advice | Alison Morton Author

Chapters – Entitled or just a number?

Is it better to put a title at the beginning of each chapter in your book or should you merely put a simple number? I’ve never used chapter titles when writing my own books although I’ve absorbed them when reading other books.

What do chapter titles do?

They can act as promises of what’s […]

Summer vacuum – the time of little writing

Updated and republished

Hooray! Summer is here; warm, lazy days, extra wine, days out with the family and friends, a holiday away. Mmm.

We have two scenarios before us:

The first:

You have a deadline looming, your fans are waiting, your muse is bashing away in your head with fantastic scenes you simply must write. […]

Carol Drinkwater's notes on writing

I’m delighted to welcome writing friend Carol Drinkwater to the blog. She’s a multi-award winning actress and writer, possibly best known for her portrayal of Helen Herriot in the BBC’s original television series, All Creatures Great and Small.

Carol is the author of twenty-four books, both fiction and non-fiction. She has achieved bestselling […]

Are you a pantser or a plotter?

Photo courtesy of Jessica Bell

Do you sit down at the keyboard and just write, a vague idea of the characters and their story swirling around in your head? Do you just throw stuff at the characters and see what happens? Then you’re a pantser* who writes by the seat of […]

Defeating copyright scams

The other week, I received a very legal seeming email for a German based company called Copytrack alleging that I had breached copy right of a photographer they represented and demanding the following:

Image license (valid for 1 year from date of purchase) 389€ Compensation costs (past usage) 350€ Payment due June 5 2025

(Can’t […]