In this inspiring collection of essays‎,‎ a range of award‎-winning‎,‎ established and newly published writers offer highly personal accounts of their creative processes‎.‎ Authors reveal the anxieties‎,‎ considerations and discoveries that shaped their own first novels‎,‎ arming new writers with practical advice‎,‎ focus and inspiration‎.‎ The book‎'‎s final section presents the perspectives of an agent‎,‎ a publisher and an author on the business of publishing a first novel‎.‎ Writing a First Novel offers an illuminating read for both aspiring and seasoned writers‎.‎ It contains contributions by‎:‎ ‎- Hanif Kureishi ‎- Valerie Martin ‎- Johanna Skibsrud ‎- David Vann ‎- Maile Chapman ‎- Edward Hogan ‎- Kishwar Desai ‎- Wena Poon ‎- Alison MacLeod ‎- Andrew Cowan ‎- Jane Rusbridge ‎- Isabel Ashdown ‎- Helon Habila ‎- David Swann ‎- Soumya Bhattacharya ‎- Jane Feaver ‎- Hannah Westland ‎- Helen Garnons‎-Williams ‎- Lionel Shriver