Yellow Lenses, Less Eye-Burn.

As somebody who works in the literary industry, I find myself staring at computer screens all day.  When I am not penning a new book, I am reading books from other authors before giving them a professional book review and eligibility for book awards.  It has its perks, but it also has its draw-backs.  Eye-burn is the biggest down-side to the job.

Being legally blind, I have modified equipment at home and very expensive glasses to help me see the screen.  When I write, I use Microsoft Word.  If you go to the menu at the top of Microsoft Word, you will see an option for “Page Layout.”  By clicking on this, you are given many options, but for those who wish to preserve their eyes and have less headaches, I recommend that you click on “Page Colour,” where you will find a vast number of colour options to choose from.  Due to the smart nature of Microsoft Word, it will automatically adjust the text colour, according to which colour option you choose.  When I am reading another author’s book in word, I opt for a black background which gives me a white or off-white text.  When I am writing, however, I always use the light-tan colouring (third column, third colour down) which will allow your text to stay black, also enabling you to easily spot any layout errors in the final draft.

On occasion, I will come across a manuscript which has been forwarded to me in PDF format.  The colours of a PDF document, in most cases, cannot be changed.  On the one hand, I could always convert it to a badly-formatted epub document, but this takes away from the quality of the read.  Instead, I use yellow lenses.  You can purchase a decent set of these at any optometrist or sporting store.  Not only are they used for snow-glare but they are also used for night-driving, to reduce the glare of the oncoming headlights on the road.  I, personally, use them when I am reading a document on a bright-white background in PDF format, with the text at 190% sizing.  Not only is the text very easy to read, but it eliminates the headaches and the burning sensation that comes from looking at a computer screen for long periods of time.

I spend approximately 18 hours per day at the computer, making sure I do an excellent job in writing or reviewing books.  If you are in the same situation with your job, I wholeheartedly recommend you buy a set of yellow lenses over the top of your eye glasses (or on their own, if you are not somebody who wears glasses).

You’re welcome, and happy reading! 🙂

– Rosie xx

Illustrating just got a little easier

With three different genres in my pocket, I haven’t had to worry about illustrating until recently.  My children’s book series is well and truly up and running, but after a whole lot of head hunting and some major let downs, I ended up looking around online to see what is available to me which I can play with in my spare time.

Although the Karmic Krystal series will not be illustrated, I first had a little bit of fun with an app called BitStrips.  The result was corny and cute, but it is not something I would be able to use in my CATHOOD series.

BitStrips is an online program which allows you to create an animated version of yourself in various scenarios.  It also lets you create your own captions.

After spending way too much time on cartoons which will be of no use to me in the Karmic Krystal series, I wasted just a little more time before I moved on.

As silly as these might seem, they took me from a rocky mood and put me into a somewhat more relaxed (and amused) place.  Finally I had a look around and sought out something which specialises more in animal pictures which do not breach commercial usage rights.

I put the following together as the new header on my Cathood Blog page for Facebook.  Although it won’t win any medals, at least it’s a start.

The Cartoonizer allows you to create whichever animals you require for your books, your shirts, your coffee mugs or hats… or even those weird people who put pictures on their undies.

Hey – YOU IN THE CORNER – quit laughing at my pictures!

For those who wish to do their own illustrations, you might want to check these out for yourself and take some of the stress out of publishing the masterpiece which you have written!

Happy illustrating! 🙂

– Rosie xx

TIP: Writing contests online!

It was not until recently that I only wrote books and blogs.  Nothing more.  But last week, I found that there are many writing contests online also.  Some have a small entry fee and some are free to enter.  All have very strict guidelines.

What I like the most is that these competitions don’t come with the usual “Open to US residents only” or “Only open to UK residents.”  These contests are open worldwide and are year-round, but if you miss the deadline, you simply need to wait until next year before you try again.

The best ones to enter, of course, do not require you to outlay any funds.  You can find a list of free competitions here:

http://www.freelancewriting.com/creative-writing-contests.php

http://thewritelife.com/27-free-writing-contests/

Don’t mind paying an entry fee of £20 or so?  Then maybe these might interest you:

http://www.writersdigest.com/writers-digest-competitions

http://www.dailywritingtips.com/25-writing-competitions/

http://www.writerscafe.org/contests/

No matter the reason – whether you have free time and want to try your hand at writing or even if you are mid-novel and have writer’s block or need a break, it is well worth your while to enter these contests, as the prize money alone for first prize is anywhere between £600 and £25,000.  Runners up generally receive around £100 each.

