The prompt should be included in your story which can be any genre. Word limit is a maximum, there is no minimum.
Stories can be posted directly in the comments, or with a link to the post on your own blog. If you’re using the latter method, please include the title of your story.
Deadline for submission is Friday, 1 December 2017 at midnight, GMT+2. Winning stories will be announced on the following Monday. Bragging rights to the winners.
Have fun!
*And also because I started writing a post about Deep Point of View for yesterday’s post and realised that it was going way deeper (haha) than I’d anticipated and I needed more time to do it justice, so … that will be next week’s post.
This week you get … wait for it … 
(Shout out to Nthato for asking this question on our writing group and saving my life giving me the idea.)
How do you guys feel about writing accents?Like the typical “German/Swede” who pronounces “th” as “da”.
Regardless of what you choose to do with your character’s speech, the most important thing is to remain consistent!
How do you feel about accents in dialogue? Do you include them? Do you have a question about writing/editing that you’d like me to answer in a Tuesday Editing Tips post? Post it in the comments below!
The prompt should be included in your story which can be any genre. Word limit is a maximum, there is no minimum.
Stories can be posted directly in the comments, or with a link to the post on your own blog. If you’re using the latter method, please include the title of your story.
Deadline for submission is Friday, 24 November 2017 at midnight, GMT+2. Winning stories will be announced on the following Monday. Bragging rights to the winners.
Have fun!
Today is the last day of the Author Q&As from the contributors of Jozi Flash 2017. The anthology will be available for free download from December – just in time for Christmas!
Today, last but certainly not least, we’re welcoming Kim Wainer to the anthology! (Don’t believe what she says about her Instagram – it’s pretty awesome.)
What’s your favourite genre to write and why?
My favourite genre is fantasy, largely because there’s so much leeway. If you write in the real world, you have to follow the real world’s rules, but in fantasy you can decide on your own rules. There are also so many shades of fantasy, from ‘magical realism’ all the way to out-and-out orcs and dragons stuff. I can neither confirm nor deny that I also like it because it allows me to throw a dragon into the story whenever I get stuck.
Have you published anything else?
No. I’ve edited a recipe book that can be bought in actual shops – does that count?
How do you feel about social media and which platform is the one you use most?
Largely, it’s a waste of time, but if you use it right it can be valuable. I do a lot of work on social media as part of my job, so I’ve seen some of what it can do beyond reminding people of other people’s birthdays and enabling benign (mostly?) stalking. The only platform I use for my own personal purposes is Instagram, but don’t let that fool you into thinking I am somehow cool or, indeed, prone to taking selfies. I mostly use it for my attempts at interesting photographs and humble-bragging about the upper end of my baking adventures.
Which of your stories in Jozi Flash 2017 is your favourite?
Personal has one of my favourite lines in it. It’s difficult to pick a favourite, but I did enjoy writing For the Want of a Nail, just because it’s a bit silly.
Who or what inspires your writing?
Inspiration doesn’t have a fixed source for me. An idea can pounce on me at any time – usually when I don’t have anything on hand to write it down with. I find that the good ones tend to stick around in my brain anyway.
Are you taking part in NaNoWriMo and what are you working on?
Of course – and, naturally, I’ve no idea. I’m sure something will turn up before the first. It generally does.
Who is your least favourite book character and why?
Oh dear. Don’t get me started. Let’s just say anyone who always has a solution to any problem, especially if they’ve been lightly garnished with “flaws” that never actually seem to have any negative impact on their life.
Pet peeve as a reader?
Bad grammar and punctuation. Badly-applied commas set my teeth on edge.
Pet peeve as a writer?
When the right word is just on the tip of my tongue, and then it disappears, never to be seen again.
How do you feel about editing?
It’s daunting, but it also seems like something that would be quite satisfying to do. I just have to finish something (just!).
Connect with Kim on Instagram!
That’s it for our Author Q&As, but stay tuned, because we’ve arranged a few extra surprises for you while we’re waiting for the release of Jozi Flash 2017!
Every day for the next two days, I’ll be posting the Author Q&As from the contributors of Jozi Flash 2017. The anthology will be available for free download from December – just in time for Christmas!
Today, please join me in welcoming Nicola Tapson to the anthology! She has the cutest little logo and name for her company – the Inquisitive Hedgehog.
What’s your favourite genre to write and why?
My favorite genre to write is romance because I enjoy seeing where my characters go with the story.
Have you published anything else?
