“You’ve spent all this time writing the book – then, what a lot of writers don’t realise, is you’ve got to go out in the world and talk about it.”

“The better you understand the intricacies of good writing, the more powerfully you can write about any aspect of your life.”

“Research is all about venturing into the unknown and developing an understanding of the world you are writing about in a way that means you can make it real for your readers as well.”

“You’ll always have moments within a manuscript of feeling stuck but just to push through. In fact, that’s often when the magic happens.”

“Too much information kills tension. But showing – through dialogue, active sentences, strong word choice and carefully chosen visceral reactions – pulls the reader into the story and makes them an active participant rather than a bored onlooker.”

“All kinds of romances have this complex journey (inward and outward) for the characters, with emotional investment from me, the reader, and a feel-good ending. Reading a happy ending makes a reader happy – and who doesn’t want to be happy?”

‘These days nearly all my friends are writers. Much of the joy in my life comes from our conversations about books, our introspective lives, and our work. It also comes from witnessing their efforts and celebrating their successes.’

“I don’t write books with the intent of sending a message – if you write a great story there will be themes and ideas that shine through naturally.”

“A great synopsis shows that you understand very clearly what you are writing about, that you are able to encapsulate the intent and trajectory of the manuscript, and that you know where your project fits into the marketplace.”