Beth Greenslade's Blog, page 49

What Writers Can Learn From Shakespeare

Every good writer knows that studying the greats can help us understand what is truly important about our craft. Shakespeare is one such writer - and everyone who is hoping to write a book should study him. His knowledge and understanding of the art are arguably the most famous and influential of his time and still hugely relevant today.

There are a massive number of important and valuable lessons that Shakespeare can teach us. Here are some of the most notable:

Study your craft

Historians believed that Shakespeare was an actor before becoming a writer, and therefore would have undoubtedly learned stagecraft and the art of playwriting as he did. Notable writers such as John Lyly, Thomas Kyd, and Christopher "Kit" Marlowe were all around at this time, and Shakespeare could well have learned some of his techniques from them. He knew how important it was to write about what you know and study what you want to write about. If you don't try to learn, if you don't know much about the genre you are writing in, it is going to be so challenging to write well - and Shakespeare was well aware of this fact. 

Understand your audience

Shakespeare would have had intimate knowledge of the kinds of people that make up his audience. Because of this, he made sure that his writing appealed to them all. From those who stood around the stage on the ground to the noblemen and women, he made sure that there were elements to his plays that engaged them, made them laugh, or cry and characters that they could identify with too. 

Fall in love with language

The more you know about language, how you can play with it, manipulate it, and shape it into beautiful, hilarious, metaphorical, arresting sentences, the better a writer you will be. Shakespeare knew that finding the most impactful turn of phrase could take time, but he bothered to wait until the right words came to him, and if they didn't - well, he'd invent them. Many words that we still use today can be attributed to Shakespeare, such as bandit, dauntless, and even elbow!

Make them laugh

Even Shakespeare's tragedies would have moments of lightheartedness and quick-witted prose. His comedies were often laugh-out-loud funny and full of larger than life characters that could be sarcastic, dumb, foolish, witty, and full of fun that would engage audiences and provide comic relief even in his darkest plays.

Don't be afraid to try new things

Shakespeare stood out in his day and still stands out today because he dared to be different. He didn't start his career by doing so - instead, following safely in the footsteps of celebrated writers such as Chaucer, Milton, and Spencer. However, as he gained confidence, he began to come into his own and did something truly unique. 

There is no denying that Shakespeare is a truly remarkable writer. By studying him, his writing, and the way he conducted himself as such, we writers can learn a lot. Next time you are stuck for inspiration and looking for something to study to motivate you - look to Shakespeare for inspiration!

Bethany Cadman - bethanycadman.co.uk

The post What Writers Can Learn From Shakespeare appeared first on Writer's Life.org.

How To Convince Your Reader To Take Action

When trying to create persuasive copy, you need to motivate your readers to take action. If they get to the end of your piece and do nothing, you haven’t achieved your goal. However, convincing your reader to act is easier said than done. Perhaps you want them to click on a link to your website, buy your product, sign up for a newsletter? Or maybe your aim is for them to share the article, or give you their contact information? Whatever it is, you need to be able to optimize your content for persuasiveness and, in doing so, maximize the possibility of your audience taking action.

Only publish content that’s of value

Your readers are much more likely to do what you ask of them if they feel as though they have gained something by reading your piece. If your article is well thought out, thoroughly researched content that’s relevant and valuable to your target audience, when you add your CTA at the end, you have an increased likelihood of getting those readers to act. It’s not just about capturing your reader's attention with a great headline. The actual content needs to give something back, is clear and logical, easy to understand, and helps your audience in some way.

Use careful structuring to keep readers reading

Many people who choose to read content published online do so when they only have a short window of time. That’s why it’s essential to structure your content so that they get the most important information first. It’s also a good idea to write for skimmers, which is break down your content into different sections with headlines so they can find the parts that most interest them. Keep sentences and paragraphs short and include lots of white space too. 

Convert through trust

You won’t get very far with your audience if you can’t convince them that what you are saying is true. It’s all well and good making big, bold, exciting claims, but if you can’t support them with facts, testimonials, or money-back guarantees, then your audience won’t trust that you can deliver on your claims. Similarly, if you are writing about something academic or political - you need to find evidence to support your argument if you want your readers to take you seriously. 

