Writers' Narrative January/February 2025 issue

EDITORIALTEAM

WendyH.Jones-EditorinChief-isalsoourExecutiveCommissioningandFeaturesEditor.Sheisthe multi-award-winning,best-sellingauthorofadult crimethrillersandcozymysteries,children’spicturebooksandnon-fictionbooksforwriters.Inaddition,sheisawritingcoach,partnerin Auscot Publishing and Retreats andhoststheWritingandMarketingShowpodcast.

SheenaMacleodisourDeputytotheEditorinChief. Sheoverseestheday-to-dayproductionanddesign. Sheis authorofthehistoricalfictionnovels,ReignoftheMarionettesandTearsofStrathnaver,andco-authorofthenonfictionbookSo,YouSayICan’tVote!FrancesConnelly.

PaulineTaitisoursubmissionsmanager.Sheisanaward -winning&bestsellingchildren’sauthor,romantic suspensenovelist,andwriting&publishingmentor tochildren’sauthors.SheisthevoicebehindReluctantReaders,aweeklynewsletterforparentand carersofchildrenwhofindreadingachallenge.

AllisonSymesisourCopyEditor.Sheisanawardwinning,publishedflashfictionandshortstorywriter. Shealsowritesaweeklycolumnontopicsofinterest forwritersforonlinemagazine, Chandler's Ford Today.

Susan McVeyisourContentEditor.Susanwrites dystopianfictionandfantasynarratives,tailoredfor theyoungadultandteenageaudience.ShepublishesunderMartiM.McNair.Herworksinclude Island of Ruin (RuinorRedemptionBook1).

MaressaMortimeroverseesourmarketingandoursocial mediaengagement.MaressaisauthoroftheElabi Chronicles, Burrowed and Sapphire Beach.

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Thismonthourthoughtsturntowritingnon -fiction.Whetherforblogs,newsletters, magazines,newspapersorevencompetitions,thereisnoendtotheirsuitability.

Manymaybesaying,Ionlywanttowritefiction, whywouldIevenbotherwithnon-fiction.The answerissimple,itisgoodtostretchyourself creativelyandthereisnoendtothetopicsyou cancover,allofwhichwillsupportyourfiction books.Non-fictiongivesyoucredibilityandallowsyoutodemonstrateyouareavoiceinthe area.

Therearemanytypesofnon-fictionandwiththis inmindourfeaturedauthorinterviewiswith KellyOliverwhospenthercareerwritingacademictextbooks.Wecanlearnsomuchfromher. WealsohaveaninterviewwithSueKittowafinalistintheNovelLondonCompetition.

Witharticlesonthetypesofnon-fictiontohints andtipsonwritingnon-fiction,fromlookingat thenon-fictionjourney,tocombiningimages andtextinnon-fictionbooks,everythingyou neediscovered.Ofcourse,alltheusualfeatures areincluded–fromthedeskoftheofficedog, writingpromptsandwritingbookofthemonth.

Thisissueissuretohaveyousittingupand readytostartyournon-fictionproject.Ihope youenjoytheissueandyoufindinspirationfor yourownwritingjourney.

Wendy H. Jones Editor in Chief

Wendy H. Jones Author, Publisher, Writing Coach

FeaturedInterview: KellyOliver

InterviewedbyWendyH.Jones

Editor in Chief Wendy H. Jones interviews bestselling fiction and non-fiction author Kelly Oliver. Here they discuss Kelly’s scholarly non-fiction and other works.

Kelly, thank you for joining us here at Writers’ Narrative to talk about writing Scholarly NonFiction. I’m excited to hear your answers as, having come from a background in academia myself, I think it is a topic which is often glossed over when discussing genres. Yet it is a vital part of the literary ecosystem. I appreciate you taking the time to answer my questions.

ThankYou,Wendy!It’smypleasure.

Whatmotivatedyoutodelveintotherealm ofscholarlynon-fictionwriting?

Shortstory:Iwasaphilosophyprofessorand enteredtheworldof“publishorperish.”

Longerstory:Beforesteppingfootonmycollegecampus,I’ddeclaredphilosophyandaccountingasmydoublemajor.

Accountingformyparents,whowantedmeto beataxlawyer.AndphilosophybecauseIhada biologyteacherinhighschoolwhowastaking philosophynightcourses.Iusedtointentionally givewronganswersonmybiologytestssoI couldstayafterschoolandarguewithmyteacher(Yeah,Iknow Imusthavebeensoannoying!!).Hetoldmeabouttheclasseshewastakingwheretheyaskedquestionslike,“Isthis chairreal?”and“Howdoweknowwe’renot dreaming.”Ithoughtthatsoundedsocool!!

Atthesametime,thehighschoolcounsellorwas tellingmetomajorinsomethingIliked.Heasked meaboutmyfavouritesubjectsinschool.I thoughtaboutitforawhileandrealizedalthoughIlovedschool,Ididn’thaveafavourite subject.Icouldn’tjustmajorin“school” remindsmeofKenintheBarbiemoviemajoring in“beach.”

IdecidedwhatIlovedaboutschoolwasthinking. AndIfiguredthatphilosophymustbethinking. So,Ideclaredmyselfaphilosophymajorbefore knowingwhatitwas.Don’tevenaskwhathappenedtotheaccountingdoublemajor!!

Lisa Turley is from West Virginia. She is on numerous ARC street teams and reads in multiple genres. She is passionate about helping authors get the wordoutabouttheirbooks.

Ifellinlovewithphilosophy.GotmyPh.Dand hadalovelycareerasaphilosophyprofessor writinghundredsofarticlesanddozensofbooks oneverythingfromanimalethics,newreproductivetechnologies,imagesofearthfromspace, capitalpunishment,andrefugeedetention,to Hitchcockfilms.

KellyOliver

Canyouwalkusthroughyourresearchprocesswhenembarkingonanewbookproject?

Itdependsontheproject.Forthephilosophy books,Ireadwidelyinphilosophyandstudied mediaandculture.Ioftenwroteaboutsocial issuesandculturalissues.Forexample,Ihave donealotofworkonHollywoodfilms.So,my homeworkwaswatchingmovies!Andthinking aboutthem.Andthencomingupwithsomethinginterestingtosayaboutthem(informedby decadesofreadingphilosophyandpsychoanalysis).

Formyhistoricalfiction,Istartbyfindinginterestingwomenwhohavebeenoverlookedormalignedbyhistory.Findingamazingwomenand bringingtheirstoriestolifehasbecomemypassion callitmypassionforfeministreclamation inhistoricalfiction.

MataHari(MargarethaGeertruidaZelle)isa greatexampleofawomanmalignedbyhistory asaspywhoallegedlyexchangedsexualfavors forstatesecrets.BiographerPatShipmanarguesthatMataHariwasascapegoatforthe double-dealing,GeorgesLadoux,France’scounterespionagechief.Shewasexecutedbecause Ladouxwasunderpressuretorootoutspies.He askedhertospyforFranceandthendoublecrossedher.Icouldn’tresistmakingMataHaria secondarycharacterinmysecondFionaFigg mystery, High Treason at the Grand Hotel.

Doingresearchfor Villainy in Vienna,Icame acrossAnnaSacher thecigar-smoking,French Bulldogloving,wifeoftheowneroftheSacher Hotel(thinkSacherTorte).Whenherhusband died,Annatookoverthehotelandbecame knownasatoughbutdiscretebusinesswoman.

ThemostinterestingwomanImetonmyjourneyto1917ViennawasMilevaEinstein,Albert’s firstwife.ShecorrectedAlbert’searlywork, wentuncreditedforcollaboratingonhisearly writings,andmostlikelycontributedimportant

researchtoEinstein’stheoryofrelativity.Althoughheneversharedthecreditwithher,after theirdivorce(hecheatedonherwithhis cousin),hedidgivehertheproceedsfromhis NobelPrize whichcouldbeinterpretedasfurtherevidenceofherunrecognizedcontributions tothetheoryofrelativity.

In Mayhem in the Mountains,FionaandhersidekickKittyLanetraveltotheDolomiteMountains inItaly.There,theymeetBenitoMussolini a notoriouswomanizerwhowasworkingforBritishIntelligenceatthetime andseveralofthe womenhewronged.AndtheymeetMarie Marvingt,thewomanwhoinventedtheairambulance.MariewasalsoaFrenchbomberpilot andcompetitiveathlete.Shecompetedininternationalskiingevents,includingskiinginthe ItalianDolomiteswithalliedItaliansoldiers.She wasalsoacompetitiveskaterandswimmer. ShedroppedleafletsfortheAllies.AndshedisguisedherselfasamantojointheFrencharmy. Inaddition,shewasamajorintheRedCross andworkedasanurse.Aregular“renaissance” woman,Mariewasquiteacharacterinreallife.

Anotheroneofmyfavouritereal-lifecharacters appearsin Arsenic at Ascot (outinNovember).In 1906,Swedish-BritishwomanEmilieAugusta Louise"Lizzy"LindafHagebyco-foundedthe AnimalDefenseSociety.Inaddition,sheinfiltratedtheUniversityCollegeLondonMedical Schoolasastudenttouncoverbrutalvivisectionistpractices.TogetherwithNinaDuchessof Hamilton,shefoundedFerneHouseasarefugeeforabandonedpetsduringtheworldwars, especiallythesecondworldwarwhenthere wasn’tenoughfoodtofeedbothfamiliesand pets. Arsenic at Ascot featurestheseearlyanimal rightsactivists.

Bringingtheseamazingwomentolifeinmyfiction,Ihopetoreclaimtheirhistories.Andinthe processbringnewawarenesstowomen’sissues bothhistoricalandcontemporary.

Howdoyoubalancetheneedforrigorandaccessibilityinyourwritingforadiverseaudience?

Ihavewritteneverythingfromverydensescholarlybooksonphenomenologytomoreaccessible “trade”booksonfilm.Iguessknowingtheaudiencehelps.Areyouwritingforanacademicaudienceorawideraudience?

Whatevermyaudience,I’vealwaystriedtopresentcomplexideasinastraightforwardway.In fact,Iwasoftentoldthatwasastrengthofmy writing.Asateacher,youlearntoexplaincomplicatedconceptsineverydaylanguage;it’sessentialtobeingagoodteacherthanyoucanexplain philosophyintermsthatrelatetoyourstudents’ lives.

OneofthemainreasonsIstartedwritingfiction wastoreachawideraudience.Myhopewasto exploresomeofthesamesocialissues especiallywomen’sissues andtobringthose issuestolifethroughfiction.

Howdoyounavigatetheprocessofengaging withexistingscholarlyliteraturewhilecontributingnewinsightsthroughyourwriting?

Read,read,read.Youhavetokeepupwiththe literatureandreadeverythingyoucanfindonthe topicyou’reexploring.Teachinghelpedmedo that.MysyllabuswasmadeupofbooksandarticlesthatIneededtoreadformyresearch,especiallywhenIwasteachinggraduatecourses. Readingsparkslotsofideas!Thebestwayto learnsomethingisbyteachingit!

Whatadvicewouldyouoffertoaspiringwritersinterestedinpursuingscholarlynon-fiction bookprojects?

Persevere.Yourworkwillfinditsaudience!

Iamgoingtochangetackslightlynow.Youare thepastPresidentofSistersinCrime,anexcel-

lentorganisation.Pleasecanyoutellusabout theorganisationandhowitsupportsmembers,particularlythosewhowritenon-fiction.

SistersinCrime(SinC)isanamazingorganization thatstartedasanadvocacygroupforwomen crimewritersbuthasexpandedoverthedecades toincludeadvocacyforallmarginalizedcrime writers.Theorganizationiscommittedtomaking diversewritersfeelwelcome.Ourmottois, “Where writers belong.”

IstartedwritingfictionthankstoaSinCworkshopatKillerNashvilleabouttenyearsagonow. SinCofferswebinarsonallaspectsofwriting craftandbusiness.Thosewebinarsarearchived. So,SinCmembershipgivesyouaccesstosome high-qualitylessonsinwritingthatapplytoboth fictionandnonfiction.

SinCofferswritersinallgenres(notjustcrime)so manyresources.JoiningSinCissuchagreatinvestmentinyourwritingcareer.

ThereissomuchIcouldsayaboutSinC,butfor now,I’lltellyouaboutoneofmyfavoritebenefits ofSinC:thewritingcommunity.Writingisoftena solitarypursuit.SinCconnectsyouwithother writerswhoshareyourpassionforreadingand writing.Asyouknow,Wendy,it’sawonderful group!!

Youalsowritecozymysteries.I’mcurious, whythemoveandfinally,wherecanwefind outmoreaboutyouandyourwork?

AsImentionedearlier,onereasonIstartedwritingfictiontoreachawideraudience.Another reasonisthestoryIhadtotellcouldonlybetold throughfiction.

Myfirstnovel, Wolf, A Jessica James Mystery,is basedonmyownexperienceasagraduatestudentinphilosophyatNorthwesternUniversity.I grewupinMontanaandIdaho,andgoingto graduateschoolwasfullofsomanyfirstsforme.

Itwaseye-opening,tosaytheleast.Iwasoneof theonlywomenintheprogram.Alltheprofessorsweremen(infactthroughoutmycollege andgraduatecareer,Ineveroncehadawoman professorasateacher).Muchofmygradschool experiencewasstrangerthanfiction!

Sure,inprinciple,Icouldhavewrittenanonfictionaccount,akindofmemoire.But,inpractice, Icouldn’tdothat.Ineededthesafetyofafictionalworldtobeabletotalkaboutexperiences thatweredifficulttoprocessatthetime and stillareforthatmatter.Fictiongavemethe spacetoturntraumaticexperiencesintofunny stories,storiesIcouldlivewith,storiesthatenabledmetolivewiththoseproblematicexperiences.

Asforcozies,Iquicklygotthefictionwritingbug. Sincewritingmyfirstnovel,almosttenyears agonow,I’vewritteneighteennovelsandcounting.I’mabigfanofentertainingstoriesanddialoguewithoutgoreorgraphicsex.Mycoziesare fast-pacedandfunnyhistoricalmysteriesinspiredbyreal-lifewomenwhohavebeenregulatedtothedustbinofhistory…alongwithlots ofquirkycharactersfrommyownimagination.

Youcanfindoutmoreaboutmeandmyworkat www.kellyoliverbooks.com Ifyougotomywebsiteandsignupformynewsletter,you’llgeta Jessica James Mystery (e-book)asmygift.

Thankyouonceagain,andIwishyouallthe bestwithyourwritingandyourbooks.Itreallywasapleasuretochattoyou.

Thankyou,Wendy!

Kelly Oliver is the author of four award-winning bestselling mystery series and dozens of nonfiction books.

Her cozy historical mystery series, The Fiona Figg Mysteries are set in WW1 and follow plucky file clerk turned spy Fiona Figg from London to Paris, Vienna, New York and Cairo. The first, Betrayal at Ravenswick, won a Reader's Choice Award for Historical Mystery. The second, High Treason at the Grand Hotel, was chosen by Mystery Tribune Magazine as one of the most anticipated mysteries of 2021.

Mystery in Manhattan is the first in the spin-off series The Fiona Figg and Kitty Lane Mysteries, where Fiona gets a new side-kick. Arsenic at Ascot won the Silver Falchion Award for Best Historical Mystery.

She is also the author of The Pet Detective Middle Grade Mysteries, including Cub Reporter, Treasure Hunter, and Geocacher. The Pet Detective Mysteries have won a Reader's Choice Award for Children's Mystery, been a finalist for a Silver Falchion Award for Children's Mystery, and won a New York Book Award for BEST Children's Book.

Kelly's latest series is The Detection Club Mysteries featuring Agatha Christie and Dorothy Sayers. Watch for the first in the series, The Case of the Christie Controversy.

Her nonfiction work includes over 100 articles and over twenty books, including: Hunting Girls: Sexual Violence from The Hunger Games to Campus Rape (which won a CHOICE AWARD for Outstanding Title).

She has been featured on ABC news, CSPAN books, and various radio programs.

NewReleasefromKellyOliver: The Case Of The Christie Conspiracy

TITLE: The Case Of The Christie Conspiracy by KellyOliver

ASIN:B0DFXWPCFP

Publisher:BoldwoodBooks(February2025)

Blurb

AgathaChristieisabouttoembarkonanew, grippingmurdercase.Butthistime,she’snot theauthor–she’sasuspect…

1926–ChristieisadarlingoftheliterarycircuitandthemostdesiredguestinLondon’sglitteringsocial scene.ShecanoftenbefoundatmeetingsoftheDetectionClub–wheremysterywriterscometogether toshareideas,swapsecretsanddrinkcopiously.Butthenafellowauthor'sinitiationceremonytakesa gruesometurn,andoneofthegroupendsupdead.Now,Agathaisnolongerjustthecreatorofgreat mysteryplots–she’saplayerinone.

AndwhenAgathadisappearsthedayafterthemurder,she’swidelyassumedtobeguilty.OnlyEliza Baker,assistanttotheClub’senigmaticsecretary,DorothySayers,isinterestedininvestigatingthecase. Butinaworldwheremurderistheultimateplotdevice,canElizapiecetogethertheevidenceandfind thekillerbeforeit’stoolate?

LaoChildren’sLibraryBoats—Laos

byWendyH.Jones

Whentalkingoflibrariesmostofusimmediatelyimaginefixedbuildingsin ourlocaltownsandcities.However, sometimesthisisnotpossibleformanyreasons butmostoftengeographicaloreconomic.So,it isoftennecessarytothinkoutsidetheboxto bringliteraturetopopulationswhowouldhave no,orlittle,access.

