Tragic Silence by E.C. Hibbs
Publication date: November 19th 2013
Genres: New Adult, Paranormal, Suspense

When tragedy strikes Bianka Farkas one night in her native Hungary, she loses more than a friend and her mobility. Some things are harder to understand. Waking up in a hospital, Bee struggles to remember exactly what happened the night she was attacked and witnessed a brutal murder. Memories of a mysterious figure plague her as well as bizarre and terrifying changes in her over the next few years. Facing this new horrifying reality with a surprising ally, Bee finally has the chance to take her revenge but at what cost?

Purchase Link: Amazon 

Guest Post: My Six Main Pointers for Writers by E.C. Hibbs

Writing has been a huge part of my life for a very long time, and I honestly can’t imagine myself not making up stories. And I’ve learned with practise which approaches best work for me, so I really get a kick out of the process. It can be long, hard, monotonous, and lonely, and writer’s block is never welcome! But I think writing fiction should always be a fun experience, and there are six essentials which I really find important when I’m doing any story. I wanted to take the opportunity today to share them with you, and I hope they might help you in the same way they do for me!

1.     Know your characters.

These guys, for me, need to be the heart and soul of the story. I take a lot of time to explore them, getting to know them as though they were real friends who I could call or go for a drink with. So they must have a definite personality, a past, flaws – even a favourite flavour of ice cream if need be! Their psychology and little quirks fascinate me, and it’s these things which I think go a long way into making them convincing and realistic, no matter what might happen to them in the story. If I don’t completely believe that they are real people, and not just names, then the book isn’t ready to be written. Don’t skimp on really finding a connection with your characters.

2.     Manage your time.

Rome wasn’t built in a day, and no story is ever written in a day! When I’m writing, I prefer to work on the book very intensely, and aim for one chapter at a time. They usually take me about 4-5 hours each. Writing in this way means I can get the first draft down in just a couple of weeks. That isn’t very long in hindsight, but I tend to think of books taking me years to write, because I count all the research and editing as part of it. And between edits, I always give myself a break of at least a month so I can really get some distance and see what needs doing. So just barging ahead with no plan for all the different stages a novel needs to go through has never really got me anywhere. It saves a lot of mess and confusion later if you think ahead on roughly what needs to be done and when.

3.     Do your research.

I can’t stress this enough. Before I put pen to paper, I always spend a good few months – or even years! – researching everything I can about whatever will end up in the story. It may seem boring, but I think it’s really important. I’ll read books and essays, find pictures and videos, and if I can, I visit locations or try things out for myself. Most of the time, 90% of whatever I find out won’t even end up in the final story. But because I’ve made myself so familiar with it all, it allows me to feel confident writing about it, even if it’s never directly used. I think it’s a vital step for practically every genre, but especially for fantasy, because it’s so easy to mistakenly believe you can make everything up and nobody will notice. They will. Fantasy doesn’t just have to convince you that the story is real, it needs to convince you that the very universe it’s set in is also real. And the way to do that is to play off of what people are already familiar with.

4.     Acknowledge your weaknesses.

I heard once, “Easy reading is damn hard writing,” and I think that’s pretty true! But the hardest part for me is the editing process that comes after the main writing period is done. I’m very self-critical of my own work, and that’s helpful in one respect, because it means I can be a ruthless editor of it. Being able to look back on your story and admit it’s not perfect is quite a big step to take. After all, this thing is your baby! Each and every one will hold a special place in your heart; take you on a unique journey. But when is the road ever that smooth? In its raw form, it may be something dear to its maker, but the key word there is “raw”. Polishing will only make it better, and it can take courage to do that. It might mean having to rewrite the whole thing, again and again, until it’s the best it can be. But it’s worth it in the end, and the story will be as good as you’re willing to make it.

5.     Acknowledge your strengths!

Here is where being very self-critical can be more of a hindrance than a help; it’s good for editing, not so good for giving yourself praise. It takes an awful lot for me to be happy with anything I write. But it is important that you don’t dishearten yourself by thinking that just because there might be room for improvement, what you’ve created is automatically terrible. The fact remains: you’ve written something from the heart. That takes guts, and it’s okay to admit that to yourself. Like I said, this is your baby! Smile and be happy that you have created something new, and don’t be afraid to have pride in it!

6.     Believe in what you are doing!

I like to disappear into the story while I’m writing, and until I type the last word, I am completely in that world. But I think the main point here comes back to the idea that you should write about what you know. Every tale is going to have a piece of the author in its mix somewhere, even if it’s not obvious or even not intentional. But take a basic emotion that you know, or a memory, or a dream, and you can turn it into an entirely new story. For me, the key is always staying connected to where it all came from, to make it appear completely real; and if it’s real to the author, it will come over as real to the reader. For as long as it takes, live the story. Never doubt for a moment that what you are doing is truly happening, because otherwise it will just become words on a page. And that’s no fun at all!

Thank you so much, Virtual Writers for the chance to write a guest post for you!!

Giveaway

a Rafflecopter giveaway

About the Author

E. C. Hibbs has lived all her life in Cheshire, north-west England. A lover of stories from an early age, she wrote her first ‘book’ when she was five, and throughout school was a frequent visitor to the younger classes to read her tales to the children.

Living so near the coast, she loves anything to do with the sea. She studied Animal Behaviour at university and longs to work with marine mammals in the future. As well as nature and animals, she also has a soft spot for history, and loves paying visits to castles, cathedrals and museums.

There are many things she could be without, but writing isn’t one of them. She carries a pen everywhere, in case an idea appears, and takes pride in still seeing the world as brimming with magic. Besides writing, she reads obsessively, her favourite genres being the classics and all kinds of fantasy. She also enjoys Disney and horror films, practising Shotokan karate, drawing, archery, and playing with her very cheeky kitten.

Social Links: Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads