How Dreams Can Influence Your Writing

Hi all!

This week I'm going to talk about dreams and how they can help your writing.

I've had most of my book ideas from dreams; including Elemental Dragons and Street Rats. Although I've adapted the story line slightly, it's still very much true to the original dream. I keep my phone by my bedside just in case I dream something up which I think would make a good book idea. Some are better than others, I've scrapped three book ideas because I just couldn't make them work despite dreaming them so vividly.

Characters.

Character appearances or names can come to you in dreams. Rocky was one of my dream characters that I put in several books before he found his place in Elemental Dragons.

Plots and subplots.

Although dreams can be crazy and unpredictable, some can give you a rough idea of a plot. You can then rework this so it fits in with the book or characters.

Writing blocks.

Sometimes we get writer's block, which is okay. Usually it's temporary and just puts us in a writing slump for a while. However, if you're thinking about your book a lot while you're awake, you might just be able to dream up a solution.

Covers.

As authors, we often spend far too much time thinking about what our book cover will look like. A specific colour or theme could come to you while you sleep.

Book names.

As I've mentioned in previous blog posts, Blood and Water wasn't the first name of my book. More like the third or fourth. I came up with half the name, water, while I was dreaming. If I hadn't then it might still be going through name changes today!

Book ideas.

A lot of my book ideas have come to me from dreams, which I have then changed to fit in with a story. The Curse of Anubis series started out as a dream about zombies, and has now turned into a four book series.

Sequels.

Dreams can often give you ideas for sequels, which you can then choose to write if you wish. Some ideas may just make no sense when you try to put them together, but at least you've tested out the idea instead of just jumping straight in.

That's it for this week! I hope you enjoyed the blog post, see you next week!

Genres I Would Like to Write in the Future

Hi all!

NaNoWriMo started on Friday so I am currently trying to reach a word count goal of 2K a day. This won't mean that I'm not writing any blog posts, however.

This week I'm going to talk about genres I would like to write in the future. As many of you know, I mainly write YA, fantasy, sci-fi and horror. But, I would like to write in other genres if I can think of a good enough story.

New Adult.

New Adult is the age group in between Young Adult and Adult Fiction. I would like to try New Adult as I think it would be a good middle ground if I ever wanted to write Adult books. I also think that the jump from YA to Adult is quite big, so NA is a nice middle ground so I can hone my skills while still having a bit of fun with teenage characters.

Paranormal.

Although at one point I had an idea for a Paranormal book, I scrapped it because I just didn't like it enough. If I were to one day write Paranormal it would probably have elements of horror mixed in. I like reading ghost stories, so I would love to one day be able to write a Paranormal book.

Mystery.

Mystery is a genre that I've never attempted before, but would love to try out. It would probably have elements of Sci-Fi or fantasy mixed in. I'm not planning on writing mystery for a while though, as I want to give myself time to research and improve my writing skills.

Crime.

Another one I've not attempted before, but would probably have elements of fantasy mixed in. I don't read many crime novels, but the ones I have read I absolutely loved. This is at the bottom of my list as I don't have any ideas for this genre, however.

Monster/Creature.

I'm a huge fan of monster films. I love watching films like Godzilla and King Kong, and I would love to one day write a book about a giant creature. Again, I don't have any ideas or plans for this as of yet.

That's it for this week, I hope you enjoyed! I also want to wish all the NaNoWriMo participants luck in hitting that 50K!

Why My Teenage Characters Swear

Hi all,

This week's post is a bit of a different one - revolving around swearing in YA fiction. I didn't realise it was an issue before I joined Twitter and I stumbled across a series of tweets asking if it's okay to have characters use bad language in YA.

My opinion?

It is.

All of my books are filled with crude language and mild sexual innuendos. There's nothing wrong with including it. When writing about teenagers you have to make sure that your characters are actually believable teenagers. Whether you like it or not, a lot of teenagers swear.

