Welcome back to our Facebook Live chats – our Life Cycle Of A Writer in video mode.
Our second Facebook Live is a 40 minute chat between Laura and Lucie, first broadcast live on Friday 23rd March 2018. Lucie chats about her new book, MUMS JUST WANNA HAVE FUN, her inspiration behind the story and how her university course and novel writing co-exist.
These last few weeks have been crazy!
In the run up to my publication day on Friday, things have been manic – juggling university coursework and study, writing guest posts for my blog tour, promoting the book on various social media platforms, working at my local special needs school… it was relentless.
However, all the stress and sleepless nights were forgotten the moment the clock ticked past midnight, signalling the start of Friday May 5th…PUBLICATION DAY!
It was a scary feeling – it still is! I knew people were going to be reading my story, but nothing prepares you for that moment when you receive messages from both people you know, and people you don’t, telling you they have started reading your book. Will they like it? Will they hate it? Will they give me a bad review? Will they just not bother reviewing it at all? Will they think I am wasting my time… all these thoughts and more have been circling my mind for weeks and there is no sign of them letting up. But, I guess, this is just part of being a writer. I need to learn to accept the compliments (which is harder than it sounds when you are so self critical of your work) and grow a thick skin for those criticisms, because, lets face it, there will be plenty of those too.
So what did I do for publication day? Well, I indulged the whole day on social media. Facebook, Instagram, Twitter… all of them. Talking to my friends and feeling the pride wash over me as I listened to their wonderful words of praise and support. I was so surprised at the sheer amount of support I received on Friday. I knew the writing community was like no other, but I just didn’t expect such a huge network of praise and encouragement on that day. It was amazing – thank you to everyone who was part of my special day. 
In the evening I hosted a live Q&A over on Harper Impulse’s Facebook page – please do pop over and take a look if you’re interested (There are two video’s as my phone decided to crash after 10 minutes! The wonders of technology!)
And of course, there was champagne!
The following day I held a small party at my house for my close friends and family and we celebrated in style with champagne, curry, chilli, jacket potatoes, Sambuca, music and disco lights! It was amazing! My friends and family were so generous with their gifts for me and my husband gave a little speech as he toasted me and it meant so much because, anyone who knows my husband knows he is not one for public speaking or showing his affection. I think the champagne helped him out 🙂 
And now It is the following week and I have just yesterday started my blog tour. So please do take a look at my guest posts over the next week or so and I hope you enjoy reading them.
What a surreal few days it has been.
I can’t believe I finally did it … I published a book.
Oh my goodness, what a crazy few weeks I have had.
For those who may have missed it, last week I revealed the cover for my debut novel, The First Time Mums’ Club, which is out in eBook on May 5th and paperback on July 13th. I absolutely LOVE it! I think it captures the essence of the story really well; fun, friendly, and full of the antics of these pregnant ladies. However, as in real life, these ladies come up against a multitude of problems which make them really question what it is they really want.
Here’s the blurb:
Meet Pippa…
After years of trying and a failed IVF attempt, Pippa is thrilled to see two little lines appear on a pregnancy test. Finally a precious baby to call her own. 
This is all Pippa has ever wanted…if only husband Jason could show just a little excitement.
Imogen…
A baby is the icing on the cake for Imogen and Alice – proof that their love for each other can overcome any obstacle. But when Imogen starts receiving malicious texts, it’s clear that not everyone is thrilled about the girls’ good news.
And Ellie…
A drunken one-night stand and Ellie’s life is ruined! Pregnant, jobless and the relationship with her best friend, Chris, over- forever. Because Chris just happens to be the father of Ellie’s baby…and potentially the love of her life!
For these first time mums the road to motherhood is bumpier than most!
What do you think? Sound like a good read? I hope you think so.
I really enjoyed writing this story. It took me back to when my LO was born and the mixed feelings of elation, excitement and sheer terror as this little human looked up at me and I knew that her whole life was down to me and how I helped her to build it. She’s now 10 and I seem to be doing ok – well she hasn’t divorced me yet so I must be doing ok!
