Our competition is now closed... Judging begins... by Margaret Graham

We are already reading through the entries from our Words for the Wounded Writing Prize and The Independent Author Book Award.

As always it's an absolute pleasure to see how many aspiring writers are producing inspiring work. It makes our task hard though, as a fine line separates the good from the excellent, but we'll get there in the end. Well done everyone, and June 6th will see the winners announced on the website.

Whilst on the subject of Independent Authors, I am posting a press release from Catriona Troth, (one of the independent authors sitting on our Self-Publishing Panel at our Words for the Wounded LitFest on 18th April:

Independent Bookshop Opens Doors to Independent Authors

Foyles on London’s Charing Cross Road, is playing host to
The Indie Author Fair (IAF)
on Friday 17th April 2015.

Part of the London Book Fair Indie Author Fringe Festival, run by The Alliance ofI Independent Authors/Indie ReCon, the fair is organised by Triskele Books and sponsored by XPO North.

After the success of IAF 2014 at Chorleywood Literary Festival, the event has grown to include over fifty authors who represent the best in independent author-publishing.

Organiser Catriona Troth said “The Indie Author Fair is an unmissable event for readers, writers, publishers and observers of the publishing scene, providing an opportunity to meet the best indie authors in the business, meet suppliers, talk to experts and discover great new books.”

“Bringing writers and readers closer together is a core part of ALLi’s mission," said Orna Ross, Director of ALLi (Alliance of Independent Authors). “We are delighted that the Indie Author Fair will showcase the talent and enterprise of so many ALLi members at Foyles, London’s largest indie bookstore, with the support of London Book Fair’s Book and Screen Week, and look forward to fostering new author-reader bonds at the fair.”

The fair will take place from 16.00–19.30 and is FREE to the public with drinks reception, goodie bags and personalised signed copies available.

This should be a great day and so good that Foyles is encouraging Independent Authors.

Sadly, the three grannies who run Words for the Wounded will be too busy to go, as we will be preparing for our LitFest which is the next day, (baking cakes is one of our tasks - all rather nerve wracking when it's for others to consume) but we're really looking forward to seeing you all.

Matt Pain, one of our trustees will welcome you  and then Katie Fforde will kick off the day at 10.00 in conversation with me. Then we have our two Midsomer Murders writers, Rachel Cuperman and Sally Griffiths in conversation - wait for it - with me. They are breaking their necks to complete their latest script at the moment, as they are first up in the new series about to be filmed at any moment. No doubt we'll hear all about it in April.

After lunch, you are then saved from an overload of MG as Penny Deacon  chairs the Self-Publishing panel comprising Amanda Hatter and Catriona Troth who will talk about their experiences as highly successful Indie Authors, and the pros and cons of the whole thing. There will be  plenty of time for questions. Janet Speedie will introduce the lovely Felicity Trew, literary agent with Caroline Sheldon Literary Agency, and Penny Deacon will close the day, chatting about her route from Mills and Boon to crime writing.

My publishers, Random House, have provided a massive box full of free books as gifts for you, and we also have a bookstall with the speakers' books so you can buy signed copies.

The Litfest is to be held at Downley Community Centre on 18th April from 9.30 (Registration) - 5.00. Price £50.

You can book a ticket by sending a SAE, enclosing a cheque for £50 payable to Words for the Wounded  to Words for the Wounded, 12 Woodcote Green, Downley, High Wycombe HP13 5UN.

Do rest assured that all money raised does go to the wounded, as the grannies absorb the costs of the charity. Hope to see you at Downley on 18th April. We have fans coming from as far away as Lyme Regis and Sussex - we can't wait to meet you all.

Great excitement: Our writing competitions and Elizabeth Buchan's wonderful news. Read about both. Margaret Graham

Our writing competitions close to entries on 11 March: flash fiction/memoir/poetry up to 400 words, and our inaugural Independent Author Book Award. Do make sure you don't miss our deadline. As you know, we three grannies absorb all expenses so every penny goes to the wounded, and trust me, every one of those pennies is sorely needed.  For details: www.wordsforthewounded.co.uk

I think one of my most profound experiences recently has been  learning about a young soldier caught in an IED explosion. He's lost not only his legs but hips. His torso is therefore truncated. His stomach has had to be reduced so that it can be accommodated, and so on, and so on... He is by no means alone in this type of injury, and every day must be a painful mountain for him, and his family, to climb. But as I say, he is NOT ALONE. There are so many recovering wounded, far more than you would dream. They need us all.

