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It Started With a Kiss - 10th November!
I've loved every minute of writing this book and I can't wait to share it with you. It's full of music, romance, 'what-if?' moments and lots of laughter, with characters you'll fall in love with and a quest that runs from Christmas to Christmas with a year's worth of weddings in between!
It Started With a Kiss is the story of a singer in a wedding band - Romily Parker - who, on the last Saturday before Christmas, has a brief encounter with a handsome stranger in Birmingham's gorgeous German Christmas Market (shortly after disastrously declaring her love for her best friend Charlie). The stranger gives her an amazing kiss, then disappears. Romily gives herself a year to find him - just as Charlie begins to change his mind...
Will Romily find the man of her dreams? Or could true love be closer than she thinks?
All this year, I've been keeping a video diary (vlog) about writing It Started With a Kiss, from initial draft to published novel. You can see my latest vlog here or visit my YouTube channel to see all of them!
Welcome to My World - 11th November 2010!
I'm so excited about it and can't wait to see what you think!
This time, the action takes place in England - in the small town where Rosie (from Fairytale of New York) grew up. You'll get to meet her cousin, Harriet, and find out what happens when Harri is roped into helping best friend (and travel fanatic) Alex with his love life - with disastrous consequences! Now she is locked in the middle cubicle at Stone Yardley Village Hall, reflecting on the events that led to officially the Worst Night of her Life...
Filled with food, travel, comedy and characters you'll love, Welcome to My World is the perfect antedote to dark winter evenings. Enter Harri's world - and fall in love!
NOW AVAILABLE TO PRE-ORDER HERE!
I'm delighted to be able to confirm that I have signed a second three-book deal with AVON (HarperCollins) - a year earlier than I was expecting!
Following the amazing success of Fairytale of New York (to date, nearly 105,000 copies sold and the Turkish language version New York Masali entering the top 20 bestsellers chart in Turkey), my publishers offered me another three-book deal - meaning that I will be publishing one book a year to 2014!
I'm absolutely delighted to be staying with AVON and, in particular, to keep working with my fantastic editor Sammia Rafique, who first found my book Coffee At Kowalski's on Authonomy.com
I have lots of stories I want to tell and I hope I can continue to write books that people want to read. It's an immense honour for me to hear from people who have loved my book and I just don't want to let them down!
My second novel, Welcome to My World, will be published on 11th November 2010 and I'm currently writing my third book, Started With A Kiss, which will hit the shelves at the end of 2011. It still feels incredibly unreal to be a published author and it's every inch the dream come true. I'm looking forward to many more happy years with AVON, doing what I love!
2010 RNA Romantic Novel of the Year Award
It's a massive honour to have my debut novel recognised by the organisation that defines the romantic writing genre. The RNA works so tirelessly, not only to promote romantic fiction in all its many forms, but also to champion new writing talent. Having been an 'aspiring writer' for many years, I know how vital it is to find organisations that are willing to support you and offer you the opportunity to further your writing dreams.
Bearing in mind that, in just over a year, I've gone from 'secret scribbler' in my spare time, to author of a novel which reached the Sunday Times Top 10 Bestseller List (spending 5 weeks in the top 10), has sold nearly 100,000 copies so far and now has made the shortlist of the most prestigious award for romantic fiction, my story proves that the dream of getting your work published does come true - and I hope that writers still dreaming of being published take heart from my story!
Looking at the awesome company that my novel is in on the shortlist, I'm under no illusions whatsover that I have a hope of winning. But it doesn't matter: just to get here is a dream come true and I'm over the moon that I'll get to go to the Awards lunch on 16th March in my posh frock!!
You can read all about the Romantic Novel of the Year Award shortlist - and the other awards that will be given at the Pure Passion Awards 2010 - here - and read my blog post about going to the launch event here
Needless to say, I'm so excited! Woo-hoo!!
A special treat for Christmas! My new cover!!
To date, Fairytale of New York has sold an amazing 60,000+ copies, spent four weeks in the top ten of The Sunday Times Bestseller List and made the longlist of nominees for the Romantic Novelists' Association Romantic Novel of the Year Award!!
All in all, it's been one heck of a ride... Thank you for sharing it with me and brace yourself for what promises to be a thoroughly amazing 2010!!
Follow me on twitter and check out my blog...
I'm going to be PUBLISHED!!!!
Oh. My. Giddy. Life.
Yes, it's true: I am about to become a published author after years of writing just for me... My novel, Coffee At Kowalski's was spotted on HarperCollins' website for unpublished writers, Authonomy.com and their Avon imprint has offered me a three-book deal!!
