Professional jealousy

We talked about this recently at a Society of Authors Manchester meeting. I’ve come across other people talking about it before.  I’ve certainly felt it and I’ve been on the receiving end of it. It is often worse when you know the successful writer personally.

Some examples

• A writer whose work you’ve edited tells you her latest novel has sold 100 copies in a few days
• An author you’ve mentored gets an agent and you’re as yet unagented
• A member of your critique group gets a book deal yet you know their work has quite a long way to go
• A colleague gets an award and you helped them to get there
• You come second in a competition that your writing friend wins.

 

What it does to you

It eats you up. You actually have to force yourself to congratulate the other writer. You feel inadequate.  You see yourself as an imposter. You may even feel like giving up.

 

Changing your mind-set

This may take some self-discipline but it is worth remembering:

·         No two creative practitioners will have the same journey.

·         Sure you have some rejections but remember your successes as well.

·         If they can do this it is possible for you as well.

·         You may ultimately be able to achieve even more than they have.

And remember to smile anyway – the act of smiling even when you don’t feel like it makes you feel like smiling. Offer your congratulations even if that is hard.

News 3 November 2021

 

Opening up and saving the planet

Shortly after I retired I found myself wondering how I’d ever had time to go to work. Then as the pandemic took hold, I wondered how I’d ever had time to go out anywhere. Many things started happening via Zoom and other similar platforms. You could join a meeting straight from your desk and work on something up until about five minutes before the meeting started. .

However I have started going out again and I hope in doing so I’m doing my bit about getting the economy moving again.

I worried a little at first about attending a Society of Authors Meeting that would involve about an hour and half traveling, or going to a Talking About My Generation news room meet up that would take half a day rather than half an afternoon.

I found it didn’t actually matter; you gain as much as you lose. There are some things that work better with a face to face meeting than when you’re communicating via a screen. The journeys can be interesting as well. There’s some good fodder for stories on a bus ride.

Yet the online meetings are still valid, particularly if there is a geographical challenge. Most of the groups I’m involved with are going for a half and half approach. I even ran my U3A Creative Writing group partly on Zoom.  It was a little odd in the social part just before the meeting got down to business. Those on Zoom chatted amongst themselves.  It was like having an extra group of little people in the room. However, once we started sharing work it all went smoothly. In any case we hold one hybrid meeting a month and one completely on Zoom.  

I’ve been out for one or two lunches and it’s clear the hospitality business is still suffering.  They are generally short of staff. Prices may have gone up a little as they try to make up for trade lost over the last eighteen months. Staff they’ve had to make redundant have now found work elsewhere.

There’s another balance to be brought in as well.  We must all do what little thigs we can to combat climate change. So, I’ve opted for public transport where possible. Most of the things on the list of the small changes people can make we do anyway. So, we’re also looking now at reducing our meat intake.

There is the danger that as we open up more after the Covid lockdowns we’ll go back to our old ways: emissions from cars, lots of paper and plastic waste from take-out lunches and more air travel. 

I hope we’ll continue to work with a hybrid pattern of on-line and face to face meetings.  Funnily enough they do just that in my Peace Child’s world.          

                  

 

Current writing

I’m now on the tenth draft of my fifth Peace Child novel, The Glastonbury Specification.   After edit nine I added a new chapter. This helped the Glastonbury specification gain a little more momentum. I think there is still more to be done however. 

My latest non-fiction work as well is finished and on its way out there.  I’m also putting together The Big Book of Prompts, which combines Prompts 2020, 2021 and 2022.   

I was pleased to appear on Hannah’s Bookshelf   on 9 October.  This is a great programme for readers and writers and goes out every Saturday afternoon on North Manchester FM . Well worth a listen. You can hear my interviews at:  https://www.mixcloud.com/Hannahs_Bookshelf/hannahs-bookshelf-with-special-guest-gill-james-09102021/  

I’ve had another story published with Reedsy. It’s described as Christian.  It sort of is and it isn’t. You’ll see what I mean if you read it. Find it here: https://blog.reedsy.com/short-story/5emxh5   Saving Gracie   

 

The Young Person’s Library

I’ve added one book this month:

Hide and Seek by Robin Scott-Elliot This is the story of a young Jewish girl living in Paris.  Her parents are taken away but she hides in her mother’s wardrobe. She eventually works for  the resistance and also helps to save some Jewish orphans.  A pleasing Teen / YA read.   

 

Current reading recommendation

I’ve gone back to one of the masters this month: Charles Dickens. In fact, the great work I read took most of the month. I’ve made my way through his Sketches.

It’s a long read but the title is so apt. It’s a collection of sketches of and anecdotes about people and places.  Dickens was so ahead of his time. Monty Python didn’t really bring us anything new.  And although he satirises the behaviour of people there is also respect and fondness.

He apologises at the beginning of the book.  He was very young and an inexperienced writer when he created these works. Fine.  We can see here his writers’ craft growing.

