The Scribblers' Script - Autumn 2015

The Scribblers' Script May 2015

New Year, New Venue, New Writing Buddies!

So, what do you do when you run a group that has become so popular that it has outgrown its venue, needs to adapt to changing ideas and technology and, generally, move with the times?

Answer: You reorganise!

This is just what we have done within Writing Buddies for the 2015 season.

We have loved every minute of meeting at the Mercure Dolphin Hotel on the High Street but recently it was very apparent that we were trying to squeeze too many into a small space.  So, with many thanks for two successful years at this venue, we have moved to the Seminar Room at the Central Library, Civic Centre, Southampton. We will hold our first meeting there tomorrow, Friday 6 February.

We have also taken the opportunity to revamp the group and present it more professionally. Writing Buddies will stay a not-for-profit organisation but members will now pay a membership fee to join (£15 a year) in addition to the £2 meeting fee. New members will have one free meeting, to get to know the group. Casual members will be welcome at £5 a meeting for a maximum of three meetings.  Proceeds from these fees will be used to fund our notetaker and guest speakers, as well as pay for essentials within the group.

In addition to an increasing line up of guest speakers, new this year will be writing practice, set discussion topics, opportunities to help run the group, writing competitions and an online magazine.  Phew!  We love a cream tea at Christmas, so this is one thing we have retained from the past.

The meetings are open to anyone who is actively writing (or who an interest in an associated field, such as editing, illustration or photography), willing to participate and wanting to have some fun.  Writing Buddies come from all walks of life, are aged from mid twenties to over eighty, write in all genres and are a rich mixture of amateur and professional.

So, we hope that the New Writing Buddies will be as popular as the old.  If you fancy giving us a try, do come along to meet us.  Our meeting dates are on the diary page of this blog.

Writing Buddies November 2014

The regular monthly meeting of Writing Buddies convened on Friday 7 November 2014, at the Mercure Dolphin Hotel, High Street, Southampton, at 2.00 pm. There were eighteen present.

Good News

Ray’s second book is due for launch on 4 December 2014, at the New Bridge Public House, Woolston. He is not fully decided on the title, but it seems logical to keep the same title as his first one, From War to an Iron Figher  but call it Volume 2. It was commented that the first book had had a successful launch at the same venue, with literally hundreds present. The group wished him well. One piece of advice was to keep the cover artwork the same, but to change its colour as this would indicate a new book in the series.

The group wished Jacqueline luck, as she is one of ten shortlisted for the Greenacre Writers writing competition for creative writers and tutors.  

Chrissie has sought advice from publishers in Cromer, Norfolk, about submitting a novel by the beginning of next year. Salt Publishing were very encouraging after her previous novella submission. She also met an agent at the University Theatre in King Alfred College in Winchester, who gave her advice.

Eileen submitted an e-book through Kindle, using Kingstar and later discovered there were margin problems, so she had to re-format. However, in the meantime, (about an hour) someone had actually bought one, so she had to apologise and send them a correct version. It was ironic because the book was based on a real life experience with a twist, about a builder who actually turned up, and came back when he said he would!

Jimmy mentioned that Aloejimmy Publishing was going from strength to strength. He has sold 53 copies of his children’s book, Jayden The Naughty Goldfish, as a Kindle e-book. (He gave a breakdown of global sales: 1 in Spain, 6 in the UK, 12 in Japan and 34 in USA). He has also sold 29 books in his Sundance Gang series. 

Jacqueline mentioned We Buy Any Books as a place to examine to buy and sell books. She put in a code for her own book, Bottles and Pots, which they were offering at £2, which is only 10% more than she is offering it at, and one of her Milly detective books at just £6, both of which she thought was good value.

Bill recently went to a talk about privately published books at Winchester Library. He recommended a visit to the Winchester Discovery Centre.  

Penny gave a talk about her book, Haunted Southampton, at the Shirley Women's Institute. 

Anne is nine chapters into her book and trying to get photographs for the cover. She has seen a style guide to formatting and is considering Smashwords and Kingstat software. Bill insists formatting software is unnecessary as it can be done through Word.

Christine went to a meeting of the new Southampton Chamber of Art, which is to support writers, authors and artistic and musical creativity. She said it may be good for offering support and networking, but it might be a case of going to several ineffectual meetings. She will monitor the group on Facebook and make a decision about whether to attend any further meetings. There was an Education Officer there who mentioned funding resources. One concept that may be of interest to the group was speed networking, where members briefly meet one to one to exchange contact details to promote their cause. It was suggested that Writing Buddies should leave some business cards with the group. Calvin warned of being beholden to the council after applying for funding, but it can raise a group's profile.

