#writingishard4 - Tenacity

Matt Haig
Notes on a Nervous Planet

If you are a writer, tenacity is certainly a prerequisite. Writing is hard. Also, it is very enjoyable and the best job ever a lot of the time, otherwise why would we do it? Whatever stage in your writing career you will need tenacity. Everyone’s journey, as an aspiring writer and/or as a published writer, is going to be different and personal to you. Consequently, it is important, as Matt Haig says, that you ‘Do not compare yourselves to others.’

It is worth also remembering that writing is a marathon, it is not a sprint. You might hear odd stories about people writing fast and being published very quickly. For a start, I’d say I bet they have done a whole lot of prewriting and that is why they could write fast, but they are just not counting it because it sounds so much better if you can say you wrote a book in a couple of months. Being published quickly is often the case of being in the right place at the right time (or being a celebrity!) The reality for most of us is very different. Writing takes time. A tweet I circulated recently said that according to Paul Graham, ‘The easy, conversational tone of good writing comes only on the eighth rewrite.’ To be honest I thought eight was a bit optimistic. More like twelve plus at least! Be prepared as well that it might take more than one novel. You may write several before you find the right one that really works. Flight was my fourth novel. The other three are unlikely to ever see the light of day, but I see them as my practice

novels. I learnt so much writing each one of them. When Flight was picked up, I had been writing seriously for over twelve years. (the photo shows a meeting where it was decided I should start submitting Flight. I was lucky I not only worked with Golden Egg Academy, but I was also mentored by Imogen Cooper)

Rewriting and editing can take a very long time and luxuriate in that first book when you do have time to dedicate to it. It’ll be a different situation after you have been picked up by a publisher. The deadlines will be a whole lot tighter and the chances are you won’t have so much time to write any subsequent books once you are published.

Once you have got a deal and a book out there, tenacity is still necessary. It might be linked to other elements of your life as a writer. Obviously, you will be writing your next book, but you are also going to be publicising/marketing your current book. Having a presence on social media, cultivating new audiences, potentially presenting at schools, literary festivals or undertaking library visits. It is all about juggling and ensuring you don’t become overwhelmed. See a recent post I did for the AwfullyBigBlogAdventure blog on remembering to enjoy your work.

Be kind to yourself. Writing’s hard, as I said, and the ‘journey’ can be a long and bumpy one, particularly if you are getting lots of rejections from agents and publishers. We’ve all been there, and it is really bruising. Allow yourself to grieve briefly each rejection. Then remind yourself it’s one person’s opinion and it only takes one person to say ‘Yes!’ Don’t be hard on yourself, see the rejection as part of the journey and something constructive. If you find in the rejection feedback that they all mention the same element as an issue/concern, then you know you need to address it. If, however, the feedback is all different, read it. Take it on board. Work on what you think is fair and relevant then move on to the next submission. One day you might be the one talking to aspiring writers about the number of rejections you got, as a badge of honour, and how you eventually got published. This photo is over a rejection letter I got a long time ago for a novel that when I look back

it is was nowhere near ready for submission. It is from my greatest friend, even though at the time we hadn’t met. That came later and that same person, Imogen Cooper, changed my life and the direction of my writing. 

Importantly, don’t give up. You can do this. The writing community is amazing and supportive. Find your tribe and talk to them. Understand that getting a book published is hard, but if you believe in your story, build that tenacity up

 Ness x

@VanessaHarbour

www.vanessaharbour.co.uk

Adhere to submission guidelines don't interpret

It is part of the journey...

Last night I was at a party celebrating the second year of the Golden Egg Academy. I can't believe it is two years since Imogen started and how it has grown and what an amazing organisation it has become. It is incredible to be part of and hugely satisfying.

I had some wonderful conversations with various agents and publishers and we were all talking about one of our biggest bug bears and that is not just the inability to adhere to submission guidelines but it is the interpretation of them.

I apologise if I come across as stroppy in this post but we do all get very tired at times. We spend a long time creating submission guidelines. They are not just numbers we pick out of the air. The number of pages or chapters we suggest have been decided because we believe they give us a fair indication of the story. It is standard that most organisations ask for three chapters. When we are doing feedback for editorial surgeries we ask for 30 pages because that is all we can read in the time allocated for preparation. It takes a long time to read and give detailed feedback.

The standard way to present this work is double spaced with reasonable margins. There is a reason for that too. It allows us to be able to see the words and write feedback on it. It is important to be able to see the white space on a page too.

Yet talking to agents, and in our own experience, people seem to find it appropriate to interpret these submission guidelines in their own way. Obviously assuming we won't notice. Three chapters suddenly becomes five because the story doesn't really get going until the fifth chapter. Or it is formatted in single line spacing with the smallest margins you can ever possibly imagine so they can get as many words in and that we can't actually read . Don't worry we re format so that it is set out properly and read only the appropriate number. Or they might slip in a few extra pages because it doesn't end in the right place - those extra pages might equate to half the number again. Some even send the whole novel just in case you have time. We would love to have time but am afraid we don't.

