Part of developing your writing craft is reading… A lot. While practice is one thing, exposure to different styles and examples of writing is another. If you never bother to read a novel, how could you possibly write one yourself? ...
Read More »Self-publishing: What you need to know, part 2
Publishing your work is never straightforward. Once you’ve edited your novel to within an inch of it’s life, there are still some very big questions you need to consider. Will you publish only digitally or do you want hardcopies as ...
Read More »Self-publishing: What you need to know, part 1
The publishing industry is changing. Self-publishing is becoming more common, with authors who are traditionally published dipping their toes into the pool as well as those who have been unsuccessful in using the traditional route to market. The stigma is ...
Read More »Tips for successful editing
January and February are the NaNoWriMo ‘Now What?’ months. For those of you not in the know, every November thousands of crazy writers sign up to attempt writing 50,000 words in one month, which makes the better part of a novel’s ...
Read More »Getting pumped for NaNoWriMo through music
NaNoWriMo is all about quantity over quality. Quality comes later. As any writing course will tell you, your first draft won’t be good. No matter how awesome you think you are, you just aren’t that good. Sure, I wish everything ...
Read More »Scrivener: A writer’s best friend in app form
Sometimes being a writer is hard going. Like many, writing is almost a compulsion with me, but that doesn’t mean it brings me endless joys. There are plenty of nights where I stare at the blank screen or piece of ...
Read More »Chuck Wendig: The only writing advisor you will ever need
Finally… I have found a book about writing that actually makes me want to write stuff. The write stuff I have always wanted to be a writer. When I grew older, there was a lot of talk about being a ...
Read More »What I learned from the literary agents at Discovery Day
Any unpublished author will tell you that literary agents are terrifying. There’s no two ways about it. Publishers (as a general rule) do not take unsolicited manuscripts, making agents the sole gatekeepers to traditional publishing. If traditional publishing is the ...
Read More »