The Forgotten Words Story Generator

The English language is a truly ancient organism. Like all living things, it evolves constantly, growing new words and shedding old ones like a snake sheds its skin. Thanks to a wonderful website called The Phrontistery, many of those forgotten words have been preserved in a kind of lexical deep-freeze. In order to demonstrate the … Continue reading The Forgotten Words Story Generator

Ghostwriter Diaries 07

Happy New Year! I hope you all enjoyed the holiday season. I certainly did. Now, with the wine rack looking sadly depleted and twelfth night just around the corner, it's time to take down the tinsel and hang up the ghostwriting schedule. It's a tight schedule, one that requires me to turn out an average … Continue reading Ghostwriter Diaries 07

Copy Editing “Talus and the Frozen King”

Here's how the copy editing process works. Your editor emails you a copy of your manuscript in Word format, conveniently marked with proposed changes and pithy comments using the handy Track Changes feature, accompanied by a request that you read through their remarks, accepting or rejecting their suggestions as you see fit, before returning it for … Continue reading Copy Editing “Talus and the Frozen King”

Ghostwriter Diaries 06

The clock is ticking! As of today, I'm in possession of the final storyline for the novel I'll be ghostwriting over the coming months. Contracts have been signed and exchanged, committing me to final manuscript delivery in the middle of April 2014. The timescale's so tight I've agreed with my client to serve up the … Continue reading Ghostwriter Diaries 06

Ghostwriter Diaries 05

Talk about a great way to end the week! I just learned that I won the competitive pitch to ghostwrite a new trilogy of fantasy novels. Having submitted my three-chapter sample only four days ago, I thought I might have to wait a little longer before being told the outcome. I guess I must have … Continue reading Ghostwriter Diaries 05

Ghostwriter Diaries 04

I'm done! My three-chapter sample for the fantasy novel is complete. I finished writing yesterday, edited the manuscript this morning, and I've just emailed the final draft to my client. All that remains is to sit back and perform the hardest task of all. It a challenge all writers face on a regular basis. Wait. … Continue reading Ghostwriter Diaries 04

Ghostwriter Diaries 03

I'm two chapters in, with one more to go before I've finished this ghostwriting sample. After a false start yesterday, I've just blasted through a couple of thousand words in a morning. Are they the right words? It's hard to say until I read through them. But I'll hold off doing that until I've finished … Continue reading Ghostwriter Diaries 03

Ghostwriter Diaries 02

I'm 2,000 words into my ghostwriting assignment, and just short of completing the first chapter. I'm overwriting, but that's standard operational procedure for a first draft. The hack and slash of editing will knock it into shape. My first session saw me trying too hard ... trying to impress, if truth be told. That's a … Continue reading Ghostwriter Diaries 02

Ghostwriter Diaries 01

Listen up. I don't have much time. I've just been invited to pitch for a ghostwriting assignment and every second counts. So I'll keep this brief. The assignment I'm talking about is a trilogy of fantasy novels. My brief comprises an overview of the storyline, brief sketches of the main characters and a comprehensive outline … Continue reading Ghostwriter Diaries 01

Fishing for the Right Words

When I started out writing fiction, I thought all kinds of things were clever. Like using lots of different words. Better still, using really long ones. Like antidisestablishmentarianism (OK, maybe not that one). Over the years, my tastes have changed. Now that my hair is a little greyer and my joints are a little stiffer, … Continue reading Fishing for the Right Words