Tag: christy grace

Categories
Writing writing advice

Ultimate Self-Publishing Checklist

I LOVE LISTS

So, when it came to publishing my book, I liked the idea of having a checklist that I could mark off and KNOW, that I hadn’t forgotten anything.

I ended up with a publisher who’s assisting me to self publish, so they’ve got that list covered, HOWEVER….

Those people who are going to self-publish all by themselves…

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It’s amazing and brave and incredible that you’re wanting to head on this journey no matter what ‘traditional’ publishers have to say about your book. These days self-published works can be just as good as the published ones – But there’s A LOT of work to do!!!

I want everyone with a creative dream to go through with it – put it out there in the world and share it so we can all enjoy. So, because I’d love to see you succeed, I decided to make that self-publishing checklist for you!

I’ve done a bunch of research into both traditional and self publishing, and I’ve come up with what I believe to be a kick ass checklist that YOU can use for your publishing journey!!

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If you end up using my list, PLEASE share your work when you’ve finally got it up and running! If you just want to check it out and see if it’s for you – that’s okay too!

To grab the list (and keep up with my own publishing journey with my newsletter), click on the link below!

GRAB THE SELF-PUBLISHING CHECKLIST

I can’t wait to hear that you’ve started your journey!

If you want to keep up with mine, you can follow my social media (below), or the CGSP: First Book Journey podcast where I’m walking the steps with you!

CGSP: FIRST BOOK JOURNEY – PODCAST

See You in the Adventures!
Christy Grace

Categories
Kidnapped Entanglement Writing

The KIDNAPPED ENTANGLEMENT Playlist Revealed

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Coffee today, is where I recap the INCREDIBLE music competition that CGSP ran recently.  The talent was Amazing – and I can’t wait to share…

The highlight video where I went through them all (with a bit more insight into what that means for the story) is below:

If you want a snapshot – here it is too!!! 

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The HONOURABLE MENTION considerations are also here:

2

Otherwise, you can check out the full videos on the CGSP FACEBOOK PAGE

See You in the Adventures!
Christy Grace

Categories
Fiction

Just Keep Playing | FURIOUS FICTION

“Just put it into the slot!” Evan screamed. I stood, frozen as the sweat fell down my face.
This hadn’t been what I had in mind when I suggested a mystery trip holiday.

I slipped the small knife–which still dribbled blood onto the floor–into the door’s mail slot and exhaled. It was done.
The chilling voice from the speaker echoed, “well done. Stand by for further instructions.”
“Emily?” At the sound of Evan’s soft voice, I turned and frowned. “How are we going to get out of here?”
The room had been designed to keep occupants inside it; with no means of escape. I looked around it once again; up at the cameras and speakers lining the roof.
There were no doors and no windows in the room. Only a chair, and whatever instruments came through the slot in the door.
How had they ended up here?
“Let’s just keep playing the game. Maybe he’ll let us out if we keep playing.” I suggested. Evan gave a half-hearted shrug and collapsed onto the chair.
This was hour 3 of the nightmare they had endured, and the fatigue was written all over his face. I was feeling it too, but I refused to let it show.
The voice echoed once again, “Make sure to bandage your hand, Emily.”
The slot in the door opened, and a sealed medical package dropped onto the floor. It was only then that I remembered my injured hand.
They’d asked for a sample of my blood; apparently the only way to move onto the next level.
How had they ended up here?
Evan tended to her hand and when he had secured the bandage, the speaker sprung to life once again. “Thank you for playing the game. We appreciate your participation. Stand by for further instructions.”
How had they ended up here?
Emily’s memory was unusually foggy. They had just been out for a walk along the beach. Hadn’t they?
“We appreciate your participation. You have passed all the necessary tests. Quickly now, you don’t want to miss the boat.”
Emily shuffled backward as the door to the room unlocked. Cautiously, they stepped forward and pulled it open.
They quickly made their way through the house and exited through the front door. Nobody stopped them, nobody followed them.
After walking through dense shrubbery for an hour, a loud boat horn broke the silence. We stood in silence, staring out at a marina.
A boat. Just like he’d said.
We made our way to the closest one and explained our ordeal.
“You’re lucky. I was just about to ship out when you folks walked out,” the captain explained. We gave our thanks and boarded the ship, away from the trauma that we had experienced.
“We made it out,” Evan said quietly as we sailed away.
I frowned as a small flash of light flickered through the trees. It was coming from the direction of the house. “Just.”

