How to survive London Book Fair!

It’s that time of year again! With London Book Fair kicking off tomorrow, here’s my round-up of advice to help you survive one of the busiest weeks in the publishing calendar…

London Book Fair @ the Olympia in Kensington

1) Wear comfy shoes
This may sound pretty basic, but trust me, you’ll be grateful for this tip after spending hours walking for miles around all the exhibitors’ stands across the three vast floors of the Olympia.

2) Plan plan plan
Did I mention plan? With such a hectic programme of events, it’s definitely worth having in mind what your must-sees are before turning up. But above all, plan to leave some time when you have nothing planned! That way you can be a bit spontaneous if someone recommends an unmissable thing to do at the last-minute.

3) Download the LBF app
The app was worth downloading last year, as I could save my fave talks into an online diary, and use it to schedule meetings with other delegates too. Just don’t forget to print a map off as well, in case wi-fi decides to play up!

4) Pack a bottle of water (or two) and lunch
Last year, I found myself with about ten minutes to get from a translation panel event to a literary festival talk three floors above. Luckily, on the advice of an LBF veteran, I’d popped a pre-made bagel in my handbag, to avoid missing the event while queuing for food and beverages. Also, it’s surprisingly thirsty work strolling around stalls and chatting to a bunch of literary types…

5) Bring a phone charger
Ok, this might be stating the obvious, but I saw more than a couple of distressed publishing types desperately trying to make calls on a drained battery. If you’re fortunate enough to see a spare socket (I found a couple of quiet ones on level 3), then pounce on it and make the most.

6) Don’t miss the Author HQ
Authors are at the heart of the publishing industry, so it’s no surprise that LBF has a range of must-see talks, seminars and events aimed at writers in the Author HQ.

7) Avoid the lifts
It can be tempting to take the lifts after a knackering day on your feet, but it’s not the wait as hundreds of people try to use them daily (whilst they argue with the lift operator about whether it should go up or down). Just put your best foot forward and take the stairs.

8) Get tweeting
Who knows what bigwig from the literary world could end up retweeting or favouriting one of your pics? Plus you’ll get a bunch more followers if you keep up with the goings on using the LBF hashtag (#LBF17, if you’re wondering). It’s a good way to remember what you got up to and who you connected when you look back in a few months time too. Make the most of online and face to face networking.

9) Remember business cards
This might seem a bit formal, but do you really want to scrawl your name illegibly on a torn notebook page when you’ve finally got a moment with that sought-after agent/ publisher/ author (delete as appropriate)? Didn’t think so.

10) Embrace getting lost
Let’s face it, in a venue the size of the Olympia, it’s impossible not to. You might get pointed in the wrong direction a few times too. Use it as an excuse to see who (or what) you might stumble upon on your travels.

11) Don’t mistake it for a careers fair
This isn’t the  place to be waving CVs under harangued publicist’s noses, or dumping a manuscript in front of an agent in the middle of an important rights meetings. They’re here to do business, not get you a job or book deal! By all means network, drop people a tweet, and follows things up with emails where appropriate. But try not to be pushy to the point it’s just annoying, and pick your moment for those job  approaches…

12) Have fun!
Some people will inevitably be sweating over make or break book deals. But it’s worth remembering this is also a great day out surrounded by like-minded people who are passionate about publishing too. So however busy you are, take a moment to enjoy it.

Hope you liked these tips, as inspired by previous LBF experiences. Feel free to share some of your own suggestions in the comments below!

Your 5 Minute Guide to the Bookseller’s Marketing & Publicity Conference

There’s one thing all comms people have in common. Whether you work at a tiny indie or a publisher the size of a small town, we’re all workload rich and time poor. So here’s my brave (or is that foolish?) attempt to sum up key takeways from the Bookseller’s recent conference in 5 minutes…

 

• Growing a Reading Community: Five Lessons from Five Years of Emerald Street

With literary editors becoming a rare breed, digital is your new best friend for coverage that matters. Cue a talk from Emerald Street, whose emails go out to 150k contacts,  and do twice weekly “Reading Rooms”. Remember: we’re viewers first then readers of their visually gorgeous content – they aim to be the still point in your inbox.

