Tag Archives: Honno

Guest post with Judith Barrow

03 Friday Sep 2021

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When my friend, Judith Barrow, and I – both published by Honno – realised we had been shortlisted, alongside one another, for the Literature Wales Book of the Year/Fiction Award, we immediately agreed on two things: we were chuffed to bits for one another & it was amazing to be recognised, slightly past the prime of our lives, for such a prestigious award. This led to a discussion about being published by a press that, amongst its many attributes, doesn’t see age. And I asked Judith if she would care to share her thoughts about being published by Honno. She agreed, and it’s my pleasure to hand over to her. Welcome, Judith!


Why I like being published by Honno
I’ve been a creative writing tutor for many years and am always pleased when a student of mine has a story or an article published… somewhere! But last week I was especially delighted to receive an excited call from one of them to tell me her story has been accepted for a forthcoming anthology by Honno, my own publishers. And it brought back the memory, my own moment of the excitement I felt when, some fifteen years ago, Honno accepted one of my stories for their anthology, Coming up Roses: tinyurl.com/t56r6mbx

The acceptance of that story gave me confidence to submit the first of my books to Honno. Six books later I’m still with them. And happy to stay with them.

Honno is my kind of publisher; small, independent, and led by strong women who know what kind of books they want to publish and don’t accept anything but the best that an author can produce. So the editing is hard, but fair, and leads to many discussions – and a few compromises on both sides.

Because it is known to be a Welsh press it is sometimes assumed that all its authors will be Welsh as well. So, often, when I’ve appeared at events, people are surprised to hear my broad Northern English accent. The supposition is false; Honno’s aim as an inspiring, feminist Welsh press is to provide opportunities for women writers. The only proviso is that they are either Welsh, are living in Wales or have a connection to the country – which actually covers a great many writers.

I love their strapline: “Great Women, Great Writing, Great Stories.” So it always gives me a thrill when the manuscript I’ve been toiling over for months (or years!) is accepted by them.

I’ve had experience of having an agent, of being asked to conform to the commercial market; to fit in. And it wasn’t for me. As a creative writing tutor, I’ve spent the last couple of decades encouraging students to “write in their own voices”. So when the agent told me I needed to conform if I wanted to be published by one of the big publishing companies, I knew it wasn’t for me. This, after she’d placed me with a commercial editor who, not only wanted me to write in a different way, but also wanted me to write in a different genre. “The talent and skill as a writer is there but you need to be open to change,” was the advice.

I took it; I changed from being a client with an agent (who had, after all, accepted me on the strength of my first book) to seeking other outlets for my work.

I was lucky, I found Honno.

But it’s not only the professionalism of Honno, the specific care and attention they give to each element of producing a book, it’s the brilliant feeling of being part of a group of women who write diverse and brilliant novels. And who support one another and are generous enough to share and promote each another’s latest publication. In what we now call (and hopefully will again, to some extent before long) “normal times”, as many of us as are able meet up to talk about our writing, the current state of the writing world, new ideas for promotion – and just a general catch up on one another’s lives. And have a laugh. Oh, and lunch – and even, sometimes, a cheeky glass of wine.

This year, friend and fellow Honno author, Carol Lovekin, and I were honoured to be shortlisted for The Wales Book of the Year. Me for my novel, The Memory: bit.ly/3b2xRSn and Carol for Wild Spinning Girls: bit.ly/3gJx4dJ . It was an enjoyable and gratifying experience. We were delighted, not only for ourselves, but for Honno as well. A reward for all the hard work put in on both sides.

Thank you very much for your words, Judith. It goes with saying, I echo your sentiments about Honno – it’s wonderful to see our remarkable publisher acknowledged in this way. And well done us! It was an honour to be shortlisted with you. Here’s to more books by women of a certain age!

And before I go, dear reader, may I say how much I recommend Judith’s books.

