Wednesday 22 October 2014

What's Up Wednesday! | 22/10/14

What's Up Wednesday is a weekly blog hop created by Jaime Morrow and Erin L. Funk as a way for writers and readers to stay in touch!

It's been a while! I went on a little hiatus while I finished up my MA and I've been rather busy recently, so it's time to catch up!

What I'm Reading

Since I last took part in WUW I've read Deadline by Mira Grant, Frenchman's Creek by Daphne du Maurier, Blood Sinister by Celia Rees (reviewed here), The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman (reviewed here), American Vampire: Volume 1 by Scott Snyder, Rafael Albuquerque and Stephen King (reviewed here), and Printer's Devil Court by Susan Hill (reviewed here).

I've discovered my love for Daphne du Maurier and right now I'm just over halfway through Rebecca and loving it (Mrs Danvers - what a bitch!), and I've borrowed Jamaica Inn and The Parasites from my local library so I'll be reading those soon.

I'm also going to be hosting a Count of Monte Cristo Read-a-Long this November. There's a Facebook group here with all the information you need to know if you want to join in; I'd really love it if more people joined in!

What I'm Writing

After finishing my MA I needed to take a break from Bloodroot and Bracken, because by the time I handed in my portfolio I was ready to tear my hair out. So this year I'm attempting NaNoWriMo (again) and I'm not going to put any pressure on myself to complete a novel, I'd just like to write as much as I can, even if it's crap, about one of the many other novel ideas dancing around in my head. Now that I'm back in South Wales with my family it seems only fitting to write a story that's been in my head recently which is set in Medieval Wales and involves dragons!

If you're taking part in NaNoWriMo and you want to add me as a writing buddy, you can find me here!

What Works For Me

Films OSTs! I like listening to music when I write, but when it comes to music with lyrics I can often get distracted and start singing along rather than concentrating on what I'm doing. But when you find the right film score writing's a breeze! Recently I've been loving the Pompeii soundtrack.

What Else Is New

Okay, quite a lot has happened since I last participated in WUW so this section is probably going to be kinda long. I'll try to be as concise as possible!

Well I finished my MA, and yesterday I got my results and I PASSED WITH A DISTINCTION! I'm so pleased that all that hard work and stress has paid off, and now I can start looking into applying for PhDs which is very exciting!

I also have a new blog design after finally giving myself a kick up the backside and taking an afternoon out to make it look pretty - I'm very pleased with the end result. I think it looks slightly less amateur now!

Over the past month I've been doing an internship with a video game company in Wales where I've been helping them to write the script for a new sci-fi adventure game. My internship came to an end last week and I've been offered a job, starting in January, to work for the company as a Game Writer! I'm so excited - it's very rare to come out of a Creative Writing MA and be able to walk into a writing job, so I'm incredibly lucky and thankful.



On the 11th October, a day after my birthday, we welcomed a new person into our family when my older sister gave birth to her third child, Neive Autumn. We went up north to visit them at the weekend and she's absolutely gorgeous. She's such a good baby; she never cries, she just snuggles up and sleeps, and if she wants to let you know that she's hungry she tends to just start sucking on your shoulder. She has loads of dark hair and she's just adorable. I could eat her up.



So what's new with you?

29 comments:

  1. Medieval Wales and dragons - I like the sound of that!

    Oh wow, congrats on the distinction AND the job! That's amazing! :D

    And congratulations to your sister and your family! ^_^

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  2. Congrats on the job! And the MA! :) And the new baby in your family :) Exciting! So I am very much intrigued by your Count of Monte Cristo Read-a-Long. I have never read it, if I participate, can I read it in French though? (being French and all, I´d love to read it in my mother tongue).
    I am also participating in NaNoWriMo this time around...I am overhauling an entire story, so it should be fun :)

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    1. Thank you very much!

      Of course you can! :) I don't mind what language anyone wants to read The Count of Monte Cristo in, and I'd be thrilled to recruit another reader for the read-a-long! There aren't that many of us taking part so far, but I'm hoping to increase the numbers before November. ^__^

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  3. Welcome back! Congrats on the MA and job. Your niece is adorable.
    I added you as a writing buddy, good luck with NaNoWriMo. This. year

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  4. Congrats the dissertation and the flying colors on your MA. Good luck on the hunt for a PhD program, Jess. Congrats on the new niece and upcoming NaNo! Have a great week.

