Quiller's Place - View From The Shed

Snowbound on the Island Winner and the last chance to win Command Performance

Quillers — Mon, 20 Feb 2012 14:20:45 +0000

Snowbound On The Island available from Amazon

The winner of Kate Allan’s great long short story, Snowbound on the Island, as picked by hubby from the cereal bowl, is Nicky L. Nicky, if you’re reading this, either myself or Kate will be in touch with you soon about your prize.

Command Performance - Now on Amazon!

There’s also one last chance to win Command Performance, my own romantic ebook. As I’m away for part of the weekend, doing the pocket novel workshop in Kent, and I’ll only have internet access on my phone, I’m giving you a bit longer to enter too. Leave a comment on this post saying ‘pick me’ or words to that effect, and I will pick a winner after the comp closes at 5pm (GMT) on Monday 27th February 2012. As comments are on pre-mod, don’t panic if yours doesn’t appear if you post on Friday, Saturday or Sunday. I will okay all comments as soon as I can. I’m back late Saturday night, but may well be sleeping all day Sunday.

Command Performance Winner

Quillers — Sun, 19 Feb 2012 07:52:59 +0000

I’m delighted to announce that the winner of Command Performance is Susanne Potts McBee. I’ve emailed Susanne to ask her what format she wants.

Commiserations to those who didn’t win. But you’ve still got a few hours left to put your name in the hat for Kate Allan’s ebook, Snowbound on the Island. Visit that page via the link to leave your name.

Apologies for taking a while to pick the winner. I’ve been laid low by the lurgy since Friday. But there will be another Command Performance Giveaway starting tomorrow.

Guest Blog: Enjoy The View – Kate Allan on Viewpoint

Quillers — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 08:15:57 +0000

Today my fellow Pocketeer, Kate Allan, joins me for a guest blog on viewpoint. There are also two chances to win an ebook of Kate’s sweet romance, Snowbound on the Island, so read on and find out how.

Snowbound On The Island available from Amazon

Snowbound on the Island review

After the break up of a long-term relationship Lisa escapes to the remote Isles of Scilly, twenty eight miles off the coast of Cornwall, for a new year reunion with old college friends. But as winter weather sweeps across Britain the airports close and only two people make it: Lisa and Dominic. She always thought him attractive and he still is, but he doesn’t even seem to remember her.

This is a very short but very sweet and sensual, read about Lisa and Dominic. When a planned weekend with old college friends goes awry due to the weather, Lisa and Dominic find themselves alone in a holiday cottage with plenty of time to get to know each other again. It’s very subtly done, with lots of sexual tension. But a hint of vulnerability shines through both characters, making them very likeable. The love scenes are pitched just right, so you get a sense of that vulnerability but also realise that whilst the sexual attraction is there, this is going to be so much more for both of them.

Enjoy the view: Kate Allan on viewpoint

This was the title of the workshop I gave on Saturday at the Get Writing conference in Hatfield, Herts, where we looked at writing viewpoint. Viewpoint is, I think, one of those tricky subjects. I remember wrestling with it when I was learning to write. Once I’d discovered that I was supposed to be writing in character point of view, I could get it 95% right, but there would be moments now and again when an authorial voice or another character’s eye view would interrupt. Once I could stick to a certain viewpoint, then the fun started and I could experiment. Which is one of my “rules of writing”:

- first learn the rules, then break them

I experimented with transitions from one viewpoint to another. I’m sure there are other ways of doing it but found the best bridges (for me and my style of writing) were action and dialogue. If I could seamlessly switch from one character’s viewpoint to another’s mid scene and without the need for a space or three little stars, it seemed like an art, not technical craft stuff. Satisfying. Ingenious.

My next discovery was something called “deep third”. No, nothing to do with deep space, or a very, very poor class of degree. This was where one could write so deeply in the third person point of view that you could create, it seemed, all the intimate qualities of writing in the first person. Indeed I got so far into deep third, I had to rein back, because I was losing action and pace. Motto: deep third can cause the same issues with too much introspection as first person. And worse. It can begin to cause confusion in relation to the action. People don’t think their actions. And thus you can’t wrote deep third as a stream of consciousness. Not in my novels, anyhow, which are very active.

