Death Of 1000 Cuts

On this episode I chat with Simon Akam about his book THE CHANGING OF THE GUARD: THE BRITISH ARMY SINCE 9/11. We talk about writing nonfiction, dealing with sources, and how to handle when things go wrong, based on Simon's experiences when the army objected to some of the things he'd written, and his publisher didn't back him up. If you want to grab a copy of THE CHANGING OF THE GUARD you can get it here: https://www.waterstones.com/book/the-changing-of-the-guard/simon-akam/9781913348489 You can listen to the ALWAYS TAKE NOTES podcast here: https://www.alwaystakenotes.com/ And if you'd like to support Death Of 1000 Cuts you can bung me a few beans via my Ko-fi page here: www.ko-fi.com/timclare

In this episode I look at the first page of a listener's story and suggest ways to make it better. In this episode I talk about starting in the middle of things, when it's better to tell, not show, the art of motivation and making things interesting. If you enjoy the show and you want to be an official superfan while helping me make more episodes please drop me a few beans here: www.ko-fi.com/timclare And if you'd like to submit the first 250 words of your super-polished good-as-you-can-make-it novel or story, you can send them to me via my website: www.timclarepoet.co.uk

In this episode I talk about what I've been up to recently, the teaching I did, what's involved in editing and copyediting a book, some differences in process between fiction and non-fiction, George Orwell, doing interviews, my top three card games and avoidance behaviours. Phew! It must be a writing ramble. If you like the show and you'd like to help me keep going, you can drop a few beans into the war chest here: www.ko-fi.com/timclare And if you'd like to drop me a line, you can do so via the 'Contact Me' button here: www.timclarepoet.co.uk

In this episode I respond to a listener's email about how you know if it's time to throw in the towel. When, as a writer, should you quit? When is enough, enough? If you enjoy the show and you believe what I do is worth something, please drop me a few beans via my Ko-fi page - it's how I keep everything going: www.ko-fi.com/timclare

This is the 6th episode of the series where I take you with me on the process of trying to write a novel. It's been a few weeks... uh oh? Have I hit a snag already? On this episode I share my first 500 words and critique them, trying to drill down into where I think they fall short, and how I might move forward from here. If you want to hear previous episodes in the series they're all in a single Soundcloud playlist, here: https://soundcloud.com/timclare/sets/writing-a-novel If you'd like to support the show, you can drop me a few beans via my Ko-fi page: www.ko-fi.com/timclare

In this episode I chat with artist John Allison about storytelling in comics. John is the creator of comics SCARY-GO-ROUND, BAD MACHINERY, GIANT DAYS and, most recently, STEEPLE. We chat about finding characters from their shape or look, the secret to making characters who feel real, how characters develop over time, writing good dialogue, and the particular flavour of English weirdness. A good jumping in point is STEEPLE, which you can read online here: https://steeple.church/comic/2020-02-17/ You can also follow John on Twitter: @badmachinery If you like the show and you'd like to support it so I can make more, you can drop me a few beans via my Ko-fi page: www.ko-fi.com/timclare

On today's episode I look at the first 250 words of a listener's fiction and suggest ways to make it better. I talk about point of view in third-person limited fiction, clarity in your establishing scene, and how to avoid 'writer's voice'. Hope it's useful. If you'd like to support the show, drop me a few beans here: www.ko-fi.com/timclare

In this episode I chat with author Tasha Suri. We talk about writing Fantasy, creating worlds, strategies for tricking yourself into writing a novel, and questions of genre and reader expectations - how much should we meet readers where they are, and how much should we challenge them? If you're in the UK you can pre-order THE JASMINE THRONE here: https://www.waterstones.com/book/the-jasmine-throne/tasha-suri/9780356515649 US listeners grab it here: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-jasmine-throne-tasha-suri/1137427867 Tasha's website is here: https://tashasuri.com/ And you can follow her on Twitter here: https://twitter.com/tashadrinkstea If you'd like to support the show, drop me a few beans via my kofi page: www.ko-fi.com/timclare

In this episode I chat with poet and writer Vanessa Kisuule about poetry, building a creative career and expectations audiences have of us on stage, online and in print. Vanessa's website is here: https://www.vanessakisuule.com/ And you can follow her on Twitter here: https://twitter.com/vanessa_kisuule If you'd like to support the show, drop me a few beans here: www.ko-fi.com/timclare

In this episode I talk about the importance of getting blurbs or endorsements from other authors. Why are they so crucial for a new book? How do you go about getting them? And why has the situation got worse? As (I think) I mentioned, if you'd like to know a bit more about the art of nonfiction, here is my chat with author Musa Okwonga: https://soundcloud.com/timclare/s4e17-chatting-with-musa-okwonga And Keiron Pim: https://soundcloud.com/timclare/s4e21-chatting-with-keiron-pim If you'd like to support the show drop me a few beans via my Ko-fi page: www.ko-fi.com/timclare And if you'd like to submit the first page of your story, click on the 'Contact Me' button via this link and send me no more than 250 words, plus a title: www.timclarepoet.co.uk