Just a short episode this month and there is no author interview – apologies!
I am buried under a deadline and some life stuff and, as alluded to in the title, I also managed to faint and bang my head a couple of weeks ago which knocked out a week of productivity/messed up my schedule.
In this episode I give an update on my writing and talk a little bit about how to cope when life (or, in this case, slight concussion) gets in the way.
I also chat about the process of making my debut novel The Language of Spells into an audiobook with ACX.
If you’re curious to see (and hear!) the result, the book is available from Audible, Amazon UK, Amazon US, or iTunes.
Plus, if you don’t already have an Audible subscription, you can sign up for a FREE one month trial and get The Language of Spells completely free!
I thank the wonderful Joanna Penn for alerting me to ACX in the first place – listen to my interview with Joanna here.
I also recommend a podcast which I am currently enjoying: The Self-Publishing Formula by bestselling thriller author (and FB advertising guru) Mark Dawson and novice author James Blatch.
I will be back next month with a full-length episode… Happy writing, everyone!
If you’ve got a question you’d like answered, please email me or find me on Twitter.
I’ll answer it on the show and credit you (unless, of course, you ask to remain anonymous).
Caroline Green is an award-winning author of books for young people. Her debut, Dark Ride, won the RONA Young Adult Book of the Year and the Waverton Good Read Award, Hold Your Breath won the Oldham Book Award, and both Hold Your Breath and Cracks have been short-listed for eleven awards between them. Caroline is Writer In Residence at East Barnet School and teaches Writing for Children at City University. She has recently moved genre with a pen name, Cass Green, and a brand new psychological thriller, The Woman Next Door, which is currently storming the Kindle charts.
In the intro I give a quick update on my writing (I finished my latest book – yay!) and recommend Mark McGuinness’s new book, Productivity For Creative People which is currently free on Amazon (or from Mark’s website, Lateral Action).
Mark is poet and a creative coach and he really knows his stuff. You might also like my interview with him in episode 12 of this podcast!
Also, I have completed my first ‘independent’ venture and the audio book of The Language of Spells is out now!
You can listen to a short sample on Audible and, if you sign-up for a 30-day trial, you can get the whole book for free. Here is the book on Audible (UK), Audible (US) and iTunes.
I answer a listener question on the writing advice ‘show don’t tell’ and mention an article I wrote on this subject for Novelicious. Here’s the link.
If you have a writing (or publishing) question that you’d like me to tackle in a future episode, please get in touch via email or Twitter.
I’ll answer it on the show and credit you (unless, of course, you ask to remain anonymous).
‘The year when most of these things were happening and I had national paper reviews and won awards and everything was wonderful, that was the year I actually did my self-employed accounts and cried because I had made no money.’
On using a pen name:
‘I think it just helps you to separate the two writing personas…’
On writing:
‘My perfect writing day involves going to The British Library… It feels like more of a commitment and I feel that when I’m there I really have to make the time count.’
‘Storytelling is what inspires me.’
Recommended: Caroline recommends Into The Woodsby John Yorke
Mark Edwards is the bestselling author of psychological thrillers such as Follow You Home, Because She Loves Me and The Magpies. Before going solo, Mark published a number of police procedurals written with Louise Voss including Killing Cupid and Forward Slash. He and Voss also have a series featuring DI Patrick Lennon, starting with From The Cradle and followed by The Blissfully Dead which came out last year.
Mark’s latest thriller, The Devil’s Work, is out on 13th September. You can pre-order it here.
In the introduction I reference this wonderful podcast episode from Joanna Penn and talk about my own journey over the last eight years.
Joanna talks about the value of measuring your progress in ‘Olympics’ and seeing how much you have got done or how your life as changed in four-year cycles.
It’s important to look up from the day-to-day grind and take stock of what you have achieved and to set goals for the future, and I think this ‘big picture’ overview is a great addition to the monthly and yearly goal-setting I already do!
I also mention the audio book for The Language of Spells, which I have commissioned. It should be available to buy in a couple of weeks time and you can read more/see the cover reveal by heading to my author site.
In the interview:
Mark talks us through his long – and difficult – journey to overnight success!
On writing:
‘I think that being a writer is so hard, the process of writing itself and all the stuff that goes around it, that you have to have it in you, you have to have that drive.’
For people who want to write:
‘Just get started, just do it. And if you aren’t a writer you won’t keep going and if you are a writer, you will.’
On the writing process:
‘I don’t think you can rush yourself, you have to have time to reflect and let the story settle in your head.’
‘I don’t plot it out, I don’t use any kind of act structure…. Somehow from reading so much, the template is there in my head and I’m writing to that without being aware of it.’
