Lights and Pipes...

Lights and Pipes sounds like it should be a non-fiction book title, but actually that's what it's been this past week.

The much talked about rewiring and re-plumbing has begun and by early next week should be on the tidy up stage.

This week it's all the downstairs plug sockets and those that are being added to my office wall- about 18 inches from my right arm!

As all the light pendents were going to be replaced I asked the Electrician what sort of light fitting could work for my recently diagnosed eye condition, as my office is quite dim in the winter months, but good if it's a sunny day as I face the window.

I did have to use a desk lamp just for one night - this was the scene above my head that evening- hence the shadow...

Awaiting the new
light fitting...

It was actually quite safe, as the bit sticking out was only one end of a long piece of flexible plastic that was wedged between joists under the floor upstairs.

The next day my new light fitting was connected up to the new wiring that was put in. It looks brilliant, and my eyes don't tire as easily as they were doing with the one light...

My new lighting...

Yesterday the new pipes for the plumbing were measured up, cut and positioned ready for connecting up later this week-that's when the boiler and radiators get changed for modern and energy efficient versions.



Meanwhile the floorboard upstairs are getting a good work-out (up, down, up, down...) and they will eventually disappear back under carpet.

The underworld...

Although there's a lot of tidying up to do and reorganisation before we start unpacking the storage unit, I'm nearer getting back to a regular writing routine than I was, and I'm eager to get back to start again...

Services for Writers...The Quick Crit...

I hope the New Year has been kind to you all so far.

Today I’m welcoming writer Linda Lewis to the blog. Linda is a very successful womag (woman’s magazines) writer, and she’s now branching out to give the benefit of her experience to others.

Welcome to Carol’s Corner, Linda.

For any readers who are unfamiliar with your numerous successes with the women’s magazine (womag) market, please tell us a little about yourself and your writing?

I live in Exeter, sharing my house with a lodger and some fish.

I sold my first story to Take A Break in 1998. Since then I have sold about 600 stories to a variety of magazines. It’s been my main source of income since 2003.
I switched to fiction after the death of my husband in 1997. I found I was quite good at it so I stuck with it. Before then, I had various ‘proper’ jobs and wrote, mostly non-fiction, in my spare time.

 You’ve recently co-launched a new website Vanda ‘N’ Linda’s Write Space, so how did this collaboration come about?

Vanda lives in Cornwall. We met when I won one of her short story competitions with the theme of a modern day fairy tale (my story was an updated version of Snow White, told in epistolary form). She called to say I’d won, we got chatting, and that was that.
Our partnership came to an end when I moved away, but now I am back in Devon, it made sense to start working together again. Vanda prefers the admin side to judging or giving feedback and critiques, while I love the judging process and find giving feedback, so we are a very good fit.

What will writers discover when they visit the Write Space?

As well as advertising our books and running prize competitions (some free to enter, others not) the website offers tips, advice, courses and feedback. We wanted to offer an affordable service, delivered by people who knew their trade.

I was a tutor for the Writers Bureau for a while and really enjoyed it. I have also run workshops and courses for organisations including Swanwick Writers Summer School and NAWG.

Now that I don’t go away so often, I wanted to continue teaching people. Vanda already offered courses so adding my own made sense.
The first course went live a few weeks ago and is about writing stories with twist endings which is one of my specialities.

If there are any areas people would like to see covered in courses, if they get in touch, I’ll  see what we can do.

Among the writing services you offer there’s a quick crit of short stories that have been rejected by the womags*; what will the writer gain from using this?

The website offers a general feedback service for writers of fiction. Prices vary according to word count, but the quick crit idea was mine.

Whenever I judge competitions, I hate it when a story misses out on a prize due to simple or basic errors and I can’t tell the writer what was wrong or how to fix it.

Apart from The People’s Friend who go out of their way to help writers by offering feedback, it’s rare for short story writers to find out why their story wasn’t accepted. The £5 quick crit tries to fill that gap.

Sometimes the author DOES know what’s wrong. A fiction editor may have told them that the plot was thin, or the characterisation wasn’t strong enough. I have a knack of being able to read other people’s stories and see how they can be improved.

If I can, I will suggest different endings or extra plot strands, in short, anything that might help the writer improve their chances of making a sale.

Stories can also be rejected when there’s absolutely nothing wrong with them. For example, it might simply be that all the Christmas slots have been filled; that kind of thing. Again, it helps to know that it’s not the fault of the story - it’s just bad luck.

