Tag Archives: #amwriting

BUSINESS OF BOOKS: FIRST, LAST, EVERYTHING – MAGAZINE FICTION WRITER WENDY CLARKE

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My very first piece of writing advice wasn’t from a writer or about writing but it was advice that would one day help me in my writing career. I was twenty-two and had just taken up my first teaching position at a junior school with open-plan classrooms divided only by bookcases. Being very new to teaching, and still finding my feet (or my voice, if you like), I was always looking for ways to make my teaching more effective. In the classroom area next to mine was a more experienced teacher who, because of the way the classrooms were laid out, could easily be heard. I was impressed with her control of the class and the attention the children gave her. Realising it was something in her voice (her tone, her inflection, her choice of words) I decided that if I copied her style of teaching, I too would achieve success. How naïve! Of course, it was a disaster – a bit like being on stage and being cast in the wrong role.

Back in the staffroom at break time, the teacher I’d been trying to copy could tell something was wrong. When I told her what had happened, she was very kind, sitting me down and making me a coffee before telling me that no two teachers taught in the same way and the children wouldn’t expect them to. In time I would find my own voice. One that I felt comfortable with. One that would be true to me. When I started writing for magazines, I remembered this advice. I didn’t try to copy the style of any other authors, I just wrote stories I loved – in my own way. My first sale came quickly and I have that teacher to thank!

The most recent piece of writing advice I received was from the writing community on social media. It was during a period when I had become disillusioned with the long and tortuous road you needed to travel in order to get your novel published. With magazine writing, you write a story, sub it, forget about it and start on another. There is no middle man (the agent) and, because I have several stories being considered at one time, it feels as though things are always happening. With a novel, you submit to agents and then wait, sometimes many months, for the inevitable rejection. Even if an agent requests the full manuscript (which happened to me six times) it can be months before hearing anything… if at all. In fact, I am still waiting. The readers of my Facebook post heard my sorry tale. Their advice was to submit directly to the publishers who accept manuscripts without the need of an agent. I did and it’s the best advice I could have been given.

Finally, the piece of advice I’d like to pass on is easy. Be kind to yourself. Set reasonable goals (if that’s the type of writer you are) and don’t beat yourself up if you don’t manage to achieve them. Also have breaks from your writing. If I go on holiday, I leave my writing equipment behind. The rest recharges my battery and helps me put my writing into perspective. This doesn’t mean that my brain isn’t still working behind the scenes though. Often, when I switch off from writing, an idea for a story, or the answer to a difficult plot problem, will float into my head as if from nowhere. Writing isn’t something to be forced but to be enjoyed and, if it isn’t, maybe it’s time to ask ourselves why we’re doing it.

 

Wendy Clarke has had over two hundred short stories, and two serials, published in national women’s magazines such as The People’s Friend, Take a Break Fiction Feast and Woman’s Weekly. She lives with her husband in Sussex and has just finished writing her debut novel.

 

https://wendyswritingnow.blogspot.com/

TAKE FOUR WRITERS: TEACHING, THANKING, VENTURING, BOPPING

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CLAIRE DYER… TEACHING

This month I want to talk about what teaching teaches me. Like many other authors I don’t actually spend ALL my time sitting in splendid isolation in a writing garret. In fact, I spend precious little time actually writing, as life tends to get in the way!

And, one such distraction is teaching Creative Writing at Bracknell & Wokingham College. Whilst I relish the chance to encourage and inform my students, what is of perhaps greater benefit to me is the chance to practise what I preach. In my Beginners’ classes we cover the basics tools of writing and in my Improvers and Advanced classes, we take this up a notch. And what I find is that in teaching these topics I get a timely reminder to apply the techniques we cover to my own writing.

I also give my students examples of my early work to critique and this shows me how awful some of the stuff I used to produce actually was! A salutary reminder to keep the writing muscle flexed and working and mark my own writing much as a teacher would: 6 out 10 Claire, could do better. See me after class!

 

LUCY COLEMAN…. THANKING

It’s been a month in which to be very grateful and to say thanks, by running a series of competitions for my amazing readers.