Make sure you get your entries to us in time. Apart from anything else, it is so good to read such wonderful work. Every one thus far has been excellent. Judging will be difficult.

Our LitFest on 18th April is sorted. As you know we have the delicious Katie Fforde, a patron of ours who is a Sunday Times No 1 bestselling author, and my lovely pal Rachel Cuperman, also a patron,  and her writing partner Sally Griffiths who will  talk about writing scripts for Midsomer Murders. We have Penny Deacon, one of the WforW grannies talking of the change from Mills and Boon to crime fiction, and a self-publishing panel including Amanda Hatter and Catriona Troth who will talk to us, and answer our questions. We have Felicity Trew of Caroline Sheldon Literary Agency to take the place of Sarah Taylor, who has personal commitments. Felicity will be with us all day, so what better place for you all to be than at Downley Community Centre, HP13 5TR, 10.00- 5.00(tickets in advance) networking and learning.

The food will be good too, and the wine, not to mention the cake and coffees, all included. Go to www.wordsforthewounded.co.uk for further details.

Remember every penny goes to those who have been wounded, like the young man I've just told you about.

!GREAT NEWS!

ELIZABETH BUCHAN, another one of our patrons, has been shortlisted for the Epic Romantic Novel category of The Romantic Novel of Year Award 2015 with I Can't Begin to Tell You. 

Elizabeth told Words for the Wounded about I Can't Begin to Tell You, some months ago, and I am now repeating her feature and send congratulations and fingers crossed, from us all. 

Elizabeth won in 1994, with Consider the Lily. How wonderful it would be if she did it again.

I Can’t Begin to Tell You

By Elizabeth Buchan

Some years ago, I wrote a novel about a female SOE agent going into occupied France during the Second World War. It was a fascinating project to research and to write – and, as the family helpfully informed me, I became an obsessive.  Soon after it was published, the phone went and a voice asked me if I was the author of Light of the Moon as she used to work for SOE’s F-section and she had liked the book?

         We became friends and, over the years, Noreen Riols (who has recently published her own remarkable memoir, The Secret Ministry of Ag and Fish) and I often discussed various aspects of the SOE. Such is her generosity, she invited me down to Valençay to celebrate with French veterans and descendants of SOE agents the seventieth anniversary of the first parachutage into France.  It was an extraordinary day. Princess Anne arrived in a helicopter, the town was en fete and the service conducted with banners and music at the memorial was poignant and unforgettable.

         Over my writing life, I have found that I like to circle around a subject, often returning to it to write another novel from a different angle. I knew one day that I would return to the SOE. However, in the interim, many other writers have seized on SOE,  particularly F-section. I needed to rethink and to find a fresh approach. Someone said: ‘why don’t you look at Denmark?’

         I took their advice and found there was actually a new area in which to roam as the writer. Denmark had had a very unusual war – it had been annexed peacefully and the Reich had bestowed on it the status of a ‘model protectorate’. This remained -  more or less - the case until August 1943 when the order went out to round up the Jews. From that moment, the situation in Denmark changed.

         A novel is not a history. It is fiction and fiction tries to explore emotional truths and human behaviour. So what was I writing about? At the early stage, I thought it would be about the tensions and problems of someone taking a decision to enter this infant theatre of war – i.e. the covert and undercover. Why would they do it?  How would they manage?  The novel would also be about lies. An agent must live on many levels and not only has to construct a charade for the enemy but for friends, lovers, spouses and family.

         I thought further around the subject. Do women make better spies and undercover agents? If so, why?  Actually, if you are the right temperament both sexes are neck and neck on that. Where women had an advantage in the Second World War was the Germans weren’t expecting women to be spies or agents.

