I'm teaching a six-part short story writing course with Comma Press at the Freeword Centre in London. In it I'll cover: • How to come up with ideas, and how to decide whether they'll work as a short story before you begin writing. • How to write a first draft, with and without a plan. • How to write a killer opening line that will hook … [Read more...]
Daily word count target – the right way to do it?
I hate writing first drafts. The story either comes out too fast in a messy splatter, lacking substance, or every paragraph sits reluctantly in the bowels of my brain and needs coaxing out with a stick. Sure, there are occasional moments where a page will glide out that'll make me smile and think 'ahhhh! I can do this!' But those … [Read more...]
Short stories come in pairs
When I write short stories, I write them in pairs. This is why: I think the best gift a writer could have would be the ability to read their own work as if they'd never seen it before. But a truly objective perspective on your own work is impossible. It helps to leave a draft in the draw for a few days, weeks or months, but I've found that if I … [Read more...]
How do you like your story endings, open or closed?
Do you want clear answers at the end of a story, or do you prefer doing a little investigative work and close reading to unpick the clues, or do you dig story endings that are wide open, where you can chew over the story and make your own interpretation? I ask because I got another email this week from someone who'd read my story, The Stormchasers, … [Read more...]
A sketchnote: the evolution of an idea
I've always used doodles, drawings and diagrams as part of my note-taking process, but after discovering sketchnotes / visual note-taking through Sacha Chua's blog, I've started illustrating my notes much more deliberately, and legibly, with the intention of making them something I can share. Here's a sketchnote from this week, which I've tidied … [Read more...]
Writing tools I can’t live without #3: Scrivener
I'm always looking for new tools that make the writing process simpler, more effective or more fun, and Scrivener does all of these things. After reading a recommendation a couple of years ago, I saw that you can get a free 30-day trial of Scrivener and gave it a go. Now I write just about all of my fiction on it. Scrivener is an incredibly … [Read more...]
New interview with The Skinny
I recently spoke with Bram E Gieben from The Skinny about short stories, dystopias and parenthood. You can read the interview now, over at The Skinny. … [Read more...]
Work it out on the page
At the moment I've got two fiction projects underway. The first is a novel I've been working on since the beginning of the year. I don't like to talk about the actual subject of the work while I'm still writing it (it lets all the hot air out), but what I did want to share was a realisation I had while working on it. Sometimes, writing feels … [Read more...]