Featured Writer on Wellness: Jan Ruth

In the beginning – and I’m talking some 30 years ago – I basked in the attention of a literary agent and the advice from Cornerstones Editorial Services.

Both of these institutions assured me I could write, but my early work needed tweaking.

I learnt lots. I was always hopeful that I would be published, and full of enthusiasm. But then the need for a thick skin and an understanding of the commercial world slowly sank in, and the learning curve began in earnest.

Rejection of those first manuscripts began to gather momentum. I was between genre! I was an unknown… I’d tried to be original, but it didn’t pay off. Publishers didn’t want originality, they wanted something similar to a book that had already done well, something they knew how to promote. A sure thing.

The frustration of it put a damper on things, and I stopped writing for some years.

And Then Kindle Happened…and I Began to Write Again

And then Kindle happened.

I decided to publish myself, content with the knowledge that the two books I’d produced were the best they could be.

But were they?

Over the course of time I began to doubt this as my knowledge of self-publishing grew. I became caught up in a frenzy of checking and double-checking, learning how to format digital copy and understand the magic formula to produce a good cover.

But I did begin to write again.

As Writers We Are Observers of Life

During this time we’d moved to North Wales and I soon grew to appreciate the benefits of this rural location. Writer’s block or a plotting problem usually untangled itself the moment I moved away from the keyboard and powered up the hills.

Writing is such a solitary existence and once I’d retired from outside work, although I relished the time I’d have to devote to my projects, I also discovered that it sometimes worked against me to be so isolated.

As writers we are observers of life, and I think it a mistake to presume we can be creative hidden away in a garret.

Perversely, I was always at my most productive when I had other activities or jobs of some description which took me away from my keyboard from time to time. I found music a great source of inspiration, too.

How Foolish I Was to Have Signed All Those Contracts

Ironically, once I’d written several books I was presented with a Traditional Book Deal.

They wanted them all. I thought I’d struck gold! How foolish I was to have signed all those contracts. The years of work and expense I’d put into those books was declared null and void by a stroke of the pen.

What followed was a very sad story indeed with a poor sales record and a continuous battle with staff to publish these books in the right category and give them covers at least as good as the bespoke covers I’d had designed … and so it went on.

It almost broke me.

I became quite depressed at this time; but I fought to get my rights back. “Be careful what you wish for,” had never seemed so true.

I Write to Please Myself

I did manage to reclaim my work and I’m much happier back in charge but as for the original enthusiasm, well, that has dwindled somewhat.

I still write, but I write to please myself and I have to say I enjoy the control over my material and operate as an individual rather than trying to produce a constant stream of material for an ebook publisher – some of these companies want three novels a year, and that sort of stress isn’t for me.

There’s a tremendous pressure to keep on publishing books once you’ve started along this road, but for many authors this can strip any joy from the experience and weaken the quality.

So for me, it’s all about being an individual and writing quality, rather than quantity. I think the biggest change for me has been the fact that I no longer look at writing books as a career or as a challenge to make money or race up the charts. I see it more as a serious hobby.

And breathe…

As a Writer, I Suffer with the Dreaded Sciatica

I’m a pretty active person as in hill-walking and horse-riding, and one might think that this is a nice balance to sitting for hours at a keyboard. And it is, but I have been known to suffer with the dreaded sciatica.

This is down to compression around the tailbone, and can be quite debilitating with pain stretching from the lower back and spreading elsewhere.

The best prevention I’ve discovered for this has been yoga and Pilates. During the coronavirus restrictions this came to halt and although I’ve tried to carry on at home, I’m not that disciplined!

I’ve purchased a kneeling-chair (forces you to sit upright and tilts the pelvis forwards rather than backwards) and a special cushion. I find that alternating an ordinary chair and the special cushion with the kneeling chair, has so far worked pretty well…

I’m Creatively Inspired By This Ice Age Landscape

Twenty years ago we moved from Cheshire to North Wales. Although Cheshire has its history and pretty rural surroundings aplenty, Wales is far more extreme in both aspects.

The castles and the rugged hillsides strewn with stone settlements, druid circles and Roman roads bring out the historical muse in me. To think that I am treading the same path as someone who lived in the Iron Age, is both fascinating and humbling.

Snowdonia kick-started my stalled obsession with writing in a very positive way.

All this whimsical talk of the past makes me sound as if I write historical-based fiction. Far from it. Much as I admire many other genres I tend to be very much rooted in current times and my work reflects a lot of my own life experiences.

But this is where I find the two ideas merge a little because I am most certainly inspired by this Ice Age landscape. What has gone before certainly shapes what we see today, but does it shape what we feel, too?

