My creative roadmap for 2016: a year of building the dream

In my last post, I reflected on the surprises and successes of 2015 for me as an author.

Today, I'm excited to look forward into 2016 and see what the year will bring! I have some great plans for my author career.

First and foremost aim is to become a full time author and illustrator this year. I have another 361 days to achieve this! (Pretty glad it's a leap year so I have a whole extra day to work.)

Ideally that means earning £1000 a month from my books & any related activities, because that's the point at which it becomes financially viable. I've worked out roughly that I need to sell about 20 colouring books a day to achieve this. This isn't unrealistic, as in the Christmas period I was selling up to 100 copies a day, but it will require some work to make sure that income is sustainable.

I'm counting fiction sales as a bonus to this, because it doesn't make any money - about £1 a month if I'm lucky - and I am still making a loss on my fiction due to editing fees. I do hope that in 2016 I can see success with my fiction sales. In part, that's my own fault for being so terrible at marketing!

Publish at least 12 projects in 2016.

That's an average one one a month. Initially, I thought this would be quite steep, but I am including my main projects (colouring books, fiction) as well as my additional income streams (like companion books for my colouring books).

It already looks like I'll have published almost 20 projects by the summer, including 2 new colouring books (lots of companion books to go with them), some more children's fiction, and if I can squeeze it in, some more young adult fiction which I am dying to write!

Improve my marketing skills.

This goes hand in hand with publishing more and creating sustainable income. I need to get my books before the eyes of voracious readers and colourists! If I can crack marketing in 2016, I'm sure I can pave the way to a sustainable writing and illustrating career.

This means I need to become more confident at using paid marketing (facebook ads, twitter ads and the like), plus begin to approach local press for publicity (which is especially important for my charity colouring project because it's supporting such a good cause).

I also want to branch into videos this year, including vlogging, video marketing and video trailers. This may also include some audio work because I am quite camera shy and am probably going to be more confident in front of a microphone than a camera!

Focus on my health.

As you know, I spent a lot of 2015 ill. As a result, I am really out of shape (that's an understatement!), and writing is not complimentary to a healthy lifestyle. So, it's important for my long term health and also my productivity (short and long term) to have a sound body and mind.

I'm focusing on healthy eating at the moment, and when the weather picks up, I can get back into my favourite outdoor hobbies/exercise; walking and archery.

This year will be about facing my fears of new things and failure, and grasping the opportunities that appear. As usual, I'll continue to push my comfort zone - even further than before - and hopefully reap the rewards.

I hope in 12 months time, when I reflect on 2016 and plan for 2017, that I can write to you as a full time creative! :-)

Reflections on a successful and surprising 2015!

A year ago, I sat down to reflect on 2014, after publishing my first book that July. I couldn't have imagined then the amazing opportunities that would come in 2015!

It has been a year filled with surprises and success, and I've enjoyed every minute of it!

I have continued on my independent author journey this year and published a further 7 titles (after only hoping to publish 1!).

• 1 YA fiction (the sequel to my first)
• 2 illustrated children's fictions
• 2 adult colouring books
• 2 companion books for the adult colouring books.

I have so many ideas that I haven't had chance to pen yet too. Right now, I have I think about 30 books plotted or planned that I need to schedule to time to actually write/draw!

Of my 8 books, all are top 100 bestsellers or better on Amazon. All are positively reviewed and it's so wonderful hearing that readers have enjoyed my work. I write because I love to, but I publish because I want my books to be enjoyed.

In the case of my colouring books, I'm touched and honoured to hear from those with health problems that colouring my books has helped them cope and recover. You may recall I've had my own health problems this year - so drawing and writing has helped get me through the tougher parts of 2015 too.

A year ago, I was on the cusp of selling my 100th book. Now I'm on the cusp of selling my 4,000th! I know that's not a huge number to some, but it's much more than I was expecting or hoping for - and I'm so grateful to everyone who chose to read one of my titles. This for me, is just the beginning.

It means that I am so so close to what I would deem financial success from writing and illustrating. I have a number in my mind that I'd like to make each month from creating, to justify and enable me to go full time without needing a part time job. So to exceed that number greatly for several months of this year is fantastic. It shows me it's possible, with hard work and time - and luck!

In my personal life, there's been a lot of changes, so 2015 has been quite tumultuous! I finished my 4 year teaching degree in May and recently graduated as the only woman in my year with 1st class honours. I am so very glad to be free of teaching. It was clearly the wrong career for me.

I also changed job/working hours a few times at my part time job and am now (as of December) working a new stable pattern that allows me to have a large chunk of defined writing/creating time each week. Not being at university has certainly freed up lots of time!

