The blog entry where Matt tries to write a “How to…” book and ends up writing something about anatomy instead.

David Isaak of Smite the Waters (out this summer) has been blogging away and asking other writers about their “craft”, including me.
Without sounding too “Swiss-Tony”, writing a book is quite like playing golf. There are a myriad of techniques, a deluge of “How to…” books, and many people willing to sell their skills (sometimes for ridiculous prices) to help would-be writers/golfers to their first published book or PGA tour-card.

I’ll tell you now, I can’t play golf…

…but hopefully I can write well enough for the following to be at least of some interest to other writers out there…

Please note: due to time constraints, not to mention the risk of boring everyone with a 10,000 word blog entry, I’ll be dividing this whole thing into chunks – they’re more digestible that way.



How I do that thing that I do: Part 1 – “Arse about Face” or Four basic questions that changed my writing world.

During my visit to St Andrew’s School in Horsell, one of the pupils asked “how do you create your stories?” I thought at first it was pretty much the stock question “where do you get your ideas from?” - except that under further questioning I discovered it wasn’t (clever kids at St Andrew’s, you know?). What he was really asking was: “where do you start writing a book?”

Now there might be an obvious answer, especially from a writer whose stories are very much chronological. But I responded with a thoughtful shrug and replied “I start at the end, of course.”


Four questions

TS Elliot once wrote that "In my beginning is my end". I'm the opposite of this, finding my end is somewhere hiding my beginning. You see, I’m a problem solver (I get that from my dad by the way). Whenever inspiration strikes with an image or a scene – which usually involves one main character - I ask four fundamental questions:
1) Who are they?
2) What are they doing there?
3) Where are they going?
And finally (and perhaps where this whole back-to-front plotting begins…)
4) ...Where have they come from?

For almost all my books thus far - including The Secret War - inspiration struck at what would be the final scenes of the story. With The Apprentice and the Stripper it was the unmaking of Ephernass, for The Prey and the Haunted it was the showdown with the Dane Woods. For The Secret War it was the denouement between friends and the sacrifice that one must take (apologies for being vague – just don’t want to include any spoilers here!). For those stories, the maxim that the journey is more interesting than the destination, followed the asking of those four questions - the final one being key to the journey itself.

This approach means I can begin planning the plot backwards, and usually any pitfalls are negotiated, noting that the hard part of ending the book has already been achieved and I just need a natural place to start the adventure.

The accusation that the writer knows too much to keep it fresh is not really valid – and I guess I can argue that if the writer knows nothing at all, how do you know where you’re going and for that matter, can the reader trust you that you’re going anywhere at all? I hate writing blind – I always want a destination in sight even if it isn’t the final destination – and most of the time, starting at the end does that for me.

And then sometimes it doesn’t.

Writing when your “Arse” won’t do

I’m not too stubborn or arrogant to realise starting at the end is not always the best approach to writing certain books. Sometimes you need to surprise yourself as well as your readership, and writing by the seat of your pants is a good way of doing that as long as you have some idea where it’s going. So for two stories, I started somewhere else.

The first is my children’s book, A World of Night, which started off with a villain and a city as inspiration (Feelix Toothcatcher and the City of Darcovik). There was no beginning, middle or end when I began writing this, until I happened upon the main character by chance and began asking the same four questions of him. Once this occurred, A World of Night formed itself from the protoplasm of my imagination with an ending that is not perhaps as rounded as my other books, but I’m still proud of it!

And last weekend I had a great idea for a book that would be called “Stranded Rooms”. Without divulging too many details, the idea came about from a simple passage of a man taking a bath after a hard day’s work. After relaxing for half an hour, he gets out, pulls on his dressing gown, opens the bathroom door…
…and is sucked into the vacuum of space.

After writing the passage (and a vividly surreal passage at that), I asked those four questions and realised this scene would occur reasonably early in the plot – so the third question became more important than the fourth, quickly realising that questions 1 and 2 were almost relegated completely, and that this poor recently-bathed-character only had a short lifespan in the book, not to mention in life generally. (You see, there’s not much you can do with a character once he’s sucked into space, is there?)

In these two cases, starting at the end would clearly not do.
A writer needs to be flexible, after all.

So which is it? Arse or Face?

Neither I guess. So I lied to the pupil at school, and I’ve lied to you (as David Isaak mentions in his blog, all writers are liars), because it doesn’t really matter at what point you start the story as long as those four questions are asked. If you know where the character is going then you have more to write, yet you cannot get there if you don’t know where they’ve been.