         What else did women do? Some of the answers were also to be found in the SOE. There were women coders and decoders – such as my character, Ruby Ingram, brilliant mathematician and angry feminist.  There were also the listeners, such as Mary Voss, the FANY,  who listened out day and night for the call signs of the agents and, although they had no idea of their sex or their names, grew to know their agents simply by listening to their ‘handwriting’ or ‘fist’ as they tapped out their messages in Morse from whatever hiding places they could manage. Who was to say that the coders and listeners didn’t cherish and love these agents and strove always to protect them – even if it meant taking on the bosses?

         Even in relatively peaceful Denmark, life was difficult and loyalties were conflicted and bought much suffering. Searching to find the plot of the novel, I read histories, memoirs,  biographies and  then finally … I stumbled across a biography of an English woman who worked for SOE during the war while her Danish  husband tolerated the occupation. They lived in a house with a lake in front of it.

         I had my story. 

A post from a great pal of mine,Steve Blayney, and great news, his daughter, Gemma is on our team. By Margaret Graham

WORDS FOR THE WOUNDED WRITING PRIZES

Do remember that the grannies absorb all the costs of the charity so every penny raised goes to where it should.

Just a reminder to everyone that the 400 word maximum Fiction/Memoir/Poetry category closes on 11 March, and though we're receiving fantastic entries every day, keep spreading the word. We need every penny for the wounded, and we want to be able to shine the spotlight on all the good writers out there.

There is £400 in prize money, and publication in Writers Forum.

We're having a really great time reading the Indie books (self-published fiction or memoir) coming through the letter box and into our inbox for the Independent Author Book Award. There are some exceptional writers out there. How lucky the team is to have the chance to read them all. Remember, the closing date is 11th March, and Words for the Wounded needs you ALL.

Palamedes PR are offering a free professional press release as first prize, and a discounted press release for second and third. Frost Magazine will publish a biography and review of the top three prize winners. All fantastic publicity for the winners.

Results will be published on 6th June, on the website.


I had the great pleasure to review Bryan Adams' photographic exhibition at Somerset House for Frost Magazine. Wounded - a legacy of war, shows in shocking detail the injuries our men and women receive, and the inspirational way they receive help, process their situation, and move forward, onto rich and rewarding lives. Get the book, it's on Amazon. See how much your help is needed.

Jaco van Gass - copyright Bryan Adams

The photographs have certainly pushed the Words for the Wounded team to greater efforts on their behalf. In April we have the LitFest Day at Downley Community Centre, Downley, HP13 5TR. Have a look at our website for more details have. We the lovely Katie Fforde, two Midsomer Murders writers, a crime writer, an agent, and a self-publishing panel. Lunch is included, and wine. Coffees too. The community centre has a lovely atmosphere, and is the former Victorian School.  Come and meet us, and network as much as you like.

We are also doing a Mud Challenge, which is basically we silly old idiots clambering over a military assault course (in August but they promise they will soak the ground to create mud - oh thanks!). There will be younger family members in the team to give us a bump up. Or it could be the moment the sons-in-law have been waiting for...

Now for a post from a great pal of mine. I met Steve Blayney some years ago when he joined one of my writing workshops, which ran for ages and was good fun. I am really indebted to Steve because he volunteered to dress as some dastardly character in a short panto 'wot' I wrote to say goodbye to Grant Sellen, who was leaving the Octagon Theatre, Yeovil, Somerset. I'm particularly grateful as I was dressed as a fairy in a very green dress, with a tiara, and a wand. Not the best look around the bazaars. Steve's a really good writer too.

Steve Blayney, looking James Bond 'smooth'. Good one, Steve.

Falklands War April 2 1982 - June 14 1982

I remember that it had been almost a year since the conflict had ended, but the scars were there. The ground was scarred, the foliage was scarred and we were scarred. Even those of us that hadn’t been here for the fighting, such as it was from the RAF’s point of view, bore traces of what our friends, acquaintances and comrades had gone through. We were united in the cause, regardless of the politics and we had done our duty, whether from a distance, as I had, or up close and personal.

Ultimately, the Islands remained as the Islanders wanted them – British. As far as I was concerned, that was the key point. The people had spoken and we had responded.

                  

I will always remember the shift in attitudes after it ended. Before it started, we would go down to town on our rare nights off and have to demonstrate a mastery in diplomacy. One word out of place and the muttered ‘Bloody warmongers’ would reach our ears. It usually took several beers to defuse the situations, but it didn’t always work and we still carry a few more obvious scars in testament to that.

