Tag: fiction

June/July blog

A rogue post! But there is some good news…..

Firstly, apologies to those of you who saw a post on Facebook saying I was running some free online workshops. A well-meaning writing friend posted it, not realising it was from four years ago! But I’ve had quite a few enquiries so I thought I’d do a course of 3 free online workshops, starting in August. These will consist of a chat on a writing topic; relevant exercises; and suggested writing practice. I’d welcome comments about the course as we go. Sorry, I don’t have space to post any of your writing.

1 book – 8 million copies sold!

This month I’d like to tell you about a fascinating talk I heard at a local church – St Richards in Aldwick – given by KATE MOSSE, author of the best-selling (8 million in 37 languages) book Labyrinth, which is set in the medieval French town of Carcasonne. Kate is a writer who is much inspired by place. She says a writer needs to get away from the familiar to experience somewhere new, to see a place with fresh eyes. At her first sight of Carcasonne, she says she felt she belonged there. She had a sense of being part of history.


She hadn’t intended to write about the place, but over the next five years of living there, she fell in love with the city and ‘I heard the whispering in the landscape’ that made her a writer.
Kate says she’s written eleven novels based on places. As humans, she says, we’re hard-wired to tell stories.
She spends years on researching a new novel,  clocking up thousands of words of notes.  


At this point, Kate broke away from her talk to comment on how the evening sunlight was streaming in through a church window straight onto the Bible, open on a lectern. She actually noted that it was 7.45pm – a detail, she said, that could be used in a story.


‘Research is the spine,’ Kate explained. Once that has been done, she starts writing to see what comes out. The first draft is all emotion and quite often she doesn’t know at the beginning what the theme of her novel is going to be. ‘I let the book show itself,’ she says. ’Then the work starts.’

Championing women


Kate also spoke about her desire to champion the cause of forgotten women who have contributed as much as men who ARE credited. In her own family, her grandmother was said to be Gladstone’s favourite novelist; and her aunt was one of the first women to be ordained. During Covid, Kate decided that something should be done about such women and she put out a Tweet, asking for names of women in the past who deserved recognition. Within days she had thousands of replies and the ultimate result is Warrior Queens and Quiet Revolutionaries: How women (also) built the world. The book is available on the usual platforms and is now permanently on my work desk, next to my computer. It’s a delightful read as Kate said, for dipping into from time to time. 


I’ll finish with two of Kate’s writing tips that I certainly subscribe to.
When you’re on your 3rd (or final) draft of your writing, change the font. It’ll be like reading a new book. 
And my favourite – when Kate has done all the edits and revisions and her book is ready for her editor, she says: When I press SEND, I have a glass of champagne!
Oh, yes!
Happy Writing
Linda 

March/April blog

Websites & Webinars for Writers

I’m sure you’ve already discovered there are hundreds and thousands of websites for creative writers, and a whole variety of webinars and podcasts: you could probably find a different one every day for the next twenty years! But you can also waste a lot of time trawling through such sites to find one that suits you.

One thing I’ve found is that if you sign up for a particular website, you can be inundated with e-mails, not just one a month or even one a week, but almost every day. And like writing magazines (in my experience), they often get left until you find the time to sit down and concentrate on what you’re reading.

Creative Writing websites vary enormously

  • Some, like Let’s Get Writing, offer a blog – usually on writing matters, often monthly. You’ll soon find out which author style suits you.
  • Others are unashamedly commercial sites, selling courses, critiques, competitions, books, videos etc.
  • Many combine the two: writerly advice plus opportunities for shopping.

So, I’m going to offer just a few websites and webinars that I have found interesting and/or useful over the years. Do have a look, and if you have your own favourites, perhaps you’d like to share them with Let’s Get Writing readers – via the Feedback form.

Websites

  1. Helping Writers become Authors by Katie Weiland – an award-winning site with absolutely loads of advice. Her books are highly recommended too.
  2. Kill Zone – written by 11 top American crime writers (including James Scott Bell and Terry Odell), so mostly for thriller, mystery and crime writers but a good read for all. They also do First page critiques, plus advice, anecdotes, wanderings, and a huge list of other writing websites.


3. Reedsy – this is a marketplace so lots of selling, but also articles, plus The 50+ best writing websites of 2025

4. Writer’s Digest – American print magazine which I have subscribed to before now. In-depth articles, plus 100-word story competition – good for getting going and group activities

Webinars

Again, hundreds available but do look carefully to see if there’s a cost. Sometimes, organisations will charge £40 for a webinar of between one and two hours. If you know and like the presenter, absolutely fine. If not, try the free ones first.

