A NEW SCHOOL TERM AT MORGAN TOWERS

So, it's the start of a new term. Year Two of this blog begins today and we have serious stuff to do, especially after that riotous blog party which I have not yet recovered from.

But do you remember new terms and new school years? We never really got any work done that first day, did we? All too busy exchanging stories of the holidays and showing off our new pencil cases.

Today is no

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, BLOG!

One year old today! Happy birthday to me, happy birthday to me, happy birthday you crabbit old bat... I know it doesn't scan, but we're on HOLIDAY today. So, no advice, no nagging, just some traditional party things for you:
A speech. [Sorry.]
An activity. [Hooray.]

A gift. [Double hooray.]

A request. [Please say yes.]

THE SPEECH
For me, last year was The Year of the Blog. On Jan 10th, I

MULTIPLE SUBMISSIONS

Having promised to go with my heart AND my head by blogging much more about writing techniques than submitting techniques during my second blog year, which starts on Sunday, I thought I'd do my last post of my first blog year on one detail of submissions which often crops up and which I haven't fully dealt with. I'm doing this because a) it's tricky, so I want to get it out of the way and b) it's

PARTY INVITATION

Even though I'm in a really bad mood for many reasons and completely fed up with the snow, I am generously inviting you all to my first birthday party. Yes, on Sunday 10th Jan, this blog will be One Year Old!

I was reading some of the first posts just now, and remembering how I felt getting my very first comments, and how extraordinarily quickly so many of you found me. Echo Freer and Tom Vowler

THOU SHALT OBEY THE SODDING SUBMISSION GUIDELINES, OK?

Right. OK. Crabbit is well and truly back. And, with a sudden an unexplained influx of new followers, it seems like a very good moment to mark my territory and, frankly, urinate very pointedly in all the right places.

I am a very misunderstood woman. See, some of you seem inexplicably to think that I advocate disobedience and rule breaking. Well, I do, in life and in writing, but only in TWO

NO UNSOLICITED MANUSCRIPTS, OK????

One of the hurdles which publishers sometimes put in your way is the "No Unsolicited Manuscripts" one. Bit like arriving at a house for a party to find the lights off in the hall and the door shut. You can see the party going on upstairs but no one's answering the bell. Damned irritating.

As a party-goer, you have three choices.
1. Creep away and go back home, seriously pissed off that

NEW YEAR INSPIRATION?

Happy New Year! May 2010 not bring all you wish for. Otherwise, what would there be left to wish for in 2011? May it also not bring all you deserve. Then all that would be left would be what you don't deserve, and that would never do.

My wishes for you as writers in 2010 are that:
you make significant steps towards your dreams, with some well-deserved achievements

your writing becomes ever