Outback Writer

Review for Vissi d'arte

2011-11-05T08:26:00.000-07:00

For anyone who has enjoyed viewing opera, for anyone who has attempted the
discipline of the performing arts, Vissi d'arte starts out with the stepping
stones - the individuals who enroll in opera school, the lessons they must
learn, and the teacher who is an enigma. For anyone who likes a slow build to
passion, Vissi d'arte portrays a group of people who, in working together, find
themselves in turnabouts of attraction and discovery.

The characters
lead the reader on, Max the banker who has always desired to show off his voice
on stage, the young women vying for lead roles, some unsure and one insidious, a
director whose favorites wait on his choice, a journalist who uncovers the
intrigue behind the curtain, and an opera coach whose past is veiled after her
move to Australia.

It's entrancing to identify with a student in the
opera school. Their language lessons and their acting practice are carefully
depicted while the author shows how the intensity of this art and its student
circle can develop into destructive passion. The knives in rehearsal, the parts
that are assigned become prelude to a desperate singer's scheme to obtain a lead
singer's life. But the most operatic of all pasts is that of the teacher,
Harriet Shaw, not known to have sung since she left England.

Realistic
dialogue, details about the restaurants and leased houses the opera students
inhabit, their days off at the ocean are all redolent of the performing artist's
life. If a person wonders how much these lives have to do with the stage's
stories, Vissi d'arte portrays both the discipline and the off-hours release of
this demanding lifestyle.

An opera singer is going to read my novel!

2011-10-15T09:55:00.000-07:00

Vissi d'arte is being given, as a birthday present, to an opera singer who was a principal at the Welsh National Opera.

I'm delighted but fearful. What if she hates it?

2011-08-04T03:50:00.001-07:00

Murders that look like accidents. An accident that looks like murder.

A psychological thriller.

A couple and their young son burn to death in a house fire. A girl dies from a nut allergy. A woman falls under a train during the rush hour. An accountant falls down the steps to his basement. Their deaths appear to be accidents. Only Gloria knows they were murders, because she murdered them.

Each time she kills someone she buys a doll.

A shy young man who has had a nervous breakdown, advertises for a lodger to solve his financial problems. Gloria moves in. He has no idea she has already murdered six people. His life becomes a nightmare. As her character become more twisted, it is no longer enough to kill her victims. First she must wreck their lives and witness their suffering.

Typical comment:

A cracking read. Tense, taut and blackly humourous, this is wonderful stuff. Gloria is identifiable and unfathomable, and I'm not sure if I like her or not (similarly, I'm unsure whether to feel sorry for Garry or join in with Gloria in her revenge).

Link to US Kindle

Link to UK Kindle

2011-08-04T03:33:00.001-07:00

This is a review for Eumeralla. I'm delighted.

'Very well-written indeed for an indie(?) author. The sample is rather extensive and gives a good taste of what to expect for the rest of the book. I'd say it was an ideal holiday book for reading in the sunshine, being set as it is in

Australia

. In some ways - and I suppose this is a minor criticism - it reminds me of Anna Karenina, as if this was the Australian book that Tolstoy never wrote, and similarly, the first few chapters of Eumeralla aren't exactly a barrel of laughs. That said, I can well imagine this being a very successful and critically-acclaimed book.'

This is a link to the Amazon page for my Kindle e-book: Eumeralla

Eumeralla

2011-03-30T08:18:00.000-07:00

Thanks to Mel Jarrett for giving me permission to use this photo.

Eumeralla is about secrets, tragedy and love. It is set in the Australian Outback. Themes running through the novel are family conflicts, adoption and inheritance.

This is a link to the Kindle edition of Eumeralla

My Inspiration

2011-03-26T04:01:00.000-07:00

Gertrude Johnson in 1921.

She was the inspiration for the character Harriet Shaw in Vissi d'arte.

My books on Amazon Kindle

2011-03-23T08:19:00.000-07:00

To access my books on Amazon Kindle click on the titles below the pictures - a new window will appear.

Vissi d'arte

Eumeralla

On Kindle - Eumeralla & Vissi'darte

2011-03-21T09:21:00.000-07:00

My 2 novels Vissi d'arte & Eumeralla are now on Kindle.

