April 2013 writing competitions and events

Below is a list of writing competitions and writing-related events taking place next month. If you know of any others, please do email me.

COMPETITIONS

• Flash Fiction: Indies Unlimited hosts a weekly 250-word max. prompt competition – see Indies Unlimited. Also see ‘Short stories’ below.
• Flash Fiction: Writer Austin Briggs runs a monthly 55-word competition (different theme each month). It’s free to enter and you can win $55 (of his own money!).
• Flash Fiction: The NLG Flash Fiction Competition (that I am Head Judge of) is now open – see ‘June’ for full details.
• Mixed: Winchester Writers’ Conference has opened their 17(!) mixed writing competitions (deadline Friday 24th May). Details in their competitions brochure 2013. £7 per entry if attending, £9 if not.
• Mixed: Christian magazine Pockets has a different theme per month.
• Mixed (novels & short story collections): iWriteReadRate and Cornerstones Literary Consultancy (http://www.voteformyebook.com) are offering a monthly social competition to members of the community – see ‘Monthly’ towards the end of this page.
• Non-fiction: ​Elephants. You gotta LOVE ‘em! And can you WRITE about them? Let’s find out. We’re looking for FICTION (including but not limited to fantasy and humor) and for Narrative Non-Fiction, between 500 and 5,000 words.Prize for 1st place is $150 and 2nd place is $50. Plus, the top tales may be included in an anthology {ELEPHANTHOLOGY} with your name. See http://www.phylsbooks.com/#!contest/c1kbb. Submissions accepted from 1 April 2013 – midnight of 1 July 2013. Cost $10.
• Non-fiction: Nature Writer of the Year 2013. You could win a place on a research expedition to Madagascar. The judges are looking for a short piece of nature writing (800 words) that describes your experience of the wild. The winning story will also be published in BBC Wildlife magazine, closing date 30 April. Judges: Miriam Darlington, Ben Hoare, Rob Stringer, Kate Humble, Paul Evans. Open to all writers aged 18 and over, whether previously published or not,
  http://www.discoverwildlife.com/webform/nature-writer-year-2013-call-entries.
• Novels: Novel Rocket runs an annual Launch Pad Contest: Boosting You Out of the Slush Pile. Entries will be accepted in all genres beginning mid-January. The deadline for submission is different for genre categories according to the following schedule. In each case, entries must be received by 11:59 PM EST on the 10th day of the month (April to September) listed on http://www.novelrocket.com/p/launch-pad-contest.html. They also post a new writing-related article seven days a week, from author interviews to marketing discussions to articles about the craft of writing.
• Playwriting: The 7th King’s Cross Award For New Writing. Up to two full-length plays may be entered per writer, unpublished and unperformed scripts only. £5,000 prize. Closing date 30 April. http://www.thecourtyard.org.uk/content/25/writers-group.
• Poetry: Poetry-Next-The-Sea Open Competition. Judge Heidi Williamson, max 40 lines, £100 first prize, closing date 6 April. http://www.poetry-next-the-sea.com/index.html.
• Poetry: UK’S First Bug Poetry Competition marking Buglife’s tenth year as the only conservation charity in Europe devoted to the conservation of all invertebrates, closing date 8 April.
• Poetry: Buxton Poetry Competition History and Heritage theme, all ages, judge Philip Wells, 40 lines max, closing date 8 April. http://www.derby.ac.uk/buxtonpoetrycompetition.
• Poetry: The Writers’ Forum Poetry Competition is a monthly contest for poems of up to 40 lines. Closing: Monthly. Entries arriving too late for one month go forward to the next. Prizes: 1st – £100. Runners-up – A Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. Entry Fee: £5 each, £3 each thereafter. Includes a free critique (sae required if entering by post). Comp Page: http://www.writers-forum.com/poetrycomp.html.
• Poetry: other poetry competitions include Nonsense Poetry & Flash Fiction (2014), Ver, Writing Magazine (WM: open to all theme: horror), www.poetrypf.co.uk, www.swconline.co.uk.
• Poetry & Short stories: Deddington Writers’ Group Open Writing Competition 2013 Short Story or Poem. Competition information and entry forms available from website end January, 2013 or send SAE to: 7, The Daedings, Deddington, OX15 ORT. 1st prize: £100, 2nd: £50,  3rd: £25, awarded in both categories. Closing date 13 April. See http://www.deddington.org.uk/community/arts/writing or www.deddingtonfestival.org.uk.
• Poetry: The Royal Berkshire Poetry Competition open to all, 40 lines max, 1st prize £200, closing date 14 April. http://www.glowmagazine.me/poetry-competition.
• Poetry: Poetry on the Lake International Poetry Competition has a theme of ‘metal’. Top prizes of €200, judges include Anne-Marie Fyfe, closing date 22 April. See http://www.poetryonthelake.org.
• Poetry: The Winter Poetry Competition has grown out of the exhibition, Ice Dance, which features the photography and poems of Rona Campbell. The exhibition is touring throughout Wales and England in 2013 and the winners of the ‘Winter’ Poetry Competition will be announced during her exhibition at The Greenwich Gallery, London, on Monday May 13th 2013.There are three prizes £100 £65 & £35.We are looking for original poems on the theme of ‘Winter’. The subject is wide ranging and can be tackled through any number of approaches, including landscape, environment, political, personal or any other idea you may have. Poems inspired by Rona’s photographs are also welcome, and these can be found on her website www.ronacampbell.co.uk. The Judges are Aled Lewis Evans and Peter Read. Rules: 1.Writers must be over 18 years old. 2. Poems must be your original work, unpublished and not accepted for publication. 3. Poems must be written in English and not exceed 40 lines. 4. Each poem must be typed, single spaced on one side of A4 paper, which must not bear the name of the author, or any form of identification. 5. The titles of the poem/s and name and address of the poet should be clearly listed on the entry form. 6. The entry fee is £4 per poem, or three poems for £10. 7. Receipt of entry will be acknowledged if a s.a.e. is enclosed with the entry. 8. A list of prize winners will be sent if an envelope marked Prize Winners is enclosed with the entry. 9. Copyright will remain with the author, but the organisers reserve the right to publish any of the winning or recommended poems, up to one year after the end of the competition. 10. The awards will be announced at The Greenwich Gallery, Linear House, Peyton Place, Greenwich, London SE10 8RS, at a special poetry event on May 13th 6.30 – 8.30pm. 11. The judges’ decision is final and no correspondence will be entered into regarding the results. The poems will not be returned. 12. The organisers reserve the right to return poems and entry fees if the need arises. 13. The judges will read all the entries. 14 Closing date: Friday 26th April 2013. Cheques/POs made payable to ‘Winter’ and send the completed poem and application form to ‘Winter’ Poetry Competition, 5 Salisbury Road, Wrexham, LL13 7AS.
• Poetry: Ver Poets Open Competition 2013. Judge Nick Drake, 1st prize £600. 30 lines max, closing date 30 April. See http://verpoets.org.uk/news/competitions.
• Poetry: Ware Poets Open Poetry Competition 2013. Prizes: £600, £250, £100. £100: The Ware Sonnet Prize. Anthology publication for winners and shortlisted poets (£3.50, post free: pre-ordered). Closing date 30 April. Informal prize-giving ceremony at Ware Arts Centre, 5 July 2013. Fee: £4;  4 poems for £12, then £3 per poem (in the same submission). Length:  up to 50 lines. Sole judge: Susan Utting. Include contact sheet with usual details. Download flyer from website, or send SAE: The Competition Secretary, Ware Poets Competition, 21 Trinity Road, Ware, Herts. SG12 7DB or email: warepoets_competition@hotmail.co.uk and see http://www.poetrypf.co.uk/images/compware13.pdf.
• Poetry: Southport Writers’ Circle International Poetry Competition 2013 Final Adjudicator: Stephen Beattie. First Prize £150, Second Prize £75, Third Prize £25 A maximum of 40 lines per poem is allowed. Closing date 30 April. See http://www.swconline.co.uk/n1/?cat=5.
• Screenwriting: Canada-based Wildsound run monthly screenwriting competitions.
• Screenwriting: http://www.oscars.org/awards/nicholl/apply.html is a screenwriting competition with a late April deadline.
• Script: Royal Court Theatre’s 100-word plays and ’Ticket to Write’ 2013: competition for stage plays about The Beatles lasting 15 minutes, closing date 5 April. http://www.acedrama.co.uk/index.html
• Scriptwriting: The Nick Darke Award is open to all writers – stage play screenplay or radio play – prize fund £6,000. Closing date 29 April. http://www.falmouth.ac.uk/nickdarkeaward.
• Short stories: ​Elephants. You gotta LOVE ‘em! And can you WRITE about them? Let’s find out. We’re looking for FICTION (including but not limited to fantasy and humor) and for NARRATIVE NONFICTION, between 500 and 5,000 words.Prize for 1st place is $150 and 2nd place is $50. Plus, the top tales may be included in an anthology {ELEPHANTHOLOGY} with your name. See http://www.phylsbooks.com/#!contest/c1kbb. Submissions accepted from 1 April to 1 July 2013. Cost $10.
• Short stories: William Trevor / Elizabeth Bowen International Short Story Competition 1st prize €3,000, closing date 5 April. http://www.mitchelstownlit.com/index.html.
• Short stories & Poetry: Deddington Writers’ Group Open Writing Competition 2013 Short Story or Poem. Competition information and entry forms available from website end January, 2013 or send SAE to: 7, The Daedings, Deddington, OX15 ORT. 1st prize: £100, 2nd: £50,  3rd: £25, awarded in both categories. Closing date 13 April. See http://www.deddington.org.uk/community/arts/writing or www.deddingtonfestival.org.uk.
• Short stories: The Fowey Festival of Words and Music (formerly the Daphne du Maurier Festival) has announced the launch of the Short Story Competition for 2013. First Prize is £100 and Runner-up £75. Entry is £6.00 and entry form and full details at http://www.foweyfestival.com/the-du-maurier-festival-society-short-story-competition. The closing date is 19th April 2013.
• Short stories: Five Stop Story, Glimmer Train (different category each month), The Moth-Altun Short Story Prize, Nonsense Poetry & Flash Fiction (2014), Nottingham Writing Magazine (WM: open to all theme: horror / subscriber-only theme: food), www.francobritishcouncil.org.uk, www.west-linton.org.uk/content/pentlands-writers-group. Also see Deddington in ‘Poetry…’ above.
• Short stories: Hayley Sherman runs a monthly short story competition for submissions on any subject up to 2,000 words. The winners are published on the website, promoted online and receive a £10 First Writer voucher. All entrants are also considered for publication in The New Short Story Annual at the end of the year. Deadline 25th of the month. Heather Marie Schuldt runs a similar contest, although 500-750 words max., but with the same deadline.
• Short stories: Young Writers’ Competition. The annual Young Writers’ Competition at Jane Austen’s House Museum is entering its fourth year and is now open for entries. Annalie Talent, Education Officer said ‘Next year is the 200th anniversary of publication of Pride and Prejudice and so we have made the theme of the competition First Impressions which was the original title of Jane’s best-loved novel.’ Entries should be short stories of 300-400 words and entrants can interpret the theme in any way they want. Entry is open to all UK school pupils in school years 7-11. There are two categories: years 7 and 8 and years 9, 10 & 11. The competition will be judged by Professor Kathryn Sutherland of St Anne’s College Oxford and the Museum’s previous Writer-in-Residence, Rebecca Smith.
  Closing date 26 April. See http://www.jane-austens-house-museum.org.uk for details.
• Short stories: National Express / Little, Brown / Jenny Colgan are running a free to enter short story competition, max 2000 words. “We’re offering you the chance to become a published author. To enter, we would like you to write a short story no more than 2,000 words long with the premise of ‘take us on a journey’. You can use your own creativity to elaborate your journey into a literary masterpiece. The winning short story will be published in the back of Jenny Colgan’s, The Good, The Bad and The Dumped, e-Book edition. Closing date 28 April. More details here.
• Short stories: first Annual Sara Park Memorial Short Story Competition. Theme Journeying, max 2000 words, closing date 30 April. http://www.redsquirrelpress.com/SquirrelCOMP.html.
• Short stories: The 2013 James Plunkett Short Story Award for new and emerging writing talent, open to all writing in English who have not had a short story collection published. 1st prize €2,000, max 3000 words. Next closing date 30 April. See http://www.ireland-writers.com/index.htm.
• Short stories: 2013 Bristol Short Story Prize is open to all writers internationally over 16 years of age. Stories can be on any theme or subject and entry can be made online via the website or by post. Entries must be previously unpublished with a maximum length of 4,000 words (There is no minimum). Entry fee £8 per story. Closing date 30 April. 1st prize £1,000 plus £150 Waterstone’s gift card. 20 shortlisted writers will have their stories published in the Bristol Short Story Prize Anthology. See http://www.bristolprize.co.uk.
• Short stories: The 2013 Bristol Short Story Prize is open to all writers, UK and non-UK based, over 16 years of age. Stories can be on any theme or subject and entry can be made online via the website or by post. Entries must be previously unpublished with a maximum length of 4,000 words (There is no minimum). The entry fee is £8 per story. The closing date for entries is April 30th 2013. Prizes: 1st £1000 plus £150 Waterstones gift card, 2nd £700 plus £100 Waterstones gift card, 3rd £400 plus £100 Waterstones gift card, 17 further prizes of £100 will be presented to the writers whose stories appear on the shortlist. All 20 shortlisted writers will have their stories published in the Bristol Short Story Prize Anthology Volume 6. The winning story will, also, be published in Bristol Review of Books magazine. The 20 shortlisted writers will be invited to an awards ceremony in Bristol in October 2013 when the winners will be announced and the anthology launched. Any shortlisted writers unable to attend the awards ceremony will be sent their prizes. The awards ceremony will be part of the 2013 Bristol Festival of Literature. Judging panel : Ali Reynolds (literary consultant, former Random House editor), Bidisha (writer, broadcaster, critic), Anna Britten (author and journalist), Chris Wakling (novelist, Creative Writing tutor). Full details and rules at www.bristolprize.co.uk.

See this blog’s Competitions page for other competitions (in date / genre order).

EVENTS

• The Writing School Leicester April to August 2013 programme is now available.
• The London Writers’ Workshops latest programme is now available.
• A rare opportunity to get top tips on thriller writing from one of the best in the business is coming to Galloway.  On Saturday April 6th, Lin Anderson will be leading a two hour workshop at the Creebridge House Hotel in Newton Stewart from 2pm.  Lin is the author of the popular Rhona MacLoud series of crime thrillers which includes Driftnet, Picture Her Dead and Torch. She is the co founder of the Bloody Scotland Book Festival and is currently the chair of the Society of Authors in Scotland.  The workshop is being held as part of the Dumfries & Galloway Rural Literature Development Hub and the cost to any writer living within the region is just £5. This price, which includes refreshments, also applies to any writer living outwith the region but who is a member of a Dumfries and Galloway writers’ group. The cost for anyone outside the region is £25. The event has been organised by the Wigtown based Booktown Writers group and spokeswoman Anni Telford said: “We are absolutely thrilled that Lin has agreed to come to Newton Stewart. This is a marvellous opportunity with one of Scotland’s leading crime writers but places are limited.”  For further information or to book your place please contact Anni by e-mailing mail@booktownwriters.co.uk or telephone 07501 046501.
• Oxford Novel Courses is running a day-long conference of seminars at St. Hilda’s, Oxford (England) on 13th April entitled ‘Pitch your novel across the Pond and Beyond’. ”Learn from straight-talking agents, canny entrepreneurs and experienced authors amid the historic surroundings of an Oxford college.” (I went to St. Hilda’s for their crime-writing weekend last August, it is a lovely place) See http://www.oxfordauthorcourses.com for details. Cost £120 (discounts for members of professional societies).
• The yearly one-day (Saturday) Get Writing Writers’ Conference run by the Verulam Writers’ Circle, Hertfordshire, England has moved from their usual February schedule to mid-April (20th in 2013). They’re also on Twitter and Facebook.
• The yearly Chipping Norton Literary Festival runs every April (20-21st in 2013). You can also follow the festival news on Twitter.
• Cambridge-based Wordfest Spring Festival also runs every April and in 2013 is 12th-14th.
• THE LONDON BOOK FAIR 2013 runs from 15-17 April 2013, at Earls Court, London. The LBF has announced a partnership with book marketing and publishing consultancy Authoright, in the creation of a revamped AuthorLounge dedicated to unpublished authors at the 2013 fair. The LBF AuthorLounge will present new writers with an eclectic, compelling, cutting-edge, interactive and collaborative programme of events, seminars and networking opportunities designed to educate and inspire and mark the beginning of a new way of thinking about writing and publishing, providing a space in which authors can learn, create, have fun and, most significantly of all, take control. Already confirmed for the seminars are representatives from Faber and Faber, HarperCollins, Foyles, Kindle Direct Publishing, Matador, Andrew Lownie Literary Agency and Penguin. The AuthorLounge will bring together experts from all aspects of the publishing industry from editors, marketers, cover designers and booksellers to share their expertise and insights into the contemporary publishing landscape and, for the first time ever at the London Book Fair, unpublished authors will also be able to meet and network with literary agents. Find out more about The London Book Fair.
• http://www.chez-castillon.com runs a variety of courses by tutors including Jane Wenham-Jones with her ‘Is there a book in you?’ workshop from Saturday 27th April to Friday 3rd May 2013.
• Alt Fiction is a science-fiction, fantasy and horror weekend in Leicester and runs every April, although it’s on hold for 2013.
• Oadby Library, Leicestershire, England is running a Get Creative Fortnight 13-28 April:
  Saturday April 13 - 2pm-3.30pm £3 per child. Aesop’s Fables: the Lion and the Mouse Interactive storytelling from Lovers of Literature (LOL) with puppets and fun animal games for under 7s.
  Monday April 15 - 1.30pm-3.30pm pricing to be confirmed. Poetry Workshop with John Gallas Leicester Writing School tutor John Gallas leads a poetry workshop.
  Monday April 15 - 4pm-5pm £4. Roald Dahl Dance Workshop. Discover Roald Dahl’s classic books through the use of dance. A fun, enjoyable workshop for 7-10 year olds using props, materials and imagination to create journeys of movement through books such as James and the Giant Peach and The BFG.
  Monday April 15 - 7.30pm £8 including refreshments. Author talk: Stephen Booth. The author of the successful Cooper & Fry crime series discusses his books and the creative writing process.
  Tuesday April 16 - 5pm-7pm pricing to be confirmed. Short Story Workshop with Alison Dunn. Leicester Writing School tutor Alison Dunn leads a workshop focussing on the art of writing the short story.
  Wednesday April 17 - 2.30pm-3.30pm £4 per child. Explorers Dance Workshop. A dance workshop for 3-5 year old exploring classic children’s literature such as The Gruffalo, through movement and imagination.
  Wednesday April 17 - 6.30pm £8 including refreshments. Author talk : Lynda Page. The Leicestershire based saga author discusses her books and the creative writing process.
  Thursday April 18 - 6.30pm £3.50 including refreshments. Author talk : Malcolm Noble. Local author talks about his series of ten crime novels and discusses the creative writing process.
  Sunday April 21 - 10am-11.30am £4. Storytelling Workshop. What is a story and what does it mean to tell a story? This workshop looks at the connection between theatre and story and how the power of stories influences issues and facts into people and lives.
  Monday April 22 - 2pm-3.30pm £4 including refreshments. Secret Leicestershire. Local history author Stephen Butt discusses the hidden historical gems that can be found in your area.
  Monday April 22 - 4pm-6pm £5 per child. Under 12s Poetry Workshop. Using games and activities to explore different styles of poetry and techniques to create a poem.
  Monday April 22 - 7.30pm £8 including refreshments. Agent & Authors Q&A Session. Children’s books literary agent Penny Luithlen talks about the do’s and don’ts for submissions, and authors Bali Rai and Dan Tunstall share their experiences of getting published.
  Tuesday April 23 - 2pm-4pm £10 including materials. Book Making Workshop. Elizabeth Dyer leads a book making workshop. She specialises in handmade and altered books, ranging from simple folded paper books to more complicated book binding and book sculpture. For age 12 and upwards.
  Tuesday April 23 - 7.30pm £8 including refreshments. Author talk : Alison Moore. Booker Prize shortlisted author of The Lighthouse discusses the craft of short story writing and reads from her new short story collection The Pre-War House and Other Stories, which will be available to buy ahead of publication.
  Wednesday April 24 - 11am-12pm £4 including refreshments. Author talk : Margaret Kaine
  Local award-winning author of romantic historical fiction discusses her novels and the creative writing process.
  Thursday April 25 - 2pm-3.30pm £2.50 including refreshments. Self Publishing – The Opportunities and Pitfalls This session looks at the range of self-publishing options open to authors, how these choices can affect their chances of success, and some of the common pitfalls authors often meet.
  Friday April 26 - 7pm £5 including refreshments. Author talk : Anne Zouroudi The popular author of The Greek Detective crime series of books discusses her work and the creative writing process.
  Sunday April 28 - 2pm-3pm £4 per child. Bali Rai Workshop for Kids Local childrens author Bali Rai leads a workshop aimed at stimulating children creatively.
  Also, we are open for submissions for the Get Creative Prize 2013, a creative writing competition. Write a short story or the opening of a novel aimed at children or young people. There are three categories:
  Under 12s £2 per story (maximum 500 words)
  Teenagers £3 per story (maximum 1,000 words)
  Adults £5 (maximum 2,000 words)
  Prizes include a £50 Leicester Writing School voucher and a critique from children’s books literary agent Penny Luithlen.
  You can call in to Oadby Library at 10 The Parade, Oadby, Leicestershire to pick up tickets or call 0116 305 8763 to reserve your place at one of our events. Please note that tickets must be paid for and collected prior to the event. We have many other arts and crafts events, including jewellery making, calligraphy, streetdance workshops, the Utterly Butterly Ukulele Project and BBC Radio Leicester’s Down to Earth gardening programme broadcasting live from the library. There is something for everyone! Click here for Oadby Library opening times and directions.
• Creative Coffee Club is where creative people meet fortnightly on a Wednesday at Screen Lounge at Phoenix Square Digital Media Centre, 4 Midland Street, Leicester LE1 1TJ (UK).
• Liars’ League run a series of short fiction readings held at ‘The Lamb’ pub in Lambs Conduit Street, London on the second Tuesday of every month.
• Loose Muse runs on the second Wednesday of every month. at the Poetry Cafe, 22 Betterton Street, London WC2 (closest tube = Covent Garden). This is London’s only regular event for women writers of all genres, with a generous open mike sharing session plus two featured writers each month. The night starts at 8.00 p.m. Cost: £5.00 / £3.00 concessions.
• Towcester Writers’ Group meets every third Wednesday of the month. 7.30-9.30pm. Cost £3 includes refreshments. Towcester Library, Richmond Road, Towcester, Northants NN12 6EX.
• Buxton’s Word Wizards slam poetry competition runs in the coffee lounge at the Buckingham Hotel, Buxton, Derbyshire, UK at 7:30pm on the last Tuesday of every month. Entry is £2.50. More info can be obtained by e-mailing Rob at: poetryslamUK@aol.com.
• BookSlam reports to being “London’s best literary club night” and usually (but not always) takes place on the last Thursday of the month.
• http://www.artsderbyshire.org.uk has various literary events throughout the year.
• Other events in April include: www.cheltenhampoetryfest.co.uk (late March / early April), www.sundaytimes-oxfordliteraryfestival.co.uk (early April), www.birminghambookfestival.org (early April), www.galwayartscentre.ie/cuirt.htm (mid April), www.scarboroughliteraturefestival.co.uk (mid April), www.stratfordliteraryfestival.co.uk (late April / early May), www.wenlockpoetryfestival.org (late April / early May), www.hexhambookfestival.co.uk (late April – mid May), www.shrewsburybookfest.co.uk (late April – mid May)

See this blog’s Events page for other events (in date order).

