Who do you rely on? In the last two weeks, I have had to ask myself this very question. Trust is an important part of being human, as is faith. But there are things we can not anticipate that come our way that can shake our world. My daughter’s fiance’s flight was cancelled two hours before he was due to board and I have had several of my support team fall ill. This comes after I had been ill for over two weeks, following a spell of burnout, and then my bank rejected all my incoming Amazon royalty payments because of some change in code. The list is longer than I care to mention in this message, but one could say that I have had a spell of bad luck and I was certainly feeling fragile. If we want to move forward in life, making plans and setting goals is important and misfortunate has a way of challenging the viability of those goals. While we may have to delay some of our plans, we should never be tempted to give up or give in to despair or harden our hearts towards others. In th...

Do we really want things to change? When times are bad, we crave, wish, and pray for a change. A change for the better. But change always comes at a cost. That cost is letting go of what we know and that can be painful for many people. Perhaps it is because I am adopted and spent some time in a home of safety that stability and setting down roots is a primary need for me. Every time I moved, I swore that this would be the last move. And yet, I feel very much like a member of one of the nomadic tribes. A bit like the movie Chocolat, a 2000 romantic comedy-drama film based on the 1999 novel Chocolat by the English author, Joanne Harris. The main character Vianne Rocher, played by Juliette Binochean expert chocolatier and her six-year-old daughter Anouk (Victoire Thivisol), drift across Europe following the north wind. But there are some changes that must happen and when we look back at our lives, we find that some of our greatest growth as humans have come in times of change. This past w...

  If you have children you know those dreaded words “Are we there yet?” In my case, as I am home schooling, I also dread the words, “Is the food ready yet?” I use this continuing theme to help my little ones, aged 8 and 6, to work on their time telling skills. So they have to come and tell me where the big hand and the little hand are on the clock. This tactic only marginally assists me in getting some peace and I feel more like a caterer than an author.  But I have to admit I feel the same way about my third book. Whenever I see my editor has made another comment or suggestion I think, “Really, are we not done yet?” I still need to get the ISBN number and complete the cover. But I am stuck on the title and that influences all the other bits and pieces.  Then the big thing that we are currently debating is that there are two “parts” in the book that initially seem like two different stories, but that link up in the end. Someone suggested putting a break in the book “PART ...

  I admit I wrote most of Book 3 during lockdown. It was a troublesome time with me having to learn how to home school and deal with lots of conflicting expectations. So it does not surprise me that my characters seem to be all over the place with some of them resistant to lessons they need to learn. After my editor started going through the first draft, she pointed out some of these characters who seem to stray off and doing their own thing without sticking to the mission. So now I have to ask myself some tough questions. Are these behaviours a reflection of my mind as I have persevered through the “stop start” feel of 2020? Or are these reflections of the characters’ journeys? It means I have to do some serious reflection on the suggested rewrite from my editor. As authors, we want independent creative expression and feedback is something that makes us stop and reevaluate our position. It is not a natural process for an author because feedback seems a lot of like criticism and of...

What are you wanting to achieve this year? They say there is a no such thing as a free lunch. I believe this is true. With everything you want to achieve, there is a cost. Sometimes that cost is time, sometimes it is money or relationships. I had to sacrifice a lot of time in order to write the Chronicles of Nadine. As I was writing part time, I got up at 03H00 every morning to carve out some time to write. Not much has changed. Since the start of the pandemic, I have to home school two children as well, so in order to work on the book series, I need to get up early. I changed my Television viewing material. Instead of watching the series that I used to, I watch documentaries of medieval times on YouTube. I swapped watching my Tinyhouse shows to researching medieval weapons. My daughter said I was part-time author physically but full time emotionally. I had to give up some relationships. People who could not understand my journey or who tried to dissuade me from following my dream. Som...