Vissi d'arte has already had a good review and 5 stars.

Brief blurb for Vissi d'arte :-

A woman with a secret.
An inquisitive journalist.
An ambitious opera director.
Students with brilliant voices.

All united by their love of opera. Vissi d'arte is about ambition, loyalty, betrayal, secrets, love, adultery, success and failure.

Eumeralla is set in the Australian outback.

If Eleanor could go back 24 years and change things, she'd wish away her children. Eumeralla's themes are, secrets, tragedy, love, family conflicts, inheritance, horses and adoption.

An Online Group for Writers - Harper Collins

2009-05-13T05:15:00.001-07:00

In January I joined Authonomy, an online group for writers run by the Publisher HarperCollins. I posted my novel Vissi d'arte on the site and have received over 200 comments on it from other members. I don't know any of them, which makes the feedback I've received even more exciting..

From now on I'm going to be posting some of these comments on here. When I joined, Vissi d'arte was ranked somewhere around 1500. A week ago it reached 21 but has fallen a bit.

I'd strongly advise any writer with a book or start of a book to join authonomy. The feedback is excellent, there's a real sense of community and it's free:

If you would like to see more click here.

Here are two examples of the feedback. I received these comments yesterday. There is also a link to all the comments at the bottom of the page.

Joanna,

Regardless that I'm probably going to be echoeing a far few people within your comments strand, but your book is near flawless. It is one of those rare treasures: a literary gem, polished and cut with precision and beauty.

I think that if a publisher were to take a chance on you, and with the right editor backing you, we could be seeing the next evolution of such writers as A.S. Byatt, Margaret Atwood and Margaret Drabble.

Simply superb, and I sincerely hope someone, somewhere sits up and takes notice that there are intelligent, literary and given the chance, commercial classics that will keep the industry in thougtful prose for many, many years.

It seems almost pat to say this in the presence of this book, but of course it is shelved... but with the respect it deserves.

*************************************************************************************

Hi Joanna-

This is wonderful!! Almost everyone in my family is a professional musician of one guise or another and I felt right at home in your story. Hmm...I am not sure if that sounds like as much of a compliment as I mean it to be! I feel like you've captured that whole world to a tee.

The mystery about Harriet is set up wonderfully; I am intrigued, but you haven't sacrificed characterization. I don't know this Sally character, but I am not a fan and I love how you use her to help us get to know Nicholas. Actually, there are a lot of things I like; too many to mention in a little comment.

This is one of those books that I really wish I had a hard copy of, so that I could curl up with it before bed. Curling up with a laptop just isn't the same! Oh well, at least I can put it on my shelf,

Maria

************************************************************************************

To read all the comments use this link.

Vissi d'arte Episode 2

2008-07-25T10:11:00.000-07:00

Episode 2

Tanya's news shocks Nicholas.

To read more please download the first episode free from this LINK. I would appreciate your comments on what you read. Thank you.

Episode 1 of Vissi d'arte

2008-07-19T09:46:00.000-07:00

Episode 1

‘Of love bereft,this life is torment.’
The Force of Destiny – Verdi

January 1968

Snow crystals hit his face as he carried his suitcases up the icy footpath. Only the thought that he might be in Australia in a few weeks cheered him. The blizzard almost obscured the elegant house he had inherited, but did not want. Kew, with its botanical gardens and tree lined streets was too suburban for Nicholas. He preferred the frenetic atmosphere of Chelsea where he had lived for seven years. Tomorrow someone else would take his place in the crowded attic flat.
He stood outside the gate, daunted by the responsibilities facing him. The house had belonged to his family since 1890, and to sell it seemed wrong. Gusts of wind caught the hem of his coat, hooking it over the jagged end of a fallen branch. Disentangling himself, he walked up the path, and opened the front door. It was the first time he had been in the house alone. He took a deep breath, expecting to smell the Chanel perfume his grandmother had worn, but her scent had not lingered. Unprepared for the stale air, he felt bereft. He dumped his cases at the foot of the staircase.
Letters scattered over the black and white tiled hallway raised his hopes. He looked for an airmail envelope, but there was nothing from Australia. Most of the others were electricity and gas bills addressed to his grandmother. His letters were from people in the drama company, begging him to return. He shook his head. Working with Sally would be unbearable.

