Suzanne Bowditch's Blog, page 13
October 16, 2017
How Often Should I Publish Posts on my Blog?
This question has plagued me continually since I began blogging. How often should I publish posts on my blog? I don’t know the answer, do you? I don’t think there is a strict rule about this.
I think it all depends on the individual and how much he/she has to say. I find that I feel more verbose when I am rested and energized. If I have had a busy day or too much to do physically around the house I don’t always feel up to a long post. It also helps that my husband starts dinner if he sees that I am typing away. Reason why I am typing furiously right now! LOL! Don’t tell him!
I write my posts as I write my books – off the cuff. I don’t always know what I am going to say until I type it on my laptop. It’s always a…
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The blacklist
The bear goes through the forest with a file in his hand. In a glade he meets the fox. The fox greets him coquettishly:
“Hello, bear !”
“Hi !”
“But what have you got under your arm, bear ?”
“I have a blacklist of those I have to eat.”
‘Oh, bear, am I on the list ?”
The bear looks at the list and announces him:
“Bad luck, you’re on the list.”
“Woe ! Bear, let me see my kids again and promise you I’m back.”
The bear allows him.
The fox goes quickly to his burrow, kisses the children with tears in his eyes and comes back. The bear kills him with a blow of the paw and then eats him.
The bear walks for a while in the woods and at some point he meets the wolf. The wolf greets him coolly:
“Hello, bear !”
“Hi.”
“But what…
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Research mania
The esteemed historical fiction writer Ken Follett (of Pillars of the Earth fame), has said that he read over 200 text books to research his last novel in the Kingsbridge series, entitled A Column of Fire.
So with this in mind, I have been busily reading as much as I can for my new book! Researching as much as you can is an essential part of the writing process, especially historical fiction. In order to write just one chapter, you have to understand the whole situation that your character lives in ; the clothes they wore, the food they ate, where they worked etc, are just SOME of the details….what was happening socially, politically, culturally, at that time ?
Here’s just a few of the books that are now in my house….in my writing room, beside my bed, on my coffee table….everywhere!
They are taking up bags of space, and I’m thrilled about it!
Does anyone have any research tips?
Please share, fellow bloggers!
Enjoy the rest of your creative week! 
October 12, 2017
Friday Fiction : Hot Chips!
This is a short story I wrote as part of my writing portfolio on the Creative Writing course. The main themes of the story were: self, family, identity, and using the theme of Food as a metaphor for these ideas. It is inspired by the novel Kitchen by Banana Yoshimoto, an uplifting novel about Grief, Loss, and Family dynamics, set around the preparation, making and sharing of Food.
Enjoy your weekend, fellow bloggers 
7 Elements of Historical Fiction
All writers of fiction have to consider seven critical elements: character, dialogue, setting, theme, plot, conflict, and world building. While every story succeeds or disappoints on the basis of these elements, historical fiction has the added challenge of bringing the past to life.
Since I work best by example, I’m developing an explanation of the seven elements in the context of historical fiction.
Character – whether real or imagined, characters behave in keeping with the era they inhabit, even if they push the boundaries. And that means discovering the norms, attitudes, beliefs and expectations of their time and station in life. A Roman slave differs from a Roman centurion, as does an innkeeper from an aristocrat in the 18th century. Your mission as writer is to reveal the people of the past.
Dialogue – dialogue that is cumbersome and difficult to understand detracts from readers’ enjoyment of historical fiction…
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October 11, 2017
Finding your writer’s voice #amwriting #writing #writerslife
So many good ideas here
“To gain your own voice, you have to forget about having it heard.”
—Allen Ginsberg, WD
A writer’s voice can be an elusive thing. It is hard to know you have found it unless you are an experienced writer with enough books under your belt.
Often, you instinctively know when you are allowing your fears to get in the way of what you really want to say, but it can be difficult to do something about it. Whether it is word choice, style choice, character choice, or some other choice you are smothering, it can be difficult to quash your inner critic and just let the inner writer out.
What is the definition of a writer’s voice?
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October 7, 2017
My own Space PLUS Book Giveaway!
My sister-in-law and her husband are over from the UK for their annual visit. Even though they love Australia, and can’t get enough of the weather, the laid-back lifestyle, the fabulous scenery… even though we enjoy seeing them …..I get hardly any work done! There, I’ve said it…from my creativity/writing point of view, they are a complete distraction!
