A.L. Michael's Blog, page 9

Writing, and the permission for truth…

When I talk about writing, I talk about two separate worlds.

In one, I write happy, comedic novels where the guy gets the girl, and the girl has amazing friends, and they can all overcome everything that gets in their way.

In the other, I teach people that it’s okay to write the sad things. The true things.

I’ve been working on my research project for my MSc, working with some amazing women who are writing their truth, and are being honest on the page and with themselves. And it makes me honest on the page too.

In novels, we want everything to be okay, we don’t want to go on a four page rant about how the heroine feels like shit that day. Why? Because no-one wants to read that. It’s a bummer. It doesn’t achieve anything but make your reader think ‘Jeez, this is one whiny narrator. Buck the hell up, kid!’

But in personal writing, in journalling and reflective writing, there is absolute value in writing about your crappy day or your sad moments. It’s a moment of pure, unadulterated honesty with yourself. And if you’re someone who’s used to putting a happy spin on things, it can be really empowering.

If you want to write therapeutically, about something negative, I’d recommend timing yourself, giving yourself over freely for 20 minutes (if you’re a seasoned writer, maybe less if not). Decide what you want to do with this writing…mine ends up moving towards the positive, I guide it that way. I get out what I need to get out, and I end it on a high note. I don’t like to leave things sitting there without a full stop, festering. I want to end things with hope. Or, you could rip it up, burn the thing. Leave that negativity somewhere else, trap it in the page.

Being honest about what you want to write and what you feel is important, so here I am, giving you permission, if you think you need it.

And whilst we’re at it, if you are writing stories or novels or poems…write what you want to write. Write things you’d like to read, things that would make you feel safe, and excited and not so alone.

I write for a lot of reasons, and one of them is fun. So I’m excited to say that the first book in my new series will be out next week! On the 28th April, Goodbye Ruby Tuesday will be released. I hope, if you read it, it’s as fun to read as it was to write.

And if you happen to be at Larmertree Festival this year, I’ll be doing some workshops around Writing and Nature, and Writing and Body, but more on that soon!

How and why do you write? Do you think there’s a benefit in cathartic writing?

 

 

 

 

 

Update: Books, Research and New Projects

Hello all,

It’s been a while since I blogged about any of my goings on – mainly as I’ve been desperately trying to finish a book. Thankfully, that happened!

I’m excited to announce that Goodbye Ruby Tuesday  will be released on the 28th April. You can pre-order it now. There will, as usual, be a blog tour, a (truly) fantastic give away and a really different and creative event to promote the book and raise money for a great cause! The excellent Sara from Huhbub will be arranging all of this for me, so if you are a lovely blogger interested in the blog tour, leave a comment or send me a twitter message (@almichael_).

It’s a book about three childhood friends who are brought together by the death of a rockstar they used to know, and start up an arts centre. It’s a noughties nostalgia-filled jaunt through the creative goings on in north London, with three friends fighting to create something special in memory of their friend.

Research:

My research into the application of creative therapeutic writing in eating disorder recovery starts next week. I’ll be running workshops in London, working with some lovely people in order to research how useful creative writing can be. I really do believe in the power of writing to heal and help arrange thoughts. I’m excited to see what this research discovers.

Future Writing:

Goodbye Ruby Tuesday is the first in a series of three books coming out this year. Each main character gets a book, so I hope you love the girls as much as I do, because there’s a lot more coming from them this year. The second book, Nice Day for a White Wedding will be our over the summer. The third, you’ll have to wait and see, but as I’m sure it’s clear, I’m picking some of my favourite songs as titles this time!

Other:

I’m excited to say I’ll be back at the wonderful Larmertree Festival this year, providing some creative writing for wellness workshops. They’ll be focused on nature and the body, really working to be inspired by the natural environment of the festival. If you’re there this year, stop by and try it out!

 

 

 

 

Tagged: almichael, amwriting, camden, carina, creative writing, creative writing for therapeutic purposes, editing, festivals, goodbye ruby tuesday, harlequin books, harper collins, london, research, The House on Camden Square, writing, writing for wellness

Writing, Wellbeing and Research- A call for participants.

