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RichardB posted an update 7 years, 7 months ago
Three years ago I was told by a WW editor that my first novel hadn’t a hope of being published because there is no market for ghost stories, and particularly not those about haunted houses because they have been done to death. I was in the library last Saturday, and what did I find? ‘This House is Haunted’ by John Boyne (2013). And is the title…[Read more]
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John S Alty replied to the topic Logging in in the forum Admin and Technical 7 years, 7 months ago
But now, three log-ins later, it works normally.
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John S Alty replied to the topic Logging in in the forum Admin and Technical 7 years, 7 months ago
Clearing browser cache has no effect.
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Athelstone replied to the topic Logging in in the forum Admin and Technical 7 years, 7 months ago
Hi John
I’m assuming that you get the login screen with user name, password and the login button, but that if you click the button it just goes on showing you that screen. I wondered whether a broken page was lodged in your browser cache which is stopping the ‘logged in’ screen appearing even though you have successfully logged in. I’m not saying…[Read more] -
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Raine replied to the topic New Blog from Emma Darwin in the forum Blogs 7 years, 7 months ago
Ugh, toothache is awful @alanr. Hope it eases. I know that guilty feeling for not writing, but sometimes its good to step away for a while too. Or at least that’s what I tell myself when school hols make time to write a rare commodity!
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Raine replied to the topic As an opening… in the forum Critiques 7 years, 7 months ago
Naomi ALderman is great @squidge! Not always a comfortable read, but (haha) very powerful. I loved The Power, and I’ve also just read her newest – The LIars Gospel, which you might enjoy. I think. Some might not like the angle it takes, but I thought it was beautiful in its own way.
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Squidge posted an update 7 years, 7 months ago
Just wondering how many here were in the Sept (I think) 2014 Self edit course? @swoop @tenacityflux … Jody Klaire, who I don’t think has found us yet? Anyone else?
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I went twice to FoW, & was in a self edit course straight after one of them, with you & Tenacity. I’m going to have to work this out by cricket seasons I think, hold on….
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Jody was definitely on it, but I’m caught on whether it was 2013 or 2014
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I changed clubs at the end of the 2012 season. I missed my last match for my old club when they were relegated to be at my first FoW, then I missed the last match for my new club when they just escaped in 2013. I couldn’t take that any more & haven’t been since….til next year. Pretty certain my self edit was 2013
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2013? Blimey, didn’t think it was quite so long ago. There was Sir something on it too… can’t remember his cloud tag.
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Yeah, went to one FoW that I went to certainly. Had a beard but his name escapes me, although I’m pretty sure he lived a couple of valleys across from Skylark…..so that should be relatively easy to work out. He says…..
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@skylark. Ooh, there we go, technology!
There was a lady who wrote a novel that was a love story that involved spitfires? Think she was published shortly afterwards? -
@louisewalters – was it you in our group?!
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It was Hurricanes, but I’ll let you off, Neil 😉
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I did it before Mrs Sinclair came out, but after I got my agent, so I think it was in 2013 I did mine. But I think Neil was on my course – Hi Neil!- so I may be getting muddled!
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Yes it was @louisewalters in 2013, sorry I couldn’t remember, time flies. Sirtanic is who we’re thinking of, Mills?
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Wouldn’t @debi know this anyway? Or were all records cloud based?
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Yes, I wondered if records can tell us which intake we were all in?
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There are no records of anything that was on the Cloud at all. Everything went pfft. 🙁 I could tell people who was in their group but it would take me some time. I’ve just done it for one recent group. One person contacted me and said they wanted to get in touch with their group so I went back to the emails I sent out with the course pack at…[Read more]
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Oh blimey, no, too much work Debi. I reckon we can work it out if we stop and think, and search our own docs for clues!
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Sirtanic – of course! I think Neil’s right, it was 2013 for us all, cos I was working on Rurik (who is now Tilda) and think I’d published Granny Rainbow in that year so I had the confidence to revisit the novel.
Much good it did me – as I edited it again for the milioonty-umpteeth time last year. Thank goodness it’s got a contract with it now…
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Squidge replied to the topic As an opening… in the forum Critiques 7 years, 7 months ago
Haha! He’s the one! I could picture him…but not remember his name!
I looked up the author – her novel sounds brill, must look it up. I like the idea of women ruling the world 😉
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Sandra posted an update 7 years, 7 months ago
An anthology of poetry, kept beside the loo, results in a LOT more poetry being read than if I keep it by the bed.
