Latest Posts

• Diamonds are Forever: review, quotes, civil servants and “shills”

  A new James Bond movie, No Time to Die, lurches over the horizon.  Will it be any good? Almost certainly not (links in bold italics are to other posts…

• The Americans: Return to California

  When I climb into an Uber driven by Jonathan (not his real name) in San Diego, he is playing reggae.  Rashly, I comment on this.…

• Was wäre wenn? Mein Berlin-Thriller “Blood Summit” auf Deutsch

  Vor kurzem war ich zu Besuch in Berlin.  Ich habe den Reichstag besichtigt: die Kulisse für meinen Berlin-Roman Blood Summit. Blood Summit gibt es noch nicht…

• A distinguished cafe off the beaten track: Cafe Eiles

  An Austrian friend of mine was reading my Great Vienna cafe reviews recently (links in bold italics are to other posts on this site). My…

• Pure writing inspiration: Loutro, Crete

  In the shade of a quiet taverna, eight people sit writing.  Crickets chirp on the fragrant hillside.  A glistening kebab rotates, wafting mouthwatering smells towards…

• New video! Bringing “Blood Summit” home to Berlin

  I recently visited Berlin to take another look at the city in which my thriller Blood Summit is set. My goal was the Reichstag, where much of…

• 7 reasons to like the Strandbar Herrmann

  In the city, the heat is oppressive.  Yet the evening, in a deck chair under a beach umbrella, is cool.  The beer in my hand…

• Austria: the best footpaths in the world?

  How beautiful can a footpath be?  Austria’s are amongst the best. I particularly enjoy the country’s system of footpath signs.  Over the past three years…

• 7 Hotel Stories: 5 suggestions

  ‘Where can I find out more about your “Hotel Stories”, featuring the world’s most homicidal hotel manager, Ms N, and her beautiful but naive ally,…

• Appreciating the Cloud Appreciation Society

  I recently visited one of my favourite places on earth, Lundy Island off the north coast of Devon, for the 22nd time. Lundy Island has…

• Lunch in the Chernobyl canteen: 25 pictures

  Exactly ten years ago, when I was living in Kyiv, I visited Chernobyl for the first time.  Following the HBO TV series “Chernobyl”, I thought…

• 14 Plums of Wodehouse

  What is the funniest book by “Plum” Wodehouse? I have so far read 14 of the 20 P G Wodehouse Jeeves and Wooster and Blandings…

• Writing fiction: 7 ways to deal with rejection

  You click open your e-mails.  Your heart leaps. The agent to whom you sent your cherished work in progress has replied to your pitch letter.…

• Robert Pimm reads “Seven Hotel Stories” at Cafe Korb

  I recently did a reading from my book Seven Hotel Stories at Cafe Korb in Vienna. It was a wonderful evening. The hosts were the…

• Wodehouse and Plumtopia – republished

  via Wodehouse and Plumtopia

• 7 ways to improve your manuscript (“How to edit your novel part 2”)

  Congratulations!  You have finished writing your novel. First step: celebrate.  You’ve achieved an awesome feat. Now what? This post looks at how you can make…

• How to write a novel: five ways to get in the habit of writing

  I recently wrote on how to write a novel: plan in advance or not?  (Links in bold italics are to other posts on this site.)  I…

• Monday 17 June: live reading from my book “Seven Hotel Stories”

  Good news for story-lovers. I shall be reading from my book Seven Hotel Stories at Cafe Korb in Vienna on 17 June. Click on the…

• A Centenary of My Man Jeeves

  Originally posted on Plumtopia: My Man Jeeves was published 100 years ago in May 1919. Jeeves–my man, you know–is really a most extraordinary chap. So…

• How to write a novel: plan in advance, or not?

  What is the best way to write a novel?  Let’s explore two common methods.  I’ve tried both.  Each can work well: which is best for…

• How to write a novel: edit as you go along, or not? (“How to edit your novel, part 1”)

  I once visited a wonderful friend who was a successful writer (DF – it was you!). At the time, I was struggling to complete my…

• How to write gripping fiction: scenes, sequels and cliff-hangers

  An experienced commissioning editor told me recently that one of two main reasons she rejected manuscripts was “no story”.  The other was “overwritten” – I’ll…

• How to sign up for “Robert Pimm’s Writing News”

  I recently started a list of e-mails for people who might want to hear about my writing activities – eg my next reading from “Blood…

• A complete Hotel Story: free!

  I am grateful to everyone who reads this blog, my Berlin thriller Blood Summit or my novel-length collection of Seven Hotel Stories. So I thought I would give…

• The Americans: Fast Trip to London

  Previous posts in my series The Americans have included The Americans: prologue; The Americans: leaving New York; The Americans: Avenue of the Heroes; and The Americans: Valley…

• Waugh, Wodehouse, Durrell & Alan Clark: four quotations

  Do any of our actions make any difference to anything?  What makes us happy?  What makes us laugh?  What about the power of memory? This…

• Trollope: “He Knew He Was Right”. A masterpiece of dry comedy

  Trollope is, perhaps, my favourite novelist (although PG Wodehouse is up there). I have described before 11 life-changing reasons you should read Trollope, including his views on…

• Summer Lightning: 36 excellent quotations

  My recent blog Reading Wodehouse: a plea for help recorded that I had finished the main body of Jeeves and Wooster stories.  I sought advice on what…

• The Hotel Stories – the toughest woman on earth?

  Who is the toughest woman you have ever met? A woman who, although she takes no nonsense from men who break her rules, keeps her…

• Being happy: Paranoid and Bachelor Boy

  What are your all-time favourite songs? If you are over 25, did you first hear those songs recently or – as I suspect – did…

• Reading Wodehouse: a plea for help

  I need help. I need help from Wodehouse experts, or Kenner as we call them here in Austria. For years, I have been relishing my father’s…

• How to stay sane: never take yourself too seriously

  The lights go down. Heavy metal chords ring out. It is clear that Deep Purple have lost none of their ability to rock. I’ve seen…

• “Like all young men I set out to be a genius, but…” three quotations

  How seriously should we take ourselves? One of the keys to happiness is not to take yourself too seriously.  You can take life seriously, and…

• Great Vienna cafes – Cafe Malipop turns 40!

  Is kissing allowed in the Cafe Malipop? How about smoking? How about being cool and hanging out? Clue: only one of these activities is allowed…

• James Bond and salad dressing? Nein danke!

  Ian Fleming’s James Bond, created in a series of novels and short stories from 1953 to 1966, is unforgettable.  But his attitudes often now feel…

• East West Street: genocide? Or crimes against humanity?

  I recently read East West Street by British law professor and international human rights expert Philippe Sands. If you have any interest in the cataclysm which…

• How to write great Nut-grafs & Cosmic Kickers: part 3

  So you want to write a brilliant blog or newspaper article?  Help is at hand, in three easy stages. First: decide your message, and make…

• Much Obliged, Jeeves – 24 quotations

  For all you ardent Wodehouse fans, I have fine news. Much Obliged, Jeeves is one of the funniest Wodehouse books I have read. The cover of…

• The health benefits of Martinis

  At the roof bar of the top hotel in Istanbul, I don’t notice a thing. Below us, the Bosphorus sparkles in the setting sun.  I…

• Why “I am Pilgrim” is the best thriller I’ve read for ages

  I crave good thrillers.  But they are vanishingly rare. So when I find a book with a compelling plot, rich characters, horrifying jeopardy and seat-edge…