Honno is a Welsh word meaning, ‘that one (feminine) who is elsewhere.’

judithbarrowblog.com/
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www.honno.co.uk/authors/b/judith-barrow/
www.amazon.co.uk/Judith-Barrow/e/B0043RZJV6

It’s the taking part

11 Sunday Jul 2021

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Last year, when Jill Doyle invited me to contribute to her Five on Friday, in answer to the question, ‘Tell us 5 things you’d like to do or achieve’, I said, ‘Win a book prize. An unlikely dream, but dreaming is part and parcel of being a writer.’ My tongue was very much in my cheek. The dreaming was what mattered; I carried on, dreaming & being a writer.

And then this happened. My third book, Wild Spinning Girls, has been shortlisted for the Literature Wales Book of the Year/ Rhys Davies Fiction Award.

I didn’t cry or squeal or do much of anything to be honest. I simply stared at the email, read it again, in case I’d missed the bit about it not meaning me & it was just information. It did mean me though – me & my book & my publisher, Honno. Me & eleven other authors in four categories. (We were all sworn to secrecy for what felt like thirty-nine years, until the announcement on the radio.) And then it sank in: the fact that Literature Wales had chosen my book as one of the twelve.

Once I knew I was shortlisted alongside another Honno author, Judith Barrow, it became a double reason for celebration. We are both women of a certain age who are friends. We have been nurtured by our amazing publisher & we are as happy for them as we are for one another.

Honno deserve this. They are the UK’s longest standing independent feminist press. They do amazing things, for their writers penning contemporary literature in a variety of genres; for the lost women’s voices from the past. And for their readers who look for quality books published to the highest standard.


When I was first published, that was the dream come true. I was so much older than most people who secure their first publishing deal & I thought it was enough. Box ticked, job done. Two more books later, to be shortlisted for this prestigious award is another layer of validation. It says, I’m good enough. It means I can, hopefully, finally shoo Imposter Syndrome out of the door & write more stories that count.

Or, perhaps not. Writing is a random business – writers are hostages to all kinds of fortune & there is something to be said for the maxim, we are only as good as our last book. In the moment, we take the brickbats (Oh look, dear reader, a 1* review!) & the bouquets (5*****s!) We write & write some more & hope to be published again.

And sometimes, we get shortlisted for an award.  

This is my first time; it’s the most exciting thing that’s happened to me in my five years as a published writer. But ultimately, it’s the recognition that counts – for me, for my sister author & above all, for our wonderful publisher.

As a girl, I quite enjoyed sport. I played hockey, I ran quite well & liked that. But I was never brilliant & I never won anything. My daddy said, don’t worry – it isn’t about winning or being the best; it’s about enjoying yourself & being part of something. My daddy was right – it really is the taking part that counts.

Spoilt for choice

05 Sunday Apr 2020

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Along with many writers, I’m in semi-hibernation. Because I live in a rural area with a lovely walk almost on my doorstep I’m able to get out for a solitary saunter each day.

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I’m managing to write too – most days at any rate & the new story is slowly unfolding. I feel blessed.

As is the case for many recently released books, my latest is fending for itself the best it can. Under the current circumstances all I or my publisher can do is promote as much as possible. I’ve had some wonderful support from other authors so this post is my way of saying thank you & returning the favour.

Titles marked* are ones I’ve read & highly recommend.

Three from Honno, my own publisher.

The Memory* by Judith Barrow.
The Covenant by Thorne Moore, coming in July.
Wild Spinning Girls, my new one.

Two beauties from Orenda Books

I Am Dust* by Louise Beech
Worst Case Scenario* by Helen Fitzgerald

And finally…

You Never Told Me* by Sarah Jasmon (Black Swan)
The Black and the White by Alis Hawkins (Sapere Books)

 

I’ve included links to the publishers. Do take a look & if anything takes your fancy, order direct from the publisher where possible, or an independent bookshop like Griffin Books in Cardiff.

 

Dear reader, enjoy all the books you choose to read. My lovely writer friends, may your muses be with you.
Be well, stay safe, best love. xXx

 

Showing up: let me count the ways…

15 Sunday Sep 2019

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Being here for starters. It’s been a month since I wrote a word. Not because I have nothing to say, more that I have too much. As I count down the months until my third novel, Wild Spinning Girls is published, I could write reams about how exciting the process is. But the authors amongst you know – while we wait, we write.

