Catching Up and Thanks...

Okay, I admit it, I left my weekend post up a bit longer than usual so I could bask in the glory of my first public reading of my work.

I don't get many opportunities like this, so forgive me for enjoying it just this once. :-)

Actually I think adrenaline was as much responsible for getting me through the event, as was the advice from fellow writers.

But one person I really do want to thank, for all she taught me about reading aloud, putting expression into my voice and standing in front of a crowd and performing, is/was my English teacher, Mrs Brant, from my days in Hillview Secondary School for Girls in Tonbridge- in the 1970's.

She not only ran the after school drama club, but was the writer of the annual school productions that Year 10 and 11 pupils took part in. Mrs Brant and other staff members and pupils made the costumes, did the music, stage backdrops and make-up.

It gave me so much confidence that is still with me today.

As one of the taller girls in my year, and with short hair, I always got the part of a male- one year I played Sir Thomas Boleyn (father of the future Queen Anne Boleyn), and the next year, Mr Brocklehurst in Jane Eyre- the clothes really do help to get into the mindset of a Victorian man, that and the long side whiskers...

Somewhere, lurking among the numerous photos I have, is a picture of me in my Sir Thomas costume. We did a fashion parade for the whole school (the day after the play's final public performance) and photos were taken of us in character.

If I find it, I'll see if I can scan it into my computer...

So thank you Mrs Brant- wherever you are now.

Reading at the Lowdham Book Festival Fringe...

Well I've survived.

And I have the photos to prove it. So the next time I have the opportunity to read in public they will be there to remind me that I've done it before and can do it again.

The last day of the Lowdham Book Festival usually sees the village crowded with people and cars, so it was strange to see everywhere so much quieter than usual. And to get a parking space!

There were still events going on at various locations around the village, so it was good to have time for a wander along the village high street, and pop into The Bookcase- the local independent bookshop run by one of the organisers of the Book Festival-Jane Streeter (who has just completed her term in office as the President of the Booksellers Association ).

They also host quite a few book launches and signings of Nottingham based authors. So who knows, one day...

So onto the main event- for me at least.

The Ship Inn is an old pub in the centre of the village, across from the village hall- a regular drop-in point for everyone on the last day. You can see a picture of the venue on the local crickets club's website, here.

It has a couple of traditionally decorated and very comfortable rooms. We were in the lounge bar which has tables, chairs, and stools on two levels, so you have to look over to the audience in the upper level too.

Following the advice from fellow writers who have read their work to an audience before, I chose a bright outfit, had a glass of water handy, and tried to remember to smile at everyone.

There was a microphone available if we needed it, but the three of us have reasonable reading voices, and the appreciative audience that had gathered wanted to hear the readings so we weren't competing with background noise.

After the previous group ran a little over time with their very entertaining selection of work, the other two Nottingham Writers' Club members, poets Viv Apple and Ken Swallow, took their positions ready to start.

Introductions in The Ship, Lounge

                                                  (All photos courtesy of, and © of Richard Bevitt)

I did the general intoductions and was very relieved my voice had greatly improved since Thursday.

I handed over to Viv Apple, a very good poet and also a member of Nottingham Poetry Society.
She read four poems, including First Bra, which tells the tale of her teenage-self going with her mother to buy her first bra, with all the angst and pride associated with it.

Then it was my turn- my three pieces of flash fiction.

I started with a brief explanation of what had inspired 'Positive Exposure'- a radio interview with an actress who had appeared in one of the early Star Trek (the 1960's tv series) episodes, who described having to wear a brief outfit with no straps to hold the top half in place, which didn't when she breathed in- and to remedy the wardrobe malfunction, tape was used.

This was well received and the audience laughed at the final line and clapped- mentally I was breathing a sigh of relief.

I moved on to my second piece, 'Surpises', and mentioned the e-book anthology it would be appearing in later in the autumn.

My final piece 'Expectations' is another piece that came from the monthly One Word Challenge competition that is held each month on the Talkback writers forum.

Enjoying the Performance.

More applause and with my section over,  I handed over to Performance Poet, Ken Swallow for a couple of short action pieces.

Viv finished the performance with her amusing poem, 'I Don't Know You From Soap'. An Australian alternative to the 'I don't know you from Adam' phrase (apparently).

I finished by thanking the audience for listening to the club members work, and it was over.

The organiser of the Fringe event is hoping that it will be repeated next year, and perhaps with a longer running time, into the early evening.

I'm hoping more writers' club members will want to be involved next time too. (I'll be writing about it for the next issue of the club magazine 'Scribe'.

Would I do it again?  

Yes. :-)


                                                                                 
 Looking at the audience
 and smiling.



What did I learn from it?

That an audience really likes to hear fun pieces, so having something light in the chosen selection helps.


If you've never read to anyone outside of your friends and writers' group, and you get the opportunity to read your work to an unknown audience, do it. You really will enjoy it, and learn a lot.

                                                            

A Slight Delay...

Just a few words today, while I recover.

I've got a cold and bunged up lungs at the moment so my asthma is bad. Sitting upright in bed is not a comfortable way to sleep, nor when I was woken up coughing- at least twenty times...

I felt so ill this morning that I did think I was going to have to back out of this weekend's events.

But I've now got some medicine and I'm hoping it will improve my breathing enough to get through my performance on Saturday.

So I'm off to print out the pages I need, and some business cards (just in case), then I'm off for a nap.

Hope the weather is a bit dryer and brighter where you are, we have dark clouds, rain and thunder, plus the Olympic Torch is making it's way to Nottingham city centre this afternoon.

Progress and Leaks...

As I write this on Monday evening we're waiting to find out where the gas leak is.

There was a strong smell of gas earlier this evening at the bottom of the short driveways on our side of the road, so the national grid gas leak service was called out and arrived a couple of hours ago; at the moment the gentleman with the device for detecting leaks has moved across the road and is inside one of the houses there, so it doesn't look like we have a gas leak this time- I'm glad to say.

Anyway, back to the progress bit of the title.

I got my trip to IKEA on Saturday and the Billy bookcase is now installed (thanks to my OH, patience and a screwdriver) and is slowly being filled. Admittedly there's still a lot of boxes to go through, but another little section of my office is emerging.

My outfit for Saturday (reading at the Fringe event at the local book festival) is almost decided; black trousers and a cerise pink cross-over top (at the moment) but this could change if it's cold. Cerise is just enough brightness for me.

The hairdresser is booked for later in the week, for a trim and colour wash.

Now I know this might seem a little over the top for just twenty minutes in total, but it all helps the confidence quotient- and I don't get many opportunities like this so I'm going to enjoy myself while I can...

If I can persuade my OH to stay and take some pictures of the event, I might be able to show you a few next week.

(The Gas man has gone now, so it looks like the leak was across the road.)

5 days to go...

Best, Fifty Shades and Zombies...

I regularly trawl the book related sites to keep in touch with the world of literature. Some months are quieter than others, but fortunately the summer months are usually busy.

So I thought I'd highlight a few things- just in case you'd missed them, or have got bored of my office saga and my spells of self promotion. :-)

News of short stories in Best magazine comes from writer Vivian Hampshire. Apparently there are no guidelines yet, but 800-1,000 word stories are wanted. Though studying the magazine's current style will be essential to target your stories. One story a week isn't much, but it's better than no stories at all; and fiction has been appearing in the seasonal specials I'm told

Best's website is being revamped as is the magazine, so perhaps details will appear once it's all completed.

* * *

Fifty Shades of Grey by E L James and her other two books in the trilogy have been setting sales records.

