International organisation supporting the careers of both aspiring and published children's authors via mentoring, community platform, courses, awards, magazine, podcasts, and more.
UK website set up by seven literature organisations which provides a mass of information about writing courses and professional development for writers, including funding, events and resources. www.literaturetraining.com
Based in London, this runs a number of courses for aspiring film-makers, including its flagship From Story to Screen course which can run over 8 weeks full-time, plus shorter courses on script-writing. http://www.metfilmschool.co.uk/
Major new initiative to establish a national academy in the UK. More than 100 established writer patrons support its aims and will be visiting the Academy to help deliver the programme. Applicants for the one year vocational course will have to submit a portfolio of writing. www.writingacademy.org
Well-organised and highly-regarded training centre for UK publishing, which has recently introduced online distance learning copy editing, proof-reading and copywriting courses. www.train4publishing.co.uk
London organisation running creative writing workshops for writers at all stages, with a focus on new writing and live literature, and encouraging innovation and experimentation. www.spreadtheword.org.uk
The celebrated Arvon creative writing courses cover four and a half days and range from Novel Writing to Starting to Write. Some grants are available. (http://www.arvonfoundation.org)
Site focused on helping writers get in touch with their own creativity through drawing, story telling and personal memoir, with a view to developing 'expanded perception, innovative problem solving and new ways of looking at one's work'. International workshops. www.creativityworkshop.com
Site created to increase profile of UK children's books on the Internet. Useful articles on writing for children and free monthly newsletter. http://www.wordpool.co.uk/
The website for the friends' network supporting the Arvon FoundationThe celebrated Arvon creative writing courses cover four and a half days and range from Novel Writing to Starting to Write. Some grants are available. (http://www.arvonfoundation.org), which runs creative writing courses for writers. This has a miscellany of writers' own work and articles on associated topics. http://www.arvonfriends.org/
As someone who's on their sixth novel and has had their ups and downs, I'm aware of how privileged and lucky I have been, and what a shock it can be for debut writers - all the reality of that world, and that new voice and when the book doesn't quite take off, it's a shock. Read more
‘Starting with a blank page is part of what makes writing a book so vulnerable. A novel can be anything, and the way it turns out is highly personal.'
This week we have broken through 10,000 pages on the WritersServices site! Our huge site contains an enormous amount of information which can be accessed through the homepage or through Advice for Writers, which gives a breakdown of what is on the site.
‘Georgette Heyer was my favourite author, then and now.
Mashing genres can be a tricky business. Do it right, and you've created a short story, book or movie that remixes those respective genres' elements in new and exciting ways-for instance, Philip K. Dick memorably using a detective narrative to explore the post-apocalyptic setting of "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?"
POD started off being closely associated with the self-publishing market, as it allows authors to publish for hundreds of dollars, if not zero dollars. It has never really shaken off that association, even though it has been a godsend for authors and publishers alike. Read more
Royalties earned from The Golden Mole, published in the US this week as Vanishing Treasures, will be given towards counteracting ‘the election of a climate-change denier'
'The literary world is made up of little confederacies, each looking upon its own members as the lights of the universe; and considering all others as mere transient meteors, doomed to soon fall and be forgotten, while its own luminaries are to shine steadily into immortality.'
'I've been lucky'
As someone who's on their sixth novel and has had their ups and downs, I'm aware of how privileged and lucky I have been, and what a shock it can be for debut writers - all the reality of that world, and that new voice and when the book doesn't quite take off, it's a shock. Read more