Category Archives: Writer Interviews

Marian Keyes Shares Her Ultimate Comfort Reads for Hard Times.

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International best-selling novelist Marian Keyes (Watermelon, Rachel’s Holiday and The Break) has today revealed her Ultimate Comfort Reads for challenging times, with a curated list shared on Bookshop in support of indie bookshops, and to mark the paperback publication of her globally acclaimed Sunday Times No.1 novel, Grown Ups (Penguin Michael Joseph, £8.99).

Marien Keyes, comfort books, Marien Keyes, comfort books,

Confessing she’s “personally … desperate for a holiday from reality and from my head”, Marian’s recommended reads will offer readers some much-needed solace and escapism into a world of bookish pleasure during lockdown, and beyond.

Marien Keyes, comfort books,

From Booker-nominated debut novels to fiercely funny memoirs, and from heart-warming stories turned into much-loved TV series to feminist retellings of traditional fairy tales, Marian’s curated list aims to inspire, engage and entertain, as an antidote to the difficult times we’re living in.

Marian’s list includes: Stella Gibbons’s Cold Comfort Farm, a classic comedy novel named one of BBC ‘100 Novels That Shaped Our World’; The Surface Breaks by Louise O’Neill, a feminist reimagining of The Little Mermaid; My Sister, The Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite, the sensational debut novel nominated for the Booker Prize in 2019; Love, Nina by Nina Stibbe, a laugh-out-lout memoir adapted into a popular BBC series by Nick Hornby; Eligible by Curtis Sittenfeld, a Pride and Prejudice catapulted into our modern world; Dear Mrs Bird by AJ Pearce, the Sunday Times best-seller chosen as a Richard & Judy Book Club Pick; the WWII romance The Morning Gift by Eva Ibbotson, based on the author’s own experience as a refugee.

The list has been released by Bookshop.org – the alternative to Amazon for shoppers wanting to support independent bookshops when they shop online. Celebrated by critics, readers and booksellers, Marian is known for her untiring support of independent bookshops. She was one of the first authors to take part in “At Home with Four Indies”, the virtual series of events launched in lockdown by independent booksellers from Linghams (Heswall), Booka (Oswestery), Book-ish (Crickhowell) and Forum Books (Corbridge).

Marian Keyes, author of Grown Ups, said: “Life is very challenging at the moment and personally, I’m desperate for a holiday from reality and from my head. Reading has always been a huge pleasure for me but because so much fear is circulating, there are lots of subjects I’m currently not able for. I’ve put together a collection of titles that I’ve found engaging, uplifting, distracting and entertaining. I hope that some of them give you enjoyment and respite. I am thrilled to share this list on a platform that supports the vital work of independent bookshops.”

One of the most successful novelists of all time, Keyes’ books have sold over 30 million copies in 33 languages, and her writing has received several accolades, including the British Book Awards, the Irish Book Awards and the inaugural Melissa Nathan Prize for Comedy Romance. In the last year, Marian has been chair of judges for the Comedy Women in Print prize, and the second series of her instant hit, Between Ourselves, will air on BBC Radio 4 on 18 February 2021.

Marian joins a growing number of authors to share a curated reading list on Bookshop.org, such as: Elena Ferrante, Malorie Blackman, Nikesh Shukla, Emma Gannon and more. Author reading lists on Bookshop.org have proven to have a tangible impact on sales figures for the books they feature, shining a light on many lesser known works beyond bestseller lists.

