BBC Writersroom Newsletter

The new edition of the BBC writersroom newsletter is now available online.

The BBC writersroom website champions new writing talent in film, television, radio and theatre and runs schemes to promote new writing alongside providing resources to help writers hone their craft. For more information, visit the website at www.bbc.co.uk/writersroom

Highlights from the current newsletter include:

Continuing Drama Series
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We've launched a new section on the website to talk about the BBC's Continuing Drama Series and how the process of finding writers for them works.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/writersroom/writing/continuingdrama.shtml

John Yorke
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Interview with the Controller of BBC Drama Production and New Talent.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/writersroom/writing/john_yorke.shtml

Tony Marchant
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Read our interview with Tony Marchant, the writer of Holding On and Garrow's Law.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/writersroom/insight/tony_marchant.shtml

Jimmy McGovern
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Interview with the writer of Cracker, The Street, The Lakes, Brookside, and many more...
http://www.bbc.co.uk/writersroom/insight/jimmy_mcgovern1.shtml

James Parriott
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Interview with the showrunner of new SF Drama Defying Gravity.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/writersroom/insight/james_parriott.shtml

John Collee
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Interview with the writer of Creation, Happy Feet, and Master and Commander.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/writersroom/insight/john_collee.shtml

Dean Craig
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The writer of Off The Hook and Death at a Funeral tells us about his career.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/writersroom/insight/dean_craig.shtml

Simon Maxwell
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Interview with the producer of new drama Off The Hook.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/writersroom/insight/simon_maxwell.shtml



New Scripts
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Our scripts are in PDF format - if you can't read them, download Adobe Reader from http://www.bbc.co.uk/webwise/categories/plug/acrobat/acrobat.shtml?intro

Holby City: Just A Perfect Day by Dan Sefton
http://www.bbc.co.uk/writersroom/insight/downloads/scripts/holby_city_s11e32.pdf

Holby City: Out of the Woods by Rob Williams
http://www.bbc.co.uk/writersroom/insight/downloads/scripts/holby_city_s11e48.pdf

Don't forget you can browse through all of the scripts in our script archive.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/writersroom/insight/script_archive.shtml

Submitting your script to BBC writersroom
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Want to write for the BBC? Find out what to send us on our script submissions page.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/writersroom/writing/submissions_writersroom.shtml

Arkham Tales #5 now available!

From their website:

"Issue #5 of Arkham Tales — the final issue, sorry to say — is now available for free download! This issue features a cover by Christophe Desaigne, and contains fiction by Robert J. Santa, Doug Goodman, Anne M. Pillsworth, Lawrence Barker, Sunder Cameron Addams, James S. Dorr, Maggie Flynn, and J.C. Tabler.

Go to http://www.arkhamtales.com/archives/184 to download your copy!

Thanks to the effects of the economic downturn (oh, how I’ve grown to hate that phrase), this will be the final issue of Arkham Tales."
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Writing for Children and Young Adults

Children's literature is one of the most enjoyable forms of writing. It allows you to tap into a magical world filled with adventurous plots and whimsical characters. Most of us have fond memories of the books we used to read when we were younger. The stories we read awakened our imagination, encouraging us to exapnd our minds and learn more about the world around us.
The demand for good children's writers is growing streadily, and we can show you how to make a name in this market. Our course shows you how to make the most of your talent, interests and childhood memories and turn them into marketable stories for young readers. You'll also learn how to approach the growing fields of radio, theatre and television for young audiences.

The course is offered by The Writing School. Full details here. It's expensive, so think carefully before spending your money.
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Firstwriter competitions

firstwriter.com's fully searchable database of writing competitions contains details and contact information for writing contests from around the English-speaking world, including dozens which are free to enter.

Please let me have any comments about this, and other, links.

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Waterstones -- new online store

From The Bookseller:

Waterstone's has become the latest online bookseller to begin selling secondhand books with the launch of Waterstone's Marketplace. Read more here.
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Drollerie Press

The Drollerie Press is currently soliciting submissions. For details, visit their website. Tales are required for the following: Trafficking in Magic/ Magicking in Traffic and Greek Mythology/ Urban Fantasy

At the Theatre

Writing plays is just one aspect of creative writing. To inspire the playwrite in you, check out the Stoke-on-Trent's Rep website for its schedule.
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Zombie Zoology Anthology: Stories Wanted

Severed Press seeks short stories for its new anthology, Zombie Zoology. Stories must include themes revolving around living-dead animals, beasts, creatures, or anything of the sort. We are looking for variety in both animals and the locations in which the story is set. Stories involving local myths, legends and superstitions will be well regarded as will the use of science. Stories can be set in the past or present.

Payment: Payment will be $0.01 per word based on the final edited version plus one Author copy.

Stories should be between 2000-8000 words and be submitted with a brief synopsis and bio in standard form as an attachment to zombiezoology@gmail.com. Closing date is the 30th January 2010 and replies will go out after this date.

Abaddon Competition

Alright, here it is! Our first ever Abaddon Competition!

Everyone knows it’s coming. You just gotta see the signs. And I see you all preparing – maybe getting some training in with simulations like L4D or House of the Dead, maybe going to see instructive films like 28 Days Later or Zombieland – but how ready are you, really? When the Zs start clawing at your door, what are you going to do? How will you fight them? Where will you take shelter?

Read more here.
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Writers Beware!

These websites offer information for writers:

Preditors and Editors, provides information about publishing for, it says, serious writers.

SFWA's Writer Beware website includes a lot of information to help writers.

As usual, inclusion in this blog is not an endorsement -- always evaluate information before acting on it.
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Crimefest Reading Group

Each month CRIMEFEST announces a new title for its online reading group. Newsletter subscribers can sign up for a one of twenty free copies. Recipients who actively participate online are more likely to receive free books on a regular basis.

The next CRIMEFEST is scheduled for May 2010. If you want to meet with writers such as Colin Dexter, Crimefest is the place to be. Details here.
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A Paladin adventure

This blog hasn't been updated in a while. Apologies for this. So then, let's start again...

Mike Chinn's story "Ace in the Hole" is available to read here -- and for free. The story stars ghost hunter Damian Paladin, and originally appeared in The Paladin Mandates, published by The Alchemy Press.
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Stoke-on-Writing Submission Guidelines

At it's last meeting, the group adopted a set of guidelines for submissions. The purpose of these is to ensure that group members are submitting work to a standard that publishers would expect. The guidelines are those specified as the standard professional layouts for prose and poetry and apply to all group members when submitting pieces of writing.

Prose Writing

The following criteria are those specified as the standard professional layouts for prose writing:

· Text should be double line spaced

· Margins of at least 3cm at either side of the page should be used

· A 12 point standard font (Times New Roman, New Courier, Arial) should be adopted

· The first line of every paragraph should be indented, with the exception of the first line in each chapter or section

· There should usually be no space between paragraphs. A line space between paragraphs indicates a section break – a change of scene, or viewpoint or to indicate that some time has passed

· Asterisks can be used to draw attention to a section break that falls at the end of a page, that otherwise might be missed by the reader

· Dialogue – each person’s speech should begin a new paragraph (indented). Single quotation marks should be used for speech and quoted words within the text. Double quotation marks should only be used when they occur within another pair e.g.

‘I can’t explain it,’ he said. ‘It’s a complete mystery.

‘He couldn’t explain it,’ William said. ‘Just that it was a “complete mystery” to him.’

This is the modern standard for writing dialogue, which is widely specified by today’s publishers and editors.

· Alternatively, if preferred, the more traditional approach of using double quotation marks can be used instead for speech. In this instance further quoted words within the text should be enclosed using single quotation marks i.e.

“I can’t explain it,” he said. “It’s a complete mystery.”

“He couldn’t explain it,” William said. “Just that it was a ‘complete mystery’ to him.”

