Afternoon guys, I took a peek at the bloggers who have submitted links so far for the V’day blog hop. I enjoyed what I read. Take a look, meet some new blogs to read … maybe submit your own love/romance related blog post to share with other passers by, the hop will continue until the 28th. Click here and go to view links to read /submit.
Afternoon guys,
Just a reminder that all are welcome to join in, we’ve had one link submitted so far. An interesting read on an experience with gay marriage. I’m a big supporter of gay rights , rights for all in fact! It’s an interesting read. See the original blog I did here for full details on how to participate, and the link submitted. The go ahead and submit your own, sit back and find some new readers.
Hi guys,
It’s the month of looove and Valentine’s Day is approaching. Valentine’s is always special to me, it’s my birthday, I enjoy the whole romance and love theme naturally, and it will be my first ever attempt to host a link up/ blog hop or writing prompt. Call it what you want, but you know what I mean…so since you have arrived sign up and take part, tell me and other readers…
How has “the month of love” been treating you this year? How was Valentine’s Day for you? Share your memorable, cringe worthy, funny, loving and romantic moments that happened during this month, and /or on Valentine’s Day itself. Or be open and express yourself and your general views on the good and bad about love and Valentine’s Day. Let readers know your honest thoughts, feelings, joys, or frustrations with love in general, and the whole concept of Valentine’s day.Whether you’re single, married, divorced or somewhere in between, gay, straight or somewhere in between everyone is welcome! Whatever you write, just be free and easy, the only theme is your thoughts/experience with romance and love this month and Valentines Day.
I promise I won’t steal your experience and put it in my next romance novel 🙂 🙂
Notes/giveaways
The link to post your blog link is OPEN now if you want to get in early….
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I’ve just discovered a really cool new blog for romance writers, they are doing a fifty two week writing prompt challenge for romance authors. Each week a different prompt for the whole of 2017. So of course I’m on board, you know I LOVE a writing prompt so here goes… I’ve joined at week six- hobbies.
I have a lot of interests, and a few hobbies. At times I wish I could turn all my interests into hobbies and have time for everything! But my one true passion that will never die, outside writing has to be fashion and beauty. Reading about it, practising it, watching it on You Tube it does not matter to me. When I comes to fashion I like to customise clothes, I can sew clothes (well) and read dressmaking patterns ( well), and I like to draw pictures of clothing designs (I wish I could draw better!). Below are some pictures of dresses that I have made. I made these while pregnant with my son three years ago, I stopped sewing when I was too pregnant to fit behind my sewing machine LOL. I have spent my free time mainly writing since, so I have not made anything for what feels like forever. My last project was an abandoned blazer.
To be fair I look back at these dresses and know I could have done a bit better, but I’m proud of them still. I was pregnant and my patience was not that great!
So how did this hobby start? Well, I learned to sew mainly from school I took textiles in high school ( secondary school) as my creative /art subject as an option. I loved learning how to use a machine, and all about fabrics, making projects along with English it was my favourite subject. I was fourteen at the time when I picked the option. After two years of study, at sixteen I finished high school with a GCSE in Textiles. By the time I was sixteen I was dead set on pursing a creative career either in fashion or as a make-up artist. I still enjoyed writing, but funny back then I never saw myself as an actual published author. My eye was on the fashion and beauty world.
My nana, when she was alive also sewed A LOT she never used patterns she would just create, I remember spending time with my nana and I’d just watch her and how she used the machine. I must have been about ten or maybe younger as she passed away when I was fourteen by the time I picked this as a qualification at school.My dressmaker’s stand, above in the picture is actually called Lucinda after my nana in her memory.
Over the years I have collected so many patterns for dresses, tops, trousers, blazers. My favourites are the vintage Vogue patterns my mum bought me. I like to use patterns from other designers ( eg shop bought ones) and adapt them to my liking.
I did a make-up course when I left school at sixteen, and a few years ago I did another one just for fun like a “hobby”. I am yet to complete it, but for all the practical assignments I did on a model I passed with 100%, for recreating the look specified by the teacher. I will carve out some time to complete it.
