Gold Coast Writers Festival

Are you an author, publisher, printer or illustrator? Or simply someone who loves books?

As promised, the Festival of Independent Writers and Publishers is all ‘go’ again, but with a new and exciting twist. We have now expanded our scope to include all authors and publishers, although indie authors and publishers will remain a major focus. The new name of the festival is the Gold Coast Writers Festival and it will take place at Robina on Friday 26 October and Saturday 27 October, followed by a Literary Luncheon on Sunday 28 October.

We’re looking for workshop presenters, speakers, panel participants and sponsors, so if you fall into any of these categories, please contact either Julie at jboydedu@gmail.com or Kathy at kathy@authorsally.com.

Don’t forget, there’s also a writing competition held in conjunction with the festival.

For more info please check out our website:

http://goldcoastwritersfestival.com

Thanks!

We’re looking forward to hearing from you.

Writing Memoir

Do you have a story to tell? For a PowerPoint presentation with tips on writing your memoir, click here: Writing Memoir

Disk or Disc?

I had always thought that ‘disk’ could be differentiated from ‘disc’ as a USA versus UK phenomenon, or as computer disk versus a disc disc, but it seems it’s more complicated than that.

There are actually two types of computer disk (disc) as well. In computer terms, ‘disk’ refers to the means to store data magnetically on some type of hardware, whereas ‘disc’ refers to the means to store data optically via software.

As said before, the spelling ‘disk’ is preferred in the USA, whereas ‘disc’ is preferred in the UK for all but computer ‘disks’.

To complicate matters further, computer companies elsewhere in the world besides the USA and UK favour the use of ‘disc’ rather than ‘disk’.

Both words refer to round flat objects, if that’s any help!

On Plotting

Besides being an editor, I’m also a writer and I recently signed up for the Australian Literature Review Manuscript Development Program. There are three such programs being held in Australian cities: Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney and the initial focus of the groups was on plotting:

A debate most novelists have is whether they’re ‘pantsers’ or ‘plotters’. Many confess to only having the beginning and end in mind and then fleshing out the middle as they go. That is, they’re pantsers. And that’s how I started – with a vague idea of the direction of the story, relying on developing the characters as I went.

But with Steve Rossiter of Australian Literature Review’s help, I’ve now realised the value of plotting. This time, with my fourth novel, I’ve written out detailed character interviews and then drawn up outlines of each chapter so that I know ahead of time which direction each scene will take.

I must admit, though, that there is a certain amount of satisfaction in discovering the characters as you go along. It’s as if some part of your mind knows the story all along and was just waiting for you to uncover it. And I’m sure this will happen, even though I’ve done such detailed planning. I fully believe I’ll discover wrinkles and nuances I had no idea existed. That’s what makes writing so much fun.

At one stage I thought plotting would obviate the need to write so many superfluous words, but that was not to be. Given the detail included in my character interviews, and the detailed plot points in each chapter, I’ve already written many thousands of words.

But the value of all this planning is that I now know my characters really well. I can see them, feel their pain, laugh at what makes them laugh, so when it comes to writing the scene, I know what they’re thinking and feeling and it’s just a case of conveying that to the reader.

It sounds easy but I’m sure it won’t be. Finding that correct phrase and just the right word will still be as much of a challenge, as will be keeping the pace going to keep my reader interested.

In the first weeks Steve had us write out the main points that would be covered in each chapter. We discussed at length the motivation for each character. He reminded us of the importance of keeping description and introspection to a minimum, to keep our characters full of action, allowing the reader to interpret the thoughts of characters through what they do and say, much as one would do watching a movie or play. All good advice and something I hope I can achieve as we progress through our novels from week to week.

I’ve set myself a 5000-word target to achieve each week and this is quite a big ask. This is when I hope all the plotting and planning will pay dividends by giving me a clear direction of where I’m heading.

Although previously I’ve I always thought of myself as a pantser, in actual fact I think this plotting might suit me very well. Only time will tell, of course, but I’m looking forward to the journey.

 

 

Review – The Beggar’s Opera by Peggy Blair

Title: The Beggar’s Opera

Author: Peggy Blair

Publisher: Penguin Canada

ISBN: 9780143179979

346 pages

 

In Inspector Ricardo Ramirez, Canadian author Peggy Blair has created a thoroughly likeable and formidable detective who will not be deterred from his task, regardless of what pressures are placed upon him by his strange illness and the constraints of the Cuban system.

Mike Ellis, a mentally and physically scarred Canadian detective, travels to Havana with his wife Hillary hoping to resurrect their failing marriage. Little does he know what lies in store for him when he gives a few pesos to a young Cuban boy. When the boy’s body is pulled from the water, Mike Ellis becomes the suspect in a horrific crime and it’s up to Canadian lawyer Celia Jones to extricate him from the mess he’s in. But can she, given the ticking clock nature of Cuba’s legal system and Mike’s impending indictment? Once indicted, he will surely face the death penalty at the hands of a firing squad.

From the first page to the last, Peggy has woven an intricate tale of deception and duplicity, all set against the crumbling decay and burgeoning modernity of Cuba’s Havana. Ricardo Ramirez and his sidekick, pathologist Hector Apiro, are unforgettable characters that you will want to follow time and time again. Up there with Michael Robotham for a great plot with plenty of twists and turns as well as unique and interesting characters. A thoroughly recommended read.

Aught or ought?

Have you ever wondered about the difference between ‘aught’ and ‘ought’? ‘Aught’ is actually a synonym for ‘naught’, which means ‘zero’ or ‘nothing’. It can also mean ‘to own or possess’, or ‘to owe someone or something’, or ‘to be obligated to someone’, when used as a verb. When used as an adjective, it means ‘possessed of’. In its archaic form, it meant ‘possession’, as of property or an object.

Although ‘ought’ and ‘aught’ are sometimes interchanged, there are subtle differences in meaning, and ‘ought’ is more commonly used now, though usually in the spoken rather than in the written form.

As a noun, ‘ought’ means ‘duty’ or ‘obligation’.

Otherwise, ‘ought’ is most commonly used as an auxiliary verb, and it can be used to express a number of things:

·         Duty or obligation: Everybody ought to donate to the cause.

·         Justice or morality: The thief ought to be ashamed. The thief ought to be punished.

·         Appropriate behaviour: You ought to visit the sick.

·         Probability: That ought to be your taxi now.

In modern times, ‘aught’ has largely fallen into disuse.

The Life Cycle of a Book – a very cool resource

Twitter is an amazing resource and if you haven’t embraced it yet you may be missing out. I found this really useful tweet by Catherine C. Turner (@OzAlleyCat) 04/12/2011 10:00, which had in turn been posted by @SydneyWriters, who had posted it on behalf of someone else … I think you get the picture. But the great thing is that it gives those who are hoping to be published an insight into what is involved. Check out the videos in the link provided: The life cycle of a book – a very cool resource: http://scbwi.blogspot.com/2011/11/life-cycle-of-book-very-cool-resource.html