tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15857025542779948872024-03-05T11:30:47.347+00:00Northern WriterNorthern Writerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10384188301284766445noreply@blogger.comBlogger186125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1585702554277994887.post-52371616387877679302022-03-22T10:45:00.000+00:002022-03-22T10:45:29.861+00:00Books that made me laugh Part 1<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjfcb5Mcum3Vhe2OLt0NnLbb6R8S1BVCEYFQX-k0O-_v9KP_eiRrv-FsklyuwDz5qqzm6foTSkCMic8VP3IyW2ZuwbEWQCWvcFeIn5PybZS0D17BDBmII_tuGRcrJcz8eUMAXxCejmsEeMmRAk590CCS51x5r-gjsNttbtOFkfGtRVVkZc0TuluEqqQHw" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img data-original-height="475" data-original-width="286" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjfcb5Mcum3Vhe2OLt0NnLbb6R8S1BVCEYFQX-k0O-_v9KP_eiRrv-FsklyuwDz5qqzm6foTSkCMic8VP3IyW2ZuwbEWQCWvcFeIn5PybZS0D17BDBmII_tuGRcrJcz8eUMAXxCejmsEeMmRAk590CCS51x5r-gjsNttbtOFkfGtRVVkZc0TuluEqqQHw=w242-h400" width="242" /></a></div><p></p><p><br /></p><p>1889</p><p>Eighteen eighty nine. The Nineteenth Century. And we're in the twenty-first. How can a book so old make me laugh? A hundred and thirty years have passed since it was written and it seems that everything has changed. So, why is it still very very funny?</p><p>My answer is that human nature hasn't changed very much at all. Our environment, the way we conduct our everyday lives and the availability of information are very different to the 1880's but people remain people. And humour remains a constant.</p><p>It's also heartening in this world of TikTok that books also endure. The written word still provides us with news and entertainment. As a writer, you'll expect me to tell you that nothing beats a good book. So, that's what I'm telling you. Books remain the only way of putting ourselves inside someone else's head. And this is important. Everyone is doing their best, whether we recognise it or not. We can only play the hand that we're dealt. Being party to the thought processes of others is an important route to compassion.</p><p>This book is, in the words of the blurb, 'a timeless classic'. More than that, it is laugh out loud hilarious. A remarkable feat that so many aspire towards but fail. Here's the link:</p><p><a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Three-Men-Boat-Illustrated-Fiction-ebook/dp/B09LRXY2WW/">https://www.amazon.co.uk/Three-Men-Boat-Illustrated-Fiction-ebook/dp/B09LRXY2WW/</a><br /></p><p>I challenge you to read the first page and not be amused. The bit where he researches diseases at the library mirrors what we all do on the internet these days. He comes to the conclusion:</p><p><i style="background-color: white; border: none; box-sizing: border-box; color: #5e646b; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif; font-size: 14px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px;">"I will not take up your time, dear boy, with telling you what is the matter with me. Life is brief, and you might pass away before I had finished. But I will tell you what is NOT the matter with me. I have not got housemaid’s knee. Why I have not got housemaid’s knee, I cannot tell you; but the fact remains that I have not got it. Everything else, however, I HAVE got."</i></p><p><span style="color: #5e646b; font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 14px;">Next time I'll mention a much more recent book that still makes me laugh. We'll fast forward to 1979!</span></span></p>Northern Writerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10384188301284766445noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1585702554277994887.post-91054495554996333092022-03-15T13:27:00.000+00:002022-03-15T13:27:15.848+00:00Heroes Part 2<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B008RPFO1U/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="279" data-original-width="181" height="279" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhO_7zWDOKQtcxsjlvMNWw4L5PRqVmu9khPZgetyWUP3Fw4XA1lWYBDgZMzVogLToxABtaBUtP5kdW0IBW-47jkAUjwdXEOcsei-rRWMQsIHrAFE2_pGhkfjVVt8-JznN533WCl92hwbqW1kKCGgcfJd3ijaAh45rPGv585RuQHzTTZPLbDWwKzhYFERQ" width="181" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p>There were a few dusty eyebrows raised when Bob Dylan was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature. Couldn't they find some who wrote books rather than a pop musician?</p><p>My answer would be that not only was the award richly deserved but Bob Dylan is one of the most talented and influential writers that ever lived. He's another of my heroes.</p><p>He has the ablilty to tell a whole story, imbue it with emotion and enough sensuous detail to satisfy the most pernickety reader (or listener) within a few lines of lyrics. A feat that would be require many thousands of my words.</p><p>The argument that Bob is not read but listened to is a spurious one in the age of audiobooks, don't you think?</p><p>Never mind what you think of his music, his songs, his voice or his performances. Read his book, Chronicles, if you remain skeptical.</p><p>Chronicles is remarkable not only for its prose but also for the insight it allows into the mind of a very special human being. The man's humility shines from the pages. This is no puff piece. No 'look at me aren't I clever?' memoir.</p><p>My abiding impression of his early life in New York is of a young man who reads widely and voraciously. Machiavelli and Plato included. As a musician, he soaks up lessons from everyone he encounters and marvels at their unique styles. He pays his dues, in other words, then makes sure we understand how valuable his experiences are.</p><p>Like I said, his humility shines through. It has inspired me to look at the influences on my life and my writing and to give them fuller credit. From my childhood days at Tyldesley Library where I worked my way though the wonderful yellow-jacketed Gollancz published SF books. Alldis to Zelazny. Blish to Sturgeon. Delany, Ellison, Heinlein, Pohl and the rest. Thank you Gollancz, you put me on the right track.</p><p>I was sufficiently flexible to seek out a wide range of books. Not just SF but LP Hartley, Huxley, Burgess and Iris Murdoch. Then there were the disapproving looks from the librarians when I asked for Gurjieff's All and Everything (Beelzebub's Tales to his Grandson) which a good Catholic boy had no right to have even heard of let alone try to read.</p><p>Stephen King once said that to be a writer you have to be a reader. Bob certainly lived up to that and I'm certain that reading widely has provided me with a solid base for my own work.</p><p>I only wish I had Bob's humility to go with it.</p><p><br /></p>Northern Writerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10384188301284766445noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1585702554277994887.post-47221289707675590692022-03-10T11:08:00.007+00:002022-03-10T11:08:45.327+00:00Heroes<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Heroes-First-Law-World/dp/0575083859/" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="328" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiLh19CJIgWLs7ZjEwysYveJajYMmQfpSD54LbaS3yAZS9zTdzofI5R4pMW18EUP3eQ8jDbkVHJr7vF5smnP-31bvabYLo9wdpvkk3qR1werXhiKQX1RTROK2vtTPNarQQwPj9r1VuchJcR4K4z7De6PUWrwj8gKdqh0vMIYhjJcjVcexAIRBBaqYyXFA=s320" width="210" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">Joe Abercrombie is the best Fantasy author in the history of the world. He's my hero, or rather one of them.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">My opinion is personal, of course, and others might disagree but it's based on a pretty comprehensive and long standing fascination with Fantasy. I've ploughed my way through the likes of Donaldson, Jordan, Bakker, Le Guin and Martin. I've read Lord of the Rings out loud to my children. I love Fantasy and there are a lot of wonderful books to choose from. Joe Abercrombie stands head and shoulders above the rest, though.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">There's a choice we writers have. A difficult one. Do we avoid writing in the genre we love because of the giants that have already claimed their castles on the mountain top? Or do we use the things we've learned and absorbed to create something of our own?</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">I met Joe at an event in Brighton where he explained the backgound to his book the Red Country. He said it was based on the Clint Eastwood film The Outlaw Josey Wales. This set me thinking that everything comes from somewhere. All writers share a vast common pool of precedent and what matters is not where the ideas originate but what we do with them.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">I love telling stories. That's the basis for what I write. My technique, if I can can call it that, is to drop into a scene and observe what my characters are up to. Then I spend my time following them around until the story has been told. It sounds easy but there are times I wish I had more influence.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">So my Fantasy books are very different from Joe's. Just as my thillers aren't at all like Chandler's or my SF like Iain M Banks. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">Writing isn't a competitve sport. I am happy to urge you to read Abercrombie if you haven't already because I'm convinced you'll be very happy you did.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">The prompt for this reflection comes from a rather perceptive review from someone in the US who says stuff like:</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #0f1111; font-size: 14px;">'DJ Harrison does a wonderful Job of creating a story, that in my opinion, is a very different fantasy!</span><br style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0f1111; font-size: 14px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #0f1111; font-size: 14px;">Filled with Demons, magic, steel and swords....YES!</span><br style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0f1111; font-size: 14px;" /><br style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0f1111; font-size: 14px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #0f1111; font-size: 14px;">But the first novels twist is that there is no clear, main character. All of them are so real, that the closest you get are Anti-heros. The human flaws that flesh them out and make them real, mean that they don't stand out in the traditional sense.'</span><br style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0f1111; font-size: 14px;" /></span></p><p>I hadn't thought about the Secret of the Scroll in those terms. As I've indicated, my characters are a law to themselves and wouldn't recognise themselves as any kind of hero protagonist. Just like the rest of us, they're doing their best with the situations that confront them. Interesting.