DONE IT!

Still adding to my word count - but I've validated my 50,000 words and am now officially a NANOWRIMO WINNER! YAY!

This was my first NaNo experience and how exciting it's been! I started with nothing but two characters and some ideas for the first chapters. After that I played it very much by ear with only the very vaguest of outlines. There were times when I couldn't write at all, and had no idea where the story was going, and others when I couldn 't get the words down fast enough. Amazingly the story started to come together somewhere in the middle and it's pretty much a complete story now - but it's going to need a tremendous amount of revision before it's anywhere near fit to submit. But - I did it, as I said I want to flesh out some scenes before the deadline, but I reached the winner's line and crossed it! It was a very exciting moment when my 'counterbar' on the site changed from green to purple and I knew I'd done it.

I was truly amazed that writing at speed, even with no proper plot or outline, somehow my characters still managed to talk to me. It's been an exciting and very enlightening expreience.

Sincere apologies to all my on-line friends who I've neglected horribly over the last 30 days. After tonight, I'll try and make it up to you, I promise!

Monday's Word

This picture has absolutely nothing to do with this week's word, but I rather like it. It was taken at our local Christmas tree farm.

I'm quietly celebrating as yesterday I pushed over the 50,000 word mark for my NaNoWriMo. I have yet to validate it, but I'm quite pleased with myself, here were times I thought I'd 'Lost The Plot, but I managed to make up a nine thousand word deficit in two days, and the it all seemed to come together. Anyway, here is my gleaning from Michael Quinion's 'World Wide Words' site.

"TWINING A minor lexicographical result of the devastating floods in Cumbria last week has been the appearance in at least two UK national newspapers of the dialect word TWINE, to complain or whine ("Cumbrians are a unique breed. They say what they see. They are hands-on people. They will twine and moan but then they will just get on with it." - Metro, 23 November).

It was at one time widely known throughout Scotland and the north of England. By way of
another of its senses, to be fretful, ailing or sickly, it may be connected with "dwine", another dialect word, to pine or waste away, which is from an ancient Scandinavian source."



*World Wide Words is copyright (c) Michael Quinion 2009. All rights reserved. The Words Web site is at http://www.worldwidewords.org

Western shindigs at the Roast

There's more fun and frolic going on at the Author Roast and Toast today.

Oliver in a Stetson and chaps! That you have to see! I swear that guy gets more handsome every day!

Put on your best gingham skirt and your dancing boots and join Sharon, Val and myself together with Cuddles the Unicorn and Junior the telepathic dog, at the Author Roast and Toast blog where we're having a shindig for Ginger Simpson. Come join us as we travel back in time to the days of the Old West, to talk about her latest book 'Sisters In Time'
Come on over and have fun and join in the contest to win a copy of her book.
http://authorroastandtoast.blogspot.com/

POLL

I'm taking some time out from NANO to ask for your help. Love Romances Book Club is holding a poll to find out which character you would like to be.

You can find the details here:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LoveRomancesBookClub/

and after you've read them the link to the poll is here:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LoveRomancesBookClub/surveys?id=12965560

Of course I'd love it if you voted for my own personal favourite heroine of my stories, and you'd win not only my undying gratitude but could win a prize as well. There are lots of other great chracter bios there and whoever you vote for you'll be entered to win a prize.

Monday's Word - SLIPSHOD

One word no writer should ever hear from readers (or editors) is 'slipshod'. I have to admit my current WIP in progress is distinctly shipshod at the moment, but having written over thirty thousand words in the space of three weeks, is, I hope, some excuse. It will certainly be revised and polished to within an inch of its life before I even think of submitting it!

But where did the term 'slipshod' originate. Well, according to Michael Quinion*:

"In the beginning, around the middle of the sixteenth century,It was simply a shoe that one could easily slip on or off, one that English speakers even then also called a slipper.

A little later in the same century, a person who wore a slip-shoe began to be described - naturally enough - as "slip-shod". Within a few decades, however, it began to take on the negative associations that have remained with it down the generations. A person who was described as slip-shod was wearing shoes that weren't suitable for polite company because they were literally down at heel, shabby, over-loose or untidy.

Our modern meaning of some activity that was lacking in care, badly organised or slovenly came about in the nineteenth century. Writers were the first to suffer its disopprobrium, with critics describing what they felt was "slipshod English", and the wider sense grew out
of this.

We have completely forgotten the connection between "slip-shod" and those comfortable sixteenth-century slip-on shoes, whose shabbiness and unfashionableness has bequeathed the language a useful term."

OK, I'm going to put on my slippers, sit in front of my pc with a mug of tea, and try to catch up on my word count!


*World Wide Words is copyright (c) Michael Quinion 2009. All rights reserved. The Words Web site is at http://www.worldwidewords.org

Christmas comes early to the Roast!

There's a lot of festive fun and frolic going on at the Author Roast and Toast today.

A cosy cabin nestled beneath snow covered mountains, a frozen lake for skating on, Oliver in his festive best, and special guest, Tracey Netzel talking about her lovely Christmas anthology 'Mistletoe Rules'. Add the Chipmunks, a naughty unicorn and a telpathic dog, and the hostesses, Sharon, Mary and myself - and anything could happen - and probably will!

Come on over and join in the fun, leave a comment to be eligible for Stacey's prizes.
Yes - I did say prizes, Stacey is generously offering two of her books as prizes .
http://authorroastandtoast.blogspot.com/

And if you're really in the mood for blogging I'd love you to pop over to Tess Quinn's blog 'Writer's On Writing' where she was kind enough to give me centre stage in a one to one interview.
http://tessquinn.com/writers-on-writing-hywela-lynn/

Single Titles

There’s a website that I visit every so often that I really like. It’s called SingleTitles.com and it’s a really reader friendly place. They review romance, mystery, thrillers, etc. About once a week they publish an author interview and there’s usually a book giveaway going on as well.

