I'm Back...

It's been a while..

I never meant to take another writing break, but I have so many other responsibilities now that writing had to go onto the back burners. Luckily, I seem to have gotten into the habit of making notes of my ideas on my phone, scraps of paper, and on the back of really important receipts.

Due to the coronavirus outbreak at the moment, I shouldn't leave my home.
Not that I was going to.. Either way, now there is time to write.
I have far too many WIPS and some of them are projects that need to be destroyed to prevent another human ever setting eyes on them.
As I said, time to write, means I will attempt to have up to an hour a day doing what I can to get another book out.
One of my aims was 10 books before 30. At the minute I'm on 7, pretty impressive, but I have less than 3 years to get 3 things worthy of the public eye. That's a book a year.

I have time, I got this..
Stay safe and sensible, readers!

Environmental Health - Out Now

The book is out in the wild.
It came out on the 8th of October, but I've not had time to update my blog - sorry.
I decided to extend the donations, I initially wanted to use 10% of sales profits to give to climate and environmental charities, but it didn't feel like it was enough, so I'm extending it. Every single month I'll be donating. One little indie kid's poetry book isn't going to make a dent in anything over one month, so at least this way more will be going to charity.

I've had some cool feedback so far about the book, and I am hoping to get more reviews and feedback in the near future. I am struggling with promotions, as always, but that comes with the indie book package and unfortunately, I can't upgrade. If you do follow me on social media, I apologise for the plugging, but I'm hoping this book can help me contribute to the climate crisis. Please help by sharing, reviewing, or even suggesting to others who may be interested.

If your little ones are environmentally conscious, please gift them the book. It's paperback for now, but I will be adding it as an ebook closer to Christmas.
You can get it HERE.

Happy reading!

#ThrowBOOK Intro.

I'm not at all encouraging people to throw literature.
Do not be rough with the books.

I am creating a throwback feature to go back to the books I have published and discuss my writing process - my favourite artwork from the book - and where to buy it, etc.
I've chosen to post '#Throwbooks', as success is not something that is instant, it can happen years later, for example, I'd created books years ago, but they are coming onto people's radars now. I don't know why the sudden surge of popularity, but I'm definitely pleased it is happening. It's not a race.

The posts will be spread out to ensure I'm not overwhelming my blog readers with self promotion. This is merely an introduction to what I will be writing about in the near future - it'll also help readers find books I haven't managed to promote as much as I'd like to.

I'm looking forward to going through my old books and picking and choosing my favourite parts. It is also a chance to see my writing strengths and what I need to work on for the books I'll be writing in the future.

So, keep your eyes peeled on the blog for '#ThrowBOOK'!

Is There Any Point In Reading To Your Newborn?

Newborns are only able to see in high contrast for a while, they don't know what's going on around them, and their eye muscles are not strong enough to focus yet. So is there any point of introducing literature to them? Because in reality, the first few weeks they only feed, toilet and sleep...

My daughter was three days old when she had her first story time. The book was a contrast picture book and 8 pages long. She's too young to even know what a book is, nevermind what the storyline was, but she was happy to sit with her father and watch him turn the pages as he read aloud. She was comfortable, she was interested, she was content.
She has since had several story times, with board books, paperbacks and even the newspaper. It doesn't matter what you read to them, as long as you're reading aloud and showing them where the story is coming from.

The benefits of reading to little ones consist of: allowing them to learn your voice, exposing them to new vocabulary, bonding over a relaxing activity, teaching them that books are an enjoyable experience, and showing them worlds they don't have around them. Children can sense the excitement in your voice as you read - especially if you put on funny voices for dialogue.

These days reading aloud is something that is being actively promoted - if children see grown ups doing it, they'll think it's just what we do - and therefore they will not feel put out when having to speak or read to an audience themselves. It's a skill even adults often struggle with.

Read aloud and proud!

You're their favourite person in the world and you're sparking an interest in reading. Reading with your littlie is a safe, comfortable activity, one that newborns can get involved with - because let's face it, they can't do much else and reading is a skill they'll have to tackle when they're older.
I've worked with young children, and they love story time. All they have to do is sit and listen, and they're imagination does the hard work. If it's escapism for adults, it's the same for little ones.

