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Welcome… I’m New Here! Hello, I'm new here!

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Sedayne

Full Member
Blogger
Lab Moderator
Joined
Mar 5, 2024
Location
Northwest UK
LitCoin
75
Hello, I'm new here!

My name is Rachel, and I'm from the Northwest of England.

I've been writing on and off most of my life, but I got stuck in seriously about two years ago and now have a trilogy of novels, the first of which has been self-edited what feels like a hundred times (the second and third only about fifty times). So maybe now is a good time to get some perspective on it all with some other points of view, and to see what everyone else is up to.

My reading tastes tend towards literary rather than genre fiction. My favourite writers are John Irving, Emily St John Mandel, Ian McEwan, Ruth Ozeki, Clare Chambers, Diana Wynne Jones and David Sedaris. Novels by other authors that I’ve recently enjoyed include Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow, Cleopatra and Frankenstein, Julia, Girl Woman Other, Vladimir, Elizabeth Finch and Lessons in Chemistry.

I'm struggling to classify my own work and fear it is the merest approximation of the writing I admire.

I'm looking forward to reading other people's works-in-progress and will happily comment for what it's worth. Then I'll upload some of mine by and by.

In real life I'm an Advanced Practitioner specialising in elderly and palliative care. I love my job, but I love writing more.

@AgentPete says to mention food and drink here. Well, I'm doubly anti-social because I don't like tea or coffee, and I've been sober for twenty-three years, but I do like a nice kombucha and I enjoy fresh food worth the calories. Despite how this makes me sound, I'm actually from a working class background.

I'm rather introverted, which I'm sure isn't unusual amongst writers, but I am also cripplingly social media shy. I tried and failed at Twitter and Instagram, and I can't bear the thought of Facebook. I am hoping I'll feel more comfortable here – it feels good so far :)
 
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Hi Rachel, welcome to the group, sounds like you'll fit in well.
I love some of the authors you mentioned. So I look forward to seeing your work and having your fresh eyes on mine. xx
 
@AgentPete says to mention food and drink here. Well, I'm doubly anti-social because I don't like tea or coffee, and I've been sober for twenty-three years, but I do like a nice kombucha and I enjoy fresh food worth the calories. Despite how this makes me sound, I'm actually from a working class background.
Hey Sedayne (interesting moniker… Warhammer??) and a big welcome!
Wish I could wean myself off the bean.
How do you think without it?

I'm rather introverted, which I'm sure isn't unusual amongst writers, but I am also cripplingly social media shy. I tried and failed at Twitter and Instagram, and I can't bear the thought of Facebook. I am hoping I'll feel more comfortable here – it feels good so far :)
That would be a typical writer, then :)
You don’t need to be a social media rock-star to be a successful writer. If you execute the words well, your readers will do the social media stuff for you. We used to call it “word of mouth”!
 
Hey Sedayne (interesting moniker… Warhammer??) and a big welcome!
Wish I could wean myself off the bean.
How do you think without it?


That would be a typical writer, then :)
You don’t need to be a social media rock-star to be a successful writer. If you execute the words well, your readers will do the social media stuff for you. We used to call it “word of mouth”!


I have only the vaguest idea what Warhammer is. Sedayne is a partial anagram of my husband's name. I informally adopted it many years ago, although I didn't legally take his actual name. He's a bit miffed that I've used it on here (because he still uses it too), but I've told him I'm stuck with it.

Thanks for the warm welcome. A big difference here compared to other social media is that the posts are all beautifully written ;)
 
Hey, Sedayne come to Huddle this Sat. Sign up is now. Though it's good until Friday really. Get a feel for what the process is. Litopia is the social media version of the Island of Misfit Toys. Though I suppose that reference dates me awfully.
 

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Hi Rachel, welcome to the group, sounds like you'll fit in well.
I love some of the authors you mentioned. So I look forward to seeing your work and having your fresh eyes on mine. xx
Thank you and nice to meet you. I'll be sure to check out your work in the lab xx
 
I have only the vaguest idea what Warhammer is. Sedayne is a partial anagram of my husband's name.
Oh how very cool.

And Warhammer is what happens to you when you have sons, and are forced to play out battles with tiny figures, that they paint themselves. Consequently, I now always call a certain colour ‘rotting flesh green’.
If you haven’t experienced this, your life is a whole lot better than mine.
 
Hi @Sedayne , a very warm welcome to the colony.

Nice to have you here.

This is a good place to check out (How-to guide) to see a lot of what goes on in the colony.

If anything is unclear do please contact me and I’ll be happy to assist if I can.

