TIPS FOR WANNABE WRITERS

KEEP IT SIMPLE

There is no such thing as writers’ block. Get on and write.

Once done, edit it. Accept that your work has to change, that it’s going to evolve. Join a writers’ group and dare to send your work there. I decided to do a creative writing course AFTER two of my books – one an award-winning bestseller – were published.

You should be able to pitch your book in one or two sentences. As Steven Spielberg said ‘You can pitch any movie idea in 27 words.’

Do not overcomplicate storylines. Take five of your favourite books, extract the main arc and you’ll be able to write the story in three sentences or less. An example: a giant shark in the sea and three men going into the ocean to face it. Are they going to win? That’s basically Jaws, right?

Write the main idea of your story on a Post It, stick it on your workstation and refer to it frequently to stay on track.

Once written, read your book out aloud. It should sound right. Every piece of work you write should have its own melody, rhythm and pacing. It should have its own beat. This hooks readers in, keeps them flipping the pages over.

Your objective should be: When a reader closes your book they feel a little bereft because they are not going to be hearing your music and are going to be living without your character.

Figuring out what you DON’T need in a narrative is important to take your novel forward. There is no room for everything that a character does. Choose just the ones that’ll take the story forward.

An example: I’m a big fan of Jane Austen. But do you know who Mary in Pride & Prejudice is? She’s one of the sisters but nobody knows what she does other than play the piano. Question: do you need so many sisters in the novel? I’d probably lose at least two of the sisters. Lucky for Jane Austen I was not an editor back in the 1800s.