</p><p>Oh, the reviewer finishes off by saying:</p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #0f1111; font-family: "Amazon Ember", Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"><b>Fans of Abercrombie will love it!</b></span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #0f1111; font-family: "Amazon Ember", Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">Which is where we came in.</span></p>Northern Writerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10384188301284766445noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1585702554277994887.post-55520728537305786322022-03-08T12:22:00.001+00:002022-03-08T12:22:23.285+00:00The Price of Gas<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjmUj0Aam6Cx0psiMltB4QD5j6zxLcLf4aK4rbX_Ju9bBFFicLA1FffL2VbjNfn22f-aPC9G_zarWKrNSJz1YbVIHiix4uA58e3c58vaoy5274jsbCMts64G6hDLvB5aLWgNRcJgNgC9O0nGJRMnKRztR1jbSH22-JZMA1dPGygHOzstYzq1JbOMkQvmg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="543" data-original-width="800" height="217" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjmUj0Aam6Cx0psiMltB4QD5j6zxLcLf4aK4rbX_Ju9bBFFicLA1FffL2VbjNfn22f-aPC9G_zarWKrNSJz1YbVIHiix4uA58e3c58vaoy5274jsbCMts64G6hDLvB5aLWgNRcJgNgC9O0nGJRMnKRztR1jbSH22-JZMA1dPGygHOzstYzq1JbOMkQvmg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p>The price of gas has increased tenfold. Heating our homes and operating our industries has become enormously more expensive. Ruinously so, perhaps.</p><p>However, I reckon the cost of gas has remained pretty much the same.</p><p>The cost price reflects the cash needed to extract the fuel from the ground and transport it to the point of use. I doubt there's much difference in cost between now and pre-war in Ukraine. The huge leap in price only reflects the amount people are willing to pay for the stuff.</p><p>There's also a lot of talk in the UK about us having 'our own oil and gas'. As a country we have none. We gave it all away long ago to the likes of BP and Shell who are now free to sell it to the highest bidder. And that's where the money is going. Directly into the pockets of already over-rich people who have no need for more money but feel they are entitled to it anyway.</p><p>At 20p per therm, the fossil fuel companies were making handsome profits. Now, at 200p per therm, profits have become astronomical.</p><p>How can this be? Why should people who can least afford it be paying into the dividend pot for fossil fuel investors?</p><p>It's the system. The one we've been told for decades is the only viable way to run the world. We've been lied to. Sold a pup. Exploited.</p><p>The biggest contributors to the Conservative Party and individual MP's, apart from corrupt Russian oligarchs, are the construction industry. There's a reason for this.</p><p>Let me use the construction industry, with which I am familiar, as an example of the corrupt system which applies equally to every facet of business in the country and, in fact, most of the world.</p><p>Land, like the oil and gas beneath it, ought to belong to everyone but it doesn't. Those with the might to claim vast tracts of our country grabbed it while they could. So, most of the surface of our country is controlled by a group of wealthy landowners. Like the Queen. And Chinese investment companies. And the Russian mafia, sorry, oligarchs.</p><p>So, what's the cost of land? Not a lot. Especially if you stole it many years ago.</p><p>But the price? Agricultural land can be bought for £5,000-10,000 per acre. This reflects the profit that can be made from growing crops. The exact same piece of land with permission for housing will yield over £1,000,000 per acre when sold as plots to house buyers. Our planning system is designed to enrich housebuilders. Corruption can be no surprise when such enormous profits are involved. Influencing politicians must be extremely good value for money otherwise why invest large sums in political contributions?</p><p>In the UK, the cost of a house has little relation to its price. The price, like that of gas, depends entirely on what people are willing to pay. And their ablility to pay is more dependant on the cost of borrowing money from the banks than anything else. Bear in mind that the exact same house in one place can fetch twice the price of one in a less fashionable district. No difference in cost.</p><p>I've rambled on a bit. Sorry. I hope you get the picture. Your energy bills are stuffing the pockets of the rich. Corruption ensures this. The media make sure we remain victims because the media is controlled by the mega-rich.</p><p>It doesn't have to be like this but it's the way we've chosen. Maybe its time to choose another way.</p><p><br /></p>Northern Writerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10384188301284766445noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1585702554277994887.post-44816733892208289262022-02-27T11:42:00.002+00:002022-03-06T10:43:31.403+00:00Tyrant<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiossi7IO_9PY7n6I5D_NuIxhR28rTbHrfd6QRGjxWw60YfF3683z4Oo1LEjL_meoQtxR4jGYrPe63dxftBswXxu3kKBFXGkNv2SSHriZv2kM7KunYHOCMPSlmZ0FN0HbS6NhWrMmFAFOG5qg__vjyHycC0XMjMLGYWi_Cp7K4OUictavP-3ovEHQv_Xw" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1920" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiossi7IO_9PY7n6I5D_NuIxhR28rTbHrfd6QRGjxWw60YfF3683z4Oo1LEjL_meoQtxR4jGYrPe63dxftBswXxu3kKBFXGkNv2SSHriZv2kM7KunYHOCMPSlmZ0FN0HbS6NhWrMmFAFOG5qg__vjyHycC0XMjMLGYWi_Cp7K4OUictavP-3ovEHQv_Xw" width="320" /></a></div><br /><br /><p></p><p>I'm a writer of speculative fiction. I am not an expert on armed conflicts or the geopolitical history of Europe.</p><p>My main job is to create characters who then act out an interesting story. There's a tyrant king in my fantasy trilogy who might be likened to Putin.</p><p>This King has to subjugate the population with fear and suppress any form of crtiticism or opposition with the hangman's noose. Yet he lives in constant fear of something coming along that will destroy him. He, like Putin, is implacable in his selfishness.</p><p>As I write this the war in Ukraine has entered its fourth day. Kyiv still stands although it seems inevitable that the overwhelming force deployed by the Russians must prevail at some point. </p><p>If this was a situation in a work of fiction that I was writing, I'd be at the stage of wondering what the endgame might be. It's likely that Putin has underestimated the power of the Ukrainians to resist. In my world, he'd now be turning on the generals who promised him a quick victory and holding them to account.</p><p>Invasion has created a reluctant hero in Zelenskyy. I doubt Putin anticipated this. The likely scenario Putin was relying on involved a swift run into Kyiv, capture or kill those in the government who hadn't already fled and installation of a puppet government.</p><p>Instead a folk hero, one who unites and inspires the whole country and the whole world. has emerged. </p><p>Given this situation, where can a writer take it? Put yourself in Putin's head. Ask yourself what you would do under the circumstances. You might say that he's irrational, mentally unstable and therefore unpredictable and you'd be right. However, I believe that his actions betray his fear of losing power. The encroachment of democracy is an existencial threat and when Ukraine voted to became western-leaning Putin knew his days of being able to resist popular opinion in Russia were numbered.</p><p>Zelenskyy standing firm and remaining in Kyiv may be the most significant factor in the whole situation. Putin can no longer cling to the fable that the Ukrainian people will tolerate a Moscow-led government. He's thoroughly pissed off forty million people who, even if he manages to take some form of control in the major cities, will resist using whatever weapons they can get including Molotov cocktails.</p><p>It will all boil down to Putin's state of mind, I'm afraid. From what I understand of his character, he will cling on to power at all costs. That means the Russian heirarchy, the oligarchs and the military, will have to oust him. </p><p>At least that's what would make a reasonably believable plot line. Unfortunately, the difference between fact and fiction is that fiction has to make sense. </p><p>Let's pray we get a good ending.</p>Northern Writerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10384188301284766445noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1585702554277994887.post-32443387157214097262022-02-07T12:54:00.000+00:002022-02-07T12:54:43.058+00:00Are you robbing me?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiDYwqJnyaSlzVGElPVSninIAn-Czbo0zOWM5En7luOf8Qz8NUo4ww6hDP3xgxG6vUHwn4T3GSZB3DZ5Ja-dU8aPxzHaUMauSSya4H3oxPE44ryy_okLuCRtYx9GfNPd7z8E1h83VXN2waenvSFuaQ7QMc3GGvZKfzliPx9xAictOw4Jgxf5Dj8BlzNNg=s2508" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2508" data-original-width="1672" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiDYwqJnyaSlzVGElPVSninIAn-Czbo0zOWM5En7luOf8Qz8NUo4ww6hDP3xgxG6vUHwn4T3GSZB3DZ5Ja-dU8aPxzHaUMauSSya4H3oxPE44ryy_okLuCRtYx9GfNPd7z8E1h83VXN2waenvSFuaQ7QMc3GGvZKfzliPx9xAictOw4Jgxf5Dj8BlzNNg=s320" width="213" /></a></div><h1 style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Secret-Scroll-Tyrant-Book-ebook/dp/B09MMHNL1Q/" target="_blank"><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span>Free!</a></h1><p>Free books.</p><p>Why on earth would I give away my work?</p><p>Bear in mind it took me about seven years to get the Secret of the Scroll from conception to publication. During that period I rewrote it three times and added a second and third book. A conservative estimate of my time would be at least 700 hours. At minimum wage rates that would amount to £7000.</p><p>The there's the external costs of making the book fit to read. Editing included several passes of structural, a line edit and two lots of proofreading. The people I use are professionals and have to be paid accordingly. No change out of £2000 for that.</p><p>Then there's the cover, formatting etc. Another £500.</p><p>Total around £10,000 if you include my time, which, if you ask me, is very much undervalued.</p><p>But you can have the product for nothing. How can I justify that?</p><p>It's all about visibility. If I do the maths, I need to sell about 5,000 ebooks at £2.99 in order to break even.</p><p>That's not going to happen unless readers know my book is available and that it's quite wonderful. That's where my free promotion comes in. Think of Netflix. There, all the films are free once you've paid the subscription. So giving one a try for 20mins is painless and easy. If it's unwatchable, you've lost nothing but 20 mins of your time.</p><p>So, my resistance to renting an unknown film for £2.99 is far greater than trying it on Netflix. I can still feel the stinging disappointment of the ones that turned out to be a waste of money.