Book Review - The Freelance Writer's Handbook

The Freelance Writer's Handbook by Andrew Croft

Publisher: Piatakus 3^rd Revised Edition 2007

ISBN: 978-0749927639

Andrew Croft is a very successful author and freelance writer, who is also very good at marketing his wares. So much so that The Freelance Writer’s Handbook is in it’s third stage of life, having been updated to reflect the technological changes in our world like blogs and e-books.I have the 2002 edition, which I do use as occasional reference and for those ‘down’ times when I want to be told ‘yes, you can do it’.

Croft believes passionately in writing as a way of living, so this book is for professionals wanting to sell their craft. But it’s not just about non-fiction, Croft has been very successful in the fiction world as well, particularly in ghost writing. The book starts from the premise that there is not better way to feed yourself and have fun at the same time as in the world of freelance writing. He warns against unrealistic day dreaming however, laying down the good and the bad in the first two chapters, so there is no room for misunderstanding. The Freelance Writer’s Handbook aims to help develop an ‘approach’ to writing which will ensure an income and provide the requisite enjoyment.

It’s all down to self-marketing, a skill most writers shrug their shoulders at or even turn their back.

If you have the ability to market yourself, then Croft believes you can sell your writing. This book is not about how to write well, it’s about how to market your writing and get paid for it.

The Freelance Writer’s Handbook asks the reader first to undergo a bit of self-analysis, a familiar activity. Then a short section is dedicated to the kind of equipment and materials you need to make a start - the practical bit. For me this is a little like telling grandma how to suck eggs, but I guess there are some people still out there who believe they can get by without a PC.

The majority of the book is dedicated to individual market sectors with insider advice about how to, and what not to do when approaching them. So readers would access these chapters depending on their self-analysis or not if they felt like a bigger challenge. Sections include; newspapers, magazines, non-fiction, business, travel, fiction, children, film, television, radio, and I believe the new edition includes blog and eBook writing.

The final section is dedicated to the ‘business’ of writing and constitutes the basic rules and regulations of any business. Advice is given on how to sell your work, agent representation, publication rights and record keeping. This part is the bit that will increase your chance of success in placing a piece of writing, but no part of the book will tell you how to write it.

Andrew Croft believes in the continued future of freelance writing, in whatever medium that might be. The Freelance Writer’s Handbook does not provide all the answers or covers all the advice but it is a good start, a framework to build upon. There is one golden rule – NEVER, EVER GIVE UP – brick walls are meant to be climbed over and the secret of writing success lies in the preparation you make to see what is on the other side.

Visit the website where Andrew Croft shares more about his life as an author and ghost writer.

Readability Rating: 10  -very clearly written for the intended market

Recommendation: Definitely - for serious writers

Book Review - Suite Francaise

Suite Francaise by Irene Nemiroskvy
Published by Vintage 2007
ISBN: 978 0099 488781


Suite Francaise is a work in progress penned by Irene Nemiroskvy during World War II. It went missing in a suitcase for many years following her death in Auschwitz in 1942 and was finally discovered by one of her daughters Denise Epstein. One of the most amazing thing about this novel is its coherent portrayal of the effecting of the war on French citizens as it happened.


Suite Francaise is essentially two novellas, although Nemiroskvy had planned for five. We know this because the book also includes an appendix of her notes on the book as she wrote and re-read her work. It is this part for a writer, which is the most interesting, an insight into the workings and methods of a successful author.


The first novella ‘Storm in June’ opens one hot morning in Paris just as the German artillery sounds all around. Nemiroskvy through the eyes of a selection of Parisians from all kinds of backgrounds shows the reader the growing realisation that they are on their own as they flee the city. A mother with her four children leaves her husband – a museum official behind; an arrogant writer but successful writer demonstrates the real and not so pleasant side of his nature and a middle-aged couple follow the orders of their employer at the bank to follow if they want to keep their jobs. The building chaos, which quickly replaces the serene, sunny morning, shocks these inhabitants of Paris as they flee leaving their homes and treasures behind them, not knowing if they will return.


The second part of the book, ‘Dolce’ is in essence the opposite of the first. It has none of the chaos or disorder but is still about a battle. The French have lost the war and the village of Bussy is occupied by the Germans. They are now fighting with their consciences and their emotions. The German figures who in ‘Storm in June’ were nothing more than faceless armies are now individuals, real people, young men, who have mothers, lovers and wives waiting back home. A home like the village of Bussy with the men gone fighting and the women and children waiting and praying for their return. This novella shows the difficulties some of the villagers have in reacting to the German invaders who are now living in their houses and eating their food. And of course then there is the bigger problem of lonely men and women, looking for comfort not always of a physical nature but realising that this is a war for everyone.


Suite Francaise is a historical novel but one that Nemiroskvy was writing before any of the outcomes were known. It is also a novel that is in a ‘raw’ state with many plans, questions, further research and editing required. It is rich in prose and short on dialogue in places and the author recognises that in her notes. In that sense it is quite a difficult book to read and one which deserves to be read a second and if not third time.
It is a living work in progress, not one that has been polished, shined, tweaked, and proofed. Which makes it a valuable tool for a writer, to understand the inner workings of another as they develop their project and one whmo it appears from the first draft can portray such depth of emotions, and such traumatic experiences of their time.




