TIME FOR CHANGE...

Hello reading friends!

Over the many years the Novel Points of View blog has been running, team members have loved sharing and connecting with readers. However, as the social media landscape has grown, placing added pressure to keep up on both readers and team members, the time for change has come and posts will be monthly (rather than weekly) from now on.

We are also saddened to share that team stalwart, Victoria Cornwall has decided to step back from the blog to concentrate on fiction projects. Throughout her time with the team, Victoria worked hard behind the scenes to ensure the blog ran smoothly and she will be very much missed, so we take this opportunity to thank her for all she has done and also to wish her well with her writing. 

Finally, we wish to thank readers for engaging, sharing and making blogging fun. Going forward, we invite you to come on our journey, as the Novel Points of View team sails towards a bright new adventure...

Best wishes from,

All at Novel Points of View x

An End of Year Post! or “How Was It For You?”

I don’t think many of us will look back on 2021 with unalloyed joy! We almost have a duty to look forward to 2022, in the not-very-convincing expectation that it won’t at least be worse!

Personally, my year has been bound by the forced realisation that I’m no spring chicken – no matter how much I try to convince myself otherwise. Sadly, my titanium knee has started to degrade, much as I expected. I also have been made acutely aware of how much my energy levels have fallen. To put it in a nutshell, my get-up-and-go has got-up-and-went! All this has been coupled with an equally savage falling off with my OHs health. As someone said, “Growing old is no game for cissies!”

One thing that makes it worse is that neither myself nor my OH are in the first flush of youth. Realistically, we don’t have that many years left (not complaining – just do the maths) and that’s two years now of lost and missed opportunities, mostly involving our granddaughter, then family and friends. Still, its no use trying to blame a virus. They are notoriously unsympathetic!

However, and this is the important bit, – NONE of this is going to stop me trying to wring every ounce of joy from every single incident, on every day of the year! I urge you all to do the same.

May All YOUR Tests Be Negative!

Meanwhile, back at the ranch……

Andrew Holgate, Literary Editor of the Times and Sunday Times, produced a list of the Best Books of the Year for “Every Genre”. In so doing he left off the LARGEST genre of all – Romance, in any of its tropes!

Like many friends who write, I was appalled by the pure snobbishness on display. Thankfully, the wonderful RNA strode in to bat for ALL of us authors of romance. Their letter is in the link.(I signed it too)

https://www.thebookseller.com/news/rna-writes-open-letter-sunday-times-after-romantic-fiction-excluded-best-books-roundup-1294270

Andrew Holgate himself seems to have gone to ground since he penned his original article. However, the RNA is made of sterner stuff. Four of their more successful members produced this excellent article:

https://romanticnovelistsassociation.org/2021/12/love-in-the-time-of-snobbery/

Thankyou to Milly Johnson, Phillipa Ashley, Heidi Swain and Rowal Coleman. Kudos to all! 

The article has garnered support from all quarters, This very readable riposte came through Harper Collins Australia, penned by https://www.facebook.com/VictoriaBrookmn

https://www.harpercollins.com.au/blog/2021/12/15/victoria-brookman-in-defence-of-womens-fiction/

 I also urge you all to keep up the struggle to stop the literary world ignoring what they like to label “Women’s Fiction!” I will continue the campaign mounted by the Romantic Novelists Association to bring the genre – OUR genre - to its rightful place. I also urge any writer whose work can be described as Romance – of any sort, or in any of its multitudinous tropes, to join the Romantic Novelists Association. Together we are stronger!

https://romanticnovelistsassociation.org/membership/

You and I can help by using the hashtag #RespectRomFic on ALL your book-related posts, whether in Facebook, Instagram or Twitter. Remember, Caring is SHARING!

💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖

To close, for the New Year – 2022 - and still “Next Year” at the time of writing, there is always hope. We have been lucky here in that we haven’t, as far as we know, lost any friends or family to the virus. For that we are truly thankful.

Have a fantastic 2022 ! 

What a Year – Its Strange Effects, Also Reflections on the Generosity of Authors

 

First things first! Leah Fleming, old friend, RNA member and reader of this blog pointed out that The Oxford Concise Dictionary of Quotations is a brilliant source of titles! And, of course, she is right.

So back to it!

This has surely been a year like no other – apart from 2020. The more things change the more they stay the same.

