Riley Adams's Blog, page 168
September 22, 2012
Twitterific
by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig
Twitterific is a compilation of all the writing links I shared the previous week.
The links are fed into the Writer’s Knowledge Base search engine (developed by writer and software engineer Mike Fleming) which has over 18,000 free articles on writing-related topics. Sign up for our free newsletter for monthly writing tips and interviews with top contributors to the WKB or like us on Facebook.
Try “My WKB”--a way for you to list and sort articles, view your read articles, and see your search history. Read more about it here: http://bit.ly/S9thqS . The free My WKB page is here: http://bit.ly/PV8Ueb .
Have a great week!
7 Rules of Picking Names for Fictional Characters: http://bit.ly/QhGKKq@writersdigest
Resist Giving Characters A Helping Hand: http://bit.ly/Spqgwu@mooderino
5 Ways You're Preventing Readers From Suspending Disbelief: http://bit.ly/RJosDA@KMWeiland
Pacing for Power--Increasing Tension & Suspense: http://bit.ly/OvTxWF@jodierennered
An Author’s 3rd Option: The Rogue Reader: http://bit.ly/T8dXLD@jasonashlock @Porter_Anderson
Rejection vs. failure: http://bit.ly/UAm949 @AimeeLSalter
The Practice of Writing: http://bit.ly/UAm14K@TrueFactBarFact
Should You Preschedule Tweets? http://bit.ly/OBL1Wa@meghancward
Why wasting time helps you stay sane and productive: http://bit.ly/POfX5j@criticalmargins
5 lessons about the writing community: http://bit.ly/QhJYxq@diymfa
How Having Kids Can Change Your Reading Life: http://bit.ly/SpyzIH@deadwhiteguys
How to Create Conflict in a One Character Scene: http://bit.ly/QhK34g
Writing lessons learned from "Where it Began": http://bit.ly/QhK48h@juliemusil
"Sparkle", From Movie to Book: http://bit.ly/QhKbAO@carleenbrice @MyBrownBaby
Should You Sell Books from Your Author Website? http://bit.ly/SpyXGY@authorems
How To Make Writing A Habit Using Rituals: http://bit.ly/QhKdJ0
Heightening emotional impact: http://bit.ly/Spz0mf@juliettewade
Staying Balanced in the Confusing Modern Publishing Industry: http://bit.ly/QhKhbu@jodyhedlund
4 Lessons Authors Can Learn from Obama's Fake Twitter Followers: http://bit.ly/QdXHTd@authormedia
Top 10 WordPress Security Myths: http://bit.ly/NvNLXU@problogger
One Simple and Incredibly Painful Way to Fix Your Novel Draft: http://bit.ly/QdXWxz@io9
How To Read Amazon Review Graphs: http://bit.ly/NvNXq5@galleycat
7 Questions Every Story Critique Should Answer: http://bit.ly/Qe59Oj@AdriennedeWolfe
How to Use Brainstorming to Edit: http://bit.ly/NvTyN9@ava_jae
Are Amazon reader reviews killing off the critic? http://bit.ly/Qe5f8u@guardianbooks
Why Kindle Direct Publishing Will Transform Indian Self-Publishing: http://bit.ly/NvTFYW@pubperspectives @VinuthaMallya
How to Find Your Character's Voice: http://bit.ly/Qe5pgb@kmweiland
7 Essential Elements of Scene + Scene Structure Exercise: http://bit.ly/Qe5vnV@plotwhisperer
Keeping Characters True to Themselves: http://bit.ly/Qe5CzY@stdennard @4YALit
10 Creative Writing Ideas for Teens: http://bit.ly/Qe5ErB@tweetthebook
Make your bookshelf searchable by taking a picture with Evernote: http://bit.ly/Qe5IaJ@ebookfriendly
What good dialogue should accomplish: http://bit.ly/NvU2mv@kit_lit
5 Things You DON'T Need to Become a Successful Freelance Writer: http://bit.ly/Qe5Ner
Finding Your Novel's Theme and Your Universal Theme: http://bit.ly/NvU4e4@roniloren
A 5-Step Plan to Improve Every Blog Post You Write: http://bit.ly/NvU8dU@copyblogger @aliventures
Whose Story is This Anyway? http://bit.ly/Qe5VKX @querytracker
The Art of Subtlety in Fiction: http://bit.ly/NvUfGc@jeanniecampbell
The DNA of a successful ebook: http://on.mash.to/NvUl0H@mashable
A look at character development arcs: http://bit.ly/Qe680N@livewritethrive
A writer shares what's she's learned so far: http://bit.ly/NvUpNG@Artzicarol @janice_hardy
Five Creepy Social Media Marketing Tactics: http://bit.ly/Qea1D2@KristenLambTX
How to Read Your Writing in Public: http://bit.ly/Qea7ug@rsquaredd
A Refresher Course On Sentence Types: http://bit.ly/OyulmP@writerscramp1
Competing Goals in Our Story: http://bit.ly/Oyukzb@theresastevens
What to Put Above the Fold on Your Blog, And Why: http://bit.ly/QeafKj@blogtyrant
What to include on your freelance writing resume: http://bit.ly/QeakO7
Being a Pro: One Often Overlooked Issue: http://bit.ly/Qeax3I@AnnetteLyon
3 Fiction Tips from Stephanie Vaughn's "Dog Heaven": http://bit.ly/Oyv4Ej@writeitsideways
A closer look at the Amazon review bar graph: http://bit.ly/RVEaLQ@salon
The Good, The Bad, and The Sadly Deluded: Actors Who Write: http://bit.ly/UehO4L@cathinnorway
Fake market or not? How to tell: http://bit.ly/RVEoTn@emergentpublish
12 Writing Prompts/Situations: http://bit.ly/UehUt5
Keeping Up with Your Blog for the Long Haul: http://bit.ly/RVEzxS@JulieBMack
The Editorial Process, Step by Step: http://bit.ly/Uei17X@chavelaque
Identifying your genre: http://bit.ly/RVELNA @museinks
Ebooks For Libraries: http://bit.ly/Uei43O @JAKonrath
A Warning To All Writers Who Need Help Indie Publishing: http://bit.ly/RVEWZl@kristinerusch
What the Romance Genre Can Teach Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers: http://bit.ly/UeibMO @lbgale
Should you always list writing credits in your cover letter? http://bit.ly/RVFaQd@nicolamorgan
5 Dialogue Basics: http://bit.ly/UeihE3 @marcykennedy
How To Enjoy Critical Reviews of Your Own Work: http://bit.ly/RVFi22@JustineLavaworm
How to Prepare For a Book Launch: http://bit.ly/UeiQgY@jodyhedlund
How do authors benefit from agents: http://bit.ly/UeiOWo@rachellegardner
5 Questions Indie Authors Should Always Ask An Agent: http://bit.ly/UeiW8A@ornaross
The 6 Magic Words That Always Get Clicks: http://bit.ly/Uel686@authormedia
Tips for 1st time ebook writers: http://bit.ly/RVKW4j@woodwardkaren
Author Solutions' Misleading PR Strategies: http://bit.ly/UelaVo@victoriastrauss
Classic Female Fantasy Writers: http://bit.ly/RVL2c0@fantasyfaction
From last resort to new career--how 1 writer self-published: http://bit.ly/Uelpjp@dirtywhitecandy
What's so funny? Humor in nonfiction writing: http://bit.ly/RVLmrk@ruthwcrocker
Writing Through a Rough Patch of Life: http://bit.ly/Uelsvk@THahnBurkett
The Myth of Giving Away 15% Ownership in Your Work: http://bit.ly/RVLsze@deanwesleysmith
The Publishing Process in GIF Form: http://bit.ly/OwuFN3@nathanbransford
Writing: Why Your Third Grade Teacher Was Wrong: http://bit.ly/S2WdOU@heidicohen
5 tips for creating self-pub success: http://bit.ly/S2Wmlx@booksparkspr
When Should You Write Full-Time? http://bit.ly/RZ0VZJ@duolit @highervis
How Clichés Can Help You Create Great Characters: http://bit.ly/S31tCe@fantasyfaction
How to build a readership for your blog and books: http://bit.ly/OwCWAB@jodyhedlund
Using Screenplay Techniques in Novel-Writing: http://bit.ly/S31FBq@sarahalderson
Writing secret: all you need is curiosity and surprise: http://bit.ly/OwDhU4@speechwriterguy
Lessons from a Copywriter for Better Fiction: http://bit.ly/S31R3z@emilywenstrom
How (Not) to Be a Brilliant Writer: http://bit.ly/S31VAA@ava_jae
The Tools Needed to Make a Living as a Writer: http://bit.ly/OwDDtQ@bubblecow
How to Edit Your Book in 4 Steps: http://bit.ly/S32cU2@writersdigest
Self-Publishing and The Midlist: http://bit.ly/S32hqW
Narcotics in Science Fiction & Fantasy: http://bit.ly/OwEdaN@tordotcom
Advice from Mark Twain on the Art and Craft of Writing: http://bit.ly/S32p9G@suzannewfisher
Use Character Quirks to Grab Readers' Attention: http://bit.ly/OwEuuy@KMWeiland
How to Focus Your Blog or Blogged Book on a Topic: http://bit.ly/OwPzf5@ninaamir
How to avoid negativity online: http://bit.ly/S39h6Y@nicolamorgan
How To Work On More Than One Book At A Time: http://bit.ly/OwPTdI@thecreativepenn
