RNA Conference 2011 - Day Two and the Gala

I wasn't supposed to be at the conference during the day on Saturday but fate intervened...It was an amazing day. It was also exactly what I needed as I tackle these edits. The day began with Linda Gillard's 'Set the scene, create the characters...painting with words'. There was so much from this session but here's a few highlights...

Linda Gillard

-readers co-create with the author
-just enough description to make the reader feel they are there otherwise it slows down the action
-when drafting don't do the action first then add the description. EMBED the description in the action from the start
-write concrete, specific detail. It works harder
-watch for your own boredom threshold
-character description can be where writing sags a bit
-be specific but not comprehensive
-framing...be aware of who is doing the describing...it can be a 2 way street

Jane Wenham Jones

Next up was the a funny, perfectly pitched session by Jane Wenham-Jones on 'Where's the hook? What's my angle?' The most important things she said for me was...'it's never too soon to think about how to sell or market you and the book.'

Tamsyn Murray

Then I sat in Tamsyn Murray's session 'Reader, he dumped me!'...the rise of the bad boy in YA lit more because of DD who is and will be reader these books. It was a fabulous session looking at bad boys in literature old and new. What is their attraction? How they have changed? And what are we teaching with the new bad boy/toxic boy? A heated debate ensued and I will be looking more closely at what DD picks up...

Post lunch it was a wonderful session with Alison King...'What Stops You? strategies to keep you writing.' As I mentioned perfect to help keep the focus on editing...

Miranda Dickinson and Ruth Saberton

Tamsyn Murray and Brigid Coady

Jill  Mansell and guess who

I then took a break. So many things were connecting in my head I needed to be somewhat still. Didn't succeed though as I spent time chatting with friends.

Emma Darwin

My final session for the day was Emma Darwin's 'The literary-commercial divide'. This was always going to be controversial and it didn't disappoint. She took us through what each offers readers and where they can fail readers before jumping into the area of books that fall between the two. She felt that in literary readers have to read into the spaces left by the writer and that readers have to work harder so they 'own' it more....She said if you fall in between the two you have to do everything better - deliver the page turning quality of commercial with the complexity of literary. It was a lively discussion and great fun.

Anna Louise Lucia, Fiona Harper, Julie Cohen, Brigid Coady

The flat mates all glam

Then off to prepare for the Gala Evening. In our flat we gathered in the kitchen to drink a bit of champagne before setting out to the bar...which turned out to be closed! We about faced and found a naughty kitchen to drink more champagne....

Judy Astley, Julie Cohen and Roger Sanderson

Me and my agent - Carole Blake

Anne Ashursy and Jane Wenham-Jones

Then the dinner and the announcement of the winner of the Elizabeth Goudge Award. As I mentioned on Monday I was the runner up with THE HOUSE OF GHOSTS (here) and Cally Taylor won with here entry THE SOMNAMBULIST'S DAUGHTER which is here. It is fabulous. But our flat and table had the wonderful Anna Louise Lucia who was also in the final six! I hope she will post her entry soon.

Anna Louise Lucia and Moi

The Heroine Addicts sans Susanna Kearsley...Anna Louise Lucia, Julie Cohen, Moi, Pia Courtenay, Brigid Coady

Moi and the fab Cally Taylor

Of course post dinner their had to be a naughty kitchen and it turned out to be ours!

In the fug of the naughty kitchen...Anna Louise Lucia, Carole Blake and Biddy Coady

A wonderful day....

RNA Conference 2011 - Post Two

First my pictures from day one are up on the RNA Blog. However not all of them are there. I saved a few more intimate ones for here...

This was a very special conference for me. It was my first one as a 'published' writer. As a newbie you sit listening to the celebratio announcements on the Friday afternoon and dream of the day when your turn will come. Well mine had come and it was better than I ever dreamed. I stood and told of my wonderful year...an agent (and not just any agent but Carole Blake), a deal but not one - three! And not only did I get to say all this...my agent was there too!

In our flat just after the celebrations announcements Julie Cohen greeted me with a bottle of champagne saying - your first sale happens only once so must celebrate as much as possible. I like her thinking :-)

Biddy and Julie before we opened the bubbly

the wonderful Fiona Harper who was a newbie with me at my first conference in 2005

Carole Blake - RNA Conference 2010 Part Two

Carole Blake and Roger Sanderson

I've pushed this report forward to counter the article in the Time Book Review saying that agent roles are changing because it didn't fit at all in with what Carole Blake said at the Industry Day of the RNA Conference.So herewith are my notes from 'What An Agent Can Do For You' :

As a yet to be published and un-agented writer you dream what it will be like when an agent says yes. Well agent supremo, Carole Blake, told all and her words were the stuff fantasies are spun from, but being Carole it was all very practical. One of course had to expect that from the woman who wrote the bible FROM PITCH TO PUBLICATION (which was a given to me as a birthday present by a dear friend after I had finished draft three of AUGUST ROCK. I duly read it and knew I was not yet ready....)

She’s been in the business a long time – about forty years, which means that she can pull on experience gained with many clients. She still gets a thrill from selling and selling over and over again. A manuscript normally goes out widely and swiftly to multiple locations. If possible she tries to split up the English speaking world to maximize royalties.

