It is often assumed that the art of writing is simply a matter of talent. While talent is definitely important, it is useless if one doesn’t develop their craft. This can be expensive, but there are many superb resources that are available for free on the internet.

Here is a list of my top ten:

There is a trend at the moment to post about short books that can be read in one day. Naturally, I’m jumping on the bandwagon and presenting you with my top ten under 100 pages (or a little bit over) books.

Celebrating and highlighting women and their achievements, I thought it appropriate to focus on the Top Ten Heroines that have inspired me.

In honour of Valentine’s Day, I offer you my top ten love stories from literature.

We often turn to art to help us process, understand our grief. This is a list of books that I’ve found helpful, sometimes cathartic, often illuminating and feeling seen.

Over the years, I’ve come across books that are eerily similar. Often, it’s copying or bad homage. But there are books that are similar in a good way.

In honour of Mother’s Day, celebrating mothers in all shapes, here are my top ten mothers from literature:

To commemorate the royal wedding of Her Royal Highness Taylor Swift to Trevis Kelce, I put together a top ten books that may have inspired TayTay’s songs. This list was created with assistance from Swiftie Extraordinaire, Azra Berberovic. @azraberberovic

It All Begins Here

It All Begins Here

It All Begins Here

September is Father’s Day month in Australia so I wanted to create a list with the most memorable fathers or father figures from literature. My search wasn’t as easy I thought. I deliberately didn’t say ‘positive’ but ‘memorable.’  Yet it was still a struggle. As it turns out, there are very many books with main male characters but only a few who are fathers. When included in the narrative, fathers are often just side characters with little effect on the main character or plot.It All Begins Here

When it comes to advice on creative writing, there is a multitude of sources on inspiration, motivation, the habits of good artists, etc. And all of them are important as writing is a mostly solitary activity which drains inner sources of commitment and perseverance. However, when it comes to the craft of writing, the nuts and bolts of HOW you actually need to write, resources are much more sparce. I know people who have completed English degrees, and even Master’s degrees in creative writing, without ever learning how to write a good paragraph or how to structure their story.

We know we need food and water, exercise and company to thrive. What we often neglect is the creative child in us. Once we’re adults, we often relegate activities that involve painting, dancing, singing, writing, to the ‘frivolous’ or ‘childish’ basket. Or, in the other extreme, we think of them as highly skilled activities that only the truly gifted and well trained should perform.

The truth, though, is that we all need creativity in our lives to prosper and feel good, fulfilled, content. But how to do it in a busy world like ours?It All Begins Here

There are very many book adaptations that I have not seen (I tend to avoid watching movies if I like the book a lot), but it does happen: very rarely, there are a few times when film makers get it right: the movie is gorgeous, we don’t feel let down after enjoying the book. And if the movie is really good, we don’t compare it to the book but enjoy it in its own right.It All Begins Here