Emma Darwin
@emmadarwinwriter.bsky.social
Writes fiction & non-fiction, teaches, blogs @ This Itch of Writing https://linktr.ee/emmadarwinwriter
Reposted by Emma Darwin
Narrative Setup and Psychic Distance in The Bruegel Boy emmadarwin.substack.com/p/narrative-... @emmadarwinwriter.bsky.social #writing #WritingCommunity
Narrative Setup and Psychic Distance in The Bruegel Boy
Five examples of how I used my favourite writing tools of all in my new novel
emmadarwin.substack.com
November 21, 2025 at 7:09 PM
Narrative Setup and Psychic Distance in The Bruegel Boy emmadarwin.substack.com/p/narrative-... @emmadarwinwriter.bsky.social #writing #WritingCommunity
Brand new on This Itch of Writing for everyone: thinking about how the fundamental decisions about narrative setup and psychic distance work together - and using The Bruegel Boy as a real-world example.
buff.ly/SbEzkgq, linktree in bio or search this itch of writing substack
buff.ly/SbEzkgq, linktree in bio or search this itch of writing substack
November 21, 2025 at 8:33 PM
Brand new on This Itch of Writing for everyone: thinking about how the fundamental decisions about narrative setup and psychic distance work together - and using The Bruegel Boy as a real-world example.
buff.ly/SbEzkgq, linktree in bio or search this itch of writing substack
buff.ly/SbEzkgq, linktree in bio or search this itch of writing substack
One of the things that's such fun about doing events for The Bruegel Boy is having such gorgeous images to work with! Wonderful evening chaired by Lucy Popescu for The Author's Club. I'm probably saying, "Gil modelled for St Michael, there in the middle, and both of the angels in white dresses..."
November 21, 2025 at 4:33 PM
One of the things that's such fun about doing events for The Bruegel Boy is having such gorgeous images to work with! Wonderful evening chaired by Lucy Popescu for The Author's Club. I'm probably saying, "Gil modelled for St Michael, there in the middle, and both of the angels in white dresses..."
Still thrilled at Antonia Senior’s review of The Bruegel Boy in The Times, Book of the Month and top of their list of the best historical fiction of 2025: vividly creates a rich, lost world and dives fearlessly into deep themes. buff.ly/73oYYWR
November 21, 2025 at 3:49 PM
Still thrilled at Antonia Senior’s review of The Bruegel Boy in The Times, Book of the Month and top of their list of the best historical fiction of 2025: vividly creates a rich, lost world and dives fearlessly into deep themes. buff.ly/73oYYWR
Brand new for everyone on This Itch of Writing: thinking about how the fundamental decisions about narrative setup and psychic distance work together - and using The Bruegel Boy as a real-world example.
buff.ly/SbEzkgq, linktree in bio or search this itch of writing substack
buff.ly/SbEzkgq, linktree in bio or search this itch of writing substack
November 21, 2025 at 11:29 AM
Brand new for everyone on This Itch of Writing: thinking about how the fundamental decisions about narrative setup and psychic distance work together - and using The Bruegel Boy as a real-world example.
buff.ly/SbEzkgq, linktree in bio or search this itch of writing substack
buff.ly/SbEzkgq, linktree in bio or search this itch of writing substack
This is a lovely piece!
John Masefield’s The Midnight Folk is probably my favourite children’s book. I tried to explain why.
The Midnight Folk: memory, magic, and consolation
The private griefs and terrors behind John Masefield's classic children's book
open.substack.com
November 20, 2025 at 11:50 AM
This is a lovely piece!
Found myself thinking about this all over again, as The Bruegel Boy was launched with so many family there...
“What glowed at me with such potency that I would willingly immerse myself for all the months of writing slog?” @emmadarwinwriter.bsky.social on writing about family (and taking inspiration from 16th century painter Pieter Bruegel the Elder).
Emma Darwin on Writing About Her Family and Finding Inspiration in Artist Pieter Bruegel the Elder
The brute reality of a professional writer’s life is a Venn diagram of intersecting circles: i) what you’re capable of writing, ii) what you can sell, and iii) what you want to write. Every novel n…
buff.ly
November 19, 2025 at 9:57 AM
Found myself thinking about this all over again, as The Bruegel Boy was launched with so many family there...
Reposted by Emma Darwin
This Itch of Writing: Ten Better Ideas than "Write What You Know" ~ and why "Write what you know" is nonetheless worth bearing in mind emmadarwin.substack.com/p/ten-better... @emmadarwinwriter.bsky.social #writing #WritingCommunity
November 14, 2025 at 1:06 PM
This Itch of Writing: Ten Better Ideas than "Write What You Know" ~ and why "Write what you know" is nonetheless worth bearing in mind emmadarwin.substack.com/p/ten-better... @emmadarwinwriter.bsky.social #writing #WritingCommunity
Heads up for all Itch of Writing subscribers and supporters: it’s our second birthday, and I’m celebrating with a competion. Enter before Mon 24 Nov for your chance to win your question answered as a full Itch of Writing post, and an exclusive Itch of Writing notebook! buff.ly/1RjLLxe
November 17, 2025 at 2:31 PM
Heads up for all Itch of Writing subscribers and supporters: it’s our second birthday, and I’m celebrating with a competion. Enter before Mon 24 Nov for your chance to win your question answered as a full Itch of Writing post, and an exclusive Itch of Writing notebook! buff.ly/1RjLLxe
Reposted by Emma Darwin
'Through Marguerite’s searing internal monologue, Arnopp offers not just a glimpse into the psyche of a warrior queen, but a fully realized portrait of grief transmuted into memory and rage.' ##Review
http://mybook.to/mhhnf
##HistoricalFiction ##WOTR ##Medieval
http://mybook.to/mhhnf
##HistoricalFiction ##WOTR ##Medieval
November 17, 2025 at 7:00 AM
'Through Marguerite’s searing internal monologue, Arnopp offers not just a glimpse into the psyche of a warrior queen, but a fully realized portrait of grief transmuted into memory and rage.' ##Review
http://mybook.to/mhhnf
##HistoricalFiction ##WOTR ##Medieval
http://mybook.to/mhhnf
##HistoricalFiction ##WOTR ##Medieval
All writers know that the most important stage of writing is actually the re-write. Join me on 25 November, 6-8pm, @bluepencilagency to find out what that REALLY means, and just how much better you can make your writing when you know how to tackle this crucial stage:
Revising & Editing - November 25 - Blue Pencil Agency | Literary Consultancy
Craft Tutorials: Revising & Editing – a Zoom workshop with writing tutor Emma Darwin, November 25, 6:00 - 8:00 pm GMT.
buff.ly
November 15, 2025 at 9:02 PM
All writers know that the most important stage of writing is actually the re-write. Join me on 25 November, 6-8pm, @bluepencilagency to find out what that REALLY means, and just how much better you can make your writing when you know how to tackle this crucial stage:
Reposted by Emma Darwin
Brand new for supporters on This Itch of Writing: have you been told to “write what you know”? Was it unhelpful? Limiting? Pointless? I’ve come up with TEN better ideas about writing than “write what you know”... yet that apparently unhelpful adage is still worth bearing in mind: buff.ly/OTT9Zlc
November 14, 2025 at 9:45 PM
Brand new for supporters on This Itch of Writing: have you been told to “write what you know”? Was it unhelpful? Limiting? Pointless? I’ve come up with TEN better ideas about writing than “write what you know”... yet that apparently unhelpful adage is still worth bearing in mind: buff.ly/OTT9Zlc
Beyond thrilled at Antonia Senior’s review of The Bruegel Boy in The Times, Book of the Month and top of their list of the best historical fiction of 2025: vividly creates a rich, lost world and dives fearlessly into deep themes. buff.ly/73oYYWR
November 15, 2025 at 12:59 PM
Beyond thrilled at Antonia Senior’s review of The Bruegel Boy in The Times, Book of the Month and top of their list of the best historical fiction of 2025: vividly creates a rich, lost world and dives fearlessly into deep themes. buff.ly/73oYYWR
Writing historical fiction? @sanjida.kay and I have taught 1000s of writers: join us for a masterclass! 7-8.30 pm GMT Weds 26 November. Through the lens of our own fiction we'll explore what makes historical fiction resonate. research vs storytelling, characters, voice & pitfalls: luma.com/0m0ddh4y
November 15, 2025 at 11:15 AM