The run up to this cover release was hectic and I have been juggling more than I have ever juggled before. I have many balls up in the air at the moment and I’m trying my best not to drop any.
I am nearing the end of my second year at Anglia Ruskin University where I am studying a BA (hons) Early Childhood Professional Studies degree. It is hard work, but I am getting there. Even though I can see the end in sight (just 6 weeks left of the semester) these weeks are very VERY busy. I have coursework due in (a portfolio and two essays) and also over this summer I have to start researching and thinking about what I am going to do for my dissertation as I begin my final year in September. I have some ideas already and I know I want to try to incorporate my love of words with my love for childhood – so maybe something literature based. I’m not sure yet. So there will be no rest over the summer with that – alongside writing book two which is out towards the end of this year (around September, I think).
I have also signed up for some voluntary work and some paid work at my university to help broaden my experience and learn new skills.
One other thing that I have signed up to do that I would like to tell you about is that I am now a student blogger for my university. I love being a course rep and blogging for the university as a student was something that I felt would enrich my role there even more. So I will be
blogging once a month about various things ranging from my course, to trips I go on, events I attend and how I manage to fit in studying around family life and a career as a writer. If you want to read my first post, it’s available here.
So that’s me. Frantically juggling many different passions I have but loving them all as I do!
Have a happy Tuesday!
***
You can preorder Lucie’s debut, The First Time Mums’ Club, here.
Lucie is also on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
And she blogs for Anglia Ruskin University, here.
Well, what a crazy few months it has been for me. I haven’t done an update for the Life Cycle series for ages and there is a reason for that. I had been waiting to do mine until I was able to share some incredibly exciting news with everyone, however, that time hasn’t come yet and I cannot put it off any longer so I am doing my update now.
Just be aware that a VERY big announcement is coming up VERY soon… I do love a little tease! (sorry!)
So, what have I been doing with my time recently?
As some of you know, I am juggling studying for a degree alongside my wrting journey. Over the summer I completed my first year and passed (hoorah!) and have since begun my second year of study. I am studying Early Childhood Professional Studies at Anglia Ruskin University and totally loving it. Being at university is a lot harder and a million times more stressful than I ever thought it would be. Don’t get me wrong, I was aware that I had signed up to a degree course so I knew it would be challenging, but as a mature student (yes, I know, at the ripe age of…30?!) I not only had to study for my degree, but I felt I had to learn how to learn again – how to retain information after being out of education for 11 years and not using that aspect of my brain. It was hard. But in my second year I feel I am slowly getting there. I am loving using my creativity for my projects – although academic writing is SO hard compared to creative writing and I don’t think I will ever get to the stage where that style of writing comes as natural to me as writing a fictional story. I have a great year group too which makes the journey that much more enjoyable.
I also ran for Course Representative for my year group and was elected by my peers which was a huge achievement and a very emotional moment, knowing I had the full support of my classmates – so a huge thank you to them. Throw in some committee meetings etc and I have managed to make my university experience much busier (but ten times more rewarding).
Alongside university, I am also writing my books and attending writing related events and experiences. I have recently enjoyed author events meeting some fab writers and catching up with my writing buddies at things such as the RNA Conference back in July.
I have been spending some time rooting for my fantastically talented friends on their writing achievements and helping to spread the word about their amazing books – although I have had to start trying to allocate time for social media for such tasks as I am very easily distracted and can pop onto social media for a quick browse and lose two hours of my life in an instant! I know I am not alone in this…
I have also been writing some little notes and drafts of some children’s book ideas that I have been thinking about. Studying within this sector has made me realise that I would also love to write within this genre and I hope that one day I will get the chance to write for children as well as adults. I’ll add it to my ever growing ‘to-do’ list, because I don’t have enough to do…
Lastly, I feel I should acknowledge the fact that I did sign up to NaNoWriMo this year with the view to getting the first draft of my next book idea down.
