Before and After

I thought it was time to do a post about what life's like now I'm a published author. Getting here has been a very surreal and exciting journey, with lots of waiting, bursts of panic and moments of total awesomeness.

So what's changed? Well, I have a book published, and another coming out next year. This has been a dream of mine since I was 13 years old, and to say it's been a life-altering experience is an understatement. Whatever happens in the future – and I hope that involves getting more books published, but you can never take anything for granted in this business – there is a book out there with my name on it. Yes, I'm still pinching myself.

Even more thrilling is when readers get in touch to tell you they've enjoyed your book. My favourite email so far has to be from a lady who told me that thanks to ACID, she's started reading again after a very long break. To think that the words I wrote on my sofa, on my dented laptop, can do that for someone… wow.

I've also been doing lots of school visits and events. Writing can be a lonely business, and it's so much fun to get out and meet readers and other authors – I love it!

What hasn't changed, however, is that I still don't feel like I know what I'm doing. At all. 

I used to think that if I got published, something would go ping inside my head and all the struggles I encountered when trying to write my novels would magically disappear. I'd feel confident about my plots. I'd be able to work out my characters' motivations first time round. I wouldn't get stuck halfway through and have to go back and work out where it had all gone wrong. And I most definitely wouldn't have many, many days where I felt like the Worst Writer Ever™ and doubted my ability to finish a single sentence.

Er… no. Ironically, since ACID sold, I've doubted myself more, not less. This has partly been the dreaded second novel syndrome (yes, it exists) - writing to a deadline for the first time EVER, worrying whether my publisher will like it, worrying whether readers will like it… you get the idea.

Part of it also comes from being more aware of the writing process. Now, when something in my stories isn't working, I know straight away. I can no longer kid myself that it'll be OK, and carry on in a haze of blissful ignorance. These days, writing is a stop-start-stop-start process for me; very rarely do I sit down and start typing, and the words just flow.

But I've found ways of coping, mostly by reminding myself that I've done this before, and I can do it again. There's always a way through, even if finding it involves a lot of rewriting, hair-pulling and wine coffee drinking.

And nothing beats the excitement of opening up a blank word document and typing the first line of a story that's been keeping you awake at night – it's worth all the stress that inevitably follows, just for that!

Having a support network has helped, too. Getting to know other writers via Twitter and Facebook has led to me being involved with two group blogs, The Lucky 13s and Author Allsorts. Once upon a time, I kept my writing a secret and didn't know any other writers at all. Now, I know many other people who understand the highs and lows of the writing process, which makes those difficult times less scary.

To finish, here are two of those moments of total awesomeness…

No. 1: ACID has been nominated for the 2014 Coventry Inspiration Book Award, 'Just the Book' (14+) category. I don't know who else is on the shortlist yet, and the winner isn't announced until February, but as soon as I have more details, I'll let you know. Here's the 2013 shortlist - I think you'll agree that whoever's on it this time round, I'm going to be in some very distinguished company!

No. 2: last week, ACID was Number 3 in the Waterstones Children's Sci-Fi Bestsellers list, two books below Rick Yancey's THE FIFTH WAVE. Waah! A huge thank you to everyone who's bought, read and helped spread the word about ACID - it wouldn't have got there without you!

Thank you!!

Before you go, check out today's post over at Author Allsorts, where I and some other members of the group are sharing our favourite pieces of advice for budding authors and illustrators.

See you next time!

A Year Ago Today…

…I was waiting on a piece of news which is simultaneously the most exciting and most terrifying thing an agented but unpublished writer can hear.

My book, which had been submitted to Random House Children's Books a couple of months before, was going to aquisitions.

The acquisitions meeting is where The Decision is made about your book. The decision about whether a publisher is actually going to make an offer for it. Even when the commissioning editors and other teams have fallen in love with your novel, it still has to get over this final hurdle. Of course, I was thrilled to have gotten this far – especially as my previous novel hadn't sold – but it was torture, too. Because the thought that my novel could get so close and yet there was still every chance it might be rejected… well, that wasn't the easiest place to be in.

