Tag Archives: writing

My Writing Process – Emma Eker.

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I’m a searcher – always have been, potentially always will be. I’ve questioned the status quo from the moment I had the capacity to do so – finding myself dissatisfied and unconvinced with the answers I was given. I mention this so you may understand that I spent my whole life pushing boundaries, rebelling against ‘the machine’ and searching for the Truth. This quest came with a restlessness that ensured I couldn’t stay still for any substantial amount of time, moving from place to place, job to job and person to person for as long as I can remember – I was always trying to get ‘there’… destination unknown. 

What you have written, past and present.

Apart from writing a teenage diary, essays for my psychology training, helping friends formulate emails and blogging through social media, my professional writing CV, up until this point, has been limited! Until recent years, although with a great love for writing, I am not sure that I considered utilising this in any particular way, either professionally or for any paid or altruistic offering – it simply wasn’t in my consciousness awareness to do so.

What you are promoting now.

My book is called “Liberation”. It has been a labour of love and is predominantly a solution-based memoir, highlighting my journey through life – moving through addiction, heartache, temporary loss of Self and many of the trappings of the human experience. I have always been solution-based, always aware that life is magic and benevolent and therefore I could not, would not, write a book relating to struggle without presenting the reader with a solution. Too many books in the mainstream point to the ‘problem’, providing identification but little or no hope for the eradication of that which the reader may be battling with. I believe we are all whole and perfect, but for our belief systems and this is what Liberation allows the reader to see. 

3. A bit about your process of writing.

If anyone is looking for ‘good advice’ from me in this area, they may be disappointed! My writing process has been totally haphazard. Some days / weeks I would be in ‘the zone’, writing flowing, immersed in the creative process and other times, my laptop would be left unattended whilst I found it more important to do absolutely nothing at all! Many a time I have found myself in judgement around my process, but I have come to see that everything happens perfectly and in divine timing. What I will say is this, I have learnt to hear and to listen to the still quiet voice within me that taps gently in order to gain my attention and nudges me in the right direction. When the ‘knowing’ comes knocking, I know it’s time to put fingers to keyboard. 

4. Do you plan or just write?

Absolutely no planning whatsoever. I truly trust my writing process and I go with what feels right, rather than what I could have set out in black and white with regard to a structure. I have never worked logically, despite being thrown into a system that required it. I must be honest and say I don’t think I ever planned any of the book at all. Everyone’s process is different though and we need to find what works best for us which is simply a matter of trial and error. I know that when I sit down in front of my computer with the intention to write, the words will flow through me and if they don’t, I recognise it isn’t the right time. For me, the trick is to take my thinking mind out of it and go with the (creative) flow.

· What about word count?

With “Liberation”, there was no specific word count. I made the decision to self-publish rather than write for a traditional publishing house who may have required a certain length of manuscript.   

· How do you do your structure?

There was no specific structure, although, before I made the decision to self-publish, I was in discussions with a traditional publishing company who had asked me to draw up a synopsis and provide a rough chapter breakdown. I did, on some level, find this helpful to refer to as the writing process began. I held the structure loosely, understanding that the ‘story’ would unfold and become clearer as time moved on. Therefore, the format continually changed as the writing flowed and took on different directions, but it was useful to at least know the direction in which I was headed.  

· What do you find hard about writing?

At many times, thoughts, ideas and words would flow into my mind incredibly quickly and leave just as quickly making it difficult at points (not to mention incredibly frustrating) to grab hold of and capture them. Because I have a perfectionist within me, I would find myself continually editing, editing and re-editing some more which again, can be incredibly frustrating. I have however learnt, that if there is something that needs language which I temporarily ‘forget’, it will revisit me again to make its way onto the page. Moving out of my own way to make way for the creative process has also been a challenge for me, left vs right brain – practice is the name of the game. 

· What do you love about writing?

It’s an interesting question. Is it enough to say that it feels like an extension of who I am? I love putting words together and creating something that touches or resonates with another human being in order to gain identification and understanding. The ‘writing zone’ is a very real thing and I love getting lost in here.

