РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.

COM/WSNWS

Win £750 in our world-famous story, poetry and flash comps

HOW TO WRITE WHAT TO WRITE WHERE TO SELL IT

SUMMER
SUCCESS
Breaking BEGIN
the rules to WITH
sell short A WIN
stories Where,
RUN
when and
how to
AWAY! start

How to cut
yourself off for
a day and get HOW MUCH
more writing ACTION DO
done YOU NEED?

ESSENTIAL SKILL
Tracking submissions

Every month workshops, exercises and market news

9 771467 252042
#202 Aug 2018 • £3.95

to help you write better fiction, non-fiction and poetry

Prude & prejudice Charity case Travel in character
Advice for a reader who The pros and cons Rupert Thomson
shocked her writing of donating writing explains his ‘method’
02

group with a sex scene to an anthology approach to novels

РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS

0208 339 6060

 РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS

WELCOME

Writers FORUM
A WORD FROM 4 HEADLINES 31 INSPIRATION
Newsfront The latest in Ideas Store Paula Williams
THE EDITOR the world of writing revisits a nursery rhyme
6 AUTHOR INTERVIEW 32 TRAVEL WRITING

D
Never too late Planning:
on’t buy Women’s Weekly Peter Perrin is markets & ideas
or sell them any stories enjoying debut Solange Hando
until they change their new success in his 70s with a tale continues her series for the
policy of taking All Rights of ‘seasoned romance’ – he occasional travel writer
speaks to Douglas McPherson 34 ACHIEVEMENT CALENDAR
for fiction (see the Newsfront
8 WRITERS’ CIRCLE August Set your targets
article overleaf for details). Your letters 37 STORY COMPETITION
All Rights means they can plus First Draft This month’s winners
sell it on, leave off your 10 FIRST STEPS of £550 in cash prizes
name, do what they like with Summer shorts Treat 46 FICTION WORKSHOP
editors (and readers) to Why dialogue matters
it. You can no longer sell it or
something out of the ordinary Fiction editor Lorraine Mace
include it in a collection. in your next pitch, urges uses a reader’s narrative-
Rights-grabbing is now common with non-fiction, but it Douglas McPherson based story to show how to
usually pays better than fiction. Besides, news articles only 13 TALES OF MY GURU bring your writing alive
have a short shelf-life and it’s easy to take the facts in a Beginners, beware, warns 48 WRITER’S CV
Hugh Scott’s mystery mentor Writing for anthologies
feature and create a new piece out of them. But short stories
14 MOTIVATION Susie Kearley introduces a
last and the major value in them is how they are written. Make yourself popular genre and suggests
Of course, the bosses in giant media companies care about untouchable Sarah Davies some benefits of contributing
profit, not value, and any rebellion may mean they close has found a way to shut out 50 POETRY WORKSHOP
these fiction markets. Well, so be it. Better for authors to distractions while writing – she Enough of a character
shares her secret Poetry editor Sue Butler
move on than work for next to nothing to make fat cats fatter.
17 AGONY AUNT shares techniques for creating
Write soon (but not for WW), Carl Dear Della Writer Della credible people for a poem
Galton answers your queries 52 POETRY COMPETITION
18 CHILDREN’S BOOKS This month’s winner of £100
Don’t miss issue #203 on sale from 16 August SCBWI special and a dictionary
Anita Loughrey 54 WRITERS’ DIRECTORY
Writers’ Forum AD SALES MANAGER Wendy Kearns highlights the benefits This month’s events, writing
Select Publisher Services Ltd EMAIL advertising@writers-forum.com of membership of the society courses and helpful books
PO Box 6337 TEL 01392 367962
for children’s writers 58 MOTIVATION
Bournemouth BH1 9EH CIRCULATION MANAGER Tim Harris
TEL 01202 586848 20 FREELANCE MARKETS The Mentor Emily
PRODUCTION MANAGER John Beare
IT MANAGER Vince Jones
The Magazine Scene Cunningham of The Write
PUBLISHER Tim Harris Adam Carpenter’s round-up Factor helps a reader worried
EDITOR Carl Styants Subscription rates (12 issues)
UK £38, EUROPE £49, ROW £56 of industry news plus Diary his writing lacks action
CHIEF SUB Wendy Reed
SUBSCRIPTION MANAGER Chris Wigg of a freelance hack 60 WRITING KNOW-HOW
Photography and artwork EMAIL chris@selectps.com 22 FICTION MARKETS Research secrets
With thanks to Shutterstock PRINTED BY Inside Story What happens Rupert Thomson tells
COVER IMAGE Tithi Luadthong Precision Colour Printing, Halesfield 1, when a plot goes off the rails? Anita Loughrey about
Stirchley, Telford TF7 4QQ
© Select Publisher Services Ltd. No part of Douglas McPherson shares his research into the enigmatic
DISTRIBUTED BY
this magazine may be reproduced without the
Seymour Ltd, 2 East Poultry Avenue,
his experience French photographer Claude
written permission of the publisher.
London EC1A 9PT 24 WRITING EXERCISE Cahun plus Writing
Writers’ Forum cannot accept responsibility for
DATA PROTECTION For information about
When, where & how to Outlets with Janet Cameron
any unsolicited material. Writers’ Forum is fully
independent and its views are not necessarily those how we manage personal data, please see start Barbara Dynes outlines 62 COMPETITION CALENDAR
of any company mentioned herein. All copyrights https://www.selectmagazines.co.uk/privacy-policy four essential ingredients for a Helen M Walters speaks to
and trademarks are recognised. Every effort has Registered in England. Registered Number successful opener the Exeter Prize team, plus
been made to identify the copyright holders of 5450559. Registered Office: Princecroft Willis 27 THE BUSINESS Becoming comp news and tips
images. Writers’ Forum cannot accept responsibility
for inaccuracies or complaints arising from
LLP, Towngate House, 2-8 Parkstone Road, Poole
BH15 2PW. A catalogue record for this magazine
a writer Don’t neglect your 65 SUBSCRIPTIONS
advertisements featured. is available British Library. ISSN 1467-2529 admin, says Kath Kilburn Get Writers’ Forum delivered
28 FLASH COMP direct to your door
For submissions, visit www.writers-forum.com/contact.html Our writing contest is FREE 66 WHERE I WRITE
We reserve the right to edit any article or letter received. to subscribers plus the £100 Phil Barrington visits novelist
Please note that Writers’ Forum does not carry book reviews. winner of last month’s comp Catherine Burns in Manchester

Writers’FORUM #202 3
 РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS

newsFRONT
HEADLINES

The latest in the world of books, the internet and publishing – written by you

Average author income

falls again Woman’s Weekly’s new owner starts all-rights grab

’money
’Authors are making less
than ever, according to
the latest income survey from the
Authors’ Licensing and Collecting
Society, which has found writers’
average earnings have dropped to
under £10,500 a year. This is a fall
of 15 per cent in real terms since
its last survey in 2013. The results
also show a growing gender gap,
with female authors earning
around 25 per cent less than men.
However the Publishers
Association has questioned
the validity of ALCS’ findings,
which it says do not ‘reflect the
investments publishers are making
in fostering creative talent’.
The ALCS and the Society of
Authors have hit back in an open
letter to the industry, pointing
out that publishers’ profits
and shareholder payouts are
increasing but authors’ total share
of turnover is only three per cent,
and that the downward trend in
earnings is ‘incontrovertible’.
The managing director of
publisher Profile Books, Andrew
Franklin, said: ‘The rewards are
distributed increasingly unfairly
and of course it should change.
The best thing publishers can do
is make the pie bigger.’
’fees’News has been trickling out of changes to freelance fiction writing
and contracts at Woman’s Weekly. There has, at the time of
writing, been no official announcement of the changes, but recently
payment for new writers has been reduced from £150 to £100. Also
crucially, the magazine’s publisher intends in future to purchase
stories on an ‘all rights’ basis – which means all rights must be
surrendered to the company, including copyright and moral rights.
This leaves the writer with no entitlement to re-use their story
(in an anthology, a competition, another magazine…) even after a
period of exclusivity, and also no right to be credited as the author.
This represents a considerable potential reduction in earnings to
short story writers and no further payment has been offered to cover
this loss. While short story writers have been assured they can still claim an annual payment from the
Authors’ Licensing and Collecting Society (ALCS), the new rules will negatively impact Public Lending
Right (PLR) income for serial writers who currently have their magazine serials converted into large-
print books, as PLR is calculated from public library loans.
A representative of Woman’s Weekly was unable to comment on the changes, but disgruntled writers
have been voluble on social media about their concerns. A standard email response to those writers
who contacted the company briefly explained that acquiring all rights is standard company policy for
commissioned work and that the move puts fiction writers on a similar footing to photographers.
However, fiction authors argue that stories are not, in fact, commissioned; they’re written and
submitted on spec, meaning each work has to be completed without the security of a certain sale.
Moreover, each story has to be unique, whereas a similar photograph can be sold again, just as research
for a non-fiction piece can be re-modelled from a new angle and re-submitted elsewhere.
These announcements come after a difficult few months at the magazine, during which, among other
changes, the timing of payment for stories was moved to ‘on publication’, so that story writers now
routinely wait several months to be paid for work accepted but not yet used. The publisher, formerly
known as IPC, was sold to US media giant Time Warner in 2011, became subsidiary Time Inc UK in 2014
and was sold on to a private equity firm earlier this year. The magazine group is now called Ti Media.
In a show of support for the writers affected, the Society of Authors’ Head of Communications,
Martin Reed, said that ‘in broad terms, we don’t advise authors to give up all rights’. He added that a
number of members had been in touch to air their concerns and that the organisation’s CEO, Nicola
Solomon, would be writing to Woman’s Weekly/Ti Media’s senior management shortly.
If you are affected by these changes, please take a look at recent posts on https://womagwriter.
blogspot.com for more information and advice. Kath Kilburn

Pirate site pops up famous authors, who could be Open call for authors including LGBTQ+ writers,
even more affected by the loss of BAME, those from working-class

’anger
’Authors have reacted with
and threats to a website
offering free pdfs of books on
request. We won’t name the site
as we don’t want to give the idiots
running it any more publicity, but
it offers users free downloads of
a huge number of books, including
entire catalogues of bestselling
authors such as Philip Pullman and
Jacqueline Wilson, and also of less
revenue.
As publishers scramble to
get the three-month-old site
shut down with legal action, the
owners remain defiant, telling
The Bookseller they are providing
a service rather than stealing
livelihoods. The site had been
promoted on Twitter, but the
feed has now been taken down
following complaints.
’Higham
’Literary agency David
Associates is to host
an open day for writers from
‘under-represented’ backgrounds.
The day will offer 10 authors the
opportunity to meet experts and
to receive tailored feedback.
The agency is welcoming
applications from unagented
writers living in the UK from
under-represented backgrounds
backgrounds and from ethnic,
cultural and religious minorities,
along with people with disabilities.
A bursary for travel expenses will
be available for each writer.
The inaugural DHA Open
Day will take place in London on
Thursday 13 December 2018,
at the agency’s offices in Soho,
and will focus on fiction-writing
for adults. It will also feature

4 Writers’FORUM #202
 РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS

talks and Q&As with agents and

publishers, one-to-one sessions
to provide feedback on current
writing projects and a drinks
reception. A second Open Day
will take place in 2019 and will
focus on writing for children.
Applicants should apply via the
form at davidhigham.co.uk before
the deadline on 17 September.
Horror rises from grave
Birthday honours for authors
’wasTheknighted
Remains of the Day author Kazuo Ishiguro
in the Queen’s Birthday Honours
list. The Japanese-born novelist, who won the
Nobel Prize for Literature last year, said he was
‘touched to receive this honour from the nation
that welcomed me as a small foreign boy’.
Also knighted in the list was Tim Waterstone
– founder of the eponymous bookshop chain
– for services to bookselling and charity, while
Mary Beard (pictured) was given a damehood for
services to the study of classical civilisation.
There were honours too for authors Jeanette

’stories
Sales of horror and ghost
are surging, up by a third
so far this year on last year’s
four-year high. Agents and editors
are also seeing an increase in
submissions in the genre.
Industry experts says the
recent success of horror films
such as Stephen King’s It and
Netflix’s Stranger Things TV show
have helped, as has a ‘blurring of
genre lines’ from literary fiction,
citing Andrew Michael Hurley’s
debut The Loney. The boom is
also being seen as a response to
‘scary’ current affairs.
Distressed mother
gatecrashes book launch
Winterson and Ken Follett, Bloomsbury Publishing co-founder Liz Calder and outgoing British Library
Chief Librarian Caroline Brazier, who were all made CBEs, while poet and author Kate Clanchy
received an MBE for services to literature and education. Sam Todd
Murder in Brisbane on 12 June, is a betrayal of the patients, commissioning new work and
the distressed mother of one victims and their families, and if offering classroom-based and
of the murder victims featured corrupt conduct was involved in online courses. The centre is
interrupted. ‘You should’ve the publication of the book. backed by patrons including
contacted me,’ she shouted. ‘You Glynis Scrivens Margaret Atwood, JM Coetzee,
didn’t tell me what my daughter’s Elif Shafak and Ali Smith.
dying words were.’
The mother had learnt the final
details of what had happened Writing centre opens
to her daughter only from the No jetting off for Jilly
book, some eight years after the
’ Writers’ Centre Norwich has
murder. The audience at Avid
Reader Bookshop walked out
transformed into the National
Centre for Writing, following a ’hasBestselling author Jilly Cooper
revealed she hasn’t holidayed
after hearing this. £2m extension and restoration of abroad for over 20 years because
Killer Instinct showcases 10 historic Dragon Hall in Norwich. she has never been able to face
murder cases where Dr Grant The centre aims to ‘explore leaving her pet pooch behind.
interviewed the murderer in his the artistic and social power Cooper is known for her love of

’Donald
When forensic psychiatrist
Grant launched his book
Killer Instinct: Having a Mind to
role as expert witness.
The Queensland government
is investigating whether the book
of creative writing and support
the creation and enjoyment of
world literature’, curating and
animals and rescue greyhound
Bluebell features in her latest
novel, Mount. Wendy Green

ps
and flash com
y, poetry

ODD SPOT BY HUGH SCOTT

mous stor
world-fa
Hugh Scott is a Whitbread-winning author. He writes and illustrates for The Park Free Press

0 in our
win £75

Send us your news

iT
Sell
e To
wher
e

e
To wriT

DenC
whAT
e
To wriT
how

ConFi sters
and the best item Boo
G

each month wins a

WRITIN
GROUPS
to
eN’S where ort
ChIldRSeRIeS find supproad
BOOK on the ion
and Quick to pub
licat

year’s subscription
Authorducer s
tv pro er project
writing
Cas Lesther help you
shares se that will one
experti r the big
conque nt
viewpoi

’theseWepages,
right
sing the
0
#191 sep

s
Choo ket new try
0000

Skill s and mar poe

want short news items for

exercisenon-fiction and
33
2017 •

kshops, the top

th wor better fiction,
6168

Tips from of sagas

every mon
£3.95

write s
65

you tool queen colour

to help Pow er
cuts
why
Fuller
short
ton
cters
Jean
Advancedrs using her chara
too late? codes
Am i res for autho word

either researched directly

r reassu
the Mento ed he’s Microsoft
r worri
a write to be interesting
too old

by you or sourced from press releases or

publications and rewritten for us. In return
you’ll get a byline and the best item each month wins a
free subscription. This month’s winner is Sam Todd.
Items should be under 200 words – the snappier the better.
You can attach a good quality photo and please make sure stories
about events are submitted in time. Importantly, you must be able
to prove your story is true and where you found it. Writers’ Forum
may edit any items submitted and if a story is covered by more
than one writer we’ll choose the best version.
Please send items to news@writers-forum.com You can cover
any topic that will be useful, interesting or amusing to
writers. The subject should be big enough to appeal to a national/
global readership although local news might still inspire or
entertain writers in other regions. Get writing and good luck!
Derek decided that his new software wasn’t very user-friendly.

Writers’FORUM #202 5
 РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS
HOW I WRITE
Never too late
Peter Perrin tells Douglas McPherson how he got
published in his 70s with a tale of late life love
P
eter Perrin was lucky enough to
have his first novel accepted by the
first publisher he sent it to – and
he’s the first to acknowledge the
element of luck involved.
His novel Grace’s Turmoil proved the
perfect fit for a rising trend for seasoned
romance and second chance romance that
focus on older characters finding love.
‘Purists say “second chance” is a
romance with someone you were with
before, or should have been with before,’
Peter explains, ‘whereas “seasoned
romance” is simply about older people.
‘The sad thing is that people are
writing so-called seasoned romance
about characters in their 30s and 40s,’
continues the writer, whose book is about
a semi-retired artist and a retired air force
commodore. ‘What does that make mine?
Seasoned-plus-plus-plus?
‘People have said, come on, your hero
is 71, it’s not going to happen. But a friend
of mine recently got married at 90 and his
wife is 84. So truth is stranger than fiction.’
Perrin had no idea ‘seasoned’ was in
fashion when he began Grace’s Turmoil. In
fact, he hadn’t read a single romance novel.
‘I’ve read quite a few since, and used
Nora Roberts as a guide, because she’s
great on characters and carrying characters
through from one book to another. But
most of my reading is action and thrillers,
so I’m used to a very punchy style. Mine
is not long drawn-out eloquence. It’s very
sharp, precise and to the point.’
Having written some poetry and stories
for his children when they were young,
the retired Post Office manager and former
RAF sergeant was only inspired to write a
novel after his 14-year-old granddaughter
self-published two books via Amazon.
‘I thought, if she’s not too young to
write, then maybe I’m not too old to write
at 69. I thought it would be nice to write
something positive about older people
and came up with the idea of a romance to
show that they’re not just sitting around
waiting for the Grim Reaper.
‘I wanted a situation where the main
characters have been through the mill.
They’ve all been widowed or divorced
and picked up a lot of baggage that makes
6 Writers’FORUM #202
them a bit like Grace is: very wary of going
down that road again. But they manage to
conquer it and get through.’
As to the setting…
‘I decided that if I had a group of the
same age range in one place then I’d have
a good pool of characters to work with,
and the potential for sequels. I originally
thought of a care home, but when I
discussed it with my writing group they
were very scathing. A woman who worked
in a care home said the environment is so
strictly controlled and secure and so full of
medication that there wouldn’t be a story.
‘So I came up with a retirement village
where they pay anything up to a million
pounds to live in almost five-star hotel
splendour. I visited one with my wife and
I was initially a bit unsure. I thought, these
people look extremely well-off, I don’t
move in their circles and I wouldn’t know
what they do for a social life. But I decided
to give it a try.’
Peter had no idea how to go about
writing a book. He says: ‘I sat down and
basically wrote conversations. I’m very
much character-driven, rather than plot-
driven, so I wrote a few chapters and
shared them with a wonderful Yahoo
group called Rom Critters. What I got from
them was there was no narrative. So I had
to develop some kind of plot.
‘I basically wrote what came into my
head and eventually tied it all up, but
there was no overall plan, which is
probably why it took me two years to get
myself properly into the book and another
two years to write it. A lot of time and
material was wasted because I wrote a lot
of stuff that I realised in a later chapter just
wouldn’t work, so I had to throw it away.’
Currently working on the second book of
a series set in the same retirement village,
Perrin says: ‘This time I want to do things a
little bit differently. I don’t think I’m a born
plotter, but I do think I need an outline.’
What he does plan thoroughly is his
characters – something particularly
important in seasoned romances, where
players have lengthy back stories.
‘For each of the main characters I have
two documents. One is their profile from
when they were born: their childhood,
upbringing, good and bad things that have
happened in their life that might be an
opportunity for a plot point or cause some
conflict with their partner-to-be.
‘The second document is a question and
answer interview with the character: What
are your strengths? How do you dress? What
do people like about you?’
Perrin used star signs as a guide to
personality. Grace, for example, is a Pisces.
‘She wears her heart on her sleeve
and can be easily hurt. She goes into the
Grange determined that she’s going to
have nothing to do with men.
‘Alfred is an Aries, which fits in with
being a leader and senior officer. He’s a real
chauvinist who goes there because it has
a great selection of women and he intends
to play the field. Of course, that all changes
when he sees Grace.
‘Then I think, if I put these two people
together, what would their conflicts be?
In what ways would they get on or not get
on? What might be a major problem that
needs to be resolved?’
Perrin admits there’s a little of himself
in his hero Alfred – or there was to begin
with, anyway.
‘He was originally going to be a sergeant
like I was, but he got promoted to air
commodore, one of the top four ranks, and
that set in my mind how he would behave.
‘My characters aren’t based on particular
people but you don’t get to be 70-odd
without getting people’s lifestyles, attitudes
and anecdotes stuck in your brain, so I
expect quite a bit comes out subconsciously
from people I’ve met. There’s a scene
at a community centre dance based on
something that happened at a matinee
dance my wife and I go to.’
As he wrote, Perrin posted his chapters
for the Rom Critters to critique, and took
their advice on board as he went along.
‘I was very lucky in that I latched on
early to one person in the States who was
willing to work with me and followed the
whole book through to the end,’ he says.
It was from another of the Rom Critters,
who had already been published by them,
that he got the idea of sending his novel
to Canadian romance specialists Devine
Destinies. They replied to his email
 РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS

submission within 24 hours – although it a meet-the-author session.

turned out that his work on the book was ‘Local radio has been
far from finished. brilliant. I’ve done two
‘They said the chapters were way too interviews with them.
long, at about 6000 words. There were One was not so much
13 chapters in total, and they said the book about the book as what
needed to be about half that.’ an older person could get
The publisher also wanted him to make out of writing: the sense
the character viewpoints more consistent. of purpose and how the
‘The biggest problem was that the only research helps to keep your
person I read to find out how you write brain sharp.’
romance books was Nora Roberts. She His biggest tip?
does a lot of head-hopping. She chops ‘Believe in yourself. Just
and changes viewpoint all the time and go for it, and once you’ve
as a result I was all over the place. They done it, hawk it around and
slapped my wrists and now I try to try to get it published. You
write most of a chapter from one main might be lucky like me and get
character’s POV and in the next switch to a publisher first time.’
another. If that’s not convenient, I put in
a break before changing point of view.’ • Grace’s Turmoil is
As to why Roberts is allowed to published by Devine
head-hop but Perrin wasn’t… Destinies
‘People say Nora Roberts is famous
enough that she can get away
with it. I’ve a sneaking
suspicion that she wrote
like that from Day
One, so how did she
get published in
the first place? But
hey, I wanted to
get published, so I
was prepared to be
flexible!’
After much
re-writing and
having his work
re-critiqued by
the Rom Critters,
Grace’s Turmoil was
finally published
in ebook and
paperback,
since when
Peter has been
throwing
himself into
promotion.
Having
established
contacts with
other writers,
he says, ‘I
think I was
on 13 blogs in
16 days. I’ve
been in my
local paper,
the Swindon
Advertiser,
twice and I’ve
just arranged
with my local
library to do

READER LETTERS
Writers CIRCLE
Your news and views, writing tips and funny stories
MOVE ON!
I read the letter from Neil Follett
(issue #201), who was unhappy
about editors ignoring pitches,
with interest and disbelief. I think
Neil needs to develop a thicker
skin and a professional attitude.
I’ve lost count of the amount of
ideas I’ve sent out and never had
a reply to. Do I take it personally?
No, I do not. A professional
writer can’t afford to. In any case,
the fact you’ve received no reply,
despite a follow-up email, gives
you your answer. Your pitch just
wasn’t suitable.
My advice to Neil is to keep
reading the magazines he wants
to be published in and hone
his pitching skills to improve
his chances. Editors don’t have
time to cater for the whims of
potential contributions.
Send out lots of pitches and
don’t wait around for those
replies. Move on!
Julie Phillips,
Telford, Shrops
PEN PAL
I agree with all Kath
PRIZE Kilburn’s tips for
LETTER keeping yourself
healthy working from
home (issue #201 July) but if
you’re a dog-owner like me,
most of that’s a given.
A daily walk of around an
hour and a half with my spaniel
Bonnie gives me a break from the
computer, fresh air and exercise,
and there’s usually someone who
wants to chat along the way – so
that’s company sorted, too.
If you don’t have a dog but
would like to ‘borrow’ one, the
Cinnamon Trust is always looking
for volunteer dog walkers to
help those who are too infirm
8 Writers’FORUM #202
РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS
BECOMING A WRITER
Kath Kilburn looks at how to keep yourself healthy when working at home
A
re you sitting
comfortably? Then
I’ll… Oh, wait a
minute, though.
You’re a writer, so the chances
of you sitting comfortably
are minimal. You’re probably
hunched over a laptop perched
on your knee. Or, like me, you
might be trying to peer through
varifocal lenses and straining
your eyes in the process?
Maybe you’ve been typing for
hours, causing nerve damage
to your wrist – carpal tunnel
to walk their beloved pets, and
there’s also a website called
BorrowMyDoggy.com that
matches owners and people
who’d like to fill the gap in their
lives by taking a dog out.
Helen Yendall,
Blockley, Glos
BURN OUT
Having been a software
developer, I experienced Kath
Kilburn’s list of writers’ health
risks first hand. She says you
‘can’t just allow yourself a day
on the sofa’. But if you can’t take
an unplanned day off, you need
to try and manage your time
differently. When negotiating
deadlines, allow for slippage
due to sickness and domestic
emergencies, and set personal
deadlines ahead of those agreed
with editors.
Careful self-management is
vital to self-employment: Adam
Smith noted that self-employed
carpenters burned out after a
few years and burnout is still
a hazard for the self-employed.
Make an effort not to become
a recluse. Exercise that involves
interacting with others (not the
solitude of the gym) meets two
goals at once. The self-employed
must avoid burning out while
wearing a hair shirt.
Alex Kashko,
Edinburgh
RESCUE REMEDY
I’ve been a subscriber for a year
since my retirement. When issue
#200 June arrived, I finally felt
ready to stop procrastinating and
seized the magazine with resolve.
The first article, an interview
with Sarah Painter, pushed all the
right buttons. Inspired, I ordered
her first book, signed up for her
newsletter and looked at her
latest novel, Beneath the Water,
set on the remote Scottish coast.
Imagine the serendipity when
I found the setting is the village I
live in! Apart from enjoying the
story, I’m having fun trying to
identify the various parts of the
THE BUSINESS
cycles. ‘The ideal solution.’
Don’t feel discouraged,
though, if you can’t match
Jaimie’s fantastic dedication
to being a healthy writer.
The important thing is to do
something. Walking to the
library to research your subject;
jogging to the cafe to fetch
yourself a coffee – it’s all good.
Author of the fabulous A
Bad Winter
Winter, Samantha Priestley
makes sure she starts her day
with a stroll.
‘I started doing a daily walk
mostly to get me out of the
village, and, yes, I’m nearly sure
my house is in it.
And am I writing at last? Yes!
Ann Lamont, Arisaig,
Inverness-shire
WIDE LOAD
Della Galton’s reply to Vaun
Evans (issue #200) about his
novel stalling at 45,000 words
reminded me of one I struggled
with: a good tale but it ran out
at 53,000 words. I added more
plot – what really amounted to a
second story – to expand it but
have never really been satisfied it
was the right thing to do.
So I no longer look to lengthen
the plot, I look at widening it.
Boy meets girl, boy loses girl,
boy wins girl is all very well, but
make one a rugby player and
the other a librarian and there
is more opportunity for clashes.
Make the boy religious and the
girl not, because of the death of
her mother, and there is another
conflict to resolve. Make the boy
a cat lover and the girl allergic

WIN A YEAR’S SUBSCRIPTION!
The writer of the prize letter each month will win
a year’s subscription to the magazine. Please make
sure that you include your full name and address in
your email. Write to letters@writers-forum.com
and it becomes almost impossible
to sort it all out in a few words.
Every time you broaden the
scope, it automatically adds
words.
Sullatober Dalton,
Faringdon, Oxon
DARN THREADS
Despite favourable reviews of the
preliminary stabs at my novel,
its development was obstructed
by various crises in the family,
including illness. After Mum
died a few months ago, I was
determined to get back into the
book. But I was nervous. It wasn’t
writer’s block but a fear that I
had lost the book’s voice.
With extraordinary timing, out
came the June issue of Writers’
Forum, with the lead coverline
‘How to Keep Going’ and, better
still, a secondary one of ‘Restart
after a Break from your Book’.
Now if that wasn’t a sign to have
a proper crack at the novel, I
don’t know what would be.
Della Galton’s advice to read
the whole thing through again – in
one sitting – led to a fundamental
and painful revelation. I had shoe-
horned in a character who did
not bring anything to the story.
He is a lovely man, the chapters
are well-constructed and, oh, I
am pleased with the evocative
passages about his childhood –
but he simply isn’t needed.
Gulp! If I took him out, my
hard-earned wordcount of
76,000 words would be slashed
to around 65,000. After an hour
of browbeating, yoga breathing
and a large gin, I reasoned it’s
better to lose those words now
than a reader in the future.
And all is not lost. Jack can
come back in another time
and another place. Or perhaps
РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS
another character can take over
the house that Jack built.
Either way, I am writing daily,
and that is what I call progress.
Jo Scott,
Broadstairs, Kent
HELP IS AT HAND
Kath Kilburn’s advice in issue
#199 about professional
development made me think
about the amazing progress
I’ve made as a writer by doing
pretty much what she suggested.
Starting out as a writer, living
on the Isle of Man seemed a bit
isolating. The local college offered
an A level in Creative Writing but
I couldn’t afford the time or fees.
I knew there were writers on
the island and I’d read many of
their books but I had no idea how
to contact them. Besides, even if
there was a writers’ group, why
would they want me?
In 2016 I discovered the Manx
LitFest, which featured talks by
‘real’ writers, including Martina
Cole, and practical events to help
writers. The 2017 festival was just
as good – the session with Chris
Ewan on place even produced
some material for my novel.
I bought a couple of books
on writing but then discovered
Writers’ Forum – a regular fix of
help and advice. Through your
pages I found the Write by the
Beach conference in Brighton.
All three of these writing
events have shown me how
supportive other writers are
None of this professional
development has cost me a lot,
but it has boosted my confidence
and helped me to feel less
isolated. I am a practical example
of Kath’s advice.
Jude Jackson,
Ballaugh, Isle of Man
JUST FOR FUN
Oh dear, it looks like Marlon James was having
a bad writing day. Can you spot the 20 errors in
this ‘first draft’ of A Brief History of Seven Killings?
Dead people never stop talking. May be because death is not
death at all, just a detention after school You know where your
going though you never seem to get there and you’re just dead.
Dead. It sounds final but its a word missing an ing. You come
across men longer dead than you, walking all the thyme though
heading no-where and you listen to them howl and hiss because
we’re all spirits or we think we are all spirits but we’re all just
dead, spirits that just slip inside other spirits. Sometimes a
women slips inside a man and whales like the memory of making
love, and little children think there’s an monster. The dead love
laying inside the living for three reason. (1) We’re lying most of
the time. (2) Under the bed looks like the top of a coffin, but (3)
There is weight, human wait on top that you can slip into and
make heavier, and you listen to the heart beat while you watch it
pump and hear the nostrils hiss when their lungs press air and
envy even the shortest breathe. I have no memory of coffins.
But the dad never stop talking and sometimes the living here.
This is what I wanted to say when you’re dead speech is nothing
but tangents and detours and there’s nothing to do but stray and
wander a while. Well that’s, what the other’s do. My point being
that the expired lean from the expired but that’s tricky.
Sent in by RS Pyne, from Ceredigion, who wins £25
commas than normal here. 11 three reasons (plural).
(typo). NB The author uses fewer dead love lying (wrong verb).
possessive). 20 expired learn from 9 there’s a monster (typo). 10 The
19 the others do (plural not (singular). 8 and wails (spelling).
18 Well, that’s (misplaced comma). (no hyphen). 7 Sometimes a woman
17 wander awhile (single word). (wrong word). 6 heading nowhere
to say. When (new sentence). word (apostrophe). 5 all the time
living hear (wrong word). 16 wanted you’re going (spelling). 4 but it’s a
14 the dead never (typo). 15 the 2 after school. (full stop). 3 where
13 breath (confusion with verb). 1 Maybe because (one word).
12 human weight (spelling). Corrections
£25
Could you ruin a passage from a modern novel? Send your
error-ridden First Draft (around 250 words), and the 20
solutions, to firstdraft@writers-forum.com Please note that entries
are accepted via email only. We pay £25 for the best published.
Writers’FORUM #202 9

