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As I was preparing to write this newsletter, I thought but how can I write a newsletter when I have no news! Truth is, there is always news, but maybe it’s simply that I don’t have anything good or exciting to write about. And so, this newsletter is perhaps less news and more muse, because in fact so much of being an author is about doing the not-very-exciting-to-report business of sitting on your behind at your desk and writing! Not much of a spectator sport, but as with all creative and indeed sporting pursuits, the shiny finished product is the result of hours of dull grind and hard work. There are no shortcuts. Book three, excitingly entitled, Untitled, at the moment (I’m very bad at coming up with excellent titles, so waiting for inspiration to strike), has turned into something of a problem child. Its journey into the world has so far not been at all straightforward. I think it is trying to do to many things at the current time, so, like all problem children, I am hoping that the application of some calm discipline, combined with a detailed plan and a full re-write will knock it into shape. I take comfort in the fact that my debut novel must have taken at least a dozen drafts before it was published, so I can do this again. I still believe in the idea, I’m still excited by it, I just need the finished article to match up, and currently it is falling short. Wish me luck! In the meantime, I have had what I think may be a very exciting idea for Book 4. Agents and publishers are always looking for that elusive ‘great hook’, which essentially are those couple of sentences which make it irresistible for potential readers to pick it up and want to read. I think I have such a hook for book 4, but I need to give it some more thought. And then, of course, there is the small issue of researching and writing it! Before becoming published myself and as an outsider to the publishing industry, I had naively believed that once you get your debut novel published, well then you are off, and you just need to keep writing. Whilst I didn’t expect it to be a breeze, I don’t think I realised just how tenuous it is to keep getting publishing deals. But, as with getting published in the first place, it all comes down to tenacity, not giving up and believing it can be done, a strategy which (I think) applies to so many aspects of daily life! I have been amazed to hear of many well-known authors who at some point in their careers have had to bin a book and start again. It is a winding, bumpy road!! In between mulling over ideas for books 3 and 4, I have also been thinking of some ideas for short stories. I enjoy writing them and it is a chance to write something totally different. I hope to share one of these with you soon!
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