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This month we have a student forum special in the form of successes and tips from students, expert advice from Heather Cooke on how to generate ideas, Ten Tops Tips to help you with your poetry competition entries, plus the usual mix of inspiration and useful websites.
Hello again,
Happy Thanksgiving to our American readers! A little early, I know, but it’s an important day and I am sure you are all looking forward to it. So, enjoy your turkey, football and parades!
Speaking of our American friends, our Director of Studies, Diana Nadin, is looking for tutors in America (both fiction and non-fiction) to work with students. So, if you are already a successful writer contact her with your CV on dianan@writersbureau.com
I have been moseying around the forums this week and I’ve found some gems of advice that I’d like to share with you, which I’ve included in Inspiration. And in Student Stories you’ll find some publication stories I’ve nabbed to show you it can and is being done on a regular basis. I have to say, I am absolutely loving the Next Line post started by Paul H – couldn’t resist adding my two pennies worth. And The Last Shall Be First post started by Sandra M. Both can be found in the Have a Laugh forum.
So remember, if you ever need a little encouragement don’t forget to go and chat with other students and read their stories – that’s what they are there for. If you are a student and don’t yet have access to the student community area of the website email studentservices@writersbureau.com to get it set up. If you are not yet a student – what are you waiting for?
We have expert advice from Heather Cooke, regular readers will know her well, on generating ideas in Steal or No Steal? And Ten Top Tips advises on how to make sure you have the best chance possible of winning in poetry competitions.
According to 840 international industry experts at the recent Frankfurt Book Fair by 2018 digital sales will overtake those of traditional books. So, if you want to keep up with the times have a look at Useful Websites for a great blog on the how, why and where of e-book publishing (and consider our Writing for the Internet course to get you off the ground). And to promote your new e-book, or any other format for that matter, you can utilise another of our featured sites for free press releases. The final website is student recommended and an excellent site for research.
If you can go gallivanting this month you may want to head over to South Birmingham College, Digbeth to attend The Writer’s Toolkit on November 21st between 10am and 4pm. In their words, “The Writers’ Toolkit is our second annual gathering for emerging and established writers and anyone working in the writing industry. It offers a unique opportunity to learn about aspects of the business of being a writer and to network with others writing and working in literature development through a mixture of panel discussions and Q&A sessions.” Tickets cost £29.00 and include a buffet lunch. Part of Birmingham Book Festival.
Students in the UK should go along to their local Borders Bookshop. They have a wide range of events going on all the time. For instance Borders in Leeds has a book group that meets every two weeks and a creative writing group too, plus book signings and a knitting group – could make for some interesting article ideas!
A five day residential writing seminar, between 1st and 7th December, hosted by Peer Spirit at a retreat called Whidbey Island, Seattle, USA may be something you think could help you develop as a writer. It is “designed for people ready to move beyond the unstructured creativity of journal writing to tackle a portion of their life experience by writing memoir, autobiography, essay or fiction.” The cost is $1275.00 which is all inclusive of tuition, consultation, room and board. Sounds fantastic, once again I’m wishing I could persuade the chiefs that I need to road test these events! More information here.
I forgot to mention the link to Sue Wilkes’ book last month, sorry Sue, and promised I’d do it this time. So, here it is. And on the theme of tutors and books, another of ours, Nicki Taylor, has just launched her newest book, The Scottish Wedding Planner, via her own publishing company, Unbound Press. Incidentally they are also seeking full length fiction and non-fiction submissions for next year. Details can be found in the submission section of the website.
As we are getting near the time of year when we have to rack our brains for what to get that special person let us take the hassle out of it for you – buy them one of our courses. You can’t go wrong! They’ll still get their 15 day trial period and you could be giving them the opportunity to start a whole new career.
Once you’ve given them the writing course, your loved one could be entering competitions like the Rider Haggard Society’s Annual Short Story Competition which could bag you £200 and a year’s free membership for first prize.
Finally, the 19th of November plays host to World Philosophy Day. So, I’ll leave you with philosophical thought from one my favourite websites – PhilosopherNotes.com – to ponder upon:
“Energy and persistence conquer all things”.
Benjamin Franklin
Have a determined month!
Shelley x
