Top Ten Writing Tips #6 – Weasel Words

Everything in writing is personal – style, subject matter, genres, themes. Half of it you don’t know you’re doing. War is a backdrop in several of my stories, though I’m not that interested in writing war stories. At least, I … Continue reading

Top Ten Writing Tips #5 – Who Do You Write For?

Ask an agent or editor whether your next novel should have the themes or settings of whatever is currently popular (vampire romance, suburban porn, etc.) and they’ll invariably say: ‘No, just write what you want.’ They’ll justify this by saying … Continue reading

Top Ten Writing Tips #4 – Killing Those Darlings

Half the world says this, the rest of us nod wisely and turn away. I used to be a wise nodder and I was thinking, ‘But what does this mean?’ It’s a good question. The earliest reference I could find … Continue reading

Top Ten Writing Tips #3 – Writers Write

There have been times when I’ve tried to write myself out of a shitty life situation. I can now report my findings – it didn’t work. What I did manage to do was write a lot. I took it seriously, … Continue reading

Top Ten Writing Tips #2 – Writer’s Block is Your Friend

There’s a lot of opinion on writer’s block, whether its exists, how to get past it, what the whole writing life thing is all about. Here’s some, and here’s some more. Not much is about why we get stuck and … Continue reading