Ideas to rethink during this digital revolution: http://bit.ly/S39ya8@rachellegardner
Getting lost in historical fiction: http://bit.ly/OwQxYD@history_girls
Where Genres Come From and How to Stitch Them Together: http://bit.ly/OwQR9V@KgElfland2ndCuz
Against Acknowledgments: http://nyr.kr/Po5n6u@pageturner
Maturity–The Difference Between the Amateur and the Professional: http://bit.ly/QlnpYW @kristenlambTX
Social Media Will Not Sell Your Book: http://bit.ly/Qlnvzv@hilarydavidson
The Last Word: 9 Famous Authors' Epitaphs: http://bit.ly/Po5K0W@BookishWallace
Top 10 Reasons People Use To Justify Pirating Digital Content (And Why They're Wrong): http://bit.ly/Po5Ntt @robwhart
The Square-One Story Killer: http://bit.ly/QlnDPG @storyfix
5 Lessons Learned From Writing 3 Novels: http://bit.ly/QlnJXr@ScottTBartlett
Tips for successful book marketing: http://bit.ly/Po6anU@writersdigest
Meet Mr Fifty Shades: EL James's husband speaks out: http://bit.ly/Po7xTy@guardianbooks
How Affordable Color POD Could Change the Comics Industry: http://bit.ly/Po7Q0E
KDP freebies--a look at the numbers: http://bit.ly/T8cd57@Porter_Anderson @dvinjamuri
Indie Authors: Your Copyright Page Needs Work: http://bit.ly/Po8H1q@jimhbs
Why genre fiction is an e-reader's best friend: http://bit.ly/Qlp9RY@annabaddeley
Charge Your Writing Batteries: http://bit.ly/Po98sA @noveleditor
Falling in love with fictional characters--a reader's tribute to "Eloise": http://bit.ly/Po9zDn @junglereds
25 Synonyms for "Delete": http://bit.ly/QlptQr@writing_tips
Genre Blending: http://bit.ly/Po9Nu0 @fantasyfaction
Top 3 Reasons to Give Away Your Book: http://bit.ly/QlpwM4@tobywneal
Tips for creating complex villains: http://bit.ly/QmGWIl@ashkrafton
15 grammatical errors to avoid: http://bit.ly/S4UFzC@bubblecow
Outlining Backwards:http://bit.ly/QmGZ77
How to Slam Dunk Your 90-Second Pitch: http://bit.ly/S4UNPR@debraeve
How To Protect Your Writing Time: http://bit.ly/S4V9G7@KellyMcClymer
3 Writing Commandments: http://bit.ly/QmHjma@jhansenwrites
Tips for combatting paid reviews: http://bit.ly/S4VtVd@annerallen
Amazon in the UK: Worries About Waterstones: http://janefriedman.com/2012/09/20/writing-on-the-ether-56/#6@eoinpurcell @Porter_Anderson
7 tips for keeping your motivation as a writer: http://bit.ly/QmHqhB@dirtywhitecandy
3 ways to end your book...that you should reconsider: http://bit.ly/QmHxtG@JaelMcHenry
Writing the Perfect Pitch: http://bit.ly/S4W1KK
An apostrophe review: http://bit.ly/QmHGwY@livewritethrive
Ways to Become an Insecure Writer: http://bit.ly/QmHHkx@lyndaryoung
5 Smarter Habits of Great Writers: http://bit.ly/QmHHBi
Beat the Bestsellers--the Other Way to the Top: http://bit.ly/SELvdL@NickThacker
Writing in a second language: http://bit.ly/S4WaxX
Re-releasing print books as ebooks: http://bit.ly/S4Y1mr@nicolamorgan
An important quality of a charismatic male character: http://bit.ly/QmINgn@rebeccaberto
A review of commas, dashes, and colons: http://bit.ly/S4YwwI
99 Ways to Tell a Story: http://bit.ly/QmIT7F @sophie_novak
Agency Pricing in Europe? No. http://bit.ly/SEM0on@Porter_Anderson @PublishersLunch
Selling Literary Fiction: http://bit.ly/SEMn1Y@thecreativepenn @tglong
Making the Most of Writers' Conferences: http://bit.ly/T8D0Oz@frugalbookpromo
The perils of paid-for reviews: http://bit.ly/T8D6WG@dearauthor
The elephant in the writing room: http://bit.ly/OL91uj@annerooney
Overcoming Writing Challenges: http://bit.ly/PTrnV7@lefrenchbook
Approaching Top Reviewers on Amazon: http://bit.ly/T8drNG@AlexisGrant @Porter_Anderson
by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig
Twitterific...
by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig
Twitterific is a compilation of all the writing links I shared the previous week.
The links are fed into the Writer’s Knowledge Base search engine (developed by writer and software engineer Mike Fleming) which has over 18,000 free articles on writing-related topics. Sign up for our free newsletter for monthly writing tips and interviews with top contributors to the WKB or like us on Facebook.
Try “My WKB”--a way for you to list and sort articles, view your read articles, and see your search history. Read more about it here: http://bit.ly/S9thqS . The free My WKB page is here: http://bit.ly/PV8Ueb .
Have a great week!
7 Rules of Picking Names for Fictional Characters: http://bit.ly/QhGKKq@writersdigest
Resist Giving Characters A Helping Hand: http://bit.ly/Spqgwu@mooderino
5 Ways You're Preventing Readers From Suspending Disbelief: http://bit.ly/RJosDA@KMWeiland
Pacing for Power--Increasing Tension & Suspense: http://bit.ly/OvTxWF@jodierennered
An Author’s 3rd Option: The Rogue Reader: http://bit.ly/T8dXLD@jasonashlock @Porter_Anderson
Rejection vs. failure: http://bit.ly/UAm949 @AimeeLSalter
The Practice of Writing: http://bit.ly/UAm14K@TrueFactBarFact
Should You Preschedule Tweets? http://bit.ly/OBL1Wa@meghancward
Why wasting time helps you stay sane and productive: http://bit.ly/POfX5j@criticalmargins
5 lessons about the writing community: http://bit.ly/QhJYxq@diymfa
How Having Kids Can Change Your Reading Life: http://bit.ly/SpyzIH@deadwhiteguys
How to Create Conflict in a One Character Scene: http://bit.ly/QhK34g
Writing lessons learned from "Where it Began": http://bit.ly/QhK48h@juliemusil
"Sparkle", From Movie to Book: http://bit.ly/QhKbAO@carleenbrice @MyBrownBaby
Should You Sell Books from Your Author Website? http://bit.ly/SpyXGY@authorems
How To Make Writing A Habit Using Rituals: http://bit.ly/QhKdJ0
Heightening emotional impact: http://bit.ly/Spz0mf@juliettewade
Staying Balanced in the Confusing Modern Publishing Industry: http://bit.ly/QhKhbu@jodyhedlund
4 Lessons Authors Can Learn from Obama's Fake Twitter Followers: http://bit.ly/QdXHTd@authormedia
Top 10 WordPress Security Myths: http://bit.ly/NvNLXU@problogger
One Simple and Incredibly Painful Way to Fix Your Novel Draft: http://bit.ly/QdXWxz@io9
How To Read Amazon Review Graphs: http://bit.ly/NvNXq5@galleycat
7 Questions Every Story Critique Should Answer: http://bit.ly/Qe59Oj@AdriennedeWolfe
How to Use Brainstorming to Edit: http://bit.ly/NvTyN9@ava_jae
Are Amazon reader reviews killing off the critic? http://bit.ly/Qe5f8u@guardianbooks
Why Kindle Direct Publishing Will Transform Indian Self-Publishing: http://bit.ly/NvTFYW@pubperspectives @VinuthaMallya
How to Find Your Character's Voice: http://bit.ly/Qe5pgb@kmweiland
7 Essential Elements of Scene + Scene Structure Exercise: http://bit.ly/Qe5vnV@plotwhisperer
Keeping Characters True to Themselves: http://bit.ly/Qe5CzY@stdennard @4YALit
10 Creative Writing Ideas for Teens: http://bit.ly/Qe5ErB@tweetthebook
Make your bookshelf searchable by taking a picture with Evernote: http://bit.ly/Qe5IaJ@ebookfriendly
What good dialogue should accomplish: http://bit.ly/NvU2mv@kit_lit
5 Things You DON'T Need to Become a Successful Freelance Writer: http://bit.ly/Qe5Ner
Finding Your Novel's Theme and Your Universal Theme: http://bit.ly/NvU4e4@roniloren
A 5-Step Plan to Improve Every Blog Post You Write: http://bit.ly/NvU8dU@copyblogger @aliventures
Whose Story is This Anyway? http://bit.ly/Qe5VKX @querytracker
The Art of Subtlety in Fiction: http://bit.ly/NvUfGc@jeanniecampbell
The DNA of a successful ebook: http://on.mash.to/NvUl0H@mashable
A look at character development arcs: http://bit.ly/Qe680N@livewritethrive
A writer shares what's she's learned so far: http://bit.ly/NvUpNG@Artzicarol @janice_hardy
Five Creepy Social Media Marketing Tactics: http://bit.ly/Qea1D2@KristenLambTX
How to Read Your Writing in Public: http://bit.ly/Qea7ug@rsquaredd
A Refresher Course On Sentence Types: http://bit.ly/OyulmP@writerscramp1
Competing Goals in Our Story: http://bit.ly/Oyukzb@theresastevens