Use Metaphors, avoid jargon and cliches

Metaphors make your writing more exciting and also are a useful way of helping your readers understand and idea or concept that might otherwise leave them feeling confused. Metaphors help people relate, which can help them feel more engaged and willing to act on what you have to say. Cliches and jargon are massive no-nos. Jargon isolates, frustrates, and irritates readers, and cliches are cringe-worthy, so make sure you avoid using them in your text. 

Be honest and open and address your readers with respect

The more transparent you are, the better. Readers don’t like feeling misled or duped, and your integrity plays a massive part in getting readers to trust you and follow what you want them to do. Treating your readers with respect is massively essential. While you should be clear, use simple language and short sentences, it’s also important not to dumb things down to the point where the reader feels patronized. 

By following the above, you can help gently and respectfully persuade your reader to take action, and your content will be all the more successful because of it. 

Bethany Cadman - bethanycadman.co.uk

Bethany Cadman

www.bethanycadmancreates.co.uk

The post How To Convince Your Reader To Take Action appeared first on Writer's Life.org.

Sent Your Book To Publishers? Things To Do While You Wait

Sending your book off to publishers is an exciting time, and getting everything prepared - your manuscript finalized, your pitch perfected, and your query letter spot on, takes a mammoth effort.

However, once you have finally sent your book off to publishers, there can often be rather a long wait time until you hear back from them. In fact, most publishers and agents ask you to wait around six months before you’ll either get a response or if you haven’t heard from them within that time, it means they aren’t interested in pursuing your manuscript further.

Six months is a long time to be waiting around for your fate to be decided. While it can be helpful to take a little break and refresh and recover from the intensity of writing a novel and preparing it for submission, it’s not a good idea to rest on your laurels for too long. 

There are lots of things that writers can be getting on with, in the meantime, and doing so will not only keep them busy but also progressing and moving forward with their writing career too.

So what should writers be doing while they wait for publishers to respond?

Research and prepare new submissions

It’s not considered best practice to send your manuscript to every publisher and agent under the sun all at once. So it would be best if you did this in waves. While you are waiting for replies from the first batch, start researching and preparing your submissions for the next lot, so if you don’t get a positive response, you are ready to try again, even if you are feeling a little disheartened.

Prepare to fail

Unfortunately, only a fraction of writers who submit their manuscripts receives an acceptance from an agent or publisher. Because of this, the best things writers can do for themselves is prepare for the fact that no publisher might decide to pick up your book. If you not only approach rejection with the right attitude but also have a backup plan in place, this can help ensure you don’t give up on your writing altogether. There are many alternative options to the traditional publishing route, and exploring and pulling together a robust action plan for what you will do if your book is not published traditionally will keep driving you forward.

Learn about marketing

Now is also a great time to understand how to market your book. Whether you are traditionally or self-published, having a firm grasp on all the ways you can promote your novel and the different avenues to explore will help you hugely in the long run. Understanding how to utilize social media, creating lists of venues you could do book reading and signings at, creating PR pieces, contacting bloggers for reviews are all good ideas. There are so many options that could help ensure your book becomes a success no matter what.

Write something else

Instead of dwelling over whether there was any more you could have done to perfect your manuscript before you send it off, instead, why don’t you try to find an alternative writing project to keep those creative cogs turning and keep your mind busy? Most authors who do find success do so because they kept trying no matter what, so it’s vital that you keep learning, writing, and improving your craft, and if you don’t get anywhere this time, remember that perseverance is critical.

If you have sent your book to publishers and are wondering what to do next, use the above tips to help keep you occupied and creative while you wait! 

Bethany Cadman

Bethany Cadman - bethanycadman.co.uk

www.bethanycadmancreates.co.uk

The post Sent Your Book To Publishers? Things To Do While You Wait appeared first on Writer's Life.org.

Mistakes To Avoid When Writing Query Letters

Writing query letters can be challenging, but getting this right is crucial if you want to ensure that you give your manuscript the best chance of success.

Here are some of the top mistakes that people make when writing query letters:

Being too cheesy or making jokes.

