Have you ever been on a writing holiday, or thought of going on one? Variously referred to as writing holidays, writing breaks, writing getaways, or even writing safaris, they all have a common theme: an opportunity to work on your writing while someone else worries about the boring stuff like cooking and cleaning.
Author Archive for Fiona Veitch Smith
The 2008 Man Booker Prize longlist has been announced and I’m sure we’ll be delving into some of them in The Crafty Writer Book Club soon. If you haven’t already done so, please drop by this month’s Book Club discussion which looks at Bill Bryson’s delightful Shakespeare: the World as a Stage. Next month we will look at Mohsin Hamid’s The Reluctant Fundamentalist, which was shortlisted for last year’s Man Booker. So now, without further ado – drum roll please – here is this year’s longlist:
Continue reading ‘Man, it’s the Booker Prize’
The Crafty Writer is one-year-old today! Twelve months ago on 4 August 2007, we went live with our first post. Since then we’ve had an eventful year as we’ve brought you quality articles, interviews, courses and workshops on the business and craft of writing.
Image courtesy of jek in the box
Continue reading ‘Happy Birthday, Crafty Writer!’
I’m going to be in Cape Town in September and will be speaking at a creative writing and publishing workshop, in collaboration with award-winning author Gillian D’Achada. I’ve just finished editing her novel Sharkey’s Son, which has won the prestigious Sanlam Award, and I’ll be over in South Africa for the book’s launch.
So if you’re going to be in Cape Town in September, why not come along to one or both of the sessions:
Session 1
Releasing your creativity:
Getting those ideas from the brain to the page. A two-hour workshop where you can explore what’s already in you and how best to get it out.
Plus – a bonus half hour on the South African and UK publishing markets.
Session 2
Bringing your writing to life:
How to use all your senses, ‘show not tell’ and banish passive writing for ever. A two-hour workshop that will give you the tools to develop your writing into something worth publishing.
Plus – a bonus half hour with Gillian D’Achada on one author’s journey towards publication.
Venue: Stellenbosch Library
Date: Saturday 13 September 2008
Time: 10am–12.30 and 2–4.30pm
Venue: Hout Bay Library
Date: Saturday 20 September 2008
Time: 10am–12.30 and 2–4.30pm
Cost: R500 for both sessions, R350 for one session. Light refreshments will be provided for each session, but lunch is not included. There are lots of eateries nearby, or bring your own!
To book: Telephone Gill on 0833610167 in SA, or contact me via email.
Your hosts
The workshops will by run by me (Fiona) and Gill, and you will have an opportunity to meet Gill and ask her questions about her book and her experience of the publishing industry.
Anyone else’s desk look like mine (perhaps I need one of those hideaway computer desks)? Fortunately I don’t subscribe to the old “cleanliness is next to Godliness” cliche…
Cartoon by Dave Walker. Find more cartoons you can freely re-use on your blog at We Blog Cartoons.
Continue reading ‘Writing space’
Alex Gazzola is an author and journalist specialising in food, nutrition and health, with a particular focus on food intolerance, food allergy, digestion and digestive orders. Continue reading ‘A health writer coughs up’
Welcome to The Crafty Writer. I assume that as you’re visiting this site, you are a writer or someone who is interested in writing. Then you’re in the right place (unfortunately that domain name was already taken!). My name is Fiona Veitch Smith and I am a professional writer and writing tutor who started sharing thoughts on the craft and business of writing on my other website http://www.veitchsmith.com/. But as that site was also full of articles I had written on other subjects, from lifestyle to spirituality, some users asked me to put all my writing articles and advice on a separate site just for them. And so The Crafty Writer was born. Continue reading ‘Welcome to The Crafty Writer’
Welcome to The Crafty Writer, published by Fiona Veitch Smith, a freelance journalist, editor, author, playwright, screenwriter and writing teacher. This site is full of information and resources to help you to become a better writer. 