I have had a poem published in Reminiscence – a Southern African Poetry Collection – in 2009.
Which of your stories in Jozi Flash 2017 is your favourite?
Every day for the next three days, I’ll be posting the Author Q&As from the contributors of Jozi Flash 2017. The anthology will be available for free download from December – just in time for Christmas!
Today, please join me in welcoming … well, myself! Hi, everyone! I’m Nicolette Stephens! 🙂
What’s your favourite genre to write and why?
I love pushing my writing to the limits by playing with every genre. I keep coming back to fantasy, romance, and horror – the last with a bit of dismay as I’m not really an avid reader of the genre.
Have you published anything else?
I published stories in Jozi Flash 2016, but nothing since then.
How do you feel about social media and which platform is the one you use most?
I have a love/hate relationship with social media. Part of me loves the useful interactions with like-minded people. The rest of me is meh. I really enjoy Twitter lately, and I’m loving my blog.
Which of your stories in Jozi Flash 2017 is your favourite?
I love Bucket List. It’s a tragedy, which isn’t my favourite genre, but the bittersweet story stayed with me for a long time after writing it.
Who or what inspires your writing?
Lately I find myself inspired by people. How we interact with the world and each other, the dreams and hopes that we thrive on. The successes and failures of plans that don’t always work out as we’d anticipated. In short, I suppose life inspires me.
Are you taking part in NaNoWriMo and what are you working on?
Yes, I’m attempting plantsing this year. I’m returning to the first book in a fantasy series that I’ve been working on for the last seven years.
How do you feel about editing?
I love editing, particularly when it’s other writers’ stories. There’s a fine line between editing and rewriting, and sometimes I need to step back and ask whether I’m suggesting a change because of the way I would tell the story, or if it’s because I genuinely believe it would make the story better in some way. Depending on my reason, I will either scrap or keep the suggestion, but I always tell people that my edits are only suggestions, and it’s ultimately their choice whether or not to make the change.
Connect with me on Twitter, Facebook, or right here, on my blog!
Every day for the next four days, I’ll be posting the Author Q&As from the contributors of Jozi Flash 2017. The anthology will be available for free download from December – just in time for Christmas!
Today, please join me in welcoming Liam Oliver Kai Selby, the man with many names!
What’s your favourite genre to write and why?
Fantasy… fantasy by far! I have always been fascinated with the worlds that people can create, using only their imaginations. Through fantasy, I have been able to escape to whole new worlds, filled with new kinds of people and animals, and sometimes even plants. I love writing fantasy because I want people to see the worlds I can create and because I hope to give others the same chance I had to escape the hustle and bustle of the real world and see new worlds.
Have you published anything else?
No, I have not published anything before. Except if you count my school newspaper as a publication.
How do you feel about social media and which platform is the one you use most?
I have mixed views surrounding social media; it has its pros and cons. I mostly just use Twitter and Reddit as my go-to platforms.
Which of your stories in Jozi Flash 2017 is your favourite?
Ahhhhh… That’s a toughy. I would have to say my favourites are my sci-fi, fantasy and comedy stories. I can’t really choose between those, but I definitely had the most fun writing my comedy story!
Are you taking part in NaNoWriMo and what are you working on?
Yes, I am most definitely taking part in NaNoWriMo! Since I learned about it (about 2 years ago) I have tried to participate as much as I can. This year, I am working on a fantasy novel, which is currently titled The Mountaineer.
How do you feel about editing?
I really enjoy editing. Especially when I am editing someone else’s work – I am a freelance editor, after all.
Every day for the next five days, I’ll be posting the Author Q&As from the contributors of Jozi Flash 2017. The anthology will be available for free download from December – just in time for Christmas!
Today, please join me in welcoming Nthato Morakabi, whose prolific writing is second only to his sense of humour!
What’s your favourite genre to write and why?
I’ve made my name as a horror writer. This is due to my entire youth spent reading R.L. Stine, Stephen King, Clive Barker and a host of other horror giants. So perhaps before I would have said horror immediately, but now I’m not so sure. I love the fantastical aspect of horror, which is also present in fantasy and sci-fi. Short answer, I don’t have a favourite genre, I have favourite genres.
Have you published anything else?
Yes. This is mostly thanks to my blog, where networking with another blogger got me in touch with a writer working on an anthology. This would become my first international platform where my horror short story The Taxi Driver would feature in Dark Tales. The following year we worked on Dead Tales and my short story The Salesman also featured.
How do you feel about social media and which platform is the one you use most?