"James, a London-based former TV executive, is now the first author ever to see three of her books sell more than 100,000 printed copies in just one week. She has also broken the weekly sales record for a paperback novel after the first book in the trilogy sold 205,130 copies in seven days, beating the previous record of 141,000." (Guardian books.)

You can read the rest of the article here.

Now I don't begrudge any writer success, good luck to her.

The book apparently has page turning quality- but from something a non writing reader told me this week, turning the page to get back to the story might be part of it.

A few months ago I received a regular newsletter from the publisher promoting their upcoming books and these three were prominently displayed.
There was already lots of discussions about the book on the web so I clicked through to the publisher's website and took up the opportunity to read the first few chapters of the first book.

I was not impressed- it needed a good editing- so I didn't bother looking at the other books, or buying them.

That was probably part of the problem. I'm a writer who has been taught to edit out inconsistencies, cliche's and all those other bad things drummed into us on how to improve your manuscript before you even think about submitting it to a publisher or agent.

If you're not convinced, then do see Sally Quilford's enlightening reviews of book one starting here, though I've been told by an acquaintance that (the second book) was nothing but erotica and BDSM- how true that is, I can't say...

* * *

Finally if you happen to know any fans of Charlie Higson's The Enemy series of books, there's a competition for a chance to appear as a zombie extra in the trailer of the fourth book, The Sacrifice.

"Would-be zombies must be over 16 and have to send a photo of themselves and 50 words, or less, describing why they would make a good zombie to puffin@uk.penguingroup.com by 26th June" and filming is set to take place on the 30th June.

So you need to be quick- not something zombies are usually good at, or so I'm assured by one of my sons who is a fan of the books.


Have a good weekend. I'll be sorting boxes.


LATE NEWS: A Harlequin/Mills and Boon opportunity is coming in a few months, see here.

The Read-Through Went Fine...

Last night was manuscript night at the writers' club and the three of us (who will be reading at the fringe event at Lowdham Book Festival on the 30th June) did a run through to check our timings, so we could make any changes needed to fill our 20 minute slot.

(I am the prose between a poet and a performance poet.)

Now I have to admit that I spent some time yesterday morning reading my pieces of flash fiction aloud and seeing how long it took me- allowing for suitable pauses for audience reaction.

So when it came to my section last night it filled my allocated 6 minutes.

I'm reading 3 pieces of flash fiction, my favourite character, Lola de Cortez, of 'Positive Exposure' will be starting my selection-it's 250 words.

Then I'm following this up with a 200 word flash called 'Surprises', which is historical. This piece will be appearing under my Serena Lake pseudonym in the One Word Challenge Anthology e-book (publisher Alfie Dog Ltd) later in the autumn.

Here's a brief snippet...

   The pristine white shift decorated with French lace and tiny intricately knotted bows lay demurely on his plump four-poster bed.
   Jason didn’t know who it belonged to, but its absent owner had most certainly left their underclothes in the wrong bedroom...

©Carol Bevitt 2012

And my final piece is only a 191 words long. 'Expectations' is another historically set story, and the viewpoint character commits patricide at the end...

So I hope the audience will appreciate the variety. :-)

9 days and counting...






                                                               

Getting There...

Well I would be if only we had some dry weather...

The flooring in the office area is now down, and it does look very good- plus it will be easier to keep clean and hoover.

A couple more small prints are temporarily hung up on the wall- they're scenes of London places in the Georgian era.

But the sorting of all the boxes is taking time. Mainly because it's been raining so I can't take stuff outside and sift through. The local weather forcast is promising a couple of days of dry weather, so hopefully I can make some progress this week.

Even though I have managed to amalgamate the contents of a number of storage boxes, the heap just doesn't seem to be reducing...

I'd love to go to IKEA to stock up on some bits and pieces- and a new Billy bookcase for the corner- if they still do them- but my OH has an aversion to driving me there, probably because he knows he'll have to spend the next few hours putting something together as soon as we get back home.

I think storage is an issue for any home. In fact most homes never seem to have enough storage space built into them, which may explain why there's a lot of warehouse type places where you can rent units to store your possessions.

One thing I have had to decide on, is reducing the pile of fiction books that I keep.

So I can see that once I have my mini office in place there's still going to be a lot of sorting out left to do.

Reading at the local Festival Later This Month...

This month is  Lowdham Book Festival 2012 between the 1st and 30th June.

Usually the last day (a Saturday) is full of free talks and events, second hand book stalls, new books, writers groups and organisations.

Sadly this year the usual format won't be taking place, but there will still be lots of book related events going on during the day of the 30th. (See the link above for times and ticket details.)

I saw a mention of John Harvey, and Jon McGregor ( who very recently won the International Impac Dublin Literary Award) during the Reading Group Day in the Village Hall.

Between 11am and 5pm there will be performances in the pub, called Fringe at The Ship. And at some point during the 12 midday and 12.40 pm slot, I will be reading a couple of pieces of flash fiction along with two members of the writers' club- a poet, and a performance poet.

We were originally scheduled for 4pm, but this clashed for one of the members, so we're sharing an earlier spot with another group.

As we're in the pub we can be sure of some audience.

This means I have two weeks to time my pieces and refine my presentation, and also coordinate with my fellow readers.

Now I'm used to standing up in front of people I know (or don't know) to read aloud at the writers' club, but to do so in front of total strangers in the pub is actually a little daunting.

But I'm a writer, so it's good practise for the future...

My only remaining dilemma will be what to wear. :-) Casual but comfortable certainly, but so much will depend upon the weather on the day.

If you have any advice, I'd be grateful for your comments.

The Queen in Nottingham...

Nottingham received a royal visit today (Wednesday). Her Majesty the Queen, accompanied by their Royal Highnesses the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, travelled by car from Nottingham railway station to the Old Market Square to be greeted by thousands of cheering and flag waving people, of all ages.

Obviously there were a lot of roads closed and buses unable to stop at their regular locations, so the guests of honour could use the quick route and avoid the roadworks...

I'd arrived at 9.30 and the main part of the square was already filled- the front row had been there since about 6 o'clock.  So I found a spot at the rail behind the water feature (almost at the far end of the square) but I had a reasonable view of the balcony of the Council House- and my OH's camera with a reasonable zoom on it.

The tall buildings around the square had workers inside leaning out the windows, or on balconies. There were even a few who came out onto the flat roof of their building to look at the view...

It was quite fun watching the poor bloke on the roof getting the royal standard ready to raise- he took his jacket off before he started, so it must have been warmer up there than at ground level!

There was a band of musicians, but we couldn't really hear them at the back.

The big screen was great for everyone much further back because we could only glimpse the
tops of hats and the cars.



They did a brief walkabout saying hello to those at the front, and accepting lots of flowers.



The Queen was wearing a matching hat and coat, apparently it was green, but it looked more blue from a distance.

But amid the crowds and officials she certainly stood out.




There was a big cheer when the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge were seen.

Everytime they appeared on the screen one or other of the numerous people escorting them, unaware of the camera man, would get in the way, and you could only see the back of the Duke's head- he has a bald patch, or the Duchess's brown hair with the little blue hat perched atop her head.





Everything settled down when the royal guests went into the Council House, but everyone was waiting for the balcony appearance.

And when they stepped out there was a roar, cheering, waving of flags, and hand waving.

I know they couldn't see me, but I did wave at them. :-)


At the back we couldn't hear the music for the National Anthem, so we couldn't join in, but those at the front did.

The Queen smiled a lot, and after another wave they went back inside, into the Ballroom.

Some of the crowd left then, but the majority waited about another twenty minutes until they came out to get in the car to go to their next engagement in Basford.

