writing
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Cringeworthy Cliches Using too many cliches in a story will annoy your reader. An editor/judge wants to read something fresh. He doesn’t want to read that Mabel was feeling sick as a parrot, or that she made it to the bathroom in the nick of time. Nor does he want to know that she lost…
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Be critical Once you have written your article or story, read one in the publication you’re planning to send it to. Then read your own submission. Is yours similar in terms of style, length etc? Would it slot nicely into the magazine and look right alongside all the others? If not, why not? How can…
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It’s nearly a month since I launched my first flash fiction competition and the entries are starting to roll in. It’s been very exciting and thank you to all who have entered so far. In case you missed it, here are the all important details. There’s still plenty of time to enter. Flash Fiction Competition:…
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My writing tip for you this week is a reminder about the importance of: Market Research When you first start writing, you know you need to analyse your target market carefully in terms of readership so you know who you’re writing for, the length of articles/stories the publication uses, the type of article/story the editor…
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We all like to win but you can’t win them all, as they say. I didn’t win first prize this time, but I was chuffed to be awarded the runner-up slot, in a flash fiction competition, with my short story, ‘Dead’. This one was something of an experiment for me. I like trying out different…
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My top tip is a bit of a cheat this week, I’m afraid but I’m having a day off work and going out with my mum, dad and daughter. Here’s a tip to remind you about the importance of spelling: Have a great weekend 🙂
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Since setting my new weekly writing challenge last Thursday (for ten-word stories using the words ‘Easter’, ‘bucket’ and ‘cat’ somewhere in the story), I’ve received some entries for the previous week’s challenge (ten-word stories using the words ‘Friday’ and ‘potato’). They’re too good not to share, so I thought I’d publish them on my blog…
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When a friend of mine had a book published, I bought a copy and happily posted a review on Amazon when he asked. Now I’ve had my own book published I can ask the the same of him, can’t I? I can, but I don’t like asking people if they’d write a review. I’m always…
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Don’t over or under-explain A lot of writers struggle with where to end their story. Some bring it to a close very abruptly and leave readers wondering what on earth happened next and thinking they’ve missed something vital. You don’t have to tie everything up in a neat little bow; it’s fine to let readers…
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Laugh Out Loud We often take life too seriously. Yes, there are awful things happening all around the world and often in our own little corner of the world. We can feel sad, angry, frustrated, disappointed and so on, but if we take everything that’s bad, upsetting etc. and heap it onto our shoulders, it’ll…
Esther Chilton 