Category Archives: Writing

Writing a Winning Opening Paragraph. Three Top Tips.

Posted on August 18, 2014 by Della Galton

Last week I was lucky enough to be teaching at the Writers’ Summer School at Swanwick in Derbyshire. Beautiful place if you haven’t been there. One of my courses was about winning writing competitions. Just for fun we had an … Continue reading →

Posted in competitions, News, Writing | Tagged , , , | 4 Comments

Ideas – a poem that inspires a story

Posted on August 4, 2014 by Della Galton

Recently, a lady wrote in to my Dear Della column in Writers’ Forum and asked me about turning a poem she had written into a story.  She wanted to know how to go about it. This is something I’ve done … Continue reading →

Posted in ideas, Inspiration, plotting, Writing | Tagged , | 8 Comments

Creating Suspense in Short Stories – Three Top Tips

Posted on June 27, 2014 by Della Galton

I used to believe that the art of writing suspense was mostly about technique – short sentences build tension and pace, longer sentences slow it down. But suspense means so much more than this. So what does the word suspense … Continue reading →

Posted in ideas, Inspiration, Short stories for magazines, Writing | Tagged , , , , | 7 Comments

Writing Your Memoir/Autobiography

Posted on May 25, 2014 by Della Galton

If you’ve ever fancied writing your memoir or autobiography you are not alone.  How do I go about writing my memoir or autobiography? is probably the second most frequently asked question I get on my Dear Della page at Writers’ … Continue reading →

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5 Things a Writer Should Never Say on Social Media and 5 Things That They Should :)

Posted on May 12, 2014 by Della Galton

If you use sites like Facebook and Twitter as promotional tools, as I do myself, there are certain things you should and shouldn’t say in public.  This is my rather tongue in cheek list of Dos and Don’ts. Dont’s Don’t … Continue reading →

Posted in social media, Writing | Tagged | 19 Comments

Woman’s Weekly Fiction Workshops – Hot Tips

Posted on April 21, 2014 by Della Galton

A couple of Fridays ago I was teaching again with Gaynor Davies at the Blue Fin Buildings, our subject, Writing Short Stories for Woman’s Weekly. I thought you might like an update. There are two more short story workshops planned … Continue reading →

Posted in Inspiration, News, Short stories for magazines, Tips on writing, Woman's Weekly, Writing | Tagged | 19 Comments

Meltwater

Posted on March 11, 2014 by Della Galton

Novellas are the new novels, apparently. Can’t remember where I saw that. But just in case it’s true, I thought you might like to see my latest novella, Meltwater, which is all about dysfunctional families. (Are there any other kind!) … Continue reading →

Posted in first chapter, News, Writing | Tagged | 7 Comments

The Journey of a Woman’s Weekly Short Story – from arrival to publication

Posted on February 25, 2014 by Della Galton

Last Friday I was lucky enough to be teaching at Woman’s Weekly’s offices in London with Fiction Editor, Gaynor Davies.  While I was there, I thought it would be very interesting to find out exactly what happens to our stories … Continue reading →

Posted in News, Short stories for magazines, Wednesday Writing Spot, Woman's Weekly, Writing | 39 Comments

Wednesday Writing Spot – A chat with Derek English of Forest FM

Posted on February 19, 2014 by Peter

Ha ha – here I am chatting to Derek English of Forest FM about writing if you have a spare few minutes 🙂 Please click the link below, or here if you’re reading this in an email.

Posted in Me on the radio - eek!, Wednesday Writing Spot | Tagged | Leave a comment

Workshops and Writing Courses Happening Now

Posted on February 17, 2014 by Della Galton

We are suddenly awash with writing courses – must be spring 🙂  In date order, soonest first, below are some of the ones I am personally involved with: From 17th February, 2014 – 2nd March – Purbeck Literary Festival There are … Continue reading →

Posted in News, Writing | 7 Comments