They've just relaunched, sporting a full site makeover and a contest to celebrate the new look. They’re offering up $450 worth of advertising as prizes.

Stop by http://www.singletitles.com when you get a chance.

IT'S MURDER AT THE AUTHOR ROAST AND TOAST!

There's been a 'cluedo' type murder over at the Author Roast and toast.

A grand old Southern mansion, a mysterious dagger, a body - and guest of Honour Beth Trissel with her great romance novel 'Somewhere My love'.

Come on over and join in the fun, leave a comment to be eligible for Beth's prize.
http://authorroastandtoast.blogspot.com/

Monday's Word: Acersecomic

I love long hair. My heroine, Jess, in Starquest has long red hair. My heroine in 'Dancing With Fate, the Greek Muse Terpsichore, has long dark hair my heroine, Tamarith in the sequel to 'Starquest', 'Children Of The Mist', Tamarith has amazing black har which reaches to her feet.

I was therefore interested to know more about the word that appeared in Michael Quinion's 'World Wide Words' this week. 'Ascersecomic'.

He says (quote:) "The legitimacy of this word rests entirely on two appearances in dictionaries, in 1623 and 1656. It seems never to have been used seriously and ever since has been held up as an example of an odd word...

...It means a person whose hair has never been cut. Though that may appear comic to some, there's nothing humorous in its etymology. The word derives from the classical Latin "acersecomes", a long-haired youth, a word borrowed from an earlier Greek one that was
made up from "kome", the hair of the head (which is where "comic"comes from in the ending), "keirein", to cut short, and the prefix "a-", not. Though this sounds like a aged curmudgeon's way to talk about unkempt youngsters who weren't like that in his day, it was actually neutrally descriptive - it was usual for Roman and Greek youths to wear their hair long until they reached manhood.

Greek "kome" has given us one sense of "coma": a diffuse cloud of gas and dust surrounding the nucleus of a comet. The same "-comic" ending turns up in two terms that, if possible, are even rarer: "acrocomic", having hair at the tip, as in a goat's beard ("acro-"means tip) and "xanthocomic", a person with yellow hair (from Greek "xanthos", yellow)."

So there you have it, it would seem the term was orginally more likely to be applied to young men than women - but then a lot of us ladies have a soft spot for men with flowing locks!


*World Wide Words is copyright (c) Michael Quinion 2009. All rights reserved. The Words Web site is at http://www.worldwidewords.org

Don't forget The Author Roast and Toast today at:
http://authorroastandtoast.blogspot.com/

Come along and meet this great author, and leave a comment, for a chance to win a download of her book.

New review for 'Children Of The Mist'

I was thrilled to received this reiew from Marilyn Thompson of Mind Fog Reviews, part of Authors Meeting Place.

This is what she said:

REVIEW: Hywela Lyn creates a very vivid and wonderful world in Children of the Mist. Her characters have depth beyond any I have seen in a science fiction novel. She has the ability to give them souls in the literary sense, which is a rare talent. The extensive descriptions of the world she has created forms in the mind almost like the memory of a place once visited.

I enjoyed this story and felt as if it carried me along from beginning to end. There was no effort in trying to understand the plot and I found it to be a bit of a mystery as well. It was a journey well worth taking and I highly recommend this book as one of the best I have ever read.

I look forward to reading more books by this author.

5 Stars *****

Author/Reviewer Marilyn Thompson

Mind Fog Reviews

Thank you so much, Marilyn, it's wonderful when a reviewer 'gets' the story and a real bonus when they like the characters A lovely review like this does so much to boost a writer's confidence!

I'm popping my head up from NaNoWRiMo madness to apologise for not posting my winner for the Breast Cancer Awarness contest last month until now.

Thank you so much for all the entries and personal stories, so many people are affected by this terrible disease, let's all pray that medical advances will continue to find new ways of conquering it. It's wonderful to know that so many people now survive after diagnosis.

It was very difficult to choose from everyone who commented but I closed my eyes and pulled out a random name - Dena. Congratulations Dena, your prize is on its way to you!

Mondays Words: Colcannon Night

I hope you all had a peaceful and fun Halloween with plenty of treats and no tricks!

Michael Quinion had a fascinating piece in his 'Worldwide Words' article this week, about Ireland and the traditional Halloween dish of colcannon.

"In Ireland, years ago, it was usual to mark the day by serving up
the traditional dish of calcannon or colcannon. This was made from
potatoes and cabbage, and perhaps other vegetables such as leeks,
spinach or hedgerow greens, with a little butter, cream or bacon
fat added, and seasoned with salt and pepper.

Because of the association of the dish with Halloween, the day has
in a few places been called Colcannon Night instead. It was known
as that in Ireland two centuries ago and emigrants took the name to
Newfoundland and Labrador. The folklore department at the Memorial
University of Newfoundland tells me that it has now died out there
and so may not be current anywhere any more.

The first part of the name must surely be related to "cole", an old
term for any type of brassica, the genus that includes cabbage and
cauliflower. Some dictionaries suggest that the second part derives
from a method of pounding the cabbage - with cannon balls. You may
believe that if you like, but it is now more commonly said it comes
from the Irish Gaelic "cál ceannfhionn" (later "cál ceannann"),
meaning white-headed cabbage."

Isn't that interesting? I have to admit I hadn't heard of 'colcannon' before. although it does sound a little like the Welsh 'cawl' only that uses leeks and lamb, rather than cabbage. so next year I may wish you Happy 'colcannon' rather than 'Happy Halloween'!

*World Wide Words is copyright (c) Michael Quinion 2009. All rights reserved. The Words Web site is at http://www.worldwidewords.org