How to Earn More Money for the Summer

Last Updated: 24 September 2024

AD* | As summer is just around the corner, one of the main concerns that you may have is having enough money to truly enjoy your holidays! You should be able to afford a nice trip away, or the freedom to enjoy some fun activities, fancy restaurants, and nights out with your friends. However, as there isn't much time left, you will need to come up with some quick ways to make a bit of extra cash so that you can do whatever you please without having to worry about draining your bank account dry.

Here are some ideas to help you get started.

5 Reasons to Insure Everything You Own

Last Updated: 24 September 2024

AD* | Insurance is essential for everything you possess in life. Whether you insure yourself against health issues, your home against theft, or your car against damage, it is a vital part of adulthood.

Money Making Ideas to Help You Spend More Time Writing

Last Updated: 24 September 2024

AD* | Writers, like most creatives, find themselves facing a familiar quandary, especially if they are graduates or at the start of their creative journey. They need time to dedicate to their creative passion and the honing of their craft. But this is the real world and most of us have to also worry about keeping a roof over our heads and ensuring that the bills are paid and the fridge is well (or at all) stocked. In a perfect world, you’d be able to make a living from your craft, but at present, you’re resigned to working a day job and doing what little writing you can over evenings and weekends. The trouble with this is that your day job saps not only your energy but your drive to pursue your passion and the temptation to simply collapse in front of the TV can become virtually irresistible.

 

If you’re serious about turning your passion for writing into a lucrative career, here are some ways in which you can supplement your income to the point where you may one day be able to ditch the day job.

Interview: Michelle Balge

Last Updated: 24 September 2024

I am welcoming author Michelle Balge to The Writing Greyhound today for a chat about her latest release A Way Out. The perfect way to get to know a writer is through their words, so why not read on and find out what Michelle had to say?

How to Name a Character by Jaimie Admans

Last Updated: 24 September 2024

Naming characters is the part of writing that I dread most. It goes one of two ways for me – either their names are there instantly and the characters have named themselves before I’ve even started planning, or I have absolutely no idea what to call them and often don’t figure it out until much later in the book.

Book Review: Papiliones by Jonathan Bradley

Last Updated: 24 September 2024

AD* | Papiliones by Jonathan Bradley is a collection of poems inspired by butterflies, as well as the stories behind their often unusual and exotic names and colour photographs. In this charming collection, the poems evoke both the colourful lives of these lovely insects and the emotions that they arouse in us. 

Each poem is unique, frequently inspired by the unusual scientific names given to them, which are often poetic in themselves. The poems lead the reader on a journey of discovery of these delicate creatures, each poem and each butterfly a new delight. 

Interview: Laekan Zea Kemp

Last Updated: 24 September 2024

Will you join me in welcoming author Laekan Kemp to The Writing Greyhound? Here to promote the novel Pen & Xander, Laekan kindly stopped by to chat with me. So, pour yourself a cup of tea, cut a slice of cake, and sit down to enjoy the perfect accompaniment to your morning break!

Book Review: How to Hang a Witch by Adriana Mather

Last Updated: 23 September 2024

AD* | It's the Salem Witch Trials meets Mean Girls in a debut novel from one of the descendants of Cotton Mather, where the trials of high school start to feel like a modern-day witch hunt for a teen with all the wrong connections to Salem’s past.

Salem, Massachusetts, is the site of the infamous witch trials and the new home of Samantha Mather. Recently transplanted from New York City, Sam and her stepmother are not exactly welcomed with open arms. Sam is the descendant of Cotton Mather, one of the men responsible for those trials and almost immediately, she becomes the enemy of a group of girls who call themselves The Descendants. And guess who their ancestors were?

If dealing with that weren't enough, Sam also comes face to face with a real live (well technically dead) ghost. A handsome, angry ghost who wants Sam to stop touching his stuff. But soon Sam discovers she is at the centre of a centuries-old curse affecting anyone with ties to the trials. Sam must come to terms with the ghost and find a way to work with The Descendants to stop a deadly cycle that has been going on since the first accused witch was hanged. If any town should have learned its lesson, it's Salem. But history may be about to repeat itself.

Interview: Leapfrogtown

Last Updated: 23 September 2024

Leapfrogtown is all about distinctive diversity - who said all music had to be the same? I sat down for a quick catch-up with Christopher Guard from the band to find out what their unique sound is all about.

What Spring Means to Me

Last Updated: 23 September 2024

I can't believe it's been over three months since I wrote about what winter means to me. The last few months have flown by in an absolute blur - I've been so busy, I've forgotten to notice the passing of time.

Although recent snow and ice are still fresh in our minds, spring is slowly on its way. Flowers are beginning to bud, more and more animals are getting out and about in the countryside and, ever so slowly, temperatures are on the rise.

Since I enjoyed writing about winter so much, I decided to make my love for the seasons into a four-part series here on The Writing Greyhound. Winter may finally be on its way out, but spring is only just starting to begin. What does springtime mean to me? Here are just a few thoughts, memories and observations.

Book Review: Forest Dancer by Susan Roebuck

Last Updated: 23 September 2024

AD* | Work to impress, dance to express.

It’s a long way to go to create a new life for yourself.

Classical ballerina, Flora Gatehouse, has no choice but to take a risk. Having failed an important ballet audition in London, she moves to a small cottage in a forest just outside Lisbon, Portugal, her only inheritance following her father’s death.

Soon, Flora is involved in village life, where fate takes a new twist when she becomes attracted to forest ranger, Marco. But they are off to a shaky start.

Can Flora find acceptance in a foreign land, in a magical place that harbours secrets and heartache?

Interview: Sandy Day

Last Updated: 23 September 2024

This morning I am thrilled to be welcoming the lovely Sandy Day to The Writing Greyhound! Read on to discover all about her life, her inspiration, and her novel Fred's Funeral.