It's bad with me
That's the Welsh translation for sorry, but bad is aso a term for illness, which is what I have had since Saturday.Actually, in South Wales diallect, if you are off work, as I am, you were bad in bed and if the medic had to call the house you were bad in bed and under the Doctor!
As in:
He's been bad in bed and under the Doctor for ages
I went to the Northampton Book Festival on Saturday and attended two seminars; one by a commissioning editor and one by an agent.
The editor was getting a lot of flak. It appeared a lot of people who had tried for years to get on the ladder at last had their moment to offload and vent their frustrations. She had to patiently remind them that that was the market, but was faced with questions like:
Don't you think it's sad that publishers will choose books that sell before books that challenge curent thinking? (Personally, I call that business)
or
why is it that someone as young as yourself should have the power to say yes or no to accepting work. I mean, you haven't lived long enough. you didn't live through the war... (well anyone born during the war is now at pensionable age...)
She handled that all well. The agent was also quite forthcoming and although painting a depressing state of the market with publishing amalgamations and reduction of book commissions also said he would willingly discuss a project over the phone with anyone - One to bear in mind.
I wonder if independent publishers aren't the answer, especially given my rural Welsh setting and rural Welsh ideas!
I have noticed I am getting greyer as the days go by. Nothing to do with the countdown to the Wales v Ireland game, i'm sure! But we have such a bad record playing them at home...the best comment I saw was:
I'm praying to all the deities I can find in my Observer's book of deities that we win this one. You don't know how much it means to us, or the amount of cash we would shell out on merchandise afterwards!
posted by Geraint @ 2:00 pm
1 Comments:
Over many years of getting rejections, I always consoled myself with the thought that all I had to do was make my writing better - and eventually there would come a point where they couldn't possibly turn it down.
As to Wales v Ireland - I've lost all my fingernails already.
Post a Comment
<< Home