Rae of Light

Writing With a Long-term Limiting Illness Finishing the writing of a book is a massive achievement. It’s right up there with home ownership and giving birth in my view. There’s the initial awful draft to complete. Writing time during this phase consists of getting the maximum amount of words onto the page whilst beset with constant doubts that the concept I’ve come up with is good enough. This is even before I begin evaluating if the writing is any good at all. Now, and only now comes the beginning of the editing process. The book will go through 5 or 6 edits, sometimes even 10 if it’s being an irritable monster. My writing group, beta readers and sensational Editor, Emma, will all be giving it the once over. When I think the final edit is the one, I then have to send it off to my magnificent proof-reader, Chantal. It doesn’t stop after the writing process. In the meanwhile I have to ensure I’m keeping up with contacts, sorting the cover, creating a fabulous look to the...

#Review: BLAZE by Devyn Jayse A 4 star read The main character, Vincent is living in the insalubrious world of the Blights with his younger sister Penny. They are orphans striving to survive in a harsh world. Vincent has his set of friends and a burning anger fuelled by the unfairness of the situation he is forced to live in. Suddenly a series of fires begins to engulf the district. People are afraid and accusations start flying. This is an engaging read with good characters and well a created setting. I felt I was in the shady world of the Blights with Vincent. The idea of a divide between The Blights and The Town is made very clear to the reader. Vincent’s cohort of friends are interesting and the description of the bond between them is realistic as it also charts the scuffles which can often occur between a friendship group of boys or young men. Further suspense is created by pushing Vincent into a situation where he’s forced to prove his innocence concerning several...

#Review: RED DESERT by Rita Carla Francesca Monticelli 4 Star reading I must confess a certain attraction to the inhospitable red planet ever since I saw Total Recall . The Arnie version of course. There simply is no other. As many of you know, I’ve even squeezed a mention of Mars into my very own little eco SciFi number. So I was delighted to come across this translation of Deserto Rosso. It is written in diary format from the perspective of Anna Persson, an astronaut landed on Mars together with several colleagues. Together they are hoping to set up a primary colony. The opening is dramatic as use of the present tense and the narrator’s situation draws the reader in. The story line switches between events on Mars and flashbacks, in the past tense, in which we learn a great deal of backstory. I found these details and the relationships Anna has with other characters very engaging. I wanted to read on and in fact finished the book in only 4 sittings. Anna's compl...

Writing on the go can be a challenge. You don’t have the comfort of your familiar writing space. There’s no handy kitchen for making cups of tea, no cupboard full of snacks and no slow-cooker getting lunch or dinner ready while you become absorbed in your writing. Over the years I’ve carved out a little nook in my living room which serves as my writing oasis in the midst of the craziness that makes up my weekly schedule. It’s a light, bright space where I keep all my writing accoutrement. It’s where words get put on the page, where I agonise over every punctuation mark, where the delete button gets a frequent pummelling. It’s the first place I head every morning as soon as I have a cup of coffee to hand. So how do you go about getting that familiar writing nook feeling along with the sense of routine you’ve built up over the years when you’re not at home? I’ve been writing on the go for several years now. At first, when I was a full time teacher, it was one of the...