We have a treat in store for you budding writers this afternoon, Kate Anthony, author of Beautiful Day has stopped by to share with us her top five writing tips!
Who is Kate?
Kate Anthony grew up in the Midlands. On graduating, she began working as a residential social worker firstly with young offenders and later with vulnerable adults. She then joined the BBC, working as a producer in comedy for some years before moving to an independent production company as a drama producer. She lives close to Brighton with her family.
Kates debut novel Beautiful day was published by Penguin Michael Joseph on the 10th of April and is available for purchase now!
Kates top five writing tips –
Number One
Don’t read other writer’s writing tips because they freak you out.
Number Two
Still reading? I’ll plough on. An extension of (1) was to find my own way of working. Everyone’s day is structured differently and I had to find what worked for me. Most of us would like to have a set place and time to work and to focus, with a little break here and there for a bowl of soup or cup of coffee (preferably brought to us by somebody else). Alas, it’s normally a mad scrabble to get anything down and there’s always less time than you thought and something to come along and muck up all your plans. When I read that an author I admire greatly, gets up at five, breaks for porridge at nine, has a quinoa salad at twelve thirty, works until six, does a bit of yoga, reads Proust and is in bed by ten, I panic (and also wonder who on earth is buying their loo roll, getting their car MOT’d or cat de-wormed). For me, starting to write was a bit like when you have a baby; you’re desperate for advice and madly absorb whatever you can find out. In reality, once the baby arrives, you throw out most of what you’ve learned and stumble through chaotically. The baby is relatively happy and healthy and eventually you find out that whatever gets you through, is roughly OK.
Number Three
In my case, the biggest difference between writing for the sheer pleasure of it and writing professionally, is that now I have to write on days when I really, really don’t feel like it; there’s no getting away from it, you just have to. I listened to a radio programme by Anne Enright and she said, if you just write 200 words in a day, then that isn’t a failure, you are 200 words further on than you were the day before. This has been a huge help on those mornings when every word is squeezed out like a pea through a needle, and I’m convinced that my latest project should be put out of its misery with one click of the delete button.
Number Four
Post-It Notes – everywhere.
Number Five
ENJOY. I try to remember what Val McDermid says: ‘I think there are 3 elements to any literary career. You’ve got to have a modicum of talent. You’ve got to work hard and you’ve got to be lucky.’ Sometimes when I get snowed under I lose sight of how lucky I am to be writing full-time, this is unforgivable.
A huge thank you to Kate for sharing her top tips with us today, I’m sure many houses are being showered in post-it notes right now!
Do you have any special tips that help you when writing? Let us know!
