“… the validation (as a writer) was very much appreciated and the excellent advice and ongoing support proved invaluable!”

Alison Gangel The Sun Hasn’t Fallen from the Sky (Bloomsbury 2011)

COURSES FOR WRITERS EVENING, SHORT AND HOME-STUDY

We offer specialist home-study and online courses with personal tuition from experienced authors.

Novel Writing Freelance Writing Short Story Writing Writing a Best-seller Writing for Children Poetry Cartooning Creative Writing Workshops Evening classes in London

For a free prospectus contact:

THE LONDON SCHOOL OF JOURNALISM

126 Shirland Road London W9 2BT Phone 0800 838216 or email info@lsj.org

Full details: www.learntowrite.org The LSJ - teaching success since 1920

‘Cornerstones recommended a writer to me. Within days of receiving the script I knew I had to represent it; within ten days of sending the book out, a publisher offered for it. How’s that for a success story!’

Laura Longrigg, MBA Literary Agents.

Next workshop:

How to Write Successful Women’s Commercial Fiction

27-29th September, 2010 Call or email for a programme scouts for leading literary agents listed by The Society of Authors call Helen Corner 020 8968 0777

www.cornerstones.co.uk Specials

AGENDA

8

In These Financial Times Business journalist Azadeh Khalilizadeh assesses freelancing options during the credit crunch – and offers a highly practical solution. INTERVIEW 13 Claudia Roden FEATURES 16 Drawn That Way As the graphic novel genre expands, artist and poet Jay Bernard examines a few of the female illustrators leading the way. The Insider: Kate Wilson 19 Serial Commitment 20 Is episodic fiction making a comeback? Novelist and contemporary practitioner Jessica Ruston says ‘Yes!’

christopher

P H ylis

‘My interest in history came through my interest in recipes.’

Claudia Roden, Interview, page 13

Regulars Contents: issue 46

STARTERS

Contributors, Letters, News and Views

4

INSPIRATIONS

Including: Laura Wilson on crime writing Maggie Gee’s first draft Making a poem: Emma Jones talks to Colette Bryce Jill Mansell’s bottom drawer, writing your self with Roselle Angwin, keep going with Bekki Hill

22

NEW WRITING

31

Christina Patterson introduces her prose and poetry selections on the theme of ‘Into the Deep.’

BOOKS

Including: How to write a bestseller: The Best of Times Literary landmarks: We Need To Talk About Kevin Independent press profile: Choc-Lit Writers’ bookshelf by Kirsty Robinson

GUIDELINES

The lowdown on funding for writers The joy of…aurality

47

57

DIRECTORY

Opportunities: competitions, submissions, retreats, grants Out and About: events and workshops

61

AND FINALLY

Jancis Robinson’s bedside table

74

Sunnily, This Summer

Well, we can always dream, can’t we? As we wait for the rain to subside (please!) and the sun to come out, we’ve been putting the final touches to our latest issue of Mslexia, full of good things that will take your mind off the weather.

Not far from that particular subject area, our current New Writing theme of ‘Into the Deep’ drew some fantastic prose and poetry, and New Writing guest editor Christina Patterson takes a good look at them in her essay on page 32.

For those of you journalists out there, business reporter Azadeh Khalilizadeh explores the practicalities of freelancing during the credit crunch – by covering the financial beat. (It’s where the news is). Our other features examine the trend of episodic fiction and the rapidly growing genre of the graphic novel.

Also in this issue we give you the lowdown on applying for and accessing funding for writers, a visit to foodie writer Claudia Roden’s home for a spot of lunch and a glimpse of what wine connoisseur Jancis Robinson’s been reading lately in our Bedside Table interview. This issue also features the manuscript that Jill Mansell never published (wait until you find out why!), Maggie Gee’s original opening for her memoir, My Animal Life, a canny dissection of Penny Vincenzi’s The Best of Times and plenty of book reviews to help you select your summer reading.

Finally, please enjoy our latest venture, a Mslexia supplement, produced in conjunction with The Writing Squad and showcasing six exciting new poets. We do hope you enjoy their work, and we look forward to feedback from you on this particular project.

Our Poetry Competition deadline is looming – 26 July – so I won’t keep you any longer. Happy reading – and writing!

Daneet Steffens, Editor