Then the crowds casually dispersed in all directions, some to shop or go on to work, others to take their children back to school, or like me to go home.

Yes, it was a bit chilly standing around for a couple of hours, but it was worth every minute...

Decorating the Office Area...

After the leaking pipework that caused big problems over the Jubilee weekend, my office area is now a step closer.

Although the proposed office area of the dining room is still full of loaded plastic boxes, I'm glad to say the surface of the concrete floor has dried out, and further inspection of the wooden skirting board has proved that the wood is dry, so apart from a small bit of wallpaper damage and the piece of soaked carpet, it shouldn't be too long before the move is underway.


As it was warm and generally sunny yesterday (Sunday) we put the boxes outside and I started sorting through them. Sat atop a box in a large carrier bag I found the bubble wrapped, framed, coloured coaching scene print that I'd bought for £3 in a local charity shop a couple of years ago.

It's actually a 20th C reprint, and the colours are more muted than the original, which you can see here. I would have photographed my framed copy but the room light would have shown up in the glass reflection...

When I'd originally shown the print to my husband, he hadn't been keen on it, so I'd left it wrapped up, and it was forgotten about. But as we'd been able to move the sideboard to it's final place there was now a big expanse of wall above it that just pleaded for this picture to be hung.

So my OH reluctantly drilled the holes for the screw fitting (already affixed to the back of the frame) and it is now on the wall; and when the rest of the room is finished I'll be adding some other small prints I have of London scenes.

I have to admit that there are a few more prints from this set I'd like, but I won't have the room. And as my OH is the one with the drill, a little pictorial restraint is required... :-)

Earlier in the week I bought some big purple box files for storing newspaper cuttings, pictures of people from the past and the present, old building images, museum info and so on. So more storage is being gathered ready for those items currently packed away.

I'm getting quite excited about my small office area, and being able to have the items I need close at hand. It will make life much tidier for everyone.

Have you found any literary or decorative gems in a charity shop?

My Novella Can Be Stretched...

I don't mean length-wise, though that's a possibility.

If you haven't seen Sally Quilford's post today about the new My Weekly Pocket Novel guidelines, then follow the link here.

I think the addition of a Medical genre will prove popular and I know one writer friend who will certainly be encouraged. Personally I spend enough of my life dealing with the medical fraternity so don't want to use my spare time writing about them in any form.

My Nottinghamshire novella set in 1802, with my delicious hero Hugh, was hopefully destined to be a pocket novel submission, but despite all my groundwork something just wasn't right; as I had my other writing projects I decided to put the novella on hold and let my brain work on it in the background.

Since the MW (My Weekly) pocket novels have been updated (a much more attractive cover design) there's been a lack of pre-20th C settings and I did wonder if this was just scarcity of submissions or editorial preference.

Personally I thought the extended length- moving from 30,000 to 50,000 words may have been too long for some stories, but not long enough for others.

And with the expanding e-book market there's a lot more options available - without the restrictions the writer needs to be aware of for a PN (Pocket Novel).

I think it was those elements that blocked me because I was too aware of them as I wrote, rather than just getting on and writing it, even with the no-nos in, and editing them out later...

With the guidelines making a strong reference to specific times: " Pocket Novels can be set in any time era from the Second World War onwards." My novella certainly won't fit...
I'm not sure what I will do with it when it is finally completed, but I can look at potential markets in the meantime.

In some ways knowing it will no longer fit means I'm not restricted in the way I was previously, so my baddie can be punched in the jaw by my hero, because said baddie has almost caused the heroine's death.

And if the intimacy between Hugh and Sarah goes beyond a stolen kiss, that is no longer a problem-which I'm fairly sure will make my characters a little more cooperative.

Yes, I know there are the conventions of the time, but records show pre-marital sex did actually happen- social and economic histories are not totally boring... :-)

Will the latest PN guidelines be encouraging you to try this market?

Trying For a Repeat Win...

As I've had the house to myself today, I've been writing.

It's been a bit chaotic recently with the boys going out for their exams, coming home at times they'd have normally been in lessons; then the Jubilee celebrations and the plumbing disaster at the weekend, so writing has taken a back seat and nothing has been done since I sent my short story off.

So today I began my entry for the 2012 Mary Street Memorial Shield competition for Romantic Novelist of the Year.

(See my success in 2011's competition here.)

I'm using my first incomplete novel that I began in 1998 and gave up on in 1999 at 40,000 words. I've always intended to go back to it one day and rewrite it, and as it's been on my mind recently I decided to use it for this year's competition.

(Somewhere in a box are those original 40,000 words and all my research notes, but I can't think where they were put. So I'm hoping they'll turn up while I'm sorting all my packed boxes out.)

It will then go into my queue of future novels, and all the relevant bits currently turning about in my conscious brain will be written and out of the way while I get on with my novella and the novel.

(In fact my Dorset novel started interfering in this Coaching Town novel all those years ago.)

Competitions are a great way to improve your writing skills, and there are a lot of free ones available if you look for them.

If you belong to a writing group then you'll usually have opportunities to enter different types of writing competition and you may find there's something you have an infinity for.

Even if you don't find it hooks you, you'll still be using your writing skills and developing your style.

A few years ago (2009) I entered the NWC annual drama award for a short play- I've acted in plays, and seen lots of plays, but never tried to write one. So I decided to go for it.

The maximum length was 15 minutes, two main characters- strangers- meet and engage in conversation on a bench outdoors, and a third minor character was allowed. With the added comment that a twist ending would be appreciated. (It was being judged by a local scriptwriter.)

I managed a 12 minute piece, and although it wasn't technically perfect I'd fulfilled the requirements of the theme; it had amusing elements, plus I'd managed the twist end which I was satisfied with.

And I won that one. But I decided not to take up play writing.

This year I've agreed to set and judge the drama competition. I had to choose the criteria for the type of drama setting-studio; and I wanted it to be simple but challenging at the same time so potential entrants wouldn't be put off from trying it, but they would still need to use their writing skills to make it work. (I would have revealed what I set, but the competition details won't be out for a couple of weeks yet.)

I'm really looking forward to seeing what the club members who enter (using a pseudonym), produce...

Do you enter competition? Do you feel entering competitions has helped your writing?

The Best Laid Plans...

First I have to say that the Queen's Diamond Jubilee celebrations have been spectacular over the weekend and Bank Holiday Monday, and I've enjoyed watching them in between the unexpected disasters of the last few days...

The first couple of days was spent boxing up the stuff in the dining room area, so it was yesterday that we started to move the existing furniture, and that was when we found the problem- damp patches and mould at the bottom of the walls and on the carpet.

Now we have a downstairs bathroom and the tiled bathroom wall adjoins the dining room wall in the corner where I was intending to move into with my desk and computer.

It turns out we had a leak in the bathroom and as a consequence part of the concrete floor in the dining room is wet and needs to dry out before we can lay the new floor covering.

The walls have lost patches of wallpaper- they came away when I wiped the walls and skirting board with hot water and disinfectant ( fortunately the wallpaper is the type you can wipe over to remove marks).

So every dry and available surface is covered by boxes at the moment. And I'm still at my desk in the living room.

Fortunately the emergency plumber came out very quickly last night and did what he could-drained the hot water, so there was no hot water to wash with this morning.

And another plumber came back this morning to complete the work and finally sort our leak out. I'm glad it wasn't as bad as it first appeared to be.

Like any older house our pipework is in Imperial, while plumbing parts now are in Metric, so you can imagine how much difficulty that creates, the supplies on hand don't fit properly...

I'm glad to say the leak has been stopped, and very shortly there will be hot water available.

