This article was originally published on Hubpages in February 2010. Looking for Story Ideas? Do you want to write but feel short on ideas? Are you a member of a writers circle looking for monthly writing projects? Or are you simply stuck in a rut with your writing, and seeking a way out of the doldrums? This economical and easy-to-make low-tech fiction story generator will fix that. This useful tool for writing exercises will provide a huge quantity and variety of story ideas simply and quickly. All you have to do then is get writing! How to Make the Story Generator You will need three small containers of some kind. Plastic tubs will be fine, such as old margarine tubs, (washed and dried, of course.) Or you could use three sandwich bags or paper grocery bags, for example. You will also need some paper - ordinary printer paper or typing paper will do. You might want to use three different colours of paper, one colour for each container. Or you could use three different colours of i...

 This article was originally published on Hubpages in June 2011. Can't Write? Many writers hit an invisible wall which prevents them from either finishing a writing project or from starting something new. The longer they stare at that empty computer screen, the bigger the hurdle seems to grow. The way forward feels blocked. The reasons for this are surprisingly simple. The drive for perfectionism, under-developed story ideas, poor timing or boredom usually lie at the root of writer's block. The simple steps outlined in this article will help unblock your creativity. The Quest for Perfection If you aim for absolute perfection from the outset, your creativity will be reigned in by focussing too much on technical issues such as grammar or flawless dialogue. You can fix all this in later drafts. For a first draft, simply get the story down - get it told - from start to finish. Only your pet dog need hear a reading of the first draft. Dogs are much less critical than humans. My dogs...

This article was originally published on Hubpages in May 2011. Booklet produced by Riverside Writers in 2010, which features three of Adele Cosgrove-Bray's short stories. The cover is simple and direct, and it uses a copyright-free image So you want to put together a booklet. This may be for your own use or for a social club of which you're a member—or you may wish to present information to a specific audience or promote a particular issue for professional purposes. This article will guide you through the process of producing and publishing a booklet, for whatever purpose, from start to finish. Some money-saving tips are also included. . Plan a Budget How much money have you allocated for producing a booklet? Fees vary considerably from one printer to another, so even before you begin compiling the booklet's contents, it is sensible to get quotes from several different companies. Tell them you have a fixed budget and would like to know how far your money will stretch and ex...

 

Progress on The Sorcerer is being made - and yes, the 5th novel in the series now has a title. The title is breathtakingly simple, true, but when you finally get to read it you'll probably understand its choice. It's a story about facing changes, the need to adapt to change, and about taking control. This is as big a hint as I'll be giving. The book already has a cover, in the style of the recently revealed new covers for the previous four books, but I won't share that until nearer the publication date. Anyway, it feels good to have reached the 69,000 word-count length, even though there is a lot of work to be done yet. This book has been slow-going; in fact it's easily been the most challenging of the series to write. I stopped writing it for quite some time, then re-read it and threw away around 25,000 words as I just wasn't happy with the direction it was going in. Was that 25,000 reduction hard to make? Well, yes and no. While it seemed like a huge chunk o...

 

  Eagle-eyed regulars may have noticed that I've been busy creating a new series of short videos on my YouTube channel. Grouped together as a Playlist with the self-explanatory title of "For Writers", these videos are aimed at...well, writers. New writers, mainly; though I hope the practical advice they share may interest, (or amuse), more experienced writers too. I've been having fun making these short films, anyway. I've gone for informative yet light-hearted quirkyness, with strong visuals.  I've also created new thumbnail images for each of my Playlists, although since doing this I've been told I should have chosen one font and used this for them all. Oh well, no matter what you do there's always a self-appointed expert eager to tell you that you've done it all wrong. The "correct" way is to create a visual similarity so each Playlist is recognisably related to the other. Hmm... How would that work in practice, seeing as each of my Pl...

This article was originally published on Hubpages in 2010. I'm slowly transferring all my articles there to here. Filling in Character Charts While filling-in character charts might seem time-consuming, that investment of effort will pay back dividends. Not only will it save you time in the long term, but the process will help you to think carefully about your fictional character—who they are, how their life is, what their motives are, and what is important to them. Working through the chart will help flesh out your fictional character, making them more believable to readers. If you know your fictional character thoroughly, they will appear more alive and three-dimensional in print. Bring Characters to Life You may well find that you get fresh ideas for subplots, too, as you visualise the character more completely. I've found this to be the case on a number of occasions. You may not necessarily use all the details. For example, there is no need to pen an item-by-item descriptio...

The exhibition at Seagrass Studios and Gallery, in West Kirby, Wirral, closes this weekend so if you wish to view my watercolour painting on show there - plus lots of other truly lovely art - then be sure to call in.  The gallery can be found on Acacia Grove, which is directly opposite the train station. Birkenhead Park sketch, and my painting (centre by lamp) in Seagrass Gallery These last few weeks, I've been busy writing Morgan .  Explained simply, there are three ways to write a novel.  One way is to plan everything in advance, making detailed notes which are then followed rigidly.  The opposite method is to plan nothing at all, to have a loose idea and start exploring this through writing and slowly discover where it might lead.  The middle way offers a compromise between these two extremes; the writer has a few notes which log important plot twists and outcomes, but which also leaves plenty of room for flexibility and improvisation. Each writer nee...

Fabian: An Artisan-Sorcerer Story out 09.09.16 I can now announce that the fourth novel in the Artisan-Sorcerer Series is now available in book shops the world over, in both paperback and ebook formats. I hope you all enjoy Fabian , and will consider writing a review on Amazon, Goodreads, Barnes & Noble or your blog or social networking site.  We indie authors can always use a bit of help, you know! I'm already developing ideas for the fifth novel.  I already know how it's going to end and who is going to die.  I'm not quite sure how our heroes are going to arrive at that point yet, but it will come.  The process is like daydreaming.  I toy around with an idea and allow my imagination to go anywhere it wants to, sometimes prodding it along a little with 'what if' questions but not trying to force ideas in any specific direction as that tends to limit creativity.  In this way, I end up with a flexible plot outline without having written even ...

Welcome to this series of writing tips. If you would like to pen a guest post for this series, email me at ACBwrites@aol.com . How many times have you read advice which encourages you to write 1,000 words a day, every day?  The purpose of this seems logical enough - if you produce a steady flow of words bit by bit your novel or short story collection will be finished. This standard gem of advice works fine if you have the time to write 1,000 words a day.  Perhaps you sprint past this word-count regularly.  If so, good for you.  However, if you aim for the golden number of 1,000 words but find yourself regularly falling short, this post is for you. Writing 1,000 words a day might be fine for people who are at home for much of the day.  It might be fine for people who work but whose partners are happy to carry the load while the writer's evenings and weekends are focused solely on writing.  But if you have kids who need takin...

Welcome to this series of writing tips. If you would like to pen a guest post for this series, email me at ACBwrites@aol.com . Today, guest blogger Gemma Gaten shares her ideas about how to improve creativity. Every person is unique. We are all creative in our own simple ways but most of us haven't realised our full creative potential. Some people are trying to unlock their creativity while others give up trying to know in which field they are most creative. Being intelligent, hard-working, and having a nice attitude are not enough to become successful in your chosen career. More than these things, you must learn how to use your normal intelligence in doing creative work. Creativity is an element that is present in all fields. Whether you are working in a business, have a job related to the arts or technology and social media, your level of creativity plays a vital role in your profession. Enhancing creativity can impact upon every aspect of your life. That...