We’re not saying that query letters need to be utterly devoid of personality. However, making too many jokes, being too cheesy in the way you present your plot, or just going over the top thinking that this will make you ‘stand out’ can massively backfire. 

Blurbs with too much confusion detail or only describes the theme, not the plot.

When publishers ask for the synopsis, it’s because they want to know what happens in your story. Don’t write too much about themes or write in a way that leaves them guessing. It would help if you wrote well and engagingly while also delivering the main plot points, so they have a clear idea of what happens in your story. 

Poor formatting

Silly images, colors, odd capitalization, lousy formatting, and documents that can’t be opened are all extraordinarily frustrating and a waste of time for agents and publishers. Most will tell you how to type and space your doc, so look for that and if they don’t, stick to a simple format and send your manuscript to yourself first to check it delivers in the way you intended.

Mentioning unimpressive accolades

While it’s great that you wrote another three novels before this book, only mention these if they have been highly reviewed by more people than just your mum and a handful of friends. If you’ve had any press, if you have thousands of social media followers and if you have previously published work, this is all of interest. However, if you mention those self-published works that have clearly not don’t very well, this could work against you so best to leave them out of your submission.

Changing of tenses and points of view

Many writers start writing in the present tense then switch to the past, or they write their author bio in the first person and then switch to the third. This all indicates a lack of care and attention, which won't go unnoticed by the recipient. 

Over/under confidence

You should be able to clearly and matter of factly explain why you think your novel will sell and who it will sell too. However, randomly claiming that you are the next [insert famous author here] is not a great idea. Similarly, sounding too much like a novice with no confidence, begging for a publishing deal, groveling, and so on will also be a huge turn-off. 

Overdoing the info in your author bio

While your author bio is the place where you can reveal a little about yourself, there is definitely such a thing as oversharing here. Stick to information that’s generally relevant to your writing and keep it short and sweet. Remember, it’s your manuscript that’s the main point of interest, so you don’t need to tell your potential publisher about that time you ran a half marathon or how you love to bake cookies at the weekend.

By avoiding these common query letter mistakes, you’ll be doing yourself and your novel a considerable favor. Agents and publishers are often particular in how they would like a query letter to arrive with them i.e., what information to include and how long it should be - don’t ignore this. Keep your query letters professional, friendly, and to the point, and you can’t go too far wrong!

Bethany Cadman

Bethany Cadman - bethanycadman.co.uk

www.bethanycadmancreates.co.uk

The post Mistakes To Avoid When Writing Query Letters appeared first on Writer's Life.org.

How To Beat The Writing Blues

We can all find it difficult to write from time to time, and when that happens, it’s easy to feel demotivated. If our creative juices aren’t flowing and writing seems more like a chore than a beloved hobby, then we can find ourselves hit with the writing blues, and it can be challenging to shake them off.

However, all it can take is a bit of determination, and knowing some great tools, tips, and tricks to get you back feeling energized and productive once more. So if you are feeling down and lacking in motivation, try the following: 

Refresh your mind and boost your imagination

Go back over your old notebooks, your character personas, your mind maps, your post-its, look over your research, and even early manuscripts to help inspire you. Doing this can help you realize that you’ve done a lot of the groundwork already and that you do have lots of great ideas to work from, all that’s needed is a little push. 

Clear up your workspace

If you’ve got a cluttered workspace, you might well have a cluttered mind. Now is the time to get organized and declutter your workspace both physically and virtually. Spend some time making the space that you write in work for you. It should be comfortable and bright and full of things that inspire you. You should also take the time to clear up your desktop and your files and folders too. Getting organized this way should give you a good boost, and you’ll feel in a stable place to start writing from once more. 

Read new things

Write a list of books that you think might inspire you and start working your way through them. It can be all too easy to let the pleasure and the inspiration of reading fall from your agenda, but it really is one of the most excellent and most accessible learning tools for writers, so refresh your reading list and then crack on!

Stop feeling sorry for yourself

If you want to get out of your writing slump, you probably need to get a little honest and a little harsh with yourself. You need to take control of your own destiny, regardless of the setbacks that you may have suffered up until this point. You are in charge of achieving your goals and realizing your dreams, so stop feeling sorry for yourself and get on with it. 