I’m doing an MSc. In Creative Writing for Therapeutic Purposes.

Sounds fancy, right?

It’s actually just the science and research based around the assumption that writing can be good for you, and can make you feel good. The same is accepted of Art Therapy, Drama Therapy, Dance, Crafts, anything. Anything that involves creativity and expression is usually quite powerful for your mental state.

I’ve loved studying about this. Learning about the psychology of it, trying different techniques and consistently writing and playing, in order to learn and experience.

But here’s the hard part: I’m doing my own research. And it’s hard.

I’m studying the response from women who are in recovery from eating disorders when they take part in a therapeutic creative writing class.

Which sounds really intense and a lot of work. And when you work through the hundreds of (very necessary) ethics forms, work out how you’re going to be self aware, keep everyone safe, allow everyone to be authentic, avoid triggers and still let people actually do the writing, well…it’s exhausting.

But the workshops will be fun! We’ll be looking at poems and playing with metaphors and writing letters. The whole thing is designed to be positive, and engaging and to encourage self love and self respect, as well as even creating bonds with the people who take part.

But when you try to advertise things like this, well, they are serious, and they do have to be safe. So no-one signs up because it sounds like a drag. It’s a catch 22.

So here, in a basic way is what I’m asking:

-Are the things in the creative writing sessions ‘useful’ or ‘helpful’ in eating disorder recovery?

-How do you define ‘useful’ and ‘helpful’?

 

That’s pretty much it! I’m asking  women in recovery from eating disorders if they want to do some creative writing sessions with me and then talk about them. If they’re fun, if they’re exciting, stressful, relaxing. That’s all!

The aim is to find out what is ‘useful’ and ‘helpful’ and one day design workshops for people in recovery that can really benefit them. It already exists for other types of recovery from other illnesses, and I think it’s time it existed for those dealing with EDs too.

So, IF you know anyone who might be interested in taking part (and can get to London for the three sessions in the Spring) please do share this or ask them to get in touch at:

writingtonourish@gmail.com

Even if they can’t come to sessions, or they’re abroad, but they want to share their ED story, have some recommendations, or have used journalling before…anyone who wants to talk to me, I’m happy to listen/read an email.

It’s hard to talk about serious things like this, and it’s hard to make it sound like an engaging and positive experience, especially when it can be scary to ‘own’ an ED so publicly, but I really think the work I’m doing could benefit people (and if it can’t, it’s best I find out now!)

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tagged: anorexia nervosa, bullimia, creative writing, eating disorders, ed recovery, metanoia, workshops, writing for health, writing for wellbeing

Surviving as a Creative: Top Five Tips to Make/Save Money

We hear it all the time, ways to make money from your writing, ways to get rich quick. I’m not here to tell you how to do that, if I knew I would be living a very different life right now! But my focus has always been on little things that help you survive, so you can live the creative life you want.

Make Art.

This one seems obvious – actually make the stuff you want to make. Write the book, sculpt the sculpture, whatever your art is. You can’t start getting paid for it unless you actually make the thing.

Use your Skills

I write books, thus I have writing skills. Therefore, I teach other people how to have writing skills. Whatever your talent is, whether it’s related to your art or not, use what you have. It’s easy to forget that some of the things that come easy to us are still hard for others. Don’t take your skills for granted. If you can speak another language, if you know how to play an instrument, if you’re really good with computers – someone needs what you have!

There is Such a Thing as a Free Lunch!

Well, sort of. One of the best things I discovered as a creative person was the possibility of mystery dining. You go for a meal, fill out a questionnaire/write a report, and you get the whole meal for free, as well as getting paid for going! For someone who works from home a lot of the time, the chance to get out and about, as well as getting to eat for free, is really useful. Plus, I get character inspiration from people in the restaurants.

It also means that when work is pretty scarce, but I still want to meet up with friends, go out on a date night with my partner, take out a family member for their birthday, I still can! I just write about it instead of footing the bill! And I’ve found some of my favourite new places.

Plus, it’s not just food – my nails are looking lovely after a spa treatment, and I’ve taken friends to howl along at karaoke, as well as romantic mini breaks with my partner  – definitely the best creative living hack I’ve found!

