I was invited to Grange Primary School for World Book Day as a local author. The children were in Year 3 through to Year 6 and wanted to know all about what it is like being an author and writing stories.
As it was World Book Day I decided to share with the children about the different books that have shaped my career as an author from early inspiration through to tools of the trade. Most importantly, I made sure to tell them about the books I had written. Then, I went on to discuss all the different roles that are involved in bringing a book to life.
I created a presentation in Canva so that I’d have a visual prompt to keep me on track whilst delivering my talk. It really helped at the start when I was nervous. By the end, the children really helped steer the talk in the direction they wanted with their insightful questions.
They had done a creative exercises to draw a picture of what they thought an author might look like. None of the children had drawn themselves, so I pointed out to them that any of them could be an author one day and all they need to do is start writing. Then keep writing and not worry if their first stories aren’t great because like everything, we get better with practice.
The children had lots of questions to ask. It was a lot of fun, and we talked about some of their story ideas and discovered that stories can be about anything and that they don’t all have to like the same stories because we are all different.
My favourite question was when one child asked me what is a story I’ve always wanted to write but haven’t written yet. It was a question with endless answers, but I chose one of my ideas to share with them. Then some of the children started brainstorming with me more ideas for my story. It was awesome to see where their minds went and left me energised to want to write more.
The event was a success, and I came away feeling incredibly welcomed by the children and inspired by their energy and excitement for stories. I wrote an article for Felixstowe Magazine which you can read here:
I had a lovely Valentines Day and one of my kids got an award at school. It was also the start of half term meaning the kids are now off for a week. We haven’t planned much so it’s a chance to recharge.
A writing challenge
I need to write book three, Forest Heart. It’s hard going back to writing a rough draft after working with a polished formatted printed book. Sky Heart released on 7th Feb, so I’ve only had a week to chill since its launch.
To get my head back into Forest Heart I’ve set myself a writing challenge. All I have to do is fall back in love with my novel.
No goals.
No word counts.
No pressure.
Half Term: Saturday, 15th February to Sunday, 23rd February
How did it going?
Sat, 15th February
I’m loving it. Saturday, I announced my challenge and then read through what I’d already drafted. This resulted in me deleting about 3k to 4k words, and only adding about 300 words. It felt a little like I was moving backwards but writing isn’t a linear process.
Sun, 16th February
Sunday my husband asked about the novels ending. Of all the plot points I have already, I don’t yet have an ending. We mulled it over and finally I think I have something. It did get me rethinking the timeline of the novel and I created a spreadsheet to map out where different key events happen in the series and how the books overlap. This doesn’t look like writing a novel, but it most definitely is.
Mon, 17th February
Monday, I actually did some writing and I was really pleased with what I got and feel excited about the direction of the story. As a family we tidied the house ready for the kids to have their friends over tomorrow.
Image created in Canva to represent my main character, Eve
Tue, 18th February
Tuesday, we tidied some more in the morning. Then after lunch, my kids had their friends over today. They weren’t too crazy and afterwards I was very impressed that they tidied up their bedrooms without me having to ask them.
Wed, 19th February
Wednesday was awesome. I’m into Forest Heart and have a clear vision for the upcoming scenes. Finally, my word count is back where I started.
Thu, 20th February
Thursday, wasn’t a good day for writing. We had lots of plans – it felt like everyone wanted to see us and I felt overwhelmed and guilty that I couldn’t make everyone happy. It resulted in me getting a headache. I didn’t write anything. And, I only read enough to maintain my reading streak. In the evening, my son went out with his mates and I managed to read some Onyx Storm to calm my nerves while I waited for him to return.
Image generated in Canva using AI
Fri, 21st February
Friday, no headache. Determined to make some progress, I started my day off writing. Now I have the writing bug I keep sneaking off to write whenever I can. I don’t want to go back to work next week. I want to write, write, write. I’m going to make the most of the time I have. Today, I finished chapter four.
Sat, 22nd February
Saturday, was a busy day and I did lots of authorprener jobs but no writing. My family had some bad news with the loss of someone very important. Keeping busy was my way of handling it. As a result, I didn’t write anything.
Sun, 23rd February
Sunday, I started the day chatting with my sister. Then called my family up North. They don’t live close by so the loss didn’t feel real until I spoke to them. Speaking with them made me accept it and I cried a little.
Me and Uncle Rob
I’m trying to keep this post about my progress with the writing challenge but my emotions did impact me. I think it’s important to acknowledge that life sometimes throws unexpected curve balls and it’s okay to stop what you’re doing to deal with it.
Allowing myself time meant that by the afternoon I was able to add a few words. Adding an extra 600 words means I’ve finished the challenge with 15,418 words.
Did I achieve my goal?
The goal for this novel is to have a final word count between 85,000 and 95,000 words. There’s still a way to go but I have achieved my goal of getting my head back into Forest Heart.
As I’m back to work next week and have a lot on my mind, I think my progress will slow. As for Forest Heart, my mind is clear on the direction of the story and once I’m ready and have time, I’m confident I can get it finished.
This has been a really productive challenge, I think I’ll do this every half term to fall in love with writing. Maybe, next time, you’ll join in.
