Swashbuckler

Wow, Kathleen! You’re writing a book? That’s wonderful. It’s hard to give pointers because everyone thinks differently, but I think the first things is to read a lot (which I bet you already do) and even read books that you might not normally read – say if you don’t read fantasy novels, give one a go, because you can learn a lot from that.
The second is to keep a notebook in which you can scribble down ideas when they come to you, so you don’t forget. I even have a waterproof notepad in the shower!
And I guess the third is just to keep at it, and keep revising what you write so it’s as good as you can make it. Sometimes that feels a bit boring but it’s an important part of the process.
I heard Lynley Dodd speak last week (she wrote all the Hairy Mclary books) and she said she does about 24 drafts of each book. I don’t do that many drafts of the longer books, but I certainly redraft many times.
Hope that helps, and good luck with your writing.
Regards,
Kelly

Hi again Kathleen,
Wouldn’t that be a fabulous thing? Once I saw a play of one of my other books, Act of Faith, and it was so amazing to see the actors speaking the lines that I wrote. I nearly cried.
I’m so happy that you like the books so much, and like Lily too. If you have decided you like adventure books after all, maybe the library would have some by Rosemary Sutcliff or Geoffrey Trease. Or you might like the books by Tamora Pierce about Keladry, the girl knight.
Happy reading, and thanks for writing to me.
Best wishes,
Kelly