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Evelyn Fenn @evelynfenn.bsky.social · 2d

#Bookvember
Three series come to mind (which date and locate (UK) me!)
- Observer book of… Pocket guides on many topics
- I Spy… topic based booklets you filled in
- Ladybird books

Lots of nerdery about many things, but birds is the one that stuck with me.

Samantha Breaux @woodenvelt.bsky.social · 2d

Welcome to #Bookvember Day 4!

Follow the directions on the prompt card and share your love of the written word with others.

#BookSky #WriteSky #Books #Authors #WritingCommunity

Bookvember, a book share prompt game for writers and readers by @woodenvelt.bsky.social

Day 4: Share your favorite non-fiction children’s book or series. What topic did you nerd out over? Dinosaurs? Space? Something more obscure? Remember: Quote post using #Bookvember. Use alt text for images. Have fun and interact with others!

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Evelyn Fenn @evelynfenn.bsky.social · 4d

#PretendPanel #WritingCommunity #Writers #Authors
Huge thanks to everyone who replied.

I think I might try plotting (contrary to my pantster instincts) and writing some snippets from both POVs, and see where that takes me.

No matter what transpires, I’ll have fun on the way.

Evelyn Fenn @evelynfenn.bsky.social · 5d

#PretendPanel #WritingCommunity #Writers #Authors

I’m wondering, has anyone tried writing the same story from two different POVs then chosen the one they like best at the end? (I don’t want to write a dual POV novel.)

Is this a crazy idea? Or is it brilliant?

(I’m leaning toward crazy.)

Hiria Dunning @hiriadunning.bsky.social · 6d

It's that time again, #pretendpanel. Thank you for a fun month of answers to my questions.

October 31st: Freebie Friday... or should I say Freaky Friday? Post anything!

#WritingCommunity #Writers #Authors #WritingPrompts

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Evelyn Fenn @evelynfenn.bsky.social · 4d

#PretendPanel
No, because:
1) I work to targets in my day job. I don’t want to add more pressure to my life; I want writing to be fun, not a chore.
2) I have other commitments this month. I can’t add a writeathon to the pile.
3) I’m blissfully ignorant about where people sign up to these anyway.

Hiria Dunning @hiriadunning.bsky.social · 5d

#pretendpanel, this month we're talking around the subject of writeathons!

November 1st: Are you participating in a November writeathon? If so, which one and/or which project/s are you working on?

#WritingCommunity #Writers #Authors #WritingPrompts

#pretendpanel
a daily prompt tag hosted by @hiriadunning.bsky.social
November 1st: Are you participating in a November writeathon? If so, which one and/or which project/s are you working on?
Please support your fellow #pretentpanel posters with replies, likes and reposts
New #pretendpanel questions every Friday and Saturday. Hop in any time!

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Evelyn Fenn @evelynfenn.bsky.social · 5d

#PretendPanel #WritingCommunity #Writers #Authors

I’m wondering, has anyone tried writing the same story from two different POVs then chosen the one they like best at the end? (I don’t want to write a dual POV novel.)

Is this a crazy idea? Or is it brilliant?

(I’m leaning toward crazy.)

Hiria Dunning @hiriadunning.bsky.social · 6d

It's that time again, #pretendpanel. Thank you for a fun month of answers to my questions.

October 31st: Freebie Friday... or should I say Freaky Friday? Post anything!

#WritingCommunity #Writers #Authors #WritingPrompts

#pretendpanel
a daily prompt tag hosted by @hiriadunning.bsky.social
October 31st: Freebie Friday!
Post anything you want e.g. plug something, acknowledge someone, ask a question
Please support your fellow #pretentpanel posters with replies, likes and reposts
New #pretendpanel questions every Friday and Saturday. Hop in any time!

4 1 10

Evelyn Fenn @evelynfenn.bsky.social · 12d

#PretendPanel
Not really. Instead, I’d say writing is the treat I give myself after I’ve fulfilled my day job and other obligations.