Discussions

Crowd funding in general and organisations such as Front Row and Kickstarter in particular were discussed as a way of presenting an idea and asking for funds to make it a viable project. It can cover various areas of the arts, including book publishing. As the average writer earns very little they often have to obtain public funds elsewhere. Both Terry Pratchett and Paul Kibbie have used Kickstarter in the past. Money is pledged in return for a stake in the project, should it become profitable. It was pointed out that the project could flop, so investors could lose their money. Bill mentioned drawbacks for those proposing a project, such as financial targets not being met and the time lags that can occur.

Royalty free photographs and music were discussed. Flickr is a source of royalty free images. Penny mentioned that if a picture belongs to someone else (copyright) you must seek permission to use it. Bill said he has used software (photo publishing) that turns photographs into pictures, and then it can be edited into a variety of finishes (eg. embossed, sketch, oil painting etc.)

An aspect of self-publishing comes up regularly at Writing Buddies’ meetings and this meeting was no exception. Rob said he has a basic aversion to Amazon, so for e-publishing he uses Kobo, LuLu or Barnes and Noble, but Ray said that these cost about £120 and, as e-books can sell for as little £1 each, he claimed this was very expensive.

Guest Speaker – Calvin Smith, founding member of the Friends of Portswood Library

Calvin spoke about the challenges of setting up the Friends of Portswood Library, following a chance remark by his daughter who, when they were walking back from the library one night, enquired, "Where would we go if there were no library?"

The Friends of Portswood Library now has 40 - 50 members. The aims of the group are to promote, protect and modernize the library, in order to serve the community. The group hosts a variety of events, for example, children were invited to bake a cake based on their favourite book. Other events include charity coffee mornings, Armed Forces Day displays and author book signings. It also serves as a community hub and invites guest speakers to deliver talks to the members. Penny, Jacqueline and James have all given talks to the group.  The idea of a Friends group has now spread to three other Southampton libraries.

Calvin talked about the future of Portswood library, which loans about 500 books per day. All the libraries are under pressure from possible closure, merger, reduced staff and shorter opening hours. The group is continually frustrated at never being taken into the decision-making loop. They have enlisted the support of a local journalist, and they intend to lobby the Education Services department of Southampton City Council, by claiming that "some stuff can't be done off a spreadsheet." The group does not want decisions dictated by budgets, yet the council seems to see the libraries as being frequented by undesirable people. He pointed out how few amenities for adults with learning difficulties there are, which is one area where the libraries help.  The Friends of Portswood Library want to get their Reading Club back, but they see the spectre of the Isle of Wight hanging over them. Here there is a policy where the council never supports volunteers, only librarians and professionals.  Calvin’s view was that they should top-cut management and train volunteers to do more.

In 2015, Portswood library is 100 years old. A 99-year-old library user, who has been visiting the library for 79 years, will join in the centenary celebrations.

The next Writing Buddies meeting will be on Friday 6 February 2015.  Everyone is welcome.

Writing Buddies - 1 June 2012

Writing Buddies met at The Art House on June 1st, 2012

** Please note change of frequency of meetings - see end of this blog.

The meeting was quite well attended, and as usual, members have been very productive.

Josephine attended a non-fiction workshop run by another member, Wendy Hughes. Josephine is still working on her book about people's loves and pet hates, and remains open to suggestions. She has been working with Park Radio; they are shortly to close down because of funding problems although they may maintain an online presence. She is reviewing some academic articles, and her book on managing meetings is close to completion.

Silma has now published her book 31 12 on Amazon; it's the story of a boy who finds access to an alternative world through his mobile phone. Silma now has a blog, and has joined LinkedIn, and she reports some recent success in having articles published.

Rowan has been enjoying producing some free writing, based on random words and phrases.

Jimmy has edited his Jayden the Goldfish story and awaits a decision as to whether it is ready for publishing. Jimmy has been advised to adjust the title, and this remains under discussion. He has nearly completed Not a Guide to Southampton for The History Press, and is reviewing the third book in his trilogy The End of the Tunnel.

New member Jean has primarily been a poet, but she is currently planning a short story.

Another new member, Phil, has written some short stories, too.

