This post was originally published at Novelicious.com and is now at WritingTipsOasis.com. WritingTipsOasis.com acquired Novelicious.com in June 2022.
You can listen to Anna’s podcasted novel over on her websitewww.annabellwrites.com and follow her on twitter @annabell_writes
Have you ever read a chick lit novel and rolled your eyes as the “ordinary” protagonist gets wined and dined in somewhere like the Ritz, or a gets invited into a private member's club where they have to have a special key to gain entrance? Well I have. On a number of occasions I have rolled my eyes and shouted, ‘as if’ across the page. Ordinary people do not get invited to these places unless they have a voucher from Red Letter Days. End of.
I’ve had to eat my hat, because in the past month I have had a champagne afternoon tea at Claridges and champagne and canapés in the private members club ‘The Club', at the Ivy’.
Don’t worry, you haven’t missed anything, I haven’t become an overnight publishing sensation, I’ve just been lucky enough to have been attending book launches. Not only have they been brilliant opportunities to get star struck and meet the authors Jane Fallon and Melissa Hill, but they’ve been brilliant from the perspective of being an aspiring author.
Both occasions served as an inspiration: This is what you can achieve if you’re a published author! Now I know that writing books and being published isn’t all cream teas and bubbles, but imagine, just imagine being at your own book launch! Think of it as the equivalent of a young athlete who runs for a school team getting to go to the Olympics to watch Usain Bolt run the 100 metres. I’m sure they’d go back to school training and running harder and faster than ever, wanting to be more like him. And for me, meeting Jane and Melissa was just like that. Talking to them about their writing habits and what it was like being a full time author made me want to be one even more.
It was especially inspirational to talk to Melissa about her writing journey as it gave me a little bit more hope. Prior to become a best selling author she wrote a novel in her spare time and kept it a secret. She sub’d her novel and got an agent and a publisher soon followed. Its a great story to hear as an aspiring author, that people are found off the slushpile and that you don’t necessarily have to be a ‘z’ list celebrity or have your best friends husband working in the industry to get an agent.
The launches have also given me an insight into how the publishing industry works. I’m used to being sent a book to review from the PR department of publisher, right at the very end of when a book is published. So it was interesting to see how that slotted together with the author and the editorial department and how they worked.
Since going to these fabulous places I’ve really knuckled down at my writing. I feel like its given me a little boost to keep on going. And just think, one day I could be sat on the other side of that table at Claridges, with bespoke cakes that the chef made that tie in with my book, and with me giving hope to an aspiring author… And its those thoughts keep in my mind every time I get distracted by twitter or online shopping, beacuse without actually finishing and subbing a book then I’m never going to be on that side of the table!