Happy New Year everyone!
Officially two years since I started my Masters in Professional Creative Writing at Coventry University and now I am an MA graduate. Yes, it happened!
A roller coaster of a ride and I can’t help but be relieved. I have a lot of new writing material to work with and I am really excited…
Imogen’s Dark Secret: I’ve turned the prose into a script. The plan is to write the script from the point of view of two characters, both with different backstories which led them to be sucked into the life of being trafficked. I realised that the topic was too big to include from a single point of view so I decided to write from two perspectives and have them meet before each having to battle through what happens. The script has allowed me to write the story in present tense which has allowed me to get into their heads. I can then use it to contribute my prose which I may start at different points in their lives. Either way I am looking forward to finishing the script and a possible series before feeding it back into my prose.
Then, there’s the big one, Realms of Magic. I wrote the first book a while ago but then took a break, free writing around characters and scenes and plot ideas I may have had at the time, with no sense of direction or organisation. Now I have documents and notes everywhere that I plan to work through into something concrete. Having not touched it for a while, I now have a fresh perspective on the story and will hopefully cut all the unnecessary material, combine chapters and get right into the heart of the action. I have plans for the plots of each book, world, and characters, particularly the main three female characters, the antagonist and the love interests. I am excited to put these plans into action.
Realms also have one spin-off based around the antagonist of the story which has a different tone to the other books and it will be interesting to write the world and character from a different angle. It should also help me develop the two sides, sorcerer and fae lore and why they are at war with each other which will then feed into the creation of the four main books. I also have an idea for a second spin-off book which will capture the life of the main love interest. He is such a strong character in my head that I just need to translate it onto paper.
I also have two other writing projects that have been put on the back burner due to starting my Masters, which I can’t wait to get my teeth into. One is Fleeing the Nest which will focus on contemporary fiction and contemporary romance. A story which captures the life of a young adult who wants to break free and make her own life and own choices. My life has always seemed to have been full of trials and tribulations, and people are always telling me that these stories could fill a book and that is what I plan to do: write a book of short stories based on my own life and then write a follow-up book which shows my character doing something with her life to help others.
Alongside my writing projects, I want to do something that has been an ambition for a long time. One of my best memories of studying at De Montfort University was participating in radio shows with the opportunity to produce one in my final year. I got a lot out of it and there are memories which I sorely miss, there was adrenaline I can not explain, that I would like to feel again. I am toying with the idea of starting my own podcast. Writing this blog has been great and I won’t stop doing it. Still, I would love to get behind a microphone and reach out to people and share my experiences, possibly even interviewing people about their own experiences as a disabled person or who may have an exciting story to tell; a new topic each week.
Finally, I want to take some well-needed rest and relaxation time while spending time with my family. My hope is to recapture who I am while updating this blog with my up-to-date advice on attending an undergraduate and a postgraduate University with a disability.
Watch this space!
The Life of Sophie 