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lol! I used to read poetry way more than I do now. Perhaps I should try your trick! Or by the kettle, to read whilst waiting for it to boil?
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I’ve been reading a bit more lately. The resurgence started after I bought Alan Bennett’s ‘Six Poets’ selection for the Orkney break. I remember thinking ‘Blimey, I wouldn’t have chosen that’ and never looked back
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Ath, Did you ever get round to reading Orkney’s no.1 poet, George McKay Brown?
The anthology I’m currently reading is 1992-2001.-
embarrassed to admit that I said I would, but I didn’t. However…I have just bought his collected works and am looking forward to some light and delightful reading if these words from ‘the poet’ are typical: When all the dancers and masks had gone inside
His cold stare
Returned to its true task, interrogation of silence.-
collected ‘poems’ not works
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Yup – that sounds like GMB – he inspired so much of my print work when I was at college.
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I wish I had been inspired at art school. I allowed myself to be ‘shaped’ into a worse artist than when I arrived.
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At least I had the courage to quit and go to university. Ah! The world of grants and state-paid fees.
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Benefit of being a ‘mature’ (haha) student.
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Did somebody in this thread alter or delete a reply? Just curious because a lot of it seems to have disappeared
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Yeah I found that- then THIS time I see above your last comment a box saying SHOW ALL 10 COMMENTS so perhaps it’s a space-saving gimmick.
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Ah – and it doesn’t work 100 percent.
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I can highly recommend Wild Embers by Nikita Gill. Her stuff is beautiful and makes me cry quite a lot! Also got Kumukanda by Kayo Chingonyi which is good too. A lot about coming from Zambia to the UK, which my mum did, so it feels personal in some ways.
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I’m finding it’s not the beautiful but the thought-provoking, recognition of something previously unvoiced that is currently jolting me into appreciation.
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Jonathan replied to the topic Festival Dreams in the forum Blogs 7 years, 7 months ago
Great blog, Skylark, and it’s so good to have seen your journey through the cloud and onto that stage (though I wasn’t there this year, you know what I mean). Long may it all continue! 🙂 Laughed at the train incident though. I did something similar when I was about 18 or so and had a few shandies. Difference was this was an older train where the…[Read more]
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John S Alty posted an update 7 years, 7 months ago
I’ve been working hard on our kitchen remodel – now finished, as far as these things are ever finished – and can get back to doing a bit more writing.
I wonder where this will appear when I post it? Finding my way around.-
I know what you mean about being finished! Fwiw this appeared on my ‘Activity’ feed
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Oh, don’t get me started on kitchen refurbs. We’ll be going to court in October over ours…
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Oh my word @squidge! That sounds horrendous! What did they do?
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Squidge replied to the topic As an opening… in the forum Critiques 7 years, 7 months ago
Thanks all!
Stella, I’ve not heard of Naomi Alderman at all – I’ll have to look her/her books up.
It’s sods law that what I’ve written makes you think of someone else’s work – originally the Power was rings, and I got slated by an agent over it being too LOTR, when the story itself is nothing like.
Ah well, they do say there are only so many…[Read more]
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Hilary replied to the topic Festival Dreams in the forum Blogs 7 years, 7 months ago
Thanks for posting this, Skylark. I, too, was very sorry to miss your speech, but glad to hear about it and glad it all went well. You continue to be an inspiration to others of us who are taking a LONG time!
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I have received six arcs this year so far about exactly that, Richard. And I note many othets coming into the library where I work. They are all some permutation on the haunted house. There is definitely a market for it.
And there’s The Silent Companions out recently and doing really well as a reading group type thing…
Forgot to say: though I say it as shouldn’t, I find the book less convincing as a ghost story than my own, and the climax is a bit OTT. Well, I’d better carry on with trying to lick my MS into better shape.
Not actually a Haunted House, but still ghostly, and very creepy, Susan Hill’s Dolly is the most enjoyable book I’ve read this year.
Yes, don’t give up @richardb! I’m not sure the talk of fashions is much help being as agents are always guessing on what will be next, and the things in the shops were signed two years before. We were told about 4 years ago that post-apocalytpic was done. But there are still agents asking for it, and still new books appearing in the shops. And I’m…[Read more]
I’m going through agents at the moment listing those with that particular request.
2013, you say. Maybe he was the one who did it to death…
I believe you when you say the book was less convincing than your own, Richard, I remember reading yours and really enjoying. It was spooky enough for me. Good luck with your MS and fingers crossed it will be available to buy soon.