So yes, authors do have other interests but writing, and they do do other things but write … but it does not mean we have time for all of them, as writing always comes first. 🙂
Today’s WordPress writing prompt word lovingly, describes exactly how I went about my day today. It was filled with love. I recently reduced my working hours in my day job from full time to part time, so I can spend more quality time with my son, and of course write more novels. Today is our day off work and nursery. This morning, I told myself I’m not a writer, teacher, or anything else today but a busy mum, trying not to get lost as I navigate my way through central London’s traffic, to get to London Zoo, with a three year old strapped in the backseat, clapping his hands and singing Old Mcdonald a had a farm at the top of his voice.
We had a great time! He has a love for all animals but he is crazy about wild animals like lions, tigers, giraffes, elephants and hippos etc. Basically any wild animal you’d find on safari in Africa, rather than farm animals. Today for the second time he saw real wild animals up close from different parts of Africa, at a different zoo. Of course he freaked out with happiness when he saw them. I even had a tantrum on my hands when it was time to leave the hippos, he did not want to leave LOL. But he lovingly made up for his mini tantrum when we had lunch, he gave me the biggest, wettest toddler kiss and hug ever. I assume to show his enjoyment, and thanks for the day out to see the animals. So today’s writing prompt response for lovingly is dedicated to my beautiful son Blake and the day filled with love we’ve had at London Zoo.
Little boy blue, mama loves all of you! Your
Oval face, and big brown eyes. To see you smile makes mama’s heart go wild,now you’re starting to speak to hear your little
Voice is such a treat, it makes mama feel warm
Inside a feeling she just can’t hide,
No regrets at all, now I have you, I feel like I have it all,
God blessed me with you, so I ‘ll do my very best to raise you, I’ll always take care of all of you, from the tips of the curly hairs on your head to your little hands and feet, to mama you are such a gorgeous treat!
Now I will lovingly prepare one of his favourite dishes he loves, sausage pasta bake 🙂
I hope everyone’s day is filled with love, and you have lovingly carried out something good today.
In response to this week’s Haiku Horizon’s writing prompt: Rain I’ve come over all poetic. I imagined how the rain can compare to some kind of heartache…Not often that I even see this side of me! Thanks for the prompt Haiku Horizons. I’m way over the word limit for Haiku but, hey oh well .. I was in the zone.
Realistically, it was over before we even got started, I never thought I’d feel this broken hearted.
Apart from this broken heart, where do I start? What have I gained from our time apart? Some perspective, strength,better health and a couple more dollar bills to add to my wealth.
Intuition, I should have listened to it, I should have followed it, when just like the rain it beat at my door. Finally, my intuition inside of me, forced me to stand on my own two feet, forced me to say there must be a better life for me. At one point I was too weak, so chance after chance was yours to reap.
Now in solitude I feel peace. And just like the rain slowly I’ll wash you away.
In response to a WordPress writing word prompt posted a few days ago… the word simple.
Is anything ever simple? Life, money, work, sex… love? Nope it never is. But somethings should be more simple than others in life… love should be one of them.
I’ve used this song above as part of my response to this writing prompt, as the song by Alicia Keys is called ” Simple” and it is one of my favourite songs from the album ” The Diary of Alicia Keys.” The lyrical content is clever. If you have read my blog for some time you know I’m a massive music fan. It inspires me when I write, I use it in my writing and I listen to it when I’m writing. In fact, I can’t actually think of a time apart from when I’m asleep, that I don’t have some form of music on.This album might be maybe about nine or ten years old, but I still love it and still listen to it.
The song (the lyrical content) is about a complex relationship that is never simple, but needs to be simplified in order to work. Which is my point. People in general may think that relationships and love are complex things, and never simple or shy away from them. Or if they are in a hard relationship walk away as it’s too much hard work. One thing I have learned over the years, is that relationships and love are actually not complex things, they could be one of the most simplest things in life that bring you as a person the most joy in your day to day life. What makes them complex are PEOPLE and their wants, needs , desires and sometimes there can be mismatch in expectation which creates a feeling of a complex /hard work relationship, that is never simple. Have you ever had a non -simple relationship?
I have and it took me in all honestly about almost seven years to come to this conclusion on relationships/love and that really they should be quite simple. It it’s hard work, it’s toxic. I learned by looking back at the relationship, and realising love should never be this hard/complex. Loving someone and being in love, should be a simple, easy feeling.
As a romance writer, I like to write about complex relationships and show how two characters over come their complex difficulties, with a happy ever after. That’s what romance and love is about, a happy ever after feeling, not complexity and hard work. Romance and love should be simple. And most importantly, I have learned it can be. If you just keep it simple.