With Lucy Coleman’s ‘The French Adventure’ wearing best seller flags in the Holiday Romance charts in Australia and Canada, hitting #53 in the main UK Kindle chart, and #1 in the iBooks Romance chart, I did celebrate.

One glass of wine, toasted by my other half, then straight back to work because it’s been a month of non-stop writing.

Next up? 4th September 2018 Lucy’s second novel will be released. Still no cover and the excitement builds… but I can share the title for the FIRST time: ‘Snowflakes Over Holly Cove’.

My Christmas stories are never solely about Christmas, but this one has a dusting of snow and a lot of heart. And it was written last summer, but it wasn’t quite as hot as this July!

 

ANGELA PETCH… VENTURING

Writers live within their heads most of the time, amongst imagined scenes and characters. In Italy, far from distractions, I have plenty of time to dream up plots and conflicts. But sometimes, like a tortoise, I need to pop my head out of my carapace and venture into the real world.

So, last week I boarded a plane from Bologna for Leeds and my first RNA Conference. All apprehensions were swept away as soon as I entered Leeds Trinity University and was warmly welcomed. It was a buzzing weekend, packed with interesting and sometimes hilarious talks (how to write sex scenes foremost), food and wine a-plenty and many new friendships. How good it was to talk writing without the fear of boring non-writers. I pitched to three different publishers and came away from Bookouture and Harper Collins with encouraging advice.

Back in Sussex, I joined self-published fellow CHINDI authors as we held our ghost tour around the fascinating seaside town of Littlehampton.

This tortoise is almost ready to retreat again. But first of all, I have granny duties. Our fifth grandchild is due any day now. I feel a children’s story coming on.

 

JACKIE BALDWIN… BOPPING

Hello again! The first half of this month I spent in Greece hiking, swimming and reading books, which was a welcome change. A few days after I returned it was time to go to Harrogate Crime Festival! I was also lucky enough to be invited to read at Noir at the Bar on the Thursday evening along with some amazing authors. The venue at The Blues Bar was packed with readers, writers and bloggers so the audience was amazing!

Highlights of the festival for me included hearing John Grisham interviewed by Lee Child and bopping away to ‘Fun Lovin’ Crime Writers,’ including Val McDermid and Mark Billingham, I also loved the New Blood panel. I shall be sneaking new books into the house the way other women sneak in shoes!

I had such a great time that I have already paid a deposit for next year!

 

 

 

 

BUSINESS OF BOOKS: FIRST, LAST EVERYTHING – MENTOR AND NOVELIST CATHIE HARTIGAN

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What was the first piece of publishing advice you received?

The first piece of publishing advice I received wasn’t offered directly, but came in the form of a question. It was over ten years ago now and I was in my first one-to-one with an agent. After she set the timer ticking for ten minutes, and put it on the table between us, she said. ‘Tell me, when do you write?’ This took me completely by surprise; but I understood that she was looking for my commitment to being a professional author.

It also reinforced in my mind, that publishing is an industry, and unless you are that very rare literary writer who sells in large numbers, the commercial market is very likely to want you to write one, or even two books a year.

My answer to the agent by the way was all the time. Not that she took me on. I was disappointed at the time, but thankful now. I had yet to finish my first novel, and I’ve learned a great deal since.

 

What was the most recent publishing advice you gave or received?

Don’t be in a hurry to self-publish. I’m often approached for advice on the back of my own self-publishing success with my debut novel Secret of the Song. It’s impossible to predict how a book will fare once it’s out in the world. I was very fortunate, but I was also well connected within the writing community, as a creative writing teacher, co-author of a successful textbook, and organiser of the Exeter Novel, Story and Flash prizes. I feel sad for people who put so much effort into writing a novel, and then see it become plankton in the ocean of books available. Having said that, self-publishing can be a brilliant option for books that have a limited, but ready-made market, such as family memoirs or books about very niche subjects.

 

What is the piece of advice you’d most like to pass on?

If you’re going to self-publish, it’s important to go through the same steps as a mainstream publisher would prior to publication. Think carefully before using free resources unless you’re convinced about the result. It’s usually worth paying professionals for edits, proofing and cover design.

