Saturday ideas and thoughts
I don’t usually do sky pictures, they’re boring, but this one is unusual and I’m a bit desperate today. If you look carefully you can see the moon breaking through the clouds. We had another week of financial bad news. Both banks that are partly owned by the tax payer posted losses. Not real losses that would send them into administration like so many High Street businesses; these are just millions and billions lost ‘on paper’.
How to write a Memoire
A guest post by Fairy Dharawat
Mémoire writing always fascinates me. Reading your memoire is like a time capsule – a peek in to your past at a particular time. It is interesting to write about a part of your life which gives you a glimpse of how you have grown. There are many sites that talk about how you can write a memoire and here I give a brief on memoire writing and what it means to write the story of a small part of your life. Let’s talk of memoire writing and how fun and important it can be.
Imagination and creativity
I took this photograph on Sunday of the Ridgacre canal. Not very pretty is it? But look again and use your imagination. What would it look like in summer? If the canal was cleaned out and fish added and then a waterfront cafe built and some other features, would you visit? How about apartments overlooking the waterfront?
How to start a blog
If you want to start a blog, you have to think about a few things. You are going to be publishing articles and maybe photographs too. You can choose a number of ways to do it. I use WordPress, but I have used Blogger. You also have to think about who will read your blog. Who will your articles appeal to?
How to write a story
You can write a story about anything. Even something as mundane as going to the supermarket. If you want to write fiction, then writing a short story can be a good way of starting. You can make it a few thousand words or very short and try to pack it into 500 words.
Writing for an emotional response
This article was originally published on http://Mike10613.Wordpress.com
Whatever you are writing, you want some kind of emotional response from your reader. You want them to say to themselves, ‘that’s clever’ or ‘that’s funny’. Better still, you hope they will share their thoughts with their friends.
Walsall author on the radio
This article was originally posted on http://mike10613.wordpress.com on the 2nd of January 2013.
You might remember that I mentioned Martin Webb’s novel last month when he gave away Kindle copies of one of his novels from the Jake West trilogy. You can now hear Martin on the radio talking about writing and publishing his novels. That will be on radio WM tomorrow about 11am. You can listen to that online tomorrow.
A Christmas challenge
I took this photo last year in the depths of winter. It’s still officially Autumn, but it getting colder. I think the lake will freeze before long and we can expect snow. Winter officially starts around the 20th of December, but then Christmas is supposed to cheer us all up. So I’m going to set you a Christmas challenge.
Writing, mixing fact and fiction
Fact supporting fiction
Last week, I used my ‘Body in the Sanna’ picture to start my blog. A picture can paint a scene. I’ve used a picture of ‘the Sanna’ again this week. The Sanna, is actually Moorcroft Pool in Moorcroft Wood. People have always called it ‘the Sanna’ because of the isolation hospital that was nearby. That was a hospital for infectious diseases like smallpox.
Imagination, writing and inspiration
Achieve something with writing
I took this photograph last Sunday and then for a bit of fun, turned it into a book cover. I was inspired by the photograph to do a book cover and the book cover could now inspire me to actually write the story. Whatever, you want to write, you need inspiration, imagination and a goal. You might want to achieve something, like getting a job.
How to begin to become a writer
To be any good at anything, you have to really interested in it. Writing is no exception to that. You need an interest in it and a fascination for words. You also need to read a lot. I read articles, blogs and when I can books too. I quoted Great Expectations by Charles Dickens in a blog earlier today. It helps that I have read it. I have read some professional writers this week, who have written articles badly. Both of them were writing on their specialised subject. They had studied at university to become competent in their chosen subject, but it didn’t show in their writing.
How to write an inspired blog
Sometimes you just have to be in the mood to write. On a Wednesday, I write about writing. I have written one blog this morning on my WordPress blog about how to write a novel. I didn’t think that was very good, but I see well paid writers who churn out really poorly written stuff and they only have to write one article a week. I’m writing several everyday. I don’t take a day off if I’m not in the mood and I even wrote blogs on Christmas Day.
Introduction, body and conclusion
When you’re writing anything, you have to make a start. Many writers find making the start difficult and suffer from writer’s block. That can caused by a simple lack of inspiration but other things can make it hard to write like distractions or not feeling well. I’ve got a cold and sore throat and so writing this isn’t easy. Although, if writing was easy everyone would do it! I’ve made a start though, I’ve written the introduction.