My fiance and I (and of course our beloved cats Jet and Pixie) moved house this Autumn too. This is one of the biggest changes of the year, because it totally alters our lifestyle. We have upsized to a good-sized family house further into the countryside that we can grow into in the coming years.

It's in a lovely location and I have a beautiful office space to call my very own, that looks out over my favourite moors. It is a wholesome and uplifting place to be that is very good for my ongoing productivity and mental/physical health (which is really important as sitting/writing is so bad for your health!). I look forward to lots of happy years living and working here. :-)

So 2015 has been a year of transition, from university student to actively planning to become a full time author. This year my eyes have been opened to what I really want to pursue with my life, and that it's possible. I've changed from being quite naive and pottering about publishing, to wanting to make a serious go at it.

It's been exciting to stumble upon and take advantage of the unforeseen opportunities that have arisen. I am so excited to share my 2016 goals with you to illustrate exactly how I plan to achieve that, so stay tuned! :D

Have an awesome New Year's Eve, and let me know how you got on in 2015/what your 2016 goals are!

A Year Of Publishing

So it's July 31st, which means a year ago today I published my first book!

How different ... and perhaps in some ways also the same ... life is today! I hope I've managed to keep the good things and improve in other areas.

A year ago I was a third year teaching student, filled with despair at the career path I'd chosen... and discovered wasn't for me. I'd just stumbled upon indie publishing: this strange but alluring world where anything was possible and the horizons were changing daily.

I published that book - The Tainted Crown - not knowing what was next on the horizons. It's done ok to date - broken even - what more can I ask for? Nothing, only that it's enjoyed. :-) It was always an experiment, if I'm honest.

Now a year on, I'm no longer a teaching student, and am not going into teaching. I still have a day job... for now. One day though, creating will pay my bills. That's a promise.

I have three books out now. The sequel to The Tainted Crown - The Brooding Crown - and an adult colouring book - The Wild Colouring Book.

The fiction sequel was to be expected. It's been an amazing project to work on and publish, especially with my new editor Sophie Playle polishing my manuscript. I'm proud of that project. It's got a long wait to go before I break even but I'll get there! :) Fiction, I've learned, is very hard to make profit (aka a living) on! I have a lot more work to do before that will be a sustainable source of income.

The Wild Colouring Book was a total wild card. I never expected to produce anything like that! But I'm so glad I did!! It's been such a fun project - fulfilling in a different way to writing. And to be honest, for a year when I've been really ill, too ill to write, drawing for that has kept me going.

It's given me my first real taste of success too. I appreciate every sale... because I know I'm so lucky that anyone chooses to buy something I created! But the sheer amount of success has overwhelmed me. Wow. To date, it's sold over 500 copies in under 2 months. With no marketing or advertising budget. Out of 28,000,000+ books on Amazon, it's reached rankings of 382. And its a top 25 bestseller in self help books.

I've had nothing but praise for it - and it's beyond amazing to hear that not only are people enjoying it for a creative past time, but that it's helping people rehabilitate in hospital, and helping them through periods of depression and anxiety. Like... wow. What a privilege, that I can create something that goes on to genuinely help people. Wow. That's humbling.

So standing here now, 1 year on and 1 year into this publishing malarkey... I'm so grateful. And so determined. I've come so far - further than I imagined and in a different direction than I first thought - but this is only the beginning.

I look forward to taking stock next year on July 31st 2016! Where will things be then? Who knows...

Onwards and upwards! :)

Meg

Ps. I'd love to hear what you're up to - reply or connect with me on social media. What goals are you aiming for in the next year or so? How are you getting along?

What should creatives choose - love or money?

Writers and artists are traditionally thought of as poor mites and yes, although many creatives now are moving to change that - success on a huge scale is entirely possible and realistic, and being a creative can bring in as much/more than a day job if you go about it the right way and have just the right amount of luck - typically we're all struggling to make ends meet from our art at the very beginning.

So, it raises the question; what should we choose - love, or money?

Do we create what we love, regardless of the financial hardship it may cause us in the near future? Do we sacrifice time spent on doing what we love to have a day job - and therefore financial security?

It's a complicated answer. We all wish we could say we choose love - creativity - but life isn't so simple!

Earlier this year, I said that once I finished university (which I did on June 8th - yay!), I would be a full time author. I knew full well I'd still have to keep a part time job at he very least to be able to make ends meet. I only expected to work very few hours, and spent the vast majority of my time creating.

Well - as life happens, it's not turned out so simply! As Joanna Penn once said, to succeed as a creative, you have to be able to balance what you want/need from life and be realistic about what's possible at each stage of the process. It's also about making the necessary sacrifices. What are you willing/able to give up to achieve your creative goals?

Well, it turns out that I need to work a lot more than I thought I would to make ends meet in a way I'm satisfied with. To me, that means being able to comfortably support my family so we don't have to worry about our basic needs being met. I am very fortunate to have an understanding partner who has reconciled himself to the fact that I won't be going out and getting a well paid day job. For that, I'm very grateful!

