We often get asked, “When is the best time of the year to submit my novel?” and the answer varies a little bit but I wanted to shed some universal light on this part of the journey to publication. Agents If you’re querying agents, watch their socials, especially Twitter. Some agents will do a countdown […]

https://lendingrights.arts.gov.au/ **This post has been updated with new information for indie authors March 2023 For those who don’t know what these acronyms stand for, they are public lending rights and educational lending rights. I’m not an expert but I’m going to unpack a little about what these are, who needs them, and what next. To […]

As a writer, spreadsheets are your friend. No really. They’re the perfect way keep track of your writing, whether it’s a catalogue of your pitches to literary journals or publications, queries to agents and publishers, or competition submissions. If you’d rather spend your time writing than in Excel, we’re here for you. We’ve designed the […]

How does flash fiction make you a better writer? By its very nature, it requires your writing to be the tightest it possibly can be. Your writing has to be stripped down to the bare minimum whilst still presenting a gripping story that will remain with a reader for a long time to come. Don’t […]

Here are some great writing prompt sites to help you bust through any moments of writer’s block (or just keep you in an internet spiral all day long):  Writing Prompts on Tumblr Creative Writing Prompts  Awesome Writing Prompts Daily prompts sent to your inbox  200 Fantasy Writing Prompts  Spec Fic writing prompts  (don’t forget to […]

By Vanessa Jones Scrivener Scrivener is handy software for writers that is like a word processor, virtual pin up board and filing system all in one. Once you’ve completed your writing project, it will even compile your project into a file suitable for epublishing. It backs up automatically everytime you close the project, which is […]

By Malcolm Walker Shakespeare asks, ‘What’s in a name?’ and answers by telling us roses smell sweet whatever they are called. But Tim Winton’s character Rose Pickles out of Cloudstreet is anything but sweet: her character comes fully armed with thorns for most of the story – even though she softens towards the end of […]

By Malcolm Walker Believe it or not one of the books I find most useful is the Macquarie Dictionary. When looking for a spelling I’ll often come across a word I’ve never encountered before and that can begin the process of interrogating ideas and relationships I hadn’t thought about before. I usually just jot the […]

Hi peeps, Cassandra Dean here, with a few hints and tips for online promotion and marketing as a writer! 1. Have a website. Make the design of it simple and easy to use. Update it regularly. 2. Blog. Blog regularly. Blog often. Blog about random shizz you’re convinced no one wants to read about – […]

By Stephen Lord Our regular volunteer, Stephen Lord, discusses his most valuable resources for writing. The most important resource I have is my writing group. Writing is a wretched, solitary and miserable business even on good days, and I couldn’t be without a support network of like-minded souls. They are beta testers, fact checkers, idea […]