busybusy

Current work: revisions
Listening to: Kathryn Williams
Reading: not – am writing

Busy today – hopefully finalising my revisions (or at least filling in a decent chunk of the gaps – was sidetracked yesterday because my publisher wanted me to do something), then this afternoon am doing a talk on ‘how to write non-fiction’ for a local middle school, as part of the National Year of Reading.

Actually, I’m a bit nervous about it; I’m more used to an adult audience. What I hope is that I’ll entertain the kids enough to make them want to go off and read books and write something of their own. So it’s Kipling’s ‘six honest serving men’, explaining how you can make things more interesting for your reader (sub-headings, pictures, captions and quotes – and how to make a picture more exciting), and then an overview of how a book is produced (from idea to outline to writing it – where you get the facts, how you present it – then proofs, the jacket, the finished book… and what the local paper does to publicise it, including locking you in a dungeon – well, that’s what mine did to me, to get a ‘spooky’ photograph!).

Have agreed with Dad that I’ll visit on Friday rather than tomorrow, so I can definitely have this book off my desk tomorrow. And then it’s articles, a bit more nonfic, and then hopefully my ed will give me the green light for the Norway book (sans reindeer… but I’m planning a teensy cameo).