What to Put Above the Fold on Your Blog, And Why: http://bit.ly/QeafKj@blogtyrant
What to include on your freelance writing resume: http://bit.ly/QeakO7
Being a Pro: One Often Overlooked Issue: http://bit.ly/Qeax3I@AnnetteLyon
3 Fiction Tips from Stephanie Vaughn's "Dog Heaven": http://bit.ly/Oyv4Ej@writeitsideways
A closer look at the Amazon review bar graph: http://bit.ly/RVEaLQ@salon
The Good, The Bad, and The Sadly Deluded: Actors Who Write: http://bit.ly/UehO4L@cathinnorway
Fake market or not? How to tell: http://bit.ly/RVEoTn@emergentpublish
12 Writing Prompts/Situations: http://bit.ly/UehUt5
Keeping Up with Your Blog for the Long Haul: http://bit.ly/RVEzxS@JulieBMack
The Editorial Process, Step by Step: http://bit.ly/Uei17X@chavelaque
Identifying your genre: http://bit.ly/RVELNA @museinks
Ebooks For Libraries: http://bit.ly/Uei43O @JAKonrath
A Warning To All Writers Who Need Help Indie Publishing: http://bit.ly/RVEWZl@kristinerusch
What the Romance Genre Can Teach Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers: http://bit.ly/UeibMO @lbgale
Should you always list writing credits in your cover letter? http://bit.ly/RVFaQd@nicolamorgan
5 Dialogue Basics: http://bit.ly/UeihE3 @marcykennedy
How To Enjoy Critical Reviews of Your Own Work: http://bit.ly/RVFi22@JustineLavaworm
How to Prepare For a Book Launch: http://bit.ly/UeiQgY@jodyhedlund
How do authors benefit from agents: http://bit.ly/UeiOWo@rachellegardner
5 Questions Indie Authors Should Always Ask An Agent: http://bit.ly/UeiW8A@ornaross
The 6 Magic Words That Always Get Clicks: http://bit.ly/Uel686@authormedia
Tips for 1st time ebook writers: http://bit.ly/RVKW4j@woodwardkaren
Author Solutions' Misleading PR Strategies: http://bit.ly/UelaVo@victoriastrauss
Classic Female Fantasy Writers: http://bit.ly/RVL2c0@fantasyfaction
From last resort to new career--how 1 writer self-published: http://bit.ly/Uelpjp@dirtywhitecandy
What's so funny? Humor in nonfiction writing: http://bit.ly/RVLmrk@ruthwcrocker
Writing Through a Rough Patch of Life: http://bit.ly/Uelsvk@THahnBurkett
The Myth of Giving Away 15% Ownership in Your Work: http://bit.ly/RVLsze@deanwesleysmith
The Publishing Process in GIF Form: http://bit.ly/OwuFN3@nathanbransford
Writing: Why Your Third Grade Teacher Was Wrong: http://bit.ly/S2WdOU@heidicohen
5 tips for creating self-pub success: http://bit.ly/S2Wmlx@booksparkspr
When Should You Write Full-Time? http://bit.ly/RZ0VZJ@duolit @highervis
How Clichés Can Help You Create Great Characters: http://bit.ly/S31tCe@fantasyfaction
How to build a readership for your blog and books: http://bit.ly/OwCWAB@jodyhedlund
Using Screenplay Techniques in Novel-Writing: http://bit.ly/S31FBq@sarahalderson
Writing secret: all you need is curiosity and surprise: http://bit.ly/OwDhU4@speechwriterguy
Lessons from a Copywriter for Better Fiction: http://bit.ly/S31R3z@emilywenstrom
How (Not) to Be a Brilliant Writer: http://bit.ly/S31VAA@ava_jae
The Tools Needed to Make a Living as a Writer: http://bit.ly/OwDDtQ@bubblecow
How to Edit Your Book in 4 Steps: http://bit.ly/S32cU2@writersdigest
Self-Publishing and The Midlist: http://bit.ly/S32hqW
Narcotics in Science Fiction & Fantasy: http://bit.ly/OwEdaN@tordotcom
Advice from Mark Twain on the Art and Craft of Writing: http://bit.ly/S32p9G@suzannewfisher
Use Character Quirks to Grab Readers' Attention: http://bit.ly/OwEuuy@KMWeiland
How to Focus Your Blog or Blogged Book on a Topic: http://bit.ly/OwPzf5@ninaamir
How to avoid negativity online: http://bit.ly/S39h6Y@nicolamorgan
How To Work On More Than One Book At A Time: http://bit.ly/OwPTdI@thecreativepenn
Ideas to rethink during this digital revolution: http://bit.ly/S39ya8@rachellegardner
Getting lost in historical fiction: http://bit.ly/OwQxYD@history_girls
Where Genres Come From and How to Stitch Them Together: http://bit.ly/OwQR9V@KgElfland2ndCuz
Against Acknowledgments: http://nyr.kr/Po5n6u@pageturner
Maturity–The Difference Between the Amateur and the Professional: http://bit.ly/QlnpYW @kristenlambTX
Social Media Will Not Sell Your Book: http://bit.ly/Qlnvzv@hilarydavidson
The Last Word: 9 Famous Authors' Epitaphs: http://bit.ly/Po5K0W@BookishWallace
Top 10 Reasons People Use To Justify Pirating Digital Content (And Why They're Wrong): http://bit.ly/Po5Ntt @robwhart
The Square-One Story Killer: http://bit.ly/QlnDPG @storyfix
5 Lessons Learned From Writing 3 Novels: http://bit.ly/QlnJXr@ScottTBartlett
Tips for successful book marketing: http://bit.ly/Po6anU@writersdigest
Meet Mr Fifty Shades: EL James's husband speaks out: http://bit.ly/Po7xTy@guardianbooks
How Affordable Color POD Could Change the Comics Industry: http://bit.ly/Po7Q0E
KDP freebies--a look at the numbers: http://bit.ly/T8cd57@Porter_Anderson @dvinjamuri
Indie Authors: Your Copyright Page Needs Work: http://bit.ly/Po8H1q@jimhbs
Why genre fiction is an e-reader's best friend: http://bit.ly/Qlp9RY@annabaddeley
Charge Your Writing Batteries: http://bit.ly/Po98sA @noveleditor
Falling in love with fictional characters--a reader's tribute to "Eloise": http://bit.ly/Po9zDn @junglereds
25 Synonyms for "Delete": http://bit.ly/QlptQr@writing_tips
Genre Blending: http://bit.ly/Po9Nu0 @fantasyfaction
Top 3 Reasons to Give Away Your Book: http://bit.ly/QlpwM4@tobywneal
Tips for creating complex villains: http://bit.ly/QmGWIl@ashkrafton
15 grammatical errors to avoid: http://bit.ly/S4UFzC@bubblecow
Outlining Backwards:http://bit.ly/QmGZ77
How to Slam Dunk Your 90-Second Pitch: http://bit.ly/S4UNPR@debraeve
How To Protect Your Writing Time: http://bit.ly/S4V9G7@KellyMcClymer
3 Writing Commandments: http://bit.ly/QmHjma@jhansenwrites
Tips for combatting paid reviews: http://bit.ly/S4VtVd@annerallen
Amazon in the UK: Worries About Waterstones: http://janefriedman.com/2012/09/20/writing-on-the-ether-56/#6@eoinpurcell @Porter_Anderson
7 tips for keeping your motivation as a writer: http://bit.ly/QmHqhB@dirtywhitecandy
3 ways to end your book...that you should reconsider: http://bit.ly/QmHxtG@JaelMcHenry
Writing the Perfect Pitch: http://bit.ly/S4W1KK
An apostrophe review: http://bit.ly/QmHGwY@livewritethrive
Ways to Become an Insecure Writer: http://bit.ly/QmHHkx@lyndaryoung
5 Smarter Habits of Great Writers: http://bit.ly/QmHHBi
Beat the Bestsellers--the Other Way to the Top: http://bit.ly/SELvdL@NickThacker
Writing in a second language: http://bit.ly/S4WaxX
Re-releasing print books as ebooks: http://bit.ly/S4Y1mr@nicolamorgan
An important quality of a charismatic male character: http://bit.ly/QmINgn@rebeccaberto
A review of commas, dashes, and colons: http://bit.ly/S4YwwI
99 Ways to Tell a Story: http://bit.ly/QmIT7F @sophie_novak
Agency Pricing in Europe? No. http://bit.ly/SEM0on@Porter_Anderson @PublishersLunch
Selling Literary Fiction: http://bit.ly/SEMn1Y@thecreativepenn @tglong
Making the Most of Writers' Conferences: http://bit.ly/T8D0Oz@frugalbookpromo
The perils of paid-for reviews: http://bit.ly/T8D6WG@dearauthor
The elephant in the writing room: http://bit.ly/OL91uj@annerooney
Overcoming Writing Challenges: http://bit.ly/PTrnV7@lefrenchbook
Approaching Top Reviewers on Amazon: http://bit.ly/T8drNG@AlexisGrant @Porter_Anderson
September 19, 2012
Beat the Bestsellers - The Other Way to the Top—Guest Post by Nick Thacker
If you're like any other author (or person, for that matter), you probably hold a book with the words "New York Times Bestselling Author" on it in much higher esteem than others. Authors, for as long as "The Lists" have been out, have tried to find the "magic bullet" method of getting their book placed side-by-side with the likes of Dan Brown, J.K. Rowling, and Robert Ludlum. Their reasoning, while implausible, is sound: "if my book can get on that list, I'll be set. I won't have to work another day in my life!" 
