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Happy Friday! As a start-of-the-weekend treat the lovely James Nicol, author of The Apprentice Witch, has only gone and shared his writing advice – perfect for those hoping to do a NaNoWriMo sprint this weekend!

What would be your five top tips to budding writers?

1. Write write write write write – get that first draft down, you can’t fix something that doesn’t exist!

2. Having a plan – no matter how rough – of where you are going is helpful and doesn’t need to curb your creativity at all.

3. Don’t know how to start a chapter? Write the bit you do know you want to happen and work it from there – I've written a few chapters back to front now.

4. If you are stuck go and do something else – go for a walk, do some laundry or gardening – baking seems to release fantastic ideas for me and you get the bonus of cake as well! 🙂

5. Read read read read read read! Anything and everything will help spark you imagination, poetry, non fiction – anything and everything!

Enter the Times/Chicken House Children's Fiction Competition to be in with a chance of winning a £10,000 publishing contract!