· Advice for other writers.

If you feel there is something you have to offer and have a desire to write, trust it. Do not give up. It does not always feel easy to take what is inside of us and give language to it ‘out there’ and at many times you may feel you are in a battle with and up against yourself, but you must trust your heartfelt desire to do it. For if it wasn’t yours to do, you would not have the desire in the first place. And remember, everything has its ‘perfect’ time, so trust that too!

 

Liberation by Emma Eker is out by Spiffing Covers on 28 January. You can buy a copy of Liberation by Emma Eker via her website or Amazon.

 

My Writing Process Alex Knight

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Howdy, all! I’m author Alex Knight — best known for my genre-warping fiction whose popularity commonly crashes global markets. Also, my humility. I used to be a ghostwriter for romance novellas and science fiction novels, but these days I write my own books, primarily in the genres of Fantasy and LitRPG. 

What I’ve written, past and present?

Aside from my ghostwriting work — which I can’t legally talk about — my work includes the Nova Online trilogy, a sci-fi, LitRPG adventure we like to bill as “Halo meets Ready Player One.” If you’re into science fiction, RPGs, and coming of age tales that pit their protagonists against tyrannical, dystopian governments, then you’ll probably dig it. Did I mention it takes place in the real world and a video game? I like to think it’s a lot of fun.

What you are promoting now?

Most recently, I’ve taken a pivot into Fantasy with my debut fantasy thriller, The Far Wild. It’s a classic adventure story about skyships and expeditions gone awry in the most dangerous wilderness known to man. It’s full of beasties with too many teeth, bombastic characters, and beasties with too many teeth trying to eat bombastic characters. Of course, there’s a bit of espionage, too, and no story is complete without a dose of looming societal upheaval, right? I grew up loving Michael Crichton’s Jurassic Park and The Lost World, and The Far Wild is my love letter to those stories. It’s been released as an Audible Original, which means it’s an audiobook and Audible brought in an incredible cast to voice the main characters. I wrote the words, but my goodness did the narrators bring them to life!

A bit about your process of writing?

Consistent. Simplistic. A gift to all humankind — just a few descriptors I wouldn’t use to describe my writing process. Realistically, writing is a wild process and how I do it changes every couple of months. Some things stay the same (butt in chair, music up loud, world ignored), but I’ve found if I write in one place for more than a few weeks my creativity fizzles up. I like to bounce between writing on a desk at home, on the couch, out on the balcony. Or, better yet, in libraries and cafes. Of course, that hasn’t really been an option with Covid, so I’ve taken to placing a camp chair in different, odd places around the house and pretending I’m somewhere else. It’s amazing how well you can tune out your surroundings with the power of noise cancelling headphones and loud, loud music.

Do you plan or just write?

You know, I’ve experimented with both ways. When I was a ghostwriter, I had to plan ahead of time so the client could understand and write off on the story. With practice, though, I’ve found that planning too much ahead of time stifles creativity in a story. I now much prefer to write out a loose plot, then follow it vaguely as I write and make sure I let my mind go where it’d like. That’s where the magic is found in writing, in my opinion. Right on that line between what you planned and where your creativity wants to take you.

What about word count?

I aim for 2,000 words a day, which is a reasonable, sustainable rate for me, and track my progress via a project tracker spreadsheet. Lately, though, I’ve been finding it easier to simply paste chapters into a manuscript first draft document as I write them. This way, I have it to refer to for an up-to-date word count, chapter word count, and it’s super easy to make control + find changes. 

How do you do your structure?

I learned pretty much everything I know about structure and plotting from 1. reading books I enjoy and 2. K.M. Weiland’s website. There’s a bunch of great resources there and I recommend it for every aspiring author. There’s a particularly useful chart on the site that outlines the basic three act structure most stories follow. I like to put my own spin on this by weaving a lot of questions into the story, then answering them bit by bit as the plot progresses. This helps me keep the story moving quickly and make it satisfying as we’re on a constant drip feed of answers.

What do you find hard about writing?

