Info-Dumping & Why You Shouldn't Do It - The Creative Process

Info-Dumping & Why You Shouldn't Do It

As I've mentioned before in numerous posts, research is one of the many things a writer has to do when they're creating new worlds. Posts on this topic can be found here & here. It can be one of the more fun parts of writing, because even when a story is set in your own original world, you still need to carry out some world building and for that,  you get to use hard facts as well as your imagination. But the issue I'm talking about today is what is affectionately called "Info-Dumping", and it's something you really want to avoid at all costs.

Now, I can understand the attraction, and I've been guilty of doing it myself on occasion. When you've spent a good few hours, days or even weeks researching how a certain thing should be done (in my case, usually a murder or something equally grisly) then you want to be able to show off that you actually did do the research and include all that you can in the dialogue and exposition. However, nothing else will pull your readers out of the cosy world you've built faster than a fourteen page lecture on how forensics work, or how fast a certain car can actually go. It may be fun to include it for your own reference, but if there's no real need for a character to talk about it, or for the reader to know, then it shouldn't be there.

I am grateful to have my excellent editing team, who make sure that I don't go on for pages and pages about how DNA evidence is collected, tested and used to catch a suspect, but it wasn't always like that. Back in the early days of my writing career, I was very happy to include as much information as I could find on a certain subject and it wasn't until someone else read it and told me that it took away from the writing, that I began to see that it wasn't needed. I would spend hours reading about a certain forensic technique and would make copious notes, but would then find that actually I didn't need to write about x or y and while it was disappointing, you have to be firm with yourself and make sure that you're telling the story and not just giving people irrelevant facts that they could find on their own if they wanted.

I don't mean facts that are relevant, such as how your characters managed to track down a killer, or how they escaped from a bound chair when kidnapped: those things do need to be in your work. That becomes a case of showing and not just telling, which I'll discuss in another piece. A good way to think about the difference between the two is to think about what YOU would like to read if the story were written by someone else. Would you really want to know every detail of a contract that was signed and never mentioned again? Or would you prefer it be kept to a simple sentence or two? If you're using so much researched information that it becomes likely that you'll need to include a list of sources, then maybe it's about time to actually start thinking less is more.

I get why writers (myself included) want to include all that information. Like I said, it's an exciting prospect to have the facts to back up your fiction and to justify certain choices, but if it starts to look more like a piece of formal writing that you'd hand in to be marked by a teacher, then it's probably too much information. There is a certain level of pride that I know I have when I write something and know that it is as accurate as I could've made it, but sometimes as a writer you have to be happy to just know that you did your research and leave it at that. While something pivotal to the plot should be included, there really isn't any need to include what kind of toothpaste your character uses and their favourite flavour of ice cream. Just because you've thought of these things, it doesn't mean that your reader needs to know, or will even care. I mean, taking that example, unless the ice cream is going to be a clue that leads them to being rescued or if the toothpaste is actually poisoned, there's no need to tell your reader all the things you know about your main character.

So yes, sometimes less is more, and info-dumping is something that should be avoided at all costs. You're writing a work of fiction and that means that some things are sometimes better left to the imagination. If you could see yourself having the conversation with the character in a relaxed setting, then maybe it needs to be there, if not, do yourself a favour and scale back on the researched information. It certainly makes life a lot easier in the editing process at least! Your mileage may, of course, vary.

Follow Joey on Facebook or here on her blog to be kept up to date with the latest news regarding Joey and her books.

#ICYMI Presenting the new cover for DYING THOUGHTS - SECOND SIGHT.

Hey Readers,

I know, it's been a long time since I did an update. I have got a few other posts already written, but thought I'd do a more personal and general one about news that may have been missed in my writing posts.

Firstly: NEW COVER ART!

Now you may have noticed that over the past year or so, there have been new covers for a few of the the books released before Dying Thoughts - Third Wish. There are a few reasons for this. Firstly, me and my cover artist, B, were no longer happy with the existing covers. Lynne & Hope was the first of the older books to get a revamp, and as you can see up above, Dying Thoughts - Second Sight has just received its new cover too! The other reasoning behind this leads onto my next point...


Secondly: PAPERBACKS!

Now, as you'll all be aware, I always planned to have every book available in both e-format and paperback. It's finally happening this year! I hired a proof-reader to read the first six books and check them for any errors, and once corrected, I have been working upon the paperback covers, uploading the files, checking formatting etc. to make sure that by the time book eight - Dying Thoughts - Fourth Week - is released, I should also be able to release a paperback version of at least three other books. By the end of 2015, ALL eight books should be available in paperback. Once that's all done, I'll plan to release in paperback and e-format at the same time.

