R.M. Archer's Blog, page 28
November 12, 2019
Self-Publishing 101: Traditional vs. Indie Publishing
I said I was taking a blogging hiatus… but then I was talking in one of my writing groups about publishing and the pros and cons of traditional and indie publishing, and I realized I could write a whole blog series on publishing. And since a lot of people are going to be working on finishing first drafts this month, it seemed like a decent time. (Not that I’m saying people should publish their first drafts. Definitely edit your work. But the conclusion of a first draft is a good time to start thinking about your long-term plans for it.) Now, most of the posts in this series are going to be about indie/self-publishing, because that’s what I have the most experience with, but this post is all about the benefits and drawbacks of both publishing routes, as far as my knowledge goes.
So let’s get started!
Traditional Publishing
How it works
This is, of course, the most “expected” route, especially if you tell relatives you’re a writer, lol. I don’t know exactly how the process works, since I’ve never personally done it, but from what I understand you finish a draft, polish it as much as it can, and then write up a query letter and synopsis (a few-page summary of your book; not to be confused with a back-cover blurb/synopsis) and send those to agents (along with the first few pages of your manuscript, depending on an individual agent’s guidelines).
After you’ve gotten an agent, the agent will pitch your novel to editors at publishing houses, which will start the actual publishing process. Once they’ve found you an editor willing to take your book, you work with said editor to clean up your book even more. After that, the publishing house will take care of some of the promotional plans, cover design, etc. When the book is published, you’ll get a good chunk of the royalties and the publishing house will get another good chunk.
Cons
You have less creative control over your story. Now, if you’re working with a good editor, they’ll make sure the story stays your own, but they will adjust your book so that it fits more traditional structure and what the market wants (to a degree). Sometimes this isn’t so big a deal, sometimes it’s more so (at least that’s what I’d guess). As far as cover design, the publisher has the final say. The author gives input, but the publisher gets to decide “Okay, that’s enough changes, this is the cover.” (For more on the cover design process in traditional publishing, check out this video by Nadine Brandes.)
It can take a LONG time to get an agent. How long this process takes really depends. Sometimes it’s months, sometimes it’s years. And after that it takes time for them to find an editor who wants to work on the book. So it’s just a long process, generally speaking.
Publishing houses only want novels. In a lot of cases this probably isn’t an issue, but if you write short stories or novellas then looking at anthologies to submit to or self-publishing is definitely a better bet.
You do still have to do marketing. Yes, working with a publishing house gives you access to professional marketing teams and some instant exposure, but you do have to put in your own work and promote your book on your social media, blog, what-have-you. And it’ll need to be an ongoing thing so people don’t forget your book exists.
There are vanity publishers out there posing as traditional publishers, so be sure to do your research. If a publishing house is going to charge you to publish your book, that’s a vanity publisher and you should stay away. I’m not well-versed in vanity publishing, so here’s a Wikipedia article that gives a run-down, but basically if they publish your book at all, they’re not going to treat it as well as a mainstream traditional publisher would; they won’t promote it nearly as much, and they won’t give as high-quality editing, cover design, etc. This is easily avoidable with knowledge and research, but it is a risk in traditional publishing.
You’re often writing under deadline. Depending on how you work, this can be a pro or a con. Traditionally publishers will often put you under deadline to complete your book, and if you’re a slow writer or you have a lot of other responsibilities, this is probably not the greatest thing.
Agents are often looking for books that fit into industry trends. If assassins and love triangles are all the rage in YA fantasy right now and your YA fantasy is about a tailor with no love interest… an agent is less likely to choose your book. That’s just how the industry works. Now, this isn’t to say that a publisher will never choose a book that’s outside of trends–trends have to change somehow–but from my understanding it is harder to get your book picked up if it’s completely outside of the current trends.
Pros
Publishing houses can get your book a LOT more exposure. They have professional marketing teams, there are readers who follow publishing houses so they hear about their new releases, you’ll get more visibility on sites like Goodreads and Amazon… etc. It’s just way easier to get your book seen if you go through a publishing house.
You get paid upfront. You get your royalties when your book is published rather than as it sells. I’m not 100% sure how royalty payments work (if they’re ongoing, how frequently, etc. I just really don’t know), so I’ll just leave it at that.
Editing, cover design, and formatting are all covered by the publishing house. No paying out-of-pocket for freelancers. You work with the publishing house’s designers and editors, who you know are skilled and familiar with your type of book, and you don’t have to pay for those or try to hack things together yourself. (There are some indie authors who are good at, say, cover-design, but they’re very few and far between. And there are also a lot of “professional” cover designers who indie authors go to whose covers aren’t actually that great. But I’ll go more in-depth on that in a future post.)
