Category Archives: Writing

Miranda Writes 26 – Plotting vs Pants-ing and New Mum Writing…

Posted on May 26, 2014 | Leave a comment

All this year, I am keeping a video diary about writing and publishing my sixth novel, I’ll Take New York. This week, I talk about plotting novels, dream film adaptations and my new life as a Writing Mum…

I’m so chuffed that many of you loved last week’s cheeky extract of I’ll Take New York – keep your eyes peeled for more sneak-peeks coming soon… In the meantime, I answer your questions on writing, including whether I can see my books as films, how much I plot my novels and how becoming a mum has changed my writing process. You might be surprised by my answer!

What would you like to know about writing, publishing, books or anything else? Leave me a comment below, tweet me your question on Twitter @wurdsmyth, post it on my Facebook page or email me at mirandawurdy@gmail.com.

Enjoy! xx

This week’s YouTube-nominated freeze-frame is entitled: ‘Ooh, put that away!’

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Miranda Writes 25 – hear an EXCLUSIVE extract from I’ll Take New York

Posted on May 19, 2014 | Leave a comment

All year I’m making vlogs to chart the life of my sixth novel, I’ll Take New York. This week, I have a bit of a treat for you – an exclusive extract from the book!

I’ve been promising to share a sneaky snippet of Bea and Jake’s story with you for some time, so I thought it was about time I did it! Below is just a snippet – but watch the vlog to see much more:

…For as long as she could remember, Bea had dreamed of one day owning her own bookstore.

She had loved books all her life. Real books, not electronic ones. Books you could carry in your bag and read on the subway. Books you could pretend to read in neighbourhood coffee shops while people-watching. Books you could snuggle up with and lose yourself in. Books you could fill your apartment with – packed onto shelves, propping up tables and piled up reassuringly by the side of your bed. If she left home without a book, Bea felt naked, bereft. But then, working in a bookshop meant there were always new friends to make and take home. 

Friends who never let her down. Friends she could trust…

I also answer your questions on my favourite characters and whether I have more stories to tell about them after my books are published. Plus, find out which of my characters will be returning in I’ll Take New York – here’s a clue: one of them comes from another of my novels…

Let me know what you think – I’d love to know if the extract I read in the vlog whets your appetite for more! Or ask me a question for next week… Leave a comment below, tweet me @wurdsmyth or email me at mirandawurdy@gmail.com.

Enjoy! xx

 

 

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Miranda Writes 24 – Book deals, surprising characters and dream locations

Posted on May 11, 2014 | 2 comments

All year I’m making vlogs to chart the life of my sixth novel, I’ll Take New York. This week, after my BIG NEWS has broken, I’ll tell you how I feel about the next three years and answer your great questions about books, writing and publishing.

How should you go about self-publishing and should you choose that option over a traditional route to publishing? Do my characters ever surprise me? And which locations would I like to write about? These fab questions are answered in the vlog. I hope you enjoy it!

Plus – watch out for MY NEW HAT! I thought it was about time I treated myself to a new hat as the last few vlogs have been in somewhat of a Hat Rut….

So what would you like to know about writing, books, publishing, hats or anything else? leave a comment under this post, or email me at: mirandawurdy@gmail.com or tweet me @wurdsmyth. I’d love to answer your questions!

Enjoy! xx

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Breaking News! The next big chapter…

Posted on May 7, 2014 | 2 comments

It’s finally time to share my amazing news with you, after two months of keeping it to myself…

I’ve signed a THREE-BOOK DEAL with PAN MACMILLAN!

Miranda Dickinson 2013

After six great years with the lovely team at Avon HarperCollins, I’m moving on to the next big chapter of my writing life – and I’m so excited! The decision wasn’t an easy one to make: Avon gave me my big break and believed in me, which I will always be grateful for. I’ve worked hard to create books that reward their faith in me as a writer and I’ve grown so much during the past six years working with the fantastic team. Over half a million book sales worldwide later,  I’ll Take New York is the culmination of what I’ve learned and I know Avon is so excited to share it with you when it comes out on 30th September in eBook and 4th December in gorgeously sparkly paperback…

MOVING ON

I never thought I would ever be able to write books for a living, so I’m blown away that my writing dream – which was my dearest secret for so long – is still coming true and taking me to new places I could never have dared imagine.

