I know I said I’d written the last blog on my writing process, but today I went into black dog books to have a look at the dyelines of my book Sugar Sugar. This is really the last stage before printing. The printer sends a copy of the book on sheets of paper as it … Continued
This is the sixth and last blog in a series about the way I write a book. After the 3rd draft, there might be a 4th draft. By this stage I’m getting impatient to get it over and done with. The internal design has been submitted by the designers, changed, because we weren’t quite happy … Continued
This is the fifth in a series of blogs about the way I write a book. So the day after I sent in my second draft, I got sick. That gives you some idea of the intensity of working on that draft. Fortunately, the third draft is a lot easier. I got back comments on … Continued
This is the fourth in a series of blogs about the way I write books. It’s been a while since I wrote the last one…that’s because I’ve been writing a second draft! So after I send off my first draft to my publisher, he reads it, my editor reads it. And they write their comments … Continued
It has been a loooong time since I wrote a blog. This is because I have been overseas for a month and then suffering from horrible jetlag. I went to UK to do some research for a new novel. I went with my daughter Lili and she is blogging about some of the things we … Continued
I recently had a query from Tristan Bancks (writer of the Mac Slater, Cool Hunter books) about how I keep my research in order. Actually, I’m not very good at keeping my research in order. I lose things all the time (eg. this morning). So I thought if I did a blog about it, someone might have suggestions … Continued
This is the third in a series of blogs about the way I write books. So assuming my publisher didn’t hate my synopsis, it’s time to start writing. For me, this initial draft is the hardest part of the process. I can easily talk myself into doing a bit more planning or a bit more … Continued
This is the second in a series of blogs about the way I write. It’s not the only way to write a book. It’s just my way. So I’ve already got a premise, a story idea. I’ve worked out when and where the story is set. I’ve got a main character. That’s when I start … Continued
I’m writing a book at the moment, and it’s going to take me about a year. I don’t like talking about my books as I’m writing them. It’s a superstitious thing. So I thought that I might do a series of blogs about my writing process. How it works for me. I usually start with … Continued
Since Dragon Moon was published, I’ve had quite a lot of emails and blog comments asking me to write a fourth Dragonkeeper book. I always say the same thing. It’s not going to happen. I don’t want to write a fourth book. After all her adventures, I think Ping should have a nice quiet life. … Continued