November Blog News

November already - hasn't the year rushed by? On the writing front it has been a good year. Tin Hats and Gas Masks published in March and The Straw Halter published in August. One to come before the year ends - only just, on Dec. 31st It's One of Ours will be out. Just in time for all those book and gift tokens you get for Christmas.
Three books in a year sounds great, doesn't it, but they were not all written this year. Two of them were sitting in the drawer from when I finished them - or rather, when I thought I had finished them. Always meant to look at them again and at the beginning of this year I did. Result was that I still liked them, still believed in them, but knew they needed revising, tweaking, working on, whatever you like to call it. So a lesson or two here for us all .
1. Never throw away something you have written unless you are certain (and how can you be) that it really hasn't got anything going for it. Trends change and subjects which publishers weren't looking for a year or so ago may be current now or next year.
2. Don't just submit them though, check them through, improve them, look at them again and do whatever is necessary to make them the book the publisher is looking for now.
All the books are available at Waterstones, W.H Smiths and most bookshops, and if they haven't any left they will order for you. I also have some here, which I take and hope to sell when I do a writing talk.
Have had a go at writing a monologue this year too. That was for a competition. It didn't win, or even come second or third, but it got a highly commended and I was chuffed about that because I hadn't written in this form before and I really enjoyed the experience. So much so that I am going to try another one next year.
Would love to hear what other writers out there are currently doing. But for now, happy writing to everone, Joan.