Archive for October, 2006

Following on from my podcast interview with Lucy Luck, a UK literary agent, and the posts Blind Date with an Agent Part 1 and Part 2, we are now at the stage, where all being well, you have found yourself an agent.

So, all you have to do is sit back and let the agent find you a publisher, right? Not so fast.

It is likely that your agent will ask you to change a few things in your manuscript. Like you, they will want your work to have the best chance of impressing an editor so they’ll want you to polish it till it shines. So your apprenticeship as professional writer begins. Can you view your work objectively? Can you cull your favourite, beautifully crafted prose with ruthless determination? Can you accept that some of what you’ve written can actually be improved?

Throughout these series, I’ve harped on and on about the re-writing and amending and re-working process. Yes, it makes for boring reading - oh no, I hear you cry, there she goes again, banging on about re-writing, enough already. Well, if you’re bored just reading this, then think about how you’re going to deal with actually having to do the re-writing time and time again, long after you excitedly finished your last chapter all those months ago. Aah, you’ll start to think, I was so young and naive back then, so full of energy - I never thought I’d have to go back to this wretched paragraph and this wretched chapter and this wretched character motivation all over again. And again. And again. Shoot me now.

I heard a story about a new novelist who fell at this hurdle. She was thrilled to get an agent - and a pretty prestigious one, too - but when the agent suggested changes, the writer got into a head-to-head row with him. This was her novel, her work, her art, she cried and flounced out of the agency. Well, that was that. Almost seven years on, her novel remains unpublished today.

But, I suppose there is something admirable in that kind of artistic integrity.

So. Assuming you do what it takes to make your novel shine, the real nailbiting stuff begins. You agent will most likely send the manuscript to their top five chosen publishers. And you wait.

Every time the phone rings, your heart is in your mouth. Will it be good news or bad? If you’re very lucky and talented, you might find yourself in an auction situation where two or more publishers duke it out over you in a bidding war. These are the deals we read about in the press and they are generally few and far-between - which is why they make the news. (Do you ever see headlines like “Accountant earns hundreds of thousands of pounds”? No? Well, that’s ‘cos they do so routinely. “Author paid hundreds of thousands of pounds” - now that’s rare. Remember that when you dream of retiring off the proceeds of your first novel….)

For most writers, they will be very, very fortunate to secure the interest of one publisher, who will be willing to pay even a modest sum.

And yet, you wait and hope and bite your nails. You ask yourself: why am I doing this to myself? Why did I ever start this in the first place? You try to get on with your life, love your family, have fun with your friends, focus on your day job. But it’s all useless.

Wait, is that the phone ringing…?

Next week: Will that phone call bring news that will change your life?

The Fusion View Store stocks books, films etc that have been discussed on this blog or that are related to issues and topics I’ve explored in my posts and podcasts. The items will change from time to time as we discuss and explore different books and issues on Fusion View.

I’ve added some Daphne du Mauriers, inspired by my holiday in Cornwall.

Alongside Featured books and films, you can also browse other similar items of interest. There is also a link to the main Amazon.co.uk store.

The store is hosted and run by Amazon.co.uk and any purchases you make will be via their secure system. If you do not already have an Amazon.co.uk account, they will walk you through the process of opening one.

Enjoy!

To visit the Fusion View Store, enter through the door here (external site)

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The store window below gives you a flavour of what’s available but has limited functionality.

If you have any concerns or queries about your experience of shopping via Amazon.co.uk, please refer direct to them. I have no influence or control over their systems or policies apart from linking to them as an amazon associate.

I’ve been collecting amusing and witty short films from YouTube.com to show on Film Mondays at this blog and as you have seen from the last few weeks, many are made by young guys who seem to have a lot of time on their hands.

The tide is turning and it looks like older guys - retired gents - are now making their presence known in cyberspace with their own short films. They are less whizzy technically - they are filmed using a basic webcam in one long shot - but the content has greater depth and humanity. The content is just these old men talking about their lives and has the feel of a slice of life or confessional, which perhaps they might never share if you were sitting in front of them face to face. But in the apparent solitude given by a webcam, they have opened up to millions.

This video “First Try” has had millions of viewers and also prompted a range of responses. Some malicious responses from juvenile nerdy types who don’t seem to like the fact that an oldie has posted on YouTube. And others defending him and cheering him on.

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I say, “Rock on, dude!”