There are no right ways or wrong ways to start writing a book - there are just ways. So there will be exceptions to this method, as there are with every book, but this is how I start my plots…

…This is how I begin to do that thing that I do.

Coming soon…Part 2: Which might be about character building, though more likely about how I structure my stories and get lost reading my own maps

A couple of visual tweaks

Okay. So I’ve converted to the new Blogger – and so far my flapping about has been unwarranted. The blog is behaving itself so I’ve taken the liberty of making a few changes. The first is this natty logo...
...which can be found to the left and links to the official website.

The Secret War logo now goes direct to Macmillan New Writing and my book (if you are so inclined, you can read the blurb, an extract from the book, or even order a hard copy or an electronic version of The Secret War!)

The second tweak is a direct link to the gallery page which is now up and running. Thus far the gallery only includes both book launch days, but will soon include the visit to St Andrews and any other event that I’m attending where there are cameras present…
(…It’s all a bit odd seeing my mug on the site and without wearing my business-hat it feels a little narcissistic - but that’s self-promotion for you!)


Coming next…
David Isaak has invited me to talk about my creative process under the headline: “How we do that thing that we do”, and how I do do that…That thing I do do… You know? That thing?

“Writing,” I think it’s called.

War of the Worlds country

(Note: I wrote this blog entry on the 16:25 from St Pancras back to Sheffield, Tuesday 20th)

“I feel tired (from an early start) and travel weary, but I’m writing this while it’s still quite fresh…

…A wise man once said that “you should never work with children nor animals” (though I forget who this so-called “wise man” was – as is the norm for such worthy quotations, the originator becomes a faceless voice of wisdom). For someone, say, in show business, or perhaps a farmer of llamas these are wise words indeed - but I held this philosophy in disregard when (arranged by a good friend of mine) I visited St Andrews school in Surrey to deliver a presentation on The Secret War (and writing in general) to three classes of school children.

I admit I felt certain trepidation. After all, I remember what it was like to be a kid and how sometimes children can act or be distracted (I was no saint – no monster maybe – but are any children truly angelic?). The last thing I wanted was a horde of children reducing me to a gibbering wreck at the end of three hours!
Also, The Secret War is not really a children’s book – it was written with adults in mind. So when you’ve been asked to deliver a presentation and a few readings to that very same audience you can forgive me for being a teensy bit nervous.

In the end, such trepidation was hardly warranted.

Stripped bare, The Secret War is just an adventure story, and one – that it seems – kids around 11-13 are interested in. The book is no more violent than say Raiders of the Lost Ark, or no more nasty than HG Wells War of the Worlds (which I find an apt reference as St Andrews is not that far from Horsell Common and it’s a book that many of the children at St Andrews have already read).

And there was another factor…

St Andrews school is a model school. It is a school where the children are well behaved and highly motivated. You have an inkling their days are not spent in front of the Playstation, or cramming junk food down their throats. They spend their time outside playing sports, or reading or other wholesome activities that I found surprising and encouraging. It was this discipline and the resulting aptitude that was certainly evident during the three presentations I did for the 11, 12 and 13 year olds. In each case, where I might have been met with blank stares and disinterest, I was overwhelmed not only by the enthusiasm the children had for my book and writing on the whole, but overwhelmed by the intelligence of questions fired my way during the informal discussions.
Some questions truly caught me off guard - not because I didn’t expect them from a class of school children - but because no one had ever asked these pertinent questions of my writing before – not friends, not family, and not even the several interviewers thus far.

Towards the end of each presentation I signed copies of The Secret War and took further impromptu enquiries (for the bean-counters among you – I shifted around 50 books in total – not bad for a morning’s work).

Following the signing, I planned to deliver the first reading of the first chapter of A World of Night. However, in a fantastic twist, Mr Murphy (the English teacher) nominated pupils to take turns reading parts of the story to the class. I must say it was wonderfully surreal to hear my own work read aloud by the audience it was intended for, and gratifying how the book sounded so magical through their voices, the pupils reading it with such gusto and animation.

For me, this was the highlight of the visit.

So in summary – if a summary does it justice – the visit to St Andrews was quite simply amazing. I learned much that morning – about my own writing, about my ability to stand up in front of a class of children (children who are, by their very nature, the harshest of all critics) and also about my audience, if only for A World of Night.
If – and it’s a big if because nothing is certain in this business – A World of Night is published, then perhaps I will start a tradition and have the book twinned with St Andrews (I’ve already suggested having a book launch there).

As ever - for further developments, watch this space.”

Change of Plans

Now that I've been allowed back into my blog (grrr) this is just a quick blog entry to say that the e-sheaf launch on Tuesday 20th, Green Room Sheffield, has definitely been called off. Apologies if you were planning to attend but it is due to unforeseen circumstances (and techie problems too).

