How to start a novel – holiday or chaos?
I’m at that wonderful, scary, exciting, fearful point of starting to plan a new novel. The first glimmerings of ideas are beginning to come. The romantic view would be that they are like whispers in…
Openings
It was like they weren’t there. This is the opening sentence of my novel The Breaking of Liam Glass. Why did I write the opening as I did and not in one of a million…
The Boots Scribbling Diary
Every year, when I was between about nine and thirteen, I’d buy one. A Boots Scribbling Diary. On New Year’s Day, I’d open it up and gaze at the empty lined page, headed January 1st.…
How to find new ideas? The blank page is your friend
Don’t know how to find new ideas? Your mind blank? We say we’re afraid of the blank page, but in fact the empty page is exactly what you need. As long as you start to…
How to ask experts to help research your script
Whatever your story, it’s well worth spending a little time and effort speaking to the best experts in the area – from divorce to the side-effects of digitalis. Their knowledge can solve plot problems, enrich characters, generate dialogue and create unexpected twists. But how do you get them on your side?
What if your story is unconvincing?
Here’s a very nice blog post about what to do if you suddenly lose faith in what you’re writing
Write with conviction in 2013
The writers and filmmakers who work with determined conviction are the ones who will succeed in this industry.
Four steps to starting a compelling script
People often ask how to get ideas. Of course ideas are all around. What they mean is where do you find ideas you know will work. Ideas that will stay alive and grow. Nothing is certain, but I’ve found these four steps will ignite my blue touch-paper.