As it's National Poetry Day, I thought I'd share a few thoughts on Byron. The celebrity cult of Lord Byron began while he was still alive, boomed when he died, and still continues today. He remains an object of fascination, scandal, and appeal. I've been interested in him since I first read about him in a "Famous People" encyclopaedia. It was a children's book, so it did not explore the more infamous aspects of his life. But it was enough to inspire me to delve further into research on the man and the myth - including the puzzle of the mirror . Ultimately, Byron went on to become a major inspiration for my first published book Day's Dying Glory , right down to its title. His early poems (generally my favourite ones) feature heavily in the book, and I enjoyed weaving in lines and references which Byron-fans would spot where others might not even notice them. Poets and poetry have inspired hundreds of writers. It is fascinating that language can be so power...
Saturday 2 nd November 2019 – Characters: Part One – Appearance This is a tricky one! To make your characters entirely believable, your reader wants to see beyond the physical exterior. But, all the same, you as the writer need to consider what your characters look like. It can be slightly awkward when a character’s hair colour suddenly changes, or they mysteriously grow a foot taller in two weeks. Photo by Tayla Walsh, Pexels Not many of us notice the colour of someone’s eyes the first time we meet them. Instead, we usually see their face as a whole and associate a certain emotion with them. People might have strict, pointy features , or perhaps a sullen frown or laughing eyes . These descriptions are a lot closer to what we experience when we meet someone, a sense you want your readers to have. They don’t want to imagine they're looking at a photograph, they want to encounter your characters as an equal. There ar...