Middlebrow? What's so shameful about writing a book and hoping it sells?
theguardian.com – Thursday November 5, 2015
Reading the recent Sydney Review of Books essay, Could Not Put It Down, it’s difficult to work out who its author, Beth Driscoll, intended to insult the most: readers for liking middlebrow books, writers for having the temerity to write them, or publishers for bowing to the demons of commerce by printing them.
Ten things I learned about writing from Stephen King
theguardian.com – Saturday October 31, 2015
The novelist James Smythe, who has been analysing the work of Stephen King for the Guardian since 2012, on the lessons he has drawn from the master of horror fiction
Publishers sell empty calories, but kids want meatier books
thetimesherald.com – Friday October 30, 2015
In 1998, when I first presented the concept for the children’s TV series Blue’s Clues to a roomful of television executives, my proposal was met with nearly complete skepticism. At the time, conventional wisdom held that children were afflicted with “short attention spans,” yet I was proposing a continuous 25-minute narrative, which is more than seven times longer than anyone believed the attention of a preschooler could be held. The only way to get preschoolers to engage with a TV series, the executives insisted, was to give them easily digestible bits of content in a “magazine format,” like most other preschool series.
Virginia Pye On Books, Publishers & the Dreaded Sophomore Jinx
huffingtonpost.com – Thursday October 29, 2015
We first met Virginia Pye at the James River Writers Conference (another reason to attend what is a great conference) and we were immediately struck by how curious she was. How she asked questions. How she seemed to want to know. We believe this is one of the most important characteristics an author can have, especially one who is starting out, but it really applies to anyone. We were overjoyed when her first novel came out, and now she has a second. We thought we'd pick her brain about what it's like to go through the process the first time, and then do it all over again.
Top tips for writing to frighten
theguardian.com – Wednesday October 28, 2015
Want to write a really scary story? Follow these top tips from Matt Ralphs, author of Fire Girl, and learn how to create the killer combination to make your readers shiver with fear
The 5 Worst Things a Writer Can Say
huffingtonpost.com – Monday October 26, 2015
This past week, I launched my fifth novel, Chance Harbor, provoking a friend to exclaim, "Wow, you're popping out books like Tic Tacs, aren't you?"
She has a point. Six years ago, I hadn't even published one book. It took me a quarter century to land a traditional publishing deal, so nobody could be more surprised--or thrilled--than I am to see my books be born.
These days, I'm often approached by aspiring writers who want to know how I beat the odds. I'm always happy to chat with anyone about writing and publishing, but sometimes I hear writers say things that make me cringe. Here are some of the worst things writers have said to me lately:
Award-Winning Novelist Cecilia Galante Shares The Realities Of Writing As A Profession
forbes.com – Saturday October 24, 2015
As a writer of non-fiction and an experienced blogger, I see myself as someone with a strong grasp of ideas and of the written word. But when it comes to writing an enthralling novel that impacts our understanding of ourselves and our lives, now that’s a completely different animal.
My Writing Education: A Time Line
newyorker.com – Friday October 23, 2015
February 1986
Tobias Wolff calls my parents’ house in Amarillo, Texas, leaves a message: I’ve been admitted to the Syracuse Creative Writing Program. I call back, holding Back in the World in my hands. For what seems, in chagrined memory, like eighteen hours, I tell him all of my ideas about Art and list all the things that have been holding me back artistic-development-wise and possibly (God! Yikes!) ask if he ever listens to music while he writes. He’s kind and patient and doesn’t make me feel like an idiot. I do that myself, once I hang up.
Writing books is not a sane way to make a living
independent.co.uk – Saturday October 17, 2015
Since the beginning of the year I have been writing a book about Star Trek. Next September, it will be 50 years since the first episode (“The Man Trap”) was shown on American television, and although an anniversary isn't necessarily the best reason for a new book, observers of the publishing process will know that it's often a very good excuse. A couple of weeks ago I finished the book and sent it off by email, three and a half months after the original deadline, two and a half months after the renegotiated deadline and six weeks after the absolutely final deadline that could not be breached on pain of death. Douglas Adams's famous comment on the subject (“I love deadlines – I like the whooshing sound they make as they fly by”) speaks to every writer in the world, alive or dead.
Reclusive novelist Dominic Cooper: what do writers do when the words no longer come?
newstatesman.com – Friday October 16, 2015
In 2013, a local paper reported on a strange script chiselled into a stone that had baffled not only historians but US code-breakers for decades. The mystery was solved when Cooper stepped forward and said that he was the secret poet.
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