Hi everyone!
Yes, it’s been a while and I have been very, very busy, but finally life is beginning to slow down again—and I really appreciate it. As I mentioned on my books’ Facebook page (if you follow that) I had my biggest month for work last month. It was reporting season, and if any of you know Finance you’ll understand that there is a heap of reporting going on in August, so that was a new challenge and I really enjoyed it.
Now I am getting back into everything, trying to balance my life a bit more, and exploring some new ideas. I decided to start learning how to wire wrap jewellery, as a way to de-stress in the evenings. I’m one of those people who can’t just sit still and watch TV, it drives me nuts. I have to be doing something with my hands. For a while there it was literally just folding plastic bags into neat little triangles, that a friend showed me how to do. I find as a convenient way to carry plastic bags when I walk the dog, to clean up her mess. Not surprisingly, that got a bit boring. Then I saw on Pinterest some really lovely jewellery, that mixed wire and crystals and looked fairly simple. I had to give it a shot.
It isn’t quite as simple as I thought, but that’s okay. It’s a really good challenge, and its creative, and you can produce something in a fairly short amount of time. I like the ability to be able to create something beautiful while watching an hour show. Unlike writing a novel, which takes a little bit longer… But as I say that, I am here testing out my dictaphone recorder, so that I can train my Dragon that bit further. Yes, I am still working on training my Dragon. Procrastination and all that. Have any of you worked on training your dragon, or do any of you use Dragon? It’s a great product, and I’m seeing the improvements every time I make myself sit down and work, it’s just that sitting down and working part that’s hard. The part you have to do, that I’ve only realised is so vitally important, is reading your own work to it, and at the end editing the work using Dragon: only using Dragon. You have to use all the VoiceCommands, and you have to wait while Dragon thinks it through, and makes the notes, and my God I end up wanting to throw my laptop out of the window. That said, I’ve gone from 8 to 6 edits per page to about one. Which is a decent difference. If I can pace myself, and force myself to do this, I can see this being a logical way to genuinely get somewhere with my writing. Which is great, given that I have got nowhere so far this year other than editing book one of the trilogy again, so that I can release it into paperback. And below is the beautiful cover spread, of the way it will look. But more on that in another blog post.
I hope you’re all well, I hope you are getting through the hurricane season, and the earthquakes, and floods safely. If you have read any fantastic books lately, do let me know, and I will be trying to get back into regular blog posts. Forcing myself to do this dictation thing. Training my Dragon… ;p
Have a great week everyone, Nic
attaboy, grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrl ?
I would give Arrival six stars if I could. Terrific story line, with characters that you just love and become their shadow. Read it late into the night, couldn’t put it down. A MUST read.
Thank you so much ?
i just want 2 know when u r going 2 continue the story about cat and all of them from the arrival or after the trilogy ended we all would luv a another book about these characters
Hi Cyn,
Well, if you haven’t read AfterBurn, or Escape Vo’Arum, you should 😉 AfterBurn is about the girls getting back to the castle and “normal” life, while Escape Vo’Arum is about the night the Mestarns (Elena’s relatives) escaping Vo’Arum when the DeNaga’s decide to take it over.
Otherwise, I do intend to write a five book series that follows the girls,but it won’t be until I finish the current trilogy I’m working on – a trilogy which follows Prometheus (also another excellent read, but sci-fi as opposed to fantasy).
I hope that helps!
Nic