Writing Secrets: Listen for your character’s place in the world
Develop a character’s voice well and we’ll immediately understand more about their world view and their place in the world. Last week, I spoke about the importance of voice for […]
Monday Motivation: The Writer, the Hero, and his Journey
Let me make a quite unremarkable observation that writing a story is, in its own right, a Hero’s Journey. Join me as I trace the Writer’s Journey over the course […]
Writing Secrets: It’s voice that allows us to share their highs and lows
Develop your character’s voice if you want us to share in their highs and lows, get to know them and care about them. But what does that really mean? Sure, […]
Monday Motivation: When gobbledygook makes senses
Primer is a little movie that was made (and written, and edited and starred in) by a guy called Shane Carruth. It’s one of those legendary stories that buzz around […]
Writing Secrets: What’s the secret to getting published?
I was asked this again just the other day, and my heart always sinks: “How can I get my book published?” I understand, I really do. I know the feeling […]
Monday Motivation: Buttresses and rickety walls
It’s called “argument by authority” and all the best rhetoricians frown on it. A bad argument, they say, is not improved by quoting an authoritative voice in support of it. […]
June Newsletter: Let’s hear it for the bad guy
This month we’re going to stand up for the bad guy. Not only will our new competition back him, but we thought it worth giving a little thought to the […]
April/May writing challenge results
An excellent crop of entries for this competition. Remember what the challenge was? A reminder: “Your perspective character finds a body – he or she could be a detective, but […]
Writing Secrets: Tips for making reading an immersive experience
A character is running through a crowd. She elbows passers-by, bumps into someone, shoves aside a group… Okay, we know what she’s doing, but we’re not there with her. Not […]
June/July Writing Challenge: Time to get opinionated (and win a literary report)
All About Writing’s latest writing challenge offers the winner a mini book report on the first 5000 words of your manuscript (or detailed feedback on 5000 words of writing) worth […]
Monday Motivation: Machines for thinking
Book festivals are taking over the world – or at least limited patches of it. James Naughtie, who helms a number of book programmes for the BBC, was present at […]
Cape Town Creative Writing Course: 3 alumni share how All About Writing changed their lives
Dr Adalbert Ernst was passionate about English, but became an anaesthetist. It was during a period of burn-out that he realised he’d been “robbed of something fundamental”. Gail Gilbride, [...]
