Blogging - Ally Aldridge

December 17, 2020 Ally Aldridge Blogging, Diary, Personal, Writing

How was your 2020?

I think we can all agree that this year has been unexpected. I started the year with concerns over a new flu virus threatening to sweep the world and feeling a bit silly for being so worried about it. But, by the end of February, the rest of the country had caught up with my fears, and we were on lockdown.

2020 PPE a face mask and a tin foil hat

Conspiracy Theories

As a result, it has made me more open to conspiracy theories. The things I saw at the start of the year that caused my concerns were of people being chained in their homes to prevent the spread, Wuhan the hospitals being overwhelmed, and people dropping dead in the streets. Thankfully, we’ve not had it that severe here. In fact, I suspect those early videos weren’t real. Luckily we don’t know anyone personally that has had Covid. I’m over being worried.

I’m following a few Court Cases: Johnny Depp vs Amber Heard, Ghislaine Maxwell (and Epstein) vs the trafficked girls (and boys, if any come forward), and Trump vs Election Fraud.

I actually quite like the New Normal

Adapting to the new normal

My husband and I are now predominantly working from home. We even had a short spell of home schooling our son – which was quite challenging but we did it. My little girl has adapted to having us both home. It has brought us closer together as we get to spend more time together as a family.

All this staying home has been great for the environment. I hope when we come out of this, people do think more about whether they need to travel.

We’ve missed spending time with family and friends.

What we’ve missed

Play groups is something I feel I’ve missed the most. Aria was enjoying playing with other kids and using different toys, and I appreciated meeting up with other mums. Noah has just hit that age where he wants to play at his friend’s homes, and found not having a party for his birthday tough. My hubby has missed the freedom of going out, like having the option to just visit someone.

We missed days out. Even when the lockdown relaxed we didn’t go out like we used to. For example, this summer, the local beach was heaving with people so we avoided it. We also didn’t go to the local farms. We did manage to go to the zoo and had a lovely day out.

It’s not all been bad.

What I’m thankful for

Mostly, I’ve been in the minority that has enjoyed lockdown. I like not having the commute to work, there’s no wear and tear on my car, or cost of car parking, and petrol. I enjoy not having any social pressures to go out, meet up, dress nice, or attend any special occasions.

I liked my stay at home birthday, minimum fuss, and collection dinner from the Dooley (local pub). I’m looking forward to a quiet cosy Christmas with just my husband and kids. It feels like life has slowed down so we can enjoy moments and value what is important.

Something we’ve all come to value is out health and wellbeing. We will continue to take care of ourselves and each other.

Really proud of myself :)

Achievements

I am so chuffed I hit my goal of publishing Ocean Heart. Originally I wanted to publish it in May but it was a lot more work than I anticipated and I ended up putting the date back to 1 Dec.

The launch was another big achievement. I pushed myself out of my comfort zone and did things I would never have done before. I started a YouTube channel, and did a few live streams, including my launch party. I did two press release interviews, and I did a radio interview that was played live twice. And, I managed to arrange a book signing in a pandemic!

What a way to end the year! I must admit, I do feel exhausted, but I am eager to get writing that next book.

Happy Christmas

Thank you for be part of my 2020. I have been blown away by the support of so many this year which has been a real highlight. I want to wish you a Happy Christmas – however, you chose to celebrate the holidays.

I hope you are able to find things to be thankful for, and are surrounded by loved ones. I hope you have a good book to help you escape the madness this year has been.

And a Happy New Year

Wishing you all the best for 2021

My next post won’t be until 2021 as I am spending the rest of this year setting my goals and developing a plan to achieve them.

On that note, I wish you a happy new year too, and I hope 2021 is full of joy.

[kofi]

If you have enjoyed this, you will like…

Book Reviews

NaNoWriMo Ouctome – November 2020

Writing Progress – May 2020

My Debut Novel Releases Tomorrow (1 Dec)

December 14, 2020 Ally Aldridge Author Tube, Blogging, Book Tube, Goals, Novel, Publishing, Romance, Tips, Writing, YouTube

It’s another IG LIVE!

I had the most fabulous live chat with author Lyndell Williams (on Instagram as @laylawriteslove).

Meeting Author Lyndell Williams

She recently had some mobile woes and took the plunge to get a new phone. It wasn’t as straight forward as just popping to the shops to get it and she had to wait F O R E V E R for her new handset to come in. She this on Instagram and I offered a few words of support. We got messaging and she asked if I’d help her test out her new mobile with an IG live.