OnesuchinitiativeistheLaoChildren’sLibrary BoatsinLaos.Thesetwoboatssailupand downtheMekongandNamOuRivers.Onthe waytheystoptoserviceandprovidebooksto schoolchildrenin104villages.Whentheboat arrives,thechildrencomeaboardandchoose books.Theythenspendtheremainderofthe day,andoftenthenight,reading,beforetaking thebooksbacktotheboatthenextmorning. However,remember,thisreadingismostoften donebycandlelightintheseremoteareas.The childrenlovereadingsomuchtheywillcarryon aslongaspossibletogetthroughtheirbooks. Itmayseemratherunfortunatetheycanonly keepthemforoneday,butneverfear,bagsof booksareleftattheschool,soreadingmaterial isavailabletotakethemthroughtothenext visit.Theboatsstockmorethan1000books, mostofwhichareinthenativeLaolanguage.

TheyareajointinitiativebetweenLuangPrabang LibraryandCommunityLearningInternational (CLI)inordertoimproveliteracyintheoutlying areas.Inadditiontoprovidingbooks,theyalso carryoutlifeskillclassesandlendagricultural bookstoadults.

Librariesreallycanchangelives,andthisinitiative demonstratesitisworthgoingtheextramile, evenifitisupariver,tobringreadingtoeveryone.Icanonlyimaginethejoyonthosechildren’s faceswhentheyseethebookboatcomingupthe riveranddockingatthejetty.Bookboatsmustbe thecoolest,andsomeofthemostimportant,librariesintheworld

Wendy H. Jones is the multi-award-winning, best-selling author of adult crime thrillers and cozy mysteries, children’s picture books and non-fiction books for writers. In addition, she is a writing coach, partner in Auscot Publishing and Retreats and hosts the Writing and Marketing Show podcast.

WritingNarrativeNon-fiction

Julia Thorley discusses writing Narrative Nonfiction and shares useful tips which will help make your work stand out.

I’vegrownaccustomedtothatslightheadtilt ofsympathypeoplegivemewhenIsayI workmostlyinnon-fiction,asthoughitwere somehowthepoorrelationofnovelwriting.I believetherecanbeasmuchscopeforcreativity infactualwritingasinfiction.

ThewayIthinkofitisthatitisatruestoryoran accountofsomethingfactualbutwritteninthe samewayasyoumightwritefiction–andintendedtobereadinthesamespirit.Itislikelyto appealtoawideraudiencethanatextbookon thesamebroadsubject.Forinstance,I’mnot interestedinsheepfarming,butIenjoyed The Shepherd’s Life byJamesRebanks.

Thetrickistoturnanon-fictionpieceintosomethingpeoplewanttoreadasthoughitwerea novel.Theywanttoknowhowitends,even thoughmoreoftenthannottheywillalready know.Forexample,in Wilding byIsabellaTree, weknowsheachievedherobjectivesorthere wouldhavebeennobook,butthehowandthe whyiswhatcaptivatesus.

Whatcanyoudototurnyournon-fictioninto somethingmorecreative?Thinkaboutthenarrativeelements,ratherthanthepurelyfactual. Consider,forexample, The Salt Path byRaynor Winn.Whatitboilsdowntoistwopeoplewalk fromMineheadtoPoole,butasthequotefrom the Sunday Times says,itis‘Ataleoftriumphof hopeoverdespair,ofloveovereverything.’

Creativenarrativeisoften(thoughnotexclusively)writteninthefirstpersonoratleastisapersonalstory,butIwouldsuggestthereisvaluein includingcharactersotherthanyourselfasnar-

rator.Likeanystory,creativenarrativebegins withthefacts,butthenyouaddthefinesse.

Beginwiththeoldruleof‘show,don’ttell’by introducingactionamongstthosefacts.Considereverythingyouwouldifyouwerewritingnonfiction,suchasreferencingeachofthesenses, andaddingcolouranddescription.Becreative withlanguage,andmakesureyouincludesome dialogue.Conversationsarepartoflifeand shouldbepartofnarrativenon-fiction.

It’sokaytodigress,too,toexplorephilosophical pointsandmoraldilemmas,ortowanderoffina ‘thatremindsme’way.Ifyouwantamasterclass inthis,checkoutAlistairCooke’s Letter from America on BBC Sounds.SimonArmitageisanotherexponentofthis.Isuggestyouread Walking Home.

I’dalsorecommendanythingbyDavidSedaris. Heisamasterofobservationandretellingtales fromhislifewithhumour,pathosandwryness. (Sidenote:whenImethimatabooksigning,on thecopyofhisbookIboughtheincludedthe message‘Thankyouformakingmerich.’)

JuliaThorley

Mergingseveralsmallbutrelatedincidentsinto onegloriouswholeisallowed.IheardaBill Brysoninterviewinwhichhesaidsomeofthe moregrotesquecharactershedescribesin Notes from a Small Island –e.g.terribleboardinghouse landladies–areanamalgamofseveralpeople hemetonhistravels,sohistalesaretrue,but subjecttoatouchofartisticlicence.

It’sfinetoreordercontentifitsuitsthenarrative better.Imustconfessinmydiarybook, A Sparge Bag on the Washing Line,whichchroniclesmy husband’sfirstyearofretirement,ifIhadtwo hilariousthingshappenononeday,Imight transferittoadulldaywhennothinghappened.

Whenpitchinganon-fictionbookyoudon’tnecessarilyhavetohavewrittenthewholething,but ifyou’retellingastorywithinityoumightwant todoso.Irecommendyouhaveabroadideaof whereyou’reheading,butthenseewhereyour researchtakesyou.

With Sparge Bag,IknewIwasgoingtowritefor oneyear,buthadnoideawhetheritwasgoing tobefunnyorsad,ortragic,orfulloflifelessons, orwhat.Asitturnsout,itisgentlyhumorous (shesays,withmodesty).Myinclinationisalways towritefreely,ratherthanrestrictmyselftoa pigeonhole,butthentoreread/editwithanend marketinmind,becausepublishersdolovea category.

TrustmewhenIsaywritingnarrativenon-fiction isnotaneasyoption.Ittakesjustasmuchdedication,planningandhardworkasanyother style.Theappealforme,though,isthatitgives methefreedomtotellmystory,myway.

Trynarrativenon-fiction

1.Usingeighttotenbulletpoints,breakdown intostagessomethingyoudoeveryday,e.g. Wakeup

Yogapractice

Shower

Chooseclothesandgetdressed

Havebreakfast

Cleanteeth

Leaveforwork

2.Nowrewritethebulletsasbaldsentences,in themannerofatextbook,e.g.

Iwokeupat6.30am.

Irolledoutmymatandpractisedyogafor20 minutes,followedbya10minutesmeditation. Ishoweredanddriedmyself.

Iopenedmywardrobe,selectedanoutfitandgot dressed.

Ihadabowlofcerealwithmilkforbreakfast, withacupoftea.

Icleanedmyteeth.

Ileftthehouse,andwalkedtothestationto catchthetraintowork.

3.Nowrevisethosesentencestoproduceacreativecoupleofparagraphsthatwouldsitwellina first-personnovel,butkeepingthefactsthe same.

Iwasn’treadyforthejangleofthealarm,buthalf -openingasleepyeyeIcouldseetheaccusing faceofmydigitalclocktellingmeitwashalf-six.I kickedoffthefamiliarfloralduvet,stumbledout ofbedandstoodstillforamomentwhilemy bodygotusedtotheideaitwasupright.Irolled outmyyogamatandforcedmyselfthrougha fewSalutestotheSun,awarewhatIreallywantedtodowascrawlbacktobed and so on.

Non-fictionwritingisalegitimateoutletforyour creativity.Evenifyouhavenointentionofwritingabookorevensubmittinganarticle,itcanbe ausefulrouteintoatrickyfictionsceneoraway ofgettingyourwritingjuicesflowinginanew andexcitingway.

Julia Thorley is a Kettering-based editor and writer, and author of several fiction and non-fiction books. She also runs workshops, gives talks on writing, and is a competition judge.

It’sNon-FictionButNotAsWeKnowIt

Wendy H. Jones provides an overview of a variety of non fiction sub genres.

Thetitleofthisarticlemaybesomewhat tongueincheek,buttherealityis,what weknowcollectivelyasnon-fictioncanbe brokendownintomanydifferenttypes,orsub genres.

Anoverviewofeachtypemaybeusefulforthose consideringwritingnon-fiction.Whilstmanyexperiencedwritersmayalreadyknowthis,itis stillworthreadingonasyoumayfindyourself itchingtowriteadifferenttypeofbookthan yourusualchoice.Whyputallyourliteraryeggs inonebasket?

Academic

Ihavedeliberatelystartedwiththissub-genreas ourfeaturedauthorthismonth,KellyOliver, startedherwritingcareerwritingacademictextbooks.IwillnotdwellontheseasKellydoesa verygoodjobofdescribingthegenre.

NarrativeNon-Fiction

Ilovethetitleofthisgenreasitdoesexactly whatitsaysonthetin.Narrativemeansstory andnon-fictionmeansitistrue,sofactswritten intheformofastory.

Increasinglyyouwillfindthetermsliterarynonfictionandcreativenon-fictionusedaswell.This isapopularwayoftellingastory,oftenfromthe past.Oneofthemostcrucialpartsofwriting suchabookistheresearch.Whilstavoidingthe researchrabbitholeisimportant,thewriterof narrativenon-fictionmustbecompletelycognisantofthefactsasitisimportanttoremember, thisisnotfiction.

Thenarrativeisequallyasimportantinthatit needsdramaandsuspense.Youmightthinkthis isadifficultbalancingactbutitisworthwhile whenitbringsthereaderenjoyment.

Anexampleofnarrativenon-fictionis A Woman of No Importance: The Untold Story of Virginia Hall, WWII's Most Dangerous Spy bySoniaPurnell.

Memoir

Amemoircanbestbedescribedasasliceofthe author’slife.Whilstitisoftenthoughtofasan autobiography,itismorefocussedthanthat, drillingdownintoapivotalmomentintheirlife. Itisalsotoldfromtheauthor’sviewpointand onlytheirviewpoint.Itishowtheyrememberit ratherthanprovidingonlystraightfacts.Yes,itis factualbutseenthroughthelensofoneperson’s memory.Memoireisactuallyaderivativeofthe Frenchwordformemory–mémoire.So,thissub -genrereallydoesdowhatitsaysonthetin.An exampleofmemoiris Educated byTaraWestover.

Guidebook

Thesearethebookswebuyandreadbeforewe goabroad.Theyareusuallywrittenby,orinconjunctionwith,alocalwithinsiderknowledge. Theycovereveryaspectofvisitingthearea,from

thehistoryofthearea,politics,hotels,restaurantsandthingstodo.Inmanywaystheseare beingsupersededbytheinternetasinformation isalwaysathandandusuallyuptodate.However,manypeoplestillpreferaphysicalcopy whichhasalltheinformationinoneplace.An exampleis The Rough Guide to New York City by RoughGuides.

Travelogue

Ifyoulovetravellingthisisoneyoumightwant toconsider.Itisliterallyapieceofwritingabout travel.IconsiderPaulTherouxtobethemaster oftraveloguewritingalongsideBillBryson.One ofmyfavouritePaulTherouxbooksis Riding the Iron Rooster: by train through China.

HowTo

Thisisliterallywhatthetitlesaysitis.Itteaches thereaderhowtodosomething.Iuse Ballet for Dummies byScottSpeckandEvelynCisnerosto gettheballetreferencescorrectformyCass ClaymoreMysteries.TheDummiesseriesisan excellentseriestolookatwhenconsidering writingHowTobooks.Thisoneisparticularly suitableifyouareasubjectexpertinanyarea.

Self-Help

Alsoknownasself-improvementthesebooks helpthereadertosolveaproblemorimprove themselvesinacertainaspectoftheirlife.I wouldventuretosaymostofuswillhavereada self-helpbookatsomepointinourlives.Agood exampleofthisis Atomic Habits byJamesClear

History

Anaccountofaparticularhistoricaleventor timeinhistory,writtenbysomeonewithagood knowledgeofthetopic.Often,theycancross overwithnarrativenon-fictionortheycanbe funandaimedatchildren,suchasHorribleHistoriesbyTerryDeary.Thesebringhistorytolife andevenadultsenjoythem.

BiographiesandAutobiographies

Anautobiographyisanaccountofsomeone’s lifewhichhasbeenwrittenbythepersonthem-

selves.Abiographyisanaccountofsomeone’s lifewrittenbyanauthorotherthanthemselves.I canneverrememberwhichiswhich,butitisimportantwhenyouarepitchingittopublishersor categorisingitintheonlinebookstores.Example ofaBiographyis Maggie Smith: A Biography by MichaelCoveney.Anexampleofanautobiographyis Old Rage bySheilaHancock.

SocialCommentary

Thesearebookswhichexploreandshineaflashlightonaparticularaspectofsociety.Thissubgenreofnon-fictionisbornoutofpassionforthe subjectandusually,butnotalways,writtenfrom theauthor’spointofview.Anexampleofasocial Commentarybookis Inconvenient People: Lunacy, Liberty and the Mad Doctors inVictorianEnglandbySarahWise.

Humorous

Thesecanliterallybejokebooksornon-fiction bookswritteninahumorousway.Inorderto writethistypeofbookyoureallymusthavea flareforhumourinthefirstinstance.Anexample ofthistypeofwritingis 1000 Years of Annoying the French byStephenClarke.

Thereareothersub-genresandevensub-subgenres,buttheconfineofspacecurtailsmygoing intoanymoredetail.Ifthisisasubjectwhichinterestsyouthenitisworthlookingfurtherinto theothergenres.Iwouldencourageyoutotry yourhandatwritingnon-fictionbut,aswitheverythingtodowithwriting,readinginthegenre youwanttowriteinisagreatstartingpoint,perhapswithsomeoftheonesIhavementioned above.Enjoyexploringthenon-fictiongenres. You’llfinditisgreatfun.

Wendy H. Jones is the multi-award-winning, bestselling author of adult crime thrillers and cozy mysteries, children’s picture books and nonfiction books for writers. In addition, she is a writing coach, partner in Auscot Publishing and Retreats and hosts the Writing and Marketing Show podcast.

The Secret Lives of Booksellers and Librarians by

JamesPatterson& MattEversmann

Reviewedby LouiseCannon

Review

ISBN-10 : 1529918898

ISBN-13 : 978-1529918892

Publisher: Century(April2024)

Blurb

Tobeabooksellerorlibrarian…Youhavetoplaydetective. Beatreasurehunter.Amatchmaker.Abrilliantlistener.

Apersonwhocreatesakindofmagicbypullingabookfroma shelf,handingittosomeoneandsaying,'You'vegottoreadthis. You'regoingtoloveit'.

Inthislovelettertotheheroesofliteracy,JamesPattersonuncoverstruestoriesfrombooksellersandlibrarians.Preparetoentera worldwhereyoucanfeedyourcuriosities,discovernewvoices, andfindwhateveryouneed.

Meetthesmartandtalentedpeoplewholivebetweenthe shelves-andwhocan'twaittohelpyoufindyournextgreat book.

Althoughthere’sanAmericanslant,duetowhereJamesPattersonisfrom,there’slotsoffoodfor thoughtforaUKaudience.Itstartswithashockingstatisticaboutreadersthatissuretomakeanyonesit uprightwithajolt,beforemovingintothelivesofbooksellersandlibrarians.

Whatbecomesapparent,islibrariansandbooksellersappearto,byandlarge,encountersimilarissues andwentintotheseprofessionsforsimilarreasonswhereverintheworldyouare.

Itisawell-presentedbookthatreaderscaneasilydipinandoutofattheirleisureandgainmanyinsights.It’sabitofacelebrationinwhatittakestobealibrarianorbookseller,aswellasshowingthey alsohavelivesout-withtheirprofessionaljobs.Thebookisalsolikeabackstagepassintowhatthepublicdonotnormallyseeorthinkofastheymostlyexperiencejusttheendresult.

Theloveforbooksellersandlibrariansthatoozesfromthepagesisenoughtomakeanyone’sheartsing withinthoseprofessionsandwinovertheheartsandmindsofthoseoutwiththoseprofessions.

Louise Michelle Cannon lives in Central Scotland with family and a cute but wily cat. She writes a blog – Bookmarks and Stages, reviewing books, theatre, festivals and conducts the occasional Q&A sessions.

WritingNon-Fiction:HintsandTips

Allison Symes shares hints and tips for writing non-fiction, applicable to whether or not a theme has been set.

Iweartwowritinghats-fictional(shortstoriesandflashfiction)andnon-fiction,which includesblogs,aweeklyonlinemagazine column,andmy Writers’ Narrative articles.

Oneofthejoysofnon-fictionwritingisinsharingusefulinformation.Iappreciatethenonfictionworkswhichcontinuetohelpmewithmy writingjourney.Iregularlywrite1000to2000 wordsfornon-fictionandhavefoundthefollowingtipsuseful.

WhereThereIsaSetTheme

Thisisthecasefor Writers’ Narrative. Ijotdown ideaswhichemergefromthesetthemeandgo withwhatIlikebest.Ijudge“liking”bytheimpacttheideahasonmeanditspotentialusefulnessforothers.BothmustbeinplacebeforeI writeanything.Idefine“impact”aswhatIcould usefullybringtothetopicandwhatexperiences Icanshare.

