It's none of their business that you have to learn to write. Let them think you were born that way. Ernest Hemingway



This book will tell you how to write novels and narrative non-fiction for publication. It is not a creative writing textbook, but teaches the core skills of story-telling: story, character, prose style, and a whole host of attendant tools that you'll need in order to be successful and to please your agent, publisher and audience. It is designed for any novelist, or narrative non-fiction author, no matter what their genre or interest.


How to Write is written by an author has enjoyed success with six novels so far, and three non-fiction titles. Harry Bingham has been in the bestseller lists, has received generous advances and has been nominated for awards. But most importantly Harry is an author who understands the needs of writers. He is the founder of the Writers' Workshop, which works intensively with new writers giving feedback and advice on their work, and helping many to publication. This book is a condensed version of all that he has learned in teaching and working with writers. If your prose style lets you down, then your characterisation will be impoverished, and if your plot is mechanical, then your book's sense of place and time will feel stagey and unconvincing.


If you're at an early stage in your writing journey, then some parts of this book will strike you as illuminating and essential. If you come back to it later on, then other passages will glow with meaning. It is manual dense with techniques, tools and tips that will kick start your writing career.