Most days then, I clock on for Book 4. (And, for a brief time, I showed up for the fifth one too. Until I ordered myself to get back to doing what I do best: one thing at a time.)  

Showing up are the two words that make up my daily writing mantra. Unless we put in the graft at the typeface, the road to publication is likely to be strewn with rocks. (Full disclosure: makes no difference – it will be littered with them. Boulders, bedrock & concrete slabs the size of dragons; Very Big Brick Walls & even bits of the earth’s crust.)

So you may as well show up. This is my current, favourite ‘Showing Up’ image. Words birds obviously, a nice frock & a beak.)

Image: Sarah Young

Like many writers, published & unpublished, I put in my ‘Time Before’ – years when the rejections piled up & I convinced myself I was comforted by the generic phrase: ‘You write well/interestingly/can’t quite place you on our list/we’ve just signed something similar.’ Or words to that effect. They’re all code for ‘No.’

It’s over seven years since I first pitched my debut, Ghostbird, to the woman who was to become my mentor. Back then, Janet Thomas was still an editor at Honno, the Welsh Women’s Press. She was the first in a galaxy of women destined to show up & have a huge impact on my life.

Initially, it was the Honno Sisterhood who embraced me & made me feel part of the best gang ever. Post-publication, many of them have become dear friends.

Some of the Honno sisterhood: from L round the table, my editor/publisher Caroline Oakley, Juliet Greenwood, me, Judith Barrow, Alison Leyland, Janet Thomas, Thorne Moore, Hilary Shepherd & Jan Newton

And then, in real life & virtually, out in the wider world a myriad brilliant, fabulous authors & bloggers have shown up. The kindest, most supportive human beings it’s my privilege to know. As I look forward to being published again, I count my blessings.

If I counted them – the kind, generous fabulous lovelies – I’d be here all day.

 

Being on a list with your sheroes

31 Sunday Dec 2017

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Island Life, Word Birds & Process

Last year, my first novel, Ghostbird, was nominated for the Guardian’s Not the Booker Prize by the generous blogger, Anne Williams whose blog Being Anne is up there with some of the best on the circuit. When I read the extremely long long list, one the names that stood out was Edna O’Brien. Quite. The actual Edna O’Brien: one of my favourite writers. I was highly amused & for a while one of my passwords was ‘onalistwithednao’brien’ & I’m not even kidding. I lunched out on it for weeks not caring that I was never going to make the shortlist. I was just tickled pink to be on a list with one of my literary sheroes. And indebted to Anne for her generous & genuine support for my book.

(And this year, by the way, one of my sister Honno authors, Sara Gethin, did make the NTB shortlist! For her wonderful book, Not Thomas. I’ve been lunching out on that accolade too!)

With my second novel, Snow Sisters out last September, time flew & all at once it was that time of year. The readers (in particular the book bloggers) began posting their lists of favourite books of 2017.

Back in April 2015 when I got an offer from Honno for Ghostbird, it would never have occurred to me that it would end up on anyone ‘all-time favourites bookcase’ (see Hayley at Rather Too Fond Of Books) or be anyone’s favourite book of the year. Or, that two and a half years on, my second book would not only be considered worthy of inclusion on several lists, in one instance it too would be awarded the top slot. I am indebted to all the book bloggers who chose Snow Sisters & in particular, Linda Hill of Linda’s Book Bag for making it her Book of the Year 2017.

S Sisters twitter - Copy (2)

And there’s this: another of my favourite book bloggers, Anne Cater of Book Connectors fame & randomthingsthroughmyletterbox brought Snow Sisters to the attention of Prima magazine & the book was included as one of 9 Perfect Autumn/Winter reads. Colour me joyful!

There are other people I am indebted to – too many to list to be honest. One or two are fabulous writers who have stunned me by their kindness & ongoing support for my writing. Louise Beech is one, Amanda Jennings is another as are Rebecca Mascull & Su Bristow.