She said to remember that you are in a relationship and that revolves around communication. For her being an agent is about preparation, selling and career management. She spends a long time finding out what kind of career her authors want and what kind of editor they need. Time is spent on making sure it’s the best possible submission package. She edits but many agents don’t.

She doesn’t like to sell a manuscript cold so she lunches almost every day with publishers and editors to find out their taste. This is a hardship she endures for her authors...

Much of her work is invisible. She listens carefully and talks general ideas. This is not done in formal way. She sets situations up. You can plan but fate will play its own role.

Carole’s goals are to sell, for her authors to be happy and to have a long career. Agents should not make decisions for authors but with them. She speaks to her author at least every ten days. She wants her authors to cc or bcc her in on every email with editors – it is a ménage a trios.

She highlighted some key things agents should keep on top of:

Piracy

The Google Settlement

What happens after the contract – ie. marketing

The development of the digital market

She cautioned that things have changed and writers now need to be public people and know their USP (unique selling point). 

She doesn’t think about trends. She has to love it and luck is important and always has been.

She personally has twenty authors and has taken on only one new author in the last three years. The agency as a whole receives 12 to 30 submissions a day and takes on 6 to 8 new clients a year. It is normally an eight week wait for a reply to a submission.

(Now off to go say a novena to St Anthony to find me the right agent and to finish the polish of PENDEROWN - I can see Carole giving me 'the look' and her voice saying just get on and write a damn good book!)

RNA Conference 2010 - Industry Day Part One

Sales and Publicity: The Insiders' Guide

Charlotte, Rob & Katie

The opening session of RNA Conference 2010 Industry Day began with a welcome from our wonderful chairperson Katie Ffforde. She then introduced two people she knows well - Charlotte Bush, Publicity Director of Cornerstone Publishing - a division of Random House and  Rob Waddington, Director of Sales at Random House.

Rob began by saying his job was to get books into as many hands as possible and his customers were the retailers. 


He gave the example of the three Katies (Katie Fforde, Kate Flynn and Katie Price) who each -

-write books for their market

-target their market

-know who will read their books

Each of these writers delivers - readers know what they will receive.

He then stated that you need to tell a great story and that the book jacket is the greatest marketing tool. Readers need a signal that this book is for them.

Charlotte then spoke saying her job was to secure coverage and drive sales with as little budget as possible. The process begins 6 months ahead of publication. They need to know what is interesting about you – what’s personal to your story. They need stories to tell. For example:

- what you may have done for research (Katie Fforde being a porter in an auction house for the book Flora's Lot)

-What was the real story or inspiration behind the book?

-Good location connection

For commercial women's fiction the best location to place publicity is:

-women's magazines (5 to 6 months before publication)

-weekly magazines 

This is because women's fiction is about relationship and this appeals to the magazine readers.

Six weeks before publication copies go out to broadcast media.

Radio is a fantastic place for women’s fiction and regional radio is extremely effective – local connection.

Work with your local libraries and book stores.

In general they don't give parties any more because parties don't sell books. Tours are very expensive. Publicity has changed. Space has shrunk.

She recommended using the free media that is avaialable. It is an effective way of getting the news out there.

Internet – use blogger, tweeting, work with website and Facebook

In the questions section this information came out:

-harder and harder to sell to women in their 20s

-the biggest book buyers are between 40-49

-make sure the jacket hits the reader

A question was asked with regard to the level of language used in books - should it be lowered or raised?

-the answer was there was no demographic

-there are 18 Million customers a week in Asda and 25 million a week in Tesco

A question was asked about stickers on books - were they an affective sales tool?

-only if the reader trusted the recommendation - ie Richard & Judy

-there is huge power in recommendation from a trusted source

A question on the difficulty of selling a book from a new author. It is harder.

-retailers rely on reader loyalty

-the jacket is key

-the hook

-the concept

-something a little different

The reality today is that a book may get less than a minute to be sold to a retailer.


NOTE: The above is taken from my quickly scribbled notes and are no doubt very flawed. I apologize in advance for any mistakes...

Conference Musing - An Overview of The RNA Conference 2010

I’m back in Dubai with so many things bubbling in my head – in a good way. The conference this year was amazing – location, speakers, food. The only downside was the accommodation (university digs which it always is but this time the heat and non opening windows were the worst culprit) and none of us go on conference for the food or the accommodation...

This year I wanted to write up my thoughts first as an over view as so many of the sessions seemed to link together – well at least in my head and where I am in my writing journey.(will try and post more session specific notes - I promise)

The industry day was filled with challenging information from the small budget for marketing and PR to a publishers take on romance (it’s big but call it anything but romance) to the agent’s perspective of how important it is to maximize your sales world-wide and that luck is still a key ingredient.

On Saturday’s sessions I heard the same things albeit in a different way – your USP(unique selling point) for the ‘X Factor’ session, ‘fauxromance’ from the MIRA editors, Sarah Duncan in her talk on ‘Mind the Gap’ exhorted us to find pzazz on every page and every paragraph (in other words leave no stone unturned to keep your reader with you for every page to the end), and Kate Hardy encouraged us even if we are not planners to use some to be more effective – even if it’s just time management...