As to my move into the dining room area that's temporarily on hold while the corner of the floor dries out...

Add Your Suggestions to the Guardian's Interactive Map

Just a brief post before I start moving my desk.

The books section of the Guardian online newspaper is launching an interactive map of the UK's best bookshops and literary locations, and you can add bookshop reviews; while booksellers can add their bookshop to the map, or add a description if it's already listed.

This is a wonderful idea.

If you live in a city or the surrounding suburbs you may not actually know the location of small independent booksellers, and this is an easy way to find out where they are so you can visit them.

Alternatively if you're away from home, it's good to know where you can buy books, especially if you want to avoid the main high street book retailers and support these smaller sellers.

You can look at the map here, and there are links to add information on the page.

I hope there's no rain tomorrow, so I can move boxes outside while the furniture is shifted around indoors. (But the weather map on TV does not look good.)

By the time I write my next blog post I should have my desk and computer moved to it's new position; my reference books and material neatly stacked on a bookshelf close by and not a speck of dust to make me cough...

Is American English Creeping Into Writing by Children ?

Earlier this week Oxford University Press (OUP) revealed the results of their analysis of the 74,074 entries into the Radio 2 (2012) 500 Words Competition, run by the Chris Evans radio show.

Now as a parent whose children are now taking GCSE's, I can confidently say that the way English has been taught in schools has changed quite a bit since they were in the primary classes- emphasis on the preferred reading scheme, regular book reading and spelling tests for words that children were expected to be able to spell by the end of the school year.

So that may explain why one of the results of the OUP's analysis was that; "Children are excellent at spelling the more unusual words (pterodactyl) while there is some confusion over more common words (does and didn’t), and construction of tenses (waked up)."

As lots of adults still have problems with spelling common words (I certainly have a few I always get wrong) and I'm sure we've all heard someone holding a conversation and mixing their tenses up.

 (I think a writer notices these more because the editing side of their brain is always alert to these issues...But not everyone is good at spelling however hard they try.)

And now to the word choices; "American vocabulary (e.g. trash can, sidewalk, candy) featured in the stories especially those written by 10-13 year olds, arguably due to the vogue for US-penned novels such as Twilight and The Hunger Games."

The fact they've ascribed that to books is good in a way, but I think they have ignored another source- children's television programmes. And the 10-13 year olds would have probably had the most long term exposure.

Making high quality children's programmes is expensive, and while there is still some drama based on children's books- Young Dracula for example, generally the number of home-grown productions has declined to be replaced with less costly, bought in programmes from the US - which obviously were made for their own market and would use their own terminology for our bin, pavement and sweets...

This article by the Guardian's education editor, Jeevan Vasagar, also highlights the regional differences in word use, and the differences in writing style between the sexes.
It's well worth reading.

And the really good news is that text-speak is not taking over...

Moving Ahead...

And I mean that in many ways.

I've had my postcard acknowledgement back from Woman's Weekly, so I know my short story has arrived and is now in their system. So now I'm going to forget about it, until a yes or no letter arrives.

I'm getting very little quiet to write or even read at the moment, as my sons are taking their GCSE exams and are in and out of the house, or at home revising and relaxing, so my much valued peace during school hours is gone...

I've also got to start packing the remainder of my writing stuff up to put it into boxes ready for the weekend move. The computer will be moving position- as will some of our furniture-into different areas of the living room/dining room.

I'm hoping I can fit a filing cabinet in by the new desk area too, as I have a lot of papers that are currently sat in boxes and not accessible; likewise quite a few of my reference books are packed away and I'd like them on a shelf or at least stacked nearby.

The advantage of the new location means people moving around in the living room won't be close enough to distract me if I'm working, unlike currently.

With the Queen's Jubilee celebrations this weekend, plus the Monday and Tuesday Bank Holiday days it will give us plenty of time to get everything done.

And if that doesn't work and make me more productive, I may have to resort to a shed in the garden...

What Published Writers Think About Their Publishers...

A survey was recently undertaken by The Writers Workshop that was only open to professional authors, and on Thursday Harry Bingham posted the results. You can read the piece here.

As a would-be novelist it's interesting to see how the 321 published respondents answered the questions set them.

After all they have agents and publishers already, so they should be relatively happy, right?

Well some don't seem to be when you look at the data closely- look here.

I think most of us know that writing books is not going to make us rich- though if your initials are JKR that won't apply- and any advance you are likely to get has got to go toward supporting you while you write the next book; as it can be quite a while before your latest manuscript reaches the shelves in its novel form, and starts earning back the advance, so you can then start getting royalties...

But £1,000-£5,000 seems to be the going advance rate for many authors- not much once you split it into three to reflect the different stages.

I know from discussions with other writers that marketing is very important if you want to get book sales, especially if you've self-published or have e-books for sale.

So I was quite surprised by the answer to the question on whether the authors were closely consulted on the publisher's marketing plan. 99 of those who answered opted for 'there was no attempt at consultation'.
And those who had consultation were not that impressed either (that's my interpretation).

The good news is that payments were clear and prompt, so that's good news among the less encouraging.


Nicola Morgan of Help! I Need A Publisher! has two valid points to add to the comments.


There are a lot more interesting responses to a variety of questions, so I recommend you take the time to read all the data.

Despite some of the negatives the data highlights, I doubt that many writers would turn down the opportunity to have a well-known publisher supporting them.

We just need to remember that when that happens, it's best to leave the rose-tinted glasses behind...

My Short Story has Left Home...

It's been quite a few years since I last submitted a short story to a woman's magazine, so I have to admit to a few last minute jitters before I put the envelope in the post box...

I mentioned a few posts back that the story (I've been working on) was originally created in 2007 and had had quite a few revisions since then.

By last week I was finally happy and left it for a final reading this week, and to check for anything I'd missed.

Plus an objective writer/reader read through it to give me an honest opinion; they highlighted a bit of a dialogue/description issue for a minor character that needed looking at, but otherwise enjoyed it and didn't see any spelling or grammar errors.

I even gave it to one of my sons this morning to ask him what he thought- I don't usually ask family members to read my work- but he's the really creative one on my sons, so wouldn't need explanations of why I'd done such and such in the text. He said it was okay- which is as good a response as it will get...

I had the stamps and envelopes but I wasn't too sure of the final weight, as I didn't want it underpaid I went to the nearest post office and checked- 90g, so it was 10g within the large letter weight and I could use the stamps I'd bought before the late April price rise.
It was only 2,000 words, but a story with 3,000 words could probably be in the next price band.

So it's now on its way to Woman's Weekly.

I know it will now be a long wait, but my previous attempts have all been rejected by three months, even when the quoted time was four months.

I really feel confident about this story, so if it gets rejected, I think it won't be because it's a bad story, or lousy grammar and spelling. And if it is a no, it will then be winging its way to Alfie Dog Ltd, the short story download site, for their consideration.

I'm determined it will find a home.

Now I can get back to my longer projects...

Kate Walker Workshop...

My post is a little late because I've been at the Kate Walker workshop on Writing Romantic Fiction at Nottingham Writers' Club today.

Thanks to everyone who took part, especially those who travelled a long distance to attend, and of course the brilliant, Kate Walker.

I'm not telling you what I said that caused everyone to laugh or smile- I only realised what I'd said after the words had left my mouth- and it wasn't what I'd meant, but that's romance writers for you, quick witted... :-D

I can assure you it was not just a roomful of women either, we also had four men there to learn about, or improve, their romance writing skills.

We started with a few facts about getting romance published in today's markets- the words, marketing is 'cut-throat' was mentioned. And just as with genre fiction generally, the 'who can market you' is important- after all there's no point in producing a book for publication if you can't sell it.