I hope you enjoyed one of my Furious Fiction entries. If YOU want to give Furious Fiction a go, you can head to the AWC website >>>>here and throw your hat in the ring! Good luck!

See You in the Adventures!
Christy Grace

Categories
Writing

Deadlines: Motivation or Crippling Fear?

It’s five minutes until you have to hand in that report for work, that assignment for class, or that manuscript that you’ve been working on for six years… And it’s not ready!!

Okay, I hope that ISN’T you! Some people are great at the last minute submission, but when it’s come to my book, I don’t like the idea.

I’ve been working for 2 years to get to this point. To publish a book, in print and ebook, and for it to be out there in the world! So, when my editors deadline approached with only ONE MONTH to go, I made a STUPID choice…. I did a HUGE edit with only four weeks to go.

I am essentially squeezing 2-3 months worth of work into 1 month. Crazy!!! I’m nuts, right?

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I’ve heard it said, that a deadline is incredibly motivating for some people. That hasn’t been my experience. Having a deadline (and not being ready, I should add), makes things stressful for me.

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Yes, I should have planned better. Yes, maybe I should have given my Beta Readers the draft BEFORE there was only a few months to go. Learning. Next time I’ll be more prepared.
In the meantime, I get to stuff as much work as I possibly can, while trying to keep my sanity…

If you’re that person who thrives with a deadline, PLEASE share your secret with me!!

See You in the Adventures!
Christy Grace

Categories
Life

Pack My Bags, I’m Going Home

Okay. I tried my best, and nothing worked. That’s it, I’m done. It’s over. I give up. 

What? That can’t be right! Can it?

It’s so easy when things don’t work out the way we wanted, or planed, to just pack our bags and move on with our lives – even if that’s our dream!
I don’t want to be known as someone who gives up, just because of a few setbacks. Life doesn’t’ always just give you lemons, it throws them at you. It takes skill and determination to make flying lemons into lemonade.

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So, I hear you asking WHY are we talking about flying lemons and giving up on dreams?

If you’ve been checking on my social media and blog posts, you’d know about a little thing I decided to run. The CGSP Song Competition.

When writing my book, I decided that all the chapters would have names. These names were going to be songs that I imagine would play in the background if KIDNAPPED ENTANGLEMENT was a movie.

I wanted something really special for it though, to give a chance for artists who aren’t on the top 100 to get some spotlight on them for a change! So, I opened it up to anyone and everyone. The only problem? Not as many people as I’d expected entered.

I know, you can’t expect uber amounts of success when almost nobody knows who you are. BUT, I didn’t quite expect that. So, does that mean I give up on my book? Does it mean I give up on having song titles as chapter names?

No GIFs | Tenor

Pick myself up, shake off the dust and put the suitcase back in the closet. I’m still here, I’m still moving forward and trying the next things.

We need to remember that IT’S OKAY TO FAIL! It’s okay if things don’t work out exactly as we planned or wanted. We shake it off, and just keep swimming.

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I hope you keep swimming! What project are you working on right now? Let’s share and support each other.

See You in the Adventures!
Christy Grace

Categories
Fiction

A Winter Train Ride | Short Story

I gripped the frozen steel bar, my fingers ash white in the below zero temperature. 
This train wasn’t going to stop.

The wind whipped through my fur-lined coat; unable to protect my organs from the harsh winter that I wasn’t used to. I watched the countryside pass by – which would have otherwise been beautiful – in a blur.
The icicles that were pooling on the steel frame outside, would also have caught my attention. Swirling inside themselves with water that had frozen into a beautiful point, they hung on each edge. My creative eye would have stared at those icicles for hours, but their beauty was muffled as I watched the mountain getting closer.