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  5. I'm so pleased for you Jess. Congratulations on the MA and on the job, and all of it. The blog is beautiful too, and so is the precious niece. What an excting time for you!

    I thought Nanowrimo was out of the question for me, given where I am with my WIP, but I'm beginning to rethink that. It's coming up soon, so I've got to decide, but this really makes me want to go for it! Thinking...

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    1. Thank you very much! :)

      Good luck with your WIP - I hope you find yourself able to take part in NaNo!

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  6. Good luck with your new job, and congratulations on your degree! It's never a bad thing to take a little break from writing, if other, more important things take precedence, and if we just need a breather. I may be starting a long-hiatused old project, with a serious overhaul and makeover, during November, though once again it'll probably just be a book I happen to start during November, not something intended for NaNo. Even I can't write something that's at least 100,000 words in just a month.

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    1. Thank you!

      Yes, I think 50,000 is rather a lot for November so a 100,000 would be one hell of a target! Good luck with your project. :)

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  7. Good grief -- I just left my comment in a email in your "Contact Me" section, because I am brilliant. Disregard that! In other news, congrats on your MA completion (!!!) and your beautiful new niece. What an exciting time for you. Have a wonderful week!

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    1. Oops! I forgot I still need to get rid of that little box at the bottom - thanks for remidning me!

      Thank you very much! :)

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  8. Congrats on your MA and all the happy things! And I hear you on NaNo and I love your approach - just write as much as you can. I might have to try that!

    Hope you have a great week!

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  9. congrats!!!! That is so awesome! Hope you're celebrating and enjoying the awesomeness :)

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  10. Congrats on your MA! How exciting.I definitely agree with you about film scores. I use them, too.

    And you'll be writing video games. That's so cool. Good luck with NaNo!

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    1. Thank you! Film scores are great, aren't they?

      Thanks - I'll probably need it!

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  11. Congrats on the job! That sounds awesome!
    I like film scores as well. One of my long-time faves is Pearl Harbour.
    I read Count of Monte Cristo a few years ago and I have to say it's one of those rare instances where I like the movie better than the book! It's probably because I watched the movie first and so I wasn't prepared for all the differences in the book (especially Mercedes).

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    1. Thank you! ^__^

      I've only seen Pearl Harbour once, years ago now, and I've never actually listened to the score - thanks for the recommendation!

      Really? I might have to watch the film after I read it, though I have heard a lot of people say they're completely different.

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  12. Aw! What an adorable addition! Congrats.

    I'm going to be NaNo-ing, but I'm right with you. No pressure, no word count, just writing every day for a set amount of time to get some great results. Oh--and congrats on finishing your MA! That's epic.

    Unleashing the Dreamworld

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    1. Thanks, she's adorable. ^_^

      Yep, NaNo should be enjoyable so I don't see much point in piling on heaps of pressure. =) Thank you!

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  13. Congrats on your MA! I love the film score idea. I too like (the idea, anyway) of listening to music but get distracted by the lyrics, so I'll have to check this out.
    And you've done some major reading this past week. I have Rebecca but haven't started it yet.
    Have a great week!

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    1. Thank you! =) Definitely try it out - if you find the right score for your WIP it can be very atmospheric.

      I just finished Rebecca this morning and I definitely recommend it. ^_^

      Thanks, you too!

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  14. Congrats on your MA and your new job! That's wonderful! And when I saw the baby pics, at first I thought she was yours and I was all "Wow, MA and a new baby" I'm glad she's your beautiful new niece because really you were making the rest of us feel like underachievers. ;)

    Hope you have a wonderful week!

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    1. Hahaha, no she's definitely not mine!

      Thank you. =D

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  15. Congrats on the new baby niece! She's beautiful. :-)
    I'm thinking of taking a similar approach to NaNo this year. I'm just going to see if I can make a concerted effort to get lots of writing done in November, without the pressure of trying to hit that 50K mark. Even without doing NaNo the "right way", I think it serves as a great motivator. Good luck!

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  16. Midieval Wales and dragons? Yes, please! Your niece is darling. It's been way too long since I've been able to snuggle a new baby. Congrats on the MA and the new job and good luck with Nanowrimo!

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