I have literally just finished formatting Granny Rainbow.
The pictures look fantastic, the cover is everything I hoped it would be, and the stories...well, you'll have to be the judge of those. But everything will be ready to go to the printer tomorrow...
I'm scared to let it go, in case there is something I've missed. I can't blame mistakes on anyone other than myself; I wanted creative control. There's only me to take the rap if this book doesn't come up to scratch.
This is really it, isn't it?
Monday, 10 February 2014
Saturday, 8 February 2014
Water, water - everywhere...
I'm sitting in my lounge, listening to the wind howl. At least the rain has stopped - for a while at least.
I can't put into words how devastated I feel for the people and communities affected by the unprecedented flooding in the Somerset Levels and the tidal onslaught on the south-west coast. If there was anything I could practically do to relieve the suffering of those affected, I would.
All I can do is pray for relief - from the wind, from the waves, and from the relentless creeping water.
Well - prayers have been known to move mountains; about time we started to work on the jet stream, don't you think?
I can't put into words how devastated I feel for the people and communities affected by the unprecedented flooding in the Somerset Levels and the tidal onslaught on the south-west coast. If there was anything I could practically do to relieve the suffering of those affected, I would.
All I can do is pray for relief - from the wind, from the waves, and from the relentless creeping water.
Well - prayers have been known to move mountains; about time we started to work on the jet stream, don't you think?
Friday, 7 February 2014
Stories for Homes - the movie(s)!
Just after I posted yesterday, I discovered that video clips have been posted of the Stories for Homes
Ivy House gig!
You can find all of them here - just scroll through to find the performer of your choice - as they're all in bite-size chunks of 5-10 mins. Humungous thanks to Dan Maitland who organised it, and to his trusty video-bods for making us all look so fabulous!
Here's me, reading an extract from Homeland, with a couple of bits missing around the two-and-a-half-and four-and-a-half minute marks... (Buy the book to get the whole story!)
It's a bit funny watching yourself on a video; for a start, I don't sound like me! And to think I was concerned about the double chin on the photos - seeing myself on video, I've decided I really must keep my eyebrows under control when reading in future!
Ivy House gig!
You can find all of them here - just scroll through to find the performer of your choice - as they're all in bite-size chunks of 5-10 mins. Humungous thanks to Dan Maitland who organised it, and to his trusty video-bods for making us all look so fabulous!
Here's me, reading an extract from Homeland, with a couple of bits missing around the two-and-a-half-and four-and-a-half minute marks... (Buy the book to get the whole story!)
It's a bit funny watching yourself on a video; for a start, I don't sound like me! And to think I was concerned about the double chin on the photos - seeing myself on video, I've decided I really must keep my eyebrows under control when reading in future!
Thursday, 6 February 2014
More Ivy House pictures...
When I blogged about the Ivy House gig in aid of Stories for Homes, my pics were OK. Enough to give you a flavour of the night, anyway.
But now, we've got some professional ones! Take a look at these beauties by Richard Denney!
(Have to say, I'm really pleased to see that the photos Richard took of me have avoided any hint of a double chin...)
And if you were wondering why I'm still promoting this whole project...you only had to be watching the BBC documentary 'Tough Young Teachers' which aired earlier this week. Although primarily about the experiences of six newly qualified teachers in their first ever teaching posts, (talk about being thrown in the deep end!) there are several students who come under scrutiny too. One student, having moved to the UK from Brazil, was dropping grades just prior to his GCSE exam; the new teacher told him (and many of his classmates) he needed to pull his socks up.
Then the programme visited the lad at home.
Home was a single room in a hostel, shared with his brother and mother. In a room the size of my lounge were crammed three beds, a wardrobe, a small sink and a 2-ring cooker. The toilet was down the corridor.
The presenter asked the boy 'Where do you do your work?'
He gave a half-smile and gestured to the corner of the room. 'My bed.' There was black mould growing on the walls beside his pillow.
And the teacher wondered why his grades were dropping...
That is why Stories for Homes - and the continuing promotion of it - is so important. It's got to be about more than having a story published.
It's about changing the future for folks who don't have a decent home.
But now, we've got some professional ones! Take a look at these beauties by Richard Denney!
(Have to say, I'm really pleased to see that the photos Richard took of me have avoided any hint of a double chin...)
And if you were wondering why I'm still promoting this whole project...you only had to be watching the BBC documentary 'Tough Young Teachers' which aired earlier this week. Although primarily about the experiences of six newly qualified teachers in their first ever teaching posts, (talk about being thrown in the deep end!) there are several students who come under scrutiny too. One student, having moved to the UK from Brazil, was dropping grades just prior to his GCSE exam; the new teacher told him (and many of his classmates) he needed to pull his socks up.
Then the programme visited the lad at home.
Home was a single room in a hostel, shared with his brother and mother. In a room the size of my lounge were crammed three beds, a wardrobe, a small sink and a 2-ring cooker. The toilet was down the corridor.
The presenter asked the boy 'Where do you do your work?'
He gave a half-smile and gestured to the corner of the room. 'My bed.' There was black mould growing on the walls beside his pillow.
And the teacher wondered why his grades were dropping...