Jacqueline has entered a children's poem for a Writers' News competition and a piece of flash fiction for consideration for an anthology. She has heard that a short story written during a recent online course has been accepted for Volume 3 of the ebook series Tortured Hearts. She has also posted Jubilee-related recipes on her food blog.

Karen has been planning the structure and content of her novel. She is working with Jimmy on the artwork for his Jayden book.

Janet has been looking at her diary, and is now working on expressing its content in poetry form.

Penny's latest book, Under the Queen's Colours, is published, and she has been to signing events. It is available on Amazon's website and also Waterstone's. She has been a guest on Radio Solent's Alex Dyke's show, and went to Australia House to discuss her book and sold all the copies she had with her. Her hardback Eastleigh Then and Now will be published in September, and work is in progress on Bloody British History: Southampton. She has a ghost book being published by The Thorn Press in October.

John has entered a formal scheme to register as a professional writer, and has been working with advisers on how this could develop.

In the discussion part of the meeting, topics included blogging and how to attract readers, how to set up a twitter account, whether a profit can be made with performance poetry, and the value of taking online writing courses.

** Although Writing Buddies is a successful and lively group, for logistical reasons it has been decided to alter the frequency of meetings. We will now be meeting on the first Friday of every month, so the next date is Friday July 6th, 2012.

Blog notes from Jacqueline Pye

Writing Buddies 10 February 2012

The Writing Buddies met again at The Art House in Southampton. There was plenty to report, and a lively discussion followed our news updates.

Shirley has finished the first draft of her sci-fi novel, and is about to start editing. She may look for an agent when it’s ready. She has had some short stories accepted onto the mobile publishing site Ether books; up to five can be uploaded free.

Janet is busy reading widely, so as to compare various writing styles.

Karen is planning to get back to working on her novel very soon.

Jo is writing her travel memoir, having got going with it following the previous meeting. She is currently writing detailed chapter plans.

Silma is currently considering self-publishing her fantasy book for children, possibly using the Kindle publishing system. Feedback from publishers has been positive, though so far none have accepted - the group commented that positive feedback was a really good sign.

Glen has completed her book Voices From Eastleigh for The History Press, and it is about to be published. There was loud approval for this! Glen is holding a launch party and would circulate details. She has entered a short story competition, and her reading of one of her poems is featured on The Art House’s CD of their recent Open Mike evening.

Jimmy continues with his Southampton miscellany book for 2013 publication, and has gained permission to take pictures from West Quay. He has visited a useful private collection of photos. Jimmy has found business community site LinkedIn helpful, especially for suggestions for publishers for his books. His children's picture books need editing for language level, but may have a local publisher, and Waterstones have said they’d like to see them, which is exciting. Jimmy’s book Growing Up In Wartime Southampton, Someone Else’s Trousers is now available for Kindle.

Veronica told the group about the Friends of Southampton Cemetery, and about the Deanery Poets group. She suggested writers pass on to the Mayflower their memories of activities at The Gantry, which no longer exists. She spoke about Age Concern’s new magazine Life to the Full and distributed copies. She and Penny are both involved in its publication.

Lynn is a new member. She has been writing children’s comic stories, and would like to start writing comedy. The group mentioned, as before, that good sitcoms are currently in short supply, and that the BBC is currently looking.

Vijay has been looking at the information about comedy writing on http://www.bbc.co.uk/writersroom and he is working on the early stages of a script of his own.

Jacqueline’s flash fiction is published in the current edition of What The Dickens internet magazine. She has found a possible format for her article on a relative’s WW1 diary, and has just started a six-week online course on writing literary short stories. She plans to blog about the course.

In the discussion, everyone was very pleased to hear that the ebook publisher Ben Ottridge is due to meet with us on March 9th to explain his no-upfront-fee system. Several members expressed an interest. We also discussed the need for blogs and websites, and how to get started with both, and our Yahoo email loop. We were all worried about library closures, but thought overall that ebooks would grow but not eclipse the printed book any time soon. The Nuffield Theatre writers group was mentioned, as they are currently looking for new members.

The Writing Buddies will meet next on Friday February 24^th at 2pm at The Art House, Above Bar, Southampton. Anyone with an interest in writing will be very welcome.

Writing Buddies - 27 January 2012

Writing Buddies met once again at The Art House Cafe in Southampton on January 27^th, 2012.

Tessa has now written her latest book, The Girl from the Land of Smiles, and is currently editing it. She has proofreaders ready, both locally and in Thailand, and the book should be published in the summer. She is also preparing to publish a book of paintings for her son.