I had to look up what a kombucha is - who'd thought it? I too am from the working classes :)
 
Hello @Sedayne, welcome to Litopia. I'd be pleased to know more about the theme of your books, whatever it is, it must be fascinating to want to write a trilogy on the matter... and of course - I'm curious. :D :cool:
 
Hello @Sedayne, welcome to Litopia. I'd be pleased to know more about the theme of your books, whatever it is, it must be fascinating to want to write a trilogy on the matter... and of course - I'm curious. :D :cool:
Hello @Eva Ulian , nice to meet you.
Since you asked:

Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere Trilogy
The Superior Position of Hannah Thomas:
Beggining in North Wales in the 1970s and ends in Bristol in the early 1980s, the book tells the story of Hannah ‘Tommo’ Thomas, a resilient teenager struggling with feelings of abandonment following the suicide of her father and the subsequent breakdown of her mother. She is confused about her sexuality because she is strongly attracted to her own gender, but falls in love with her best friend, Neil Harper. It is a story about loss, separation, sexual exploration, feminism, and the power of love and friendship. It is about family and the lack of family, about falling in love and not falling in love, and how music and literature connects us.

The Mysterious World of Neil J. Harper:
In the second instalment, we find Neil finally embarking on his English degree as a mature student at Lancaster University in the 1990s. He is still married to Hannah, but she lives in Bristol with her girlfriend. Wanting a fresh start and feeling unable to explain himself, he conceals the fact of his marriage from his new friends Bex and Caleb who, despite the age difference, soon become as close as family. Neil develops an unhealthy obsession about Bex’s never-seen best mate, Sarah, who she talks about incessantly, and when he finally meets the girl, he is drawn into a peculiar relationship that he cannot fathom – not least because he is still in love with his secret wife, Hannah. It’s a story of secrets, obsession, intangible love, and fear of growing old while all around you seem eternally young.

The Forgotten Songs of Sarah Sullivan:
In 1996, Sarah moves to Lancaster to study nursing and be close to her best friend Bex who she hasn’t seen for two years following an incident of misunderstanding between them. Devout Catholic and half-seriously considering becoming a nun, she is both proud and embarrassed to still be a virgin at age twenty-two. She doesn’t see her sexual attraction to women, nor her bad habit of drunkenly snogging random strangers in nightclubs as an issue, but as Bex would say, she’s nothing if not a contradiction. By the time she meets Bex’s university friend, Neil Harper, he has already finished his studies and returned to North Wales. She’s bewildered as to why he wants to keep in touch with her and why he starts coming up to Lancaster not to see Bex but to visit her. Confused but addicted to his company, her depression spirals as she tries to come to terms with her past, present and future whilst still safely negotiating her vocation with compassion. A book about loneliness and friendship, addiction and recovery.

I'm now as addicted to editing as writing, but after a few more tweaks I'll put opening chapters on the Lab.

Thanks,
Rachel xx
 
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Welcome aboard, @Sedayne :) you'll love it here! I wonder if you've ever come across Paul Ridout in your work? He's worked in the elderly healthcare sector for decades (maybe nursing homes?). He was well known when I worked with him 24 years ago at what was then DLA. But palliative might be another niche, so maybe not. Your books sound interesting. Look forward to seeing them in the lab :)
 
Welcome aboard, @Sedayne :) you'll love it here! I wonder if you've ever come across Paul Ridout in your work? He's worked in the elderly healthcare sector for decades (maybe nursing homes?). He was well known when I worked with him 24 years ago at what was then DLA. But palliative might be another niche, so maybe not. Your books sound interesting. Look forward to seeing them in the lab :)
Lovely to meet you @RK Wallis . I don't know Paul Ridout, but the NHS is a huge organisation. I work for a GP surgery, but have a lot of contact with our local nursing homes and provide home visits for housebound elderly and chronically ill as well as palliative patients. Everyone has a story :)
 
Hello @Eva Ulian , nice to meet you.
Since you asked:

Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere Trilogy
The Superior Position of Hannah Thomas:
Beggining in North Wales in the 1970s and ends in Bristol in the early 1980s, the book tells the story of Hannah ‘Tommo’ Thomas, a resilient teenager struggling with feelings of abandonment following the suicide of her father and the subsequent breakdown of her mother. She is confused about her sexuality because she is strongly attracted to her own gender, but falls in love with her best friend, Neil Harper. It is a story about loss, separation, sexual exploration, feminism, and the power of love and friendship. It is about family and the lack of family, about falling in love and not falling in love, and how music and literature connects us.