Even worse, at that point, hardly anyone knew I was a writer – let alone a writer with an agent and a book out on submission that was about to go to acquisitions at a major publisher. So I had to go to work that day and pretend everything was normal, even though inside, I was just about ready to explode. I had to smile at people and make conversation when all I wanted to do was to stare at my computer screen, finger hovering over the refresh button on my email inbox.

Not that I wanted any emails. 'If you hear from me today, it's bad news,' my agent had told me. 'If you don't, it's good.' As soon as I finished work, I rushed home, fired up the laptop and logged on. Nothing. I checked again ten minutes later. Nothing. I choked down dinner. Nothing. Saw hubby off to teach his art class. Nothing. Tried to write a bit more of my new novel. Nothing.

And although I'd told myself I wouldn't get too optimistic – that there was still plenty of time for my agent to email me – I began to feel the first glimmerings of hope. Of what if they said yes?

And then, at about quarter past seven, I checked my email one last time, and saw a message from my agent sitting in my inbox.

My heart sank. At arm's length, I opened the email, the same mantra running through my head that I always repeated to myself when I got a rejection: It doesn't matter. Perhaps the next publisher will say yes. Or perhaps it'll be the next book that sells. You'll only fail if you stop writing. And all the while, disappointment sat heavy inside me. My book had got this far, and they still didn't want it.

But it wasn't a rejection. It was a forwarded email from the commissioning editor. The response to my book at the meeting had been positive. They were going to make an offer.

My book was going to get published.

Okay, I admit it, I cried. I may even have screamed and scared The Hound. And I know I re-read that email about a hundred times, not quite daring to believe it was real. But it was. And it was still there the next day. And the next. This was actually happening.

Now, with all the edits and copyedits on ACID done, and the manuscript waiting to go to the typesetter, I can hardly believe that just one year ago, I had no idea if my dream of publication was still books and years away from coming true. That can be the worst thing about trying to get published, I think – the waiting, the not-knowing, the knock-backs which drain your confidence no matter how much you try not to let them.

But if ACID hadn't sold? I'd still be writing, without a doubt. Because you never know when everything's going to change. And a year ago today, that was what happened to me.

A Million Words* (And Then Some)

When I started my first ever novel, and realised that maybe this was what I wanted to do with the rest of my life, I thought getting published was easy. I’d finish the book, tweak it a bit, send it off and… voila!

Yeah.

Ha ha.

I know there must be people whose first ever novels are their debuts. People who are either ridiculously lucky or ridiculously talented, or both. But I’m not one of those people. If I could go back now and tell my thirteen-year-old self just how long it was going to take, and how many words she’d have to write to get there, I think she’d have almost died of shock.

Fourteen years to get an agent.

Another four years, and two novels, to get a book deal.

So you’ll understand why, when I got The Email saying ACID had sold, one of the first things I did was go upstairs, open a cupboard and stand there looking at what was inside for a while.

And then this, which I keep stashed away in a filing cabinet:

That’s all the writing I’ve ever done, from when I started up to now. (The bright green folder in the picture above is the manuscript for ACID, which I’m currently in the middle of editing.)

I guess what I’m trying to say is that if you’re a writer, and you’re trying to get published, don’t stop, even if you feel like you’re never going to get anywhere.

Because the next book could be the one that gets a yes. Or the next one. Or the next. And if you don’t write it, how will you ever know?


*The title for this post comes from a quote, attributed to various authors (if anyone knows for sure who it was, please tell me!), that you have to write a million words to find your voice as a writer.

Author Interview - Liz Coley

Today, I'd like to give a huge welcome to Liz Coley, one of my fellow Lucky 13 authors whose debut novel, PRETTY GIRL-13, is out from HarperCollins in 2013. Liz has also self-published a YA novel called OUT OF XIBALBA, so I've asked her a bit more about both books and about the differences between the self-publishing and traditional publishing processes.