The collection also acts as time machine for a 21^st century reader; we are transported to a London, an England and a society very different from the ones we know now.           

Get your copy here.      

 

Giveaway

Note: these are usually mobi-files to be downloaded to a Kindle.  Occasionally there are PDFs.

This month I’m offering my short story collection: Girl in a Smart Uniform

Gisela yearns to belong. Yet life conspires against her.

At first Gisela is delighted to be a member of the BDM. She struggles as she has to care for her disabled half-brother, she firms a taboo relationship with another girl and also loses her father and her precious brother, Bear.

Girl in a Smart Uniform is the third story in my Schellberg Cycle which includes themes of identity, the Holocaust and World War II.                  

Find out and grab your copy and lots of other freebies here.

And please, please, please leave a review when you’ve finished.    

Note: Normally my books and the books supplied by the imprints I manage sell for anything from £0.99 to £10.99.  Most on Kindle are about £2.99 and the average price for paperback is £7.00. Writers have to make a living. But I’m offering these free samples so that you can try before you buy.

 

The Schellberg Project

The posts may be helpful for teachers who are familiar with the Schellberg stories or who are teaching about the Holocaust.  They may also be interesting for other readers of historical fiction.

Sometimes I also write about what might be of interest to other writers.

I’ve added three posts this month.

Shortages – then and now compares what we’re experiencing now with what happened in the 1940s. Maybe we shouldn’t grumble?

Racism and Anti-Semitism looks at some of the root causes of racism and anti-Semitism.

I have also added here information about Hide and Seek by Robin Scott-Elliot,  also discusses above, as it gives insights  into the Resistance     

 

Some notes about my newsletters and blogs

They do overlap a little but here is a summary of what they all do.

 

Bridge House Authors For all those published by Bridge House, CaféLit, Chapeltown or The Red Telephone or interested in being published by us. General news about the imprints. News for writers. Links to book performance. Sign up here.

 

The Bridgetown  Café Bookshop where you can buy my book and books published by Bridge House Publishing, CafeLit, Chapeltown Books and The Red Telephone.  Visit us here.     

 

Chapeltown Books News about our books. Sign up here.

 

The Creative Café Project News about the project and CaféLit – for the consumer rather than for the producer.  Sign up here.   

 

Gill’s News: News about my writing, The Schellberg Project, School Visits and Events. Book recommendations and giveaways. Find it here.   

 

Pushing Boundaries, Flying Higher News about conferences and workshops to do with the young adult novel. (infrequent postings) Sign up here.  

 

Red Telephone Books News about our books and our authors. Sign up here.

 

A Publisher’s Perspective Here I and some other editors blog as a publisher. Access this here.   

 

The Creative Café Project Listings and reviews of creative cafés. See them here.   

 

CaféLit Stories Find these here

 

Gill James Writer All about writing and about my books. View this here.

 

Gill’s Recommended Reads Find information here about books that have taken me out of my editor’s head and a reminder of the ones I’ve highlighted in this newsletter.    

 

Gill’s Sample Fiction Read some of my fiction here.

 

The House on Schellberg Street All about my Schellberg project. Read it here.

 

Writing Teacher All about teaching creative writing.  Some creative writing exercises. Access this here.     

 

Books Books Books Weekly offers on our books and news of new books. Find them here. 

 

The Young Person’s Library The children’s book catalogue. Access it here.

 

Fair Submissions  Find it here.   

Opportunities for writers are added several times a day. Roughly once a month I send it out to a list. If you would like to be on that list, sign up here.  

Happy reading and writing.

 

Misha Herwin tell us all about her writing today

 

I write book both for adults, women’s fiction, which included, time-slip, family saga and contemporary novels and for kids, fantasy/alternative worlds.  I also write short stories and plays. Working in various genres I find challenging and exciting. It’s great to have written something for an adult readership, which deals with present day issues and then go into my alternative Victorian Bristol where twelve year old Letty and friends are battling the sinister power of the Dark Ones.

I started writing very young as an offshoot of playing with my younger sister and telling her stories.

 Much as I try to stick to a routine, it rarely works out. Ideally, I’d write all morning and deal with everything else in the afternoon, or early evening, but life has a habit of getting in the way and if it’s a question of seeing family or friends, they come first.

I’m very lucky to have an office of my own, which I absolutely love. It’s full of books I need for reference, though Google has made a lot of these redundant and pictures and photos that inspire me.

I started calling myself a writer only about ten years ago. Before that it was almost like a secret vice something I’d admit to very reluctantly. Then I decided that if I wasn’t going to get a publishing deal with one of the big companies, I’d go Indie. Now I have eight children’s books out there, plus five novels and numerous short stories, once my books started coming out my attitude changed and I realised that it’s all how you project yourself. See yourself as a writer and that’s how people will treat you.I take myself seriously so do family and friends, all of whom, whether writers or not, tend to be very supportive.

Freecycling for Beginners is my latest novel.