The Mysterious World of Neil J. Harper:
In the second instalment, we find Neil finally embarking on his English degree as a mature student at Lancaster University in the 1990s. He is still married to Hannah, but she lives in Bristol with her girlfriend. Wanting a fresh start and feeling unable to explain himself, he conceals the fact of his marriage from his new friends Bex and Caleb who, despite the age difference, soon become as close as family. Neil develops an unhealthy obsession about Bex’s never-seen best mate, Sarah, who she talks about incessantly, and when he finally meets the girl, he is drawn into a peculiar relationship that he cannot fathom – not least because he is still in love with his secret wife, Hannah. It’s a story of secrets, obsession, intangible love, and fear of growing old whole all around you seem eternally young.

The Forgotten Songs of Sarah Sullivan:
In 1996, Sarah moves to Lancaster to study nursing and be close to her best friend Bex who she hasn’t seen for two years following an incident of misunderstanding between them. Devout Catholic and half-seriously considering becoming a nun, she is both proud and embarrassed to still be a virgin at age twenty-two. She doesn’t see her sexual attraction to women, nor her bad habit of drunkenly snogging random strangers in nightclubs as an issue, but as Bex would say, she’s nothing if not a contradiction. By the time she meets Bex’s university friend, Neil Harper, he has already finished his studies and returned to North Wales. She’s bewildered as to why he wants to keep in touch with her and why he starts coming up to Lancaster not to see Bex but to visit her. Confused but addicted to his company, her depression spirals as she tries to come to terms with her past, present and future whilst still safely negotiating her vocation with compassion. A book about loneliness and friendship, addiction and recovery.

I'm now as addicted to editing as writing, but after a few more tweaks I'll put opening chapters on the Lab.

Thanks,
Rachel xx
These works sound to me much like they would find a home on the shelves of family saga - along the lines that DH Lawrence wrote, but with a "coming of Age" supplement. Great stuff @Sedayne
 
Hi @Sedayne , a very warm welcome to the colony.

Nice to have you here.

This is a good place to check out (How-to guide) to see a lot of what goes on in the colony.

If anything is unclear do please contact me and I’ll be happy to assist if I can.

I had to look up what a kombucha is - who'd thought it? I too am from the working classes :)
Don't tell anyone (drops voice to a low whisper), but you can buy it in Waitrose ;)
 
These works sound to me much like they would find a home on the shelves of family saga - along the lines that DH Lawrence wrote, but with a "coming of Age" supplement. Great stuff @Sedayne
@Eva Ulian Thank you!
I'm probably more influenced by John Irving than DH Lawrence, but I get what you mean, and there's definitely a coming of age vibe. It's been a long time since I read any DH Lawrence, but maybe it's time for reread of the Rainbow.
 
Oh how very cool.

And Warhammer is what happens to you when you have sons, and are forced to play out battles with tiny figures, that they paint themselves. Consequently, I now always call a certain colour ‘rotting flesh green’.
If you haven’t experienced this, your life is a whole lot better than mine.
A Warhammer tragedy story. When we moved to Wexford in 2017 the owners had to clear out their attics. My son saw original Warhammer boxes. Loads. Each one worth hundreds on eBay. He told the owner he wanted them, but when we got back the guy had decided to burn all of them.
 
@Eva Ulian Thank you!
I'm probably more influenced by John Irving than DH Lawrence, but I get what you mean, and there's definitely a coming of age vibe. It's been a long time since I read any DH Lawrence, but maybe it's time for reread of the Rainbow.
NAW. We've discovered sex since then. A lot of those shocking turn of the century guys one big idea was "Women like sex, too." Though considering all the goings on in the Edwardian upper class country houses you'd think it wouldn't have been that much of a revelation.
DH Lawrence was a baby man who beat up women stupid enough to run away with him. He deserves to sink quietly into obscurity.
 
NAW. We've discovered sex since then. A lot of those shocking turn of the century guys one big idea was "Women like sex, too." Though considering all the goings on in the Edwardian upper class country houses you'd think it wouldn't have been that much of a revelation.
DH Lawrence was a baby man who beat up women stupid enough to run away with him. He deserves to sink quietly into obscurity.
Fair point @Pamela Jo Perhaps I won't waste my time revisiting stuff I read thirty years ago. Sarah Waters does it better.
 
After almost a week here, I am suitably convinced to put my hand in my pocket and graduate to full membership. Thanks to everyone on this thread for welcoming me and proving me wrong about my distrust of all things 'social' on the internet. @AgentPete should have you guys on commission.
 
After almost a week here, I am suitably convinced to put my hand in my pocket and graduate to full membership. Thanks to everyone on this thread for welcoming me and proving me wrong about my distrust of all things 'social' on the internet. @AgentPete should have you guys on commission.
Funny you mention that :)

We’ll be re-launching the associate scheme quite soon, which will do exactly that.

More soonish. P.
 
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