I began writing many years ago now – after completing the Writers Bureau course. I first found success in magazines and had a range of articles published on a variety of subjects. Then I had three books on horticulture published as well as courses written for colleges to help students study towards horticultural qualifications – so the markets are varied.

My latest and most successful foray has been into the world of jazz music where I have two columns in one magazine and one in another.
They say write about what you know and this is very true. I began writing about the jazz scene two years ago and have not really looked back, although I keep my hand in with other markets of course. Read the rest of this entry »

Do you remember your first email? I do. My wife showed me how to send it. I sat next to her with a pad taking notes on what and when to click. It all seemed very complicated and, scarily, wasn’t that long ago. Everything’s changed now though – Twitter, Facebook, Linkedin, Google Plus … we’re in a digital world, and if you want to be a writer (or a musician, photographer, even a plumber!) you’ve got to have some kind of presence out there. Read the rest of this entry »

OK, confession time.  I cannot tell a lie. I used to be very sniffy about copywriting. ‘Those who can, do,’ I thought, ‘Those who can’t, write copy.’

How wrong can you be? Read the rest of this entry »

First, thanks to Andy for last Friday’s blog. It’s great to hear that he’s having so much success with his books. But it just goes to show that once you’ve finished your book you can’t just rest on your laurels. These days you’ve got to be proactive if you want to make an impact – especially if your work is self-published. Read the rest of this entry »

Right, listen. I’ve got to get this off my chest – writing is no simple thing. Read the rest of this entry »