Beth Martin's Blog, page 23

Bluetooth Keyboard: Worth it for Serious Writers?

Something happened to my laptop this week. I made a YouTube video about it. Basically, the computer I use for... everything... is out of commission. We have one other computer in our household: a desktop which is hooked into an enormous TV in the media room. I mean, it's nice doing photoshop on a 4K TV, but for most of the things I do, a little laptop will suffice.

But without even a laptop,

The Importance of Proof

I've gone on a binge of watching YouTube videos of new writers unboxing the first copies of their debut book. The excitement, joy, and pride of making something amazing shows on their face. It's a special moment for budding authors, and it's addictive to watch.

As soon as I got The End of Refuge formatted for paperback, I had to order a physical copy. I was excited to see my hard work finally in

Strategies for Combating Writers Block

I have a confession to make. I'm suffering from a serious case of writers' block. I've gotten to a point in my manuscript in which I know where I need to go but just can't figure out how to get there. Usually, I try not to sweat it when I get stuck. After a couple days, I'll puzzle out what needs to happen next or how the characters will surmount the challenge I gave them. But until then, I need

Book Review: The Gender Lie by Bella Forrest

The Gender Lie by Bella Forrest
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I really enjoyed the first two books of the Gender Game series, so I had high expectations for The Gender Lie. I was pretty disappointed even early on in this book.

The Gender Lie picks up right where The Gender Secret left off. Viggo is unconscious and needs a magic laser to heal him, while Liberators have taken over the underground

How I Made an Animated Book Teaser

I know book trailers are a thing, but to be honest, I haven't seen too many of them. I'm not sure if they're helpful for book promotion or not. Recently, I had an idea of a teaser for my novel that I wanted to make, but it would only work in an animated form. And since I spent some time trying to make an animated cover in GIF format, I decided to make a teaser GIF. Here's what I did:



Get

Book Review: Lawless by Tarah Benner

Lawless by Tarah Benner
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I seem to be on a streak of reading dystopian novels with strong female leads, but when Amazon recommended yet another one... Naturally, I bought it and couldn't put it down.

Lawless follows Lark, a woman who was on trial for murdering a man who was trying to rape her. Instead of taking her chances with a jury, she takes a plea which allows her to

How to Make Goals (Writer Style)

Happy New Year, friends and readers! In each new year, I find myself thinking about new year's resolutions and what I want to achieve in the coming year. 2017 will be an exciting year for me since this is the year I publish my debut novel, The End of Refuge. So what are my resolutions for 2017? I plan to publish my second book this year along with a lot of other activities to help me become a

What is Art?

"Ideas alone can be works of art….All ideas need not be made physical.…A work of art may be understood as a conductor from the artist’s mind to the viewer’s. But it may never reach the viewer, or it may never leave the artist’s mind." 

-Sol SeWitt, American artist.

I view any form of creating as art, whether it be painting, writing, dancing, cooking, or arranging flowers. As a creative person,

The Many Hats of an Indie Author

Writing for me has very much transformed from just a hobby into something much more. In the back of my mind, I knew that there would be more to being an author than just writing books. But as I'm gearing up for the release of my first book, I'm very much realizing how much work is entailed in being an author.



I've had to readjust my perspective. If I want to be successful in indie publishing,

THE END OF REFUGE Now Available for Pre-order

I wanted to make a special post today to announce that my debut novel, The End of Refuge, is available for pre-order on Amazon.com, iBooks, and KOBO. So if you want to purchase an eBook copy of my book, feel free to order in advance!