New member Jo has always been a keen writer. She has concentrated on writing for business in the past, but is now planning a book about her trip to Mongolia. This project is proving complex, and the group discussed ways for Jo to produce the work, perhaps both as a travelogue and as the basis for fiction.

Karen is continuing with her novel, though she finds that since the story is so familiar already, she finds it hard to be consistent in writing. She plans to enter some flash fiction competitions in the meantime.

Janet is working on her nursing stories, using her background knowledge and also consulting relevant magazines.

Ray’s memoirs are still in progress; he has been working on them for some time, but mentioned that he finds the Writing Buddies meetings useful and motivating. This raised a cheer in the group!

Lynne, another new member, is a literature and language teacher and has always been an active writer. While training she had to critique other writing, and wonders if this has made her hypercritical with her own work. She made some useful suggestions in the discussions.

Mike still awaits a response from the publisher about his aviation book. He has a co-written book coming out in March, Shipwrecks of the Cunard Line.

Alan is halfway through his second mouse book for preschool children. He has also been working on sketches and a sitcom, helped by his experience on the comedy stage. The group thought there is a good current market for television comedy.

James is still hoping that the Daily Echo will review his book, Growing up in Wartime Southampton – Someone Else’s Trousers . He had a letter in the Echo that week, citing a relevant quote from his book, though the reference was removed before printing. The work may be made into an audio book. James continues with Southampton - a Miscellany and his books for young children, and plans to send off a Sundance Gang book to an agent recommended to him.

Jacqueline’s flash fiction piece about Miss Havisham will appear in the next edition of What the Dickens internet magazine, out on February 1^st. She has entered a short story competition online, and will be entering two flash fiction competitions. She has enrolled for an online short-story writing course, which starts next month.

Penny has been to the National Memorial Arboretum to take some final pictures for Under the Queen’s Colours, though the Royal British Legion has not given permission yet for their use. She has recently finished editing the first edition of the new magazine Life to the Full, and is hoping for offers of admin help and sponsorship to enable the second edition to be published. She has nearly finished her book Eastleigh Then and Now for The History Press.

The general discussion was wide-ranging. Topics included how to kick-start a stalled project, ways of keeping up motivation with writing, and whether a Buddies magazine might be a possibility. A stand to sell members’ books at The Marlands is still being debated; this would be for the run-up to Christmas, and volunteers, exact venue and good marketing would be needed.

A new ebook publishing service was discussed. This is described at www.SelfSelfSelf.com by a digital consultant who takes Word-document books and converts them to ebooks for all platforms, with no up-front fee but 15% commission on net takings after other costs. It was decided that some members would take a look, and perhaps check the presentation of ebooks already published by this means.

The next Writing Buddies meeting will be on Friday February 10^th at The Art House Cafe, Southampton from 2pm. Anyone with an interest in writing is very welcome.

Writing Buddies, 16 September 2011

The Southampton Writing Buddies met at The Art House Café on 16 September with Jacqueline chairing the meeting in the absence of Penny.

Tessa showed everyone the Echo article about Andrew Jones, author of Inktastic, which was published by her company, The Thorn Press. Ann Roberts' book, The Master's Tale, also published by Tessa's publishing company, is being launched on 20 September. Ann will be on Radio Solent on 23 September, in the afternoon, to talk about her book. Ladybird Fly, Tessa's third book of her trilogy, is now published and she has started a new novel about a Thai girl who marries an Englishman. The book will show the differences in cultures.

Jimmy has completed his questionnaire for The History Press regarding a Miscellany of Southampton. Both Penny and Jimmy had been offered the opportunity to write a book about 1950s childhood and The History Press have confirmed that they are happy for Penny and Jimmy to write it jointly. Jimmy is busily editing his Jayden the Goldfish books, which he hopes to self publish through Lulu. Jimmy is giving talks at Woolston Library on Friday 7 October and Bitterne Library on Saturday 5 November.

Elizabeth is continuing with her Writers Bureau course and feels it has opened her eyes to writing non fiction, as there are so many publications on the market with opportunities for placing work.

Jan has been out and about and gathering ideas for future writing.

Catherine is having a little break from intense writing but has been keeping herself busy with a 75 word exercise: see www.paragraphplanet.com. Catherine has submitted a short story to Writers Forum and will get feedback on her work. She is entering the Harry Bowling prize: see www.harrybowlingprize.co.uk. Catherine is also involved in the staff newsletter for employees at West Quay shopping centre.

Emma writes poetry and has been trying to start a blog.