What tied everything together for me was the somewhat controversial talk by, in Katie Fforde’s words our ‘Koh-i-Noor’,  Joanna Trollope because for her too ‘romance’ is a problem. To get around it she gave us a history of the word romance and then moved onto to its origins in literature...where we come from as romantic novelists. (Note: she separated herself from us at the end by saying that we wrote about romantic relationships whereas she wrote about relationships – which made me smile because I was then left with the impression that she too had fallen foul of the pink fluffy jackets she complained about and not had not read many of the writers sitting in front of her)

No one over the weekend including the JT denied that romance sells, but the clear message was that everybody even those writing it are afraid of the implications of romance. It has been downgraded by society in general – possibly over loaded by images of superficial sides of romance. JT spoke of the cartoon covers put on books that degraded not only the contents but most importantly the reader. My brain immediately jumped to David Shelley’s comment about how books which as essential romantic novels are been rebranded as inspirational lifestyle books (I heart Paris for example) or vampires (The Twilight series). This then led me to the session with the Mira editors who were talking about their new young adult line and the need to bring these readers to romance but please let’s not call it romance... but cover it with paranormal or whatever works.

Then JT spoke of the snobbery and a fear of emotional display which in effect dismisses a whole genre that has something to say to us all - I wanted to stand up and cheer.  I have read romance all my life from Mark Twain's Tom Sawyer (yes it is an adventure story but I loved Becky’s part), Harlequin/Mills & Boon, Georgette Heyer, Jane Austin, Anya Seton....to my favourites of today. They have carried me through my worst days and continue to do so. My life would have been so much less without them. I would dreamed less and aspired to less without these romantic books.

She spoke of how ground breaking Brigid Jones Diary and Sex in The City had been and how in an overcrowded market the consistent cloning had brought romance down and lost the important message in the hearts of woman.

So JT’s talk and the industry have fired me up. I’m not yet facing deadlines, editorial demands, and pink fluffy covers so I have time. At this stage I can still write the book of my heart which is my unique selling point and that can’t be found anywhere else...in JT’s words roughly – offer something that can’t be found anywhere else...the quality of hope...engage with the complexities of the heart...write with your voice...think of your reader(which came from every speaker)...lift the imagination out of the habitual and reboot the soul to the possibility....your readers know that this is fantasy but need to believe in the possibility...

So the conference’s industry day and JT’s bracing talk gave me the courage to continue to write the books of my heart and not chase publication at any cost (ie the latest trend in publishing ie paranormal if that is not me) and through the craft sessions the conference gave me the tools to lift my writing to the level that will make my readers believe in the possibility of the world I have created. I simply could not have asked for more.

The RNA Conference in Greenwich

I'm at the conference and loving it- more reports later but here's a few photos...

Jet Lag, Dogdy Connections and RNA Conference Notes

I'm back in Dubai but I don't think my brain has arrived yet. I hate this wobbly headed feeling. I normally don't suffer jet lag to badly but maybe because I don't have to rush around suddenly I can 'indulge' in jet lag???

New time in the UK was brilliant - glorious weather, friends, writing, shopping.........but terrible Internet connection. My dongle wouldn't stay connected for more than two second if it would connect at all. Ended up using friends 'puters which is fine for a quick check of emails but not much more. So I am way behind on all the things I need to do - like catch up on emails etc.

I don't know if its the jet lag or something else but am having a tough time reconnecting with Penderown at the moment. It certainly could just be the muzzy head, which a strong espresso isn't helping. It could be I have come to stuck plot point and it isn't working. I'll give it until tomorrow before I start digging for the glitch.

I am way behind in posting loads of things for you. I received an award 'The Lovely Blog' from the fabulous CS Harris. Blushing here especially having been such a bad blogger lately but I solider on.

The rules are simple:
1) Accept the award, and don’t forget to post a link back to the awarding person.
2) Pass the award on.
3) Notify the award winners.

I always find this a bit tough but in this case I have to give the award to Anita Burgh who will curse me for it but she is doing the most wonderful posts at the moment beginning with the start of writing a novel (make sure you read the comments too on the latest post as other writers are sharing their processes too) and JJ for the way she enjoys her expat life and struggles with writing.

Now think back to summer, that wasn't if you were in the UK, I began most on the RNA conference but never finished them. So below find my notes for the wonderful talk by Jodi Thomas - she gave us so much that it was hard to get it all down.


Jodi Thomas ‘Plotting for Success in a Writing Career’


She has been making a living by writing for twenty years and before that she was a family counsellor.