So our workshop group sat around a table and I asked the writers there whether they preferred first or third person. I’ve only ever tried first person once, properly. While I found it refreshing it’s still on the subs bench of my repertoire. All my published novels are in third person. The workshop group were divided, some firmly in one camp, the others unsure. Those who were certain they preferred first or third confessed they had done very little of the other. We all agreed we’d try and broaden and experiment. Nobody had ever tried second person viewpoint. I’ve only done it in letters, and excerpts from letters, included in novels.

We then talked about tenses and the advantages of (simple) past or present. We agreed that it depended on the narrative. We also considered briefly the future tense and decided it sounded impossible for novels although could work for a short story, but no one had tried it.

Which brings me to another of my little “rules”:

- until you try something, you won’t know if you are any good at it

Which means I’m going to have to write something in the future tense sometime. Just because.

A question I often had a tackle when a novice writer was that of which character should the scene be seen from. Now, I know instinctively. Then, I had to think about it. The fog cleared when someone said to me that the writer should always consider whose the scene it was emotionally. Leading to another little rule:

- write the scene from the viewpoint of the character with the most at stake

I think that’s my only actual viewpoint “rule” as everything else is breakable. Do you have any viewpoint rules, and do you find viewpoint a struggle or did it come naturally?

Thank you to Sally for kindly inviting me to post on her blog during my Snowbound blog tour for my new novella, Snowbound on the Island.

Copies of Snowbound on the Island and chocs up for grabs in my winter photo competition on Facebook. Share your winter snaps to be in with a chance to win.

Available on Amazon

Twitter: @kate_allan

Blog

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Win a copy of Snowbound on the Island on this blog.

Thanks Kate for that fascinating insight into tenses. Along with Kate’s photo competition there’s also a chance to win a copy of Snowbound on the Island on this blog. Just leave a ‘pick me’ comment below and your name will be drawn out of a hat when the comp closes at Midnight (GMT) on Sunday 19th February 2012. I will pass the winner’s name on to Kate, and she will ensure you receive your prize.

Command Performance on Amazon and chance to win a copy

Quillers — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 08:07:51 +0000

: Command Performance – Now on Amazon!

I’m delighted to announce that Command Performance is now available to buy on Amazon.co.uk and at Amazon.com. To celebrate, I’m having another giveaway. Simply put ‘Pick Me’, or words to that effect, in the comments below and I will choose a winner when the comp closes on Friday 17th February 2012 at 5pm (GMT). The first person drawn out of the hat (well the cereal bowl actually) will receive an ebook copy of Command Performance.

Blog Tour – Expected by Sarah England

Quillers — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 07:00:18 +0000

I have another fab blog guest, the highly prolific Sarah England. Sarah has produced an ebook of her novel, Expected and I invited her along to chat about it.

Review of Expected

Expected is a fun read about Sam Sweet, who is overwhelmed by the expectations of her family, friends and dull boyfriend, particularly when it comes to babies. I recognised many of the situations that Sarah wrote about, particularly the awkward social occasions she has to endure. Sam is a crowd pleaser, so finds it hard not to try and make everyone happy, but often forgets to make herself happy. She also puts her foot in it with alarming, and amusing, regularity. As someone who isn’t nearly as socially able as I pretend on my blog, I really felt for her at times. Obviously this is a story of change, and things do change for Sam. I shan’t give away the ending, but it has a very amusing twist which I didn’t see coming!

Interview with Sarah England

SQ: First of all tell me about yourself.

SH: I originally qualified as a nurse in Sheffield, then worked in medical sales for 15 years. At 40 life changed and I suddenly had the chance to do what I had wanted to do since childhood and write fiction. Since then I have had over 100 short stories published, mostly in women’s mags and newspapers, plus several anthologies and most recently online with ether books. I have also written my first novel, Expected, which is currently available on Amazon Kindle ebooks. My website is HERE.

