Rob Parnell's Writing Academy Blog

Dear Fellow Writer, Get my NEW THRILLER (and free stuff): KINDRED by Rob Parnell at AMAZON KINDLE Latest Reviews: "Matthew Reilly Meets Stephen King - Kindred should be offered to aspiring authors as a prime example of 'how to write a thriller'. It introduces intriguing characters, sets up a compelling story, and then takes the reader on a roller coaster ride of thrills and chills. It's a kick-ass suspense experience that will leave you breathless and wanting more. Employing effective prose and lots of cliffhangers, this fast paced novel will keep you reading until the very last word has been absorbed. Something that fascinated me about this book is that most of the action occurs in just one location, a place that the characters can't escape without fighting for their lives. Along the way they are confronted by shocking secrets from their past. This story grabs and won't let go." Chris Ryall, Amazon Reader Review "Two days a...

The Rule of Five Whatever you're writing, a good rule is that you expend five times more effort editing than you did creating the first draft. That way you'll be sure to find mistakes, tighten up the text and generally create something actually worth reading. So, if it takes you an hour to write something - be prepared to spend five hours editing it to perfection. This may seem extreme but honestly, if being a lifelong writer has taught me one thing, it's that presentation and effectiveness is everything. And, being a teacher of writing for over a decade, I can honestly say that it's clear many new writers are loathe to look at what they've written even once before they're convinced it's ready. Probably because, if they did, they'd see that it was essentially worthless. As Hemingway famously said, Everyone's first draft is crap. There are five issues that are important when editing. 1. Punctuation 2. G...

Dear Fellow Writer, I am still unashamedly bribing you to read my NEW THRILLER: KINDRED by Rob Parnell at AMAZON KINDLE This week an esteemed subscriber asked me about the process I used to write this latest 349 page novel - and I had intended to write an article about it today. However, the article was turning into a bit of a novel in itself, so perhaps next week I'll write a more condensed version of how I wrote Kindred - and why it took almost 3 years to complete! Plus, in case you've been following this other thing, I have finally finished making  First Cut , my latest horror movie - a 30 minute piece - and I'm ready to start submitting it to film festivals around the world. I'll be putting out a 30 second trailer for it soon. Keep writing! THIS WEEK'S ARTICLE: My 30 Day Mentoring Program My subscribers often ask me what they get in my 30 day novel mentoring program - the one that comes FREE with my ...

Dear Fellow Writer, Today, I am unashamedly bribing you to read my NEW book: KINDRED by Rob Parnell at AMAZON KINDLE See below for details on all the FREE goodies I'm willing to give you -  if you can help me make Kindred a bestseller! Yep, that's the cover up there. Pretty cool, huh? It's 349 pages of thrills, chills and suspense.  You're gonna love it! I guarantee this is my best work of fiction yet! Three years in the making - written and edited to perfection. And if you go over to Kindle right now and get it, I will send you the following FREE GIFTS - worth a few hundred bucks at least: 1. "How to Write and Plot a Thriller" A full course 2. "How to Write and Plot a Horror Story" A full course 3. "How to Make Money Writing" A 51 page report 4. "How to Get What You Want"   A 32 page report 5. "Attract Money Now" a 165 page ebook  6. "Writer's Bl...