 

Cathie Hartigan is a novelist and founder of www.creativewritingmatters.co.uk which offers a range of services for writers, including competitions, mentoring and manuscript appraisals. Cathie’s novel, Secret of the Song, was recently shortlisted for the inaugural Hall & Woodhouse Dorchester Literary Festival Writing Prize.

BUSINESS OF BOOKS: FIRST, LAST, EVERYTHING – CHILDREN’S AUTHOR CHRISTOPHER JOYCE

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What was the first piece of writing advice you received?

I armed myself with How Not to Write a Novel by Newman and Middlemark, which is both hilarious and packed full of tips, and The Art of Writing Fiction a rather more scholarly book by Andrew Cowan. 

The first book covers plot, character, style and much more. Each tip is accompanied by bad examples with headings such as ‘The Gum on the Mantelpiece’ where the author makes much play about said-piece of confectionery and then NEVER refers to it again. Anyone else guilty of that? Another of my favourites is a section entitled ‘Said the Fascinating Man” where the author tells the reader what you think of his writing. “Was it a fish?” the girl said eloquently.

The section on what not to name your cat in your story includes:

  • after a composer (Bartok, Mahler)
  • Mr + adjective + anatomical feature (Mr fluffy paws)
  • Magnificat – or similar pun

I think I got away with naming the cat in my book, The Creatures of Chichester – The One About The Smelly Ghosts. I decided on Purrcasso as she lives at the art gallery. What do you think? Did it stray into Magnificat territory?

Mr Cowan’s book is more learned with lots of writing exercises he used with his students at UEA, I believe. These include exercises on creating great dialogue, using all the senses and many more. I created a special notebook to do them all. It’s mostly still empty but – one day.

 

What was the most recent writing advice you gave or received?

Sometimes it really is okay to tell not show. Every course I’ve ever attended and blog you read talk about showing not telling. It can become obsessive. At some point, it’s better to just say: ‘it’s midnight’ rather than: ‘Bats passed silently by the ancient metal hands of the church clock as they moved into a vertical position.’ This is particularly true in children’s books where most kids want action. I am, however, a fan of using show not tell in dialogue though. Better to write His clenched fist was inches from her face, “I Hate you!” said Bob then “I hate you,” said Bob angrily. In fact, part of my editing process is to remove as many adverbs as I can.

 

What’s the piece of advice you’d most like to pass on?

Once you’ve written and edited your work get in proofread by a professional. This is not your sister, who is an English graduate; not your neighbour, who studied law and is very bright and NEVER yourself. It’s impossible. I would add that Grammarly is great at picking up many obvious errors, and it’s free too.

If you can afford an editor then this will also make a huge difference. There are lots of good books and courses on this but, like the proofreading tip above, it’s very hard to do this objectively yourself. reedsy.com is a great source of advice on what you need to consider and also provide experts who can do this for you.

Finally, if you decide to self-publish (as Mark Twain and the Bronte sisters did) then pay for a professional cover designer. If you’ve taken a year or more to write the best book you can, then surely this must be worth it? There are also lots of good books and webinars on this but it’s like me downloading a book on how to play the violin. All the information is there, but I can assure you that my mother would testify that even though I passed grade 1 at junior school, it does not make me a member of the orchestra. If you’re a good writer then write. Leave the editing, proofreading and cover design to somebody else.

 

Christopher Joyce has written six books in The Creatures of Chichester series and produced The Alien Cookbook with out-of-this-world recipes for kids of all ages. He also promotes self-publishing through CHINDI a group of independent authors in the UK. www.creaturesofchichester.com. www.chindi-authors.co.uk

 

TAKE FOUR WRITERS: CELEBRATING, RESEARCHING, WEEDING, WAITING

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JACKIE BALDWIN… CELEBRATING

A very exciting month! Publication Day of Perfect Dead came and went in a blur. I embarked on a blog tour organised by the fabulous Love Books Group. I’d already submitted the guest posts and extracts in advance so all that remained was trying to keep up with all the posts on social media. I also managed to trip over a boulder and smash up my face again, leaving me looking like I had taken up cage fighting!