Webinars can be live or recorded. I tend to mostly watch the live ones as you can often ask questions, make comments and interact with other writers.

These are the two I’m most familiar with:

Authors AI. Their main business is using AI to analyse your novel. There’s a free version, plus paid ones. I’ve used both and find them most useful. They also put on regular webinars, usually presented by AI co-founder Alessandro Torre (see left), interviewing an American (usually) novelist. They last half an hour and can be entertaining and interesting. Recommended.

I also recently joined a webinar run by Jericho Writers, called Big Picture Editing, which was well-presented, well-structured and offered a different look at editing. Recommended.

Other companies that run free webinars include: Lulu Publishing; Curtis Brown Literary Agency; Reedsy;  BluePencil Agency and WriteAcademy.

If you have experienced other webinars that you’d like to pass on, please do so through the Feedback button.

Last month I asked if anyone had experience of writing courses. Writing friend Brian contacted me about the courses he’s been on at the City Lit in London. It’s near Lincolns Inn Fields and the address is 1-10 Keeley St, London WC2B 4BA.

Here’s Brian’s experience:

My first course there, after retirement, was an introduction to journalism. I enjoyed two terms, met interesting people but failed to write any memorable articles. Perhaps, because as I later discovered I enjoyed writing stories that were only seemingly true. My next course was an Introduction to Short Story writing. This was a good mixture of prescription and practice. Over ten weeks, we wrote three long stories, receiving comprehensive feedback on the originals and two further edits. I was more in my creative comfort zone now. On two further creative writing courses, I wrote enough stories to fill an anthology and, much late, when I discovered Lulu, a self-publishing website, I published First Coarse, a pun on the standard of my writing and its source.

The next stage in my writing journey was to investigate travel writing at the nearby Mary Ward Centre. Here, I discovered I had forty years of history, featuring journeys taken in my many cars, to fill a book.  I used Lulu to self-publish to publish Road Works –  the drives of a lifetime.

In more recent times, I’ve attended one day courses on writing for children, one on straight storytelling and one on picture books. Both courses provided a good foundation of the elements required for each genre.
Thank you, Brian.

Happy writing in March and April. I’ll be back in May.

Linda

Blog for January/February 2025

Courses for Writers

I mentioned back in November that I would write about some of the courses I have done over the years – the good and the not-so-good bits. The good ones I have named. The not-so-good ones I haven’t, because they might well have improved by now. And there hasn’t been a single course that I’ve attended where I haven’t learned something about writing.

Firstly, why should you, as a writer, go on a writing course?

  1. As I said above, you WILL learn something new, however experienced a writer you may be, and whatever your genre and level of expertise.
    It may be about writing itself – structure, plot, characterisation, dialogue, pacing etc. It may be about the basics – grammar and punctuation.
    You will also learn about publishing and selling your writing, including editing, agents, submissions, competitions, self-publishing and marketing. Things have changed so much in publishing even in the past ten years that it’s well-worth keeping up to date with how the industry works.

2. Feedback is SO important for writers, and courses can be a really good way of finding out if your writing works for other people – both the experts running the courses and your fellow writers.

3. Going on courses will motivate you into improving and continuing your writing. There’s nothing like a few days or a week being totally immersed in writing to keep you going and realising what you are capable of.

4. Taking part in course exercises or working on your own projects will increase your portfolio. Nothing you write need ever be wasted. Make sure you keep all your writing – who knows? A suitable competition might crop up, while trends in subject matter change all the time.

5. And writing courses can be very sociable. You may well develop new friendships and even a writing buddy or two!

Courses can be in person or, nowadays, there are so many online opportunities.
The courses that I have found the most useful in recent years have been online with the Curtis Brown literary agency.

I did one six-week course in which there was a recorded video lesson every week from an established writer in my chosen genre, plus exercises, some of which you were encouraged to submit to fellow writers for feedback. At the end, you could also pay an extra fee for tutor feedback.

4-week courses cost from £135; 6-week courses £230; 3, 6 and 8-month courses range from £1500 upwards.

Here’s the link to the Curtis Brown page.

Curtis Brown also run online Bootcamps – these are for a month at a time, where you are given a prompt every day for a 700-word piece and asked to submit a piece every three days for feedback from fellow participants. I did two of these bootcamps and found them ideal to get me back into a regular routine. They are extremely reasonably priced at £40 each.

