My Writing and Me by Guest Author Allison Symes

Val Penny ♦ July 18, 2018 ♦ Leave a comment

My friend and fellow author and Swanwicker, Allison Symes is making a welcome return to my blog today to explain her own writing journey. Thank you so much for making time to do that, Allison. Aliison’s first book, From Light to Dark and Back Again, is reviewed on this site: bookreviewstoday.info/2017/03/22/from-light-to-dark-and-back-again-by-allison-symes/.

My flash fiction and short stories are published online and in print by Alfie Dog Fiction, Bridge House Publishing, Cafelit, Scriggler (US based) and Chapeltown Books. I also blog for online magazine, Chandler’s Ford Today.

My flash fiction collection, From Light to Dark and Back Again, was published by Chapeltown Books in 2017. I love the challenge of writing a story to a tight word count, especially the 100-word tales, otherwise called drabbles. This makes me a flasher and a drabbler. The 50-word story writers are flashers and dribblers. I’d love to know who invented these terms, and, more importantly, why! Flashers I understand but the others? Your guess is as good as mine…).

I love flash fiction as, due to the limited word count, there must be gaps readers fill in. It also has to be character led as there is no room for world building. So if I show you a character is a time-travelling alien, your imagination will fill in what kind he/she/it may be while my story reveals what happens to them (which, after all, is the important bit!).

Technology has helped flash fiction take off as a form as it is easy to read on tablets, mobiles etc. I hope it will encourage reluctant readers, because flash doesn’t commit anyone to too much in one go. Become hooked on flash fiction and you will hopefully go on to become hooked on longer forms of fiction.

My page for Chandler’s Ford Today is a joy to write and is at http://chandlersfordtoday.co.uk/author/allison-symes/

I’ve interviewed other writers, including Val, as it fascinating to discover the joys and woes of writing in genres other than mine. The criteria for CFT is there must be a local link. Sometimes that link is me! I’ve also written about how to spot “real” writing competitions, scams, what makes a good writing conference, and creativity being good for you amongst many others.