I have to say, though, that publication day was not even close to being the highlight of my month. My proudest moment by far was watching my lovely daughter graduate in zoology from Aberdeen University. It was such a special day for all of us. I’m now home catching up on my blog tour before escaping to a Greek island on Friday to try and calm down!

 

LUCY COLEMAN… RESEARCHING

I’m a Gemini, so when asked what I wanted for my birthday I said ‘A trip to Versailles’ because I have an idea for a contemporary love story. I’ve been there twice before but I needed to soak up the ambience again – and grab photographs!

The final proof read of my next book, due to be released by Aria Fiction on 4 September 2018, arrived the day before I left for my holiday. But authors take their work with them, anyway, so after foot-wearying days my bedtime reading was sorted.

The palace at Versailles is enchanting, opulent and the stuff that dreams are made of – I fell in love with it all over again. Coming home I had to hit the ground running. New graphics to produce, two work-in-progresses on the go and a contract to sign … exciting times! But now I want to write about Versailles …

 

ANGELA PETCH… WEEDING

Suddenly, the writing road ahead is a flat path through wild flower meadows instead of a craggy climb. I always find calm in Tuscany where we live for six months each summer. After an initial panic over the edits needed for “Mavis and Dot”, I went for a long walk to untangle my thoughts and to face reality. I’m now acting on comments from my editor and Beta readers and rewriting sections. I’ve got my trowel out and I’m digging out the weeds, rearranging the beds. And I want “Mavis and Dot” to be as perfect as I can manage.

My husband helped devise a spread sheet for my illustrator. Her main job is busy editor of a Sussex based Arts Magazine called Ingenue, so she was pleased to work to a schedule. She hit the bullseye with two illustrations she subsequently sent and produced smiles of delight and relief.

 

CLAIRE DYER… WAITING

This month I want to talk about waiting. As a poet and an author I, like many others in the same fields, do a lot of it!

Consider this: I submitted some poems to a well-known literary journal in March of 2017. They accepted one of those poems in February: that’s eleven months of waiting. Also, I sent my agent a manuscript last September and waited for her valued and considered feedback which I got in December and it was well worth the wait! That manuscript then went on journeys out and about into the big wide world and there was more waiting and, as I write this, I still don’t know where its future might lie.

There are many more examples. In answer to the usual, ‘Where are you at the moment?’ the standard writer’s reply is ‘I’m waiting for my agent/editor/publicist/’ and/or, ‘I’m waiting to see the cover/get my first reviews/hear about a TV deal.’

Then there’s the fictional world of say, ‘The Truth about the Harry Quebert Affair’ by Joël Dicker where the fictional author is hounded by his fictional agent who calls constantly asking, ‘Where is the manuscript you promised me?’

I’m not sure how one goes from the one who waits to the one who is awaited, but there’s something tantalising about imagining this. Just think, one day I may get an email which says, ‘Dear Claire, We were wondering if your new book is ready as we have the perfect cover for it.’

 

 

 

BUSINESS OF BOOKS: JANE CABLE ON BOOK BLOGS AND MAKING THE BIG BIRTHDAYS COUNT

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All writers have slow news times and yet the voracity of social media means we always have to create news. My relationship with Frost means I’m very lucky as I can write about other people and still have plenty to share. But there comes a time when you have to focus back on yourself, even when you really have nothing to say.

I always knew that if I had a new book out at all this year it would be much later on, so there came a point when I was actively looking for something to celebrate. With three books becoming two when Endeavour Press went into liquidation and I decided not to sign with the successor company my writing CV suddenly seemed a little empty. Should I dash off a quick novella, write a few short stories to give away? No, I’m writing new material anyway and don’t want the distraction. So I decided to focus on what I already had.

On 1st August my debut novel, The Cheesemaker’s House, will be five years old. Sales are still ticking along nicely, but I wanted to give them a boost and celebrating the anniversary seemed an excellent excuse to do it. I’d been impressed by the results achieved for my Chindi Authors’ buddy Helen Christmas by Rachel’s Random Resources so I decided to sign up for one of their book birthday blitz packages followed by a mini blog tour.

