How I'm going with my latest published book

Here we go on my second ever blog!

All That We Are

Nice to tell everyone that my last novel ALL THAT WE ARE (my 22nd pubished one) seems to be doing quite well and has had quite a few very nice reviews from people. It came out in hardback last year and early this year went into trade paperback and Isis Audio are arranging to put it into CD.
Whoopee! Have just heard that The Co-ops are buying a tidy amount of the book, also The Works buying the same anount, and someone named Tony Fisher also buying the same amount which go on airport and railway terminus stands. All great news
All my books have so far been bought by Isis, in the early years going into audio, but now with the changing times, in CD.
Can't believe all this has happened to me - have to pinch myself sometimes - and I still get a little thrill deep inside when it hits me. And to think it all started from writing an account of a very bad robbery I had years ago - but that's another story. When my mother said, "write it out of yourself" I did (didn't need any counselling - and I recommend anyone who's been through a traumatic experience, to write it all down. It's like getting it all out of youself and it worked wonders. And on top of that, the piece got published, the editor of Weekend Magazine (unfortunately no longer out there) phoned and said why don't I break into writing short stories when I told him how much I liked writing. I said, "who to?" He said, "To us, of course!" So I did.
After the third rejection - during which he practically taught me how to write a short story - lovely man, he has my undying gratitude, I had my first short story accepted, and never looked back.
Had a couple of dozen published. But when the magazine folded, I turned to writing the novel (two of which I termed "my abysmal jargon" but had to suffer five or six years of trying before getting an agent and my first book was published. You don't half have to be patient.
Now my novels go all over the world, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, USA, Europe. I had one published in Russia, another in Greece, and they sent me 3 complimentary copies - all in Greek - can't read a word of it!

My favourites of those I've writtten are GIVE ME TOMORROW which is set around suffagettes; JULIA'S WAY riches to rags and back to riches again, BOW TO BOND STREET another rags to riches tale, BRENDA'S PLACE, a wartime novel. There are quite a few more, but that'll do.

Anyway, that's all for now. Tell you one day of that absolute thrill of being told that your first novel has been accepted - there's nothing like it. It's better than as if you'd struck gold!

Hope what I've said is an encouragement to all those who love writing and hoping one day to be published. Just keep at it. Get someone to look at your work (a writing group maybe) and be able to help with some constructive criticism - we all need it. I know I do.  And just keep going.

Good luck everyone