For me, the worst part of lockdown has been the physical isolation from family and friends, especially from my writing friends. At the time of writing, we have just had Covid restrictions extended for another month. It will be almost two years before we can see our younger daughter. At least we can see her sister and our granddaughter and hug THEM. When you are a grandparent, it takes extraordinarily little to keep you happy, and there IS light at the end of the tunnel.

Hopefully, my brain fog will lift, too. It’s probably part of advancing age and decrepitude, but we also find ourselves anchored inside a small circle of activities, and for both of us, all our energy has disappeared. We are both remarkably keen on a nap in the afternoon nowadays!  Still a change will be as good as a rest (surely). It may help stop the feeling of life being sucked from our brains!

---

July 1st is the middle day of the year, and also Canada Day, and my birthday. Also last year it was the day that the 2020 version of “Children in Read” was announced.

For those who have no idea what this is, it’s now a major charity fundraiser for the BBCs Children in Need appeal. Last year, it attracted about 600 contributing authors and raised almost £22,000. It was founded by a Liverpool businessman, Paddy Heron, who continues to organise and drive the event forward from year to year. Now in its seventh year, it has raised increasingly larger amounts each year.

Paddy normally “opens the shop” to donations in early July. Most authors are only too happy to donate a book. Children in Need, and Children in Read are both excellent causes to be associated with and have the highest approval of almost any charity in the UK. Last year I got involved and approached Jo Rowling and Philip Pullman, among others. Jo Rowling donated a copy of The Ichabod, and that went for £800. Philip Pullman donated three signed bookplates, and they went for about £350. Members of the Romantic Novelists Association seem to have taken the event to heart – about 200 members donated one or more books.

Once they are open, to donate a book is so easy! Just email Paddy Heron at childreninread@yahoo.com or Tweet (DM) to him (and Follow him) at @ChildrenInRead and tell him you would like to donate a book. All genres and all age-groups are welcome,  BUT NOT YET! 

What does Paddy need? Your name, with a “head shot” photo, your book title and a “cover shot” photo, your bio, and the “book blurb”. He also needs your Author web page and Twitter address. BUT NOT YET!

After the Auction, on November 13th, Paddy and the team will contact you with the details of the winning bid.  You then sign a copy of your book and post it to the winner!

Could it be easier, or more worthwhile? I don’t think so! 

Apart from being a great charity (Children in Need is arguably the best-known charity in the UK) I also see this as an outstanding promotion for ALL participating authors. To be there, on display, on an equal footing with the great and the good from ALL levels and genre of authors in the UK, is fantastic for “putting yourself out there”.  The auction website also comes with “share buttons” for Facebook and Twitter, making it extremely easy indeed to publicise your own generosity, and both the Charity and the Auction.

The costs for this are derisory – for me that works out at around £10 for the cost of a book, an envelope and UK postage. You would be mad not to!!!

And for Readers? You see the widest choice of books in ALL genres, waiting for YOUR bid. From Kate Mosse to Lucinda Riley and Tom Kerridge, and of course, JK Rowling and Philip Pullman!

If your bid wins, you receive a signed and usually dedicated copy of the book – and ALL the money that you bid at auction goes straight to Children in Need!

On the hedgehog front we are having regular visits every night from what I think are two “boars”. No sign of any hedge-sows or hoglets yet, but we live in hope. Hedgies are very much solitary animals, and certainly “do not play well with others!” Their main reactions to each other are pushing and shoving matches, usually ending with the smaller hog assuming the “ball” position until the coast is clear.

And to close - remember, Carpe Diem!! Life sucks, but it's still better than the alternative, 

and I will let you know as soon as Paddy opens the Auction.

 

 

FIVE WAYS TO CREATE A WINNING STORY TITLE

Over the past year I’ve focused on flash fiction writing, completing how-to courses and entering competitions. One piece of advice that is repeated over and over is to choose your story title with care. This makes sense with flash fiction as competition entries usually sit around 250 to 500 words, some pushing the writer even further by allowing only 100 words. With such little material to play with and perhaps hundreds of entries to read, it’s understandable that judges prefer a title that shines. 

