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    Writing courses, free resources and webinars, and developmental editing Writing courses, free resources and webinars, and developmental editing
    • Home
    • Mentoring
    • Retreats
      • Venice Writing Retreat
      • Stow-on-the-Wold Writing Weekend
      • Karoo Writing Retreat | Memoir & Fiction Getaway in South Africa
    • Courses
    • Resources
      • Free offerings for writers
      • Downloadable writing resources
      • Blog
    • About
      • About Us
      • Testimonials
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    Archives

    Tag Archives for: "becoming your characters"
     Writing Secrets: What does your character do in his spare time?
    0
    By Jo-Anne Richards
    In Jo-Anne Richard's blog, Tips for Writers
    Posted October 31, 2018

    Writing Secrets: What does your character do in his spare time?

    What books does your character read, if any? We all know, or we should, that one of the most crucial parts of writing fiction involves developing your characters. Build them, grow them into whole [...]

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    We asked South African author of the Tannie Maria We asked South African author of the Tannie Maria mysteries and @allabtwriting community member, Sally Andrew, what top three writing skills she treasures more than Tannie Maria’s rusk recipe. 

Which skill are you going to implement in your own writing?

Sally’s latest book, Wild Things Never Die, is out now at all good bookstores. 

#allaboutwriting #southafricanauthor #writingtip @sallyandrewkaroo
    #WritingAdvice #StoryCheatsheet Choose an intrigui #WritingAdvice #StoryCheatsheet
Choose an intriguing world for your story 

Readers want to know whose fortunes they’re following – but they also want to know something about the world of the hero. 
So it pays to set your story – or at least begin it – in a world somewhat different from your reader’s. 
Ann Cleeves sets her murder mysteries in the Shetlands which are just sufficiently different to be interesting in their own right. Ditto Donna Leon, who sets her murder mysteries in Venice. 
In Elmore Leonard’s Bandits we learn within the first few paragraphs that his protagonist has worked for a few months in a mortuary, and the opening scene has him watching his boss uneasily as he sucks out a client’s brains.

Want to build a tale that holds together, pulls your reader in, delivers a satisfactory climax, and burnishes your reputation as a story-teller? 
Whether you’re writing a novel, a piece of creative non-fiction or a screenplay, we’ve put together ten pointers to help light your way. 
Download the complete All About Writing’s Story Cheatsheet on our website under resources. 
www.allaboutwritingcourses.com

#writingcommunity #allaboutwriting #writingtips #writingadvice
    A splash of colour for this week’s writing motiv A splash of colour for this week’s writing motivation as we celebrate the lead-up to summer. 

The theme is observation - I’ve often written about the need for writers to observe. It strikes me that true observation is about much more than watching, however. It requires patience and it demands that you look deeply. It demands that you pay attention.
Observation involves more than your eyes: it draws on memory – what is different, what has changed...

Read more in your inbox this week and if you don't subscribe already sign up now via the link in bio, and if you do, share it with a friend.

#WritingCraft #WritingTips #AllAboutWriting #WritersOfInstagram #AmWriting #WritingMotivation #FictionWriting #WritingCommunity #CreativeWriting #WritingAdvice
    #WritingAdvice #StoryCheatsheet Introduce your her #WritingAdvice #StoryCheatsheet
Introduce your hero doing something 

You need to introduce your protagonist in an intriguing or striking way. Give him or her something to do. Have her water-skiing. Have him writing a suicide note. 
In Iain M Banks’s Consider Phlebas, the story starts with our hero trapped in a cell while raw sewage is being pumped into it. There’s only an inch or so of air at the top of the cell – and even that is closing rapidly... 
Your protagonist cannot afford to be passive even if at the start of your story they’re in a bad place – shaking with withdrawal symptoms, waking up in a pool of their own vomit, captured by agents of the enemy and lacking (apparently) all agency. 

Want to build a tale that holds together, pulls your reader in, delivers a satisfactory climax, and burnishes your reputation as a story-teller? 
Whether you’re writing a novel, a piece of creative non-fiction or a screenplay, we’ve put together ten pointers to help light your way. 
Download the complete All About Writing’s Story Cheatsheet on our website under resources. 
www.allaboutwritingcourses.com

#writingcommunity #creativewriting #allaboutwriting #writingadvice #writingcraft
    *FREE WEBINAR* The Creative Writing Skills that Ma *FREE WEBINAR* The Creative Writing Skills that Make the Most Difference✍️

If you've ever wondered which writing skills are truly worth your time – the ones that, once you grasp them, genuinely shift the quality of your work – this is the webinar for you.

