From Breakthrough Authors To Bestselling Legends
The Most Exciting & Original Voices Writing Today
Why Mother, Why Father
Last year I made a short film. As a screenwriter with a drawer full of unproduced scripts I was eager to write something I can…
You Don’t Know Me
On The Honest Authors’ podcast, Gillian McAllister once mentioned that she was asked, “Do you really think that?” about something controversial she’d written in one…
Merlin
A carved wooden statue of Merlin stands in Carmarthen town centre. A mythical Celtic shaman, he was a constant in British folklore between the 5th…
Everything Is Going to Be Alright
It’s been a pretty bad week for me. It started last Monday when I took my mum for an appointment with the gynaecologist. She’s currently…
Book Club Programme & Dates for the Year
Litopia’s Book Club, run by @Jason, is an unmissable monthly event. There are – happily – lots of book clubs around. But none like ours….
The Stories in Our Stars: The Zodiac for Writers
We are now in Pisces Season. But what are its stars, what’s the ancient story behind it all, and what does it mean for writers? Time…
Dope Junkie
I’m a dope junkie, and I’m spiraling. Scrolling. For hours. Every evening, you can find me lounging on the couch or sprawling in bed, zoned…
The Moon vs. Brian Cox
Of the many jobs I’ve juggled, my latest presents a unique challenge. Sabah, in Malaysian North Borneo, is popular with Korean tourists. Five hours south…
The Death of the American Penny.
Well, it’s been in discussion for years, but the man behind the curtain X’d (I guess you can’t say tweeted anymore?), that the American penny…
What Came First, the Chicken or the Egg?
Bear With Me! Okay, this is probably a weird analogy but this is how my (bird-brained!) mind works. So, in terms of the title question,…
Bonnie Bethany
She found a shilling down the back of the sofa and gambled it on a horse called ‘Bonnie Bethany’ in the 5th race at Carlisle….
Dems the rulez
Once again, I find myself writing about an argument I stumbled upon on X (Can’t they agree on anything over there?) and I just had…
Murmuration
Blackpool has a long tourist season that runs from Easter to Christmas each year, but the biggest seaside spectacular takes place throughout the winter months…
Humans vs AI
Okay, I know it’s not a war. Us against the machine. I’m not I-Robot-ing or anything. Or am I? I do know I’m angry about…
Our Stories in The Stars- The Zodiac for Writers
Story Archetypes of The Zodiac We are now in the season of Aquarius, The Sign of All Humankind Whatever we think of astrology,…
Finding a Literary Agent
If you want to be traditionally published, the chances are that you’ll need a literary agent. Their job is to sell your book to a…
The Joys of a Book Table
About a year ago I was visiting at a friend’s house and noticed they had a book table. It’s literally what it says – a…
Identity Politics
Holy hell, this shower feels good. Pretty sure I’m using up the hot water, but any fucks I could give evaporate into steamy bliss. After…
More Haste, Less Speed?
What Do We Mean by ‘Pace’ And Why Is It Important? We often hear that books are fast-paced, slow burn or ‘saggy in the middle’….
Writing As A Job…
Recently, I came across a fiery argument on multiple social media platforms around the topic a writer compensation. On the face of it, it shouldn’t…
Welcome to Publishing Year Zero
“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness…” wrote…
My First Crit
Do you remember your first time? Was it exciting? Were you nervous? Did you just want to get it over with? One of the most…
Bombing in the Reviews
An indie author often lives or dies based on their books’ ratings and reviews. Okay, maybe that was a touch dramatic. Often, it’s a case…
Safeguarding Writers’ Mental Health In 2025
Writers are, by definition, people of heightened awareness and sensitivity. If you weren’t, you wouldn’t – couldn’t – be a writer. Yet in a world…
My Resolution (Or a List of Books)
As the old year comes to a close, I think about things I am grateful for and about fostering good habits for the new year…
WTF, Will! Sonnets + Summary
My reading of The Complete Works of Shakespeare was almost at an end. The book (only a paperback) had weighed in at 1250g, and the…
Let It Snow!
I looked everywhere but I couldn’t find it. It wasn’t in the jumble of decorations packed away from last year. Nor in the Advent calendar…
WTF, Will! The poems 1 – 5
Well, I’d just read all of Shakespeare’s plays and I was feeling extremely showy-offy. And yes, I’d been totally mind-blown or singularly unimpressed and all…
Don’t Call On Me
Cold winds blow through city streets as winter’s grip takes hold and grey souls in downbeat worlds retreat to lies untold. . Rain-lashed pavements now…
WTF, Will! parts 36 – 37
Unbelievably, after nearly six months, I had almost come to the end of the complete works of Shakespeare. That lockdown challenge had proved hard to…
Basic Membership Is Free.
Basic membership is sufficient for many writers.
Benefit from unlimited access to the Writing Lab for critiques using the Litopia® Method… Start your own writer’s blog on our powerful platform… And of course, maximum support from the oldest and friendliest community for writers on the ‘net.
Full Membership Is Only $149.95 For An Entire Year
Everything in Basic Membership plus unlimited access to all our writing seminars and unlimited access to our weekly live Writers’ Huddles for personal mentoring & coaching.