Nora Roberts On How She Writes | Nora Roberts celebrates her birthday on 10 October. Discover how she writes, from her daily routine and three-draft method to her advice on discipline, deadlines, and staying focused. 📝 #noraroberts #authorbirthday #writingsky

'I like colourful tales with black beginnings, and stormy middles, and cloudless blue-sky endings. But any story will do.' ~K. A. Applegate #authorbirthday #writingsky #animorphs #booksky

Welcome to the sixth post in our greatest fictional world builders series. This series is a reference and a resource for writers who are building their own worlds. Our sixth fictional world builder is Frank Herbert who was born on 8 October 1920 and died on 11 February 1986. #authorbirthday #dune

'I think the main thing for aspiring writers is to make sure you’re writing all the time... And don’t be afraid of learning the craft of writing – structure is not a dirty word. Story craft is really important.' ~Charlotte McConaghy #authorbirthday #writingsky

'Whenever you’re struggling – with the beginning, middle, or end – it’s because you don’t have fundamental conflict, and you haven’t set up the characters correctly so they are involved in a real battle.' ~Terry Hayes #authorbirthday #writingsky

'I wanted to find a voice that was not performed. And I think that a lot of times the first person—quite powerfully—is a confessional form. It’s testimonial.' ~Rachel Kushner #authorbirthday #rachelkushner #writingsky

'For me it’s important that I enjoy the characters I write about, or rather, those whose points of view I am using. I need there to be something intrinsically interesting in them.' ~Steven Erikson #authorbirthday #writingsky

Want to actually finish the book you’ve started? 6 October is thriller writer Joseph Finder’s birthday, so we’re sharing his eight practical tips for making writing a habit and protecting your time. #authorbirthday #josephfinder #writingsky

It’s Michael Morpurgo’s birthday on 5 October! The bestselling children’s author has written more than 150 books. Discover his 10 rules for writers and decide which ones you would like to use in your own writing. #authorbirthday #michaelmorpurgo #writingsky

'It took me 49 years of preparation — of reading and writing and making up stories in my head — to be ready to write. Now I do not intend to stop.' ~ @karencushman.bsky.social #authorbirthday

'When I’m in the thick of it, and I’m building the world, and I’m playing with the sentences, and I’m seeing the characters do things that are surprising to me—that’s Shangri-La.' ~Tochi Onyebuchi #authorbirthday #writingsky

Graham Greene was born on 2 October and became one of England’s most celebrated novelists. He was known for combining suspense with deeper questions about human nature. Discover the writing process behind some of his best-known works. #grahamgreene #authorbirthday #botd #writingsky

'Let your freak flag fly. Your odd, quirky, unique voice is what makes your story special. Be who you want, and be joyful.' ~Nicola Yoon #botd #authorbirthday #writingsky

'I want to write a whole novel that invades you. I want to control what you think and feel, to put you right there, right then… I want to give you a life you’ve never had and change the one you live.' ~Nicola Griffith #botd #authorbirthday #writingsky

'Set schedules work for some people, not for others; but any writer who waits for ‘inspiration’ to strike will never finish a book. Inspiration is all very well, but it will never replace sheer dogged determination.' ~Elizabeth Peters #authorbirthday #botd #ameliapeabody #writingsky

'I have one sacred rule about the thriller. It is, it ought to be, it must be, a morality. If it strays from the side of the angels, provokes total despair, willfully destroys–without pressing need in the plot–the innocent and the good, that is unforgivable sin.' ~Ellis Peters #botd #authorbirthday

'When I first started to get into writing, it was via music. I’d generate ideas for songs that would turn into stories, then they’d turn into novels.' ~Irvine Welsh #botd #authorbirthday #writingsky

'After a while I was just writing books to become a more expansive person. I couldn’t stop myself… I owe my whole life to writing.' ~Jonathan Evison #authorbirthday #botd #writingsky

'Poetry is not a turning loose of emotion, but an escape from emotion; it is not the expression of personality, but an escape from personality. But, of course, only those who have personality and emotions know what it means to want to escape from these things.' ~T. S. Eliot #botd #authorbirthday

'I would say when I first started writing, I was a very dialogue heavy writer. It comes to me most naturally. As I got older, I had to really learn how to write setting. I had to deliberately learn certain elements of craft.' ~Alison Espach #authorbirthday #botd #writingsky