The first piece of writing advice you were ever given

The summer of 2014 was an exciting time. I had submitted my manuscript to a carefully selected list of agents and was waiting to hear back. An agent requested a full manuscript and I felt I was finally going to achieve my dream of becoming a published author. By the time Christmas arrived I had been rejected by all of them and had received my first professional writing advice. “You have a gift for writing, but you need to edit it on paper.” I put down the phone confused by the advice. What did she mean? Grumbling to myself, I printed my novel on A4 paper and began to read it. This was a pivotal moment in my writing career. Multiple small errors, which were mysteriously invisible before, began to jump out at me. It was a valuable lesson and now I always edit a paper version at some point during my self-editing phase.

The most recent piece of writing advice you gave or received

Strangely this is linked to editing again. Two author friends, at separate times, said they were listening to their manuscripts for errors and suggested it was a good way to edit. A Daughter’s Christmas Wish was the first time I added this method of editing to my writing process. Once again, I was amazed. It is easy to read what we expect to see rather than what is truly there. Our hearing is very sensitive. A misspelt word, repetition or a sentence that is far too long, is more obvious to our ears. It is another tool to use to improve the standard and flow of your writing. All software have the option to have a voice narrating your text and it is normally free and easy to use. If you are unsure how to find the speaker option, search “How to” on the internet and there will be a step by step guide on how to activate it.

The piece of advice you’d most like to pass on.

Don’t let agents’ rejections stop you pursuing your dream. The reasons they reject you are varied. It might be related to your writing, but it may also be not what they are looking for at that time. Many successful writers have been rejected by agents and/or publishers at some point in their career. I was. Their rejection initially crushed me, but they also made me more determined to prove them wrong.

Four years after that summer of rejections, which I mentioned earlier, I have four traditionally published books out in the big wide world. All my books are released as ebooks and audiobooks, two have been released as paperbacks. I have been shortlisted for the New Talent Award at the Festival of Romantic Fiction, a finalist at the Joan Hessayon Award and reached number 21 in the paid kindle rank for Victorian romance. I was tempted to give up writing after I was rejected and I’m so glad I didn’t. Don’t let the rejections crush your joy for writing, just see them as part of the journey to get to where you want to be.

Victoria Cornwall is the author of the Cornish Tales series published by Choc Lit. Her novels are historical, Cornwall based fiction, with romance and drama at their core. She is married, with two children and is a member of the Romantic Novelists’ Association.