                 

Everyone had to do a three month tour Down South and eventually it was my turn. I arrived in their winter and it was cold – bloody cold. In the terminal building (shed), I watched the Britannia take off to return from whence it came and wondered how long it would be before I was on the other side of those cabin windows.

                  

The transport arrived to take us to our new home for the next quarter. Bedding was issued, locations of various useful amenities were barked and we were reminded to make sure our respective watches were set on the right time – none of us had remembered that.

                  

After a few weeks, the one thing that struck me was that the locals weren’t scarred. They always seemed genuinely pleased to see us. Even disregarding the slight drop in their faces when we told them we were RAF and not Paras or Bootnecks.

                  

But what was the most memorable thing? Sounds pathetic, not to mention incredibly shallow, but it was when the Bennies came back to drop off their load of Island virgins and take back the veterans who’d done their time. It was usually an overnight stop (unlike when I’d been delivered) and they always had hosties onboard. Believe me, those girls knew how to party...

*

Merry Christmas, everyone by Margaret Graham

The mornings are frosty, the sky blue, and the air crisp. Just right for this time of year.

We are celebrating a great year for Words for the Wounded. We have launched our new prize, The Independent Author Book Award, and already have entries arriving, both for the book award, and for the shorter length competition. We're most excited.

January will bring a great feature in People's Friend about Words for the Wounded which will spread the word, and Debbie Young, of the Alliance of Independent Authors is going to put us on her own marketing blog Off The Shelf Book Promotions (for which we're heartily grateful)  and our lovely Joshua Edwards, who handles our social media, has been 'shooting' us for Youtube.

I think it was when he mentioned 'close-ups' that two of the grannies blanched. The third one, Penny Deacon, was heedless as she was swimming amongst seals around the Galapagos Islands.  Meanwhile  Jan Speedie and I found ourselves in a complete dither.

You will have to wait until January to view this extravaganza but I give you a taster now.

Tony Pain, patron, and our lovely Josh setting up a shot for the moment when Tony talks of the creative arts at Tedworth House Recovery Centre, and what Words for the Wounded means to him.

Here's Matt, one of our trustees, telling the camera about Combat Stress which we support in memory of my grandpa, Percy Newsome, who returned from the 1st World War seemingly untouched, only to take his life a few years later. 

Tony reading more about Josh's shooting script, with Jan Speedie catching up on the gossip whilst the 'grands' do their bit.

Josh and the girls having fun as they prepare for their shoot. Josh kept asking if they would like to nip in and find their coats, but they insisted they were fine. He was FREEZING and longed for them to say yes, so he could 'coat up'. They talked of their efforts on behalf of Words for the Wounded and how they had raised money through their loom band WforW bracelets. They then talked to camera about Forces Support.



The two grannies walked along to the common at Downley with their director, (Josh) and did their bit as various dogs added to the sound track. We dreaded the close ups and the camera had an exclusion zone. As I was being filmed, there are no more photos here today of our momentous moment. Needless to say, the moment we'd finished all three of us hot footed it to The Bricklayers Arms, just opposite, for a carvery lunch and a medicinal tot.

Jan and I welcomed the chance to talk about Words for the Wounded and the skydive. We missed Penny because she enjoyed the skydive so much she'd do it again. We talked of the charities we support. Well, the charities you help us support. As you know, the grannies absorb all expenses so every penny goes to where it should. You probably know by now we feel we must earn our donations. So, as well as the writing competitions that give opportunities to aspiring writers, the grannies took to the sky in the summer.  Next year we think we've decided to try and sort out the Mud Challenge, which seems to consist of getting very very muddy as we heave ourselves over, and under, and through various obstacles which go on for several miles. We are hoping that some of the younger members like Matt and Kris join us to help toss us over some of the exceedingly high 'thingies'

So, for now, thank you for helping us help those who return with life changing injuries, and not only the wounded, but the bereaved, who we consider are also wounded.

A very merry Christmas and a happy new year from all of us here. 

At last 11 November 2014 is here and we launch our competitions - Margaret Graham

As you all know, we at Words for the Wounded are determined to create opportunities for aspiring writers as well as raising funds for the recovery of the wounded.