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Morgen’s Online Non-Fiction Writing Group

• http://nonfictionwritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/335526669896374

Morgen’s Online Novel Writing Group

• http://novelwritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/508696639153189

Morgen’s Online Poetry Writing Group

• http://poetrywritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/388850977875934

Morgen’s Online Script Writing Group

• http://scriptwritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/319941328108017

Morgen’s Online Short Story Writing Group

• http://shortstorywritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/544072635605445

We look forward to reading your comments.

 

Today’s online writing groups’ poetry and story exercises (29th March 2013)

Every weekday I post a set of poetry prompts on poetrywritinggroup.wordpress.com and a set of story prompts on the script, novel and short story blogs (and poems, script / novel extracts, stories at the weekends). As you’ll see by the headings, you’ve missed a few but they’re listed on the relevant group’s Exercises page so you can always find them there…

Poetry Writing Exercises 060: Friday 29th March

Here are your four poetry exercises for today. Time yourself for 15 minutes for each one, then either have a break or move on to the next one.

You can do them in any order.

1. Keywords: ticket, eye, speed, pour, shadow
2. Random: Furrowed brow, brave smile
3. Picture: what does this inspire?
4. One-word prompt: twenty

Have fun, and do paste your writing in the comment boxes below so we can see how you got on!

See below for explanations of the prompts, they do vary…

• Sentence starts = what it says on the tin. You can use it at the beginning of the poem or include it later, and being poetry it doesn’t have to be exact – just be inspired by it.
• Keywords = the words have to appear in the poem but can be in any order and can be lengthened (e.g. clap to clapping).
• Single-word prompt = sometimes all it takes is one word to spawn an idea. Sometimes it easy, sometimes hard but invariably fun.
• Mixed bag = an object, a location, a colour.
• Picture prompts = nothing other than a picture. What does it conjure up?
• Title = The title for your piece.
• Haiku poem= 5 syllables, 7 syllables, 5 syllables
• Random = whatever takes my fancy!

Story Writing Exercises 064: Friday 29th March

Here are your four story exercises for today. Time yourself for 15 minutes for each one, then either have a break or move on to the next one.

You can do them in any order.

1. Keywords: feel, consume, sand, easy, smile
2. Random: S/he’s with her/his partner for her/his inheritance
3. Picture: what does this inspire?
4. One-word prompt: cheat

Have fun, and do paste your writing in the comment boxes below so we can see how you got on!

See below for explanations of the prompts, they do vary…

• Sentence starts = what they say on the tin. You can start the beginning of the story with them or a later sentence but they’re a great way of kicking off.
• Keywords = the words have to appear in the story but can be in any order and can be lengthened (e.g. clap to clapping).
• One-word prompt = sometimes all it takes is one word to spawn an idea. Sometimes it easy, sometimes hard but invariably fun.
• Mixed bag = two characters, an object, a location, a dilemma, a trait. Mix them all together and you have a plot… hopefully.
• First person piece or monologue (a one-sided conversation).
• Dialogue only = this is where you literally just write a conversation between two people. No ‘he said’, ‘she said’ or description, just speech and the reader has to be able to keep up. :)
• Second-person = some of you will know that I champion. The prompt can be in any style but has to be written in second-person viewpoint… oh, what a hardship. :)
• Title: This is the title of your story.
• Picture prompts = nothing other than a picture. What does it conjure up?
• Random = whatever takes my fancy!

Tips

• Don’t forget your five senses: sight, sound, touch, taste, smell
• Show don’t tell: if your character is angry, don’t tell us he is, have him thumping his fist on the table.
• Colours: Include at least one colour in your story. It does add depth.
• Use strong verbs and avoid adverbs: Have a character striding instead of walking confidently.
• Only use repetition to emphasise.
• When you’ve finished the first draft, read the story out loud. It’s surprising how many ‘mistakes’ leap out at you when you read out loud… assuming you have any of course!

Pictures courtesy of morguefile.com

** NEW!! You can now subscribe to this blog on your Kindle / Kindle app!

See http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B008E88JN0

or http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B008E88JN0 for outside the UK **

You can sign up to receive these blog posts daily or weekly so you don’t miss anything. You can contact me and find me on the internet, view my Books (including my debut novel, which is being serialised on Novel Nights In!) and I also have a blog creation / maintenance service especially for, but not limited to, writers. If you like this blog, you can help me keep it running by donating and choose an optional free eBook.

For writers / readers willing to give feedback and / or writers wanting feedback, take a look at this blog’s Feedback page.

As I post an interview a day (amongst other things) I can’t unfortunately review books but I have a list of those who do. If there’s anything you’d like to take part in, take a look at Opportunities on this blog.

I welcome items for critique for the online writing groups listed below:

Morgen’s Online Non-Fiction Writing Group

• http://nonfictionwritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/335526669896374

Morgen’s Online Novel Writing Group

• http://novelwritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/508696639153189

Morgen’s Online Poetry Writing Group

• http://poetrywritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/388850977875934

Morgen’s Online Script Writing Group

• http://scriptwritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/319941328108017

Morgen’s Online Short Story Writing Group

• http://shortstorywritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/544072635605445

We look forward to reading your comments.

 

Today’s online writing groups’ poetry and story exercises (28th March 2013)

Every weekday I post a set of poetry prompts on poetrywritinggroup.wordpress.com and a set of story prompts on the script, novel and short story blogs (and poems, script / novel extracts, stories at the weekends). As you’ll see by the headings, you’ve missed a few but they’re listed on the relevant group’s Exercises page so you can always find them there…

Poetry Writing Exercises 059: Thursday 28th March

Here are your four poetry exercises for today. Time yourself for 15 minutes for each one, then either have a break or move on to the next one.

You can do them in any order.

1. Keywords: shredded, plate, severe, won’t, start
2. Random: A formidable person
3. Picture: what does this inspire?
4. Thursday Title: Maggie remembers

Have fun, and do paste your writing in the comment boxes below so we can see how you got on!

See below for explanations of the prompts, they do vary…

• Sentence starts = what it says on the tin. You can use it at the beginning of the poem or include it later, and being poetry it doesn’t have to be exact – just be inspired by it.
• Keywords = the words have to appear in the poem but can be in any order and can be lengthened (e.g. clap to clapping).
• Single-word prompt = sometimes all it takes is one word to spawn an idea. Sometimes it easy, sometimes hard but invariably fun.
• Mixed bag = an object, a location, a colour.
• Picture prompts = nothing other than a picture. What does it conjure up?
• Title = The title for your piece.
• Haiku poem= 5 syllables, 7 syllables, 5 syllables
• Random = whatever takes my fancy!

Story Writing Exercises 063: Thursday 28th March

Here are your four story exercises for today. Time yourself for 15 minutes for each one, then either have a break or move on to the next one.

You can do them in any order.

1. Keywords: cold, windy, frosty, howl, screech
2. Random: S/he isn’t bonding with her / his grandchild
3. Picture: what does this inspire?
4. S/he isn’t bonding with her / his grandchild

Have fun, and do paste your writing in the comment boxes below so we can see how you got on!

See below for explanations of the prompts, they do vary…

• Sentence starts = what they say on the tin. You can start the beginning of the story with them or a later sentence but they’re a great way of kicking off.
• Keywords = the words have to appear in the story but can be in any order and can be lengthened (e.g. clap to clapping).
• One-word prompt = sometimes all it takes is one word to spawn an idea. Sometimes it easy, sometimes hard but invariably fun.
• Mixed bag = two characters, an object, a location, a dilemma, a trait. Mix them all together and you have a plot… hopefully.
• First person piece or monologue (a one-sided conversation).
• Dialogue only = this is where you literally just write a conversation between two people. No ‘he said’, ‘she said’ or description, just speech and the reader has to be able to keep up. :)
• Second-person = some of you will know that I champion. The prompt can be in any style but has to be written in second-person viewpoint… oh, what a hardship. :)
• Title: This is the title of your story.
• Picture prompts = nothing other than a picture. What does it conjure up?
• Random = whatever takes my fancy!

Tips

• Don’t forget your five senses: sight, sound, touch, taste, smell
• Show don’t tell: if your character is angry, don’t tell us he is, have him thumping his fist on the table.
• Colours: Include at least one colour in your story. It does add depth.
• Use strong verbs and avoid adverbs: Have a character striding instead of walking confidently.
• Only use repetition to emphasise.
• When you’ve finished the first draft, read the story out loud. It’s surprising how many ‘mistakes’ leap out at you when you read out loud… assuming you have any of course!

Pictures courtesy of morguefile.com

** NEW!! You can now subscribe to this blog on your Kindle / Kindle app!

See http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B008E88JN0

or http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B008E88JN0 for outside the UK **

You can sign up to receive these blog posts daily or weekly so you don’t miss anything. You can contact me and find me on the internet, view my Books (including my debut novel, which is being serialised on Novel Nights In!) and I also have a blog creation / maintenance service especially for, but not limited to, writers. If you like this blog, you can help me keep it running by donating and choose an optional free eBook.

For writers / readers willing to give feedback and / or writers wanting feedback, take a look at this blog’s Feedback page.

As I post an interview a day (amongst other things) I can’t unfortunately review books but I have a list of those who do. If there’s anything you’d like to take part in, take a look at Opportunities on this blog.

I welcome items for critique for the online writing groups listed below:

Morgen’s Online Non-Fiction Writing Group

• http://nonfictionwritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/335526669896374

Morgen’s Online Novel Writing Group

• http://novelwritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/508696639153189

Morgen’s Online Poetry Writing Group

• http://poetrywritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/388850977875934

Morgen’s Online Script Writing Group

• http://scriptwritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/319941328108017

Morgen’s Online Short Story Writing Group

• http://shortstorywritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/544072635605445

We look forward to reading your comments.

 

Today’s online writing groups’ poetry and story exercises (27th March 2013)

Every weekday I post a set of poetry prompts on poetrywritinggroup.wordpress.com and a set of story prompts on the script, novel and short story blogs (and poems, script / novel extracts, stories at the weekends). As you’ll see by the headings, you’ve missed a few but they’re listed on the relevant group’s Exercises page so you can always find them there…

Poetry Writing Exercises 058: Wednesday 27th March

Here are your four poetry exercises for today. Time yourself for 15 minutes for each one, then either have a break or move on to the next one.

You can do them in any order.

1. Keywords: hot, chamber, praise, down, shot
2. Random: A daunting task
3. Picture: what does this inspire?
4. Sentence start: When made in hope…

Have fun, and do paste your writing in the comment boxes below so we can see how you got on!

See below for explanations of the prompts, they do vary…

• Sentence starts = what it says on the tin. You can use it at the beginning of the poem or include it later, and being poetry it doesn’t have to be exact – just be inspired by it.
• Keywords = the words have to appear in the poem but can be in any order and can be lengthened (e.g. clap to clapping).
• Single-word prompt = sometimes all it takes is one word to spawn an idea. Sometimes it easy, sometimes hard but invariably fun.
• Mixed bag = an object, a location, a colour.
• Picture prompts = nothing other than a picture. What does it conjure up?
• Title = The title for your piece.
• Haiku poem= 5 syllables, 7 syllables, 5 syllables
• Random = whatever takes my fancy!

Story Writing Exercises 062: Wednesday 27th March

Here are your four story exercises for today. Time yourself for 15 minutes for each one, then either have a break or move on to the next one.

You can do them in any order.

1. Keywords: empty, motion, memory, ideal, depth
2. Random: He fancies his wife’s hairdresser
3. Picture: what does this inspire?
4. Second-person viewpoint sentence start: Taking your hands off the handlebars…

Have fun, and do paste your writing in the comment boxes below so we can see how you got on!

See below for explanations of the prompts, they do vary…

• Sentence starts = what they say on the tin. You can start the beginning of the story with them or a later sentence but they’re a great way of kicking off.
• Keywords = the words have to appear in the story but can be in any order and can be lengthened (e.g. clap to clapping).
• One-word prompt = sometimes all it takes is one word to spawn an idea. Sometimes it easy, sometimes hard but invariably fun.
• Mixed bag = two characters, an object, a location, a dilemma, a trait. Mix them all together and you have a plot… hopefully.
• First person piece or monologue (a one-sided conversation).
• Dialogue only = this is where you literally just write a conversation between two people. No ‘he said’, ‘she said’ or description, just speech and the reader has to be able to keep up. :)
• Second-person = some of you will know that I champion. The prompt can be in any style but has to be written in second-person viewpoint… oh, what a hardship. :)
• Title: This is the title of your story.
• Picture prompts = nothing other than a picture. What does it conjure up?
• Random = whatever takes my fancy!

Tips

• Don’t forget your five senses: sight, sound, touch, taste, smell
• Show don’t tell: if your character is angry, don’t tell us he is, have him thumping his fist on the table.
• Colours: Include at least one colour in your story. It does add depth.
• Use strong verbs and avoid adverbs: Have a character striding instead of walking confidently.
• Only use repetition to emphasise.
• When you’ve finished the first draft, read the story out loud. It’s surprising how many ‘mistakes’ leap out at you when you read out loud… assuming you have any of course!

Pictures courtesy of morguefile.com

** NEW!! You can now subscribe to this blog on your Kindle / Kindle app!

See http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B008E88JN0

or http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B008E88JN0 for outside the UK **

You can sign up to receive these blog posts daily or weekly so you don’t miss anything. You can contact me and find me on the internet, view my Books (including my debut novel, which is being serialised on Novel Nights In!) and I also have a blog creation / maintenance service especially for, but not limited to, writers. If you like this blog, you can help me keep it running by donating and choose an optional free eBook.

For writers / readers willing to give feedback and / or writers wanting feedback, take a look at this blog’s Feedback page.

As I post an interview a day (amongst other things) I can’t unfortunately review books but I have a list of those who do. If there’s anything you’d like to take part in, take a look at Opportunities on this blog.

I welcome items for critique for the online writing groups listed below:

Morgen’s Online Non-Fiction Writing Group

• http://nonfictionwritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/335526669896374

Morgen’s Online Novel Writing Group

• http://novelwritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/508696639153189

Morgen’s Online Poetry Writing Group

• http://poetrywritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/388850977875934

Morgen’s Online Script Writing Group

• http://scriptwritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/319941328108017

Morgen’s Online Short Story Writing Group

• http://shortstorywritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/544072635605445

We look forward to reading your comments.

 

Today’s online writing groups’ poetry and story exercises (26th March 2013)

Every weekday I post a set of poetry prompts on poetrywritinggroup.wordpress.com and a set of story prompts on the script, novel and short story blogs (and poems, script / novel extracts, stories at the weekends). As you’ll see by the headings, you’ve missed a few but they’re listed on the relevant group’s Exercises page so you can always find them there…

Poetry Writing Exercises 057: Tuesday 26th March

 

Here are your four poetry exercises for today. Time yourself for 15 minutes for each one, then either have a break or move on to the next one.

 

You can do them in any order.

 

1. Keywords: become, wait, see, freeze, scream
2. Random: A difficult decision
3. Picture: what does this inspire?
4. Tuesday Title: A wise direction

 

Have fun, and do paste your writing in the comment boxes below so we can see how you got on!

See below for explanations of the prompts, they do vary…

• Sentence starts = what it says on the tin. You can use it at the beginning of the poem or include it later, and being poetry it doesn’t have to be exact – just be inspired by it.
• Keywords = the words have to appear in the poem but can be in any order and can be lengthened (e.g. clap to clapping).
• Single-word prompt = sometimes all it takes is one word to spawn an idea. Sometimes it easy, sometimes hard but invariably fun.
• Mixed bag = an object, a location, a colour.
• Picture prompts = nothing other than a picture. What does it conjure up?
• Title = The title for your piece.
• Haiku poem= 5 syllables, 7 syllables, 5 syllables
• Random = whatever takes my fancy!

Story Writing Exercises 061: Tuesday 26th March

Here are your four story exercises for today. Time yourself for 15 minutes for each one, then either have a break or move on to the next one.

You can do them in any order.

1. Keywords: scream, twist, kick, overdue, trade
2. Random: S/he’s fretting about making a will
3. Picture: what does this inspire?
4. Tuesday Title: Always the bride

Have fun, and do paste your writing in the comment boxes below so we can see how you got on!

See below for explanations of the prompts, they do vary…

• Sentence starts = what they say on the tin. You can start the beginning of the story with them or a later sentence but they’re a great way of kicking off.
• Keywords = the words have to appear in the story but can be in any order and can be lengthened (e.g. clap to clapping).
• One-word prompt = sometimes all it takes is one word to spawn an idea. Sometimes it easy, sometimes hard but invariably fun.
• Mixed bag = two characters, an object, a location, a dilemma, a trait. Mix them all together and you have a plot… hopefully.
• First person piece or monologue (a one-sided conversation).
• Dialogue only = this is where you literally just write a conversation between two people. No ‘he said’, ‘she said’ or description, just speech and the reader has to be able to keep up. :)
• Second-person = some of you will know that I champion. The prompt can be in any style but has to be written in second-person viewpoint… oh, what a hardship. :)
• Title: This is the title of your story.
• Picture prompts = nothing other than a picture. What does it conjure up?
• Random = whatever takes my fancy!

Tips

• Don’t forget your five senses: sight, sound, touch, taste, smell
• Show don’t tell: if your character is angry, don’t tell us he is, have him thumping his fist on the table.
• Colours: Include at least one colour in your story. It does add depth.
• Use strong verbs and avoid adverbs: Have a character striding instead of walking confidently.
• Only use repetition to emphasise.
• When you’ve finished the first draft, read the story out loud. It’s surprising how many ‘mistakes’ leap out at you when you read out loud… assuming you have any of course!

Pictures courtesy of morguefile.com

** NEW!! You can now subscribe to this blog on your Kindle / Kindle app!

See http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B008E88JN0

or http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B008E88JN0 for outside the UK **

You can sign up to receive these blog posts daily or weekly so you don’t miss anything. You can contact me and find me on the internet, view my Books (including my debut novel, which is being serialised on Novel Nights In!) and I also have a blog creation / maintenance service especially for, but not limited to, writers. If you like this blog, you can help me keep it running by donating and choose an optional free eBook.

For writers / readers willing to give feedback and / or writers wanting feedback, take a look at this blog’s Feedback page.

As I post an interview a day (amongst other things) I can’t unfortunately review books but I have a list of those who do. If there’s anything you’d like to take part in, take a look at Opportunities on this blog.

I welcome items for critique for the online writing groups listed below:

Morgen’s Online Non-Fiction Writing Group

• http://nonfictionwritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/335526669896374

Morgen’s Online Novel Writing Group

• http://novelwritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/508696639153189

Morgen’s Online Poetry Writing Group

• http://poetrywritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/388850977875934

Morgen’s Online Script Writing Group

• http://scriptwritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/319941328108017

Morgen’s Online Short Story Writing Group

• http://shortstorywritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/544072635605445

We look forward to reading your comments.

 

Author interview with screenwriter and novelist Harry Duffin

Welcome to my blog interviews with novelists, poets, short story authors, scriptwriters, biographers, agents, publishers and more. Today’s is with screenwriter, novelist and spotlightee Harry Duffin. A list of interviewees (blogged and scheduled) can be found here. If you like what you read, please do go and investigate further.

Morgen: Hello, Harry. Please tell us something about yourself, where you’re based, and how you came to be a writer.

Harry: Well, I’ve been living on the Costa Blanca in Spain for the past 13 years, but I was born in Bradford in the Second World War, so that makes me a member of a very proud, special and notoriously boastful breed – a Yorkshireman. That made me eligible to play cricket for the best county in England but, though I was opening batsman for my junior and senior schools, I was never destined to become the next Len Hutton, or Geoffrey Boycott. So I had to look around for another career, and found my inspiration firstly, and mainly, through a wonderful junior school teacher called Mrs Poulson. She so encouraged my writing that I won 3rd prize in an essay competition in the whole of Hull, where I was brought up. That inspired me to believe that writing was something that maybe I could be good at. [It would be interesting to know if the kids who won first and second prize went on to be writers.]

At grammar school I was lucky enough to have another inspiring English teacher, Mrs Mayer, who fired me with her love of Jane Austen and Shakespeare. Out of school I began to devour Ernest Hemingway and F. Scott Fitzgerald among many others, and the dream of becoming a famous writer grew from there. A dream, I have to add, that I am still pursuing, [though over the years I’ve learned that writing is its own reward, and fame, if it comes, is a by-product that shouldn’t be pursued as the main goal.]

So basically, to sum up, I owe what writing success I’ve had to two amazing women teachers to whom I will always be deeply grateful

Morgen: English was one of my favourite subjects and I remember the best teachers being those but it didn’t twig I could be a writer until I went to evening classes eight years ago but then I have those years’ experience to write about. You’re a scriptwriter, was there a reason for creating scripts rather than standard prose?

 

March deadline writing competitions

A bit late this month but below are the competitions from my Competitions page which have March 2013 deadlines.

Also listed on the calendar are regular competitions e.g. weekly, monthly, quarterly, ongoing and of course competitions with other dated deadlines including one I’m Head Judge of, the NLG Flash Fiction Competition which has a 30th June deadline (500-word max, £2 / three for £5 to enter) but entries already welcomed.

