New found confidence

For the first time this week I started to believe that I can do things that I thought I would never do. This week I knocked on the door of a total stranger and did an interview for a future article. Of course I had emailed the lady to arrange the meeting, so it was not unplanned but for me it was still a big thing. I have never been confident in pushing myself forward for situations such as this but after completing my journalism course, I do feel that I have found my confidence and want to make myself do things to progress in the future. I really believe that doing my distance learning course helped me to achieve this.

It was so wonderful to talk about a subject that I knew nothing about and then get home to write about it. I will not be paid for the article as it is for my local parish magazine but I still went about the whole thing in the same manner as I would for any other market. I made sure I still tackled the subject with the same professional attitude, though we did laugh when I showed her my pass pictured above. I just didn't want her to think I was some odd person turning up at her house and that I was genuine in my reasons for being there.

It was a great experience to go into a situation and learn something new. I have mentioned in the past that I have played safe and only written about my favourite and almost obsessive subject of chickens! This inspired me so much and in just over an hour taught me not to be afraid of new subjects, talking to new people and most of all having confidence in what I can do.

Kindle all the way

I have decided to take the plunge this year and work towards getting two of my books published on Kindle.

I made the decision with my novel 'Red Kite' a few months ago after my writers retreat and hope to launch it this autumn but before that I'm going to experiment with my non fiction book about Dinosaurs. I have tried since early 2011 to get it published in a traditional manner but ran out of time. Many of the publishers liked the idea but said they already had their quota of Dinosaur related material. I decided that I couldn't just shelve it and give up after months of research and writing, so started thinking about it over Christmas.

I want to launch it in time for this years Olympic games so have a lot of work to do. The text is ready but I am going to attempt to illustrate it myself. I am no artist, I did manage to pass an O-level in art and I worked for a while as an assistant to a graphic designer but that's it. This is a massive challenge for me but feel that I have to give it a go and see if I can produce some simple line drawings to accompany the words.

On researching children's books on the Kindle shelf I found that not all of them had illustrations anyway but I would like to try and get a few done as I hope the humour will come through stronger with some pictures.

It may be crazy but it's something I have to try and the way I see it I have nothing to lose - except a little pride if it flops!

A certificate of competency

I was thrilled to receive my certificate from the British College of Journalism the other day. I have been doing a distance learning course for the last six months with the college and have learned so much as a result.

Before I started the course I was really playing safe with my article ideas and would only attempt to pitch an idea to an editor if I knew a bit about the subject I was writing about. ( in my case it was chickens) I just couldn't move on from the the poultry magazines, although it has been great to have some success with them, I now feel confident to approach a wider range of publications with my ideas, which I hope will increase my chances of publication in the future.

The course made me step out of my comfort zone and tackle new subjects ranging from travel writing to approaching celebrities for an interview, though I did get a ticking off from my tutor for not spelling a celebrity name correctly. I had assumed that it would be the normal spelling and she pointed out that I should always check before submitting. Details like that are so easy to avoid and that mistake would have probably cost me the interview if it were for real as it would have appeared most unprofessional.

I have learned so much from the feedback from my tutor who also motivated me to send things off. I am bursting with ideas for 2012 now and have one article pending publication as a direct result of this course. I also had an acceptance from a local newspaper but at the last minute they said they had no space which was disappointing but it has not deterred me in trying again.

If anyone is thinking about doing a course, I would certainly recommend this one. For me, distance learning is a great way to learn if you have to juggle time with daily life and work. It's also suitable for different types of writers. For those new to writing, you get to learn all sorts of techniques such as how to use quotes and finding new angles and for the more experienced writer, it could be the chance to try something new if journalism is something you haven't done yet.

I now want to put everything I have learned into practice and stay motivated even though I may meet a few barriers in the future. I am determined that even when I do get a rejection, I shall look at my certificate and remember that I am competent, it's not that I can't write, it's just sometimes not the right time or place for what I am writing.

That can only be achieved by trying time and time again, which is something I am prepared to do.

Red Kite - back cover blurb

Since deciding to release my novel 'Red Kite' onto kindle next year, I have re-gained my inspiration and learned so much in just a short space of time.

I visited the red kite feeding centre the other day and managed to capture these stunning birds on camera. The wonderful thing was that it gave me some fresh ideas to add to my story and breathe new life into it. I felt like I was watching them at times through the eyes of my central character so now hope that I can add some reality to a couple of the scenes that were written several years ago.

