S.J.Budd

The brand new year of 2015 will soon be upon us, hopefully full of good fortune and health. It's also  good time to set yourself some writing targets for the year ahead, this will help you stay motivated and give you something to strive for. Of course we all wish to be a bestselling author, but no one is born that way. We all have to start off at the beginning which means starting off with realistic goals that should be achievable with hard work and dedication. Remember you should start with small goals and then if you achieve them early on, you can always set yourself some more. To help you on your way, make sure your resolutions are SMART S PECIFIC - Be clear on what your goals are M EASUREABLE - Ensure that you can quantitatively measure your progress A TTAINABLE - Start small with goals you're confident you can achieve R EALISTIC -  Pick goals that are within your reach T IME-RELATED - Give yourself a reasonable time limit. If you fancy it you could also se

What is Symbolism in fiction? Symbolism simply means the using of symbols to demonstrates an idea or concept that is not easily communicated with just words. Symbols used can be anything from, literally symbols, objects, a particular word, colour or phrase, such as a cliche. It is a tool by which the writer can subtly suggest what may happen next without giving it away. For example describing a full moon in your story, can subconsciously give off the impression that something out of the ordinary is about to happen. This is because a full moon is associated with many occult creatures such as werewolves and it is supposed to be a magical time in the moon's cycle. Not to mention the effect of setting your story at night. Interestingly colours can also be used to represent a character or concept. Traditionally black represents evil and white represents purity whilst the use of multi-colours represents happiness. Symbolism can add significant depth to fiction by transformin

Last Friday I received an email that every aspiring writer hopes for - one of my short stories had been accepted by a magazine. I was thrilled and couldn't believe it that someone out there likes my work. This is my first short story to be published and I hope it's not the last. You can read my first published story in Sanitarium Magazine, issue 28, which is out now. You can buy a copy here For those who haven't heard of Sanitarium before it is a monthly magazine that specialises in horror fiction, and also publishes articles and interviews. It's a great little read and well worth checking out. www.sanitariummagazine.com

So if you're reading this you've probably decided to take the plunge and have a go at submitting your short stories for publications in magazines, anthologies and competitions, and why not? It's the greatest feeling when finally one of your stories gets accepted, especially when you get to see it in print. Once you start looking for magazines in your genre you'll realise there's a multitude of magazines out there to submit your work to. Fortunately unlike submitting stories into competitions there's no entry fee. Sounds easy right? But how can you know which magazines are more likely to accept your work. Once you've sent off your submission you may be faced with a lengthy wait of six months. That's six months of wondering whether they've even received your work, of wondering whether they like it. It's six months of not being able to enter it in anything until you hear back. Yes, it can be a long process. I like to think that submitting sto

The antagonist is the character that plays a big part in the life of the protagonist. In case you're not sure the protagonist is what's known as the main character in any novel short story etc. The plot will evolve around them and they're usually the hero of the story that the reader most strongly identifies with. How does the antagonist relate to the protagonist? Therefore the antagonist is the character that in some way has conflict with the protagonist. The antagonist will make life difficult for the protagonist, maybe on purpose or by accident. The antagonist is often referred to as the baddie but an antagonist is not exclusively the baddie, they just have to oppose the protagonist in some way. Though the antagonist does not have to be a single character, they can also be a group of characters such as an evil force, or race of people in conflict with the protagonist. How important is an antagonist to a story? All stories need both a protagonist and it&#

If you're new to writing short stories in speculative fiction and want your work to be published bear in mind that most agents, editors and slush pile readers are looking for ORIGINAL fiction and ideas. So although your head might be brimming with great plots and ideas, are they as original as you think they are? If sometimes a whole story or an idea comes to your head in the blink of an eye it may be because it is a cliché that has been written many times before. You may have read it before without realising. In this post we're going to take a look at the top overused fantasy clichés that everyone is bored of. So if you want to write stories that may get published or win in competitions, it's best to avoid these. Top Fantasy clichés to avoid   The protagonist or hero is an orphan This is a classic technique used to make the reader sympathise with the character and make them more likeable, everyone loves an under-dog. This is also a convenient way of buil

