We are thrilled to have Karen on The Write Place blog today. With her fourth novel, One Moment at Sunrise, just published Karen tells us how she joined The Write Place - and never looked back!
I can’t believe it’s now over four years since I began this
amazing treck - from joining this fabulous creative writing class to now
publishing my fourth novel! It’s been an exceptional time for me and
naturally,
I want to inspire others to perhaps follow in my footsteps and live their
dream.
This blog is about my aspirations and just how much The
Write Place has been part of my writing journey. It’s impossible to explain or
describe what it is that drives us writers, maybe one day I’ll carry out a
survey, or maybe you could comment and tell me your experience, but all I know
is, there has been a constant burning in my belly, and to one day have my novel
published, is a now reality. Although it began way back before I had a family,
it wasn’t until 2011 when I was regularly attending the hospital with my mum
during her chemo treatment when I took along my notebook and started to
structure the novel that had, for over ten years, been in my head. It was at
the end of the year when I made up my mind to work hard to complete it and to
join the Romantic Novelists’ Association’s New Writers Scheme. A scheme which,
if you were able to get on to it, you could have your novel critiqued. At
midnight on the 1st January 2012, I had my finger poised to send in
an email for a place. It worked and seven hours later, I got the reply. My
application was successful – all I had to do was complete the book.
That was the hard part. But, that day, I was reading my
Writer’s Monthly Magazine and read an article about a local creative writing
class, The Write Place which was based in Dartford in Kent, just ten miles from
where I live. Immediately, I rang Elaine Everest, who told me to come along
that evening, which I did. I was in a determined frame of mind and, two hours
after speaking to Elaine, I was among a warm friendly group of writers with
diverse levels of writing success and I was in awe. Some of those members, I
soon discovered, Elaine included, were also in the RNA New Writers Scheme and
the novel class worked perfectly because so many of us had novels in progress
and were working towards publication.
The lessons included themes like planning your novel, scenes,
writing your first chapters, forming your characters, researching your
background etc etc. I was in the perfect place. Everything I learned allowed me
to apply to my novel. A detailed outline was complete, my scenes and chapters
growing, the novel was really taking shape and so was my confidence. Even
reading out a few pages each month in front of the class was becoming the most
natural thing to do. I knew I wasn’t the best writer among the class, far from
it. I still had so much to learn, and I work to continue to improve my writing.
Joining the RNA as associates in the New Writers Scheme complimented this class
so beautifully and allowed myself and other class members to attend to RNA
events and meet professional writers, talk to them and ask questions as well as
go to their workshops or talks. It was the perfect preparation and I found the
writing community so supportive and friendly. So much so that
Elaine urged us to get our writing out there. It was scary because I didn’t
feel ready but, I as Elaine pointed out, writers are full of self-doubt and
will never feel the time is right. It was the push I needed. I returned to edit
my first three chapters and my synopsis so that I could send it off to competitions.
By the August when my manuscript was due at the RNA NWS, I was only two-thirds
of the way through, but Elaine urged me to send it for a partial critique,
which I did. Two months later I received a very thorough and positive report
from a professional writer. It wasn’t perfect, not at all. There were parts
which needed changing, grammar to be corrected, but on the whole, I had
something positive to work with. An important aspect to bear in mind as you
can’t edit blank pages. I made the necessary changes and submitted it to a New
Talent competition. I didn’t win that competition but had an invite to attend a
one-to-one with an editor. Of course, a wonderful opportunity, so I drove to
Bedford to the Festival of Romance and met the editor. She had read my entry
and told me that what I had written was good. I sat staring at her, speechless.
But, she was also very encouraging and invited me to send in the completed
manuscript. Two months after submitting that manuscript, I received an email
offering me a two-book digit-first deal. A year later, after both were
published, they asked for two more. My fourth novel is now out. I continue to
enjoy my classes and support from and to fellow writers. I hope you feel
inspired and I wish you every success in your writing journey.
Karen’s books published by CarinaUK/Harper Collins are
available on Amazon:
You can also follow Karen:
Thank you Karen and good luck as you work on that fifth novel and go on from strength to strength.
Interested in The Write Place: www.thewriteplace.org.uk
