I was delighted to receive a review copy of The Blue of You, the latest work by talented author Amanda Huggins, published by Northodox Press. The novella is a joy to read, and I thoroughly recommend it to you. Here’s my five-star review:
The setting of a village on the NE coast of England in The Blue of You is integral to the story where some members of the close-knit community hold secrets and others break them. The novella works as a mystery where I found myself wondering which characters were trustworthy. Layers of narrative reveal Janey Shaw’s personal history as she becomes empowered to address issues of unresolved grief. The writing is immersive and rich with symbolism. This is another triumph for the author who has a strong track record of producing high quality writing.
I was invited to review Amanda Huggins‘ latest publication titled Each of Us a Petal which is a stunning collection of stories of and from Japan.
Here’s the blurb:
This collection of short fiction from award-winning author Amanda Huggins takes us on a journey through Japan, from the hustle of city bars to the silence of snow country. The people, culture and complex social mores of this beguiling country have inspired Huggins’ writing ever since she first visited Japan almost twenty years ago.
Whether they are Japanese nationals or foreign tourists, temporary residents or those recalling their time in Japan from a distance, the men and women in these stories are often adrift and searching for a connection. Many are estranged from their normal lives, navigating the unfamiliar while trying to make sense of the human condition, or find themselves restrained by the formalities of traditional culture as they struggle to forge new relationships outside those boundaries. Others are forced to question their perceptions when they find themselves drawn into an unsettling world of shapeshifting deities and the ghosts of the past.
What impresses me most about this collection is Huggins’ ability to enter a very different culture and focus on the similarities that bring us all together. She taps into themes of yearning, loneliness and being on the outside to show these as universal experiences, as well as celebrating love and personal connections. It made me reflect on a family visit to Tokyo in 2010 while on a stopover to Australia. My tall and blonde teenage son was head and shoulders above the crowds at the Shibuya Crossing, the world’s busiest pedestrian crossing yet we still melded into the city’s backdrop of quiet gardens.
The collection also reminded me of the 2003 film Lost in Translation where Scarlett Johannson and Bill Murray play characters drawn together amidst the strange and sometimes unsettling experience of high-rise living in Tokyo.
Huggins has a keen eye and focuses on small things in her stories such as a knife or a key or a sparrow’s footprints which all bring a wider meaning to the reader. It is a delightful collection which I highly recommend. Although the book was released by Victorina Press, the publisher has since closed and your only option to purchase a copy is through the author’s blog. Do pop over and grab a copy before they’re all gone!
Incidentally, if your’e interested in purchasing copies of my Victorina Press publications they’re now available from the online shop at bargain prices. Get my coming-of-age debut, The String Gamesfor only £3 or Pandemonium a delightful children’s picture book for only £2.
When friends who lived in Japan visit next week, I’m looking forward to recommending Each of Us a Petal to them.
It’s taken three years from writing the very first line of The Secret Life of Carolyn Russell to arriving at publication day. There have been many ups and downs in reaching this point, but I’m proud of this story with its mystery and underlying messages that show changes in the moral code over thirty years and provide glimpses into racism in a rural setting. Book blogger, Linda Hill has posted an insightful review covering many of the elements I hoped to get across in her publication day review here.
If you’ve ever wondered how an author spends publication day, here’s my schedule:
7am: write a blog post and send (timing has slipped a bit here)
8am: join Writers’ Hour to finish a Q&A kindly offered by book blogger Victoria Bucknell
9am: check Amazon rankings to see if the novel has made a splash (repeat hourly every ten minutes)
My publishing contract with Bloodhound Books for The Secret Life of Carolyn Russell indicates the title is a working title. It also says the publisher will consult on the proposed cover. Contract vetting by the Society of Authors, suggested I might like to strengthen the consultation right on the cover (and title) to a right of approval. This wasn’t something I cared about. After all, the title had changed four times since I started drafting the novel in 2021. Here’s the story of how the title changed:
Title One: Little Swot
In the 1979 storyline, Carolyn persuades her mother to invest in tutoring which provides an opportunity for close contact with the teacher of her dreams, Mr Simmons. But when I told my husband about Little Swot, he assumed the title referred to a boy.