Expected is on Amazon.co.uk or outside the UK

SQ: Expected deals very much with the expectations placed upon women in society, especially with regard to having a family. Am I right in thinking this is something you feel very strongly about?

SH: I’ve had some very strange reactions from people when I say I don’t have children. The expression on one woman’s face was a cross between having trod in something stinky or been told I had personally butchered 100 dalmations. I do wonder why there is still this onus on women to have children. Most very much want to and it’s not an issue for them, but some are meant to do other things just as men are, and in fact, are as unsuited to parenthood as to nuclear physics. I hope that Expected brings a little empathy for those of us who have chosen a different path in life. The only thing I feel strongly about is that we have respect for people’s differences, for their hopes and fears, their alternative views, and ways of looking at the world. I took a chance with Expected and was certainly blown out by a major chicklit review site – which is precisely the sort of prejudice I’m talking about!

SQ: I must be honest and say that when I read it, I immediately saw that it might be a difficult subject to get across in a world obsessed with women and motherhood. That’s not to say it shouldn’t be published. As Jeanette Winterson says ‘Oranges Are Not The Only Fruit’.

This is an obvious question and I know I should know better being a writer, but is any of it based on your own experience? In particular I’m thinking of the dreadful get togethers that Sam has to endure, but also in the way other people’s expectations of her colour her behaviour?

SH: Oh dear yes! In fact I’ve had so many horrific experiences that it became a choice – do I become a bitter and twisted old crone living in a skip swigging gin, or write about it? I do think there is a fine line bewteen horror and trauma – my nursing days ‘gallows’ humour doesn’t help – but I realised that all the toe-curling experiences I had made people laugh – in a thank-God-it-wasn’t me sort of way – and so I chose the latter. Phew!

SQ: It certainly made me laugh and even though I have two children and several grandchildren, I still recognised many of the situations that Sam endured under the pressure of other people’s expectations of her.

Like many writers, myself included, you’ve gone down the independent publishing route with Expected. Is there any particular reason for this?

SH: Expected doesn’t fit any particular genre – it’s comedy, it’s anti-chicklit, it’s women’s commercial fiction……… but nothing neatly. I was repeatedly told by agents that while they had laughed and enjoyed it they did not feel that in the current climate they could guarantee publication. I realised that the market is very tight in women’s commercial fiction at the moment and as Expected is a bit of an outside runner, I decided to try Kindle.

SQ: How have you found the whole ‘publish to Kindle’ experience?

SH: Honestly? A pain. You write it. You edit and edit and edit. Then you format it and publish. Then you have to market and sell it. It has been hugely time consuming, especially for a techno-phobe like me, and I really wish I had a publisher now. Also I find self-promotion torturous as I’m a back seat kind of girl.

SQ: I agree. Having done it myself, I can verify that self-publishing is a very time consuming route. Especially if you care about the end product.

What advice can you give to other writers thinking of taking the same route?

SH: I would say find a publisher – either traditional or online if you can. If you publish it yourself then be prepared to have a massive internet presence and devote a lot of time to marketing. You might also make sure the quality is up to scratch and get help with the cover, but that goes without saying. Or does it?

SQ: Sadly it doesn’t. The bad quality of some self-published books gives the rest of us a bad name. I cheat with my covers. I always have a white background then use one motif, usually in red, as a central picture.

Anyway, Sarah, thank you for sharing your experience with us, and good luck with sales of Expected!

Crossing Over To The Light Side

Quillers — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 14:34:54 +0000

In my Online Pocket Novel Workshop, we’ve been discussing the problems of letting go of the darkness in our souls (cue dramatic music) in order to write light-hearted fiction. Today’s blog post was inspired by that discussion.

Lighter writing is often denigrated as being insubstantial and fluffy. Those who write for the women’s magazine and light romance market are not always considered to be ‘proper’ writers amongst the more serious writers.

Yet, I would argue that writing light-hearted stories is no mean feat, and actually takes just as much skill as writing more gritty literature. You may have heard it said that easy reading is hard writing. I’d also argue that light or comic reading is also hard writing. Douglas Adams, who wrote the classic Hitchhiker’s Guide To the Galaxy reputedly had to be locked in a room to make him write.