FIRST STEPS
GET STARTED
Summer shorts
Douglas McPherson suggests an adventurous
approach to selling magazine fiction
Knock their
socks off
W
e all like to take
a break from our
daily routine.
Fiction editors
and women’s magazine readers
are no exception. So send them
a story this summer that takes
them somewhere different.
It could be an exotic foreign
locale, like the Bahamas, Dubai
or Switzerland, or somewhere
further off the beaten track,
like Antarctica, the Amazon
rainforest or the first tourist
trip into outer space.
Perhaps you could take
them on an outing to see what
goes on behind the scenes of
a sausage factory, a speedway
track or a fashion show. Or
10 Writers’FORUM #202
РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS
back in time to the recent or
distant past, or even back to
their youth.
Whatever you do, don’t
consign them to another
boring afternoon in someone’s
kitchen or anonymous office.
New style
There’s a prevalent belief that
the women’s mag market is a
hard nut to crack and that the
only way in is to slavishly read
the existing content and try to
replicate its formula.
The danger is that you are
likely to a) end up writing
something generic, half-hearted
and lacklustre, and b) bore
an editor who’s been reading
the same stuff week in, week
out when what they’re really
looking for from a new writer
is something original.
So this month I’m going to
suggest that you STOP reading
the magazines and just send
them the sort of stories that
you’d really like to write.
Is that reckless? Not when
People’s Friend fiction editor
Shirley Blair recently wrote on
her blog:
Try to identify what you don’t
see in the magazine. Try to
identify a period that hasn’t been
featured lately. Same with types
of story. Try to break the cycle and
offer us something that makes us
and our readers go “Ooh, this is
fresh and different!”’
Cut-offs
Of course, when editors say
they’re looking for something
different they mean within
certain parameters, which you
will have to abide by although
they are more about length and
tone than content.
Among the magazines
currently accepting unsolicited
submissions are People’s Friend,
Weekly News, Woman’s Weekly,
Ireland’s Own, In the Moment
and, further afield but open to
international contributors, Allas
(Sweden), You (South Africa)
and That’s Life! Fast Fiction
(Australia).
Each uses stories of very
specific lengths, such as 1200
or 2000 words, which you
must stick to. You can go a few
words over (up to 50 at most)
but never under, as it’s easier
for an editor to trim than pad.
Your first stop should
therefore be the guidelines
of your target magazine to
see what length stories they
require, along with their
submissions procedure. Some
accept email subs, others insist
on a paper manuscript by
post. They’ll also often include
some dos and don’ts on their
particular preferences.
If the guidelines aren’t on
the magazine’s website, you’ll
find them on the excellent
Womag Writer blog at www.
womagwriter.blogspot.co.uk
Apart from length, the
differences between the mags
 РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS

Forget what everyone else is writing

about. If it fires your imagination,
it’ll interest other people TAKE THE STEP
Lesson 1
The danger in
are mostly superficial and easy You, Ireland’s Own, Take a Break nothing much happens, or an trying to replicate
to adapt to where necessary. and That’s Life! Fast Fiction inconclusive anecdote. the formula of a
The Weekly News and Ireland’s without previous sight of the ■ A story needs a main
magazine’s existing
Own, for example, aren’t mags or altering my style, so character challenged by events
fiction is that you’re
exclusively aimed at women I’d say the markets are fairly and circumstances. They need
so they’re more open to stories interchangeable. a clear goal with obstacles to
likely to end up with
with a male main character. The reason is because all the overcome. Wondering how they something dully
The others occasionally run above markets want material will overcome their problems is formulaic, whereas
stories with a male lead if the of essentially the same tone, what keeps us reading. editors are crying out
story justifies it. which comes down to: ■ Engage the reader with your for stories that are
You, Ireland’s Own and That’s main character by sticking to fresh and different.
Life! Fast Fiction prefer stories ■ Stories suitable for family their point of view throughout.
that the readers can at least reading, so no explicit sex, ■ Make them likeable, so we’ll Lesson 2
imagine are set in their home violence or swearing root for them. Or, if they’re Every publication
countries, or that feature ■ Warm, uplifting tales with intentionally unpleasant, give wants stories of
characters from those places, a feel-good ending them a satisfying comeuppance.
lengths unique to its
but in many cases that will ■ No harsh, bleak, shocking or ■ Use dialogue as much as
own design, but they
mean changing little more depressing themes possible to show the character’s
than minor details, such as ■ Stories that promote thoughts rather than telling us all want uplifting,
pounds to euros or dollars and traditional family values and what they’re thinking. It makes feel-good fiction that
avoiding unsuitable weather morals livelier reading. steers away from
references for their climate. ■ Mainly stories from a female ■ Get into your story quickly, depressing themes.
And it’s only a general rule, character’s point of view. so we know immediately who
as I’ve sold You a story set in we’re reading about and what Lesson 3
Paris with a French heroine Fine tuning they’re up to. The secret of success
and one to That’s Life! Fast The other requirements are ■ Get out equally sharpish. As is writing stories that
Fiction set in America with an those of any commercial fiction: soon as the problem is solved match the required
American cast. or the happy ending achieved, wordcount and tone
■ Be sure to tell a story with bring the curtain down.
while bringing original
The right tone a definite beginning, middle
It’s probably worth noting here and end, as opposed to a Be yourself content the author is
that I’ve sold to In the Moment, character study in which Beyond those pointers, there excited about.
really is no limit on creativity.
Homework
From my own experience,
Pick one of the titles
TRICKS OF THE TRADE I’ve found the secret of selling
fiction to be the same as selling that accept unsolicited
Douglas shares writing tips he’s learned through experience articles. You have to fit in fiction and check out
with the mag’s format while the length of stories
#43 Start at the end bringing something uniquely require. Without
your own. trying to second guess
The end is the most important part of a story. It’s the big, emotional So if you have a passion the type of story they
(or comic, or thrilling) punch that everything else has just been setting for horses, aeroplanes, Spain,
want, write a feel-good
the readers up for. A hooky beginning may draw them in, but it’s the Westerns or the 1990s rave
ending that will leave your audience either satisfied or disappointed. scene, forget what everyone
tale using a setting
Because endings are so important, it’s a good idea to write your else is writing about and write that inspires you. Send
closing scene as early in the writing process as you feel confident a story around the things that it in and let us know
to do so. A good ending needs room to breathe. You never want to most inspire you. If it fires your how you get on.
think, ‘I’ve only got 200 words left to wrap this up.’ That will result in a imagination, it’ll interest other
rushed and unsatisfying ending. It’s better to write your closing scene people. More importantly, • Start Writing
without wordcount pressure. Let it flow naturally and give it as many you’ll write with an energy Today by
words as it needs. It will be easier to shorten any less consequential that will shine through your Douglas
scenes earlier in the story. prose and keep your readers McPherson is
entertained to the end. available as
■ If you have a question about getting started as a writer, an ebook to
please email Douglas at gettingstarted@writers-forum.com Next issue download from
How to beat first page block. Amazon now

Writers’FORUM #202 11
 РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS

WEST CORK LITERARY FESTIVAL

WEST CORK LITERARY FESTIVAL
RK LITERARY FESTIVAL
Bantry, Co. Cork, Ireland
Friday 13 – Friday 20 July 2018
readings / workshops / seminars / children’s events

featuring

Zadie Smith • Bernard MacLaverty Available online at Amazon, Barnes & Noble,
Margaret Drabble • Philip Hoare • Louise O’Neill
and Google play “...give or take a pebble.”, “...
give or take a shilling.”, and
Sinead Morrissey • Nick Laird + Many More “...give or take a moment.” ( coming soon)

+353 (0)27 52788 / westcorkliteraryfestival.ie Readers can contact the author at

tthompa@verizon.net
Images, from left: Margaret Drabble, Philip Hoare, Zadie Smith Photos: Ruth Corney, Dennis Minsky, Dominique Nababkov
 РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS
Tales of my GURU
The mystery mentor explains a common writer’s misconception
A
waitress, carrying a chair by its
ears, approached my table. She
placed the chair opposite me.
‘For your friend,’ she said.
‘Another pot of coffee?’
‘Yes, please. Did he phone?’
‘No,’ she said wisely. ‘I just knew.’
And I nodded. Only my Guru could
convey information subliminally with
enough conviction to influence a busy
waitress.
‘Better bring some buns,’ I sighed; for
my Guru was no ordinary friend, but a
sort of esoteric layer of knowledge laid
down since the beginning of time, and
able to manifest as a person in order to
help amateur writers like myself, and able
also to consume buns and coffee by the
barrowload.
‘Okey dokey,’ said the waitress, and
toddled off.
I liked her already: the casual acceptance
of the inexplicable; the uninhibited wiggle
of her –
‘There you are,’ said my Guru. ‘And here
comes my coffee. And buns. How kind.’
He beamed at the waitress, and she
inclined her head politely but without
interest.
‘I sent her a text,’ he said, unwittingly
demolishing my fantasy.
‘All writers have fantasies,’ he continued,
as he poured coffee and squeezed a bun.
‘It’s how they make their living. But there
is one fantasy they should avoid.’ He
looked at me with his eye above the bun.
‘Tell me, then,’ I grumbled. ‘Jim Grunt?’
Jim Grunt was a prehistoric sort of bloke
in my writers’ group.
‘Mrs Halburton-Smythe.’
‘Oh.’
Mrs Halburton-Smythe – also in my
writers’ group – was in crisis with her
writing. She was insisting on perfecting
the first paragraph of her novel before
going on to the second.
‘I try to help,’ I said.
‘I understand,’ said my Guru. ‘Mrs
Halburton-Smythe is indulging in a
fantasy that many amateur writers get
caught up in.
‘Imagine,’ he continued, pressing the
bun into his mouth and selecting another,
‘a new artist, who has only just discovered
which end of a pencil to use, insisting on
replicating the Mona Lisa so that her copy
by Hugh Scott
Imagine a new
artist insisting on
replicating the
Mona Lisa
is indistinguishable from the original.’
‘OK.’
‘Or a musician, who thinks that a
trombone is for sucking, trying to –’
‘Yes, yes!’ I said. ‘The amateur who
wants to be a prodigy in one paragraph! I
get it! Fantasy! But what can I do about it?’
‘Perhaps nothing,’ admitted my Guru,
‘because some ladies (and men) simply will
not be told. But kindly suggestions aired
to everyone in your writers’ group –’
I was suddenly ahead of him.
‘You mean that I shouldn’t tell her
directly? Let her overhear – sort of thing
– so that she doesn’t realise that I am
referring to her work. Excellent idea! But
what do I say?’
I, too, ate a bun, in considerable
excitement.
As I chewed, my excitement faded. I
was trying to imagine addressing my
writers’ group in such a sly way that Mrs
Halburton-Smythe’s smug ears would be
unblocked sufficiently to let in new ideas.
But Mrs Halburton-Smythe, I knew, had
ears more thoroughly blocked than a drain
full of dripping.
I poured coffee slowly, hoping for
inspiration.
LIKELY STORIES
‘I could…’
My Guru licked icing from his third bun.
‘…or perhaps not,’ I admitted, because I
hadn’t actually thought of anything.
I sucked up coffee. Then I wondered if
I should try to overtake my Guru’s bun
consumption by eating faster. But I was
bun-full. Axiology came into my head. I
wondered what it meant.
‘What does axiology mean?’
‘It’s the study of essential things,’
said my Guru, and he tilted his glance
encouragingly.
‘If I gave a short talk about the axiology
of writing… the perfection that some
writers try to reach. I could invite
questions. What is perfection? How can
we know when we find it? That sort of
thing. Mrs Halburton-Smythe might just
respond.
‘If we believe,’ I lectured my Guru, ‘that
we have written perfectly for the first half
of a story – not the first paragraph; she
would know I was talking about her – how
could we be sure of that perfection if the
story is unfinished? The first half might not
fit the second half And we can’t know that
until the story is finished. Hmm,’ I said.
‘And!’ I said, my excitement rising. ‘Who
is to decide what is perfect? Is there a
Committee of Perfection who can judge?
Or does the writer judge? How can the
writer judge perfection if she – he – is a
beginner? By gum!’ I cried quietly. ‘That
might just work! What do you think?’
But my Guru was gone, along with the
last bun.
But I didn’t mind. He had played his
favourite trick: he had made me work it out
for myself And it was time, now, perhaps,
for me to unbung Mrs Halburton-Smythe’s
drain full of dripping.
Use it or lose it
‘Axiology’ is the study of essential things. Oh.
My Guru has already told you.
The early adventures
of me and my Guru are
published in a super-
beautiful hardback, Likely
Stories, published by How
Stories
To Books for less than a
tenner – that’s the price of
five coffees. Treat yourself.
Writers’FORUM #202 13
 РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS
MOTIVATION
MAKE YOURSELF
UNTOUCHABLE
Sarah Davies explains how she’s managed to break all contact with the
world while writing, and shows how you can do it too
W
hat, be uncontactable? For a
whole day? Every week? Oh,
I couldn’t possibly!’ Such has
been the reaction of many
people this year when I tell them how I’ve
started isolating myself from the world
while writing.
It all began when I read Neil Pasricha’s
article ‘Why you need an untouchable
day every week’, in the Harvard Business
Review. My immediate thought was: ‘I can
do that.’ Usually, like most people, I then
get on with real life and forget about ideas
like this, but for some reason this time I
picked up my diary and scheduled some
untouchable days.
In his article, Pasricha explained how
he plans his days 16 weeks ahead of time,
because his work schedule allows him to
do that. I keep a weather eye on my month,
but only schedule my untouchable day on
a Sunday when I’m planning my work for
the following week.
And no, I don’t always schedule a whole
day because sometimes I don’t have a
whole day to spare (and there’s a whole
other discussion there about needs, wants
and choices).
For many reading this, writing might
be the thing you fit in between a regular
job and your family. You might only have
a few precious hours a week. So why not
make them untouchable and keep them
that way?
What if ‘stuff’ comes up?
In real life things do often come up at the
last minute that simply can’t be missed
or rescheduled. You can move your
untouchable time if you have to, but you
must fit it in the same week.
Untouchable days or times are not
about luxury, they are about committing
to showing up and putting in the hours so
that you achieve your writing goals. Make
it clear to yourself and your family and
14 Writers’FORUM #202
I’ve upped my
productivity and the
quality of my work …
I really get into the
flow of the project
friends that this is work time and that as
soon as you’ve finished, they will get your
undivided attention.
How do I do it?
Scheduling the time is all very well, but it’s
really easy to look at that block of time and
think: ‘But instead I could…’
The bottom line is, if you’ve scheduled
an appointment in your diary, it’s a thing
that’s happening. Get into the mindset of
treating these appointments with yourself
just as seriously as you treat appointments
with anyone else and show up ready to
get the job done.
You don’t have to leave the house to do
your untouchable time – it depends on
your home circumstances. If it’s quiet and
you can resist turning on your phone and
the internet, then you’re probably going
to be fine. And don’t feel you need to sit
at your desk (if you have one). Move to a
different place – the kitchen or a sofa – and
see how that changes the experience.
If you choose to go out, choose your
spot wisely. Libraries are good as everyone
else has their head down working too.
Finding the perfect coffee shop or pub can
also be a good option, but you might need
to visit a few before you find the perfect
environment for you…
Other suggestions from established
writers include:
■■ Going out walking
■■ Taking a long bus ride
■■ Going on a train journey
■■ Sitting in the garden or local park.
But I can’t work without wi-fi!
Yes, you can. I was really struck by a few
people who said: ‘Wi‑fi is a must.’ Why?
I understand that as writers we need to do
research, but surely you can write some
research notes or just leave a highlighted
gap in your draft to remind you to go back
and check the facts when you do have
internet access?
Some writers download internet pages to
view offline when they’re on untouchable
time, but a lot – me included – write in
notebooks and type the work up later. It
might seem like making the whole process
overly long, but I write better quality
stuff if the first draft is done with pen
and paper. And you don’t have to carry a
heavy laptop around with you.
I know if my phone or computer is on,
I’m going to struggle not to look on social
media or just ‘quickly’ check my email.
I won’t lie, sometimes I have missed out
on potential work leads because I haven’t
responded to something the minute it
was posted. But those instances are the
exception not the rule. Whereas by giving
myself untouchable time, I’ve upped my
productivity and the quality of my work
because I’ve been unashamed to take the
time and really get into the flow of the
project in hand.
It’s a change of mindset
So often as writers we feel guilty about
actually doing it. It seems like an
indulgence and there are always mundane
house chores to do, ‘real’ work (if we still
have a day job), or commitments that we
convince ourselves are more important
than putting pen to paper.
Once we convince ourselves, though,
that we are real writers – with the rejection
slips and the novel in the bottom drawer
РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS

to prove it – we need to set ourselves our

untouchable time, whether that’s a whole
day or just an hour. And we need to show
up ready to write.

Stick at it
You may find you sit down and think, ‘I’m
not in the mood today’, but I encourage
you to stick at it, even if you have to start
writing a stream of consciousness piece
about how you really don’t have anything
to say today. Eventually you will get into
the flow.
If you can stand it, I’d really encourage
you to leave your computer at home if
you go out, or switched off if you’re at
home. And definitely switch your mobile
phone off.

What about emergencies?

Let’s face it, they hardly ever happen. If
you decide to work away from home, let
someone know where you are so that you
can be found. Otherwise, allow yourself
some time during the day when you do
switch on your devices. You’ll soon see
that most things can wait.

In conclusion
Untouchable days or chunks of time can
enable you to take your writing to a whole
new level by giving you the time to focus
on and produce more work. But you have
to be dedicated enough to:

■■ Make an appointment with yourself in

your diary.
■■ Make the decision to treat appointments
with yourself as seriously as you treat
appointments with anyone else.
■■ Do the preparatory work beforehand
so that you have everything you need to
make the best use of your untouchable
time.
■■ Show up to the appointment and work
hard (just like you would for any other
appointment).
■■ Follow up afterwards and fill in the
gaps in your writing, or research the ideas
you came up with during your session.

If you do all of these things, if you treat

yourself as you would any other client,
then you will find yourself getting more
done, getting more rejections (and more
commissions, because the more you pitch,
the more success you’ll get).
You’ll be working smarter and feeling
like you’re making headway in the world
of writing.
Finally, if you stick to your guns and
keep showing up, you could – like Pasricha
himself – find yourself scheduling not one
untouchable day a week but two!

Writers’FORUM #202 15
 РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS

Do you have a story to tell?

EDITORS WANTED
WHO WE ARE: Mortons Media Group is a long-established and highly respected
independent publishing company based in Horncastle,
Lincolnshire. We are looking for new non-fiction authors
to work with, whether they are recognised or unknown.
We publish 20-25 bookazines every year and we are
always on the lookout for new and exciting titles.

WHAT WE NEED:
A bookazine typically consists of
between 50,000 and 70,000 words and
200 to 300 images. So if there is a title
you already have or one that you would
like to work on, please get in touch to
see if we can work together.
Remittance is typically paid in full
as soon as the completed manuscript
and accompanying images have been
received and accepted for publication.
All existing and new authors are
welcome to visit our offices at any time
to meet our team. We are committed
to producing quality publications in a
range of different topics, including but
not limited to aviation, military history
and historic vehicles.

CONTACT: STEVEN O’HARA – SOHARA@MORTONS.CO.UK – 01507 529 535

 РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS
Got a question – or advice for one of these readers? Email help@writers-forum.com
Need advice on writing and publishing? Novelist
and short story writer Della Galton can help
Fruity scene shocked my writing group
Q I tend to get totally involved in
my characters when I’m writing.
I laugh, cry, swear, act out their
movements, everything. I drew on this
for one of my characters, a writer who
was writing a sexy scene and getting a
bit hot under the collar. But the other
members of my writing group were
stunned into silence when I read out the
passage. I hadn’t written graphic sex, or
anything approaching porn; touching on
the erotic I would accept. It was only a
couple of paragraphs and I don’t plan to
cut them out. But just what is acceptable?
Millie Vigor, Taunton
A I think what’s acceptable, as far as
erotic content goes, depends entirely
on your readership. Are your writing
group also your target readers? If so,
having read the extract you attached
with your letter, I wonder why they were
shocked. Maybe it’s simply that they aren’t
used to you reading out a piece that’s
‘closer to the edge’ than usual. I think we
also react differently to something in a
public forum than we would reading in
private at home.
I wouldn’t worry too much. You are
the author, and if you think what you’ve
written fits your novel, then keep it. You
might also want to seek advice from
your publisher or agent, as I see you have
several novels published already.
My agent, interestingly, thinks I can be
too reserved when writing scenes that
have an erotic slant. ‘Put it all in there,’ she
advised me when reading an early draft
of my current novel. ‘Don’t shy away from
love scenes if they are key to the plot.’ This
is also good advice.
Q I’m about to enter the Impress
novel competition. As well as the
opening chapters they’re asking for
other information. Most of the elements
are self-explanatory but they include a
‘rationale for publishing the book’. I
have a vague idea what this means
but Googling it I get many conflicting
answers. I’m a bit stumped.
Mary Phillips, via email
A The Impress Prize rules state that each
entry should be accompanied by the
following: author biography; synopsis/plot
summary; outline of market readership;
proposed length; rationale for publishing
the book. As you say, most of these are
self-explanatory, but just to clarify:
■ An author biography is written in
the third person. If you have any previous
publications, however small, you could
mention them. Eg: Mary works in the family
business, but writing is her passion. She has
been placed in several short story competitions
and this is her third completed novel.
■ A synopsis/plot summary means
a brief outline of your novel. A page of
single-line spacing (500 to 600 words) is
usual, written in the present tense.
■ Market readership refers to who you
think will read your book. Publishers often
like this to be in the context of a named
author. So you might say: I think my novel
will appeal to readers of Lee Child.
■ Proposed length – this is the length
you anticipate your novel will be. A first
novel is usually around 90,000 words.
■ I asked the Impress organisers exactly
what they meant by rationale and they
said: ‘What we are looking for are reasons
from the author for publication: why is the
book different, original, even unique? Why
will it appeal to a significant readership
and who will that readership be?’
Q I have completed a crime novel
(after multiple drafts) and I have
started sending it out to agents listed in
the Writers’ and Artists’ Yearbook. I have
had a number of replies, all rejections,
and whilst this was exciting at first I am
now starting to feel downhearted. What
else could I be doing? Should I create a
ADVICE PAGE
website and an online presence? I feel
that, without publication, I won’t have
much to put on my site!
Adam Peacock, South Shields
A I think almost every published author
would agree with you that trying to
get an agent is a disheartening process.
Rejections are part of the journey.
Have any of them offered you advice?
If they just say things like ‘my list is full’,
it’s not very helpful, but if they are more
specific and say things like, ‘I couldn’t
warm to the protagonist,’ then this might
be something to think about and work on.
If you are sending out a partial (three
chapters and a synopsis) does anyone ask
to see the rest? If they do, it means your
writing is good enough but the novel
maybe doesn’t live up to expectations. I’d
be inclined to get a second opinion from a
reputable critique agency, for example, The
Literary Consultancy or Hilary Johnson.
Are you a member of the Crime Writers’
Association (CWA)? Join and go to any
conventions on offer. This is a good way
to find out what kind of novels agents and
publishers in your field are looking for.
You could set up a website, but I’d be
more inclined to get a Twitter account or
Facebook page to begin with. Both are free
and not as time-intensive as writing posts
for a website. On Twitter you could follow
crime publishers and agents and crime
writers to start off with, for the purpose of
building up knowledge of the industry.
I hope this helps and I’m going to end
with the advice that was once given to me
by editor Linda O’Byrne: Don’t give up.
There is always a market for excellence.
• Della’s books on
writing, The Short
Story Writer’s
Toolshed and The
Novel Writer’s
Toolshed, are available
from Amazon
Writers’FORUM #202 17
 РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS
CHILDREN’S BOOKS
WRITING4CHILDREN
SCWBI SPECIAL Anita Loughrey, Membership Coordinator for the
Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators, highlights its benefits
T
he Society of Children’s Book
Writers and Illustrators or SCBWI
is a non-profit and volunteer-run
organisation that is purely about
serving members’ needs.
SCBWI is different to other children’s
writing groups and is a well-respected
global organisation. There are currently
over 1000 UK members who have
access to SCBWI people and events all
over the world. This provides a unique
and inspiring community of writers
and illustrators, with a vast array of
networking opportunities.
You join via the International website
scbwi.org and pay in dollars. Your details
are then forwarded to the British Isles and
your regional network.
Regional networks
The regional networks are tailored to
members’ needs at a local level. Having
regional networks brings the publishing
world out of London.
The network organisers are all
volunteers who consult members on what
they want, to provide a sense of belonging
with a community that lasts.
Cath Jones says:
‘There are local
SCBWI groups
scattered throughout
the UK and mine
meets not far from
where I live.
‘When I joined,
it was run by the wonderful author Jane
Clarke. She was so generous, sharing her
expertise and helping me to develop my
picture book texts. At one point I almost
gave up on my dream, but support from
the group kept me focused.
‘I have made some really wonderful,
talented friends. It’s worth being a member
of SCBWI for this alone.
‘I have also made lots of contacts
including Maverick editor Kim Nye. My
debut picture book, Bonkers About Beetroot,
was published by Maverick in October
2017. Bonkers tells the story of an optimistic
zebra who, accompanied by a pessimistic
18 Writers’FORUM #202
penguin, tries to save his safari park home
from closure by growing a giant beetroot,
with hilarious, unexpected consequences.
‘Last year was a bonkers year for me.
Since June 2017 I have had 11 books
published! It’s great finally being able to
say: “I’m an author.”’
Undiscovered Voices
The Undiscovered Voices competition runs
every two years and is for unpublished,
un-agented children’s book writers and
illustrators living in the EU. It is supported
by book packager Working Partners.
The aim is to put fresh, new voices in
front of agents, publishers and, ultimately,
readers. Winners of the 2017 competition
were launched in the Undiscovered
Voices anthology in February and the
competition will re-open for submissions
in July 2019.
Writers and illustrators included in
previous anthologies have received
publishing contracts for over 200 books.
These authors have been nominated for
and won an amazing array of literary
prizes, including the Carnegie Medal,
Waterstones Children’s Book Prize,
Branford Boase Award, Blue Peter Award,
the SCBWI Crystal Kite Award and
nearly 30 regional awards. See www.
undiscoveredvoices.com for the fantastic
success stories and details of how to enter.
Candy Gourlay
says: ‘I felt like I
was bashing my
head against a brick
wall, with frequent
near-misses and
kind, enthusiastic
rejections from
agents and editors alike. I needed
something to tip the odds in my favour.
‘Winning Undiscovered Voices did it
for me. It persuaded the agent who had
been mulling one of my “not quite there”
manuscripts to sign me, and we continue
to work well together eight years later.
‘Being able to say I was an Undiscovered
Voices winner also laid the foundation for
launching myself as a debut writer. I think
I would have eventually been published
even without it, but winning creates a
breakthrough moment in one’s career
which contributes to its sustainability.
So, thank you, UV.’
Is it a Mermaid? was published by Otter-
Barry Books in April 2018.
Golden Kite and Crystal Kite
Awards
SCBWI have their own highly respected
awards. Both the Golden Kite and
Crystal Kite Awards are for members
only. The Golden Kite Awards are the
only children’s literary award judged by
a jury of peers and recognise excellence
in children’s literature in five categories:
Young Reader and Middle Grade Fiction,
Young Adult Fiction, Nonfiction, Picture
Book Text and Picture Book Illustration.
The Crystal Kite is a peer-given award
to recognise great books from 15 SCBWI
regional divisions around the world.
Previous winners include Candy Gourlay,
Sara Grant, Dave Cousins and Teri Terry.
Teri Terry says:
‘I have been a
SCBWI member
since 2008. My
fourth book, Mind
Games, was the
winner for the
British Isles in 2015.
Having the recognition of your peers in a
regional award – and all at the amazing
SCBWI annual conference party and mass
book launch, among so much talent and so
many friends! – was a humbling
experience. There’s no doubt that an award
from an organisation as respected as the
SCBWI is around the world boosts your
profile, and it looks lovely on my shelf.
‘I’ve got so much from being a member
of SCBWI, from all the details in the early
stages such as how to prepare a synopsis
and submission, to the encouragement
that really is a lifeline through all the
rejections, to the contacts made.’
Deception was out in February 2018. It
follows Contagion as the second in the
Dark Matter trilogy.
 РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS
PICTURE BOOKS STORY BOOKS EASY READERS CHAPTER BOOKS MIDDLE GRADE YOUNG ADULT
EASY READERS CHAPTER BOOKS MIDDLE GRADE YOUNG ADULT PICTURE BOOKS STORY BOOKS
Slushpile Challenge
This competition runs four times a
year in the SCBWI British Isles online
magazine, Words and Pictures. It involves
commissioning editors and agents setting
a challenge for current SCBWI un-agented
members to enter. Each challenge is for a
different age range. The winner of each
challenge is put in touch with the agent or
editor who set and judged the competition
to arrange a 30-minute discussion, in
person, by Skype or on the phone.
Em Lynas says:
‘I met my agent
Amber Caraveo of
the Skylark Agency
through the
Slushpile Challenge.
She was looking for
“voice” and I had
one. Nosy Crow (Children’s Publisher of
the Year 2017) liked the voice too. They
offered a three-book deal and published
You Can’t Make Me Go to Witch School! in
August 2017.
‘It features Daisy Wart who has been
dumped at Toadspit Towers School for
Witches but she is definitely not a witch.
She is a Shakespearean actress and she is
ac-chew-ally starring in a tragedy!’
SCBWI Conference
The SCBWI Conference takes place in
Winchester each November.
Sue Wallman
says: ‘Winning a
manuscript critique
with the editorial
director at Penguin
Random House was
a big part of how I
got published. I was
at the SCBWI Conference and there were
lots of raffle prizes, most of them critiques
from different editors and agents. You
could choose which envelope to put your
tickets into and I shovelled lots into
Natalie Doherty’s envelope. I really
wanted to win that critique.
‘Lying About Last Summer was my fifth
attempt at a young adult novel. I’d written
and re-written it and thought it was ready,
but I knew it had to be as good as it could
possibly be. Of course, I secretly wanted
Natalie to read my manuscript and say
it was the best thing she’d ever read and
offer me a book deal. She didn’t, but she
emailed me a list of incredibly useful
comments.
‘Among other things she suggested
making two characters sisters rather than
cousins in order to intensify the grief in
the story, adding flashbacks to show the
bond between characters, and changing my
first chapter to something more dramatic.
‘I knuckled down and re-worked the
book yet again. A couple of months later, I
had a two-book deal with Scholastic.
‘Before I joined SCBWI I had no idea I
would learn so much about the craft of
writing or that I’d make such great friends.
The year after I was published, I teamed
up with four other SCBWI debut authors,
Olivia Levez, Patrice Lawrence, Kathryn
Evans and Eugene Lambert, to tour
various bookshops around the country. I
will always be grateful to them for their
comradery and support.
‘My second book, See How They Lie,
was published in February 2017 and the
third, Your Turn to Die, also published by
Scholastic UK, came out in May 2018.’
Agents’ Party
The Agents’ Party is a members-only event
where attendees can meet top children’s
literary and illustrators’ agents who are
actively expanding their lists. The agents
talk on a panel about what books excite
them, what they’re looking for and their
submission process.
Peter Bunzl
says: ‘The biggest
thing was meeting
my agent Jo
Williamson at the
Agents’ Party. The
event is a chance for
unrepresented
writers to go and hear children’s agents
speak and to meet them informally.
Afterwards I sent Jo my book and three
months later she asked to represent me.
‘Since being a member of SCBWI I
have discovered what children’s agents
are looking for and how to approach
them. I’ve also learned what’s involved in
being a successful author, how to create
a public persona through web presence,
performing at festivals and doing school
events.
‘Moonlocket came out in May 2017 with
Usborne Books. It’s the sequel to my
Waterstones-nominated debut Cogheart.’
Summing up
All of these factors help to make SCBWI
stand head and shoulders above other
organisations. SCBWI is not a critique
service charging for each stage of a book’s
development; as you can see, SCBWI offers
so much more.
■ www.britishisles.scbwi.org
■ Twitter: #SCBWIchat
● or follow @SCBWI_BI
● or @SCBWI_illustrat
● or @Words8Pictures
■ Facebook: @SCBWIBritishIsles
• To find out more about Anita’s books, visit
www.anitaloughrey.com
Writers’FORUM #202 19
 РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS

FREELANCE MARKETS

THE MAGAZINE SCENE

Adam Carpenter gives a round-up of launches, trends and other magazine news

THE FINAL FRONTIER…

Air & Space magazine is a bi-monthly title from the Smithsonian’s
National Air and Space Museum in Washington DC.