As you know, I am trying to get braver in front of the camera My inner introvert was screaming “Say no!” but to get more experience on camera, I said Yes. And, I am so glad I did. Layla was so lovely to speak to.

Going Live on Instagram with @laylawriteslove

We agreed a date & time for the Instagram Live, and both connected without any issues. Yay!

We mostly discussed writing and reading romance. I discovered her novels are steamy, and her series features around diverse characters. Her readers demanded more stories about her side characters, so she wrote some novellas. You can discover more about her book here.

She also shared tips with me on plotting. And, we covered writing in different point of views and making believable characters. She is a developmental editor and we both discussed how valuable they are. She has five novels and uses a developmental editor too. You can find out more about her services here.

Check Out Our Live

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A post shared by Romance Author+Editor+Coach ?❤ (@laylawriteslove)

[kofi]

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Author & Me Show

Check out my Live Stream Team

Technical Difficulties

Book Review: Agent Undone by Cassidy Reyne

August 17, 2020 Ally Aldridge Blogging, Books, Competition, Editing, Novel, Poetry, Publishing, Tips, Writing

If you’re an indie, you need to know about this!

When I joined WIW I didn’t think self-publishing was for me. I only joined to connect with other writers.

Hearing their inspiring stories changed my mind. Self-publishing was no longer scary and they happily shared their experiences which I was able to learn from.

And, I achieved my initial goal of making incredible writer friends.

You can learn more by following them on:

Facebook: World Indie Warriors Members

Instagram: @WorldIndieWarriors

WordPress: World Indie Warriors

WIW eZine

This is a project that I manage for World Indie Warriors. I have been learning as I go and think each edition is better than the last!

It contains:

ENTERTAIN/LEARN: Articles for readers, writers and other creatives
BUY: Listings for indie books, products and services
CONNECT: A directory of featured members and how to find them on Social Media

This month there have been three blog posts on the WIW Blog about the upcoming brochure and how to get involved. This have been:

Submissions Open

This blog posts details all the content you need to submit to get featured in the brochure.

You can get featured if you are:

An indie author
Creator of indie products
Provider of an indie service

And you don’t need to be an indie. You can be a supporter of indies. We also feature members that are book bloggers too!

A book blogger or reviewer of any product or service in the brochure

New Releases

We have rebranded the brochure as an eZine. Another new feature will be to promote books coming soon.

If you are an indie author publishing in Oct, Nov, or Dec, you can get your new release featured.

All Indie Books

This is for bookstagrammers! Check out the post for full details but all you have to do is take a photo of an indie book or collection of indie books, use the hashtag #AllIndieBooks and we’ll feature our favourite with credit to your instagram account.

If the photo is of a book in the brochure we may also include you on the page it is featured.

What are you waiting for?

If you haven’t checked out WIW yet, go do it now! Check out the brochure and get involved.

The new brochure will launch at the end of September.

If you enjoyed this, you will like:

Writing Progress: July

Soul Heart Readers – Street Team

Why I love World Indie Warriors

Where To Find The Best Indie Books

January 16, 2020 Ally Aldridge Blogging, Book Genre, Contemporary, Fantasy, Personal, Publishing, Tips, Writing, Young Adult

Why I have chosen to Self-Publish

This post will share my ambition to traditionally publish and why that dream has changed to wanting to be an indie author.

The Traditional Author Dream

For years my dream was to be a published author. From the moment I realised someone wrote the story I was reading, I wanted to be that someone.

Back then, the only way to publish was to look inside a similar book for the contact details of the publisher and send your manuscript to them with a covering letter in the post.

Since then, things have changed. Many publishers won’t accept unsolicited manuscripts so you first need to get a Literary Agent. Most places won’t accept manuscripts by post so you now must send the document by email or using a form on their website. Their websites inform you of everything they want and don’t want. Most places now want:

A polished manuscript
A personalised covering letter (body of email) saying why you choose them
A synopsis (that fits on one page)
Comparative novels
A pitch
A marketing plan
And social media links.

Sounds like a lot! And often you need a good pitch to even get invited to send all that to them in the first place.

That’s not to add that rejection is high.

The Different Publishing Paths

As a result, it is no surprise that people have come up with solutions to this madness. One alternative method is to self publish and another is vanity publishing.