To read more please download the first episode free from this LINK. I would appreciate your comments on what you read. Thank you.

Blurb for Vissi d'arte

2008-07-16T05:58:00.000-07:00

A Novel about Love and Music

Nicholas is an ambitious young opera director. Natasha, Jacqueline, Max, Deborah and Richard are talented young singers at a fiercely competitive opera school. Harriet has a secret. Vivien is an inquisitive journalist.

Set in Australia in the sixties, a time of moral and cultural change, Vissi d’arte is about the ambitions and relationships between students and staff at an opera school in Melbourne. Politically, this period of Australian history was turbulent. Passions over conscription and the Vietnam War were intense. The opposing views of the characters cause explosive quarrels. Further conflict occurs when Nicholas, the new director from London, wants to update popular operas and put on performances by modern composers. His ideas are resisted by the founder of the theatre, Harriet Shaw, who is a traditionalist.

Vissi d’arte contains doomed love stories and a mystery, which is interwoven through the novel. In 1930 Harriet gave up her opera career in London. For years she has lied about the reason. Nicholas’s girlfriend, Vivien, starts investigating.

Episode 1 tomorrow.

Trying to find an agent/publisher

2008-07-14T05:59:00.000-07:00

What a catch 22 situation. Writers are suppoed to only approach one agent at a time. At that rate a writer would only be able to send out about three proposals a year. I've sent out lots of enquiry letters. One page long. Some agents have taken six week to send out standard rejection letters. How long s=does it take to read and make a decision on a 1 page letter? So I'm abandoning hope and going the blog route instead. I'll be posting my query letters and short episodes of my novels Vissi d'arte, Eumeralla and The Doll Collection.

The Other Boleyn Girl

2008-04-15T05:18:00.000-07:00

A film about Anne Boleyn without Cardinal Wolsey? Yes, the director obviousy didn't think he was important. He was mentioned though - ONCE. Two hours long it was a bitter dissapointment. The book by Philippa Gregory was brilliant, but the film was dire. Henry VIII needed a charisma implant. Anne Boleyn was good but hampered by the the script. Interplay between the characters was zero. Oh, and Thomas Moore didn't appear either. Still I don't suppose the director or scrip writer bothered to read the book which was a shame. Maybe they just read the blurb on the jacket.

Writer's Beware

2007-10-12T10:17:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I almost fell for a 'literary agent' scam. Thank goodness for a writers forum, which absolutely slated this 'agency'. Based in New York they appear very encouraging. Everything is done by e-mail. I submitted a synopsis and bio and the next day they replied that they would like to see more. So I sent it to them. A week later I received a positive response, but still no personal e-mail, which I found a bit odd, but the e-mail, which was very long, explained this away. Then the contract arrived and alarm bells started ringing.
The writers forum said that this was simply a mail drop. None of the submissions were read, just automatically given the same reply. Just to be sure I went through the process from the beginning again. I gave myself a terrible bio, that anyone would have rejected immediately, (I said that I wrote all day, exactly 500 words) and the new synopsis, about a cat that sat on the mat, was equally appalling. Guess what? Yes, a positive reply, identical to the one I'd received for my genuine submission, came back. This pretend 'agency' want money ... not for them, of course, but for the price of editing your novel, even if it's already been edited. The contract urges one not to have it checked by a solicitor, because this will waste time and it's been drawn up by their attorney.
Two of the people at this bogus agency are Sherry Fine and Georgina Orr, although the names are probably as fake as their agency. The comments about them on the web are very unflattering. So writers beware.

Pavarotti

2007-09-09T08:51:00.000-07:00

When I was at opera school in Melbourne all the tenors wished they had a voice like Luciano Pavarotti. Memories of his charisma, smile and voice will last for centuries.

Addio, Maestro.

A platinum voice
Preserved for posterity
On plastic

EUMERALLA - the movie!

