Beth Greenslade's Blog, page 104

What Do Editors Hate?

A piece of advice every writer should follow is to hire a professional editor to go through their work, once they have completed their book.

However, to actually prepare your manuscript for that stage, it’s a good idea to be aware of the common pitfalls that writer’s fall into. If you know what editors hate, you can make their lives easier and save you time and money too.

Not only is it good to look out for and fix the mistakes that editors hate before you send your book to them, but also for when you send your book to publishers and agents. If you want them to seriously consider your work, checking you have already eliminated any of these editors bugbears from your book before you send it off will give you a much better chance of success.

So what is it that editors hate? Let’s take a look.

No basic grasp of grammar or spelling

If every second word is a spelling mistake and every sentence is punctuated incorrectly, it’s going to take a huge effort and many hours to get through your book. This will mean editors have less time to concentrate on structure, character development and plot - elements which are important to receive feedback on. Do yourself a favour and run your manuscript through a spelling and grammar checker before you pass it to an editor.

Huge passages focusing on backstory

Having backstory is useful and a device to establish your characters and allow the readers insight into their past lives. However, if you focus too much on backstory both the editor and reader will get bored. Include details that are relevant and necessary - cut the rest out.

An entire chapter where the character is walking somewhere, driving somewhere or sitting in bed reminiscing

An excellent book will be fast paced and full of action - if a character spends too much time getting somewhere or reminiscing about something, this slows down the pace of your book - a pet peeve of editors.

Melodrama

Making your story overly dramatic will make it seem farcical and unbelievable. Readers need to buy into your story, to believe it - editors know that and so should you.

Making the same point over and over again

If you draw out a point laboriously or repeat it in different ways over and over again, it simply looks like you are trying to hit a word count rather than write a story that appeals to your readers. If you say something well, you only need to say it once.

Going into too much detail

Creativity is all about having poetic licence, and beautiful descriptions can be really affecting in a book and enhance your story significantly. However, when you spend an entire paragraph describing a vase in your characters living room, it better be seriously significant, otherwise you need to cut it down. Overwriting is a big no no for editors.

Silly inconsistencies

When you are editing and redrafting your novel, look out for inconsistencies. These can be anything from where a character is standing to the time of year. Inconsistencies are easy to make but will frustrate your editor as these should be picked up by you.

Repetitive vocabulary

If you continuously use the same descriptive word this will quickly get tiresome for your readers. Try to be unique and exciting with all your descriptions. If you know you overuse a word, try doing a ‘find and replace’ search of your manuscript so you can easily pick these up and change them.

Long passages of dialogue

Dialogue creates immediacy, can drive the action forward and reveals more about your characters. However, don’t turn every piece of dialogue into a massive speech or monologue. Use it as a device to break up the narrative instead.

Telling rather than showing

Editors hate it when you tell the reader something rather than showing them. Comb through your novel and pick up instances of when you are doing this - this will save your editor having to point them all out for you!

If you can go through your manuscript before you send it to an editor, agent or publisher and look out for these ten things, you’ll make their and your lives so much easier. So make sure you take the time to edit your book first thoroughly, and you’ll find you get so much more out of your editor and are more likely to have a positive response from a publisher too!

Bethany Cadman -author of 'Doctor Vanilla's Sunflowers'

The post What Do Editors Hate? appeared first on Writer's Life.org.

Why Writing A Book Makes You Seriously Cool

You are seriously awesome did you know that? Just stop for a minute and think about that, about how awesome you are? It’s a good feeling, right? Hold onto it, because you deserve to feel that way.

Why? Because writers are seriously cool.

We spend so much time doubting ourselves, having to deal with rejection, worrying that we’ll never make it, and wondering what we are doing with our lives that perhaps it’s time to give ourselves a break. If you are doing it, if you are out there writing your book you should be celebrating. Because you are doing something so many people dream of, yet so few people actually manage to do.

Writers are amazing because they are:

Not afraid to be vulnerable

Writers are doing something scary, something personal and something with no guarantees. They are OK with being vulnerable (or at least they pretend to be!) because they know that it’s worth the risk.

