Anyta Sunday's Blog - Posts Tagged "berlin"
Lenny For Your Thoughts -- Out Now :D
So, yeah . . . my next full length novel is now available on Amazon. Phew, what a journey.
There are many people I'd like to thank for helping me craft this story and making it the best it can be.
Teresa Crawford did an amazing job with content editing, and without her insight, a quarter of the story wouldn't exist! Thanks so much for the direction you gave me. It's really appreciated.
Also a big thanks to Lynda Lamb who line-edited for me and made the text nice 'n shiny. It's so crazy how many of your own typos you overlook! Lol.
Then there are my betas and proofreaders and friends who helped me out too! Cheers.
So, Lenny . . .
A story that drifts in and out of the present and past to follow Lenny and Julien (cousins from the same village) and their friendship as it blurs into something much deeper and more forbidden.
It is set in Germany partly in Berlin, where I currently live, and partly in a small made-up village of Waldau. A place inspired by where my husband was raised. (That being said, the layout of the village—and the characters who lived there—are all fictional.)
This is a love story with a good dose of angst--but rest assured, there is no physical violence or death!--and it plays over 18 years.
___
I was very nervous about writing this book because the characters are very close to me. I think Lenny and Julien have a lovely story to share.
It's hard to explain, but I really felt them. There were days I wanted to throw up because they were so demanding and so strong and the scenes would play over and over in my head and I needed to get it out and do it right . . .
In some ways it felt like falling in love again along with them, I rarely felt the need to eat, I couldn't sleep, they were always on my mind, I would smile as I walked about and not even realize it. But mostly I felt so sick that their story was so beautiful and I wasn't doing it justice.
But I did the best I could. And I'm now happy to share their story with you!
Please find an extract of the first chapter at www.anytasunday.com
There are many people I'd like to thank for helping me craft this story and making it the best it can be.
Teresa Crawford did an amazing job with content editing, and without her insight, a quarter of the story wouldn't exist! Thanks so much for the direction you gave me. It's really appreciated.
Also a big thanks to Lynda Lamb who line-edited for me and made the text nice 'n shiny. It's so crazy how many of your own typos you overlook! Lol.
Then there are my betas and proofreaders and friends who helped me out too! Cheers.
So, Lenny . . .
A story that drifts in and out of the present and past to follow Lenny and Julien (cousins from the same village) and their friendship as it blurs into something much deeper and more forbidden.
It is set in Germany partly in Berlin, where I currently live, and partly in a small made-up village of Waldau. A place inspired by where my husband was raised. (That being said, the layout of the village—and the characters who lived there—are all fictional.)
This is a love story with a good dose of angst--but rest assured, there is no physical violence or death!--and it plays over 18 years.
___
I was very nervous about writing this book because the characters are very close to me. I think Lenny and Julien have a lovely story to share.
It's hard to explain, but I really felt them. There were days I wanted to throw up because they were so demanding and so strong and the scenes would play over and over in my head and I needed to get it out and do it right . . .
In some ways it felt like falling in love again along with them, I rarely felt the need to eat, I couldn't sleep, they were always on my mind, I would smile as I walked about and not even realize it. But mostly I felt so sick that their story was so beautiful and I wasn't doing it justice.
But I did the best I could. And I'm now happy to share their story with you!
Please find an extract of the first chapter at www.anytasunday.com
Writing Workshops for LGBT fiction
So . . . I'm involved in a really exciting new project. Europe-based Writing Workshops for LGBT fiction!!! :D
It all began last year at the Bristol LGBT Fiction Meet, where I met the amazing Aleksandr Voinov and got to chatting with him. I was super impressed with how charismatic and knowledgable he was and I asked if he ran any writing workshops--because, baby, I'd so be there. He said he wasn't running anything but that he'd love to get involved in coaching more on the craft.
I took that interest and ran with it. Why wait for the writing workshop(s) I wanted to attend? I was going to make it happen.
So we really got talking, discussing what it was we wanted to offer beginning and intermediate authors to help develop their writing and confidence being an author. First and foremost, we wanted to offer LGBT writers a stimulating, safe environment to exchange ideas and work on their stories.
