Rowan Coleman's Thoughts on Her First RNA Conference

Tamsyn Murray, Rowan Coleman and Cally Taylor

There are many reason why, after being a member of the RNA for ten years, the 2012 summer conference was my very first, and it has absolutely nothing to do with having recently had twin baby boys and needing some sleep. It’s a little bit that I’m quite shy about joining in, and that after spending a lot of time locked up in my office writing a novel and conversing mainly with under threes, when people do let me out in public I talk far too much and far too loudly without stopping to take a breath (some of you may have noticed that…).

However, after spending a weekend in Penrith I really do wonder why it’s taken me so long to go. What a wonderful time I had!

Before going I was a little alarmed by the kit that conference experts told me I should take, especially by Liz Fenwick’s twitter musings on whether or not to take wellies. I worried that I might be going to some sort of romance boot camp, and that there might be marching and maybe enforced group hugs. Well, I needn’t have worried, there were plenty of group hugs, but none of them enforced, and as lovely Miranda Dickinson said, what incredible value the conference brings. Not only a weekend away, with lovely people but the sheer volume of knowledge, expertise and experience concentrated in one place, is worth its weight in gold. Highlights were many, but my favourite were Talli Roland’s clever and incisive talk on online marketing, Tamsyn Murray, bringing me up to date on ‘going all the way’ in YA, Jenny Barden’s fascinating talk on researching historical romance, Kate Harrison’s pertinent discussion on the future of women’s fiction, and Julie Cohen turning a whole room of grown women into weeping wrecks in just over four minutes, with her Pixar presentation. And also the wonderful inspirational energy I got from an audience (and a very glamorous vending machine coffee in the rain) with the amazing Carole Mathews. Everyone I spoke to was so friendly and welcoming, but I especially enjoyed chatting to Freda Lightfoot and Nell Dixon who were so generous with their knowledge and insight.

It’s an incredible feat of organisation, and I am in awe by the fantastic job that Jan Jones did, I still owe her a very large glass of wine for putting up with me and all my questions with unfailing good grace (sorry I didn’t find you at the right time, Jan). Over all I came back from Penrith feeling like part of a family, which of course I’ve been a member of for a long time, but now I know exactly how wonderful it is. And next time I shall endeavour to do better with my shoes, as the ones I took this time were all together too sensible. 

Rowan's latest book...

'You are a remarkable woman and you deserve all the happiness, contentment and love in the world. I, for one, know that I have never met anyone quite like you.'

When Rose Pritchard turns up on the doorstep of a Cumbrian B&B it is her last resort. She and her seven-year-old daughter Maddie have left everything behind. And they have come to the village of Millthwaite in search of the person who once offered Rose hope.

Almost immediately Rose wonders if she's made a terrible mistake - if she's chasing a dream - but she knows in her heart that she cannot go back. She's been given a second chance - at life, and love - but will she have the courage to take it?

Out 27 September 2012

About Rowan...

Rowan Coleman grew up in Hertfordshire longing to be a writer despite battling with dyslexia. After graduating from university she worked in bookselling and publishing for seven years before winning Company Magazine Young Writer of the Year in 2001. Her first novel 'Growing Up Twice' was published in 2002.

Rowan has gone on to write twelve novels for adults including the international bestsellers 'The Accidental Mother, The Baby Group' and 'The Accidental Wife' and eight novels for children and teens, including the paranormal adventure novels Nearly Departed and Immortal Remains under the name Rook Hastings. Her books are published around the world in several different languages and her latest book 'Dearest Rose' is out in September 2012. She now lives in Hertfordshire with her husband, and four children and is working on her next novel. 

Rowan will be teaching at the Faber Academy Get It Written

Cally Taylor Shares her Top 15 Writing Tips

Cally won the Elizabeth Gouge Trophy at the RNA Conference in Wales this year and here she shares her writing tips.....

Cally’s Top Fifteen Writing Tips

   1. Decide what your main character’s goal is and then throw as many obstacles at her as you can to stop her reaching her goal. If you want your book to have a happy ending she should overcome each of the obstacles and achieve her goal by the end of the book.

   2. If you have difficulty visualising your characters or bringing them to life cut out pictures of people who look like your characters from magazines, or use a web site like http://www.channel4.com/entertainment/t4/microsites/M/makingfaces/yourface_createMate.html to create them, and pin them above your desk so you can look at them while you’re writing.

   3. Set yourself little targets to motivate yourself – 2,000 words by the end of the week or 10,000 words in a month – and give yourself a little treat when you hit your target. When I was writing “Heaven Can Wait” I bought myself a paperweight for every 25,000 words I wrote. By the end of the first draft I had four very pretty paperweights on the window sill in front of my desk, reminding me of what I’d achieved.

   4. Don’t keep going back to edit what you’ve  just written. You’ll get too bogged down trying to make it perfect and you’ll never reach the end of your novel! The most important thing is to get the whole novel written. Most first drafts are rubbish. It’s the editing afterwards that turns a draft into a complete, polished book.

   5. Join a creative writing evening class. A good one will inspire you and motivate you to write.

   6. Join a writing group where reading and critiquing each other’s work is encouraged. Your friends and family might tell you wonderful things about your book but a stranger is more likely to be honest!