Breathtakingly imaginative

Coming up with the plot, the characters, the world, and the dialogue for a whole novel is no mean feat - it’s actually pretty amazing that anyone can do it. Yet you are. You’ve thought of an entire story, you’ve created these amazing imaginary people and brought them to life - how cool is that?

Fearlessly brave

Being a writer requires you to be so brave. You know the odds, you know the risks, and yet you are willing to take the plunge, to put yourself out there and to take a chance.

Steely determined

All writers suffer setbacks. Most of them suffer setbacks over and over again. They keep going in spite of this. They know they have to pick themselves up after a rejection and they just keep trying. They never give up.

Willing to make sacrifices

All writers have to make sacrifices; it’s pretty impossible to write a book without doing so. Writers prove that hard work is necessary but oh so worth it in order to get what you want.

In touch with their emotions

Writers use their everyday experiences and the way they think and feel to perfectly capture emotions in their book. They aren’t afraid to explore their emotions and to truly express how they are feeling - more people could do with being this way.

Dream chasers

Writers chase their dreams, no matter how distant or impossible they seem. Never giving up on your dreams is amazing, especially in a world where so many people settle for less.

Inspiring role models

All of the above makes writers seriously inspiring role models. Not just the ones who find massive success, fame and fortune. But each and every one of us - and that is surely something to be proud of!

Bethany Cadman -author of 'Doctor Vanilla's Sunflowers'

The post Why Writing A Book Makes You Seriously Cool appeared first on Writer's Life.org.

Learning From Rejection

Here are just some of the rejections that famous writers received before they made it big:

F Scott Fitzgerald was told his novel would be good if he got rid of “that Gatsby character”. Dr Seuss was told that his writing didn’t have appeal because it was “too silly”. William Golding’s Lord of the Flies was described as “dull” by one publisher, who no doubt later spent many years kicking himself in the shins.

The one thing that all these writers have in common and the reason we delight in the irony of these stories is that instead of listening to those that criticised them and giving up, they refused to believe it, kept trying and eventually found publishers who could see their genius and take them seriously.

However, we must face facts. The majority of people who attempt to get their books published, by a traditional publisher, will be unsuccessful. It’s a fact that we cannot ignore. What is important to remember, before we get too downhearted, however, is that the ones who do find success don’t just do it on luck alone.

What every writer needs to remember when they receive a rejection letter is; either the work simply is not good enough, or the publisher isn’t the right publisher for it. Now while these may seem like two very different outcomes, in fact, they are not. Because if you want to be a successful writer the solution is the same - you must keep trying.

Agents and publishers aren’t going to like every good book that lands on their desks, and it's important here to stress the word good. Your book might be extremely well written and have a tight, faced-paced plot and engaging characters, but if that agent or publisher simply doesn’t ‘like it’ there is nothing more you can do. You must have picked up a best seller at some point in your life and thought ‘My God this is boring!’ Well so do agents and publishers - they are trained to recognise the traits that will sell a book, but sometimes, due to personal tastes, they simply won’t be able to see them. If that’s the case, there is nothing else you could have done.

Because of this, you’ll waste far less of your time if you research the agents and publishers you send your book to. Make sure that their tastes are the same, that they have published books similar to yours in the past. Most agents and publishers make this particularly easy for you, and state on their websites what they are looking for. If they don’t work in your genre or have never published a book remotely similar to yours, do everyone a favour and don’t bother sending your manuscript in on the ‘off-chance’ they might suddenly do a 180 and decide to go for it.

We can all accept that not everyone will like our work. Admitting to ourselves that perhaps our work is not yet good enough for publication is far more challenging. However, learning to recognise when your book needs more work is crucial to your success. It might be that you need to make a few adjustments, or it might be that you need to start over, but if your book has been rejected time and time again, you have to decide whether you are willing to continue to work on it, or simply to move on to your next project. Either is fine, as long as you are always moving forwards.

