7 October 2019 - What's new
7 October 2019
- ‘Before the actual placing of words on pages, The Testaments was written partly in the minds of the readers of its predecessor, The Handmaid's Tale, who kept asking what happened after the end of that novel. Thirty-five years is a long time to think about possible answers, and the answers have changed as society itself has changed and as possibilities have become actualities. Margaret Atwood, author of 17 novels, including The Handmaid's Tale and The Testaments, which is shortlisted for this year's Booker Prize, in the Sunday Times Culture. Our Comment.
- Our article on How to get your book translated into English (without it costing the earth) asks writers with a manuscript which needs translating or has been written in English by a non-native speaker: "if your English is good enough, what about translating your book yourself, or writing in English, and then getting your translation polished and copy edited by a professional editor who is a native English speaker?" This could be a cost-effective way of reaching the international English-speaking market.
- English Language Editing is a polishing service for writers who have translated their work into English or written it in English when it is not their native language. If you need to make sure it's good enough to publish, or send to a publisher, this service is for you. Acknowledging the growth of world English, English Language Editing is designed for the many non-native English speakers throughout the world who want to publish their work in English.
- There are two poetry competitions, two short story competitions and one wonderful competition for a debut novel still open on our Writing Opportunities page.
- Our links: as the publishing world grinds its way towards the Frankfurt Book FairWorld's largest trade fair for books; held annually mid-October at Frankfurt Trade Fair, Germany; First three days exclusively for trade visitors; general public can attend last two., An Unsolicited Manuscript Becomes a Hot Pre-Frankfurt Property; how one author drew on his own childhood experience in setting up a bookshop, Diary of a small town sensation: how the Wimpy Kid author built his dream bookshop | Books | The Guardian; how one author's 'wholly one-sided and indecorous obsession with another author' led her into looking at famous rivalries, Headbutts, snark and furious obsession: a toxic history of literary rivalries | Books | The Guardian; and an economical opportunity to have your work reviewed by a professional editor before you begin querying and submitting, Manuscript Evaluations: What They Are and What to Expect | Jane Friedman.
- Our Services for Writers - just a list of 20 services to help you get your work ready for publication.
- More links: where do prize-winning authors find their inspiration? How to write a Booker contender - by Margaret Atwood, Salman Rushdie and others | Books | The Guardian; for Martina Myers, a high school English teacher on the Navajo reservation in Arizona, a novel which seemed too good to be true, Do Works by Men Toppled by #MeToo Belong in the Classroom? - The New York Times; and a troubling plagiarism accusation when two authors have been mining the same historical events, Jojo Moyes Has Been Accused Of Publishing A Novel With "Alarming Similarities" To Another Author's Book.
- The Web as a Research tool - there are some sensational research resources for writers on the web. The search engines and other directories have made these accessible.
- In our Writers Quotes, the great northern Irish poet Ciaran Carson, who died this week: ‘If you know exactly what you are going to say in a poem, that poem will be a failure. Besides, there is no interest or fun, in saying what you already know.'
