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RichardB replied to the topic World Book Day 2019 – quite an experience! in the forum Blogs 7 years, 7 months ago
None of the holidays we used to have in France (we haven’t been there since we’ve acquired a sat-nav) used to be quite complete without getting comprehensively lost at least once.
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RichardB replied to the topic World Book Day 2019 – quite an experience! in the forum Blogs 7 years, 7 months ago
You have my sympathy on two counts, Squidge. Fifteen or so years on, I still shudder at the memory of my only encounter with the Boulevard Périphérique in Paris – which will remain my only encounter if I have anything to do with it. And losing the GPS signal just when you need it: I’ve been there too, more than once. So frustrating.
Glad the d…[Read more]
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Raine posted an update 7 years, 7 months ago
There’s an agent I follow on Twitter (and have subbed to, and has expressed interest but gone quiet) who has a lot of shared interest (feminism, birds, fun science) and I would normally ‘like’ a lot of his tweets but CANT because that would be stalkery and weird and it is a DILEMMA!
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Hah hah! I know that feeling!! Incidentally, would it be the right time to give him an email nudge, if he’s “gone quiet”? Or… maybe wait till after London Book Fair.
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Raine replied to the topic Plotting workshop notes in the forum The Writers' Lifeboat 7 years, 7 months ago
These look amazing, Kaz, what a great workshop it must have been. Thank-you so much for sharing. That might be my day’s reading sorted out!!
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Raine replied to the topic World Book Day 2019 – quite an experience! in the forum Blogs 7 years, 7 months ago
Oh Squidge, what a nightmare! I’d have been getting panicky too, being lost and in heavy traffic and with a deadline is a terrible combo. Hope the G&T therapy helped and today is devoid of traffic and Coventry. But all that aside, your visit itself sounds wonderful, so huge well dones for that. x
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John S Alty replied to the topic Plotting workshop notes in the forum The Writers' Lifeboat 7 years, 7 months ago
How incredibly generous of you to share your notes in this way, KazG. Thank you.
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Daedalus replied to the topic My Publishing Nightmare – the story of a book deal gone bad (Part 1) in the forum Blogs 7 years, 7 months ago
So here it is – Part 3, the conclusion of the story of my publishing nightmare, and how I finally recovered the rights to my novel from an intransigent and uncaring publisher. It was financially costly – but not nearly as costly as it might have been, and taught me a great deal about what not to do next time. Final blogpost, with as much in the…[Read more]
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Raine posted an update 7 years, 8 months ago
My mojo has been misplaced. If anyone sees it, please send it this way.
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A day off needed maybe? A walk? A few moments to remember how wonderful you are and how magical your writing is? Tea? Chocolate? It will return…
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Both tea and chocolate sound good! I decided to give myself ‘permission’ to not even try to write for a couple of weeks, rather than try and flounder. But I’m not sure that’s a good thing to keep doing as inertia and doubt set in – I know you understand! I’m away to test whether more chocolate is the cure…
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Time off is good, even if it feels dispiriting at the time. Honestly. My cats are worrying about you and the pompoms.
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Sending hugs, shakes, tea, chocolate, sharpened pencils, power ballads, more tea, pom poms, a fluffy cat, sympathy, and faith in you.
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Hopefully your mojo will be in there somewhere, too. xxx
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That is the splendidest rescue package ever!! Thank-you! I can’t tell the pompoms from the fluffy cat but I guess I will once I shake them…
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Hee hee!
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Hugs and chocolate and inspiration pills being sent over the ether now. Waiting for those replies doesn’t help, does it?
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Raine replied to the topic Warnings in the forum The Writers' Lifeboat 7 years, 8 months ago
Along the same lines, I saw a warning about a competition that was asking for all rights to ALL entries (not just listed ones) with no reversion mentioned. Yeah, don’t agree to that!
I second what @Phillipaeast says – mags/comps generally ask for first publication rights or english language rights for a period between (ime) 3 months to a year.…[Read more]
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Janette started the topic Warnings in the forum The Writers' Lifeboat 7 years, 8 months ago
I’ve set up this link that we have a place to warn each other of bad experiences in the writing world, or other words of caution we wish to pass on.
I’ll kick it off with something I came across while catching up on my Writers’ Forum magazine reading last night. This month’s issue features a warning that some short story magazines are beginning t…[Read more]
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Janette replied to the topic Short Story Publication/Competition in the forum Podium 7 years, 8 months ago
Just saw the news on the main wall. Congratulations, Stevie! Great to hear what the comps on here are producing.
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Daedalus replied to the topic Short Story Publication/Competition in the forum Podium 7 years, 8 months ago
That’s great news Stevie. Wonderful to hear of a RWAV story hitting success so early, it bodes well for the field in general
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Raine replied to the topic Short Story Publication/Competition in the forum Podium 7 years, 8 months ago
COngrats @stevie – that’s great news, and how multitalented you are! You were super-quick off the mark to get your story in already – I’m impressed!!