So, let me give you a little background on my husband’s relatives. My sister-in-law is a retired art teacher who now paints full time from her studio at the bottom of a very English garden (you get the picture…lots of roses, hedgerows, oak trees bordering their moss covered wall). She loves her work and finds inspiration from travelling around the world, taking photographs of wildlife, breathtaking landscapes, cities, etc. Then she paints them, quite well actually. Her husband is a retired doctor, who used to run a successful practice in Hampshire. Now he trawls through travel magazines every few months, (no, I stand corrected…every few weeks, or even days!) looking for places to visit. He also has a model train set up the attic of their small English cottage (picture it; low wooden beams and hardly any space as theirs has a huge chimney stack in one corner!), where their four cats have also made their home (warm and cozy-like). He loves to read travel magazines, and their house is full of artifacts from their travels.
So, they have lots of time on their hands to visit folk like us. Their passports are bulging with the places that they’ve visited (bear in mind here that they have been retired just a couple of years!). They have visited most of Europe on mini breaks (Greece being their favorite place) plus France, Spain, Croatia, Italy (at least four times!) as well as safaris in Africa, Madagascar, Dubai, Egypt, Texas (where his sister lives), toured across the States, India, and Australia (heaps of times). New Zealand is next on their list, and they are currently on a mini cruise break to Papua New Guinea. They left our house this morning with battered suitcases and lots of suntan lotion!
Phew! It is an A-Z of countries, and that’s the countries I know of!
Me? I am back to the comfort of my studio room, in front of my computer, busily dreaming up more plots for my next book…! Back in my comfort zone, my safe haven from life and its realities! The places I visit are totally in my head (until I write my bestseller of course, then I will travel….dreams are made of this!)
Do I sound jealous? Of course not! Well, maybe just a little!
Anyhow, this leads me neatly into my own question, fellow writers/bloggers!
What distracts YOU from your writing?
Does anyone else feel the same? Please share if you are with me…even just a little bit!
PS Have a great weekend, and happy, creative writing y’all!
PPS My new book is now out! Please take a look at The Tourmaline Bracelet the third book of A Celtic Trilogy. It’s FREE all this weekend!
#writing #creativity #iamwritingabook #happydays #myownspace
October 6, 2017
Are Deadlines Necessary For Writing?
This is a guest post by Corinne Ledling, a businesswoman who’s very passionate about her job. She’s a Content Manager at Bizstats.co.uk and in her free time, she loves to read mystery books and write short stories. When she suggested a post about deadlines, I just had to accept. Because, deadlines, right??
Are Deadlines Necessary For Writing?
I have been writing for over a decade, and have written hundreds of articles, eBooks, and even scripts during this time.
I am proud of the fact that I have never missed a deadline, but I often sit and wonder if deadlines are even necessary in this line of work.
Writing is a creative job at the end of the day, and creativity cannot be bounded. However, today all businesses have deadlines, and fortunately (or unfortunately) writing has become a business as well.
Writers are bombarded with tasks that are to be…
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October 5, 2017
Do you think music inspires you when you write?
Love these ideas, anything to get the creative juices flowing !
Or do you feel as to if the sound of music distracts you from your project?
For me, music is a distraction.
However, I’ve read a lot of articles from many writers about how music can set the tone and mood for their story.
Today one such post caught my eye and I thought maybe, just maybe I’m missing out on an important writing tool.
Read and tell me what you think.
8 Styles of Music to Help You Focus While You Write by DANA SITAR
I love music, country music is my favorite, although I’ve been known to listen to all types. From Bach to Jay-Z with lots of Willie Nelson and Jimmy Buffet in the mix. Yeah, my taste run wide. All depends on my mood at the moment, and of course the song.
Oh, one exception might be polka. Meh, not a fan. 
So, after reading this post…
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When is the Best Time to Write?
Inspiring…and true
Writer’s need routine because…well, routines are just helpful in general. When we talk about routines for writers, the question usually comes up “when is the best time of day to write?”
There is a theory (meaning: I have read a few “prestigious writers” that have said this) that the best time of day to write is in the morning, before you have done anything else.
They (the prestigious writers) say you should always write in the morning, because your brain is empty and closer to your unconscious because you just woke up. Nothing has yet happened to fill up your brain.
Is it true? Should you write in the morning??? Do I really have to become an early bird to get the worm??? Let’s take a look *dons spectacles*.
To start things off, there may be actual science behind this, meaning, there may be a certain time of day when…
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