Dear Catrin Collier,
I have a non-fiction book published and am currently taking the self-publishing route with my first novel. A small publisher accepted it under a partnership agreement but they wanted more money than I could afford. So I have resorted to self- publishing with all the added complications of self- marketing. Now for the big ask! Would you be kind enough to read some/all my novel and give me an endorsement for the back cover?
Kind regards
Thank you for your e-mail and the kind things you’ve said about my books. First, congratulations on completing your book. An incredible achievement but, as you’ve discovered, all publishing
is very much down to luck, and one agent or editor’s anathema, is another’s joy. I really wish I had the time to read all the manuscripts that are sent to me but if I did I would never have time to research and write my own books I would advise any writer who is serious about publishing to join their local Writers’ Circle. I am a member of Swansea Circle and would never have become published without the friendship, advice and support of the members. If your novel has a Welsh background perhaps you would consider submitting it for the Great Welsh Novel competition
http://www.abervalleyarts.co.uk.
The prize is consideration for publication by Accent Press. It’s not guaranteed but it will mean that your work will be lifted out of the slush pile. My sincere good wishes that you shortly see your name in print, Warmest Wishes, Catrin
Hello Catrin I am making my way through all of your books with great pleasure. The last one I read was Such Sweet Sorrow and I felt very strange when I got to the part at the end of the book when Huw Davies met Will in the gloom of the station yard. Will told his story of the massacre by an SS unit. My father Albert Leonard Pooley was one of the two survivors of the’ Le Paradis Massacre’, William O’Callaghan was the other man. It was through my father’s perseverance and tenacity that Fritz Knoechlein was tried and executed on the 29th January 1949. Dad’s ashes were taken back to Les Paradis on his death and they were buried at the foot of the cross in the grave yard along with his boys. Did you ever get to read the book by Cyril Jolly ’The Vengeance of Private Pooley’?
Thank you for the pleasure you have given me through your writing Catrin, I have recommended your work to all my friends who enjoy a good read. Kind regards Jeannette E Hawkes (nee Pooley)
Dear Jeanette,
Thank you so much for your e-mail . It was wonderful to read about your father and I really admire him for persevering with his quest to bring Fritz Knoechlein to justice. My father went in on D Day 2 and one of his jobs after the war was to drive Nazis back to the UK for debriefing. So many were never brought into court although they had committed the most horrendous crimes.
I’m only sorry that I never came across your father, Albert Leonard Pooley’s name or that of the other survivor William O‘Callaghan in the accounts I read of the SS massacres of unarmed British troops. If I had, I would have put them in the author’s notes in the book. Thank you so much for taking the time and trouble to e-mail me. It’s always wonderful to hear from a reader but your letter really is something special. I will now go and look for The vengeance of Private Pooley on Amazon,
Warmest Wishes, Catrin
Hi Catrin, Just wanted to email to say how much I enjoy your novels. I watched the Hearts of Gold mini-series when it was screened eight years ago, but would now love to see it again, is it available to purchase? Also, will the BBC be adapting the other seven books in the Pontypridd series? I would love to see them all be adapted! Kind regards, an avid fan Kathryn
Dear Kathryn, You can have no idea just how much your e-mail means to me, particularly now when I am working on a new novel. It is always a tremendous boost when someone writes to tell me how much they enjoyed reading one of my books.
I’m sorry, but I cannot help you track down a DVD of the BBC production of Hearts of Gold. Like most writers who have their work adapted for the screen I had nothing to do with the production, although I have since met the beautiful and talented actress Kate Jarman, who played Bethan. Kate is now the "voice" for my audio books which are available in libraries.
The BBC never sent me a DVD of the production and despite the BBC press releases there are no plans to film the rest of the books. So if there are any film companies out there who would like to build on Hearts of Gold’s initial success, (the first episode attracted 6.8 million viewers) all rights have reverted to my agent. He’d love to hear from you. Thank you again for writing,
Warmest wishes, Catrin
Hi Catrin,
I am wondering if you know of any literary agents who may be interested in representing me. I am writing a novel which is aimed at females aged I guess from 20-45... I do have a list of agents, but there are hundreds and I understand most agents specialise in certain types of work, so I am hoping you can tip me off where a good place to start might be. M
A good place to start would be the Writers and Artists Year book; you can buy it in Smith’s or borrow it from the reference library. There are all sorts of tips on writing as well as full list of all UK and USA publishers and agents and what they are looking for.
Happy Writing and all power to your pen,
I hope you do not mind my email but I went to the library a couple of weeks ago and picked up One Last Summer. I finished it last night and I just wanted to say what a wonderful book. It was so moving. I have not cried over a book in a long time. I have kept thinking about it this morning, it was so touching.
