Writing

The Hero's Journey was first described by Joseph Campbell. Campbell was an American professor of literature at Sarah Lawrence College. He wrote about the Hero's Journey in his book The Hero with a Thousand Faces. More than a guide, this book was a study on the fundamental structure of myths throughout history.

It took me many years and a lot of work to complete my first crime novel. Along the way I learned a lot about the writing process - or at least, as it applies to me. Every writer is different, so different things will suit different people. There is no right or wrong way. It's really about what works for you. Having said that, here are some things I learned which I hope you may find useful.

Writers including Malorie Blackman and Nikesh Shukla have urged writers of colour not to give up and that their stories matter, as the #PublishingPaidMe hashtag took off over the weekend to illustrate the disparity between the advances paid by publishers to non-Black authors versus Black authors.

My new novel Glorious Boy began with a dream. On a tropical island during an emergency evacuation, a young girl was hiding in a dense rainforest with a small, mute white boy in her care. The girl, local to this island, knew the boy's parents would not take her with them. She was hiding out of equal parts jealousy and spite.  Read more

Julia Crouch is a former theatre director and playwright who has carved out a successful place for her novels in the genre of Domestic Noir - a term she herself coined. Below, she provides five important tips for keeping readers on the edge of their seat.