Thirdly: COVER REVEAL!

This year, I am planning a cover reveal event for Dying Thoughts - Fourth Week. It's set for the14th August at 12:00 (BST) and will run through live until around 16:00. I am hoping to be able to find three (or more) young adult authors to take over the event for a short thirty minute period, where they can do one of the games I've planned and have ten minutes to talk about anything they wish. If you're interested in doing that, you can email me at bugbooks@virginmedia.com 

Fourthly: DYING THOUGHTS - FOURTH WEEK RELEASE!

It's taken a long time to get the book ready, but I'm pretty sure I now have an actual release day. 18th September will be the day that the fourth Dying Thoughts book is released on Amazon Kindle (and hopefully paperback shortly after). I am planning a big event for that, and will try to keep you all updated as and when I have actual ideas about what it will entail. I am very busily working on making sure the editing is done by the middle of August, so that I can send it off to the proof-reader afterwards and then set it up so that it is ready to be pre-ordered by the end of August!


I'm hopeful that these events will all go along as planned with as few hiccups as possible. I promise to keep you updated, should there be any more developments, so be sure to like my Facebook page or my Tsu, and follow along here to be kept up to date and make sure you don't miss something important!

GUEST BLOGGER - Roy Huff

Welcome Guest Blogger, Roy Huff!

Roy approached me asking for a review of one of his books, and since I loved the book, I thought I'd host him here and share the review with you all! Below is a little piece about why he chose the fantasy genre. 

The reason I write YA fiction is because I love it. I love science fiction and fantasy as well and have been heavily influenced by all three genres. I also watch just about every tv show and movie that comes out. This allows me a great escape. I often live in a dream world and play out a multitude of scenarios in my head. That becomes part of the inspiration for when I write. I have also recently taken to writing down my dreams on a daily basis something I used to do when I was a teenager. The broad background in the subject and the frequent daydreaming allows me to sit uninterrupted for hours when I have the time and inclination to write. Due to my hectic schedule, I tend to be a marathon writer and write during my days off, so having played out many plot lines beforehand helps my imagination when I start putting pen to paper.

If you want to know more about Roy, you can follow his blog, find him on Goodreads and other social media sites, or join his mailing list here.

The book I read was the fourth in the Everville series. You can find it here. Below is a synopsis and following that, my review.

Two very different worlds, Easton Falls University and the magical realm of Everville are in dire need of a hero. Owen Sage embarks on an epic journey of monumental proportions to save these worlds all while fighting to keep the world within himself intact. This quest is not for the faint of heart nor is it for the weak of mind—only the bravest will succeed. Discovering the well-kept secret of The Fourth Pillar of Truth is only part of the feat. Owen will have to outwit the ever-powerful villain Governor Jahal and overcome countless other challenges along the way. Amongst all of the dragons, giants and grand chaos, will Owen's acquired skills and wisdom be enough to save both worlds or will peril be the ultimate fate of all?

My review: 5/5 stars - an intriguing tale!

I was approached by the author for an honest review in exchange for a copy of his book. I'm not usually one to read fantasy, but the synopsis of this book made me want to give it a go, and I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed it. I did find it hard to follow some of the storyline in places because I haven't read the previous three books, but on its own it did tell a good story and I worked out most of what was happening. It tells the story of Everville and follows on from the changes to the time-line made in what I assume to be the previous book. Owen is on the search for the Fourth Pillar of Truth, and treks through Everville to find it.
It is well written, fast paced and certainly held my interest - it had me reading from page one until the end, and I was only able to put it down when I became desperate for sleep. It's a great book and one I would recommend to YA fantasy readers, as the world building is superb and spot on. I enjoyed it immensely and may even end up checking out the previous three and the ones that come after this book. Overall, a good read and well earnt five stars!

If you're interested in doing a guest blog post, contact us by email - bugbooks@virginmedia.com

Making Your Ideas Work: When You Start Off Too Small - The Creative Process

Making Your Ideas Work: When You Start Off Too Small

I wrote a piece recently about what to do when your idea is too big (found here) and I promised that I'd look at the other end of the spectrum as well, which is where this piece comes in. What do you do when your idea is a great one, but it's tiny? It's so small that you're not sure the box you want to put it in will even notice that it's there. You can't stretch it without worrying about it snapping in two and no matter how much you think about it and try to brainstorm your way into making it larger, nothing seems to work. If you're a planner like me, you'll usually be aware of this before you put pen to paper, but sometimes even the best planners have great big plans for ideas that are just too small. So, here are some options for if you choose to try and make a little idea into a big story.