Book Plotting
-first it’s all about the characters
-must care about the characters
-we have to identify with them
-has to have flaws; if good looking and perfect on the outside the flaws must be within
-he has to have a goal – need or want something and we need to know this from the beginning; the reader needs to know that
-we need to throw his world into turmoil; has to be basic down to the ground
-think of the character and think of the flaw and the need – they go together even if not reveal to the reader totally until the last page (you find out that he is an orphan on the last page and this is what has driven him to want a home and family so badly)
-fully developed as he needs to come alive
-has to be fully rounded; backside and front side; every character trait has two side – the positive and the negative (a gentle man which is good but you fear he will be unable to act to defend you)
-people develop in a story – everyone ether gets prettier or uglys up like they do in real life- not by the way they look but by their actions


Conflict
You have to have a mountain in front of your character’s way – he must climb up and fall back again and again
Don’t bother with a conversation if it doesn’t have conflict in it
Create a character - Character's Name- would have been perfect if she hadn’t wanted ........ so much – a silly example (mine - I think) Ben would have been perfect if he hadn’t loved pizza with such passion
What if?
-he is gluten intolerant
-his wife hates pizza with the same passion as he loves it
-if he is actually so obese his mouth has been wired shut

Then make it personal - change to first person
-What if I am allergic to cheese and wheat
-What if I love my wife so much I can’t make her have any more pizza
-What if I am determined to lose 100 hundred pounds and regain my life

1.Wagon wheel
Put the problem in the middle and fill each space with a solutions – then create the spokes out of there with further possibilities of what it
2.Tell a few friends your basic premise and have them throw 20 scenarios at you as quickly as possible
3.Write down five things your character would never do- force his wife to eat pizza, use wire cutters to cut open his mouth to eat the pizza...
4.Push your characters out of their comfort zone whatever that may be...make them uncomfortable
4.Set aside time to plot – we are always in such a rush to start a new book – to get going. Take time – take a day or two or a week and change your environment to do it – even if it’s going to a coffee shop in a different part of town so no one knows you and can interrupt

Plotting your Writing Career
Spring
-Clearing the land, preparing the land. This is the time to learn your craft; take courses, read books
-Practice Writing - get a critique group
-Challenge yourself and Set Goals
Pitfalls: Too comfortable so you get stuck
Summer
-A writer writes –the secret of a successful writing career is to write)
-wear a stop watch and see the actual time you write (be honest)
-writers like to ‘build their nest’ cut this time down to ten minutes
-if you write for twenty hours a week (actually write – remember the stop watch above) you will be published
-only failures are people who don’t try
-when you feel you are going to quick and all is against you remember ‘triumph comes through perseverance’
Pitfall – fear of rejection so have a rejection plan so that when they come in and they will you open the envelop you keep it in and enact it - be eat two of the best chocolates, buy a pair of shoes, go to dinner with your husband, or have a pity party with two of best mates and drink until you can’t remember the rejection
The Fall/Autumn
-this is the harvest
-doors open – the hardest book to get published is the first
-don’t get the big head (bout the time you think you’re hot snot – you’re cold buggers)
-we are all on the same road – doesn’t get an easier
-all books won’t be perfect (she gave a great quote about a journalist was taking a multi published author to task for the quality of books 5, 7, and 11. The author said that may well be but I have to write them in order to 6,8 and 12)
The Winter
- The warm cosy place – a time to smile. I did what i set out to do
- Learn to trust your gut
- The books are better in your head
- You give away your best ideas
- Creativity is not a bucket – it is a river and the more you use it the more it flows
- Help others – be a guide to others – your best book may yet come out but in others

Jodi's latest book.

RNA Conference 4 (part 3) - Linda Gillard

Below is the final section of Linda Gillard's Sense and Sensitivity session.

But before that I just wanted to update you on where things are with my own writing. I had to leave Penderrown at 71,000 words and plunge into A Cornish House as the New Writers' Scheme deadline is approaching fast. The good thing is that I haven't looked at the manuscript in about seven months. It is amazing what the fresh eye can see and what I have learned in the intervening time. I have read all the feedback from last year's NWS report, agents comments and publisher comments. I looked for any real consistency and there was none! So it is now down to me as the writer to see where this story needs to grow and shrink. I need to give myself clear page deadlines for each day which have to be met or surpassed - I may be a bit quiet on the blog if I start falling behind (Needless to say that this deadline falls as DH is on his three weeks hols, hence the rain in Cornwall, the kids are all here and we have guests!) So each day I need to revise 25 pages which will give me time for one last read through before submission. Fingers crossed.

CREATING DETAILED CHARACTERS – using photos

Beware: description of character can be where writing sags.

It’s much harder to describe beautiful people than ugly ones! Difficult to avoid cliché. Focusing on non-visual aspects some of the time will help avoid the pitfalls.
(I avoid describing my characters because I think it’s a pit you can fall into. I also think it’s a weakness in my writing, so I don’t draw attention to it.)
You don’t want lists of adjectives, back-story, clichés. You mustn’t let readers switch off. (Some skip description!) Keep your descriptions sensory and vivid, and readers won’t want to skip.
Make your characters vivid by using concrete detail (and not just things you can see.) Be specific.

I often work from photos of real people (sometimes amalgams of more than one) because it makes me step outside my comfort zone and my own limited memory bank.
[Resources: PEOPLE photo packs Note: Here pick a few of your own]

WRITING TASK 5 Sensory Gymnastics!

1. Choose a photo and study it.
Imagine this is one of your characters.

2. Think of a smell associated with that character - their perfume or their natural body smell; the smell of the job they do; perhaps the smell of fear or blood.

3. Think of a sound associated with your character – the sound of their voice, an instrument they play, the music they listen to, a sound their body makes (eg asthmatic wheeze.)

4. Think of a texture associated with your character – the feel of their hair, skin, clothes, or something they touch in the course of their work, something they make as a hobby.

