Day 253

It’s all quiet on the Slippery Souls front – dropped my manuscript off at my auntie’s over the weekend, so now I just wait for her verdict.

I went to the Transporter Bridge in Middlesbrough with half of the Easington Writers Group on Thursday. We had a trip over on the bridge, then had a wander round to the Temenos sculpture – and watched a seal in the water rip the head off a massive fish. He looked quite pleased with himself. I’ve written a poem called Distracted, which I will enter into the Listen Up North competition.

Whilst I now have a little bit of leeway, in regards to work on Slippery Souls at a standstill for the time being, I hoped to get on with some coursework – but alas, I think I may have gone absolutely stark raving mad...I’ve started on a new novel idea! It’s a bit of an experiment in all honesty. Slippery Souls seems to have taken lots and lots of time and planning to get to this stage – so this time I want to try hammering away at my new idea with only minimal planning to see where that gets me. Oh, and I’m aiming to have it finished by the end of August. Ambitious? Probably. Do-able? Yes, I reckon so. I took part in the National Novel Writing Month back in November 2009 and managed to write 50,000 words in one month. So in just over a month, I’m hoping to have 80,000 words. I’m happy to see where it takes me anyway. It’s not in the same genre as Slippery Souls – and I reckon the only way to describe my new novel idea Monday is chick lit perhaps. 

I have a new travel report on my Rachael’s Travels blog called Rachael Meets Rameses II, which can be found here: http://rachaelhdixonstravels.blogspot.com/2011/07/rachael-meets-rameses-ii.html

Well, I’d better go and get typing. It’s Monday morning, and Monday calls!

Day 246

Hooray, second draft of Slippery Souls is finally complete. 

So what now? 

There’s a timeline that runs throughout the whole book, which specifies time and location at the beginning of each chapter – so I need to make sure all timings are correct. And then I’m going to print a copy of the manuscript out and hand it over to my dedicated beta reader (my Auntie Liz) to go through – and she will hopefully give me some constructive (but kind) feedback. So that’s my next step – hope to have the manuscript with her by Thursday.

Okay, so what else has been happening?

On Friday the Easington Writers (including myself) performed poetry at the Durham Light Infantry Museum alongside trombonist Alan Tomlinson, who was playing artist Kate William’s glass trombone. This was the first time this had been done – and it was a very different experience! 

Rehearsal pictures can be found here: http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.217260601642834.49333.168349263200635. 

I performed my poem Dirty Phone Call, which was inspired by the glass and breath theme:

Hello? Hello! Is anyone there?

Is it you again? I cannot tell.

If you’ve nowt to say, then go away

What’s that you say? Really? Well!

You call all hours, breathing hard

Expecting me to listen

Ask what I’m wearing, without caring

About the fact I’ve got a life

I’m someone’s wife, I will not hear

While you grunt and groan at me

I’m not the type for all this hype

I’m a respectable lass, you see

So tell the truth, are you in a booth?

Steaming up the glass

You’ve got such face, in a public place

To act so very crass

So forget it please, you’d better stop

This isn’t turning me on

And what kind of man must you be

To do these things for fun?

I’m hanging up, my husband’s home

This has really gone way too far

Stop wasting my time, that’s enough, goodbye!

By the way, I’m not wearing a bra...

This week the Easington Writers will be making a trip to the Transporter Bridge in Middlesbrough to do some writing for a competition being ran by Rachel Cochrane from www.listenupnorth.com. The deadline is the end of this month – so we’d better be quick! This is to mark the 100^th birthday of the bridge.

My travel blog has been updated with a day trip to Blackpool, called Horror at the Pleasure Beach, so please check that out: http://rachaelhdixonstravels.blogspot.com/

 

And I think that’s about all of my news for this week – I still haven’t touched assignment 17 of my Writers Bureau coursework! Maybe whilst I’m awaiting my Auntie’s verdict regarding Slippery Souls I can crack on with some of that...hopefully.

Anyway, keep enjoying the lovely weather, and I’ll be back with more news next week...

Day 239

I’m a gnat’s cracker away from having the second draft of Slippery Souls finished now – I’m currently working through chapter 36 (so about 2 and a half left to go!) Admittedly, I should have had it completed by now – but I got held up over the weekend by all this weird, bright, warm stuff called sunshine. 

I’ve heard the weather is meant to change drastically as of tomorrow, and we’ll be inundated with rain – so I guess I’ll have plenty time to get my fingers into a frenzy then.

