Roz Morris's Blog, page 7

Our robot masters

Our robot masters; finding Michael; enter this competition if you write narrative non-fiction, poetry or memoir; I'm giving my first online reading; a little horse.
All in my newsletter https://mailchi.mp/39151833ee83/our-r...

The hidden shapes in stories and why drama isn’t what you think it is – interview with @EHeathRobinson

This is a massive headline, I know. A massive headline for a massive and far-ranging conversation about storytelling. My host is Heath Robinson, whose YouTube channel has seen a stellar line-up of story nerds, including Christopher Vogler, author of The Writer’s Journey, Christopher Vogler, Matt Bird, author of The Secrets of Story, John Truby, author of… Continue reading The hidden shapes in stories and why drama isn’t what you think it is – interview with @EHeathRobinson

Finding our true voices and where we belong – novelist and coach Heather Marshall

Heather Marshall’s novels are concerned with questions of family. In her first, The Thorn Tree, the characters are rediscovering who they are as family grows up and their life roles change. In her new novel, When The Ocean Flies, an adoptee comes to terms with long-held misbeliefs, seeded from her earliest days. This theme of… Continue reading Finding our true voices and where we belong – novelist and coach Heather Marshall

What’s editing – and how do editors work with writers? Interview at Writers’ Narrative magazine

Why is editing so important for writers? Why is it publishing’s biggest – and best-kept – secret? How do editors work with writers to ensure clarity and consistency – and yet preserve the writer’s unique voice and flavour? What if the writer disagrees about changes the editor wants to make? How do we keep a… Continue reading What’s editing – and how do editors work with writers? Interview at Writers’ Narrative magazine

Everyone says: why the rule about dialogue tags isn’t cast iron

I’ve seen dialogue tags discussed a few times recently on writing forums. The discussion goes like this. ‘When writing a piece of dialogue, do you need synonyms for “said”? Doesn’t it get boring for the reader? What about words with a bit more expression, such as exclaimed or spat or shouted or yelled?’  ‘Noooo,’ comes… Continue reading Everyone says: why the rule about dialogue tags isn’t cast iron

Festival of joy, win a publishing deal

Festival of joy, there is no short answer, I'm judging a competition for memoir and creative nonfiction (do enter), see me at the London Book Fair, a little horse.
All in my newsletter https://mailchi.mp/8fba187597a3/festi...

Write what you know? Why the true test of authenticity is the effect on the reader – interview with James Ladd Thomas

Authenticity is a troublesome concept in the arts at the moment. There are things we’re ‘allowed’ to write, things we’re not ‘allowed’ to write. While this raises valuable debates, authors have always written about characters, places and situations outside their personal circumstances and experience, and made works that are honest and truthful. That’s our craft,… Continue reading Write what you know? Why the true test of authenticity is the effect on the reader – interview with James Ladd Thomas

Why writing books is a career like no other, and 9 takeaways for doing it

I’ve had an email from a high school student who’s writing an English assignment on careers he would like to follow. He said: Would you answer a few questions about your job journey? I’m very interested in what you do. His questions were fairly standard, and they made me realise how most creative careers are anything… Continue reading Why writing books is a career like no other, and 9 takeaways for doing it

A blasted heath, beware of the moth...

A blasted heath, beware of the moth, I'm judging a new competition for writers of creative non-fiction, see me at London Book Fair, also see me at David Farland's writing group, a little horse. All in my newsletter https://mailchi.mp/fe860ea17ac3/a-bla...

When to write poetry, when to write prose? Interview with poet and fictioneer Mike Maggio

What makes a poem a poem? How is it a different beast from richly written literary fiction? In prose, it seems, we can do most of what a poem can do, beyond just telling a story. Creative expression, profound thoughts, metaphors. We can even control how the text falls in the reader’s mind through our… Continue reading When to write poetry, when to write prose? Interview with poet and fictioneer Mike Maggio