• Totes Amazing: What Really Works in Trade Marketing

Profile Books Publisher Jason Spackman revealed the secrets to the perfect proof copy: Personal, relevant, high quality, original. I loved the idea of a WWII themed book sent out in an evacuee’s suitcase with ration books and 1940s themed goodies! Now I just need the budget…

• Reasons to Stay Alive: Putting the Author at the Heart of the Campaign

The brilliant team at Canongate talked about putting an author at the heart of a campaign to produce a bestseller, with Matt Haig’s Reasons to Stay Alive as their case study. Don’t just take it from me, here’s their 12-month campaign plan summed up a one handy slide!

• How Sticking to What We Know Won’t Help us Grow

Keynote speaker Sara Lloyd of Pan Macmillan stressed the importance of innovation and challenging convention. Suggestions included looking at teenagers’ phones to see what their top 5 most used apps are, and taking inspiration from this. Her colleague Emma Bravo also delved into new ideas for building successful media partnerships. A key question to ask is: what does success look like for both of you?

• Prepping for Debut Success in The Trouble with Sheep and Goats

Want to make a good impression on retailers and get those orders in? The Harper Collins team behind this bestseller said the recommended approach was the more personal, informal touch of taking an author to key Waterstones shops in person, introducing them to the team over a cup of tea, and giving out sleek book proofs by hand. Oh, and 2,000 proofs doesn’t hurt!

• Is Our Business Like Show Business?

In a talk about what we should (and shouldn’t) learn from other industries, the question was asked: should we be focusing more on promoting reading as a behaviour than marketing individual books?

• Send Better Email

One of Zainab Juma’s from PRH’s top tips for sending better email was to imagine you’re a considerate guest at a dinner party: don’t impose or turn up with leftovers. Who only wants to be told about books on sale for 99p? Or be emailed three times in one evening? Also, the key to using data effectively is to target behaviours not just demographics.

• Handselling Your Way to the Bestseller Charts

Amazon bestselling author Mark Dawson talked all things Facebook advertising. If you’re not already in the know with pixel installation, creating lookalike audiences, and how to set up successful social media book clubs, then start liking his Self-Publishing Formula Facebook page now.

That’s (nearly!) all folks. For those of you who happen to have a whole precious hour to spare, here’s a link where you can check out all the presentation slides from the day for FREE. Don’t say I don’t spoil you!

Happy reading, marketeers…

How to prepare for London Book Fair!

The countdown to one of the biggest publishing events in the global calendar begins. With just 7 days to go until London Book Fair 2016 kicks off, here’s my round-up of advice for authors and publishing bods alike, not only about how to survive the fair but how to enjoy it too!

1) Wear comfy shoes
This may sound pretty basic, but trust me, you’ll be grateful for this tip after spending hours walking for miles around all the exhibitors’ stands across the three vast floors of the Olympia.

2) Plan plan plan
Did I mention plan? With such a hectic programme of events, it’s definitely worth having in mind what your must-sees are before turning up. But above all, plan to leave some time when you have nothing planned! That way you can be a bit spontaneous if someone recommends an unmissable thing to do at the last-minute.

3) Download the LBF app
The app was worth downloading last year, as I could save my fave talks into an online diary, and use it to schedule meetings with other delegates too. Just don’t forget to print a map off as well, in case wi-fi decides to play up!

4) Pack a bottle of water (or two) and lunch
In 2015, I found myself with about ten minutes to get from a translation panel event to a literary festival talk three floors above. Luckily, on the advice of an LBF veteran, I’d popped a pre-made bagel in my handbag, to avoid missing the event while queuing for food and beverages. Also, it’s surprisingly thirsty work strolling around stalls and chatting to a bunch of literary types…

5) Bring a phone charger
Ok, this might be stating the obvious, but I saw more than a couple of distressed publishing types desperately trying to make calls on a drained battery. If you’re fortunate enough to see a spare socket (I found a couple of quiet ones on level 3), then pounce on it and make the most.

