Keris Stainton's Blog, page 4
June 4, 2014
Mum
It’s fifteen years today since my mum died.
June 3, 2014
Starring Kitty has a cover (and I love it)
So my next book has got a cover. And I totally and utterly love it. You know, like I, um, just said in the title to this post…
The book is out 10 July and here’s the description:
The first in a new series about first love and friendship by much-loved teen author Keris Stainton
Sometimes the greatest love stories happen behind the scenes…
Kitty’s keeping secrets. Like how she’s struggling to cope with her mum’s illness. And how she’s falling for the girl with the purpley-red hair… A fun film competition with her friends Sunny and Hannah seems like the perfect distraction. But then Dylan wants to be more than Kitty’s secret. Is Kitty ready to let her two worlds meet or will she risk losing Dylan forever?
You can pre-order it on Amazon or Hive.
I’ve made a Pinterest board (of course I have) featuring some of the settings.
Hope you like it!
June 1, 2014
Women and heart attacks – do you know the symptoms?
[Originally posted last year, but posting again as a reminder.]
Yesterday the boys and I went to a first aid session arranged by the home ed forum I’m a member of. First we learned what to do if someone is choking and then we watched a short video about heart attacks. The video featured a woman who suddenly clutched her chest and staggered around, saying it was probably indigestion, you know, the usual thing we see on TV and in film when someone’s having a heart attack.
But around about this time last year, I heard this reported on the radio:
Fewer women than men suffering from a heart attack appear to experience chest pain symptoms, according to a study of more than one million people in the US.
Overall men have significantly more heart attacks, but under the age of 55 women are more likely to die from one.
Without displaying the classic chest pain symptoms of a heart attack, researchers say some women may not be getting the right kind of treatment.
Dr Kevin F Fox, a consultant cardiologist at Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust and speaking for the Royal College of Physicians, said that overall the number of heart attacks and associated deaths were falling, but that when young women had heart attacks the outcomes were not good.
“The paper has shown that women, and in particular younger women, under 55 years of age, often do not have the typical presenting symptom of chest pain compared to men when they have a heart attack.
“Although heart attack survival is improving overall, doctors, health care professionals and the public need to be aware and vigilant that women can have a heart attack without the typical chest pain that we all think of as the main symptom.”
It rang a bell with me – I was sure I’d heard that before – so when I got home, I looked it up.
It was in O magazine. In 2006. Heart Health: Men vs Women
Men: Often the first sign of heart disease is a heart attack itself, a feeling like the chest is being run over by a Mack truck.
Women: Women’s first warning signs are much more subtle and often hard to pinpoint. They may feel fatigue when doing something that they used to do easily, such as play tennis, run to catch a train, change sheets, or walk up two flights of stairs. Sometimes heart disease registers in women as a feeling of mild indigestion. Often there’s no chest pain whatsoever.
So why, seven years later, are we still saying there is? Back to the BBC report:
The US researchers describe the results of their work as “provocative” and urge further study, but say that for the moment there should be no change in the public health message that chest pain and discomfort could be symptoms of a heart attack.
“For the moment.” I’ve been aware of it for seven years, which suggests the health industry has known about it for a lot longer. How much longer does it need to be researched? How many women have died in the meantime? How many women need to die before they change the message?
Women are more likely than men to have atypical symptoms such as:
Back, neck, shoulder, jaw, lower chest, or upper belly pain or discomfort
Nausea or vomiting
Shortness of breath
Dizziness or lightheadedness
Fatigue
Want to write YA?
I’m running my Writing for Teenagers online course again from… today. (It’s June? Seriously? Blimey.)
On this eight week online course you’ll learn:
What young adult fiction actually is (and how to decide what age group you actually want to write for).
How to come up with inspired ideas.
How to create believable characters.
How to write convincing dialogue.
How to grab readers right from the first page and keep them hooked to the last.
The teen fiction cliches you may want to avoid (or not!).
It will basically be eight weeks’ access to the contents of my head. But, you know, in a good way.
(Plus I share my edit notes AND I’ve bothered a bunch of top YA authors for their tips.)
The price is £50. For the full course. Payable in advance via Paypal.
To put your name down – or if you have any questions – please email me.
Nice things people have said:
“This course is an ideal introduction to the YA genre. The reading list is excellent and varied and the discussions were thought provoking. I especially enjoyed Keris’s posts on writing, which dispelled some of the myths I had about writers and inspired me to give it a go myself (now I know everyone gets stuck in the middle!). Another plus point for me was that the course was flexible and therefore easier to fit around work and family.” Suzanne Adams
“The course for me was well rounded and packed with enough information/guidelines for the novice writer to put together a jolly good book. It’s the best fifty quid I’ve spent in a long time.” Paula Smith
“This is such a friendly and fun way to learn about writing for teenagers. You can contribute as much or as little as you like, read and review some great YA books, and pester the tutor with those questions you’ve always been too afraid to ask. I know I did!” Helen Maslin
“So inspiring and informative! I found the whole approach a brilliant way in to talking about the issues surrounding writing and editing YA.” Harriet Reuter Hapgood
“This course was perfect for getting a better understanding of what makes good YA fiction. Using the books on the reading list along with Keris’ questions helped me to think deeply about different writing styles, what worked for me and what didn’t. Keris also gave us lots of tips and links to resources. The course was fun, not overly time-consuming, and practical. And I particularly welcome the opportunity to post some of my writing up for feedback. Absolutely worth the money, thank you.” Alison Clayton-Smith
“I’ve loved the course. It’s been supportive, inspiring and helpful. It’s given me more confidence and enthusiasm to keep going.” Lesley Taylor
May 30, 2014
#countdownYA Author Interview: Lisa Glass
I’m really excited to welcome Lisa Glass for my stop on the Countdown to 5th June blog tour.