Karen is continuing with her 30 day writing challenge and is thinking of having a go at NaNoWriMo. She is also contemplating blogging.

Pat has been short listed for the Maskers Theatre: see www.maskers.org.uk with a play. She has also written 80,000 words of her novel but feels she can write more.

Lottie, joining the group for the first time, has been writing on and off for four years. She recently completed a fantasy novel for teenagers, sent it to an editor and received good feedback. She feels she has more to write so it could turn into a trilogy. Lottie requested help with writing a synopsis.

Mo has a new actress playing her character, Shindig, from her book A Blues for Shindig, as the original one has gone to the USA. Mo has been blogging and entering a life writing competition.

Lisa's first chapter of her romance novel for the Mills and Boon competition is now completed:see www.romanceisnotdead.com. The deadline is 10 October, when entries are then filtered by a voting system. There are six categories to choose from and Lisa has opted for 'warm and cosy.'

Jacqueline has pitched an article on How to Keep Your Brain Active, to Woman's Weekly magazine. Hampshire View magazine has accepted a short story and this will be published in the March 2012 edition. Regarding her children’s book, Jacqueline requested that Lisa, with all her expertise in this field, give a presentation at a future Writing Buddies meeting about self publishing.

Vijay has been writing a few flash fiction stories but as yet has not submitted them anywhere. He is still planning NaNoWriMo but feeling unsure where to take it.

General discussion covered the merits of blogging and Emma expressed her need for help in this area. Informative websites are www.blogger.com or www.wordpress.com. Literary Agents and magazine editors do look at blogs, so it is well worth blogging. For a hit counter go to www.easycounter.com. The Society of Authors are having a Tweetathon on Radio 4, over a period of five weeks. The idea is to make a story out of five tweets. Ian Rankin has started the Tweetathon with an opening line: see www.societyofauthors.org. For anyone interested in screenwriting then BBC Talent is asking for 30 minute scripts (minimum) for a drama course. Deadline for submissions is 1 November see www.bbc.co.uk/newtalent and go to Writers Room.

The next meeting will be on Friday 30 September at 2.00pm.

Post by Elizabeth Streatfield.

Writing Buddies, 2 September 2011

The Southampton Writing Buddies met at The Art House Café on 2 September. New faces were present along with regular members to discuss writing matters.

Josephine has finished her last but one book and has ideas coming quickly for the one she is working on at the moment. A local radio station in the New Forest has been asking for volunteers and when Josephine mentioned her text books they showed great interest. They said that they could fit a business section into their programme. The radio station is on 96.9 FM www.thepark.fm

Lyn came to the last meeting and gained a few ideas. She looked at the suggestions of Suite 101 and Motion on Line for practicing her writing and liked Suite 101. Lyn is working on ideas for newspapers and has started the first assignment of her Writers Bureau journalism course.

Tony had two local history books, published years ago. He uses Authorhouse to publish his books, www.authorhouse.co.uk, who, he says, do deliver, although they are a little on the slow side. However, they do put things right quickly and are reasonably priced. Tony has given up with The History Press as they quoted him £10,000 to publish his book on the American Civil War.

Elizabeth is continuing with her Writers Bureau course. She received an email from Sainsbury's magazine, regarding a letter she sent for the 'News and Views' page confirming that it would be published in the November edition.

Jimmy brought his book, Growing up in Wartime Southampton: Someone Else's Trousers to the meeting, together with flyers that his publishers, The History Press, have issued for his talk at Woolston Library on Friday 7 October, 12 – 2.00pm. Tickets are available now (contact: Carolyn.Taplin@southampton.gov.uk). He contacted The History Press to accept the commission to write Miscellany of Southampton. He has also been approached about writing a book about 1950s childhood.

Catherine (Miller) is a member of The Romantic Novelists' Association under the New Writers Scheme, where she submits work and receives feedback. Catherine is now in the scheme until her book is published. Although Catherine believed she was more a chick lit writer, she has been informed that she is a woman's fiction writer. She has been published in Prima magazine twice this year. The magazine pays £25 per comment. Prima can be followed on Facebook and will give an indication as to what they are looking for.

Catherine, joining the group for the first time, explained that she was brought up in Zimbabwe and has written 260 pages so far of her memories and reflections of her life there. When she has finished the book she would like to pass it to people for their comments. It was suggested that, as family and friends can often be too 'kind', it be given to friends to ask them to pass to people they know, but are not known to Catherine, for a more critical opinion.