I will be working with the super-fab Caroline Hogg and the Pan Macmillan team, who are all bursting with enthusiasm about my writing. I can’t wait to begin work with Caroline and the team on my first book for Pan Macmillan – my seventh published novel! I’ve already started writing it and I know you’re going to love it…

I’m excited about the stories I’ll be able to share with you and the new roads we can wander down together. There are so many new things I want to accomplish with my writing and I’m over the moon to have the opportunity to explore them in my new publishing home!

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Miranda Writes 23 – Inspiration, fab fonts and beating doubts

Posted on May 5, 2014 | Leave a comment

All year I’m making vlogs to chart the life of my sixth novel, I’ll Take New York. This week I’m answering your questions about writing including where I get my inspiration from for characters and stories, how to turn an initial idea into a full-blown novel and overcoming writer doubts!

Thanks for all your fabulous questions! Don’t worry if I don’t answer your question this week – I had so many fab questions on Twitter and Facebook that I’ll be answering them all over the next few vlogs.

This week I’ll tell you where I’m at with my writing, hint at something very exciting that’s coming up and talk about where to start with a novel, where my inspiration for characters and stories comes from and what my favourite fonts are for writing. I’ll  also talk about beating writer doubts (a constant battle for every writer) and how my WriteFoxy! philosophy is helping me overcome mine.

I’m running two more WriteFoxy! Writers’ Inspiration Days and would love you to come! Part writers’ conference, part writing retreat, these days will reconnect you to your love of writing and encourage you to write better, braver books:

Here’s the vlog – enjoy!

M xx

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Miranda Writes 22 – plotting, writing advice and Flo!

Posted on April 27, 2014 | Leave a comment

It’s here, finally! The vlog is back after a brief sabbatical during which I had my lovely baby girl Florence Wren and had to replace my poor old video camera after it finally bit the dust…

So, what’s it like being a full-time writer and full-time mum? Where am I at with work on my sixth novel, I’ll Take New York? I answer these questions in the vlog, together with cracking questions from you on everything from the dialogue and description balance in short stories, how to tighten up a flagging scene (ooh, can be nasty, that…), how I plot my novels, finding a cracking opening scene to what essentials I can’t write without. Oh, and watch out for Flo’s very first vlog cameo!

Let me know what you think! And what would you like me to talk about next week? Leave a comment below or email me at mirandawurdy@gmail.com.

Enjoy!

M xx

p.s. This week’s YouTube-nominated freeze-frame is entitled, ‘What’s that coming over the hill…?’

p.s. As this is a new video camera the picture isn’t quite as good as I wanted it to be, but bear with me and I’ll have it fixed for next week.

 

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Here’s a FREE short story for you!

Posted on April 17, 2014 | 1 comment

You know I love to spring surprises on you… Well, here’s an exclusive short story as a Thursday treat with my love!

I wrote this story last year based on a character who was in the original first draft of Take A Look At Me Now. Originally, Nell went to her local coffee shop to mull over the news about losing her job instead of just walking around the car park as she does in the finished novel. I cut manager Tony and his branch of the Ben’s Beans coffee shop franchise out in the end because it slowed the pace, but I still wanted to tell his story.

A Nice Place to Sit is the result…

A Nice Place to Sit by Miranda Dickinson

It’s about the need to feel part of somewhere and something, even when life seems to suggest that there’s no longer a place for us. It’s about finding positives and meaning in bad situations. And it’s a story of hope.

I hope you enjoy it!

Click HERE to read and download the story for free…

 

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Miranda Writes 20 – THE BIG TITLE REVEAL!

Posted on March 5, 2014 | 1 comment

Drumroll please… I am SO excited to finally be able to share with you the title for Book 6 at last!

The book is actually all written and edited as I’m just over a week and a half away from welcoming Bump into the world and I can’t wait for you to read it. To celebrate the title reveal, I’ve made a little trailer vlog that gives you some sneaky details of what Book 6 is about. Hope you enjoy it – and let me know what you think! xx

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Come to my first Writers’ Inspiration Day!

