Back in the Saddle - Getting Back to a Writing Routine

Are you about to start something? Thinking of going back to something? Putting off going to a class or a group because it's a long time since you've been and it seems too much of an effort to get leave the house and get started again?

It's the time of year when we traditionally get back in the saddle, return to classes, resume hobbies that we stopped for the summer. My adult education students will be returning to their creative writing classes this week, and that got me round to thinking about how much harder it is to get started again than it is to simply keep going.

A couple of years ago, I was physically very active as I went to several dance classes a week, as well as swimming regularly and using my rebounder at home every day. All that went by the board this past year as I had a very heavy schedule of work commitments that clashed with my usual classes and often kept me at work on the computer till nearly midnight.

When I was in a regular routine, I automatically took part in my various activities without giving them a second thought. But having had a break, I am surprised at how difficult I am finding it to get myself back in the groove.

Take my salsa classes, for example. Every week, I say to myself, 'I must go back to salsa this week,' yet I always seem to find some excuse to put off going. Yet if I am to get fit again, I know that good intentions are not enough. I actually have to go to the class, put on my dancing shoes and get dancing.

I have come across lots of writers who have this sort of problem. They are going to write a novel one day. They really are. They have a really fantastic idea, but they just haven't got round to putting it on paper yet.

The trouble is that the vast majority of them never will. Being a writer is not just about having talent or imagination. It's about getting down to it. Putting pen to paper. Starting to write and keeping going till you reach the end of the novel. And then going back to the beginning and reworking it all until your book is in its final form.

It's a lonely business being a writer. Many people find it really difficult to shut themselves away and sustain a long project to the very end.

That's where writing classes and writing groups are invaluable. Once you have made the initial effort to go along and get involved in one, you look forward to going back, week by week or month by month, spending time with your fellow writers and hearing what they've written. It also spurs you on to make progress with your own writing so that you have something to share.

So if you've always wanted to write that novel, but never got round to it, why not join a writing class? Did I mention that I have room for a few more students in my Advanced Class? It's on Thursday evenings from 7 - 9 at The Manse Adult Education Centre in the centre of Huddersfield. Give the Centre a ring - (01484) 437150. Ask for Gale's Thursday writing class.

Meanwhile, I'll just go and dig out my salsa shoes...

The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency

There's nothing to beat reading a good book, except perhaps having a good book read to you by an imaginative and talented actor.

On long journeys to and from Scotland, my family enjoys listening to talking books. Initially, we'd borrow some from the children's library to keep my son occupied - children's books that we parents would find entertaining too.

Then gradually we branched out into the adult section of the Sound and Vision Library. Unfortunately, our library charges for cassettes and CDs so the cost could mount up if we borrowed a few items - it's always good to have a standby in case you find one of your choices is a dud.

Recently I was lucky enough to find a few audio books on CD in our local discount store for only £2 each - almost as cheap as it would cost to hire them. The one that gave us the most pleasure this Easter holiday was Alexander McCall Smith's The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency which was beautifully read by Adjoa Andoh, who has appeared in Casualty and Eastenders and has been a member of The Royal Shakespeare Company.

Much as I have enjoyed the television dramatisations of the Alexander McCall Smith books, I found I enjoyed hearing the book read even more. Hearing Precious Ramotswe's back story and the sadnesses she has endured makes the book less sickly than the happy-happy television adaptation.

If you come across any of the audio versions read by Adjoa Andoh, I heartily recommend them, whether they are on sale at £2 each or at the full price.

Reading for Writing - 'The Other Boleyn Girl'

I've been having a very busy time recently with lots of things happening at once. It was the Gang of Five meeting at my house yesterday - a whole evening devoted to discussing writing of mine that I'd sent them to read.

My fellow writers managed to read three of my short stories - four, if you take into account that I'd sent them two versions of one of them - and they came up with some very useful comments and observations about them.

