Tag Archives: novels

Oct23

Author Interview – Karen J Mossman – Ghostly Writes Anthology 2019

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There are a whole host of authors in the Ghostly Writes Anthology 2019, available to download from 31st October! Today, I welcome Karen Mossman onto my blog, to have a chat and find out more about her and her writing. We met on the Ghostly Writes Anthology group, so all I know is that she lives in North Wales!

1 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?

I tend to get an idea, then play around with it in my head for a while, which could be weeks sometimes. Once I have a sense of it, I’ll start writing. Sometimes I just write scenes and then put them all together at the end. So definitely not planned to perfection!

2 Do you have a writing ritual? Meditation, certain cup for your tea, writing trousers?

 No, absolutely nothing. As long as I have my lap top, I can let my fingers do the walking. Although on occasions I like to sit down with an empty page and just write and see what magic appears out of my pen.

I love a pen too!

 3 Aside from writing, what makes you tick? Tell us 5 things about yourself we probably don’t know.

  1. I love to craft, I go through craft like genres of writing. At the moment I am crocheting.
  2. I’ve started giving talks to clubs and groups, one about books and the other about growing up with parents who fostered.
  3. I lived all my life in a big city, and now I live in a rural area by the sea.
  4. I’m always on a diet, and if I’m not, I should be!
  5. I once ordered Sir Alex Ferguson out of a lift in anger, then realised who it was. He was very gracious. (Ex manager of Manchester United.)

 Great answers!

4 If you were stranded on a desert island with shelter, food and water, what 5 items would you want with you?

  1. My kindle with unlimited battery, or some books.
  2. A pen and paper.
  3. My dogs for company.
  4. A swimming costume
  5. Knickers!

5 On said island, what 5 books would you take and why?

Any books that I haven’t read before as I’m not a fan of re-reading a book unless it is acceptable. So I have at least five on my Kindle and they are:

  1. The Anglesey Murders: Visit from the Devil by Connor Jones.
  2. Just Rose by L. T. Marshall
  3. Silent Night by Sahara Foley
  4. Falling for Kate by J. M. Rally
  5. Unveiled by J. M. Northup

 

6 Off the island now, which famous person would you like to have dinner with?­

 I’ve never been a fan of meeting famous people. I would be far too intimiated and they would have better things to do than bother with the likes of me! So I would choose my mum and dad to have dinner with, simply because they have been gone for nine years now, and in that time questions have arisen that I will never have answers too.

 

7 Your current writing projects?

I have two on the go. I am rewriting my novel The Secret from first person point of view to third, as suggested by my publisher.

The other is called Crossing Serbia, it was a short story that I’m expanding into a novella. It is about a Tanya an aid worker during the time of the break up of Yugoslavia. While she is working with people trapped by war, she gets kidnapped by insurgents. A group of British soldiers are sent into rescue them and its about their journey across a war torn country. So, a politcal romance.

 

They both sound fascinating. Finishing up, please share with us your published work…

I have just entered my story to the halloween edition of Ghostly Writes, which is where I met you. In previous editions, I have entered stories I already have. This time I’ve used a story that I wrote some time ago but never did anything with after the first draft. It’s based on a true story, the haunting of a house where someone I know lives. I must say, I’m thrilled with how it turned out and can’t wait to see it in print.

I have four novels and nine novellas as well as stories in anthologies. They can all be seen on my website (https://karenmossman.weebly.com/)

 I’m also a lover of stories, so maintain the Magic of Stories website (https://magicofstories.net/) where I share my own stories and those of others, including many true stories. Apart from that, I review every book I read on Karen’s Book Buzz Blog.  (https://karensbookbuzz.wordpress.com/)

Thanks so much for joining me, Karen. You can also find Karen’s work on Amazon via her Author Page https://www.amazon.co.uk/Karen-J-Mossman/e/B00JJY69OO

and for our friends across the pond https://www.amazon.com/Karen-J-Mossman/e/B00JJY69OO

Don’t forget to look out for more author interviews, showcasing the talented authors contributing to the Ghostly Writes Anthology 2019!

 

 

 

Sep4

Changing my routine

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I’m a creature of habit who loves a routine, but I don’t want to get stuck in a rut, especially if the routine is an ‘old story’ I’d do best to forget and write a new one.

With three weeks to go before I needed to go back to teaching dance four times a week, I wanted to re-establish the important routines in my life.

The first step was to get back into my daily walking routine. I hadn’t stopped walking each morning, first thing, but I’d been doing less steps then, and far less during the day, as my time was spent renovating. Now that’s done, I’ve created a new morning walk that is working towards clocking up 3.5k steps and 30 minutes of active exercise on my Fitbit.

I started with 2.5k and 20 minutes, which was fine as I’ve also got back to pulling brambles and nettles, and barrowing stones, so they clocked up extra active minutes, but by pushing over the 30 minutes in the morning, I’m guaranteeing myself the minimum every day, and setting myself up to achieve a minimum of 10k steps too.

My 5 minute arm workout is also back as a daily one, especially as I’m not dancing as much at the moment. I was thrilled with how toned my arms looked in my sleeveless dress at my son’s wedding, and I want to keep them that way for as long as possible!

Having used Dr Gregor’s Daily Dozen App for over a six months, I’ve been able to keep my diet pretty balanced, and get the nutrients I’ve needed, but I have been eating a little more than I’ve needed. Vegan Magnum ice lollies are delicious, but don’t count as a whole food, unfortunately, so they, and a tendency to eat dates by the handful, need to be kept under control. I’m keen to return to eating until I’m full and then stopping, as the healthiest way to eat on a whole food plant based diet.

