Category: The writer’s life

WHY

As Rudyard Kipling once put: “Words are, of course, the most powerful drug used by mankind.  I believe words are assuredly the most potent magic…

giles 20 August 2021

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What’s your hidden mantra?

Here’s a thought: You will, consciously or unconsciously, have a philosophy of writing, a set of assumptions or beliefs that underpins everything you do. But…

Harry 20 August 2021

50 Comments

Nine Odd Things

Here are nine Odd Things about the market for books. Odd Thing the First Consumers are fantastically finicky about books. If you like tomatoes, you…

Harry 13 August 2021

29 Comments

Got no car, got no house …

The Guardian newspaper ran an interview yesterday with a South African author, Karen Jennings. In one way, the article offers a standard literary tale. Roughly this:…

Harry 6 August 2021

13 Comments

Plot twists & how to write em

Determined as I am to add value to my readers, always  – I’ll start by telling you the easiest way to write a plot twist.…

Harry 30 July 2021

8 Comments

Why booksellers are your new best friends

Let’s nerd-out on books for a bit.  We’re celebrating all things books in this newsletter, exploring that beautiful, blurry line between readers and writers. Hear…

Esther 27 July 2021

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Here lies the body of Mike O’Day

I’ve never really been a sailor, but I’ve done some mucking around in dinghies on lakes and on the coast. At one point, my dad,…

Harry 23 July 2021

22 Comments

Time – our favourite dimension

Last week we were all set to talk about time, when Markus Dohle of PRH and some Italian pigs’-bladder-kickers got in the way. This week,…

Harry 16 July 2021

8 Comments

Be happy

I was going to write an email today about time, and how to write it. But then – A group of eleven Englishmen managed to…

Harry 9 July 2021

16 Comments

The World’s Biggest Pedant

My missus and I are currently watching a Netflix drama, Orange is the New Black, set in a women’s prison in the US. And –…

Harry 2 July 2021

24 Comments