Ok, well maybe it's not that extreme, but it's not too far off. Heck, I tend to daydream about landing a huge publishing deal that'll send me a half-million-dollar advance, and a spot beside the next in the Bourne saga. But truthfully, my expectations--and yours, if you're a writer--should be a little lower.
It's a well-known fact that the bestseller lists (NYT, Book Review; pick one) are just proprietary algorithms that would make Google proud, that select and churn out "bestsellers" left and right--sometimes before the book even hits the shelves.
It's even been rumored that these lists are contrived forms of propaganda intended to keep the "establishment media" agencies ahead of the game.
Big-name authors like the aforementioned reap some of the benefits of being on these lists, no doubt (as do the publishing companies that push them!). But the bottom line for the rest of us new or even mid-list authors is that we don't have the choice to get to The Lists. We can try--by writing more and better and for longer periods of time--but there's never a guarantee. Success at that level is at best as elusive as it is esteemed.
No, we humble wordsmiths are resigned to the closets of our one-bedroom apartments in the suburbs, wrenching and prying out words that might never be read by anyone other than our devoted spouses and fan (yes, that's singular...). It's easier to complain, blaming the system and politicians and publishing companies and agents and...
There is another way.
Yes, that's right. There's another way to "the top." While it isn't via "traditional" channels like landing on a well-respected list or having a daytime spot on Oprah, but it's a just as--or perhaps more--satisfying way to achieve success in the scary world of books: making a ton of money and attracting a bunch of new readers without the strings, constraints, and conditions of big publishing.
"Self-publishing" may still have a bit of a stigma, but it seems as though more and more, authors are expected to market themselves; either putting up the money for an advertising firm, or by going it alone. There's simply not as much money in the industry as there used to be (or, at least, it's not allocated the same way...).
Sure enough, authors--published or not--are finding new and untested ways to market, promote, and sell their books. Mailing lists, social networking, and special Kindle shenanigans come to mind, and all of these are great ways to market your stuff after it's written.
And that's just it -- the "new" method for long-term success in this world has little to do with "after the fact" marketing.
It's about writing more books.
Specifically, it's about publishing (however you want to define the word) more books.
The proof is in the pudding, as they say, and I can vouch for it. Over the past few months, I've studied just about every marketing tactic, promotional strategy, and book-selling trick known to the self-publishing world. Some worked, some didn't, but I discovered a truth that authors like J.A. Konrath and others have been preaching for awhile:
The more books you have available to be purchased, the more you will sell.
The problem facing any author is the delicate balance between "finishing" a book so that it's polished, edited, and basically perfect (which is probably impossible anyway), and just getting it out to market, flaws and all.
Since no one wants to embarrass themselves with a shoddy product, authors tend to lean toward the "waiting" side of things. But there really is another way:
I'm a big proponent of the "lean startup" method of launching a product, app, or business, and I've applied the approach to my books. Here is my process that's worked to provide me with a modest yet growing monthly income stream:
1. Write a lot of stuff.
I say "stuff" here because you don't have to publish super-long books on Amazon -- I have a line of "Dead-Simple Guides" that I market as "articles," even though they're on the longer side of that definition (around 10,000-20,000 words). I also have a manifesto, a couple full-length nonfiction books, and some guides.
The whole point is that I am constantly writing -- and publishing. It's building a backlist, sure, but it's also building a craft around what I like to write. However, none of this would be possible without the next steps...
2. Have a "pre-reading" plan in place.
I've started blogging and building a mailing list of possible readers that I "tap" whenever I'm about to release something -- I can send them a free copy of the book if they're willing to read through it and let me know what they think. This saves me from hiring a professional editor for everything I write (I still go with an editor for the longer stuff).
These beta readers vet out the typos, continuity errors, and generally anything they don't like -- allowing me to rewrite knowing that it'll be much better afterwards.
3. Shoot for digital first.
Digital is fast, immediately trackable, and adaptable. I don't want to wait around for an editor to find every single thing that's wrong with the book -- I can instead let the beta readers tear it up, rewrite it a few times, publish it, and make more minute changes as we go forward. If a particular book does really well one month, I might think about offering a special print version or something, but not usually from the very beginning.
This process is different, and it's not what a "major" house would probably recommend. But by doing it this way, I'm working to be a bestseller in a handful of sub-sub-sub-sub-categories, not the overall Nonfiction or Fiction categories. I don't expect to sell 10,000 copies of anything in the first week of a launch, and that's not the goal. The goal is to completely own a few of these smaller niche categories over time.
The process works because it's so much faster the "old" way.
Yes, you have to type fast and think fast and publish fast, but it's really not that bad. In fact, I can't imagine waiting a year or more to go from finished manuscript to print -- I usually go from concept to storefront in a little over a month -- and I'm working on numerous projects at once.
You can "beat" the bestsellers by doing it this way, but you have to make the commitment to building trust with some readers over time, and consistently provide them with something to read. I believe most people would prefer to read a full-length novel and a few shorts from a favorite author, putting up with the minor typo or error every now and then (that will eventually get fixed anyway), than wait for a typo-less, full-length novel only every year.
Get it? The point isn't to ignore mistakes and publish for the sake of making money -- it's to publish enough stuff that you're staying in front of people so they can't forget you, offering better and better stuff as the relationship grows.
As small business owners, our benefit is speed. Use it to your advantage, and you'll "win" this publishing game.
Nick Thacker writes about writing, blogging, and publishing, and you can check him out
on his blog
. Be sure to grab his new book,
Welcome Home: The Author’s Guide to Building A Marketing Home Base
, and
grab the newsletter!
September 18, 2012
Overcoming Writing Challenges: Guest post by Anne Trager
Guest post by Anne Trager, @lefrenchbook, the founder of Le French Book and translator of The Paris Lawyer by Sylvie Granotier
I recently founded Le French Book, an independent publisher dedicated to bringing readers around the English-speaking world, “French books you’ll love in English.” My husband found that tagline. I found our motto: “If we love it, we’ll translate it.”Because I’m the one doing some of the translation. I have many years of translating behind me, but when I took on our first crime fiction novel, The Paris Lawyer by Sylvie Granotier, I encountered some unique challenges that required some creative thinking, a lot of research, and then, well, some real questioning about what we were trying to do. That is where I found the answer.
The Paris Lawyer is a legal procedural set in France. The heroine is a rookie lawyer who takes on a big felony case, pro bono, to boost her career and ends up having to confront her own past. It’s a great book. It’s well written. I love it. So what was the problem?
Well, France and the United States have very different court systems. Lawyers do not do the same thing. Court procedure is different. The very purpose of a trial diverges. Oh dear, oh dear.
My worries began when I was walking around the outside of the Palais de Justice in Paris, getting a feel for the place, since the main character is a lawyer and some scenes take place there. It occurred to me as I did so that there is no way you can translate “Palais de Justice” by “courthouse,” which is not nearly grand enough for this edifice. Justice has been dispensed in this building since medieval times. It still holds the Sainte Chapelle, the chapel of the royal palace that once stood here, not to mention the Conciergerie, the former prison where Marie-Antoinette was held before losing her head (literally). OK, OK, none of these details actually impact the story. I ended up making the decision that the story is more important. I called it the courthouse. That’s what it was for the main character.