Christine will be performing at the Big Oak Literary & Arts Festival in Derry, Ireland www.bigoakartsfest.com which takes place from 9^th - 11^th September 2011. She will be one of several featured authors and at the moment is unsure what is expected from her. The street in which the festival is being held was the setting for her book, Jump Derry.

John is still writing amateur dramatic reviews for the Echo. He has thoughts about resuming his play and novel. He is presently assisting Penny typing up her tapes.

Jacqueline is still awaiting a reply from Nosy Crow. She is editing her children’s book, which she now thinks could be a series. She was not short listed for her Humble Boy entry, which was apparently judged by the amount of laughter each entry received. Penny's introduction of the recordings made by Writing Buddies' members for The Talking Echo is to go out on memory stick together, with Mo's two-part story. Half an hour of Writing Buddies work (approx. 3 stories) will be sent out every four weeks. Chris Litton thanked the Writing Buddies for their efforts and they will await feed back from the listeners. Jacqueline's submission to People's Friend has still not been published, although she has been paid. Jacqueline had a letter printed in the Echo and she is also pitching ideas for self marking quizzes.

Alan brought in his story The Adventures of Sniggles, as he needs advice on what to do with it. He was extremely impressed by Karen's art work.

Mo praised Christine’s book, Jump Derry, and mentioned that Christine will be at the next meeting of Writers in Southampton www.writers-in-southampton.org.uk on Thursday 6 October, which will be held at the Richmond Inn, Portswood, (opposite Waitrose).

Alex, new to the group, has been blogging for four years and has had two pieces of work published. Alex has entered a 60 minute play for the Bruntwood Prize for playwriting. It is a send up of cookery programmes. The closing date was in June and the results will be announced in October 2011.

Karen is applying herself to a 30 day writing challenge and everyday she writes a piece based on one word.

Jan is progressing with her writing about growing up in a mining community.

Penny, new to the group, attends a writing course run by Penny Legg at Age UK. She had a blog published in Woman's Own magazine.

Penny (Legg) is running a new class at Age UK and is launching a new magazine titled, Life to the Full. She is still interviewing for her Diamond Jubilee book, Under the Queen's Colours, the deadline of which is 1 December 2011.

Richard is still editing the U3A magazine for his area but will soon be giving it up.

General discussion ranged from how to cut and paste, to the practicalities of running a twitter account from a mobile phone. Christine was concerned about what she should talk about at the Literary Festival and Penny (Legg) suggested that she focused on a particular aspect of her novel. The merits of blogging were also discussed and it was thought to be a very good tool to get your name known. You Tube is also another way of advertising your work.

The next meeting will be on Friday 16 September at 2.00pm.

Post by Elizabeth Streatfield.

Writing Buddies, 13 May 2011

The Southampton Writing Buddies met at The Art House Café on 13 May for a discussion dedicated to self publishing and welcomed Ann, Jan, Veronica and Tony to the group, who were joining for the first time.

Penny had invited author Martin Baum along, to talk to the group about self publishing, but before Martin began, James Marsh shared his experience of self publishing his Davie Collins series of books. They were published by Lulu. Jim explained that the company do not charge for publishing but take 20% of all sales. The author is expected to lay out the book in the correct manner, set the selling price, print size, paper weight and decide on the front cover. Lulu do not provide an editing service, so no proofs are sent to the author for checking. Jim's advice is that anyone thinking of self publishing with Lulu should take care to ensure they are aware what is expected of them before embarking on this route.

Martin addressed the WritingBuddies, explaining that he is a satirist and wrote a condensed Shakespeare book in modern language, for his son, to make it easier for him to understand. After failing to get his book published through an agent he decided to self publish. He did his research in depth and self published through Richard Fitt at Authors Online. The company charges £750 to set up and publish the book, and the author receives 6 free copies. Authors OnLine send proofs, which need to be thoroughly checked. The company charges to have any mistakes corrected. Martin emphasised the importance of proof reading '7, 8, 9 or however many times it takes,' to get your work accurate, and he advised involving one or two people to help.

Following publication, the author will need to do much leg work. This will involve a press release and Martin advised that 200 words maximum be used, with bold letters in red. When his book TO BE OR NOT TO BE, INNIT (www.yoofspeak.net) was released, it invoked upset amongst the Shakespeare purists. This led to interest from the press and Martin found himself giving interviews on television and newspapers, and much more.

