Tag: #catchup

• Yay! It’s March!!

  Posted at 10:40 pm by Jodie, on March 3, 2020

  

  So, February didn’t go quite to plan. How about yours?

  My main goal had been to reach 60,000 words on book 2, Sorceress of Flame, to stay within target of publishing in November. I knew it would be tough due to the school holidays. What I hadn’t factored in was a month of storms resulting in my daughters school being flooded and gifting her an extra week of holiday. It’s safe to say by the end of two weeks, I’d had enough.
  
  The worst part was there was never a dry day, so it really limited where we could go, but we did manage a little trip down to London and met up with fellow author and World Indie Warrior, Cassidy Reyne.

  

  A visit to the Natural History Museum and the Tower of London have certainly given me some sparks of inspiration, it’s just a shame they’re for a completely new and unrelated story idea.

  I managed to reach 54,790 words, which isn’t great, but I found the story grinding to a halt and I couldn’t figure out why. I decided my best course of action was to read through everything I had written for Sorceress of Flame and do a mini edit. After moving a few chapters around, and updating my timeline, I feel like I might be onto something.

  So, what am I up to in March? I’m glad you asked!

  The first item on the agenda is a Facebook live with Cassidy Reyne on the World Indie Warriors Facebook Group (It’s free to join!). We will be discussing the upcoming Camp NaNoWriMo, including what it is and how we are getting involved as a group.

  

  The second exciting thing is my wedding anniversary on the 14th March. And, how am I going to celebrate? I’m going to spend a night at a spa with a close friend and family, leaving hubby at home alone with Madame.

  To top it off, the following weekend (Mother’s Day in the UK), I am travelling to the Netherlands to meet up with Cassidy and another of our writing friends, Kara S. Weaver. We are crossing everything in the hopes that it can still go ahead, what with the Coronavirus trying its best to sabotage us.

  Writing wise, I really want to get past the 60,000 words mark. I have a huge gap in the middle of the book, as I knew how I wanted it to end, but I’d really like to close that up in preparation for April’s CampNaNo.

  I’m going to continue with my Author Q&A and Book Review, and I also have a book to beta read, so I’m sure there’s never going to be a dull moment. In fact, I’m so busy right now that I’m doing my best representation of procrastination by writing a huge shopping list for Ikea.

  Oh well, there’s always next month!

  Speak soon, Jodie xxx

  Posted in Uncategorized | 0 Comments | Tagged #blog, #campnanowrimo, #cassidyreyne, #catchup, #divineprophecy, #goals, #inspiration, #karas.weaver, #london, #march2020, #sorceress, #update, #worldindiewarriors, #writing

• Don’t Forget the Extra Day!

  Posted at 7:00 pm by Jodie, on February 2, 2020

  

  Yes, hello February, indeed! As the title suggests, don’t forget that it is a leap year. So, what will you be doing with your extra day?
  
  Firstly, I would like to take a look back at January and everything we have (or haven’t!) managed to achieve.

  As revealed at the start of the year, instead of New Years Resolutions I am just going to be tackling a giant to-do list, and this is what I’ve managed so far.

  Sorceress Of Flame
  * Brought first draft up to 50,000 words.
  * Arranged m/s review.

  Other Tasks
  * I got half way through a book.
  * Started to enter DofA into a competition but not sure if I will continue.

  Website
  * Monthly book review.
  * Monthly Author Q&A.
  * Post regular blog.
  * Launched new ‘Works’ page.
  * Brought all of the pages up to date.
  * Added an events page.

  Social Media
  * Spent more time interacting with the #writingcommunity on Twitter.
  * Created new aesthetics for IG.
  * Got back into having a pretty and organised grid.
  *Post more SofT snippets etc.
  * Organised my Pinterest board.

  I’m pretty happy that a lot of my ‘admin’ activities are done and out of the way, which should allow for more writing and reading.

  During January, Sorceress of Truth also made it into the Top 50 Book Covers in the Allauthor.com Cover Contest. This was mostly down to many of you supporting me and voting, so a massive ‘Thank you‘ to each and every one of you.

  My main target for February is to focus on book 2, Sorceress of Flame. I would love to reach at least 60,000 words, ideally 65,000, if I want to stick to my November release schedule. The only stumbling block is the school half term holiday, (And boy do we have a week planned.) I can’t wait! Follow my Instagram Stories to see what we get up to.
  