I’m In My Creative Zone Tramping Up Hills on a Moody Day

There’s no doubt I’m in my creative comfort zone tramping up the hills on a moody day. There’s no better way of busting that plot. Dedicated to a 6th century prince, the tiny church of St. Celynin (sometimes known as Llangelynnin) is a great find for historians, spiritualists, all kinds of artists, and a certain weary walking writer.

This church is mentioned in the Wild Water series and I’ve spent many an hour soaking up the atmosphere. It’s quite a climb, some 900 feet above the village of Henryd, but sheltered from the Irish Sea by the comfortable bulk of Tal-Y-Fan.

It proclaims to be the most remote church in Wales and due to its location on the Pilgrim’s Way, it is actually better accessed on foot or on horseback, but that’s just me wearing my whimsical hat again. I guess you could ride a quad bike or get a 4×4 along the green lane (originally the coffin path) up from the village, but that would spoil the experience considerably.

The centuries of men’s hands on the same stones put the feeling into a place. I can relate to this and there’s no better way of making that connection than scrambling over those very same walls and finding a way across the hills. Even the names of the mountains are laced with enough magic to fuel the effort.

The Only Way is the Long, Slow Road

Promoting is a huge subject and can be very expensive. There is no quick fix.

The only way so far as I can see it is the long, slow road. Building a platform, getting branding right, spending some time every day on social media and understanding how algorithms work, blogging, using the correct keywords.

The list is long and arduous, but there is no other way. Of course, if one is rich or already famous, then none of this matters…

Advice for a Young Writer: Don’t Publish Too Soon

Don’t publish too soon.

And don’t make the mistake of thinking that a traditional publishing deal is the be all and end all. Don’t pay to have your work published unless its through a reputable assisted-publishing company. Vanity Publishers are to be avoided, do the research.

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Jan Ruth writes contemporary fiction about the darker side of the family dynamic, often blending life in rural Wales with a touch of city business. Her style is best described as fast-paced and realistic, with a sprinkling of dry humour.

Jan’s first novel – written in 1986 – attracted the attention of editor Anne Dewe, Andrew Mann Literary Agency, London. Dewe’s own company, Love Stories Ltd, was a project aiming to champion those books of substance which contained a romantic element but were perhaps directed towards the more mature reader and consistently fell through the net in traditional publishing. Summer in October was contracted immediately but sadly, the project failed to get the right financial backing and the company dissolved.

Many years later Jan’s second novel, Wild Water, was taken on by Jane C Judd Literary Agency, London. Despite Judd’s enthusiasm, the book failed to find the right niche with a publisher – one brave enough to expand on those established, traditional genre stereotypes.

And then Amazon changed the face of the industry with the advent of self-publishing and Jan went on to successfully publish several works of fiction under her own imprint, Celtic Connections. After a brief partnership with Accent Press in 2015, she chose to return to the freedom of independent publishing.

For more information on Jan and her work, please see her website or connect with her on Twitter and Facebook.

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Wild Water: Jack Redman, estate agent to the Cheshire set. An unlikely hero, or someone to break all the rules? Wild water is the story of forty-something estate agent, Jack, who is stressed out not only by work, bills and the approach of Christmas but by the feeling that he and his wife, Patsy are growing apart. His misgivings prove founded when he discovers Patsy is having an affair, and is pregnant.

At the same time as his marriage begins to collapse around him, he becomes reacquainted with his childhood sweetheart, Anna, whom he left for Patsy twenty-five years before. His feelings towards Anna reawaken, but will life and family conflicts conspire to keep them apart again?

Available on Amazon.

Gift Horse: Caroline Walker’s daughter suffers a horrific riding accident. Her distraught parents wonder if she’ll ever walk again, let alone ride. And when Mollie’s blood group is discovered as rare, her husband offers to donate blood. Except Ian is not a match. In fact, it’s unlikely he’s Mollie’s father.

Eighteen years previously, Caroline had a one-night stand with Irish rock star, Rory O’Connor. Caroline fell pregnant. Deeply flawed boyfriend, Ian, was overjoyed. And Caroline’s parents were simply grateful that their daughter was to marry into the rich, influential Walker family.

Caroline turns to Rory’s friend Connor; and although his almost spiritual connection with his horses appears to be the balm she needs, Caroline cannot forget Rory, or her youth – both lost to a man she never loved. Eighteen years on and after surviving cancer Rory lives as a virtual recluse in the Welsh mountains. Through his well-meaning but interfering sister, he is shocked to discover he has a teenage daughter. Or does he? As the truth begins to unravel, Caroline finds herself faced with a complex trail of moral dilemma.

Someone has made a terrible mistake… someone is going to get hurt…

Available on Amazon.