Too many writers get ONE rejection and give up with a story. Our attitude to rejection affects our success. Rejections, and I must have had thousands, still hurt me, but I get over it.  I have another look at the story, Can I change it? Maybe I can lengthen or shorten it and send it elsewhere? And if I’m lucky enough to get feedback, I will almost always rewrite and re-sub.

When there were a lot more magazines taking fiction, I could send a story out five or six times before I gave up with it. Even then I might reuse the basic idea.

* I have been fortunate enough to have a one off trial of Linda's quick crit service and it's good value. Linda identified the main issues with my rejected short story- sent to Woman's Weekly a couple of years ago- and suggested possible routes I could consider when I rewrite. And I will rewrite it and submit it again.

Thank you for answering my questions Linda. I'm sure the website and quick crit service will be a success...

You can find Linda's books on the website, and via Amazon where you can discover them on her author page.

If you're interested in any of the competitions, books or the new critique service then pop along to www.vnlwritespace.com

If you're on Twitter you can follow Linda @writingiseasy

Happy New Year to You All...

Today has been moving furniture out of my office area and putting temporary storage in place. It's certainly given me a bit more space, and will be easier to move things for the electrical work in the next few weeks.

I've just got to reconnect my printer now...

As it's the last day of 2017, my flexible plans for the coming year are made and all that's left is to reveal my final word count for the current year.

For 2016: 34,621.
For 2017: 36,444.

Considering the circumstances of the last few months it's not too bad.

So my target for 2018 is to aim for 50,000 words.

All that's left is to wish you all a Happy New Year...

Celebrations!

Merry Christmas One and All...

Goodness, where have the days gone.

(image courtesy
of Dennis Apple)

I'm still not sorted as there's presents still to wrap, and sadly a few friends won't be getting their cards until after Christmas- not enough hours to get everything done this year.

 We're almost done in the sorting and boxing department- fortunate as the Electrician starts work in 2 weeks!

Christmas Eve I'll be cooking and preparing as much as possible, so I don't have to get up early to put the turkey in the oven on Christmas Day...

Merry Christmas to all...

To all my friends and readers, I wish you a peaceful and enjoyable Christmas...

Christmas image from Pixabay.

2017 Has Been a Year of Highs and Lows...Part 2

Welcome back to Part 2 of my Writer's Year.

Although I didn't mention it in part 1, I did set myself an unspoken/written target on my word count this year.

Not only did I want to improve on my 2016 total (see further down the page) but I wanted to exceed 40,000 words. I have to the end of December...

My year Part 2...

(My typing speed is improving.)

So here's July to December.

July
It was an exciting month. My daughter finished University and we attended the graduation ceremony at Trentham Gardens.

I also led my first workshop.

August
This month can be summed up with the word boxes. We have work to be done on the house, rewiring and re-plumbing (to start with).The storage unit was sorted and we began sorting, disposing of, and packing.

The quote for the rewiring was selected with a provisional starting date of October.

Guest post by Sally Quilford.

September
The writing stopped for most of this month. But I did attend a book launch in Waterstones Nottingham, for Cathy Bramley's The Lemon Tree Café.

October
This was a good and bad month.

Having signed up to Readly earlier in the year, I was researching what magazine filler slots there were available.

As well as sorting and packing I had other time consuming commitments. But they all faded into the background when my OH was hospitalised for a short spell, and recovery was slow. Very happy to say he's okay now and is feeling much better than before that happened.

My shelf sorting revealed my box of old floppy disks of short stories, articles and my first novel (unfinished). Even better I can access them for future use.

November
Eye issues and new glasses. The unpleasant winter cough and cold bug. :(

December
Two Christmas parties.

Looking back, I haven't made as much progress as I'd hoped on my main project, which is a big disappointment.

But there's been positives across the year. I still co-host #writingchat on a Wednesday evening on Twitter (when I'm not at the writers' club).

I have been a Belmont Belle for 18 months (the Leicester Chapter of the RNA), and celebrated my second Christmas party with them all. :-)

Both of these have given me insights and knowledge I didn't have when I joined them, and in turn they've increased my confidence in so many ways- thank you all.

My 2016 word count was: 34.612
My 2017 word count (currently): 35,884 - to be updated after Christmas.

So to my targets for 2018...

Get that second draft completed.
Continue to be open to writing opportunities and experiences.
Rewrite/revise a few of those short stories I found on my floppy disks.
More reading and much more writing.