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If you want to follow other videos made by geriatric1927, you can go to his personal page on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/profile?user=geriatric1927

If you have been inspired by this film to post one of your own up on YouTube (whether you are are grey or otherwise!) please do come back and let me know!

Bestselling novelist and creator of the Caper Court series of legal novels, Caro Fraser, takes time out from her prolific novel-writing to blog for Fusion View. She has generously donated three signed copies of her latest novel, A World Apart, to my prize draw - three lucky winners will be picked at random from the Fusion View email subscription list to win a copy each: find out how you can get a chance to win by clicking here.

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Caro writes:

I suppose it’s unconventional for a woman to write a novel about a man in a mid-life crisis, which is the theme of my most recent novel, A World Apart, but the male psyche has always intrigued me. Having said that, the themes of the novel – lost youth, the sense of unfulfilled possibilities, a longing to rekindle the spark of romantic desire – are common to both sexes.

The dissatisfactions of women seemed somehow too familiar, however, and I found it more intriguing to imagine what it would be like to be a man who finds his sense of identity subtly shifting as he reaches a certain point in his life. Are we just the sum of all we have accomplished, all the relationships we have forged, the children we have reared, and the friendships we have made - or are there other, unfulfilled possibilities within us that we can still explore?

The answer for my protagonist, Mark Mason, is to try to create a parallel universe where he can indulge his fantasies and experiment with lost dreams. Needless to say, the two worlds inevitably collide, with messy results, but Mark finds that he has nonetheless succeeded in creating, in his parallel world, a new identity, a new Mark – Mark II. The question is, which identity will he choose to inhabit from now on? The novel is just one take on an endlessly fascinating question – how many of us are prepared to commit those irrevocable, and often ruthless acts which can change our lives dramatically and forever?

Since writing A World Apart, I’ve completed three further pieces of work: Hanging Fire is an experimental novel in which I, as the author, conduct a dialogue with my troublesome and somewhat recalcitrant main character as she makes her way through the story of her own life. The Girl In The Yellow Dress is a more traditional romantic narrative, tracking the fortunes of two step-sisters from the 1930s to the 1980s. And as a complete change of form, I recently completed a children’s book, in the form of an epic poem, called Songs Of The Three Kingdoms. I hope all three books will be published in the not-too distant future.

Now that my four children have returned to school, peace will descend once more and I’ll be able to start yet another book, for which I’ve been brewing ideas over the summer months.

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You see we writers could all learn a thing or two from Caro - she writes and just keeps on writing. Every time I catch up with her for coffee or call for a chat on the phone, she’s either mulling over the current book she’s working on or she’s just finished a book or she’s working up ideas for her next one. She has 13 books to her name, all written in the last ten years. And she has a large family to run in between all this creativity. Wow!

The result is that her books are everywhere (apart from bookshops) - during my holiday in Cornwall, we found copies of her books in the cottage we stayed in and we saw copies in second hand bookshops and lying around those trendy cafes where they scatter books and magazines for you to read while you sip your cappuccino. I must ask her if it’s weird for her to be on holiday and everywhere she turns, it’s like “Oh, there’s my book. And another one. Oh, and here…”

You can find out more about Caro at her website www.caro-fraser.com

Bestselling novelist Caro Fraser has generously donated three copies of her latest novel A World Apart to the Fusion View prize draw. Three winners will be picked at random from the list of email subscribers to Fusion View. To get a chance to win a copy of Caro’s book, subscribe to this blog. Subscribe now.

Subscription is free and you will receive free email notifications once a week with the latest updates on this blog. You will automatically be entered into the prize draw to win a copy of the A World Apart and also all future prize draws (unless otherwise stated). For more about how to subscribe/ unsubscribe and my subscription policy,click here.

The closing date for this prize draw is Thursday 30 November 2006. You can still subscribe after that date and you will automatically be entered into the next prize draw.

Please read the Rules of the prize draw below.

Yes, please enter me into the prize draw - I want to subscribe now. Click here to subscribe now.