Rachel is an experienced book blogger who has recently started to offer a variety of promotional services for authors. I was concerned that as The Cheesemaker’s House was so old and has had so many reviews there wouldn’t be a great deal of interest but I couldn’t have been more wrong. Within eighteen hours of announcing the tour on her website no fewer than 28 bloggers had signed up, 23 of them promising a review, and I couldn’t have been more delighted.

I’d agreed on a multi-content tour so over the last week I’ve been answering Q&As, writing guest blogs and choosing extracts from the book. It was strange going back five years and telling the book’s story all over again but I’m really hopeful it will reach a new audience and it was such fun to do.

While I am more than happy to pay for Rachel’s services to organise the tour I would never actually pay for a review. This week – like many other weeks – I’ve had emails asking me to do just that. I won’t, because I believe it’s wrong on so many levels. Especially as I’m yet to see a review anywhere that says ‘this review was paid for by the author’.

It’s an issue that’s been bubbling around on social media recently as well, as yet again bona fide book loving bloggers have been attacked for ‘undermining the market’ by giving free reviews. Excuse me? Although some bloggers have book marketing related businesses on the side (as Rachel does) their reviews are the product of being total and complete bookworms who just love to share their passion. And that’s important. Because it’s why we can trust them.

TAKE FOUR WRITERS: JUGGLING, REVEALING, PARTYING, BALANCING

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CLAIRE DYER… JUGGLING

This month I want to talk about loyalty; not to our nearest and dearest, nor our publishers and/or agents but to our books.

Consider this: I have a book that’s just been published and I’m busy talking about it on social media, to library audiences and writers’ groups. I love this book. I have also written another one which is with my agent and which we’re still discussing and editing. I love this book too. And, I’m writing a new book and am at the brick wall that is 60,000 words. I don’t love this book very much at the moment but I should do, and hopefully I will when I’ve climbed over the wall and seen what’s on the other side.

So I’m carrying three books in my head all the time and this isn’t unusual, it’s par for the course for authors. Indeed, some carry even more and/or are different stages of the above process which will require them to concentrate on the intricacies of multiple novels at the same time.

And what does this mean in reality? It means we’re constantly torn; we juggle characters and settings, we have to remember who has which pet, what our heroine’s favourite food is, her deepest fear. Not only this but we have to remember with pinpoint clarity our plot lines and at all times believe in the magic: the alchemy that is writing. There are some days when my brain feels like scrambled egg, but then when it’s just me and screen and I’m back in the zone and it’s making sense, then it’s all worthwhile, believe me.

 

JACKIE BALDWIN… REVEALING

Hello, lots of excitement for me to report this month! First of all there was the Killer Reads Cover Reveal for Perfect Dead. I absolutely love the design! I’ve been getting ready for my Blog Tour, organised by Love Books Group so I’ve been busy writing guest posts, providing extracts etc.

I also had the most unexpected thing happen this month. My first novel, Dead Man’s Prayer had a one day Book Bub promotion and, to my surprise and delight, became an Amazon UK Kindle bestseller in two categories. I was absolutely over the moon! As I write this it is only three weeks until publication day on 15th June. This is always a nail-biting time for an author as you wait with baited breath for those reviews to start trickling in. Wish me luck!

See you next month!

 

LUCY COLEMAN… PARTYING

May has been an exciting month! The Romantic Novelists’ Association Summer Party prompted a trip to the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford. It was great to meet up with writerly friends old and new. Which, I might add, included fellow Frost Musketeer, lovely Claire Dyer.

A pre-party meet-up with a group of Aria Fiction authors, my lovely editor – Lucy Gilmore – and Melanie Price (who is a whizz on social media) was accompanied by Prosecco. It was a great start to the evening.

The week prior to that, structural edits arrived for the second manuscript in my four-book contract with Aria fiction, writing as Lucy Coleman. I despatched those very quickly and I’m now waiting to see the cover for this Christmas novel, set in Caswell Bay on the Gower coast.

Then back to work on book no. 4 which currently stands at around fifty-thousand words. Never a dull moment!

 

ANGELA PETCH… BALANCING

On May Bank Holiday, we loaded our car and set off for our six-month stay in our Tuscan home, stopping overnight in beautiful Alsace (I am itching to include this location in my next Tuscan novel … bizarre, but I have an idea).