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Jules replied to the topic Short Story Publication/Competition in the forum Podium 7 years, 8 months ago
Congratulations, Stevie. Great news and very well deserved 😊
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Athelstone replied to the topic Short Story Publication/Competition in the forum Podium 7 years, 8 months ago
Brilliant news, Stevie. Well done!
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Sandra replied to the topic Short Story Publication/Competition in the forum Podium 7 years, 8 months ago
Oh, well done, Stevie, and deservedly so!
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Athelstone posted an update 7 years, 8 months ago
I expect many here know about Jericho Writers, the successor to the Writers’ Workshop that hosted the Word Cloud forum. It seems that they are about to offer a one-year Writing a Novel course to include a pass to the Festival of Writing and either the Getting Published or Self-Publishing day. It also includes a full MS assessment, one to one…[Read more]
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Oh yes (part 2): just to show how bad I am at reading things – it’s £4,950 / €5,700 / $6,500
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Well, that just answered my own question for me. At about half that price I might puzzle over whether I could stretch to it, but £5K is way out of reach
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Sounds to me like Harry’s got his head in the clouds again. Who on earth is going to commit that sort of money? Anyone who was confident enough of their abilities to make it seem worth it would be confident enough to think they didn’t need it, surely?
Incidentally, I see Retreat West, partners in this venture, is run by Amanda Saint, who was on…[Read more]
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At least 4 of the people in my self-edit group are publishing away, Richard. One of the our very own Bric. We definitely do not all move at the same pace along our paths!
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You’re as good a writer Richard. Anyway, people on each SE course are naturally at different stages when they come into it. Incidentally I still think that second novel of yours is cracking and would urge you to keep subbing it as well as working on AROS
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Agree with Daed and WB. We all take tge journey or mountain at what speed best serves us. And you should definitely keep going with AROS (as long as you want to!)
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Who the hell is going to pay £5k for that? For £5k you could probably do one of the more prestigious creative writing MAs
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Flippin heck. That is steep. With no guarantee at the end of it that you’d be published…
Amanda does seem to be getting on well – there are some other ex cloudies working with her now as well.
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Interesting… almost feels like they’re trying to offer something similar to the Curtis Brown Creative course. That’s a massive amount to invest.
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Ok that’s mad. For £84 you can join skillshare (having got the first 3 months free) and pretty much learn evetything being taught here from a choice of 100s of different teachers. With a bit of research and determination, you can find professional author groups to join that will give you a lot of the hand holding and help. Ok it includes the…[Read more]
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Yes, Jules, that’s just what I was getting at above. If you’re so near to the start of your writing journey as to need everything in this package it’s still basically a dream/hobby. And how many have that sort of money to blow on a dream?
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Chichester Uni’s creative writing MA costs £5,202, and features some fairly big names on the teaching roster. With all due respect to the people on the Jericho course, they ain’t Jim Crace or Kate Mosse.
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And of course at the end of that you have a postgraduate qualification as well as having received first-class teaching and support
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If I had 5k to spend, I’d spend it on an MA. YOu get the 1:1 tutoring from highly qualified teachers and writers, peer support, much more in depth writing tuition, and you end up with a degree that agents etc will sit up and pay attention to. No contest. (I wish I had 5k. I’d LOVE to study writing at MA level)
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Me too, Raine. And yeah if I had a soare 5k to spend on writing, that’s where my money would go too.
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Same
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Very much the same.
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Tick. I’ve learned that money spent on courses, assessments, etc isn’t necessarily well-spent. I’ve already wasted too much.
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Wow, Daeds, that comparison is a real eye opener. I wonder which will go best on a CV? He really has showed himself up for what he is IMHO.
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It is indeed a lot of money. It is rather aimed at complete beginners as far as I can tell, because somewhere (possibly in a blog about it) Harry has said that if you have completed a novel and are editing it then it probably isn’t for you (at least not for that novel) so it does seem like a write from scratch hand-holding affair. I’m sure that it…[Read more]
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Raine posted an update 7 years, 8 months ago
A note to those on submission or thinking of submitting – Agents etc are starting to gear up to the London Book Fair now, so March is a bad time to send stuff/expect responses. They’ll be totally preoccupied with prep, and then the week or so afterwards with finalising deals made there.
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RichardB replied to the topic Hull Paragon: The Million-to-One Chance in the forum Blogs 7 years, 8 months ago
They’re favourites of mine. And they were exceedingly good engines too. A design that stays in front-line express service for forty years is not to be sneezed at.
I own the current iteration of the Hornby Castle. A lovely model to look at, but my example is an erratic runner, so it sits on my desk as an ornament.
I told you I was a nerd…
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