Give yourself permission to be free — I don’t remember when I first heard the term ‘creative writing’ but it was a very long time ago. I was the kind of child who, like many, lost themselves in books and wrote stories that reflected the excitement I wanted in my own life. …

Let’s get back to basics — I was speaking on a networking panel last year and was introduced in an awkward way. Before the panel, I’d told the chairwoman a bit about the background of my work – I was a non-fiction author and content writer. All good, I thought. …

It’s not all rejections and J.K. Rowling comparisons — Hi there! I’m Kitiara, I’m 33 years old and am the author of six books, four of which are traditionally published already or due to be published traditionally in 2022. I expect to sign at least one more book deal this year, likely more. If I’d read that paragraph when…

The obstacles in my path were put there by me — They say that hindsight is 20:20 and I’m inclined to agree. When it comes to building a career as a writer, I had no idea how much my own attitude affected my work and progress. …

And why you can’t — Do you have a folder of novel openings? Have you got three chapters into your memoir and, somehow, five years has passed? Do you start books fully believing that you can finish them and then…well…end up abandoning them, afraid that they’re not good enough, original enough or just enough? I…

You are who you say you are — I get a lot of people asking me for advice on being a full-time writer and they often have this phrase–or a variation of it–in their emails and messages: I hope to become a writer one day. And listen, I get it. Solicitors qualify and become solicitors. Doctors graduate medical…

If you don’t, why are you even self-employed? — I’m gazing out the window at the glorious sunshine. The temperature is cool, the sky blue and the weather perfect for a run. I look at the time. It’s 4 pm. Ugh, another hour and a half to go. I can’t focus on what I’m doing because all I can…

The 21st century is a fabulous time to be alive (ignoring the pandemic, that is). You can order whatever you want, whenever you want it and it’ll be on your doorstep or in your downloads folder with the click of a finger. …

I’m not the only one micro-planning foreign transport options, right? — I went to Copenhagen a few years ago for my first solo trip abroad and my god, did I research the city’s transport to the nth degree. Before I left the UK, I knew exactly where the metro station was in the airport, the ticket I had to buy to…