</p><p>If you take my book for free, you will be doing me a big favour. This is how:</p><p>1. You move me up the charts. After 1 day of my free promotion the Secret of the Scroll is No. 1 in Epic Fantasy. That means more people get to see it.</p><p>2. You give me a chance to hook you with my writing. </p><p>3. If you read my book you might leave a rating or review. Ratings are massively important for Amazon sales. Ratings also help qualify for the book promotion services with the greatest reach. Until I get 50 reviews, I'm practically invisible.</p><p>4. Most importantly, though, you might read my book. Which is the main purpose of writing it. Forget about economics, all I really want is to be read and enjoyed.</p><p>So, you're not robbing me. There's not need to wait for the price to go up. Be my guest, take a free book now and I hope you enjoy it.</p>Northern Writerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10384188301284766445noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1585702554277994887.post-14179302209814680712021-12-21T13:48:00.001+00:002021-12-21T13:48:54.881+00:00Happy Christmas<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgkBeURsXBi4Vz4I1tvgJVDAP7p9iZ7vWHgCt48UAei5rO6_6kZGUctHj6ZMmRHHRWWtFEkyA07RCRim_1YNGFeutFU_hhJOo96Zpoj1_O0KaUXIrNBSsJDdzarvHTOoX3eMOv5QlWO9-zp1ygK0qh-lUo-V-Rr9Kv-DeJtSx3nAqZBL6u7gEPvlQHgLQ=s2508" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2508" data-original-width="1672" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgkBeURsXBi4Vz4I1tvgJVDAP7p9iZ7vWHgCt48UAei5rO6_6kZGUctHj6ZMmRHHRWWtFEkyA07RCRim_1YNGFeutFU_hhJOo96Zpoj1_O0KaUXIrNBSsJDdzarvHTOoX3eMOv5QlWO9-zp1ygK0qh-lUo-V-Rr9Kv-DeJtSx3nAqZBL6u7gEPvlQHgLQ=s320" width="213" /></a></div><br /><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: center;"> <a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Secret-Scroll-Tyrant-D-Harrison/dp/1909607142/" style="text-align: center;" target="_blank">The Secret of the Scroll</a></p><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><p> <span style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Thanks for all your support for the first Tyrant book, The Secret of the Scroll. </span></p><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;">There's still time to leave me a Christmas present in the form of a review.</div><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></div><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;">The second book, King of the Desert, is well on its way and should be published towards the end of January provided I get my finger out and make sure the edits are all approved.</div><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></div><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;">ANYONE WHO LEAVES A REVIEW FOR TYRANT 1 WILL BE ENTITLED TO A FREE COPY OF TYRANT 2!</div><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></div><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;">We're working on the cover which will look something like this:</div><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjWAWSf0LKn7_h2J98Z93nOpQAI-Oq4rhc-ooR0-Jbtb_zo1Sdxj-ZkEJazrIXEgt-J53QO4J0W5Nea8KdvTEsds47U5aR9MNJPidNgbhr02yX5Ine0kGPMhXdYqPiJR9yuFlh8q28g5h3W9YvS3MgsfD_N8hBNiA9RTd0bphtSIQTuT39Ex1GhOY4aZA=s5400" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="5400" data-original-width="3600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjWAWSf0LKn7_h2J98Z93nOpQAI-Oq4rhc-ooR0-Jbtb_zo1Sdxj-ZkEJazrIXEgt-J53QO4J0W5Nea8KdvTEsds47U5aR9MNJPidNgbhr02yX5Ine0kGPMhXdYqPiJR9yuFlh8q28g5h3W9YvS3MgsfD_N8hBNiA9RTd0bphtSIQTuT39Ex1GhOY4aZA=s320" width="213" /></a></div><br /><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></div>Northern Writerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10384188301284766445noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1585702554277994887.post-54208883337058822902021-11-28T11:31:00.001+00:002021-11-28T11:32:22.433+00:00Genre<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8NwNoWjljciSNOsWWOi0qAGqj4OKhM2PECAeQZDdstC4W5mp6r89X2x-MVpNmMTpgjcfpZMx4bfE-tlWHzKzARKo8cWOe2kG-gATJu_ev8S9UGaxVpzBIkmo3nzBBCSow5heiVWBGFxxH/s2048/9781909607132.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1365" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8NwNoWjljciSNOsWWOi0qAGqj4OKhM2PECAeQZDdstC4W5mp6r89X2x-MVpNmMTpgjcfpZMx4bfE-tlWHzKzARKo8cWOe2kG-gATJu_ev8S9UGaxVpzBIkmo3nzBBCSow5heiVWBGFxxH/s320/9781909607132.jpg" width="213" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B09MMHNL1Q/" target="_blank">My new book!</a><br /></p><p>I'm blogging again and this time it's because I have a new book out. Last time it was my son's brilliant thriller, Recursion, that prompted me to post.</p><p>Most of you know me through my Jenny Parker crime thrillers. My new book is completely different. It's Fantasy. Why the change?</p><p>My favourite genres are Fantasy and Science Fiction. They are what I prefer to read and what I set out to write. However, my first attempts were, unsurprisingly, extremely poor. I wrote three SFF novels before I got the message that, although I had a story to tell, my execution was too dire for any reader who hadn't been threatened with violence to persevere.</p><p>In order to improve my technique, I decided to change from third person past tense to first person present tense. This made the writing more difficult and more emotionally charged. Adding in a female protagonist pushed my boundaries to the limits.</p><p>My initial intention was only a writing exercise but the storyteller in me became engaged in the awful suffering of my protagonist, Jenny Parker. I had to find out how things resolved for her. I wrote four full length novels before I could leave her in a relatively safe situation.</p><p>Because I knuckled down, learned to write from the heart and managed to express Jenny's tribulations in a way that engaged readers the series was published and has sold far more copies than my most optimistic expectations.</p><p>The Tyrant series has been seven years in the making. I wrote all three volumes then went back and rewrote the first book from scratch having learned an immense amount about my characters during their subsequent escapades.</p><p>I'm immensely proud of it and have dedicated it to my older grandchildren. It's a story that I'm convinced they'll enjoy reading and solves the Christmas and birthday present conundrum for a couple of years at least.</p><p>Don't worry about Jenny Parker, though. She has three new adventures being prepared for publication.</p><p><!-- wp:paragraph -->
<!-- /wp:paragraph -->
<!-- wp:paragraph -->
<!-- /wp:paragraph -->
<!-- wp:paragraph -->
<!-- /wp:paragraph -->
<!-- wp:paragraph -->
<!-- /wp:paragraph -->
<!-- wp:paragraph -->
<!-- /wp:paragraph -->
<!-- wp:paragraph -->
<!-- /wp:paragraph -->
<!-- wp:paragraph -->
<!-- /wp:paragraph -->
<!-- wp:paragraph -->
<!-- /wp:paragraph -->
<!-- wp:paragraph -->
<!-- /wp:paragraph -->
<!-- wp:paragraph -->
<!-- /wp:paragraph --></p><p>Happy days.</p>Northern Writerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10384188301284766445noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1585702554277994887.post-51753740947980113702021-09-27T12:19:00.000+01:002021-09-27T12:19:32.118+01:00What's in a Name?<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><p></p><p>People sometimes ask me what on earth I was thinking when I named my son David John, exactly the same name as mine. I reply that I was expecting him to be a girl. That I was taken by surprise. That I panicked when I realised Samantha wouldn't be appropriate.</p><p>My decision has caused minor confusion for a long time but the situation recently changed with the publication of his first novel. He calls himself David J Harrison, not to be confused with D J Harrison, which is me. Phew! So that's OK.</p><p>His book, Recursion, comes out very soon and you should buy it so that you can see just how brilliant a writer he has become. I would like to claim some credit for his awesomeness but I won't.</p><p style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Recursion-David-J-Harrison/dp/1913913481/" target="_blank">Recursion</a><br /></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Recursion-David-J-Harrison/dp/1913913481/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="" data-original-height="499" data-original-width="321" height="469" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivaQx8hOpalS8vzHW5ybnWzOdSswrDWnn_c1AR4UnakoQ3LU0V8uxR15G6YCzrTGY8GCkoCF5fonMiIyHgnM6L4PIgWZh706Iws4qhbtn_RHyS0ns479w8g8dZnBurmYHd9Gedsw9-KDs8/w301-h469/image.png" width="301" /></a></div><br /><p></p>Northern Writerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10384188301284766445noreply@blogger.com0Yorkshire, UK53.9590858 -1.079240325.648851963821151 -36.2354903 82.269319636178835 34.0770097tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1585702554277994887.post-83977381843952057842020-10-29T17:46:00.000+00:002020-10-29T17:46:09.782+00:00Reviews Part Two<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNJ0G7KFxULerLmy35ZUERzJdfSZv-Md6e2w2oHSsyAvsKEPYaasO4M1_olIlf6PRdhiUhJ9vuqquLGVXh3CaujOjAmmgmCAprtyPLgQO7Z4ePzTICg7MqGKIM9BYncqU6AYvNEB4iDf4l/s2048/due_dilligence+%25283%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1366" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNJ0G7KFxULerLmy35ZUERzJdfSZv-Md6e2w2oHSsyAvsKEPYaasO4M1_olIlf6PRdhiUhJ9vuqquLGVXh3CaujOjAmmgmCAprtyPLgQO7Z4ePzTICg7MqGKIM9BYncqU6AYvNEB4iDf4l/s320/due_dilligence+%25283%2529.jpg" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p>For years, my first Jenny Parker novel struggled to get reviews. There were a fair number of sales, but reviews were hard to come by. Then I wrote the blog previous to this one.</p><p>Unbeknown to me, my publishers had created a big promotion for the Jenny Parker series around the same time.</p><p>Normally, my sales are communicated to me with my royalty statement on a six monthly basis. A very good half-year might involve a thousand sales. I'd not had a good one for quite a long time. We're talking a few dozen sales.</p><p>I went to an old friend's farm to give him my rescue chickens. This isn't a digression, though it might sound like me going off at a tangent, because his partner and her friend have been keen readers of my books for years. A socially distanced chat revealed that she hadn't read the latest Jenny Parker book and she rang her friend to tell her there was another treat coming her way. I offered to send her a copy but she said she was happy to buy one.</p><p>OK, I'm getting to the point. Be patient.</p><p>If I want to see how my books are doing, I go to my Amazon author's page and look at the charts. One sale makes a big difference when you're selling very few books. You can soar from number 1,000,000 to number 50,000 in an instant before gradually decaying back down to earth.