Making fiction from family memories – Charlie Young

‘I realised I came from an unusual family,’ says Charlie Young, and in that moment came another realisation – there was a story to be uncovered and told. That story became a historical novel, Houdini’s Last Handcuffs, co-written with his sister Cheryl. But to begin at the beginning, I asked Charlie where the idea of the novel was born. The idea of Houdini’s Last Handcuffs came from a multitude…

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Four ways to finally finish: how novelists revise their work

Here’s a thing you learn as a novelist: stamina. Revising a novel is often a lengthy process and a real test of motivation and dedication. When you’ve gone as far as you can with your own edits, comments from beta readers and editors can derail you all over again. Sometimes they’re revelatory – you knew something wasn’t working but you hadn’t figured out what. Editing a novel is a complex and…

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A little bit of Not Quite Lost - free short story and other pieces from @VineLeavesPress

Earlier this week I took part in an event to showcase a few authors from Vine Leaves Press. I’ve never done an online reading before so this was a first. Usually at readings, one can’t see the audience members’ faces so close. Sometimes what I saw wasn’t faces, but ceilings or thumbs or travelling ground. Or daylight, when outside my study the sky was dark. All of life, in little Zoom postage…

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Can SEO writing ruin your prose style? And why Bill Bryson can call a book Wubberhumptimuph and you can’t

I’ve had this question from Mark…. This question has been bouncing in my brain ever since the digital revolution began and especially after working for various publishers that asked me to help them with social media and website text.  Do you think that being forced to focus on SEO when writing articles, promos, headlines etc can negatively impact your non-journalism writing? My sense is that…

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Our robot masters, finding Michael, enter this competition if you write creative non-fiction poetry or memoir, my first online reading, a little horse. All in my newsletter https://mailchi.mp/39151833ee83/our-robot-masters-finding-michael-enter-this-competition-my-first-online-reading-a-little-horse

The hidden shapes in stories and why drama isn't what you think it is - interview with @EHeathRobinson

This is a massive headline, I know. A massive headline for a massive and far-ranging conversation about storytelling. My host is Heath Robinson, whose YouTube channel has seen a stellar line-up of story nerds, including Christopher Vogler, author of The Writer’s Journey, Christopher Vogler, Matt Bird, author of The Secrets of Story, John Truby, author of The Anatomy of Genres, and Vic Mignogna,…

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Finding our true voices and where we belong – novelist and coach Heather Marshall

Heather Marshall’s novels are concerned with questions of family. In her first, The Thorn Tree, the characters are rediscovering who they are as family grows up and their life roles change. In her new novel, When The Ocean Flies, an adoptee comes to terms with long-held misbeliefs, seeded from her earliest days. This theme of leading an authentic life and discovering what that should be clearly…

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What's editing - and how do editors work with writers? Interview at Writers' Narrative magazine

Why is editing so important for writers? Why is it publishing’s biggest – and best-kept – secret? How do editors work with writers to ensure clarity and consistency – and yet preserve the writer’s unique voice and flavour? What if the writer disagrees about changes the editor wants to make? How do we keep a dialogue going throughout the editing process so the writer doesn’t feel they’re losing…

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Everyone says: why the rule about dialogue tags isn’t cast iron

I’ve seen dialogue tags discussed a few times recently on writing forums. The discussion goes like this. ‘When writing a piece of dialogue, do you need synonyms for “said”? Doesn’t it get boring for the reader? What about words with a bit more expression, such as exclaimed or spat or shouted or yelled?’  ‘Noooo,’ comes the reply, overwhelmingly. ‘Only use “said”.’  I agree, mostly. I also…

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Festival of joy, there is no short answer, I'm judging a competition for memoir and creative nonfiction (do enter!), meet me at the London Book Fair, a little horse https://mailchi.mp/8fba187597a3/festival-of-joy-there-is-no-short-answer-competition-for-memoir-and-creative-nonfiction

Write what you know? Why the true test of authenticity is the effect on the reader – interview with James Ladd Thomas

Authenticity is a troublesome concept in the arts at the moment. There are things we’re ‘allowed’ to write, things we’re not ‘allowed’ to write. While this raises valuable debates, authors have always written about characters, places and situations outside their personal circumstances and experience, and made works that are honest and truthful. That’s our craft, isn’t it? My interviewee today is…

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Why writing books is a career like no other, and 9 takeaways for doing it

I’ve had an email from a high school student who’s writing an English assignment on careers he would like to follow. He said: Would you answer a few questions about your job journey? I’m very interested in what you do. His questions were fairly standard, and they made me realise how most creative careers are anything but. They’re unpredictable and weird.Here are my answers, and I’m really…

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A blasted heath, beware of the moth, I'm judging a new competition for writers of creative non-fiction and memoir, a little horse. Also, a love of old derelict places, including a splendid abandoned airfield https://mailchi.mp/fe860ea17ac3/a-blasted-heath-beware-of-the-moth-im-judging-another-book-competition-see-me-at-lbf-a-little-horse

When to write poetry, when to write prose? Interview with poet and fictioneer Mike Maggio

What makes a poem a poem? How is it a different beast from richly written literary fiction? In prose, it seems, we can do most of what a poem can do, beyond just telling a story. Creative expression, profound thoughts, metaphors. We can even control how the text falls in the reader’s mind through our use of cadence and line breaks. What’s the distinguishing difference with a poem? Mike Maggio is…

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6 questions to transform a boring character in your novel or screenplay

On a podcast recently, scriptwriter Moira Buffini was asked this question. What do you do if a character is boring? ‘Cut them out,’ said Moira. I don’t necessarily agree. Sometimes cutting a character is the right decision. If the narrative is too crowded. Or your brain is. And all writers need to be bold about killing our darlings, whether they’re characters or plot turns or descriptions or…

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Hello 2024, I can help with your brilliant works this year, what I'm working on (Turn Right At The Rainbow), where I'm teaching, A little horse. https://mailchi.mp/30d79f499183/hello-2024-for-your-brilliant-works-where-im-teaching-a-little-horse?e=[UNIQID]

Reblog: keep in touch with your WIP when all is merry and chaotic

How to keep in touch with your book when your writing routine is disrupted

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