Rushing to the door...

I was at a conference today, running workshops and promoting Asboville. Yep, still promoting it!

There were two guest speakers at the event, both writers of different sorts, both fascinating to listen to and both 'over there somewhere' in a different world that mere mortals cannot enter. Within a minute (quite literally a minute) of the second speaker finishing, the two of them were out of the place, to the taxi that was waiting to rush them to the station. No chance to say "hello", no chance to see if they were really human after all.

It got me thinking as I drove home, because the same thing happened with another writer last year, that whenever this happens it only adds further weight to the arguments of those who wish to write and see the publishing world as a closed shop. These people get paid to speak, for sure and of course they have places to get to and things to do, but is a little time too much to ask for, to sign the book for the person who just wants to say "hello", to answer a question from the shy person in the audience who doesn't like to ask in front of others, to speak to the would be writer who's looking for a little bit of advice or dare I say it, encouragement?

Your experiences please...

Is somebody trying to tell me something?

Today on Amazon, Asboville's 'perfect partner' book is A Can of Madness: An Autobiography on Manic Depression by Jason Pegler...

FOPP Signing cancelled/postponed

To anybody who was thinking of attending (there must be one or two of you out there...) I'm afraid the signing has been cancelled/postponed. I'm not really in a position to say why. I imagine all will come to light in the weeks to come. Sincerest apologies.

FOPP Signing

Four years ago I quit my job in teaching. I had a plan to move to Spain, get a part time job to cover basic living expenses and write. It didn't quite work out as planned for all sorts of reasons but those few months of having no job, when I had to write each and every day to justify what I was doing to myself, were the turning point. For years I'd daydreamed about being a writer and done next to nothing about it. Now I had a quota to reach each day and time to dedicate myself to what I wanted to do.

I split my time equally between two activities:

1. Writing

2. Looking for places to publish my works

I stumbled across a BBC Get Writing Competition, entered it and was a finalist. I discovered Openwide Magazine (who published my first short story), the Orphan Leaf Review and Ralan's Market List, places I visit regularly still. I had to go back into teaching but I was a different person. I had a belief that I could do it if I tried. So I tried some more.

I sent off stories and got rejections. I sent off children's novels and got rejections. But every now and then a small magazine said "yes" to a story and every now and then a publisher/agent sent back a letter that said more than simply "no thanks". I discovered TQR Stories in the USA and Thriller UK Magazine and Litro and they all said "yes".

I learned how to take the knockbacks (by writing more stories and working on novels harder) and I learned how to approach publishers. My girlfriend was crucial at this point, forcing me to approach publishers with belief and subtle persuasiveness. I developed a writing CV. I spent time working on submission letters, biographies, synopses and pitches. In short, I became more professional.

On Saturday 23rd June I get to give a talk and sign copies of Asboville in the FOPP store in Canterbury. It's at 1pm in the afternoon, their busiest time of the week. It's the biggest and most important event I've done since I started this whole thing.

I'm deeply grateful to everyone at FOPP for arranging this. Hopefully it's the start of a beautiful relationship!!!!!

Workshops

So since Christmas I've been shooting up and down and across the country carrying out creative writing workshops in schools. It's been an experience, a different type of teaching to my day job in my own school, thoroughly enjoyable and occasionally stressful!

It's been great to go into schools as a published author, to field questions from youngsters who want to write themselves, to offer them support and tell them it can be done. I've even managed to sell a few class sets to schools along the way.

I've always loved travelling by train, so workshops in Bath or Leeds for instance by train have been a real pleasure, combining the love of two things. I've even managed to get some writing done on the way and on the way back.

Friday 8th June however was a tough day. I only had to go to Bethnal Green so decided to drive. It was only 60 miles. I gave myself over 2 hours to get there...but arrived 45 minutes late. The poor teachers who had to look after the kids that were waiting for me must have been tearing their hair out. I met the head of the school in the corridor and he told me one of his staff lived close to me and made the journey every day. He/she gives himself/herself a 3 hour window each morning, leaving Whitstable in Kent at 5.45am. I told him I'd never have thought of leaving that early, but there we are, we live and learn.

I sent them some free books in a bid to redeem myself. I hope they forgive me just a little bit.

June, July and Beyond

A busy time this month and next with school workshops in London, Stanway, Manchester, Glossopdale, Birmingham and Bath as well as a few locally.

The final draft of the new novel is almost complete and will be heading to my agent very soon.

Plans are afoot for a children's book too (well it's a sort of children's book...) but I have to keep that to myself for a little while longer. I'll be working on this heavily during the summer.

I've organised a summer session of short story workshops at the Horsebridge Centre in Whitstable. Dates are:

Thursday 26th July
Thursday 2nd August
Thursday 9th August
Thursday 16th August

Sessions (7pm - 9pm) are designed to help new writers make inroads towards their first short story publication. These are not going to be 'how to write' workshops...more what to do with something when it's finished which is the thing I struggled with for years! I really didn't have a clue. More details on my website.