Swanwick - a week of writing related indulges (Part 2)

I apologise that I don't have many pictures of my walk.
I've been unable to transfer them from my Tablet so far
and have only a couple taken on my old phone.

On the Tuesday of my week at Swanwick I had some time out. There were courses running including a procrastination free day, but I fancied a walk. The weather was superb and I set off after breakfast towards Butterley Railway (East Midlands), run mainly by volunteers. I went there last year but didn't look at the engine sheds. This time I did. It made a lovely morning out and the walk was wonderful. So much beautiful countryside around there and next time I hope to do more walking. There is a pathway you can follow along the track side which I'm keen to investigate.

On my return to Swanwick I had lunch and then headed up to where the labyrinth is and sat in the garden for a couple of hours undisturbed. No one seems to go up there much. Maybe it's the trudge up the hill people don't like. It's a great place to sit and read or write. In the evening there was an event, 'In conversation with....' Hosted by Simon Hall it was a chance to find out a little more about Sue Moorcroft (fiction writer) Jon Mayhew (writer of children's fiction) and  Steve Hartley (writer of children's fiction). Questions included 'where were you when you heard your first book had sold?' and 'whether being published had changed you.' One thing became evident writers never quite believe they have made it even when they have. Sue Moorcroft admitted she rang her agent the following day just to check she'd heard right. Lack of confidence seems to plague writers. As one person said 'you think someone will find you out.' A very enjoyable evening with lots of laughter.

I certainly seemed to be taking it easier this year as on Wednesday the only course I did (apart from the third session of Writing Popular Fiction) was in the afternoon with Hazel Prior, who not only writes but is a harpist (see website). With only an hour we skipped through some of the essentials looking at the order of editing - structure, beginnings and voice. All useful stuff.

Then came the last full day and my last Writing Popular Fiction session followed by a brilliant short course in Murder Investigation. I don't write crime/murder but I am fascinated by it and try to get to as many of these courses as possible. Our tutor Stuart Gibbon is an ex police officer and he ran through how an investigation runs from who attends, initial steps, the Golden Hour Principle,  Post Mortem and things like the Murder Investigation Team (Ranks), what the police need to know and how they go about it, various authorities they have to acquire, forensic evidence, the detention clock and custody procedures. Wow! a lot of information and I was scribbling away like mad. A wonderful informative course.

The last evening was a chance get-together in the hall, time for thanks and some fun - a few songs (popular songs with the lyrics changed to something suitably writerly) including S Club 7's Reach for the Stars. In the morning those not departing to the station by coach came and waved us off. All over for another year.

I didn't think I was that tired this time but yesterday I spent the day dozing and it took me a while to get going this morning. I even forgot to check on Paragraph Planet yesterday to see my latest flash fiction published there! It may take me a little longer to return to normal (or normal for me). If you have never been to Swanwick, I'd highly recommend it. You'll be with others who are passionate about writing. That alone is wonderful because writing is a lonely task and for a week it stops me boring my non-writing friends about what I'm doing!

A couple of photos taken on the walk

The view from my window at 6.30am on the morning I left to go home

Swanwick - a week of writing related indulges (Part 1)

This past week I have taken time out to indulge in the world of writing. I have just returned from Swanwick - The Writers' Summer School. This was my second year and it was good to see some familiar faces as a group of around 70 of us waited for the coach at Derby station on the 12th August.

On arrival I was able to lead a few newbies in the direction of Lakeside accommodation where we picked up our welcome pack. As I arrived at my door I realised this was the room I had last year. To say I was excited is an understatement. I all but leaped across the room! It was like coming home. Soon the kettle was on and I was unpacking. So began my week - a chance to say hello to old friends and to meet lots of new people. After dinner on the first night we had Stephen Booth (crime writer) come and speak to us. He was a delight to listen to as he told us about his way into writing and about the books he writes, the characters and how readers get so caught up in his plots and characters that they make suggestions or go to visit the places where scenes took place. His anecdotes were funny and his passion for what he does shone through. There was time for questions before he sped off to sign copies of his latest book.