Get physical 

Sometimes sitting in front of our computer screens trying to write is counterproductive. We need to be active and physical, to be strong of body and mind, to get out into the world, to see things, and to have experiences. Doing this is what will lift our spirits, give us new inspiration and make us a better writer, so make sure you take the time to leave your desk and do some exercise to reboot, re-energize, and help calm and declutter your mind too. 

Overcoming the writer's blues can take a bit of effort, but the sooner you bother to admit you are suffering from them and find ways to tackle them, the better you will feel. So get out of that writing slump now and follow the above tips to be a healthier, happier writer once more!

Bethany Cadman - bethanycadman.co.uk

Bethany Cadman

www.bethanycadmancreates.co.uk

The post How To Beat The Writing Blues appeared first on Writer's Life.org.

Best Places To Write In Summer

Now that the warmer weather is upon us, the idea of spending long days hunched over a desk seems a little depressing. The great thing about writing for a living is that we can manage our own time and change up our workspace as we see fit, so if it’s a glorious day outside, don’t let deadlines and unfinished chapters stop you! Instead, why not gather up your laptop and a flask of coffee and head out into the vast wide world for some fresh air and hopefully new ideas?

Here are some of the best places to write in the summer:

Your garden

If you are lucky enough to have an outside space to enjoy, why not head to your garden to do some work? The great thing about writing in your garden is that you can enjoy all the benefits of the fresh air, the warmth of the sun on your face and hearing the birds singing and the bees buzzing, while also being able to pop inside for coffee whenever you need it -it’s a win-win!

In the park

If you don't have a garden, heading out to your local park is just as good. Take a picnic blanket and find a lovely calm spot under a shady tree and spend an afternoon working on your novel or latest blog or article. Parks are great for people-watching, too, so you might just spot some inspiration for your next character here if you keep your eyes open!

By the sea

There is nothing quite as relaxing as the sounds of lapping waves rolling against the shore. So if you don’t live too far away from the sea, we suggest you head out there to enjoy working with the wind in your hair and the salty air on your skin. The amazing depth and expanse of the ocean can be pretty awe-inspiring too!

In the woods

Heading out to some woodland to write can help clear your head and then fill it with lots of new ideas. Woods are ancient and magical places that are teeming with life. So if you are feeling a bit demotivated, a woodland walk might be just the thing to help energize and refresh you once more. 

At the top on a mountain

Why not make your workplace one with a great view and head up to the top of a hill or mountain to observe life unfolding below? Here you'll find peace and tranquility, see your problems and obstacles melt away and are sure to find that your concentration and focus increases too.

Hopefully, these outdoor destinations will give you some great writing inspiration while keeping you calm, happy, and relaxed too! So next time the sun makes an appearance, why not head outdoors and see where your imagination takes you?

Bethany Cadman

The post Best Places To Write In Summer appeared first on Writer's Life.org.

How Quickly Should You Write Your Book?

Understanding how long it takes to write a book is a valuable lesson for every writer. While many people might argue that it is impossible to define how long it will take any individual to write a book, there are several factors to consider. It’s crucial regardless that every author embarking on this journey, decides, in advance, how long it will take them to complete their novel. Without any sense of a timeline, it will be all too easy not to push oneself, to make excuses, to procrastinate, become demotivated, and never reach the finish line. 

How long does it take to write a book?

For most writers, it takes between 2 months and 2 years to write a book. This, of course, is dependent on the word count and how much capacity the author has to write it. You might be a particularly productive writer who has lots of free time and can dedicate full days to writing, or you might be trying to fit your creative writing sessions around a demanding full-time job. 

A year is around the average length of time it takes for an author to write a book, though some do it much more quickly, and others spend years pouring over their manuscripts. However, taking much longer than a year, at least to get your first draft down, could spell trouble, and if it takes you longer than this, it’s worth considering why and working out how you could dedicate more time to writing your story. 

Of course, longer works of fiction are likely to take increased time, so here is a rough guide to length of time it takes to write a book in relation to the number of words written if you can write 500 words a day, each day:

50,000 words: 500 words/day = 100 days

80,000 words: 500 words/day = 160 days

100,000 words: 500 words/day = 200 days

However, we realize all writers can't commit to this word count, and individuals need to be realistic and honest with themselves when setting their writing goals. 

