It’s nothing about money and it’s everything about money. It’s eating arctic roll and thinking Vienetta is a fancy pudding and having your Christmas presents put into a large box … Continue reading What Being A Working-Class Writer Means To Me
In a workshop I attended this week, someone made the simple comment, ‘creative people are good at ideas. It’s the finishing that’s the problem.’ So true. I look up at … Continue reading How To Finish Your Stories
There’s something strange about expectations. I find that positive ones are far worse than negative. Let me explain. If I’m worried about teaching a tricky class, making an awkward phone … Continue reading Playing For Ideas
Discipline. Stamina. Routine. I’ve lost count of the number of quotes and advice that tell you that in order to be a writer, you have to write every day. No … Continue reading Don’t Be a Slave to the Routine
I came back from the wilds of Scotland a couple of weeks ago to find my P45 in the post. Quite a contrast – from a wind-battered climb up a very … Continue reading Why I Quit My Job in the Middle of a Pandemic
Putting these two things together feels as impossible as pineapple on pizza. A creative person needs no rules, boundaries or pesky lists. Organisation is about limiting yourself with goals and … Continue reading Organising Your Creative Life Positively
Much more lighthearted and unusual this week. I was reading the introduction to Cathy Newman’s book Bloody Brilliant Women and I came across an nun from the 10th century who wore … Continue reading Celebrating Amazing People #2
Like most people at the moment, I don’t know what to do. Scrolling through endless feeds and WhatsApp messages bring a strange feeling into my gut – helplessness. So many … Continue reading Celebrating Amazing People #1
You may have noticed a large gap since I last wrote a blog. I certainly have. I’m currently working my way (very slowly, baby/job/rest of life permitting) through The Artist’s … Continue reading Thickening My Skin
“The world is only tolerable because of the empty places in it…when the world’s filled up, we’ll have to get hold of a star. Any star. Venus, or Mars. Get … Continue reading A Week of Silence
Over the past few weeks, something strange has happened. In the tiny bubbles of time I get between work and baby, I’ve started to write again. At first, it wasn’t … Continue reading Finding My Voice
We al love the idea of leaving the dreary hum of normality behind. Magical realism, science fiction, fantasy, call it what you like, almost everyone can think of an example … Continue reading How to have a Magical Time – Reading or Writing