Hi Liz. Tell us a bit about yourself.

I’m Liz Coley, mother of three teenagers, changing careers mid-life from volunteer extraordinaire/chauffeur to author. It’s going to be crazy interesting.

When did you start writing, and why?


I started writing seriously in 2002, when I wanted to create a sci-fi novel my two boys could enjoy. The Captain’s Kid was born over the next two years during piano lessons and taekwondo classes. It has never sold. I kept writing, though, because I was determined to give it a solid effort, and, I reassured myself, I was setting a great example for my kids of standing up in the face of rejection and plowing ahead with my dreams.


What is your writing process like?


First I have to go grocery shopping on the way home from school drop-off, then prep the vegetables or start a soup simmering. Some dusting or bill paying or sorting things or laundry might enter into it. Then there’s catching a missed episode of Daily/Colbert. Make a latte. Oh bother--it’s almost lunch time. You get the drift. Procrastination often steals the morning, but the afternoon can be a productive rush of writing frantically packed in before carpool.

You have a debut YA novel, PRETTY GIRL-13, coming out from HarperCollins in 2013, but you’ve also self-published a YA novel, OUT OF XIBALBA. What made you decide to self-publish XIBALBA, and what made you decide to pursue a traditional publishing deal for PRETTY GIRL-13?


I have written eight manuscripts by now, all with the goal of traditional publishing. OUT OF XIBALBA was a true labor of love, a story involving a lot of historical research about the Mayans, a sophisticated civilization that fell into ruins in the jungle a millennium ago. I drop a teenaged girl from Ohio alone into that world of human sacrifice, bloody warfare, and palace politics. As a time travel/alternate history/romance/2012 apocalypse story, it wasn’t something hot on the radar for teens, and in fact, many of my readers have been adult men and women. It refuses to be niched, which makes it impossible to sell traditionally. However, I knew I’d regret it forever if XIBALBA languished on my hard drive, so I made the decision to self-publish before the world ends.


Can you tell us a bit more about the process of self-publishing XIBALBA?


Using Createspace for my print platform and Kindle and Smashwords for my ebook editions, I learned so much from self-publishing--lessons that I believe make me a better author for my publishers. Since a self-pub author makes all the decisions, I now have a better appreciation for both cover and internal design--fonts and style decisions and typesetting. I appreciating what it means to be the final copy-editor and proofreader. I get the really important differences between e-pub and print, including use of images and fonts. Most of all, I appreciate the sizable challenges of promotion and distribution. Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Kindle, and Nook all carry OUT OF XIBALBA now, and it is getting nice reviews. I’m working to get it into some libraries and schools. (see LCTeen.com)


And can you tell us a bit more about PRETTY GIRL-13’s journey to publication?


PG13 was my 2009 Nanowrimo novel. I had spent a year thinking about it, the prior summer doing the research, September and October clearing my plate of other projects, and November diving into what was a dark and difficult subject. I delivered the story to my agents in early 2010 and spent half a year in revision with them. They took the manuscript out on submission at the start of 2011, and I signed with HarperCollins in July.


If you could only own one book, what would it be (and why)?


This is too hard. Maybe the Oxford English Dictionary (with the magnifying glass and a really bright light) or maybe a favorite that I have reread to shreds but never get tired of--The Doomsday Book by Connie Willis or Memory by Lois McMaster Bujold.


If you could only own one album, what would it be (and why)?


A recording of Handel’s Messiah, because I could sing along.

Who or what is your biggest inspiration?


In terms of writing, I am always inspired by the stories and interviews I hear on NPR. In terms of how to live your life, I am inspired by my mom.


And finally, what’s next for you?


For Nanowrimo 2011, I am digging into another dark psychological story I hope will please PG13 readers. If PRETTY GIRL-13 is about secrets you can’t even tell yourself, this one is about a guilty secret that has to be told, even if it means losing everything.