There are usually ways you can shorten the length of time it takes to write a book depending on your level of dedication and commitment and any extenuating circumstances that need to be taken into account.

Bethany Cadman

bethanycadmancreates.co.uk

The post How Quickly Should You Write Your Book? appeared first on Writer's Life.org.

How To Find Your Ideal Job In Writing

If you want to make writing your career, it’s well worth considering all the different options available to you. You might have specialist knowledge, a love of language, a vivid imagination, or enjoy pulling together informative and compelling content. Wherever your skills, strengths, and passions lie, doing your research about the different types of writing careers out there could really pay off and ensure that you land a well paid, exciting job that gives you great satisfaction as a result.

So what are the kinds of jobs with which writers could get involved? The truth is that almost every sector - be that media, entertainment, marketing, publishing, finance, medical, technology, and more, all require talented writers to craft top-notch content that reaches different audiences. This makes writing one of the broadest careers to get into and one that you can tailor to suit your particular interests too. 

However, becoming a successful writer isn’t easy, and just because you are passionate about a particular cause or have a specialist hobby, this doesn’t mean that by writing about it, you’ll start making money. You need to understand how to write and find an audience, as well as how to get paid for your efforts if you are going to make a successful career.

So while you are considering which writing career might be best for you, we’ve compiled a list of some of the most exciting jobs for writers to help you find your ideal role. 

Here are some of the top writing careers:

Novelist 

Naturally, we had to put a novelist near the top of our list as we know how many writers dream of completing their own book one day. Becoming an author, however, is particularly tough, especially if you hope to be a fiction writer. However, if you have a particular passion, hobby, or skill, this could be a good basis to write a book, and you could find a niche audience who’ll be excited to buy it too. 

Speechwriter

Becoming a speechwriter could lead to all sorts of exciting opportunities writing for anyone from businesspeople to government officials to celebrities. Writing speeches requires excellent research skills, flair, and the ability to understand how words translate into speech, so they connect and resonate with different audiences and move them to take action. 

Scriptwriter

Writing film, TV, or radio scripts could make for an exciting and rewarding career. You might also wish to consider writing scripts for adverts, for business videos, for the educational sector, and many more. 

Communications director

As a communications director, you will oversee lots of different ways in which your business communicates with its customers and the public overall. The communications director is responsible for making sure that the brand and reputation of a company is a positive one, and this requires excellent writing skills as well as brilliant and creative marketing skills.

Columnist or journalist

If you fancy yourself as a reporter, you might want to consider becoming a columnist or journalist. Columnists give subjective opinions on particular subjects or current events while journalists are tasked with discovering newsworthy stories and pulling together their findings to create readable, engaging content. 

Critic

Another exciting way to put your writing skills to good use is to become a critic. Your particular passion or interests should guide you. You could become a film or TV critic, a video game critic, a food critic, and so on. Writing in an engaging and often humorous way, as well as having specialist knowledge of your subject is essential. 

Greeting card writer

Research shows that people are often moved to purchase a greetings card based on their words. So you could use your creativity, imagination, and poetic license to create heartfelt, humorous, or downright silly messages for people to choose to bring a smile to other's faces. 

Ghostwriter

A ghostwriter is a person who writes on behalf of another, for example, writing up someone else’s memoirs. This is perfect for those who love to write but don’t necessarily have a burning desire to write about anything personally. You have to leave your ego at the door, though, because if a particular piece starts gaining a lot of attention, you must accept that it won’t be your name at the end of it!

Proposal or grant writer

If you prefer the more technical side of writing and have a businesslike and informative style, you might want to try your hand at writing proposals or grants for businesses. Lots of corporate industries need proposals to help secure new contracts as well as the funding to accelerate new business ventures. 

These are just some of the writing jobs that could see you making a fantastic living and doing what you’ve always dreamed of day in and day out. So when you’ve decided what your ideal job in writing is, you need to make that dream a reality!

www.bethanycadmancreates.co.uk

The post How To Find Your Ideal Job In Writing appeared first on Writer's Life.org.

