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Taking a writing holiday

I love writing novels as it gives me a chance to dig deep into the characters and build complex paranormal and fantasy worlds…however sometimes after doing a pile of edits there is nothing better than slipping into a short and spicy novella.

It’s like taking a short weekend break, only with writing. 

Here are my three reasons I like to take a writing holiday: 

1. I get to go to a totally new world.

Just a like a real holiday a change of location is very important for that feeling of getting away from it all. What could be more different from goblins, curses and the awful Shadowlands? Rock star vampires of course :)

2. Meeting new people…er characters
I know it’s a hard job but finding the right picture for the new hero has to be done. And while I’m doing that I contemplate who the perfect heroine would be and then work out how to make them suffer before they get a HEA—just the plotting part is a fun afternoon of pictures, paper and chocolate (it’s a holiday so the calories don’t count).

3. Short and sweet
25k is the perfect length for me as I can plot it and write it in a week. There’s no subplots to get tangled in and if I’m writing for Ellora’s Cave the only thing getting tangled are the sheets. However it’s also long enough that I can create a whole new world to get lost in.

So rather than throw down the laptop and flake out in front of the TV sometimes the perfect way to rejuvenate is to write something totally different. That said I have the whole 7th season of Supernatural to catch up so if you don’t mind I have me some Winchester to watch. That would be Dean, sorry Sam.

Comments

  1. I make a bear and watch a movie to take a break. I had to laugh when I read your title. I'm doing a writing marathon this weekend. No distractions. Or...just a few. I like writing short too, but right now I have to complete 2 more full length novels before the end of the year so the only thing short to write is the weekly word count of 10,000 words! Happy writing!

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  2. Hi Terry,
    I’m doing a weekend of writing in July. No kids, no distractions :) I’m looking forward to it.

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  3. I totally understand. Writing in different genres or voices seems to exercise a different part of the brain. Of course, only a writer would think writing was a vacation!

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  4. I totally understand. Writing in different genres or voices seems to exercise a different part of the brain. Of course, only a writer would think writing was a vacation!

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  5. I've never written a novella but sound like it might just be fun!
    Amelia

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  6. I would love to try a novella, but so far my stories are 90,000 words. Period. No matter what I do. It's a good thing that's the length Sourcebooks wants, because that's how long it takes me to tell a story!
    As for relaxation, I read other people's romance novels! I guess it's a busman's holiday, but I love visiting other people's worlds for a while.

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  7. Novella writing has been my saving grace since I started writing them for Siren a couple of years ago. I'm currently working on a Regency menage and having a blast with it. Not sure I can get one done in a week, though. I bow to your greatness!

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