(If you’re interested in being a mystery diner, I’d recommend signing up with Service Scan, they’ve sent me to lots of lovely, delicious places! When you fill out the application form, put ‘Reference: Andi’s Blog’ somewhere in there!)

Live Small, Dream Big

Okay, no-one wants to admit that working as a self-employed creative means that sometimes you can’t do what other people do. You can’t always afford the latest clothes, it might be harder to get a mortgage, you’ve got to account for a quiet month here or there. But as with your skills, think about what you have that is an investment. Streamline your life – sell your crap! Ebay and Gumtree, or any other number of local sell apps will let you get rid of the stuff you don’t need. That money can go towards the things you need to make your art. Plus, tidy home, tidy mind = more creating.

Trade

So technically, this isn’t really about money, but it is about survival. We are living more and more in a trade based society. Partly because of the recession, partly because people are recognising the value of theirs skills (see point 1!) but also because the value of money is so contextual. What costs the world to one is a drop in the bucket to another. But a skill? Or an object? Well, we place our own value depending on how much we want something. You know how to fix a leaky sink, and your neighbour knows how to make that Chicken Pie that you’ve desperately been wanting. It makes sense to trade. And getting what you need without having to use money at all is pretty damn satisfying.

What’s Coming Up in 2016

Hi Friends,

I know I’ve been quiet for a while, things have been manic. I took on a 9-5 job, which is excellent, plus I’ve been teaching, studying, editing one book and writing another, and generally overwhelming myself. That’s the lesson I’m taking on from 2015.

So here’s a little on what you can expect from me in 2016:

A brand spanking new three book series! All of the characters are completely new, and of course, it’s set in my beloved London town (with an exception for a beautiful Italian landscape in book 2). I can’t tell you too much about it just yet, but I can give you a few snippets of information:

The books are about 3 childhood friends who reconnect.

They’re about how the arts can bring us together and give us hope.

The first one is due out in the Spring of 2016, and is called Goodbye Ruby Tuesday.

Hope that’s whet your appetite just a little. I’m really excited about this new series and can’t wait to get them all shiny and perfect so you can read them!

You can also expect something a little different when it comes to the launch! With help from the fabulous Sara Veal, we’re going to be launching the book with an awareness of what the arts mean to young people, and hopefully doing some good! A little different to your drinks and canapes (but I’m sure there’ll still be canapes). Stay tuned!

And now one of the most important things I’ll be doing in 2016, and something maybe you can help with…

Some of you may know I also work as a creative therapeutic facilitator, running creative writing workshops that are designed to focus on wellbeing. I’m currently doing research for my MSc, and my research project is called Writing to Nourish – I’m basically running three creative writing classes for women who are in recovery from eating disorders, wanting to get their feedback on which writing tasks they enjoy and find positive and useful. The classes would be on Saturday mornings in North London, and the research could help design workshops that can help in eating disorder recovery. I’m really passionate about this work, and would love to hear from people who would like to get involved in this research.

If you would like to know more, or you know anyone who would like to be involved, please email me at writingtonourish@gmail.com and I’ll give you all the details!

 

In my personal life this year, I’ll be trying my best to travel, learning to snowboard, committing myself to my yoga practice and generally focussing on wellbeing and health, things that connect with my books and my research!

Dear readers, this year I wish you as many books as you can disappear into, as many worlds as you wish to discover. I hope you feel grateful every day, loved every minute and inspired as often as you can bear it. And if any of that is too deep, I wish you many adorable kitten videos on Youtube.

 

Happy New Year!

 

Andi

Editing: Criticism, compassion, collaboration.

So last week, I had one particularly busy day, spent in big, impressive glass buildings in London. Firstly, I was giving a talk on my experience of business as a writer, and what entrepreneurials skills were required at a university, and then I was going on to have a (wine-fuelled) meeting with my editor. Both were lovely, and both seemed to have a theme: collaboration.

Now, I know I don’t just bleed magical words from my fingertips – there’s a reason it’s called ‘craft’. You draft and re-draft and fix things and change stuff. And I hurtled into this new novel headfirst, I was eager to get on with it, and though I had  a lot of doubts and problems throughout the process, I just decided to steamroller over them to get the book done. Which was why, when my lovely editor sent over her notes, despite her positive comments about all the things she loved, I felt like I’d failed her, myself, my publisher and the whole world, in general.