I am working on the back page blurb at the moment. This is something that I have found quite difficult, just like the synopsis, it's hard to sum up a story in a few words and I have already made a dozen attempts without a decent result so far. However, I will continue to work on it until I am satisfied and then hope to post it on this blog for comments (when I feel brave enough!)

I realise that I have a long way to go and so much more to learn. It has to be just right before I make the final decision to release it but that will hopefully come with the editing process. It may take some time but I hope eventually, I will get there.

Glowing with inspiration

I have just spent the most wonderful weekend at our Wrekin Writers annual retreat. This year it was in the most magical setting near the sea at a beautiful cove called Cwmtydu. The house pictured below was incredible and I had to be firm with myself to get some writing done in between walks to the beach and enjoying the splendid grounds. The company was excellent too and I have to thank my fellow retreaters who have helped and advised me over the last few days. I always learn so much from them just through conversations while working or over the dinner table in the evening.

It was such an inspiring time, even the journey there made me change my plans as to what I wanted to do with my time. I was going to write some short stories but as as we were travelling close to Aberystwyth we saw a Red Kite. It immediately felt like it was sign for me to do something with my novel 'Red Kite' which I had left for months after receiving yet another rejection from a publisher. I realise now that this was not the best thing to do and I am determined to keep on this time, however many hurdles I have to encounter. The good thing about leaving it for a while was having a fresh approach so at least this was a positive side to my self-imposed defeatist attitude.

It was so great to read it with fresh eyes and start working on it again. I managed to go through the whole manuscript and make some important changes to hopefully improve its prospects in the future.

My big plan is to release it on Kindle in 2012 just to give it a chance and feel like I am doing something positive with it. I think by doing so I can move on, perhaps even start writing a sequel.

Who knows where it will take me but I am going to give it a go.

Local Author Event - W H Smith

I attended a local author event recently at W H Smith in Wellington. These events are a great way of meeting other writers as well has hopefully getting a sale or two!

I was very lucky to be sat right next to my own Mom, Phylis Blakemore who wrote 'Gentlemen of the River - The last Coracle men of the Severn Gorge' We had a lovely time chatting to customers and although we didn't sell loads of books, it was a lovely experience.

Pictured below is local author, Catherine Cooper. She was launching her new book 'Silver Hill' and has already enjoyed enormous success with her Jack Brennin series which will be turned into a film very soon.

It was so inspiring talking to her and this was the only chance I had to get a photograph as she had a constant stream of customers queuing to buy her books.




I didn't have to fight any queues off but I did make one sale which was lovely and I always appreciate the fact that a person is willing to pick up a copy and pay me for it. But that's not what it's all about. It gave me a great opportunity to spend several hours browsing the shelves and taking note on which writers are popular at the moment and which publishers they are using. This is so useful when preparing for my own future projects as I even found a new publisher that I may try submitting to.

I came away with a mind full of inspiration, a notebook crammed with information and enough money to buy a copy of the December issue of Writers Forum which has an article by Wrekin Writers very own Julie Phillips.

To me that's a sucess!

Writing for Parish Magazines

I am so thrilled to report that I have just had a little article accepted for 'West of the Clee' This is the parish magazine for Bitterley and surrounding areas and I feel very proud to think that the editor is willing to use my work.

I think small publications like this are so important. I love receiving it every month just to catch up on what is going on locally and now I feel really happy that I will be making a contribution to this wonderful little magazine, especially when the subject matter is very close to home. ( My next door neighbour who does wonderful things with his vintage tractor!) I shall report more on that next month, as I am hoping for it to be published in the November issue.

It was such a boost to my confidence to send something off one day and get a definite 'YES' on the very the next day. Infact, it was such a quick turn around, as I interviewed my neighbour on the Sunday, wrote the article on the Wednesday, sent it off on the Thursday and got a reply by the Friday! I really liked making myself work to a deadline as they needed contributions within a few weeks and that gave me great experience that may come in useful in the future, just to prove that I can do it.

To me, on this occasion, it's not about being paid lots of money (though that is nice!) I am just happy to be included in a lovely little publication that needs local contributers to give it life.

There must be hundreds of Parish Magazines out there that need contributions from local people. It's a great way of getting your writing out there and keeping the magazines going.

So, if you have a local magazine in your own area, why not give it a go?