Courses began the following morning (Sunday). With so much to choose from it was often a difficult choice, though I had highlighted my preferred options as soon I received my brochure through the post! For my specialist course I chose Writing Popular Fiction with Sue Moorcroft which ran over four mornings, an hour each session. Over the course of the week we looked at various aspect of writing starting in session one with the difference between popular fiction and niche markets; we were given advice on knowing where to look for up to date advice into trends, what is selling etc.  In the second session we looked at the shape of a novel - how to improve the saggy middle, about prologues, endings and what to include in the first couple of chapters. Sue gave us a great insight into her plotting for her latest book - a string of A4 sheets stapled together in concertina fashion. We all had a laugh at that. She also explained mind maps and timelines. Session three was the dreaded submission process - covering letters, synopsis and the first three chapters of the novel. This was really useful as Sue explained what to include in the letter and what not to and how to set out (format) a synopsis and chapters. Session four dealt with themes and messages of novels, characters (central, secondary and walk-ons), viewpoints and how to go about self-editing. Sue was generous with her time and answered multitudes of questions. I found the course insightful. I only have to use all this information to write my bestseller!

My work zone! Though here I am catching up with the World Athletics live stream!

I can only comment on the courses I took during my week at Swanwick. There was a choice of four other specialist courses (Fiction for Children & Young People, Scriptwriting, Non-Fiction and A Year in Poetry). Then there were the short courses - different choices each day each with two sessions. My short course on the Sunday was Short Stories with Della Galton. I would have loved to attend Forensics & CSI one but I need help with my short story writing! I did buy the CSI book though (by Kate Bendelow who tutored the course). I heard a rumour that 40 copies were being placed in the book room one evening and I got there early. There was already a queue to pay for copies which were going fast. Anyway, the short story course was interesting. Though geared mainly for women's magazines (not my area) I have come away re-thinking it. The parameters of what the few magazines accept has widened and it might be worthwhile reconsidering this market. Having said that the market is shrinking and the day after the course we heard that the fiction editors of Women's Weekly have all left so they are no accepting anymore submissions for now. It seems that to save money magazines are either letting their fiction editors go or only employing them for something like five hours a week. Very sad. At least I'm armed with tips - how to, how not not, good endings, bad endings and lots more.

Our evening speaker on Sunday was Sophie Hannah. Again she was excellent, funny and happy to tell us her route into writing and how she came to write a Poirot continuation novel.

The first Monday short course I chose was Writing Intimate Scenes with Liz Hurst. She writes under two names. and writes mainly erotica. This class was lively to say the least! At times it felt like being back at school with everyone trying to think of new words for certain body parts! We had a go at writing about a kiss and later to write an erotic scene of our own. Our starter was a female in a room where she knows a man is watching her in another room via a camera in the room. She gives him the turn on of his life without taking her clothes off! Some brave souls offered to read theirs out. I learned about alternative lifestyles (some I'd never heard of!). It was enlightening that's for sure.

I then attended a workshop in Writing for Competitions (which I do a lot). Our tutor was Ingrid Jendrzejewski who has won competitions and now judges them. We got through an enormous amount of information in one hour - the difference between the longlist and shortlist and how to get further. Ingrid gave examples from real competitions of why some entries didn't make it, how to do good beginnings and endings, common themes, how to do them better, editing, choosing the right contest and about submitting smart like reading previous winners, researching the judges, keeping records and taking time out to research new opportunities.

There is still so much to say but I shall leave it to the next post. I will say there were early morning half hour sessions to do before breakfast for writing and for mind (meditation by the lake was one) and evening entertainment and opportunities. I have to say this year I took more time out to re-charge and I slept better than last year. That helped a lot as between courses there is all that eating to do, refreshment breaks (with more cake if you can find a space for it!) and chatting. However, I did make the Facebook and Twitter meet up during one tea break.

See you soon.