That is why Stories for Homes - and the continuing promotion of it - is so important. It's got to be about more than having a story published.
It's about changing the future for folks who don't have a decent home.
Wednesday, 5 February 2014
Granny Rainbow - getting closer?
A short while back, I wrote that Granny Rainbow was going to be slightly delayed after a decision to tweak some of the illustrations.
Instead of a publication date in January, as I'd originally hoped, it was looking likely to be nearer March before I had real, paper copies in my sweaty mitts. Especially when the printer contacted me to say he needs all the material by the 17th Feb in order to deliver by the 5th March - the day before World Book Day. Well, I need to whisper this so as not to jinx things, but...
*I think we might be on track for the 5th March!*
The last two redrawn pics are due this weekend, which should give me enough time to add them to the text and let the printer have everything he needs to start formatting.
I can't put into words how this makes me feel. Am I excited? Scared? Difficult to tell. On one hand, it's the culmination of a dream - to have produced a real book with my name on the cover and filled it with my stories. On the other hand, it means it's getting closer to the time I find out whether a) my writing is professional enough to be accepted by the market, b) actually going to be read by the folk I intended it to be read by and c) whether I've made a huge mistake in placing a large order.
I'm not going to fix a launch date until I'm absolutely certain I can meet it - but when I do, you'll be the first to know...
Monday, 3 February 2014
I'm stuck
I didn't get much writing done last week. Between the London trip for Stories for Homes, a migraine, some paid editing and waiting for some important feedback, my mind wasn't in a good place for thinking up new stuff. This week, I'm in a better place; I can write!
Mondays are normally good writing days, because Mr Squidge is out all day and the kids have clubs after school. If I'm lucky, I can write for hours! But today, I knew I had to catch up with the housework before I could allow myself that indulgence. I finally sat down, in a very much cleaner house, at 1pm, with the aim of getting stuck in for a couple of hours before the kids come home.
By 2pm, I'd had to stop. I got stuck, rather than stuck in.
Reason being, with my current WIP, I'm trying a different approach to get the story down. It involves keeping on writing till I get to the end, no looking back, no editing - forward only. A rough outline of where I was going was all I needed, and it seemed to be paying off.
Then Ani (the main character) got bolshy and changed the storyline. Which had a knock-on effect on several other characters and the blinkin' plot. So I've had no choice but to go back and tweak bits I know now don't fit...otherwise, I'll get to the end and it'll be like spaghetti, all knotty and twisty turny.
I simply can't hold in my head all the possibilities that are arising out of where the story is at the moment! There are no chapters either, which is proving to be a distinct disadvantage at the moment. I'm not really a planner - more of a pantser - but in this case, I'm going to have to make an exception to get me back on track.
My writing time this week will therefore be spent on chapter plans and plotting, rather than writing the new scenes which are trying to break out of my head.
I am somewhat dischuffed at the prospect, but at least, once it's done, I can get writing 'properly' again...fingers crossed.
Mondays are normally good writing days, because Mr Squidge is out all day and the kids have clubs after school. If I'm lucky, I can write for hours! But today, I knew I had to catch up with the housework before I could allow myself that indulgence. I finally sat down, in a very much cleaner house, at 1pm, with the aim of getting stuck in for a couple of hours before the kids come home.
By 2pm, I'd had to stop. I got stuck, rather than stuck in.
Reason being, with my current WIP, I'm trying a different approach to get the story down. It involves keeping on writing till I get to the end, no looking back, no editing - forward only. A rough outline of where I was going was all I needed, and it seemed to be paying off.
Then Ani (the main character) got bolshy and changed the storyline. Which had a knock-on effect on several other characters and the blinkin' plot. So I've had no choice but to go back and tweak bits I know now don't fit...otherwise, I'll get to the end and it'll be like spaghetti, all knotty and twisty turny.
I simply can't hold in my head all the possibilities that are arising out of where the story is at the moment! There are no chapters either, which is proving to be a distinct disadvantage at the moment. I'm not really a planner - more of a pantser - but in this case, I'm going to have to make an exception to get me back on track.
My writing time this week will therefore be spent on chapter plans and plotting, rather than writing the new scenes which are trying to break out of my head.
I am somewhat dischuffed at the prospect, but at least, once it's done, I can get writing 'properly' again...fingers crossed.
Saturday, 1 February 2014
Thinking about why I write how I write...
If you've followed the Scribbles for a while, you'll know I've had a few problems with getting my writing accepted by agents. 'Nice' is a word that crops up a lot, as well as the phrase 'lacks sparkle'.
In a conversation with an agent recently, who said both of those things (along with some other very lovely feedback and suggestions for possible improvements for Rurik), I was given a challenge to try to find 'sparkle' ingredients.
Said agent asked me to re-read some of my favourite children's stories and try to identify why I liked them so much. Was it the characters? The action? The dialogue? Then, look at what I considered to be the exciting bits in Rurik and decide whether I could see the same things there - and if not, how would I change what was already written?
I find this SO hard to do! I don't know why I enjoy certain books rather than others! I just know that I like it or I don't - if I get sucked in, it's generally because of a mixture of things.