MARCH

• Children’s: Academy of Children’s Writers, Crystal Magazine.
• Flash Fiction: Indies Unlimited hosts a weekly 250-word max. prompt competition – see Indies Unlimited. Also see ‘Short stories’ below.
• Flash Fiction: Writer Austin Briggs runs a monthly 55-word competition (different theme each month). It’s free to enter and you can win $55 (of his own money!).
• Flash Fiction: Flashbang 2013 is now open to entries: http://flashbangcontest.wordpress.com. Sponsored by CrimeFest. £2 entry free. 150 words maximum. Deadline 1 March 2013. First prize is two free passes to CrimeFest. Shortlisted and winning stories published online. Judge is bestselling crime writer, Zoë Sharp. Full details are here.
• Flash Fiction: Erewash has a free flash fiction competition. Deadline noon (UK time) Thursday 21st March 2013. Full details here.
• Mixed: Words for the Wounded (W4W) is a new charity that raises money via writing prizes and donations for the rehabilitation of wounded servicemen and women. All proceeds will be passed to projects such as Battle Back, funded by Help for Heroes, which uses sports rehabilitation to help wounded service personnel gain independence and confidence. W4W is launching its first writing prize on Armistice Day, November 11, and is calling for all non-writers, aspiring, and experienced writers to enter. Entries can be up to 400 words, written in poetry or prose, fiction or life story tale. Winners will receive a small cash prize and their entries will be published in the monthly writers’ magazine Writers’ Forum (http//writers-forum/com). Entry costs just £3.50 and the deadline is March 11 2013, winners will be announced on 6 June (D Day). Oscar-winning screen writer and author Julian Fellowes and his wife Emma are among W4W’s patrons. Julian says: “Emma and I feel strongly that we must never forget the debt we all owe to these brave men and women. We are honoured to be involved in this wonderful charity.” Other patrons include Rt Hon Lord Ashdown, Lt. Col J. Dryburgh, authors Katie Fforde, Katherine McMahon, Louis de Bernieres , Sarah Challis and Mark Hodgson, Daisy Goodwin, paralympian Ann Wild OBE, Taryn Lee QC, artist Rowena Hampton, extreme sportsman  Hugh Williams Preece, Lt Ian Thornson and Founder/Director of the Winchester Writers’ Conference Barbara Large. For more information, see www.wordsforthewounded.co.uk or follow us on Twitter @Words_4_Wounded.
• Mixed: Christian magazine ‘Pockets‘ has a different theme per month.
• Mixed: www.helenwhittaker.net/phpBB2 (shorts & poetry).
• Mixed (novels & short story collections): iWriteReadRate and Cornerstones Literary Consultancy (http://www.voteformyebook.com) are offering a monthly social competition to members of the community – see ‘Monthly’ towards the end of this page.
• Novels: Novel Rocket runs an annual Launch Pad Contest: Boosting You Out of the Slush Pile. Entries will be accepted in all genres beginning mid-January. The deadline for submission is different for genre categories according to the following schedule. In each case, entries must be received by 11:59 PM EST on the 10th day of the month (April to September) listed on http://www.novelrocket.com/p/launch-pad-contest.html. They also post a new writing-related article seven days a week, from author interviews to marketing discussions to articles about the craft of writing.
• Novels: Rubery Book Award First Prize is £1,000 and the winning book is guaranteed to be read by a top London literary agent from MBA Lit. Second and third prizes are £200 and £75 respectively. The books should either be published by an independent press or self-published. All genres welcome. Visit www.ruberybookaward.com for more details. Deadline 30th April.
• Novels: other March-deadline competitions include Dundee International Book Prize and The Next Big Author.
• Playwriting: Windsor Fringe Kenneth Branagh Award for New Drama. and www.sohotheatre.com (Verity Bargate Award).
• Playwriting: Cambridge Theatre Challenge: Would you like to write a one act play for the stage and enter it in a competition where short listed plays are given full performance, judged by the audience, considered for publication and given a written assessment by a publishing company? The winning playwright will also receive a cash prize of £200. Every play will be read in its entirety by a minimum of two judges and entrants will receive two lots of feedback on request, at no extra charge! A shortlist of up to ten plays will be drawn up and posted on the Sky Blue website.  Local actors and a production team will be assembled by professional directors to rehearse the plays for performance at the Junction Theatre in Cambridge 6th / 7th July 2013 where the audience will vote for the winner. Closing date for submissions is 30th March 2013. Plays must be submitted on line and full details can be found on our website http://skybluetheatre.com/newplaywriting.php.
• Poetry: The Writers’ Forum Poetry Competition is a monthly contest for poems of up to 40 lines. Closing: Monthly. Entries arriving too late for one month go forward to the next. Prizes: 1st – £100. Runners-up – A Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. Entry Fee: £5 each, £3 each thereafter. Includes a free critique (sae required if entering by post). Comp Page: http://www.writers-forum.com/poetrycomp.html.
• Poetry: other poetry competitions include Cardiff International, Fish Prize for Poetry, Literature Wales, MAG, Michael Marks (pamphlets), Northern Writers’ Awards, Writing Magazine (WM: open to all theme: creative acrostic mini), www.davidburlandpoetryprize.com, www.treehousepress.co.uk (Three-in-One), www.towerpoetry.org.uk, www.firebirdpoetry.com, www.scottishbooktrust.com/familylegends.
• Screenwriting: Canada-based Wildsound run monthly screenwriting competitions.
• Scripts: www.euroscript.co.uk.
• Short stories: Calderdale, Chapter One Romantic, Dark Tales, Exeter Writers, Fish Prize for Flash Fiction, Five Stop Story, Glimmer Train (different category each month), Meridian Writing, Mslexia, Northern Writers’ Awards, Rider Haggard, Writing Magazine (WM: open to all open: 750-words max / subscriber-only theme: last line ‘Out she walked with a spring in her step.’) and www.exeterwriters.org.uk, www.bristolprize.co.uk, www.greenacrewriters.blogspot.com, www.wyvern-publications.co.uk/competitions.
• Graffiti Magazine Short Story Competition Rules: *For crime stories* 1. Closing date March 16th 2013; 2. Entries must be in English and be the writer’s own unpublished work. They must not be on offer for publication or entered in any other current competition; 3. Maximum length 1,500 words; 4. Each piece of work, with its title, must be in clear type on one side of A4 sheet(s). Details of the writer must not appear on this sheet; 5. The name and address of the writer and the titles of all entries should be typed on a separate sheet of A4 paper; 6. The prize-winner will be notified by post, if SAE provided, or by email if email address is provided; 7. Entries are only accepted by post. Please keep a copy of your work, as entries will not be returned; 8. The fee is £3 per story. Cheques / Postal Orders in sterling only, should be made payable to ‘Catchword Writing Group’; 9. All entries that arrive on time will be considered by the adjudicator, whose decision is final. No correspondence will be entered into concerning the result. 10. Competitors wishing to be informed of the results should enclose an SAE marked ‘Results’ or provide an email address. Send entries to: Graffiti Magazine Writing Competition, c/o 33 Sandford Leaze, Avening, Glos. GL8 8PB (UK). Prize: £25 The winning entry and up to five of the short listed stories will be published in Graffiti. For more information: graffiti.magazine@yahoo.co.uk.
• Short stories: Hayley Sherman runs a monthly short story competition for submissions on any subject up to 2,000 words. The winners are published on the website, promoted online and receive a £10 First Writer voucher. All entrants are also considered for publication in The New Short Story Annual at the end of the year. Deadline 25th of the month. Heather Marie Schuldt runs a similar contest, although 500-750 words max., but with the same deadline.
• Short stories: The Bath Short Story Award is now (October 2012) open for entries. This new international competition welcomes stories of up to 2,200 words on any theme or subject from published or unpublished writers. Prizes are as follows: 1st £500, 2nd £100, 3rd £50, and an additional local prize of £50. The competition closes March 30th, 2013. For further details see our website www.bathshortstoryaward.co.uk.
• Short stories: Writers’ Village runs a quarterly short story competition which attracts entrants worldwide. Click here for the rules… and every entrant receives invaluable critique! Their spring deadline is 31st March.
• Short stories: Exeter Writers is pleased to announce that the prizes in its 2013 Short Story Competition have all increased in this fifth annual Competition. The first prize is £500, 2nd and 3rd are £250 and £100. There is also an additional prize of £100 for a writer living in Devon so please pass on this information if you know writers who live here. Stories can be in any genre except for children, they can be up to 3,000 words and the entry fee is £5 per story. The closing date is 31st March 2013.  Rules of the competition and an entry form can be found on our website: www.exeterwriters.org.uk or you can send a stamped self-addressed envelope to Competition, 4 Albion Place, Exeter EX4 6L.
• Short stories: Five Stop Story runs a quarterly short story competition (end March / June / September / December). Membership to the site is £25 but you get to enter up to five stories in each competition. Further details at http://www.fivestopstory.com/write.

***

** NEW!! You can now subscribe to this blog on your Kindle / Kindle app!

See http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B008E88JN0

or http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B008E88JN0 for outside the UK **

You can sign up to receive these blog posts daily or weekly so you don’t miss anything. You can contact me and find me on the internet, view my Books (including my debut novel, which is being serialised on Novel Nights In!) and I also have a blog creation / maintenance service especially for, but not limited to, writers. If you like this blog, you can help me keep it running by donating and choose an optional free eBook.

For writers / readers willing to give feedback and / or writers wanting feedback, take a look at this blog’s Feedback page.

As I post an interview a day (amongst other things) I can’t unfortunately review books but I have a list of those who do. I welcome items for critique for the online writing groups listed below:

Morgen’s Online Non-Fiction Writing Group

• http://nonfictionwritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/335526669896374

Morgen’s Online Novel Writing Group

• http://novelwritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/508696639153189

Morgen’s Online Poetry Writing Group

• http://poetrywritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/388850977875934

Morgen’s Online Script Writing Group

• http://scriptwritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/319941328108017

Morgen’s Online Short Story Writing Group

• http://shortstorywritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/544072635605445

We look forward to reading your comments.

 

Author interview no.658 with novelist and screenwriter Erica Miner

Welcome to the six hundred and fifty-eighth of my blog interviews with novelists, poets, short story authors, biographers, agents, publishers and more. Today’s is with YA, romance / suspense thriller novelist, screenwriter and red pen session recipient Erica Miner. A list of interviewees (blogged and scheduled) can be found here. If you like what you read, please do go and investigate further.

Morgen: Hello, Erica. Please tell us something about yourself, where you’re based, and how you came to be a writer.

Erica: Hello, Morgen. Formerly a violinist with the Metropolitan Opera in New York, I am now based in Southern California. I actually started writing before I played violin. When I was about 7 years old I was placed in an afterschool Creative Writing program. Even then I loved the process of telling stories and have never stopped writing and taking writing classes. When injuries from a car accident spelled the end of my professional music career, I went back to writing as my creative outlet. I started by studying screenwriting and, in fact, have written screenplays for all three of my published novels.

Morgen: I wrote the beginning (102 pages) of a TV drama for the defunct Script Frenzy and found it really hard. I love dialogue but it didn’t flow like prose so I take my proverbial hat off to you. What genre do you generally write and have you considered other genres?

Erica: So far I have written in the Romance, Young Adult and Mystery genres in my novels, though I’ve added Comedy, Action Adventure and others to my screenwriting body of work. I haven’t considered other genres, though I’d love to write a period piece, something from the time of bonnets and carriages…

Morgen: What have you had published to-date? Do you write under a pseudonym?

Erica: I don’t write under a pen name, since I think mine is pretty literary (Erica Jong is one of my most admired writers). To date I have had published three novels: ‘Murder In The Pit’ (Mystery), FourEver Friends’ (Young Adult), and ‘Travels With My Lovers’ (Romance).

Morgen: I have Erica (Jong’s) ‘Fear of Flying’ but haven’t read it yet. I’ve heard it was a very controversial book so I look forward to reading it. You’ve self-published – what lead to you going your own way?

Erica: My first novel, ‘Travels With My Lovers’, was published as a POD. I had just entered the world of writing novels, and I was eager to get my name known. The technology was fairly new then (about 9 years ago), but as a result of using that I was able to get numerous book signings, interviews, lectures et al. I definitely think it led to my name being known and to eventually getting a novel published traditionally.

Morgen: Congratulations. Agents and publishers are keen on authors having a following which is another reason why there are so many of us finding our own way online. Do you read eBooks or is it paper all the way?

Erica: I’ve tried reading both paper and electronic books, but I much prefer the former. For me there’s nothing that beats holding a book in your hand; plus for a writer, well…it’s just not possible to sign an electronic reader, at least not practically speaking.

Morgen: Margaret Atwood has a remote signature machine (mentioned on http://www.technovelgy.com/ct/science-fiction-news.asp?newsnum=556) and although I’m a techie, it’s not like meeting someone in person (not that my novel’s in paperback yet). Do you have a favourite of your books or characters? If any of your books were made into films, who would you have as the leading actor/s?

 

Author interview with novelist, scriptwriter and non-fiction author Melissa Jo Peltier

Complementing the full interviews on this blog, which will be dropping to weekend mornings from mid-March, another new interview on my interview-only blog has been posted! The (640+) interviews from this blog are there already so there’s plenty to read.

The latest interview on the new blog is with novelist, scriptwriter and non-fiction author Melissa Jo Peltier and can be read in full at http://morgensauthorinterviews.wordpress.com/2013/02/26/author-interview-with-novelist-scriptwriter-and-non-fiction-author-melissa-jo-peltier.

***

If you are reading this and you write, in whatever genre, and are thinking “ooh, I’d like to do this” then you can… just email me and I’ll send you the information. They do now (January 2013) carry a fee (£10 / €12.50 / $15) for the new interviews on this blog but everything else (see Opportunities on this blog) is free.

Alternatively, if you’d like a free Q&A-only interview, I now have http://morgensauthorinterviews.wordpress.com on which I’ve rerun the original interviews posted here then posted new interviews which I then reblog here. These interviews are Q&A only, so I don’t add in my comments but they do get exposure on both sites.

If you go for the interview, it’s very simple; I send you a questionnaire (I have them for novelists, short story authors, children’s authors, non-fiction authors, and poets). You complete the questions, and I let you know when it’s going to go live. Before it does so, I add in comments as if we’re chatting, and then they get posted. When that’s done, I email you with the link so you can share it with your corner of the literary world. And if you have a writing-related blog / podcast and would like to interview me… let me know.

** NEW!! You can now subscribe to this blog on your Kindle / Kindle app!

See http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B008E88JN0

or http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B008E88JN0 for outside the UK **

You can sign up to receive these blog posts daily or weekly so you don’t miss anything. You can contact me and find me on the internet, view my Books (including my debut novel, which is being serialised on Novel Nights In!) and I also have a blog creation / maintenance service especially for, but not limited to, writers. If you like this blog, you can help me keep it running by donating and choose an optional free eBook.

For writers / readers willing to give feedback and / or writers wanting feedback, take a look at this blog’s Feedback page.

As I post an interview a day (amongst other things) I can’t unfortunately review books but I have a list of those who do. I welcome items for critique for the online writing groups listed below:

Morgen’s Online Non-Fiction Writing Group

• http://nonfictionwritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/335526669896374

Morgen’s Online Novel Writing Group

• http://novelwritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/508696639153189

Morgen’s Online Poetry Writing Group

• http://poetrywritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/388850977875934

Morgen’s Online Script Writing Group

• http://scriptwritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/319941328108017

Morgen’s Online Short Story Writing Group

• http://shortstorywritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/544072635605445

We look forward to reading your comments.

 

 

Author interview with novelists and scriptwriters Ken Farmer and Buck Stienke

Complementing the full interviews on this blog, which will be dropping to weekend mornings from mid-March, another new interview on my interview-only blog has been posted! The (640+) interviews from this blog are there already so there’s plenty to read.

The latest interview on the new blog is with novelists and scriptwriters Ken Farmer and Buck Stienke and can be read in full at http://morgensauthorinterviews.wordpress.com/2013/02/21/author-interview-with-novelists-and-scriptwriters-ken-farmer-and-buck-stienke.

***

If you are reading this and you write, in whatever genre, and are thinking “ooh, I’d like to do this” then you can… just email me and I’ll send you the information. They do now (January 2013) carry a fee (£10 / €12.50 / $15) for the new interviews on this blog but everything else (see Opportunities on this blog) is free.

Alternatively, if you’d like a free Q&A-only interview, I now have http://morgensauthorinterviews.wordpress.com on which I’ve rerun the original interviews posted here then posted new interviews which I then reblog here. These interviews are Q&A only, so I don’t add in my comments but they do get exposure on both sites.

If you go for the interview, it’s very simple; I send you a questionnaire (I have them for novelists, short story authors, children’s authors, non-fiction authors, and poets). You complete the questions, and I let you know when it’s going to go live. Before it does so, I add in comments as if we’re chatting, and then they get posted. When that’s done, I email you with the link so you can share it with your corner of the literary world. And if you have a writing-related blog / podcast and would like to interview me… let me know.

** NEW!! You can now subscribe to this blog on your Kindle / Kindle app!

See http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B008E88JN0

or http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B008E88JN0 for outside the UK **

You can sign up to receive these blog posts daily or weekly so you don’t miss anything. You can contact me and find me on the internet, view my Books (including my debut novel, which is being serialised on Novel Nights In!) and I also have a blog creation / maintenance service especially for, but not limited to, writers. If you like this blog, you can help me keep it running by donating and choose an optional free eBook.

For writers / readers willing to give feedback and / or writers wanting feedback, take a look at this blog’s Feedback page.

As I post an interview a day (amongst other things) I can’t unfortunately review books but I have a list of those who do. I welcome items for critique for the online writing groups listed below:

Morgen’s Online Non-Fiction Writing Group

• http://nonfictionwritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/335526669896374

Morgen’s Online Novel Writing Group

• http://novelwritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/508696639153189

Morgen’s Online Poetry Writing Group

• http://poetrywritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/388850977875934

Morgen’s Online Script Writing Group

• http://scriptwritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/319941328108017

Morgen’s Online Short Story Writing Group

• http://shortstorywritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/544072635605445

We look forward to reading your comments.

 

 

Author interview with novelist, playwright and poet Valerie Laws

Complementing the full interviews on this blog, which will be dropping to weekend mornings from mid-March, another new interview on my interview-only blog has been posted! The (640+) interviews from this blog are there already so there’s plenty to read.

The latest interview on the new blog is with novelist, playwright and poet Valerie Laws and can be read in full at http://morgensauthorinterviews.wordpress.com/2013/02/20/author-interview-with-novelist-playwright-and-poet-valerie-laws.

***

If you are reading this and you write, in whatever genre, and are thinking “ooh, I’d like to do this” then you can… just email me and I’ll send you the information. They do now (January 2013) carry a fee (£10 / €12.50 / $15) for the new interviews on this blog but everything else (see Opportunities on this blog) is free.

Alternatively, if you’d like a free Q&A-only interview, I now have http://morgensauthorinterviews.wordpress.com on which I’ve rerun the original interviews posted here then posted new interviews which I then reblog here. These interviews are Q&A only, so I don’t add in my comments but they do get exposure on both sites.

If you go for the interview, it’s very simple; I send you a questionnaire (I have them for novelists, short story authors, children’s authors, non-fiction authors, and poets). You complete the questions, and I let you know when it’s going to go live. Before it does so, I add in comments as if we’re chatting, and then they get posted. When that’s done, I email you with the link so you can share it with your corner of the literary world. And if you have a writing-related blog / podcast and would like to interview me… let me know.

** NEW!! You can now subscribe to this blog on your Kindle / Kindle app!

See http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B008E88JN0

or http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B008E88JN0 for outside the UK **

You can sign up to receive these blog posts daily or weekly so you don’t miss anything. You can contact me and find me on the internet, view my Books (including my debut novel, which is being serialised on Novel Nights In!) and I also have a blog creation / maintenance service especially for, but not limited to, writers. If you like this blog, you can help me keep it running by donating and choose an optional free eBook.

For writers / readers willing to give feedback and / or writers wanting feedback, take a look at this blog’s Feedback page.

As I post an interview a day (amongst other things) I can’t unfortunately review books but I have a list of those who do. I welcome items for critique for the online writing groups listed below:

Morgen’s Online Non-Fiction Writing Group

• http://nonfictionwritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/335526669896374

Morgen’s Online Novel Writing Group

• http://novelwritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/508696639153189

Morgen’s Online Poetry Writing Group

• http://poetrywritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/388850977875934

Morgen’s Online Script Writing Group

• http://scriptwritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/319941328108017

Morgen’s Online Short Story Writing Group

• http://shortstorywritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/544072635605445

We look forward to reading your comments.

 

 

Author interview no.648 with poet, playwright, novelist and essayist Sheriff Garba

Welcome to the six hundred and forty-eighth of my blog interviews with novelists, poets, short story authors, biographers, agents, publishers and more. Today’s is with poet, playwright, novelist and essayist and spotlightee Sheriff Garba. A list of interviewees (blogged and scheduled) can be found here. If you like what you read, please do go and investigate further.

Morgen: Hello again, Sheriff. Please tell us something about yourself, where you’re based, and how you came to be a writer.

Sheriff: Well, I’m Sheriff Garba, a published poet. I also write articles, essays, plays, short stories, and I’m presently working on a novel. I live in Ogun state, Nigeria. I discovered my passion for writing during my primary school years, about thirteen years ago. At the time, I wrote a children’s storybook titled The Adventure of Aguiyi. I gave the manuscript to a broadcaster-uncle of mine to edit but unfortunately that was the last I ever heard of the book. I finally published my first poetry collection, Aries, Aphrodite, and Aries in 2008.

Morgen: Oh dear. It’s very easy to lend things to friends and family and never see them but you’d have hoped not with something so important (with me it’s DVDs). Do you write poetry to form or as it comes? If to form, what are your favourites? Are some easier than others?

Sheriff: I write poetry as it comes. For me personally poetry has this especially spiritual quality which distinguishes it from other literary genres. Thus for me the best poem is an inspired poem. And of course inspired writing – by implication – is writing that you allow to write itself.

Morgen: The little poetry I write, I tend to do the same (unless instructed otherwise). Do you generally write rhyming or free verse?

Sheriff: I prefer and write free verse most of the time. However I also write a few rhyming verses if I’m inspired to.

Morgen: What have you had published to-date?

Sheriff: A poetry collection, Aries, Aphrodite, and Aries. First edition, 2008; second edition 2011.

Morgen: Have you had any rejections? If so, how do you deal with them?

 

Author interview with novelist and scriptwriter Kristen Reed

Complementing the full interviews on this blog, which will be dropping to weekend mornings from March, another new interview on my interview-only blog has been posted! The (630+) interviews from this blog are there already so there’s plenty to read.

The latest interview on the new blog is with novelist and scriptwriter Kristen Reed and can be read in full at http://morgensauthorinterviews.wordpress.com/2013/02/15/author-interview-with-novelist-and-scriptwriter-kristen-reed.

***

If you are reading this and you write, in whatever genre, and are thinking “ooh, I’d like to do this” then you can… just email me and I’ll send you the information. They do now (January 2013) carry a fee (£10 / €12.50 / $15) for the new interviews on this blog but everything else (see Opportunities on this blog) is free.

Alternatively, if you’d like a free Q&A-only interview, I now have http://morgensauthorinterviews.wordpress.com on which I’ve rerun the original interviews posted here then posted new interviews which I then reblog here. These interviews are Q&A only, so I don’t add in my comments but they do get exposure on both sites.

If you go for the interview, it’s very simple; I send you a questionnaire (I have them for novelists, short story authors, children’s authors, non-fiction authors, and poets). You complete the questions, and I let you know when it’s going to go live. Before it does so, I add in comments as if we’re chatting, and then they get posted. When that’s done, I email you with the link so you can share it with your corner of the literary world. And if you have a writing-related blog / podcast and would like to interview me… let me know.

** NEW!! You can now subscribe to this blog on your Kindle / Kindle app!

See http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B008E88JN0

or http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B008E88JN0 for outside the UK **

You can sign up to receive these blog posts daily or weekly so you don’t miss anything. You can contact me and find me on the internet, view my Books (including my debut novel, which is being serialised on Novel Nights In!) and I also have a blog creation / maintenance service especially for, but not limited to, writers. If you like this blog, you can help me keep it running by donating and choose an optional free eBook.

For writers / readers willing to give feedback and / or writers wanting feedback, take a look at this blog’s Feedback page.

As I post an interview a day (amongst other things) I can’t unfortunately review books but I have a list of those who do. I welcome items for critique for the online writing groups listed below:

Morgen’s Online Non-Fiction Writing Group

• http://nonfictionwritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/335526669896374

Morgen’s Online Novel Writing Group

• http://novelwritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/508696639153189

Morgen’s Online Poetry Writing Group

• http://poetrywritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/388850977875934

Morgen’s Online Script Writing Group

• http://scriptwritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/319941328108017

Morgen’s Online Short Story Writing Group

• http://shortstorywritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/544072635605445

We look forward to reading your comments.

 

 

Author Spotlight no.165 – Harry Duffin

Complementing my daily blog interviews, today’s Author Spotlight, the one hundred and sixty-fifth, is of screenwriter and novelist Harry Duffin.