Being rejected is tough, but it really can be a good way to learn and improve. Try to put yourself in the publisher's shoes, ask yourself, why this person might have rejected your book and whether, therefore, you could have done anything about it. If you are lucky enough to get anything other than a textbook response, or worse, no response at all, then really take on board the feedback you have been given. If an agent or editor has taken the time to write to you personally, this is hopeful, and it is well worth considering their feedback and advice.

Remember, it only takes one person who has the power to publish your book to say yes to you to change your life. When you get that yes it won’t matter a jot whether your book has been rejected by one hundred others. So take every rejection in your stride, learn as much as you can, and always, always keep trying.

Bethany Cadman -author of 'Doctor Vanilla's Sunflowers'

The post Learning From Rejection appeared first on Writer's Life.org.

How To Identify Your Reader

One of the most important yet challenging parts of writing a book is identifying who you are writing it for. Ideally, writers should consider this well before they begin their novel so that as they write, they always have their reader in mind.

Writing for a particular audience doesn’t mean you have to shape your entire story around what you think they might like. Rather, it is about having a clear, firm idea of who would buy your book and why it would appeal to them. Doing so not only makes crafting your story easier, but also helps you no end when pitching your book and trying to market it.

But just how do we identify this target audience, how can we conjure a picture of our ideal reader, and ensure that our book will appeal to them?

Here are some helpful tips to get you started.

Start by identifying and separating the types of people your book would be of interest to, and those that it wouldn’t.

Whatever your book is about, it isn’t going to appeal to some readers, and yet will massively to others. Try to isolate these groups, so you know who you are dealing with early on. There can be several different groups that you might think your book would appeal to, and that’s OK - just make sure you can identify them and justify your reasons for doing so.

Use other books to guide you

Find other books that are in the same genre or have a similar storyline or themes and examine who they are pitched to and how they are marketed. If you can gain insight into the profiles of the people who would buy books like this you are well on your way to understanding more about who would buy yours.

Pick out the unique features of your book

Every story is different, and it’s important to identify what makes yours so. What are your books strongest features? What makes it interesting? What’s it’s hook? Try to describe it using only five words or a couple of sentences. This will help you hone in on what’s important when it comes to trying to market your book to your readers.

Think on a wider scale

If you are writing a kids book your target audience is, of course, the kids, but also the parents of those kids - the ones who you need to convince to part with their hard earned cash to buy a copy of your book. Similarly, you might write a romance that you think will appeal to 40 something women - but what about the husbands/ partners and friends that might buy that book for them as a gift?

Do your research

Spend some time getting to know your audience. Make a list of questions you’d like to ask them, find out where they hang out, what they like to do in their spare time, where they shop, what time of day they shop, where they like to read, what they want to gain from a book. Learning as much as you can about your reader will not only influence your story but will help you set up successful marketing strategies when it comes to getting your book sales going.

Pay particular attention to your cover design

The cover of a book should never be underestimated. Make sure yours appeals to the right people. Your book cover needs to be professional, and excellent quality but also capture the very essence of your book - if you know your reader you’ll know what would make them look at a book cover and want to find out more.

Identifying your target reader can be tough. However, if you do put the time and effort into actually getting to know your reader, it can make a huge difference when it comes to the success of your book.

Bethany Cadman -author of 'Doctor Vanilla's Sunflowers'

The post How To Identify Your Reader appeared first on Writer's Life.org.

The Benefits Of Writing A Book Series

For many new authors, when you first decide to sit down and write your book, the idea of finishing just one can seem daunting, let alone an entire series! However, writing a book series has many advantages, and so it is worth examining your idea before you start and considering whether you could create more than one book from it.

Many stories lend themselves well to becoming a series. Detective fiction, for example, is a genre where many authors choose to write a series of books with their main character, the detective solving different murders, crimes and mysteries in each. Fantasy, sci-fi and epic adventure novels naturally also work well. But there is no reason why any book couldn’t be turned into a series, and doing so can be a smart decision when it comes to marketing your work.

