Kohl Publishing is a new independent Scottish publisher set up by Lesley Dickson and Leila Cruikshank earlier this year. I chatted to them about chick lit, why they decided to go it alone, and the inescapable topic of the digital revolution…
Continue reading “Interview: Kohl Publishing”
On Tuesday there was a story in The Scotsman that I thought was definitely worthy of a noir comic. So I started drawing it. This is page one.
As per a suggestion left in the comments yesterday, another unlikely hero…
By day he is merely The Chair, sitting in the lounge listening to Roxy Music records. But when danger strikes… He is still in essence, a chair.
This weekend I started a journal documenting my last-ditch attempts to catch up with NaNo. This is how it went:
Saturday November 26, 13.40. I am sitting in our kitchen/living room listening to the hum of the washing machine and the wind outside. The enormous evergreen in the garden next door waves frantically at me and I wonder how much damage it would do if the wind was strong enough to knock it down – it’s as tall as this three story tenement building.
I should not be thinking about the tree, of course. I should be catching up on my NaNoWriMo story, which sits at 35, 962 words after a week of work, hanging around an industrial estate in Dundee, applications for funding and writing jobs, and last night an unexpected trip to everyone’s favourite grotty rock club in the cowgate. As I sat in this very same seat at 4am, scarfing down chunion crisps from the garage, my book was the last thing on my mind.
Time to Write or Die.
Continue reading “NaNoWriMo: Where Did It All Go Wrong”
Today I present for your consideration another short story from last month. The inspiration came from a bit of graffiti I noticed one day on my walk home from work. I am a fan of graffiti, but I’ve got no idea what the deal is with this particular tag. You see it all the time around Edinburgh, though.
I can see the concentration in his shoulders as he marks the last letter of his tag on the door. He’s using silver marker pen to painstakingly write each letter, S-I-N-E.
In broad daylight. Near a busy train station.
Something tells me he’s not a seasoned pro.
Continue reading “Monday Story: S-I-N-E”
NaNoWriMo has begun and might look like a daunting task at present, so today I have a guest post to motivate you into thinking about what you might do after the 30 days are up. Scottish writer Lynsey May is in charge of Marketing and Events at the Edinburgh Review, and she’s also a freelance copywriter. Here she gives her tips on how to start out digitally.
Continue reading “How To Start Out Digitally”
12 Books in 12 Months 