5. Can you think of a taste associated with your character? A food or drink they like? Or if your character lends himself/herself to the sensuous and erotic, something s/he tastes of?…

I want to thank Linda for sharing all of this. It is a fantastic set of exercises and I can already see the benefit.... So to find out more about Linda drop by her website. There is a great section on writing.

RNA Conference 4 (part 2) - Linda Gillard

Yesterday I posted part one of Linda Gillard's session on Sense and Sensitivity. Today brings you part two and tomorrow the final part. Enjoy.

You’ve been recording “TELLING” DETAIL - detail which tells the story




Look at the pictures of settings (note -these are just random ones off of my 'puter) and choose one that appeals - a picture that interests you, or that you might like to “walk into” if you could.

WRITING TASK 2 Settings 10 mins
1. Study the picture and make notes – sounds, smells, textures & tastes.

Try to imagine a full sensory picture of your scene.
Think about air quality, temperature… What would the textures feel like? What sounds could be going on in the background? Or is it silent? What is the quality of that silence?
Can you smell anything?… (Make things up!)

(Is there a detail that encapsulates the scene as a sort of sensory postcard?)

2. Try to develop your notes into a few sentences to capture the scene. Write about the visuals if you like but don’t let them dominate. Try to let the reader know what it was like to be there, not what it looked like.


Telling detail doesn’t have to be visual. (What things looked like wasn’t necessarily the most important thing.)

For the purposes of romantic writing, the other senses might do a better and less clichéd job.

In STAR GAZING I wrote love scenes (and indeed sex scenes) that had no visual element at all because they were written in the first person and the narrator-heroine was blind…

When writing my 1st novel EMOTIONAL GEOLOGY I’d made the discovery about “the spaces in-between” which readers fill in for you

Back story…
Post-illness, conserving mental and physical energy, I wrote short sections and I wrote about detail - the little picture, not the big picture.

When I got feedback from readers I found that focusing on detail had nevertheless painted a big picture because of the wonderful magic whereby readers fill in, as “co-creator”.

In EG I described rocks. People saw landscape.
I described colours and threads and people saw quilts.

In SG I described what rocks, trees, snow felt and smelled like and readers experienced the Isle of Skye.

If you write about details (eg describe eyes) readers will still see the whole. (ie face) Reader will fill in. (Cheshire cat’s floating grin – hard to imagine.)

In SG I described what the hero sounded, felt like and smelled like. There’s very little visual description of him.

Concrete detail will do most of the work for you if you really focus on it and make it vivid. It’s the “active ingredient”. If the detail is real for you, it will be real for your readers. And if the detail is real for readers, they will fill in the background, and that will be real too.

Detail is the writer’s labour-saving device!


WRITING TASK 3 A memory in detail 5 mins

Think of a time when things were very good or very bad for you (or for someone else.)

Describe some small part of that experience - not the big picture (the content/the cause) but a detail (eg the weather at the time, the sounds and smells in the hospital waiting room.)

Might help to begin with “I remember…” Avoid visual description as far as possible.

RNA Conference 4 - Linda Gillard

I was unable to attend Linda Gillard's session on Sense and Sensitivity, but heard wonderful things about it. Here's what Biddy had to say when she blogged about the conference over on The Pink Heart Society Blog:

"One of the best for me was Linda Gillard about Sense and Sensibility, the use of senses in writing. We mostly concentrated on all the senses but the vision. We live in such a visual world that sometimes we neglect the other senses. We did some exercises that really helped. "

So Linda has very kindly offered me her notes and allowed me to share them with you! Today I'll post through to the first exercise and then continue on from there. Before that though let me tell you a bit about Linda. She now lives in a village outside Glasgow, but spent six years living on the Isle of Skye. Her first career was acting which led to journalism then onto teaching and finally to writing novels. Her last novel Star Gazing was short listed for the Romantic Novel of the Year Award 2009. Here's part one of her notes:

"It is a terrible thing to see and have no vision." Helen Keller

Intro
How I came to write STAR GAZING’s blind heroine…
1. “Playing with my imaginary friends” led to imaginary hero
2. Non-visual representation of Isle of Skye to avoid cliché.

I thought the blind “pov” would be limiting and readers would get bored. Reverse was true.
It extended my writing.

Qualifications for a writer:
To be curious
To be observant
You need a good memory
To be sensual (esp. writers of romance!)

When you’re writing, you’re trying to see the picture, to watch the movie of your story unfold. You will eventually be trying to hear what the characters are saying. You’re “eavesdropping”.

But do you tend to stop there?
Do you ever wonder if your readers feel as if they are actually there, in the middle of your story? As if it’s happening to them?

We tend to confine our observations to what we see and hear, but experiences and memories are very much related to all the 5 senses: sight, sound, touch, smell & taste.

Memories aren’t just visual.
eg “They’re playing our song”. The power of familiar music to evoke whole scenes.
Looking at holiday photos will show you only what you saw. They don’t convey the heat, the sound of the sea, the noise of children playing, the delicious smells coming from the taverna.

A visual record is incomplete but we tend to think a visual record is a good record simply because sight dominates our other senses. And we live in a visual age. (Elizabethans invariably talked about going to “hear a play”.)