Poetry

· Stanza breaks and the gap between the title and the first line of the poem should be indicated by an extra line space, otherwise, poems should be single-spaced within stanzas

· Margins should be positioned to the left of the page (poems should not be centred). This requirement does not prevent the writer from indenting lines as part of the poem

· The title of the poem should be in bold type

BFS short story competition

The results of the BFS Short Story Competition 2009 were announced at FantasyCon:

Winner:
"Dead Astronauts" by Patrick Whittaker

Runner-up:
"In the Moment" Elana Gomel

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British Fantasy Awards have been announced

Best Novel (The August Derleth Fantasy Award)
Memoirs of a Master Forger by William Heaney aka Graham Joyce (Gollancz)

The Karl Edward Wagner Award (the Special Award)
Hayao Miyazaki

Best Anthology
The Mammoth Book of Best New Horror 19 ed. Stephen Jones (Constable & Robinson)

Best Collection
Bull Running for Girls by Allyson Bird (Screaming Dreams)

Best Non-Fiction
Basil Copper: A Life in Books by Basil Copper ed. Stephen Jones (PS Publishing)

Best Novella
The Reach of Children by Tim Lebbon (Humdrumming)

Best Short Fiction
"Do You See" by Sarah Pinborough from Myth-Understandings ed. by Ian Whates (Newcon Press)

Best Magazine/Periodical
Postscripts ed. Peter Crowther and Nick Gevers (PS Publishing)

Best Artist
Vincent Chong

The PS Publishing Best Small Press Award
Elastic Press (Andrew Hook)

Best Comic/Graphic Novel
Locke and Key by Joe Hill and Gabriel Rodriguez (IDW Publishing)

Best Televison
Doctor Who (Russell T. Davies, BBC Wales)

Best Film
The Dark Knight directed by Christopher Nolan (Warner Brothers)

The Sydney J. Bounds Award for Best Newcomer
Joseph D'Lacey for Meat (Bloody Books)

S-o-T Writers' Weekend

Three tutors (Emma Hardy, Nicholas Corder and Dinesh Allirajah) are leading a Writers' Weekend in November at the City Centre Library, Hanley. There will be around 12 workshops covering many aspects of writing -- short stories, research, sense of place, poetry, etc. The weekend costs just £20, which is excellent value for money.

The workshops are scheduled for the weekend 28/29 November.

You'll need an application form to register. Phone 01782 238455 for details
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Writing for Teenagers

Tutor: Gill James
Introductory workshop looking at the characteristics of YA fiction
Bentilee Library, Stoke-on-Trent (about 6 miles from Cheadle)
Saturday 26 September, 10.00--3.30
Cost: Free

Take your own lunch

If you are interested in attending this workshop, phone 01782 231315
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Scriptwriting for Absolute Beginners

Venue: City Centre Library (Hanley, Stoke-on-Trent)
Sat 7th November, 10.00--3.30
Tutor: Nicholas Corder

Take your own lunch

Developing ideas
Plots and narrative
Structure of film
Dialogue
Etc

To reserve a place phone 01782 238455

Again, this course is free.

SToW -- Future Meetings

The next meeting is on Saturday 3rd October at the Bentilee Neighbourhood Centre. SToW meetings have also been booked for 7th November and 5th December

Writing Your Life Story

Ever wanted to write all about yourself, your life, all the things you did when younger? Here's an opportunity to gain an insight in how to do it. Writing Your Life Story is a workshop scheduled for Wednesday 25th November, 10.00-3.30, at Bentilee Library, Stoke-on-Trent. Lunch isn't provided, so take along sandwiches, Cornish pastries, sausage rolls...

The publicity says that the workshop is open to anyone of any age, and that you don't need to have done anything spectacular (such as climb Everest). No writing expereince is necessary.

The workshop is free. To reserve a place phone 01782 231315
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Romantic Novelists' Association

From the Romantic Novelists' Association's website: "Romantic fiction is the best selling, most widely read type of fiction, universally enjoyed because everyone knows something about love."

There are three degrees of membership, including probationary level for new writers. Visit the RNA website for further details, plus info on many favourite romance writers.
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Writing Romance

Jan Jones, award-winning author and member of the Romantic Novelists' Association, is leading a workshop on writing romance fiction. If you want to write in this area then don't miss this workshop on Saturday 3rd October, 2009, at the City Central Library, Hanley. The workshop lasts from 10.00 to 3.30 with a short lunch break (food is not provided). And the cost of this workshop? Nothing. Brilliant value!

To reserve a place on this workshop phone 01782 238455

Jan Jones has a website: http://www.jan-jones.co.uk/
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National Poetry Day

Join Nicholas Corder -- Stoke-on-Trent's resident writer -- for a celebration of National Poetry Day. Come along to the Stoke Library (not Hanley Library) and try your hand at writing comic verse and/or add to the open community poem. The celebartions start at 9.30 and end at 12.30 (pop in anytime) on Friday 9th October, 2009.

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Write On. What Next?

Write On's funding comes to an end this coming December. The Stoke City Centre Library is interested in hearing your ideas for future projects, in order to secure further funding. Contact Anne Mackey with your suggestions (before 30 September):

anne.mackey@stoke.gov.uk

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The Write On Anthology

Today I received confirmation that the deadline to this anthology has been extended to 9 January 2010. This anthology is only open to all participants of Stoke-on-Trent's Write On workshops held over the past 18 months.

Submission guidelines: Max 1200 words prose or a 40 line poem. Or a combination, such as 600 words of prose and a 20 line poem.

Send your submissions on disc (save in 'doc' file format) and paper to:

Write On Anthology / Emma George
City Central Library
Bethesda Street
Hanley
Stoke-on-Trent ST1 3RS

Writing Resources on iTunesU

For those of you interested in developing your writing style there are a number of podcasts produced by the Open University that are available for download free of charge from the iTunes store.

These podcasts replicate some of the course material for a number of Open University courses, from introductory modules such as Start Writing Fiction and Start Writing Plays to some of the advanced creative writing courses that are offered.

Topics covered range from from developing your ideas and characters to the process of re-drafting and revising your work and are often produced using input from established authors and playwrights such as Alan Ayckbourn and Hanif Kureishi.

To get these podcasts, visit the iTunes store. Click on iTunesU from the home page and select Literature from the categories.

Duotrope Digest

Duotrope's Digest is a free writers' resource listing over 2575 current Fiction and Poetry publications. More details on their website.

I haven't used this site, so if anyone has and is able to supply feedback to post on the StOW blog, please do so.
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Crimewave: submission guidelines

From their website:

We are always open to submissions of new modern crime and mystery short stories of up to about 10,000 words in length. Follow these simple guidelines:

• Send your manuscript mailed flat or folded no more than once, in standard manuscript format — typed (not handwritten!), double spaced, good margins all round, printed in black ink on one side of white paper, numbered pages, keyword from story title and author's name on each page — with a covering letter and adequate return postage (ie a stamped, self-addressed envelope).
• Please include a covering letter but don't worry too much about it, just introduce yourself and list any relevant credits, things like that. If you've never been published before tell us this too — we've published many debut stories over the years.
• Use a paper clip to hold pages together, not staples or any kind of binder. There is no need to place your manuscript inside a folder. An ordinary paper envelope is sufficient, don't use bulky padded envelopes.

There are more guidelines. To read these go here.

Next meeting: a reminder

The next StOW meeting is scheduled for the 4th September, at 10.00 am at the usual venue -- the Bentilee Neighbourhood Centre. All aspiring writers are welcome -- just come along and bring something you've written. You may want to read it out to the group (you don't have to!).

Google versus authors

"This is the settlement administration website for the Google Book Search Copyright Class Action Settlement. The purpose of this website is to inform you of a proposed Settlement of a class action lawsuit brought by authors and publishers, claiming that Google has violated their copyrights and those of other Rightsholders of books and inserts, by scanning their Books, creating an electronic database and displaying short excerpts without the permission of the copyright holders."

To read more, go here.

Writers' workshops at WHC2010

From today's press release:

The World Horror Convention 2010 is excited to announce that we will be holding three different Creative Writing Workshops over the convention, to be tutored by MORT CASTLE, NANCY KILPATRICK and JO FLETCHER.

Mort Castle has been a writer for over four decades, and a writing teacher for almost as many years. He developed and edited Writing Horror for the HWA in 1997 and the expanded and revised edition, On Writing Horror, published in 2006 by Writer’s Digest. Mort will be holding two separate four-hour courses on Creative Writing.

Nancy Kilpatrick is the author of the four-book vampire series “Power of the Blood” and several other volumes featuring the Undead. She has taught various writing and editing fiction courses for twenty-two years through George Brown College in Toronto. Nancy will be teaching a four-hour course on Writing Vampire Fiction.

Jo Fletcher, has worked as an editor of fantasy, SF and horror at such major UK publishers as Headline, Mandarin and Penguin Books. She is currently Associate Publisher of Gollancz, Orion’s award-winning fantasy and science fiction imprint. Jo will be running a two-hour course on Publishing and Editing.

