Wendy's taking over my blog today, and we're doing a little table turning. She's answering some questions she usually poses to other authors. Take it away, Wendy.
How do you write? Is everything plotted, planned to perfection? Do you ever change tack as you go along or always stick to a pre-made plan?
Most of my story ideas come to me as "what if?" I often spend months bouncing an idea around in my head until a story forms. I'm a visual learner and reader, so once the characters are playing out scenes, I write them down. Sometimes the beginning and end come first and I let the characters work their way through a story. I don't plot to perfection, and I do change tack sometimes.
Do you have a writing ritual? Meditation, certain cup for your tea, writing trousers?
I have writing trousers! They are comfy and loose fitting, perfect for snuggling up and getting pen to paper. I write with my trusty Waterman fountain pen with black ink on A4 lined pads before typing up on my laptop. Beverage of choice at the moment is rooibos in a thin china mug.
Aside from writing, what makes you tick? Tell us five things about yourself we probably don't know.
I'm an ATS® Tribal Belly dancer and teacher. As a chubby child, told I was "a fairy elephant," I didn't start dancing until I was 40! I live in a Grade II listed, 300-year-old dilapidated farmhouse in Wales. My first novel took me over three years to write, between looking after three young children...it was too wordy to be published but gave me a great start in getting words on paper and telling a story I cared about. We moved to Wales and lived in a tent in a field for 10 weeks with three cats while the house purchase went through.
If you were stranded on a desert island with shelter, food and water, what five items would you want with you?
A solar panel so I could charge up my kindle and iPod...is that three or just cheating? Rosie Rabbit has traveled the world with me so she must come, and a toothbrush and toothpaste would make me ready for every day, whatever it brought.
On said island, what five books would you take and why?
The Complete Works of Shakespeare because I've not read enough and The Lord of the Rings because I love it! A Hatful of Sky by Terry Pratchett (though choosing one of his books is hard) because it makes me smile and Doctor Doctor by Lelani Black (can I take all the Island Moonlight Collection?) because it's cheeky and sexy and "laugh out loud" funny! My final choice would be Wendy Woo's Year --- A Pocketful of Smiles --- 101 ideas for a happy year and a happy you as I wrote this book from my own experience of living with depression, and it has been a constant companion ever since.
Off the island now, which famous person would you like to have dinner with?
I'm shy with new people, so could I have my favorite cast list from an episode of QI so I don't feel awkward? Stephen Fry, Alan Davies, Bill Bailey, David Mitchell and Johnny Vegas.
Your current writing projects?
I published the second book in the Lilith Trilogy, Wrath of Angels, in June 2014 but my first writing, begun and completed in Wales, is out on Nov. 6. The Standing Stone --- Home for Christmas was inspired by the Bronze Age settlement on the hill next to my house. The sequel, The Standing Stone --- Silence is Broken, will be out in 2015.
Here's what my new novella, The Standing Stone --- Home for Christmas, is about:
Rachel arrives in Wales to begin a new life but will Marcus jeopardise their future together before it's begun?
Candy knows the punishment for leaving Station 23 unguarded. Will she succeed in convincing Paul to obey the Lesson?
Fern loves her life in the village, but when the Tall Folk arrive with metal working skills, will her peace be shattered forever?
Though distanced by time and space, three women find the Standing Stone and the teachings of the Great Mother, Binah.
Wendy's links
You can find all my books via my Amazon author pages:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Wendy-Steele/e/B007VZ1P06/ref=sr_tc_2_0?qid=1365459567&sr=1-2-ent
http://www.amazon.com/Wendy-Steele/e/B007VZ1P06/ref=ntt_dp_epwbk_0
BLOG www.wendysteele.com
TWITTER https://twitter.com/WendyWooauthor
FACEBOOK https://www.facebook.com/destinyofangelsnovel
https://www.facebook.com/WendyWooBooks
GOODREADS https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6548666.Wendy_Steele
How do you write? Is everything plotted, planned to perfection? Do you ever change tack as you go along or always stick to a pre-made plan?
