Happy New Year everyone, today I’m going to share a few insights into contracted work or Freelancing.

When I started making a noise about publishing my first book back in January a contact I had made previously got in touch and asked if I’d be interested in doing some Freelance work. ‘Great’ I thought because, you know, paid work writing, what’s not to like? And, I must admit, I really do like it.

The freelance work that I’ve done to date has been settings work for tabletop Roleplay books, setting the scene, building the world that the story will be set in. Having someone approach you with an offer of work is a wonderful thing but, if you’re interested in getting into such work you’re going to have to ‘pound the pavement’ a bit before you get an offer of work. Writing for the games industry can bring you into writing for Roleplay games, computer games and other areas in that sector.

Once you have an offer of work you’ll likely get a genre, word-count and deadline, this is likely before you even get a contract, it’s the final chance to decide whether you’re up to doing the work. If it’s a co-operative piece with a pool of workers you should get invited to an online workspace, I thoroughly recommend signing up since your fellow writer will prove an invaluable resource and it’s nice to be able to communicate with other people on a job.

The project should come with a style guide, the company layout for recieving work. This guide will cover format, layout and font, basically how to setup your document. This means you’ll have to know how to setup a template in your chosen word processing programme and even how to convert to a given file format. A full guide might also make suggestions on style and language, it’s important to read these documents and pay attention to what they say. They’re setup to ensure that the editors don’t have to make the changes for you and that means they can give the meat of your work their full attention.

On the subject of Editors, talk to yours, your project coordinator or whatever. That’s not to say barrage them with questions, compliments and small talk but, if you’re struggling for inspiration or look like you might fail to make the deadline don’t be afraid to speak up. Extensions can be granted in most cases also the project coordinator will be more familiar with the material you’re working on than you are. On the subject of the material, if you’re working on an existing Intellectual Property you ought to be granted access to related material already in print (but that’s not a given).

The first draft will go to a redline stage where the coordinator will look over your work and make edits or suggestions. If your coordinator is really nice (like mine) they’ll also provide some words of praise for good work. Now, this is the really important part, DON’T be too ‘precious’ over your work. You’ve written it for someone else, they WILL want to make changes. It’s not an insult to recieve suggestions. Your material has to fit THEIR brief. Once you’ve made tha amendments atthe Redline stage your work goes back, you might see it again for a final review but hopefully, by this point, it’ll be ready for acceptance.

I won’t be so crass as to talk about rates. Usually, as far as freelance work is concerned, it’ll be a rate of cents per word. Payment will probably be split between getting the draft approved and the product hitting the shelves. It will take some time, in order to make a living doing freelance you’ve either got to be very good or incredibly prolific.

Follow up. You might be content to sit around and wait for your coordinator to contact you about further work but, as mine has said, don’t contact them asking why they haven’t. If you want to work with them again by all means contact them and ask them if they have any work going but, if they don’t contact you after a job is done with a future prospect the liklyhood is that there isn’t a new project on the horizon or, that you made yourself unpopular for some reason. So, understand that the work you’re doing is on someone elses behalf, if you’re in a team be part of that team and, if you want work get out there and find it. Track down the companies who produce the material you like to write, put together a writers CV (these places don’t want to know about your time in retail or at a desk, they want to know what you’ve written and for who) and contact them, every couple of months if you have to.

Good luck, have fun, and here’s to a productive and prosperous 2019!

 

Happy New Year Everyone!

So, it’s been a little under a year since I released Camelot 2050: Black Knight and (in the scheme of things) it’s doing well. The thing is I (like many of us who release our work out into the world) want it to fly, to soar and, hopefully, one day it will. In the interim all that I can do is carry on working and wait for Camelot to gain the momentum I know it can.

But waiting is SO frustrating, you know that and I know that and it can impact on your work if you’re not aware of it. Feeling like ‘you’re not getting there’, especially in the current industry situation, is the new rejection syndrome. So many writers quit because the rejections got to them and that was back when getting an agent was the way to go. Now you’re expected to self publish to prove you can finish a product or move units alongside everything else, the stress and frustration, feeling like you’re not making progress.

The most importnant part of writing is to stick with it. You might never be recognised but, you’ll never know unless you try and never at all if you quit. As I’ve said before, if your work makes one reader happy you can count yourself a success.

I know this is only a short entry but I’m desperate to make some progress myself and start the 2019 right!

Before I go quiet for the Holiday Season I thought I’d share what I’ve learned about the state of play in the publishing industry over the last year since next year I’ll be working on a novel to attract a publisher and agent.