Thanks for letting me interview you, Liz! It's been great to have you on the blog and to find out more about your books - they both sound fab!


You can also find out more about Liz here:


Lizcoley.com


LCTeen.com


Phlography.blogspot.com


TheLucky13s.blogspot.com


twitter.com/#!/LizColeyBooks

Author Interview - Talli Roland

I'm thrilled to welcome the lovely Talli Roland to my blog this week. Talli's latest book, BUILD A MAN, launches today, so she's here to talk to me about it, and about a few other things too.

Welcome, Talli, and thanks for dropping by! Tell us a bit about yourself.
Oh, that’s a tough one to start off with. Um, okay… I’m Canadian, I’ve lived in London for almost eight years (oh yes, and I’m British now, too). I trained as a journalist, but soon discovered I much preferred making things up! I’m married to an Egyptian, which provides an endless source of entertaining cultural misunderstandings.

When did you start writing, and why?
I don’t even remember starting to writing – I just did! I was always scribbling down something . . . a poem, a short story, a make-believe newspaper article. When I was nine, I wrote my first travelogue, a non-fiction piece called ‘Disasters in Florida’, based on a family trip to Orlando. My real piece de résistance, though, was my novel called ‘Glint off the Gold’, which I completed on the Commodore 64 at age thirteen and sent off to various publishers. And thus began my long love affair with rejections!

My first big break was when a small publisher contracted me to write a London travel guide. I’d always dreamed of writing fiction, but as a former journalist, writing non-fiction came more naturally. Although non-fiction was never really my dream, I figured being published in any genre was a good first step. It taught me a lot about how the process works.

What is your writing process like?
I sketch out my characters and a basic plot – turning points, etcetera. Then, I sit down and write. I power straight through to the end. My first drafts are always rubbish, but there’s no way I could edit as I go – usually because while I know the main turning points, I have no idea how the characters will get there. It’s only once I have everything on paper that I can begin to shape it all into a narrative that makes sense. I do another four or five drafts, and voila! I’m done.

Your new novel, BUILD A MAN, is out today - congratulations! What's it about?

 BUILD A MAN follows an ambitious tabloid reporter who goes undercover to construct the nation’s perfect man. It’s set in a cosmetic surgery clinic, and it was inspired by my time working in a five-star spa in one of London’s wealthiest boroughs. I had so much fun writing it, because my main character gets to express many of the things I would have liked to!

You already have two novels, THE HATING GAME and WATCHING WILLOW WATTS published by Prospera Publishing, but you decided to publish BUILD A MAN yourself. Why was that, and what has the experience been like?
There are a lot of reasons why it’s the right decision for me to self-publish – you can read more about my thought process here. I’m not one of those self-publishing evangelists who thinks it’s the only way, though. If a big print publisher (or Amazon!) came my way, I’d definitely be more than open to hearing what they had to say.
The experience is remarkable similar. I worked with an editor and a cover designer on BUILD A MAN, the same way I had with a publisher. I always did my own marketing and promotion, so that hasn’t changed at all. In a way, I find it easier, because now I have complete ownership of my work and timelines.

Describe your perfect writing day…
I can sum it up in three words: coffee, writing, wine.
 

…and your actual writing day!
Coffee, writing, wine! Seriously, I am very lucky that I’m a full-time writer, so my time is my own. I love that, but it’s quite a responsibility to be ‘in charge’ of yourself. I sit down at the desk at eight and I do a good four or five hours of writing or revising before even attempting to answer emails and do promotional work. Writing has to come first for me.

If you could only own one book, what would it be (and why)?
Another tough question! Right, I have to say THE TIME TRAVELLER'S WIFE. I love the elaborate plotting, and the ending always makes me sob.

If you could only own one album, what would it be (and why)?
I’m going to be a dork here and admit I’m not really into the music scene. If I could only own one album, it would have to be something by Chopin or Sibelius, my two favourite composers.

