Thanks for posting the links Angharad: Yes, they did work.

It's fascinating stuff. A few “rules” which struck me were:

• Use regional dialect, patois, sparingly. Once you start spelling words in dialogue phonetically and loading the page with apos­trophes, you won't be able to stop. [I’ve seen this happen!]
• A problem with a piece of writing often clarifies itself if you go for a long walk.
• Do it every day. Make a habit of putting your observations into words and gradually this will become instinct. This is the most important rule of all and, naturally, I don't follow it.
• Never ride a bike with the brakes on.
• Only bad writers think that their work is really good.
• Remember there is no such thing as nonsense.

But of course, all rules were made to be broken.

Passive Scribe