</p><p>On a promise of a sale, I checked my Amazon page. All my books were doing ridiculously well. Due Diligence was second overall in the UK and 3rd overall in the US. Obviously there was a glitch with the figures so I checked with my publishers. No glitch, more than 30,000 downloads, they said.</p><p>I was gobsmacked and happy. Then the sales persisted. Then the reviews and ratings began to accumulate. DD has well over a hundred positive reviews now.</p><p>So, I'm telling you that writers should never give up. Success can come at any time. And when it does, I have to remind myself to taste the sweetness instead of wishing for even more.</p><p>One sale is enough to make me happy. One positive review increases that happiness tenfold.</p><p>Despite the pandemic, there's a big smile on my face most of the time now.</p><p><br /></p>Northern Writerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10384188301284766445noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1585702554277994887.post-47248080758054980992020-10-21T19:14:00.002+01:002020-10-21T19:14:53.159+01:00Reviews<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEif-TptIR03XF2ICVsyY4oLWM7I5FmAAPMA5l9O0-6V6sAzzKv-tPto45UakbQocKqcX-xkzv25rPHa4YhlbIOHD73qsTAWnPyombOxL5iW_zw-3OlGyQQub9VvEuQg1oru9O7k9A_LSM6j/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="104" data-original-width="486" height="68" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEif-TptIR03XF2ICVsyY4oLWM7I5FmAAPMA5l9O0-6V6sAzzKv-tPto45UakbQocKqcX-xkzv25rPHa4YhlbIOHD73qsTAWnPyombOxL5iW_zw-3OlGyQQub9VvEuQg1oru9O7k9A_LSM6j/" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p>Authors like me need reviews. Reviews sell books. Book sales mean earnings. Earnings help pay for stuff like ink and food.</p><p>However, there are a few tips I want to impart about reviews.</p><p>1. If you buy a book, leave a review.</p><p>2. If you leave a review, make sure it's FIVE stars. Why? I'll explain later if you still need me to.</p><p>3. The stars are important. Your opinion isn't. This might appear harsh but I would point out that you're not writing for the Times Literary Supplement.</p><p>4. If the book arrived in one piece, was readable and the same book that you ordered, definitely FIVE Stars.</p><p>5. If you can't be arsed to read it, at least leave a review so that the whole thing doesn't result in a total waste of effort.</p><p>6. If you do read it and it's not your cup of tea, then I suggest one of two things. Either keep it to yourself or, preferably, use Tip Number 4.</p><p>7. A simple 'I liked it' is quite enough. If you're prompted to add more words you can use 'oh yes I did' a few times. If you get a bit bored with that you can say 'looking forward to the author's next book'. That's always a good one.</p><p>8. Some reviewers like to write a bit about the plot and content of the book. Don't fall into that temptation. At the top of the page, underneath the picture of the cover and the title, the author and publisher have provided a carefully worded set of information to inform the potential reader. The log line, the blurb and the short synopsis are arrived at after long hours of drafting, rejecting, honing, editing, rewriting, getting feedback, starting again, trying not to give too much plot away while attempting to whet the reader's appetite. A reviewer saying they were very surprised when Fred turned out to be the murderer isn't helping anyone, to be honest.</p><p>9. So, what's all this about FIVE stars? Well, my take on the star system is in Tip Number Four. Nuancing is, in my opinion, pointless. If you give 5 stars to everyone, nobody is going to be disappointed and you won't have to decide whether Harry Potter should have more stars than Cloud Atlas.</p><p>Reviewing can be simple and fun. It's also a sure fire way of making a poor beleagured writer a whole heap happier.</p>Northern Writerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10384188301284766445noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1585702554277994887.post-68380564324825000722019-07-21T11:06:00.002+01:002019-07-21T14:26:33.144+01:00First Principles<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjES06DoDo1axiXXpcgJpV9oEZ3hxNY-da7joYn3NH4_P3ly4hrSgXtarqwuo-dmXPxO5xYcxHuGzWgXYGnj49dwo-N34BL6qnXAZXCMR7OKwt8okca-LsL1XHcIM82_PcQHwwZTjnWz6La/s1600/203_co2-graph-061219.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="1280" height="250" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjES06DoDo1axiXXpcgJpV9oEZ3hxNY-da7joYn3NH4_P3ly4hrSgXtarqwuo-dmXPxO5xYcxHuGzWgXYGnj49dwo-N34BL6qnXAZXCMR7OKwt8okca-LsL1XHcIM82_PcQHwwZTjnWz6La/s400/203_co2-graph-061219.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<br />
We all know about Climate Change. Believing it is one thing, doing something about it is another. Then there are prominent related issues like Biodiversity and Plastics in the Oceans. The situation is pretty much overwhelming. It's hard to believe that any individual can make a difference.<br />
<br />
We're constantly being fed conflicting information. This is designed to confuse and frustrate our good intentions. If there's a report on how a plant-based diet is not only good for our health but of enormous benefit to the planet, the media will respond with 'research' based evidence that meat is good for us and that vegan families are risking the health of their children by such faddism.<br />
<br />
Let me try to help by explaining my approach. When I was studying Chemistry I found that provided I understood the first principles I could avoid having to remember huge amounts of information. So it is with the environment. None of us can know and understand every consequence of every action. Life and our relationship with the planet is much too complex for that.<br />
<br />
I'll give you an example to begin with.<br />
<br />
Fracking. Why do we oppose fracking?<br />
<br />
Proponents of fracking will argue that we need gas, that there is no risk, that the earthquakes are small and that opponents should back off.<br />
<br />
The anti-fracking brigade cite horror stories about contaminated water supplies, the loss of value of homes adjacent to fracking sites, flammable gases coming through domestic water taps and lots more.<br />
<br />
My advice is to forget all that. Risk assessment is subjective. Go back to first principles which is that fossil fuels have to be left in the ground if we are to mitigate climate change and avoid extinction. Extracting gas puts the carbon it contains into the atmosphere. Simply put, fracking will make climate change worse. That's enough for me.<br />
<br />
The country, and some councils, have declared a climate emergency without doing anything except shout about it. We need to dramatically reduce our use of gas. There will be no market for fracked gas if we do that and the frackers will give up because they're only in it for the money.<br />
<br />
The Committee on Climate Change has advised Government that 800,000 households a year need to be converted to sustainable fuel from here on in if we are to reach our carbon reduction targets. Yet almost all new houses are being fitted with gas boilers. This is wrong. Councils can and must stop this. There are alternatives and these are much cheaper if installed at the building stage rather than having to retrofit.<br />
<br />
So that's the first principle:<br />
Anything that will make Climate Change worse has to be avoided.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br /></div>
Northern Writerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10384188301284766445noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1585702554277994887.post-9090051320532585762019-04-03T10:06:00.000+01:002019-04-03T15:09:20.838+01:00Precious Words<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsjcypiNFzoeYU8_25RbnOat0QlqmCvZUigh9ONuAkatx_TyHwZRmhvvUEFMRYptvBL_fhyphenhyphen1qxrwaHlBegNcb-SuRvf52KyOyi6NXXGxdYyLxeKe8kAozsH-V9NZnEXjthLtW0fDafuies/s1600/IMG_1332.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsjcypiNFzoeYU8_25RbnOat0QlqmCvZUigh9ONuAkatx_TyHwZRmhvvUEFMRYptvBL_fhyphenhyphen1qxrwaHlBegNcb-SuRvf52KyOyi6NXXGxdYyLxeKe8kAozsH-V9NZnEXjthLtW0fDafuies/s320/IMG_1332.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
<br />
People ask me how many words they have to write before they have a novel. It's an interesting question. Writers like me can be a bit obsessive when it comes to word count. I use it as a measure of progress. I like to write at least a thousand words every day. My problem is letting some of them go into the trash but I'll come to that later.<br />
<br />
I'm reminded of the story about the budding author who approaches a publisher at a party. 'What's the least number of pages you'd publish as a novel?' she asked. 'Three hundred,' he answered. The writer threw up her hands in joy and went running excitedly around the room shouting 'It's finished!'<br />
<br />
The conventional answer to the question is seventy to ninety thousand words though some genres like fantasy can be much longer. I would add a few words of caution, though. The important thing is to tell the story in a compelling way. That may take more words or, preferably, fewer. Vonnegut urged us to 'start as close to the end as possible'.<br />
<br />
Which brings me back to the unpalatable truth that not every word I write is either necessary or appropriate for the story I'm telling. Accepting this isn't easy. Those words were painstakingly and often painfully extracted. Losing them into the oblivion of the trash bin can hurt.<br />
There are times when I read through the previous day's output and am tempted to trash the lot. This is normal but ill-advised. I have learned to leave everything exactly as it was written until I've finished the story. Then, after a period of reflection, revision can take place.<br />
Working with an editor has taught me that I am not a good judge of my own work.<br />
<br />
The initial casualties of the editing tend to be the first few chapters. Often these can be completely removed with great benefit to the whole piece. Why is that? The way I've come to think about this is to consider the opening exchanges of a difficult conversation. Imagine having to persuade someone to do something you know they won't like. How would you start the conversation? I'd certainly not go straight to the point. I'd ask them how they were and try to get an idea of how they were feeling. See if there was some angle I could use to soften the impact of the harsh words to follow. So it is with my characters. They are inevitably in for a hard time. I'm about to throw all kinds of trials and tribulations their way. Before I do, though, I spend a bit of time getting to know them a bit better.<br />
The reader doesn't have to see this process.<br />
<br />
