Photo by Brigitte Tohm on Unsplash
Let's all ignore the fact that it's six months, minus a day, until Christmas and instead focus on the fact that it's only six months until The Choice is out. It feels like a tipping point, half way there and it's starting to feel more real.
I've seen a first draft of my cover and I can't wait to be able to share it with you. It's really striking, not at all what I expected but completely appropriate for the book I've written - as opposed to the book I thought I was writing. That's a whole other blog post. Want to know what The Choice is about? Read on... 'Eat the best, leave the rest! Remember Mother knows best.' Olivia Pritchard lives in constant fear since Mother Mason came into power. Everything from healthy eating to exercise is controlled by the government, all in the name of health and happiness. Olivia hates being dictated to, but to protect her family she must follow the rules or face a stay in the Shame Box - a transparent prison cell set up in public for everyone to judge. After Olivia witnesses an innocent woman being violently arrested, she is no longer able to ignore the injustice. The underground rebellion 'Cut The Apron Strings' is gaining momentum and for the first time in years Olivia has a choice: keep her head down or join the fray... #CTAS #JoinTheFray Pre-order The Choice
The Choice is available to pre-order from Amazon, Waterstones, Book Depository
DETAILS Published: 26th December 2019 Publisher: Orion ISBN: 1409187748 'Eat the best, leave the rest! Remember Mother knows best.' Olivia Pritchard lives in constant fear since Mother Mason came into power. Everything from healthy eating to exercise is controlled by the government, all in the name of health and happiness. Olivia hates being dictated to, but to protect her family she must follow the rules or face a stay in the Shame Box - a perspex box, placed in a public place for everyone to judge. After Olivia witnesses an innocent woman being violently arrested, she is no longer able to ignore the injustice. The underground rebellion 'Cut The Apron Strings' is gaining momentum and for the first time in years Olivia has a choice: keep her head down or join the fray... #CTAS #JoinTheFray Pre-order The Choice It’s a year today that I found out I won the Good Housekeeping Novel Competition. I wasn't allowed to announce it then and keeping the secret was painful, but I'm delighted to be able to look back on the day that changed my life.
It couldn't have come at a better time, I needed something good to happen. I'd been having a horrible month: my grandad had died, I’d had a virus and then travelling to the funeral and all the extra stress had set my ME/CFS back. If you broke your arm you would go to the hospital. They would reset it, put your arm in a cast and send you home to heal.
What if they didn’t? What if they told you there was nothing they could do, that you should go away and try not to use it too much? What would you do? Now swap the broken arm for a condition that leaves you in terrible pain, with fatigue so bad you can’t work, socialise, walk or even get out of bed? That’s what happens with a chronic illness. I’ve been ill with ME/CFS for 26 years, bed bound for 6 of those, housebound for 14. So my metaphorical arm has been broken for a very long time.
Pre-order The Choice
The Choice is available to pre-order from Amazon, Waterstones, Book Depository
'Eat the best, leave the rest! Remember Mother knows best.' Olivia Pritchard lives in constant fear since Mother Mason came into power. Everything from healthy eating to exercise is controlled by the government, all in the name of health and happiness. Olivia hates being dictated to, but to protect her family she must follow the rules or face a stay in the Shame Box - a perspex box, placed in a public place for everyone to judge. After Olivia witnesses an innocent woman being violently arrested, she is no longer able to ignore the injustice. The underground rebellion 'Cut The Apron Strings' is gaining momentum and for the first time in years Olivia has a choice: keep her head down or join the fray... #CTAS #JoinTheFray DETAILS Published: 26th December 2019 Publisher: Orion ISBN: 1409187748
Coming Up with the Idea Ideas are everywhere, all the time, you just have to start looking. A story on the news, an overheard conversation, a dream. It just takes a single spark to ignite a story, whether that’s a piece of flash fiction, a short story, a novel, that’s really up to you. The idea can seem small at first, but the more you work with it, the larger it can get. Feel It I always get a bubbling sense of excitement when I know it’s the right story to focus on. It’s hard to describe, but it’s this feeling that this idea has something special about it. For me, the story has to matter, it has to connect to something bigger than me: a concept, a situation, an event. I get bored easily, so if it has enough depth to explore, then that’s the idea I go with.
“What if sugar and fat are addictive?” “What if sugar became illegal, like drugs?” “What would the world be like?” “What would I do?” “How would I feel if I couldn’t bake?” From those simple questions The Choice was born. The story changed a lot as I wrote it, but the core idea of a world where sugar was illegal and baking was a crime never changed. Pre-order The ChoiceThe Choice is available to pre-order from Amazon, Waterstones, Book Depository
DETAILS Published: 26th December 2019 Publisher: Orion ISBN: 1409187748
I knew that I would do author events once The Choice was published, but I never expected to be asked to speak at London Book Fair (LBF). This time last year I was hoping an agent would sign me and take my book to sell at the fair. It didn't happen and I was disappointed, but it turns out there was something far more exciting waiting for me.
