Blog post

By Neil Bailey If you’re a writer who hangs around on X (or any social media site), you’ve probably seen this message pop into your DMs at least once a week: “Hello [your name], I came across your amazing profile! What are you currently working on?" Soon followed by, "I can connect you with my agent who’s looking for new authors!” Or maybe: “I’m a professional editor who’s worked with bestselling authors. I’d love to help polish your manuscript!” And for about half a second,

By Neil Bailey Weaving ideas together So here I am again. Another idea. Another shiny, exciting, completely unplanned story that’s marched into my brain shouting, “Write me next! You know you want to." Sound familiar? You try to ignore it. You tell yourself, “No. I’m busy with my current work in progress. I will not be distracted.”  You scream to your new shiny idea like Gandalf, "You shall not pass!" But before you know it, you’ve opened a new document. You've spent hours co

Let’s be honest. Rejection hurts. Especially when it’s rejection for something you’ve poured your heart, caffeine, and late-night sanity...

Many a writer has been there, including myself. You start with a brilliant idea. The opening sings, the characters feel alive, the...

and how I make it work for me Writers love to argue about tools. Scrivener versus Google Docs, notebooks versus apps, even typewriters...

There’s a special kind of panic that comes when you realise your own story has outsmarted you. This happened to me mid-way through...

Making friends with the blank page

There’s a piece of writing advice you hear all the time: Write every day. And it’s good advice. For some people. But I don’t follow it. I...

Writers often get asked: where do your ideas come from? It’s a fair question. And also a tough one to answer. Ideas, for me, come from...

Here’s a confession that surprises a lot of people: I didn’t really read books as a kid. Den building in the woods - though these are not...