Harry Duffin is an award-winning British screenwriter who has worked extensively in UK television for such hugely popular series as ‘Howards Way’, ‘Eastenders’, ‘Boon’ and ‘Coronation Street’. As Head of Development for Cloud 9 he was responsible for seven major television series, including ‘Swiss Family Robinson’ starring Richard ‘John Boy’ Thomas, and ‘Twist in the Tale’ featuring William Shatner.

He is co-creator of the hit teen series ‘The Tribe’, produced by Cloud 9, which ran for 260 episodes and has a growing world-wide fan base. His first novel ‘Chicago May’ was adapted from his own screenplay of the same name.

And now from the author himself:

I wanted to be a writer ever since I read Hemingway and Scott Fitzgerald aged sixteen, but it was over 25 years before I achieved that ambition and was able to earn a living as a full-time writer. So I’m not what you could call an overnight success.

After five years as a teacher, trying to drum Shakespeare into the skulls of fifteen year olds, I escaped when playwright Alan Plater opened the Spring Street Theatre in Hull, and I blagged my way in as publicity officer, which initially frankly I knew bugger all about. But I managed to work there for ten years, as stage designer, company manager and writer for the youth theatre, with two spells at the world-famous Soho Poly Theatre in London, working with, and learning from, playwrights like Barry Keefe [The Long Good Friday] and Glen Chandler [Taggart].

In 1980 I was lucky enough to join the legendary Leeds Theatre in Education team as designer/stage manager, and helped in the creation of the award-winning ‘RAJ’ and ‘DIRTY RASCALS’, two projects that have gone down in the annals of TIE history. Working there with talented writers like Mike Kenny and Paul Swift was the springboard for my own youth writing, and I wrote two television plays for the ITV teen series ‘DRAMARAMA’, the first of which gave Nick Berry [Eastenders] his first television role as teddy-boy, Lance Boyle. By chance I went on to write the episode of EASTENDERS which introduced Nick to the series as Wicksey. The audience for that script broke the 20 million barrier for the first time for the famous soap.

When the Eastenders creators revived ‘DISTRICT NURSE’ I got the chance to write for one of my favourite actors, the marvellous Freddie Jones, one of the highlights of my career as a TV writer.

Though my first instinct for writing had been for prose, [I wrote many rejected short stories for magazines in my twenties], I found that my years of working in theatre had developed my ear for dialogue and I was able to go on to write drama for all the major UK television companies.

In the early Nineties I became a founder member of a UK independent company, Cloud 9, where I worked for ten years as Head of Development, script consultant and senior writer for many film and TV series, working with Hollywood legends Richard ‘John Boy’ Thomas and William Shatner.

Having developed many projects for TV that never saw the light of day, I finally got the chance to make my own individual mark by co-creating the cult teen series ‘THE TRIBE’ for Cloud 9, which ran on Channel Five for five years with over 260 episodes. The series went on to be aired in over forty countries and is still being shown somewhere in the world every year. Writing THE TRIBE was my proudest achievement in my TV career, but in the back of my mind I always had the desire to emulate my boyhood writing heroes Hemingway and Fitzgerald, by writing a novel.

Having failed to sell my screenplay CHICAGO MAY in Hollywood, a couple of years ago I adapted it into a novel and self-published it via Spiderwyze in Scotland.

The story, inspired by a real person, tells of the exploits of a sixteen Irish girl who ran away to New York and became the most successful con-woman on the East Coast.

Writing the novel was the most satisfying project of my writing career to date.

Since then I have collaborated with my wife, Chris, in writing JAIL TALES, a brief, amusing memoir of her 20 year career as a prison governor.

And last November I completed BIRTH OF THE MALL RATS, the first of a series of novels based on the original TV series.

So over fifty years on I have finally achieved my ambition to be a novelist. My advice to wannabee writers? – ‘Never Give Up!’

Absolutely, Harry. Thank you very much. You can find more about Harry and his writing via…

• http://www.harryduffin.com
• http://www.facebook.com/harry.duffin.5
• http://www.amazon.com/Harry-Duffin/e/B005KR3E74
• http://www.tumblr.com/tagged/harry-duffin
• http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4674467.Harry_Duffin
• http://uk.imdb.com/name/nm0240471

***

** NEW!! You can now subscribe to this blog on your Kindle / Kindle app!

See http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B008E88JN0

or http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B008E88JN0 for outside the UK **

You can sign up to receive these blog posts daily or weekly so you don’t miss anything. You can contact me and find me on the internet, view my Books (including my debut novel, which is being serialised on Novel Nights In!) and I also have a blog creation / maintenance service especially for, but not limited to, writers. If you like this blog, you can help me keep it running by donating and choose an optional free eBook.

For writers / readers willing to give feedback and / or writers wanting feedback, take a look at this blog’s Feedback page.

As I post an interview a day (amongst other things) I can’t unfortunately review books but I have a list of those who do. I welcome items for critique for the online writing groups listed below:

Morgen’s Online Non-Fiction Writing Group

• http://nonfictionwritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/335526669896374

Morgen’s Online Novel Writing Group

• http://novelwritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/508696639153189

Morgen’s Online Poetry Writing Group

• http://poetrywritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/388850977875934

Morgen’s Online Script Writing Group

• http://scriptwritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/319941328108017

Morgen’s Online Short Story Writing Group

• http://shortstorywritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/544072635605445

We look forward to reading your comments.

 

Morgen’s Saturday Shout-out 004 – Shaping up nicely

Sadly not me… unless you like curvy. No, I definitely have what Jane Wenham-Jones eloquently calls ‘Writer’s Bottom’. I gave up my day job in March and the chair I inherited (they moved and downsized the office during my notice period) does feel a little snugger these days. I have Jane’s new eBook 100 Ways to Fight the Flab so I’ll be working my way through them, although no.69 will have to wait until I’m no longer single! You must read a review by Sebastian on Amazon, it’s hilarious!

Anyway, back to the ‘shaping up nicely’. I was referring to the blog, or rather blogs. I mentioned last week that I’d set up four new critique blogs and Facebook groups. A fifth, http://nonfictionwritinggroup.wordpress.com, joined them today. The only non-fiction I write is about writing, but I wanted to have a critique group that could help non-fiction writers… I’ve interviewed so many.

I’ve had a few submissions to the four original blogs, two items outstanding which I’m tardy getting to, all will become clear why in a minute, but would welcome more. The details of the blogs are in the footer below and http://morgenbailey.wordpress.com/online-writing-groups.

In last week’s Shout-out I talked about increasing the author spotlights, which are now weekday evenings so there won’t be one tonight, and that the interviews had taken over my life. What I’ve had to do (and I hated doing it) was to have a cut-off at the end of February and email the interviewees scheduled for March to June that I could no longer run them for free (today’s was the 624th!). I offered them the spotlight instead and some have gone for that. I wanted to find an alternative to just stopping the interviews, because all the authors had gone to the trouble of replying to my questions and a light bulb moment on Tuesday lead to the creation of http://morgensauthorinterviews.wordpress.com.

So what I’ve been doing for the past five days is re-posting the original full interviews. I’m actually only up to no.380 so over half way and I intend to keep going so they’ll all be up by midweek next week. It’s taking so long because they’re months old so I’ve been updating the footers; with the new blog links etc.

Once they’re all up, I’ll then be able to introduce new free Q&A interviews; my questions, the author’s replies but no extra comments from me. I’ll then reblog them on this main blog (which will just show an extract then a link to the interviews blog) so you get to hear about them, although the new blog is also linked to Twitter, Facebook, Yahoo, Tumblr and LinkedIn as this one is so you may spot those notifications first.

Apart from the full interviews on this blog, everything else here, and on the other blogs, are free – a list is on http://morgenbailey.wordpress.com/submission-information/opportunities-on-this-blog and http://morgensauthorinterviews.wordpress.com/opportunities-on-the-main-blog. There is plenty of choice. If I’ve not interviewed you yet and you’d like to go for the full interview, it’s only £10 / €12.50 / $15 so won’t break the bank.

That’s about it for this week. Next up (in about an hour) is the second instalment of my debut novel, The Serial Dater’s Shopping List, on Novel Nights In (NNI) where you’ll get to meet Tim the Weeble and Lawrence the stick-thin social worker.

The NNI slot returns tomorrow night with the third instalment of Rose Mary Boehm’s novel ‘Coming Up for Air’. I hope you enjoy them both and we would love your comments. Clicking on the ‘like’ button is great, and we do appreciate you doing that, but staying just a moment longer to tell us what you think really means a lot.

So that’s about it. I’m going to crack on with reposting the interviews. I’m further behind than I wanted to be because this morning, when I was supposed to be getting ready to go to do my stint at my local British Red Cross shop (I deal with their donated books), I decided to rearrange my bedroom. It’s only the ‘box’ room (because I have two lodgers) so I had my wardrobe in my office which was OK but I knew if I did some moving around it would fit… well, I did it, with about an inch to spare, and crazy as it may sound, especially because it’s the winter here in the UK and my bed is now nearer the radiator, I’m looking forward to going to bed even more so tonight… with Jane’s book for company methinks.

***

** NEW!! You can now subscribe to this blog on your Kindle / Kindle app!

See http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B008E88JN0

or http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B008E88JN0 for outside the UK **

You can sign up to receive these blog posts daily or weekly so you don’t miss anything. You can contact me and find me on the internet, view my Books (including my debut novel, which is being serialised on Novel Nights In!) and I also have a blog creation / maintenance service especially for, but not limited to, writers. If you like this blog, you can help me keep it running by donating and choose an optional free eBook.

For writers / readers willing to give feedback and / or writers wanting feedback, take a look at this blog’s Feedback page.

As I post an interview a day (amongst other things) I can’t unfortunately review books but I have a list of those who do. I welcome critique for the four new writing groups listed below and / or flash fiction (<1000 words) for Flash Fiction Fridays. For other opportunities see (see Opportunities on this blog).

The full details of the new online writing groups, and their associated Facebook groups, are:

Morgen’s Online Non-Fiction Writing Group

• http://nonfictionwritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/335526669896374

Morgen’s Online Novel Writing Group

• http://novelwritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/508696639153189

Morgen’s Online Poetry Writing Group

• http://poetrywritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/388850977875934

Morgen’s Online Script Writing Group

• http://scriptwritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/319941328108017

Morgen’s Online Short Story Writing Group

• http://shortstorywritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/544072635605445

We look forward to reading your comments.

 

Author interview no.623 with historical and crime fiction writer Colin Falconer

Welcome to the six hundred and twenty-third of my blog interviews with novelists, poets, short story authors, biographers, agents, publishers and more. Today’s is with historical and crime fiction author Colin Falconer. A list of interviewees (blogged and scheduled) can be found here. If you like what you read, please do go and investigate further.

Morgen: Hello, Colin. Please tell us something about yourself, where you’re based, and how you came to be a writer.

photo via Wikipedia

Colin: Hi Morgen with an E! I’m sitting in a beach house in a tiny coastal town about fifty miles north of Perth, Western Australia at the moment. It’s a weekday and there’s absolutely no one around. By contrast I was born in a terraced house in North London, and first came to Australia when I was 20, when a football club brought me out here. I’ve been a full time writer for nearly thirty years. I had no choice – there was just nothing else I wanted to do with my life. Took me a while to get there, but I never regretted it.

Morgen: I felt / feel I had no choice either because I love it so much. I living the pauper lifestyle (sort of) but I’m living the dream (by not having a ‘proper’ job) as are you, by the sound of it. What genre do you generally write and have you considered other genres?

Colin: I write mainly historical fiction, from BC to twentieth century, though I have written some crime fiction. I used to go where the stories took me, but I don’t think that was a very smart move now. Neither readers or publishers like you jigging around too much, so I try to keep my butterfly mind focused these days.

Morgen: What have you had published to-date? Do you write under a pseudonym?

Colin: Colin Falconer is a pseudonym, yes. I have published about forty books all told, including some autobiographical stuff under other names – one was a huge bestseller in Australia, only Dan Brown kept me off top spot! – as well as some YA that I wrote for my kids. Even won some awards here for it. But I keep that other stuff under wraps these days. I focus on what I’m doing now and plan to do in the future, which is my historical fiction and historical thrillers.

Morgen: Wow. Congratulations. Have you self-published at all?

Colin: I’ve been traditionally published all my life, and I still publish through Corvus-Atlantic in London. But I’ve never been able to break through big time in the US. The Big6 say I’m too far away to promote, even though 85% of my blog followers are from there. It’s stupid. And the advances are way down in the US – 10K is the new 100K. Getting stuck on someone’s midlist is the kiss of death, so in the last year I’ve decided to take more of my destiny back into my own hands. I get very frustrated with traditional publishing. They say they can’t publish more than one book a year but it’s clear that readers will accept as many good books as you can write, and I’ve always been very prolific. I’ve been listening to guys like Bob Mayer, who are the real visionaries in the business now.

Morgen: I know a first time author who’s doing the agent hunt wanting to secure a publisher with a decent advance. As you say, it’s more difficult than ever these days. Are your books available as eBooks? How involved were you in that process? Do you read eBooks or is it paper all the way?

 

Author interview no.622 with children’s book author, freelance writer, and playwright Natasha Yim

Welcome to the six hundred and twenty-second of my blog interviews with novelists, poets, short story authors, biographers, agents, publishers and more. Today’s is with children’s book author, freelance writer, and playwright Natasha Yim. A list of interviewees (blogged and scheduled) can be found here. If you like what you read, please do go and investigate further.

Morgen: Hello, Natasha. Please tell us something about yourself, where you’re based, and how you came to be a writer.

Natasha: I’m a children’s book author, freelance writer, and playwright living in Ukiah, a small town in Northern California (about two hours north of San Francisco). I was born in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, but went to elementary / primary school in Singapore, and high school / secondary school in Hong Kong. My secondary school was actually a British school, King George V School, where a creative writing English assignment by my 1st form (7th grade in the U.S.) English teacher, Mr. Harry, led to my love of writing and creating stories. I have wanted to be a writer ever since I was 11 years old.

In my teen years, I kept several journals, and dabbled in poetry and short stories. I attended Dominican College in San Rafael, California, where I attained a Bachelor of Arts in English Literature with a Writing Emphasis, and a Masters of Science in Counseling Psychology. After graduate school, I began working as a counselor / social worker in group homes, foster homes, and finally with Child Protective Services. I would write on my free time, and in my 20s found some success with publication for regional and local newspapers and magazines. In 1996 or 1997, I began to write stories for children, and my first book “Otto’s Rainy Day” was published in 2000 by Charlesbridge Publishing.

Morgen: What a great English teacher. I do remember enjoying English at school (I can even remember which books we covered which is about all I remember of secondary school, other than the mandarin cheesecake!). So you began writing children’s stories, is this your main genre, and have you considered other genres?

Natasha: I primarily write children’s books, but have written non-fiction articles for both adult and children magazines. My plays, however, are for adults. I did at one time think I’d like to write an adult book one day, but have discovered that I actually have no interest in writing for adults. It’s so much more fun to create stories for children, and there’s nothing like seeing or hearing about a child choosing a book over and over again because they really connect to the story. Plus you get to do school visits and meet the kids!

Morgen: It’s funny. I write very little for children and much prefer writing for adults, usually dark stories, but then I’ve never had children so maybe that would help. What have you had published to-date? Do you have a favourite of your books or characters?

 

Author interview no.619 with non-fiction and scriptwriter Mary Batten

Welcome to the six hundred and nineteenth of my blog interviews with novelists, poets, short story authors, biographers, agents, publishers and more. Today’s is with non-fiction and scriptwriter Mary Batten. A list of interviewees (blogged and scheduled) can be found here. If you like what you read, please do go and investigate further.

Morgen: Hello, Mary.

Mary: Hello, Morgen. Thank you for this opportunity to be featured on your blog.

Morgen: You’re very welcome. I’m delighted you could join me. Please tell us something about yourself, where you’re based, and how you came to be a writer.

Mary: I write nonfiction books, magazine articles, and television shows for children and adults. Most of my work deals with nature and science, although I get quite political in my blog. I’ve been writing since I was eight years old and I knew I wanted to be a writer at that early age. I don’t know why the writing bug bit me, but I know my grandmother played an important part. When I was in the second grade, I lived with my grandparents, as my mother was expecting her third child and our family doctor thought it would be less stressful for me (I had had rheumatic fever the year before and everybody was worried about my heart) and my mother if I lived with my grandparents whose house was just five minutes down the road. During that year, my grandmother and I played a storytelling game almost every day. She would make up a story and then I would make up a story. In retrospect, I realize we were “writing” with our imaginations.

I live on the East Coast of the United States in Virginia.

Morgen: What a wonderful grandmother. I totally understand about the writing bug biting, it got me in my late thirties. With your non-fiction, how do you decide what to write about?

Mary: Sometimes an editor calls me and asks whether I’d be interested in writing about this or that topic. Otherwise I write about things that fascinate me.  Nature is always a great source of ideas. I’m drawn to unusual, often bizarre behaviours of animals and plants, such as mating behaviour and pollination.

Morgen: The great thing about nature is that there’s so much of it. You’d never run out of inspiration. What have you had published to-date?

Mary: To date, I’ve published some 15 books. These include my new eBook, How To Have Sex If You’re Not Human: Intimate Journeys in Natural History, Sexual Strategies: How Females Choose Their Mates, Aliens From Earth, Hungry Plants, Anthropologist: Scientist of the People, Please Don’t Wake the Animals: A Book About Sleep, Hey, Daddy!, and Wild Cats. I also have a short story, “The Rabbit”, in the forthcoming edition of IN GOOD COMPANY, a short story anthology published by Live Wire Press.

Morgen: A great variety. You’ve self-published, what lead to you going your own way?

Mary: Only one of my books is self-published, How To Have Sex If You’re Not Human. I decided to step into the digital publishing world and self-publish my first eBook. Digital technology makes it so easy for writers to publish their work. It’s a whole new publishing arena that gives writers control of their work, higher royalties, and elimination of the middle level of agents and publishers. I find it very exciting and it’s clear that digital books are the books of the present and the future. However, there’s a tradeoff. The writer must take on the challenge of marketing her work. You aren’t going to sell any books unless you climb the steep marketing curve. Marketing is time consuming and difficult. It definitely cuts into writing time. You have to become your own publicist, interact with social media, blog, do podcasts, and anything else you think will help sell your book. Some writers hit it big by self-publishing digitally, but most writers who go this route don’t. Most of my books are published by traditional publishers. I think pursuing a mixed publication strategy is best for me.

Morgen: I think you’re very wise. Authors these days have to do plenty of marketing, needless to say more so when they go it alone but then we get to contact our readership directly which is great. Are all your books available as eBooks?

Mary: I have two eBooks: How To Have Sex If You’re Not Human, which I self-published, and Hungry Plants, which my publisher, Random House, released in digital format.

Morgen: For the traditionally published books, did you have any say in the titles / covers of your books? How important do you think they are?

Mary: Yes, I come up with most of my titles and others evolve from brainstorming with my editors. I sometimes make cover suggestions; in other instances, my editors and publishers come up with the cover idea in collaboration with the illustrator. I am so fortunate to have wonderful artists like Higgins Bond, Paul Mirocha, and Beverly J. Doyle who have illustrated my books. Titles and book covers are extremely important in catching a reader’s attention. They’re the first thing a potential buyer sees.

Morgen: They are indeed, and you have striking titles and covers (Sexual Strategies is my favourite of the three you’ve sent me). What are you working on at the moment / next?

Mary: I’m working on a two-part memoir project.

Morgen: Do you manage to write every day? Do you ever suffer from writer’s block?

Mary: Usually I write something every day.  I’ve never had writer’s block.

Morgen: You’re very fortunate. I rarely get stuck but then like you, I write a variety so it does make it easier. Do you do a lot of editing or do you find that as time goes on your writing is more fully-formed?

 

Author interview no.616 with multi-genre writer Carmen Anthony Fiore

Welcome to the six hundred and sixteenth of my blog interviews with novelists, poets, short story authors, biographers, agents, publishers and more. Today’s is with multi-genre author Carmen Anthony Fiore. A list of interviewees (blogged and scheduled) can be found here. If you like what you read, please do go and investigate further.

Morgen: Hello Carmen. Please tell us something about yourself, where you’re based, and how you came to be a writer.

Carmen: My real name is Carmen Anthony Fiore, which is also my professional writing name. After a three-year sojourn in Florida with my wife, Catherine, who is a professional artist and art teacher, we moved back to our home state, New Jersey. The Toms River area is only about five miles from the Atlantic Ocean. I was born in Trenton, NJ. Anyone from Great Britain who is interested and familiar with the interlocking history of our countries will note that the battles of Trenton and Princeton in 1776-77 (Christmas holiday time) against the Hessians and the British troops played a pivotal role in the American Revolution and Gen. Washington’s rejuvenation as a winner, overcoming the loser he was prior to those battles. Talk about a momentum switch!

I’ve always marched to a different drummer, and I was always highly alert to my environment when growing up, as well as having an active imagination. Looking back, I realize how important that was to my becoming a writer. But I shouldn’t discount growing up with my father’s barbershop occupying the front room of our house. I used to sweep the hair and shine shoes in it while listening to the adult male conversations. I found them intriguing. It was an education you can’t buy or get in school. Of course, as an adult I held positions as a social worker, a schoolteacher and ad a civil servant for the State of New Jersey where I dealt with the public on a daily basis. My work background contributed to the grist that fed my writer’s mill, writing part time while maintaining the jobs, and now that I am retired, I write full time and I’m loving every minute of it. I hold a B.S. in Commerce from Rider Univ. and a Master of Education Degree from Rutgers Univ. (both in NJ). And my all-time favorite author is William Shakespeare. I’m such a fan of his I wrote a supplemental textbook for high-school kids titled SUPPLEMENT TO SHAKESPEARE which is supposed to be published this year by a small independent education press. It compares Shakespeare / Elizabethan entertainments to the present-day entertainments in all their electronic glory.

Morgen: An active imagination certainly does help a writer although it sounds like you’ve had an interesting life to write what you know. What have you had published to-date?

Carmen: So far I’ve published (print / e-books) 26 titles. Twenty-four titles are available on the Kindle e-book reader and other hand-held devices as follows:

Full-length novels priced @ $2.99 per download:

• AVARICE CAN BE DEADLY (private-eye/mystery-suspense) ASIN: B006QG7N5M
• ITALIAN INTERLUDE (private-eye/mystery-suspense) ASIN: B0073GQMOM
• THE DREAM LADY (private-eye/mystery-suspense) ASIN: B006SMKVXA
• TILL DEATH DO US PART (private-eye/mystery-suspense) ASIN: B007139TG0
• EROTIC PRIEST (drama) ASIN: B006GV89SC
• LITTLE OSCAR (erotic drama) ASIN: B00564R9HC
• SEARCHING (racial drama) ASIN: B003KN3Z1U
• SZABO’S SONG (social drama) ASIN: B006OELY42
• THE BARRIER (racial drama) ASIN: B005230PZ0
• THE COLORED KID (family/racial drama) ASIN: B006M47M0O
• THE LINCOLN CAPER (what-if historical fiction) ASIN: B0064D6CZ4
• THE SNAKESKIN (juvenile adventure) ASIN: B004VSYMOM
• VENDETTA MOUNTAIN (family/suspense drama) ASIN: B004X2HTLE
• A CASE IN PRINCIPLE (amateur-sleuth/mystery-suspense) ASIN: B007DCBIFY
• AND BABY MAKES THREE (amateur-sleuth/mystery-suspense) ASIN: B0081KQ1LI

Novellas priced @ $1.99 per download:

• A RESTLESS SPRING (family drama) ASIN: B005BYXAIE
• MIXED DOUBLES (mystery-suspense) ASIN: B005C6CHB2
• SPORTS CAN BE LETHAL (private-eye/mystery-suspense) ASIN: B006VEZ518
• THE DEVIL’S WORKSHOP (private-eye/mystery-suspense) ASIN: B006YDMNKW
• WHERE’S THE PARTY? (drama) ASIN: B005A1IYIE
• YOUNGBLOOD STALLION: boy writer (humorous drama about writing, publishing) ASIN: B00767V43M

Full-length nonfiction:

• GETTING WHAT YOU WANT FROM DIFFICULT PEOPLE (self-help) ASIN: B005CKIBWM
• HOW TO BE EMBARRASSMENT PROOF (self-help) ASIN: B005D7V8QU
• NOBODY LOVES ME LIKE I DO (self-help) ASIN: B005EHRVB0

I have two books in print that are not on the Kindle:

• YOUNG HEROES OF THE CIVIL WAR (creative young-adult historical nonfiction)
• VOICES OF THE DAUGHTERS (nonfiction-interviews of Italian-American women/co-written)

Morgen: Wow. It makes me tired just reading that list. Have you ever written under a pseudonym?

