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Rebecca Alasdair
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    • HOLDING UP THE SKY
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  • fantasy fridays

    Playing God: Music, art & literature in the world of your WIP

    Rebecca Alasdair / 7 August 2020 / No Comments

    Music, art and literature are three of the “cultural universals” found in every society, so they ought to be considered when world-building for a fantasy WIP. In today’s Playing God post, I explore each of these aspects in some detail, and give a sneak peek at the music, art and literature in my own fantasy world!! →

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  • on writing

    How to be a productive writer while stuck at home

    Rebecca Alasdair / 21 July 2020 / No Comments

    Since the end of March, I’ve been working from home while chipping away at all my writing projects. I’ve had to adjust to this new routine, but have learned some valuable lessons, and today I share some of the strategies I’ve used to maintain my productivity. I’d love to hear about yours! →

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  • fantasy fridays

    Playing God: The language of your fantasy world

    Rebecca Alasdair / 12 June 2020 / No Comments

    Language is how we communicate, an inextricable part of our everyday lives, and an important consideration when creating a fantasy world. In today’s Playing God post, I explore the significance of language, how to shape vernacular and new phrases, and give a sneak peek at the language in my own fantasy WIP!! →

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  • on blogging

    How to find ideas for your writing blog

    Rebecca Alasdair / 14 May 2020 / No Comments

    When I sat down to decide what I was going to blog about this week, I found myself drawing a blank. It can be a real challenge to keep those ideas coming, so today I thought I’d share the key sources and categories from which I find inspiration. Writers and bloggers, come forth and share where you get your post…

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  • fantasy fridays

    Playing God: Shaping race and culture in your fantasy WIP

    Rebecca Alasdair / 24 April 2020 / No Comments

    Race and culture have a vital role in shaping society and human identity, so in turn they deserve careful shaping when world-building for a fantasy WIP. In today’s Playing God post, I explore the definitions and significance of race and culture, some important considerations, and give a sneak peek at these concepts in my own fantasy world! →

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  • on reading

    What to do when your bookshelf overflows

    Rebecca Alasdair / 9 April 2020 / No Comments

    SOS! Send help! My bookshelf is about to overflow! Said every bookworm ever as they despaired over where to store their “excess” books. I’ve done a little searching online, and today I present a few different options for when your space is running out. If you have any unique ideas or experiences, I’d love to hear all about them! →

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  • on writing

    Conceptualising a story idea with the 5W1H method

    Rebecca Alasdair / 11 March 2020 / No Comments

    There are many different ways in which a writer may conceptualise a story idea, and half the time we don’t even realise we’re doing it. But in this post I share one method of bringing order to the chaos…by asking yourself six key questions about your story concept! →

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  • excerpts,  graceborn

    GRACEBORN: NaNoWriMo + next steps + book 2 reveal!

    Rebecca Alasdair / 3 December 2019 / No Comments

    Did you participate in NaNoWriMo 2019? I did, and I finally finished the draft of the first book in my fantasy series Graceborn! Woohoo! Come and check out the details, featuring some exciting SNIPPETS from the book, what I plan to do next, and the reveal of the title and mock cover for book two!! →

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  • on writing

    Plans & preparation for NaNoWriMo 2019

    Rebecca Alasdair / 24 October 2019 / No Comments

    NaNoWriMo 2019 is just around the corner! I plan to use this challenge to work on the final part of Blood of Old, the first book in my WIP fantasy series Graceborn. Come and learn the details of my goals and preparations, and tell me about your own NaNo project!! →

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  • fantasy fridays

    Playing God: Making history in your WIP’s world

    Rebecca Alasdair / 20 September 2019 / No Comments

    History is an often-underrated element of world-building, and one which can add incredible depth and detail to a fantasy novel. In today’s Playing God post, I explore the reasons you need to know your world’s history, some important considerations, and give a sneak peek at the world history in my own fantasy WIP! →

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Welcome! I'm Rebecca Alasdair, an Australian indie author whose one true love is fantasy—the more epic, the better.

