Amanda Fleet's Blog, page 12

Turns out, I'm an incorrigible romantic...

Just before lock down started here in Scotland, I was in a reading slump - nothing I had on my shelves or in my Kindle appealed, and I ended up reading almost nothing for weeks.

Then lock down started. I was supposed to be on holiday the first two weeks after lock down. I'd planned everything - book launches, events, starting writing the new book... everything - around those two weeks. And then the holiday was cancelled and here we are, however many weeks later, still pretty much in lock down. At the start of lock down, I wasn't even writing the new book - I was supposed to be taking a well-earned break after launching three books in four weeks.

An ideal time to read then?

Apparently not. My brain didn't know what it wanted, other than the holiday that I'd been looking forward to for months.

And then, out of the blue, I had a yen to read a cowboy romance.

What? Um? What???

Those of you who know me in real life will be scratching your heads over that one. So was I! But, I really, really wanted to read something, but nothing that I already had. So I downloaded a couple of free cowboy romances to my Kindle, fully expecting to read a few pages and remember that I'd never, in all my nearly 50 years of life, wanted to read many romances and nothing about cowboys. I fully expected to be back to fantasy or crime novels within minutes of reading a romance.

Well.

I've now read almost 20 romance novels since the start of lock down. A couple haven't been 'cowboy romances' - one was a vet, another was a time-slip novel with Vikings, and one was an artist - but it seems I am (at least at the moment) an incorrigible romantic who just wants a happy ever after ending. I'm less keen on explicit sex scenes (because most are pretty cringe-worthy to me, rather than sexy); I am keen on 'friends to lovers' books. Some of the books have been utter tosh (and there were some Did Not Finish in that 20), but some have been fantastic. I definitely need to connect with the characters more than care about the plot itself, but that's not a huge surprise as that has always been the case for me.

Two I would definitely recommend would be Sarah Fine's book "Only Between Us" (writing as Mila Ferrera), and Ashley Munoz's book "The Rest of Me". Both of these have incredibly strong characters and I was rooting for everyone. I've loved pretty much every Sarah Fine book I've ever read (and could read her Guardians of The Shadowlands books again and again) but I'd never heard of Ashley Munoz before. I'll certainly be looking for more from her.


Has anyone else suddenly discovered they're addicted to a new genre, out of the blue? If so, what genre do you usually read, and what have you suddenly discovered a love of?
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Plans? What plans?

Well. It was all going swimmingly... I was 40,000 words into the new book. 40,000

And then...

Well, and then I hit a stumbling block and decided I needed to change something fairly significantly.

Not the plot... the plot's fine (though I keep needing to trim out side-plots that are either unnecessary or wanting their own show a bit too much). It's the point of view (POV) I've needed to change.

The trilogy was all written from Reagan's/Aeron's POV and in 1st person ("I/we"). But in the new book, she's not always in all of the action for a variety of reasons, and was having to find out about it after the fact. This wasn't helpful!

However, Faran (Aeron's husband) was in all the bits of action she wasn't, and so, at 40,000 words in (I really can't stress that enough! That's almost half the book written!) I decided to switch to have two points of view - some scenes from Aeron's (still in 1st person) and some from Faran's (3rd person close - "he/they" but only what Faran can see/hear/experience).

So, the last week (and this week) has been/will be spent going back through those 40,000 words and changing about half of the scenes/writing new versions.

The fabulous thing is, I'm getting to write from Faran's perspective, and boy, is his perspective different from Aeron's at times! It took me a day or so to totally get into his head and 'hear' him, but now his voice is loud and clear (um, a little too loud, sometimes!) and I'm loving writing the scenes from his POV.

I just wish I'd had this realisation a little sooner than when I'd written almost half of the book!

Ah well.

