Projects & Progress

The problem with thoughts like ‘I’ll hit the ground running in the New Year; how to plan to write in a way that tempts you; what to do when you don’t want to send your book out to any more agents; Iris Murdoch’s ‘eggs and baskets’ advice for writers; how to choose (between anything and anything!) when your instincts are leaning one way but you’re still not sure;vwhy rejection can be good for our books.

When your writing mentor takes all the joy out of the writing process; a DA picks a new agent for a reason that she likes; the differences between acquiring (from an editor’s point of view) a literary novel and a commercial one; how to deal with ‘am I being self-indulgent in pursuing my writing dreams?’; should you give up on your book and move on if you haven’t heard anything from your agent in several months?; how to get back into writing after a break; should you send your agent your most recent, updated synopsis, when she’s already got the previous version?; how to approach the most laborious parts of the writing process; how much information should you give the reader at the start of any story?; how to write your book when some of the content is triggering.

Should you speak up for yourself, even if the other person won’t listen?; your thoughts about money; when scheduling feels like fantasy stuff – what to do; is it okay to think ‘I can’t be arsed’ and make no effort?; why and when to write under two different names.

An update on Sophie’s progress on Poirot no. 5; Sophie coaches a DA who is feeling distant from her writing and scared of immersing herself in it again.

Sophie reports on the progress she’s making on Poirot no. 5, and other Dream Authors report on their progress and the challenges they’re currently facing, including: a bizarre book cover, a house move and how to approach a one-to-one with an agent.

What to do if you’re worried that you’ve fallen behind in Dream Author and/or aren’t doing it properly!; what to do if your week seems to shrink so that you can’t fit in all the things you’ve planned to do; a Dream Author’s plan for how to proceed with her current writing project; Sophie talks about her own (flawed) plan for writing Poirot no. 5.

How to suffer less, when you’re struggling with guilt or shame; Sophie’s ‘Get real and get down to it’ challenge re scheduling; why no Dream Authors are ‘failed’ Dream Authors; how to go from a no progress ; inner coach versus inner critic – how to know the difference and why it matters.

How to know if you should press on until the end of a draft or go back and edit before finishing; how to structure a thriller plot; how to deal with aspects of your plot that might be considered far-fetched.