Marian Keyes’ Ultimate Comfort Reads:

  • The Secret Countess by Eva Ibbotson (Pan MacMillan)
  • Oh My God, What A Complete Aisling by Emer McLysaght and Sarah Breen (PRH)
  • I Never Said I Loved You by Rhik Samadder (Hachette)
  • Gravity is the Thing by Jacqueline Moriarty (Atlantic)
  • Standard Deviation by Katherine Heiny (Harper Collins)
  • Love, Nina by Nina Stibbe (PRH)
  • Professor Chandra Follows His Bliss by Ranjeev Balasubramanyam (PRH)
  • Writers and Lovers by Lily King (Pan MacMillan)
  • The Surface Breaks by Louise O’Neill (Scholastic)
  • The Loveliest Chocolate Shop in Paris by Jenny Colgan (Little, Brown)
  • Cold Comfort Farm by Stella Gibbons (PRH)
  • Filter This by Sophie White (Hachette)
  • The Diary of a Provincial Lady by E.M. Delafield (PRH)
  • My Sister, The Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite (Atlantic)
  • The Bookish Life of Nina Hill by Abi Waxman (Hachette)
  • If I Never Met You by Mhairi McFarlane (Harper Collins)
  • Odd One Out by Lissa Evans (Simon & Schuster)
  • Such A Fun Age by Kiley Reid (Bloomsbury)
  • The Switch by Beth O’Leary (Hachette)
  • The Cazalet Chronicles by Elizabeth Jane Howard (Pan MacMillan)
  • Dear Mrs Bird by AJ Pearce (Pan MacMillan)
  • Brother of The More Famous Jack by Barbara Trapido (Bloomsbury)
  • The Morning Gift by Eva Ibbotson (PanMacMillan)
  • Eligible by Curtis Sittenfeld (Harper Collins)

 

What would you add?

www.Bookshop.org

My Writing Process – Emma Eker.

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I’m a searcher – always have been, potentially always will be. I’ve questioned the status quo from the moment I had the capacity to do so – finding myself dissatisfied and unconvinced with the answers I was given. I mention this so you may understand that I spent my whole life pushing boundaries, rebelling against ‘the machine’ and searching for the Truth. This quest came with a restlessness that ensured I couldn’t stay still for any substantial amount of time, moving from place to place, job to job and person to person for as long as I can remember – I was always trying to get ‘there’… destination unknown. 

What you have written, past and present.

Apart from writing a teenage diary, essays for my psychology training, helping friends formulate emails and blogging through social media, my professional writing CV, up until this point, has been limited! Until recent years, although with a great love for writing, I am not sure that I considered utilising this in any particular way, either professionally or for any paid or altruistic offering – it simply wasn’t in my consciousness awareness to do so.

What you are promoting now.

My book is called “Liberation”. It has been a labour of love and is predominantly a solution-based memoir, highlighting my journey through life – moving through addiction, heartache, temporary loss of Self and many of the trappings of the human experience. I have always been solution-based, always aware that life is magic and benevolent and therefore I could not, would not, write a book relating to struggle without presenting the reader with a solution. Too many books in the mainstream point to the ‘problem’, providing identification but little or no hope for the eradication of that which the reader may be battling with. I believe we are all whole and perfect, but for our belief systems and this is what Liberation allows the reader to see. 

3. A bit about your process of writing.

If anyone is looking for ‘good advice’ from me in this area, they may be disappointed! My writing process has been totally haphazard. Some days / weeks I would be in ‘the zone’, writing flowing, immersed in the creative process and other times, my laptop would be left unattended whilst I found it more important to do absolutely nothing at all! Many a time I have found myself in judgement around my process, but I have come to see that everything happens perfectly and in divine timing. What I will say is this, I have learnt to hear and to listen to the still quiet voice within me that taps gently in order to gain my attention and nudges me in the right direction. When the ‘knowing’ comes knocking, I know it’s time to put fingers to keyboard. 

4. Do you plan or just write?

Absolutely no planning whatsoever. I truly trust my writing process and I go with what feels right, rather than what I could have set out in black and white with regard to a structure. I have never worked logically, despite being thrown into a system that required it. I must be honest and say I don’t think I ever planned any of the book at all. Everyone’s process is different though and we need to find what works best for us which is simply a matter of trial and error. I know that when I sit down in front of my computer with the intention to write, the words will flow through me and if they don’t, I recognise it isn’t the right time. For me, the trick is to take my thinking mind out of it and go with the (creative) flow.

· What about word count?

