2007 

11th March
Shiny new website hits the net!


15th March
The Society of Authors (SOA) New Members' Reception.  I'm so used to being almost the only person in the room without a nice, easily defineable job (doctor, lawyer, PA etc) and therefore spending most of the time at any kind of social gathering explaining (justifying?) exactly why I've chosen to write, what I write, and whether or not I'm any good at it. This evening was totally different and it was fantastic!  It was the first time that I've ever been in a crowd of people who all 'get' what I'm trying to do, simply because they're trying to do exactly the same thing - even if their particular interests happen to lie in a variety of different areas to mine.  The first time, but, I very much hope, not the last!


23rd - 25th March
Visited the Sunday Times Oxford Literary Festival, staying in Christ Church college at the heart of all the action.  A fantastic experience that I would wholeheartedly recommend to anyone with even a passing interest in books and their authors, writing, reading, politics, poetry, religion, children's literature, modern childhood and too many other subjects to mention!


23rd April
I attended The SOA Members' Party tonight - the first big event of theirs that I have been to.  Knowing that it was going to be hosted by Tracy Chevalier, and that Andrew Motion would also be giving a reading, I was quite worried that it would be full of famous people discussing their huge advances etc and that I would feel really out of place.  Luckily, there turned out to be plenty of non-famous people there as well - including a couple of familiar faces from the reception in March - and everyone was once again very keen to chat to everyone else, so it ended up being another great evening.  :-)


28th April
A visit to the National Archives at Kew with the Barnes Literary Society (BLS).  The morning began with a very interesting talk - 'Criminals, Spies and Bureaucrats - Literary Figures at the National Archives' - from historian James Travers.  Then, after having had the opportunity to study some old and extremely precious documents, we were taken on an extended tour of the archives, including not only the public areas of the building, but also some of the private ones.  The morning finished, as so many tend to - too many for the good of my bank account, anyway - in a bookshop.  I tried (somewhat half-heartedly, I admit) to restrain myself, but I ended up leaving the Archives with an oversized pile of books and the firm intention to return very soon!


15th May
SOA seminar on 'Giving a Reading'.  Lead by Catherine Dell, this was an afternoon of extremely useful preparation for all kinds of school visits, readings, or talks that an author might be required to give, and, with my first invitation to a local children's summer school now confirmed, I was determined to absorb as much information as possible!  As an added bonus, however, I also picked up a few handy hints on breathing and articulation which I was able to pass on to some of Shadow Road's actors!


17th May
SOA general meeting - 'How to Make Money as a Writer Online'.  Speakers Miles Galliford and Evan Rudowski of http://www.subhub.com/, gave a packed hall of writers some invaluable advice on creating and maintaining a financially advantageous presence online!  One of their recommendations included starting up a blog, something I've considered doing in the (recent) past, but decided against, due mainly to my lamentable and lifelong inability to maintain a diary for more than a couple of weeks at a time, no matter how exciting the potential material of the moment!  It may, however, be time to think again... ;-)


29th May
Launch party for Alonzo at The Barnes Bookshop, 60 Church Road, London, SW13 ODQ from 6.30-8.30 pm.  Books, drinks and food were available upstairs, and I was downstairs, signing.  Around 100 people came along and, with the exception of a brief break for a couple of short speeches, I sat at my little table all evening, watching a queue (an actual queue!?) of people snaking towards me to get their books signed and have a quick chat whilst doing so!  Some of the people there were old friends whom I hadn't seen in years (ten or more, in a few cases!), and I was genuinely touched that they had made the effort to come along and support me, even after all this time.  An absolutely fantastic night. 


30th May
Official publication date of Uncle Alonzo's Beard.  This is it - Alonzo is now at large in the world and free to roam.  All I can do is sit back and wait to see how he gets on out there...


24th-28th June
Shadow Road's debut production - a double bill of Joining the Club by David Tristram and Time Flies by David Ives - played at The Old Sorting Office, Barnes Pond, SW13 0LF.


21st July
SOA seminar entitled 'Poetry Please'.  Gaby Morgan from Macmillan spent the morning giving a roomful of assorted poets and verse-makers some very interesting insights into the state of and various markets for children's poetry in the UK today.  Then, following an impressive buffet lunch, I was able to pick up some very handy hints during the afternoon session - 'Performance and Survival' with Tony Mitton and Paul Cookson - which I am hoping (all available digits firmly crossed) to put to good use on August 14th!


14th August
I visited the Barnes Summer Play School to give a reading of Uncle Alonzo's Beard, answer some questions, and introduce the children and their parents to a couple of Alonzo's other relations!  As it was my first public reading of Alonzo, I couldn't help feeling more than a little bit nervous beforehand, but I needn't have worried - everyone was so warm and welcoming, the children were very well-behaved and full of interesting questions, and the parents and grandparents also seemed to enjoy themselves!  A lovely afternoon, which has given me the courage to think about doing more school visits in the future.  Many thanks indeed to the Barnes Summer Play School for having me, and to Yvonne Wake in particular for organising the whole event.  :-D


24th October
SOA seminar on 'Self-Publishing'.  I'm hoping to be able to find conventional publishers for a large percentage of my work, but there are just a couple of things that I'm thinking of self-publishing, so I found this seminar extremely helpful and something of an eye-opener!

The BLS's year began tonight with a talk from Michael Holroyd on his intriguingly titled new book, Six Characters in Flight from an Author.


1st November
I may quite possibly have taken leave of my senses, but last night I signed up for NaNoWriMo - an increasingly popular international writing event that challenges you to complete a 50,000 word novel (or at least the first draft of it) between midnight on 1st Nov and midnight on the 30th.  A large percentage of people who attempt NaNoWriMo are apparently not successful, but all those who achieve the required word count in time are considered to have 'won' and given a certificate and a small icon for their website to prove it!  Given my somewhat obsessive need to edit everything several times before I can happily move on to the next paragraph (something strongly discouraged here), I don't envisage this ending well for me, but I've always loved a challenge... ;-)


7th November
Second BLS event of the season tonight: Oscar-winning screenwriter Julian Fellowes in conversation with the writer Barbara Baker.  A fascinating evening that ended all too soon!


8th November
Launch party for fellow Meadowside author Preston Rutt's new children's book, Captain Yellowbelly!  Preston was there, looking rather splendid in a spiffy pirate's costume, and I was able to pick up a signed copy of the book for a recipient who shall remain un-named until after Christmas - don't want to spoil the surprise!


29th November
Much to my amazement, and with one day to spare, I made it past the 50,000 word finish line for NaNoWriMo 2007 this afternoon!  The novel itself is not actually finished yet - I am hoping to complete the first draft by the end of December - but I now have 50,000 more words to my credit than I had twenty nine days ago. :-)


14th-15th December
For two nights only, Shadow Road will present a Christmas show, tentatively titled A Countdown to Christmas (24 doors on an Advent calendar, 24 Christmassy items in the show!), with the aim of raising money for our next production in the new year...