VAL PENNY

It is a delight to welcome my friend and fellow author Elizabeth Ducie back to the blog to learn more about her writing and what she...

Authors vary a great deal in how they prepare to write their books. Some plot carefully using rolls of wallpaper to display their story...

I am thrilled to introduce my readers to my friend and fellow author Alex J. Adams whom I met when I attended Books on the Beach run by...

Every writer understands the importance of support and encouragement from others who understand their passion. Writers' groups, writing...

I only started my writing career after I had been treated for breast cancer and took early retirement. Who would have thought that...

One of my favourite topics is books. let me share with you five of my favourite books that I would count amongst the most memorable or...

In contemporary literary studies, a theme is a central topic, subject, or message within a narrative. Themes can be divided into two...

Last month I attended my very first book signing. It was Books on the Beach at Blackpool run by the force of nature who is the author and...

Many years ago when I first attended The Writers' Summer School that meets each August at the Hayes Conference Centre in Derbyshire,...

It is my pleasure to welcome Charlie Tyler back to the blog today to discuss her experiences as a published author. Thank you for your...

A gripping plot can only carry an interesting story if it is carried by convincing characters. When I an creating a new character I start...

It is my pleasure to welcome back to the blog my friend and fellow author, Michelle Cook. Michelle writes dystopian fiction and I'm...

I suppose I should start this article with a disclaimer because, in reality it is mis-titled. Swanwick is a little village in Derbyshire...

This month I visited the Theakston's Old Peculiar Crime Writing Festival in Harrogate for the first time this year, largely because my...

I have had the pleasure of knowing bestselling author, Morwenna Blackwood for many years and recall the impact her amazing debut novel,...

I am delighted to have a chance to tell you about Hunter’s Rules , the new novel in my series of DI Hunter Wilson Crime Thrillers. I have...

The synopsis is every author's nightmare. If you have written a novel of 90,000 words, to condense it into a few hundred words is a...

The main setting for the DI Hunter Wilson Crime Thrillers is Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland. It is so important that it is almost...

I tutor, lecture and teach writing. I have also penned eight bestselling novels, and have found that authors often struggle with some...

Writing gives us as authors lots of leeway to tell our story in the way we want to. We want to use humour as a way to engage our readers....