Tips for Writers
The interview process is best approached with an open mind – a journey that you lead the interviewee through to some resolution and end point. I rarely plan an interview completely in advance – although preparation beforehand is crucial – instead I use questions as signposts through the conversation. It helps to make myself invisible and allow the interviewee’s story to unfold. There is always a moment of ‘revelation’, a golden nugget on which to hang a story, and you know the moment that you have it…
Resources for Writers…
Organisations:
Women Writers’ Network – monthly meetings at The Conway Hall, Red Lion Square featuring magazine and newspaper journalists, literary agents and writers of all kinds…see website for details. www.womenswriters.org
Women in Journalism. Fantastically high profile organisation which actively encourages young writers into the fold. Meetings and seminars regularly held, featuring leading women journalists. Great parties, too. For further information see website. www.womeninjournalism.co.uk
Arvon - Best for creative writing of all kinds. www.arvonfoundation.org
Open University – creative writing, great tutors www.open.ac.uk
London College of Fashion/ London College of Communication: all part of the London Institute now, including Central St Martins and Chelsea School of Art. Check out their journalism courses – both full and part-time. www.arts.ac.uk
Books on Writing:
A Room of One’s Own. Virginia Woolf. Based on a lecture that Virginia Woolf gave to students at Girton College, Cambridge – a call to arms for women writers.
Artists and Writers’ Yearbook. An invaluable resource. Revised annually.
Writing Down the Bones. Natalie Goldman. Kick start your creativity…
The Writer’s Block. Jason Refulak. Running Press. Literally a three inch square cube choc-a-block with ideas to get your pen on the paper…
The Creative Writing Coursebook. Forward by Andrew Motion. Edited by Julia Bell and Paul Magrs. MacMillan. An off-shoot of the highly-regarded MA in Creative Writing at UEA, this book offers advice from forty writers on writing for pleasure or publication.
The Right to Write. Julia Cameron. MacMillan. Julia Cameron describes her book as ‘using writing to bring clarity and passion to the act of living’. A revelation. The writer’s equivalent of a ‘twelve step programme’, with exercises for every day of the rest of your life…
Literary Festivals
Hay Festival of Literature, Herefordshire.
Simply magical – in
one short day at the festival I heard Margaret Atwood, Seamus Heaney
and Christopher Hitchens talk about their work, danced to Elvis Costello
in a tent and met the screenwriter of Shadowlands and Gladiator, William
Nicholson. Nothing quite like it…
www.hayfestival.com
Port Elliot Literary Festival, Cornwall
Literary fun in tents. Sadly not on this summer, but back for it’s
fifth year in summer 2009. www.portelliotlitfest.com
Poetry
The Poetry Review. The crème de la crème of poetry publications, published quarterly under the editorship of the hugely talented Fiona Sampson. Based at the Poetry Society. – see below. See also articles in ‘Tips for Writers’.
The Poetry Society. Betterton Street, London WC2. www.poetrysociety.org.uk
A place for poets run by poets. Plus a nice caff.
London Review of Books Bookshop. 14 Bury Place, London WC1A 2JL. An impressive collection of fiction, non fiction, poetry and prose in the heart of Bloomsbury. Nice café too. www.lrb.co.uk