  I don’t think I have much else to say other than watch this space for another great Author Q&A and Book Review.

  Speak soon! Jodie XXX

  Posted in Uncategorized | 0 Comments | Tagged #blog, #catchup, #divineprophecy, #february20, #goals, #SofT, #SorceressofTruth, #update, #writing

• New Year, New…. ah, who am I kidding?

  Posted at 9:45 am by Jodie, on January 11, 2020

  

  Here we are in 2020 already —it only feels like a few years ago when we were seeing in the millennium— and we are almost reaching the mid point of January!

  I’ve decided not to set resolutions this year. I don’t want to blow my own trumpet or anything but, besides being podgy around the middle and having difficulty saying no at times, I’m fairly happy with who I am at the moment.

  How about you? Have you set any resolutions? Do you ever stick to them?

  For 2020 I’ve created a list of tasks I want to work through instead, and I thought you might like to have a gander. Plus, in the spirit of accountability, if they’re out there I have to do them, right? 

  ---

  Sorceress Of Flame
  * Complete the first draft.
  * First round edits.
  * Arrange m/s review.
  * Second round edits.
  * Beta readers.
  * Third round edits.
  * Proof read.
  * Arrange cover.
  * Arrange formatting.
  * Arc readers.
  * Publish (Hopefully Nov).

  Other Tasks
  * Read 20 books throughout the year.
  * Finish batching up the murder mystery for testers.
  * Attend 3 events as an author.
  * Organise some swag.
  * Take part in CampNaNo (April).
  * Take part in NaNoWriMo (November).
  * Enter DofA into competition (by Feb).

  Website
  * Monthly book review.
  * Monthly Author Q&A.
  * Monthly writing tip.
  * Post regular updates.
  * Redo my ‘Releases’ page.
  * Bring all of the pages up to date.
  * Add an events page.
  

  Social Media
  * Spend more time interacting with the #writingcommunity on Twitter.
  * Talk to more reviewers/book bloggers on IG.
  * Create new aesthetics for IG.
  * Get back into having a pretty and organised grid.
  *Post more SofT snippets etc.
  * Try to organise my Pinterest board.
  * Add F1 story to Wattpad.

  Don’t add any more books to my TBR pile!

  ---

  On top of all of this, I will also try to make sure I don’t lose my daughter under a mountain of washing, that everyone remains fed and watered, and the walls don’t crumble under the weight of dust and clutter.

  I wish you all a successful 2020. Now, what shall I tick off first?

  Speak soon, Jodie xxx

  Posted in Uncategorized | 0 Comments | Tagged #blog, #catchup, #divineprophecy, #goals, #January2020, #newyear, #novel, #SofT, #sorceress, #update, #writing

• What a November!

  Posted at 11:08 am by Jodie, on December 14, 2019

  As usual, November turned out to be crazy month for me. If I wasn’t writing birthday cards and attending kids parties, I was hiding in my office, coffee shop, bathroom…, pretty much anywhere I could spend some time writing. Why was that? Well, it was NaNoWriMo of course!

  What is NaNoWriMo?

  National Novel Writing Month takes place in November every year and it’s a special time that drives writers into a strange state of hibernation. Often it ends with them huddled in a corner under a duvet, rocking backwards and forwards, and mumbling to them selves about word counts with their hands stuck in a claw like position (Likely from holding a pen or hovering over a keyboard).

  It’s a challenge that we set for ourselves, with no real prize other than the sense of achievement and a partly written novel. The aim of the game is to write 50,000 words (1,667 a day).

  It’s not all doom and gloom though, or what would be the point in taking part?

  It’s a challenge that has spread worldwide. Across the website and social media platforms, it creates a buzz around an activity that, for most of the time, is seen as solitary. People talk. People encourage. And, more importantly, we support each other through the difficult times. These hints, tips and strategies can be used throughout the year and make the whole process worthwhile.

  Want to know how I did?

  

  That’s right, I’m a winner! I managed 50,000 words in a month for the second year in a row but this time, it certainly wasn’t easy. I had to rely massively on my support network to drag me through, but we got there in the end.