Let’s look at some of the benefits of writing a book series:

You've already got your idea

One of the most distinct advantages of writing a book series is that you already have your idea. If you can make two, three, or even four books out of your story idea rather than one then you have material to keep you going for years. It is a frightening thought for any writer that they might run out of steam, that they might not be able to think of another story to write - a book series helps a writer feel confident that they have enough material to produce several books and make a name for themselves as an author. It also means you are likely to write your books faster as well, as the characters and their world are already established.

More book sales

The more books you have, the more book sales you are likely to make. It’s also likely that if a reader likes your work, they are going to buy all of the books in your series. Therefore you make more money and your popularity as an author increases - it’s as simple as that.

The more books you have, the more established you are

The more books you write, the more authority you will have as an author. If readers can see you have written several books, they are going to see you as having more credibility, as being more established. Trust plays a significant factor in whether a reader will buy your book, and the more you have written, the more trustworthy you appear.

Publishers make more money

A book series is also a more attractive proposition to publishers and agents. So if you are trying to go down that route pitching your book as a series can help. If they like what they read and know there is the promise of more books in a similar vein coming their way, they may be more willing to take a risk on your book, as if it does well the other books in the series should do well too.

Loyal fans

Many readers search for their favourite authors rather than simply browsing for new books to read. If the first book in your series does well, readers will keep coming back for more. It is far easier to market your new book to existing fans of your work than trying to get new readers interested in your work, so the more successful your series, the easier it will be to market and achieve high sales when you release the next book in it.

Of course, writing a book series takes careful planning and considerable effort. However, if you think your book idea could be turned into a great series, this is something worth considering, before you start writing your first novel.

Bethany Cadman -author of 'Doctor Vanilla's Sunflowers'

The post The Benefits Of Writing A Book Series appeared first on Writer's Life.org.

Unusual Writing Tips

There are thousands of pieces of writing advice out there, some useful,  some just don’t apply. Some are obvious, some too obscure. Some you agree with, some you don’t.

Every writer who likes to learn and grow will search for writing tips and advice. However, if this is something you regularly do, you may find you come across a lot of the same tips and ideas over and over again. Write every day; show don’t tell, always use a professional editor and so on. These pieces of writing advice are great, and useful for the vast majority of writers. However, you may well have taken these on board already.

Developing as a writer is all about trying new things, so if you are looking for some unique and unusual writing tips to use to refresh and refocus your writing, why not give these a go?

Writing about your writing sessions

If you want to discover how you work best as a writer than keeping a writing journal or log book about your writing sessions can reveal a lot. Observe details such as the time and date you wrote, where the writing took place, how much you write in what space of time, how you felt when you write, how long it has been since your last session and anything else you think might be useful. While this might eat into your valuable writing time, it could prove to be extremely helpful if patterns start to emerge and give you interesting insights into how, where and when you perform at your best.

Don’t think, just write

Don’t say another word. Don’t even breathe. Just start writing. Just do it. Right now. Get your computer, open that document and write, without thinking about anything else. There is loads of advice on how to start a writing session. Forget it all and just do it instead.

Gamify your writing

Set timers, write while you walk, act out your book - basically try anything that turns it into a game. If you can make your writing as fun and challenging as possible, this will motivate you to keep going. Keep challenging yourself or trying to beat your ‘score’ and suddenly you’ll want to keep writing all day long.

Create emotion playlists

Music can be powerful when it comes to enhancing or releasing emotions. Make amazing playlists that you would listen to when your angry, happy, sad, in love and so on - play them loudly and write down everything you are feeling - this can be a great way of perfectly capturing emotions and then using these in your stories.

Start at the end

Most writers write linearly, but why not try and change it up a little? Next time you come up with a story idea, challenge yourself to write the end first and work backwards - it could turn out to be an insightful and entertaining experience.

Don’t restrict yourself in any way

We all write with our guards up a little. Why not try writing without caring what anyone else thinks? Write the sexiest sex scene you can imagine, or the most violent brutal death, write about something that scares you, or your guilty pleasures or secrets, your weirdest, darkest thoughts. You could come up with something compelling and find this liberating too - you don’t have to show it to anyone or use it if you don’t want to!