I’ve committed myself to more magic on my river bank than I have been this year so far. At the last full moon, I set off a powerful healing spell for a friend, that was added to and boosted by other magical creatives, and I’m happy to say our friend is a lot better.

But I’ve struggled to get back into a writing routine. I’m used to days, or big chunks of days, where my partner is at work and I can write. Even with a few hours to myself, I’m not writing, so I decided to hold myself to account. I have to write for ten minutes every day. It doesn’t matter what it is, but I have to sit and write for a minimum of ten minutes.

I’ve six short pieces so far (more by the time you read this!), some of which could be longer stories, or even novels.

Visit again for Holding myself to account, and a chance to have your say as to how I should expand my writing.

 

Aug15

For the love of power naps

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I discovered power naps fifteen years ago, and now I’m self employed with no dependents living at home, I can use them to gain even more constructive time in my day.

Four years of IBS left me thin and weak, and then I discovered bellydance. If I wanted to dance, I had to eat, but also be as rested as possible, to give me the best chance of dancing the hour and a half session. How could I fit it in? I was so tired and yet, daily household tasks needed to be done and the children needed collecting at 3.15pm. I chose to power nap from 1.30pm to 2.10pm, rising from my bed, driving straight to the school able to spend almost an hour in the car writing my first novel.

I loved bellydancing and wanted to dance more. There was another hour and a half session the following evening. Could I manage two nights of dancing? It wasn’t just the overwhelming fatigue I felt every minute of every day, but the pain was often excruciating, leaving me drained and nauseous and ready to give up on life. I tried the classes and with the help of my regular nap, I was able to bellydance twice a week.

Sticking to the routine was easy for me; it helped with pain and tiredness and enabled me to do the things I wanted to do. I had so much more energy for the children too, making getting them to clubs after school so much easier.

The power nap combined with bellydance changed the course of my life. Before I had my children I ran an Offshore Funds Settlements Department in London; in 2007, at the age of 44, I created Phoenix Bellydance and began teaching Egyptian dance to women and girls, as well as continuing to write. I had articles published in dance magazines, interviewed dancers and musicians and wrote their stories, but it was around 2009 that I knew I wanted to write magical novels, having discovered the stories of Dion Fortune.

My mind was opened to all sorts of possibilities, but managing the IBS was still a problem. I’d taken on two cleaning jobs for friends, just three hours a time, but with teaching in the evening, and attending classes and workshops myself, I struggled to manage my pain and the fatigue again. And then I discovered reiki. I’d signed myself up for an aromatherapy massage course, hoping to learn more about essential oils and their healing properties, but there weren’t enough people so the reiki course was suggested as a stop gap.

Learning about chakras gave me the frame work to heal my own body and mind. I attended a later aromatherapy massage course too, and proceeded to Reiki 2 training. My naptime took on even more relevance, a time not just to rest but to heal. Around this time, I realised a sense of ‘self’ I hadn’t known before. I discovered American Tribal Style® Bellydance and around the same time, greater confidence working magic on my own or with close friends and my daughter.

Throughout this time, I discovered that a power nap wasn’t called Forty Winks by accident. Forty minutes was the perfect length of power nap for me; any less, I didn’t feel refreshed after and any more, I felt heavy and lethargic and struggled to get going. I was allowed to press the snooze button though, as it gave me ten minutes if I needed it, to come round slowly.

Now, especially if my partner is working away, I use power naps to make my day even longer. Up before 6am and out walking by half past, if I nap before 3pm, I can still have energy to pull brambles, dance, research or write until about 11pm…I feel like I’ve fitted two days into one! It’s not possible to use them every day with work commitments, but if I’m up early and fading by 11.30am, I’ll always try and fit in a power nap…or sometimes a cat nap if a kitten comes to join me.

Apr3

What do YOU want from a novel?

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I gave up putting up the book I was reading on Goodreads…because so many were so bad, I couldn’t finish them. Each and every one had been recommended by glowing reviews yet they didn’t grab me or keep me wanting to read them. I know what I want to read, my latest review ‘Soul Doubt’ by D Hart St Martin, proves that but maybe other readers are looking for something different?

I want…believable, real, engaging characters

Identifying with the characters is paramount in my reading. I don’t have to like them all, but they need to be ‘real’. I’m a visual reader so if I can’t picture the characters acting out the scenes in the book, you’ve lost me already.

I want…a story that holds my attention

Moving on from the characters, it’s the story that holds me and compels me to read on. It can be happy, sad, thrilling, exciting or inspiring but I need to believe that the story is important. For me, the story isn’t the plot; it’s what the book is really about.

I want…a well-crafted book

I love words. I love them used to create a memorable sentence. I don’t mind background or words that move the reader from scene to scene but I want words used thoughtfully, provocatively and beautifully.

I want…a well-edited book

I’m not a stickler for this but if the formatting is heywire, there are additional words, words spelled incorrectly or if a book feels like a first draft, you’ll lose me after a couple of chapters. I may read on if the story is compelling but rarely to the end.

I want…to be left wanting more

I love reading a book that I enjoy so much that I can’t wait to read another by the author. We all have our favourite authors, those books we devour the moment they are released and many readers enjoy books from a series, each book a whole story in its own right while the next moves the characters and story on further.

I want…a story to dwell in

For me, all books are magic, transporting the reader to another time or place, away from our own reality. Total immersion is what I seek. I want to be clinging to the side of a Viking ship or taking my first space walk to fix a problem with the solar panels. I want to sun myself on a beach in Australia or battle the elements, climbing to a mountain summit. I want to ride a train to Budapest or a camel in the desert. I want to dance at a ball in my high necked gown or hide in a cave from a demon.

What do YOU want from a novel?