Festivals and Workshops: Festival of Writing

Welcome to Elaine Roberts with another in her interesting series about literary festivals and workshops.

This month I have interviewed Laura Burson from the Festival of Writing. Welcome to the RNA blog, Laura. Can you tell us something about your festival, how it came about and how long its been running?

The Festival of Writing takes place annually in York. Now in its seventh year the festival has gained

an outstanding reputation for helping unpublished authors on their writing careers. Its many notable success stories including Joanna Cannon, Tor Udall, Deborah Install and Shelley Harris. It is the biggest creative writing weekend in the UK.

Who are your main speakers this year?

This year we have two hugely successful self-published authors to join traditionally published names in speaking at the festival. Mark Edwards and Rachel Abbot, who have each sold more than two million copies of their books and are now published by Amazon’s Thomas & Mercer imprint, will address hundreds of aspiring writers about the different routes to publication, sharing their experiences.

As our blog is for writers can you tell me how your festival would benefit our members?

The Festival of Writing is one of the most influential and highly regarded creative gatherings in the publishing calendar. It attracts hundreds of aspiring authors from across the UK who gather each year to meet agents and publishers to pitch their ideas, attend creative workshop and benefit from one-to-one tutorials with editors and industry experts, honing their craft and helping them on the path to publication.

Is there anything to enter (maybe a writing competition), if so could details be provided?

Yes, one of the highlights of the weekend is the now famous ‘Friday Night Live’ competition (often described as the literary X Factor) when delegates read 500 words of their manuscript to be critiqued by a panel of experts. Previous winners have gone on to great success with bestselling novels and six-figure book deals. The 2014 winner Joanna Cannon read from her future bestseller THE TROUBLE WITH GOATS AND SHEEP. Within 48 hours of leaving York she had seven offers from book agents and went on to become a Sunday Times bestseller in hardback and paperback.

We have a host of other exciting comps too, with great agent judges on the panel.

How about staying over for the whole event. Where can people stay?

Those booking weekend tickets get accommodation included. It's on campus so close to all the workshops, talks, all the meals and all the other evening events. Everybody stays on campus, so you'll be sharing food, drink & accommodation with the editors, agents and authors present.

What does it cost to attend?

Day tickets start at £185 (including two agent one-to-one meetings).

Weekend tickets start at £395. With these weekend options you get accommodation included. All meals, inc gala dinner. Refreshments. All talks & workshops. Plus 2 one-to-one sessions (with agents / publishers / book doctors).

Although day tickets are available to the event, we do urge people to stay the Friday and (especially) the Saturday night, as many of the most important connections will take place 'out of hours'.

Do workshops/talks fill up quickly?

We still have tickets left for 2017 but encourage folk to book soon to get choice agent slots.

How much time does it take to organise the festival?

It takes a year in the making, with planning for the next usually starting just as we've tidied up that year's event.

Dates for this year and possibly next.

The Festival of Writing takes place 8-10 September 2017 in York.

Website

For more information and the full programme visit:

www.writersworkshop.co.uk/FestivalofWriting2017.html

Email for queries: info@writersworkshop.co.uk

Thank you for taking the time to talk to me, Laura,  and we wish the festival every success.

***STOP PRESS: RNA members who wish to attend can type RNA into the relevant box to receive 15% off any ticket option***

All Roads Lead To York!

On behalf of members of the Romantic Novelists’ Association, your intrepid bloggers set off for a long weekend in York, the highlight being the Tea Party at the Guildhall organised by Jane Lovering and Lynda Stacey. Two trips to Betty’s, a cruise on the Ouse and many miles walked around York and we are home and exhausted.

Thank you to Jane and Lynda for the following words and John Jackson for the images.

Lynda Stacey

It was a cold, windy day in York, but inside the Guildhall it was warm. More than ninety people came to the first RNA Afternoon Tea event, and of those, more than half had never attended an RNA Party before, so we were delighted that so many were prepared to come to York as their first introduction to partying, RNA-style!  They were greeted by glasses of Prosecco and the chance to mingle and chat, helped by the familiar RNA name badges and lanyards, which meant nobody had to ask that awkward question ‘I’m sorry, who are you?’