If I disciplined myself to write to a schedule then I might need treats to motivate me. But generally I write only when I’m in the mood to.

Hiria Dunning @hiriadunning.bsky.social · 12d

#pretendpanel, I like today's question a lot 😍 Thank you again @longwaydownbook.bsky.social for writing this month's questions!

October 25th: Are there any treats you give yourself to help making the writing process easier?

#WritingCommunity #Writers #Authors #WritingPrompts

#pretendpanel
a daily prompt tag hosted by @hiriadunning.bsky.social
October 25th: Are there any treats you give yourself to help making the writing process easier?
Please support your fellow #pretentpanel posters with replies, likes and reposts
New #pretendpanel questions every Friday and Saturday. Hop in any time!

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Evelyn Fenn @evelynfenn.bsky.social · 13d

I start out as a panster but usually end up having to retroactively plan half way through because I get tangled plot lines and plot holes. That’s frustrating, but the rush that comes with finding the solution is heady!
Plotting from the outset would rob me of the roller coaster thrills.

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Evelyn Fenn @evelynfenn.bsky.social · 13d

#PretendPanel
I 💖:
- when the story flows from my subconscious rather than me having to think deliberately about every word & plot point. It’s magic, heady & exciting.
- when characters & plots surprise me, and ideas pop up unexpectedly.
- the sense of accomplishment when I reach The End.

Hiria Dunning @hiriadunning.bsky.social · 13d

Hello #pretendpanel! Can't believe how fast this month has gone. Tell me...

October 24th: Is there anything about the writing process or about any of your writing projects that brings you life?

#WritingCommunity #Writers #Authors #WritingPrompts

#pretendpanel
a daily prompt tag hosted by @hiriadunning.bsky.social
October 24th: Is there anything about the writing process or about any of your writing projects that brings you life?
Please support your fellow #pretentpanel posters with replies, likes and reposts
New #pretendpanel questions every Friday and Saturday. Hop in any time!

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Evelyn Fenn @evelynfenn.bsky.social · 18d

#PretendPanel
Besides querying, promotion, failing to deal with social media and juggling the day job?

When the world leans more to the right and I tick off yet another square in my bingo card of plot points from the novel I believed in but nobody picked up. Yeah, those rejections sting! 🐝

Hiria Dunning @hiriadunning.bsky.social · 19d

#pretendpanel I once again must catch up with your responses tomorrow. I'm at another all-day writing event. For now, tell me...

October 18th: Is there anything about the writing process or about any of your writing projects that drains you?

#WritingCommunity #Writers #Authors #WritingPrompts

#pretendpanel
a daily prompt tag hosted by @hiriadunning.bsky.social
October 18th: Is there anything about the writing process or about any of your writing projects that drains you?
Please support your fellow #pretentpanel posters with replies, likes and reposts
New #pretendpanel questions every Friday and Saturday. Hop in any time!

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Evelyn Fenn @evelynfenn.bsky.social · 20d

Maybe I haven’t yet killed enough darlings for them to rise from the grave and haunt me or maybe I’m a callous serial killer who wields an ax with no remorse. Either way, my victims have remained buried firmly six feet under. 💀🪦 🧟‍♂️👻

So far.

#PretendPanel #WritingCommunity #Writers #Authors

Hiria Dunning @hiriadunning.bsky.social · 20d

Hello #pretenpanel! Dropping this before a busy day tomorrow, so I will be delayed in responding, but I am keen to know...

October 17th: They say sometimes you have to kill your darlings. Which of your darlings just don't stay dead?

#WritingCommunity #Writers #Authors #WritingPrompts

#pretendpanel
a daily prompt tag hosted by @hiriadunning.bsky.social
October 17th: They say sometimes you have to kill your darlings. Which of your darlings just don't stay dead?
Please support your fellow #pretentpanel posters with replies, likes and reposts
New #pretendpanel questions every Friday and Saturday. Hop in any time!