So, back in the day a writer would work on their manuscript, take it to agents until one of them took a liking to it and then the agent would take it to the publishers and arrange everything, distribution, promotion, appearances etc. That’s not how it works today.

From conversations with various other authors, webinars and panels with publishers what I have learned is that the process has pretty much reversed with the introduction of cheap and easy self-publishing and social media, so (whilst the goal is still to get an agent) actually getting an agent is pretty much the last item on the list, almost.

So what’s they new process? Well, writing the book is still the first thing to do, the promise of a finished work doesn’t sell so well (unless you’re already famous) so getting the work done is still item one. From there the publishers and authors I’ve spoken to recommend getting it out there, Self-Publish and start building an audience. Now you also want to start self-promoting, social media and going to conventions to promote your brand.

Once you’ve proven that you can not only write a book but have a social presence and a willingness to make appearances you can start pitching to publishers. These days your publisher can pretty much fulfil the role of an agent (up to a point) and it’s not uncommon to stop there, sit back and wait to see if you appear on the Bestsellers lists. Depending on how your book does on the market you might then choose to approach and agent or (if it really takes off) an agent might approach you and that (hopefully) is where it all takes off.

So, next year is the year I put pen to paper on a standalone novel to take to publishers, during that time I’ll be attending nearly a dozen conventions to promote my existing work. In the meantime, remember to check reviews on the self-publishing services or ‘publishers’ you approach. A self-publishing house will charge you, file uploads and unit print costs, a ‘publisher’ who asks for money up front isn’t a proper reputable publisher looking to sell your book for you.

So, for 2018 that’s it so far. Happy Holidays and see you in the New Year!

Just a point of clarity for starters, I am not an English Lit Major. The study of Literature didn’t figure in my education beyond secondary school, I’ve read a lot (within my preferred genres) and I watch a lot of TV shows, movies and the like so, what follows isn’t what you’d call an ‘educated opinion’ just my opinion.

The sources I’ve read, articles by editors and the like, brand stereotypes, coincidences and cliches as ‘bad’, evidence of ‘lazy’ writing or poor story planning but why? Let’s look at each one, see why they might appeal and then break down some of the drawbacks of using them.

A stereotype, a “widely held but fixed and oversimplified image or idea of a particular type of person or thing”, well straight away there’s the appeal. It’s something ‘everyone’ (the ephemeral everyone) already knows. It’s something familiar but, as the definition describes, it’s also fixed or rigid. The majority of stereotypes are also derogatory, you just have to look at how the sensationalist media have used them in past years, used and reinforced them to sell units or rally public outcry. Stereotypes based on race, culture or sexual/gender identity are almost universally ‘bad’, they demean the lived experiences of the individual by placing them within a template that people, people who often have no parallel experience think they can understand. Yet there are stereotypes that do appeal and do get used again and again, corrupt executives, shady lawyers and the like. These templates don’t rely on gender or race and there are enough examples of them in recent history to justify the use. But, back to the argument, a stereotype is not a character. It might form the basis for a character but that basis has to outgrow the confines of the template, gain dimension, until is no longer what it was before it can be accepted by the audience.

Coincidence, “a remarkable concurrence of events or circumstances that have no apparent connection with one another.” or (as some editors I’ve read have described it in the literary setting) ‘the divine hand of the writer intervening.’ sometimes you do write yourself into a hole, you can’t see a way out and going back to rewrite the sequence of events seems like an insurmountable job, you don’t want to discard a bulk of work to move forward. Of course a great explanation for ‘coincidence’ is ‘prophecy’ but that will likely already have been established, so it’s expected and accepted, but it doesn’t work well too far outside of the fantasy genre. The thing is coincidences, seemingly unbelievable coincidences, happen all the time but, by engineering circumstances the writers coincidences become ‘unbelievable’. I’m not saying certain coincidences don’t have their place but they should be subtly employed.

Cliches, “an expression, idea, or element of an artistic work which has become overused to the point of losing its original meaning or effect”. Again, even cursory reading of the internet will deliver the idea that cliches in literature are ‘bad’, very much like stereotypes. The corrupt exec, or shady lawyer examples come back around, are they stereotypes or cliches? Well they are both, both definitions apply and still they are used (more often as red herrings) and, like stereotypes there is the appeal of using the familiar, the comfortable to achieve a widely recognised image, the kindly mentor is another that endures. The idea extends into common sayings, a character who uses a cliche as a catchphrase isn’t being original. But, in this time when common conventions are being openly challenged, perhaps calling out the use of cliches, ‘hanging a lantern on it’, is an acceptable source of humour. We don’t have to completely disregard old ideas but, as writers we should be striving to put a fresh spin on them.