Being on a list with Edna O’Brien will always be my secret thrill but hanging out on so many lists & with such a fabulous gang of tremendous writers has blown me away. My thanks to everyone who has supported my writing, bought my books or reviewed them.

Happy New Year you lovelies.
Be kind, be brave & read books! xXx

 

Not nepotism

30 Sunday Jul 2017

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Island Life, Word Birds & Process

Last year it was loudly promulgated, by the few who can never resist, that nominations for the Guardian’s Not the Booker Prize were largely the result of in-house publishing/author nepotism. There’s a trickle this year too and it’s silly. Occasional irresponsible lapses notwithstanding, the idea that I would nominate a book by one of my sister Honno authors just because she’s published by Honno makes me itch.

I nominated Not Thomas by Sara Gethin before I realised other people had. As a single nomination secures a place on the NTBP longlist and other people had already picked everyone else on my list I tried to ‘cancel’ my vote (you can’t delete it), spread my net wider and nominate See What I Have Done by Sarah Schmidt and The Roanoke Girls by Amy Engels both of which I adored. (I don’t know either of these authors so no one can accuse me of bias.)

In truth, I wouldn’t care if they did. Not Thomas was top of my list purely because it’s a beautiful book: an extraordinary story which deserves to win prizes. There was no partiality. I simply love the book and I’m proud to be published by a press with such discerning taste!

not thomas

My list of possible nominations included Su Bristow’s exquisite Sealskin
and Maria in the Moon by Louise Beech, both published by Orenda Books a publishing house for which I have a huge regard. Each of these authors has endorsed my forthcoming novel, Snow Sisters. Does that make my choices in some way reciprocal back-scratching? The Wild Air by Rebecca Mascull was on my list too – she gave me a wonderful quote for my first novel, Ghostbird. Does that constitute some form of sycophantic favouritism? Not in my view. All it means is I’m fortunate to know a bunch of brilliant, generous writers!

Pish and twaddle, frankly. And all things in my world being eminently equal – the very best of luck to everyone nominated for this fun prize. In particular, my favourites!

Book review – The House with Old Furniture

26 Wednesday Jul 2017

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The House with Old furniture is a recent release by Helen Lewis from Honno, the Welsh Women’s Press. I only review books I like a lot. I like this book a lot & make no apology for promoting a debut novel from my own publisher.

old f

This is an accomplished debut – the writing flows and the narrative never lets up. It’s a pretty book too – each chapter heading is decorated with facsimiles of old recipe books and an old-fashioned font. Sadly, that’s as far as the pretty goes.

Do we go mad or are we driven mad? In The House with Old Furniture by Helen Lewis the question is moot.

Evie and Finn are instantly placed: each one grieving for the loss of Jesse – a son and brother respectively. Killed in a shocking gang-related incident, Jesse’s ghost follows his distraught mother and lost little brother as they are forced into moving from London to Wales by his father, Andrew, easily the most arrogant and obnoxious character I’ve encountered in a very long time.

Evie is utterly broken by her son’s death, grieving almost to the point of inarticulacy, but even when she does speak, no one listens. No one listens to Finn either. As they attempt to settle into Pengarrow, an ancient house in Wales, it slowly dawns on Evie that Alys, the woman cooking in the kitchen, isn’t quite who she first appears to be. Evie finds common cause with ephemeral Alys, the author of an old book filled with recipes, reminders and remedies; notes, letters and clues. A book containing her life. Alys also has a son, fearful Nye who reminds both Evie and Finn of Jesse. The unfolding horror of the parallel ghost story slinks like a snake between the cracks of Evie’s grief-stricken mind and Finn’s growing confusion.

Vile, weak Andrew and his monstrous parents make Evie’s life hell on earth. Isolated in more than her desperate sorrow she is ‘unincluded’ rendering her inadequate and a target for people who ought to be caring for her but who have shocking agendas of their own.