WhereThereIsn’taSetTheme

Thisisthecaseformyweeklyonlinemagazine column.Ipickthetopic.Here,itisacaseof knowingmyaudience.Itargetfellowwriters. Thereisasignificantwritingcommunityinmy area.HavingyourIdealReaderinmindapplies justasmuchtonon-fictionasitdoestofiction.

Thecalendarhelps.Forexampletowardsthe endoftheyear,Iwillwriteapieceformyweekly onlinecolumnwhichwillincludefestiveflash fictionI’vehadpublishedorbroadcast.Iwillflag

Allison Symes

up where thisworkappeared.Why?Otherwritersmaywanttosubmitsomethingnexttime. Youmustknowthemarketexiststobeableto writeforit,Igetinaplug, and sharesomething ofvaluetofellowwriters.Win-win!

Someoneelsesharedwithmehowtogetmy flashstoriesbroadcast.Whatgoesaround comesaroundissotrueinthewritingcommunity.Webenefitfromwhatotherssharewithus.I seethisaspayingitbackwardsandforwards.It paysyoutodoit.Youneverknowwhensomethingwillcomearoundwhichprovesbeneficial toyou.Ithappens.

FindingIdeasforNon-Fiction

Startwithwhatinterestsyou.I’minterestedin creativewriting.Playtoyourstrengths.Youcan keepwritingontopicsyoulove.Lifeistooshort towasteonwritingonthingswhich don’t interestyou.Howcouldyoukeepthatup?

Lisa Turley is from West Virginia. She is on numerous ARC street teams and reads in multiple genres. She is passionate about helping authors get the wordoutabouttheirbooks.

Thinkaboutwhatcouldcomefromyourmajor interest(s).Inmycasethisincludeshow-toarticles,celebratingbooks(toencouragepeopleto readmore),sharingsomeofmyfictionand breakingdownhowIwrotethestories.Ialso interviewauthorsformyweeklycolumn.

SothefieldofcreativewritingcoverswhatI write,whatIliketoread(andthenItalktothe authors),aswellassharingtipsandwriting news.Thiscomesfromonemajorinterestof mine.

Research

Bigtip:notedownyoursourcesasyougo.This willmakeiteasierforyoutorefreshyour memory.Itwillsaveyoutimeandgriefwhen submittingworktoapublisher.Theyalways wanttoknowwhereyoufoundyourresearchas necessarypermissionsmustbecleared. Think aboutbooksyoulikereading.Writersarealso readers.Wecandrawonourloveofbooksfor furthernon-fictionpieces.

Audience

FigureoutwhoyourIdealReaderwouldbe. SomeofmyarticlesItargetatbeginnerwriters. Thosearticlescanalsoproveusefultothemore experienced.Theyactasreminders.Ialsoask myselfwhatIwouldwantfromanarticleIwas proposingtowriteifIwastheonereadingit.

Layout

Bigblocksoftextcanbeoff-putting.Breakup textwithsub-headings.Usebulletpoints.Lay outyourworkinasensibleAtoBmanner.Asa storyneedsabeginning,middle,andanend,so doesnon-fiction.Makeyourpieceapleasurefor someonetoread(includingyoureditor).

Attheend,areadershouldfeelasiftheyhave comeawaywithsomethinginteresting.Thisis wherethinkingaboutwhatyouknowyouwould findusefulpaysdividends.Youareanticipating readerneeds.I’vedonesoforthisarticletoo.In puttingyourselfinyourIdealReader’sshoes,it steersyourwriting,whichleadsmenicelytomy finalpoint.

Outlining

Pleasedon’tgroan!Anoutlinecanbeassimple orascomplexas you want.It’saroadmap.For myflashfictionImightwriteacoupleoflinesto workoutmycharacterandwhattheywillface.

Forarticles,IwantalogicalorderforwhatI share.

Justnotingdownideasforanarticlewillhelp yousortoutwhicharethestrongonesyou shouldwriteupandtheweakeroneswhich needfurtherconsiderationand,ifnecessary, discarding.Thephrase“Killyourdarlings”appliestonon-fictiontoo.

Conclusion

Iwasarelativelylatedevelopertoreadingand writingnon-fictionbutamgladIloveitnow. SometimessomethingI’vereadinnon-fiction willsparkstoryideas.IalsofindifIamrestinga story,byworkingonsomethingdifferent,which non-fictionis,theactofwritingthatsomething differenttriggersideasforimprovingmystory. Thesubconsciousdoesworkonsomething you’remullingoverwhileyourfocusiselsewhere.Iusedtofindthatannoying.Idon’tdoso now;Iwelcomeitinstead.

Itworkstheotherwayaroundtoo.Whenwriting fiction,Ioftengetideasfornon-fictionpieces.I jotdownthoseideas,writemystory,andthen returntomynotes.Justashavingtimeaway fromastoryhelpsyoutoedititmoreeffectively, havingtimeawayfromideanoteswillhelpyou assesswhetherthesewillworkornot.

Happynon-fictionwriting.Itisagreatfieldin whichtowork.

Allison Symes is a flash fiction/short story writer, blogger and editor based in Hampshire. She runs writing workshops, judges competitions, and writes weekly for writers for Chandler’s Ford Today. She has two flash fiction collections published (Chapeltown Books) with a third in the pipeline.

TheViolette

Lis McDermott discusses the Violette this month and how she keeps on learning so much from writing in different poetic forms.

Forthethemeofnon-fiction,Idecidedto writeinaformcalledtheViolette.

Theformhasarhymeschemewherelinefourof eachstanzacarriesalinkingrhymeacrossfrom stanzatostanza.

Thepoemcanbewrittenwithanynumberof fourlinedstanzasasyouchoose.

Thesyllabicpatternforthepoemis6-6-6-4.

Therhymingpatternisaaabcccbdddbeeeb–b isthelinkingrhymefromstanzatostanza.

Workinginmyusualway,Ifirstthinkaboutmy themeandwordslinkedwiththattheme.InitiallyIthoughtaboutthevarioustypesofnonfictionwritingandendedupwithquitealist:-

Article;biography;letter;diaries;self-help books;opinion;academicwriting;history,essay, memoir,review,textbook-therearemany more.

ThenIlookedforrhymingwordstomatchmy typesofnon-fictionwritingandendedupwith onlyfourofthewordsthathadagoodnumber ofmatchingrhymes.

Essay,Memoir,ReviewandTextbook.

Next,Ichosewordsthatrhymedwith‘fiction’ endingupwithaddiction,restriction,contradiction.

LisMcDermott

Mynextjobwastocreateafoursyllablelinethat madesenseasthesewordsweregoingtobethe rhymingwordattheendofeachstanza.

Thisisthefirstdraft.

Non-FictionWriting

Praisedforhisnewessay Compellingfaithheldsway, hecouldnotturnastray. Pureaddiction

Inherwords,hermemoir Herlifeasachildstar. Themundaneandbizarre. Norestriction.

Thelatestfilmreview Ofwhichthereareafew Morethanonepointofview. Contradiction.

Methodsofhowtocook, Bestwaystocatchacrook.

Manytypesoftextbook. Allnon-fiction.

Iwasn’tfullyconvincedbysomeoftheword choices,sowrotethissecondversion.Inthefirst stanza,Iwaveredbetween‘hecouldnot’and ‘hewouldnot’,andintheendchose‘could’becauseofthelastline–pureaddiction.Idecided hewouldn’thaveachoice.

Non-FictionWriting

Praisedforhisfierceessay, Compellingaimsheldsway, Hecouldnotturnastray. Pureaddiction

Herstory,amemoir oflifeasarisingstar, bothmundaneandbizarre. Norestriction.

Thelatestfilmreview ofwhichtherewereafew varyingpointsofview. Contradiction.

Methodsofhowtocook, Bestwaystocatchacrook. Manytypesoftextbook. Allnon-fiction.

Inthefinishedpoem,thereisapartoftheform thatisn’tincluded,whichisthattheendrhymes shouldbefemininerhymes.

Definitionoffemininerhyme:arhymebetween stressedsyllablesfollowedbyoneor moreunstressedsyllables (e.g.stocking/shocking,glamorous/amorous).

I’malsolearningasIwritepoemsinthesedifferentforms,includinglearningthetechnicallanguageofpoetry. Forexample,whilstresearchingthemeaningoffemininerhyme,Ialso

learnedthenoun‘prosody’meansthepatterns ofrhythmandsoundusedinpoetry.Previously, notawordI’veusedorcomeacross.

Whenwriting‘Non-Fiction’IwasnotsureIstuck tofemininerhymethroughout.Thisisbecause sometimesformscanberestrictivewhenit comestofindingwordchoices–especiallyonce you’vedecidedonthethemeofthepoemand aresetonthatpath.Therefore,Idecidedtowrite asecondpoemwhereI’mcertainI’veusedfemininerhymesattheendofeachline.

ANewStart

Thenewyeariswaking allhopesforthetaking. Timefordaydreammaking. Befarbraver.

Bearecordbreaker notafraudandfaker Beanewlifeshaker. Neverwaver.

Don’tspendyourtimebleating aboutallthingsfleeting. Changedirection,greeting joystosavour.

HappyNewYearandenjoyexploringnewpoetry forms.

Lis McDermott is a multi-genre author, poet and writing mentor. Visit Lis’ website: https://lismcdermottauthor.co.uk

HowToBecomeAnEffectiveWriter

John Greeves discusses how to become an effective writer and shares some fabulous tips.

Successinwritingoftendependslesson naturalabilityandmoreontheorganisationandoverallapproachyouadoptasa writertotheprocess.

Frequently,toolittleissaid,orwrittenaboutdevelopinganinnerresilienceandmentaltoughnessnecessarytobecominganeffectivewriter.

Ofcourse,otherfactorspertain,butwriting startswiththeselfandisasmuchtodowithyour attitude,determinationandtenacityasitisto puttingwordsdownonpaper.

Developingaresilientoutlook

Asawriteryouneedmentaltoughnesstoaccept criticismandrejection,aswellasthemanyaccoladeswhichcomeyourway.Writerssuchas Hemingway(The Sun also Rises),Orwell(Animal Farm),Golding(Lord of the Flies)allhadtheir novelsrejectedinitially.Goldinginfactwasrejectedtwentytimesbeforehewaspublished.

Sometimesit’spossibletooverlookthepositivity andconstructivefeedbackcontainedinaneditor’srejection.Beforetheadventoftheinternet,I washeartenedasayoungwritertoreceivea postcardfrom The New Yorker,whichsaidthey liked“certainaspectsofmywriting,”even thoughtheyrejectedmysubmission.Thiscertainlyfeltlikeadefiniteboostandnotaletdown atthetime.

Asawriter,ittakesdetermination,self-beliefand practicebutlikeeverythingelseinlife,youcan stillexpecttheupsanddownsinyourwriting journey.

PersonalContractandGoals

Writerscaneasilydriftandnotmakethebestuse oftheirtime,opportunities,ormarkingouttheir individualpathway.Devisingapersonalcontract canhelpyousetoutyourgoalsandclarifywhat youwantfromyourwritingandthestepsnecessarytoachievingthem.

• Asawriteryouneedtobeclearabout:-

•Whyyouwanttowrite?

•Whatyouwanttoachieve?

•Whatshorttermandlongtermgoalsyouwill set?

•Howyoucanachievethesegoals?

Cultivatingthewritingprocess

Itisvitalyourfamilyknowshowimportantwritingistoyou.Youneedtoestablishanorderly routinewhenyouwillbeleftalonetowritewithoutdistractions.Makesuretowriteeveryday. Thiscantaketheshapeofajournal,ablogor lengthye-mailstofriends.Insteadoftakinga photographoutside,capturetheimageinwords.

Carryanotebookatalltimesandcreateanideas bookaswell.Recordthedate,publisher,andresponsetoworkyousendforpublicationand keepwriting.

JohnGreeves

Writingstructure

Ifyouaskvariousauthorshowtheywriteanovel, youwillfindavarietyofapproaches.Somewriterswillbedetailedplanners,whileothershave devisedanindividualapproach.There’snosingle waytodoit.

Oneofthebiggestpointsofdifferenceamong writersiswhethertheyplaninadvanceorletthe writingemergeinstinctively.Thecontinuumcan rangefromWilliamGolding,authorofLord of the Flies, whodescribedstructureasanessential partofhiswritingprocess,toJ.K.Rowlingwho hasabasicoutlinebutleavessomethingsundecidedasshewrites.

Alwaysstopforthedaywhileyoustillknow whatwillhappennext

Thereisadifferencebetweenstoppingand foundering.Hemingwayneverlefthiswriting withoutknowingwhathewouldwritenext.

Frommyexperience,Ialwayswritetheopening sentencetothenextparagraphbeforeIturnoff thecomputer.Whenit’stimetoworkagain,I readthroughthepreviousday'swritingandthen continuefromyesterday’ssentence.

Editing

Greatwritingdoesn’thappensuddenlyonthe page.Changeshavetobemadewithinthedraft, buttherearewaystohelpthisprocess:

• Printoutyourdraft.Readitaloud.Youcan hearifthesentencedoesn’tmakesenseor feels‘heavymouthed.’

• Cutanyredundancy.

• Ensureconsistencyingrammar,spellingand style.

• Checkthetransitionsbetweenparagraphs.

Bepreparedtomoveparagraphsaroundto cutorevencombinethemifthishelps.

• Avoidclichés.Ifyou’vehearditbefore,think ofsomethingnew.

• Showdon’ttell.

• Highlighttheemotionalwordsinyourwriting, angry,happy,eager,loveetc.Rewritenow, butshowratherthantell.

• Keepyourvoiceactive.Withactivevoicewriting,thesubjectofasentenceisperforming theaction.

• Allowaperiodoftimebeforereturningtothe reviseddraftandrepeattheeditingprocess.

Reading

Youcanlearnfromtextbooksaboutthewriting craft,butthere'snosubstitutefordiscovering howawriterstructuresanovel,developscharacter,orbuildsplotsandcreatessuspense.

Readingprovidesameansofasharedexperience andunderstandingofhowanauthormasters particularelementsintheirwriting.

Forexample,ifI’mlookingforsomeonewho writescompellingdialogue,ImightturntoanauthorlikeDavidNichols...forastrongnarrative writer,WilliamBoyd...orawriterwhohasstrong womencharacters,ImightturntoKristinHannah orElenaFerrante.

Readingprovidesotherbenefits;itinspires, growsvocabularyandboostscreativity.It’saprocessofosmosiswherebyardentreadersallowthe manyformsofwritingtoentertheircognitivebeing.

FindingaWritingMentor

Writingcanbeanisolatingactivityanditsessentialtofindsomeoneyoucantrusttogiveyou

honestbutsupportivefeedbacktoyourwriting.It canbeasharedprocessthatisbeneficialtoboth writers.

Awritingmentorcan:-

• Assureyouaren’taloneinyourendeavours.

• Motivateyouwhenyouneedit.

• Provideasoundingboardforyourideas.

• Giveyouhonestandconstructivefeedbackon yourwriting.

• Addressthequestionswhichhavearisenin yourwriting.

• Offersupportandsuggestpossibleways throughanimpasse.

• Keepyouontrackwiththeagreementsyou madewithyourself.

Developingbeliefandbeatingtheself-critic

Sometimeswritersunderminethemselves,sell themselvesshortandallowtheself-critictocast doubtontheirability.Perhapsacommentfroma writinggrouporanunrealisticcomparisonof yourfirstdrafttoacolleague’spublishedpiece hascastdoubtsonyourability.

Youdon’tstopwhenyouhavesetbacksorgiveup becauseyourwritingisrejected,believingyou aren’tgoodenough.Therearemanyreasonsfor rejections,perhapsthemagazineisfull,orthey mayhaverunasimilarpiece,oritmaybeapublisherwhodoesn’tacceptunsolicitedmanuscripts.

Youstillneedtobehonestwithyourself,redraftingmaybeneeded,butthisisn’talwaysabad thingandyoushouldremainundeterred. Remember,it’sonlyoneperson’ssubjective opinion theymayloveyourwriting,orrejectyourwritingoutofhandbutit’ssomethingyouhaveto

learntoaccept.

Howtotellyourwritingisimproving Whatconstitutesgoodwritingandhowcanyou tellifyourwritingisimproving?Thismayseema difficultdilemma,butthereareindicatorswhich canhelp.

Youmaynotice:-

• You’relessdauntedbytheprocessofwriting.Itfeelsmorenaturalandyoucanbegin writingstraightaway.Nowyouaremeeting manyofthegoalsyouset.

• Youstayfocussedforlonger.Yourwritingis conciseandhasclarityandyoufeelyouare developingadistinctivevoice.

• You’reconsciousabout‘overwriting’and editforredundancy.

• Youusefewercliches,adverbsandadjectivesandemploymorelivelyverbs.

• Youusetheactive,ratherthanthepassive voice.

• Youtakemorerisksandarenotfrightened tofailintheseattempts.

• Yourwritinghasanincreasingreadership andyourworkisacceptedbyseveralpublications.

Remember,awriterneverstopswriting.Even whenthey’renotusingtheircomputer,they’re oftendraftingnewworldsintheirminds,knowingtheywillneverreachperfection,butconfidentwithsustainedendeavour,theyarebecom-

John Greeves originally hails from Lincolnshire. He believes in the power of poetry and writing to change people’s lives and the need for language to move and connect people to the modern world. Since retiring from Cardiff University, Greeves works as a freelance journalist who's interested in an eclectic range of topics.