So yes, reading to a newborn is a must!

Poetry : Buoy, I'm Glad I'm Not The Sea

Mini Rebrand

I've bit the bullet and made an 'authors page' for my children's books. It took a lot of bottle for me to do as I was terrified that it would come across as arrogant. My anxiety has been through the roof on the run up to creating the page - I needed a space for my books in general, to save me making a new page for every book I made - and this way, my work is all together.
The Twitter Writing Community has been very supportive of me creating the page, which helped my nerves.

I've deleted my Charlie Cheese Books Facebook page because I wanted to focus on the general page for children's books - and it makes room to promote books that aren't in the CC series. Plus, I can use the page to post about upcoming books or any book news.

I have a new avatar, shown on the homepage and this will be my profile picture on most things where my children's books are concerned. I have tried to use headshots before, but it's more comfortable to use the avatar. This was drawn by the ever awesome Tommings.

The page can be found here: Beffy Parkin Children's Author.

Please give the page a like, or have a little look around if you've got the time. There isn't much on there as of yet, but I'll be sure to update whenever I can. Phew!

End Of Writing Hiatus!

I'm back!

Well, nearly. I'm a parent now, so I can't work as much as I used to, but I will be writing up ideas and updating my blog at least once a month. If I manage to get into a good balance, it'll be more!
Time away has made me see where my bread is buttered, and although I will be engaging in many different writing exercises, I've decided that children's books is where I thrive.
With the lovely feedback from the Charlie Cheese Books series, and reviews of The Macroodelzig, I cannot see where else to focus my time.

However, I will continue to expand my writing talents by creating more comedy, poetry, screenplays etc, as I enjoy doing all I can to make work I'm proud of, it just won't be promoted as much as any children's stories I'll write - It's an excuse to finish the mountain of unfinished projects I have on the go. I think my main focus will be children's books - but that doesn't mean I won't ever publish another poetry book, or eventually get around to filming my ideas. (God help me, I will film something if it kills me!).

I have a little one now,  so I'll be writing to entertain her - which means lots more children's books will be coming soon! It's good to be back!

Meet The Author

I thought I'd make a 'Meet The Author' post for whilst I'm on my writing break. I hope it makes for an interesting read and I'll be back as soon as I can! You can follow me on Twitter: @beffyparkin or Instagram: @thebeffyparkin if you fancy.

Do you use a Pen Name?
- Yes. 'Beffy' is my nickname, I gained it when working with small children as it's easier (and more fun to say) than my actual name, and 'Parkin' is my maiden name. I answer to my pen name more than I do my legal name!
What do you write?
- Children's books mostly, I have released four story books into the wild. But I have tried to expand my creative writing, I also dabble in poetry, screenplays, jokes, short horror stories, stand up comedy sets, and I'm working on a novel.
Do you base characters on real people?
- I have a few WIPs that have characters that are loosely based on people I know. I find  real life characters make the best book characters, even if it's just aspects of their personality.
What does literary success look like to you?
- I'm aiming to have 10 books out by the time I'm 30. I already have 6 books available to the public, so I'm nearly there. I like having my name on things, so the more books, the better!
Do you read your book reviews?
- Definitely, someone took the time to read one of my books and leave feedback, I'm happy to hear opinions on my work, positive or negative.
Do you Google yourself?
- I have done in the past, mostly to find where my books are available to purchase - I don't get updates for this, so I have to hunt them down myself.
How many hours a day do you write?
- I write as much as I can before burning out. I try to set time aside to write, but if I'm not feeling creative, it's not happening. I don't force it too much, it'll render the exercise pointless.
What are you working on?
- I have lots of unfinished writing projects, such as poetry, short stories and comedy. I can't wait to come back and get working on them again! Time away has worked well for me, so I'm happy to put pins in work.
What are the titles of your children's books?
- My Charlie Cheese Books have three books so far, Don't Eat Charlie Cheese, Charlie Cheese Travels The World, and Charlie Cheese And The Food Dance. I also have a book inspired by my naughty, little dog called The Macroodelzig. There will be more!
Where can we find your books?
- My children's books are available on many websites, Waterstones, Barnes and Noble, Booktopia, Amazon, etc.
Do you give out creative writing advice?
- My blog is riddled with advice, tips and experiences of creative writing. I will try most things to expand my creative writing abilities, so I'm happy to talk about them.
What's your top tip for an aspiring writer?
- Respect the reviews and feedback you get for your work - people put time aside to read what you put out there, so you should return the favour! It will only improve your work.
When will you be blogging again?
- I'm hoping to get a routine going where I have a few hours a week to write properly, and update my blog. I'm winging it, so it could be any time!
How can you be contacted in the meantime?- I'm going to be less active but I will try to check my Twitter/Instagram as often as I can - You can fill in the contact form on this blog if you're querying and I'll respond as soon as.