If Andrew is the nastiest character I’ve ever encountered, Evie has to be the most tragic: poor, sad Evie, left with ‘all the things I should’ve thrown out and nothing we really need.’ Ten year-old Finn will break your heart; Evie will take the pieces and crush them. The ending is a stunner. It’s brutal and even though it left a space I didn’t know how to fill, and at first I thought I didn’t like that, after a few days I realised what makes this book special is the author’s absolute and unequivocal honesty. Which meant I could decide that after all, I loved it.

As Evie says, close to the end, when she and Alys raise a glass, “Now you’re talking; dirty, lying, scheming, cheating bastards…”

A draft is a half-formed thing

16 Sunday Oct 2016

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Island Life, Word Birds & Process #24

Earlier in the week my writing group sister & I were discussing a quotation she’d come across. Anyone who knows me knows my take on these things. The more ‘inspirational’ they are the less likely I am to be enamoured. This one is different. It’s less inspirational & more common sense. We were in agreement.

“Hard writing makes easy reading. Easy writing makes hard reading.”

Although the quote has been officially credited to William Knowlton Zinsser, an American writer, literary critic, editor & teacher, it’s also been attributed to Ernest Hemingway. It hardly matters. For the purposes of making my point, I’m happy to have Hemingway on my side too. Neither writer meant ‘easy’ as in ‘peasy’ – they meant that when a book is easy to read the words flow, the eye is mesmerised; the pages turn as if by remote control because the whole is the the result of dedicated hard work, often  written in metaphorical blood.

My first book, Ghostbird, was published in March this year. It took me years to write, rewrite & eventually submit. It got rejected; I rewrote it, resubmitted & so forth. It was hard, hard work & eventually it paid off. I got a publishing deal with Honno, the Welsh Women’s Press. I think I can safely say, even if it isn’t your cup of tea, my book is easy to read.

I’m currently editing my second. I began writing it approximately eighteen months ago. The first draft was completed in roughly ten months which seemed ridiculously fast until I recognised I must have learned a few tricks on the way. (And there’s nothing like being published to make you want to write another book!) After I’d written the second draft (& edited the hell out of it) I submitted it to my editor, the gracious & scarily perceptive Janet Thomas. Her input was, as it always is, positive with added ‘buts.’

‘Buts’ are what a great editor excels at. ‘Buts’ are what they say after, ‘I love this part…’ It’s when the light bulbs go on, the boxes get ticked & the writer realises she still has work to do. It doesn’t matter because the solutions to the ‘buts’ make her heart sing.

This is my third draft – a deeply focused edit involving a good deal of rewriting based on Janet’s wise advice. I have excavated the layers beneath, accessed my authentic story; I’m doing the best I can for my characters. I hope to have this version finished by the end of the month. It will still be scrutinised again & possibly taken apart.

And here’s my point. The initial idea for our stories often comes out of somewhere unexpected. They take us by surprise, fire us up & it’s incredibly exciting. (I had the idea, characters & most of the story outlined for this current book in two days!) It’s the filling that takes the time. Writing a book is hard graft. There is more to it than a great idea. And a padded outline isn’t a story, a single draft isn’t enough. Neither is a second proofread, friend-read one. Until it’s been picked apart by someone with no agenda other than to make the story the best it can possibly be it remains a half-formed thing.

Unless one is Margaret Atwood – or someone of that calibre – an easy, quickly written story is a draft. Unedited, it grates on the eye, has the reader reaching for her metaphorical black pen. If we love our characters, have faith in our story why would we opt for easy? In my view, easy is lazy. Nothing worth doing comes without effort; least of all writing a book. It takes time, dedication & resolve.

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The title of this piece references the debut novel by Eimear McBride – A Girl is a Half-Formed Thing. It’s an extraordinary book, innovative & challenging, written in a mind- bending style that’s demands every iota of your attention. Once you give it, fall into the flow & joy of the prose, you realise this is a book that can only have taken the writer on the hardest of paths.