2007-06-20T07:33:00.000-07:00

Pete has just made me a movie to publicise Eumeralla. To see it use this link: my movie.
Make sure the sound is turned on and you will need Windows media player capability in your browser.

EUMERALLA

2007-05-28T03:36:00.000-07:00

EUMERALLA is now available on Amazon.

I am adapting Vissi d'arte into a film script. It's more difficult that I imagined. The dialogue scenes are fine and they zip along, but when I get to emotions and people's internal thoughts it's more difficult, but I'll persevere.

The Richmond Writers' Circle continues to flourish. Suzanne Bugler's second novel MEET ME AT THE BOATHOUSE has been published by Hodder Headline. I hope it has the success that it deserves.

Annie, Jessica, Louise ad I went to a stunning production of AIDA a few weeks ago at The Richmond Theatre. It was leap out of your seat stuff. The best opera productions I've seen have been at Richmond. Ellen Kent productions know what they are doing. I saw Tosca in 2004. The production was perfect. Not a thing to criticise. When I heard one of the minor characters singing I thought, 'Heavens, what on earth are the leads going to be like?' Sublime is the answer. Scarpia was handsome, but managed to look sinister, so powerful was his stage presence. The near rape scene had me terrified. Tosca sang Vissi d'arte lying on the floor. A stunt girl jumped off the battlements. It's better than anything I've seen at The Royal Opera House or at The ENO. I never want to see Tosca again, because I know I'll be disappointed.

The White Cross

2007-04-15T10:20:00.000-07:00

Woe! The last decent pub in Richmond has gone the way of all the others. After refurbishment it now has a huge TV screen in the upstairs room and speakers which will play music favoured by the bar staff. Any request to turn it down so patrons can hear each others conversation will be met with the universal comment, 'No one else has complained.'

Gone is the cosy atmosphere that made it so appealing. The interior decorator have robbed the place of its soul. There are no more quirky individual pictures on the walls. Why they had to do this is a mystery. The place was always full! Last year there was a board outside proudly proclaiming ONLY FOOTBALL FREE PUB IN RICHMOND. What will it proclaim this year?

Richmond has such a wonderful heritage. It has history and two theatres. Instead of playing up to this, in the pace of ten years, it has been wrecked. Gone is Masquerades the basement wine bar in the Orange Tree. Next to go was Boswells which looked, as one person in the writers group said, as if was the place where revolutions had been plotted. Then The White Swan down Old Palace Lane was redecorated and the beams were painted vomit green and the place resounded with music suitable for airheads. Magnums, an atmospheric wine bar, now looks like a bathroom and sells take away cocktails at drink in the Ritz prices.

Where can anyone go for a quiet drink in Richmond? If anyone knows please tell me quickly.

Writers fall foul of the Child Protection Act

2007-04-10T13:24:00.000-07:00

The Richmond Writers Circle has fallen foul of the child protection act. A youth theatre group, consisting of girls from between the ages of 14 to 17, now meet before us. The room is big. There is a platform. The girls are fully clothed. But we are not allowed to enter in the room until they leave it. Adults and children are not allowed in the same room together unless the adults have been cleared by the police.
Are their anxious parents waiting to meet them? No. How strange. It is 7.30. These girls are permitted to walk into Richmond town centre, which is seething with adults, unaccompanied by their caring parents. Most of the year it is dark at 7.30. Children can get on a bus or train, full of adults, and make their precarious way home. But they can't be in the same room as adults who have not been cleared by the police.
There must be material for novel here somewhere. A crime novel.

Eumeralla Launch

2007-03-04T09:22:00.000-08:00

Eumeralla was launched today. The party was held in the parish rooms, which have a wonderful view of trees and the Church of St Mary Magdalen in Richmond. When I heard the forecast of torrential rain and storms I thought that no one would be able to come. I was wrong and I am so happy that so many people turned up and made the launch memorable.
It was an afternoon of music and short readings from the novel. Richard Rickford the chairman of The Richmond Writers' Circle did the introductions and two of the readings. Vera Lustig read another short section. They both have expressive voices and someone said afterward that he could see a film script. So if anyone knows Stephen Polikoff or Franco Zeffirelli please lend them a copy of Eumeralla!
Annie Morris sang beautifully and chose songs with an Australian theme. Why she is not famous is a mystery to me.
I am indebted to members of the writers circle and to Peter, my husband. I would not have been able to do it without them.
I will be having another launch party for my work colleagues in the near future to thank them for their encouragement.

