#writingishard5 - you never stop learning

Imogen Cooper & my best friend

It doesn’t matter where you are in this writing malarkey you never stop learning. I have an MA in Writing for Children, a creative writing PhD which looked at the representation of sex, drugs and alcohol in young adult fiction and included writing a piece of young adult fiction; I was lucky enough to be mentored by Imogen Cooper while I worked for the Golden Egg Academy. Yet I still learn something new about writing on a regular basis and can look at a blank screen starting a new novel, thinking: ‘How do I do this again?’ I have also heard of many a famous and successful author say they feel a similar thing when faced with that blank paper or screen.

You never stop learning. It is important that you keep reading about writing. Not only do you need to keep reading fiction, watching films, going to art galleries and the theatre but continue to research into the subject. Understand what it means to write. 

People often ask me whether it is worth taking a degree in creative writing or undertaking a course. My answer is simple, it depends on what you want. You will hear plenty of people saying that they

got published without them. But taking them shows you are serious about your writing. A degree allows you to experiment with a variety of different voices and enables you to find your voice. To work out who you are as a writer. That is certainly what happened to me. I was doing a degree in English, but it had strands of Creative Writing, which is why I did it. I had a very set idea of what sort of writer I thought I was and that was certainly not a children's writer. I'd never even considered it. One of the modules gave me the opportunity to have a go at writing for children with Judy Waite. It felt like coming home. My voice felt natural and my writing flowed. If I hadn’t taken that degree, I’d never have experimented like that. You hone your craft in an academic situation.

Working with organisations like the Golden Egg Academy means you can hone your manuscript and your craft while working with professionals, who have their finger on the publishing pulse. By the end of it, you really understand the editing process and how to apply that to any future projects. It also means you are not daunted by any potential editing undertaken by an agent or publisher.

By taking either an MA or working with an organisation such as GEA you learn not to too precious about your work. I’ve heard stories of writers who’ve refused to make any changes to their work because it is their ‘baby’ and it is perfect. I can’t imagine feeling like that about my work. I know a lot of writers, including myself, who won’t look at their work once it is published as they will see areas they want to improve as they don’t consider it good enough. All that happens to those who won’t make any changes is that they don’t get a publishing contract as they are deemed impossible to work with.

Personally, I love listening to writers talking about their writing processes. I always learn something or find an affirmation because they write the same way as me – such a good feeling. As a lecturer and workshop leader, I always find these inspirational as it is so good to hear the students and writers talking about their work. Again, I quite often learn something from these sessions.  The Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators is a great organisation where you can meet like-minded people. They run socials, masterclasses and wonderful conferences. 

Writers are invariably generous of heart and very willing to share. They are happy to talk to a certain extent BUT don’t take advantage. Don’t keep asking them to read your work. They are busy people. They have their own writing to do. Don’t assume you are the only person that asks them to look at their work. Don’t keep asking for tips. Also, if you don’t have anything nice to say about their book, don’t say anything. Writers have feelings you know.

I’ve listed some resources that I’ve found useful but there are many, many more. Feel free to add to them in the comments. This is not an exhaustive list and this is a personal list.

Podcasts

Writer’s Routine

Prepublished

CTRL ALT DELETE

Simon Mayo’s Book of the Year

Always Take Notes

The Literary Salon

In Writing

The Bookseller

Front Row

Books

Janelle Adsit ed. Critical Creative Writing: Essential Readings on the Writer’s Craft

Amanda Boulter, Writing Fiction

Dorothea Brande, Becoming a Writer

Kevin Brophy, Explorations in Creative Writing

Andrew Cowan, The Art of Writing Fiction

E. M. Forster, Aspects of the Novel

James Frey, How to Write a Damn Good Novel

John Gardner, On Becoming a Novelist

John Gardner, The Art of Fiction

Natalie Goldberg, Writing Down the Bones: Freeing the Writer Within

Ernest Hemingway, Ernest Hemingway on Writing 

Henry James, ‘The Art of Fiction’, Longman’s Magazine

Colum McCann, Letters to A Young Writer

Robert McKee Dialogue

Robert McKee, Story: Substance, Structure, Style, and the Principles of Screenwriting