My first Jenny Parker novel originally began with a long detailed scene with Jenny sitting on a toilet. I resisted its deletion with all my might but eventually conceded that this piece of information might have been essential for me but it was something my readers should be spared.<br />
Incidentally, six years after its first publication, a new edition of Due Diligence has been released. The toilet scene is still missing.</div>
Northern Writerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10384188301284766445noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1585702554277994887.post-8969778743892261832018-12-30T11:11:00.000+00:002018-12-30T11:11:01.970+00:00New Year<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUBh0wMjJF50-BusEi69OVzmw7bqGhFjmZj72PLxrWW1Um6zYJ6DasfOfkdWCQC4JucInZSDim0Rgm8mrxHf0RC1kkhrR2YgXN_FjgMAl2FfmLdlhUMGNAM0GxJW7rOpz2xVLI2LwTRB7N/s1600/37423927640_a1b6c55946_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUBh0wMjJF50-BusEi69OVzmw7bqGhFjmZj72PLxrWW1Um6zYJ6DasfOfkdWCQC4JucInZSDim0Rgm8mrxHf0RC1kkhrR2YgXN_FjgMAl2FfmLdlhUMGNAM0GxJW7rOpz2xVLI2LwTRB7N/s320/37423927640_a1b6c55946_o.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
Happy New Year!<br />
<br />
Here are a few tips that might help make 2019 a good writing year.<br />
<br />
1. Write<br />
<br />
Seems obvious, doesn't it? However, by waiting for the right time and perfect conditions I wasted many years of opportunity. Write a little bit every day. This is hard, I know, but it can be done.<br />
<br />
2. Don't Edit<br />
<br />
Write the piece in its entirety without going back over it and making changes. Finish it. This is even harder than number 1.<br />
<br />
3. Write something else<br />
<br />
This is the advice I give to anyone who sends me their work. A finished piece is best put away for a while before trying to assess it.<br />
<br />
4. Don't Self-Publish the first thing you write<br />
<br />
I know that intense feeling of temptation to upload my novel as soon as I've finished it. After all, if people can't buy it how do I become the next J K Rowling?<br />
I was fortunate to avoid this catastrophic error and my writing career was saved. Anyone trying to read the first novels I wrote would have avoided me like the plague for the rest of time. And been quite right in doing so.<br />
<br />
5. Just because it's been written doesn't mean anyone should read it<br />
<br />
Believe it or not, this is a liberating thing. I avoid 'writing for publication' and write for myself. Always. Or at least I try not to second guess what the public might like because I have absolutely no idea. I do, however, know what I like. Write the book you want to read.<br />
<br />
6. If you do publish, do it properly<br />
<br />
There will come a time, I hope, when you've produced something you think might be of interest to a wider public. When that time comes, it is important to present it in readable form. In other words, it will need a professional edit. This will cost money. A lot of money in writing terms. Almost certainly more money than you will ever recoup in sales.<br />
<br />
7. Writing is not a competitive sport<br />
<br />
Any success I've had has been dependant on help from other writers. The writing community is a wonderful resource. Join it in whichever guise suits you. Your local writers' group is a wonderful place to begin.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br /></div>
photo credit: Sworldguy <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/64233859@N06/37423927640">Fireworks Explosion</a> via <a href="http://photopin.com/">photopin</a> <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.0/">(license)</a></div>
Northern Writerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10384188301284766445noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1585702554277994887.post-32953128470107032402018-10-21T11:20:00.000+01:002018-10-21T11:20:51.850+01:00Unruly Chracters<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLpdYz91dBxrrtuHGZKafdZir5TD0D-EOtjGdBkbQwdIFeEhdaGPPjoc7WYqxY7pQKnRvIFt6v8gXwzRg0ze94VltFkzcS16mSX8drrnDEtc742LN6oAbMVI0nLo6VbDihjMcOb1n13WSe/s1600/40603621235_058c362cfd_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1143" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLpdYz91dBxrrtuHGZKafdZir5TD0D-EOtjGdBkbQwdIFeEhdaGPPjoc7WYqxY7pQKnRvIFt6v8gXwzRg0ze94VltFkzcS16mSX8drrnDEtc742LN6oAbMVI0nLo6VbDihjMcOb1n13WSe/s320/40603621235_058c362cfd_o.jpg" width="228" /></a></div>
<br />
As you might already be aware, I try to write a bit every day. I wake up in the morning and find myself enveloped in the story. I look around and see the characters who then begin to do things. Sometimes unexpected things. Unintentioned things. Exciting things. That's what makes writing so interesting for me. It's the not knowing.<br />
<br />
When I get almost to the end of a story and realise what's going to happen, it becomes more of a struggle to write. It's as if my mind has finished with the project and is no longer interested.<br />
<br />
I have been a little bit poorly of late and unable to write. Now I'm recovered and back at it, I find that my characters haven't had the patience and good grace to hang around and wait for me. Instead, they seem to have carried on regardless and what was a nice linear plot line involving four of them in a voyage of discovery has fallen to bits. I left them all on a perfectly good ship complete with crew, provisions and a clear plan. On my return, I find the ship is gone. I have no idea where it is. One of my characters is sitting on the shore feeling sorry for himself. Two more are wandering around in a jungle when they should be on the ship. These are the least of my problems. My fourth character has disappeared completely.<br />
<br />
You might think it would be easy to find her. I'm the writer, after all. The fantasy world I've created is a bit short of detail, though. I only know about the places my characters have actually been. She may have gone somewhere new. Or even hopped out of this particular version of reality into a completely different one. She can do things like that. She's a witch.<br />
<br />
OK, I'm currently writing fantasy but my process is the same for my crime thrillers. I'm with the reader all the way. I know what they know. I can speculate, just as they can, and I do this in the same way whether I'm writing or reading someone else's story.<br />
<br />
Another thing I should mention is that my characters appear fully formed. What I mean is they have lived their lives outside the confines of my story and their motivation derives from experiences I have no knowledge of. Usually, I get to understand them better as the story unfolds. That's what makes them interesting.<br />
<br />
Like my witch. After 250,000 words of the story, I'm at last beginning to understand the reasons behind her behaviour right at the beginning. What she did then is only now beginning to make sense.<br />
<br />
Are writers supposed to carefully design characters down the the colour of their eyes and the toys they received for their first Christmas? Should they always know what's going to happen at the end of their story? <br />
<br />
Am I the only one who writes without knowing anything?<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br /></div>
photo credit: Jrwn Photography <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/163038535@N05/40603621235">Natcha</a> via <a href="http://photopin.com/">photopin</a> <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.0/">(license)</a></div>
Northern Writerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10384188301284766445noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1585702554277994887.post-35850210632524427302018-09-22T12:00:00.000+01:002018-10-05T10:53:08.546+01:00Science Fiction<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3JPeApMya4UUnRbTPL_v5WA8ZcEFB4YuRsohfIuDaQKUnlo_3205MEzPKWZc2fLLGdDAKPx2_4zj2ALOYjt6eNUpikClgEyQx8wlMP7W1ku9-EHRrMUlPm7ztND2vAT4f19CQ1EwL276M/s1600/40543594381_a493ee0391_o+%25281%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1027" data-original-width="912" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3JPeApMya4UUnRbTPL_v5WA8ZcEFB4YuRsohfIuDaQKUnlo_3205MEzPKWZc2fLLGdDAKPx2_4zj2ALOYjt6eNUpikClgEyQx8wlMP7W1ku9-EHRrMUlPm7ztND2vAT4f19CQ1EwL276M/s320/40543594381_a493ee0391_o+%25281%2529.jpg" width="284" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
Science Fiction is my favourite genre. I'd love to write a really good SF novel. Better still, I am going to write a brilliant SF novel, you just wait and see.<br />
<br />
As a child, I would be taken to Tyldesley library every Saturday morning where I would gather my stock of books to last me a whole week. I can't remember how many I was allowed to borrow at a time but however many it was, it was never enough. Which meant that I had to read everything I borrowed. This was a very good discipline because it prevented me from falling into the habit of abandoning books without giving them a chance. Just like my Friday evening visits to the cinema, I made the best of what was on offer.<br />
<br />
My go to books were the bright yellow sleeved Gollancz ones. I worked my way through them from Aldiss to Zelazny. Two particular favourites that I remember were Samuel R Delany and Theodore Sturgeon. Happy days.<br />
<br />
I also like Fantasy. Traditionally, Fantasy involves swords, elves, dragons and similar things whereas SF has spaceships, robots and technology. Many of these are interchangeable but the defining element is often said to be magic.<br />
<br />
The problem with magic is that it has to be carefully defined for it to be a useful plot element. It's too tempting for a writer to suddenly conjure up a new piece of magic to help his protagonist out of a tight spot. That kind of behaviour plays havoc with dramatic tension and has the reader relaxed and waiting for a new miracle at every crisis point.<br />
<br />
The SF equivalent is, of course, technology. Star Trek provides plenty of wonderful example of how not to use technology in a story. Suddenly deciding that reversing the dilithium crystal polarity to save the Enterprise from doom can be a bit weak unless you've tried it at least once before and shown the reader or viewer some potential negative consequences.<br />
<br />
It's easy to be lazy when you're inventing your own technology or dreaming up magic spells. That's why I think that the very best of both genres ranks with the very best writing ever. I also recognise that the opposite is undoubtedly true.<br />
<br />
The most recent SF book I read was <i>Dogs of War</i> by Adrian Tchaikovsky. It's superb. Highly recommended, as is his Nebula Award winning <i>Children of Time</i>. One of my all time favourite SF reads is <i>the Algebraist</i> by Iain M Banks, though every book he wrote contains much to savour.<br />
<br />
