Saturday 30 July 2011

The Poorly Computer...

Yes, my computer is sick and early next week it will be getting an big upgrade and my long minutes of waiting for image heavy pages to load will be over, no more waiting and waiting for the little hour glass to do something...

I like to read as many blogs as possible over the weekend, but I'm a bit limited at the moment, as not only am I in the middle of reorganising at home, among other things, the postcards are now in a pretty, larger box with plenty of room for new additions- but the washing machine is on the blink threatening to stop working completely- it's had a hard life with my family.

Last Saturday I came back from food shopping to find my OH had dragged the washing machine out of it's slot and was checking the pipes at the back, with a pile of wet washing in a laundry basket.
I'm glad to say he got it working again, but it keeps having stroppy spells- now that has given me an idea...

But anyway next week I will be discovering Windows7- and I hope by next Friday I'll be back surfing the web without any problem and catching up on the blogs I've been missing.

Technology and labour saving devices are great until they breaks down or get old...

Finally here is the writing related bit, I'm going to leave you with a blog to look at- Louise Wise-who has started a blog directory (by category) that you might like to peruse in the meantime.

Wednesday 27 July 2011

Short Stories and Women's Magazines...

The petition begun (last week) by the Society of Authors against the cuts being planned by Radio 4 to short story slots from spring 2012, has reached over 5,000 signatures and will be presented to the Radio 4 Controller Gwyneth Williams on Thursday afternoon at Broadcasting House. It will be accompanied by a number of authors and the director of the National Short Story week too, read the Bookseller.com article about it, here.

As to Women's magazines...

Best magazine (that stopped their story slot last year) are running a short story competition for which you need to collect tokens- the first one is in the 2nd August issue out now, so you'll need the following three August issues for the remaining tokens. The entry form will be in the 6th September issue.

At the moment the terms and conditions they refer to at the back of the magazine don't give any information on required length or any rules of entry, nor what rights are involved. Hopefully they will reveal that soon.

I read and buy the magazines that do fiction, I don't buy the magazines that are full of supposed real-life stories. I want to be entertained and those type of stories don't do that.
Sadly many of the women's magazines when they revamp seem to consider these as essential. And with that goes the celebrity/soap items. (Okay many do like these slots, personally I don't.)

I like fashion and make-up, but please, affordable, available and not just suited to young and skinny women please.

Am I the only older (okay, I admit I'm 50+) but still young, woman, who feels the weekly women's magazine market is not catering adequately to my age group?

Compared to my mother's generation, the fifty plus women of today are very different, we lead much more active lives and many of us still have children/teenagers going through the education system.

And short stories please...

So magazine editors start considering us. There is a gap in the market that you are missing out on, and we all know that when it comes to the head honchos in the magazine business world, sales matter...

Monday 25 July 2011

Reorganising- I Found...

I've been getting on with the sorting out I mentioned recently.

There's been a lot of shredding and recycling going on in my house over the weekend and the bin for dry recyclables is filling up quickly, unfortunately it isn't due for emptying for another week.

I have to admit that I don't like throwing magazines and newspapers away. I will, but only after I've checked that I've removed interesting items for future reference- and of course they then sit there waiting to be used or filed for future use...

So in my effort to get organised and make space for these items I've started on the book shelves, well the cardboard magazine files that I started with some years ago. And as I realised when I pulled out the first one, it was some years ago- 2004-5... That's what happens when something is so tidy you forget it's there.

I went through a dozen magazines, cut out snippets, pages, stapled where needed and then discovered I'd run out of the thin clear plastic A4 covers.

Well I did find a few interesting items. A piece about Priest's Holes and a short list of properties that contain them. I'm considering if I can put one of these 17th C. examples to use in a story set in a later time period.

Another item about the changing face of beauty and the power beautiful women could wield as a result.
Clever women throughout history have gained power by using their looks and their bodies to get what they wanted, and who could blame them when men decided their futures, and usually their views weren't considered at all.