Martin's sources of advertising included information gathered from either the Writers' Handbook or Writers' and Artists' Yearbook. He contacted television and everyone relevant with press releases, including local radio and the Bournemouth Echo.

Martin recommended contacting the library service and provided the group with the website address for libraries nationwide As librarians from each library meet and select books, it is advisable to make them aware of the release of a self published book. Royalties of 6p per book are gained each time the book is taken out of a library (and even photocopied), but it is necessary to register for Public Lending Right and also with The Authors' Licensing and Collecting Society. Perseverance is needed as it is very repetitive contacting the libraries. Martin advised the group to be prepared to be asked questions. He also stresed how important it is important to put everything on your website.

Martin explained that although he has written short stories for magazines and had them published, together with three plays, he had been unable to get his book accepted for publication by a main stream publisher. His view is that having short stories previously published held no sway when it came to trying to get a book published. On Martin's website he gives advice see: 60 second book break. His conclusion regarding Authors OnLine is that they are an honourable company. Martin suggested using google or flickr for pictures for a front cover of a book. Martin added that he is willing to answer any questions if you email him.

Tony, new to the group, has self published books through Authorhouse and has the impression that they are a genuine company so he can recommend them, but, just be cautious. Tony decided on the price and size of his book and found that the company gave a lot of advice. Previously, Tony had set up his own publishing company; with his son setting up a website. He visited bookshops and within two years sold his books on a sale or return basis. He used to publish other writers' books, but now prefers to have a publisher and limit himself to his own work.

Penny thanked Martin for a very informative talk and sharing his experiences with Writing Buddies. She also thanked James and Tony for sharing their self publishing experiences.

The Writing Buddies display will be arranged at the weekend, 14/15 May, in the front window of The Art House Café.

Penny will be giving a talk at Woolston Library on Friday 20 May at 7.00pm. Tickets £1.00 available from Woolston or Weston Library, or by emailing carolyn.taplin@southampton.gov.uk

The next meeting will be on 27 May 2011, when the group celebrates its second birthday.

Post by Elizabeth Streatfield.

Writing Buddies, 15 April 2011

The Southampton Writing Buddies met at The Art House Café on 15 April for a discussion on writing matters.

Elizabeth is still working on the second assignment for The Writers Bureau and has completed a little more of her book.

Sunida is studying magazine journalism at The Solent University.

Jacqueline is once more flowing with her writing and has had a letter accepted for Sainsbury's magazine. The current issue of Writers News has her short piece about World Book Night and she is about to be paid for her contribution to Peoples Friend magazine. Also, Writers Forum magazine has printed her letter. Jacqueline is currently reviewing a self published book and is finding many errors. Last but not least, Jacqueline has received an email from Yours magazine who would like her to write an article on sleep, for the July issue. The magazine has planned it out and expects 800 words by 1 June, for which they will pay £200.

Glen is continuing with her book on Eastleigh which she has been commissioned to write by The History Press. She has written about 13,000 words so far and the requirement is 30,000 plus photographs. She is finding it a little difficult transcribing her interviews but is enjoying writing the book.

Mike is a new member and is in his 3^rd year at Chichester University where he is studying Counselling Psychology. He has written prose and poetry and is currently working on his dissertation of 12,000 words.

Jimmy has just completed a short children’s book which, when illustrated, will be dedicated to his grandson. He is working on chapter 5 of his latest book. His visit to The London Book Fair was productive as he was able to get two publishers interested in his books.

Mo also attended The London Book Fair and took three chapters of her book to Black Spring Publishers. She was particularly interested in the Russian section at the fair.

Catherine is editing her novel and is currently on the second draft. She aims to complete this by the end of April. Catherine has posted an interview with the author, Margaret James on her blog and the Writers in Southampton group have asked Catherine to do a talk on blogging in February 2012. Catherine was pleased to announce that she has been long listed for the Flash 500 competition she entered.

Penny went to The London Book Fair on the final day and was surprised to find some of the stands packing up. She visited The History Press stand to obtain feed back on her book sales and was very pleased to hear that her latest published title, Haunted Southampton, had achieved sales of 1,085 between 1 February and 31 March 2011. She has four further book proposals and on 1 May her Winchester book will be released. Winchester Cathedral, which will be stocking this book, have asked Penny to host an event. Waterstones have suggested to Penny that she hosts another ghost evening talk, following the great success of the last one.

