When you’re embarking on a new journey, there’s no greater asset than those who have walked the same path before you. Listening to those who have experienced the same worries and doubts, faced the same challenges, navigated the same tricky questions, and ultimately...
The process of writing historical fiction can throw up some pretty tough challenges, but with a bit of knowledge, practice, and determination, it’s certainly possible to overcome them. To help you along, we’ve put together this post on the top five challenges of...
Even if your story is not a historical romance, you may still want to incorporate a romantic subplot for that extra dose of spice and emotional depth. But you want to do it well. You’ve read your share of predictable, throwaway relationship subplots that left you...
In a market where formulaic fiction is churned out an ever-increasing pace, The Last Roundhead has a rare distinction indeed – it is something truly different, a genre-bending gem that mixes laughter with melancholy, substance with frivolity, and vulgarity with...
I’ve just finished Heresy by S. J. Parris, the first in her Giordano Bruno historical thriller series, and I enjoyed it so much that I decided a review is in order. Set in 1583, Heresy introduces us to an England riven by religious strife. The English Reformation has...
The first chapter of your novel – or your prologue if you prefer – must contain a compelling opening hook, giving the reader a taste of what’s to come and persuading them that the rest of your story isn’t to be missed. Get it right and your reader will commit to your...
If you’ve ever had a hard time wrapping your head around when you should and shouldn’t capitalise words like ‘sergeant’, ‘doctor’, ‘queen’, and ‘sir’, you can be safe in the knowledge that you’re not alone. Probably about half of the manuscripts I edit contain...
Despite being a highly neglected element of storytelling, theme is in fact one of the most powerful tools at your disposal as you plan, write, and revise your novel. In school, many of us learn to identify a theme as a single word or phrase, a broad topic explored in...
I was recently fortunate enough to enjoy two weeks of holiday… so essentially two weeks in which to read whatever I wanted, regardless of genre. My initial plan was to read A Song of Ice and Fire – which I did, for a while anyway – but of course I eventually...
No, I promise I’m not moonlighting as a personal trainer. When I talk about a sagging middle, I’m referring to the way some stories lose their momentum as they reach the halfway point. It’s a common problem – affecting perhaps 10 per cent of the manuscripts I edit –...
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