We’reGoingOnATypoHunt byWendy.H.Jones

Wendy H. Jones provides some useful tips to help in the hunt for typos.

RecentlyIhavebeentakingpartinanevent knowntoalonglineofwriters.Itshistory goesbacktocavemenwritingonthe walls.Thisisthehuntforthelesser-spottedtypo, otherwiseknownasproofreading.Nevermind killyourdarlings,thisiskillyourcommas.AsI writeIthinkaboutthosecaves,andalsothepoor soulswhowroteinhieroglyphicsonthewallsof thepyramids.Theygottotheendoftheirmagnumopusandlookedinwonderatthenewlyinscribedwalls.Theninwalkedtheheadscribe, shakinghishead.

‘No.No.Theheadcomesbeforetheeye.How manytimesdoIhavetotellyou?It’saneasy thingtoremember.’

Thisprobablyledtoinstantdeflation,andinthe caseofourEgyptianscribe,certaindeath.Ifnot death,thenatleasthavingtoscrubitalloutand startfromscratch.Ifwearewritingbyhand,this iscertainlythecaseforus,althoughitissomuch easierwhenacomputerisinvolved.However, computersbringtheirownproblemsastyposfly offyourfingersontothekeysandstraightonto yourcarefullywrittenmanuscript.Iwillgiveyou anexample.IknowhowtospellthewordHAVE. MyfingersinsistontypingAHVE.Seriously.And don’tgetmestartedonmissingcapitalsatthe beginningofsentences.MicrosoftWordseemsto refusetobelieveIhavepressedtheshiftkey.

Typosareshycreaturesandwillfindplacesto hidethroughoutanymanuscript.Theyhaveno particularnestingsiteandcanbefoundanywherewithinadocument.Theyarenotfussy aboutthesizeortypeofdocumentandrespect noborders.Thelesser-spottedtypocanalso transformitselfandhasbeenseeninamultitude

ofdisguisesascanbeascertainedfromtheexamplesabove.TakethewordFROM.Itoftendecides itwantstotransformitselfintothewordFORM.I haveevenseenthisinpublishedbooks.Allthis canmakethehuntverydifficultespeciallyforthe newerhunter.Ittakestime,experienceandcertaintrickstotrackthemdownandchangethem intothebeautifulwordstheyaresupposedtobe.

How,then,cantheeagerwriterfindoneofthese creatures?Theonlywayistoproceedslowly throughthehabitat.Examineeverycharacteras theremaybealesser-spottedtypolurkingnearby. Whenyouseeoneyoumustkillitimmediately. Thisisnotonlylegal,butalsoenshrinedineditoriallaw.Onemustexterminatethem.Donotfear thattheywilldieout.Thelesser-spottedtypo breedsrapidlyandImeanrapidly.Oneisoften temptedtotakethemalldownatonceusingthe searchandreplacebomb.Thinkbeforedoingthis asitoftenleadstofurtherproblemswhenwords whichwerecorrectsuddenlylosehalftheirletters ortheirlettersarechanged.

Patienceandpersistencearetheonlywaytofind thiscreature.Afterhuntingthroughyourmanuscriptonce,pleasedonotgiveup;itisnecessary togothroughyourworkseveraltimes.Asyou moveforwardseveralmorewillhavetakenuppositionbehindyou.Pleasedonothuntifyouare tired.Thelesser-spottedtypowilltakeadvantage ofthisandburrowindeeplywhilstyouarenot looking.Ittakesafresheyeandagreatdealofenergytofindthem.

Oneusefultipistohuntingroups.Findskilled professionals,suchaseditors,proofreadersand moreknowledgeablefriendstojoinyou.Thisis oneofthebestwaystoeliminatelesser-spotted typoscompletely.

So,herearesometipstohelpyouonthehunt.

Continuedonpage28

InsightsFromANon-fictionJourney

Jocelyn-Anne Harvey shares her non-fiction insights and tips based on her experiences of writing it.

Whatdoesnon-fictionmean?Wecould gointothedictionarydefinition.There isnothingbetterthandiscoveringthe etymologyofaword.ButmaybeIneedtorefine thequestionhere,‘Whatdoesnon-fictionmean toyouasawriter?’

Thescopeofthisgenreisbroadandcouldbe anythingfromtextbookstohowtoguides,travel reviews,autobiographiesorthisarticle!Irrespectiveofwhereyouarewithyournon-fictionmojo it’slikelyallofushavewrittensomethingthat wouldfitwithinitsdefinition.

Writingnon-fictiondoesrequireadifferentstyle thantheimaginarystorytellingfictionoffersus. Wespeakdirectlytothereaderratherthancraftingourplot;we’resousedtofollowing‘show nottell’itcanfeelstrangetoflipthatfamiliar creativewritingphrase.

Thereisadifferentsenseofintent–anoutcome ournon-fictionworkseekstoaddress.Wehope ourstoriesspeaktoandsatisfyareader,butthe storytellingofnon-fictionaimstobroadenunderstanding–tosharesomethingwherewemay beclassifiedasanexpertorhavingexpertise. Ultimately,wewantourreaderstofinishour piecehavinglearntsomethingorbeencalledto action.Thereisaninterchangeofknowledge.

So,what’smyexperienceofwritingnon-fiction? Iwouldn’thaveimaginedmyfirstpublished bookwouldhavebeeninmyownvoice.That wasalearningcurvetorealiseIwasopeningmyselfuptojudgment.Icouldn’thidebehindmy characters. Not Knowing, but Still Going waspub-

Jocelyn-AnneHarvey

lishedin2021andfollowstheNoah’sArkstory fromthewoman’sperspective.Ihadthatpullof wantingtoencouragemyreaderswithwhatI hadlearntfromawell-knownBiblestoryand therewasalotmoretoitthanjustNoah.

Mybookgavemetheopportunitytosetoutmy contentonthepage,andthedelightofknowing whiledoingso,Ihadapublishingcontract. Thoughthisdidgiveanaddedpressure–Ihada frameworkinplacebutthemanuscriptwaswrittentotheirdeadlines.

Ihadn’tappreciatedthereweresomanystrands youneededtothinkaboutaswellastheactual writing.Notonlyweretherecontentpages, chaptertitles,headingsandsubheadings;but howyousetoutthetextandusedthewhite space;usingillustrations(whererelevantand possible);tasksforfurtherreflectionortodeepenunderstanding;andIevenincludedblank pagesfornotemakingduetothesuggestionofa betareader,andthankfullythepublisheragreed. Ifyouneededtotakeadeepbreathafterreading thatparagraphit’snotsurprising.Thereisalot toorganiseandmanage.Ilearneditwaseverythingelsewrappingaroundthemanuscript

whichwastimeconsuming.Andwithhindsight beingawonderfulthing,thesethreethingsare whatI’dstartsoonertohelpmewiththeoverall publishingprocess.

Planningiscrucial

Whetheryoulikeawhiteboard,notebookora spreadsheet,youdoneedarecordtohelpyou knowwhereyouareandwhatyouhave.Noway witheverythingelseweneedtojuggleinlife,can weretainallthatdetail.Alongsideyourplan,ensureyouhavedocumentmanagementinplace onyourtechforallthedifferentversionsyou’ll besaving…rememberit’slikelyyou’llhaveeditor andproof-readercomments.

You’llwanttoflipbetweendifferenteditsto checktweaksandensureyou’rehappywiththe waytheprocessisshapingthemanuscript.Also, thoughwealldoit,savingandbackingupisinvaluabletopreventthose,‘HaveIlostitmoments?’likeIhadwhenI’djustmanagedtorewriteatoughparagraphandthenmylaptophad ameltdown.Thatkindofadrenalinsurgeisbest avoided.

Avoidcopyrightinfringements

Iuseddifferentsourcesandthoughmyeditor washelpful,Ihadtoseekalltherelevantpermissions.Youdon’twantanyplagiarisingissuesespeciallywhenquotingdirectly.Thismeansalot ofadditionalworkandtime.

You’llneedtoidentifywhereyouareusing sourcesinyourmanuscript,thenfindoutwhere/ fromwhomtoseekthatpermission.Ihadtoregisterontopublishingportals,checkwithgovernmentcopyrightmanagersandfindpeoplevia exploratoryemails.Thiswasn’tjustinthecountrywhereIlive,butalsofurtherafield.Thesepeoplearenotalwaysworkingtoyourtimeframes, oryourpublishingdeadlines,soIcan’toveremphasisehowworthwhileitistostartthisassoon asyoucan.

Onceyou’veheardback,you’llneedtokeepa recordwhenpermissionhasbeengiven.Plus ensureyouarecompliantwithwhatthey’vestated,forexample,Ihadtofollowincertaincases exactcitationtemplates.Iftheyweren’tused, thenthepermissionwouldn’tbeactive.This meansyouneedattentiontodetailtocheck you’veusedthewordingcorrectlyandinthe rightplace.Again,thatdocumentmanagement comesbackagainwithkeepingtrackofprogress andallthoseemailsasareferencepoint.

Ichunkedtheseadminactivitiesintodifferent timessomywritingfocuswasn’tdiverted.This wasespeciallyusefulwhenitcametothefiddly taskoffootnotes.Theyarenotfuntobetweakingallthetime.Itmayvarywithwhatyou’re writingbutcheckwhetherthereisapublishing formatyouneedtofollow.

Usingsourcescanbehelpful.Don’tbeputoffif youwanttouse,justmakesureyou’vemade thosechecks.Andit’sagoodexerciseasyou scourthroughyourtextforthemtoconsider whethertheyareaddingvaluetowhatyouwant tosay.

Widerwriterlyvillage

Feedbackisinvaluablewithwhateverwe’re writing,andjustlikewithfiction,youcan’tbeat havingabetareadingteam.Identifythosewho canhelpwithcertainaspectsandthosewhocan readandre-readthebook.Askingthemearly ensuresyou’vebothfactoredthetimeandagain it’sanotherthingyoucanmanageonthatplan.

Theseearlyreadersmayalsobeabletowrite endorsements.However,youmaywantawider breadthof(hopefullypositive!)comments.I askedpeoplewithinmynetwork,butIalsowasn’tafraidtocontactthosewhoIdidn’tknow–whenIfelttheywouldbeinterested.Admittedly, somedidn’tengenderareply.Othersresponded well,orwouldhavelikedto,butdidn’thavethe time.

Timeisagainthatvitalcomponent.Ihadmilestonesforwhenmypublisherneededendorsements.Thisrequiredsendingmypre-editedversiontoendorseeswithenoughflexibilityfor themtoreadandsendbackaquote.Thereisno pointinhavingendorsementsiftheycan’tbe includedinthebook.

Don’tforgetthisisallaboutthemarketing: quoteswereusedonmybookcoverandIwas alsoabletousetheminmysocialmedia.Promotionisasectioninyourplanandanotherarticleinitself!

Wemayallhaveourownversionsofwhatnonfictionmeanstous.Asisthecasewithallwriting,themorewedo,themoreweprogressand understandourwriterlyself.Whereverweare withournon-fictionjourneys,I’dencourageus tocontinue.Doingsoenablesustoincreaseour scopeandreadershipwhilestrengtheningour creativemuscleforwhenwejumpacrosstothe fictionworld!

Don’tforget

• Set your keywords and ensure your editor is aware.

• Think about how you interact with the reader. Using ‘we’ is more inclusive whereas ‘you’ can feel didactic.

• Read your work aloud from back to front. Anything that means you’re not reading from beginning to end all the time. This helps you spot tweaks or typos.

Continuedfrompage25

• Keepalistofcommonwordswhicharemisspelled–FromandForm,thereandtheir, yourandyou’reandanyothersyoucome across.

• Readyourmanuscriptoutloud.Whenyou changethemedium,youaremorelikelyto pickupmistakesasthewordswillnotsound correct.Doitslowly,otherwiseyourbrainwill nottakeinthemistake.

• Readyourmanuscriptbackwards.Thenyou willtakeinindividualwordsratherthansentences.

• GetWordtoreadthemanuscriptouttoyou. Writedownanythingwhichseemsstrange.

• SendittoyourKindleortoAppleBooksto read.Whenyoureaditasanactualbookyour eyepicksupsomanymoremistakes.

• Getsomeoneelsetoreaditaswell.Afresh pairofeyesdoeswonders.

Ihopethishashelpedyouandgoodluckwith huntingdownthosetypos.

This articleisbasedonablogpostIwrotefor MoreThanWriters,tenyearsago.Ithasbeenupdatedandrewrittenforamodernaudienceand isasimportanttodayasitwasthen.Itisalsoextremelyimportantfornon-fictionwriterswherea misplacedlettercanchangethemeaningofwhat youaretryingtosaycompletely.Despitethe comictoneofthisarticle,itiswellworthensuringthatyourproofreadingistopnotch.Will somestillsneakthrough?ProbablybutIdidsay thosetyposareslipperylittleanimals.

Jocelyn-Anne is a published writer, speaker, Creative Writing teacher and mentor who loves encouraging people. She has a MA in Creative Writing and is the author of Not Knowing, but Still Going. Coastal walks, cake and coffee are mandatory activities to spark her imagination.

Wendy H. Jones is the multi-award-winning, bestselling author of adult crime thrillers and cozy mysteries, children’s picture books and nonfiction books for writers. In addition she is a writing coach, partner in Auscot Publishing and Retreats and hosts the Writing and Marketing Show podcast.

The Untold Story of Books byMichaelCastleman

ReviewedbyWendyH.Jones

The Untold Story of Books: A Writer’s History of Book Publishing byMichaelCastleman

ISBN:978-1961884083

Publisher: UnnamedPress(July2024)

FromGutenbergtoAmazon,MichaelCastleman'sTheUntold StoryofBooksisthefirstandonlyhistoryofpublishingtold fromaveteranauthor'spointofview.Witty,entertaining,and fullofremarkablenewinsights,itisadeeplyresearched,fascinatinghistoryoftheidiosyncraticbookbusiness-aimedatauthors,aspiringauthors,booksellers,industryprofessionals, andeveryonewholovestoreadbooks.

Organisedintothreedistinctbookbusinesses,alldefinedby theevolutionofprinting,TheUntoldStoryofBooksexplores howeachnewbookbusinessupendeditspredecessor,forc-

ingauthors,publishers,andbooksellerstoadapttoever-changingcircumstances.It'sastoryfullofsurprises:whydidbooksbecomefavouredChristmaspresents?Becauseofapoemwrittenin1823.Whyis NewYorkthenation'spublishingcapital?BecauseoftheErieCanal.Whyarebookendorsementscalled "blurbs"?Becauseofasatirist'sjokein1907.Andwhyiscopyrightoftenanillusion?Becausepublishing wasfoundedonbookpiracy,whichtodayiseasierandmorerampantthanever.

Review

Thisisnotaquickread,butitisacomprehensiveandabsorbingone.Thefactitiswrittenbyawriterwho isfullyimmersedinthepublishingworldgivesitauthoritybutthatdoesnotmeanitisdry.Itisdelivered inastylewhichengagestheaveragereaderwhilstprovidingfactsfiguresandstoriesinawaywhichis bothenjoyableandfascinating.

Thestoriesbringthewholeindustrytolife.Forexample,IlovetheoneofblackauthorRichardWright.He grewuppoorandwhenlivinginMemphis,hewasnotallowedtoborrowbooksfromthelibrarybecause ofthecolourofhisskin.So,heborrowedawhitefriend’slibrarycardwithanotesayinghewaspicking upbooksforafriendandborrowedasmanybooksashecouldread.Thebookispepperedwithstories whichshowtheimportanceofbooksandlibraries.Ofcourse,AndrewCarnegie,aScotsman,whobuilt 1698lendinglibrariesworldwideisincluded.Yes,heofCarnegieHallfame. Everysingleaspectofthepublishingindustryiscovered.Fromthefirstprintingpressesrightthroughto moderndaywhichgivesarealisticinsightintotheindustry.Ibelievethisisabookwhicheverywriter shouldreadasIlearnedsomuchthroughreadingit.

ThreeErrorsThatLedToMySmallPressContract

Jean Burgess discusses what led to her being offered and accepting a small press contract.

Ifyouareoneofthose“fullsteamahead” types,whoaretooimpatienttolearnfrom yourmistakes,thenstopreadingnow.However,ifyouarewillingtolearnhow,asanovicefictionwriter,Imadeafewmajorerrorsandstill landedacontractwithasmallpressformydebut fiction,readon.

Aswriters,wetendtogetsoexcitedwhenwefinishourmanuscriptwejustcan’twaittopushit outintotheworld.Somewriterswanttoskimp onserviceslikebetareadersorcompetentdevelopmentediting.Somearetemptedbyvisionsof dollarsigns,thenmoviedeals,thentelevision series,thenworlddomination…(Seehowquicklythingscanspinoutofcontrol?) Andsadly, somehavelosttheirgroundingandforgotten whytheyweredrawntowritinginthefirstplace.

IcanpointouttheseflawsbecauseI’vebeen there.Let’sdiveinandseewhatcanbelearned fromtheseerrors.

Error#1:Pitchingtoliteraryagentsbeforethe manuscriptisready

Yep,thatwasme.Thebookwascompleted.I’d hadseveralbetareadersofferinputandeven maderevisionsbasedontheirfeedback.Ihireda copyeditorwhoalsoofferedafewdevelopmentalcomments,allofwhichIactedupon.Idecided Iwasreadytosecurealiteraryagent.So,Iqueriedandqueriedandqueried.Ireceivedplentyof “Thanks,butnothanks”responses.