Examples of my childhood memories that couldn’t be captured just visually:

Smell of blackcurrant leaves and the buzzing of bees in the hollyhocks when I played as a child in my garden.

Basil’s Italian ice cream (taste of vanilla, crystals in and coldness of ice cream; the sound of his bell which triggered excitement and salivation!)

The two abiding memories of my first teddy - damp patches on his paws where I chewed and the sound of sawdust moving when I squeezed him. (But I can’t remember what he looked like.

WRITING TASK 1 A Childhood Memory 5 mins 10.25 – 10.30

1. Record an intense memory, perhaps from childhood. Try to recall the event in more than just a visual way. (Your oldest memories are unlikely to be just visual, that’s why they’ve stayed with you.) Use all your senses. Jot down your impressions in note form.

2. Select most powerful aspect of that memory, the thing that brings it to life for you. Note whether it’s a visual memory.

Tomorrow part two........ and let me know how your exercise went and I'll share mine!

RNA Conference 3, Kathy Gale

Kathy Gale – “What Publishers Want”

She has 25 years in publishing and switched from editing to being a writing coach and well as publishing consultant for Quick Reads - which was set up for people who struggle with reading or who lost the reading habit. She became a writing coach because of the gap between writers and publishers.

The Practical Info
- They want best selling writer who write a book a year and make them loads of money
- Supermarkets have transformed the market and if you don’t make it in to them you’ll never make
- The mid list is almost totally gone
- Publishers don’t have the facility to build writers
- Books has to be really fantastic
- They want writers to be writing in the same vein-even better with continuing characters

You need to know where a book will fit in the market place – it’s a means of communication to so many possible (the chain of people who have to communicate your market) so be clear be clear of your market

Have a phrase or a way of describing yourself – ie contemporary women’s fiction, heart rending love story, rom com....something people can relate to

Seeing yourself as a contemporary writer – what is being written now – the style now – what makes it fresh and contemporary

Who is your target market –
ABC1- middle class
C2D- working class
Women
Men
Age
-who is the core readership
-it is a helpful idea to have a picture of your core reader – name her – think about your market in that way
-think about what your reader wants

Trends in Publishing
-misery memoirs are heading down
-historical sagas on the way down, Regional saga has peaked
-look at the Times best seller list
-Develop a relationship with a librarian and a bookseller – who are the breakout sellers and what was the breakout book
-read the Bookseller
-read new authors who have sold really well – what is it about them that that is completely new, fresh
-look at things with an open mind – what is selling
-don’t write cynically – those books are thin; they don’t have heart

It’s about finding a balance - a balance of writing a book that lights your fire with an eye to the market. Often it is in the detail -
-emotional depth
-vary pace; give enough detail
-evoking atmosphere
-don’t let pace over ride everything; give the reader enough time
-the setting
-richness

It is a huge job to write a book – it can take years

She then said having listed the above 'rules' -YOU ARE NOT TO FOLLOW ANY RULES AT ALL- DON’T TWIST YOURSELF OUT OF SHAPE
Go with the feel – go with your heart- go with your own writing pattern
Resonant writing
Publishers want their authors to be professional
-The appearance of the author does matter; interesting; engaging; they are promotable; be stylish, bright, contemporary not stuffy
-They want authors who are self respecting and assertive but are not difficult to work with
-Respect them as professionals
-Don’t be difficult
-Watch out what you say about yourself and your book in the covering letter-be professional but not grandiose
-No gimmicks
In answer to a question she said -
There is room for innovation – yes. Take Bridget Jones for example.It transformed the landscape of contemporary women’s fiction, in fact it made it contemporary

Kathy's website

This session had so many light bulb moments for me - it filled in the gaps to some of the feedback I have had on A Cornish House. So now back to polishing ACH for the New Writers' Scheme deadline 31 August.

The next session post will be next week. I apologize for posting the sessions out of order but I am doing the ones that I have already written up first!

RNA Conference and Builders

I have builders in as I write this so I don't have time to post my next conference report however the RNA Conference Links will direct you to other reports of the conference and this is being updated as new reports appear and today's post has another conference experience here.

RNA Conference 2 - Veronica Henry and Pictures of Friday Night

Veronica Henry – ‘From Ambridge to Honeycote’

Veronica opened with the fact that she was in the naughty kitchen the night before but she behaved unlike some others (here read a look directed at your scribe). Her early life was as an army brat and with all the moving her comfort and constant companions were books.

She did Latin at uni but found running a nightclub more fun and was asked to leave. However the upside is that she met her future husband in the nightclub. She then went to a secretarial school which led to a job as production secretary with the Archers and this opened a whole new world which eventually brought her to scriptwriting and television.

All of which proved brilliant training ground for novel writing. This began when she decided that she wanted to have a family.... The first novel began as the idea based around a brewery and the family that owned – sort of beer meets Dallas.

Veronica went on to tell us how her experience writing for tv informed her novel writing. First the story structure is the same and it was when she was doing a few episodes of Holby City that one went awry. She was sent on a course for naughty writers given by John York to get writers back on track.

Out of this course she has held onto the ten questions to focus on your characters and get things working again.