Hundreds of courses

If you search for writing courses on the Worldwide Web, you will find hundreds. They can be run by literary agents, colleges, groups, companies and individuals. I would suggest trying to find someone who’s been on the course that interests you – personal recommendation is the best. Or contact the course provider to ask the questions you have.

Not at all conducive

Having said that, a writing friend went on a most productive retreat down in Devon. Daytime was spent writing in your own room or, if preferred, in quiet company in the public areas. All meals were provided. In the evenings, there was plenty of writerly chat with other participants, with readings and critiquing.
I went to the same place more recently and was dismayed to find that I was the only writer of three people staying that week – the other two having won the retreat in a (non-writing) competition. I didn’t find my room particularly conducive to writing all day, and having to creep along a corridor to the bathroom at night was the last straw – I didn’t stay long!

Out of action

And there was the time I went on a residential week’s course in Wales. I’m not naming the venue as the week turned into a disaster! A rather virulent tummy bug hit nearly all the participants. I was out of action for two days and just managed to drive home afterwards instead of joining friends to climb Snowden! But the course itself did give me valuable feedback on the opening of a novel which I am now editing with a view to self-publishing later this year. I was also introduced to the Zig-Zag method of cause and effect for story writing which I now use for all my stories. And I still have, and refer to, my notes on the tutored sessions I was able to attend!

Finally I want to mention a place that I absolutely loved in the eighties and nineties: the Earnley Concourse in West Sussex. It was an adult residential learning centre offering a whole host of courses in a lovely setting, complete with garden peacocks! I attended eight courses there, on art, croquet and photography, as well as three excellent writing courses.

One of those was run by Frederick E Smith, author of the novel 633 Squadron which was made into a film starring Cliff Robertson and George Chakiris (on TV again this Christmas!). Such a shame the centre closed many years ago and the site is now being considered for housing.

I hope I’ve given you some encouragement to look at going on a writing course. Do let me know if you have your own experiences to share here.
Next time, I’ll write about Creative Writing webinars and websites.

Happy writing!

Linda

November blog

Solo or Sociable

What sort of writer are you? And is there a right or wrong way?

This month I thought I’d address the topic of how do we write – completely alone, with someone, or in a group? What’s best and what might work for you?

We all have our own way of writing, and it might change depending on what we’re writing, our mood and our situation. On holiday, I like nothing better than to go to a beach, preferably where there’s no-one else about. If it’s warm, I’ll sit on the beach; if not, in the car. Staring out at the waves invariably puts me in a good mood and I have spent many hours writing happily in such a state.

At home, I’m fortunate to have a small office that looks out onto my garden. And although this is where I do a lot of writing, unless I’m really in the “zone”, I find there are too many distractions. You’ll probably recognise some!

  • that flower bed definitely needs weeding
  • I must put the bins out
  • a friend has phoned up for a chat
  • I’ll just Google that research point
  • just a quick peak at my e-mails!

Is writing alone the way to go?

If you read the opinions of famous writers, it would seem so!

Ernest Hemingway said: ” Writing, at its best, is a lonely life. You must be prepared to work always without applause.”
Gustave Flaubert: “Writing is a lonely life, but the only life worth living.”
Franz Kafka: “Writing is utter solitude, the descent into the cold abyss of oneself.” 
And on a brighter note! Margaret Atwood: Writing is alone, but I don’t think it’s lonely. Ask any writer if they feel lonely when they’re writing their book, and I think they’ll say no.

No distractions

What these writers are saying is that the actual physical work of writing is best done on one’s own with no distractions. But I firmly believe there is a place for writing with others, and meeting and/or socialising with other writers. There are so many options: it’s just a case of finding what works for you.

  • A writing buddy
    A fellow writer you’re happy to spend time with, in person or, if circumstances demand, on a screen. You might talk about writing; you might swap pieces and critique them; you might spend the time in relative silence to write.
  • A group of writers
    The group could meet weekly, set homework, read out and critique each other’s work. They could be monthly meetings, some with a guest speaker, others as manuscript critiques.
  • Classes/workshops
    Many adult education colleges run these, so too do individual writing groups, writers, publishing companies etc etc. They vary – in quality, makeup of participants and price! Personal recommendation is probably one of the best ways to choose. I love them! I always manage to get motivated by going to a class, and if you find a really good tutor, that’s a bonus, so too a writing buddy.
  • Residential writing courses
    Many are held in lovely parts of the country with meals all catered, one-to-one sessions, guest speakers and critiquing sessions. They tend to be attract what I term “serious” writers and can be very sociable.
  • Online courses
    These seem to have proliferated in the last ten years with publishing houses in particular offering a whole range of topics. Again, some are quite pricey. They can vary from one-day webinars, to three or six-week or even six-month courses, with some offering the opportunity to critique each other’s work.
  • Free online courses
    These often take the form of webinars – often by authors, agents, editors and publishers. I find the half-hour ones the most accessible as anything longer, I have found, can deviate from the main topic and you end up not getting much out of them. Again, speak to your fellow writers and ask which ones they recommend.

