ADVICE FOR ASPIRING WRITERS

People might have different views on when I started being a writer. Was it when I picked up a pen for the first time on holiday in 1994 and scratched a thousand words of never-to-be-seen again scribble? Or when I got my first typewriter, before home PC’s became a thing? Or was it when I got my literary agent and she was trying to sell my work? Or maybe when I signed my first publishing contract in 2006?

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The answer is personal to everyone. Some people write just because they want to write, and perhaps share it with their friends at a local writing group or workshop. Others write because they want to be published, or have a career as a writer. For me, if I were forced to make a choice, it was when I signed my first publishing contract, because the challenge for me was to prove that I was good enough, nothing more. At school, it was always the one thing I seemed to be good at, and I was fortunate that my choice of degree, law, involved essay writing. I just wanted one book, on one shelf, in one shop, just to prove to myself that I was good enough.

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Now I’m much further down the line, with twelve published novels under my belt, along with a couple of indie novels and books published in foreign languages. It's given me cause to look back on my career and think about how things have changed for me as a writer, and I’ve decided to pass on some of the tips and tricks I’ve picked up along the way.

 

I am not writing this guide because I think I’m a writing genius who can scatter some gold dust. The lessons I’ve learned have been given by editors, critics, and other writers, as well as from reading books about writing books. The purpose of these next few pages is to help guide those who do it in the hope of being published, as well as those who write just for the fun of it. You might not agree with everything I say, and that is fine, but much of what I have to say has been said by much better writers than me, so buckle up.

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But I’ll start with the mantra of Stephen King, which is, “it’s all about the story”. I stand by that. An average writer can write a great story and make it an enjoyable read. A great writer can write an average story and make it an enjoyable read. Of course, the gold standard is a great writer and a great story, but hopefully I can help to avoid an average story by an average writer, because no one wants that.

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The headings are these. If you want to follow the arrows and go through piece by piece, just click and follow. If you want to go straight to the page, just click on the link.

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Right on with the show.

Stop Writing Short Stories
How To Plot
Bite-size Chunks
Arrive Late, Finish Early
Names
Characters
Do I Write What I Know?

Trends
Research
Finding Your Voice
Don’t Show Off
Bad habits
Edit, Edit, Edit
Getting Published​

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