Colophon

Published by Warners Group Publications plc West Street,

The kids are not alright

How can you make the ‘scary children’ trope in horror your own? Alex Davis babysits you through the process of creating your own creepy kids

WELCOME

Cover images: _veiksme_/AdobeStock 16 Tina Jackson Content Editor

PEOPLE IN PLACE

In the third and final part of her series, author and short story expert Alice Jolly looks at the transformative elements that will make your short stories stand out

UNRELIABLE NARRATORS and uncooper ative protagonists

Who better to offer advice on writing unreliable and uncooperative characters than author and Taboo co-creator Chips Hardy? A little dysfunction goes a long, long way, he says.

WRITING lost voices

How do you write about people whose voices were unheard in their lifetime? Acclaimed journalist and author Katharine Quarmby describes the process of raising lost voices from paper, and offers advice for writers who want to tell their own stories of the unheard.

Folklore AND FICTION

With a resurgence of interest in folklore, novelist Ceri Houlbrook looks at what folklore actually is, and how it can be woven into our writing

THE MAGIC WORDS

Bestselling crime writer Elly Griffiths talks to Tina Jackson about the dark magic of variety theatre, seedy seaside towns, forensic anthropology and why character is fate when it comes to writing a crime series

SARAH FREETHY

A background in factual TV gave the debut author the research skills to embark on a novel, but it wasn’t until a big birthday loomed that she decided it was time to fulfil her dream of writing one

SHELF LIFE

ROBERT DINSDALE

Retreading the city

Crime thriller writer Ajay Chowdhury describes discovering the past history of the East E nd and weaving it into the opening of his new novel, The Detective

JACKY HYAMS

Lynne Hackles talks to the author about the discipline her previous career as a journalist brought to her career as a writer of non-fiction

Get building

Build it and they will come, says author and tutor Ian Ayris, as he invites you to consider: What sort of writer will you be?

Your writing critiqued

Following his piece on writing sex scenes in the October issue, James McCreet applies his forensic micro-criticism to the steamy passage at the beginning of a reader’s manuscript

Fertile furrows

Alison Chisholm is excited by a thought-provoking eco-poem that gives an old standard an apocalyptic twist

WRITING WINTER wonderlands

Margaret James looks at using winter in your work and how it can transform your writing

Five quick questions 5

When and where did your journey as an

It’s what you know

Helen Walters looks at the importance of specific detail in your short fiction, with an example story set in a particular work environment

Double trouble

Two characters can make for great company in your children’s fiction. Amy Sparkes offers advice on creating duo dynamics with real child appeal

The world of writing

What goes through a writer’s brain? Readers’ letters and dispatches from the wide world of writing

IN THE SPOT LIGHT: YOUR WRITING

FOCUS ON FEELINGS

Subscribers’ news

To feature in subscribers’ news contact: tjackson@warnersgroup.co.uk

Get the write idea

Think about interpersonal relationships and the possibilities of different kinds of communication in these creative writing exercises for you to try right now

HOMES & interiors

Think about where people live in these place-related writing group exercises from Julie Phillips

Novel Ideas Got legs

You never know what the writing life might offer, says Lynne Hackles

LESS IS MORE

Alison Chisholm looks at how very few words have been used to great effect in the winners of WM’s Haiku Competition

Found Footage

TWIST SHORT STORY COMPETITION

COMPETITION LAUNCHES

https://www.writers-online.co.uk/writing-competitions Writing Competitions , Writing Magazine, Warners

Wordcount WORRIES

Writers fret about whether they’re producing too many words as well as not enough. How much is too much, wonders Gillian Harvey

Retreating to write

Can running away be a good move for your writing business? Simon Whaley explores the benefits of writing retreats

STATISTICAL EVIDENCE: Part 2

How can you ensure the statistics you’re using for your research are reliable? Research expert Tarja Moles offers pointers to getting it right

Behind the tape

Expert advice to get the details right in your crime fiction from serving police officer Lisa Cutts

Stephanie Glencross

Simon Whaley caught up with literary agent Stephanie Glencross, after her return from the Crime Writing Festival at Harrogate

Opening up to changes

Monica Chakraverty offers advice on maintaining creativity while editing and submitting

LITMAG OPPORTUNITIES

American Short Fiction American Short Fiction has no

NON-FICTION OPPORTUNITIES

Vox pop Vox is a major US-based general

SHORT FIC AND POETRY COMPETITIONS

Creative Mind Writing Competitions 2024 For Creative Mind’s

Business buddy

Sometimes a writing project takes two, says Patrick Forsyth

SCRIPT OPPORTUNITIES

BBC Writersroom Open Call The BBC’s next Open

OPPORTUNITY FOR YOUNG WRITERS

Benjamin Franklin House Literary Prize 2023 The annual

DEVELOPMENT OPPORTUNITY

Arvon grants With its residential and online courses,

SHORT FICTION COMPETITIONS

Ringwood Short Story Competition 2023 The competition from

INDIE MAGS AND WEBSITES

Booth Booth is the journal put together by

NOVEL COMPS

CWA Debut Dagger 2024 The CWA’s prestigious annual

POETRY COMPETITIONS

Cambrian Mountains Poetry Competition 2023 The competition is

Nobel Prize for Fosse

The Norwegian writer Jon Fosse has been awarded

LITMAG OPPORTUNITIES

The Stinging Fly The Stinging Fly is an

COMPETITIONS

The Prolitzer Prize for Prose Prole Books are

Special sights

Some travel involves sights that invoke awe and wonder, says Patrick Forsyth

How to enter

Competition Rules

LUNCHEON OWCHERS

Piers Blofeld reflects on the fact that in publishing, the saying that there’s no such thing as a free lunch rings particularly true

Words of warning

WM’s latest poetry competition is for comical cautionary tales. Alison Chisholm offers advice on how to craft one