Nick Wilford, Speculative Author

IWSG April 2026

2026-04-01T08:08:00.001+01:00

Time for our monthly meeting of the Insecure Writer's Support Group! Hosted as ever by Alex J. Cavanaugh, the aim of the group is to offer a safe space where writers can share doubts and insecurities without fear of being judged. This month's co-hosts are Melissa Maygrove, Cathrina Constantine, Kate Larkinsdale and Rebecca Douglass.

After missing last month I'm not fooling around for our April 1 edition but going straight in with this month's IWSQ question, which is a fun one: If you have a playlist (or could put one together) that either gets you in the groove to write or fits with one of your books, what is it? What type of music or what songs?

I don't write with a playlist or any music on because I'm one of those writers who needs total silence and as few distractions as possible. That's not to say music isn't a huge inspiration to me in terms of scenes, ideas, characters - brain work in general. So I've delved into putting playlists together for my books in the last few years more with the aim of sharing with readers. But I might try using them when it comes to edits on my current works. I'd say my taste leans towards alt rock and the idea is each song links to a specific event, a theme in the book or just a vibe.

Here's the playlist for my book published a few years ago, The Becalmer:

And the book I'm querying now, Mirror Me, dealing with cloning and trans issues:

And a bit short because it's a work in progress like the book it relates to but I've started one for the book I'm editing, with a tentative title Artificial Life. I'd say each playlist has a key song that fits for the overall theme and here it's the Beastie Boys "Sabotage". More will be added here as it comes to me!

I also have my newest WIP that I'm drafting but that hasn't reached a playlist stage. Still trying to hammer down the themes and vibes on that one! I'll be looking forward to checking out your answers for this one. Do you enjoy writing or editing with playlists? As always the IWSG entrants can be found in the list here!

IWSG February 2026

2026-02-04T07:52:00.000+00:00

Time for our monthly meeting of the Insecure Writer's Support Group! Hosted as ever by Alex J. Cavanaugh, the aim of the group is to offer a safe space where writers can share doubts and insecurities without fear of being judged. This month's co-hosts are J Lenni Dorner, Victoria Marie Lees and Sandra Cox.

This month's optional IWSG question is: Many writers have written about the experience of rereading their work years later. Have you reread any of your early works? What was that experience like for you?

I fear this question will show up how disorganised I am. My earliest work is many laptops and computers ago, and I've never been very good at backing stuff up (still not, although it helps that nowadays the process is largely automated). So unless I did some deep digging into ancient emails I don't even have my old work to go over and laugh about. If I did, I'm sure it would feel like reading someone else's work. I do remember the tone of those books, and my style has evolved vastly (thankfully) and it's a completely different genre than what I now focus on. A lot of crime/thriller stuff as I read a lot of those sort of books at the time, but I realised it's not my forte.

As for the present day, I'm still sketching out my parallel universe-based WIP, and "sketching" is a good way to describe it as I've been jumping about in the story, leaving placeholders and making broad brushstrokes, with a lot of stuff taking place in different universes and metapysical realms. This is definitely different to how I used to write early on as I would edit at the same time as writing and do a lot of work on scenes before moving on. I'm less precious about that stuff now and I'm fine about just getting down vague impressions that can be improved on later. Apart from that, I've recruited some beta readers for my previously completed book and anxiously awaiting their feedback while trying not to suffer imposter syndrome from critiquing their wonderful work.

Of course, as ever you can find other entrants to the IWSG at the sign-up list. Have you read back over your early work?

IWSG January 2026

2026-01-07T07:23:00.000+00:00

Happy New Year! I hope you had a restful and rejuvenating holiday season, whatever and however you celebrate. Now it's time to reconvene for the first Insecure Writer's Support Group meeting of the year. Hosted as ever by Alex J. Cavanaugh, the aim of the group is to offer a safe space where writers can share doubts and insecurities without fear of being judged. This month's co-hosts are Shannon Lawrence, Olga Godim, Jean Davis, and Jacqui Murray.

Let's have a look at this month's IWSG question.

Is there anything in your writing plans for 2026 that you are going to do that you couldn't get done in 2025?

Well, I guess this will handily double up as a 2025 roundup and a look towards plans for 2026. There's loads I planned to do last year, and I just hope this is the year I can get them wrapped up! The first month of 2025 I was still laid up in hospital having suffered a mini stroke and a leaky heart valve. Upon release it took a couple of months to get myself together to think about writing again. It started with gaining feedback from critique partners on the book I had previously finished. That was encouraging enough to make me start a brand new project, based on a vision I had of a girl waking up in a forest with no memory of how she got there. I optimistically hoped I could get a first draft down by the end of the year, but around September I set it aside to work on edits for my previous WIP. (One thing I'd like to achieve for 2026 is to learn to juggle multiple projects, but it's looking less and less likely!) I have now made two intensive passes and this week I returned to my unfinished draft. Surprisingly I had got as far as 40,000 words, and it goes to some very strange places. I've already got ideas for how to make the opening stronger.

So - I have my plan for 2026, to finish that draft and continue refining Artificial Life. Yes, I have a title now - it might stick around, it might not. This is where I'd like to call upon the assistance of my dear IWSG friends. I have never used beta readers before, but I think I'm going to need them to get this book over the line. I would be honoured if you would consider beta reading Artificial Life. Here is a (hastily knocked together) blurb:

As a superfan of the hit teen show Blue Heart Bay and an influencer posting content based on her favourite character, the charismatic Randall, Corin has one thing on her bucket list: to enter a VR experience based on the show and meet her idol in the flesh. Or as close to it as the AI will allow. But she’s also a struggling student working two jobs, and the admission price is tantalisingly out of her reach. That is until she unexpectedly receives a complementary ticket from a mysterious benefactor.

Despite some reservations, this is an opportunity Corin simply can’t pass up. After being hooked up to a feeding tube in a Glasgow townhouse holding the mainframe that supports the program, she enters the world and meets Randall, and they become closer than she could ever have imagined. But when a mystery she’s tasked with solving takes a dark turn, she finds herself trapped in a universe where everything is turning against her. To escape and save her own life, she’ll have to take on a murderous artificial entity that’s become far too intelligent for its own – or anyone else’s – good.