Who is Catherynne.M.Valente? Catherynne M Valente is a lesser known author that has been receiving a lot of attention lately and I'm always on the look out for discovering new favourite authors.  For some reason I thought Catherynne M Valente would be an older woman of about sixty due to her impressive array of published fiction but when I checked out her website I was shocked to see how young she was. Alongside her novels she has published various works of poetry and her short stories have been published in the likes of Lamplight Magazine which are featured on the Magazines page, if you're interested in submitting work to them. The titles of her other works sound really intriuging such as; The Habitation of the Blessed This Is My Letter to the World The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making Yume No Hon: The book of Dreams Palimpsest The Orphan's Tales: In the Night Garden and In the Cities of Coin and Spice Under in the Mere The

I've decided to try something new to try and help with my creative writing. Writing on demand. One of my favourite websites,  fantasyfaction  who run a monthly themed writing competition which is free to enter. By the way if you're not familiar with this website, it's well worth a look. Its the perfect site if you're a fantasy lover and the site features loads of book reviews, news articles as well as really handy in depth articles on writing in the fantasy genre. I'm quite blessed in the sense that I often pick up inspiration for new stories from my everyday life, but I thought it might be a good idea to try and write a short story specifically for a themed competition. Who knows I might win (unlikely) but it will be good fun and will only increase my output of work. This month's theme is religion and to be honest I don't know how to approach it. I'm not a religious person and it's not a subject that dominates my writing, but hey its

What is conflict? Conflict is an essential ingredient to any plot regardless of genre. It's easier to look at conflict in relation to the other basic ingredients for a foundation plot line. What are the utmost basic plot requirements? A plot needs,at least two characters, one should be a protagonist and the other the antagonist.  Why?  Because almost every problem that affects us is caused by someone else. How many times have you felt the urge to disappear off to a desert island and get away from everything and everyone.  Conflict between two characters will be something that every reader will instantly identify with. Who hasn't gone through life without having a single argument or falling out with someone else? Should conflict be resolved? Absolutely, even if you are writing a series of novels. For example in the Harry Potter series, poor Harry Potter experiences a lot of conflicts which he resolves in each book. However  the overri

What is causality? In fiction causality is a chain reaction that occurs between events in your plot. It makes one event cause another. A example of causality is when a character sets out to seek revenge against someone that has done them wrong. If this character had not been wronged they would have no need to seek revenge. What happens when causality is omitted from a plot? If there is no causality in your plot then your story is simply a stream of unrelated events that occur one after the other.  An example of this is: A man walks down a street, he sees a cat, there is a car crash, he goes home, the end. Without causality in a plot it is merely a stream of consciousness. There will be no point to the plot. Your characters do not grow and learn. There are no truths realised, and no change has occurred. What's the purpose of a plot? Remember a plot is a complete cycle. In very rough terms there should be a beginning, a middle and an e

In a previous post we've discussed how to create a gripping story by raising questions. Now we will go further into this and explore the two main types of questions that should be raised in your story. How to create Mystery and Suspense? Mystery and Suspense can be created by the raising of questions in your work. There should be at least one really big question included at the very beginning which will need to be answered. This is what will keep your reader motivated to read on until the end. When decided to choose what questions you will raise, it is very important to realise that you must be able to answer them in a way that will leave your reader satisfied. If you don't they will feel cheated. What is mystery? Mystery is defined by an event, occurrence or phenomenon that is impossible to explain or understand. In fiction, the genres that are based on mystery are thrillers, ghost stories,detective stories, murder mysteries, whodunnits.