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Evelyn Fenn @evelynfenn.bsky.social · 26d

#PretendPanel
Dick Francis. Not only because I loved his books and heroes but also because I have core memories of the summer I was introduced to them. I remember when and where I read them, and later reading his new books became part of our family Christmas traditions. I met him once too.

Hiria Dunning @hiriadunning.bsky.social · 26d

#pretendpanel I can't wait to catch up with your responses! Life is super busy here - I'm at a fundraising dinner right now - but let me know...

October 11th: Is there a deceased author, writer, or poet that you've really connected with?

#WritingCommunity #Writers #Authors #WritingPrompts

#pretendpanel
A prompt tag hosted by @hiriadunning.bsky.social
October 11th: Is there a deceased author, writer, or poet that you've really connected with?
~ please support your fellow #pretendpanelists with replies, likes and reposts ~
New #pretendpanel questions every Friday and Saturday. Hop in any time!

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Evelyn Fenn @evelynfenn.bsky.social · 27d

I hope the retreat is wonderful and fulfilling!

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Evelyn Fenn @evelynfenn.bsky.social · 27d

#PretendPanel
As a childless person, I won’t leave my genetic mark on the world when I die. My ego would like to think I could live on in my writing instead, entertaining generations of readers to come—or torturing school kids, if I got onto the curriculum).

Very unlikely, but dreams don’t hurt.

Hiria Dunning @hiriadunning.bsky.social · 27d

#pretendpanel, I'm at a retreat over the next few days so I am incorrigibly absent! However, tell me...

October 10th: Writing and reading are kinds of necromancy. How do you hope your writing will hold/reflect your ghost after you're gone?

#WritingCommunity #Writers #Authors #WritingPrompts

#pretendpanel
a daily prompt tag hosted by @hiriadunning.bsky.social
October 10th: Writing and reading are kinds of necromancy. How do you hope your writing will hold/reflect your ghost after you're gone?
Please support your fellow #pretentpanel posters with replies, likes and reposts
New #pretendpanel questions every Friday and Saturday. Hop in any time!

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Evelyn Fenn @evelynfenn.bsky.social · Oct 4

#PretendPanel
Submissions or anything where I have to ‘sell’ myself. I find self-promotion excruciatingly difficult and stressful.

Fiction is different; I control what I attempt. The end product might be good. It might be bad. But the act of writing isn’t the scariest part of the process.

Hiria Dunning @hiriadunning.bsky.social · Oct 3

#pretendpanel, I'm thrilled to be bringing you a month (of weekends) of questions by @longwaydownbook.bsky.social. Here's the first...

October 3rd: What's the scariest thing for you to write?

#WritingCommunity #Writers #Authors #WritingPrompts

#pretendpanel
a daily prompt tag hosted by @hiriadunning.bsky.social
October 3rd: What's the scariest thing for you to write?
Please support your fellow #pretentpanel posters with replies, likes and reposts
New #pretendpanel questions every Friday and Saturday. Hop in any time!

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Evelyn Fenn @evelynfenn.bsky.social · Oct 4

#PretendPanel
Any fears my characters experience come as responses to the situations in which they find themselves, and each experience will differ according to circumstance and personality. Sometimes fear is internal; others it comes from an external source.

TL;DR: I have no simple answer.

Hiria Dunning @hiriadunning.bsky.social · Oct 4

Hello #pretendpanel! I've been on the road all day so I have a bunch to catch up on from yesterday, but here's the next question...

October 4th: How have you explored fear in your writing?

#WritingCommunity #Writers #Authors #WritingPrompts

#pretendpanel
a daily prompt tag hosted by @hiriadunning.bsky.social
October 4th: How have you explored fear in your writing?
Please support your fellow #pretentpanel posters with replies, likes and reposts
New #pretendpanel questions every Friday and Saturday. Hop in any time!

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Evelyn Fenn @evelynfenn.bsky.social · Sep 27

This is something I also struggle with.