Genre: YA sci-fi

Length: Approx. 70,000 words

Mainly, I would be looking for advice on pacing (do any parts need tightened up, do any paragraphs need shortened), characterisation and authenticity of dialogue, but all comments are welcome. I would ask for all feedback to be in by February 28th, but just let me know if you need more time. Hopefully, this will be on a reciprocal basis, so if you've got anything for me to take a look at, I would be more than happy to. Drop a comment below or email me at mcwilfo(at)gmail(dot)com.

Well, that's it. I hope in 2026 all your plans come to fruition! As ever, the full list of fabulous IWSG contributors can be found here. See you next month.

IWSG December 2025

2025-12-03T07:04:00.002+00:00

Time for our monthly meeting of the Insecure Writer's Support Group, and the last of 2025! Hosted as ever by Alex J. Cavanaugh, the aim of the group is to offer a safe space where writers can share doubts and insecurities without fear of being judged. This month's co-hosts are Tara Tyler, Ronel Janse van Vuuren, Pat Garcia, Lisa, and Natalie Aguirre.

It appears we have a suitable question for the time of year. As a writer, what was one of the coolest/best gifts you ever received?

Well, this takes me back to my earliest forays into the writing world. Ah, so much hope and so many possibilities back then. (Okay, they're still there, but tempered somewhat by years of rubbing shoulders with harsh reality.) I have to say I haven't been showered with authorly parephenalia - my family don't indulge me with mugs, T-shirts, mouse mats, or fridge magnets, but that's okay. I've received some excellent writing books over the years and the standout has to be Stephen King's On Writing. I think it's the fact this book combines advice with a chatty, biographical tone that makes it more engaging as opposed to a dry list of rules. It makes you see how the writing mindset can be incorporated into your everyday life. It's a while since I read it, but a lot of it has seeped in, such as the idea that inspiration can come from anywhere.

What else do I have to report as we approach the end of 2025? Well, I'm almost through a first pass of my AI/VR-skewering satirical/dystopian project. I've identified some pacing issues with the help of my excellent critique partners and I plan to continue fine-tuning with the aim of having some solid by the end of the year. I also have a few more queries for my previous MS that I want to get out in December. In other words, I'll keep ploughing on. I think King said his only two days off were Christmas Day and the fourth of July. Well, only one of those is a thing where I am.

I'll wrap up by wishing you an excellent, stress-free and rejuvenating festive season, however you celebrate, and I'll see you back here in 2026! In the meantime there's always the plethora of superb authors to check out at the IWSG list.

IWSG November 2025

2025-11-05T06:49:00.001+00:00

Time for our monthly meeting of the Insecure Writer's Support Group! Hosted as ever by Alex J. Cavanaugh, the aim of the group is to offer a safe space where writers can share doubts and insecurities without fear of being judged. This month's co-hosts are Jennifer Lane, Jenni Enzor, Renee Scattergood, Rebecca Douglass, Lynn Bradshaw and Cathrina Constantine.

There's an interesting question for this month's topic: When you began writing, what did you imagine your life as a writer would be like? Were you right, or has this experience presented you with some surprises along the way?

I need to cast my mind right back for this because I've been writing for so long that it's hard to remember my initial expectations. I'm not sure I really had any, although the pipe dream of being able to do this full time was probably always floating around (still tantalisingly out of reach). Maybe I thought it would get easier the longer I kept at it, and I've definitely been disabused of that - I struggle as much as ever. But that's because every story presents unique challenges.

I didn't imagine much about success and popularity because at first I only focused on getting a story finished, and it took a while to achieve that. Since then, it's always been about finishing the next story. Being on a bestseller list, or winning an award, would be nice, but I can't say I ever spent too much time pondering on these hypotheticals. The best thing I would say if anyone was starting out would be to live your story in the moment and concentrate on that. Let everything else spiral from that!

While I'm here, I should update you on what I'm doing with my stories right now. Edits are underway on my YA sci-fi adventure about a VR simulation that gets out of control and traps a human participant, tentatively titled Artificial Life. Ten chapters have been reviewed. Finding a few plotholes, a lot of repetitive mannerisms, but overall I'm quite pleased at how solid the story is so far. This is a first pass so the real work is yet to come, of course. My querying journey continues for Mirror Me, and I recently got my first full request from an agent, so that's enough to keep me on this track for a while.

I'm interested to hear your answers to this question, and all your news. As ever the list of IWSG entrants can be found here. See you next time!

IWSG October 2025

2025-10-01T08:17:00.000+01:00

Time for our monthly meeting of the Insecure Writer's Support Group! Hosted as ever by Alex J. Cavanaugh, the aim of the group is to offer a safe space where writers can share doubts and insecurities without fear of being judged. This month's co-hosts are Beth Camp, Crystal Collier and Cathrina Constantine.

I like this month's question because it invites positivity and reflecting on our strengths:

What is the most favorite thing you have written, published or not? And why?

I am going to go for something published because that goes some way towards making it feel like a complete entity, if that makes sense - not that I need the validation to achieve something I've proud of but it feels like it reached a defined end. My first traditionally published novel, The Becalmer (2023) also felt like the first time I nailed down my MO, of ordinary characters dealing with extraordinary circumstances and undergoing a transformation, in a succinct way. I'm extremely fond of the main character, Harica, who starts out shy and withdrawn and burdened by her gift of being able to solve others' problems subliminally, and ending with the confidence of having stretched to achieve far more than she thought she could. She feels like ground zero for the strong female characters I've written about since. I also clearly remember starting the book in a way I really don't with others - of course, it was in the memorable surroundings of the first lockdown, which lent it a claustrophobia and intensity that got vacuum sealed in. Of course it was a great moment to get it published. It felt like a lot of things I try to do got crystallised here. I'm hopefully improving with any subsequent work, of course, but this'll probably be my favourite for some time!

I'd love to hear other answers to this. Many will no doubt be found at the IWSG sign-up list, which as always can be reached here. See you next month!

IWSG September 2025

2025-09-03T08:57:00.000+01:00

Time for our monthly meeting of the Insecure Writer's Support Group! Hosted as ever by Alex J. Cavanaugh, the aim of the group is to offer a safe space where writers can share doubts and insecurities without fear of being judged. This month's co-hosts are Kim Lajevardi, Natalie Aguirre, Nancy Gideon, and Diedre Knight.

Apologies for missing last month, I haven't been the most organised lately!

