New Year New Book

This is what I think I should do to plot a book... 

New Year, new resolutions and all that.

I'm not very good at making those, but I have started writing my next book.

What with my four years of online dating experience, I have been urged (by my current beau #TheBoss - who I met through online dating) to write my online dating story. I mean I have so much material!

I've noticed writers say they're going to write 1000 words a day, etc. and for me that's no good. It's not possible. I'd be failing before I even started. There's no point setting yourself something unachievable. It's not motivational.

I work part-time, so on the days I work, I don't tend to get to write. I have two kids, so I try not to write during the evenings, and use that time to relax and read. And now I have a new man - who takes up my weekends, so there's no way I can sit down every day and bash out 1000 words.

Anyway, I got to thinking; what if I try to reach 5000-7000 words a week. I have three days a week where I try to set aside writing. Although even I don't get write on all of these days sometimes.

At the moment I don't think even this is possible, as I am in the throws of researching (which I tend to do a bit as I write because I'm the pantster type writer apparently...) I'm just not very good at the whole plotting thing. I just end up writing and research as I go. I make notes, don't get me wrong, and make sure I put the main points I need to get into the book, but I like how the story comes to me from my head through my fingers on the keyboard, and onto the screen.

Then I got to thinking, well what if worse case scenario, I only got 3000 words written a week, in those 3 days... How long would it take me to write approximately a 90,000 word novel. So I did the math.

Basically, it would take 30 weeks, which is around 7.5 months (if they're all 4 week months!). Well that's not so bad. I could be looking at by the end of July having the first draft finished.

So that's my plan. It might be a bit longer than that as we need to factor in school holidays - but some weeks, once this novel really takes off, and I don't have to think up new names, or sneak off to the internet for some research, I'll get more than 3000 words written a week - easy.

I do use a spreadsheet to see how many words I write a day, so I can monitor my progress and see if I'm on target. I've marked off the 90th day. So let's see if I can do this.

Currently it's working title is The Golden Rules To Online Dating.

A Happy, Healthy New Year

Well, 2016 has been a fun one. Not. But I do have mixed feelings for last year.

I started it single. And happy I was.

There are so many celebrity deaths, some quite shocking that it just seemed to be taking away childhood favourites, and showing a sign that I was getting older too. Then we don't even want to talk about Brexit and Donald Trump. I fear 2017 may also be a tough year, as a consequence of the results of 2016.

However, I did meet someone (who I will refer to as #TheBoss although we all know I'm the boss really). I went on a date with this man, thinking it would probably be only the one date, like the others...  And we've shared the last six months together... :D And hopefully we will share many, many more months... years... to come. He is my calming influence. So 2016 has not been all bad.

I'm not really one for making New Years resolutions, but I do like to try and make dates, plan more to do, catch up with friends, and to try and worry less.

I have a new book release this year, so this will be exciting to look forward to. My friend and I want to see Jasper Carrott (it's a long story) and he's coming to Weston! We (#TheBoss and I) have booked Harry Potter studio tour for January with our kids - which we maybe more excited about than the kids - so already my diary is filling up.

What about you? What do you hope 2017 holds for you?

Let me take this opportunity to wish you all a very happy, healthy New Year. Fingers crossed 2017 isn't so disastrous.

Now Proud Owner of a Pre-nager

Everything went a bit bonkers before the weekend, and I never managed to post my obligatory happy birthday post to my son - not that he sees it.

Anyway, my eldest turned 12 yesterday. TWELVE! Where the bloody hell did that go?

If you're reading this and nursing a baby, hug and cuddle that baby. Kiss him/her regularly. They grow up so fast. I savoured every cuddle with my two boys, especially when I was breastfeeding them and they would fall asleep in my arms. I only wish I'd got even more times like that.

Now I find myself frustrated and nagging more than I like to my not-so-little pre-nager...

I love him so much. And the reason I shout and scream at him is because I want him to turn into a decent human being, and a gentleman. I am bringing up a future husband after all. Generally, he's pretty good. He just seems so laid back with his head in the clouds at times, which is not me at all. Well, the writer in me does have my head in the clouds I suppose... But the dithering I can't cope with.