Ialsopitchedatwritingconferences.Thiswasa

JeanBurgess

betterexperienceandhere’swhy:aftersubmittingmythreechaptersorfiftypages,atleastI received“Thanksbutnothanksandherearetwo reasonswhy….”

NowIhadsomethingtoworkwithandthat’sexactlywhatIdid.

Lessonlearned:ThefeedbackIreceivedfrom theliteraryagentswasinvaluable.Itcausedme toask:howdoIfixthoseissues?Asanovicefictionwriter,Iwasabletoanalyzemyskillweaknesses.Itookworkshopsandclassesto strengthentheholes.Thebiggestlesson,however,wasIneededtobepreparedtorevise(and reviseandrevise)mymanuscript.

Error#2:Beinguneducatedabouttheindustry

Guiltyascharged.Lookingbackonmyownjourney,Inowaskmyself,“WhatwasIdoingqueryingagentswhenIdidn’tunderstandathing abouttheauthor-agentrelationship?”

WhatdidIwantfromaliteraryagent?DidIeven understandtheirfunctionintheindustryand

whattheydoforauthors?Andwhataboutselfpublishingvstraditionalpublishing?Whatwas thathybridpublishingIkepthearingabout? HowcanIavoidscams?Yikes!IrealizedIneeded togetmyselfeducated.

Lessonlearned:Iamsurethereareavarietyof pathstogettingthesequestionsanswered.I chosetojoinseveralprofessionalwriters’organizations.Theseofferseminarsandresourcesthat helpmeimmeasurably,plusIappreciatethe networkingaspectofthegroups.

Ialsoencourageotherstoreadreputableblogs andinformationabouttheindustry.Securea completeunderstandingofallthevariouspublishingapproaches-self-publishingvstraditionalpublishingvssmallpresspublishing–before decidingwhichisrightforyouandyourbook.

Error#3:Nothavingaclearwriter’spurpose

Idobelievethatnotbeingclearaboutmywriter’spurposewhenItookthenextstepinpromotingmybook,whetherqueryingaliterary agentorevenchattingaboutittoareader,wasa hugeobstacle.Itinterferedwithmymessaging andmyconfidence.

WhenIsay,“writer’spurpose,”I’mnottalking aboutmyreasonforwritingthisparticularbook, butratherforwritinganything.Whatmotivates metowrite?Whatmotivatesyoutowrite?Andif youransweris“Forthebigbucks,”youmight wanttodigdeeper!

IfoundthatIwasflailingwithmyconnectionto mypurpose,whichcausedmetobeunfocused whenIspokeaboutmydebutnovel.

Lessonlearned:OnceIpermittedmyselftoindulgeinuninterruptedquietreflectionandmeditatedonthequestion“Whatmotivatesmeto write?Whatismypurpose?”,Ifinallyfoundclarity.Mywritingpurposeappliestobothmynonfictionandfictionworks.

Iwritetohelpothersandtostartconversations.

Understandingandconnectingwiththispurposehashelpedmetodefinemygoalsanddecisionsformovingforward.Ipivotedinmythinkinganddecidedtoputallmyeffortsintopursuingsmallpressesforpublicationofmydebut novelsetinthelate1970saroundthemesof emergingfeminism,socialinjusticeandmusic.

Asaresult,atthenextregionalwriters’conferenceIattended,Iskippedpitchingtotheliterary agentsontherosterandfocusedonthesmall presspublishersinstead.

Inthepast,regardlessofwhoIpitchedto,Imust admitI’dbeanxiousaboutthewholeprocess. Butthistime,IfoundIwasrelaxedandenjoyed chattingaboutmybookanditsmarketingpossibilities.Ibelievemyeasewasrelatedtobeing connectedtomypurpose.

Thebestnewsofallismydebutnovel, That Summer She Found Her Voice,waspickedupby ApprenticeHousePressandpublishedinApril 2024.

Basedonmyjourneyofbeingopentorevisions, learningallyoucanabouttheindustry,andtakingtimeouttodefineyourpersonalwritingpurpose,Iencourageyoutoapplythesevitalsteps towardsecuringyourownpublishingsuccess story.

Bestwishes.

Jean Burgess is a writer, editor, and playwright with a background in theatre and education. Her debut novel, That Summer She Found Her Voice: A Retro Novel, was published by Apprentice House Press in April 2024 and is available on Amazon and other online outlets. Follow her publishing journey by signing up for her monthly newsletter at https://www.jeanburgessauthor.com

MonthlyWritingPrompts

Wendy H. Jones and Tami C. Brown set this month’s writing prompts. Inspired by a theme of non-fiction they provide a range of prompts. Why not give them a try?

Words:

Narrative

Reality

Information

Music:

Adventure of a Lifetime byColdplay

I Can’t Tell You Why by Eagles

A Day in The Life byTheBeatles

Images:

WhenItravelItakepicturesofstatuesandresearchthepersonwhenIgetbackhome.Fascinatinginthatmostofuswillnothaveastatue namedafterusbutwesurelycanhaveapartin thehistoryofourfamily,faith,towns.Remind yourfamilytosharethestoriesofthosehereand gonesothatgenerationslaterwillknowofthe impactoftheirlives.

WritingPrompts

(Photographic images by Tami C. Brown)

ThefirstpictureismyofmygrandmotherEsther. ShewaspartoftheGroundObserverCorpsin WorldWarIIandobtainedhercertificatewitha classof23in1943.Theirjobwastolookforforeignairplanesinourarea.Herhusband,Phil,my grandfatherwasinWWIIsoI'msureitwasherway ofhelpinghim.Wedidn'tknowthispieceofher historyuntilwewereolderadultssadlyshe passedawaywhenIwasayoungchild,Iwould havesomanyquestionsforher.

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WendyH.Jones TamiC.Brown

Inthispicture,AthenaishousedinTheParthenoninNashville,TN.Thestatueisforty-onefeetteninches high.ShehasquiteastoryandhonestlythemostdecorativestatueI'veeverseen.HerfriendNikeis6 feettallandshehasahugecobrabyherside.Theshieldis15feettall.SheisthepatronessofAthens.

AngelStatueinAZ~theplaquestates"Andheshallgivehisangelschargeoveryoutokeepyouinall ways."

Editor in chief, Wendy H. Jones is the multi-award -winning, best-selling author of adult crime thrillers and cozy mysteries, children’s picture books and non-fiction books for writers. In addition she is a writing coach, partner in Auscot Publishing and Retreats and hosts the Writing and Marketing Show podcast.

Tami C. Brown loves to have her camera ready to snap beauty wherever she goes. Her family and friends, affectionately known as the Queenies, are well prepared for random stops along the journey to have a photo op. She’s grateful for all photography opportunities and the adventures that come along with it.

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AWoofingNewYeartoYouAll

Sophie, the office dog, ably assisted by Peter Thomas, discusses the folly of humans making New Year Resolutions.

HappyNewYear,everybody.Peoplehave beenaskingwhetherspanielsmakeNew YearResolutionsandtheanswerisof coursenot.Mostofthethingshumanbeingsset theirheartstodoseemridiculoustodogs.

Forexample,atthistimeofyearmanyhumans decidetheywanttoeatless.Thatisobviously crazy.Iftheyseriouslywantedtoloseweight theycouldjustavoidovereatingintheweeks beforehand.Butwhyeatlessanyway?Dogsalwayshopetoeatmore.

SinceshecameintoourhouselastyearmypuppyapprenticeTessahasenjoyedbreakfastas wellasdinner,whileIasanadultdogonlyever getonemealaday.Thisissomanifestlyunfair mygoalforthisNewYearistofindawaytoget ourhumanstofeedmebreakfastaswell.

WehaveMummyandDaddywelltrainedsothat whentheytakeusforlunchatacaféwesitquietlyunderthetableforaslongastheyfeedus treats.Butwearealsoworkingonincreasingthe numberofsnacks.LikethevelociraptorsinJurassicParkweworkasateam.TheotherdayI engagedthenicepeopleonthenexttableina conversationabouthowbeautifulandsoftand fluffyIam.Whileeverybodywasdistracted Tessarestedherchinonthetableandslidher extra-longtongueouttowithinamillimetreof Daddy’scake.Ifthereisasnacktobeenjoyed, carpediem,seizethefish.

Manyhumansmakeresolutionsabouttaking moreexercise.Theyshouldjustgetthemselvesa dog.Wespanielswillhappilykeepyourunning. Withourshorterlegswedon’tneedaFurBitto tellusweeasilyachieveour100,000stepsaday. Weracearoundthebeachatleasttwiceaweek andinwoodsorparksafewtimesaswell,but wereallywanttogetouteveryday.

Ihavebeeninspiredbypicturesaroundthe houseofourgreatauntieGoldenRetriever SashasittingatthewheelofDaddy’scar.Itwas rumouredatthetimethatshewasmoonlighting asTopGear’sincognitoracingdriverTheStig.So IhavedecidedthatthisyearIamgoingtolearn todrive.

SinceDaddy’snewcarisanautomatic,Iwillbe abletokeeptwopawsonthesteeringallthe time.Fordogstheonlybarriertodrivingisholdingthekeysbetweenourclaws.Butthiscaruses keylessentry,soIwon’tneedtoturnthekeyto getinortostarttheignition.Wewillbeableto leaveourhumanssnoringandenjoyexpeditions withoutthem.Evenbetter,ourfavouritecafes

SophieandTessa

allknowourregularorders.WithDaddy’scontactlesscreditcardwewillgetourselveseven moresnacks.

Ofcourse,thereismoretolifethanfoodand running.Wedogslovetoplaywithourcuddly toys.MyfavouriteisBigRacoon,alsoknownas Tail-lessRacoonafteranunfortunateincident withalawnmowerinthelonggrass.Tessaloves herSquirrel,soMummygaveournewpuppy cousinTanwenaSquirrelforChristmas.Apparentlythatwasn’twelcomedbecauseTanwen livesinaVeganhouseholdsohercuddlytoysare onlyallowedtobeboringfurryfruitandvegetables.MummylikestohideSquirrelallaroundthe houseforTessatosniffout.Inthekitchenorbehindthesofaorevenunderaflowerpotwasfair playbutlatelyshehasbeenhidingSquirrelin cupboardsanddrawersandthatisjustnoton. TessaisthreateningtoconcealMummy’smobile phoneandseehowmuchshelikestoplay “find”.

Thebestthingaboutourtoysisthatthey squeak.MybestfriendDottyhasaDuckwhich makesthemostrealisticquackingsound.One dayoutwalkingDottyheardthatsoundand divedintotheriverandretrievedanactual featheryduck.Butwhatdoyouexpectfroma cockapoo?

OurownDuckmakesawonderfuldeepsqueak whichisloudenoughtowakeupanyhumans whoaretryingtosleepupstairs.Allourcuddly toysmakenoiseswhenwesqueezethem.Caterpillarcanmakesixdifferentsoundsbutbestof allisourtwo-foot-longSnakewhichhasawhole octaveofsqueakers.

TheNewYearisawonderfultimetoembarkona newproject.For2025TessaandIhaveresolved tomakeourfortunerecordingYouTubevideos ofusplayingmusiconourtunedcuddlytoys.We havestartedwith“WhoLetTheDogsOut?”, “TheyCallItPuppyLove”andofcourse“Hound Dog”.

Ifyouhaveanysuggestionsofsuitablepiecesfor ustoperform,orwouldliketobookaprivate recital,justsendusalettercareofWriters’Nar-

rative.Untilnexttime,followyourdreams,and wewisheverybodyaPawsomeTail-Wagging NewYear!

Rev Peter Thomas has published three non-fiction books and is delighted now to assist Sophie in her creative writing projects. Originally a teacher and author in the fields of chemistry and computing, Peter retired in 2023 after 36 years as a Minister of local Baptist Churches. He continues to add to his blog and videos of more than a thousand sermons and reflections found at www.pbthomas.com.

SubscriberNews

Tonominateyourlocallibrary orbookshoptobefeaturedinfutureissues emailwritersnarrative@gmail.com subjectheadedfortheattentionoftheEditor inChief.

PeterThomasandSophie

WritingNon-fictionAsANon-Expert

Jeanette The Writer looks at why it is vital to think like a reader when it comes to editing your book.

“A Jack of all trades, though master of none, is oftentimes better than a master of one”.

It’sgreattobeanexpertinsomething.However,toreachexpertlevelsinwork,hobbies, sports,andotherpastimes,hardwork,discipline,andtimearerequired.So,whatdoyoudo whenyouwanttowriteaboutanon-fictiontopic thatyouaren’tanexpertin?Canitbedone?

I’mheretotellyouitcan.

OnJuly9th,2023,IembarkedonawritingjourneythatledtothepublicationofmyfirstnonfictionbookinMay2024.ThetopicIwroteabout wasthesportandlifestyleofrecreationalmermaiding.EventhoughIwasbrandnewtothe sport,IalreadyhadtheoutlinefinishedbeforeI hadcompletedmyownmermaidtrainingclasses.

Whileitseemsabitbrazentotrytoteachpeople aboutsomethingIhadonlyjuststarted,Iknew myapproachtowritingaboutasubjectIwasunfamiliarwithwouldtaketherightmindsetand therightresearch.WiththoseIcouldcertainly succeed,andsocanyou.

BeAwareofYourAudience

Thefirsttrickinwritingonanunfamiliarsubject istounderstandwhoyouraudienceis.Asanewbietomermaiding,myjourneywouldresonate mostwithnewmersandthosewantingtotry. So,Iplannedmyoutlineinawaythatanswered themostcommonquestionsanewmermaid mighthaveabouttheindustry,thecommunity,

thehistory,thesport,andsafety.

Targetingmerswithdecadesofexperience wouldnotbeidealbecauseIdon’thavethe credibilityintheireyestotellthemwhattodo. It’ssaidtobean“expert”,youonlyneedto knowonemorethingthanthepeopleyou’re speakingto.Ifyouaimyourbookatthosewho arefirstlearning,you’llbebettersuitedtomeet themwherethey’reat.

GetCurious

Therearesomebenefitstobeinganewbieat somethingandwritingaboutit.First,yourviews arenotcoloredbyhistoricalinformation.Anexpertwithdecadesofexperiencemayberelying ondecades-oldbeliefsandknowledgethat needsupdating.Bygettingcuriousaboutsomethingyoudon’tknowanythingabout,youcan learnthemostmoderninformationalongwith historicaldata.

Writerswhoarecuriousalsoaskmorequestions thanexpertswhoareconfidentintheirbasic knowledgeofthesubject.Ifsomeoneunfamiliar withatopicwritesaboutit,theywillexplain morebasicconceptstoensureacomprehensive

JeanetteTheWriter

understandingandcoverageofthesubject.This helpsyourtargetaudienceofsimilarbeginners tostartwiththe101information.

Anotherbenefitofbeingan“outsider”toasubjectisyouareunlikelytousetechnicalspeakor jargoninyourwriting.Youmayexplainindustry termswhenyouusethem,butyoudon’tassume aworkingknowledgeofthatterminologyto beginwith.

AddExpertise

However,it’scriticalthatyouaddexpertiseto yournon-fictionbook.Thiscomesinthreeforms: research,interviews,andexperience.

Whenyouresearchasubject,besureyouare findingtrusted,legitimate,andrecentsources. Goodreads isnotaplacetopullquotesfromunlesstheycitethebookitcamefrom.Articlesand factsfromtenyearsagomaybeoutdatedand incorrect.Chooseprimarysourcessuchasdirectlylinkingtostudies,notjustarticlesthatmentionthosestudies.

Consultingexpertsisthebestwaytoaddexpertisetoyournon-fictionbook.Formybook,I reachedoutto30+mersandendedupinterviewing18ofthem.TheirquotesaddedmuchneededlegitimacytotheinformationIprovided andhelpedfilloutthebookbyalmostdoubling thewordcount.

Ofcourse,Idon’trecommendwritingabout somethingwithoutatleasttryingitforyourself. Youdon’tneeddecadesofexperiencetowrite aboutanewsubject,butsomepersonalexperiencewiththesubjectmatteriscriticalforadding legitimacytoyourinformation.Remember, you’rewritingfromtheperspectiveofanewbie, sobeingnewtosomethingisnotadownfall.

YouCanDoIt

Ifyou’reconsideringwritinganon-fictionbook aboutanunfamiliarsubject,youabsolutelycan doit.Curiosityandresearchareyoursuperpowers.Now,gooutandgivesomethingnewatry!It mightjustchangeyourlifeinmorewaysthan one.

Herearesomestepstogettingtheperfectquote-

KnowWhatExpertiseYouNeed

Ididn’tinterviewuntilIhadmychapters/sections outlinedandknewexactlywherethegapsinmy ownknowledgewere.(Thisalsohelpsyouchoose whichexpertsyouneedtointerview.)

KnowYourExpert

Isoughtoutmerswithexpertiseineachspecific topictoensureIcouldgetaquoteshowcasing theirhard-earnedknowledge.(Peopletendtobe moretalkativewhentheyknowalotaboutasubject.)

HaveQuestionsPrepared

Iwentinwithspecificquestionsprioritizedby whatIneeded,butnottoomanyquestionsasI wantedtostickfirmlytomypromisedtimelimit. (Keepinmindwhethertheintervieweeistalkative,andcutoraddquestionstofillthetimeappropriately.)