I'm going to skip the IWSG question this month because I feel like I've already given my thoughts on this topic. Instead, I'm going to lean into this topic of organisation and how this might pertain to writing a book (the oldfashioned, human way - no outside artificial assistance!). Since leaving hospital at the beginning of the year, I've wanted to start writing a story, which is currently standing at around 35,000 words - doesn't seem like great progress, but it took a while before I was up to do anything. I would also like to dive into edits on my previously completed work, but working on two books at the same time has proven tricky, even when they're at very different stages. Lately I decided to set a goal of finishing 5,000 words of new writing per week, which would have taken me to my word count goal of 70,000 by October 10th (which also happens to me daughter's birthday). This went well for a couple of weeks, even taking time on the weekend to meet my goals. This week, though, I've struggled to get just 250 words down. Why? I'm not sure why my inspiration has taken a dip. Maybe the change in season, although I usually find autumn inspiring. Maybe it's just that dreaded midpoint sag. There are several ways the stories could go, so maybe it's a paralysis of choice, although that's better than being at a total dead end.

Maybe, overall, although organisation and goals are good for a writer, we need to accept there are days it's not happening - and even if you only get 250 words down that move the story forward, that's more productive than 1,000 that end up in the trash bin. Writing 1,000 words isn't a menial task such as delivering a certain number of parcels per day, to invoke a job I dabbled in before getting ill. Of course it's a balance because I don't want a book to drag on forever, but I think if I spend every day moving forward, even just thinking about where I could go next, that's more important than mechanically hitting a word count.

What's your thoughts on organisation as a writer? Must you be inspired to write? Is a daily word goal important to you?

Look forward to hearing your thoughts, and as ever, you can find other entrants to the IWSG bloghop here!

IWSG July 2025

2025-07-02T10:09:00.001+01:00

Time for our monthly meeting of the Insecure Writer's Support Group! Hosted as ever by Alex J. Cavanaugh, the aim of the group is to offer a safe space where writers can share doubts and insecurities without fear of being judged. This month's co-hosts are Rebecca Douglass, Natalie Aguirre, Cathrina Constantine, and Louise Barbour.

This month's optional IWSG question is: Is there a genre you haven't tried writing in yet that you really want to try? If so, do you plan on trying it?

This is a great question. I'm always interested in trying all sorts of genres, or at least elements of them - I'm a big believer in mashing up genres as it makes things more interesting, although I don't think it should be premeditated. You have to write the story first, and then whatever genres it might fall into will hopefully become clear. I like to think I write speculative fiction, but that can be a pretty broad church to start with. The novel I'm querying, Mirror Me, has a pretty strong sci-fi hook but with a nefarious criminal gang to be defeated, it has the beats of a thriller that give it some propulsion. I think that's something I've always tried to do since my first couple of books, which were more like straight-up thrillers, although not particularly successful.

My answer to this question would probably have been fantasy, a long-term love of mine but a genre that I've not yet dived into in my own work. There's some serious worldbuilding involved if it's to be done effectively. However, I can see that my latest WIP does incorporate some fantasy aspects with an age-old good-vs-evil battle going on behind the scenes - we have angels and demons manifesting as humans on Earth (or multiple Earths) and pulling strings - mixed with a multiverse construct and an exploration of the roads we could have travelled in a different life and circumstances. I'm excited to see how this all plays out. It'll be biblical with a firmly small "b." Overall, I think it's really important to stay open to taking in different genres.

Apart from that, what I have been up to? We had a ten-day break in Florida (including two days of travelling each end). Been home for a week and just about recovered! Disneyworld, Universal, waterpark, Cheesecake Factory - a lot was packed in. Great times with the family and it was the first time our son-in-law joined us.

Have you been on holiday recently? Any new genre you're exploring? As ever, the whole list of IWSG entrants can be found here. See you next month.

IWSG June 2025

2025-06-04T09:53:00.005+01:00

Time for our monthly meeting of the Insecure Writer's Support Group! Hosted as ever by Alex J. Cavanaugh, the aim of the group is to offer a safe space where writers can share doubts and insecurities without fear of being judged. This month's co-hosts are PJ Colando, Pat Garcia, Kim Lajevardi, Melissa Maygrove and Jean Davis.

Today's optional IWSG question: What were some books that impacted you as a child or young adult?

This is a great question that will generate a lot of discussion. Although, as a whole, Terry Pratchett's books had a great impact on me in terms of their skewering of human behaviour, I can pinpoint three titles I absorbed as a young adult that turned out to be a great influence on my writing years later and continue to be so today. These are George Orwell's 1984, Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451 and Kurt Vonnegut's Slaughterhouse 5. The dystopian, censorship and anti-war themes are extremely thought provoking in all of these, and made me think more deeply about how these problems exist in the real world - sadly, they are probably more relevant today than ever. They show how writing about challenging themes can highlight how humanity asserts itself even in the most straitened circumstances. That's definitely something refracted in my work and I think books such as these play a big part in that.

I'd love to hear your answers to these questions! In other news, it seems like age is catching up to me but I embrace it, grey hairs and all, not to mention my first ever glasses, which I need for reading and writing. I like them, but I'm not sure if they've increased my IQ.

Don't forget you can always check out other IWSG entries at the list found here. See you next month!

IWSG May 2025

2025-05-07T10:12:00.000+01:00

Time for our monthly meeting of the Insecure Writer's Support Group! Hosted as ever by Alex J. Cavanaugh, the aim of the group is to offer a safe space where writers can share doubts and insecurities without fear of being judged. This month's co-hosts are Feather Stone, Janet Alcorn, Rebecca Douglass, Jemima Pett and Pat Garcia.

This month's optional IWSG question is: Some common fears writers share are rejection, failure, success, and lack of talent or ability. What are your greatest fears as a writer? How do you manage them?

This is a great question and you might have to forgive me if my answer gets a bit heavy. I don't worry too much about rejection, failure or success. Those things are very fickle and largely out of your control. But after what I've been through it's really been hammered home how important the basic ability is. For me, losing the ability to write is terrifying. It would basically mean reconstructing how I process things and how I relate to the world. I was incredibly lucky after suffering two strokes as part of the infection that landed me in hospital. Since I came out, I've more or less been able to carry on doing what I was doing before and have written 5000 words of a new book, which I didn't necessarily foresee being possible. (We'll leave aside whether they might be any good or not.) And I did get some confirmation that I had a lucky escape when I saw a brain consultant recently and scored 100% on their cognitive test. Apparently I was the only patient they'd seen who'd suffered a similar affliction to have done so. I was weirdly embarrassed because I'd rather keep going with my usual activities without being singled out as special, especially because the term "high functioning" was mentioned. But it was definitely the best news I could have received and I feel like I've received a new lease of life. I do think the brain is a muscle and like the rest of the body it's got to be kept in top form with constant exercise.

