First, thanks to Emily for last week’s blog. I really admire all the hard work she’s putting in to get the first draft of her novel down on paper. Sometimes you need a deadline, or a bit of pressure, to force you to get on with a projected of this kind. But I suspect that the really hard work will start when she goes back and starts knocking her first draft into shape. I’ll make sure she lets you know how she’s getting on in six months’ time. Read the rest of this entry »
Sometimes I feel that it’s all doom and gloom surrounding the writing of short stories. We’re told that the market is getting ever smaller and it’s harder than ever to find paying markets – as opposed to websites that will publish your work, but don’t offer a fee. Read the rest of this entry »
Most of us find ourselves stuck for words at one time or another; so thanks, Karen, for sharing your tips on how you kick-start your writing.
This week I came a across a term I’d never heard before – Keitai novels. Apparently, these short (very!) novels are sent out in instalments using a mobile phone. As you might expect, it’s a literary form pioneered in Japan. Personally I don’t think I’d find a lot of satisfaction in something so brief, but for the current multi-tasking, phone-addicted generation it obviously has its plus points.
Incidentally, if you want to see a fantastic example of how to get a story across in the least number of words, check out the winner of our ‘Twitter’ Halloween Spooky Story Competition. And while you’re there, you may be tempted to enter the November ‘Caption’ competition. It’s worth having a go as there’s a Freelance Journalism course on offer for the best suggestion.
Talking of very short stories, Reader’s Digest currently has a competition running that asks you to write a compelling story in just 100 words. There’s a £1000 prize for the winner and two runners up will get £100 each. In addition there are two school categories (one for 12 to 18 year olds and one for under 12s). The winner in each will get £500 of high street vouchers to spend plus £500 for their school. It might be worth tipping off your local school about the competition – full details are available on the Reader’s Digest website.
As you’re reading this blog, I suspect many of you may already be writing your own blog or are planning to do so. If you want some professional advice on your posts we currently have a 10% discount for this on our Review and Appraisal service. Also, if anyone would like to provide a guest post for me (on a writing-related topic, of course) I’d be delighted to hear from you. And if you’d like me to guest on your blog, in return, just let me know.
And coming full circle, if you’re a Writers Bureau student and feel that one of our courses has given your writing the ‘kick-start’ it needed then why not take part in our Student of the Year competition? There’s £250 to add to your earnings for the entry we deem best and four runners up will receive £50 each. An entry form can be downloaded from our website and if you’re brave enough you can even put together a YouTube clip for our delectation!
Until next time…
First, thanks to Nick for last week’s interesting – and very useful – post on how social media can benefit you as a freelance writer. Read the rest of this entry »
First this week, I’d like to say congratulations to the winners of our Annual Short Story Competition! The stories were all very accomplished pieces and if you’d like to read them they are now available on our competition website. I’d also like to say thank you to everyone who joined us last Friday for the event on Facebook to celebrate the winners – I hope you all had a good time because we certainly did.
The weather is now firmly back to normal – but I took advantage of the sunshine last weekend to go to Wales and try out white water rafting. It was a great experience, even if I did feel a bit like a trussed turkey by the time I’d fought my way into a wetsuit and then had my life jacket tightened until it had the same effect as a surgical corset. We also took the opportunity of walking across the Pontcysyllte aqueduct near Llangollen (not for those with a fear of heights) and climbing to Castell Dinas Bran. I couldn’t help but think of Simon Whaley’s post a few weeks ago – those views certainly do inspire!
This week (3rd-9th October) is Children’s Book Week – a celebration of reading for pleasure for primary school children. It’s been going for 80 years now – in libraries and schools around the country – and I hope it will still be going in another 80 years. There’s little that can beat the enjoyment of a good book and it’s so important that we convince children of this. It shouldn’t be about telling them that reading is good for them, it should be about guiding them to read the kind of books that will really grab their imagination and make them reach for the next, and the next, and the next… So, if you’ve ever wanted to write a book for children and feel you’ve got the flair that will grab the next generation’s imagination, why don’t you give it a try?
Finally, if you fancy winning one of our Fiction Writing courses why not enter our Halloween ‘twitter’ competition. All you have to do is write a spooky story in no more than 140 characters and, as you might expect, the closing date is 31st October.
My guest next week is Nick Dawes – someone who really can turn his hand to any writing assignment and handle it in a professional manner.