Now, I've made the very difficult choice to work more hours each week. This is a double-edged knife; on the one hand, I now will make enough to cover my half of the bills and give my family financial security. It's very important to me to be financially independent. I can work and contribute - and therefore I should. Don't get me wrong - if I could do that just from my writing, I would! On the other hand, that financial security means I have even less time for writing now than I thought I would.

It means I'll have to scale back how many projects I'm scheduling - already I'm noticing the difference and falling behind where I wanted to be. It's frustrating! It means I'll have less time to write in the future too, although that will of course be the biggest priority for me outside work.

The type of person I am means that I could not stand by and expect/watch someone else pay for me. I feel duty bound to pay for myself in this life. I also feel duty bound to provide what I can to my family - why should they go without just so I can indulge myself? Certainly, I aim to make a full time living from writing and illustrating - but I also know that realistically, that's a while off. In the meantime, I need to make ends meet.

It's been a difficult choice - one I wish I didn't have to make - but I feel I'm doing the right thing. It doesn't feel like it at times, knowing I will have less time to do what I love, but I hope in the long run it will pay off. In the meantime, onwards and upwards we go! :-)

Don't forget to comment/connect with me on social media - have you had to make any sacrifices to your creative time for one reason or another? How do you reconcile with this?

Ciao for now,

Meg

Life is perfect when...

Today is a good day. I'm feeling very grateful and thankful for all the blessings in my life. I guess today is one of those days that just feels perfect and it's because I'm working towards/fulfilling my dreams today - which really fills the soul with contentment.

It's been a productive day; I've finished two illustrations for The Wild Colouring Book and the cover design for The Brooding Crown, both of which I'm really excited to share! (But not yet... ;-) ) Both projects are on track. What's more, it's only 3pm!

It's sunny and beautiful weather today, and I'm just about to take a quick tea break and and start reading a new book outside, whilst soaking up the vitamin D. It's neither too warm, nor too cold - just right. The cats are keeping me company and being generally adorable and friendly (... and a *little* bit mischievous, but they can't help that!).

I feel in a position of incredible privilege and am so grateful I have the opportunity to do this. It wasn't that long ago that I felt hopeless and despairing; depressed at my career prospects and unhappy with the path I saw before me.

Now I get to live every day working towards *my* goals, the ones that deep down, I *really* want to achieve. I cannot ask for more from life than that. I hope that the hard work and dedication I'm putting in now will lead to the fruition of my dreams and being able to make a living - pay my bills - from doing what I love.

Anyway. That's enough time sat inside today working - I'm off out to enjoy the sun for a while! Have a lovely week. :-)

- Meg

15 Ways To Reduce Stress

Image by wisteriasweb. Used under a Creative Commons Attribution-No Derivative Works 3.0 License

I just got back from the doctors after a couple of months of not feeling myself - poor sleep, pains that wouldn't go away and other random symptoms. Within a minute, the doctor nodded her head decisively and announced I was suffering from stress.

It was a surprise to me! After my last teaching practice finished in December, I thought I'd be done with stress - it was the most stressful time in my life, in which I worked 80 hour weeks and decided on a total career change from teacher to independent author. However, the doctor said that actually no, stress can be hard to shift.

Your body can be so upset by times of high stress that it can take months for normality to return.

To live a productive, happy and healthy life, I need to beat my stress! But it got me thinking about how stressful life can be on a daily basis.

So here are my top 15 favourite ways to beat stress, that I'll be using and applying to get myself back into tip-top shape.

1) Determine what's causing the stress.

This has to be number one. How can you begin to address the problem or stress if you don't know what's causing it? Figure out why you're stressed - then you can take action to solve that as well as the stress. If you just focus on reducing stress/negative emotions without fixing underlying problems, the stress will return.

2) Take control

There's always a solution to a problem, and you have the power to control it. If you're feeling stuck, chances are that someone else has encountered your problem. Talk to a friend about how you can address it - or hop onto Google to see if you can find ideas. (n.b. if it's health related - go see a doctor/ medical professional. Self diagnosing is not recommended.)

3) Exercise

Exercise is proven to not only lead to good physical health, but also good mental health, by releasing endorphins which reduce stress and increase feelings of well being. Exercise won't make your stress disappear, but it will help to clear your thoughts and reduce negative emotions.

4) Eat well

Eating poorly can damage your health - both physically and mentally. Eating well, so enough food from the main food groups, can help your body and therefore your mind feel better. Goodbye binge/comfort/stress-eating!

5) Avoid bad habits

Smoking, drinking, drugs, caffeine - anything that helps you 'cope' with the stress. These just mask the stress temporarily, but don't help you address the root cause and fix it.