Does 2021 feel a little like Deja vu for you? Some challenges we had from 2020 have carried through to this year. But I have to admit that being in lockdown brought a fresh perspective to me. I used to feel a little guilty that I was robbing myself of income producing hours and that my children would suffer for it. However, I came to realise that while I do not wish to have a repeat of last year, I could write without the guilt that I used to carry. That was so liberating for me. Established authors who created courses for authors released some of their material for free, and I grabbed on with both hands, so I could create better stories for my readers. While I can not minimise the sorrow and suffering that so many people had, I am grateful for what I have gained in that time. I learned more about my craft and the publishing process. While I am convinced that my computer was an original issue in Noah’s arc, I still completed the first draft of book 3 on it in 2020. This year I started...

  Have you ever met someone who has told you to “just get over it?”  Sometimes this is easier said than done. We all face our own challenges. No one set of people has the same circumstances, but sometimes journeying with others who are facing challenges and who overcome them can encourage us.  I know that when I was a teenager; I found my courage through books. I did not find courage through people overcoming small trials, rather I found courage when reading about people who overcame massive trials.  My mother used to tell me that if we all threw our problems in a hat, we would probably want to take our own troubles back out again when we compared our problems to others. While I do not believe that it is true in all circumstances, I know that no one can fully understand my personal trials. However, I can learn of people who have overcome similar trials or can bring a fresh perspective to me. This week I released my Novella. This Prequel Novella deals with the nastier...

It feels like we have had at least three quarters of the years dedicated to lock down. While we have had more freedom in my part of the world in the last few months, there have been some changes that have been long lasting. Many people have become more fearful, and that is difficult to remedy. This Christmas I wanted to invite someone I know who was alone for Christmas, but then I realised we have to restrict ourselves to just family. It is one of the many sad realities of living in a decade where there is a virus of this magnitude. My husband is 63 and in a higher risk category (because of age), which meant that I had to ask myself what would happen to my children if something were to happen to their father. That kind of distancing fear annoys me, because too many people were alone for Christmas. In my new Novella, A Mother’s warning, readers get to learn about Lady’s Christine’s mother Queen Isabella. King Radolf trapped Queen Isabella, manipulated her and silenced her until she had ...

This past week I interviewed two authors for my YouTube channel. One of them once wrote 30 000 words in one weekend and he has 11 published books. It was a jaw-dropping moment for me. My immediate reaction was that I felt such an underachiever. I just finished the last chapter of my third book on Friday and on my most productive day ever, I can manage 5000 words. But then I realised that while we should have mentors and people who challenge us to live to a higher standard, everyone has to run in their own lane. When you are in a race, you can’t cross over into someone else’s lane. You need to stay focused on who you are and what your purpose is. While I can learn from this author, I can’t compare my journey to a writer who published his first book four years ahead of me and whose life is very different from mine. In my series, the Chronicles of Nadine, Lady Christine has a different battle to fight to her companion Beatrice. King Radolf murdered Lady Christine’s parents, and so she mus...

Choosing your tribe is critical. You may be tempted to believe that your friends have to fulfil all your emotional needs.  But that is not true. They may be an excellent friend in one area, but not able to support you in another.   Choosing the wrong people for your tribe can kill your dream. So treat it like a fragile baby. When I had children, I stopped spending time with certain people. Not because they were awful friends, but because I was going through a season where worrying about my baby touching their glass table with their sticky fingers would fill me with anxiety.     Once I had a babysitter then, I could reintroduce that friendship into my life. When you are reaching for a goal, you may need to take a break from some people, or only speak to certain people about your dream. Choose your tribe carefully when building your dream. You want a group who had got your back, the ones you can trust.  The Chronicles of Nadine is in the medieval period where powe...

Feudalism flourished in Medieval Europe between the 9th and 15th centuries. It was a way of structuring society around relationships derived from the holding of land in exchange for service or labour. Although the Chronicles of Nadine takes place around 800 AD, we used a range of medieval concepts that spanned across many centuries to create a world for the series.Under the feudal system, there were different groups with varying degrees of power and status. A king or queen owned all the land, which they broke up and gave out in exchange for military service. The Lord or knight who received the land was called a vassal and was legally obligated to provide services in exchange for that land.  In the Chronicles of Nadine, Nadine’s father, Nicolaus received Land from Lord Logan and had to resume his Knightly services.Knight service was military duties performed in exchange for the lands.  A King or Lord might require the military service for wars or expeditions or for riding and e...

