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    How Not to Write a Novel: Confessions of a Midlist Author
    Unavailable
    How Not to Write a Novel: Confessions of a Midlist Author
    Unavailable
    How Not to Write a Novel: Confessions of a Midlist Author
    Ebook284 pages3 hours

    How Not to Write a Novel: Confessions of a Midlist Author

    By David Armstrong

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    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    About this ebook

    Every week, agents and publishers in this country receive hundreds of manuscripts from would-be authors. Of these, fewer than one per cent will make it into print. David Armstrong was one of the one per-centers, his first crime novel plucked from the slush pile at a major publisher and published to acclaim. So far, so good. But it rapidly became clear to Armstrong that being a published novelist is not always as glamorous as it seems from the outside. There are the depressing, ill-attended readings, the bitchy writers' conventions, the bookshops who have never heard of you and don't stock your book. All of these will be familiar to any writer who, like Armstrong, falls into to the category euphemistically known in publishing as 'midlist'. The reality is that for every JK Rowling, there are 1,000 David Armstrongs; for every writer who is put up in a five-star hotel and flies first class courtesy of their publisher, there are 1,000 who sleep on friend's floors during book tours and dine at motorway service stations...Witty, acerbic and wise, How Not to Write a Novel lifts the lid on publishing. From agents to editors, publicists to sales reps, it explains the publishing process - and how to survive it - from the point of view of a non-bestselling writer. A unique book, it is essential reading for anyone who dreams of getting their novel published - and for anyone curious about the inside workings of the publishing game.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherAllison & Busby
    Release dateNov 4, 2011
    ISBN9780749011352
    Unavailable
    How Not to Write a Novel: Confessions of a Midlist Author
    Author

    David Armstrong

    David Armstrong was born in Birmingham and now lives in Shropshire. He left secondary school without qualifications but later went on to read English at university in Cardiff. His first novel was short-listed for the Crime Writers' Association Best First Crime Novel and since then his work has continued to receive critical acclaim.

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    • 3/5
      How to outsell your own not very successful novels with a 'how to' book.A book that claims to be the antidote to How to... books. In fact it is really a memoir of the author who has published four novels and achieved, by his own measure, mediocre success. As a quick and slightly humourous read it is worth five out of ten. The author comes across as conceited, dressing up his anger and arrogance in fake modesty and self-deprecation. Reviews on Amazon warned me of the continous plugging of his other titles and I was ready to buy one half way through this short book. Then I started to develop a certain dislike for the author. He makes some good points worth remembering but goes on to describe obvious mistakes he has made and still seems unconscious of. Amazon reviews of his novels are sparse. Ironically this title, which shows his various inadequacies, will probably be Armstrong's best seller.