‘High flying’ new imprint: Bloomsbury Circus
Rook by Jane Rusbridge will be one of nine launch titles in a ‘high flying’ new imprint from Bloomsbury, it has been announced today in the Bookseller. ‘The books in Bloomsbury Circus,’ says Alexandra Pringle, Editor-in-Chief, ‘will be mostly fiction, unashamedly literary, always fresh and sometimes surprising.’ One of the aims of the new imprint is to celebrate the joy and beauty of the physical book.
The imprint will include established novelists like Liz Jensen, Patrick McGrath and Emily Perkins, as well as début writers. Read more about the launch titles on the Bloomsbury website
Rook is a mesmerising story of family, legacy and turning back the tides, set in the ancient Sussex village of Bosham. It explores the mystery surrounding Harold II’s burial place, the hidden histories of the Bayeux Tapestry and connections forged through three women’s secrets and their stories, past and present.
You can read more, and preorder ROOK from Bloomsbury online
Diary of a Rook Obsession, in pictures
‘The creative habit is like a drug. The particular obsession changes, but the excitement, the thrill of your creation lasts’ Henry Moore
Now that I have just finished checking the page proofs for Rook, to be published in August, will my 4 year obsession with rooks begin to dwindle? An obsession shared by my daughter Natalie, a photographer.
Autumn, 2007: Noticed rooks’ nests in the trees either side of the lanes on my drive home. Wanted to learn more.
Read Mark Cocker’s Crow Country . 
Fell in love with rooks.
December, 2007: Went to Norfolk seeking rooks. Watched thousands and thousands of them fly in to roost, near Buckenham Carr. One of the most uplifting, cathartic experiences of my life. Three nights in a row.
Spring, Summer, Winter 2008: Read and talked, a lot, about rooks. Collected stories about pet rooks.
January, 2009: Returned to Norfolk, with my daughter, Natalie Miller and her camera. Nat fell in love with rooks too.
Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter, 2009: Nat and I continued to be distracted by sightings of rooks, rookeries and roosts. Nat took more photographs, near where we live in Sussex:
January, 2010: Nat went to back to Norfolk, with a friend who loves birds, and took more photos.
Summer, 2011: Talked to Nat about Nora, the main character in Rook. Told a little of her story. Which gave Nat some ideas:
Autumn, 2011: Sent some of Nat’s rook pictures to Bloomsbury.
December, 2011: Senior designer Greg Heinimann created the first version of the cover, using one of Nat’s photographs of rooks in Norfolk:
I had one or two ideas. Discussed them with my editor, who passed them on to Greg. Version 2 of the cover design:
Loved the Bayeux Tapestry in the sky on the back cover. Suggested a scene more relevant to the themes of the novel.
3rd, and final, version:
All photographs of rooks in this post taken by Natalie Miller . Prints available for sale via website contact form.
Rook by Jane Rusbridge available to preorder from Amazon here , and from Bloomsbury here
Let’s Get Digital: Social Networking and Digital Marketing for Writers
London Writing Workshops
20th October workshop: LET’S GET DIGITAL: SOCIAL NETWORKING AND DIGITAL MARKETING FOR WRITERS
Novelist Jane Rusbridge – The Devil’s Music (Bloomsbury 2009) and ROOK (Bloomsbury Circus 2012) – and PR expert Lucy Middleton on how to negotiate the highways and byways of new media to connect with new readers. More details to follow.
OTHER LONDON WRITING WORKSHOPS FOR 2012.
Saturday, 25 February 2012, 10.30am – 4pm.
CAPTURE NEW CHARACTERS. HEAR THEM SPEAK: Characterization and Dialogue
with Vicky Grut.
Novels and short stories that linger in the reader’s memory almost always have intriguing and complex characters at their heart. This enjoyable and highly practical one-day workshop explores different ways of creating compelling fictional characters, as well as ways of writing sharp, lively dialogue that will bring their voices alive on the page. Suitable for all levels of experience. Cost: £85 includes tea, coffee and a sandwich lunch. Group limit: 12
Saturday, 17 March, 10.30am – 4pm.