 

Grace was said by Kelvin Woolmer, husband of RNA Chapter Liaison, Jean Fullerton after which we drank tea out of vintage cups and saucers and ate sandwiches, savouries and cakes from gorgeous vintage china. The setting in the beautiful fifteenth century York Guildhall, with its vaulted ceiling and ancient beams was awe inspiring.



 

Milly Johnson, who gave a very funny talk on the subject of ‘The Northern Bird’, filled with

scurrilous remarks and observations. She then performed her own parody of the well-known Robert Burns poem, with her ‘Address to the Scone’, followed by the delivery to the tables of heaps of scones, with clotted cream and home-made jams.

The proceedings closed with a rush to the Pic n Mix table, where guests helped themselves to sweets for the journey home. Thanks to everyone who came, and to John Jackson for documenting the event so thoroughly in photographic form!

Thank you, Jane, Lynda and John.

So where to next? Cornwall, Scotland, Wales or the South Coast? It will soon be time for another RNA event. In the meantime don’t forget the RNA Winter Party on Wednesday 18^th November at the Royal Overseas League, Park Place, London. Click here for details and booking form.

The RNA blog is brought to you by,

Elaine Everest & Natalie Kleinman

If you would like to write for the blog please contact us at elaineeverest@aol.com

In Praise of the North

Jane Lovering joins us today to tell us about the planned RNA Northern Tea Party. 

I sometimes get asked why a good southern girl like me writes books based in Yorkshire. And I have to answer that it’s because I live here and can do research without having to do anything more strenuous than look out of the windows. I’m practically naturalised now, although I still say ‘scone’ to rhyme with ‘stone’ and pronounce bath as ‘barth’. I’m also used to the patchy mobile reception up in the moors, half-day closings, and shops that sell everything from five barred gates to washing powder under the same roof. My books are marketed as the ‘Yorkshire Romances’ series, despite having nothing linking them but the fact that they’re set in Yorkshire. My latest book How I Wonder What You Are is actually set on the North York Moors, where I based the heroine’s exploits riding her horse across the moorland on my own experiences. Apart from the ‘finding a naked man’ part. I haven’t done that yet, but live in hope.

So, when it was mooted that there should be an RNA Northern party, to give those of us who can’t make the London-based parties a chance to wear posh frocks and nice shoes, and Lynda Stacey offered to organise it and asked me to help, I jumped at the chance. After all, even we adopted Northerners sometimes like to get out of our wellington boots and into something slinky. We decided to go for something a little different to the London parties, and, once I’d been sat on to prevent me from suggesting completely impossible things (I was going to suggest either an RNA Rodeo or Burlesque lessons) we agreed on an Afternoon Tea.  So we’ve duly booked the 15^th century York Guildhall for the day on Saturday, 5th September in the centre of the beautiful city of York. We’ve ordered good weather to enhance the view over the river, and enough sandwiches and cake to provide refreshment for an entire host of romantic novelists. 

Even better, we have Milly Johnson coming to give a talk, entitled ‘the RSPB Guide to Northern Birds’. As a prime example of Northern Birdhood herself, her talk will be educational and hysterical and accompanied by cream scones and tea, so it’s a winner all round, I think you’ll agree.  We’re hoping for a good turnout of both frocks and shoes, there will be sandwiches, cakes, quiches and scones and unlimited tea and coffee, and both Lynda and I are looking forward to seeing an influx of Romantic Novelists converging on York.

I still think a rodeo would have been a good idea, though…

For tickets contact Jane at janelovering@gmail.com

Thank you, Jane. Our tickets are booked and we can’t wait to join you.

The RNA blog is brought to you by 

Elaine Everest & Natalie Kleinman

If you would like to write for the RNA blog please contact us on elaineeverest@aol.com