My journey through writing and publishing, including reflections on the craft and my humble advice to other writers.
I recently started writing a book review and found myself thinking that I have no idea whether I am doing it “right?” What makes a good book review? What elements are essential? Is there a specific structure I should be following? I realised that I’d never studied the matter and | Read more…
As writers, it’s easy to slip into being isolated. To working within your own little bubble. Attending classes and seminars are a great way to remind yourself you’re part of a huge community and there is always something new to learn, new ways to explore writing. For instance, next week | Read more…
This month I want to let the words flow, and find my way back to the swift flowing river and out of the stagnant creek up which I have floundered. *Blows cobwebs out of wordpress* Back in the summer of 2010, I started writing my first, still unfinished novel. In | Read more…
On the evolution of stories and a case of unexpected philosophy. Muse There are those who scoff at authors when they claim they have no control over the stories that they tell, that they are a conduit through which stories are told, more like a medium than an engineer. That | Read more…
Some thoughts on the use of song lyrics and other copyrighted material in fiction or other media. This weekend the subject of quoting song lyrics in works of fiction came up in conversation with another writer. He wanted to know whether he would be allowed to quote lines from a | Read more…
Ideas are not something I usually struggle with, but sometimes I like to challenge myself to write something based on a prompt purely because it wasn’t my idea. I’ve found in the past that some of the stories I have created through trying to find a story within a prompt | Read more…
While I’ve come across advice in the writing world that pushes reluctant writers to eventually take the plunge and try submitting their work, it is far outweighed by that desperately trying to instill some sort of reality check. I have never been one to expect I will “get good” at | Read more…
When I review a book I like to think about what I can learn from it. A few weeks ago I reviewed Crimes Against Magic by Steve McHugh, and it got me thinking about the pitfalls of making your hero too powerful. Nate Garrett, centuries old sorcerer assassin is a | Read more…
Last week I reviewed The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. These days, when I read a book, I like to look back and think about what I can learn from it. Whether it’s something the author did well and I can try to incorporate into my own writing, or something | Read more…