If you could tell your younger self one thing, what would that be?
I’d tell my younger self that it’s okay to stop driving forward all the time; that you should stop to enjoy your accomplishments a bit more. Even now, I find that very difficult to do.
 

Who or what is your biggest inspiration?
Cheeseball alert! I really admire my husband. He works full-time, yet in the past five years, he’s managed to write, direct and edit two feature-length films. His dedication and determination is truly inspiring.

And finally… what’s next for you?
I’m currently working on CONSTRUCT A COUPLE, the sequel to BUILD A MAN. It will be out in Spring 2012.


Thanks again, Talli - it's been great talking to you!

Talli Roland has three loves in her life: chick lit, coffee and wine. Born and raised in Canada, Talli now lives in London, where she savours the great cultural life (coffee and wine). Despite training as a journalist, Talli soon found she preferred making up her own stories – complete with happy endings. Her debut novel, The Hating Game, was an Amazon Top 100 bestseller and shortlisted for Best Romantic Read at the UK’s Festival of Romance, and her second, Watching Willow Watts, was selected as a 2011 Amazon Customer Favourite. Build A Man is her latest release. Talli blogs here and can be found on Twitter here.

First Draft Doubt

As some of my Twitter friends know (because they told me about it - thank you!) ACID was announced in the Bookseller yesterday, along with three other dystopian YA novels by Sangu Mandanna, Lissa Price and Jennifer Bosworth which will be coming out from Random House Children's Books in 2012 and 2013. Their books – THE LOST GIRL, STARTERS and STRUCK – sound amazing and I can't wait to read them! You can see the announcement here: 


http://www.thebookseller.com/news/knowles-signs-dystopian-deals-rhcb.html

And now (ahem), on with today's post…


When I first start a new story, I’m always excited. It’s a shiny new idea, one I’ve thought about for months, even years, and I can’t wait to plunge in and start start that mysterious process of alchemy which brings my plot and characters to life. But as I continue – usually when I get to the end of the first third – uncertainty sets in. And then all my insecurities come flooding in. This is the worst idea ever. I didn’t plan it enough. My characters suck. My writing sucks. I suck.

…You get the idea.

It used to paralyse me. I couldn’t keep going with anything. I’d rip every story up and start over, again and again, until I had to give up on them because I’d completely lost sight of what I was trying to write about in the first place.

Something had to change.

One day, I happened upon a quote from Jacqueline Wilson, where she said that with each book she writes, about halfway in, she starts to doubt whether it’s ever going to work, and that she ‘never write[s] with great confidence.”

Yes, you read that right – Jacqueline Wilson. Former children’s laureate and bestselling, multi-award-winning author of around 90 books. Books which fill almost half a shelf in the library where I work – when they’re there, that is, which isn’t often because they get borrowed so often (she’s one of the top ten borrowed authors in the UK).

I was astonished. Because back then, if you’d asked me who I thought was least likely to have confidence crises in the middle of writing something, I’d have said Jacqueline Wilson.

And it made me think. Apparently, other writers suffered from First Draft Doubt too. Writers who were published, and published many times. So how did they deal with it? How did they get their books finished? Was there a top secret formula which, when applied to wavering plotlines or flagging characters, would bring them round as effectively as a sharp smack in the face (or smelling salts, if violence wasn’t your thing)?

Of course not.

Because there is no secret.

Only this: it’s normal to doubt your first draft. You should doubt your first draft (because that’s what drives you to make it better). And you shouldn’t let that get in the way of you writing it.

That’s not to say if it’s not working that you shouldn’t find out why. These days, I do this by writing letters to myself, starting them “What needs to happen next?” Then I keep writing, trying to switching off my conscious, logical brain and allowing my characters and plot to lead me from my unconscious brain, where the answers have usually been brewing all along.

