Trying to write a novel but don’t know where to start? Want to plan your novel in a format that’s accessible and affordable but lack the specialist writing software, like Scrivener or FocusWriter? There’s a way of planning your novel and keeping your notes together that can be tailored to you, and it’s probably already…
Granite Noir 2024: Unsettling, Unnerving, Sublime
This week, I’m winging my way to Aberdeen to take part in a panel at Granite Noir 2024. Exploring the ‘Unsettling, Unnerving, [and] Sublime’, we’ll be talking bodies, weirdness, and the dark, twisty things at the heart of creepy storytelling. Here’s the event description: Three writers whose books leave you with that brilliant creeped out…
When writing life gets ‘squished’
Finding it difficult to find time or space to write? You’re not the only one.
Current WIP – Faeries & Goblins
As scheduled as ever, a week or two after finishing the final draft of my third novel in August 2023, I began my next project. My baby daughter! The last few months have been a whirlwind of giggles, milk, sibling politics, and baby poop. But I also spent December yearning for the next story; drawing…
The Real Mothtown
At the MOTHTOWN book launch, I was asked whether there was a real place that inspired the story. Is Mothtown real? And if so, where is it? Well, dear Reader. Be prepared for a tale of daring. Adventure. And stupidity. Close your eyes and imagine Midwinter’s Day. You might be cosying around a fire. Drinking…
How did I get here?
I’ve seen lots of writers, poets, librettists, and authors in the writing community share their ‘Writing Journey’, so here’s mine! At least what I remember of it. It’s been a bit of a whirlwind, for sure. And it’s only when I see it all in a list that I realise how far I’ve come, and…
JOURNAL #26 – The next thing
Here I am again. At the beginning of a new story. Not just a new book to write, but a new fictional world to inhabit for a year or two. And I can’t decide. I’ve long wanted to do something with the sea. For years, I’ve drifted back to tales of selkies, mermaids, abandoned lighthouses….
Mothtown Book Launch
I’m being brave, facing my fear, and DOING IT. Launch, here I come!
Gods and Monsters
This extraordinary, thrilling, soaring anthology has been gracing bookshop shelves since September now, and I’ve not had nearly enough time to shout about it. Ana Sampson produces exceptional books. I have several! And of course it’s wonderful to be in a poetry collection illustrated by my now long-time-collaborator, Chris Riddell! Gods and Monsters is a…
Journal #25 – Bumblebee jasper
In my last post, I wrote about how the last couple of months had been a time of transformation. Wrapping up novels, house renovations, body changes, and a new baby.
Even one of those is enough to send your head in a spin. But all of them together? That’s true disorientation.
So what life chapter am I in now?
Caroline Hardaker Author 