Corona-angst: writing in altered times
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The world has changed since I last wrote this blog three weeks ago. It was changing then, but the change was still some distance away, creeping closer, but still far away enough for it to be about other people not … Read More

D. H. Lawrence: writing inspired by Nottingham’s literary heritage
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The Creative Writing group at Maggie’s Nottingham has been invited to produce some work for an exhibition at the D H Lawrence Birthplace Museum in Eastwood, Nottinghamshire. So for the last few sessions our writing exercises have been based around … Read More

How to write convincing dialogue
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Dialogue – speech between two or more people – is important for bringing fiction to life. It gives voice to characters, breaks up the text, balances description and helps to move the action on. How someone speaks tells the reader … Read More

Setting: how to create a sense of place in fiction
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Where and when a story takes place is crucial for the reader’s enjoyment and understanding and provides a backdrop for the action. It creates atmosphere and sets the scene for the narrative. Setting can also give an idea as to … Read More

How to create convincing characters in fiction
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Character building is essential to fiction writing and for the last few sessions at Maggie’s we’ve been creating, and developing characters. Central to any story is its cast which drives the narrative and injects life into the plot. Each story … Read More

Autumn: seasonal writing prompts
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The Maggie’s Centre, Nottingham, where I run creative writing workshops, often gets described as a ‘treehouse.’ Despite being on the city hospital campus, it’s surrounded by greenery, nestled among the trees. So what better setting for an autumn-themed writing session? … Read More

Watch your body-language: how to show emotion through non-verbal communication
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It was back to school for the Maggie’s Creative Writing group this week, and we had a guest tutor, John Baird. This meant I could sit back, enjoy the session, and take part! I also learnt some new words – … Read More

School’s out..(but not for ever)
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Something momentous happened in the UK last week – and I’m not talking about Boris being foisted on the nation. We had a thing called summer. In fact temperatures soared to ridiculous levels of up to 35 degrees and we … Read More

More than a feeling: how to write emotion
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Creative writing can help us explore and understand how we are feeling. It also helps process and work through our emotions. This is the reason why organisations like Maggie’s hire tutors like me to run writing workshops. Writing is proven … Read More

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