How to write a letter
I don’t write many letters these days, I can’t afford the stamps! Letter writing like all writing is an art. If you want to write a convincing letter, you have to use words skilfully or get someone else to write it for you. It’s the same with any document. It could be a student essay or assignment or your CV that is an important profile of you for prospective employers. You can start with an introduction. What is the document about? Tell your reader what it’s about and make it interesting enough that they will read on to the next paragraph.
How to write fiction | moods
Some of the articles and blogs that I read are by amateurs and some by professionals. The amateurs often write better than the professionals. I read a couple by the same writer that were truly awful this week. The quality of writing, whether it is fiction or non-fiction, does vary a lot; depending on the mood of the writer. The writer that I read this week was obviously under a lot of stress and struggling. When we write fiction, we must be totally committed to the story and not distracted by personal problems. (more…)
This week’s ideas
I took lots of photos last Sunday for my Neodigital Art blogs. What do you think of this one? I converted it to monochrome, but with a slight blue tint. It’s the enchanted woodland of Merrion’s Wood. Neodigital Art is about being creative with your digital camera, scanner and maybe a graphics tablet. In fact any digital device you can lay your hands on. It is fast becoming a school of art. If you search for Neodigital Art using Google, you will I have been promoting it for a few years now. Want to join in? (more…)
Writing fiction | Inspired
Fiction can be inspired by many things. It can be inspired by a photograph, a person, an outing, television or just a random thought. We have to keep our minds open to new ideas and new perspectives. I have just downloaded a new font, will it inspire me to write fiction? It could! (more…)
Writing Fiction | Past, present and future
Your story can be set in the past, present or future. if it’s the past, you can do research and find information about that past time. If it’s the present then there will be less need for research, but you still need to do some research. The future, which could be your choice if you are writing science fiction is a little more difficult. It requires more imagination. What will future technology give us? New materials? Super-conductors for electricity? Super-light materials to fabricate space craft from? There is a need for research again and maybe all these technologies can be incorporated into your story to make it; plausible. (more…)
Writing | Inspiration
Whatever we are writing, we need inspiration. I find my inspiration in all sorts of places. This photo was taken near my home and it’s interesting because the river has a dam across, that acts as stepping stones, but also helps store the water behind it. There is no litter around there, which is surprising, because this is not in the English countryside as you might imagine; but in town. (more…)
The Magic of Words
I have started today with a picture of a sign. In a few words it has to convey a message. It can’t go into too much detail, it just assumes you will understand that refreshments are sold and so too is compost; you aren’t expected to consume them both together! The sign leaves something to the imagination and common sense. It gets it’s message across successfully, it’s a farm and it’s open to the public and it describes what they sell and when. (more…)
How to write fiction – life inspires art.
Writing a work of fiction is producing a work of art and it needs inspiration. I went out taking photographs again yesterday and ended up at the lake in the picture photographing the wildlife. It hasn’t really inspired me to write but if you read any novel by a famous writer they appear to be inspired by what they see and the people they meet. If I wanted to write a story based in the English countryside, I would certainly spend some time there. I read a novel not long ago set in a Yorkshire village and although I’ve never been to Yorkshire the description of the village was enough for me to imagine what it would be like. The image that the writer projects however is combined in my mind with everything else I know about Yorkshire villages. (more…)
How to write fiction | genres
There are a lot of different genres to choose from when you’re writing fiction. You should always have your readers in mind, regardless of what you’re writing. There is always a demand for books for children and you might think it’s easy to write for children, but keeping it simple can be quite hard. Children can be impatient and won’t like long drawn out descriptions, but they also have vivid imaginations and so just need enough information to see the same imaginary world as you do. The young adult genre is very similar, but far more sophisticated. (more…)
How to write fiction | Inspiration
Sometimes, I’m inspired to write by places, such as this lake I photographed on Sunday. It was a typical summer’s day in the English countryside and people were having picnics at the side of the river. The stuff of great English novelists, like Jane Austen. Jane Austen captured the mood of the time she wrote in, when picnics in the countryside would have been more important than today. There were few forms of entertainment in those days and a day out would have inspired memories to be treasured. (more…)