6) Don’t miss the Author HQ
Authors are at the heart of the publishing industry, so it’s no surprise that LBF has a range of must-see talks, seminars and events aimed at writers in the Author HQ. This includes a traditional vs self-publishing discussion on Tuesday 12th April at 12.45pm, featuring the Director of my company Accent Press, and our author Jodi Taylor (*plug*). Get a break from those exhibition stands and come and check it out!

7) Avoid the lifts
It can be tempting to take the lifts after a knackering day on your feet, but it’s not the wait as hundreds of people try to use them daily (whilst they argue with the lift operator about whether it should go up or down). Just put your best foot forward and take the stairs.

8) Get tweeting
Who knows what bigwig from the literary world could end up retweeting or favouriting one of your pics? Plus you’ll get a bunch more followers if you keep up with the goings on using the LBF hashtag (#LBF16, if you’re wondering). It’s a good way to remember what you got up to and who you connected when you look back in a few months time too. Make the most of online and face to face networking.

9) Remember business cards
This might seem a bit formal, but do you really want to scrawl your name illegibly on a torn notebook page when you’ve finally got a moment with that sought-after agent/ publisher/ author (delete as appropriate)? Didn’t think so.

10) Embrace getting lost
Let’s face it, in a venue the size of the Olympia, it’s impossible not to. You might get pointed in the wrong direction a few times too. Use it as an excuse to see who (or what) you might stumble upon on your travels.

11) Don’t mistake it for a careers fair
This isn’t the time or place to be waving CVs under harangued publicist’s noses, or dumping a manuscript in front of an agent in the middle of an important rights meetings. They’re here to do business, not get you a job or book deal! By all means network, drop people a tweet, and follows things up with emails where appropriate. But try not to be pushy to the point it’s just annoying.

12) Have fun!
Some people will inevitably be sweating over make or break book deals. But it’s worth remembering this is also a great day out surrounded by like-minded people who are passionate about publishing too. So however busy you are, take a moment to enjoy it. Who didn’t love the giant sofas the size of a truck and tequila bars last year? Thought not.

Hope you liked these tips, as inspired by my experiences last year. Feel free to share some of your own suggestions in the comments below!

Top 10 Things I Learnt ‘Speed-Dating’ with Literary Agents!

I was lucky to recently bag myself a much sought-after ticket to Discovery Day 2016 at Foyles in London. This fantastic free event for aspiring novelists was run in association with award-winning literary agents Curtis Brown and Conville & Walsh – a day of ‘speed-dating’ style pitching sessions, Q&As and publishing industry insight. Worry not if you missed out on a place – I’ve rounded-up my list of the top things I learnt there!

1. The key ingredients for a cover letter are a pitch for the book, a sense of the story and a bit of information about the author. Be sure to cover the genre, main characters, and what the key conflict at the heart of the story is. Writers approaching Curtis Brown Agency should submit the first fifty pages, plus a synopsis of the novel (remember this isn’t the blurb from the back of a book – spoilers are welcome!).
2. Don’t rush sending a manuscript out to agents if you’re worried your idea will stop being relevant or current soon. They’re much more interested in the quality of your work than how topical something is – and with two agents alone receiving 120 submissions between them a week, you can’t risk sending anything until it’s the best you can possibly make it.
3. Be patient – a novel is a marathon not a sprint. During a panel event with Emma Healey (author of million-selling Elizabeth is Missing), she said the book had taken around five years to write. The agent will then expect some re-drafts, and once the publisher gets hold it so will they!
4. Emma also advised authors to ask why you, why this subject, and why this moment, when working on your novel. It’s not always about writing what you know, it’s about writing what interests you.
5. The key things agents look for in a novel are a compelling story, strong voice and characters, gripping narrative, heart and emotional engagement. They need to care for the characters. A sense of surprise or a fresh twist on a genre can help too. Ask if your book achieves these before submitting.
6. A lot of people at the Discovery Day were retired and looking to start writing in older age. Several aspiring authors asked if this was an issue, but the agents all agreed age doesn’t matter, it’s about the book itself.
7. Writing workshops and courses were a big discussion point of the day. Many bestselling writers who secure agents have attended these, but a weekend retreat or online learning can still be helpful if you can’t afford to do an MA or six month novel writing course.
8. Become a pitching pro. At every stage of the novel’s journey to publication, it will be pitched. An author will pitch to an agent, an agent to an editor, and that editor to their wider team and sales reps. What’s the idea at the heart of your novel, and can this be summed up succinctly and with passion? For Elizabeth is Missing, the line “how do you solve a crime if you can’t remember the clues” made it all the way into the cover of the book. Check out my blog post about pitching tips here.
9. Read as much as you can, this is some of the best training possible for writers. One agent suggested taking your favourite books and asking how does it work, how is it structured, and why do you care about the characters?
10. Last but not least, my moment in the spotlight (when agent Alexander read through my opening page) taught me not to give away too much too soon – drip feed some details to readers and add a sense of mystery.

