The more I talk to writers, the more I realise the passion that they hold for their art and one subject that seems to evoke stronger reactions than most is ‘where do stories come from?’

This comes to mind because I am teaching a plotting masterclass at Greenfield Arts Centre in Newton Aycliffe on February 16. There are those writers who argue that ideas come out of real life experiences. You go through it as a writer, therefore you are able to best tell the story.

Others recoil…

Crime novelist and creative writing tutor John Dean has launched an online Crime Fiction Course.

John, author of 12 novels published by Robert Hale, and the creator of DCI John Blizzard and DCI Jack Harris, also runs Inscribe Media Ltd, which is based in Darlington in North East England, which will be offering the course.

The online course, which runs in eight parts and can begin at a time and date to suit the student, will help writers to improve their technique and improve…

The season of Open Mic nights for authors will  continue on Thursday January 26..

The nights, supported by Darlington for Culture and which offer a forum for writers to read their material and audiences to enjoy it, run at Voodoo Café/Cantina, 84 Skinnergate, Darlington, on the last Thursday of the month.

Now in their sixth year, the nights have…

I am doing two beginner's masterclasses at Greenfield Arts Centre in Newton Aycliffe in February and March - you can email me on deangriss@btinternet.com for details

Good story writing depends on many things but can be boiled down to three factors, the triangle.

At the top is the narrative, a strong story, plenty of pace, a tale that enthrals the readers.

At one bottom corner is a sense of place, a strong sense of where the action is taking place.

At the other corner is a sense of being, the creation of characters strong and interesting enough to carry the story.

Get…

I am running two masterclasses as part of Darlington Arts Festival 2017

Saturday May 6

A Touch of Villainy–   Crime Fiction Masterclass

Friends’ Meeting House, Skinnergate, Darlington 10am-4pm

Run by crime novelist John Dean, the creator of the DCI John Blizzard and DCI Jack Harris series of books, this masterclass shows you how to create a crime novel

Booking in…

The new season of Open Mic nights for authors will continue on Thursday November 24. The nights, supported by Darlington for Culture and which offer a forum for writers to read their material and audiences to enjoy it, run at Voodoo Café/Cantina, 84 Skinnergate, Darlington, on the last Thursday of the month.

Now in their sixth year, the nights have given dozens of writers from Darlington and further afield the opportunity to read work including poetry, short stories, novel extracts…

The Open Mic night for authors season continues on Thursday May 26 as part of Darlington Arts Festival.

The nights, supported by Darlington for Culture and which offer a forum for writers to read their material and audiences to enjoy it, run at Voodoo Café/Cantina, 84 Skinnergate, Darlington, on the last Thursday of the month. Each session starts at 7pm and the cost of entry is £3 paid on the door.

More information is available from Inscribe Media Limited at…

Darlington Arts Festival has seen a new series of events this year in the form of three In Conversation With… events featuring published authors. The third and final one is

Monday May 23 In Conversation with …..crime and thriller writers Mike Beck, Roger Barnes, Bud Craig and Pam Plumb, the final evening in the festival’s In Conversation With published writers series. Crown Street Library 7pm

Chaired by crime writer…

The UK-based Crime Writers’ Association has asked book lovers across the nation to nominate their favourite crime authors for the 2016 Dagger In The Library award.

This literary prize is a unique part of the Dagger Awards because the nominations are made by crime readers and are in celebration of an author’s entire body of work, not just one individual book.

The CWA continues to be inspired by readers, who flock to libraries to devour crime books. The Dagger In The Library was…

Sometimes, I find myself telling a student that they ‘have given their idea’ away, by which I mean that the idea for a story is a really good one but that it has been wasted.

For instance, I worked with a writer with…

Sometimes, I find myself telling a student that they ‘have given their idea’ away, by which I mean that the idea for a story is a really good one but that it has been wasted.

For instance, I worked with a writer with…

Returning to my occasional theme of young writers, we run an open mic for writers in our home town of Darlington (next one Thursday September 24, Voodoo Café, 7pm) and several of the writers who read from time to time are teenagers.…

Novelist John Dean is running an online mentoring and writing workshops programme for aspiring authors.

John, who is based in Darlington, in County Durham, North East England, and has had twelve crime novels…

Following the news that we are to run an online crime fiction course (details on the home page) I thought it would be useful to look at how to write a good crime story:

* The story should be strong and one that can be told in a short story (most crime stories are novels)

* Create a strong sense of place - the reader must be able to visualise where the action happens

* Create strong characters - do not stray into cliché, make our…

Crime novelist and creative writing tutor John Dean has launched an online Crime Fiction Course.

John, author of 12 novels published by Robert Hale, and the creator of DCI John Blizzard and DCI Jack Harris, also runs Inscribe Media Ltd, which is based in Darlington in North East England, which will be offering the course.

The online course, which runs in eight parts and can begin at a time and date to suit the student, will help writers to improve their technique and improve…

 I am one of the panellists at the Carlisle Crime Writers' Weekend taking place on June 12-14- full details can be found in this pdf crime%20writing%20programme%20landscape%20interactive%20.pdf

I am one of the authors appearing at Darlington Arts Festival in May

Saturday May 23

2.30--4pm

A Life of Crime

Darlington Art Gallery, Crown Street Library, Darlington

Darlington-based crime writers Bud Craig, whose recently published second novel is Dead Certainty, Mike Beck, author of Harry’s Torment, and John Dean, whose latest novel is A Breach of Trust, talk about their life of crime, including explaining why they love the genre and readings from their…

Got a story to tell? Keen to be a writer? Then this could be your big chance

Creative writing tutor John Dean is be running his popular courses at the Friends’ Meeting House in Skinnergate, Darlington and bookings are now being taken for the Summer 2015 course.

The adult learning courses, previously staged at Darlington Arts Centre, deal with all aspects of creative writing, focusing primarily on prose, including short stories, novels and other forms of writing as well…

The Open Mic night for authors season continues on Thursday April 30. The nights, supported by Darlington for Culture and which offer a forum for writers to read their material and audiences to enjoy it, run at Voodoo Café/Cantina, 84 Skinnergate, Darlington, on the last Thursday of the month. Each session starts at 7pm and the cost of entry is £3 paid on the door.

More information is available from Inscribe Media Limited at…