The Southampton Writing Buddies met at The Art House Café on 11 November to discuss writing matters. Jimmy chaired in Penny's absence.
Karen has started writing about the childhood games she and her sister played and which she hopes can be turned into a series.
Jan has been looking at her nursing stories and writes whenever possible.
Veronica has been focusing on peace matters and showed the group The Christmas Truce by Carol Ann Duffy.
Ray Dumper joined the group for the first time and explained that for some years he has been writing his memoirs. He has reached the stage where he needs help and advice to move forward.
Tessa has been reading e books and recommends Smash Words www.smashwords.com for any writer thinking of publishing an e book. Tessa has also been working on her current novel.
Jacqueline has been editing her children's novel and will submit to a publisher by the end of November/early December. She has submitted a poem to 'What the Dickens' on the theme of snow, been blogging on the psychology of writing, and sent a pitch to Writer's Forum magazine. Jacqueline is unsure at the moment what to do with her Uncle Frank's war diaries (WW1). She is currently enjoying reading Tessa's first book of her trilogy, The Dohlen Inheritance, and showed the group a copy of the Waterside Herald newspaper which featured the launch of Pam Whittington's poetry book.
Elizabeth has taken a break from fiction writing and written a poem and started two more.
Pam has been busy organising the badges for the Wordfall writers at the launch on Saturday 19 November at Waterstones, Above Bar. She has sent Wordfall off to Society of Women Writers & Editor's magazine The Woman Writer. Pam is very occupied at present reading through a manuscript for a friend. Her poetry book Sunshine and Showers Poetry and Prose has been published and she was pleased to inform the group that her book launch was very successful.
Lisa recently attended a Harper Collins book launch for Miranda Dickinson's It Started with a Kiss. She is continuing to go back and proof read her novel Death in the City and is putting the polishing touches to the 6th chapter of her fantasy horror. She will try John Jarrold Literary Agent for publication.
Glen has not had much contact with The History Press but she is expecting to be proof reading soon. She sold six or seven copies of her framed poem and Romsey Tourist office have taken a quantity to sell.
Jimmy gave a talk at Bitterne Library and was asked if he would be willing to give another in the new year, as listeners outnumbered seats. He is having a little trouble obtaining the coat of arms for Southampton for his book A Miscellany of Southampton. He has been reading through his 'Sundance' series of books and unfortunately lost some edited work but realises the importance of backing up work. Jimmy is continuing to record his published book for The Talking Echo and has completed four chapters so far.
Mo received a large unexpected bill from her internet supplier and found that someone had been downloading vast quantities of material via her router. Mo advised that her publisher is stopping supplying Amazon with her books.
Open discussion mainly focussed on Ray's request for advice. He mentioned that he had read Jimmy's book and had in fact met Jimmy's late father. Ray has been writing for 18 years but he doesn't read books regularly and lacks confidence. In his book he is aiming to emphasise the changes since the 1950's, which is when he grew up. Pam recommended that he join a writers group who will read and give constructive comment on his work. Lisa advised that Brockenhurst College run a Memoir Writing Course, which could be helpful. It was generally agreed that Ray needs to find someone, or a group of writers, who will read his work and give an opinion and that this may involve a financial outlay. Ray had to leave the group early but expressed his thanks for the advice given.
Jacqueline informed the group about The Giving Machine www.thegivingmachine.co.uk where a vast amount of shops, including Amazon, give to charities. Jacqueline also mentioned that Janice, a Buddy member, was recording a Poetry Corner for The Talking Echo.
Notes by Elizabeth Streatfield.
Jimmy concluded the meeting by reminding everyone that the launch of Wordfall is at Waterstones, Above Bar branch on Saturday 19 November 5.30 – 6.30pm. Also, the recording of The Writing Buddies interview with Katie Martin of Radio Solent is being aired from 14 - 18th November.
The next meeting will be on Friday 25 November at 2.00pm.
The Southampton Writing Buddies met at The Art House Café on 14 October for a lively
chat and update on members' writing achievements.
Jan has not done very much writing lately but continues to collect information for future use.
Karen has been busy illustrating and blogging. She and her sister have an idea to put their childhood games into a book, aimed at the teenage market. The group encouraged her to do this.
Tessa is learning how to programme for E books and finding it to be a tedious process. Tessa feels that Smash Words see www.smashwords.com is the best way to go as she has found using Kindle involves more work. Tessa reported that her latest book Ladybird Fly is doing well and she proposes to publish it as an E book.
Alan showed the group a letter he had published in the Echo (Your Views) about th
e cenotaph and also a framed poem he wrote 15 years ago.
Veronica informed the group about Forward Poetry of Peterborough see www.forwardpoetry.co.uk where you will find poetry competitions to enter. Veronica has an entry in the anthology.
Glen has not heard from The History Press but is expecting to receive proofs of Voices of Eastleigh to read and return by the end of October. The book will be published in February. Glen has finished her Poppy poem and has framed copies of it, which she showed to the group. She will donate 10% of the profits from the sale of them to the British Legion. Penny suggested that veteran day events would be a good way of selling them.
Mo advised the group that the launch for Christine Donovan's Jump Derry went well at Writers in Southampton. Mo is at present interviewing actors to perform her character, Shindig, from her book A Blues for Shindig.