I also turn to my favourite book about writing and storytelling - STORY: Substance, Structure, Style and the Principles of Screenwriting by Robert McKee. Although it’s not an easy read – I had to take notes the first two times I read it! – I’ve learnt so much from this book. If I’m having a serious plot problem, a combination of dipping into this book and a What Happens Next letter get it back on track.

The most important thing I’ve learnt, though, is that the first draft doesn’t need to be perfect. It can’t be perfect. It’s a sketch, a roughing-out, a shuffling-together of ideas, and if you try to make it perfect, it won’t get done.

Instead, ignore those doubts, accept and note your story’s flaws, and get the damn thing down anyway. Because then you’ve got something to work with. Something to make better. Material for a second draft. And that’s where the real fun begins!

What about you? Is there a particular point in your writing you always lose confidence at? And how do you deal with it when you get there?

Author Interview - Abi Burlingham

This week, I’m thrilled to be doing my first ever author interview with my lovely writing friend and fellow Hound minion Abi Burlingham. Abi is the author of the RUBY AND GRUB picture books - RUBY AND GRUB, GRUB IN LOVE and the forthcoming GRUB’S PUPS, out next week! Gorgeously illustrated by Sarah Warburton, they're published by Piccadilly Press, who are also publishing her BUTTERCUP MAGIC series for 6-9-year-olds, with the first book, A MYSTERY FOR MEGAN, out next spring.

So, Abi, tell us a bit about yourself. (Ooh, that sounds proper interviewer-y, doesn't it? *Adjusts microphone*)

 Well Emma (ha ha! you see I can do it too), I live in Derbyshire and teach adults literacy, but mostly, I write. I'm a huge animal lover - all of them, and regularly cry at nature programmes. I love trees and woods and growing things, especially potatoes - there's something so satisfying about planting a spud and then digging out a whole load with your hands. I love the sea, and am a compulsive picker upper of bits of wood and pebbles. I like to draw and paint too, but have less time for this than I'd like. Mostly, I love to write, just love it. It feeds my soul and if I can't do it I am a total and utter misery guts!

When did you start writing, and why?

My first memories of writing were from when I was around nine I guess.  I used to make up rhymes and 'odes' all the time. My mum liked poetry and would buy me funny poetry books, which I loved. I used to pore over her Cecily M Barker 'Flower Fairies' book, and 'The Butterfly Ball'. Then I asked for a portable typewriter for Christmas. I was lucky - I got one. It was in a gorgeous dark green zip up case and I adored it. I would sit and type letters from people who didn't exist to people who didn't exist - often very funny and very quirky. They make me howl when I read them now. After that, I wrote poem after poem, often accompanied by drawings and sketches. I think the 'why' bit is harder. It always felt right.  Also, I was painfully shy as a child and would clam up in front of people. The words were all inside and writing was their way out. 

What made you decide to write for children?

I didn't have a compulsion to write for children at any point, until I'd had my son. I had left my job - I worked in admin for a long time - and moved to Yorkshire with the sole purpose of writing, then I had my son. I was surrounded by baby stuff, mushy food being flicked onto walls, nappies thrown into a corner of the room in haste, the constant drone of Teletubbies and Postman Pat. I also had two dogs at the time - a whappy cairn terrier and our lovely springer spaniel pup, so I was suddenly in a very crazy place, not at all conducive to writing poetry. I am very quick at making decisions and tend to stick to them, so I decided to write some stories for young children and to research the whole process. Unlike many writers, apart from having to write at school, I had never even attempted a story. I had only ever written these whacky letters and poetry. All Grown Up, my first picture book to be published, was one of the very first stories I ever wrote.

How long did it take you to get published?

Between the first stories being written and the first book being published, it took four years. I wasn't working regularly at it because by then I'd had my daughter too, but I had received some really good feedback from a handful of publishers, so kept working away at ideas and trying things out. One particular commissioning editor for a big children's book publisher would spend half an hour or more talking me through ideas and ways of trying things, on regular occasions. She gave me the bit of self-belief that I needed in order to carry on.