I think I'm going to need to have a box just for the items that spark ideas as I go through- thank goodness for post-it notes.

Next for cannibalising are the old family history type magazines, and I know there are always useful and inspiring articles in those.

So I've made a start. Now I just need to be ruthless...

Friday 22 July 2011

Some Actors Are Natural Costume Hero Models...

I know there are a few writers who almost swoon over Sean Bean's Sharpe, and I'm sure if I ask you'll tell me your favourite actor in a costume role.

Some actors just seem to suit historical costume and just don't look quite right in modern clothes- but that may just be me of course...

I like costume dramas - I always have - and we have been spoilt in the UK with the number that have been produced over the years- Pride and Prejudice, Poldark, the Onedin Line, Jane Eyre, Wuthering Heights and many more.

Does anyone remember The Flashing Blade serial ? Early 1970's I think. A tale of love and adventure in French with voice dubbing that just didn't fit the actors, but probably helped get me hooked on romance and costume drama.

A friend at the writers' club went down to the south-west recently to see Henry IV Parts 1 and 2, because one of her favourite actors was in it- the guy who plays Becker in Primeval (Ben Mansfield) and for the part he has a beard, and very attractive with it he is too... :-)

She sent me a copy of the picture she was lucky enough to have taken with him, and I'm very certain one day that image will create a hero character in one of my novels.

There was mention of pirate scenarios from my friend...

A very long time ago when I lived down south I went to the Barbican to see the RSC doing Henry IV (both parts). That time it was Timothy Dalton (who years later played James Bond) playing Harry 'Hotspur' Percy.

I'd booked a ticket for both parts but actually only saw part 1. I was asked out to the theatre (by my now husband) elsewhere in the West End on the same night as my ticket for part 2. It wasn't much of a dilemma- my OH has a beard, so I chose him over Timothy Dalton... :-)

So please tell me, are there any actors or actresses (or characters) in costume dramas that you like or drool over?

Wednesday 20 July 2011

Radio 4 and Short Stories- Help save them...

More bad news for short story writers has been announced, from next spring Radio 4 will be reducing their short story slots from three a week to one- read the Bookseller article here.

The Society of Authors (SoA) have written to the BBC Radio 4 controller Gwyneth Williams, saying "We were astonished to hear this news, not least because at recent meetings you reiterated the BBC's commitment to showcasing new and original writing." (You can read the complete letter on the SoA link.)

There are also related links on the SoA page and you can also see the current signatories to the petition and their comments.

There is an online petition at the National Short Story Week website, so you can show your support too by signing up- I've signed today, and all you need to give is your name, e-mail address and any comment you wish to add- after you sign the petition there is an option to donate to iPetitions to keep it free, but no donation is necessary to add your name to the petition.

So if you love the short story, sign the petition and/or send your comments to: Gwyneth Williams, Controller BBC Radio 4, Broadcasting House, London W1A 1AA.

Monday 18 July 2011

School's Almost Out...

Yes it's that time of year again, the six weeks school summer holidays begins at the end of this week, for me.

In the past I've always used this time to do research, whether it's reading up on a subject, or visiting a place that features in my novel under construction, or one in the planning stage.
Neither apply this year.

This year there are no trips planned, so I can't relax while I'm absorbing the sights and history of my chosen area.

Likewise I find any concentrated writing session is also out- there's too many interruptions and background noise. I need quiet to write and I don't get it during this long holiday...

Fortunately there are a few films out currently that my family want to see, so I'll be taking advantage of the silence when they go out-barring unexpected intrusions...

So I've decided this summer to get more organised.

I have lots of information and illustrations in plastic covers sat in a box waiting to be filed. As they're clearly falling into set categories, for example: buildings, costume, law, food, and people (any interesting faces from magazines, catalogues etc). So hopefully by the time September comes these useful items will be filed for easy access- I know there are a number of nuggets of inspiration among them.

