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Italy: Liberation Day
The 25th April is a national holiday here in Italy and it’s called Liberation Day. I had noticed, however, as the years went by, the…
The Worst Part Of Being A Writer
“So, what is the worst thing about being a writer?” my neighbor asks me at the Spring Social. “Ummmm,” I say, looking past him to…
Writes and Wrongs
Remember lockdown? Remember how we all got a bit excited in the first one and felt we had to make it count? And some of…
Can Songs Teach Us Something About Writing Novels?
Rules and Commonalities I’m not a musician but even I know that songs have a structure, verses and a chorus, that they often have a…
What Wordle Taught Me About Writing
I’ve been doing the daily Wordle puzzle since it started. In case you missed it, Wordle is an online game that gives you six chances…
Stories that stay with you
Last time, I spoke about stories that stay with you – or more accurately, the ones that don’t. This month, I want to take some…
Rejection
You Are Not Alone Most people experience rejection when querying. Beatrix Potter, author of The Tale of Peter Rabbit, got so many rejections she ended…
Writing Routines
Time and Head Space When I was teaching full-time, I found it difficult to fit in any writing. It’s definitely not a nine-to-three job! My…
Cue the Music
In that heady, comforting, all-encompassing safety-net that is the deep love forged by a long life together, my soul-mate and I tried to find ‘our…
Self-Critiquing
Who the hell do you think you are? I once heard that authors alternate between two perceptions of their work-in-progress. One is: ‘This is amazing!…
The International Children Books Illustration Exhibition
The International Children Books Illustration Exhibition opens its doors for six weeks every year at Sarmede, my home town, gathering the usual crowd of fans…
Read. Write. Repeat.
“Christmas won’t be Christmas without any presents,” grumbled Jo, lying on the rug. That opening line is indelibly inked in my memory. Other fictional characters…
Business Speak
The Brother has a view on modern verbiage ++ Now, c’mere ’til I tell you this. I’m all ears. What is it? The brother has…
What Makes Great Writing?
We All Have Our Own Opinions Of course we do! Life would be very boring if we didn’t. But there are elements to story that…
Multiple Points-of-View
Say What? Writing a novel with more than one point-of-view can be tricky. How can you juggle different personalities and motivations – and somehow use…
The Cat Blog
There’s something about cats. Yes, in January I burst my eardrum trying to cure the ear mite infection I caught from our two….
Ghost Writing
Sorry! I’ve been a tad disingenuous with this title because I’m not referring to the act of writing on behalf of others, but rather the…
Where Did All The Stories Go?
The last few weeks, I have been replaying a video game from my distant past. An old favourite by the name of Final Fantasy VII….
Over achievers
Over achievers rarely herald from untroubled upbringings. Being born to a mother with low confidence in her own abilities wouldn’t have been so bad, had…
Not the Typical (Ugly) American Tourist (I hope).
Ciao. Getting ready for our two-week trip to Northern Italy. Northern Italy you say. What about the rest of Italy? Well, in due course. A…
Everything is Writing
“Aren’t you supposed to be writing?” I shove the nagging question away. The computer will still be there when I return to it, cursor blinking…
Unreliable Narrators (Spoiler Alert!)
An Issue of Trust I’ll admit, novels with an unreliable narrator are not everyone’s cup of tea, but I love them. You start off thinking…
How The Koreans Are Bossing A Trope
Mention the word Trope to us writers and we’ll recoil. Add the word Cliche and you’ll see us running for the hills. These two five-letter…
Unlikeable Characters
My three psychological novels have unlikeable point-of-view characters. Without balance, they can appear two-dimensional – and I’ve discovered that achieving that balance is rather tricky!…
I Am Made Of Regret, But Not Of Sadness
I am made of regret, but not of sadness. During my brief and somewhat misguided youth, I spent my money and spoke my mind. I…
Making Sense of Chaos
A writer friend of mine and I have exchanged writerly encouragement to each other for many years. The most frequent reminder we bounce back and…
Postcards from Earth
Dear Grandpoppypops Wish you were here? Look at the size of the stamps now! So much larger than the penny black you showed me from…
A Bowl o’ Stew
Flann O’Brien’s much-loved character – The Brother – transported to the 21st century. What would he make of contemporary trends and fads? This episode imagines…
Writing Distractions. Oh my!
This is my first post on this forum, so I wanted to do something short and light. What types of distractions interrupt you when you’re…
Go beyond the usual guide book notes of the Trevi Fountain and savour its unexpected pleasures.
PART ONE Walk through the heart of Rome and you will be lured in one direction and then another as instantaneously as a magnet does…
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