With “Liberation”, there was no specific word count. I made the decision to self-publish rather than write for a traditional publishing house who may have required a certain length of manuscript.   

· How do you do your structure?

There was no specific structure, although, before I made the decision to self-publish, I was in discussions with a traditional publishing company who had asked me to draw up a synopsis and provide a rough chapter breakdown. I did, on some level, find this helpful to refer to as the writing process began. I held the structure loosely, understanding that the ‘story’ would unfold and become clearer as time moved on. Therefore, the format continually changed as the writing flowed and took on different directions, but it was useful to at least know the direction in which I was headed.  

· What do you find hard about writing?

At many times, thoughts, ideas and words would flow into my mind incredibly quickly and leave just as quickly making it difficult at points (not to mention incredibly frustrating) to grab hold of and capture them. Because I have a perfectionist within me, I would find myself continually editing, editing and re-editing some more which again, can be incredibly frustrating. I have however learnt, that if there is something that needs language which I temporarily ‘forget’, it will revisit me again to make its way onto the page. Moving out of my own way to make way for the creative process has also been a challenge for me, left vs right brain – practice is the name of the game. 

· What do you love about writing?

It’s an interesting question. Is it enough to say that it feels like an extension of who I am? I love putting words together and creating something that touches or resonates with another human being in order to gain identification and understanding. The ‘writing zone’ is a very real thing and I love getting lost in here.

· Advice for other writers.

If you feel there is something you have to offer and have a desire to write, trust it. Do not give up. It does not always feel easy to take what is inside of us and give language to it ‘out there’ and at many times you may feel you are in a battle with and up against yourself, but you must trust your heartfelt desire to do it. For if it wasn’t yours to do, you would not have the desire in the first place. And remember, everything has its ‘perfect’ time, so trust that too!

 

Liberation by Emma Eker is out by Spiffing Covers on 28 January. You can buy a copy of Liberation by Emma Eker via her website or Amazon.

 

THE BOOK I NEEDED TO WRITE – MICHAEL PARKER

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When I was a Chindi Author (a group of indie writers in Chichester), Michael Parker was our elder statesman, the author who had been traditionally published, and who had time for everyone. It was hard to think I could come to respect him more, but since his beloved wife Pat died last year, he has written an incredible tribute which I hope to review for Frost next month.

I have always been able to write. As a teenager at Grammar school, I used to write hooky notes for my mates and charge them one cigarette for each note. You could say I was earning royalties even then. I was a prolific reader too and often found myself in awe of the authors and how clever they were. But I never aspired to become a writer; that was something only the clever ones did: those with university degrees and a middle-class upbringing. For someone like me: a working-class lad with no qualifications, I never believed I could become a published author.

I started dabbling with storytelling in my mid-twenties and wrote a family saga. It never saw the light of day, but it did become the seed, that feeling that there was something there. I remember contacting the Daily Mirror and asking them how I could get my book published. I had no clue about the publishing world. Their advice was to get an agent. It was when I was in my late thirties that I finally succeeded, when Macmillan agreed to publish my first novel, North Slope, in 1978. The Financial Times called me a “gifted narrator”. As rewarding as that was, it didn’t mean I would become a successful author.

Years later, when I was living in Spain with my wife, Pat, I found myself writing and being published. Eventually I ended up with seven traditionally published novels; six of them with Robert Hale of London. I was published in Norway, Denmark and Canada. Now I have fourteen books to my credit: all of them available on-line. But the book I needed to write: the book I want to talk about now, was a tribute to my lovely Pat who sadly died of cancer last year, 2020.

Pat became ill after a five-week trip to Australia and the Far East. She was diagnosed with cancer on our return after an examination for a spider bite. I looked after Pat for almost two years, here at home, until she finally succumbed to the disease. By this time, I’d already given up writing; there was no longer any inclination or desire. My sole reason for living was to be by Pat’s side and nurse her.

When it was all over, I was asked if I would start writing again. I would shake my head and say probably never. But my granddaughter, Gemma, wanted to know more about her Nan, and it was this that encouraged me to write down my memories after sixty years of marriage, and put them in book form: a tribute to my lovely wife. The book has now been published and is called, My Pat, a love story.

