3 habits of bad writing: Not useful…AT ALL; A BIT superfluous; PRETTY awful

Over the next month, Takeshita Demons is being featured in editing and writing workshops held by Seven Stories in the UK, as part of promotions for the 2011 Diverse Voices childrens book award (which you should enter if you are an as-yet unpublished childrens author)(It’s INTERNATIONAL and FREE TO ENTER and you can ENTER BY [...]

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Taking advice: Better late than never

It’s a funny thing, asking someone else to read your book manuscript. Sometimes they say things you want to hear, and sometimes they point out problems you can easily fix. And sometimes — awful but useful times — they point out giant issues with your plot or characters or story. Those are the occasions that [...]

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How to write a synopsis: four big secrets and an example

First of all, congratulations to @LiiaAnn, who has finished writing and editing her book draft of 60,000 words, a huge effort and awesome success.  Now the fun bit: how to take all that work and mince it down into 60 words that make an agent or reader or publisher go: YES PLEASE! I WANT MORE. [...]

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I finished a second edit of The Filth Licker!

Woo hoo….   I’ve just send the latest version of Takeshita Demons II to my editor at Frances Lincoln Childrens Books, and I think it’s terrific! It was a rocking story even before Janetta gave me her feedback and ideas, and now, after a good going over complete with new exciting ideas, it’s even better than [...]

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I have fabulous news!

I have fabulous news! And I’ve been buzzing all week because of it. Fabulous news #1: FORESTS AND FILTH LICKERS is finished!!! Well, the first draft is with a Very Special Group of Reviewers (one is reading it as I type). So far the feedback has been good and there’s not too many fatal errors [...]

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Editing your own work is like diagnosing your own heart disease

In this week’s post I’m probably going to include more mixed metaphors and cringing clichés than a pig has had hot dinners: I’ve spent most of the week editing Forests and Filth Lickers (we’re about 2/3 through the first draft!) and I just can’t be bothered editing anything else. Apologies in advance. At the end [...]

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5 signs of an extraneous character: writing out Ruby

While Takeshita Demons is ticking away in the background I’ve hauled an old manuscript out from the bottom drawer and been working to polish it. The book’s called Beyond the Safe Zone and it’s longer than Takeshita Demons, and maybe scarier too, with zombies, a walled community and children living in a post-apocalyptic world. I [...]

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Update from publisher land

Yesterday was my meeting with Janetta, my publisher, and all seems to be going well. She’d read my second-edit of the manuscript, loved some bits of it, didn’t like others. I’ve now turned it completely over to her for a thorough edit under the pen of experience. I’m hoping that this combination of my “raw” [...]

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Writing a sequel? Writer’s block?

Just heard from my publisher that we’ll be meeting on the 21st May; I’ve volunteered to give the manuscript a onceover before then, so will aim to email her the new-improved finished product by the 19th. In the mean time, I’ve started thinking about a Takeshita Demons sequel. But where will I even begin? For [...]

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