I don’t think it’s a generalisation to say that the majority of writers start off writing autobiographical stories or poems. They painfully record every time their parents didn’t give them what they wanted, or every time their parents turned out to be flawed human beings just like everyone else, or every school playground slight, or every time the love of their life (for that week at least) turned them down. Anyone who has ever upset them is casually murdered in their stories in new and ironic ways. I know, because I was that writer. Most of my writing from when I started in the mid-nineties till at least the mid-noughties was in this vein. Even when I tried not to be autobiographical, I found that once the vein was open, it was hard to seal it up again.

As anyone who’s read my blog before will know, I’m generally a light-hearted person. I don’t walk around thinking ‘oh woe is me’. Yet when I started writing in 1994, I had a lot of stuff I needed to purge. I’ll spare you the miserable childhood, but it seemed that until I had written all that out of my system, I wasn’t ready to move on to what I was really good at, which is making people smile, and occasionally, I hope, making them laugh. I’ll admit I also wasted too much time thinking that I should be a deep and meaningful writer, because public opinion (or at least the opinions on several Internet forums when I was a newbie writer) insisted that it was the only way to be true to oneself.

Who is to say that someone who writes lighter fiction is less true to themselves that Salman Rushdie or Sarah Waters? The ironic thing is that I am more true to myself now that I’m writing what I want to write, than I ever was when I was churning out page after page of self-pity and murderous revenge. Not that I’m averse to throwing the odd character off a cliff nowadays if it suits my purpose.

That doesn’t mean light fiction comes easy to me. One market I write for, My Weekly Pocket Novels, has very specific requirements. The morals are very 1950s, if the 1950s really were like we see in The Darling Buds of May. I doubt they ever were, but this is what the readership enjoys. There’s enough misery in the real world, so when they open up one of the novellas, they want to escape into a world where morals were black and white, the good people were rewarded and bad people punished, but no one ever does anything truly wicked.

However, like many people, I wake up cranky and fed up some mornings, and that occasionally slips out in the writing. I also find it more difficult to create this rose-tinted world if I’m writing a contemporary story.

The 1950s, as we think of them through our hazy coloured spectacles, are probably a construct, brought about by shows like The Darling Buds of May and Happy Days, and the stories that my 75 year-old dad, who is still a Teddy Boy at heart, tells me. Yet it is easier for me to slip into that world, or an earlier one, where the morals were more certain. In a story set in 2012, I can’t imagine why a man and woman who fancy the pants off each other wouldn’t just hop into bed together. In 1950 or earlier, their abstinence becomes more realistic, because, back then, nice girls didn’t do such things.

Alright, alright, I can hear you all scoffing from here. We may well know that illegitimate children were born in the past, and that there was a lot of poverty, domestic abuse, injustice and illness, but in our heads there is that golden moral glow that only distance can lend to an era. We believe that people were nicer to each other, that life was better and we were all happier, and ignore the fact that racism was a national state of mind, women were expected to stay home and make babies and there was a class divide that created a glass ceiling for the majority of the population.

Of course novels do deal with these things. Andrea Levy’s A Small Island covers pretty much all of them and to wonderful effect. The market I write for has tighter requirements and a readership who buy them to be cheered up, not made depressed. As Maggie Seed, editor of My Weekly Pocket Novels said in an interview last year, she doesn’t care if lots of people died in any particular historical era, neither she nor her readers want to read about it.

That doesn’t mean one can’t dig deep. My characters have dealt with heartbreak, grief, the loss of their livelihoods and the odd murder or two. The trick is in pitching it so that nothing distresses the readers. So grief is there but the characters tend to be plucky and work through it. Murders are always ‘offstage’ and generally the victim is someone that the reader has not come to like too much. Heartbreak is followed very quickly by the happy ending the characters have come to deserve.