One of the tightest rules these competitions have, however, is that your work must not have been published anywhere, whether online or in a book.  So if you are up for the challenge, get fingers to the keyboard, pen to paper, brain into gear… and get writing!  What have you got to lose? 🙂

– Rosie xx

Inspired by who?

Everybody who has read my books tells me that I have a distinct style of writing.  Whether it be my children’s books, my autobiographies or my YA Paranormal Fiction, readers tell me that when they read, they always know it was written by me.  Although I am never sure whether to take it as a compliment or not – my English Master at school was very strict and mean – I always keep plodding away, writing more and more each day.

My modern day favourite authors include the likes of Christie Craig (C.C. Hunter), Amy Plum, Alyson Nöel, Lauren Kate, Cate Tiernan and more.  But it was my childhood influences who shaped my writing skills of today.  Of the many writers out there, only two authors from my youth remain in my permanent book collection:

Every single Australian knows about May Gibbs.  Until today, I thought she was a worldwide name, but as soon as my friend and illustrator (a British Finn) advised that he had never heard of her or of Snugglepot and Cuddlepie, I almost fell off my chair in shock.  Even now, 50 years after her death, May Gibbs’ books are in every single bookshelf in Australian homes.  Her stories bring nature to life and teach children how precious the smallest thing can truly be in this world.  Read one single page and you will be hooked.

The other author who has influenced me is John O’Grady, who also writes under the pseudonym of Nino Culotta.  I have all of his books in my collection and they have all been read so many times that some have had to be replaced after falling apart.  My favourite of his books is, of course, written about a cat called Smoky Joe – or rather – is written BY a cat called Smoky Joe 😉

I read this book as a child and the copy became so worn out that I ended up having to replace it three times in my lifetime (so far). Written by John O’Grady’s cat, Smoky Joe is a stray feral kitten which was discovered by an old man and treated like a king. It was quickly discovered that fish was Smoky Joe’s favourite food – thus the book title – and it talks about a wild kitten which fast learns how to live in a human world. This is by far John O’Grady’s finest work and it inspired me to write the CATHOOD series (featuring Muffin & Milly). Although deceased, John O’Grady will forever be my favourite author and I thank him for passing on the writing bug. xx

Although my book count is small in comparison to those who inspired me, I will continue writing and continue loving what I do.  I hope that some day people gain the same inspiration from my writings that May Gibbs and John O’Grady have given me.

Feel free to follow me on TWITTER or FACEBOOK. I look forward to seeing you there! 🙂

– Rosie xx

The ever-ponderous “Why do I write?”

I just left a comment on a friend of mine’s blog after he wrote a blog – an essay – having to explain why he writes.  To read his blog and see his reasons, you can read here:

WHY I WRITE – Article 94

After I left my response, it got me thinking that I should also perhaps blog my reasons.  Here is the comment that I left for Article94 – also known as Mark Gardner – one of my favourite authors.

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Personally, I love your writing style, but that is not exactly news.

For me, I write for two reasons:

1. Therapy. My first book did for me what many therapists couldn’t. It brought out all of my inner demons of the domestic violence situation that cost me my hearing, my eyesight and the life of my baby son.

2. My son. Although he died 18 years ago, writing children’s books brings me a joy because as I write, I am “reading” it to him and I am watching his face light up as I read.

The fact that I am unable to leave the house gives me the chance to let it all out, whether the reason be 1 or 2.

People may find it weird or even morbid. But what they think is not what motivates me. Their feedback after they have read a full book – that is what matters. If I have made their day better as well as my own, then the writing was worth it at the end of the day 🙂

And when I take a break from writing, I read – mostly your work. You have a unique writing style which seems to break the laws of physics. It impacts and it penetrates (not in a sexual way). For example, I am Deaf. But when I read your words, I can “hear” the sounds in the story. I am almost blind, but I can “see” everything around me so clearly because I become fully engulfed in the story.

Weird? Oh well – shit happens 😉

Keep writing xx

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My son lived and died under a name his father gave him.  After we left, I called my son A.J. (Alfred Junior).  I always promised my father that my first born son would bear his name.  I kept my promise.  I think of them both always.

I am who I am and I never apologise for it.

– Rosie xx