A couple of other books I bought

Quick as a flash I'm on Paragraph Planet

This post is rather late in the day but if you catch it before Wednesday is over you could go over to Paragraph Planet to read my 75 piece flash fiction which is published today. I posted it one evening and got a reply the next day. What a quick turnaround. The piece was actually written at Swanwick Writer's Summer School as a 100 word piece of flash fiction which I entered into their competition and it was shortlisted. Never one to miss out on another opportunity, I re-wrote it without looking at the original. I know I kept some of the lines but I honed it to 75 words to fit the bill and was really pleased with the result. Thankfully, Paragraph Planet was too!

I took a lot from the Flash Fiction course at Swanwick with Veronica Bright, and today I've had a good session of writing. Yesterday I entered a 500 word flash into a competition. This one has been sitting in my computer for at least a year and has been tweaked any amount of times but I couldn't find that killer ending. Then I had a light bulb moment. Let's hope it lights up the judge, if you see what I mean!

Swanwick 2016 - the friendly writer's conference

So, I'm back from Swanwick Summer School with a notebook full of...er..notes and ideas. As a 'white badger' (first timer or newbie) we got the special treatment. A reception in the main lounge was laid on during late afternoon on the day we arrived. It was a chance to get to know other newbies. Straight away we had something in common as well as writing in common. That evening at dinner we also had our own tables with a Swanwick Ambassador to answer any questions we might have. After that meal we mingled at mealtimes with those who were back for a second or fourteenth time!

Before I get on to the courses I attended, I just like to say that if you have ever thought about going be prepared to:

be amazed
have fun
learn lots
pace yourself
be locked into great conversations with friendly and helpful people
make new friends
take a large notebook
be exhausted
encounter slide splitting laughter during evening entertainment (speakers, Page to Stage and Panto)
dance (if you want to (disco's))
dress up or dress down
admire the beauty of the surroundings
enjoy everything Swanwick has to offer within reason - watch for burnout!

I have to say that at Swanwick I met the friendliest group of people ever encountered at a writer's conference. Everyone is happy to chat. Everyone mucks in. You feel part of it whether you are a published writer or still trying to find you feet. New friends are made and there is lots and lots of laughter. I met up with some 'twitter' people I follow and made new friends. From the opening night speaker to the Panto on the last evening it was wonderful. Such a variety of the courses and options to daily immerse oneself into.

I chose Writing Original Poetry with Alison Chisholm as my special course. This ran for an hour over four mornings. There was homework, a chance to share your work and one group activity. I came away with new ideas for finding new ways into poetry. There was a choice of one-off daily short course and afternoon workshops. The courses I chose were Self Publishing (with the excellent Helen Barbour)  and Hybrid Publishing (Chris Browne) (I wanted to see what the difference was), Flash Fiction (Veronica Bright),The Trickier Side of Fiction,(Sue Moorcroft), Ending and Agents (Erin Kelly) and a course entitled How to Eat an Elephant (Bridget Holding), which dealt with splitting the writing process into chunks as well as offering some writing exercises on how to get rid of negative thoughts and look at the positive feeling of writing.

There were other courses I had considered but one has to make a choice in the end. I heard from others how excellent the other choices were and maybe some of them will be repeated another year.

Tuesday was described as a free day. However, there was always something to do. You could have attended the Procrastination Free Day - a chance to get writing or go along to the Crime Special, which is what I did. I have to sat this was my favourite day. If I never write a crime thriller this day will never be considered a waste. It was informative and fun. In the first session Michael O'Byrne (retired chief constable and writer of Police Practice and Procedure (which I have!)), Simon Hall (BBC crime reporter and writer of the TV Detective Series) and Kate Bendelow (forensics expert with Greater Manchester Police) informed us about fingerprinting, guns (there were replica guns and we were told to go into a shop that sells them and ask to feel the weight!) and much else. In the second session they were joined by Ian Martin (retired detective sergeant) for a Q&A panel. The questions came thick and fast.

Evenings always began with a speaker after the meal and then there were other things going on - a fancy dress disco, a writer's quiz night, Page to Stage (mini sketches written by delegates - drama and comedy), general knowledge quiz, open mic night, buskers night and on the last night the panto, farewell and disco.