Exercises To Strengthen Your Hands

Many writers find that their time spent at a computer can leave them feeling a little uncomfortable. If you want to write at your most productively, it’s important to take good care of your health. Hand pain is a common complaint in writers, and so here are some exercises to help ensure that you keep those digits flexible, and that long hours typing away don’t leave you with any injuries!

These exercises can help those with a muscle or joint problem which affects their hands, fingers or wrists.

It’s best to try doing five repetitions of each exercise three times each day. When you have built up more strength you can add to this by doing a couple more repetitions as long as you don’t experience any pain or discomfort. 

If any of these exercises feel too painful, cause new pain or make symptoms worse it is best to stop them immediately and contact your medical processional.

The clenched wrist bend

Rest your hand on its side on a table, with the hand loosely clenched, then bend both the wrist and fingers towards you. Hold the position for 2 seconds before bending the write and fingers back to the starting position.

The side to side wrist bend

Rest your palm on the table, keeping both fingers and wrist straight, then bend the wrist to the right without straining. Hold the position for 2 seconds then bend back to the center. Repeat on other side. 

The hand turn

Rest your palm on the table, keeping both fingers and wrist straight, then turn the palm up without straining. Hold the position for 2 seconds then turn your palm back to center.

The hand clench

Rest your hand on its side on a table, keeping both the fingers and wrist straight, then gently clench your fingers until you create a loose fist. Hold for 2 seconds before unclench the fingers and retiring them to a straight position.

The finger curl

Turn the hand so that your palm is facing towards you, and so that the fingers are loosely clenched, before slowly uncurling the fingers until they are fully straight, without straining. Hold for 2 seconds before curling them back into the starting position.

The finger and thumb touch

Turn the hand so that your palm is facing towards you, keep the hand relaxed and open, then touch your thumb to each finger one by one. After touching your little finger, go back the other way.

These exercises can help writers ensure that their hands are in good condition and will lessen the chances of experiencing discomfort or pain that could stop you in your tracks just when you are in the writing zone! So why not try them out? 

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Why You Should Face Painful Writing

Many writers find that the process of writing itself is a rather painful one. Why is this? Because truly authentic writing has to come from a place of truth that’s inside. When you write from the heart you are digging deep, you are searching your soul for the story that wants to escape, the words that need to come out, the things you need to share with others. This can feel extremely daunting, and it can be a struggle to do so.

Being honest with oneself is never easy. Often writers avoid what they really want to write about and spend years writing about what they think readers want to hear, or safe subjects that don’t leave them susceptible to being wounded in the same way. Think about it. Its far less painful to be rejected or to receive a negative comment about work that we didn’t pour our heart and soul into right?

You might feel this doesn’t resonate because you don’t want to write about dark or highly emotional subjects, you might have that painful past or sad story that needs to come out in order for you to heal. However, it’s important to note that painful writing doesn’t necessarily have to come from a place of distress, you don’t have to be a tortoured soul or have done through a traumatic experience to find writing painful. Rather it is about getting to that place of honesty. You might want to make people laugh, you might have a passion or particular knowledge, you might just find something incredibly interesting and think others will too - whatever it is it still leaves you open. It still is about saying ‘hey I think you’ll really like reading about this,’ and then waiting to see if you receive an equally enthusiastic response. That in itself is scary, that in itself can feel painful to do.

At the end of the day all our actions, interactions, and experiences come from the hand of cards we’ve been dealt in life and when you get to the core of what motivates you it could well be that there is some sort of past scar that is driving you to tell a particular story in a particular way.

You need to write from the heart, from the place that exposes you, by doing so you’ll connect with those raw, genuine emotions and your writing will be all the better for it. Avoiding the pain not only deprives you, the author, from writing about the thing you care about most, it also deprives your readers of the chance to feel connected, understood, and even to heal too. 

Being courageous in your writing is cathartic, facing your discomfort head on and being brave rather than sticking to safe subjects or trying to shape your writing into a particular mould that you think readers will want will just end up making the process more difficult and exhausting and deeply unsatisfactory as a result. 

So the next time you feel yourself avoiding writing about the painful bits why not take that leap of faith, and find the courage to do so - you could find that you produce your best work, and feel amazing as a result. 

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