Going Back on Wattpad and Getting Back to Writing my Novel

Hello! So for a while I have been going through a creative writing slump. I have been writing blog posts and working on social media and brand relations for my blog but I just haven’t felt the motivation or inspiration to write my book. Earlier this year I started posting my current work in progress on Wattpad. This is a novel that I have been working on, on and off for two years. I have almost half of the novel written and I was editing those chapters and uploading them regularly on Wattpad. However, I got to a point where I seemed to have lost my writing muse. It was as if the writer in me had hibernated.

Avoiding The Sale Of A False Hope

The very first time a product comes off the manufacturing line is a cause for celebration. So many companies that have made it and become worldwide recognised names have had a small party when they had this moment. Little did they know they would reach the stars and have such massive acclaim with consumers from all over the world. It's only right that you expect yourself to one day, be just like them so have yourself a small huzzah. They got to where they are now because the made sure to tread carefully. Although they believed in their product, the knew that they couldn’t oversell it and give customers any false hope. The marketing campaigns could be hugely expensive and make the product and brand look like the saviour of the customers’ dreams. Yet when every person bought the product they were left in no doubt about what it could and could not do. Avoiding selling a product that promises more than it delivers could cast no doubt over your reputation as a trustworthy business and a lawsuit.

Wording the label

Almost every product you can think of comes with a label glued onto it somewhere. The label is there to do simply one thing and that’s harbour product information. A pasta sauce bottle will not just list the ingredients and the levels of sugar, fat, carbohydrates and so on. It will also give consumers instructions on how and where to store it. How to cook with it and how long you can leave it alone in the fridge once opened. It will also make any disclaimers such as saying that although the company works hard to make every bottle the exact same, results may vary. All of this is taken for granted by consumers because we’re all just used to it. Maybe we don’t care or we don’t have the time to care, but all businesses cannot take a chance on selling a false hope to anyone. Your product isn’t invisible and nor is it going to always satisfy customers. So clearly state in the label on your products these declarations.

What I Have Been Up To #3

Hi everyone! Today I am going to be talking about what I have been up to lately, let me know what you have been up to in the comments!

1. Education:

I am hoping to do a masters in creative writing! I have been writing for years, I started with poetry and then also began writing short stories and potential novels. I have been thinking about doing a masters for a while and if I can that will be amazing. I would love to develop my writing skills, learn more about writing and get a masters (hopefully I could pass!).

My Favourite Pokemon Games and What Is Currently Missing from the Franchise

I want to talk about my favourite Pokemon games and what I feel is currently wrong with the Pokemon games that have been coming out. Here are my top 3 Pokemon games:

1.       Pokemon LeafGreen 

This was the first Pokemon game that I ever played and it will always be my favourite. If I could only play one Pokemon game it would be this one.

2.       Pokemon White/Black 2

I loved the Pokemon Black and White games and their sequels. It was the first time I felt like I had seen a lot of new Pokemon and the story definitely picked up. Furthermore, there was an amazing feature of seeing how many Pokemon are available to catch on each route which made catching many different Pokemon a lot easier and more fun.

Why I Want to Listen to Audiobooks More

I haven’t listened to many audiobooks in the past. I absolutely loved the Pride and Prejudice audiobook, having wanted to read this book for a long time but I was put off by the writing style as I had read a sample during my studies that I did not like. The audiobook was a great way to go.

I’ve been in a reading slump for a while and I have realised that I am almost always doing something else. If I have spare time I try to work on my blog. I want to start fitting in gaming again and I thought that it would be a great idea to listen to audiobooks whilst I play games (not when there are big dialogue scenes in the game). This would also mean that I am reading more and I can listen to audiobooks whilst doing social media which I spend a lot of time doing.