I feel frustrated when I don’t make progress but I don’t want to force myself in case it turns writing from pleasure to chore.

My challenge is how to let myself not write and feel at ease with that choice.

Good luck in finding balance which works for you.

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Evelyn Fenn @evelynfenn.bsky.social · Sep 27

Remember August’s #PretendPanel questions about genres?

Well, I’ve just finished reading A Short History of the World According to Sheep, by Sally Coulthard, a gem of the book which I wouldn’t have found if I didn’t venture outwith my comfort genres.

Recommended!

Hiria Dunning @hiriadunning.bsky.social · Sep 27

I can't believe September is already coming to a close, #pretendpanel! Today it's...

September 27th: Freebie Saturday - post anything!

#WritingCommunity #Writers #Authors #WritingPrompts

#pretendpanel
a daily prompt tag hosted by @hiriadunning.bsky.social
September 27th: Freebie Saturday!
Post anything you want e.g. plug something, acknowledge someone, ask a question
Please support your fellow #pretentpanel posters with replies, likes and reposts
New #pretendpanel questions every Friday and Saturday. Hop in any time!

1 1 2

Evelyn Fenn @evelynfenn.bsky.social · Sep 26

#PretendPanel
I like them all, even the unlikeable ones. I couldn’t write them if I didn’t.

But I have particular soft spots for Moira, Clare and Janice, my ‘older’ aroaces. Hopefully, they helped plug the gaping void in older ace rep. More importantly, I enjoyed getting to know them.

Hiria Dunning @hiriadunning.bsky.social · Sep 26

I've gotta know, #pretendpanel...

September 26th: Do you have a favourite character that you've written?

#WritingCommunity #Writers #Authors #WritingPrompts

#pretendpanel
a daily prompt tag hosted by @hiriadunning.bsky.social
September 26th - Do you have a favourite character that you've written?
Please support your fellow #pretentpanel posters with replies, likes and reposts
New #pretendpanel questions every Friday and Saturday. Hop in any time!

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Evelyn Fenn @evelynfenn.bsky.social · Sep 20

#PretendPanel
I hope not.
My MCs vary in age and background as req’d to satisfy the story. But I suspect they have some traits in common because there are certain types of personalities I like to read/write about. Plus they tend to reflect my socioeconomic background or that of people I know.

Hiria Dunning @hiriadunning.bsky.social · Sep 20

#pretendpanel I have a potentially difficult question for some of you today...

September 20th: Be honest, its ok... do you kinda write the same character over and over again?

#WritingCommunity #Writers #Authors #WritingPrompts

#pretendpanel
a daily prompt tag hosted by @hiriadunning.bsky.social
September 20th: Be honest, its ok... do you kinda write the same character over and over again?
Please support your fellow #pretentpanel posters with replies, likes and reposts
New #pretendpanel questions every Friday and Saturday. Hop in any time!

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Evelyn Fenn @evelynfenn.bsky.social · Sep 19

#PretendPanel
Characters which are memorably bad are those where they detract from an otherwise fabulous story. Poorly drawn secondary characters can be memorable because they jar (eg a love interest who is incompatible with the MC and you can’t imagine them working as a couple).

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Evelyn Fenn @evelynfenn.bsky.social · Sep 19

#PretendPanel
Characters can be memorable in both positive and negative ways.

For me, memorable in a positive way requires me to care about and root for the character. They have to be more than one of:
Angsty
Relatable
Show personal growth
Clearly drawn - you’d be able to pick them out of a crowd.

Hiria Dunning @hiriadunning.bsky.social · Sep 19

I hope you're doing well today, #pretendpanel! Tell me...

September 19th: Can you put your finger on what makes a character memorable in your opinion? E.g. dialogue, qualities, motivations etc.

