A Very British Blog Tour – post at Authors Electric

The files that make up this blog post are a twinkle in a data farm somewhere in the US. My books are too, blades of virtual grass in the electronic territories of KDP, Smashwords, Kobo and On-Demand Publishing. (If that’s already fried your brain, Daniel Marvello will no doubt save us with a comment that makes sense of it all, and straighten out my assumptions.)

We publish everywhere our language can be read. I’m sure most of the commenters here aren’t from the UK. So I’m quite amused to be invited to A Very British Blog Tour, which aims to celebrate authors from our small isles and pin down whether our national characteristics influence our work. I never even thought about what those were; I simply wrote. Anyway, do drop in for a cup of Earl Grey.(You don’t have to drink it.)

And out of curiosity, tell me: where are you reading this blog?

Not sure how to market your book? Maybe you already know… guest post at Michael Schein Communications

To my surprise, I find myself guesting today on the blog of marketing and communications consultant Michael Schein. I thought I knew zilch about marketing; certainly not enough to share with those who possess business genes. But Michael contacted me after reading Nail Your Novel and asked if he could pitch me some questions.

Once I got my teeth into them, I realised that storytellers and advertisers run on adjacent rails. The sensitivities we use as novelists could serve us well when we have to intrigue the world about our books or write blurbs and pitches. Although we still have to identify where our readers hang out, writers of fiction are well equipped to sell ourselves and our work.  Come and see.

Predictions for writers in 2013 – and guest post at On Fiction Writing

Everyone’s writing prediction posts right now. I wouldn’t have dared, except the website On Fiction Writing asked what I thought might happen in the industry in the next five years.

Obviously writers can’t be oblivious to what’s going on in publishing, but if you look at what’s changed in the past two years, do we have a hope of predicting anything with accuracy? Anyway, who would trust the predictions of anyone who makes things up for a living? Worlds, economies, social movements roll out of our imagination to suit whatever story we want to tell. (And I see they put my interview next to a novel called The Mad Scientist’s Daughter. Adorable cover anyway.)

The only certainties I can predict – for myself and for other writers in 2013 – are these.

• I will need to weigh up several new social media environment and decide if they’re worth the effort. I will need to remind myself that once upon a time I was scornful of Twitter, Facebook and even – gasp – blogging.
• I’ll need to embrace at least one new platform for publishing, on a device that I don’t see the need for. I will have to remind myself that putting Nail Your Novel on Kindle turned out to be a brilliant move.
• I’ll never decide what’s worthwhile unless I have help – which I will probably find by firing off a tweet or a Facebook post to all you guys.
• I’ll get stuck on the novel I’m writing, and when I think all is irretrievably lost the answer will fall effortlessly onto the page. (I talk about writer’s block in my interview, in case you’re wrestling too.)
• I’ll discover several writers whose work contains such insight, I will not know how I did without them (I talk about favourite writers too)

Predictions aside, I’m also talking about self-publishing, publishers developing new roles as partners for indies, finding readers – and ghostwriting. Do join me there and if you’re in a predictive frame of mind, leave a comment here with conjectures, projections and outright fabrications and fantasies for writers in 2013.

Savoury chocolate, bad reviews, finding an agent and writer’s block – interview at Lorna Suzuki’s blog

If you come to my house for dinner, I will cook the most bizarre recipe I can find and it will be a dish I’ve never tried before – so an adventure for us all. That’s probably how I approach my fiction too, although I didn’t realise until Lorna Suzuki asked me a bunch of questions at her blog All Kinds of Writing. (Lorna’s pretty cool, BTW – she’s a fifth-dan instructor of  Bujinkan Budo Taijutsu which she draws on for her kick-ass fantasy series Imago.)

Once we’ve dispensed with the chocolate porcini risotto, we settle down to more useful matters – how to handle bad reviews, what to do if you’re struggling to find an agent, tips for self-publishers, how to handle writer’s block… Come on over (and bring a good supply of Lindt 99%)…

How to self-publish an ebook and get a traditional book deal – guest spot on The Write Lines podcast

When I was first discovering blogs – and looking for a home for my own fiction – I discovered The Write Lines on BBC Radio Oxford. Presenter and novelist Sue Cook brought together experts from UK publishing to give advice, information and resources for new writers.

Fast forward through a few revolutions and the latest series (now a podcast) is exploring indie publishing – both as a leg-up to a traditional deal and a viable option in itself. Some of the authors whose blogs I was reading as the first series aired are her experts this time – including Nicola Morgan and Catherine Ryan Howard – and me. I feel like I’ve graduated. Exciting times…

In my episode I’m sharing a studio with indie superstars Mark Edwards (one half of the Edwards/Louise Voss partnership) and Mel Sherratt. You can either listen on the site or download….

Ghost no more… interview at Lakefront Muse

That was such a lovely headline I had to put it on this post too. Writer Mary Metcalfe invited me to her blog today, but we dispel the ghost stuff pretty quickly. We’re also talking about character versus plot, how author promotion is evolving, self-publishing, why my first attempts at writing were science fiction (short version: I was trying to irritate everybody).

Mary has a sweet story on her blog about the moment she first knew she had to be a writer. Do check it out – and answer the same question for yourselves here, if you feel so inclined…

 

Your life will, in the future, be someone’s past – audio interview at Bookcast

Oh yes it will. Or so my novel asserts. I’m proud to be interviewed today by Washington journalist Bill Thompson for his new site The Bookcast. He put me through my paces with all the big questions – reincarnation, hypnosis, destiny – and whether we seek answers from fiction. Oh, and whether any of my novel came from real life (mine).
Bill’s also looking for indie authors to interview – so if that’s you, head over to his site and drop him a line.

Shaking off the ghost – guest post at Jessica Bell’s

When I was ghostwriting, I longed to have a novel published with my own name on. Today I’m talking about my journey to make that happen at The Alliterative Allomorph, bloggish home of author, singer, poet and songwriter Jessica Bell.

Her name might be familiar to you as a recent guest on The Undercover Soundtrack, where she made a big impression by revealing she wrote her own unique soundtrack for her debut novel String Bridge. Yes, that Jessica Bell, I knew you’d remember her… Come over and see where this very cool lady hangs out.

A typewriter with no letter ‘t’ – interview at Jason’s Spina Bifida Journey

Jason Bourne, in the non-fictional world, blogs about everything from cancer, sport, spina bifida, spirituality, music, the USA, love, leukaemia, food and friends. He also likes to collect authors from time to time and I’m honoured that he wanted me to guest on his Author Roundtable feature this week. We delve into my first urges to write, including the part played by a typewriter with a disadvantage that didn’t stop it having a full and productive life… The full interview at Jason’s blog

Underwater music and understanding a character’s passion – interview at Underground Book Reviews

How did I develop the underwater world of the Soothesayers for My Memories of a Future Life? What experience did I draw on to create the musician narrator Carol? Did I start my blog to plug my writing book (a timely question considering this week’s post)? What’s this Life Form 3 novel I mention from time to time?

My Memories of a Future Life was reviewed yesterday at Underground Book Reviews, and today they’re in interview mode, digging for answers… including how do I prove I ghostwrote those bestsellers? And will my career as a movie extra ever amount to anything? Come and delve…

If you have tackled any of the questions I was asked about – including creating worlds or understanding a character’s passion, share in the comments!