Whew, sorry to get somewhat intense there. Moving on, as for today, I'm taking part in the next edition of the #QuestPit event, which garnered me my first agent like back in February, followed by my first agent request, then my first rejection on such a request just yesterday - but that's the way it goes and the rejection was certainly kind and positive. I'll see how I fare on today's occasion.

Really interested to see how today's question will get answered. As ever all participants can be found at one handy place here. See you next time!

IWSG April 2025

2025-04-02T09:03:00.000+01:00

Time for our monthly meeting of the Insecure Writer's Support Group! Hosted as ever by Alex J. Cavanaugh, the aim of the group is to offer a safe space where writers can share doubts and insecurities without fear of being judged. This month's co-hosts are Jennifer Lane, L Diane Wolfe, Jenni Enzor and Natalie Aguirre.

This month's optional IWSG question looks like a fun one: What fantasy character would you like to fight, go on a quest with, or have a beer/glass of wine with?

I won't go on at length with this one, or this will turn into another Pratchett love fest following last month. But there are a plethora of choices to be had from his canon. Overall, I'd say Captain Carrot would be a solid and stand-up guy to go on a quest or have a drink with. I wouldn't fight him though (described as "two metres tall and bulging with muscles").

With the clocks having gone forward in the UK, things are feeling a lot more springlike, and I'm determined to keep moving on. With my most recently finished book sent to critique partners, I'm getting started on my next project, and this one seems like it might be another genre mashup (a bit of horror mixed with sci-fi I'm thinking). Hopefully, it will be quite different to what I've done before. A limited outline, and we'll see how the rest pans out.

How is spring looking for you (or autumn, for southern hemisphere friends)? I have a goal of finishing returning visits sooner than one day before the next meeting this time. As ever, the circle of IWSP participators can be found here.

IWSG March 2025

2025-03-05T09:16:00.000+00:00

Time for our monthly meeting of the Insecure Writer's Support Group! Hosted as ever by Alex J. Cavanaugh, the aim of the group is to offer a safe space where writers can share doubts and insecurities without fear of being judged. This month's co-hosts are Ronel Janse Van Vuuren, Pat Garcia and Liza @ Middle Passages.

I'm glad to say I'm feeling a lot better after my unexpected stay in hospital. Not quite all there yet, but I'm enjoying edits on my WIP. It seems to make reasonable sense, so that's something.

Let's have a look at this month's IWSG question:

If for one day you could be anyone or *thing* in the world, what would it be? Describe, tell why, and any themes, goals, or values they/it inspire in you.

I guess this question could go all sorts of ways, but without thinking about it too long, I would have to say my literary hero, Terry Pratchett. Just to have that boundless imagination and take what is ostensibly a fantasy world and use it to smuggle in a whole range of genres - thrillers, mystery, satire, sci-fi - with a deft humorous touch and a grasp of what it means to be human even when the characters are werewolves, trolls, Death, or an orang-utan. His books seemed to have it all and that genre-blending approach has definitely inspired me in my own work.

Looking forward to what others have to say on this one. As ever, the list of IWSG entrants can be found here. What would be your answer to this question?

IWSG February 2025

2025-02-05T11:21:00.000+00:00

Time for our monthly meeting of the Insecure Writer's Support Group! Hosted as ever by Alex J. Cavanaugh, the aim of the group is to offer a safe space where writers can share doubts and insecurities without fear of being judged. This month's co-hosts are Joylene Nowell Butler, Louise Barbour and Tyrean Martinson.

First of all, I'd better offer an explanation for my absence over the last couple of months, which some of you might have already caught up on Facebook. If not, I'll repost it below. It's a sorry tale, but I'm doing a lot better now.

I got out from hospital a couple of weeks ago after having been admitted on the 4th of December with what I thought was a bad dose of a bug including sickness and diarrhoea. It turned out I had suffered an infection that had gone to my heart, giving me a leaky valve, as well as into my brain, causing a mini stroke. This caused me to describe in a way that my daughter Emma best summed up as “doolally” and led my wife to call an ambulance.

I got my own room for the first ten days and initially I was very disorientated as to why I was in hospital. My vision was bad, causing me to see scrawls on the wall that I thought had been left by a child, and the TV was a mere blur. After a battery of tests I was started on a six-week course of IV antibiotics with the aim of heading for surgery to fix my valve. I was moved to the cardiology ward on 14th December where I shared a room with four other men. At first I found this daunting, but everyone was friendly and welcoming. After I while I found myself the longest serving patient in the room over that time as others started to come and go and were sent to other hospitals or home. Not all patients made for good roommates and sometimes there was too much noise to sleep. It was certainly a full range of humanity but by the time I left the room had become much more relaxing and had been christened the “Brian ward” due to the arrival of four Brians in the space of three days.

Ultimately I didn’t have to go for surgery because it was deemed the antibiotic had done a good enough job of repairing the valve on its own. Not before I had a tooth pulled out in a gruelling procedure because infection had been found there and you can’t have any area of infection when you go for the surgery. It came out with a piece of bone attached and I kept it to proudly display as a souvenir.

When I got out it was one day earlier than planned, which we pushed for because of the red weather storm warning for the next day in Scotland which could have potentially seen me stuck in hospital for another whole weekend. Since then I’ve been taking it easy, getting back to work slowly. I’ll still have some rehab to do cognitively speaking but I'm playing a lot of word games as I was throughout my whole stay. Of course I've got to give huge thanks to my family - Heather, Hannah, Emma and Eve - for coming to see me day after day, as well as keeping things ticking over at home so well while dealing with the sad loss of one of our six pups, Tobi.

In terms of writing, I'll get back to that in due course, but I've had a look at my most recent WIP which was undergoing a first pass before this whole saga. I found that pass is nearly finished, so that's definitely something I could manage over the next few weeks. It will probably need fresh eyes from a couple of new CPs, so if a YA sci-fi adventure where the MC becomes trapped in a VR reproduction of her favourite TV show when the AI engine behind it goes haywire, let me know!

I'm off to catch on all of your exciting doings now. Hoping you're all in good health.

