Karen Stevens's collection of essays offers practical advice and inspiration for those embarking on the long, lonely journey of writing a novelAccording to Karen Stevens, "writing a novel is the longest and loneliest journey a writer can embark upon". Her collection of essays by established and new writers splits that journey into four stages: inspiration, research, voice and form. There is also practical advice from a literary agent and an editor who notes honestly that "chance does play a part" in getting published. Lionel Shriver is equally frank about what comes after the acceptance of your first novel: "struggle and disappointment". Although Hanif Kureishi candidly admits, in an excellent piece from 2002, that "most writers do not entirely understand what they are doing", these essays are both perceptive and inspiring. Alison MacLeod writes beautifully on the voice of a novel: "It is the unknown quantity every novel needs." Kishwar Desai admits to being driven by "the demons of insecurity" to over-research, and Jane Feaver, writing about form, advises authors to develop "an alertness to the collective materiality of words". But all agree with Wena Poon: the process of writing a novel is a "strange and wondrous journey".PublishingPaperbacksEssaysPD Smiththeguardian.com © 2014 Guardian News and Media Limited or its affiliated companies. All rights reserved. | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds Continue reading at 'The Guardian'
[ The Guardian | 2014-03-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
Write what you know, they say. This is what I know. On November 19, 2013, my younger sister, Sarah, died of a drug overdose in the bathroom of her boyfriend’s home. She was 24 years old and an opiate addict. Her body wasn’t found for four days. Her dog was locked inside the house with […] Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2020-07-10 08:47:22 UTC ]
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Kyle Cathie has compiled A Taste of Home to raise funds for The Passage, London's largest homeless charity. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2020-07-07 03:31:20 UTC ]
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Princeton Architectural Press will publish Sean and Karin Hepburn Ferrer's Little Audrey's Daydream, about actress Audrey Hepburn. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2020-07-07 02:24:58 UTC ]
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Octopus imprint Cassell has scored a journey into the world of quizzing by actor Shaun Williamson. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2020-07-02 16:28:56 UTC ]
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Among the revelations from Condé Nast's virtual NewFronts presentation last week was the launch of a dedicated podcast network, including seven new audio series tied to various brands in its portfolio. One of those, "The Pitchfork Review," debuts next week, comprising a weekly series hosted by... Continue reading at Folio Magazine
[ Folio Magazine | 2020-07-01 17:31:18 UTC ]
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Author A G Smith has launched Paperchains, a project that aims to publish a book of writing by prisoners, homeless people and members of the armed forces about the coronavirus lockdown. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2020-06-29 23:21:12 UTC ]
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Authors aren’t allowed mutual reviews in the Book Review anymore, but in the 1950s there was a moment of kismet. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2020-06-26 09:44:07 UTC ]
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The AKO Caine Prize for African Writing has said it is "reviewing our structures" in the wake of the controversy which has seen Baroness Emma Nicholson's honorary role axed at the Booker Prize Foundation. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2020-06-26 06:05:32 UTC ]
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The National Book Award–winner tackles familial, and national, legacies of white supremacy in his latest book, 'Life of a Klansman.' Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2020-06-26 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Emily Temple's "The Lightness," about a seeker who loses more than she finds, is a beguiling novel after Donna Tartt's heart, if not her plotting. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2020-06-24 13:45:57 UTC ]
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Ann Cleeves has written a short story based on indie store Forum Books in Northumberland, which even features manager Helen Stanton as a character. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2020-06-22 05:26:33 UTC ]
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The Room Where It Happened, due out later this month if attempts to block publication fail, has received stinging early notices but is already Amazon’s No 1John Bolton’s damning indictment of the Trump presidency is topping bestseller charts in the US a week before its release, despite withering... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2020-06-18 11:54:13 UTC ]
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Val McDermid has revealed her 2020 “New Blood” list of hotly tipped crime-writing talent, featuring Deepa Anappara and Elizabeth Kay. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2020-06-18 03:04:34 UTC ]
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For more than half a century, Sam Adams’ eclectic output has made him a stalwart of Wales’ literary scene. He discusses his latest novel Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2020-06-16 01:59:07 UTC ]
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Bloomsbury Wildlife is publishing a trilogy of books by journalist Anita Sethi exploring themes of identity, place and belonging, starting with I Belong Here: A Journey Along the Backbone of Britain. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2020-06-12 07:24:30 UTC ]
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Many years ago, I heard a teacher of mine, the late John Gardener, once say that there are only two plots in all of literature: you go on a journey or a stranger comes to town. Or, as Stanley Elkin put it even more succinctly (in reference to science fiction), you go there or they […] Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2020-06-08 08:47:33 UTC ]
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PHILOSOPHER GARY COX’S How to Be Good: or How to Be Moral and Virtuous in a Wicked World was recently released by Bloomsbury Academic. In the book, Cox explores the concept of goodness, how it is achievable, and how to decide what the right thing to do is. Moral philosophy is notoriously complex... Continue reading at Los Angeles Review of Books
[ Los Angeles Review of Books | 2020-06-06 12:30:45 UTC ]
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First-time writer Lorelei Goulding has won Spread the Word's Life Writing Prize, for her "heart-breaking story" Birdie. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2020-06-04 12:18:00 UTC ]
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The Wilbur & Niso Smith Foundation has announced the shortlist for the Best Unpublished Manuscript category in the Wilbur Smith Adventure Writing Prize. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2020-05-28 03:59:23 UTC ]
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This summer, instead of squeezing one more book into our suitcases, we’ll need what we read to transport us to faraway places. Continue reading at The Washington Post
[ The Washington Post | 2020-05-27 06:00:00 UTC ]
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