As for Fantasy, it's hard to look beyond the Hobbit. Some might say this is the book that shaped the genre for all time. However, I can't not mention Joe Abercrombie and the First Law series. Joe is in a different class entirely to every other Fantasy author.<br />
<br />
So, one day I'll have my own masterpiece to add to the pantheon of SF. All I have to do now is to write it and convince Gollancz to publish it.<br />
<br />
Watch this space.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br /></div>
photo credit: jaci XIII <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/34700343@N08/40543594381">New family</a> via <a href="http://photopin.com/">photopin</a> <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.0/">(license)</a></div>
Northern Writerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10384188301284766445noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1585702554277994887.post-53106015267103430702018-09-15T11:12:00.000+01:002018-09-15T11:13:11.347+01:00Taking Stock<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxfYIENkT9BWw8NoFHeQIXdQgk0RRY9ZEEQfDKMVe3WIGEjBdCnURVj0We_0S_e2IA7SsjEACVUxRmC-li81bA3jZ31B17jvqXFbSwMh2Ukbu0U8h0dYTbRPkwAyA5gG3ro89l75uPxu4l/s1600/Proceeds+of+Crime3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1068" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxfYIENkT9BWw8NoFHeQIXdQgk0RRY9ZEEQfDKMVe3WIGEjBdCnURVj0We_0S_e2IA7SsjEACVUxRmC-li81bA3jZ31B17jvqXFbSwMh2Ukbu0U8h0dYTbRPkwAyA5gG3ro89l75uPxu4l/s320/Proceeds+of+Crime3.jpg" width="213" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
On the day that my second Jenny Parker crime thriller is published by Endeavour Media, I am taking stock of where my writing is up to.<br />
<br />
The third Jenny Parker, Limited Liability, is scheduled for publication in October. The fourth, Exit Strategy, is done and dusted. Written, revised (many times), edited, rewritten, edited, finalised and copy-edited. Polished to a burnished hue. Ready to go.<br />
<br />
I'm currently writing a fantasy series. Three books. The first two are drafted. I've already completely re-written the first after feedback from an agent and it's much better. The third Tyrant book is well under way.<br />
<br />
The rest of my recent output is looking for an agent that can get the best out of it.<br />
<br />
A stand alone novel about a father-daughter dysfunctional relationship.<br />
<br />
A novel based on the early years of my waste management consultancy.<br />
<br />
Two Palmer and Jones books (humorous crime novels).<br />
<br />
A childrens book, Unipig.<br />
<br />
A toddlers book (Not for Bedtime).<br />
<br />
A book about the ancients gods of Sumeria (in process).<br />
<br />
Then there's my SF trilogy, Technical Difficulties. I wrote these around ten years ago. All I can say about them is that they were good practice for the discipline of writing. They will never see the light of day. At least not in their present form. I've started a rewrite, of course I have, but it's got bogged down in 1977 Las Vegas. Not the best place to leave your characters.<br />
<br />
Now I need someone to look at all this stuff and help me decide where to concentrate my efforts. Meanwhile, I write what comes up and there's plenty that is.<br />
<br /></div>
Northern Writerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10384188301284766445noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1585702554277994887.post-35562965968771026582018-08-05T20:07:00.000+01:002018-08-05T20:14:43.523+01:00The Ten Minute Rule<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiWMyUCsnyx-6jUFi6ZLRTUbb-sTSDQ4-XzhBnXwkdzULsVzQcR7NCbI_jJ4tJ3in0eLGBwr6Ofo2SBnijvIXOdo-e9mm6ekkYltitFnnJPlahEXEMpttC2bcKDu_DsM4jNusdi-AgizTp/s1600/38951721762_612539d1f4_b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="678" data-original-width="1024" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiWMyUCsnyx-6jUFi6ZLRTUbb-sTSDQ4-XzhBnXwkdzULsVzQcR7NCbI_jJ4tJ3in0eLGBwr6Ofo2SBnijvIXOdo-e9mm6ekkYltitFnnJPlahEXEMpttC2bcKDu_DsM4jNusdi-AgizTp/s320/38951721762_612539d1f4_b.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
Give it ten minutes.<br />
<br />
It's a symptom of the modern age that we have less and less attention span. The situation hasn't been helped by the advent of streaming. We can get movies and books instantly. If we don't like the one we're watching or reading, we can change at the prod of a finger.<br />
<br />
Once upon a time, I used to have to go down to the local Blockbuster video store and physically borrow a copy of a film. An even longer time ago, I would go to the library every Saturday morning for my weekly ration of reading matter.<br />
<br />
Either way, movies or books, I was stuck with the selection I'd made. If the film was rubbish, I'd watch it anyway because I'd taken ages to choose it, queued up to rent it, paid for it and driven there and back. And there wasn't anything else for us to watch. If the book I'd borrowed was a bit dry, I'd read it anyway.<br />
<br />
Now I have Netflix and Amazon and iPlayer and Kindle and iBooks. If what I'm reading or watching isn't doing it for me, it's liable to get replaced by something else. Instantly.<br />
<br />
That's what I call the ten minute rule. Sometimes ten minutes is being over-generous with my time. A good film has me forgetting that I'd decided to give it ten minutes because I get absorbed.<br />
<br />
As a writer, I feel compelled to give books a bit more room to impress me. A slow start doesn't necessarily mean a bad book. However, I'm conscious that many readers these days aren't so patient. Books are chosen on the basis of the cover and then the first few sentences. Quite honestly, I'd be happy if readers would give my books a whole ten minutes.<br />
<br />
Which makes it incredibly satisfying when people do read my books from cover to cover. My publishers recently promoted my first Jenny Parker thriller in Australia and we sold lots of copies. What was most exciting, though, was the number of people that bought and read the other two in the series. Unless I'm deluding myself, these wonderfully astute readers must have enjoyed their first taste of Jenny Parker to be willing to pay for more. Nothing could be more satisfying for an author like me.<br />
<br />
Having said that, I'm constantly aware of the need to make my books as instantly compelling as possible. There's no room for shilly-shallying about in the modern novel.<br />
<br />
The ten minute rule sees to that.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br /></div>
photo credit: marcoverch <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/149561324@N03/38951721762">In letzter Minute</a> via <a href="http://photopin.com/">photopin</a> <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/">(license)</a></div>
Northern Writerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10384188301284766445noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1585702554277994887.post-24314613493062608782018-07-29T12:55:00.000+01:002018-07-29T12:56:39.899+01:00Violence<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjb9rxVCjeP0vGmtL_QH4lun_BW5uv7FBOkU-Jz-2jcC_MSt0itlFqOSHee9lRUZ-d8XZOz5Cb6M_7hWgkblUWbJB96-F_rLaI4EZej0PqeaCrnM3ijP8dUA1MGgw_vhy-P6ZSDrkKFRW0Q/s1600/24757096008_c26fb2c8ed_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjb9rxVCjeP0vGmtL_QH4lun_BW5uv7FBOkU-Jz-2jcC_MSt0itlFqOSHee9lRUZ-d8XZOz5Cb6M_7hWgkblUWbJB96-F_rLaI4EZej0PqeaCrnM3ijP8dUA1MGgw_vhy-P6ZSDrkKFRW0Q/s320/24757096008_c26fb2c8ed_o.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
I love a good thriller and thrillers usually involve violence. What I don't like is the portrayal of violence as the universal answer to any problem. If I read a book or watch a film that uses violence to sort the job out, I feel cheated. I think of it as lazy and unimaginative writing.<br />
Violence creates problems, it doesn't solve them.<br />
Take a comment I once saw posted on the Glock website. (For those of you who don't have an interest in handguns, I will explain. Glock make pistols that are the weapon of choice for many law enforcement agencies. British police use them, for example.) A customer asked why the Glock 19 <i>only </i>held fifteen bullets in its magazine. The answer was a good one. <i>If fifteen rounds from a Glock hasn't solved your problem then maybe you chose the wrong solution.</i><br />
My complaint is that books and films choose the Glock solution too often when it is inappropriate and unsatisfactory.<br />
Most of us don't have the option to visit violent retribution on evildoers. As any sane American will testify, nor does having a gun protect you. (Unless someone shoots you and the bullet hits your gun and bounces off, I suppose)<br />
My protagonist in Due Diligence, Jenny Parker, is an ordinary person. She's just like you and I. Vulnerable. No institution to back her up. She doesn't have the option to fight fire with fire. That would not only get her arrested. It would be also be pointless and ineffective. She has to find other ways to survive. She has to use her wits.<br />
I find that so much more satisfying to write and to read.<br />
As for the magazine capacity of a Glock 19, I find it hard to stuff more than ten rounds into the magazine before the spring gets too stiff for my thumb.<br />
(I hasten to add that my experience of handguns has been limited to a legal range in the US while conducting research. Sometimes it's necessary to obtain first hand experience even if you disapprove of what you're trying out.)<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
photo credit: subtlemd <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/10039187@N00/24757096008">CZ 85B 9mm</a> via <a href="http://photopin.com/">photopin</a> <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/">(license)</a></div>
Northern Writerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10384188301284766445noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1585702554277994887.post-21267995473501727492018-07-04T11:13:00.000+01:002018-07-04T11:13:12.242+01:00You're a Writer, So Admit It!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSc7SovosDdKoCRM9jRP7RpmPQV9jryLVLn-Wmz2D6FpJLvEnC4Hr09IsfasxWua8gH2BKCOrgBFNhFQZfJDPD317yQVPlYPYvYuqZxh0Eh-zUZaCyDTs8jXH8kN-7M6ZHqpJGYx24nvrD/s1600/Patrick.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="675" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSc7SovosDdKoCRM9jRP7RpmPQV9jryLVLn-Wmz2D6FpJLvEnC4Hr09IsfasxWua8gH2BKCOrgBFNhFQZfJDPD317yQVPlYPYvYuqZxh0Eh-zUZaCyDTs8jXH8kN-7M6ZHqpJGYx24nvrD/s320/Patrick.jpg" width="216" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpFirst">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">I
know that this blog is supposed to be about writing but the film ‘Patrick’ does have
some relevance, so bear with me.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">While
on the subject of Patrick, I urge you to watch it. Take the whole family.
