'Perhaps what is significant for writers is not that we alone change and others do not, but simply, we have the rare privilege of noticing it.'

Perhaps what is significant for writers is not that we alone change and others do not, but simply, we have the rare privilege of noticing it.

The post Nicola Baldwin appeared first on The Royal Literary Fund.

'You can never revise your work too often. As our scatological friends remark, there are some things you can't polish, but a manuscript is not one of them.'

You can never revise your work too often. As our scatological friends remark, there are some things you can't polish, but a manuscript is definitely not one of them.

The post Neil Hanson appeared first on The Royal Literary Fund.

'The Moomins suffered the same fate... Characters and plots are too gentle for older children, but the text is too hard for younger children. '

The Moomins suffered the same fate... Characters and plots are too gentle for older children, but the text is too hard for younger children. Schools emphasise 'decoding', not reading for pleasure.

The post Leila Rasheed appeared first on The Royal Literary Fund.

'Be original. Think of the obvious and then go in the opposite direction. Be open to surprises, challenge yourself, inspire yourself.'

Be original. Think of the obvious and then go in the opposite direction. Be open to surprises, challenge yourself, inspire yourself. If you can be surprised at your work, so will your audience.

The post Shelley Silas appeared first on The Royal Literary Fund.

'If I read through that folder's contents now, I'd probably find a kind of dramatic structure, a story arc; obstacles and setbacks, hope briefly given, then snatched away.'

If I read through that folder's contents now, I'd probably find a kind of dramatic structure, a story arc; obstacles and setbacks, hope briefly given, then snatched away, and at last a breakthrough.

The post Chris Westwood appeared first on The Royal Literary Fund.

'As I nested like a dormouse with all the pillows and cushions I could find, I discovered that I could support my arms, shoulders and neck to stop strain and tension.'

As I nested like a dormouse with all the pillows and cushions I could find, I discovered that I could support my arms, shoulders and neck to stop strain and tension; and this is now how I write.

The post Sarah Duncan appeared first on The Royal Literary Fund.

'I scribbled notes on pieces of paper. I'd leave them out overnight, and let slugs crawl over them. Whole words, and even phrases, would be eaten.'

I scribbled notes on pieces of paper. I'd leave them out overnight, and let slugs crawl over them. Whole words, and even phrases, would be eaten, and over weeks subjected to the criticism of snails and slugs.

The post Gabriel Gbadamosi appeared first on The Royal Literary Fund.

'It was my mother who dragged me to my first writing group. I was 17, and very against the idea; the Royal Court Young Writers' Group.'

It was my mother who dragged me to my first writing group. I was 17, and very against the idea; the Royal Court Young Writers' Group, as it was known then, was just off Ladbroke Grove, and we'd meet every week.

The post Rhiannon Tise appeared first on The Royal Literary Fund.

'Don't wait for the right commission, or agent, or reply, or accent, or background. None of that will happen. '

Don't wait for the right commission, or agent, or reply, or accent, or background. None of that will happen. Just write it anyway.

The post Carina Rodney appeared first on The Royal Literary Fund.

'I believe very much in the spark, the little bit of magic sending a particular idea my way. I'm sure my sub-conscious is at work.'

I believe very much in the spark, the little bit of magic sending a particular idea my way. I'm sure my sub-conscious is at work, though, quietly asserting what it is drawn to.

The post Emylia Hall appeared first on The Royal Literary Fund.