Essential in cricket, land ownership and relationships. Not so noticeable in the books we read. But knowing what is in, and what is out, is how you write a good book. Writing a book is not about...

Being in the flow of writing is wonderful. The words rush to our fingertips, barely able to keep up as our brain hurls instructions. That’s why the first draft must never be the last. Book deals...

My daughter just came in from the garden, her hands covered with mud, and told me she’d been “chitting” the seed potatoes. “Chitting?” I said and ran not for a towel but...

I began to write a nonfiction book last November with enthusiasm. I knew what I wanted to write and exactly who I was writing for. It’s so niche, my book, I could tell you the names of the...

Publishers are busy people. We know that, because more often than not, they don’t have time to tell us, writers all, how much they loved our book idea. That publishers and agents are muzzled by...

Even 200 words a day will move your book on in a way that 0 words a day won’t. But you (and only you) know when you want to move your book on...

Specialized vocabulary. Used appropriately, it will enrich your writing. In writing my current murder mystery, I’m galloping to the stable door and home but in the editing process, I’ve...

Tim Cahill in Sense of Place, a collection of interviews with travel writers put together by Michael Shapiro, said this: Whether you are writing, or preparing a journey to a new country, it helps to...

In November, I’m hoping to be on a ship on the Atlantic, delving deep into my next book. It will be a two-week journey of discovery: internal and external. Very like book coaching, though it...