Now I have a REAL book!

Looking for the Imagination Sparks Blogfest? My post is here, click to see how music can inspire your writing...

Just a quick update to let you know, my paperbacks arrived!

First the proof copy turned up. And I fell in love. The cover is absolutely gorgeous, and that's all thanks to bookcovercafe.com - fantastic team there. Even the spine has special details...

And now I have boxes and boxes of books, all ready to distribute!

The paperback is not yet available online, but it will be very very soon.

In the meantime, here's a sneak extract...

...  
‘Hey, Kitty-Cat.’
  Jessica Jones. We shared a maths and science class, but that’s all we had in common. Jessica always had swarms of friends around her, and her happy voice twittered along the school halls.
  Yass was a close-knit country town and I was still an outsider. I felt stumpy and plain next to the tall blond girl.
  ‘Oh, uh, hi,’ I mumbled. Why are you here?
  I kicked at the ground with my shiny black patent shoe. My toes hurt and I wished I could go barefoot.
  ‘Are you a junior handler too?’ Jessica furrowed her brow as if the idea was puzzling.
  My stomach sank. Jessica would be competing against me. I would be pathetic, and everyone at school would hear how hopeless I was.
  ‘Uh-huh,’ I said.
  ‘I haven’t seen you here before. I guess you’re new at showing. I’ve been handling dogs since I was seven.’ She grinned.
  ‘This is my first.’
  Spade pulled. Tug-tug. He wanted out of there too.
  ‘Last year I was regional junior handler,’ Jessica flicked back her curls and smoothed her hot-pink blazer. ‘This time I’m aiming for junior handler of the year, and I’ve got a good start already.’
She checked out my outfit, cringed and slowly shook her head.   
  ‘You’ve already missed the first three shows of the season. That’s going to put you behind.’
  ‘Your dog is pretty,’ I said. And she was. The Afghan hound’s golden fur shone almost as much as Jessica’s own perfectly formed curls.
  I reached up and shoved my stubborn, loose string of mousy brown hair behind my ear.
  ‘Oh, Sheeba’s not mine,’ said Jessica. ‘I just borrow her for the show. The owners trust me because I’m an experienced handler.’
  Sheeba gave me an aloof stare.
  My cheeks burned. ‘I have to walk Spade now.’
  Jessica furrowed her brow, this time at my dog.
  ‘You’re going to handle him? Oh well, never mind, the judges will be looking at you mostly, not the dog.’
  ‘Yeah, thanks.’ I strode away, Spade in tow.
...

Imagination Sparks Blogfest has begun!

I've popped my post up here, and am now visiting other sites, join in!

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Imagination Sparks Blogfest

About the Blogfest

Time for our Imagination Sparks Blogfest! It's not to late, you can still sign up and join in - the link's below. What is the Imagination Sparks Blogfest? Simply share with us a creative writing prompt, or suggest a way to warm up your imagination before you sit down to write - it's really up to you. Then pop around and see what other bloggers suggest, try out one or two activities (or all of them if you're really keen for a creative week), then on, or around, the 8th of August, do a post to let us know how you went. Did you learn something, find a new story idea, discover a favourite writing prompt? Let your imagination go wild.

My Creative Spark

I must admit, this is not something I usually do to spark creativity, but I decided to try something a bit different for this blogfest. Today I'm using music to prompt my writing. I first discovered the power of music for story writing when I was eight. It was 1977, and my mother took me to the cinema (a very special treat back then) to the see the magnificent Fantasia. I will never forget the amusement of the dancing hippos, the wonderment of the frolicking cupids, and, the concern when Micky's brooms just wouldn't stop marching! But most of all, I remember that terrifying finale, with the huge devil letting souls slip between his claws to the soundtrack of Night on Bald Mountain and Ava Maria.

Years later I enjoyed the spectacular release of Fantasia 2000 with my girls, and it was an instant win for them too (aww, that sweet little whale getting separated from his mother).

Today I've included two classical masterpieces for you to write to. Choose your favourite, or try both. Both have a good mix of emotion and rise and fall in the tempo. Try to write a story, or whatever comes to mind as you listen. Here's hoping you get something surprising!

I'll be checking in with all the other participants and trying the writing prompts/exercises. Hope we get lots of sparks this week!

