Excuse the artistic license here and there, and at the end, as there were less lyrics than music!
Santa baby, I’d like to have a quick word or two, With you, Now you’ve not much to do, Santa baby, My Christmas stocking felt a bit light… Santa honey, I know that you brought chocolate and cheese… I’m pleased… But the dog ate all these, Santa baby, Perhaps we could redress this tonight? Think of all the sites I’d see If you would just deliver me an SUV… Four wheel drive, economy… Just park it under the cherry tree. Oh, Santa cutie, my clutch is really on its way out, I’ll pout, If I can’t get about, Santa baby, So let’s see if we can’t make it right. Don’t expect it all for free… I’ll even buy a ticket for the lottery… Help me out and I’ll desist From publishing those photos of the Mom’s you kissed! Ho, Santa baby, I’m not sure Mrs Santa would care To share All that ‘mistletoe fare’, Santa baby So hurry down my chimney tonight.
It’s the last One-Liner of the year so I thought I’d join in, one last time, but not last for good if you know what I mean?
As of the new year, I am bowing out of my daily challenges, so I can actually get my rewrite and editing done on those blessed WIP of mine. I’ll still be around, you know me, I can’t stay away. Spidey and Chai will definitely be happening, it’s just the other stuff.. for a while at least…
2019 will be the year.
I hope…!
No, I don’t hope, I will make something happen. By the end of the year, there will be a book available, with my name as the author… whether it is by indie means or other… it will be there, and with any luck, another will be well on the way too!
Now, I just need your writerly vibes to help me along!
Got your drink ready? Or at least got your kettle on? Settle down then!
If we were sipping chai together I’d firstly say, PHEW! We are finally on holiday! The last term has been really long, and coupled with the staffing issues and illness, it has not been an easy ride, but we have got there!
If we were sipping chai together I’d tell you that Christmas can really make a teacher feel appreciated! My pupils ad colleagues excelled themselves, I was loaded down with gift bags to take home, filled with choccies, bickies and all sorts of lovely goodies!
If we were sipping chai together I’d tell you about another drama involving Lil Man, his friends, an X-Box controller, security cameras, black magic, Autism and friendship… but it would be far too long, and we’d need IV drips for our drinks! Suffice to say, Tuesday was an eventful evening!
If we were sipping chai together I’d say the staff Christmas party was a fun evening, even though the younger members of staff didn’t quite appreciate the entertainment, asking what a UB40 was, rather than who… as we had a tribute band, UB42, providing the music for part of the evening! Still, I enjoyed it and by swaying along to the reggae, I smashed my step count and active minutes according to the FitBit app!
If we were sipping chai together I’d tell you that I have been secreting little presents away for the kids, and now I really need to get them wrapped! If we were sipping chai together I’d tell you Saturday and Sunday were pretty calm, all Christmas-panic-related things, considered!
If we were sipping that chai together, and possibly reaching for cake or cookies I’d whisper that I still haven’t wrapped anything! Eeeek! Guess what I’ll be doing this evening!
If we were sipping that chai together, and possibly reaching for cake or cookies I’d rant that I have to take Lil Princess to a party today – on Christmas Eve – at the local Shopping centre! Seriously? Who chooses one of the busiest times of the year and one of the busiest venues, to have a party?! Still, I am hoping to have a couple of hours of either shopping, or sitting with a book and a Chai Latte at Costa, to while the party hours away!
If we were sipping that chai together, and possibly reaching for cake or cookies I’d wish you a very Merry Christmas, and say, I look forward to all the Christmas stories next week!
Write how you think, show your readers you are a human too!
I’ve said this before but your voice is what readers will identify with, so don’t try to be someone else. It is easy to try and do that behind the facade of a blog, but it’s hard to keep that pretence up.
I’m really not one for reading texts for how to improve your writing.
It’s not that I don’t think I need them, but I often feel that if someone is telling me how to write, then what I churn out is not really my voice, but that of another…
Having said that, I have read a few recently, by trusted authors, some who I feel I know, some whose name I have grown up with… Stephen King, Karen McQuestion, Bryan Cohen, Nicola Morgan, Sacha Black…
And they haven’t been telling me what to write, rather how to go about the process, sometimes how they started off, in order to reach the heights they have climbed.
Sacha Black is definitely one of those authors.
Hers was actually the first ever writing craft book I read actually.
When she released her guide to creating villains, I had to get it. Partly because I had been with her step by step, via the blog, as she wrote it, and partly because she always sounds like she knows what she’s talking about!
And after that, she couldn’t leave it at one book, so on top of writing two parts to her YA series, she created a guide to create a fantastic hero character too!
So, the blurb…
From cardboard cut-out to superhero in 10 steps.
Are you fed up of one-dimensional heroes? Frustrated with creating clones? Does your protagonist fail to capture your reader’s heart?
In 10 Steps To Hero, you’ll discover:
+ How to develop a killer character arc
+ A step-by-step guide to creating your hero from initial concept to final page
+ Why the web of story connectivity is essential to crafting a hero that will hook readers
+ The four major pitfalls to avoid as well as the tropes your story needs
Finally, there is a comprehensive writing guide to help you create your perfect protagonist. Whether you’re writing your first story or you’re a professional writer, this book will help supercharge your hero and give them that extra edge.
These lessons will help you master your charming knights, navigate your way to the perfect balance of flaws and traits, as well as strengthen your hero to give your story the conflict and punch it needs.
First, there were villains, now there are heroes. If you like dark humor, learning through examples, and want to create the best hero you can, then you’ll love Sacha Black’s guide to crafting heroes.
Read 10 Steps To Hero today and start creating kick-ass heroes.
For the first time, since reading these kinds of books, I was inspired to get a pen and paper, any paper, and jot down ideas to hopefully improve my characters, and their reasoning behind doing some of the things they do in my own book!
I’m weaving my own web of connectivity, creating character arcs, looking through my hero lens… (you’ll need to read it to get what all those are!) And all with the help of this rather cool guide that is rather funny too. Sacha is like me, she tends to create her own words, to describe things. She’s not afraid to say it like it is either.
And would I recommend it to other aspiring writers?
And not only does Sacha write these amazing badass craft guides, but she even manages to write accompanying workbooks too!
You know you wanna buy…
If you don’t know Sacha, why not?
She is blogging event organiser extraordinaire, being the birth mother of the Annual Bloggers Bash and Awards, and an author of four books, two fiction, and two non-fiction, with more due soon! And she is a loving wife and mother too, to top it off!
Sacha Black has five obsessions; words, expensive shoes, conspiracy theories, self-improvement, and breaking the rules. She also has the mind of a perpetual sixteen-year-old, only with slightly less drama and slightly more bills.
Sacha writes books about people with magical powers and other books about the art of writing. She lives in Hertfordshire, England, with her wife and genius, giant of a son.
When she’s not writing, she can be found laughing inappropriately loud, blogging, sniffing musty old books, fangirling film and TV soundtracks, or thinking up new ways to break the rules.
But I Smile Anyway... 