And especially to keep writing while all the work is being done on the house...

2017 Has Been a Year of Highs and Lows...Part 1

It's only 15 days until Christmas Day and I've still got so much to do... I'm doing this in two parts so you haven't got to read a long post- if you are interested. ;)

As in previous years I look back at what I've done  during the year; whether I've reached my targets, and make a few decisions on my focus during the coming year.

Last year I did my 2016 review toward the end of November, and my aims for 2017 were:

Carry on with the second draft; get out into the world more; continue being open to writing opportunities; read more; write more. And lose weight... :-)   

I haven't done too badly- okay the lose weight one hasn't made any progress. :(

The 2017 Review

January    
It was a slow start.

I'd intended to enter an epistolary short story competition in Writing Magazine, but decided not to enter; you can find out why in A Very Slow Start.  

After a brief foray into the 1920's with a novella idea that was lurking, aided by a fashion source book, I began writing the idea out of my head- it's now on hold while I decide a few important details and get on with my main project.  

February   
I was planning my return trip to Bath (see March).

The NWC National Short Story competition opened and I began my reading, marking and feedback stint.

March                                                          
With the competition reading ongoing, I was continuing to write the 1920's story.

My long weekend in Bath with my OH was wonderful, with museum visits, lots of walking and occasional stops for refreshments.

April
This was my opportunity to share a few of my many images from my March visit to Bath. There was the History of Fashion in 100 Objects at the Fashion Museum (also more images on my Serena Lake site)  as well as the Bath Postal Museum, and the Museum of Bath Architecture. Here's a link to all three.

May
This was a very busy month.

On the 4th May I was out celebrating the 90th Anniversary of Nottingham Writers' Club with other club members. We started with a reception at the Nottingham Council House overlooking the Market Square. Then we went for dinner at a nearby restaurant.

I also had to reinstall Windows 10 on my desktop. After an unexplained issue my computer wouldn't install the important security update that would protect my device from that ransomware that hit computers across the country.

The latter half of the month saw the release of my feel good/ghost story on Alfie Dog Fiction. It's still available for download, so if you're looking for a short story to read with your cup of tea or coffee, just follow the link.

June
Was the annual Lowdham Book Festival. I was promoting the writers' club and the books and downloads by club members- and myself. It was a lot of work preparing for it, and an early start on the day. (I've decided to give 2018 a miss.)

During this six month period I was writing as many days of the week as I could, and my second draft was slowly making progress...

Word count: January - July: 29,646.

Sadly it didn't continue that way. Part 2 will be posted on Thursday...

Update - the Bad Sex in Fiction Winner was...

Christopher Bollen for The Destroyers.

You can read the judge's comments in this Bookseller article.

Until next year...

It's Time for the Bad Sex in Fiction Awards...

Not sure whether you could call this a highlight of the book awards year, but it's certainly 'different'...

"According to the prize’s organisers, the Literary Review, the purpose of the prize is to draw attention to “poorly written, perfunctory or redundant passages of sexual description in modern fiction”. The prize is not intended to cover pornographic or expressly erotic literature." (The Bookseller)

It seems there were a few nominations that despite being well supported didn't quite fit the spirit of the award so were ruled out.

So here are the titles and authors of the 2017 contenders:

• The Seventh Function of Language by Laurent Binet.

• Here Comes Trouble by Simon Wroe.

• The Destroyers by Christopher Bollen.

• War Cry by Wilbur Smith (with David Churchill).

• Mother of Darkness by Venetia Welby.

• The Future Won’t Be Long by Jarett Kobek.

• As a God Might Be by Neil Griffiths.

You can read the extracts in the Guardian's article here.

This year's selection is much better than it's been in previous years; perhaps the trend for sex scenes in books that really don't need them has passed, so the poorly written stuff hasn't reached print.

So my contenders from this year's crop: The Future Won’t Be Long by Jarett Kobek, and for what on earth is he going on about- it's sex not Meccano- The Seventh Function of Language by Laurent Binet.

The results will be announced this coming Thursday (30th), and no doubt the winner will get a few extra sales as a result...

decision time...

Think Eyes...

Yes, I'm still here.

It's been a month of good and bad since my last post.

It's been a month of sorting, packing, dismantling, cough & cold- feeling very weak- and getting new varifocals.

New
glasses...

I'd been having problems with my eyes for a couple of months, so booked my annual eye appointment at the Opticians - two months early. The good news is I'm less short-sighted than I was, but the less positive news is that I have the start of macular degeneration.