I'd like to just give a little shout out to a couple of musical friends this week. Perhaps they'll inspire something creative in you!

I don't watch much television and never reality competition shows, so I got a pleasant surprise to learn one of my students from my old school (which I do miss a lot!) was an entrant on X-Factor. Not only that, but she made it through! Please check out Veanka Howard, she has an amazing talent...

And I also discovered one of our writing group buddies plays around with producing electronic music with his band. I think this could inspire a sci-fi story...

That's all from me today, now, I've got a few blogs to visit and a hankering to watch Fantasia over and over.

PS: for those following my website design journey - I'll post the first few steps in my progress after the blogfest is over.

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Getting your website off and running

My new website project is coming along nicely - and I will show you how soon!

Hello bloggy friends!

I'm on a bit of a high at the moment. Why? I've got a new project. Whenever I begin something new, I'm like a kid on red cordial. I stay up late and wake up early and can't wait to get started. 

But I'm not writing. This project is not a story, it's a website. A website I did not want to make ... because it would be hard. Now I'm getting some (slow) progress, I'm really excited. I promised to share the steps, so I've been taking loads of screen shots and making notes all along the way. In fact, that's my first tip: If you adjust, rebuild, start from scratch, or touch ANY button on your blog/website, keep a notebook dedicated to your site by the computer. Write down everything you do. That way, if you delete the whole project (as I did, not once, but twice) you'll be able to backtrack and at worst, will have the steps to repeat (minus the deleting bit).

I'm so keen, that I'm not just starting my website, but a few others as well! I'll be creating:

iTeenWrite - a site for all my workshop materials for kids and teens who want to write (I'm even making vlogs!).

Happy Family Challenges - anyone who knows me is familiar with my whacky challenges I set for myself and my family. I'm now going to share various activities and challenges you can take to bring your family together in a fun way.

illusions4kids - one of my challenges was to set a project for my daughters to start up a small business and run it for six months, at which time it will be evaluated for its success. They started off with ideas like dog washing, but quickly moved to an online platform for their business. They'll be following Pat Flynn's advice on setting up a niche website business. They plan on making videos performing magic tricks, only revealing the secrets to kids who sign up to the young magician's club (all free). They're hoping to be sponsored by products relevant to the magic world. Matilda is a magic lover and now a young entrepreneur (teenpreneur?).

Phew! I've got my work cut out for me. I'm hoping that recording all the steps will make it easier for each new site I have to set up.

Soon I'll post the first step. Just to remind you, I'll be using Just Host (who also go by the names Host Clear and Super Green Hosting). There are other good hosts, but I can only recommend the one I use and like (when I had a problem late last night, I hopped on the chat function and had it solved and explained within 3 minutes). 

My next post will show you how to register your domain name and install Wordpress via the 'cPanel' (fancy name for dashboard), and even how to choose a 'theme' (template, layout design for your site). If you want to see how I'm going so far, here's my landing page (most links don't work yet - but they will soon!).

www.charmaineclancy.com

And for even more excitement! My good bloggy friend, Michael Di Gesu is revealing a new novel by Siv Maria Ottem - featuring a cover illustrated by Michael! Pop over to cheer them on:

Michael Di Gesu ... In Time

Siv Ottem ... Been there, done that.

And one last thing ... have you signed up yet for the Imagination Sparks Blogfest? It's a fun event where we all share one of our favourite ways to warm up our creative muscles before writing. Do you take a walk? Have a writing exercise? Something we can try? Share it for the blogfest, then go around to others and try a few of their ides.

Sign up now and please spread the word!

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Build a Better Author Website With Me

I put Zoe in charge of building my website, but she spent all her time on Grumpy Cat memes.

It's important for authors these days to be accessible online, especially if you're starting out with self-publishing or going through a small press publisher who doesn't have the big budget to promote your work. 

I've loved my blog. It has remained my favourite form of social networking, and I've tried a lot of them! I will always blog, aiming to share any information I think can help other writers and authors. But now, I need to create a more professional website to host my blog. My page needs more than Blogger can provide.

