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I’d like today to write a disquisition on walking.  The subject might fascinate me because I am myself so bad at it. Whatever the reason, though, I’m sitting now on […]

We climb the stairs to the first floor of Ca’della Corte and mill about around the long dining room table. Liza says, out of the blue: “Persiflage…” “Persiflage?” I say. […]

I am fascinated by memory because it is at once so precise and so vague. I am astonished that our brains hold within them the minutiae of events and incidents […]

Unmotivated action is unbelievable and erodes the relationship between writer and reader. If, as a reader, you don’t believe that a character is capable of a given act, then you […]

Some of the best stories ever written have great antagonists. Join us on Thursday 15 April for a free webinar on writing the antagonist. Here’s your chance to ask Michele […]

We meet Alexander musing moodily about the impending dissolution of his marriage. He wonders whether there isn’t any chance of rescuing it. He agonises over the effect of the breakup […]

Creating compelling characters that you and your readers care about is essential in getting your readers to invest in, and engage with your characters. Join us for a free writing […]

In my early twenties, I fell in love with Mordecai Richler’s Joshua Shapiro, the protagonist from his novel, Joshua Then and Now, and spent years searching for someone just like […]

I don’t know about you, but there are characters from books that I remember quite as clearly as the people I grew up with. They are as real to me, […]

When I was at university, the writer whose new books we anticipated most was Kurt Vonnegut. He was cool. He was committed. He wrote books that straddled the line between […]

We like to say that the best beginning – of a book or short story – should contain a hook and a promise. Hook your reader, and promise them more. […]

How self-aware should your fictional characters be? It’s a decision that needs some consideration, since it’s part of your protagonist’s make-up and personality. There is no short answer either. [...]