Not all my time in the sun has been spent slacking though – I’ve trawled through my new copy of Writers and Artists Yearbook and have got a long list of publishers and agents, suitable for the urban fantasy genre, written down.

My auntie has very kindly offered to act as a beta reader for me, which I’m actually quite nervous about – because it’ll be the first time anyone has read any of it! Hopefully, she’ll point out any cock-ups kindly and lovingly though!

Other exciting news is that I’ve had a short horror story of mine called Church Fate (inspired by a local church and vicar) accepted into Static Movement’s Summer Thrills Anthology. It’s a non-paying piece, but I reserve all rights on my work, and when the anthology is published it will be sold on Amazon. Not long after I had Church Fate accepted, I also had Dempsey’s Demons accepted for their Sowing the Seeds of Love Anthology. So I’m more than happy that two of my shorts will be circulating in a couple of American anthologies.

Hopefully, I intend on joining the local community centre’s committee – to try and generate some interest and awareness there. I’ve already contacted the local press and the deputy editor said he is more than happy for me to send in features...so more on that soon, all going well.

And as for the Durham Light Infantry Museum’s glass trombone event, well that creeps ever closer and I’m seriously petrified now. I’ll be performing on Friday night alongside the other Easington Writers, and I’ll be using my poem Dirty Phone Call. Our rehearsals are taking place earlier that very day, and I believe I am up last on the set...*my heart’s already going like the clappers* I’ll be sure to give a full account on the event here next time.

I’ve updated my travel blog with a trip account of Amsterdam, which is called Sun, Sea & Sex – and it can be found here: http://rachaelhdixonstravels.blogspot.com/ But I intend on adding more shortly, with a write up of a day trip to Blackpool – so watch out for that also.

That’s about all of my news for this week, so wish me luck for Friday!!!

Day 232

Wow, it seems summer has finally arrived! (Though, of course, I’ve probably just jinxed it by saying that – so blame me for any subsequent rain). 

Anyway, as well as being overjoyed about the nice weather (at last!), I’m also really quite excited because the second draft of Slippery Souls is almost finished. I’ve managed to get 30 chapters edited – so only 8 more to go. At 30 chapters I have a total word count of 58,640 – and ideally, I’d love to add a further 12,000 to that by the time I’m done, but we’ll see. 

My brand-spanky-new copy of Writer’s & Artist’s Yearbook 2012 thudded onto my doormat this morning, woo hoo. I’ll be burying my nose in that quite a lot this week because I’ve finally come to a decision that I will try approaching agents and publishers with my manuscript, in the first instance – and then if I don’t get any joy, I will head down the self-publishing route. Now, because I intend to try the traditional way first, this means I need to prepare a dreaded synopsis and covering letter...eeek! More on that later though – I won’t dare start on those till strictly necessary (I’m too scared).

Now what else has been happening...?

Last Thursday at the Easington Writers group we were involved in our first workshop in association with the new Durham Light Infantry Museum project that we’ve been asked to partake in. We are working on poetry and prose on the subjects of glass and breath – inspired by the ‘Breathtaking – revealing a new wave in British glass blowing’ exhibition that will be taking place on 8^th July 2011, which is centred around glass trombone designed by artist Kate Williams. The glass trombone itself will be played on the evening (which is apparently a treat in itself), and the Easington Writers (including myself) will be performing our pieces of poetry/prose. Tickets into the event are free, and more information can be found using the following link: http://www.brassfestival.co.uk/programme/late-and-live-and-the-amazing-glass-trombone.51.html

I’ve also added another travel report to my personal Rachael’s Travels blog (http://rachaelhdixonstravels.blogspot.com). It’s called Birthday Chills at Chillingham Castle, and is an account of a two night stay in a haunted castle (which, incidentally, knocked a couple of years off my life because I was so terrified!)

I think that’s about all of my news for now, so until next time – make the most of the sun!! :-)

Day 224

My skates have been flying this week, with sparks shooting out the back and everything! I’ve got 21 chapters sorted, hooray! I feel like I’m finally catching up from where I started lagging...and thankfully, my word count is increasing quite nicely in the second draft. In the first 21 chapters I have a word count of 46,645, so by the time I’m done I should have easily reached my target of 70,000 (maybe even more).

So that leaves me with 17 more chapters to go, plus the epilogue, and dare I say it? – I’m actually optimistic about having it finished by the end of this month, with a LOT of hard slog.