This is where the hard writing comes in. It takes several edits to change things so that they’ll be accepted by the editor at the other end. Sometimes the changes happen in the initial writing stage. A story that I’m working on at the moment is set in World War II. I started with the premise that someone was slashing ladies’ stockings at night. I immediately realised that slashing with a knife is a bit too violent for the light-hearted story I had in mind, so I decided the ‘slasher’ was using a stick. I saw straight away that this was ludicrous, and didn’t really take away from the sexual element of the crime. It isn’t a sexual crime. It’s intended to be a jealous crime. So then I changed it so that stockings were being cut to pieces whilst on the washing line. The next day, before I wrote any new words, I went back and changed it again so that the slashed stockings were stolen from the lines instead. It’s still a crime, but it feels as if it’s less of a violent crime. A stocking stealer feels more appropriate than a stocking slasher and probably lends itself more to moments of comedy during the story.

You may well wonder why it should matter if the stockings are stolen or slashed as long as no one is harmed, but I’ve learned to be very careful. I still bear the scars from the time I discussed writing a werewolf romance with an editor, got the go ahead, wrote fifty thousands words and then found out, when I sent it in, that what she actually wanted was a werewolf romance without actual werewolves…

Writing ‘light’ is a balancing act, made up of regularly altering the language used, toning down dialogue, even changing the plot as one goes along, if things start to get too dark. Especially on days when I get out of the wrong side of the bed. I’m sure Stephen King works just as hard on making his language frightening, heightening the terror and making sure he stays on the dark side of his plot.

I’d argue that both Stephen King and I have to work equally hard not to let real life in. His fictional world, with ITs creepy clowns hiding in every sewer, is no more real than the 1950s innocence of the world I write about. He inhabits the dark side. I inhabit the light side. Whilst I’m not in any way putting myself on King’s level as a writer, I believe it takes skill to do both.

>The (British) Cheats Guide to Writing Western Romances

Quillers — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 09:31:17 +0000

Carrying on my theme of revisiting old blog posts, this one was mentioned in my Pocket Novel workshop the other day. Don’t take it too seriously (as some Americans who read it did … oh dear … though it was rather unfortunate that they didn’t know that the Sierra Nevada IS a big winegrowing region.) It’s the British Cheats Guide to Writing Western Romances. Enjoy and don’t send me hate mail.

>The (British) Cheats Guide to Writing Western Romances.

Blog Tour – Write A Great Synopsis by Nicola Morgan

Quillers — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 07:00:30 +0000

Write a Great Synopsis by Nicola Morgan

I am very proud today to be hosting a leg of Nicola Morgan‘s blog tour. Nicola has written a fantastic ebook guide for those of us who obsess over writing a synopsis, called Write A Great Synopsis. Read on for my review of the ebook, an interview with Nicola, and details of how you could win an invaluable critique of your synopsis by Nicola.

About Write A Great Synopsis and Nicola Morgan

Most writers hate writing synopses. They need dread them no more. In Write a Great Synopsis – An Expert Guide, Nicola Morgan takes the stress out of the subject and applies calm, systematic guidance, with her renowned no-nonsense approach.

Write a Great Synopsis covers: the function of a synopsis, differences between outlines and synopses, different requirements for different agents and publishers, finding the heart of your book, how to tackle non-linear plots, multiples themes, sub-plots and long novels, and it answers all the questions and confusions that writers have. Nicola also introduces readers to her useful Crappy Memory Tool, explains the art of crafting a 25-word pitch, and demonstrates with real examples. Gold-dust for writers at all stages.

Nicola is the author of around ninety books for all ages, fiction and non-fiction. To writers she is known for the no-nonsense expert advice in her blog, Help! I Need a Publisher! and her highly acclaimed book for writers, Write to be Published, as well as Tweet Right – The Sensible Person’s Guide to Twitter.

Praise for Write to be Published:

Best-selling author, Joanne Harris: “…the tutor I wish I’d had… Nicola Morgan is made of crabbit – but she is also made of awesome.”

