Thursday 4 February 2016

10 things I learnt about myself by getting published, and things I would have liked to have known before I was

I got lucky.

The journey from starting my manuscript to getting it published was remarkably short. Two short years. And I do mean it when I say 'lucky' because luck plays a huge part in getting published. Of course, you need more than just plain old 'luck' to have a publisher pick you out from the millions also trying to get spotted. You need to be able write, and write well, but 'writing well' can mean far more than putting good words down on paper. It means being smart about the way you go about writing, about pacing yourself, how you know when to continue with a manuscript and when to change tack, as well as how to approach agents and publishers.

My debut novel, The Damned, came out in May 2015 (UK and OZ) with Duckworth Overlook, and will be published in the US and Canada in May this year with Overlook Press. It made it into the Book Depository's list of 'Best Books of 2015'.

In my time as an unpublished and then published writer, I've met a number of published authors and they're all completely different. None of them fit the same mould, other than it's clear they've been tested in some way by the experience of getting published and its left its mark upon them. It's also clear that they possess that vein of iron determination and grit about them. They've fought for, and they've survived the experience of, getting published.

I'm not sure if, like them, I carry this mark of getting published, an ambition I'd held since I was eight. But there are things I have learnt about myself that I never knew since writing and there are things I would have liked to have known before I had begun.

So here's a list of 10 for you, budding author, of what I've learnt in my journey so far;

1. Your first, second, and possibly third, manuscript will be rubbish
When I first started writing 'sincerely' I spent four years slogging away on my frankly ludicrous first manuscript that was to be 'my masterpiece'. Consisting of two towers and a band of dwarves (you can immediately see the problem here), I worked on this monstrosity for more hours than I care to remember, caressing every page, every line. It wasn't a total waste of time, because it helped me to begin to find my writing voice and proved to me that I loved sitting on my own in a chair writing for hours, days and weeks on end. However, I know I would have been far better setting myself shorter writing challenges and seeing where my direction best lay, rather persevering with my Tolkien-ripoff. Also, don't worry about finishing your first novel until you know it's something you genuinely want to put your name to. Writing, at the start, is about finding your edge, your voice, your love. The Damned was the first novel I ever completed.

2. Write your manuscript quickly, then rewrite it
In the early days I wrote and rewrote every page until I was utterly delighted by it, until it was, in my warped opinion, perfect. Then I moved on to the next page or scene, did the same, then the next, etc etc and so forth. What a ridiculous way of writing a novel! Writing is like art. When an artist sits down to paint, they don't work up in precise detail one part, then move on to the next. The five year old child at pre-school does this. The artist roughly sketchs out the piece, then they get in the tones, then initial colours, building up and up until the piece is finished. Writing is exactly the same. Write your first manuscript lean, get it mapped out, and then go back and rewrite over the bones.

3. Write every day
Whilst it took just two years to get published with The Damned, from first writing it to seeing it on the shelves, the journey to this point took me twenty years and over a million words. Writing is rarely something which hits like a bolt from the blue and empowers the writer to produce award winning prose from the start. It's like any skill, you have to work at it and a lot of this time feels soulless and pointless. But like elite athletes, you need to put in the shift if you're going to shift any units. I didn't write everyday. In fact, there were long periods of my life when I stopped writing completely. The longing and the ideas never went away, but I just, frankly, couldn't be arsed to write - and I regret this now. Would I have managed to get published sooner? Possibly, although see point 10. However, writing is a joy and I know I missed out on a lot of ideas and fun by not writing when I was doing something else. Which leads neatly on to…

4. If you'd rather do something else than write, give up and do something else
If you'd rather be out having fun than sitting at your desk and writing, give up and go and be amongst your friends and family. Writing is not a choice, it's a calling. Writers write, not because they have to but because they must. I felt it when I was eight years old and heard 'The Hobbit' read to me for the first time. It was like a calling. I understand why some people believe in God. It's as if a light comes on inside you, something which guides and commands - exactly the same as you feel as a writer. If you don't feel this compulsion, this drive, I suspect you won't make it - and you'll hate the journey trying to make it.

5. Be prepared for a long assault. Things don't happen quick
Someone once said to me, 'Writing a novel is like a war of attrition. You just have to be stronger than your book.' Novels take a long time to write. You should expect to put aside a year of your life to writing your novel. On top of this, you need to plan it (see point 6) and you need to research it. Once written, you then need to tout it around the agents and publishers. You might get lucky, like I did, and catch the eye quickly, or it might take years to get noticed. Whilst frustrating, if writing is your calling (see previous point), you will accept the time it all takes (begrudgingly, none the less.)

6. Embrace rejection. Love criticism
People in industry know best. You might not necessarily agree with them, but you have to listen to them and do as they suggest. You can be arrogant after your fourth bestseller. Up until then, listen and do as your agent, your editor or your published best friend mentor suggests. Don't see rejection as a bad thing. It's as much part of the industry as split infinitives and plot red herrings. Use it to guide and improve your manuscript. I've had some classic rejections. They've all been right and have helped in some way for me to become a better writer.