Building Hotels

2007-02-04T10:22:00.000-08:00

We have spent every weekend since the storm chopping and sawing the remains of our gum tree. Its fall crushed two hebe bushes which also have to be taken out. But the larger branches and the trunk have gone towards building 4 invertebrate hotels for frogs and beetles and any other eco friendly creatures that want to take up residence.
We look forward to planting a tree to replace our gum, we haven't decided what yet, and some new hebe bushes. The stump, we hope to be able to turn into a garden seat where we can sit and admire our new garden.
What with politicians finally taking the threat of global warming seriously it is vital to have as many trees for birds and insects as we can.

Casualty of the storm

2007-01-22T10:35:00.000-08:00

Our beautiful gum tree, which we planted 15 years ago, fell over in the storm. Amazingly, the wall on which it fell didn't collapse. When we moved here our garden was very plain. The only tree was a dying apple. In Australia gum trees used to be called widow makers becsue the branches would fall off. Here, where they have plenty of water, the wood is less brittle but the root systems are shallow and they just topple over. Trees make such a difference to an area, adding beauty and variety and a home for birds so we were anxious to get as many trees in our garden as possible. We planted an oak, 2 maples, a silver birch, which died a few years ago, a pine, and a tree of heaven. Birds have generously given us a sycamore, hollyoake, and 3 yews which we are nurturing. But the majestic gum tree was the Queen of our small forest and we miss it. We have a lot of chopping and sawing to do and then the fun of replanting and designing. Much of the wood we will leave for frogs and insects.

New Year's Eve 2006

2007-01-01T08:44:00.000-08:00

The New Year's Eve hype aggravates me. We have been to some lovely parties where everyone chatted and hoped that things in the world would get better. In February 1999 we received our first invitation to a new millennium party. We turned it down. Some people were horrified by my dour attitude. My reply was to ask them if they believed that there was going to be a serious outbreak of love and peace in 2000. Well, of course, they didn't, and they were right. But they argued that it was not the point. But it is my point.
This year we went to Vesna's and Peter's, friends that we met in the writers' circle. It was a magical night. Vesna is a vegan and a culinary genius. The food was delicious. The party was everything a party should be. Music was provided by Annie, who writes wonderful poetry, plays the guitar and composes poignant songs, which she sings beautifully. But that was not the end of the talent. Malcolm, who is a compelling speaker, read poetry by Burns and then some of his own, which were deep and thought provoking. Then Annie and Malcolm sang a duet. It was such an uplifting night and we left after 2 am feeling that maybe the world will get better.

My Elephant

2006-12-28T10:10:00.000-08:00

Among the Christmas presents I received was a renewal of my sponsorship for an orphaned elephant called Morani. Born in 2001 he was found wandering alone in the bush. He had been injured and nearby was the dead body of his mother who had been shot by poachers. Two bullets had passed straight through his body just below the spine and the other was lodged in his leg. He is now in the Care for the Wild sanctuary in Kenya. This is the third elephant I've had sponsored for me. The other two have been successfully released back into the wild and one is pregnant. As well as looking after orphaned animals they do vital anti-poaching work. If anyone is interested in the work of this organization their web address is: wwwcareforthewild.com

Animal Testing

2006-12-10T09:10:00.000-08:00

My post about being the dictator of the world caused a few protests.
The comment which caused the most upset was that animal testing should be banned. But in its place would be tests on serial killers, such as Ian Brady, Peter Sutcliffe, Rosemary West and Beverly Allitt. They have taken so much from society it would be a way of giving something positive back. If they do not give their consent their human rights are being violated, but, in my opinion, they gave up their human rights when they committed the crimes they did. They violated the human rights of their victims who did not give their consent to be murdered, raped and tortured. Another reason against animal testing is that they can be unreliable. Tholidomide was one such disaster. Recent tests on ordinary people who had given their consent has been tragic. Innocent volunteers have had their health destroyed. Many valuable medical discoveries have been made through animals testing, but how many more diseases would be eradicated if we had tests on humans? Some conditions, like diabetes, can be controlled, but still leave the sufferer with related illnesses.