Write outside

Sometimes the sun on your face or the wind whipping your hair around can be exhilarating and inspiring. We all have our sensible and comforting spots to write in. Mix it up a little. Write somewhere unusual and see if this gives you an extra boost.

Focus on the criticism

Instead of comforting yourself by reading the great reviews or remembering the words of encouragement you’ve been given, instead concentrate on the criticism -the worst thing anyone has ever said about your writing, or the people that don’t believe you can do it. Get angry, and use that anger to motivate you to prove them all wrong.

If you are looking to try something a little different with your writing, why not experiment with the above tips and see how they make you feel? If you have any unusual writing tips, share them with us here!

Bethany Cadman -author of 'Doctor Vanilla's Sunflowers'

The post Unusual Writing Tips appeared first on Writer's Life.org.

How To Use Other Writers As Inspiration For Your Book

Every good writer knows that reading is the key to writing a good book. Finding inspiration from other writers is natural and a fantastic part of the writing process. In fact, it’s what inspires many of us to try our hand at writing our own books in the first place.

From heart-wrenching romances to epic adventures, any book that you read is likely to have been inspired by another writer. That’s not to say that all stories are simply copies of others, but that even the greatest writers of our time will happily tell you that some of their ideas and inspiration came from reading other people’s work.

People have been telling stories since the dawn of time, so it’s no wonder that many contemporary books are derivatives of a story that came before them.

Of course, there is a line. And it’s essential that writers understand where that line is and make sure they don’t cross it. They say that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, but when it comes to ripping off ideas from another writer's work, you are more likely to find them disgruntled and possibly ready to take action against you if you are lazy about how you use other writer’s ideas.

So how do you use other writers as inspiration for your book without being criticised or creating the possibility of a lawsuit looming down your neck? No respected writer wants to be accused of simply stealing the ideas from another, so making sure that you get the balance right is important.

Here’s how you do it

Read widely

The more widely you read, the more likely you are to be inspired by a range of writers; therefore it will be less tempting and harder to ‘accidentally’ steal another writer's ideas or just copy their writing style.

Never copy word for word

Never lift someone else’s words and try to pass them off as your own. You will get caught, and your reputation as a writer will be destroyed too.

Think carefully about where your ideas came from

Sometimes we might think we’ve had an original idea, but when we examine where it came from, and we suddenly realise it’s because we read so-and-so. Always try to understand how and why you have thought of a particular story and make sure you aren’t just directly stealing it from someone else.

Always give your ideas a unique twist

As we’ve said before, it is OK to be inspired by other stories you’ve read, but don’t make yours exactly the same. Use bits of that story to inform your own, give yours a unique twist, and a different perspective to ensure it doesn’t feel to same-y to your readers.

Write in your own unique voice

Finding your writing voice is so important, and doing so will make your writing always feel authentically your own.

Be happy to credit other authors for inspiring you

If there is a reason why you want to lift ideas from another story, be sure not to try and deny all knowledge of doing so. Saying you were inspired by such and such a writer can make all the difference. If you are open and honest about it, people are far more likely to respect that.

Ask them if it’s OK

Of course, a more direct approach is to contact the author in question explain that you loved their work and tell them about your ideas - ask them if they are happy with your writing and see what they say.

Don’t ‘jump on the bandwagon.’

Sometimes there is a craze for new sorts of writing where one book will become a bestseller such as Harry Potter or 50 Shades of Grey, and suddenly hundreds of poor imitations spring up into existence. Don’t write a story just for the sake of it. Write it because it’s the story you’ve always been dying to share with the world.

Stay true to yourself and the story you are trying to tell

If you have a story that is burning inside you, it’s your story to tell - try always to stay true to that - you’ll know if you’re not. Writing something that you know is unique yours is a wonderful feeling, and far superior to simply trying to imitate something someone else has written already.

We know that every story has been inspired in one way or another, by a story that has come before it - and that’s OK. By using the tips above you will be telling your story, in your way, and that’s what good, original writing is all about.

Bethany Cadman -author of 'Doctor Vanilla's Sunflowers'

The post How To Use Other Writers As Inspiration For Your Book appeared first on Writer's Life.org.