In the New Year I hope to blog a bit more about courses, telling you about the ones I’ve found useful and enjoyable. If anyone has similar stories they’d like to tell, please do send them via the Feedback button.

So, is it best to go Solo? My preference to is to write on my own, in silence, resisting telephone calls and emails. And then, to go to any or all of the above to be sociable, and to keep up my motivation and learning.

Happy writing.

Linda

October/November blog

How much is too much?

Do you like reading paragraphs or even pages of description? Do you love every detail of every place, building, street, garden, house, furniture, person and their pets in a story?

Or do you sometimes find yourself skipping over some of those paragraphs, hoping to find the action or conversation that will take the story forward.

It is too easy to include a lot of information in fiction writing, believing it to be essential to the story. But when there is a description overload, then I feel the author hasn’t given enough thought as to what the story needs.

…there is a fine line between precision and self-indulgence

This is a quote from Natalie Goldberg’s book Writing Down the Bones – one of my favourite “How To” books on Creative Writing. It was written in 1986, sold more than a million copies and has been translated into 12 languages. (See link below)

I came across this particular quote when I was reading a few chapters (they are very short) the other day, hoping for inspiration. I got it! What immediately came to mind was those long passages of description that I have, unfortunately, been reading (or skipping) in quite a few books recently.

What is description? It could be setting the scene, describing someone’s clothes, or taking the reader through a five-course meal.

Please don’t get me wrong: I am very much in favour of using personal experience and/or research to bring authenticity to a story – you have to if you don’t want bland writing that doesn’t connect with your readers.

But how much is enough?

We’ve all probably done some research for a story, whether it’s the latest technology for a sci-fi tale, or what clothes they wore in the 15th century. Having done the research, we want to put it to good use. But that is the point at which you, the writer, must identify what the READER needs to know, rather than what YOU know.

Ernest Hemingway had his “Iceberg” theory: “If a writer of prose knows enough of what he is writing about, he may omit things that he knows and the reader, if the writer is writing truly enough, will have a feeling of those things as strongly as though the writer had stated them. The dignity of movement of an iceberg is due to only one-eighth of it being above water.”

Over-writing is often described as PURPLE PROSE – writing that is showy, overly flowery; drawing attention to itself rather than progressing the story.

Sadly, new writers often tell me that “the words just poured out of me, so they have to be good, don’t they?”

I’m afraid not. That’s PURPLE PROSE at its worse – masquerading as words that flow when they and the plot have been well thought out and the author is thinking about every word.

How to avoid Purple Prose or
The dividing line between precision and self-indulgence:

  • Try not to use too many adverbs and adjectives – stronger verbs and nouns are far more effective. Using too many weakens the verb or noun while the occasional adverb or adjective will make much more impact.
  • Don’t search for fancy verbs – keep them simple but strong.
  • By all means use similes and metaphors, but not too many and certainly not too close together. With metaphors and similes we are trying to give the reader an image but they will only get confused if there are too many different metaphors and similes close together.
  • Don’t describe everything. Keep descriptions to the things that matter to your story.
  • Try to mix descriptions with action and dialogue.
  • Only use vocabulary that your Point of View character would use.
  • Always think of what the reader needs to know (and how much they need to know) rather than what YOU know.

Don’t mistake Purple Prose for Literary Writing. We could spend hours discussing what, exactly is Literary Fiction! Authors of literary fiction are experts at using the right adjective at the right time, the right amount of description and the right words, even long ones, at the right time. Their writing flows and is beautiful to read. In addition to using metaphors and similes in the right place, they often employ other literary devices such as hyperbole and personification.

Genre writing on the other hand tends to be more direct, with more conversation and often more action. I believe it is just as hard to write good genre fiction as it is to write literary fiction. The choice is yours!

Happy writing!

Linda

Click here if you’d like to buy Natalie Goldberg’s book.