Remember: It’s a competition — Writing competitions are a great way to hone your writing skills, give you a deadline to work towards, while also offering the opportunity to win a prize. But, as someone who’s judged national and international writing competitions (as well as organized and managed a few), there are some basic mistakes…

Why writers should love writing in longhand — My name is Simon Whaley, and I have a notebook addiction. There. I’ve said it. Although, to be honest, I think most writers are stationery addicts. Who doesn’t love a new pen, notebook, and set of Post-It Notes to help plot their next novel? But when it comes to notebooks…

A very British (recycled) tourist attraction — “Cherish the past, adorn the present, construct for the future,” is what Clough Williams-Ellis said when he spoke about his precious Portmeirion. It’s a truly magical village of varied architecture nestling on the Welsh coastline near Porthmadog, Gwynedd. And its trademark brightly coloured buildings make Portmeirion a delight to visit…

The Revd Donald E. Carr: Shropshire’s Miracle Man — Crossing Shropshire’s whale-backed Long Mynd in winter can be dangerous. In the late 19th century, it was common for people to die on the hill in bad, wintry weather, particularly drovers taking livestock to markets. Some valleys, known as batches or hollows in this seven-mile long mound, refer to such…

Touring Herefordshire’s Black and White Trail — The north-west corner of Herefordshire is colourfully black and white. Here, villages have everything a traditional English village should have: beautiful location, a country pub or two, an historic church, and the chocolate box charm of timber-framed cottages nestling like calorific creations in a luxury selection box. Although the black…

Being a writer is about having a system, not goals. — I used to think being a productive writer was all about goals. If I write 500 words every day, I will have written 100,000 words in 200 days. Mission accomplished. However, goals aren’t everything. Sometimes it’s about creating a system instead. Writing 500 words every day for 200 days will…

Three authors share how they use promotional email newsletter services to boost their writing business — Launched in January 2012, BookBub is the premier promotional email newsletter service offering bargain books to their millions of subscribers. For many self-published authors, getting a BookBub promotion, or deal as it is sometimes known, can send their book to the top of the charts, boosting sales by thousands, if…

When it comes to author branding, it’s not all about logos and design — Branding. We’re always being told to think about how we portray ourselves to our readers. And it doesn’t matter whether we’re self-published or traditionally published, as writers we are a brand. But what is branding, and how do we create our brand? How do we know if we’ve created the…

My thank you to a mystery photographer. — It might have been 8 am on a cold December morning in the Lake District, but I was not alone. Over two dozen other photographers were capturing daybreak over Castlerigg Stone Circle. I spent thirty minutes snapping a red sky radiating from the east. But when I came to leave…