Join All About Writing co-founders Jo-Anne Richards and Richard Beynon for a free live webinar to share the creative writing skills they believe make the biggest difference.

Not a long list of things to work on. Not vague advice about reading widely and writing every day. Between them, they've selected the specific skills that they return to again and again when working with writers at every stage: the ones that, when writers really understand and apply them, transform their storytelling.

This webinar is for writers at any level. Whether you're still finding your feet or you've been writing for years and feel something is missing, you'll leave with a clearer sense of where to focus your energy – and why.

Live Zoom Event
🗓️Monday 4 May 2026
🇬🇧17:00 to 18:00 UK time
🇿🇦18:00 to 19:00 South Africa Time
✍️REGISTER VIA LINK IN BIO

#writingadvice #writingcommunity #allaboutwriting
    Happy Publication Day to @bonnieespie for Lifting Happy Publication Day to @bonnieespie for Lifting the Lid. Bonnie has been a long-time member of the All About Writing Community and is part of our mentorship programme. Bonnie is proof that writing is a mix of craft and passion. Well done on Book 2!

#allaboutwriting #writersofinstagram #bonnieespie #southafricanwriter #fictionwriting
    *FREE WEBINAR* The Creative Writing Skills that Ma *FREE WEBINAR* The Creative Writing Skills that Make the Most Difference✍️

If you've ever wondered which writing skills are truly worth your time – the ones that, once you grasp them, genuinely shift the quality of your work – this is the webinar for you.

Join All About Writing co-founders Jo-Anne Richards and Richard Beynon for a free live webinar to share the creative writing skills they believe make the biggest difference.

Not a long list of things to work on. Not vague advice about reading widely and writing every day. Between them, they've selected the specific skills that they return to again and again when working with writers at every stage: the ones that, when writers really understand and apply them, transform their storytelling.

This webinar is for writers at any level. Whether you're still finding your feet or you've been writing for years and feel something is missing, you'll leave with a clearer sense of where to focus your energy – and why.

Live Zoom Event
🗓️Monday 4 May 2026
🇬🇧17:00 to 18:00 UK time
🇿🇦18:00 to 19:00 South Africa Time
✍️REGISTER VIA LINK IN BIO

#writingadvice #writingcommunity #allaboutwriting
    ✍️In this week’s Monday Writing Motivation I ✍️In this week’s Monday Writing Motivation I ask a very important question for any writer - is your title pulling its weight?✍️

When I first started thinking about the Clatterbridge series, I called the opening novel Murder on the Allotment. It did the job. It told you there was a murder, and it told you roughly where. But every time I typed it, something nagged – a faint dissatisfaction I couldn't quite name. Yes, it followed the pattern established by scores of cosy murder mysteries available on the market and yet precisely because of that, it landed with the leaden thud of cliché.

Read this week's newsletter to find out how I worked through my title choices, what I finally landed on, and why I believe your title is doing TWO jobs. 

#WritingCraft #WritingTips #AllAboutWriting #WritersOfInstagram #AmWriting #WritingMotivation #FictionWriting #WritingCommunity #CreativeWriting #WritingAdvice
    Finding yourself stuck in your writing? 👇 Rick Finding yourself stuck in your writing? 👇

Rick Melvill shares his #1 Tip for keeping his writing on track with All About Writing's Jo-Anne Richards. For the full replay of "Telling Your Story: How to Start, How to Keep Going", visit our blog. 

Sign up for our newsletter for news on our FREE monthly webinars, courses and more. 

www.allaboutwritingcourses.com

#writingtips #writinglife #writingcommunity #allaboutwriting #creativewriting
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    NEWS & TIPS
    • The Creative Writing Skills That Make the Most Difference: Key Insights from Jo-Anne Richards and Richard Beynon
      The Creative Writing Skills That Make the Most Difference: Key Insights from Jo-Anne Richards and Richard Beynon
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