Writers' know-how

What Kafka’s Poseidon and I — and probably every other freelance — have in common.

Gratuitous swearing usually adds nothing to a piece of writing or a talk. It’s unpleasant to listen to, and probably has unfortunate consequences for the offender.

Late Lines is an event run by the City Lit adult education institute in London. Here’s a brief report of the most recent one, plus key dates for your literary calendar.

Another quick tip for writers who want to get stuff done.

How attending a prose and poetry evening caused me to make a few changes in my life.

Another fast writing tip: using a specific keyboard shortcut in Word.

Part pf the art of writing fast is using time wisely. In this article I look at how to read pdfs for research on your Kindle.

Coming up in June: a useful conference for those who write educational materials and books.

Rather than wait until I've read books before reviewing them, I think a halfway house is to at least let people know about books and, if possible, my first impressions. My intention is to write full reviews of these in due course. I hope you find these snapshots useful and interesting.

Subscribers to my newsletter, Terry Freedman’s Books Bulletin, receive more than ‘just’ news about new books, reviews of bookshops and books, and tips concerning writing,. They also have opportunities to win books in giveaway contests!

This week I’ll be publishing details of how to enter a draw to win a copy of Alex Quigley’s new book, Closing the Vocabulary Gap.

Details of where to go to subscribe to the newsletter are in the article.

So you think you've read some atrocious writing in your life? Well, you ain't seen nothing yet.

If your initial pitch to an editor is not well-researched or well-written, you won't even make it to square one with that publication or publisher. What are the common errors, and where can you find examples of bad practice?

Here's a quick round-up of the things I'll be discussing in my next newsletter, including censorship, publishing myths and a marketing website.

Even if you are a non-fiction writer, this book is worth reading.

Another article in the 'bad writing' series, 7 Features of Bad Writing suggests some common characteristics of poor prose. Any one of these 'sins' would serve as an indicator, especially if they occur more than once or twice.

The moment that every wordsmith dreads...