Avoid Writing Clichés

Including clichés in your writing is a common mistake, and one that at some point, us writers are probably all guilty of. Sometimes we write clichés without realising they are so, and it becomes easy to lose these in your writing and much harder to weed them out!

So how do you ensure that you steer clear of the cliché? Here are some helpful tips:

Avoid plagiarism

OK so we all know it’s not cool to steal text from other writers, but it’s also not cool to steal their ideas. Some stories have been done to death, and unless you can throw a unique twist or give a refreshing take or opposing point of view on them, it’s best to steer clear.

Be careful when choosing sensational subjects

Every good book should be full of drama, however, if you decide to write about a sensational subject for the sake of it, you may end up including lots of predictable clichés in your book. Think carefully about the characters you include in your novel and how to make sure you don’t turn them into stereotypes.

Take your time

When you first start writing a novel, the desire to get the story down and to excite and engage your readers at every twist and turn can lead to rushing through your story, which, in turn, can lead to lots of clichés littering the prose. By taking your time and carefully thinking about your story, as well as letting the action unfold naturally rather than rushing through it, you are far less likely to do this.

Turn the ordinary into something extraordinary

Your story doesn’t have to be about something mind-blowing or dramatic. It’s all about the way you tell it. By turning something ordinary into something out of the ordinary, you are less likely to fall into the trap of clichéd writing.

Pay attention to your descriptions

Writers can get lazy with the way they describe people, as well as the places and things characters see and do, or how they feel. Pay attention to every one of your descriptions and try to make them fresh, unique and arresting too.

Don’t be so melodramatic!

Unless you are writing a soap opera, cutting out unnecessary melodrama from your text is a good idea. You want your readers to believe in your story, to find truth in it. If it’s full of melodrama, of people storming out of rooms, punching each other in the face, smashing windows in anger etc. you could be distracting the reader and taking away from your story as a whole.

Avoiding clichéd writing is so important as it’s something both agents and publishers, as well as your readers, could pick up on. Follow the above tips to ensure that your writing is cliché free!

Bethany Cadman -author of 'Doctor Vanilla's Sunflowers'

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How To Make Sure Your Writing Isn’t Boring

Every writer's nightmare is receiving feedback on their writing saying that it’s boring.

The trouble is that writing a whole entire book can be difficult! When you are telling a story to someone face to face, you choose your words carefully; you use expressions and gestures to emphasise it, you pause for dramatic effect, you are animated and lively. You can see if your audience is losing interest and adjust accordingly.

With a book the challenge is far more tricky - you want to write a book a reader doesn’t want to put down, a fast-paced page turner that keeps them hooked and desperate for more. However, because writing a book takes time and considerable skill, it’s no wonder that many writers find some parts of their book are putting their readers to sleep.

So what can you do to make sure your story isn’t boring? Here are some helpful tips:

Plot and plan your novel carefully

Carefully research, outline and plan your novel before you begin. Having brief chapter outlines will help you to see your story as a whole, and understand what happens when. Breaking your book down in this way means you can examine each chapter and make sure it includes some action and drama, and that it advances the story in the right way.

Don’t make it overly complicated

If you try too hard to write a complicated story, you could easily bewilder and lose your readers interest. You don’t have to dumb it down, but a story where readers can't follow whose speaking or aren’t sure what is going on, will struggle to capture their attention for long.

Reveal more and more about the characters as the story goes on

Characters need to be unique and engaging from the outset, but they also need to develop over time. By the end of your story your readers should be invested in the characters, they need to care what happens to them - if they don’t your story is dead in the water.

Make sure there is conflict - conflict that escalates

Conflict is essential for every book. Your protagonist is on a journey and must face a series of obstacles, each one greater than the last before they reach the end. Continually raise the stakes to keep the tension and drama rising, and readers hooked on every word of your book.

Make sure it makes sense

Stories that don’t make sense are impossible to read. If there is no sequence to follow or the story jumps about too much or is too illogical, your readers won’t be able to keep up. Reading is supposed to be pleasurable after all!

