January 2022 Blog Posts (6)

The golden rules of writing

This is a subject I come back to from time to time in my blogs because, however experienced the writer, it is useful that I/they keep reminding myself/themselves about the golden rules. Get them right and everything else falls into place.

Every writer will have their own versions. Mine are:

Do not write for yourself, always write for the reader. Provide them with what they need to understand the narrative (but hold things back for later in the story).

Be disciplined -…

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Added by John Dean on January 31, 2022 at 11:42 — No Comments

A matter of vengeance

 A quick reminder that DCI John Blizzard is back in The Vengeance Man, the latest of my crime novels to be published by The Book Folks.

In the novel, a teenager gets the fright of his life when he sneaks into a graveyard for a crafty smoke and is chased away by a man dressed in black, screaming dire threats.

Rumours of such a local…

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Added by John Dean on January 27, 2022 at 11:11 — No Comments

Book comes out on Kindle

The recently-published 100 Ways to Write a Book, which comprises author interviews about the craft of creating stories, is now available on Kindle, having previously been in paperback only.

The book started life as a small lockdown project with editor Alex Pearl asking authors for interviews and the project rapidly developed into what is a…

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Added by John Dean on January 26, 2022 at 9:39 — No Comments

Celebrating the Kirkcudbright effect

I am delighted to have had a piece accepted for a new book that celebrates the way that Kirkcudbright in Dumfries and Galloway inspires writers.

Kirkcudbright Encounters started life as a fightback against the dismal days of Covid and features local writers.

It is published by The Stewartry Writers and Friends, who include members of…

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Added by John Dean on January 14, 2022 at 9:39 — 2 Comments

Keeping things interesting

One of the challenges with writing a series of novels is the need to keep them fresh so that the readers do not become bored.

There are various ways to do that, including developing facets of the recurring main characters and continually coming up with inventive storylines, but also important is the creation of new characters, either to appear regularly or as one-offs.

I am always interested in what triggers a new character for a writer. When and how do they burst into life? I…

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Added by John Dean on January 13, 2022 at 10:30 — No Comments

Authors offer insights into the craft of writing

I am delighted to be one of the authors to be featured in a new book that examines the craft of writing.

Titled 100 Ways to Write a Book, the publication  comprises author interviews initiated by Alex Pearl during the Covid epidemic and which started life as a small lockdown project. Before long, Alex’s requests for interviews elicited an…

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Added by John Dean on January 4, 2022 at 10:00 — No Comments

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An exciting character

Author Ian Robinson has a new crime novel out - and it’s attracting plenty of glowing reviews. Criminal Justice (The Book Folks) introduces undercover police officer Sam Batford, a man who walks the narrow line between successful detective and corrupt cop. The novel sees him sent to work with a serious crime team in London in an investigation which sees him play the good…See More
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Authors highlight different ways of starting to write a book

I have just started writing my next crime novel and I have more time to concentrate on it now that Kirkcudbright Book Week, which I help organise, has come to an end for this year.In fact, the subject of how best to begin a story cropped up during Book Week, not least when I chaired an in-conversation event at the Selkirk Arms, featuring crime writers Traude Ailinger,…See More
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Tackling the dreaded blank first page

 I am working on a new DCI John Bizzard crime novel for my publisher The Book Folks, and that means being faced with the dreaded blank first page.So, how do writers get going under such circumstances? How do they start writing their story? Well, in this hectic world, I have always felt that there is a lot to be said for holding back and allowing myself a little time to…See More
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