How to write your first novel

Ever thought of writing a short story or a novel? It’s often said we all have a book inside, but just how easy is it to put pen to paper and create something someone else wants to read?

Three published authors who live in Luxembourg and write in very different styles, reveal how they got started, what inspires their writing, help with feedback and editing, and the routes to publication.

Zoé Perrenoud has written a trilogy of what she classifies as dark, young adult fantasy. The first one, Bloodlender was inspired by a garden exhibition at the Pompidou Centre in Metz where “there was an Italian garden full of fantastical statues.”

John-Paul Gomez, famous for his blog Luxembourg Wurst, had his first book of short stories entitled The Idiot of St. Benedict and Other Stories published last year by Black Fountain Press. It won the National Literary Competition in 2022.

“All my stories are off-kilter or weird, or as the publisher described – dystopian. In most there is a bit of darkness more than hope,” he explained.

James Leader describes himself as a poet primarily and then a novelist, and most recently published a book of poetry entitled High Talk. Nevertheless, he has published three novels – Chickendance, The Mysteries of Gogos, and The Venus Zone. He will be launching his new novel Into Babel at the Walferbicherdeeg on Saturday 16 November.

To read the full article on luxtimes.lu, click here