I’m not saying I’m not guilty of any or all of the above. In writing Camelot 2050 my main goal has been to produce something fun, something that, while it has a message of its own, doesn’t take itself too seriously, and, as my trunk work, I’ve railed against being told ‘how to do it’ (certainly at least one New York Times Bestseller has said ‘don’t be told what to write’). However, when (down the line) I want to be taken seriously by publishers or agents, my next project will certainly involve more planning, more attention to avoiding the stereotypes, coincidences and cliches that the broader writing world find so irritating. For now I’m pushing through writing book three of the trilogy and I am doing it how I want.

Pretty much everyone is familiar with ‘Writers Block’, those periods where your ideas dry up and you just can’t see a way forward. It’s something that every writer has to deal with at some point and we all have our own ways of dealing with it. Sometimes you just need to work on something else, clear your mind, sometimes it just takes a break and indulging in a little leisure (watching movies, reading books etc) and eventually you can overcome and sometimes it’s all down to motivation, some days you just don’t ‘feel it’ in you and getting in the chair is the hardest part.

For my own part, the toughest block I’ve hit recently is approaching the closing act of Camelot 2050: Dark Magic. The story I’ve been working on for over a decade and one that means a great deal to me. Closing a story that I’ve worked on for so long is different to approaching the end of a series I’ve enjoyed reading. There’s a feeling of obligation, to make the story the best I can in service to the readers who have supported my efforts. There’s also a hesitation, once I finish that book where do I go? I have concepts sure, I’ve even started some real work on some of them but Camelot 2050 is my debut, it’s been a part of my life for so long (and will continue to be) but once I finish the series I have to say goodbye to those characters, that world and it’s very much like saying goodbye to old friends.

So, what’s the answer? Well, my answer is deadlines. I have a set deadline, known and publicised on my social media, and the duty I feel to my readers will help me push my creative efforts forward.

I do want to finish, I’m driven to finish but, there’s the duality of not wanting that story to end. Like I say, I have my answers, I offer them here to encourage fellow writers to find their own and to reassure you that, the reluctance to finish a series of books, or even one book, is not a feeling you are alone in. I may come back to Camelot in future but, for now, I have other ideas that I need to explore and other goals to achieve. I hope that Dark Magic is a fitting end for the Camelot 2050 trilogy, I hope you enjoy it and I hope these blogs, infrequent as they are, help some of you with your own works.

I know I didn’t Blog last week, it’s getting on to winter and Authors in the Northern hemisphere are preparing for hibernation. Today I’m going to talk about shows. My experience of Conventions and trade shows to be specific. I’ve done a few and it’s been a real blast I have to admit.

I was lucky again in that my partner has been trading on the Con circuit for the past few years and had a good idea of where to go. This past year my calendar has been split between Film and Comic, Sci-Fi and Literary Conventions. The events themselves aren’t hard to find on the internet and what you’ll likely find is that they a split between those run by a parent company and those run by a society group.

The company run events tend toward celebrity appearances and trade stalls, there will be contests and giveaways and (this is the important bit) footfall. These are the conventions where you can sell, independent authors don’t tend to pop up in numbers at these events but the people who go to them are fans, they watch, they read and, sometimes, they’re on the lookout for something new. Face to face engagement is a key tool, if the reader can see your enthusiasm for your story then they will be enthused too. Groups to search for include the likes of GoGeek and Show Masters.

Independent shows like Easter Con and Bristol Con are more literature oriented, you’ll likely meet other authors there and the Conventions include panels, readings and chances to showcase your work. Signing up for a panel is a chance to identify with a wider group of people, choose a subject that you’re familiar with and have a passion for. It might be a genre or a theme like representation in literature, whatever you choose you want to engage the audience but try not to overrule the other panel guests. Don’t be disappointed if you don’t get included on a panel first time around, the Con organisers likely want to get an idea of your character and material first. Some conventions might ask for panel suggestions as well, it’s a good place to meet like-minded or experienced people. If you can find opportunities to attend a panel you can get some really good advice from people in the industry or you might just get the validation that what you’re doing is right. At a literary meet your going to be showcasing your books against other authors but remember, it’s not a competition but there are some steps you can take to up your game. Banners are cheap and relatively easy to produce, with the skills you can learn in producing your cover you can put together a banner design and have it printed to catch the eye of passing readers.

It all goes toward building your readership and promoting your material. Building connections with readers and others in the industry is an important part of getting your stories into the hands of the readers who’ll appreciate them.

