I wasn’t sure where to post this – it’s a bit of a howl of anguish, but here goes.

Do you ever find yourself reading commercially published novels and thinking: that’s it, I’m going to give up – not because they are so brilliant that you are immediately overcome with incurable imposter syndrome, but because they break so many of the rules and…

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When using Agent Match, one annoying (and time wasting) feature is that, having created my list of agents to view using the filters, each time I finish looking at an individual’s profile and click to return to the list, it takes me to the top of the first page once again, rather than to the page I was on. Is there a way of avoiding this?

Also, as…

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Yes, I know there isn’t a definitive answer but I’d be interested in fellow writers’ views.

One bit of feedback from an agent 1-2-1 at the Festival last weekend was that my chapters were ‘too short’. I was surprised at this; the chapters in the extract I had provided were in the 1800-2000 word region.

I’ve never consciously written to a specific…

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Hi Giles

It was great to meet you and I’m sorry we didn’t get more time to chat. Were you there yesterday? I looked around for you but with no success.

Oh no, we all have to be on different wavelengths. Then, when we come together, we collectively achieve perfect harmonies.

I wouldn’t worry. It’s also the Pride parade in central London on Saturday so people will be on their way home from that. You’ll probably feel underdressed in comparison 😀

It’s my first time too but I attended a similarly-formatted weekend organised by another organisation last year and came away both exhausted and energised.

From my experience, it’s wonderful to meet so many other writers, even if only for brief chats in the coffee queue, and to realise that we are such a diverse bunch with so much in common.…

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Thanks for posting this, Laure. It’s a thorny topic that has particular resonance for me. The first draft of my first completed (general/literary) novel clocked in at just under 250,000 words. It was a multi-generational saga with chapters set in the 1940s, 1970s and present day rotating and, finally, all coming together at the end as the thread…

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Anthony Powell’s Dance To The Music of Time portrays the higher echelons (as they would see themselves) of English society from the 1920s through to the 1970s across 12 books. Very easy reading – each book is about 70-80k words, I imagine – and the way in which he weaves the characters in and out of the narrative is masterful.

Sounds good – and I’m sure there will be others to join us. I’ll be in the ‘Working with small publishers’ session before lunch.

I think I still can claim a reasonable resemblance to my profile photo – maybe the hair is a little thinner and the world-weariness etched a few millimetres deeper.

It’s abut a mile from London Bridge station to the hotel. If anyone isn’t sure of their way around the City and would like me to show them the way on Saturday or Sunday morning, please raise your hand.

I intend to arrive at LB at about 08.35 on Saturday and 08.30 on Sunday.

Hi Giles

I’ll be free 15.15 to 16.00 on the Saturday, as well as over the lunch break (12-15-14.00).

How about you, Karen?

Rob

First time for me too and I’m also registered for the mixer this evening. I’m intrigued at the reference to ‘getting to know some faces’ – are we all on camera this evening? If so, I might have to have a shave beforehand or I’ll put you all off!

I don’t think there is a right or wrong way to do this other than:

1 – Definitely personalise it. Mention succinctly why you opted for that agent in particular.

2 – Be clear about what you are hoping for from the meeting – are you actively seeking representation from that agent or merely looking for advice?

3 – If advice, be as specific as possible -…

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Thank goodness there weren’t two more or all of the apocalyptic horror writers would be clambering over each other to claim the incident for their own stories.

(PS – I read that the horses were injured but expected to recover and be ‘retired’. The person who seems to have come off worse is the cyclist who couldn’t get out of the way quick enough.…

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Hi Karen

I’d suggest taking no notice of what any online tools tell you, especially as many seem to use American English, which, in my view, is not English 🙂

It’s not a failsafe option but I like to read my work aloud and, where a sentence has a pair of commas, see if a sentence still makes sense when the words that are bounded by the commas are…

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That’s useful advice, Katie. Thank you. I think I will keep the prologue – if only because many of the key events in the story take place during the Tour de France and that race almost always begins with a short prologue stage. I suppose that does mean that I should consider retitling my epilogue ‘the winners’ presentation’, though!

Putting together the package for my two agent one-to-ones, I find myself with a conundrum: should I include the prologue in my 5000 words or begin with chapter one?

Read in the context of the completed novel, the prologue is important. It introduces one of the two protagonists (it’s a dual timeline novel) and reveals a crucial piece of information,…

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I imagine it depends on what you hope to get out of your meeting. If you are specifically looking to be signed, then I’d say you definitely have to have a manuscript that you have polished so much that you can see your reflection in it (in the knowledge, of course, that the agent will then tell you all the things that you need to change before it…

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Great. Look forward to sharing a coffee – or something stronger.

I’d also suggest asking to see an example of the editor’s work for someone else before making any commitment. At a book launch a while back, I met someone who described herself as an editor and was quite forceful in trying to persuade me to commission her. I noticed that she had self-published a couple of novels herself and ordered one. It was…

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I’ve taken the plunge and signed up for both days and am looking forward enormously to meeting some fellow members and coming away from two days of stimulation with my head bursting with ideas and my notebook packed with amazing insights which, with my handwriting, will make no sense at all a week later.

And, even better, no hotel to pay for as I…

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In answer to the main question, I’d say it’s useful to have a web site if you have other work to display and if you want to extend your biographical information beyond the few lines that you’d typically include in a query letter.

I use mine – http://www.robmcivor.com – to republish short stories that I have had published elsewhere, including some…

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I’m not sure if this belongs here or on another board but, for anyone who didn’t join it on Monday evening, I can heartily recommend Sophie’s workshop on writing a synopsis. I’ve always struggled with this but, applying the techniques and format she recommended, I was able to put together a reasonably decent 300-worder for one novel and managed to…

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IMO, you should take every opportunity to get your work and name out there. I was very fortunate in that my godson is interested in all things digital and so built me a website – Rob McIvor – Author – on which to republish some of my published short stories and a few non-fiction blogs. I had intended to add new stories regularly (I have a fair…

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