How?
As the title suggests in response to today’s WordPress writing prompt, the one thing burning within me that I would like to achieve, and then I’ll feel like a success, is to move from conversational/intermediate level in my reading,writing and general comprehension of the French language to somewhat fluent.
For about two to three years I’ve studied the language, and some might say by now I should be fluent. Maybe so, but I’ve never really been in a rush to be perfect, it’s always been just a general interest of mine. That changed in 2016, something shifted in me and I have a new level of motivation. It could be as I have three French exams in May speaking,listening,reading and writing! I need to pass if I want my language certification, and to feel some kind of success, no one sits an exam and wants to fail or gain a poor grade.
If you’ve ever tried to master a new language you may be able to relate to how I feel, when learning a language for me personally one skill always outweighs my ability to do another. For example my problem is I can read and write so much more better in French. (Well, my French speaking girlfriend and penpal in Paris may disagree with me, she may laugh her head off at my bad French in my letters). But I feel that my confidence in the language is via reading and writing, more so than listening to spoken French. It might be all the years of practice I’ve had via writing letters in French why my skill is better in this area. If someone speaks to me in French quite slowly, I’ll pick up most of it and understand, but maybe not straight away depending on what they say. But if you write it down I will understand straight away. To back this point up even more, I have downloaded some French easy to read young adult books from Amazon and I understand, but when I listen to the audio I have to pause and go back and listen again and so forth. So I have really started to work on my speaking and listening skills. I’ve started to watch some TV shows in French I’ve found on Netflix and You Tube.
So as they say, slow and steady wins the race right? OK well here I go, I’m preserving with my learning and spending a lot more time on Skype talking with language partners and listening to French by having general conversations with others, rather than hiding behind my pen and paper to practice. This new way of language mastering is in hope that by May I can say yes I am successful, I have moved up a notch in my fluency, and no longer need to say as often” ah can you repeat that for me again, please” so many times, before I understand ! Once this has reduced, I can then say yep I feel much more a success in my language skills.
Have you ever tried to learn a language or new skill? What did you do to master the language? And feel successful in your learning attempts?
Taken from the 365 Days of Writing Prompts book, under today’s date this is the prompt.
When you were 16,what did you think your life would look like? Does it look like that? Is that a good thing?
No, my life looks nothing like I imagined it at sixteen. At sixteen I was just leaving school I gained good grades, I went down the traditional route to do academic study at A-Level I started to study sociology, English and media studies. I dropped out! The only real subject I really worked hard in was English. I really enjoyed sociology. But as a typical sixteen year old girl I had other ideas and got distracted. I dropped out and went to beauty school instead. I ended up finishing a make-up, hair, nail and beauty course. The creative person in me was born outside of writing, I have always loved fashion and beauty.
Back then, my idea of how my working life would be was to become some kind of creative person working within make-up /fashion. I worked for a few years in salons and kept up the dream. Drooled over Vogue magazine and the like. Played around with make-up like there was no tomorrow. But life changed and I needed to earn a better living so I fell into an office role, kept working, loved what I was doing for so long and then started my degree worked, then did a teaching degree and started teaching, I kept writing… Then became an author.
I’m thirty- four next month, the sixteen year old me would look at my “day job” now and say no way! A teacher??? You messed up! You should be doing make -up on every super model, TV- presenter, singer, song writer out there by now. A sixteen year old me would look at my job as a writer and be like wow, I never saw that coming. But maybe if you did not drop out of college to go to beauty school you may have done this earlier …
At sixteen I imagined, I’d be living a much more glam life than I do now by the time I reached thirty- four LOL. I imagined I be flying all over the world working on projects, the main make-up artist for London fashion week each year, maybe even my own make-up range and drinking an endless supply of Cosmopolitan cocktails. In reality I’m a content and very happy mum, writer,lover of make-up, fashion and beauty who indulges on You-Tube in her passion or sews the odd dress or skirt at home in the privacy of my living room. Is that a good thing? That my life is not one of the most high flying, make-up artists or fashion designers out there earning mega bucks? Well, in a way yes as I probably would not be a very happy and content mum, writer and to be honest that’s fine with me as life feels about right. In my thirties I’ve felt the best I’ve ever felt, like fine wine life gets sweeter the older I get.
