Ben Westerham's Blog - Posts Tagged "creativity"

When I first started writing stories it seemed all there was to do was, well, to write stories. But time and experience has shown that is not quite true and that I do, in fact, have to be a man who wears many hats. Let me explain why.

Writing stories is a creative activity. You are constantly dreaming up characters, plots, dialogue and anything else that’s needed to go into a story. Sometimes it is pure inspiration, something that appears out of the ether, others it may be that you riff off something you’ve seen or heard, felt, smelt or tasted. But wherever the inspiration comes from you are engaged in creating something new.

And I’ll be honest here, this creative part of putting together a new story is, by a country mile, my favourite bit of the whole process. For me it’s what it’s all about.

However, if I was to package and release a new story as soon as this stage is completed then I would be doing a disservice to both myself and my readers. Frequently, much of what appears is peppered with spelling and grammar mistakes, and often it is far from being a consistent and high quality product. And then there’s the inconsistencies in plot and character than insist on creeping in.

It’s at this stage that I have to change hats for the first time. Off goes the writer’s hat and on goes that of the editor because this is where I have to start re-writing in order to remove the mistakes and inconsistencies and more generally bump up the quality.

The important thing to understand here is that this really is a different activity and, as such, it uses a different part of the brain. There’s more logic to what you’re doing here. It’s no longer an entirely creative process.

But it doesn’t stop there, because once I think I’m done with my re-writes and before the work is shipped off to my editor, I like to read it through wearing a third hat, that of the reader. Now this can be tricky because it requires you to take an entirely different perspective, but it helps in producing something that is as appealing to readers as you can make it.

So, there we have it. Being a writer is a multi-faceted activity and that’s why I like to view myself as being someone who wears not just the one hat but many. I am a man of many hats.

‘The Banbury Cross Murder Mysteries, classic murder-mysteries with a splash of humour and a little romance.’
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I am about two-thirds of the way through writing a new book in an existing series and I know already this will be the last book I write in that series. I’ve loved writing these particular stories, but I feel I’ve now done all I want to do with these. Of course, that means there will be space for something new, but what is that to be?

One thing I never have any shortage of is ideas for a new story. They fall upon me from out of the sky, whatever the weather, and I usually hurriedly jot down some notes and file these away for future reference. The difficult part, you therefore won’t be surprised to hear, is deciding which one of these gets my attention when the time comes to start on something new.

The same thing goes for a new series. There are many ideas tucked away, some of which I have already played around with to a lesser or greater degree. So, the question is, how do I go about deciding what comes next whenever the opportunity to start something new arises?

A new series is a big commitment. The idea is there will be multiple books written and, if that doesn’t turn out to be the case, then it will be because the first book has fallen flat on its face. Naturally enough I want to get it right from the start.

Of course, I want to write something that people will enjoy reading. I mean, who sets out to spend money on a book they think they won’t enjoy?

There is also usually a degree of expectation from people who have already savoured some of an author’s work. If they are used to you writing witty cosy mysteries then one day you show up with a blood-thirsty, shape-shifting, zombie end-of-the-world tome chances are they won’t be any too impressed.

Just as importantly, I want to write something that I enjoy writing. It’s not meant to be an exercise in self-torture and, what’s more, if I don’t enjoy writing it then it’s more than likely going to show through when people read it.

With a series I also need a core group of characters that I am confident I will enjoy spending time with, because that could end up being a great deal of time indeed. I don’t actually have to like them all, but I do need to enjoy their company. An evil villain can be just an entertaining as an impressive hero.

It helps too if I feel sure from the outset that there will be scope for me to develop these core characters over the course of a series. That certainly helps an author to maintain their own interest as a series progresses and I think this applies to readers too.

So, you can see, there’s a lot of factors to take into account. But I’d be lying if I said that I go about making these decisions in a ruthlessly cold, calculating manner. Remember, I am an intuitive author who makes up his stories as he writes them. It ought to come as no surprise, therefore, to hear me say that such decisions are made as much with my sub-conscious brain as the conscious part. It needs to feel right, is another way of putting it.

I do have a favourite candidate for my next series. It concerns a cast and a setting that came to me only very recently and which really got me excited as I started scribbling down notes. It is tempting to say the job is done, the decision made, and to plunge straight in the deep end when the time comes. But I am going to let things percolate away in the background. Allow my subconscious to do its thing. Then, when I do finally make a decision I will have some confidence it is the right one.

As this is my first post of 2025 I will end by wishing you a wonderful year ahead. My all your reads be fabulous ones.

All the best,

Ben

Many months ago now I realised I needed to get out and about more. Sitting at my desk all day, every day wasn’t really good for me. It’s turned out to have been a good move but it seems the pool of things to do is actually wider and deeper than I realised. So, if you happen to feel you might need a pick me up, then read on.

I’ve loved being a full-time author. I get to write for hours every day, five days a week, which is not only fun but has also allowed me to progress many more story ideas than was ever the case before. After a bit of a tussle I’ve also come to enjoy much of the time I spend on marketing and other non-writing activities. If only I’d made the jump sooner!

However, after a few months I came to realise that I was enjoying things so much that I was only ever leaving the house on a regular basis when I go for a short pre-work walk in the morning. That, of course, really wasn’t a good thing. Too much time by far sitting at a desk and too little time getting exercise, fresh air and re-charging those batteries by doing something different.

My response was to delegate Wednesday afternoons to non-authorly things. I started calling this part of the week my Wednesday Afternoon Wanderings and I have made a point of visiting somewhere different each and every Wednesday afternoon.