The desire to do it as well as I can. There’s always that voice inside saying “you could do this better,” or “you should have written this this way.” Silencing that voice is key to finishing, well, anything you write. There’s always a compromise you must find between quality and speed. You could blaze the book out in a month or you could take forever doing edits and rewrites. The sweet spot lies somewhere between those, and finding it is a unique journey for each book.

What do you love about writing?

The act of doing it. Creation. I love nothing more than sitting down, cranking the music, and diving into a fantasy world to find out what happens next. Fingers tapping on the keyboard, cursor flying across the page — that’s what I live for. When you’re at that perfect spot between a tight plot and a loosely planned story, magic happens. You surprise even yourself, watching the plot unfurl in unexpected ways. In that way, I, as an author, get to experience the story in a fresh way. It’s much better than knowing every twist and turn ahead of time.

The Far Wild by Alex Knight is available exclusively on Audible now.

 

My Writing Process Terence Gallagher

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My writing routine:

I spend a lot of time working out in my head what I am going to write before I commit anything to my iPad which is my preferred writing tool. Only one to two hours a day is spent typing. I like to work out phrases and dialogue while I’m out walking my two Irish Setters or riding my bike. I also do a fair amount of research while I’m on the go. I use my iPhone in coffee shops to surf the web as I nail down the details of locales I am using, or to check historical facts. 

A bit about me:

I am Irish. I grew up in Dublin in the sixties. I am a proud graduate of  Trinity College Dublin. After College I went into management consultancy and ended up working in a wide variety of cities and countries worldwide. I am married with three grown children and split my time between Naples Florida, and Howth, a small fishing village north of Dublin. In both cases I live by water. I find it therapeutic to look out on a seascape whether it be the Gulf of Mexico or the Irish sea. My hobbies include, biking, working out, and walking. I am a music lover with a particular affinity for classical and Blues. My home in Howth  stands on an acre and this has made me a reluctant gardener.

What I have written, past and present:

So far I have published two novels, Fujita 4, and Analyst Session. Both of these are available as ebooks and in paperback. I also had Fujita 4 professionally narrated and it is in audiobook format. I found it very exciting to have my characters brought to life and given a voice by a skilled actor. I am currently working on my third novel, A Coup in Makati.

What I am promoting now:

 Analyst Session was just recently published and I am busy with promotional activity. It’s quite a juggling act to stay on top of PR for one book while trying to make progress on the next.

My writing process:

I use Scrivener word processing software to structure the outline of a book before I begin writing in earnest. Scrivener is specifically designed for authors. I create a summary of each chapter. I also use it to store sketches of  all the major characters and to keep research notes. I then methodically work my way through from start to finish of the book. This means that each day I know what I have to work on next and I can keep from being overwhelmed by the magnitude of my task.

What about word count?:

As regards word count I go in aiming to create a work of between sixty and seventy thousand words. If I know how many chapters I have outlined, I roughly know how many words a chapter. This helps  me figure out where the plot is light or I need to do more with characterisation. I run work in progress through Grammarly. This is a decent software package that will catch typos and many grammatical errors. 

How do I create my structure:

It starts with the central character. I have to really know and understand him or her. Its as if they stand alone on an empty stage. I then like to create life situations which test my protagonist’s moral belief system. The milieu in which this plays out will be a place where I have lived or spent significant time in my own life. It’s easier to have the settings for the story be realistic. Other characters whose actions will precipitate the moral conflict then come to life. 

What do I find hard about writing:

The most challenging aspect of writing for me is communicating the interior emotional life of my characters, particularly my female characters. The daily word output slows dramatically when I am wrestling with this. 

What I love:

What I love about writing is conceiving a cast of characters, placing them in my fictional world, and seeing how they react and evolve. They tend to take on a life of their own. It wreaks havoc with the plot-line a lot of the time but I wouldn’t have it any other way.

Advice for other writers:

Advice I would have is take advantage of some the great software out there to help with the writing process. I have also used a variety of professionals to help edit and polish my work. I have used Reedsy and Fiverr to hire these and by and large it has worked out well for me. 

Georges Simenon, the author of  the Maigret stories was able to crank out a book in eleven days! It took Flaubert five years to write Madame Bovary. Every writer has their own pace. Writing is a solitary activity. It requires self discipline. All sorts of distractions can get in the way if you let them. It is important to have some sort of routine and schedule when setting out to write something.

Analyst Session is available as an ebook or in paperback from Amazon.

My Writing Process CJ Daugherty

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I’m a former journalist and ex-Whitehall civil servant. I was raised in Texas, but have lived in Britain most of my adult life. 

I’m the author of the boarding-school thriller series, Night School, and the US-based crime series, The Echo Killing, set in the southern town of Savannah. 

My new novel, Number 10, follows the 16-year-old daughter of the new prime minister as she rebels against the constraints of living in Number 10 Downing Street, and the intense security that surrounds her. When she stumbles across a Russia-led plot to kill her mother and replace her with a puppet prime minister, she’s determined to stop it. But will anyone believe her? 

 A bit about your process of writing. 

I discovered long ago that trying to write in the morning was pointless for me. I use mornings for admin and other work, and I usually settle down to write at about 3pm. I turn off the internet and the phone, and I write for four hours straight, stopping at around seven. If the writing’s going well, I often pick it up again after dinner and write until midnight. 

 CJ Daugherty

Do you plan or just write?

I plan a moderate amount. My first step is always a one-page synopsis, which I share with my agent. If she likes it, I expand it to two pages, and then to eight. My theory is, if I can’t get eight pages out of the plot, I don’t have a big enough of an idea for the book. Once I do have that much material, I sit down to write chapter one. 

What about word count?

Word count for me is a tale of three halves, basically. In the first 10 chapters of the book, I’m happy if I reach 500 words a day. From chapter 10 to chapter 20, I expect 1200 words a day. After chapter 20, if I don’t reach 2,000 words a day, it’s a bad day.

 How do you do your structure?

My structure is freeform, but I shoot for a W-shape to every plot. Start on a high. Then develop character and explore the plot. Build to a mid-book crescendo. Then dip the pace a little as the characters investigate the main incident and I thread in b-plot and c-plot. End on a high. One of my books (A Beautiful Corpse) ends with the main character deploying a baseball bat against a murderer. Nothing like a fight scene to get the story moving.

 What do you find hard about writing?

It’s very hard for me to be patient with the amount of time it takes to conceive of and create each book. Even once I’ve got the idea and it’s begun to take shape, there’s still months of thought and planning that has to happen before I can build flesh and blood around the basic bones of that first idea. Taking the time to methodically go over and over the same content requires real effort.

 What do you love about writing? 

The magic of it. The moment when I can hear my characters’ voices in my head. The way I can see the locations in the book in vivid, three-dimensional form, as if I’ve been inside their houses. Stood on those porches. Walked through their woods. I spent so much time inventing the inside of Number 10 Downing Street for my latest book, I felt as if I’d lived there myself. It’s an extraordinary illusion, and it comes from taking the time to build those places in your mind, and on the page.

 Advice for other writers. 

To get through the start of a book it helps to know what the ending will be. When you begin planning, think it through all the way. Once you have a beginning and an ending, then you can spend time on the rest of the journey. I think most writers give up when writing because they get stuck, and I think they get stuck because they don’t know exactly where they’re going. Find your ending, and the rest may fall into place.

 Number 10 by CJ Daugherty is out now, £9.99 from Moonflower Books available on Amazon here.

 

Helene Fermont – My Writing Process

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Helene FermontMy Writing Routine
 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.
What you have written, past and present.

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.
What you are promoting now.

One Fatal Night, set in Norway with an explosive plot, protagonists

and many twists and turns.
Do you plan or just write?

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.

What about word count?

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.

How do you do your structure?

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.

What do you find hard about writing?

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!

What do you love about writing?

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.

Advice for other writers.
 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!

Marieke Nijkamp – My Writing Process.