Writing never stops being hard but I reckon it’s the closest thing to bliss I’ve experienced. I’ve just finished reading a book that made me cry (in a good way), shake my head at the perfection of it. It wasn’t written & published in a few months. It has excellence, faultless research & attention to detail on every page. As I read, the pages turned by themselves, the words conjured spells & this morning when I came to the end, I stroked the cover & seriously considered going back to the beginning.

The book? It’s by Louise Beech & called The Mountain in My Shoe. I’ll be reviewing it soon, if I can resist reading it again.

Unexpected book review in blogging area

09 Sunday Oct 2016

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Island Life, Word Birds & Process #23

I rarely add book reviews here. I don’t have many followers & this is where I tend to rattle on about my own writing. If I can’t support a sister Honno author here however, where can I? Well, yes, on Amazon & I’ve done that – we all know who’s in charge of promotion & stats!

*Curtsies to Amazon*

Juliet Greenwood writes historical mystery stories with a twist. She lives in north Wales, has a penchant for Cornwall (as do I) old houses (me too) & a story with a secret (tick.) She is unswervingly kind to other authors. She also has great taste in frocks.

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The White Camellia, is published by Honno, the Welsh Women’s Press. It’s fabulous.

My review

This is Juliet Greenwood’s third novel and in my view, her best to date. Her writing has matured, settings are beautifully drawn; characters leap off the page insisting on being heard. And in The White Camellia, they have a great deal to say. The women in particular, although the author writes men well – the good, the bad and the ones you really couldn’t give tuppence for!

Anyone interested in the grass roots aspect of the women’s suffrage movement will be intrigued by this story. Set aside for a while the more famously chronicled activities of Mrs Pankhurst, her suffragettes and her campaign of direct action. Take a seat in The White Camellia tearoom; listen in to the less subversive conversations that nevertheless led to equally effective agitation. It was in tearooms such as this one where many women first experienced a level of independence, found their voice and began campaigning for the right to vote. This is an extremely well researched book about what it meant to be a woman at the turn of the century, fighting (literally sometimes) for the vote. A woman didn’t need to be aggressive or actively militant to be arrested or attacked by the police and the prison system. Simply photographing the abusive methods of the police could land you in jail and lead to force-feeding, a particularly vile form of torture that left many women’s health utterly ruined.

The story begins gently – the author creates a perfect sense of the time, with an undertow of excitement that gradually emerges. Set in London and in the author’s beloved Cornwall, we first meet Beatrice, in the capital, picking up the pieces of her family’s shattered fortune, while discovering her courage as a woman in a world where men’s voices rule. In Cornwall, Sybil moves into Tressillion, a house with a dark past. These two women – with more in common that they know – are gradually drawn together by an old secret.

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It’s an intimate book on a grand scale, full of real people you care for. It has all the elements of great historical mystery: adventure, suspense, secrets and drama. And the right amount of romance to lighten the mood. Above all, it’s a book about the bravery of women, our foresisters whose courageous struggle, sadly, some of us still take for granted. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.

Celebrating

25 Sunday Sep 2016

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Island Life, Word Birds & Process #21

Writers write every day? Kind of… Most of us write a line or two even if it’s only 140 characters (or less) on Twitter. We write letters & emails, make notes, do research & so forth. Some days we go to publisher parties (I know – cool huh?) or book fairs & frankly, that means NO WRITING OF ANY SORT WHATSOEVER. (Honno’s 30th birthday party is why there was no blog post last week.)

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Jane Aaron, Honno’s Classics Editor speaking with huge passion about the history of this invaluable imprint.

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Sister authors L-R: Me, Caroline Ross, Judith Barrow, Thorne Moore, Alison Layland & Juliet Greenwood.

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Today’s offering is brief because loads of people are posting about yesterday’s Book Fair in Tenby & who needs overload?

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Me & my book at Tenby

Mostly we do put in the hours & in between the high life I am editing – honestly. I’m scribbling like mad & loving it. After two weekends of ‘authorial’ fun & frolics, tomorrow I’m leaving birdseed on the windowsill, a tray of English Breakfast tea & buns for Mrs Woolf & turning back into a writer.

Onward & sideways.