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SPFBO

What???
SPFBO stands for Self-Published Fantasy Blog-Off. It's an annual competition, organised by the author Mark Lawrence. You can read the full details on Mark's SPFBO page.
Why am I telling you about this? Because I entered!! 
There are only 300 books in the competition. These are then distributed to ten book blogs who are particularly interested in fantasy books. Over the next five months, these 300 books will be whittled down to ten - one from each of the book blogs involved. Then, over the next six months, one will be chosen as the winner. There's no financial prize... it's far more about publicity and visibility.
Aegyir Rises has been allocated to Rockstarlit Book Asylum. They have five reviewers who are each going to read six books and choose their favourite, and then from those six, they will choose the book to go forward to the final ten across the competition. Within Rockstarlit Book Asylum, I've been allocated to Jen as the person reviewing Aegyir Rises.
What happens next?In all likelihood, I crash and burn... but this is what comes next competition-wise, within the blog group I've been allocated to: Before the end of August, each of the 5 judges reads at least 25% of each book they've been assignedBy the end of August, each judge puts forward their favourite book from the 6 they've read/sampled, as their semi-finalistEach judge will get a post on Rockstarlit Book Asylum to discuss their 6 booksBetween September and October, the 5 judges will read the 6 semi-finalists (again, they will read at least 25% of each book)Some time in October, their finalist will be announcedI'll keep you posted as to how I get on! Wish me luck?
And don't forget, you can still get a free novella, if you join my newsletter... 
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B5 writing folio

A long time ago, I posted about converting an old Filofax Deskfax into a writing folio. You can read that post here. Essentially, I took the ring mechanism out and added strings. The layout of the Deskfax meant that I could slide the cover of a B5 notebook into a back slot. The added strings could hold thinner B5 books. The various pockets and pen slots could hold Post-It notes, pens etc.

I don't know about where you are, but Scotland has had some fantastic weather recently. After wrestling with the plot (see last week's post), I've been scene planning, and a lot of that takes place in a notebook. A HUGE B5 notebook! Over the course of writing a book, I write a LOT of notes. Quite a while ago, I bought this notebook, ready for the next novel:
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Me v The Plot

This is how much of last week felt!! Writing had been going well, I was 20,000 words in to the first draft of the new book, and then I looked at my plan and thought, "Oh. I appear to be writing another trilogy!"

I had far too much plot for the book! Thus followed a couple of days (or more) of plot-wrestling, with all aspects insisting that they couldn't possibly be cut and just had to stay in, while I wielded the red pen, trying to excise them from the plot...

By the end of the week, the plot and I were more like this...


Maybe I'll write up the cut strands into short stories and share them with my newsletter subscribers. If you've not yet signed up, I'm currently giving away a free novella - a prequel to The Guardians of The Realm trilogy. It's only available to newsletter subscribers and is about what happened the first time Aeron met Aegyir. Don't miss out!

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Want a free book?

Aeron's Fall
It was all going so well. As one of the most senior warriors in The Realm, life couldn't be better for Aeron. 
But then millions of people started dying Outside - Earth, as you call it.
Something old... something evil was stirring again.
Aeron was determined to stop it, before it could wreak havoc on The Realm.
If she failed, The Realm could be destroyed.
If she succeeded? She still might lose everything.
Find out what happened when Aeron took on Aegyir, the first time they met.
I've just finished "Aeron's Fall" - the story of what happened the first time Aeron met Aegyir. It won't be available for sale anywhere as it's an exclusive book for my newsletter subscribers only.

Already a subscriber but haven't had it yet? Fear not, it's coming in this month's newsletter!

Not a subscriber yet? Sign up below!

Want the book, but you're not sure about the newsletter? Well, the newsletter only comes out once a month, and it has bits about what I've been up to over the month, book recommendations, special offers, and news about upcoming books (and events in non-covid times!).

Okay. While I have your attention, can I ask anyone who's read any of the trilogy if they would leave a review, especially on Amazon. Reviews help other readers choose which books to read. They also help with the visibility of the book in Amazon's algorithms - the more reviews there are, the more visible the book and so more people actually hear about the books! An author can also only sign up with some of the better marketing groups if they have a minimum number of reviews. Seriously, without reviews, the books are invisible. So please, if you've read any of my books, could you consider leaving a review? It doesn't have to be long - even just "Loved it!" or "Great book!" is enough.

Thank you.

Hope you enjoy the free book!

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Saving The Cat...

