That Bloomin' Apostrophe!

Cartoon, apostrophes

Source: The Apostrophe Protection Society

Briefly, possession and omission. Yep, it’s that easy.

People get very hot under the collar about apostrophes, me included. First my mother, then my wonderful English teachers – Mrs Campbell and Miss Robson – eradicated any nonsense about misuse out of me at an early age. Like other […]

Trust your reader!

When we write, we hope that somewhere, in some way, somebody will read it and embrace the message we are sending. When we receive an email from a reader saying they ‘get’ our concept and book world, or when a reader comes up to us at a book event and says it to our face, […]

The political author's dilemma

Reposted after update 2024

Bit of a tricky one, this.

Whatever genre you write, something of you, the author, creeps into your work. Perhaps it’s shades of your opinion, your wishes or even your frustrations. Perhaps you are writing a story that you wish you were living in a far, far away place and […]

Aged writers?

Probably done through ignorance, carelessness or thoughtlessness, this graphic aroused some strong reaction in the digiverse.

Some thought it silly, others were mortally offended. Most were insulted.

I think it springs from a sincere wish to attract mature writers, those who haven’t been able to write a creative work because of family or work commitments […]

Writing retreating

Left to right: Me, Carol Cooper, Jean Gill, Jane Davis, Karen Inglis, Clare Flynn, Lorna Fergusson in April 2024

No, I don’t mean retreating from your writing, but going on a writing retreat.

A retreat implies withdrawing from the world.

A writing retreat implies getting away from the everyday and being able to […]