Writing a romance  requires characters, conflict, emotion and the HEA (happy ever after). And we looked at each element in more detail.

I'd never thought about the readers expectations, but thinking about it, it makes sense. A romance wouldn't be satisfying if the two main protagonists could solve their problems easily and without any suffering.

There was even a writing exercise, and we were soon being very creative- the only sound was pens on paper and pages turning.

So here are a few of the snippets I learnt today:

Setting is not just the background, but it can also be the stage that your character has reached in their life.

'Feisty' is a current buzz word...

PTQ- Page Turning Quality. 60% dialogue and 40% narrative.

"Emotions don't have a logical basis, so can't be reasoned away."

If there's a secret involved, write it from the point of view (POV) of the one who doesn't know it, as that makes the most of the emotional impact...

BM and GM- Black Moment and Grey Moment- those points in a novel when things are looking bad, and possibly unrepairable. (I'd not heard these terms before.)

There's a lot more but you'll have to go on one of Kate's workshops to find out more...

And yes, sex did get mentioned briefly- we didn't have enough time to go into detail :-), but the scene must 'work' for you-have a purpose, as sexual intimacy can change everything (between the characters, their circumstances etc). We should also consider the emotional vulnerability of our characters at these times.

I certainly learnt a lot to add to the mass of writing information I've already absorbed.

Many of us bought books and Kate signed them for us. I got her '12 Point Guide to Writing Romance', now on it's Third Edition.

But I must also thank Mills and Boon for providing a freebie book for everyone attending the workshop- Kate signed those too.

And finally...

There's a new term that I must share with you- you've heard of the slush pile (the hard copy type) well there's even a digital pile- manuscripts loaded onto an e-reader for an editor to read- it's 'slush Kindle'...

A Home for Short Stories...

We were talking about markets this evening during the manuscript meeting at the writers club, and I mentioned the new short story download site Alfie Dog.

It officially launched today, and among the writers who have stories on there are Linda Lewis and blogger Patsy Collins, who have both had lots of stories published in Women's magazines.

You'll find a wide variety of reading from general fiction to humour and many mainstream genres. There are children's stories and teen/young adult fiction too.

There's even a Story of the Week.

If you're a writer with stories looking for a home, even previously published ones, then have a look at the submissions details here.

The site is the brainchild of writer Rosemary Kind, who describes the site as carrying  "a fantastic group of talented writers writing in a wide range of genres. 69 authors, over 170 stories to begin with and more being added every week (we will be over 200 by the end of the month. Available in pdf, epub and mobi formats. Stories to make you laugh, make you cry, make you think. Bedtime stories to read to the kids. It's the place to be for stories."

I'll certainly be sending a story in for consideration, in a few months...

Wednesday (16th May) Is National Flash Fiction Day...

Wednesday's post is a day early so you will be able to take part in events to celebrate the 1st National Flash Fiction Day.

The National Flash Fiction Day blog has a roundup of events taking place starting early on Wednesday morning. You can find the details here.

There's still time to enter the Flash Flood which will be posting 500 word flash stories from midnight on the 15th/16th May. You'll find the details on the Flash Flood link and you still have all of Tuesday to submit a story.

Meanwhile here's an opportunity in The Guardian online- and David Gaffney explaining the basics of flash fiction- if you're unsure of how to write such a short piece.

If you tweet, you can follow them @nationalflashfd and on Facebook facebook.com/nationalflashfictionday

And here's a piece of mine that I posted some time ago, it won the Nottingham Writers' Club Manuscript of the Year competition in 2007, and appeared in the club magazine 'Scribe' (and preserved for posterity, or as long as the Central Library in Nottingham keeps them- they have copies going back to the early 1930's).

Positive Exposure

                                                                  (by Lola de Cortez)
When the work dried up I knew I had to do something. Who would know it was me doing the voice-over for Squeaky Clean washing-up liquid?
     I made changes, finding a nice cosmetic surgeon in Harley Street; who reminded me of my third husband. I had a face lift; botox and breast enlargement, and it certainly got me noticed.
     I was booked for Parkinson, and then invited to present a BAFTA for the best Make-Up and Hair in a movie. I'd have liked something a bit more prominent, but there's always the Oscars.
     I looked amazing on the night, three inch heels, diamonds at my wrist and ears, complimenting those sweet little gems in my beehive. And the dress...a perfect grey strapless floor length silk. It was such a shame I had to tape myself into it.
     It wasn't that it didn't fit,well it was a teeny bit loose about the chest, but I couldn't let the opportunity go- it was reduced in the sales.
     Double-sided tape was all I needed, strategically placed; I even bronzed my shoulders and cleavage to give me a glow.
     If only that silly young man doing all the talking hadn't stepped on my hem. My dress parted company with my chest, and I was bared to the world.
     The next day the tabloids were covered with my moment of exposure, and I must say I looked good for 62.
     The headline blazed '60's Siren Coming Unstuck', and I've been working every day since.

© Carol Bevitt 2007

Busy Week Ahead

As you may have noticed I didn't post anything at the weekend.

I was extra busy as my OH had to take a quick trip up the motorway to see his mum who was ill, so I was holding everything together at home and celebrating most of our 28th Wedding Anniversary by myself.

Though I'm glad to say my mum-in-law is getting better, and my lovely husband did get home Saturday evening with a bunch of Sweetheart roses and a big box of Thorntons Continental chocolates for me. :-)

GCSE exams begin today, so my teenagers are going to be busy for the next month or so...Exam stressed teenagers are probably best not bothered with requests for the return of glasses, plates and assorted cutlery from their rooms (I'm going to be getting plenty of exercise going up and down stairs...).

I'll be organising the final details for Saturday's all day workshop with Mills and Boon author Kate Walker. I'm really looking forward to the workshop, and having met Kate briefly last October at an event, I'm sure everyone attending will enjoy the day and learn from it.

Meanwhile my short story is almost ready for sending out. I've just got to print it out and check for any typos, wrong spelling of similar sounding words, and any missing punctuation, or formatting issues.

I'm happy with the story as it now is, and there's nothing else I can do to it- without ruining it!

So, I'll be back to my normal blogging routine on Wednesday...

A Brief Catch Up and Yoga...

I'm not sure where this week has gone actually, but it's almost Friday again.

I've almost finished the final edit on my short story, now that I've got my formatting sorted out. Some of my new lines didn't indent to where they were set to- no idea why, but it was just one or two lines each on pages 3,4, and 5...

Even stripping all the formatting out of the document and re-doing the settings didn't sort it out- that document has been highlighted more than my hair!

Having asked some writer friends how to solve the problem, both of the suggested solutions were needed to resolve the issue.

It was only recently, when I was reading an article by Sue Moorcroft in Writers Forum magazine about presentation, that I discovered pressing the space bar five times at the beginning of each new paragraph was not a good idea. Apparently it makes extra work for an editor, so I thought I better learn how to set indents properly, and started with my short story.

(As you may have realised I'm still learning how to use the assorted options on Word 2007, so I won't be switching to the 2010 version anytime soon...)

Actually being able to sit down at the computer for a while was quite good, as I'm still aching from the yoga class that I attended on Tuesday. Now I did yoga when I was younger (much much younger) and I knew I was capable of doing the various positions, and admittedly some of them I had no problem with, but sadly the rest were not as successful.

Yes, I'd had one of those 'moments'. My brain still thought I could do it, but my body had decided that a) I'm not 20 years old anymore and b) my body is no longer that flexible...:-)

I'm sure I'll improve with time and practise, as my writing has...