How to keep your readers attention? What's the magic behind a book or short story that is completely impossible to put down? Every once in a while we all come across one that will have you staying up all night just so you can know what happens at the end. How do these authors do it? How do they keep you reading, even against your will? The answer is simple but the mechanism is harder to put in motion. To keep your readers entertained in your book you need to raise a very big question at the beginning that will motivate your reader to continue past the first page of your story. How to raise questions in your story? If your killer question is good enough people will read until the end to find the answer. This will keep their attention sustained throughout your story and they will happily plough through your book to get to the end. How to raise questions when writing a novel? If you're writing a novel, you will need to raise your killer question in the

A run-on sentence consists of two sentences that should have been separated with a punctuation mark. How to avoid a run on sentence? The mermaid was very wet she had been swimming for hours in an endless ocean of deep blue water. This in incorrect. Instead you could write The mermaid was very wet. S he had been swimming for hours in an endless ocean of deep blue water. Or The mermaid was very wet, as s he had been swimming for hours in an endless ocean of deep blue water. Or even The mermaid was very wet; s he had been swimming for hours in an endless ocean of deep blue water. A run-on sentence is grammatically incorrect Run-on sentences will make your work look clumsy and rambling. So make sure you proofread for these mistakes. For more handy tips on improving your grammar and punctuation click here to view many more articles.

What's pleonasm? Despite its name this is actually a fairly simple concept. Pleonasm simply refers to the use of unnecessary or redundant words in a sentence. Avoiding pleonasm in your work will make it flow better and be more concise. The wizard himself had cast the spell. In this sentence the word himself is unnecessary. The ogre with his very own eyes had seen the pretty princess approaching. You can check for these by proofreading your work. For more handy hints on how to improve your writing, grammar and punctuation click here to be taken to homepage.

What's the perfect length of a paragraph? This can be a hard thing to get right. If they're too long you could risk discouraging people from reading your work and if they're too short it could imply your work is of a low quality and not properly thought out. Unfortunately there's no set length on how long a paragraph must be, but there are guidelines. What is the purpose of a paragraph? The point of a paragraph in both fiction and non-fiction is to introduce a single idea or point. The first sentence of a paragraph should introduce the idea or point, the following sentences in that paragraph should explain or discuss the point or idea. This helps to keep your work concise and to the point. When you introduce another point or idea you then start off with a new paragraph. To view more articles on improving your writing, grammar and punctuation click here

How to write in the horror genre?  Horror is a genre that can be hard to get right, but when it's done well it has fantastic results. The bottom line is people love to be scared, and what better way than through a safe medium such as reading or watching a scary movie? How can horror scare readers? What is it that people are most afraid of? What keeps them awake at night and invades their dreams churning them into nightmares? People are all afraid of the unknown. We fear what we can't understand. Fear touches us all on a daily basis. What's that strange noise coming from downstairs in the middle of the night? What's going to happen to me once I die? What will happen if I don't pay my bills on time? Keep this in mind when you write. If you tell your readers what is happening in your story, you will put their minds at rest. Never do this is, your writing horror. Keep them in the dark, quite literally, and keep them scared. The golden rule of writing:

Writing cover letters when submitting short stories isn't as hard as you think. A lot of inexperienced writers wrongly assume that your cover letter needs to describe your submission. What's the purpose of a cover letter? Try to consider that the process of submitting short stories for journals magazines or competitions is the literary equivalent of applying for a job. The purpose of attaching a cover letter is to very briefly introduce yourself in a professional way, but always check the submission guidelines of the publication you are applying to, as many have their own strict criteria. A checklist for writing a top cover letter Always try to address your cover letter to a specific person, usually the fiction editor. Their name can be easily found out by checking their website. If you can't find their name, make it addressable to a colleague so it will show you at least tried. Your cover letter will be forwarded to the correct person. Include your name,

What's an apostrophe? An apostrophe is used to either contract words or to illustrate possession within a sentence. What are the functions of an apostrophe? To indicate a word contraction To indicate possession How to use an apostrophe in word contraction? An apostrophe is used in a sentence when one or more letters have been removed from a word. Do not = Don't Have not = Haven't It is = It's Who is = Who's Take care not to overuse apostrophes and remember that they should not be used in academic work. How to use an apostrophe to indicate possession? Apostrophes to show possession are often over used, and is a common mistake to make. If it is a singular noun, proper noun or common noun that does the possessing this is indicated by - 's Tom's magical cat was amazing. The castle's walls were beginning to crumble. Cornwall's pixies were notorious for littering. If using an apostrophe to indicate possession by