With traditional publishing, you’ll be told whether or not your book is good enough by professionals who see both good and bad manuscripts all the time, and you’ll be able to make your book presentable before sending it out to the masses. You can absolutely have a publishing-worthy book if you go indie, as well, and there are ways to find “gatekeepers” even on the self-publishing route, but “gatekeepers” are automatic if you’re going through traditional publishing.
You’re often under deadline. If you’re someone who thrives under outside pressure and with outside accountability, and you have the time and speed to write, this is probably a great asset for you.
You should choose traditional publishing if you…
Want a lot of exposure
Want professionals to carry a lot of the work
Want “gatekeepers” to assess your work and confirm that it’s worth publishing
Work well under a deadline
Self-Publishing
How it works*
*Please keep in mind that this post is written with the assumption that the reader is interested in making a career of writing. If you’re just interested in publishing once or twice, the process doesn’t need to be quite as intense.
The process for self-publishing doesn’t always look exactly the same, but I’m going to outline my recommended process. (And in the spirit of full disclosure, I have yet to follow this outline in my own publishing efforts, but it’s something I plan to do with my self-published novels.)
If you’re going to self-publish (and want to do it really well), you’ll likely need to save up and/or crowdsource a lot of money. Probably around $1,000. Now, the exact price will vary depending on what exact editor and cover designer you get. There are definitely cheaper options out there. For the first novel I planned to publish, I spent $80 on the cover and $500 on an editor (but I also did everything wrong with that, so…), and for the second novel the editors I’d chosen would have cost $450 together and the custom art for the cover would have been $350. If you’re crowdsourcing with something like Kickstarter, you’ll need to factor in the fees for using the platform and the cost of whatever rewards you choose to offer. The fees on my second book would have been around $450 total. Self-publishing well is not often cheap, though it can be.
After that, you have to hire the editor(s) and cover designer/artist, and work with them. If you’ve found a good editor and cover designer, great! If not… well… this will take extra long and you’ll be out a lot of money. (So I recommend asking people who have already indie-published who they hired, or scouring the acknowledgements of the best indie-published books you can find.)
Ideally while you’re working on the editing and cover work, you’ll want to plan out your marketing strategy. I won’t go into all that needs to include until a later post, because that’s a whole topic in and of itself, but basically… it’s a lot of work. There are ARCs to be arranged, graphics to be designed (or commissioned), readers to be contacted… It’s a lot of work. And you don’t often have a marketing team to back you up, although you can hire help and/or assemble a street team to help you out.
Then there’s the actual launch, which you have to hype up and get on people’s radar, and getting people to review your book is a huge pain but reviews and direct recommendations are the main way that indie books get seen.
Anyway, now that I’ve totally poisoned you against indie publishing because “OH MY GOSH THAT SOUNDS LIKE SO MUCH WORK AND MONEY 
”… I’m going to basically outline the same things in a more streamlined way before I get into the pros. (Because, trust me, there are pros.)
Cons
First off, the cost. If you hire out a cover designer and an editor or two, your costs are already really high. But then there are also the optional costs of Kickstarter rewards, designers for your marketing graphics, marketing people, formatters, etc. It’s often expensive.
The work. Indie-publishing takes a LOT of elbow grease. You have to be a marketing manager, author, extrovert, fangirl, and a million other things all at once.
It’s really easy to get bad “professionals” if you don’t know what you’re doing. Like I said earlier, I highly recommend reaching out to already-published indie authors and asking them who they hired and who they’d recommend.
It takes a while. You get to set your own timeline, yes. You’re not waiting on an agent or an editor or anything like that. But you do have to save up the money you need, hire and work with professionals, and then go through all the marketing and whatnot. Don’t expect that just because you set your own rules everything will go exactly as you plan, because there are always set-backs. It’s like remodeling a house. There are always surprises.
It’s hard to get exposure. You can start with your friends and family, fellow writers, etc., and that will be a great start, but most of us don’t have hundreds of people who will actually read their work and not put it off, so it’s likely to take a while to push your book up in the ranks. (There are people who have huge fan-bases before they publish, and they can get huge exposure early–earlier this year Abbie Emmons published her book 100 Days of Sunlight (highly recommend) and I didn’t even realize at first that it wasn’t a traditionally published book. There were SO MANY people fangirling about it prior to the release that I thought for sure it was from a publishing house. But nope! She just had that many fans already from her blog. But that’s not the norm. At all.)
