1. December 2008 by Geoff.

One of the key pieces of advice that bubbles to the surface of my consciousness time and time again is, “to write well, you have to read well.”
That means reading the chosen piece twice. Once for shear enjoyment and then a second time to analyze the authors technique and craft points.
It also means, reading what you want to write - be it technology articles, poetry, literary fiction, historical non-fiction, travel writing, short stories, or mysteries in all their glorious sub-genres.
It’s a tall order and that is why sometimes, picking a genre or theme and sticking with it is so important for new writers.
Focus and practice, not every four weeks, but every day develops a flow and a rhythm and there is no better way to do this than writing a short blog on a subject that interests or entertains you.
The blog can be set to private for you alone or shared with only those you nominate, at least until you’re ready to face the world or have it face you.
If anyone would like help or advice in setting up there own blog drop me a line.

In the meantime, I can recommend reading Andrew McAleer’s “The 101 HABITS of highly successful novelists” available on Amazon.

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14. November 2007 by Geoff.

As I mentioned there are numerous sources of guidance for the beginning writer. In my mind one stands out above others and that is:

Writing for Story
Jon Franklin

More details at Amazon - reviews are “wow this is great” to “anyone who needs this must be a bad writer”.

Guess I know where I stand.

Stay tuned for others that have a permanent place in my growing collection.

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13. November 2007 by Geoff.

A jumble of books on the craft of writing competes for space on my crowded bookshelves. One book never finds a resting place there.

It is possibly the best book on writing non-fiction or fiction that I have ever read and has become a go to reference work due to its simplicity of structure and working examples.

I read it cover to cover and now dip in to it for specific topics.

The book makes use of two Pulitzer Prize-winning articles written by the author, who explains in detail every aspect of their construction and execution in easy to understand terms. The author also describes his process for focusing on the key points of the story and achieving a result with which the reader can resonate.

The appendixes contain a dissection of each article with no less than 292 annotations defining the reason or purpose of each word, phrase or thought in the articles.

The small paperback book is truly a remarkable aid to understanding the craft of writing for story.

So what is this book - I’ll reveal that in my next post.

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