6) Accept that some situations are beyond control

I thought there was a solution to every problem? Well there is - but sometimes, things are beyond your control. By accepting that, you can reduce the stress and concentrate on what you do have control over.

7) Find the positives

Things may seem hard, there might not seem to be a light at the end of the tunnel - but I bet that when you think about it, you have an awful lot to be thankful for. Do you have a roof over your head? Food on the table? A warm, safe place to live? A loving family? A good support network of friends? A job you enjoy? Whatever it is that you have, appreciate it. Even by thinking each day of three things you're grateful for, you can boost positive emotions.

8) Have some downtime

Whether you work 8 hours or 80 hours a week, you need some time to yourself to relax and recharge in whatever way is best for you. For me, it's a scented candlelit bubble bath with a cup of tea and good book. Aaah. Bliss! Having 'me time' releases those feelgood emotions, and helps you lose the tension in your body that stress can cause.

9) Deep breaths

They really do help! Taking deep breaths, or even trying meditation or yoga techniques can help beat stress. Deep breaths reduce cortisol the stress hormone and temporarily lower your blood pressure.

10) Laugh your way through it

Laughter and smiling reduces stress and increases feelings of well being. Go to a comedy gig, hang out with your friends, or watch something funny on TV to cheer up.

11) Music

Listening to your favourite tunes can have a calming effect, lowering anxiety, blood pressure and heart rate. It's hard to feel stressed when your favourite music gets your foot tapping and your head nodding! 

12) Get a massage

Ok, so this one can be pricey, but massages are a fantastic way to release the physical tension in your body, leaving you feeling relaxed and refreshed.

13) Get creative

Art is therapeutic! 'nuff said.

14) Start a journal

Writing down your feelings is a great way to vent the frustration through reflecting on your experiences.

15) Be kind

This might sound a bit odd, but altruism is a stress beater too! By helping others, you can often boost your own emotions too.

I hope that helps you beat stress in your life. Now, I'm off to go beat mine.

Ciao!

Meg

Sources: NHS, Helpguide, Greatist, WebMD.

The 10 books that made me 'me'.

So thanks to the lovely Myk, I got book tagged! I don't do memes as a rule, but since this tag is actually a great one, I couldn't say no!

The aim of the game is to post your 10 most formative books.

Here are mine - in the order that I encountered them. Enjoy! Here's a little of why I tick the way I do. :-)


The Tale of Peter Rabbit, by Beatrix Potter
 I used to have almost all of the Beatrix Potter books as a child, the hardback editions with a dust cover and full colour illustrations. I treasured them, arranged them, read them and kept them tidy on my first bookcase. I couldn't help but love the quaint tales, which were so beautifully illustrated.

These were the first books that I have any memory of reading, and think they definitely influenced my love of slipping away into fictional worlds. My favourites, the ones I read the most, were The Tale of Peter Rabbit, The Tale of Jemima Puddleduck and The Tale of Miss Tiggywinkle!


Five on a Treasure Island, by Enid Blyton
 I adored many of Enid Blyton's books, but the Famous Five series were the first and the favourites, with the Mallory Towers series coming a close second and the Tales of the Faraway Tree third. This was my favourite Five adventure. I used to love reading about the gang's adventures.

I wished more than once that I could be Georgina, off exploring with Timmy and the gang! I was so caught up with it that I insisted my parents let me add "Georgina" to my middle names (not legally). Being tolerant folk, they obliged, though now I am sure they they thought it ridiculous!


Matilda, by Roald Dahl
 Matilda was one of my favourite fictional characters as I grew up. This is one of the rare occasions where the film was more influential than the book, because it seemed so perfectly cast. I wished more than anything else that I could have Matilda's powers.

I always tried to make things move, but it never worked! I still remember a recurring dream I had as a child, brought on by reading Matilda, where I would fly around our dining table. It was always disappointing to wake up and realise that it was only a dream!


The Hobbit, by J.R.R. Tolkien
I still have my well-thumbed copy of The Hobbit from my childhood and still re-read it, though not as regularly as I did back then. As far as I know, this was my first exposure to a fantasy world and I loved it. Hobbits, dwarves, wizards, elves, dragons and gold!? Bring it on! I remember often reading this as a child and being completely lost in Middle Earth.

My first attempt to write any kind of serious story was heavily based on The Hobbit - it never saw the light of day! I have it still - neatly handwritten in fountain pen in the same red file with 'Keep out!!!' written on the front. I remember proudly telling my English teacher at the time that I was writing a book. She laughed at me as though the concept was ridiculous and would occasionally ask me with sarcasm "How's your book going?". I ignored her at the time and carried on writing it, though I still think she's horrible! Really, of all the teachers to encourage creative writing, she should have been number one!

