Freya North

I thought some of you might find this section useful. I hope so. I am often asked for advice. As a rule, I don’t comment on what you’ve written – I can’t really, I am not trained to do so – I don’t have that skill. I’m only an author, not an editor!
What I can do – and am most happy to do – is tell you what works for me when it comes to writing…and what worked for me in finally landing a publishing deal.  This advice page is therefore split into to sections – the practical steps you can take to have your work noticed, and (hopefully) encouraging advice on physically sitting down to write a novel…

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I wanted to write the type of book I wanted to read but couldn’t seem to find in the shops (back in 1990!!) and though I started my second novel (Chloe) once I’d finished my first (Sally), and though I didn’t have an agent, let alone a deal – publication was of course my ultimate goal.

I made a lot of careless mistakes when I first started submitting my manuscript – here’s my advice to help you bypass them! Read more

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It took 4 long hard years before I had a contract, hideous waiting time only for rejection to follow rejection, and I had to confront much negativity and really tactless comments from people who did not enjoy my work.  Just keep thinking Horses For Courses. Make it your mantra when you receive yet another ‘thanks but no thanks’.
I hated Miss Smilla’s Feeling for Snow and I couldn’t even make it through the first third of Captain Correlli and I gave up half way through Love In The Time of Cholera. That might make me sound like a completely uneducated lazy lump – but I’m not. Often, it’s simply down to taste. What you like to write might not be what someone else wants to read. But I promise you, for every one who says “don’t like it”, there’s another who’ll say “bloody love it”.  One publisher who rejected my first novel, Sally, actually wrote to me saying “You can’t start a book like that…”  And yet another publisher obviously thought, oh yes she can! – because Sally was published to great acclaim!
It’s very important not to become demoralized or complacent – but that’s easier said than done. Just try not to let it affect your writing. Keep writing. Just keep writing.

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Though there’s nothing quite like the feeling of seeing your books in a shop, of holding finished copies, of coming across complete strangers reading your novels, or receiving correspondence from happy readers – it’s an arduous process to make it there.  And not just mentally.  Physically, you can do a lot to help – or hinder.  Here’s my advice… Read more

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Early in my career, I met an author who told me he’d been “working on dialogue” that day. I was beside myself with insecurity – and panicked that I should make Mondays my dialogue day, have Tuesdays for landscape and backdrop, Wednesdays for character description….until I thought hey! I LIKE the way I write, because it WORKS FOR ME.

Perhaps the greatest encouragement I can give you is that there really is NO RIGHT OR WRONG WAY TO WRITE! And that’s a fact.  Most authors would agree.  Check out my writer-chum Mike Gayle‘s website – he has loads to say too! Read more

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People often ask about Writer’s Block. I’m sure it does exist, but (contentious this) I feel it’s a little like claiming to have double pneumonia when actually you have a head-cold.
Writing is a job, not an indulgence.
Of course there are days – weeks even, when you’re not in the mood.  However, you have to perform. There are times when it’s very easy to veer away from actually WRITING THE DAMNED THING to ruminate instead on “where the plot’s going” or to re-read ad nauseum what you’ve already written and fiddle constantly with adjectives and semi-colons.  Or to tell yourself you can’t possibly write because ‘the muse has not alighted’.  The muse?  What – some little good fairy who floats down and sits on top of your screen sprinkling magic glitter at you? Read more

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To me, it is fundamental to think about WHY you want to write. I often have people contact me saying “I want to be a writer, how do I go about being a writer?“. To me, this is skewed. You should want to ‘be a writer’ because you WANT to WRITE…you NEED to write! Not because you are attracted to some fanciful notion of lifestyle!
I love my job and I feel blessed to have such stimulating and latterly successful career – but it can be extremely lonely too. Writing a novel demands a great amount of discipline. It needs you to claw back self-belief during periods of stifling self-doubt. It can also be quite exhausting. For me, it also takes a fair amount of physical energy as well as mental alertness of course. Most importantly, you have to have emotional dedication – who wants to read words which weren’t truly ‘felt’ as they were written? Read more

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I have found that it is a good idea not to become too bogged down with structure and plot – it is far more important to have colourful, 3D characters. Not a lot need happen in a book if the characters leap of the page – on the other hand, who gives a toss about the most intricate plot if the characters don’t breathe? When you know your characters, the plot seems to follow – then there’s ample opportunity to shape it when you have momentum. Read more

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