I do know that what I don't like reading - and therefore avoid writing - include some of the following;
1. Long descriptions of people or places (I want to see action!)
2. Characters with stilted dialogue (Oh, Mrs Smith, do you remember that he pursued me to the woods? Oh yes, he chased you for half a mile over Farmer Fairley's fields and you were quite muddy when you got home, were you not?)
3, Convenient storylines (and then the butler appeared with the same knife in his hand so he was the murderer)
4. Ping-pong dialogue (Are you OK? Yes I'm OK. Are you sure? Yes, of course I'm sure - will you stop fussing? I'm not fussing, I'm concerned)
5. Detailed descriptions of action scenes (Jim's right fist thrust upwards as his left leg kicked out towards the bloated stomach of his attacker. The impact jarred Jim to the core but he followed through with a side chop to the larynx...)
6. Cliffhanger endings (The mystery was solved. 'But you are not my son,' Father said. My whole world had just fallen apart. The End.)
Working on the flip side then, that must mean that generally, I like...
1. Lots of subtle little details about people and places that bring them alive.
2. Dialogue that's realistic.
3. A plot that carries me onwards all the time and then makes me go 'oh! I didn't see that coming, but it's so obvious now!'
4. Action that isn't necessarily a fight scene.
5. A complete story - something that ties up enough loose ends to come to a logical conclusion but also leaves enough strands to weave into a new story at a later date.
I thought - hoped - I included these things in my own writing, but feedback continually shows I'm falling short somewhere.
I wonder how much of the problem comes from the fact that as a child, I read 'nice' books? They were gentle stories which took you on fantasy adventures, unlike the rollercoaster rides of action which seem to be pretty popular today. Off the top of my head, I'm remembering the Magic Faraway Tree, Olga da Polga, King of the Copper Mountain...I can certainly see that 'gentler' element in my own creations. Don't get me wrong - I'm not averse to a bit of Alex Rider, or Skulduggery Pleasant, or Artemis Fowl, but I do get exhausted reading them because of their relentless pace! As a result, I don't write that kind of story - my pacing ebbs and flows.
I suppose the question is, are there enough children today who still appreciate a 'gentle' read? Or will I need to change what appears to be my natural (gentler) writing style to fit the (faster paced) market to stand any chance of reasonable success?
In a conversation with an agent recently, who said both of those things (along with some other very lovely feedback and suggestions for possible improvements for Rurik), I was given a challenge to try to find 'sparkle' ingredients.
Said agent asked me to re-read some of my favourite children's stories and try to identify why I liked them so much. Was it the characters? The action? The dialogue? Then, look at what I considered to be the exciting bits in Rurik and decide whether I could see the same things there - and if not, how would I change what was already written?
I find this SO hard to do! I don't know why I enjoy certain books rather than others! I just know that I like it or I don't - if I get sucked in, it's generally because of a mixture of things.
I do know that what I don't like reading - and therefore avoid writing - include some of the following;
1. Long descriptions of people or places (I want to see action!)
2. Characters with stilted dialogue (Oh, Mrs Smith, do you remember that he pursued me to the woods? Oh yes, he chased you for half a mile over Farmer Fairley's fields and you were quite muddy when you got home, were you not?)
3, Convenient storylines (and then the butler appeared with the same knife in his hand so he was the murderer)
4. Ping-pong dialogue (Are you OK? Yes I'm OK. Are you sure? Yes, of course I'm sure - will you stop fussing? I'm not fussing, I'm concerned)
5. Detailed descriptions of action scenes (Jim's right fist thrust upwards as his left leg kicked out towards the bloated stomach of his attacker. The impact jarred Jim to the core but he followed through with a side chop to the larynx...)
6. Cliffhanger endings (The mystery was solved. 'But you are not my son,' Father said. My whole world had just fallen apart. The End.)
Working on the flip side then, that must mean that generally, I like...
1. Lots of subtle little details about people and places that bring them alive.
2. Dialogue that's realistic.
3. A plot that carries me onwards all the time and then makes me go 'oh! I didn't see that coming, but it's so obvious now!'
4. Action that isn't necessarily a fight scene.
5. A complete story - something that ties up enough loose ends to come to a logical conclusion but also leaves enough strands to weave into a new story at a later date.
I thought - hoped - I included these things in my own writing, but feedback continually shows I'm falling short somewhere.
I wonder how much of the problem comes from the fact that as a child, I read 'nice' books? They were gentle stories which took you on fantasy adventures, unlike the rollercoaster rides of action which seem to be pretty popular today. Off the top of my head, I'm remembering the Magic Faraway Tree, Olga da Polga, King of the Copper Mountain...I can certainly see that 'gentler' element in my own creations. Don't get me wrong - I'm not averse to a bit of Alex Rider, or Skulduggery Pleasant, or Artemis Fowl, but I do get exhausted reading them because of their relentless pace! As a result, I don't write that kind of story - my pacing ebbs and flows.
I suppose the question is, are there enough children today who still appreciate a 'gentle' read? Or will I need to change what appears to be my natural (gentler) writing style to fit the (faster paced) market to stand any chance of reasonable success?
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