Do You Like Books and Art? Worrying in whimsical, wordy, watercolours.

I used to think that you had to be good at art for it to be worth creating.

'No Mistakes' by Marley Betts

I thought that everybody else would see my art in the same critical way that I did.

I would get mad if something didn't turn out just the way I had envisioned (because that made it 'bad').

I would compare my art to other art and mine would always come off as second-best.

I was aiming to create a type of art that isn't what wanted to come out of me.

Now, I realise that 'bad' art can be good, because bad art isn't bad at all. There is a definite charm to quirky, whimsical, abstract art. It has character.

Also, there is an audience for everything.

If some lady can sell vacuum dust and toenail clippings, then my art is surely going to appeal to somebody out there.

'Curly Words' by Marley Betts

I don't make perfect art, I make real art. Like me, and you. Full of imperfections, but still beautiful and exactly as it should be.

I always wanted to be a writer, and I have always enjoyed painting. It would be a dream come true to be a writer and artist.

So why not?

Why the heck not? Why should I be scared of people criticising my art? I was scared of the same thing with my writing, but I did it anyway. So now, I'm sharing my art too.

You can check out the brand new little Art Shop tab on my website, where you can browse and buy my artwork - some of which you can see throughout this post.

'Lessons From A Leaf' by Marley Betts

At the moment, the art that I am creating is primarily in watercolour (it's a much easier clean-up with little ones) and fineliner (plus a little bit of dirt), but I am not going to pigeonhole myself. I might swap to acrylic, ash, makeup, rubbish, old teabags. Who knows?

What I do know is that I am no longer going to censor what wants to come out of me (creatively) because I am afraid that it is not good enough.

Maybe it's because I am approaching 40 and am starting to sense that time is slipping away. Maybe it's because I discovered SARK at just the right time (thank you SARK! - that's another blog post).

Whatever it is, here I am, sharing my art with the world. Marley Betts: writer, artist, and creative whim chaser. Look at me go!

I don't know what to expect so I am not going to stock my shop with 100 pictures just yet, but I am going to assume that people aren't going to criticize my art, but applaud my bravery. I want to be an example for my kids, and for you too. I don't want to be a hypocrite - I'm doing it scared, but I am also excited to be chasing dreams that I never thought possible.

'Most Fierce' by Marley Betts

What would you do if you weren't scared?

Time to go chase your dreams.

Much love,

Marley x

P.S. Click HERE to check out my little art shop (which is currently full of whimsical, wordy, watercolours).

28 Weird and Relatable Things That Readers Do

We readers are a funny bunch. Here's a list of some of the many weird and relatable things that we find ourselves doing. How many do you do?

Book sniffer

1. Smell our books!

2. Close the book once we have finished a reading session and check how much progress we have made by seeing how much closer the bookmark is to the end of the book.

3. Run our fingers across the embossing on book covers.

4. Think about how many other people have touched the pages before us and wonder what their stories are (and what they thought of the book).

5. Judge books by their covers (not always, but sometimes we may even select a book based solely on its cover... without even reading the blurb!).

6. Lose track of a story element then have to flick back to remember who someone is or where they are (or why they have gone wherever they are).

7. Picture things in our head one way and then have to mentally rearrange things when a detail in the book throws off what we had in our mind.

8. Feel proud when we see books that we have already read on shelves at the store or library.

9. Like to point out the books that we have already read that are on shelves at stores or libraries.

10. Give our opinions of the books that we have read that we point out on shelves at stores or libraries eg. "Read that. Loved it," or "Didn't like that one. Couldn't get into it."

11. Get excited to start a new book. Like, smiles and butterflies.

12. Go on dates with our books. I'm talking candles, wine, and soft music, maybe even a bath or a picnic under a shady tree.

13. Mourn the end of a good book (and being unable to go through that first amazing time ever again).

14. Feel sad and anxious about the thought that there are too many amazing books to be read in the world and not enough time.

15. Develop very real crushes on very fictional characters.

16. Recommend and lend books to people you care about as a display of love and affection.

17. Keep your most favourite books in pride of place, likely set apart from the rest.

18. Love the feeling of history that comes with a secondhand book.

19. Love the special ambiance of being around books (there is a different one for each setting - bookstore, library, thrift shop, market - all have their own special vibe).

20. Set themselves times that they will stop reading eg. at 10pm or at the end of the chapter, then feel a very real resistance and think 'just a little bit more'. Then all of a sudden it's midnight.

21. Get a kick out of finding errors in a book.

22. Fight really hard with ourselves trying not to let our eyes jump ahead to find out what happens later on the page.

23. Have an enormous list of books that we want to read, then struggle to remember any the second we step into a library or bookstore.

24. Keep a list of books we have read and books we want to read (to avoid #23).

25. Have a large pile of books on our bedside table (der).

26. Use anything as a bookmark (it doesn't need to be flat).

27. Remember only odd or specific details about a book that we have read, then think 'Oh yeah' when we read a review that mentions the main points of the story that we forgot

28. Know that book lovers get a little more vicarious living done in their lives than non-readers.

Just me? I don't think so!

