We’ve just had a few days away visiting Amsterdam and Antwerp, our first holiday abroad since the COVID times.

A few weeks before taking this break, I had been attending The Golden Hour at The Novelry via Zoom, where a group of writers would sit in silence and write for one hour. I found that being able to see the others hard at work encouraged me to keep going, and I felt less isolated. In just one hour a day, over fifteen days, I doubled my word count from 13,000 to 26,000. I returned from holiday yesterday and will start attending The Golden Hour again, which is running until Christmas. Hopefully, I will have the first draft of this new novel completed and ready to tackle the rewrite. I am thoroughly enjoying writing in a notebook during this time, then typing up the pages and undertaking the first edit as I do so.

Being on holiday has helped broaden my mind – I even managed to speak French when ordering food and shopping in Antwerp, even though almost everyone spoke English. I spent time reading The Past by Tessa Hadley and The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman, but only managed to handwrite a few pages of my new novel. However, the break has fired up my brain, and I can’t wait for the hour to begin at one o’clock today.

The photo above is a statue of Nello and his dog, a Belgium equivalent of our story of The Little Match Girl. Nello was homeless and visited the Antwerp cathedral every day to look at the Rubens paintings, which he loved. One winter’s day, both Nello and his dog were found dead in the cathedral. Antwerp is a stunning city, with beautiful Medieval architecture and the cathedral of Our Lady housing some gorgeous Rubens paintings as well as some modern sculpture. I will post some photos below. We also visited Amsterdam, but for some reason, I haven’t managed to upload the photos.

As much as I enjoyed my time away, I’m happy to be back at my desk to work on my new novel; I did miss my daily writing routine. After posting this, I will type up what I wrote whilst away and kick my brain into writing gear.

Thank you for reading this, and Happy Word Flow One & All

A while ago, a literary agent requested the full manuscript of my novel, and I was cautiously excited as I’ve been here before. Then, a few weeks ago, I had a Zoom meeting with the A for Authors Agency, and I was offered representation by Kirstie Long, and I accepted!

It has been a long journey to get to this point. I started writing ten years ago, and my search for a literary agent began shortly after when I naively thought I was ready. Then, I was fortunate enough to have seven novels published by Wintergoose Publishing, which occupied me for five years. I learned much from working with the editor there, but I realised I still had so much more to learn, and the desire to have an agent by my side had resurfaced.

So, I took the Edit and Pitch Your novel course with Curtis Brown Creative and discovered I enjoyed being immersed in learning the craft of writing. Then, two years ago, I found The Novelry, where I worked on my novel by writing, re-writing and editing until I felt I could do no more. And et voilá, I found representation!

To those writers seeking representation, I remember clearly how it felt to receive rejections, but as Sylvia Plath said, see these rejections, they say I’m a writer. So I pinned the positive, personalised rejections on my noticeboard to remind me that I was ‘getting there’ and kept trying.

Of course, getting an agent does not mean that my novel will be picked up by a publisher, but if it is, it will take maybe a year or two before I can hold the book in my hands. After that, who knows what the future holds?

I am still a member of The Novelry, as I love the supportive community, the courses and the guest authors who come and talk to us about their journey and the craft of writing. In addition, I am constantly discovering new books I want to read by inspiring authors. So, along with all the book bloggers I follow on Twitter and Instagram, my bookshelves are groaning!

Fingers crossed, Margot Baker Knows Best will become a book, but in the meantime, I am busy writing the next one.

Persevere, dear writers, if you’re seeking representation, there will be an agent for you. Learn your craft and work on your novel until you feel you can do no more. And don’t be defeated by rejections – remember dear Sylvia Plath.

Happy Word Flow, One and All.

When my May 2022 copy of Writing Magazine dropped through my letterbox, I felt one article had been written primarily for me. The article, ‘The shock of the (shiny and) new’ by Gary Dalkin, talks about how to cope with writing one novel when a new idea pops into your head about another book. I read the article with relish as it’s the situation I find myself in currently.

I have written 42,000 words of one novel and 7,000 of another, and I’m enjoying writing them both. They are both women’s fiction, both with an element of suspense, and I’m enjoying writing both protagonists and cast members. I start writing one, then moving to the other, which is utterly ridiculous, as I’ll never get one finished at this rate, dear reader.

So, I wrote a synopsis for both novels and today I showed my long-suffering hubs, my youngest daughter and her partner who have arrived for the weekend, and I’ll show my eldest daughter when she arrives later this evening. So far two votes have gone to the longest novel and one vote to the other one. If my eldest daughter votes for the one which would make it a tie, I’ve no idea what I will do.

You are probably saying, why don’t I continue writing the one which is already 42,000 words, you crazy fool. And yes, that would make sense, but there’s an irritating voice in my head saying, which one will hook an agent? I know I’ve had several books published previously, but my heart is set on finding an agent – perhaps I have a foolish heart. However, two agents who were not grabbed by my last novel said that they would love to consider any future books I write. This, dear reader, made my heart sing.

