Meet Sarina, indie author of dark epic fantasy, mama to one beautiful cat, and your host for this writing podcast!

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*** WE'RE MOVING *** Find us on https://ko-fi.com/writingsparrowpodcast going forward - the old links will stop working soon.

To find out more about Sarina and her books, visit her website, find her on Facebook, or connect with her (and the podcast!) on Discord.

In April 2020, I burned out bad. It took me over two months before I was back to myself again, and I want to help you avoid the same pain. In today's episode, I talk you through some of the symptoms, how burning out for two months affected me, and what you can do to stay far away from it.

Common symptoms of burnout include:

• You're exhausted physically and mentally
• Writing is harder than usual, even impossible
• You're emotional irritable,and stressed
• You feel like you can't possibly take any time off
• Your to-do doesn't seem to get any smaller even though you're working.

Your action steps for today are:

1. Make a list of your burnout symptoms (or copy the ones from this episode if you've never burned out before)
2. Make a list of the things that help you relax
3. Share your symptoms with someone you trust so they can help you take a break when you need it.

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*** WE'RE MOVING *** Find us on https://ko-fi.com/writingsparrowpodcast going forward - the old links will stop working soon.

To find out more about Sarina and her books, visit her website, find her on Facebook, or connect with her (and the podcast!) on Discord.

We've all doubted whether our novel ideas are enough, but I'm here to tell you that yes, it is, because all it needs to do is exist!

This week's action step:

Just... start writing. I know it's hard, but you can't polish something you don't have. Get the first draft written and worry about infusing the magic later.

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*** WE'RE MOVING *** Find us on https://ko-fi.com/writingsparrowpodcast going forward - the old links will stop working soon.

To find out more about Sarina and her books, visit her website, find her on Facebook, or connect with her (and the podcast!) on Discord.

This week I had a chat with Becky Wright, indie author and founder of PlatformHouse Publishing, which she runs with her husband and where they create book trailers, covers, formatted interiors, and promo images for authors. I have worked with them on several projects (including the cover for this podcast!) and happily vouch for their quality and affordable prices.

You can find out more or book PlatformHouse Publishing for your project on their website.

To find out more about Becky, check out her Instagram, her Twitter, and her website.

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*** WE'RE MOVING *** Find us on https://ko-fi.com/writingsparrowpodcast going forward - the old links will stop working soon.

To find out more about Sarina and her books, visit her website, find her on Facebook, or connect with her (and the podcast!) on Discord.

This week, I had a chat with urban fantasy author Grace - G.R.Thomas - about her recently wrapped-up debut series, the importance of making connections, and what it's like to get negative reviews. Grace started working on her books in 2014 and has learned a great deal along the way. She shares some of her gained knowledge in this week's episode.

You can find out more about Grace on her website, find her on Instagram, or follow her on TikTok.

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*** WE'RE MOVING *** Find us on https://ko-fi.com/writingsparrowpodcast going forward - the old links will stop working soon.

To find out more about Sarina and her books, visit her website, find her on Facebook, or connect with her (and the podcast!) on Discord.

In today's episode, I explain my favourite season of the year: NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month).

NaNoWriMo exists in two versions:

• the big event in November, in which the goal is to write 50,000 words in 30 days.
• the two smaller camps in April and July, for which you can set your own goal and edit or outline a novel instead of writing a novel.

All three are annual events, and they are free to join for writers of all backgrounds and experience levels.

This week's action step:

1. Join the NaNoWriMo fun (https://nanowrimo.org)
2. Declare your project
3. Join a cabin (mine might have room! ask me on social media or leave a comment)
4. Stock up on cafeeine and snacks.

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*** WE'RE MOVING *** Find us on https://ko-fi.com/writingsparrowpodcast going forward - the old links will stop working soon.

To find out more about Sarina and her books, visit her website, find her on Facebook, or connect with her (and the podcast!) on Discord.

Do ignore me at the beginning when I say it's the 19th of September. It's definitely October :)

This week I had the pleasure of talking to horror author Beverley Lee about writing short stories and getting them published in anthologies. Beverley has published four books so far and has been featured in several anthologies this year alone, and she shares her top tips in this episode.

Want to write short stories for anthologies?

• Do your research - if you have a fantasy story, don't submit it to a pure horror listing
• Write to the brief - if it's asking for graveyards, make your short story about graveyards
• Set a goal - find one or two anthologies you want to submit to, and get writing or you'll fall down the submission rabbit hole.
• Not used to writing short stories? Here are some prompts for you:

1. Write a short story that includes a scarecrow in a graveyard. (thanks, Beverley!)
2. Write about an object that has personal meaning to you.
3. Scientists announced they've discovered the secret to immortality. Write a petition letter to save the event of death.
4. Write down as many cliches and aphorisms as you can think of. Go back and star the ones you actually say. (not the kind of prompt we were expecting, but I promised to include it, so here you go!)

Keep your story under 6,000 words. Have fun!

Writing prompts 2-4 are from the book 642 Things to Write About by the San Francisco Writers Grotto. Disclaimer: this is an affiliate link)

Find places looking for submissions on:

The Horror Tree
Cemetery Gates Media
Kandisha Press

We also mentioned Forest App, a productivity timer I use to stay focussed.

To find out more about Beverley, check out her Instagram, her Twitter, and her website.

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*** WE'RE MOVING *** Find us on https://ko-fi.com/writingsparrowpodcast going forward - the old links will stop working soon.

To find out more about Sarina and her books, visit her website, find her on Facebook, or connect with her (and the podcast!) on Discord.

This week we're diving deeper into NaNoWriMo preparations without over-preparing.

Please note: this is how I prefer to prepare for November. You can prepare more or less if you like :)

There are 4 equally important basics I get ready before NaNoWriMo:

• my main characters - names, ages, looks, wants and needs, fears, strengths and weaknesses, speech habits,...
• my world - relevant country names, what those countries are known for, culture, how growing up there influenced your characters,...
• my plot - beginning, why your character goes on this journey, how everything changes in the middle, and the ending/aka what every word is leading up to.
• my rewards - I like to set myself milestones throughout NaNoWriMo and treat myself if I reach them. My tiers are 15k, 30k, and finishing at 50k, but you can set those to whatever you like or not do this step at all. I recommend it as a month-long motivator.

If you're writing every day, your word count is 1,666 words a day. If you take the weekends off like I do*, your word count goal is 2,380 words a day.

Most importantly, remember that all progress is good progress. If you don't reach 50k words next month, it doesn't matter - just have fun and enjoy the process!

Your action step this week is to take a few notes about your characters, world, and plot so you know the basics. Set your milestone rewards if you fancy. Take a deep breath. We've got this! <3

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*** WE'RE MOVING *** Find us on https://ko-fi.com/writingsparrowpodcast going forward - the old links will stop working soon.

To find out more about Sarina and her books, visit her website, find her on Facebook, or connect with her (and the podcast!) on Discord.