Creative writing – F C MALBY

What I’ve learned after 14 years as a published author

I get lots of questions from new and aspiring writers. So, after four published books and stories in five international anthologies, here are my thoughts.

Finding your style takes time

You will write many words that you throw away or put in a drawer. The more you write, the better you will become at the craft. Don’t give up at the beginning. Blogging is also a great way of honing your craft (and gathering an audience). It’s also a solid platform, as social media sites come and go, or shift. I’ve had almost 142,000 readers on my site since I began – your readership is cumulative. Views have doubled in two years.

Consistency is important

You don’t have to spend hours every day, but find what works and stick with it. I try to write regularly, and when I’m writing a novel, I spend several hours each day writing. For you, it might just be journaling once or twice a week, or working on a short story or a novel for an hour a day or a few hours a week. Writing can fit around your schedule.

Take breaks when you need to

If you feel dry or uninspired, it’s absolutely fine to step away or switch gears and switch from stories to poetry or blogging, or letter-writing. There are so many ways of writing, so don’t limit yourself to a huge manuscript, which can feel daunting. I began with short stories, then later began my debut novel. I started writing poetry many years ago, but only returned to it in more recent years, only beginning to send work off for publication more recently.

Find what inspires you

Go for a walk, use images as writing prompts, or work in a cafe if you work better with noise and other people around you. I wrote some of my last novel with a writing partner, both online and in person in cafes. Find what works for you personally and don’t be afraid to experiment.

Create a writing space

I can’t stress this enough. Find a space that’s yours, a space that’s comfortable (because you spend hours in it), and a space where you won’t keep being interrupted. Writers’ spaces have been some of my most popular blog posts. You can find them here and here.

Read, read, read

Read as much as you write, if not more. Reading both within and outside your genre will give you inspiration and help you to find what works and what doesn’t. It also breaks up your writing time. In an age of fast information and scrolling, it can be hard to focus, but you need that focus to be able to write. Whether you prefer an eBook or a paperback is up to you, but I prefer to read physical copies, as I spend a lot of time using screens for work and writing. It’s a controversial topic, but I don’t think you can beat a fresh hardback book!

Understanding Subplots: The Key to Storytelling

I’ve had lots of questions and about plotting stories, and my articles on plot and structure continue to be among my most read posts.

What is a Subplot?

A subplot is a secondary storyline which runs alongside the main plot. It often involves supporting characters, additional conflicts, or personal struggles that relate directly or indirectly to the protagonist’s journey. Some of the best subplots connect to the main narrative, either by reinforcing the theme, revealing character traits, or influencing the main plot’s outcome.

Why We Need Subplots?

Whether you are writing scripts, short stories or novels, having multiple plot strands creates a necessary expansion of the main themes and layers your stories. Subplots add depth, complexity, and emotional resonance to a story. They transform a simple narrative into a layered experience that feels more realistic and engaging. Understanding how and why to use them strengthens your writing.

Subplots Add Depth to Characters

One of the greatest strengths of subplots is their ability to develop characters beyond the main storyline. The main plot often focuses on a specific external goal: solving a mystery, defeating an antagonist, or achieving a dream. Subplots, however, often explore the internal lives of characters: their relationships, fears, and motivations. This creates intrigue and insights for the reader, which might be missed through the main plot line.

Creating More Realistic Worlds

Real life rarely follows a single narrative thread. People juggle relationships, responsibilities, and individual struggles. Subplots highlight this layering effect by weaving multiple storylines together. This creates a world which feels more realistic. Supporting characters also show their own motivations and story arcs rather than existing solely to support the protagonist. This creates a richer, more immersive experience for the reader.

Subplots Strengthen Themes

Subplots are powerful tools for reinforcing the central themes of a story. A well-designed subplot often mirrors, contrasts, or adds complications to the central plot. If the main plot explores trust, a subplot might show a different character grappling with betrayal in a different context. These variations allow readers to view themes from multiple angles, making the story feel more authentic.

Change of Pace

A single storyline moving at full intensity from beginning to end can become exhausting for readers. Bringing in subplots shift the focus and builds gradual tension, creating breathing space between key points in the plot. They can also act as narrative bridges which keep readers engaged, while the main plot builds toward a pivotal turning point.

Subplots Drive the Main Plot Forward

Although subplots are secondary, they often have direct consequences for the main storyline. A subplot might influence a character’s choices during a critical moment, or reveal information which changes the direction of the main conflict. When subplots intersect with the main narrative, the story feels more interconnected.

Some Examples in Films

If you’ve ever watched the film, Crash, you’ll see how well subplots are used to increase tension and keep the viewer hooked. Set in LA over several days, we see the stories of different characters interweaving. Its impact is intense. Layering is important, and an interweaving of plot and subplot creates a richer, more diverse experience.

In the film, Shawshank Redemption, the role of Brooks as Red’s negative mentor, tricking the viewer into expecting Red will follow the same path towards destruction.