#1 - FEED REGULARLY AND ALLOW TO GROW

One thing that works for me when an idea is too small to support itself in a full length novel, is to set it to one side, check in on it occasionally and see if it grows on its own. Sometimes it does, sometimes it doesn't, but as long as you keep it earmarked for a possible book, then you give it the chance to feed itself and fill up to the point where it fits in the box without the need for packing to balance it out.

#2 - MARRY TWO TOGETHER

Sometimes an idea won't do enough growing to ever be considered large enough to fill a book, in those cases you can sometimes alter it to be a small arc in one of your current WIPs, or in a new project where you take the bare bones of another story and use the smaller idea to help that one grow too. It doesn't always work that way because sometimes you'll find that an idea is too specific to marry it with another without losing the plot points you wanted to create.

And finally, #3 - LEAVE IT AS IS

There are no rules when it comes to how long a book is. Well, there are rules, but there are also awesome short stories and just because an idea you have is too small to fill fifty-thousand words, that doesn't mean that it should be shelved and/or never used. Some ideas are just too awesome to do that to and so a lot of great authors have taken a lot of smaller ideas and put them together in a collection of short stories. Just because they're in the same "book" doesn't mean that they all have to intertwine, though generally speaking they usually all share a common genre, such as detective or horror or fantasy. It's a great way to use those unfulfilled stories and turn them into a collection of awesome short ones.

However you choose to get your ideas to work for you, remember that while there are rules as to how things should be done in the writing world, part of being a writer is knowing which rules you can bend, which ones you can outright break and which ones you need to stick to no matter what. When you have that worked out you can make any idea - big or small - work for you to create the story that you see in your head. After all, that's what writing is about, sharing the impossible, creating from nothing and sending your ideas out into the world and hoping they soar to the clouds. Your mileage may, of course, vary.

Follow Joey on Facebook or here on her blog to be kept up to date with the latest news regarding Joey and her books.

Making Your Ideas Work: When You Start Off Too Big - The Creative Process

Making Your Ideas Work: When You Start Off Too Big

The key to any good project is how you start preparing. Personally, I'm a planner, I always have been in regards to my writing (a piece about which can be found here) and I don't think I'll ever stop planning. At least, not unless I find another way that doesn't involve so much micromanaging and still works. However, there are times when you'll have an idea, you'll wrestle it to the ground and you'll start trying to fit it into the box you'd picked out specially for it. And that's when you realise, it's too big. I don't mean that the box is slightly overflowing and you'll have to sit on it to get the lid to close, I mean it's WAY too big. The box has practically collapsed from the sheer enormity of it. The sides are almost on the floor and there's no way it's gonna fit. 

So, what do you do? If you're like me and you take your time to build your ideas and you plan and map out each chapter, you'll have hopefully realised that your idea was too big before you'd invested hours of painstaking writing into trying to make it fit into the plot. If not, then that's when you have a problem, because while the indie world doesn't have  many rules regarding word count, there does still come a point where you have to say "it's too much". The kind of idea I'm talking about is the kind that meets those rules, and snaps them in half. Either way, whichever kind of writer you are, you're going to have some serious issues if you don't do something about the idea, because if you want it to end up as a book, you'll need to find a way to either scale it down or draw it out. I'll discuss both of those in more detail.

#1 PUT THE IDEA ON A DIET.

Whenever you write the first draft, you're aware that some things that get written won't make it into the final copy. The same can be said for ideas. Do you need every little thing you've thought of to make it into the actual book, or will leaving out a few bits and pieces here and there allow you to parse down the word count, but keep the story just as awesome? Only you really can answer this, because it's your idea. Think of it this way, if you've ever read a book that then got turned into a movie, you'll have noticed that some of the scenes in the book didn't make it into the 90+ minutes of the movie. Sometimes you'll think that a certain scene WAS needed because it helped to explain something else that WAS included, but you get the general idea. While it's completely fine to write a seven hundred page novel (and I've read a couple of really good ones where anything left out would have ruined the book in my opinion), you have to realise that for some critics and reviewers, there'll be some scenes that they see as completely unnecessary and filler that should have been cut.

That's the hard thing about writing an idea. Even if you're really good at capturing the idea and describing it in beautiful technicolour through words, some people are always going to see parts of it that weren't needed and since you're the one who wrote it, it may seem that they are missing the point. However, most writers need an outside perspective to decide whether a certain scene is critical, and that's why we have editors. I know that for me, I've written a killer scene (both literally and figuratively) and then been told by my editor that for the sake of the rest of the book, it has to go, and they're right. If your idea is too big to be told in one go, you have another option that I'll come to in a moment, but if you choose to do it in one huge book, be prepared to lose some scenes that you may love. This is good advice no matter how big your idea is: not everything you write will make it to the final draft and that's often for the best.