Lisa’s new book, Blue – a summer surfing romance – sounds right up my street. I can’t wait to read it. But first, some questions…
Can you tell us about your writing day?
I have two little kids, one a tiny baby, so whenever the eldest is being looked after by someone else and the youngest is asleep, I rush over to the computer and tap out a few hundred words.
What’s been the best moment of your writing career so far? And the worst?
The best moment was being offered the three-book deal with Quercus. The worst was finding out that interest in my previous novel, which I thought was going to get a publishing deal, had ebbed away.
Have you got any abandoned manuscripts no one will ever see?
Loads. About a million words of abandoned manuscript, more’s the pity.
Have you ever experienced writers’ block and, if so, how did you get past it?
Yes. When I’m pregnant I find it really difficult to write. I just can’t make myself care about the characters. I become really intolerant of them, and have to fight the urge to kill them all off in the next chapter. The way I got past it was by giving birth. Once the babies were out, I was able to write again. I don’t know why pregnancy makes me so hostile to my own imagination, but it does.
How is being a writer different from what you imagined?
I thought it would be a more serene endeavour. I didn’t realise how hard it would be to get published, and paid. Also, I thought I would be prouder of my job. By which I mean: I have always admired writers, but now that I am one, I feel almost embarrassed to admit it, or acknowledge that it is even a job, even though I work very hard at it. But, I am from a line of bricklayers, cleaners, lorry drivers, seamstresses, and saying ‘I’m an author’ makes me feel as if I am betraying my working class roots, which is ridiculous, but there we are.
If you had to live within the confines of one book, and only interact with its characters (but you would still be yourself), which book would you choose?
This is a great question. I think I’d go for It Chooses You by Miranda July. It’s not a novel. It’s about the author’s experiences of interviewing people who advertise stuff they want to sell in a weekly circular. The people she interviews are all really interesting, and I think I’d enjoy hanging out with Miranda July. She seems like a lot of fun and I think she’d be great in arguments, really quick-witted and fiery.
Which three books would you take to a desert island?
London is the Best City in America by Laura Dave, because she has the most beautiful prose and I’m still trying to figure out how she manages that. The Friday Gospels by Jenn Ashworth because she has incredible insight into human behaviour and Very British Problems by Rob Temple, just for the lolz.
If a film was made of your life, who would you want to play you?
I had this conversation with my friend Rosy once and she answered Jack Black. So now I naturally want Jack Black to play me. We have the same glint of crazy in our eyes and we both have extremely mobile eyebrows. But can he do a Westcountry accent? I just don’t know.
Thanks, Lisa. (That’s a film I’d want to see!)
May 28, 2014
Throwback Thursday: Victorian Strongman Joe
I always thought Joe looked like a Victorian Strongman in this vest and so one day I added the moustache and curl with eye pencil.
Joe saw this picture a couple of weeks ago (when he was looking for one of when he was “very first born coming out of your tummy, Mama”) and loved it. He wants a print for his bedroom wall.
It makes me smile whenever I see it.
May 22, 2014
May 20, 2014
A sunny day in a St Annes beach hut
I’ve always loved the idea of a beach hut. My boys definitely do like to be beside the seaside – and I do too (so much that we’re planning to move there) – but sand in the sandwiches and getting changed out of wet clothes under a towel that’s flapping in the wind… Well, it’s not ideal. Beach huts seem so much more civilised.
Even though we go to St Annes a lot (and Della Says: OMG! is partially set there), I had no idea about St Annes Beach Huts until I saw them on Twitter. Straight away, I said that’s what I wanted to do for my birthday. My only worry was that my birthday might be rainy and obviously a beach hut is better in the sun. But then last Saturday the sun was shining, we were planning a trip to the seaside anyway, and then I noticed that the owner, Stuart, had some availability. So I emailed and asked if we could come straight down and he said yes.
We got there just after lunch and fell in love immediately. It was an utterly glorious day and the hut is decorated beautifully and comfortably with a pile of cushions on the sofa, a swivelling table, a fridge, kettle and lights. We got out a couple of chairs, unpacked the picnic, and settled in for the afternoon.
Within an hour or so most of the other beach huts were occupied and there was a great atmosphere. Harry and Joe played on the beach with the children from next door and I earwigged on a fascinating conversation (about a potentially exploding eye) from the other side. David did say that he felt a bit like we were in a zoo – everyone walking past looked at us! – but that didn’t bother me (cos I had a book… and a glass of wine).
Once we’d been for a long walk across the beach and the weather had started to cool, David went for fish and chips and we closed the doors, making the hut completely private. (Particularly when the boys insisted we also close the blinds “to see how dark it is”.)
We’d planned to stay and watch the sunset, but it clouded over, so we packed up slightly earlier than planned. Apart from Joe who stayed on the beach until the bitter end.
It was an absolutely glorious day and we’ll definitely book a beach hut in the future. Fingers crossed for a nice hot summer!
Stuart of St Annes Beach Huts provided us with a complimentary day’s rental in return for an honest review. Thanks, Stuart!
May 15, 2014
Throwback Thursday – Della Says: OMG!
This totally should have been last week’s since last week it was four years since Della Says: OMG! was published. Blimey. Even though it does seem a while since Della came out, I can’t quite believe I’ve been published for four years. Four years! And it’s been a rather brilliant four years.
Always take my books out for a drink…
In the Bliss mag chart