What does the word destiny mean to you? People say that it a predetermined course of events that leads us to some kind of purpose in our lives. There are a lot of debates about whether life is a matter of choice or a matter of destiny. The argument is that destiny predetermines everything. If that is true, then why should we bother with any decision making. It almost takes the fun out of life. We want to believe that we have control over our lives. In the series The Chronicles of Nadine, this is a theme that Nadine struggles through. Does she bend to what those around her say is her calling, or does she make her own choices? For a stubborn and fiercely independently thinking young lady, that seems an impossible choice. In the beginning, Nadine made some decisions based on what she thought would be the fate of her parents when they were captured by the dragon… Come to think of it, what is the difference between fate and destiny? Are they the same thing? . Fate  is the preordained co...

What does the word destiny mean to you?  People say that it a predetermined course of events that leads us to some kind of purpose in our lives. There are a lot of debates about whether life is a matter of choice or a matter of destiny. The argument is that destiny predetermines everything. If that is true, then why should we bother with any decision making. It almost takes the fun out of life. We want to believe that we have control over our lives. In the series The Chronicles of Nadine, this is a theme that Nadine struggles through. Does she bend to what those around her say is her calling, or does she make her own choices? For a stubborn and fiercely independently thinking young lady, that seems an impossible choice. In the beginning, Nadine made some decisions based on what she thought would be the fate of her parents when they were captured by the dragon… Come to think of it, what is the difference between fate and destiny? Are they the same thing? Fate  is the preordaine...

The Plaster Does Not have to stay on Forever A Day in the Life of an Author By Kim Vermaak Do you ever feel disconnected? This morning I did.  I completed my normal routine.  Get up, read my bible app, hydrate, eat protein and get down to work, while the children were still asleep. I had committed to writing an article for a new woman’s networking group and had to cover some extra work in for book three of “T he Chronicles of Nadine ” series. I put on some instrumental worship music because listening to songs with lyrics just overwhelms me when I am trying to form my own. But still I felt disconnected.  Then I realised what it was the plaster that I had on my finger. My flying fingertips on the keyboard turns my thoughts into the words that paint pictures in my readers’ minds. It is where sunsets cast their brilliant fiery crimson light over the brilliant green and delicate pattern of leaves of ancient gnarled oaks. Where despair blossoms into hope as th...

Did you know that one of them is extinction? In a hierarchy of fears, extinction forms the base of all of our fears.  When confronted with and pandemic, this fear jumps out above all, and it is a time when people can make practical or dangerous decisions. Another fear is the fear of separation, and this is what happens when we are quarantined.  When governments protect their population, some of these decisions run into our fear of loss of autonomy. When our movements are restricted, this fear shouts out as us, as we cannot travel and feel controlled by our circumstances. These are some feelings I explore in my book series, the Chronicles of Nadine.  When Muquin the last Silver Wing Dragon attacks Nadine’s village, the villagers fear that they will all wiped out. Nadine’s friends, family, and fellow villagers are separated from help and are confined in tunnels with no way of communicating with the outside world. The written word, like the spoken word,...

I was 15 when I felt afraid.  I knew beyond a doubt that someone had spiked the drink that I had just had.  I had a neighbour who I had popped in to say hello to. He was not there, but a group of friends were. I knew most of them. They were chatting and laughing, and I accepted the refreshment they offered. I did not know about spiked drinks then. But to go from a sober, nervous girl to someone so drunk that I was throwing up made me know something was wrong. It was when I felt fear.  I did not want my parents to know that I was drunk. I went to one bathroom and washed off the mess from my blouse. I thought if I could just let it dry on the balcony, I could go home and not have to answer questions about where I had been and with whom.  That is when he came,  To check if I was all right. He used words to tell me I would have to accept what was coming after all; I was the one without a blouse on.  Many of you will scream, “Foolish girl....