  Last year, I seemed to breeze through it. I wrote a large chunk of the Don of Avery (Working title), a dark mafia romance that is certainly not suitable for YA ears, and eventually wrote ‘The End’ around April time. It seemed only natural that I would continue with that series and write the second book. I even made a book cover to help, erm, motivate me…

  

  Anyway, I was really struggling. I got around 30,000 words in but every word was like pulling teeth. I just wasn’t feeling inspired at all and achieving the 50,000 word goal was looking even more unlikely.

  Then, something strange happened.

  I knew how I wanted book 2 to end, and I had an idea for a third book which takes place several years later. They are, mostly, the same characters but the storyline from book 1 and 2 has already been tied up, so it’s a brand new plot.

  For a non creative type, it can be hard to understand when writers mention that their characters talk to them. Well, in this case my characters completely lynched me and kept walloping me over the head with random conversations and scenes for book 3. I knew I had to get them written down before they left me completely. Unfortunately, they were more akin to a gazillion glass pieces being glued back together rather than the neat and smooth edges of jigsaw pieces.

  Suddenly, I found myself inspired again, which you can clearly see where my daily word count massively increases around day 18.

  

  So, what did I learn this time around?

  This time I learned that, no matter how well you prepare, sometimes you just have to go with the flow and not be afraid to change course. I may have spread my 50,000 words over two different projects, but I am still a winner.

  From now on it’s going to be a big of a struggle to pick which project to work on. I desperately want to finish Sorceress of Flame, and that’s going to take priority in the new year, but I now have two other novels to work on, plus a murder mystery to finish packaging up.

  All I know is, I’m going to take it easy over the next few weeks. If I feel like writing, I’ll write, but I have a huge TBR mountain waiting for me, along with two books I am eager to beta read.

  I hope you all have a great Christmas and I will be back as soon as I can!

  Speak soon. Jodie xx

  Posted in Uncategorized | 0 Comments | Tagged #blog, #catchup, #character, #cover, #donofavery, #inspiration, #nanowrimo, #novel, #November2019, #update, #writing

• Hello October

  Posted at 3:41 pm by Jodie, on October 3, 2019

  

  The time of longer nights, pumpkin spice everything and smoke lingering in the air is upon us. I absolutely love this time of year. The transition between Autumn and Winter, where the weather isn’t too bad but the heat of summer is a distant memory, is my favourite.

  Anyway, I’m here to talk to you about my goals for the month. I know I’m a few days late, as is tradition for me now, but I started with a bang. On the 1st October I revealed the cover for my upcoming release, Sorceress of Truth, and here it is in all its glory.

  

  I can’t stop looking at it! Natalie, from Original Book Cover Design, did an amazing job. I really hope you like it as much as me. The release date is scheduled for 10th November, then you can get a copy of your own, and maybe find all of the hidden gems.

  So, that leads me nicely onto my plans for the rest of the month.

  

  Much of my list is a continuation of September’s, which is fine by me as a lot of the tasks are quite big and not something I can do in a day.

  The biggest change is that I’m shifting away from some of my editing as I focus on getting Sorceress of Truth loaded and the Advanced Reader Copies sent out.

  It’s quite nerve wracking knowing that other people out of my close circle are going to be reading it. Though, I’m going to have to get over those feelings pretty quickly once it’s launched fully.

  I hope you’ve been enjoying my Character Series. So far we have been introduced to Tory, Kylan and Pepper, and I’m thinking of doing one more, Lucas. All I will say is, if you’re looking for a new book boyfriend then you are too late. He’s already been claimed by a member of my indie group (I needed to add that as she would kill me if I didn’t!). He’s certainly an interesting character to get to know.

  Now that I’ve done my (almost) weekly ramble, I hope you enjoy the rest of your week. Please feel free to follow me on Instagram and Twitter. If you have any questions or comments, I’d love for you to get in touch.

  So long, for now! Jodie xx

  Posted in Uncategorized | 0 Comments | Tagged #blog, #booklaunch, #catchup, #cover, #divineprophecy, #goals, #novel, #october2019, #sorceress, #SorceressofTruth, #update, #writing

• J.D. Groom

  

• Follow Me

  • Instagram
  • Twitter
  • Pinterest
  • Goodreads
  • Amazon