Denise M Taylor

Writing Consultant I Editor I Proofreader

If you have an unpublished novel or a non-fiction manuscript waiting in the wings for you to take the next step towards submission to publishers or self-publishing, then I can offer you an assessment to help you gain the confidence. So why not take advantage of this one-off fee-reduction offer for the month of November to provide an objective assessment […]

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There is a lot to be learned about the art of creating fictional characters from Geoffrey Chaucer’s ‘The Canterbury Tales’ (a collection of twenty-four stories written in Middle English between 1387 and 1400). I recently went through my library and came across this book, which I studied many years ago and often revisit. In the ‘General Prologue’, each pilgrim is […]

Verbs are the engine of writing. When editing or reviewing, I often ask writers of both fiction and non-fiction: ‘Do you think critically about your choice of every verb in every sentence?’ The majority of answers are something like: ‘sometimes’ or ‘I don’t give them much thought because I’m focused on the flow of the sentence’. So many writers are […]

At the moment I am far away from home, refreshing, and immersing myself in other cultures, ancient walking trails and nature reserves. I am seeking old and new art in cities, listening to different voices and sounds, gathering new ideas to assist my work with writers. In the meantime, keep writing and honing your craft. I look forward to engaging […]

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Recently, I taught an adult class about classical art and spent time, with my editor’s hat on, explaining the difference between the words ‘classic’ and ‘classical’, and whether to capitalise these words in a sentence. Both words imply that something is of a special class, and refer to high culture, especially the civilisations of ancient Greece and Rome (hence the […]

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Australian Indigenous artist, Yhonnie Scarce, loves the transformative qualities of glass, enabling her to generate metaphors that reflect the past, present and future concerns for her people, her Country and Aboriginal culture. TarraWarra Museum of Art is currently displaying Yhonnie’s new glass work, ‘Hollowing Earth’, which was commissioned specifically for TWMA’s autumn exhibition (along with a collection of paintings and […]

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Spitalfields in East London sounds like a place out of a Dickens novel; images come to mind of the Artful Dodger racing over the cobblestones and seedy characters lurking in dark and foggy alleyways, spitting as they size each other up. However, any macabre desire to encounter ghosts from Victorian times was abated by the bright sunny day in July […]

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This ingenious exhibition, ‘Edward Steichen & Art Deco Fashion’, combining the innovative photography of Edward Steichen (1879-1973) and a stunning selection of 1920s and 1930s garments and accessories from the National Gallery of Victoria’s collection, is sure to impress. Behind the camera, Steichen captured the personalities of Hollywood and the elegance of the modern woman dressed to reflect post-war exuberance. […]

Mont Sainte-Victoire is Cézanne’s mountain and I had to see it. On 13 October 2012 we’d spent too much time wandering through the charming town of Aix-en-Provence where Paul Cézanne (1839-1906) had lived most of his life. It was one of those perfect days in Provence: blue skies with a clear heat, but the autumnal sun was sinking towards the […]

What are those rabbits doing in the border of that medieval prayer book? Is that a snail jousting with a dog? Why is a naked man riding a many-legged ‘dragon’ in the lower margin? No, your eyes are not deceiving you. This profusion of humans, animals, fantastical plants and grotesques painted in the margins of thirteenth and early fourteenth-century Europe […]