A good story happens when you get your character down that blasted rabbit hole. The plot is just a vehicle for the characters. When they are dealing with problems, they have to reveal themselves for who they are. Just keep them moving and let them bounce off each other. Start now. Don’t worry about the past. Flashbacks should set off alarm bells that there is something not quite right with your story. Instead, think of Lewis Carroll’s ‘Alice in Wonderland’. By the end of page one Alice is down the rabbit hole ..read more

If you never complete a first draft then you never know your story. Write without full knowledge of what you are about to write. Let the subconscious sum up the premises and intentions you have slept on and thought about over many days. Write without judgement and do not edit until the last word of the first draft is written. Only then do you rewrite, rewrite, rewrite ..read more

Murakami’s sense of himself as a sort of pipeline – a conduit between his subconscious and that of his readers – is so pronounced that he even pauses, after referring to himself in passing as a “natural storyteller”, to issue a correction: “No, I’m not a storyteller. I’m a story watcher.” His relationship to those stories is that of the dreamer to a dream, which may explain why he claims almost never to dream at night. “Well, maybe once a month, I dream,” he says. “But I usually don’t. I think it’s because I get to dream when I’m awake, so I don’t have to dream when I’m sleeping.”   From https ..read more

Try doodling an outline. It doesn’t always have to be structured and numbered. Outline everything. Get into the habit of outlining from the start. It will save time in the long run ..read more

Childhood stories are about friendships, laughter, bravado, tears and pain. Ask yourself a few questions to spark those memories. As a child: your favourite toy was … your favourite book was … your favourite sport was … your best friend was … your favourite sweets were ..read more