But then how would I deal with the defendant standing at a bar in front of three judges, not one, who are the ones firing out questions, while the lawyer stands on the side? That is court procedure in France, so there was no question of changing it. I had to make sure that the differences came across smoothly, without them keeping the reader from enjoying the story. I had to find ways to make sure the characters or context explained things, explained that in France, the court appearance is more a ritual confrontation with the law than it is for presenting evidence and facts. This is because there is a prior inquiry during which several judges have actually made a decision. I had to work with the French author to make sure that these adaptations did not denature the story.
Long-time translator David Bellos, in his book, Is That a Fish in Your Ear? Translation and the Meaning of Everything, writes that translators are matchmakers, because ultimately, they “find matches, not equivalences…in the hope and expectation that their sum will produce a new work that can serve as an overall substitute for the source.” Ultimately this means recreating a reading experience, so it brought me back to the very important question, “What are we trying to do here?” Our goal with Le French Book is to publish entertaining books, my goal as a translator is to make sure the read in English gives the same shivers of expectation, longing to read more and pangs of emotions. I had to make sure nothing took the reader out of the story or undermined suspension of disbelief. Imagine my satisfaction when Edgar Award-winning author Thomas H. Cook read the translation and said it was“beautifully written” and that “it captures the reader from the first page and never lets go.”
Le French Book is so excited about The Paris Lawyer that they are giving away a trip to France and lots of free books, surprises and gifts just to celebrate. This party starts on September 18. Go see for yourself: Great promotion from Le French Book (http://www.theparislawyer.com)
********************
About Anne Trager: Anne Trager has lived in France for over 26 years, working in translation, publishing and communications. In 2011, she woke up one morning and said, “I just can’t stand it anymore. There are way too many good books being written in France not reaching a broader audience.” That’s when she founded Le French Book to translate some of those books into English. The company’s motto is “If we love it, we translate it,” and Anne loves crime fiction.
About Sylvie Granotier: Author, screenwriter and actress Sylvie Granotier loves to weave plots that send shivers up your spine. She was born in Algeria and grew up in Paris and Morocco. She studied literature and theater in Paris, then set off traveling—the United States, Brazil, Afghanistan, and elsewhere, ending with a tour of Europe. She wound up in Paris again, an actress, with a job and some recognition. But she is a writer at heart, and started her publishing career translating Grace Paley’s short story collection Enormous Changes at the Last Minute into French. Fourteen novels and many short stories later, Sylvie Granotier is a major crime fiction author in France. Sylvie splits her time between Paris and the Creuse.
The Paris Lawyer:
September 16, 2012
Steampunk--Grafting Genres
by Kaitlin Nichols, @TheAtheleSeries
I like genre blending. I'll just come right out and say it. I mean, this isn't anything against purity - a straight horror or a straight sword and sorcery fantasy is cool, but horror with ghosts and sword and sorcery in space just takes cool and then combines it with awesome to get this Awe-ool Co-some thing.
That metaphor didn't quite work out like I intended.
Anyway.
Some genres are more easily blendable than others. It's sort of like how a banana is a much better part of a smoothie than, say, spinach. Don't get me wrong, you can make a killer spinach smoothie with the right ingredients and spicing, but in general it's just not the first choice. Any person can toss a banana and ice in a blender and get something pleasant. It takes a deft hand to correctly execute a smoothie with vegetables.
Now, my name is Kailtin, and I am a Steampunk author. I'm here to tell you why Steampunk is much more akin to a Banana than it is to Spinach. In other words, I'm here to tell you a couple reasons why genre blending with Steampunk is something you should try.
#1 Steampunk is flexible.
Wherever you fancy going, Steampunk is all over it. A story by sea? Ship or submarine? A story by air? Dirigible or other flying machine. A story by land? Buggy, horseless wagon, gigantic manors with trap doors. In a way, Steampunk is a lot like fantasy or sci-fi (it's often considered a sub genre of them, if a very distinct one) in that it is what you make of it. The show Firefly is often named as a Steampunk show, and it takes place in outer space. Steampunk has been found blended with Romance, Adventure, Horror, and Fantasy (Legend of Korra, anyone?).
Now, some might make the argument that Steampunk is merely a sub-genre, and that in many stories if you dropped all steampunk elements, you wouldn't have anything fundamentally different than what you started out with.
#2 Steampunk is new, exciting, and unbearably cool.
A piece of advice which is given over and over to writers is to 'Write what you want to write, not what the market demands'. Now, I will never argue that you should write something you dislike. However, I will argue that just because the market demands it doesn't mean it's bad. I'm one of those people that's slow to try new things. We were on book three of Harry Potter before I got into it. Avatar the Last Airbender was on its third season before I finally watched the pilot episode (and proceeded to watch the first and second season in 2 days). Game of Thrones is coming up on its third season and I just now fell completely in love with it. Sometimes, guys, the market is completely right. And the great thing about being a writer is that every word you put down stretches your creative muscles. Sometimes, in fact, a new genre is just what you need.
So go ahead, try it out. If you need some reference or research material, I'll help you out with
Kaitlin is from Omaha, Nebraska. She enjoys things such as running, dancing, singing, writing, and Patrick Stewart pontificating about the letter 'B'. Her first e-book, Valeria, comes out November 5th, 2012 from Lyrical Press. You can find her (and her husband) at www.kaitlinandmichaelbranch.com on facebook at "The Athele Series" or on twitter, @theatheleseries.
September 15, 2012
Twitterific
by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig
Twitterific is a compilation of all the writing links I shared the previous week.
The links are fed into the Writer’s Knowledge Base search engine (developed by writer and software engineer Mike Fleming ) which has over 18,000 free articles on writing-related topics. Sign up for our free newsletter for monthly writing tips and interviews with top contributors to the WKB or like us on Facebook .
Try “My WKB”--a way for you to list and sort articles, view your read articles, and see your search history. Read more about it here: http://bit.ly/S9thqS . The free My WKB page is here: http://bit.ly/PV8Ueb .
Have a great week!
Do Your Characters Fail Enough? http://bit.ly/P2N9ZN @ava_jae
Island settings in crime fiction: http://bit.ly/QhIxiJ @mkinberg
Different Ways to Take Notes on the Go: http://bit.ly/P2NRpD
Making Amazon Forums Work For You: http://bit.ly/P2OeAM @TexasDruids
Escaping the Darling Hitman: http://bit.ly/PL4m78 @TaliaVance
Ending the self-pub stigma: http://bit.ly/P2OX4T @duolit
5 lessons writers can learn from director Tony Scott: http://bit.ly/PL4AuY @MichelleRafter
An apostrophe review: http://bit.ly/P2PhRe
Why 1 reader no longer trusts Kindle ebook samples: http://bit.ly/P3gDXi @farmlanebooks
Beautifully written book with no plot or character changes? Beware of reader boredom: http://bit.ly/P3iRpu @DonMaass @Porter_Anderson
How to Create a Character: http://bit.ly/QqU9PH @hollylisle
Research Resources for Fantasy Writing: http://bit.ly/POfiAU @HP4Writers
Why we keep getting the same old ideas: http://bit.ly/QqUu57 @MichaelMichalko
The Clash of Characters: http://bit.ly/QqUAcV @susannelakin
Top 10 Middle Grade Novel Agents: http://bit.ly/POfBvC @fictionnotes
A free directory of #ebook pros--for covers, editing, formatting, & more: http://tinyurl.com/3mxg5zt #epub
When to Ask for Evaluations of Your Novel: http://bit.ly/QqUSQR @AdriennedeWolfe
The death of the novel will presage a rebirth of writing: http://bit.ly/POfU9D @guardianbooks
Why wasting time helps you stay sane and productive: http://bit.ly/POfX5j @criticalmargins
10 Myths About Space Travel That Make Science Fiction Better: http://bit.ly/QqVaao @io9
All We Needed To Know About Social Media Success, We Learned in Kindergarten: http://bit.ly/POg8xz @kristenlambtx
How to Write a Sentence: http://bit.ly/POgmVB @Hal_Duncan
The Uncomfortable Pantser: When Your Method Doesn't Fit Your Personality: http://bit.ly/QqVxSC @roniloren
3 Skills Every Successful Freelance Writer Should Have: http://bit.ly/RKuCSF @writersdigest
How to Write an Omniscient Narrator: http://bit.ly/RKuTEY @io9
Tips for writing scenes: http://bit.ly/OvSDt0
Pacing for Power--Increasing Tension & Suspense: http://bit.ly/OvTxWF @jodierennered
