Review of These Savage Bones

I’ve followed Kaitlin Hillerich at her writing tips blog Ink and Quills for a while now, so I was delighted to learn that she was releasing her debut novella (and had done as of last October – I’m just so slow when it comes to keeping up with a single book, especially on Kindle. Sorry!) I …

Winter Reading (Again)

I'm hoping, or at least trying, to read a bit more over my winter break. I guess I'm averaging a chapter a day, but with the amount of different books I want to read... And since I clearly don't talk about reading enough on this blog, I'm gonna look at that. So, what am I …

Whodunnit On a Sky Cruiser: A Review of MURDER OUT OF THE BLUE

1908. A gruesome death on board the Sky Liner RMS Macedonia exposes the clash of class, secrets and sexuality in upper class Edwardian society. On her journey home Maliha Anderson, Anglo-Indian daughter of a Scottish engineer and a Brahmin scholar, hopes to make peace with her past, her future and what she sees in the …

Fall 1st Page Critique Blog Hop

(Or 'autumn', if we're going by UK English ;)) The wonderful Michelle Hauck has kindly organised a 1st page critique blog hop, where we get to critique the five blog entries below and ours in the linky on her page. It's open to all fiction writers, regardless of genre or age category. Here's mine, taken from Of …

The Great Mortdecai Moustache Mystery by Kyril Bonfiglioli

“She was a fellow and tutor of Scone College and the world must learn that Fellows and Tutors of Scone College shall not be done to death with impunity.” That’s from the blurb. But it gives you a sense of the voice and language of The Great Mortdecai Moustache Mystery. And it was both the …

7 Quick Takes About The Usual, The Unusual and The Moving Back

Join us over at ConversionDiary as we recap our weeks. ~1~ Hullo. I travel back to uni tomorrow *sad face* So I expect the posting to become more sporadic again as I try and find my feet and help out with the freshers. On the other hand, that means I'll have more to talk about …

Beta/CP Match-Up

To cap off the summer long Ready. Set. Write! initiative, hosted by Alison Miller, Katy Upperman, Jaime Morrow, and Erin Funk, a mixer for potential critique partners and beta readers is being held. Today we’ve been invited to talk about our WIP and MSs, so without further ado… OF JACKETS AND PHONES Genre: YA Mystery (contemporary) Approx. wordcount: 55,000 …

Beautiful People: Agnetha

I’m editing her first adventure at the moment, so I think it’s appropriate that I tell you a little about my favourite – and first – protagonist via the Notebook Sisters and Further Up and Further In monthly meme. I turned my attention to the question of names – and my realisation was bitter. Inwardly, I cursed …

Ready. Set. Write! Update 11/8

Ready. Set. WRITE! is a summer writing intensive that encourages goal-setting and accountability, and provides an opportunity for us to cheer each other on wherever we’re at in our writing—planning, drafting, revising, or polishing. This year, RSW hosts are Alison Miller, Jaime Morrow, Erin Funk, and Katy Upperman. I'm back on track after my holiday, and have lots to …

Five Years of Jackets and Phones (and murder and explosions and poisonings and Agnetha…)

It’s almost Easter 2014, and, aside from the obvious to celebrate, I realised that I technically have a writing milestone to celebrate: five years since I decided to write a novel and succeeded. Well, pretty much. So, how did I really become a writer? What was my story beyond being an only child who sat …