Writing historical fiction? @sanjida.kay and I have taught 1000s of writers: join us for a masterclass! 7-8.30 pm GMT Weds 26 November. Through the lens of our own fiction we'll explore what makes historical fiction resonate. research vs storytelling, characters, voice & pitfalls: luma.com/0m0ddh4y
Brand new for supporters on This Itch of Writing: have you been told to “write what you know”? Was it unhelpful? Limiting? Pointless? I’ve come up with TEN better ideas about writing than “write what you know”... yet that apparently unhelpful adage is still worth bearing in mind: buff.ly/OTT9Zlc
November 14, 2025 at 9:45 PM
Brand new for supporters on This Itch of Writing: have you been told to “write what you know”? Was it unhelpful? Limiting? Pointless? I’ve come up with TEN better ideas about writing than “write what you know”... yet that apparently unhelpful adage is still worth bearing in mind: buff.ly/OTT9Zlc
The oddities of the writing life, No 167:
Today’s To Do list includes writing a formal abstract and key words for my chapter in the first scholarly study of poet Frances Cornford, to be published by Brill Publishers next year, and drafting a short story to be published by Woman’s Weekly next year...
Today’s To Do list includes writing a formal abstract and key words for my chapter in the first scholarly study of poet Frances Cornford, to be published by Brill Publishers next year, and drafting a short story to be published by Woman’s Weekly next year...
November 14, 2025 at 3:49 PM
The oddities of the writing life, No 167:
Today’s To Do list includes writing a formal abstract and key words for my chapter in the first scholarly study of poet Frances Cornford, to be published by Brill Publishers next year, and drafting a short story to be published by Woman’s Weekly next year...
Today’s To Do list includes writing a formal abstract and key words for my chapter in the first scholarly study of poet Frances Cornford, to be published by Brill Publishers next year, and drafting a short story to be published by Woman’s Weekly next year...
Down by the flaring fire Sint-Johannes—Gil—sat on a stool, fast asleep, with his mouth dropped open. ‘Even the most faithful servants are only human,’ said Bruegel. Then into the evening quiet came the mewling of a baby.
The Bruegel Boy is available @hollandhousebooks.bsky.social buff.ly/aSXr72l
The Bruegel Boy is available @hollandhousebooks.bsky.social buff.ly/aSXr72l
November 14, 2025 at 1:35 PM
Down by the flaring fire Sint-Johannes—Gil—sat on a stool, fast asleep, with his mouth dropped open. ‘Even the most faithful servants are only human,’ said Bruegel. Then into the evening quiet came the mewling of a baby.
The Bruegel Boy is available @hollandhousebooks.bsky.social buff.ly/aSXr72l
The Bruegel Boy is available @hollandhousebooks.bsky.social buff.ly/aSXr72l
Brand new for supporters on This Itch of Writing: have you been told to “write what you know”? Was it unhelpful? Limiting? Pointless? I’ve come up with EN better ideas about writing than “write what you know”... yet that apparently unhelpful adage is still worth bearing in mind: buff.ly/OTT9Zlc
November 14, 2025 at 10:34 AM
Brand new for supporters on This Itch of Writing: have you been told to “write what you know”? Was it unhelpful? Limiting? Pointless? I’ve come up with EN better ideas about writing than “write what you know”... yet that apparently unhelpful adage is still worth bearing in mind: buff.ly/OTT9Zlc
Reposted by Emma Darwin
“What glowed at me with such potency that I would willingly immerse myself for all the months of writing slog?” @emmadarwinwriter.bsky.social on writing about family (and taking inspiration from 16th century painter Pieter Bruegel the Elder).
Emma Darwin on Writing About Her Family and Finding Inspiration in Artist Pieter Bruegel the Elder
The brute reality of a professional writer’s life is a Venn diagram of intersecting circles: i) what you’re capable of writing, ii) what you can sell, and iii) what you want to write. Every novel n…
buff.ly
November 12, 2025 at 6:30 PM
“What glowed at me with such potency that I would willingly immerse myself for all the months of writing slog?” @emmadarwinwriter.bsky.social on writing about family (and taking inspiration from 16th century painter Pieter Bruegel the Elder).
