Category: #editing

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Paul Flavel on Capturing Memories of John Martin’s

Paul has always loved the South Australian department store, John Martin’s. When he realized memories of the beloved store were fading, he resolved to write a book to celebrate the company’s legacy. John Martin’s – The Story of South Australia’s Beloved Department Store is the result. It almost sold out in its launch week, so a second print run is arriving before Christmas, and less than two weeks later, it’s already onto the third run. Why is it generating such a buzz? Read on to find out. Continue reading Paul Flavel on Capturing Memories of John Martin’s

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Writing a Mystery: Crafting a Series

In the first part of this blog series, Writing a Mystery: Introducing Jade Riley, I introduced the protagonist for The Godfather of Dance. A journalist by trade, Jade hails from Melbourne and has a past tinged with the tragedy of her best friend’s death. Today, I share how I am developing the Jade Riley Mystery Series, and how I envision future books. Of course, this will almost certainly change along the way due to factors beyond my control or my evolving creative preferences. Continue reading Writing a Mystery: Crafting a Series

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Diane Clarke on wartime evacuation and her novel, The Photograph

Diane Clarke was born in South London and spent her childhood on the Sussex coast. She trained as a speech pathologist and worked in that field most of her career, continuing after she immigrated to Australia 27 years ago.

When she took three months off to find another job, she decided to dabble in writing, and now, her debut novel has been published, The Photograph, a family drama about a woman looking for her lost brother. Continue reading Diane Clarke on wartime evacuation and her novel, The Photograph

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The Why, What and How of Storytelling

I recently had the honour of chatting with Lisa Hope Tilstra on the Make Life Less Difficult podcast. To quote her purpose, “This podcast explores what it means to make life less difficult for each other and for ourselves. We share stories of struggles and successes because we believe sharing our stories eases the difficulty of life.” This really spoke to me because as an editor and writing coach, my role is all about helping people tell their stories. I tried to articulate for Lisa how I help authors and subsequently wrote this post to capture those ideas.
When a client approaches me for help with their book, I need to understand their motivation and goals. The why, what and how of their story:
Why do they want to tell the story?
What do they want to say?
How might they say it?
This may sound obvious, but it’s easy to dive into what is already on the page without considering these parameters. If I’m working with authors who are clear about their goals, I don’t spend much time on this, but for new authors who are feeling their way, a more extensive discussion may be useful. Continue reading The Why, What and How of Storytelling

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Writing a Mystery: Introducing Jade Riley

Jade is an everyday hero. In the first book, she’s a rookie journalist with more ambition than experience, more passion than finesse. She’s Australian, from my hometown, Melbourne, but she’s living in The Woodlands, Texas, a satellite suburb of Houston, where she works for a local newspaper. By no coincidence, this is where I lived with my family for five years. She’s also passionate about ballroom and Latin dance. Continue reading Writing a Mystery: Introducing Jade Riley

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Bella Ellwood-Clayton on Weekend Friends

Dr. Bella Ellwood-Clayton’s debut novel is set in a cliquey suburb where belonging to the in-group is everything. It features intense female friendships and explores parenting in our perilous times when social media can build someone up as quickly as it can tear them down.
Join us as we talk about motherhood, friendship and how to write a good plot twist. Continue reading Bella Ellwood-Clayton on Weekend Friends