13 ways to write with urgency: http://bit.ly/RKw1bL @chadrallen
8 Ways To Become A Better Writer: http://bit.ly/OvTEkZ @woodwardkaren
The End of the Unprofessional Writer: http://bit.ly/RKw878 @kristinerusch
The First/Last sentence experiment: http://bit.ly/NhM9Rk @juliettewade
Top 10 cozy catastrophes: http://bit.ly/U1UAPe @guardianbooks
How to Decide How to Monetize Your Blog or Blogged Book: http://bit.ly/NhMmny @NinaAmir
Second Time the Charm? (Or How Not to Reinvent the Sequel): http://bit.ly/U1UJSI @4YALit @tommygreenwald
Writing With Passion and Purpose: http://bit.ly/NhMpQk @thecreativepenn @middlereaders
Romance in YA: http://bit.ly/NhMBz1 @tara25fuller
The Practice of Writing: http://bit.ly/UAm14K @TrueFactBarFact
The Business of Screenwriting: Hip pocket representation: http://bit.ly/QuR80S @gits
Rejection vs. failure: http://bit.ly/UAm949 @AimeeLSalter
Criticism as Fantasia and Inquiry: http://bit.ly/QuRlkG @sfsignal
Bookstores vs. Backlist: http://bit.ly/UAmjbL @jamigold
Making Your Book Spreadable: http://bit.ly/QuRq80 @authorems
The Indian Kindle Store Isn't The Real Deal… Yet: http://bit.ly/UAmq7g @davidgaughran
Obstacles in Stories: 3 Ways to Turn Hills Into Mountains: http://bit.ly/QuRzs4 @jodyhedlund
5 Great Reasons to Build Your Writer's Platform Yourself: http://bit.ly/UAmBzF @emergentpublish
Why the Best Kids Books Are Written in Blood: http://on.wsj.com/kfh47W @wsjspeakeasy
The story of English spelling: http://bit.ly/UAmELR @guardianbooks
7 Sets of Doublet and Triplet Verbs: http://bit.ly/QuRS67 @writing_tips
9 Wonder Woman Villains (That Explain Why Nobody Talks About Wonder Woman's Villains): http://bit.ly/Urq8jr
Hey, Author, About My $4 Coffee: http://bit.ly/PFn6Vr @Liz_Mc2
Should Self-Published Authors Use Author Solutions? http://bit.ly/PFmfnU @galleycat
Writing Conventions and How to Survive: http://bit.ly/Pm7cxO @traciewelser
How to create a media list to promote your new book: http://bit.ly/Uropuu @sandrabeckwith
The New World of Publishing: The Myths Are Still Strong: http://bit.ly/OnyaXj @deanwesleysmith
More on cranky authors: http://bit.ly/PeN05u @justinelavaworm
How to lose an audience (more on Weird Tales debacle): http://bit.ly/P1D2Cx @millism
How to Make Unlikeable Characters Likeable: http://bit.ly/PeNkkN @writeangleblog
Instant Transitions: http://bit.ly/P1D6C5
Lessons from Drawing for Writers: http://bit.ly/PeNxo2 @BTMargins
Anthropological Science Fiction as a Sub-Genre: http://bit.ly/PeNLeJ @tordotcom
5 Quick Fixes to Make Readers Love Your Villains: http://bit.ly/P1DzEA @sdwriter
Revising to Raise the Stakes: http://bit.ly/PeOpJb @AimeeLSalter
What to do if you can't afford professional editing: http://bit.ly/PeOxbL @nicolamorgan
Making readers cry: http://bit.ly/P1EaWH @EmmieDark
Books Need Both Vertical and Horizontal Moments: http://bit.ly/PeOInj
Adding Google Analytics Tracking Code to WordPress: http://bit.ly/P1EiWg @JFBookman
A list of late-blooming, successful writers: http://bit.ly/PeOWLh @randysusanmeyer
Rules involving numbers: http://bit.ly/P1EzZg @livewritethrive
Tips for increasing your book's Amazon rank: http://bit.ly/OA4RAR @bookbuzzr
Do you really know who your audience is? http://bit.ly/OA4Z3o @danblank
12 Lessons Learned from 12 Years of Writing: http://bit.ly/NkbIBf @copyblogger
Making the Time to Write, Blog, Do Social Media, Finish School and Parent: http://bit.ly/OA53QI @duolit @yeseniavargas32
Strengthen Your Writing by Listening to Pet Peeves: http://bit.ly/OA59aU @KMWeiland @danasitar
How to Write For Any Medium: http://bit.ly/OA5fQ3 @JoeBerkowitz @fastcompany
Fact vs. Fantasy in Memoir and Nonfiction: http://bit.ly/OBKQKu @grubwriters
10 Things to Do to Achieve Freelance Success: http://bit.ly/PjRB6m @bob_brooke
Should You Preschedule Tweets? http://bit.ly/OBL1Wa @meghancward
17 Reasons to Write Something Now: http://bit.ly/PjRPuq @joebunting
Optimizing the Query Process with Fewer Mistakes: http://bit.ly/PjRU0Z @catewoods
Finding Comparables for Your Novel: http://bit.ly/OBLibq @AnnieNeugebauer
6 Reasons For Using An Epilogue: http://bit.ly/Q36O9l @writersdigest
Walk-On and Secondary Characters: http://bit.ly/RJfO82
Vanity publishing--turning the label around: http://bit.ly/Q376wW @victoriastrauss
Romance in books that aren't romances: http://bit.ly/RJg9aP @sarahlapolla
The Do-It-Yourself Writing Retreat: http://bit.ly/Q37n2W @MuseInks
The importance of external conflict to a story: http://bit.ly/RJgzy3 @storyfix
20 words for 'cry': http://bit.ly/RJheiV @writing_tips
Top 10 mistakes in science fiction movies: http://bit.ly/Q38gZf @tordotcom
Layers of Reality: http://bit.ly/Q39bst @fantasyfaction
4 ways to get magazine or newspaper interviews: http://bit.ly/RJiMcC @GLeeBurgett
Fail Faster (So You Can Become a Better Writer): http://bit.ly/RJn2Zz @jeffgoins
'Social' Media: Author Ignorance: http://bit.ly/RJngzY @Porter_Anderson
Are You Writing The Right Book? 5 Ways To Find Out: http://bit.ly/Q3cTm4 @woodwardkaren
Fan fiction vs reality: http://bit.ly/RJnt6o @EvaWiseman
Believing in yourself as a writer: http://bit.ly/Q3d6ph @jamesscottbell
Gaining Momentum In Your WIP: http://bit.ly/RJnGXe
Fantasy Influences: Ancient Greek Mythology: http://bit.ly/Q3dhAX @VickyThinks
Editors answer questions about editing: http://bit.ly/RJo73K @RuthHarrisBooks
5 Ways You're Preventing Readers From Suspending Disbelief: http://bit.ly/RJosDA @KMWeiland
An editor with advice for aspiring writers (and an explanation why writers find it hard to self-edit): http://bit.ly/RJoFXk @theresastevens
Konrath's defense of sock puppetry: http://bit.ly/TODPvb @Porter_Anderson @JAKonrath @RickGualtieri @DoraMcAlpin @plwinkler @rezendi
10 things to know about speakers bureaus: http://bit.ly/TOUUFm @rachellegardner
An editor on what to read and how to read it for ideas: http://bit.ly/TOVin7 @ruthharrisbooks @annerallen
A first year of Kindle Daily Deal – facts, tips, and commentary: http://bit.ly/Pf3Jnj @ebookfriendly
Novel Structure: James Scott Bell's LOCK System: http://bit.ly/TOVWB5 @jamesscottbell
Thoughts on making up your own words as a writer: http://bit.ly/Pf4dtA @kcraftwriter
How Self-Publishers Reach Readers: http://bit.ly/TOWmaK
Quick scene exercise: http://bit.ly/Pf4r3W
The future of the book: is it in apps? http://bit.ly/Pf4Inq @criticalmargins
Literary Fiction vs. Genre – what's the difference? http://bit.ly/Pf4RqW
When Worlds Collide: SciFi and Horror Themes: http://bit.ly/Pf5EIr
Arming Your Villains While Maintaining Your Credibility: An AK Rifle Primer for Authors: http://bit.ly/TOYtex
11 Kinds of WordPress Blog Pages: http://bit.ly/Pf5UXX @JFBookman
Amazon's new Kindle Serials (and a few serialization concerns): http://bit.ly/NkGKJj @Porter_Anderson @ByRozMorris @jasonashlock
The Lazy Way To Be A Great Writer: http://bit.ly/Pf8X2q @karencv
10 Grammar Mistakes that Can Keep Your Content from Spreading: http://bit.ly/TP1R9o @alexisgrant @copyblogger
Writing Realistic Love Relationships: http://bit.ly/Pf94uO @CMKaufman
Writing Lapses: 5 Tips to Get You Back on Track: http://bit.ly/Q9LYoP @serbaughman
Finding Solid Names for Your Unique Characters: http://bit.ly/RQFiAm @writersdigest
On leaving the world for a novel (and making it back alive): http://bit.ly/Q9Ml2A @internspills
Things to consider as the digital book revolution gains global steam: http://bit.ly/Q9Nhnw @MikeShatzkin
Libraries and Ebooks: http://bit.ly/RQGAvg @ursulaleguin
Conflict begins on page 1: http://bit.ly/Q9NreN @fictionnotes
4 Songwriting Tips For Scoring Film and TV Placements: http://bit.ly/RQGMus @usasong
Can self-publishing buy respect? http://bit.ly/Q9NBmf @salon
The 10 best contemporary African books: http://bit.ly/RQGVhB @guardianbooks
Wrestling with reader expectations and cliché: http://bit.ly/Q9NMOx @juliettewade
Tips for coming up with story ideas: http://bit.ly/RQHaJm @DeeWhiteauthor
13 Top Books on How to Freelance as a Writer: http://bit.ly/Q9NWoY
7 Reasons to Publish a Blog: http://bit.ly/RQHfNk @writing_tips
Tips for building an author platform: http://bit.ly/Q9O4ov @louise_wise
When Your Character Doesn't Speak English: http://bit.ly/RQIgEY
A King Named Sue: Picking Perfect (Character) Names: http://bit.ly/RQIlIZ @susanjmorris
The surprises that pull our stories together: http://bit.ly/OFO2o9 @ManMartin1
Why 1 reader no longer trusts Kindle ebook samples: http://bit.ly/P3gDXi @farmlanebooks
Post DoJ maneuvers begin (and some trad. published ebooks' prices fall): http://bit.ly/Sg63sT @Porter_Anderson @sarahw @juliebosman
Villains Need Love Too—12 Tips: http://bit.ly/Q8AV2V @DonnaGalanti @JordanDane
3 myths that are keeping you from writing short stories: http://bit.ly/Q3dKmO @Yaminatoday @womenwriters
Make it easy for readers to suspend disbelief--here's how: http://bit.ly/QWUrAm @DonnaGalanti
September 13, 2012
Cover Yourself—Guest Post by Donna Galanti
by Donna Galanti @DonnaGalanti
In becoming an author and reader across genres, I’ve discovered a compelling novel is an emotional experience. If we fall in love with the characters in a book we can forgive some plot errors–but not all–and we can just believe. And if we believe, we stay in the fiction dream. James Scott Bell, in his workshop Structure of a Novel, emphasized this. We need to keep the reader entranced in the fiction dream. But how do we do that? Create a world to support them.
My developmental editor, Kathryn Craft, reinforced Bell’s advice. She advised me that to keep the fiction dream alive we need to have our readers suspend disbelief–and never, ever show our underpants. What does this mean? It means that we must create a world in which a plot point can happen. Don’t create an event just to “show” something.
For example, a scene reveals a daughter’s healing powers. The mother falls from a barn window onto a pitchfork and the daughter heals her.
But , we have no creepy sensation that all was not well:
· There is no violent wind
· No portent of doom
· No anxious horses stampeding
· No prior warning of the pitchfork danger
The world was not created to support the plot point. The author just needed this accident to happen so the daughter’s powers could be revealed. The author showed her underpants. She didn’t cover herself. Literally. That’s just not cool. And it does not create heart-pumping tension and suspense.
In fiction, accidents and coincidence don’t help a plot unless they are carefully contrived and built up. As readers we don’t want to read about a world in where stuff happens just like in real life. We want an ordered world where even if the character didn’t see it coming–we did.
Can outlandish plot points be bought by the reader? Yes, but to accept big jumps in plausibility the reader must believe it was the only one possible way it could go down–and the way the author chose it to.
Authors need to use all the goodies in their writer’s toolbox to create believable scenes that keep the reader invested in the story and the characters’ dilemmas, no matter how outlandish. It’s all about keeping the fiction dream alive.
I want the fiction dream. To read it and write it. I don’t want to see plain old underpants. And as an author, I will keep my own undies tucked away from now on. Thank you very much.
Donna Galanti is the author of the paranormal suspense novel,
A Human Element
, called “a riveting debut that had me reading till the wee hours of the night” by international bestselling author M.J. Rose. She’s lived from England as a child, to Hawaii as a U.S. Navy photographer. Donna lives with her family in an old farmhouse in PA with lots of nooks, fireplaces, and stinkbugs but sadly no ghosts. Visit her at
www.donnagalanti.com
Connect with Donna here:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/#!/DonnaGalanti
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/DonnaGalantiAuthor
Blog: http://blog.donnagalanti.com/wp/
Purchase A HUMAN ELEMENT here:
Ebook/Paperback:
Amazon: http://tinyurl.com/dg-the-Kindle
Barnes & Noble: http://tinyurl.com/dg-he-Nook
September 11, 2012
The Surprises that Pull Our Story Together—Guest Post by Man Martin
by Man Martin, @ManMartin1
Farrish Carter, an old college friend – and by old, I mean old; we hadn’t seen each other in thirty years – stayed at our house for a couple of nights. The first night he was here, we sat in the living room talking and drinking red wine, and he showed us shots from his current series of photographs.
For these shots he’s abandoned his fancy-shmancy Nikon with its detachable lens that looks like a cannon’s mouth. Instead, he works with his cell phone, snagging candid pictures from the passing scene. Although perfectly within his rights to do so – anything that occurs in public is, after all, public – he admits to slight trepidation about taking pictures of complete strangers without permission, often as he pretends to be making a call on his cell phone. I think if the subjects saw the pictures, however, they would not be affronted. Farrish never mocks people; he doesn’t take the sort of pictures you might have seen on the web featuring, say, a morbidly obese woman at the WalMart wearing tiger-print hot pants. His shots are taken with respect, and even if the camera sees them as they do not see themselves, I don’t believe they would feel ashamed of their portrayal.
The way Farrish describes his process is that he’ll be walking down the street and see a likely-looking subject – at which point he’ll break into a trot, “framing it up” in his mind, getting into position. More often than not, his subject moves on before he gets his picture. Out of hundreds of shots, only a few may be worth keeping. But the ones he keeps!
So what does this have to do with writing? My favorite shots here are the young soldier with the doll-like complexion and the little girl waving what appears to be a magic wand or a sparkler (it’s a sunflower). The big concrete pylon in the soldier picture shouldn’t be there – it throws the composition slightly off balance; surely if Farrish had more time to “frame up his picture,” he would have eliminated it. And yet. For a reason I can’t explain, that pylon is essential to the picture. It guarantees its authenticity, perhaps; it makes the scene look more raw and unplanned. Ditto for the little girl with the sunflower. The texture of the stone steps, her expression, her pink flip-flops: all of this, Farrish had seen and rushed down the street to capture. The part he could not have anticipated was the waving sunflower. Oh, he saw the sunflower, too, but there’s no way to know it would be waving, or waving exactly that way, or how the cell phone’s lens would interpret that smear of green and yellow light.
The weakest of the shots – and weak is a relative term, because each of these is a marvel – is the young man standing behind his motorcycle. Farrish told me that when he shared these, a fellow photographer said, “Was this a studio shot?” And it really is a beautiful shot; it’s perfectly balanced with beige buildings lit by amber lights rising in the center and on either side, and a sky that looks like a back-lit blue canvas. The handsome man standing like a model, one hand on his helmet. It’s perfect, actually. And that’s its flaw. It lacks the element of surprise for both the artist and the viewer – the concrete pylon that’s out of place but inexplicably apt, the waving yellow sunflower that turns into a firework.
That’s what Farrish Carter taught me about writing; you bring every ounce of skill, raw talent, training, and craft to the table; you rush up to it, as you recognize a story line or character “framing up.” Most of your draft goes in the little trashcan on your computer desktop, as you whittle down pages and pages to the essential words. But in the final analysis, it’s that little glimmer of accident, the thing you couldn’t plan for, that moment of unexpected grace – a lopsided concrete pylon or a waving sunflower – that brings the whole thing together.
Man Martin is two-time winner of Georgia Author of the Year. His novels are Paradise Dogs and Days of the Endless Corvette. He blogs at http://manmartin.blogspot.com
September 10, 2012
Traditionally Published Titles and Rights
by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig
I wanted to touch on a topic today that not everyone is going to relate to, but one which I think is important—self publishing backlists or restarting discontinued series.
I have one traditionally-published book that was contracted before I got an agent. I negotiated that contract myself. And negotiated it poorly, no doubt, because I ended up with a one book deal….as opposed to my two series with Penguin, where I had three book deals at the get-go.
At any rate, that was Pretty is as Pretty Dies. When the publisher decided not to sign me for more books (early 2010), we parted on good terms. I still had readers for the series, who were emailing me quite a bit to ask about the next book. I wasn't sure what to do.
My agent for my other series suggested that I shop the series out with either Penguin, who’d previously been interested in it, or St. Martin’s…meaning, of course, that she’d represent me and get a cut if we went in that direction. But to me, I was already working on other series and didn’t want the hassle of shopping it out and the delay of another contract and the back-and-forth, drawn-out nature of negotiations. On top of that, there would also be production time—it would just take forever.
So I did nothing. :)
Toward the end of 2010, the self-pub buzz was really growing and I started considering taking the series directly to e-reader. It took a while for me to make that decision….probably six months.
One of the reasons I was nervous about it was that I wasn’t sure how to get my rights to the characters back. Or when those rights reverted to me. My agent hadn’t worked with me on that book, so I couldn't consult with her, and I’m not great with legalities or contracts. I read my contract a few times and made some sense out of it….but not a whole lot.
