Friday 13 March 2015

Book Feature: Garden by Jane Yates


Inspired by the classic novel The Secret Garden, Jane Yates introduces us to a steampunk world of bio-domes, robots and mysteries. Eleven-year-old Aberdeen is so used to being by herself that all she has to fill her thoughts are stories of mighty dragons and grand castles. But Aberdeen’s world is soon thrown into disarray however; her parents murdered.
Having no choice, Aberdeen is sent to live with her uncle back on Earth where her fascination into her new surroundings begin to take hold. It isn’t long before Aberdeen befriends three other children – Maisy, Peter and Lenard.
Oh, and there’s Frank too, Peter’s robot dog, who completes this special circle of friendship.

Garden is a journey of self-discovery, of trials and friendship. With adventure boundless, Jane Yates follows up her acclaimed Paradox Child trilogy with a new tale for young fans of steampunk and science fiction.
Buy Links     Amazon    Smashwords
Smashwords 35% discount coupon: EN36V
Excerpt
Deep in space, Aberdeen sat on a balcony overlooking a grand party her mother hosted. Everyone wore their finest clothes. The music was loud; a type of remixed jazz. Aberdeen searched her mother out among the crowd of guests. Upon spotting her, she gazed at her mother’s attire; a long silk dress, the colour of shock blue. This was matched by elaborate feathers and sparkling jewels that hung in her blue hair. Her mother’s hair swung down her back, which highlighted her large dragon tattoo. Aberdeen eyed the lead in her mother’s hand and followed it to the golden robot dog sat beside her. It was tall and thin, and even from where Aberdeen sat, she could see the cogs moving inside it as if it had a tiny heart beating.
Aberdeen’s mother laughed gaily. She had the full attention of a young officer with braided hair, who was smartly dressed in his green and gold uniform. As he chuckled along, his head dropped back and a cool thin line of rose-smelling cigarette smoke slid from the corner of his mouth.
Aberdeen continued to watch the party from above. As usual, there was no sign of her father; probably in the engine room of the ship, she guessed. She browsed at all the fresh fruit and flowers in
the tall bowls and glasses decorating the table. She knew that they had been picked up the last time the ship had docked at one of the satellite stations. She had learnt that the fragrant, exotic flowers had been grown in large artificial garden domes and she longed to see one.
She looked down in awe at the musicians. A large man sat at a glass piano, his fingers elegantly flitting from key to key. Aberdeen could see his fat belly though through the transparent top of the piano; it wobbled tastelessly as he played, a huge contrast to his regal demeanour. Aberdeen also noticed a tall, skinny man, strumming a black shinny double base and three female trumpeters who all wore brown and white stripy suits.
Draped from the metallic ceiling were candle-shaped lights, and in between them dancers gambolled on trapeze ropes. They wore porcelain masks and flamboyantly displayed peacock feathers, midnight blue and jade green, in their hair. They matched the rhythm of the quintet perfectly, Aberdeen thought.
The floor was polished to a high shine and Aberdeen could see the refection of the sociable people in it. In the corner of the room was an old gentleman who caught Aberdeen’s interest. Upon his head was a black top hat and he rested a glass monocle on his eye, which magnified his golden brown iris so even Aberdeen could see. His long twisting moustache made Aberdeen giggle.
There were no children however, and Aberdeen wondered what the workers’ children were up to. She suddenly felt quite alone.
About the Author
Jane lives in the historic city of Oxford, England with her two spaniels. She works at the Pitt Rivers museum there too and is amazed and inspired by its wondrous array of objects. Being a museum of anthropology and world archaeology, Jane often finds herself influenced by its exhibitions. And indeed it has helped Jane write a trilogy for children – the Paradox Child series.
Jane is not only a mother, artist and storyteller, but dyslexic too, which only highlights her success even more. Jane refuses to allow the disorder to halt her dreams and continues to enjoy her favourite hobbies. Jane is a lover of steampunk, adventure and children’s stories, which often play a huge role in her own books.

Follow Jane:


Saturday 7 March 2015

Planning for Pantsers - Characters

fictional characters, character sketches
Even if you are a pantser (a write-by-the-seat-of-your-pants writer), it is advisable to do some planning before you start a new story. It helps you to get to know your characters. You don't have to do it for every single character in your story. Minor characters, or characters not referred to by name, for example the waiter, or the postman, need not be developed.
It is the main characters that you need to create, to flesh out, to make them real to your reader. You can only make a character real, if you know him or her from the inside out.

A simple list:
1. Physical characteristics - these define his or her eyes, colour, hair colour, height, weight, skin tone, shoe size, scars, lips, nose, chin, jaw line, shoulders, limp, etc. A list will suffice that you can refer to if needed. This list will help to prevent you from changing the hero from a muscular blond hunk, to a bulky carrot top with a weak chin.

