February '24
A month in the rear-view mirror.
1st
Editing the initial draft of a new novella, The Red Tie. Current intention is to give away an electronic version to my premium subscribers when it’s finished.
Started on a new method of planning and logging my writing-related time (which is something I’ve pretty much always done, but felt it was time to ‘freshen up’ my approach).
3rd
Woke to this wonderful comment from Daniel Barber on my post The Haunting of Ghosts - Rose: “This is so well written, especially that poem at the end. Got so hooked in by this it felt like no time at all had passed between starting and finishing it, awesome stuff!!”
5th
I have started typing up the hundreds of changes identified in the first pass through my novella, The Red Tie. There was a time when I would never had identified so many changes; but now I regard doing so as proof (to myself) that a) I am taking the editing process seriously, and b) I can approach this next stage of the process (“write drunk, edit sober”) with the degree of emotional detachment needed in order to produce the best work I can. So: finish typing up the edits; draft the sections needed to fill identified gaps; go back through the editing process…
My wife (who rarely reads my work) has just finished reading 17 Alma Road. She is a voracious reader in other genres (and an English graduate), so her enthusiastic feedback that the book is really good - and so much better than the book group novel she has just given up on - is super-significant to me.
7th
Making good progress on The Red Tie edits. Have now mapped out its likely future trajectory and it seems it will be ready in early May. [Would be good to have it finished before I go on retreat to Garsdale.]
Edging toward the launch of Grimsby Docks and 17 Alma Road in just over a week. Never sure how heavily to bang the PR drum.
Also getting close on anthology publications: Pebbles on the Strand (short stories) is ready for the 17th Feb (complimentary copies already arriving with the authors), and New Contexts: 6 is looking like early March.
9th
I wrote a post about Writing as Life or Death and how writing has become existential for me. On reflection I don’t think I quite hit the right note. Sadly I think it needed to be a little more ‘desperate’…
Made the decision to retire my Walking Thru Fire podcast. The numbers simply weren’t there to justify it. Instead I have opened up a ‘Readings’ tab on this site and will load some of the audio files here. Started with readings of my long poem Crash, plus the short stories An Irregular Piece of Sky and Downsizing. Will gradually add to these over time. The not the Sonnets readings (1-100) will still sit under their own tab.
10th
Tomorrow I will start sending out the first copies of New Contexts: 6 to the writers included in the collection, plus copies of it, Pebbles on the Strand, 17 Alma Road and Grimsby Docks to the British Library and the Legal Deposit Libraries (as I must). On the two anthologies I fear I may have not broken even - which much cast a shadow over future projects of this ilk.
11th
Unable to sleep - again! - at 3a.m. I discovered an email telling me that one of my new short stories, Closing his account, is going to be published soon in the on-line Canadian-based journal, Verdant (the Fall-Winter 2023 issue). Even when you’re only half-awake that’s great news!
Call me crazy, but I’ve pitched Crash to the Durham Fringe Festival in July…
13th
Having closed my Buzzsprout podcast, I’m gradually adding readings of my work here (under the ‘Readings’ tab). Seven thus far…
Submitted an article to the local paper based on my ‘Writing as Life or Death’ post here.
14th
Started to think about ‘what next?’… After the launch at the weekend I will only have The Red Tie on the go, so I need a new project. There are options. I feel a post coming on…
16th & 17th
I thought the launch reading from Grimsby Docks and 17 Alma Road went well last evening. There were some super comments from those in attendance. I was especially pleased with how the Grimsby Docks poems read - and how they felt like something worthwhile.
Checking on internet websites today (publication day) and was not surprised to discover that Amazon’s entry is incorrect: they are showing the ebook as a paperback. They really are dreadful. I’ve had £10 books being retailed on their site for over £20… It seems so random. And Bezos has just sold $4bn worth of shares… Should ask for compensation?!
18th
Lots of editing of The Red Tie, plus another os Charles E’s anecdotes written up for pushing out tomorrow.
Got in touch with Amazon again re the issue above. Someone promised to correct it… Just checked. Not yet. Why do I expect nothing to happen..?
19th
All complimentary and extra copies of New Contexts: 6 now sent out. [I know this isn’t about my writing but the ‘other side’ of my work, but as it has been such a big thing over the last four months, I thought I ought to acknowledge a line being drawn under it.]
Amazon error: still not fixed… And people are starting to buy the book.
21st
Currently sitting at my ‘stall’ in a literary festival - and undeniably disappointed both with the event and the experience. More people here trying to sell stuff than audience. And organisation and content…
22nd
Have just been on a Society of Authors event with Bonnie Garmus (Lessons in Chemistry). My take-aways: she had another novel rejected by agents over 90 times!; writing courses - and being told what’s ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ - can do more damage than good; and, most importantly, if you want to be a writer TAKE YOURSELF SERIOUSLY. And surely that’s about belief: in what you write, who you are, the legitimacy of your endeavours - and that includes Substack sites! We have no control over what others think of us, therefore self-belief has to be our bedrock.
23rd
Amazon have yet to resolve the data issue on my ebook. Apparently it has been ‘escalated’. Clearly it’s their system issue when someone like Kobo has got all the info spot-on…
Idle thought: if I emphasised the fact that there were sex scenes in On Parliament Hill and more to come in future sections of the draft French Story, would that generate a flood of interest? I wonder…
24th
Loving editing The Red Tie (and, to some extent, tidying up the rough draft of ‘the French story’). I feel as if I’m honing it, making it better, like the finer detail on carving a sculpture perhaps…
25th
Put up the post about writing being like sculpting.
Finished the v4 edit of The Red Tie. One more should hopefully do it.
26th
The independent bookshop, ‘The Rabbit Hole’ in Brigg, has taken some copies of Grimsby Docks. They also have a shop in Grimsby itself, and are hopeful the book will do well there. Fingers crossed!
My current to-read pile:
28th
Had a really interesting chat with a friend over coffee yesterday about one of my books. It’s always great to get a reader’s perspective, especially when the critiquing is constructive and echoes what others have said. The conversation has immediately influenced my editing of The Red Tie where I’ve already deleted about a page from the v5 draft…
29th
Hosted the 24th Contextual virtual poetry reading hour - which means we’ve been going since November 2021! Always grateful to our wonderful readers and attendees; marvellous stuff!
Found a lovely review of On Parliament Hill on Amazon (who may also have finally fixed the entry error re 17 Alma Road).
Finished The Red Tie v5 edit. There will be one more round…
Contacted by the local council to see if I might be interested in hosting/reading at a ‘pop-up’ event in July. More on this to come next month…
I always thought I was focused. Nope, Not like Ian. Pretty impressive February!