This year we are introducing The Independent Author Book Award for self-published novels and memoirs (for children or adults) in response to requests we have received. Full details are on our website.

We are thrilled that this year Palamedes PR are sponsoring our top three places.

1st prize is a professional press release, and 2nd and 3rd have the opportunity of a discounted press release.

Palamedes is a shining star in the public relations world, and a press release from such an organisation will be like a dream come true to any independent author.




This is not all. We have been offered sponsorship by the razor sharp and increasingly popular lifestyle Frost Magazine, an online magazine, whose editor and owner, Catherine Balavage is going to

review each of the top three. In addition, Frost is continuing its amazing support for Words for the Wounded's efforts through ongoing publicity and we, the grannies of Words for the Wounded, consider ourselves enormously privileged. Entry fee £12.50. Closing date 11 March 2015

But that's not all. Our short prize is also launched today, with the ever popular Writers Forum Magazine  publishing the winning entries.

Write up to 400 words of Fiction/Memoir/Poetry and you could receive the winning prize of £250 and publication in Writers Forum. 2nd receives £100 and publication  and 3rd £50 and publication. Entry fee £4.50. Closing date 11 March 2015.

Further details are available on our website. Please, please spread the word in this commemorative year, one  that has drawn attention to the horror of war and its aftermath. Though we have withdrawn from Afghanistan those injured still have battles to fight, and will be doing so for a long time. It is essential therefore, that fundraising continues for as long as it is needed. This year we are raising funds for Combat Stress, Forces Support and the creative arts at Tedworth House Recovery Centre.

No doubt the daft grannies will be going white water rafting or something similar after this year's skydive, which raised additional funds. Giving writers opportunities, however, is always close to our hearts, and if we can combine fundraising with that, we are more than pleased.

And now we move on to Katie Medina, an exciting new talent who has written this post especially for the launch of this year's competitions, and I leave the last words to her. (Crikey, isn't she young!)

 

K.T. Medina

My parents have a photograph of me, aged seven, sporting a crew cut, an Army camouflage outfit and a mad grin.  I was an outdoorsy, wild child and always wanted to be a soldier – which is probably why I ended up spending five years in the Territorial Army and working for Jane's Information Group, the world's leading publisher of defence intelligence information.  My parents were nonplussed by my obsession because our family has no military background.  However, my interest probably developed from the many hours I spent hiding behind the sofa when I was supposed to be asleep, watching such World War 2 classics as Bridge On the River Kwai and The Dirty Dozen through my dad’s legs.

It was my involvement with and interest in the military that led me to write my first novel, White Crocodile, a thriller set in the landmine fields of northern Cambodia, which was published in August, by Faber and Faber.  

White Crocodile came out of personal experience: a month spent working in Cambodia with a wonderful and highly dedicated British based mine clearance charity, Mines Advisory Group.  Whilst in Battambang Province, I was privileged to spend time with both Western and Khmer clearers and to meet Khmers who had lost limbs to land mines.  There are huge numbers of amputees in Cambodia, including very young children who, in many cases, thought that the anti-personnel mine they found was a toy.  Off the tourist trail, Cambodia is a heartbreaking place to visit and left a huge and lasting impression on me.

It is mines and IEDs – improvised explosive devices – that seem to do most of the damage to our troops currently serving in Middle-Eastern conflicts.  It must be psychologically devastating to be a physically fit, ‘Alpha’ person, and then to be grievously injured, and the wounded must be helped to regain their independence and self-confidence, so that they can lead fulfilling lives - albeit lives that will be very different from the ones that they dreamed about when they were children.

I was probably lucky to be in the Territorial Army between wars: after the first Iraq War and before the next intervention in Iraq and in Afghanistan.  Perhaps it always was, but war feels particularly dirty these days, with an enemy who is potentially anybody and everywhere and who doesn’t comply with the Geneva Convention.  It is disturbing to know that young men and women – often just teenagers or early twenties – are exposed to such potentially physically and psychologically devastating harm in these dirty conflicts.