#2 LET THE IDEA MULTIPLY.

Now the other option for this situation is to see if the idea will grow more, so that you can make it into a series. There are numerous popular trilogies out right now and they all started out as an idea, possibly one that was just too huge to fit into one 70K word novel. If your idea is big enough to span a few books, then go for it and be happy that you didn't set the idea aside for something smaller. However, I do have a few pieces of advice.

Generally speaking, when someone buys the first book in a series, they are expecting an over-reaching story arc - i.e the big idea, as well as a smaller story arc that spans the book - i.e something that introduces the story and then resolves and/or leads to the next in the series. If you have enough of an idea to span three books, but can't break it into a smaller arc for each one, you may find yourself with some unhappy readers. People generally want there to be a reason for the split in the books rather than being told "it was too long for one" because that makes them feel like they have been charged for two books but only one story. I'm not saying that it can't be done that way, just that I would warn against it. As with the long novel, I have read and loved series that don't have mini arcs, and when done well they can be excellent to read, you just have to be careful how you construct your words.

So, those are the two options for when your idea is too big, but what happens though when your idea is a bit too small and needs to be plumper before it can fit across fifty thousand words? I'll be writing a piece about that soon. Remember though, your mileage may, of course, vary, everyone is different and every idea unique.

Follow Joey on Facebook or here on her blog to be kept up to date with the latest news regarding Joey and her books.

Guest Blogger - Jennifer Loiske

Good Morning!
I am joined today by Jennifer Loiske, a fellow indie author who writes young adult paranormal fiction. I asked her to write a piece about her writing journey and will also include the reviews I've done for two of her books. But first, a little about Jennifer!

Jennifer Loiske lives in Finland in Naantali, which is a small sunny town on the southwest coast. She is a Teen/YA paranormal fiction author, with four exciting series available worldwide; McLean Twins series for teen readers, Immortal Blood series for mature young adult readers, Blood Hunters series, also for mature young adults, which is a follow up for Immortal Blood series and is created by the readers’ requests, and The Shape Shifter series for anyone age 16 and up. 

Jennifer’s stories are full of creatures of the night. Vampires, demons, witches, shape shifters… but even if they are mostly fiction you can find a hint of a truth in every story. Jennifer loves to research so every time she gets an idea of a new story she does a crazy Google session looking for places, old myths, names, folklores, magical items…anything that could spice up her story and make it more real for the readers. Jennifer is also part of Authors For Charity, an international author alliance, and team member in Epilepsy FI magazine. She is a pre-school teacher by profession. You can find her on Facebook, Twitter, Goodreads, Amazon and on her website.

GUEST BLOG POST

Sometimes we cannot choose where the journey will take us. We’ll just have to follow the flow and see what happens… I’ve always wanted be a writer, but life took me on a different direction for years. However, I believe things happen when they are meant to happen, and me starting to write happened stealthily. At first I filled millions of post-it notes with my scribbles. Then the post-it notes were replaced with sheets of paper, and eventually moved to a file in the depths of my laptop. Now I have ten teen/YA novels available worldwide, and my short stories have been published in three different anthologies.

I’m a pre-school teacher by profession, a mom of two young women, and an eternal teenager by heart. So writing for young adults comes easily for me. I think I’m just as excited about the endless ‘what ifs’ as they are, intrigued by the paranormal world and always ready for an adventure. I enjoy watching teen movies, and reading YA literature, and even my favourite TV-series are meant for young adults. Why? I have no idea. I’ve tried to be more adult but gave up, as it just isn’t me. I want to believe there’s more than meets the eye and my hyperactive imagination creates the wildest of possibilities about this world were living in.

Vampires, werewolves, demons, witches and other paranormal creatures are my everyday life. In the darkness, strange thoughts are filling my mind and forcing me to write about them, so YA fiction is not only my natural choice but also a way of keeping my dark side on a leash. Old myths and legends fascinate me, and I love to add a hint of truth in every story. In fact, half of my time goes with research, finding the most engrossing tales and entwining the nuggets of fact with a fiction. I also love planting some educational seeds into my text, and to my delight the readers have been very perceptive and found at least some of my tips. For me, it’s extremely important to have a control over my stories, to stand behind my words and never ever cross the line. After all, there is a reason why some books are for young adults and some for adults only. My stories must be the kind of I’d let my own teens to read.