Editor of The New Writer, Merric Davidson: “It’s here. At last! The book of the blog – and very probably the book of the century (so far) for all aspiring writers out there… This really is the real deal; the one book you should have by your side as you’re plotting and planning your career as a published writer. It is, without doubt, one of the most generous how to books you will come across and it’s written in a most approachable, informative style by the self-styled Crabbit Old Bat (check the blog!)….Invaluable advice, delivered with honesty and no little humour.”

MA Creative Writing course leader, David Belbin: “Accessible, intelligent and up to date. … Should be on the reading list of every creative writing course in the country.”

Karen Ball, author: “It’s a must-have book for aspiring writers [and] authors who already know their trade…”

Aspiring writer on Amazon: “…what makes this book different (and the thing which will make you fall in love with it) is the wonderful style in which it is written. … as though you’ve sat down and had a really good chat with someone who knows just how you feel. … You’ll never feel on your own again.”

Popular blogger, Bookwitch: “… she writes the way I want to…She writes great children’s novels, but it’s Nicola’s non-fiction – and her shoes – that I’m willing to kill for… There is not a thing missing. Nicola deals with it all in her – how shall I put it? – calling-a-spade-a-spade style.”

Aspiring writer on Amazon: “…never have I seen all these things addressed so well in a single volume.… [WTBP] has convinced me of the science behind the successful writer. … And it is not only her pragmatism that infects you but her enormous enthusiasm for the joy of writing. For a novice writer like me, this book is a complete meal.”

Author, blogger and publisher, Scott Pack: “I receive a lot of emails from authors asking for guidance on how to take the next steps to publication. In future I will just point them in the direction of this book.”

Write a Great Synopsis Review by Sally Quilford

Like many writers I hate writing a synopsis when sending out work. It’s a chore I get over with as quickly as possible. I know there are lots of guides out there, but I often find that as well as being really dry reading, they make things seem even more complicated. They’re full of dos and don’ts and superior preaching that leave me feeling even more nervous about the task in hand. Plus they assume that every agent wants the same thing. Not so with Write A Great Synopsis by Nicola Morgan. The guide is witty, informative and talks to the reader, not at them, offering lots of advice on how to create your synopsis. Nicola explains what works and, just as importantly, why it works. There are also tips from agents and publshers, along with helpful examples taken from discussions on Nicola’s own blog where she has advised her visitors on their own synopsis writing efforts. What really comes out of the guide is how writing a synopsis shouldn’t be anywhere near as stressful as writers make it.

Nicola Morgan

Interview with Nicola Morgan

In the highly unlikely event that any of my blog visitors have never heard of you, tell me all about yourself.

(Actually, I’m hoping loads of people haven’t heard of me. They are the people I want to meet!) I’ve had a lot of books published – novels for teenagers and books of all sorts for younger children (including some Thomas the Tank Engine books), books about the brain (including teenage brain – yes, it’s there and it works brilliantly!) and titles for writers – Write to be Published being my main one in that market. Won a few awards, had a few best-sellers, but not nearly enough. Used to be a teacher. Love cooking, shoes, chocolate, sparkly wine and candlelit baths. Born and educated in a boys’ school. Can gut a fish, pluck a turkey, wield an electric drill and put up shelves. First (and pretty much only) Google result for the phrase Crabbit Old Bat, because of my feisty honesty on my Help! I Need a Publisher! blog.

What do you think it is about synopsis writing that makes most writers want to curl up in a foetal position and pull the duvet over their heads? Or is that just me?

No, it’s not just you. But you haven’t read Write a Great Synopsis (WAGS) yet (or you hadn’t when you asked that question).

I had, but I was pretending I hadn’t. Call it artistic licence. You were saying …

There are two reasons for the widespread fear. First, writers think their synopsis has to be as beautiful as their book and that without a perfect synopsis they cannot get a deal. Neither of those things is true. Second, many writers have a misconception as to what a synopsis is for. WAGS will sort them out.

You’ve written an incredible 90 books, or thereabouts (bows and chants ‘I am not worthy’). Do you still get nervous when writing a synopsis or is it easier for you now?

