Nicky Peacock's Blog, page 52

My top ten book list

My own over-stuffed book shelf.

My top ten books.

As I’ve mentioned before, you really can’t be a decent writer if you’re not an avid reader, so in that spirit, I’m listing my top ten recently read books – but don’t worry, although there are brief descriptions there are no spoilers.

The Hunger Games – Suzanne Collins.

Ok, this really counts as three books, but I devoured them so fast that it felt like just the one. Dystopian, political, gruesome (in places) sad (in places) and above all written expertly well – if you haven’t already read them, ask Santa for this trilogy.

Warm Bodies – Isaac Marion

First person from the zombie’s point of view – need I saw more? Ok, a little more…it has a loose Romeo & Juliet storyline. Is funny and poignant. The film of this will be out next year, so read the book first – just in case the film doesn’t do it justice.

Dark Fever – Karen Marie Moning

Evil alien-like Fae creatures are forcing their way into our world and only one American Southern Belle has the power to stop them! Very Buffy-like in it’s concept and the whole series is thoroughly enjoyable – would love to see this made into a TV series.

Deadlocked – Charlaine Harris

The latest instalment of the Sookie Stackhouse series. I read this in a day! I usually do with the books in this series. It got some mixed reviews about it being overly complicated but, if you love and know the characters the whole thing just gets more intriguing – I was uncertain about the love interest by the end though (read it and you’ll see what I mean)

Incarnation – Emma Cornwall

Taking the point of view of Lucy in Dracula, this Steam Punk story gives us an alternate version of the events that inspired Bram Stoker. Well written and great escapism – although it did take some liberties every now and then.

What’s a Ghoul to Do – Victoria Laurie

I usually find it hard to read ghost stories, but with its fun characters and great premise this one really took me by surprise – A ghost busting psychic detective story which straddles both paranormal and crime novels. Lots of books in the series, so I’m looking forward to working my through to see what MJ Holiday does next.

Masque of the Red Death – Bethany Griffin

A great alternate history steam punk novel that kick starts a trilogy. Interesting concept and compelling characters that really do develop through the book. Manages to paint both a bleak and vivid picture of an alternate Victorian society. Eagerly awaiting the next instalment, which Bethany assures us is under way.

Kitty’s Big Trouble – Carrie Vaughn

I’m a big fan of the Kitty books. She’s a werewolf and a radio show host – what more can you ask for? I like the way the author has developed the character and my particular favourite of this series is ‘Kitty and the House of Horrors’ which was like a supernatural big brother. Big Trouble doesn’t disappoint and, if you haven’t read them, put them all on your Christmas wish list.

Morganville Vampires – Last Breath – Rachel Caine

I bought the Morganville Vampire series a while ago and quickly devoured them. The newest ones are a little jarring though, as the POV switches between characters – which I tend not to like – but the characters themselves are fully fleshed out and the vampire lore in these books is fantastic (I could have written ‘fangtastic’ but I didn’t) My favourite character is Myrnin – a flamboyant fluffy bunny slipper wearing mad scientist vampire, who you never know whether to trust.

The Goddess Test – Aimee Carter

We’ve been saturated with vampires, werewolves and zombies so a book about the Greek Gods is a refreshing twist. Great themes in this one and lots of parallels with mythology. It’s a lovely written YA book that captures you from the very beginning. The ending was quite obvious, but sometimes that’s a nice comfy feeling.

What have been your favourite reads this year?

Free Story – Food Chain

So, just for you, here’s a free story of mine. You won’t find it anywhere else.

FOOD CHAIN

by Nicky Peacock.

He wanted a relaxing day, to just melt into the overgrown grass of the reservoir’s bank, like he’d died and his essence was being sucked back into Mother Nature’s belly; alas it was not meant to be. No matter how still he sat his little amphibian mind buzzed with the constant hum of the nearby human buildings that surrounded the small man-made lump of nature he called home.

At least it was the weekend and there were no school trips. It was on those days he and his neighbours were subjected to stints of incarceration in brightly coloured buckets, and worse forced into cartoon character backpacks never to be seen again. Yesterday had been one of those days. Three teenagers had snatched him up and, whilst laughing maniacally, passed him round and licked his back.  All the while he was painfully aware that yet another group of kids were leaving the school system without knowing the difference between a common frog and a hallucinogenic toad.

He stretched out his long legs and tried to relax, such moments of peace were rare for him so he felt obligated to enjoy them. All too soon he found himself wondering what it would have been like if he’d have been spawned in one of those nice natural rivers.  Maybe he should take a trip over to one, fight the homing urge? No, it was a bad idea, frogs from such waters looked down on the likes of him coming from a quick crudely made ‘reservoir’ rather than one lovingly evolved by Mother Nature. The idea left him as quick as it had appeared, although if he was truthful to himself, it had merely retreated to fight with his reason another day.

It was starting to get dark and the night dwellers that lived in the reservoir were beginning to wake. It was then he saw the human. A lone man carrying a wriggling sack over his shoulder….

The frogs were use to things being dumped in their home, currently it was being used by a scientific research centre. The last thing they had abandoned there was the Three Eyed Toad. Too large to hunt, the frogs had looked after him. In return he had told them about the humans and their experiments, the brightly coloured liquids that burnt, and the howling animals with greedy stares. He hadn’t lasted long in the wild, he’d simply known too much. He may not have been born of nature, but she was forgiving and didn’t judge, she took him back. His body fed a flock of birds who watched the reservoir’s inhabitants with hungry vigilance.

“What’s going on Toby?” Minty scrambled up on the rock beside him and watched as the man dropped the sack to the floor.

“Not sure, hope it’s someone like the toad, he was nice.”

“Yeah,” Minty looked away, a slimy tear dribbling down his jowl.

The man kicked the sack then looked up and around like he’d spotted a predator; he then shook his head and pulled out his car keys and started striding back toward the road where his company van was parked. They didn’t need to look at the van to tell it was from the research centre. Three Eyed Toad had warned them never to go near it, although deep in their frog bellies they had always known as much.

“Let’s go have a look, someone might need our help.” Toby bounced off the rock, Minty close behind him.

The first thing they noticed was that the bag smelt strange. It wasn’t like the unnatural smell of Three Eyed Toad or even the brightly coloured buckets that randomly became their prisons; no this was naturally unnatural.

“Don’t get too close Minty.” Toby edged forward getting another whiff of weirdness.

It was a bag about five times the size of them, and it wriggled. Something was inside trying to get out, and Toby had the oddest sensation that whatever it was shouldn’t be freed.