I then had to get up the next day and talk to a group of artists about how I have apparently ‘made it’. Now, if there’s one thing I don’t believe in, it’s ‘made it’. I used to think ‘made it’ was the publishing deal, then it became the bestseller – we move the goalposts. All I’m able to talk about is the fact that I worked (and wrote) my arse off for about five years, and now I’ve been lucky enough for that to pay off.

The theme that kept emerging was collaboration – working with others to create, or interpreting and reinterpreting other’s creativity. Making art can be lonely, it’s a compromise for the lifestyle (one of the other ‘c’s I should have included in the title) and it got me thinking about what ‘editing’ really was. I was collaborating with my editor. The original ideas were mine, but she was the problem solver, the route finder, the map reader. And that collaboration deserves a mention.

Writers often mention fighting their editors on decisions, and I can understand why. It’s hard to kill your darlings, it’s hard to unpick threads of storyline, to remove chunks of text that are pretty but pointless. Or even worse, to lose something that is well written and has a point, but the market isn’t interested.

I have to say this – my editor has always been right. It’s like she’s magic or something. Almost everything she highlights is something I wobbled on during the creative process. Sometimes it’s stuff you realise, sometimes it’s stuff you stopped yourself from realising, or sometimes you just think ‘yeah, that makes a better story’.

I often give the advice to writers not to talk about what they’re doing, for fear of making the story stale, or stopping themselves from writing it. You have to discover your story as you write, to a certain extent, that’s what the fun part of writing is! If it’s dogmatic before it’s hit the page, then it’s going to sound like dead verbage, like your characters are bad actors standing in for the ones you imagined.

However, talking to the students about collaboration, and outlining my excitement and worries for the next book in the series to my editor, I can see why people talk about their stories. Collaboration is shared excitement, it’s opening up to perspectives and allowing for change. Often, when you’ve got a story, that can be a scary thing, but there’s definitely a place for it in writing. In my world, that’s in the editing space, for you, it might be at the beginning. Your novel might be like having a crush on a world you’ve invented; you can’t help but talk about it!

So as I move forward into editing mode (and I take great joy in the number of authors who wring their hands and hate this part of the process as much as I do) I’m going to say a big THANK YOU, to those who collaborate, who share ideas and thoughts and process, who give feedback and answer questions. That’s what keeps stories alive.

 

 

On Staying Silent: Review Etiquette

So…I had a little hissy fit last week. It was not my finest moment. Normally, I get a bad review and I react in one of the following ways:

‘Damn, that’s a good point. Why didn’t I realise that before I submitted?!’
‘Damn! THAT’S SO TRUE! WHY AM I AN IDIOT? CRAP!’
‘Huh, that’s funny. I never noticed that. Better not do that in the next book.’
‘Oh well, I wasn’t sure if that would work. That’s a shame.’
‘Dude, I didn’t choose the title! That’s not my fault!’
‘Dude, I didn’t choose the cover! That’s not my fault!’
‘Dude, I didn’t tell you to read this book when you read one with a similar storyline last week!’
‘Oh well, ya win some, you lose some.’
‘Well…you really didn’t get what I was going for there…I’m not gonna question who’s fault that is, because a bunch of other people got it.’
‘Oh…I wonder if you’re a writer who’s trolling…’
‘Wow, I really feel like you know me and have purposefully tried to carve out my heart with a spoon- how can you possibly hate me this much?’

Last week, however, I was overwhelmed with the fact that I could answer a lot of the points this reviewer had made. That I could tell them I’d done the research, that in fact, yes this could happen. I wanted to tell them not to judge me on the title. I wanted to tell them that patting me on the head because 2 stars is actually pretty good due to their terribly high standards made me want to chow down on the living flesh of fools wandering in the woods at a full moon.

But I couldn’t. Because professionals don’t do that shit.

So what did I do?

I shouted at Twitter. In a series of 150 characters snippets, I shouted into the void. Not necessarily because I wanted to be heard, but because I wanted to justify myself. Reviewers have the power to determine sales of a book. They can create a buzz, share excitement and help authors become better writers. They can offer critcism because they read so much, but they can also be responsible for boosting a career when they’re a fan.