Posted on January 10, 2014 | 1 comment

I’m so excited to announce that I will be running my very first day conference for writers – The Write Foxy! Writers’ Inspiration Day!

And the best bit is, you are invited!

Write Foxy!

I’ve heard so much about writers at all stages of their writing careers struggling lately and the thing that’s struck me is how many of us are battling to keep sight of why we dreamed of writing stories in the first place. Following on from my 2014 writing resolution to Write Foxy – i.e. write what I love and reconnect with the sense of fun that is so often lost in the sheer hard work of writing books – I am putting together a day for writers to meet, share ideas, be inspired, write and, most of all, remember why we love writing!

The Write Foxy! Writers’ Inspiration Day takes place at the very lovely De Vere Village Urban Resort Dudley on Saturday 1st February, from 9am – 4pm. Refreshments will be available throughout the day and a full buffet lunch will also be included. The day will consist of a mixture of inspirational speakers, networking opportunities and the Write Foxy! Writers’ Room where you can hang out with other writers and work on your own projects. The day will be fun, inspirational and a great opportunity for you to invest in yourself as a writer. The event costs £95 per person and includes all of the above, plus session notes and a goody bag. Places are very limited, so book now to avoid disappointment!

BOOK YOUR TICKETS – CLICK HERE!

>>> F.A.Q’s >>>

Don’t Just Write: Write Foxy!

A day for writers to come together, share ideas, be inspired and, most of all, reconnect with a love of writing. Part conference, part writers’ retreat, the Write Foxy! Day will encourage you to make the most of your writing, learn from the experience of bestselling authors whilst also providing space for you to work on your own projects. Refreshments will be available all day and a full buffet lunch is included.

Who is the Write Foxy! Day for?

Everyone who writes! Whether you are just starting out, are working towards becoming a published or self-published author or are already published, this day offers something for you.

Will the Write Foxy! Day teach me how to write a novel?

No, but it will inspire you to make the most of your writing, whatever stage you are at. It’s an inspiration day that will leave you fired up, armed with new tips and raring to pursue your writing goals.

What does Write Foxy! mean?!

Write Foxy! is all about writing what you’re passionate about, keeping fun at the centre of your writing and loving what you do. So many writers at all stages of their writing careers struggle with doubts, fatigue, a sense of hopelessness and a lack of motivation: this day is designed to reconnect you to the reason you started writing. If you believe in and love what you write, readers will too!

BOOK YOUR TICKETS – CLICK HERE!

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2014 is the year to… WRITE FOXY!

Posted on January 6, 2014 | 1 comment

Well, we’re at the beginning of another new year and all around me people are making resolutions. Personally, I love setting goals for the year ahead and I’m always surprised at the end of the year by how much I’ve achieved or how much my priorities have changed. For 2014, I have made only one resolution – to WRITE FOXY!

Write Foxy!

Lots of things are about to change in my life this year. Bob and I are going to welcome a new baby into our lives in March (ten weeks and counting – eek!), I have some major decisions to make about my writing career and there are certain things I’m working on that may or may not happen during 2014. It feels like a year of possibility – and, as anyone who reads my books knows, I love the allure of possibility…

After the challenges I faced with my writing last year – and the crisis of confidence that almost made me quit – I have decided to spend this year pursuing one thing: foxiness! By this I mean I want to write stories that thrill me; that I bounce out of bed in the morning to write; that make me happy. I want to be known as a writer who adores what she is doing. A writer who takes risks. A writer who appreciates the importance of fun in everything she does. Even if I’m the only person to read it, I want my words to exude foxiness: to be sassy and brave and unafraid.

I’ve learned the hard way that achieving a writing dream is just the beginning: the key to continuing to live the dream is to never lose sight of why you started dreaming about it in the first place. If you don’t love what you write – and constantly reconnect with that first love – you simply won’t survive.

I’m excited to see where my foxy writing resolution will take me and what stories will emerge from it, during this year and beyond. There could be zombies. Or thrills. Or quirky tales that make me smile. There will definitely be new characters who want to welcome you into whole new worlds. It could be crazy and some of it might lead nowhere at all – but it will definitely be one heck of an adventure!

So, there it is: in 2014 I’m starting as I mean to go on. No matter what else happens, I’m going to WRITE FOXY!

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