Ask the Author: Nicola Sinclair
Answered Questions (4)
Nicola Sinclair
My latest release, Redemption (Peters Junction Series Book 3), came about because my number one fan (and primary beta-reader) requested it. I hadn't intended to give Paul his own story (he's the villain in book 2 of my Peters Junction Series), but once the seed was planted in my brain it just started to grow. Suddenly I was overwhelmed with all the possibilities the story could take and I just wanted to explore every single one of them. I loved the challenge of taking a disliked character from one novel and turning him into the hero for the next, and I loved how the character changed and grew throughout the story.
Nicola Sinclair
I’ve just started a new series called Stonebridge, and Cosmic Glitch is the first book. Stonebrige Hotel is an iconic hotel set in the heart of Surfers Paradise on the Gold Coast of Australia. It is owned by the six Hawthorn siblings and the series will describe each of their journeys to love.
The first book, Cosmic Glitch is a story about perceptions, misconceptions and seeing what’s right in front of you. Jessie, the eldest Hawthorn sister, is recovering from an injury that ended her ballet career. She’s trying to find new meaning in her life by heading up the Stonebridge Foundation, a charity run by the family. Her older brother’s best friend, Shane Taylor, has always been in her life, but she’s never noticed him before. Then everything changes and suddenly he’s all she can see.
Shane has always been in love with Jessie, but, rather than jeopardise his relationship with Jessie’s brother, Derek, he decides not to pursue her. That is until the day that Jessie finally sees him.
As the two of them navigate their way towards a relationship, Jessie continues in her recovery. When she sees a chance to revive her ballet aspirations, she is faced with a difficult choice. Follow her childhood dreams, or embrace her new life with the man she loves.
The first book, Cosmic Glitch is a story about perceptions, misconceptions and seeing what’s right in front of you. Jessie, the eldest Hawthorn sister, is recovering from an injury that ended her ballet career. She’s trying to find new meaning in her life by heading up the Stonebridge Foundation, a charity run by the family. Her older brother’s best friend, Shane Taylor, has always been in her life, but she’s never noticed him before. Then everything changes and suddenly he’s all she can see.
Shane has always been in love with Jessie, but, rather than jeopardise his relationship with Jessie’s brother, Derek, he decides not to pursue her. That is until the day that Jessie finally sees him.
As the two of them navigate their way towards a relationship, Jessie continues in her recovery. When she sees a chance to revive her ballet aspirations, she is faced with a difficult choice. Follow her childhood dreams, or embrace her new life with the man she loves.
Nicola Sinclair
Don't edit! At least not straight away. Editing your work will just wastes time and makes you put off what you should be doing - writing. It can also be very demoralising as you realise that what you've written isn't perfect and, ultimately, it can make you doubt your abilities until you stop writing altogether.
Here's a news flash... NO author writes a perfect manuscript in their first draft. The purpose of the first draft is to get the story out of your head and onto the page. The ONLY thing you should be worried about with your first draft is making sure the plot works and the characters work, if you've achieved this by the end, then it's mission accomplished.
When you've completed the first draft... then you can edit. You can go back and fix plot holes, you can flesh out your characters and re-work your dialogue, you can add more descriptions or change something that doesn't fit properly, you can even re-write the entire story if you want. The point is that the first draft gives you something tangible to work on, something to improve upon. So don't worry about writing the perfect manuscript the first time around, concentrate instead on finishing your manuscript so you can perfect it afterwards.
Here's a news flash... NO author writes a perfect manuscript in their first draft. The purpose of the first draft is to get the story out of your head and onto the page. The ONLY thing you should be worried about with your first draft is making sure the plot works and the characters work, if you've achieved this by the end, then it's mission accomplished.
When you've completed the first draft... then you can edit. You can go back and fix plot holes, you can flesh out your characters and re-work your dialogue, you can add more descriptions or change something that doesn't fit properly, you can even re-write the entire story if you want. The point is that the first draft gives you something tangible to work on, something to improve upon. So don't worry about writing the perfect manuscript the first time around, concentrate instead on finishing your manuscript so you can perfect it afterwards.
Nicola Sinclair
I can't say I've ever been "blocked", at least not to the point where I can't write anything. I have, however, been stuck at a point in the story where I just can't seem to continue. I know where I want to go, I just don't quite know how to get there. I have two ways of dealing with this problem. The first is that I simply skip the bit I can't figure out and head straight over to a scene I know I can write, that way I keep the momentum going and it gives me more time to fill in the blanks later. My second technique is to stop writing altogether and give myself permission to daydream. This entails is grabbing a cup of coffee and making myself comfortable either on my favourite chair, or laying out in the sun - wherever I can relax, and then I just dream up alternate scenario's until I stumble across one I like.
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