Holly Ice's Blog, page 2

Fatal Glitch: Alpha Read

Snow and frost is on the horizon in England for tomorrow and the day after but I have two great books to keep me occupied as part of the alpha swap I've set up with two other writers. They'll be reading my prequel novella to the Courage Colony books Fatal Glitch over the next few weeks while I read their books.I was hoping to get three alpha readers on board for this first round of feedback on Fatal Glitch but two is great to start me off and should give me some usable feedback on where the book is working and where it needs work.I'm a blend of excited and anxious (as usual) to see how well the book is doing after my first round of editing. If it's in good shape, I'm hoping to publish Fatal Glitch in the first half of this year.The Approach is also going well. Six out of eight beta readers have reported in and I'll be starting edits from their feedback this week while I await the remaining feedback.As a whole, I'm very pleased with how productive January has been. Here's hoping the rest of the year goes as well.Until next time!

2018 in Review and 2019 To-do List

2018 was a big one for me. It was the year I left my full time job to focus more on my writing career. I'd realised that the full time job was too mentally demanding and left me too tired when I got home to make much progress with my writing. Last December, I decided I wanted to change my focus going forward and that the best way to do that was to leave full time work.This was simultaneously a terrifying and invigorating step but, from the beginning of February, I was working full time on my writing. I got an entire book (The Approach) planned and drafted and self-edited, including through one alpha swap. By this point, it was summer and I'd also realised that to keep a good schedule and to keep social contact with the outside world, I should apply for a part-time job. I'd previously balanced part-time work and my writing well at university, so I thought it might be a happy medium. In June I applied for a part-time 20 hours per week contract and started working there in mid July. It's a retail job which is a big change from what I was doing previously but not unfamiliar to me, and not something that exhausts me when my shift is over which means that even on working days, I often manage to get writing or something writing related in.Since this change, The Approach has gone through a second alpha swap and edits and is currently with beta readers. Three out of the eight I've sent it to are yet to offer their feedback. Once that's in, I'll be making the final changes before it'll be sent to a professional copyeditor but the best news is that work-work is complementing rather than hindering my writing, and I'm a much happier and more fulfilled person as a whole.I've probably mentioned most of these stages before individually, but I'm super excited about going about the process of publishing a book myself, from start to finish. It helps that this book is now at the point it's reading well and having a great reception from early readers. I'm excited (and nervous as hell) to find out what a wider selection of readers will think, once it's ready. With the current work already done and what's left to go, I think the book could be published in the first half of 2019. Certainly a milestone to look forward to!In November, while The Approach, was with beta readers, I also drafted another book, a prequel set hundreds of years before The Approach which showcased how the world ended. This is tentatively titled Fatal Glitch. The first draft is complete and I'm currently in the self-editing phase. Going from an almost finished book to a new, very rough, first draft, is always a difficult adjustment, but I think this book could also be finished in the first half of 2019.In December, I also put together a plan for the plot of a second book in the series, directly following the action within The Approach. I haven't started writing yet but I'm excited to draft this book next year and delve even deeper into the characters and the story and world as a whole. There'll be many surprises ahead, I'm sure, and my passion for the endeavour is just as high as when I left my old job.So, that sums up my progress through 2018, but how does it match up to what I myself called ambitious (and potentially unachievable) goals? At the end of 2017, I challenged myself to draft four books and publish two in the year to come. In the end I drafted two, planned one, and have one of those books close to publication.The results of the year don't quite match up to my lofty goals, but this isn't something I'm sad about. I took a massive first step in refocusing my goals and emotions fully onto writing, and I'm improving. It's becoming much easier to plot stories and self-edit. It's a long process but it's an enjoyable one, and I think 2019 will go even better.As it's New Year's Eve, I'm also thinking about my goals for 2019. Bearing in mind the progress I've made already this year, my goal will be to draft two books (the second in the series that I've already plotted, and a third in the same series). I'll also aim to publish three books: Fatal Glitch, The Approach, and, hopefully, the second book in the series will be completed by the end of the year and be ready for publication.Like last year, this is a lot to ask of myself, but i don't think I would have come close to how much I've achieved this year without challenging myself to work harder, learn more, and do more. I'm looking forward to finding out how far 2019 takes me in next year's reflect back and look forward.PS - I also made a smaller goal to update this site more often, ideally once a month. For the last half of the year, that went pretty well. I hope 2019 goes the same way.All the best for 2019! I hope your holidays were full of fun and happiness and that the same awaits you in the new year.

Fatal Glitch: NaNoWriMo 2018 Win!!