Carmen: I have never used a pseudonym and never intend to.

Morgen: I wouldn’t say you need to with a great name like yours. You’ve self-published, what lead to you going your own way?

 

Red pen session 014 – critique of Agoraphobia, a short story by Kerry Dwyer

I have been run a fortnightly critique group for the past five years as well as critiquing other authors’ writing which I really enjoy, so I started creating podcast episodes doing this. Because this was not only time-consuming but also restrictive being audio-only, I decided to switch from audio to text. The earlier episodes have already been blogged (and are listed on the http://morgenbailey.wordpress.com/red-pen-critique page).

I have set up four new critique online writing groups for short stories, poetry and novel / script extracts (see http://morgenbailey.wordpress.com/online-writing-groups so will be stopping this red pen critique section of this blog). The good news is that I can post more than one item a week (I have been doing one a day when I’ve had the submissions in) so more opportunity, and more actively welcoming critique.

Back to this post, please remember that it’s only one person’s (my) opinion and you, and the author concerned, are welcome to disagree with my interpretation – I will never be mean for the sake of it, but hope you find that I’m firm but fair. I type my comments as I read through the story as a reader would think as they read, although they would most likely be reading, not analysing, unless they’re writers too!

Regardless of what genre you write I hope that this helps you think about the way fiction is constructed and that you have enjoyed reading another author’s work, the copyright of which remains with them.

***

The 2,200-word story in this post was kindly emailed to me by non-fiction and short story author Kerry Dwyer.

If you have any feedback on this or aspects of my website or blog, I’m always delighted to hear from you – my email address is morgen@morgenbailey.com.

And if you’re feeling brave enough to send me a short story or novel extract (with a brief synopsis please) – 3,000-words maximum – for these red pen blog sessions then feel free.

So without further ado, the story / synopsis and extract, then my feedback…

Agoraphobia

We don’t make house calls. We talk to people on the phone. There’s a new drop-in centre where some of the other Samaritans speak to people face to face. But I’ve always preferred the traditional ear on the telephone support, see.  I like being a Samaritan. It was a bit odd at first. The training was tough. You wouldn’t think there was so much to listening, but there is. The police checked me out too. Made sure that I hadn’t ever done anything I shouldn’t’ve, well they have to don’t they?

I get on all right now with my team. We look out for each other and make sure no one is getting too involved.  We only speak to someone once usually. The night shift get it worse. It’s at night when people get maudlin and suicidal. I mainly do mornings. Sometimes I get idiots wanting me to pay their leccy bills. And once I had this woman screaming at me ‘cause she needed someone to look after her kids so she could go to work. When I asked if she was feeling suicidal, we always do, see, she said she felt more like murdering someone. Sometimes someone’ll latch on to you and it’s hard to get them to move on. Once they know when it’s your shift they just call at that time, see. We can always get the shift leader to sort it, if it gets too much.

I’ve been talking to Margaret for about six months now. She got me the first time she rang the hotline number. It’s in the morning just after her husband, Jim, goes to work that she feels the need.  She’s agoraphobic. She hasn’t set foot outside her house for years.  She tried therapy, years ago now. Didn’t do her any good, poor cow.  They tried what’s called exposure therapy. So, they take her to a park, don’t they? It wasn’t too bad she said until Jim needed a wee. Well he goes into the public loos and she’s left outside with this therapist who she doesn’t know from a bar of soap and she starts shaking and sweating. By the time Jim comes out she can’t breathe. So she clings onto him, her husband not the therapist chap, and she demands to be taken home. Which he does, even though the therapist’s harping on about how she should face it and get over the fear. Wanted her to stay for an hour he did but her Jim took her home. She never wanted to try it after that. She refused point blank to see the chap again.

She can’t remember when it started, the agoraphobia. Funny how we say ‘agra’ isn’t it, when it’s written AGORA? Or you hear some folks saying ‘agrophobia’ like you’re afraid of aggro, which I suppose you are. Anyway, she told me about one Christmas time, when she was nearly due with her last. She was enormous and she had to go shopping, see. So she had the two little ones and this great big belly and she was in the queue for the cash desk when the woman at the till gave her a sympathetic look and that was it. She burst into tears. They had to get her a chair and a glass of water and call Jim to come and take her home. She told me she felt ashamed and the kids were upset too. It put her off going into supermarkets again. She had to force herself to go out when the kids were small. She had to take them to school and clubs and what not. Then as they got bigger she had to go out less and less. By the time they left home she was hardly going out at all.  When Jim offered to pick up the groceries on his way home she jumped at the chance. She just stopped going out altogether.

She likes talking to me. She says it’s great that I don’t tell her what to do. I just listen which is what she wants sometimes. Her family, she says, always tell her what to do. Her kids are the worst. They tell her she should pull herself together and get on with it. Well I read up on this agoraphobia, see. She can’t just get on with it otherwise she would, wouldn’t she?  Her kids just don’t get it. For all their fancy jobs and posh houses in somewhere under Lyme they can’t work it out. Margaret’s brothers and sisters don’t visit much. When they do they get at her. Jim protects her though. He tells her they don’t understand. He tells the kids to leave her to it.

Her husband sounds like a love. She was bored indoors so he got her a job that she can do at home. She gets these boxes of parts delivered. They come in a van every Monday. The guy drops them off in her front porch and picks up the boxes she’s left at the same time. They are different parts that make up lampshades. She has to put them in packets and stick the labels on. It’s not much of a job. It keeps her busy. They are different every week but the principle is the same. She has to make sure that each pack has a frame, top and bottom, instructions and the shade. Flat pack lampshades! I ask you? He does all the shopping as well. Wish I had a bloke who would do all the shopping. She writes him a list and he picks it up on the way home from work.  She doesn’t use the internet. She never wanted to learn. I told her about shopping on line and having it delivered but she wasn’t interested. Said she would have to get used to another delivery and one a week was enough.

Anyway, the first time Margaret called me, Jim had just been diagnosed with the cancer. Well you can’t help feeling sorry for them can you? She was in a right state. He’s the only person she has any trust in, see. She was so upset she didn’t make sense at first. He’s not very sick yet, still working, but he’s got this lump in his head and they can’t operate on it. He gets right bad headaches which is why he had the examination.  She’s calmed down a lot since that first call. She still calls me nearly every week to tell me about it. She feels a bit pathetic not being able to go with him when he goes to the clinic for his treatment and the like but what can she do? Always gets a bit distressed when her kids have been for a visit. It never goes the way she wants it to. She was hoping that one of them would offer to come home again once their dad died. They’ve made it clear that she will have to pull her socks up and get on with it. They don’t want to see their dad more than they used to either. You’d think they would wouldn’t you? Now that he’s dying and all.

 

Author interview no.611 with scriptwriter & crime writer Tony Glover

Welcome to the six hundred and eleventh of my blog interviews with novelists, poets, short story authors, biographers, agents, publishers and more. Today’s is with scriptwriter & crime author Tony Glover. A list of interviewees (blogged and scheduled) can be found here. If you like what you read, please do go and investigate further.

Morgen: Hello, Tony. Please tell us something about yourself, where you’re based, and how you came to be a writer.

Tony: I live in Newcastle upon Tyne.  I was born in Northumberland – the Debateable Lands, as they were known in the past – England’s last wilderness. I started writing as a child – I was always making up stories in the car on the way to school. When I was at secondary school I had some of them published in the school magazine.

Morgen: I love it when I hear that someone started writing early. I was in my late 30s and would have loved to have realised earlier how thrilling it is to make things up, but I remind myself that I have all those years’ experience to write about. What genre do you generally write and have you considered other genres?

Tony: My first love was writing for film – shorts and so on.  Then I had a radio play on the BBC which won a bronze Sony award. After that I had a pilot for a drama broadcast on ITV.  I’ve had a couple of stage plays produced.  But it was only recently I started writing crime stories.  My first book was about an Elizabethan spy in the service of Sir Francis Walsingham.  I had that ready to go when another writer brought out a book on the same subject – I remember reading the review in the Observer. My blood ran cold! So I put that back on the shelf and started a crime novel.

Morgen: I used to read Stephen King in my teens (under the duvet with a torch, they were so gripping) and loved Roald Dahl’s Tales of the Unexpected so it was inevitable my writing would have a dark side. I’ve written chick lit, lad lit and mystery, but my heart is with crime too. I started a crime series for NaNoWriMo 2012. What have you had published to-date?

Tony: This is my first published novel. I’ve written a book about wartime Darlington and a collection of folk tales but I’ve always pursued film writing, which is an odd sort of career. You are working blind in that you never know if your story will ever see the light of day.  I’ve recently sold a script for a feature film but once a script leaves the writer, anything can happen.  I’ve loved working on the current book because I’m not waiting for a decision from a producer or commissioning editor.

Morgen: I have heard many scriptwriters say how hard it is to get taken up, more so than prose, I think, and many books who have their film rights bought often never come to fruition, which is a real shame because someone saw the potential. I guess it’s all about money. Have you self-published?

Tony: I prefer to be a writer, rather than be a publisher.  Self-publishing is a very respectable option but I don’t have all the skills to promote a book.  I was lucky enough to be approached by two publishers for ‘Cars Just Want to be Rust’.  Both were very able but I knew the folk at Crafty Publishing would give it their best shot.

Morgen: Are your books available as eBooks? How involved were you in that process? Do you read eBooks or is it paper all the way?

Tony: Yes. ‘Cars Just Want to be Rust’ is available as an ebook on Amazon, Smashwords and the Crafty Publishing website.  I learned as much as I could about the process – software, layout, publicity. I bought some software, which wasn’t right!

I read 50% on the Kindle and 50% paper. Sometimes you just need to hold a ‘proper’ book, don’t you?  I love the smell of books – the aroma of ink is intoxicating!

Morgen: You do. I’m the same, pretty much. My house is a small library so I think I’ll always be reading ‘pBooks’, then there are so many free eBooks coming my way (I promote many via my 5am Flashes) that they all go on my Kindle. Do you have a favourite of your books or characters? If any of your books were made into films, who would you have as the leading actor/s?

 

Morgen’s Saturday Shout-out 002 – what a difference a week makes

Last Saturday I started this section of the blog to say what I’ve been up to. It did go on a bit (you can read it here) and although a lot’s happened this week, I’ll try to keep this short (I do waffle for England).

Last Sunday morning while going round the park with my dog, I came up with the idea (although it had been milling for a while) of expanding, or at least diluting, the red pen critique I do, and build a blog where others can more involved in critiquing short stories.

Morgen’s Online Short Story Writing Group was then born… and a few minutes later Morgen’s Online Poetry Writing Group… then by the end of Sunday, Morgen’s Online Novel Writing Group, and the following day Morgen’s Online Script Writing Group.

So, there are now four groups where… readers and writers critique each others’… short stories, poetry, novels and scripts. I then created Facebook pages for them (listed at the end of this post’s footer), inviting some of my Facebook friends. If you’re on Facebook, feel free to join in.

I put a shout-out on Facebook and Twitter that these blogs / groups exists and have had almost a dozen submissions already for the first three groups (so if anyone has a <5,000-word script extract they’d like to submit…!).

To-date I’ve posted:

• 001: Novel extract by Lianne Simon (novel group)
• 002: The Dreamt Child by Yvonne Hertzberger (novel group)
• Poem 001: His Mac by Ina Schroders-Zeeders (poetry group)
• Poem 002: Punchinello by Salvatore Buttaci (poetry group)
• Poem 003: Australian Hendecasyllabics by Phillip Ellis (poetry group)
• Story 001: Mine Own Land by Nathan Weaver (short story group)
• Story for Critique 002: The Coffin Route by John McGowan (short story group), with Red pen session 012 – critique of ‘Shooting Stars’, a short story by Graham Smith posted in between
• Nothing yet for the script group

Plus I’ve started daily exercises with four prompts for each so an hour’s worth of writing every evening for those who say they can’t find the time, or inspiration, to write… most of us, I think.

Because of these groups, I’ll be stopping the Red Pen Critique slot after the two I have booked in (tomorrow and Sunday 20th) – (a) because I’m doing the same thing in the short story and novel groups (I’m not qualified to really comment on poetry or script as I don’t write much of them but no doubt I will have something to say!) and (b) because I’ve been doing my red pen and then typing up the notes which takes a few hours each – for example I’ve written 14 sides of a shorthand notepad (about A6-size) just for a 2,200-word story!

The Short Story Saturdays (sss) slot has also now stopped because it was also posting and reviewing stories so is duplicated by the new short story group.

I’ll also be cutting down on the blog interviews: I’m currently booked up (still at one-a-day) until the end of June, when they will go to weekend mornings only, with the author spotlights then moving from Wednesday and Saturday evenings to weekday mornings. I am now charging (£10 / €12.50 / $15) for the interviews (because they take at least an hour a day to do – I add in comments as if we’re chatting) but everything else will still be free of charge. Wednesday evening will become another guest blog spot and Saturday evenings… not sure yet, maybe I’ll be posting some writing of mine.

I’ve also handed over the reins of my (in-person) Monday night writing group to a colleague who’s now going to host it every other Monday at her house. I’ll still go from time-to-time but it’s one less thing I have to do.

Last Sunday saw the start of the new Novel Nights In slot, where I run a guest novel in a maximum of 10 instalments. The novels can be self- or traditionally published but if the latter, I’ll need permission from your publisher that they’re happy to run it.

The 5pm Fiction has had a break since I started NaNoWriMo at the beginning of November but that returns February 1st. The idea was that it would give me three months to edit novel number two (a mystery written in 2009) but it’s making slow progress.

So, all-in-all a busy week with a lot of changes (I’m hoping for the better). No writing of my own done (not even the exercises – tut tut!), but hopefully the groups will more or less take care of themselves with a bit of admin from me. I will critique each one but the plan (from now on) is not to put the critique on the blog but provide links to scans of my markings. Invariably they’ll look scary but hopefully everyone will learn something from them. Each blog group has a ‘Submissions’ page stating what I need but do email me (morgen@morgenbailey.com) if you have any queries.

I quit my job in March 2012 so I could spend more time writing, I’m hoping 2013 will see me actually doing just that!

***

** NEW!! You can now subscribe to this blog on your Kindle / Kindle app!

See http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B008E88JN0

or http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B008E88JN0 for outside the UK **

You can sign up to receive these blog posts daily or weekly so you don’t miss anything. You can contact me and find me on the internet, view my Books (including my debut novel!) and I also have a blog creation / maintenance service especially for, but not limited to, writers. If you like this blog, you can help me keep it running by donating and choose an optional free eBook.

For writers / readers willing to give feedback and / or writers wanting feedback, take a look at this blog’s Feedback page.

As I post an interview a day (amongst other things) I can’t unfortunately review books but I have a list of those who do, and a feature called ‘Short Story Saturdays’ where I review stories of up to 2,500 words (and post stories of up to 3,000 words), or posted for others to critique (up to 5,000 words) on the new Morgen’s Online Short Story Writing Group. Alternatively if you have a short story or self-contained novel extract / short chapter (ideally up to 1000 words) that you’d like critiqued and don’t mind me posting it online in my new Red Pen Critique Sunday night posts, then do email me. I am now also looking for flash fiction (<1000 words) for Flash Fiction Fridays and poetry for Post-weekend Poetry and Morgen’s Online Poetry Writing Group.

Four new online writing groups:

• Morgen’s Online Novel Writing Group (http://novelwritinggroup.wordpress.com / http://www.facebook.com/groups/508696639153189)
• Morgen’s Online Poetry Writing Group (http://poetrywritinggroup.wordpress.com / http://www.facebook.com/groups/388850977875934)
• Morgen’s Online Script Writing Group (http://scriptwritinggroup.wordpress.com / http://www.facebook.com/groups/319941328108017)
• Morgen’s Online Short Story Writing Group (http://shortstorywritinggroup.wordpress.com / http://www.facebook.com/groups/544072635605445)

 

January-deadline writing competitions & events

I have a list of writing competition on my Competitions page, initially listed by month then the weekly, monthly, quarterly and yearly ones. Below are the January-deadline competitions. Do email me if you know of any others…

January competitions

• Children’s: Frances Lincoln.
• Flash Fiction: Fiction Desk, Indies Unlimited hosts a weekly 250-word max. prompt competition – see Indies Unlimited. Also see ‘Short stories’ below.
• Flash Fiction: Writer Austin Briggs runs a monthly 55-word competition (different theme each month). It’s free to enter and you can win $55 (of his own money!).
• Memoir: Lightship Short Memoir Contest: Do you want to tell your own story, or an episode of it? 1st prize £1,000 closing date 31 January 2013 – judge Rachel Cusk. Thanks again to The New Writer magazine for the info.
• Mixed: Christian magazine Pockets has a different theme per month.
• Mixed (novels & short story collections): iWriteReadRate and Cornerstones Literary Consultancy (http://www.voteformyebook.com) are offering a monthly social competition to members of the community – see ‘Monthly’ towards the end of this page.
• Non-fiction: Nature writing essays welcomed for the Resurgence & Ecologist magazine. The deadline is 6th January 2013.
• Novels: www.booklinethinker.com/hookline.
• Plays: Bruntwood (OPENS 31st January 2013).
• Plays: The Drama Wales One-Act Play is ON HOLD for 2013 so there’ll be no competition but I’ll let you know if this changes in 2014.
• Poetry: Kent & Sussex Poetry Society Open Poetry Competition has a First Prize: £1000, 2nd: £300,  3rd: £100,  4th: 4 x £50. Judge: Daljit Nagra. Entry fee: £5 per poem. 3 or more poems: £4 each. Closing date: 31 January 2013. Entries to: The Competition Organiser, 26 Courtlands, Teston, Maidstone, Kent, ME18 5AS. Put name and address on separate sheet – not on poem or enter online and pay by Paypal. For more details, go to: www.kentandsussexpoetry.com.
• Poetry: other poetry competitions include Haiku Calendar, Hippocrates, Leaf Press, Strokestown, Writing / Writers’ News magazines (monthly), www.haikusoc.ndo.co.uk, www.slipstream-poets.co.uk, www.bevlit.org.
• Screenwriting: Canada-based Wildsound run monthly screenwriting competitions.
• Short stories: The Sophie King Prize is a romantic fiction short story competition which aims to discover a great new romance short story. The winning story will be chosen by best-selling novelist and short story writer Sophie King. The competition is run by women’s fiction ebook publisher Corazon Books, which published Sophie’s own short story collection, Tales from the Heart, earlier this year (to rave reviews) and a new edition of her novel The School Run. This free-to-enter competition is open to both published and unpublished writers resident in the UK. The winning story will be recorded by a professional actor, and broadcast from a dedicated online audio player at http://www.sophieking.info and www.greatstorieswithheart.com. The winner will also receive a beautiful silver-plated jug and £50 gift voucher courtesy of The Handpicked Collection. Entries must not have been previously published in any medium (including but not limited to print, audio and online). The Sophie King Prize will launch on Monday 12th November in association with National Short Story Week. Entrants must submit a short story of between 2,000 to 2,500 words with a romantic theme. The submissions deadline is January 10th 2013 and the winner will be announced in March 2013. More details at www.sophieking.info.
• Short stories: Home-Start Bridgwater Short Story Prize has a 21st January 2013 deadline and this year’s judge is Dame Margaret Drabble.
• Short stories: Hayley Sherman runs a monthly short story competition for submissions on any subject up to 2,000 words. The winners are published on the website, promoted online and receive a £10 First Writer voucher. All entrants are also considered for publication in The New Short Story Annual at the end of the year. Deadline 25th of the month. Heather Marie Schuldt runs a similar contest, although 500-750 words max., but with the same deadline.
• Short stories: The Bath Short Story Award opened October 2012 for entries – see ‘March’.
• Short stories: Writer Selection has a 31st January deadline and 200-2000 word count. The 2013 judge is writer / poet and Costa / Troubadour winner John Hayes. Prizes £150, £50, £25. Entry is free and all entrants receive a year’s membership (normally £10).
• Short stories: Other competitions include Bury St Edmunds, Chudleigh, Fiction Desk, Five Stop Story, Glimmer Train (different category each month), Home-Start Bridgewater, Mslexia, National Galleries Scotland, Writing / Writers’ News magazines (monthly), www.flair4words.co.uk/news.

***

and an Events page based on a similar format. Do email me if you know of any others…

January events

• The Writing School Leicester September term programme will have been published in July.
• The London Writers’ Workshops latest programme is now available.
• Two-hour weekly (Tuesday nights) creative writing sessions at the Old Cross Pub, Church Street, Stapleford, Leicestershire. Run by local writer, Dave Wood. Cost £3.75. Email him for more info.
• Creative Coffee Club is where creative people meet fortnightly on a Wednesday at Screen Lounge at Phoenix Square Digital Media Centre, 4 Midland Street, Leicester LE1 1TJ (UK).
• Liars’ League run a series of short fiction readings held at ‘The Lamb’ pub in Lambs Conduit Street, London on the second Tuesday of every month.
• Loose Muse runs on the second Wednesday of every month. at the Poetry Cafe, 22 Betterton Street, London WC2 (closest tube = Covent Garden). This is London’s only regular event for women writers of all genres, with a generous open mike sharing session plus two featured writers each month. The night starts at 8.00 p.m. Cost: £5.00 / £3.00 concessions. I’ll be appearing there in March.
• Towcester Writers’ Group meets every third Wednesday of the month. 7.30-9.30pm. Cost £3 includes refreshments. Towcester Library, Richmond Road, Towcester, Northants NN12 6EX.
• Buxton’s Word Wizards slam poetry competition runs in the coffee lounge at the Buckingham Hotel, Buxton, Derbyshire, UK at 7:30pm on the last Tuesday of every month. Entry is £2.50. More info can be obtained by e-mailing Rob at: poetryslamUK@aol.com.
• BookSlam reports to being “London’s best literary club night” and usually (but not always) takes place on the last Thursday of the month.
• http://www.artsderbyshire.org.uk has various literary events throughout the year.
• Other events in January include: www.jaipurliteraturefestival.org (India, late Jan), www.galleliteraryfestival.com (Sri Lanka, late Jan), www.stonystratford.gov.uk (late Jan), www.pitlochry.org.uk (late Jan / early Feb).

I put out a list of my New Year’s Resolutions this morning and I’m pleased to say I’ve stuck to them so far; the dog’s been taken to the park, I’ve eaten less rubbish and I’ve written a short story (whilst walking round the park). I’m working on the others.

