BPA's Blog
Author and literary agent Q&As, plus advice ranging from submissions to how to improve your craft.
Peggy Lee
Peggy manages Blue Pencil Agency’s editorial department, social media channels and blog. She completed a Master’s in Prose Fiction at the University of East Anglia, where she found a love for editing and decided to pursue a career working with words. Peggy has had stories published by Liar’s League, Every Day Fiction and Coffin Bell. She is currently working on two contemporary novels.
Alice Jolly: POV and Voice
A significant proportion of the manuscripts that come through BPA contain fundamental issues with POV. It's a huge part of writing a novel, but one we don't like to think about too much because it's not as exciting as other aspects of the craft. In an invaluable BPA...
Emma Darwin: Motivation and Inspiration
To kick off BPA's first online writing weekend, novelist and tutor Emma Darwin shared her insights on staying motivated, silencing inner critics and listening to inner editors. She started by acknowledging that we all want more writing time but it’s not a straight...
The Eight-Point Story Arc: Worth Thinking About?
Discovering the Arc During my creative writing degree, we were taught about Nigel Watts's 8-point story arc. As a writer of literary fiction, I was hesitant to consider a formal structure when planning my own novel. I didn't want it to be formulaic or obvious. But...
How to Write a Stand-Out Cover Letter
SO, WHAT IS A COVER LETTER? Literary agents and many literary competitions require a cover letter along with your sample chapters and synopsis. This is a formal introduction to you and your novel. Note: It is not a CV, a bio or a blurb for the book. It's a letter,...
Ask an Agent: Marina de Pass from The Soho Agency
Marina de Pass joined The Soho Agency after several years working in the editorial departments of Little, Brown and HarperCollins. She is currently building her list of Fiction clients. Marina also published her first YA novel The Year After You shortly after...
Editing Your Novel: writing guru Emma Darwin’s top tips
I was delighted to attend Emma Darwin's BPA workshop on 'Editing your Novel'. Emma's memoir This is not a book about Charles Darwin, an account of her struggle to write a historical novel based on her family, was described by the Daily Mail as ‘a masterclass’, which...
Common Mistakes Writers Make: A Q&A with BPA’s Editors
Blue Pencil Agency offers editorial reports to writers who want their manuscript to be in the best shape possible before they approach a literary agent or self-publish. Our editors are bestselling authors and industry experts with shrewd eyes and a passion for...
Highlights from our Zoom Q&A with Eve White Literary Agency
Mid lockdown and following the postponement of our May retreat and workshops we were delighted to offer 14 clients and BPA subscribers the chance to "meet" our literary agent friends Eve White and Ludo Cinelli and readers Aisha Bushby and Sarah Revivis-Smith from Eve...
How to Write a Synopsis
SO, WHAT IS A SYNOPSIS? A synopsis is a functional document summarising the story of your novel. It usually fits on a single side of A4, but always check the agency/competition website for specific requirements. Third-person, present tense, reasonable font size......
Ask an Agent: Hannah Weatherill from Northbank Talent
Hannah Weatherill is a literary agent at Northbank Talent. She is currently building her list of Fiction and Children's clients and is keen to work with a twisty thriller, an emotional reading group or women's fiction novel, or something entirely different. ...
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