I'm glad I didn't take any notice of her dismissive attitude and ploughed away being creative. I did drop writing for a long time after that - perhaps her words did affect me - but you can't not do what you're meant to do... before too many years had passed, I was writing seriously again.


Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, by J.K. Rowling
This was the first Harry Potter book I read. I chose this of the first three (which were the only ones released at the time), because the cover appealed to me most. Then I went back and read the first two books - and I've been hooked ever since.

It's weird, because I remember in absolute clarity being in the school library (a beautiful, wood panelled room that was the most magical library you could ever wish for - my primary school was in a Victorian manor house, with all original features retained). I recall the exact moment the moment my eyes fell on the spine of this book, and I reached up to take it down from the shelf. My brain must have realised that this would become a special memory.

I think, of all the books I've ever read, I wished Harry's world real more than any other. I was genuinely upset on my 11th birthday, when I didn't receive my Hogwart's letter. I obsessively read every Harry Potter released after that. I grew up with Harry - in the books and films from then on, I was roughly the same age as Harry, Ron and Hermione, so it resonated with me because of that, but most of all, because the tale J.K. Rowling told was genuinely spellbinding.


Artemis Fowl, by Eoin ColferAnother very well chosen pick of my parents, brought home to entertain me, that I fell in love with! The first fantasy/sci-fi mix I read, I suppose? In any case, it's impossible not to love Artemis' constant sarcastic put downs, arrogance and clever solutions to impossible problems. I loved all the pickles he managed to get himself into, and how he got himself out of them again, too!


Lord of the Rings, by J.R.R. Tolkien
I saw the first film with my dad when it was released, not thinking it would be anything special. How wrong I was! We left the cinema and before long I had a hefty copy of the trilogy in my hands and was glued to it. I read it 11 times in the first year that I had it (not joking). Now, it's falling to bits it's so well read! (and I dropped it in that bath one time so it's got a bit of a perm, whoops...)

It was a magical read, like nothing I'd ever read before and even quite different to The Hobbit. The movies only helped bring it to life - Jackson's realisations of LOTR are the only book-to-film adaptations other than Harry Potter that I believe do the maximum justice to the books, because of the excellent casting, resources, effects and the love, care and attention to detail. The Two Towers was my favourite part of the trilogy. I haven't read it in a few years now, though!


Eragon, by Christopher Paolini
I remember my dad coming home from Waterstone's one day with this as a present for me. He'd seen the cover (Saphira's eye) and thought it looked interesting. This was to be the most influential epic YA fantasy novel that I read in my teen years. I read this so many times and eagerly snapped up copies of the rest of the series when they were released. It's now not my favourite book in the series, but I still have a very soft spot for it.


Across the Nightingale Floor, by Lian Hearn
This was a set text at school for half of the year group. Unfortunately, I was in the other half and instead, we got lumped with Dickens' 'Great Expecatations'. (I hate that book with a passion now!) The fact that this story was a school text put me off reading it for many years, as I assumed it would be similarly horrible, but what a mistake. This book and the rest of the series are so beautiful they are genuinely an art form.

Hearn creates real people, not characters, in a culturally rich real world, living their real lives. They draw you in and don't let go in their twisted mesh of choices and relationships. Just wow.



The Alchemist, by Paulo Coelho

This book genuinely changed my life. At the time I was in a job I hated, severely depressed and failing to see the point of it all. My friend kindly sent me this book, her own copy, in the post one day to cheer me up. I read it. My mind was blown. I can't even explain this book - it's one of those that needs to be read to be understood.

I made life changing decisions based on reading this book that have brought me to where I am now - being a full time author. Forever indebted to Rhi, my friend, and Paulo Coelho. Thank you for helping me to see the light! :-)

~

I won't tag anyone, but I would love to hear what books defined you. If you complete this, drop a comment and let me know where to find your top 10 formative books!

Meg

Career decision made. I'm going to be a full time author.

Hi all, hope you're well.

Today is the day that I admit to the world that as of this May, the very moment when I finish my degree, turn in my dissertation and sit my exams, I'll no longer be a student teacher, I'll be a full time writer. It fills me with joy to say that!

The decision has been a long time in the making. I started writing seriously in late 2011/early 2012 and made the decision to publish in 2013. Since then, I've not looked back. The world of writing and publishing has sucked me in.

The online community of writers - both indie and traditional - has welcomed and inspired me to pursue the impossible, the improbable and the original. It has truly been a beacon of hope to me in dark times and a chain reaction of inspiration in good times. It's helped me overcome my own fears about writing, acceptance and pursuing my dreams.


It is regrettable that I've done a four year degree in teaching and no longer intend to pursue it as a career. But then, the career is in no way related to what I thought it would be and doesn't fulfil me as I'd expected it to either.

