Fi Phillips

Christmas trees are going up in people's homes (they've been up in the shops since the beginning of November). Black Friday and Cyber Monday saw a record spend by the British public. Bets are being placed on whether we'll have snow on the big day. In the run up to Christmas, I think we all go a bit doolally in our quest for the perfect festive celebration. That isn't necessarily a bad thing but it can certainly cause as many arguments as it does rewards. When I first started writing the 7 Ways articles, I posted one on how to survive the run up to Christmas. I think that 7 ways to keep your sanity in the festive season is still as pertinent today as it was back then. Go on, slap a snowman. A major part of the preparations in the run up to Christmas is buying presents. Throughout the year, I make a note of all the things that my children mention they would like so I have a shopping list by the time I get to November. My husband is more difficult. This year I tol...

1. Magazine Subscription I'm a firm believer that staying informed on not only your craft but also your industry is important for all writers. There are various writing related magazines that can serve this purpose and that also run competitions. A good choice for all writers is Writing Magazine which incorporates Writers News. A similar publication is Writers Forum . For women writers, there's also Mslexia . 2. Writing Software There are all kind of writing related software packages that you can buy for your writer friend. New Novelist provide a package that I've found quite useful in compiling the details of my novel and constructing a chapter plan. For help with creating your characters Character Writer provides what looks like an in depth approach that includes an enneagram based character generator. Storybook provides an open source (free) novel writing programme that can be downloaded from their site. 3. Books on writing I personally feel that there is...