AskOpen-EndedQuestions

Ifsomeonegaveashort,incomplete,oryes/no answer,Iwouldfollowupwith,“Canyouexpand onthat?”(Remindyourintervieweethatthey shouldgiveanswerssuitableforyouraudience’s knowledgelevel,notnecessarilyyoursastheinterviewer.)

BeFlexible

BecauseIwasinterviewingmersacrossthe world,Iwassuretoschedulewhenitwasconvenientforthemandwhentheywouldbeattheir best.(Yes,thismeantIwasupat2a.m.foraninterviewonce.)

Addingexpertknowledgetoanon-fictionbook canincreasethedepthofinformationandits credibility.

Jeanette is a copyeditor and fiction writer based in Fort Worth, Texas, who aims to demystify the editing process through copy editor and self-editing instruction. You can read more about her at www.Jeanettethewriter.com

WriterSueKittowFinalistintheNovelLondonCompetition

InterviewedbyWendyH.Jones

Sue, firstly I would like to say, congratulations on becoming a finalist in the Novel London Competition and thank you for joining us here at Writers Narrative Magazine.

I’mcuriousastohowlongyouhavebeen writingandwhatgaveyoutheimpetusto startwritinginitially?

I’vewrittenstoriesforaslongasIcanremember,andwroteaGothicnovelattheageof13!I foundittheotherdayanditisn’tasbadasI feared.Ican’trememberwhatgavemetheimpetustowrite–Ireadfromtheageof4,so wordshavealwaysbeenpartofmylife,andthe urgetowritehasalwaysbeenthere.

WhatmotivatedyoutosubmitLainy theNovelLondonCompetition,andhowdid youprepareforit?

TheNovelLondonCompetitionsoundedinteresting,asdidthejudges,soIsentmyentryoff. (ThebookhasalreadybeenpublishedsoIcouldn’tagoniseoverchanginganyentries.)Ithen promptlyforgotaboutit,asI’meditingmynext book,andwasastonishedtohearI’dbeen longlisted,thenshortlisted,thenwonsecond prize.

Whatdoyouthinkmadeyournovelstandout amongthecompetitionentries?

Iwouldliketothinkthewritingqualityhas somethingtodowithit,butalsobecauseit’s writtenbyadogwhichisunusual.

Canyoushareanyspecificlessonsorinsights yougainedfromtheprocessofbecominga finalist?

Ihavebeeneditingmycurrentbookallyearand editingisalonelybusiness,albeitwiththehelp ofwriterfriendsandmyeditor,soitwasahuge boosttomyconfidencetofindthatotherprofessionalsreallyvaluedmywriting.

HowhasbeingafinalistintheNovelLondon Competitionimpactedyourwritingcareeror opportunities?

AsIsaid,it’sahugeconfidenceboost,andhas helpedsalesofmybooks.

TellusabitaboutyourstoryLainy’sTale.

IfanyofyourreadershaveheardofSophiefrom Romania,thisisthestoryofanotherRomanian rescuedog,Lainy,thoughshearrivedherelong beforeSophiedid,soIwroteLainy’sTaleafew yearsago.Lainy’sTaletellsofthehealingpower ofmusicfordogsaswellaspeople,howtolive withtrauma,andunderliningitallisthestrength ofloveinmanyforms:betweendogsandhumans,thelovethatdogshaveforeachother, andalsoagrowingloveaffairbetweentwohumans.

Whatinspiredyoutowriteanovelfroma dog’sperspective,andwhatchallengesdid youfaceindoingso?

Talkingtoafriendaboutwhathadhappened sincemyhusbanddied,shesuggestedwritinga fictionalversionbutwrittenfromMoll,mylast dog’spointofview.ThatbecameTheRescue, andwhenIadoptedarescuedog,afterMoll died,IhadsuchagoodresponsetoTheRescue, itseemedonlyrightthatLainyshouldhaveher ownstory.

Howdoyouapproachbalancingauthenticity inportrayingadog’sperspectivewhileensuringthestoryresonateswithhumanreaders?

I’vehaddogsfor20yearsnow,soIknowabit abouthowtheythink.Ijusttriedtogetinto Moll’sheadandthinkhowshewouldreactinthe circumstancesthrownather.Shewassurroundedbylove,andsuddenlyathirdofthatlovedisappearedwhenoneofherownersdied.What wouldshedototryandlookafterherremaining owner?Mollwassuchastrongcharacter,friends oftenaskedwhathervoicesoundedlike–then theyfoundout!

Whatresearchortechniquesdidyouuseto getintothemindsetofadogandconveyit convincinglyonthepage?

Asdogsusetheirnosesastheirmainsourceof communication,Itriedtothinkwhateverything wouldsmelllikeforadog.(Ortastelike.)What didsadnesssmelllike?Happiness,love,attraction–itwasafascinatingexercise.We’retoldto useourfivesensesmore,butthisbookmade sureIreallyusedmysenses.

Doyoufeelthatwritingfromanon-human perspectiveallowedyoutoexplorethemesor ideasthatmightbehardertotacklefroma humanviewpoint?

Oneofthethemesin Lainy’s Tale isPTSD:I wantedtoaddresstreatingPTSD(whichLainy has)foradogaswellasahumanandgivesome insightintowhydogsufferers–andpeople–reactastheydo.Itstruckmethatit’seasierto getprivatehelpforadogifyoucanaffordit, thanitistotryandpersuadeahumanthatthey mayneedhelp.IhopethatLainyexplainingwhy shereactedasshedidwithPTSDmakesiteasier tounderstandwhyZachcouldbesoimpossible. Ialsowantedtoexplorehowhealingmusiccan befordogsaswellashumans,sothisisoneof theotherthemesinthebookandLainyhas plentytosayaboutherchoiceofmusic….

Thankyouonceagainforjoiningushereat themagazineandtakingthetimetothoughtfullyanswerallourquestions.Iwouldliketo wishyouallthebestforyourfuturecareer.

Wendy H. Jones is the multi-award-winning, best-selling author of adult crime thrillers and cozy mysteries, children’s picture books and non-fiction books for writers. In addition, she is a writing coach, partner in Auscot Publishing and Retreats and hosts the Writing and Marketing Show podcast.

DryFactsOrSharingAPassion?

Jenny Sanders discusses whether non-fiction is just sharing facts or if it can be a fabulous way to share a subject you feel passionately about.

I’vehearditsaidnon-fictionwritersare‘the packhorsesofliterature’(StacySchiff,Americanwriter).Iagree.Theydosomeheavylifting inthecompositiondepartment.

Factsarefacts;objectiverealitiescannotbe changedunlessyou’reshiftingtoaparalleluniverse,inwhichcaseyou’vealreadyslippedinto theparadigmoffiction.

Shapinghardfactsintosomethingsoftenoughto bedigestibleforareaderwithoutcompromising onsubstancerequiresadifferentskillfromthe writerwhocanlettheirimaginationcarrythem intothewideopenworldsoffiction.Making thingsupmeansthesky’sprettymuchthelimit, whereasthenon-fictionwritermustfacethechallengeofbringingwhatare,essentially,drybones tolife.Youmustparkyourimaginationbutnot yourcreativity.

Factscanbeunwieldythingswhichneedthoroughchecking,corralling,andgroupinginorder toavoidleavingthereaderfeelingmachinegunnedbyyourbook.Peltingthemwithinformationwithoutwrappingitinanappropriateand appealingpresentationalformisunkindand counter-productive.Givingabroadperspective beforezoomingintoexamineyourthemeinmore detailallowsareadertimetoprocessthematerial youshare.

Thisgenreisnotthesameasaparedbacknews story.Journalistsaretrainedtopresentuswith theconcisewho,what,where,why,andhow

JennySanders

anatomyofanobservationalreport.Thesedays wearesubjectedtowhicheverspincomeswith that;opinionshavecreptintoournewswithincreasinglyobviousbias,elsewewouldnothave sucharangeofnewspapersandtelevisionchannelsreflectingtheill-disguisedspectrumofpoliticalpersuasion.Apurelyobjectivereportisasrare ashen’steeth;perhapsitalwayshasbeen.

Itbehovesawritertoaskwhethertheyaretrying togetsomethingofftheirchest(inwhichcasea punchylettertoanationalnewspapermaybe thebestavenuefortheircreativity),oriftheyare hopingthereaderwillcomewiththemonajourneyofdiscoveryand,perhaps,enlightenment.

Thefamilyofnon-fictionpublicationsspreadsa widenetfromjournalismandspecialistjournals thatdealwithdata,academicresearch,niche tradedevelopmentsandreports,throughtotext booksandtopicssuchastravel,healthandwellbeing,businesspractices,hobbiesandself-help.

Therehasbeenaproliferationof‘how-to’books oneverythingfromgardeningtogolf,embroidery toequinecare,diettodancing.Happily,thedays ofploughingthroughencyclopaediastolocate accurateinformationinourresearchhaslargely beenreplacedbyafewclicksontheinternet.

Whichevertopicyouselect,dobearinmind:Yourtopicmustbesomethingyouhaveapassionfor.Ifitdoesn’tinterestyou,itwon’tinterestyourreader.

Findyourvoice(asyoudoinfiction)butmake sureit’sneitherberatingnorpatronising.Come alongsideyourreaderasyouexplainandexplore yoursubject.

Youmustcraftyourworksoitisnotjustalistof facts.Youneedtooffermore.

Theremustbeaclearprogressiontoyourwork; don’trepeatyourthesisendlessly.

Theremaynotbeanarrativeassuch,butis thereachronologytoyoursubjectasthereis withabiographyorautobiography?

Ifyou’renotclearwhereyourworkisgoing, don’texpectreaderstocommittocomingwith you.Readersdon’twanttobeconfusedbutthey arewillingtobetakenonaprogressivejourney. Knowingitisgoingsomewheregivesreadersthe impetustoengage.

Whateveryourchosentheme,ensureitenergisesyoutothepointyouarepreparedtosweat throughtheprocessofairingandexplainingthat passionwithoutthein-personbenefitofintonationorgesture.Non-fictionisnoteasiertowrite thanfiction.

Unlikefiction,factswillprovidenaturalboundaries.Withinthoseyouwillfindplentyofspacefor choosinghowtounpackandexplorethem. Don’tleaveyourreaderwithmorequestions thantheystartedwithunlessyouareofferinga seriestoupgradeorup-skillsomethingspecific. Abeginner’sguidecouldleadontoamoreadvancedguidegivingyouscopeforfurtherprojects.

Irepeatnon-fictionisnotanexcusetoabandon creativity.

Theartofnon-fictionwritingisliketakinga friendtoanartmuseum.Thefriendisthereader andtheirinterestwasinitiallyarousedbyyour bookcover,justasatouristmightpickupanadvertorialleafletataninformationbooth.They havepaidfortheirticketbybuyingyourbook.

Yourtopicismetaphoricallyrepresentedbythe plethoraofmasterpiecesdisplayedonthewalls. Theremaybemany‘pictures’tosee,butwhich willyouhighlighttoexamineclosely? Youhave neitherthetimenorthewordcounttolingeron all,sodesignyourpersonaltourselectively.

Rememberfewbookstrulycovereverything. Sliceanddiceyoursubjectruthlesslytopickout theessentials.Some‘pictures’requiremoreofa viewer’sattentiontotakeinthedetails.There maybenuancesoftechniqueyourexpertisecan pointoutwhichmighthavebeenmissed.Point themoutandyou’llbethanked.

Perhapsyouhavebackgroundinformationon themetaphoricalartistorthesubject(s)ofthe workwhichacasualobserverwouldhaveoverlooked.Inthiswayyoubringsomethingfresh andprobablyuniquetoyourwritingwhichmay alsopiquetheinterestofapublisher.

Yougettheidea?

Youmightseetheprocessasthatofachefwho takesfamiliaringredients,addslessfamiliar onesinuniquecombinationsandsocreatesan appetisingdishthatdelightsandintriguesthe diner.Thinkoftherecipebookswhichcontinue tofillthemarketandhowmanydifferentways we’vebeenofferedtoservechickenorvegetablesovertheyears.Thatwingofnon-fictionhas notdriedup.

Alternatively,youcouldthinkofitasputtingtogetherajigsawpuzzle.Thoseall-important straight-edgedpieceswilldefinethewhole.Everypieceisimportantifthepictureontheboxis tobeaccuratelyreplicated. Shouldonebeomittedthepuzzleisruined.

Whichevermetaphorresonateswithyou,the possibilitiesforexploringthenon-fictiongenre aremultiple.Justbecauseyou’vealwayswrittenfictiondoesn’tmeanyoushouldn’tturnyour handtothis.I’vewrittenbothandenjoyedthe challengesofextensiveresearchandcrafting ‘meaty’contentaswellaswhat,forme,turned outtobethelightreliefofwritinghumorousfictionfor7-11year-olds.Myreadersmaybedifferentbut,happily,bothgenreshavebeenenjoyed.

Yourtaskinnon-fictionistoprovideinformation butalsotoignitethatflickerofinterestwhich ledapotentialreadertopickupyourbookin thefirstplace.Useyourskilltofanthatintoa flamewhichequatestoyourpassionandensurestheyreadrighttotheendasyouhavejust donehere.

WriteinTime

MayaAngelou 1928–2014

“Thereisnogreateragonythanbearinganuntoldstoryinsideyou.”

MayaAngelou, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings

BornMargueriteAnnieJohnsononApril4,1928 in St.Louis,Missouri,U.S,MayaAngelouwasan Americanmemoirist,poet,dancerandcivil rightsactivist.ShewasthesecondchildofBaileyJohnson,adoormanandnavydietitian,and VivianBaxter,anurse.TheydivorcedwhenMayawasthree-yearsold.

Spiritual Feasting is Jenny’s faith-based exploration of authentic living in tough times. She explores the theme of being shaped for purpose in her latest book Polished Arrows. She has two collections of humorous children’s stories: The Magnificent Moustache and other stories and Charlie Peach’s Pumpkins and other stories. She is available for author visits for creative writing sessions with Key Stage 2 children in the UK.

MayaAngeloupublishedseveralautobiographies,booksofessays,booksofpoetryas wellaswritinganddirectingscreenplays.Her autobiographiesfocusonherchildhoodand earlyadulthood.In1972,shewrotethemovie Georgia, Georgia -makingherthefirstAfrican Americanwomanto produceascreenplay. ShediedonMay28,2014inWinston-Salem, NorthCarolina,attheageof86.

Herpublishedworksinclude:

AutobiographicalWorks

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings (1969)

Gather Together in My Name (1974)

Singin’ and Swingin’ and Gettin’ Merry Like Christmas (1976)

The Heart of a Woman (1981)

All God’s Children Need Traveling Shoes (1986)

Wouldn’t Take Nothing for My Journey Now (1994)

A Song Flung Up to Heaven (2002)

Memoir

Mom & Me & Mom (2013)

BookofEssays

Letter to my Daughter (2008)

RecentReleases

In Writing: Conversations on Inspiration, Perspiration and Creative Desperation byHattieCrisell

ISBN-10: ISBN-10 : 1803510633

ISBN-13: 978-1803510637

Publisher:GrantaBooks(November2024)

Blurb

HattieCrisellinvitessomeofourmost-readauthors,poets,journalists andscreenwriterstosharetheirsecrets,assheasksthem:wheredo ideascomefrom?Whathappenswhenconfidencefaltersorthework fails?Andwhatdoeswritingsuccesslooklike?Theanswersareasrevelatoryandentertainingastheyarediverse.

WithcontributionsfromAndréAciman,JesseArmstrong,CharlieBrooker,WendyCope,CressidaCowell, ElizabethDay,KitdeWaal,GeoffDyer,JohnLanchester,EmilyStJohnMandel,LianeMoriarty,David Nicholls,MaggieO'Farrell,JonRonson,MichaelRosen,DavidSedaris,CurtisSittenfeld,BrandonTaylor,

Title: Qi And Me: A personal glimpse into using the body’s energy to enhance health byEileenRolland (November 2024)

ISBN-10: 1916879780

ISBN-13: 978-1916879782

Blurb

Arewemorethanthesumofourparts?Istheremoretolifethanmeets theeye?Canholdingyourhandonasorespotmakeitfeelbetter?

Weallhavequestionsaboutlifeandhowitworks.Someaspectsofour existencecan’tbeeasilyexplainedbutcanmakelife ‘interesting’. EileenRollandopensthedoortoherworldandinvitesyoutoexplorelife fromaslightlydifferentperspective.Herquestioningmindandsensitivity toenergy,evidentfromearlychildhood,tookheronapathshehadn’t expected.

Topicscovernotonlymind-bodyexercisesandtheirhealingpropertiesbutalsoinformationonnutrition fromaChineseMedicinepointofview,includingadifferentapproachtofoodallergiesandintolerances.

Fascinatedwiththeconceptofenergyflow,sherelatesstoriesofherlifeandherworkasaComplementaryTherapistinparallelwithaspectsofTraditionalChineseMedicineofferingmeditationsandtechniquesforyoutotry.

UsingFictionalTechniquesforNon-fiction

Allison Symes shares why she welcomes using fictional techniques when writing non-fiction

OnedevelopmentinrecentyearsIwelcomeistheincreasingusageoffictional techniquesfornon-fictionwork,beit articlesorbooks.Itisusuallybetterknownby thenameofcreativenon-fiction.