Don't get me wrong, Blogger is still a great platform for new bloggers. It's easier to use than many others, and allows you to track your growing follower list. And I've no intention of deleting everything I've built here, but migration will begin soon to a new hosted site, using a professional Wordpress theme. My site will have pages to accommodate my upcoming vlogs for teens and kids on creative writing (iTeenWrite), information about my writing workshops, a book page, free resources and, of course, my blog.

I'm starting from scratch and doing this techie work myself, so it'll be a while off yet. So why am I telling you now? I'm going to record every step with lots of screen shots and voice over instructions, so if you take this path you won't make my mistakes. I'm hoping to make web building easy for you!  

Here's the thing. I can help you each step of the way if your process is the same as mine. My host site and domain name is Just Host, I find them reliable, consistent and fairly good value. I tried Squarespace but found it more than double the price for a platform that was too complicated for me to use and only produced a very basic site without an IT degree. I've heard good things about Crazy Domains, but haven't tried them. I can happily give Just Host a plug and have included an affiliate link below - have a look and see if it's for you. 

My first step will be installing Wordpress through Just Host:

You have homework! Even if you don't want to try this tactic for building your site, this is something you should do before creating any website. Write a plan, a list of all the important things you want to include on your website. Will you offer writers' workshop, school visits? Want a sales page for books? An email sign up form? Plan before you build, it'll make life easier later!

Don't forget to sign up for our awesome blog hop!

Imagination Sparks Blogfest

Starts August 1, sign up now!

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5 Top Reasons to Live THE ARTIST'S WAY

Have you joined the
Progressive Book Club yet?

The more books on the craft of writing I read, the harder I am to please.

All I want from a how-to manual is just one good, useful, life-changing tip - is that so much to ask? Just one. But it has to be a doozy. 

Many writing manuals are packed chock-full of tips and advice, in fact too many. At the most, my scattered little brain can only remember up to three good points, otherwise I get sparks and steam coming out my ears as the cogs grind. Most are good tips, but really, once you've read half a dozen writing guides, you've probably heard them before.

No, it must be an earth-shattering, mind-blowing piece of advice. And this book has it.

The Artist's Way Handbook was already listed on my Ten Best Writing Workbooks post, but it warranted a revisit. Why did I like it? I got my one good tip. 

Morning Pages - this is the term Julia Cameron uses to describe a daily task. First thing you do when you get up in the morning is to write three pages in longhand. It doesn't matter what you write, as long as you fill three pages. This was amazing for me. Here's my top reasons you should try writing morning pages:

1. Focus. This small act lets me know my day is set for writing. When I don't complete my morning pages, I find I have a disorganised day.
2. Capture dreams. If I get started quickly enough I can hold onto that vanishing story from my dream time. Last night I dreamt of a flat cat, that once I administered first aid, it inflated back up again. I can't make that stuff up.
3. Inspiration. By delving into my aspirations, I can clarify my career desires.
4. Stories. Sometimes my writing pages are blessed with stories, I don't even understand where they all come from. One of my favourite sassy characters, big Rosie, manifested on these pages.
5. Info dump. Sometimes my head becomes overloaded with clutter. I get so frazzled with the hundred different aspects of my life that I can't sit still and work on my WIP. On those days, my morning pages dump all the garbage out of my head and leave a nice clear space for the creative.
6. To-do list. I'll often finish up my three pages with a quick to-do list for the day. Once I get the kids up and off to school, I feel like I have a guide in place so I know exactly where to start when I get back.

This time I got further with the book. Some tips I enjoyed, such as listing things I love to do, other lives I could have lived, but then there were other activities I couldn't get into, such as remembering someone who wronged you from the past and pondering what blocks your creativity. I found the later too negative for me, I'm all about bouncy happy bunnies, no time for doom and gloom.

Coming up with your own writing affirmations is also a big winner for me. They serve as a reminder that my writing and teaching writing is a professional career and deserves respect.

In summary? Get yourself this workbook. There are several editions, but I recommend the workbook. Do the activities that speak to you, and miss the once that don't appeal to you (like the downers). Go for it. The Artist's Way is a fantastic workbook. 5/5 for me!

Don't forget to sign up for our awesome blog hop!

Imagination Sparks Blogfest

Starts August 1, sign up now!

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Tune in to Podcasts for Writers

While Emily loves her tunes, I prefer podcasts.

