Back from Harrogate

'The Festival has now been running for twelve years, my third visit and there certainly appears to be no letup in its popularity evidenced by full houses at every event.I arrived on Thursday in plenty of time before the award ceremony and opening party. The Crime Novel Of the Year went to Belinda Bauer for 'Rubbernecker,'   which I bought but haven't read yet, but the story sounds interesting with a young lad with Asperger's who sets out to solve a murder.

The Outstanding Contribution Award went to a very special lady, Lynda La Plante.

For the following two and a half days I had a hectic schedule of one gig after another with a celebrated list of authors in conversation or being interviewed including the BBC's Mark Lawson who estimated he has interviewed some 3000 authors in his time, was now being interviewed as a crime novellist himself with his book 'The Deaths.' 

 

On Friday evening, I was lucky enough to have a complimentary ticket to the sellout session of 'Robert Gailbraith in Conversation with Val McDermid' at the Royal Hall Harrogate. I was in the second row. 

Denise Mina as ever was sheer joy to listen to and very inspirational. John Harvey announced he had just written his last crime novel and we were given insights into the world of publishing, screenwriting and film and TV production. The 'Special TV Panel: Broadchurch,' consisted of the creator, writer and executive producer Chris Chibnall, actors Olivia Colman and Jodie Whittaker, and the writer who turned the screenplay into the official novel, Erin Kelly.

my personal favourite just had to be Lynda La Plante. On a wet Sunday morning she brought the sunshine to Harrogate. She was inspiring, hugely entertaining and loved by all. A most worthy winner of the Outstanding Contribution Award to Crimewriting.

Return to Ephesus

My return to Ephesus paid off. I am happy to say the story I started in Turkey, after a trip to Ephesus around 5 years ago was finally completed after a return to Ephesus. So watch this space, available to an e-reader near you anytime now. Writing the book then revisiting was strange to me because I remembered details of the place in the same way I would have, if I had actually lived there. The statue of Artemis is not easy to find, unless you are told. I found her without any difficulty. Her temple one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World is not on the main Ephesus site, and I had to request my guide to take me there, which she gladly obliged. Only two people got off the coach to photograph it, and I have to say the single reassembled column does appear to be fairly uninspiring. But if you know the history, it is very meaningful to be there. The Greek poet Antipater who is accredited with compiling the list of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World said 'I have set eyes on the wall of lofty Babylon on which is a road for chariots, and the statue of Zeus by the Alpheus, and the hanging gardens, and the Colossus of the Sun, and the huge labour of the high pyramids, and the vast tomb of Mausolus; but when I saw the house of Artemis that mounted to the clouds, those other marvels lost their brilliancy, and I said, 'Lo, apart from Olympus, the Sun never looked on aught so grand.' Antipater, Greek Anthology IX.58.

Here is what I photographed. I think the eagle flying overhead as I took my photograph was significant and symbolic of the Greco-Roman era that I was trying to imagine at the time.

Here is an artists impression of what Antipater must have seen.

Watch this space and I will be announcing the release day of 'Ephesus' soon x

 

 

Just What The Doctor Ordered

Thank goodness for small mercies. I'm jetting off to warmer climes tomorrow. I've always said travelling is my best motivator and I'm hoping this holiday will be a productive and I come back with a bag full of words embedded on my hard drive.

I have been really busy this past month, and when I've not been busy I've been asleep, so all writing including my blog has been on the back burner,

Today I got another 5* review! this time on Goodreads: http://tinyurl.com/lm6szx3 thanks Stuart 👍

My other reviews are on Amazon: http://tinyurl.com/kkl5yr4 and http://tinyurl.com/l34lko5.

When I have genuinely enjoyed a book I like to write a review. I know the impact a review can have on a writer. 

Tomorrow I'm going off on my holiday pumped and I can't wait to get writing. I will be revisiting the real Ephesus, so perhaps that will give me the inspiration I need to finish that project and get it out there.

Until then, if you want some light entertaining reading for the summer, try Henley's Ricotta and Ushabti. Links are on the right hand column of this blog.

I'm So Pumped.

April In Paris

April In Paris was released the year I was born. Sixty years on I have made my first visit to Paris, in April :-) I don't think a lot will have changed over the last six decades, for that matter maybe not in the last couple of centuries. Fashion, technology and demographics, may have caused some superficial alterations, but the heart of the city lives and breathes history as if it happened yesterday, whether it be the Hundred Years War, The French Revolution, The First French Empire under the rule of Napoléon Bonaparte, or the Liberation of Paris in 1944.

History evokes emotions which evokes culture, where there is evidence of on what seems to be on every street corner, in their architecture, paintings, sculpture, the opera, fashion, cuisine, philosophy and literature, to name but a few of the many facets of this amazing city.

What I was totally unprepared for, was the Parisians who were warm, friendly, welcoming and helpful, not what you would expect from a capital city. I can't wait to return. Here are some of my photos I'll share. There is no need for further comment from me, the pictures speak for themselves.





Back from Get Writing 2014

My day at VWC's, (Verulam Writer's Circle), Get Writing did not disappoint me at all. 

