my glamorous writing life

patsy

Grimes Graves and BIG news

Gary and I recently visited Grime’s Graves. The name is somewhat confusing, as they’re named for a pagan god called Woden (or Odin, or Grim), and despite a few bodies, they’re actually neolithic flint mines, not graves.

When the mines were created, side passages were created, to get out as much of the prized black flint as possible. The length and depth were limited, as they are believed to have used only natural light. They were then refilled with soil. Some have since been excavated, and it’s possible to climb down into one.

The descent is nine metres, which doesn’t sound a lot until you start negotiating the first of three ladders.

You may wonder what stone age people used to mine flint. Apparently it was antler picks, and flint axes.

The BIG news, is that I’ve been offered a contract for a large print edition of my romance novel, Escape to the Country. That will be available, from libraries and to buy, next May. The regular paperback, ebook and audio book are unaffected.

patsy

Approaching autumn

Yes, I know autumn is already here. Approaching Autumn is the title of my latest story in Woman’s Weekly. I’d forgotten when it was due to be published, but I always flick through the magazines when I see them, to see if I can spot stories by my writing friends. I came across this one whilst in LIDL buying Marmite to go on my toast for breakfast.

We’re currently away in the mobile writing retreat, and have seen a lot of views like the one used in the illustration.

patsy

Ready and waiting

We got up really early and came to photograph a ship. We can’t even see the sea!

As the pilots can’t see anything either, the ship has gone to anchor. That means I can get on with some writing while we wait. A cup of tea first though I think.

patsy

I’m a womag expert!

Not only do I have an article in the July issue of Writing Magazine, which the editor attributed to ‘womag expert Patsy Collins’, my blog for writers has also been heavily quoted in this article in Press Gazette.

It’s said there’s no such thing as bad publicity, but I’d rather be known for my actual fiction writing than the process of creating it (or not!). If you’ve read and enjoyed any of my short stories or novels, please help spread the word! If you’ve not read any yet, you can find lots of them here. You may like to start with a free one, such as this mini mystery, or this little collection of short stories.

patsy

Back in the van

No, we’re not on another trip, and I haven’t run away from home. The office fitter (Simon) is back. You can glimpse his white van in the photo and he has two sugars in his tea, so you know he’s the real deal! Hopefully Sharps will finally get it right, and send the worktop we ordered, so Simon can finish the job.

The kettle, teapot and tea bags are always on board. I brought in milk and a cup from indoors (it’s bigger than the van mugs), so if I don’t get any work done, I’ll need to get creative with my excuses.

patsy

Writing in Writing Magazine about magazine writing

I have an article in Writing Magazine about writing for womags (women’s magazines). The piece even gets a mention on the cover.

I do like being a cover girl. According to the blurb for the article, I’m also an expert!

patsy

It’s all about POV

When writing, it’s important to choose the right point of view (POV) from which to tell the story. That’s something I’m currently trying to decide on for book 5 in my Little Mallow cosy mystery series. Yes, I know I’m supposed to be writing book 4, and I am – but with a series you have to plan ahead.

Here’s an illustration of what I mean by POV, and how picking the wrong one can spoil a story. Gary and I are currently on Islay. It’s our first visit, and we enjoy travelling on ferries, so you can imagine how excited we were seeing this view from the mobile writing retreat – our campervan called R’ten.

The story just then would have been the same from R’ten’s POV.

Gary and I then went to explore the ship (the Isle of Islay), have a yummy cooked breakfast on board and enjoy the scenery. It was interesting for us, and included details I’ll probably eventually use in fiction.

R’ten might have guessed what we were doing, but she didn’t know, wasn’t able to join in and all she could see the whole time, were the bow doors inches from her nose. That wouldn’t have made a great story, would it?

patsy

Morning people!

I don’t tend to get up really early, unless there’s a good reason, such as taking a sunrise shot of the lighthouse on the Mull of Galloway.

That was quite a few weeks ago (we’ve been so busy exploring, photographing and writing that I’ve found it hard to keep up with blogging). If I’d done it today it would have been much easier, thanks to it now getting light later, plus the clocks going back. I don’t think we’d have had such good weather though.