Fi Phillips

Well, that's another year nearly over and what a year it's been. The Highlights Back in January, I made my freelance copy and content writing business official by launching my website . I never expected it to take off as quickly as it did. After taking part in a Camp NaNoWriMo in July and receiving a critique from the Faber Academy in August, I finished my novel, re-naming it, Haven Wakes. It's currently doing the rounds of UK literary agents. Haven Wakes has also been entered into the Bath Children's Novel Award competition. With that novel put to bed for now, I started on the following novel, Haven Journeys - set partly in Iceland, and with selkies and genies for Steve and his friends to deal with, this is a continuation of the adventure that began in Haven Wakes. The Lows After running my murder mystery playwriting business Murdering The Text for 21 years, I decided to call it a day in November. I'm not the same person I was when I started the b...

Last month, I told you that I was taking part in Camp NaNoWrimo in July with the target of completing the (probably) final draft of my novel. I got off to a good start but as I had to write a number of completely new chapters, my progress slowed down gradually. Still, I kept ahead of the required wordage and saw my wordcount build each day. Taking part in an organised writing session with accountability partners helped keep me inspired and motivated, and the daily messages and advice from the organisers only added to this. On 29th July, I reached my target and completed my draft. Yay! My novel is now with a reader at Faber Academy for a full manuscript read-through. Having added new chapters, I'm aware that this isn't my final draft but it's close and I'm hoping some experienced advice can pave the way to my manuscript being agent-ready very soon.

Wow, July is almost over and the school summer holidays are in full swing. There's so much going on but I've still managed to find some choice writing advice for you. The first is an article by Rae of Barely Hare Books - What is a Character Arc? And why does your character need one? The 'character arc' topic crops up time and time again in writing advice but Rae's article really breaks the notion down into an easy to follow read. Have a look. Following (a lot of) changes to my novel, I'm struggling to come up with a new book title so I found How to title a book: What do good book titles have in common? by the folks at Reedsy really useful. As you know, I'm taking part in Camp NaNoWriMo this month and as part of their Camp Care Package, they provide some brilliant writing advice videos. Here's one on interviewing your character. And here's another on World Building.

This July, I'll be joining Camp NaNoWriMo in an attempt to finish the final draft of my novel. I've taken part in the full-on NaNoWriMo in past years and a couple of spring camps too, but never in the summer. What I like best about Camp NaNoWriMo is the support I receive from other writers in my assigned (virtual) cabin. It's great to feel we're all tackling our writing challenges together. There are some brilliant writing resources from camp counselors too with advice on the writing craft. If you're in need of a little (or a lot of) motivation to speed through your work in progress, why not give Camp NaNoWriMo a go?

It's going to be a busy month with two family birthdays, Father's Day, client articles to write and a murder mystery to finish off for another client. Add to that the fact that we won't be having our normal June getaway because my daughter has exams and I don't think there'll be much of a chance for a breather this month. Having said that, I like busy. Busy pays the bills and keeps away the boredom. All that 'busy'  means that this month, more than most, I'll be planning like crazy. Here's my tick-list for June: Buy presents: For my son that'll probably be Overwatch related. Zenyatta is his current favourite character to play, plus he's now got a bank account and is very keen to earn interest on his money. My husband has had his main present already so we'll be looking for a selection of smaller offerings for his birthday and Father's Day, but nothing gimmicky so I'll be steering the teens away from the comedy socks. ...

I put off posting until this time because in the UK, today is April Fool's Day where jokes can be played all morning, hence the multitude of fake articles on cities being taken over by coffee shop empires, film directors quitting and proof from the space station that UFOs really do exist. This month starts with the Easter break. My children are on school holiday so I'm keeping them amused (oh yes, and fed too) along with all the things I normally have to do each week. On top of this, I'm taking on the April Camp Nanowrimo . My target is to write 30,000 words of the first draft of my next novel before the end of the month, that's 1,000 words each day. Today, I met my quota (just over the thousand). Fingers crossed, I can maintain that pace throughout April. I'm therefore doing my best to avoid taking on any extra workload this month so that I can concentrate on my writing but of course, if anyone out there wants me to write them a murder mystery script I wou...

Now that my first novel Shadowbinder is doing the literary agent rounds, I thought I would use the Camp NanoWrimo experience to kickstart my next novel. My first go at the April writefest was this time last year  when I managed just under 25,000 words during that month. This time round, I'm setting the target at 30,000 words. Surely I can manage 1,000 words a day. I'll post my progress on my Facebook page each day, and Twitter too. Wish me luck.

After the build up to Christmas and the day itself, my family and I are having a few days at home together. It's all very relaxed and with no real plans to keep to. Late nights, family games and good company. My husband and children are taking advantage of the lack of routine to have lie-ins so I'm usually first up, enjoying the quiet with my morning coffee. It gives me time to think and reflect on the year that's almost over. It's been generally a good one, in some ways quite magical, and definitely a year I want to remember. Back in January, I posted my 2015 reading list and my goals for the year . I didn't do very well with the reading list, only completing three of the fifteen (even worse than in 2014). I must read more next year. I did better with my goals. I revised and polished my novel and began the search for an agent. I returned to the partial first draft of my second novel which now requires a massive rethink because of changes to the first novel. Du...

So I'm packing up my tent, dousing the fire and getting ready for my last day at Camp Nanowrimo . Throughout April, I've worked on the revision of my novel with a target of 30,000 words in mind. To date, I've written 24,236 words. That means that today, I need to write just over 5,000 words to accomplish my target. 30,000 words may not be a complete novel but it's a mahoosive booster to get me on my way. I've brushed up existing chapters and created lots of new chapters too. Tying the two together has sometimes seemed like knitting spaghetti with string but I haven't let that stop me.  One of the most pleasurable aspects of this month has been taking part in my Cabin chats. It's been a joy to talk to other writers, sharing our journey together (with all its ups and plummeting downs). There's been plenty of help in the form of Camper Messages from Camp Nanowrimo organisers and friends to keep us all motivated too.  I'm encouraged to ...

In November last year, I took part in National Novel Writing Month ( NaNoWriMo ) and got a massive amount of work done on my novel. Now that I'm revisiting/redrafting/ rewriting/editing (any of these may apply) my novel post manuscript assessment, I feel like I need another boost to get me going. Camp Nanowrimo is for writers who want to return to the chaos *cough* concentrated effort of a month's committed writing. It takes place twice a year. I'm dipping into it this April. Unlike the full November NaNoWriMo, you can choose your own wordcount and you are also assigned to a cabin with a number of other writers to share the experience with you. Working from home, I sometimes lack the momentum that working out there in the real world with a team of colleagues can provide. Camp Nanowrimo is just what I need. Wish me luck.