Here is a little info graphic on the basic differences between the different paths for novel publishing (from my interpretation):

Vanity Publishing is not for me. I don’t have the upfront costs and I want more control.

Traditional Publishing is no longer for me. I have a lot of admiration for people that are fortunate enough to get their Literary Agent and publisher. It instantly gives their novel validation that it is good enough to print. And, you know that it will have been processed by a number of industry professionals before going to print. But, I’m bored of querying.

Ready to publish

I have waited long enough and now I realise I don’t need someone else to say yes when I can give myself permission to publish today.

Con Artists

In recent years, the only requests I have had have been from ‘publishers’ I don’t trust. They requested my novel after a pitch event or via Instagram. Their websites were newly created and had no details about authors or books they have worked on/with or even who the agents or editors at the company are. I passed.

Costs

It has taken me years to find the money to pay for an editor myself. I need to pay as you go. I also like the idea that the sales will go to me.

Autonomy

After all the time I have put into it, I want my novel to be the way I want it. I want a say over the formatting and the cover. I want control.

Readership

I don’t want this to be my only novel. It is important that my novel is a quality product. I want to be confident and proud of my book. I want readers to enjoy it and want more. Once I publish, I don’t want to stop.

Self publishing is scary. But, I’m ready. And, I hope you will enjoy following me in my journey to publication.

If you enjoyed this you will like:

Seven tips for querying agents

How to Write a Synopsis

Felixstowe Book Festival – The Publishing Industry

Writers beware! Know who you are querying.

Click my link tree to discover more ways to connect.

December 30, 2019 Ally Aldridge Blogging, Goal setting, Goals, Novel, Personal, Tips, Writing

Goals: Progress Since September 2019

Here is an update on how I have progressed towards the goals I set in September 2019 (towards achieving my annual goals set in January).

Social Media

Blog (Word Press): To continue to post at least twice a week keeping to my content schedule as much as possible.

I am so proud of myself for keeping up with this goal. Even during NaNoWriMo I managed to post twice a week.

Instagram: To maintain the new connections I have made and continue to engage with them and share content about my writing.

My posts have slowed down but I am still posting regularly. Recently my post have been every two days.

Twitter: Continue to share links to my content on Twitter and connect with writers on the platform.

I took part in #RevPit and was one of the winners. I keep meaning to write a blog post about it. Basically, winners get to email their first 5 pages and query letter to an editor. The editor then tweets about the ten submissions they have with advice on how to improve – this advice is useful to all writers so worth following the hashtag. The next day, winners get an email to let them know which tweets were about their work.

I did Boost My Bio for Pitch Wars then forgot to enter the main competition for a mentor – OMG I was so cross with myself (serious understatement). It had been a busy weekend with two book festivals!

Facebook page: To brainstorm how I can use this to connect with more writers.

I haven’t done anything new to my page but it is getting more traffic. I have also been active on World Indie Warriros Facebook page. I did my first Live via their page. Then during NaNoWriMo, I did three live write-ins and I’ve hosted a midweek chat in December.

View this post on Instagram
Not long now! Going live on Facebook to chat about NaNoWriMo and @worldindiewarriors ? #nanoprep #preptober #preptober2019 #nanowrimo #nanowrimo2019 #worldindiewarriors #worldindiewarriorsbasecamp #nationalnovelwritingmonth #nationalnovelwritingmonth2019 #plotterorpantser #hustlingwriterscommunity #fellowcreativemindsspotlight #fellowcreativeminds #writerofig #writersofig #writerofinstagram #writersofinstagram #instagramwriter #instagramwriters #igwriter #igwriters #writingcommunityofinstagram #indieauthor #indieauthors #indieauthorsofinstagram #indieauthorsofig #indieauthorsofinsta #indiewriter #indiesareworthit
A post shared by Author Ally Aldridge (@redfae) on Oct 21, 2019 at 9:10am PDT

YouTube: To be brave and get in front of the camera and start sharing video content.

I’m not sure I understand the change in terms for YouTube videos so I’ve not pushed myself to do this but I am super proud of myself for getting in front of the camera (see Facebook above).

Tumblr: Share Instagram and Word Press content to this platform.

This happens all the time as my other sites are set up to automatically share there.

Newsletter

I sent out my second newsletter at the end of October. This also included a full guide on using Hashtags on Instagram. My next newsletter is due out at the end of December. Click here to sign up.

