Keep thinking. Keep listening. Maybe you'll come up with something different. Sometimes, if you're really clever, you might be able to combine the ideas together to give them strength and depth. For example: I need a new villain for my Boyface books. How about a bully? Or a weird boy? A robber? A clown – no, I know – he's a weird clown boy! 7. Dive straight in! This is my favourite part of the writing process. It's like falling and laughing and having a wee. All at the same time. 8. Finish what you start.

Outside of his blog, you’ll find Lee in a variety of mags and publications, stretching his men’s grooming muscle (sounded better in my head). Be sure to keep Leein your bookmarks, he’s one of the few blogs I have feeding straight into my inbox. The Ged LabI always carry a notebook. 99% of my writing goes down in this way. I use my computer for typing everything up, but pen and paper are the best way for creative writing. There is something important about watching the ink come out of the pen as I am flowing. Try to draw and design your own birthday cards and Christmas cards for your friends and family. You won't believe how much happiness a hand drawn card can bring someone until you try it. Doing this on a regular basis when I was at school helped me to be less worried about showing my work to people. It will also save you a good deal of your cash in those awful card shops! 7. See where a line takes you. Blogging since December 2013, Gianni C is another one of my new favourite men’s skincare and grooming bloggers; despite the fact he’s just posted this where he shares his dislike of 4 of my favourite products *glares*. This sort of thing is no use whatsoever. I have to get rid of it somehow. For me, the antidote to fear is faith. So I always say a little prayer before I start and ask to be guided in my writing. This gives me the freedom to play with my work and enjoy it. I work best when I'm happy. The newest book in the Boyface series, Boyface and the Tartan Badger is available from the Guardian bookshop.

It's not always easy to do what you love in life but it is possible to love whatever you do. My publishers took a huge gamble when they asked me to illustrate the Boyface books but I think they saw my enthusiasm for the project and knew that I would give it my absolute best, so thankfully, they gave me my chance. I think people are much more likely to respond to you positively if you are positive yourself. The newest book in the Boyface series, Boyface and the Tartan Badger is available from the Guardian bookshop. Every now and then you’ll see a post that looks like it’s been garbled in transit, but fear not, from time to time, Phil writes in Dutch (his first language) but what upsets me most is that his english is better than mine. I especially love his new The Gym Edit. Pampered Prince Since January 2012, The Pampered Prince by Andy, a facialistand skincare expert, is one of the leading authorities online when it comes to looking after your skin. Again, taking a unisex approach to skincare, Andy targets brands you might not have heard of before, particularly from within the professional beauty and skincare industry. The biggest obstacle I have to my writing is fear: fear that it won't be good enough or that I won't be able to do it.I always copied the drawings that I loved, particularly out of comic books. Teachers usually tell you off for copying but I say: "COPY! COPY! COPY!" I learnt so much by seeing how other artists made their drawings, and the best way to do that, I discovered, was to try to draw like them. Don't tell my publishers, but I hereby encourage all young illustrators to copy drawings of Boyface as often as they want! 3. Remember what excited you about the drawings you loved when you were little. punishable by imprisonment. In the decades after 1967, as many as 15,000 gay men are estimated to have been convicted of such charges. Not that I’m being biased or anything, but thought thiswas a good opportunity to plug my brand new blog like an absolute, 100% mother-plugger. Whereas MANFACE has always focused on luxury grooming, skincare, beauty and fragrance; BOYFACE looks at the wide array of fabulous products available on the high-street. Some friends of mine taught me a useful phrase once: "Take the second bus." What it means is: you should listen to the second idea that comes into your head, rather than just going with the first thing all the time.

I had a favourite author and book when I was little. It was called What Do People Do All Day? by a brilliant American author and illustrator called Richard Scarry. His drawings in this particular book were so full of crazy and very funny things that sometimes I would spend hours gazing at one picture just to make sure I hadn't missed something. In the same way, I love to fill my illustrations with loads of odd stuff so that there is always something new to notice and hopefully raise a smile. 4. Don't worry about being rubbish – just aim to do your best! He writes ona broad range of grooming and skincare products from bargain to prestige whilst touching on hair removal, tanning (obviously) and even the hazy territory of men’s makeup. Gianni C There comes a point in a book when I have the idea, I know what sort of thing it's going to be and I've done a little bit of planning. What do I do next? Writing things down in a notebook means that you don't need to remember everything all at once. When your head is empty again there is more space for new ideas to come in. Be a channel of creativity: not a pond. 3. Writing a book? Imagine you've already finished it! If you are trying to think of an idea for your writing, it's not always the first thing that comes into your head that's best. Just because it's an answer and it fits, doesn't mean it's the best answer. This isn't maths, it's art!

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Once I have written the whole first draft, it's time to make it better. I usually put the book away to settle for a few weeks and write something else. This way I can look at the story with a fresh head. The all-talented Jules Heptonstall, St. Tropez celebrity tanner and online columnist for The Mirror, presents The Beard and The Quiff; founded in 2011.

Some advice: dogs and cats are really good at listening. Hamsters get bored easily.) 6. The second idea. Photographer Phil Polglaze’s trajectory into the hidden life of ‘cottages’ is a somewhat unexpected one. In 1974, he was working as a geography teacher at a South London school. Already a keen amateur photographer, he used the school’s darkroom to teach himself how to print pictures. The London borough of Southwark then employed him as a photographer through the 1980s and ’90s. But in 1979, Polglaze was approached by a lawyer friend who needed an unusual set of pictures taken.The thing is just to get on with it! I don't always start at the beginning either. I usually start something near the beginning of the middle. Usually I just jump in at a bit I like the look of. Wherever you start, the important thing is to take a deep breath and let go.