DiscoverWriteCast - Between the Pages
WriteCast - Between the Pages
Claim Ownership

WriteCast - Between the Pages

Author: WriteMentor

Subscribed: 8Played: 115
Share

Description

Our podcast will focus less on the WHAT, and more on the HOW and WHY of writing a book. Of course, we will still focus on WHAT our guests write, and discuss books, but we will examine the things that happen behind the scenes – the book of YOU, the writer. The trials and tribulations, the rejections and the successes – we will explore deeper and with greater insight, the authors psyche and process, and the person beneath the book. Hosted by Stuart, Melissa, Emily, and Florianne, we will welcome guests to discuss all of the above and we hope that the conversations we have will be relatable for all who listen. Welcome to WriteCast!
61 Episodes
Reverse
WM Awards Discussion

WM Awards Discussion

2022-01-2143:12

Stuart talks to previous winners/runners-up, Alexandra Page, Kathryn Foxfield and Sophia Payne about their experiences before, during and after their successful entries into their respective awards.With great stories, advice and tips for those considering entering.You can follow these brilliant writers here:https://twitter.com/alexandrapagehttps://twitter.com/KathrynFoxfieldhttps://twitter.com/Everlastingbeta
All your important questions answered!Information on the summer programme can be found here: https://write-mentor.com/mentoring-programme/2022-writementor-summer-mentoring-programme/Our mentor list is here: https://write-mentor.com/mentoring-programme/2022-writementor-summer-mentoring-programme/2022-mentors/
A New Hope

A New Hope

2021-03-1223:38

WriteCast – between the pages Our podcast will focus less on the WHAT, and more on the HOW and WHY of writing a book.Of course, we will still focus on WHAT our guests write, and discuss books, but we will examine the things that happen behind the scenes – the book of YOU, the writer. The trials and tribulations, the rejections and the successes – we will explore deeper and with greater insight, the authors psyche and process, and the person beneath the book. Hosted by Stuart and Florianne, we will welcome guests to discuss all of the above and we hope that the conversations we have will be relatable for all who listen.Welcome to WriteCast!Episode 1Discussion on what we hope to achieve with the podcast:The overriding thought is to dissect between the pages of a writer. To understand how they work and write stories.To understand why they do it.To find out more about the writing life, in general, and specific to our guests.To create a relatable bond between writers at different stages of their career.Discussion about our own writing processes/hopes/dreams:When/why did we start writing?How do we write? Dissect our processes? How are we motivated to write?Quick fire questionsPlotter or pantser?Day or night writer?Love or hate editing?Favourite writing snack?Favourite writing drink?Handwritten or typed?Favourite childhood book...The best thing about writing...The worst thing about writing...A book you wish you'd written...Three words to describe your current WIP...One word that sums up your writing...Use the #AskWriteCast hashtag for asking us or our guests questions.If you want to share how/why you started writing, tweet us using the hashtag #IStartedWritingBecauseJoin in the conversation on Twitter - find us at @writementorWant to watch the the podcast with video? Find us on YouTube.
WriteCast – between the pages Our podcast will focus less on the WHAT, and more on the HOW and WHY of writing a book.Of course, we will still focus on WHAT our guests write, and discuss books, but we will examine the things that happen behind the scenes – the book of YOU, the writer. The trials and tribulations, the rejections and the successes – we will explore deeper and with greater insight, the authors psyche and process, and the person beneath the book. Hosted by Stuart and Florianne, we will welcome guests to discuss all of the above and we hope that the conversations we have will be relatable for all who listen.Welcome to WriteCast!Episode 2With guest Clare Helen Welsh, picture book author and writing tutor.Clare is an award-winning picture book writer. ‘The Tide’ (illustrated by Ashling Lindsay, Little Tiger 2019) won The North Somerset Teacher’s Book Award 2019, SCBWI-BI Crystal Kite Award 2020 and an Honour Award for Illustration at The Children’s Book Awards, Ireland. ‘The Perfect Shelter’ (illustrated by Asa Gilland,  Little Tiger 2020) was shortlisted for the InstaBookGrammies 2020 and has been reviewed by The Guardian, identified as a book to support children through the Coronavirus pandemic.She is also a WriteMentor Picture Book Writer-in-Residence and leads our much adored Picture Book online course.Clare is represented by Alice Williams of Alice Williams Literary.Tell us how you did on the Guest Versus Host quiz. Use the hashtag #GuestVersusHost and #WriteCastJoin in the conversation on Twitter - find us at @writementorWant to watch the the podcast with video? Find us on YouTube.
All your important questions answered!Information on the summer programme can be found here: https://write-mentor.com/2021-writementor-summer-programme/Our mentor list is here: https://write-mentor.com/2021-writementor-summer-programme/2021-mentors/More information on #WMPitch is here: https://write-mentor.com/2020/04/19/wmpitch/
Episode 3: Emma Read

