Protected: Blog a Story: Frances & Gilbert (Cape of Good Hope Series) – Part 1
The Cape of Good Hope about 140 years ago
Hello my Dearest Readers!
Last week was the last of my short stories suitable for other eyes. I have a whole library full of other short stories but not ones that I think is anything more than gibberish.
Over the next few weeks, 25 weeks to be exact, I will be sharing my novelette Frances & Gilbert with you. It’s the 1st story in my Cape of Good Hope series.
This little story is solidly a clean / wholesome romance set in the 1880’s more or less.
Frances and Gilbert are the main characters in the story. Some other characters from future books are introduced as the story progress.
Here’s a smart summary of the story:
Gilbert Parsons’ life of privilege feels artificial, frivolous and empty. Frances Snowley shows him just how much when they meet for the first time. Frances’ life is turned upside down when both her parents die in a short period of time. She’s confronted by the bureaucracy of society when she’s required to take a husband. In each other they will have exactly what they both want and need. But conspiracy, social demands and time seem to have a different plan. Will they choose marriage-of-convenience or marriage-of-love?
Frances & Gilbert (Cape of Good Hope Series) by Anne C West
That’s it for now.
Until next time!
PS. The password to my Blog A Story (#BAS) posts are in my newsletter. Please subscribe to my newsletter to get it.
Protected: Blog a Story: The Harmony Bridge (Short Stories)
Musical notes under foot
Hello my Dearest Readers!
This week I want to introduce you to a deadly bridge
It fits securely into fantasy. Probably a bit dark fantasy but fantasy nonetheless.
I can’t exactly remember what was the inspiration for this story but it was definitely from a time where I looked for the devil in all things and handed out judgement left right and center.
How far I’ve come…
We’re all just works in progress.
This story is playing a little bit with the Billy Goats Gruff story of the troll on the bridge and the goats passing over.
In this story the one doing the work gets to cross the bridge and the other one meets their, well demise.
Like my ‘Notebooks’ story, this is definitely also just a scene in a bigger story. Probably just a short story or maybe just a novella. I’ve been craving Christmas stories so maybe I can write my own dark Christmas fantasy!
Regardless, I hope you enjoy the story this Friday. Don’t hesitate to let me know what you think.
That’s it for now.
Until next time!
PS. The password to my Blog A Story (#BAS) posts are in my newsletter. Please subscribe to my newsletter to get it.
Books I’m currently reading 03
*Disclaimer: No affiliate links
Hi everybody!
Focus, is the mother of success. My own words!! Lol!
Last month I decided to focus on 1 book and finish it before I follow my previous habit of multiple books at once.
It worked.
This is how I progressed.
Atomic Habits: An Easy and Proven Way to Build Good Habits by James Clear
Progress: 104 of 298 pages
I’ve completed the 1st law of the journey in developing habits.
The Magician’s Nephew (Chronicles of Narnia #1) by CS Lewis
Progress: 202 of 202 pages COMPLETED!
And now I know how Narnia was created, how Jadis ended up in Narnia and how the animals became talking and thinking creatures. It bugged me since the 1st time I watched the movies where all of this started. Loved this little book and I look forward to reading the 2nd book. Maybe next month…
Women Who Love Too Much: When You Keep Wishing and Hoping He’ll Change by Robin Norwood
Progress: 314 of 314 pages COMPLETED
This has been one of the most helpful books I’ve read in a while on my journey of healing. What a gem. I actually did a semi-bookreview of it too
The House at Pooh Corner (Winnie the Pooh #2) by AA Milne
Progress: 180 of 180 pages COMPLETED
I love Pooh! And I actually wiped a tear away at the end.
Did you hear that a Pooh movie was released? To celebrate Pooh coming into the public domain?
And I’m outraged!!! It’s a HORROR!!!! To make it worse, this is exactly the little book in which Christopher Robin goes away…
Here’s a trailer if you haven’t seen it…
Effortless: Make It Easier to Do What Matters Most by Greg McKeown
Progress: 26 of 256 pages
Hubby took this book with him on his travels so I will continue when he finishes.
Tales of the Peculiar by Ransom Riggs
Progress: 190 of 190 pages COMPLETED
This is a fabulous bundle of short stories. I’m so happy I finally completed this book. The stories are fantastical.