Although not all teenagers use bad language, most of them do from time to time. When they've just learned these words they will use them in any way they can, as it makes them feel grown up. Older teenagers tend to use them less.

All of my characters swear.

An example of swearing in Blood and Water - no, she isn't really a vampire.

Blood and Water was even rejected by an agent because I included swearing, and I was told that I should take it out or I would never get published.

She also said that it's unrealistic as teenagers do not swear.

When I was teenager, I swore profusely. I still do now.

To say that teenagers never swear is a false statement, and not one she should be telling authors who are hoping to get a few with her.

I've published Blood and Water by myself, and I have not removed the language.

Some authors get around this by inventing new words for their characters to use in place of swear words. You can do this if you want to, but I didn't want to invent new words to replace swearing. When your target audience is YA, it's okay to use swear words. I'm sure 99% of your readers swear, they're not going to hate you for it.

I don't think it should be as big of an issue as people make it out to be. If you want to include swearing, fine. If you don't want to include swearing, also fine.

Do what's best for you and your story.

Personally, I prefer having my characters swear as it makes them feel more human to me. At the end of the day it's just words anyway, and just because you don't write about it in your books doesn't mean that people will stop doing it.

Do what you want to do, and don't let anyone shame you for your decision.

That's it for this week! Next week I will be talking about how I'm feeling about self publishing, as Blood and Water is due out in nine days!

See you next week!

My Top Three Favourite Genres

Hi all!

This week I'm going to talk about my favourite book genres and what inspired me to write stories in them. In no particular order:

Fantasy.

Elemental Dragons is a fantasy series, so I'm sure this doesn't come as a shock to anyone. I've loved fantasy ever since I was little, so it's only natural that I would write in that genre. My favourite fantasy book series has to be Warrior Cats, and those books have inspired me and influenced my writing style. I hope that my books will bring as much inspiration to someone as Warrior Cats did for me. I love books that contain magical creatures and my all time favourite are dragons!

My fantasy books (written and planned):

Elemental Dragons - four book Young Adult Fantasy series.

Damaged Goods - three book Young Adult Historical Fantasy series.

Aerus Vs Bolt - Young Adult Fantasy standalone.

Sci-Fi.

The newest series that I'm writing, Celestial Plague, is a sci-fi dystopian novel. A lot of my favourite films are sci-fi, including the Alien and Predator series. Every time I watch those films I fall in love with them a little more. Although I'm only planning one book that includes aliens, the rest are more dystopian than sci-fi. I like the idea of writing about viruses and natural disasters and how the characters adapt to their new worlds, which is what Celestial Plague is about.

My sci-fi books (written and planned):

Celestial Plague - three book Young Adult Sci-Fi/Dystopian.

Enna - New Adult Sci-Fi standalone.

Years - Young Adult Sci-Fi/Dystopian standalone.

Horror.

When I was younger I didn't really like horror, but the book that changed that for me was Stephen King's 'Pet Sematary'. After I finished that, I was hooked on the genre. I've now read plenty of horror books and watched loads of films (with one of my cats always nearby, of course). I haven't really planned many horror books due to the fact that it's not really a genre I've ever really written in - but I hope to change that in the future when I get some practice. I've heard its a genre that can be hard to get right, so I want to make sure that my skills are up to scratch.

My horror books (written and planned):

Unnamed zombie series - four book Young Adult Horror series.

That's it for this week! One day I might write a sequel to this for my least favorite genres. If you'd be interested, let me know!

See you next week.

How Doodling Can Help Your Writing

Hi all!

This week I'm going to talk about doodling and how your writing can improve by doing it.

The good thing about doodling is that you don't need to be an amazing artist to do it. Whether you can draw anything and everything or can barely manage a stick figure, it doesn't matter. I'm not a great artist by any means, but I have a sketchbook filled with drawings and symbols from my novels, written and to be written. I mainly use mine to draw symbols or markings. For example: all eight elemental markings from Elemental Dragons are in there.

Elemental ice markings from my sketchbook

Visual art can help with descriptions.