■ The magazine’s goal is to show readers, whether expert or

enthusiastic beginner, new aspects on the enterprise of flight. The
emphasis is on the human rather than the technological, eg the ideas
behind events or emotional accounts from those involved.
■ A good section to aim for is Above & Beyond, a ghostwritten,
first-person narrative of an adventure in air or space, with an ‘I was
there’ flavour. Meanwhile, Flights & Fancy is a shorter recollection with
a whimsical feel that should leave the reader ‘chuckling quietly’. The
tone varies each issue, from purely nostalgic to cheeky and satirical.
■ Start by sending a proposal, which should explain what your article
will bring to the topic that other authors have not reported. Include
details of sources and interview subjects as well as images.

Recent coverlines: How combat made the A-1 better; This CEO’s
vision: 1000 workers in space; Meeting at the face of the sun
Celebrate our
achievements
Visit: www.airspacemag.com in air and space

AMAZING WOMEN WANTED

Monthly glossy Woman & Home has been around for decades and

MARKET NEWS
claims to have been the first title of its kind to embrace ‘a brand
new attitude’ for women over 35. Here’s how to make an approach:

■ This is a place for positive stories, particularly in relation to age,
as emphasised by the ‘50 over 50’ Amazing Women Awards. Editor
Kath Brown says: ‘We discover awesome ladies working in their local
communities, setting up successful businesses and generally holding up
the world. We think they all deserve awards, actually.’ If you know a
woman who fits this mould, you may have a good story on your hands.
■ The target reader is trendy and wants to travel the world, so they
welcome inspirational stories of women who have achieved this in
some interesting way. The reader, says Kath Brown, ‘loves to read
features about inspiring women who are achieving great things.’
■ The team are always on the lookout for real-life stories that get
to grips with interesting and relevant health issues, including those
affecting children or partners. Food, interiors and books are also
important, so ideas or interviews in these areas are worth pitching.
■ Kath Brown says: ‘Our women have cash to spend, but want
advice on spending it wisely. They have no problem shopping in Aldi
for the award-winning champagne but are also quite happy to splash
out on an amazing holiday in Vietnam if we say it’s brilliant.’
Recent coverlines: Yes, you can afford a holiday home; Grown up
festival guide – great loos, posh food and people like you; You and your
adult kids – shopping, sharing and sex under the same roof.
Visit: www.womanandhome.com
When is a magazine not a magazine? When it’s a ‘marketing
communication exercise’, according to Facebook. The social
network recently brought out print publication Grow but insists it’s
not a magazine, even though it says it’s ‘a quarterly magazine for
business leaders’ on the cover. Its ethos is to ‘grow businesses,
networks and perspectives by shining a light on people, companies
and trends that are challenging the status quo.’ The print version
replicates content found on its ‘Grow by Facebook’ page for
high-end businesspeople too busy to read unless travelling. It will be
distributed in exclusive locations such as executive airport lounges.
Commentators have suggested that Facebook doesn’t want to be
known as a publisher because that would mean it would be legally
responsible for the content published on its website.
We regularly cite the importance of including quality photos
in your pitches as they can really sell stories. More often than
not these days, editors are finding photos taken with our phones
are good enough and now there are apps to help you edit images to
a professional standard. Filters you see on social media are just the
beginning. Apps such as Snapseed and Darkroom offer many of the
same features and tools that you find in powerful desktop editing
software, and because they are available on your phone, you can
edit anywhere. Some offer free trials so it’s worth experimenting.
A tweak may help send your pitch to the top of the pile.

20 Writers’FORUM #202
 РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS
INSIDE VIEW
KINBOX website
Kinbox is a new website with the tagline ‘for
parents, by parents’ and features ‘stories from
the heart of family life’. It offers a chance
for people to open up about all aspects of
parenthood, so there is a lot of opportunity
to get your story on the site and in front of
Kinbox’s fast-growing community. We spoke
to editor Paul Connolly…
Tell us more about Kinbox and how it
came about
Kinbox was started by Safwan Hak, a Syrian-Canadian living in
the UK. He and his wife Petia have family all over the world. He
has a vision of connecting families around the globe by collecting
and sharing their stories. Kinbox’s aim is simple: to tell great
family stories and inspire those with stories to tell theirs too.
What sort of ideas are you looking for? It
seems like personal, first-person stories are
ideal but are you happy for writers to tell
others’ stories too?
Our mission is to tell family stories that move us, make us
laugh and provoke us to think about our own families. Personal,
first-person stories are the best way to do that. We also
welcome anonymous, ghostwritten stories. We also like
parenting guides, but they tend to be from experts. If you know
of any good family stories, please get in touch.
You have other sections on the site, such as
culture and tech, health and wellbeing – can
writers pitch ideas for these too?
We’re looking for book and gadget reviews but, as with the
other areas, the big family stories are our obsession.
What fees are you offering for copy at
this stage?
£200 to £300 per 1000-plus words, dependent on the quality
of the story.
Email: paul.connolly@kinbox.com
Visit: www.kinbox.com
THIS WRITING LIFE
WRITER ON CALL
U
rgent is an elastic term in the world of magazines. The
mag has to go to the printer’s every month, and there
have to be words on every page, so there are obviously
deadlines. Thanks to forward planning, however, the deadlines
dished out to us freelance hacks are seldom of the ‘We need
this today!’ type that newspaper reporters work to. It’s useful to
have that ‘Hold the front page!’ mentality in reserve, however,
as you never know when you’ll have to turn a job around in
double-quick time. Very often a relaxed ‘Three weeks from now’
deadline can turn into ‘We need this today!’, either because you
end up putting the job off for three weeks or because you’re beset
with unexpected hold-ups.
This month, for instance, I got an email from Pete, who
plans further ahead than most editors. ‘Can you do an urgent
interview?’ he asked. ‘Sure,’ I replied, because the hack who
always says ‘Yes!’ is the hack who always gets called. ‘How
urgent?’ I asked. ‘By the end of next week,’ he said.
Now, as it was only Tuesday of this week, that was hardly
urgent at all. Especially as the shortish one-page interview with
a German singer had been offered by Howard the Reluctant PR,
who I’ve dealt with for years, and Pete said Howard was aware of
the rush. So I emailed Howard and waited for an interview date,
which didn’t materialise.
The following Monday, with the deadline drawing closer, Pete
emailed: Any luck with the interview? So I relayed the same question
to Howard. ‘We’ll hopefully hear soon – her manager was away
last week,’ Howard replied.
By the Wednesday, ‘urgent’ was becoming a more apt term,
even though I knew Pete probably had at least another week in
reserve before going to press. I chased Howard, and again on
Thursday, but Howard wasn’t getting any response from the
singer’s management, even though they’d offered her up for
interview in the first place. I suggested he try writing his emails
in German, but it didn’t help.
Last thing Friday – my deadline day – Howard assured me he’d
have a time for me by Monday at the latest, so I told Pete we might
just scrape in under the wire. By Monday afternoon, however, it
was clear the interview wasn’t going to happen.
‘OK, we’ll fill the page with news,’ Pete said, philosophically.
On the Wednesday, however, he emailed: I’ve got a replacement
interviewee if you’re up for the job! This time the PR was on the ball
and a phone interview was arranged so quickly I had just an hour
to prepare. Now that’s what I call urgent!
Writers’FORUM #202 21

FICTION MARKET
INSIDESTORY
Douglas McPherson reveals the story behind his My Weekly
serial Over the Moon – before it all went wrong…
I
t’s often said that writing
is re-writing, but I’ve never
re-written anything as
much as my serial Over the
Moon, which was submitted
in three different forms to
two magazines before it was
published.
Appropriately for a story
that took two years from first
draft to print, the idea had
been germinating in my mind
for several years before that.
It began with the idea
of a woman arriving at an
ivy‑covered stately home where
she’s appearing as a voice actor
in a Thunderbirds‑style puppet
show. Running late, she’s still
wearing her raincoat as she
takes her place at a row of
microphones, self-conscious of
the disapproving looks she’s
getting from the other actors.
That scene came to me as
images rather than words, like
a clip from a TV show, and I
had no idea what to do with it.
Vaguely, I considered the idea
of a story within a story. In one
thread, we’d follow the plot of
the sci-fi show, in another we’d
follow the story of the actors,
with the relationships of the
fictional characters somehow
mirroring those of the people
playing them.
Research
I liked the concept and did
some research into Thunderbirds
creator Gerry Anderson. I
thought there was dramatic
potential in his relationship
with his wife Sylvia, who
began as his secretary but
progressed to his co-writer and
leading actress – she was the
voice of Lady Penelope.
I didn’t feel ready to proceed,
however, so I shoved the idea
22 Writers’FORUM #202
РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS
Fired up with the crazy chemistry
of my characters, I leapt from bed
to laptop and rattled out the serial
on to the back burner of my
subconscious, where such
thoughts either eventually
begin to give off an appetising
aroma or dry up in the bottom
of the pan.
My interest was revived
when I interviewed the
former trainer of the PG Tips
chimps and learned that in
the 1960s she’d worked on
a string of animal films for
Disney at Pinewood Studios.
Pinewood was built around
a Victorian country house –
much like the stately home I’d
originally thought of – and
my interviewee provided
some colourful insights into
life there.
First, she was making
back-to-back films with the
ethos of a theatrical repertory
company. It was always the
same actors playing the hero,
heroine and villain. The
Carry On films and the James
Bond flick Dr No were being
made at Pinewood at the
same time, with all the casts
socialising together.
The busy environment
sounded like a colourful
setting for a serial, and my
interviewee provided some
humorous anecdotes about
working with the larger-than-
life film producer, Walt Disney.
‘He told me, “If you want
to get on in this business,
you have to do something
different.” I went in the next
day wearing odd shoes and
he said, “That‘s not exactly
what I meant.”’
Around the same time, I
chanced upon an article about
the secretary to an eccentric
West End theatre impresario
in the 1950s. She’d open
seemingly urgent letters from
his associates and ask if he
wanted to reply. ‘Oh no,’ he’d
say, ‘I’ll bump into him sooner
or later and talk about it then.’
I chucked these accounts of
unconventional bosses into my
back-burner pot, along with all
the mid-century flavouring,
and some semi-related stories
I’d heard along the way, such
as secretaries at Motown
Records being called on to
sing backing vocals when a
professional singer didn’t turn
up, and ending up as stars.
Countdown
Over time all these ingredients
brewed together in my bonce
and one day I woke up with
Over the Moon pretty much
fully formed.
Set in the 1960s, in a stately
home called Dogwood House
(mainly because I’ve got a lot
of dogwood in my garden and
had only just found out what it
was called), the story revolved
around Henry Cronk (an echo
of Pinewood founder Arthur
J Rank), the half-mad writer-
producer of a puppet show
called Moon Base.
Physically, he was tall and
imposing, with a bald head
and large, round glasses. He
wore dark suits that were often
covered with dust and soot,
due to his dangerous obsession
with staging on-set explosions.
When we first meet him,
he’s on his knees, stuffing
explosives into a model flying
saucer.
‘Um, Mr Cronk, do you think
you’ve got enough explosives?’
asks a nervous puppeteer.
Missing the sarcasm, Cronk
says, ‘You may be right,’ and
reaches for more charges,
declaring, ‘We don’t want
another damp squib like last
week!’
As a boss, Cronk is loud,
manic and high-handed.
And because he’s completely
preoccupied with the show
and its associated merchandise
– Moon Base action figures,
sweet cigarettes and pedal cars
etc – he’s absentminded, as
evidenced by the verbal tic of
taking three alliterative blind
stabs at every name he forgets:
‘Ah, you must be Helen, or
Heidi, or Heather.’
‘Valerie,’ she corrected.
Valerie was to be Cronk’s
foil, the latest young secretary
sent to replace a string of
assistants who have left
suddenly, due to Cronk being
such a mad taskmaster.
Valerie was herself quite
an eccentric, comic heroine.
Extremely short-sighted,
even with her thick glasses,
she’s a gauche girl from the
provinces, out of place in the
glamorous world of mid-’60s
television. For her interview
she’s bought an expensive
 РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS

FIRST CLASS FICTION Funny New Serial

Small-town girl Valerie is off for an interview at Dogwood Studios

– it’s 1966 and who knows how far this opportunity will take her!
and the Rolling Stones, Valerie couldn’t made her look more glamorous than
By Judy Punch wait to leave behind a provincial town she’d imagined.

V
alerie slammed the front
door and hurried down the
path of her neat little
terraced house. As she left
the gate, she could feel her mother’s
eyes watching her from behind the net
curtains – and doubtless the eyes of
several neighbours, too.
Well, she wasn’t going to look back,
and she wasn’t going to feel guilty,
either. She wished that for once her
mother could be happy for her. But, oh,
what was the point?
In the distance, she heard the shriek
of a steam whistle.
“And now I’m late!”
Cursing the stupid argument with her
mother, Valerie trotted as fast as she
could in the pencil skirt of her navy blue
suit. She made it to the station as the
train thundered over the bridge above
that hadn’t moved on since the war. She
wanted to feel the energy of Carnaby
Street and the King’s Road, where life
was swinging.
As she stepped onto the concourse of
King’s Cross station, however, with its
rushing city gents, swooping pigeons
and deafening echoes, she was daunted
by London’s size and busyness.
She was taken aback by how many
girls were sporting knee-high boots,
mini-skirts and straightened hair. She’d
thought her suit and seamed stockings
were sophisticated, but suddenly
wondered if she should have chosen
something trendier.
At nineteen years old in 1966, it was
hard to know what to wear.
She peered into an empty office.
“Dogwood’s where they make the
TV shows, ain’t it?” said the cabby.
“Like Moon Base.”
“Ah, yes.” Valerie smiled. “But I’m
only going there for an interview. As a
secretary.”
“I thought you might have done the
voice for that Dr Jones,” the driver
grinned in his mirror. “Never miss an
episode, me.”
“I haven’t really watched it,” Valerie
confessed. “Thanks,” answered Valerie, and was a tall, handsome man with swept “There’s a bit up there, too,” Valerie
“It’s not just for kids,” the cabby murmured, “I’m going to need it.” back wavy brown hair. She put him in pointed. She tapped her temple to
assured her. “Me and the missus are As the cab turned and drove away, his late twenties. He coughed and indicate where he’d left a smudge of
glued every week. You almost forget leaving her dwarfed by the mansion’s thumped his chest, then caught sight soot on his face.
they’re only puppets.” pillared entrance, Valerie suddenly felt of his visitor. He rubbed it with his hanky.
Valerie was grateful just to get an very small, alone and out of place. Valerie was amazed by how quickly “Gone?” He raised his eyebrows with
interview in London. That the job was in She hadn’t come all this way to lose his manner transformed. such boyish innocence that Valerie
her nerve, though. “Are you being looked after, miss?” couldn’t help grinning goofily as she
The red front door stood open, so she
took a deep breath, straightened her
As he strode towards her, an easy
smile on his face, his limbs loose and
nodded in reply.
“Well, as you can see, it’s a bit of a

Behind her came a huge ka-BOOM

her head, showering her with smoke and back and strode up the steps. relaxed, no one would have guessed madhouse around here. You’d better
cinders as it slowed. She found herself in an airy hall, with he’d emerged from an explosion just come up to my office.”
Heart hammering, she drummed her a sweeping staircase and a vast seconds before. Valerie stared at his back as he strode
fingers on the counter while the elderly chandelier. To one side was a long “I’m here for an appointment with on long legs towards the sweeping
I L L U S T R AT I O N S : L A U R E N R E B B E C K , W W W. L A U R E N R E B B E C K . C O M

clerk slowly took a ticket from his
wooden rack.
The moment her ticket touched the
counter, she snatched it away and
turned on her heel.
“Wait up, Miss, your change – !” the
clerk called. But Valerie was already
running breathlessly up the sloping
tunnel to the platform.
She slammed the carriage door
behind her as the train jerked forward.
Relieved, she flopped into a spongy
seat and watched the parade of back
gardens that passed her window as the
train gathered speed.
Her head full of songs by the Kinks
“Where to, miss?” The driver of the
rattling black taxi threw a folded
newspaper onto the seat beside him and
tapped his cigarette ash out the window
as Valerie climbed into the back.
“Dogwood Studios, please.”
A few minutes later, they were
speeding past Trafalgar Square, with
Valerie craning her neck for her first
glimpse of Nelson’s Tower and its
surrounding lions.
“You an actress, then?” the cabby
asked cheerfully.
“Me?” Valerie wondered if her new
suit and freshly permed chestnut hair
reception desk, like they had in hotels,
television felt like a miracle. but no one was manning it.
As the taxi chugged up the long, “Hello?” Valerie peered across the
curving drive of Dogwood House, desk into an empty office.
however, she began to wonder if the From behind her came a ka-BOOM!
chance was too good to be true. Set in that nearly scared her out of her skin.
emerald lawns with a backdrop of She turned with a yelp to see a huge
woodland, the huge stately home, cloud of smoke mushrooming from a
draped in dark ivy, looked almost as doorway. Along with it came three men
grand as Buckingham Palace, which
they’d passed on the way.
On the gravel by the front door
– just shadows in the pall – coughing,
staggering and fanning the air.
“Now that, Chris, is how you blow up
Valerie gawped at a parked Rolls Royce, a flying saucer!” As the owner of the
flanked by a scarlet E-type Jaguar. upper crust accent stepped from the
“Good luck with the interview,” the gradually thinning smoke, brushing
cabby called cheerily. down his suit as he came, Valerie saw he
Mr Crondell,” she said, her throat dry.
“Call me Harry,” he grinned. “And
you are?”
“I…” Transfixed by his open smile
and the confidence of his steady gaze,
Valerie’s brain went blank. Eventually,
she realised her mouth was hanging open.
“Valerie Maddox.” She pulled herself
together. “I’m here for the secretarial job.”
“Of course!” Harry punched his
temple with the heel of his hand. “I
completely forgot!”
He offered his hand to shake, then
pulled it back as he realised it was black
with soot. He tugged a handkerchief
from his breast pocket to wipe his palm.
staircase. Shaking her head to clear it,
she trotted after him, pausing only to
glance back at the two figures still
choking and wiping their eyes on the far
side of the hall.
“Don’t want to risk another damp
squib like last week, do we!” one of them
lisped camply.
V alerie followed Harry into an office
full of more paper than she had
ever seen. Precarious piles towered
everywhere.
“Take a seat,” said Harry.
“What on?” she blurted.
Continued on page 31

28 www.myweekly.co.uk www.myweekly.co.uk 29

028_MWK_110717.indd 28 29/06/2017 12:09:32 028_MWK_110717.indd 29 29/06/2017 12:09:45

tailored suit which she thinks an episode of Moon Base. and she’s still secretly in love new live-action programme of
is sophisticated but which In the studio, she meets with Tony. Cronk’s devising.
every other character finds the regular stars of the show: The crisis is compounded by
ridiculously Mary Poppins-ish. George L’Amore, an older, vain a newspaper scandal in which Crash landing
This results in frequent use of ladies’ man, and Sabrina, an an anonymous jealous co-star I thought it was the funniest,
her exasperated catchphrase: ageing, never-quite-made-it accuses Valerie of getting the fastest moving thing I’d ever
‘Well, really!’ actress. L‘Amore and Sabrina star part through having an written. And the reason I’m
The new secretary, however, are constantly at each other’s affair with Cronk. telling you is as a warning
quickly proves her ability throats. The third star is Valerie blames Tony for the that, whenever you find
to save Cronk from his Tony, a young drama school tip-off, because he’s the only yourself thinking ‘this is the
forgetfulness: graduate who Valerie falls in one she told about Cronk’s best thing I’ve ever done’,
love with. proposal. With everything your pride is almost definitely
‘Can I brief you on something Unfortunately, Tony seems going wrong, she decides to about to be slapped down
before your meeting?’ to be Sabrina’s toy boy, leave the show. with a mighty rejection!
‘What’s that, Valerie?’ although it will eventually On the morning of her In my case, Over the Moon
‘You’re wearing odd shoes.’ transpire that he’s just the departure, however, one was to be rejected by My
unwilling recipient of Sabrina’s of Cronk’s explosions sets Weekly, re-written for People’s
See how I inverted the flirting, which is designed to light to Dogwood House. Friend and rejected by them
Disney anecdote, there? make L’Amore jealous. Valerie and Sabrina are too, then re-written again for
In Episode 2, Valerie is trapped in the burning My Weekly.
Lift-off taking late night dictation building, where Sabrina And little did I guess when
Fired up with the crazy in Cronk’s office while he confesses responsibility for I first hit ‘send’ in such high
chemistry of Cronk and struggles to find inspiration the newspaper story. Valerie spirits that the final version
Valerie, I leapt from bed to for the flagging show. Valerie forgives her and the day is would only be accepted
laptop and rattled out my suggests a new female saved when L’Amore and once I’d written out my two
three-part serial in three days character and Cronk creates Tony take on the roles of their favourite characters.
– 3000 words a day. Val Venus, a starship captain puppet personas to bravely
It began with Valerie to be played by Valerie herself. rescue the women from the Next issue, I’ll tell you
arriving at Dogwood after her Valerie becomes a star, inferno. where it all went wrong. Or
first ‘Well, really!’ encounter much to the resentment of the With Valerie and Tony can you work it out from the
with a taxi driver, who cracks others, and the instalment united in a clinch, Cronk summary above?
the first of many jokes about ends with the bombshell of finally realises that his
her outfit. Cronk proposing marriage. proposal was misplaced. He How to Write and
Cronk, stunned and soot- Part 3 reveals Valerie’s loves Valerie for her mind Sell Fiction to
blackened from his latest horror at the proposal. She but has never been the ‘kissy, Magazines by
explosion, mistakes her for a loves Cronk as a boss and huggy sort’. Douglas McPherson
guest actress he’s expecting work-wise they’re a perfect The serial ends with all the is available to
and Valerie finds herself team, but romantically there’s characters about to embark download from the
press-ganged into recording zero chemistry between them on another adventure in a Kindle store.

Writers’FORUM #202 23

WRITING EXERCISE
WHEN, WHERE &
HOW TO START
Barbara Dynes explains a foolproof way to begin your
stories – and sets an exercise
A
s fiction writers, we
are given a lot of tips
about beginnings. It
is the first example
the editor sees of your work,
so a good start is vital. But my
advice – especially for the new
writer – is not to sit biting your
nails over the first paragraph
for too long. Move on with the
story, or you might be tempted
to give up altogether. Get the
thing written! Then go back
and revise that beginning –
again and again and again.
Check that you have:
■■ Included a narrative hook to
make the reader read on
■■ Introduced a setting, so he
can begin to picture the scene
24 Writers’FORUM #202
РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS
■■ Brought in the main
character, particularly in the
short story
■■ Established the tone of the
story or novel
It will not always be possible
to include all those points at
the start, depending on your
chosen genre. But they are
important aspects to consider.
Narrative hook
This is essential. You must give
the reader something to worry
about at the beginning or why
would they want to read on?
The key word here is change.
Always try to start at the
point of change in a story;
something has happened in
your main character’s life – he
gets an unexpected phone call
or email, he meets someone,
he loses his job, his girlfriend
walks out on him. Something is
going askew – not necessarily
in a major way, perhaps just
emotionally – and his life is
changing. This needs to come
in right at the beginning.
If you are writing a novel,
where you have more time to
unravel your story, you might
favour a more leisurely start.
But you still need to hook your
reader in some way, perhaps
with a hint of mystery or a tiny
clue to the excitement to come.
You might do this through
someone’s dialogue or attitude
or by adding something subtle
that is going to be significant
later. Readers love a mystery!
Setting
It is not easy to bring in
background and setting at
the beginning of a short story,
where economy of words
is everything. Novelists, of
course, have the time and
space to create atmosphere
with compelling description
at the start, if they so wish.
Yet, even in a novel, that
description needs to be relevant
to the plot or the reader will get
impatient.
One excellent example is
the beginning of Daphne du
Maurier’s Rebecca:
Last night I dreamt I went to
Manderley again… It seemed to
me I stood by the iron gate leading
to the drive… No smoke came
from the chimney, and the little
lattice windows gaped forlorn.
The descriptive setting, with
its haunting gothic tone, hints
at the tragedy to come.
The short story, too, needs
to be placed somewhere
immediately, albeit briefly, so
that the reader can picture the
scene. Example:
Neville took the letter out of his
pocket and stared at the envelope.
So efficiently typed; typical of Jan
to announce she was divorcing
him like this. No emails, phone
calls or texts for Jan. He could
not trust himself to read it again.
Though, no doubt, his bored fellow
passengers would welcome his
emotional outburst.
Where is Neville? In a train,
plane, bus? Until we are told

about fellow passengers, he
could be in his kitchen or
halfway up a mountain. The
first sentence might begin: Once
seated in the train…
Main character
Your opening should give the
reader someone to focus on –
usually the main character. In a
short story, that person – or at
least a mention of him – should
come in as soon as possible. He
or she is integral to the main
action and the crucial conflict
presented at the start will
involve him or her.
In the above example, it is
obvious that the main character
is going to be Neville because
we are in his viewpoint,
thinking and acting along with
him. And this adds a bonus.
If you start like that, showing
Neville’s character, you’ll
help him to come alive for the
reader straightaway.
In the example, we begin at a
point of change – Neville’s wife
wants a divorce. He obviously
does not, so we’ve given our
main character a problem,
tempting the reader to read on.
A tip for those writing for
commercial markets, such as
women’s magazines: the main
events should circle around
your viewpoint character. If he
is merely looking on, telling the
story but not really affected, it
probably won’t work. OK, he
might have learned something
by the end, but it is still not his
story. Such a plot device can
work well in a novel (The Great
Gatsby, where F Scott Fitzgerald
uses a narrator, is an example)
but it is rarely successful in the
magazine market.
If you’re writing a novel, you
may not be able to establish the
main character straightaway,
but readers still like to identify
them as soon as possible.
The tone
The other aspect to be aware of
is tone. Even if you don’t plot
in detail, you will have settled
on the type and genre of the
story you are about to write.
You might adopt a chatty style,
perhaps using first person, and
develop a light tone. A romance
РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS
Writers’FORUM
might mean a more reflective
style of writing.
Should you stay in the main
character’s viewpoint for the
EXERCISE
whole story, the tone will
be established through that
person’s personality. That way,
Begin the beginnning
A
the reader sees everything –
Rewrite the following as the beginning of
action, thoughts and emotions
– through his or her eyes.
a short story. At the moment we are just
Example: ‘told’ what is happening. Where will you
start? Bring the alarming situation to life
Sunday April 4th with dialogue and setting.
My father sent a telegram to the
War Office. He wants to take part Jane awoke suddenly. There was some sort of commotion going
in the war with Argentina. His on outside in the street. She got out of bed and looked out of her
telegram read: window. Two men were fighting in the road, wrestling with each
QUALIFIED HEATING other and yelling and swearing. To her horror she saw that one of
ENGINEER STOP A1 FITNESS them was her boyfriend, Dan. She pulled on her dressing gown
STOP OFFERS HIMSELF and ran downstairs. Once outside, Jane saw that Dan was on the
IN THE SERVICE OF HIS ground, lying very still. In the distance she saw the blue lights of a
COUNTRY STOP. police car approaching. She screamed.
That is the beginning of
Sue Townsend’s The Growing Notes
Pains of Adrian Mole. It tells us
exactly what to expect: a funny
story, told in diary form. The
book works because Townsend
never overwrites, and the focus
is always on the story rather
than the clever phrases.
Now, summing up:
/ / /
Completed My scene rating
When to start: Not when
B
everything is going smoothly
and there is no change. Aim to Rewrite the following situation as a short
drop your reader right in the story beginning. Think about Gary’s
middle of the action, especially character and write it from his point of
in a short story. view. Pay particular attention to the tone
of the story emerging as you create his
Where to start: Establish
where the action is taking place
thoughts and reactions. You’ll also need
immediately, so the reader can to include some setting.
visualise the scene.
Gary is a happy-go-lucky young lad, regularly bunking off
How to start: Bring in school. He is sitting in the Head’s office with his father. Gary’s
the conflict, whether major dad is shouting at him; the head teacher is more restrained.
or trivial, as soon as possible. Is Gary bored, thinking about his girlfriend or mates while
Why should your reader read pretending to listen to their lecturing?
on if nothing is happening?
.
Once you’ve finished go back Notes
and revise that beginning over
and over again. It will pay off!
Barbara Dynes’ latest
book, Masterclasses
in Creative Writing,
is published by
Constable & Robinson
/ / /
at £9.99 Completed My scene rating
 РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS

Essential Books for Writers

NEW By Alison Baverstock
Marketing Your Book:
An Author’s Guide
How to target agents,
publishers and readers
‘A rich source of information
for people trying to navigate
their way through the
process of how to get
‘I honestly think I would never have become publishable without the fascinating and
their book noticed.’
instructive Cornerstones reports on my three novels.’
Rebecca Swift,
The Literary Consultancy Cherry Radford, The Lighthouse Keeper’s Daughter, Urbane Publications

Structural editing, copy-editing and proofreading services.

