fransico alice

I’m with you and Sandra on not going graphic. Ramping up the PD and inferring what’s going on rather than full on graphic is definitely my preferred route. BUT, don’t ignore feedback either. What percentage of your Beta readers had this reaction? Could you ask the ones who didn’t mention this how they felt. It may be you’re being too short and…[Read more]

You are scorching hot at the moment. Long may it last!

I’ve been tempted to read Earthsea a few times, but was put off when I read Le Guin uses a quite distant narrative style.
This blog has piqued my interest though, and I think I might go find out for myself, because The Dispossessed sounds fascinating.
Thanks for writing about it Richard.

I really liked this Squidge. Very immediate, straight into the action. Lovely voice. Thumbs up all around.

This is brilliant news. Congratulations.

Huge congratulations.

I’ve tweeted John Alty.

Congratulations Philippa.

Thought provoking and intriguing as usual Elle. I very much enjoyed, but I’m with Philippa that, for me, there were perhaps too many vignettes. I thought at one point that you were moving us forward through time up until the telephone conversation, and then reversing us after that, because some of the names repeated, but then I realised it was…[Read more]

Hope you are able to get it up and running at a new venue Athelstone. Took me ages to figure out where my room could be! I reckon all of us must have a few e-mail contacts with other Cloudies, that when pulled together would cover the majority of those that signed up for the challenge. Perhaps messages could be passed on. Good luck with getting it…[Read more]

This has been a really encouraging thread for someone whose still battering at the agents’ doors. I am definitely one for bloody minded perseverance, so I’ve got that one ticked, and am always striving to improve my craft. I’ll take a look at those podcasts Philippa, they sound excellent.
I’ve just finished Mark Forsythe’s Elements of Eloquence…[Read more]

I know just how you feel Richard. It really sucks. But I tell myself if I don’t sub, I don’t have any chance, so keep on scratching at those doors.
Thanks for that tweet link Daedalus.

Thanks Philippa. It’s magical realism, so never going to be an easy sell, but I’m not giving up quite yet. At least I have that bit of paper from a professional saying it’s good that I can get out and stroke occasionally to console myself! Thinking about retiring my adventurous soul and writing some chick lit instead. :/

Following a really positive book doctor report on my MS that said in a fair world my book would get published, I started submitting back in May. I’ve had nothing but form rejections.
So my advice PB is, when the rejections start coming in, you have to hold on very tight to the fact that it’s not your writing that’s bad, it’s just very difficult to…[Read more]