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Don't underestimate the power of humour in good writing

When writing, it is easy to cover the whole gamut of emotions ranging from sadness, jealousy to plain disgust. However, humour can be easy to overlook. What most people think when they hear the word ‘humour’ is a rip-roaring comedy. However, it can be subtle and it can also aid you in telling the most effective of stories. Take for example an artist creating a painting. If they use too many ‘dark’ colours and don’t vary it with ‘bright’ colours, then the painting is going to almost certainly look dull. In the worst-case scenario, it could be hard to make out the features of what they’re painting. Hence, a painter must create something called ‘contrast’ to make a painting more interesting. ‘Interesting’ is what we’re aiming for in our prose. Contrast can be thought of as the interplay between ‘light’ and ‘dark’ to create something that stands out.* Being an artist in addition to a writer, I consider the technique of creating prose to be similar to creating a painting. Use too m...

Writing on the train

If you see me on the train, you might be inclined to think that I am texting on my mobile phone. In fact, the possibility that I am writing a novel might be the furthest thing away from your mind. However, that's exactly what I do when I commute to the day job. There is a number of advantages of writing whilst on a public transport.When you're commuting to work, you find out that it is sometimes the only time during the day when you can write. I  prefer to use my time wisely.  Furthermore, I find the whole process more spontaneous than when I am at my desk writing and trying to come up with a scenario. For those of you less inclined using this method or thinks that it is a disaster for your hands, I would recommend purchasing a wireless keyboard to use with your phone. They're super cheap online and are very easy to set up. Writing on the train has become one of my favourite things to do. PS. If you're wondering, I wrote this post on the train.

Fan fiction – to do or not to do

A vital part of my development of writer is to write about everything and anything. When I was younger, I was a big fan of fan fiction and I have contributed to the fandom myself. The ones that I was particularly interested in was “Harry Potter” and “Buffy the vampire slayer” as well as the marvel comics universe. I understand that it can be a fiery issues. There are some who believes that fan fiction is not truly a form of writing. Then, there are some who believes that fan fiction is a great way to sharpen your writing skills. A notable work that started off as fanfiction was the “fifty shades of grey” trilogy. It was originally a Twilight fan fic. I believe that fan fiction is a good way to practice your writing skills and gain readers. After all, you’ve got a readily available characters and an already established universe. However, its advantages can be a curse. Unless you want to write alternative universe fan fiction, I found that it can sometimes be too constricting. Readers so...

Third Draft Blues

As you guys will probably know, I am still in the process of writing “the angels of fire” trilogy. For the first novel “The Damnation Plays” I am currently on my third draft. This means that I’ve written two other earlier versions and have slowly streamlined and honed my writing and ideas to make it into a publishable novel. However, I am aware that it won’t all be ready even then because I still need to send it to my trustworthy and friendly beta reader. I’ve written novels before but I’ve never published them. They’re somewhere hiding away in my proverbial attic waiting to see the light of the day.  However, this is different. I am planning to publish the “Angels of fire trilogy”. This brings another different set of pressures upon me as an author because I want to give my readers the best possible experience reading my novel. I’ve also discovered the flaws of my novel whilst writing the third draft. For example, I’ve got a minor character getting hurt in a pivotal scene but in the s...

When there's so much to do and not enough hours in the day...

I have been slaving away at assignments from the course I am doing at the moment. It's not surprising then that my writing has taken a backseat. Funnily enough, the assignments has the same hand in date as another professional work I had to hand in. Hence, my hands have been full throughout the week. Furthermore, I have been working all throughout. All this has made me realise what a great thing good time management skills are. I try to plan my time but it is so easy to get distracted by browsing the internet or watching the latest film on TV. On the other hand, I can't wait till I finish everything and have some time for myself. My novel, the damnation Plays is taking shape now that I am on to the third draft. I can't wait for it to be proofread and finished - that will be sweet. The Sequel, the condemnation games is still in the process of being done. However, there had been some parts in which I've been stumbling and wondering which direction the novel is going to go...

The proper care and feeding of ideas

A light bulb moment occurs   I believe in the importance of ideas. In fact, I almost worship ideas because that's what keeps me going when I find that the first draft of my novel is going nowhere or I am at the brink of giving up. Sometimes I get ideas at the spur of the moment and sometimes it germinates in my head, sometimes for years, until it finally blooms into a finished product. For instance, in one novel that I am working on I had the idea for it since 2006. It morphed into different forms until I had the "aha" moment and decided that this was the shape it was going to take. Ideas are really important for writers for obvious reasons. Without a good idea many of the greatest novels wouldn't have been written. I have a bad memory so I find it really helpful to jot down my ideas into a notepad or into my mobile phone since ideas often come to me in random moments. To end this post, I would like to ask my readers a question. How are you feeding and caring for your...