In college, at work, retired? Remember you can always go Back to Creative Writing School
I had a lot of fun playing around with PHOTOFUNIA, an online picture editing tool that has just celebrated its eight birthday. It lets you produce imaginative and wish fulfilment … Continue reading
Writing Exercise from the archives: Historical Fiction
This is straightforward lucky dip. Choose two numbers – both have to be between one and ten. The first number gives you a personal event and the second a historical … Continue reading
Writing Exercise from the Archives: connect three pictures…and suddenly you have a story
Don’t censor yourself just write. Don’t cross out. Just write. Try to keep your hand moving across the page or the keyboard. A lot of what you are going to … Continue reading
FREE WORLDWIDE — popular creative writing ebook: offer ends Sunday July 5th
From today until Sunday July 5th BACK TO CREATIVE WRITING SCHOOL is free to download from Amazon. Thirty exercises to set your imagination free and it won’t cost you a … Continue reading
And the winner is….
Let me introduce you to Jan Baynham Jan joined a local writing group in Cardiff three years ago but it wasn’t until she attended a university writing class taught by … Continue reading
OUT NOW! The latest edition of my Creative Writing Newsletter. Sign up and win a free paperback copy of Back to Creative Writing School
Edition number five of my creative writing newsletter has just gone out. It contains details of submission and competition opportunities (plays, poetry, short stories and novels) that haven’t yet appeared … Continue reading
Win a copy of my creative writing guide in time for Christmas
Hurray! I’ve made it past the 200 ‘likes’ milestone on my creative writing facebook page. As promised I’m going to give away a paperback copy of BACK TO CREATIVE WRITING … Continue reading
I don’t think I’ve mentioned this before…
…but I have a facebook page dedicated to writing. I use it for quick bits of information that seem funny or useful or both. I don’t put the same material … Continue reading
Five Tips for writing flash fiction plus one inspirational exercise that will deliver a plot to your keyboard
I originally wrote this post for the Hysterectomy Association when I was writer in residence of their annual writing competition earlier this year. Flash Fiction goes by many names: micro … Continue reading
I’m not a poet, but I’ve read enough bad poetry to recognise what poets shouldn’t do…
I’m not a poet. In fact, one of the exercises in my guide to creative writing* is called the I-don’t-want-to-wrie-a-poem poetry exercise. The fact that I’m not a poet makes … Continue reading
5 Top Flash Fiction Tips for Writers – Hysteria Writing Competition
FLASH FICTION goes by many names: micro fiction, sudden fiction, short short stories, skinny stories (no fat allowed) and postcard fiction. I gather in China it translates to a palm-sized … Continue reading
Back to Creative Writing School: an announcement
I’m delighted to reveal – imagine a drum roll and a touch of staccato piano playing in the background – that Back to Creative Writing School is now out in … 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
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
