Category: Contemporary Women Writers
How to Write the Point of View of an Alpha Male
The name Douglas MacArthur conjures up the image of a maverick World War II hero who liberated the Philippines and rebuilt Japan—handsome in his trademark khaki uniform, sunglasses, and corncob pipe. Is there anything more macho than MacArthur’s somber gaze? Google the name and you’ll see what I mean. My historical novel, My MacArthur, is […]
How I Found my Literary Agent
Three years ago, I was a freelance writer with an extremely long Word document chilling on my hard drive. Today, those 98,000 words mark my shift from aspiring writer to fiction author: The Lost Night is coming out from Crown. My novel is a thriller about a woman uncovering the dark truths surrounding her best […]
The Paradox of Inspiration
My father was the proverbial rocket scientist. He had more than 120 patents on everything from missile guidance systems, to seals for airplane windows, to antilock braking systems. I can remember, as a little girl, waking up and being told by my mother to be quiet because my father was sleeping. He had awakened with […]
Locations Can Be Characters Too
I treat the settings for my books as if they were people. If that sounds a bit mad, stay with me and I’ll try to explain. What are your favourite childhood memories? Pretty much all of mine take place outdoors. Whether it’s blackberry picking with my mum and sister (returning home with telltale purple hands […]
My Writing Journey: Life began at Forty-Four
I’ve always been a late starter in my life. I was twenty before I had my first alcoholic drink, twenty-five when I lost my virginity to a man, thirty-six when I got my driving license and fifty when I first had sex with a woman. And so it was with writing, I didn’t start until […]
Silk and Writing
Liz Trenow, author of The Dressmaker of Draper’s Lane, published by Pan Macmillan on 21st February 2019. I have written six novels and four of them were inspired by a single thing: silk! I was born and brought up next door to a silk mill in Sudbury, Suffolk. My family have been silk weavers for […]
My Writing Tips And Advice
First up, if you have been thinking of writing and haven’t started, I suggest you do. It won’t write itself. You must unleash the demons so to speak and get writing. Don’t let any disabilities stop you from writing. If writing is your passion and you have dyslexia or are on the Autism spectrum disorder […]
No Mystery Here! Cozy British Mysteries—How They’ve Inspired Me to Write
I’ve been drawn to all things cozy mystery my entire reading life. My favorites in particular are British cozy mystery series—where I can get to know the characters (at least the surviving ones) and watch them develop and grow over the years. I consider Agatha Christie’s Poirot, Miss Marple, and Tommy & Tuppence (OK not […]
ANYWAY
Anyway is an adverb. I am not fond of adverbs. My first drafts are peppered with them until I go back over the text and score most of them out. I like the sentence to have made an impact without the insertion of an amplifier although there are exceptions. ‘Anyway’ is different. Anyway is often […]
COMEDY WOMEN IN PRINT PRIZE
I knew I had to pursue a comedy fiction prize when I was met with 100% enthusiasm, not one doubter – well, only one literary agent, who said she didn’t think there was ‘enough funny female fiction out there to justify a prize’ so I said “exactly! – that’s why we need this prize!” – […]
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