What about Bilbo Baggins, who saves the dwarves from the spiders in The Hobbit. Baggins is a good example of creating conflict through a subplot to illustrate growth in a character.

The Power of Character-Driven Stories

One of the questions I’m most frequently asked as a writer is, ‘do you focus on plot or character?’ I predominantly write thrillers, so character is particularly important and often drives the story line (the plot). Jana in Take Me to the Castle and Leisl in Dead Drop are strong female protagonists. Their thoughts, lives and actions drive the plot.

It works well for short stories, particularly given the brevity of the craft and the constraints of needing to hook a reader quickly, drawing them into a story. When the reader is engaged with the character, they are more likely to engage with the story and understand the motives driving the character’s decisions and actions.

When a reader knows what a character has experienced and understands their weaknesses and specific character traits, the story makes more sense and the reader wants to go on the journey with them.

Who your characters are is much more intriguing than what they do in a character driven story. We don’t engage with perfection as readers, we engage with vulnerability. Vulnerability leads to trust and connection.

It works with fictional characters in the same way as in real life. The writer’s job is to make the reader care, and the most effective way to do this is to highlight a character’s fears, vulnerabilities, and internal conflicts. I’ve written more about this in other posts on plot writing here and here, as well as on the narrative arc.

Examples of character driven stories…

Of Mice and Men

Crime and Punishment

Brooklyn

A Man Called Ove

Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine

Celebrating 100,000 Blog Views with Writers and their Creative Spaces

To celebrate reaching a blogging milestone of over 100,000, I thought I’d share more of what you’ve enjoyed recently. One of my most viewed posts over the past month has been Writers and Their Creative Spaces. So, here are some of the creative spaces of other writers.

Hemingway’s writing space at his home in Florida Keys. He wrote whilst on his boat or at his Key West home. Here, he wrote The Old Man and the Sea.

In celebration of hitting a blogging milestone of over 100,000 views

Michael Pollan built this small writing hut in the woods by his house in Connecticut. Pollan was inspired by French writer, Gaston Bachelard, who wrote in The Poetics Of Space, ‘I should say: the house shelters day-dreaming, the house protects the dreamer, the house allows one to dream in peace.’

“The house shelters day-dreaming, the house protects the dreamer, the house allows one to dream in peace.”

Neil Gaiman built a gazebo almost 30 years ago in his garden. He says, “I can look out of the window and some wildlife will occasionally look back…There are heaters down there, because it gets cold here in winter, and blankets on the chairs, ditto, and I have to try and remember not to leave bottles of ink on the table as they freeze. It’s just out of reach of the house Wifi, too, which is a good thing.”

It’s just out of reach of the house Wifi, too, which is a good thing.

Roald Dahl wrote in a shed in Buckinghamshire, which he called his Gipsy House. Everything was within reach of his chair, according to illustrator, Quentin Blake. He also wrote with his favourite pencils on yellow paper.

Inspired by Dylan Thomas, who found writing at home difficult with young children, Dahl built his Gipsy House – a sanctuary, somewhere where he could work without any interruptions.

A sanctuary, somewhere where he could work without any interruptions.

Poems Published in Cable Street Press: Issue 9

Four of my poems have been published in the marvellous Summer Edition of Cable Street Press, Issue 9.

A word from the editor on Issue 9:

**Tiger Swallowtail Butterfly, Sage Flowers, Marigolds.**

Bastille Day has come and with it, the explosion of writing and art that is the latest Cable Street Issue. I’ll be frank with you—every issue blows my mind. I see all the pieces one by one and they are surprising, delightful, shocking, thought provoking. But then they all come together, and each and every time, I’m moved by the web of art in conversation that is created...And these are only some of the many treasures of this issue. Storm into this tower at your own speed, making sure to check out the poetry of F.C. Malby and Roberta Schultz…There is plenty to enjoy on this Bastille Day weekend.

— Hardy Griffin for the editors

Poems by F C Malby

My poems, Crossing, I Have Already Gone, Moths, and Where Have All the Birds Gone feature a range of themes, including the contentious issue of immigration. Through Crossing, I wanted to give a voice to the voiceless; this is a particularly exigent issue.

Crossing

I line up with other bedraggled bodies,
some look as though they might be dying,

others carry the weight of grief. I watched
a child slip away while we waited yesterday,

saw the life leave its lungs, the mother clung
to its body, tears wet the child’s face. It’s not

pretty, it’s worse than they tell you. I don’t
know whether we will make it or whether

we might be taken back. I don’t speak
the language, few of us do. It matters.

The look on the guard’s faces is difficult
to read, tells me they’ve seen so much

of this. None of us know what to do or
what’s next. Clothes dry on a makeshift

line between tents, next to plastic bags
of what we have left after the police take

anything else. Some of us camp under
bridges, avoiding the boulders that stop

us settling on softer ground. We wait for
the next boat, for a better life. The

mother is still holding the child. We
wait. Some of us won’t make it.

Read my other three poems here.