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Hello again! Thought I'd better do a catch up and tell you about some more competitions that are running and what I've been up to.
I've been out and about quite a bit, took a fantastic trip down the Manchester Ship Canal on the Mersey Ferry (although we had a bit of trouble at the Salford end with a bridge that wouldn't open for two hours!) and I've been on a small mammals workshop in Cheshire where I got to learn about trapping to find out species live in an area.
I got to see a common shrew and lots of wood mice up close and had to help weighing them and picking them up by the scruff of their tiny necks which is very tricky! It was a really interesting day - with a very early start! I'm sure it'll come in useful for my Dr Midas stories one day too, it's great to get first hand experiences like that.

Speaking of Dr Midas I've been working on the second book again in the hope of entering it for the Times/Chicken Book children's fiction competition (deadline October 30th for whole novel up to 80,000 words - http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/books/article6733392.ece).
I entered the original competition with Dr Midas and the Pirates but didn't have any success and have wanted to try again but as you need a whole book I was a bit stuck. The only other completed children's book I have is the sequel Dr Midas and the Incas. I think it would be really hard to do well with a sequel but then I started wondering if it could be changed so that it read as a standalone which it is for the main part. The biggest hurdle is how to get round the fact that this is adventure starts with Max finding out that his sister Millie has been on a time travel adventure with Dr Midas. He is so jealous that he decides to do the same and steals the time machine.
I've actually entered the first few chapters in another competition and was happy with them but when Iooked at them again I realised the start was slow in the Max and Millie parts and definitely not strong enough for setting up a first book.
So I've re-written the first two chapters so far, now the book doesn't start at Max and Milie's home but at the museum where they are on a school trip. I'm much happier with the new start, but still have a good way to go. I also need to make sure I really keep in my characters heads all the way through. I do think that my writing has really come on since my Cornerstones critique.
Actually I got asked in a job interview last week (sady I didn't get it) how did I know if my writing was any good? It's an interesting question and my answer was that I'd had a couple of competition wins and some good feedback via my website and query letters but mainly I guess because I love reading and I know what makes me give up on a book. Of course it's much harder to judge when your so close to the work, but leaving a good length of time before revising definitely helps.
Anyway I promised aye-ayes, pirates and more comps!
Firstly aye-ayes - I hope you've been watching Last Chance to See with Stephen Fry - it's been a brilliant series so far, but the best is yet to come this Sunday (BBC 2 8pm) because he's going in search of Madagascar's aye-aye. In an interview with the Radio Times he was asked if he had a favourite animal from his trip.
He said: "We met a captive aye-aye eyeball to eyeball - and what strange amber eyes they have - and watched a wild pair from below a tree as they tapped and sucked at a coconuts. They're astonishing, but spooky too. I think the Mme Berthe's mouse lemur takes a lot of beating for sheer, unadulterated cute."
Another lemur fan! There was a great photo of him and zoologist Mark Carwardine with lemurs too.
Soon everyone will know what an aye-aye is! Hopefully they'll want to read adventure stories involving them and other lemurs too! I'm also pleased to read that the title of the next Pirates of the Carribean has been annouced. Apparantly it is going to be 'On Stranger Tides.' I'm glad pirates are still proving popular and marketable, especially as I'm still trying to find a home for Dr Midas and the Pirates! (I've sent it to another slush pile via email.)
Well there's the new Brit Writers' Awards which I saw advertised in Writing Magazine which is supporting this new competition. There are lots of categories including short story, novel and poetry and entry - which is usually £10.95 is free for WM subscribers. There are also young writers categories and schools can register so their pupils can also enter for free. There's a website www.britwriters.co.uk but information is a bit sketchy at the moment. The deadline is December 8th 2009. I'd be interested to know what other people think about this one - there's a big prize up for grabs too of £10,000.
The Sunday Times have also launched a competition for previously published writers - The Sunday Times EFG Private Bank Short Story Award. There's a £25,000 prize for the winning story and entries can be up to 7,000 words long. For more details visit http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/books/article6817172.ece
The Sefton Celebrates writing competitions are also open for entry again. Deadline is October 9th 2009 and the theme for this year is journeys. There are prizes for poetry, other writing (£2 to enter), and writing by young people (free entry) . Entry forms/details at http://www.seftonarts.co.uk/uploads/file/writing%20comp%20pdf.pdf Well good luck if you enter any of these competitions.
Susan :)

Hello again! Thought I'd better do a catch up and tell you about some more competitions that are running and what I've been up to.
I've been out and about quite a bit, took a fantastic trip down the Manchester Ship Canal on the Mersey Ferry (although we had a bit of trouble at the Salford end with a bridge that wouldn't open for two hours!) and I've been on a small mammals workshop in Cheshire where I got to learn about trapping to find out species live in an area.
I got to see a common shrew and lots of wood mice up close and had to help weighing them and picking them up by the scruff of their tiny necks which is very tricky! It was a really interesting day - with a very early start! I'm sure it'll come in useful for my Dr Midas stories one day too, it's great to get first hand experiences like that.

