Dr Yes Will See You Now

I suppose I shouldn’t really be advertising someone else’s writing course when I’ll be hosting one myself for the Irish Writers’ Centre next month, but I’ll make an exception for Dr Yes, aka The Artist Formerly Known as Colin Bateman. That’s mainly because there’s a lot of flakes and chancers out there peddling their literary snake-oil to aspiring writers, whereas Bateman is the genuine article, a best-selling writer who has proved himself across a range of genres and forms. Also, he knows where I live, and has promised to ‘call around’ with ‘the Bangor Boys’ (possibly ‘the Banger Boys’ - it was a muffled phone call) if I don’t ‘play ball’.
  To wit:

Secrets of Writing a Best Seller is an inspirational two-day course aimed at those who want to write commercial fiction that sells. It is best suited to beginners who might have an idea for a novel but don’t know how to get started, or those who have a novel underway but aren’t sure how to progress with it.

We will look at where ideas come from, genre, research, dialogue, character development, plotting, re-writing and editing, preparing synopsis and outlines and at how to get motivated and stay motivated. We will take a look at the business of publishing, and students will be guided in the best ways to approach agents and publishers. We will look at the option of self-publishing and chat with a leading agent.

Colin says, “Many people dream about being a best selling writer … but don’t think it’s possible because they have no idea how to start writing a novel. I was exactly like that when I started out – lots of dreams but no idea about how to take the first step – or the second, or third.”

It will take place in Bangor, County Down, over the weekend of November 10-11 2012. Although reasonably intensive will also be conducted in a friendly and relaxed manner, with plenty of opportunity for participants not only to get advice from a best-selling author, but also to ask whatever questions they have, as well as to participate in group discussions with other aspiring writers.

  For all the details, clickety-click here …