Bought these beauties from Foyles on Discovery Day! #BookSwag

Good luck with your own novels, everyone! Let me know how you’re getting on…

 

A Glitzy Night at the LBF Trailblazer Awards!

I was thrilled to make the shortlist for the recent London Book Fair & Society of Young Publishers Trailblazer Awards, in my role as Marketing Manager at Accent Press! The award celebrates the bright young things working in publishing who are roaring through their twenties and helping to shape the future of the industry.

An invitation to a glitzy ceremony in London’s Covent Garden Hotel on 16^th February followed, so I got my glad rags out and kept my fingers crossed…

The awards evening began with a packed-out drinks reception and much mingling (fellow guests seemed impressed I’d travelled from Cardiff, as the furthest most people seemed to have trekked was from South London!).

Everyone took their seats ready for a video about the awards, and then each judge gave a quick introduction to shortlisted candidates. There was a fantastic array of upcoming luminaries in the book world, from young people who’d set up their own publishing companies, to a magazine CEO, and many more! I was delighted to find myself in such good company, with so many incredibly talented people making their mark on the UK publishing industry.

Soon the 2016 winners were announced: Harper Collins Assistant Editor Clio Cornish; DKW Lit Agency founders Ella Kahn and Bryony Woods; Gojimo entrepreneur George Burgess; and KRP Books Head of Digital Nick Coveney. Congratulations all!

I’m already looking forward to seeing what next year will bring for the current cohort of Trailblazers…

Life’s a Pitch – How to Sell a Novel in 30 Seconds

By day I’m a Marketing Manager for a publisher, writing blurbs and catchy sales copy for other authors. In my spare time, I’m writing my own novel – and starting to discover how much harder it can be to neatly package and sum up your work!

I have a place at this month’s Discovery Day at Foyle’s, where leading literary agents are offering support to aspiring authors on pitches and extracts. But what details should I include, and what do I leave out – and is it even possible to sum up a historical fantasy that spans continents with a huge cast of characters and multiple plot twists in 30 seconds? In short, yes. Here’s a summary of agency Curtis Brown’s must-read pitching advice for what Discovery Day participants could cover. Hopefully you guys will find it handy too:

• Introduce yourself. Tell us briefly who you are. 
• Talk about what is at the heart of your novel. If there’s a strong original idea, tell it to us.
• Tell us the title if you have one.
• Think about genre.
• If you can liken your novel to a successful published work or say that you are aiming to write like a particular author, do so.
• Tell us the story! We’d like to know what happens. You’re delivering a lively snapshot.
• Who are your characters? Who are the people you’re writing about?
• If you’re really stuck with working out your pitch, you might like to practise pitching a novel that you love.

So, now it’s time for me to bite the bullet! Here’s my attempt at a 30 second pitch. Feel free to let me know what you think works about this (and what doesn’t!). Does this sound like a novel you’d want to read?

NOVEL PITCH – A DRAGON AMONGST MEN

I’m an award-winning writer and a marketing manager in publishing.

A Dragon Amongst Men is historical fantasy fiction, inspired by The Night Circus and Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell.

The British and Chinese Empires hunt escaped magician Angharad Anderson, who holds the power to win the Opium Wars. But aspiring journalist Emma Delaney joins with infamous pirate Madam Cheng to find the magician in London, and they discover a plot to overthrow a nation. 

This opening novel in an adventure series is about strong women in a man’s world. It combines my passions for Chinese culture and the Victorian era. 

The 5 Day Short Story @ Faber Academy

I’ve just returned from an inspiring stint at Faber Academy’s “The Five Day Short Story” course. Here’s my low-down on highlights and things I learnt from the week:

Day One

After a near-hiccup trying to find the Faber Academy (the building was camouflaged behind scaffolding!), myself and the thirteen other lovely participants arrived and got stuck into introductions.

We kicked off the course, led by tutor Shelley Weiner, by discussing what actually makes a short story. Ideas ranged from length, to plot, pace, theme, characters, and epiphany moments. One of my favourite quotes from course was “a story begins with a recognition of the strange” (Graham Swift, I believe), and a sense of what if…

Each day focused on a particular short story, the first being ‘The Book of Ruth’ from the Bible. We looked at how a writer can effectively cover an extensive time-span in a short number of words, and how to approach writing compelling beginnings. We then undertook a character-themed writing exercise, choosing a photograph and imagining who that person was, what they wanted in life, and what their obstacles were. I decided that my picture of an elderly lady in a fur coat would be a hard-working Russian called Miriam Ivanovna!

The Faber Academy group getting creative!

Day Two

The second day of the course focused on Chekhov’s exquisite story, ‘The Lady with the Dog’. This tale of a man incapable of settling down, who (seemingly) finds love with a woman for the first time was my favourite piece of the week.  It opens in the Russian seaside resort of Yalta, and we observed the importance of setting and a sense of place to a story. I particularly love Chekov’s advice about description: “Don’t tell me the moon is shining, show me the glint of light on broken glass.”

We also talked about how Chekhov’s writing follows the pattern of real life – meandering, aimless, and not always neatly tied up at the end. The discussion led onto point of view, and who tells the story. Our task for the day was to re-write it as Anna in first person – I attempted to make the lady with the dog a more empowered and active character, who is secretly leading the man Gurov along.

By this point I had also begun writing my own short story, with just two days to go until the deadline for the anthology at the end of the week! Afternoon sessions became a chance for others to share their varied short stories for feedback from the rest of the group.

Day Three

On Wednesday, the group dissected Hemmingway’s masterful short story, ‘The Killers’. This tale of two hitmen walking into a diner left several people cold, but if offered a perfect lesson in writing killer dialogue, the theme of the day.

Author Elizabeth Bowen wrote that dialogue is “the most vigorous interaction.” We bounced ideas off each other about the purpose of dialogue, from revealing more about characters and their relationships, to conveying a sense of time and place. One of the top tips that I got from this session is that it’s fine to use the speech marker “said”. I used to try and find more creative way to express this in my short stories, such as “she mumbled”. But as evidenced by ‘The Killers’, which uses “said” over 100 times, it works well as an invisible word, allowing readers to make up their own my about how characters say something.

Afterwards, we split into groups to get stuck into a practical exercise on writing dialogue. The prompt was: imagine three people at a bus stop— then someone asks for money for the fare home. It was amazing how many different scenarios that came out of this.

Day Four

Today’s sessions were all about crime writing, with reference to the intricate short story ‘Death and the Compass’ by Jorge Louis Borges. I found it somewhat contrived and pretentious (perhaps this was a translation issue?), but I can appreciate that the plot is supposed to be as labyrinth-like as the crimes and motivates within the story.

The group mapped out the conventional structure of a typical detective story, and how it’s as much about the detective themselves as the crime being solved. We then undertook a surreal task, where we were given absurd crimes, and had to invent suspects, motives and the “ah-ha” moment when the detective solves it. Let’s just say my group’s involved a man in a bath, a breast pump, and a dummy….!

Thursday also saw the moment I received feedback on the first draft of my short story, ‘Diminishing Returns’. It follows an elderly widower struggling to come to terms with his wife passing away from cancer. Strange occurrences begin to happen around the house, and he starts to question whether they’re down to his memory problems, or if his wife really is communicating with him from beyond. I was really pleased by the positive response it got from the group, and also the constructive feedback about cutting one of the extra characters out to make the story tighter.

 

Day Five

The final day of the course came around far too quickly. Before we knew it, the group was chatting together about Nobel Prize-winning author Alice Monroe’s ‘The Beggar Maid, as if we’d known each other for months. It was incredible how well Monroe seemed to understand her characters, and they felt like real people when she got inside their heads and walked them around the pages.

Tutor Shelley then led us into a discussion about beginnings and endings. We looked at what makes the opening and closing sections of the stories we’d read that week effective. Some key thoughts on how to make an ending stick in someone’s mind included; give a sense of life continuing afterwards; leave moralising to fairy tales; think of the structure in advance and don’t rush towards your destination.

We rounded off the afternoon with a session bouncing ideas around about how we could all motivate ourselves and keep up the momentum with our writing. I suggested (rather geekily!) that I’d set up a spreadsheet of publications and submissions to keep track, and also that I’d write a letter to myself outlining my goals, and ask a friend to post it back to me in six months.

*****

The Faber Academy anthology!

At that, it was time for a meal at the pub, and the presentation of anthologies (after some technical difficulties at Faber—something to do with printer and stapler issues!). As we tucked into our grub and caught up about the week, we realised how much food for thought the course had left us with. I can’t wait to keep in touch with the group, and see where the Faber Academy leads us all!

With thanks to New Writing South’s New Buds Award for supporting me to attend this course.

Top 10 Things I Learnt at the London Short Story Festival

The London Short Story Festival returned from 18-21 June, bigger and better than ever!

I had an incredible time at the inaugural LSSF in 2014, so I was quick on my keyboard when the team did a call out looking for volunteers for this year’s event. Organised by Spread the Word and hosted by Waterstones Piccadilly, I couldn’t wait to get a glimpse behind the scenes, meet some of the world-class authors, and (major perk alert!) see some of the cracking sessions on the programme for free.

LSSF volunteers – photo credit Sira Pocovi

Here’s the list of my ten top insights during this literary-fuelled weekend:

1) Award-winning writer Toby Litt’s top three tips for a strong short story are; tie no bows, open gaps, and make it more wrong if the story isn’t right. (What are you waiting for, give it a go!)

2) One of Laura Van Den Berg’s greatest inspirations is Murakami’s short story collection After the Quake, and she recommended everyone should read it. *Buys copy*

3) Waterstones Piccadilly is so vast it actually has its own gravitational pull like a planet, it’s practically big enough to become a country and declare independence from London, and it has miles of shelves full of amazing books. Ok, at least the last bit’s true…

4) The festival line-up boasted 65 leading writers and speakers across 4 days and 27 events.

5) During the Short Story Gate Keepers session, the panel’s most important advice included; read what magazines publish before you submit to them, don’t just write what you think publications want to read to tick them off your hit list, and remember it’s the voice that grabs.

6) I discovered some fascinating cuisine-based facts at the Cooked Up: Food Fiction event. Did you know that Ben Okri’s favourite dish is Nigerian peppered soup? Plus, Elaine Chiew makes the BEST cheese straws ever.

Wine and nibbles at Food Fiction event

7) The fiction scene in Wales is going from strength to strength, as demonstrated by readings from a selection of fantastic authors at Wales Arts Review’s showcase.

8) I learnt it’s very confusing having your identical twin sister attend the festival you’re volunteering at! Inevitably many people mistook her for me, and asked “where are the book signings/ are there any tickets left for the next event/ which floor are the ladies toilets on/ insert random enquiry here.”

9) Irish writer Kevin Barry is hilarious, and he cracked the entire room up with his reading during the festival finale, a Sunday times EFG Short Story Award themed-session.

10) Only at the London Short Story Festival could a 12 hour volunteer shift go by in flash, and leave you wishing there was a another event still to come afterwards. Fingers crossed LSSF will be back next year!