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 -…

 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…

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…

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…

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…

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…