17 May 2021 - What's new
17 May 2021
- ‘Everything hinges on character. Plot is important, but character is crucial. Character is best revealed through action. Someone pulls a gun on your hero. How do they react? Fight or flight? Their character will determine. Complex characters are gold. A hero whose first reaction is flight but who plausibly stands and fights is way more interesting. Mike Bullen, British scriptwriter, who has written the successful series Life Begins, Cold Feet and All about George, as well as a novel, Trust.
- For anyone thinking about or embarked on self-publishing, our ten-part WritersServices Self-Publishing Guide by Joanne PhillipsUK-based freelance writer and ghostwriter. She has had articles published in national writing magazines, and has ghostwritten books on subjects as diverse as hairdressing and keeping chickens. Visit her at www.joannephillips.co.uk is an essential starting-point, taking you through the process step-by-step. 'Indie authors access the same professional services as traditional publishing houses. They employ freelance editors, proofreaders and cover designers. They have their work professionally formatted for ebooks and typeset for print. They may use service providers to manage some or all of the publishing tasks, or they may go it alone...' Articles include Choose Your Self-publishing Route and Marketing and Promotion for Indie Authors: Online.
- The James Berry Poetry Prize closes on 1 June. It's open to poets of colour, who are UK residents who have not yet published a book-length collection, special consideration given to LGBTQ+/disabled poets and poets from disadvantaged socio-economic backgrounds. No entry fee. 3 equal winners are each to receive a £1,000 prize, expert mentoring and their debut collection published with Bloodaxe Books.
- Other live competitions.
- Professional copy editing does make sense, either if you are trying to give your work its best chance when submitting it or, even more crucially, if you are planning to self-publish. But how are you supposed to tell who will do a good job, when the editorial services on the web all sound pretty much the same and it's tempting to go for the cheapest? Getting your manuscript copy edited
- Links from the publishing world: in the past authors banded together to make the case that publishing was a crucial industry for the nation's cultural and intellectual life, Book Publishing's Mike Pence Problem | The New Republic; a different perspective on book publishing's existential crisis, Mike Pence's book deal and publishing's wide rift on cancel culture - Vox; who knew that publishing could be so thrilling? New Thriller Books Find Drama in the Publishing World | Time; Wattpad already has 90 million monthly users, including five million writers who have contributed stories to the platform, Korea's Naver Completes Wattpad Acquisition; and the latest book fair news, Beijing Book Fair 2021: Internationally Digital, Physical for China-Based Publishers.
- Your submission package - how to put your package together to make the best impression when you're submitting to agents and publishers.
- Links from the world of writers: the more we all open up, then the more we can normalize the practice of talking about art and commerce, How Much Do Authors Earn? Here's the Answer No One Likes. | Jane Friedman; how female novelists have captured the literary zeitgeist, displacing men, How women conquered the world of fiction | Books | The Guardian; what makes some books work when others don't? The Magic Number - Bard Press; and another kind of magical entity at work, Deb Caletti on the Practical Magic of Research.
- From Joanne Phillips, The Business of Writing for Self-publishing authors offers terrific advice for all writers: 'Self-publishing authors - also known as ‘indie' authors or author-publishers - have had a steep learning curve these past few years. Getting to grips with the various sales channels available to them, producing top quality ebooks and paperbacks, and finding a place in mainstream outlets have left many writers struggling to keep up with the paperwork. What follows is a brief guide to the essentials your self-publishing business needs - because it is a business, even if you only publish one book!'
- Links from writers and readers: the bestselling YA author on having your novels adapted for the screen Shadow and Bone author Leigh Bardugo: ‘People sneer at the things women and girls love' | Leigh Bardugo | The Guardian; I wrote my first crime novel for the saddest of reasons, Fuelled by grief: why I write crime fiction; a controversial book about the history writers, Who's missing? Top author stirs anger with ‘too white' history | History books | The Guardian; and do you get a buzz from your reading achievements? Why I am deleting Goodreads and maybe you should, too | Books | The Guardian.
- From our Writers' Quotes: 'Writers are fortunate in that they are able to treat their neurosis every day by writing and as soon as the writer is blocked - this is catastrophic because the writer will start to go to pieces.' Edmund Bergler.
