Facing 2023
As we stood in the Plaça Catalunya this year, grapes in hand and waiting for churchbells to chime, it struck me that once again, I was celebrating New Year’s Eve upon an unknown shore. Ten seconds to midnight, the crowd started counting down, ten, nine, eight. And then, at midnight– Nothing. The fireworks were a…
That Expat Girl’s Guide to Writing a Novel | Part 2: The First Draft (1)
Sometimes writing a first draft is more like getting lost in a city, and sometimes it’s more like planning the perfect vacation. Either way, things rarely go completely according to plan….
February – Lockdown Updates and Worldbuilding Questions
In the midst of a third lockdown without sight of any sort of relief on the horizon, things have felt a lot more grim lately. I didn’t think that I’d be missing parties and my bookselling job all that much, and yet, here we are, and all I really want is to actually hang out…
The Absolute Beginner Writers’ Guide: Freewriting, or how to get started with creative writing in just ten minutes
Writing, like any other craft takes practice. Take the pressure off your writing and let the words flow with this versatile and fundamental writing exercise.
Salvaging Stories: On the Publication of Like Clockwork
Click Here to read Like Clockwork. Back in 2007, I found myself in a place that was becoming all-too-familiar in the worst possible way. Once again, my mind and body had betayed me, and several weeks removed from the flow of my life was the result. From the barred window of my room in the…
An Advent Calendar of Prose Poems 4
It’s officially the beginning of The Season. This year, I’m challenging myself to write a piece of prose poetry for each of the days leading up to Christmas. This is week four — for days one through six, start here, days seven through twelve, here, and the previous days here. Check back for new ones…
An Advent Calendar of Prose Poems 3
It’s officially the beginning of The Season. This year, I’m challenging myself to write a piece of prose poetry for each of the days leading up to Christmas. This is week three — for days one through six, start here, and days seven through twelve, here. Check back for new ones regularly, and let me…
An Advent Calendar of Prose Poems 2
It’s officially the beginning of The Season. This year, I’m challenging myself to write a piece of prose poetry for each of the days leading up to Christmas. Here comes week two — for days one through six, start here. Check back for new ones regularly, and let me know your thoughts! 7 | Christmases…
An Advent Calendar of Prose Poems
It’s officially the beginning of The Season. This year, I’m challenging myself to write a piece of prose poetry for each of the days leading up to Christmas. Trying to get back into the rhythm of writing prose poetry — we’ll see how it goes. Check back for new ones regularly, and let me know…
Herbarium: An artistic heritage post
Back in 2016, I participated in a project called Stejjer Imfewħa, where we collected memories and turned them into stories…
Of Unpublished Novels, Competitions, and Shortlists…
If you’re finishing a novel but not quite sure you’re ready to share it, may I suggest a competition?
That Expat Girl’s Guide to Writing a Novel | Part 1: Ideas
Amateurs sit and wait for inspiration, the rest of us just get up and go to work.Stephen King, Awaken This post is the first in a series on the novel writing process. Follow me or subscribe to be notified as soon as a new post goes live. I’m going to tell you a secret. It’s…
That Expat Girl’s Guide to Writing a Novel
A couple weeks ago, I wrote the first post in what I intended to become a series on the editing part of writing a novel. Editing is the place I’m in right now, and I was super excited to share my editing journey with you. But coming back to write the second part of the…
That Expat Girl edits a novel | Part I: Editing Goals
If, like me, you currently have a sprawling, vaguely-sensical monstrosity of a first novel draft on your hands, you may very well be wondering what to do with it. Let’s figure it out together.
Edit
edit /ehd-it/ (verb, with object) | A long, dismal process of rearranging broken things, aligning the ragged edges of mis-matched puzzles, filing too-sharp points to polished facets and hiding the unfinished corners. Trace over fracture lines with molten gold; find diamonds to set in the pockmarks. Perhaps the thing is not a ruin after all.…
After Narnia (a Flash Fic)
When Lily Underwood, Queen of the Eight Lands, Empress upon the mountain, Consort of the God-king Achram Lord of Light, and Goddess of the Five Seas and the Islands of Orawn stepped back through the wardrobe door, she found that not a moment had passed. Her scepter was gone, and her royal robes, and she…
Of Novels and Webmischief
One of my goals this year has been to get more of my work out there — not necessarily through the traditional publishing route, but on my blog, through medium, and — rather ambitiously — by posting the first novel I ever wrote (under a pen name) free on the web. So if you’re curious…
Apocalypses
They all say the world endsin the brilliance of explosions but in truthit dies in the darkwithout even a single candle To light the pagethat no one is reading
How you can use Nanowrimo to build a year-long writing practice
Five days into November, the fireworks are flying, the coffee is flowing, and all over the world, novelists from all walks of life are furiously scribbling away, aiming to reach the goal of writing 50,000 words by the end of the month. Started in 1999 when Chris Baty was told, in no uncertain terms, that…
The Venture 