I found out just before Christmas and I'm still in complete shock about it all. Even now, having met the team at Avon, my editor and the publishing director of Avon UK - and receiving my writing schedule - it still hasn't quite sunk in yet. Of course, I've started writing new sections for the book and have also done quite substantial work on books 2 and 3 - I'm working hard because I want to make the most of this opportunity. I also want to work hard to justify the humungous amount of effort, energy and belief that the team at Avon has already invested in me.
To read some of Kowalski's in its current form, click here... and wish me luck!
WINNER of BEST NEW ARTIST,
ISSA Songwriting Contest 2008
I'm still in shock!
I've just found out that I have won BEST NEW ARTIST in the Indie Singer Songwriters Association's Songwriting Contest 2008!
It's an amazing honour, not least because I have been given the award by my peers within the industry. I beat thousands of entrants to claim the prize and I'm over the moon about it!
You can read more and hear my winning song, Man Behind The Smile here: http://songcontest.issa-music.org
Read my book on Authonomy.com!
I might have completely lost my marbles, but in a wild moment of extreme optimism, I submitted my novel Coffee At Kowalski's to Authonomy.com - the new website from publisher HarperCollins, aimed at finding new writing talent. It's a light-hearted, witty rom-com set in New York, following Rosie Duncan, a hopelessly eternal optimist in the face of overwhelming evidence to the contrary, together with a host of supporting characters.
When Rosie meets Nate, a pessimist with everything he ever wanted, their burgeoning friendship over coffee at her florist store - Kowalski's - leads her to start to open her heart. Then a face from her past suddenly reappears, making Rosie confront her biggest fears - and start to unravel the mystery of why she moved from her home in England and wound up in The Big Apple.
Authonomy.com works with a ranking system - with people choosing to back books they like and the top five books finding their way to the heady heights of The Editor's Desk (I feel there should be a da-da-daaaaa! there!) - where it will receive feedback from the Editors at HarperCollins.
So if you have a moment, please go to www.authonomy.com and enter 'coffee' in the search box (top right-hand corner) - my book should come up - have a read and, if you like what I've written, choose me for your bookshelf! I'd love to hear your comments, too, so please feel free to comment on the site or email me at: miranda.dickinson@gmail.com
Enjoy!
Buy my music - at last!!
After years of writing music nobody could access, I've finally started selling my songs at 7digital's indiestore.com
Now you can own my song, Man Behind The Smile - which has just been optioned by MTV for their programming schedule - along with three other tracks, The Question, I Still Love You and Somewhere Beneath The Stars - all for the bargain price of just 99p each!
New Story Published at Authortrek.com
I'm finally PUBLISHED!!! Woo-hoo!
(The picture is me shortly after receiving the news!)
The lovely people at www.authortrek.com have very kindly published my short story Remember - and now you can buy your very own Miranda Dickinson original! For the princely sum of 50p, you can download the story as a PDF book... Just visit here: http://www.authortrek.com/miranda-dickinson-remember-page.html
Authortrek are aiming to do for short stories what sites like iTunes and 7Digital have done for singles. Their site is well worth a visit to find some great new literary voices.
If you like your stories emotionally layered and slightly spooky, I think you'll like Remember. I wanted to challenge myself to write something that would affect me as much as my readers - and I certainly succeeded in spooking myself out!
This is what Authortrek say about my story:
Remember is a chillingly classic short story from a superb writer. Miranda Dickinson was a semi-finalist in the 2007 UK Songwriting competition, and has also previously worked as a copywriter to a major political party, so she is obviously an outstanding wordsmith. Remember is an excellent short story, which aptly exhibits Miranda Dickinson’s fantastic narrative skills. The story also has great emotional depths, as well as being supremely spooky. I can foresee Remember, like the great Victorian ghost stories, living on for many years to come…
Here's an extract from the story:
From that moment on, the possible lives of Albert and Eda consumed my imagination and I resolved to be their sole visitor. I imagined them falling in love; the scandal surrounding Albert’s courtship of a woman thirteen years his junior; their simple marriage witnessed by only a few approving family members; their bustling family home with four children and the heartbreak of little Sarah’s premature death. As I walked to their graves, I would picture the widowed Eda, heartbroken yet defiantly observing a daily pilgrimage to her beloved husband’s grave, for nine long, lonely years. Did the surviving children follow their mother’s steps to St Hilda’s after her death? What happened to them? Was the memory of their father full or dim? All of these possibilities I pondered as I placed new flowers in the two small Rose’s Marmalade jars I had brought from home to brighten their graves.
...Read on at: http://www.authortrek.com/miranda-dickinson-remember-page.html
