Free Creative Writing Course

I decided to have a fresh look at my website, www.stuartrivers.com, and decided that it needed a revamp. This will be a focus over the next couple of days, but I've already added a feature that will hopefully prove interesting to aspiring writers a Free* Creative Writing Course (*If you find the Creative Writing Course helpful and it spurs you on to write your Magnum Opus, please feel free to purchase a copy of my novels from either Kindle or FeedaRead.com as a token of your esteem).


The course is a set of modules I wrote when I was a member of the Rain Publishing stable of writers. The proprietress wanted to host a series of seminars online to help prospective writers and some of her authors were invited to produce a seminar on their particular area of "expertise". I was asked to write and compère the seminar Writing for Children 12 Years and Older, but, due to Rain Publishing ceasing trading, the seminars never took place.

However, the modules for my seminar have remained on my USB memory stick since then gathering the metaphorical dust. Rather than delete them, I have decided to put them online on my website, www.stuartrivers.com (Free Creative Writing Course) and, hopefully, other aspiring writers may take time to read them and gain some inspiration to write a bestseller. 

Please feel free to have a look at these modules and use them for inspiration if you can.

Waiting For News

I've sent the manuscripts for Cromarty Biggs Powder Monkey and In Search of the Beast to a publisher here in the UK and am waiting for news. With Rain Publishing out of action for a while, this is an opportunity for my work to be put into the UK marketplace by a British publisher. The obvious advantage is that, being resident in the UK, I'll be able to meet with the publisher as and when required, and also attend any function necessary to market the books. They've had the manuscripts for about two weeks so I should hear something within the next month or so, but it's nerve-wracking waiting for their verdict.

I'm thankful to Rain Publishing for giving me the opportunity to show that my work is publishable, but I think it's now time for it to be seen on a wider front; the object of the exercise is to hopefully give me the chance of changing careers and be able to take up writing full time. As soon as the publisher gets back to me, I'll post it here.

Sales

Since receiving the consignment of books from Rain Publishing, I've managed to sell a few! Its not in the realms of Harry Potter numbers, but it shows that there is an interest out there - I've just got to find time in my busy schedule to go out there and take every opportunity I can to get people interested and have them part with their hard-earned cash! In that regard, emails will be winging their way to prospective hosts for book signing events so, who knows, I may be appearing at a bookshop near you.

It won't be long before my next book, In Search of the Beast, hits the shelves as its due out in May 2008. A stablemate for Cromarty may help both books to find an audience. I don't have a front cover picture yet, but, as soon as do, I'll post it online to show you what it'll look like.

I haven't posted many Blogs, mainly because I'm busy working full time on shift work and then spending free time with my family. My second book is due out in May 2008 and, in anticipation of this event, Rain Publishing have made my first novel (Cromarty Biggs Powder Monkey) the featured book on their website.

I'm going to be involved with a seminar that will be hosted online by Rain Publishing; my input will be to advise writers on writing for the teenager/young adult market. This is very exciting as it may open other avenues for my own writing. I would really like to write full time and not have the bother of working for anyone else (Rain Publishing excepted of course!).

I'm a third of the way writing my third novel and will hopefully have a manuscript ready by the end of the summer. In that respect, I'll sign off now and get hard at work.

Well the book has been out since April 2007 and needs to be marketed with a bit more gusto. I am, therefore, appearing on http://www.thatradio.com/ radio show "Liquid Lunch" on Friday 26th October 2007 to discuss the novel. Should be interesting!