Last week, I said I was sailing in First Draft Lake. Unfortunately, I got blown back towards The Great Sifting River because I didn't like how the book was starting.

Now, because I'm a planner not a pantser, I don't always write a book in order. I have a general idea of the structure, and if I can really 'see' a scene that's later on, I write it, knowing that it will almost certainly be in the book, and probably roughly where it is, and that I can fix lead-ins and exits in the first edit, to smooth out any rough junctions. I use Scrivener to write, and so I create a separate document for each scene. These are really easy to move around, if I change my mind about the order or structure. I normally spend a decent chunk of time getting this basic structure into some semblance of where it might end up (though things always change between writing the plan and writing the book!).

That's not what I did this time!
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Here be monsters...

I've drawn a (terrible!) map of how writing a book goes for me (click on it to enlarge it). It starts with the Fountain of Ideas. This represents that glorious time when anything is possible in a book and no ideas are too daft. It's "play time" when my imagination gets to run mad, and ideas chase each other and twist and morph into new plot lines. It's a heady time. It's where I've been for the last few weeks.

Eventually, these ideas all flow into the Great Sifting River. Here, plot-lines peter out because they either don't fit in with the rest of the book, or just don't have the legs to carry them on. It's also where some plot-lines grow arms and legs and decide they want to be a whole new book on their own. And there are some ideas that just won't leave and inveigle their way back into the plot, invited or not.

After this, comes a giant lake: First Draft Lake. This is where I am at the moment, and where I will be for the next few months! And indeed, here be monsters. Some days it's all plain sailing through the lake - scenes come together, plot lines zing and all is right with the world.

And then there are the days when the giant monster that lives in the lake leaps up and chomps its way through a whole scene (or plot-line) leaving it in tatters and you don't know whether to mend it or leave it to sink and die.

Coupled with that are the Strong Winds of Change (not yet illustrated) which blow the plot off course, steered by unruly characters who think they know best (they usually do). Navigating a path between the Strong Winds of Change and The Monster can be a challenging time.

There was an interesting article out this week, talking to various authors, which found that most authors 'hear' their characters. I certainly do. I listen in on their lives and they have distinct voices. I can see them and the scenes they're in, in my mind's eye, as if I was watching them.


I once posted a cartoon about the characters wrecking a plot, and another author got quite stroppy with me and said that the author is in charge and the idea that these characters are anything other than a construct of the authors mind, is daft. While I accept that the characters are a construct of my imagination, I can't agree that I'm always the puppet-master and they only do what I want! When I'm in the flow, a scene can gallop along and it just feels right with where it's going. Often though, it either introduces things I hadn't planned, or ends up in an unhelpful place, miles from where the original plot is. I generally go with these flows. The scene is almost always better than if I try to cram it into the 'plot box' I had in mind.

Writing the first draft is often described as the author working out what the book is actually about, and I would have to agree. It's the author telling themself the story and it's quite a fun place to be. But I know what's coming after this... Once I've found my way through First Draft Lake, I'll be into The Mountains of the First Edit - the seemingly impassible, soul-sapping region which takes the book, pulls it all apart, exposes the holes and the patches and (eventually) fixes them. I'll amend the map when I get there!

Until then, I shall swim in the First Draft Lake and try not to be eaten by monsters.

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Lesley Kelly's "Murder at the Music Factory"

The Pandemic is Spreading

The body of Paul Shore toppled on to him, a stream of blood pooling around them on the concrete. Bernard lay back and waited to see if he too was going to die.

An undercover agent gone rogue is threatening to shoot a civil servant a day. As panic reigns, the Health Enforcement Team race against time to track him down - before someone turns the gun on them.

ReviewRead more »

Another Kindle Unlimited Bundle for you...

Another amazing bundle for you all to check out. Do you want to read stories about ordinary who find themself in an extraordinary situation? Maybe they're a farm boy who discovers they can talk to dragons, or a high school girl who finds out she's a witch? This is your place!

The books all free to read with Kindle Unlimited, so go and find a new author to binge on.

Where?

Right here
Let me know who you've discovered?

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It comes out once a month and subscribers get a free novella – the prequel to The Wrong Kind of Clouds – and all my special offers.
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