Elizabeth is continuing, albeit slowly, with her Writers Bureau course.
Jimmy now has the contract from The History Press for his Pocket Miscellany of Southampton and this is due out mid 2013. He is giving thought to the publication of the first of his Jayden the Goldfish books. His talk at Woolston Library went very well and his next one will be at Bitterne Library on Saturday 5 November at 2.15pm.
Catherine has finished her first draft of her philosophical memoir. This has been planned for years and the book portrays an inner journey. Penny suggested Richard Dawkins’ publishers as possibly being interested in Catherine’s work. See www.richarddawkins.net.
John informed the group about Apples and Snakes who are running ten workshops helping children see www.applesandsnakes.org
Penny was pleased to announce that the group's anthology Wordfall will be out on FRIDAY 11 NOVEMBER 2011 and the book's launch will take place at Waterstones, Above Bar branch. On 20 October Penny will be on Radio Solent talking about her ghost book. The British Legion has informed Penny that they will not support her forthcoming book Under the Queen's Colours, which was going to raise money for the Poppy Appeal. She has approached other service charities and these are more than happy to work with her.
Penny advised that Pam Whittington launches her poetry book on 25 October 2011 in Hythe. Glen is considering the Age Concern room in Eastleigh for the launch of her book. General discussion took place as to the different ways of advertising forthcoming book launches.
The next meeting will be on Friday 28 October at 2.00pm. Everyone welcome!
Blog post by Elizabeth Streatfield.
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.
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 9th - 11th 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.
The Southampton Writing Buddies met at The Art House Café on 19 August. Although a smaller group than usual, due to the holiday season, the discussion on writing matters was as varied as ever.
Tessa proudly showed the group the cover of Ann Roberts' book about the Titanic. Her company, The Thorn Press, is publishing the book, The Masters Tale. It will be released for sale on 20 September 2011 and the book explains how the disaster happened. Tessa's own book, Ladybird Fly is due for release and she is thinking about where to hold her book launch.
Karen attended the last meeting and found it to be beneficial. She is, at the moment, thinking about two stories which are half written. One is about her grandmother's life and someone at university has inspired her for the other. Karen has done some very clever illustrations for Alan's story about a mouse which he talked about at the last meeting.
Jan has written about 400 words about growing up in a mining community. She has checked at the library and found an organisation interested in stories from the 50s and 60s so she will decide what to do with her writing. She was congratulated on taking her first steps into writing.
Elizabeth is continuing with The Writers Bureau Course, more slowly than anticipated as she is finding trawling through magazines to be a time consuming experience. She has also sent a letter, via email, to Sainsbury's magazine.
Jimmy mentioned that the Echo are still ignoring him and Tessa kindly said that she will write to them on Jimmy's behalf. Following his email to Best of British magazine they have confirmed that they wish to do a review of his book, Growing up in Wartime Southampton: Someone Else's Trousers. He has now written three stories about Jayden the Naughty Goldfish and received an email from The History Press asking him if he is interested in writing a Miscellany of Southampton. He has accepted and is also continuing to edit his other books.
Debs called into the Art House Café for a cup of coffee and saw the Writing Buddies advert. A friend is putting together a play about Deb's life. Debs has been keeping a journal for some years. She transcribes dreams and is a Life Coach by profession, being paid by a charity to do this.
Lyn has edited charity newsletters in the past and started a journalism course with The Writers Bureau two years ago. However, she needs to get motivated into a writing routine as she feels that she is now ready to start.
Mo has sent the first three chapters of her latest book to two potential publishers. Her new book, her third, is about two women who fall in love. Mo is also writing with a friend and feels she needs to focus more on Southampton instead of London.
Penny has appeared on the Katie Martin show on Radio Solent for five consecutive days. Each day a different one of her books was featured with the book she is currently writing, Under the Queen's Colours, being featured every day. She was able to get a plug in for Writing Buddies. Listeners contacted the show with their stories. BBC radio want Penny to broadcast on location. She interviewed a service man she met in Weymouth for her diamond jubilee book, Under the Queen's Colours.
It has now been agreed that Tessa will typeset the Writing Buddies Anthology Wordfall. Penny's book Voices of Southampton will be launched at Waterstones, Above Bar branch on Saturday 20 August.
During general discussion, self publishing was debated and it was generally agreed that this is changing fast. Penny mentioned that Writing Buddy member Lisa Scullard has very successfully self published on Kindle. Tessa explained that every writer needs an editor but you have to believe in yourself. If you do go down the route of self publishing then you have to be aware that you must approach book shops yourself to get them to stock your book.
Lyn has many interests and the How To articles might be a solution for her. Suite 101 www.suite101.com was mentioned as there are masses of articles on all subjects and this may be another idea for Lyn, to practice her writing. Caution is needed, however, with advertisements asking for payment. Lyn mentioned that she has an opportunity to write for an on line newspaper for no fee. Penny suggested that if no fee is offered then she should make sure she has a link to her website or blog. Motion on Line www.motiononline.co.uk is also a good way of practising article writing.
Penny mentioned to the group that Josephine still requires more Pet Hates for her book.
The next meeting will be on Friday 2 September at 2.00pm.
Blog post by Elizabeth Streatfield.
