The (virtual) beers are on me! ***WARNING: May contain scenes of smugness***

[Trufflehound]

Are we allowed to read what you wrote?

It will be on their website "soon" (so I'm told anyway): The Writers Bureau – home-study creative writing courses that help get you published. probably under "20th Anniversary Award".

 

[Trufflehound]

Truff at work

The great thing about surfing for porn with one paw is it still leaves three for wanking.

 

[Easy 10]

Well done Truffers.
Good to know we have a certified, bona-fide AWARD WINNER amongst us. In fact, I think this calls for something to be added in your signature. Something along the lines of:

"This post was exclusively brought to you from the articulate, award-winning prose of Trufflehound - Bard, Humourist, Ponderer and Philanthropist. Available for after-dinner speaking, childrens parties and village fete openings. PM for details."

 

[Dick Knights Mumm]

Well done Truffles mate. Top man.

 

[Trufflehound]

"This post was exclusively brought to you from the articulate, award-winning prose of Trufflehound - Bard, Humourist, Ponderer and Philanthropist. Available for after-dinner speaking, childrens parties and village fete openings. PM for details."

(This post was exclusively brought to you from the articulate, award-winning prose of Trufflehound - Bard, Humourist, Ponderer and Philanthropist. Available for after-dinner speaking, childrens parties and village fete openings. PM for details.)

 

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

Sorry, might just be me, no wish to piss on anybody's parade in any shape or form, but IMHO nobody should EVER pay for a creative writing course. You should just WRITE and submit your stuff to editiors. Then follow up by hustling. You'd be really surprised how easy it is to get published, be it reviews of local gigs in your local press, articles in specialist hobby magazines, anything that gets you a bit of a portfolio really or fills a gap in coverage. Can only speak for myself, but in my teens used to write all at the same time for me & bruv's fanzine, plus a weekly column in the county's premier evening paper, plus regular features in a national music mag, all the while holding down a completely unconnected day job. The income was always pitiful, barely covered expenses, but the perks in the shape of free gigs, records, interviews etc were SUPERLATIVE. If you don't believe me, ask Richie Morris how it works.

 

[Franks Wild Years]

Marvelous effort Senor Truff'.

The author earlier,

 

[Lush]

Sorry, might just be me, no wish to piss on anybody's parade in any shape or form, but IMHO nobody should EVER pay for a creative writing course. You should just WRITE and submit your stuff to editiors. Then follow up by hustling. You'd be really surprised how easy it is to get published, be it reviews of local gigs in your local press, articles in specialist hobby magazines, anything that gets you a bit of a portfolio really or fills a gap in coverage. Can only speak for myself, but in my teens used to write all at the same time for me & bruv's fanzine, plus a weekly column in the county's premier evening paper, plus regular features in a national music mag, all the while holding down a completely unconnected day job. The income was always pitiful, barely covered expenses, but the perks in the shape of free gigs, records, interviews etc were SUPERLATIVE. If you don't believe me, ask Richie Morris how it works.

But did it then pay you £1000 for a single piece of writing?

 

[Trufflehound]

Sorry, might just be me, no wish to piss on anybody's parade in any shape or form, but IMHO nobody should EVER pay for a creative writing course. You should just WRITE and submit your stuff to editiors. Then follow up by hustling. You'd be really surprised how easy it is to get published, be it reviews of local gigs in your local press, articles in specialist hobby magazines, anything that gets you a bit of a portfolio really or fills a gap in coverage. Can only speak for myself, but in my teens used to write all at the same time for me & bruv's fanzine, plus a weekly column in the county's premier evening paper, plus regular features in a national music mag, all the while holding down a completely unconnected day job. The income was always pitiful, barely covered expenses, but the perks in the shape of free gigs, records, interviews etc were SUPERLATIVE. If you don't believe me, ask Richie Morris how it works.

To an extent I agree, but the fact that you could get paid for just sending stuff off had NEVER occurred to me (and it's this point I made in the piece that just won). So to that end it was worth signing up. Besides, it cost me £250 to join, and they've just given me £1000 of that back, so I think I'm ahead on the deal. (Not to mention all the money I've made since my career change...)

 

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

But did it then pay you £1000 for a single piece of writing?

In today's terms? Yeah, probably, on several occasions.

 

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

To an extent I agree, but the fact that you could get paid for just sending stuff off had NEVER occurred to me (and it's this point I made in the piece that just won). So to that end it was worth signing up. Besides, it cost me £250 to join, and they've just given me £1000 of that back, so I think I'm ahead on the deal. (Not to mention all the money I've made since my career change...)

Indeed. And the very best of luck in that career. I genuinely wish you well

Would still never ever recommend anybody signing up significant amounts of money for a writing course though. For the simple fact that it's always in the course-provider's interest to string you along.

 

[Trufflehound]

Would still never ever recommend anybody signing up significant amounts of money for a writing course though. For the simple fact that it's always in the course-provider's interest to string you along.

It was useful in that it pointed it me in the right direction.

But I agree that what subsequently built me a very nice little freelancing career was perseverance and talent (and to start with, a little luck).

 

[house your seagull]

Sorry, might just be me, no wish to piss on anybody's parade in any shape or form, but IMHO nobody should EVER pay for a creative writing course. You should just WRITE and submit your stuff to editiors. Then follow up by hustling. You'd be really surprised how easy it is to get published, be it reviews of local gigs in your local press, articles in specialist hobby magazines, anything that gets you a bit of a portfolio really or fills a gap in coverage. Can only speak for myself, but in my teens used to write all at the same time for me & bruv's fanzine, plus a weekly column in the county's premier evening paper, plus regular features in a national music mag, all the while holding down a completely unconnected day job. The income was always pitiful, barely covered expenses, but the perks in the shape of free gigs, records, interviews etc were SUPERLATIVE. If you don't believe me, ask Richie Morris how it works.

ah, but was that 1976 when writing was legitimate right?

it's not the same these days.

 

[ben andrews' girlfriend]

Trufflehound - I've been asked to write an article for one of the top nursing journals (eep!) Can you do it for me?!

 

[Trufflehound]

Trufflehound - I've been asked to write an article for one of the top nursing journals (eep!) Can you do it for me?!

I have hairy legs. They might notice the switch.

 

[El Presidente]

Well done Truffers (thinks: what writing competition can I enter)

My life as a serial mass murderer?

 

[Barrel of Fun]

Bravo Truff.

I shall keep an eye out for it. I have been issued my tutor and it seems that he has had a handful of books published, subject.... Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. That should help with the genre I am aiming for!

I can't remember whether I sent you a PM to thank you for your advice, so I shall offer you two virtual beers.

 

[black & white seagull]

In today's terms? Yeah, probably, on several occasions.

In that case, count yourself lucky. All the magazines I've ever worked for have paid woeful pittances to their freelance writers!

Which must make your success all the sweeter, Trufflehound! Congratulations.

 

[otk]

Just about writing in today's climate, I wrote three gig reviews for a well known music magazine and e-mailed them off. There was no payment offered or sought, but what pissed me off was the alterations they made to them before publishing them. I'm not illiterate by any means and can write to a good standard, and I hoped to capture my feelings for the gigs in question through my description. You can't change ANY of the wording in a piece without changing emphasis or emotion etc. IMHO.

 

[Questions]

Well done Truff with the win and keeping smugness to acceptable levels. Tonight I will toast you with a special ale.



As a bit of an amateur photographer, I can still remember the exitement I felt when I got my very first photograph published and was paid the huge sum of ten pounds. My wife was not so impressed at being in Readers Wifes but as I told her at the time, '' Its artistic love''