My stories are fast paced, fun, sassy and full of suspense. I love cliffhangers, and yes, I’m a serial writer (is that even a saying?), as well as a serial reader, and I try to stay true to my writing style. Then again, I do have four different series so I can sidestep a little if needed. I hope you’ll find your next read amongst my books and enjoy reading them as much as I enjoyed writing them!

  

Her novel BLACK DIAMOND is available from Amazon here. Below is the blurb and following that, my review!


After her mom’s sudden death, twelve-year-old Shannon McLean has to move from the US to the English countryside to live with her mysterious father, Connor McLean, whom she hasn’t seen since she was a baby. Soon she discovers that he doesn’t want her around and her moving into his huge manor, Greyman Hill, is nothing more to him than a compulsory deal. But if he does not exactly give her a warm welcome, his servant Robert is most likely an incarnation of evil. He runs the house with an iron touch and makes everyone who works there his little puppets.

Weird things start to happen and the whole place scares the crap out of Shannon. Her dad can control her just by looking at her. The walls are full of secret passages and apparently she has the talent to awaken the ghosts in them. Every day is worse than the day before and she wants badly to run away but discovers it’s impossible. If she wants to stay alive she has to do exactly as her dad says or else she will not only jeopardize her own life but also the lives of the people around her.

While Shannon struggles to find the magic inside her, Connor is slowly turning into a demon. One carelessly spoken word from her could either save or destroy them both. In the end she has to decide whether to save herself and her loved ones, or lose her dad to the darkness and evil that threaten to eat his soul.


My review: 5/5 Great start to a great series!

BLACK DIAMOND starts with the death of Shannon's mother, leading to her being left alone in a hotel, waiting to meet the father she never knew. As she's taken from the hotel and back to his large estate, she starts to realise that things are not as they seem. There are people with strange tattoos on their wrists who act as though they are robots or servents and are scared to talk to Shannon. When first meeting her father, she is struck by how not-normal he is about the whole thing and within the first twelve hours she realises that she's in danger and needs to escape. Enter her twin brother, someone she didn't even know existed, and the world of witchcraft and devils.

This is a YA book, and excellently written. I found myself drawn to Shannon and going along with her as she discovered more and more about her father and the strange people who reside with him. I enjoyed reading and discovering more about the bond between the twins and the history of the family. When faced with the prospect of having to defeat the biggest demon they have met, I found myself desperate for them to succeed without risking their father's life. The book is well written, beautifully constructed and will keep you turning page after page. I would recommend not just to young adults, but also to those who enjoy reading about good hopefully triumphing over evil! Highly enjoyable and recommended!

The second in the McLean Twins series recently came out - DEMON'S TOUCH - and can be found on Amazon here. Below is the blurb and following that my review!

“Magic is all about words and believing. If you believe then anything is possible.”

Shannon McLean had come a long way since she lost her mother. A while ago she’d thought she was alone in the world, a plain Jane with no place to go. Now she knew better. Suddenly she was surrounded by relatives: a crazy talented twin brother, Ian, who literally held the keys to magic in his hands; a demonic father, Connor, who had paid a high price for a one-way ticket to hell; and a wannabe big brother, Simon, who was not only half demon but also a hit man of some sort; and herself … so not a plain Jane but a witch with ancient spells tingling on her fingertips.

Oh, and if that were not enough of a burden for a thirteen-year-old girl, her father had sent her to London on an impossible quest. Truth be told, she might have volunteered, but only because she naively believed that the world was beneath her feet and she was capable of performing a miracle as long as her brother stood beside her. She’d been so wrong.

No matter what she did, or who tried to help her, she kept failing time and time again, and time was not something she had. If she ever intended to save her father from becoming the next king of hell, she had to act fast. She had to find a way to do the impossible and save a demon. After all, every witch knows the hard truth: demons cannot be saved. 

My review: 5/5 The much-awaited sequel!

It has arrived! The long awaited sequel to Black Diamond and finally I got to sit down and read what's been going on with Shannon, Ian, Simon and the gang. Picking up where the last book left off, they're off to find a relative who will hopefully help them and be the key to saving their father, and Simon. However, a little over eager and they may end up losing the very things they hold dead. It's a good one, and we are left hanging over the edge of a scary cliffhanger for the end, and I know I'm not the only one wanting to know when the next book will be out!