I don’t have enough time here to explain what a lovely woman Pat was, but the following is a short extract from the book:

I first laid eyes on Pat when she was fourteen. I was a “mature fifteen-year-old” who could not possibly have any interest in a girl as young as that. Besides, Pat was my mate’s little sister, and it was beyond parody to think I could have anything to do with her. But I still remember her dark hair, lovely eyes and generous mouth, plus the fact that she was wearing a canary yellow sweater. So, it stands to reason I couldn’t have noticed her. Four years later we were married.

Whether I’ll write again remains to be seen, but I am happy that I have published my best work ever.

You can learn more of me and my books by hopping over to my website: www.michaelparkerbooks.com.

 

 

 

 

 

WELSH WRITING WEDNESDAYS: INSPIRED BY A GHOST – INTRODUCING JILL BARRY

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In 1975, my husband and I bought and renovated a Victorian school. We faced a daunting task, but fast forward a year and we were in, complete with baby son born while we lived in our tiny cottage in a chocolate box Wiltshire village.

Soon we were offering accommodation to tourists from all over. My only creative writing consisted of menu preparation until one morning a guest entered the dining room, looked through the open door into the kitchen/family area and asked who my son’s playmate was. I insisted he was alone, but our guest looked at me strangely, saying, ‘Can you not see the little fair-haired girl beside him?’

I couldn’t, though I didn’t doubt the guest’s conviction. That ‘sighting’ sparked a short story which, with another, was accepted for broadcast by BBC Wiltshire. Years later, I won a local short story competition, but it wasn’t until my son went to Uni that I began taking my writing seriously. Frankly, my first attempt at a novel was so dire that I gave up until the bug bit again after I was widowed and moved back to Wales. I spent weeks settling into my lovely new home at the foot of the Eppynt Hills, exploring woodland tracks and getting to know nearby towns. I was inspired to write, but I needed a job.

Fortunately, my secretarial skills landed me a role as a minute taker. I made new friends and was recommended to join Builth Wells Writers’ Circle. I gained a place at Trinity St David’s to study part-time for a Masters in Creative Writing. Several short stories were published in anthologies and women’s magazines and I won First Prize in The Lady magazine’s annual fiction competition. Another move followed, and soon I was finding kindred spirits within a local writing group called Hookers’ Pen.

Over the next few years, I took a script-writing course and saw one of my short plays performed at Swansea’s Dylan Thomas Centre. After gaining my degree, I ran one off writers’ workshops plus sessions for the Local Authority, and became Creative Writing tutor at an online high school. By then, I was well-published as Toni Sands, writing erotic romance for Accent’s Xcite imprint. I took two writing courses at Ty Newydd, working with mentors, Peter Guttridge, Rosanna Ley, Lynn Truss and Kate McCall, BBC Radio Producer. Rosanna mentioned the Romantic Novelists’ Association and soon I was in touch with Liz Fielding, who ran the Carmarthenshire Chapter.

Joining the RNA offered the perfect excuse to travel to London for whatever event was happening at the New Cavendish Club, as I could combine visits with seeing my son. Amazingly, although I’ve attended HNS and Winchester Writers’ conferences, I have attended only one RNA conference – the last one taking place at Caerleon. Little did I know that four years later, I would be living in nearby Newport. After Liz moved to Wiltshire, I looked after the Carmarthenshire Chapter until we joined up with a small group of writers, including RNA members, who met in Cardiff.

I truly believe, while the courses and workshops we attend help wonderfully, it’s the camaraderie so many Romantic novelists enjoy that’s invaluable. There’s always someone to gain advice from, to offer help to in return – and most importantly, someone with whom to exchange commiserations and congratulations.

