Sara Martin's Blog, page 7

Is it possible to own too many books?

This piece on the Guardian is a few months old, but I think about it often:

You be the judge: should my wife clear out her old books?

Here’s the precis: Andy says he wants his wife, Sally, to get rid of some of her old books because she keeps every book she's ever read, and they clutter up the house and gather dust, and there's no reason to keep so many books when they have access to a library and audiobooks/ebooks. He thinks Sally should adopt a one in one out policy.

Sally says no, she’s going to...

Desk tour

My desk is where I do 90% of my writing, and honestly, where I spend most of my time during the day. For that reason, I like to have it set up nicely! Today for something a little different, I thought I’d give a little tour…

Desk: Deskbird 1500x800mm size in the Classic Walnut colour with white frame. This is an electronic standing desk. I don’t use the standing function nearly as much as I should, but it’s great to have it available.

Chair: Secondhand and I got it for free. I have no qualms about...

The light at the end of the tunnel

In case you missed it, I recently announced the publication of the omnibus edition of my three-book series - My K-Drama Life: The Complete Trilogy. Today I have another announcement - the paperback is now live on Amazon, and will be coming to other online retailers soon. This edition has gorgeous new cover art and is more affordable than buying the three books separately. It’s the perfect Christmas gift for K-drama fans!

Buy now

In other news:

I’ve finished the draft of my new book! Clocking in at ...

New boxed set goodness is here

How time flies. It has now been one year since I released the The Superstar Scandal, book 3 in the My K-Drama Life Series.

The success of my little three-book series continues to amaze me, and to celebrate this success, I have just released the trilogy in one complete volume.

Introducing, My K-Drama Life: The Complete Trilogy

Buy now

Get all three books in one volume, with a special new (gorgeous) cover design, and save money compared to buying each book separately!

This set is currently available as...

90's and 00's book nostalgia

I can remember the first book I ever read by myself. It was Lily and the Bears by Christine Ross.

Green Eggs and Ham by Dr. Seuss was another childhood favourite, along with Oh the Places You’ll Go.

The first chapter book I read by myself was James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl. I followed that up with several other of Dahl’s books: Matilda, The Witches, Fantastic Mr. Fox, George’s Marvellous Medicine, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, and Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator.

When I was nine,...

I'm up to the steamy scenes

I recently crossed the 3/4 mark in my draft and now I'm up to the steamy scenes. I haven’t written anything this sexy before. It’s actually kind of fun! The only problem is the niggling feeling in the back of my mind—"What if my mum reads this?" Now I know why most romance writers use a pen name...

In other news:

I'm house sitting, looking after a cat. This is Effie. A very active little cat who likes playing, chasing her tail, and jumping up on the table to steal food and drink. Very naughty. But...

Do you journal? Analogue vs. digital

I was thirteen years old when I started writing in a journal. It was a small, cheap, hardcover lined notebook that I attached a ribbon to the spine with tape as a bookmark. I wrote my first entry on my first day starting high school, and the frequency of my entries ramped up when I got my first crush on a boy.

Photo by Julia Joppien on Unsplash

I continued journalling through high school, then university. The entries came to an abrupt end when I started working a full-time job. “Real life” was too...

New routines and rituals

In the few weeks since I talked about my daily routine, I’ve been doing a lot of self-reflection. I’ve been coasting for most of the year and not producing as much work as I want to, not exercising enough, not eating as healthily as I should...

It’s time to step up and make some positive changes in my life. I want to fill my time more intentionally (no more mindless scrolling!), go for a walk or do yoga every day, and once a fortnight have an evening session at the local leisure centre: cardio a...

Letting go of words, making room for story

Photo by Brett Jordan on Unsplash

A recent blog post by Kristine Kathryn Rusch struck a chord with me. Writers fail by getting too hung up on the words, she explains. Writers who focus on words lose sense of the story, and the quality of their writing suffers because of it.

This resonated with me because it’s what I’m going through right now with my WIP. I have lost the flow of my story over and over again because I’ve been caught up in choosing the right words. I’ve got a project full of beautifu...

Ideal writing routine vs. reality

I’ve gone from full-time office job, to full-time author, to part-time author and part-time WFH in the space of a few years. I like to think I’ve achieved a balanced and sustainable lifestyle, but the truth is more complicated.

When I worked full-time in an office, I got up at 5:15 a.m. every weekday to do my writing. I had no energy to do anything except relax after work, and I always fell asleep the moment my head hit the pillow, no matter how early I went to bed.

Thanks for reading Sara's Noteb...