2025 in review (part 2)
Short stories: Resonance, Words in my flesh, The hedge (a terrible title, perhaps, but the story is haunting)
Drabbles: The flute of Nut, alongside 3 miscellaneous folk-tales.
In flight: Longing & Pareidolia (the later is almost complete)
Here is to a productive year.
2025 in review (part 1)
A year of quiet writing; of stories that require refinement before consumption but they are out of my imagination and trapped on paper.
Arvasoka (part 1) 23000 words drafted. A dark fantasy that I enjoyed living in though I approach what is to come with trepidation.
...
Time to emerge from a half year hibernation. I didn't stop writing; merely failed to do anything else such as socials or editing.
The current short story explores why children see things we cannot whilst I ponder the outline of a chilling story about teeth.
A happy New Year to you all
The amount of agonizing I'm putting myself through over which dark moments drabble to submit to @blackharepress.bsky.social is unreal...i can flip a coin right?
Another short story draft complete. The growing editing pile is looking at me, it's accusing me...
Whilst editing I've become drabbly*... It's like dopamine hunting "ooo a drabble ooo another drabble"
*I've written 5 this week - mostly because I write on my phone but edit on a proper computer.
The pen is down.
The first draft of a novella is complete at 22k. A deviation from weird fiction and horror as well 😱
Now for a celebration, a breather and into editing.
674 words...not bad for a first night back. One more scene and then the siege.
Honestly I just want to write the end to see how it turns out...so close.
Okay...it's been a month since I wrote a word.
Health issues under control. Back in the pub for my Thursday night writing session.
Now what where my characters up to? 🤔Wish me luck! 🤞
To be clear I love the horrors of the sea, the terrors of the deep and the unforgiving ocean but those stories written by sailors with such details of the nautical world that I must wade through tedium to get to terror.. more weird and surreal less reality of the setting.
This week I visited the hospital for what I will think of as research of the experience but it was simply a medical procedure.
In other news I must grudgingly concede that I do not like nautical horror...
I'm trying really hard not to make this character be derivative of Gollum but it's a small scrawny monster child that is scrambling around... In my head it sounds like Gollum.
I don't want to break my drafting flow so thats future me's editing problem!
I believe so. I did a quick double check through the presses website (www.bagofbonespress.com/books) and amazon seems to be their standard.
#HorrorWritersChat my (pen) name is C.R. Backwood I write, mostly, somewhere between gothic horror and weird fiction. I like the unknowable horror threatening the narrator's soul but also how a single mundane object can be utterly terrifying.
My latest contribution: amzn.eu/d/4OMzanE
I fear I have created a protagonist I actually like. I don't think this has happened before. Quick commission them a movie or Netflix series so I can't kill them off.
My first Thursday pub writing evening and it's been a day... Time to unwind, let a sentient mountain crush a city and revel in the ensuing battle.
A 500 word short story in 25 days...
< 1 minute to form the story idea
5 days to plan and write the first draft
20 days to edit, rewrite and reread until it was right
Day 26 will be a final read aloud and then submit.
Everyone reads their stories aloud in character right? 👀
My "plotting" technique for a short story did not translate to a coherent novella. Stalled at 9800 words 🤦♂️
Let's retrofit some planning! No one will know 🤫
724 words written of a 500 word short story. Let the brutal editing begin!
I've been awake since 3am. It's 1 degree outside. I walked 15 minutes to the pub. Time to get tapping those keys and do some writing for an hour or two.
This has got the neurons firing 🎇
I'm here for it! Although I don't know why. I like John Carpenter, I like the effects style but I'm incredibly irritated by the film. At least it's better than the ghosts of Mars 🤣
I always feel like I'm going to be burnt at the stake but.. I hate this film 🤣 I don't get the hype it's better with pingu (thingu)
Moving myself over to here whilst watching bluey.