“Minty hop onto the edge of the sack.”

“Why?”

“Just do it.”

Minty jumped onto the edge and Toby sat on the other end. The wriggling inside got worse.

“Can’t you feel that?” Toby shot a serious look at his friend.

“Feel what? The thing in the sack, we should let it out, it might be injured after the human kicked it.”

“No. It all feels…wrong we need to…” suddenly the sack stopped wriggling and deflated.

“What happened?” Minty moved from his corner to investigate.

“No Minty, stop!”

The sack was empty, whatever it was had eaten its way out of the bottom. The ground was alive with scuttling creatures that swarmed toward Minty with a common purpose, “Hello, what do we have here?” was all he got out before they were all over him.

“Minty!” Toby was rooted to the spot, he wanted to help his friend, he needed to, but it was like his legs had turned to frog spawn and all he could do was watch on helplessly as Minty was devoured by the little creatures.

The creatures looked like ants, but not like any ant Toby had seen before; they had giant yellow horns that erupted from their heads, horns that must have weighed more than an ant could carry as they dragged their heads down, making it impossible to see their eyes. They didn’t act like ants either; frogs were their natural predators they should be swarming away from Minty, not eating him.

“What are you looking at Toby?”

Toby turned to see his friend Kewl hopping toward him.

“What the? Is that Minty?”

“Was.”

“Come on brother let’s move!” Kewl grabbed Toby and pulled him toward the rocks.

Toby looked back to see the remains of Minty’s skeleton sinking into the mud. They reached the rocks and leapt behind them.

“Where’d they come from?”

Toby shook his head, “Guess!”

“Those scumbag humans.” Kewl looked back to see the ants had stopped swarming and were just standing really still. There were about twenty of them and they had all simply stopped and were now silently watching the night sky above them, their heads still labouring beneath the horns.

“We have to do something Kewl, those things eat us, and we need to kill them before they start a nest here.”

“Ok, ants for dinner then.”

“No! There’s something wrong with them, can’t you feel that?”

Kewl peered over the rocks, “Yeah, no I get it brother, I feel it too, they’re not suppose to be here.”

Toby joined him and they both watched the ants staring at the sky. Shadows flickered above them.

“Birds! Get down Toby!”

Both frogs jumped back behind the rocks and watched as a group of black birds circled the ants who just stared up at the feathered death bringers with oblivious abandon. One swooped down and started pecking at the small ant army. Instantly they were all over it, they went from naught to sixty within a nanosecond; they were the Ferraris of the insect world.  The bird cawed, struggled then was subdued as the ants feasted on its innards and licked the blood from its feathers.

“Toby we are in so much trouble right now!”

The frogs stared up at the other birds circling the ants. After watching their comrade roll and writhe then succumb to the strange horned creatures, they squawked at one another and flew off into the safe horizon.

“Whoa!” Kewl looked from the empty sky to Toby and back, “I’ve never seen birds fly away from a meal before.”

“Food that eats you is not exactly high on their menu choice.”

“These little guys are rattling the food chain, no wonder they don’t feel right brother. What did the humans do to them?”

“Three Eyed Toad said that they like infecting creatures with viruses and bacteria for their own amusement.”

“That’s no virus!” Kewl motioned at the ants that were now milling around the bird carcass, having stripped it like a Christmas Turkey.

“We need to see.”

“See what?”

“What they are. They don’t act like ants, ants would be working by now, building a hill, a home, and they’re not doing anything like that,”

“Apart from eating everyone, oh, hang on, what do you mean see? I’m not getting any closer to those horny little weirdoes than I have to,”

Toby turned and looked Kewl in one of his side eyes, “We need to get one, we won’t know what we’re dealing with till we…”

“What? Pull it apart? What are we now? The humans? Shall we make up a cage of lily pads and twigs?”

“Actually that’s not a bad idea.”

“You’ve gone insane!”

“The world’s gone insane Kewl, I’m just a frog trying to keep up.” Toby jumped behind the rocks and started pulling at twigs, and yanking plants out by their roots.

Kewl watched with sticky eyes and a dry mouth. Minty was dead. Rather than admit that and move on, like move way on to the next body of water away from the horned ants and certain death, Toby was waging a one frog war. They had all grown up together, spawned at the same time in the reservoir, probably not brothers, but as they had been tadpoles shedding tails and crawling out of the goo at the same time they felt like family. They’d stayed here and not jumped into the horizon like the rest of them, they had braved the school trips, scientific dumps and legions of birds and for Minty to die covered in ants… Kewl felt his back leg vibrate with anger, “What do you need me to do?”

Toby looked over and nodded, “We need to build a trap.”

“Count me in brother.”

The two frogs worked quickly, their webbed hands molding the mud into a primitive cage, the plant life of the reservoir tied together as ropes. Every now and then one of them would poke their head up from the rocks to see what the ants were doing; the answer always seemed – not much, apart from staring at the sky and of course looking weird.

Once their tasks were complete the frogs watched the ants for a while, judging the stragglers.

“There, the one to the right, he’s furthest away from the group,” Toby motioned to the ant almost on its own.

“Good spot brother, let’s do this.”

It’s hard to be stealthy when you’re a frog, the very act of jumping is both noisy and obvious, especially when croaking on lift off was almost a reflex; so they both decided that a surprise grab would work best. Trying to sneak up behind it would just be embarrassing. Once in position they nodded to one another, took deep breaths and leapt onto the ant. Toby whipped out his tongue, grabbed it, and they both leapt back and behind the rocks. Once there Toby threw the ant back up and into the mud prison. It stared at them, its foreign looking giant horns waving in the breeze coming from the two panting frogs. After gaining their breath and composure back they checked if the other ants had noticed. They hadn’t, their interest was still on the night sky.

“So what the hell are you?” Kewl asked slamming his amphibian hand onto the mud ceiling, “I’m bad cop,” he whispered to Toby.

“No you’re a frog,” Toby whispered back.

The ant had no reaction to the question, but squinted at the mud prison around it.

Toby pulled on their makeshift rope and wrapped it around the ant’s horns, “Just in case you get the nibbles friend.”

“We know that you came from the lab, tell us what you know.”

Nothing. It just stared at them, the only difference than when it had stared at the sky was that now it had a hungry glint in its eye.

“That’s so odd,” Kewl said moving closer to it, “it’s not an ant, or I think it was maybe one at one time, just not anymore,”

Toby tightened his grip on the rope, “What do you mean?”

“It has this glazed look, and I can’t hear a heartbeat.”