So Shape: Healthy Meals and Snacks on the Go

So Shape sell shakes that are not only good for you in terms of nutrients but that can also help you to lose weight. There are three different challenges which cover either 5 days, 14 days or 28 days. They offer both snacks/desserts and meals. I opted for the 14 day challenge and 6 different flavours: chocolate, brownie, stracciatella, mint chocolate, vanilla and white chocolate and caramel. So basically all of the chocolate related flavours. In my package I received a shaker, an instruction manual and 30 different powdered flavours. You pour some water into your shake, add the powder and shake. The shake also comes with a diffuser which you can put fruit in and have a fruit flavoured water.

My Goals Going Forward

In my last post, I discussed what I had learnt from having no internet for 48 hours. In this post, I am going to go more in depth on what I learnt about my goals during this time.

1.       I want to keep blogging

This was an obvious one. Of course, I want to keep blogging! I love blogging and I hope to continue to grow this website.

2.       I want to keep making progress in my creative writing

I have been in a writing slump for a while. I kept feeling like I had no inspiration and I wouldn’t really be able to write until I can travel one day and soak up new inspiration. Reading hadn’t been helping me to write and no matter how long I left it, my muse was not returning. However, during my time without internet, I remembered how much I want to share my worlds with, well, the world. I have always wanted to help people with my writing and that has not changed. I want to create the characters and worlds that are roaming around inside me and release them to be enjoyed by others. Although I am still struggling with writing, I have decided to keep working on one project at a time. I am going to keep editing my book, Through the Portal, until I get to where I need to write more and then I will write new chapters. Even if I do this slowly, I still want to be making progress to finish this book and help find out what happens to the characters. It may take me a long time to write a book but I also really want to help people with my blog!

Five Things I Learnt From My Internet Detox

I just finished doing 48 hours without internet in aid of Cancer Research UK. Here are the things that I learnt during this time.

1.       It is ok to use the internet sometimes 

I often feel bad that I use the internet as much as I do. I think that I should be doing other things instead. However, I have realised that it is ok to use the internet. It is ok to spend time on social media, post things and talk to others, as long as you are not spending too long on there or spending time on social media or accounts that make you feel bad about yourself.

2.       Without internet you can relive some good old times

Not having access to internet 24/7 reminded me of when I was younger and we literally did not have access to internet 24/7. We had to spend our time in other ways. The one activity that I spent most of my time doing was playing video games. I used to love spending time playing the same game over and over again and a lot of the games I never even completed because they were too difficult for me but it was still a lot of fun! Without internet, I actually played a couple of games that I had been thinking of playing for a while, without distraction. I could fully immerse myself in the game and in that moment. No muting the sound to watch a video at the same time, no pausing the game to check social media and it was good.

Rapid Fire Book Tag

This is a book tag created by Kate from GirlReading (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q-46EzDWdSY). There are a series of book related questions to answer so let’s go:

Q: E-Book or Physical Book? 

A: E-book, I know this is a controversial answer but I love my kindle so much! It is light to hold, keeps my page open and tells me an estimate of how much longer I have left in the book which helps motivate me to keep reading.

Q: Paperback or Hardback? 

A: I don’t really have a preference!

Q: Online or In-Store Book Shopping? 

A: I love shopping in a book store. Being surrounded by books is one of my favourite places. I can look at all of the different books available and choose whichever is available at the time. I often find books that I wasn’t originally planning on buying!

Q: Trilogies or Series?

A: I love series because then there are more books to read, as long as the books still continue to be great and there is enough story to last across more books.

Guest Post: The Psychology of Writer's Block by Kim from writersideoflife.com

I want to talk about the dreaded realm of the tortured artist: Writer's Block. Anyone who calls themselves a writer has experienced it. Your coffee is hot and your fingers are poised over the keyboard. The cursor flashes black in a sea of white. All those ideas that were rushing around while you were trying to get to sleep are gone. Your mind is completely blank.

What is writer's block?

Writer's Block is defined as the condition of being unable to think of what to write or how to proceed with writing. I love the quote by Thomas Mann; “A writer is someone for whom writing is more difficult than it is for other people.” So what makes it harder for us writers?

Fear of criticism

Writers are inherently sensitive people. They have to feel things deeply to be able to write about them in a way that feels relatable to other people. It follows that they will think deeply about others' attitudes towards their work.