However, I believe this is the reason I am in this pickle; I feel so close, and yet…

Perhaps I will have my answer come this evening – let’s hope so, otherwise, I risk wasting valuable writing time jumping from one novel to the other. I can, of course, ask my tutor at The Novelry, and it may come to that after this evening, but it’s fun seeing how the votes pan out.

Thank you for taking an interest, and I will update you when I know which novel I have nailed to the mast.

Happy Word Flow One & All

I write every day; it’s what makes me happy – unless the words aren’t flowing. On those days, the negative voice in my head is telling me the story is rubbish, and I’m a terrible writer. For those moments, I look at the positive comments I’ve received from my tutor or editor at The Novelry, or from agents who, although they have rejected me, are keen to see any further novels from me. These are all printed out and pinned above my desk.

I try to look at Twitter and Instagram in the morning, as I can get sucked into the vortex and swill around without noticing the time passing. I follow so many book bloggers I’m often steered towards Waterstones to add books to my future purchases list, or buy them there and then, especially if there’s a signed copy on offer – my weakness. Thankfully, I’m not a fan of FB, although I have an author page there.

Being at home also means I’m interrupted from writing by the washing machine, dust which is screaming to be swept away, or Alfie, our rescue cat, who wants stroking while he eats, given water from my cupped hands under the bathroom tap, playing with indoors, or company in the garden while he rolls in the soil. I cannot ignore his pitiful meowing or his eyes staring at me until I move and follow him.

There are some days when I’m reading a novel that is so good that I just want to sit and read it until I finish it. Although it’s imperative for an author to read, sometimes it does make me feel that what I am writing is not good enough. Comparing oneself to others brings nothing but pain.

Of course, the news is also taking its toll on my creativity. I watch the news once a day only to keep abreast of what’s happening, but it’s so upsetting that it can be hard to focus on anything positive in life, as there is an element of feeling guilty about how I’m living compared to the people in Ukraine. The behaviour of human beings toward one another is so abhorrent in this situation it is incomprehensible.

Well, dear reader and writer, I hope you are not stymied from writing too often, and if you are, you find ways of dealing with it. Of course, it is good to have a break when things aren’t going your way, and I find nature extremely beneficial in those moments, whether it’s walking by the river, on the common, or sitting or working in the garden. May you all have a peaceful day.

Happy Word Flow One & All

Well, folks, it’s been a while since I’ve written a post. Covid interrupted life as we know it, and I hunkered down to write my novel – Margot Baker Knows Best. I’ve spent two years at The Novelry working on it, and Margot and I have become firm friends over that time. She’s not always the easiest person to be around, but there’s a secret in her past that has shaped who she is and her perception of life. She’s never told a soul – but maybe that would help her?

I’ve now put her to one side to await the blessing of The Novelry to start submitting her to agents, and I find I’m missing her and her entourage. However, I’m jumping headlong into working on my next novel, as writing makes me happy and keeps my mind off thinking about Margot’s future.

I spent a week away in Cambridgeshire, in a chalet by a lake, where hubs fished and I wrote. There were some cheeky goats on the site – the one in the above photo loved greeting me in the mornings. Writing while surrounded by nature is an uplifting experience for my creativity, and we plan on doing a similar holiday again this year. Do you find nature makes you feel the same?

Hopefully, I won’t be a stranger to my site from now on – although I’m not making any promises as I’ve tried changing my profile photo, but it won’t upload, which is highly annoying, as Margot would say.

Hope 2022 will be a positive and healthy year for you.

Happy Word Flow One & All

Like most people, I am delighted to say goodbye to 2020, although I’ve been exceedingly lucky compared to some folk. Neither me or hubs have had Covid-19, and neither have our immediate families. Of course, this could change, although hubs being a nurse, is tested weekly, so we would know swiftly.

It was a quiet NYE, obviously, although there were a lot of fireworks at midnight, much to Alfie’s chagrin, so he hid in his ‘safety’ cupboard where I’d already placed a blanket in readiness.

I was – and still am – kept sane by The Novelry, honing my writing, attending classes on Zoom, and listening to some amazing authors such as Joanna Canon and later this year, Mike Gayle. This Sunday is the first Team Chat of the year, and I’m so looking forward to seeing a host of familiar faces after the Christmas break.

I no longer make New Year’s Resolutions. I do, however, have some things I hope for this year, but I’m not putting unnecessary pressure upon myself to achieve them. 2020 has taught me to take one day at a time and to appreciate the smaller things in life, such as a delicious piece of cake, the spring bulbs pushing through the hardened soil, or a quiet stroll along the seashore. It is, of course, impossible to make plans for the year, seeing as Covid-19 is ever-present, so another reason not to add undue pressure on what I can or cannot achieve this coming year. I received plenty of books as gifts this Christmas, so when I’m not writing, I have a wonderful selection of novels to choose from. I hope you were lucky, too.

Let’s hope 2021 is a brighter and healthier year, where we can see our families and friends, eat out, attend food and literary festivals, and listen to live bands in pubs. But let’s look forward one day at a time, with the hope the infection rates and death rates fall dramatically, ushering in the life we used to know – or near enough.

Hope the words flow for you, and stay safe One & All.