Writing

Jewel of the sea (formerly Drift)

Enter into the Wattys. Put novel out to Beta Readers. Take part in September’s #PitMad. Work on my query letter.

I entered Wattys but wasn’t a winner. I also entered Wattpairs Mentorship Challenge on Wattpad but wasn’t chosen to be a mentee. My Beta Readers went quiet… I didn’t let these things halt my progress towards my dream.

At the end of December it will be 10 years that I have been chasing traditional publishing. I have decided it is time to be brave and self publish. With my birthday money I have booked an editor and taken that first step towards making it happen.

Diamond in the sky (formerly Glide)

Re-plot novel, edit existing version and write ending.

I edited the first few chapters and updated Diamond in the Sky on Wattpad. I then used Save the Cat to plot and develop the remaining chapters. Then during November, I worked on this novel for NaNoWriMo. I managed to write a further 45k words, bringing the book up to 60k words. There is still more to be written but I am so pleased with my progress and I know how it end now.

Red Dresses

#NewYearNewNovel start a new novel for 2019

This is the new novel I started in April this year. I plotted out the first few chapters and wrote the first 15k words to see how I got on. I really enjoyed this novel. I envision it being a steamy new adult romance. I definitely plan to return to this project at a later date.

Tinsel Tiger (picture book)

Research publishers and Literary Agents and pitch events to consider querying. Consider whether to commission an artist to do the images and then self publish.

I haven’t had any time to make any further progress on this project so it has taken a back seat.

Other

In October, I volunteered to write the World Indie Warriors brochure, ready for December.

I planned to have the brochure completed by the end of October so it would not distract me during NaNoWriMo. It turned out to be really hard to get all the details required from all the creatives involved.

During November, there was still missing information I was chasing. I set aside Sundays to make time to get it finished and I managed to get everything by 1 December 2019.

It was my first time creating a brochure and it was a steep learning curve but I really enjoyed doing it. I wish I could do something like this everyday for a living. You can view the World Indie Warriors brochure here.

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Have you got some last Christmas gifts to buy or fancy treating yourself? Be sure to check out @worldindiewarriors brochure of products and books by indie creatives. ? And keep an eye out for my blog post, this Monday, on how you can get involved. ? #indiecreative #indiecreator #shopsmall #supportcreatives #smallbusiness #indieproducer #indieauthor #indieauthorsofinstagram #selfpublish #bookmarketing #bookbloggers #influencer #bookpromotion #bookish #bookgifts #giftideasforbooklovers #bookworm #bookdragon #bookreviews #worldindiewarriors #artistsoninstagram #writersofinstagram #poetsofinstagram #creatorsandinnovators #creatorsoninstagram #bookshopsofinstagram #indiebookstore #independentartist #worldindiewarriors
A post shared by Author Ally Aldridge (@redfae) on Dec 6, 2019 at 1:54am PST

Writing Course/Writing Festivals

Attend writing festivals

I got to attend The Ingram Sparks Print Facility Tour which was part of the Milton Keyne’s literary festival #MKLitFest.

I also attended WoW Con which is an online Literary Festival run by Write Mentor. I also paid for a one-to-one via Skype with a Literary Agent. I intended to write a blog post about it but just haven’t had the time.

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I had an incredible day yesterday. I travelled to Milton Keynes for #mklitfest to attend the Ingram Sparks factory tour. ? @ingramsparkbooks was described perfectly by one of our tour guides as The Willy Wonka factory equivalent for book lovers. It was like magic seeing the massive machines producing books. ? I got lots of samples and information on using their print services. Of course I was delighted to get a notebook in each colour. ? A massive highlight was meeting some of my @worldindiewarriors friends. ? #miltonkeynes #ingramsparks #printondemand #selfpublishing #worldindiewarriors #wiw #indieauthor #indieauthors #indie #indieauthorsofinstagram #indieauthorsofig #indieauthorsofinsta #indiecreatives #fellowcreatives #indiewriter #indiesareworthit #notebooks #stationery #bookmaking #Notebook #notebookaddict #writingtip #writerstip #writingtips #writerstips #supportauthors #supportingauthors #authorssupportingauthors #bookstagram
A post shared by Author Ally Aldridge (@redfae) on Sep 21, 2019 at 2:47am PDT

Personal

Crafts

Make time at least once a week: Planner: continue to use Carpe Diem planner; Pocket letter: write another pocket letter; Scrapbook: Do at least one page; Crochet: Finish Aria’s blanket for her birthday.