What is your favourite book?

Ooh, I love this question. It would be hard to say an absolute favourite, but if push comes to shove, 'The Book Thief', by Markus Zusak. I love his writing with a passion, and this book has it all for me. This is the book I would love to have written.

What about your favourite film?

Philadelphia Story, starring Katherine Hepburn, Cary Grant and James Stewart, to name but a few. I love the old black and whites, and the old actors, the way they spoke, the chivalry, the wit. It must have been 'grand' to be a teenager then.

Your favourite music?

Ah! I used to be a punk - secret's out now. I had the back-combed hair and the weird clothes. In fact, I used to make quite a lot of my clothes from charity shop stuff that I butchered until they resembled something I quite liked. My favourite bands then were people like The Cocteau Twins, The Comsat Angels, The Cure, The Chameleons (I seemed to like bands beginning with C for some reason). But I was also brought up on Roxy Music and David Bowie, Simon and Garfunkel, 10cc, Elton John and The Who. All of these I still love to listen to. At the moment, I have The Horrors 'Skying' on constant replay on my car CD player. I like Arcade Fire, Editors and am a huge fan of Elbow. I also love Sigur Ross and one of my new discoveries, The Black Atlantic, who are from The Netherlands. As you can probably tell, I am a big music fan - music wins over tv for me any day.

And (because I’m nosy and I just have to know!) your favourite joke?

I am rubbish at remembering jokes. I have two - one isn't repeatable here, the other is: What's brown and sticky? A stick. The only reason this is one of my faves is because it's the only one I remember that I can repeat. Mostly, I just like it when people say random funny things that make me laugh.

Describe your perfect writing day…

This is a very good question, because my perfect writing day hasn't happened yet. My perfect writing day would be among the trees in a favourite part of Clumber Park, where no-one else seems to go, or in a wood, just me, a notepad and pen, a big bag of crisps and some water. Otherwise, I guess a day at home where all the words come and I have few other things to do, is fairly close to perfect.

…and your actual writing day.

My actual writing day is punctuated by doing the school runs and walking my greyhound, washing up, and of course, The Evil Menace of Distraction... commonly known as Twitter. Not to mention, answering emails, doing publicity stuff etc etc. I imagine it's much like most writer's days really when we do a bit of writing in the gaps between other things. I am lucky though as I only work 3 half days a week, so at least I can settle down for longish spells and get quite a lot done in that time.

If you could tell your teenage self one thing, what would it be?

This is a bit uncanny actually as I had a conversation with someone today about this very thing. I did tell my teenage self something, and would tell myself the same again. I was painfully shy, and I realised that I'd never get anywhere being like this, so I remember telling myself that it was about time I got a grip and pulled myself together. I can't say it was easy, but I was determined that I wasn't going to end up doing nothing with my life and I knew that my shyness would hold me back. I was bullied quite a lot at school but it gave me a steely determination which has stayed with me and always makes me come up fighting.

And finally, what are you up to next?

At some point I would like to sleep and have tea and toast in bed... but before that, I have Grub's Pups coming out on 27th October and am having my first ever book launch for that, which is really exciting (and a tad scary!).  I've written the first of a series of books for 6-9yrs, Buttercup Magic, and the first of these, A Mystery for Megan, is out in April 2012. This means I have two more to write. I'm also working on a couple of picture book stories, another 6-9yrs novel about a rescue greyhound, a 9-11yrs novel about about a girl who aspires to be someone special, and my first YA book. I have also started a novel. Oh, and a poem or two inbetween. I've two poems due to be published in magazines soon, which I am ecstatic about. Hopefully all of this will be punctuated with feasts of cheesecake and fish-finger and fried egg sandwiches... hopefully!

And can I just say, thank you so much for interviewing me. This is my first ever interview, and these have been lovely thought provoking questions. I've really enjoyed thinking about them and I hope people enjoy reading my answers.

Thank YOU, Abi - it’s been great to interview you and I'm sure they will!

