Good morning/afternoon/evening one and all, from a quarantined Salisbury, UK.
A big thank you to those that have signed up to my newsletter in the last month – it’s great to meet you, so to speak. I hope you’re enjoying your free copy of ‘Frozen To The Core’. Feel free to drop me a line and let me know what you think.
Writing Styles
Since the start of the year all I’ve been doing is working on the fifth book in my Young Adult fantasy series, ‘A Fiery Farewell’. Over 100,000 words in, I’ve struggled to motivate myself over the last few weeks. I’ve also taken my eye off the ball, so to speak, because one particular night, as is usually the case, I dreamt about another part of the storyline. ‘WHAT?’ I hear you ask. The very last chapter of the very last book in the series, which might be either a book and a half away, or two and a half books away. Now I’ve known for some time how it all ends, but the dream in question was in rather graphic detail, with lots of little loose ends tied up and so, taking the hint as I have done on so many other occasions, I’ve turned my hand to writing that last chapter, the very end of it all. I’ve just finished it and it’s come in at a staggering 31,705 words and more than a few tears. So for me, it’s back to work on ‘A Fiery Farewell’.
It is odd though how the writing experience can change over time. Wandering off and writing another part of a book is nothing new to me, as I did the same with the chapter ‘Currying Favour’ in ‘A Twisted Prophecy’, but the way in which I write now, on my fifth book, is startlingly different to how it all started.
Working on book 1, ‘A Threat From The Past’, I was incredibly naïve, having planned the book out with ten chapters all ten thousand words each……IDIOT! Yes, I know now, but I didn’t then, not to start with. And it didn’t take me long to find out what a cockwomble I was. Another standout point from that first book, was that I had to write it all in order. So if I got stuck, which I did on occasion, work stopped until I could push myself to get through it, instead of just going off and writing one of the later chapters which I would have been more than capable of doing, given that I knew the storyline in graphic detail. I learnt a great deal about myself and my writing style during the course of that first book.
Everything changed in book 2,”A Chilling Revelation’. I’d already been dreaming about the events while writing the start of book 1 and so I had a fair idea of the whole plot, maybe missing only some of the miniscule details that go along with it. Anyhow, to cut a long story short, ‘A Chilling Revelation’ was different in that I started off writing, and if I got stuck at any point, I moved on to one of the other chapters further on in the book, that I knew how to write. At the time it worked well, meaning that I never really lost any time from being stuck on not knowing what to put next. The down side to all this was that when I finished writing it (and it took a while……217,000 words) that I had all of these chapters to put together in the right order. And that took some time figuring out, and getting it just right. Did the time it took to put all the chapters in the correct places outweigh the time that would have been lost for me getting stuck and not knowing what to right next? Who knows? For me, it was just another example of a different way to put one of my books together and I suppose, subconsciously, I took that all in and adjusted accordingly for book 3, ‘A Twisted Prophecy’.
With the experience of both the previous books under my belt, I think a combination of the two worked pretty well for this one. Mostly I just got on with it and wrote all the way through, although if memory serves me correctly, I might have written a couple of chapters and slotted them in afterwards. Much easier, a better flow and not so much juggling about at the end. It definitely felt with this one that I’d found my style, if such a thing even exists.
On to book 4, ‘Earth’s Custodians’, and I was well and truly in the swing of things. Almost 190,000 words, with many, many plot lines to bring together, I don’t think I wrote anything out of order, just getting on and nailing the words to the page. Although trying to weave lots of threads together, the writing itself never really stopped this time, with the images from my head being put to paper in a much easier and more fluent way, something that, looking back, I don’t really remember happening before.
And here I am now, quarantined to the hilt with my gorgeous wife and lovely daughters, I find myself in the same kind of mode and mood as I did with the last book. It feels as though something of a crest has been reached, a peak almost, and that as a writer I’ve found who I am and how I best get the words down onto the paper. While it doesn’t always flow, if I focus all my intent and don’t get too distracted, I’m able to write as ably as possible most days. Of course, sometimes life gets in the way, and when that happens for me, it’s the writing that suffers and drops out completely. But thankfully, that’s rare enough now, unlike when my kids were a bit younger, and so the words keep on spilling out, my hopes and dreams exiting my tiny brain, making a mad dash for the pages on my monitor.
Anyhow, that’s what has and hasn’t worked for me. If you have a different way of doing things or just want to comment on what I’ve just written, please get in touch.
So I’ve started my own Facebook group all about, as you can probably guess…..ME! My books, my writing, what’s going on in my life, with cover reveals and competitions. I’d be delighted if you wanted to join up. Click on the image to ask for an invite, I’d love to get to know you better.
Over the last couple of months I’ve added the option for people in the UK to purchase signed copies of my books directly from me. You can find out more at my website: www.paulcude.com
Stuck in quarantine for us means rounding out the evening with a couple of television series episodes. PICARD SPOILERS AHEAD! This month….finished Picard. Brilliant! Can’t wait for the second season. Particularly loved Riker turning up with the fleet. Also caught right up to the latest episodes of Blue Bloods…..BOO! One of my favourite shows and can’t believe that since the start of the year we’ve watched right the way up to series 10. Love all the characters as well as the New York skyline. Have now replaced Blue Bloods with our regular sitting of Seal Team, which I can thoroughly recommend. The action is fantastic and I simply adore the characters (Sunny in particular). To think that there are men and women running around the world doing that job and keeping us all safe makes me hugely proud, even though I don’t know any of them and probably ever will. What a job you all do.
Having not been out anywhere significant over the last month, apart from the family run that we go on every three days, I thought I’d share with you some of the pictures I’ve taken across the last couple of years. The water droplets on the blade of grass I liked very much, taken at Hengistbury Head on a cold winter’s morning. The view of Salisbury cathedral is taken from about a ten minute walk from where I live, on a crisp summer’s day. And last but not least, the waves crashing against the slipway are from one of my favourite places in the world and one we as a family probably visit more often than anywhere else (when not quarantined)….the beautiful town of Swanage in Dorset, UK. I hope you like them.
Finally, here are a few things that have caught my eye on the internet and made me laugh.