I was talking to Hannah Sheppard of DHH Literary Agency as she was telling me how she gently sends an email to an author who doesn't meet the submission guidelines suggesting that they check out the website. Very generous of her. However if they resubmit and are still ignoring them (it happens!) they have lost their chance. It is really not that difficult.

Please this is your novel. You have worked hard on it. Why stumble at that last hurdle by not bothering to pay attention to those little details. The impression it gives is that you are going to be quite difficult to work with because you just don't listen and can't be bothered to pay attention.

For all those who attended the Big Honk last night here's Andrew Wright's Book Map anthem

Agents and Editors...they are human beings you know!

Sometimes the way writers behave really embarrasses me and they give  the rest of us a bad name. I have to say they are often the inexperienced ones.  I am Facebook friends with the wonderful Carole Blake of Blake Friedmann. She will occasionally regale us with tales of recalcitrant aspiring authors who have not read the detailed submission guidelines on the agency's website or have not taken kindly to her rejection and something she wrote recently made me think I ought to write this post.

Before you all shout at me I do also know that some agents may  behave a little badly too with their rejections but today I am not talking about that. I will deal with that in another post.

Firstly those awful letters/emails. Some of which come across as almost threatening! And this is the point that I have to thank Carole for. Do not respond to any rejection email while drunk. It is not clever. You have no hope of ever being able to send anything else ever to that agency/editor again if you send a rude and abusive email to them. Never say anything in an email you wouldn't be willing to say face to face. Always be polite and considerate.

Nicola Morgan has written some excellent books offering guidance as well as Carole Blake's own book, From Pitch to Publication(Macmillan), which she is currently writing an a new version of. As well, of course, check the submission guidelines on any agency/publishers website and adhere to them. They are there for a reason.

But then there is also face to face and that can be really cringeworthy. I am talking about those people, and come on you have all seen them or heard them haven't you, who pin a potential agent or editor in the corner giving them no hope of escape while telling them every single detail of their book even if it is not finished or appropriate for their agency/publisher because the aspiring author hasn't checked who they are. Shouting at them 'Oh you must read it, you'd love it, I know you'll want to take me on. I'd be so easy to work with.Shall I give you my number, or I know shall I ring you tomorrow? Can I have your card.' This is all said without taking a breath and without the agent/editor being able to get a word in edge-ways.  I have seen it happen at conferences, other people's book launches and most unforgivable parties where the poor agent/editor has actually gone to have a social life with people who have nothing to do with books necessarily.

What I am trying to say in possibly a rather long winded way is respect these people. They are human beings. If you are going to an event where you are know they are going to be in attendance. Find out about them (Check out websites and the Writers' and Artists Yearbook if you don't know where to look) and just talk to them.  Have a normal conversation. There is a good chance when they find out you are a writer they will ask you about your work and then you have an opportunity to give your brief (note that word BRIEF) elevator pitch. If they are interested they will ask more. If not don't push it, don't keep harping on about it thinking you can convince them. Leave the subject alone and move the conversation on. Don't let them think you were only talking to them because they were agents/editors. How shallow and rude is that?

Most importantly be an interesting writerly person who leaves a good impression. And for all writers there is always going to be another mountain but we will always make it through...

What's in a name?

I have made a momentous decision this week - well to me anyway. With encouragement from the prospective editor I have changed the name of my work in progress. This now means that it is no longer my PhD novel, which was called, as you know, Ham and Jam. It has moved on and become a totally different animal and ,in the end, I think will bear little relation to that novel. But what's in a name? A huge amount I would suggest.

I ask all my students to name their assignments with the idea that you feel like you own it, in your mind, if you have named it. It becomes real. Choosing a name can be an agonising process because selecting the right one is vital. It can tell you so much about the story. (It is also a great way to prevaricate and avoid the actual writing so be warned!) One of the favourite names of my novels was not thought of by me, my daughter came up with it - Disjointed was an earlier novel about cannabis psychosis. A novel I think I may try and convert into a script as I think it would work better in that format, but that is an aside. Ham and Jam had a reason behind it too. It was the signal to be given by the British army when they had captured the Pegasus Bridge during the D Day Landings. Very relevant to me but not the greatest selling point. I am hoping the new name will do its purpose - to attract the reader's attention and give them a clue as to what the story is going to be about (however vague)

Once you have got a name think about doing both a Google search and one on Amazon to see what other books have that title - if at all. Having a good, snappy name can be a good way to attract attention when submitting to agents/publishers. A name that sticks in the memory must be a good idea as it will help you stand out from the rest. But, and this is a big BUT, be prepared that there is a good chance that if (when) you get a contract from a publisher they may well change the name again to something that they think will sell it, to make it even more marketable, so don't be too precious about it.