Competition to Find UK Romance Writing Talent-Details

Hope you're having a relaxing Bank Holiday Monday (for those in the UK).

Just seen a tweet from Piatkus Entice (a digital-first Romance imprint) about a competition to find new UK authors for their imprint. This is a great opportunity.

They are looking for " novels in three genres: romance/contemporary women's fiction, historical romance and paranormal romance and is open to all writers in the UK, including new writers and also authors who have been previously published as long as they are not under contractual obligation to another publisher."

One winner from each of the three genres to be published as an ebook by Piatkus Entice in 2013.

Closing date is midnight BST on the 30th September. The winners will be announced at the gala Festival of Romance 2012 Awards on Friday 16th November.

The submission must include a completed manuscript, so I won't be able to enter. But if you have something suitable then here's what you need to include.

• A completed manuscript of 80,000 – 100,000 words which must be double spaced and typed in Times New Roman font, point size 12 and which must be your own original work.
• A one-page synopsis of the plot.
• Cover blurb (no more than 200 words).
• Your biography and photograph.
• Your contact information including your telephone number and email address.

Full terms and conditions are here.

And best of all submission is both free and by e-mail. But do make sure you follow the instructions, as it would be silly to get excluded because you'd not followed the submission terms they've set out.

Good luck to all who enter...

Good Housekeeping Novel Competition - Latest News

Apparently there's been an announcement on Facebook to say that the winner has been notified, as have the 14 runners-up.

The August issue of Good Housekeeping magazine will feature details of the winning author, and an extract of their entry.

7,000 entries were seen by Orion Books readers, and the judges were apparently impressed by the standards of the writing received.

So if you entered and didn't make the final cut then sympathies- competition was obviously tough.

And if you did get into that final selection, well done.

Of those writers I know who entered, none have heard anything.

So pass the news on...

Novelist, Short Story Writer or Both?

Good news on the short story; I've got it down to the 2,000 words I was aiming for. It's now having a 'rest' while I finish sorting out my formatting issues.

When my story finally reaches it's destination I want to ensure that not only is the story good, but it's appearance is right too, so it gives the editor no extra work- if it gets to the accepted point...

The mention of short stories in the interview between bloggers Rosemary Gemmell and Patsy Collins, started me thinking.

Patsy has had a lot of short stories published in Women's Magazines and elsewhere, but has recently seen the publication of her debut novel 'Escape to the Country'- I read it recently and really enjoyed the heart-warming tale which left me smiling by the last page.

When asked about the transition from short-story to novel, Patsy said, " I began a short story that I couldn't seem to end. After a while I stopped trying to keep it short and turned it into a novel."

I can sympathise, that is the problem I have all the time. I come up with an idea that I think is a short story but it quickly becomes clear that it isn't. It's a bigger story with sub plots, more characters and action, that my mind knows is a novel/novella before I've consciously accepted it.

Yes, it's important to be able to write short stories, as they help you learn many of the skills you will later need for writing a novel. I realised that a long time ago.

I started a novel in 1999 and got to 40,000 words, and where I'd originally envisioned the end; but it had become obvious that a) I was only half way through the story- I had a lot of scenes in my head (they're still there too) and b) I needed to learn a lot of writing skills to do it properly.

Some writers are poets, some prose writers, while others can do both. So perhaps there is a similar situation here- some are novelists, others are content to write short stories only, and the rest can do both quite happily.

I'd like to do both, but my creative mind seems reluctant...

Weather possibilities...

If you are in a dry part of the country/world today, lucky you. As I write the rain is continuing to fall and the wind is blowing. It's been a few very wet weeks where I am, with only the occasional day without the wet stuff dropping from the sky.

Seems if you mention the words 'drought' the dark clouds will arrive just to disagree.

So I thought I'd have a look and see what the weather was like in 1912, 1812 and 1712. Now as I don't have a time machine, I'm consulting the very interesting Agricultural Records A.D. 220-1977, by J.M Stratton (this is the 1978 second edition).

Obviously the cost of  wheat, barley and other commodities played a big part in the economy of the time, so records of prices were useful. In fact look at any microfilm of very old news-sheets and you'll see the price table for those goods that week.

If you lived in the country the weather often dictated plowing, sowing, and harvesting times.

Even nowdays I can look out the kitchen window at incoming clouds and know roughly when it's time to bring the drying washing in from the clothes line...

So 1712- a dry spring, especially during February-to Mid May (so that's different to now). Then hot weather until late June (that sounds normal for the UK summer) and then a wet autumn and winter...
But looking at the couple of years prior to 1712, there are some similarities to UK weather over this past couple of years.

Now 1812 was during the Napoleonic Wars- a wet year, which would obviously effect the eventual harvest badly- so prices would rise.
Apart from the fog in January in London, March had frosts and Scotland had mid-month blizzards (I think that may have happened this year in some areas). Rainy and cool during our two main summer holiday months-July and August. And included with the early winter, London had some October floods.

1912- the year of the Titanic disaster. Gales in January and March with a dry spell in between. April, unlike 2012, was dry. But the overcast and wet summer struck then too. A hot spell was followed by "excessive rain" over the counties in the east. 4 inches in 24 hours. After flooding in a few regions the rest of the year seems to have been standard, apart from a gale in Scotland on Christmas Eve that resulted in injuries.

When I think about it, there could be a number of stories just in some of the weather occurrences mentioned- pursuit through the London fog, someone suddenly homeless on that Scottish Christmas Eve.

So many possibilities just because of how the weather was...

News Round-Up - April

Just a few items you might want to follow-up... :-)

Novelicious Undiscovered - The Top 20

The twenty names and the titles of their entries are now posted on the Novelicious website, and starting on the 1st May, one story will feature every day, allowing readers to comment, but not vote-yet. That begins on the 5th of June.

It's reassuring to see that it's not going to be done by popularity vote, in a way that would enable multiple votes from those who have a lot of friends...You can only vote once and there will be a form to fill in.

Sympathies if you entered and didn't get into the shortlist- but with over 200 entries, choosing 20 must have been a tough task.


Grazia and Orange’s ‘First Chapter’ Competition

Seems the terms and conditions that were posted originally have since been expanded on.

They have also added the words "Entries in the incorrect format will not be considered." But there doesn't seem to be anything defining what their correct format is...

This addition is sure to mean inexperienced entrants being excluded. Adding details like this when a competition is underway is not right.


Flash Fiction Competitions

Details of more competitions have been added to the competition page of the National Flash Fiction Day website.
Just scroll down the page to read the latest competitions with closing dates in May or beyond.

And finally

Workshop

The Writing Romantic Fiction Workshop with Kate Walker at Nottingham Writers' Club on Saturday 19th May 10am to 4pm.

There are a handful of places left, so if you're interested click on the Workshop link above. The price for the day is a great deal less than many one day workshops charge, so take a look.

The History and Future of my Short Story ...

This month I've been revising one of my short stories.

It was originally written as a 1,000 word story for a (new) annual competition at the writers' club back in late 2007. It didn't get anywhere, but I'd had to cut it to get it to the required length, and honestly it lost something.

So I decided to rewrite it and the total went up to about 1,500 words.

It got put aside and didn't reappear for a couple of years, until I decided to enter it in a sort of competition that Writers Forum was running with a few of the weekly women's magazines. I knew it wasn't good enough to be selected for publication- entry was free, but for a few pound you could get a critique from the judge.

The one page crit was really worthwhile and showed me how much I had right and what the niggles were- that I hadn't been able to pin down myself because I was too close to it, and inexperienced.

