Writing reviews

February 25, 2014 at 11:32 am

Do you like reading? Do you like to support your favourite authors? Please, help us out and write a review at every book site you visit. You have no idea how much your review (even if it’s only short) can encourage others to try the book themselves. When we authors ask people to buy our books it’s never as convincing as you, the reader, writing an excited review about the book you loved. Of course we’re going to say our book is great! But you can be the difference when it comes to getting the word out about our work. […]

What makes a good novel?

February 18, 2014 at 11:39 am

Do you know what makes a good novel? Sometimes I wonder if I do. This could be a serious problem, since I write them, but I think it’s harder to pin down than most people realise. If you asked everyone this question, most of us would answer differently. With some people the differences would be extreme. Some would definitely mention technique, some might suggest that technique is old hat and emotion is all that’s required. While technique can pin it down for some people, what actually makes a novel a good one can be a nebulous thing. Certainly, not using […]

Do celebrities deserve what they get?

February 11, 2014 at 12:40 pm

If I was sunbathing in my backyard (not gonna happen, I assure you, but this is hypothetical, of course!) and a man peered over my fence and started taking photos of me I’d call the police and have him arrested. Where I live they come down pretty hard on that kind of thing. It’s often equated (deservedly so) with stalking. I certainly don’t think it’s nice behaviour, do you? But it seems that this kind of behaviour is just fine if you happen to be famous. Now, don’t get me wrong, I know that a lot of famous people can […]

Music as a muse

February 4, 2014 at 11:50 am

Are you inspired by music? I am, particularly in my writing. Each of my books so far have featured a ‘playlist’. A playlist is like a soundtrack. My playlists feature songs or music that inspired or helped me write certain scenes. I often have scenes laid out to a particular piece of music and I play them together in my head, with the piece of music playing along with the action. I have found that sometimes a song has changed an already written scene because I can see how well the song goes with the action. For example, in The […]