 Last Thursday, I was delighted to be internet-based ExpatRadio‘s special guest on ‘The Scribblers’ spot. They let me witter on (in between music) for an hour. No, it was more of a conversation with Mike Madden, Wendy H Jones and Eilidh McGinness. I’ve met Wendy several times before – we both spoke a the last Dublin Writers’ Conference (and will be at the next one in June) and I know Eilidh from social media. Mike asked some good open questions and Dave Hailwood, the station supremo, held it all together.
They let me mention not just Roma Nova and the books, especially the latest CARINA, a novella set in between the first and second in the series (INCEPTIO and PERFIDITAS) but also thank SilverWood Books (at 21 minutes) who helped me get going on my publishing journey. I also got a plug in for The Deux-Sèvres Monthly, my local English language magazine for expats, where I write a column on writing and publishing.
We chatted and joked in between alternative history, heroines, emotion, writing skills and France. That hour passed far too quickly. They’ve invited me back when my next book is out… 🙂
Here’s the recording (minus the music) and no, we weren’t on gin, just good humour):
(There are some tiny repeats here and there due to internet buffering, but shouldn’t detract from the enjoyment!)
Alison Morton is the author of Roma Nova thrillers INCEPTIO, PERFIDITAS, SUCCESSIO, AURELIA, INSURRECTIO and RETALIO. CARINA, a novella, is available for download now. Audiobooks are available for the first four of the series.
Find out more about Roma Nova, its origins, stories and heroines… Get INCEPTIO, the series starter, for FREE when you sign up to Alison’s free monthly email newsletter
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 A plot in a novel gives the reader the main character’s goal; the challenges the character has to overcome to achieve the goal, what’s stopping her/him and the dire consequences if she/he doesn’t succeed.
My own goal is to produce a readable, entertaining and thought provoking book at least once a year. But every now and again, when I come up for air, I try to pin down why I write and why I spend hours at my keyboard doing it.
A year or two ago, I wrote about this in my column for The Deux-Sèvres Monthly. I asked some writing friends for their thoughts…
 Adrian Magson (First endorser of INCEPTIO) I write because I don’t really know how not to write. Making stories is something that is so intrinsically part of who and what I am, that I can hardly imagine what it would be like not to do it. Also, writing is a fabulous excuse to not do the dishes and the laundry. Liesel Schwarz, steampunk author
I write to explore how I feel about the things that trouble me and to tell stories to entertain. Ann Cleeves, Shetland series
I write because I must and it’s what I’ve always wanted to do. Simple. I also work hard at it and believe it will come out right. Adrian Magson, thriller writer
 With Elizabeth Chadwick I write because I have been telling myself stories of one sort or another almost from birth. It’s a deep part of who I am. Elizabeth Chadwick, historical writer
I write because it’s my family business – and also because it’s the best way I know to make a living. Victoria Lamb, historical writer
I have perceived myself as being a writer from when I was a little girl and always had something I was burning to say.
These days I just say it at more length. Trisha Ashley, women’s fiction writer
I began writing in the mid nineties for practical reasons. I’d sustained a serious wrist injury that ended my career as a probation officer. For me, writing on a computer was physiotherapy following surgery but also to keep my mind occupied. I was bored at home and far too young to be retired. At the time I had no aspirations to become a professional crime writer. It was years when that thought occurred. These days, I write because I must. Mari Hannah, crime writer
And the master, Stephen King… I really can’t imagine doing anything else and I can’t imagine not doing what I do.
My conclusion so far (This may change, of course!)
If you know what you want from your writing, why you write, your writing will be tighter and more focused. If you’re not clear now, it will come back to haunt you later in your writing life especially when faced with choices which could mean pursuing one part of your goal but at the expense of neglecting another.
And me? The story was just bursting to get out and was triggered by seeing a rubbishy film at the local multiplex. ‘I could do better than that,’ I whispered to my husband in the dark. ‘So why don’t you?’