If I have to choose a story, it would be difficult. The Locust is sweet and The Woman Who Befriended Ghosts is enduring. Then there’s The Man Who Bottled the Sun which is a bit like an Aesop’s Fable with a gnarly theme.
It’s absolutely in the same imaginative style of Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Rigs. Although this bundle of tales were authored by Millard Nullings, one of Miss Peregrine’s students.
Techniques of the Selling Writer by Dwight V Swain
Progress: 26 of 317 pages
No progress
GMC: Goal, Motivation and Conflict: The Building Blocks of Good Fiction by Debra Dixon
Progress: 33 of 116 pages
No progress
Prayer: The Art of Believing by Neville Goddard
Progress: 56 of 304 pages
This book is also available in pdf here. Consume it in audio by Brian Scott on YouTube if you prefer.
This book is kinda on repeat through the YouTube version by Brian Scott. It’s a good book.
How to Write A Novel Using the Snowflake Method by Randy Ingermanson
Progress: 24 of 211 pages
This is a writing craft book that I learned about a few years ago. I’ve worked through blogposts and videos about this method of plotting, planning and outlining a book but didn’t quite get it right. So I decided to actually READ the book.
And what a joy! This book is so cute but I’m actually understanding how to do it now.
To practice this method, I’m using it to rewrite the 4th novelette in my Cape of Good Hope series. It would actually then be a brand new story I’ll be adding to my Blog A Story project here on my website.
In closing…
What are you reading?
Have you read any of these books?
I hope to finish more books this month.
Until next time, thank you for reading.
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Protected: Blog a Story: Notebooks (Short Stories)
Combining a secret obsession and sci-fi
Hello my Dearest Readers!
This week I want to introduce you to my favorite short story I wrote.
I think I’ve mentioned the 12 Stories in 12 Months challenge before. Regardless, it’s a challenge to write a short story every month inspired by a prompt. This story comes from one of those challenges.
The prompt was ‘DELETE’.
And I thought some speculative fiction is the thing.
What do I have such a secret love for? NOTEBOOKS! Yeah, I love notebooks more than I can fill it. Even though I’ve made an agreement with myself to fill those I have first with whatever, burn them when full and start filling up a new one.
‘The horror!! What do you mean you burn them?’ That’s usually the reaction I get when I tell people, I burn my full notebooks.
It’s cathartic. You should try it. Maybe when I burn one again, I’ll tell you all about it.
Anyways back to the story.
Friday’s Blog A Story, is about the role notebooks played in an experiment that has the potential to have devastating effects. It’s playing the role of a sort of kill code.
‘Notebooks’ is a scene from a story that could probably be a proper sci-fi story and can go anywhere. I’ve never played with the possibilities before. I’m not sure I’ll do soon. But I could.
It could probably build into a sci-fi with romantic elements or it can keep to hard-core science. Who knows!
Look out for ‘Notebooks’ tomorrow as part of my Blog A Story series. Let me know what you think. Love it? Hate it? Do you think it could work as a bigger story?
Imagine if I can write it based on your suggestions. That will be fun.
Anyways…
That’s it for now.
Until next time!
PS. The password to my Blog A Story (#BAS) posts are in my newsletter. Please subscribe to my newsletter to get it.
Protected: Blog a Story: Walking the Pages (Short Stories)
When a friend dies
Hello my Dearest Readers!
This week I want to introduce you to a story I wrote after a friend’s husband died from pancreatic cancer a few years ago.
He was but 42 and his son was not even 10 years old.
His death shook me to my core. It reminded me of my husband that nearly died from cancer himself when my oldest was 2 years old. Let’s just say the experience was very much real to me.
I suppose this story was me, working through the cursed ‘what ifs’ that tend to either spur us on, or paralise us.
The story has a happy ending, keep heart!!
All I can say from this story is that it’s definitely not one of my best stories. But I want to share it regardless.
Please look out for Walking the Pages this Friday.
That’s it for now.
Until next time!
PS. The password to my Blog A Story (#BAS) posts are in my newsletter. Please subscribe to my newsletter to get it.
Protected: Blog a Story: Pebble in my Brick (Short Stories)