More time passed and after doing a workshop on short story writing for women's magazines, the tutor agreed to read and critique a story up to 2,000 words. She herself had sold lots of short stories to the women's magazine markets, and I'd read a couple of hers not long before the event and enjoyed them.

It was reassuring that the comments I received were more good news than bad. My story was almost up to a publishable standard, it just had a few minor areas that needed work.

In solving the first lot of weak points I'd created other small issues, but I was quite capable of solving them.

Since then it's gone through a couple of versions, but with time away from it and developing my writing and editing skills, I decided now was the time to make a final push at getting it finished and sent off, hopefully to be bought and published...

There were elements that I needed from three different versions of the story, so began the slow task of cutting and pasting the appropriate sections from each version. The plot was still the one I started with, but my characters had developed, and I'd discovered facts about them which I hadn't known all those years ago.

Yesterday (Wednesday) I finally completed the combining/rewriting as I went along stage. My story has now reached a length of 2, 040.

Now if I can just lose those forty words somehow, I'll be happy. So a final edit beckons.

The womag short story market has changed so much over the time I've been rewriting. The magazine it would have worked best for, no longer accepts submissions from new writers, and it's 50/50 for the second target market.

The other potential home may be the Alfie Dog Ltd short story download website. It's open for submissions and I know the editor won't accept substandard stories.

The writer earns money from their stories being purchased by readers- read the outline of how it works here, and royalty details here. The submission process is all online, so no postal costs are involved.

Whatever eventually happens to my short story, good news or bad, I'll let you know...

Happy Monday-World Book Night, Shakespeare and St. George...

Phew! Today really is busy...

Happy St. George's Day to all those living in England.

Happy Birthday to the greatest and best known playwright in the world, William Shakespeare, who grew up in Stratford-upon-Avon in Warwickshire.

I spent a lot of summer holiday's there in my early 20's, I would book theatre tickets for whichever productions were on at the RSC (Royal Shakespeare Company) during my chosen holiday week, find a nearby hotel or bed and breakfast and immerse myself in the town and Shakespeare's plays.

(It was quite normal to walk past well-known actors in the street, or to be standing in the same queue as them in a shop without anyone bothering them...)

When I wasn't at the theatre, I would stroll alongside the river, sit and read, or just enjoy the calmness away from the traffic and bustle. I even ventured onto the river in a small hired row boat- I did wonder if I would ever get back to land a few times, but I could certainly appreciate how tiring rowing a boat can be.

During the day I did the tourist trail- I've visited his birthplace a few times, and always found something new to learn. You can find out more here.

The other big event today is World Book Night.

You can get a brief overview of some of the events from this Bookseller.com article.

But if you think the hoo-ha is too much then here's a few other ways to celebrate the giving of books.

Nicola Morgan is doing her Complementary World Book Night again this year-after getting a lot of tv and press coverage for her views in 2011. She'll be going to the book shop and buying books to give.
This way the bookshop gets sales (high street bookshops need people to go in and buy books from them, to keep running), the writer of the book earns royalties, and the publisher gets money too.

And if you'd like to support independent authors then do visit Authors Electric who are celebrating WBN by offering a selection of their e-books for free on the 23rd/24th April. A great opportunity to try out some new authors.

Well I'm off to do some writing before chores take over.

Happy World Book Night/Happy St.George's Day. :-)

Competition News...

You may have been fortunate in not getting the heavy prolonged rain that I've experienced this week, but if you have, and you've had to go out in it- as I did, you have my sympathy.

So to cheer you up, I've got a few competition details you might like.

• Words with Jam First Page Competition 2012.

"What are we looking for: the most gripping, read-on-able first page of up to 400 words. Any genre, but as always we're looking for The Best First Page."

Entry cost: £6 for one entry or £10 for two but the winner receives £500, while 2nd and 3rd get £100/£50 respectively. And the three winning entries will be published in the August 2012 issue of Words with JAM.
It will be judged by the author of '22 Britannia Road', Amanda Hodgkinson.

Details here and here.

• Grazia and Orange’s ‘First Chapter’ Competition.

Best-selling author Rosamund Lupton has written the opening paragraph which leaves you to complete the chapter in 800-1,000 words.

Sadly this appears to be a UK entrants only- if you look at the general rules and conditions. It is free to enter, but you must include with your entry a brief bio and a passport photograph of yourself, with your date of birth and occupation included on your contact information sheet.

The winner is awarded £1,000 and attends a party (invitation only) at The Royal Festival Hall on the 30th May- presentation on stage. There are two runner-up prizes of £500 each. The winner's story will appear in Grazia, while the runners-up will see their story on the website. All will receive the short-listed books for this year's Orange Prize.

This may be one to avoid if you're well over the target age range for the magazine's readership- but that's my personal opinion only.

Details here

• If you're interested in Crime-writing not doing- here's an ongoing competition opportunity.

"Writers’ & Artists’ Yearbook, in association with Bloomsbury Publishing and The Crime Writers’ Association, have launched the Short Sentencecrime writing competition."

"Tell a tale of dastardly deeds in 1000 words or less. A new theme will be set every two months and we will select a winner for each theme. Entries will be collected throughout the year and we will also announce one overall winner during National Short Story Week in November."

One of the best bits about the prizes is a ticket for the Harrogate Crime Festival 2013.

For full details see here.

There's lots of competitions around at the moment, so you'll be sure to find something you like and if you know anyone who might be interested please direct them here. :-)

Scarred Baddies Are a Stereotype...

Late last week there was an item in a few of the newspapers about stereotyping in movies of those with facial disfigurement- scars indicate a baddie.

If you are interested in the campaign to change this attitude, then you'll find the BBC News article here and the Changing Faces website here, where you can watch their short film that is being shown in 750 cinemas across the UK.

But it got me thinking about how disfigured people are viewed in romantic fiction.

In the classic, Jane Eyre, Mr Rochester is injured and blinded in a fire. Apart from his intention to commit bigamy by marrying Jane, while his first wife is still alive and locked up for her own safety, he's not seen as a baddy, he's just a man in an impossible situation.

In an historical romance context there are going to be scarred heroes and minor villains...

Before guns, men used swords, and in a fight or a battle if you didn't die from the vicious sword wound you'd probably die from blood poisoning. And if you did survive there would be scars- yes they would fade a little in time, but they would still be visible.
Wounds would be sewn with a needle and thread, and the neatness of the scar would depend on how good the doctor (or whoever was doing the stitching up) was with their stitches...

No doubt there were people in past times who turned away from those who suffered disfigurement, or heavy scarring, just as many still do now days.

Certainly in some of the American historical romances I've read over the years, the heroine drags the scarred and/or disabled hero back into the light, and back into society by the healing power of her love.

The baddies in these stories often lack scars, in fact they look just like anyone else- they can even be women!

So no cinema stereotypes there, quite the opposite in fact...

Agency Model Revisited...

It's been quite difficult to keep up with the almost daily changes going on in relation to Apple, the big name publishers, e-books and the 'Agency Model'.

At the moment there's no final news on the results of the investigation being undertaken by the European Commission (on whether any competition laws have been infringed by agency model pricing).

But earlier this week the US Department of Justice filed papers alleging conspiracy, by Apple and five US publishers, over fixing e-book prices.
Obviously the publishers refuted this and Apple's spokesman denied any collusion.

Now, I'm inclined to accept they didn't actually get together and agree to fix prices- after all they're competitors in one way. But obviously once one publisher does something major, the others are bound to look at it and quickly follow suit without reference to their fellow publishers, just to avoid being put at a disadvantage in the market...

And they probably all share the desire to get one up on Amazon, just to get a little control back...