IWSG November 2024

2024-11-06T07:05:00.000+00:00

Time for our monthly meeting of the Insecure Writer's Support Group! Hosted as ever by Alex J. Cavanaugh, the aim of the group is to offer a safe space where writers can share doubts and insecurities without fear of being judged. This month's co-hosts are Deidre Knight, Lisa Buie Collard, Kim Lajevardi and JQ Rose.

First of all, I don't normally participate in any politics online, but I couldn't let today go by without asking if my American friends are OK. Whatever happens, I think you should all take it easy on yourselves!

With that out of the way, this month's optional IWSG question is: What creative activity do you engage in when you're not writing?

This is an interesting one because I used to have a lot more creative pursuits when I was younger that have fallen by the wayside as I've dedicated a laser focus to writing. As a child, I enjoyed acting, photography, and a little bit of drawing. But as I grew up, my time to do things just for me became more and more limited and I had to zero in on where my greatest passion lay. A familiar tale to many, I'm sure. However, if it counts, in recent years I've found some surprising enjoyment in making visual book-related content. I never saw myself as a particularly visual artist, but Canva is shockingly easy once I found my way around. I haven't made my own book covers - I've sourced images and entrusted them to a designer - but I've made things like book trailers and mood boards, and trying to strike a certain aesthetic that reflects my tone does have a certain satisfaction in it. Of course, my efforts are probably highly amateurish compared to some, but I thought I'd share a couple of things anyway. Here's a trailer I made in the runup to the release of my book The Becalmer:

And a moodboard for the book I'm currently querying, Mirror Me. I was surprised to get a bunch of positive reactions to this when I took part in #questpit recently, because I always think others' are far better!

Speaking of visual things, the cover for The Becalmer was nominated in the Indieverse Awards for Unforgettable Cover Art, and voting is now open until November 10th! Here's the link. You have to go through all the categories in order to vote, but you can skip any category where you don't know the nominees, and I'm sure you'll find other awesome things to vote on anyway.

And as ever, you'll find all the other entrants for the IWSG right here. See you next month when we'll no doubt get festive - wow, how did that happen?

IWSG October 2024

2024-10-02T07:09:00.001+01:00

Time for our monthly meeting of the Insecure Writer's Support Group! Hosted as ever by Alex J. Cavanaugh, the aim of the group is to offer a safe space where writers can share doubts and insecurities without fear of being judged. This month's co-hosts are Nancy Gideon, Jennifer Lane, Jacqui Murray and Natalie Aguirre.

This month's optional IWSG question is: Ghost stories fit right in during this month. What's your favorite classic ghostly tale? Tell us about it and why it sends chills up your spine.

This is a really good question for October and I don't claim to be as au fait with the horror genre as I'm sure many among us are. I've never really tried to write it and I respect how hard it is to create that suspense and dread. However, one story that sticks out for me since reading it is The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson. It's a classic of the Gothic horror genre and really set the blueprint for that whole trope of the split personality. In fact the phrase "Jekyll and Hyde" has become ingrained within our lexicon to describe anyone displaying such traits. I suppose what endures about it is the quiet sense of mounting despair and the idea that we all potentially have evil within us that could totally take over in the right circumstances. It's not a long book with a rough count of around 27500 words, but it certainly accomplishes a lot.

So what have I accomplished since we last met? Well, I've begun edits on my novel featuring an evil AI interface (hey, that could easily play under the horror umbrella now I think about it... a semi-autonomous force, supposedly beneficial but with the potential to go totally haywire). I'm only a couple of chapters in and the verdict is it's very messy but better than I remembered. Looking forward to getting stuck in properly. And I'm still continuing my querying journey on my completed novel on a cloning and gender identity theme. Just realised I'm a year into this, but I'm probably only just getting started, especially since I rebranded from YA to adult/crossover. I'm still waiting for a bite but I continue to be encouraged by the personalised rejections complimenting the "fantastic premise". Hopefully the universe will tip something in my favour soon.

Well, that's about it for another month. I'm sure all of you will have some wonderful spooky suggestions on this month's theme. Look forward to checking them out! As ever, all those posts can be found at the IWSG site here. See you next month.

IWSG September 2024

2024-09-04T07:03:00.000+01:00

Time for our monthly meeting of the Insecure Writer's Support Group! Hosted as ever by Alex J. Cavanaugh, the aim of the group is to offer a safe space where writers can share doubts and insecurities without fear of being judged. This month's co-hosts are Beth Camp, Jean Davis, Yvonne Ventresca and PJ Colando.

Let's check out this month's IWSG question:

Since it's back to school time, let's talk English class. What's a writing rule you learned in school that messed you up as a writer?

This is a fun one, I'm sure I learned many things that haven't been applicable to my writing at all, but I do remember being told "Write what you know." Now this might be the single most overrated piece of advice of all time. I'm sure the intention behind it is well meaning, presumably to get you on your way, but it always seemed fishy to me because what I knew seemed very limited and I wanted to try and escape that. If I'd only written about what I knew, I don't think anyone would have wanted to read it. To me, it's always been more about writing what I didn't know but needed to find out, so it's a never ending learning process - and that encompasses the human condition, the whole nine yards. I'm not born with an innate knowledge bank that I can draw from ad infinitum, so the rule is fundamentally flawed to me.

In fact, I didn't start taking writing seriously until about a decade after I left school, and I wouldn't go as far as to say that was their fault, but maybe it would have been nice if I'd been pushed a bit more, with more of an exploratory mindset. But it worked out somehow.

How have things been working out in the past month? Well, I got a second job outside of the house, which was really needed for monetary reasons. It doesn't bite into my writing time but I'm trying not to let the fatigue factor become a thing. I'm still circling around edits on my recently completed first draft, but that will start very soon. I did overhaul my letter for the project I'm querying and have rebranded as adult instead of YA based on a very constructive personalised rejection. I know you shouldn't let the opinion of one agent change your whole approach, but it makes sense in a lot of ways - my protagonist is eighteen, with a job, living with a flatmate and for the most part taking on a brutal grown-up world without too many typical YA issues for the most part. I suppose there is an argument for calling it "new adult", but I'm still kind of iffy on how widely that is used as a proposition. If an agent says they specialise in that, I can always lean into it.

I think that's about it for now - really intrigued to read more answers to this month's IWSG question! To find those entries, as always, check out the list here. See you next month!