Pay attention to dialogue

If you write dialogue exactly the way a person would speak in real life, it will bore the pants off your readers. Dialogue should be tight, fast paced and drive the action forwards. Dialogue should be authentic and true to the character so it helps to draw the reader in.

Cut out unnecessary details

It’s so easy to get carried away with details and descriptions. However, readers will soon tire of this. If you overwrite your book, you are taking away from the story. Overly flowery language is too much - and most readers will find this off-putting.

Show don’t tell

Ah, the old classic - show don’t tell. You may have heard it before, but it’s worth saying again. It’s so easy to fall into the trap of telling the reader the story rather than showing them what happened through your careful choice of words. Showing immerses the reader in the story, telling them isolates them from it.

If you can follow the tips above you should be well on your way to writing a story that’s interesting, engaging and keeps your readers hooked until the very last page!

Bethany Cadman -author of 'Doctor Vanilla's Sunflowers'

The post How To Make Sure Your Writing Isn’t Boring appeared first on Writer's Life.org.

Get Organized. Be Productive.

When it comes to being a good writer, you not only need to have talent, imagination and creativity, you also need to be disciplined, organized and seriously productive.

So many people claim to want to write a book, and yet very few manage to achieve this. Why? Because people simply don’t have the ‘time.’ Sure we all lead busy lives, but what sets writers who realise their goals and make a success of themselves from the rest is their drive and determination to find that time no matter what, to make sacrifices when they need to, and let nothing stand in their way.

The key to getting to the end of your book is being organized. If you can organise yourself properly, you’ll find that you can make time for your book each and every day. But how do you do this?

Learn when you write productively

Everyone has different times when they best write. Know when you are likely to be at your most creative and focused (this may take some trial and error) and move other commitments around so you can use that time for your writing.

Have a dedicated writing space

A dedicated writing space will help you to feel productive as soon as you sit down. It separates your writing from your other tasks and daily life, and you know as soon as you settle down in your writing space you’ve got to be productive.

Identify gaps in your schedule

If you are struggling to find time to write sit down and look at all the things you try to achieve in your day - could you delay other tasks? Find some extra time - even if it’s only for 10 minutes, it all adds up.

Get up earlier

Getting up half an hour earlier can make all the difference, and once you are into a routine of doing so, you’ll hardly notice and feel so proud of yourself for getting your writing done.

Go to bed later

If you are more of a night owl than an early bird, try going to bed a bit later instead. It's al about finding what works best for you, and the progress you make with your writing will keep you motivated.

Be efficient in your other tasks

Figure out where you could cut corners with other commitments you have. How about doing an online shop instead of going to the supermarket? Could you ask your partner or kids to cook dinner one night a week? Perhaps you could hire a cleaner once a week to alleviate having to do it yourself and free up some time for your writing?

Prioritise

Learning how to prioritise effectively will help you when it comes to writing more productively. Prioritising not only your daily tasks so you can have more writing time, but also prioritising your writing tasks will ensure you are at your most productive at all times.

Recognise procrastination

We all procrastinate from time to time, learn when you are doing this, consider why and try to focus and get back to your writing work instead.

Make people aware of what you are doing and how important it is to you

The more people that know what you are trying to achieve the better - especially close family and friends who will not only help and support you but know not to distract you when you are trying to finish your book!

Have a timetable

Create a realistic but challenging writing timetable and make sure you stick to it too.

Never leave it too long between writing sessions

Don’t leave it too long between writing sessions otherwise; it will be harder to get back into the swing of things. Writing regularly, daily if you can, will keep you progressing with your writing and it will be much easier to pick up where you left off each time.

Set yourself deadlines

Deadlines will help keep you focused and give you something to work towards - make your deadlines realistic and break tasks down into smaller goals so you can have deadlines for each - make sure you congratulate and reward yourself when you achieve each one, this will keep you motivated to continue.

By doing the above, you will run your writing sessions and your daily life like a well-oiled machine, make the most of your writing time, and get that book finished before you know it!

How do you stay organized and productive when writing? Let us know here!

Bethany Cadman -author of 'Doctor Vanilla's Sunflowers'

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