The picture of above shows how much he looks like me - poor sod!

Love you so much, Ben x x

2015 - before he cut his hair but one of my favourites of us!

December Is Here

It's pretty cold outside today, confirming Winter is here too. There's a frost on the ground which the kids all want to be snow.

My boys love December. It means they get to have chocolate at breakfast. (I have to reiterate after they've eaten their breakfast!)

Even though Ben is going to be 12 in a few days time, he still likes our advent calendar that has now become a part of our Christmas tradition. I love finding small chocolates that will fit into the pouches. On the 4th and 24th there has to be extra in there.

And Ben loves having a December birthday, because it means he gets to eat chocolate in the morning...

I still won't put the decorations up until about a week later, although I may have to get the lights on outside the house (as my neighbour has put his up and I wouldn't want him to feel the odd one out).

This year I got treated to an advent calendar from Marks and Spencer, so this morning I enjoyed the excitement by opening up the first box. You're never too old to have an advent calendar!

I've deliberately not looked at the list on the back, so I'll get a surprise every day! I love presents!

Usually I run a kind of advent calendar on my blog, but I think I'm going to be too busy with edits for my third book, due out in April, and with wrapping presents etc. But hopefully, I'll get to sneak a few blog posts in before the festivities truly begin.

What advent calendar do you have? I've seen some pretty unique ones on Facebook...

Wouldn't this be a wonderful Advent Calendar to have.... don't think we'd get much done running up to Christmas though...

Pokemon can just Go now

I don't actually own this dragonite!

Anyone else been playing this game? (That's probably a silly question). I stupidly thought it would be fun to download onto my phone so I could play it with the boys. And don't get me wrong, at first it really was great fun. Along the seafront for us, is great for catching Pokemon!

But now, quite frankly, it's boring me. It's also soooo frustrating at times too.

Now I'm not really a gamer, so I don't know what's good or bad about a game, in gaming sense. However, what I find frustrating is that there is no way of collecting all of the Pokemon's unless you pay for incubators and hope you'll get something decent out of your egg. I did pay... I got mainly Pokemon I already had. (It's not very satisfying when a Drowsy hatches out of a 5km egg!) I didn't do it again. I refuse to pay for more incubators if I'm only getting Pokemon I've already got, and don't even need the candy for!

So now I have 9 eggs... and one bloody incubator. Can't we get the odd incubator from a Pokestop? Please? Not just at certain leveling up!

Then, my other gripe is nothing really set at a certain level. You could be on level 10 and catch an Aerodactyl, and on level 30 and still waiting to catch/hatch one. Is that a good or bad thing about this game? I'm still waiting for a sodding Snorlax! I'm level 23! But now 10km eggs seem to be like gold dust, I can't see me hatching one anytime soon.

Then, while out and about, all I seem to see are rats, pidgeys and bloody weedles (unless I'm on the seafront). I know these help to level up etc. by evolving them all the time, yet there are Pokemon's out there, not all that rare, I could just do with seeing a bit more frequently. A Bulbasaur.... I live by a bloody park for pity's sake!

I also get frustrated when I catch a damn Pokemon five (or more) times, and he's still escaping the Pokeball. If I'm not meant to catch him, then make him run away! For rats, pidgeys etc. they have a one ball rule. Can't be arsed with wasting balls on things I don't need!

And now, the Pokestops have stopped being generous on giving out Pokeballs. So I'm definitely sticking to that one ball rule.

Isn't this game supposed to be for kids? Or just us big kids? Either way, I'm finding it rather dull now, and frustrating... let alone fed up that when it is on, I'm charging my phone constantly.

Give me something more exciting to catch, Pokemon Go! Something I bloody need!

You could easily get sucked into spending a lot of money on this game, which makes it more like gambling than gaming. I mean, the average newly released PlayStation 4 game is £40 - but the play value is far higher and more entertaining, isn't it? (Like I said, I'm not really a gamer).