These days, it is normal for authors to go to writing workshops – or teach them. So why does the idea they produce derivative writers persist?What makes a writer? How do you become one? When I was younger, even asking those questions seemed to disqualify me: a writer isn’t something one becomes, I thought, a writer just is. Despite writing, rewriting and reading all through my 20s, I was no closer to completing, let alone publishing, a novel. I realised I would need help if I was going to succeed, and I applied to several creative writing MAs.This was, depending on who you ask, either a decision that condemned my writing to being forever derivative and tired, or, an important step on the path towards the publication of my first book. The debate about the value of a degree in creative writing has been done, one might think, to death – good writing depends on an innate facility that cannot be taught, versus good writing depends on devoted time, support, and elements of craft that can be studied – yet it continues to rage. This week, a much-lauded debut novel was criticised in a review by an author for its “MA creative writing-speak” and “oh so tediously writing workshop description”. For some, “writing workshop” is shorthand for bad. But why?'One must have in mind between 68 and 73% of the ending' before starting a story, my teacher once advised Related: Buy a cat, stay up late, don't drink: top 10 writers’ tips on writing Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'
[ The Guardian | 2018-04-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Unless you’re a disgraced politician, trying to get a book published can be difficult, nerve-wracking, soul-denting work. If you’re anything like me, though, it really helps to hear that rejection is the rule in the publishing industry, rather than the exception. When my novel was out on... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2021-03-10 17:04:17 UTC ]
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Former Orion creative director Lucie Stericker, the designer of the Queenie cover, has launched her own creative agency Studio 7:15 after leaving the publisher after 23 years. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2021-03-01 22:47:52 UTC ]
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Nobel Prize-winning author Sir Kazuo Ishiguro has revealed concerns that young writers are “self-censoring” to avoid an “anonymous lynch mob that turns up online and makes their lives a misery”. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2021-03-01 15:01:44 UTC ]
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Pakistan, and particularly her mother's home city of Karachi, have long held a fascination for British journalist Samira Shackle. In fact, in 2012 she quit her job at the New Statesman and for a year became a Karachiite. Shackle says: “I had an urge to reconnect with this heritage—this was... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2021-02-26 06:47:55 UTC ]
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Writing duo Whitney Phillips and Ryan M. Milner negotiate how funny writing should be in an unfunny time. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2021-02-26 05:00:00 UTC ]
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Organisers of the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival have confirmed live events will go ahead later this year, after the government unveiled its roadmap out of lockdown. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2021-02-25 01:25:47 UTC ]
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Wattpad has increasingly become a very popular platform among young writers. Allowing anyone to share their works and providing a route for aspiring authors to be discovered by the publishing industry, it has become a compelling route for those to looking to develop professionally as a writer... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2021-02-24 03:00:18 UTC ]
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In “Backable,” author Suneel Gupta says don’t simply ask “What do you think?” Instead, stage an exhibition match. After explaining an idea to a friend, I’ll often ask them to explain it back to me. Not only does that help me understand whether the idea is landing, but it also helps me pick up... Continue reading at Fast Company
[ Fast Company | 2021-02-23 08:00:20 UTC ]
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Chatto & Windus has signed a new two-book deal with The Language of Kindness author Christie Watson, including a joint project with her 16-year-old daughter Bella Egberongbe. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2021-02-22 16:24:18 UTC ]
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Some good news: today, Publishers Weekly reported that We Need Diverse Books is partnering with Penguin Random House on a series of programs to get more books by Black writers published. The Black Creatives Fund initiative involves a “Revisions Workshop”; a mentoring program; and marketing... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2021-02-17 18:23:38 UTC ]
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Operating under the Black Creatives Fund banner, We Need Diverse Books is partnering with Penguin Random House on a series of programs designed to get more books by Black writers published. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2021-02-17 05:00:00 UTC ]
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It is hard to talk about sex and literature without making some sort of Fifty Shades of Grey reference. But where Fifty Shades shows a caricature of S&M, the new anthology Kink is a celebration of the range of human desires. From the power of control and the titillation of voyeurism, this... Continue reading at Electric Literature
[ Electric Literature | 2021-02-12 12:00:00 UTC ]
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Melvin Burgess’ Three Bullets, which interrogates themes of brainwashing and the far-right, will be released this summer alongside a 25th-anniversary edition of the author’s pioneering YA novel Junk. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2021-02-11 21:15:24 UTC ]
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Over the past 20 years, industry shifts have funneled more novelists into TV rooms than ever. It's salutary in many ways — beginning with health insurance. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2021-02-11 15:00:05 UTC ]
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Cast aside your assumptions about academic libraries. You'd be surprised what absolute gems of nerdery you can find in a college library. Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2021-02-08 11:30:00 UTC ]
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Snapchat is marking Black History Month with a host of in-application features and tools honoring the theme of Black excellence. Snapchatters will have access to Bitmoji, creative tools and lenses highlighting the creativity of Black artists and lens creators on the platform. Black History Month... Continue reading at AdWeek
[ AdWeek | 2021-02-03 22:50:53 UTC ]
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Michael Lewis has written a “stunning” book on a group of people who predicted the coronavirus pandemic, to be rushed out by Allen Lane. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2021-01-28 20:37:13 UTC ]
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Vaseem Khan was reading about the history of Mumbai as part of research for his successful Baby Ganesh Agency series—which stars the newly retired Inspector Chopra and the elephant he inherits on his last day of work—when he came across a fact that made him sit up. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2021-01-28 16:04:12 UTC ]
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More than twenty years ago, walking into a foreign bookstore in Tokyo, the first thing I noted was a slightly musty yet soothing scent. It came from the paper used for these books and magazines, which had been shipped from overseas—the paper either thicker or thinner, and certainly rougher, than... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2021-01-27 09:48:22 UTC ]
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As a trans person, I spent most of my life with my head in a book imagining other lives, other bodies, and other histories. In some ways, my memoir is an amalgamation of all the books that kept me curious, kept me thinking it was worth it to keep going. Sometimes it was to dream […] Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2021-01-26 09:48:49 UTC ]
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