** NEW!! You can now subscribe to this blog on your Kindle / Kindle app!

See http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B008E88JN0

or http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B008E88JN0 for outside the UK **

You can sign up to receive these blog posts daily or weekly so you don’t miss anything. You can contact me and find me on the internet, view my Books (including my debut novel!) and I also have a blog creation / maintenance service especially for, but not limited to, writers. If you like this blog, you can help me keep it running by donating and choose an optional free eBook.

For writers / readers willing to give feedback and / or writers wanting feedback, take a look at this blog’s Feedback page.

As I post an interview a day (amongst other things) I can’t unfortunately review books but I have a list of those who do, and a feature called ‘Short Story Saturdays’ where I review stories of up to 2,500 words (and post stories of up to 3,000 words). Alternatively if you have a short story or self-contained novel extract / short chapter (ideally up to 1000 words) that you’d like critiqued and don’t mind me posting it online in my new Red Pen Critique Sunday night posts, then do email me. I am now also looking for flash fiction (<1000 words) for Flash Fiction Fridays and poetry for Post-weekend Poetry.

 

5am Flash: Indie Author Books – Non-fiction

Having seen one of my interviewees Rosanne Dingli say on a LinkedIn thread: “someone should write a blog soon about all the wonderful indie books available by very capable writers”, I challenged them to give me a <15-word synopsis for their book(s)… they are accepting the challenge and their books are appearing here. What I’m after is your name (listed within each section alphabetically by first name), your website / blog address, book title, book link (where we can buy it), genre and summary in no more than 15 words (a test of your editing skills ). You can email me these details for up to 5 of your books (please don’t paste them into this page’s comments section). My free and $0.99-$2.99 eBooks are detailed on the Books – mine page.

Non-Fiction (including auto/biographies)

• you could have your non-fiction book listed here
• Aggie Villanueva: The Rewritten Word: How to Sculpt Literary Art No Matter The Genre (Non-Fiction) – whittle away what buries the art of your words beneath pulp. Publishing 2011 winner of the Global eBook Award
• you could have your non-fiction book listed here
• Alana Woods: Family medical history (non-fiction medical journal) – record everything of a medical nature for your family here in this one journal.
• you could have your non-fiction book listed here
• Ann Pietrangelo: No More Secs! Living, Laughing & Loving Despite Multiple Sclerosis – a love story at heart; romantic love; love of family; love of life – with MS. Available as eBook and paperback.
• you could have your non-fiction book listed here
• Anne R. Allen: How to be a Writer in the e-Age and Keep Your Sanity (co-written with Catherine Ryan Hyde) – a guide to 21st century publishing. Available as an eBook from Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk and a paperback from Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk.
• you could have your non-fiction book listed here
• Anne Cossé: Facial Rejuvenation Acupressure, Look 10 Years Younger in 10 Min per Day (non-fiction beauty) – learn how to look younger and fresher with DIY Facial Rejuvenation Acupressure.
• you could have your non-fiction book listed here
• Barbara Barth: The Unfaithful Widow (non-fiction memoir) – Personal journey after loss with the help of a vintage Corvette, great friends, and dogs.
• you could have your non-fiction book listed here
• Bob Maddams: Lights, Camera Jemuru – Adventures of a Film-Maker in Ethiopia (factual) – remarkable true-life story of a high-flying adman who taught in an Ethiopian community film school.
• you could have your non-fiction book listed here
• Carol Anita Ryan: Right Now Is Perfect: A Romance, An Adventure, The Unexpected Thereafter –  a South Pacific sailing saga wrapped in a romance with an unexpected ending.
• you could have your non-fiction book listed here
• Dale T Phillips: How To Improve Your Interviewing Skills (career help) – interviewing is critical for getting jobs – this book has been designed to help get better at it.
• you could have your non-fiction book listed here
• Christopher Robbins: The Ravens (factual) – true story of volunteer pilots in a war in Laos that officially did not exist.
• The Test of Courage: Michel Thomas (biography) – one of the most inspirational stories of the 20th century.
• you could have your non-fiction book listed here
• Deborah McCarragher: Mission Possible (relationships/women’s issues) – an encouraging book for women in a spiritually mismatched marriage that will change your life.
• you could have your non-fiction book listed here
• Felicia Johnson: A historical glimpse about your braids (narrative non-fiction) – origin of braided hairstyles relevant to history, culture, style, and economics.
• you could have your non-fiction book listed here
• Gregory Allen: Proud Pants (memoir; eBook only) – a man recalls his life of addiction, abandonment, and anger as he faces death at the age of thirty-four.
• you could have your non-fiction book listed here
• Hodges L. Golson, Ph.D.: Influence for Impact: Increasing Your Effectiveness in Your Organization (business / self-development) – understand and use the laws of influence to make your life easier. Available from Hodges’ website.
• you could have your non-fiction book listed here
• Jamie Cawley: The Self Publishers Guide to Book Marketing: Step By Step Guide For Fiction and Non-Fiction Authors (writing guide) – Book marketing made easy!  Affordable ways to promote your book and boost sales.
• you could have your non-fiction book listed here
• Jill Dobbe: Here We Are & There We Go: Teaching and Traveling With Kids in Tow (travel memoir) – a heartwarming travel memoir filled with temper tantrums, disorienting jetlag, and zany, one-in-a-lifetime family adventures. Available from Amazon.com, Amazon.co.uk and Barnes & Noble.
• you could have your non-fiction book listed here
• Joan H Young: Fall Off the Couch Laughing (non-fiction, essays) – ten humorous essays on outdoor recreation topics, illustrated with photos by the author.
• North Country Cache: Adventures on a National Scenic Trail (non-fiction, essays) – afternoon strolls or backpacking, an eclectic collection of essays chronicling 2300 miles of NCT hikes.
• you could have your non-fiction book listed here
• Jonathan Margolis: A Brief History of Tomorrow (factual) – a fascinating look at the future, as you’ve never seen it.
• Uri Geller: Magician or Mystic? (biography) – a biography of Uri Geller, the controversial spoon-bending and mind-reading performer.
• you could have your non-fiction book listed here
• Joy V Smith: Remodeling: Buying and Updating a Foreclosure (non-fiction eBook) – How one woman bought and remodeled a foreclosure; it didn’t even have a kitchen sink!
• you could have your non-fiction book listed here
• Kathryn Elizabeth Jones: Conquering Your Goliaths: Guidebook (Christian non-fiction) – have your own Goliaths to conquer? Get help here using the five stones.
• you could have your non-fiction book listed here
• Kathryn Vercillo: Crochet Saved My Life – exploration of the health benefits of hobbies and a handmade life told through the lens of personal stories. Available via CreateSpace (paperback) and Amazon (eBook and paperback).
• you could have your non-fiction book listed here
• Kerry Dwyer: Ramblings In Ireland (travel memoir) – a tangential ramble through culture, grammar the west of Ireland and random trivialities. Available from Amazon.co.uk and Amazon.com.
• you could have your non-fiction book listed here
• Kimberley Payne (Fit for Faith and Return Home and Tell blogs): Fit for Faith – 7 weeks to improved spiritual & physical health – unites physical and spiritual health through a program to lose weight and strengthen God’s relationship. Available via Smashwords and Amazon.
• Where Family Meets Faith (non-fiction devotional) – shows the similarities between the challenges of a family and building a relationship with God. Available via Smashwords and Amazon.
• Where Fitness Meets Faith (non-fiction devotional) – reflections about the challenges of maintaining a healthy lifestyle and building a relationship with God. Available via Smashwords and Amazon.
• you could have your non-fiction book listed here
• Linda M James: How to Write Great Screenplays (and Get Them into Production) (paperback) – jam packed with everything you need to know to write a great screenplay! Highly recommended.
• How to Write and Sell Great Short Stories (paperback & eBook) – full of fabulous advice about writing and selling short stories and novels. Inspiring.
• you could have your non-fiction book listed here
• Martyn Forrester: Madvertising 1975-1985 (factual) – the inside story of advertising’s wildest decade.
• you could have your non-fiction book listed here
• Michael Nicholson: Natasha’s Story (memoir/non-fiction) – The heart-wrenching true story of how legendary TV reporter Michael Nicholson smuggled an orphan out of war-ravaged Sarajevo.
• A Measure of Danger (auto-biography/non-fiction) – A vivid account of the 18 war zones Michael Nicholson has braved in his career with Britain’s prestigious ITN.
• you could have your non-fiction book listed here
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Author interview no.573 with children’s writer and poet Sherrill S Cannon

Welcome to the five hundred and seventy-third of my blog interviews with novelists, poets, short story authors, biographers, agents, publishers and more. Today’s is with children’s author and poet Sherrill S Cannon. A list of interviewees (blogged and scheduled) can be found here. If you like what you read, please do go and investigate further.

Morgen: Hello, Sherrill. Please tell us something about yourself, where you’re based, and how you came to be a writer.

Sherrill: Hi, Morgen.  I am a children’s author, Sherrill S. Cannon, and I live in the United States.  My primary home is in Pennsylvania, but my husband and I are retired and spend half the year in our RV, traveling to Florida and then to California and back home.  I have been composing poetry since I was four years old. (I can’t say writing, since my mother had to write them down for me.)  Now that I am retired, I am able to get my books and plays published.

Morgen: How lovely that you started so young. I didn’t ‘find’ creative writing (an evening class) until my late 30s but most of my writing group are retired and many say they have always wanted to write but have never found the time, which is a shame because 300 words a day = 100,000 novel in a year. What genre do you generally write and have you considered other genres?

Sherrill: I write rhymed children’s stories for ages 3-8, and most of them are about establishing good manners and learning about consideration for others.  I also have written a lot of poetry, since I love to play with words as well as the challenge of rhyme and meter, some of which has been published in several anthologies, and plays for children, which also are primarily in rhyme.

Morgen: What fun. I have written very little for children but the family next door have three of varying ages so maybe I should give it a go. What have you had published to-date?

Sherrill: I have four published children’s books, with several more waiting in the wings, and six internationally published children’s plays. Interestingly enough, my plays are through www.lazybeescripts.co.uk – and my stories apparently are gaining popularity in the UK as well.

Morgen: You’ve self-published, what lead to you going your own way?

Sherrill: My publisher, SBPRA, is more of a “help-publish” publisher.  I had to contribute a small amount for my first book, Santa’s Birthday Gift, plus pay for my illustrations – but for each succeeding book, I have had to contribute less. Now I can just contribute to the marketing of the books, which is the other half of being an author!  After spending some time in my earlier days (there are quite a few of them, since I am now 72!) submitting my stories to publishing houses who either told me they weren’t accepting unsolicited manuscripts or that I needed an agent (who then told me that they weren’t interested in representing unpublished authors!?!) I decided to try online submissions, where I found SBPRA.  It was the best decision of my life!

Morgen: I’m so glad it’s worked out for you. You (I) do hear some horror stories. Are your books available as eBooks? Do you read eBooks or is it paper all the way?

Sherrill: Yes, all my books are now eBooks – and Peter and the Whimper-Whineys is an App as well.  I didn’t convert them until the Nook came out with a color version, since I feel that children really need the color illustrations to hold their interest.  Now I still feel that children need an actual book, to hold and leaf through and take to bed with them – but the eBooks are great for trips and entertaining kids when it is easier to take one source along. And children are so tech-savvy now, that toddlers seem to be able to manipulate the iPhones and iPads and Kindles and Nooks better than I can!

Morgen: It’s the old saying (well, not that old as they’ve not been around all that long by comparison) that if you want to know how a computer works, ask a child. I’d love a guest blog on creating an App. Do you have a favourite of your books or characters? If any of your books were made into films, who would you have as the leading actor/s?

Sherrill: My favorite book will always be Santa’s Birthday Gift – because it was the first to be published, and the one that I feel that I was inspired to write.  After I read the story of the Nativity to one of my grandchildren, she looked at me and said, “But where’s Santa?”  I thought to myself, Yes indeed, where is Santa?  That night the entire story came to me in a dream, and when I sat down to write it the story just flowed (in rhyme)… So to me it will always be a very special book. (My books are in rhyme and too short to be films.)

Morgen: I like your granddaughter – she’s switched on. Did you choose the titles / covers of your books? How important do you think they are?

Sherrill: I always determine the titles and covers of my books. That is one of the great advantages of working with a small publisher and an illustrator of my choice.  My illustrator, KJ of the Kalpart team, is absolutely awesome and I am very happy whenever someone decides to judge one of my books by her covers!  Small children who can’t read have no other way to choose books, and parents are aware of that. Kalpart has illustrated all of my books – we work together online, since she is located in India – and we are already preparing for my next book.

Morgen: The joy of the internet, don’t you just love technology? You mentioned your next book, what are you working on at the moment / next?

Sherrill:  My next book will still be about manners, and will incorporate some of the characters from my most recent two books, The Magic Word and Gimme-Jimmy.  I hope the new one will be released early in 2013.  My last book, Gimme-Jimmy, actually has the covers of The Magic Word and Peter and the Whimper-Whineys embedded in the illustrations, and the main character Elisabeth of The Magic Word makes a cameo appearance in one scene.  My readers have seemed to enjoy that!  I also have three or four other finished books, ready for publication, which are not quite so branded by good manners, but which teach other commendable traits.

Morgen: I love it when minor characters become main characters and vice versa. Do you manage to write every day? Do you ever suffer from writer’s block?

Sherrill: I write every day, but not stories.  There is a tremendous amount of social networking available for authors today, and keeping up with all of it is challenging. Launching a new book is even more time-consuming, since one needs as much exposure as possible – including submissions to reviewers and contest entries, all of which help promote a book.  The children’s book market in particular is overwhelmed with new books – especially since the entry of self-published and eBooks – and it is difficult to get a new book noticed. Blogs such as this one are invaluable, since it lets me introduce my books to new readers, and I thank you for this opportunity!

Morgen: Oh, you’re very welcome. Doing this blog made me realise just how many authors there are out there; I’m booking into next July (no.772 is the latest) and I think I’ve only touched the tip of the proverbial iceberg. Do you plot your stories or do you just get an idea and run with it?

Sherrill: This would probably be a better question for a novelist.  My stories are all an attempt to teach something to small children, usually manners and consideration for others, disguised as fun stories. So my stories start with that premise and develop from there.

Morgen: It is a question I ask novelists but I think in the respect of how we write, most of us do get an idea and see where it takes us, as you do. I think it’s more fun that way although it doesn’t work for everyone. Do you have a method for creating your characters, their names and what do you think makes them believable?

Sherrill: I do try to use some of my family names for my characters, usually middle names since I don’t want them readily recognized in my dedications and acknowledgements.  Many times, however, I just use names that fit well into a rhyme-scheme!

Morgen: I like that idea. How thrilling must being a character be? Do you do a lot of editing or do you find that as time goes on your writing is more fully-formed?

Sherrill: My editing is pretty well done as I go along.  I am very cognizant of the restrictions of rhyme and meter, however I will use slant-rhymes (like self and help) along the way to break up monotony – or just to be able to convey what I want without being totally constrained.  Don’t forget that Dr. Seuss just made up words – not only for the names of his characters – to help his rhyme and meter flow. (Not that I’m claiming to be Dr. Seuss – especially since he could also draw!! – but I like to think that he would like my books!)

Morgen: Wouldn’t that be great. Some poems etc. can feel like they’re trying too hard to rhyme just so it scans – it you don’t notice something rhymes, or it flows so well that it jingles along then the author’s done their job. Do you have to do much research?

Sherrill: Not very often, for children’s books.  However I had one other story published in an Anthology many years ago titled David’s A.D.D. where I did quite a bit of research and interviewing children with A.D.D. and their parents before I submitted it for publication.  Also, in several of my children’s plays, which I write with my daughter who is an elementary school teacher, I do quite a bit of research.  Many of the plays are written around lesson-plans, so they have to be accurate.

Morgen: And things change quickly, don’t they. What point of view do you find most to your liking: first person or third person? Have you ever tried second person?

Sherrill: I have written a couple in first person because the story seemed to fit better from that perspective, and my next book will be that way.  The ones I have had published are third person.  I’m not sure I could manage to write in second person.

Morgen: Second person is often quite dark so maybe not so good for children’s writing. Perhaps a children’s writer reading this could say if they’ve used it. You mentioned your poetry, has the children’s writing taken over?

Sherrill: I still love to write poetry – mainly trying to put feelings into words, and using rhyme and meter most of the time.  That doesn’t seem to be very popular nowadays.  I don’t think that poetry should be prose chopped up into short lines, but then I’m definitely old enough to be old-fashioned!

Morgen: Do you have pieces of work that you think will never see light of day?

Sherrill: I have a large collection of my poetry which I hope will see the light of day after I no longer can.  My children will have the collection and can do whatever they see fit with it!

Morgen: I hope they do something with them. I do believe there’s an audience out there for everything (that’s well-written / edited). Have you had any rejections? If so, how do you deal with them?

Sherrill: I have had several rejections, but less than many authors since I didn’t really submit very often.  I tried to follow the rules about no simultaneous submissions, and spent a lot of time in limbo!  It’s hard to not take a rejection personally.  After all, it actually is a rejection of a part of an author’s “self” – and I am sure most authors will agree about that.  But it is also hard to get a bad review – or to have no sales – so there are lots of ways to damage an author’s ego.  I think you really have to believe in your work (and get it edited for grammatical and punctuation mistakes before you ever submit anything!) – and then have faith in yourself.  Just don’t sit around and wait to be “discovered”.  If you get a rejection, then submit somewhere else!!

Morgen: Absolutely. I’ve only had 20-something rejections because I don’t submit very often. Do you enter competitions? Are there any you could recommend?

Sherrill: Yes I enter competitions, because if you can win an award, they are an excellent way to get your book noticed and give it credibility.  Especially for children’s books, an award can reassure a parent that the book is well written and has a positive message for children. I just wish there weren’t such restrictions on book entries in some of the more prestigious contests.  Many of the bigger ones – like Caldecott and Theodore Geisel – require only United States authors and illustrators.  Newbery and ALA have the suggestion that the publisher of the book has to be an “approved” publisher, (which usually excludes small press and self-published authors) even though the book itself is supposed to be judged on the author. Even the Children’s Choice is decided by the ALA, mentioned above.  I like the Readers Favorite, the Reader Views, and the Indie Awards as seeming to include a better variety of submissions. The Magic Word won a 6th award – International Book Awards (IBA) Finalist – so now there are 10 awards.

Morgen: Wow, congratulations. Do you have an agent? Do you think they’re vital to an author’s success?

Sherrill:  I do not have an agent, although I have the impression that they are required in order to get one’s book at least looked at by the large publishing houses. Since I had as much trouble finding an agent as I did a publisher when I first started looking, I decided I was wasting too much time.

Morgen: How much of the marketing do you do for your published works or indeed for yourself as a ‘brand’?

Sherrill: I do a lot of marketing (including writing blogs like this one!). It really helps for readers to get to know authors, and the only way to get one’s book noticed is to find ways to share them.  I love the Google-Alerts which you can set up to let you know when there is something written about a “whining child” for instance – and then you can see if you can suggest on that site that you have something that might help solve the problem – such as reading Peter and the Whimper-Whineys!  I have joined a lot of blog sites, and actually found quite a few new friends, that way!  I also find them by responding to offers for guest blogs, so I can reach a greater reading audience (like my new friend, Morgen with an e!).

Morgen: I have Google alerts for Morgen Bailey and Morgan Bailey and it picks up the occasional gem, although most of the former are my postings, because there are so many of them. What’s your favourite / least favourite aspect of your writing life? Has anything surprised you?

Sherrill: My favorite part, without question, is reading my books to children.  I love to go to the schools, and libraries, and small stores, and even big ones like my local Barnes & Noble, and read to them.  I guess I love their questions and comments afterwards as well.  Children are so wonderfully open and enthusiastic, and I truly love sharing with them!  My least favorite aspect is the feeling that there is never enough time to accomplish all that I would like.  I was totally surprised – and thrilled – when Santa’s Birthday Gift won its first award, which was my first award, and I have been consistently surprised and honored with the rest of them that have followed.

Morgen: It must be great meeting your audience face-to-face. My debut eBook is set in the town I live in so I will, at some stage, have it printed and promote it here (I’m too busy at the moment with another novel and short story collections to get online, then I’ll more to promote). What advice would you give aspiring writers?

Sherrill: I think the most important advice, at least for authors just starting out, would be to pick your genre and write within it.  Write about what you know and love, in the easiest way it is for you to write – because then your works will flow, and be sincere, and have meaning for others as well.  This will also help you later on when you need to market your books.

Morgen: If you could invite three people from any era to dinner, who would you choose and what would you cook (or hide the takeaway containers)?

Sherrill: Dr. Seuss would be my first pick, and then the poet Sara Teasdale, and of course I would have to include Morgen Bailey since she arranged it all – and then I would suggest we all go out to dinner and they could choose what they liked (since I grew up in a hotel, and fixing dinner is not one of my favorite things…)

Morgen: Yay! My first (I think) invitation. Going out to dinner would be lovely, especially if it’s to a buffet. One of my favourite restaurants here in Northampton is a buffet with Chinese, Italian, Indian, Japanese, French, English, …um, probably others. It’s fab because there’s no looking at someone else’s plate and wishing you’d ordered what they have. Is there a word, phrase or quote you like?

Sherrill: “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you” – which is really “treat thy neighbor as thyself”…  (keeping in mind that thy neighbor is not just the person who lives next door.)

Morgen: I try to be like that. Are you involved in anything else writing-related other than actual writing or marketing of your writing?

Sherrill: Does acting as my husband’s “administrative assistant” count?  He has a consulting business, so I do his formatting and bookkeeping, etc.

Morgen: The other kind of books. What do you do when you’re not writing?

Sherrill: I love to read, but that’s pretty close to writing!  My husband and I (we’ve been married 52 years) love to enjoy living and traveling in our RV, and we also like bike-riding and taking walks.

Morgen: 52 years, wow. Are there any writing-related websites and / or books that you find useful?

Sherrill: The most important books would be a Dictionary and a Thesaurus, followed closely by Harbrace’s Grammar (or similar book).

Morgen: Are you on any forums or networking sites? If so, how valuable do you find them?

Sherrill: In addition to Facebook (http://tinyurl.com/Author-Sherrill-S-Cannon) and my website (http://www.sherrillcannon.com) I use Twitter (https://twitter.com/sherrillcannon).  I also recommend http://www.Bookbuzzr.com for a great place to get your books noticed, as well as http://www.jacketflap.com and http://www.redroom.com and http://www.bookhitch.com.

Morgen: Thank you for those, Sherrill. What do you think the future holds for a writer?

Sherrill: I think we will find more and more print-on-demand books, more eBooks, and less big publishing houses.  I think, however, that writing is still a profession where it probably isn’t a good idea to give up your day job! With more and more books published, only a very few are going to become self-sustaining, much less millionaires.

Morgen: Where can we find out about you and your writing?

Sherrill: Here are all the links for me and my books (sounds like a song!)

Published Name:  Sherrill S. Cannon

Website and Blog: http://www.sherrillcannon.com

Author Link for All Books: http://sbpra.com/sherrillscannon

Book Title:  Gimme-Jimmy (ISBN 978-1-61897-267-5)
Link to amazon: http://tinyurl.com/Gimme-Jimmy
Genre:  Children’s Picture Book
Summary: Jimmy is a bully whose favorite word is “Gimme”, who has to learn to share

Book Title: The Magic Word (ISBN 978-1-60976-909-3)
Link to amazon: http://tinyurl.com/TheMagicWord
Genre:  Children’s Picture Book
Summary: Elisabeth needs to learn The Magic Word “please”, and to use it every day

Book Title: Peter and the Whimper-Whineys (ISBN 978-1-60911-517-3)
Link to amazon: http://tinyurl.com/PeterandtheWhimper-Whineys
Genre:  Children’s Picture Book
Summary:    Peter and the Whimper-Whineys helps parents cope with whining in a fun way.