Revisiting A WIP : Spitting Ducks

I may have mentioned my sketch show idea, Spitting Ducks, last year or so. I was hoping to film parts of it just to get the hang of things, and a feel for directing a comedy.

The sketch show was written, edited and left in my notes - mainly due to the fact I didn't have any money at all to even hire filming equipment, never mind get anything made. Spitting Ducks is a daytime television parody sketch show - it takes television shows and mangles them, either with puns or taking it dark.

I had to dig out the notes recently, as I was inspired by the new series of Channel Four's Lee And Dean to get back into comedy. (If you've not seen Lee And Dean, you should! Come for the comedy, stay for the incomparable facial expressions).

Anyway, the notes I went through don't seem relevant anymore, or some ideas just come off as desperate or are spoofs of programmes that are no longer on television, and feel long forgotten. I'm glad I didn't throw it away though, as there is more good ideas I can work on than there is bad ideas. I am confident with 80% of the sketches - but there is always room to polish the positives.

I've decided to keep the title of Spitting Ducks, and will be leaving this open to work on as often as possible - I WILL get it perfect, it will be filmed, and I will bother as many people as I can with it.

4am Creative Writing

Being woken up at 4am isn't always fun. Who are we kidding, it's never fun being woken up, no matter what time it is!

Unfortunately, this is quite frequent these days, so I put my time to good use. I have been spending the early hours of the morning writing! Poetry, story ideas, and for the first time in a while - a complete children's story. I managed to write a full rhyming story in the hour and a half I was rudely awoken. When I woke up at a reasonable hour, I sent off the note to my beta reader ( ... my poor unsuspecting husband!) and had some good feedback.

No typos, no plotholes, no confusion.
How on earth did I do that when my brain doesn't want to work?

The story is called, 'Do Your Homework, Sally Dean!', I'm hoping to sit on it for a until the end of the year, or the beginning of next year, then release it - but I know for a fact I'm going to be overly excited and try to publish it as soon as I have the finances! (If you see me promoting a book with that title in a few months, call me out!)
I am making sure I put a pin in all future ideas and notes - they will either become future writing projects, or something to reflect on and wonder how I got anything at all done on so little sleep.

Writing Exercise : Blackout Poetry

I play this whenever my husband buys a newspaper (which is rare, so it's extra fun!)

You select a short article in the paper and try to use the words to form a haiku, funny sentence, or poem, then you blackout the rest of the paragraph, leaving just your poem - plus it looks very arty-farty this way.
Alternatively, you can also circle or highlight the words - this is useful if you've chosen a long article.
It's a great way to write without writing, use your creativity, and in my case kill time at the hospital!

I have seen a few posts about people using this exercise, and I think it's absolutely fantastic! The article you've chosen may include some words or themes that you'd never write yourself, but the result is your handy work. It's borderline effortless - but you are putting your creative writing to good use!
I don't recommend using books because you shouldn't deface an author's hard work in order to complete a writing exercise; newspapers and magazines have enough wacky articles with interesting themes, and you can do whatever you like with them!

I'll be uploading some of the blackout poetry I've created to Instagram in the near future, just for fun. So keep a look out!

