Do you hurry through a first draft, or are you conscious of flaws as they go down? Has that changed over time?

This really is an interesting question. I do believe that, for me, this particular aspect of writing has changed over time.

My children’s books are quite short at just under 600 words. This is the standard length for a picture book. They don’t require an awful lot of editing but I always read the proofs carefully and my publisher also goes through them. I’ve still found the odd error in them, but not enough to worry about. I have more issues with the pictures in the ebook that often seem to distort. It really bothers me when that happens.

My first longer children’s book, Silly Willy Goes to Cape Town, was also edited by my publisher and myself. I haven’t picked up many errors in it but it was only 33 000 words and my writing style has changed a lot since I wrote it. I still think it is a fun story but I have progressed a lot with showing and not telling as well as writing dialogue since I wrote this book in 2017.

My three most recent books have all been through a long editing process. The first one, While the Bombs Fell, was written and edited firstly by me, and then my mother had a go at it. It is her story and I wanted her to be happy with all the details so we went through it word-for-word three times. I had the most wonderful developmental edit of this book by Charli Mills. As a result of her advice, I turned the whole story around and added a lot of the historical elements to the book. Her advice about developing a timeline of the historical events and overlaying my mother’s life over it was excellent. I’ve subsequently developed timelines for both Through the Nethergate and my nearly completed novel, A Ghost and His Gold. The timeline for this latest novel is included in the book to help readers with the main events of the Anglo Boer War which is the main setting for this story.

Through the Nethergate was edited by me, developmentally edited by the talented Esther Chilton, who also gave me some fantastic advice and ideas, and then edited by my mother and my husband. I gave it another read before sending it to my publisher and she also read it and gave me changes. I haven’t found a lot of mistakes in this book either, although there are a few that slipped through.

A Ghost and His Gold started life as a short story of 5 000 words which grew to 30 000 words. I had this draft novella developmentally edited by Esther Chilton and a few of her comments triggered a series of new ideas. The book has swelled to 116 000 words. I sent the enlarged version back to Esther who undertook another developmental edit which helped me close out a few lose threads in the story line. I also changed the writing style for one section at her suggestion. I am pleased with the amended version and am grateful for the good advice I received. This book has subsequently been edited by my mom and my sister and I am now doing my final read before sending it to my publisher. It will get a further edit from Anne and she always finds things that need correcting.

Reading the above, I realise I go through five rounds of editing for each book. That is in addition to the editing I do as I go along. I am not a fast writer. I never churn out more than 1 500 words in one sitting and sometimes its as little as 700 words. I spend a lot of time researching and then reworking my writing for each paragraph so its as good as I can get it before I move on. Despite this careful editing as I go along, I always make changes after each chapter has “rested” for a few weeks.

I am happy to note that my developmental edits are far less extensive now than they were for my first book. I can say the same about my short stories which have only needed small changes and not big reworks.

I work very hard at ensuring I incorporate all the advice I’ve received from my developmental edits and from other people who kindly take the time to read and comment on my prompt writing and extracts, into my stories going forward.

This is for my books. I am not as good at editing my blog posts. Sigh! I try, but there is only so much time in a day and I spend at least two hours a week writing book reviews and eight to ten hours a week writing and editing. I also work a 35 to 40 hour week, and sometimes more if we are on a deadline, and I spend time with my boys. I also read a book a week and listen to two audio books a month.

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I am participating in another Box under the Bed series anthology of horror stories, edited by Dan Alatorre.

I have participated in two previous anthologies in this series. Dark Visions, published in 2018, had my stories The Willow Tree and The Haunting of William.

Nightmareland, published in 2019, features three of my short stories, The Siren Witch, Death Without Honour and The Path to Atonement.

The new book is called Spellbound. It is available for pre-order here: https://www.amazon.com/Robbie-Cheadle/e/B01N9J62GQ

I have two horror stories in this book, Death is about Choices and Glass Mountain.

Blurb

From the creators of the #1 bestseller The Box Under The Bed horror anthology and its #1 bestselling sequels Nightmareland and Dark Visions, comes Spellbound
– a horror anthology with 20 stories from 15 authors.

A young girl and her mother seek out a mysterious sorceress to guide the child in developing her powers, but the beautiful blonde witch has ideas of her own – and desires a powerful book that only the child can give her.
Tremble along as the stories in the magical book are revealed. “Some are true, some are false, and some are spells disguised as stories to hide our kind from those who would do us harm.”

