The Writer In You Blog Hop – 3

The Writer In You is a blog hop hosted by Katie at The Fiction Diaries. In her own words, “this is a blog hop for all aspiring writers out there. It is a chance to meet other writers and share tips, writing, and experiences, all while gaining new followers for your lovely blog…” Every Saturday, Katie asks a question that we have to answer.

This week’s question is: What is your favorite classic novel and is there anything in particular you take from it that you hope to see in your own writing?

My favourite classic novel is undoubtedly Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë. Published in 1847, this book is considered a masterpiece of English literature. It is famous for its doomed love between Catherine Earnshaw and Heathcliff, which is indeed the most passionate and fascinating love story I have ever read.

But what I find incredibly inspiring in this novel is how DARING it is. Not only does the novel have a complex narrative structure (hello multiple narrators and mise en abyme) and it depicts an amazing setting, but it also includes incredibly violent scenes, bold topics and dialogues in Yorshire dialect.

Wuthering Heights’ writing is actually so bold and original that it has often been suggested that Emily Brontë, a shy clergyman’s daughter who lived in the middle of nowhere, couldn’t possibly have written such a book. Yet she did. It’s called the power of imagination.

And I wish my books were half as daring as Wuthering Heights.

“If all else perished, and he remained, I should still continue to be; and if all else remained, and he were annihilated, the universe would turn to a mighty stranger.”

For everything there is to know about Wuthering Heights, visit: http://www.wuthering-heights.co.uk/index.htm

What about you? What is your favorite classic novel? Join the fun here and happy writing!

The Writer In You Blog Hop – 2

The Writer In You is a blog hop hosted by Katie at The Fiction Diaries. In her own words, “this is a blog hop for all aspiring writers out there. It is a chance to meet other writers and share tips, writing, and experiences, all while gaining new followers for your lovely blog…” Every Saturday, Katie asks a question that we have to answer.

This week’s question is: Do you outline your writing?

I do outline my stories before writing them. I didn’t use to, but over the years I have learnt that outlining your novel before writing it actually 1) saves you time and 2) helps you be a better writer. Because outlining makes you think about your story, makes you deal with the tough questions (Where is this all going? Is this scene/chapter useful for the plot? What are the arcs in my story? etc.) and makes you solve all the problems BEFORE writing the story. So when your outline is done, you can just WRITE. No excuse.

What about you? Do you outline your writing? Join the fun here and happy writing!

ROW80 Check-In #7

Hello gentle reader,

this week again I’m happy to report that I have been working well toward my ROW80 goal: I’m ALMOST done self-editing my Fantasy novel THE LAST QUEEN… I hope to be completely done by Wednesday.

This week on the blog you can find out if you are like the writers depicted in the movies (here). It’s fun, try and take the test!

I also recommend you join a new meme called The Writer In You, hosted by Katie @The Fiction Diaries. Every Saturday she asks a question about our writing habits.

Finally, I wanted to share with you an infographic called How a Book is Born. It was created by the publishing house Weldon Owen and it shows “the path of a book from idea to final product”.

Here it is:

According to its author, the chart is only 74% accurate… Find out more here.

And last but not least, here is the Linky for the other ROW80 participants…

Have a great week and happy writing!

The Writer In You Blog Hop – 1

The Writer In You is a blog hop hosted by Katie at The Fiction Diaries. In her own words, “this is a blog hop for all aspiring writers out there. It is a chance to meet other writers and share tips, writing, and experiences, all while gaining new followers for your loverly blog…” Every Saturday, Katie asks a question that we have to answer.

This week’s question is: When and where do you do most of your writing?

I have a very busy life and I tend to write when and where I can. Which is, mostly in the evening and at the weekend. In an ideal world, I would get up early in the morning to write, take a break in the afternoon, then go back to writing in the evening. I like writing at my desk by the window in my living room with music on.

What about you? Join the fun here and happy writing!