“Ashes are much hotter than flames”.This is an observation I heard online a few months ago, and you’d think, OK, what does that have to do with creative writers? Well, let me take you to the Australian Outback to explain. The ‘swagman’ of Waltzing Matilda fame traditionally goes walkabout through the Outback of Australia withContinue reading “What do the Secrets of the Australian Swagman Have to Say to Creative Writers?”
Tag Archives: novel
My New Book ‘Perilous Path: A Writer’s Journey’ Out Now
I’m delighted to announced that my new book is out now and available to buy on Amazon, both as a paperback and as an ebook. Perilous Path: A Writer’s Journey is a short informative and encouraging book of 126 pages, giving an insight into the writer’s life. It will appeal to aspiring writers, keen readers fascinatedContinue reading “My New Book ‘Perilous Path: A Writer’s Journey’ Out Now”
I Have a New Book Coming Out Soon
I’m pleased to announce I have a new book coming out soon, this time non-fiction. It will be a short one, 100 pages, and will be available in paperback as well as an ebook. I’ve written it for all those who’d love to know about the process of writing novels: whether they be aspiring writers,Continue reading “I Have a New Book Coming Out Soon”
Staying Focused as a Writer: Learning From Leo Tolstoy
Leo Tolstoy, the author of the novel widely regarded as one of the world’s greatest, War and Peace, not only crafted characters we love and care about – Pierre, Natasha, Anna Karenina, and many others – but was also fond of sideways excursions into his theory of history during the course of a novel. SoContinue reading “Staying Focused as a Writer: Learning From Leo Tolstoy”
A Passionate Spirit and The Cult That Stole Children
A couple of years after I left university, whilst on a spiritual search, I went to a lecture at the Royal Overseas League in London, met, chatted to and became captivated by an inspirational speaker: a Physics professor who wrote spiritual books. His name was Dr Raynor Johnson. Subsequently I read and loved all his books,Continue reading “A Passionate Spirit and The Cult That Stole Children”
The Writing Process for Creating a Novel In Less Than a Month
NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) begins today for 2016 and I will be once again taking this challenge – completing the first draft of my new novel “Director’s Cut”. Here is an article I wrote when I was 3 weeks into the 2011 challenge, in order to write the first draft of my second novel “AContinue reading “The Writing Process for Creating a Novel In Less Than a Month”
“Dream” Book Buyers at Festival of Crafts, Coombe Abbey
Thank you to the “dream buyers” who bought my books on Saturday at the Coombe Abbey Festival of Crafts. They needed no promotional chat of any kind from me, (which I’ve discovered is counter-productive), studied my banner, reviews and blurbs closely, and recognised that the stories were just their type of thing. Abigail, Jamie and IContinue reading ““Dream” Book Buyers at Festival of Crafts, Coombe Abbey”
Writing Stories That Grow Legs and Run Away From You
In my creative writing class at Lancaster University years ago, our tutor said to us: Once written and completed, your work is A Thing on the Table. The world can make what it likes of it. It doesn’t belong to you any more.” More recently, novelist Susan Hill, speaking at a local author event,Continue reading “Writing Stories That Grow Legs and Run Away From You”
Amateur Actors, No Rehearsal, Disorganised Direction, Disappearing Props – A Dream for Shakespeare
This weekend I joined a cast in a drama – at St Mark’s Church in Leamington Spa – which I think Shakespeare would have loved. Why? because we were rather like the little band of local workmen in that Athenian wood in A Midsummer Night’s Dream. But we were not playing “Pyramus and Thisbe”. Instead,Continue reading “Amateur Actors, No Rehearsal, Disorganised Direction, Disappearing Props – A Dream for Shakespeare”
New Book About Writing, For Aspiring Writers
I’m currently working on a new book about writing, which has the working title of Perilous Path: a Writer’s Journey. The book contains 30 short pieces I’ve published online over the past 6 years, both on ezine articles and on this blog, all on the subject of writing a novel. Here’s a taster from theContinue reading “New Book About Writing, For Aspiring Writers”
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