I now have new super-duper glasses, with lenses that transition in bright light; less issue from glare and fuzziness with car headlights and illuminated bus signs too. But best of all I can look at the computer screen without doing head contortions to focus, and my eyes aren't tired after a couple of hours.

I'll have to get a new photo taken next month so I can update my profile picture with the new specs.

It also means I can get on with some writing now- when I'm not packing boxes!

Meanwhile here's some useful advice from the College of Optometrists re Screen Use.

Eyes are an important work tool for every writer so look after them...







Image from Pixabay.

Finding Treasure in Boxes...

Now I need to say at the start this treasure is not the archetypal pirate treasure- coins, jewellery and other goodies along with the odd skull.

This treasure is my past writings.

As a teenager I used a pen and pages of A4. I moved on to a portable typewriter, and from there to a Brother Word Processor- work was saved to floppy disks. (Yes we're talking 20th century...)

Then I moved onto my first computer (an XP) with a floppy disk drive in the tower, so I carried on using them.

When that computer eventually died Windows 7 was the latest operating system; but it didn't have a floppy disk drive anymore, so I had to buy an external version with the USB connection.

I was able to access some of the items, but others were unreadable. I left them in the storage box and resigned myself to searching for a programme that would enable my computer to read my saved work. It never happened and I packed the box away somewhere.

After all I did have some of the work printed out ...somewhere.

Then last weekend, clearing one of the shelves in the corner bookcase- it needs to be moved for the rewiring work- I pulled out a compact blue box from the corner. I knew what it was instantly. My floppy disks.

A box of treasure

Downing the small paintbrush (for dusting books) and soft cloth I went to my office and rummaged on the shelf for the floppy disk reader- would it even work on the Windows 10 desktop?

I plugged in the USB and nothing, it wasn't recognised. All my excitement at my discovery went pancake flat. As a final check before unplugging I opened File Explorer and there it was.

Floppy disk reader, old manuscripts
file box...

Reviewing the floppies I chose one labelled short stories 1, inserted it into the reader, listened as it whirred noisily, and then a box opened on my screen displaying numbered stories (SS1, SS2 etc).

Clicking on the first one, Notepad opened the story; I scrolled down and I immediately remembered writing that tale- it was one I'd wanted to rewrite, but thought lost forever.

Opening more,assured me they were okay, so I set about copying and pasting from Notepad into a Word document.

Then I found the disks from my first incomplete novel; I'd started writing it in 2000 and got to about 40,000 words where I'd reached my planned ending. That was when I realised that I'd only gotten half way, there was more story to follow- the possibilities had quickly started flowing through my mind.

 But I stopped there. I realised that I didn't have the skills I needed to complete it- I didn't know anything about writing drafts. I had to go and learn how to write properly. That was how I came to join the local writers' club.

So it was with some trepidation that I now slipped the novel disk into the reader, but all that came up was a box showing formatting and asking me what I wanted to display it in, there were three choices, and in my disappointment I didn't really take in what it was asking me.

As I tried the other disks the same problem, my disappointment grew until I stopped and read what was being asked. I chose an option but nothing happened; it was a frustrated turn of the mouse wheel that scrolled down the box a bit,  and there among the little formatting symbols was text I could read!

I began the copying and pasting again but accepted I needed to do this a bit at a time, so saved and backed-up everything I'd transferred.

That box isn't going to be packed away anywhere for some time.

So if I'm ever irritated by something Windows 10 does, please remind me that it helped me retrieve my early writing that I thought had been lost forever...

Magazine Fillers - what's there?

Apologies for the lack of communication this last few weeks; it's been a month of varying appointments, arranging a speaker for October at the writers' club- so many writers are having a very busy October- and more sorting and packing boxes that was suddenly interrupted by a family member being sent to hospital urgently, kept overnight and now at home recovering.

I think we forget that one simple thing becoming troublesome in the body can have a lot of unpleasant results.

So magazine fillers- what's available?

When you're working on longer stories, or when some of the women's magazine markets have restricted who can submit stories, then fillers can earn small amounts.

It used to be a useful earning potential, and at one time there were plenty of magazines who paid for letters used, or included short pieces that filled spare slots in magazines.

It's changed a lot, so I've searched for a few examples in case you'd like to follow them up...

