The Creative Writing Blog

Character development is essential to any great novel. In any genre of fiction – from action studded with high-speed chases to philosophical contemplations of the human condition –...

We’re delighted to welcome Amanda Reynolds to The Novelry as a writing coach specialising in psychological thrillers and suspense.

Amanda’s first novel, Close To Me, was a number one...

For many writers, the question of how to start a story is one of the most panic-inducing. Whether it’s because you know too much or too little about your characters, world and events,...

Given both love and storytelling are as old as time, it’s no wonder the question of how to write a love story has so absorbed us.

And it’s possible that this question is only becoming...

Can creative writing be taught? It’s something many of us have pondered. Whether you’re just thinking about taking a creative writing course, or you’re already enrolled and hoping...

Research and historical fiction tend to go hand in hand. Before the writer puts pen to paper, they must become familiar with the facts of the period.

But how much research is too much research?

...

The idea of outlining a novel may strike dread, panic or even tedium into a writer’s heart. Are we really expected to have our entire story outlined before we put pen to paper?

It’s all...

Are you curious about how to write a murder mystery? The endeavour can be baffling and thrilling in equal measure. If you want to try your hand at murder mysteries, try these five top tips...

As a writer, it can be easy to amalgamate all the stages of publishing a novel into one (sometimes distant!) process. But it’s actually much more complex than that. There are lots of steps...

It’s a truth universally acknowledged in the publishing industry: if there’s one thing any writer needs to ensure success for their novel, it’s a good hook. It’s how...

The writing process is doubtless a joyful and rewarding one, but it can demand a great deal of motivation and resilience. The first hurdle is often writing inspiration; we wait for some bright...

Suspense writing is an amorphous and multifaceted concept, but Kate Riordan wants to make it straightforward.

Having written five novels – including the Richard and Judy book club pick The...

Our Founder Louise Dean looks back on how she wrote her second novel and beyond; how ideas sometimes come fully formed, but only rarely – and explains how to write your best novel yet.

_From...

The word trope comes from the Latin tropus (a figure of speech) and the Greek word tropos (a turn, direction, course, way; manner, fashion). Technically in rhetoric, it refers to figurative...