Blog Tour: The Rosie Effect
We are very delighted to be welcoming Graeme Simsion to our blog today and his blog tour for his new novel, The Rosie Effect which is the follow-up to the fantastic, The Rosie Project. Graeme talks to us about how writing much of the novel in New York influenced it.
I had about half of The Rosie Effect drafted, and a clear idea of where it was going, when I arrived in New York with my wife for three weeks in December 2013. We had spent seven months there in 2010, and this was a chance to catch up with friends and revisit favourite places. A holiday: but I had vague intentions of working on the novel, which I felt would benefit from being written ‘on location’. By the time we arrived, those intentions had crystallised into a plan: I would try to write two thousand words every day and finish the draft. As motivation, I promised myself that any day on which I failed to meet the target would be an alcohol-free day.
One of the pleasures of NYC is its bars and restaurants, and I’m a reasonably enthusiastic consumer of wine and the occasional cocktail (‘occasional’ meaning ‘on the occasion of being in New York and it being evening’). I didn’t miss a day. My wife was particularly impressed to find me up at 7 a.m. on Christmas morning, writing diligently. We had champagne with the turkey.
by 
Novel Kicks Fiction Friday: A Document
Friday 19th September 2014.
Fiction Friday is our weekly prompt. The aim is to write for a minimum of five minutes and then keep going for as long as you can. Once you’ve finished, don’t edit, just post in the comments box below.
Today’s prompt: You find a document about your life. As you begin to read about the current day, things from the page start to happen in real life. Continue on the story. What happens next?
by Bella’s Scribblings: Post Holiday Blues (PHB)
Bella Osborne
Oh my word it’s hard being back at the proper job! All those wonderful days relaxing in the sun are so quickly a distant memory as you walk back into the office, open your in-box and start catching up. It all takes so much effort to keep your brain focussed in the room and not wandering off back to that sun lounger by the pool, with the warmth of the sun of your skin, the gentle breeze and the distant laughter of children splashing in the pool… sorry what was I saying? Yes, keeping your attention on the day job is tricky, but essential, because it’s the one that pays the bills.
Somehow after a holiday it all seems just a little bit more pointless than it did before you went away. Before you went on holiday, you were excited about the plans for the second half of 2014, you knew you were adding value, heck you actually enjoyed your job but something has changed. Of course nothing has actually changed – it’s just post holiday blues (PHB).
So question is how best to overcome them? There are probably quite a few right answers for this but here’s just a few suggestions that I tried:
- Cake – no don’t laugh, I’m serious. There isn’t much that can’t be solved with cake. Also if you share it with others it means less calories and lard points for you and a kind gesture to others suffering from PHB.
- Tea or Coffee – More frequent tea/coffee runs gets you away from your desk, which stretches your legs and gets the circulation going again. Giving yourself a break from a computer screen is good for your eyes. So physically this is a good thing.
- Lists – I love lists. It may be because they involve stationery and I have a proper fetish about stationery but any list is a good way to concentrate on the ‘must do’ things. Just take it one day at a time. Too much on the list makes it a ‘laugh and tear up’ list, you need it to feel achievable. You will also feel great as you tick things off your list. Make the first item on the list – Make a list!
- Choices – You do have a choice. You don’t have to do the day job. You could quit and do something completely different or do nothing at all but you choose to stick with what you know. Sometimes it helps to accept that it is your choice to stay in your current job, you could choose to leave but you dislike the alternatives more than staying so you choose to stay. Oh yes you do – I’m not saying it’s a great choice but it is a choice!
by Book News: R.S Pateman
The Prophecy of Bees is the new book from the author of The Secret Life of Amy Archer.
I loved R.S.Pateman’s first novel and so I am looking forward to reading his second novel. It’s due for release by Orion in hardback and e-book on 20th November 2014 and then in paperback on 31st December 2015.
About The Prophecy of Bees.
Moving to Stagcote Manor was meant to be a fresh start for Lindy and her teenage daughter Izzy. A chance at a new life in the country after things went so wrong in London. But for Izzy it is a prison sentence.
There’s something about the house that she can’t quite put her finger on. Something strange and unnerving. As Izzy begins to explore the manor and the village beyond its walls, she discovers the locals have a lot of bizarre superstitions and beliefs. Many of them related to the manor . . . and those who live there.
When Izzy begins to investigate the history of the estate, her unease deepens to fear as the house’s chilling past finally comes to light.
The Prophecy of Bees is available for pre-order
Read our review of The Second Life of Amy Archer.
by Writing Room: Photo Prompt
Writing Room is our online writing group.
We post a prompt. Once you’ve written your piece, post it in the comments box below. Anyone is welcome to take part and it’s an opportunity to post work plus give and gain feedback.
Today’s prompt: Pathway.
Photos can be great for inspiration. What does this photo make you think about? Does it inspire a story? Using this photo, make a list of all the words and themes it makes you think of and then write a story between 500-1000 words.
by Book Club