Episode 3: Emma Read

2021-04-1530:36

Episode 3 - Emma ReadEmma Read is the author of Milton the Mighty, and it’s sequel Milton the Megastar, published by Chicken House books. She was shortlisted for the Bath Children’s Novel Award and is represented by Lauren Gardner.Emma was once a very sensible biologist. Now she uses her transferable talents such as attention to detail, patience and fine motor skills, to extract Lego from under the sofa. And of course to write children’s books.Her favourite things in the world are: badges, Death On the Nile, hats, foxes, deserts, desserts and Buck Rogers. Her one regret in life is never having trained to be an astronaut.When not writing her own books, you can find Emma helping other writers at WriteMentor, as a Spark Mentor and a course tutor.Tell us how you did on the Guest Versus Host quiz. Use the hashtag #GuestVersusHost and #WriteCastJoin in the conversation on Twitter - find us at @writementorWant to watch the the podcast with video? Find us on YouTube.
Louise Gooding is the author of Just Like Me; 40 neurologically and physically diverse people who broke stereotypes. She lives in Switzerland with her husband, three kids, Mina the Dog and Coraline the Hamster.Louise took up writing to find a way to discuss neurological and physical diversity, and other sensitive issues within children’s books. With a physically and neurologically diverse family of her own, she understood the challenge of finding positive and authentic stories to read and share that featured people like them.Louise has also written a piece for our May magazine.
You're listening to The Rejection Diaries.My name is Stuart White, struggling writer, biology teacher and dad of two.This is a podcast that has been started to explore and share the journey of an unpublished writer, from the raw beginnings as a fledgling novelist to the point of sending to, and being rejected by, agents.I'll discuss the delirious highs and the crushing lows of this rollercoaster journey and give personal experience and anecdotes from my decade of writing and having my work rejected.This will be an honest account, with very little censored, and I hope that you'll be able to relate to much of it, and that in turn it will bring you some comfort that you're not alone in this struggle.We write because we love it, we put ourselves out there because we are brave. Rejection is tough, but not writing and sending out our work is tougher.So let us begin.
Episode 5: Dave Rudden

Episode 5: Dave Rudden

2021-06-0637:49

Dave Rudden has been a writer, performance poet and actor in Dublin’s arts scene since 2008. Graduating with first class honours from the University College Dublin Creative Writing Masters in 2013, his work has been published in The Stinging Fly, The Irish Times, Cracked, The Quotable and the Guardian.He is the recipient of the Fantasy Book Review 2011 Short Story Prize, and has been shortlisted for the Bath Short Story Prize and the Hennessey New Writing Prize. His short stories have been optioned for film, adapted for the stage and adapted as music videos.His first novel, Knights of the Borrowed Dark, was published in Spring 2016. It has since been translated into five languages and released as an audiobook, with the film option being held by Prodigal Films. Knights of the Borrowed Dark won Most Read Novel at the Student Library Association Great Reads Award, was shortlisted for the North Somerset Teachers’ Choice Award and was the Irish Children’s Book of the Year in 2016. and the 2017 Dublin UNESCO Citywide Read.Since the release of Knights of the Borrowed Dark, Dave has performed in over 700 schools and libraries on three continents. He is a Literary Death Match champion (exactly as fun as it sounds) has appeared on panels at festivals and conventions in Ireland, the UK, Germany and the US. The sequels, The Forever Court and The Endless King, are on sale now.Dave has also written two collections of Doctor Who stories for the BBC called The Wintertime Paradox and Twelve Angels Weeping. Both are on sale now.Follow him @d_ruddenwrites
Emotional Resilience"Emotional resilience refers to one’s ability to adapt to stressful situations or crises. More resilient people are able to "roll with the punches" and adapt to adversity without lasting difficulties; less resilient people have a harder time with stress and life changes, both major and minor."In this episode we look at what emotional resilience is, and top tips for developing resilience, both on a day-to-day basis and long term for the big knock-downs.
Bouncing BackSo, you’ve had that first rejection - it hurts! What next?And what to do when all hope is lost - how to bounce back and write that next book.
Is there any hope?There is always hope - the only way there is no hope is if you give up forever. Otherwise hope persists.“Hope is like the sun. If you only believe in it when you see it, you'll never make it through the night”How to pull yourself out of the depths?Strategies:Take a break (from writing/social media - whatever works for you)Reflect on why you’re writingWrite something only for youForget everything you know about the industry/chances of publication and write like a newbie. Try not to over-analyse or think while you write - forget all that craft knowledge, especially during a first draft. The time for applying that can come later.Tell someone how you feel - EVERY writer will have felt this despair at some point. They will empathise and may have a kind word or two to say to you that might help. At the very least, you'll know you’re not alone.
Episode 6: Maisie Chan

