13 January 2021

Ten tips for writing dialogue

by Discoveries Discoveries, From the Agents, Writing Tips

CBC and Curtis Brown are proud to be partnering with the Women’s Prize Trust and NatWest to create Discoveries, a writing development prize and programme that offers aspiring female authors of all ages and backgrounds encouragement and support at the beginning of their creative journeys. This week Discoveries team member and Curtis Brown associate agent, Viola Hayden is talking […]

12 January 2021

Cathi Unsworth: ‘Keep going until you get to the end of the novel… Everything can be fixed in editing’

by Katie Smart Author Interviews, Writing Tips

Cathi Unsworth is the acclaimed author of four crime novels, most recently That Old Black Magic; plus two further (non-genre) novels, all published by Serpent’s Tail. Cathi is one of the tutors on our upcoming six-month Writing Your Novel course and a mentor for our new Breakthrough Writers’ Programme, which offers nine months of one-to-one mentoring […]

11 January 2021

Clare Mackintosh: ‘Writing a good crime novel is like performing a magic trick’

by Katie Smart Author Interviews, Writing Tips

Clare Mackintosh is a number one bestselling crime author. We’re very grateful to Clare for providing funding for one talented Black writer to join our online six-month Writing Your Novel course. Through the Clare Mackintosh Scholarship for Black Writers Clare will also provide a bespoke mentoring package for the winning student. We caught up with Clare about […]

06 January 2021

How to edit your novel before submitting

by Discoveries Discoveries, From the Agents, How To ..., Writing Tips

CBC and Curtis Brown are proud to be partnering with the Women’s Prize Trust and NatWest to create Discoveries, a writing development prize and programme that offers aspiring female authors of all ages and backgrounds encouragement and support at the beginning of their creative journeys. This week Discoveries team member, experienced editor and Curtis Brown literary agent, […]

01 January 2021

Creative writing opportunities to kick-start 2021

by Katie Smart Events, Writing Tips

The new year provides the perfect excuse to revaluate goals and priorities as we look forward and think about what we want to work on in 2021. For writers that might mean submitting a book to agents, embarking on a dreaded edit or finally dedicating the time needed to put pen to paper. Whatever your […]

16 December 2020

Jacob Ross: ‘Narrative Craft is not only about passing on techniques… it is also about boosting self-belief’

by Katie Smart Author Interviews

Jacob Ross is an award-winning author, his crime novel  The Bone Readers won the inaugural Jhalak Prize in 2017 and his collected short fiction Tell No-One About This was listed by the 2017 Bocas Literary Prize among the best Caribbean fictional works. His most recent crime novel Black Rain Falling was published in spring 2020. We are delighted to welcome […]

15 December 2020

(C) John Shortt Photography 2020

Fiona Sherlock: ‘If what you’re writing feels a bit dark, remember it’s escapism for the reader’

by Katie Smart Author Interviews, Writing Tips

Fiona Sherlock studied on our three-month online Writing Your Novel course back in 2018. This year she signed two book deals! One with the Irish publisher Poolbeg Press and another with Hodder & Stoughton. Her debut novel Twelve Motives for Murder was published by Hodder Studios earlier this month. We caught up with Fiona to […]

08 December 2020

Caroline Day: ‘It is important to understand what the hook of your story is from the outset’

by Katie Smart Author Interviews, From Our Students, Writing Tips

Caroline Day studied on our Writing Your Novel – Three Months course in 2016. Now she has a two-book deal with Bonnier Books UK. Her debut novel Hope Nicely’s Lessons for Life will be published in March 2021. We caught up with Caroline to find out more about her time on the course, her essential […]

02 December 2020

Sandeep Mahal: ‘Have fellow travellers alongside you who can help… connect with other writers.’

by Discoveries Discoveries, Writing Tips

CBC and Curtis Brown are proud to be partnering with the Women’s Prize Trust and NatWest to create Discoveries, a writing development prize and programme that offers aspiring female authors of all ages and backgrounds encouragement and support at the beginning of their creative journeys. This week the Discoveries team talk books and writing advice with Director […]

01 December 2020

From left: Stephanie Thwaites, Michael Mann and Cynthia Murphy.

How to write for younger readers: Advice from literary agent Stephanie Thwaites and authors Michael Mann and Cynthia Murphy

by Danni Georgiou Author Interviews, From the Agents, How To ..., Writing Tips

Last week, we hosted a very special webinar with top Curtis Brown literary agent Stephanie Thwaites and two of her clients, former CBC students, Cynthia Murphy and Michael Mann. These special webinars are an exclusive component of our Writing YA & Children’s Fiction course, and they give our students the chance to discover more about […]