I think that I'll be able to make the changes to two of the stories very soon and get them sent off. However, the third one (the one with two versions) will take a bit more time to finalise as they liked different aspects of each of the versions. My challenge will be to work out how to combine the best of both of them as one is from the viewpoint of the younger sister and the other is from the viewpoint of the older girl.

So today I took a look at my diary and my 'to do' list and realised that to my alarm that I have another deadline looming. I'll really have to get my skates on if I'm to meet this one.

We've got another 'Reading for Writing' book group meeting in Holmfirth Library on Monday afternoon, but I hadn't even started reading the novel we're meant to be discussing. I eventually made a start on it this morning. It's called The Other Boleyn Girl and it's by the best-selling historical novelist, Philippa Gregory.

I think I'd been putting off reading this book for a couple of reasons. One is because it's a historical novel set in a period I know very little about - the court of Henry VIII. Having been brought up in Scotland, I had studied Mary, Queen of Scots and not really learnt anything about Henry.

Unlike some of my contemporaries who were brought up in England, I didn't grow up able to list all the wives of Henry VIII in order. I know he had a lot of them, but I'm not even sure which ones were divorced, which ones died and which were executed.

The other reason I haven't been keen to read this book is that it's a very big book to read - 529 pages of extremely small print. (I do wish publishers wouldn't use small print. Even if it does save paper and cut costs, it's very tiring to read for any length of time, even for someone like me who doesn't usually have to wear glasses for reading.)

Having said that, I've been pleasantly surprised so far. I'm finding the novel very entertaining and there's plenty of emotion, suspense, and intrigue to carry me along. The main characters are pretty interesting too. I do find it very odd though to find Henry VIII being described as an object of desire. For most of my life, I've thought of him as than the chap on the pictures with jowels and a huge belly from feasting on too many stuffed pheasants and boars' heads.

So I've got off to a good start. Will I be able to finish reading the book by Monday, though? Will I have any eyesight left after reading all that small print? Will I need to resort to using reading glasses or a magnifyer?

Watch this space to see if I have enough staying power to reach the end of the novel. Reading it is certainly an experience.

Shall I Write a Fiction Book or a Non-Fiction Book?

Is it Easier to Write a Novel or a Non-Fiction Book?

I am a writer who has had non-fiction books published but my friends mainly write novels. So which is the best bet for someone at the start of their writing career?

It's very much a matter of horses for courses. Trying to get a novel published these days is extremely difficult and many novelists earn very little for a great deal of work, unless they are in the higher echelons of the profession.

What are Your Strengths?

So writing non-fiction might appear to be an easier route to success. But really, it's a matter of what you enjoy writing and what your strengths are, both writing and otherwise.

Why I Chose Non-Fiction?

In my case, I had been an academic researcher and a BBC television researcher. I enjoyed doing research, I knew how to do it, and I could find my way around libraries, including academic libraries and The British Library. Doing research was something that I enjoyed and something I felt very confident about. I had already been involved in writing for education and training, so writing non-fiction was a relatively simple sideways step.

It was still exciting to see my name on the cover of a book for the first time, and my non-fiction book credits coupled with some commissions from the BBC gave me enough professional contracts to earn me membership of The Writers' Guild of Great Britain, one of the organisations for professional writers.

It was good to have a contract and an advance instead of sending things off piecemeal and keeping my fingers crossed that somebody would publish them. Having a contract also meant that I had a deadline to adhere to, which was a great motivating factor for me.

If you have a special skill or specialist knowledge, it is possible to capitalise on that, which is what I did in a way. I wrote biographies for a religious publisher. As a professional researcher, I knew I could cope with the research, and as I had spent many years at university studying religion, I also felt confident that I could understand the religious views of the people I was writing about.

It's possible to write about just about anything - fishing, crafts, local history, health topics. Non-fiction covers a huge range of subjects, so if you have a particular hobby or specialist knowledge because of your job, you will probably be able to think of something you could write a non-fiction book about.

Start Small

Of course, if you're not sure whether you know enough about your subject to write a whole book, you could always dip your toe in the waters by writing some articles about it first, perhaps for newspapers or magazines. This would also help you gain confidence and give you some credentials and a track record that you could mention when you eventually approach a book publisher.

