Macmillan New Writers

At the end of August/September this blog will cease. I’ve made that decision based on how I wish to concentrate my writing energy in the future, and coming up with blog entries on a regular basis doesn’t feature in those plans. The Macmillan New Writer blog was meant to last only 18 months or so during that great adventure of being published for the first time, whilst covering the writing of my second book.
Both are about to come to a natural conclusion.

However, as discussed with David Isaak, I’m looking to replace this blog with something that all the Macmillan New Writers can post entries on without feeling obliged to post all the time. Something like a collective Macmillan New Writers blog, but this will depend largely on whether any of the MNW authors would want it.

So why build a new blog at all?

I enjoy blogging - at times I find it compelling (I concede I’m addicted to writing). And the lull between blog entries is like having an irritating itch. Seeing nothing new on my own blog has on occasion driven me to write something disposable, irrelevant, and a complete waste of my time. In other words, writing when writing is not required nor inspired.
Afterall, there’s nothing more annoying than a blog that just dies without warning. You kinda feel like you’re hanging around on the phone when the caller has already put down the receiver, or the last one at the party when even the host has gone home.

A communal blog means I can throw in the odd entry here and there without the blog gathering dust, as hopefully other MNW authors will toss in the odd entry or two to keep it going, not to mention the new blood flowing in as and when debut authors are added to future publishing dates.

As David suggests, I envisage a one-stop shop for the MNW bloggers, a platform to share the whole debut experience, and somewhere to promote their books. I’m getting kinda handy with the blogging template so it will have thumbnails of all the books listed on the side bar and links to the authors’ various blogs and websites if they’re still running.

So let’s talk timescales. I’ve already registered the name “Macmillan New Writers” and marked it as a BETA site. As yet I haven’t much time to spend developing it, but that should change at the end of July when the 4th draft of the new book is done. So by the time this blog ceases (by the beginning of September) the Macmillan New Writers blog should (fingers crossed) be up and running.

If any MNW authors out there are interested, make sure you have a Blogger account and send me your e-mail address…