• The Story Behind the Book

    Just Another Week in Suburbia: The Publishing Journey ~ Part 2

     Note: None of what follows is intended as a criticism of publishers. These are just my experiences, as well as my views as a result of those experiences. I’ve never wanted to tee off at a publisher or journal because of a rejection – even when rejections were the end of the world for me. I understand and appreciate that’s the business. This is just an account of how things happened and what I felt.   I once got a rejection from a major publisher that opened, “Dear Leo”. Leo. The rest of the rejection was form – a generic knockback to which they simply add your name. It’s simple,…

  • The Story Behind the Book

    Just Another Week in Suburbia: Revision ~ Part 2

    Following the feedback from Bernadette Foley, I read through Just Another Week in Suburbia and identified three key scenes that were issues, and which would need alternatives to help domesticate the story. There were other smaller things things throughout, obviously, and also general revisions that would round out the story. Being at this stage is different to any other feeling you have when you write. When you begin something, it’s a blank document. You fill it. When you revise, you shape what’s there, like your first draft is a big lump of clay, and every revision brings you closer to what you’re trying to create. But revising while writing in…