writing nonfiction tagged posts

Episode 82 – “Travels, Quasimodo and Anna Waddington-Feather!”

May 11, 2013 Newbie Writers Podcast  No comments

Episode 82 of The Newbie Writers’ Podcast

Special Guest: Anne Waddington-Feather

Recommended by Tim Leeder via Facebook. The Newbie Writers’ Group on Facebook

http://sawriters.org.au/our-authors/18-general/134-annie-waddington-feather

Annie trained as a journalist before taking to the road as a tour leader for an adventure travel company. She now lives in Blackwood and has written for a number of publications ranging from travel, historical and martial arts to business, insurance and finance trade articles. When she’s not writing for her local newspaper The Blackwood Times, her regular column for the UK publication Credit Control, also a couple of blogs, she is writing a child’s novel based in Shropshire where she grew up – watch this space!

Latest Book: From the GrandRead More

Episode 75 – Tee Off The Front Nine With Productivityist Mike Vardy!

March 16, 2013 Newbie Writers Podcast  No comments

Episode 75: The Newbie Writer’s Podcast

 Special Guest: Mike Vardy

Author of “The Front Nine: How to Start the Year You Want Anytime You Want”
@mikevardy | http://mikevardy.com | http://www.productivityist.com

 WRITER • TALKER • PRODUCTIVITYIST

INACTION SPEAKS LOUDER THAN WORDS.

Bio:

Mike Vardy may spend a lot of time writing and talking, but it’s what he writes and talks about that can turn inaction into action. His work has been featured by many productivity-focused websites and publications, including Lifehack.org, Lifehacker, The Next Web, The Globe and Mail, and SUCCESS Magazine.

Mike, you describe yourself as a productivity enthusiast or, rather, a “productivityist”. Tell us what that means, and how you came to this position and vocation.

In your blog and web site youRead More

Episode 33-Creative, Self Help and How To Books plus Damienisms!

May 19, 2012 Newbie Writers Podcast  2 comments

Episode 33

Books on Writing

Writing books, what works and what doesn’t

Here are my favorites and we will discuss what they are and why.

Books specifically focused on the How To of Writing

Don’t write like You Talk – Catharine Bramkamp
Funny grammar advice as well as writing advice. If you don’t want too much sanctimony in your inspirational work, I’m your woman.

The Cheap Retreat Workbook – Catharine Bramkamp
How do you get the benefits from a writing retreat without the cost? Do it at home. I also include a wealth of writing prompts to shake loose your creative ideas.

Okay, I had to mention my own books, otherwise marketing people will yell at me.

The Artist’s Way
Julia Cameron
One of the classics – Cameron will help work you through the creative process and give youRead More

Episode 30 – Newbie Writers Podcast!

April 28, 2012 Newbie Writers Podcast  One comment

Episode 30

Books on Writing- Special guest Ciara Ballintyne.

Ciara chats about creative writing in law. How to avoid turning your fantasy fiction piece into a stilted legal document. The ins and outs of why lawyers write like they do!

www.ciaraballintyne.com

Ciara is currently having her latest book offering beta tested. If you would like to participate check out her website and send through your contact details.

We ask all these questions and many stupid ones (well Damien anyway)!

Bring Out Your Dead:

BALLINTYNE Ciara (1981 – 2081) – Arrived, lived and departed loudly. Born argumentative, then became a lawyer, so nothing changed as she aged. Ciara never hesitated to point out when someone was wrong, and she was always right. She never really did decide whether to use her powers forRead More

Diary of a Newbie Novelist

October 26, 2011 Diary of a Newbie Novelist, Submissions  No comments

How do you deal with rejection?

Rejections are a real part of every writer’s life, a legacy of the subjective world of creativity that we choose.

There are numerous reasons why publishers reject novel submissions: their lists are full; the genre is wrong; they don’t gel with your characters; you haven’t adhered to their submission requirements; story isn’t fresh or original or they simply don’t like it; writing style, etc. etc. The list is endless…. And for the most part, we receive no explanation, just a standard response.

