Peer Review

I spent a lovely day last week with the ladies of the Marcher Chapter of the Romantic Novelists' Association  at The Courtyard Theatre, in Hereford. As usual the company, the gossip, the laughter and the food were good - I love the fish pie for lunch and this time people also had cake! I was too full of fish pie to have one of my own but got fed slivers from other people's and very nice they were too. Next time I'll save some space.

This meeting was a bit different from usual, though, as it was a critique workshop, and instead of making ourselves at home at a couple of tables in the cafe, we'd actually got a room. This is the second time I've done this - so not as scary as last time, but a bit scary, because I don't do much in the way of critiques - I don't have a critique partner and no one usually reads my stuff until it goes to the publisher. The first time wasn't too bad - lots of confidence building comments on a romantic suspense that I wasn't too sure about. I'm working on it again, but other things keep elbowing it out. It will happen.

This time I took the first pages of what might be the next Riviera Rogues book.  There were seven of us, and part of the fun is trying to match the writer with the critique piece, as they are anonymous when they arrive. Some were fairly easy to guess, but there were a couple of surprises from people writing outside their usual genre. I have to say they were all fabulous. I wanted to read them all and comments seemed like nit picking. Happily the other felt the same, but we soldiered bravely and everyone got feedback, and we had a lot of fun. I'm not going to divulge details, but I really hope all the books make it into print, because I do want to read them all.

And mine - well the feedback was positive, but the big question was - how are you going to work the plot out? And thereby hangs the tail, because although the book is finished it's the one with the plot that is ... well, let's say at the moment it needs a lot of suspension of disbelief. I will sort the bugs out, because I want Nadine and Ryan to have their story and also to catch up with what has been happening to Cassie and Jake two years into their marriage.

I'll have to give the matter deep thought. Very deep.