Writer’s Toy

This is my new writer’s toy.  I believe it’s called a “lapdesk”.  It’s a desk that sits on your lap. Hence, “lapdesk.” Stop me if I’m going too quickly for you. Look.  It even has its very own light.  All mod cons, you see. My wife bought this for me yesterday.  Now, rather than sitting at my desk all day, …

Polish, Schmolish

After a busy weekend, I’m just over half-way through my final polish of the manuscript before sending it back to my editor and publisher.  Things have been going smoothly enough, but occasionally I get a page like this one: That’s not a polish, that’s industrial cleaning.

The Promise of an Empty Page

As I approach the end of the re-write for the Book With No Name, I find myself thinking more and more about my next effort. While the manuscript for the new novel was out in the real world, looking for a home, I had several months to flesh out my thoughts for the next one.  The original kernel of the …

A Place to Write

When it comes to writing, I am a creature of habit. I need my routine; equally important, for me anyway, is where I write.  I know people who can dash off stuff in trains, waiting rooms, and especially in coffee shops.  This always baffles me.  Perhaps I’m just too nosy, or feckless, but I am unable to concentrate on what I’m …

Reaching the End

As I approach the end of this epic rewrite, I am faced with mixed emotions. I will be relieved when the work is done, and I can turn my attention to other stories which have been waiting patiently for me.  But with that comes the knowledge that this particular effort is almost finished, and with that knowledge comes a degree of …

Is Writing Fun?

Interesting piece here from a while back in the Guardian.   Authors respond to the question Is writing fun? with varying degrees of pretentiousness. Most delightful, and surprising, was Will Self’s unabashed glee at writing novels – perhaps he’s being his usual brilliant, perverse self by taking a position so at odds with most of his long-suffering colleagues, for whom …

The Loneliness of a Long-Distance Novelist

People sometimes ask me what characteristic is most important for a writer to possess.  I expect they’re waiting for me to say that you need a felicitous turn of phrase, an outrageous imagination, an overweening ego, or something similar.  Now, perhaps all of those things might help, in some shape or form, but if I had to choose the one …

Title Talk

Still no closer to a title for the book, although I am thinking about it an awful lot – whenever I have a spare moment, in fact.  Often I forget that not everyone is as fixated about the subject as I am.  This can throw up some interesting discussions, when only one party to the conversation is particpating with the …