So I need to make some room on my bookshelves for easy future access- and of course that means sorting other stuff out and seeing what I want to keep and what can be recycled...

Somewhere I have a folder full of old short stories that got temporarily packed away and haven't been seen since- my computer couldn't read the language they were originally saved in. Some of the hard copies might be worth reviewing- I've learnt a lot since they were written.

So I'm off to order the bits and pieces I'm going to need- a few large boxes included.

But, the good thing is I do still have a couple of days of quiet writing time left...

Friday 15 July 2011

Bits and Bobs...

First the good news on the Blackbird family nesting in our garden. Two days ago the first fledgling appeared among the pots and overgrown grasses by the patio...

*   *   *
I've been having to look at computers with a view to replacing the current desktop. It is still functioning but the loading time for any web page with pictures is slowing down; so the graphics card is no longer adequate for a lot of the visuals you get everyday.

So it will be Windows 7 and that means I have to sort out all my saved work on XP so it will be in a form the new system can recognise- anyone got any tips?

*   *   *
If you haven't visited Sally Quilford's blog today, then do pop over and have a look at the pdf of the new guidelines for the longer My Weekly Pocket Novels.

*   *   *
Jane Austen's unfinished manuscript of The Watsons was sold at auction a few days ago and sold for just under a million pounds. It was bought by the Bodleian Libraries of Oxford, so it will not be going out of the country.

She was very neat in her editing- crossed out lines were quite straight, but you'd certainly need good eyesight to read it...

You can read what there is in book form, details here.

Despite our digital world with lots of means to communicate, in the end paper will probably last a lot longer and still be able to be read...

Wednesday 13 July 2011

Character Queries - Speaking Italian...

Yesterday I started chapter two and (just like the previous time I'd tried to write it) found myself changing my mind. After the fourth attempt I got something I was satisfied with and that's when queries started occurring...

My hero is stood looking at a neglected field and he curses. Now if it were in English then it wouldn't be a problem, I could have toned it down, but he curses in Italian.

(I had already decided that this story was not going to fit the pocket novel formula and this moment confirmed it.)

I considered whether I could find an alternative way, but that wouldn't have been true to how I see and hear him in my imagination; it would also have denied part of his back story.

So off I went and googled Italian curse words and phrases. I discovered that just like the UK, there are different dialects in various areas of Italy too. Plus I have to remember that my story is based in the early 19th C not the early 21st...

So whatever I choose will be simple (and likely to have been used at the time) but will still get over his anger and upset at that moment.

I think I will be looking into the Italian language in a little more depth, and it won't be wasted- yes, there's an attractive Italian waiting for his story to be written, he's the brother of another character's love interest...

But I mustn't get sidetracked, those are other stories. :-)

Monday 11 July 2011

Chapter One and Observation...

Another week and some time to write.

I've been rewriting chapter one of my novella and this morning finished it- okay it's only the first draft and there's still fourteen chapters and numerous rewrites and edits to go, but I still feel positive about it.

Having spent time thinking and writing down the details of my characters in a structured way before I started the new chapter one, I've found it has been very helpful. I could see elements I'd missed before, and that important snippet of info that was in the wrong place (now put aside in a folder) awaits the second chapter where it needs to be.

So what about the observation?

Well the novella is a love story. And over the weekend the news channels were reviewing the royal tour of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge to Canada and the west coast of the USA. It was fascinating to watch as so many times there were smiling glances-even if their other half was busy talking- and an almost touch that the romantic in me thought awwww...

Meanwhile in our garden we have blackbirds nested in the back of our blackberry bush that have made interesting viewing- I think they may have built the nest on the old lidded water butt that has become enclosed in greenery.
The parents are busy getting food and when one returns there's a sudden burst of chirriping from within the depths. The male has set up a one way system of entry to the bush, landing on a large pot and then flying up and in through a gap; while the female just flies in and out of the gaps at the front...