Three publishers quickly settled with the DoJ and agreed terms- read this piece in the Bookseller explaining.

Meanwhile four publishers have apparently offered a deal to the EC.

While there's a split between those publishers who've agreed to their agency terms being modified, and the remainder who are holding out, surely Amazon will take advantage?

You can read Alison Flood's concerns in the Guardian, 'The Apple ebook price-fixing lawsuit has terrifying implications'.

If your head is spinning from all those links, then you'll find this extensive piece, 'Agency is dead, long live new agency' by Phillip Jones rounding up all the information, with essential quotes and links, plus the implications of these changes, useful.

I can see 2012 is going to prove very interesting...

Commenting Problems Anyone?

A writer friend has let me know that she tried commenting on my blog a number of times and her message wasn't getting through.

So, I've removed the horrid Captcha and put comments on Moderated for the moment. I check my blog regularly so if you comment and you don't see your message after a couple of days please let me know, using the address on the right hand side of the page.

Sadly my blog gets frequent visits from spam websites (hence the moderation for the time-being) even though I don't click on those sites when they appear in my stats.

So thank you for visiting and reading, and I hope to read your comments soon. :)

Some Interesting Results for Historical Fiction...

A few weeks ago- okay perhaps slightly more than a few weeks- I followed a link to a survey on Historical fiction reading. This wasn't aimed at Historical Romance, or writers, it was for Historical Fiction readers generally.

Well the answers have been collated, and it certainly raises some interesting aspects about reading historical fiction, that even romance writers might find useful; many of the answers probably won't be a surprise.

In Mary Tod's survey results, which you'll find in a link on her blog 'A Writer of History-thoughts about writing historical fiction', the responses to the question asking 'Have you always enjoyed historical fiction?' showed (that of the 805 people (of both sexes) who responded to the survey) that 533 had been reading HF since they were a child/teenager.

The most popular reason for reading historical fiction was to "bring the past to life, appreciating how people lived and coped in very different times."
A good example of why getting your novel's setting, and the lifestyle and behaviour of your characters right is important.

And "a great story" was the second popular option...

For the many writers of Medieval and Tudor based stories, you're clearly producing work for the favoured time period.

There's a lot more information to discover including the frequent book or e-book buying preference.

So pop over to Mary's blog and find out more...

Historical Time Periods: Which Do You Prefer?

Over the years I've read novels that have ranged from Roman to Medieval, and on to Victorian times- I've enjoyed some more than others.

In college I studied Ancient History for O'level and when I moved on to A'level History I was starting in the 18thC, and I really couldn't get on with it.

I enjoyed the Victorian section of the course, with all the political change, but the 18thC was my downfall...

So perhaps it wasn't so surprising when my first novel was set in the early Victorian period when a lot of advancements began to take place- the continuing decline of the old horse-drawn coach services and the emergence of railways.

(No it didn't get finished, it only got to 40,000 words. Mainly because I realised there was a big chunk of story that had emerged during the writing, and it had completely changed emphasis- there was a romance developing against the story background which hadn't been intentional.

With that realisation there was the need to change the time period to fit the romance plot.
And I didn't have the knowledge and experience then to know I should just keep going and sort it out later...One day I might get back to sorting it out...)

I like reading novels set in the Regency, but I don't think I could write one. But if you want a source of information then Social Customs During the Regency on the blog for Jane Austen's World, has a lot of links under the numerous topics- too many to list here, and wide ranging.

It was actually my Dorset novel that started to get in the way of that first one, and it hastened the 'put it in a box and move on' moment.

Originally my Dorset novel was going to have a smuggling background, but again the facts and circumstances of the time period interfered- and for certain elements that I needed for my plot, a slightly earlier setting than I'd originally anticipated was essential.

It was during my research for that time span that I finally started to grasp the 18th C.
If I'd been able to approach the 18thC in this way back when I was doing my A'level, I might have got  the 1700's when I needed it...

It's the Weekend and Synopsis...

As it's Easter weekend- and I'm meant to be helping in a big tidy up my hubby has planned- It's only going to be a short post...

If you've ever struggled with writing a synopsis then have a look at the tips given by Nicola Morgan over on her Help! I Need A Publisher blog.

I have her e-book 'Write A Great Synopsis- An Expert Guide' and would recommend it if you are struggling, or don't know where to start.

Have a great weekend and don't eat too much chocolate.

I have to admit one chocolate egg was consumed yesterday afternoon/evening, but it was dark chocolate. :-)

New Role...

I've finally managed to get the computer to myself so I can catch up with all the news. Easter school holidays make writing of any sort difficult.

Last night (Wednesday) was the AGM at Nottingham Writers' Club. Sadly the cold and dreadful weather we had yesterday meant we didn't have too many people turn up, but there were enough attending to elect the Committee and discuss any issues that members wanted to raise.

Like any group it's hard to get people to volunteer for club committees as it is hard work. I started out as Assistant Secretary ten years ago, and progressed to Secretary, then Vice Chairman. Then last night I became Chairman.

It's only for a maximum of three years and if they get fed up with me, they can always elect someone else next April... :-)

I have to say that I've gained a number of skills during the time I've been on the Committee. I've met a number of writers and learnt from every one of them.
My organisational skills have developed- just wish I knew how to transfer that knowledge to a couple of my offspring...

When you work on a committee- any committee- you learn how to work with other people, and
multi-tasking.
Also you gain confidence, not only in yourself, but for dealing with other people.

I'm a different person to the woman who attended her first writers' club meeting eleven years ago, worried about not fitting in, or being good enough to join.

I quickly learnt that I needn't worry on either point.

So if you belong to a writers' group (anywhere in the country) and it's run by a Committee, then consider helping out, without volunteers groups may not be able to carry on.

 You only realise the value of something when it's no longer available...

Romance Terminology-Hero Types...

For any UK reader of Romance novels, who venture into US romance blogs, or reviewing websites there are terms you might not recognise, as well as those you'll be familiar with. So read this ABC of Romance from a few months ago and see which ones you recognise.

Alpha and Beta males are fairly standard. But now you can add Gamma Males. I like this term, as I really think my heroes fit this description. Gamma males are a mix of Alpha and Beta types and for me they can have everything I might want.

Now we like Alpha males (strong, dominant men who take charge), but honestly, I don't think I could live with one all the time and not want to smash him around the head!!!

Likewise Beta males are good (smart, know the value of humour, friendly, but aren't going to throw you over their shoulder and take you back to their lair), but sometimes you might like a little bit of those Alpha  tendencies...

So with a Gamma type you can have the nonthreatening hero who will turn into the decisive, instinctively strong male who will fight to save or protect, when those he cares for are threatened.

Alternatively, your strong man can show a softer side, supporting an unlikely charity, or has a pet that was an abandoned dog, and has now become his shadow...

Would you add any UK terms to the list in the article?

Are there any terms you particularly like or dislike?

Would you define the main types differently?

Yes, you guessed, I'm married to a Gamma type- and wouldn't change him... :-)
(Perhaps that's why most of the heroes in my stories are Gammas too.)

Oddest Book Title of the Year Winner Announced...

It's 'Cooking with Poo' by Saiyuud Diwong - and as I mentioned previously Poo is Thai for crab- but apparently Poo is also the author's nickname, so hence the title.

The winner got 38% of the votes, while the second place title (about the chicken sexer in Hebden Bridge) received 22% of the 1,363 votes.

Sadly the Estonian Sock Patterns that I favoured just couldn't compete with the top two titles, garnering only 12%...

For full results see the Bookseller article here.

So if you want publicity and sales for your non-fiction book, clearly an odd title can have its advantages...