Scouts for literary agents

2nd edition • £11.99 • 9-780713-673838

+44 (0) 1308 897374

Is There a Book in You? Visit www.cornerstones.co.uk
Foreword by columnist and
writer Katharine Whitehorn
£8.99 • 9-780713-679328
Listed by the Society of Authors

Available from bookshops or to order direct

call 01256 302699 or visit: www.acblack.com

BECOMING A WRITER
Kath Kilburn takes a quick look at ADMIN & RECORD-KEEPING
I
t was a day of great sadness
for me when our local
stationery superstore closed.
Oh, they sold computers
and filing cabinets and stuff of
that ilk too, but what set my
own little heart aglow were the
multi-packs of highlighters,
the crisp new A4 pads, the file
wallets and pens.
I’m a regular stationery
junkie and it’s all in the cause
of organisation. Because
one thing you really need
as a writer, from the very
start of your career, is good
record-keeping. I know it eats
into precious writing time but
trust me, you’ll feel better for
being on top of this stuff.
What might you need to
keep records of? A whole raft
of things:
■ Which publications or
publishers you’ve sent your
submissions to, who has replied
and, if successful, whether
you’ve been paid
■ A file of current contracts
so you can easily refer to them
should you wish to re-use
material
■ A file of your target markets’
requirements, be it publishers,
newspapers, websites or
magazines
■ And you need to keep
together any bank statements,
copy invoices and remission
slips for your tax return.
In case you’re smiling wryly
at this point and thinking I’ve
lost my marbles because you’re
never going to make enough
money to pay tax on your
writing income – remember,
lots of writers have separate
salaried occupations and both
streams of income together can
edge even fledglings over the
tax threshold.
It sounds like a lot of
paperwork and all of the
above are important but, in
РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS
my experience, by far the most
significant is your record of
submissions.
Ask any group of writers
how they keep track of their
submissions and each person
will have a different method.
What they’ll agree on, though,
is the need for accurate records,
even if they don’t always
practise what they preach.
Double trouble
Imagine the fall-out from
accidentally sending a short
story to two magazines at once
and having it accepted by both.
You should be so lucky, eh?
Wrong response! You don’t
want to end up on the writerly
naughty step!
So, record submissions as
and when you make them to
avoid upsetting editors, which
is never a good career move.
One former writer found
this to her cost when she sent
duplicate submissions to an
anthology and a magazine
at the same time. Staggered
print times should have meant
all was fine but, alas, timings
changed and this particular
writer ended up, temporarily,
in the submissions doghouse.
Another anonymous writer
– see how discreet I’m being
this month? – had a problem
when one magazine took
much longer than expected
to respond, so she sent her
story off somewhere else and,
again, disaster! One early
acceptance collided with one
late acceptance. Uh-oh.
It might seem unreasonable
to have to wait more than six
months for a response to your
submission but, to be on the
safe side, you should always
chase up your sub or officially
withdraw it before you send it
elsewhere. Unless you’re one
of those thrill-seeking, live-on-
the-edge types…
For new novel writers, the
situation is different, but you’ll
still waste a lot of time and
effort if you mistakenly send
your synopsis and excerpt to
the same publisher twice or if
you have to scrabble through
your sent emails to check when
they went off.
Keep it simple
So, what specifically should
you note down? Well, I send
out mostly short stories and
my record-keeping is almost
embarrassingly low-tech. I list
submissions in a notebook in
chronological order noting
what I sent, where I sent it and
when. Later I add details of
acceptance or rejection and,
later still, when I was paid for
it. (It might seem unlikely, but
it’s possible, in the excitement
of a sale, to overlook payment.)
To complement the
chronological list, each story
THE BUSINESS
also has its own card filed in
alphabetical order by title in a
card index box, showing where
the electronic version of the
story is.
Originally mine were
on numbered floppy disks
– remember those? Easily
corruptible little so-and-so’s,
weren’t they? These days I
use memory sticks and the
PC, and I also have printed
copies in loose-leaf files. Belt
and two pairs of braces, just
in case. I also note on the card
wordcount and submission
history.
That’s my very simple,
but diligently completed,
record-keeping. At any
moment I can check whether
a story’s free for sending to
a competition I’ve just seen,
or if there are any stories sent
off ages ago that seem to have
got lost in the arid desert of
magazineland.
I don’t send out hundreds
of subs per month, though.
And I’m guessing you don’t
either at this stage. Others, who
are more prolific than you and
me, might choose to keep their
records on a spreadsheet or in
a Word table, or they might
write notes to accompany their
printed copy.
It matters less how you do
it than that you do do it – in
whatever way suits you.
I have another file and it’s
my favourite one. Not so
much a file as a periodicals
box, full of magazines that
have published my stories or
articles. There’s nothing quite
so inspiring, when you’re
struggling with a story, as a
shelf full of magazines, each
featuring something you have
written.
For a writer, your first
publication is probably just as
memorable as your first love,
so don’t let that memory slip
away. Celebrate it!
Writers’FORUM #202 27
 РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS

SHORT SHORT WRITING

Writers’FORUM
FLASH COMP RESULTS
Last month’s task was to write up a nice walk for a local magazine

T
here’s a great skill in being able to transport readers to a
different place through travel writing. One of the main issues
I found this month was entrants using rather tired phrases to
describe the scenery and wildlife they encountered: leaves rustling,
crows cawing, cows grazing, eagles soaring etc.
Try to think of new imagery that encapsulates a specific aspect, so
that readers can picture it vividly. Use a cliché and the reader’s brain
has no work to do, but bring a particular aspect to life and the reader’s
interest is piqued and the brain has to extrapolate in order to create
the whole. The image is then created in the mind, rather than on the

www.essexwalks.com
page. This is what good poetry does, and every writer can benefit from
thinking like a poet. Look at this aspect of your entry as an exercise.
A number of readers wrote about recent walks or bus rides etc,
rather than going on a new one. Given the tight deadline and that some
people have mobility issues, I was happy as long as they met the brief.
But continue to try and get out and observe the world. Interact with
people, think about the senses, perception and your reactions. Find the larger as it approaches; until I step aside, allowing it to rush past
detail and depth that will inform and improve your work. me, tightly bound in lycra and breathing heavily. She nods the
merest nod, not wanting to be distracted from her campaign
£100 winner against herself.
On Tollesbury Wick by Ken Smith, Colchester Further on, where the mud narrows and the estuary opens out,

I
t’s a contradictory day; a blue sky offers an invitation out into
something wilder; a cold fierce wind blows a caution down from
the north, questioning presumptions of summer’s arrival. I pass
through the gate, while the boats in the marina behind me jostle
and clang. Their smartness soon gives way to smaller wrecks and
ruins, slumped in the mudflats that stretch alongside the Wick.
The wind barrels over the land making my hat redundant but
exciting the lapwings into ever more daring acrobatics, as they
patrol and defend their marshland territory.
It’s an empty, mid-week day, full of space and time; a day when
encountering anyone on the path only emphasises the remoteness
of this place. The sea wall runs away, a raised bank between two
different terrains united by their need for water. Half an hour
along it, I see a lone figure, just below me near the edge of the
borrow dyke. He’s poised motionless within an abundance of
pockets and straps, staring towards the shallow lagoon where
the sheldrake calmly refuse to be forced out of their anchorage
by the wind; and where the snipe thrust at the water. He is as still
as the egret caught in the lens of his camera.
Further on by Shinglehead Point, the air rolls even more
powerfully off the creek. A kestrel flies ahead of me, balancing on
the wind, absorbed in his search for prey. He falls in stages down
a spit of land runs sleekly into the river, marked by a thinning
layer of sand. At its furthest edge stands another figure. He wears
a brown lounge suit in place of his habit; a time-travelling ghost
from Saint Cedd’s long-gone mission across the river at Bradwell.
Even from this distance his expression seems earnest, looking
over the driving waves and beyond out to sea, as if listening for
the voice of his God.
And with startling courage, a sky lark rises up contesting the
wind’s dominance, and sings and sings and sings.
• Ken says: ‘I’ve been a walker all my life, through fields and forests, and
have only lately come to know and enjoy the creeks and estuaries of the
Essex coast and their particular spirit.’
Editor’s comments This piece is full of fantastic new imagery
– boats jostle and clang, snipe thrust, the kestrel falls in stages down
a staircase of air. The land itself becomes a character – two different
terrains united in their need for water. I get a real sense of the atmosphere
of the place, and the quiet battles of its inhabitants. Excellent work.
Runner-up
A Walk to Remember by David Jackson, Bolton

a staircase of air, coming nearer to his victim, unaware of my slow
enraptured approach. He sinks ever closer to the ground and to
me, and I can see the delicate flecks of his feathers, the intelligent
terror radiating from his flaring eye – and then he sees me come
too close to him and in an effortless, parabolic sweep he dips and
soars around me, a hot brown streak of energy curving against
the wind, rising up to reach a safer place for his hunt above the
sea wall.
There is a glimmering, glorious melancholy here, pricked just
now by a coloured fragment of light. It grows imperceptibly
T
he day before New Year’s Eve is a time to clear your head. It
seems to call for a walk in a high, lonely place. If that walk is
in the company of one you love, so much the better. And so
we set out.
After driving to Old Bewick, we started up the narrow track
that leads up the hill. We passed the row of cottages in one of
which, local lore says, Jane Grigson first watched her grandmother
bake ‘Singing Hinnies’.
We passed through the gate and climbed upwards. The snow

28 Writers’FORUM #202
 РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS
lay thick, and the way was a ribbon of ice, more frozen stream
than path. We climbed on with the steep ramparts of the Iron
Age fort on our right, until we reached the flattened tops of the
moorland. The snow was getting deeper. The path became harder
to follow. In the distance ahead of us lay our goal, the ruined
steading of Blaewearie, its roofless house and barn standing at the
foot of the tree-topped rock outcrop.
Thirty minutes later our path took us close to the Bronze
Age burial cists. We made a detour to look closer at the stones,
half‑buried in the snow. In the springtime we’ve sat to watch
young adders slither across these ancient graves. But this was not
the season and it was too cold to tarry.
Reaching the steading, we passed by the ruined buildings. On
the bank surrounding the old farmyard stood the ancient plum
tree whose fruit we’ve gathered most autumns. Before us lay the
wall of rocks that encircle the secret garden that had been hewn
out for a Victorian farmwife many years before.
Ahead was the flight of steps that take you up the wall and
down into the garden. And ahead was a shock. The great beech
that for years had stood guardian over the entrance lay fallen, half
covered in snow, like the body of a slaughtered giant at Ragnarok.
It had seemed so permanent and I felt that something important
had been lost, like losing a friend. It seemed a sign that something
was ending.
She stood, at the top of the steps, in her green coat, her face pink
with cold and the joy she always feels in this place. Her happiness
broke my melancholy, brought me back to the moment. ‘Take my
photo,’ she called.
We didn’t stay long in the abandoned garden, and moved out
through the snow-covered bracken seeking the pool beyond. A
perfect circle, ringed with alder saplings, it is an eerie, magical
place, a place of myths and moonlight meetings. That day the pool
was frozen, and she sat for a while entranced by the patterns of
ice crystals forming on the reeds.
But we could not stay. Winter days are short and the darkness
was falling. Reluctantly we left the pool and retraced our steps
down the hill, back to the waiting car, and the journey back to
the coast.
• David says: ‘This piece describes a favourite walk to a homestead called
Blaewearie in Northumberland. My wife and I have been making this walk
for nearly 50 years, but advancing age and diminishing mobility mean that
the occasion described could well have been our last visit. If so, it was a
fitting end.’
Editor’s comments This was another atmospheric piece but this
time about companionship rather than solitude. I like the melancholic
touches when David mourns the fallen tree and the passing of the
years, tempered by its positive message about living in the moment.
Highly commended
Milestones by Diane Tatlock, Worton, Wilts – a good theme touching
on three centuries of military history in the peaceful rolling
landscape around Salisbury Plain.
Suffolk Showstopper by Angela Keeler, Lowestoft, Suffolk – nice theme
about a couple walking to see a visiting celebrity who turns out to
be an American bittern.
Livadia to the Red Beach by Christine Acaster, Alnwick, Nthmb – a
descriptive piece sharing the dramatic scenery on the tiny Greek
island of Tilos, which Christine calls a walker’s paradise.
HOW TO ENTER
Writers’FORUM
FLASH COMP
Enter our monthly quick writing
contest with a £100 first prize
T
he editor’s monthly competition for short short
writing has a £100 prize for one winner and a
number of runners-up may also be published,
depending upon the nature of the contest and available
space. The flash competition is FREE FOR SUBSCRIBERS
(single entry only). For non‑subscribers (or extra
subscriber entries) the entry fee is £5, which you can
purchase by following the link on the Writers’ Forum
website (www.writers-forum.com).
Entry is strictly by email only.
Writers’ Forum wants to encourage you to write, so:
■■ We will have a theme/task each time so that new
writing has to be produced.
■■ There will be a tight deadline so that results can be
published quickly and entrants can’t dither!
The editor’s decision is final and no correspondence over
results will be entered into. By entering, entrants agree to these
rules and for their entries to be published in Writers’ Forum.
COMP 202:
RISKY BUSINESS
Deadline: 12 noon
GMT on 30 July 2018
Editor’s assignment:
Read Douglas McPherson’s
Summer Shorts article on page 10 and then write an
800‑word short story suitable for the type of magazines
he mentions. Your story must take a few risks and shake
things up, while still fitting the general magazine story
guidelines that Douglas lists. The rest is up to you.
How to enter
1 Paste your entry straight into the body of a new email
(NOT as an attachment) followed by the wordcount
and your name and address. Give your purchase order
number or state if you’re a subscriber to check against
our database. Add a line or two about what inspired you.
2 In the email’s subject line box, write Flash Comp 202:
followed by your interesting and relevant story title.
3 Send your email to flashcomp@writers-forum.com
by the deadline above.
The results will be published next issue. Good luck!
Writers’FORUM #202 29
 РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS

THE BEST WAY TO SELF-PUBLISH

MAY BE WITH A PUBLISHER...

Eyewear has years of experience collaborating with

authors who want to self-publish, to maximise control of
their books, and to get a larger share of the profits –
BUT who also want the benefits a publisher can offer –
a respected imprint, wide distribution into bookshops
across the UK, Ireland and the USA; marketing and PR
experience; a proper launch; Oxbridge-level editorial
guidance; and high-quality book printing. Our Maida
Vale Imprint considers hybrid publishing as the best
balance between trade publishing and doing it all yourself.

NO ONE OFFERS MORE THAN WE dO – TAKE A

LOOK AT: WWW.EYEWEARPUBLISHINg.cOM

OR cONTAcT: INFO@EYEWEARPUBLISHINg.cOM
ANd ASK FOR TOdd, ROSIE OR ALExANdRA.
 РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS
L
ast month I shared with you my
mixed feelings as my novel, Murder
Served Cold, moves steadily towards
its publication date in October.
I’ve recently completed the edits process,
something I’d been looking forward to and
dreading in equal measure. The last time
anyone paid such close attention to my work
Paula Williams has been in and out of her comfort zone
was when I was at school. At least this time I
didn’t have to worry about getting B-minus or
‘See me later’ scrawled all over it.
My first read-through of the edits was
punctuated with occasional gasps of indignation
and frequent groans of embarrassment. I was
shocked at how often I’d used unnecessary
capital letters.
In my defence, the book’s written in the
first person and the narrator, Kat, is a bit
of a Drama Queen (see, I’m still doing it!). If
I’d been writing in the third person I’d have
probably described her as using air quotes
every now and again to make this point.
I had a really major wobble after the second
edits and it took all my courage to send it
back, knowing it would then go on to the
next stage of the pre-publication process and,
consequently, one step nearer Launch Day.
Suddenly it’s all beginning to feel very real and
FICTION SQUARE
Roll a dice to find all the ingredients for your next story
– or use each of the squares as a daily prompt this month
Ist & 2nd roll 3rd & 4th roll
Characters Traits
1 7
Seamstress Complex
2 8
Manager Dreamer
3 9
Singer Miserly
4 10
Over-
Child
protective
5 11
Editor Inhibited
6 12
Nanny Frail
INSPIRATION
THE WRITERS’
was Jock Dobbin? Was he murdered? If so, by
whom? And why?
Into my mind’s eye came a country village,
where there’s suddenly a series of anonymous
notes, starting with ‘Who killed Jock Dobbin?’,
each one following the lines of the nursery
rhyme Who killed Cock Robin? There was a
different note (and a different bird) for each
quite terrifying. I’m not so much out of my episode of the story – and, of course, the
comfort zone as completely off piste. rhyme provided me with the story’s title All
Which is why it’s such a relief to turn back the Birds of the Air.
to serial writing, a much more familiar world. I loved every moment of writing this story
My eight-part serial, All the Birds of the Air, and am already well ahead with writing the
started in People’s Friend on 29 June. The sequel, but its fate will depend on whether the
original idea for this came from a creative People’s Friend readers enjoy this one as much
writing class I attended over 30 years ago. as I have.
I enjoyed the course very much apart from
those dreaded moments when the tutor I’ve also just finished writing our annual
would say: ‘OK, it’s your turn now.’ The rest village pantomime. This year it’s based
of the class would be scribbling away furiously (very loosely indeed) on the old TV series
while my brain stayed resolutely blank. The Addams Family. Only my version is The
The only thing I’d written in my notebook Fladdams Family. It’s been both fun and
that particular time was the line ‘Who killed frustrating to write as it isn’t really standard
Jock Dobbin?’ And that was as far as I got. I pantomime material.
had no idea where to go with Jock Dobbin’s I always keep a notepad next to my laptop
unfortunate demise until I was looking for when I’m working. If I get stuck (and I got
inspiration for my People’s Friend story all these stuck a lot writing The Fladdams Family) I often
years later. I started to ask questions. Who find writing rather than typing can unblock
the flow. I’ve put an unedited page from this
notepad on my blog. It’s a graphic example of
the creative process – or maybe the ravings
of a madwoman. Check it out and decide for
yourself. It’s at paulawilliamswriter.wordpress.
com – follow the link to the entry headed
‘Dog walks, hurdles and a murder mystery.’
You’ll also find a picture of my handsome
Dalmatian, Duke.
5th roll 6th roll 7th roll
There are also, as usual, some daily
Weather Location Object
prompts. They’re a collection of random
13 19 25 prompts I’ve gathered over the years, many of
Deserted which have resulted in stories. The 6 August
Heatwave Old glove
beach prompt ended in a sale to Woman’s Weekly.
My advice, as always, is to pick the prompt
15 20 26
for the week from the list below, then start
Light rain Art gallery Beehive free writing. No stopping to think about what
you’re going to say, or to correct typos.
15 21 27
Drought Rooftop Unwanted gift ● 6 August: Once when nobody was
watching…
● 13 August: A secret revealed… but too
16 22 28
late.
Snow Rose garden Party hat ● 20 August: A time to laugh, a time to
cry…
17 23 29 ● 27 August: If I had my way, I would…
Sea mist Supermarket Torch
You could ring the changes by writing with
pen and paper or even on a whiteboard. It
18 24 30 really doesn’t matter. The important thing is
Overcast Classroom Piano to write unchecked for, say, 15 minutes or
three pages. Do let me know how you get on
at ideastore@writers-forum.com
Writers’FORUM #202 31
 РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS

TRAVEL WRITING

TRAVEL WRITING PART TWO

Planning: markets & ideas
Solange Hando continues her series for the occasional travel writer

B
ack from your trip at home or
abroad? Check your notes, check
your pictures, then jot down any
ideas that come to mind, the more
the better – it could inspire you to write
several articles from a single trip.
Poised to begin? Hold on! If you want
to be published, you must act like a pro:
research the market before you start
writing, and don’t be shy. Did you know
English is the official language in over
80 countries? If the UK travel market
seems thinner than it was, think
worldwide. There are thousands of
publications out there waiting for your
work, so check the internet and ask friends
and family to bring back likely magazines
from their holidays.
What sort of publications feature travel,
regularly or occasionally? Titles come and
go but travel is about places and people
and opportunities cover a much wider
range than you might think.
on. Even if you did only one morning, it
The choice is yours should provide sufficient material for an
Travel magazines are an obvious target, If you’ve been article. With a little extra research, you can
although there is a lot of competition from add facts to personal experience.
other writers. But if you have come across stalked by a tiger, ■■ City breaks: anywhere in the world,
something unusual, being stalked by a it’s definitely worth often presented as 24 hours in… or it could
tiger for instance, it’s definitely worth be a stopover on the way to Australia or a
pitching. Most are published monthly but pitching feature with a theme: Hong Kong for families;
browse newspapers and you will find a lot Gastronomy in Berlin.
of weekly travel pages or supplements. ■■ Beach holidays: Five best beaches in
Then of course there are hundreds of Sicily; secluded creeks in Cornwall; three Greek
in-flight magazines covering airlines and produced by tour operators, hotels, banks islands – which is best for you?
partners’ routes, most of them with or supermarkets. Don’t forget local or ■■ Green holidays: responsible tourism –
English language features. county mags, because what is home to you did you stay in a farmhouse, visit a national
Less obvious? Check the women’s mags, is travel to someone else and most British park, a botanic garden, go dolphin or
then look out for publications about food, people take their holidays in the UK. whale watching, ride a horse, cruise on a
health or body and soul that are looking Then there’s online opportunities, even canal or river? Waterways are increasingly
for relevant holiday content: wine, olives, your own blog. It may not pay, but display popular and an afternoon cruise might
yoga, spa, meditation… your work and pictures and you never suffice. Or perhaps you helped save turtles
The great outdoors is another possibility know who might notice and get in touch. in Sri Lanka or clear a footpath in Wales?
– cycling, hiking, caravanning and more – ■■ Adventure: adrenaline seekers
plus you’ll find niche markets for interests Current trends will have plenty to write about but soft
or hobbies you might enjoy on a trip. Travel writing is a business and it helps adventure is equally needed, whether it’s
Sports, too. Perhaps you watched a cricket to know the flow. Browse a number of rambling on the South Downs or bouncing
match in Samoa, went scuba diving, found publications and you will see what kind of in a jeep on an exotic safari.
a golf course with amazing views. trips and follow-up features are popular: ■■ Relaxation: your whole holiday or
Or you could consider magazines just a few hours; a mud bath in Turkey; a
aimed at specific social groups – families, ■■ Activity holidays: bird watching, massage in a Bangkok temple.
seniors, business, `disabled – or those painting, cooking, photography and so ■■ Culture: history, tourist sites, festivals

32 Writers’FORUM #202
 РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS
and also human interest, for instance an
interview with a craftsman or a chef.
■■ Reviews: hotels, campsites, an unusual
restaurant…
Less is more
The secret of success? Don’t offer the
destination: the tighter the angle, the
better. For instance, take a river cruise:
■■ One article could focus on the green
holiday: scenery, peace and quiet, rural
villages, wildlife, wonderful sunrise or
sunset, relaxing on deck…
■■ Another could be about a city you
visited on a day excursion
■■ A third, food and wine – on the boat or
local specialities
■■ Did you wander around an
archaeological site which could fill an
article, with appropriate research? Or
maybe a temple or a cathedral?
Someone might want an article about
the whole cruise, but keep considering
angles and you will increase your revenue.
Snapshots
Now, whatever your trip, is there a snappy
little story somewhere, truly original? Did
anything dramatic, hilarious or unexpected
happen? That may be only a few hundred
words, but get it published and you will
feel on top of the world. Examples:
■■ Safari in Kenya: 30 minutes from birth to
death – watching a zebra being born then
taken away by a lion, sold to Travel Africa.
■■ Kathmandu: a holy man doing incredible
things with his private parts, sold to TNT.
■■ Taiwan: one night with 200 monks, wow,
sold to Real Travel (now gone).
■■ Paragliding on a 60th birthday: for a
seniors magazine.
Ready to pitch
Always query before you write, as any
professional would do. You may know
what has been published but you cannot
tell what is in the pipeline so avoid
wasting time or risking a rejection. The
only exception is a scoop.
Now go back to your original ideas
and decide what your first article will
be: content, focus, pictures. What sort of
market would be interested? Allow plenty
of time for this research – it is the most
important part of the process. And bear in
mind that a weekly publication will need
a lot more contributions than a monthly.
When you feel you have found a
suitable match, read at least two or three
copies and build a picture of the reader:
age, budget, likely interests. Could
PERFECT
for WRITING
TRICKS OF THE TRADE RETREATS
Hook it up
Anything topical will increase your
chances of acceptance, so dig deep and
see what you can find. For example:
■■ A new museum or attraction
■■ New low-cost or direct flight to the
destination
■■ Recently listed Unesco site, like the
Lake District The Mount
■■ Upcoming event, a royal visit, the
Tokyo Olympics
Durlston, Swanage
■■ Recovery after a natural disaster:
Nepal after the earthquake
■■ Bouncing back after unrest: Tunisia,
Turkey, Egypt…
■■ An anniversary of any kind, but if it’s
well known you’ll have to be quick.
you write for them? Did you enjoy the
magazine, and the style?
Brilliant, now email the travel editor or
features department. If you cannot find the
details, phone the switchboard for names.
Tips for your query/pitch
Large reception areas for group
■■ Subject line clear and simple: ‘Feature on workshops and socialising
Madagascar Lemur Island’. Don’t try to be
clever, it might look like spam.
■■ Show, don’t tell, that you are familiar
with the publication: use the same style and
don’t ask for guidelines.
■■ No CV, former publications (or lack
thereof) – all the editor wants is your idea.
■■ Keep it brief and to the point, mention
topical hook if at all possible.
■■ Offer images. If you have an amazing
one send it low res but offer high.
■■ Do not ask about rates at this stage.
Guess what sort of query editors really Six bedrooms with twin or
hate ? ‘I have just spent two weeks in China, kingsize beds and writing desks
would you like an article about my trip ?’
Just imagine how many articles one could
write on China! So think angle, focus – and
remember that less is more.
Get going
■■ What trip will you write about ?
■■ What is your main idea/angle/focus?
■■ Find the right market
■■ Query the editor
Next month
Time to write: we’ll look at format and style
to fit your chosen market while keeping
your own voice to liven up the story. Surrounded by a private garden
and Purbeck’s inspirational scenery
• Solange Hando is the author of Be a Travel
Writer, Live your Dreams, Sell your Features, To book The Mount for
available on Amazon
your writing group, please visit
www.themountswanage.co.uk
or call 01929 424163
 РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS

Writers FORUM

August 2018

‘I d
on’
th
ave
to wri
teabo
ut t
he f
For utur
– pin up this calendar and then use it to

e.
keep track of your progress this month

mo
Time to get serious about your writing

st p
eop
le, t
he p
rese
nt is
enou
gh li
ke th
e futur
e to b
e pre
tty sca
r y.’
William
Gibson

Pin up this calendar

and then every morning
add a note about what you are
going to write that day – it really works! Image: Tithi Luadthong
 РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS

What am I writing? Notes

Enter brief notes about what you want to achieve TODAY Important dates
(or plan your work for TOMORROW if you prefer) and deadlines

Wed 1
Thu 2
Fri 3
Sat 4
Sun 5
Mon 6
Bank Holiday (Scotland)
Tue 7
Wed 8
Thu 9
Fri 10
Sat 11
Sun 12
Mon 13
Tue 14
Wed 15
Fiction and poetry comps (rolling deadline)
Thu 16 Writers’ Forum #203 on sale

Fri 17
Sat 18
Sun 19
Mon 20
Tue 21
Wed 22
Thu 23
Fri 24
Sat 25
Sun 26
Bank Holiday (not Scotland)
Mon 27
Flash comp #203
Tue 28
Wed 29
Thu 30
Fri 31
 РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS

MASTER YOUR
CREATIVE
WRITING CRAFT

The Manchester
Writing School
Join our MFA/MA Creative Writing programme and one
of the UK’s largest and most successful literary centres.
• Study on campus or from anywhere in the world
via online distance learning (September or
January entry).
• Follow a specialist route in Novel, Poetry, Writing
for Children & Young Adults, or Place Writing £10k Poetry and Fiction Prizes
(Creative Non-fiction).
The Manchester Writing Competition
• Complete your own full-length manuscript with is now accepting entries for the 2018
editorial input from one of our world-leading writers. Poetry Prize and Fiction Prize. Both
prizes are open internationally and offer
• MA English Studies, short writing courses and the chance to win £10,000.
two-day Summer School also available. Find out more:
manchesterwritingcompetition.co.uk
Visit: mmu.ac.uk/english/creative-writing
 РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS

STORY COMP

Writers FORUM
fictioncompetition
Congratulations to this month’s winners, Jack Dabell, Rowena Fishwick and Christopher
Fielden. Do you have a short story that could impress our head judge Lorraine Mace?
Any subject, any style is welcome. Turn to the rules and entry form on page 38.