Readability Rating = 5 but a second or third reading is essential
Recommendation = A definite for a writers toolkit

The Angel's Game by Carlos Ruis Zafon

Publisher: Weidenfeld & Nicolson; First Edition edition (1 Jun 2009)

ISBN: 978-0297855545

There are some key words which sum up The Angel's Game for me and include; sinful; mysterious; engaging; erotic; magical; lyrical and just plain pure pleasure. It is a gothic, supernatural novel, which reflects the style of Shelley and is a tale about secrets and lies and a book about books.

David Martin is the main character, an author who at the beginning of the story we find writing sensational and successful tales under a pseudonym. He lived in a huge crumbling mansion which he later discovers holds many secrets and there are two things he desires. To write for ‘real’ and to declare his love for Christina, daughter of the chauffer to Vidal a long-term friend and affluent man who is also desperate to write. Then the mysterious publisher Andreas Corelli, who promises to pay him a sackful of money if he can produce a manuscript, which will define a new religion, offers Martin a solution. Not a man of faith, Martin struggles with this concept but his interactions with the ‘Angel’ take him deep into a dark world, which results in death for many around him. Young Isabella is a girl with an attitude and becomes his assistant, but takes her duties a little too far in terms of protecting him. Martin begins to explore the life of the man who lived in the mansion before him and stumbles on things that may have been best left alone, particularly for those people he seeks out for information. But does he realise his two desires? Well, you have to read the book and discover that for yourself, for the answers are not clear, nor are they murky. It is a matter for the reader to decide.

The Angel’s Game is set just after World War I in the struggling streets of Barcelona. It takes us back to the childhood of the main protagonist and takes to forward to his future and in-between there is a maze of subplots and hidden secrets, a little like Pandora’s Box. It also takes us back to the Cemetery of Forgotten Books first visited in The Shadow of the Wind. But this book is not a sequel to that equally satisfying read. Zafon has a great skill with story telling which doesn’t appear to be diluted in translation. He hooks you like a fish, slowly winding in the line, providing regular morsels to nibble on and whet the appetite until you are caught up in the very essence of the story. Unwilling to put the book down yet at the same time wanting to savour every word, every evocation.

About the Author

Carlos Ruis Zafon was born in Barcelona and has penned six novels. His The Shadow of the Wind was the most succesful publication in Spanish history since Don Quixote. He has won numerous international awards.

Readability Rating: 10

Recommendation: Without Doubt

All He Ever Wanted by Anita Shreve

All He Ever Wanted by Anita Shreve

Published by Abacus/Little Brown 2003

ISBN: 0 349 115583

All He Ever Wanted is an evocative story of love and passion, which is fed to the reader in small, delicious bites. There are two significant features to this novel.

It is written in the first person, a difficult point of view to maintain, but never the less Shreve does this well. First person is told through only one set of eyes so demands a certain expertise in providing the right element of showing and telling.

Secondly, it is written as a kind of account, a stream of thought from the main character (who is a man) and who is recalling the events on a long train journey. Again, this style requires a significant skill to ensure that the reader does not become bored or distracted. Again, something, which the author manages well.

The main character and narrator is Nicholas Van Tassel, Professor of English and Rhetoric (no less) at Thrupp College in New Hampshire. The secondary but equally central character is the love interest of said Professor, Etna Bliss the niece of one of his colleagues.

The two meet very soon in the account, following a fire at a hotel where they are both dining, separately. Van Tassel accompanies Etna and her aunt to the safety of their home following the distressing incident. He is at once mesmerised by Etna’s beauty and is unperturbed by her cool, almost mannequin-like demeanour. He courts her slowly and we learn of his growing lust and indeed love for her. She is all he ever wanted. However, Etna does not have the same feelings and when Van Tassel plucks up the courage to ask for her hand in marriage, she begs for some time to think. But she leaves, returning to her family home without informing him and he is devastated. He is not taking her absence for granted though, follows her, and persuades her to accept him.

However, whilst his relationship with Etna will go on for some years, Van Tassel is beleaguered by a notion that starts on his wedding night and the consummation of their marriage. He says nothing but it is this niggle which will eat away at him and their relationship. They have two children – a girl and a boy and on the outer surface appear to have a normal life. Until some fourteen years later when the promotion sought by Van Tassel is put at risk by a newcomer. A man of the Jewish faith and whom has some knowledge of Etna. But it is not this that seals the fate of Van Tassel; he also finds out that Etna has been keeping something secret from him. It is when he confronts her about it that her true feelings for him are revealed more openly. She leaves with the children but is persuaded to return by a sequence of events which Van Tassel constructs but does not understand their true consequence.

All He Ever Wanted is a story of love, jealous passion, unrequited dedication but also a story of deceit, lies that take many guises. It is also a reflection of the societies demands of the times (late 1900’s) and its prejudices regarding faith and its portrayal of the role of women. Shreve portrays so beautifully the love felt by one man for one woman and how that love can be all consuming with unwanted outcomes.

Readability Rating  = 7 (the style takes a bit of getting used to)

Recommendation    = Yes, if you like a slow, simple but evocative tale