And why I carry on? I just can’t leave it alone…
Alison Morton is the author of Roma Nova thrillers – INCEPTIO, PERFIDITAS, SUCCESSIO, AURELIA, INSURRECTIO and RETALIO. CARINA, a novella, and ROMA NOVA EXTRA, a collection of short stories, are now available. Audiobooks are available for four of the series. NEXUS, an Aurelia Mitela novella, will be out on 12 September 2019.
Find out more about Roma Nova, its origins, stories and heroines… Download ‘Welcome to Roma Nova’, a FREE eBook, as a thank you gift when you sign up to Alison’s monthly email newsletter. You’ll also be first to know about Roma Nova news and book progress before everybody else, and take part in giveaways.
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 Speaking at conferences is one thing – you know what your defined role is, whether giving a talk, being a panel member or running a workshop. You are on the inside track, you prepare materials, you mix with attendees, carrying on discussions from your talks. You are giving back.
Attending a conference as a delegate is different. If you’re not speaking, why are you there?
- Education – You’re learning new skills, honing existing ones and remembering ones you haven’t used for some time.
- Networking – Wherever you are in your writing journey, you need to make contacts (authors in your genre, agents and publishers, people who have inspired you), find new providers of services and meet virtual friends in the flesh.
- Being counted – Most writers’ conferences are run by genre associations and societies, professional groups, interest groups, local litfests, etc. This is the time to show your support for them, to be there at the major annual/biennial event.
- Discovering what’s trending, what’s new, how to prepare for and take advantage of future developments.
- Fun – Shut up in your writing garret, your writing shed or the spare bedroom, you are alone. Going to a conference means you socialise with real people who ‘get’ writing.
How get the best out of a conference
Preparation
- Select the right one – Is it relevant to you at this time? With travel, accommodation and meals, conference going can represent a significant expense. Be hardheaded about whether you’re going to gain something that will benefit your writing/writing life, not just be an agreeable trip to see your mates.
- Be informed – Check the information sent to you, find the organisation’s conference website/Facebook page/Twitter handle and check for updates and release of new essential information
- Prioritise – Mark up the talks/panels/workshops which you judge ‘essential’, ‘very helpful’ and ‘would be nice’. Also note the sessions you may want to miss. Many genre specific events arrange one-to-one mini interviews with an agent, publisher or book doctor who will assess a sample of your writing (sent in advance). Appointments are fixed weeks or even months before the event and snapped up incredibly fast. Check the exact details on how to bag one of these as soon as you can, and apply immediately.
- People – If you receive an advance attendance list (You don’t always get one.), mark up the people you already know and the attendees you’d like to meet. Getting to know others can be a delightful surprise!
- Practicalities – Don’t take too many clothes – check the event details – but one complete change is sensible. Accidents do happen! Take extra teabags, coffee, wine and a mug/glass. Some events give away a goody bag in which you can cart your papers and book purchases around, but slip an extra cloth bag or small carrier in your case as a precaution. Talk ahead of time to others who have been to the previous year’s event.
At the event
- Timing – Turn up on time. It’s better to arrive on the afternoon before the conference so you can get settled into the accommodation without rushing and be ready for some early networking. Sometimes a pre-conference drink or meal is where important contacts are made. And when the conference proper starts, getting to each of your chosen sessions promptly means you get a good seat!
- Speakers should let you know whether they will answer questions as they go along or prefer to take them at the end of their talk. If you wish to ask them a question at the end, wait politely as each person has their turn. Sometimes you and the speaker have to leave the room as the next session may be starting. If they’re not going straight to another talk, they may be happy to talk over a cup of tea now or glass of wine later. Keen as you are to chat to them, don’t hassle or hog the speaker. 😉
- Ask questions – Many people are nervous about this, but you can be sure that if you stand up and ask, others will be grateful you did.
- Keep your ears open for informal arrangements – drinks, readings, meals, side discussions, parties, etc.