THE WRITERS’ WORKOUT: Inspiration for new fiction
with Vicky Grut
Another intensive day of writing exercises and prompts designed to recharge your creative batteries in a supportive environment. Come along and rustle up some new inspiration for the Spring. Suitable for all levels of experience. Cost: £85 includes tea, coffee and a sandwich lunch. Group limit: 12
Saturday, 21 April 2012, 10.30am – 4pm.
SHAPING YOUR STORY: Narrative Structure
with Vicky Grut
A practical day of writing exercises and focused discussion for novelists and short story writers who want to explore story structure. Come along and experiment with different kinds of story shapes or bring an existing story outline and get feedback on work-in-progress in a supportive environment. Cost: £85 includes tea, coffee and a sandwich lunch. Group limit: 12.
ALSO…
Saturday, 26 May 2012, 10.30am – 4pm.
WRITING FROM LIFE – with ALEXEI SAYLE
and Vicky Grut
An opportunity to spend a day exploring the pleasures and pitfalls of drawing on real experiences with writer and comedian Alexei Sayle. Using a mix of discussion and practical writing exercises, we’ll look at ways of shaping characters from real people – including yourself; drawing inspiration from real places; creating story-lines; and the evocative power of sensory memories. This workshop will appeal to people interested in life writing, memoir or creative non-fiction, as well as those writing fiction based on real events.
Praise for Alexei Sayle’s recent memoir Stalin Ate My Homework: [This] ‘touching, elegantly written memoir stands out’ (Independent on Sunday); ‘Fascinating and hugely entertaining’(Daily Telegraph); ‘brilliant satires on modern life’ (Tim Lott, Independent); a book of ‘charm and substance, both as memoir and history’ (Times Literary Supplement).
Workshop leader Vicky Grut is the recipient of a number of short fiction awards, including the 2009 Asham Award (finalist) and the 2006 Chapter One International Short Story Prize (winner). Her stories have appeared in magazines and collections including Random Factor (Pulp Books, 1997), Reshape Whilst Damp (Serpent’s Tail, 2000), Valentine’s Day: Stories of Revenge (Duckworth, 2000), two volumes of the British Council anthology New Writing 13 (Picador, 2005) and NW14 (Granta, 2006), and Waving at the Gardener (Bloomsbury, 2009). She is a reader for the Literary Consultancy and has taught for Birkbeck College, the Open University and the Arvon Foundation. She teaches on the BA in Creative Writing at London’s South Bank University.
More Details can be found here
Reading Group Meet-the-Author Evening
| March 19, 2012 | ||
| 7:30 pm | to | 10:30 pm |
Do you belong to a Reading Group in or around Bognor? Why not get reading novels written by three award-winning authors, all of whom have strong local connections with West Sussex, then come along to Bognor Library in March to join us for an fun and friendly evening of readings, conversation, and a chance to discuss your questions about the books.
DATE: 19th March 2012
TIME: 7.30pm
PLACE: Bognor Library
TICKET DETAILS: here
Gabrielle Kimm’s debut novel, His Last Duchess, was published by Little, Brown in 2010 and was long-listed for the RNA Novel of the Year. Her second novel, The Courtesan’s Lover, shortlisted for the Impress Prize, was released in November 2011. Gabrielle lives and works in Sussex. As well as her writing, she is also an English teacher, and has taught in a number of local schools. The Courtesan’s Lover – this passionate story resounds with historic truth and makes for a vibrant journey around the Naples of the past - (Italia! magazine)
Isabel Ashdown’s debut novel Glasshopper was twice named in the press as one of the best books of 2009. Her second novel, Hurry Up and Wait, was published by Myriad in June 2011. Isabel grew up in East Wittering, and the Sussex Coast continues to be an important influence in much of her writing. Her prize-winning entry to the Mail on Sunday Novel Competition was described by judges Fay Weldon and John Mortimer as ‘magnificent’ (Glasshopper, 2009).