The Health Challenges
Travelling with my ME/energy requirements can be tricky. I need extra time to recover from the journey. I was worried it might be a barrier to going, but my agent, editor and Orion couldn't have been more supportive or accommodating. We stayed at a fab hotel just down the road from Olympia and I was able to pace my energy and enjoy the day.
Photo: London Book Fair. Jo Finney, Amanda Preston, Claire Wade, Clare Hey.
I had fun answering the questions; Jo Finney from Good Housekeeping compared the event and it was very relaxed and friendly. The audience were really engaged and asked lots of questions. Everybody wanted to know how to win a competition and even though I've done it, I'm still not sure quite how I did.
My best advice is to keep writing, follow your dream and tell a story that ignites a passion and enthusiasm within you. That's what I did with The Choice and it worked well for me.
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I entered the novel competition at the end of March, found out I won in May, it was announced in August and I signed my agent and publishing contracts in October/November. It felt like it was all taking forever, but with each new step came a rush of excitement and more "pinch me" moments.
When the physical contracts came through the door, I couldn't quite believe it. I loved holding a tangible result of my competition win. I've been working towards this for six years and at times I wasn't sure if it would ever happen. There was lots of legal-ease (technical term!), so I got both my agent and the Society of Authors to check the contracts through for me before I signed. There were no problems and it was a joy to put my name on the metaphorical dotted line. |
The hardest part was deciding which pen to use! A ballpoint felt too cheap, my fountain pen doesn't work any more, so I found a good, black ink roller-ball instead. #authorproblems!
I had already started my edits on The Choice before I got my contracts and that has been a real roller-coaster, I'll tell you all about it next time.
I've got a week until my copyedits come through, then it will be back to the grindstone. Wish me luck!
I had already started my edits on The Choice before I got my contracts and that has been a real roller-coaster, I'll tell you all about it next time.
I've got a week until my copyedits come through, then it will be back to the grindstone. Wish me luck!
When I'm not writing...
I'm reading: Lethal White by Robert Galbraith
I'm listening to: Conversations with Friends by Sally Rooney I'm making: A crocheted Harry Potter house scarf blanket I've made: Adjusted a Harry Potter tie and made a hair bow for my niece I've baked: My first ever quiche!
You can keep up to date with all my latest news by signing up to my email newsletter.
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Pre-order The Choice
The Choice is available to pre-order from Amazon, Waterstones, Book Depository
DETAILS
Published: 26th December 2019
Publisher: Orion
ISBN: 1409187748
DETAILS
Published: 26th December 2019
Publisher: Orion
ISBN: 1409187748
'Eat the best, leave the rest! Remember Mother knows best.'
Olivia Pritchard lives in constant fear since Mother Mason came into power. Everything from healthy eating to exercise is controlled by the government, all in the name of health and happiness. Olivia hates being dictated to, but to protect her family she must follow the rules or face a stay in the Shame Box - a perspex box, placed in a public place for everyone to judge.
After Olivia witnesses an innocent woman being violently arrested, she is no longer able to ignore the injustice. The underground rebellion 'Cut The Apron Strings' is gaining momentum and for the first time in years Olivia has a choice: keep her head down or join the fray...
#CTAS #JoinTheFray
Olivia Pritchard lives in constant fear since Mother Mason came into power. Everything from healthy eating to exercise is controlled by the government, all in the name of health and happiness. Olivia hates being dictated to, but to protect her family she must follow the rules or face a stay in the Shame Box - a perspex box, placed in a public place for everyone to judge.
After Olivia witnesses an innocent woman being violently arrested, she is no longer able to ignore the injustice. The underground rebellion 'Cut The Apron Strings' is gaining momentum and for the first time in years Olivia has a choice: keep her head down or join the fray...
#CTAS #JoinTheFray
The Choice is available to pre-order from Amazon, Waterstones, Book Depository
DETAILS
Published: 26th December 2019
Publisher: Orion
ISBN: 1409187748
DETAILS
Published: 26th December 2019
Publisher: Orion
ISBN: 1409187748
Claire Wade
I'm an author, disability activist, winner of the Good Housekeeping First Novel Competition and The EABA for Fiction 2020 and founder of Authors with Disabilities and Chronic Illnesses (ADCI).
The Choice is available from:
DETAILS:
Title: The Choice
Publisher: Orion
ISBN: 1409187748
Title: The Choice
Publisher: Orion
ISBN: 1409187748
You can keep up to date with all my latest blog posts by signing up to my email newsletter.