I’m delighted to announce more dates for Gatherings. The first half dozen have been full, and the feedback very positive - thank you to those who made it so.
For general info about the purpose and focus of these gatherings, there’s more here.
There are three types of gathering:
Getting A Book Published Gatherings
where I talk with industry professionals - such as publishing directors, editors, agents, and - of course - writers of many kinds - with the aim of demystifying the whole process of getting your words in front of decision makers in a form that they want, and - hopefully - what’s involved in the broader process of writing an actual book.
Writing Process Gatherings
where I’ll be inviting guests to explore creative aspects of the writing process - different ways of going about it, managing self doubt and imposter syndrome, moving an idea from the germ of a lightbulb moment to something substantial, editing, encouraging good creative habits, and much more.
Substack Gatherings
where we’ll deal with making Substack more of a friend, how it can become your writing home, the commitment you’ll need to realise your aims, how to go about the practicalities of posting, formatting, and creating your Substack profile, as well as - I hope - inspiring you to take that step.
These will all be run a zoom meetings for a limited number of people. There will be plenty of opportunity to submit questions before and ask questions on the day.
I hope you’ll join us for at least one.
Substack Gatherings: Creating Your Own Substack, with me
Mon 15 April; 6pm GMT
This is a general overview, an introduction - looking at the practicalities, what’s involved, how to post, is Substack for you, etc. An opinionated perspective and an introduction to how I approach Substack and go about creating your own. your chance to ask whatever questions you fancy about making this place your writing home.
Substack Gatherings: The Practicalities of Substack with me and Jo Thompson
Tues 9 April, 6pm GMT
Getting to know how to use it, work flow, writing, editing, posting, organising, creating sections, integrating other media (images, sound, video, podcasts), posting, dealing with comments, paywall and how/if to approach using one.
Jo Thompson has a brilliant (and much imitated) Substack, and does things slightly differently to me in some respects - I thought it would be really useful to get two perspectives, and double to the bank of expertise and experience for this. As well as covering the key areas, this gathering will be very much driven by questions from whoever is part of the gathering.
Substack Gatherings: Building a Community with me and Jo Thompson
Thurs 11 April, 6pm GMT
How to draw people to your Substack and keep them engaged, building an audience, responding and engaging, using social media, Chat, Notes and more.
Jo Thompson has a brilliant (and much imitated) Substack, and does things slightly differently to me in some respects - I thought it would be really useful to get two perspectives, and double to the bank of expertise and experience for this. As well as covering the key areas, this gathering will be very much driven by questions from whoever is part of the gathering.
Getting A Book Published: Chris Young
Weds 20 March, 9.30am GMT
Chris is not only a superb editor - now at DK, once of the RHS’ The Garden magazine - he’s a talented garden designer, content creator, podcaster and much more. He’s also one of those rare people who leaves smiles and happiness in his wake. Chris has agreed to talk with us about any aspect of how to go about getting a book - or other form of writing - published, with a bias towards the gardening world. We’ll be talking about how to approach publishers, what to avoid, what makes a good proposal, what he’s looking for, how to stand out and much more.
The Writing Process: Debora Robertson
Mon 8 April, 6pm GMT
Debora Robertson is one of my favourite food writers and columnists. Her work has appeared in all the broadsheets, and in magazines including Delicious (where she writes a monthly column), Country Life, Red, Sainsbury's Magazine, BBC Good Food and Waitrose Food Magazine. After thirty years in London, she now lives in a village in the South of France, which she writes about - with recipes - in her best-selling twice-weekly Substack newsletter, Lickedspoon with Debora Robertson. She is the author of Notes from A Small Kitchen Island: Recipes and stories from the heart of the home. We will be talking about how she navigated her way her path from ghost writer to features in her own right, to brilliant substacker, to writing something of a modern classic in her debut cookbook.
The Writing Process: Cathy Rentzenbrink
Mon 6 May, 6pm GMT
Cathy is not only a wonderful writer of fiction and memoir (eg The Last Act of Love), she’s also a brilliant, insightful teacher and mentor. She will be joining us to talk about the writing process, the value of distinct stages of regurgitation and crafting, dealing with imposter syndrome and the jury on your shoulder, and much more. If you are trying to find (or regain) your voice, struggling with an idea, unsure of how to progress or being slowed by self doubt, join us.
The Writing Process: Matt Inwood
Weds 15 May, 6pm GMT
Matt is a hugely talented photographer, with a history of design and art directing that puts those skills in a wider context. He runs courses that encourage us to develop skills that embellish our words, telling stories with images as much as prose. Whether you use a SLR or phone photography is your thing, Matt is the person to help you tell your story more fully. You might enjoy his excellent Substack. If your photography doesn’t complement your work as well as it might, join us for an hour of some practicalities as well as delving into the why of what we’re doing and the age and space we’re doing it in.
Format
These will be Zoom meetings, lasting 45-60 minutes.
Cost
It is free.
Attending
This event is for paid subscribers.
And once you are subscribed, you have to register (see below) to attend.
Please only register if you are definitely attending - numbers will be limited.
How do I register
If you are already a paid subscriber, you will have received this by email, in which case please reply to this email saying which gathering/s you’d like to attend: if there is a place available, I will reply confirming your registration and send the zoom link.
If you are a free subscriber, you’ll need to upgrade (click the button below) to become a paid subscriber. Once done, please reply to this email saying you’d like to attend: if there is a place available, I will reply confirming your registration and send the zoom link.
If you are not a subscriber to The Imperfect Umbrella, and are looking at this online:
subscribe as a paid subscriber (click the link above)
once you have subscribed, reply to this email letting me know which gathering/s you would like to attend and - if there is a place available - I will reply confirming registration and with the zoom link
Questions
We want this to be as useful as it can be to you. While we have things we know will be interesting to cover, the more of this that responds to your needs, the better.
I will email those attending ahead of each gathering, asking for any questions you may have.
Lastly
In order to protect attendees privacy and encourage relaxed openness, I will not be uploading a film of this after the event.
Please only register if you are sure you can attend: every gathering so far has been oversubscribed, and I want to ensure all spaces are taken on the day.
I hope to see you at one of the gatherings - any questions, please let me know.
Mark
I love this concept and very much looking forward to being part of it - thanks for inviting me to your gatherings!
Really looking forward to our conversation, and to many of the other voices you gather here.