Category: The writer’s life

Fake mouldings, potted palms

Last week, I wrote a ‘Pears, walnuts, blue cheese’ email, the gist of which was that if you need to characterise a minor character fast,…

Harry 5 August 2022

1 Comment

How to Break In (and Cling On) to Being a Published Author

We’re always talking about wiggly timelines and frustrating setbacks – it’s part of virtually every writer’s life, after all. Laura Pearson is an author who…

Esther 2 August 2022

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Pears, walnuts, blue cheese

We used to have a cookbook, the theme of which was that if you found three harmonising ingredients, you essentially had a meal. So, if…

Harry 29 July 2022

4 Comments

Things not to bother about in a heatwave

Folks, The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland – a country name so inept, you’d imagine is was a splinter republic of some…

Harry 22 July 2022

2 Comments

Eh, toc toc toc

My kids, if they think something is ridiculous, tap their fingers to their heads and cry, “eh, toc toc toc.” When I told them that…

Harry 15 July 2022

2 Comments

Authorial Yoga

Last week, I felt rubbish, so I said so and wrote a “let’s be gentle with ourselves” email that applied as much to me as…

Harry 8 July 2022

2 Comments

The Kit de Waal Bursary Winner

We’re overjoyed to announce that the winner of the Kit De Waal Bursary for carers is Lucinda Marsden. Her YA feminist novel, ‘Undercurrent,’ is inspired…

Esther 8 July 2022

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The Sign You’ve Been Waiting For

Missed out on the deadline for our Summer ’22 Ultimate Novel Writing Course? You’re in luck as we have just opened applications for our next…

Esther 5 July 2022

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A little rain

Oh, there are sunny days and rainy days, there are rise-with-the-lark days and please-an-extra-hour days. There are days of ease and days of grind. There…

Harry 30 June 2022

3 Comments

The Butterfly Dynasty Series

The struggles of a writer are not just those of plot, motivation, grammar, and inspiration at inconvenient times – like in the shower or at…

robertbarclay 26 June 2022

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