And much the same goes for a short story or novel. A title must be memorable, unique, intriguing, genre-appropriate. One that says to the reader ‘pick me, pick me.’ If this all sounds a touch daunting, never fear, as a quick internet search revealed some creative and quirky ways to come up with imaginative and winning story titles… 

RANDOM STORY TITLE GENERATOR 

The first thing I stumbled across was a list of random story title generators. Who knew such things existed? Most are FREE and they are more sophisticated than you might at first think, with different generators focusing on specific genres - Romance, Fantasy, Horror, Non-Fiction, Crime, Mystery, Children's and Comic Book titles. Even if they don't provide the perfect title for your piece, it's still helpful to have a go and hopefully find some inspiration along the way. Click on the link to discover a list of the Best Book Title Generators 2021, shared from the Kindlepreneur blog… FIND YOUR NEXT STORY TITLE HERE!

USE A CHARACTER'S NAME 

If your protagonist is a strong character, worthy of attention, then why not be bold and use their name as the title. My latest book group read was Angel by Elizabeth Taylor (the 20th century novelist, not Elizabeth Taylor the actress). The plot, as well as a cast of minor characters, revolved around Angel, so it made perfect sense that her name should be on the cover. Other examples that spring to mind are Oliver Twist, Jane Eyre, Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine, Rebecca, A Man Called Ove. Daniel’s Daughter by team member, Victoria Cornwall is another fine example. 

Use a character name...

WHAT IS THE STORY ABOUT? 

One purpose of the story title is to offer a hint as to what is to come, so it can be useful to consider the content and entice the reader with an attention-grabbing statement.  Excellent examples of this include The Hunger Games, The Devil Wears Prada, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime, The Book Thief. Not forgetting great reads by our own team members including The Witness by Terry Lynn Thomas, and The Girl I Left Behind by Andie Newton 

Entice with attention-grabbing statements...

WHERE IS THE STORY SET? 

One of the joys of reading is being transported to another time or place and it can be useful for readers to know where they are headed. One of the easiest ways to do this is to signal the location in the title. Who could resist being swept away by the following; A Passage to India, The Paris Library, The Mermaid of Black Conch. We also have two fantastic examples from team members Kathleen McGurl (The Daughters of Red Hill Hall) and Linda Mitchelmore (Summer at 23 The Strand). 

Transport the reader to a fab location...

POETIC BOOK TITLES 

Still need inspiration? Then try reading some well-loved poetry or favourite song lyrics. All the following titles began life in a poem; The Lovely Bones, Of Mice and Men, Far From the Madding Crowd, I Know Why A Caged Bird Sings. Our own John Jackson's, Heart of Stone shares its title with both a beautiful poem and popular song.

Turn to poetry for inspiration...

So, if you are a writer, how do you choose a title? Do you have tricks or tips not already shared?  

I hope these pointers are handy, but most of all I wish you fun creating a whole stack of winning story titles.

Rae x

 

VICTORIA CORNWALL AND THE DAUGHTER OF RIVER VALLEY

Hello and welcome to another in our get to know our team and their writing series. Today it’s the turn of historical romance writer, Victoria Cornwall and her latest release, The Daughter of River Valley. Victoria’s debut novel, The Thief’s Daughter, was published in 2017 by Choc Lit, introducing readers to her Cornish Tales series, as well as being selected as a finalist for the prestigious Romantic Novelists’ Association’s Joan Hessayon Award. Whilst penning novels, Victoria also loves connecting with readers online and has a heart-warming short story published in this month’s Your Cat magazine. (Which gave me the purrfect excuse to buy one!)

But before we discover more about Victoria and her writing, here’s a taste of what to look forward to in The Daughter of River Valley…

Can you trust a man with no name?

Cornwall, 1861

Beth Jago appears to have the idyllic life, she has a trade to earn a living and a cottage of her own in Cornwall’s beautiful River Valley. Yet appearances can be deceptive …

Beth has a secret. Since inheriting her isolated cottage she’s been receiving threats, so when she finds a man in her home she acts on her instincts. One frying pan to the head and she has robbed the handsome stranger of his memory and almost killed him.

Fearful he may die, she reluctantly nurses the intruder back to health. Yet can she trust the man with no name who has entered her life, or is he as dangerous as his nightmares suggest?

Author - Victoria Cornwall

Hello Victoria, and thanks for agreeing to take the hot-seat today. Let's get started... 

1. Beth Jago is a character many aspire to be like – capable and resilient – and yet, following the death of her beloved grandfather, she has also been left fragile, taking comfort from the familiar landscape and seclusion of River Valley. What drew you to explore Beth’s attachment to place, rather than say a family member?

