Reminder: you’ve got the rest of this week (until the end of Friday) to get your hands on Get Writing at “pay what you want” prices. You can pay as little as a dollar to get the whole ebook, plus all the bonus goodies.

Another year’s almost gone … and sometimes I feel like I don’t have much to show for it.

My daughter is five and a half, and my son is almost four (his birthday is Christmas Eve). They’ve grown so much and learnt so much over the past year, and they’re at a lovely, interesting age. The baby years feel quite a long way behind us now!

As for me … well, when I tot everything up, it looks like I managed to get more done than I thought.

• I re-wrote and re-ran a couple of my online courses: Blog On and Start Freelancing. I created the brand new course Successful Guest Blogging.
• I relaunched the Aliventures blog with a brand new design.
• I published my novella, Not So Imaginary.
• I launched my first “pay what you want” product, Get Writing.
• I took on several new freelancing gigs, some of which I’ll be talking about a bit more in the new year.

I didn’t write everything I wanted to, but when I look back … I did a fair amount during what’s still a fairly busy stage of parenting.

Whatever season you’re at in your own life, I hope you’ve had a good 2018; if it’s not gone too well, I hope that 2019 has many brighter things in store for you.

I’ll be taking some time off from blogging to enjoy spending Christmas with my family (and also to recover from organising a birthday party for 20+ three-and-four-year-olds two days before Christmas). If you’ve got a little extra reading time over the holidays, here are some posts from 2018 that you might want to read or re-visit:

General:

When Can You Call Yourself a Writer? (Jan 2018)

Do you call yourself a writer? Should you? This post takes a look at what being a “writer” means and when, or whether, you should apply that particular descriptor to yourself, in private and in public.

Four Dangerous Pieces of Advice for Writers (Mar 2018)

There’s lots of excellent writing advice out there, much of which I’ve benefitted from over the years. There’s also some fairly misguided and sometimes downright dangerous advice doing the rounds. This post debunks some popular misconceptions.

Twelve Excuses Writers Make (and How to Overcome Them) (Oct 2018)

Trust me, I’ve made pretty much every excuse on this list … often more than once. But sometimes, it’s worth taking a hard look at the excuses you’re making to see which ones you can overcome.

What Can You Write About if You Don’t Have Any Ideas? (Nov 2018)

I think a lot of writers will know this feeling: you want to write, whether that’s stories, blog posts, or something else … you just don’t know what to write about. Hopefully this post will help.

Fiction:

Why You Should Stick to One Name for Each Character in Your Novel (Apr 2018)

Sometimes, novelists think they need to change things up by referring to their characters in several different way … but this is rarely necessary. In this post, I explain why you should pick one name to use for your character in the narrative, and stick with it.

“Show, Don’t Tell” Doesn’t Always Apply: Here’s What You Need to Know (Apr 2018)

The “show, don’t tell” rule is a handy one when you’re starting out as a writer, but there are times when it’s better to tell the reader something rather than to try to dramatise it. This post explains key times when you can use “telling”, and gives examples.

Choosing the Right Viewpoint and Tense for Your Fiction [With Examples] (Jun 2018)

When you write fiction, your story needs to be told in either the first person (“I”) or third person (“he/she”), and it needs to be told in the past or present tense. This post takes a look at a range of examples from published fiction.

The Two Scenes in Your Novel That Will Need the Most Rewriting (Jul 2018)

While the whole of your novel will probably need extensive redrafting, there are two scenes you need to pay particular attention to: the opening and the climax. This post goes through some key questions for each.

Blogging / Freelancing:

Five Easy Ways to Write in a More Conversational Style (Apr 2018)

If you’re a blogger, or if you freelance for blogs and websites, you might be aiming for a “conversational” style in your writing. But what does this mean (and why is it so frequently advised)? This post explains, with examples.

Three Things to Do Before You Start Freelance Writing … and Three Things Not to Bother With (Jul 2018)

I got into freelancing rather by accident, and in retrospect, I’d ideally have set things up better. On the other hand, there are some things that new or would-be freelancers fret about that really aren’t a big deal. This post explains what you need and what you don’t.

Seven Reasons to Try Freelance Writing (Even if You’ve Never Considered it Before) (Oct 2018)

Have you ever thought about freelancing? You might feel it’s not for you … but it might be easier (and better paid) than you’d think. Plenty of writers freelance part-time to support other projects, too.

How to Raise Your Rates as a Freelance Writer – Here’s Everything You Need to Know [Includes Email Template] (Dec 2018)

Are you undercharging? If you’ve been freelancing for a couple of years without ever raising your rates, you almost certainly are. This post explains why you need to put your rates up regularly … and how to do so.

If you celebrate Christmas, I hope you have a very enjoyable time, however you spend it. And I wish you all the best as we enter into 2019: it’s going to be an exciting year for me, as I have lots of new courses to run, some new fiction-writing directions to explore, and some big plans for when my youngest starts school in September!

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