How I thought I could fit in 50,000 words of novel writing in a month which saw my daughter turn 10 (with two sleepover parties and a bedroom make over to do) and at a time of the year where I had TWO presentation exams to prepare for and present at university. I love a challenge, but I think this was one step too far and I had to admit defeat and say that it was not going to be achievable. In life, it is good to set yourself challenging goals, but sometimes, the best thing to do is to know when to say enough is enough and take it back a step. Saying this, I finish university for Christmas in just a couple of weeks and I have the whole of January off so I have a clear 6 weeks of full time writing to settle down with – with a little writing retreat thrown in too – so I just had to juggle a few tasks to that time instead of running myself into the ground. Sometimes life just needs to have a jiggle round – everyone loves a jiggle from time to time!
So there you have it. Whilst it may seem like, at times, I am quiet on the writing front, it is most definitely not the case. And once I can reveal more, all will become clear.
Until then…
xx
Last month when my friend, Leanne, tweeted me saying ‘this looks good, we can go after uni!’, it was the start of a very exciting conversation. She is fantastic and is sometimes an extra pair of eyes on Twitter for things exactly like this event. Because I spend a lot of my time either writing books, writing university papers or reading textbooks, my time on social media comes about in fits and starts, so I sometimes miss these great announcements of events and by the time I see them, they are sold out! This is where it is handy, as a lover of books and writing, to have a friend like Leanne to scout these events and tweet me about them! She did the same about the Paige Toon event I went to last month which I shall blog about next week as I totally forgot to at the time! (I blame university/book brain!)
So fast forward to yesterday, the day had finally come. We were off to London to the offices of Fabulous Magazine for their author event. Not one, not two, but THREE fantastic authors were there to chat to everyone and sign books. A-MAZ-ING, right?
So, we had the very lovely and VERY funny Lindsey Kelk, author of the ‘I heart’ series alongside other novels. Her latest book, ‘We Were on a Break’ is OUT NOW and promises to be another incredibly funny and witty read.
Next we have the amazing Giovanna Fletcher, super talented author of books such as ‘Billy and Me’, ‘Dream a Little Dream’ and her most recent novel, ‘Always with Love’ is a great read. Mum to Buzz and Buddy and wife to Tom, Giovanna amazes me with how she manages to fit everything in and still manage to meet fans and
enjoy an evening out.
And last, but by no means least, the incredibly talented and super friendly Mhairi Mcfarlane. Mhairi is one of the nicest people I have met; easy to chat with, identifiable and a total word wizard! Mhairi’s latest book ‘Who’s that Girl’ is OUT NOW. I am about a
third of the way through it and LOVING IT!
So, what do you get if you add three FABULOUS writers and a FABULOUS magazine – you got it, a FABULOUS evening! A free glass of wine – tick – a free book – BIG tick and a stunning view – phenomenal tick! The ladies chatted about their books, how they write, what they write, why they write. The topic went from cats with urine infections (don’t ask) to Tom Mcfly killing off Giovanna’s characters and using the lives of friends to help create the most craziest stories. There was laughter, lots of it, and great questions from audience members. The interview was filmed for a short while on Facebook Live which added a great dimension to the evening and the room in which the event took place was kitted out amazingly with lights, music from a DJ and a wonderful buzz of excitement that flew around and into every nook and cranny of the space. 
I had the chance to meet all three wonderful ladies and have my books signed. We did have to queue for quite sometime (they are popular women) but when each and every person arrived at the front desk, it didn’t feel rushed or awkward and each person was given adequate time to chat and enjoy the company of their idols. I had some lovely conversations with each of the ladies, I almost wish I could have pulled up a pew and indulged in conversation all evening.
But unfortunately, as all good things, the evening had to come to an end. My friend and I left – with another friend of mine from back in high school who I recently have started to bump into at these book events (Hi Hannah!) – and we strolled back to London Liverpool Street station ready to embark on our journey back home.
But not before a quick snap on London Bridge to add to our souvenirs from another very enjoyable event.
Thanks to Fabulous Magazine for hosting a great event.
Thanks to Lindsey, Giovanna and Mhairi for providing many laughs and incredible books.