Introducing new quirky characters, this book is well written and executed brilliantly. Jennifer Loiske has once again found a way to drag you in from the first page and make it so you don't want to put the book down until you're done with it. I read through this in a late night session because I was desperate to know whether the twins would be able to pull off the spell they so desperately wanted, or if they would make things worse for themselves. An excellent YA paranormal with the right amount of teenage angst, drama and a few laughs here and there. I love this series and will continue to read it, but I suggest if you like YA books of this kind, then you'd do well to do the same! Highly recommended!

If you're interested in doing a guest blog post, please contact the team at bugbooks@virginmedia.com.

Spoonie Writer: Idenitifying As A Spoonie Writer

Spoonie Writer: Identifying As A Spoonie Writer

I've thought long and hard about this piece. It's been something on my mind for a while and it's something that ties in with two of my other posts: Being A Disabled Writer (found here) and Why Is Representation Important? (found here) If you're aware of who I am, then you're probably also aware that I am disabled and I identify as a "spoonie" (an explanation can be found here as to what the spoon theory is). I firmly believe that there is nothing wrong with being disabled and letting people know about it and how that disability affects your life, however, there are other people who think that by being so outspoken about disability, I'm asking to be treated differently, or to get special treatment. I'd like to address both of those in turn and explain why I have decided that being open about my disability is the course for me.

When I tell people that I am a disabled writer, I am not asking to be treated any differently than any other writer, indie or otherwise. I welcome reviews, regardless of who they are from. I'm aiming to get my books on other people's e-readers and have their honest feedback and I'm not telling you I'm disabled to garner sympathy. In fact, sympathy is the last thing I want. I do what I do because it's something I love, and the fact that I'm disabled has little bearing on my choice of profession.

Then why do I bother to identify as disabled, to have it on my blog, to have it in my bio? The answer to that is simple. The world is filled with people who are all different, from skin colour to religion, to ethnicity to social class and everything in between. I know that when I was growing up, I identified with other writers who were like me. Female, white and writing about difficult young adult subjects. I didn't become disabled until I was in my late teens and it was only then that I realised that writing was the career path I wanted to be on. When I was first starting out, I wanted to look at other authors and see myself in their fiction. Even now as a fully grown adult, it's still nice to be able to relate to a character (or their creator) because we have something in common.

For me, that's relatively easy because I'm white, but for other people of different skin colours, it's harder to see people like them in all forms of media. Be that books, films, plays or TV shows. This goes back to the point I wrote about in the representation piece, which is linked above. As someone who has what would seem to be the "default" skin colour for the majority of literary and fictional characters, I can't imagine how it would feel to not see yourself in those forms. For the black girl who wants to read about other black girls kicking ass and taking names and saving themselves/the world and/or their friends. I have been lucky enough to have had that representation growing up and there lies the reason I am open about my disabilities.

Say you have one hundred female book characters. Now, you take out the white, able-bodied ones and you're left with maybe say twenty. Out of that twenty, you'll have about nineteen able-bodied people of colour. The one disabled character out of that one hundred characters represents one of the most under-represented people in fiction, and that's even before you factor in intersectionality. Now, this is just my own judgement, but it's backed up here, here and here. Those are the first three that came up when I searched Google for "disabled women in fiction".

What does this have to do with my own choice to identify publicly as both disabled and a writer? Simple. There are a number of young people, some teenagers, some younger, who may come across my name or my book and be able to see that people with disabilities, in my case, white women, are able to achieve their dreams. They are able to do wonderful things and that they don't need to be ashamed of who they are, or what their disabilities are or anything like that. I want the next generation of writer's to grow up knowing that they can be disabled and they can be proud of that fact. I want them to know that it's not a shameful thing to say "Hey, I'm a disabled writer". Until we start to show that there is nothing wrong, they will remain hidden from view and no one deserves that.

Follow Joey on Facebook or here on her blog to be kept up to date with the latest news regarding Joey and her books.

The Trials Of An Indie Author: Writing Every Day

The Trials Of An Indie Author: Writing Every Day

I'm sure you've heard the common advice that as a writer, published or not, you should try to write something every day. It doesn't even have to be something for your latest works in progress, it doesn't even have to be fiction. It can be an email to a friend, a status update, a blog post or (and this is usually the best for writers) it can be part of a chapter. It's a piece of advice that has stuck with me for a long time. I've been writing as a career since 2005, which is when I was first published, but even before that, I'd always enjoyed writing a good story and even approached some publishers when I was thirteen and had written a "book" which was 36 pages on Word!

Since I became an indie author in 2011, I've made a lot of good friends in the writing world. Some of them are indie authors too, and others are published through traditional means. All of them have said to someone that you should try to write something every single day. After all, you are a writer, and if you get into the habit of writing, then good things will follow. You'll find yourself having writer's block less and less and your craft will be honed as you think up new things to write about.