My redcurrant bush has been completely defruited by other blackbirds, leaving just stripped fruit stems. And our bush resident bird has now started on the small amount of white currants still available- I'm hoping the young birds are gone before the blackberries ripen and need picking.

Now I've got to go and replace the first lot of washing I put on the line this morning- we've had to leave flight path gaps for the birds to get through as the clothes line is close to the bush.

Yes I know I'm strange...  :-)

Friday 8 July 2011

Postcards Are For More Than Writing On...

They can inspire stories...

Earlier this week the writers club held a workshop on this month's speaker evening, it was about short stories.

I have to admit that whenever we have to write something without any idea of what is going to be presented I slightly panic. My brain freezes and I have to remind myself I'm not going to be in trouble if I can't do it. So panic over...

We were given a postcard each, mine was a black and white semi-nude male with a large jar held on one arm- very classical. (If it didn't inspire us we could change it for another.) But it immediately triggered a character for my potential story, called Adam.

We had about ten minutes to write details about our character and some of us couldn't avoid starting to tell the story as we wrote. A few of us read out our descriptions. So far so good...

Next we were given another postcard and this was for our second character. I had a young girl sat in a restaurant with a waiter to one side with his back turned, so you couldn't see his face. This girl was Maria- very West Side Story connotations. Again another ten minutes to write about her.

Finally we were given a postcard with a scene, a building or a place like a river. I had a tall rounded building across a street, the painting's aspect gave the impression that you were in a high place somewhere across the road. Above one window was a striped red and white awning.

Adam, I decided, is a would-be artist earning money by posing as a life model. Maria works in an Italian restaurant across the road...

The final part of the exercise was one or both has a secret- what is it?

So it's on my list to do.

You might remember (or not) some time ago I mentioned that I had a box of postcards somewhere. Well I found them and they brought so many memories back as I looked through them.

There were postcards from exhibitions I attended in London when I was about twenty. Reminders of holidays I took in York, Stratford-Upon-Avon and Scarborough. Then there were the costume postcards from various museums, and cards of the beautiful Sutton Hoo exhibits, the real things held me mesmerised whenever I went to see them in the British Museum.

All the postcards triggered mental images of the past.

So I've decided to start gathering interesting postcard images to add to my box, like those used in the workshop, so when I need some different ideas I can look through and see what stories and characters they inspire.

But first I need another box...

Thursday 7 July 2011

Why Knock Romance Novels?

I was surprised to read an article in the Guardian  this morning reporting that "Psychologist says that 'a huge number of the issues that we see in our clinics and therapy rooms are influenced by romantic fiction'."

I think some Psychologists are a bit obsessed with blaming romance books for all feminine mental health and social ills...

Sadly this latest attack on Mills and Boon books comes via the Journal of Family Planning and Reproductive Healthcare. (Now I'm not knocking what they do, they are important services for women of all ages).

But we never see crime novels - and some of them feature really gruesome murders- being cited as cause for concern in clinics- unless I've missed that article somewhere...

Sadly you can't read what data Ms Quilliam based her opinion on- unless you are a subscriber to the BMJ or wish to pay £24 for one day's access to the article! But the Guardian item (linked above) does give more detail and some of it is not unreasonable.

" "If readers start to believe the story that romantic fiction offers, then they store up trouble for themselves – and then they bring that trouble into our consulting rooms," writes Quilliam."

They are fiction. And I'm sure the majority of readers know that.

So a serious question, do Mills and Boon romance novels give women unrealistic sexual expectations? Do they think everything will be hunky-dory forever in their lives, just because it always is at the end of a romance novel?

I'm quite sure there are ordinary men out there who could rival some of the sexual abilities of the heroes of these novels, even if they lack the riches and looks.

The saying 'beauty is in the eye of the beholder' is very relevant.