Places are strictly limited for individual seminars on a first-come, first-served basis. Information about fees, times and further details are available on our website along with advance registration through PayPal. Whether or not you want to attend the Workshops, you can still have any of the three tutors critique your manuscript for a small fee. Again, all the details can be found on their individual pages on the website.

Steampunk Tales: submission guidelines

The following is taken from the Steampunk website:

If you have authored an original story and would like us to consider publishing it in Steampunk Tales, please follow these submission guidelines. We'd love to consider publishing your Steampunk Tale!

Guidelines:Submission content shall follow the following guidelines:

Stories shall be a minimum of 4,500 words in length. The word count for the story should be displayed at the top of the first page.

Submissions must not have been previously published or posted publically in any form. All content published in Steampunk Tales must be first run.

Stories must be submitted by the author(s) who wrote them. Stories submitted by a third party will not be accepted.

Submissions must consist entirely of original content.

Submissions must not contain any profanity, offensive or obscene content. Steampunk Tales is not intended solely for mature audiences. Content shall not exceed what would be generally found in a PG-13 movie.

For further information on manuscript presentation, visit their website.
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Writing course at Hanley

Pencil this in your diary: a writing course is being planned for Hanley Library for 28/29 November. The cost will be around £20. When I have further details I'll post them here.
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The Hugo Awards

The winners of the Hugo Awards have been announced. They include Neil Gaiman's The Graveyard Book for Best Novel and editors Ellen Datlow and David Hartwell. The complete list can be found here.
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Angry Robot Short Story Competition

On Friday August 7th, at the World Science Fiction Convention in Montreal, Angry Robot author Lauren Beuke launched a short story competition. The prize includes a chance to have your short story published in Lauren's next book, Zoo City. In order to enter, all you need to do is write a short story (up to 3000 words) based in the Moxyland universe, using characters, themes and settings from the book to create your own work. An excerpt of Moxyland is available to read on authonomy now. Or, if you prefer, you can read the whole book using browse inside.

You can enter the competition by posting your entry into the comments section of the Moxyland book page. Over the next couple of months, Lauren will be on the site and reading every story with her favourite 3 going into her next book, out in Spring 2010. The closing date for entries is September 11th 2009 and we will only accept one entry per person.

The winners will be announced by the Angry Robot team at FantasyCon 2009.

Aesthetica Annual Creative Works Competition

Aesthetica magazine are running their annual creative works competition, which is looking to discover unpublished writing talent. The competition is looking for short stories up to 2000 words in length, with any genre considered. There is a £500 first prize and all winning entries will be published in an anthology that will be available nationwide through Borders bookstores. The closing date for entries is 31st August 2009 and full details of the competition can be found by visiting http://www.aestheticamagazine.com/submission_guide.htm

Write On -- Reminder

Don't forget the Write On Anthology, to be published later ths year -- and only open to participants of Stoke's various workshops. If you look over past posts on this blog, you'll find more information (go to April's posts). The address for submissions (by 1 September) is:

Write On Anthology (c/o Emma George)
City Centre Library
Bethesda Street
Hanley
Stoke-on-Trent
ST1 3RS

The Producers

Scheduled for November 3rd to 7th at the Regent Theatre in Stoke-on-Trent is THE PRODUCERS. Remember the brilliant Mel Brooks' movie? About Max Bialystock and Leo Bloom and their attempts to stage a sure-fire flop. It's on the stage this autumn -- should be fun.

Box Office: 08700 606649

Website: www.nsosltd.co.uk
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Sebastian talks about Mervyn Peake

Sebastian Peake, son of the late Mervyn -- author of the Gothic masterpiece Gormenghast trilogy -- will be presenting a talk on his father's life and work (novelist, poet and artist) at FantasyCon 2009. The convention takes place in Nottingham this September. Visit the website for details.
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Fact, Fantasy and Poetry

Here are two free poetry competitions which you can enter right now. There's a £100 first prize in our open competition, Fact and Fantasy. You can enter by post or email and make sure you put "Fact and Fantasy" at the top of your entry. Your poem can be on any subject you like but must be no more than 160 words or 20 lines, and you can't use "Fact and Fantasy" as the title. Send your entries now because this competition closes in September and we want to see something from you.

Also, there's a £1000 prize to the winner of our annual Local Poem competition. You must put "Local Poem" at the top of your entry and the theme must be someone or something local. For example, last year's winner was a poem about two cooling towers. The previous year's winner was a poem about a river, and three years ago, the winner was about village life. You could write a poem about a famous person or even a member of your family, living or dead. You could write a poem about your local bus driver or your greengrocer. The same length limitations apply to this competition and we want to see something from you now.

If you have entered this year's National Poetry Anthology, you may hear from us with some good news in the very near future. Judging is currently taking place and we have already selected around 300 regional winners who will all receive a free copy of the book, and they will get to vote for the best poem. The author of that poem will receive £1000. All the regional winners will be contacted within the next few weeks. So if you haven't heard anything yet, keep your fingers crossed.

Our Poets of the Year book will be out in September, at the same time as Poetry By Moonlight. A Guiding Light will be out in November, and Whispers on the Breeze will be out in December. Don't forget that you can still submit a poem for our new CD anthology, Voices in Verse. All you have to do is email or post us a poem and put "Voices in Verse" at the top (but you can't use this as the title) and we will get back to you if we can accept it. So please be sure to include your phone number and address.

Many thanks for all the funny stories we have received for Things Kids Say, the book we are producing in association with Barnardo's, to raise money for this worthy charity. We are also grateful to all the artists who have provided illustrations for the book, which should be out in about three months. We are also pleased to say that it's been a very good year for our other charity projects, and we have now helped to raise over £20,000 for cancer charities this year, making a total of £172,000 in the last six years.

Kind regards,
Peter Quinn
info@unitedpress.co.uk

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Hint, hint...

"Hint fiction" (n) : a story of 25 words or less that suggests a larger, more complex story

Check out this website
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Are you an aspiring graphic novelist?

DO YOU HAVE AN ORIGINAL STORY TO TELL?


Jonathan Cape and Comica have got together with The Observer to offer you the chance to see your work in print and win £1,000. Take this opportunity to get your work read by industry experts. The judges are Joe Sacco (author of Palestine), Simone Lia (author of Fluffy), Rachel Cooke (The Observer), Dan Franklin (Publisher, Jonathan Cape), Paul Gravett (Director, Comica Festival) and Suzanne Dean (Random House Creative Director). The first prize is £1,000 and the publication of your story across four pages in The Observer Magazine. The runner-up will receive £250 and your work will appear on http://www.guardian.co.uk/. Deadline for entries: 25th September 2009. Click here for competition rules.

Next Meeting

The next StOW meeting is scheduled for the 4th September, at 10.00 am at the usual venue -- the Bentilee neighbourhood Centre. All are welcome -- just come along and bring something you've written. You may want to read it out to the group (you don't have to!).

Crime Fest 2010

The annual Crime Fest for 2010 has been announced. It is scehduled for 20-23 May 2010, in the city of Bristol. This convention is aimed at occasional readers of crime fiction, as well as avid fans. Visit the website for full details and registration prices.
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The Turing Test Wins Edge Hill Prize

Chris Beckett's collection, The Turing Test, from Elastic Press, has won the prestigious Edge Hill Short Story Prize, earning Chris a remarkable £5,000 cash prize. The judges said:

"I suspect Chris Beckett winning the Edge Hill Prize will be seen as a surprise in the world of books. In fact, though, it was also a bit of surprise to the judges, none of whom knew they were science fiction fans beforehand. Yet, once the judging process started, it soon became clear that The Turing Test was the book that we'd all been impressed by, and enjoyed, the most - and one by one we admitted it. This was a very strong shortlist, including one Booker Prize winner in Anne Enright, and two authors who've been Booker shortlisted in Ali Smith and Shena Mackay. Even so, it was Beckett who seemed to us to have written the most imaginative and endlessly inventive stories, fizzing with ideas and complete with strong characters and big contemporary themes. We also appreciated the sheer zest of his story-telling and the obvious pleasure he had taken in creating his fiction."

Andrew Hook (publisher of Elastic Press) said: "Naturally, we're very pleased about this."

Copies of the book are still available from Elastic Press. More on the Edge Hill Prize here.

SToW -- web link

SToW is now listed on the official Stoke-on-Trent website, here. Find the Leisure pages and follow links to Events. You should end up here.

SToW is also present on the Creative Stoke website.
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Memoirs of a Vampire Hunter

SToW member Peter Allchin's debut novel, Memoirs of a Vampire Hunter, is available to buy from the publisher; it's also available from Amazon. Click on the links below for further details.


