Getting Your Message Home
December 27th, 2008 — Writing
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Pulitzer and Nobel Prize winning author, Toni Morrison
Popularity: 3% [?]
October 24th, 2008 — Writing
Research and development is a vital ingredient in the creation of any new product. Being able to show and tell a story in ways that make the words fly off the page is one of the highest compliments for any writer. It means that the reader was able to feel as if they were actually experiencing the sensations and emotions, the life and atmosphere, depicted by the author.
Showing events through active characters, vivid imagery and real dialogue instead of merely using informative language to present people, places, things and events would also suggest that the writer was able to immerse himself in the world of his story and became very familiar with it.
Keeping it Real
As a novel loosely based on my childhood and set partly in England and Jamaica, my current work in progress also requires some degree of research. I am familiar with life in England, of course, but I left Jamaica as a ten year old many years ago, returning only briefly on holiday a few times since then. To write well about the government funded Bodles Banana Breeding Station & Research Centre where I spent some of my most formative years, for example, it would be useful to revisit the place and spend some reflective time there.
Popularity: 11% [?]
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on this post - (2) Posts October 17th, 2008 — Writing
Writing good dialogue doesn’t come easily to everyone. And creating convincing dialogue is not about trying to reproduce the way that people actually speak.
Each time you use dialogue in your novel or short story it should be doing one of five key things, if not all of them at once.
Writing good dialogue is a skill like any other, and learning to listen is a key component in the process of creating believable characters.
Popularity: 9% [?]
October 6th, 2008 — Writing
To coincide with the start of a Creative and Life Writing master’s degree at Goldsmiths College, I’ve added a brand new interactive online Forum for all would-be writers and artists. As well as interacting online with fellow students at Goldsmiths, I very much hope that some of you will take up this invitation to join in the fun and debate, too.
Our MA program requires a combination of practical and theoretical/reflective work as part of the assessment process – together with a critical account of how the work has been structured and developed. As many of us, myself included, are in the process of writing our debut novel/non-fiction volume of prose or poetry, the creation of this new online community to discuss the process of researching and writing a first book should appeal to a wide range of writers both at home and abroad. Participating Forum members are encouraged to actively engage with one another and the writing process, and joining the site offers benefits to members such as exclusive podcasts and interviews, plus original articles and tips for amateur and professional writers and artists alike.
Popularity: 10% [?]
October 2nd, 2008 — Writing
It can’t be much fun sharing your name with a famous dead rock star, but Nick Drake came to Goldsmiths’ College and did not disappoint.
The poet, playwright and novelist turned up at short notice to replace author Jackie Kay who was sick with back trouble. You can generally tell within a minute or two if you’ll like a speaker or not and when our eyes met briefly and he smiled and nodded, I thought, I like you.
Such quick judgements made within the blink of an eye are rarely trustworthy but there in his gaze was still the spark of nervous excitement and the undying joy of a playful child. When I returned his friendly gesture I had no idea who he was, but as he stood up to address a roomful of writers, his easy smile and honesty had us all captivated for two hours.
Born in 1961 of Czech hertitage, Nick Drake lives and works in London. His first book-length collection, The Man in the White Suit
Popularity: 11% [?]
Join the forum discussion on this post - (1) Posts September 21st, 2008 — Letters From America, Society, Sport, Travel
“HIV! HIV! – Go fuck yourself!” she said. And then I woke up. Or maybe it was the other way round. Maybe a whore outside my door was actually cursing her punter and I wasn’t dreaming at all, and then, I woke up.
“Why you don’t want condom? Fuck you! I don’t like you.”
“Fuck you too” said the English-speaking white male voice. “I don’t like either of you. Fuck off! Go on. Get out!”
Across the hallway a door slammed shut and the two Thai whores continued their cursing. “You got no Willy. You got no Willy…he-he-he…Fuck you too! HIV! HIV!”
Popularity: 19% [?]
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Blood River: A Journey to Africa's Broken Heart
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