Most of my story ideas come to me as "what if?" I often spend months bouncing an idea around in my head until a story forms. I'm a visual learner and reader, so once the characters are playing out scenes, I write them down. Sometimes the beginning and end come first and I let the characters work their way through a story. I don't plot to perfection, and I do change tack sometimes.
Do you have a writing ritual? Meditation, certain cup for your tea, writing trousers?
I have writing trousers! They are comfy and loose fitting, perfect for snuggling up and getting pen to paper. I write with my trusty Waterman fountain pen with black ink on A4 lined pads before typing up on my laptop. Beverage of choice at the moment is rooibos in a thin china mug.
Aside from writing, what makes you tick? Tell us five things about yourself we probably don't know.
I'm an ATS® Tribal Belly dancer and teacher. As a chubby child, told I was "a fairy elephant," I didn't start dancing until I was 40! I live in a Grade II listed, 300-year-old dilapidated farmhouse in Wales. My first novel took me over three years to write, between looking after three young children...it was too wordy to be published but gave me a great start in getting words on paper and telling a story I cared about. We moved to Wales and lived in a tent in a field for 10 weeks with three cats while the house purchase went through.
If you were stranded on a desert island with shelter, food and water, what five items would you want with you?
A solar panel so I could charge up my kindle and iPod...is that three or just cheating? Rosie Rabbit has traveled the world with me so she must come, and a toothbrush and toothpaste would make me ready for every day, whatever it brought.
On said island, what five books would you take and why?
The Complete Works of Shakespeare because I've not read enough and The Lord of the Rings because I love it! A Hatful of Sky by Terry Pratchett (though choosing one of his books is hard) because it makes me smile and Doctor Doctor by Lelani Black (can I take all the Island Moonlight Collection?) because it's cheeky and sexy and "laugh out loud" funny! My final choice would be Wendy Woo's Year --- A Pocketful of Smiles --- 101 ideas for a happy year and a happy you as I wrote this book from my own experience of living with depression, and it has been a constant companion ever since.
Off the island now, which famous person would you like to have dinner with?
I'm shy with new people, so could I have my favorite cast list from an episode of QI so I don't feel awkward? Stephen Fry, Alan Davies, Bill Bailey, David Mitchell and Johnny Vegas.
Your current writing projects?
I published the second book in the Lilith Trilogy, Wrath of Angels, in June 2014 but my first writing, begun and completed in Wales, is out on Nov. 6. The Standing Stone --- Home for Christmas was inspired by the Bronze Age settlement on the hill next to my house. The sequel, The Standing Stone --- Silence is Broken, will be out in 2015.
Here's what my new novella, The Standing Stone --- Home for Christmas, is about:
Rachel arrives in Wales to begin a new life but will Marcus jeopardise their future together before it's begun?
Candy knows the punishment for leaving Station 23 unguarded. Will she succeed in convincing Paul to obey the Lesson?
Fern loves her life in the village, but when the Tall Folk arrive with metal working skills, will her peace be shattered forever?
Though distanced by time and space, three women find the Standing Stone and the teachings of the Great Mother, Binah.
Wendy's links
You can find all my books via my Amazon author pages:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Wendy-Steele/e/B007VZ1P06/ref=sr_tc_2_0?qid=1365459567&sr=1-2-ent
http://www.amazon.com/Wendy-Steele/e/B007VZ1P06/ref=ntt_dp_epwbk_0
BLOG www.wendysteele.com
TWITTER https://twitter.com/WendyWooauthor
FACEBOOK https://www.facebook.com/destinyofangelsnovel
https://www.facebook.com/WendyWooBooks
GOODREADS https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6548666.Wendy_Steele
 |  Above, Wendy and her family, including three cats, stayed in a tent for 10 weeks while waiting for their home purchase in Wales to go through. Below, they live in a 300-year-old farmhouse.  |
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