Speaking of Dr Midas I've been working on the second book again in the hope of entering it for the Times/Chicken Book children's fiction competition (deadline October 30th for whole novel up to 80,000 words - http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/books/article6733392.ece).
I entered the original competition with Dr Midas and the Pirates but didn't have any success and have wanted to try again but as you need a whole book I was a bit stuck. The only other completed children's book I have is the sequel Dr Midas and the Incas. I think it would be really hard to do well with a sequel but then I started wondering if it could be changed so that it read as a standalone which it is for the main part. The biggest hurdle is how to get round the fact that this is adventure starts with Max finding out that his sister Millie has been on a time travel adventure with Dr Midas. He is so jealous that he decides to do the same and steals the time machine.
I've actually entered the first few chapters in another competition and was happy with them but when Iooked at them again I realised the start was slow in the Max and Millie parts and definitely not strong enough for setting up a first book.
So I've re-written the first two chapters so far, now the book doesn't start at Max and Milie's home but at the museum where they are on a school trip. I'm much happier with the new start, but still have a good way to go. I also need to make sure I really keep in my characters heads all the way through. I do think that my writing has really come on since my Cornerstones critique.
Actually I got asked in a job interview last week (sady I didn't get it) how did I know if my writing was any good? It's an interesting question and my answer was that I'd had a couple of competition wins and some good feedback via my website and query letters but mainly I guess because I love reading and I know what makes me give up on a book. Of course it's much harder to judge when your so close to the work, but leaving a good length of time before revising definitely helps.
Anyway I promised aye-ayes, pirates and more comps!
Firstly aye-ayes - I hope you've been watching Last Chance to See with Stephen Fry - it's been a brilliant series so far, but the best is yet to come this Sunday (BBC 2 8pm) because he's going in search of Madagascar's aye-aye. In an interview with the Radio Times he was asked if he had a favourite animal from his trip.
He said: "We met a captive aye-aye eyeball to eyeball - and what strange amber eyes they have - and watched a wild pair from below a tree as they tapped and sucked at a coconuts. They're astonishing, but spooky too. I think the Mme Berthe's mouse lemur takes a lot of beating for sheer, unadulterated cute."
Another lemur fan! There was a great photo of him and zoologist Mark Carwardine with lemurs too.
Soon everyone will know what an aye-aye is! Hopefully they'll want to read adventure stories involving them and other lemurs too! I'm also pleased to read that the title of the next Pirates of the Carribean has been annouced. Apparantly it is going to be 'On Stranger Tides.' I'm glad pirates are still proving popular and marketable, especially as I'm still trying to find a home for Dr Midas and the Pirates! (I've sent it to another slush pile via email.)
Well there's the new Brit Writers' Awards which I saw advertised in Writing Magazine which is supporting this new competition. There are lots of categories including short story, novel and poetry and entry - which is usually £10.95 is free for WM subscribers. There are also young writers categories and schools can register so their pupils can also enter for free. There's a website www.britwriters.co.uk but information is a bit sketchy at the moment. The deadline is December 8th 2009. I'd be interested to know what other people think about this one - there's a big prize up for grabs too of £10,000.
The Sunday Times have also launched a competition for previously published writers - The Sunday Times EFG Private Bank Short Story Award. There's a £25,000 prize for the winning story and entries can be up to 7,000 words long. For more details visit http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/books/article6817172.ece
The Sefton Celebrates writing competitions are also open for entry again. Deadline is October 9th 2009 and the theme for this year is journeys. There are prizes for poetry, other writing (£2 to enter), and writing by young people (free entry) . Entry forms/details at http://www.seftonarts.co.uk/uploads/file/writing%20comp%20pdf.pdf Well good luck if you enter any of these competitions.
Susan :)

Topping & Co in Bath - photograph by Susan Humphreys
I guess its hardly surprising that I haven't had much time for writing lately - well not unless you count filling in application forms for jobs - I've written plenty of those! I've even written a report on social networking as part of my volunteer work and of course i'm writing all the time on Facebook and Twitter - even on here whe i can think of something to share! but as for actual fiction - nothing!

There's no excuse really though and as a former reporter I should know you just have to do it! I must try harder! Especially as this month's National Geographic magazine has Angkor on the cover.
I have however managed to find time for my quick trip to Bath where I got to hear my hero Glen David Gold read from his new book Sunnyside. He was very funny and admitted he is also very bad at writing when he should - "oh look there's a cat in the yard," was his comment. I got to have a quick chat with him after the reading and he very kindly signed my books and told me he is however working on something new (hurrah). I'm hoping it won't take him eight years as it did after finishing Carter Beats the Devil - my favourite book. I also mentioned I read his blog - which he seemed very pleasantly surprised about! Well I know how that feels - when I'm writing on here I always feel like no-one's reading it.
Topping & Company was a fanatastic bookshop - you could spend days in there and the staff were lovely. They are also open 7 days a week till 7.30pm! I couldn't resist buying the new Jonanthan Stroud book too - Heroes of the Valley especially as it was a signed copy. If you're in Bath and you love books do pop in - well linger!
I also got to pay my second visit to Bristol Zoo, it was a glorious day and I got to check out al lot of Madagascan animals again including the aye-ayes, mouse lemurs and mongoose lemurs. One of the highlights though was getting to shake hands - well legs- with Gabriella the tarantuala - which involved letting her carefully put her limbs on the palm of my hand. She was much lighter than I expected and very soft - not at all scary. I also got to hold a Madagascan Hissing Cockroach again - they were very noisy!

I love this theme... takes me back to my Sesame Street days. =)