It was a common opinion that you simply do not write in second person POV. No one really went into detail about why. It was one of those typ

Your story will have many problems that arise – Fred not having any peanut butter is a problem, but it’s not THE problem

Whereas a setting provides the physical environment for the scene, world building adds the abstract. It encompasses the setting while also

The industry panellists in the crime writing master class: Oli Munson, literary agent; Alex Saunders, Fiction Editor at Pan Macmillan; Vikki

I always go into a submission with an open mind, but lately, when time travel becomes the obvious subject matter, I find myself groaning...

Have something happen in your story. Seems obvious, yes? And yet, we receive so many stories at the mag where this is not the case.

But the other thing a stereotype does within a reader is to trigger their prejudices without them even realising it, and you can play on tha

Without his characterisation such as it is, the ghosts would never have visited, meaning the plot would never have taken its first steps for

Our preceding posts this month have emphasised the need for planning in order to succeed at reaching our 50k goal in November. But no...

WriMo’s Ebbs and Flows NaNoWriMo tends to have its own pacing structure that many-a newbie unwittingly falls into. Here is an idea of...

Success is All About Preparation If you are not familiar with NaNoWriMo, its name stands for National Novel Writing Month, or more...

What is the most important point to consider when writing a mystery? How do I create a three-dimensional character? What is the purpose of a

It’s a question every writer asks themselves and yet it can be one of the most elusive answers to obtain. Why? Most of us can string a...

If you haven't explored who your characters are, how do you know what decisions they will make? How will you know what markers to use? H

Your climax is what your whole story should be building towards, and the conflict and tension should be rising up like a wave ready to crash

Sticking to a writing routine at Christmas is probably the hardest thing. Well, who around here is busy, busy, busy? In all honesty,...

So, here’s an approach that might help you if you are uncertain on what your Nano project should, or would, look like, or if you’ve never wr

Have you ever thought about writing? Dreamed about writing a book or a story? Create something out of nothing? Writing is one of the most li

One of the ongoing raging debates in fiction writing is about whether to use passive voice. The general rule is to not use it, opting for mo

...Without spending a packet. *Free online resources to improve your writing.* First of all, let’s get poetry out of the way. For you...