Sunday 24 April 2016

Workshop- Writing Historical Fiction...

Saturday- St George's Day and Shakespeare's birthday I spent indoors at a workshop- except for a brief foray outside for food and to admire St. George, and his two fellow knights on horseback outside the Council House, as I passed by.

Author Judith Allnatt was running a writing historical fiction workshop, held in the events room at the Nottingham branch of Waterstones. The events room actually has a name- the Alan Sillitoe Room.

(It's on the top floor and is large enough for a book launch/ talk if you ever have need of one.)

There was also a good supply of tea and coffee to keep us alert...

I must admit that I always find workshops a little scary, as well as worthwhile.

Ready to workshop...
Scary because I worry I'll freeze when it comes to writing exercises, but thankfully I didn't have too much problem. And there were times when a few of us attending found a particular item problematic, but that was okay.

The warm-up bit was fun as we were able to choose from a selection of postcards of shoes (from assorted time periods) and used that as a starting point for creating a character. It was ideal for me as so often visuals connect with the room of waiting characters in my sub-conscious. The pair of shoes I chose were from 1912.

There was one exercise I will definitely use again. My new character, how do they sleep, what is around them in their bedroom or room they sleep in? My character didn't have a first name at this point, but I was soon realising her circumstances were dire.

When you think about it, the place where you sleep is very telling, as are the objects around you, their neatness or an incongruous item or two.

I'd never thought about it that way before, but I will now.

By the time we reached the senses, I knew my character's name, and a better idea of the time setting- late Victorian rather than early 20th century.

(This was when a missing scene from my work in progress popped up and resolved one of my niggle points.)

Judith read an extract from her third and lately released in paperback, The Silk Factory, to provide an example of how the senses could be used.

We looked at published extracts and how they convey information without it being obvious, even if you don't know what event it may refer to- such as a national/world event.

As the workshop drew to a close Timelines were mentioned,  and between us we compiled a long list of research resources. There were a few I will be looking into, especially Academia.edu.

With time running out there was a Q&A to finish.

Everyone seemed to leave inspired to continue writing their historical novels.

Personally, it was enjoyable, I learnt more, but it also reassured me that I'm doing the right things for the historical side of my romances.

Have you been to any workshops this year?







image courtesy of noppasinw & www.freedigitalphotos.net







Monday 18 April 2016

The Rewrite Resumes...

Finally I can return to the second draft rewrite.

I'm grateful to Patsy Collins for guest posting last week while I was very busy with essential work for the writers club...

Anyway, to draft 2. I know it's advised that you read the whole manuscript through and make notes, but I'm not doing that for this draft.

I've got numerous minor and major changes to do, and the overview of the story in my head. And if I'm not sure of something I do have my chapter outlines with any changes that were made marked in.

The second half of the story was clearer, mainly because I had discovered more about my characters, their motivations, their reasoning, and the emotions and reactions that were lacking in some of the earlier chapters.

So the aim for draft 2 is: to take one chapter at a time, read it, make notes. Where I know a scene is missing I'll write it in, and deal with the points made in the notes.
The next drafts...

Spread throughout are various comments in brackets-research x. They're minor things and I've already found the information I need on most of them.

Once I've reached the end of draft 2, there will be a short break and then the complete read through and more note-making.

How I approach draft 3 is for deciding when I get to it.


I know what works for me to produce a 1st draft. Now I need to discover how draft 2 works...









image courtesy of Stuart Miles & www.freedigitalphotos.net






Thursday 14 April 2016

Patsy Collins Returns- E-books to Print Part 2

Welcome back to part 2 of e-book to print for the self-publisher. Today it's the useful 'how to' post.

(I'm taking notes for the future.)

Over to you again, Patsy.

Thanks for having me back again Carol, despite the cheeky way I mentioned my new short story collection, Through The Garden Gate and how the kindle version is currently on sale for 99p! (Gosh, but I'm subtle!)

It's also available as a paperback version, which is available now for £6.60

How I did it.

There are a variety of companies which allow you to self publish your own books. I use Createspace, which is a print on demand (POD) service. It's part of Amazon, which means the distribution is taken care of. There's nothing to pay in advance as they take their money from the sale price. If you don't sell any, you don't pay a penny.


Available now...
The work involved.

Createspace provide useful articles on every step of the process. For example, here's one on formatting. I suggest having a quick read of those first. There's also a forum where you can ask questions if you get stuck.

Everything you need to do the formatting is available in most of the software packages you're likely to have used to write the book. Word, OpenOffice and NeoOffice will all do the job.

1. You'll probably want to add page numbers and might want to include your name and the title in page headers. It looks best to start each chapter on a new page. Use section breaks for that.

2. You should select 'mirroring' for the page set up, so there's a slightly wider margin for the inside edge of each page than the outside one. Pages should also be sized appropriately for the book size.

3. If it's a short story collection or non fiction work, you'll want to include the page numbers in the table of contents, or index, if you're using one.

4. It's a good idea to use an ISBN. Createspace will provide this for free if you select that option and you may wish to add this to the front matter of your book - that's the bit where you put copyright notices, disclaimers and that kind of thing. Just copy and paste.

5. Once you're happy with the document, save it as a pdf. You're now ready to upload it. Select the 'guided' option and you'll be guided through each stage.

6. Once uploaded, you can view a digital proof online. Look through this carefully and if there's anything you're not happy with, adjust the document and upload the new version. Repeat until it's perfect.

7. It's a good idea to look at a physical proof too. You can order it at this stage.
This is one place I don't follow the Createspace guidelines as their proof is expensive and it'll take a long time to come through. Instead, I publish the book, buy one copy and immediately un-publish again. 

