Writing, Re-drafting…Everything but the kitchen sink
It's a hard lesson to learn, but less is more. On my fourth draft of current project and I'm paring right back to find the story is getting stronger and stronger. I'm learning that my default reaction is to say, 'oh that'll be good' and 'what about if this happened'...
The Jane Austen Writers Club – a great book for writers.
I don't usually blog about one particular book, but for this, I will make an exception. Not a beginners book - you need to know what PoV and characterisation etc are for instance - but for someone who wants to improve, particularly in plotting and editing - this is an...
Best books of 2016
The decision to keep a book journal was one of my better moves this year. Having only started in March, my year to date total is 60, which implies my total read was probably in the region of 80-90. Not too shabby. Could do better, if there wasn't quite so much choice...
Writing: ideas and copyright…Plagiarism or homage?
In these days of social media, it almost feels as if plagiarism doesn't matter. How often do you see a picture or a quote retweeted, without credit given to whoever spent time and mental energy creating it in the first place? As someone who has made a living being...
Creating a book journal
Back in March, on this blog, I bemoaned the fact that I had 'too many books to read, and too little time.' I was convinced that the growing pile of books awaiting my reading attention was the result of my reading too slowly, or not often enough, not the result of...
Lessons learnt from Story Shop – performing and reading in public
I had my glorious moment of fame, performing at the Edinburgh International Book Festival. Fifteen minutes, one hot Monday afternoon, reading out my short story Be Careful What You Wish For. When I decided to apply for Story Shop, I hadn't really thought about what...
Get yourself out there – rejections, resilience
I have to admit that a recent flurry of rejections almost had me retreating into my cave. Even though there were all nice rejections; i.e. not bog standard, depressing "your work has been received and if you don't hear from us, then just go away", they were still...
In praise of Nanowrimo – November Novel writing in a month
It's the end of April, and I've just finished 'Camp Nanowrimo'. It's hard to describe what Nanowrimo is all about. You just need to sign up and have a go. This is how it is described on their website: "National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) is a fun,...
Are writers sadists? Putting your heroes in jeopardy
"I think writing about unhappiness is probably the source of my popularity, if I have any-after all, most people are unhappy, don't you think?" So said Philip Larkin. I'd agree with that. No-one wants to read a happy story about lucky people having a lovely time. We...
How long does it take to write a book?
I hesitate to say I've read everything there is to read about the process of writing a book, because there will always be more to say. Is it better to plan in detail or should you just go for it and fix everything afterwards? Should you list everything there is to...