This wasn’t a passenger train; it was designated to carry cargo across the country. That’s why when I finagled my way onto it – claiming I had permission from all the authorities – I was curious to see the differences in a passenger line. Before my exploring had begun, frantic yelling at the front had fuelled my curiosity further and I had confirmed it. This train was heading towards a mountain with no tunnel, no tracks, and no working breaks.

Without listening for the WHY, I pumped my legs and headed towards the best vantage point of the potential danger; the car closest to the mountain. After I’d realised that I couldn’t see without leaning out of the door, I obliged and the frozen wind forcefully met me there.

Quickly a hand pulled me back inside and I saw the train driver screaming at me. As the cold wind continued to rip through my ears, his words were deafened. His eyes were frantic as he pointed towards the back of the train cars.
I followed the driver and tears began to form in my eyes. Ignoring them, we ran through the first, then second, then the third car until we reached the final one. With only moments before the impact, the driver leaped out of the train and onto the snow-covered tracks. He thundered onto the ground and rolled.
Before I could see if he was okay; before I could decide if I wanted to risk being injured or killed from the fall, the sound of steel smashing behind me propelled me forward and I closed my eyes for the impact.

I hope you enjoyed this short story. 
What do you think happened to the person in this story? Did they survive? Let me know how YOU see that ending!

See You in the Adventures!
Christy Grace

 

 

Categories
Life

No Prospects, No Money and No Idea

I left with no prospects, no money and no idea of what to do next.

Okay, so that may sound a little ‘Jane Austin-ish’ but I can assure you, that’s how it was when I left my full time job.

I decided to leave without any guarantee of work anywhere else, and no clue of what exactly I wanted to do. I applied for a few different creative fields, because THAT was the one thing I knew for certain; I wanted a creative job that I would enjoy!

Painter GIFs | Tenor

People say – just get a job that pays the bills, so you can do what you love on the side  – all the time. They are WRONG. Just. Plain. Wrong.
If you can find something for a job that pays AND you enjoy – that’s what makes you happy in life.

My grandfather spent his whole life in a horrid job, doing something he loathed – just the pay the bills. Grateful, is the only word I could come up with. Grateful that he did that to provide for his family, and that it lead to my Dad being who he is.

Fortunately in these times, we have more flexibility. Not only in WHAT job we do, but HOW we do it (and this could become even more flexible post Covid).
So, Why when I advise everyone NEVER to leave a job with no prospect of another on the horizon, did I make this decision?

The answer is simple, but it may sound strange – depending on your world view.
I just KNEW it was the right time. Things had been spoken to me and over my life (through trusted people in my sphere), and it was time! My job wasn’t challenging or interesting anymore, it was sucking my creativity and I was coming home tired because I wasn’t fulfilled – instead I was using my energy just to be present and do my work.

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I knew that I was looking to publish my first book, so leaving was SCARY as heck! I pushed the book a few months until I could secure some income, and I searched!
What I found was an incredible blessing. Using some of my business skills, while also my creative eye – I ended up in School Photography.

Even though right now, schools are closed and my Day Job awaits for a more stable school community, the job was the greatest blessing I could have hoped for. Now, I have flexible hours to continue writing, enough income to pay bills, and I am happier than I’ve been in years.

Your answer; your dream; your YES; your silver lining; They are all out there. Don’t settle. Chase what makes you happy!

See You in the Adventures!
Christy Grace

Categories
Podcast

What Kind of Man.. Men..?

Last time in my CGSP First Book Journey Podcast, I shared about one side of the kidnapping story. NEXT WEEK, I’ll be going over who the loved ones are that were left behind. They’re important to the story too, so who are they?

Before it comes out next week, check out PART ONE with some of the other characters
>>> here

See You in the Adventures!
Christy Grace