If you can’t get your head around what’s happening in Ukraine perhaps a poet can help…
A dear friend, poet and novelist Naomi Foyle will be reading tonight at English PEN’s Ukrainian Poetry Evening in Oxford alongside poet Ihor Pavlyuk and translator Steve Komarnyckyj Naomi isn’t … Continue reading
Life after 2020 – the theme of an international short story competition
What will the future bring? How will we respond to climate change? What does the Higgs-Boson mean to you? Are robots more than vacuum cleaners? Will death be conquered? I’ve … Continue reading
A Writer doesn’t need tricks…Raymond Carver: Quotes for writers (and people who like quotes)
I hate tricks. At the first sign of a trick or gimmick in a piece of fiction, a cheap trick or even an elaborate trick, I tend to look for … Continue reading
10 rules for writing a synopsis
I’m away for a few days so here is something from a year ago which I think is still interesting – synopsis training. The agent Carole Blake, author of From … Continue reading
Is this the next big thing? Another publishing company is looking for teen and YA fiction ebooks
I see that Bloomsbury Spark – a digital imprint from Bloomsbury Publishing (aka as J.K.Rowling’s publisher) is looking for teen, young adult and new adult fiction from new and established … Continue reading
I need advice and if you’ve ever bought a book, you’re qualified to give it
Four months ago I self-published BACK TO CREATIVE WRITING SCHOOL – an ebook of 30 writing exercises that I’ve developed over nine years of teaching on university undergraduate courses and … Continue reading
“Language, as a vehicle, is a lemon…” Quotes for writers (and people who like quotes)
We writers aren’t sculpting in DNA, or even clay or mud, but words, sentences, paragraphs, syntax, voice; materials issued by tongue or fingertips but which upon release dissolve into the … Continue reading
Route to Publication by Danny Kemp – the self-published London taxi driver with a film deal
Today I’m handing over my blog to Danny Kemp, a self-published author who came to writing almost by chance. Over to you Danny… I wrote my first book when I … Continue reading
How fast can you read? Test yourself
My score was 477 per minute in this timed test (which apparently is 91% faster than the rest of the population if you’re feeling competitive.) Click the screen above to … Continue reading
Stephen King on why readers stop reading — Quotes for writers (and people who like quotes)
“In many cases when a reader puts a story aside because it ‘got boring,’ the boredom arose because the writer grew enchanted with his powers of description and lost sight … Continue reading
TECHNICAL GIZZMOS FOR WRITERS Safari Friday searching the web for writers and readers
Haven’t done a Safari Friday post for awhile but I wanted to tell you about TECH FOR WRITERS a new feature on a New Zealand blog Hunting Down the Writing. … Continue reading
If you want to write a dystopia start with this map…
This fictional map shows what the British Isles might look like in 2100 if sea levels rise and are 100 meters higher than they were in 2000. The artist/cartographer Jay … Continue reading
Reader’s Bill of Rights — Quotes for writers (and people who like quotes)
1. The right to not read 2. The right to skip pages 3. The right to not finish 4. The right to reread 5. The right to read anything 6. … Continue reading
Good morning Santa Cruz!
Santa Cruz on the coast of California is famous for golden beaches, surfing (they even have a museum dedicated to it) and its liberal social attitudes. Close your eyes and … Continue reading
BRIDGET WHELAN writer 