I'm a big fan of podcasts. I listen to them while I'm doing menial tasks, walking, catching public transport, driving and sometimes even while I sleep. I can't get enough.

What is a podcast? Put simply, it's an audio file that you can download to your mp3 player (most phones will play podcasts). Most of the quality podcasts are structured very similar to a radio broadcast or a seminar recording, but you can listen when it suits you. I first came across podcasts on education when I was studying to become a high school teacher and I've been hooked every since.

If you're new to podcasts (you can find a lot on iTunes, or go straight to the websites), here the ones I enjoy listening to:

Brain Burps About Books

Author Katie Davis hosts Brain Burps About Books as a "fly on the wall" show. It's all about the business of children's books: publishing, creating, promoting, and writing them.
* Katie's enthusiastic approach is addictive. Love Brain Burps.

Part time Author Podcast

Covers all things writing, from tips and resources to industry information and guest author, editor and agent interviews. Podcast host, author, and speaker Genny Heikka, and tech expert, illustrator and kidlit writer Aaron Robbins, share stories from their own writing journeys and discuss the real challenges and opportunities that arise in the pursuit of becoming an author.

The Creative Penn

Interviews, Inspiration and Information on Writing, Publishing Options and Book Marketing. Hosted by Joanna Penn

Write Out Loud
Interviews with new and experienced authors, editors, literary agents, publishers, and everyone in between. 

Adventures in Sci-fi Publishing

Interviews, panels and seminars on the world of science fiction publishing and writing.

Writing Excuses

Fifteen minutes long, because you're in a hurry, and we're not that smart.

Odyssey Writing Workshops

Welcome to the Odyssey Podcasts. These podcasts are excerpts from lectures given by guest writers, editors, and agents at the Odyssey Writing Workshop.

On The Page Screenwriting with Pilar Alessandra

Covers branding, agents, managers, networking, pitching and writing for features, tv, webisodes, video games, procedurals and reality.

The Self Publishing Podcast

I should probably recommend this one with a warning -- the first time you listen, you'll wonder why anyone would tune into this bunch of fellows complaining, swearing, self-promoting and laughing at private jokes. That's what I thought, but now I can't wait to tune in again.

Radio National Books + and Books and Arts Daily

Radio National put all their top ABC radio programs up as podcasts, so if you miss them when they're live, you can still download them! So many to choose from, but Books + and Books and Arts Daily are my pick.

Litopia

Litopia Radio were one of the first podcasts I listened to all about the publishing industry. They focus more on any controversy in the news and legal issues with publishing. Last time I tuned in there was a strange political rant.

The Penguin Podcast - Penguin Books UK

Industry news and interviews in the world of Penguin

Dymocks for Booklovers Podcast

Author interviews.

Australian Writer's Centre Podcast 

These podcasts feature a variety of author interviews, many including Australian authors.

Inside Creative Writing

Advice on craft and technique. Episodes are like attending a workshop on writing techniques.

Writers on Writing

Writers on Writing is a weekly radio program produced and hosted by author Barbara DeMarco-Barrett, with co-host Marrie Stone.

The Wheeler Centre

Videos of author talks and seminars

Grammar Girl Quick and Dirty Tips for Better Writing

Every writer should have access to this website! Any grammar quesiton answered.

3 Minute Hypnosis

Ok, I know this is not on the craft of writing, but these are seriously good hypnosis recordings. Get help relaxing, relieving stress, sleeping, inspiring creativing, being more confident and much more.

Smart Passive Income with Pat Flynn

Also not about the craft of writing, but excellent tips on marketing and social media use.

Don't forget to sign up for our fun blog hop: The Imagination Sparks Blogfest

It'll be a lot of creative fun with little to no rules. Runs 1-8 August - sign up now!

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Imagination Sparks Blogfest

You might remember this blogfest from 2011, well I've brought it back!

This is the IMAGINATION SPARKS BLOGFEST

What does that mean? It's easy. We all know at least one good warm up exercise to get our brain geared up and ready to write. That one creative task that gets your imagination bubbling with ideas. I thought we'd share them and try eachother's.

