Category: Being a Writer
Women Vs Thrillers
All writers need inspiration. For me, it’s the “what if” scenario: What if your neighbour turns out to be a serial killer? What if the supermarket at the end of your street is a cover for an international drugs cartel? What if the old man who owns the second-hand bookshop is actually a ghost? It’s […]
Poetry and the Art of Choosing Favorites
I do not have favorite women poets. There, it’s out. I do not have favorite men poets either, so it’s an even deal. What could this mean? After all, I am a poet, a poetic author (I’ve been likened to Jane Kenyon and Annie Dillard), and the owner of T. S. Poetry Press. Oh, and […]
When Life Starts to Resemble your Writing
People often ask me if the mother character, Maman, in The Night Rainbow is based on myself. The short answer is no. I’m not a big fan of ‘write what you know’. So many interpretations of this axiom lead to pretty unimaginative stories. Of course our lives inform our writing, because we have experiences […]
Creativity in Pregnancy
Pregnancy changes us. Hormones flood our bodies and we have no option but to slow down and refocus. Much has been written, often based on anecdotal experience, about the effects of pregnancy on a woman’s behaviour; from welling up at the story of a lost cat being reunited with its owner to retching at the […]
How to Avoid Writer’s Arse
As a full-time writer, I’m lucky that I don’t need to go out to work – or brush my hair, get dressed, and endure getting up close and personal with someone’s armpit on the Tube. No, I can roll right out of bed, throw on my fluffy slippers and robe, and head straight to my […]
Writing with Dyslexia
I wasn’t diagnosed with dyslexia until I was in my twenties and at university. Apparently my tutor thought my handwriting ”looked like someone with dyslexia” and sent me off to be tested. When they confirmed I was, I purposefully didn’t look into what that meant. I didn’t want to be labelled. But as my middle child grows and […]
But Who will Want to Read it?
An esteemed British writer, one whose novels have been published for half a century, advised me recently not to read my own book reviews – unless they’re written by someone whose opinion you respect. Good reviews will make you vain, they told me, and the bad ones will crush you. Since then, I’ve tried to […]
Why Women Write: Part One of Two
We asked, “Why do you write?” To persuade? To inform? To change the world? In 1946, George Orwell wrote an essay called, “Why I Write.” This popular piece explained who he was, and why he decided to become a writer. What were his motives? What were his desires? We at Women Writers, Women Books, however, […]
Words on the page as kernels of possibility: An interview with Belinda Pollard
After reading this post by writer and editor Belinda Pollard, owner of Small Blue Dog Publishing, I knew I had to interview her for Women Writers, Women Books. Communicating via email, we discussed what advice she has for writers and editors, what inspires her, and how being a woman has informed her writing. About Belinda What was […]
Writer and Mother: How Children Can Help (and Not Hinder) the Creative Process
The birth of my first child came as somewhat of a shock. I was relatively young (at least, by today’s standards) and was of the naïve opinion that a baby in my life wouldn’t impact on writing, travelling, hiking, working in the allotment, piano playing or indeed any of these things that I took for […]
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