“Don’t be ridiculous Kewl, of course it has a heartbeat. If it didn’t it would have been took by Mother Nature already,”

Kewl moved even nearer, “Maybe it’s heartbeat is just faint?”

“Don’t get any closer!” Toby felt the ant tense then suddenly it reared back. The rope constricted on its horns and swiftly pulled them off.

“Whoa!” Kewl hopped back and both frogs watched as the ant decomposed in front of them, its body turning several shades of death, then sinking into its mud prison, leaving the yellow horns still tied to the rope.

“That ant was dead, it was the horns that were alive, they were just using its body to…”

“To what? Have a nibble at the wildlife buffet? This is wrong brother, we’ve gotta do something, if just one of those things gets outta here it could upset the whole food chain. What if it’s not just ants that it can use? What if…”

Toby nodded, “Ok, we need a plan.”

Kewl took a deep breath, “I miss Three Eyed Toad, he would have known what to do.”

“That’s it! You’re a genius, we need to get to that lab and talk with his friends, if he would know, they’d know. They might even know what these zombie ants actually are.”

“Hang on there brother, that place is dangerous.”

“The lab is now only marginally more dangerous than being here, and what if those yellow horns were to attach themselves to a human? What then eh? We need to know what we’re dealing with if we’re to stop them.”

“I don’t care what they are brother, I just what to know how to kill them.” Kewl looked off into the middle distance and puffed out his chest.

“We know how to kill them Kewl, we pull off their horns, we just need help, we can’t get them all on our own there’s too many, they’ll swarm us.”

Deflated Kewl sighed, “I knew that, I was just trying to be cool.”

Toby laughed, “You are Kewl, that’s how you got your name.”

 ***

They hopped like it was spawning season, the wind against their drying skins, and the fear of the ants weighing heavy on their minds. They stopped briefly to tell their few frog friends about the zombie ants and ask that they keep an eye on them, but not to go near them. Although most had gathered as much upon seeing the horns and feeling the aura that declared ‘keep away’. Funny the animals got it, most of them anyway, why hadn’t the humans? Surely they would have felt that primeval kick in the gut when they had seen these things, and if they had, why release them into the wild? Three Eyed Toad had been released because he had outgrown his usefulness, what could be learnt from an extra eye? The frogs quickly found that it actually made his eyesight worse rather than better, his balance was terrible so moving was a constant game of gravity roulette, where would he fall next? Humans were meant to be top of the food chain, they controlled the wild, made the reservoir, could freely walk anywhere without fear of being eaten by a hundred and one other species, yet still they didn’t seem happy to leave Mother Nature to get on with it. They still had to interfere.

***

The smell of humans and chemicals was everywhere and the smooth floors were proving painfully slippery to the frogs, but they had made their way via a sewer grate and up through a toilet so there really was no turning back.

Their little eyes bulged at the giant furniture and flashing lights, even at night the lab didn’t rest. They hadn’t see any humans though; Three Eyed Toad had instilled a fear so deep within them about the white coated creatures that the mission would have been instantly aborted upon one’s appearance – every frog for himself.

The door that held the animals was unmistakable in its scent so the frogs made their way beneath the cracks and soon found themselves staring at row after row of metal cages.

“Our mud cage was better brother.”

“These things look pretty sturdy, how did Three Eyed Toad escape again?”

“He didn’t, he got released, he said that they put a pink slip on his cage and the next day he was free.”

“The pink slips are too dangerous, they could mean get rid off for all we know. There must be another way to open the cages, we’ll find it and talk to these guys, we need help Kewl.”

“What about the food chain? If we let something above us out it’ll just eat us.”

Toby hopped further into the room, eyes pink and raw stared back at him, “Don’t worry Kewl. They’re beyond the food chain now, the humans have done things to them.”

Kewl followed him and soon a strange whispering began to echo about the cages, voices from a hundred different tiny tongues.

“Umm, hello.” Toby stood on his hind legs so he could meet their eyes, as best he could, “I’m Toby, this is Kewl,” he gestured at his friend who rolled his eyes.

“How did you get in here?” a small voice from behind the nearest cage.

Toby hopped toward it and peered into the darkness.

Two round pink eyes greeted him then a clawed hand slowly extended from the cage, “I’m Number 335.”

Toby took the hand and carefully shook it, it belonged to a large white female rat, who when she smiled, the frogs discovered, had no teeth,

“They took them out,” she explained, “we bit them when they grabbed at us, so they took our teeth.”

Lots of furry clawed hands then extended from the cages. Some took them quickly back in, some waved, one made an awkward ‘thumbs up’ sign.

“I’m Number324,”

“I’m Number527,”

“I am Number125,”

And the different numbers kept coming.

“Did you know the Three Eyed Toad?” Kewl asked Number335.

“No, sorry before my time I think.”

Toby stepped closer, “We need help Number335, will you and your people help us?”

“Help with the ants?”

“Yes! What do you know of the ants?”

“They’re dead.”

“No they’re not, they are in our reservoir, eating anyone who comes near them.”

“No, they are dead,” Number335 said, “We saw them, they were normal, they had a queen, they didn’t talk much but they worked hard to build a home here at the Lab. Then a human came, he was meaner than the rest, he had cold eyes and a dish filled with a pale yellow powder which he threw at the ant hill. They all died. Then they got back up and started growing horns. They ate their queen. They were not ants anymore, just mindless eaters driven by the yellow powder.”

“What was the powder sister?” Kewl asked.

“We are uncertain but we heard the humans speak of finding it deep below the earth, somewhere called Prehistoric.”

Toby inched closer to Number335, “Can you help us, we’ll set you free, but we need to kill all the ants in our reservoir,”

“We will help you Toby and Kewl, but we do not know how to kill the ants.”

“That’s ok, we figured that bit out, we just need the manpower.”

“Man power we cannot give, rat power however…”she winked her pretty pink eye and smiled her toothless smile.

  ***

With the aid of the rats Toby and Kewl found the switch to open the cages. They had to move quick, not every creature there was as friendly as their new thirty two rat friends. Before they could be eaten they all ran toward a grating that led to an extraction fan, which was fatefully broken; through that and into the fresh night air.

“Lead us to your home Toby,” Number 527 said and then gave the ‘thumbs’ up sign again.

“I think you should be called Thumbs from now on brother.”

“I like that.” Thumbs grinned.

“I’d like a name too.”

“Name me.”

Kewl put his webbed hands in the air, “No worries we’ll give you all proper names.”

Toby nudged him, “Let’s do it after, ok?”

“After what?”

“The ant battle.”

