What advice do you have for writers setting out?
If a writer was to ask me what would be my advice just setting out, I would say probably two or three things. One is: Look at the market. I know that sounds very anti-creative, and I'm not saying that you must write fully to your readers, but there is no point in not knowing what is in bookshops. You need to go into bookshops regularly. Look at the covers and look at the books that are in these 3 for 2 deals. Work out, "Where would my book be? Why?" Ask yourself, "Why would anyone read it?" If you're writing as a hobby, that's great, and you should continue to do so, because writing is a tremendously rewarding thing. But if you're writing to be a published author, you've got to know what you're up against. There is no obligation for anyone to read your book. It can only be done by enthusiasm. If I was a writer, I'd go into bookshops once a week or once a month and look. You're probably a reader anyway, if you're a writer, but you probably shy away from the commercial side of it. The second piece of advice to writers is to understand that story means a certain level of compromise. If you started with an idea in your head that you liked, and the book becomes slightly different, don't keep on pushing it back to that original idea, because it won't work. You have to go with what seems right, rather than what you think is right, and that's where advice is needed.