1. Whose story is it – from whose pov are you telling it and why?
2. What emotional state is he/she in the beginning? Is it sufficiently far enough away from the end point?
3. What does she want and what does it tell us about her character?
4. What is the inciting incident and why does it affect her more than anyone else?
5. What obstacles are in the character’s way and what character traits help her overcome them?
6. What’s at stake and what will be lost if they don’t achieve the objective?
7. Why should we care? – people have to be flawed but we must be able to relate, they must be human, the reader must feel they are redeemable
8. What do they learn and how do they change?
9. How and why do they change?
10. How does it end?

Victoria ends with a HEA (my kind of book). So when she is floundering she pulls out the questions and applies them to all the characters – there needs to be an arc for each one.

She begins with a setting and a theme. She is not a huge plotter – she builds a main frame with the main plot points that she wants to reach and some set pieces she would like to include but not necessarily where they will go. She does this on a four sheet of A4 paper.

She likes to take the scenic route but doesn’t want to be too undisciplined.

The most important thing for a new book is the trip to Paperchase to buy a new clean notebook – the excitement it builds. They are all perfect in head but once on the page the characters develop flaws – very much like real life. Characters aren’t what you expect, but run with it – it’s an adventure.

She writes chronologically now but didn’t before. She is now strict except when stuck then she may jump ahead just to get writing – get the writing muscle moving and to build confidence again.

She writes in 20k word chunks which then then locks away until the end then she can come back to it with a fresh eye. If she keeps going over the old words she avoiding writing the new.

She tests herself with new writing tricks – to keep changing and evolving as a writer.

She doesn’t want to get stuck in a rut; she makes herself work harder; she will stick to the brand but wants to shake it up a little.

She gives maybe a page or two of what she knows will happen to editor so that the editor knows what she getting and it doesn’t change too much. The journey can change but not who ends up with who.

The scariest thing is to dump six months work in the bin.

Titles are so important and she finds them hard. Fantastic titles sell even if the book isn’t. The title should encapsulate what the book is about. Long titles are the fashion at the moment.
Current book – MARRIAGE AND OTHER GAMES. The story is in the title and it fits her brand which is a little mischievous but nothing too weird. She stays away from covers unless there is something so wrong.

Regarding branding she said just be yourself, know your voice, be true to your genre and know who you are.




Now a few photos from the bar on Friday night.

A peak inside one of the naughty kitchens!

RNA Conference - Opening Session

I finally reached home at ten last night - exhausted but energized at the same time. The conference was simply wonderful. There is nothing quite like being with people who don't think you come from an alien planet because you live with strangers in your head.

Below is the first of my conference notes - I must add again these are just my take on what was said - what I could scribble down quickly - not exact quotes but my summary - so therefore I could be way off the mark from what the speaker actually said or intended. I offer my apologies for this in advance.

I do have to say this session alone did show that there is no one right way....and boy did I learn a lot!

How much........is too much?

The Opening session of the RNA Conference in Penrith was chaired by Catherine Jones aka Kate Lace. She introduced the authors on the panel –Melanie Hilton aka Louise Allen(hot historicals for Mills & Boon), Liz Gill (Sagas), Helen Scott Taylor (Paranormal), Sue Moorecroft (short stories), and Veronica Henry (romantic comedy).

We, the audience, were asked to phrase our questions as “How much (blank) is too much?” Catherine opened the questions with ‘How much sex is too much?’

HST – in paranormal many are very hot especially in the US – the market in general there spans extremely hot to inspirational
MH – it’s too much if you don’t feel comfortable- otherwise its shows – you need to think of your readers’ comfort zone – more important the unexpected frizzon
VH – in her 1st book she wrote very steamy scene and now that is expected in all her books. However you do need to earn them – they need an emotional pull or reward; they are good fun
SM – in short stories it depends on the market
LG – one reader commented to her once ‘Don’t know how you sleep at night with all those sex scenes.’ She hadn’t thought there were many in the book but went back to count and there were 11. She added that it’s got to be in conflict otherwise it’s gratuitous. Conflict with sex – the whole novel should be in conflict...what’s holding them back (what’s going on the outside vs the inside –we need to care) Sex has to be more that sex.

Research
LG – lots..libraries, people best. She researches while watching telly, it is only too much if it all turns up in your novel – read and digest & forget. There is never enough research but it shouldn’t be the book
VH – too much when you become obsessed by it. It should be a natural absorb then concentrate on the story; follow your interest so you don’t bore your reader or yourself, keep it flowing
MH – too much research is when it stops you writing the book. She many times researches backwards to check facts as she did on a 5th cen Roman book. Research can be wonderful displacement activity.
HST – can make it up but her starting point is usually in folklore and then she goes off to create with familiar elements in it.
SM – she said think of an art gallery with one picture on the wall laid bare – in a short story everything shows. Interviewing people is wonderful research

Revision and Polishing
MH – when it becomes too slick, loses its edge, loses its voice, and you become bored
VH – its a good way of not getting on!(as you are too bust tweeking adverds and adjectives and not writing the story); she writes in 20k chunks then locks then away until the end which is about 120k. She does have a good memory to keep track of all that is going on in the book. When the book is written then she polishes
SM – she is finished polishing “when I can read without changing anything” only then is she done – she likes polishing better than the first draft
LG – James N Frey wrote in his book – when you want to throw up all over it...when you are bored and tired of it. She writes a book every 6 months
HST – she blasts through the first draft and works on the fly – just makes notes to come back to as she goes along – once she starts fiddling she loses momentum then 2 revision on the computer, another one printed out and then one more time on the computer – she is always cutting for the US market as they require it to be very tightly written.

