Text Books and Teach Yourself

Do you have an idea for a gripping novel? Would you like to know how to plot your book flawlessly? Do you want to create beautifully crafted characters and nail biting twists? Writing a novel is an exciting goal. Of course it is not easy. Rosemary Aitken/Rowe's two books provide expert guidance. The latest, "Writing Crime Fiction" is about to be published in the Masterclass series

Rosemary Aitken had twenty years experience in training teachers in English as a Foreign or Second Language, (sometimes called EFL or ESOL), and after winning a English Speaking Union prize for a paper on Teaching Listening Comprehension wrote a number of highly-acclaimed text-books in the field. These included the original Nelson Listening Series: a set of four texts ranging from beginners to advanced (with supporting tapes and teacher’s notes) aimed at stimulating interactive work. Although written in the 1980’s for foreign learners, these books are still occasionally used with mainstream pupils for developing key-stone listening, discussion and language skills.

Teaching Tenses (ELB) is a handbook for ESOL teachers and trainees, outlining the differing tenses in the English Language and their use, with suggestions for teaching and contextualizing each (including photocopiable material). It has gone into many reprints and a revised third edition is due late 2008.

Rosemary also runs courses for aspiring writers seeking help with “How to Write”, and was commissioned to write a hand-book. Writing a Novel- A Practical Guide, (Crowood Press) is a self-study course, but has been used as a course-text on a number of creative writing courses in the UK and abroad.

Books Available

"Writing a Novel" offers both a practical guide for budding writers and a source of alternative approaches for the more experienced novelist. Rosemary Aitken introduces the concept of the reader contract - what the writer must undertake to do in order to satisfy the reader. Topics covered include getting started - knowing your strengths, understanding your imaginative style and creating a setting for your novel. It covers creating believable and consistent characters, both major and minor, and how to use dialogue to give information and show personality. Creating and sustaining plots and sub-plots and planning the chapters, controlling the style and pace of the narrative is also covered. Also included is how to deal with publishers and agents.
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This book is designed for anyone who wants to write an unputdownable crime novel. Whatever your subgenre, whether Scandi-crime or detective 'cosies', this book is full of inspirational advice, acute insights and practical exercises. The first part of the book establishes the rules of writing crime fiction - from convincing characters to the role of research. The book then covers the practical craft of writing and editing, before explaining in detail how to secure a contract and/or self-publish your work. A comprehensive guide for anyone who wants to be the next Val McDermid or Ian Rankin.
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A really good book for TEFL Teachers. This book is particularly useful for native speakers in that it gives clear guidance on the seemingly chaotic rules that the English tense system follows. For each tense, we are provided with the form and function of the tense, suggested contexts with which to introduce it, and a list of problems that foreign students often have, and means of solving them. The back of the book comprises a large set of photocopiable drawings to elicit tenses from students.
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all consist of a Student Book, a Cassette, and a Teacher's Book

• "Making Sense": Elementary
• "Overtones": Pre-Intermediate
• "Loud and Clear": Early Intermediate
• "Play it by Ear": Intermediate

• a Student Book and a Teacher's Book

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