On writing dark or shocking material and self-censorship:
‘To me, books really have to divide opinion. So if I think I’m writing something that some people are going to hate or are going to be offended by, then I think it’s probably good idea to keep it in there’
‘There’s nothing worse than being bland and safe… Take risks!’
If you have a writing (or publishing) question that you’d like me to tackle in a future episode, please get in touch via email or Twitter.
I’ll answer it on the show and credit you (unless, of course, you ask to remain anonymous).
My guest today is Siobhan Curham. Siobhan is the award-winning author of several books for adults and children including Finding Cherokee Brown, True Face, Dear Dylan – which won the YoungMinds Book Award in 2010 – and The Scene Stealers. Siobhan is also an editorial consultant, motivational speaker and life coach, and has written for a variety of publications including The Guardian and Cosmopolitan. Siobhan is passionate about helping others with their writing and runs a creative coaching service, Dare to Dream, and has released a non-fiction title, Dare to Write A Novel.
Siobhan’s latest YA title is The Moonlight Dreamers and it’s out on 7th July. Order it by clicking the link above or the book cover.
To find out more about Siobhan and her books, head to:
My guest today is Cesca Major. Cesca is a fascinating interviewee as she writes in two genres under different names. Cesca’s debut historical novel, The Silent Hours, was published last year by Corvus, to great acclaim. However, Cesca also writes romantic comedy under the name Rosie Blake. The first Rosie Blake book, How To Get A (Love) Life, was originally published by Novelicious Books and was then picked up by Corvus, as part of a three book deal.
I give a small update on my own writing and reveal my plan to get The Language of Spells made into an audiobook!
I’m very excited to dip my toe in hybrid publishing. If all goes well, I will get The Secrets of Ghosts and The Garden Of Magic made, too. I’m using ACX which is a platform which connects people who own audio rights to books such as publishers and authors, with narrators and audiobook production companies.
I first heard about ACX via the wonderful Joanna Penn at The Creative Penn and I’ve also read Simon Whistler’s excellent guide to the subject Audiobooks for Indies.
I will keep you informed on the process as I go along!
Listener Question:
This month’s question comes from Jeanna Kunce (windhillbooks.com).
Do you feel it is important to be a part of any writers/artists associations? Aside from any conferences or networking benefits there may be, do you think you think it makes a difference simply having on your resume/submissions? Would it actually help someone get their foot in the door? Some people seem to feel it’s only your story that will get you published; others seem to feel that having that “badge” helps to make you seem more serious or professional. Thoughts?
If you have a writing (or publishing) question that you’d like me to tackle in a future episode, please get in touch via email or Twitter.
I’ll answer it on the show and credit you (unless, of course, you ask to remain anonymous).
Alison Waines publishes fiction under the name A.J.Waines and has sold over 150,000 books worldwide. Last year, she topped the UK and Australian Kindle bestseller charts with her number one hit Girl On A Train, and was also awarded the Kindle KDP Top 20 ‘Most Read Author’ in the UK. Alison used to work as a psychotherapist before publishing her dark psychological crime fiction, and she is a hybrid author, straddling both traditional and self-publishing.
The Self-Esteem Journal by Alison Waines I’m giving away a copy of Alison’s non-fiction title, The Self-Esteem Journal, as I think it could be useful for those struggling with creative self-doubt, as well as more general lack of confidence.
To be in with a chance of winning, just leave a comment on this post, or send me an email (sarah (at) worriedwriter.com) with the subject ‘win’.*
In this episode, I give a personal writing update, as well as share the news about In The Light of What We See (it’s been a wonderful first month of publication, with 99 five-star reviews on Amazon, already – whoop!).
I also mention brain.fm which uses AI-generated music to promote focus, relaxation and sleep. Although initially sceptical, I have tried the ‘for focus’ music and it seem to improve my concentration.
I heard about brain.fm via Mark Dawson’s new podcast (which is excellent) – Self Publishing Formula.
If you have a writing (or publishing) question that you’d like me to tackle in a future episode, please get in touch via email or Twitter.
I’ll answer it on the show and credit you (unless, of course, you ask to remain anonymous).
In the interview:
Alison reveals what it was like when a high-profile thriller was released with a title which is almost-identical to her own (already published) book.
Alison describes her journey into both traditional and independent publishing and her experiences with both:
‘One of the nice things about being hybrid is that for some of the books I have complete control over everything and I really enjoy that.’
Alison’s writing process:
‘I love deadlines!’
‘Never leave at the end of a chapter or a scene… I always want to put something that just triggers where I am for the next time I am back at my desk.’
On marketing:
‘People should play to their strengths.’
On fear:
‘I always come back to that awful terror of I can’t do this.’
Just a short episode this month and there is no author interview – apologies!