“The time has come for Jane to sell the family home. Downsizing to a flat means everything must go, but her late husband’s favourite chair is far too precious for the tip.

Meanwhile Robyn, balancing her precarious career as a portrait artist with raising an autistic son, is searching for a chair with panache that will allow her sitters to pose in comfort.

Elsewhere in the city Tracey is clearing out her wardrobe at the same moment that divorced and cash-strapped Debbie is frantically seeking a prom dress for her daughter.

None of these women have ever met until Freecycle brings them together and their lives are about to be changed in ways they could never have imagined.”

I’ve always been a keen re-cycler and it was a story on my local freecycling site that sparked the idea for the novel. A mum was asking if anyone had a prom dress they could let her have for her daughter. Since it was late on into the Summer term I wondered why she had left it so late. Had there been an unexpected invitation? Were they too poor to afford a new dress? Or had something happened to the original one and they were looking to replace it? I never found out what happened, but a little later there was another post asking if anyone had a posh car and could give a lift to the prom. Putting these two posts together I imagine who would reply and why.

I loved the idea that random people would be helping each other and that offering an unwanted item could bring people together in ways that would affect the rest of their lives.

I also wanted to write a novel about community and friendship and the wider issues of avoiding waste and caring for our planet. If that sounds very serious, there is also romance and humour and a general feel good factor that we could all do with at the moment.

Freecycling forBeginners is available on Amazon, other sites and can be ordered from all good bookshops.

Now that Freecycling for Beginners is published, it’s back to the Adventures of Letty Parker with book four The Hanging Tree coming soon.

 

 

 

 

A Conversation with Rebecca Redshaw

 

Hello, Rebecca. Tell me, what do you write? Why this in particular?

My first novel, Dear Jennifer is an epistolary novella. I love writing letters and I created characters that wrote to Jennifer throughout her life. The challenge, different from most letter books, is that I didn’t include any letters from Jennifer! Whatever you learn about the main character is from what others write to her. Other than a few short stories, Dear Jennifer marked my beginning as a serious writer, and I subsequently adapted it for the stage.

In my career I’ve written six novels, seven plays, and a number of short stories. Once I get an idea, the format, play or novel, is determined, not by me, but by the characters early on.

 

 

 
  Do you have a particular routine?

I am a creature of habit, and it has served me well since leaving my past career in film restoration in Los Angeles. I keep a 4” x 8” reporter’s notepad by my computer and every night I write a “To Do” list for the next day. It’s pretty consistent. Monday: Submit. This reminder insures I get my work “out there.” Other mornings, nine to noon, are for writing. I don’t answer the phone or emails and if I’m not working on a big project (novel or play), I click on my “Non-memoir File” and choose from a list of past experiences. Whatever the topic, it’s always accompanied with a cup of tea and my dogs, Stevie and Zora, who position themselves at my feet when I say, “It’s time to go to work!”

 
  When did you decide you could call yourself a writer? Do you do that in fact?

I struggled with calling myself a writer in the beginning. Would it be when I’m published? When I got paid? When I started teaching writing? I suppose having plays produced and hearing audiences applaud helped me over the hurdle of credibility. And, yes, I call myself a writer. 

 

  How supportive are your friends and family? Do they understand what you're doing?

I am very, very fortunate. My wife and I have been together for more than thirty years. Early on in our relationship, Kay went back to graduate school to become a Physician Assistant. I was working for SONY Pictures at the time, so it was my honor to support her career change. Years later, she had established her career, and I left the studio to write full time. Not only does Kay support my endeavors, but she stepped out of her comfort zone to play a role in a reading of my play, “Hennessey Street.” I know I am lucky and appreciate her support.

 

  What are you most proud of in your writing?

I love when readers write me a note. I’ve been fortunate to write for newspapers and, for whatever reason, two columns in particular stand out. One, was an op ed about the importance of a handwritten note or card compared to a text or email. Many people wrote to me saying they forwarded that column to their children and grandchildren, which I thought was impactful. Two, a lengthy article I wrote for the paper ran on Father’s Day. I shared memories of life with my father which triggered emotions in readers that they shared with me. “Proud” may not be the correct word, but I appreciate the interaction of human emotions inspired by the written word.

 
  How do you get on with editing and research?

I love editing and research, two very different processes!

For years I’ve been working on a play based on an actual event in 1904. Researching the daily lifestyles and the world events of that era was fun and vital for the characters to be believable.

As for editing? I tend to underwrite. Not like an insurance agent, but my first draft tends to be stark, so rewriting for me usually means adding more detail. After the 6^th or 7^th draft of a short story, for example, I’ll put it aside for a week or more. When I work on it after that, the fine tuning begins. I love everything about the process. Plus, when the occasion arises, I enjoy editing others’ work.

  Which writers have inspired you?

Zora Neal Hurston. Talk about meeting challenges head on! When I feel discouraged or frustrated, I try to imagine the courage and grit Zora encountered in getting her work published. Plus, her characters are clearly developed and memorable.