The Writing Shed

So here I am, and so are you. This space, The Writing Shed, has changed it’s colours several times over the years. Originally, it started out on WordPress in a blog of a different name and was where I interviewed other writers and provided occasional hints and tips about the business of writing. It moved to Substack in November 2023 with more of the same.

I added a weekly writing prompt in January, moving from the Hysteria Writing Competition website, and these are the posts that are responsible for most of the conversation that takes place.

Naturally, we change over time. We age, we have different experiences and our perspectives shift. Who I was, is not who I am now, I have moved away from explaining how to use the digital world. So this place is now a place and a space for me to discover more about the world we live in through the words and language I play with.

What you’ll get

Free subscribers can expect the weekly writing prompts, occasional interviews with other writers and interesting people, occasional fiction, and forays into topics I find fascinating. This content is available for two weeks before going into the archive for paid subscribers eyes only.

Paid subscribers get immediate access to the entire archive and back catalogue of everything that has appeared on these pages, together with my deepest gratitude for their support of my writing.

Within the archive you’ll find my original word on living a writing life, courses I created about self-publishing, book marketing hints and tips, how to guides and much more.

There may be the occasional online get together on an ask me anything basis - I’ll let you know through the posts I create just for you!

Why follow me?

I'm a writer, and the author of nine books. I’ve also edited ten anthologies over the years. Playing with words is what I do, I can’t imagine not doing it. To not write would be like not breathing.

I first started writing professionally as a way to generate funds for my social enterprise The Hysterectomy Association, way back in the mid-1990s. It started with website content, booklets and newsletters, and rapidly moved into books and anthologies. Along the way, I learned a lot about the business of writing; from self-publishing to content development and management, marketing and business strategy.  I was fortunate, an audience running into the millions every year meant I had the best testing and learning ground. All I learned, found about, practised and perfected over the 20+ years of running the Hysterectomy Association is what I share with my clients and the audience here.

Being a writer came a little later as I developed a personal understanding of what it means to admit you are a writer. The desire to self-edit, be coy and shy about writing is strong because the nature of words and how they are put together is so subjective. So I developed workshops and retreats to help writers become more confident about what their words had to offer to the world.

This place is where you will find all this. It's a work in progress that will never be finished as there is always something else I want to say, share, and understand myself.

Every year, between April and August from 2012 until 2023 I organised and managed the international Hysteria Writing Competition.

Frequently asked questions

What if I want to cancel my paid subscription?

Substack allows you to do just that whenever you want. It would be helpful to know the reason but only because I want to make sure I provide what the community want. You can cancel your paid subscription and still keep the free subscription so you still get the weekly writing prompts, updates and essays.

OK, you’ve sold it to me, how do I join?

Simply click the button below and upgrade your membership. It’s as easy as that and I’d love to meet you.

Join the crew

Be part of a community of people who share your interests.

To find out more about the company that provides the tech for this newsletter, visit Substack.com.