However, I understand there are plans for the launch in March, so watch this space...

Anyway, must dash to put the finishing touches to the presentation at St Andrew's school this Tuesday. To answer Sally's last comment - I have never done this sort of thing before so it's sink or swim time. I do remember what it was like being an 11-13 year old but that was before the days of Playstations and quick-wins. Yep, I'm a little nervous, but hopefully it will be a fun experience reading an excerpt of The Secret War to each class, as well as an exclusive reading of the opening pages to A World of Night (which is, afterall, a children's book!).

If I survive, and if Blogger allows me, I'll report back at the end of the week to share the experience...

My Muse Sings and other miscellaneous gumph

Appearing at a school near you

I will be attending my first public event since the launch, next Tuesday at a school down in Surrey, talking about The Secret War and the whole writing process to three classes of secondary school children. Having never spoken to kids before about my writing, I’m a little nervous, though not too old that I can’t remember what held my interest at that age – so I’m going armed with a few visual aids, and of course, a few books.

It does beg the question though: what age is The Secret War appropriate for?

There are only slight sexual references, hardly any swearing – yet it is quite bloody. I suppose in visual terms it is no worse than perhaps the films Titanic or Lord of the Rings (both received 12 certificates on release). I myself picked up Frank Herbert’s Dune around that age (though I understood very little of it), and by the age of 12 I was quite content reading Stephen King short stories.
But that’s just me, and my folks were happy to indulge in that sort of thing as long as it meant their son was reading.

So to those parents out there: what would you find suitable or not for children between 11 and 13? And if you’ve read The Secret War, would you see it as appropriate?

Grumpy’s Millions

Grumpy Old Bookman has recently announced that he is to retire – at least from doing regular blog entries. And who can blame him? At the end of last year I cited my reasons for blogging more infrequently – one of them being the 50,000 words (more like 60,000 now) I could have spent on writing my books. G.O.B. has reputedly written almost a million words in three years on his daily blog – which in book terms amounts to around five to six novels, including the drafts.

Like many ‘netters, I found his blog informative and entertaining, and his regular input will be missed – though this move is hardly surprising. If blogging (a means to an end, as well as an enjoyable pass-time) detracts from the actual process of writing, then you need to look at the raison d'être to blog. This could explain why almost 200,000 blogs went dormant towards the back end of last year.

Blogging is like keeping a very public diary, yet sometimes you can forget the reasons why you’re blogging in the first place…

Now where was I?

Where I do what I do

This is where I write:


It is a far cry from the writing environment eight years ago that amounted to no more than a box room, sitting on the edge of a bed with a keyboard perched on my lap. I’m a big believer of having a comfortable writing space – not too cluttered and distracting, but with plenty around to inspire.
The major(minor) difference between this writing space and the last, is the rejection spike – a Philips screwdriver that I stuck into a desk-tidy where I impaled all my rejection letters – especially around The Secret War. These letters are now nicely stored in a folder to the right, along with the first acceptance letter I received from Macmillan publishers…

…Still, the spike might come out of retirement when I start submitting my children’s novel (a redraft of A World of Night) in a few months time.

I’m optimistic, sure, but children’s fiction is currently the hardest market to crack!

Q&A, or rather a pause in blog entries

Okay, I’m taking a breather for a week to write more of The Secret of Mhorrer and perhaps another blog entry, so I’m going to cheat and make this blog entry a Q&A session.
So ask me anything about The Secret War, the new book, what I think of the whole publishing business, about reviews, about publicity, about anything to do with writing…

…and I’ll pop in from time to time to answer.

My writing life in numbers

I’ve sold out. Well, in Sheffield I have. There is not a single copy of The Secret War available to buy in my home town – the last three copies were sold yesterday at Waterstones, Orchard Square. That’s not bad going for four weeks in print (and at least 10 copies in stock at Waterstones – not including the 80 copies sold there on Launch day).

And trade is still brisk on Amazon. My ranking was at the heady heights of 1,755 this lunch time. Though I’m fully aware the Amazon ranking is purely “interesting” rather than mirroring sales.

Before anyone asks how the book is doing elsewhere – I really don’t know. I can only go by anecdotal stuff that says it is selling nicely, for example, in London (it has sold out in a couple of London bookshops apparently).

If there are any interesting numbers in this game, they will appear later in the year with my first ever royalty cheque. I guess then those figures will become a reality.

And I’ll know whether or not The Secret War has remained just a “secret”.