“Oh, ok brother.”

They moved with swift intent through the grass and cut across the human road; when it came to roads the animals knew there was safety in numbers, a car was more likely to see a hoard of rats than two small lone frogs.

When they made it to the reservoir they found that the frogs that had stood guard in their absence had disappeared.

“Oh great, who’s watching the ants?” Kewl motioned over the rocks and then hopped onto it, “Oh no, they’ve gone too!”

“The ants have died?” Number335 joined Kewl on the rock, “No, look they are there,” she pointed with her long nose to a mass of feathers and blood; the ants had spread out to take another victim.

“Ok, here’s the plan,” Toby motioned for them all to gather round, “Tomorrow is a school day, and if there’s a trip and the human tadpoles get hold of one of them it would not only disrupt the food chain but could break it all together.”

“We’re protecting humans?” Thumbs cocked his head.

“Not humans, but Mother Nature, the natural order must be upheld and it’s up to us to do it.”

“Tell us what we must do.” Number335 huddled closer, and the rest of the rats followed suit.

Problem was Toby didn’t really know what to do; in truth he didn’t think they’d get this far. Dying in the lab was as far as he’d thought up to, but with the army of pink eyes blinking at him and Kewl nodding heroically at a plan he had yet to hear, well he had say something…

“Right the plan,” he stood up on his hind legs so he was the tallest of the group, “Ok the plan is…” and next thing he knew he was air born clutched in the talons of a big black bird who looked down casually at him as it flew toward the sky, his friends frozen and watching on.

It was now or never to form a plan, thought Toby, “Excuse me bird.”

The bird stopped flying and hovered.

“Bird, please put me down.”

“I’m hungry.”

“I’m sure you are, but we have a problem that needs addressing and I’m the only frog who can do it; by eating me you could be dooming the planet to a zombie ant invasion.”

The bird narrowed its eyes, “That’s what those things are?” he nodded his beak to the squirming horned ants below.

“Yes.”

“They’re not natural.”

“No, they were dumped by the humans.”

“Of course, humans,” the bird snorted and almost dropped Toby.

“The ants have already eaten two birds that we know of; help us avenge your fallen friends?”

“I will not help; humans can clean up their own mess.”

Fear and dread tumbled through Toby’s tight dry little body and he realized that he’d never again see the wonders of a dawn or the eat a fat fly, or mate and spawn in the Spring.

“Please Bird,” he stared up at it, “we are the only defence Mother Nature has.”

The bird began to carefully tumble through the sky till it was just above the rock where Kewl and the rats were still sitting, their mouths slack with the horror of Toby’s abduction.

“Suddenly I’m not so hungry little frog,” the bird said then carefully placed Toby on the rock and propelled itself back into the sky.

“Brother! Are you OK?”

“No Kewl, I’m so far from OK right now that OK has invented a time machine and zapped itself back to the age when our ancestors were twenty foot tall and roamed the earth.”

“What did you say to the bird?” Number335 put her nose on Toby and sniffed him.

“It doesn’t matter, I’ve had a really bad week: back licking, science dumps, Minty killed before my very eyes, trip through a sewer and a toilet when we could have gone straight through the air ducts, yes Kewl I noticed that! Then, to top it all off, bird attack,”

“How was I supposed to know about the air ducts?”

“You knew about the sewers!”

“Frogs,” Thumbs peeked over the rock, “the ants are finished with the bird, they’re now moving around, with… more purpose.”

“Ok, there’s no time for a plan, let’s just roll in there and start ripping horns out!”

“Yeah!” Kewl jumped onto the rock, “Come on brothers and sisters, no ant lives!”

The rats squeaked and applauded so loudly that the ants heard them and started moving toward the rocks.

Then Toby got an idea, “They kill by their numbers but there are more of us, everyone picks an ant and destroys that one before they can swarm.”

As the two armies clashed together, the battle cry of the frogs and rats was heard slicing through the still night air. Clawed paws met with yellow horns, each of the frogs pounced onto an ant and held it in place for a free rat to rip into. A few of the rats were careless and eaten so quick it was like they’d sank into quick sand. the actual fighting took but a few minutes but to the frogs and rats it felt like hours.

By the end the reservoir looked like a discarded battlefield strewn with bodies like red and white confetti and defiant yellow horns that, by their continued presence mocked Mother Nature.

“What about the horns brother?”

Toby picked a pair up, “We bury them Kewl, as far down as we can so the humans can never find them again.”

“We will dig.” Number 335 rallied the other rats.

“Thank you, Num… Pink Lady.” Toby smiled at her, and Kewl started naming the other rats.

***

The story of what happened was told time and again for many moons. Sometimes it was a beaver that led the white army to victory against the horned ants, sometimes it was a stray dog looking to win back the love of its masters. Although the basic story remained the same, there are two truths consistently left out, one was that a lone bird circled the battlefield keeping away any skyward predators from picking off the brave soldiers, and the other was that it was all down to two frogs, two little frogs that saved the world from the yellow horned zombie ants.

After all, it would never have been believed, and we all have the responsibility of protecting the natural order.

Monsters – Part 2

Dragons

Many years ago ‘Here be Dragons’ was written on maps to indicate unknown areas of land and sea. Frightening creatures, Dragons are so similar to Dinosaurs, Crocodiles and Alligators that they could easily be turned into a horrific monster who stalks your protagonist with the echo of a hungry growl. Lots of publishers are out there now putting together Dragon anthologies and they are pretty easy to make work in horror. My own Dragon story ‘White Fur and Red Lips’ takes place in a universe where everyone transforms into their Chinese astrological sign on their year – the story starts as they enter the year of the Dragon (this story is being published in Static Movements’ Dragon Blood’ anthology)

Fae

Ok, the Fae have started to creep into the mainstream, after all Sookie in TrueBlood is part Fae and Karen Marie Moning has been using Fae as evil alien like god creature since her Fever series. But I feel that they still haven’t really hit their stride yet. Faeries and Fae creatures dominated old English folklore – even, when I was a little girl, I was told by my mum not to dance in mushroom circles lest the Faeries take me! They are a massive race of lots of different creatures, they even have their own vampires and werewolves, so exploration of these creatures is actually fairly top of my list of research. Remember though, don’t feel you have to stick with tradition here – what’s to stop you from creating your own race of Faeries?

