A writer’s journal can perform this function, as well as its primary: opening your imagination. If you make sure you write in it at least every few days, about what you’ve seen, your ponderings on things, and ideas you may have had you will really start to notice a difference. Even if it starts out being a bit like a diary, it will soon morph into an imagination portal, where you can really put those crazy things in your head into words.

Why not use the back pages of your journal as a notebook – for ideas and jottings when out and about – and the front as an actual journal? Two birds with one stone. Or something like that.

What he meant (rather than brutal child murder), is that your favourite line in a poem, or paragraph in a story, or chapter in a novel , probably needs to be taken out. A horrifying thought for anyone new to writing or who is only just becoming accustomed to others’ feedback, I know, but a necessary one none the less.

Be prepared to see your writing from someone else’s point of view. You may think that this particular image is poignant, beautiful, lyrical and meaningful, when in actual fact it is just pretentious, pompous drivel.
The bottom line is to get over yourself, and be aware that if you want to write for other people, you have to listen to other people and admit the fact that you don’t always know best.

Always check their specifications. If they say they want in double line spaced, Times New Roman, size 12, and yours is none of these things, they’re going to assume that you didn’t bother to read their specifications, and – if that’s the case – they’re not going to read any of your work.

Make sure you have numbered pages, your name and title on each page, and – for goodness’ sake – keep a copy yourself!

A good way to get 15 minutes writing in every day is to wake up early and write in bed. It may sound the opposite of what you want to do, but nobody makes it with the big boys if they’d rather get an extra 15 minutes kip that chase their dream.

Even if you can’t schedule time in every day, you should make sure that you determine a time every week and dedicate it to writing. Otherwise, it will end up being a line here and there, when you’re on the bus, or waiting for a film or on your lunch break, and you’ll end up with a million half-started poems or chapters, without any of them going anywhere.

‘But how do I start out with no experience?’ people ask. My answer is that you don’t have to do writing work in order to gain writing experience.

In this day and age, getting your writing published somewhere where it might be seen by people couldn’t be easier. Start a blog and your writing is accessible to anybody with an internet connection.

This gives editors a way of seeing your work, but even more importantly, it shows that you’re serious. 200 blog posts says that someone wants to be a writer far better than bland statements about how enthusiastic you are.