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How to put down your book and start writing more productively
Well, another month has passed, and it’s time for our Round Robin already. Where do all the weeks go? It’s a good question to ask for this post, since this week’s theme is on the subject of time –...
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#Romance15: an online weekend Romance Festival for authors, readers and...
This weekend is the second virtual Romance Festival organised by Harper Collins and Mills and Boon (Harlequin). The event begins at 2pm on Saturday (UK time) and runs all day Sunday. The organisers...
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How to make use of Goodreads as an author, plus a romance novel giveaway for...
Goodreads Book Giveaway A Way from Heart to Heart by Helena Fairfax Giveaway ends March 13, 2015. See the giveaway details at Goodreads. Enter to win Last weekend saw the online Romance Festival...
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Author Mary Waibel on using Tweetdeck to manage Twitter
Twitter is a great asset to authors – a place to find out and share information, as well as to tell the world about our books. The trouble is, it does take quite some dedication to make the most of it....
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How do writers “hear” their characters?
Image courtesy of Pixabay Last week I caught the tail end of BBC Radio 4’s Open Book programme. It was a fascinating discussion about how writers actually “hear” the voices of their characters (you...
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8 Tips on Writing Faster from Writers in the Storm
There are some blogs I follow that always deliver great advice for writers, and one of these is Writers in the Storm. For ages now I’ve been trying to increase my daily word count. This week Writers in...
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A brilliant book of writing tips by romance and mystery authors
In August last year my author friend JQ Rose invited me and several others to share our favourite writing tips in a series of posts running on her blog from October to February. JQ Rose had had the...
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How romance novels have changed in the past ten years; plus, is there still a...
So, it’s getting on for the end of May and time for another Round Robin. This month we have two topics, both equally interesting. First up is: How have romance novels changed in the past ten years? My...
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Starting in the right place and staying focused on your story. 5 tips from...
Patience Bloom is a senior editor with Harlequin in the US, and I’ve been following her blog (Romance is My Day Job – great title!) for quite a while now. Although Patience doesn’t post very often,...
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Creating heroes and villains – why good is bad and evil is fun
Today is another in our Round Robin series, and this month’s topic is pretty deep: “There is a precipice each character stands on–one side is too good to be true, the other side too evil to exist. What...
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6 essential tips on time-management for writers and bloggers
I’m delighted to welcome back my friend Mrs N.N. Light to my blog today. Her post today is all about time management – something every writer struggles with from time to time. Thanks for dropping in,...
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10 ways to promote your novel for free
Sharon Boothroyd, along with her husband Keith, runs a free e-zine for fiction lovers called KISHBOO. The magazine has gone from strength to strength since its launch, and yet Sharon, as a canny...
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Some surprising tips on pitching to an agent (and some not so surprising)
Last week I was at the Ilkley Literature Festival – a series of writing-related workshops and talks held every year here in the north of England. One of the talks was given by Andrew Lownie, who deals...
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How to spend more time writing and less time on boring stuff (plus some easy...
Last year I was part of a cookbook called Bake, Love, Write, a collection of recipes sent in by over eighty authors around the world, and collated and edited by author Lois Winston. Lois donated a...
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Setting goals, my writing projects for 2016, and some advice required
It’s time for the first Round Robin of 2016, and this month we are to list “one or two writing projects” we have in mind for the coming year. I really like the idea of goals. Even if I don’t achieve...
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How writers find inspiration – or, where do stories come from?
Image courtesy of Pixaby “Where do you get your ideas from?” is a question writers are often asked – and sometimes all I can say is, “I just don’t know!” It’s not a very helpful reply, I know, but I’ve...
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The importance of setting in a romance novel, with author Jennifer Young
I’m chuffed to welcome back Scottish author Jennifer Young today. Jennifer is a fellow member of the Romantic Novelists’ Association, and she came to my blog last year (you can read her interview...
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Why Amazon’s new rules are good for authors #amazongiveaway
Recently I’ve heard a lot of authors discussing the benefits of running an Amazon Giveaway , and so last week I decided to try it out for myself. Anyone can set up a giveaway on Amazon (although at the...
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The greatest secondary characters in fiction – and when they aren’t really...
It’s another month, and time for a Round Robin, and this month author Rhobin Courtwright has given us another excellent topic to mull over: Secondary characters have many functions in stories. Have...
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Pathetic fallacy – symbolism and the weather in fiction
Another month has gone by, which means it’s time for another Round Robin, and author Rhobin Courtwright has come up with yet another great topic for us: “Have you noticed how weather is used in...
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