"In the late 19th century, Doctor Peter Reiner returns to England after the horrific death of his new wife, only to find the horror of his honeymoon has followed him. Intent on justice, Reiner seeks out the monster, only to discover the dreadful truth of the identity of one of history's most notorious killers. Within the pages of this book you will enter the dark world of vampires. But this is no ordinary vampire story. This is a tale that weaves fact with fiction to uncover the truth about Old London's most infamous murderer.


Full details of price and links to booksellers, both paperback and Ebook, plus, the first chapter, can be found at the Vampire Hunter website.


Paperback: ISBN-13: 9780980358223; eBook: ISBN 978-0-9803582-3-0


To view a 50 second YouTube clip, go here."
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David Gemmell Legend Award 2009

On Friday 19 June, at the Magic Circle in London, the winner of the first David Gemmell Award was announced. This prize went to the Polish writer Andrzej Sapkowski for his novel Blood of Elves (published by Gollancz). On hand to accept the award was his British editor Jo Fletcher. The recipient received a replica of the axe Snaga, from the David Gemmell books.

Photo (c) Peter Coleborn
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Future SToW meetings

The next meeting is on 4th July, at 10.00 a.m. at the Bentilee Neighbourhood Centre.

We do not have an August meeting. What with the Bentilee Open Day and so many people on holiday, we are taking a month out. The room at the Neighbourhood Centre has also been booked for the SToW meetings on the following dates:

5th September
3rd October
7th November
5th December
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Giving away the trade secrets

Christopher Fowler writes exceptionally good short stories (novels, too). And he's prepared to tell you how to write them! Chris says: "In weekly parts, I’m helping you to write a story. This is a free tutorial with a specific aim; finding a practical way to write something that pleases you and readers."

Full details can be found on Chris' Blog.
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Keele's short story winners

Taken from Keele University's magazine:

Budding authors who took part in a new short story competition organised by Keele were presented with their prizes this week. Prizes were up for grabs for short stories of up to 2,500 words and micro-stories of up to 250 words, as well as a school prize and a student prize. The competition was open to anyone living in Staffordshire, Cheshire or Shropshire and there were more than 300 entries.

The student prize went to by Christopher Prendergast, of Keele, for his story 'Sunset'; the winner of the overall first prize of £300 was Melissa Darlington, from Crewe, for her story 'Far from Us' and the schools' prize (young writers) went to Hannah Stubbs, of Stafford. The micro story winner was Rebecca Smith from Keele. The prizes were presented by the Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Rama Thirunamachandran, who praised the high standard of entries.
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Pegasus flies high

The Pegasus Publications catalogue includes both fiction and non-fiction. If you want to submit anything, first check out their submission guidelines, here.
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A Meeting of Minds

A Meeting of Minds, formerly known as The Writer's Forum, is an organisation dedicated to showcasing and assisting writers and authors in Staffordshire; their primary location is in Stoke on Trent. They a meeting every three months with guest speakers from the local area and an open discussion of topics affecting writers in stoke.

Theakstons Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival

From their website:

"The Theakstons Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival, Harrogate is a not to be missed event. Let’s examine the evidence: George Pelecanos, Val McDermid, Laura Lippman: a roll call of cool. Hang on for your life as many of the biggest authors in crime fiction gather for Europe’s most gripping crime writing festival.

The scene is set: July 23rd 2009: the Crown Hotel. The days are hot, the nights sultry. You’re at the hotel bar, pint of Theakstons in one hand, a novel by your favourite crime writer in t’other. And stood next to you - Simon Kernick, Mark Billingham, Lee Child… Witness some of the finest ‘criminal minds’ knocking heads in a series of debates, seminars and on-stage interviews. And don’t miss the notorious late night crime quiz and prestigious award ceremony for the Theakstons Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year."
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The Keele Writing Shoestring Festival

Thursday 21st May sees a special event at Keele: The Keele Writing Shoestring Festival.

There are a number of afternoon events, culminating in the evening launch of this year's Keele Writing magazine, followed by a BBQ and After-Party. All events will take place in a marquee at the KPA Clubhouse, on campus.

The programe includes: Can You Write With A Gun To Your Head?; Pimms and a Pitcha -- a talk on Keele’s Creative Writing MA; Will Perform For Food -- an open-mic event open to all; Keele Writing 3 - The Launch.

More here.

Many thanks to Jeanette for providing this information.
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This is True

Every Saturday I receive via email a copy of This is True. This e-newsletter tells of the absurbities of life, such as the man who tried to sue his doctor because he survived his cancer longer than predicted. This is True is based in the USA but covers the daft things that we do from across the globe. Visit the website for further information (and some of the reports may give ideas for your own stories).

SToW meeting

Yesterday's Stoke-on-Writing meeting was fun ... and very useful. The formal part was covered promptly, which allowed us ample time for reading one's own work -- and receiving comments. Nick Corder turned up, and his insights were astute and constructive (they were for me!).

The next meeting is scheduled for Saturday 13 June at 10.00 a.m. at the Bentilee Neighbourhood Centre. If you've not been to this venue, it's on Dawlish Road (post code ST2 0EU.
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Crime: fact and fiction

I recently rediscovered the true crime magazines that I remember from my youth. The one I bought, Murder Most Foul, contains over a dozen crime reports, ranging from a couple of pages to a handful (I'm being precise, not!). If you are writing crime and mystery fiction, these articles may be offer ideas for stories: just steal the basic plot and develop your own narrative...

Crimefest 2009

And starting next week in Bristol: Crimefest 2009. The guests include Simon Brett and Michael Connelly. If you want to go, better get your skates on. Click here for details.
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The Hay Festival

Fast approaching, the Guardian Hay Festival takes place at the end of this month (from 21st May). As usual, there will be many, many events to get immersed in. For details, go here.
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Comics in Birmingham

If you want to write for the comics world -- or find out more about them -- perhaps a trip to Birmingham in October is in order. Over the weekend 3/4 October, the Millennium Point Thinktank hosts the British International Comics Show -- check out the BICS website for more details.
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Hodder Children's Books

If you want to see what books for teenagers and other children Hodder is publishing, check out the website.
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The Mystery Place

If you want to write about crime, what better place to start (on the web, anyrate) then at the Mystery Place. It is, in fact, the home of the Ellery Queen and the Alfred Hitchcock mystery magazines. But you'll also find submission guidelines and a readers' forum. Trouble with forums, is that you can spend too much time browsing them when you should be writing!
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What's it like to be a writer?

How does a writer plan his or her day? What routines are followed? Pop over to Daily Routines to find out. The site also includes the daily routines for lots of other professions and people -- which may be useful if your writing includes such folk.

Things Kids Say

I have just received this press release:

Can members of your writing group help us with a book we are producing to raise money for Barnardo's? We are looking for very short stories of about 100 words. They must be on the theme of "Things Kids Say" and should be funny illustrations of amusing things that children have said.

We hope you can help because we need more material for the book and half of the £5.99 cover price goes to Barnardo's.We launched the book with the help of actress and TV celebrity Lynda Bellingham recently, and your members can see more details and an interview with Lynda at http://www.unitedpress.co.uk/itn.php.

We are also looking for people to do simple black ink illustrations of some of the funny stories, so if you can help in any way please let us know.

Many thanks, Peter Quinn, Managing Director, United Press

Winchester Writers' Conference

The next Winchester Writers' Conference is scheduled for 3-5 July, with a series of workshops programmed for the week beforehand (29 June to 3 July). It's perhaps not the cheapest course but Jan, who has attended it in previous years, has always returned home fired up and full of creative enthusiasm. Visit their website for more info and booking details.

They also run a competition that is open to both attendees and non-attendees. Click here for details.
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Science Fiction & Fantasy Writing Course

I've just received this press release:

"Science Fiction & Fantasy Writing" is designed to help you improve your creative writing techniques. This four-night crash course in what science fiction is -- and does -- is taught by one of Britain's most accomplished science fiction novelists, PAUL McAULEY -- author of 17 novels and over 70 short stories, and winner of the Arthur C. Clarke Award, John W. Campbell Award and Philip K. Dick Award.

Multiple award-winning editor, writer and publisher Stephen Jones (THE MAMMOTH BOOK OF BEST NEW HORROR series, etc.), will be a special guest at the final class, talking about how to get published and what you need to do to build a career.

