Novel and Short Story FAQs

Blogging to Sell Your Book
These days, the lion’s share of marketing your freshly published books falls to you – the author! With most publishers only allowing a miniscule budget for book promotion, you’ll be expected to get out there and push your work in whatever way you can. Read more>>>

How to stick to writing a novel
This is a problem that most writers will encounter at some point in the process of writing their novel. Anyone who’s started a novel knows that you start off great and, as time goes by, you get distracted by other things, get writer’s block or just become a bit disinterested with it. Read more>>>

Tips for writing a novel set in the past - Part One
Novels set in the past can be tricky. Why? Because to be convincing and create authenticity you have to get your facts right! Imagine reading a book set in Celtic Britain featuring rabbits frolicking in the fields at dusk. Read more>>>

Tips on writing a crime novel
Thinking of writing a crime novel? Good choice – it’s currently one of the nation’s most popular genres! But, this also means that the competition for publication is fierce. So, how do you write a cracking crime novel? Read more>>>

Different types of crime novels
What are crime novels?Well, they include a perpetrator or perpetrators – the bad guys – who’ve committed an immoral or illegal act and a protagonist – the good guy – who’s trying to bring them to justice. Read more>>>

Ten steps to planning a novel
We all have a novel in us, or so they say. The problem is, most of us struggle to get it out! How do you get the ideas from your head onto paper and into some kind of useable format? Of course, there’s no magical formula that fits every single writer – what works for one is another’s nightmare. Read more>>>

Writing a fantasy novel
Writing a fantasy novel is great fun – you can, literally, let your imagination run wild. It’ a little different to writing a novel set in the real world as, unlike books set in reality where you can use real life as examples, you’ll have to invent everything in your new fantasy world. So how do you get started? Well, read the five tips below and you’ll be on your way to having a great fantasy novel. Read more>>>

How to write Fantasy for Young Readers
This is a popular market! What with the success of the Harry Potter and Twilight books, it’s not surprising that many people think their road to fame and fortune is paved with wizards, spells and an array of grotesque monsters. But how easy is it really? How do you write a gripping fantasy for young readers? And how do you get it out to them? Well, there are some rules you can keep in mind when you start the process. Read more>>>

Is it better to write a short story before writing a novel?
This is one of those questions that simply does not have a yes or no answer. Some novelists have never written a short story, some have written hundreds. And there are advantages and disadvantages to doing both. Read more>>>