Theadvantagesofitisitdoescreateamore “lively”style,meaningbooksandarticlesbecomemoreinterestingandarelikelytoattract morereaders.BenMacintyre’sbooksconnected totheSecondWorldWararegreatexamplesof theform(Operation Mincemeat, Double Cross, Agent Zig-Zag andmanymore).

Theideaistousethosehooksandtechniques whichkeepareaderreadinganoveltokeep themreadingnon-fiction.

Advantages

Nomoredullnarrationoffactsthen?Correct.

Haveanarrativevoicewhichgripsyou,justas youhaveinanovel?Correct.

Havechapterswhichendonacliffhangeror somethingsimilartoit,justasyouwouldina novel?Correct.

Thewayfactsarepresentedismademoreinterestingtoo.Thereisusuallyanarratorsharing thisinformationwithyou.Ifindthismakesthe non-fictionbookmoregrippingbecauseIwant tofindoutwhatsaidnarratorisgoingtoshare withmenext.Thereisalsoastrongsenseof workingthroughfactstogettotheconclusion.

Allison Symes

Thiskeepsyoureadingtotheendwhendone well.

Thelanguageusedisaptforthesubject(fora historicalbook,therewouldbenoslangterms weusenow,forexample)butitisalsowrittenin amoreinformalstyle.Thereisalwaysagood sourceofreferences/furtherreadingideasatthe backofthesetoo.Anygoodnon-fictionbookor articlewillleaveitsreaderswantingtofindout moreaboutthesubjectandIbelievecreative non-fictionamplifiesthisideal.

TellingtheNon-Fiction“Story”

Aswithanovel,awriterneedstodecidewhose storyisbeingtoldhere,whoisgoingto “narrate”it.Itisaquestionofworkingouthow topresenttheinformation,howyouwillend yourchapterstoensurereaderskeeponreading.Itisvitaltokeepaccuratenotesofyour sourcesthough.Publisherswillwanttoknow theseandtoensureanynecessarypermissions arecleared.

Lisa Turley is from West Virginia. She is on numerous ARC street teams and reads in multiple genres. She is passionate about helping authors get the wordoutabouttheirbooks.

Ifyoutellastorywhichislargelybasedontruth butwithelementsmadeup,youdoneedtosay

so.Oftenthewaytodothisistohavesomething like“basedonatruestory”onthecover.The word“based”tellsreadersnoteverythinginthe bookisliteraltruth.Mostofitwillbethough. Readersshouldbeabletolookupthefacts you’vesharedhereanddiscoverthey’retrue fromothersources.

Writing“Tightly”/UsingAptLanguage

WhatIcalltightwriting,whichIuseallthetime inmyflashfictionwork,isaboontoallcreative writing,includingnon-fiction.Itmeanscutting theadjectivesandadverbs.Itmeansbeingspecificandnotusingqualifiers.Lookoutforwords likevery,actually,particularly,abitandsoon. Bedefinite.

Whenyouhavecharactersinyournon-fiction workspeaking,whattheysayshouldbeasclose aspossibletowhatwasknowntohavebeensaid bythematthetime.Wherethereisnoproof,especiallyifyougowaybackintime,usethelanguageanditsstyleinawaywhichwouldbeapt foryourcharacter.Aswithanovel,shortstory,or flashpiece,thecharacterhastostillringtrue withreaders.Theonlydifferencehereisyour characterswererealorarebasedonthose knownorthoughttobereal.

FactualCharacterVoice

Whatalwaysgrabsmewithawellwrittenfictionalbookisthestrongvoiceofthecharacterscomingthrough.Youwanttobeabletopicturethem. Thecreativetechniquesusedherehelptomake themseemmorehumanandidentifiabletousin thisdayandage.Thesameappliestonon-fiction works.

Youstillwantyourreadertoknowfarmore aboutyourrealcharacterthantheyhaddoneat thestart,oriftheycometoyouwithknowledge ofthecharacteralready,thereisnothingtojar them.Agoodnon-fictionarticleorbookbrings itssubjecttolifeencouragingfurtherreadingon

thesubject.Ifyoucangetyourreaderstohone inonyourcharactershere,tobeabletounderstandwhattheydidandwhyattheirtime,then yournon-fictionworkwillbeasympathetic read.Engagingwithcharactersdoesencourage furtherreading.

LifeChangingBooks

Bookswrittenlikethiscanbelifechangingtoo. Oneofmyfavouritesis The Daughter of Time by JosephineTey.Strictlyitisaworkoffictionbut theauthorweavesinhistoricalfactsintoherstorynarration,itdoesseemlikeyouarereadinga “true”story.

Thisisaptgivenhertitlecomesfromthephrase Truth is the Daughter of Time. Thisbookchanged myviewsonKingRichardIIIofEnglandcompletelyandremainstheonlybooktohavemade methinkagainaboutarealpersonage.I’vesince readothernon-fictionbooksincludingPhilippa Langley’srecent The Princes in the Tower and AnnetteCarson’s The Maligned King. Bothof thesearenon-fictionbutwritteninanaccessible wayandreadlikenovels.

Onceyoucangripareaderonasubject,theywill readandread-fictionandnon-fiction-around thatsubject.

HowdoIknow?Becauseit’swhatIdo.

Andthewayin?

Throughgrippingnon-fictionworks.

Allison Symes is a flash fiction/short story writer, blogger and editor based in Hampshire. She runs writing workshops, judges competitions, and writes weekly for writers for Chandler’s Ford Today. She has two flash fiction collections published (Chapeltown Books) with a third in the pipeline.

ImagesAndText:ASymbioticRelationshipInNon-fictionWriting

SC Skillman discusses the symbiotic relationship between images and text in non-fiction works and shares her experiences of using these along with working examples.

WhenIwascommissionedtowriteanonfictionbookforthehistorypublisher Amberleycontainingbothtextand photographs,Ithought,‘thiswillbestraightforward’.Iimagineditwouldbeasimplematterof findingstoriesaboutplacesthenchoosingphotostogowiththem. Ihadnoideathenofthe almostmagical,interdependentrelationships betweentextandimages,andhowtheychange eachotherinadynamicway,andalterthenatureofthewritingprocess.

DuringthelastfiveyearsI’vefoundoutmuch moreaboutthemysterythatbreaksthroughbetweenwordandimage. Averysimpleexampleis oneofthephotosIincludedinmymostrecent manuscript, Paranormal Gloucestershire. Istood infrontofapicturesquehouseinalonelyrural settingoutsideavillageandfeltwhatalovely picturethatwouldmake;butitwastheEast WingwheretheincidentstookplacethatImust writeabout;soIneededaphotoofjustthat wing,whichIobtainedbytrespassingdowna longgraveldriveandnegotiatingaforbiddingNo Entrysign.

WitheachbookIbuildupmyfileofphotosofformidablecastles,chillingprisondoors,poignant longbarrowsandfieldsoverwhichaWhiteLady drifts,andsavethemunderlocationname,then cometoselectthebest,whichisoftenverydifficult.

Sometimesthephotospeakssoclearlytome,I mustincludethestoryitreveals.Atothertimes,I haveanintriguingtalebutnospecificplaceto pinitontosoIcan’thighlightitwithanimage. Mybriefisfor20,000wordsoftextand100photossoatfinaldraftIhavetomakeadecisionand eliminatethoseentrieswhereIcannothavethat relationshipbetweenimageandtext.

AlternativelyImightconjureupanideaforaphotoanglewhichworksverywellinstead,highlightinganotheraspectofthestory;whichthennecessitatesare-shapingofthestorywithadifferentfocus.

TogiveanotherexampleIvisitedacenturiesold manorhousewithaRomantempleintheouter partofthegroundsandspoketotheelderlyhead ofthefamilywhoowntheproperty.Allonline imagesofthishousecarryalicenceiftheyareto beusedinacommercialproject;hewasunable tosourceahighresolutionoriginalphotofrom thepastformetouseandwasvagueaboutwhy.

Hissonstilllivesinonewingoftheproperty,and Ihadreadhisbookwhichrecordssomeanecdotesoftheproperty,includingcompellingand

SCSkillman

frighteningeventsbothheandhissonhaveexperiencedthere.Thepropertyhadinthepastbeen opentothepublicfortwentyyears,thefamily’s experiencesofglaringpublicityfor ‘themost hauntedhouseinBritain’eventuallybecameso horrendousforthemtheycouldn’tstanditanymoreandclosedthehousetothepublic.

Sincethenithasbeenextensivelyrefurbished and(fromtheestateagent’spictureonline) doesn’tlooklikeacreepyhauntedhouseatall, merelyaneleganthighlydesirableresidence–andithaslostallitsatmosphereandresonance.

Insteadofsourcinganexpensiveonlineimage andpayingthelicencefee,Ichosetousemyown photooftheentrancethroughthemassive wroughtirongatesandfocusonthefactthatthe drivewayexactlycorrelateswiththeancientRomanroaddiscoveredbeneathit,uponwhichseveralpeoplereporthavingsightedapparitionsof Romansoldiers.Thisrelatedwelltomyaccount oftheRomantempleexcavationsinthegrounds, whereIlistenedtothetalesofthearchaeologist whooriginallydiscoveredthem.HehimselfadmittedtoseeingtheshadowyoutlineofaRoman there.

Ichosetoincludemyphotoofthattempleonthe hilltop.VeryclosebyIfellinlovewiththesame viewwhichinspiredtheancientCeltsandtheRomano-Britishtobuildtheirshrineinthefirst place.Iwasenchantedbythesublimeviewofthe HorseshoeLoopoftheriverSevernathightide. Theconditionswereperfect;aclear,brightsky illuminatingthewater.

AsIgazedIthoughtofmyancientforebearsover twothousandyearsago,andimaginedthey wouldhavefeltjustthesameasIdidaboutthis view;itpromptedthemtobuildtheirwaterhealingshrineinhonourofSabrina,thegoddessor nymphoftheriverSevern.ThefamousSevern Bore,agreatwave,rushesupthatriverusuallyin Marcheachyear,andisprizedbytopsurfers;our Celticancestorshonouredthevisiontheyhad conjuredupofSabrinaridingherchariotdrawn byfourwhitehorsesacrossthetopoftheBore.

ThisbecamethefocusofmystoryofthatCeltic healingsanctuary;Ifeltapersonalconnection withit,andwiththevisionthathadmotivatedits originalbuilders.

Mynon-fictionbookonWarwickhighlightedthe people,placesandbusinessesofthiscounty town,foundedintheyear914byAethelflaed,ladyoftheMercians,anddaughterofKingAlfred theGreat,tofightofftheDanes.

LateritbecamethelocationofWarwickCastle, thehomeoftheEarlsofWarwickwhowielded suchinfluenceoverEnglishhistory.Inevitably muchofthefascinationofWarwickliesinitsrich history;andIdrewfullvaluefromthatfact.

Twoofmyfavouritephotosforthebookareone takendownontothebeautiful15thcentury housesofMillStreetfromhighonthecastlebattlements,andtheotherofCaesar’sTowertaken fromthegorgeousMillGardens.

HoweverIalsochosetoincludesomeofthelife ofthetowntodayandsoIwroteastoryabout WarwickaSingingTownandincludedanimage ofthecommunitychoirtowhichImyselfbelong. Itookaphotoofthechoirmembersrehearsing foraweddingintheexquisitegardenoftheUnitarianChurch,justoneofthemanybeautifulgardensinthistown.Itwasverywellchosen;allthe choirmembersweredressedintheirbest,the ladiesinjewel-likecolours,anditsymbolisedvibrantlifetoday;infactthepublisherschosethat photoforthefrontcover.Theimagealsoserved tocovertwotopics;elsewhereIhadincludeda storyaboutthegardensofWarwick.

In Illustrated Tales of Warwickshire Iincludeda sectiononIntriguingPeoplePastandPresent, andinterviewedalovelyoldtraditionalwooden toymaker(justlikeGeppettoinPinocchio–and thisgentlemanwasactuallyaskedbyDisneyto filmoneoftheextendedfeaturesfortheirnew digitallyremasterededitionofPinocchio).

ImethimatthelocalCosta,chattedtohimand tookphotosofhimandofsomeofhistoys;Iincludedthosephotosinthebook.

AnotherstoryintheHoaxessectionfeaturedthe 19thcenturymurderofapopularlocalfarmeron alonelyroadoutsidehisvillageandhowfor manyyears,superstitionhadreignedamongthe villagersabouttheholehisheadhadlainin.Obviouslytheholeisnolongerthere,soinsteadI tookaphotoofthechurchyardwherethevictim liesburied;verypoignantwithitsbrokentombstones,andthechurchbuildingitselfissoidiosyncraticitmakesaperfectimageforthestory.

NationalTrustphotoscarryalicencefeeforuse incommercialprojectsnomatterwhetheryou takethephotoyourselforsourceitfromtheir ownlibrary,butphotostakenonpubliclandattractnofee.SoIbecameexpertattakingphotos ofNationalTrustpropertieseitherfromthepublicroadorfromtheirchurchinsteadwhichisof coursepublicland.

Isoondiscoveredhowtofocusinsteadonthe oftenquirkyhistoryofthechurch,asinthecase ofthemoatedmedievalmanorhouseatBaddesleyClintonwhose14thcenturypriestfellfoul ofthehot-temperedlordofthemanorwhodid rathercuriouspenanceforyears,ratherthan suffertheusualpenaltyofmurder.

Isharethetaskoftakingphotoswithmyphotographersonwhoisquiteadeptatdiscovering completelydifferentangles;andveryusefultoo onvisitstoNeolithiclongbarrowswhenheeasilycrawledinsidetheburialchamberandtooka fantasticphotolookingfromthedarkinterior outtothelightbeyond.

Elsewhere,inGloucestershire,Ivisitedagraciouscenturies-oldhousewhichoftenfeatures inmajorfeaturefilmandTVproductions;thereit becameimportantformetophotographatiny window,bothfromoutsideandinsidebecause ofitsassociationwithoneofthehouse’softseenghosts,theWhiteLady.

Atthiswindowaladylitalanternduringthe EnglishCivilWarasasignaltoherloveratthe castleacrossthefields,thathemaycometoher.

Thestoryhadatragicandgrislyending;shebelongedtoahouseofParliamentarysupporters,

andhewasaRoyalistCommander.Thisisthe verywindowaboutwhichitissaid‘whenalight appearsinthatwindowherspiritisabroad’.

Iwassofascinatedbythefatefulandromantic story,byhowtinythatwindowisandyether lightcouldbeseenfromacrossthefields,thatI madeaspecialvisittothecastlewheretheRoyalistCommanderwasstationedandincludeda photoofthatcastleinthebooktoo.

Finally,mayImentiona‘pagancabinet’inanotherGloucestershirecastleofviolentandfascinatinghistory.Thispieceoffurniturestandsina roomwhichwasconvertedfromamedieval chapel,anditreplacedthealtar.Aparticular carvedfigureonthecabinetlooksspeciallygrotesque,andwhentheguidetoldusitwasthe mosthauntedroominthecastleandavisitor hadpointedout‘Somethingbehindyouright now’itgavethatphotoofthestrangecarvinga newdimension!

Inthiswaystoriesarecraftedfromphotos,and photosmaterialisefromstories,andIliketoimaginemyreaderscandetectthatsymbiosis,even unconsciously,whentheyreviewmybooksand tellmehowfascinatedtheywereandhowit makesthemlongtovisitthoseplaces!

SC Skillman is the author of Paranormal Warwickshire, Illustrated Tales of Warwickshire and A-Z of Warwick, all published by Amberley. Her forthcoming book for the same publisher is Paranormal Gloucestershire.

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BodiesInTheBookshop

byWendyH.Jones

Our bookshop of the month is a unique and specialist book shop in Cambridge, Bodies in the Bookshop.

Thismonth’sbookshopfindsusinCambridge,Englandtoauniquebookshop whichonlysellscrimebooks.Now,that’s abookshopIneedtovisit.Imaginebeing steepedinallthosecrimebooksbothfictionand non-fiction.Thisisacrimebookaddictsdream.

Notonlyisituniqueinitsofferingofonlycrime, butitwasalsosetupinpartnershipwithpublisherOleanderPress.Theycarryaselectionof carefullycuratedbooksandemphasiseanyauthorwithaconnectiontoCambridge.

Iwonderifhavingvisitedthecityoncecounts.I amsureitdoesn’t.

Theystrivetoensurethespaceiscosyandwelcomingandhostauthortalksandbookclubs. Beingacrimewriterandanavidcrimereader,I lovetheideaofthisbookshop,andithasme wonderingifthereareanyothersuchshopsin theworld.

Wendy H. Jones is the multi-award-winning, best-selling author of adult crime thrillers and cozy mysteries, children’s picture books and non-fiction books for writers. In addition, she is a writing coach, partner in Auscot Publishing and Retreats and hosts the Writing and Marketing Show podcast.

FindingYourUniqueVoiceWhenWritingNon-fiction

Susan Day shares tips and advice on how to find your unique voice when writing non-fiction.

Non-fictionauthorsaremotivatedto sharetheirknowledgeandskillstoeducateandenlighten.Theyhaveasetpurposeinmindthatgoesbeyondtheroleoffiction writers,whichistoentertain.Thevoiceofanonfictionauthormustbeauthoritative.Theyhave tocomeacrossasknowledgeableortheywill lackconfidenceandlosetheirreaders.

‘The voice of a non-fiction author must be authoritative.’

