The Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins provides a very exciting, stirring read, engaging young adults – and now of course adults too – with major issues in today’s world. I saw The Hunger Games movie having read the trilogy a couple of years ago. I found the books compelling in their narrative of horrific events, in the endContinue reading “Highly-focused, intense, and brilliant: The First Hunger Games Film”
Category Archives: media
Favour, privilege, and royal fairy dust
My son mentioned to me that he had learned from Newsround that Garry Barlow of Take That had asked Prince Harry to sing a line in one of their songs. And that Harry had (so far) refused. This led to thoughts about royal power and privilege; especially as I later watched the excellent TV programme “She-Wolves” presentedContinue reading “Favour, privilege, and royal fairy dust”
The Lost World of the Reclusive Bestseller Author
JK Rowling has said, I imagined being a famous writer would be like being Jane Austen, being able to sit at home in the parsonage and your books would be very famous… I didn’t think they’d rake through my bins. I didn’t expect to be photographed on the beach through long lenses. JD Salinger and Harper LeeContinue reading “The Lost World of the Reclusive Bestseller Author”
Novelists and Screenwriters – Where To Find All You Need To Know About Story Structure
Several years ago, I nearly signed on for Robert McKee’s “Story Structure” workshop in London – tempted by the testimonial from John Cleese, who attributed his success in creating the Fawlty Towers scripts to what he learned from this workshop. But I saw it was essentially for screenwriters, and chose to pass on it. I have sinceContinue reading “Novelists and Screenwriters – Where To Find All You Need To Know About Story Structure”
Do Creative Writers Ever Feel they’re On the Inside? Or are they Always On the Outside of Everything Looking In?
This morning I was listening to Howard Jacobson, comic novelist and Booker Prize winner, on Desert Island Discs, and among the many things he said which touched and amused me, the most striking was this, “I have always felt myself to be on the outside of everything, looking in.” He gave this reply to the interviewer’sContinue reading “Do Creative Writers Ever Feel they’re On the Inside? Or are they Always On the Outside of Everything Looking In?”
My BBC Radio interview with Liz Kershaw
This was my live interview with Liz Kershaw of BBC Radio Coventry & Warwickshire on Sunday 7 November 2010. Liz clearly understood the struggles of a writer and asked some very good perceptive questions. I greatly appreciated the opportunity she gave me to talk about my writing journey on live radio. scskillmanlizkershaw-interview
HELLO WORLD! My First Personal Blog on The Writing Life
This is new territory for me – though I’ve written lots in my life I’ve never written it “nearly live” (apart from Facebook of course)! Usually I correct what I write over and over again – even emails. Yes, I still long for those far-off days when Mr Darcy sat down and composed carefully-thought-out letters to his littleContinue reading “HELLO WORLD! My First Personal Blog on The Writing Life”
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