IWSG August 2024

2024-08-07T07:56:00.001+01:00

Time for our monthly meeting of the Insecure Writer's Support Group! Hosted as ever by Alex J. Cavanaugh, the aim of the group is to offer a safe space where writers can share doubts and insecurities without fear of being judged. This month's co-hosts are Feather Stone, Kim Lajevardi, Diedre Knight, C. Lee McKenzie and Sarah - The Faux Fountain Pen.

I'm going to skip this month's IWSG question because I feel like we had that discussion not too long ago. Just to say I have no intention of using AI for my writing, I haven't ruled it out for purposes of research etc., but yet to be convinced on that.

So I'll turn to my customary round-up on my activities for the past month. Since my last post, I did manage to type "the end" on my current WIP, which coincidentally deals with an AI program going haywire. (I don't totally hate all of it, I promise - just concerned about where it could end up.) At 72,908 words it's quite lengthy for me because I tend to write short. I'm sure that will be trimmed in edits, which will start very soon.

I'm also nearly ready to jump back into the query trenches with my previously completed project. I retooled my opening scene and got some incredible feedback from my critique partners, so that is currently being fine tuned and I do feel it's much stronger than it was before.

I finally relaunched my newsletter! I was mugged by MailerLite's technical gremlins during their update at the start of the year. (Something to do with synching... coding... the exact details thankfully escape me.) Being resistant to change and busy with general life stuff meant it's taken until now to switch providers, but after seeing it recommended by a blogging buddy I'm now back up and running with HubSpot. It was fairly painless in the end. If you want to sign up to my list, you can do so here!

Finally, tomorrow marks the first anniversary of the release of my first traditionally published book! It's been a fun and exciting year, I'm grateful for everything that's happened and the brilliant response and I'm looking forward to what's next.

See you back here next month! As ever, you can check out other IWSG entries at the list here.

IWSG July 2024

2024-07-03T07:17:00.000+01:00

Time for our monthly meeting of the Insecure Writer's Support Group! Hosted as ever by Alex J. Cavanaugh, the aim of the group is to offer a safe space where writers can share doubts and insecurities without fear of being judged. This month's co-hosts are J.S. Pailly, Rebecca Douglass, Pat Garcia, Louise-Fundy Blue and Natalie Aguirre.

This month's optional IWSG question is: What are your favorite writing processing (e.g. Word, Scrivener, yWriter, Dabble), writing apps, software, and tools? Why do you recommend them? And which one is your all time favorite that you cannot live without and use daily or at least whenever you write?

I'm very old school - just Word and a pen and paper for me. I can't imagine needing anything else. I don't write entire books in longhand, but it's invaluable for sketching outlines and hashing out ideas when I get stuck. The hard part is deciphering the scrawl afterwards!

What am I up to this month? The usual, keeping on keeping on with writing and querying. I feel like I've nearly reached "the end" of the first draft of my WIP for the longest time, but other things keep piling up. In these next couple of weeks, I need to nail it.

My book, The Becalmer, is half price for all of July in the Smashwords Summer/Winter Sale. You can grab it here if you haven't read it! Here's the blurb as a quick reminder:

Harica is gifted with the ability to defuse conflicts using her mind. When she is recruited to assist in resolving a war via an arranged marriage, she discovers that the reluctant bride-to-be has similar powers. Princess Jasmila doesn't use her powers for good and when Harica arrives to help with the marriage arrangements, she fights back and sends Harica into a coma. It is through this comatose state that Harica discovers a mysterious liminal space populated by others who share her gift. In this new realm, she learns to do things she never believed possible, but soon things spiral out of control. In the face of a terrifying and seemingly unstoppable adversary, Harica wrestles with the decision to come to terms with the dark side of her gift. Will she take ownership of it or turn her back on it forever?

As ever you can check out more IWSG posts here! See you next month.

IWSG June 2024

2024-06-05T07:15:00.000+01:00

Time for our monthly meeting of the Insecure Writer's Support Group! Hosted as ever by Alex J. Cavanaugh, the aim of the group is to offer a safe space where writers can share doubts and insecurities without fear of being judged. This month's co-hosts are Liza at Middle Passages, Shannon Lawrence, Melissa Maygrove and Olga Godim.

This month's IWSG question is: In this constantly evolving industry, what kind of offering/service do you think the IWSG should consider offering to members?

This is a great question and for me, it kind of answers itself - I think the clue is in "constantly evolving". In an industry of fleeting trends and new platforms popping up every other week, the IWSG should offer stability, continuity and above all, a warm hug to its members and it's already doing that in spades. It definitely feels like the last bastion of the old school blogging age and that's no bad thing, we can all gather once a month and arm ourselves with solid advice and support, get a laugh or two, before going out and continuing to plough our furrow in whatever way seems best at the time. That image of the beacon shining on the lighthouse is so well chosen. Something unchanging and reassuring.

So what have I been up to? Well, I continue on my querying journey for my DNA transitioning story. No requests yet, but hopefully getting close! I was lucky enough to get a critique from an agent and I also got my query letter, synopsis and Chapter 1 looked over on QTcritique, the community offered on Query Tracker. The feedback was definitely a mixed bag - some reviews are very perfunctory, while others go into great detail - but it's good for showing up common threads where a majority of readers think something needs work. I've implemented a lot of changes and am hopeful going into round 2 of querying.

What do you think the IWSG should offer members? Have you tried QTcritique? As ever, check out more responses from other IWSGers here. See you next month!

IWSG May 2024

2024-05-01T06:00:00.001+01:00

Time for our monthly meeting of the Insecure Writer's Support Group! Hosted as ever by Alex J. Cavanaugh, the aim of the group is to offer a safe space where writers can share doubts and insecurities without fear of being judged. This month's co-hosts are Victoria Marie Lees, Kim Lajevardi, Nancy Gideon and Cathrina Constantine.

Let's have a look at this month's IWSG question:

May 1 question - How do you deal with distractions when you are writing? Do they derail you?

Hmm, I don't really get a lot of distractions because I've very deliberately engineered a writing time of between around 5 and 7 a.m. for the very purpose of avoiding distractions. I'm the kind of writer who needs a big block of time, I don't really do well with squeezing in five minutes here and there through the day. The only distraction I do get is my six lovely dogs who invariably start yelling for breakfast at some point (they hear me get up, so they now think it's time for them to get up too). Once they're fed and watered, I've got my furry friends around to keep me company while I finish what I was doing. We make it work!