Gargoyles

Supposedly so ugly that they scare away evil spirits, Gargoyles are either guardians or rogue monsters. I have read stories that interpret them as both, but these guys are still peripheral to all other monsters and, to be honest I can understand why. Unlike Vamps and Weres they don’t have the handsome side that can be used in paranormal romance, and being made of stone their scare factor can be a little bland – although the stone Angels in Dr Who are pretty darn scary! If you want to utilise these bad boys in your work you’re going to have really think hard before putting pen to paper, or finger to keyboard.

Incubus

Perfect for paranormal romance – a bit of a problem for horror. Most publishers in their guidelines state that there should be no rape scenes in your story, and as Incubus feed off sex, well that can be a problem; if its not consensual it can’t go in. These guys are beautiful and fantastic lovers, so for supernatural erotica they’re right on the money. Of course there are Succubus  as well – Bo in the series ‘Lost Girl’ is a Succubus and also Fae in origin – so really the world’s your paranormal romantic oyster when it comes to them – but be careful though if you’re looking to include them in horror.

Doppelgangers

I find these monsters very nasty indeed. Exact evil identical twins who want to kill you and take over your life. All your friends and family would think you’re mad and, quite frankly they could cause no end of French Farce type situations. For me – worse still, if they managed to kill me, they’d probably do a better job in managing my life than I’m doing! Doppelgangers are not used enough in horror or paranormal romance – so roll the idea round in your imagination and see what sticks!

Sirens

Also known under the broader Fae family and even Merfolk, Sirens are wonderfully rich in their history and have the capabilities of both paranormal Romance and horror – depending on how you write them.  In my opinion, to come into their own they really need to have their story line out of the ‘attack the ship’ box and perhaps should be updated into something more modern – what would happen if a Siren got an audition at X Factor?

Willo-the-Wisp

OK – not really a proper monster but the Willo-the –Wisp cartoon in the early 1980s was my very first introduction to the world of weird and when I was small I loved it! Kenneth Williams rocked!  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Willo_the_Wisp  But hey looking at the legends they could be manipulated into something quite nasty and, with a bit of creativity, even something ghostly romantic too…

Monsters – part 1

 

As we rapidly approach Halloween I’d like to talk about…monsters. They really are the main ingredient in the majority of horrors so I feel like now is the perfect time to talk about them, not just about the ones the we all know, but also about the lesser used creatures who rarely grace our books, TV and film screens and seem destined to wait on the literary side lines.

First things first, let’s look at the ones we all know and love? Vampires, Werewolves, Zombies, Ghosts, and Witches. Next blog will cover some of the lesser known entities that still deserve a mention.

 Vampires:

These guys have been in the forefront of horror and paranormal romance for the past couple of decades. We all know the legends, starting of course with Bram Stoker’s Dracula (the book rather than the film). Many historical figures were rumoured to be Vampires and remains of ‘Vampire burials’ have been discovered all over the world. These blood suckers have, in fact, been haunting our nightmares for centuries. The science of Vampirism is even more interesting with ‘Renfield Syndrome’ now an official clinical term.

Only recently have they been morphed into more romantic figures and, in my opinion, lost their scare. When monsters are humanised and romanticised like these guys, well it’s hard to feel that sense of dread anymore. I remember watching Stephen King’s ‘Salem’s Lot’ when I was little – when that little boy tapped on his brother’s first floor bedroom window, I decided to ask for a cross that Christmas! Nowadays I leave the cross at home to make my neck more enticing!

So OK, let’s be realistic here, the only way these guys are ever going to be scary again is if they don’t look like Alexander Skarsgard! Think Nosferatu rather than Edward Cullen. But rather than ruin anyone’s day dreams Vampires do still firmly belong in paranormal romance (I’m guilty of using them as such myself) but make sure that when you write their characters, you give them a bit more grit and lot less maudlin – remember they are still monsters!

 Werewolves:

The two-natured beasts have also been somewhat muzzled in recent years, perhaps not to the extent as the Vampire, but still they’re certainly not what they use to be. Werewolves have been with us just as long and were, more than likely, the supernatural explanation for some very real psychological disorders, such as schizophrenia, and lycanthropy. Being a ‘Werewolf’ was a handy excuse for townspeople that couldn’t believe that the ‘nice bloke down the road’ had murdered his wife and children. Here’s a handy link to a list of 10 real life historical Werewolves:

http://listverse.com/2012/01/25/10-true-life-werewolves/

These guys definitely need a re-vamping (pun intended) they have so much that could be explored and of course have the capacity to still be bloody scary. One need only read Angela Carter’s ‘In the company of wolves’ to see how both their violent and sexual natures can be combined into a terrifying story.

A good Werewolf tale (I punned again!) can be a number of things: an out and out stalking monster story, a who’s the Werewolf Cluedo game or of course you can keep them as romantic figures – but hey let’s at least give them their claws back!

 Zombies:

People take the piss out of me when I say that zombies could happen, but you only have to read this article:http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/neurophilosophy/2012/may/03/zombie-ant-parasitic-fungus to realise we are just one mad scientist away from an un-dead apocalypse.

Zombies are one of the few monsters out there today who still retain their scare factor. You can’t reason with a Zombie and well, they’re pretty up front with what they want from you. This might change with the cinema release of ‘Warm Bodies’ next year, based on the book of the same title by Isaac Marion; as this firmly puts a romantic spin on the whole Zombie/ human relationship. Still, if Zombies where behind door number one, then I’d choose the box every time!

When writing Zombies, it’s really down to the gross factor. You can’t write a polite Zombie story. Pick a scenario that screams outrageously hard to escape, throw in a ravenous Zombie hoard and prepare yourself to kill off your characters!

Ghosts:

Kind of the poor relation of the supernatural at the moment, but I truly think that they’re ready for a comeback. I remember listening to ghost stories when I was a little girl and thinking they were the best entertainment ever, that was until nightfall and I started rolling around their existence in my mind,whilst sitting up wide eyed in bed! Everyone you know, and care to ask, knows at least one ghost story – they really are universal.

One thing to remember with ghosts is that they are the ethereal manifestation of people – so are neither good nor evil – in theory. The key here to writing a cracking ghost story is the actual back story of the ghost itself, who they are and why they’re trapped.

 Witches:

Hubble Bubble Boil and Blah! In my opinion Witches are so old big black pointy hat nowadays. To get these guys in the forefront would take a truly magical idea and a new spin on a tired stereotype. Now, in saying that I’ve seen the trailer for ‘Hansel & Gretel Witch Hunters’ which is coming to a cinema near you early next year and it looks pretty good – the witches are more scary than sexy and it has a kind of dark gothic feel to it. Let’s hope it inspires us to take Witches and place them firmly back into the horror genre.