While I understand that it is hard to always be thinking about writing something to your latest book - because let's face it, at times writer's block does happen - I find that even if I put all thoughts of my books out of my head and just write a blog piece or write an email to a friend, my fingers start to go faster and faster and before long I'm pulling up my Word document and typing something there as well. I'm not going to say that it happens every single time I write something because if that were the case I would have a lot more than twelve books written! However, it's like someone who trains for a sport professionally or even just as a hobby. The more time they put into practice, the easier they will find it. The same can be said to those who play musical instruments. If you practice every day - even for five or ten minutes - as those days turn into weeks and months, you'll develop more skills. The same can be said for writing.

For some people, writing is their job, for others it's a hobby or something to pass the time. For those of us who are trying to pay the bills with their words, we need to make sure that our brain stays in shape. By exercising it for a few minutes every day, you're doing just that! Now, for those of you who say that they just can't always write something new every single day, I would agree with you. As you're all very much aware, I have chronic illnesses and those inhibit how much work I get done on any given day. In the beginning of my career, I used to get angry with myself if I didn't write something. In turn, that anger would make me feel bad, which would make my physical symptoms seem or feel worse. It was a vicious cycle and one that took a lot of hard work to break free of.

The crux of it is this, if you're able to spend time writing something, then do so. Try to set aside five minutes in the evening when the kids are in bed or you're not thinking about work or housework or anything like that and just let yourself write something. It doesn't ever have to make it off the computer screen, or you can throw the piece of paper away afterwards and no one need ever know what you've written. If you want to keep it, that's okay too, if you want to show it off to your friends or whoever, that's also fine. I know a lot of writing communities who do daily prompts. They ask that you take the prompt and spend ten to fifteen minutes writing a short piece. That can do wonders to helping you get better as a writer, it can make you think outside of what you're working on, which in turn can lead to more work being done on your current project.

Basically, just as you make time to read in the evening, or to watch a certain TV show or whatever, try to make time to do a little writing. It doesn't have to be award winning, it doesn't have to even be that long, just something that you can use to exercise your writer muscles! After all, that's kind the definition of what we do!

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Guest Blogger: Wendy Jones

I'm joined today by Wendy Jones, an indie author who has just released her début novel Killer's Countdown. She has written a piece on Forensics and research to share here, and after which I'll share my review of her book, as well as links to buy it!

Thank you for inviting me to take over the blog today at Joey Paul Online. It is a real honour and a pleasure to be here.

For those of your readers who don’t know me, I live in the Beautiful Scottish City of Dundee. Although I am originally from Dundee, I moved away when I was 18 and returned only 3 years ago. In the intervening years I was in both the Royal Navy and the British Army as a nurse. I am a passionate reader, especially of crime fiction, and had always wanted to write crime books. Two years ago I took the bull by the horns and wrote my first book, Killer’s Countdown. The book launch for this was the on 17th November 2014 at Waterstones Bookshop in Dundee.

As I say, it is an honour to be here as your blog is a great tool for writers. As a fellow crime writer, I appreciated your post on The Trials of a Crime Writer: When research becomes unhealthy. I agree that there is an inordinate amount of research that goes into writing crime books. I too do a lot of research for my books and have done several courses on Forensics. Killer’s Countdown is the first in the DI Shona McKenzie Mysteries. During this book, Shona is in Tayside Police. Whilst I was in the process of editing the book, all the Scottish Police Forces merged into one big force called Police Scotland. This organisation has been very helpful and promptly dispatched a Police Sergeant to my house to help me understand the changes. We spent a pleasant few hours drinking tea, eating biscuits and discussing the finer points of police work. He then advised me to pay absolutely no notice whatsoever to what the police actually did, in a broad sense, as this would bore the readers to an early grave. Val McDermid has also said a similar thing. So, whilst I make sure that on the whole everything is accurate, I then play fast and loose with anything I want. For example, the Scottish Police are not armed. However, DI Shona and her team are always running around the streets of Dundee carrying firearms. The local police have even tweeted about this very fact. So, whilst I agree with everything you say in your blog, my motto is never let the facts get in the way of a good story. Where fiction is concerned anyway.

Thank you once again, Joey. It has been a pleasure to come along today and meet your readers. I hope they enjoy the book. 

First Book in the DI Shona McKenzie Series
Dead Women
A Ruthless Killer
A Detective with something to prove
Newly promoted DI Shona McKenzie struggles to cope with her new job, the respect of her colleagues, and the need to solve the hardest case of her life.
Will she succeed?