Here's what I want you to do:

1. Register your blog in the link list below to show you are going to try and participate. Sign up will be available from now until the end of the blogfest. If you'd like to use the image above to let others know about the blog hop - go ahead!
2. On the 1st of August (or there about - I'm not strict), post one of your favourite writing exercises that we can all try. 
3. Read other people's blogs and try some of those exercises.
4. Around the 8th, do a follow up blogpost to let people know which exercises you tried and what results you got. Visit the other blogs to see how they went with the exercises. (we all have different time zones, so anytime that fits your schedule is good for me)
5. Get new ideas and make new bloggy friends!

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Writing with Marian Allen

Today on dream... write... publish, I have the talented author Marian Allen, sharing her writing routine, promotional tip and her trilogy, SAGE.

Marian has many publications (just check out her author page on Amazon!), and is one of my favourite authors of short stories. Seriously, when asked about writing short story writing, I recommend Ray Bradbury and Marian Allen. So, let's get on with the interview!

Marian, what is your writing routine, and how do you entice those words to flow?

I don't have a routine; I have to grab the minutes whenever I can get them. National Novel Writing Month and Story A Day in May taught me to overcome my natural laziness and do the hard bit first: plotting. My inclination is just to write, write, write and let the plot unfold as it pleases ... until I get to the part where I have to start making decisions. Then it isn't FUN anymore. It's HARD, and I don't LIKE it! I've learned that, if I just take the time to choose a general plot arc right at the beginning, I can play the whole way through. If the plot changes, it changes, but I don't have to stop and whine just when things are starting to get interesting.

You've released quite a few books now, what do you consider an author's best promotional tool or strategy?

What sells me on an author's work is a literate blurb with at least one hooky element. If the blurb is badly worded and/or boring, I probably won't buy the book. I like to interact with writers and read at least some of their blog posts; it indicates something about the quality of their minds and their prose.

*That's so cool, I just realised  you can read minds on blogs! Wait... oh oh.

Your latest series making a splash on the internet is SAGE, please tell us a little about this series.

SAGE is really one BFF (Big Fat Fantasy) divided into three 'acts'. It took me nearly twenty years from conception to publication, in part because I kept finding agents who were interested in it. The manner of its telling is peculiar though, and they kept suggesting changes they then didn't like and dropping me. I think I went through three or four agents before I realized I'd rewritten the life out of the book and went back and rewrote it to suit my peculiar self. In the meantime, indie publishing took off, and I was lucky enough to find Hydra Publications (NOT the Random House subsidiary!), which handed me to Martha Swanson, QUEEN OF ALL EDITORS, who helped me say what I wanted to say the best way I could say it, rather than trying to 'fix' the peculiarities.

* Getting dropped by your team makes you a great candidate for Prime Minister in Australia.

  

SAGE: Usurper. Lost heir. Runaway bride. Land on the brink of civil war. All so familiar, until Tortoise -- the Divine Creature who ignores the rules of right and wrong -- challenges his fellow divinities to meddle. Suddenly, children targeted for murder are adopted, swordsmen turn into blacksmiths, and none are reliably who or what they seem.

The four Divine Animals are afoot: Tortoise, Dragon, Unicorn and Phoenix. Hold on tight.

The Fall of Onagros, SAGE Book 1.

In the first book of the SAGE trilogy, a legacy is lost, a woman vanishes into thin air, wisdom is found in unexpected places, and a man hopes to defeat a tyrant with tall tales and gossip.

Bargain with Fate, SAGE Book 2.

The mighty are helpless, the weak are strong, and a little girl clutches creatures of terror to her ragged heart.

Silver and Iron, SAGE Book 3.

The contention over the throne of Layounna is fought on strange battlegrounds: an island, a henyard, a scrivenry, a pocket, and the heart of the chief claimant.

Wow. You've got me hooked! Show us where to grab this BFF series!

The Fall of Onagros

Kindle http://bookshow.me/B00AYF6546

print http://bookshow.me/0615774474

*The Fall of Onagros is FREE on July 16-17!

Bargain With Fate

Kindle http://bookShow.me/B00CLUUO9O

print http://bookshow.me/0615818323

Silver and Iron

Kindle http://bookshow.me/B00D2GKXGK

print http://bookshow.me/0615818315

That's awesome, thanks so much for sharing with us today Marian! If you'd like to find Marian to learn more about her books and become a fan (but not one of those creepy ones... although, she'd probably have fun turning that into a story!), here's some links:
Blog:  www.marianallen.com
Twitter:  @marianallen
Facebook:  Marian Allen Author
Google+:  Marian Allen Author

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We have WINNERS!