General topics discussed ranged from the importance of a correctly composed covering letter to a publisher, to the need of double checking spellings instead of just relying on the spell check facility on your computer. As previously discussed, Penny confirmed that the meeting on self publishing would be arranged for Friday 13 May, which will be the next meeting of Writing Buddies. Jimmy self published through Lulu a few years ago and will be able to give some insight into the pitfalls that he encountered. Lisa has published on line and also John has self published his book of poems.

The Writing Buddies window display at The Art House Café was discussed and Penny will check if it is booked for 14^th or 15^th May. Mo will be able to contribute a laptop plus two posters, magazines and front cover of her book. Business cards and flyers will be needed and Jacqueline confirmed that she is able to contribute. Penny asked members to think about the display and requested help in dressing the window.

New member, Mike, explained more about his counselling services and that he has a website and would like to set up a regular blog. His website is www.livingchanges.co.uk He works privately and also with NHS referrals.

The next meeting of Writing Buddies will be on Friday 13th May. The meeting will be about self publishing and author Martin Baum will be welcomed as a guest.

Post by Elizabeth Streatfield.

Writing Buddies 18th March 2011

The Southampton Writing Buddies met at The Art House Café on 18 March for a lively discussion to share information on writing matters.

Jacqueline has received a critique for her children’s book and taken note of the comments. She has been busy editing Talking News and is working on a short story for Take a Break magazine. She is entering a humorous poetry competition and has had a letter printed in The Echo. Jacqueline has also been asked to review a book on child abuse. She also mentioned Ether Books www.etherbooks.co.uk .

Sunida joined the group for the first time. She is in her third year at Solent University and wanted advice on how to proceed with writing about the strange experiences she has encountered in her life.

Eileen writes crime books. Her second novel is ready to go to the publishers and she is working on the third. Her first novel, Miss McGuire is Missing, is being reprinted and also being published in large print.

Gunvor is from Sweden and started writing short stories and poems. She wrote a book aimed at eight to twelve year old girls and has also written a sequel. Her third book is different and she is trying to get this one published, so needs advice on this aspect.

Elizabeth has completed the first assignment for The Writers Bureau and is working on the second. She has also been able to write more of her novel.

Jacob has been working on a variety of different things. He is editing one short story and has started another.

Mo has a new reader for her book and has been requested to do a one woman show. She has been actively blogging - see www.loudwomen.blogspot.com, www.themotiononline.couk and Mo's own blog on www.mo-foster.co.uk

Penny's activities include her launch of her book, Haunted Southampton. The evening of ghost stories Penny hosted at Waterstones was a sell out, and she is considering a repeat performance. Her talk at the Civic Centre was plagued with problems. Penny overcame these and emphasised to the group the importance of ascertaining, before-hand, that the equipment provided at a venue is compatible with your own. The page proofs and cover design for her Winchester book are now through. Haunted Southampton is currently no.1 in Waterstones book listings.

Laurel is working on a short story entry for the Bridport Prize. She is also entering a ghost story for a competition in a writing magazine.

Lisa has finished her proofs for Death And The City, books one and two. A producer, from Lymington, is looking for a script based on a female security officer and is very impressed with Death And The City and has contacted Lisa regarding this. Lisa took her book, The Terrible Zombie of Oz to be passed to Andrew Lloyd Webber for his perusal.

John has written one or two reviews and two poems as a result of his visit to Bournemouth, as mentioned at the last meeting.

A general discussion followed covering various topics including the benefits of having a blog, Twitter and Facebook. LinkedIn was mentioned but this is more for professionals.

Sunida was given advice on how to write about her experiences and it was suggested that whether it is written as fact or fiction, is dependent on how much material she has. Another suggestion was a plan for both fiction and non fiction. It was generally agreed that thorough research was needed.

Gunvor is having difficulty placing the two fantasy children’s books she has written, aimed at girls from age 8 – 12. She has been working her way through agents and now contacting publishers. Penny advised her to go straight to a publisher and research those who accept unsolicited manuscripts. Penny stressed the importance of the accuracy of a covering letter and synopsis when sending to a publisher.

Penny confirmed that she will organise a meeting solely about self publishing after Easter. The publication of Wordfall, The Writing Buddies Anthology, is postponed until September.

The date for the group's advertising in The Art House Café window has now been confirmed as being from 15^th May to 24^th June.

More suggestions for display included:

· Book marks

· Flyers

· Banner

· Flip-chart (stories/articles)

· Book-covers

The meeting concluded with Lisa showing members her E Touch Android Tablet, which is a book reader, not storing as many books as a Kindle, but costing less.

Post written by Elizabeth Streatfield.