It's been a busy month between work and NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month). This year I managed to write 50,739 words on my sci-fi prequel to the Courage Colony books, Fatal Glitch. It's an extremely rough draft with a lot of padding on one hand and some scenes which will need to be fleshed out on the other. In other words, the rewrite is going to take a while... but I'm still celebrating!I'm also pleased that twice this month I managed to write over 5,000 words in one day. This bodes well for meeting future targets. I'm thinking that, outside NaNoWriMo, my minimum word target for each day during production periods should be 1,000 words. Anything over that would be a lovely bonus. That way, I can better balance productivity and editing, hopefully winding up with a better first draft at the end of each piece.In other good news, four out of eight beta readers have reported back on the first book in the series which takes place a few centuries after the prequel, The Approach. I have a few small tweaks to make and some amazingly positive comments which will keep me smiling through the final changes to the text before the copy edit.If all goes well, I'm hoping to have both books ready for publication in the first half of next year. Wish me luck. :)Until next time!

Alpha Read #2: Revisions

I'm over the moon with the feedback from the second alpha reader round. I had some extremely positive comments which I'll be holding onto while I make the final tweaks before the beta stage, comments that are likely to stick with me even longer.Equally wonderfully, the revisions really will just be tweaks. All three readers found the book gripping and had only one larger scale thing to comment on which should be fixed relatively easily with careful foreshadowing. All in all, this book is a lot closer to publication than I had hoped.I'll be making the remaining changes next week and have some beta readers signed up to read the book once it's ready (end of October 2018 to early November 2018). If their feedback is as positive, this book will be going to the copyeditor early next year.While the beta readers are reading in November, I'm planning to tackle the first draft of the prequel to the series, tentatively titled Fatal Glitch. I'm tempted to participate in NaNoWriMo (National November Writing Month) to get the words down but since the book is likely to only reach 40K, it would be a shortened NaNo. I might try doing 40K over the 30 days, making it less of a challenge when I'm balancing writing with work. To be decided...Until next time!

Alpha Read: Round Two!

Autumn is here – my favourite time of year. It's a time for fireworks, raining leaves, fiery colours, layered clothes, TV under the covers, fluffy clothes and shoes, bobble hats, hot chocolate, fresh night air, the first sparkling frosts and powerful thunderstorms, plus a new alpha book swap.Work on The Approach, the first book in my Courage Colony YA sci-fi series has spread the seasons of this year. I started the research and planning on boxing day 2017, finished the first draft (with some edits as I wrote) in May 2018, completed the first alpha book swap in June 2018, and finished the changes from the first swap in September 2018, just in time for a second alpha book swap.I'm hoping this swap will make the book even better. Of course, I also hope the book needs fewer changes this time around but that's a common wish of creative types. I still plan on a beta swap after this round of feedback but after that I'm hoping the book will be ready for proofreading and publication.These things always seem to take longer than I hope but, now that I'm working part time, writing is far less stressful and much quicker, which helps the lingering frustration over my naturally average speed. As my friend often says, at least I'm beating George R R Martin!

Update: Courage Colony Book One

A lot has happened over the last few months. First, by the 24th June, my fragile first draft of The Approach had faced the firing squad of my alpha readers, and I had their feedback in hand. That makes them sound mean – they weren't, but they were honest, and it seemed like the book needed a fair bit of work, particularly in acts two and three.Between the four alpha readers, I had around 400 in-line comments to sort through, and pages of summary comments. I guess, in context, it isn't a surprise I felt a bit overwhelmed. I also started a new day job from the 10th July, with lots of new procedures to learn and weird shift patterns to get used to. This sounds like a list of excuses, and... well, it is! Sorry.The good news is I'm back on the editing train and working through the comments my alpha readers left. I'm currently on chapter four out of seventeen which means there's a fair way to go yet, but I think time away in July gave me the perspective I needed to better know what to change and what to keep. As the picture would indicate, I'm starting to see light at the end of the tunnel.Still, ask me about that light after the beta read feedback comes in, and I might not feel the same way!All the best until my next update!

I HAVE A FULL DRAFT!!!

