Category Archives: writing

30 Days of NaNoWriMo: Day 1

Posted on November 1, 2017 by Mark Hayes

Day 1. on my NaNoWriMo calendar this year… ‘Say goodbye to your sanity’ Target for the day, get to 1667 words Time to get going, dig out the notes you made if you’re a plotter. If your more a fly … Continue reading →

Posted in nanowrimo, quotes, writes, writing | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

To Plot Or Not To Plot? That Is The NaNoWriMo Question…

Posted on October 23, 2017 by Mark Hayes

With #NaNoWriMo2017 about a week away. The oldest of questions has reared its ugly head at my writing desk… To plot or not to plot..? Whether you attempting NaNoWriMo for the first time or the eighteenth time you’re probably contemplating this fundamental … Continue reading →

Posted in amwriting, nanowrimo, opinion, pointless things of wonderfulness, self-publishing, writes, writing | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

A Quote Or Two For NaNoWriMo

Posted on October 14, 2017 by Mark Hayes

With the thirty days of NaNoWriMo looming on the horizon for many of us. I’ve trawled my big book of quotes for inspiring words, (and some not so inspiring) here’s a selection of quotes on the subject of that most NaNoWriMo of … Continue reading →

Posted in humour, nanowrimo, quotes, writes, writing | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

NaNoWriMo: Or how to first draft…

Posted on October 6, 2017 by Mark Hayes

With November less than a month away, and in the mildly self-aggrandizing of attempting to offer some advice to budding writers… This is the story of how I managed to write my first novel. It is also the story of how … Continue reading →

Posted in amwriting, Hannibal Smyth, indie, indie novels, insomnia, nanowrimo, opinion, pointless things of wonderfulness, self-publishing, writes, writing | Tagged , , , , , , , | 11 Comments

Wisdom of Scribblers

Posted on October 5, 2017 by Mark Hayes

Writers, never short of a quote on any subject. Often these quotes contradict quotes by others, such is the nature of the beast, but then you can’t live your life by quotes, can you? The best that can happen is … Continue reading →

Posted in humour, quotes, reads, writing | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Darker Wisdoms

Posted on September 26, 2017 by Mark Hayes

Writers can be a dark lot at times… Terry Pratchett, who has many so many of us smile, and laugh, and filled us with joy once told his friend, compatriot and occasional co-conspirator, Neil Gaiman, that he wrote not from joy but … Continue reading →

Posted in humour, Lovecraft, pointless things of wonderfulness, quotes, writes, writing | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Writing Novels: The rules

Posted on September 25, 2017 by Mark Hayes

A writer should write what they want to write, and write it how they want to write it. This is a theory I have expressed before, and one I will continue to express. I am aware that some may disagree … Continue reading →

Posted in humour, opinion, pointless things of wonderfulness, publication, self-publishing, writes, writing | Tagged , , , | 4 Comments

Wise words…

Posted on September 21, 2017 by Mark Hayes

More of the wisdom of writers: or a few scattered quotes that could be wisdom or tosh, it’s not always easy to tell. But such are the words that on occasion inspire me to write, even those full of derision… The … Continue reading →

Posted in humour, quotes, writes, writing | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

That Offensive Word…

Posted on September 14, 2017 by Mark Hayes

The internet and ‘Faceache’ writers groups, in particular, throw up the occasional odd question. Odd to my mind at least, not odd to the person asking the question. Probably I find them odd because I have some fairly firm views … Continue reading →

Posted in opinion, rights, writes, writing | Tagged , , , , | 5 Comments

Scrap-ends…

Posted on September 13, 2017 by Mark Hayes

For no good reason, or perhaps the best reason of all, I’ve spent a listless hour pondering my way through a folder on my desktop that predates the hard drive. The folders called scrap-ends. It’s an apt description used as … Continue reading →

Posted in books, indie, indie novels, indie writers, nanowrimo, opinion, quotes, reads, the elf kings thingy, writes, writing | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments