Flaming Nora: Resisting, donating, short stories & chocolate

Friday, January 29, 2021

Resisting, donating, short stories & chocolate - my writing week

This week I am one chapter closer to finishing the first draft of the novel I'm currently writing. It's another saga, set in the northeast village of Ryhope where I grew up. It's a really great story, with some wonderful characters. What's surprised me most, and wasn't planned for at all, is the friendship that has arisen between an older woman and a young girl. I love it when surprises like these arise in my writing, it seems the characters often tell me (I know that sounds daft) where they want their stories to go.

One more week and I'll finish the first draft. It's tempting at this stage to rush to the finish line, to write THE END and be done with it before going back in for a second draft, adding and taking away. But I resist the temptation to rush. I write slowly and regularly, little and often, four days a week, allowing myself Fridays and weekends off.

In other news this week, I sold two short stories to The People's Friend magazine for publication. Before you think to yourself that it's easy for me to get published, let me tell you that while the magazine took two stories for publication, they also refused one. It wasn't right for the magazine at this time and as I was given feedback, when I next have free time I may change it to submit elsewhere.

Also this week I ran a competition to win a signed copy of my novel Pearl of Pit Lane, chocolates and bookmarks.

You have until 5pm on Weds 3 Feb 2021 to enter. All details here.

During lockdown, there's been little to spend money on. There's been nowhere to go and nothing to do and so I've been able to donate to charities and organisations close to my heart instead. This week I ordered a large shipment of my novel The Girl with the Scarlet Ribbon and these will be distributed by Ryhope Community Centre around Ryhope, the village where the novels are set. The books will go out with a weekly afternoon tea for elderly residents and those self-isolating. In these horrible times, doing something like this really lifts my spirits and the feedback from readers is worth every penny.

As a writer, I've been shocked and saddened by news reports of some school children being unable to access home-learning because they haven't got a laptop or device of their own. One little boy was even using his mum's phone to do his home-schooling. I've today donated to the Cash For Connectivity campaign to ensure those most at risk of falling behind in home-schooling can stay in the virtual class.

If you'd like to donate too, all details are here.

I crafted another episode of my weekly soap opera Riverside for The People's Friend magazine. I've been writing Riverside weekly since 2016 and you can find out all about it here.

And finally, I wrote another Coronation Street weekly update and sent it to my emailing list of thousands of Corrie fans around the world. I've been running this list since 1995 and if you'd like to sign up to receive these weekly updates, all details are here.