Visit to Wellie Writers

I was invited to talk to a local writer's group at Wellingborough to talk about Selfish Jean. It's always encouraging to other writers to see there are people getting books published with a bit of talent and a lot of luck and not to give up. Dorothy (the blonde lady in the picture) has had a lot of encouragement for a novel of hers, but sadly no publisher as yet, so I think she will have a go at Macmillan New Writing.. Also the local press came along and took a photo and the young reporter kept calling me Claire! Maybe that's why I look a little defensive in the first photo whilst the photographer is preparing. However, hopefully they'll get it wrong in the paper and everyone will think Claire Sweeney has had a novel published and buy it by the truckload. Fingers crossed!

I've been a bit remiss in keeping my blog up to date lately, but have had quite a bit of publicity lately. An article I wrote about Macmillan New Writing has appeared in the magazine of The Writer's Guild.. I also had an interview e-published by The Motivated Writer e-zine. Click on current issue if you want to read it. I've also has an excerpt of Selfish Jean published in the Lapidus Magazine, published by the organization Lapiduswhich I'm a member of. They stand for creative arts for health and well being, which of course is important to me for my work in facilitating workshops in healthcare settings usually in the mental health field. It's amazing work and helps my writing too. I think to be a good writer you have to be willing to expose yourself even if it is fiction because that's the only way you can really touch people with what you write. If anyone has any views about this please let me know. I was at the Scottish Lapidus conference last weekend in Glasgow and had a wonderful time meeting and connecting with people with like or similar minds and staying with Frances Campbell at her house, who is a lovely mix of energy and fun.We met twice before at previous Lapidus conferences. A great recharging time, though I seem to have picked up some tough Scots bug which has left me feeling a bit rough, or maybe it was that ferocious Virgin train air-con. Why? I want to wage a war against aggressive air-con. It will definitely feature on my room 101 list when I'm famous enough to get on the programme!

The new novel has been started at last. I've been struggling with it, but now getting on with it and having loads of ideas. Glasgow also involved a bit of research for it as there is an element of Charles Rennie Macintosh featuring. I will say no more for now, as I just have to stop talking about it and get on with it.

Lucy McCarraher's Blood & Water published

Lucy's book Blood & Water is published at last. Lucy had a really successful launch at Goldsboro books new larger premises in London last week and sold out! That's how cool she is and though she said she was nervous you'd never have known. We've become really good friends since meeting at the official launch of Macmillan New Writing back in April, funny it seems longer ago than that, so I was please she called me her new best friend in her speech.
For full details see Lucy's blog. I really think she will do well and deserves to.


So what is the book about? About a woman who seemingly has it all and yet everything is threatened by her own fears about the future and the solving of mysteries from the past. It's a wonderful read, complex in it's plotting, yet very easy to read, and takes off as Mo Mozart the heroine tries to juggle her complex family life, wacky but very human friends, and solve several mysteries at the same time. It probably is a woman's book, but why should that be a derogatory term? There's a real sneering labelling of such things that I don't think happens to men's writing, but that's another story. This is a warm real book that should have a wide audience.