staying motivated – girl and duck

Finish your freakin’ novel. Here’s why

By: girlandduck October 29, 2017

Uncategorizedcreative writing, creativity, finishing novels, how to write a novel, how to write books, inspiration, learning to write, staying motivated, submitting a manuscript, submitting to publishers, writing, writing advice, writing endings, writing fiction, writing tips4 Comments

I’ve often been asked by aspiring authors if they should send three sample chapters to a publisher and try to get a contract that way. Alarm bells. If that’s what the publisher is asking for, by all means send them sample chapters. Always give them exactly what they want. That’s, ‘How to be an Author, 101’.…

How to become a better writer

I wrote my first picture book in the 1980s. It was about a teddy bear. Mr Bear spent several hours dangling from a clothesline. Gripping stuff. I popped my story in an envelope and sent it to a publisher. Six months later when the rejection slip arrived, I stuck it to the wall above my typewriter.…

Do you compare yourself to other writers? Let’s break the addiction

This week on Duckie TV, we kicked off Q & Q Friday 2017, with a mindset question. A duckie wrote to ask if I ever compared myself to other writers and if so, how did I cope with it. Hello? Did I ever compare myself to others? Hell, yeah! I’ve even tried to dress like my favourite…