Many of my author friends have an editing issue that seems to be fairly common: their word count on completed drafts is usually 120k+. In contrast, my second drafts are more commonly found in the 45k+ bracket, which means instead of culling scenes or even entire chapters, I have to bulk up my book. Having said that, the last thing I want to do is add words just for the sake of it. They need to have meaning and bring a richer element to the story. Over the past few years, I ha

It was Christmas 2016. I had been out of work for six months, and our finances were still looking good. I was approached by someone in my...

Do you like vanilla? I don’t mind it as a flavour, but I know very few people who would choose it as their favourite, myself included. I...

Right now, I am mired in the editing bog, which is slowly giving way to a polished novel ready for publishing. Many people love the...

This week I had the privilege of critiquing a fledgling authors work. She had written 2,000 words and, feeling stuck, asked for someone...

Although writing is seen as a pretty solitary occupation, no-one can really be an effective writer on their own. They need people who...

I am a published author! As I sit writing this, my first book has gone live and is available to buy on Amazon. It’s a huge occasion for...

When is a novel finished? When I first started writing, I naively assumed that it was when I wrote the last word on the page. Of course,...