I want to know...

How many of these do you find yourself doing?

Much love - Marley x

What is Women's Fiction?

Women's Fiction, Contemporary Women's Fiction, Women's Literary Fiction, Commercial and Upmarket Women's Fiction, Paranormal Women's Fiction, and Chick Lit. Discover everything you need to know about the genre in one helpful blog post. Read on!

Book Genres

Let's start at the start.

A 'genre' is used to categorise a book.

Firstly, a book is either fiction or non-fiction.

In fiction, books then fall into a literary subgenre e.g. romance, science fiction, fantasy, women's fiction, etc.

Each of these literary subgenres has its own expectations, for example, did you know that a book has to have a happy ending for it to be considered a romance? While fantasy books need to contain either magic or the supernatural.

There are so many genres that things can get confusing! So, let's look at some of the main Women's Fiction genres and hopefully clear some things up. First things first:

What is Women's Fiction?

Women's fiction is the umbrella term for books that focus on the lives and experiences of women. These books are marketed to women and often include journeys of self-discovery/personal growth during which you get to see a snapshot of what is going on inside a woman's mind.

What is Chick lit? (aka. Beach Fiction)

'Chick' is a slang word for 'young woman', and 'lit' is short for 'literature'. Thus, Chick lit is literature aimed at younger women. It is often:

• lighthearted

• funny

• easy to read

• urban

• 20-or-early-30-something-year-old female protagonist

Fun and young, but not dumb. It often centers around real issues for this demographic at their stage of life: friendships, romantic relationships, and careers.

What is Commercial Women's Fiction?

Commercial Women's Fiction is much like Chick lit but not specifically aimed at younger 20-to-30-year-old women. Therefore, it tackles some deeper and more wide-ranging real-world issues, and may be a bit less light and humorous, while still remaining broadly accessible and easy to understand.

What is Contemporary Women's Fiction

Contemporary Fiction books are set in a present or modern-day setting.

Therefore, Contemporary Women's Fiction is just Women's Fiction set in the present or modern-day.

What is Women's Literary Fiction?

Literary Fiction is a bit more serious. It generally has a purpose and a message and aims to get readers to think about important and complex themes, such as social or environmental issues, which are just as important to the story as the plot.

The plot tends to be character-driven, which means that it is just as focused on what is happening inside a person as what is happening outside, and the plot moves forward because of the person and the choices/actions that they make.

Literary Fiction uses words in a more complex, creative, and innovative way.

So, Women's Literary Fiction is a mixture of Women's Fiction + Literary Fiction.

What is Upmarket Women's Fiction? (aka. Book Club Fiction)

Upmarket Women's Fiction fits between Commercial Women's Fiction and Literary Fiction. It is generally fairly easy to understand and broadly accessible, like Commercial Women's Fiction, but often less predictable, slower paced, and more innovative with language, like Literary Fiction. Check out the following 2 links for more information:

• Lidija Hilje's blog post: Genre Guide: Women's Fiction, Upmarket, Romance, Literary...?

• Carly Watters': Infographic: Do You Know The Difference Between Literary, Upmarket, and Commercial Fiction?

What is Paranormal Women's Fiction?

Paranormal Women's Fiction is a new genre

(created in 2020) that is aimed at women in mid-life (40+). It deals with real-life issues for this demographic (e.g. menopause, empty nest, widowhood, divorce, etc.) and combines them with a protagonist's new or developing magical powers.

Cross-Genre

Most fiction books are cross-genre, which means that they mix genres together. For example, my latest book, The Silver Sheep, is a Contemporary Women's Literary Fiction novel. It:

• Has a modern-day setting (contemporary fiction)

• Is a young women's coming-of-age story that spans the teen years to early twenties (women's fiction)

• Is a journey of self-discovery and personal growth (women's fiction)

• Follows her journey from a rough and poor only child of a single, alcoholic mother, to a free-thinking and spiritual, commune-dwelling young mother herself (women's fiction)

• Tackles issues such as: Substance abuse, abandonment, teen pregnancy, dysfunctional family, being a child caregiver, and moral dilemmas (women's fiction)

• Has social and political themes eg. social inequality; prejudice, intolerance, discrimination, hive mentality; political influence, and corruption (literary fiction)

• It also has a strong earthing theme and aims to encourage free thinking about the themes explored and the very real benefits of connecting with our planet (literary fiction)

Hopefully this helps to shed some light on Women's Fiction for you. Have you tried reading in each of the genres listed? Maybe you can find your next favourite book in a genre you have yet to explore!

Much love - Marley x

P.S. The Silver Sheep is available as an ebook or paperback, and can be downloaded for free by Kindle Unlimited subscribers. CLICK HERE to find out more.