Pressure (from a looming deadline)
HST – gave herself enough time but not too much; she works well to a deadline – it is a good thing
MH –writes three books a year – tight deadlines but prefers that – no drifting allowed. She works out how long she has and pulls out the non-writing days then divides the writing days by the total number of words required and set a target for each day which she aims to exceed – then she recalculates each day until she is finished ahead of time with time to revise.
VH – writing and promoting simultaneously which can make her panic; she had an inbuilt sense of where she should be and if she falls behind she goes away by herself for a few days to catchup but always does it in the time she has been told.
LG -2books a year so she works everyday but builds it around her very busy social life – for example if she is out for lunch she will arrive at pub a half hour early to write before lunch

Back Story
LG – she uses prologues as flashback can upset reader if used too much. Just write the story.
SM – you place characters in a situation so it comes out in the scene/dialogue then use introspection
VH – you need to know and inform your characters – don’t slow the story with it – a good editor will say you are slowing up – cut to the chase; don’t make it show
MH – avoid back story dump – writes out back story first so that she can absorb it into motivation, behaviour and dialogue
HST – enough at each stage of the book so that the reader knows what is going on but only knows something as it is needed. Get to know story of character before writing – then it feeds out gradually

Scene Setting
VH – if you need to make sure you show – don’t tell and make it exciting so it doesn’t slow the action up. Take them on the journey. She uses multi protagonist – so some has to be given but as little as possible; what are they doing, saying, wearing
SM – nothng that you don’t need – so very little, characters must have the conviction – they persuade the reader
LG – does it for geography alone
MH – You don’t need the character announcing ‘Goodness it’s 1749 and doesn’t Brussels look...’it should seep out in the writing
HST – need scene setting as it is completely different than normal – it depends on how different the author makes the world just don’t slow the pace of the story

Subplot
LG – doesn’t do subplot if story is short about 3 for 120k; just tell the story that you want to tell and that only you can tell
VH – several – one is the engine and time line; all the others reflect one another; it all follows and is a bit like a jigsaw; it pulls the reader through seamlessly keeping the reader interested but be clear; keep in control – neither too much nor too little
MH – in 75/80k is not enough space for too much subplot – except in a series. They must be relevant to the main story – keeping them moving forward too
HST – hadn’t thought about subplots until she had a review which mentioned her use of them. They should have that relates and intertwines – it can’t exist separately but occurs naturally as it unfolds

Points of View
SM – she is the viewpoint police – one per episode unless there is a good reason to change that; it should be whose story it is, whose conflict, - otherwise you lose the immediacy – be in their heart and soul
LG – the whole point is that the reader doesn’t notice and as long as it reads well – generally she has 4
VH – has lots of characters and flips gaily between – this is from script writing – she writes filmatically like she’s at a cocktail party but sticks with one person for some satisfaction. It is important not to switch out of one head to avoid getting into the deep stuff – it has to be done – you can’t avoid it
MH – writes roughly 60% form the heroine point of view and 40% from the hero. Only in one book did she write only from the heroine’s pov but this was done because she had the most at risk in every scene. She does analyse every scene to see who is most at risk
HST – was taught to stick to one person’s pov in each scene and usually uses 3 pov per book. It is key to know whose head we are in and it is a bit genre dependent

Advance
HST – haven’t had too much - no idea but it seems bigger advance to names and the lower down get squeezed
MH – said too keep an eye on the tax situation – is it better to have it in advance or leave it to come in gradually especially if you have other income streams to deal with
VH – said there is a huge amount of expectation but to remember it affects all other budgets like how much money they have to spend on the promotion of the book – finding a middle line is best and being sensible
LG – it can be too much so pay attention

Romantic Novelist Conference - Penrith

First sorry for the silence this week but I have been traveling again - in the UK that is. Now I am sitting in my little room here in Penrith and loving the fact that I am spending the weekend with the a fabulous group of writers. My liver is shaking in fear but aside from that all is well.

My intensive writing time began on the train to London where I managed another 2000 words on Penderrown. I am now just over 70,000 and I see it all pulling together. It's a good feeling, but I do know that this is the messiest draft I have ever written so the real work is ahead of me. Just a few years ago this would have frightened me almost into a state of inability to move forward, but now I know it's really the fun part - carving out a decent book from the muddled mass of words of the first draft.

I haven't yet responded to the comments on last week's post on emotional scenes. The comments have been amazingly insightful and I will be going back to them as I rewrite and work hard with the all important and painfully difficult scenes. Thanks to all who commented and a particular thanks to Julie Cohen - yet again hit the nail on the head for me.

A taste of things to come - a few photos from yesterday here at Penrith with the early arrivals and then it's off to breakfast and then a morning workshop on dealing with the media (well, I am ever hopeful!).....