"What did I keep finding myself going back to?"
At the fount of bookish and cultural riches that is @literaryhub.bysk.social, I’ve been talking about how failing to write a novel about my family let me back to an early love - Pieter Bruegel the Elder - and forwards to my new novel:
buff.ly/sSB9wfy
At the fount of bookish and cultural riches that is @literaryhub.bysk.social, I’ve been talking about how failing to write a novel about my family let me back to an early love - Pieter Bruegel the Elder - and forwards to my new novel:
buff.ly/sSB9wfy
Emma Darwin on Writing About Her Family and Finding Inspiration in Artist Pieter Bruegel the Elder
The brute reality of a professional writer’s life is a Venn diagram of intersecting circles: i) what you’re capable of writing, ii) what you can sell, and iii) what you want to write. Every novel n…
lithub.com
November 12, 2025 at 5:47 PM
"What did I keep finding myself going back to?"
At the fount of bookish and cultural riches that is @literaryhub.bysk.social, I’ve been talking about how failing to write a novel about my family let me back to an early love - Pieter Bruegel the Elder - and forwards to my new novel:
buff.ly/sSB9wfy
At the fount of bookish and cultural riches that is @literaryhub.bysk.social, I’ve been talking about how failing to write a novel about my family let me back to an early love - Pieter Bruegel the Elder - and forwards to my new novel:
buff.ly/sSB9wfy
Reposted by Emma Darwin
Pieter Bruegel the Elder: the Richard Scarry of the Northern Renaissance ... Chidren's Games, 1560
Link in bio or search the bruegel boy
Link in bio or search the bruegel boy
November 12, 2025 at 5:26 PM
Pieter Bruegel the Elder: the Richard Scarry of the Northern Renaissance ... Chidren's Games, 1560
Link in bio or search the bruegel boy
Link in bio or search the bruegel boy
Reposted by Emma Darwin
The Freelance History Writer ~ Medieval Mystery Plays ~ A guest post by Toni Mount thefreelancehistorywriter.com/2025/11/12/m... @toniauthor.bsky.social @susanabernethy2.bsky.social #medieval #History
November 12, 2025 at 10:31 AM
The Freelance History Writer ~ Medieval Mystery Plays ~ A guest post by Toni Mount thefreelancehistorywriter.com/2025/11/12/m... @toniauthor.bsky.social @susanabernethy2.bsky.social #medieval #History
Did you know that Bruegel's Adoration in the Snow is almost certainly the first European painting to depict falling snow? I couldn't resist putting that moment in the novel...
Bruegel’s brush flicked and dotted, and the snow settled on the panel as lightly as goosefeathers floating from Heaven: you might almost have reached out a hand to this Bethlehem, and found a snowflake landing in your palm.
The Bruegel Boy: 6 Nov @hollandhousebooks.bsky.social buff.ly/Jpm9R0g
The Bruegel Boy: 6 Nov @hollandhousebooks.bsky.social buff.ly/Jpm9R0g
November 11, 2025 at 11:10 AM
Did you know that Bruegel's Adoration in the Snow is almost certainly the first European painting to depict falling snow? I couldn't resist putting that moment in the novel...
Reposted by Emma Darwin
Thrown out of his family for a crime he didn’t commit, Gil becomes model and muse to the great Pieter Bruegel. But in Bruegel's world politics, art and religion are explosively combined and soon love and vocation are also at war.
The Bruegel Boy is out @hollandhousebooks.bsky.social buff.ly/Jpm9R0g
The Bruegel Boy is out @hollandhousebooks.bsky.social buff.ly/Jpm9R0g
November 8, 2025 at 9:27 AM
Thrown out of his family for a crime he didn’t commit, Gil becomes model and muse to the great Pieter Bruegel. But in Bruegel's world politics, art and religion are explosively combined and soon love and vocation are also at war.
The Bruegel Boy is out @hollandhousebooks.bsky.social buff.ly/Jpm9R0g
The Bruegel Boy is out @hollandhousebooks.bsky.social buff.ly/Jpm9R0g