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Even If We Break by Marieke Nijkamp is out now in hardback by Source Books.  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 Glenda Young

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Glenda Young, author, writer, The Girl with the Scarlet Ribbon by Glenda Young is published 1st October (£7.99, Paperback, Headline)

1.      A bit about you.

My name’s Glenda Young and I’ve loved writing ever since I was a child. I live in the northeast and my novels are set in the coalmining village of Ryhope where I was born and bred. You don’t need to know the village to enjoy the books, which are gritty and dramatic and have a feisty, young heroine at their core. All of my books are stand alone books and you can read them in any order. 

I’m a life-long fan of the soap opera Coronation Street run two Coronation Street fan sites – Corrie.net online since 1995 and the Coronation Street Blog which was launched in 2007.
2. What you have written, past and present.

I’ve written six novels to date published with Headline. The first four are now available and these are Belle of the Back Streets, The Tuppenny Child, Pearl of Pit Lane and The Girl with the Scarlet Ribbon. Still to come are The Paper Mill Girl and novel six which has the title to be confirmed. The novels are gritty sagas, inspired by my love of soap opera, really dramatic with lots of action and some great women characters!

I’ve also built an impressive reputation as an award-winning short story writer.  Plus, I have an unusual claim to fame! I’m the creator of the first ever weekly soap opera Riverside to appear in The People’s Friend, the longest running women’s magazine in the world. My short fiction has appeared in magazines including Take a Break, My Weekly and The People’s Friend. In 2019 I was a finalist in the Clement & Le Frenais Comedy Award.

As a life-long fan of the soap opera Coronation Street I’ve written TV Tie-In books about the show including Coronation Street: The official colouring book, Deirdre: A Life on Coronation Street, A Perfect Duet. The Diary of Roy and Hayley Cropper in Coronation Street, and have written major updates to Coronation Street: The Novel and Coronation Street: The Complete Saga.

3. What you are promoting now.

My fourth novel is The Girl with the Scarlet Ribbon. It’s a dramatic, gritty story set in a small village in 1919. It begins with a new born baby girl being left on the doorstep of a very grand house. The baby is left in a basket that has a scarlet ribbon tied around the handle. The housekeeper of the wealthy McNally family takes the baby into her care and names her Jess. Sworn to secrecy about the baby’s true identity, the housekeeper brings Jess up as her own, giving Jess no reason to question where she came from. But when the housekeeper passes away, grief-stricken Jess, now sixteen, is banished from the place she’s always called home. With the scarlet ribbon the only connection to her past, will Jess ever find out where she really belongs? And will she uncover the truth about the ruthless McNallys?

4. A bit about your process of writing.

I write in the mornings when I can concentrate better. I stop for coffee and have a break, do some thinking and then return to writing. I try to write 2,000 words per day. I find I’m much more able and creative in the mornings than in the afternoon. I live close to a lovely beach so I walk on the beach in the afternoons or go for a bike ride. This helps clear my head after writing all morning.

5. Do you plan or just write?

I always plan, even if it’s just a short story I’ll make a list of say, ten things I want to include from start to finish. I plot and plan loosely as I think all writers know that once you start writing your work takes on a life of its own and you should go with the flow to a certain extent. I liken my plotting and planning to building a frame on which to weave my words. It’s always flexible to change as I go but I always have a structure in place so I know what I’m doing and where I’m going, even if sometimes I go off on a side road for a little while.
6. What about word count?

For novels it’s usually around 100,000 words and for short stories for women’s magazines, it can be anything from 700 words up to 3,000 and beyond.

7. How do you do your structure?

For my novels I take sheets of A4 paper, one for each chapter and lay them out on the floor. Then I take my plot points and spread them out on post-it notes across the book, moving them around until I’m happy. Then I type up chapter plans, just a couple of paragraphs for each chapter so I know what I’m doing within each one. Then once I start writing, characters appear I never planned for, incidents happen I never envisaged and the book takes on a life of its own. It’s quite scary how it happens and I don’t truly understand it. Perhaps that’s the secret?

8. What do you find hard about writing?

Switching off. When I’m writing a novel it’s all encompassing, my entire concentration goes into my work for the duration I’m writing it. I’m living in that world and I love it, it’s all I can think about as I immerse myself into the story.