Book Title:  Santa’s Birthday Gift  (ISBN 978-1-60860-824-9)
Link to amazon: http://tinyurl.com/SantasBirthdayGift
Genre:  Children’s Picture Book
Summary:  After reading a story of the nativity to a grandchild, she asked “But where’s Santa?”

Morgen: Thank you, Sherrill – I’ve listed them on http://morgenbailey.wordpress.com/books-other-peoples/childrens-ya. Is there anything else you’d like to mention?

Sherrill: I’d like to offer a few words about my plays, which are all available in the UK and have been performed internationally – not only in the UK and the US, but in Germany, Cambodia, Ireland, United Arab Emirates and Botswana (so far).  They are all for elementary school classrooms, and each student has at least one line.  They are available at http://www.lazybeescripts.co.uk:

Have You Seen My Little Lamb?
Mary has brought her lamb to school and now the lamb is lost. Mary, with the help of Mother Goose, meets many storybook friends as she searches for her lost lamb. (Grades 1-3)

The King’s Spell
Something is not right in Mother Goose Land, when Old King Cole casts a spell on the characters. Mother Goose wanders through the kingdom finding everything mixed up until she can prevail upon the King to remove his spell. (Grades 2-4)

When You Wish Upon a Star…fish
A little girl (or a little boy) finds a starfish while she is walking on the boardwalk and throws it back while making a wish that she could see what is under the sea. The play continues with the starfish introducing the little girl to different sea creatures, who each tell her a little about themselves. This play is educational in nature, and can easily be used in connection with a classroom project about undersea life. (Grades 3-4)

The Wonderful World of Weather by
A bird family starts the play, which continues through the different weather scenarios as they go through the seasons, and the bird family concludes the play returning to their nest at home. This play is educational in nature, and can easily be used in connection with a classroom project about the weather. (Grades 3-4)

ABC December
This play is seasonal, and must be performed in December, but it is about the month of December and not just a “holiday” play. It includes many different customs and celebrations. (Grades 1-2)

We Have Character
This play is all about the ways in which children learn character traits through reading. (The traits are exemplified by suggested books, referenced in the Notes at the end of this play.) Each child (or pair of children) comes center stage to tell about the particular character traits of their book: Being Trustworthy, Being a Good Listener, Accepting of Others’ Differences, Caring, Working Together, Being a Good Friend, Thinking of Others, Being Fair, Having Good Judgment, Truthfulness, Being Patient, Never Giving Up, Perseverance, Being Helpful, Showing Respect, Having a Positive Attitude, Having Courage, Sharing, Showing Compassion, Being True to Self, Not Afraid to Make a Mistake, and Being Confident are all included. This play is educational in nature, and should be used in connection with a classroom project involving reading the suggested books.  (Grades 1-2)

Morgen: What fantastic stories. I can see why children love them. Is there anything you’d like to ask me?

Sherrill: How do you keep track of all these different pages, spotlights and blogs?  Is there any way to repay you for your time?

Morgen: I have a wonderful Word table striped in all sorts of colours. Having a schedule for each item on the blog helps keep me in check too. As for ‘repaying’, I’m always enjoy appearing on other people’s blogs although in the literal sense I don’t make any money out of my blog and so haven’t earned any money from it in the last 20 months but I have just put a donate button should anyone feel inclined. If you could mention eBooks or blogging service to anyone who may be interested would be lovely, thank you Sherrill.

I then invited Sherrill to include an extract of her writing…

The Magic Word – Page 1:

Elisabeth Keys was really quite rude;
She pushed into lines and she gobbled her food.
She never said, “Thank you,” “Excuse me,” or “Please.”
She made fun of people; she’d argue and tease.
She took what she wanted whenever she could,
Elisabeth’s manners were not very good!
She wouldn’t share storybooks, puzzles, or toys
So no one would play with her, not girls nor boys.

*

Peter and the Whimper-Whineys – Page 1:
In a house in the forest all covered with vines
Lived a very small rabbit who did nothing but whine.
He’d whine and he’d cry from morning till night,
And nothing that anyone did would be right.
He’d cry and he’d whine, and he’d whine and he’d cry,
Till his mother said, “Peter, I want you to try
To stop all that whining and unpleasant noise.
Go take a nap, or go play with your toys;
If you can’t stop that whining, I very much fear
That the old Whimper-Whineys will look for you here.
You’ll go live with them in a land far away,
Where you’ll join them in whining and crying all day.”

**

I then invited Sherrill to include a synopsis of one of her books…

James Alexander’s nickname was Gimme-Jimmy because he was a greedy and selfish bully.  Imagine Jimmy’s concern when he discovered that every time he said the word “Gimme”, his hand grew larger.  Jimmy was happy to discover that when he was polite and said “Please” and “Thank you”, his hand began to shrink.  He started practicing his new “Polite Rule” and found out that it was much more fun to share.

Gimme-Jimmy – Page 1:

James Alexander’s nickname was Jim,
But nobody would be friends with him.
No one wanted to play with Jimmy,
For Jim Alexander always said, “Gimme.”
“Gimme my books,” he’d say. “Gimme my toys.”
He’d grab from the girls and he’d snatch from the boys.
Jill didn’t like him and neither did Jack,
For Jimmy would take things and not give them back.
Jim was a bully at home and at school;
Though nobody liked him, he thought he was cool.

***

All four of Sherrill S. Cannon’s books are in rhyme and all try to teach something like good manners and caring for others.  In less than three years, this former teacher has won nine United States National Awards for her books, The Magic Word, Peter and the Whimper-Whineys, and Santa’s Birthday Gift.  Her fourth book Gimme-Jimmy, has just been released.  She has also written six published and internationally produced plays for elementary school children, which are available in the UK at lazybeescripts.co.uk.   Growing up in the Willard Hotel in Washington D.C., she became an accomplished equestrienne in her teens; riding, training and showing horses in the Virginia and National show circuits.  She later graduated magna cum laude from The American University, and continued to have a varied career. She was a teacher and coach for ten years; and then became a professional newspaper sports photographer and columnist; then a Dinner Theatre Company Stage Manager; then an Assistant Talent Manager; and finally a Business Administrator.  She and her husband of 52 years are now retired, and travel in their RV from coast to coast each year to spend time with their children and grandchildren… sharing Sherrill’s books along the way!

Update February 2013: Sherrill’s latest book is “Manner Man”…

“I am strong, and my flash is bright,

And I will defend you and make things all right…”

These are the magic words to call upon Manner-Man – a superhero who can help control bullies and teach children ways to be considerate of others.

Manner-Man arrives, shouting “To the Rescue”, helping children learn about sharing and warning about not ‘hitting with words.’  He teaches that if someone starts pushing, just shout out “not nice!”

Meet the children who form the Manner-Man team and find out how to join!

Manner-Man incorporates messages and characters found within some of Cannon’s earlier books – helping children learn how to cope with bullies and look within themselves for their inner superhero!

This is the fifth rhyming children’s book by this award-winning author whose other bestselling books include Gimme-Jimmy, The Magic Word, Peter and the Whimper-Whineys and Santa’s Birthday Gift.

Sherrill says, “Manner-Man is also part of my CureJM Fundraiser Site - http://sbpra.com/curejm/ where 50% of the cost of my books goes to the CureJM Foundation to help find a cure for Juvenile Myositis, an incurable children’s disease. The little girl, Addie, who is featured on the site is now also an illustrated character in Manner-Man, and is the little girl in the turquoise blue dress on the cover!  She is also on the Acknowledgements Page, where there are many other children’s names there as Manner-Man Team members, many of whom are also suffering from the disease. The video about Addie is: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=anIGaQXkhg0“. Thank you, Sherrill.

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If you are reading this and you write, in whatever genre, and are thinking “ooh, I’d like to do this” then you can… just email me and I’ll send you the information. They do now (January 2013) carry a fee (£10 / €12.50 / $15) for the new interviews on this blog but everything else (see Opportunities on this blog) is free.

Alternatively, if you’d like a free Q&A-only interview, I now have http://morgensauthorinterviews.wordpress.com on which I’ve rerun the original interviews posted here then posted new interviews which I then reblog here. These interviews are Q&A only, so I don’t add in my comments but they do get exposure on both sites.

If you go for the interview, it’s very simple; I send you a questionnaire (I have them for novelists, short story authors, children’s authors, non-fiction authors, and poets). You complete the questions, and I let you know when it’s going to go live. Before it does so, I add in comments as if we’re chatting, and then they get posted. When that’s done, I email you with the link so you can share it with your corner of the literary world. And if you have a writing-related blog / podcast and would like to interview me… let me know.

** NEW!! You can now subscribe to this blog on your Kindle / Kindle app!

See http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B008E88JN0

or http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B008E88JN0 for outside the UK **

You can sign up to receive these blog posts daily or weekly so you don’t miss anything. You can contact me and find me on the internet, view my Books (including my debut novel, which is being serialised on Novel Nights In!) and I also have a blog creation / maintenance service especially for, but not limited to, writers. If you like this blog, you can help me keep it running by donating and choose an optional free eBook.

For writers / readers willing to give feedback and / or writers wanting feedback, take a look at this blog’s Feedback page.

As I post an interview a day (amongst other things) I can’t unfortunately review books but I have a list of those who do. I welcome items for critique for the online writing groups listed below:

Morgen’s Online Non-Fiction Writing Group

• http://nonfictionwritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/335526669896374

Morgen’s Online Novel Writing Group

• http://novelwritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/508696639153189

Morgen’s Online Poetry Writing Group

• http://poetrywritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/388850977875934

Morgen’s Online Script Writing Group

• http://scriptwritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/319941328108017

Morgen’s Online Short Story Writing Group

• http://shortstorywritinggroup.wordpress.com
• http://www.facebook.com/groups/544072635605445

We look forward to reading your comments.

 

5a.m. Flash 061212 – December deadline writing competitions

Every now and then at 5a.m. (probably posted by my clone) I will be bringing you a newsflash, update on what I’m doing, invited guest piece, or whatever takes my fancy, and today I’m talking writing competitions.

I have a Competitions Calendar on my blog and below are some competitions that have December deadlines.

NB. I may well not have tried these competitions myself so please take a good look at the websites before parting with money and submitting your hard work!  ALSO please note that not all the competitions run each year so please check their validity before entering (and their guidelines do change from year to year).

DECEMBER

• Children’s: The Frances Lincoln Diverse Voices and www.theredtelephone.co.uk.
• Flash Fiction: Indies Unlimited hosts a weekly 250-word max. prompt competition – see Indies Unlimited. Also see ‘Short stories’ below.
• Flash Fiction: Writer Austin Briggs runs a monthly 55-word competition (different theme each month). It’s free to enter and you can win $55 (of his own money!).
• Mixed: Christian magazine Pockets has a different theme per month.
• Mixed (novels & short story collections): iWriteReadRate and Cornerstones Literary Consultancy (http://www.voteformyebook.com) are offering a monthly social competition to members of the community – see ‘Monthly’ towards the end of this page.
• Playwriting: New Perspectives has a £1000 prize fund for their Dream Up script competition which ends 21st December. Open to any writer living in the East Midlands area of England, the theme is ‘Starting out in the East Midlands’ and should last no longer than 10-15 minutes with a maximum of four characters. See http://newperspectives.co.uk/STEPUP for more details.
• Poetry: Print Express are running their first poetry competition and this is free to enter, with the winner will receive £100 worth of Amazon vouchers. The theme is ‘Winter’ and poems must be no longer than 45 lines. The deadline for this is the 28th December 2012.  You can view further details here: http://www.printexpress.co.uk/blog/2011/10/17/the-print-express-poetry-competition
• Poetry: Other poetry competitions include Anthony Hecht, Holland Park Press, www.le.ac.uk/engassoc and Writing Magazine (WM: subscriber-only theme: waiting for the post).
• Screenwriting: Canada-based Wildsound run monthly screenwriting competitions.
• Screenwriting: www.screenplay-competition.com.
• Short stories: Hayley Sherman runs a monthly short story competition for submissions on any subject up to 2,000 words. The winners are published on the website, promoted online and receive a £10 First Writer voucher. All entrants are also considered for publication in The New Short Story Annual at the end of the year. Deadline 25th of the month. Heather Marie Schuldt runs a similar contest, although 500-750 words max., but with the same deadline.
• Short stories: Writers’ Village runs a quarterly short story competition which attracts entrants worldwide. Click here for the rules… and every entrant receives invaluable critique! Their winter deadline is 31st December.
• Short stories: The Bath Short Story Award opened October 2012 for entries – see ‘March’.
• Short stories: Five Stop Story, Glimmer Train (different category each month), Willesden Herald, www.westcountrywriters.com, Words Magazine, Writing Magazine (WM: open to all theme: first line ‘This won’t be as much fun, Jessica thought.’ / subscriber-only theme: moving on).

***

** NEW!! You can now subscribe to this blog on your Kindle / Kindle app!

See http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B008E88JN0

or http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B008E88JN0 for outside the UK **

You can sign up to receive these blog posts daily or weekly so you don’t miss anything. You can contact me and find me on the internet, view my Books (including my debut novel!) and I also have a blog creation / maintenance service especially for, but not limited to, writers. If you like this blog, you can help me keep it running by donating and choose an optional free eBook.

As I post an interview a day (amongst other things) I can’t unfortunately review books but I have a list of those who do, and a feature called ‘Short Story Saturdays’ where I review stories of up to 2,500 words. Alternatively if you have a short story or self-contained novel extract / short chapter (ideally up to 1000 words) that you’d like critiqued and don’t mind me posting it online in my new Red Pen Critique Sunday night posts, then do email me. I am now also looking for flash fiction (<1000 words) for Flash Fiction Fridays and poetry for Post-weekend Poetry.

 

Reader feedback wanted and offered

** LIST UPDATED 15 DEC 2012 – CLICK HERE FOR LATEST LIST **

Can you offer an author FREE feedback? Would you like to receive that feedback?

I came up with the idea for this page during a mini-break at a ‘pitch to the panel’ event at the Festival of Romance, Bedford, mid-November 2012. I know there are many writers out there who, for one reason or another, don’t have enough (or any!) readers / writers willing to give them FREE feedback on their works-in-progress so they can make it as good as it can be before they submit it. Could you give that feedback? Would you like that feedback?

NB. You can be on both lists – it doesn’t have to be one or the other. :)

** Because almost everyone has contact details against their name, I shall leave it that you contact each other. Obviously any enquiries I receive will be passed on but I would ask that you visit this page from time-to-time to check whether I have added anyone who is willing to read your genre or that an author is looking for feedback that you offer. Thank you again everyone for taking part. I hope to build this page into a really valuable (if not monetary!) resource for all concerned. **

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READERS (see below for readers offering feedback)

• Do you like reading novels, short stories, non-fiction or poetry (anything else?) and are willing to give free, honest feedback?
• Can you read them quickly (within a month)?

I’m looking to list first readers on this page (below) so please either email me or leave a comment below (and I’ll paste it into this page) with the following information…

• Your name:
• Your email address: (via me if preferred)
• Your website (if you have one, if not I can design you one!):
• Genre preferred:
• Format (novel, short stories, poetry, non-fiction):
• Maximum length of work to be read (___,000 words / ___ lines for poetry):
• Lead time preferred (ideally no more than a month please):
• Do you write? (yes/no):
• Any other relevant information:

Thank you so much in advance. Writers can never have too many first readers and feedback more than “that’s good” (or otherwise) is invaluable to us and you get a free read!

NB. Don’t be under pressure to give a lengthy, detailed feedback (but it would be great if you could). You’re doing this for free so just what you can would be so gratefully appreciated. You can discuss this directly with the other author.

Readers listed here (alphabetically for now)…(note the ‘at’ in the email address should read @, with no spaces, but formatted like that to try and avoid them getting spammed! If you click on the links they should work OK)

• Aaron Fuller (email c/o Morgen): Genre preferred: anything except romance! Novel synopsis and individual chapters only, not whole ones! Otherwise any. Max count: 10,000 words. Lead time: 2 weeks. Do you write? Yes. Thank you, Aaron!
• Aaron Roark (aaronroark9 at gmail.com): Aaron is a writer (listed below) who would also like to give feedback, preferably fantasy or horror (no non-fiction or romance). He needs at least two weeks lead time depending on the length of the work. (50,000 words max). Thank you, Aaron!
• Claire Maycock (formerly Marriott) (claire at nibenon.com, new blog coming soon at www.clairemaycock.com) Genres: non-fiction (home, garden, crafts, personal development), fiction (historical). No maximum length. Lead time to be agreed on receipt of file but will typically be three to four weeks. Do you write? Yes. Thank you, Claire!
• David Ferretti (edf at wildblue.net): I write crossover fantasy (no cursing/sex). I have two finished manuscripts of my trilogy; the first is edited and has been read by several beta readers that caused me to make changes. I am the only person to read the second. I will be glad to exchange finished manuscripts with anyone who writes in the same genre. My manuscript is 119,000 words long and readers have told me that it is a fast read. If your manuscript runs <120,000 words then give me two weeks to review it. Greater length manuscripts will take a little bit longer. I prefer Microsoft Word docx or doc files. Thank you, David!
• Elaine Spires (hello at elainespires.co.uk / www.ElaineSpires.co.uk): Genre preferred: all except sci-fi, horror and poetry. Do you write? Yes (several plays, a TV series, three books, presently working on fourth). Thank you, Elaine!
• Hersilia Press publisher Ilaria (ilaria) Meliconi (info at hersilia-press.co.uk / http://www.hersilia-press.co.uk) is willing to offer feedback on crime novels but timescale dependent on existing workload. Grazie Ilaria!
• James Munroe (MunroJim at twitter.example.com): I will read any novel set in the medieval period, and if it is good, post a review on MedievalMysteries.com, or otherwise send a brief critique direct to the author by email. Thank you, James!
• Jeanne E. Rogers (echidna at gmail.com / http://warriorechidna.blogspot.co.uk/p/contact-me.html): I really like this idea, Morgen, with an ‘e.’ I would like to participate on both sides of this coin. I am a writer of middle grade fantasy, focusing on highlighting endangered animals in my stories. I would like to read fantasy, not necessarily for young people (timescale dependent upon workload – please enquire first), and I would like to have my new book, which is not complete at this point, read for some thoughts / opinions. Thanks so much! Thank you, Jean!
• Kay Millward (kay.millward at yahoo.co.uk / http://www.kay-millward.com/contact-us.php): Any genre. Feedback usually within the month. Do you write? Yes.
• Laurence French (laurencefrench92 at yahoo.co.uk): Hi, I’d be happy to read other authors’ works and give them feedback. I’m a published author in the UK (fiction and non-fiction), as well as having a number of articles published. I like all genres and, if the author wishes, I can do a complete proofread of their work as well. I would have to charge for that though as I work freelance. Otherwise I’m willing to read and give a critique, with suggestions and constructive comments. Thank you, Laurence!
• Morgen Bailey (morgen@morgenbailey.com / http://morgenbailey.wordpress.com/red-pen-critique): short stories (any family-friendly fiction genre) up to 3,000 words or novel extracts of a similar length (with synopsis) for this blog’s Red Pen Critique slot, although the story / extract are posted on the blog so only be happy with that before offering me your writing.
• Nikki Dudley (nikkisdudley at hotmail.co.uk / http://ellipsisandnovels.blogspot.com / https://twitter.com/nikkidudley20): I would like to go on both lists please! As a reader, I am interested in mystery, thrillers, crime, young adult and general fiction. I am happy to read most lengths but lets say not over 100k. I can get back in a month, maybe less. I write fiction and poetry myself. I also co-edit an online magazine. As a writer, I am writing a young adult dystopian novel set in the future. It centres around natural energy. It is around 90k words. Just looking for general f/b. Can give more info on contact. Thanks! Thank you, Nikki!
• Ralph Scott (info at credittheedit.com / http://www.credittheedit.com) If it might accent the above, the staff at Credit The Edit, LLC provides detailed, complementary Test Edits on up to five pages of almost any fiction or nonfiction manuscript. Though five pages does not allow for the examination of everything that is solid or is in need of an overhaul in an author’s manuscript, it’s quite impressive just how much those five pages reveal about the merits and hurdles of the project. So feel free to tap us at least for that. That’s very kind of you, thank you, Ralph.
• Rebeccah Giltrow (rgiltrow at gmail.com / http://rebeccahgiltrow.blogspot.co.uk): Any sort of fiction (novel, short story, poetry, script/play, lyric). Max. length: 50,000 words for prose, any number of lines for poetry. Lead time: 3-4 weeks. Do you write? Yes. Thank you, Rebeccah!
• Robin Greene (bodicea77 at yahoo.com). Genre preferred: Fiction, anything except romance. Format: Novels or short stories. Max length: 80,000 words. Lead time preferred: about a month, probably less. Do you write? (yes/no): some have said that, yes.  Thank you, Robin!

Websites where authors can put their work online for feedback include Authonomy (known as HarperCollins’ unofficial slush pile), YouWriteOn – with these two you have to critique to be critiqued, ABC Tales, Absolute Write, Chapteread, Critiquecircle, Fiction Press, Figment (aimed at teens), Scribd, Webook, Worthy of Publishing, Writers, Writers’ Cafe, StoryLane (more about you than your fiction) and Wattpad (I’m on the latter two). Ken Weene recommends http://authorsinfo.com and http://cowbird.com.

I also have a list of reviewers on this blog’s Reviews page. I offer feedback on short stories or novel chapters on my blog’s Red Pen Critique page going live (the story / extract then my feedback) every Sunday evening.

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WRITERS (see below for writers wanting feedback)

Are you looking for free feedback? If so, please either email me or leave a comment below (and I’ll paste it into this page) with the following information…

• Your name:
• Your email address:
• Your website (if you have one, if not I can design you one!):
• Title of your item:
• Genre of your item:
• Format (novel, short stories, poetry, non-fiction):
• Word count (___,000 words / ___ lines for poetry):
• Brief synopsis of item (50 words max!):
• NB. Please list items separately if wanting feedback on more than one.
• When you need the feedback by:
• Any other relevant information:

Thank you and good luck with your works-in-progress! Please remember that the readers will be offering to do this for free so feedback will be as detailed (or otherwise) as their time allows.