FIRST PRIZE £300

Alone Together
Jack Dabell

Contains strong language

A
re you cold?’ I cast my eyes towards Ethan and a long
silence draws out between us. I look at him with equal
parts incredulity and disdain.
‘Are you kidding me? Don’t I look cold? What sort of
question is that?’
Ethan’s eyes drop to the floor the way they always do when
someone snaps at him. His feelings bruise easier than an old peach.
‘Sorry, Ethan,’ I lie. ‘I’m just… struggling a bit. We’ve been here
too long. I think it’s starting to get to me.’
The cabin is as familiar to me as my own home now. Its walls,
once glossy and strong, are peeling and bent. The windows are just
single panes of white, not much of a view anymore. The ancient
stone fireplace sits cold and barren along one wall. No furniture to
speak of, hence why Ethan and I sit huddled on the floor.
We’re going to die here.
That thought keeps creeping back out. I put it in that box
everyone has in the back of their minds: The one labelled ‘DO NOT for the first time. I spent weeks planning an incredibly elaborate
OPEN’ and ‘FRAGILE’ which is buried in the very back of your burglary of Ethan’s dad’s liquor cabinet. What I wouldn’t give for
mind-cupboard. Trouble is, my box is getting very full. that bottle of Jack now.
‘How’re you doing?’ I ask. ‘Sit here and die.’
‘I’m fine, Mason. I think I’m holding up better than you.’ ‘Not one of your best sounding plans but you’ve never steered
I know he doesn’t mean that in a spiteful way, but I kind of hate me wrong so far, Mason.’
him for it. Why is he holding up so well? He doesn’t even look cold I wonder which one of us will die first.
or hungry. I wonder what I’ll do if it’s him.
‘How are you holding up so well?’ ‘I don’t know what you want me to say, Ethan. We’ve been stuck
‘The power of positive thinking, my friend.’ in this cabin for what? Twelve? Thirteen days? We ran out of stuff
Ethan taps his finger on his temple and offers a smug smile. to burn a week ago and we’re about to run out of food. We’re
I hate you. buried under fuck-knows how many feet of snow in a cabin that
Ethan looks like he always has: his big blue eyes shine with that probably isn’t even on anyone’s map anymore. Our phones don’t
unshakable positivity of his and he chats away like he just learned work and it’s clearly impossible to dig out of here. So, no. I do not
to talk. have a plan.’
‘So,’ Ethan chirps, ‘what’s the next plan?’ We are going to die here.
I was always the one who made the plans when we were kids.
I remember when we were teenagers and wanted to get drunk Continued overleaf

Writers’FORUM #202 37
 РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS

Writers FORUM
Want to see YOUR story published? Alone Together continued

Three great prizes every issue

1st £300 2nd £150 3rd £100
All types of story are welcome, be it crime, comedy, history,
romance, horror, sci-fi… but THEY MUST BE ENTERTAINING/
RIVETING NOT UNREMITTINGLY BLEAK. Don’t rely on
subjects like death, abuse etc to add cheap emotion. Stories
must work harder to engage readers.
● Entries MUST be between 1000 and 3000 words.
● Documents must be on plain A4 paper with double line
spacing and good margin widths. No handwritten entries.
● On the title page give your name, address, phone number,
email, story title and wordcount.
● Entry fee is £6 or just £3 for subscribers. Cheques (sterling
only) should be made payable to ‘Select Publisher Services’
or fill in your card details below.
● If your entry is placed you will be notified and asked to email a
Word-compatible file of your story plus a brief bio and photo.
How to enter
Enter at www.writers-forum.com or post this coupon
(photocopies accepted) with your payment and manuscript to:
Writers’ Forum Story Contest
PO Box 6337, Bournemouth BH1 9EH
By entering, authors agree for the story to appear in Writers’ Forum if it wins
a prize. Entries must be in English.There is a rolling deadline – entries arriving
too late for one contest go into the next.
‘Well yeah, it all sounds pretty bad when you say it like that. But
I’m sure there are loads of people out there looking for us.’
‘Oh, you’re sure about that, are you?’
‘Well, I still have hope.’
I look away and wrap my arms tighter around myself.
‘I just don’t think focusing on the bad stuff is going to help us
right now.’
‘But how can you not? We’ve got hardly any food and no heat.
Aren’t you starving? We’ve barely eaten in three days.’
As if on cue, my stomach grumbles.
‘I’m just trying not to think about it. Think about other things;
happier things.’
Like slitting your throat.
Jesus, where did that come from?
A few hours of stillness pass. I decide to take Ethan’s advice. I
sit and I think. I think about home and I think about work. I think
about my grandpa’s old armchair for some reason. I think about
dying again and then I think about trying not to think about that.
Eventually, I decide to eat the last of the food.
In normal life, which this is not, running out of something isn’t
a big deal. You run out of milk, you go and get more. You use the
last of the cheese (shit, don’t think about cheese), you go and get more.
Your car runs out of petrol, you go and fill it up. It’s no trouble.

Name He doesn’t sound right. There is

Address a look in his eyes suggesting
Postcode something has changed…
Email address

Phone number However, now, running out of things is definitely a problem. I start
to cry. Pathetic, salty tears appear on my cheeks and soak into my
Story title collar. I try to wipe them away so Ethan won’t see but it’s too late.
‘Are you crying?’
Length words
‘No,’ I sniff.
I declare the story has not previously been published or ‘You are, Mason. I can see that you are.’
broadcast and that it is my own work Fuck off.
‘Fuck off.’
ENTRY FEE: £6 (non-subscriber) £3 (subscriber) ‘Mason, it’s going to be all right. Like I said, I’m sure they
Subscribe below and take advantage of our special entry fees have people out there looking for us. They must know about the
– you can also subscribe online at www.writers-forum.com avalanche. They’ll have rescue teams out there.’
OPTIONAL: Please enrol me for an annual subscription He might be right. Maybe there are rescue teams out there.
£38 UK £49 Europe £56 Rest of world Maybe they are on top of us right now, digging down to save us. I
wish he would hug me. Isn’t that the natural instinct when one of
FEEDBACK: I would like a story critique from the judges and your friends is crying? I mean, I know we are both guys but I don’t
include a large stamped addressed envelope plus the fee of £5 think masculine ideals should be a factor right now. I need the
comfort. But I’m not going to ask him. Fuck that.
TOTAL amount payable £ ‘Maybe. I just hope they get here in time. This is the last of the
food. You should have some.’
I enclose a cheque My credit-card details are below ‘No, you have it. I’m not that hungry.’
I don’t argue too much. I eat and then lie down. Sleep is a good
Visa/Mastercard/Maestro (delete) Total £ idea. You’re not hungry or cold when you’re asleep.
We’re going to die here.
Card no
Stop it.
Expiry date Valid from (if shown) A few short hours of fitful rest later, I wake up. A few wonderful,
euphoric seconds pass where I haven’t yet adjusted to reality. In
Issue no (if shown) Security no (last 3 digits) those few seconds, I’m not hungry. I’m not cold. I’m not trapped
and I’m not going to die. For those few seconds, I am happy. And
Signature
then those few seconds pass and the grim reality comes crashing
I am happy for my story to be considered for a free fiction back. Shivering, I push myself into a sitting position against the
workshop and to be featured in Writers’ Forum (optional)
38 Writers’FORUM #202
 РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS

STORY COMP

wall. Ethan is propped up opposite me.
‘Did you sleep?’ I ask.
‘Nope.’
‘How come?’
‘I wasn’t tired.’
He doesn’t sound right. There is a look in his eyes suggesting
something has changed. That persistent positive light that always
shines beneath the colour is fading. Maybe he, like me, is starting
to give up.
‘Are you OK?’ I ask.
‘Are you?’ he counters.
I pause for a long time to think about my answer. Ethan has been
trying so hard to stay positive I feel like I should do the same. The
situation is clearly starting to get to him too. I should help.
‘No.’
Good helping, Mason.
Ethan lets out a snort.
‘Of course, you aren’t. You never are, are you? Everything’s
always a problem with you. It’s always unfair or unjust or some-
body else’s fault. You can never just be positive about something,
can you?’
Ethan stands up and starts walking towards me.
Is he going to kill me?
I let out my own sarcastic laugh this time.
‘Positive!? What exactly do you expect me to be positive about?’
I could kill him.
‘I don’t expect you to be positive about anything. That’s the
problem. That’s why we’re friends because I’m the positive one and
you’re the miserable, cynical, pessimistic one. We balance each
other out. And you know what, Mason? The balance is slipping.’
It would be easy.
‘So, what are you saying, Ethan? What’s your fucking point?’
Should I?
‘I’m saying that if you don’t lighten up a bit, I’m going to leave!’
Before he gets the chance?
‘Leave! You’re going to leave!? Well, that’d be a neat trick. Let me
see, go on, good fucking riddance.’
I stomp across the room and gesture dramatically to the door.
Ethan’s eyes drop to the floor again but it does nothing to quell the
anger he has stirred in me. ‘You can’t leave, Ethan. We’re going to
die down here and the sooner you accept that the better.’
Look at his face. He wants me to do it.
‘I should never have come on this trip.’ Ethan’s voice is soft now,
the opposite of mine.
Die, you miserable fuck.
‘Well, it’s a fucking good job you didn’t then! It’s a blessing that
your baby got sick and you had to leave after two days…’
Oh.
Well, this is just brilliant.
I am going to die down here.
About the author Jack is a 25-year-old primary school
teacher living and working in Brighton. Despite being a
professional pessimist and fully licensed cynic, Jack dreams of
one day releasing a book of short stories and a sci-fi novel.

SECOND PRIZE £150

Down the Mississippi River

Rowena Fishwick

D
id you hear?’ Dolly says. ‘Someone threw a brick through
the Earles’ window.’
‘Good on them.’ My sisters look at Mrs Humphries,
their spoons halfway to their mouths. ‘George Earle
should’ve been shot.’
Pru lowers her hand. ‘You can’t mean that.’
‘Can’t I?’ There’s a glitter in her eyes. ‘I’m surprised at you,
Prudence Andrews. Your own dear brother was killed and you
defend that conchie? Think of him. And all those other poor souls
who laid down their lives.’
Pru clears her throat, flashing me a glance. ‘Yes, but perhaps –’
‘And you can’t be sticking up for Mrs Earle. It’s always the mother.
She must’ve done something for him to turn out so cowardly.’
‘Read him too many ghost stories as a child, I expect,’ Dolly says,
grinning.
‘Well, it certainly wasn’t the Bible.’ And Mrs Humphries gives us existence of fossils, but what do you have? And if you don’t have
a look because we know what she means. anything then why should I waste my time?’
It was before I was born, but I’ve heard the story often enough. That day, George Earle walked out of church and never returned.
One Sunday, Reverend Whitman was reading through his sermon He declared himself an atheist. Mrs Humphries says it’s the worst
when George – then about ten-years-old – stuck up his hand. ‘Yes thing a person can be, even worse than a Methodist. So it’s not like
George?’ Reverend said. To which George replied: ‘You said God he refused to fight for religious reasons. No. George Earle made
created the sun on the fourth day. Well, how were there days the same argument to the War Office that he did to Reverend
before the sun?’ Reverend was too shocked at his blasphemy to Whitman. ‘So, tell me, where is your evidence that this war is the
reply. ‘And while we’re here, what evidentiary support do you
have for all of this? I mean, the theory of evolution is proven by the Continued overleaf

Writers’FORUM #202 39
 РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS
STORY COMP
Down the Mississippi River continued
right thing to do? I mean, I don’t understand how my going abroad
to kill some Germans I have no quarrel with will be at all beneficial
to society. I’m not saying you’re wrong, mind you, I just want some
proof, or why should I waste my time?’ And the official was too
shocked by his lack of patriotism to reply.
‘Just think how ashamed you’d have been if Malcolm turned out
like that. At least you can be proud of him.’
Pru stares at the table. Dolly sucks the last of her pudding from
her spoon.
‘Well, I’m proud,’ I say. ‘If all the men had been filthy conchies
and refused to fight what would’ve happened to the war?’
‘Now that,’ Dolly says, ‘is something to consider.’
‘Hester.’ Pru clears her throat. ‘Help me clear the table.’
As I take Mrs Humphries’s bowl she says, ‘Whoever threw that
brick deserves a medal.’ And I hold my head high as I march out
of the room.
The river is green today, like a field. It’s always changing colour.
Sometimes it’ll be blue, sometimes brown, and sometimes black. I
like it best when it’s blue, like Ma’s sapphire brooch. The one Dolly
claims is hers, but I’m sure we’re meant to share. Not that I care
for jewellery. I’d rather have a rifle, but Pru keeps saying: ‘This is
Oxford, England, Hester. Not Oxford, Mississippi.’
I’m up in the crab-apple tree. Now I’m seven I can climb almost
to the top and I’ve got a clear view of the riverbank. Mal is down
there with a girl. This one is blonde. They’re writhing on the grass
like a couple of snakes.
I asked Mal once what he wanted to do all that kissing for. He
said it’s just what folks do when they grow up. Like going to the
Crown, or saying: ‘You do as you’re told.’ I can see why people do
There are things rustling in the
trees and something cries out. But
I’m no coward. I climb aboard…
those other things, but the kissing looks kind of painful. Must be,
from the way the girl keeps gasping.
There’s some apples close to my head. I reach over, pluck one off,
and throw it.
It hits her on the arm. ‘Ouch.’ I throw another and it bounces
close to her leg. ‘Someone’s throwing apples at me.’
Mal spots me. ‘You quit that, Hester.’
‘Who is it?’
‘Only my kid sister. Hester, you come on down here.’
‘Not till you use my proper name.’
‘All right, Huck. You come on down and apologise.’
‘Huck?’
‘Huck Finn. She’s wanted to be him ever since she read the
book. You know, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. That’s why she
dresses like a boy. We’re gonna sail down the Mississippi together
one of these days.’
I reach the ground and scuff towards them, my hands in my
pockets. The sun is so bright it near enough blinds me.
‘You apologise to Sibyl.’
I look at this Sibyl. Up close I can see she’s got spots all over her
chin. ‘She aint as pretty as the other blonde.’
‘You thought Beatrice was pretty?’ Mal asks.
‘But neither of them is pretty as Lydia.’
40 Writers’FORUM #202
Sibyl has been getting rather red in the face and now she starts
screeching. ‘Malcolm Andrews! How many girls are there?’
He shrugs.
‘You… you…’ We wait for her to get her words out, it seems to
take an awful long time. ‘You aren’t a good boy.’
‘I told you, honey. I’ll be eighteen in a few weeks, and they’ll be
calling me up. I could be dead soon.’
‘I hope you do die. I hope you get blown to pieces!’ She snatches
her jacket off the grass and stomps off through the trees. We watch
her go. Then I roll up my overalls, and dip my feet in the water.
It’s so cold it makes me shiver, but the day’s so hot it’s a real nice
feeling.
‘She weren’t so nice as Lydia, neither.’
‘No,’ he says, and lies on his back. ‘I guess she wasn’t.’
‘Does it feel kind of bumpy kissing someone with all them
spots?’
‘You’ve got to kind of kiss around them.’ He’s staring up at the
sky, one hand hovers flat over his eyes.
‘When we gonna take our trip, Mal?’
‘We need to build a raft first.’
The water is still, like it’s turned to jelly.
‘How d’you build a raft?’
‘You need wood and stuff.’
‘But we’ll go soon, won’t we? Down the Mississippi. Just you
and me.’
‘Course we will, Huck. All the way to New Orleans. Just as soon
as we build that raft.’
‘I’d rather you didn’t say things like that around Hester,’ Pru
says. ‘You put ideas in her head.’
Mrs Humphries snorts. ‘George Earle’s a criminal. That’s why he
went to prison.’
‘That’s your opinion. It isn’t mine. And I’ll thank you not to drag
my brother into your opinions. He would have agreed with me.’
She takes a breath. ‘Since my parents died, Hester has been my
responsibility. She’s a little wild, I know. Mal was the only one who
could handle her. But I don’t need you getting her all worked up
about poor George Earle. If you can’t hold your tongue you’ll have
to find a room to rent elsewhere.’
I don’t care to listen anymore, so I go out to the back garden. I
can see Mal’s bedroom window. There’s no light inside, but when
the moon hits the glass it sometimes looks as though there is. I
wish Pru would stop saying, ‘Mal would’ve agreed,’ or, ‘It’s what
Mal would’ve wanted.’ Folk are always saying things like that, like
they can speak to the dead. And if Pru did get a chance to speak to
Mal, would she really be asking things like, ‘Do you think Hester
should do her school work?’ or, ‘Do you mind if we donate your
old clothes to the Red Cross?’ Not likely.
I head off down the lawn. When I reach the fence I climb over
the broken part and I’m running through the heath. Thanks to the
moon I can see clearly where I need to go. It’s bright and swollen,
and I guess that’s why the river is white.
The raft is hidden under the blackthorn. It doesn’t look like
much. It’s just some odd bits of wood tied together with rope, but
now Mal’s gone there’s no one I can ask for help. So it’ll have to do.
It takes a long while to push it to the edge because it’s so heavy.
It’s been hot all day, but now the air’s blood temperature. It feel like
nothing at all. There are things rustling in the trees and something
cries out. It’s so loud I think it might be right beside me. But I’m no
coward. I climb aboard the raft and use my foot to push myself
out, on to the river.
There, now I’ve done it. I let the raft drift. It wobbles. For a second
I wonder if this is a good idea. The river is faster than I’d thought
and before I know it I can no longer see the clearing.
 РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS
But I’m no coward.
I lie on my back and look at the moon. The sky’s so black and
thick, like it isn’t a sky at all but just one big rip in the world. If I sail
far enough I can find the part where the real sky returns.
The raft gives a lurch and water splashes me. I’m going much
faster now, and begin to spin. I roll on to my front and grip the
sides. I’m afraid. But it’s bad to be afraid. Did Mal feel scared when
he went off to war? I don’t think so.
Although… he did seem a bit peculiar when he came home on
leave. Sort of quiet. He smoked too much and spent too long at the
Crown. When he was around he’d just stare.
But that wasn’t because he was afraid. He was just tired. That’s
what he kept saying when I asked about our trip. ‘I’m too tired
right now.’ Then he’d go back to staring.
The raft crashes against a rock. It snaps and I tumble into the
water. I’m a good swimmer, but I can’t seem to pull myself up. I
open my eyes, but all I can see is dirt and it stings so bad I have
I lie on my back and look at the
moon. The sky’s so black and thick
… like it’s one big rip in the world
to close them. Somehow I manage to break the surface, but the
water’s got so rough I can’t stay up. I take a gulp of air and I’m
back under. Something is dragging me down. Like some poor soul
is under there and he’s hooking around my ankles and pulling.
I am scared, then. I’m so scared I want to scream and cry, but
you can’t do those things underwater. I open my eyes and can just
about see a light. The moon. It’s flickering. I scrabble around for
something to grab onto. My head thumps against something hard.
Then the light is gone.
Something touches my face. I lift my hand to bat it away, but it
keeps coming back.
‘Stop doing that. I’m trying to help you.’
Then I remember the river and I wonder if this is it. I’m dead.
And maybe this angry person is some kind of angel. But I thought
angels were nice and sweet, not grumpy.
I prise my eyes open. There’s a fire. I’m so close it makes my skin
all tingly. I look up and there’s a man sitting beside me. He’s been
pressing something against my head.
‘You nearly drowned,’ he says. ‘You always go swimming at
night?’
‘I wasn’t swimming.’
‘No. That you weren’t. You were doing the opposite of swimming.’
‘If you must know I was sailing to New Orleans.’
‘On the Thames?’
I sit up so fast I feel dizzy. ‘What am I wearing? You take my
clothes off?’
‘My mum did that. You’re wearing one of her dresses. She’s gone
to fetch your sister.’
I look at where I am. The first thing I notice is the cardboard
covering the window. It’s from a parcel of Swan matchboxes, and I
wonder how many matches these folk need, to buy a whole parcel.
‘You’re George Earle.’ I look closer at his face. He used to be
handsome. Not like Mal, who was dark and dashing, but like a
boy in a story book I once had with yellow hair and blue eyes. Now
he has a scar on his top lip and broken teeth, and a blackened eye.
‘How’d I get here?’
‘How do you think? I saw you in the water and pulled you out.
STORY COMP
Then I carried you up here. You know you’re heavy for a little girl.’
‘I’m ten, I’m not so little.’
‘No,’ he rolls his eyes. ‘Ten’s old enough to know better. Are you
stupid?’
‘I am not. Dolly says she never met anyone with a smarter mouth
than me.’
He shuffles across the floor, until his back is leant against a chair.
Then he gives the fire a prod. He looks so mad, I wonder if he
knows it was me that broke the window. Perhaps I’m not safe alone
with him. He might strangle me. Though, on second thought, if he
wanted to kill me he might as well have let me drown.
‘So what were you doing by the river at night?’
‘I like to walk at night. There’s no one around to bother me.’ He
touches his bruised eye.
‘People only bother you because you were a conchie.’ He shoots
a glance at me and I glare back. ‘If it weren’t for all you conchies
my brother might still be alive.’
‘And how do you work that out?’
‘Well, it’s law of averages. The more men there are, the less likely
you’ll be the one to bite it.’
‘I heard your brother’s ship got blown out of the water. You
ask me, if there were a few more men on board all that would’ve
happened is a few more men got killed.’
‘And why shouldn’t you be killed? Why should you be walking
around, all safe and cosy, while all them other men are dead or
wounded or… You’re a filthy coward. How can you live with
yourself?’
I erupt into tears. I don’t know what’s wrong with me, I just can’t
stop. I’ve not cried like that since I was a baby. When Pru told me
Mal was gone I squeezed a few out, to make her happy, but crying
is for silly girls in books. Huck Finn wouldn’t cry. Neither would
Mal. I guess I’m not brave after all.
I hear voices outside. I get to my feet and run to the window, but
I can’t see past that cardboard. It seems to take an age for the door
to open and I fling myself at Pru. I’m expecting her to be mad, but
she says nothing, just pats my hair and waits for me to stop.
‘You should see the doctor about that head,’ Mrs Earle says. I
look at her over Pru’s shoulder. She’s a small woman, with long
yellow fingers and hair in a plait that reaches her waist. She looks
like a creature in a fairy-tale – only one that’s grown old and faded.
‘You’ve been very kind,’ Pru says, and steps around me. I watch
her walk up to George. ‘Thank you.’ She holds out her hand. He
stares at it, as if unsure what it is. At last he uncurls his fingers and
touches it. He goes red, but then most folk do that around Pru. Mal
used to tease her and call her Anna Karenina, because he said she
looked like a Russian heroine with those dark eyes. ‘If there’s ever
anything we can do for you, you’ll let me know.’
He nods.
Then she says something that shocks me. ‘You’re the bravest
man I know.’
Even George must be shocked, because he doesn’t say a thing.
There’s a flurry of fuss from Mrs Earle, and then we’re walking
up the path in the moonlight. We’re halfway home before I can
speak.
‘How could you say that? About George Earle being brave? He
was a conchie. He was too scared to fight.’
‘There are different ways of fighting,’ she says. ‘Mal would’ve
agreed with me.’
About the author Rowena recently received a free read
from the TLC for her novel-in-progress, a psychological thriller
she is currently editing. She lives with her son in Southwick, West
Sussex, and is delighted to have been placed in this competition.
Writers’FORUM #202 41
 РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS
STORY COMP
THIRD PRIZE £100
Bloodless
Christopher Fielden
Contains strong language
M
irrors don’t lie. That’s why I avoid them.
I know I ain’t pretty. Got a broken nose. Teeth that
make my tongue look like it’s in prison. Face like a
tattoo-and-scar crash.
I’m called Ton, because I weigh a ton. Well, I don’t. Just look like
I do. Me and the dark make nightmares together. But I’m 60. At
60, you can’t contend. Not with men half your age, not with men a
third your age. You’re done.
I started out working in factories. Manual work. Lifting, moving,
packing, boring. Wanted to do something different. Something
better.
Joined a gym. Worked out. Boxed. Studied Krav Maga. Met
people. Got invited to fight. Said, ‘Yes.’ The fight took place in a
derelict warehouse. In a cage. No rules. I won. I wasn’t just good,
I was exceptional. I had speed, strength, stamina, power. No fear.
No remorse. Gave me the advantage.
Worked hard. Became notorious. Gamblers loved me. King of the
cage. Got a manager. He looked after me. Went legit. Earned good
money. Kept on winning. I was unbeatable. Problem is, you’re only
unbeatable until Time takes you to bed and fucks you.
I had the sense to stop before I got beat. Actually, that ain’t
entirely true. My manager had the sense to make me stop before I
got beat. My name became legend. Could Kane have taken me at
my prime? Could Ruin? Maybe. We’ll never know. They’re now.
I’m yesterday.
My manager thought I had a future hosting fights. Doing inter-
views. Running a gym. Shows how much he knew me. No reason to
train meant no training. No training meant no routine. No routine
meant no rules. No rules meant I could do whatever I wanted.
I had money. Not loads, but enough. For someone with sense.
Problem is, sense ain’t something I got a lot of. Spending’s too
easy. Women, drugs, booze. Moderation don’t work for me. Didn’t
plan ahead. Got hooked on Blue Gold. Stupid name, seeing as it
was white. Didn’t matter what colour it was. Made me feel good.
Snorted too much of it. Lost part of who I was. Ended up taking a
bath in Shit Creek, using piss for shampoo.
Woke up one morning on the floor. In a bus stop. Covered in
filth. My filth. It was lunchtime. People with jobs, with families,
with lives, looking, staring, avoiding. Pity in their eyes. Disgust.
Lowest I’d fallen. Not the lowest I’d fall.
I stumbled into an alley. Hid in a bin. Big metal dumpster. It
stank. Rancid. But I felt better, away from people, out of sight.
Then a shadow gave me a little black card. Yeah, that’s right. A
shadow. Whoever it was, they looked like a shadow to me. Not
sure how I got out the bin, or what I did in-between. I remember it
was dark. I was in a kids’ playground. Me and a few other fuckups,
sleeping under a climbing frame. Felt the card being pressed into
my hand. Opened my eyes. Saw the shadow. Gone before I could
work out if I was dreaming. Thought it had given me money.
Nearly threw the card away. Didn’t. Noticed the design. Liked it.
Gold writing, like sun rays. Title said ‘Witch Way?’ Under that, it
said ‘I deal in magic’. Then there was a phone number: ‘553700078’.
Things were bad. I wanted magic. Needed it. If the card wasn’t
a witch’s, maybe it was a hooker’s. Maybe she’d listen. Make me
42 Writers’FORUM #202
feel better. Used the last of my change to call. We talked. Turns
out ‘witch’ wasn’t a typo. She thought magic was real. Possible. I
almost hung up. Almost.
Her voice was kind. Genuine. I listened to her. She was good
with words. I decided to meet her. Find out if her witchcraft
bullshit was witchcraft or bullshit.
She had a hut by the river. It looked like crap from the outside.
Covered in weird graffiti. Made me think voodoo. Inside was
different. Warm. Inviting. Safe.
She was remarkable. Striking. Angelic. Not like you’d imagine
a witch to be. She wore a dress that hugged her curves. Multi-
coloured. Looked like a paint factory had puked on it. She stared
into my eyes and listened. Let me talk, tell her how shit things
were. When I was done, she told me I was the one making things
shit. I liked that about her. Her honesty.
Then she talked about magic. I was desperate. Wanted to believe
her so bad. Told her I had no money. She didn’t care. Told her I’d
do anything. She gave me a contract. I signed it. Didn’t read the
bottom bit. You know, the bit written so small you can’t read it.
Wish I had.
She stuck a pin in my finger. Pulled her dress open. Smeared my
blood on her chest, over her heart, and cast a spell.
I must have blacked out. Gone into a trance. Something… Not
sure what happened, but when I came out of it, my head felt clear.
Sober. I saw things from a distance. Saw my life how it really was.
Saw me how I was.
I’d been a mess for a decade. Thought I was beyond salvation.
Wished I was dead. Didn’t have the courage to end it. Hoped the
drugs or booze would do it for me.
Now I was considering the future. Being less of a prick. Someone
I could be proud of. I was thinking about living life. Dreams.
Aspirations. What I could be. Hadn’t thought about that in years.
I smiled. It felt alien. Made me realise how long I’d been frowning.
She had worked magic. Offered me hope. I was surprised to find
I wanted it.
She watched me carefully. Made me tea. Watched me drink it.
Gave me food. Watched me eat it. Made me promise to stay clean.
I promised. If I stayed clean, my life would be better. I’d be happy.
I’d be alive. If I didn’t, the magic would be wasted. I’d be back
where I was, snorting, drinking, waking in bins, wishing I was
dead. I promised again. She took my hand, opened my fingers and
pressed my palm on to her chest, over her heart. Her skin was soft.
Warm. She looked into my eyes. Repeated herself. Insisted I live
 РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS
life, not endure it. I promised again. I don’t know if she believed
me. I think she wanted to.
I’d done good. For a while. Got a job. For a while. Went to the
gym. For a while. Helped other wasters do better. For a while.
Pictured the witch. For a while. Remembered her words. For a
while. Lived clean. For a while. Fought the cravings. For a while.
But then the clawing, niggling, itching, yearning… it hunted
me. I tried to ignore it. Couldn’t. Cravings always in my thoughts.
In my dreams. Every moment of my existence consumed by want
want want. Need need need. Relentless. Eternal. Maddening.
Sometimes, the only way to stop the cravings is to let them in.
Accept there’s no escape. Embrace them.
I stole. Bought drugs. Amphetamines. I like being wired. The
energy. The power. Feeling immortal. Unstoppable. Like a storm.
I got wasted.
I remember waking in mud and oil. Scrap metal place. Cars
heaped around me. Moon in the sky. Silence. Complete silence.
Puke and blood on my chest. My puke. My blood. A girl next to me.
Naked. Wasted. A guy next to her. Bloody. More teeth on the floor
next to him than in his mouth. Looked at my fists. Red. Bruised.
Raw. Bite marks. Pain. It felt good. I smiled. Right then, I knew.
Knew what I was. No amount of magic would help. No amount
of trying. Pretending. I was no Samaritan. No priest. No good. No
use. Nothing. I was an asshole. I was me.
Got up. Stared at the guy. His eyes moved to look at me. He
groaned. Blood bubbled from his nose. Bone poked out of his arm.
Caught the moonlight. Looked like a magic wand.
Went through his pockets. Found a wallet. Took the cash. Fuck
him. Prick. Probably tried to rape the girl. Or me. There’s usually
a reason I get punchy. Unless I’m off my tits. Maybe he looked at
me funny.
I was hungry. Lights in the distance. A town. Or the edge of a
city. Dawn creeping through darkness. I walked towards the light.
Looked for food.
I was eating a burger. Had some stupid name. Burger Me.
Something like that. I’d spent the guy’s cash on it. It was the size
of a planet. Had its own centre of gravity. Curly fries were orbiting
it… OK, I’m exaggerating. But it was big.
I’d only had one bite when I died. One. Then the burger went
all see-through. Couldn’t grip it. Dropped through my hands. I
looked down and saw the back of my head, resting on the bun.
‘Hello, Ton.’ The voice was hypnotic. Laced with disappointment.
I looked up. The witch was sitting there, watching me. She was
naked. Blonde hair fell over white skin, hiding her tits.
‘My real name’s Dennis,’ I said. Needed her to know. Not sure
why. Seemed important.
She shrugged. ‘It doesn’t matter. You broke your promise.’ Her
eyes were different. Unnatural. So bright they hurt. It was like
looking at the sun. ‘I expected more from you. Dennis.’
I looked at my knuckles. Still raw from the fight. Bloody and
oozing.
I’d let her down. Let me down. Upset me so much it surprised
me. My eyes felt like they might piss tears. I hid it. Coughed. Spat.
Looked at her. Talked. I remember the conversation. Every word.
‘Nice scythe,’ I said. It was resting on the table. The blade was
golden. Shone like the moon. ‘I thought you were a witch.’
‘I am.’
‘Death is a witch?’
‘I’m not Death. I’m Life.’
‘You said your name was Meg.’
‘You told me yours was Ton.’
Talking to her felt like I was losing a game. ‘I’m dead, right?’
STORY COMP
She nodded.
‘So where’s Death?’
‘You gave me your soul.’
‘When?’
‘In the hut.’
‘Did I fuck.’
‘You should’ve read the small print. But it’s a good thing. It
means she can’t have you.’
‘She?’
‘Death is my identical twin. Well, almost identical. Our eyes are
different. On this side of mortality, mine are of stars. Hers are of
the void. And she wears a cloak. I’m pure. Naked. Free. Alive.’
I looked down at the burger. I didn’t feel hungry no more. ‘What
happens now?’
‘You’ll become Bloodless.’
‘Bloodless?’
‘Alive beyond death. Undead.’
‘Like a zombie?’
‘No. Nothing like that.’
‘What then?’
‘You’ll be in my care. You’ll spend eternity helping others. You’ll
guide mortals, help them understand what’s important, what isn’t,
what they’ll find fulfilling, how to find happiness. You’ll tell them
your story. You’ll dispense magic.’
‘What if I don’t want to?’
‘What you want is of no consequence.’
‘Great. Your magic didn’t work. Don’t see why you should have
me.’
‘My magic worked perfectly. I gave you clarity. Sight. Perspective.’
‘Didn’t want clarity.’
‘It’s what you needed.’
‘Still, didn’t help, did it?’
‘Yes, it did. It cleansed you. But you allowed your addiction to
consume you. The magic worked. You failed.’
‘And you still want me?’
‘Yes. I see greatness in you, Dennis. By working with me, you
might release that greatness and see it yourself.’ She spoke softly.
Every word filled with kindness. Hope. Belief in me. Me. An old
prick who did so many drugs he’s dead. My eyes were threatening
to piss again.
‘It’s time.’ She stood up. ‘Embrace me.’
I got up. Did what she told me. Had to obey. She was beautiful.
Perfect. But I felt no arousal. Just content in her arms. Protected.
And protective. I don’t know. I ain’t good with words. Or feelings.
Hard to explain it. I felt that maybe… maybe I wasn’t all bad. I had
something to give. And someone to guide me. A guardian. With
her help, I could be someone of worth.
A wind began to swirl. Her embrace got tighter. Her lips pressed
against mine. My mouth burned. I became hers. She was with me.
In me. Everywhere.
She pulled away from me. Floated up. Her hair lashed about.
Her eyes burned. She was power. She was beauty. She was every-
thing. I was nothing. She looked down on me.
‘You’re of the ever now. You are unending. Of the sun and the
stars. Of eternity. You’re Bloodless.’
The wind scattered, exhausted. She floated down. Stood next to
me. Took my hand. Led me out of the burger place. No one looked.
No one cared. No one saw what I saw.
We stood on the street. The sun was bright but it didn’t warm
me. People didn’t see me. Walked through me.
‘You will be seen by those who seek something better,’ said Life.
‘Those who have the propensity to give everything in return for
Continued overleaf
Writers’FORUM #202 43
 РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS
STORY COMP
I
Bloodless continued
always enjoy stories where
the ending takes me by
clarity. Those with hope. Those who seek magic.’ surprise, but for an entry to
Then she taught me everything. be successful, what happens
leading up to the denouement
And now I’m sitting here, in Life’s hut, talking to you. also has to be gripping and
She must see something in you. Hope. Strength. Something. Not credible. The story itself has to
everyone gets her number. Only those she can see inside. Only be enthralling and not simply
the few. You. You’re special. Don’t think you are. Think you ain’t. a series of events enabling a
But you don’t know nothing. That’s why you got a card from a twist ending.
shadow. Same one I did. You read the words. Couldn’t ignore Jack Dabell has done this ex-
them. Couldn’t forget them. Called the number. tremely well with his winning
I sat where you are. When I was desperate and living seemed entry, Alone Together. For most
pointless. I ain’t perfect. Neither are you. I don’t look like no witch. of the story I was expecting
Neither do you. That don’t mean we can’t work magic. Do good. the narrator, Mason, to attack
Just depends how we think. What we do. How we do it. his friend, so to discover right
I can’t tell you what happens if you face Death. I never done it, so at the very end that Ethan
I don’t know. Even Life don’t know. Says it ain’t her business. Same wasn’t even there was a satis-
way Death’s got no business knowing what she does. fying twist. This shows how
But Life says being Bloodless is a blessing. A gift. Makes you the skilfully Jack misleads his
best you can be. You know what? I’m starting to see it that way. readers while at the same time
OK, I admit, part of me wishes I’d read the small print. Chosen planting plenty of clues along
death. Faced Death. Been dead. I always wonder about it. Knowing the way to show the truth of
I’ll never know. Makes me restless. Like I missed a fight. A battle. the situation.
Something better than I got. But that part of me – the asshole – is These pointers are well
dying. I enjoy what I do. I learn all the time. I’m getting wiser. disguised and appear to give
Slowly. Feeling complete. Whole. Somebody. I see that greatness Mason reasons for disliking
Life told me about. I’m proud. Not of what I was. Or what I am. Of his friend.
what I’m becoming.
I think Life’s better at talking about this than me. She says that ‘How’re you doing?’ I ask.
ain’t true. I’m better. Sounds real coming from me, cos I’ve been ‘I’m fine, Mason. I think I’m
where you are. Up Shit Creek, piss for shampoo and all that. Yeah. holding up better than you.’
You know what I mean. Trying to escape. Nowhere to escape to. I know he doesn’t mean that in
Wanting better. Not sure what better is. That’s why you’re here. a spiteful way, but I kind of hate
Looking for magic. him for it. Why is he holding up
I’ve said all I got to say. You know all you got to know. It’s time so well? He doesn’t even look cold
for you to make a choice. or hungry.
Here’s a pen.
Here’s a contract. Although we don’t know
You gonna sign it? it at this stage, Ethan is a
figment of Mason’s fevered
imagination, so wouldn’t
look distressed. However, on
About the author Chris writes, runs a humorous story first read this appears to be a
competition, plays drums and rides his motorcycle, sometimes normal conversation between
to Hull and back again. He runs flash fiction challenges and has two friends trapped in a
published hundreds of authors in support of various charities. remote cabin smothered by
an avalanche.
The author has made it
clear Mason believes in his
own bleak fantasy because to
accept he is alone would be
Highly commended more than his rational mind
There were eight other shortlisted stories this month: could bear. Later in the story
another clue arrives when
Let’s Never Get Boring by Timothy Cant the imaginary Ethan insists
The Loop by Heledd Williams there will be rescue teams
Stolen by Natalie Watson out looking for them. Mason
Interview with a Button-Eyed Rabbit by Dan Patton needs reassurance, but this
Colours of Julia’s Sunday by Celtria Wakenarrow isn’t forthcoming.
Us and Them by Julie Evans
Release by Tasha Martini-Cooper I wish he would hug me. Isn’t
Aftermath by Julianna Fejer that the natural instinct when
one of your friends is crying?
44 Writers’FORUM #202
Readers will be wondering
why Ethan isn’t reacting to his
friend’s distress, but before
we can question it, the subject
of food comes up. Mason
offers Ethan some of the last
remaining provisions.
‘No, you have it. I’m not that
hungry.’
I don’t argue too much. I eat
and then lie down. Sleep is a good
idea. You’re not hungry or cold
when you’re asleep.
When the narrator wakes
he asks Ethan if he has slept,
only to hear that Ethan wasn’t
tired. So now we know that
Ethan doesn’t respond with
physical gestures, doesn’t eat
and doesn’t sleep, but these
aspects are not presented in
a way that makes the truth
obvious – until we reach the
end and discover Ethan left
before the avalanche hit.
At this point the constant
refrain of ‘we are going to die
down here’ changes to the
singular.
Oh.
Well, this is just brilliant.
I am going to die down here.
D
own the Mississippi
River by Rowena
Fishwick opens with
some excellent scene
setting dialogue.
‘Did you hear?’ Dolly says.
‘Someone threw a brick through
the Earles’ window.’
‘Good on them.’ My sisters
look at Mrs Humphries, their
spoons halfway to their mouths.
‘George Earle should’ve been
shot.’
I immediately wanted to
know who George Earle was
and why Mrs Humphries felt
so strongly.
Rowena uses another telling
section of dialogue to answer
these questions. This also
leaves the reader in no doubt
about the narrator’s part in
the attack on the window.
‘Well, I’m proud,’ I say. ‘If all
the men had been filthy conchies