* A young man is given a family heirloom at his mother’s funeral, but her protection can’t save him from himself.
* A sailing ship takes a journey to the new world and discovers horrors along the way.
* A young girl seeks a connection with her parents but learns she isn’t magical enough.
* And many more!

Compiled by USA Today bestselling author Dan Alatorre, this anthology of horror once again unites the minds and stories of more than a dozen amazing authors.

Spellbound will take you into the shadowy world of the eerie and macabre, with heart stopping stories from:

USA Today bestselling author Dan Alatorre (The Gamma Sequence),
award-winning bestselling author Robbie Cheadle
award-winning bestselling author Ellen Best
award-winning author Kaye Booth
award-winning bestselling author Alana Turner
award-winning bestselling author Christine Valentor
award-winning bestselling author Nick Vossen
award-winning bestselling author Alana Turner
award-winning bestselling author Victoria Clapton
award-winning bestselling author AM Andrus
award-winning bestselling author Adele Marie Park
award-winning bestselling author MD Walker
award-winning bestselling author Dabney Farmer
award-winning bestselling author M J Mallon

Perfect for Halloween or any time, these stories will make you think twice before borrowing a book, giving away jewelry, looking into a mirror, or going out on a moonlit night.

CONSIDER YOURSELF WARNED.

In celebration of the forthcoming book, I made a short reading of an extract from The Siren Witch from Nightmareland.

Thursday Doors is a weekly feature allowing door lovers to come together to admire and share their favorite door photos from around the world. Feel free to join in on the fun by creating your own Thursday Doors post each week and then sharing your link in the comments below, anytime between Thursday morning and Saturday noon (North American eastern time). 

These are some photographs of random doors I took during our time in Budapest last year September. The stone and mental work is amazingly ornate and beautiful.

Norm is on holiday for the next few weeks so he isn’t hosting this challenge.

What Amazon says

History always makes an impact on the present. Retired homicide detective Sam Sadlowski faces his personal history and fears as well as living and dead enemies.

My review

Gallows Hill is the second book in The Investigative Paranormal Society series. I have read the first book, Maledicus, so I was engaged with the characters in this book before I started it. In Maledicus, I quickly became very attached to the main character, Roosevelt or Rosy to his friends, and also to Helena, the little girl who becomes the focus of Maledicus’ evil intentions.

In this second book, a different member of the society is central to the story and we get an opportunity to learn the backstory of Sam which, intriguingly, ties in with the central themes and story of Gallows Hill.

Sam is a retired detective who lost his only son, Josh, to suicide ten years earlier. His son’s death destroyed his marriage and Sam lives alone. He has never recovered from Josh’s suicide and carries a burden of guilt that is threatening to destroy him.

The author is exceptionally good at character building and his depiction of Sam and his emotions and motivations are captivating. I quickly grew to love Sam and was thoroughly invested in his life.

The story has a dual theme, the first being the chronic illness of his friend and colleague’s daughter, Maria, and the ultimate revelation of the circumstances surrounding Josh’s death and the second, is the investigation by the society of rumours of a ghostly presence at an abandoned steel mill on the outskirts of town. The two themes are cleverly woven together to create a satisfying and clever story.

The ghostly presence, Ebeneezer Schwarznacht, is horribly depraved and his portrayal was reminiscent for me of the men behind the Salem witch trials. I find the evil embodied in this type of personality, pious and self righteous, is far more frightening than the concept of a demon as it represents real people and real happens rather than fantasy. It is chilling to think of killers who are totally entrenched in their belief that they have a divine right to judge others and take away their lives.

The author does a great job of running the two themes in parallel with clever overlaps and then tying them both together with some great twists at the end.

This is an excellent and chilling story and I would recommend this book to lovers of horror and supernatural stories.

Purchase Gallows Hill by Charles F. French

There is no key

Secret or otherwise

To unlock a mind

That has gone awry

Stretched to breaking point

By three wretched visitors

Stress, the spirit suppressor

Anxiety, the spirit disabler

Fear, the spirit destroyer

There’s no front door

No easy access

You need to delve

Take the time to explore

To test and experiment

Following the clues

Traveling the paths

Half formed and rutted

With your tiny hammer to hand

Built of unconditional love

You must chip away

At the filters and barriers

Unraveling the maze

Breaking down the walls

Removing the debris

It could take months

Or even years

There is no way of measuring

Its unfathomable presence

You have to persist

Until you find your way in

And the healing can begin

By Roberta Eaton Cheadle

I haven’t written any poetry for months. The spirit just has not moved me so I was pleased when the idea for this poem popped into my head in response to this photo.