Onto more serious matters

And so we come to the end of my first month as a published author. It’s been a fantastic experience so far – from the subdued opening to the on-going excitement of publicity and mindlessly watching the ol’ Amazon ranking!!

But more serious writing matters must now intervene.

The publicity and the sales for The Secret War have their own momentum, and even though I’ll be keeping an eye on them in case either stalls, I must now concentrate on writing the 2nd draft of The Secret of Mhorrer, and this blog will in future reflect that. This weekend Sarah is working and despite the prospect of sunshine, I too will have my head down, finishing chapter 7 of the new book and working straight on with chapter 8. The book is being revised every moment of every day – from the physical typing on the laptop to the musings on the bus and the changes concluded in my thoughts before I commit them to screen.

Writing a first draft is fun.

But redrafting can be exhilarating and torture in equal amounts!


Postscript:
The reprints have just arrived at Waterstones in Sheffield... and they look quite different to the first editions. The paper's a bit thicker and there is no longer the bookmark ribbon attached to the spine. The presentation is still impeccable, but I think the first editions may turn out to be collectors items even now... (so yes, I am currently eating my own words from a previous blog).

Brave New Digital Words

The Secret War has gone digital. Zapped into millions of pixels with a machine that looks like a Flash Gordon death-ray, the book has been miraculously reassembled by the IT bods at Macmillan, on screen. The whole process is apparently not that far removed from Mike Teavee’s fate in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.

But without the children.

…And the songs (though I’m sure the techs at Macmillan probably whistle while they work)…

Richard Charkin has written a blog entry on this new bit of technology (which you can find by clicking here), or go straight to the “Macmillan-New-Writing-MikeTV-digitally-rearranged-zapped-and-deathrayed” version of The Secret War by simply clicking here.

The jury is still out how this will take off. I’m more of a book-in-hand kind of person, but it would save carrying around multiple novels, and your bookshelves will no longer groan from the weight of untold volumes of books.

The future is bright. The future is book-pod-shaped.

Read a new writer, win a new book

And so to Debut a Debut, a competition I mentioned a couple of blog entries ago. The competition was an interesting topic of conversation during Mike Barnard’s retirement do last week – and provoked quite a bit of interest from fellow authors.
Some reading this will remember Roger Morris’ Read A New Author Month (or RANAM) which was used to promote new writing as a whole. Roger quickly discovered that as a new author, running such an initiative can restrict the focus on your own writing, and will also open you to attacks from cynics. Debut a Debut is like RANAM in respect to promoting first books from new writers, but it is run by readers. And in my opinion, such a competition is very important to all new writers…

…Counter to what some might think, the success of the first book can make or break an author in many respects – financially and mentally. If the book does badly then there is little money to support the writer during the second novel, and wouldn’t it be dispiriting having waited all that time to be published for it to sink without a trace? First books tend to do that through no fault of the book or the author, but because word of mouth has not taken hold and Luck has decreed that no one is taking notice of it.
I mean, who wants to spend time and money reading a book from an author no one knows about?

Hopefully, there will be some reading this who have just shouted: “well, I do!” It is that sort of response that keeps first timers going, and Debut a Debut is an “I do!”-competition, encouraging people on the web to pick up a debut book and give it a go.
The carrot - if there is need of one - is the prospect of one of many book prizes donated by publishers, authors and bookshops. The prizes go to the reviewers of these debut books – and anyone can enter.
One of the prizes is a copy of my book, by the way. But that doesn’t mean you can’t buy a copy of The Secret War and review it!

…It just means you could win another copy that’s signed!!!

(For more information on Debut a Debut, go to West of Mars)

Rony Robinson Show – and The Secret War

So I’ve just completed the live interview for Rony Robinson, on BBC Radio Sheffield. I think it went quite well – though I’ll let you all be the judge of that.

You can hear the interview by clicking here (via the "listen again" link and zooming forward to about 1.30pm) but be warned the recording is only available for 24 hours before being replaced by tomorrow’s show.

e-sheaf

And talking of interviews, the interview with Trudi Taylor, editor of e-sheaf also went well. Much like the Sheffield Star and Profile magazine interview, it felt thorough and I pretty much said everything I wanted to. e-sheaf is undergoing a change of presentation at the moment, but the new issue should be available around 20th February.
To mark the event, there is an issue launch at the Green Room, Sheffield, from 7pm. I'll be attending as a guest writer and I understand it is an open event. They'll be readings by other writers and poets from the publication and their own work, so please come along and give your support to the local writers.

Due to earlier commitments down in Surrey the same day, I'm not sure whether there'll be copies of The Secret War on sale and for me to sign, but I'm working on it...