I have never been nervous about writing a synopsis. At first, I wasn’t nervous because I was so ignorant that I didn’t know there was anything to worry about. Now I’m not nervous because I know how to do a synopsis and know how unworrying they are when you know how.

Briefly, and so we don’t give the whole basis of your book away, what are the cardinal sins of synopsis writing?

Not sins but errors. Error 1: confusing outline with synopsis. Error 2: not knowing what plot bits to leave out. Error 3: verbal profligacy. Error 4: being too close to your book.

I can relate to all of those, and I found your guide very helpful in clearing up the confusion.

What is the best type of synopsis to write? (again briefly so we don’t give the whole book away)

Your synopsis will be perfect for your book if it seamlessly shows the answers to the “who, what, why, where, how(ish) and with what result?” questions. A good synopsis is functional more than beautiful but all good functional designs have a kind of beauty to them, too. The function is to show the reader (agent or publisher, not end-reader) that your story works and what it is like, not to relate the whole story episodically.

Do you have any stories of funny/awful synopses that you would like to share?

Yes, unfortunately. When my publisher was commissioning Know Your Brain (the follow-up to Blame My Brain), I had to write a synopsis. At that time, the book (which also had a different title – I forget what) was going to be about genius, focusing on famous brilliant people and looking at how brilliance is often accompanied by a major negative. The book was commissioned and then my editor and I had a very different idea for what the book would be about. But the publicity person who had to write the info which goes, amongst other places, to Amazon, was only told the new title but not that the whole thing had changed. Nor did we know that anyone was writing the description so early, or sending it out without telling us. So, for a rather long time, Amazon showed Know Your Brain as containing hopelessly wrong contents. I mean hopelessly.

Is there anything else you would like to say that hasn’t been covered?

Don’t panic: it’s only a synopsis!

Also… Would you like the chance of winning a critique of your synopsis from me? All commenters below (by Feb 15^th) will be entered into the Big WAGS Competition, with chances to win a critique of your synopsis by the Crabbit Old Bat herself! One comment per person on each blog – though you can add to your chances by commenting on the other posts on the tour. Details of all stops on the tour will appear on my blog (Help! I Need a Publisher!) as they go out. Full details of the competition and prizes can be found HERE.

For details about the book, including buying options, go here. The link direct to Amazon UK is HERE.

Thanks for having me here, Sally, and good luck to all your readers. I hope they’ll find the advice in WAGS really useful and fun to read – yes, really, a book about synopses, fun!

Thank you for visiting, Nicola. I can’t stress enough how helpful WAGS is. I’ve somehow managed to sell novellas with the synopsises (synopsii?) I’ve sent out, but reading WAGS taught me how I could do it much better, and with less stress.

>How I Write

Quillers — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 11:54:19 +0000

I wanted to reblog the article linked below, but there seems to be a button or something missing from my reblog function. I wrote it way back in March 2007 – Nearly five whole years ago. I don’t think much about how I write has changed, apart from the fact I now have my column and I’ve had the pocket novels published. Oh and now I have the shed to disappear to in summer. Sometimes I don’t feel that I write as much as I did back then, but I guess it’s all relative when writing longer works. Still, I thought it would be interesting to revisit some old blog posts.

>How I Write.

100k in 100 days – Prompts – Day Thirty-One

Quillers — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 08:00:42 +0000

Today’s prompts come from The Book of Days, which is a collection of diary entries from various sources – 1 for each day of the year.

1. “I am told that a viper bite may make a woman silly for life, or deprive a man of his virility.”

2. I particularly admire the curl outward of the blossom.

3. Abroad, and met with Hadley, our clerk, who, upon my asking how the plague goes, told me it increases much.

4. The cocktail party at Alec’s was quite fun…

5. I never saw a place that had so much the air of opulence and ease as Oxford.

6. Visited a wretched family who are actually living in a hole…

7. The way in which the king bowed was really royal…

8. It rained so hard that we were not able to go to the well…

9. By good fortune a ventriloquist and partial juggler came in…

10. Nothing could be more romantically beautiful than the rich wooded hills…