As I said on Friday, the conference is now in its third year and, with TLC always on the hunt for new exciting opportunities for writers, it is no surprise that they have made this year’s conference bigger and better than ever by adding a brand new bonus day to the programme.
The third day saw people from all walks of literary life taking over Farringdon’s Free Word Centre, with Kobo Writing Life’s Diego Marano kicking the day off with an informative introduction to Kobo and its continued support and schemes for writers.
Thanks to the Royal Society of Literature in association with the Booker Prize Foundation, upstairs fourteen lucky writers took part in an intimate three-hour masterclass with award-winning novelist and poet, Bernadine Evaristo. During the session, entitled ‘On Character’, Evaristo divulged her secrets in the art of character building, from how to write complex, interesting but credible characters that can hold an entire novel, to using them effectively to create powerful, emotional impact.
It is arguable that it is impossible to be a great writer if you are not also a great editor. Luckily professional copy-editor and proof reader Richard Sheehan was on-hand all day to showcase the different types of editing, indispensible advice for any author, be they published traditionally or independently.
Thanks to the Royal Society of Literature in association with the Booker Prize Foundation, upstairs fourteen lucky writers took part in an intimate three-hour masterclass with award-winning novelist and poet, Bernadine Evaristo. During the session, entitled ‘On Character’, Evaristo divulged her secrets in the art of character building, from how to write complex, interesting but credible characters that can hold an entire novel, to using them effectively to create powerful, emotional impact.
It is arguable that it is impossible to be a great writer if you are not also a great editor. Luckily professional copy-editor and proof reader Richard Sheehan was on-hand all day to showcase the different types of editing, indispensible advice for any author, be they published traditionally or independently.
Meanwhile the main theatre was transformed into literary X Factor. TLC’s Rebecca Swift and Aki Schilz took Dermot O’Leary’s seat, hosting the Kobo Writing Life sponsored Pen Factor Writing Competition pitching session. Fifteen brave Pen Factor entrants, including this year’s winner Guinevere Glasfurd-Brown, read from their opening extract to a panel of top London agents: Hannah Sheppard (DHH Literary Agency), Heather Holden-Brown (hhb agency), Tom Witcomb (Blake Friedmann), Chris Wellbelove (Greene & Heaton) and Lorella Belli (LBLA). The sessions provided the writers with the rare opportunity to pitch directly to the industry ‘gatekeepers’ and walk away with detailed bespoke editorial advice and an invaluable insight into the mysterious mind of a Literary Agent. And it was clearly not just the readers who were benefitting, as each discussion was accompanied by the soundtrack of scrawling pens and scurrying fingers over keyboards coming from the rapt audience.
In the main hall, the Writers’ Fair was in full swing with representatives from TLC, the Alliance of Independent Authors, Amazon KDP & CreateSpace, Completely Novel, ePubli, Kobo Writing Life, Liars’ League, and the Royal Society of Literature, each offering both one-to-one and drop-in sessions for writers throughout the day.
From agents to Amazon, from debuts to backlist, from digital to live fiction, the TLC’s bonus day showcased the plethora of options available to writers, both new and established, and taught us all that the Digital Age is not about one right way of publishing but about multiple opportunities and platforms waiting to be explored.
Wow, that all sounded pretty intense and meaninful huh? Well I'm feeling knackered so I'm going to go to sleep all week. Oh, wait, I'm working and have the London Short Story Festival next weekend... no rest for the wicked!
P.S. I always thought it was 'no rest for the wicket' as in, you know, cricket... I think my way makes more sense.
In the main hall, the Writers’ Fair was in full swing with representatives from TLC, the Alliance of Independent Authors, Amazon KDP & CreateSpace, Completely Novel, ePubli, Kobo Writing Life, Liars’ League, and the Royal Society of Literature, each offering both one-to-one and drop-in sessions for writers throughout the day.
From agents to Amazon, from debuts to backlist, from digital to live fiction, the TLC’s bonus day showcased the plethora of options available to writers, both new and established, and taught us all that the Digital Age is not about one right way of publishing but about multiple opportunities and platforms waiting to be explored.
Wow, that all sounded pretty intense and meaninful huh? Well I'm feeling knackered so I'm going to go to sleep all week. Oh, wait, I'm working and have the London Short Story Festival next weekend... no rest for the wicked!
P.S. I always thought it was 'no rest for the wicket' as in, you know, cricket... I think my way makes more sense.
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