole range of benefits from those looking to improve sporting performance to those just looking to improve their lifestyle so that everyday tasks such as climbing stairs become easier.
Run faster
If you want to run faster, whether you are a distance runner or a sprinter, then you should be squatting. The speed at which you run is heavily influenced by your ability to apply force into the ground. To run faster, you need to apply more force. The best way to do this is to strengthen the lower body. Using squats to train the quadriceps, hamstrings and glutes will allow you produce more ground reaction force. For those who are distance runners, if you increase you 1RM on a squat then you will also improve you run time. Think of it this way. If you weight 70kg and have 1RM back squat of 70kg then you are going to have to recruit more motor units in order to propel yourself forward when running compared to someone who also weights 70kg but has 1RM on a squat of 120kg.
Increase muscle size
Squats are a great way to increase size of muscle tissue, not only in them legs but all over the human body. Developing muscle mass heavily relies on hormonal responses from exercise. Testosterone and growth hormone are two of the major muscle building hormones in the body. Squatting heavy and engaging the large muscles around the hips will mean you begin to produce huge amounts of testosterone. This release will also have a positive impact of other muscles as it flows through the blood stream. Combining this with some lighter load and higher reps will mean you start to feel a burning sensation within the legs, this burning sensation come from the build up of lactate and lactic acid within the muscle. When the body starts to get a build up of lactic acid you subsequently get a release of growth hormone. Theism just like testosterone is fantastic for this individuals looking to gain some muscle mass.
Torch calories and body fat
I want you to try something for me. After completing a thorough warm up, walk into a squat rack, load the bar with what is the heaviest amount of load you can possibly lift for 15 reps. Complete 4-5 sets of 15 reps whilst only taking around 60seconds rest between these sets and tell me how you feel. I guess you are going to feel extremely worn out and needing to sit down for a few mins ‘to catch your breath’. Completing this type of session will make the body move away from its safe environment of homeostasis and enter into EPOC (Excess Post Oxygen Consumption) meaning the body will need to take on additional oxygen to help you recover. This is accompanied by elevated consumption of fuels, particularly from fat stores. Using a tabata protocol for squatting (20secs all out / 10secs rest x 8) has been shown to elevate EPOC for up to 48 hours post exercise.
Here are list of squat variation exercises you can try to help you. Also included is a strength continuum chart to help you ensure you are working at the correct intensity, with the correct load, at the correct pace and with adequate amounts of rest depending on what you goal is.
|
Training Effect |
Reps |
Load (%1RM) |
Rest |
|
Strength |
1-5 |
80-90% |
3-5min |
|
Hypertrophy |
6-12 |
60-80% |
1-2min |
|
Endurance |
15+ |
>40% |
30-60secs |
Front Squat
Take a grip on the bar slightly wider than shoulder width.
Position the bar so it is just behind the clavicle and close to the throat.
Ensure the chest is high and push your elbows up and in.
Foot stance should be shoulder with apart or slightly wider.
Once in position sit back onto the hips slightly as the hips and knees simultaneously flex.
Push the knees out to ensure they track the toes and stay on the heels at all times.
Once you have broken parallel drive the heels into the ground extending the knees and hips.
Back Squat
Take the narrowest most comfortable grip on the bar for you range on movement.
Position the bar high on the back.
Pull the shoulder back and keep the chest up.
Pull down on the bar and push the elbows forwards.
This should create a natural ledge surface for the bar to sit on.
Once in position sit back onto the hips slightly as the hips and knees simultaneously flex.
Push the knees out to ensure they track the toes and stay on the heels at all times.
Once you have broken parallel drive the heels into the ground extending the knees and hips.
Bulgarian Split Squat
For this exercise you are going to need a bench and some dumbbells.
Take a hold of the dumbbells in both hands.
Elevate your rear foot on the bench and take a step forward with your front leg.
Ensure that the chest is high and shoulders are pulled back with a neutral spine.
Bend at the knees so you body is moving in a vertical fashion until your reach 90degrees in the front knee.
At this point drive back up and return to the top.
Complete the required reps on this leg before changing.
Jessica Ennis | People
Jessica Ennis is 9 stone of steely determination and today she has made Britain incredibly proud. The 26-year-old broke the British record in the 100m hurdles and won heptathlon gold for Team GB.
Down-to-earth and wonderfully normal for someone so gifted, Jessica has a fiance, Andy, who works in construction. She has been with Andy for seven years and he is three years older than her. They met in a night out in Sheffield even though they went to the same school.
She’s outspoken “When things don’t go well, I’m always really irrational and thinking, ‘Oh, my world is crumbling around me.'” and honest, saying before a game: “I get really anxious”.
Her ambition is obvious “The silver is a position I just don’t want to be in again. I’ve tasted that and I don’t like it.”
She missed out on the 2008 Olympics because of a stress fracture in her foot. Before the Olympics 2012 Marie Claire magazine asked her how it would feel if she didn’t get it, she said: “I don’t like to think about the negative or the possibility of things going wrong, because that’s just a really bad way of viewing it. It gets in your head.”
Jessica says she visualises every event going well, but not winning as there is “so much to come before that, and so much that can go wrong”.
She trains at the Sheffield’s English Institute of Sport and is the face of Olay Essentials range. She come across as a girl’s girl and says “I don’t even walk the dog without make-up. I’ve always been like that”.
Her beauty icon is Jennifer Aniston and she loves Bobbi Brown make-up. Her beauty routine is low-key, “I train twice a day so I’m always sweating, which is actually quite good for your skin. But I always wash, cleanse and moisturise so my pores won’t clog.”
Some idiot may have called her fat, but the world was outraged and she brushed it off. Jessica has a lot of pressure on those toned shoulders of hers, but she is handling it all with grace and beauty.