9. What do you love about writing?

Everything! From getting that initial spark of an idea to seeing my books on the shelves of the bookshops and getting amazing reviews online and in the press and on radio, etc. There’s nothing I don’t like.

10. Advice for other writers?

Never give up. Never.

http://glendayoungbooks.com

@flaming_nora on Twitter.

My Writing Process Diane Allen, author of The Girl in the Tanners Yard

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I was born into a farming family that had a sheep farm which was very remote within the Yorkshire Dales. My early years were spent roaming the fells and dales, often by myself as I was the youngest of four and my older siblings had already spread their wings leaving me as an only child. I made my own entertainment and had a good imagination but also had a great love of losing myself in a good book which I still do to this day. The love of reading continued into my teenage years and could often be found reading to the early hours of the morning. When I left school I found a job in the local glass engraving firm, which I did enjoy but left to marry my husband, Ronnie who after forty-eight years I am still married to. After raising a family of two and nursing an ill father, I finally found my true niche in life at a local large print book firm. I soon rose through the firm and eventually became manager, negotiating rights with authors and agent and loving every minute especially when the books I had chosen came into the warehouse to be distributed to the libraries we supplied. It was that which started me thinking that I could perhaps be lucky enough to be able to write myself and the rest is history. 

I have written nine books now for Pan Macmillan. All are based in the Yorkshire Dales and I hope to portray the Dales and the people within them. I have family connections with the Settle to Carlisle Railway so that features quite a bit in my books. For A Mother’s Sin’s was a fictional account of the building of the line, featuring the building of the Ribble Head viaduct, while the Windfell trilogy is set around Settle and the Cotton Mills. 

My latest title is THE GIRL FROM THE TANNER’S YARD, this is set in West Yorkshire, around Haworth and Keighley. It tells the tale of lowly born Lucy Bancroft and ex-military man Adam Brooksbank and the unlikely love affair that springs up between them. Adam lives on the wild moors above Keighley and employs Lucy as his maid and finds just how strong and caring she is when he befalls an accident. Lucy thinks her love can never be returned by Adam, she comes from the Tanner’s Yard, a filthy dirty place and thinks that he will never treat her as an equal. However, with a little help from Adam’s old friend Ivy loves blooms, and Lucy’s dreams will be fulfilled despite what life puts between them. 

In the morning after breakfast, I usually disappear into my office, answering e-mails and promotional things and then go on to edit the previous day’s writing. After lunch I write for a solid four hours, trying to write at least 2,000 words. Sometimes it does not always go to plan, I feel I can’t write or I get stuck in a plot. Walking around my garden usually helps out along with plenty of cups of coffee supplied by my husband. 

Usually, when I’m nearly finishing my latest title I start thinking about the next. I visit where the book is to be set, research the area, picking up any history so that I can include it in my writing. I have notebooks that include loads of my scribbles within them just noting anything that I think would be interesting to be included. I then plot a rough start, middle, and end, this may alter as I once get writing. I let the characters take me where I should go as they develop in the book. 

My officially set word count is 100, 000 words, however, I usually find this hard to reach, so most of my books are around the 95,000 mark. I can’t see the point of padding a book out with things that have not relevance to the story.

When structuring my book, I give most though to the two main characters within the story, their occupations, and the setting of the book. I then make a note of their age, their looks, their hair and eye colour and any unusual features. Their surrounding is also noted along with any place names and local names to the area.

Some days you just can’t write and those days you are better walking away from your keyboard. Your characters will draw you back to them when the time is right. My biggest failing is following timelines, no matter how I try, I always seem to be out with age or length of a pregnancy. I get too carried away in the plot. 

I love writing, I can’t live without it now. If I give myself a fortnight break between books by the end of it I am the most frustrated person on the planet. I’m always hatching a plan in my head and looking for new ideas. It is a break from the real world, I can be where I want and who I want. Through these hard months of COVID, it’s been a welcome escape, I can go back to more simpler Victorian times and forget the heartache outside in the real world.   

The Girl From Tanners Yard is available here.