A Cornish Affair Won!

A few days later and I am still in a state of delighted shock… A Cornish Affair won the Festival of Romance's Readers' Award for Best Romantic Read! The short list was superb and I still become teary when I think about it. This book took a long time in coming to publication. Those who follow the blog know that it began life as August Rock back in 2005.

Since then if has been rewritten more time than I want to count. But I am so thrilled that Jude's story won.

As with last year the Festival was held in Bedford and this year it was bigger and better. This is the only event in the UK for readers of romance to meet their favourite authors and connect with new writers. I think there were 60 romance authors this year.

Me holding the lovely Miranda Dickinson's latest book Take A Look At Me Know

On Saturday morning it was the coffee and cake event with 14 authors. I read an short extract from the award winning (need to keep saying so I can believe it!) A Cornish Affair. And the big highlight was meeting the wonderful John Jackson!

Me reading…picture courtesy of John Jackson

The book fair was held in the Corn Exchange and it was great with share a table with Kat Black and William Coles.

Then I had a book signing at Waterstones with the lovely Hazel Osmond (one of my fellow short listed authors)…

Then complete collapse in my room. I was beat. I looked at my dress which glittered and sparkled at me and thought I can't wear it. But bullied on by friends on Twitter I donned the frock and set forth the ball. As with any time when you get a bunch of romantic novelist together the volume is high and the conversation can slip low…this was no exception….

I was happily tweeting the award winners live and was all set to type in the winner of the Readers' Award for Best Romantic Read when…my name was called. I am grateful there are no pictures of my face! I fully expected any other the other wonderful authors on the list but not my name.

Sue Morrcroft, Liz Fenwick, Jane Lovering, Rowan Coleman and Hazel Osmond

Somehow I made it up to receive my award from the wonderful Christina Courtney (fellow Heroine Addict) and then sat down stunned. In fact I was shell shocked all evening and didn't know what to do with myself…still feeling this way but now I can at least work on the next book!

Sorry about the pink lightening…Tracy Bloom (Tracey won the Best Author Published Book) and Liz Fenwick

Kate Allen has done a wonderful job with the festival and I'm already looking forward to next year.

Broo Doherty won the agent award

I wish I could thank the readers personally. I am so thrilled they loved Jude's and Tristan's journey…

So off to Dubai in about a half hour…yes, back to normal life on a plane.

PS…finishing this post at 35,000 feel somewhere over Europe!

Busy, Busy, Busy

I feel so bad that I haven't blogged in ages - not really like me, but it has been for very good reasons. Since I last appeared I have been to Dubai and back, attended two publishing/writing related events, written about 4k on PENDEROWN, and managed to catch up briefly with DH!

First, as you know I was worrying about DD going away to school...well, she loves it - which is a huge relief. It doesn't mean that we aren't both at times falling all over ourselves in misery missing each other but she is happy!

Now the How to Get Published conference at Kingston Uni was great. Unfortunately I have left my notes back in Dubai so you will have to wait for the details but it was soooo worth changing my flights to attend.

The past few days I have been tucked away in ancient manor in Oxfordshire (somes like one of my books!) on Cornerstone's Workshop on Women' s Fiction. Magic. You know when you have reached something of an impasse and you can't see the forrest for the trees, well I was there.

Since 2004 I have learnt so much. I have moved from being able to write a complete book to being able to write a pretty good book. I have been told I am so close - but just couldn't see how the hell to take my writing to the next level. I am one of those people who has to 'see' how - if that make sense. Maybe it's my dyslexia but I need concrete examples of where I have missed the mark. Once I can actually 'see' the error then I can learn to fix it and find the rest them in the script or at least that is what I have been able to do in the past.

I had hoped that this workshop might help me on my way. In fact i had high hopes because the person teaching this workshop was Julie Cohen. I know Julie from the RNA, love her books and have been lucky enough to have attended one of her workshops on Pacing at a conference. So I knew that at the start the teacher could write (that is an understatement) and possibly more important that she was a gifted teacher - these things do not always go hand in hand.

So let's just say I wasn't disappointed. I knew before I began where I perseceived my weeknesses and I wasn't wrong, but I didn't quite have it all and I certainly was stumped how to fix it...During the workshop I was put through exercises on my own work and others on the course which helped me to 'see'. I learnt different ways of approaching my totally organic process of plotting and conflict which should improved it, tighten it, or even sometimes find it!

In the past Julie has gifted me with many lightbulb moments and I wasn't disappointed in anyway. It was a wonder I wasn't blinded by the flashes. Now I need to cement these tools into my brain, if possible, so that they become more a part of my natural writing process, which I know will take time...

The other part of the workshop was a chance to learn more about the 'business' end. Helen Corner provided this side. She armed us with the tools to help break through. The pratical nuts and bolts of submission prep and approaching agents. There also a chance to question her indivually about specific concerns - worth it's weight in gold.

On the second evening the wonderful agent, Broo Doherty joined us for dinner and q & a. Opportunites to pick an agent's mind don't come much better than this. She was funny, honest, realistic (her agency of 2 agents receives 5000 submissions a year!), and generous with her answers.

The other bonus of the workshop was the other attendees. Being with other writers is brilliant. This talented group contained women in different parts of the writer's journey were tremendously supportive and helpful. They were inspiring and fun. It was great to spend the time with them. I have gained so much from them that they will never know. I hope they came out of the workshop ready to tackle their own persona challenges.

So I am pumped. The end of PENDEROWN is insight. PILGRIMAGE is bubbly in my head and after my one-on-one with Julie (not sure I like you any more!!!) I have decisions to make (May talk about this more later when i have had time to chew things through).

Between the two writing events though I have come away with three key things that I will share as they are not specific to me or either event:

1. Know your reader
2. Be professional in every way
3. Don't rush and ruin the chance your have by submitting to soon

Finally Anita Burgh has a wonderful post on GUILT on her blog and from that blog I am not called myself a YUP!