Writers listed here… (note the ‘at’ in the email address should read @, with no spaces, but formatted like that to try and avoid them getting spammed! If you click on the links they should work OK)

• Aaron Roark (aaronroark9 at gmail.com): My book is called The High Grass. It’s a horror story. Only the first chapter is complete, but it will be a novel. About 1100 words. Synopsis: It’s the story of a fifteen year old boy named Jimmy. He lives on a farm in north Texas with his mother and father. The farm is adjacent to a large field that no one owns where the grass is about five feet high (hence the title). There is something evil in the field that is after Jimmy. I would also like to give feedback. Need at least two weeks lead time depending on the length of the work. (50,000 words max). Thank you, Aaron.
• David Ferretti (edf at wildblue.net): I write crossover fantasy (no cursing/sex). I have two finished manuscripts of my trilogy; the first is edited and has been read by several beta readers that caused me to make changes. I am the only person to read the second. I will be glad to exchange finished manuscripts with anyone who writes in the same genre. My manuscript is 119,000 words long and readers have told me that it is a fast read. If your manuscript runs <120,000 words then give me two weeks to review it. Greater length manuscripts will take a little bit longer. I prefer Microsoft Word docx or doc files. Thank you, David.
• Ethan Holmes (ethanholmes-at-ethanholmes.com / http://www.ethanholmes.com): I certainly wouldn’t mind some feedback or reviews. I have five titles ranging from short story collections to science fiction to my latest title which turned out to be a self-help book I didn’t know was going to be one. You can visit my site and tell me which one(s) you would like to read. Thank you, Ethan.
• Gary Showalter (gary at garyshowalter.com / http://www.garyshowalter.com): A Primer on Roses (gardening, rose care). Non-fiction. 53 pages. Rose care – from choosing a location to plant, how they grow, how to prune, how to select tools, etc. Feedback wanted: as soon as possible. Additional information: “The pamphlet is available on Amazon now, but feedback is always welcome and changes will be made where necessary, based on feedback, with credit provided for valuable feedback. I will send a PDF file with the text to first readers.” Thank you, Gary.
• Gina Charles (ginacharles at earthlink.net / http://ginacharles.com). Title of item: Shift Happens, A Laypersons Guide To Awakening. Genre of item: Self-help. Format: non-fiction. Word Count: 31,289. Brief Synopsis: Know that you already have all the tools you need to experience that shift into a more peaceful, abundant, and enjoyable life. Shift Happens lights the way on the journey back to Self. Feedback: At earliest convenience.
• Jason Fink (jasonfink88 at yahoo.com): Jasmine Cowl and the Salagi Talking Stick (contemporary fantasy novel, first of a potential seven-book series). 78,000 words. Jasmine Cowl is p*ssed.  Fifteen years ago, the African American woman and her friends saved the world.  Stuck in a boring life, even though she works for the CIA… the other one.  Saddled with family, a job, and the PTA, she’s found something new. Disgruntled gnomes & talking islands force themselves into Jasmine’s life while she hunts for a powerful wand.  She’s fighting for more than the world. This time she’s fighting for her kids. Feedback wanted: no real timeframe, finished it up about 3 months back. Any other relevant information: Thanks for taking a look – I’d like to know if it’s an ok read, or if it’s… not. Honesty is always appreciated! Thank you, Jason.
• Jeanne E. Rogers (http://warriorechidna.blogspot.co.uk/p/contact-me.html): I really like this idea, Morgen, with an ‘e.’ I would like to participate on both sides of this coin. I am a writer of middle grade fantasy, focusing on highlighting endangered animals in my stories. I would like to read fantasy, not necessarily for young people, and I would like to have my new book, which is not complete at this point, read for some thoughts / opinions. Thanks so much! Thank you, Jean!
• Kenny Johnston (alwayssmilingthroughthetears at gmail.com): Always Smiling Through the Tears (biography / memoir) 111,000 words. Synopsis: In October, 2010, Kenny put 2 nooses round his neck in the garden shed. Twice. This is his story, a story of a broken home, mixed race children, racism, adversity and heartbreak. Suicide is all too common in our broken society, and here you see it revealed from the inside, to find what actually drives somebody to the point where the pain of death is seen as preferable to the pain in life. Kenny says, ”For those, who provide feedback/reviews, I will post a free copy of the book, signed by me, if they like!” Thank you, Kenny.
• Lae Monier (laemonie at aim.com / http://laemonie.wordpress.com): Wanted (psychological crime). Novel (67,147 words). Feedback wanted: two weeks from the time they get the WIP. Thank you, Lae.
• Laurence French (laurencefrench92 at yahoo.co.uk): ‘Waiting for Dark’ (war / personal relationships). Novel. 80,000 words. Synopsis: A severely injured soldier from WW1 is looked after by a French nurse who takes him back to the battlefield at Ypres to lay the ghosts of his past and to rid him of the guilt he feels about the loss of his pals. No specific timeframe. Thank you, Laurence!
• Nikki Dudley (nikkisdudley at hotmail.co.uk / http://ellipsisandnovels.blogspot.com / https://twitter.com/nikkidudley20): I would like to go on both lists please! As a reader, I am interested in mystery, thrillers, crime, young adult and general fiction. I am happy to read most lengths but lets say not over 100k. I can get back in a month, maybe less. I write fiction and poetry myself. I also co-edit an online magazine. As a writer, I am writing a young adult dystopian novel set in the future. It centres around natural energy. It is around 90k words. Just looking for general f/b. Can give more info on contact. Thanks! Thank you, Nikki!
• Robin Greene (bodicea77 at yahoo.com): Nothing Good From Secrets (“women’s fiction, I guess”). Novel (c. 79,000 words). Synopsis: Carys’ best friend PamLynn is keeping something from her. She goes through finding out PamLynn’s father has Alzheimers, that her mother has been having her followed, and that the man she thought was her father isn’t her biological father. PamLynn is more than a friend, she’s actually her sister. Blurb: (I think) Not everyone who loves you tells you the truth. Carys’ best friend has a secret. Her mother has a huge secret. Carys even has one of her own. How does a near 40 year old woman, who wants a successful career, to live a few of her dreams, oh yes and someone to share all that with, help her friends, understand her mother, and most of all help herself? When you need the feedback by: Not in a huge rush, but as soon as possible. Thank you, Robin.

Websites where authors can put their work online for feedback include Authonomy (known as HarperCollins’ unofficial slush pile), YouWriteOn – with these two you have to critique to be critiqued, ABC Tales, Absolute Write, Chapteread, Critiquecircle, Fiction Press, Figment (aimed at teens), Scribd, Webook, Worthy of Publishing, Writers, Writers’ Cafe, StoryLane (more about you than your fiction) and Wattpad (I’m on both). Ken Weene recommends http://authorsinfo.com and http://cowbird.com.

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Guest post: Getting It Right (part 2) by Neil L. Yuzuk

Tonight’s guest blog post, on the topic of getting your facts right is brought to you by crime novelist Neil Yuzuk who brought us Part 1 in October.

Getting It Right (part 2 of 3)

How to get your facts straight?

RESEARCH – GOOGLE – RESEARCH – GOOGLE – RESEARCH – GOOGLE

Even though I have police at my fingertips, eager to share their information and stories with me, I can’t bother them for every little thing. And sometimes I find things they didn’t know. I needed a revolver with a silencer, so there wouldn’t be any spent shells at the crime scene. I was told there are no revolvers with silencers—there are. I also needed information about automatic weapons and a sniper rifle and sight.

I found, through Google, an arms dealer who sold surplus Israeli weapons. They were perfect for Beachside PD’s new SWAT team. The arms dealer was more than happy to give me the information I needed and he described a revolver that took a silencer. His name? I only know him by “Double Tapper.” A double tap is killing someone with a .22 caliber pistol—two shots to the back of the head. The bullets rarely exit, they just bounce around inside the skull turning the brain into . . . you get the picture. I used the gun he suggested, a Smith & Wesson Combat Model 18, .22 LR revolver, in an assassination: ‘In one quick move, the gun was put behind Smithers’ ear, the hammer cocked, the trigger pulled once, twice and the sound of the two shots were reduced to pfft – pfft by the silencer. Smithers’ body spasmed briefly and then he was dead.’

I needed a second silenced pistol. More research took me from Google to YouTube and led me to the Nagant M-1895 revolver. It is an elegant weapon and was used widely by the Soviets during World War 2. After the breakup of the Soviet Union, it began to show up in the U.S. It worked perfectly in a murder attempt and was easily traced because of its unusual bullet shape . . . the sound of its firing mechanism—it sounds like a toy pistol without the bang. It totally muffles the explosion, but not the mechanism’s, click – click.

When I needed information about vineyards and wines—a subject I know nothing about—Google. But when I say Google, I mean spend long periods researching. Don’t go with the first thing you find. I contacted several vineyards who were more than willing to help and I also watched several TV programs on vineyards.

Here’s another bit of help. The only reason why I was able to get the Gypsy crime cases and stories for “Beachside PD: The Gypsy Hunter” was that I researched Gypsies before we met. When I told him that I knew where Gypsies originated, he folded his arms and gave me the, “I can’t wait to hear this piece of nonsense” look. I blew him away with the correct answer. After he picked his jaw up, he said, ”You are the first non-Gypsy I’ve met in almost twenty years, who knew that.” I won his respect by doing my research.

Do you know where the Gypsy people originated? Research it anyway, as you’re most probably wrong. In addition to the information he gave me, I continued research on Google re culture and customs, took two books out of the library and bought two more on-line at Amazon. My research lent authenticity to what I wrote. Here is a meeting between my Gypsy hunter and the hunted Gypsy’s father. The parenthetical remarks are not in the book, but for your information. ‘I was sitting in a back booth drinking iced tea when he came in. He spotted me and walked over a bit slower than usual. I offered him tea, and he asked for it in a disposable plastic cup. To use utensils that had been used by gadje (non-Gypsies) was marimé (a multi-use word, used here as forbidden). The Rom (Gypsies) consider the gadje as unclean and diseased. They had a lot of rules about cleanliness, but the disposable plastic cup and straw was kosher to his way of thinking—although, he was drinking tea with a gadjo (non-Gypsy).’

In “The Gypsy Hunter” I used photos of Gypsies (Google) when I needed to physically describe certain Gypsy characters. I also used an actual Renaissance Faire that is in Fort Lauderdale for a crime scene. I downloaded (Google) the map of the actual Faire grounds and was able to use it as a guide when I described the search for a missing Seminole Indian coed.

If the book reads authentic and believable, it comes from a lot of research.

GETTING IT RIGHT (the conclusion), out next month, will discuss how to use people in your research.

Thank you, Neil.

Neil L. Yuzuk was born in Brooklyn, New York. Now retired after twenty-two years, as a SPARK Substance Abuse Prevention Counselor, he wrote Beachside PD: The Reluctant Knight, after collaborating with his police officer son on a screenplay of the same name. The book was a finalist in the Global eBook Awards in the category of suspense / thriller.

The second book in the series is Beachside PD: The Gypsy Hunter and third book is entitled Beachside PD: Undercover. He has also written a screenplay: Fade To Light. Another book, Zaragossa: Fruit of the Vine is in the works. Neil and his co-author son David are the authors of the Beachside PD series and their website is http://www.BeachsidePDBooks.com.

You can also watch their video at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=20e_i39GaQA and their print and eBooks are available at Amazon.com.

Since Neil sent this guest piece to me, I learned that he and his family were badly affected by Hurricane Sandy and I understand they’re now staying with friends. We wish you well, Neil.

***

If you would like to write a writing-related guest post for my blog then feel free to email me with an outline of what you would like to write about. If it’s writing-related then it’s highly likely I’d email back and say “yes please”.

The blog interviews return as normal tomorrow morning with biographer Gearoid O’Dowd – the five hundred and forty-sixth of my blog interviews with novelists, poets, short story authors, bloggers, autobiographers and more. A list of interviewees (blogged and scheduled) can be found here. If you like what you read, please do go and investigate further. And I enjoy hearing from readers of my blog; do either leave a comment on the relevant interview (the interviewees love to hear from you too!) and / or email me.

You can sign up to receive these blog posts daily or weekly so you don’t miss anything. You can contact me and find me on the internet, view my Books and I also have a blog creation service especially for, but not limited to, writers.

Unfortunately, as I post an interview a day (amongst other things) I can’t review books but I have a feature called ‘Short Story Saturdays’ where I review stories of up to 2,500 words. Alternatively if you have a short story or self-contained novel extract / short chapter (ideally up to 1000 words) that you’d like critiqued and don’t mind me reading it / talking about and critiquing it (I send you the transcription afterwards so you can use the comments or ignore them)  on my ‘Bailey’s Writing Tips’ podcast, then do email me. They are fortnightly episodes, usually released on Sundays, interweaving the recordings between the red pen sessions with the hints & tips episodes. I am now also looking for flash fiction (<1000 words) for Flash Fiction Fridays and poetry for Post-weekend Poetry.

 

Bailey’s Writing Tips podcast – short stories episode no.17

Bailey’s Writing Tips podcast ‘short stories’ episode number 17 went live today and contained three flash fiction pieces that have appeared on my blog as Flash Fiction Fridays. Do email me should you like to submit your own.

This episode contained: Three pieces by non-fiction author, autobiographer and interviewee Abbie Lipschutz, Cafe Mort (716 words) by prose author, poet, lyricist and interviewee Nathan Weaver (you may need to forgive my French accent in that one) and Autumn preserves (122 words) by short story author and poet Susan Moffat.

See the green links above to read the stories… or hear my dulcet tones on the podcast, which is available via iTunes, Google’s Feedburner, Podbean (when it catches up), Podcasters (which takes even longer) or Podcast Alley (which doesn’t list the episodes but will let you subscribe).

***

For nine decades, Abbie Lipschutz has been a fighter, lover, writer, dilettante musician and classical music commentator. He is a clinically happy soul who possesses Offensive Charm and Unjustified Arrogance, qualities that have served him well over the years. He was a kibbutznik in Palestine in the early 40s, a veteran of the Dutch Prinses Irene Brigade in World War II, and a volunteer in Israel’s War of Independence, 1948-1949. By then he had long lost his beliefs in the Zionist-Socialist dreams. Nonetheless, he joined, feeling that 2000 years of persecution had been enough.

Having made a living for 50 years as a wholesale diamond peddler throughout the American South, he discovered the vastness of our land, its Big Sky and its multi-colored characters. He ended his diamond career in 1999 after being held up at gunpoint. Seeing van Gogh’s painting, “The Potato Eaters,” at age 14 changed his life by turning him into a political radical, which he has still remained. Thoreau’s phrase, “Most men live lives of quiet desperation and go to the grave with the song still in them,” confirmed what van Gogh’s painting had conveyed to him years before. Husband, father, and grandfather, he has written a memoir filled with the sights, sounds, scents, songs and surprises of a soulful, vigorous life well-lived. His book connects the generations in one grand sweep of hope, love, and peace. Abbie’s website is http://www.abbielipschutz.com and you can watch his video at http://youtu.be/C-xpHaz2P3s.

***

Nathan Weaver has been writing for roughly 15 years, though badly in the beginning, and focusing on short stories, novellas and screenplays. He has recently been honing his craft towards writing novels, completing a draft of his first novel in summer 2011, which is the beginning of a series of crime novels set in a high school setting and titled Hardboil High.

Aside from storytelling, he is an independent filmmaker and lyricist for Blue Solace. You can read a lot of his shorter works and excerpts from longer ones, for free, at his blog Tales from Babylon, and you can find this event on his http://talesfrombabylon.fanbridge.com/tourdates page.

***

Born in 1969, Susan Moffat grew up in County Durham, in the North East of England, during the period of the Miner’s Strike, mass unemployment and the very beginning of the technological boom.

She studied Computer Studies in the late 80′s, and worked in IT for a book distribution company for almost 10 years, before taking time out to become a mother. She now works part time as a librarian in a Special Needs Secondary School.

In 2010 she started a degree course in creative writing and film and TV sceenwriting.

***

Thank you for downloading / listening to this short story episode – I hope you enjoyed it. The next episode will be a hints & tips episode in a fortnight, then short stories return a fortnight thereafter.

All the details of these episodes are listed on this blog’s Podcast Short Stories page and my email address to submit a short story for critique (or review for the Short Story Saturdays) is morgen@morgenbailey.com.

The podcast is available via iTunes, Google’s Feedburner, Podbean (when it catches up), Podcasters (which takes even longer) or Podcast Alley (which doesn’t list the episodes but will let you subscribe).

You can sign up to receive these blog posts daily or weekly so you don’t miss anything. You can contact me and find me on the internet, view my Books and I also have a blog creation service especially for, but not limited to, writers.

Unfortunately, as I post an interview a day (amongst other things) I can’t review books but I have a feature called ‘Short Story Saturdays’ where I review stories of up to 2,500 words. Alternatively if you have a short story or self-contained novel extract / short chapter (ideally up to 1000 words) that you’d like critiqued and don’t mind me reading it / talking about and critiquing it (I send you the transcription afterwards so you can use the comments or ignore them)  on my ‘Bailey’s Writing Tips’ podcast, then do email me. They are fortnightly episodes, usually released on Sundays, interweaving the recordings between the red pen sessions with the hints & tips episodes. I am now also looking for flash fiction (<1000 words) for Flash Fiction Fridays and poetry for Post-weekend Poetry.

 

Flash Fiction Friday 059: Faulkner’s Ghost by Donald Schwarz

Welcome to Flash Fiction Friday and the fifty-ninth piece in this series. This week’s is a 900-worder by multi-genre author Donald E Schwarz.

Faulkner’s Ghost by Donald Schwarz

I’ve always considered myself too cynical, but you can forget about Roger Corman.  They look just like they did in life, the only way you know it’s a ghost is because they can’t possibly be where you see them.  They are always totally unaware of their surroundings, so absorbed by their own thoughts that they have lost their place in time.  Come to think of it a lot of ‘living’ people are like that too, just to confuse things even further I suppose.

We were in the park it must have been about 11:30. I was seeing this Earth Mother cannonball.  Not usually my type but she was smart enough so I got involved.  We were sauntering along a sun-speckled path lined with daisies.  We were having one of those deep conversations, the kind that she would later tell me were actually lectures.  It was all very metaphysical we were passing through shafts of light that penetrated the foliage of the trees, surrounding us in gold dust before plunging us back into shadow.

She dejectedly paused to pick a daisy.  She had this unhealthy need to constantly compare her work to the dark Russian masters of literature; there is no better way to prevent one’s self from ever writing anything.  She was so paralyzed by it that I felt compelled to give her a Tolstoy-ectomy.

She settled herself down on a bench and began to pluck the petals…  “To be a writer… Or not to be a writer…”

I took the partially plucked flower from her and stuck it behind my ear for emphasis.  “If you have a choice, then why torture yourself?  Joys of creation… BARF!  Do something fun, like advertising.”

Her voice grew wistful… “I don’t have a choice.  It’s just each time I start writing something I read it and say ‘it’s not War and Peace’ and I give up.”

“You are aware that War and Peace is not scripture, right?  Tolstoy did what he had to do to reflect the time in which he lived.  Stop obsessing.  Why not try Faulkner?  He’s free and easy, might loosen you up.”

She mulled over the possibility.  Her eyes became sort of glazed and her lips moved ever so slightly as if she were reading something.  Suddenly her eyes grew wide and she shook her head.  “I know he’s a great writer, but I can’t stand to read him.  More than any other writer I always hear his voice when I’m reading and he’s speaking this private language of men that no woman can possibly understand, that no woman even has the right to listen to.  It’s like walking into an old time Memphis bar, the kind that has a sign saying: ‘Booths for Ladies’ and hearing someone telling the most wonderful stories in this slow drawling voice.  And then everything stops and they all turn to look at you and wonder what the hell you’re doing there so there is nothing to do except leave.  Utter disappointment…”

Her paralyses began to return so I nudged her gently.  “Think of it this way: imagine a baseball pitcher who didn’t have a catchy name like “Vida Blue” or “Catfish Hunter” but the pedestrian moniker Irving Kolodna.  This guy had so little charisma that his own wife couldn’t remember what he looked like.  He had broken every pitching record in the book yet no one even noticed.  Anyone in their right mind would have given up, but he genuinely loved the game.  To keep himself interested he started doing things like getting 3 and 0 behind the batter, just to show that he could retire the side on 9 consecutive strikes.”

She just stared at me until I stopped talking.  “That is exactly what I mean, man patois, just like Faulkner!”  Her attention was then suddenly drawn by something and her face lit up as she pointed, “Look!”

She was gazing off down the path behind me and there he was.  Faulkner.  All 5’2″ of him with a Faulkner-esque iron grey haircut and a Faulkner-esque iron grey moustache, walking along in a Faulkner-esque pose, eyes down, hands clasped behind his back, intensely preoccupied, totally unaware of his surroundings with his two hound dogs.  Even they looked preoccupied.

I grabbed her hand.  “Don’t let go, no matter what happens…”

I pulled her onto a side path at a brisk pace; when we turned back of course he and the hounds were gone.

Another strange thing about ghosts, they only appear in the exact center of your field of vision.  There is also that folklore that they always appear at noon…

Earth Mother stopped walking and began to giggle.  I was concerned that perhaps she had actually snapped, but when she spoke her observation seemed utterly sensible…

“When you stop to think about it, if you get to take your dogs along, how bad can it be?”

Just then an angel, with stiff terracotta robes, floated past us on an updraft.  Her face was an unhealthy yellow and her wings news-print grey.   She held a stone tower cradled in her arms.

My companion was flabbergasted, “What on Earth!”

I raised my eyebrows, “That was Saint Barbara of the Thunder, she was de-canonized and her cult suppressed.  I guess you can’t blame her for being pissed…”

I squeezed Earth mother’s hand and we double-timed it out of the park.  It was five past twelve…

***

Normally here I would ask the author what prompted this piece by Don sadly passed away in August and his writing colleague Victoria King-Voreadi said…

Although it may sound as crazy as a box of frogs, Don insisted it was an actual occurrence.  He and the young lady in question were both grad students, both living in Greenwich Village in NYC in the early 70′s.  Perhaps his was a shared hallucination, a lot of wild things were going on at that time.  Generally Donald was the most superstitious person I have ever known to date.  It seems odd that anyone with a double Masters in mathematics would believe in ghosts, the I Ching or Tarot cards but that was Donald – a fascinating amalgam of contradictions.

Thank you, Victoria… and to Donald for writing such a great story.

***

Donald E. Schwarz was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York, and lived his entire adult life in New York City with a brief hiatus working at Technion in Israel developing an irrigation project for Mexico.

He studied mathematics at CUNY before going to Israel.  Upon returning to Manhattan he worked for an ad agency designing computer models until changes in the industry made his position obsolete.  After that he drove a cab to support his writing habit, spending most of his time ‘holed up’ in the New York Public library.

Interrogation Tango was his first literary effort to be published, but his real passion was writing screenplays. You can find out more about him and his debut novel (co-written with Victoria King-Voreadi) at http://donschwarz.iguanabooks.com. I shall be interviewing Victoria (who will talk about her work with Don on Saturday 5th January).

***

If you’d like to submit your 1,000-word max. stories for consideration for Flash Fiction Friday take a look here.

The blog interviews will return as normal tomorrow with thriller novelist, short story and non-fiction author, spotlightee and fiction interviewee Alana Woods – the five hundred and fortieth of my blog interviews with novelists, poets, short story authors, bloggers, biographers, agents, publishers and more. A list of interviewees (blogged and scheduled) can be found here. If you like what you read, please do go and investigate further. And I enjoy hearing from readers of my blog; do either leave a comment on the relevant interview (the interviewees love to hear from you too!) and / or email me.

You can sign up to receive these blog posts daily or weekly so you don’t miss anything. You can contact me and find me on the internet, view my Books and I also have a blog creation service especially for, but not limited to, writers.

Unfortunately, as I post an interview a day (amongst other things) I can’t review books but I have a feature called ‘Short Story Saturdays’ where I review stories of up to 2,500 words. Alternatively if you have a short story or self-contained novel extract / short chapter (ideally up to 1000 words) that you’d like critiqued and don’t mind me reading it / talking about and critiquing it (I send you the transcription afterwards so you can use the comments or ignore them)  on my ‘Bailey’s Writing Tips’ podcast, then do email me. They are fortnightly episodes, usually released on Sundays, interweaving the recordings between the red pen sessions with the hints & tips episodes. I am now also looking for poetry for Post-weekend Poetry.