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#HistFicThursdays - Art as Inspiration

 Last year, the Historical Writers Forum published an anthology of stories which had been inspired by pieces of artwork. I take a particular pride in this anthology - not only because it is a fabulous collection of stories which mine is included in, but also because I helped to come up with the theme. In amongst the pages of Masterworks , you will find stories inspired by painting and sculptures, and one which was inspired by a carving. I wrote a blog on this little carving when the book came out last November (which you can find here !), but it got me thinking about other examples of artwork as an inspiration... As historical fiction writers, art is not only an inspiration, it is also a valuable tool. Through art, we can get an idea of what people looked like (very handy if you are writing about a real figure from history) and it can also be very handy for events and settings. One of my favourite continuous portrayals of an event is the example of Frost Fairs. These start from their n
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NaNoWriMo Day 30 - What Next?

Saturday 30th November - What Next?

Wow! We've made it to the end of NaNoWriMo.  If you managed your 50,000 words: Congratulations!  If you managed to get off the starting block: Congratulations!  Whatever anyone tells you, there is nothing easy about writing a book.  Even when you enjoy it, it's still hard work.

So, what happens next?  Here's what Crowvus suggests:

  1. Have a party - you've deserved it! And, by the way, a party only needs to have as few or as many people as you want.  My favourite parties have been family affairs.  It's important to be proud of yourself, and to celebrate your success.
  2. Revisit your novel - I suggest you re-read the whole thing.  Pick up and iron out any continuity issues and correct any typos you spot, but don't go through looking for them.  Proofreading comes later.
  3. Find your First Reader - for advice on this you can read our Day 15 blog.
  4. Rerevisit your novel - decide which of the First Reader's comments you want to build on and make these changes.
  5. Proofreading - you can choose whether to employ someone or find a friend, but proofreading should not be done by yourself or your First Reader.  You need someone who is not familiar with your writing and story.
  6. Rererevisit your novel - no need to add or change anything other than any issues your proofreader highlighted.  Some proofreaders will make these changes for you.
  7. Editing - for advice on this you can read our Day 10 blog.  This stage takes time, and will probably take a lot of to-ing and fro-ing for your manuscript.
  8. Rerererevisit your novel - this is your novel's final visit before handing it over.
  9. Decide your publishing route - whether through a publisher or self-publishing, your book is now ready to go "Out There".
On behalf of Crowvus, Congratulations!

Image result for congratulations free clipart


Thanks for sharing NaNoWriMo with us!

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