Competition round-up
Dead and alive – maybe
Lorraine Mace explains why she chose this month’s winners
and refused to fight what would’ve
happened to the war?’
‘Now that,’ Dolly says, ‘is some-
thing to consider.’
‘Hester.’ Pru clears her throat.
‘Help me to clear the table.’
As I take Mrs Humphries’s bowl
she says, ‘Whoever threw that
brick deserves a medal.’ And I hold
my head high as I march out of the
room.
Hester is young enough to
see the world in black and
white. People are brave or
cowardly. There is no middle
ground. The fact that her
adored older brother perished
in the war makes her even more
determined to be brave. She
completely misunderstands his
attitude during his leave.
He smoked too much and spent
too long at the Crown. When he
was around he’d just stare.
But that wasn’t because he was
afraid. He was just tired.
The entire story is skilfully
presented, leaving the reader to
РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS
decide which view of conscien-
tious objectors is correct. Even
at the end, the narrator hasn’t
accepted that not fighting
can be the braver option, so is
shocked by her sister’s state-
ment to the very person Hester
sees as a coward.
‘You’re the bravest man I know.’
I like the way it is up to the
reader to understand what
hasn’t been said. I was left
feeling sad for George Earle,
and all the real George Earles
through the ages who have
been brave enough to be a
coward.
‘How could you say that? About
George Earle being brave? He was
a conchie. He was too scared to
fight.’
‘There are different ways of
fighting,’ she says. ‘Mal would’ve
agreed with me.’
This is a story with a strong
message, but one that has been
lightly handled.
T
he punchy sentences of
Christopher Fielden’s
Bloodless give the narra-
tive pace. It fairly races
along as we travel through
Ton’s triumphs and disasters.
Underlying the reading experi-
ence is the feeling the narrator
is talking directly to someone
other than the reader. I felt
like I was eavesdropping on a
conversation – which, in effect,
is exactly what I was doing.
Ton doesn’t hold back on who
and what he was in life, or try
to make his choices appear
more altruistic than they were.
He beat other men senseless for
money:
The fight took place in a derelict
warehouse. In a cage. No rules.
I won. I wasn’t just good, I was
exceptional. I had speed, strength,
stamina, power. No fear. No
remorse. Gave me the advantage.
His downward spiral into
drugs and penury was inevi-
table before the witch appeared
on the scene. It was at this point
STORY COMP
that a lesser writer would have
lost my attention. However,
Christopher introduces Ton’s
saviour in such prosaic terms,
it was possible to believe in her.
I liked the way her multi-
coloured dress was described as
like a paint factory had puked on it.
Had the story ended with Ton’s
lifestyle conversion I wouldn’t
have been as convinced by the
characterisation as much as I
was by his trying and failing.
This showed him as flawed, but
decent underneath it all.
I’d done good, for a while. Got a
job. For a while. Went to the gym.
For a while. Pictured the witch.
For a while. Helped other wasters
do better. For a while. Remembered
her words. For a while. Lived clean.
For a while. Fought the Cravings.
For a while.
I even enjoyed the death,
which was as matter-of-fact as
the meeting with the witch.
I’d only had one bite when I died.
One. Then the burger went all see-
through. Couldn’t grip it. Dropped
through my hands. I looked down
and saw the back of my head
resting on the bun.
The dialogue in this story
is short and sharp. I believed
totally in Ton – both alive and
dead. The final three sentences
sum up the point of the story.
I was sure the unknown recip-
ient of Ton’s newfound wisdom
would sign the contract. I know
I would.
Lorraine is co-author
of The Writer’s ABC
Checklist (Accent
Press) and author of
children’s novel Vlad
the Inhaler (LRP)
Writers’FORUM #202 45

SHORT STORIES
Fiction workshop
Our head judge uses reader entries to show how to improve your writing
Why dialogue matters
I
t is hard to make characters
come to life when the use
of dialogue is limited. It is
almost impossible (other
than in the hands of extremely
skilled writers) if no dialogue
at all is employed.
Dialogue has so many uses,
it would be difficult to choose
the most effective reason for
including it, but here are some
of the benefits.
Characterisation
As characters experience
change and turmoil, their
dialogue will reflect their
feelings. Using narrative to
explain these changes would
be far less effective. An
additional benefit is seeing
first hand the way characters
relate to one another.
How they speak
Using dialogue shows the
background of characters much
more effectively than narrative.
What is said, how it is said
and any dialect used provides
a wealth of information.
Good dialogue shows mood,
personality, background and
character.
Increasing conflict
Dialogue can (and should)
provide turning points in the
story as the characters discuss
possible options and decisions
they need to make.
Foreshadowing events
It is easier to drop in crucial
information that doesn’t
initially appear to have any
impact on the plot via dialogue
than in narrative. A character
can deliver a seemingly
innocuous line that only later
46 Writers’FORUM #202
РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS
hits home to the reader as
being important.
Essential exposition
The important word here is
essential! You can use dialogue
to give readers facts but the
dialogue has to be credible; it’s
no good having one character
tell another something they
would already know, such as
their place of birth, where they
work or the name of a spouse.
Moving the story on
Dialogue can advance the plot
in a more direct way than a
narrative explanation. For
example:
‘Jack has the knife,’ George said.
‘Where is he?’ Sally asked,
edging closer.
That’s far more effective than
the longer narrative version:
George told Sally Jack had the
knife. Sally asked George where
Jack was, as she edged closer.
A story minus dialogue
The Old Man by Jack Howard
has been written entirely in
narrative form. This causes
several issues, many of which
I have outlined above, but
another difficulty is knowing
whose story is being told.
The story opens with a
passage telling the reader about
an old man who moves into a
derelict cottage above a fishing
village. In time, the cottage is
renovated to a respectable state.
The old man keeps a dingy
called Jade, which he sails out
to an island most days to catch
enough fish to feed himself.
This introduction is followed
by several paragraphs
describing the village and the
surrounding countryside.
The old man begins visiting
the local pub, where he sits in
the window overlooking the
harbour. He reads and keeps
to himself. A woman begins
working for him as a domestic,
but she knows no more about
him than the other locals do.
One of the cottages is owned
by city dwellers Janet and
Derek, who visit at weekends
with their two children, Jason
and Sophie. Janet loves the
place and is accepted. Her
husband is unpleasant and
widely disliked. The two
children are keen sailors.
One day, while the parents
are in a nearby town shopping,
the children go out to sea and
the weather blows up. They are
able to make it to the island,
but their boat is swept away.
Janet is worried about her
children, but Derek cares only
with tutor
Lorraine Mace
that his suit is getting ruined
by the rain. By the time Janet is
able to return to the village, the
weather is so bad the lifeboat
can’t be launched.
The old man puts to sea in
Jade, makes it out to the island
and brings the children back
safely. After this exciting
rescue, he sits in his usual seat
in the pub and then dies. Janet
makes a plaque in his honour,
which is placed outside the
cottage.
Whose story is this?
As you can see from my
summary, it is the old man
whose story is being told, but
he is not the central character.
In fact, there isn’t a protagonist
as such.
I would strongly advise
Jack to rewrite the story, using
Janet as the central character.
Through her interaction with
the villagers we would be able
to see the old man as someone

If you’d like your Story Comp entry to be considered for a workshop, tick the box on the entry form or state it clearly in your email
who is present, but not really
part of village life.
The children he saves are
hers, so again this would
enable readers to be on the
wind-battered shore watching
and praying that the old man
can bring her offspring safely
home.
Taking this idea one stage
further, I am going to show
how certain passages could be
rewritten using dialogue and
interaction between Janet and
the other characters.
Janet’s acceptance
The following passage from
the story introduces the family,
but doesn’t bring them to life.
Janet loved the village and she
eventually became well-liked by
the villagers. Her husband Derek
was the opposite. He rarely made
an appearance and when he did he
was miserable, complaining about
the lack of facilities and making
veiled threats to buy the harbour
and turn it into a private marina.
As can be imagined, the residents
were not impressed and the general
opinion was that Janet should
divorce him.
There were two children of the
marriage, Jason aged eleven and
Sophie aged nine. Both children
loved the village and the sea and
were often out in the family boat,
usually with Janet, but sometimes,
during fine weather, alone.
It would help to see Janet as
she interacts with the villagers.
‘Hello, Janet,’ said Bill. ‘I see
Jason and Sophie were out bright
and early in the dinghy this
morning.’
‘Morning, Bill. I was hoping to
go with them, but Derek and I need
to go into town later.’
‘Anything to get away from this
place,’ muttered Derek.
Janet saw the frown on Bill’s
face and jumped in before her
husband could get going on his
favourite subject of turning the
harbour into a private marina.
‘Can I get you anything from
town, Bill?’
‘Oh, for goodness sake!’ Derek
hissed. ‘Are you going to talk all
morning? Let’s go.’
РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS
Adding drama Instead of telling us there has her arm and guiding her to a stool
In the following passage we been an explosive row, we need by the counter. ‘Pour her a glass
are told about Jason and Sophie to see it happening: of whiskey, Tom. Don’t you be
going out in bad weather. worrying, Janet. I expect they’re
‘We need to get back. I’m over at a friend’s house.’
Janet had gone shopping with worried sick about Jason and She swallowed and coughed
Derek to the nearest town, Jason Sophie.’ as the fiery fluid hit the back of
and Sophie preferring to sail than ‘Don’t be stupid. They’ll be fine, her throat. ‘No, they’re out in the
to shop. They had sailed further which is more than can be said dinghy… Jason and Sophie …
out from the coast than they had about my suit.’ someone help them,’ she begged,
intended or were allowed to do, so ‘How can you care more about tears flowing.
when the storm struck they were your stupid suit than your own
only just in sight of land. children? I’ve had enough of you Observations
Janet sensed the change in the and your bloody moaning. I’m Dialogue can give an
weather and when the rain started getting a taxi back to the village.’ observation more emphasis.
began to worry about Jason and
Sophie: Derek worried about his Upping the tension It was Bill who first noticed that
new suit getting wet. In the following scene, the Jade was not at her usual mooring
tension level needs to be raised. and that the old man had left. It
It isn’t necessary for us to gradually dawned on them that he
be with the children in the She burst into the bar and must have put to sea and that the
dinghy as we can use Janet’s immediately commanded silence, only reason could have been to try
observations to add the her whole appearance, wet and to find the children.
necessary drama. dishevelled, stating her panic.
She stumbled on her words, a Compare:
‘Derek, do you think the glass of whiskey was placed in
children will be OK? I don’t like her hand; she somehow, if rather ‘Look! Jade’s not in her
the look of the weather.’ incoherently, informed everyone mooring,’ Bill shouted. ‘The old
‘You don’t like it? How do you that her children were out to sea. man must have gone out to look for
think I feel? You’ve dragged me There were the usual platitudes the children.’
all over town and now it’s starting and excuses, telling her not to
to rain. My new suit is going to worry and that the children were Adding poignancy
be ruined!’ more than likely at some friend’s The ending to this story is
house. Eventually she convinced extremely poignant. Narrative
And then later: them that her children were out in doesn’t quite do it justice.
a force ten gale in a small dinghy.
Janet was getting more and She collapsed sobbing at the bar. The old man sat in his usual seat
more worried about the children: staring out to sea. It took a while
Derek was getting more and In such situations, dialogue for it to register with the others
more worried about his suit. The really comes into its own. that he had not moved and would
inevitable explosion happened and not do so again; that was indeed
Janet returned alone to the village, Janet burst into the bar. his last voyage.
hurt and crying and determined to ‘You … can anyone … my
ditch her sod of a husband at the children…’ And using dialogue:
earliest opportunity. ‘What is it?’ Bill asked, taking
Janet walked over to the old
man, who had resumed his usual
Narrative has its place place looking out to sea.
I am not advocating avoiding narrative completely. There are ‘I can’t thank you enough,’
valid reasons to use it in place of dialogue. she said, but the old man didn’t
Linking one scene with another Let us suppose a character respond.
has a conversation which he then has to relate to a third Bill touched her arm. ‘I don’t
character. It would be tedious for us to have to wade through think he’ll be answering you,
the same words. Narrative can move us on more quickly. Janet. It looks like he’s made his
Descriptive writing Allowing readers to see the setting final voyage.’
through the eyes of the protagonist adds to the reading
experience. But don’t go overboard. Writing as Frances
Action and interaction Characters need to move during di Plino, Lorraine
scenes – picking up a glass, dressing, opening and closing Mace is the author
doors, getting into cars, jumping on trains, fighting (physically), of the DI Paolo
making love, or pushing someone away. Anything that Storey crime series.
requires some form of action usually needs narrative to show Her latest book
the reader what is happening. is Looking for a
Reason.
Writers’FORUM #202 47

CV BOOSTING
WRITING FOR ANTHOLOGIES
Susie Kearley looks at the benefits of contributing to a short story collection
A
n anthology is a
book of short stories
written by different
people, usually on a
specific theme. They’re often
produced to raise funds for
charities, but some anthologies,
such as Chicken Soup for the
Soul (www.chickensoup.com),
have also enjoyed major
commercial success.
You have to send story
contributions ‘on spec’ to
Chicken Soup for the Soul, but if
your work is accepted, the fee
is well worth having. When
my story was accepted in 2013
I received $200 and five copies
of the book, and qualified for
regular newsletters.
I also became part of their
writing community, which
for US contributors includes
opportunities to participate
in book fairs and events, and
receive advance copies and
special offers. As I’m based in
the UK, it’s not possible to
take part in all the promotions,
but it’s still nice to be kept in
the loop.
Chicken Soup for the Soul is
a much bigger brand in the
US than it is the UK, but they
sell millions of books, so being
a contributor is something
48 Writers’FORUM #202
РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS
you can feel proud of.
Holy Cow Publishing (see
www.holycowpublishing.com)
publishes anthologies
regularly. In their last call for
science-fiction stories they
offered up to 10 cents a word,
which works out at $200 for a
2000-word story.
Crystal Lake Publishing
(www.crystallakepub.com)
pays less for contributions to
its anthologies, which include
the Tales from the Lake series. If
you have a piece of work that
would suit one of their themes,
the pay is about 3 cents per
word, which equates to $180
for a 6000-word story – the
maximum length they accept.
Dark Moon Digest (www.
darkmoondigest.com) publishes
horror anthologies. Their last
call for submissions offered up
to $160 for 8000-word stories.
Regular anthology
These are just a few of literally contributor Nadia Ali
hundreds of opportunities to
write for anthologies (see box,
below right). paying publications, including published in a bestselling
Animal Wellness magazine. Has anthology may have influenced
Plus points she got more work as a direct an editor’s decision.’
Nadia Ali, a Londoner who result of being published in an It’s certainly true that having
moved to the Caribbean, anthology? To be honest, it’s a good portfolio of work
is a prolific contributor to hard to tell. improves your chances of being
anthologies. She’s written for ‘Commissioning editors published elsewhere.
numerous titles, including don’t explain why they accept Nadia continues: ‘In
encyclopaedias, children’s a submission, but being anthologies, you’re published
books and true-life collections.
She says: ‘Anthologies don’t
always offer payment; you get
Where to find news of open anthologies
a byline and a contributor’s
copy. So you won’t get rich in ■ The Writing Career (www.writingcareer.com/call-for-
a monetary way from them. anthology-submissions) is a good resource for up-to-date
But I contribute because it’s a anthology information, with rates of pay included.
way of establishing myself as ■ Literary Mama (www.literarymama.com/tag/calls-for-
a published, credible writer. submissions) publishes a monthly list of calls for submissions.
‘I get richer as a writer, and it ■ Angela Benedetti (www.angiebenedetti.com/blog/
helps me develop better skills category/anthology-market-listings) publishes a monthly blog
and grow in confidence.’ of anthologies seeking submissions.
Nadia is a contributor to ■ Another useful resource is Literarium (https://literarium.net/
celebrity charity anthology We collection/anthology) which flags opportunities.
Will Survive, fronted by singer ■ Published to Death (www.publishedtodeath.blogspot.com/
Gloria Gaynor, and is also p/calls-for-submissions.html) clearly lists rates of pay for each
part of the Chicken Soup stable. publication seeking submissions.
She freelances for a variety of

It was
stimulating
to have a
purpose for
my writing
alongside fellow writers, so
you become part of a writing
community. You also have a
publishing credit that’s in print
for the long term, as opposed
to a magazine, which goes out
of circulation quickly.’
Writing for charity
Charitable anthologies are a
popular way to raise funds for
a good cause. English Heritage
released one last year called
The English Heritage Book of
New Ghost Stories. Submissions
to charitable anthologies may
not be paid, but the author can
expect a complementary copy
of the book on publication.
You could argue that it’s
better simply to give money
to a charity rather than donate
a story that may or may not
raise funds. But the call for
stories in itself raises awareness
of the charity, and a book can
highlight important issues.
Whether you want to
donate a story depends on
your circumstances and your
writing goals. In a recent blog,
Nicola Solomon of the Society
of Authors warned authors
to be careful when agreeing
РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS
to work for charities, and to
make sure that they are happy
with the terms. This includes
keeping copyright, being kept
informed of any reissues (to
update an author biography)
and ensuring that work cannot
be easily pirated, given that
charities are not usually
experienced publishers.
When I first started writing
seriously at the age of 16,
publication was a distant
dream. I was willing to write
for a small fee or to help a
charitable cause. If you’re
a struggling writer, it’s
nice just to have your work
read, appreciated and taken
seriously.
Today I write for a living,
but I’ve still given the RNIB
permission to reprint one of
my articles in Braille for free,
as it supports a good cause.
Debbie Ash-Clarke from
Buckinghamshire is
passionate about eliminating
homelessness and rough
sleeping in the UK. She
contributed to the Stories for
Homes anthology, which raised
money for the homeless charity
Shelter.
Debbie says: ‘As a society,
we offer little help to those
who have found themselves
homeless, so I wanted to write
a story that made a point. I
imagined a teenage girl whose
life goes very wrong after her
mother dies.
‘It was stimulating to have
a purpose for my writing and
I was delighted that my story
was chosen. The anthology
was such a success that they’ve
since published a second
volume.
‘I’ve now been published in
three anthologies and it does
please me to be in them. I think
they’re a worthwhile addition
to my writing CV.’
Writing for publication helps
to focus the mind, develop
your writing skills, and of
course, practice makes perfect!
There’s nothing like having
your work considered for
publication to make you pay
attention to detail.
Non-charity collections
You might, however, take a
more cautious view towards
contributing to the many
non-charitable anthologies out
there, many of which pay very
poorly, or not at all.
Consider the monetary
value of your time and effort.
Is it reasonable for writers
to work for nothing? If the
anthology is being sold, and
the printers and organisers are
being paid, some might think
the writers should get a decent
fee too.
That said, some people are
happy with any fee. Allen
Gittens, a teacher who writes
for pagan magazines among
others, says: ‘I usually write for
nothing so I’m happy to be paid
a small fee for contributions
to anthologies. Any financial
benefit is a bonus, as I usually
write for fun.
‘I’ve contributed to a poetry
collection, had short fiction
published in heavy metal
fanzines, and I have a regular
column in the Berengaria Order
[of Druids] newsletter.’
Publishing an anthology
Short story writer Sharon
Boothroyd edited Kishboo
magazine for two years,
running a short story and
poetry competition with cash
prizes for the winners. She
later re-published some of the
best stories from Kishboo in
an ebook anthology, Paws for
Thought, to raise money for
the local Halifax, Huddersfield
& District branch of the RSPCA.
‘We adopted a cat from the
RSPCA and an e-anthology
seemed like a good idea,’
Sharon explains. Additional
stories were donated by fellow
women’s magazine story
writers keen to get involved.
In the first year, the anthology
sold 20 copies and raised £25
for the RSPCA.
‘I know it isn’t mega bucks,’
says Sharon, ‘but it’s paid for
a few tins of dog and cat food.
It’s a kind of “drip drip” effect
– the sales will all add up.
‘The anthology showcases
the work of contributors, and
for the experienced writers it
was an opportunity to help
a charity that was close to
their hearts.’
• Stories for Homes (CreateSpace,
2013) is available at www.
amazon.co.uk/dp/1493534246
• Paws for Thought (Ryecorn
Digital Publishing, 2017) is
available at www.amazon.co.uk/
dp/B072HRFX8F
Writers’FORUM #202 49
 РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS

