Can't blog now, more heroes to meet...

I've not been a good blogger of late, I know that and I'm sorry. The thing is, I'm just not spending much time at all online at the moment. I'm reading loads, and writing plenty, but none of that writing has turned out to happen online (until today). My third novel is coming along and I'm also working on a script for The Killing Jar, which looks like it's found a producer, so all that's keeping me busy, busy, busy, as well as quite shiny and excited.

I've also had some fun this summer meeting my heroes. They are all heroes I've met before, but that doesn't take the shine off for me, they're still heroes. Chuck Palahnuik (one of said heroes) says in something I read once that you shouldn't meet your heroes, that they're bound to let you down by farting or belching. Well, I haven't heard any evidence of the above and, as I don't have much of a sense of smell, I wouldn't notice otherwise. So far, I've lucked out.

Of course, one of the biggest events of the year has been the 80th birthday of Alan Sillitoe, which has been celebrated in style. For the latest tribute, catch the next issue of Left Lion. They done 'im proud.

Most recently, I interviewed Irvine Welsh at the Broadway Cinema, where I used to work. I was quite nervous; I heard somewhere that he could be quite prickly in the wrong hands. Nothing could have been further from the truth. He was friendly, chatty and asked me about my books on more than one occasion! (Not during the actual interview - that would have been just wrong lol). I'd say you couldn't meet a nicer man. An editor at Random House once suggested to me that they felt the nastiness of someone's fiction had almost an inverse relationship with the personality of the writer. ie Nice guys write grim. So far I'm finding this adds up.

If you want proof of this, I'm interviewing Chuck Palahniuk soon. He's about the nicest guy who writes the grimmest stories. He comes so close to defining cult fiction, that's what his fans call themselves. If you fancy checking this out for yourself, it's 6pm, at the Broadway, Broad Street in Nottingham on Thursday 14th August. See you there. Don't fart!

N

Lowdham Book Festival - this Saturday

I'm at Lowdham Book Festival this Saturday, 1pm, in the Fiction Marquee, launching my new crime express book The Okinawa Dragon with Clare Littleford, who has also published one called The Quarry. Be nice to see you there.

And don't forget about Irvine Welsh at the Broadway. If you have any ideas for things I should ask him, post em here.

Nicola

Finding a voice and Irvine Welsh

I'd just like to point you here, in the direction of the anthology from my new students. They've worked very hard and I'm really impressed with what they've achieved. I definitely recommend it. Make sure you buy from the 'new and used' available part, so that you go direct to the publishers and don't need to pay a sourcing fee...

Also, I'm interviewing Irvine Welsh at the Broadway Cinema in Nottingham on 10th July. To book tickets and for more information see their website. http://www.broadway.org.uk/

Alan Sillitoe reviews to come soon :)

Toodle pip xx

Missing May

This May, I've been too busy living to blog. Too busy living to write very much even, though I've had lots and lots of inspiration recently and I am working on a script and a couple of stories, as well as what I hope will become novel number 3. I'm hoping to tie up some loose ends in the next week or so then get into some serious writing...

Meanwhile, Alan Sillitoe was made a Freeman of the City of Nottingham in celebration of his 80th birthday. Apparently, this does not mean he can walk into Squares or Yates's and demand a free pint, but that he has the right to herd sheep or cattle freely through the city without charge. I think he should do it. Just for the craic.

As a celebration of Alan's new status, as well as his 80th birthday back in March, I am re-reading his book of short stories The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner, the title story of which inspired the name of this blog. I'm going to review each story as I go and post those reviews here.

TTFN...

The Verb

Catch me tonight on Radio 3's The Verb, together with other writers Aravind Adiga, Ardashir Vakil, Sinead Morrissey and Willy Vlautin, who also happens to be lead singer of Richmond Fontaine. It's a great show, with some insights on the portrayal of India in fiction, and on the relationship between music and words. If you're too cool for school and out on Friday night, you can listen again for up to seven days after the broadcast.

Nicola

Spaced...