When coming up with ideas for symbols or markings, it can be good to see them on paper. This will help you when writing your descriptions. You can then also visualise them on characters or covers to see if you like the design and if it fits with the story.

It can give you a break.

If you've hit a rut with your novel you can still work on it by doodling. Actually putting designs on paper may get your creature juices flowing and you'll feel better about writing your story.

Creative designs.

Doodling your ideas gives you the creative freedom to draw them however you want. You may have certain elements that you want in your designs. For example: I use a lot of swirls in my designs because they're simple but still pretty.

You can share them with your readers.

While waiting for the next book to come out, readers will still want new content from you. Sharing your sketches is a good way to engage your readers and they may even draw your designs themselves.

Sketch from Damaged Goods

You can design creatures.

Drawing your creature out can be a good way to visualise them, you can then see what parts of the design works and what doesn't. I've drawn a design of a spider hybrid in my sketchbook, which really helped me decide what features to give it and how I can describe it in my story.

You don't have to be good at art.

Most of my drawings are terrible, but that hasn't stopped me from continuing to sketch them out. You don't need to be an amazing artist to draw.

You don't have to show anyone.

It can be for your eyes only if you want it to be, other people don't have to see it if you don't want to.

You can see what works and what doesn't.

Sketching out a certain symbol on paper may look completely different to what you had in mind. This way you can alter the design or scrap it and start afresh.

That's it for this week, hope you enjoyed.

See you next week!

My First Book Launch Party

Hi all,

For anyone who has missed my social media posts - I attended the launch party for Adverbially Challenged Volume Four and Sensorially Challenged Volume Two on Tuesday. It was my first ever launch party and writing event that I've ever attended.

All the readers at the event

My boyfriend and I went to a cat cafe, You & Meow, beforehand to try and settle my anxiety. Although I have a cat at home, Bristol is a two hour drive from where we live, so I needed to pet some cats just before the launch party. The cats were all very sweet and playful, they even had some new kittens! Overall it was a great experience and helped me calm down a bit. We also had some delicious carrot cake that we had to eat quickly because a few of the cats were eyeing it up.

One of the cats trying to get a taste of my smoothie

Now, for the launch party itself.

There was quite a lot of people there, most getting ready to read their stories in front of everyone. My stomach churned the entire time as I was waiting for my slot. Eventually my turn came and I managed to make my way up to the stage without tripping. Although the reading of my story, Mother Cat, was short and a bit rushed, I managed to do it. The entire time I was waiting to go up I felt like I was back in school again, about to do a presentation in front of the whole class. The whole experience made me very thankful that I'm not in school anymore!

Me, reading ‘Mother Cat’ from Adverbially Challenged Volume Four

The evening was great and I loved the stories that were read out by others. I've never seen so many authors in one place, and it was good to see that so many people have a passion for writing.

Would I do it again?

Yes.

Would I read another story out?

Maybe.

The experience brought back a lot of bad memories from my school days, so I'm not sure if I could put myself through that again. I'm so glad I faced my fears and did it though, and that my boyfriend was there to support me.

I hope you enjoyed this week's blog post.

See you next week!

Why I Chose to Write About Dragons

Hi all!

Before I begin this week's blog post I want to highlight an article by Bryan Collings, who got in touch after reading my blog post on writer's block. Feel free to check it out below, it's very in depth and includes thirty six ways to get through writer's block:

https://becomeawritertoday.com/writers-block/

This week I'm going to talk about dragons. I've loved dragons since I was little, but it never occurred to me to write about them until I was seventeen. Before then I mostly wrote about cats, especially my own, Rocky.

One day I decided to go on Amazon and have a look at books that contained dragons. I wanted something different to read and always found dragons cool.

There wasn't much.

Most of the ones that popped up were picture books, and I was very disappointed. So I went online and had a look around. I came across several posts on forums from readers frustrated that dragons weren't written about that often. If they were, they were the villain or the mentor.

Because there wasn't anything that I could find, I thought I'd write my own.