To the writing itself, I should give a general update while we're here. My AI WIP (that's writing about AI, not with AI, natch) has hit 67,000 words, which is quite lengthy for me, but it feels like about the last 10,000 has been trying to nail the ending. The AI in my story really did take over and run amok, which I kind of thought would happen, and now I'm trying to work out how to put the rabbit back in the hat. Editing is going to be a serious hack job, but I also think it'll be fun, because this is one of the wildest things I've written.

As to my querying journey, I'm still waiting on that elusive request, but I have had some very helpful personalised rejections saying the concept is super intriguing, but something is not quite there with the pacing or where the story starts. I also signed up to qtCritique where I'm hearing a lot of the same thing, so I think I know what I need to work on, and I'm feeling inspired to refresh my query and get back out there.

So I do have some insecurities and stumbling blocks this month, but at the same time I feel like things are heading in the right direction. What about you? Do you have distractions from writing? Tried qtCritique yet? Don't forget to check out more amazing IWSG authors as ever at the list here. Till next month!

IWSG April 2024

2024-04-03T08:41:00.001+01:00

Time for our monthly meeting of the Insecure Writer's Support Group! Hosted as ever by Alex J. Cavanaugh, the aim of the group is to offer a safe space where writers can share doubts and insecurities without fear of being judged. This month's co-hosts are Janet Alcorn, T. Powell Coltrin, Natalie Aguirre and Pat Garcia.

Let's turn to this month's IWSG question, which is leading us down memory lane: How long have you been blogging? (Or on Facebook/Twitter/Instagram?) What do you like about it and how has it changed?

I've been blogging since October 2011, so I guess that makes me some kind of veteran, I suppose? In those days, the received wisdom was that if you were a writer, you had to blog. I still think that's true, and I'd always recommend it as a good way to flex your writing muscles and establish a writing habit. Now, the overwhelming message is that a writer has to be on TikTok, Instagram, or any one of several newer contenders that seem to spring up all the time. (I've been trying BlueSky but have yet to really find a groove on there.) All of these have their merits as well as their drawbacks. But I have always been more comfortable with longer form text rather than snippets and videos. Blogging gave us endless opportunities to take part in blog hops, writing challenges, contests and get invaluable feedback from peers. It seemed like you could do a different challenge every month if you wanted. Now most of these have fallen by the wayside, leaving just the old warhorses such as our esteemed IWSG and the excellent A-Z Challenge to stand as sentinels. (Who is doing A-Z this year? I keep meaning to get back involved - maybe next time.) I'm glad these are still going because I still don't think there's another community that offers connections like blogging can. In terms of how it's changed, I think many newer authors still probably write posts as a section on their website but I'm not sure how involved they are with the community at large. It doesn't have the same importance attached. The other platforms are perhaps more reader-facing, but for the camaraderie and support of other writers (which we all need), blogging can't be beaten. I'm really glad IWSG is still here because it keeps my blog alive!

I really enjoyed last week's IWSGPit. Although I missed out on getting industry likes, I did get some brilliant responses and feedback on my pitches and made new connections, which is certainly a boost. Today I'm trying my hand at #QuestPit, which is new to me, but seems like a lot of fun. If you'd like to find out more and get involved, there are details to be found here.

How do you feel about the state of blogging today? Read more answers as always at the list here. Are you taking part in #QuestPit?

IWSG March 2024

2024-03-06T06:31:00.000+00:00

Time for our monthly meeting of the Insecure Writer's Support Group! Hosted as ever by Alex J. Cavanaugh, the aim of the group is to offer a safe space where writers can share doubts and insecurities without fear of being judged. This month's co-hosts are Kristina Kelly, Miffie Seideman, Jean Davis and Liza @ Middle Passages.

This month's optional IWSG question is: Have you "played" with AI to write those nasty synopses, or do you refuse to go that route? How do you feel about AI's impact on creative writing?

These are great questions. I feel like we covered AI quite recently - though my grip of what is "recent" is quite hazy, so it could have been anywhere up to a year ago. I'm happy to dive back in though. I'll restate the answer I will have given for that other question - I would never let AI near any piece of writing that I put my name to. No shortcuts here! No matter how dreaded the synopsis might be (and I do have quite a lot of dread), I'd fear the program would misrepresent what my work is all about and I'd have to do it all again anyway. Even if it produced a word-perfect summary, I'd probably feel there was something missing because it can't capture those emotional nuances that the human writer can - one of the hardest parts of the synopsis is producing a pocket-sized recap of your narrative while also transmitting something about the characters' emotions, and I definitely wouldn't leave that to a machine.

Talking of synopses, that ties quite nicely to my current insecurity, which has been for the last few months - you guessed it, querying. My journey is ongoing and I'm still hopeful, but I'm reaching that point where it might be due a rethink to change things up (leaving AI out of it though!). Over five months, I've sent 50 queries to agents, receiving 20 rejections, and a further 12 were closed with no response. I think only a couple of these rejections were semi-personalised. Everyone's journey is different, of course, but if you've been in the trenches, how many queries/rejections would/did you go before refreshing things? I'm still hanging in there, and in a lot of ways I feel like I've just started. Interested to hear any advice.

I'm also gearing up for #IWSGPit which is due to take place on March 27. Let me know if you're taking part, it would be great to see you there! Meanwhile, don't forget to check out other answers to this month's IWSG question here. See you next month!

IWSG February 2024

2024-02-07T08:28:00.001+00:00

Time for our monthly meeting of the Insecure Writer's Support Group! Hosted as ever by Alex J. Cavanaugh, the aim of the group is to offer a safe space where writers can share doubts and insecurities without fear of being judged. This month's co-hosts are Janet Alcorn, SE White, Victoria Marie Lees and Cathrina Constantine.

This month's optional question is: What turns you off when visiting an author's website/blog? Lack of information? A drone of negativity? Little mention of author's books? Constant mention of books?

I hadn't really given much thought to this before - I usually just think how everyone's site looks so much better than mine! But on reflection, if I do find anything offputting it's when the front page is too busy, with links to multiple blog posts (often in apparently random order), mixed with book images, ads, newsletter pop-ups etc. Too much going on and hard to know where to start. I like to read about the author, and links to other pages like the bio may be too small or faint, hard to find etc. So, I guess I would prefer my sites to be kept pretty clean and neat. Funnily, that's the opposite of how I usually am in my physical space!