My review of Killer's Countdown:

5/5 stars. Highly recommended and very much enjoyed!

This was on my TBR list for a while, but thankfully I finally found time to read it and loved it! DI Shona is faced with the enormity of having to solve one murder when another and then another keeps popping up.They all seem to be random but they also seem to be linked. Can she find that link between them and then catch up with a killer who's skilled in many different ways and almost seems to be a ghost? You'll have to read to find out. This was my first reading of a book by Wendy Jones and I am not disappointed at all. I loved the prose, and the way it was written seemed to pull you into its grip and I soon found that despite it being almost midnight, I *had* to finish this book and know exactly what motivated the killer to set out upon a life of crime. It deals with some serious issues such as child abuse, bullying and neglect, but does so in a way that makes you relate to all the characters on some level. The level of accuracy in the book is outstanding and I could picture myself following along with the investigation as a silent shadow because the story made it seem as if I were there myself.

As a debut novel, it is excellent and I will be reading the next in the series when it comes out. Wendy Jones is someone to keep a watch out for. She writes believable crime and allows you to follow the characters as if they were real. Highly recommended and I loved every page of it!

Her book can be brought on Amazon Kindle (UK - USA), as well as in paperback and other e-book sites.

If you're interested in Guest Blogging for Joey, please contact her at bugbooks@virginmedia.com or comment on this blog!

The Trials Of A Crime Writer: When Research Becomes Unhealthy

The Trials Of A Crime Writer: When Research Becomes Unhealthy

One of the things that I don't like about my job, is the research that goes hand in hand with writing fiction. Some people say that you should only write what you know, but for me that seems to limit the imagination to only what you're sure about. With the need for more writers to expand their circle of characters to be more inclusive, it seems to be that writing is always going to include things that the writer themselves have not experienced. That of course, goes double for situations I write about that include crime.

I have never actually murdered someone, though like many other people, I have thought about what would be the "perfect crime". I have read various reference books in regards to crime, punishment and forensics, but that just makes sense to me given what my chosen genre is. In fact, I'm writing this piece just after completing some work on an introduction to forensics course that I took to give me more information about the process of catching a criminal. Of course, there are many crimes that you can research by talking to people who have been through the system, such as petty theft and possibly even some drug related crimes. Other more violent crimes tend to be hard to experience through talking with the convicted perpetrators and even if it  was possible, I'm not sure I'd want to go that far for authenticity.

One thing I have learnt in my forensic course is that there is pretty much no such thing as a perfect crime. Locard's principle sticks in my mind and essentially boils down to "every contact leaves a trace". Some of these traces are not even visible to the naked eye and unless you want to start carrying around a microscope and other heavy equipment, you're not likely to realise it's there. My main issue when writing a new book, or writing about a case Tara has been called to work on, is knowing whether or not it's something that the police would have picked up. Obviously, scientific discoveries have allowed the crime scene experts to know what to look for, and in that regard the police are pretty well versed in how to run a crime scene. The whole idea of some of my books is to think up something that they may have missed (such as during some of Tara's cases) or things that the killer has thought of and produced counter measures to make sure the police are lead in the wrong direction (as is the case with a couple of my books)

However, as I've mentioned before, there are only so many things you can learn from a course or a book and it's not unheard of for crime writers to act out, as much as they can, the exact scenarios they want their characters to go through. Although it's a work of fiction, a good example would be the ways in which Richard Castle in the TV series CASTLE, tests the strength and ways to break out of a zip tie. I've done similar things myself, and for the record, those bits of research I actually do like! For me it's the going through books and websites and videos to find the information I need that drive me up the wall. It's a necessary evil, but it has to be done if you want your reader to be able to believe that it's possible that the chosen scenario happened.

Yet, there is a line, I feel, for when you have to realise that all the research (and I mean book more than practical) in the world is not going to give you the information you want and therefore, you're either going to have to change the scene and use something else or you're going to have to find some hands-on evidence that backs up your story line. Research is all well and good so long as it actually helps you move on with the story. I do believe however, that eventually you have to stop reading the books and making everything perfect (or info dumping, which is something I'll discuss another time) and allow the story to unfold on its own. There is such a thing as too much research. While it is possible that knowing exactly how a DNA sample will be processed and the sheer number of statistics on your side as to whether or not the sample is individualised enough, there is also the possibility that your book will go from being a work of fiction, to almost like an essay on how wonderfully good forensics are. If you're going to keep the reader from feeling like they are doing research, you have to allow for some imperfection. After all, knowing how it should be done, doesn't mean that it is always done that way. Some of the best "mistakes" can make the most riveting reading!

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