Thank you for a wonderful read. Lisa Jobson
Dear Miss Collier,
I’m a seventeen-year-old girl from Greece! I love the book ONE LAST SUMMER and I can’t stop crying whenever i bring back the pictures from this book! I’ll try to buy the other books as I’m sure that will be the same interesting like this book. I have read in history for what Germans one the one side did and what Russians from the other side did! But while reading this book that is based on your relatives’ real moments that they passed made me really understand how human’s brain can do the most impossible thing, to kill his fellow-man! I may be from Greece by Albanian parents, but I know very well about Germany’s history and I like Germany as I would like to have my studies there! I’m looking forward to your answer soon! Thank you!
Yours sincerely, Sarah!
Dear Sarah,
What a lovely e-mail. It was so kind of you to write and tell me that you were moved by One Last Summer. What I tried to illustrate in One Last Summer is how people can be warped and twisted by war itself. I don’t think man’s inhumanity can be attributed to any one race of people, just individuals, and this is something that you understood so well. I studied in Germany for a year myself when I was seventeen. If you go there, you will have a wonderful time. Like Greece and Albania (I visited Saranda and Butrint last year) it is a beautiful country with warm generous people.
Thank you so much for writing to me Sarah,
Warmest Wishes, Catrin
Hi,
I don’t know why I’m doing this because it’s not the sort of thing that I would normally. I am not given to writing to total strangers for no reason other than we share a common interest. I read your home page with interest. The rejection letters for my first book are not quite in double figures yet but it’s not far off. Maybe there is still hope for me. I am currently writing on my day off from my full time job and for little spells whenever I can. I know it’s not enough but I can’t let my dream get in the way of my family or making a living. Do you have one piece of advice for someone who is aspiring to be where you are now? Thank you for taking the time to read this. CM
I’m going to press send and amaze myself.
Dear CM
First thank you so much for writing to me. And secondly the one thing that amazed me when I started writing was how wonderful helpful and generous published writers were to me when I had nothing but rejection letters to show for my efforts, they not only talked to me but gave me tips on who to contact and how to send manuscripts to agents. So it is a pleasure to help anyone who is trying to break into what sometimes feels like the most difficult job market in the world outside of acting.
I know exactly how you feel about not letting your dream take anything from your family, either in financial or time terms. I wrote my first ten (published I have dozens of unpublished) books at the rate of two a year beginning in 1989 when my oldest son was fourteen, my daughter thirteen and my younger son nine. But I had been writing for twenty or more years before that with limited success, (a good year was when I made £80) publishing a few articles here and a few short stories there. I was also working full time for a management consultancy, something that turned out to be more than a 9-5 job. Unfortunately a lot of the short story and article markets that were around then, (principally magazines) have since folded in favour of True Life and Celebrity magazines. So the market for short stories is not as great as it was, neither is the market for articles unless you can fake the photographs (along the lines of - I am the most tattooed lady in Wales- or my husband left me for a gorilla - etc)
I used to write in the night after the children went to bed which meant my husband watched television alone, or went to the pub – alone. It wasn’t as bad as it sounds because he’s long suffering, supportive (he re-mortgaged the house to buy my first computer when I didn’t dare) and he used to work long hours and usually fell asleep in front of the TV after half an hour or so. I tried – sometimes without success - to set aside time to write every day which I can do now without feeling guilty. But only because my children have all left home and my husband is enjoying his retirement and meeting up with like-minded hill walkers who ramble over the Gower.
My children knew exactly how and when to wind me up during those years. They’d come in when I was in the middle of a chapter and ask for more pocket money or tell me I cared more for my books than them. Now we laugh about it, and they admit to conspiring with one another to plot new accusations to make me feel guilty.
One way out was to encourage all of them to invite their friends round and sit in the middle of the chaos typing away wearing industrial ear muffs – it worked although I was never quite sure what I’d find in the house after I ‘came round’ from writing.
As for rejections, put any group of writers together and they start talking about the rejected manuscript they received that wasn’t theirs in the first place, or the letters that said – we like it but – it’s not suitable for our lists – or this type of book was popular two years ago – etc etc.
I studied the markets for years and tried to write for them but only succeeded in getting my first book published ( crime) when I sat down and wrote exactly what I wanted to.
You say the time you can spare is not enough – believe me a day a week would have been unimaginable luxury when I started.
Write what you want to – but bear the markets in mind. My break came with a crime book after twenty unsuccessful years of trying to write Mills and Boon. Write when and where you can – children are remarkably resilient, I know you never get their early years back, but mine loved ‘helping’ with my research, especially when I visited fairgrounds, or theatres, or toured the Rhondda Valleys. And above all, believe in yourself. If I can do it (and I can’t believe I’m actually writing this now, it still feels like a dream to have a book in print) anyone can.
If I can help with any specific problem – please – just e-mail me.
Warmest Wishes, Catrin