And thanks to my friend, Leanne, for finding the event, accompanying me and providing yet more laughs on the journey home at the expense of her jacket!
Today, we are honoured to have wonderful writer, and dear friend, Giselle Green on our blog. I caught up with her recently to have a chat about her new novel – here’s what she had to say:
Good morning Giselle, thank you so much for coming onto our blog to share the news of your fantastic new novel, Dear Dad.
Thank you for reading it, Lucie! And thank you for inviting me back onto the Romaniacs blog – it’s my pleasure to be here.
What it’s about …
A young war reporter suffering from PTSD who’s lost everything that’s dear to him is faced with a difficult dilemma when multiple letters start arriving mysteriously at his flat. Mistakenly addressed to ‘Dear Dad,’ they’re from a young, bullied kid called Adam who’s desperate for someone to help him out of his misery. Only Nate’s not his dad – and he can’t be anyone’s advocate. He can’t even bring himself to leave his flat. Acquiescing to Adam’s plea, he agrees to visit the boy’s school pretending to be ‘Dad’ just so he can explain to Adam’s teacher what’s going on. As Nate and Adam’s pretty young teacher Jenna fall for each other, Nate soon discovers that some lies, once told, are not so easy to recover from…
It’s true I’ve had large themes very much in the forefront of my mind in the past (e.g. Hope, faith and Charity, Justice). For this book, the theme was there all along but it was only after I finished it that I finally recognised what it was – kindness.
On a more mundane level, I wanted to talk about ‘Dads’ – I’ve spoken about the role of Mums so often in the past. I wanted to talk about people who take on the fatherly role even when they weren’t the biological dad.
I also wanted to say something about the social isolation so many people seem to suffer from. Even though we’re living on a planet that’s more densely populated than it’s ever been, loneliness and a sense of isolation are endemic. Those are things that can affect anyone – even previously popular, outgoing, successful people like Nate. He falls from a great height. When we first meet him, he’s got this sense of shame, of having somehow ‘failed’, but it’s only when he reaches out in compassion to someone who’s even worse off than he is, that he can start to find healing.
Some of the issues in Dear Dad are a little heart-wrenching – the issue of child carers who go unnoticed in the system, for one. Not because there aren’t the mechanisms in government to help them, but because half the time they simply aren’t picked up. It’s a catch-22 situation for some children – they have no advocate, and because they have no advocate, they don’t get ‘seen’.
Any situation where children are the victims is always hard for me – my heart bleeds for them. But because I used a lighter tone for this book, it wasn’t as hard to write as it might have been. And Adam’s ever-optimistic character that shone through all his troubles so stoically made it easier, too
That’s a great question Lucie – I really have no idea where Adam’s mindset came from. It was just … there, automatically. Of all the characters in the book, this vulnerable, savvy 9-year-old arrived the most fully-formed and I loved him from the word go. He was so easy to write that when I finished, I didn’t want to leave him behind. I have had six boys myself, as you know, so maybe I unconsciously drew on some of them, when it came to what it ‘felt’ like to be him. I also had some friends with children of about the right age read through to make sure the ‘Adam’ scenes were true to the age group – you are one of the people I must thank for your input in that department!
You are very welcome! 🙂
I had so much fun writing the Nate-Adam scenes! They were my favourite ones to write. In those scenes, despite the pathos, I was able to bring a little humour and lightness into my story – something I have been wanting to do for a while.
The scenes which show Nate’s agoraphobic tendencies were tougher. There was the question of actually ‘getting into his head-space’ while I wrote his point of view. For about a week I will confess I felt a bit breathless and reluctant leaving the house – which I put down to being in Nate’s mindset at the outset when he’s really stuck. It wasn’t very comfortable.
I had the concept two years ago. I just wasn’t ready to write it then. My initial attempts to get into it threw me back on the realisation that I still had a lot of decisions to make. For instance – was it a father-son story, or a love story, at its heart? I really only got going with it properly this year, so I would say it took a year to write, but maybe six-eight months to get my internal bearings with it.