#WritingCommunity #Writers #Authors #WritingPrompts

#pretendpanel
a daily prompt tag hosted by @hiriadunning.bsky.social
September 19th: Can you put your finger on what makes a character memorable in your opinion? E.g. dialogue, qualities, motivations etc.
Please support your fellow #pretentpanel posters with replies, likes and reposts
New #pretendpanel questions every Friday and Saturday. Hop in any time!

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Evelyn Fenn @evelynfenn.bsky.social · Sep 14

Seldom have I felt so seen.

(Just back from a week away and have the inevitable suitcase of post holiday laundry to deal with.)

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Evelyn Fenn @evelynfenn.bsky.social · Sep 13

#PretendPanel
For some characters, they cease to exist for me when the story ends. For others, I know how their future lives may develop. But unless I get round to telling any future stories, I don’t feel the need to tell readers lest it messes with their own ideas. I don’t want to be prescriptive.

Hiria Dunning @hiriadunning.bsky.social · Sep 13

I'm running a little late on answering everything from yesterday #pretendpanel, sorry! But in the meantime:

September 13th: Is there something you're dying to tell people about a character but you can't make it fit into your story?

#WritingCommunity #Writers #Authors #WritingPrompts

#pretendpanel
a daily prompt tag hosted by @hiriadunning.bsky.social
September 13th: Is there something you're dying to tell people about a character but you can't make it fit into your story?
Please support your fellow #pretentpanel posters with replies, likes and reposts
New #pretendpanel questions every Friday and Saturday. Hop in any time!

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Evelyn Fenn @evelynfenn.bsky.social · Sep 12

#PretendPanel
I don’t usually write much down, but I know my characters. I can picture them in my mind’s eye, and I know a fair amount about their personalities.

But they can change as I write. The story concept and characters are intertwined and evolve together.

Hiria Dunning @hiriadunning.bsky.social · Sep 12

Hello #pretendpanel! Today I can't wait to find out...

September 12th: How much work do you put into forming your characters before you start writing them?

#WritingCommunity #Writers #Authors #WritingPrompts

#pretendpanel
a daily prompt tag hosted by @hiriadunning.bsky.social
September 12th: How much work do you put into forming your characters before you start writing them?
Please support your fellow #pretentpanel posters with replies, likes and reposts
New #pretendpanel questions every Friday and Saturday. Hop in any time!

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Evelyn Fenn @evelynfenn.bsky.social · Sep 6

#PretendPanel
Not intentionally. But I’ve written two books about queer (mostly ace) journeys which come from a place that matters to me; my experiences, and some traits, have bled into the characters.

When exploring less personal themes, the similarities decrease.

I also draw on familiar places.

Hiria Dunning @hiriadunning.bsky.social · Sep 6

Tell me #pretendpanel:

September 6th: Have you ever written a self-insert character?

#WritingCommunity #Writers #Authors #WritingPrompts

#pretendpanel
a daily prompt tag hosted by @hiriadunning.bsky.social
September 6th: Have you ever written a self-insert character?
Please support your fellow #pretentpanel posters with replies, likes and reposts
New #pretendpanel questions every Friday and Saturday. Hop in any time!

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Evelyn Fenn @evelynfenn.bsky.social · Sep 5

#PretendPanel
Concept first, followed by a MC who complements the concept. Other characters are foils to the main character. They evolve as the story develops and can surprise me. One villain demanded to be rewritten as a good guy.

They may/may not share aspects of my personality and experience.

Hiria Dunning @hiriadunning.bsky.social · Sep 5

#pretendpanel, it's that time we've been waiting for... character focus time!

September 5th: Where do your characters come from? You could answer in specific, or if you have a general philosophy then please expound upon it!

#WritingCommunity #Writers #Authors #WritingPrompts

#pretendpanel
a daily prompt tag hosted by @hiriadunning.bsky.social
September 5th: Where do your characters come from? You could answer in specific, or if you have a general philosophy then please expound upon it!
Please support your fellow #pretentpanel posters with replies, likes and reposts
New #pretendpanel questions every Friday and Saturday. Hop in any time!

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