7. Plan your novel
The first two novels I wrote, The Damned, and a second unconnected novel straight after my first book, which might one day see the light, I wrote with no plan on paper, just a plan in my head. I got lucky (there's a theme here!). They were stories I had to write, and I knew how to write them. But luck runs out, as it did with me and Book Two of The Darkest Hand. I got myself in a pickle with it, a pickle which tormented me over and over again. The writing of the sequel took me too the edge of insanity and, at times, over it. Take the advice of a once broken man, plan your novel, and then write to this plan. It's so much easier and will allow you to concentrate on the quality of the writing, rather than on working out what's coming next - and if you're losing your mind.

8. Don't write for the money
I never set out to write for fame and fortune, so I'm glad I went into it with this knowledge already understood. But some people do write believing that they'll get published and never have to work again. The sorry truth is that only 1 in 10 published authors survives on writing alone. The average book sells 250 copies in its lifetime. It's not a business where you are likely to make any money at all. If this sounds unpleasant, scroll back to point 4 and reread. Remember, you write because you're commanded to, not because you see it as a cushy life everyone wants. It mostly likely will never be.

9. Always carry a notepad
Ideas come from the most weird of things and the most strange of times. Always have a pad at hand to jot them down. From the smallest idea, great things can grow. Writing is hard enough. Don't make it harder by trying to chase the good ideas in your head which have slipped just beyond your reach.

10. Magic happens, you just won't know when.
Magic is real. I know, because I've experienced it first hand. Sometimes you sit down and the book you're working on literally writes itself. The words come from somewhere inside you, a little magical store of them in your soul out of which they flow. Other times you can slog away and achieve nothing, and then this magical world reveals itself again and you power through. Whole parts of the Damned I read now and think, where did this come from? My second novel, I read it and think, did I really write this? I can't remember doing so! Magic. It happens. You'll never know how or when, but it happens. When it comes, harvest it, dear writer. Harvest it!

Good luck!

Wednesday 3 February 2016

My debut novel, The Damned, amongst the 'Best Books of 2015', according to the Book Depository

I was knocked out to discover that my debut novel, The Damned, had made the Book Depository's list of their best books of 2015!

The book depository, the world's leading specialist online bookstore (according to their web site), included The Damned, the first in my trilogy The Darkest Hand, alongside the likes of Man Booker Prize winning, "A Brief History of Seven Killings" by Marlon James and Jonathan Franzen's "Purity", as one of the best works of fiction of last year.


This news coincides with The Damned being one of Amazon's 'Picks of the Month' for February, currently discounted to a mere £1.69! A bag of greasy chips would cost you more and sit on your hips a lot longer than my dark fiction novel ever will.

So pass on the junk food snack and download The Damned today from Amazon UK or Amazon Australia - and see if my debut gets into your own book list!

You can also download the acclaimed prequel to The Damned, The Hunted, for FREE from Amazon UK and Amazon Australia.

For friends in the US and Canada, the wait is almost over. The Hunted and The Damned arrive 1st March, published by Overlook Press.

You can see the full list of 'best of' books at http://www.bookdepository.com/best-of-2015

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For more information about me, visit www.tarnrichardson.co.uk

Monday 1 February 2016

The Damned, the first in my The Darkest Hand trilogy, is one of Amazon's 'Picks of the Month' for Feb. Get it cheap!

Just been told that The Damned, the first in my The Darkest Hand trilogy, is one Amazon's 'Picks of the Month' for February!

You can now own this first episode in the life of Inquisitor Poldek Tacit for just £1.69 or $3.24 in Australia. (Sorry, for my friends in the US and Canada, it arrives 1st March on your shores!)

Critically acclaimed, The Damned follows the adventures of Catholic Inquisitor Poldek Tacit at the start of World War One as he hunts down the killer of a Catholic Father within the city of Arras close to the trenches of the Western Front. However, quickly he discovers a far greater and more sinister plot which could have ramifications not just the church he serves but for the whole world.

"Engaging, intense and full of visceral descriptions, 'The Damned' is a sublime work of dark fiction meets mystery, meets horror that recalls the likes of 'Anno Dracula', 'Hellsing', and 'Constantine', with a hint of 'Fight Club'." (Intravenous Magazine)

"Richardson does a wonderful job of setting the scene; there’s plenty of atmosphere…The historical elements are fascinating, as is the author’s twist on the werewolf mythos, but the brooding, conflicted Tacit is the most compelling element. The conclusion will leave readers looking forward to the next installment." (Publishers Weekly)

"Allegorical and erudite, this imaginative first volume establishes a world, a monolithic villain, and a catapult for Tacit and Isabella, Sandrine and Frost to confront the evil lurking in the volumes to come." (Kirkus)

"Richardson's debut has mash-up leanings ... It works surprisingly well." (Daily Mail)

Download the The Damned, the Amazon Pick of the Week, from here UK or here Australia

You can also download the ebook preview to The Damned FOR FREE from UK or here Australia

Finally, the second installment to the Darkest Hand is released May 5th on Trade Paperback format. Reserve your copy now!