Somemightsaywritingnon-fictionisadryand cheerlesstask.Afterall,aren’tnon-fictionauthorssimplysharingfacts;dreary,boringpieces ofinformation?Canthisbedull?Isthereaway toallowthatpassiontoshinewithoutsending yourreaderstosleep?

Oneoftherolesofnon-fictionwritersistolay downthefacts,oneaftertheother.Andthisis definitelyonewaytogetyourmessageacross, butdoesitmaketheworkinteresting?Doesit makeyourreaderwanttoconnectwiththetopicandyouasanauthor?Doesitfireuptheirpassionandbeliefinwhatyouareconveying?

Beforeyousitdowntowrite,imagineyouare sittinginfrontofagroupofpeoplewhoknow nothingaboutyouoryoursubject.Youare taskedwithentertainingthemforonehour.If youweretoreadfromyourbook,howlong

wouldittakebeforetheygotboredorfidgety?If youcan’tkeepthementertained,theyaregoing todisengage,andsomemightmakeanexcuse andleave.Iftheywerereadingyourbook,they wouldsoonputitdownandnotpickitupagain. So,howareyougoingtokeepyouraudience turningthepages?

Youneedtobecomeastorytellerwithaunique voice.Shareyourinformationandinsightsasif youwereatadinnerparty.Imagineyourreaders arebackinthatroom,butinsteadoflecturing them,youareentertainingthemwithfactsthat arefun,interesting,andlifechanging.

‘Become a storyteller with a unique voice.’

MiltonMeltzer,anaward-winningAmericanauthor,stated,“The best writers of non-fiction put their hearts and minds into their work. Their concern is not only with what they have to say but how they say it1.”

Includeanecdotesbecausetheyaddvaluetothe

SusanDay

facts.Ratherthanlisttheeventsthatledupto Dunkirk,forexample,tellthestoryofthesoldierswhowerethere.Whatweretheirnames, theiroccupationsbeforethewar,whatwere theirlikesanddislikes?Whatwastheweather likeinMay1940,whatsongsorbookswerepopularthen?Howwouldyouhavefeltifyouhad beenthere?

Whencraftinganarrativeaboutaserviceorprogram,it'simpactfultoweaveinthepersonal journeysofindividualswhohavebeentouched bytheexperience.

Forinstance,"Anna"aparticipantinourliteracy program,discoveredanewfoundconfidencein herabilitytocommunicateandexpressherideas.Herstoryisoneoftransformation from someonewhostruggledwithreadingtoavoraciousreaderwhonowleadsabookclub.

Similarly,"John,"whojoinedourwellnessinitiative,sharedhowtheprogramnotonlyhelped himachievehishealthgoals,butalsoconnected himwithasupportivecommunity.

Anecdotesandpersonalstoriesliketheseare powerful.Theyareremarkablewaystoletyour distinctivevoiceshine.They'renotjusttestimonials;they'rereal-lifenarrativesofempowermentandgrowthandasyouarewritingabout them,you’llfindyourconnectionwiththese peoplealtersyourwritingstyleandyoubecome moreengagedandconnected.Yourreaderswill feelittoo.

Blendyourpersonalexpressionwiththefactsto createyouruniquenarrative.Thinkaboutwhat yourwritingstrengthsare.Perhapsyouarea whizzatgrammaroryouaregreatatspelling. Howbestcanyouusetheseskillstopresentthe informationthatallowsyournaturalvoicetobe clearlyheard?

Beingasuccessfulnon-fictionauthorrequires determinationandskill.Therearehundredsof hoursofresearch,interviewsandfact-checking neededtocreateabook2.However,tosetyour bookapartfromothers,youneedtoinfuseyour bookwithyourindividuality.It’ssomethingyou

can’tfakebecauseitisareflectionofallthatis includedinyourpersonality,yourpassion,beliefs,likesanddislikes.Intruth,yournon-fiction narrativeisasdistinctiveasyouare3 .

Beauthentic,honestandembraceyourindividuality.Remember,yourvoiceisanintegralpartof thewriting,andit'swhatwillmakeyourwork standout.Embraceit,refineit,andletitguide yournon-fictionjourney.Mostofall,enjoyit.

References:

“Milton Meltzer.” Wikipedia (2024), https:// en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Milton_Meltzer

“9 Ways to Insert Your Own Voice And Style Into Research Based Nonfiction Writing.” Writers Digest (2022), https://www.writersdigest.com/writebetter-nonfiction/9-ways-to-insert-your-ownvoice-and-style-into-research-based-nonfictionwriting

“Using Voice in Non-Fiction Writing.” Jane V Blanchard. (2013), https://janevblanchard.com/ using-voice-in-nonfiction-writing/my-musings/ writing/voice-writing/

Susan Day is an art therapist practitioner and a non-fiction author. Susan hosts her own podcast, facilitates creative art sessions, and has over six mindful art therapy books published.

Susan is enthralled with the power of art and the written word to change people’s lives. When she’s not supporting clients or creating, she is planning her next trip away in her campervan, walking her Border Collie or vacuuming up ‘fluffy-butt’ cat hair.

You can find more about what she does by searching ‘mindful arts therapy’ on your socials and by visiting her website – https:// mindfulartstherapy.com.au

UsingSalesTechniquesToImproveYourReadership

Allie Yohn provides practical advice on how to use sales techniques to improve your readership.

IfthereisonethingthatbeingaGirlScout taughtme,it’sthatIamaterriblesalesperson.

GirlScoutcookiesintheUSpracticallysellthemselves.They’reagreatexampleofscarcityeconomics:becausetheyonlyshowuponceayear, they’vegotabuilt-indemandfortheexisting (and,thereforefinite)supply.

Thecookiesalesareawaytogetmoneyforthe troops,buttheyarealsoawaytoteachthegirls aboutfiscalresponsibility,marketing,andperseverance.Everygirlmanagestogetacookiesale duringcookieseason.Still,therearegirlsineach troopwhodazzlealltheotherswiththesheer volumeoftheirsales.Therearemanypossible explanationsforthisphenomenon:

• theirparentstookthesalesformtoworkand passeditaround

• they’vegotahugefamilyofcookieenthusiasts

• theycreatedanundergroundmarketwhere thecookiesarecurrency or

• they’resimplygreatsalespeople.

Someofusarebornsalespeople.Idon’tmean we’reborninthebackroomofausedcarlot, whileamanagerwithanill-fittingtoupeelooked oningleeasthedoctorannounced“it’sasalesperson!”

Butsomeofusareluckyenoughtobebornwith allthequalitiesthatmakesomeonegoodatsellingthingstoothers,whetheritbeagood,service,oranidea.

Whenwethinkofsales,wethinkofgoods/ products(likeGirlScoutcookiesorusedcars) first.

Thenwethinkaboutservices-dowereallyNEED someonetotrimourtreesintofabuloustopiaries,designtheinteriorofourhouses,ordetail ourcars?No,butsomeonegoodatsellingcan convinceusthatwedo.

Thesellingofideasisonewefrequentlyforget. Showmeanysuccessfulpolitician,community changeorganizer,protestleader,anideasfocusedbusinessleader,ormotivationalspeaker,andIcanshowyousomeonewhoiswellversedinpersuasivecommunication,AKAsales.

Aswriters,andmaybeevenashumans,wedon’t liketothinkaboutideasassaleable.Wedon’t thinkofthepeoplewhoproclaimthoseideasas sellingsomething.Butwhetherwe’retraditionallyorself-published,writersareinthebusinessof sales,evenifweneverpersonallyhandovera booktoareaderinexchangeformoney.Growingyourblogorbecomingapublishedwriter comesdowntobeinggoodatsales.

AllieYohn

Therearelessonswecanlearnfromsuccessful sellingtechniquestohelpusonourpublication journey.

Youmustbelieveinyourproduct.

Don’tdemeanyourworkbeforeyouletsomeonereadit.No“Iwrotethisstory,anditreally needsalotofworkbutI’mhopingyoulikeitanyway.”No“yeahIhaveablog,butIdon’tthink it’sverygood.”

Evenifyoucan’tshout“IthinkwhatIwroteis great”fromtherooftops,stopaddingqualifiers thatdemeanthevalueofwhatyouwrote.Say“I wrotethisstory,Ihopeyoulikeit.”Or“Ihavea blog,andhere’swhereyoucanreadit.”

Youcan’tbeshyaboutsharingyourproduct withtheworld.

ThinkbacktotheGirlScoutcookiesales.Girl Scoutsusedtoweartheirscoutinguniformsand knockoneverysingledoorontheirassigned streettoselltheircookies.Theirparentstalked aboutthesaleatworkandpassedaroundthe ordersheet.Thetroopleaderstalkedaboutthe saleinnewspaperarticles.Anditworked,the troopsmanagedtosellalotofcookiesevery year.

Butnow,thegirlssetupstallsoutsideofgrocery storesandgreeteverysinglepasserby.They haveboxesofcookiesreadytohandoverinexchangeforcashorcard.Andtheirsaleshave grownexponentially.

Thelessontotakefromthisisthatyouneedto talkaboutyourworkifyouexpectanyonetoeverwanttoreadit.Tellpeopleaboutyourwriting.

Iwentfromanaverageof10-12readersperblog posttoover70onarecentpost. How?

Italkedaboutitinawritinggroupandpostedit ontheirwebsite(whichisinternational).

IalsomakeasocialmediaposteachtimeIwrite ablog,oneveryplatformI’mon.

Youdon’tneedtospendmoneyonGoogleSEO

togetthewordoutaboutyourwriting,though youcanifyouwanttodoso.

Also,network.Ifyougotoawritingconference, bepreparedtotalkaboutyourwritingwithothers.Thoseconferencesincludeeditorsandpublisherswhomightbelookingforexactlywhat you’vewritten.Butyou’llneverknowifyoudon’t talkaboutyourwork.

Youmustbeconsistentandpersistent.

ThisisatrapIfellintoforquiteawhile.Aflurry ofactivityonmyblog,followedbyperiodsofinactivity.I’dgofrom25+peoplereadingmyblog, tosingledigits.Oneblogpostonlygottwo views,andI’mprettysurebothofthosewere fromme.

Setupascheduleforblogpostsandstickwithit. Planoutideasofwhatyou’regoingtowritein advancesoyou’renotscramblingforatopic.

Persistenceisalsokey.Doyouthinkanyused carsalespersonletsthefirst“no”ofthedaystop them?

Absolutelynot.Theykeeptryingtosellthesame carsoverandoveragaintothepeopleshowing upintheshowroom.Youmustdothesame thing.Keeptalkingaboutyourblog.Keepsubmittingyourwork,evenifeverysinglepieceis rejected.Ifyougetfeedbackthatseemsvalid, reviseandsubmitagain.Don’tletasingle“no” stopyouinyourtracks.

Istartedoutaterriblesalesperson,it’strue.But byfollowingthetipsabove,I’vemanagedtoimprovemynumberofreaders.Andifyoufollow them,oddsarethatyou’llgetreaders(andbuyers)soontoo.

Originally from Kansas, Allie now lives in Arizona with her wife and rescue dog. Previous publications include "In the Very Air You Breathe" in "Wily Writers Presents Tales of Foreboding," as well as non-fiction pieces in both LOTL and CURVE magazine. She is a member of both the Horror Writers Association and Sisters in Crime.

WritingMono-rhymes

Lis McDermott discusses mono-rhymes and shares tips on writing them.

Amono-rhymeisapassage,stanza,oran entirepoemwhereallthelineshavethe sameendrhyme–andthewordend rhymessoundthesamethroughout.

Youcanwriteawholepoemwiththesameend rhyme,asI’vedonethismonth,oryoucould changeitforeachstanza.

‘Silent, Silent, Night’ byWilliamBlakehasthe rhymingschemeof: AAABBBCCC.

Hisfirststanzaendswith: night,light,bright.

Thesecondstanza:day,stray,betray

Thethirdstanza:sweet,deceit,meet

Thelaststanza:joy,destroy,coy.

Shakespearealsousesamono-rhymeinariddle thatPrinceofMoroccoreadsout,inhisplay, The Merchant of Venice:

Allthatglistersisnotgold,

Oftenyouhaveheardthattold; Manyamanhislifehathsold

Butmyoutsidetobehold: Gildedtombsdowormsinfold.

Hadyoubeenaswiseasbold,

McDermott

Younginlimbs,injudgmentold, Youranswerhadnotbeeninscroll'd: Fareyouwell,yoursuitiscold.

Shakespeare, 1595

Somedefinitionsformono-rhymessaythat,as wellaseachlineendingwiththesameend rhyme,theyshouldalsoendinwiththesame consonants.

AsImentionedinmyarticleabout Editing Poetry,(intheApril2024issue),modernpoetsdon’t alwaysstrictlysticktotherules.

Ihavemovedawayfromchoosingwordsthat endwiththesameconsonants,becausebydoingthisyouconstrainthechoiceofwordsopen toyou.

Forexample:malaise,days,crazeallsoundthe samewhenitcomestorhyming.

Lis

TheProcess

Thefirststep,wastothinkofasubject.WhenI thinkofJuly,havingspentyearsinmypastlife, teachinginschools,thefirstthingthatcomesto mymindareholidays.

ThenextthingIdidwasthinkaboutwordstodo withholidays,andtheworditself,andseewhich wordgavemethebestchoiceofrhymingwords. Asithappens,holidayshadalotofwordsthat rhymewithit.

WhenIstarttowriteamono-rhyme,Imakemy listofwords,andthenthinkofatypeofstory,or anordertheywordscangoin. Forsomereason thisoneworkedquickly.

IendedupwithmyfirstversionandthenhadonlyasmallnumberofchangesIwantedtomake whenIeditedit.

Version1:

Packyourbagswithsunhatsandcream,we’re offonourholidays

togetridofthoseterrible,winterfeelingsofmalaise.

Atimetoenjoywithfamilyandfriendssoaking uptherays, certainly,outweighsthetimesittingatyourdesk inadaze.

Hourssittingbythepool,orinbeautifulhideawaybays

Lookingintothedistance,throughaheavyheat haze.

Wanderthroughthetown,visitingstreetcafes,

Divingintolashingsoflushchocolateice-cream sundaes.

SpainandtheCostasthesedaysarebecoming clichés

MoreadventuroustripstotheNorwegianfjords amaze,

ortripstofarflungplaces,suchasjungleswith trailstoblaze;

Whateveryourholidaydream,enjoyyourlatest vacationcraze.

Version2:

Packyourbagswithsunhatsandcream,we’re offonourholidays

Timetogetridoftheterrible,wintermoodof malaise.

Atimetoenjoywithfamilyandfriendssoaking uptherays, certainly,outweighsthetimesittingatyourdesk inadaze.

Hourssittingbythepoolorinbeautifulhidden bays

Gazingintothedistancethroughaheavyheat haze.

Wanderthroughthetownvisitingcolourful streetcafes,

Diveintolashingsoflushchocolateice-cream sundaes.

SpainandtheCostasthesedaysarebecoming clichés

MoreadventuroustripstotheNorwegianfjords amaze, ortripstofarflungplaces,suchasjungleswith trailstoblaze;

Whereveryourelax,enjoyyourlatestvacation craze.

Lis McDermott is a multi-genre author, poet and writing mentor. Visit Lis’ website: https://lismcdermottauthor.co.uk

SUBMISSIONGUIDELINES

Writers’NarrativeeMagazine

We are interested in submissions on any aspect of writing and publishing and will accept simultaneous submissions.AllinterviewsmustbepitchedtotheEditorinChieffirstbeforedoingtheinterview.

We accept varying lengths of submissions depending on the topic - 500, 1000, 1,500. Book reviews can be shorter but should include a substantial review in addition to the book blurb. Only submit previously unpublishedwork(eitheronlineorinprint).

MonthlythemeswillbepromulgatedinboththemagazineandintheFacebookGroup.

Please use Hart’s Rules: The Oxford Style Guide. Light editing will be undertaken. If major editing is required, the article will be returned with general advice on what is required to bring it up to publication standard.

All submissions are to be in Times New Roman or Times, size 12 font, single spaced, with no formatting. Allformattingwillbecarriedoutbytheeditorialteam.

Theonlyimageswhichshouldbesubmittedwithyour articlesareyourauthorphotograph andbookcoversifdoingabookreview.Includeabriefbioandauthorphotographalongwithyourfirstsubmission.

Pleasestatethemonthforwhichyouaresubmittingyourarticle.However,thismaybechangedifitisfelt itbettersuitsadifferentissue.

Writers’Narrativeispublishedmonthly.Submissioncutoffdates:

January–7th November

February–7th December

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Submissionsviaemailto writersnarrative@gmail.com

To nominate your local library or bookshop to be featured in future issues and for any queries including advertisingwithusemailwritersnarrative@gmail.comsubjectheadedfortheattentionofEditorinChief

Whilethereisamonthlythemeandfocus,thiswillnotbetheonlytopicforthemagazine.General articlescanalsobesubmittedforpublication.

Themesfor2025

January/ February Non-Fiction

March HistoricalFictionandNon-Fiction

April ScienceFictionandFantasy(It’sNationalScienceFictionMonth)

May Worldbuilding

June CozyMysteries

July WritingHabits

August CoverDesign

September Publishing

October ShortFormFiction

November NarrativeNon-Fiction

December ResearchingasWriters

Comingin….March2025

Theme—HistoricalFictionandNon-Fiction

FeaturedAuthorFionaVeitchSmith

Articles

BookReviews

Newreleases

Andmore….

March2025