Just Another Week in Suburbia and The Hachette Manuscript Development Program
The Hachette Manuscript Program is a joint initiative between Hachette Australia and the Queensland Writers Centre, which involves a week of workshops on writing, editing, publishing, marketing, agents, among other things. Entrants submit fifty pages. If they’re chosen, they submit the rest of the manuscript, then go to Queensland to participate in the Program. In 2013, I submitted Just Another Week in Suburbia and “Prudence” (the book I wrote immediately after) and, as had become my wont, didn’t expect anything. However, Just Another Week in Suburbia was shortlisted. It was gratifying given it was the novel I’d designated as THE ONE (as in the one where I was determined that…
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This week, I’m beginning with the lie ~ Last Week’s Lie: I wrote, I like the way TFSoLY is going. That’s untrue. But it’s not because of the way the story is developing, or how I feel about it, and it’s not specific to TFSoLY, but just a general malaise about all my writing in recent years. TFSoLY is going well (as in I’m cruising along), but I don’t know how much faith I have in my writing as a whole, which creates this weird juxtaposition and gnawing self-doubt. I believe a number of writers are insecure about their writing. And it’s something that’s worthwhile exploring. But before I go…