Tag: women writers
How I Fell Into Writing
People often ask me ‘when did you know you wanted to be a writer?’ And to be honest, I didn’t. Writing novels seemed like a job for people who lived “Overseas”, not for people who lived in Zimbabwe. I was, however, a great reader. I often got told off for reading when I was supposed […]
Shouting From The Rooftops: Self Promo
Way back in the mists of time (2000) at the instigation of author Margaret Murphy I was one of seven northern crime writers who clubbed together to launch Murder Squad. We created a website, produced a brochure and were soon appearing at libraries and festivals throughout the country to promote our work. The impetus for […]
Sex, Lies & Scotch Tape: Exposing Secrets & Healing Wounds WITH Your Characters’ Help
Successful albeit intensely secretive husband wires all of your money out of the country, forges your name, abandons you and your two young children, leaving you with less than $1 in your bank account, and then he vanishes—never to be seen nor heard from again. It’s as though he never existed … A page-turner, right? […]
How to Write about Something You Know Nothing About
I recently began taking piano lessons as an adult, and I can now tell you this for certain: I am no musician. On the first day, when I told my piano teacher that I wanted to learn to play ragtime, she said: “Why does everyone always want to tackle the hardest music first?” I didn’t […]
Lessons Learned From The Brooklyn Book Festival
Never having been a vendor at a book festival, I jumped at the chance to share a booth at the Brooklyn Book Festival with two other She Writes Press authors, Sande Boritz Berger, author of The Sweetness, A Novel and Liz Gelb O’Connor, author of The Angelorum Chronicles and Caught Up in Raine—romantic women’s fiction. […]
Symmetry and Picasso: What I’ve Learned From My Third Grade Art Students About Writing
Every year I present a week-long program at my kids’ elementary school called “Art Goes to School.” It’s a wonderful idea sponsored by the local art institute. I meet with volunteers weekly throughout the fall to study a portfolio (which changes annually) of about 20 reproductions of pieces located in art museums throughout the world. […]
Pieces Of Me: Rescuing My Kidnapped Daughters
“You should be glad you didn’t get your girls back yet,” a friend told me while we were in line at a coffee shop. “Your book will be that much better.” It was 1995, and I had just returned to Alaska from Greece after my first failed attempt to rescue my kidnapped daughters, taken by […]
Science and Writing
The spot I chose for my first ever experience of wild camping was on a Scottish cliff top overlooking the North Sea. It was the third day of my camping holiday and, although the previous two campsites had provided running water and toilet facilities, I’d had very little sleep for 62 hours. There was a […]
The Kindness of Strangers
Three years ago the opportunity came my way to interview Fay Weldon for the Historical Novel Society. To say I seized on the chance would be an understatement. Weldon is a household name, a woman whose writing career spans 5 decades, who has written 34 novels and many short story collections, TV dramas and plays […]
I Can’t Believe You Said That- Using Dialogue to Build Conflict
Dialogue is a critical component of your novel. It shows character, provides an opportunity to move the plot forward, and increases your pacing by breaking up large narrative blocks. This article focuses on how dialogue can also help build the conflict in your novel. All novels require conflict. Agents, editors, and readers rarely feel that […]
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