I try not to regret the decision to study it, because it's led me to where I am today. I try not to think about other paths I could or should have taken, too, like Illustration or Graphic Design or Creative Writing. A degree is still a degree - a valuable asset, though perhaps not right now.

It's not to say that teaching won't ever be the right thing for me - who knows - but for now, it's certainly not and I'm lucky enough to be able to walk away from it to pursue writing. It's a really hard job - at times impossible - and I genuinely respect anyone that can do it and do it well.

We need outstanding educators in our societies to have any hope of furthering ourselves as a race, especially in an ever changing society. Educators also need to be totally committed to all that teaching entails to have any hope of doing their pupils justice - a reason why I *should* not be a teacher at this current time. I cannot fulfil that.

So instead, I get to focus on doing what I do love, which is a position I feel extremely fortunate - no, the luckiest person alive - to be able to say and do. Writing consumes me and almost every waking moment is devoted to thoughts of writing, publishing, improving and sharing my work with the world. Now I get to do that full time (well, soon, anyway).

Of course I still have bills to pay! I'll be keeping my part time job indefinitely to meet those. I'm blessed with an incredibly supportive partner who encourages me in this venture too, whilst we have the opportunity for me to pursue this. I hope that I can repay his confidence in me by making a success of this.

For many months, toying with the decision of what job to choose and feeling like I had no choice by to pursue my degree as a career... the thought of letting down those I love by walking away from a 'proper' job, a respectable profession and secure income indefinitely was the greatest weight upon my shoulders.

I do intend, though I'm not sure how long it will take, to make a full time income from doing what I love - writing - so that I can support my family as a responsible member of society and also be able to continue to do what I love the most; more writing! I will succeed. There is no question or doubt in that. I will make it happen. No one is going to hand this to me on a plate - I have to go and earn it and I will.

So. Over and out for now. Can't wait to finish my university commitments (dissertation and various essays), so that I can concentrate on my many exciting projects for 2015.

Just as a final thought - it really is important to do what you love in life. I wish I had been braver and pursued my true interests earlier in life. You only get one go: make the most of it. And whatever you think, however hard it may seem: there is always a way.

Bye for now,

Meg, the (soon to be) full time writer.

#MegsNoWriMo reaches 50,000 words on The Brooding Crown

Happy to announce that I just reached that magical point; 50,000 words on draft one of The Brooding Crown, The Second Book of Caledan, woohoo! Just over halfway done with the first draft, hopefully!

I would do a video diary, but I am too tired today so here, have a blog post instead haha.

Also managed the most successful day of #MegsNoWriMo too, writing over double my daily word target of 1,700 words, for which I am glad, as I was beginning to fall slightly behind and become frustrated with myself.

This is despite being glued to the news today for hours, watching the deeply disturbing events unfold and play out in France. I don't tend to delve into real life/world things in my writing social life, but I am so very glad to hear that the situation is now resolved with minimal loss of life. My heart goes out to those who died for free speech. As a writer, in a community of creatives, we all rely on being able to speak, write and create freely without fear.

So. Today feels a writing success, but tinged with sadness at the loss of life that could so very easily have been any of us in any city across the world.

Definitely a lesson to take each day as a blessing and live with joy, not fear in your hearts.

Take care,

Meg

Glad to be home! (aka hello WRITING and other big plans!)

At home enjoying family time with my zany cats.

Pixie loves to scramble up and down the Christmas tree!

Hello!

Gosh is it good to be home, and by 'home', I mean online amongst this wonderful community of writers, creatives, readers and friends. I have missed you all!

It's been a long three months away, but I'm relieved to say I'm back to stay. My fourth and final teaching practice is at last finished. It's been the hardest experience of my life - exhausting, gruelling and completely unsustainable, working 80 hour weeks.

Suffice to say I've not had the time to even look after myself properly, let alone think of indulging in writing or my other hobbies. Every day I have missed writing and looked forward fervently to the moment I could begin it all again. That time is now!

I've just got a new office (thanks to my lovely partner who helped me heft furniture all over the place this weekend - and thanks to the cats who as per usual got underfoot!). It's a mess, alas, so needs some reorganisation, but for the whole I now am lucky enough to have a small, cosy and private space in which to work. Plus, as a bonus, I have working internet again - woo!

I plan to get straight back to work on BOC2 (Books of Caledan 2), which is about a third complete. With Christmas being this week, home life is obviously manic. But I will re-familiarise with the story, plot, etc and aim to dive back in as soon as I am ready (and as soon as all the washing up is done after the Christmas dinner...!)

Plus, I'm also thinking hard on where I want to be at this time next year. What do I want to achieve in 2015? Certainly, to finish at least one more book (and more if I can - I have so many ideas!). I also want to share The Tainted Crown more - I just checked my sales and I'm so very close to the 100 mark now! 96 sales since publication in July 2014.