When I signed up to Readly (it's a site that enables you to read thousands of magazine- digitally- for a monthly fee)  I spent some time looking at a range of magazines to see what filler opportunities there were.

Research fillers...

It doesn't appear as bright as it once was.

Some magazines have gone the route of Facebook and Twitter. On a certain day of the week they pose a question and ask for readers opinions, and some of those replies feature on a page in the magazine later on.

There's nothing to suggest payment or a prize is offered...

Where Letters slots still exist many have gone to only awarding the star letter a prize - I wonder if the product maker has provided the freebie for exposure... Very few seem to pay cash anymore, and if they do it's only the Star letter.

*Saga, the magazine for the over 50's - does have interesting articles related to health, money, gardening, holidays and technology; it pays £50 to the writer of their star letter, but you've only got 100 words available.

Like any submission read the magazines and see what appeals to them and you.

* If you like Spirit & Destiny magazine, their star letter wins £50, and others printed won a book prize- in the November issue it's a book on Crystal use...

Opinion piece slots seem to have become celebrity orientated with recognisable TV and radio personalities sharing their thoughts on life or a specific topic. But keep looking as reader opinion slots are occasionally seen.

The good news is that you don't need many words if you have a good image to go with your useful tips- upcycling seems a popular choice, what use have you made of something you would normally use for something else. Or you've got a happy/fun image to share.

* Weekly magazine Pick Me Up pays £25 for pics and videos used for their Your Pick Me Ups pages- think fun, feel good and if you've met a celebrity and had your photo taken with them...

* They also do Your Brainwaves, £25 for 'your brilliant tips!' Some are quite simple, but very useful. A clear photo helps.

* Chat to Us in Chat magazine pays £25 for any photo they use, but it must not have been sent to 'any other publication'. They also pay £25 for tips they use.

And most magazines give instructions on sending by email as well as post.

But probably the biggest return is on the true-life tales that are splashed across the cover of weekly magazines such as Real People- their Quick Reads are 'short and sweet' tales, not fiction (earn up to £2,000), and Chat (says they pay cash for your real-life stories but doesn't specify the range).

If you're going to be doing articles then Readly is a good way to research lots of magazines without it costing what you might earn, and you can stop your monthly £7.99 subscription at any time.

Just like ideas being everywhere, so can filler opportunities- check out smaller and local magazines for opportunities. Admittedly these may be non-paying, but it's up to the individual writer to decide what's right for them.

Now I've had an idea for a useful recycling into something else tip, so I'll be getting the camera out to photograph it and send it off...

Have you had any success with fillers?



image from Pixabay.

Would You Use a Book Doula?

We're probably familiar with the word 'doula' being associated with pregnancy and birth, but until I read this Guardian article (courtesy of a writer in a Facebook group I belong to- thank you PR) 'Book doulas: the new way to push your writing into the world', I'd not heard of it in connection with books...

My first reaction was good grief!

It sounds a great idea, having that support and one to one contact, but there is a cost involved and you'd still need to research the person to assess their experience to take on the role- and how do you decide whether they're good enough?

We know the writing world has changed so much in the past 10 years.

Self-publishing has lost most of the taint of vanity publishing, and serious writers going this route know they need to write the best story they can, produce a good manuscript and get an editor who knows what they're doing- and can prove it; along with a book cover designer-among the numerous items to tick off the self-publisher's list.

Numerous services for writers have emerged, and only the individual writer can decide what they think they might benefit from.

But consider the following first (and I'm referring to the UK here):

We already have: mentoring, critique groups, regional writing organisations (offering lots of choices for developing your writing skills and bringing your book to life), genre specific organisations (with conferences, local groups and numerous opportunities to network, even take part in agent 1 to 1's etc), podcasts, book festivals...

reading together...

Even mainstream publishers have got involved: The Faber Academy, and Penguin Random House with The Writers Academy are just the two that come to mind.

Then there's universities offering creative writing courses, and degrees.

Writing Magazine has been running their writing courses for many years.

Yes, even writers' groups and clubs; choose wisely and you'll find published writers who belong to them and will pass on advice, encouragement and help writers develop. Often, those writers were gifted with the generosity of their peers when they were first experiencing those qualms.

You can learn from any of these, with support and advice to develop the skills and resilience you need to produce that book, or other writing.

Of course there's a cost to all these things too, but you can mix and match as your needs - change.

Doulas may find their way into the vast world of writing services and opportunities, but when there's already so much available, are they really needed?

Do you have any thoughts on this topic?