Written for Fiction in a Flash Challenge hosted by Suzanne Burke. You can join in here: https://sooozburkeauthor.wordpress.com/2020/08/14/fiction-in-a-flash-challenge-new-image-prompt-week-13-pursoot-iartg-asmsg-writingcommunity/

Today, I am delighted to introduce you to author G J Griffiths. I have read all three of Graham’s Quarry Bank Mill books and enjoyed them thoroughly. I invited him over today, to tell you about how he came to write his historical series.

Over to G J Griffiths

I am a retired science teacher and I have spent many of my retirement days at Quarry Bank Mill Museum, in the UK, as a volunteer in various guises. I started as a volunteer ranger on the estate; I’ve been an exhibition guide; I’ve enjoyed leading groups of school children and adults on tours around the mill, and QB House. It can be good fun entertaining them with a few family or workers anecdotes, and even, occasionally, some upsetting facts. Often they are particularly interested in the information we share with visitors about the child apprentices. They were indentured from distant workhouses during the first fifty or sixty years of the mill’s existence, and well into the 19^th century; these were children who lived in the Apprentice House at Quarry Bank.

When I’m not at QBM I write books under the pen name G J Griffiths and I’ve recently completed on my third historical fiction involving two particular apprentices who ran away in 1806. It’s quite a departure for me as a science teacher who hated history lessons at school back in the 1960s. But many of the true stories at QBM as well as the fantastic site have given me new inspiration for writing, as well as a surprising love of history! My historical fiction novels are entitled The Quarry Bank Runaways, Mules; Masters & Mud and The Mule Spinners’ Daughters. All of the stories are very much focussed around the lives of Thomas Priestley and Joseph Sefton; the runaways who were aged 13 and 16 in 1806. To add a sense of authenticity to the tales I attempted to write much of the dialogue in a kind if old English dialect. Then I subsequently added a “NUTS alert” in the book’s blurb to warn future prospective readers about what to expect. This was because some reviews mentioned difficulty in understanding one or two characters’ speech. It reads thus:

WARNING! This book may contain NUTS! (Non-Uniform Text Speech)
In other words, conversations in what some have called “Olde English Vernacular”. It is spoken by characters in the book from the North, the Midlands and the South of England. There is a glossary at the end of the book to help if you can rise to the challenge. It adds shades of colour to this 19th century story that you may not be expecting.

The specific inspiration for writing each book in the series came about, briefly, as follows:

The Quarry Bank Runaways

When I learned that the two boys sneaked out from the mill and made their way on foot to London, 200 miles south of Cheshire, I wanted to know what happened on their journey. There were no obvious answers to my many questions so I planned out their probable route, most likely along the various drovers’ roads between the numerous market towns. It is known that Thomas Priestley and Joseph Sefton appeared in court in Middlesex from archive evidence held at Quarry Bank, and that they wished to find their mothers who were in Hackney Workhouse. It was from that same workhouse that the very young boys were originally taken in order to be indentured to Samuel Greg, the owner of QBM. So with that destination as the finale to my story I commenced researching and writing.

Mules; Masters & Mud

While gathering information for the runaways book I came across the real story of Robert Blincoe, also a child apprentice in various northern mills, and the appalling treatment that he had to endure. He eventually became a relatively successful business man in the same region of Cheshire, but not at Quarry Bank. At the same time I discovered stories of the ‘mud larks’ along the River Thames, and I always had an intention to include something about chimney sweep masters and their ill-treated apprentices. With all this buzzing around in my head I decided to make Thomas and Joseph achieve some satisfaction in their adult lives with a loving family and a different occupation. And how could I cover this period of British history without including one of the young men being present at the horrendous Peterloo Massacre?