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The information on this website / blog is authentic to the best of my knowledge, and as such, it may contain errors or be absent some key information. Any opinions expressed are my own. Content is generated for entertainment and informative purposes, and is not to be perceived as professional advice. I am not responsible for the comments made by visitors to this site, and will act quickly to remove any inappropriate comments. Abuse and harassment may be reported and the perpetrator’s personal information disclosed in accordance with my Privacy Policy.

Serious question: What day of the week do you thin Serious question: What day of the week do you think is the best day to publish/release a book? And why? 🤔

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#indieauthor #indiepublishing #writeralife #authorlife #writersofig
"I'm not afraid of you, Tora," he said quietly. H "I'm not afraid of you, Tora," he said quietly.

Her face twisted. "You think that makes it easier? Kael, that makes it worse!"

I can't wait for everyone to meet these two later this year! They had my beta readers TORN! 😁

🎨 Art by @sophielouisedraws

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#indieauthor #fantasyauthor #fantasybooks #epicfantasy #gracebornseries
The author. The first page. The book. I'm usually The author. The first page. The book.

I'm usually far too late jumping on trends, but I think I've made it this time! 

No, I don't show my real author face online, and no, I don't have a final cover for this book yet, but "Blood of Old", first in the #GracebornSeries, is coming later this year!! 😱

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#authorsofig #indieauthor #fantasyauthor #epicfantasy
Here are some sound bites from my incredible beta Here are some sound bites from my incredible beta reading team! ☺️

Seriously, every time I start to doubt myself and whether my upcoming fantasy saga is worth seeing the light of day, I have to dig these out. They help me remember that most of those who have read book 1 so far have loved it. You guys are legends!!

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#betareading #fantasybooks #epicfantasy #fantasyauthor #gracebornseries
What do my characters think about each other or th What do my characters think about each other or themselves?

And who are YOU most interested to meet when book 1 in the #GracebornSeries comes out?

🎨 Art by @sophielouisedraws

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#fantasyauthor #fantasybooks #epicfantasy #characterart
U is for Uylesia! 👇 I'm back with another post in U is for Uylesia! 👇

I'm back with another post in the A to Z of worldbuilding in the #GracebornSeries, and we're getting towards the pointy end. Quite literally, today, as I wanted to talk about magic weapons.

I LOVE seeing magical weapons in fantasy, so of course my world has a few. They're not common, but they do play an important role in the series.

An example is the Circle of Swords, a set of eight blades capable of combating the Shadow. One such blade, the Sword of Harmony, is the feature of this post. I can't wait to see my readers discover the many mysteries of this weapon! 😀

What's your favourite magical weapon/s from a fantasy book or show?

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#worldbuilding #fantasybooks #fantasyseries #fantasyauthor
What are your goals for 2026? I didn't achieve ma What are your goals for 2026?

I didn't achieve many of my goals last year, so a lot of them have been carried over to this year. I'm trying to embrace the unexpected, but I do like having an ambitious plan to strive for! 😅

This will be a big year for my epic fantasy series. I plan to publish book 1, finish the first draft of book 3 and send it to my alpha readers, and start working on the third draft of book 2 after receiving reader feedback.

I also hope to create a new reader magnet for my author newsletter—maybe even more than one!—and get back into the habit of reading. We'll see how we go! 😀

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#authorgoals #writinggoals #goalsetting #goals2026 #writerslife
A little snapshot of what it looks like to work on A little snapshot of what it looks like to work on multiple books in a series at the same time...

Why do I do this, you might ask? It takes me a loooong time to write these epic fantasy books, so I want to make sure I've got the first three partway there before I start publishing. Also, this first half of the series has more scope to change things in response to feedback, so I didn't want to jump the gun!

Do you think this approach will pay off? 😅

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#fantasybooks #fantasyseries #epicfantasy #fantasywriter #fantasyauthor #indieauthor #writersofinstagram #gracebornseries

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