At long last, it's here - my debut novel, the award-winning Bat Boy, is available to buy on Amazon.
It feels like the end of a long, loooong journey, but in the words of Mrs Carpenter, it's only just begun. I'm hoping to do some interviews and guest blogs in the coming weeks, and see where it takes us. If anyone has any marketing advice, it'd be much appreciated!
Oh, and I'm donating 25% of my first year royalties to the RNIB, who do a fantastic job providing care for the blind community. This way at least my book can do some good, even if people think it sucks :)
Monday, 16 May 2011
Sunday, 1 May 2011
Are you the Next Big Author?
Got a great idea for a novel, and waiting for an excuse to start the damn thing? May is your month.
Prospective novelist site YouWriteOn is hosting a major new comp called the Next Big Author, which aims to find and crown an exciting new literary talent. Breathe easy, cos you don't have to bash out a whole book in May - just write and post up 5,000-7,000 words before the end of the month.
Each entrant must then review competing entries in June, receiving a review of their own in return. The five highest rated entries come the end of June win a free critique from the likes of Random House and Bloomsbury.
The prize is a good one, and it's free to enter the competition, although having writers assess their competitors' work is no doubt going to lead to controversy. I wouldn't be surprised if this one descends into a popularity contest, or some entrants decide to hurt their competition by dishing out one-star reviews, with the argument that they 'didn't get it'.
Prospective novelist site YouWriteOn is hosting a major new comp called the Next Big Author, which aims to find and crown an exciting new literary talent. Breathe easy, cos you don't have to bash out a whole book in May - just write and post up 5,000-7,000 words before the end of the month.
Each entrant must then review competing entries in June, receiving a review of their own in return. The five highest rated entries come the end of June win a free critique from the likes of Random House and Bloomsbury.
The prize is a good one, and it's free to enter the competition, although having writers assess their competitors' work is no doubt going to lead to controversy. I wouldn't be surprised if this one descends into a popularity contest, or some entrants decide to hurt their competition by dishing out one-star reviews, with the argument that they 'didn't get it'.
Sunday, 24 April 2011
Oooh, sunshine...
Holy dingleberries, Batman. After what seemed like twelve years of constant darkness, the sun has clawed its way through the haze and graced us with its warming rays once more. I was beginning to feel like Viggo Mortensen in The Road, haggard and weary, accepting that the world was at an end. The moment the clouds shifted, I balked like Nosferatu, afraid my translucent skin would burst into flames and my flailing body would collapse into ash.
Problem is, my motivation to write has now evaporated, like the murky puddles that graced my balcony for so many months. My glossy-screened laptop means I have to stay indoors, when I'd much rather be skipping down the street and waving merry welcomes to the chavs and their pastie-munching offspring.
The solution? Shagloads of coffee and all-night binge-writing sessions. They kill your head just like all-night vodka sessions, but with none of the self-loathing. Genius!
Right, time to top up the sunburn...
Problem is, my motivation to write has now evaporated, like the murky puddles that graced my balcony for so many months. My glossy-screened laptop means I have to stay indoors, when I'd much rather be skipping down the street and waving merry welcomes to the chavs and their pastie-munching offspring.
The solution? Shagloads of coffee and all-night binge-writing sessions. They kill your head just like all-night vodka sessions, but with none of the self-loathing. Genius!
Right, time to top up the sunburn...
Friday, 1 April 2011
A worthy challenge
This blog right here has issued a new challenge to authors - can you write an 80k word novel in 80 days, starting in May?
If you email the writer responsible, Sally Quilford, with details of your intended book she'll stick a post up promoting your idea. There's no prizes for completing the novel, just the satisfaction and presumably some very sore wrists from constant typing.
Actually, 1,000 words a day is definitely doable, and a lot more friendly on the social life than the 'write an entire novel in November' challenge, which demands that you shut yourself off from the world for a month, emerging only to feast on dry crackers.
I might try this for my next novel, although the end result will probably be a mess of drunken ramblings and terrible prose. No different from normal really.
If you email the writer responsible, Sally Quilford, with details of your intended book she'll stick a post up promoting your idea. There's no prizes for completing the novel, just the satisfaction and presumably some very sore wrists from constant typing.
Actually, 1,000 words a day is definitely doable, and a lot more friendly on the social life than the 'write an entire novel in November' challenge, which demands that you shut yourself off from the world for a month, emerging only to feast on dry crackers.
I might try this for my next novel, although the end result will probably be a mess of drunken ramblings and terrible prose. No different from normal really.
Thursday, 17 March 2011
The Hedgehog Stared, Menacingly
Something I was recently called out on was a scattering of adverbs in my writing - in other words, those words ending in '-ly', such as slowly, grimly, painfully...
I admit it's a cop out and a classic case of telling instead of showing, but I didn't realise how much I did it until someone pointed it out to me. Now every instance is like a giant turd staring out of the page at me, like some horrific obscenity - the literary equivalent of a kick in the knackers.
And I've started noticing the damn things in other people's writing too. Even esteemed authors use the occasional quickly or deftly, and each time it's like smashing your car into a brick wall - I crumble to a painful halt and have to start again from the next sentence.
Sometimes all these writing 'rules' are a pain in the arse. I'm off to make a cup of tea, quickly and expertly of course.
I admit it's a cop out and a classic case of telling instead of showing, but I didn't realise how much I did it until someone pointed it out to me. Now every instance is like a giant turd staring out of the page at me, like some horrific obscenity - the literary equivalent of a kick in the knackers.
And I've started noticing the damn things in other people's writing too. Even esteemed authors use the occasional quickly or deftly, and each time it's like smashing your car into a brick wall - I crumble to a painful halt and have to start again from the next sentence.
Sometimes all these writing 'rules' are a pain in the arse. I'm off to make a cup of tea, quickly and expertly of course.
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