I’ve visited towns, such as Leamington and Rugby, gardens and woodlands, such as Batsford Arboretum, museums, such as the British Motor Museum, and gone for long walks across the nearby countryside. It’s been wonderful and I can’t recommend this sort of thing enough. I feel refreshed, inspired, delighted and properly exercised.

But I recently bumped into an article that discusses the findings from a Cambridge University study that identified a link between cultural outings and feeling happy or even fending off depression. It seems that going to see a film or a show, or paying a visit to a museum regularly is beneficial for your mental health.

Now, I’m not so sure about those that involve sitting down, since part of the reason for my Wednesday Afternoon Wanderings is to get some exercise, but it was certainly good to see that what I have found in practice is also reflected in academic studies. What’s more, it seems the range of activities that can be beneficial is wider than I had originally thought.

So, what are you waiting for? Put down that post-lunch coffee, put on your coat and shoes and get yourself out there to whatever cultural delights you can find, safe in the knowledge that it will likely do your mental health some good, as well as be fun.

I know I am now going to be looking at a wider range of adventures for my Wednesday Afternoon Wanderings.

All the best,

Ben

There are so many things involved in being an indie author that, at times, it can feel close to overwhelming. So, how do I go about avoiding overload and burn out?

When I sat down to start writing my first novel all those years ago, I didn’t envisage just how many other activities I would end up finding myself involved with in order to get a story from a blank page to a book on a virtual or physical shelf.

There’s the writing itself. First draft, second draft, editing, re-writing. Then there’s the production, formatting the content, sourcing a cover, uploading the files, checking it’s all working properly. I run a newsletter that readers can sign up for, write my blog posts and run several social media accounts. Oh, and then there’s the marketing and what a lot of time that demands.

There’s also keeping up with the news from the world of books and, especially these days, relevant developments in the tech field. Blockchain and AI anyone?

I’m also keen to keep working on my craft and other skills, so I try to always be doing some relevant reading, video watching or, sometimes, completing a course.

And if all of that wasn’t already enough I also like to hang out from time-to-time with other authors, either in person at conferences or online.

I actually enjoy a lot of the non-writing activities but, strewth, they can be a time stealer. In fact, it is all too easy to find yourself feeling run-down and overwhelmed. You really do have to remember to take care of yourself.

So, how do I attempt to do just that, avoid getting overwhelmed and run-down?

Trial and error have shown me the way and I now have a three step approach to help keep me sane.

First of all prioritise and be ruthless about it. Most things can, in fact, wait for another day and remember this helps you to put the really important stuff first.

Secondly, once you know your priorities then plan. Starting the day without a clear idea where you’re heading is a sure fire way to stress and frustration. I run a quarterly and weekly planner and I also review outcomes at the start of each week to help me plan better.

Finally, whilst prioritising and planning are all well and good you also need to retain a degree of flexibility. Stuff happens that often has not a jot of regard for your plans and over which you have little control. Don’t stress about it. Instead, smile, re-plan, and move serenely on.

I won’t pretend that, even with such an approach, it isn’t sometimes tough, especially when there’s a lot going on at once, such as when I’m launching a new book. But, if you at least try to approach things in the right way and remember that you’re here to enjoy it, then you give yourself a chance. If I do feel things are, despite my best efforts, getting on top of me then I have been known to push aside the keyboard, vacate the premises and go for a long, long walk. That one works just about every time.

All the best,

Ben

If you’re a fan of dark, disturbing stories, then take a wander into the darker recesses of the human mind https://benwesterham.com/shorts-in-th...

Just recently I had reason to re-visit a question that has bumped around in my head on previous occasions, namely is it a good or bad thing to make use of local dialects in my writing.

I was reading a very tatty copy of Thomas Hardy’s Under the Greenwood Tree*. Hardy is one of my favourite authors, but it can be a tough gig reading one of his books as they do tend to have some pretty unhappy endings. Fortunately, Under the Greenwood Tree does not fall into that category.

Very early on in the story, Hardy begins to deploy a heavy sprinkling of local Dorset dialect. Given the book was written in the middle of the nineteenth-century, the passing of time has only served to make reading it all the more of a challenge.

At first I found this a bit of a nuisance as I was forced to linger on words in order to work out what was being said, which was easier in some cases than others. But, as the book progressed, I found this got easier as my brain tuned into the dialect and, in the end, I didn’t really mind it at all.

I haven’t made widespread use of local dialects in my own writing, with the exception of my David Good books. These are set in south London during the 1980s and I felt I needed to make some use of the local lingo if I was to give them the right vibe. Even then I heavily scaled things back, since if I had gone all in the books would have been largely incomprehensible to many readers. For a while I kept a close eye on reader reviews to see if people were finding the south London dialect a problem. I did get one or two complaints but, somewhat to my surprise, most people not familiar with the lingo found it easy enough to work out and said it gave the books some added interest. All-in-all then things didn’t work out too badly.

However, I’ve still tended to shy away from this sort of thing for fear it will put readers off. But am I right about that? Should I give myself a bit more freedom here? It’s a tough call and for now I’m playing it safe.

But what do you think, does the use of local dialect put you off reading a book or does it add some welcome extra colour? I’d love to hear what you think and if you have some examples you’d like to share then so much the better.

All the best,

Ben

* This particular edition of the book had an extensive set of notes, including definitions of some, quite frankly, incomprehensible words that I suspect were not generally in use even during Hardy’s time. Some of these were hilariously funny and I thought I’d share one here. How about Borus-snorus, which means outspoken. I really must find an excuse to use that in one of my own stories!

If you’re a fan of crime, mystery or thriller stories then check out these great reads https://benwesterham.com/books/