Piper J. Drake's Blog, page 8
August 30, 2015
Mobile Writing and Piper’s Travel Hijinx
As you might know from seeing my “Piper’s Travel Hijinx” on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, I am on the move rather often. Mobility is key to my productivity. Or more specifically, mobile writing. I’m always exploring technology solutions to allow me to write from anywhere, anytime. Recently, I’ve been pondering my choice in personal writing laptops. (I make it a practice not to write on my day job laptop. I keep the work for day job as separate as possible from writing.)
I’ve been an AlienWare user for a long time. I love the look and feel of these laptops. I used to play a lot of StarCraft II and World of Warcraft, so a gaming laptop made sense. I’ll also admit to recently giving Final Fantasy XIV Online a trial run. But writing takes priority over gaming in my time nowadays and the software I use for writing does not have the same heavy-duty system requirements that gaming does.
AlienWare laptops are heavy and bulky. They’ve gotten more streamlined over the last year or so, but there’s only so much streamlining to be done. Though the new M13 is interesting at 40% thinner than previous models, it’s still heavy on long walks through airports.
As an interim solution, I was using an iPad for a couple of years with a bluetooth keyboard. This was working but I truly missed being able to work in Scrivener. I struggled to do edits, almost always waiting until I could work on a laptop instead. Not a viable long-term solution.
And yet, a lot of writers love their Macs. Love them. I can’t count the number of times a MacBook Air has been recommended to me and Scrivener–my favorite writing software–was originally developed for the Mac OS.
I still love AlienWare and keep it at home for gaming. But now I have a Macbook Air specifically for mobile writing and my shoulders/back appreciate the consideration. Especially when I’m running through the airport terminal to catch a connecting flight. 
August 8, 2015
Picture Perfect: Author Pictures
I’m going to need to set up a fresh author media kit this year in prep for my upcoming book releases. This means new author pictures so my readers can recognize me when they come to conventions, book signings, and other events.
But we’re all a little nervous when we’re getting ready to put ourselves out there.
I’ve found that the best author pictures result from being prepared and feeling good about yourself during the shoot. Which means having confidence in your look: make up, hair, outfit.
I prefer to put more into my make up for a photography session than I do my everyday make up (often, I don’t wear any make up at all). Lighting can do funny things and wash out your face or pick up the shimmer/glitter in your make up and … O.O
So it’s a little extra coverage to hide hyper-pigmented spots and dark circles, then matte eye shadows and blush. I go a touch heavier on the eye liner or mascara too.
When it comes to hair, I tend to do my own but if you’re pressed for time or want that little bit of extra oomph to your look, try scheduling yourself for a blow out with a nice hair salon. This reduces the anxiety and nervousness of fighting with your own hair. Plus a salon will know how to combat the day’s local atmospheric challenges: humidity, wind, making your hair stay in the style you want. Another tip: don’t wash your hair the morning of your shoot or just before you style. Clean hair may seem to make sense the day of, but especially if you have silky fine hair, it won’t hold a curl or stay in a style as well as if you washed it the night before and gave it a few extra hours to lose the excess moisture from washing. Salons have healthy products to get your hair “dirty” and give it texture to set your hair in a style that will last the entire photoshoot.
For outfits, I choose simple clothing components. Solid colors, so the patterns don’t distract from my face. The goal is to have headshots so readers can recognize me, after all, as opposed to the shirt I’m wearing. As my photographer friend, JR Blackwell, advised – I choose a shirt I feel attractive wearing, one that makes me feel beautiful. Again, because if you feel good, feel confident, your pictures will turn out wonderfully.
However, I’m definitely not a beauty expert so I figured I’d link to a couple of the tutorials available out there with some of the things I do plus extra tips others might find useful too.
Here’s a tutorial by Michelle Phan with useful tips specifically for preparing for photos:
And when it comes to actual posing tips for the photo shoot, Michelle Phan had a good video for that too (note: Michelle is also an author! Make Up: Your Life Guide to Beauty, Style, and Success–Online and Off):
Hope this helps or at least gives some insight to the fun of photos. I’ll be sharing my new author media kit in the weeks to come!
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July 25, 2015
A Need for Writing Space
Last weekend I had the opportunity to explore a new friendship. It was delightful, fun, entertaining, and inspiring. It also got the gears turning in my head – pondering productivity.
What I also realized, as I chatted to a wonderful woman (who is also one of my long time favorite authors), was that I really need dedicated writing space. My productivity is much better if I can move from a sleepng area to a day job working area to a writerly working area. It helps me change mental gears and makes me more productive. Over the last five years or so, I haven’t had these spaces.
I’ve been saving money and living in a 2 bedroom apartment with my roomie. Now that boyfriend has moved in and begun to share my sleep/day job/writing space, we’ve hit maximum saturation of the living space. It’s crowded. And worse, no room for pets.
I find I need to kick both roomie and boyfriend out of the apartment (which isn’t fair or feasible, really) or I need to leave in order to get my writing done.
I need a writer’s space.
This past weekend and previous visits with more writerly friends gave me a lot of ideas. Patricia Briggs uses a trailer as her office (for the time being while her more permanent awesome office is under construction). Scott Sigler has an incredible studio space with designated areas for writing, podcasting, packing books for his fans, and even a sound booth for recording audio books. Tee Morris & Pip Ballantine have their new, actual, Shared Desk.
