Think about it long enough and everything you’ve ever known (society, politics, life, the whole entire universe) becomes a weird, twisted vegetable…
Wins!
Very excited that my postcard-inspired short story was one of 30 (out of 2000!) shortlisted in The Observer and Redstone Press prize. Go read it and feel sorry for Malcolm. Or don’t. He deserved it.
Also very excited that my newest and (quite possibly) weirdest short story was longlisted in the latest New2TheScene competition. The biggest win, though, is that as a member I’ll get feedback on the piece. Yay!
And, oh yeah, still revelling in that ‘I finished the first draft of my novel and I don’t have to edit it just yet’ feeling…
Rejections
A surprise rejection for book #2 from an agent I queried back in the spring. I haven’t been entirely ghosted, then. Lols.
And a rejection for a short story, but alongside some positive, insightful and actionable feedback.
We thought it was a darkly comic and inventive piece, with a strong narrative voice and a clever formal idea at its heart. The shift from third person to first person is particularly effective, creating a change in perspective that gives the piece real performance potential.
We’d encourage you to trust the form and the reader a little more. A sharper edit, with some of the explanation stripped back, could allow the humour and formal twist to do more of the work.
That’s twice now that feedback has been mentioned. Hmm…
Learnings
I’m excited to be working on book #3 with an additional coach (alongside those from The Novelry) to help them develop their future offer to writers. The first round of questions have been settling nicely at the bottom of my brain after filtering through all the story guff that’s still floating around in there. I haven’t got all the answers yet, but they’ll come.
What is the ideal age of the main character? Could she be older or younger? How does that affect the story?
How does the setting serve the story? Could the story happen anywhere, or only in this particular setting?
What POV is the story told from? Is that what’s expected of the genre? How does that enhance what happens?
Readings
Finished: Raven Leilani’s Luster. Beautiful prose that really shows how lost and isolated the main character is. We follow her as she gets involved in an older couple’s marriage, moves in with them, and tries to find herself through her painting… including a scene where she paints the wife dissecting the corpses of veterans in the morgue. Dark, weird, captivating.
Also finished: Lisa Taddeo’s Animal. A great study in writing techniques, as well as a truly intoxicating story. The use of imagery around meat and eating right from the start of the book was very clever, and made the completely batshit events later in the book feel logical. Come for the strong voice and dark main character, stay for the revenge.
Now reading: Elle Cosimano’s Finlay Donovan is Killing It. Racing through this already. It’s pacy, slightly terrifying and utterly compelling.
Musings
Recently I’ve been musing about the importance of celebrating feedback and, perhaps more importantly, the people who’ve taken the time to give that feedback. There are so many kind and supportive people in this industry, and I’m glad to have received notes from many of them. Sure, not all feedback is helpful. In fact, I recently got a cracking one on a piece of non-fiction I’d shared with a local writing group…
Extract from a piece of non-fiction with feedback.
But, that aside, I know the vast majority of feedback helps to make me a better writer. And what does ‘better’ mean? Well, to me it means that my writing is more ‘true’. More able to connect my intention with the reader’s experience. Because isn’t that sort of the point – to connect with others, to be seen and understood?
Oh yeah, and the weird, twisted vegetables? Well, aren’t they just perfect fodder for a new weird, twisted story…? Watch this space.
Till next time,
Vicky