I’m so absorbed in it all, and am really feeling my characters. So much so, that every time I take the dog for a walk (which is valuable thinking and pondering time), I’m already planning a prequel and a sequel because I can’t bear to let them all go. I know what the next two books will be called, and I know what the opening lines will be too.

I’m eagerly awaiting the release of the Writer’s & Artists Yearbook 2012 next month so I can start doing some research into proofreading, self-publishing, traditional publishing and agents – just so I can make a decision on what my next step will be. All along I’ve thought I wanted to self-publish, but there’s a tiny element in the back of my mind that wonders whether I should try the traditional route first. And then there’s a part of me that wonders whether I should release it to Kindle first to test the waters. I’m just so undecided. So, like I say, I’m relying on the good old Writer’s & Artists Yearbook 2012 to enlighten me.

This Thursday, Easington Writers will be involved in the first workshop for the new creative writing project we’ve been given by the Durham Light Infantry Museum – so I’m quite excited to see what that’s going to entail. More on that next time...

Oh and to appease my love of travel writing, I’ve made up another blog which is dedicated to all holidays and away days I find myself going on. So far there’s two posts on there – one from a trip to Yorkshire, to see Holmfirth (filming place for The Last of the Summer Wine), Emmerdale (The original Woolpack) and Haworth (home place of the Bronte Sisters), and one from the German Short-haired Pointer Club’s 60^th Anniversary event in Doncaster. Hopefully there’ll be loads more stuff put on there as the year goes on, and it can all be found at: http://rachaelhdixonstravels.blogspot.com

Anyway, I’ll love you and leave you – I’ve got plenty of work to be getting on with!

Till next time J

Day 218

*Hangs head in shame*

I’m yet to start editing chapter 15. I’ve been away since last Wednesday though, so I haven’t spent too much time at my desk (or at home for that matter). We went to Epworth in Doncaster for a 60^th anniversary event for the German Short-haired Pointer Club (okay, we don’t have a GSP – but we went down with my folks, and they have two of them).

I’m all rested and chilled out now – so I’ll keep this update very brief and just crack on.

My skates are now firmly strapped on, and I’ve removed the stoppers from the front...

Day 211

So much has happened this past week! Now where to start...

I suppose most importantly, I will start with a Slippery Souls update. Alas, I only have 14 chapters sorted for the second draft...it’s very slow going at the moment, because I’ve been busy with so much other stuff, oops.  I’ll be making a start on chapter 15 today though (which thankfully is a nice short and snappy chapter).

Last Wednesday I went to Beamish to read out my poem in the memorial chapel, for the 60^th anniversary of the pit disaster. It was all quite nerve wracking really – the memorial chapel was absolutely crammed full, and it was my biggest audience yet. Luckily, I was standing up in the pulpit, so nobody in the audience was able to see my knees knocking together. Mind you, it didn’t go unnoticed by the other members of the Easington Writers who were sat behind! (Thanks guys for not laughing at me!).  Anyway, that’s all the pit disaster anniversary stuff wrapped up now...and we have an exciting new project ahead. The Durham Light Infantry Museum would like us to do some creative writing for them to read out on Friday 8^th July. I don’t know all of the exact details just yet – so more on that later J

And then onto something non-writing related...

I went to Yorkshire for a girlie weekend with my mam and my friend Angela....which is why I haven’t got much writing done! On Saturday we visited Huddersfield and then Holmfirth – where they filmed Last of the Summer Wine. We enjoyed a nice cuppa in Sid’s Cafe, met some friendly (but toilet-hogging) bikers there and posed for photos on Nora Batty’s infamous steps. Then on Sunday we visited the original Woolpack pub from Emmerdale...and despite the fact that none of us even watch the programme, we still posed for photos outside. Unfortunately it was only 10am and it wasn’t open, so it’s with regret that I wasn’t able to have a pint there, pah! Then lastly we headed over to Haworth, which was apparently the home of the Bronte Sisters. I had no idea who they were, shamefully, until my mam muttered something about Wuthering Heights and Jane Ayre. I’ve vaguely heard of these before (though I’m more familiar with Kate Bush’s song), so we just did some retail therapy in Haworth instead of investigating the Bronte museum – period romance just isn’t our cup of tea. We arrived back home yesterday teatime, and I swear I could have slept for a week!

But I can’t. So okay, chapter 15, I’d better go and get started with that...

Well, maybe after I’ve looked at my photos from the weekend J