If you could drag yourself from your bed in the mornings there were chances to some meditating or a quick writing session and there were 'unwind your mind' sessions in the late afternoons. The grounds offered secluded places to sit and contemplate, write or read, pathways to walk, a chapel and garden with labyrinth, where I spent half an hour or so unwinding and even threw a badly written poem together!

There was a whole afternoon I had free on Tuesday and I took myself off for a walk, firstly into Swanwick village and then explored a public footpath close to the Conference Centre entrance which took me to Butterly Railway (Preserved line) across beautiful fields.

If you did everything you would be shattered very quickly. As a first timer I felt overwhelmed at first and I dropped one session I'd intended to do so I could have some time out. Some people came to write in solitude. Basically, you do what you want and if nothing is what you want then no one is going to tell you off. You don't have to chose what to do until the morning and if what you chose wasn't quite what you expected or it didn't work for you you didn't have to go back. I met people who did one session of one short course and switched to another for the second session because they didn't want to miss out! That's the beauty of Swanwick. It's there for you. You do as much or as little as you want.

By the way, the rooms are nice, everything is included in the price, full board as well as biscuits at morning break and cake at afternoon break. There are even machines that produce hot chocolate and latte etc. You won't go hungry and you won't ever get bored!

The view from my window

My bedroom, a place to write (tea & coffee making facilities included)

I nearly forgot the Book Room. Open twice a day there was a nice selection of books written by delegates and course leaders for you to buy as well as an information room with lots of freebies. Thankfully, I left room in my luggage for books!

I procrastinated over whether to read at the open mic night and was egged on by others to have a go. So, nervously I put my name down and wore a long skirt so no one could see my legs shake as I stood up to read! I'm proud I did it because I know I'd have regretted not having a go otherwise. I even entered the flash fiction competition (100 words) and was shortlisted! That took me by surprise and gave me encouragement in my future writing.

So, have I convinced you? Go and have a look at the programme on the website if you want to know more.

Busker's Night in the Main Lounge (packed to the door)

Page to Stage comedy sketch

On my walk

Butterly Railway

Sometimes a writer just has to chill!

The grounds

Panto night - the chorus and musicians

The Lake

Simon Hall - Panto -  'The Battle of Writer's Block'

Some freebies

The Vinery - a favourite quiet space of mine

Half-yearly review

I have just been looking back at my goals for this year. Well, we are over half way through the year. Though success rate has been poor, in other respects I have achieved a great deal.

Number one on my list was to submit a novel to an Agent. I've achieved that one. No, I don't have a contract or even a near miss, just rejections, but at least I've started the process.

Second on the list was to write short stories. I thought this would be hard as I've written two extremes....75 words at one end and 80,000 at the other plus the odd 500 worder. However, I have ended up already writing more short stories than poems this year. I'm beginning to enjoy the process and I've started entering them into competitions and magazines.

Find new outlets for my flash fiction. While I have been successful getting published on Paragraph Planet, I wanted to widen my horizons. Again, I have entered a couple of competitions, but there is still much to do here.

The last on the list was about being tough on my poetry editing. While I have done very little in this area I have edited some poetry and written a few new ones. I've even begun submitting again.

I have a lot of work out there, stuff I'm waiting on, but there have been lots of rejections this year so far. However, I'm not going to be despondent because there is another half year to come, well almost.

Next month I am going to Swanwick Summer School for a week. I love the fact that you don't have to commit to workshops when you sign up and can make up your mind on the day! It looks terrific. The programme arrived at the weekend and I've been highlighting things I'd like to do. I'm particularly looking forward to the Crime Special on the Tuesday. I enjoy reading the genre these days, now I've found authors I really like, but to write it I think is the most difficult. I've dabbled in writing a few crime stories, never murder though, I feel I need to learn a lot more about it to make it sound authentic.  The Chairman of Swanwick Writers will be involved in the Crime Special. I bought his book a couple of years ago. Absolutely fascinating to read.

Anyway, I thought I'd mention Swanwick in case there is anyone reading this who is also going. If you are let me know. This will be a first for me and I'm really looking forward to it.