Hi everyone, I’ve just published another book! This one is factual, but written in a ‘tongue in cheek’ story style. Aimed at 12+ age group, it’s ideal to read around a campfire in the woods after dark… Available on Amazon in paperback or ebook. Click here to order on Amazon. The video trailer for the …
Writing is one of the most important skills anyone can possess. Having the ability to express yourself through the written word is invaluable. Writing offers both physical and mental benefits, and is a tool that can be used for many purposes by anyone. In communicating with others, writing gives you the opportunity to express yourself …
There are a lot of knowledgeable writers out there helping fellow writers to write, publish, and market their work. Even better – some of them do it for free! Whatever you think about the internet, you can’t deny that it’s a help for writers. I thought I’d write a post about the useful people and …
People ofter ask authors if the setting and characters in their books are from real life. Although the setting – the village of Tyneford – is from my imagination, it does have similarities to where I grew up in a rural corner of Hampshire. Sadly, most of that corner is now covered in houses. We …
‘When the first conker falls’ – Setting and characters Read More »
Living in Hampshire, local writers have a lot to live up to! World-famous, talented authors have lived here in Hampshire – some were born or buried here. It is a highly literary county! Charles Dickens was born in Portsmouth in 1812. Amongst his famous works are A Christmas Carol, Oliver Twist, and Great Expectations. Jane Austen …
People always ask ‘Where do you get your ideas from?’ It’s a very difficult question to answer. It seems to me that I have a glimmer of an idea that’s like a puff of smoke, and slowly, sometimes over the course of weeks or months, it solidifies and starts to shape itself into a story. …
Writing Inspiration for ‘when the first conker falls’ Read More »
Does the weather ever remind you of books you’ve read and loved? It does for me. A long hot summer will always make me think of Leo losing his innocence and falling for Lady Marian in The Go-Between by L.P.Hartley – and I can’t listen to a thunderstorm without thinking of the poor boy being …
And isn’t grammar odd! Yes, there are rules, but there always seem to be exceptions. But It’s is quite straight forward. The apostrophe means there is a missing letter or letters. So it could mean ‘it is’ or ‘it has’. And that is the only time there should be an apostrophe included. Its means ‘belonging …
It’s, its, it is: the oddities of grammar and does it really matter? Read More »
“Oh what a tangled web we weave – when first we practice to deceive .” I love this old saying by Sir Walter Scott. Well expressed and so true, it needs no explanation. It has always made me picture a deceiver (liar) as a spider, although I doubt that was Scott’s intention. Nevertheless, I always …