Jill Barry pocket novels are available as Linford Romances in the public library system and the more recent ones are on sale via The Reading House: https://thereadinghouse.co.uk/

You can check out my other books and blog posts by visiting www.jillbarry.com

 

 

 

 

 

My Writing Process Helen E Field

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The Mystery Shopper & The Hot Tub , Helen E Field, writing, writer, how I write. My mother once told me that when I was 10yrs old I informed her I was not going to have a ‘boring life.’ Well, I guess I must have succeeded because according to most people I know, I have led a very interesting life. Important for a writer I think. To me, I’ve just lived it exactly how I wanted – a free spirit if you will. ‘work hard, play hard’ could well be my motto. I started writing funny poems about all my classmates at school from the age of ten and I haven’t stopped writing them ever since. I have a business writing bespoke funny poems for and about people and I used my ability to write these funny poems to publish a range of greetings cards. I also began a journal at ten and nearly 50 years later I am still writing it – I have an old sea chest full of them! At school I was often picked out by my English teacher to stand up in front of the class and read the essay I had written; the one that I recall even now, was entitled ‘The Goldfish Who Could Speak.’  The class were in stitches!

I left school at sixteen and worked in retailing and hospitality. I started my own hospitality training consultancy in 1998, training managers and staff all over the UK, Europe and USA and speaking at conferences. One strand of the business was to design and implement mystery shopper programmes. It was the trigger for my debut novel ‘The Mystery Shopper & The Hot Tub.’

I have three incredibly talented grown-up children and a saintly husband! Pre-Covid, we embarked on some serious travelling around the world – clearly curtailed for the past ten months but we’ll be off again as soon as we are permitted! 

What you have written, past and present.

I have had numerous professional articles published in various hospitality publications over the years. One article in particular when published was deemed ‘an important academic paper’ which thrilled me, given I’d never gone to university. I wrote the entire article in one hit of 8,000 words in one evening and they didn’t change a single word! 

I completed The Mystery Shopper & The Hot Tub last Autumn and am currently writing the second book in the series, which I hope will be out by late Spring.

What you are promoting now.

I am promoting my debut novel The Mystery Shopper & The Hot Tub, for which I also wrote a free download called ‘The Big Dilemma’ that readers can access at the end of the book. It is women’s humorous fiction. I would say that you have to have a sense of humour and not be overly politically correct to enjoy it!

I do not have social media – my choice – which makes promoting a bit more challenging. I’m a face-to-face kinda gal and would much prefer to talk about the book in person or on the radio, but Covid has put a stop to that.

A bit about your process of writing. 

I don’t honestly think I have a process. I just write when I feel like it for as long as I want to. When I’m really in the flow, I can write for hours at a time without stopping. If I don’t feel like it, I don’t write. It’s pointless. When both my brothers were diagnosed with prostate cancer and my mother developed Alzheimer’s all in the same year, I was very flat and exhausted. I just couldn’t write ‘funny’, so I left my manuscript for a year and went back to it, when I felt more in control of things.

Do you plan or just write?

I would say I was more of a ‘seat of the pants’ writer. The only thing I could remotely describe as planning, is that I decide what I want the ending to be and kind of work out how to get there! My stories are very visual – a number of readers commented that they thought the book would make a great TV/film. I often think of ‘scenes’ that I know I want to include – particularly the mystery shopping assignments, which have been based on real life assignments that I have actually done myself or been de-briefed about by an assessor. They are very funny, not least because they have actually happened.

What about word count?

I never even considered word count when I started writing my first book. I literally just wrote it exactly as I wanted. When I finished it was around 120,000 words. I discovered afterwards that that was a lot of words for a book of my genre. I had to do some ruthless editing that made me weep as I removed whole chapters and chunks of writing to get it down – even now it’s around 105,000 and 443 pages long.

This has provided me with a problem I hadn’t anticipated.The print cost of a book of this size is significant, but to sell at a price similar to ‘competing’ novels I will be making very little money indeed on paperbacks.

Big lesson for me for book number two – keep an eye on word count!

How do you do your structure?