I’m making plans and hopefully by the beginning of next year, a few more variables will resolve. I’ll be able to pull the trigger on some lifestyle enhancements. Until then, I’ve got a deadline to hit and I’m working in the space I’ve got.
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July 3, 2015
Giveaway! Erin Condren Life Planner
I’ve got some challenging deadlines writing both the Safeguard series (mercenaries, explosive action, strong heroines) and the True Heroes series (hot military heroes, the women who love them, and the dogs that always have their backs). The time management involved can be intimidating.
So you might have seen me get excited about Erin Condren Life Planners somewhere around social media (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram) or heard me talk about them with Katee Robert and Robin Covington in my most recent #EMEPiper podcast episode. If not, shoo! Go check it out somewhere.
But come back!
Because I decided the Erin Condren Life Planner helped me organize my writerly life so much, I wanted to share the organization fun (really, it can be!). So to celebrate this Independence Day weekend (Happy 4th of July!) I’ve decided to give away an EC Rose Gold LIMITED EDITION 18-month life planner to one winner (open to Residents of the US only this time).
It’ll be enough to get you started in planner fun right away in July 2015 and take you right to the end of 2016.
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June 15, 2015
EMEPiper Ep 2: Day Planners and Time Management
And it’s here, the second episode of Every Minute, Everywhere: Time Management for Authors with Piper J. Drake.
Confession: I’d intended to get this episode up in February. I had a major contractual deadline loom. The deadline became my highest priority and everything else fell by the wayside. This podcast included. Because the reality is that everything about being a writer is turning in your manuscript (or subsequent edits) to get your book published on time.
There’s a time management reality for you. Tough decision have to be made and we can’t necessarily get All The Things completed in the time we have.
Without further ado, I’m excited to share with you an interview with authors Robin Covington and Katee Robert on time management and using day planners to get organized for 2015.
Highlights:
Introductions: Robin Covington & Katee Robert
How did we hear about EC Planners?
Sticker & washi tape love
Tracking word count
What one thing would you recommend to an author trying to organize themselves for the year?
Stickers and stress management
Adaptability, multi-purpose potential in these planners
(request to Erin Condren to develop an Author’s Planner line)
Plotting, brainstorming, character sheets in the planner
Marketing and promotion: managing those timelines with the planner
Finding time to write
Looking approachable is a double-edged sword
Writerly wisdom from Katee and Robin
Because this interview took so long to go up, I contacted Robin and Katee asking them for an update on how they’re doing with organization in 2015…
From Robin…
I love using my ECLP and I’ve been able to easily modify it to fit my needs. I use the coil clips to attach printouts of my book Pinterest boards and my plot outlines when I’m writing a book and I’ve found stickers on Etsy that allow me to change the “morning, day, night” headings to “book, family, to do”. The best part of the planner for me is the two page month spread that shows me at a glance what I need to know.
From Katee…
I’ve finally got my planning method pretty much refined, and now I’m geeking out by working on my handwriting so the whole thing is pretty. Using the planner to keep track of both promotion and writing/editing has made it significantly easier to manage my time overall, and my productivity has gone way up.
Shout-outs:
Robin Covington – robincovingtonromance.com
Katee Robert – www.kateerobert.com
Erin Condren Life Planners – www.erincondren.com
Cherry Adair’s Writer Bible – www.cherryadair.com/Writer_Bible.html
Jamie Raintree Writing Progress spreadsheet – jamieraintree.com/writing-progress-spreadsheet
Thanks to rj10328 for the sound byte “131659__bertrof__game-sound-intro-to-game_&_80921__justinbw__buttonchime02up_3.mp3″
Commentary from Matt “itsOrD” during the editing process:
“She’s a morning writer? She’s weird. Tell her she’s weird.”
May 20, 2015
Cover Reveal: Extreme Honor
Heroes and Heartbreakers is revealing my cover for the first True Heroes novel from Grand Central Publishing’s Forever Imprint!
Check it out…
May 8, 2015
Piper J. Drake at RT Dallas #RT15
RT Book Lover’s Convention is huge and one of the events I attend as both my alter-identities. It get’s pretty confusing sometimes, but I answer to both Piper and PJ and love to meet readers of any of my books, no matter what name they call me by. 
April 21, 2015
Cover Reveal: Hidden Impact
Heroes and Heartbreakers is revealing my cover for the first Safeguard novel from Carina Press!
Check it out…
Also, don’t miss the link to the interview with Carina Press Editorial Director, Angela James! 
March 30, 2015
Emerging from the Writer’s Cave
Whew! It’s been a while. I had some serious deadlines taking priority and unfortunately, other things got put on hold. But I’ve turned in my latest manuscript and plan to clear my head by working on the next #EMEPiper podcast and a few Piper Note videos.
Check in over the coming weeks too, because there’s a couple of fun things to share coming down the pipeline.
January 24, 2015
EMEPiper Ep 1: Introduction, SMART Goals, and Schedule
This is it! It’s my first episode of Every Minute, Everywhere. Time Management for Authors with Piper J. Drake.
Highlights:
Introduction – What (or who) am I?
Why am I podcasting?
The New Year and SMART Goals
…also scheduling
What’s in store for this podcast
This is just the beginning and my first foray into solo podcasting. I plan to improve as I go and I hope you’ll all enjoy #EMEPiper’s evolution.
