Novelist Emily Winslow is here today to chat about her book on how to write a novel, Time to Write.
Emily is doing a virtual book tour with Wow! Women on Writing. Feel free to check out her full tour schedule below.
Bio:
Emily Winslow is the author of a series of crime novels and a memoir. Her novels (The Whole World, The Start of Everything, The Red House, and Look For Her) have been called “brilliant” (The Washington Post), “vivid” (Parade magazine) and “dazzling” (Shelf Awareness). Her memoir, Jane Doe January, is “meticulously constructed and ultimately terrifying” (The New York Times), “potent” (Kirkus), and “compelling” (Bustle). She grew up in the U.S. and now lives in Cambridge, England teaching for the University of Cambridge.
Welcome, Emily. Please tell us about your current release.
Time to Write is a creative writing guide aimed at anyone who wants to write a novel. It contains 49 lessons, each easy to read and packed with insights based on my experience as a novelist and my experience teaching. I’ve learned what makes students light up and what makes their work drastically, excitingly improve.
The book is full of encouragement, recognizing and affirming different work styles, and it’s a total handbook, teaching a broad range of specific writing skills as well as covering topics around writing, such as how to give and take critique and how to evaluate publishers and agents.
What inspired you to write this book?
I found that writing my lectures excited me in a similar way to writing my novels, and they also seemed to energize and inspire my students, who are of a wide range of ages and levels. As my teaching role expanded and I covered more and more breadth, it felt natural to rewrite my talks for book form and share them more widely.
What exciting project are you working on next?
I brought my detective series to a satisfying close with Look for Her so now I’m looking to do something different. I’m feeling drawn to the supernatural, but still with mysteries or crimes to solve. It’s still forming for me. That’s something I love about writing—being able to experiment and follow what I’m drawn to.
When did you first consider yourself a writer?
There have been lots of little landmarks along the way: poetry awards, freelance work for a favorite magazine, signing with an agent, and celebrating my first book deal. If I had to pick just one moment, it would be walking into a Barnes and Noble in New York with my husband and young kids in 2010. My first novel had just come out and we were hopeful of finding it on the shelves. But it wasn’t there! I felt deflated and embarrassed. Until we noticed a stack of my novel displayed on one of the front tables—what a thrill!
Do you write full-time? If so, what’s your workday like? If not, what do you do other than write and how do you find time to write?
When I started writing my first novel, I wrote around our childcare/homeschooling schedule. When the kids became teens and went to school, I started teaching writing, which I still do; so now my writing works around my teaching schedule. I’ve recently become Course Director for Cambridge University’s master’s degree in Crime and Thriller Writing. It’s a part-time role that has a rhythm of busy times and downtime, so I get plenty of time for writing. But even with all the time in the world I’m a slow writer. I like to take my time with a book.
What would you say is your interesting writing quirk?
I really, really, really like writing in first person. I love immersing myself in one character’s point of view, with all its limitations, and taking the reader with me. Each chapter is as much about the world inside the narrator as it is about the world around them.
As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?
Actress, singer, or writer. Or archaeologist, paleontologist, astronomer. So many wonderful things to do! Luckily, as a writer I can invent characters with the other jobs I covet—like detectives!—and that gives me an excuse to research those experiences and in a small way enter their worlds.
Anything additional you want to share with the readers?
Read lots of whatever you love, and if you want to write, you should.
Links:
Website | Cambridge Creative Writing Program | Amazon US | Amazon CA | Amazon UK | Amazon AU | Facebook | Instagram
— Blog Tour Calendar
October 16th @ The Muffin
Join us as we celebrate author Emily Winslow and interview her about Time to Write. You’ll also have the chance to win a copy for yourself. https://muffin.wow-womenonwriting.com
October 17th @ A Storybook World
Stop by Deirdra’s blog to read “What Skills Do You Need to Write a Novel?” by Emily Winslow. https://www.astorybookworld.com/
October 18th @ What is that Book About?
Visit Michelle’s blog to see her spotlight of Time to Write. www.whatisthatbookabout.com
October 19th HERE!
October 20th @ The Faerie Review
Stop by to read Lily’s review of Time to Write by Emily Winslow. https://www.thefaeriereview.com
October 21st @ World of My Imagination
Stop by Nicole’s blog to read her review of Time to Write. https://worldofmyimagination.com
October 23rd @ Sue Edwards’s blog
Check out Sue’s blog to read her review of Time to Write. https://suebe.wordpress.com/
October 24th @ Michelle Cornish’s blog
Read a guest post from Emily Winslow about why she teaches. https://www.michellecornish.com/blog
October 26th @ The Knotty Needle
Stop by to read Judy’s review of Time to Write by Emily Winslow. http://knottyneedle@gmail.com
October 26th @ Deborah Adams’s blog
Check out Deborah’s spotlight of Time to Write and read her interview with author Emily Winslow. http://www.deborah-adams.com/blog
October 28th @ Sue Edwards’s blog
Revisit Sue’s blog to read a guest post about choosing which publishers to submit to by Emily Winslow. https://suebe.wordpress.com/
October 29th @ Shoes, Seeds, and Stories
Stop by to red Linda’s review of Time to Write by Emily Winslow. https://lschuelerca.wordpress.com/
October 31 @ A Lit Life
Come see Stephanie’s spotlight for Time to Write. www.alitlife.com
November 2nd @ A Lit Life
Read Stephanie’s review of Time to Write. www.alitlife.com
November 3rd @ Bookshine and Readbows
Stop by to read Steph’s review of Time to Write. https://bookshineandreadbows.wordpress.com/blog/
November 5th @ Shoes, Seeds, and Stories
Revisit Linda’s blog to read a guest post by Emily Winslow about whether Time to Write will help someone who wants to write a memoir. https://lschuelerca.wordpress.com/
November 6th @ Michelle Cornish’s blog
Revisit Michelle’s blog to read her review of Time to Write. https://www.michellecornish.com/blog
November 7th @ A Lit Life
Listen to Stephanie interview author Emily Winslow on her podcast A Lit Life. www.alitlife.com
November 8th @ World of My Imagination
Revisit Nicole’s blog where she shares “Does Daydreaming Count as Work?” by Emily Winslow. https://worldofmyimagination.com
November 9th @ A Storybook World
Revisit Deirdra’s blog to view a spotlight of Time to Write. https://www.astorybookworld.com/
November 10th @ Jill Sheets’s blog
Stop by Jill’s blog to read her interview with Emily Winslow. https://jillsheets.blogspot.com/
November 11th @ Helen Hollick Author
Visit Helen’s blog to read a guest post from author Emily Winslow. https://ofhistoryandkings.blogspot.com/