Blog posts about NaNoWriMo – the annual November writing marathon.
I was planning to write a light comedy piece today, similar in plot and style to a short story I wrote a few years ago, but which I intended to rewrite using a better structure.
But…
While I was eating breakfast, a different story came to me. This one was a dark medical drama, with just a tinge of humour.
Should I stick to my original plan? Or go for the story that was now almost writing itself? Continue reading “Time for some black humour”
Today I wanted to explore the early life of a character I’d met in my historical novel, The Reluctant Scribe.
She is a doctor’s daughter, and her chosen name is Lin Min, which means intelligent (or clever) and from the woods. A fitting name, her father agrees. But Lin Min has just turned 16 and life is about to become complicated… Continue reading “It’s a shame she was born a girl…”
Day 6 of NaNoWriMo and I spent the weekend away, walking and travelling, which left little time for writing.
One thing I wanted to do was write a short story – a very short story – of only 750 words. But what would the story be about? Continue reading “Is 750 words enough?”
I started off writing a short story, for day 5 of NaNoWriMo #30days30shorts, and it just blossomed into something beyond my control.
2,000 words down, and I hadn’t even got to the crux of the story I had originally planned.
Actually, my main protagonist was based on a minor character in my Tang dynasty historical novel. Now I’m beginning to wonder if she can be contained in a short story or whether I need something larger… like a novella. Continue reading “Birth of a novella?”
What happens if you buy a second-hand laptop, and find it contains murderous secrets?
For today’s NaNo story, I’ve stayed firmly in the present day. It could have been a romance… But, no, that would be too easy. So I went for a psychological thriller instead.
#30days30shorts
Ruth Livingstone 