Again Witches can work well in paranormal romance, they are human after all and so side step that awkward mix of species – just as long as you stay clear of the whole Love potion Number 9 malarkey!

Fairy Tales

It’s me as a comic book Little Red Riding Hood!

“There once was a man from Venus, that had a massive… ” No wait, that’s limericks!

Fairy Tales really are the ancestors of modern stories. They usually had a moral theme and were designed to teach valuable life lessons to kids.

Little Red Riding Hood – Don’t talk to strangers

The Emperor’s New Clothes – Even the rich are gullible.

Hansel & Gretel – Don’t trust strangers

Little Mermaid (original not Disney version!) – self-sacrifice earns you a spot in heaven

The Red Shoes – be careful what you wish for.

Little Match Girl – Keep warm or you’ll die?

Fairy Tales were written in a very special way as, not only were they passed along in book format, but also orally as folk tales by story tellers.

Through the years these old tales have been morphed into more ‘happy ever after’ versions where no one dies or gets eaten, so it could be debated whether or not they still serve a purpose other than for the entertainment value. After all, if there are no consequences is there still a teachable lesson?

Have a look a Wikipedia at the authors of some of the more famous Fairy Tales: Hans Christen Anderson, The Grimm Brothers, Madame d’Aulnoy and Charles Perrault and follow links to read some of the original texts. If you are going to write new Fairy Tales then starting at the source will stand you in better stead than watching the latest Pixar or Disney movie.

Most publisher call outs are either looking at horror twists or the romantic elements in Fairy Tales so I’d advise sticking to these genres for now – although if that creative wind blows you in a different direction, don’t fight it!

Try to avoid re-writing it blow for blow as that kind of falls into the lap of plagiarism. Instead read the tale, write down the major theme, characters and plot points – then mix it up a bit. Maybe Snow White was a vampire that the Queen was trying to save the kingdom from. Perhaps the glass slipper in Cinderella was code for a torture device. Or maybe Hansel & Gretel were robbing the poor witch’s house and, by new UK law, she was allowed to use deadly force on them to defend her property! The possibilities are endless! So dig in there and re-craft these classics to translate to modern times with twists and turns.

Let me know what you come up with and leave a comment here…

Now monsters and myth go hand in hand with Fairy Tales, so next blog will we talk about all those pesky common ones and also cover the ones that seem to have been forgotten about.

Inspiration

There are two key ingredients to being a good writer – skill and imagination. You can be the most accurate and precise writer in the world but if your stories are boring and predictable you’re not going to wow publishers or readers. In my little ol’ personal opinion I think that inspiration and creativity in writing is what makes a good writer – the editing process can be taught, but being creative – well that spark has to be there in the first place. So here’s how to fan that spark into an out of control forest fire that consumes all it touches…

Spit Balling

Talk to other writers and creative individuals. Yet another reason to join a local writers’ group. Chatting through ideas and generally debating current topics can spark creativity beyond your wildest imaginings. If you are struggling on the end or beginning of your story – throw it out there, a new perspective will help you get where you need to be. But don’t just be a taker – make sure you give as much creativity as you’re getting. I regularly spit ball with fellow writers and love nothing more than to float ideas and see where they take us.

Dreams

Your unconscious mind is veritable cornucopia of crazy – perhaps the only thing that links all the people of this world together is that we all have strange disjointed dreams. Taking a note of your dreams can birth stories – obviously trying to get them down verbatim is not going to get you anywhere, but using images and especially certain feelings and concepts can grow into a seed of an idea. I actually got inspiration for my story ‘Letting out the Heat’ featured in Blood Bound Books’ Night Terrors 2 anthology by having a rather nasty dream on a hot restless night.

Write what you want to read

Read. Read. Read! I cannot stress this enough…READ! A writer who doesn’t read their genre is like a chimp in a tutu –only funny once, and God only knows how he got in it. You must read the books in your chosen genre. Only by having an appreciation for the authors already mastering this industry can you then embark on conquering it yourself. You could also put it down to the old adage ‘Know your enemy’. Knowledge is a powerful thing and only by knowing what is already out there can you write something different (or with a twist) and compete with your competitors. You’ll also then get a sense of what’s missing – a story you would want to read. Write the story that you long to read, but no one has conjured up yet.

Eaves dropping and people watching

This sounds awful – but it really works. It’s one of the main reasons that a lot of writers tend to favour coffee shops as their primary writing location. Listening to snippets of conversations then imagining the people behind them, and how things continue, can help to create facets of your work and even become main themes. The other bonus is that you can base characters (loosely) on the people you see and hear. Your characters then automatically have a sense of realism without you having to flesh them out too much.

Photos and paintings

Going to galleries and searching online for images can really focus your mind. They say that pictures are worth a thousand words and I believe that this is down to the fact that they are subjective to the beholder. We could both look at the same painting but both see two entirely different story lines being played out. Try to avoid famous paintings or photos that you have knowledge of; instead seek out the unknown and let your imagination wander free.

Journal

Do keep a journal of all your ideas and writing thoughts. This sounds a bit pretentious and time consuming but, believe you me, you’ll forget something if you don’t. Storing up all these ideas means that you have a larder to go back to when you need something. I tend to use a folder on my laptop for this rather than physical journal that can be lost or destroyed. I come up with an idea, create a word document and copy and paste info in there along with my thoughts. I then back this folder up on a memory stick along with all my other work.

Write to order

This works wonders. Have a look at publisher call-outs and editors’ wish lists and see what they are looking for. Not only does it instantly give you a possible home for your work, but also a deadline in which to get it across. I do this a lot and find it really motivates me to ‘think outside the box’. My story ‘Fountain of Flesh’ included in Dark Moon’s ‘Vampires!’ anthology was down to them specifically asking for something that, so far, had not been done with vampires – a hard task right? So I pondered it for a bit, then wrote a story that featured a vampire that wasn’t actually a conscious participant in the tale but was still the catalyst for the bad thing to happen.

Looking at the current call-outs fairy stories are a real favourite. Once upon a time there was a blog….

Drafting and editing

Oddly drafting and editing has become one of my favourite parts of writing. Polishing that little diamond of work can be fulfilling and, let’s face it, help to get you published. Long gone are the days where just the skill of creative writing will get you by, now you must be adept at editing and re-drafting your work – the less work your publishers need to do on your manuscript, the better.

So there’s a massive amount of books out there that will tell you intricate and annoying ways of doing this, some might even wimp out and tell you get someone else to do it – the fact is, most writers don’t have the money to spare on a professional editor and, to be frank, you are the most passionate advocate of your work so you are really the best polisher to make it sparkle – at least in the first instance.