Today, as the situation deteriorates in Iraq - the country where the current unraveling of security across the Middle East started with Saddam Hussein’s overthrow in 2003 - and in Syria, with the seemingly unstoppable advance of ISIL, I fear that our military may soon be facing another ‘on the ground’ challenge against a particularly brutal and morally corrupt enemy.  It is critical now, more than ever, that we as civilians support the young men and women who have given so much in these conflicts.

Katie Medina

www.ktmedina.com

Remember, spread the word. Every penny counts, and every penny raised goes to those in need. 

October news by Margaret Graham

Our writing competitions are looming, and open on November 11th so the mail shots will begin. Gear yourself, fellow grannies! This year we have added the Independent Author Book Award. So now there is a short and a long opportunity. On November 11th we will post more about that but our website has the details. Do help these wonderful men and women who Words for the Wounded does its best to help.

It's been a really busy time for the grannies who run WforW. 

Penny Deacon has finished the first draft of her crime novel, I'll Swing for You,  and I have seen my 15th novel published by Random House, Easterleigh Hall, which is the first of three which follow the lives of two families in the north east.  I've had the greatest time researching it, because I had to go back up north which is where my mum lived, and which I love.

Of course we had to celebrate the launch at The Wellington on the Strand (The Wellie) with a few friends, including he who must be disobeyed, and our third grannie, Jan Speedie.

From the left: Janet Speedie, Margaret Graham, Pat Heath, Dick Graham and Sue Atkins. (Thanks to Sue for some of the photos below). Thanks to our friend, Esther, for taking the photo and looking after us so well, as always, and to The Wellie for the bottle of Prosecco. 

We had spent the morning at the Tower of London, seeing the poppies. I have posted the article I wrote for, Frost Magazine which is a great online magazine and what's more supports, Words for the Wounded with publicity. 

I will be posting on 11th November again, with more about our competitions and something about our LitFest in April, but for which we already have reservations. We have Katie Fforde, and two Midsomer Murder writers, an agent, a crime writer and a self-publishing panel. Random House, my publisher are donating new books for the prize draw. Frost Magazine are supporting us with publicity. You can find details on our website.

Blood Swept Lands and Seas of Red

Yesterday, on a brilliant clear October morning two of the granny administrators of Words for the Wounded, Jan Speedie and Margaret Graham, arrived at the Tower of London  to view the art installation Blood Swept Lands and Seas of Red.

Two of the grannies at the Tower.Jan Speedie and Margaret Graham

The art installation commemorates Britain's involvement in the First World War, a war to which so many marched in the early days, certain that it would ‘be over by Christmas’.  It was not to be, of course. The war ended four years later at 11.00 am on the 11 day of the 11 month of 1918.

And these represent only some of our fallen.

One of those who went early to war, was a Derbyshire man who died in Flanders. He wrote in his will, knowing that everyone was dead and he was surrounded by blood, The Blood Swept lands and seas of red, where angels fear to tread. It is these words that inspired ceramic artist Paul Cummins’s design.

In those trenches, classes mixed for the first time, barriers were broken, lives were destroyed. ((888,246 British and Colonial dead) many many others were injured, mentally and physically . It was a defining moment in our history, if you could call such relentless effort and sacrifice a moment.

The setting was designed by stage designer Tom Piper. In total, 888,246 ceramic poppies will progressively fill the iconic Tower's moat over the summer. One for every single man who was lost. Volunteers fix the stems and plant out the poppies, for sale for £25. In due course, the poppies will be packaged and posted to the purchasers, again by the volunteers.  Bravo the volunteers.

Volunteers beavering

By yesterday the tide of poppies had extended in some areas to the edge of the moat, and in others, were lapping towards the walls,  but there is room and time for more, just as there was, sadly, time for more in that First World War.

It is a heart stopping vision, one that promotes a moment of deep reflection, of commemoration, and for the grannies a determination to continue with our voluntary work - raising funds for the recovery of injured troops, so on with the mail shots for our fundraising writing competitions opening on 11^th November.

I believe the last poppy will be planted on the cusp of 11 November.

The start of a new wave

The Tower of London website says ‘We are hoping to sell all of the poppies that make up the installation and, in doing so, raise millions of pounds which will be shared equally amongst six service charities.’

I would love to know exactly how much is distributed as our servicemen, and ex-servicemen are still sorely in need.

Pictures courtesy of Susan Atkins and Margaret Graham

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