8. If you already have a kindle cover image this will need some tweaking. The resolution needs to be higher and you'll have to allow for 'bleed' - that's the bit which will probably be trimmed off when the physical cover is formed. The precise requirements are clearly given when you get to that stage.

9. Selecting categories, sales channels, adding the blurb and pricing are all explained and almost identical to doing this for an ebook. Again you'll be guided through. 

Top Tip

Allow plenty of time for formatting and uploading your book. It's better to do it a step at a time over several days than try to do it all in one mad rush. There's also a wait of several hours, or sometimes days, from when you click the confirm button to it appearing for sale.

Go on then – What are you waiting for?

Tuesday 12 April 2016

Patsy Collins - From E-book to Print Part 1...

Welcome my guest this week, Patsy Collins, who's sharing her experience of creating print copies of her books (in addition to the e-versions).

Over to you Patsy...

Thanks for inviting me onto your blog, Carol! It means I can mention that I've self published a kindle version of my new short story collection, Through The Garden Gate. It's available at the special price of 99p until19th April.

Oh ... that's not why you invited me? That's right, I remember now.

Patsy and her latest collection
Carol, being an observant writerly type, noticed that whilst self publishing ebooks is fairly common, far fewer writers also produce paperback copies. She asked me to explain why, and how, I'd done this for Through The Garden Gate. Which is available now for £6.60  (hee hee, got away with that one!)


The Advantages

1. It's nice to be able to hold your own book in your hands. Trust me, you'll feel a lot more like a proper writer when you do.

2. There are lots of people who don't use a Kindle and some of these might want to read your book.

3. Paper copies can be sold to libraries and they qualify for PLR and ALCS payments.

4. It's good to have physical copies if you give talks, both to show people and to sell.

5. Physical copies can get passed around. That doesn't help your sales, but might bring more readers (who might buy other books you've written). You never know who'll end up seeing a copy and becoming a fan.

6. Books make nice gifts or competition prizes.

7. You'll have done (or outsourced) all the hard work of writing, editing, formatting, proofreading, selecting a cover image and promoting for the e version, so there will be very little extra work involved.

Disadvantages

1. It will take up a small additional amount of time. That time would probably have been used being annoyed by grammatically incorrect memes on Facebook, watching insurance adverts on TV, or something else equally worthwhile.

Have I talked you into giving it a go? 

Hope so as I'll be back Thursday to explain how I created the paperback version of my latest collection.

(Carol here again.)

If you've got any comments on today's post do please use the comments link below, and Patsy will be checking in from her travels...




Sunday 10 April 2016

Coming Up on Tuesday- My Guest Takes the Next Step...

As I've had a very heavy day with computer updates, I'm a little late in sharing some very exciting news.

This week both posts will be courtesy of my guest, blogger Patsy Collins.

Patsy is a wonderful writer with numerous short stories (and collections) to her credit, and a number of novels, including her most recent, (it features a hunky fireman) Firestarter.

It was Patsy who encouraged me to finish and send off my cake-related short story to one of the women's magazines- more about that in the summer.

Patsy Collins
Patsy Collins
Patsy is also my writing buddy, and the purple-loving writer behind the very useful womagwriter's blog.

On Tuesday, Patsy will be discussing the advantages/disadvantages of taking your self-published work beyond the kindle e-book and into print, using Createspace.

Then on Thursday, you can discover more about the actual process, with useful tips and links to help you take that next step.

You'll still have to do all the work, but Patsy's experience may help you decide whether it's for you...

And to top it all off there's an offer you won't be able to resist.

So pop back on Tuesday to find out more...


Monday 4 April 2016

Windows 10 - The Not-So Scary Bits...

Now I've been able to add a few programs to my new desktop I'm feeling much more in control.

After advice from writer friends who are familiar with Windows 10, I downloaded Office 2007 from the disc I bought for my previous computer- it still had a use available. So I've not had to move to Office 365 with it's subscription system (monthly or annual).

I'm not keen on the new browser, Edge (the IE replacement), so I quickly downloaded Chrome, and added a few programs that make life easier.

Having used Windows 10 for a few days now, I'm getting used to how it's set out. Plus having to look to find out what updates have been added in the background.

Progress!
My main gripe is that they've hidden so many useful items. I've found it's actually quicker to get to what I want by using the search bar on the bottom toolbar next to the Windows symbol that opens a cross between a start bar (like Windows 7) and a block of tiles (as in Windows 8).

Yes, it gives a tidy appearance, but I don't want or need to waste time looking for the program/app I need.

Maybe my amplified annoyance is another left-handed (and the way my mind works) thing...

If something isn't working as it should, then most means of resolution will be found somewhere in the settings; just choose the relevant category and look through the options.

Apparently, if you have anti-virus protection and it runs out, Windows Defender automatically takes over, so you're not open to nasties getting onto your machine.

It hasn't been as difficult to adjust to the move from Windows 7 to 10;but I could have happily lived with version 7 forever.

The major downside is that you need a Microsoft account, so if you want to add a family member so they can use the computer with their own password, you need to add their Hotmail, Outlook, X-Box or other Microsoft related email address, and they then receive an invitation in their inbox; once they accept their account will appear on the opening page screen.

If a family member doesn't have a relevant account they have to create one, then follow the process for an invite.

There's a wide selection of apps in the store, some are pre-installed, Microsoft People- it utilises your email address book. :(

Personally, if my old computer hadn't bust irretrievably I would have carried on with Windows 7.

If you've thought about the free upgrade to Windows 10, but are still happy with Windows 7, 8 or 8.1, then don't rush. Friends who have upgraded seem split between those who have been trouble-free, and those who have had a number of issues.

The most important thing now is that I can get on with my writing without further delays...



image courtesy of aechan & www.freedigitalphotos.net