The Macroodelzig - Where To Find One!

The Macroodelzig has been out for a while now, which means the book is available in more stores! Hooray!
Along with the fabulous online feedback, I've spoken with many people who really enjoyed the story, artwork and the message of the book. I'm so happy with the response I've had, and I am grateful that people are willing to set time aside to read my book and write up a little review. Please leave a review if you can, it really helps indie authors out.
The book is now out in the world, and you can grab a copy from all corners of the world. Here's a list of online websites and bookstores that stock the book:

Amazon

Barnes and Noble

Booktopia

Bokus

Foyles

If you spot a copy of the book in the wild, don't be shy, let me know so I can update this post!
Happy book hunting!

Finding Feedback - The Struggle

It's fairly difficult to source your own book bloggers for feedback, and being an indie only makes it worse. Here's how I went about finding people willing.

I had to contact people on several different social media sites to find people willing to fit my work in to their busy To Be Read list.
You can't expect people to drop what they're doing to deal with you.
The people I spoke to were writers, bloggers, book reviewers, parents and carers, and people who enjoy children's literature, and fortunately, I managed to get some feedback.

Some of the feedback I received were posted on the social media that I had contacted them on, so I had featured on their Instagram stories, was retweeted on Twitter, and the cover of my book reposted on Tumblr. Not all feedback comes to Amazon - that's why you have to share their feedback on your own, as others may not see it. It's always good to request that they share their comments on Amazon, if they can, bonus, if they can't, it doesn't matter, they've spent time giving your work feedback, so you should take the time thanking them, sharing their words, and returning the favour if possible.

Don't go into thinking that people owe you anything. Yes, you have a new book. Yes, it's super exciting. Yes, the people you contact do this for a living. It doesn't mean they read your genre, or they prefer books that aren't indie, or they just don't have time - some people make a living from reviews, and therefore would expect a payment for their time. If you cannot pay them - don't ask them. I don't pay for reviews, as I feel you'd want more bang for your buck, and expect a glowing review as your hard earned money went towards it - which may not be completely honest or reflective of your work.

Top tip: Do not expect the review to be perfect and sparkly, they see your work in a different light and will point out the flaws, imperfections, and will inform you of their opinion - it's honest work, and it's better to hear the truth from someone who has built a career on book reviews, than to be told it's amazing and that feedback being useless to you.

Does Blogging Count As Writing?

Of course.

I write every single day, be it in notebooks, correcting ideas or through blogging. I'm writing.
Blogging is a way of sharing the writing projects I'm working on, a platform to plug my books, and to express what I'm going through at the moment. I don't blog for the sake of it, I often write posts to explain the difficulties you can face as an indie, or to show off writing exercises that help me create.

My blog is another place to be creative with my writing. There's nothing holding me back, I have freedom to write all day long on here if I see fit.
Some people will pass it off as being a blogger - but you have to have a way with words to make content people want to read.
It's taken me a while, but I can bring in over 1k views a month with my blogposts.
It wasn't always like this, but the more experience I gained, the more I could write interesting content!

My blog is a place to log and record my journey to being a full-time writer. If I didn't have my blog, I wouldn't have anywhere to express myself - whilst sticking to the theme of being an indie writer.

If you blog, you write. End of.

My Impending Writing Hiatus..

It's hard to come to terms with the fact that my writing will have to go on the back burner for a while!

I've had my whole pregnancy free to write whatever I want and try new writing styles, so it'll be strange not getting up, grabbing a pen and cracking on! I'm coming to the end of my pregnancy and in a few months, I'll have a new priority.

I'm swapping notebooks for nappies! How exciting!

I will be making an effort to write as and when I can - but I have a feeling my ideas will be recorded as voice notes, rather than quick sticky note scribbles. I don't want to lose my interest in writing, and I'm excited to juggle raising my child, and follow my career goals - you can have both.

I'm hoping to set a little time aside when I feel comfortable to get some new ideas down or rediscover my WIPs. I've been making an effort lately to draft some blog posts, so if I do get a spare moment, I'll at least be able to keep my blog as active as possible.

