It turns out there's more to chocolate than I ever realised. Like a fine wine or a premium coffee, the highest quality chocolate has subtle flavours and aromas reminiscent of the plantation where the caca0 beans were grown. Along with the cocoa mass concentration, which determines the degree of darkness, these flavour variations can be … Continue reading A chocolate education: 6 things you need to know
First off, let me admit I'm going to break the rules. I've decided these '11-question' games or memes or whatever you call them offer too much fodder for discussion to be used up in a single blog post. So instead I'm going to use each question as a launching point for a single post. And … Continue reading If I could live in a fictional world…
I've just returned from spending the Easter long weekend at our family holiday house down at Phillip Island. At least once every visit I like to walk into town (Cowes) along the beach for breakfast. And every time I make this little half-hour pilgrimage for coffee and eggs, I find myself marvelling at the many … Continue reading The beach has many faces
Ha! Chenna here. I'm back! It's taken a great deal of coaxing and smooching, but Ellen has finally let me back near the keyboard . . . er, that is, she's letting me type something rather than merely batting me away (rather ineffectually, I might add). Today it's time for a little lesson in how … Continue reading Diary of a Devilcat: How to be helpful
A quick post to acknowledge two things that happened in my blog world this week: WikiRandom Writers Challenge A creation of the irrepressible Laird Sapir, the WikiRandom Writers Challenge is a flashfiction competition involving the creation of a three-sentence story using a phrase generated by hitting the Wikipedia random button. Sara Walpert Foster won the … Continue reading Spreading blog love
Another WIP Wednesday, and today I'm going to talk about one aspect of the fantasy genre you just can't escape from: Worldbuilding. This is perhaps one of the most attractive aspects of writing and reading fantasy for me. I just love the opportunity to explore amazing worlds, and when an author gets it right, it's … Continue reading Two touchstones for worldbuilding
How would you react if you suddenly found yourself stranded on the moon? I jotted this question down recently as I watched a Dr Who episode -- you know the one where Martha is introduced? The episode is called Smith and Jones. Anyway, Martha is a student doctor working in a London hospital that is … Continue reading If you found yourself on the moon…
Inspired by what might have been a throwaway comment on facebook by Alvarado Frazier, I thought I'd launch a series called WIP Wednesday, when I post on aspects of my Work in Progress. I'm not sure how it's going to go, or what exactly I'll write about from week to week, but it'll be reflective of … Continue reading WIP Wednesday: Lucky 7 Meme
A couple of weeks ago, Australian speculative fiction author Deborah Biancotti shared some very wise insights while guest-posting on Lisa Hannett's blog: "... But here’s what you have to remember: You’re running your own race. "This means you set the pace & the direction. YOU do. Both. Pace AND direction. "... So when you find … Continue reading When you feel like you’re taking the hard path
I wanted to work on my WIP today. We've had a public holiday and it seemed the ideal opportunity to get back into my novel after a few weeks of neglect. But, as it turned out, there was something else I had to do first. When my life gets crazy and starts to spin out … Continue reading Decluttering: creativity essential or shameless procrastination?
Ellen Gregory 