May has been productive. “Mavis and Dot” are with my editor and while I wait for feedback, I have sent off a serial to The People’s Friend. My wonderful editor there instils calm, reiterating that good writing comes when you are at peace with yourself. Tomorrow I should receive my illustrator’s first designs for M and D. I have organised new covers for my two earlier novels. I have an appointment with a special Museum of the Diary in the valley for research for my third Tuscan novel. And, finally, I have been approached by a publisher for my Italian books. Decisions, decisions… but, ringing in my ears are my husband’s words: “Don’t take all the fun out of your writing.” Watch this space.

 

 

 

 

 

 

THE BUSINESS OF BOOKS: THE KITCHEN CLASS OF 2017

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Jane Cable catches up with RNA friends

There is a tradition at Romantic Novelists’ Association conferences that the really important stuff happens in the kitchens of the shared accommodation. And for me (and I’m sure I’m not alone) the really important stuff was making friends with other writers. Almost a year later most of us have kept in touch and there have been many successes to celebrate. To be honest, I haven’t had the best year of my writing career but being able to cheer on my new friends had been a pleasure which has kept me going.

Jan Baynham, another writer from my home city of Cardiff feels the same: “No exciting publisher or agent news from me, I’m afraid, but I’ve been delighted to read about others’ successes this year. There’s been so much to celebrate! I’ve spent the time since the Conference submitting my first novel to publishers. Two recent rejections have given me very encouraging feedback and spurred me on. One editor said my novel fell into ‘the nearly-but-not-quite’ category, telling me why, but said she would be happy to consider further submissions from me. A second was even more complimentary about the quality of the writing and has asked to see my second mother-daughter saga that’s partly set in Greece. I’m working hard to get Whispering Olive Trees ready to submit to her.”

Jan’s travelling companion last year was Sue McDonagh whose debut novel has just been published by Choc Lit, but it hasn’t always been an easy road. “I wrote, learned and submitted until that magical ‘Yes’. There was joy – until the edits came in. Christmas to February, Writing Boot Camp, I rewrote almost every word, hacked back rookie errors of over-blown baddies and plot lines that went nowhere. My timeline was a joke.  I despaired that the ending would ever work. I couldn’t do it. I could, and it did, miraculously. I painted the front cover, another highlight. Published five days ago, Summer at the Art Café is already earning a slew of 5* reviews. I’m still learning – it’s a steep curve!”

Another kitchen compatriot discovering the joy of a publishing deal was Cornwall based Kitty Wilson. “My writing life has been a whirlwind since we all sat around the kitchen table at the RNA conference last year. I have gone from wannabe novelist used to micro-expressions that flashed sympathy and suggested delusion to fully fledged author. By January I had landed myself my dream agent, had to choose which publisher to go with and spent a lot of time pinching myself – it was all so dreamlike. With my first book coming out next month, the second nearly completed and a whole series to write, 2018 is going to be a very busy, but very happy, year.” The cover of the first of her Cornish Village School books has just been revealed, ready for publication next month.

When we met last year Susanna Bavin already had her deal with Allison & Busby, and her writing career is going from strength to strength: “It’s been a year of dreams coming true for me. My debut saga, The Deserter’s Daughter, has been published in hardback, e-book, audiobook, large print and paperback. My second, A Respectable Woman, will appear in the same formats; and I have a contract for another two. The best moment? Out of a year of ‘best moments,’ the very best was listening to The Deserter’s Daughter as an audiobook read by Julia Franklin. I’ve listened to audiobooks for years and Julia is one of my two favourite readers, so having her as ‘my’ reader is wonderful.”

Last but not least, Kirsten Hesketh feels she’s on the verge of something big too: “What a year! The main thing I have learned over the past year is not to submit your work too early to agents! After a round of ‘good’ rejections last September, I spent the next few months editing, restructuring, polishing and then getting a critique from the marvellous Alison May whose advice made all the difference. Then I did it all again!  The result is …. I now have an agent! I am thrilled to be represented by the wonderful Felicity Trew and have just had the excitement of having my book taken to the London Book Fair. Fingers crossed!”