There's a lot going on right now. Like Frankie, I am in Seattle, a business trip of my husband's that I've come along to help with. Meanwhile, I was on the radio today without even being in the country. How clever is that? You can listen again here as long as you get there in the next six days.

Someone pointed out to me last week that all the events going on should be up here and he was quite right, although I have been rather too busy doing them to have time for that blogging thing, you see. Anyway, here goes nothing...

I have a very interesting piece going out on Radio 3, the show called the Verb on Friday 4th April at 21.45. When I was commissioned on this piece, the producer suggested I may want to do something dramatic, or experiment with sound, so I set myself the challenge of writing a piece to be read with a piece of music. I'd already had a bit of a go at this, with the opening prologue to Starfishing, but I'd done that quite loosely because it was for print publication rather than recording, so didn't need to be an exact science. I chose a longer piece of music this time, seven whole minutes. It was the most challenging piece of writing I've undertaken in a while and took a whole day's work, with lots of reading aloud to check the timings. Finishing it was extremely satisfying and exciting.

Thursday 3rd April I'm at the Bookcase in Lowdham for my Notts launch of Starfishing. Frankie is coming along, and will be writing about it afterwards. She's having fun with this postmodern side she's discovered in herself and has no intention of crawling back into her book anytime soon.

Saturday 12th, I'm hanging out at the New Street branch of Waterstone's in Birmingham to chat to customers and sign some books from 11am till 3pm. Thursday 17th, 7:30pm, I'm talking and signing at Waterstone's Nottingham. Nottingham Central Library are having me on Monday 21st April at 2pm. 26th April is my appearance at the Cuirt festival in Galway, 5pm.

I also have a piece in this month's Left Lion and next month's Marie Claire so watch out for those.

I'm off to give in to my jetlag.

Nicola x

Happy Saturday...

STOP PRESS - PICTURES FROM LAUNCH PARTY IN SPECIAL SLIDESHOW HERE------->>

(aren't I clever? Lol)

Starfishing is officially launched into the big, wide sea and it's slightly scary and very exciting, like most voyages out in the big waves of the book industry. I had my party on Wednesday in the City, at an old haunt, Browns on Old Jewry. I used to attend said establishment on a regular basis when I worked for Trading Technologies, as our office was around the corner on the Poultry. It was odd to be back there in that it didn't feel strange at all. It felt like coming home. It was the best kind of party. Just the right amount of alcohol, and friends from all the different times in my life. One from sixth form (my husband Chad), a couple from University, some from my time in the City, others who studied on the MA with me, and yet more who are more recent acquisitions, as well as quite a few people I'd never met before. It all made for a very pleasant evening and a good number of books sold, even though many of the people who came had already bought a copy ahead of the event. I'm now looking forward to pushing the book out into Nottingham waters via The Bookcase in Lowdham.

For the first time in a long while, I've been inspired to get out some canvas and a paintbrush. Part of this is to paint a rather special piece for a friend of mine, an 'in' joke of a picture, you could say. It was something I said I'd do in a less than sane moment but now I really want to. I'm also painting a Peppa Pig for my niece. Perhaps a less ambitious project but it's her birthday and I wanted to give her something a little bit different. Peppa Pig and her friends look easy to draw, but once I got started I began to realise why these little characters are so appealing. They're not that easy to get right - an exercise in the art of perfect proportion. I haven't drawn anything for years and this was a good way to get back into it.

I feel at a bit of a crossroads creatively. I'm not about to give up writing and try to sell my Peppa Pigs, but I do have all sorts of ideas running off on their own without my permission! I want to write a script for The Killing Jar, then I think that Starfishing would be easier, and make a great movie. I'd love to start my next novel; except I don't feel quite ready. There are so many ideas washing round and round my poor little head it's like a spin cycle in there and I feel slightly sick. Also, for the first time in a long while, I can feel my hair on the back of my neck. Yes, indeed, for those of you who thought I still looked like this, I've grown it all back, as you will see from my launch pics.

Maybe I will just stop and chill for a little while, and enjoy the parties.

Pictures from the launch toot sweet I promise... See the slideshow over here ---->

Nicola xx