WHEN AND WHERE? 18th-21st May 2009, 6:00-9:00pm at Kingston University London, Penrhyn Road Campus, Kingston upon Thames, Surrey KT1 2EE

WHO IS IT FOR? The course is designed for everybody -- from beginners to long-time devotees of the genre -- and McAuley will provide workshop-style discussions of student work, overviews of the history of the genre, the current state of play, and the best ways of breaking into the market.

WHAT WILL WE DO? There will also be class exercises in brainstorming story ideas and narrative development, and class discussions of topics including good work habits, getting from idea to story, research and plausibility, world-building, interaction between character and narrative, and revision and preparation for publication.

HOW WILL IT HELP ME? Before the course begins, you are invited to submit 1,000 - 2,000 words of a work in progress.

You can expect personal feedback -- by the instructor and the class as a whole -- of your work, and you will learn how to closely read and contructively critique others' stories, as well as how to revise and improve your own work.

HOW MUCH? £180 (£120 students -- student ID number required). To book go to the Kingston short course website. Kingston's main website is here; And click on the following links for more information on Paul McAuley and Stephen Jones.
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It's Alchemy!

The Alchemy Writers' blog is worth a visit now and again. You'll find useful posts and links -- mostly leaning towards the fantasy, horror and science fiction field. Click on Alchemy to whizz over right now. The Alchemy Writers is a small group that meets approx every other month. Peter and Jan are members.

The Virginia Prize for Fiction

To celebrate 20 years of success as a small independent publishing house based in Richmond-upon-Thames, Aurora Metro is launching a new competition to encourage and promote new writing by women.

Virginia Woolf completed and published her first novel The Voyage Out while living in Paradise Road in Richmond where she and her husband Leonard also founded the Hogarth Press in 1917. By naming this prize in Virginia Woolf’s memory, we’d like to celebrate her significant literary contribution and her inspiration to young writers.

The Prize is open to any woman over 18 who has written an unpublished novel in English. The shortlist will be compiled in October 2009 and the £1000 prize will be awarded in November as part of Richmond’s Book Now! Literary Festival. The winning entry will be published by Aurora Metro Press in the following year.

Pop over here for details. Aurora Metro is an independent publisher of books - drama, fiction, non-fiction, humour, children's and biography. Their website can be found here.
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SCBWI-BI Undiscovered Voices 2010 Anthology

From the Undiscovered Voices website:

"SCBWI-BI is pleased to announce the return of the Undiscovered Voices anthology. As with the first anthology, this book will highlight debut fiction writers exclusively from the SCBWI British Isles region membership. The printed anthology will present a selection of novel extracts from early readers up through young adult novels and be sent to editors and agents in both the UK and the US. As before, the anthology will be produced thanks to the kind support of Working Partners Ltd.

In a change from the previous anthology, only SCBWI British Isles un-agented members can submit work for the anthology. See further eligibility rules below. There is no submission fee for this contest and the deadline is Monday 1st June 2009. See below for the submission policy. On submission, each author must sign an agreement confirming adherence to the eligibility rules and giving SCBWI-BI the right to print the submitted extract."

There is a lot more information on the website, so pop over here and here and take a few minutes to read all the rules and advice.

For more info on the SCBWI, click here.

And in case you were wondering, what does SCBWI stand for (I did), it's the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators. So now you know.
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Teenage Fiction Competition

I know that a number of SToW members are interested in writing for children and teenagers. If you need inspiration, maybe entering a competition will spur you on. I cannot vouchsafe for any of the competitons that have been listed on this blog. Anyway, here are the details:

1st Prize: £100; 2nd Prize: £75; 3rd Prize: £25; 4th Prize: Critique of story of choice to the value of £20; Closing Date: 6th June 2009; Entry Fee: £3.00

"Have you ever fancied writing a story that can reach out and enthrall teenagers everywhere?
Writing for the teenage market is a fun and exciting project. Like us, teenagers have a wide taste in fiction: from romance to mysteries to everyday stories that may contain a message. The theme for this competition is open to interpretation but must be created specifically for teenagers. Think in terms of language, lifestyles, issues and dilemmas encountered by today’s teens. Maximum word count is 2000 and stories must be original and unpublished."

Visit the Creative Competitor website for details.
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The London Book Fair

Every year I promise myself to go to this event, and every year I 'forget' to get organised enough to attended. Same this year -- just realised that the Book Fair is a few days off. Never mind, maybe in 2010. Full details of the event can be found here.

Goings on in the West Midlands

A list of literary events in the West Midlands can be found here, part of the Lit-Net website.
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Adventures in Fiction

This is taken from the Adventures in Fiction website:

"We are pleased to announce the fourth year of the Apprenticeships In Fiction scheme. This year we are offering five placements including one for crime and one for children’s fiction (age range 11-16). The selection panel will include Stephanie Glencross from the influential Gregory and Company Literary Agency.

In its first three years, the scheme has already resulted in a publication and referred a further six writers to literary agents. Four writers have also secured funding, two from Arts Council England, one for an individual mentoring programme with Adventures In Fiction and one to support an apprenticeship placement."

To find out more, and how to apply, visit Adventures in Fiction and then their Apprenticeship pages.
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Members websites and blogs

If you are a member or friend of SToW and you have a website, and you want it mentioned here, send me the URL. Well, let's be honest, if you do have web presence you surely want it to be seen.

Nicholas Corder
Jan Edwards
Peter Coleborn
Jenny Barber
Peter Coleborn (I'm greedy!)
Mike Chinn
Peter Coleborn (told you I'm greedy; actually, this is to my Flickr site)
Alchemy Writers (a national group that includes a couple of SToW members)

And here is the link to the Creative Stoke website.

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Poetry on Loan

Poetry on Loan is joint promotion from the public libraries in the West Midlands. They have a website located here. POL appears to be connected to Lit-Net, a West Midlands literature group. And that's all I know about them; if you have more info that you wish to share, send it to stokeonwriting@gmail.com.

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A Sense of Place

Stoke-on-Trent Central Library is hosting a series of poetry workshops titled "A Sense of Place". The workshops will be lead by Dinesh Allirajah, a founder member of the North West writing group, Asian Voices, Asian Lives. You can find more info on Dinesh by clicking here.

The workshops take place on the following Saturdays: 2nd May, 16th May, 30th May, 13th June and 27th June, at 10.00 a.m. (to end at 1.00 p.m.). Actually, the press release calls this a course, so you may be expected to attend all the workshops rather than just one -- this isn't made clear. I suggest that you phone the Library to check: 01782 238455.

The workshops are free (a nice touch in these hard economic times) but booking is essential. Ring the above number to book your places.

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Write On, and on and on...

The Stoke-on-Trent Library has announced The Write On Anthology. This book will be published later in the year, and will contain a mix of prose and poetry. The submission date is 1st September 2009 -- so get your pens, typewriters and keyboards cooking...

Each contributor may submit prose up to 1200 words or verse up to 40 lines, or a combination of the two (on a pro rata basis). The anthology is only open to the participants of the various Stoke workshops held over the past 18 months. Every contributor will receive a copy of the book and will be able to purchase further copies (approx £5 each).

The Library's press release states: no salacious, libellous or offensive material; submissions may be edited; submission does not guarantee acceptance; and contributors must keep copies of all their work in case stuff goes missing.

Send submissions (preferably on disk plus a hard copy) to:

Write On Anthology (c/o Emma George)
City Centre Library
Bethesda Street
Hanley
Stoke-on-Trent
ST1 3RS

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More online publications

Many thanks to Jenny for sending me the following links -- more online venues for your fiction:

http://www.strangehorizons.com
http://clarkesworldmagazine.com
http://www.darkfantasy.org/fantasy/

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Just a minute

The minutes from the latest SToW meeting, held on 4th April, are available. If you would like a copy via email please contact us on stokeonwriting@gmail.com

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Competition links

The following are links to websites detailing story and poetry competitions. Often there is an entry fee -- so competitors beware: I have no idea how these competitions function. If you have experience of these and you want to pass it on please contact me. And send me updates and corrections and news of any other competitions.

http://www.pw.org/content/grants_amp_awards_your_guide_writing_contests?was=/mag/grantsawards.htm
http://www.biscuitpublishing.com/comp/index.html
http://www.chapteronepromotions.com/competitions/open-short-story-competition.htm
http://www.writersbureau.com/competition/
http://www.jbwb.co.uk/writingcomps.htm
http://seawoman.wordpress.com/2008/11/18/the-commonwealth-short-story-competition-2009-united-kingdom/
http://www.harpersbazaar.co.uk/going-out/Short-story-competition-2009/v1
http://www.britishfantasysociety.org.uk/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=74&Itemid=43
http://www.ilkleyliteraturefestival.org.uk/user/Competition.php

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Online short story markets

These links all head off to websites that seem to publish short stories. I can not comment on the quality of the fiction, so it's try and buy -- except you don't actually have to pay for anything. If you know of any other sites, let me know, and let me know if any of these are worth revisiting on a regular basis.

http://www.pantechnicon.net/
http://www.short-stories.co.uk/
http://www.short-fiction.co.uk/
http://www.fringemagazine.org/
http://www.hubfiction.com/
http://www.eastoftheweb.com/
http://www.indianchild.com/short_stories.htm
http://www.storiesville.com/

And this sites appears to be about short fiction:

http://www.theshortstory.org.uk/

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Date of next Meeting

The next SToW meeting is scheduled for Saturday 9 May at 10.00 am at the Bentilee Community Centre.