In other news, I'm inching towards 60000 words on my WIP set in a virtual reality AI universe that goes severely wrong. I feel like I'm still to iron out a really defined resolution and a brainstorm might be in order, but the end is certainly in sight.

As I continue to query my first book following my traditionally published debut, I was pleased to see #IWSGPit will return next month and will be busily polishing my pitches to throw my hat in the ring. If you haven't taken part in this excellent event before, you simply (?) have to craft a tweet-length pitch for your work, including genre and age hashtags, which you can post once per hour over a ten-hour timespan in the hope that browsing agents and publishers will take a nibble. If they like your pitch, you check their submission guidelines and send your requested query. It's taking place on March 27, 2024 from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Eastern time. More details here!

I think that's it. See you next month, and as ever, more IWSG entries can be found here.

IWSG January 2024

2024-01-03T08:27:00.001+00:00

Time for our monthly meeting of the Insecure Writer's Support Group and the first one of 2024! Hosted as ever by Alex J. Cavanaugh, the aim of the group is to offer a safe space where writers can share doubts and insecurities without fear of being judged. This month's co-hosts are Joylene Nowell Butler, Olga Godim, Deidre Knight and Natalie Aguirre.

It's a brand new year, so there should be a lot to talk about. Chief among these is that I'm not going to miss any more IWSG postings if possible after skipping the last two. Life intervenes and all that, but I'm lucky not to get kicked off the list!

First, let's look at this month's IWSG question. I was a bit caught unawares by this one:

Do you follow back your readers on BookBub or do you only follow back other authors?

BookBub is one of the many things that I'm on, but I need to do more with. I hadn't even thought about it for some time, which I know is bad. Upon realising I did actually have an account, I found I had a grand total of ten followers and was only following one back. I quickly put that right and followed everyone else. Now, I just need to see what BookBub can do for me. I have always inferred that it's hard to get listed in promotions and such, but I need to have a poke around. But yes, I would always follow back readers as well as authors, as I would on any platform. Authors are great sources of support and will often read your book and shout about it too, but I want my book to reach as many people as possible and not just readers.

So, turning to thoughts of the new year... apart from cracking BookBub, what do I have in store? Well, I decided that this is the year I finally put myself out there in the form of real, live author events. Something that I've always shied away from or found an excuse not to do. But I do believe that a one-on-one connection between an author and audience is increasingly important in a world that's being digitised to death. I have recorded several podcasts and Facebook live events, so have dabbled in public speaking to an extent, but it's a different ball game when the people are right there in front of you. I'm going to have to do a lot of practice so I don't fall on my face, but I'm up for the challenge. I'll be starting off with a reading at Cymera SFF festival in Edinburgh in the summer, and then there's an indie book festival in the autumn that I hope to confirm this week.

Apart from that daunting prospect, I'm just going to keep doing what I'm doing, but more consistently... writing, marketing, newsletter, whatever else. I don't believe in making grand resolutions out of leftfield that will probably only last a couple of weeks. Instead, it's better to refine and improve what you already do. That said, I do want to get fitter this year. I'm also continuing with querying and of course will give updates on any positive news on that front if it comes.

I hope 2024 is a wonderful success for you whatever you have planned! To read other IWSG entries, as ever, check out the list here.

J.L. Campbell - Flames of Wrath blog tour

2023-11-28T08:49:00.000+00:00

Today, I'm welcoming the excellent author J.L. Campbell to help kick off the blog tour for her new release, Flames of Wrath!

The need to right a wrong against an innocent victim triggers a hailstorm of revenge.

Flames of Wrath

by J.L. Campbell

Genre: Crime Thriller

A mother’s quest for justice turns into a race against time to stop insidious murders that mysteriously begin populating throughout the city. Fans of Lisa Jewell and Ruth Ware will be enthralled by this emotionally chilling thriller!

The need to right a wrong against an innocent victim triggers a hailstorm of revenge!

In less than twenty-four hours—before Alexia Leighton is scheduled to return to Miami from spring break in Jamaica—a group of friends betray her in a grisly assault that stops a heartbeat away from murder. The seventeen-year-old prays for the mercy of death. She survives. While on the road to recovery, Alexia's attackers become victims of mysterious acts of violence, leaving authorities confounded and racing against time to prevent another deadly attack. Concern looms, as the perpetrator has proven to be two steps ahead of them at every turn.

When the attention swings to Alexia's mother, a cyber-security expert, the family closes ranks. Geneva Leighton must quickly eliminate herself as a suspect, but not without handing down more punishment. The offenders fear for their own safety and the secrets that plague them. Can they trust the police to find the killer before someone else dies, or has their fate been sealed—leaving them with no place to run, and no place to hide . . .

Amazon * Apple * B&N * Kobo * Bookbub * Goodreads

An Accidental Adventure

Flames of Wrath is a new genre for me and an adventure that started when I pitched a romantic suspense story to Black Odyssey Media. They were more interested in a thriller, and since I’m not one to back down from a challenge, I brainstormed the idea with my son and expanded on the concept I’d come up with in a synopsis.

The main character is a cybersecurity expert, so that meant a fair amount of research to make the story credible. Writers tend to fall down a rabbit hole when researching, so I had to balance information on technology without getting lost in subject matter that I wouldn’t use in the story.

The writing was the easiest part of pulling Flames of Wrath together. I tend to take a linear approach but this book had me writing chapters out of sequence. Some at the back end of the story were written early and only had to be tweaked a bit when I arrived at that part of the book.

The best thing about writing this novel is the fact that it’s a new adventure for me. I’ve been blessed in that I’ve never written in a genre that didn’t like me. There were times when I asked what I had gotten myself into with this story, but my experience with romantic suspense gave me the edge I needed to bring all the critical elements together in a cohesive way.

Would I do it again? That’s a definite yes. The characterization, accidents-on-purpose, and plot twists made Flames of Wrath exciting to write. I hope readers will find it as interesting to read.

National Bestselling Author, J.L. Campbell lives in Jamaica and writes across several genres. She is a certified editor, and book coach, who has produced over forty books. When she’s not writing, Campbell adds to her extensive collection of photos featuring Jamaica’s natural beauty.

Website * Facebook * X * Instagram * Bookbub * Amazon * Goodreads

Follow the tour HERE for special content and a giveaway!

$10 Amazon

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