They also have the power and safety to destroy someone from behind a screen. To ensure a book never sells and never gets heard of again. To be snarky and sarcastic and even vindictive (and that is their right) because they have people who trust their opinions.

Do I think I wrote a perfect book? Hell no. Do I feel the really harsh reviews that tear things apart like scratchings against my soul? Not always, but yeah…sometimes. Especially if the reviewer forgets that writers are human. It’s harder to put something out there than it is to tear it down. There’s a lot more vulnerability in creation than there is in destruction.

Now I know what’s coming here- ‘Man the fuck up! You’re an author! It’s just part of the job!’ I’d like you to name another job where the people who pay your wages tell you on a regular basis that what you’re doing is perfect but is also shit and worthless and they hate you. In an ordinary job, you work to please your boss. In my job, if you do that, you’ll end up writing song-lyric-influenced-epic-wartime-love-story-between-a-werewolf- and-a-dinosaur-that-goes-back-in-time-to-save-earth-from-cowboys. Because every reader is my boss.

We have to write for ourselves. It is only in being marginally pleased with the result that we can put it out into the world less afraid, and with less excuses when the critics come to call.

Is the moral of this story to man the hell up and not care about reviews? No, I’ve met some lovely people through Twitter and the reviewing process. And their views do help make me a better writer. They also help me feel better when things feel a bit crap. So I didn’t shout out into the void when I justified myself to Twitter. I shouted out, and readers responded. And THAT is the moral of the story. Be upset by your reviews if you want, trust your own process, try to write for yourself. But know that somewhere out there is someone who loves what you do, and wants you to keep going.

Tagged: author, books, criticism, goodreads, novels, reading, reviewing, reviews

Reading as a Writer and how it can help your work.

I don’t mean that as a writer, you need to read. That’s one of the basic tenets of writing. I read an article this morning that had a list of things NOT to say to an agent or publisher, and ‘I don’t read because I don’t want to steal anyone’s ideas’ is one of them. Not to say it’s not a fair point, I think we all have that worry, but it’s imperative you’re reading. You don’t ask a painter to create for an exhibition when they’ve never even stepped inside a gallery.

But, that’s not what I’m talking about. I’m talking about the way you read. I’m currently in another of those ‘this is crap, this is so crap’ points in my work in progress (40000 words in, I should have expected it) and every line looks boring, or overdone, or slow. So I thought I’d go back to looking at some of my favourite books, and looking at how they do it. So I started reading as a writer. I looked at where she put the commas, how many times she used ‘said’. What the sentences in between the speech told us. I thought perhaps there was some sort of style or code to this author’s perfection. And what did I find?

Zilch. She uses said a lot. The sentences in between do the same that mine do. It’s not that fast paced, it’s just enjoyable to the reader to go on the journey, because the dialogue is funny. And that’s what I realised- when we write, we are judging our own work as critics of the language. We’re strangling the adverbs and looking at individual lines and worrying, worrying, worrying.

But when I read a good book, all those things become invisible. The ‘said’s cease to exist, because they’re just markers. The description translates directly into a vision of a character, I’m not sitting there wondering why she used a certain word, or commenting on the vocabulary- I’m too busy disappearing into the story!

Which tells me two things:

I’m probably not as crap as I think I am right now, and I just need to buck the hell up.
Some of the best writing is ‘invisible’ to the reader.

So happy morning all, I’m off to write some invisible words on the page now.

Tagged: almichael, editing, fiction, invisible writing, novel, self-doubt, writing tips

Writing Full Time: When the Dream Doesn’t Live Up to the Hype

I haven’t had any work for the last few weeks. That’s the way it goes with my life, ebb and flow. Everything was a stressful overwhelming mess, and now there’s no more tutoring, classes, festivals or essays to be written. I literally just get to work on my novel. Which is all I’ve ever wanted.

