by Teika ‘Strange days’, ‘unsettling times’, ‘unprecedented situation’. These are just a few of the phrases that most of us will have come across on a regular basis in recent weeks. It’s almost becoming clichéd to use these words about the current Covid-19 pandemic, and yet those phrases do adequately describe what we’re living through. […]
Are you honest about your writing goals?
by Teika January, of course, is the month for setting goals. Many of us have plans for ‘getting that novel published’ or ‘acquiring an agent’ or ‘finally doing something about that poetry pamphlet’ in the year ahead. Goals are good. Dreaming big is good. They are both incredibly useful since they enable you to make […]
What’s more precious? Time or money?
by Teika Recently, I’ve led a spate of workshops to do with the business of getting published. One question that’s cropped up a lot is whether it’s worth paying for editorial, mentoring or publishing support. My answer, in essence, is yes. But, it does come with a question – what is more precious to the […]
Fairy tales and the lessons they offer writers
By Teika As someone with a keen interest in fairy tales and their psychological richness, I cannot help but be aware of their continued applicability, even in today’s publishing world. We make sense of the world through stories, so I thought it may be of use to run through some common narratives to glean some […]
The cost of cons and invisible returns
By Teika: When I recently totted up the costs of attending Ytterbium, the name for this year’s annual Eastercon (the annual UK science fiction convention), it was rather disheartening to see that: petrol + car park fees + tickets for the con + table costs + hotel costs + food + drink = a lot […]
A marathon of sprints
By Tom: Writing a book takes time. Unfortunately, time is a resource that is precious and limited, and for those of us without wealth or patronage, it usually has to be found in stolen, fragmentary moments. This can seem to be at odds with the sustained discipline needed for writing a novel or non-fiction book; […]