Social media, like anything else in life, can be amazing but can also ruin people. Personally, it’s thanks to social media that I became a published author. I have met many amazing authors who I can now call friends even though we’ve never met face to face. I spend most of my time between my WordPress blog and Twitter.
Which of your stories in Jozi Flash 2017 is your favourite?
Haha, hard to say. I loved Colours of Freedom. I wrote it as a flowing melody that told a story of love and sacrifice with a touch of African history. Then again Neapolitans was hilarious to write and The Family Recipe was a tribute to my first published horror, which I also wrote in 2nd person.
Who or what inspires your writing?
Everything. Music. Movies. Anime. Books. Random conversations. A single sentence on a billboard. There’s inspiration everywhere, it’s just about how my mind interprets it.
Are you taking part in NaNoWriMo and what are you working on?
Oh yes, I am definitely taking part in NaNo. This year’s novel is a horror, which, surprisingly, is a genre I haven’t written for NaNo. Ever. The premise is based on regret, and the personal inner darkness we all have to deal with. Intermingled with a supernatural entity of course.
Who is your least favourite book character and why?
Gee, this one is tough. Wait, no it’s not. It’s the entire cast of The Desert Spear, the second book in Peter V. Brett’s Demon Cycle series. It’s like they became new people compared to the first one, and the choices they were making annoyed me.
Pet peeve as a reader?
Bland writing where the narrator/main characters sound like a robot. Just mechanically going through every day things that don’t really do much for the story. I don’t care how you put on trousers unless you explain you have eight legs and four of them are made of jello.
Pet peeve as a writer?
Editing. Nuff said.
How do you feel about editing?
Ha should have known haha. See the previous answer? Okay uhhh editing is a necessary evil and when you have 50 000 unedited words, with grammar issues that could topple a small country … well you can imagine how I feel.
Connect with Nthato on Twitter, on his blog, or on Facebook.
Last week’s prompt got two entries into the competition – both from Jozi Flash 2017 contributing authors! It makes me deliriously happy when I get to read stories inspired by the prompts I put up, but even more so when they’re from authors I’ve had the pleasure of working with on an anthology.
Nicola Tapson entered her piece in the comments section of the prompt, and it was a bittersweet tribute to life and death:
Nthato Morakabi – whose writing is flamboyantly elegant, and whose use of language to describe scenes consistently floors me with its power.
Both entries were a gorgeous take on the prompt, and I’d like to thank both of you for taking the time out of your hectic schedules to enter! I hope it will be the first of many. 🙂
This week’s prompt:
The prompt should be included in your story which can be any genre. Word limit is a maximum, there is no minimum.
Stories can be posted directly in the comments, or with a link to the post on your own blog. If you’re using the latter method, please include the title of your story.
Deadline for submission is Friday, 20 October 2017 at midnight, GMT+2. Winning stories will be announced on the following Monday. Bragging rights to the winners.
Have fun!
Every day for the next six days, I’ll be posting the Author Q&As from the contributors of Jozi Flash 2017. The anthology will be available for free download from December – just in time for Christmas!
Today, please join me in welcoming Elliot P. McGee, who isn’t a cat, but whose writing has been thoroughly vetted and approved by one!
What’s your favourite genre to write and why?
Fantasy or sci-fi. Both allow me to explore the world, or any world, as I see it. There are no limits. It is the same reason to hate those genres.
Have you published anything else?
I have not. This will be the first publication I am taking part in.
How do you feel about social media and which platform is the one you use most?
Social media is a great marketing tool, as well as a way to keep in touch with fans and other people in this business. I absconded from social media for a while but I am back on Twitter, Facebook, and running a blog.
Which of your stories in Jozi Flash 2017 is your favourite?
This is difficult. I enjoy City of Gears most at the moment because it harkens to something larger. It may become a novella or full novel later.
Who or what inspires your writing?
Everything and anything. There is truth in everything. What better to inspire us than what is around us, what we experience, and taking that to one extreme or another?
Are you taking part in NaNoWriMo and what are you working on?
I am taking part in NaNo. This will be my second year. I will be working on a currently undisclosed novel, not even to myself.
Who is your least favourite book character and why?
Any character that plays no role in expanding on what is already written.
Pet peeve as a reader?
Poor editing.
Pet peeve as a writer?
Poor editing.
How do you feel about editing?
Editing can make or break a story. There are some success stories that break that mould, but most people in this industry will say the same.
Connect with Elliot on Twitter, on his blog, or on Facebook.