It's official, the competition for the Kindle Fire and Amazon Gift Card to celebrate the release of DOGNAPPED? A Dog Show Detective Mystery, is over! We had almost 100 entries, and Rafflecopter has generated our first place and second place winner. And now, for the....

The prize is the current model.
I have no idea if this photo is the same one or an older one, but you get the idea.

And the winner is...

And there was a runner up prize of:

And the winner for the gift card is...

How exciting! Stephanie, I'll send you an email today to get a postal address for your awesome prize (if you don't have a US postal address, the prize is a Kindle Paperwhite because Amazon will not post Fires outside the US - as per my earlier post 

http://clancytales.blogspot.com.au/2013/06/competition-to-win-kindle-fire-still.html)

And Sally, I'll email you your Amazon credit very very soon!

*I'm in the library today, and sometimes my email use is dodgy, so I might end up sending them tomorrow from home.

CONGRATULATIONS!

AND THANK YOU TO EVERYONE WHO DOWNLOADED DOGNAPPED?!

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Writing the Funny - Top 6 Tips via Twitter

I worry that I spend too much time on social media. Then I switch off and worry I don't spend enough time on social media. It can be a distraction, but is also quite helpful at times. While procrastinating from writing, um, I mean, while keeping up with my social media requirement, I stumbled across a great twitter conversation. You can find out more about the twitter conversation #writersroad at Heather McCorkle's blog, or just join in:

We chat every Monday at 6pm PT (using either Tweetchat~easier when it works, but it is glitchy~or TweetDeck) and all are invited to participate. We're always open to topic suggestions so long as they involve writing or the publishing industry. Feel free to apply to join our Facebook page as well. We are often trending on Twitter!

A couple of weeks ago we had a great talk on writing humour. There were tips, opinions, and funny responses. Here's the top tips I got from that conversation:

1. Humour is about perspective. 

What's funny to us authors as an inside joke doesn't always translate. That's what professional editors are for. (@cushmanovich)

Making your friends laugh, being funny on screen, and writing comedy are completely different and often unrelated. (@EitanTheWriter)

Know ur audience and what they would find funny. YA audience humor differs from MG or Adult humor. (@DougSolter)

2. Show don't tell.

Don't tell us your protagonist's uncle is funny, show him telling jokes instead. PROVE he's funny. (@charmaineclancy)

Not funny: saying a character is "clumsy" but they never do anything clumsy except fall down every 100 pages. (@Tina_Moss)

3. Funny sounds funny.

Everyday names can be funny. I have a Kev in one book, but Bob is always a funny name, but Peter? Nah. (@charmaineclancy)

Part of humor is in the language we choose. (@HeatherMcCorkle)

With humor, you never say "pull" when you can say "yank." Some words are simply funnier than others. (@teetate)

4. Humour is not mean.

It's a risky line between being funny about a character and being mean. Laugh 'with' not 'at' -- or at least make the victim deserving. (@charmaineclancy)

There is a fine line between bullying and humor. Make sure your characters know it. (@HeatherMcCorkle)

5. Steal your ideas.

... take notes when people laugh in real life, and takes notes on what makes you laugh. (@HeatherMcCorkle)

Steal examples from real life. Wanna see some funny stuff? get on YouTube & look up "pranks" (@teetate)

Think of your favorite funny characters in books and movies, then explore why they were funny to you. (@HeatherMcCorkle)

6. Funny is unpredictable.

I've heard (and observed) that the best humor is in the unexpected. I like this rule of 3s. (@kristiecookauth)

I also think it's funny when you get insight into the character's mind, but what comes out of their mouth doesn't agree. (@jbeemills)

This post is part of the IWSG - a group or writers who blog once a month about insecurities and offer helpful advice.

IWSG Time! To join up, just click on the image!

It's getting close!

Competition to win a Kindle Fire or Amazon Gift Card closes on the 7th July!

Did you enter? For details, go to WIN A KINDLE!

I'll announce the winner on the 8th of July.

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