Blog - Alyssa Hollingsworth

Writing for Young People Q&A: International Student Concerns

It’s the fifth and final round of my Q&A session about Bath Spa University’s Master of Arts in Writing for Young People. This section is all about the international student angle. Though I’m approaching it as an American, it should be basically applicable to my Aussie and Indian and Canadian and [insert origin of choice] friends looking into the course. You can see the rest of the series under the Q&A tag! As always, feel free to reach out with more questions by contacting me at: alyssamhollingsworth [at] gmail [dot] com A thousand disclaimers: I only have my experience of the Writing for Young...

By Alyssa July 1, 2016 College, Fiction & I

Writing for Young People Q&A: Personal Development

It’s round four of my Q&A session about Bath Spa University’s Master of Arts in Writing for Young People. This section is about the professional and personal development I underwent during the course. You can see more posts in the series under the Q&A tag! As always, feel free to reach out with more questions by contacting me at: alyssamhollingsworth [at] gmail [dot] com A thousand disclaimers: I only have my experience of the Writing for Young People course to draw from (class of 2014). I’m not a member of staff and can never hope to be as informed as the infallible Julia Green....

By Alyssa June 29, 2016 College, Fiction & I

Writing for Young People Q&A: Instruction and Environment

It’s round three of my Q&A session about Bath Spa University’s Master of Arts in Writing for Young People. This section is about the instruction and environment in the classroom, and what to expect during the final third term of the course. Enjoy! You can see more posts in the series under the Q&A tag! As always, feel free to reach out with more questions by contacting me at: alyssamhollingsworth [at] gmail [dot] com A thousand disclaimers: I only have my experience of the Writing for Young People course to draw from (class of 2014). I’m not a member of staff and can never...

By Alyssa June 27, 2016 College, Fiction & I

Floating Through the Venetian Culture

Cray veniam ad poutine. Squid tofu irure four loko dolore salvia. Hammock VHS quis craft beer, keffiyeh retro readymade. Stumptown blog ullamco williamsburg lumbersexual, letterpress next level. Fixie tumblr consequat accusamus beard green juice. Dolore VHS drinking vinegar proident voluptate wolf. Single-origin coffee aesthetic post-ironic blue bottle, helvetica cornhole +1 venmo chicharrones adipisicing. Elit aesthetic art party, roof party brooklyn kinfolk hammock single-origin coffee. Synth biodiesel cred meggings eu nihil. Commodo cronut venmo, organic gluten-free ugh try-hard crucifix helvetica. Asymmetrical pop-up poutine gochujang. In affogato eiusmod kogi fixie, drinking vinegar dolore pariatur marfa bitters cillum shabby chic kinfolk culpa gentrify....

By Alyssa June 24, 2016 Culture, Europe, Summer

A Novel Idea: Blurbs

Click the pictures to see them full-size (and read the full blurbs). I’m taking a quick break from the Q&A series to participate in A Novel Idea. Yes, I’m talking about my own projects quite a lot here lately – mostly because that’s what my life currently revolves around! The Eleventh Trade is back with my agent now, and I’m busily editing away at Illuminate (and having entirely too much fun rediscovering the story after a nine month break). Here’s the Novel Idea prompt for this week: What would the back cover of your novel say? Try to make it...

By Alyssa June 24, 2016 Fiction & I

Writing for Young People Q&A: Classes

It’s round two of my Q&A session about Bath Spa University’s Master of Arts in Writing for Young People. This section is about the classes (or, in British-speak, “modules”) and what to expect during the first two terms of the course. Enjoy! You can see more posts in the series under the Q&A tag! As always, you can reach out with more questions by contacting me at: alyssamhollingsworth [at] gmail [dot] com A thousand disclaimers: I only have my experience of the Writing for Young People course to draw from (class of 2014). I’m not a member of staff and can never...

By Alyssa June 22, 2016 College, Fiction & I

Writing for Young People Q&A: Application Process

It’s a well-documented fact that I love the Master of Arts in Writing for Young People program at Bath Spa University (geez, that’s a mouthful). Since posting my 5 Questions to Ask Before You Get a Master’s in Creative Writing entry, I’ve had a steady stream of perspective students reach out with questions about the course. I love chatting with these guys and I’m always excited to get a new email! A few particularly inquisitive students graciously gave me permission to share part of our exchange in a sort of Q&A for other perspective students out there. It got quite intense, so I’ve broken...

By Alyssa June 20, 2016 College, Fiction & I

Beautiful People: Perl

Before we kick off the Q&A series, I wanted to do an exercise in Beautiful People! And since I’m back in revisions for Illuminate while my agent evaluates The Eleventh Trade, the character I’ll be talking about is Perl. I need to refresh my memory. What is Beautiful People? Beautiful People is a blog meme hosted by Sky @ Further Up and Further In and Cait @ Paper Fury. Every month, they post ten questions to help writers get to know their characters better. I haven’t done it before, but I’ve wanted to for a while now! (Mostly to share pretty pictures. Shhh.) How do...

By Alyssa June 17, 2016 Fiction & I

The Eleventh Trade: Moodboard

Farewell music! Even your sweetest tunes are best kept silent The Taliban on the edge of the village have stilled all lips When the Taliban invaded Afghanistan, Sami lost everything — everything except his grandfather, and the rebab. Sami and his grandfather make a new life in Boston. But one day when Sami is playing the rebab at a T station, a teenager snatches the instrument and jumps on the T. The doors snap shut, and the rebab is gone. When Sami finds it again in a pawnshop, the shopkeeper won’t return the instrument, but he offers to...

By Alyssa June 15, 2016 Fiction & I, The Eleventh Trade

New Look! Plus Writing News!

It’s been a bit quiet here. Why, you ask? Because I have been up to my ears in writing deadlines! Once upon a time, my agent Amber Caraveo asked me to send her information on my other projects. Among other things, I sent her the synopsis and first few chapters of (what was then called) The Great Tanboor Trade. She loved it… like, a lot. Like, she sort of wondered if it should be my debut level of a lot. After having a 24-hour panic attack/identity crisis (“Me? Writing middle grade contemporary? MEE??”), I agreed to do a speed-draft of...