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Public Lending Rights

The Government has responded to a petition regarding public leanding rights. The petition was concerned about the cut in PLR funding. Here is the Government's response:

The Department for Culture, Media and Sport does understand how many authors significantly depend on Public Lending Rights (PLR) payments for income. The Government remains firmly committed to the PLR scheme, and since April 2008 has worked with the PLR on a number of efficiency measures to ensure that the organisation spends the minimum amount possible on administration. Consequently, in 2008/09 the rate per loan has been maintained.

It is now not possible to reopen the PLR’s funding allocation until the next Government Spending Review. Making funding allocations always involves weighing priorities, and in the circumstances of the last spending round, the allocation made to the PLR represented a fair settlement given the broad range of competing pressures. The Government has demonstrated its support for PLR and for writers through significant increases in previous spending rounds - in 2002/03 funding was increased by 35%, from £5.2m to £7m, and in 2000/01 the rate per loan increased by 58%, from 2.67p to 4.21p.

From: http://www.number10.gov.uk/Page18782
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2009 BBC National Short Story Award

The 2009 BBC National Short Story Award was launched on 26 March. This year's panel of judges are: singer-songwriter Will Young, broadcaster and journalist Tom Sutcliffe (chair), author Dame Margaret Drabble, Orange Prize winner Helen Dunmore and BBC Radio 4’s Editor Di Speirs. The shortlist will be announced on Friday 27 November with the five stories broadcast on BBC Radio 4 each weekday before the winner is announced. The five stories will also be published in a special collection. Entries are now open for the Award. The deadline for entries is 5pm on 15 June 2009

Go to the Beeb for details.

Investigating Crime with Margaret Murphy

The Crime Writers’ Workshop, held on Saturday 15 March in Hanley Library, was a great success. About a dozen want-to-be writers turned up (including someone from London) and were entertained by, and learned from, Margaret Murphy. Margaret is the author of several crime novels, including The Dispossed and Now You See Me – copies of these two were available for purchase. We also discovered that Margaret is due to take over the Chair of the Crime Writers Association and that she was a founder member of the Murder Squad. The workshop was very relaxed and friendly. It’s a cliché, I know, but it is difficult to imagine such a charming person behind a series of crime books.

The workshop began with a look at villains, how to make them appear more natural – more human – rather than as ciphers. The first exercise was to write a paragraph or two to introduce the villain, who showed elements of empathy, a character who was perhaps monstrous but not grotesque. A few brave souls volunteered to read out their efforts.

After lunch, Margaret gave a talk about CSIs – they used to be called SOCOs in the UK, but our American cousins influence all aspects of our culture, including crime detection. Actually, a Crime Scene Investigator makes more sense than a Scene of Crime Officer since those involved now include civilian scientists and not just policemen and women. The talk, with PowerPoint presentation, covered advances in DNA and fingerprint evidence. Fascinating.

We discussed the extended metaphor, and then the final exercise of the day was to write a piece based on the elements covered earlier in the workshop. Margaret provided two opening sentences. Unfortunately, time was running out and there was no opportunity for everyone to read out their pieces. Personally, I was surprised at how easily I found it to write in a crowded room. Of course, my piece was a tentative first draft and will require a lot of work, but it did provide an idea that I hope to use in the future.

This was a jolly good session, and more importantly, it was inspiring. To find out more about Margaret Murphy visit her website.

© Peter Coleborn

More Writing

I've come across this website -- More Writing. I don't have time to explore it at the moment, so I can't comment on its usefulness. Can anyone shed light on More Writing? Is it worth while registering with this website?
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The Write Stuff: competition winners announced

Congratulations to SToW member Jeanette Williams.

The Write Stuff was a creative competiton based on the history of Stoke-on-Trent. The winners were recently announced at a ceremony in Hanley Library -- and Jeanette took first prize. Councillor Hazel Lyth, portfolio holder for enterprise and culture at Stoke-on-Trent City Council, said: "Some of the stories have been exceptional and it was a really difficult contest to judge."

Jeanette received the first prize of £50 of book tokens. Second prize, £20 of book tokens, went to Colette Alcock; joint third prize winners were Linsay Roger-Coutes, Peter Philips and Noble V Khokhar (each received a £10 book token).

Click here for more information.

SToW Constitution

Constitution

The constitution was adopted on the day of 7 March 2009

1. NAME

The name of the Association shall be Stoke-on-Writing ('The Association')

2. AREA OF BENEFIT

Stoke-on-Trent and surrounding areas

3. OBJECTS

The objects of the Association shall be to:

1) To develop and encourage the creative arts
2) To provide educational and artistic opportunities within the area of benefit

4. POWERS

In furtherance of the objects but not otherwise the Executive Committee may exercise the following powers:
a) Power to raise funds and invite and receive contributions
b) Power to organise activities, events, lectures, discussions and to produce leaflets and other publicity material.
c) Power to consult the public by arranging meetings and surveys.
d) Power to co-operate with other charities, voluntary bodies and statutory authorities operating in furtherance of the objects and to exchange information and advice with them.
e) Power to purchase , take on lease or hire property in furtherance of the objects.
f) Power to pay reasonable out of pocket expenses to committee members and volunteers for costs incurred in carrying out the Associations business
g) Power to remunerate any member of the General Committee for professional services rendered to the Association
h) Power to insure and arrange any insurance cover necessary against all such risks incurred by the Association and volunteers in the course of their duties
i) Power to do all such other lawful things as are necessary for the achievement of the objects.
j) Power to employ staff who will not be members of the management committee

5. MEMBERSHIP

a) Full membership of the Association shall be open to all persons aged 18 years or over interested in furthering the objects.
b) The Executive Committee may for good and sufficient reason terminate the membership of any individual, provided that the individual concerned shall have the right to be heard by the Executive Committee, accompanied by a friend, before a final decision has been made.

6. SUBSCRIPTION

All members shall pay such subscription, as the Annual General Meeting shall from time to determine.

7. EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

a) The Association shall be managed by an Executive Committee to be elected annually at the Annual General Meeting.
b) The Executive Committee shall consist of a Chairperson, Secretary, Treasurer ('the Officers') and not more than 4 other members.
c) If vacancies occur among the Officers, the Committee shall have the power to fill them from among its members.
d) The Committee may co-opt up to 4 full members of the Association to serve on the Committee until the next Annual General Meeting.
e) All members of the Executive Committee shall retire from office at the annual general meeting following the date on which they came into office but they may be re-elected or re-appointed.

8. EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE MEETINGS

a) The Executive Committee shall hold at least 4 ordinary meetings each year.
b) There shall be a quorum when at least one third of the members of the Committee or three members of the Committee, whichever is the greater, are present at a meeting.
c) Every matter shall be determined by a majority of the members of the Executive Committee present and voting. In case of equality of votes the Chairperson shall have a second or casting vote.
d) Minutes shall be kept as a record of the proceedings of the meeting of the Committee and any of its sub-committees.
e) The Executive Committee may appoint one or more sub-committees providing that all acts and proceedings of the sub-committees shall be fully and promptly reported to the Executive Committee and may in addition co-opt up to 2 further people who are full members of the Association.

9. ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

a) There shall be an annual general meeting, which shall be held as soon, as practicable after the end of the Association's financial year. Members shall be given at least 14 days notice.
b) The Executive Committee shall present the report and accounts of the Association for the preceding year.
c) Nominations for election to the Executive Committee must be made by members of the Association in writing before the commencement of the meeting.
d) The quorum at the general meeting shall be 4 members, or one quarter of the members, whichever is the greater.

