In my last post on Filmmaking: the screenwriter’s role I told you how many people, including the director, can suggest or even demand a script rewrite. So I’ve asked an up and coming writer / director for his perspective on the creative process.
Alex Kinsey is a 28 year old actor and director. Acting work has included short films, TV dramas, commercials and theatre work. He wrote, directed and produced his first short film ‘Smile’ – a strange tale of a sinister meeting in the ‘Get Carter’ car park in Gateshead. Alex directed the short film ‘Maybe One Day’ through the Stingers scheme in 2008. Another recent short film he wrote and directed, ‘The Other Woman’, can be seen on Northern Film and Media’s website.
Continue reading ‘Screenwriting: the director’s perspective’
Last week freelance writer and guest blogger Suzanne Elvidge gave us some tips on how to find work in the potentially lucrative field of report writing. This week she shows us how to go about producing the copy.
Continue reading ‘Report writing – the nuts and bolts’
Writing for the business market or copywriting can be a lucrative string to a freelance’s bow. In this two-part series, guest blogger and freelance writer Suzanne Elvidge gives you some tips on how to find the work and then tackle the reports.
There are a lot of different types of report a freelance writer might be called on to write, for a wide range of different audiences. They include
- annual reports for a company or charity;
- reports from meetings and conferences, including those looking at research areas or products;
- reviews of products or topics; and
- business intelligence and market research reports.
Like all freelance work, there is no simple one stop shop for finding all the work you need (but if you know of one, please let me know…). There are as many places to find work writing reports as there are types of reports.
Continue reading ‘Report writing – finding work’
Who knows what’s in the mind of an editor? I decided to ask one of them for his top tips on pitching freelance work. Ian Wylie is editor of the Guardian newspaper’s weekly Work and Graduate sections. He also writes on business issues for a wide range of titles in the UK, Europe and US. In the last 12 months his features have been published in the Financial Times, LA Times, Monocle, Management Today, easyJet Inflight and Velocity. So over to Ian …
Occasionally poachers turn into gamekeepers, but few hold down both jobs at the same time. I’ve been a freelance journalist for 15 years, selling ideas to a variety of newspapers and magazines both in the UK and abroad. But for the last 10 years, I’ve combined my freelancing with a part-time job as a commissioning editor at a national newspaper.
Continue reading ‘What editors want – the right pitch’
As an internet-based forum, The Crafty Writer thought it was high time we offered you some advice on writing for this medium. So we asked freelance web writer and editor Suzanne Elvidge to share her top tips on writing for the internet. Suzanne specialises in biotechnology, pharmaceuticals and healthcare, though she says she will write anything that results in an invoice. She writes poetry and short fiction in what she laughably calls spare time, and is plotting a novel and a book on being green. And now, over to Suzanne.
Continue reading ‘Freelance writing for the internet’
The Crafty Writer asked top women’s magazine writer Lorna V how new writers could break into this aspirational market. Lorna has written for glossy, mass market and specialist women’s magazines in the UK and abroad, as well as national newspaper supplements. Her experience also includes editing Time Out’s consumer section. She’ll be running a three day Writing for Women’s Magazines course at the London School of Journalism in September, and also runs tailored individual courses through her website.
Continue reading ‘Writing for women’s magazines’
Fantasy is probably the most popular of all children’s genres; however much of it is still read and enjoyed by adult readers. One only has to look at the highly successful Harry Potter series to see how much influence this type of writing has. But as a writer you need to be aware of a few facts and conventions of the genre before trying your hand at writing fantasy.
Image courtesy of ginieland Continue reading ‘Writing Fantasy Fiction’
Fellow freelance, Linda Jones, has asked me to guest on her excellent blog www.freelancewritingtips.com. You may want to pop over there to read my tips as well as all the other useful advice that she provides on her site.
Some writers are specialists, others generalists. I’m the latter.This is partly a matter of personality and partly one of fear. Although I trained as a news reporter in the early 1990s, I soon realised that the rigours and confines of writing hard copy for news did not allow me the creative freedom I desired – so I became a freelance feature writer. Naturally, I pitched for work in areas that interested me. The problem was, lots of things interested me… Read more.
Due to other writing commitments, including the success of a non-fiction writing career, Linda is withdrawing from editing her blog. However, she’s looking for another successful freelance writer to take over the site. We wish her the best in her future plans.
The Crafty Writer has managed to persuade accomplished poet Joan Johnston to write a series of posts in which she will introduce readers to the beautiful art of poetry and encourage you to pick up a pen and sketch pictures with words. This month, Joan talks about the importance of listening. Continue reading ‘Poetry: are you listening carefully?’
For Valentine’s Day the Crafty Writer has asked Texan romance novelist Pollyanna Williamson (aka Tambra Kendall and Kelia Greer) to tell us a bit more about writing for this genre. And if you’re more interested in how much the flower industry generates than sighing over the roses, perhaps these figures will turn you on:
- Romance novels generate around 1.52 billion U.S. dollars in sales
- There are 51 million readers from all walks of life
- Romance comprises 53.3% of all paperback fiction sales in America
Do we have your attention? Good. Now over to Polly: Continue reading ‘Romance fiction: more than just sex’
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. 