I don’t regard myself as being immensely tech-savvy, just enough to get by. When I started self publishing (coming from a largely manufacturing background) I learned a great deal, from developing my knowledge of Word to Graphic design on Gimp. But, some lessons are learned the hard way.

I generally do my work first on Google Docs, it’s a secure and stable site that I can access from a desktop, laptop or (on rare occasions) even my phone. When the draft is done I transfer to Word for formatting and layout and, when that is done I store the file on a data stick and an external hard drive. Pretty safe you might think, well it’s only safe until you get complacent.

After the first release of Black Knight I followed the programme, one copy of both the manuscript and cover (also the original artwork) on the Hard Drive, one on the Data-Stick. I did the same for Dragon Fire and all was well. But Black Knight wasn’t finished, I needed to get it out in the world so it went out with some mistakes that had been missed in the first edit. So it was re-edited, the layout was brought up to scratch and that led to a reduced page count so the cover had to be redone and resubmitted. This is where I made the mistake.

I didn’t back up the 2nd edition, it was only on the external hard drive. I’d suffered computer failures before but, thanks to the external drive all my files, revisions, accounts and schedules where safe… until the external drive failed.

So, my strongest advice. Backup your files, regularly. Update your hardware periodically. Keep your creative output safe so that you can forge ahead with piece of mind.

Writers don’t exist in a vacuum (seriously, toss us into space and we explode just like anyone else), as I’ve previously mentioned isolation can be one of the hardest things to cope with when you spend a majority of your time in a world of your own devising. That’s where other writers can (and usually will) help.

I’ve been writing for years (on and off) but I didn’t become a ‘writer’ until November 2017. A close friend of mine already head a self-published work and was a great help and support in getting me to the point of publication. Another close friend, while I was finalising my first book for release, was putting together an RPG project and sourcing contributors for settings and vignettes and (as well as allowing me to submit to the project) had some very helpful input in the design aspect for the cover. Without these close friends I would have found it much harder to hit my release on time.

Having long-term contacts is a great support, especially when they have prior experience but I’m sure not everyone knows a writer first-hand. In attempting to promote my works I took to Facebook and Twitter but, as well as spreading the message I found the community. There are hundreds of writers at all stages of the process on social media and shared words of encouragement, memes and WIP (Work In Progress) updates can be encouraging to both starting and more seasoned writers.

I haven’t joined a writers group myself, neither have I been to the Writers Retreats I’ve occasionally seen advertised. It’s a personal preference and there is the view that it can encourage ‘writing by consensus’. Either way what I do have is a few trusted readers who preview my work and provide useful feedback.

Personally I think the best move for a starting writer is to hit the Convention Circuit. You can attend the panels, meet new people and then, once you’ve attended an event or two, you might even want to sit on a panel and share your own experiences.

As much as this blog is about seeking support in the community I must confess that some of my most productive days came about on a short holiday I took with my laptop to the South of France (which references back to my blog about looking after yourself). The stereotypical writers holiday I know but there’s a reason stereotypes become stereotypes.

Having contact with other writers and the means by which you have contact can have numerous benefits beside helping the keep you positive. These days having a strong Social Media presence is one thing that’s going to improve your chances at getting picked up by a Publisher. But, in conclusion, I have largely found that being a writer is one of the least competitive lines of work you can undertake. For the most part, the writers who I’ve talked to are only ever in competition with themselves, trying to write the best work that they are capable of.

Today I’m going to talk a little about self-care. I’m lucky enough to be in a position where I don’t have a day job, writing is my full-time job. Some of you might think ‘That’s Great!’ I certainly did and it is, except…

One of the things I thought I’d be able to do more was socialising. I used to work anti-social hours, so getting out to see friends was always a real hassle to organise. When I started writing full time I thought I’d be able to get out more, but wait! Just because I have all this free time doesn’t mean anyone else does, and who says I have free time anyway? Between writing, marketing, event prep, housework and my usual commitments it’s just like working a full week except now I’m more inclined to do overtime. So, do I go out more? No, in fact I go out less which leads me to…

Any of you who also work from home might know this one; Isolation. Even when I was working jobs I hated, there were people around me who I liked, who I could moan about it to and who would sympathise. We could chat and set the world to rights and just interact with each other. I still have my family around me (when they’re not at work) but besides that my personal interactions these days are quite limited so it can get quite lonely at times.

