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Steve McHugh Subjects Me To His Quickfire Questioning In Order To Test My Worthiness.

August 13, 2012 / T. James / 2 Comments

I am humbled by Steve’s charity this week as he has deigned to interview me on his blog. There was no denying his masterful intellect, powerful personality, and unparalleled bravery – he’s about to have his third daughter and has no sons, as yet, for moral support.

I was subjected to insightful questions that probed my innermost being, and was found wanting. To restore my honour a geas has been placed upon me, and I must leave this humble blog for a little while until my quest is completeth.

Click here to show your support as Sir Steve, nobbly knight of the realm, protects his Lady at this bounteous time.

The Ultimate Holiday Accessory: 33 Uses For A Block Of Lard.

July 26, 2012 / T. James / 16 Comments

The best pieces of equipment for the holidaymakers are always small and have multiple uses. As I’m on holiday this week I thought I would pass on my recommendation for a useful travel aid that few people seem to know about. It is portable, versatile, mouldable, and edible—ladies and gentlemen, let’s have a round of applause for your friend and mine, the underappreciated BLOCK OF LARD. Continue reading

The Writer’s Essential Guide to Mobile Tech, Part One: Lose the Laptop.

July 23, 2012 / T. James / 21 Comments

Next week I’m on holiday, and this got me thinking… My online writing friends are an unusually mobile and outgoing lot; some of them like to travel, even when they don’t have to. As anyone knows, spending more time on social networks than penning words is essential for the serious writer. But when you are on-the-go, how do you keep writing and hooked up to the intravenous drip-feed of tweets, posts, and comments that we all need so desperately? Today’s interconnected technology would appear to provide the answer, but other’s experiences have found it wanting. In this post you will find the solution—innovation isn’t dead—read on and be amazed! Continue reading

Problems Writing Your Novel Or Story? Maybe A Little Logic Can Help…

July 16, 2012 / T. James / 8 Comments

So what do you do when your creativity goes to sleep? How do you respond when readers tell you that your character’s actions and speech are inconsistent and erratic? How do you smooth out those kinks in your plot? When your creativity implodes, rolls over and dies; or when it’s buzzing along so fast on turbo-charge that your characters morph and change faster than Play-Doh being pummelled by a hyperactive four-year-old; when your plot has more holes in it than a rusty cheese grater—it’s time to stop writing, give the right side of your brain a rest, and reach for your internal Mr Spock. Continue reading

Lovely Blog Award (2)

July 8, 2012 / T. James / 30 Comments

This week, I am honoured to receive another Lovely Blog Award, from Marilyn Armstrong.

Last time I messed with the logo (the original is the pink one above). This time I’m bending the rules, just a little:

Day Of Demons: A Book Review

July 3, 2012 / T. James / 8 Comments

This week I’ve got a guest post over at the Gothicked Blog. I review the Day of Demons short story anthology, and I thought it was well worth checking out—I gave it 4 out of 5 stars.

If you’d like to read the review in full, just click the picture below.

(Please note: comments seem to be disabled on the Gothicked blog , and have been since the post was put up on Saturday. If you have anything you’d like to say about the review or Day of Demons you can pop back here and leave a comment below).

Self-Publication: The Floodgates Aren’t Open Yet—But They Will Be, Soon.

June 25, 2012 / T. James / 18 Comments

Since I self-published my first eBook in March this year there has been around 200,000 books added to Amazon’s Kindle eBook store; that’s over 65,000 new titles per month. If my guess is correct, then this may only be the start and the floodgates have yet to open. Continue reading

Poem: Broken Feathers

June 18, 2012 / T. James / 12 Comments

Self-Censorship Vs. Creativity.

June 11, 2012 / T. James / 6 Comments

When a writer writes, should they play it safe and live comfortably in the knowledge that no one will be offended? Do they push their craft to the limits of their imagination, even if others hate what they do? Is there ever a valid reason for breaking with ‘good taste’? These are some of the questions I’ve been thinking about this week.

Last month I tried an experiment: I gave an opinionated, obnoxious and thoroughly unlovely character some of my blog space. Most blog posts that feature fictional characters are careful to let the reader know what is going on; in my blog posts I deliberately kept that fact hidden—instead I left some clues in these posts for readers to find. Some clues were discovered, some were not.

I received a wide range of responses: some thought it was clever and funny; others did not like it; still others felt as though it was a joke made at their expense. So my question is, as a writer, do I follow my creative whims or do I censor what I write to avoid offending people? Continue reading

SHOCKING TRUTH REVEALED: Faye Ling Is A Man! Characters Who Take On A Life Of Their Own…

June 3, 2012 / T. James / 12 Comments

A month ago I posted my first ever guest blogger Faye Ling, who brought with her her ‘special’ personality, way of expressing herself, and unique insights. But no matter how unique Faye is, the strangest thing about that blog post was that Faye isn’t a real person. How many of you this will actually be news to I don’t know, but after a few interesting email exchanges this week I thought I’d better put the record straight: Faye Ling is a man; in fact, Faye Ling is me.