Now complete novella Gateway to Hell.
So today I completed my horror novella " Gateway to Hell." Get a taste here on my blog, where the first two chapters are posted. The watty awards are currently going on so if you enjoy it, head on over to twitter and vote #mywattyschoice by tweeting the story link.
If you fancy reading the completed novella , you can do so here Gateway to Hell
My writing process, tips and tricks.
- First and foremost you need a writing space that you can spread out on. A desk, laptop, notebooks ( If your like me) pens, highlighters, reference books, smartphone. Some of the items I find necessary
- Writing software ~~ I use open office for my final drafts, and ywriter for creating my first draft and story ideas, characters, project ideas, quotes I want to use etc. This software allows you to put together your novel or project chapter by chapter, and each chapter is broken up into scenes so you can work on one section at a time. If you are particularly stuck, what I like to do is think up a scene I want in my novel, and begin with that. Starting with a Piece you are going to enjoy writing will get your creative juices flowing for sure. You can also flesh out your characters and their backstory with this software which is extremely helpful, you always need to know far more about your characters than what you will actually end up using. It will make them far more believable. You can get ywriter free online.
- As above, chop your chapter into scenes within that chapter so you are writing one scene at a time, allowing your chapter to develop naturally and come together with less effort.
- When I'm stuck on a chapter or scene, I use Why? What? Where? To progress it naturally, as in why did she/he say that? Where were they when they said it? What could happen next? This usually does the trick and moves the story along.
- If I still find things feel a little forced, I simply do a few menial housework chores. Washing up, dusting, hovering, and think about my characters at the point of the story I left off. I envision what they are doing, and saying and use the Why? What? Where method. Especially with dialogue. For example my character says something and I play the conversation in my head, 9 times out of 10 the conversation flows naturally in my mind and the characters do the talking for me. Always let your characters speak to you. Imagine what would naturally come next if you were having tat conversation with someone. Bearing in mind your characters personality, and traits of course.
- Before you start any project, make sure your characters are the first thing you create. As I said earlier flesh out their backgrounds first. Consider emotional wounds within their backstories. eg. were involved in a house fire, drug or alcohol issues, sexual abuse, giving reasons why a character may be a certain way, so when the reader discovers this they can empathise with the character.
- Don't make the mistake of describing your character physically in one lump. It makes your flow choppy and is unnecessary Let small details out as you go along
- You don't necessarily have to know what comes next before you sit down to write it. Personally a lot of the time, I only know what's happening from chapter to chapter, although I do have a basic plot outline in mind : beginning, middle, end. I then fill in the gaps chapter by chapter, scene by scene.
- Have a few really great scenes mapped out in your head before you begin. This will give you an important starting point when you are struggling to begin, and you will find that when you start writing them, the story will begin to flow and almost write itself.
- I take a notebook with me everywhere! Especially beside the bed when I go up to bed at night. I find the best ideas hit me when I am distracted, or get inspired by people's conversations etc. I adore real notebooks, and can't own enough of them but I also have onenote, and evernote on my phone so I can take notes from where ever I am. They are both free too and you can have unlimited notebooks so can have one for each story, or even for each character if you like even more added back story.
These are all my personal tips, and what I find works well. Play around with ideas and find your perfect writing process. Feel free to add your own to this post, or shoot me a question in the comments. If you want a fast answer...email me at meami_5@live.com and I'll get right back to you!
~~~ Coming up : " Gateway to hell chapter 3, why my daughter decided to be the incredible hulk, and story extract from a talented fantasy writer.
Thanks for tuning in. x
Chapter 2.
Alex hammered on Kendall's bedroom door.
"Baby, the others have gone just let me in? If nothing else I need to see if you're ok?"
Silence.
The stairs creaked behind him, and Alex whipped around , blood pounding through his ears. He held his breath painfully in heart stopping suspense at the approaching footsteps, until finally Morgan appeared over the brow of the stairs. Air hissed from between his teeth in relief.
" I've finished cleaning up, I've never seen a group of people leave so fast."
She whispered to Alex. Taking in his stricken features, her tone changed suddenly to more forceful inflection.
"Just go Alex, I'll make sure she's ok and get her to call you when she's calmed down. She needs some time to make sense of whatever went on down there in her mind."
Morgan took him gently by the shoulders, and walked him toward the stairs. He nodded at her wide eyed, relief now obvious in his expression as his shoulders relaxed and the tense angle he held his eyebrows fell away. Content for now someone was taking charge of this mess.
When the front door finally clicked shut, Morgan tapped on her sister's door. The gentle 'click' of the lock being turned prompted her to turn the handle and step inside. Kendall walked back toward the bed where she scooted up into the corner, pulling her knees up to her chin in a defensive posture.
"I'm not sure exactly what went on down there? I saw the board, heard the scream, and had a garbled explanation from Alex?"
She slid up onto the bed next to her obviously shaken younger sister. Morgan wanted to put her arm around her, comfort her in some way? She was clearly distressed, but something stopped her from reaching out to touch her. Morgan held strong beliefs about Ouija boards, tarot, and anything to do with spirits, knew they were not to be messed with, and had thought her younger sister had been wise enough to do the same.
" I got rid of the board. I told Daniel it would be best if he left when your friends did and told him to dump it somewhere on his way home."
Kendall nodded, her eyes lowered refusing to meet her sister's searching gaze.
"You need to promise me right now, you will never mess with anything like that ever again?"
She touched Kendall's cheek turning her face to meet her eyes. Heat sparked through her fingers where she made contact with her skin. Sucking in her breath sharply She whipped her hand back , hoping the gesture went unnoticed not wishing to alarm her sister any further. Not knowing quite where to put herself, she hopped off the bed, and stuck her hand in the back pocket of her tight designer jeans.
"I promise." Kendall's voice was scratchy, having not spoken since her ear splitting scream. Morgan nodded and headed toward the door. With one last furtive glance toward her sister, she left her alone clicking the door shut softly behind her. Morgan studied her hand, the fingers that had made contact with Kendall hot and stinging from the heat. She balled her hand into a fist, before flexing her fingers out again, and letting out a long shaky breath before heading to her room.
Kendall's hand shook violently as she extended her right arm. Slowly she gripped her sleeve and began to roll it up . When she felt it stop at her elbow she lowered her eyes to the bare skin she had exposed. Her pale blue eyes widened in sheer terror at the 3 inch gouge straight down the middle of the soft skin of her forearm. The skin furrowed at the edges of the gaping wound like lips pulled back to expose an unsmiling mouth mocking her own horrified grimace.
