Quill & Ink

What a month...

Fri, 30 Nov 2012 21:24:19 +0000

Firstly, apologies for not posting since 2nd November…

and now… even bigger apologies…

NaNoLo, due to unforeseen circumstances, could be more accurately described as NaNoLoNoGo…

My final word tally is: 8,191. Bit of a far cry from 50,000 – just under 20%…

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NaNoWriMo Day 2: Done!

Fri, 02 Nov 2012 23:18:39 +0000

After writing 1695 words yesterday, I wanted to keep the momentum going and write even just a few words more than the recommended daily minimum of 1,667.

Goal for today: 3400 (total)
Today’s total: 3402
Written today: 1709

Even though I only…

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NaNoWriMo + Lois = NaNoLo! It’s that crazy time of year...

Thu, 01 Nov 2012 10:03:14 +0000

NaNoWriMo + Lois = NaNoLo!

It’s that crazy time of year again… National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo)!

And, as you do,…

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Look!This post is in response to Five Minute Friday at...

Fri, 19 Oct 2012 22:42:48 +0100

Look!

This post is in response to Five Minute Friday at lisajobaker.com

——–

Look!

One little word grabs…

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And... breathe!

Wed, 05 Sep 2012 16:32:39 +0100

Ah, that beautiful moment when you hit ‘Send’ and know you’ve submitted a piece well before its deadline. This week, I’ve gone from having seven deadlines approaching (for two separate publications, which, somehow ended up being on the same day – 15th…

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Surprise Yourself…Cover interview with Giles Kristian,...

Mon, 27 Aug 2012 20:34:59 +0100

Surprise Yourself…

Cover interview with Giles Kristian, historical novelist, out now in Writers’ Forum magazine.

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OUT NOW!My (cover!) interview with historical novelist Giles...

Fri, 24 Aug 2012 23:50:25 +0100

OUT NOW!

My (cover!) interview with historical novelist Giles Kristian is out now in Writers’ Forum magazine.

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Boats against the current...

Tue, 21 Aug 2012 01:16:34 +0100

Some ties can never be broken. Some are good, some bad. Never has the closing sentence of The Great Gatsby been more relevant in my life: “So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past.”
Life moves forward at an alarming…

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Real love

Sun, 19 Aug 2012 12:50:35 +0100

Real love is all about sacrifice, about loving the other person more than yourself.

God loved us so much that He sacrificed His son. Are you willing to sacrifice what is dear to you for the sake of the ones you love?

How deep, how selfless – how real –…

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Hasn’t Evolution Been Proven True? by A. J. Monty White...

Sun, 19 Aug 2012 12:42:19 +0100

Hasn’t Evolution Been Proven True? by A. J. Monty White (from The New Answers Book 1)

A recent discussion with someone on Twitter about creation versus evolution has prompted me to…

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An Observance

Fri, 17 Aug 2012 20:27:43 +0100

People often say ‘why do you want to live in the past?’ when talking about history – they think it’s over and done with and there’s no point dwelling on it. They don’t understand that nothing ever truly changes. Fashions come and go – customs, too – but…

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Important Announcement...

Wed, 08 Aug 2012 16:30:03 +0100

Ladies and gentlemen…

Quill & Ink has moved!

As of today, 08 August 2012, all new posts will be to the new and improved blog over at Wordpress - click HERE to visit it!

This Tumblr edition will remain in existence, at least for now, but all new posts will be on the new blog.

Please update your bookmarks and subscriptions / follows, and I’ll see you on the other site!

[Once again, the new and improved Quill & Ink is located HERE. Thank you!]

What the Dickens? magazine - Issue 5

Wed, 08 Aug 2012 00:07:28 +0100

What the Dickens? magazine – Issue 5 – out now!

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Book Review: Della Galton's How To Write and Sell Short Stories

Wed, 08 Aug 2012 00:07:05 +0100

Book Review: Della Galton’s ‘How To Write and Sell Short Stories’; What the Dickens? Issue 5; page 89

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Book Reviews: Arthur Conan Doyle's A Study in Scarlet | Sheramy Bundrick's Sunflowers

Wed, 08 Aug 2012 00:05:03 +0100

Book Reviews: Arthur Conan Doyle’s ‘A Study in Scarlet’ & Sheramy Bundrick’s ‘Sunflowers’; What the Dickens? Issue 5; pages 90 & 91

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30-minute Word Count Records...

