Sifting through the various feeds and newsletters that fill my inbox with information about The World of Publishing. Hmm.
Serial killer fiction still the staple of escapist thrillers. (Why is reading about women being tortured in cellars a primary form of relaxation in Equality Britain? Answers please!) Amazon have new digital platform for short stories. (Need to get my head round this, will be back to you on this when I understand it properly.) The Frankfurt Book fair has been and gone and was busier than expected. (Went to the London Book Fair last year and it was curiously similar to any other trade fair, with that curious non-atmosphere and a general mood of caffeine-fuelled claustrophobia.)
Here’s a news item for you: J.K. Rowling has been voted the most influential woman in Britain by National Magazines, publishers of Cosmo and similar fat glossies. (But then again, Forbes magazine says Michelle Obama is the most influential woman in the
whole world, so marrying Barack trumps inventing Harry. Or perhaps her upper arms are just more toned.)
Deep breath….and relax. This is the stuff of migraine. I have a writer friend in California who goes through a little ritual every time he sits down to write. He closes his eyes, then focuses on Famous Writer info, self-doubt, accumulated put-downs, unease about his lack of ability, self-doubt, EPA (Empty Page Anxiety) and general white noise. Then he imagines a black box, opens it, puts all this fizzing doubt inside and sends it into outer space.