The Joy of Fiction

Other people really live to write fiction and that's what they want to do even if they have to write books for years and years with no contract and no guarantee that any of them will ever get published. The joy of being able to use their imagination and to spend time with characters they have created outweighs the inconvenience of having to send submissions packages out to publisher after publisher at considerable expense and possibly receiving a string of rejections.

Is This What You Really, Really Want?

Ultimately, you'll probably be more successful if you are doing what you enjoy and what you are naturally suited to, so it's important to think about what you really want to achieve. Then go for it, no matter what the current fashions are or what your friends are writing.

There is a niche waiting for you somewhere. It's just a matter of finding it - and having fun along the way.

Male or Female Books?

A Controversial Book Group

Following on from yesterday's post about what sort of things people like to read, we had a bit of controversy in our novel analysis group today.

We were discussing Jodi Picoult's book, Vanishing Acts - I mentioned this book in an earlier post. We had a helpful discussion, both about that book and about Jodi Picoult as a writer. Kimm, who was leading the discussion, had very kindly photocopied the opening page of five other Picoult novels for us to read and compare.

A Women's Book?

We were in broad agreement about both the strengths and the weaknesses of Vanishing Acts, except for one member of the group, the only man, who dismissed it as 'a book for women'. He said he couldn't imagine any man enjoying it because it's about emotions. He thought we'd have been better off discussing the new James Bond novel, Devil May Care by Sebastian Faulks.

Can You Get Unisex Books?

But is there really such a divide between books that men like and books that women like? I don't think it's the case in the genre that I am most familiar with. For example, I would imagine that Ian Rankin's Rebus novels would appeal to men and women equally.

And there must surely be plenty of books written by men that deal with emotions. Men feel emotions too. They get angry. They fret. They fall in love. Life isn't all about Action Man, even if you're a bloke.

What do you think? Do you believe that there are some books that will only appeal to men and some that will only appeal to women? Can writers really only write for their own sex or is it possible to write something that will appeal to both men or women?

Do write a comment and let me know what you think.

Just for the record, we have agreed that we will look at Devil May Care in a couple of months' time. Equal opportunities and all that.....

Your First Thirty Seconds - How to Write an Opening

First Impressions Count

Recruitment experts always say, 'When you go for an interview, the interviewer will form an opinion about you in the first thirty seconds'.

Readers do the same sort of thing when faced with a piece of writing. There are so many things to read these days - articles, stories, writing in magazines, newspapers, books, the internet - that your readers have plenty of reading matter to choose from and not enough time to read it all.

So when you're starting off a piece, you need to make sure that your opening will grab your reader's attention and make him want to read on.

The Hook

Writers have a special name for this. It's called the hook. Just as a fisherman doesn't want to sit at the riverbank all day and go home empty handed, the writer also needs to catch his readers and keep hold of them.

How to Create a Catchy Hook

So how are you going to write an effective hook for your story or article? What sort of bait are you going to use? Here are a few suggestions:

• Start with a question to get your reader thinking
• Use direct speech to make your opening immediate
• Refer to something topical, then tie it in with the subject of the piece
• Say something surprising
• Be controversial
• Start with an honest, personal observation then open it out
• Begin with an anecdote that is funny or memorable

Discover for Yourself

When you read anything in the coming week, whether it's an article in a newspaper or magazine or a novel, you could take a special look at the opening. Ask yourself what technique the writer has used to hook his readers. Perhaps you could even jot down in a notebook what they did and start your own little collection of effective openings?

Think back to your favourite books or to stories or articles that have lingered in your memory. Can you remember how you felt when you began to read them? Did the opening make you curious? Was it striking? Did you identify with what the writer was saying or feeling?

How about when you looked at this post? Can you remember how it started? What did I do to catch your attention at the beginning?

If you're feeling ambitious, maybe you could write an opening paragraph yourself and try to incorporate a hook? If you like what you've written, you can share it with us by writing it as a comment. Tell us why you think it works.