WRITER
STORYTELLER
TEACHER
Julie Hartley
Welcome to my website! I’m a novelist, poet, creative writing teacher, editor, retreat leader and parrot owner. Here, you’ll find details of my books: check out my latest novel, released by Bookouture in September 2024! The novel is about a young girl living in England in 1940 whose life is changed forever when she discovers an injured German spy in the woods behind her home. You’ll also find information on this website about my annual creative writing retreats in Mexico and Costa Rica, and my creative writing classes for adults and teens. Check out my blog, too, for writing prompts and techniques, tales of travel and musings on a creative life. Oh – and there are a few stories about the parrot, too.
Her Secret Soldier is Out Now!
Her Secret Soldier tells the story of an 18-year-old girl in 1940 England whose life is forever changed when she discovers a German spy in the ancient woodland behind her home.It’s available on Kindle, in paperback on all online stores and as an audiobook through Audible!
Elmore Leonard: 10 Rules Of Writing
Writer Elmore In July 2001, the crime fiction writer Elmore Leonard wrote a short piece for The New York Times on his ten rules for writing. This was eventually adapted into a book. I’ve shared his rules many times [...]
Writing Tips: Landscape and Character
In so many novels, landscape is a driving force. Characters behave the way they do because of the world they inhabit. The landscapes they long for impact the way they behave. The ones they live in shape their destiny. Being lifted [...]
Writing a Novel: How NOT to Begin!
The opening segment of your novel is by far the most important part, not only because you must hook your readers and keep them hooked, but because you are going to rely on your first few pages as a sample when [...]