Writer Interview with Kate Gilby Part 2

This is Part Two of the great interview with writer, blogger and editor Kate Gilby.  You can read Part One here.

Can you share one of your milestone moments from your writing journey?

The first time a publisher contacted me out of the blue to ask me to write for them, for money, was quite a milestone. But, on a personal level, it would be the time a friend told me they had been reading an article (written by me) and recognised my 'voice' before they even got to the byline. I think all writers hope they will have a unique voice, so it was heartening to know I do.

Do you keep a set writing schedule?

To an extent. I have weekly and monthly deadlines I have to meet, so for those jobs I do write to a schedule. I'm more informal with speculative work – in other words, work I plan to submit for publication. In those cases I tend to wait until creativity strikes, then have long writing sessions during which I'll work on several pieces, often at strange hours of the night when sane people are asleep.

Have you ever faced a situation that almost caused you to give up on being a writer?

Oh yes. Most recently – someone who was supposed to be a friend made a really spiteful comment about something I'd written. Although, I knew he was having a lot of problems and this comment was due to his own state of mind, it was still very hurtful. A couple of weeks later, a column I wrote received a lot of negative feedback which I had to deal with alone because the publisher and editor felt it was more manly to hide behind my metaphorical skirts. Those incidents really dented my confidence. I seriously considered giving up and getting a job in the local chip shop. Fortunately, I have a great support network of fellow writers and editors who weren't prepared to let me give up that easily. Anyone who has ever eaten chips cooked by me would say that probably worked out for the best.

Is your writing career how you envisioned it?

Not really. I originally intended to go into journalism, and had this idea that I could become the next Kate Adie. Not quite sure why I thought I'd want to do that; the idea of me roaming around battlefields, miles away from functioning bathrooms is quite ludicrous. However, I discovered blogging which took me on a different path.

I suppose blogging is similar to journalism in many ways, but I feel bloggers have a lot more freedom and are less likely to be confined to writing about a single subject. As a blogger I have the luxury of being able to pick and choose what I write about, so although I diverted from my planned path I have no regrets.

What big writing goals do you still want to accomplish?

I'd love to write a column for a national broadsheet, and also write for the BBC. For quite a few years I dreamed of becoming a novelist, then I wrote a novel and found I didn't enjoy the process at all. However, I do enjoy writing dialogue, so I've been learning about scriptwriting and plan to write a screenplay. One of my sons is a talented film maker – yes, I am biased but it's true – and I'd love to collaborate with him on a project. I'm also working on a collection of inter-connected short stories which I hope to compile into a book with a view to publication.

You can find out more about Kate at her website,  http://kategilby.co.uk

 Come back later this week to read her Wise Writing Words contribution.

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