Whose Voice is it Anyway?

In the last couple of weeks I have come across an interesting conundrum. Part of my novel is set in another era which suits my own voice. The remainder is set in the 1990's and told from the point of view of a character who is nothing like me. That's part of writing, I hear you cry; convincingly taking on various voices but always with your own style. The problem is I keep imaging an agent (I never dare to imagine getting as far as publisher) reading my MS and thinking badly of the vocabulary etc, i.e. that it is not very advanced. I am comforting myself with the fact that I have concentrated on getting the story down, focussing on pace and particularly dialogue and not on description. Hopefully I will feel better when I edit and can add to the latter.

Fire Station Bookswap

I had a great night out at the Fire Station Bookswap this week. It is a monthly event and was established a year ago by Scott Pack and Marie Phillips. The guests this month were Emma Darwin and Edward Vallance. The 'stage' is set up with a sofa and table complete with kettle and cake (the latter is passed around the audience during the evening). The audience put written questions in a pot at the start of the evening and these are used by Scott and Marie during their chats with the guests. Questions on subjects other than writing are encouraged which lends even more of a relaxed feel. Perodically, audience members are asked to pitch the books they have brought along and those who are interested try and pitch their book and get the swap. I was rather shy of using the mic so Scott kindly did it for me. I can now honestly say Scott Pack pitched my book (alright I'm strteching it a bit but hey). Anyway, back to writing my book; nearly at 20,000 words.

Positive Feedback

I had my tutorial yesterday and it went well. I honestly didn't know what to expect as the first 8,000 words that I submitted were two standalone chapters in the form of diary entries. I submitted a basic draft and then needed advice as to which areas needed emphasis. Only two elements need to be drawn out so that is good. In addition, my tutor was positive about the voice and the fact that although the draft sits on solid research it doesn't scream "I've researched this you know". I am glad that the first review is done and now feel a lot more confident.

The Gradual Slope

At the end of term, our course convenor warned us that life often throws things at us without warning so it was a good idea to get as much of our dissertations under our belts as soon as possible in case unforseen events took us off course. I paid attention and hoped that it wouldn't apply to me. Within a few weeks a close family member became ill and unfortunately died. Rather than put my work to one side I used it to get me through the five weeks, even to the point of writing the opening paragraph on the back of a letter from the dentist, whilst sitting in the hospital. It provided some structure at a time when all sense of time and place became distorted and also as a way of going to another place for a while. I have a real sense of achievement today as I have met all of my planned milestones and have completed over a quarter of my dissertation (only a first draft, however, so I may end up re-writing sections of it). I have my second tutorial on Wednesday when I will get feedback on the first 8,000 words. I'm a little apprehensive.

Project Management

I have been busy over the last couple of weeks setting up my dissertation. This includes a schedule (on a rather snazzy spreadsheet) which sets out the key milestones for the next five months. It's a good thing I did this as I thought it was a long period of time before I calculated how many words I need to write per week.
I have also amended my novel plan following feedback from a workshop and my first tutorial. I have two protagonists (one contemporary and one in the past) and the feedback I received was that the contemporary character was a 'frame' for the other rather than a key character in her own right. At first I didn't get it but that many people can't be wrong. Then I realised that although the contemporary character was alive and kicking in my mind, the reader did not get time to know her at the start of the novel before the inciting incident and therefore would not understand the impact on her. I was caught out by the belief that the novel should start 'in media res'. I have now added a couple of scenes to the opening which add a further thread to the plot, making the whole thing stonger (I think!).
I have also worked on character profiles - not everyone likes this much planning but it helps me to go between these and the plot before I start. Character profiles, by the way, are not about appearance or what they do for a living, rather they are about the character's key qualities and desires.
Finally, I have researched other novels that are similar in form, genre and subject matter and ordered them (I seriously need more bookshelves) as these will feature in the writer's journal that accompanies the novel.
And yes, I will now start writing...

Wonderful Feeling

I have that wonderful feeling of finishing a piece of coursework. The formatting and referencing is done (why does it always take longer than I think?) and I just have to print it off. I now have the outline of my second novel and just want to write it; I can see the characters, know how my protagonist feels and I'm ready to give them life. There is, however, the small matter of my first novel i.e. my dissertation.
I have my first dissertation tutorial on Tuesday and have five months to produce 40,000 words of the best writing I can. I'm feeling inspired this week as a former graduate of the course, Christy Lefteri, has just published her first novel.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Watermelon-Fish-Bible-Christy-Lefteri/dp/1849161275
A precedent has been set and I have no excuses.

Validation

I had my last lecture this week. We went through our novel outlines as a group with our tutors. I have to say that I was rather nervous as I have been researching it for so long and not shared it with anyone. It was very well received and I know what I need to work on. Writing a synopsis is very difficult but I did it in the first person which lent it vitality. All I have to do now is write the novel. I've been assigned a tutor to work with over the Summer and I will update my blog as I go.