Creative Writing
In this post I preview two books which you may be interested in. One is a series of autobiograohical stories, beautifully written, while the other comprises six writers explaining why they did what they did in their short story included in the book.
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That’s the name of a one-day course I will be teaching at the City Lit on 13 June 2026. It’s already half full.
Read MoreI submitted my review of this book to Teach Secondary magazine, an educational magazine in the UK. The first review is what the magazine published. The second one is what I actually wrote! In substantive terms there is little difference between the two, but you may find it interesting to see what the editor altered.
Read MoreI submitted my review of this book to Teach Secondary magazine, an educational magazine in the UK. The first review is what the magazine published. The second one is what I actually wrote!
Read MoreIt’s really interesting looking at signs, because they either tell you so much, or you can use them to light a fire under your imagination.
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Saxophonist, by Terry Freedman
Sometimes, when it comes to effort, less is more.
Read MoreA poem written within the parameters of a constraint of sorts.
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Created in Google Imagefx
I haven’t finished preparing the new course yet, but here are a few things I’m considering…
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Generated in AI
Did you know that Rebecca Holden and I write a letter on Substack to each other on Wednesdays? Well, we do, and this is the latest one from me to her. Read on for a jolly good chortle.
Read MoreEvery time I teach my Writing for Blogs course, it transpires that some most of the people on the course do not read any blogs.
Battersea Power Station. Photo by Terry Freedman
I first had the idea for a writing machine many years ago, while watching an episode of the Avengers.
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Graphic by Terry Freedman
Quite by chance I’ve been reading about bureaucracy recently — such as in customer (dis)service — and it reminded me of North Thames Gas’s attempts to drive me mad. That was many years ago and North Thames Gas doesn’t even exist any more, but even now the mere mention of a gas company starts my nervous twitch going.
Read MoreThis is a transcript of a conversation between Fred Terryman and myself. It’s been lightly edited, with the pauses taken out for ease of reading.
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Oulipo word cloud
Can creative writing be automated (without using A|).
Read MoreHow many ways can you organise a library?
Read MoreHave you ever thought about all the jobs you’ve had, whether paid for or as a volunteer?
Read MoreAn article I wrote for a client is characterised by 24 pieces of data. More correctly: metadata. So what?
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Shoredticth in black and white, by Terry Freedman
The standard advice for writers who are feeling uninspired or blocked is to allow your mind to wander where it will or to just start writing aimlessly to see what happens. Therefore to suggest the opposite approach, that of imposing some constraints on your thinking, seems completely counterintuitive.
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What is writing with constraints? In a nutshell, it means writing according to specific and tight rules. The “official” name for this is Oulipo, which is a French acronym for Ouvroir de littérature potentielle.
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Blogger, by Terry Freedman
Some people say "of course creative writing can be taught", while others say the opposite. I take a slightly more nuanced view.
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