Tag Archives: writerslife

Writers on reading…

Posted on July 9, 2018 by Mark Hayes

The old sage and great whit Stephen King says in ‘On Writing‘ “If you want to be a writer you must do two things above all others: read a lot and write a lot.” Occasionally I forget the former when … Continue reading →

Posted in #amwriting, amreading, goodreads, humour, opinion, pointless things of wonderfulness, quotes, reads, writes, writing | Tagged #amwriting, amreading, quotes, stories, thoughts, writers, writerslife | Leave a comment

The waiting room of the psyche…

Posted on June 28, 2018 by Mark Hayes

I am a little bi-polar, though that is not unusual, almost everyone is to a degree. We all have highs and lows, and our moods swing between them. the truly bipolar are just those for whom the swing between extremes … Continue reading →

Posted in depression, goodnews, goodreads, Hannibal Smyth, insomnia, opinion, Passing Place, self-publishing, writes, writing | Tagged #amwriting, #scifi, amwritingscifi, steampunk, writer, writerslife, writingtip | 1 Comment

Piano Player or Pianist…

Posted on June 15, 2018 by Mark Hayes

Sam, he who was famously, but never actually, asked to ‘Play it again,‘ was the piano player in Rick’s bar in Casablanca. To my mind, that is whom he is, ‘The Piano Player’, he has never been ‘The Pianist’. That … Continue reading →

Posted in books, Esqwiths, goodnews, goodreads, Hannibal Smyth, indie, indie novels, novels, opinion, Passing Place, pointless things of wonderfulness, reads, writes, writing | Tagged #amwriting, amediting, books, Hannibal Smyth, Passing Place, writerslife, writingtips | 1 Comment

Rambling through a full edit…

Posted on June 14, 2018 by Mark Hayes

Stephen King explains in On Writing that his approach to second drafts and editing involves reducing the word count of a novel by a good ten per cent. Having read my fair share of Mr Kings novels, one hates to … Continue reading →

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Advice for writers in a slump

Posted on June 9, 2018 by Mark Hayes

A facebook friend struggling with their first novel was asking for advice or more accurately was bemoaning the struggle they are having getting words on paper. So after telling them not to be so hard on themselves. I wrote out … Continue reading →

Posted in #amwriting, nanowrimo, rant, writes, writing | Tagged #amwriting, amediting, writers, writerslife, writing, writingtips | 1 Comment

The Writers Imperative…

Posted on May 11, 2018 by Mark Hayes

‘It is not a chemically driven dependency, it’s simply a choice, after all, you chose to write, or not to write…’ Continue reading →

Posted in blogging, depression, rant, writes, writing | Tagged #amwriting, depression, mentalhealth, writer, writerslife, writing | 4 Comments

A Perfect Storm…

Posted on May 10, 2018 by Mark Hayes

Last night, around 11pm, somewhere between one too many coffees and the point where my mind stopped denying my body needs sleep, I hit a perfect storm. One of those rare moments when everything just clicks into place. A moment … Continue reading →

Posted in opinion, pointless things of wonderfulness, Uncategorized, writes, writing | Tagged #amwriting, amediting, nanowrimo, writerslife, writing, writingtips | 1 Comment

The Quotable Writers Block…

Posted on May 1, 2018 by Mark Hayes

We all get a touch of the dreaded writer’s block every now and again. Just as we all get a touch of the procrastination fairy, hit by wayward narrative bombs and once in a while manage to string a few words together without anything … Continue reading →

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Whats in a title…

Posted on April 17, 2018 by Mark Hayes

I’ve just finished writing the first draft of a short Hannibal Smyth crossover novelette that is set in Esqwiths Passing Place. I’ve not made mention of this before now because it started out as an experiment a week ago when … Continue reading →

Posted in books, Passing Place, pointless things of wonderfulness, publication, sci-fi, steampunk, writes, writing | Tagged #passingplace, Hannibal Smyth, nanowrimo, novels, wordpress, writer, writerslife, writing, writingtip, writingtips | Leave a comment

The Read Through…(or the narative atom)…

Posted on March 23, 2018 by Mark Hayes

The read-through is a task I always approach with a certain ambivalence. I both love and hate doing it, but I also recognise just how essential they are, both as a writer in general and when you’re working on an edit. It’s … Continue reading →