- Bookshop bargains – Books are sometimes discounted at events, plus it’s more than likely that the author will sign them for you.
- Make notes, pick up any handouts on offer, jot down websites and exchange business cards. In all the buzz from the event, you won’t remember everything…
 And have fun! Left to right Christina Courtenay, Anna Belfrage, Incognito (sorry!) Christoph Fischer, Helen Hollick Alison Morton, Denise Barnes/Molly Green (HNS 2016) What have I missed out There’s bound to be something you can add!
Alison Morton is the author of Roma Nova thrillers – INCEPTIO, CARINA (novella), PERFIDITAS, SUCCESSIO, AURELIA, NEXUS (novella), INSURRECTIO and RETALIO, and ROMA NOVA EXTRA, a collection of short stories. Audiobooks are available for four of the series. Double Identity, a contemporary conspiracy, starts a new series of thrillers. JULIA PRIMA, Roma Nova story set in the late 4th century, starts the Foundation stories. The sequel, EXSILIUM, is now out.
Find out more about Roma Nova, its origins, stories and heroines and taste world the latest contemporary thriller Double Identity… Download ‘Welcome to Alison Morton’s Thriller Worlds’, a FREE eBook, as a thank you gift when you sign up to Alison’s monthly email update. You’ll also be among the first to know about news and book progress before everybody else, and take part in giveaways.
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 The Scream, Edvard Munch, 1893 When I read yet another ‘buy my book’ direct message on Facebook Messenger this morning, I screeched out loud. I’m surprised it wasn’t heard from one end of Europe to the other.
Direct messaging (DM) or private messaging (PM) is a utility on social media, in particular Twitter and Facebook and a one-to-one message channel between ‘friends’, i.e. people you are happy to interact with on those media.
You may want to say something only applicable to the other person, or small group of people, or something sensitive or confidential. In this way, it’s like a quick ‘n’ dirty form of fast email without messing around with subject lines, composing a message, etc.
I use it principally on my phone to fix timings, send an instant photo or link to a friend, chat to family, fellow FB group admins, friends, and to answer queries. It’s a place for private conversations.
IT IS NOT A SALES CHANNEL.
DM sins
- Inviting me to be your friend then sending me a ‘buy my book’ message within the following 24 hours
- Sending me a ‘please endorse my book’ (True friends don’t ask like this.) or ‘like my new book page’ message. (Use the invitation facility on your Facebook page!)
- Trying to sell me something
- Being a creepy person and trying to hit on me virtually
How to use DMs
- If you have researched and tried every other way of contacting somebody – looking on their website (email address or contact form), a friend who might know them, Googling – then send them an ultra polite DM with a hint of what you want to talk about. Send only once. If you are not ‘friend’ or they don’t follow you, you may just have to be patient until they spot your message.
- If a conversation in open forum needs a personal or confidential answer, then offer to DM them
- Observe confidentiality about what’s said in a DM
- Use them to exchange telephone numbers, addresses and personal email addresses. You should never do this openly on social media.
- Put yourself in the other person’s shoes and respect their privacy
And what do I do if I am a target of one of the ‘sins’?
Instant unfriend or unfollow.
What’s your take on these messages?
Alison Morton is the author of Roma Nova thrillers – INCEPTIO, PERFIDITAS, SUCCESSIO, AURELIA, INSURRECTIO and RETALIO. CARINA, a novella, and ROMA NOVA EXTRA, a collection of short stories, are now available. Audiobooks are available for four of the series. NEXUS, an Aurelia Mitela novella, will be out on 12 September 2019.
Find out more about Roma Nova, its origins, stories and heroines… Download ‘Welcome to Roma Nova’, a FREE eBook, as a thank you gift when you sign up to Alison’s monthly email newsletter. You’ll also be first to know about Roma Nova news and book progress before every
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 Christmas tree 2017 It’s Christmas Eve morning and I’ve had my croissant and pain au chocolat. We normally have much healthier muesli, but as we bought a boxful of butter laden pastry morning goods for the visitors, why not raid one or two?