Yes, every book takes me a different route. I never really feel I know what I’m doing till about half-way to three quarters of the way in, then it all gathers pace. I like to challenge myself with each new book. This book leads with the male perspective – another difficult decision (the first incarnation of this story started with the heroine), but given the subject matter I simply couldn’t do otherwise. I also have three main characters instead of the usual two. While the plot is deceptively simple, writing three people who are closely involved each with the other was a new challenge. My earlier books had a lot more back-story whereas in this one I’ve cut it down to a minimum. The story flows faster and in a more straightforward trajectory as a result. So, there are a lot of departure in this novel, new directions, but I also wanted to maintain what I feel is my stock-in-trade; tempting readers to challenge their perceptions and feelings about certain topics – about what’s right and what’s wrong. I like it when readers feel they’ve been given food for thought
For anyone who is yet to read your books, how would you describe your writing style? Do you think this has differed at all from your first releases?
DEAR DAD has a different timbre to my previous novels, it’s true. It’s lighter and – while it does deal with some dark subjects – they’re not dwelt upon. That was part of the charm of writing about a child. There is something so compelling and magical about the way that children think.
I do like to give myself a break. It’s easy to let yourself become exhausted, otherwise. I’m on the look-out for people and places, tales of people’s lives, and pieces of music that move me and so on, though.
I like to give a launch party. Proper party-style, with flowers and fizz and balloons and friends. I haven’t done one in a while, so when the paperback of DEAR DAD comes out in the summer (around June) I plan to do one this year.
Sounds like fun!
For those of you wanting to know more and/or purchase Dear Dad, here it is!
Please click on the book for more details:
Thank you so much, Giselle. On behalf of the Romaniacs and me, we would like to wish you every success with Dear Dad – I hope everyone enjoys it as much as I did.
Giselle has the following online platforms:
Website – http://www.gisellegreen.com
Facebook Page- https://www.facebook.com/gisellegreenauthor/?fref=ts
Wow, it seems like only yesterday that I was writing my last Life Cycle post, telling you all how my writing had slowed right down and how life had, as it always seems to, got in the way of things.
Whilst this is still very much true, I have made huge progress with my latest WiP. And I have the RNA conference to thank for that.
I attended the RNA conference this year, in London, and, as always, it was FANTASTIC! I loved every minute of it (well, maybe not the throat infection part and losing my voice, but the rest was huge fun!) Every year I attend the conferences, I always come home feeling hugely inspired and raring to go. The talks and workshops are amazingly informative and full of inspiration and self belief, the evenings are full of laughter and friendship and the atmosphere is something like I’ve never experienced anywhere else. However, this year, there was one difference for me. I actually got involved with the conference from a participants point of view – myself and my fellow Romaniacs presented all conference goers with the opportunity to speak about themselves and their writing, on camera, in our Romaniac Sparkle Corner. It was incredibly popular and not only did we fill all our slots, but we squeezed some additional people in as and when we could to help satisfy the interest. It was incredible! It was so lovely to give something back to the RNA and all our supporters – I hope everyone who took part (and those who watched/shared the videos) all enjoyed it.
Another thing I came away with from this years conference was self belief and motivation. And I suppose this was another difference to this years conference – I had some one-to-one industry appointment’s. For those who are not aware of what this is, this is a chance to meet an editor/agent on a one-to-one basis for a 10 minute ‘pitch’ with them. These are invaluable and they give us writers the chance to meet and ‘sell ourselves’ to some huge names in the business. I had always been too scared to apply for a slot in previous years but this year I just went for it – and I am so glad I did. I had two meetings and both were incredibly positive and encouraging. They made me believe in myself and my work and gave me huge hope for the future. I came away thinking, I CAN do this!
So I made a plan. I rang my agent and we discussed this plan. And now I am working to make this plan happen! This includes quite a re-write of my latest novel, however, it will *hopefully* make the novel more appealing to publishers. Both my one-to-one appointments gave me some very good advice on where my novel needed to be and so I am taking their advice and reshaping it.