I'm so astounded, overwhelmed and overjoyed that 96 people chose my book. That's 96 more than I ever expected. If I could make it to 100 - well, even if I never wrote another word in my life (not that that's not going to happen! You just try and keep me away from the keyboard...!!), I could die happy, reaching that milestone.

I'd also like to branch into visual/audio work - I'll start posting videos to a Youtube account (not sure of the content, though yet) and will be looking into producing audio only non-fiction work (though this takes a back seat compared to my fiction writing, which is first and foremost!).

I hope that 2015 will be an exciting year, filled with new adventures - for me and my characters!

I definitely need to develop a more solid business plan, with timed and segmented goals so I can achieve everything I want to, step by step, in a timely fashion.

What do you hope 2015 will bring for you?

In any case, I feel very positive and hopeful for the future - that I can create the life of an author for myself. It will be a long, slow and hard journey, of that I have no doubt. But, this year, 2014, was the year I began that journey. I have no intentions of giving up now!

Ciao for now, I'm off to go de-clutter the office so I have space to work. ;-)

Have a very merry Christmas, a happy Hanukkah, a wonderful festive period and the happiest of New Years!

Meg

Progress is progress

Well, back to the real world I went today! It's been a nice week off - enjoyable not to have the time pressure of having to go to work, though I did, in the end spend most of my time working at home!

My mornings of lesson planning over-ran, but I did spend time each day writing. I made sure I added at least 1,000 words to my manuscript each day, so I have added about 7,000 words in the last week, which is a great feeling! Progress is progress, after all.

The first draft for book two now sits on 32,342 words, and I can say is just over a third completed (hopefully!) I  still don't have a working title, though a writing buddy suggested some names all with 'crown' in.

Originally, I hadn't planned to have crown themed titles, but it's an interesting idea I won't dismiss. "The Brooding Crown" could fit nicely as a title, though, of course, being so close to the manuscript, it's very hard to be objective about effective titles, and something I find incredibly difficult.

Besides that, how can you distill tens of thousands of words... many characters and places and events... all into a few words? (I'd love to hear what you think about titling pieces of writing - do you find it easy/hard? What's your process?)

Anyway, I digress! I also fixed some plot issues that had been niggling me. I found that, whilst I was being authentic to the characters, in how they were responding to the rubbish I threw their way, the rubbish I threw wasn't necessarily right for the story I wanted to tell. I'll have to see how the final manuscript fits together to decide whether it still needs further major chopping and changing!

However, this is the beauty of writing - it can be whatever you want it to be. :-)

Other than that, it's been a quiet week of being ill haha. Perils of working in education - the sniffles is an ever present threat!

I also watched "Jobs", the film made of Steve Jobs's life (surprisingly played by Ashton Kutcher, who did a great job), this week. I wasn't expecting to enjoy it, but found it eye opening and a real inspiration.

People like Steve Jobs - who make something from nothing, who chase their dreams, never give up, and make the impossible a reality - inspire me on a day to day basis. They make me determined to always try, though all things worth doing take a long time and much effort to come to fruition.

Anyway, ciao for now! Let me know your thoughts on inspirational people who motivate you do keep aiming for your goals. Also, to those doing this years Nano (upon us again already, it seems!!), GOOD LUCK! May the words flow :-)

~ Meg

Striving to seize the day

Hi all,

Hope you're well. Life has been really busy lately - rocketing from zero to what feels like too fast to keep up with!

I turned 25 a couple of weeks ago; a prompt to reflect on life. Life's an odd thing really. I'd never really planned it out, but when I was younger, I was sure that by the time I'd reached this age, I'd have reached whatever career goal I'd been aiming for. It didn't happen! I'm still re-training as a teacher (though thankfully in my final year at last), whilst working and writing on the side.

I really do struggle to find the time to write though at the moment. Such is a career in teaching. Too many things, not enough time. It's important to write every day - I know it to be so (more words is a good thing - practice, meeting manuscript words counts, deadlines, etc). Yet, how is it possible to fit it in?

At the moment my life consists of getting up in the dark to commute to another city - a stressful experience that I genuinely dread each day - to teach my class (and children are tiring! Wow does it take a surprising amount of energy out of you!).

When their day is done, I stop behind to plan, mark and prep for the following day. When I make it home, in the dark (I miss sunlight and the wind on my face, how stupid does that sound?), back through the blood-pressure raising tangle of cars, the family needs feeding, the house needs tidying, or cleaning, or something else, and the school work generally still isn't done, so there's that to do too. I know I'm not alone - this work routine probably describes most of the adult population!