POETRY WORKSHOP

Enough of a character
The wind has worked its way through the
ropes that hold the bamboo slats. In a minute
the slats are at the wind’s mercy. It lifts them
off the ground and carries them far into the
distance. In those flashing moments when
lightning strikes the earth, the boys watch in
amazement as the wind chases the fence away,
part by part. Like magic, thinks Shortie.
The rain. The keening wind and thunder.
And lightning. Shortie wonders about the goats.
Have they run away with the wind? He does
not think they are in the pen, or where the pen
was, anymore. He is sure they are not under
the felled hut frame and thatch. These are still
there, and there is no bleating from under them.
Selvan suddenly gets up and starts running
towards the twin palm. Clutching the kid to
him, he pushes his way through the wind.
Shortie runs after him and drags him down
and they both sit in the open field. Shortie
holds himself tight and small. Selvan drops the
kid into Shortie’s lap and puts his hands around choose for your characters can have a what else does the reader need to know?
his shoulders. He howls and weeps. Louder significant impact on the way your reader A character’s physical features can
and louder. Sobs wrack his stricken and cold perceives them. Whether we like it or be reported or described directly or
body. Shortie hugs Selvan to himself. not, different names conjure up different revealed more subtly, eg in the way they
‘There, there, it’ll soon be over. Soon.’ images of the person concerned. move. With this in mind, how might you
Selvan cries even more and buries his head The names you choose for the characters show or suggest the following physical
in Shortie’s lap. Burdened by the two creatures in your poetry can reveal or suggest a characteristics without actually naming
in his small skinny lap, Shortie looks up. The whole range of information including them directly?
rain is steady now. Lots and lots of it. The sex, nationality, age, class, religion, a
wind appears to be dying down. Looking up physical characteristic or a character trait. ■■ A wall eye
at the sky, he feels a surge of joy. Selvan digs You might even link the name to the ■■ Beauty
himself deeper into Shortie’s lap. Shortie’s hand character’s job or hobby. And remember, ■■ An amputated or under-developed limb
tightens round him. Wind, rain and lightning you can use names to conform to a reader’s ■■ Morbid obesity or emaciation
dance all around them to a steady rhythm. expectations or confound them.
Shortie feels himself a raindrop, bouncing off To explore this further, try writing six Voice
the wind and falling to earth. lines about each of the following:
Seasons of the Palm by Perumal Murugan What can the reader deduce from the
■■ An Inuk (Eskimo) called Percival spoken interaction between Shortie

A
Translated from the Tamil by V Geetha
s soon as a character appears
in a poem, it is essential that
everything about them is
believable. This does not mean
they can’t have two heads, wings and
a third eye if that is right for the poem.
What it means is that the author needs to
think carefully about what evidence they
provide to the reader and what they might
just hint at or suggest; and the possible
impact of this difference.
To start with, let us consider names.
He or she, young or old?
What do the names Shortie and Selvan
convey to the reader? The names you
■■ A waitress called Abigail Harrington-
Jones or a waiter called Horatio
■■ A cowboy called Pierre-Auguste Patel
■■ A monarch called Tracy
Abbreviations are another aspect of
names you might want to consider. For
example, might the reader have different
reactions to a character called Roberto,
Robert, Robo, Bobby, Bob or Bobsy? If so,
why is this?
Get physical
What does the reader know about the
physical characteristics of Shortie and
Selvan? Spend a few moments making
a list. There’s not much information, but
and Selvan? In the extract by Perumal
Murugan, there is no description of Shortie
or Selvan’s voices. The only reported
speech is Shortie saying: ‘There, there,
it’ll soon be over. Soon.’ And Selvan cries,
howls and weeps.
Take some time to think about the
difference between a character’s voice
and the words they use or the noises they
make. Explore this further by writing some
direct speech for a voice that is:
■■ Posh or not posh (think carefully about
your notion of both)
■■ Brittle, chipped or broken in some way
■■ Musical (think beyond baritone or
soprano)
■■ Exhausted

50 Writers’FORUM #202
 РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS
You can contact Sue at poetry@writers-forum.com
with poetry editor
Sue Butler
Ensure the direct speech is appropriate
for the historical period in which your
poem takes place.
All in the mind
What is the reader told or shown about
mental and emotional characteristics of
Shortie and Selvan? Does it matter if the
reader has no idea about the relationship
between the characters before the poem
began and after the poem ends?
Physical location
Where in the world are Shortie and Selvan,
the goats, the pen and the storm?
The location in which a poem is set
should always be 100 per cent believable
in poetic terms; however, does it always
matter whether the reader knows exactly
where?
How do you convey a sense of the
location without saying this poem takes
place in the kitchen of 86 Acacia Avenue
or in a specific goat pen in a specific field
in a specific region?
Time of day
Is it important that the reader knows
exactly at what time of day or night the
action in your poem takes place? For
example, what is the difference between
Shortie and Selvan being caught out in the
storm at noon or at midnight?
Pulling it all together
There is so much to think about when
creating a character. Have you considered
their clothes, the contents of their pockets,
the food the characters might eat, the
songs they might sing? Try to literally step
into your character’s shoes, their skin and
their mind; experience the time of day and
the physical location, then enjoy writing
bravely and boldly.
Poetry feedback service
If you’d like detailed and targeted feedback
from Sue, you can purchase an extended
critique of three poems for £35. Email her at
poetry@writers-forum.com for details.
POETRY
EXPERIMENT
Manners of speaking
For a Child of 1918 by Elizabeth Bishop (1911–1979)
My grandfather said to me ‘and he’s well brought up. See, he
as we sat on the wagon seat, answers
‘Be sure to remember to always nicely when he’s spoken to.
speak to everyone you meet.’ Man or beast, that’s good manners.
Be sure that you both always do.’
We met a stranger on foot.
My grandfather’s whip tapped his hat. When automobiles went by,
‘Good day, sir. Good day. A fine day.’ the dust hid the people’s faces,
And I said it and bowed where I sat. but we shouted ‘Good day! Good day!
Fine day!’ at the top of our voices.
Then we overtook a boy we knew
with his big pet crow on his shoulder. When we came to Hustler Hill,
‘Always offer everyone a ride; he said that the mare was tired,
don’t forget that when you get older,’ so we all got down and walked,
as our good manners required.
my grandfather said. So Willy
climbed up with us, but the crow
gave a ‘Caw!’ and flew off. I was
worried.
How would he know where to go?
But he flew a little way at a time
from fence post to fence post, ahead;
and when Willy whistled he answered.
‘A fine bird,’ my grandfather said,
What constitutes good manners 100 years later? What type of behaviour
might a grandparent, parent or any adult for that matter expect of a child
in 2018?
Write a poem on this topic using the same style and format as Elizabeth
Bishop. Take note of Bishop’s rhyme scheme and be sure to have your
poem narrated by a child.
Pay careful attention to the way the adult and the child in your own
poem speak to each other. How might this differ from the interaction in
Bishop’s poem?
POETRY WORKOUT
Forget choosing eight pieces of music, a book and a luxury –
what would it really be like on a desert island?
1
Cook a three-course meal using only fuel, utensils and foodstuffs
found (or made with available materials) on your island, plus two
items saved from your shipwreck.
2 Who or what makes the footprints or the eerie wail at twilight?
3 Try to attract attention or escape. Do you know how to start a fire
or build an electronic signalling device? Can you build a raft, an
aeroplane, a time-travel machine?
4
What do you miss and what don’t you miss?
Writers’FORUM #202 51
 РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS

POETRY

Poetry competition with poetry judge Sue Butler

£100 winner
The Toolbox
Terry Baldock, Droitwich Spa, Worcs
I found my Dad’s toolbox
The other day,
Dumped in the garage;
Hidden away.

A fold-out lid
That held old screws,
Tools inside that he’ll
Never use.

There’s hammers and spanners

T
And bits for drills;
Old Polyfilla
he winning poem this month is by Terry Baldock from That no longer fills.
Droitwich Spa. On the page, the final two lines might initially
look like an unanswered question, but having read the poem it Screws to put in and
is abundantly clear how an old box can break a heart. Screws taken out,
Picture hooks wire and
Pieces of grout.
About the poet Terry, 71, is a retired civil engineer who
tries to enter as many writing competitions as possible and has Packets of nails that
had a few successes. He joined a writers’ group last year and is He never used.
grateful for the encouragement and help it has provided. All as forgotten when
He was confused.

Highly Commended The saw that created

My cricket stumps;
Painting Sound by John William Thompson, Ashton-under-Lyne The train he made me,
Ageing by Tracey Foley, Holtby, N Yorks When I had mumps.
The Chair by Peter Hickman, Purley, Surrey
He wasn’t a carpenter,

Poems that might have been

Or joiner by trade,
But we were so proud of things
That he made.
Use the ideas below to explore the different directions
the winning poem might have taken. Think about Tables, lamps, wardrobes,
format, style of language and narrative development. And shelves.
Use the questions to inspire your own poem or poems. Things that we couldn’t have
Made for ourselves.
■■ The poem explores how a box full of things can break a heart. Use
the same four-line stanza format to explore the contents of a box that All being sold except
creates a different emotion, eg joy, horror, anticipation or remorse. Loved souvenirs,
That have meant something
■■ The narrator says: ‘All being sold except, Loved souvenirs’. Write Over the years.
about buying one of these. Consider location, finances, emotions, the
object’s ability to ‘speak’ and what happens next. Things put together,
Things taken apart.
■■ The father is not a professional carpenter or joiner. Write about How can an old box
someone (or yourself) by only saying what they (or you) are not. Break someone’s heart?

52 Writers’FORUM #202
 РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS

Writers FORUM Professional Self-Publishing

Want to see YOUR poem
published in these pages? “ I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend them for their
Any topic, any style – all entries welcome! Rhyming or free verse, professionalism, customer care and post-production
haiku or sonnet, funny, sad, romantic or angry… assistance, all at a reasonable price.“
Prize £100 and a Adrian Churchward Moscow Bound and Dancing With Shadows

Chambers Thesaurus worth £40

How can we help you…?
ENTER AS MANY POEMS AS YOU LIKE ∙ Editing and proofreading
£4 PER POEM – OR £6 WITH CRITIQUE ∙ Book cover design
∙ Trade distribution
● Poems must be a maximum of 40 lines and printed on A4.
∙ Book marketing
● Give your name, address, phone number and email address.
∙ Worldwide Amazon listing
● Add a brief biography of yourself: age, occupation, family, ∙ Author websites and social media
writing career to date, favourite poets.
∙ One-to-one support
● Entry fee is £4 per poem, or £6 per poem if you would like
a brief but helpful critique from poetry editor Sue Butler.
Cheques (in sterling only) should be made payable to
‘Select Publisher Services’, fill in your credit-card details
below or pay online at www.writers-forum.com
How to enter
Fill in the coupon below (photocopies are acceptable) and
post with your cheque or credit-card details to:
Writers’ Forum Poetry Contest Discuss your next book with Publishing Team Assistant Anna Loo
PO Box 6337, Bournemouth BH1 9EH E: assistant@silverwoodbooks.co.uk | T: +44 (0)117 910 5829

By entering, you will have been deemed to agree for the poem to www.silverwoodbooks.co.uk
appear in Writers’ Forum if it wins a prize.The competition is open
worldwide but entries must be in English.
Deadline: 15th of each month. Late entries go into the next contest.

Name

Address

Postcode

Phone number

Email address
Institute of Continuing Education
Poem titles
Study creative writing
at Cambridge this summer
Join adults of all ages and backgrounds at the University of
I declare that this poetry has not previously been published Cambridge International Summer Programmes. The Creative
or broadcast and that it is my own work Writing Programme (5 - 18 August) builds on Cambridge’s rich
literary tradition and will help you develop your writing skills.
Signed
Courses will focus on the writing of fiction and non-fiction in
I enclose (please tick) my poem(s) payment of £ a range of genres and styles. Course Directors – all established
writers – will set practical writing tasks and guide you in critical
a stamped self-addressed envelope for my optional critique
reflection of your own work, that of fellow students, as well as
OPTIONAL Please enrol me for an annual subscription that of published writers. Well-known figures from the world of
at the price of £38 (UK) £49 (Europe) or £56 (Rest of world) publishing will give plenary lectures and evening talks. Our other
open-access programmes include Literature, Shakespeare
Visa/Mastercard/Maestro (delete) Total £
and, new for 2018, Art and Visual Culture.
Card no You can stay in a historic College, get to know other students
Expiry date Valid from (if shown) at meals in magnificent dining halls, join excursions and social
events, and enjoy all that Cambridge has to offer.
Issue no (if shown) Security no (last 3 digits)
+44 (0)1223 760850
Signature intenq@ice.cam.ac.uk
www.ice.cam.ac.uk/intsummer
 РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS

DIRECTORY

Authors! Moonwriting
Would you prefer to be
A range of services at
writing and creating your
stories and articles than reasonable prices incl.
typing and formatting? Word processing &
Manuscript critique
Sarah.purdue@sky.com
Our experienced and dedicated
staff offer: 2018
Relax & Write www.moonwriting.co.uk
* Audio Services * Copy Typing Weekends

S
Services * Business Support * 116-18 November at Lilleshall
Formatting * Publishing Shropshire

s
‘Getting Away with Murder’ with
GET RITING

a
* Website Design for your book

und
Stephen Wade
Find out more about our friendly ‘Writing Creative Non-Fiction’ with
Simon Whaley
efficient service. Call Julie or Tina ‘Write from the Top : The Cream of
on 01367 246003. Poetry’ with Alison Chisholm Writing
info@mypavirtualservices.com ‘Write that Romantic Novel’ with Kate
Walker
www.mypavirtualservices.com Informal & fun our A series of one-day events for writers
courses suit all levels. on the second Sunday of each month
All inclusive fee From 10:20am to 5:00pm
ONLY £249 & £255
BOOK Book Early
Pay by instalments
13th May: Short Story Writing
10th June: Writing for Children

PUBLISHING Free Parking

Contact Lois on
8th July: Effective Dialogue

Authors invited to submit Tel 01454 773579 Lively Workshops All this for
manuscripts all categories E-mail loisbm@aol.com
www.malagaworkshops.co.uk
One-to-One Surgeries £35
including poetry Buffet Lunch per day
Free Parking
New Authors welcome
(Workshops,
Surgeries,
Coffee and Cake Lunch & Cake
)

A.H. STOCKWELL LTD, For further details

ails and tto
enrol, contact Wendy on
Dept. 857, Torrs Park,
Ilfracombe,
01269 820596
or e-mail: wendyhusemann@gmail.com
Devon, EX34 8BA. Brynamman House,
Tel 01271 862557 Brynamman, Ammanford
www.ahstockwell.co.uk
Publishers for over 100 Years
To The Last Word
Editorial Services
who write
f or w omen
m ag azine ‘Gary Dalkin is a thoughful and highly

the professional editor..’ Arthur.C.Clarke

Award-winning author Tricia Sullivan

Gary has edited award-winning/

bestselling writers including, Cherith
Baldry (Erin Hunter), Eric Brown,
Ken MacLeod, Simon Morden, Adam
Roberts, Justina Robson, Lisa Tuttle.

g. Enquire for an edit or critique of your

y of writin manuscript.
psycholog
ss and
t h e busine
ss in Tel: 01202 579640
astercla Mob. 07552 220438
Subscriptions start at £24.95
r terly m
A qua mslexia.co.uk/subscribe gary.dalkin@live.co.uk
0191 204 8660 www.tothelastword.com

For advertising, call Wendy Kearns on 01392 466099 or email advertising@writers-forum.com

 РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS
Send your event listings three months ahead to diary@writers-forum.com
Literary diary
FESTIVALS
Port Eliot Festival, Cornwall
26-29 July
An annual celebration of words, music, ideas,
nature, food, fashion, laughter, exploration and
fun. This year Billy Bragg, Blake Morrison, Philip
Marsden and Clare Mulley are among those
taking part.
www.porteliotfestival.com
Edinburgh International
Book Festival
11-17 August
Set in a specially created tented village in
Charlotte Square Gardens, this festival offers
something for every age and interest, with
more than 1000 authors taking part, including
novelists, poets, scientists, philosophers, sports
people, illustrators, historians, biographers
and Nobel and Booker prize-winners.
www.edbookfest.co.uk
Swanwick: The Writers’ Summer
School, Derbys
11-17 August
A week of speakers, courses, workshops, panels,
talks and more. There’s no need to sign up in
advance for courses or workshops – choose
what inspires you on the day. Our own Della
Galton is among those taking part, alongside
Sue Moorcroft, Paul Dodgson and Julia Pattison.
www.swanwickwritersschool.org.uk
Beyond Borders
International Festival
25-26 August
Panel discussions and debates exploring world
cultures and new ideas in the tranquil setting of
Traquair House, near Peebles. Authors taking
part include Richard Holloway and Stuart Kelly.
www.beyondbordersscotland.com
Hastings Litfest
31 August – 2 September
Venues across the town including the pier will
be hosting author talks, workshops, meet the
agent events, a book fair and poetry readings.
Michael Arditti, Kevin Brooks, Alison Moore
and Sheila Bugler are among those taking part.
www.hastingslitfest.org
NAWG Annual Festival of
Writing, Warwick
31 August – 2 September
Hone your writing skills, meet new friends and
enjoy opportunities to network with writers,
agents and publishers. Workshops are run by
professional tutors such as Ken MacLeod, James
Nash and our columnist Morgen Bailey.
www.nawg.co.uk
Budleigh Salterton
PENfro Book Festival, Pembs
6- 9 September
Rhosygilwen Mansion hosts this annual event
celebrating the quality and diversity of writing
in Wales today, recognising the contribution of
local publishers and booksellers. Paul Dodgson
and Angela John are among those taking part.
www.penfrobookfestival.org.uk
Festival of Writing, York
7-9 September
Meet agents and publishers, get advice from
professional authors and make lifelong friends
during this inspirational weekend, which takes
place at the University of York. Now in its 12th
year, it’s for writers looking to hone their craft
and get published traditionally or independently.
https://jerichowriters.com/festival-of-writing
Budleigh Salterton Literary
Festival, Devon
19-23 September
Now in its 10th year, the event is bigger than
ever, with five days of bestselling authors,
lively panel debate, workshops and events for
children. Hilary Mantel, Kate Morton, Michael
Rosen, Wendy Cope and Michael Morpurgo are
just some of the big names appearing this year.
www.budlitfest.org.uk
AUTHOR & BOOK EVENTS
Jack Sheffield, Milton Keynes
1 August, 1pm
Waterstones hosts the author as he signs his
new novel Starting Over, set in the years before
his Teacher,Teacher series. The event is free.
For more details call 01908 395384.
Paige Toon & Lindsey Kelk,
Cardiff
2 August, 6.30pm
The authors will be in conversation at Reardon
DIRECTORY
Kate Medhurst brings you
the pick of next month’s
writing and book events
Smith Theatre, reading from their latest works
and taking questions. Tickets cost £7.
For more details call 02920 871846.
Jasper Fforde, Oxford
3 August, 7pm
The author will be at Waterstones to talk about
and sign copies of his latest novel, Early Riser.
Tickets cost £5.
For more details call 01865 790212.
Peter Robinson, Reading
8 August, 12.30pm
The author will be at Waterstones, signing
copies of his new DCI Alan Banks novel Careless
Love. The event is free, arrive early to get a seat.
For more details call 0118 958 1270.
Louis de Bernières, St Andrews
15 August, 8pm
The bestselling author will be at Topping and
Company Bookshop with his new novel,
So Much Life Left Over. Tickets cost £7.
For more details call 01334 585111.
Gabrielle Kent, Yarm
17 August, 2pm
Kent will be at Waterstones signing copies of
her latest novel, Knights and Bikes, for ages 9-12.
For more details call 01642 939720.
Carrie Hope Fletcher,
Birmingham
20 August, 7pm
The Glee Club hosts an exclusive author talk
and book signing with the singer, songwriter
and author. Tickets cost £17.99 and include a
copy of her novel, When the Curtain Falls.
For more details call 0871 472 0400.
Matt Haig, Glasgow
25 August, 7pm
The author will be at Waterstones talking about
his new book, Notes on a Nervous Planet. Tickets
cost £12.99, including a copy of the book.
For more details call 0141 332 9105.
Patrick Gale, Bristol
29 August, 7pm
Gale will be discussing his new book Take
Nothing With You with novelist Tiffany Murray at
the Central Library. Tickets cost £4.
For more details call 0117 922 2000.
Sebastian Faulks, Bath
11 September, 8pm
The author will be at Topping and Company
giving an exclusive, pre-publication reading from
his forthcoming novel, Paris Echo. Tickets cost
£20, redeemable against a purchase of the book.
For more details call 01334 585111.
Writers’FORUM #202 55
 РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS

DIRECTORY
INSPIRATIONAL WRITERS RETREAT
SOUTH WEST FRANCE
Advertise AUTUMN VOICES
Writers talk about creativity in later life
in A historical and culturally rich area of the
Languedoc Roussillon. The property is set
Writers’ Forum This book is just amazing.
Nobody who reads it
in the seclusion of its own grounds and
surrounded by open countryside. A converted
To talk about can doubt its central
significance. There is 18C farmhouse providing accommodation
advertising hardly a page when I
wasn’t brought up short
for self-catering holidays, bed and breakfast,
family/group holidays, workshops or retreats.
call Wendy Kearns on by an insight memorably
expressed. A treasure trove.
There are two houses available, one sleeps 5,
the other house sleeps 4 and an apartment
01392 466099 (John Killick, poet &
former chair of National with one double room. Accommodaton is
Or email Association of Writers in
Education)
spacious with fully equipped kitchens.

advertising@ Seasonal Swimming Pool, Tennis Court, lawns

and gardens
writers-forum.com Order through: www.autumnvoice.co.uk
It is especially suitable for anyone
wishing to run workshops or for writers
wishing to find peace, quiet and inspiration
in beautiful surroundings.

Written a novel?
Literary Self-publishing?
Consultant Submitting to agents?
Friendly, professional
support for writers. Experienced editor and writer
Karol Griffiths providing copy/content/line
Editor & Writing Coach. editing, proofreading and
Years of Experience working with beta reading. Feedback and
Bestselling Authors, suggestions on all aspects of your
Screenwriters, Playwrights and
New Writers. manuscript. Help with synopsis
writing, query letters, blurbs, self-
publishing and promotion.
Excellent rates
For further information please contact:
alisonwilliamswriting.wordpress.com Helen Tel: 0033 (0)4 68 69 10 99
Email: alisonewilliams@sky.com
Email: maneque@wanadoo.fr
Tel: 07891 065 012

Reasonable Rates
For more information visit: AUTHORS! WRITERS! LOOK!
www.karolgriffiths.com L

bcs
or call: 07942 552 050 One-Stop Shop for ALL Your Writing Needs
Let us help you
create a quality Writing Typing Proofreading Editing
book with a Typesetting Formatting for Kindle + Print
Editorial & beautiful cover
Full Self-Publishing Help!
Critique Service michelleemerson.co.uk / 07887685922
Realise your potential... Friendly, Affordable, Professional Support for Serious Writers

Award Winning short story writer and published

novelist, Debz Hobbs-Wyatt provides copy editing,
proof reading and in-depth critique on short stories Janet Williamson
and novels. Advice on narrative, style, voice, plot, We have over 15 years experience creating Creative Writing and Editorial
pace, dialogue etc., with suggested revisions and professional layouts and excellent covers, Advisory Service
with a knowledgebase to help you on
ideas for placement. Affordable prices.
your journey. Check out our website for Friendly Efficient Service at
Free or discounted follow-up after revision affordable prices on formatting, design, affordable rates.
Check out her website for more ebook conversion and proofreading.
information www.debzhobbs-wyatt.co.uk www.williamsonswordsuk.com
bookcreateservice.com
Or email enquiries@bookcreateservice.com
or please phone
writer@debzhobbs-wyatt.co.uk 01626 870999 01709 526071

For advertising, call Wendy Kearns on 01392 466099 or email advertising@writers-forum.com

 РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS

Send your event listings three months ahead to diary@writers-forum.com DIRECTORY

New courses
HELPFUL NEW BOOKS

Writers’ & Artists’ Yearbook 2019

(Bloomsbury Publishing, £19.49) is the
bestselling guide
to all areas of
publishing and is
updated every
year. The book
is packed with
advice, inspiration
and practical
guidance on
who to contact
and how to get
published, and
includes over
4000 listings
entries. New articles this year include
writing about sport, writing successful
dialogue, world-building, self-publishing your
audio book and more.

Novel & Short Story Writer’s Market

West Dean College
RESIDENTIAL COURSES
Fiction Retreat, Inverness-shire
6-11 August
This course provides an opportunity to develop
your ongoing work in a supportive and inspiring
environment. Whether you are stuck in the
middle of a project, attempting to whip a first
draft into shape or applying the final tweaks to
your manuscript, this course provides detailed
one-to-one tutorials to cater for your needs. It
takes place at Moniack Mhor Creative Writing
Centre, in the beautiful Scottish Highlands near
Inverness, and costs from £540.
www.moniackmhor.org.uk
Short Story Writing, West Sussex
11-17 August
On this week-long summer course run by
Ruth Brandt you will learn the fundamentals
of writing as you develop your ideas into
short stories. Through a series of exercises
with plenty of feedback, discover how to use
character, setting, dialogue, conflict and dramatic
structure to write and edit your work. It costs
£709 (course only, accommodation extra) at
stunning West Dean College (above).
www.westdean.org.uk
ONE-DAY COURSES
Beginner’s Guide to
Writing a Novel, London
8 August
The emphasis of this course is to get a grasp
on what you’re up against – and to make it
clear that although talent can’t be taught, story
techniques and principles do exist and are very
powerful. Learn them well and you will have
the basic tools to write a novel. It costs £49
and takes place at the Guardian offices in
Farringdon from 6.30pm to 9.30pm.
www.theguardian.com/guardian-masterclasses
Writing Haiku Poetry, London
10 August
This interactive daytime workshop offers
students the opportunity to learn about key
literary figures in the haiku genre and write
their own poetry inspired by a range of stimuli
and prompts. It takes place between 10.30am
and 4.30pm and costs £59.
www.citylit.ac.uk
Writing for Wellbeing Taster,
Staveley, Derbys
1 September
This workshop with Leonie Martin uses a
series of fun and engaging prompts based on
the five senses.You’ll be encouraged to unlock
your imagination and put pen to paper. It takes
place 10.30am–12.30pm at Staveley Library. The
workshop costs £5.83 and can be booked via
Eventbrite (use search to find the event).
www.eventbrite.co.uk
SHORT COURSES
The John Retallack Playwriting
Course, Oxford
10 September – 3 June
This professional-level course based in Oxford
is from award-winning playwright and director
John Retallack and covers every aspect of
writing a play. There will also be individual
tutorials at the end of each term. Sessions take
place every Monday and there is a maximum
of eight writers per group. Admission is via
2019 by Robert Lee Brewer (Writers
Digest Books,
£22.99) includes
hundreds of
listings for book
publishers,
magazines, writing
competitions
and literary
agents, updated
annually. It features
advice from the
experts, covering
everything from character and plot to
unleashing your storytelling skills, as well
as interviews and articles on selling your
work. An American publication, it’s essential
for anyone looking to publish in the US.
Published 28 September.
interview plus a submission of written work.
It costs £2750.
www.oxfordplaywriting.co.uk
Novel Writing, London
13 September 13 – 7 March
Based at Curtis Brown’s central London offices,
this hugely popular, face-to-face creative writing
course features visits from the Curtis Brown
literary agents and takes place over six months.
It is led by Simon Wroe and costs £2990.
www.curtisbrowncreative.co.uk
ONLINE COURSE
Writing for Children
Jericho Writers
Learn how to turn a simple premise into a
full-length story for children, how to develop
your voice, build recognisable worlds and create
unforgettable characters.You’ll learn what
publishers and agents are looking for and gain
the tools to begin creating compelling stories.
The course costs £365 and lasts six weeks.
www.jerichowriters.com

Writers’FORUM #202 57
 РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS

MOTIVATION

Emily Cunningham of The Write Factor

publishing agency helps you find the way
forward with your writing

THE

MENTOR
I’m stuck in an introspective rut
I love to write about the thought processes
of my character but then I end up
neglecting the ‘action’ element of the story.
What can I do?