It took me many attempts to perfect this process, and to be honest it’s still an ongoing challenge, however I can tell you what I’ve learnt along the way with working with editors and give you a starting point to perfect your own way of editing and proofing.

What I do is have a 8 check system. Each time I read through my work I’m specifically checking for one thing. This makes life much easier and also ensures you are more likely to spot a mistake rather than just keep reading over and over again.

1) Check for consistency of story – Check that all your questions have been answered, all your important plot points are lined up and that characters are described in the same manner – it’s confusing to the reader to have their protagonist described first as blonde an then as a red head in the next chapter – of course, unless you want to include a dramatic hair dying scene!

2) Flourish – I add descriptions in poignant parts of my story and cut down on bits that are overtly flowery and take the reader off point. Descriptive prose is how you express yourself as a writer however a whole manuscript in this style can make for an acrid style and can quite frankly annoy the reader. Only using this technique on scenes that matter will ensure that your reader enjoys the story and focuses on the plot points they need to.

3) Tenses – you can’t always have the same tense, if you talk about the past then obviously you need your tenses past, however you need to pick a long term tense for your manuscript. The usual is past – although sometimes present helps more with tension. It really depends on what you are writing – horror tends to work better in present tense as it can help to ramp up the scares. Personally I’m partial to my romances in past tense as it eludes to that happy ever after ending that goes hand in hand with a good romance.

4) Perspective – You really can make a rod for your own back with this one if you’re not careful. Pick the perspective (1st, 2nd, 3rd) and for which character, and stick to it. When you look back you need to be aware that, depending on your perspective, you’ll have limitations and so check that these are adhered to in your manuscript. For example, if your character is taking first person you need to make sure that the action is limited to their presence – they can’t talk about something they didn’t hear about or witness.

5) Cliches – ahhh, lips like rose petals. We hear cliches all the time and so its natural that they should creep into your work – however they should never stay there. Take the time to look through and check that you are not falling into cliched chasms in your prose – dialogue is up for grabs as people do talk in cliches, but your prose should be blissfully cliche free.

6) Info Dumps – We have of course covered these, but I really feel strong enough about them to dedicated a whole draft to checking for them. Identify them with a highlighter and then re-write that information back in in a less obvious way.

7) Grammar – This is one of the most important drafts. Grammar can change the structure and meaning of a sentence. Without the correct grammar your manuscript will not make sense! Seriously! You need to take sometime and learn the proper usage of grammar and ensure that you’ve checked for it in one of the final sweeps. OK you probably will miss some mistakes, but by ensuring the majority are caught you retain some semblance of respect for the English language.

8) Format – Just before sending your manuscript off, change your font, spacing, tabs etc. to the format your publishers ask for. They are all different so do double check this. You don’t want your amazing story overlooked just because you didn’t send it in the right font?

Let me know if you think of anything else that should be included on this check list and of course don’t get hung up purely on the editing process – make sure that you keep writing. Your first draft is just that, a first draft. It will not be perfect. Even Hemingway said that ‘The first draft of anything is s**t’ – so dig up that diamond first, then polish it.

But how do you get that cracker of an idea in the first place? I feel a next blog coming on…

Advice – better late than never.

Yes – that’s me aged 4! All together now – ahhhhhhh

In the photo above I was all dressed up and ready to go exploring the inner depths of an ancient dusty tomb filled with lolloping flesh crazed zombies and crumbly curse ridden mummies. I was all set to explore the…cupboard under the stairs! OK not as exciting as I built it up to be, but hey it was still pretty dusty down there! So when I look at this photo of myself I tend to start to get a bit maudlin and wonder what my life would have been like if I’d known then, what I know now.

No matter how old you are I hope the following lessons I’ve learnt and advice I’ve gleaned can help you on your way and perhaps save you the most valuable thing we all own…time.

 IMAGINATION

I wrote a line in my story ‘Personal Demons’ included in Static Movements’ Carnival anthology:

‘Imagination can be a blessing and a curse’.

This for most writers should ring true. Having a vivid imagination makes writing fun, gives you the foundations to a great story line and can even draw others to you; but it can also make you a worrier, make you a dreamer and above all leaves reality as monotone mundane drudgery – nothing is as good as you imagine it will be. The trick to this is to pour all your imagination into your writing. Stop imagining the date you’ll be having with your cute neighbour – just go out with them. Stop putting yourself into your dream world – I know its great escapism, but in will turn your reality into a very ordinary and dull place. Imagine your stories, and get on with your life.

 YOU CAN’T PLEASE EVERYONE

This is the best advice I’ve ever been given. In trying to please everyone you can end up pleasing no one. The best thing to do is please yourself (no rudeness intended!) You might write a story that is rejected by one publisher only to be merrily accepted by another. You can’t be all things to all people; the only thing you can do is make sure you are happy in what you do in life, what you write and how you write it. Never be told what to do or be forced into a cookie cutter version of yourself. Life’s far too short and time is running out. When it comes to writing the only thing you have to do is: adhere to guidelines, know your market and keep trying.

 JOIN A WRITERS’ GROUP

Or in my case create one! I put Creative Minds Writing www.creativemindswriting.co.uk together almost two years ago and looking back it was the best decision I ever made. By having a group of like-minded individuals on hand to talk to, spit ball ideas with, gain knowledge from, and motivate me I was kept on the writing straight and narrow. I wanted to do well for them, to learn all I could so that I could help them and in the process I got published. The motivation was definitely key; on my own I’d given up my writing dreams more times than I’d care to admit – with them my resolve was stronger. Through the group I’ve met wonderful people and life long friends and, unlike other friends and family who have no interest in writing, their eyes do not glaze over when I excitedly tell them a new idea – they get excited with me.

 SEND YOUR WORK AWAY

This sounds dumb, but I was definitely a pack rat writer. I had file after file of beautifully organised crap just sat gathering dust on my bookcase. Was it going to magically sprout legs and wander off down the road to a major publishing house? No. Well not unless a mouse with a wand got involved (and thinking about it, that whole animated object thing didn’t work out so well for the mouse!) You can’t get published if no one is seeing your work so email those stories, novels, articles, whatever you’re hiding away from the light of day – research a publisher to send them to, polish them up and march them out like paper solders in your own private battle. Like in every war, some will fall by the wayside but others will storm to victory waving your flag for all to see!

But before you send your manuscripts out, let’s talking about drafts and proofing…but you’ll have to wait for my next blog!