And then we went further into the craft-bits and worked out a wonderful workshop outline. We want authors to leave the workshop not only with methods for reworking a draft to make it more dynamic and engaging, but also with the motivation and confidence to get those rewrites done!
In an interview with Marc over Rainbow Gold Reviews, Aleks really hit the nail on the head with his comment on the value of writing workshops.
[. . .] I find a lot of value actually comes from leaving behind your normal environment and spending time with fellow writers—the creativity and mutual understanding can take things to a new level and be one of the most affirming things you can do as a writer. Writers can get stuck in negativity or other unhelpful environments, so sometimes feedback from other writers or an experienced coach can make all the difference in terms of motivation and faith in the idea and your abilities.
Anyway, to say I'm excited is an understatement! I think we've come up with something that will be both helpful to writers and FUN!
Yes! Berlin is a great city and our workshop is located right in the heart of it.
During the course of the workshop, the famous Karneval der Kultur is taking place. So there's the option of popping out of the accommodation and into the thick of the festival.
Our inaugural workshop will be from May 21st-25th. Four days packed with presentations, Skype sessions (including a call from agent Laura Zats of Red Sofa Literary), critiques and one-on-one intensives to get your story to the next level.
So, have you got your further education classes sorted for this year? If not, maybe this is what you're looking for!
For more details check out the CritShop website.
And to download a PDF of the workshop schedule click here.
Woohoo! Bring on May! It's going to be a blast. I LOVE fiction. Love learning more about the craft. Love helping other authors navigate the waters of publishing. Love that there will be this new opportunity in Europe.
And if you can't make it this year, then we intend to be hosting workshops on a yearly basis! We'll be looking into hosting smaller day/weekend workshops too.
:D
It all began last year at the Bristol LGBT Fiction Meet, where I met the amazing Aleksandr Voinov and got to chatting with him. I was super impressed with how charismatic and knowledgable he was and I asked if he ran any writing workshops--because, baby, I'd so be there. He said he wasn't running anything but that he'd love to get involved in coaching more on the craft.
I took that interest and ran with it. Why wait for the writing workshop(s) I wanted to attend? I was going to make it happen.
So we really got talking, discussing what it was we wanted to offer beginning and intermediate authors to help develop their writing and confidence being an author. First and foremost, we wanted to offer LGBT writers a stimulating, safe environment to exchange ideas and work on their stories.
And then we went further into the craft-bits and worked out a wonderful workshop outline. We want authors to leave the workshop not only with methods for reworking a draft to make it more dynamic and engaging, but also with the motivation and confidence to get those rewrites done!
In an interview with Marc over Rainbow Gold Reviews, Aleks really hit the nail on the head with his comment on the value of writing workshops.
[. . .] I find a lot of value actually comes from leaving behind your normal environment and spending time with fellow writers—the creativity and mutual understanding can take things to a new level and be one of the most affirming things you can do as a writer. Writers can get stuck in negativity or other unhelpful environments, so sometimes feedback from other writers or an experienced coach can make all the difference in terms of motivation and faith in the idea and your abilities.
Anyway, to say I'm excited is an understatement! I think we've come up with something that will be both helpful to writers and FUN!
Yes! Berlin is a great city and our workshop is located right in the heart of it.
During the course of the workshop, the famous Karneval der Kultur is taking place. So there's the option of popping out of the accommodation and into the thick of the festival.
Our inaugural workshop will be from May 21st-25th. Four days packed with presentations, Skype sessions (including a call from agent Laura Zats of Red Sofa Literary), critiques and one-on-one intensives to get your story to the next level.
So, have you got your further education classes sorted for this year? If not, maybe this is what you're looking for!
For more details check out the CritShop website.
And to download a PDF of the workshop schedule click here.
Woohoo! Bring on May! It's going to be a blast. I LOVE fiction. Love learning more about the craft. Love helping other authors navigate the waters of publishing. Love that there will be this new opportunity in Europe.
And if you can't make it this year, then we intend to be hosting workshops on a yearly basis! We'll be looking into hosting smaller day/weekend workshops too.
:D
