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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If we're honest, there isn't enough money in monochrome erotica and Benedict Cumberbatch GIFs to sustain a billion-dollar website. That's why Tumblr is doing its very best to become more of a publishing platform that can attract the sort of writing (... Continue reading at Engadget
[ Engadget | 2015-01-29 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Martin Pistorius was believed to be in a 'vegetative state' for 12 years, only to wake up and inform his caretakers he had been conscious. His triumph over adversity is captured in his memoir. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor
[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2015-01-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Chef Gino D’Acampo is to write a vegetarian cookbook for Hodder & Stoughton. Gino’s Veg Italia! The Healthy Way to Eat Like an Italian will be D’Acampo’s first exclusively meat-free book. Lifestyle publisher Nicky Ross commissioned the title in a two-book deal with agent Jeremy Hicks of... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2014-12-13 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Her debut novel, Girl Online, was written with the "help" of her publisher, Penguin, admits Zoella. Continue reading at BBC World
[ BBC World | 2014-12-08 00:00:00 UTC ]
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This essay is adapted from Hacker, Hoaxer, Whistleblower, Spy: The Many Faces of Anonymous, by Gabriella Coleman, published by Verso. On the evening of Thursday, Dec. 11, Coleman will be discussing her book with the ACLU’s Christopher Soghoian at a free Future Tense happy hour event in... Continue reading at Slate
[ Slate | 2014-12-08 00:00:00 UTC ]
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"Geordie Shore" star Vicky Pattison, who released her autobiography earlier this year, is to write two novels. Manpreet Grewal, commissioning editor, acquired world rights to the books for Little, Brown Book Group imprint Sphere from David Riding at MBA. Pattison’s novels will focus on a... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2014-12-06 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Will Boast: "If fiction is the art of invention, memoir is the art of selection and arrangement." Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-12-05 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Amber Caravéo, former editorial director at Orion Children’s Books, is launching a competition for unpublished writers at her new agency, with judges from Puffin, Orion and Macmillan Children’s Books. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2014-11-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
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How she dodged the Hollywood complex to make A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night.In a world where Hollywood is investing more and more into comic book heroes and reboots, it's perhaps unsurprising that a black and white Iranian vampire western wouldn't be the easiest pitch to studios. Ana Lily... Continue reading at Fast Company
[ Fast Company | 2014-11-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
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What's it like to sell over 200 million books worldwide? Dan Brown speaks with Publishing Perspectives about his writing life in the wake of enormous success. The post Dan Brown on the Writing Life as a Global Megaseller appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2014-11-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
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How do successful authors keep their writing on track? Twenty-three client authors of the The Andrew Lownie Literary Agency outline their writing habits. The post What Are Your Writing Habits? appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2014-11-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Glasgow Women’s Library and the Wigtown Book Festival are among the organisations receiving funding for the first time from Creative Scotland. The two groups join a number of other literature and publishing organisations awarded regular funding for the period covering April 2015 to March... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2014-10-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The Women's Writing Festival in Matera, Italy was a showcase for the growing importance of women's fiction and self-publishing in Europe. The post Italian Writing Festival Takes Women, Self-Publishing Seriously appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2014-10-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Roy Keane and Roddy Doyle will be among the big names appearing at the second London Sports Writing Festival, taking place next week at Lord's Cricket Ground. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2014-10-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Author Emily Perkins about imaginary worlds, acting and the ebooks v print debate. Continue reading at Stuff
[ Stuff | 2014-10-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Jodi Picoult has inked a deal with Delacorte Press to co-write another YA novel with her daughter, Samantha van Leer. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-10-01 00:00:00 UTC ]
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A higher proportion of the UK population reads books on a weekly basis than in France or Germany... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2014-09-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Oxford University professor Viktor Mayer-Schönberger offers a preview of his presentation on Big Data in Publishing, which he will deliver at the Frankfurt Book Fair's CONTEC conference on October 7. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2014-09-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Penguin Random House’s crime community Dead Good Books and Specsavers have teamed up for #... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2014-09-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
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There's a reason everyone you know is obsessed with the quirky site that makes content parodying viral content--and then makes it go viral.Getting George Takei to share something you made with his 7 million Facebook followers is like crushing a piñata filled with free pageviews. It's a huge... Continue reading at Fast Company
[ Fast Company | 2014-09-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
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