Not very busy recently with the ‘getting words on page’ part of writing, alas, though I’ve been plotting, making notes, and reading around for the two projects I want/need to get on with this Autumn.
First up is a short story for Manifold Press’s No Holds Bard anthology. I decided quite a while ago that this would be set in Antarctica, so after I read through as much info as I could find on the British Antarctic Survey’s website, and other such places, I’ve been reading up on the history of humans on Antarctica. I need to wind-up my reading on that soon, re-read the Shakespeare play which I’m incorporating into my story, and get going!
The other project is a longer one which has been niggling at my brain for years, incorporating various ideas and strands of stories, and generally just sitting there on low simmer. I usually refer to it as ‘The Fairy Story’ because I’m imaginative like that. It’s had one or two other working titles in the past, and at present I’m thinking of calling it ‘Dragon’s Reach’ – but I’ll see how it ends up before definitely settling on that.
Most recently (within the last hour, in fact!) I’ve sent back my corrected proofs for the two stories which will be appearing in Manifold Press’s Call To Arms charity anthology later this year. It’s been a few months since I last worked on them, so it was nice to reconnect with those characters.
The anthology is a collection of stories about LGBTQ+ people during World War 2. Just based on mine and the few stories I beta read for friends, it will be a wonderfully varied collection. Of mine, A Cup of Tea is set in a small English town, and Between Friends is set in Manaus, Brazil! I’m really looking forward to being able to read the whole collection, and also to sharing some of the inspiration and stories behind the stories in a few weeks’ time.
In the meantime, I’d better get back to paying attention to my guests who’ve been staying with us this weekend to attend our village’s folk & acoustic music festival!