10. GENERAL AND SPECIAL GENERAL MEETING

The Executive Committee may at any time call a general or a special general meeting of the Association stating the business to be discussed. A special meeting may also be called by the Secretary if a written request is received from at least 10 members. At least 14 days notice shall be given for special general meetings.

11. FINANCE

a) All monies raised by or on behalf of the Association shall be applied to further the objects of the Association and for no other purpose.
b) The funds of the Association including all donations, contributions and bequests shall be paid into an account operated by the Executive Committee shall from time to time decide.
c) All cheques drawn on the account must be signed by two Officers and must be approved by the Executive Committee.
d) The Executive Committee shall comply with the obligations for trustees under the Charities Act 2006 (or any statutory re-enactment of modification of the Act) with regard to:
i. The keeping of accounting records
ii. The preparation of annual statements of account
iii. The auditing or independent examination of the statements of account.

12. AMENDMENTS

Any amendment to the constitution shall require the approval of a two-thirds majority of those present and voting at the General Meeting at which it is discussed. Any resolution for the amendment of the constitution must be received by the Secretary at least 21 days before the meeting at which the resolution is to be brought forward.

13. DISSOLUTION

a) The Association may be dissolved at a Special General Meeting called for that purpose and must be advertised 14 days before the meeting.
b) Such proposals to dissolve the Association shall take effect only if agreed by a two-thirds majority of members present and voting at the meeting.
c) Surplus funds of the Association, if it is dissolved, shall be given or transferred to such other charitable institution or organisation having similar objects as the members of the Association may determine or failing that shall be applied for some other charitable purpose.

14. ARRANGEMENTS UNTIL THE FIRST ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

Until the first annual general meeting takes place this constitution shall take effect as if references in it to the Executive Committee were references to the persons whose signatures appear at the bottom of this document. The constitution was adopted on the date mentioned above by the persons whose signatures appear below:

Chair: Jan Edwards; Secretary: Mel Baines; Treasurer: Darren Buttery; Committee Members: Gwyn Booth, Jeanette Williamson and Peter Coleborn.

Crime Writers’ Day at Hanley Library

Crime Writers' Day with Margaret Murphy

The first half of the workshop will look at creating credible villains. Find out how some authors, e.g. Elmore Leonard and Thomas Harris, manage to do this. Writers will have the opportunity to try out their own skills to this end. Then in the second half, A Crime Scene Uncovered: insights into the real police work behind the fiction – from detectives and CSIs to computer hackers.

Margaret Murphy has written nine internationally acclaimed psychological thrillers, most recently, The Dispossessed and Now You See Me. She has been shortlisted for the First Blood Award and for the Crime Writers’ Association Dagger in the Library. Originally trained as an Environmental Biologist, she has been a biology teacher, dyslexia specialist, tutor for the open College of the Arts, Visiting Professor for the MA in Writing at LJMU and - in addition to tutoring on Arvon courses - she has presented workshops, lectures and readings for libraries, readers’ groups and professional associations across the UK.

Margaret is founder of Murder Squad, Vice Chair of the CWA, and has recently been appointed a Royal Literary Fund Fellow. Venue: City Central Library, Hanley

Date: Saturday 21 March 2009, 10am – 3.30pm. Cost: £7, to be paid on booking. Please make cheques payable to Stoke-on-Trent City Council. To book, telephone City Central Library, Hanley on (01782) 238455.

Wind in the Willows: story competition

Wind in the Willows Centenary short story prize
Stories: 4000 words max
River related story for young people
Prizes: 1st £500, 2nd £200, 3rd £50 + publication
Entry fee: £4 story,
Closing Date; 15th March 2009

Visit here for details
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Writing competitions

The Bristol Short story Prize
Stories: 3000 words max
Prizes: 1st £500, 2nd £350, 3rd £200 + publication
Entry fee: £7 story,
Closing Date; 31st March 2009

Acadamy of Children’s Writers story competition
Stories: 2000 words max – story for children up to teenage
Prizes: 1st £2000, 2nd £300, 3rd £200
Entry fee: £2.70,
Closing Date; 31st March 2009

Ware Poetry Prize + Sonnet Prize
Poems: 50 lines max or sonnet
Prizes: 1st £500, 2nd £200, 3rd £100 + £1oo for best sonnet
Entry fee: £3 poem or £10 for 4,
Closing Date; 30th April 2009

The Bridport Prize
Poems: 42 lines max
Stories: 5000 words max
Prizes: 1st £5,000, 2nd £1,000, 3rd £500
Entry fee: £7 story, £6 poem
Closing Date; 30th June 2009

Click on links for further information on each competition .

Minutes from yesterday's meeting

The minutes of yesterday's meeting (7 March) are now available from the committee. Email stokeonwriting@gmail.com if you require a copy. Briefly, the meeting agreed on a membership fee of £20 pa with a discount for the unwaged; a minimum age limit of 18 years; to investigate the costs of various projects; and voted in additional committee members. Details of the committee to follow.

We then did what we were there for: several group members read out items for comments -- a mix of short stories and poems.

Future meetings are scheduled for: 4 April, 9 May, 13 June and 4 July. These are all Saturdays. The meetings start at 10.00 a.m. at the Bentilee Community Centre.

Making comments

If you wish to take issue with or add further information to, or just praise, a blog post, why not send a comment? After each post there are several hyperlinks, one of which is a number followed by the word "comments" (eg, 0 comments). Click on this and fill in the prompts, add you comments, and then click on Post Comment. You should then be asked to enter a verification code by transcribing characters (supplied by the program) -- this is an anti-spamming device. I look forward to receiving your emails of comments.
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Copyright notes

The issue of copyright was recently raised. Here is a very brief explanation. I suggest you look at the relevant chapters in a current edition of the Writers’ & Artists’ Yearbook, or read guides such as The Writer’s Rights by Michael Legat or An Author’s Handbook by David Bolt.

In the UK, if you write something original, it is your intellectual property. You own the copyright to that material. It does not need to be published for the assertion of copyright. Copyright means that no one is allowed to copy that material without your permission – which you give, for example, when you sell a manuscript to a publisher. You can give away or assign the copyright to someone else, should you wish (this may happen with some short story or poetry competitions, I believe). Copyright extends beyond the death of the artist (writer) by 70 years. Often, authors emphasise their ownership by adding © or (c) "your name" to a manuscript, but I don’t believe this is essential.

Remember: you can not copyright ideas. Any author has the right to produce work with similar themes or using the same facts. And of course, if you wish to include a quote (eg, song lyrics) in a story, you must gain permission from the copyright owner.
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FantasyCon 2009 press release

The British Fantasy Society is holding its annual convention, Fantasycon 2009, in Nottingham, UK, over the weekend 18-20 September. Fantasycon was first staged in the mid-1970s in Birmingham and has run more-or-less continuously since.

The 2009 convention is delighted to announce that the Guests of Honour are Jasper Fforde, Brian Clemens and Gail Z Martin. The Master of Ceremonies is Ian Watson. The convention’s highlights include guest interviews, panel discussion and the British Fantasy Awards Banquet.

Since Jasper Fforde’s first novel - The Eyre Affair - was published in 2001 he has consistently blurred genres, producing a wonderful series of reality-bending, funny, complex, literate and very silly books. His Tuesday Next series follows the adventures of the eponymous heroine and Literary Detective as she solves crimes against fiction in an alternative Republic of England. The Nursery Crime series, starring DCI Jack Spratt, have addressed both the murder of Humpty Dumpty (The Big Over Easy, 2005) and porridge-smuggling by bears (The Fourth Bear, 2006). A new series begins with his latest novel Shades of Grey.
Brian Clemens was born in Surrey in 1931. He is best known as the creative force behind The Avengers, for many of us epitomised by the image of Diana Rigg starring as Mrs Emma Peel. After service in the Army he worked in an advertising agency, during which he wrote a script which attracted the attention of the BBC. And from small beginnings... He later wrote the pilot episode of The Avengers, first shown in 1961. Besides writing for this, he scripted TV shows such as Adam Adamant Lives, The Persuaders, The Professionals and Thriller.

Gail Martin is the author of the Chronicles of the Necromancer series: The Summoner, The Blood King, Dark Haven and Dark Lady’s Chosen (coming in 2010). She discovered her passion for science fiction, fantasy and ghost stories in elementary school. The very first story she ever wrote — at age five — was about a vampire. Her favourite TV shows as a pre-schooler were Dark Shadows and Lost in Space. At age 14, she decided to become a writer, and launched a fanzine when she was in college.