I haven’t found anytime for crafts. I haven’t been using my planner, written any letters or created any cards. I haven’t added to my scrapbook or finished Aria’s blanket.

I did attend the Festive Planner Meet in Felixstowe. I can’t even begin to express how amazing it was to spend time with these girls doing crafts for a few hours. It had made me feel motivated to do more crafty things in 2020.

For Christmas, I have brought brown paper and festive stamps to decorate it with. That counts as a craft, right?

Read at least four and a half books by the end of September (annual goal 6 books)

I’ve exceed this goal and read a total of 11 books. I will be sharing a post in early 2020 with a collection of all the book reviews posted in 2019.

I have also read The Practice Boyfriend by Christina Benjamin (review scheduled for January 2020) and Crown of Conspiracy by Kara S Weaver (review scheduled for February 2020) and Trust Me by Maddie James (review scheduled for March 2020).

I have also signed up to Net Galley to be able to review new releases. I will write a review on how I get on with the site and I’ll post about any books that I manage to read (time is always my biggest challenge).

Development

Writer courses: Continue to take advantage of any free courses that come my way if I have the time to do these.

I desperately want to enrol on Page Malcolm’s courses, especially her author academy, but it is beyond what I can afford. I keep missing her live videos as they are when I am asleep but I always try to catch the replay as the content is valuable.

I am also incredibly lucky that Willow Editing has given me access to her self-publishing course to beta test it. I started it at the end of October but then had to stop due to NaNoWriMo. I intend to make good use of this during December. She is so friendly in the videos she actually gets me excited about editing which is you knew how much I hate editing then you’d understand how awesome she is.

Resource book: Buy another writing help book. I am considering the Emotion Thesaurus.

I haven’t ordered any resource book but my wish list has got longer. lol!

What’s next

I am really pleased with what I have achieved this year and I’m feeling positive that 2020 is going to be even better. I am actively pursuing self-publishing and I love being part of World Indie Warriors.

How did your goals go this year? Are you feeling positive about 2020?

If you enjoyed this post, you may also like:

My Books

#BoostMyBio for Pitch Wars 2019

How was NaNoWriMo 2019

I got to tour Ingram Spark’s print facility

Why I Love World Indie Warriors

To discover more ways to connect, click my link tree.

Click My Link Tree
To Connect On Social Media

September 30, 2019 Ally Aldridge Blogging, Goal setting, Goals, Novel, Personal, Tips, Writing

Goals: Progress Since June 2019

Here is an update on how I have progressed towards the goals I set in March 2019 (towards achieving my annual goals set in January).

Social Media

Blog (Word Press): To continue to post at least twice a week keeping to my content schedule as much as possible.

This has been happening even though it has been challenging to find time since returning to work. With my hashtag series, I’ve got quite a few posts already scheduled so I should be able to post twice a week for a little while still.

Instagram: To maintain the new connections I have made and continue to engage with them and share content about my writing.

This has definitely happened and I there are some writers that stand out to me as we have been chatting off Instagram (I even met three of them in person).

On Instagram, I took part in the #WIWJulyChallenge by @worldindiewarriors. I have continued to post for the #StorySnippetsSaturday challenge and I took part in their week long #WritingJourneyChallenge in August by the same hosts. For September, I have been doing the #aestheticWIPup photo challenge (I’ll share my highlights soon).

I got to create the October Instagram photo challenge #WIWOctober for @worldindiewarriors , so I need to post daily for that – eek.

Twitter: Continue to share links to my content on Twitter and connect with writers on the platform.

Twitter is a platform I’ve neglected as Instagram has taken precedent and I tend to only use it for events. On Twitter, I took part in #SFFpit September, #PitMad September. I am also taking part in #PitchWars.

Facebook page: To brainstorm how I can use this to connect with more writers.

I haven’t really done this.

YouTube: To be brave and get in front of the camera and start sharing video content.

I just don’t have the opportunity to create videos. With an ambitious, mischievous, one year old that rarely naps, I think I will have to put this goal on hold until she moves out.

Tumblr: Share Instagram and Word Press content to this platform.

This happens all the time.

Other?

I managed to send out my first ever newsletter (sign up here).