For all writers in the NE of England: explore all kinds of non-fiction writing – autobiography, specialist articles, opinion pieces, writing for the internet, travel writing and much more, in this 8-week course. Starting Friday, 5 October 2007, 10.30am at the Centre for Lifelong Learning, Newcastle. Continue reading ‘Non-fiction writing course’
Archive Page 21 of 22
I’ve just relaunched my children’s book, Donovon’s Rainbow as an e-book, and made it available as a free download. Or you can buy print copies of the book; 10% of all sales will go to Beautiful Gate Ministries, supporting HIV Aids orphans in Africa. For more information click here.
Who are picture books for? In Britain, North America and Australasia, books with pictures are still largely for children. In the Far East where ‘comics’ are for adults as well as children, the graphic novel is a respectable art form. Thankfully, Western readers and publishers are finally coming around to see the value of illustrated stories for adults and the graphic novel is taking on a more literary slant. For an excellent discussion of this read Sunday Times Online. But as this is a series on writing for children, we will focus on what are commonly known as ‘picture books’. Continue reading ‘Writing for children: Picture books’
Mysteries and thrillers are always popular reads. Like any writing for children and young people, the content of these books will vary across the age groups. However, there are certain mystery and thriller conventions that will help you write a compelling story. Continue reading ‘Writing for children: mysteries and thrillers’
A couple of years ago I had one bad month with two copyright infringements in a row. The first came with the morning post. It was a corporate brochure for a holiday company I had recently done an article on for a women’s magazine. I paged through the brochure, wondering if I’d ever be able to pay to go on one of their weekend getaways, when something very familiar jumped out at me. It was my article, word for word, picture for picture, as it had appeared in the magazine. I couldn’t believe it. Continue reading ‘Protecting your copyright’
Following on from How to get started in feature writing The Crafty Writer would like to introduce you to the basics of writing for magazines and newspaper supplements. In the previous article I stressed that you should get yourself some training then work on building up a small portfolio of work by doing freebies for charities or student publications. Once you’ve done that, you can approach an editor and hopefully get your first paying commission. Continue reading ‘The basics of feature writing 1’
I was recently asked ‘what makes a good children’s book’? My answer was it’s the same combination of factors that make any good book – is it original, well written and with the intended reader in mind? Of course, unlike adult books, you also have to consider the illustrations, but if children’s books are going to fail it is more likely on the words than the pictures. As a mother I’ve read far too many beautifully illustrated books to my daughter that I’ve had to put in my own words because the existing text doesn’t do the job properly. It’s a scandal. With that rant over, let’s look at some factors that adults should look for when buying a book for a child. Continue reading ‘What makes a good children’s book?’
He slipped his hand under her shirt and fumbled with her bra clip. She held her breath in anticipation, but after nearly 60 seconds of oxygen deprivation, forcefully exhaled: “For pete’s sake get on with it!”
But should we, as adult writers of books for children and young people, be ‘getting on with it’? How far is too far? Do we have to include sex, love and romance in our storylines? Continue reading ‘Writing for children: sex, love and romance’
Most of my articles are written with years of experience behind me. But this is an exception. Only a year ago, I decided to start writing again for the theatre. As a fresh-faced, cellulite-free twentysomething, I wrote for an amateur theatre company in South Africa called Mirror Image. Now, ten years later and living in the UK I thought I would try going professional. Continue reading ‘Getting started in playwrighting’
Ask any freelance and they’ll tell you one of their biggest worries is payment: when they’ll get paid, how much they’ll get paid, if they’ll get paid. When I first tried freelance work after being a staffer, I soon discovered I had to become a hard-nosed businesswoman as well as a top-class journo. For some, this comes more naturally than others. Continue reading ‘What to do when you don’t get paid’
