When Fiction meets Reality it can be Scary!!!

This is a really quick post this morning re above title!

Over a month ago I wrote a short story for Tessa's blogontest blogfest: it was meant as a fun read and featured a scary creature stalking a youth while on his way home from the pub. The story seeded and stemmed from a rather large black cat I'd spotted lounging at the bottom of our paddock. It leapt up and jumped across the ditch and headed into the cover of trees, nevertheless I thought it unusually large for a feral cat, but thought no more about it.  It looked not unlike this: big, but not so big you'd think it a black panther.



That sighting was almost five years ago in middle paddock: seen here as hay field!

Narberth is 6 miles from my house, Clynderwen 2 miles.

Now read this: Big cats terrifying livestock in Pembrokeshire

This is the short story penned by moi:  "Hoody"

What do you think?

Chapters from Latest Novel up for perusal!



Well, I've done it: I've set up a profile blog and posted 2 chapters from my lastest novel. 

It's a historical as you can see from the image.

To read chaps go here:  

The overall story is one of unrequited love, scandalous seduction, tragic deaths and much heart-searching for both hero and heroine. Although Civil War wrenches them apart, it brings them together again yet the hero all the while unaware of the heroine's presence, but truth will always be outed and love that never died can win true heart again with patience and affection.  

How to Get a Lit Agent? - So says Lit Agent!

In this month’s edition of Writers’ News I noticed a very interesting article on “Getting an Agent”, in which Kirsty McLachlan voices the virtues of author web profiling, i.e. blog, facebook, Twitter. All three if you feel so inclined, though she did recommend Twitter for following agents and the like as a means of getting to know more about them and their personal preferences: all things literary. She also recommended blogs for posting samples of your work: WIPs etc., and promote your characters, after all, it is they that are the important factor.

  

Kirsty furthered with, quote:

“Blogs are great ways to keep writing – but remember not to over-use them. Think about why you are writing a blog and whether it links into the book you are actually writing: if your book is funny, is your blog? Don’t tell your readers about your lunch or whine – whining in blogs is the biggest turn-off! Be positive and be entertaining. Think about other sites and link to them – be successful through association”. (she means gain visual presence of interested followers – this adds to your appeal as a potential published author)

But, what struck as extra note worthy was this comment, quote:

“Look for hungry agents – those with small lists and who have just moved agencies or have recently been promoted to become a junior agent”.

And, last but not least another, quote: “Remember to be passionate about your book – this might sound very obvious but too many unpublished writers feel they have to apologise in some way. An unpublished writer is just a writer that hasn’t been published yet. So talk about your book – bore people if needs be, you just never know who will hear your conversation. Get on your soap-box – start talking, shouting – about your book. Someone somewhere might hear your conversation and will help you get your manuscript to the desk of an agent”.


So there you have it: from the horse’ mouth so to speak!



The Do:

1) Promote, promote, and keep right on promoting you and your writing!

2) Have a blog specific to your book/s. See mine here.

3) My suggestion: have a fun-time blog running parallel.



The Don’t:

1) Don’t whinge and don’t cringe in the corner like a cowering dog on a pile of rejection slips!

2) Keep your profile professional in appearance and avoid clutter on writer blog: make every post count in displaying your artistic ability as a writer.

What say you - are you thinking professional image or just waffling for the sake of, and if you are indulging in the latter is it now time to set up a blog for promotional purposes?

Or is this the way to get what you want?

"You're gonna be my lit agent - right?



Pile 'em high ...then let 'em die: Aspiring authors take note!



There's been much talk on blogs about subbing, about writing the perfect "Query" letter, about avoidance of specific "utility" words, about re-crafting sentence structure to eliminate pesky words etc., but no one, no editor or lit agent thinks the same, reads and absorbs content the same, nor will any of the former like the same material set before them (as in passionate for same), so what should an aspiring writer do? Read the following for starters!



This was Simon Trewin (UK lit agent) featured way back in The Independent, June 2004:


Quote: "Clearly, the compulsion to write should come from a genuine desire to say something, rather from a baser desire to get rich fast. Writing for the market is the quickest way to produce a hollow novel which won’t get off the starting blocks".

So what's changed in the world of publishing if anything since that article first saw light of day?


With hindsight the arcticle makes for intriguing reading. Note my *ing endings* - and two-fingers to the *ing* hate brigade!


To read the article go here. But, before you do, have you ever felt like flinging a book on the fire? I have twice, and all because the word rueful appeared more than once per chapter in two romance novels, in fact the despised word popped up no less than fifty times in twenty pages. By page twenty-one I was beside myself with book rage!  Grrrrrrrrr.  Needless to say I didn't burn said books (gave them away) but this image is kind of satisfying because I can imagine all are blighted with the dreaded *rueful grin* and every other connotation of rueful utilised by obsessed romantic novelist: whom I would love to send a Thesaurus for Christmas!



Quick add-on: I've had loads of e-mails from published authors and aspiring writers in support of this post, each and every one unwilling to pass comment in a public arena, but all having read category romance novels that annoyed, irritated, cheesed off, infuriated, even p*ssed off two, another stating she actually binned one in disgust, and five having sold unwanted CR novels on Ebay to regain partial compensation for badly written, poorly edited and downright lousy plots! Though I must say I thought the funniest was the case of the shredded book: fed to a garden shredder for compost! 
                     

Romantic Novelist/Editor/Poetess/Blogger Scoops 3-book Transworld Deal!

Sort of a NEWS post and hopefully huge INSPIRATION to all romance novelists: inclusive blog deserving of a visit!

Dreams really do come true, and did big-time for Jane Holland

Editor at Salt Publishing/Editor for Embrace / Romance Author &  Lady Poetess, Jane has achieved her dream: she's hit the Transworld jackpot!  Wow!!!

A three-book deal for historical novels, and the first, I know for sure, is a Tudor period piece.

As Jane said: she hopes a bit of fairy dust will fall on all those who follow her blog, so why not go and grab some before it's all gone, then watch her progress from contract to publishing date.  ;)

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Now to the blog I think is worth a vist!

I truly recommend everyone take a moment out of your day to pay Owl's blog a visit.

I guarantee you will not be disappointed if you have an ounce of romantic essence streaming through your veins and love all things natural world!