The festivals of Edinburgh are gearing up and the city is starting to bloat with visitors and tourists, mingling with acrobats, actors, comedians, writers and a plethora of other arty-farty types. I have my tickets ready and will report back over the coming weeks on my highs and lows of the festival.
Publishing is in a state of meltdown. Tech is changing the industry faster the it is able to keep up. This is probably the worst time ever for a new writer (such as myself) to try and make it with a big publisher (I'm trying, really I am). The publishers are unwilling to enter into lengthy expensive contracts with unproven talent and yet a new model for ebooks has not yet arrived. Publishers are trying to keep up with the demand of readers wanting works quicker and in different formats, but so far they seem to be at loggerheads. So bad has it got that some writers are quitting, which is a real shame. This week M. D. Lachlan (Mark Barrowcliffe) wrote a polite opposite view over at The Speculative Scotsman. I have to say, I agree for the most part with him. I'm a quick writer and I thrive on deadlines. If the last year has taught me anything, it's that I have both the ability and stamina to write and to move my projects along. I just haven't got a publisher (yet) willing to take that chance on me.
The views above were then amplified by both the Guardian and the Independent. Their respective websites carried articles about an established authors inability to sell ebooks (but get free advertising) due to the sheer amount of work being produced and the death throws of the printed medium.
Over at the blog Dee Scribe, there is helpful advice for writers maintaining some kind of network. This is something I plan to concentrate on over the next year. I need to get the writer "Adam J. Shardlow" better known and during the festival is probably the best time to do this. I just need to be a little more assertive at meeting people.
As part of my task of meeting other writers in Edinburgh I plan to visit the Inky Fingers Minifest at some point over the weekend. They are completely free events, so if you get the chance, pop down.
I've been using Twitter for several years now and I didn't realise how many #hashtags for writing there now were. I really should learn some and make use of them. PublishingTalk has a handy list.
Some very lucky students at Napier University get to be taught by a real Doctor Who writer. Wish I could gate crash and meet Robert Shearman. I'll just have to be content with the second half of the new series.
Not writing related, but I wonder if my brother DC Benny has seen the Dark Spartan in action. I believe the real life (and maybe suicidal) superhero prowls his patch.
Publishing is in a state of meltdown. Tech is changing the industry faster the it is able to keep up. This is probably the worst time ever for a new writer (such as myself) to try and make it with a big publisher (I'm trying, really I am). The publishers are unwilling to enter into lengthy expensive contracts with unproven talent and yet a new model for ebooks has not yet arrived. Publishers are trying to keep up with the demand of readers wanting works quicker and in different formats, but so far they seem to be at loggerheads. So bad has it got that some writers are quitting, which is a real shame. This week M. D. Lachlan (Mark Barrowcliffe) wrote a polite opposite view over at The Speculative Scotsman. I have to say, I agree for the most part with him. I'm a quick writer and I thrive on deadlines. If the last year has taught me anything, it's that I have both the ability and stamina to write and to move my projects along. I just haven't got a publisher (yet) willing to take that chance on me.
The views above were then amplified by both the Guardian and the Independent. Their respective websites carried articles about an established authors inability to sell ebooks (but get free advertising) due to the sheer amount of work being produced and the death throws of the printed medium.
Over at the blog Dee Scribe, there is helpful advice for writers maintaining some kind of network. This is something I plan to concentrate on over the next year. I need to get the writer "Adam J. Shardlow" better known and during the festival is probably the best time to do this. I just need to be a little more assertive at meeting people.
As part of my task of meeting other writers in Edinburgh I plan to visit the Inky Fingers Minifest at some point over the weekend. They are completely free events, so if you get the chance, pop down.
I've been using Twitter for several years now and I didn't realise how many #hashtags for writing there now were. I really should learn some and make use of them. PublishingTalk has a handy list.
Some very lucky students at Napier University get to be taught by a real Doctor Who writer. Wish I could gate crash and meet Robert Shearman. I'll just have to be content with the second half of the new series.
Not writing related, but I wonder if my brother DC Benny has seen the Dark Spartan in action. I believe the real life (and maybe suicidal) superhero prowls his patch.
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