What are you on about?!Okay, celebration dance done and a well deserved drink in hand, I can announce I finally have a full draft for The Approach, the first novel in the Courage Colony series. What is this book and what's it about? Well, here's the blurb:When nanites consumed our solar system, they killed every human they infected. Only one ship escaped. They named it ‘Courage’.Errai Avila is the biological child of her parents, and shunned for it. She’s an unwelcome anomaly on a generation ship approaching its final destination. All she wants is to escape notice, but when Captain Jabir calls for volunteers to explore their new home, she must make a choice. Will she continue to hide in the mess hall kitchen, or will she cast off anonymity to finally gain respect?The Approach is the first book in a gripping YA sci-fi series. If you like intense power struggles, grey choices, and strong, intelligent heroines, then you’ll love Holly Ice’s Courage Colony books.Experience tells me you might have a few more questions. I'll do my best to answer them below but feel free to ask if I've missed anything!Where did you get the idea?Personal PreferenceI read and watch a lot of science fiction. From Doctor Who to The 100, I'm ready to binge watch/read, but I quickly run out of content. My favourite sci-fi stories are those which explore the human dilemmas and conflicts found in space environments and these books and shows seem to be in short supply. The current craze in sci-fi appears to be action – bounty hunters and spaceship fights, all good gallivanting fun... but that's not what I enjoy most. This series sets out to be a softer kind of sci-fi, one that focuses on power, love and respect over violence. I hope it's a story you can enjoy, too.The ScienceI was fascinated by the idea of starting fresh – a colony in distant space, far removed from Earth. The idea that 160 people could travel on a spaceship for two hundred years before returning to civilisation also had me hooked. The social dynamic that brought was too interesting to let go.However, the 160 person maths was done on the basis that the ship would return to a larger gene pool (home to Earth) after this period in space. For my colony story, that wouldn't happen. I looked into other ideas for long distance space travel. One was embryo space colonisation. This is where a ship holds frozen genetic material which autonomous robots bring to life after preparing the destination planet for human life. The problem with this is both ethical and practical. How can robots raise children?So, I combined two ideas. In the Courage, hundreds and thousands of embryos are frozen, ready for use, while a 160 person crew directs the ship to their new home. After two hundred years, they start to have 'tank babies' rather than biological children, keeping the gene pool from stagnating. I wondered how this would impact those forced to have children that didn't belong to them, and the idea of the last 'kin kid' in a generation was born.What happens next?Two things happen next. The first is an acknowledgement that although i have a full draft it's still rough and imperfect in places. June will see the book read by four pre-arranged alpha readers. From their feedback, I'll make edits and polish the book. I'll then be giving the book to volunteer beta readers. After further edits, the book will be proofread and move forward to publication.During the weeks readers are offering their feedback, I'll be working on a prequel to the Courage Colony books. This prequel will focus on the biological parents of one of the crew members aboard the Courage, and how these biological parents dealt with the end of the solar system. I'm hoping to offer this prequel novella for free to those that receive my newsletter but it will also be uploaded to online retailers as a paperback and an eBook.That's all the news I have to share for now. The next item on my list is preparing the book for my alpha readers.Thanks for reading and I'll see you at the next update!

New Website and Upcoming Goodies

Those of you keeping an eye on the site will have noticed a big revamp. It took me ages, but I'm beyond pleased with the result. The colour scheme and layout is much more professional and more in keeping with speculative fiction. Hopefully you like it too!The major focus of the design is space. This isn't a coincidence. I'm currently spending most my writing time on a YA Sci-fi series tentatively titled the 'Courage Colony' series. More details are on the WIP page. Book one is very nearly a full draft and will be with alpha readers soon.Aaaaand I plan on writing a prequel. My newsletter readers will get it for free! If that tickles your fancy, you can sign up ahead of time or wait for news. I'll advertise more strongly once the prequel is written and ready to go.Since it's been ages since I last posted, I've also been blessed with more short story publications – all in the horror genre! Check them out on my books page. I'm excited to be in print beside such fantastic stories. :)Until next time!

2016 Horror Publications

I'm afraid I've been a bit remiss in updating this blog! But the good news is...Last year I was chuffed to find a home for two horror stories in anthologies edited by Matthew Cash. The first, Death By Chocolate, was published in March 2016 by KnightWatch Press. Here's the blurb:Chocolate. Some people crave it, some people hate it. It is given on many occasions, and used for many reasons. For celebration and for comfort, in good times and bad. This selection box brings you 14 treats from Edward Breen, Jonathan Paul Butcher, Calum Chalmers, Daniel Marc Chant, S.L. Dixon, Kayleigh Marie Edwards, Justine Johnston Hemmestad, Holly Ice, Christopher Law, Chris Moore, J.R. Park, Duncan Ralston, Mark Woods and the editor, with original illustrations by Holly Marie Smith, all enveloped in the deepest, darkest chocolate.The second, 12Days Anthology, was published in December 2016 under BURDIZZO BOOKS and all profits go to the Cystic Fibrosis Trust! It's full of seasonal and not so seasonal delights, with many stories focuses on the conflicts Christmas can bring. Why not take a look and see if one takes your fancy?

The Russian Sleep Experiment: Live from Siberia (or Amazon)

  Book Trailer: Those of you that have been keeping up to date with these posts know this has been a while coming, but the day is finally here. The Russian Sleep Experiment is live on Amazon in ebook and paperback formats.     Links below: Kindle US                 ($3.10) Kindle UK                 (£1.99) Paperback US          ($5.99) Paperback UK          (£3.99)   There is of course the option to look inside before you take the plunge of buying this psychological horror novella, and for the