Do I feel like writing though? Not a chance. I vegetate on the sofa and if I have two thoughts awake enough to rub together, or if I can hold a conversation, I'll count that as a success. My brain is in no shape by that point to craft and hone a story worth reading.

I started up a routine last week - get home, write until teatime, then make tea and sort everything else out. It lasted one day. From then on, I was simply too tired to even contemplate getting out the laptop, other than for the teaching things which needed to be done so that I could stand in front of the class the next day, prepared.

I'm not going to lie - it sucks. There's little work-life balance at the moment. I can only hope that it improves with time and practice. I know there's teachers out there that do manage to have a balance between working and doing the things they enjoy out of school. That's the thought I hold onto; that it is possible. I'm a motivated person, determined to do whatever is necessary to reach my goals (and importantly, with an appreciation that these things do take time to achieve...). I'm sure I'll get there - I just don't know how long that will take.

With the arrival of my 25th birthday (a quarter century, halfway to 50, closer than ever before to 30, or whatever other taunt my nearest and dearest joke about), I hope it doesn't take too much longer. Life moves on apace, and you can never really be sure what is around the corner. Plus, I have too many book ideas in my mind, with characters who are getting really to impatient to remain there much longer!

Carpe diem certainly springs to mind. A writer friend of mine, Andy, recently died - a total shock and surprise to all who knew him. The world lost a great man and a brilliant mind that day, who never had the chance to fully realise his writing potential or share his greatness with the world. He was great, of that there was no doubt. You only had to read snippets of his work to think "Wow, that's something special."

It was one of those events that, amidst the upset that causes, and the anger at such an injustice, makes you once again realise the frailty of all that we hold dear and how important it really is to make the most of it all.

So, this week, I endeavor again to do so. It's half term - a week of calm and time alone. My mornings I will fill with all the teaching related stuff I need to do (aka the neverending checklist!). The evenings belong to my family and I .. and the chores. But the afternoons belong to me and to fiction.

I'll be working on Books of Caledan 2, whilst reading too. I've picked up a copy of Sun Tsu's "The Art of War", a fascinating sounding book that I've been meaning to read for years. Plus, I have a hefty reading list piling up on my kindle to catch up on, which I can hopefully make a dint in!

After this week, I'm not sure what will happen in the next 7 weeks of teaching until the Christmas break. I really hope that I can find some time to write, even if it's just on weekends, to keep me sane. It's frustrating not to be able to put into place the ideal routine, but something will be better than nothing, at least.

Anyway, that's enough of my ramblings for now. Don't forget - carpe diem.

- Meg

In memory of Andy Walmsley, immortalized in our memories and his words.

Back into the maelstrom

It's been a little while since I posted. The Tainted Crown is up and running on Kindle exclusively now, so it's also available on Kindle Unlimited and Kindle Lending Library. If you're a member, check it out for free! :-) I also have some promotions coming up in October, which I'll let you know about nearer to the time.

Life has become busy once more, hence my absence! I've been working on some art, a new website and various other things. Mainly (you may or may not know that I'm a student teacher) my fourth and final academic year of training has begun and so back into the maelstrom I go (willingly and unstressed at this point, that may will change)!

It means that I probably won't have much time for writing fiction over the coming three months as I'll be busy writing lesson plans (and other stuff) instead. I'm intrigued to know just how many words I actually write each week on teaching related stuff... It's probably immense! (No, I'm not sad enough to sit down and work that out though, haha.)

I am keeping my little toe dipped in the pool of writing though, so to speak. My writer buddies and I complete a monthly prompt, so I'll be writing about 1,500 words a month for that. I've found it to be such a refreshing change. Every month is different, and there's no constraints on genre, style, or anything, really. So far I've done Sci-fi and thriller and had a lot of fun! Definitely genres I want to write in in the future. ;-)

I hope that I can also write other things too. Will try to squeeze in whatever I can! Books of Caledan #2 is up to the 25% mark in any case, so a good start has been made. I'm just mulling over some key issues - after plotting the entire thing in detail, some big things may be changing. I think I've let the characters run amok with the story just a little bit too far. The little dears need to be reigned in!

I also have plenty of other book ideas that I'm recording. Definitely books for the future! At least 3 so far - a humorous fantasy, a thriller (based on a writing prompt I really enjoyed), another thriller (Dan Brown meets Indiana Jones-esque?), and a further book whose genre I'm unclear on as yet.

Just need infinite amounts of time, motivation and tea to be able to labour away at them! Who knows if and when that will happen haha. But, it's important to record the ideas so they're not forgotten! I do that on a note app on my phone (as it's always with me) - do you do this? If so, how do you record your ideas? Good old fashioned pen and paper, or a high tech approach?

Anyway, enough rambling for now. I hope you're all well~ Let me know how your own writing is going! :-)

~ Meg