Tips for writers who want to get published

Two interviews and lots of advice!

Aug 04, 2023

Hello!

I’ve been asked quite a bit lately about what tips or advice I would give an aspiring author, so I thought I’d share two links to recent interviews where I talk about this, and also share a few more ideas below.

The first is an interview by Curtis Brown Creative, who I completed a three month writing course with in 2019, which was instrumental in developing my confidence and pushing me to polish my manuscript before pitching to agents. I talk about how I developed writing ‘In Such Tremendous Heat’ from multiple characters’ points of view, what inspired the novel, and which three fictional characters I would have for dinner.

Click on the image below for the full interview:

If you missed the Fane interview with Lola Akinmade Akerstrom, then check out this clip in which I share three of my essential writing tips:

A lot of the tips I give are to inspire writers along the journey, but I’ve been thinking also about the practical ways I get words on the page because unless you physically get something on the paper, it just lives in your head, where it can also exist in the realm of brilliance without ever been critiqued! This is dangerous because it keeps you from taking real steps towards realising your goal of getting a book published. So here are some practical tips for when you actually sit down to write:

Set a timer and force yourself to keep going even if you write nonsense - just write something
Journal in a diary just before so you get your thoughts and feelings out of the way
Set a word count and break it into little checkboxes. Eg 200 words, 400 words etc. It’s very satisfying and encouraging to see yourself getting somewhere. On some horrible days, I literally write 50 words but at least I wrote something!
Stop writing when the scene is getting juicy. You’ll be much more motivated to continue writing the next day and building a routine is what you’re aiming for, more than writing a huge amount one day and then nothing for weeks
Never stop writing at the end of a chapter. Write even just one sentence of the next chapter before you stop. It takes a lot of mental energy to figure out how to start a new chapter; don’t make it harder on yourself by sitting down to a blank page

Enjoy!