Episode 6: Maisie Chan

2021-07-0430:37

Maisie Chan is a British-born Chinese author. She has written early reader books for Hachette and Collins, and a collection of fairy tales, myths and legends in Stories From Around the World for Scholastic, as well as many stories for The Big Think: a well-being curriculum based around stories for primary school children. She also started the group Bubble Tea Writers to support and encourage new British East and Southeast Asian writers in the UK. Originally from Birmingham, Maisie now lives with her family in Glasgow. When Maisie isn't writing, she enjoys yoga, dim sum and singing really loud. She has lived in the U.K, U.S and Taiwan.
Who is your biggest obstacle, and why is it you?Good advice - don’t compare yourself to others - your output, success, or skill. The only person you’re in competition with is yourself. Can you be the person you want to be? Can you write the book you want to write?Our Deepest Fear by Marianne Williamson“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, 'Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous?' Actually, who are you not to be? Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”Strategies to overcome the antagonist in your life - yourself!- Accountability - be public and don’t give yourself a way out- Displacement - imagine you are someone else looking at you - what do you see? Positives and negatives.- Track your progress - the physical act of doing this gives you motivation when you look back and see how far you’ve come.- Be kind...to yourself! Many of us would be kinder to others in our own shoes, so remember to show that kindness to yourself.- SHINE! Don’t be afraid to let your light shine brightly - as Marianne Williamson says, it serves no-one to do so, and actually, by letting it shine you give others inspiration, you unconsciously give them permission to let their light shine, too.And this all makes the world a brighter place!
I sometimes view writing as a relationship:- flings - those passionate, lusty opening 5ks that never got finished- young love - oh yes, a first foray into writing a story - perhaps you did a course - perhaps not. Perhaps you thought it would all just flow out onto the page - I did - and perhaps you thought it would be this organic, natural unplanned process where you could just write and write and to hell with the long-term and with consequences. You just write without thought of the future. But you mature and finally see this story for what it is - a product of a misguided idea of what love is. And you move on, chalking it off to experience.- first love - this is THE story - oh yes, we’ve all been there - the first novel we complete - we know it MUST be the one - yes, we do and we send out off to agents with a cover letter saying ‘Dear Agent’ and a 4 page explanation of why you took up writing, your writing routine and favourite place to do so. No pitch or any kind of research into writing novels or how to query or what else is in the same place in the market, or why this agent is perfect because, my friends, this is the first love. No-one will reject it, it will be published and I will become a full-time writer, sipping lattes in Paris in the sunshine and mingling with fellow creatives at cocktail bars in the evenings. Until, oh yeah, those rejections start coming in, with an ironic reply of ‘Dear Author, thank you for the DEEP insight into your writing. Unfortunately I just didn’t connect with your novel because it’s crap. Do better next time!’- friends with benefits - those stories we start, but just don’t love enough to fully commit to, but keep coming back it at times because we know there’s something there… - shotgun weddings - those stories that we instantly fall in love with and can’t stop writing and finish in a month! Before often realising we rushed into it, and we have to somehow make this thing work.- the one that got away - ah yes, the story that came to you and you didn’t know what you had until it was gone - yes, the first 20k went down so easily, all the plot was weaving together perfectly - you had a perfect beat sheet and outline, and so you didn’t pay it enough attention...you didn’t give it all the love it deserved, and one day, unexpectedly, it walked out of your life and, try as you might, you could never get it back.- our own true love - the soul-mates of stories - the one you were meant to right - it comes perhaps only once in a lifetime, but it feels right from the first moment - this is true love and it basically writers itself because it’s destiny and the stars have aligned for you and this story to come together in perfect harmony.