I am a story teller and I think my book reflects that. I never sat down and thought ‘how am I going to structure this novel?’ I just wrote the story it as it came to me. I would get to the end of a section and think, OK so what would be really funny to happen now? Then I wrote it. On editing, I made a few changes if I thought that the flow of the story wasn’t quite right, but really nothing major.

What do you find hard about writing?

I really don’t find anything about writing hard. I genuinely don’t understand writers who say they sit at their laptops struggling to get words out. I write so prolifically and easily it’s a mystery to me.

What do you love about writing? 

I love making up stories. It’s a bit like being a child again I suppose. In the real world we can’t pretend, but in stories you can create whatever crazy characters and wild incidents you like. It’s like creating escapism for yourself and for others to enjoy and I do like making people laugh.

Advice for other writers. 

My genuine advice to other writers is likely to get me into trouble from the many organisations that offer writing courses, advice, manuscript assessment etc etc. It is easy to forget that it is in all these people’s financial interests to tell you your writing isn’t good enough. For me there is only one group of people who have the authority to tell me that and that’s my readers. No-one else matters.

I can truthfully say that if I had read all the articles and advice about how to write before I started my book, I would never have written it. I would have been paralysed by indecision over absolutely everything. Never in my life have I come across such contradictions, nonsense rules, imposition of politically correct notions or subjectivity,  in an industry. This became the main reason I decided to go down the self-published route. 

I came across a quote many years ago, which I had printed on cards and gave them to my children as a good rule to live their lives by. It’s not a bad one for writers either.

“It had long since come to my attention that people of accomplishment rarely sat back and let things happen to them. They went out and happened to things.” 

Leonardo da Vinci

The Mystery Shopper & The Hot Tub is out on the 14th of January and is available from amazon.co.uk

 

 

INTRODUCING WELSH WRITING WEDNESDAYS

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Although it isn’t often mentioned in Frost, I am very proud of my Welsh heritage. I was born in Cardiff and my father was an Anglo-Welsh poet and literary critic, so it is inevitable I have an affinity with other writers with connections to the principality. So much so, I am a member of the Cariad chapter of the Romantic Novelists’ Association, and it is to these wonderful women I looked first when I was considering Welsh Writing Wednesdays.

The idea is simple; on the second and fourth Wednesdays of each month one of us will bring you an article about writing in Wales. And replacing the ever-popular Sister Scribes’ Reading Round Up on the last Monday will be Cariads’ Choice.

So here are some of the wonderful authors you will be meeting through Frost this year.

Judith Barrow

Originally from Saddleworth, a group of villages on the edge of the Pennines, Judith has lived in Pembrokeshire, Wales, for over forty years.

She has an MA in Creative Writing with the University of Wales Trinity St David’s College, Carmarthen, BA (Hons) in Literature with the Open University, and a Diploma in Drama from Swansea University. She is a Creative Writing tutor for Pembrokeshire County Council and holds private one to one workshops on all genres.

Jill Barry

Jill began her writing career with short stories for magazines and anthologies, winning prizes and being both long-listed and short-listed. She is a multi-published romantic novelist who also writes Pocket Novels for D C Thomson and who draws on her varied career and her travels for inspiration. She has also written one psychological suspense novel which is published by Headline Accent. A member of the Romantic Novelists’ Association and the Society of Authors, Jill enjoys mentoring new writers and is convinced she will never stop learning.

Jan Baynham

Originally from mid-Wales, Jan lives in Cardiff. As well as short stories and flash fiction, she writes full-length novels that deal with family secrets and explore the bond between mothers and daughters. Her debut novel, Her Mother’s Secret, was published by Ruby Fiction in April 2020. This was followed by Her Sister’s Secret in September 2020 and book three will be out next July.

A member of the Romantic Novelists Association, she values the friendship and support from other members and regularly attends conferences, workshops, talks and get-togethers. She is co-organiser of Cariad, her local RNA Chapter.

Jessie Cahalin

Jessie is a Yorkshire author living in Wales. Wales and words have a special place in her heart, and she wants everyone to meet the characters who’ve been hassling her for years. Penning women’s fiction is Jessie’s dream job, but she also writes travel articles and features for her blog and magazines.