There have always been women unhappy in their marriages- it's been going on for centuries. Just because now you can get a divorce it doesn't stop feelings of failure and guilt (and visits to the consulting rooms mentioned )- and that is more to do with society's and other peoples expectations rather than the ideal happy couple at the end of the book.

You don't read a romance to be depressed by reality- at least I don't...

Young women (and young men) are bombarded with unrealistic images and expectations every day from glossy magazines to music videos to talent shows.
They eventually accept that it isn't the real world, but that comes with time and experience.

Romance novels display a lot of positives and that should be encouraged and welcomed.

Tuesday 5 July 2011

Further News re: Amazon and the Book Depository...

The OFT (Office of Fair Trading) has issued an 'invitation to comment' on the acquisition of The Book Depository by Amazon.

Written representations about any competition or public interest issues can be sent to the OFT- details here. This is open for comment until the 18th July. (They apparently expect to have made a decision on referal by the end of August.)

You can read more on the Bookseller.com website.

Obviously the 'invitation to comment' does not necessarily guarantee an investigation, but it's part of the process that leads up to it.

This acquisition could take a long time to occur...

Monday 4 July 2011

Amazon To Acquire the Book Depository...

Amazon is one of those companies that you can choose to avoid, but not anymore...

Yes, they've been a great boon to writers wanting to get their work out to readers via Kindle- but let's not ignore the fact that Amazon benefits from this too- they make money on every sale.

But I was dismayed to read on the Bookseller.com website that Amazon " has reached an agreement to acquire The Book Depository". Having seen some of the tweets showing on the BD home page many of their customers weren't too happy either...

Many book buyers choose to use The Book Depository rather than purchase from Amazon- I'm sure many of them refuse because they don't like Amazon's practices.

Amazon has it's place but even I can see this is a liberty too far. There is now no longer (or seems not to be)any real alternative to being able to buy a wide range of books online. They have stopped the serious competition.

Even major booksellers can't compete on price or range when they're up against Amazon.

Perhaps now is the time for publishers to consider their responses to Amazon's cut of the profits. After all if the publisher doesn't have much choice anymore in who they can supply, nor the terms they can agree to sell on, then the readers and especially the writers both suffer...

Hopefully the OFT will look at this. But I doubt it will qualify for investigation by the Mergers Commission as their criteria requires three things and this won't qualify on the "two or more enterprises must cease to be distinct." Amazon will still be Amazon at the end of it...

Unless:
"In exceptional cases where public interest issues are raised, the Secretary of State may also refer mergers to the CC."

So perhaps the Secretary of State covering arts and the media needs a deluge of letters...

So what do you think?

UPDATE: After I posted the above and went offline the Bookseller website got more information. The Book Depository are saying they will continue to trade independently of Amazon. Read more here.

Friday 1 July 2011

Keeping Track of My Progress...

My writing time has always been limited so I've set targets for many years, but circumstances take over and targets are missed- or just abandoned...

So I decided that I'd start a new system with my novella. I'd keep a writing log.

At the start of a writing session the first thing I do is open my log - a Word document- and put in the session number, the date and the intended writing, then the time I start writing. Then I just reduce it to the bottom tray so it can't be forgotten about at the end.

Obviously when I finish I make sure I have a printed copy of the work done as well as the copy on my computer and a memory stick (just in case anything happens to the computer).
The final bit is to fill in the finish time of that session, save it and close the files.

So far this has been the most successful method I've tried and I'll be doing it with my short stories and novels too.
(Previously I've tried this system with a notebook but I just kept forgetting to put the details in.)

Now not only will I be able to see how I'm progressing, but by the time I've finished I'll have an idea of how long particular types of writing take me. So in future I can plan out my time better and ensure that I've given myself long enough to meet competition deadlines...

Too often I've intended to do a particular project and found I don't have enough time for it. (I have to say I can't just manage 10-20 minutes here and there- it just doesn't work for me...)

For now the log is a useful tool...