So I finally, in March 2011, wrote a very simple email to Midnight Ink….along these lines:
I'm writing to confirm that my rights to the character of Myrtle Clover have reverted back to me, as the author. Midnight Ink published Pretty is as Pretty Dies, a Myrtle Clover novel, in 2009. A sequel was offered to the editorial staff in early 2010 and was rejected, about a year ago. I'm now interested in taking the previously unpublished sequel directly to Kindle instead of shopping it to another publisher, and wanted to confirm that's not a problem for Midnight Ink.
Actually, that’s the exact email I sent to them. This is what I heard back:
Your question regarding the follow-up to PRETTY IS AS PRETTY DIES and the status of rights was forwarded to me.
You are correct regarding your right to take the sequel title directly to Kindle yourself. You have that right based on our decision not to publish it under the Midnight Ink imprint.
We wish you good success with the book on Kindle or even with another publisher.
Please let me know if you have any questions.
That was directly from the publisher, Mr. Krause, himself (one nice thing about working with a mid-sized publisher.) :)
This process was resolved in the same day. There was no need for me to have put it off the way I did.
Then it was just a matter of hiring an editor, finding a cover designer, and getting someone to format the book for the different ereaders. I also bought ISBNs from Bowker, simply because I’m old-fashioned. Who knows if that will end up being the right thing to have done?
The two books that I’ve put up on Kindle have sold well for me and resulted in thousands of dollars of income that I wouldn’t have otherwise had. Yes, y’all, it’s worth the trouble and handwringing and inconvenience to get a backlist up there or to get an unpublished title from a suddenly-canceled series up there.
Last week I got another email from Midnight Ink that the print rights for Pretty are reverting back to me, since the book will go out of print. They made sure to let me know they’re holding onto the ebook rights for that title, though. So make sure you know what you’re receiving when you get a letter or email from your publisher.
This is the notification I got on that reversion (and the exclusions for the rights reversion are pretty clear):
Midnight Ink hereby returns all international and domestic rights to you to the above named title with the following exceptions:
Ebook
English large print rights (domestic and international)
Note that this rights return does NOT include rights to the covers, interior or exterior artwork. Nor does it include typography or electronic files.
When I procrastinate, as I’ve mentioned before on the blog, it’s usually a clear sign that I’m not sure how to proceed.
But that’s okay. If we think through the steps we need to take, making progress a little at a time, then we just check off the items on our list as we work through them.
The main point of this post is….if you aren’t sure about your rights, just ask. Don’t let this hold you back from taking the next step of self-publishing. Either contact the publisher directly, as I did, or an intellectual property lawyer. It’s not that much trouble and you can continue your series, self-publish your backlist, and increase your income.
And make your readers happy. I’ve heard from quite a few that have been delighted that the series is continuing.
Have you considered self-publishing old titles? Or self-publishing in general? Is there a pattern to your procrastinating? How do you work through handling a big project (like self-publishing a backlist or continuing a discontinued series)?
September 9, 2012
Need Inspiration? Go Out to Find It. Guest Post by Marsali Taylor
The editing's finished, the cover looks amazing, and the launch is days away. Now it's time to start work again ...
Death on a Longship, and its sequel, The Trowie Mound Murders, are both set in Brae, Shetland. Now, for the third of the series, my feisty sailing heroine Cass is going back to school: the North Atlantic Fisheries College in Scalloway, to get the formal qualifications needed for a paid post on board a tall ship. I already know she's not going to like it. She's a loner, used to people who come aboard for a fortnight. In a classroom situation, Jimmy's irritating laugh or Peter's sexism are going to drive her to think of homicide ... except that, as my main character, she's not allowed to carry it out.
When I'm stuck for inspiration, I try an interesting place. So, here I am, in the beautiful new Scalloway Museum, contemplating murder.
It's an amazing place, taking you right through the history of Shetland's ancient capital: Iron age ploughshares, a stunning Viking bracelet, the building and decay of Black Earl Patrick's Renaissance castle, the herring boom. From World War II there are mementos of Scalloway's proudest moment, as the headquarters of the 'Shetland Bus', when a handful of young Norwegian men risked their lives running arms to the Resistance in German-occupied Norway.
That would be a wonderful back-story for a mystery. I eye up the replica sub-machine gun hidden in a fish barrel. Now, suppose some nefarious person were to substitute that for a real one? How could he or she manoeuvre the victim to be shot by it? A family party, perhaps, with the kindly uncle making jokes until the blackmailing nephew stood in position, and some other family member, in all innocence, pulled the trigger. Possible ... but for a family party it would need to be daytime, like this, with children chattering around the model Shetland pony, and trying out the replica wheelhouse. Regretfully, I abandon the murderous uncle. It would be much better if I could get Cass here on her own, at night, and then she could find the body ...
And so, on it goes. So much plotting is practical. What would give you a tense, creepy start? How can you make the reader jump as much as your character does when the body is revealed? Creating characters, you're asking why, why, why. Creating plot, I find, you're asking how, how, how. How could I get Cass alone in the museum after dark? She climbs like a cat, so if there's a window that could be left open - I cast a quick glance around. Yes, that one up there. I'll need to go and look outside to see how she'd get up the wall, but it's a possible. Toilets usually have potential too. I go to investigate, and my eye is caught by a black iron cauldron filled with fine reddish ash: peat ash from the summit of the hill where they burned witches.
Suddenly ideas are thronging thick and fast: a girl face-down in that cauldron, smothered to death. Cass, outside, could hear a scream that ends in an awful choking gurgle, look around for access - the door, naturally, being locked - climb in through the window, find the dead girl and nobody else in the place ... Yes, nice.
Then there's the witches connection. I could work up a beautifully eerie atmosphere with that. I've a vague feeling there are witches in modern-day Shetland, Wiccans I think it's called now, who promote a positive closeness to the forces of the earth and nature. Memo to self: research. Another memo: it could be sensitive territory, and as a Catholic, Cass would be wary of 'all that' - which would add tension.
What's Cass doing wandering about at dead of night anyway? Answer: asking herself if she can bear to keep on with her college course, or if she's going to give up her attempt at respectability, and return to being a wandering vagabond. In which case, the resolution of the case should also make her decide.
Why that cauldron? How about the girl who's dead having come here to steal some of that ash? It could be some sort of séance, to contact one of those long-dead women. Is she serious, or just having a laugh? And her shadowy companion?
Now the work begins. I have a whiteboard in my writing room, and I'll write these bones of a story on it, then spend a day just working on them. Why must the girl be killed? I need an idea that'll be startlingly different from the witchcraft red herring, yet satisfyingly strong - if I've beguiled my readers with long dead witches, they're not going to be satisfied if she's been killed just because she's pregnant and the boy doesn't want to marry her. At the end of a good day, I'll have the skeleton of my plot. It'll change as I work on the individual characters, but now I know the questions to ask, my subconscious will have fun coming up with the answers.
At last, I have the inspiration I needed - all because I went out to look for it.
Death on a Longship:
When she talks her way into a job skippering a Viking longship for a Hollywood film, Cass Lynch thinks her big break has finally arrived - even though it means returning home to the Shetland Islands, a place she hasn't set foot on since she ran away as a teenager to pursue her dreams of sailing. When a dead woman turns up on the boat’s deck, Cass, her past and her family come under suspicion from the disturbingly shrewd Detective Inspector Macrae.
Cass must call on all her local knowledge of Shetland, the wisdom gained from years of sailing, and her glamorous, French opera singer mother to clear herself and her family of suspicion - and to catch the killer before Cass becomes the next victim.
Giveaway Info
Marsali is giving away THREE prizes; a copy of Death on a Longship at each blog stop on her tour, a 1st place grand prize giveaway at the end of the tour of some silver Viking-inspired jewelry from the Shetland Islands, and a 2nd place $15 Amazon gift card.
1) To win a book: leave a comment on this blog post to be entered to win a book (open internationally for ebook or the US, UK, and Canada for a print book). Be sure your profile links to an email so we can contact you if you’re the lucky winner. This giveaway ends five days after the post goes live.
2) To win Viking-inspired Jewelry OR a $15 Amazon gift card: Click the link to go to the contest’s website and enter the Rafflecopter at the bottom of the post. A first and second place lucky winner will be selected on October 1st. First place person gets to choose which grand prize he/she wants. The second place person gets the remaining grand prize. Open to every country.
Here’s the contest’s website >
Marsali Taylor grew up near Edinburgh, and came to Shetland as a newly-qualified teacher. She is currently a part-time teacher on Shetland’s scenic west side, living with her husband and two Shetland ponies. Marsali is a qualified STGA tourist-guide who is fascinated by history, and has published plays in Shetland’s distinctive dialect, as well as a history of women's suffrage in Shetland. She's also a keen sailor who enjoys exploring in her own 8m yacht, and an active member of her local drama group.