This year there seemed to be a very noticeable drop in attendance. I don’t understand why this should be, because the panels, workshops, pitching sessions were up to the usual high standard, and well worth every penny. All I can say is I hope writers will continue to support this 5* event and the organisers should feel very proud. 
Publisher Ian Skillicorn gave a heartening talk to writers of short stories stating there is a demand for short stories in magazines, ebooks and audio format.
My first workshop was  called "Men Do It Too," meaning they submit short stories to women's magazines. We got plenty of inside information from long established magazine writer Lesley Eames.  
Lesley packed a lot into that workshop and kept us busy, feverishly writing, developing characters, setting and plot being as economical as we could with our words. 
Next was back into the main auditorium for a panel discussion, "Writing For Screen, Radio and TV," with David Roden, script editor for 'Coronation Street,' Peter Wild, freelance producer for Radio 4 and Max Kinnings, screenwriter.
It was established that currently the best British writing is for the cinema and radio. 'Philomena' being a prime example, (I'm so pleased I saw it at the cinema, I don't go very often.'
It's interesting to note that British TV drama comes from a history of stage and radio productions, whilst US TV comes from a history of filmmaking. When you look at the end result I think it becomes fairly obvious.
Our last workshop before lunch was "How Studying Screenwriting Can Make You A Better Novellist," with Max Kinnings. We studied the various stages of the process, 
Pitch/logline/tagline (sell line)
Statement of Intent
Character biographies
Outline/treatment
Scene by scene outline
First draft script.
I could relate to so much of this from having read Blake Snyder's "Save The Cat," (http://screenscribbler.blogspot.co.uk/2011/02/structure-and-motivation.html).
It was at lunch that I enjoyed the company of two writers, Keith Large, award winning playwright and radio dramatist, www.carrotnapper.com and Maria Smith www.firstdraftcafe.blogspot.com.
We've been in touch and I hope our paths will cross again in the not too distant future.
Back in the main auditorium and this time it was 'The Crime Panel,' Max Kinnings, MR Hall a barrister who wrote "Kavanagh QC," William Ryan who wrote detective novels from the 1930's era and Emlyn Rees who writes both crime fiction and in partnership with his wife writes comedy fiction.
My final workshop was "Writing On Air," with Peter Wild. We learned that audio drama is the newest form of drama. Just go to  www.wirelesstheatre.co.uk and see how high the standard of production is. I've subscribed to them already, and hope to send some submissions when they start accepting them again in September.
The day ended on a high for me. I delivered my pitch for "Henley's Ricotta" to Emlyn Rees. He reassured me that there is a demand for comedy fiction, and he has my details. Who knows, the pitch was fun and he restored my confidence. By the way, he's a very good writer, he had me laughing embarrassingly loud when I read "Seven Year Itch" which he wrote with his wife Josie Lloyd.
That's my report for this year's Get Writing event. God bless VWC, (Verulam Writer's Circle), and all who sail in her and let's hope that more people will turn up for Get Writing 2015 to make it bigger and better than ever.

Get Writing 2014

It's time to take my annual trip down to Hatfield for Get Writing 2014 on Saturday 29th March.

It's just great to meet up with writers again, and for that reason, I just love a conference. It's not as writers all go to work in a writing factory everyday and go down to the canteen exchanging amusing anecdotes over their alphabet soup.

 
Besides a long list of speakers at various times during the day, there will be four workshops to attend. My choice for this year is:Studying Screenwriting/ Men do it too/ So you think you're funny eh?/ Starting out.

So you think you are funny, may come in useful for the vision of a comedy renaissance that myself (Previous blogpost  Nowhere To Go For New Comedy Writers ) and my good blogfriend Deborah Barker (What’s so funny?)

'Men do it too' will be a good follow up to the workshop I attended in January when I was encouraged to try submitting stories to women's magazines.

I am going to try a five minute pitch again. Wish me luck with that. I made a complete mess of it last time. This time I will be prepared, and I have researched the agent I am pitching to.

I'll let you know how I get on, and if you would like to come along, at the time of writing there are just a few bronze tickets left. Get Writing 2014

 
 
 

Nowhere To Go For New Comedy Writers

New writers of comedy have received another blow with the news that the BBC are about to announce they are taking BBC Three off air and making it available an internet only channel. It has been acknowledged that some of our most recent successful shows were given their break on this platform such as Gavin and Stacey and Little Britain.
Perhaps there is still some money  in the pot from Channel 4's axing of Big Brother, which released around £50,000,000 a year,  some of which has been committed to drama. Then there is Sky TV, who are spreading their wings and producing some wonderful comedy and drama.
Or maybe we just have too much choice. When people speak of the Golden Age Of Television, they look back to the days when there were just two channels, with limited viewing time. It was a remote controless world where people had to get up from the sofa (or settee as it was known in those days) to turn on the television and wait for it to warm up. If the plug was pulled on more channels that would go to more difficult to access and find internet channels, perhaps we could return to that Golden Age of entertainment, variety that could take up a smaller amount of our time. This would leave more time for home entertainment, family life and the great outdoors. No, who am I kidding, internet, mobile phones and Playstations are already filling the gap.
Going back to my point, where are all the new comedy writers going to go. Well maybe publishers should look at a renaissance in regenerating the humour genre back where it belongs in the book market. I'm sure people are looking for it when they browse through the bestsellers shelves at the supermarket, but it's just not there. Generally, comedy is lighter, easier to read and has a feel-good factor because it makes people laugh and cheers them up. There must be a better market for short stories, particularly humorous stories on eBooks.
Does anyone out there still like to read comedy? If so please let me know.