At first I was a little frustrated and thought, not another edit, however, as writers, we have to be prepared to do as many edits as it takes to get it right.
You only get one chance to make a first impression when submitting to publishers – I need to make sure it is a damn good one!
So it’s back to the desk for me and an overhaul on the book, but it will be worth it. Hopefully my next Life Cycle round up will be a little more exciting.
Watch this space…
Hello!
The time has come for me to give you lovely people a round up of what I have been up to since I last posted.
Whilst I haven’t got exciting news like a book deal or a competition win, I feel over the last few weeks my writing has taken a huge change in direction – for the better!
For a while now, I have been playing about with my writing to find where I belong. It takes a little time, as a writer, to find your place, your ‘voice’ as some call it, and realise where you fit in. Whilst I thought I already had, I think the way in which I have moved forward so quickly since January has proved that finally, I know who I am. Whilst romance always plays a huge part in my stories, I have come to realise that the stories I want to tell are more relationship based books, family dramas, domestic stories. My stories always have an issue based plot whether it be a young woman dealing with grief and depression, or someone in a violent relationship desperate to escape. Or even a couple entering into IVF not realising the devastating effects this could have on their already rocky relationship. These are everyday issues that everyday people fight. I write about ordinary people finding their modern day fairytale ending.
So, realising that my writing had taken an alternative route, meant a total overhaul of my image. I had been promoting myself as a romance author, and whilst that is still true, I didn’t feel it gave my followers a true definition of who I was and what I write. So, after discussions with my agent and a few of my writing friends, I decided to re-launch myself:
I feel this describes me much better. With this reinvention, came a shiny new website and an author page on Facebook. Please do pop over and have a look at both – and feel free to ‘like’ and subscribe if you want to!
Now I had a lovely website, a stronger presence on Facebook and Twitter and a plan. It was then time to sort out my submissions.
In my last post I told you about ‘Love Hurts’. This book has now been retitled as ‘Fractured Love’. I have completed another edit of FL after some tweaking by my agent (Sarah) and it has now been sent off to be proofed by her. Head over Heart, which was my first completed novel, is now undertaking a huge re-write to reflect my new ‘real life, real love’ route. When I first wrote HoH, I was still very much concentrating highly on romance being the main factor and it was lighter than it needed to be. When I finished FL, my agent and I agreed that HoH needed a complete overhaul to match the pace and quality of my latest novel. My writing has developed ALOT since I wrote my first book and this rewrite needs to reflect that. I am excited about the new direction I have taken and I cannot wait to work this into Sophie’s story.
I have also written a brief outline of the next book that I am to work on. This is currently untitled but it will focus on IVF and the effects – both good and bad – that it can have on some relationships.
Whilst my books are not directly linked, I do have a theme running through them all which ties them together. Because of this, I will be submitting them as a series this time round. And hopefully that submission will be soon. Just a few last minute tweaks and reads before Sarah hits SEND. Fingers crossed for me…
Another exciting turn that my writing has taken recently, is the development of a CHILDRENS SERIES! Writing for children is something that has also been an ambition of mine. I work in a nursery with 0-5 year olds in my day job and I love working with the little ones. So I think it was a natural development that my writing was bound to take. I will reveal more of this as it unfolds but at the moment it is very much in the early developmental stage. Because I plan to aim this series at both the fiction market as well as the educational market, I am doing lots of planning and research first.
Another hurdle I have come across with this is the decision of whether to have a separate pseudonym for my children’s books. Whilst I don’t write erotic fiction or anything like that, I do approach hard hitting issues and swear etc in my adult novels. So would it be best to create a whole new persona to promote my children’s books with? What do you all think?
I have also been more active in the competition stakes recently, entering my most recent novel into both the Lucy Cavendish Annual Fiction Prize and The Bath Novel Award. Entering competitions is something that I haven’t really done much, but it was something I vowed to do more of this year. So that was where I started. I am also going to try to write more flash fiction/short stories to send into magazines and competitions, too. It is all part of my being more proactive!
