Tag Archives: March

Matt Bell’s March craft book, REFUSE TO BE DONE: an accessible, practical guide to writing and revising a novel—for writers of any genre and level

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“I can’t imagine anyone setting pen to paper, or fingertips to keyboard, who won’t want to keep this book permanently close at hand.”
—Benjamin Dreyer, New York Times bestselling author of Dreyer’s English
 We all need help to be the best writer we can be. This brilliant book from Matt Bell not only does that, but it also teaches you have to be efficient, something that is a must as writing becomes a career. I loved this book and I cannot recommend it enough. I will definitely keep it close to hand. — Frost editor, Catherine Balavage.
Acclaimed author Matt Bell draws from years of writing and teaching experience to deliver an accessible, direct, and concise guide to novel-writing full of concrete tips meant to guide writers of any genre, at any stage of their career, from first to final draft.
Matt Bell | Refuse to Be Done: How to Write and Rewrite a Novel in Three Drafts | Trade Paperback Original | $15.95 US/$21.95 CAN |
ISBN: 9781641293419 | ON SALE: March 8, 2022 | Soho Press
Refuse to Be Done is intensely practical, focusing always on specific tasks, techniques, and activities for writing a novel, from the first draft all the way through final revisions. Divided into three main sections—each containing numerous subheadings and detailed items—the book is easy to use at any and every stage of the writing process, whether one is starting from scratch or already has a full draft to revise. Concrete examples from published fiction and media, as well as Matt Bell’s personal experiences, bring further meaning to the tips included, showing how they were developed and how they come to fruition in existing works.

In the first section, Bell shares a bounty of tactics to get through perhaps the most daunting stage of novel-writing: actually writing the book. Intended to push writers through the initial conception and get words on the page, this section includes strategies for process (such as how to regiment one’s writing and track progress), the writing itself (e.g. how to develop characters and determine which scenes to write next), and overcoming writer’s block.

Next, with a complete draft in hand, the second section focuses on reworking the narrative through outlining, modeling, and rewriting. This includes such tasks as fleshing out characters, scrutinizing the plot, and reshaping a manuscript into a more polished form.

The final stage captures Bell’s philosophy to “refuse to be done,” encouraging writers to stay in their novel for as long as they’re able by working through a checklist of revisions. In this layered approach, writers fully work through the text multiple times, focusing on a specific, achievable task through each pass. Whether it’s revising the prose or scrutinizing the structure of each scene, every pass brings the manuscript closer to accomplishing the writer’s ambitions and becoming the greatest it can possibly be.

Written for novices and veteran writers alike, Matt Bell’s accessible, practical guide to novel-writing offers an abundance of strategies to motivate writers and invigorate the revision process, empowering novelists of all genres to approach their work with fresh eyes and sharp new tools to produce their best work yet.

Mother’s Day Gift Guide

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Mother’s Day is on the 15th of March this year and It is time to spoil the most important women in your life. Here is our handy guide to gift-buying for Mother’s Day.

Ringtons loose tea and infuser gift box

We love this. The tea is absolutely amazing and the infuser is easy to use and looks great.

The fantastically presented loose tea infuser sets come in a stylish Ringtons cream and gold gift box, decorated with the famous Ringtons crest.  The sets include a Ringtons tea infuser – a simple device designed to take the fuss out of preparing loose tea and bring out the full flavour of the leaves – and three full size packet of expertly selected loose teas as well as three x 30g sample blends.

 

The Luxury Great British Tea Infuser Gift Box (top image) • £22.99

Includes: Traditional English Breakfast loose tea (125g), Afternoon Blend loose tea (125g), and Classic 1907 loose tea (125g), and 3 x 30g samples.

ringtons tea set

The Luxury Taste the Exotic Tea Fuser Gift Box

• £22.99

Includes: Bird of Paradise loose tea (50g), Samavor Orange Spice loose tea (125g), and Mint Marrakech loose tea (125g), and 3 x 30g samples.

 

The Ringtons Signature loose teas featured and Ringtons gift boxes are available via mail order at www.ringtons.co.uk or via customer care on Freephone 0800 052 2440.


Some Flowers.
buy flowers

Try The Fantastic ‘Summer Memories’ Bouquet – Fresh Flowers with free Delivery

The Notebook  on DVD

notebook

 

Mother And Daughter Message Bangle from notonthehighstreet.com

mother's day gift ideas

 

 

Personalised Thank You Print by Rosie Robins from notonthehighstreet.com

normal_personalised-thank-you-print

Mum’s Measure Wine Glass by Becky Broome from notonthehighstreet.com

normal_mum-s-measure-wine-glass

 

Personalised Family Tree Cushion by A Type Of Design from notonthehighstreet.com

family tree, mother's day mothers day , gift, guide, ideas

 

Cocktails are always a good idea….

cocktail recipe

Quintessentially Vodka Rhubarb Rickey

35ml Quintessentially Vodka

12.5ml Rhubarb liqueur / syrup

12.5ml Fresh lime

Soda (top up)

 

Method: place the Quintessentially Vodka, rhubarb syrup and fresh lime in a tall glass, adding ice and a spritz of soda.

To finish, stir a few times before adding a wedge of lime.

 

What will you be doing for your mother?

 

 

The Affordable Art Fair Returns To Battersea

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katemossKate Moss, Watercolours on paper, 53x38cm by Cate Parr

£1,950 at SD Gallery

The Affordable Art Fair returns to the Battersea Evolution building in Battersea Park from 7 – 10 March, and they are giving people a chance to Sleep Now, Buy Later…

– Art lovers given chance to sleep on decision before purchase –

In a consumer shopping first, one lucky visitor to the Affordable Art Fair this month will be given the opportunity to ‘sleep with’ their prospective art purchase in order to make a fresh and considered decision after a good night’s rest.

Fair organisers hope to put more first time buyers at ease with the one off concept which will be trialled with a single lucky winner at the Battersea Park event. The idea came as a result of research* which found that nearly half (47 per cent) of people found it helpful to sleep on a decision when making a purchase for the home.

Over half of Brits (51 per cent) admitted to taking up to 24 hours to make a decision when buying a piece of art.

The public can enter to win the chance to ‘sleep before they buy’ by tweeting the hashtag #sleeponit by no later than midday on Wednesday 6 March.

The lucky winner will be notified on Thursday 7 March and invited to attend the fair on the day of their choosing, select their prospective piece of art to sleep with for the night to allow them some time to relax and consider their chosen work.

To announce the initiative, the Affordable Art Fair has created an original image, inspired by a famous installation shown at the Tate, to demonstrate what the winner will experience.

Nicky Wheeler, Fair Director of the Affordable Art Fair Battersea said “We’ve had so many comments from visitors over the years who have found a piece of art they like but are reluctant to make such an important decision on the spot. Often customers fall in love with a piece at first sight but sometimes thinking time can help in making the right decision – one person will be given this chance at the Affordable Art Fair next week.”

The Affordable Art Fair is the UK’s friendliest and most welcoming art fair, well-loved for its informal and un-stuffy atmosphere. With over 100 galleries exhibiting art priced from £40 – £4,000, the fair runs at the Battersea Evolution building in Battersea Park from 7 – 10 March.