2. Choices they had made - people are defined by their behaviour and that includes their choices made or not. The same applies to your character. Choices such as career, car, house, location, country even. These can include marital status, social behaviour (is he a player? is she stuck up around men?) and so on. Write these down for the present and the past, since they will help shape the choices your character makes for the future.

3. Relationships - we are as much part of our relationships as our characters need to be. Best friend, ex-boyfriend, lover, wife, child, parent, colleagues, other friends, enemies, acquaintances, and the stranger that almost knocks her over on the street. All our interactions define us, and we need to focus on the most important ones to shape our characters.

You can add more information, or as much detail as you like, but having characters that are alive in your mind, will come to life in words. Your reader will want to know them, cheer for them or cry with their disappointments and be happy when they achieve their goals.

How much time do you spend making your characters come to life?

Tuesday 3 March 2015

Early Benefits I gained from Tai Chi

tai chi health benefits
Source for Infographic
I have not been doing tai chi for a long time, not even three full months yet, but I have been diligent in my daily practice sessions. I practice twice a day, except for Sundays where I only seem to fit in one session. But that is okay, it still works for me.
I don't go to a class, so my form is probably as bad as you could possibly imagine, but I have noticed some things that are different than before I started doing tai chi.
Before I expand, a quick note. I am still struggling with torn ligaments in my left foot which after nearly four weeks, have not healed yet. Due to my work requiring me to walk a lot and climb stairs because the elevator is far away from my office, the healing process is a slow one. A very slow one.
Despite my injury, I have no additional pain during my practice sessions, and take care to ensure proper weight placement on my foot where the form requires it.
On top of all these constraints, I have noticed that my balance is better. I have not had issues in the past, but now there is no struggle, or wiggling, or hopping around when I put on a pair of pants.
The second thing I noticed is my focus during the practice. When my attention drifts for some reason, I get irritated because there is an immediate impact on the form I am busy with. This is also becoming less, while my body seem to remember the moves better when I simply relax and let my hands and feet do their thing. Not an empty mind, but a mind that is relaxing into the moment as the movements flow from the one to the other.
I still have a long way to go with the current course, and already I am thinking of sending the company an email requesting another course to take the practice of tai chi to the next level.

Which course am I doing? I will let the cat out of the bag very soon.

Saturday 28 February 2015

My editing tips (as a non-editor) - Part 3

This week my tips are three unusual things you can to do to help you edit your own writing:
  1. Everyone will tell you to hide your first draft in a drawer for at least 4 weeks before tackling the editing. Yep, you should that. It gives your brain a chance to forget what you have written, so you can start the editing with fresh eyes.
  2. Start from the back. Now this tip made me giggle when I heard about it the first time. If you think about it, it does make sense. Start editing at the last paragraph will keep your mind focused on the words written, not the story line. This is a helpful hint for copy editing – finding grammar, spelling and language errors.
  3. Rewrite your story in pictures. Stick figures or little blocks will do the job, if you cannot draw people. This tip helps your editing effort to spot gaps in your plot and timeline. Add cryptic notes, on the actions/activities your characters are involved in.

    Draw a line underneath the block/figures and make notes on the timeline through the story. If you are using flashbacks in time (although not recommended) make sure that your reader knows where the shift is and who the POV character is for the flashback. The same applies for flash-forward scenes.
Lastly, draw an emotional/action line above your storyline.  Indicate the intensity/highs and lows of the storyline. Are the lows too long? Is the action interspersed with less intense activities? Is the emotional roller coaster of your protagonist balanced with highs, lows and normal activity?
Do it by scene or chapter – it will depend on the type of story you are writing. See the example below for a high action scene.
editing tips. editing for writers
Do you have any unusual tips for editing that works for you? Why not share it in the comments, it might just be the tip someone is looking for.

Tuesday 24 February 2015

Breaking News: Launch of the Kasparov MiniChess App

http://www.minichess.co.za
Marisa van der Merwe: CEO and Founder of MiniChess
This event has been in the making for eighteen months. And it is not just another chess playing app. Nope, this is the one app that will eventually help you to play chess, but it is first and foremost an educational tool.
Developed by an overseas company, it has taken many months to take a hands-on books system, to a visually appealing and fun mobile device app.
Aimed at the age group 5 to 9 years, it helps to develop skills in children with a programme that now includes the antics of Cheddar, the MiniChess mouse.
Marisa van der Merwe, Graham Jurgesten
Marisa with Graham Jurgesten and one of the children taking part in the programme
Skills such as spatial thinking, forethought, strategic thinking and creativity are just a few of the things that are developed in children when taking part in this programme.
The programme is now available in several countries and is underwritten by the Kasparov Chess Foundation. Mr. Jurgesten representing the African branch of KCF, added his words of praise and enthusiasm on behalf of the chess master himself.
Kasparov MiniChess App Launch
People attending the launch ready to raise their glasses in celebration
The App was launched at the head office of MiniChess in Pretoria, South Africa tonight and the event was by invitation only.

You can find the Kasparov MiniChess App on iTunes and Android online stores.

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