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Reading

Tyranny and liberation: Birgit Vanderbeke’s The Mussel Feast

There’s a reason why oppressive societies have images of their leader on every wall and statues in every town square. For the tyrant to maintain power, he must be everywhere, or at least give that appearance. In this gripping portrait…

Reading

What’s the book you turn to?

Do you have a particular book that you turn to when you’re feeling lost or confused? Something that you’ve read or dipped into dozens of times, and that always makes you feel better? For me, that book is the Tao…

The writing process

Generalities are the enemy of good writing

That was quite a general statement, so let me explain. Good writing involves seeing something in a fresh way, and that means seeing it for itself, not for its category. I was sitting here writing this morning, and saw a…

The writing process

Interview with a writer (and his cat): James Higgerson

Check out this short interview I recorded the other day with James Higgerson, Manchester-based author of The Almost Lizard. In the interview, James tells us how he wrote the novel, what he wanted to communicate, and what most surprised him about…

Reading

Rutherford Park by Elizabeth Cooke

Do you ever get the feeling that you’re not the target audience for a particular book? The cover of this one set my alarm bells ringing with its references to Downton Abbey and Catherine Cookson and Edwardian English country houses.…

The writing process

The ten rules of writing fiction

There’s an old Guardian article I’ve used a few times when giving talks on the craft of writing. It was called The Ten Rules of Writing Fiction. The Guardian asked a whole load of famous novelists for their advice, and…

Reading

The Rag

I like literary magazines. I read a lot of them, although I don’t review them on here too often. I just read a new one called The Rag (well it’s new to me, but this is Issue 5 so I…

Reading

Meditation by James Hewitt

Meditation is a difficult subject for a ‘how to’ guide, because ultimately it doesn’t really matter how you do it. This is a pretty good attempt, though. James Hewitt gives the basic advice on posture, breathing, etc., and then takes…

Reading

Andrew Blackman

Andrew Blackman

Andrew Blackman

Tag: featured

Tyranny and liberation: Birgit Vanderbeke’s The Mussel Feast

What’s the book you turn to?

Generalities are the enemy of good writing

Interview with a writer (and his cat): James Higgerson

Rutherford Park by Elizabeth Cooke

The ten rules of writing fiction

The Rag

Meditation by James Hewitt

Mr Darwin’s Gardener by Kristina Carlson