One person added to the list of things to instigate, by suggesting ink pens rather than biros. It was something that had not occurred to me, but which makes a lot of sense. Biros are wasteful. Fountain pens last for years.

I look forward to your opinions.

Eumeralla latest

2006-12-08T09:49:00.000-08:00

Eumeralla finally went off to the printers this week. What a relief. Unfortunately it won't be ready for the Christmas market, but will hopefully cheer up January. If mainstream publishers gave new authors a chance by actually reading what they send in I wouldn't have to go through all this nonsense. Reading is my addiction. I read many good books but, frustratingly, too many bad ones where the plot is weak, characterization is poor, the text is full of cliches and there are grave errors that have not been picked up by the publisher. I gave up reading one novel because with all the character's Christian names beginning with M it was confusing. A male character called Michael and a female character called Michelle were both referred to, in dialogue, as Micky. Carelessness and lack of editing by publishers is unforgivable. Another problem is forcing established writers to keep on when it is clear they have run out of ideas, instead of allowing them to retire gracefully and keeping their best novels in print. The reading public deserves better. Thanks to JK Rowling there is more demand for books than ever before and the publishers should be actively encouraging new writers.
I'd love to hear your thoughts on this.

Reasons for my absence

2006-11-18T09:29:00.000-08:00

Writing Eumeralla was easy. I wrote the whole novel then read it out in segments to the Richmond Writers' Circle, listened to their comments, thought about them and either rewrote or left it as it was. Editing it was easy. I just printed it out gave it to my copy editor and corrected my mistakes. Trying to typeset it has been a nightmare and I have been too frazzled to post. It's still an ongoing saga, but now I'm being more pragmatic and tell myself that these things happen for a reason. So I'm back!
I think I've chosen one of the most difficult professions to break into. People who have read my first novel Vissi d'arte were positive about it and keep asking when my next one is coming out, so I know they are interested and not just being kind. But I've given up trying to interest a publisher. It's a waste of time and money. And agents have the cheek to demand that a writer only submits to one agent at a time. It's like saying that people can only apply for one job at a time. If only we could audition like actors!
Hopefully I'll have better news soon.

Spooky happenings at The Spooky competition

2006-10-29T06:51:00.000-08:00

The Richmond Writers' Circle annual spooky competition was named after Heather Vineham, an old member who died and left a legacy to the writers circle. She used to write spine-chilling stories and the award was set up in her memory. Another interesting aspect about Heather was that during WW II she worked at Bletchley Park on Enigma.
This year the competition was won by Gerry Ball. The spookiest thing was that two people wrote short stories about Lilith, who I had never heard of, but, she is a threat to fertility. Spooky!

2006-10-20T05:03:00.000-07:00

Dictator of the World

If I was the dictator of the world I would ban things and instigate others. I invite bloggers to help me finish my A-Z lists and challenge me. Before you go hysterical with rage, check out the list of things I would instigate. But I know that my dictatorship would not last a day, because I would be assassinated when this list was made public! If you disagree with this list, cheer up! It's never going to happen! Is it?

To Ban - Armaments, Bull fighting, Cars, Dead boundaries i.e fences, Experiments on animals, Fur coats & Hats etc, Green belt building, Hunting, Intensive farming & fishing, Junk food, Loud music, Muzak, Night clubs, Pesticides, Refined food, Seal culls, Twenty-four hour TV, Veal, Whaling, Xmas advertising (commercial).

To Instigate - Bicycles, Crop rotation, Experiments on serial killers, Free-range farming, Government controlled and registered brothels, Hard labour prisons for the worst criminals (eg serial killers and multiple rapists), Live boundaries (hedges of yew, box, privet and hazel), Music lessons for all children, Nationalization of all transport and utilities, Organic farming & pest control, Rod & line fishing, Single currency, Trams & trains, Unrefined food, Vegetarian ethics, Xmas advertising must spread the real meaning of the festival not the commercial side.

