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Insider tip
Trying to create a comedy game through dialogue or regular one-liners when the gameplay takes itself too seriously is likely to give the player the feeling of a game at odds with itself. Writing for Video Games by Steve Ince-
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Do you read or write blogs?
Of course you do! Well, you must at least read them, because you’re here, right now, reading… The reason I ask is that I’m supervising Tina, a postgrad at Kingston University, and she’s keen to ask you about a few things. I very much hope you can help!
Now… I’ll hand you over to Tina:
“My name is Tina Mories and I am currently studying for an MA in Publishing. I am in the midst of researching my dissertation which is about blogs and the people who read them. I want to find out – with your help – more about Read more
This morning I am writing like…
… Isaac Asimov. How do I know this? Because I’ve just been dabbling on the new ‘I Write Like’ website that has been taking the internet by storm.
If you visit I Write Like you can find out which famous writer your writing most closely resembles. All you need to do is copy and paste a few paragraphs of your writing, hit the ‘analyse’ button, and hey presto! The Read more
The open-minded agent
There’s an agent-author conversation which crops up in a variety of ways all around the web and it goes a bit like this:
Hotshot literary agent: “If you don’t get my name right, make spelling mistakes and fail to follow the submission guidelines on my website, I won’t look at your work. I’m not interested. You’re wasting my time.”
Brilliant new writer: “Agents are totally stuck-up. They’re fixated on Read more
Writers’ & Artists’ conference
I just wanted to say a quick thank you to everyone who attended our ‘How to Get Published’ conference yesterday. It was a terrific day with lots of engaging chat and some excellent questions.
I was part of the team of organisers but happily I still managed to listen in to many of our guest speakers.
Literary agent Carole Blake spent a moment despairing at the name ’slush pile’, preferring to call it Read more
Quick thoughts on age and prizes
Today I am speed blogging, which means no lengthy comment from me but just two things that have grabbed my attention today.
First off, praise from Richard and Judy or winning the Nobel Prize – which is the bigger honour? Before you say the Nobel, let me say this, a new survey has revealed that more people have heard of the Richard & Judy Book Club (despite it now being defunct) than the Nobel Prize for Literature. If your aim is to Read more
500:1 against getting an agent?
I was reading an interview with a literary agent over on Galley Cat and among her answers, one thing stood out. The agent, an independent who is just broadening her client list to take on young adult fiction, mentioned the number of manuscripts she reviews.
Quite often you’ll hear a literary agent saying they are swamped by manuscripts or drowning under their slush pile, but it’s not often they attempt to put a number on what they actually look through.
Are they really Read more
Be a literary agent for a day
Filed under: Competitions and Offers, Literary Agents
News just in, the US literary agent Nathan Bransford has announced his second ‘Be a Literary Agent for a Day’. The first one made for entertaining reading, so I’ve high hopes for this new experiment.
This is what he’s testing:
“…whether or not queries adequately reflect an underlying work’s quality. Can someone really Read more
London Book Fair: 10 pointers for writers
I was at the LBF yesterday to do some filming (which will be up on this site as soon as we’ve done an edit) and there again today on the offchance I could squeeze my way into a seminar where pre-booking was ‘essential’.
These are ten things I picked up, which are worth knowing, either for use and reference right now, or to decide whether you want to attend next time round.
1. “Everyone thinks they can write a children’s book”, according to Jayne at A&C Black. But then everyone at some point wanted to be an astronaut/train driver/Olympic athlete (delete as applicable). Writing a children’s book is harder than you think, and reading age is tricky to get right.
2. Authors who approach a stand and say “I know the editor-in-chief for Read more
‘Me and My Web Shadow’ giveaway
Filed under: Competitions and Offers
Win a copy of Me and My Web Shadow!
Have you noticed that when you leave a comment on this blog, and others like it, you can add an avatar to it?
What is an avatar, you may have wondered? It’s really simple. An avatar is a representation of you in a digital space. You’d normally choose a Read more
What it means to be an agent
According to a new Twitter thread, this is what being a literary agent means:
- “Reading books with covers is a luxury to be savoured” (KatApel)
- “Getting early rave reviews from your students for one of your clients’ books” (SMozer)
- “Sometimes having too Read more
Buy the 2011 Yearbook
The Writers' & Artists' Yearbook is available at a discount from our online bookshop. Get all the information, contacts and advice you could need.On camera: Jon McGregor
"Being longlisted for the Booker Prize changed everything - it was the launchpad for my writing career." Click to view our video with novelist Jon McGregor »
On camera: Justin Cartwright
"Just write... If you're any good you may not know it, but certainly someone else will." Click to view our video with novelist Justin Cartwright »
On camera: Julie Myerson
The novelist and journalist Julie Myerson on how she got that all-important first publishing deal. Click here to view our video exclusive »