This is the good thing about putting a pin in projects!
I have some work projects to come back to - and since it'll be a while in the future, I'll have fresh eyes - which has worked well for me in the past!

My Book Aims

I genuinely didn't expect to have more books than Don't Eat Charlie Cheese.
I was 22 years old when I crafted the Charlie Cheese character, I was working in a pre-school, didn't know exactly what I wanted to do with my life, but I thrived making up rhymes and funny characters with the children and my co-worker (now best friend!). On my break, I used to make notes on scraps of paper or tissues I'd find in my pockets. It was exciting and sparked my interest in writing.

I would never think that 5 years later I'd have two more Charlie Cheese books, a memoirs comedy book, a poetry book and a new children's book.

It's such a wild achievement, and it's incredible to see my hard work being enjoyed by others. I am delighted I found such enjoyment with making stories, and decided that this is the future I'd see myself being happy having.
I believe I've done incredibly well in regards to getting my writing career off to a running start, although I hate feeling like I'm boasting or showing off, I do feel proud about this. I'd like to set myself new aims when it comes to books - rather than writing challenges.

My book aims are:

- Release 10 books by the time I'm 30. (Borderline impossible, but let's give it a go!)
AND
- Finish my novel. I don't have a deadline for this, but I'll be happy when it's complete.

Amazon Bestseller : The Maths

Ever wanted to work out how books reach the Top 100 on Amazon? They have a Best Sellers Ranking system which gives each book a number - this number changes with reviews, sales, and other books being added on to the Amazon website. So, I was wondering what it would take to hit the Top 100 from standing...

My best sellers ranking (at the minute) is 130,706.
So, I would need to have at least 130,606 reviews or sales within a limited period - as I said, if more books are added the book can be knocked back. (ARGH!)
I have approx. 450 Facebook friends, and 750 Twitter followers.
Providing there is no cross over with accounts, that's 1,200 people - so even if they purchased the book or left a review, it wouldn't scratch the surface. To smash this realistically, you'll need the best advertising and promotional team going - but who has the money for this?

It's near impossible - in my opinion - for an indie author, to promote, advertise and even know enough people to have them ALL help accomplish this goal.
I'm still attempting to boost the ranking number - for a personal achievement / for fun - it gives me something to work towards with this book.
The ranking doesn't mean the content of the book is no good - don't forget this!

Want to try and help bump my number up?
Grab The Macroodelzig on Amazon now!

The Macroodelzig - Out Now!

The book is finally out in the world, and I cannot be happier! I've spent a lot of time and energy getting feedback, making promotional posts, and attempting to advertise the book as much as possible this month.

The Macroodelzig is only available from two websites at the moment, but I will make a seperate post of all of the online bookstores in the near future.

Please follow the hashtag, #TheMacroodelzig, on social media and give some feedback on Amazon as and when you can - that would be amazing!

Where to grab the book early:

Amazon

Barnes and Noble

The Macroodelzig - Super Sneaky Snippet!

I just had to make a small, flick through video to promote my children's book, The Macroodelzig!

It's very short, but it shows the amazing artwork - by Tommings - and this is the first sneak preview video I've ever made, so I love it!

Please give it a view / share / like / comment etc! The book is coming soon, so let's hype it up!

> > The Macroodelzig Sneak Preview < <

World Book Day 2019

It's that time again! Happy World Book Day!
As a treat I thought I'd honour the hashtag, #ShareAStory.

This year I haven't dressed up, as my baby bump limits some costumes, so this is the next best thing - I am sharing some lines from my first book, Don't Eat Charlie Cheese! Hooray!

Happy reading!

 Charlie Cheese has lots of jobs,
he is a very busy slice.

His bosses try to eat him, though,
they've tried to once or twice.

Charlie went to be a chef, he had to cook a roast.

The chef took out a slice of bread..

"I am not for toast!"

Charlie had a little sulk,
they don't know how he felt!

Charlie started crying,
and then began to melt!

Finish the story and fill in the gaps by grabbing your own copy - search 'Don't Eat Charlie Cheese' on google now!