View All Posts of Emily Ashton

When you start working on your next novel or short story, give a little thought to your opening paragraph. It’s easy to rush through to the exciting bits of your story, but keep in mind that if your opening doesn’t grab your reader’s attention, it might be the only part of the story they read! A strong opening is the key to getting your rea...

The children’s book market offers a huge range of opportunities for new writers, and if you think you’re up to the challenge then it could be the best decision you ever make. If this is something you’ve never given much thought to, then there’s no better time to give it a go! But what is it that makes writing for children so rewarding? Most...

With only a few days to go until the closing date for The Writers Bureau Short Story Competition 2014, it seems like the perfect time to dish out some advice on what the judges might be looking for. If you’re still working away at your entry – take note! We’re giving you some of our top tips for writing a winning story.It might seem like an o...

Children’s books might seem like an easy way to get started and get your first book published, but it really isn't as simple as it looks. Madeline L’Engle, the author of “A Wrinkle in Time” once said: “You have to write the book that wants to be written. And if the book will be too difficult for grown-ups, then you write it for children...

So, you've completed your course and you feel like you’re ready to start working and earning money - where do you start? If you are working as a freelancer, you have the luxury of being your own boss. It sounds great to begin with, but remember that this also means you are responsible for finding your own work and getting in touch with editors....

What is SEO? SEO, or Search Engine Optimization, is essentially how you make your website visible to people using search engines like Google, Bing or Yahoo. If you’re writing for the internet, be it your own website or blog or someone else’s, then it’s something you need to think seriously about before you start writing. Using SEO effectively...

We’ve already talked about finding new markets and ideas for your non-fiction work, so it seems only fair that we do the same for fiction this week! Some writers find that writing fiction can be a lot more fun, because it gives you complete freedom to come up with new ideas. The problem is that the market for fiction is much more competitive, wit...

Writing non-fiction is by far the easiest way to get published and start making money from your writing. The market is bigger and less crowded, and the market for non-fiction work is wider and more varied.The problem most new writers seem to face is finding an idea for an article, and we completely understand! It can be a little bit intimidati...

So, now you've written your book it's time to move on to promoting it. After all, it's no good having a book published if no one knows about it! It used to be that the promotional work was down to the publisher, not the author, but times have changed and authors are now far more involved with the marketing side of things. Some authors make ...