What is a hyphen? The use of a hyphen is often overlooked but when used properly can give your work a more professional feel. Hyphens are used when combining words in a sentence. What are the functions of a hyphen? To combine the word self with a noun To illustrate adjectives that are formed by combining words How to use a hyphen to combine the word self with a noun? This is really simple. Self-confidence Self-loathing How to use a hyphen to illustrate adjectives that are formed by combining words? The pedlar was a nik-nak man. He was a new-age wizard.

A semicolon is an often misused piece of punctuation but is very simple to use. Take care not to over use a semicolon in your work. What are the functions of a semicolon within a sentence? To help organise a complicated list To separate two closely related  independent clauses How to use a semicolon to organise a complicated list? A semicolon should be used in a sentence to organise complicated lists when one or more of the items contains commas. The witches and wizards at the conference had come from Scotland, Wales; Cardiff, Ireland; Dublin, and Cornwall. Not The witches and wizards at the conference had come from Scotland, Wales, Cardiff, Ireland, Dublin and Cornwall. How to use a semicolon to narrow the gap between two closely related independent clauses? The semicolon is used to separate two independent clauses but also to show that the two clauses are related to one another. Ethel rarely used her broomstick; she was afraid of flying. To use a semicol

The colon like the comma is a commonly misused piece of punctuation that is usually confused with the semicolon. Quite often it is overused, a colon  should only be used sparingly. What are the functions of a colon? To introduce a list within a sentence To introduce an idea within a sentence To introduce quoted material within a sentence How to use a colon to introduce a list within a sentence A colon can be used to introduce a list of series of items. The first item in the list that appears after a colon does not need to be capitalised, unless it is a proper noun. When using a colon the clause that precedes it must make sense with its corresponding list. Frodo had packed everything he needed: food, drink, maps and sunglasses. The clause, Frodo had packed everything he needed , makes sense on its own and so a colon   can be introduced after it. Avoid using a colon to introduce a list when it directly follows a verb or preposition. I need: dragon's blood

The comma is often misused, and a comma splice is one of the most common mistakes made. A comma splice is when a comma is wrongly used to separate two independent clauses There are many simple methods that can be used to avoid this mistake. The unicorn liked the fairy, she was kind. The two clauses in the above sentence are independent and can form stand alone sentences. They do not need to be connected by a comma. The unicorn liked the fairy. She was kind. The above method of separating two independent clauses using a full stop is the simplest, but there are other ways to do it. A semi colon can be used, but take care to not overuse them in your work. The unicorn liked the fairy; she was kind. A semi colon shows that the two independent clauses are linked. A conjunction can be used to connect two independent clauses. The unicorn likes the fairy as she is nice.

How to use a comma? Most people wrongly assume that the comma is a simple piece of punctuation. The comma is extraordinarily complex.  This is because it has many different functions which have been listed below. The biggest misuse of comma is that many writers believe that a comma should be inserted in every pause and tend to overuse commas in their work. Don't get caught out. Writers wrongly assume a comma is just a pause. It is so much more than that. What are the main functions of a comma? To separate adjectives within a sentence To separate introductory elements within a sentence To separate contrasting clauses within a sentence To separate dates and years, towns and counties within a sentence To separate parenthetical elements within a sentence To separate direct speech or quote elements within a sentence To separate a list of three or more items within a sentence To separate two independent clauses within a sentence How to use a correctly us