Cara, Kidwelly

A
glimpse inside someone’s head is
a delicious treat, Cara, and isn’t
necessarily a problem. One of the
greatest strengths of a novel over any
other creative media is that it allows for
descriptions of emotions and thoughts.
You don’t get such hand-holding during
films and TV dramas. The viewer is left to
guess what’s going on in the actor’s head
by scrutinising their facial expressions.
Equally, there’s no explanations with
visual art or poetry, you have to make
your own mind up, which can be
off‑putting (many people find both of
these intimidating for just this reason). In
a book, you can lay it out beautifully for
the reader to enjoy.
One example I enjoyed reading recently
was by a student on my creative writing
course at The Write Factor. She wrote
a short story told in the first person
about a nurse sitting by a patient’s bed,
knowing he is about to die. The whole
piece is devoted to her thoughts during
this time; reflecting on who the patient
was, wondering whether his family will
arrive in time and then drifting into
daydreaming about what to have for
dinner, all while she held his hand and
watched his chest rise and fall ever-more
slowly. The only action of the piece is
at the beginning, when she decides to
keep the patient company during his last
moments.
It was written so elegantly that I wasn’t
craving a car chase and the absence
of hand grenades didn’t leave me
disappointed. Instead, I was entranced
by the depiction of that moment in time,
suspended as if in amber.
The fact that you enjoy writing about
a character’s interior life is hopeful, as it
suggests that you have a talent for it, that
what you write excites you. There’s no
need to tack on extra action just because
you think you should.
In your email, Cara, I can hear a ‘should’.
You feel you should include action, that
you should tread a recognised path in your
work, but I want you to ignore that tedious
harpy and pursue your own style.
Is the ‘should’ popping up because
you doubt your own ability? Or perhaps
because you think your work won’t be
successful? Try not to let this influence
you. As author Geoff Dyer said:
‘Never worry about the commercial
possibilities of a project. That stuff is
for agents and editors to fret over – or
not. Conversation with my American
publisher:
‘Me: “I’m writing a book so boring, of such
limited commercial appeal, that if you publish
it, it will probably cost you your job.”
‘Publisher: “That’s exactly what makes me
want to stay in my job.”’
There’s plenty of room on bookshop
shelves for a variety of writing styles.
Leave the action to James Patterson.
Thinking about books that favour internal
monologue over action, I’m reminded of
the greatest book no one’s ever finished:
Ulysses by James Joyce.
According to literary critic Declan
Kiberd, this lengthy stream of
consciousness is a ground-breaking

58 Writers’FORUM #202
 РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS
There’s plenty of
room on bookshop
shelves for a variety
of writing styles
masterpiece: ‘Before Joyce, no writer of
fiction had so foregrounded the process
of thinking.’ (Anyone else pause over the
word ‘foregrounded’?)
Another, more accessible book of a
similar style is by Nicholson Baker. I’ve
mentioned him before as having the
ability to turn daydreaming into an art
form. His novel The Anthologist focuses
entirely on a poet agonising about writing
the introduction to a forthcoming book.
Yes, that’s the plot of the whole novel.
It’s a courageous move, ironically, to
sacrifice action completely. And did that
gamble pay off? A review in the literary
blog No Pun Intended is not sure: ‘Reading
Send your letters to Emily at mentor@writers-forum.com
The Anthologist is like reading the memoir
of someone who just wants desperately
to be liked; there seems to be little other
point to the story.’ Ouch.
The reviewer goes on to suggest that
the book’s success is explained by the
Emperor’s New Clothes mentality:
‘It can sometimes seem plebeian or
vulgar to want stories to have plot – it can
make you seem like the kind of person
who only reads Stephen King and John
Grisham, or only sees movies directed by
Michael Bay. This, I suspect, is why The
Anthologist received such good reviews.
Critics don’t want to sound crass by
complaining that not enough happens. But
the traditional elements of story are there
for a reason. We don’t just read novels
because they are about someone; we read
them because they are about something.
And for a story to really have an impact, it
needs to have conflict.’
This is a fair point, but it’s still possible
to do this whilst remaining true to your
own style. If you have faith that your
writing is absorbing and your characters
are believable then you’re on to a winner,
action or no action.
As Margaret Atwood said, one of the key
goals in writing is to:
‘Hold the reader’s attention. (This is
likely to work better if you can hold your
own.) But you don’t know who the reader
is, so it’s like shooting fish with a slingshot
in the dark. What fascinates A will bore the
pants off B.’
There are readers out there, including
myself, that relish an examination of
someone’s psychological makeup. Gaining
an insight into another person’s perspective
is often fascinating and a very effective
way to flesh out a character. Learning about
their motives, desires and regrets is the
meat and drink of creative writing.
One caveat I would offer is that you
make sure that whilst you’re deep inside
your character’s head, their thoughts are
moving the story forwards. Something has
to happen, even if it’s that your character
decides not to leave her husband. Having
a plot, a framework from which to hang
your work will helpd to make your book a
page‑turner.
So, to summarise, Cara, you worry
about neglecting action, but I think that
if your writing is engaging, then action
must still be there, just not in the form of
in-your-face murders and explosions.
Tips to take away
■■ Remember pace – writing about internal
workings has a more sedate pacing so
use techniques such as moving between
different scenes, or the past and present, to
keep up the flow.
■■ Big up the colour – because you’re
sacrificing traditional ways to grip the
reader, you have to compensate by making
sure your descriptions zing.
■■ Take comfort in the words of 18th
century philosopher William Godwin: ‘The
philosophy of the wisest man who ever
existed is mainly derived from the act of
introspection.’
The Write Factor offers all
sorts of services to support
your writing process, from
mentoring and writing courses to editorial
feedback and assessment. Find out more at
www.thewritefactor.co.uk
Writers’FORUM #202 59

AUTHOR KNOW-HOW
Research secrets
Rupert Thomson talks to Anita Loughrey about his ‘method writing’
approach to his research for his novel Never Anyone But You
I
n 2006, I opened a magazine
– I forget which one – and
was stopped dead in my
tracks by a black-and-white
photograph of a woman with
a shaved head and eyebrows,
her face alert but wary, as if
the photographer had taken
a liberty, or startled her. She
looked like a vampire or
someone in a concentration
camp. Who was she?
Her name, it turned out, was
Claude Cahun, and the photo
had been taken in 1928. I found
that hard to believe; the image
looked so modern.
I began to read about
Cahun – her sexual ambiguity,
her long-term relationship
with Suzanne Malherbe, her
association with the Surrealists
in Paris, her defiance of the
Nazis in the war – and became
intrigued. That was where
Never Anyone But You began,
though it was almost 10 years
before I wrote a single word.
When the time felt right, I
familiarised myself with the
basic details of Claude’s life,
and studied all the photos I
could find online, and began.
If I had known everything
before I started, I would have
felt hamstrung and suffocated.
There would have been no
room for the imagination.
In the first two drafts, I
was looking for an undertow,
a dynamic, some kind of
psychological truth. I made
up scenes that seemed in
character, not knowing if
they could have happened. It
didn’t matter. They could be
re-worked later, or discarded.
The difficulty came when I
saw the gaps in my knowledge.
Where did Claude go to
school? How many times did
she attempt suicide? What did
60 Writers’FORUM #202
РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS
I was
stopped
dead in my
tracks by a
photograph
she like to drink? There was
only one biography – Claude
Cahun: L’exotisme intérieur
by François Leperlier. It is a
masterly and fascinating book,
but it’s yet to be translated. I
had studied French to A Level
but it would still take me an
hour to read six pages. What’s
more, it’s organised around
themes and ideas rather than
chronologically.
Experts
It became obvious I would
need to interview Monsieur
Leperlier, since he was the
world’s leading expert on the
two women I was writing
about. I contacted him through
his publisher, and arranged to
meet him in Nantes for a drink.
A year later, in August 2016,
he invited me to his house in
Normandy. I spent three days
with him. In the mornings, I
recorded his answers to my
questions (I came away with
nine hours of conversation). In
the afternoons, he allowed me
to explore his Cahun archive.
Some of what I discovered
was extremely inconvenient.
Leperlier would listen to my
account of a scene from my
latest draft, then laugh and say:
‘Impossible!’
Throughout the autumn and
on into 2017, I was constantly
writing to him with questions.
Some were complex – Could you
give me a brief medical history of
Claude Cahun, including all the
major crises? – and others were
seemingly trivial – What brand
of cigarettes did Claude smoke?
– but he was always patient,
generous, and swift to respond.
A simple example of how
I integrated a real event into
the book occurs when Claude
disappears for 36 hours in
Paris. There is no record that
Claude ever disappeared
for such a length of time,
but it seemed plausible, and
it allowed me to reveal the
anxiety that lurked beneath
Suzanne’s stoical façade. I had
read about the trance sessions
that took place in André
Breton’s apartment on rue
Fontaine in the early 1920s, and
wanted to include them in the
novel to convey what Surrealist
Paris was like.
When Claude has been
missing for several hours,
Suzanne starts to look for her.
She calls on friends and visits
various restaurants, bookshops
and cafes. As darkness falls,
she stops at a café for a pastis.
While there, one of the
founders of the Surrealist
movement, the writer Philippe
Soupault, invites her to Breton’s
apartment. She ends up
witnessing one of the very first
trance sessions, during which
the poet Robert Desnos speaks
from his unconscious.
There is no actual evidence
that Suzanne ever witnessed
one of these events, but the
point is, she could have done.
(François Leperlier would
probably say: ‘Impossible!’)
Location
I always try and go to the
locations I am writing about
– but only after I have written
about them. I imagine them
first and am often surprised
to find how accurate the
descriptions turn out to be.
I often travel in character.
In Jersey, for instance, I would
travel as Suzanne. I call this
‘method writing’. The things
I notice are the things she
would have noticed. The
things that happen to me are
the things that would have
happened to her. Again,
it’s uncanny how the world
seems to cooperate with this
approach. Sometimes, in fact, it
offers me things that are simply
too good to be true.
During the writing of Never
Anyone But You I went to Jersey
twice. On Jersey, the Cultural
Development Officer put me
in touch with a 93-year-old
man called Bob Le Sueur. He
helped to hide escaped Russian
prisoners during the war.
In his twenties, he had seen
Claude and Suzanne walking
their cat along the beach at
St Brelade’s on a lead. He called
them ‘the two Jewesses’. I
recorded Bob talking about
the history of Jersey, and
about the occupation, and he
was kind enough to give me a

tour of the island in his car.
There are times when
research turns you into a
detective. I found the name
Lucille Renouf in a Jersey
phone book in my hotel. Lucille
was Claude and Suzanne’s
housekeeper. When I went to
her house nobody was home.
For a year I called her number
but no one ever answered.
On my return to Jersey, Bob
put me in touch with a friend
who told me Lucille was in an
old people’s home in St Helier.
The only problem was, she had
dementia. With permission
from her nephew, I spent an
hour talking to Lucille. She
wasn’t always lucid but she
gave me pieces of information
I wouldn’t have discovered
elsewhere. My detective work
had turned up trumps.
Mistakes
The French artist Louise
Bourgeois said: ‘I trust my
subconscious. My subconscious
is my friend.’ I believe we know
things that we don’t know
we know, and the first draft
is a chance to unearth that
hidden knowledge. Structure,
continuity, verisimilitude –
all that can come later. The
disadvantage of my approach
is that I make all kinds of
embarrassing mistakes.
I wrote an ending to Never
Anyone But You based on a
photo I found in the Jersey
Heritage archive. I had been
led to believe it had been taken
by either Claude or Suzanne in
Majorca in the early 1950s, so I
set the scene in Majorca – only
to be told by François Leperlier,
in no uncertain terms, that
the two women couldn’t
possibly have gone to Spain at
that point, since Claude was
РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS
already half-blind and Suzanne
had arthritis and was having
trouble walking. François said
the photo had probably been
sent to them by a friend.
The ending I have now is
better than it was before. It
doesn’t matter if you make
mistakes. No one need see
them. And they allow you to
discover things you might not
have discovered otherwise.
Mistakes can be a source of
inspiration.
What to include
Never Anyone But You is
essentially a love story – one
woman’s account of a life spent
with a woman she couldn’t live
without. So scenes could only
be included if they shed some
light on that relationship. That
was how I decided what to use.
At a very late stage – draft
nine, I think – I discovered
that Suzanne had a cancer
scare in 1932, and had to have
one of her breasts removed.
Once I had written a scene
that included the cancer and
the mastectomy, I had to find
other ways to bring that in,
since it felt unnatural to refer
to it just once. I decided to have
the sadistic Nazi, ‘Wolf of the
Gestapo’, mock Suzanne for
her missing breast during an
interrogation in 1944.
Slowly, biographical detail is
woven into the fiction until the
two cannot be distinguished.
Fiction is first and foremost
an act of the imagination. There
are imagined facts, and real
facts, and imagined facts must
always be given priority. Real
facts are merely servants of
the narrative.
• Follow Rupert Thomson on
Twitter @rupertthomson1
LITERARY MARKETS
WRITING OUTLETS
with Janet Cameron
The cream of the crop
The Compass
thecompassmagazine.co.uk
This beautiful online journal
is published three times a
year. It does not stick to a
particular school of poetry
but is looking for quality.
The material for each issue is rolled out over a 10- to 14-day
period so that every piece can be appreciated. Each poet’s
work can be accessed via a photo byline.
Tip: Poems should ‘continue to intrigue and haunt, and pro-
vide a calm space – a metaphorical boulder in the flood’.
Submissions: Send six poems in a single Word document
with your name on every page. Email editor@thecompass-
magazine.co.uk with Submission in the subject window and
an author bio. Have a good author photo ready to send.
The Apple Valley Review
applevalleyreview.com
Published in spring and autumn,
this online literary journal seeks
finely crafted fiction and poetry.
They prefer their poetry un-
rhymed. Don’t send pure genre
submissions, although such ele-
ments within a literary piece are
fine. Apple Valley has an impressive
resumé of achievement – see their About page.
Tip: Although they require fine writing, it must never be
inaccessible. Shorter pieces stand a better chance.
Submissions: Three prose pieces of 100-4000 words or
up to six poems. Email in the body of an email to editor@le-
ahbrowning.net with Poetry or Fiction in the subject window.
You may send a cover letter and a brief author bio.
Projected Letters
projectedletters.com
Projected Letters prides
itself on its diversity, wel-
coming poetry and stories
from all over the world and
from all minority groups.
They also accept essays, book reviews and journals/diaries,
and occasionally photography. They do not pay. There are
no rules about poem length or how many you may submit.
Work and presentation speak for themselves.
Tip: The editors strongly suggest you read content online,
for an indication of what is required.
Submissions: Please use the online submissions manager.
Receipt of your contribution will be acknowledged and they
promise to respond to all submissions.
• Janet’s ebook Fifteen Women Philosophers, published by
decodedscience.com, is available from Amazon
Writers’FORUM #202 61

COMP CALENDAR
Competitive Edge
CREATIVE WRITING MATTERS
This month, Morgen hears from novelists
and comp judges Cathie Hartigan, Sophie
Duffy and Margaret James
A
few years ago,
creative writing tutor
and novelist Cathie
Hartigan set up
Creative Writing Matters, an
Exeter-based business intended
to encourage writing talent.
Cathie was soon joined by
fellow novelists Margaret James
and Sophie Duffy, who together
form the team of three who run
several writing competitions
every year – the Exeter Novel
Prize, the Exeter Story Prize and
the Exeter Flash being the three
most prominent.
They also mentor aspiring
writers, run literary events and
generally get involved in the
literary life of Exeter.
What advice would Cathie,
Margaret and Sophie offer anyone
entering writing competitions?
■ First of all, read the rules, and
remember they apply to everyone
who enters.
■ Also, if possible, read entries
that have won in the past, so you
get a feel for the kind of thing the
judges are likely to enjoy. Short
story competition organisers
often produce anthologies of
winning and shortlisted entries,
and you can find three anthologies
of the Exeter Story Prize winners
on Amazon – search ‘Books’ and
‘Exeter Story Prize’ to track them
down.
■ When you enter a story
competition, you’ll always need
to tell a story. Creative Writing
Matters receives plenty of entries
that aren’t stories at all. They’re
anecdotes and they feature
little or no character or plot
62 Writers’FORUM #202
РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS
development, no conflicts and no
resolutions. A short story always
needs to have a resolution of
some kind.
■ Some competitions ask
entrants to write a story based
on a specific theme, so always
remember to check this out.
■ Send your story to the
organisers in the format they
demand. These days, almost no
competitions accept handwritten
entries, but Creative Writing
Matters still receives a few
every year.
■ Start any comp entry with Left to right: Sophie,
something exciting, interesting, Cathie and Margaret
compelling or even horrifying
taking place; do almost anything
rather than spend that vital, commercially published, as have
hopefully attention-grabbing first novels by several runners-up.
page filling in the background to Start an entry There are full details of all the
the story.
with something award events on the Creative
Writing Matters website.
Morgen’s Motivation exciting, The first prize of £500 is
generously donated by Exeter
Cathie, Margaret and Sophie compelling, Writers, Cathie, Margaret and
mentioned conflict. This doesn’t
have to be a car teetering on
even horrifying Sophie’s local writing group
(www.exeterwriters.org.uk).
the edge of a cliff, although this The next competition is
always gets the reader’s attention. Comp of the Month the Exeter Story Prize 2018,
No, conflict can be anything which closes on 31 August
from being denied an expected The flagship competition of 2018, the same deadline as the
promotion to being threatened Creative Writing Matters is the Exeter Flash comp. Details of
with a gun, to Freda’s washing Exeter Novel Prize. At the end of both competitions and how to
machine breaking down. March 2018, the fifth award was enter can be found at www.
Whatever it is, don’t make given to EJ Pepper, whose novel, creativewritingmatters.co.uk
the solution too obvious. Write Mr Whittaker, was chosen by head
down as many possibilities as you judge and London literary agent ■ Send Morgen your
can think of, go do something Broo Doherty. recommendations for ‘Comp
else, then come back and write Broo has been the head of the Month’ as well as
another one. That could well be judge for all five years of the competitions we could include.
the winning idea – the one that competition. The first winner, She’d also love to know how
is the least likely option and that Sealskin by Su Bristow, and you’ve got on with comps listed in
fewer readers, or judges, will the second, The Gunner Girl by these pages or elsewhere. Get in
come up with. Clare Harvey, have now been touch at the email address above.

Send your success stories, questions for Morgen, tips and comp news (three months in advance) to comps@writers-forum.com
with writer, editor and
competition judge Morgen Bailey
COMPS NOW OPEN
Arkbound
Short Story Competition
Closes 1 November 2018
Story: max 1000 words. Theme:
‘Hope’. Fee: £3. Prizes: £100
plus feature; £50 plus feature; £25;
3 x £10; certificates. Details: see
arkbound.com/writing-competition
or write to Competitions, Ark-
bound, Backfields House, Upper
York Street, Bristol BS2 8WF.
BeaconLit
Flash Fiction Competition
Monthly
Story: max 500 words. Theme:
varies. Fee: £2; optional critique
£5. Prizes: three per month go
through to following July’s Beacon-
Lit Festival final, with 10 prizes
worth over £325. Details: see
beaconlitblog.wordpress.com/500-
word-competition
NAWG ‘100’ Competition
Ongoing
Flash fiction: 100 words. Fee:
£3 or £5.50 for two or £8 for
three. Prizes: £75; £25. Details:
see www.nawg.co.uk/3805
Scottish Book Trust
50-Word Competition
Monthly
Flash fiction: 50 words. Fee:
FREE. Prizes: Mug or books.
Details: see www.scottishbook-
trust.com/reading/the-50-word-
fiction-competition
Scribble Annual
Short Story Competition
Closes 1 November 2018
Story: max 3000 words. Theme:
‘Neighbours’. Fee: £4 (free to sub-
scribers). Prizes: £100; £50; £25;
РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS
publication. Details: see www.
parkpublications.co.uk/competi-
tions.html or write to Park Publi-
cations, 14 The Park, Stow on the
Wold, Cheltenham GL54 1DX.
COMPS CLOSING SOON
TARGET
10 JUL
YOUR
Doris Gooderson
MARKET
Short Story Competition
Story: max 1200 words. Fee: £5.
THROUGH
Prizes: £200; £100; £50. Details:
see wrekinwriters.wordpress.com THE
or write to Competition Secretary,
29 Christine Avenue, Wellington, PAGES OF
Writers’FORUM
Telford TF1 2DX.
12 JUL
Ledbury Poetry Festival Call Wendy
Competition
Poem: max 40 lines. Catego- Kearns on
ries: Adult; Young Persons; Chil-
dren. Fee: £5.75 for first then 01392 466099
£3.50. Prizes: Adult £1000 plus
course at Ty Newydd; £500; £250.
Young Persons £100; £50; £25.
Children £25 book token; £15 book
token; £10 book token. Judge:
Nia Davies. Details: please see
www.poetry-festival.co.uk/ledbury-
poetry-competition
31 JUL
Ink Tears
Flash Fiction Competition
Flash fiction: max 500 words.
Fee: £3.50. Prizes: £250; £50; 6 x
£25 plus publication. Details: see
www.inktears.com/ffentry
Scribble Quarterly
Short Story Competition
Story: max 3000 words. Fee: £3
(free to subscribers) or £5 with
critique. Prizes: £75; £25; £15.
Details: see www.parkpublica-
tions.co.uk/competitions.html or
write to Park Publications, 14 The
Park, Stow on the Wold, Chelten-
ham GL54 1DX.
Continued overleaf
▲
 РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS
COMP CALENDAR
Aesthetica Continued from page 63
Creative Writing Award
To Hull & Back Humorous
Short Story Competition
Story: max 3000 words. Fee:
Call for Entries
Dedicated to supporting and championing creative talent from
£11, £18 for two, £22 for three.
Prizes: £1000; £500; £250; 3 x
£50; 14 x £25; plus extras. Details:
around the world, the award is a celebration of outstanding see www.christopherfielden.com/
poetry and short fiction. Deadline 31 August 2018. short-story-competition
win £1,000 & publication 1 AUG
www.aestheticamagazine.com/cwa
Ilkley Literature Festival/
Walter Swan Trust
Poetry Prize
Poem: max 30 lines. Fee: £5.
Prizes: £200; £100; £75. Judge:
Imtiaz Dharker. Details: see
www.ilkleyliteraturefestival.org.uk/
join-in/competitions or write to
Ilkley Literature Festival, 9 The
Grove, Ilkley, W Yorks LS29 9LW.
Ilkley Literature Festival
Short Story Competition
Story: max 3000 words. Fee: £5.
Prize: £200. Judge: Nikesh
Shukla. Details: see www.ilkley-
literaturefestival.org.uk/join-in/
competitions or write to Ilkley
Literature Festival, 9 The Grove,
Aesthetica CWA - QP Writers Forum.indd 1 31/01/2018 14:39Ilkley, W Yorks LS29 9LW.
30 AUG
Biographers’ Club
Tony Lothian Prize
Biography: proposal of 20 pages.
Fee: £15. Prize: £2000. Judges:
Alex Clark, Lindsay Duguid, Edmund
Gordon. Details: see www.biog-
raphers.club/tlp-prize-entry
31 AUG
Exeter Story Prize and
Flash Competition
Story: max 10,000 words. Flash:
Postgraduate Diploma in max 1000 words. Fee: £12. Prizes:
£500 plus trophy; £150; £100; Tricia
Creative Writing Ashley award for best humorous
entry: trophy plus £200. Details:
CENTRE FOR LIFELONG LEARNING see www.creativewritingmatters.
ONLINE STUDY OR FACE-TO-FACE co.uk/competitions.html
Reflex Quarterly
Flash Fiction Competition
Contact Us Flash fiction: 180-360 words.
Telephone: +44 (0)1904 328482 Fee: £7. Prizes: £1000; £500;
Email: lifelonglearning@york.ac.uk £250. Rules: entrants must be
Web: york.ac.uk/creative aged 16 or over. Details: see
www.reflexfiction.com/flash-
fiction-competition-rules
64 Writers’FORUM #202
Exeter
Sentinel Literary Quarterly
Poetry Competition
Poem: max 50 lines. Fee: £4, £7
for two, £9 for three, £11 for four,
£12 for five, £22 for ten. Prizes:
£200; £75; £50; 3 x £20. Details:
see sentinelquarterly.com or write
to Sentinel Poetry Movement, Unit
136, 113-115 George Lane, London
E18 1AB.
1000-Word Challenge
Flash: max 1000 words. Fee: £5.
Prizes: £100; £50; £25. Details:
see www.1000wordchallenge.com.
18 SEP
Templar Poetry
Quarterly Portfolio Awards
Poems: 10- to 12-page portfolio.
Fee: £12. Prize: publication.
Details: see templarpoetry.com/
pages/submissions-and-awards
30 SEP
Jerry Jazz Musician
Short Fiction Contest
Story: max 3000 preferred, max
5000 words considered. Prize:
$100 plus publication. Details:
jerryjazzmusician.com/2013/02/
short-fiction-contest-details
UNLESS OTHERWISE STATED…
Theme and genre are open. Entries
should be original and unpublished.
Postal entries should be printed on
white A4 in a clear plain font. Include
a separate cover sheet with the title,
word count, your name, address and
postcode, phone and email. Stories
should be double-spaced with good
margins.Where necessary include a
large enough sae with sufficient
postage. Always contact the organiser
or check their website to confirm
details.Writers’ Forum does not
accept responsibility for errors in or
changes to the information listed.
 РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS

OUR GIFT TO YOU

Receive your copy of Stephen
King’s On Writing,
one of the most
acclaimed books
about writing,
when you
subscribe for Plus FREE
12 months† ENTRY to
the FLASH
COMP!
While stocks last. Due to postage costs the
†

book offer is for one-year UK subscriptions only

Subscribe now, save money and find information and inspiration on your doorstep every month!
Call 01202 586848 � Visit www.selectmagazines.co.uk � or return this form to:
Subscriptions, PO Box 6337, Bournemouth BH1 9EH
ONE-YEAR SUBSCRIPTION 12 ISSUES PAYMENT DETAILS Choose one of the following three options
UK £38 Europe £49 World £56
1 I enclose a cheque for £ made payable to ‘Select Publisher Services Ltd’
OTHER OPTIONS UK ONLY
6 issues £20 2 Please debit my Visa Mastercard Maestro by £
Quarterly £9.50 by Direct Debit (see form)
Card no
BINDERS I would like @ £6.50 (see below)
Valid from Valid to Issue no Security no (on back)
START DATE Please start the subscription in
Signature Date
Month Year

YOUR DETAILS 3 Quarterly payment of £9.50 every 3 issues (UK only)

Instruction to your bank or building society to pay by Direct Debit
Name
Please fill in the form and send to:
Select Publisher Services Ltd, PO Box 6337, Bournemouth BH1 9EH � � 3� �8 �7 � 7
Service user number 8 3
Address
Name and full postal address of your bank or building society.
To: The Manager, Bank/building society
Postcode Address
Phone Postcode Name(s) of account holder(s)

Email Branch sort code Account number

DELIVERY DETAILS (if different) (Official use only) Reference

Name Instruction to your bank or building society

Please pay Select Publisher Services Ltd Direct Debits from the account detailed in this instruction subject
Address to the safeguards assured by the Direct Debit Guarantee. I understand that this instruction may remain with
Select Publisher Services Ltd and, if so, details will be passed electronically to my bank/building society.

Signature Date
Postcode Banks and building societies may not accept Direct Debit instructions for some types of account.

KEEP YOUR MAGAZINES PRISTINE MARKETING PREFERENCES

Grab our sturdy red binders with the Writers’FORUM logo up the Please tick if you DO want to receive other
information from Select Publisher Services.
£6.50 spine. To order just add £6.50 per binder to your total or choose the Please tick if you DO want to receive information
for subscribers binder option on our website. Non-subscribers can order binders for from our advertisers and other companies.
inc p&p For information about how we manage personal data,
£7.50 inc p&p by calling 01202 586848 or at www.selectmagazines.co.uk please see https://www.selectmagazines.co.uk/privacy-policy
 РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS
WRITING ROOMS
Where I write
Phil Barrington visits recent debut novelist
Catherine Burns in her Manchester home
I
write in my dining room. It gets a lot of
sun in the morning. It also has shelves
full of books and a big comfy sofa for me
to lie on and read when I lack inspiration.
Horror and gothic are favourites – Shirley
Jackson, Stephen King and Joyce Carol
Oates – but I read lots of genres including
non-fiction.
It’s important to spend a lot of time
reading. Recently, I read a book about
the financial crisis in 2008 as research for
a fiction book I’m working on. My first
book, The Visitors, is on display, maybe to
convince myself I’m a real author.
My house is in a red-brick terrace, built
around 1900. It isn’t as large or rundown
as the Georgian mansion Marion and
John Zetland, the main characters in The
Visitors, live in but it does have similarities.
There’s a very creepy cellar, attic rooms
and creaky stairs. It’s certainly a little
spooky with its draughty rooms and
creaking floorboards. I do, in fact, believe
66 Writers’FORUM #202
it has been visited by a ghost on at least
one occasion. This house and the objects
I inherited from my family were a major
inspiration for my novel.
There are a lot of antiques here. Marion
in The Visitors has plenty too, mostly linked
to unhappy memories. I get attached to
objects as well but am not as much of a
hoarder. There’s a silver tray on the table
that belonged to my great-grandmother.
She was a servant in a big house and was
given it when she retired. It was my mum’s
job to polish it when she was a little girl.
I usually start work around 10am with
a cup of strong coffee. The house has to be
fairly tidy. I don’t like being surrounded
by chaos, though I’m not obsessive about
neatness either. It’s easy to get distracted.
I can’t imagine working in public but
when I’ve finished a draft of whatever
I’m working on it gets sent to my Kindle
and I can read that anywhere. I find
reading on the Kindle helps me to spot
problems that I don’t see on the computer.
The view from here is all right. I can see
the garden, which is nice and green, but
it’s overlooked by a lot of terraced houses.
I’d love to look out on to a lake or the sea
and be somewhere warmer. I am usually
wrapped up in jumpers and scarves.
Sometimes I listen to music, something
without lyrics that will help set the tone for
what I’m working on. I like Ligeti, Haydn,
Bach or Philip Glass and soundtracks from
Stanley Kubrick films.
A rigid routine wouldn’t fit with my
personality and it’s too late to change. But
I try to make sure I do something every
day. Not all work is done sitting in front
of a computer. You need to keep the story
in your head. Sometimes I’ll be thinking
about it while I’m driving and a new idea
will come to me. The daydreaming part
of writing is really important. There’s a
notebook by my bed so that I can write
ideas down in the middle of the night.
Once, I was lying in bed late at night
when I heard someone scream. That gave
me the idea for opening of The Visitors. I
looked out the window but couldn’t see
anything. I hope the person was OK.
РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS
РЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS