The truth: Where I'm up to with my current novel and the story so far

PLUS: How to enter Regional Press awards | Authors fight for writing in the north | Final call for BPA Pitch Prize | Women in Journalism heading to Leeds | Young Journalist awards & more

My dear wordsmiths,

How did you find my spoken edition last week? I’d love to know if it’s worth my time continuing so please let me know. I’d also like to appeal to you all out there to consider subscribing if not already and please share. I also need feedback: What would else you like me to share, is any of this helpful? As always huge appreciation to my regular readers - I see you!

Plus, I’m always in the market for new Substack accounts to subscribe to and also to set up a buddy recommendation - let me know..

My novel journey so far (Write, reject, repeat)

I was eight when I wrote my first book. Already irritatingly ahead of my school mates in vocabulary due to an immense lack of social skills which saw me buried in books early - plus access to my mum’s pile of racy paperbacks - my first attempt was full of words I didn’t really understand. It was, however, elevated by the application of glue, pasta and gold paint which meant it was the approximate weight of War and Peace. Many similar, witthequally terrible artwork, followed but one ability I never wavered on was the ability to tell a story.

The reality is I wanted to be a novelist before I wanted to be a journalist (though I do love being a journalist, most of the time). When I learned journalism was storytelling for a living, that become my goal. Two decades later, I’m still in journalism but have no novels published. Life, and the difficult landscape that is the publishing industry, got in the way. Although I did, during my role as a regional news journalist in 2008, co-write a crime book Lancashire’s Most Notorious Murders (now out of print). It was true crime before true crime was cool although I did recently revisit one of the murders for a true crime documentary ‘The Handless Corpse’ for Shots TV.

All of this aside, the reality is I am the world worst procrastinator in face of agent rejection. I’ve only had a few for the current novel - admittedly a previous draft - and I need to attack the coal face again before I lose the will. Feel free to give me the kick up the backside I need to start again..

Why haven’t I had my novel published? Spilling the tea..

In the interim I have written millions of words including endless news stories, features, travel reviews, columns, radio scripts, two novels that are in a drawer, and one which I am currently redrafting and trying to to get the courage to apply the write reject repeat stage of the process. I want to be traditionally published is the reality, I think it’s possibly because I’ve seen my name in print so many times, I don’t want to be published for the sake of it and do a half-arsed job of of the marketing and distribution - and I just don’t have the time.

Please don’t think I disapprove of self publishing - my dad has several self published novels as well as traditionally published astronomy titles - and I hugely respect those who do and make it work. There are some absolute belters who started that way from Margaret Atwood to EL James (Erika Mitchell) and Nicola May - whose journey I have followed right from the start. Even my former BBC radio co-presenter (and good friend) Gemma Ray is a self published hero - her personal self discipline and self help books have topped the charts in her categories. But like many, I work more than full time with an additional radio presenter job and self publishing is not right for me - right now. This journey is personal to us all.

This is long so next week I’ll share some juice about my actual novel - and I would absolutely love to hear about yours? Where are you up to? How do you deal with rejection? I’m happy to include your story on here- if you want to tell it.

News, events and opportunities

Writing

The BPA’s (Blue Pencil Agency) annual pitch prize: (Urgent!) Friday October 25 marks deadline to this competition for un-agented writers looking for representation for a work of fiction. The judge is Katie Greenstreet at Paper Literary and there will be up to 10 winners. To enter you will need to submit the first 500 words of your opening chapter, a 300 word synopsis and a cover letter to include your pitch. Online entry via BPA website. Entry fee: £12 for each submission.

More than 80 writers join north’s ‘Creative Call to Arms’: Leading authors, academics and writers have put their support behind a campaign to secure a major new centre for the writing industries in the north of England. Mick Herron, Ann Cleeves, and Peter Straughan are just three of 82 professional writers who have put their backing behind the campaign. In an open letter, titled, ‘A Creative Call to Arms’ the stable of writers call for the Culture Secretary, Lisa Nandy, to back the scheme after a decade of funding cuts to the arts.

“Writing is an art that the UK excels in and it plays a major role in the Creative Industries – underpinning publishing, media, film, TV, audio, and spilling over into games, music, theatre, local news and innovations in VR and AI, alongside jobs in related industries such as communications. For too long, the writing industries have been centred in London and the South East, creating an unbalanced eco-system, spread of jobs, and barriers to those in underserved and northern communities.”

Journalism:

The Regional Press Awards entry deadline (for standard fee) is Friday October 31. The awards celebrate the resilience and brilliance of UK journalism, honouring the stories and teams that unite communities and spark change. You can find detailed information about eligibility criteria and category specifics in the entry kit. Submit your entry by 23:59 BST on Thursday 31 October to qualify for the standard fee of £85 + VAT per entry.

Society of Editor’s Media Freedom Awards: Editors, journalists and news leaders wishing to attend next month's Media Freedom Awards are encourage to book as only a small number of tickets remain. The awards, presented by ITV News' Lucrezia Millarini, will bring together more than 300 journalists for a celebration of public interest and campaigning journalism.

Women in Journalism (WIJ) comes to Leeds: Women in Journalism is heading to Leeds for a networking event in the city. The event is open to all who live and work in the region, regardless of whether you are a WIJ member. The evening event will be hosted by WiJ Chair and ITN CEO Rachel Corp and Sunita Bhatti, WiJ Deputy Chair and Head of Regions Ch 4 News.

Journalism under attack: An essential and timely discussion on the growing dangers faced by journalists worldwide. From the unprecedented number of reporters killed in conflict zones such as Gaza to the misuse of terror and surveillance laws to target journalists in the UK, press freedom is under siege. Speakers will include Alan Rusbridger, Peter Oborne and Yasmin Alibhai-Brown. This is a SOAS event in partnership with Frontline Club Charitable Trust.

CIOJ Young Journalist awards: The Charted Institute of Journalist’s Young Journalist Awards are now open for entry. Free to enter, you must format three articles with any support material and create a PDF file - see website for details. You can use stories from a mix of platforms – online, print, or broadcast or from a single source, and submit them with your completed entry form in the online template provided.

Many thanks as always, don’t forget to like, subscribe and share! Happy writing, N