I never get over what a strange process writing can be. It's different every time, and very different depending on the medium. My strengths in webcomic writing don't necessarily translate to being my strengths in novel-writing, and vice-versa.

When writing series like Footloose or Cherry, Em and I get together and work out the direction of the plot and the story arcs (often over a rather large amount of gin). Then I go away and write the individual chapters, before batting it back to Em, who draws the pages, tweaks dialogue or timing as necessary, and comes up with the final, finished product.

Maybe it's the collaborative nature of the stories, but plotting comics has always felt easier than plotting novels, even though a comic series is a much longer-running and more sustained story. While writing my latest novel (which is all about teen Norse gods), I knew that something was wrong, but couldn't work out what. After reading John Yorke's Into the Woods, I realised that the plot was good at the beginning and the end, but sagged in the middle, like a washing line with too many clothes. I needed a good, strong midpoint, but instead, my story was getting lost.

Maybe the shorter a story is, the harder it is to plot – at least for me. I find short stories even more difficult, and usually I'm only any good at them when I stick to one specific scene.

Writing is weird, and frustrating, and what works for one story won't work for another. And, in its own odd way, that's what makes it so much fun.

Read Alice's short stories at Smashwords and Amazon, and keep track of updates via her Facebook group and her blog.


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Hey everyone, hope you're enjoying Black Market Magic! We certainly are, working with a new colour scheme has been very freeing, and coming up with ideas for how new characters will react to things is a lot of fun.
Footloose Volume 3 is printed and available for sale in our store- now the whole Summer School arc can be yours to add to your collection of excellent Footloose books- maybe pick up a copy of Cherry 1-6 whilst you're there!

Planned Conventions for this year:

MCM Manchester Confirmed
MCM Scotland (Glasgow) Confirmed
MCM London October Confirmed