I think it is a primal need in all of us to feel safe and secure and have a place we can call our home. People also have the natural desire to protect what they hold dear. Beth, the character, only had this need met and the desire to protect it, when she arrived at River Valley.  I used this theme as I felt readers would relate to these very natural, primal feelings and connect with Beth and the emotional journey she takes.

2. Without giving too much away, one of my favourite scenes in the book is

Rocky Valley, Cornwall

when Beth and Joss explore River Valley together for the first time and a magical natural spectacle appears. I noticed in the author’s notes that River Valley is based on Cornwall’s Rocky Valley. Is this scene imagined? Or is there an area of Rocky Valley where this takes place? (Readers will have to read The Daughter of River Valley to discover what this is!)

Rocky Valley is a beautiful valley. There are narrow earthy tracks, a tree where visitors hang tokens and ribbons, water which were once thought to have healing powers, a waterfall ... and of course a river. There are also stone carvings, which I did not put into the novel. However the natural spectacle that I think you are talking about is not related to Rocky Valley. It was inspired by Chipman Valley, which can be found on the coastal walk between Bude to Crackington Haven. Locally it is known as Butterfly Valley.

3. It was fascinating how dress, whether it was Beth’s Sunday best or the correct amount of a lady’s cleavage showing, enabled characters to identify where others belonged in the Cornish social hierarchy. What research did you have to do to establish how seamstresses worked at the time?

I have started a small collection of research books relating to life in the Victorian era. The internet is also a great help, although the information is not always accurate and needs to be cross-referenced to check the details. Beth's profession was inspired by a very old sewing machine in the family, however fashion through the ages is my secret passion and once you know what you are looking for, you can date a dress to within a few years as fashions changed as quickly as it does now.

4. The historical period, feisty characters and romantic setting will very much appeal to lovers of Poldark. How much has Winston Graham’s novels inspired your own writing? And why do you think writers and readers love to return to Cornwall, both literally and in a literary context, again and again?

First of Winston Graham's
series

I am a great fan of Graham's writing. It is poetic at times, yet realistic to the era and keeps you turning the pages. I would say he is a massive influence on my writing style. I have read his Poldark novels many times and tend to compare everything I read to his writing style. It is partly why I began writing in the first place. I write about Cornwall because I am Cornish and I live here. It is a place and community I know well, so it was a simple choice for me. Many people have been to Cornwall or aspire to visit the county. Reading a book is about escaping the present and what better place to escape to then Cornwall? Writers recognise this market and cater to it by setting their novels in Cornwall.

5. There is an interesting strand of Cornwall’s military history sprinkled throughout the novel. What drew you to include this part of Cornwall’s past?

I am very interested in our war history. So many men and women died in

the name of our country so I feel it would be wrong to forget our past. I honour them in my own way, by visiting museums, watching documentaries or films. I was visiting the Cornwall's Regimental Museum, in Bodmin, to learn about the Duke of Cornwall Light Infantry and was surprised to learn that soldiers from the southwest took part in a very famous battle related to the Victoria Cross, which is the highest award a soldier can earn. This inspired part of the plot and was my way of honouring those soldiers who took part and all they had to suffer.

6. The questions I can never resist – which authors do you enjoy reading? Which books might we find on your bedside table?

For beautiful, plot turning pages, it would have to be the first seven books of the Winston Graham's Poldark series. 

For fascinating historical detail in fiction it would have to be Forever Amber by Kathleen Winsor

For pure sensual poetry in fiction, The Various Flavours of Coffee by Anthony Capella

7. The Daughter of River Valley is book number three in the Cornish Tales series, although it can also be read as a stand-alone. So what’s next? 

There is a full-length novel waiting in the wings, which will be published by Choc Lit and is part of the Cornish Tales series. I hope that will be released next year. I loved writing it and hope my readers will love reading it.

In the meantime, I am delighted to say that I have a Christmas novella coming out in November. A soldier returns from the Great War to fulfil a promise to a fellow soldier, which is to bring Christmas to the fiancé he will never see again. As it's the 100th year anniversary of Armistice this year, it is my tribute to those who fought and suffered for our freedom during WW1.

Sounds a wonderful tribute, Victoria and a great Christmas read too. And in the meantime, readers can enjoy The Daughter of River Valley or catch Victoria's short fiction in September's Your Cat magazine.


Happy reading,


 Rae x