Giselle

  • I’m pretty sure I do this anyway, probably 100++ if I’m honest. I see it as essential as I’m in the process of fine-polishing, and we all know a MS has to be as good as possible before submitting to agents. And frankly, if I should miss a day, I would feel guilty.
    Today, I’ve had raging toothache, so I worked on my synopsis.
    Make every day count.

  • Squidge replied to the topic As an opening… in the forum Critiques 7 years, 10 months ago

    Haha! He’s the one! I could picture him…but not remember his name!

    I looked up the author – her novel sounds brill, must look it up. I like the idea of women ruling the world 😉

  • Sandra posted an update 7 years, 10 months ago

    An anthology of poetry, kept beside the loo, results in a LOT more poetry being read than if I keep it by the bed.

    • lol! I used to read poetry way more than I do now. Perhaps I should try your trick! Or by the kettle, to read whilst waiting for it to boil?

    • I’ve been reading a bit more lately. The resurgence started after I bought Alan Bennett’s ‘Six Poets’ selection for the Orkney break. I remember thinking ‘Blimey, I wouldn’t have chosen that’ and never looked back

      • Ath, Did you ever get round to reading Orkney’s no.1 poet, George McKay Brown?
        The anthology I’m currently reading is 1992-2001.

        • embarrassed to admit that I said I would, but I didn’t. However…I have just bought his collected works and am looking forward to some light and delightful reading if these words from ‘the poet’ are typical: When all the dancers and masks had gone inside
          His cold stare
          Returned to its true task, interrogation of silence.

    • Did somebody in this thread alter or delete a reply? Just curious because a lot of it seems to have disappeared

    • I can highly recommend Wild Embers by Nikita Gill. Her stuff is beautiful and makes me cry quite a lot! Also got Kumukanda by Kayo Chingonyi which is good too. A lot about coming from Zambia to the UK, which my mum did, so it feels personal in some ways.

      • I’m finding it’s not the beautiful but the thought-provoking, recognition of something previously unvoiced that is currently jolting me into appreciation.

  • Jonathan replied to the topic Festival Dreams in the forum Blogs 7 years, 10 months ago

    Great blog, Skylark, and it’s so good to have seen your journey through the cloud and onto that stage (though I wasn’t there this year, you know what I mean). Long may it all continue! 🙂 Laughed at the train incident though. I did something similar when I was about 18 or so and had a few shandies. Difference was this was an older train where the…[Read more]

  • I’ve been working hard on our kitchen remodel – now finished, as far as these things are ever finished – and can get back to doing a bit more writing.
    I wonder where this will appear when I post it? Finding my way around.

  • Squidge replied to the topic As an opening… in the forum Critiques 7 years, 10 months ago

    Thanks all!

    Stella, I’ve not heard of Naomi Alderman at all – I’ll have to look her/her books up.

    It’s sods law that what I’ve written makes you think of someone else’s work – originally the Power was rings, and I got slated by an agent over it being too LOTR, when the story itself is nothing like.

    Ah well, they do say there are only so many…[Read more]

  • Hilary replied to the topic Festival Dreams in the forum Blogs 7 years, 10 months ago

    Thanks for posting this, Skylark. I, too, was very sorry to miss your speech, but glad to hear about it and glad it all went well. You continue to be an inspiration to others of us who are taking a LONG time!

  • I can see replies here @KazG but can’t see where they are in the thread or how to continue the conversation. Pfft. I’m currently trying to get to grips with the new platform for the course before it starts tomorrow so I’m probably being dense. Just want to say I’m eagerly awaiting a link to say you have a deal (!!!) so I can add you to our Hall of Fame.

  • Raine posted an update 7 years, 10 months ago

    Am trying to convince myself that toblerone counts as a healthy snack because almonds.

    • I had the sane thought this morning about jam, because fruit. Also it was home made and I must have burned off a few calories mashing the fruit and stirring it

      • That’s the same reasoning that makes me walk 15 minutes to the chip shop, Daedalus.

        • The logic is incontestable

          • Raine!! You’ve Toblerone? I think that is a word that should be banned from this site for setting up an atmosphere of deep envy and greed. And nasty thoughts towards those that have when I have not. .

            • All calories fall out of food once you break them up. So toblerone only has calories until you snap a piece off, then poof. All gone.

            • From this robust survey, it sounds incontrovertibly like toblerone is indeed healthy. Sandra I will save you a triangle for next time we meet up. Maybe.

    • Almonds, Raine – healthy of course.
      And honey, which is healthy because it is bee-puke, which is about as natural (and therefore healthy) as anything can be.
      And there’s chocolate, which is made of milk – naturally, this is healthy because cows are healthy and these are Swiss cows so they eat Swiss grass and the Swiss are very healthy because of…[Read more]

  • I did a version of this… Rather than setting myself so many days up front, I just made a grid and marked off one square every time I wrote something. That way, there wasn’t so much pressure if I had to allow myself time off when life got busy or I needed a short break. I always wrote in the date so eventually I worked out that a break of any…[Read more]

  • Squidge posted an update 7 years, 10 months ago

    You know some of us are having to log in again on the https site? Well, might be worth mentioning it seems to have undone the thing we sorted to stop getting email notifications of everything… So if you’re getting loads of them again, might be worth going to settings to check.

  • Raine replied to the topic Hello All in the forum Coffee Shop 7 years, 10 months ago

    @alanr It’s definitely v tricky to find a balance between not selling yourself enough, and being horribly ott, isn’t it? Factual seems to work best. Actually ‘tidy’ isn’t bad! Means you havent waffled on too long or included unnecessary info which can both be fatal.

    Hope the 1:1s gave you some direction for what could be changed, even the…[Read more]

  • Sandra replied to the topic New Blog from Emma Darwin in the forum Blogs 7 years, 10 months ago

    Brilliant blog, as ever, and I’ve done other 100 days things over the years and can vouch for their effectiveness, but this time I too have novels to edit and to write (and in any case have no need of inducement to write every day)

  • Alan Rain replied to the topic Hello All in the forum Coffee Shop 7 years, 10 months ago

    Thanks Lorraine,
    At FOW18, I had two 1-to-1s. One was encouraging, the other quite negative. My cover letter was described as ‘tidy’, which I guess means it lacks punch. I know it was self-deprecating, because it’s just not me to boast. I can try to step it up a tad.

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