Oh dear reader. I'm tired. So I'm blogging. Why do I always want to blog when I'm tired? It's perverse, right? (Global comment. Expect more typos and grammatical faux pas than usual.) It's raining. Steady, soaking, let's-pretend-it's-winter rain. Somewhere it's a Cup Day. Melbourne? Bendigo? Kyneton? Moscow? Dunno. There are so many cups and so …
My Slow Living Experiment
Slow living, how it worked for me. Planning my days, running my biz, writing books.
How to handle rejection. Or here’s what Jane Godwin said…
How successful authors handle rejection.
Dressing your Characters. Why Clothes Matter!
How you dress your characters makes a huge difference to your story-world.
Here’s why minor characters are important
I remember reading one time, that the difference between secondary characters and minor characters is that minor characters don't speak. Sometimes they don't even have names. This definition confused me. All my stories have minor characters who speak. Sometimes they have quite a lot to say. Does that make them secondary characters? Is that how they …
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Oi! Here’s an easy way to liven up your stories
Does your writing sometimes feel a bit, erm, pedestrian? The following post will give you some fresh ideas, help you shove more energy into your stories. Dear Diary Will letters, notes, doodles or lists add interest to my stories? Yours sincerely Inventive Author These days kids have words and images coming at them from all …
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Who said what? The importance of tagging dialogue in kid lit
I've read loads of manuscripts that start out funny or entertaining or full of potential. Then the dialogue kicks in and, quite frankly, it's a birdy's breakfast. Nothing will baffle an editor faster than poorly tagged dialogue. Do not overlook this if you want your manuscript to win friends and influence people. If you want editors and publishers …
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Here’s where writers often stuff up. (Part Two of yesterday’s post)
When I worked in publishing, I was surprised by the number of unsolicited manuscripts that had wonky tense. Not the occasional transgression. They crop up in most manuscripts. I'm talking about tense that was a bit like time travel. Totes all over the place, girlfriend. Past, present, here, there, everywhere. Now, when I teach IRL (in real life), …
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Why all writers need a secret stash
Early this year I was interviewed by a rather pompous character called, Bookworm. It was for a Channel 9 kids TV show. I'll let you know when it screens... At one point during the interview, Bookworm said, 'I hear you collect words.' I said, 'Who told you that?!' Bookworm was taken aback (and that's saying something). …
The Q & Q Files. How do I know when my book is ‘finished’?
Yes! (Dainty air punch.) This is the first of many transcripts I'll be sharing with you, dear reader, over the coming months. Q & Q Friday (questions and quacks), straight from Duckie TV to you!I got words. I got videos. I got sound files. I got the lot! It's a veritable picnic of advice, opinions and... …
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