Believe me you’ll enjoy it, perhaps in spite of many misgivings. It’s a
brilliantly gentle British comedy in the best tradition of all that’s good in
that genre. The sort of film that amuses, entertains and leaves you feeling
uplifted.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">As
I said though, this isn’t a film review column, it’s about writing. So where’s
the relevance?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Here
it is. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">I
have found that I possess an inherent reluctance to admit that I’m a writer. I
don’t think that I’m alone in this feeling. Perhaps it’s a fear of being harshly
judged. The response to an admission is usually something along the lines of ‘Oh,
really? Have I heard of you?’ or ‘Are you as good as Stephen King and have you
sold as many books as J K Rowling?’ At least that’s what I hear, even if the
actual words are less specific.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">While
on holiday in cloudy Dorset, escaping the rigours of the harsh Lancashire sunshine, I met a lady who said she was a writer. I plucked up the courage to
admit that I was also a writer. She told me she wrote films. I said I wrote
crime thrillers. I told her my name and she went away and bought Due Diligence,
the first Jenny Parker book. Next time I saw her, she told me she was reading
it and enjoying it. Then she invited my wife and I to a special showing of her
latest film, Patrick, where she introduced the leading lady to an audience of
her friends. It was a very good evening and talking to her has given me a
valuable insight into the film world.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">I’m
not implying that Jenny Parker is going to be gracing the silver screen any
time soon but I’m very glad I admitted I was a writer because otherwise I
wouldn’t have made this exciting connection.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">It takes courage to admit
you’re a writer, I know it does. It takes even more courage to engage with other writers but I strongly advise you to do it. <o:p></o:p></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 16px;">I'm a member of my local writers' group and this has been an enormous support to me from my first tentative attempts at writing to becoming published. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Meanwhile,
enjoy the movie.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br /></div>
Northern Writerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10384188301284766445noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1585702554277994887.post-81853351773283975722018-05-12T11:25:00.000+01:002018-05-12T11:25:54.405+01:00An elephant with two trunks<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidji2QSsljMzS9favgE75gL2puRVisHyAclXY7cU1uEzCNi8bepDXjoToqM_w-jNwdIf1XrZeJAz58ECyWEm-oP-04dC6Ie9CZ4GGj7BmYvvyVFldviGT2oqZY4YF1y24ymS2qtTVthSGN/s1600/39857402070_8c1d124534_b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="683" data-original-width="1024" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidji2QSsljMzS9favgE75gL2puRVisHyAclXY7cU1uEzCNi8bepDXjoToqM_w-jNwdIf1XrZeJAz58ECyWEm-oP-04dC6Ie9CZ4GGj7BmYvvyVFldviGT2oqZY4YF1y24ymS2qtTVthSGN/s320/39857402070_8c1d124534_b.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
Let's have a referendum.<br />
<br />
I think that all elephants should have two trunks. How about you? Wouldn't that be a really cool thing. Good for the elephant, I bet. And good for the zoo visitor who will be able to see something different. Imagine the benefits of two trunks. Breathing while drinking. The ability to pick up two things at a time. It seems a shame that they have been denied the extra trunk for so long.<br />
<br />
I'm convinced that having two trunks would be a major benefit for both elephants and humans. Don't you agree?<br />
<br />
So, let's vote on it. We can have a referendum. Sort this out once and for all.<br />
<br />
Sounds crazy, doesn't it? The idea that just because people vote for something then it has to be like that. You and I know perfectly well that no matter how overwhelming the vote might be, elephants only have one trunk and that's that. The vote changes nothing. All it does is make us look stupid and ill-informed for bothering.<br />
<br />
The Brexit referendum is pretty much the same. People (narrowly) voted for two trunks. They were promised two trunks by politicians who didn't have any prospect of delivering.<br />
<br />
Now, the reality of EU membership is starting to become clear. It's a club we can't leave. We are in Europe and, no matter how many people vote to be somewhere else, that's where we stay. Our major trading partners are European. Our food supplies come from Europe. Our defence strategy is European. And so on.<br />
<br />
The big shout from the Leave campaigners is that the people have spoken The will of the people must be done. We have to leave the EU. Elephants must have two trunks.<br />
<br />
The Government has recently realised that elephants only have one trunk and that there's nothing they can do to change it. Two isn't possible but none certainly is. If they can chop off the trunk of every elephant then at least they will have done something in response to the referendum.The elephants will all die but that's merely the consequence of holding a referendum that demands a change in the number of trunks an elephant should have.<br />
<br />
It's the will of the people that elephants must have two trunks. They voted for something that isn't possible. Even another vote that promises three extra trunks per animal wouldn't change the facts.<br />
<br />
It's the same with the EU. Voting for things to be different doesn't change the fact that we rely on our EU membership for our livelihoods.<br />
<br />
But, the people have spoken and cutting off our only trunk might be the only alternative to leaving things as they are.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br /></div>
photo credit: marfis75 <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/45409431@N00/39857402070">Elefantastisch.</a> via <a href="http://photopin.com/">photopin</a> <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/">(license)</a>
</div>
Northern Writerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10384188301284766445noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1585702554277994887.post-75719895305537371922018-05-06T10:50:00.000+01:002018-05-06T10:50:04.784+01:00First Draft<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0wdlxtq5G5pZ-9OrFd-IszTOERRawlLW-fpa9kqtgi0amqXE1N_aaNQhFvUEWV4Wn_60c0kEbwpRC3A8E02IU_Xx0HhnVPNJzm1RG8c4Fdv3vIn59EuTQJaeFOS1ANk-MIvKdtnKseYzl/s1600/3742918775_844595cbda_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="800" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0wdlxtq5G5pZ-9OrFd-IszTOERRawlLW-fpa9kqtgi0amqXE1N_aaNQhFvUEWV4Wn_60c0kEbwpRC3A8E02IU_Xx0HhnVPNJzm1RG8c4Fdv3vIn59EuTQJaeFOS1ANk-MIvKdtnKseYzl/s320/3742918775_844595cbda_o.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px;">
OK, so you've written a story. Now what?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px;">
Read it out loud, either to yourself or some poor soul that hasn’t anything better to do with their time.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px;">
This will give you an idea of what works and what doesn’t. A word of warning, if it’s your first novel then very little of it will be salvageable. Best not to try.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px;">
I thought my first novel was a humdinger. A work of brilliant wit and master storytelling. Fortunately I paid someone to tell me different.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px;">
It wasn’t until I finished my fourth book that I had something that had the potential to be read. Then I made a big mistake. This was Due Diligence, my first Jenny Parker novel. I’d just finished writing it and was introduced to the crime fiction editor at Orion. He said he’d read it if I sent it to him. On the train coming back from London, I pressed the send button. I wish I hadn’t.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px;">
It taught me never to send out or publish a first draft. I never heard from him again and no wonder. The book began with Jenny on the toilet!! What was I thinking? The final version (two years and several versions later) had none of that in it and started what had been halfway through.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px;">
You only get one chance to impress a publisher or a reader. If you blow it, that’s them gone for ever. For ever. Think about it. If you started to read a book by D J Harrison and it was an unreadable stinker, would you be likely to seek out one of his later books and give him another chance? No? Of course you wouldn’t.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px;">
Publishing a first draft is always a mistake. Always.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px;">
What do I mean by a first draft? Well, you’ve written it, put it away, read it out loud and revised it. Then it’s a first draft. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px;">
When you can’t make it any better yourself you need an editor.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px;">
Believe me, you can’t edit your own work. It’s impossible. I’ve tried. There’s a blindness that afflicts a writer when reading their own work. After all, you know what you meant to say. You know all about the characters. You know everything. It’s impossible to be objective.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px;">
A good editor costs money but is an essential investment. Before you commit to that expense, I suggest that you pay for a critique. This will help to convince you that your novel is worth further time and attention. Or it might not. Both messages should be heeded. Especially the second one.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px;">
I think of my novels as ships. If someone looks at the whole vessel and decides that it’s ugly and unserviceable, there’s no point in my redecorating the captain’s quarters and hoping that will make things right, is there?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px;">
What about money, though? I already told you that editors cost money. But how much should you pay? Editors are a bit like lawyers. There’s nobody more expensive than a cheap lawyer, in my experience. Scrimp on the editor and you’ll end up with a shoddy book.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
</div>
photo credit: Mark van Laere <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/30213319@N07/3742918775">Creativity</a> via <a href="http://photopin.com/">photopin</a> <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/2.0/">(license)</a>
</div>
Northern Writerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10384188301284766445noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1585702554277994887.post-661173556383919302018-04-29T10:32:00.001+01:002018-04-29T10:32:55.867+01:00Writing Tips<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAIQTx-FYozHvIGlkacjBHmqu7D8KvpA8k8np8xO0tJhJufvUAPm3FDvb4aTxcTqZuQRE3WQBMNrIV8GtoSGP7RaoIadmdNTQfaSWAOnwInWzCXTE9QdDFjYzYjpkg0sBEPsN2RbI0euBx/s1600/27247614189_57a45349aa_b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAIQTx-FYozHvIGlkacjBHmqu7D8KvpA8k8np8xO0tJhJufvUAPm3FDvb4aTxcTqZuQRE3WQBMNrIV8GtoSGP7RaoIadmdNTQfaSWAOnwInWzCXTE9QdDFjYzYjpkg0sBEPsN2RbI0euBx/s400/27247614189_57a45349aa_b.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
Someone has asked me to write down
my writing tips. So I have.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
My first tip is: Write<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>This
is so bloody obvious it shouldn’t need saying. But it does. It took me ages to
realise that’s what I needed to do.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>For
years, I wrote very little, preferring instead to prepare for that wonderful
day when I would be free from all encumbrances, released form inhibitions and
have the swathes of time I needed to write.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Poppycock.