Ian Watson was born in 1943 and graduated from Balliol College, Oxford, in 1963; he spent time working abroad before becoming a full-time writer in the 1970s. His work includes The Embedding, his first novel and which won the John W Campbell Memorial Award. His other books include: The Power, The Fire Worm, Whores of Babylon, Miracle Visitors, God's World and The Gardens of Delight.


For information and booking details, visit the Fantasycon website and blog: http://www.fantasycon.org.uk/ and http://fantasycon-2009.blogspot.com/

Painting Words

They say that a picture paints a thousand words. Thus, in order to look at thousands of them, take a trip over to Peter's Flickr website. There are loads of photos, many of writers in the fantasy and SF field.

Junk!

I thought I might recommend Junk by Melvin Burgess. Although this is aimed at the YA market, it warrants reading by adults, especially those with children, to help them understand their offspring. Junk tells of two young teenagers who run away from home, one from an abusive father, the other... Well, her reasons aren't as strong to the book's other protagonists. Gemma and David end up in squats in Bristol, amongst the unemployed, druggies, prostitutes. And it is only inevitable that they fall into this pit. Junk follows their life from several viewpoints, like the statements of all protagonists; and they come over with verisimilitude. Junk is so convincing. It is a salutory story which, I suspect, acts as a better caveat than all manner of warnings by teachers, politicians and parents.
--- Peter Coleborn

Ellen Datlow's Writing Tips

I contacted Ellen yesterday, and she gave permission for the following article to be reprinted on this blog.

WRITING TIPS BY ELLEN DATLOW

Are you writing for yourself or an audience? If you're lucky and good, you can do both at the same time. How accessible must you be? How accessible do you want to be? There are fine writers in and outside the sf/fantasy, and horrors field who are respected and read by editors and other writers but who don't sell very well.

This matters more in novel form than in short fiction. A writer can afford to be more experimental in short fiction because each story in a magazine or anthology does not sell the entire magazine or book. Each novel published needs to make money for the publishing house. You can and indeed must be literate in everything you write, but this does not mean you must be "literary."

When submitting fiction to an editor, send it in as finished and polished as you can. A story can only be read a first time once. In other words, impact counts. Editors are more likely to buy a story that hits them strongly on the first read. Whether a story is meant to be read more than once or not, the first read is the most important.

If you're having trouble with dialogue, I highly recommend reading the work of Elmore Leonard. You can pick up almost any of his books, turn a page at random, and find terrific, effective dialogue. People speak in idiom. Most people do not speak with perfect grammar or sentence structure. If you are using formal dialogue intentionally—for example, to show that a character speaks English as a second language—it's allowable. Leonard's dialogue runs fast and furious. It's not appropriate for every kind of story, but you can still learn from him.

The first line and paragraph of a story count. To see examples of effective first lines, check out William Gibson's stories in his collection BURNING CHROME. You don't have to start off with a bang, but something has to hold the reader—an image, a character, a hint of an event to come. This is known as the "hook." Practical advice on submitting a story:

• Always double space
• Paper clip your submissions
• Do not put tape on every corner of your submission envelope as it makes it exceedingly annoying and difficult for whomever is opening the envelopes to do so.
• Underline to show italics—do not italicize in a manuscript as it makes it difficult for the editor and copy editor to read.
• Use a standard, easy-to-read 12 pt font

(c) Ellen Datlow

Roots of an Editor: Ellen Datlow

Jan Edwards interviewed Ellen Datlow for a series of "Roots" interviews that appear in the magazine Dark Horizons, in issue 51 published in 2007. Ellen, a New Yorker, gained a BA in English Literature, and began at the roots of the game, building on hard work and dedication to become editor of Omni magazine and Omni Online from 1981 to 1998, and oversaw Event Horizon: Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror Webzine from September 1998 to December 1999. Ellen was also editor of SCI-FICTION until 2005. She had edited and/or co-edited approaching 50 anthologies. She has won seven World Fantasy Awards; two Bram Stoker Awards; an International Horror Guild Award; a Locus Award; and two Hugo Awards. The following is an extract from the original interview. (Photo of Ellen Datlow by Peter Coleborn)

JE: What story first sparked your imagination and led you into a career in the fantasy field?

ED: I don’t remember just one but there were fairy tales and Greek myths that I read when I was young and also the Mushroom Planet series of books by Eleanor Cameron. Later it was The Twilight Zone (original series) – I was too young to stay up for them so my mom told me the stories the next day (or sometimes, my sister and I watched from the direct line along the hallway from our bedroom to my parents’, where we could see the TV if we weren’t caught).

What was your earliest ambition? Did you always know that you would work with books or writers in some way?

I wanted to be a veterinarian because I love animals and I thought it would be wonderful to be around them all the time. Of course, as a child, I didn’t realize that [1] I’d have to take maths and science courses (ick) and [2] I’d be around a lot of sick and dying animals – those two things put me off the idea pretty quickly (especially the maths part). Then I wanted to work in a bookstore because I loved being around books and reading them. I knew nothing about how one would work with writers when I was young. In fact, I’m not really sure how I discovered that editors existed and that one could work for a publisher and help produce books. But somehow the connection was made and by my early twenties I wanted to get into editorial work in book publishing.

What where you first jobs before you became an editor?

Nothing very interesting before publishing: putting together cardboard boxes; bakery one summer; working in the university library in college; working in the Nizo-Braun camera factory in various jobs (machine room, assembly line-which was so boring I asked to do something else after a few days, helping in the kitchen) outside of Munich for several months after college.

You were born in New York, and still live in Manhattan. Do you feel that it was life in a big city that prompted you to explore the more colourful side of the human imagination?

I grew up in the Bronx until I was eight and hung around my block with a bunch of friends where we did things that kids do now in the suburbs. Play, build snow tunnels (yes, there was enough snow in the Bronx sometimes). My dad pulled me down the streets in a sled. I climbed bus poles (I was a tomboy), my friends and I practiced blowing bubbles with bubble gum. We practiced whistling (the only way I’ve been able to do it is the two fingers screech with the pinky and forefinger – you know? The taxi cab hailing whistle you sometimes see in movies. My father owned a luncheonette kitty corner across the street from where I lived and even after we moved to the suburbs when I was eight, we’d come to the luncheonette for lunch every Saturday (my sister and I went to music school that day) and I’d read all the comic books in the store, from Little Lulu and Superman to Classics Illustrated and the ones with creepy crawlies on the covers (I don’t remember the titles). So to answer your question – bet you thought I wasn’t going to get to it – I don’t know if it was the city per se that prompted my interest but certainly my upbringing encouraged it in some ways.

What was you first editing job?

You mean editorial job? Then I was as editorial assistant at Charterhouse, an imprint of David McKay (neither which exist any more). If you mean actually editing, it was Arbor House, which at the time was owned by the monster Don Fine. No one lasted very long there and the six months or so I worked there I went from answering the phone to editing a couple of novels and doing publicity. But my first real editing job was at Omni magazine, when I was hired as Associate Fiction Editor by Ben Bova, and worked with Bob Sheckley.

You edit both novels and short fiction. Do you have a preference? And can you remember which was the first story you selected for your first anthology?

I much prefer to edit short fiction. I’ve done it longer and I think I’m better at it. Well, since I started editing at Omni way before editing any anthologies, the first stories I selected and edited there once I was promoted to Fiction Editor were ‘Eyes I Dare not Meet in Dreams’ by Dan Simmons, ‘Burning Chrome’ by William Gibson, and ‘Petra’ by Greg Bear. Before that, of course, I was not yet buying the fiction myself but I was reading and editing all of it, including ‘Johnny Mnemonic’ and ‘Hinterlands’ by Gibson.

Anthologies have been scarce outside of fantasy and science fiction for many years. But in recent times the publishing houses have started to bring out more anthologies, especially in the YA ranges. How encouraging do you think this is for the future of fiction in general and fantasy in particular?

I’m not sure. Terri Windling and I have had luck selling a series of Young Adult anthologies to Viking – we get good money for them and they sell very well. Will Viking continue to support them? Who knows? It’s always a struggle to sell another anthology. I did an original horror anthology for Tor (The Dark) and it did well enough for them to commission a second from me (Inferno, out in December). If that one does well enough, I hope they’ll have me do another. I’ve got feelers out about some other anthologies – horror and fantasy ones. I don’t think mainstream publishing has much impact on genre publishing with regard to anthologies.

(c) Jan Edwards / Dark Horizons