Category: On Writing
Growing Up in a Golf Cart
My book was born on a golf course. Which may sound strange since the book has nothing to do with golf or sports of any kind. It makes more sense when you consider the hours I’ve logged with my family looping around golf courses from Miami Beach to Southern California. For all practical purposes, I […]
My Writing Journey: Sheila Patel
‘I just write…. I write it as I see it and if it makes me laugh, I write it down’ When I was growing up, I loved watching movies, the funnier the better. Jerry Lewis, the Marx Brothers and of course, Laurel and Hardy. I grew up in a huge Punjabi family in the textile […]
The Pale Blue English Racer
I was the only kid in the sixth grade with a fat-tire Schwinn. No one had those anymore. All my friends were riding English racers with hand brakes and gears. I asked for a new bike, but my father said they were too expensive. Then one Christmas morning, I woke up to find a skinny-tire, […]
How The Weather Influences My Writing
The idea for a novel does not usually arrive—for me at least—in a sudden “aha” moment. It is a process that takes place over time. Some of my ideas have lived in me for years like spores I scarcely knew were present until they found the fertile soil in which to sprout. Weather Woman was […]
From Idea to Full Length Novel
How it all began When I’m not writing crime novels I write a monthly column for the UK magazine, Writers’ Forum and have done so for the last eleven years. Called “Ideas Store”, I get to ask other writers the question every writer is said to dread: “Where did you get that idea from?” It’s […]
You Are Not Alone
Many people, I think, imagine writers alone in a room in front of a computer screen furiously typing their stories. While this is absolutely true for me, I also email all day with a few close author friends until we need a new thread because so many messages are flying back and forth. We talk […]
Q and A with BARBARA TAYLOR BRADFORD
Barbara Taylor Bradford, OBE is one of the world’s best loved storytellers. Her 1979 debut novel, A Woman of Substance, ranks as one of the top-ten bestselling books of all-time, with more than 30 million copies in print. To date, she has written 35 novels — all bestsellers on both sides of the Atlantic. Master Of His […]
Lies, Shame And Social Media: The Inspiration For Shame On You
In my novel, Shame on You, a much-adored Instagram celebrity, Holly, is the victim of a sudden, violent and unprovoked attack. Her legion of followers are shocked. Holly is the dream they all aspire to: healthy, fit, and beautiful. Every post of a yoga pose or smoothie bowl inspires envy. But as the world delves […]
Persona: When the Voice Is Not Your Own
This whole process began with hearing voices. I was working in my journal one night when this voice began, with no prodding, no expectation. It was strong and sure, a woman’s voice, dictating lines, whole poems. The first scribbled line was, Well I guess this is the freak show. I was shaken, to tell the […]
How Do You Get From 0 to 1? From Dreaming to Writing, Writers Tell Their Stories
After I graduated from college, I wanted to write a novel. I’d had this dream ever since I could remember. But first there was the small matter of supporting myself. I didn’t look for a full-time job; I wanted a job that would earn me enough money to pay for rent and food while still […]
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