The Mule Spinners’ Daughters

When Thomas and Joseph each became loving fathers to a family, in book 2, they had daughters who inherited their parents’ determined spirits. The young women were literate and thoughtful about life, sensitive to the social changes during the first half of Queen Victoria’s reign but not without romantic inclinations. I had been encouraged by a staff colleague at QBM to include something in the next book about a robbery there around the 1840s, as well as a preacher, John Wroe, who formed the religious sect known as the Christian Israelites in nearby Ashton-Under-Lyne. How could I resist ‘flinging’ the two young women, Sally and Catherine, into this melange and discover, for myself, what they would make of it all? Writing this book was quite a challenge, but for his ‘reward’ I named my police inspector Walter, after the man with his two bright ideas at Quarry Bank Mill!

Thank you, Graham, for visiting me with this terrific post.

About G J Griffiths

G J Griffiths is a retired science teacher with some early working experience of the photographic industry. Born in the UK he enjoys reading most genres of fiction such as sci-fi, crime/detective thrillers, historical and wildlife stories. Non-fiction reading mainly includes scientific or historical books. Walking in the English, Scottish or Welsh countryside with binoculars ready for bird-watching or other wildlife is a particular pleasure. Seeing badgers and otters in the wild recently was an exciting first.

His first novel was Fallen Hero and the So What! series of three books followed and which are all focussed around the fictitious Birch Green High School. More recent works include poetry: Dizzyrambic Imaginings, two illustrated children’s sci-fi stories about ant-size aliens and historical novels based upon real characters from the Industrial Revolution period: The Quarry Bank Tales.
If you enjoy reading any of G J Griffiths’ books please share your enjoyment with other readers and post a review. This is very helpful for new writers. G.J. would be pleased to hear from you on a Comments page at his website: www.gjgriffithswriter.com

Purchase G J Griffiths books

Amazon US Books

Contact G J Griffiths

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My review of The Quarry Bank Runaways

I was introduced to the writing of G.J. Griffith through the second book in this series, Mules, Masters & Mud, which I thoroughly enjoyed. I found this first book to be equally entertaining and interesting and I found myself even fonder of the main characters, Joseph and Thomas, as teenagers in The Quarry Bank Runaways.

Joseph and Thomas are both indentured apprentices to Quarry Bank Mill in the early 19th century, having spent the later part of their short childhoods in a workhouse in London after their mothers fell on hard times. The boys vividly recall the journey from London to the mill near Manchester in the bank of an enclosed wagon with a lot of other children. The paupers were bumped around and arrived battered and bruised and, although their master, Mr Greg, is one of the better mill owners as far as treatment of his workers was concerned, life does not improve for the apprentices after their arrival.

Following an accident in which Thomas loses a finger, he is desperate to travel to London to visit his mother. Joseph decides to accompany him and take advantage and visit his own mother. The two boys make a plan and manage to escape the mill and set off on the long and arduous journey by foot to London. Their determination to visit their mothers during a time of physical challenge seemed very natural to me and the mill owner was unkind to disallow the journey. Mr Greg’s refusal of Thomas’ request to have leave of absence from the mill highlighted the fact that workers were treated as commodities at that time in history and had no rights whatsoever.

The story tells of the boys journey and the various people they meet along the way. Many are kindly and do their best to assist the runaways, but others attempt to exploit them for their own personal gain.

The detailed depictions of life during the early years of the industrial revolution and the awful work conditions and related health issues in various walks of life from mill workers to bargemen to potters to charcoal burners is well researched and fascinating. The reader is also given a brief glimpse into the lives of a retired night watchman, a magistrate and a scullery maid as well as the harsh laws impacting the lives of people forced to enter the workhouses.

The dialogue is written in various dialects which some readers may find a bit challenging, but I quickly got used to it and thought it added to the authentic feel of the time and the story. I would recommend this book to readers who enjoy delving into history and how people lived in the past.

Thursday Doors is a weekly feature allowing door lovers to come together to admire and share their favorite door photos from around the world. Feel free to join in on the fun by creating your own Thursday Doors post each week and then sharing your link in the comments below, anytime between Thursday morning and Saturday noon (North American eastern time). 

These are some doors from my trip to Auckland and Rotorua in New Zealand in 2016. The depict some of the amazing Maori artwork you will find in both these interesting places.

If you’d like to join in the doors fun, you can do so here: https://miscellaneousmusingsofamiddleagedmind.wordpress.com/2020/08/13/thursday-doors-august-13-2020/

I saw a post with this title over at Jessica Bakkers‘ lovely blog of the same name. You can read it here: https://jessicabakkers.com/2020/08/07/getting-to-know-you-whats-your-day-job/. I thought it was wonderful to learn more about her outside of her blogging and writing persona. I decided I would follow her good example and tell you a bit about my day job.

