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Thirteen Reasons You May Be Procrastinating
And even more ways to help yourself get on with it
Sep 4
•
Emma Darwin
12
2
4
August 2026
Why I Still (quite often) Believe in Writing Workshops
How to avoid the drawbacks and make the most yours
Aug 28
•
Emma Darwin
18
4
6
On Empathy and Enchantment
Why empathy matters in writing but distance matters too
Aug 21
•
Emma Darwin
28
6
What is subtext and how can it improve your writing?
In a recent Itch of Writing Q&A, a supporter asked about including more subtext in their novel, as some writing-group colleagues had suggested it would…
Aug 8
•
Emma Darwin
15
8
2
Q&A: Dressing and accessorising characters; 'get in late and get out early'; getting the right paid-for editing
The pick of the Itch of Writing Ask Me Anything Live Chats
Aug 7
•
Emma Darwin
23
3
July 2026
The Thirty Thousand Doldrums, and how to get out of them
Whether you've been racing along with a following wind, or tacking slowly and steadily across the sea, when you're becalmed in the doldrums it's…
Jul 31
•
Emma Darwin
10
4
Itchy Bitesized 44: Twelve Things About Pausing A Project
How to cope with, and even make the most of, some months or years away from writing your novel or memoir
Jul 24
•
Emma Darwin
37
4
7
Making it Real: Mary Karr's 'carnal world'
How to make your characters' lives and worlds come alive for your reader
Jul 17
•
Emma Darwin
7
4
3
Picked Up A Bad Book? Think Of It As A Good One
What you can learn from books that are good-enough-to-sell-enough
Jul 10
•
Emma Darwin
43
7
11
Make Friends with Synopsis-Writing
Why synopses are the perfect tool for developing and editing as well as selling your writing
Jul 3
•
Emma Darwin
12
4
June 2026
Q&A: Braided narratives in first person; bones showing in your third draft; is it worth entering competitions?
The pick of the Itch of Writing Ask Me Anything Live Chats
Jun 26
•
Emma Darwin
27
6
2
De-Filtering Your Draft
Why filtering matters, what to do about it, and twenty words which point towards filtering
Jun 19
•
Emma Darwin
27
5
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