No sign of life from the visitors – they probably need the sleep. I’ve opened the shutters and switched on the Christmas tree lights. Two strings of small lights circle the tree.
This year we have rescued ducks from an old set and plonked them on some of the lights. Now we have ducks, angels, flowers, snowmen, robins, stars and balls. Not a sign of tinsel, thank you.
But the lights… They work, almost with demonic insistence, they work. I kneel down and flick the master control. The receptors in my eyeballs are singed with airburst level blazing lights. Even Jupiter’s thunderbolts didn’t flash like these little horrors. I fumble with the control box, pressing maniacally through the programs to find the still, gentle state of just being ‘on’. No flashing, nor fading nor alternating, nor Mexican waving – just on. At the seventh press, tranquillity returns and I sit back, the adrenalin dispersing, heart rate reducing, happiness returning.
My question: why can’t the default setting be just ‘on’? Why must the lights start in agitation mode? Where are the dim, but gentle fairly lights of my childhood?
Then I started to think. Dangerous, I know. In 2017, we all have to ‘hit the ground running’, ‘be up for it’, run five kilometres before 6 a.m. Images, news, stories, information, rants, alternative facts bombard us 24/7. The lights in life are on agitated flashing mode by default.
 Christmas 2015 (author’s son’s photo) Christmas itself is when generations meet; they laugh, bicker, sulk, drink, eat different food and visit their parents’ friends, but they also talk face to face, go on walks, rest and watch films and Christmas specials together. They live in different worlds, or bubbles, and while they touch, they can never fully integrate again. Younger ones are bored by the accounts of older ones’ operations; older ones don’t understand their children’s job titles, let alone what they do all day at their work. But somehow, they do touch here and there.
Which brings me to emotional blackmail… When I was younger, it was ‘expected ‘ by my parents and parents of their generation who had fought a terrible war and only desired a stable and happy family life afterwards, to ‘go home’ for Christmas. You may be in your forties and have your own children with their own needs for a family Christmas, but if you didn’t report for duty in your parents’ home, you were in trouble. Don’t get me wrong – I loved it. A week of no work, sleeping in, no domestic chores, drink on tap, great talks, stories and jokes. But it was always assumed. Hurt, anger and bewilderment flowed down the phoneline if you tried to make a break for it. So you gave in. If you were married, you alternated between parents or you did a Tour d’Angleterre for two weeks on the middle of winter and returned to work in January, exhausted but relieved.
 Christmas 1960 (author’ father’s photo) In my turn, I love having my adult child and partner (aka daughter in law) here. We’re not very exciting, but they seem to keep coming back. But we never ask and we never expect. I vowed that when I became the older generation, I would never demand their presence, and I don’t. But I’m really rather pleased they want to come and see us…
So, no more fuzzy felt, jigsaws, listening quietly to Childrens’s Hour on the wireless, learning to knit in front of a coal fire and starting the ‘thank you’ letters of my childhood. Today it’s watching The Crown on Netflix, posting and tweeting with transcontinental friends on tablets, phones and laptops, using the Jacquie Lawson e-card service, swapping trends, jokes and stories. Talking of which we have a new trend chez Morton: a multiple international Skype on Christmas morning, all participants with a glass of bubbly in their hand.
But we still have a good lunch, Christmas pud and listen to the Queen at 3pm. And I have learnt to tame the bloody lights.
Alison Morton is the author of Roma Nova thrillers INCEPTIO, PERFIDITAS, SUCCESSIO, AURELIA, INSURRECTIO and RETALIO. CARINA, a novella, is available for download now. Audiobooks are available for the first four of the series.
Find out more about Roma Nova, its origins, stories and heroines… Get INCEPTIO, the series starter, for FREE when you sign up to Alison’s free monthly email newsletter
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