Bren

  • John S Alty replied to the topic Story idea in the forum Coffee Shop 6 years, 8 months ago

    I couldn’t do this idea justice. The right person could really build the tension and explore the changing relationships of the three characters as the story builds. Interesting project for someone, but not me.

  • Well, I got away with the last one so this is another blog from the Word Cloud. Apologies again to former Cloudies who remember it. To repeat myself, it’s worth saying straight out that I’m also sorry if they seem too locker-room in style. The male gaze is overused and far less important than male writers suppose. But the blogs are who I was…[Read more]

  • Philippa East replied to the topic Story idea in the forum Coffee Shop 6 years, 8 months ago

    Ooo, it’s a bit like an updated spin on Dead Calm!

    BTW – don’t assume you won’t write this idea. I almost gave an idea once… but then realised actually I wanted to write it myself!

  • Aw, you star, Jane!!! Thank you so much!! It really means a lot
    BTW You are in the acknowledgements 🙂
    xx

  • Hi Athelstone! And thanks.
    Yes, I’m currently planning a launch party for February (whoop!). It will likely be in Lincoln, and you will all be welcome! Details to follow once I’ve sorted them out…

  • Well the story of the book is seriously interesting, so I can hardly wait to get my copy.
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    party?

  • Still a week left to enter the monthly comp!

  • John S Alty started the topic Story idea in the forum Coffee Shop 6 years, 8 months ago

    I woke this morning with an idea for a short story/novella. It’s not something I’d tackle so I thought I’d put it out there for anyone looking for a new project:

    Two women have taken on the challenge of rowing across the Atlantic for a charity – say, breast cancer awareness – and have acquired the necessary sponsorship, had a boat built and have…[Read more]

  • There was, of course, no such thing as corporate manslaughter back then. But I did hear that after one Victorian accident (not this one) where the driver was charged with manslaughter, Punch published a cartoon showing a policeman collaring the driver and a director walking away, with the caption ‘Yes, you’ve got one. But you ought to have got…[Read more]

  • Thanks both, especially for the kind words about how I currently write.

    I do have very vivid dreams, which are full of this level of detail. Sometimes, they’re full of sensation too, but this one wasn’t – I was simply an observer in this one.

    Why did it feel false to write? I think it was because I was consciously trying to make it ‘gorgeous’…[Read more]

  • I’m not sure. An I remember exercise about a particular relationship would be something of a curiosity I think. I enjoyed writing these short pieces because they helped me remember the taste of the time rather than focusing on every intense flavour.

  • With such a litany of abysmal systems, irresponsible staff and wayward practices, it’s a wonder that a lot more than fifteen people weren’t killed. Not that that’s any consolation. The people who ran the show ought to have gone to prison for a very long time

  • Hah hah! Reading back, I think I maybe make it sound worse than it was. Despite all the tears and tantrums, it still felt like a privilege to sit down and create something with my words. I still knew this was what I wanted to do. Plus, I have a lovely agent who I knew would support me. At the time, it was all so new though, such a steep learning…[Read more]

  • It’s really hard to believe that somebody could send deliberately ridiculous/obstructive messages like Herbert John when lives were at stake (and I know he was only 18). That said, it’s a level of managerial incompetence and hubris that almost defies belief. Sadly, as the years go by it’s clear that more than cream floats to the top.

    Another…[Read more]

  • Ditto. And *hugs* from me, too x

  • Railway accidents have many causes. Sometimes the fault is with the hardware: the signalling, the track, the trains themselves. More often one or more people make mistakes, through pressure of work, a moment’s lapse of concentration, or sheer negligence. But the Radstock collision of 1876 on the Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway was, fortunately,…[Read more]

  • Kudos for sticking with it all, Philippa – it sounds like it has really taken a toll over this year.

    Looking forward very much to reading it – I am sure that it will be worth every bead of sweat, nibbled fingernail and tear shed.

    And if it makes you feel better – Tilda’s just been published and even though we went through all the pages,…[Read more]

  • Hah hah, yeah! Well, I suppose I could have not bothered reading the page proofs and just left it to the proof reader. But when I asked other authors, they all advised checking myself, saying I would KICK myself down the line if I spotted typos I could have caught! TBH though, I’ll take page proofs over structural edits any day!

  • Love it! It was Donny Osmond for me, but not for very long. Adam Ant pushed him out!

    For I remember, I think we naturally turn to the most impactful memories – the really good or bad or unusual ones. I wonder if we tried to do a specifically ‘good’ version, how different it would be. Or how hard it would be to pick out those kind of memories?

  • Oh, Hil – your I remember struck a chord, as we’ve done this recently about people we’ve loved and lost to prepare an artwork for a community project exhibition (I blogged about it just today). Sending hugs – it’s never easy to do.

    Hope your time with your grandson helped ease the pain – you certainly got some interesting snippets! Love the belly…[Read more]

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