The Write to Know, Issue 6
Recommendations, reviews, randoms and reads
I happened to tune into Radio 4’s Woman’s Hour this week, just in time to hear author Sarah Gristwood talk about her new book, Secret Voices: A Year of Women’s Diaries.
It was so fascinating that I immediately reached out to Sarah and cross fingers, she’ll be doing a Ten for The TEN q&a in the next few weeks.
I told her that I didn’t think of myself as someone who journals because I spend so much time writing for work (and then in the gaps, creatively), that the thought of adding diary entries to my day seems unnecessary and overwhelming.
But thinking about it, after finding all those notebooks, journals and diaries in my old storage boxes earlier this week, I’ve actually been journalling all my adult life.
You can grab yourself a copy of Sarah’s book here.
The very word ‘diarist’ is evocative of emotional adventures and secrets held. Anais Nin, Anne Frank, Bridget Jones Adrian Mole, Hunter S Thompson, Alan Clark, Samuel Pepys, the Wimpey Kid, Lewis Carroll and Virginia Woolf all immediately sprang to mind as I was writing this post.
In fact, I’ve just started writing my first novel and after this week I’m seriously considering turning it into a diary. Will keep you posted on whether or not that idea sticks!
But on with the show. Here’s this week’s list of curated gems…
PUBLISHING AT WHAT EXPENSE?
If you’re on Threads and interested in what your publishing expense ROI might be, YA author Brigid Kemmerer lays it out very clearly.
She’s been traditionally published since 2012 and has released 16 books, so knows the process inside out. Her novels include A Curse So Dark and Lonely, Defy the Night, and Letters to the Lost.
She has some great advice on what you do - and don’t - need to spend money on.
GET INSIDE MY PUB!
Want to write for the soap EastEnders but don’t know anyone who can get you to the inner sanctum?
Well then this is your lucky day because the BBC Writers Studio are flinging open the Queen Vic doors to anyone with the talent, the passion and the drive.
Here’s a snippet of info:
The Writers’ Studio: EastEnders is an open script call for those who are looking to take the next step in their writing career and join the ranks of the EastEnders writing team. The initiative intends to find writers with some experience, who are actively keen to pursue a career in continuing drama. As avid viewers of the show, you should be familiar with its recent stories and characters, and with the tone and style of storytelling.
The open call process will shortlist 8 writers who’ll each write a paid trial script. The 8 shortlisted writers will embark on their paid trial script with the full support of the in-house development editor and other resources. Writers will be paid £2,000 per script, which will include up to 2 rounds of notes. The trial scripts are then reviewed by the producers to select who may be suitable to proceed to a full commission.
Submissions are now open and close at midday on April 22.
REALITY BITES
A couple of weeks ago, I stumbled upon Edge of Reality, a fascinating podcast about the dark side of reality TV.
Hosted by journalist Jacques Peretti, it tells the story of how modern shows like The Bachelor, Married At First Sight, The Circle, and Love Island, found great success - but at what cost?
Expedition Robinson, a 1997 series I’d never heard of but was a precursor to Survivor, is considered the first of the genre but is now only remembered for the fact that the first participant to be voted off the show took his own life.
Reality TV is now a gazillion-dollar industry and in this podcast, insiders divulge the extreme lengths taken by the entertainment business to deliver the most sensational content.
I absolutely galloped through the episodes. Unfortunately, Edge of Reality is only available on Audible but if you subscribe, I highly recommend it.
More pod: Deadline Hollywood are running the Deadline ElectionLine Podcast until the country goes to the polls. Their latest episode features director John Ridley and actress Regina King, who stars as Shirley Chisholm, the first black woman elected to Congress. Shirley is currently streaming on Netflix. You can listen to Deadline’s podcast here.
FOOD, GLORIOUS FOOD!
The Sophie Coe food history writing competition is now open to submissions.
Sophie was an anthropologist, food historian and author, known for her work on the history of chocolate.
First awarded in 1995, the prize was founded in memory of Sophie Coe, who died in 1994, by her husband Michael Coe and fellow food writer, Alan Davidson.
There are lots of rules and regs so make sure you soak it all up like a Victoria sponge. Deadline is April 26. First prize is a tasty £1,500.
Read Sophie and Michael’s The True History of Chocolate (and then eat some!).
FLASH MOBBED
Looking for a long read this Sunday?
Of course you are! Then make yourself comfy because this has everything; drama, bloodshed, desire, compelling characters, the Chicago underworld and audacity by the bucketload.
I love long reads. To me, they embody the spirit of magazines past and present. When everyone was predicting the death of mags, they didn’t reckon on the appetite that would remain for great storytelling.
When done well, these immersive articles, leave you feeling warm and fuzzy. They are hot chocolate on a wintery day and an Arnold Palmer on a sunny one.
I’m trying to get a couple of long read writers for my q&a interview series because putting together something this well-researched and well-written is no mean feat.
The Rise of Tokyo Joe, published last May by Chicago Magazine, tells the story of Ken Eto, who effortlessly climbed the ranks of the Chicago mob (and was admired by the FBI for his audacity and money-making skills). This is the American fever dream but ultimately, the mafia wanted its pound of flesh
Written brilliantly by Dan O’Sullivan, this is a 50-minute long read that requires your utmost attention and respect.
SUSPENDED IN TIME
I interviewed the rather wonderful conceptual artist, Yinka Shonibare, a couple of weeks ago, for Intelligent Magazine.
He debuts a new show, Suspended States, at the Serpentine, from April 12. It sounds absolutely incredible but after discussing his artworks, which study immigration, colonialism, spaces of refuge and sanctuary, I asked him what he was reading.
He told me that he’d been gathering information about restitution for a new project but I already knew he was a fun of Jonathan Swift’s Gulliver’s Travels.
He says of it: “This is a book that deals with all of human nature and deals with the way we treat strangers and particularly in the context of the migrant criss and also looks at the futile nature of war. Every time I read it I discover new things.”
If you want to learn more about this brilliant British/Nigerian artist and his work, background and motivation, this podcast with The Art Newspaper is worth a listen.
A CHEMICAL ROMANCE
[Come on! That’s a great subhead!]
The Profumo Affair author, Vanessa Holburn, who featured in las week’s Ten for The TEN, shared with me some of her current book recommendations.
Like the rest of us she struggles to get through her to-read list. “I've just started a Sebastian Faulks novel from 2015. I always feel like I'm very behind in my reading!”
She told me: “I read all sorts of books for pleasure. My most recent favourite was Lessons in Chemistry, by Bonnie Garmus. It was so clever and there's a dog in it, so bonus points there!”
Here’s a review from The New York Times, but you can also watch the TV adaption, starring Brie Larson, on Apple TV.
She also recommends anything by Turkish-British novelist Elif Shafak. “I love that she uses her fiction to discuss issues like misogyny and politics.”
Reading Lessons in Chemistry now. Garmus perfectly weaves in the daily struggles women go through—even more so in the 1950s—from misogyny, lower pay, sexual discrimination, being talked down to, work-related insults and more. The protagonist is decades ahead of everyone else as she plows headlong through life, determined to live her life on her own terms. IShe's smart, has spunk, and won't back down. I'm loving it.