Abi has a fantastic website, and a blog which she updates every Friday - you can find both of them here.

GRUB'S PUPS LAUNCH

If you are in the Chesterfield area on Saturday 29^th October, Abi will be at Waterstones on Vicar Lane at 11am to launch Grub’s Pups. She'll be reading from and signing her books, and there'll be refreshments, colouring, lollies and free Ruby and Grub bookmarks for the children (I might have to pretend to be a child so I can get one!).

The Lucky Thirteens Blog Launches Today!

I'm really excited to announce that a brand new group blog, the Lucky 13s, will be launching later today - and I'm going to be there! 


We're a group of authors with debut children's and young adult books arriving in 2013. We'll be adding members as we go along and blogging about all aspects of writing and the writing life.


So why not grab some balloons and a part hat and come on over to help me and fellow founder members Rachele Alpine, Liz Coley, Jessica Corra, Lamar "L.R." Giles, Kristen Kittscher, Tara Lazar, Nicole Maggi, Ellen Oh, Steven dos Santos, Sarah Skilton and Jessica Young celebrate our launch day at The Lucky 13s? It'd be great to see you. You can also follow the Lucky 13s on Twitter.


Many thanks to all the Lucky 13s for their hard work over the last few weeks, especially to Nicole for getting it all going in the first place!

Telling People

I’m a writer.

What was that?

I’m a writer.

Sorry, you’ll have to speak up. I can’t hear you.

I’M A–

Okay, okay. You get the idea.

For a long time, only a handful of people – hubby, other family members, a few friends – knew I wanted to be a writer (note wanted to be, not was). Others knew I was interested in writing – it’s pretty hard to hide it when you’re first in line to volunteer for writing-related events at work, and then you end up running your library’s writing group. But I never told them how serious I was about it. I didn’t ask them to read my work, or turn to them with a wild look in my eye to wail about my slowly-growing collection of rejection slips. I didn’t start blogging about my writing process or tweeting about how hard I found it to bash out those tricky first drafts.

I was too scared to.

Because what if I was kidding myself? What if I couldn’t really write? Better to keep it a secret; then, if I failed, I could give it up quietly, and hardly anyone would know I’d wasted years trying to do something I had no ability for.

Yet something kept me plugging away at it. When I didn’t write, the world had no colour; without my characters whispering in my ear, telling me their stories, I felt as if I was living half a life. I was bored. And, despite my doubts, I wanted to get better at it, even if I wasn’t at-all sure that I could.

The only way to do that was to keep going.

In 2007, I had a breakthrough: I got an agent, the wonderful Carolyn Whitaker at London Independent Books, and my first YA novel went out on submission. I told a few more people about my ambitions at that point – but only a few. And when the book didn’t sell, I was relieved I hadn’t broadcast it. Instead, I got on with finishing my next novel, ACID, and while that went out on submission, started another (mainly as a distraction).

And then, in July this year, ACID was bought by Random House Children’s books.

Finally being able to tell people I’m a writer – and that I’ve got a book coming out – has been like opening a window in a room that’s been sealed up for years, and letting in a blast of fresh air. I no longer have to hide something that’s such a huge part of who I am, or pretend I spend my evenings and days off watching TV, when really, I’m surgically attached to my laptop. I’ve joined Twitter, where I’ve met loads of lovely fellow writers, and now I’m writing this blog. It’s wonderful.

But if I could go back, would I do things any differently?

No.

I’m not for one single moment trying to say that telling people about your writing from the beginning is wrong; in fact, I admire – and envy – the confidence of people who can be so open about their ambitions from such an early stage. However, it would most certainly have been the wrong thing for me. I’ve had so many setbacks and stumbles with my writing, so many nearly-but-not-quite moments, that feeling as if everyone was watching me screw up would have stopped me doing it altogether. I needed to discover myself as a writer in private, and in doing so, find the courage to carry on.

But now? You might just have trouble shutting me up!