What were your dreams at sixteen??
It has been forever since I sat down and blogged something creative, if you’ve followed me for a while you’ll know writing prompts, poems, word challenges and short stories are my thing. The last month has been crazy busy for me, writing offline, reading and just the hustle and bustle of life in general. I have missed creative blogging, and reading other blogs too.
I just wrote the date down on something I have to send off, and I was like wow is that November over already? In my part of the world the 25th November arrives in under an hour. The year has flown, and we are well and truly on our way to Christmas.
Christmas is my favourite time of year, so it is probably no surprise my last book had this kind of backdrop theme.I don’t celebrate thanksgiving but if I was American,it would surly be a holiday I’d really enjoy too. So today I’d like to share what I love about Christmas . Send me a comment let me know what you love about Christmas?
Firstly, it’s the quality time with family that makes Christmas so special for me. I don’t know about you, but for me as a mum, writer, employee sister, aunt, friend etc life can be a bit crazy and go a million miles an hour. At Christmas that’s when I do two things 1. shut down,and focus on my family and organising our special time together 2. reflect and plan for the new year. I love the whole sit down meal, treats, three full courses for dinner and chit chat. I find it so heart-warming to spend that time over the holiday with family. When I say family, I also mean friends of mine, I class my close friends as family and I love time with them too. Either on the phone, skype, text or even letter – as you may know my love for writing means I have old fashioned snail mail penpals,overseas and in the UK. My most distant is in Australia! The other side of the world.
I also love spoiling special “little people.'”This year, I’m super prepared gift wise,I’m done with gift shopping.I don’t believe in gifting to receive,in fact I don’t actually want them personally. My son has just turned three and today I ordered him a toy washing machine and CD player that plays nursery rhymes. ( To add to the mountain of gifts hidden in my wardrobe from him). What? Don’t give me that face YES I got him a washing machine as a gift- my son is soooooo domesticated he loads up the machine himself, as soon as he takes off his clothes. He listens for the click when a wash is done, opens the machine then pulls out all the clothes. My sister has bought him a toy hoover also he loves to help me sweep, mop and hoover the floors LOL. I feel proud, any woman he lives with will have a very house proud husband.
I love the whole slowing down at this time of year, when school ends for the two week holiday and all students have some head space and rest, us teachers do also! Trust me we need it,as when we return the focus is preping students for their exams- tough work. Love that this time of year, the best “slow down” movies are on. I remember watching Singing in the Rain, Bambi and 101 Dalmations with my little man and the family.
Food! I love to cook, something I am not ashamed to say I’m good at and blow my own trumpet. I love preparing a three course meal for my family and extended family/friends. Often I buy so much food for days we are eating Christmas supplies. I find myself creating different meals with left over cuts of meat.I’m not much of a turkey fan, today my older sister called me and said ” sis I’ve just bought us a turkey crown” I tried to sound as pleased as I could lol but I’ll cook it. My choice is Lamb over turkey can’t beat it when it is well seasoned and cooked. Every year, I make a Caribbean traditional rum cake. I’ve tried to master it, it never tastes as good as my mum’s. She emigrated to the UK over forty years ago,but can make it taste so great! I follow her instructions well and soak the fruits in rum for two days, and bake it Christmas eve and hope maybe it will be as good as mum’s.
This time a year, I look back, see what I’ve learned, should have learned, would like to learn, focus and plan. Short term, med term and long term. I’ve always been a list and plan person. I think this is the best time of year to do it not 1st January. I personally feel by the 1st January I should know where I’m going or what I am working on. I have a few lists do you?
This time of year, at Christmas I think London is so pretty the way it’s lit up in celebration for the festive season. I’d say I notice that most Londoners are happier, full of joy generally. I like the different vibe the festive season brings to London. I enjoy walking around London, and taking note of what all the tourist do in central London. Things I’d take for granted as I’ve seen them a million times over.
So these are a few things I enjoy about the festive season. I am getting jolly! And smiling at the thought of unwrapping gifts with my little man and family on the big day. I am also smiling at the thought of my current dining table/desk piled high with food and drinks rather than books, flowers, notepads and writing supplies. I am looking forward to posting off my overseas Christmas cards and final letters for 2016,to pals and wishing them and theirs a successful, healthy and happy 2017.
Tell me what do you love about Christmas and the festive season ?
Author, Kim Knight 