   7. Write what you love, not what you think will sell. When I wrote “Heaven Can Wait” there weren’t any  supernatural romantic-comedies for sale in bookshops but I didn’t let that deter me. I had to write the novel that was bubbling inside of me.

   8. If you can’t attend a writing class or a course there are lots of fantastic ‘how to write a novel’ books on the market. I own lots of them and find them tremendously helpful. I’ve included links to my favourites on my website www.callytaylor.co.uk/books.html

   9. You can also learn a lot about writing a novel by studying books by your favourite authors and asking yourself, “How did they make that chapter so gripping?” or “Why did that scene make me cry?”

  10. When you’re editing your novel one of the best things you can do is to read it out loud. Reading aloud mimics how your novel will sound in a reader’s head and you’ll be surprised how many sentences suddenly sound clunky or awkward.

  11. Don’t be surprised if you get part way through your novel and suddenly all your enthusiasm drains away and you think your novel is awful. This is perfectly natural and happens to all authors. Give yourself a little bit of a break then continue writing, you will start to believe in your novel again.

  12. You can generate ideas for novels by asking yourself ‘What if?’ I came up with the idea for “Heaven Can Wait” by wondering “What if a woman died the night before her wedding and refused to go to heaven?” With ‘Home for Christmas’ I thought, “What if two people had very different ideas about what would make them happy?”

  13. When you’ve finished the first draft of your novel set it aside for at least a month before you start editing it. You’ll be more removed from it and will spot problems or mistakes that you wouldn’t have notice if you’d started editing immediately after finishing it.

  14. When your novel is as good as you can get it buy a copy of the Writers and Artists Yearbook or a similar publication that lists all the literary agents in the UK. Carefully look through the agents, identifying the ones that represent authors who write similar fiction to you and send them a covering letter, synopsis and the first three chapters of your novel (or whatever they specifically request). Very few publishers look at unsolicited manuscripts these days so getting an agent is your best route to publication.

  15. Getting short stories published or placing in competitions is not only good practice for writing a novel but, if you include them on your covering letter to an agent, it’ll demonstrate that you’re an accomplished writer with a good track history.

Cally Taylor lives in Bristol with her boyfriend and their ridiculously large DVD/book/music collection. She shares her 'study' with the washing machine and ironing board and writes her novels in any spare moments she can squeeze in between the day job and her social network addiction . She started writing fiction in 2005 and her short stories have won several awards and been published by a variety of women's magazines. Her debut novel Heaven Can Wait has been translated in 13 languages and was voted 'Debut Novel of the Year' by chicklitreviews.com and chicklitclub.com. Home for Christmas is her second novel.
You can find out more about Cally on any of the following:

Website: www.callytaylor.co.uk

Twitter: www.twitter.com/callytaylor

Facebook: www.facebook.com/CallyTaylorAuthor

Blog: http://writing-about-writing.blogspot.com

Beth Prince has always loved fairytales and now, aged twenty-four, she feels like she's finally on the verge of her own happily ever after. She lives by the seaside, works in the Picturebox - a charming but rundown independent cinema - and has a boyfriend who's so debonair and charming she can't believe her luck! There's just one problem - none of her boyfriends have ever told her they love her and it doesn't look like Aiden's going to say it any time soon. Desperate to hear 'I love you' for the first time Beth takes matters into her own hands - and instantly wishes she hadn't. Just when it seems like her luck can't get any worse, bad news arrives in the devilishly handsome shape of Matt Jones. Matt is the regional director of a multiplex cinema and he's determined to get his hands on the Picturebox by Christmas. Can Beth keep her job, her man and her home or is her romantic-comedy life about to turn into a disaster movie?

HOME FOR CHRISTMAS available here

A Cautionary Tale - Speaking to Readers

When asked, every writer has a story of that moment when they see someone they don't know reading THEIR book and they have tales of when friends have not only spied someone reading their books, but have dared to approach the reader.

RNA member and debut novelist Cally Taylor has one such story to tell. Friends the world round have been on the look out for HEAVEN CAN WAIT. These many friends have been taking photos and sending them to Cally (for a full report click here). One encountered an interesting reaction when he tried to request permission to take a photo of a woman reading Cally's book and this is the text he sent Cally:

"So, I saw the same girl on the train today, she's still reading your book! I chose my moment, wriggled past a few passengers, went up to her and explained that 'I know the author', 'it's her first novel' and 'she's very excited' and that I'd like to send her a picture of someone actually reading her book and would she mind?And this girl just looked at me, didn't say anything for what must've been 5-10 seconds, and then eventually, with a completely deadpan expression on her face, responded, "That's the worst chat up line I've ever heard." and just walked off."

That could be the beginning of a novel itself.....

'What would I do without you, Lucy Brown?' he said, and kissed me softly. I held his face in my hands and kissed him back. I felt that life just couldn't get any more perfect. And I was right, it wouldn't. By the end of the next day, I'd be dead.

Lucy is about to marry the man of her dreams - kind, handsome, funny Dan - when she breaks her neck the night before their wedding. Unable to accept a lifetime's separation from her soulmate, Lucy decides to become a ghost rather than go to heaven and be parted from Dan.

HEAVEN CAN WAIT is out now.

http://www.callytaylor.co.uk