What I'm Reading
At the moment I'm reading a collection of John Donne's poetry - he's always been one of my favourite poets - and I'm reading my first Sarah Waters novel! I mentioned Fingersmith in my 2014 Booket List as the Historical Fiction novel I'd like to read most this year, but before jumping into that one I'm reading Affinity.
I'm also taking part in the Hogwarts House Reading Challenge over on tumblr, and because I'm a Ravenclaw I have to try and complete these challenges over the course of April!
This week the challenge is to read a book with a blue cover, so I think I'm going to pick up Neil Gaiman's The Graveyard Book; it's the littlest book of his that I own and I'd love to finally cross it off my TBR list.
What I'm Writing
It's day 2 of Camp NaNoWriMo and I've already made some changes. Because I'm rubbish.
As I mentioned in my post on Friday I wanted to work on a 20,000 word prequel novella to my current WIP, and while an entire novella is something I really want to work on, just the thought of working on another full-length piece, when I haven't got everything figured out for my novel just yet, had me wanting to bang my head against a wall. Add to that that I only got home from a very busy, very exhausting term at university on Sunday, and that I just want to relax this April, and you might be able to understand why the entire 20,000 words is no longer a possibility.
So instead I've set myself a new goal of 15,000 words, and I'd love to use those 15,000 words to write a small selection of Historical Fiction short stories, most of which I can turn into parts of the novella some time in the future!
One other short story I'd like to work on this month is a 5,000 word Beauty and the Beast retelling! Eggplant Literary Productions are looking for poetry and fiction submissions until 30th of April for Spellbound & Spindles, a pair of anthologies containing retellings of fairy tales which feature POC, LGBT and disabled characters, as well non-Western European and non-North American settings.
So I'm still going to be busy writing away over April, just not as busy as I initially thought - I need a break!
What Inspires Me Right Now
Yesterday I was surrounded by Historical Fiction and Historical Dramas. As I mentioned above I'm reading Sarah Waters' Affinity, and then I watched The Awakening, a spooky film set in the 1920s, and then last night I watched the first episode of the new Channel 4 drama New Worlds, which is set in England and America during the 17th century.
As someone who enjoys writing Historical Fiction it's a lot of fun to experience it in so many different forms, and so many different eras! I'm rather picky when it comes to TV shows - the only shows I regularly watch are Game of Thrones and Hannibal - but I think I'll watch more of New Worlds; I particularly enjoyed the storyline that took place in Massachusetts and starred Alice Englert (Lena Duchannes from Beautiful Creatures) and Joe Dempsie (Gendry from Game of Thrones).
Are any of you watching New Worlds?
What Else I've Been Up To
On Sunday my parents picked me up from uni and we made the five hour drive down to South Wales. It's so nice to be back home, in my bigger bed and just be pampered for a few weeks - I was so tired after this term that my first night back home I slept for eleven hours! Then on Monday I got my hair cut which I was so looking forward to; I love having long hair, but it had gotten to the point where it was all dry and split and horrid, and now it's a lot healthier and lighter and just nicer.Last week I had a meeting with another tutor who made me feel a lot more confident about my prospective PhD thesis, so now I can start looking into what I'd like to write about in much more detail and start making a list of prospective universities. I already have two I'd definitely like to check out and a possible third, but I'd like at least four or five.
That same day I also found out that I'm going to become an auntie for the fourth time this October! For so long my sister kept saying she wasn't going to have any more children - she already has a little boy and a little girl - but I had a feeling she'd have at least one more. Now I have to see if, nearer the time, I can guess correctly what the baby's going to be. So far whenever my sisters or one of our cousins has had a baby I've always guessed the sex correctly. Maybe this year I should start making bets...
What's new with you?
I like the idea of historical fiction short stories! Sounds like fun to write, and it's still writing where you'll learn from it :)
ReplyDeleteI do love Historical Fiction, and it'll be nice to go back to short stories for a little while after spending so long on just one project! :)
DeleteI love historical fiction so much- I'm pretty sure I've said that before. We don't have those shows here in Canada. I'm watching Reign which is lots of fun but VERY loosely based on Mary Queen of Scots. Their clothes in particular are just ridiculous (but pretty!). Over the weekend I watched the movie 42 which I really enjoyed because I've always loved the story of Jackie Robinson.
ReplyDeleteI keep seeing Reign and even though it looks like a pretty, fun show I just can't bring myself to watch it. It's really difficult to be completely historically accurate when it comes to TV, but I feel as though Reign hasn't even tried. It seems to have a huge fanbase though, so maybe I'm cutting off my nose to spite my face by not watching it!
DeleteThat Hogwarts House Reading Challenge sounds so fun! I'd be tempted to take part if I wasn't kind of crummy at following through with challenges. It does seem like it isn't too hard, though. Hope you're starting to feel more rejuvenated now that you're home. It sounds like you have some good plans writing-wise and otherwise, so that's awesome. I love historical fiction, so I'll have to check out that New Worlds sometime. Have a great week, Jess!
ReplyDeleteI'm usually pretty rubbish at challenges myself, but this one looked like too much fun to pass up. :) Thank you, I'm definitely starting to feel more relaxed and much less stressed now that I'm home!
DeleteOh yay, your sister's going to have another baby? Exciting! I bet you manage to guess right, again. ;)
ReplyDeleteWorking on two long pieces at once might be too much, but good luck with the short stories! :)
Yup, another miniature person to bleed my purse dry come Christmas. :| Babies are cute, though, so I'm looking forward to it. :)
DeleteThanks!
Love your hair cut! It is always nice to get the split ends cut to have healthier hair. I saw The Awakening a while ago and couldn't help but think it would've made such a good book. The movie was still good, but the ending was rushed.
ReplyDeleteThank you! :) I agree with you there - it would be a brilliant book!
DeleteA Hogwarts House Reading Challenge sounds like so much fun! I think that's great that you've taken on a more manageable goal for Camp NaNoWriMo. You might as well set yourself up for success, right? Good luck with your short stories, and I really hope you enjoy your time at home! Sounds like you could use some relaxation!
ReplyDeleteI thought so too - usually when reading challenges are going around I'm too busy to participate, so it's nice to have the time to take part. Thank you! :)
DeleteThat Hogwarts House Reading Challenge sounds like fun. I'm a Slytherin, according to Pottermore. I loved The Graveyard Book it's one of my favorites. Have a great weekend!
ReplyDeleteThe Slytherin Reading Challenge looks a lot of fun, too - in fact they all do. :) Thanks, you too!
DeleteThat is a lot writing you'll be doing! Good luck with it all, but don't forget to rest too! Breaks are important!
ReplyDeleteLove the House Cup for reading idea. I'm a Ravenclaw too and would totally participate if I weren't in a terrible reading slump, haha.
New Worlds sounds interesting. I wonder if I can find it... I'm looking forward to AMC's new series (now that The Walking Dead has finished their season) Turn since it's about spies during the American Revolution (and I love that time period). I'm also looking forward to the return of Game of Thrones, and of course, Hannibal is awesome. Always great to meet another fan! :)
Thank you! :) Haha no worries there - I'm very good at resting. :P
DeleteOh dear, reading slumps are the worst! You could try taking part just in case the challenges lead you to a book that pulls you out of your slump. :)
I'm sure it'll be online somewhere, in fact it's probably on the 4od website now. I haven't heard of Turn, but I just looked it up and it sounds interesting - I like Jamie Bell so I might check it out.
I've barely met anyone who isn't excited for Game of Thrones - it's contagious! :D Yup, it's always lovely to meet another Fannibal. ;)