The Rules for the prize draw
1. The closing date for this draw is 30 November 2006. Within two weeks of that date, 3 winners will be picked at random from the list of subscribers.
2. I will notify the winners by separate emails and ask for your name and land address to which to send the prize. I will be entitled to assume that the name and address given is the name and address of the winning subscriber and I will not knowingly post the prize to any other person.
3. When I receive a winner’s land address, I will post the prize to them and delete their land address from my records.
4. I will post the name of the winners on this blog (but not the land address or email address) .
5. I will not enter into any other correspondence or discussion regarding the winners or regarding this or any prize draw and my decision on the winners and prizes is final. You may not substitute the prize offered for anything else.
6. I will post the prizes by the public postal system. I am not liable for any acts or omissions of the postal services in the UK or any other country.
7. Where the address is not in the UK, I am not liable for any taxes, duties, or customs or excise or import requirements that may be applicable in the country of receipt nor for ensuring compliance with any other laws, including but not limited to laws relating to copyright, censorship or any other matters that may arise regarding or in connection with the prize. These remain the liability of the recipient and it is the responsibility of the recipient to ensure compliance with the laws of their country.
8. By subscribing / entering this prize draw, you are confirming to me that you are over 18 or that you are over 13 and have the permission of your parent or guardian to subscribe/ enter this draw.
9. Your email address will remain on the subscription list (unless you unsubscribe) and will be entered into all future prize draws (unless otherwise stated). For my subscription policy, click here.

The (Un)Happy Planet Index is a website which measures and compares personal wellbeing and also the wellbeing of the planet across the globe. It is supported by the Friends of the Earth and poses the questions for each of us - are we personally happy? And are we helping to make the planet happy?

Curiously, the happiest countries are those in Central America - a surprise to me as the general perception about them is that they are dangerous and poor countries overwhelmed by drugs and guns. The UK comes at no. 108 in spite of longer life expectancy and being generally more stable economically and politically. Malaysia come no. 44, but with lower life expectancy than the UK. Our “cousins” across the causeway in Singapore fare terribly, coming in at no. 131.

The index also measures the environmental footprint of a country and of individuals ie the impact that person or country has on environmental resources. As you would expect, the more developed the country, the greater the impact. Singapore’s footprint is 6.2, the UK’s is 5.4 and Malaysia’s is at 3.0.

You can check it out for yourself at http://www.happyplanetindex.org/

I took the test to see what my Happiness Index was. I came out above average on general feelings of contentment with my life, personal self-esteem and life expectancy. Sadly, I also came out above average for my environmental footprint - although I rarely use my car and instead often take public transport and walk wherever I can. Perhaps I need to recycle more and live in a colder and darker house!

You can take the test at http://www.happyplanetindex.org/survey.htm. It’s anonymous so you don’t have to worry about typing in your weight and whether you eat too many cheeseburgers!

If you do go and explore or do the quiz, please come back and let me know your thoughts on the site!

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PS. Thanks goes to David Grantley for telling me about the site

During our holiday in Cornwall, we visited Newquay, once a fishing village and now a prime destination for surfers from all over the world. The town sprawls down the clifftop nestled within several magnificent bays where the surf rides dramatically into shore. High cliffs circle the bays like fortress walls.

Just outside the main town, perched on the very edge of a soaring clifftop, is the historic Huers Hut. Made of stone, it looks like a white-washed domed temple that might just as easily have been in Greece. Its curved walls face the land while an open patio looks out to sea, a giant fireplace and chimney taking up most of space inside.

In the fourteenth century, this was where the huer would stand watch, gazing out to the vast ocean waiting for the pilchards. When he saw the shoals of fish, he would raise the hue and cry to alert the fishermen in the village and they would rush out to launch their boats and head to catch their precious livelihood. Standing on the cliff top, the huer would direct the boats towards the pilchards like a general mustering his army, using hand signals and calls.

The pilchards have declined and commercial fishing is not enough to sustain the people of Newquay. But “raising the hue and cry” remains.

I am thrilled that Sarah Yeh, the founder of DimSum, the British Chinese Community website, has invited me to write an article for them about the inspirations for my writing - and blogging.

You can read the article here - http://www.dimsum.co.uk/community/fusion-view.html

The title to this post - and the illustration - is misleading, I’m afraid. I have to confess that the article on DimSum is in English and not in Chinese. To my eternal shame, I can’t read or write Chinese - I grew up in Malaysia speaking English: my parents, grandparents and extended family all speak English as their every day language. I think in English. So you could say that English is my mother tongue.

I remember going to Chinese lessons where we learnt to speak Mandarin and had to write out words/ characters endlessly. It was sooo boring. Especially as I never had the need to actually use it in daily life. I guess it would have been different if we’d had Mandarin speaking friends or gone on holidays to China. But no, it felt as obscure as learning Latin…

… this is the sort of thing that makes me wish I was more active - and co-ordinated.

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