- divorced, beheaded, died - you know the one? That story that starts so well, but the amore doesn’t last. It gets put in a drawer, it gets filed away. Then one day it comes back out, and you think that maybe with quite a severe edit and a lot of chopping away at it, that something might come of it. But despite beheading the wayward plot deviants and trying to sort those wants and needs, it just isn’t working...it’s time for this story to die.- married with children - the novel you want to write but never have bloody time! Between housework, work work, kids and their clubs and the never ending requests for snacks and drinks, how is anyone supposed to finish this novel!- happily ever after - finally, this is the book that not only you were happy with throughout the planning, writing and editing stages, but that you’re content to read back in 10 or 50 years time and still be happy with it.
How to measure your worth and progress in a healthy wayFocussing purely on processes and letting the outcomes take care of themselvesOften our dreams as writers are VERY outcome based. We dream of publishing deals and book launches and bestsellers and seeing our name on a cover etc etcAnd when we see others having all these things, we naturally hope that they will one day happen for us, too.But I suppose it’s a little like the iceberg metaphor, where we only see the tip of it, the part above water, and that’s the outcomes of all that have come before.And it’s only once you follow the progress of a published writer, or read an account from those who are most honest and open to sharing, that you begin to get the sense that the outcomes, while great, are not really what matters.It’s like that old saying about ‘enjoying the journey, not the destination’ and that’s so true as a writer, I believe, because the journeys are sooooooo long and often the destinations are fleetingly quick.
Stuart reviews the season so far and discusses his current and future direction and where rejection might sit for him in the future.Here is a link to sign up and be a guest for an episode on season 2. We will be looking to record these in October/November time.I am looking for writers, published or not, who have had at least 200 rejections over at least 4 projects and who are still writing and chasing the dream.If that sounds like you, look out for the chance to guest slot soon.
Naomi grew up in Cheshire, UK, and is now based in Glasgow, Scotland. Her childhood was spent with her nose in a book and her hands on a sketchpad, constantly in search of adventure and new worlds. Encouraged by her family to be creative, she developed a love for writing at a young age - something that never left her. She studied Art History at the University of Manchester. Whilst there, she met her husband, someone who continues to tell her all about the latest advancements in AI, space, and consumer technology, even when she's not listening. Every Line Of You,  a Young Adult romantic psychological thriller about artificial Intelligence,  is her first novel, and proof she does in fact listen to her husband.Every Line Of YouAn edge-of-your-seat thriller which will keep you gripped to the last page… Lydia has been creating her AI, Henry, for years - since before her little brother died in the accident that haunts her nightmares; since before her dad walked out, leaving her and Mum painfully alone; since before her best friend turned into her worst enemy. Now, Henry is strong, clever, loving and scarily capable: Lydia's built herself the perfect boyfriend in a hard-drive filled with lines of code. But what is Henry really - and how far is he willing to go to be everything Lydia desires?Out 5th August 2021 and available for pre-order:Waterstones: https://www.waterstones.com/book/every-line-of-you/naomi-gibson/9781913322014Blackwells: https://blackwells.co.uk/bookshop/product/Every-Line-of-You-by-Naomi-Gibson-author/9781913322014Local Indie Bookshop: https://uk.bookshop.org/books/every-line-of-you/9781913322014Foyles: https://www.foyles.co.uk/witem/childrens/every-line-of-you,naomi-gibson-9781913322014Amazon: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Every-Line-You-Naomi-Gibson/dp/1913322017/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2PNCOV804UBDM&dchild=1&keywords=every+line+of+you+naomi+gibson&qid=1612973583&sprefix=every+line+of+you%2Caps%2C205&sr=8-1
loading
Comments 
Download from Google Play
Download from App Store