I am a chartered accountant and it took me six years to qualify which is one year less than the normal time frame for this qualification in South Africa. I did my degree part time through a correspondence university and managed to do my full course credits each year as well as work as an assistant in a video shop. I used to work the afternoon/evening shift from 3 p.m. until 9.30 p.m. and study from 8 a.m. until 2 p.m. every morning/early afternoon.

I was fortunate as I won a scholarship for the university after my first year and didn’t have to pay a cent for my second to fourth years at university. This was a great boon as I didn’t need to take a student loan. I was also selected for a part-time bursary at a local college and was able to attend lectures for selected courses I was taking. I really enjoyed being able to attend classes for the more complex subjects like statistics and economics. I also enjoyed being able socialise with other students.

After I finished my degree, I started my articles at a “Big Four” auditing and accounting firm in Johannesburg. I worked full time doing my first year of articles while I did my honours degree through the correspondence university. I successfully completed my honours at the end of that year and went on to take my board examinations during my second year of articles.

I met my husband during my first year of my articles, but I was very diligent and our relationship never impacted on my results or academic performance. I finished all my academics after five years and had all my core work hours by the end of my second year of articles. I was very lucky as the firm let me move to corporate finance at the beginning of my third year instead of completing another year in audit. I was not a big audit fan although my husband is an auditor.

I loved corporate finance and I have been involved in that world ever since. I love deals and transactions. It’s like doing a giant puzzle, you get the picture of what the client wants to do and once you know the end point, you work backwards to get all the pieces in place to build the financial history and the deal “story”. I am fortunate as I have an innate ability to work out what the end result needs to be and to work out how to achieve that result using the existing accounting and legal rules and regulations. Everything I do is strictly above board but I am good at working backwards and juggling the pieces into position.

During my time in corporate finance, I wrote a series of publications about investing in Africa, the African debt market and investing in Africa. These were well received and I learned a lot about writing and publishing. They were fat publications of over 400 pages and covered all the main financial markets and stock exchanges in Africa. I also did comparisons of the African stock exchanges to others around the world and gained a good working knowledge of the exchanges in London, Beijing, Toronto, Australia and New York. I have also worked with a lot of the Euronext exchanges (EU) and the rules and regulations of the SEC (U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission).

I still do a lot of work for various stock exchanges and work predominantly with London and the USA. I am currently also working with Australia which makes for some interesting working hours for me.

So that is a little bit of information about my work life and what I do for all the hours in between my blogging and writing and home schooling.

What about you? What do you do when you’re not blogging or writing? Let me know in the comments.

Charli from Carrot Ranch’s 99-word flash fiction challenge this week is: August 6, 2020, prompt: In 99 words (no more, no less), write a story about molten lava. It can be real-time, such as a volcanic event or the result of one in the geologic timeline. Or, think about making the prompt into a metaphor of heat. What is so hot? Go where the prompt leads!

Firestorm

The dust storm distracted the authorities from the wildfire. No one realised, until it was to late, that it had developed into a firestorm, creating its own fire-induced winds which spread the blaze faster. Smaller fires started on the outskirts of the town as a result of firestorm induced spotting and lightning strikes. The winds spread the blaze and the change in the wind caused by the reduction in temperature from the dust storm, activated the sides of the main fire and the smaller ones, making them broader and bigger. It swept through the town, destroying everything and everyone.

You can join in this challenge here: https://carrotranch.com/2020/08/06/august-6-flash-fiction-challenge-2/

Thursday Doors is a weekly feature allowing door lovers to come together to admire and share their favorite door photos from around the world. Feel free to join in on the fun by creating your own Thursday Doors post each week and then sharing your link in the comments below, anytime between Thursday morning and Saturday noon (North American eastern time). 

When we visited Scotland last year, we went to Inverness and toured Loch Ness and the surrounding tourist sites.

These are some of the doors I photographed during this small part of our Scottish tour.

If you would like to join in the Thursday Doors posts, you can share to Norm’s site here: https://miscellaneousmusingsofamiddleagedmind.wordpress.com/2020/08/06/thursday-doors-august-6-2020/