Andrew Melrose, Writing for Children

Orson Scott Card, Characters and Viewpoint

Sol Stein, Stein on Writing

William Storr The Science of Storytelling

Writing/Philosophy/Creativity

Anne Bernays & Pamela Painter, What If Writing Exercises for Fiction Writers

Italo Calvino, Six Memos for the Next Millennium

Joseph Campbell, The Hero with a Thousand Faces

Neil Gaiman, The View from the Cheap Seats

Martin Griffith & Jon Mayhew, Storycraft: How to teach Creative Writing

Arthur Koestler, The Act of Creation

Milan Kundera, The Art of the Novel

David Mamet, Three Uses of the Knife

Philip Pullman, Daemon Voices: Essays on Storytelling

Katherine Rundell, Why you should read Children’s Books

Twyla Tharp, The Creative Habit

Judy Waite, Wordtamer: Activities to Inspire Creative Thinking and Writing

Jen Webb, Researching Creative Writing

J. Webb Young, A Technique for Producing Ideas

Virginia Woolf, A Room of One’s Own

John Yorke, Into the Woods

Journals

https://vanessaharbour.wixsite.com/write4children

http://www.textjournal.com.au/

https://www.axonjournal.com.au/

New Writing

Writing in Education

Writing in Practice

Media & Organisations

The Big Scottish Book Club

CBBC Book Club

Front Row

The Bookseller

Society of Children’s Book Writers and illustrators (including Words & Pictures)

Golden Egg Academy (Sign up to receive their free newsletter) also follow them on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook to see their writing tips and prompts.

National Association of Writers in Education

Society of Authors - great for advice

Momentous days

What a momentous week I have had. This photo is of me presenting a paper on research informed teaching and methodologies within creative writing at the NAWE (National Association of Writers in Education) Conference held in Cheltenham at the weekend. This was the second paper I had given in three days. As those of you who follow my blog may know I have been quite worried about these but both papers were well received. The other paper I gave was at the Faculty of Arts International Symposium. This was the paper I was more comfortable about as it was on my thesis and had a ridiculously long title: In a society where teenagers live by sound bites is there still a place for young adult fiction? This was the first time I had presented at my own university but I had many friends who came to support me which was wonderful. I did fluff the questions a bit at the end though which was quite disappointing. It was an 'international' symposium because my great friend Jen Webb and her colleagues, whom I now can also consider as friends, Jeri Kroll and Donna Lee Brien, all from Australia and all Professors, also presented. It was a fabulous events with great papers also by Dr Neil McCaw and Charlotte Purkiss - who did a great piece on Ficto-criticism.

The three Australians were also at NAWE and they were fantastic company. I haven't laughed so much for a very long time. They presented two great workshops on research practice and research supervising which I found really useful and enlightening. Jen and Jeri were able to come to my paper which gave me a lot of confidence. I was terrified of this paper yet it went brilliantly and this time I didn't fluff the questions. I was on cloud nine and it is Jen who kindly took the photo of me.

I am hugely grateful to the Australians and Jen in particular for making it a very special few days

Then today I had a meeting with my Director of Studies and we have a plan! We are aiming for me to submit my thesis on 1st April with a final viva voce at the end of May. If all goes well and gall bladder permitting!!

I should be flying high, instead I am fighting the black dog that has decided to appear. The photo shows me wearing my rucksack. This is not by choice it is because it carries the nutrition in that I need that is pumped straight into the stomach. Prior to being ill I had been feeding overnight so had avoided the 'hiking' look. It was a bit of shock seeing it so prominent again and I think it was that that allowed the black dog to come knocking. My DoS was great and reminded me who I was and what I am achieving and have achieved.

Time to beat the black dog back into his kennel and build on the success I have had over the last week. PhD here I come.

Circles and family and Papers....