All that is left to say is that I shall be attending the Romantic Novelists’ Association Summer Party this year so I do hope to see a lot of you there!
Happy writing!
Lucie x
PS. My ironing pile has also resumed residence on my spare bed… I wouldn’t be able to call myself a writer if I didn’t have a horrendously large ironing pile and/or an overdue list of housework chores. Come on, you know I’m not the only one…
Can you believe it? Today, The Romaniac blog is a whopping three years old. Three years! We have had the most amazing journey over those years, both with each other and with all you lovely lot, too.
When we launched our blog, back in February 2012, we never imagined we would receive such a warm, welcoming response from everyone. It has been truly amazing.
Over those three years we have each grown as individuals. Some of us have won awards, some of us have bagged an agent, some of us have started new careers and taken writing into a new direction. There are some of us who have taken the plunge and crossed genres and even those who have decided to write in a few different ones. A few have had publishing contracts and we’ve even given talks!
We’ve each had our ups and our downs, but you have all been there, standing firmly by our sides and supporting us throughout it all. For this, we are truly thankful.
One of the things we have achieved as a group, was the publication of our first Anthology, Romaniac Shorts. A collection of 22 short stories 
and flash fiction, penned by all 8 of our lovely Romaniac girls. There is a real mix of genres throughout our Anthology, a little something in there for everyone’s liking. All our proceeds are split between Dyslexia Action and the Romantic Novelists’ Association and we are delighted to be sending each a cheque this month for the first year’s royalties.
Which brings me onto the exciting giveaway we have. In celebration of our three years on the blog, we are giving away a fantastic book bundle. The bundle consists of a SIGNED copy of Romaniac Shorts (signed by all 8 Romaniacs), Follow Me Follow You (Signed by Laura James) Closing In (signed by Sue Fortin.), together with tea, coffee, hot chocolate, biscuits and a mug; ideal reading companions.
All we are asking of you, to be in with a chance of winning this book and gift bundle, is to do one/or all of the following:
LIKE our Facebook page and comment ‘I’m in’ (link HERE)
COMMENT on this blog post with the words ‘I’m in!’
RETWEET the giveaway tweet on Twitter.
*The competition will close at midnight on February 20th and a winner will be picked at random shortly after. Due to postage costs, we are afraid that we can only offer this to UK participants this time. Apologies to those unable to enter, we thank you for your understanding and support. *
All that is left to say is a huge THANK YOU to each and every one of you for your continued support and encouragement over the last three years. Here’s to many, many more.
Last weekend it was my turn to go roaming the streets and this particular Romaniac was let loose in Milton Keynes.
Saturday 7th June was the annual agency day for the Kate Nash Literary Agency and, having signed with Sarah Taylor in January, I was invited.
I can’t tell you how excited I was. It has been quite some months since I last attended a writing event so I was looking forward to seeing other writers in the flesh – and knowing that there are still other crazy people Out There.
The day was amazing. Lots of useful and essential tips and information was on offer both from Kate and Sarah, and also fellow writers, too. Ranging from industry trends, to the latest bestsellers, to marketing. Throw in lots of laughter and lovely food and you get a jist of why I had so much fun.
After a day of talking – and sipping back on the free tea, coffee and biscuits – we retired to our rooms to get ready for an evening out. The agency day coincided with Jane Lovering’s publication day. Falling Apart celebrated its birthday in true, author style.
It went out and PARTIED!
For a more in depth look at Falling Apart’s antics – pop over to my blog, here. *WARNING* Not for the faint hearted …
We had a lovely evening out in Milton Keynes. Dinner, cocktails and lots of dancing. Kate and Sarah put together a fantastic day and I am sure I am not alone when I say a massive THANK YOU to them both for a wonderful weekend.
*Kate and Sarah are both accepting submissions at the moment, so If you would like to submit to either of them, please do! You will find submission guidelines here. *
And now to look forward to the RNA conference where a number of Romaniacs will be let loose … don’t say I didn’t warn you!
The Romaniacs 