“I really want readers to fall in love with every character” – Emma Mugglestone on writing a small-town romance series
Meet the author of the gorgeous new small-town romance novel The Reality of Us.
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How to format text messages in fiction
An easy guide to depicting dialogue as text messages in a contemporary fiction novel. Text messages are a part of everyday life so if you’re writing contemporary fiction there’s a good chance you’ll want to include a few in your story. But how do you format them? Should you use quote marks? Do you need […]
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Introducing the vocative comma
This tiny piece of punctuation saves lives. One of the best things about punctuation is that when it’s used correctly it’s invisible in plain sight. It’s like driving a road you know so well that you get home without recalling the journey. But when it’s misused? Those misplaced commas, semicolons and dashes can be jarring! […]
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“I want my characters to be relatable and authentic” – Stephanie Hazeltine on writing domestic thrillers
As a primary school teacher, Stephanie Hazeltine always thought she’d write children’s books one day – but when she started writing, it was the heart-racing thriller genre that got her hooked. She’s just released her second domestic thriller novel, You Weren’t Watching, which is book two in her Suburban Secrets series. I was delighted to […]
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“I love to push limits in romance” – Natalie Murray on writing historical fiction, switching to contemporary romance, and how editing brings out her best
Natalie Murray is an Australian author to watch. If you’re a fan of historical romance, you might already know her Emmie and the Tudor King series, which follows a young woman’s time slip into Tudor England and entanglement with a (fictional) fiery ruler. It’s swoon-worthy, passionate, transportive reading. Now, Natalie has returned to the present […]
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4 signs you’re ready for a line and copyedit
A simple explainer to help you work out if a line and copyedit is what your novel needs now. So, you’ve written a novel. Now what? You might be thinking about starting the editing process, and perhaps you’re keen to work with a professional editor. That’s an excellent decision (wink!) but before you go ahead […]
