Part of the myth of writing is the amount of time spent in front of a screen. Or a notebook. Or however you do it. Time away from tapping away on that keyboard is time wasted, we think, and sit and try to get something, anything, down on the page. But of course, it doesn’t… Continue reading 52 dates for writers: a review
Category: writing
Bronte Festival of Women’s Writing
There was no possibility of taking a walk that day.* At least not in Nottingham. But as I drove up the M1 the rain cleared and a sliver of blue sky appeared through the clouds. I was on my way to Haworth, or to the Bronte Festival of Women’s writing, put on by the Bronte… Continue reading Bronte Festival of Women’s Writing
Word up
The Oxford English Dictionary is asking for people the world over to vote for their most disliked word. It’s an interesting exercise as I imagine more people will be able to come together over what they don’t like than what they do. But after thinking and discussing this a little, I think people select words… Continue reading Word up
Writing as catharsis
Do you view your writing as somehow cathartic? I’ve been pondering this subject in the last few days. A lot of people use writing to deal with the world, especially though journalling or writing therapy. And some of those writing tip memes that you see flashed around the internet often talk of living life first, experiencing… Continue reading Writing as catharsis
Writing East Midlands conference
I spent Saturday in Loughborough. Not words I’m usually happy to utter but this was different – I attended Writing East Midlands’ Writers’ Conference at Loughborough University. It was a cold grey morning as we arrived and troughed down the refreshments, all clutching our cream and blue goody bags and piling into the auditorium. I… Continue reading Writing East Midlands conference
National Libraries Day
It’s late, I know. My blogging has fallen off in recent weeks and I can only blame the day job workload and a stinking cold. But a quick few words because it’s National Libraries Day. My first library was a bus. A mobile library that came to the close where I lived. I on’t remember… Continue reading National Libraries Day
Slashing… and mortifying realisations
I’ve been tackling draft three of the book. This is the slasher one. I added about 7,000 to the word count with the second draft, filling in gaps, adding scenes and so on. I knew I would add to the word count – for one thing a character who was pivotal to the plot only… Continue reading Slashing… and mortifying realisations
The broken pushchair by the back door or… writing with a family
I don’t know if it’s a current trend or coincidence but I seem to have seen quite a bit of chat about mothers who write recently. Some pieces have advice about finding writing time, others are just describing what it’s like and more still, ponder that it’s not the same for men. Practically all of them… Continue reading The broken pushchair by the back door or… writing with a family
A writer’s Christmas list
Stuck for what to get the writer in your life for Christmas? Need a few stocking fillers? There are loads of literature-inspired gifts out there but for practical useful gifts, here are my recommendations: Coffee. All the major chains do gift cards, or you can get beans delivered. Being a Nottingham-based lass, I recommend you… Continue reading A writer’s Christmas list
Unthank Books – How to Write a Novel
Having had a case of the wobbles mid-way through rewriting my book, I did what I often do when I’m panicked about something, I enrolled on a course. Unthank Books, based over in Norfolk, publish fiction and teach creative writing. A three month online course on something called How to Write a Novel looked just the… Continue reading Unthank Books – How to Write a Novel
Susan E Barsby 