Thanks to Margot Kinberg (who we interviewed yesterday) to her Wise Words!

What is your favourite writing site/online resource?

I get a great deal of help and support from others in my online writing community. For instance, I learn a lot from Elizabeth Spann Craig’s terrific Mystery Writing is Murder, and I get a great deal of writing support and ideas from fellow writers Elspeth Antonelli at It’s a Mystery and  Alan Orloff, who blogs at A Million Blogging Monkeys. I’ve also recently discovered Writer’s Remorse, and am looking forward to learning a lot from that site, too. There are lots of other writers’ sites, too, that I visit regularly to get tips, support and ideas about writing.

Do you have a favourite writing quote?

I’ve always liked this one by Agatha Christie: “The best time to plan a book is while you're doing the dishes.”   I think I like it so much because I write in dollops of time, and it’s not always easy to make time for planning.

What advice would you give to aspiring writers?

I actually have three pieces of advice. First, read, read, read. Read in your genre, so you’ll know how excellent writers in your genre do what they do. Be familiar with styles, authors and so on. Second, keep writing all the time. The more one writes, the more one can develop a distinctive style and approach. Writing takes a lot of practice. Third, surround yourself with supportive people, preferably with at least a few who are also writers. By supportive, I mean people who care enough about you to be honest about your writing (when it works well and when it doesn’t), and who also care enough about you to encourage you. 

Our Wise Words series is a collection of advice and resources from other writers.  For more information, please join our community on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Writers-Remorse/260965577980