You Can’t Go It Alone, her debut novel, was a bestseller in the UK and Canada. For Jessie, a good natter with other authors and readers is a special treat as she usually lives in her tiny writing room with Paddington Bear and a collection of handbags.

Alexandra Walsh

Alexandra is the author of The Catherine Howard Conspiracy, The Elizabeth Tudor Conspiracy and The Arbella Stuart Conspiracy, known collectively as The Marquess House Trilogy. A series of a dual timeline Tudor conspiracy thrillers, published by Sapere Books, the novels explore a secret hidden within history and the potential havoc its revelation could wreak. Her new book with Sapere, The Windchime, is due out in 2021. Another dual timeline story, set in present day and late Victorian times, it explores mental health issues, grief and rebuilding lives after the worst has happened.

Evonne Wareham

Evonne is an award winning Welsh author of romantic suspense – more crime and dead bodies than your average romance. She likes to set her book in her native Wales, or for a touch of glamorous escapism, in favourite holiday destinations in Europe. She is a Doctor of Philosophy and an historian, and a member of both the Romantic Novelists’ Association and the Crime Writers’ Association.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My Writing Process Alex Knight

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Howdy, all! I’m author Alex Knight — best known for my genre-warping fiction whose popularity commonly crashes global markets. Also, my humility. I used to be a ghostwriter for romance novellas and science fiction novels, but these days I write my own books, primarily in the genres of Fantasy and LitRPG. 

What I’ve written, past and present?

Aside from my ghostwriting work — which I can’t legally talk about — my work includes the Nova Online trilogy, a sci-fi, LitRPG adventure we like to bill as “Halo meets Ready Player One.” If you’re into science fiction, RPGs, and coming of age tales that pit their protagonists against tyrannical, dystopian governments, then you’ll probably dig it. Did I mention it takes place in the real world and a video game? I like to think it’s a lot of fun.

What you are promoting now?

Most recently, I’ve taken a pivot into Fantasy with my debut fantasy thriller, The Far Wild. It’s a classic adventure story about skyships and expeditions gone awry in the most dangerous wilderness known to man. It’s full of beasties with too many teeth, bombastic characters, and beasties with too many teeth trying to eat bombastic characters. Of course, there’s a bit of espionage, too, and no story is complete without a dose of looming societal upheaval, right? I grew up loving Michael Crichton’s Jurassic Park and The Lost World, and The Far Wild is my love letter to those stories. It’s been released as an Audible Original, which means it’s an audiobook and Audible brought in an incredible cast to voice the main characters. I wrote the words, but my goodness did the narrators bring them to life!

A bit about your process of writing?

Consistent. Simplistic. A gift to all humankind — just a few descriptors I wouldn’t use to describe my writing process. Realistically, writing is a wild process and how I do it changes every couple of months. Some things stay the same (butt in chair, music up loud, world ignored), but I’ve found if I write in one place for more than a few weeks my creativity fizzles up. I like to bounce between writing on a desk at home, on the couch, out on the balcony. Or, better yet, in libraries and cafes. Of course, that hasn’t really been an option with Covid, so I’ve taken to placing a camp chair in different, odd places around the house and pretending I’m somewhere else. It’s amazing how well you can tune out your surroundings with the power of noise cancelling headphones and loud, loud music.

Do you plan or just write?

You know, I’ve experimented with both ways. When I was a ghostwriter, I had to plan ahead of time so the client could understand and write off on the story. With practice, though, I’ve found that planning too much ahead of time stifles creativity in a story. I now much prefer to write out a loose plot, then follow it vaguely as I write and make sure I let my mind go where it’d like. That’s where the magic is found in writing, in my opinion. Right on that line between what you planned and where your creativity wants to take you.

What about word count?

I aim for 2,000 words a day, which is a reasonable, sustainable rate for me, and track my progress via a project tracker spreadsheet. Lately, though, I’ve been finding it easier to simply paste chapters into a manuscript first draft document as I write them. This way, I have it to refer to for an up-to-date word count, chapter word count, and it’s super easy to make control + find changes. 

