Joanne Harris

Esma Mary Cairns.

A gravestone shaped like a metal gate inside a piece of granite…

I first saw this grave in Grantchester in 1985, and it inspired my very first novel, THE EVIL SEED…

And this morning the Shed is a set of footprints in sand, heading away from the waterline…

You can now get a copy of my recent live event with @joannechocolat.bsky.social and support the work of @folklorelibrary.bsky.social

See below for full details, or in the words of @scarfolk.bsky.social ... for more information, please re-read

A few years ago I got sick, too. All I could do was on-camera events. I looked like shit. No one cared. I was alive.

Unsolicited writing advice, no. 189:
There are many different ways to be a writer. Being a professional writer is only one of them. All are valid.

Absolutely. Which is why authors should probably think quite hard before they do give up the day job.

Grainy photo in black and white, its roughness accentuating the mist that hangs over the dewy field we see. In the field, three young fox kits leap and play amidst the stalks.

Foxies!

Photo by Minoru Taketazu from his book Kita-Kitsune (Hokkaido Fox), 1974.

And this morning the Shed is a fluted stone from the battlements of a hill fort long lost to the ravages of time…

There are many more secure ways to pay bills than being an author…

This Christopher Fowler book is a great read for lots of reasons, but especially for seeing how valuable advice no. 235 is.
www.christopherfowler.co.uk/books/book-f...

Unsolicited writing advice, no. 235:
Stop equating wealth and fame with your value as a writer. Some of the writers we now admire were unknown in their lifetimes; just as many once-bestselling writers are now forgotten and unread. Making good art is not the same as making good money.

“Fairy tales were not my escape from reality as a child; rather, they were my reality: for mine was a world in which good and evil were not abstract concepts, and like fairy-tale heroines, no magic would save me unless I had the wit and heart and courage to use it wisely”
@terriwindling.bsky.social

What fasting again taught me as a transgender Muslim In the wake of the killing of an openly gay imam earlier this year, Jaheim Karim writes on being trans and Muslim

In the wake of the killing of an openly gay imam earlier this year, Jaheim Karim writes on being trans and Muslim

https://www.wearequeeraf.com/what-fasting-again-taught-me-as-a-transgender-muslim/

There's no such thing as a "real" author. There are only those who do, and those who don't.

Unsolicited writing advice, no. 10009:
Beware of people who give writing advice for a living, rather than writing books for a living. And beware of people telling you about *the publishing business* who don't currently work in the publishing business.

And this morning the Shed is a rocking chair, no bigger than an acorn cup; lined with spider silk, and with cushions of thistledown…

Highlighting this for the weekend crowd 😊 #booksky 📚 💙

"single-use plastic of the mind" had me GAGGED

I think it helps, yes: writers who try to follow trends they don't really like or understand tend to sound joyless and insincere.

Unsolicited writing advice, no. 18167:
There is no "typical reader," just as there is no "typical writer." Your first responsibility is to yourself; to create the most honest, well-written, carefully-researched story you can. Finding readers comes later.

30 more women to tip this over 55k today? The calm, compassionate, inclusive feminists, who might not have seen the amazing support received for the trans community and the rejection of hate so far? Go on…

a lightning bolt is visible in the dark sky Alt: A lightning bolt is visible in the dark sky.

Lots of wuthering outside the Shed. Time for another pot of tea...

Of course!

Love to you and yours, Naomi. X

And this morning the Shed is a paper boat, floating on an ornamental lake flanked with stone mermaids, tritons and coiled sea monsters…

Gosh, why didn’t I think of that 30 years ago? 😂

There are, yes. But unless you want to write like Faulkner, you need not follow his process. Find yours instead. His way is already taken.

Unsolicited writing advice, no. 101:
Writing is not a uniform. It's a dressing-up box, from which you can pick and choose what fits, in order to create your own, unique look. Remember that what fits someone else may not be at all right for you.

And this morning the Shed is a time vault, hoarding the months and minutes…