Honestly, if my rejection pile was compared to my acceptance pile it would crush it outright. So, how do we turn them around? Here’s my way:

1. Don’t take rejections to heart – we are in a subjective business, what one editor hates another loves.
2. RevisitRead More

Diary of a Newbie Novelist

September 4, 2011 Diary of a Newbie Novelist, Submissions  No comments

Early May 2011

With the interest in my novel to date, I should be ecstatic. Two Agents interested – should be a fiction writers dream. But I was about to learn that securing an Agent doesn’t automatically ensure publication. It just gives you a foot in the door.

In May I received the rejection of all rejections. With the major UK publishing houses passing on my novel, my Agent struck out. He was unable to secure a deal which offered sufficient advance to satisfy his commission requirements. I was back on my own.

Jeffery Archer was rejected by thirteen publishers before he secured a contract for Not a Penny More, Not a Penny Less which later became a bestseller. Even J K Rowling received rejections. I was joining an established club. The problem was that this information didn’t easeRead More

Diary of a Newbie Novelist

August 31, 2011 Diary of a Newbie Novelist, Submissions  No comments

April 2011

Where do our ideas really come from?

Often when I’m at my day job character traits, dialogue, scenarios pop into my mind that may add to a section I’m working on in my book – sometimes they get used, sometimes they’re discarded. The point is, for me anyway, 75% of writing fiction is thinking, playing out a scene in my mind, feeling the emotions of my characters in an effort to convey them in the text. Getting words down becomes easier, when you know what you are going to say and how to say it convincingly.

Whilst I am busy creating, indulging, I realise that I don’t think of my book in a business context.

April was a month of diversions in the UK. Easter celebrations meant a long weekend off work, the Royal Wedding gave us all an extra bank holiday, the London BookRead More

Diary of a Newbie Novelist

August 16, 2011 Diary of a Newbie Novelist, Submissions  No comments

Feb. 2011

Every word counts. As writers, that’s what we are told, whether in fiction or non-fiction. It may be the best line in the world, your pride and joy – but does it add colour to the narrative? Does it really drive the story forward?

With these thoughts in mind I examined the suggested line by line edits on my manuscript. In some places I could see that I was being indulgent, holding on to precious words and phrases that I really liked, but weren’t essential to the story. They were the easy ones.

Others I didn’t want to part with. You know those odd lines you come up with in the shower, on long lazy drives into the country, when something wakes you in the middle of the night? These had context. But when I read and re-read I realised that they weren’t all really necessary.Read More

Diary of a Newbie Novelist

August 9, 2011 Diary of a Newbie Novelist, Submissions  No comments

Early Feb. 2011

What’s in a pen name?

February brought good and bad news from the Agent. He actually liked my edits – phew! I was learning that the points he had raised were suggestions for me to consider, not set in stone. Relieved, I was growing in confidence. The bad news was that he didn’t like my pen name.

As soon as I realised that I would actually finish my book, I decided that I wanted to use a pseudonym for my fiction work. Why? I can’t tell you exactly. Maybe I wanted an alter ego, maybe I wanted to protect the privacy of my family. No idea. It just seemed like an important move. My regular name is Jane Lobb – regular in every sense. So, I had spent months thinking long and hard. I wanted something usual, something different, something that stood out. Eventually IRead More

Writing Ideas

July 24, 2011 Writing Tips  No comments

 Wait for it……………………….wait…………………..wait……………………wait, OK maybe not!

 It would be nice if the next time we wanted to write we could just sit down and have a dozen ideas of what to write about, right?  Maybe not in the clairvoyant way you are thinking about but with an open mind you can have many ideas at your finger tips.

 I am more of a non-fiction guy.  I like the idea of learning as I write and the time frame to right short pieces appeals to me since I don’t know what I’ll have going on in six months. So my ideas tend to be more geared toward a magazine article or a blog post.  But what I try to do is cultivate as many ideas as I can think of when my mind is rolling in that direction.

 For the past week I have been travelingRead More