How do you do your structure?

I learned pretty much everything I know about structure and plotting from 1. reading books I enjoy and 2. K.M. Weiland’s website. There’s a bunch of great resources there and I recommend it for every aspiring author. There’s a particularly useful chart on the site that outlines the basic three act structure most stories follow. I like to put my own spin on this by weaving a lot of questions into the story, then answering them bit by bit as the plot progresses. This helps me keep the story moving quickly and make it satisfying as we’re on a constant drip feed of answers.

What do you find hard about writing?

The desire to do it as well as I can. There’s always that voice inside saying “you could do this better,” or “you should have written this this way.” Silencing that voice is key to finishing, well, anything you write. There’s always a compromise you must find between quality and speed. You could blaze the book out in a month or you could take forever doing edits and rewrites. The sweet spot lies somewhere between those, and finding it is a unique journey for each book.

What do you love about writing?

The act of doing it. Creation. I love nothing more than sitting down, cranking the music, and diving into a fantasy world to find out what happens next. Fingers tapping on the keyboard, cursor flying across the page — that’s what I live for. When you’re at that perfect spot between a tight plot and a loosely planned story, magic happens. You surprise even yourself, watching the plot unfurl in unexpected ways. In that way, I, as an author, get to experience the story in a fresh way. It’s much better than knowing every twist and turn ahead of time.

The Far Wild by Alex Knight is available exclusively on Audible now.

 

SISTER SCRIBES: A LAST WORD FROM KITTY WILSON

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As this is my last Sister Scribes post I thought I would use it to update you on where I am now in terms of my writing career and what I have learnt along the way.

When the Sister Scribes started writing for Frost I had just published my second book in The Cornish Village School series and signed a contract for three more. Truthfully, it still hadn’t sunk in that I was a published writer.

Now two years on, all five books in the series are published digitally, available on audible and the final book, Happy Ever After, will be joining the others in paperback next month. I have loved writing this series although am still a little stunned that what began as a simple experiment in my living room – writing what I knew – has taken on a life of its own and spans five books.

I have spent this year writing a new romantic comedy, centred around the city of Bristol where I now live. Currently I am tweaking it and don’t know what changes will be made once my editor has read it but I do know that I was worried that the strength of community I had created in Penmenna would be hard to recreate in a city. I am so pleased to have been wrong. Community is alive and well in the area in which I live, and I hope I have managed to do it justice.

This book is for a different publisher with a brand-new editor and I am so excited, though I can’t tell you who just yet. The Cornish Village School had three different editors and I have learnt that each one has different ways of working, different priorities and will therefore teach you something new. Each one helps you to refine your writing and being published is the start of learning to write professionally. I think so many aspiring authors see publication as the end goal, I certainly did, but it really is a beginning rather than a finish. I feel that my writing has improved with each story and I hope it continues to do so.

There are many things I wish I had known or been more secure in with my first book. But I am forever telling my children that we aren’t born knowing how to do things, that it takes time and patience and practice and the same is absolutely true of writing. I enjoy studying the craft and think it’s important to maintain. I am currently working my way through John Truby’s The Anatomy of a Story and whilst dense it’s remarkably helpful. For those starting out I highly recommend Emma Darwin’s This Itch of Writing blog and Jessica Brody’s Save the Cat Writes a Novel. Every other profession has Continuing Professional Development at its core and I think writing should be no different.

The other thing to learn is that writing is a business. You have not been published because people want to be your friend or are being kind, you have been (or will be) published because a publisher can see potential profit. Thus, rejections aren’t personal they are professional and the same applies for contracts. Make sure you recognise your own value and don’t put your success down to others just being nice. I’m giggling as I type this because I do it all the time. Maybe I’ll get better at that one in 2021.

 

Merry Christmas everybody, thanks so much for supporting all of us at Sister Scribes, we’re wishing you all a very happy 2021.

Kitty x