Short and sharp names seems to work well. Thinking of Lucy Christopher's Stolen; Miriam Halahmy's Illegal, Mary Hoffman's David, Mal Peet's Tamar, Rachel Ward's Numbers, Nicola Morgan's Wasted and Tabitha Suzuma's (and Judy Waite's) Forbidden. Others work well with short sentences: Candy Gourlay's Tall Story, Meg Rosoff's How I Live Now, There is No Dog, Keren David's When I was Joe, C J Skuse's Pretty Bad Things. (I know these are all YAF but am not sure it is that different when naming any MSS) Obviously, this list is not exclusive or all  encompassing but is made up from books that I can see from my desk as I write this. I am sure you can, and will, add many more to it. Neither am I telling you that this is the only way to do a name. You have to find one that you feel good about and helps you to own your piece of writing and keep focused. Have fun with it.

As for the new name of the work in progress.....at the moment it is Trafficking. What do you think?

Thought we would have a bit of Kate Rusby this Sunday morning with her song 'No Name'

Critiquing

This week I was lucky enough to have a one to one with an agent that I had won via a raffle at the Society of Children Book Writers' Conference. It was with Madeleine Buston of Darley Anderson Literary Agency and I have to say it was an absolute delight talking to her. Not just because she happened to like my book but because her advice was well thought out and considered. Madeleine was able to advise me on various aspects including suggesting I think of a new more explicit title to the book we were considering - currently still retaining its PhD title: Ham and Jam - and thinking of a one line pitch. Her support and encouragement was invaluable and way more than I expected from what is basically a 'free' consultation. But Madeleine didn't stop there, she very kindly arranged for me to talk to Vicki Le Feuvre, an editor at the agency, who had also read my sample chapters and had enjoyed them too. Vicki went through her notes with me on the phone and then even emailed them to me. A particular thrill for me was when she spoke about one of my characters, whose voice I had been worrying about, but who she found to be fresh and honest with a really readable voice. Vicki had some truly brilliant ideas which are really going to add to the story and that had me thinking: why didn't I see that, it's so obvious. I came away from the session absolutely buzzing and full of ideas.

My point with this post is not just to say thank you to Madeleine and Vicki for their insightful advice, and to the excellent organisers of the SCBWI conference who arranged the raffle, but to also remind everyone how important it is to get your work critiqued. Getting other people to look at your work brings fresh eyes to it and may help to spot parts that are just not working. Family is not always a great bet - they might feel honour bound to tell you it is wonderful when actually it needs quite a bit of work, but it does need to be somebody you trust. As I said in numerous earlier posts writing is all about the rewriting and listening to others can be part of this process. I always warn my students that when I am marking their creative pieces I can pick out those who have not bothered to partake in class workshops. The pieces will lack polish. It is something I miss having finished my PhD as then I always had someone there to give me feedback. If you are not already in one I would suggest that it is well worth considering setting up a critiquing group (online or face to face) where you can get this sort of support. The SCBWI is excellent at pointing you in the direction of such groups if you are interested in writing for children.

I have to say the one to one was a highlight of the week along with a hilarious evening spent with my children and some good Australian friends. However, the rest of the week was not quite so successful. Let me ask you this, do you ever have one of those weeks when your head is so full of stuff to do that it explodes and you end up not thinking things through and find yourself irritating or hurting people? The rest of the week was like that for me. I just didn't think and it  is the potential of hurting or irritating someone that caused me so much pain and stress this week. Probably stupidly but I really worry about things like that. The body is rebelling and the brain is struggling to cope with everything but it is a new day and maybe next week I will do better. What I do know is I will be working on Ham and Jam full of inspiration and drive.

2011 SCBWI Conference

Or you know when you've been SCWBI'd when:*

1) Your head is buzzing and you see inspiration around every corner. 
2) You meet up with many fb friends find that they are just delightful in ‘real life’.
 3) You are told by an author, who you have admired for years, “but you know more than I do!” Even if he didn't mean it, it felt good!
 4) You get to lie down on the job….or rather you get to play the denouement for Anthony McGowan!**
 5) You meet an agent who doesn’t bite your head off and spit it out. And also doesn’t say ‘What on earth makes you think you can write?’
 6) You are surrounded by like-minded people who get just as excited as you about writing for children.
 7) You hear Frank Cottrell Boyce say ‘A tale isn’t beautiful until it is added to.’**
 8) You hear a member of the industry panel say ‘Don’t look at what’s selling, write what you want.’**
 9) You hear a group of authors who write ‘Edgy’ YA fiction who all spoke so passionately about a subject that is so important to me.**
 10)You get to read Candy Gourlay’s speech which makes you realise what is possible and not to give up. (Wished I could have heard it but the body had other ideas as it always seems to)
 11) You can’t wait to get back to the computer to start writing as, and going back to where I started, you see inspiration round every corner.
 *with thanks to Nick Cross
 ** There will be more detailed posts on these at a later date
 This is Ed Sheeran with his Lego House, just because he is my new favourite and I have just got his CD!