Guest editing the Afterword
All this week, I have been guest editor on the Canadian National Post's book blog, The Afterword. I wrote four posts for them about writing, reading, and the inspiration behind a few of the stories in Instruction Manual For Swallowing. Here are the links: How Paul McCartney taught me to stop worrying and love zombies: on killing zombies with … [Read more...]
What a Sunday roast can teach you about editing
Right now, I’m doing a final edit of my new story collection and am spotting faults. They’re not spelling mistakes or character names that change half way through the story, which would be bad, because some of these stories have already been published in magazines and anthologies. They’re not really mistakes, but little bumps in the road that … [Read more...]
The trouble with titles
I have a theory about titles: If the title is the first thing you write, then the story goes like a dream. If the title is the last thing you write, you are screwed. This is the problem I'm having at the moment. My second story collection is almost done, but I don't have a title. I have left it too late, and now I am struggling. If I had … [Read more...]