Jane Rusbridge, winner of the Philip Lebrun Prize, is published by Bloomsbury. Her first novel, The Devil’s Music, was nominated for the 2011 International IMPAC Literary Award. Her second, Rook, is set in Bosham and published in August 2012. The Rusbridge family has farmed in the local area for generations and Jane gains much of her inspiration for setting and atmosphere from the Wittering seascapes. ‘A highly original, fresh, new talent of rare quality’ – The Lady
Books will be available to buy at the special event price of £5, signed by the authors.
Local Book Group Visit
| February 7, 2012 | ||
| 7:00 pm | to | 10:00 pm |
Joining local book group to discuss The Devil’s Music with readers.
Private meeting.
Details to be confirmed
Sea Glass: The Story behind a Christmas Giveaway
Sea-glass is something we have probably all picked up at one time or another, if we’ve spent any time on a beach. I’ll pick up any pieces I spot on a walk along Wittering beach and, whenever I sit on the shingle, I’ll be raking my fingers through the pebbles, searching. After years of living near the sea with children, the collection of such ‘treasures’ along the shoreline has left me with an assortment of bottles filled sea-glass in various sizes and shapes, misty colours in shades of green, white and brown, as well as my favourite, the cobalt blue.
What is it that we find alluring about the chips of coloured glass? For me it’s the texture and colour, the connection with the sea and the mystery of where and what have they come from, these broken fragments rolled on the ocean’s bed for who knows how many years, smoothed and frosted by the motion of waves against sand and pebbles until they are in some way whole again. Sea glass invites the beachcomber to pause, to hold each piece up to the light and wonder at its origins, the story behind its journey. Sea-glass is rare, but not too rare, and it’s free. I’m sure I’m not alone in preferring sea-glass to diamonds.
Designer Harriet McAlonan and I came across each other on twitter – I can’t remember how, but I’m guessing it was through our shared passion for the sea. Browsing the Sea Sparkle website, filled with beautiful bracelets, necklaces and earrings fashioned in silver with sea glass collected from Devon and Cornwall’s beaches, I bought some of Harriet’s delicate jewellery for myself and my daughters.
When Harriet read The Devil’s Music, she was inspired to make her own version of a bracelet the mother, Helen, receives at the end of the novel. The bracelet arrives in an envelope from Crete in a padded Jiffy envelope, and is in the form of a Celtic shield knot, which Helen takes as a clue it is a gift made by the son she has not seen since he was nine years old. I was delighted when Harriet sent me a picture of a similar bracelet she’d made, inspired by the knot work described in the novel. So, although Harriet’s bracelet is not yet available for sale, she and I have teamed together to offer a special Christmas Giveaway: Harriet’s Get Knotted necklace comes with a FREE signed copy of The Devil’s Music – for all those who, like us, love the sea.
Meet the Chichester Book Club Authors:
| March 19, 2012 | ||
| 7:30 pm | to | 10:30 pm |
Come and meet Chichester Book Club authors Jane Rusbridge, Gabrielle Kimm and Isabel Ashdown at Bognor Library on March 19th, at 7.30pm.
Gabrielle Kimm, His Last Duchess, was published by Little, Brown in 2010 and long-listed for the RNA Novel of the Year. Her second novel, The Courtesan’s Lover , shortlisted for the Impress Prize, was released in November 2011. Gabrielle lives and works in Sussex. As well as her writing, she is also an English teacher, and has taught in a number of local schools.
His Last Duchess (Sphere) is ‘ full of fascinating period detail and simmering with tension’ – Lancashire Evening Post.
Isabel Ashdown’s debut novel Glasshopper was twice named in the press as one of the best books of 2009. Her second novel, Hurry Up and Wait, was published by Myriad in June 2011. Isabel grew up in East Wittering, and the Sussex Coast continues to be an important influence in much of her writing.
Her prize-winning entry to the Mail on Sunday Novel Competition was described by judges Fay Weldon and John Mortimer as ‘magnificent’ (Glasshopper, 2009).
Jane Rusbridge’s first novel, The Devil’s Music (Bloomsbury, 2009) was nominated for the 2011 International IMPAC Literary Award. Her second, Rook (2012) is set in Bosham and explores the mystery surrounding Harold II burial place. The Rusbridge family has farmed in the local area for generations and Jane gains much of her inspiration for setting and atmosphere from the Wittering seascapes.