Tue, 07 Aug 2012 17:50:51 +0100

I have discovered a challenge that will actually help me to get more of my novel written…

I give you the 30-minute Word Count Record! The task/challenge that is about quality and quantity. This is not just 30 minutes of writing “Then she did something… [fill in later]… and um… blah blah… double blah…” - it’s actual writing, with a time limit. And the added bonus/terror of being accountable on Twitter to all your followers (and everyone who searches for the #amwriting hashtag. Want to join me? Here’s the plan:

Tweet something like this: “30 minutes… 500 words - can I do it? Here goes!”
Write for 30 minutes.
Tweet your results: “Wohoo! 593 words in 30 minutes… Personal best!”
Then, each time you do it, try to smash your own ‘score’!
Add the #amwriting hashtag to your posts so other writers can find out and join in!

Here are my own attempts and my personal best:

07 August 2012: 639 words in 30 minutes

~~25 July 2012: 588 words in 30 minutes~~

I’d love to know how you do - comments or tweets on a virtual postcard, please!

Book Reviews: Arthur Conan Doyle's 'A Study in Scarlet' & Sheramy Bundrick's 'Sunflowers'; What the Dickens? Issue 5; pages 90 & 91

Thu, 02 Aug 2012 15:01:45 +0100

Book Reviews: Arthur Conan Doyle's 'A Study in Scarlet' & Sheramy Bundrick's 'Sunflowers'; What the Dickens? Issue 5; pages 90 & 91

Book Review: Della Galton's 'How To Write and Sell Short Stories'; What the Dickens? Issue 5; page 89

Thu, 02 Aug 2012 15:00:28 +0100

Book Review: Della Galton's 'How To Write and Sell Short Stories'; What the Dickens? Issue 5; page 89

What the Dickens? magazine - Issue 5 - out now!

Thu, 02 Aug 2012 14:55:00 +0100

What the Dickens? magazine - Issue 5 - out now!

'The Bleeding Land' by Giles Kristian

Wed, 25 Jul 2012 12:34:00 +0100

Musketry and Mayhem

The Bleeding Land is the first in a new trilogy from the author of the popular Viking saga Raven (Blood Eye; Sons of Thunder; Odin’s Wolves). The setting this time is 1642 England - a country on the brink of disaster. Growing parliamentarian forces are threatening to overthrow the King, and the novel’s two protagonists - brothers Edmund and Tom Rivers - find themselves on opposite sides of the battlefield, each with his own reasons for fighting and each willing to lay down his life for what he believes in. But can blood ties ever truly be severed? Which allegiance will prove the strongest?

From the very first page, I was immersed not only in 1642, but in the drama of the Rivers family. Though the novel is lush with factual descriptions and period detail, Kristian manages to distribute it in such a way that the characters and their situations are always the main focus. Readers are introduced to a range of weaponry, clothing and customs without any slowing of the action or resemblances to matter-of-fact, non-fiction history books.

Each sight and sound comes alive. Each grips you and pulls you into the action. At times, it’s hard to remember that you are not on a horse yourself, riding swiftly into battle. There are moments of elation, and moments of despair. Kristian not only captures these moments well, but releases them to the readers, who cannot help but share in the excitements and disappointments the characters are feeling.

As a writer, I also love to look beyond the storyline and discover the author’s style. I noticed whilst reading The Bleeding Land that Kristian uses a number of techniques to pack a solid punch at pivotal plot points - for one, a lot of alliteration. He also alters the rhythm and length of sentences depending on what’s happening, using shorter, punchier sentences after a few longer ones when the action is heightened, or when a character is affected in some profound way. Which can be quite effective. Crows, rooks and ravens often appear as ominous foreshadowing devices, and a few other allusions to the Raven trilogy might just be spotted by those who look closely enough…

Giles Kristian plunges readers back to a time in our nation’s history that is largely neglected in the world of historical fiction. After reading The Bleeding Land, I imagine that interest in the English Civil War will blossom from the literary seeds Kristian has planted.

Overall, The Bleeding Land’s first installment is a vivid, compelling tale with an epic span. Bring on book two!

[Review originally published in What The Dickens? magazine, Issue 4, June 2012; Page 70]