There was a rare occurrence last night. The Harbour family went out on mass to the Village Fireworks. We don't often get to go out all together these days because we all are involved in different things. It was amazing how quickly they reverted to being children - Toby kept having to be reminded by Bea aged 5 that dancing down the middle of the road was not safe! It was also wonderful because we were accompanied by Charlie's partner Greg and the children obviously and Greg's parents and sister and husband. We were suitably noisy and raucous as any large family should be. Leo spotted a shooting star; Toby was confused by pumpkin lanterns, Charlie was as frightened as ever by fireworks (not helped by her brother shouting in her ear)but the highlight for me has to be Seb, age 5 (and yes Bea's twin brother), who was so excited by the fireworks he just kept on dancing with his eyes focused on the sky. Oh to have his lack of inhibition and total love of life. The village has been holding the fireworks every year for as many years as I can remember and certainly ever since we moved to the village 24 years ago. Initially it was run by the cricket club but is now run by the scouts and a good job was done by all. It is very much a village tradition as on the day of the bonfire if you have stuff you want burnt you put it at the front of your house and John, Greg's Dad, comes along and picks it up in his lorry. The same lorry that used to go round the village on the last Sunday before Christmas with Father Christmas sitting on the back and the cricket club in their whites delivering sweets to all the children of the village. Mine used to love it, in part because they knew all the cricket club lot. But I love the irony of the fact John and sometimes later Greg were handing sweets out to my daughter who will soon be part of their family. Life is all circles.

I then went on to the house of some old friends for dinner (clarify, they eat I watch but they have no problem with that). I sat there listening to our conversation and realised how it had changed. Our discussions used to be based around our children and what problems they might be causing now we discuss our parents and the problems we now have to deal with just trying to make sure they are ok. We got onto Christmas inevitably, both Karen and I have lost a parent this year. It is going to be a strange one but at least we have each other to understand what it is going to be like. There are some fabulous reasons for living in a village and knowing so many people. As a child we moved a lot but my children are born and bred in Winchester. It is wonderful to see how secure they are and how many long term friendships they have. They all have good friends who they started nursery with. It is a good feeling.

Last week was a fraught week and the next one even more so. But once it is over I can focus on my PhD and relax a bit. I finally got the journal out after much swearing at the software package which we use. (I am going to change this before the next edition). Once it was online I was delighted with the way it looked(go to www.write4children.org and click on Vol II Iss I to have a peep). It is once again an eclectic mix of articles, discussion papers and reviews as it melds together the fields of writing for children and research into children's literature.

This week I have two papers to give in three days. The one on Wednesday is for an international symposium to be held at Winchester University and including, on the panel, my great friend Jen Webb and some of her Australian colleagues. I am worried about this paper because it is the first time I have presented to people I know. I tend to go away to conferences where nobody knows me! I am happier with the content of the paper though as it is embedded in my PhD thesis. The symposium is being followed by an exhibition called Kyoto, a big story about a boy and a little bear and a little story about global warming (starts at 6.00pm in The Stripe at Winchester University if you are around and would like to see it). The book Kyoto is a collaboration between Karenanne Knight who illustrated the book and Andrew Melrose (my DoS) who wrote it. They have developed the idea into a project that can be taken around schools and Wednesday is the launch. I wish them well with it as I know they have both worked hard on it. (Kyoto is available on Amazon if you are interested).

Once all that excitement is over I then have to drive up to Cheltenham on Friday after I have finished teaching to go to the NAWE conference where I will join Jen, Jeri and Donna fresh from their symposium and hopefully still not jet-lagged. They are presenting on Friday afternoon so my aim is to get there in time for that. I am presenting on Saturday morning. I talking about research informed teaching in creative writing. And I can assure you I don't feel anywhere near as confident about this paper as I do the symposium one. It will very definitely be a case of 'phew' when it is over. I am looking forward to the conference after I have given my paper and I can relax!

And talking of relaxing that will be me afterwards. This is the last thing I have committed my self to and the last thing I intend to commit to until the PhD is over. From then onwards all my spare time will be focused on my PhD and I can't wait. I have this bubble of excitement in my stomach (and no it isn't wind) when I think of being able to work on it without papers or journals getting in the way as I still love my subject but am conscious I need to move on and finish. I will have my teaching and my RIT job to do but everything else is about about the PhD.

Bring it on!!