Citadel by Kate Mosse Kate Mosse is a brilliant writer who brings the past to life. I love historical fiction, especially when blended with supernatural elements. Who isn't intrigued by the past events that have helped shape our world today? I've read Kate Mosse's previous books in this trilogy, Labyrinth and Sepulchre as well as The Winter Ghosts , so I knew I'd be in for a treat. The setting of the novel is in Carcassonne, the south of France during the second world war. Straight away Citadel is strikingly rich and vivid in detail but not bogged down with endless information dumps and soon you're transported to the author's world of war time France. Kate Mosse is a master of conjuring imagery. She can paint a thousand pictures with one word. The pace is quick and there are many intriguing characters with their own secret pasts and hidden agendas. It's an exhilarating read and hard to put down. As you continue to read you really feel with the

What's an author's bio? So recently I have been very busy re - evaluating my current library of short stories to send them off into the world. I've decided to change tactics slightly and as well as entering numerous short story competitions, I'm having a go at submitting some of them to magazines and journals for publication. For the third time today, I've been asked to include a brief author's bio. The prospect of writing one fills me with dread. I've never been very good at selling myself. I have no idea how to write an author's bio or what a really good one looks like.  Suddenly I feel so less sure of myself. As a writer I haven't really achieved anything, I haven't won any competitions or ever been published. I can hardly call myself a writer. I have no literary achievements to actually include, other than the obligatory - I love writing. But then what writer doesn't? I feel silly for even thinking of putting it in. I l

What are prepositions? A preposition is simply a word within a sentence that indicates either a location or relationship between a noun and other parts of a sentence. The cat was hiding behind the curtain . In this sentence the preposition was behind. The noun was cat, or object of the preposition. The object of the preposition is the noun or pronoun that is associated with the preposition. In most sentences the preposition will usually goes before its corresponding noun or pronoun, but they can go afterwards. Where did the evil witch go? In this sentence the preposition go, is after it's corresponding noun witch. How to use prepositions correctly There are a few prepositions that need to be used with care. Like , is a preposition that means similar, or similar to, and should be followed by either a noun, pronoun or noun phrase, not a subject or verb. It's best to avoid using like with a verb. You smell like a rotten toad. Rotten toad is the n

What's an adjective? Adjectives are words that we use to describe a noun or pronoun. Without adjectives sentences would be very dull. You can use adjectives before and after a noun or pronoun. There was a vicious storm . Here the adjective is vicious it is describing the storm which is the noun in the sentence. The storm was vicious. The adjective is vicious and can be used after the noun storm . The three forms of an adjective, and how to correctly use them Adjectives come in three forms; positive, comparative and superlative. Let's use wise , as an example to explain what these different forms are. In it's normal form, the positive degree, we would simply use wise . The wizard was wise. If we were to use wise in its comparative degree which is as straightforward as the term suggests we would use wiser. The wizard was wiser. To use the adjective wise in its superlative degree, we would use wisest . The wizard was the wis

It is often the simple mistakes that writers make that can cost us dearly. When short stories and/or manuscripts are submitted into competitions or sent to literary agents, magazines and publishers, it will be the little mistakes that will expose you as an unprofessional, inexperienced, amateur author. To use who, that and which correctly you'll need to remember the following; Who and sometimes that refer to people in a sentence. That and which refers to groups or things in a sentence. Gandalf is the wizard who is mighty and powerful. Who is correct as it refers to Gandalf who is a person. It was the army of Orcs that caused an awful mess. That is correct as it refers to a group of Orcs. That is used in a sentence to introduce an essential clause. An essential clause adds vital information to a sentence. I do not trust that Orc who is mean. That is correctly used as it introduces the essential clause of the Orc being mean, which is why he can'

As I have said before in a previous post it is often the simple mistakes that writers make that can cost us dearly. When short stories and/or manuscripts are submitted into competitions or sent to literary agents, magazines and publishers, it will be the little mistakes that will expose you as an unprofessional, inexperienced, amateur author. There's a very simple method that you can use to determine whether whoever or whomever is correct. He = whoever , and him = whomever Whoever broke the spell? He broke the spell and therefore who is correct. Whomever broke the spell was a hero The spell was broken by him and therefore whomever is correct .