Baloney.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>This
was self-sabotage of the worst kind.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>A
writer needs to write. The thing that has helped me more than anything has been
the development of a writing habit. This began when I managed to persuade
myself that writing was more important than watching Coronation Street. As soon
as the theme music started, I left the room, went to my quiet place and sat
down to write. My wife and family became used to it. They were distracted by
the TV and I claimed an hour or so of peace. This was my big breakthrough. I
‘came out’ as a writer as a result. I became a writer at last.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Now,
my practice has shifted to early morning but remains an overt one. My wife
doesn’t expect to see or hear from me until about 11am. By which time I have
done my writing for the day.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Writing
every day is good for my soul. It provides me with nourishment and contentment.
On days when I can’t write, the ensuing day seems to have less sparkle.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>However,
if I don’t write, I’m gentle with myself.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Writing
every day (or most of them) brings another benefit. Productivity. A morning’s
writing can produce a thousand words. If I do that every day, we’re talking
about three hundred thousand words in a year. Five hundred words a day would
still produce the raw material for two or three novels.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>The
maths are compelling if you write every day. Two hundred and fifty words, a
page, accumulate nicely to a novel a year proportions.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>It’s
doing it every day that makes this possible. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
Quite honestly, I couldn’t write
any more than I do. Writing is hard work. Exhausting work, physically, mentally
and, if you’re having a good day, emotionally.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
My advice is to write, then.
Whatever you’re writing, write until you’ve finished it. Don’t look back. Don’t
try to judge it. Resist the urge to throw it all in the bin.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
Put it away for a while. Some like
a month, me, I prefer a year.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<br /></div>
</div>
photo credit: Brett Jordan <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/55497864@N00/27247614189">Word (lock)</a> via <a href="http://photopin.com/">photopin</a> <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/">(license)</a>
</div>
Northern Writerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10384188301284766445noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1585702554277994887.post-5202130686895362842018-03-26T10:18:00.000+01:002018-03-26T10:18:24.374+01:00Nowt on Telly<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBnyeu50rFPTCsPuaIo55psiednu-qfz30WWCfcN4cn33ws1DwuztaNBsOhBV1AkhZ6iSXCt43XHCku-qa9rO3sF7jQ7GXm5n2LFshHIbZy8cTuUF1qaNhO9AB21t7YSELeEAs-7EMrO7h/s1600/City+and+city.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="710" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBnyeu50rFPTCsPuaIo55psiednu-qfz30WWCfcN4cn33ws1DwuztaNBsOhBV1AkhZ6iSXCt43XHCku-qa9rO3sF7jQ7GXm5n2LFshHIbZy8cTuUF1qaNhO9AB21t7YSELeEAs-7EMrO7h/s320/City+and+city.jpg" width="210" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
If you're like me, you've spent a fair amount of time watching things on TV that, in hindsight, seem a complete waste of time. Then you watch the next instalment if only to see if this one's any better than the last. Perhaps, as I have, you've become inexplicably hooked by a couple with more money than sense being filmed looking for a property in the country.<br />
If I see one more undercooked rack of lamb on Masterchef I may throw up.<br />
There's an antidote to the hollow feeling that comes from wasting an evening in front of the box. It might be hard to swallow for the first few attempts but it's well worth persevering. If you do, a whole new richness will enter your life. Every day will hold the promise of discovery and excitement. Life will feel that much more worthwhile.<br />
There's a magical effect produced when a TV is switched off. Your attention becomes your property again. You can do with it whatever you wish without it being constantly dragged to the screen.<br />
Then there's the silence. Opportunity for stillness. Your mind relaxes, free from a constant bombardment of images and sounds.<br />
So what do you do instead? What's this magical alternative to relaxing in front of the telly?<br />
Read a book.<br />
It's the best antidote to boredom and that empty feeling of having wasted time.<br />
Ok, I'm an author so I would say that, you might think. There he goes, trying to peddle his books, you might say.<br />
In response, I admit that I'm as affected by TV in all its forms as anyone. I waste vast amounts of precious time slumped on a sofa in a semi-comatose state.<br />
As soon as I pick up a book and start reading, I feel so much better. Reading is a much richer experience than TV can ever be.<br />
I'll prove it to you, if you have any doubts. Read any book that has been adapted for TV, then watch the program or film. It's become a cliche that the book is always better than the film but this just isn't fair. A book is a book and a film is a film. They're different media. You can do things in books that films, even using the most sophisticated computer generated imagery, can't possibly display. The greatest actor on the planet can't hope to communicate feelings with the same intensity that living inside the character's head can.<br />
Try Lord of the Rings, even if you've seen all the films.<br />
Read The Handmaid's Tale, even if you saw the TV programme.<br />
Read The Shining, then watch the film.<br />
Read anything by Iain Banks, David Mitchell, Haruki Murakami, Neal Stephenson.<br />
Why not try the greatest crime writer in the history of the world, Raymond Chandler? His books have been made into films again and again. The Big Sleep is a particular favourite of mine.<br />
You don't even have to buy a book. We have a brilliant library service in Lancashire.<br />
If you do want to make a purchase, support an independent book shop.<br />
By the way, there's a TV adaptation of China Mieville's The City and the City coming on the BBC. Get the book. Immerse yourself. Then enjoy the program in a very different way.</div>
Northern Writerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10384188301284766445noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1585702554277994887.post-81380942128942896452018-02-20T15:27:00.000+00:002018-02-20T15:27:07.011+00:00Freefall Writing<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Writing-Without-Parachute-Barbara-Turner-Vesselago/dp/1785921711/" target="_blank"><img src="https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/51cvwjaOt8L._SX331_BO1,204,203,200_.jpg" /></a></div>
<br />
<a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Writing-Without-Parachute-Barbara-Turner-Vesselago/dp/1785921711/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=" target="_blank">https://www.amazon.co.uk/Writing-Without-Parachute-Barbara-Turner-Vesselago/dp/1785921711/</a><br />
<br />
No matter how long I've been writing, there's always more for me to learn. Reading other writer's work is a brilliant way to do that. Writing itself, just putting words on paper is also recommended. However, a school teacher once told me that practice did NOT make perfect. 'If you carry on making the same basic errors, you'll never improve. CORRECT PRACTICE makes perfect' is how he expressed it.<br />
With that in mind, though they say you shouldn't take any notice of school teachers because 'those who can, do and those that can't, teach,' I try to take every opportunity to improve my writing technique.<br />
Content isn't a problem for me. I'm blessed with a very inventive mind that is harder to rein back than it is to get going. Getting it down on paper in a manner that will keep a reader engeged is the trick as far as I'm concerned.<br />
Many years ago, I was introduced to Barbara Turner-Vessalago's Freefall writing method and I've been attending her two UK workshops every year since.<br />
My first attempts at novel writing are the stuff of legend. I wrote a SF trilogy with a casual, stand-offish point of view that was packed with self-conscious humour that didn't work and served only to dissipate what little dramatic tension I'd created.<br />
Barbara taught me to write from a more authentic place. To embody what I was saying. To feel in to the characters and the situation. To drop into a place, look around, see what was happening, smell the air, listen to the wind in the trees, watch my characters react to their surroundings.<br />
Her workshops are wonderfully transformative. She is a supremely gifted mentor and the feedback she gives is always exactly what is needed. Unfortunately, there are only two courses per year in the UK and only twelve writers per workshop. Of the twenty four potential places, though, at least half are taken up by gluttons like myself. So the opportunities to attend are very limited. If you ever get a chance, I advise you to take it because you won't regret it.<br />
After much heart-searching, Barbara distilled her teaching into a book which provides a very cost-effective alternative to her workshops and is the next best thing.<br />
With Barbara's blessing, I'm going to be giving a short introductory workshop to Chorley and District Writers' Circle on February 27th. Check out <a href="http://www.chorleywriters.org.uk/" target="_blank">http://www.chorleywriters.org.uk/</a> if you're interested.<br />
If you can't make it, get the book.</div>
Northern Writerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10384188301284766445noreply@blogger.com0