I didn't want my dragons to be the huge treasure hoarders that are usually portrayed, so I decided to spice it up a bit. I loved the dragons in How To Train Your Dragon, as they each had their own personality. I wanted my dragons to act like overgrown pets, a mix between cats and dogs. 

The dragons in Elemental Dragons are all different, but act like family pets. They play like kittens, stick their tongues out like dogs and silently judge you like a cat does. They are also able to communicate with feline and canine creatures as they share the same language, but each animal species has different mannerisms when speaking. They are only able to communicate with humans through growls and barks however, as I decided against having them speak. I thought it would be too weird.

The series also has several types of dragon, four species that show up in the universe. They are:

Primordial.

This species is extinct in the books, but they have had a large impact on the dragon raising culture and the characters do learn about them as time goes on. There are three sub-species in this category: Anthropomorphic, Draconic Hybrid and Hydra.

Avian.

The most common species of the Elemental Dragons universe. This type is also the only type where the teenagers can form a 'bond'. There are four sub-species: Amphiptere, Drake, Fairy and Western. The Western dragons are the ones that are usually bonded with, and most of the dragon characters in the books are Western.

Aqueous, a Western dragon - Artist

Reptilian.

This species is the rarest, as they are most likely to be hunted by the other species for food and hunted by humans for their horns. There are three sub-species in this category as well: Eastern, Ouroboros and Wyvern.

Serpentine.

These dragons are parasitic in nature, and tend to live off the Primordial dragons. Most of these species are also extinct in this universe, as they largely died off when the Primordial dragons went extinct. There are four sub-species: Great Serpent, Lindworm, Sea Serpent and Wyrm.

Most of these dragons are rarely shown in books and film, so I researched many dragon types and categorised them into species. All of them will be at least mentioned across the series, with some having major roles in the plot. I don't want to spoil anything, so I won't go into any more detail.

That's it for this week, I hope you enjoyed learning about the dragons in Elemental Dragons and why I write about them.

See you next week!

Ways to Overcome Writer's Block

Hi all,

As promised, this week I'm going to discuss ways you can get through writer's block. Every writer gets writer's block, it's an unfortunate reality of writing. There's nothing wrong with dealing with it, it could take months to come out of. Below are a few ideas that have helped me when I've hit writer's block.

Take a break.

Sometimes writing every day can cause burn out and you can hit a block with your writing. Take a few days off to relax and come back to your project with fresh eyes.

Work on another project.

Writing, editing or planning another project can help overcome writer's block. It means you can continue writing while taking some time away from your current project.

Read.

Take some time away from your project and read books in your genre. Not only will it help you relax, but holding an author's book in your hands could inspire you to keep going.

Edit your current project.

If you hit a wall with your project, go over what you've already written and give it a quick edit. It could help you move the story forward.

Free Write.

Choose a random prompt and write about what your characters would do in that situation. For example, Character A drags Character B into going hiking, but forgets to bring a map. This way you'll still be writing about those characters in a different scenario that could get your creative juices flowing.

Change your environment.

If you usually write at home, try going to a coffee shop and write. Sometimes a change in environment can inspire you.

Plot ahead.

Jump ahead in your project and plot what happens next, then keep going until you get to the ending. Work out how you can make it from where you are now to the end point.

Listen to music.

Listening to music is quite good for inspiration, as I can usually imagine scenes based on what music I listen to. If you're stuck on a fight scene, try listening to fast paced music. Love songs for romance scenes, etc.

Play with your pets.

This works for me quite often, as Rocky and Mishka are always happy to get some attention. Taking time away and thinking of something other than writing can make you feel better about your work and return to writing.

Next week I'm going to talk about why I chose dragons over any other mythological creature for my book series. 

See you next week!

How Pets Can Influence Your Writing

Hi all!

This week I'm going to talk about how pets can influence your writing, as promised in last week's blog post.

They help with animal characters.