Title Two: Extra Lessons
Still on the theme of tutoring, I changed to a title which I thought had a nuanced double meaning. (I did check on Amazon that it hadn’t been used for erotic fiction!) Although as time wore on, I began to feel this title wasn’t quite right.
Title Three: The Girl and the Tutor
I attended an online masterclass in December 2021 offered by Writers & Artists. It was called How to Write a Book That Sells and delivered by bestselling author Angela Clarke. The content focused on the submission package (opening chapters, synopsis and cover letter) and was aimed at developing this in order to acquire literary representation. One of the things Angela emphasised was the need to pay attention to supermarket bookshelves. It’s Angela’s contention that busy women doing the weekly shop want to grab a book similar to one they’ve enjoyed before. With the advent of Gone Girl and Girl on a Train, many similar titles followed. This is how I settled on the new title of The Girl and the Tutor and felt relieved that the girl in my title is actually a girl of sixteen years – and not a woman as in many of the other books. My husband still grumbled and said the title was too on the nose.
Title Four: The Secret Life of Carolyn Russell
In the latter stages of my querying journey, I won feedback on my submission package during a fundraising auction for Ukraine. The editor of a small press gave helpful advice to improve all aspects of the package and suggested a new title. She said, The Girl is good, but The Girl and The Tutor is not great. Maybe just something generic like The Lost Girl or The Missing Girl or The Cold Case or The Abduction of Carolyn Russell. So, I played around with these ideas and settled on The Secret Life of Carolyn Russell.
I was prepared for the title to change again on publication by Bloodhound Books but the team were happy with it. Phew!
How important are titles to you in choosing a book to read or giving a name to your creative work?
From a post by The Supercargo about header images, my friend and fellow writer John Nixon at Pens Around the World has inspired me to play around with pictures to illustrate my manuscript The Girl and the Tutor. It’s the story of a girl who never grows up due to an early obsession with her maths tutor and here’s what I produced:
I’ll refrain from going into the whole plot but suffice to say I chose a copyright free image of a prefect from Unsplash and another of a tutor from Pixabay. In Canva, I was able to select the heart-splattered background and the leaf image to finish the job. What do you think?
Interestingly, there’s a pitch party launching in April called moodpitch. This is where authors get a chance to write a tweet-length pitch (280-characters) for their novel in the hope of attracting interest from agents and publishers. At this pitch party, there’s also an expectation that the tweet will include a moodboard. Looks like I’m all set to go!
Happy New Year to all you lovely readers of The Writer is a Lonely Hunter. To celebrate six months since the launch of This Much Huxley Knows, my publisher Black Rose Writing, has decided to make my second novel for adults free to download this weekend. Grab your chance to connect with the adorable Huxley, a wise young narrator who shines a light on the follies of adults. Book bloggers have been enthusiastic in their praise for the story – you can read a snapshot of their reviews here:
Huxley is a totally lovable character that I defy anyone not to adore by the end ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Julie Morris, A Little Book Problem
This warm, compassionate book captures the voice of seven-year-old Huxley perfectly ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Karen Cole, Hair Past A Freckle
Towards the end of each year, Emma Welton at Damp Pebbles invites book bloggers, bookstagrammers and published authors to choose three must-read titles published in that year. There are 50 posts in total for 2021 and currently there’s over 110 individual publications listed including This Much Huxley Knows. Thank you so much to Julie Morris at A Little Book Problem who recommends my novel and says:
This is a book that will have slipped under many people’s radar as it isn’t published by a mainstream publisher and I think that is a great shame because I don’t think I have ever read a book that so clearly describes life from the point of view of a child or captures so brilliantly the joy and pain of being a seven-year-old that doesn’t quite fit in. This is such an individual book, both saddening and uplifting to read and it deserves a really wide audience. I hope including it encourages more people to pick it up.
In other pre-Christmas news, I was interviewed by Melanie at Grab The Lapels in one of her regular Meet the Author posts. The interesting questions generated discussion amongst readers which you can follow here.
We’re away over the Christmas week (all being well) but we still decorated our tree. Doesn’t it look pretty?
If I don’t post again before the holidays, please accept my good wishes for Christmas.
the writer is a lonely hunter 