Giving constructive criticism can be scary, especially when it's a friend asking for your feedback. Here's my guide, based around eighties pop songs...
Tag: editing
Finding an agent is a lot like speed dating - you get one chance to catch their attention, you have to communicate a lot of information about why you're perfect for them in a short amount of time, and you're surrounded by others doing exactly the same thing...
Let's face it, new writers make many of the same mistakes. It's great that you've got a great story and characters you love, but it's the little things that take your writing into polished territory...
I admit it. I'm an over-writer. I write my way into scenes and all the way back out of them, I write whole chapters that don't need to be there. My first drafts are ridiculously long. I know this because I throw away more words than I end up with. My first edit starts with … Continue reading Does Size Really Matter?
We’ve all had ‘helpful’ advice about becoming a writer like, ‘Just write’, ‘If it’s important to you, you’ll make time,’ or even ‘Inspiration shows up when you’re working’. I put helpful in quotations because, when you’re staring at a blank page, they’re no help at all...
When people ask if they can read my novel, my response is always: “Yes, but only if you promise to be harsh.” Perhaps it’s that I overwrite so much in the first draft, or perhaps that I fall in love with the characters too much...