The behaviour of the dragons in Elemental Dragons is based off the behaviour of my cats, Rocky and Mishka. Take Drea, Marco's dragon, for example; she likes nothing more than to sleep in the peace and quiet. She doesn't like being bothered by other dragons. This reflects on Rocky in real life, as he loves to sleep and hates other cats getting too close to his territory.

You can put them in your projects.

Rocky is a main character, as a human, in Elemental Dragons. This is because he inspired me so much and was always around when I wrote Blood and Water (asleep of course). I want to make sure a part of him will live on in my books after he's gone.

They help with designing creatures.

If you're having trouble designing creatures, aliens or monsters make sure you look to your pet for inspiration. The way they move, their personality and their looks can be integrated into a creature design. For example; a canine-like alien with twin tails and toxic breath.

Rocky, in one of his favourite sleeping spots

Giving pets to your characters can show their softer side.

Everyone treats their pets differently to how they treat other people. Your pet is a part of your family, your baby. Use your relationship with your pet as a base for how your characters interact with their animals.

They'll entertain you when you take a break.

Mishka starts meowing when I spend too long writing, she's like a furry timer. Whenever I step away from my writing I use that time to play with her and give her cuddles (until she's had enough).

They are a great distraction.

Getting frustrated with your work? Just go to your pet for a play session. Taking a break for a minute or so will give you some much needed time to think about new ideas and how to fix the problems in your stories.

Mishka, snuggled up in

They're great for stress.

Pets are amazing for stress. During my exams in secondary school Rocky was great, he would sit near me as I revised and did homework and let me pet him whenever. Mishka has been wonderful for when I stress about self publishing, hearing her purr and scratching her chin helps me relax.

Their antics make great stories.

With all the funny things animals do you can create so many stories. I once wrote a story about the time when Rocky went outside for the first time and how he explored his new territory. He kept trying to jump on the garden wall but couldn't quite make it because he was too small.

They will do the writing for you.

If your pets are anything like Mishka, they will walk all over the keyboard adding a bunch of random letters or words to your story. At least they're trying to help!

That's it for this week! Next time I'm going to write about what you can do when the dreaded writer's block hits.

See you next week!

The Pros and Cons of Having an Author Logo

Hi all!

This week I thought I would go back to another pros and cons blog post. In March I made a poll on Twitter asking how many authors had logos. The results are below:

Screenshot from my Twitter account

As you can see, not many authors have logos.

It got me thinking about whether author logos are necessary.

So, I thought I'd make a post weighing up the pros and cons of authors having logos.

Pros:

Your brand is easily identifiable.

Logos are the first thing that pops up in people's heads when you talk about companies. Some companies have logos that are more recognisable than the rest of their brand. To make your author brand stand out, a logo may be necessary.

It looks professional.

Brands with logos look more professional than ones without. Think about how you want your readers to perceive your brand.

You can put it on everything.

Your website, social media and even your books can display your logo for all to see.

Design.

You can have your logo designed specifically to convey a message or draw readers in. It is unique to you, so you can be as creative as you want with it.

Cons:

Authors don't typically have logos.

As you can see from the results of my poll, very few authors actually have a logo. It could be argued in this case that you don't need one.

It can add to your budget.

A logo is an easy to thing to overlook if you have a budget, and you don't necessarily need one. Getting a logo designed can be expensive, and many people don't have the funds to spare when publishing.

People don't remember authors for their logos.

Readers remember a certain author for writing their favourite book, not for having a logo.

Readers won't notice an author logo.

Even if you put it in everything, it's usually the last thing people will notice. Readers will read your book and may not even notice your logo.

It's another thing to remember.

When you have a huge checklist of things to get done before your book comes out, you don't want to worry about a logo. It can be an extra stress you don't need.

I thought about getting a logo, but I've decided against it for now. It's not necessary to publish a book with one so it means I have one less thing to worry about. One day I might change my mind, but for now I'm happy without a logo.

Next week I'll talk about how pets can be a fantastic influence on your writing.

See you next week!