‘a highly original, fresh, new talent of rare quality’ – The Lady
Christmas Open House with local artists and authors
| December 3, 2011 | ||
| 2:00 pm | to | 6:00 pm |
| 2:00 pm | to | 6:00 pm |
ROOK: coming 2012
Coming August 2012 . . .
‘A novel of such calibre whets the appetite for more’ – The Irish Examiner
Nora has come home to the Sussex coast where, every dawn, she runs along the creek path to the sea. In the half light, fragments of cello music crash through her mind, but she casts them out – it’s more than a year since she performed in public. There are memories she must banish in order to survive: a charismatic teacher with gold-flecked eyes, a mistake she cannot unmake. At home her mother Ada is waiting: a fragile, bitter woman who distils for herself a glamorous past as she smokes French cigarettes in her unkempt garden.
In the village of Bosham the future is invading. A charming young documentary maker has arrived to shoot a film about King Cnut and his cherished but illegitimate daughter, whose body is buried under the flagstones of the local church. As Jonny disturbs the fabric of the village, digging up tales of ancient battles and burials, the threads lead back to home and Ada and Nora find themselves face to face with the shameful secrets they had so carefully buried.
One day, Nora finds a half-dead baby bird in a ditch. She brings him home and, over the hot summer months, cradles Rook back to life.
Set in the ancient Sussex village of Bosham, Rusbridge’s mesmerising story of family, legacy and turning back the tides explores the mystery surrounding Harold II’s burial place, the hidden histories of the Bayeux Tapestry and connections forged through three women’s secrets and their stories, past and present.
‘A brilliant new voice’ Alison Macleod
How Reading Modern Poetry Can Change Your Life: A Writing Exercise
If you’re looking for a starting point for writing, why not look again at a story which already exists? Take a family story, perhaps, or a myth, a fairytale or story from the bible, or maybe a well-known novel, and then retell it from another perspective, or a different character’s viewpoint. Choose a story which fascinates you, which draws you back to it, for whatever reason.
Jo Shapcott has done this with her poem, ‘Mrs Noah: Taken After the Flood’. She builds on a story we already know, giving Mrs Noah a voice and a previously untold story of her own. Though ‘The ocean/is only a memory’, Mrs Noah is haunted by sensual thoughts which surface, thoughts of ‘big paws which idly turn to bat the air’, of a ‘rough tongue, the claws, the little bites / the crude taste of his mane.’
Here’s the whole poem, taken from 52 Ways of Looking at a Poem or How Reading Modern Poetry Can Change Your Life by Ruth Padel: :
Charles Wright, in his introduction to ‘The Best American Poetry 2008′, says poetry is ‘the fox under our shirts that gnaws away at our hearts’, a description which aptly captures the fierce intensity of poetic language. I often find that a poem will provide me with the inital spark for a story, with that image or idea which ‘gnaws away’. Another poet whose work has struck a chord with me recently is Esther Morgan . I keep going back to her poem ‘Bone China’, from the collection, The Silence Living In Houses You can read the poem here.
You might like to choose a particular poem which you draws you back again and again. Or, you could try the following steps with ‘Bone China’, and see where they take you.
With the poem in front of you:
(1) Find sections of 1-3 lines which leap out at you.Write them down, or underline them.
(2) Break the 1-3 lines down into key words/phrases/images. Now, one by one, do a mind map of ideas, associations, memories, images, questions for EACH.
Give each mind map its own page and give yourself plenty of time. Let your mind roam. Keep going. Keep musing.
(3) Now… whose point of view or experience interests you most? Perhaps there is even someone on the edge of the text, connected in some way but not mentioned…
(4) Are you interested in creating a new version of the same ‘story’? (set in a different period, a different place?) Or perhaps a new ‘branch’ of the original story?
(5) Whose voice or which pov?
(6) Now write, quickly, for 10 minutes. See what unfolds.
Entries RSS | Comments RSS | Designed By Insight Studio