To explain. The ban on some things, eg armaments, would be immediate. The ban on cars would have a 5 year running down period to allow manufacturers to plan a new industry eg, bikes, trains and trams. Public transport would be excellent and cheap. Government registered brothels would have compulsory health checks and control the spread of VD. Prostitutes would pay tax. Vegetarian ethics means eating less meat.

My Novels

2006-10-14T09:42:00.000-07:00

Eumeralla is my second novel and will be published in November 2006. For more details go to this link.

2006-10-14T06:37:00.000-07:00

This is my first novel available on Amazon, as a download version in pdf format or on CD direct from me using this link. You can also read extracts from it and see what other people have said about it using the same link.

Floods delay next thrilling episode

2006-10-12T09:48:00.000-07:00

Flooding on the underground has delayed the members of The Richmond Writers' Circle hearing the next episode of Emma's Baby. Carla has written this crime novel with skill and leaves us all anxious to hear the next installment. But we had a good night listening to other novels by our writers.
Barry's novel set in the 50's is funny, gripping and sad. Skillfully he sometimes manages all three feelings at the same time.
Vesna is drawing us into A Woman with no Clothes on. It is a novel that publishers like, but say is too quiet. Rubbish! It would become a best seller.
The Pebble Garden, that Vera is writing, is a complex novel within a novel and also deals with it's main character's reaction to world events. It begins in 1981 on the day the engagement of Lady Diana Spencer and Prince Charles was announced.
Elaine's novel, Blue Green, is set in Portsmouth and is about relationships between parents and children and men and women and is always received with enthusiasm from the circle.

Jack the Ripper letters and a fossilized rat

2006-10-10T09:53:00.000-07:00

What do the above have in common? They are both in The National Archives safe-room and were on display to staff this morning. Other items were Magna Carta, which looks as if it has been chewed by a rat, a letter from the Princess Elizabeth to her sister Queen Mary Tudor, and medieval drawings. The rat was actually found in a document by a reader, who must have found it an unwelcome extra. Another unexpected item found in a document was a loaded gun. This was brought to the counter about 8 years ago, by a startled man, and had been left in a metropolitan police file. Fortunately the reader who found it was not a madman ... what damage he could have wrought. There must be a story for crime writers here!

2006-10-05T09:11:00.000-07:00

Another exciting night at the Richmond Writers' Circle yesterday. Our novelists are writing about a wide range of subjects that include child kidnapping, Manet, childhood in the 1950's, fantasy, family saga and deep psychological plays. At the end of the meeting we went down to The White Cross, the only decent pub left in Richmond, where we chatted in peaceful surroundings unmarred by television or banal music. We talked about Suzanne Bugler whose novel was published in the summer. It is a wonderful book that you only put down when you have to. We hope it does well.
Richard, our chairman, is modest and leads the group with tact and humour. On the rare occasions he reads, we are all riveted. Once someone said of his work, that not only was it the best thing he had ever heard read at the group, it was the best thing he had ever heard. If Richard makes it as a writer, and he should, he will be known as a writer of genius.
Perhaps one day the Richmond Writers' Circle will be as renowned as The Bloomsbury Group.

Hello - My first blogg

2006-10-03T09:22:00.000-07:00

My name is Joanna and I live in Richmond, Surrey, UK. It's my ambition to be earn my living from my novels. To help achieve this I joined The Richmond Writers' Circle in 1997. Creativity wise it's the best thing I've ever done. Comments from the group have helped me turn mediocre scenes into powerful ones. Often it's just a matter of changing the viewpoint or setting. Capturing the attention of a publisher these days is so difficult that I self-published my first novel and have been pleasantly surprised by the enthusiastic reaction. It is called Vissi d'arte (www.vissi-d-arte.com) and is set in an opera school in Melbourne Australia. My second novel, Eumeralla, is about family secrets, tragedy and love and is set in the Australian outback - due to be published soon. The writers' circle has been a constant source of inspiration to me and many of my postings will be about them and writing.
Another source of inspiration is the National Archives where I work. Having been passionate about British History since childhood, it is a fantastic place to work and the documents held there are amazing. Just holding an ancient deed fills me with wonder.