Helping authors to make their stories shine … Editing Services for fiction and memoir
In my last post about my writing life, I lamented the fact that my publisher, Wings ePress, is closing down at the end of 2025. At my request, they unpublished my books right away, so I could jump back into the pitching game.
…I’m happy to announce that I’ve signed with a new (aptly-named ) publisher: Next Chapter Publishing. Continue reading Jade Riley is Back
My dear friend, Danny Finley, drummer in MPD Limited, is the real-life inspiration for the character called Danny in my mystery novel, A Killer Among Friends. Danny’s behaviour in the book is made up, but like his namesake, he is a drummer in a rock band.
Join Danny and me as we chat about the joys and challenges of life as a performer and his life after music. Continue reading Danny Finley’s life lessons learned through music
In my debut novel, The Godfather of Dance, I used song titles to name each chapter, which suited a novel set in the ballroom dance world. Reader feedback about this was positive, so it made sense to continue the style for the second Jade Riley mystery, A Killer Among Friends. It also matched the story because the second point of view character is a drummer in a rock band. Continue reading Writing a Mystery: Chapter Titles/Playlist A Killer Among Friends
When I first started writing The Godfather of Dance, I made each chapter title a ballroom or Latin American dance type: samba, waltz, pasodoble, etc. As the number of chapters grew, I ran out of dances, so I switched to song titles, which gave me more freedom. Continue reading Writing a Mystery: Chapter Titles/Playlist The Godfather of Dance
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
It’s important to understand the difference between an agent and a publisher. The publisher edits, produces and distributes the book. An agent finds a publisher and manages the author’s career. Some authors deal directly with their publisher (more common in Australia than the USA or UK), but many prefer to have a middleman. Continue reading Five Reasons to Sign With a Literary Agent
What is the difference between memoir and autobiography? What is creative nonfiction? What are the advantages of writing memoir? These are just some of the questions tackled in The Pros and Cons of Writing Memoir. Continue reading The Pros and Cons of Writing Memoir
My firstborn son turns 19 this month. Besides
his birthday, it marks another significant milestone – the anniversary of my decision to become a writer. Nearly two decades. I’ve almost come of age. Continue reading Baby Steps
Brightside Story Studio 