Planning your work

As much as I joke about not meeting publishers’ deadlines, in reality I’m quite an anal person and have never missed an important deadline. I’m a planner – loud and proud! It may not be the sexiest part of being a writer but it sure is one of the most important. Learning to plan your time can be the defining factor between your ‘yet to be written best seller’ and your finished manuscript ready to be rolled out to the word hungry public.

All my life I’ve worked with deadlines so have learnt a few tricks along the way that I’m going to pass on to you. As anyone who knows me can attest, I have no sense of direction so maps, plans and schedules are my personal saving graces – here’s how you can use them too…

MIND MAPPING

Don’t worry its not some New Age hippy concept, they actually do help and can really focus you on your end goal. Draw a diagram with your goal at the top – getting your book published (or anything else) then write down all the small steps in-between that goal and your current situation. It might start as simply as buying a laptop that you can use to write frequently and with ease or coming up with a story line.

Now, one thing that I learnt the hard way, and that I’d like to pass on, would be to have a few steps in-between ‘Start writing’ and ‘Send your novel to publishers’. Most new writers are so hungry for that big score that they forget to learn the craft of creative writing– few writers achieve the published novel leap straight off the bat – learn your craft and gain publishing credits by exploring the massive short story market first. Anthologies are hugely popular right now and although don’t often pay well, give you experience with writing, working with editors and also exposure to potential fans. They show publishers and agents you are serious about what you do and that you have some tried and tested skills. Check out www.duotrope.com for a 4,000 + database of anthologies and magazines, in all genres, all over the world, looking for talented writers to submit short stories.

People always ask me how I managed to get so many publishing credits in such a short amount of time (currently 32 in under 2 years) and it was using this method. I identified a publisher with an anthology call out – I wrote the story they asked for – I adhered to their guidelines and next thing you know I’m published in 5 countries and have worked with over 17 publishers.

Short stories also help to focus you on your writing. It’s hard to keep the excitement alive when your novel (which took you 5 years to complete) is consistently rejected – short stories take anything from a week to a month (depending on your time) and give you such a buzz when they are accepted that they can really spur you on to write more. You organically learn how to write great stories, a skill which will help you write that bigger manuscript.

PLANS

Write a plan, but know that you are not obligated to follow it – sounds crazy right? No, it means that you are free to adapt and evolve your plan when needed. How I work is: I write down all the publisher call outs (keeping an eye on what’s coming up) that I could write a story for – I then write the deadlines on my wall chart (usually shaving off a week for leeway) I then create draft emails, that contain links and formatting guidelines, and title them with the date and name of the anthology. That way, when you are looking in your emails, they’re there, in order – mocking you with their very presence – the only way you can get rid of them is to finish that story and email it out!

The plan itself will change when you are writing your bigger manuscript. If it’s all down to you then you’ll have no strict deadline unless you give yourself one – so do. Plot out the major scenes in your book and write them. You don’t need to write the linking scenes between them right away, write what excites you about your novel first – this will then keep your momentum.

SCHEDULE

Buy a diary that is just for your writing – make it small so you can carry it round with you and jot story notes in. Now of course the biggest step in becoming a published writer is…WRITE! Actually sit down and write something, and do it regularly. Obviously nowadays there are other things that authors need to do to promote themselves and their work, social media and blogs is a must – but don’t prioritise them over your actually writing. Make sure that you schedule in a bit of time everyday for you to write, once you’ve done that, then engage with your fellow bloggers, Twitter mob or Facebook friends.

So now that you have started planning your success (remember when you get there who gave you the directions!) in my next blog I’d like to take this further and talk about the mind set of a writer – how to overcome rejection and some advice that I wish someone had given me years ago!

Responsibility to your Reader.

OK, you’re probably wondering why I’m bringing this up; writing is an art form and so does not adhere to the limitations of basic responsibilities…right? Well the answer to that lies squarely on your shoulders as the writer. Everyone will have an opinion on this – but it really is a ‘yes’ or ‘no’ answer. As a writer you have ethics or you don’t. I’m not saying that those who think morals is just a Spanish resort are evil or deserve banishment from the realms of polite society – but what I am saying is that ignorance is not an excuse and when you are a writer you need to choose that ‘yes’ or ‘no’ and stick to it. When your work is sent out into the world, make sure it accurately represents you as an author and a person. I write for both adults and young adults and in doing so I endeavour to include some morality in what I write.

I’m going to give the most obvious example here, ‘Fifty Shades of Grey’ love it or hate it – it’s the Marmite of the literary world but you can’t argue that the author has made some serious money off the back of it. In my opinion it’s ill written, lacks theme and sports some mind numbingly clumsy prose. It glorifies relationship abuse and sends out the message that, ‘even though he beats me, I can change him’. Now I’m no prude and I’ve written some over 18 material myself, however these scenes in a book/film should be there for a reason – they show a façade of the characters, they move the relationship on etc. – what shouldn’t happen is that they are just liberally sprinkled into a manuscript, like porn dust, just for effect. There is a place for books like these, and it is not stacked high at the doors of our local supermarkets or flaunted in the window of high street book shops. Now to be fair, the author really isn’t to blame for most of this. The media machine surrounding the books has spun out of control – however as the author she had the right to say ‘no -I do not want my book in easy reach of children’ and perhaps to write in come character/ story consequences somewhere along the way, perhaps a similar relationship to that of the main characters, one that didn’t end well. Maybe even give some of her fortune to a few charities that support victims of relationship abuse?

Now let’s talk about someone who does put in some ethics, yet still earns a pretty penny. Jeff Lindsay writes the Dexter books which, in my opinion, are brilliant (although I’d like to talk to Jeff about the last one!) He writes first person from Dexter’s point of view; Dexter is a serial killer. However as a serial killer he has ethics and standards. He only kills other killers and is effectively using his ‘dark passenger’ to help keep innocent people safe. Without this crucial ethical twist the Dexter books would have been borderline sick and no where near as interesting. Although the subjects of the Dexter books range from deranged surgeon to cannibalism, they still have that noble ideal running through them, they are well written with a dry sense of humour with gore that has a reason to be there.

So now that I’ve had my rant I’d like you to take out a bit of time and look at your own work – make that ethical decision and change/ ignore accordingly. I’m not dictating what you should do, but like most things in life, it’s better to know your options and think ahead with a clear plan in mind. 

Planning is one of those life skills that some people have in spades and others shrug off preferring to fly by the seat of their pants. When it comes to writing the latter really does you no favours – so my next blog will be everything I’ve learned about planning your writing and meeting crucial deadlines.