We’ve all been there, haven’t we? ‘One day I’ll earn enough to write full time and I won’t have to do my crappy day job.’ Except, sadly, I think I need my crappy day job for my brain to actually work. Otherwise, I sit at home and write a bit, tidy a bit, sit around watching TV and getting depressed about my ability to do anything, bug my partner at work, go to the gym, and wonder why I got more writing done when I had three other jobs on the go.

I think it would be different if I had a job that was still a joy, like being a mum and full time writer. Although more and more I wonder how the hell my wonderful writer friends with kids manage at all! That’s not really a job you get a break from. Or space to yourself, to climb inside your own mind and hang out with the imaginary people in there.

I knew this about myself. I wrote it in my five year business plan when I graduated from my creative entrepreneurship MA. I need to keep busy in order to be creative. Again, it’s about balance, something I’ve never been very good at. So at the moment, instead of doing all the powerful things I could be doing to prepare for when the work starts up again (organising files, doing my accounts, prepping all my tutoring work) I’m just distracting myself by procrastinating and using my skills for anything I possibly can. Including blogging about the distinct turmoil of getting everything you ever wanted.

Yeah. I hate me too. Ungrateful bitch that I am. So, now I’ve procrastinated for the day, I’m going to use that precious time for my actual job- writing books.

I guess the lesson here is ‘be careful what you wish for’ but really, it’s about knowing who you are, and what you need to stay creative.

Tagged: author

My Top Five Places to Write

I recently had a negative review on Amazon, where the reader criticised the fact that my self-employed character, Tig, wasn’t just a coffee shop customer, she was a well known regular, who’d made friends with the staff. The reviewer seemed to find this irritating, but when you’re self employed, you do find yourself frequenting the same places, and getting to know people. Similarly, as I share my barista experience in ‘If You Don’t Know Me By Now’, I often remembered the customers, because they were in so frequently, and shared their stories.

I can’t always work at home. I get distracted by the washing that needs to be done, or it’s too cold, too hot, too dark. I put the TV on in the background (but then get distracted). So I turn the TV off, and it’s too quiet. The only time I work at home is in the evening, because I like there to be someone else in, to have background noise and to not feel so alone.

So I thought I’d make a list of my Top Five Favourite Places to Write:

Cinnamon Square, Rickmansworth

A gorgeous bakery/cafe with a tudor style building, higgledy piggledy walls, and magic happening in the bakery at the back. Often the gentle twang of Chuck Berry or Buddy Holly provides my background music, and I like alternating between writing and thinking about what cake I want. The coffee isn’t too strong, which means I can keep up the steady stream of Americanos throughout the day. Plus, if it isn’t busy, they let me sit at the huge bench in the snug, which is both great for writing and people watching. And the food is delicious , and they don’t get annoyed at me for sitting there for hours. Have currently written about a third of my WIP in here. If you’re in Hertfordshire, don’t miss out.

Drink Shop Do, Caledonian Road (London)

I actually set ‘My So-Called (Love) Life’ in this cafe/restaurant/home of awesomeness. It’s where I started the novel, where I’ve sat writing quite a few times, and where I meet writing clients, authors and friends. The cake is awesome, and I massively enjoy the array of events and art here. The tea comes in mismatched pots and cups/saucers, and the food is lovely. You pay London prices, and occasionally there can be an air in the evenings that you’re not really cool enough to be there, but that’s the price you pay for being a messy writer girl.

My Mum’s Dining Table

Sadly, this one isn’t open to the public, but there’s something about the height of the table, the sunshine through the windows, the puppy sitting at my feet and the frequent offers of tea that really works! Although when it’s winter and cold, it becomes dangerously possibly to curl up on the sofa with too many episodes of ‘Say Yes to the Dress’.

The Workshop, Norwich

I used to live down the road from this cafe when I was a student. Somewhere that did beer, art, free wifi and made fish finger sandwiches? They have a ‘study space’ in the basement that’s got comfy seating, and really strange pictures that seem to be the equivalent of Victorian porn. Well, it’s inspiration, right?

Cafe International, Haight Street

A great coffee shop in San Francisco. Reasonably priced, ridiculously delicious bagels, and most importantly they put frozen coffee ice cubes in their iced coffee so it doesn’t dilute! Genius.

Tagged: cafe international, cafes, cinnamon square, the workshop, writers cafe, writing