In the grand scheme of things these might seem very small, first world problems. ‘Oh no! You’ve stepped out of the rat-race to do something you love and found that it’s not all lollipops and rainbows! Boo-frigging-hoo!’ But, as I learned in my years of Counselling training any issue, phobia or fear is important because it’s yours. We all know people who are scared of spiders/clowns/heights/air travel. These things might not scare us but that doesn’t make the sufferer’s fears any less, or any less relevant. So, if you choose to walk the path (or sit in the chair more accurately) of the full-time author, self care is something you must learn.

Don’t beat yourself up for not writing everyday. Steven King once said in an interview “If you don’t write, you’re not a writer.” And the Master of Horror can’t be wrong, can he? Well, yes and no. You do have to write but not every hour of every day, sometimes it’s important to take a day, or a few days to refill the creative well. Watch some TV, read that book you’ve been meaning to read, get out and exercise and try not to feel guilty about it, and, speaking of exercise…

Exercise is good for you, not just your body but your mind. A regular routine can help you maintain a flow of creativity to jog you out of a creative rut. You don’t have to run a marathon or bench 300, just raise your heart rate and maybe work up a bit of a sweat to create those endorphins that make you feel good about you.

Treat yourself, you deserve it. Every once in a while have the cupcake/candy bar/facial/massage that you’ve been longing for. Taking a little time to do self-care should never be thought of as writing time lost, but a step toward further creativity. You put yourself into your books, your work, hell whatever you do you put a bit of yourself into it so take some time to rejuvenate your stock of ‘you’.

Beyond that, do take care of your social interactions. Spending time with people is just as important as spending time with your characters. Writers don’t just write what they know, on occasion they write who they know, so be warned! Writers are subtle and quick to anger, our retribution is to eviscerate our detractors in prose and make them characters who will be maligned by readers forevermore!

As I mentioned in an earlier entry the main influence for the Camelot 2050 series (besides the Romanticised Legends of Arthur) takes the form of Saturday Morning Cartoons from the mid to late 1980’s. Central to this influence are the properties He-Man, She-Ra and Brave Starr by Mattel and the ThunderCats (owned by Warner Bros and animated by the Pacific Animation Corporation). These are the foundation blocks of my (and I suspect many other peoples) childhood and essentially the standard by which I would measure shows for years afterwards.

I think, perhaps it was the symmetry between the settings that appealed to me. Arthur was a hero who gathered together a group of like minded, courageous individuals to do good for the people of Briton (at least, in the legends he was) and each of the properties above has that in common, you can equally throw Transformers by Hasbro into that mix. Characters like She-Ra, Lion-O and Optimus Prime fit very well into the Arthur role even reflecting various stages of his growth and development as a leader. Lion-O is the young Arthur, he’s still learning and is frequently aided by Jaga the Wise (a Merlin-esque mentor figure) who helps him fulfil his potential. Optimus Prime is the fully realised Arthur who leads with courage, compassion and wisdom, the one whom all others look to when the situation seems unwinnable.

While She-Ra, He-Man and ThunderCats all existed in heavily Fantasy oriented settings (with a heavy injection of technology to sell those expensive vehicle toys) where monsters and magic could largely overcome those machines that did feature Brave Starr took a technology heavy setting (influenced as it was by the Wild West and the Gold Rush) and injected mysticism into it. Essentially flipping the established formulae. I remember Brave Starr very fondly, at the time I was heavily into Westerns and Science Fiction and this series appealed to both. I remember my favourite character was 30-30, the cybernetic horse and Brave Starr’s most loyal companion (another show, The Galaxy Rangers would occasionally feature robotic horses but not, as far as I remember, as fully developed characters in their own right). So Brave Starr opened my eyes to genre-mashing.

Aimed (as they where) at children these shows, especially the Mattel properties, carried strong themes about morality, they featured life-lessons at the end of each show and, in many cases if you go back and re-watch a few episodes, these lessons seem incredibly progressive for the time so, in writing Camelot 2050 I’ve tried to encompass that sense of ‘becoming the best you’ in some of my characters. That sense of growing into their responsibilities and, as the series progresses, earning the privilege of their station is an important part of the narrative (and a commentary upon my feelings surrounding many figures in the political/economic world we live in).

Camelot 2050 is written for those of you who remember getting up early on a Saturday to go and watch those cartoons. It hopes to bring back that sense of joy and ‘wow, cool!’ but with a firm nod to your, by now, adult sensibilities. The sentiment informs the imagery and, even though a robotic horse does seem an impractical mode of transport in an era of tanks and machine-guns it’s the enduring image of the Knight and what they stand for and that is what’s important in the world that has been created for you.