There’s less accountability. There are no built-in “gatekeepers” in indie publishing. Beta-readers and editors should be a help in telling you when your book is or isn’t ready to publish, but they’re less likely to outright tell you “No, you should wait and work on this more.”
Pros
You have full creative liberty! This can be a blessing or a curse, and really only you know. If you’re too attached to your story just as it is, this is likely to shoot you in the foot. But assuming you have a healthy ability to accept constructive criticism, this is great because you can improve what needs to be improved while keeping the parts of your story that are really important to you. (Which, again, a good editor at a publishing house will also allow… You just have more freedom in self-publishing, especially with the look of your cover. Which, again, can be a blessing or a curse.)
You don’t have to wait for a middle-man. I mean… you do… sort of. You have to wait for your editor to edit your book, or for beta-readers, or whatever. But you don’t have to wait for someone to explicitly want your book before you can publish it. If you think it’s worth reading and you think people will enjoy it, you can just publish it! Which means no having to adhere to industry expectations and trends at any given time to catch an agent before getting your book in front of readers.
You set your own hours/deadlines/timeline. You don’t have to work under any deadlines other than your own, whereas with traditional publishing you’re generally tied to a deadline. I do recommend setting deadlines, but with indie-publishing these deadlines can be custom tailored to how you write and not the time a publishing house wants your book finished. And you don’t have to wait for an agent before jumping into the publishing process.
You should choose indie publishing if you…
Want creative freedom
Write outside of normal literary trends
Write novellas or short stories
Are willing/excited to do the work of marketing, formatting, editing, etc. for your book
Work better under self-imposed deadlines
Hopefully this gives you a decent overview of the benefits and drawbacks of each publishing route, and hopefully I haven’t chased you away from the idea of publishing forever. Publishing–through either route–is a long process that takes a lot of work, but it’s well worth it to put your words in front of readers, to impact their lives, to share lessons and emotions, and to simply share your story with other people who appreciate it.
The rest of this series will be focusing on indie publishing–things not to do, what is or isn’t vital in the publishing process, and what’s really involved in indie publishing–but if you’re interested in traditional publishing and it sounds like a better fit for you, I’d recommend Go Teen Writers’ posts on publishing as a start.
November 8, 2019
Know the Novel Part 2 – Within the WIP
Part 2 of the Know the Novel link-up has arrived! It’s probably early to be doing this, but I’m super excited to share more about Calligraphy Guild, so… here we are. Part two is all about the writing process!
1. How’s the writing going overall?
Pretty well! It hasn’t been as “fun” as I was hoping for it to be, but I’ve been making steady progress and I’m fairly happy with the results, as far as first drafts go. It’s definitely going to need work, but all drafts do. :P
2. What’s been the most fun aspect of writing this novel so far?
Probably the character interactions. Relationships are really the core of this book, and seeing the different relationship dynamics unfold has been really fun. And a couple of characters have shown up more than I expected, which has been really cool to see.
3. What do you think of your characters at this point? Who’s your favorite to write about?
Most of them aren’t as vivid on the page as I would like them to be, unfortunately. There are quirks that haven’t made their way into the book, and the fact that I struggle to be descriptive in my first drafts is taking a toll on their realism. But I still love who the characters are supposed to be, and I’m hoping I’ll be able to bring them out more in future drafts. I think my favorite to write about is probably Makio, who’s one of the characters I mentioned who’s shown up more than expected. He’s Tora’s older brother, and he’s turned out to be a big brother figure for Duyên, as well, which has been super cool to write about. ^-^
4. Has your novel surprised you in any way?
I think Makio’s importance has been the only significant surprise. There’ve been little places where scenes have gone a direction I didn’t expect and featured interactions I didn’t plan, but none of them have been huge. So far I’ve mostly kept to my outline in the big stuff.
5. Have you come across any problem areas?
Yesterday I came to the end of the Scrivener files I’d properly prepared for NaNo and started operating off of memory rather than directly from my outline and I’m fairly certain I rushed into a scene that shouldn’t have happened yet. But I think I’ll be able to just rearrange things and it won’t be a problem. Hopefully.
6. What’s been your biggest victory with writing this novel at this point?
Learning to write even when I don’t feel like it! It’s made a huge difference to learn that I can write a couple thousand words if I just get started, regardless of how motivated I am or am not, and that will impact future novels just as much as this one.
7. If you were transported into your novel and became any one of the characters, which one do you think you’d be? Would you take any different actions than they have?
Duyên is loosely based on me, so she’d be the easy option. I think I’d make a lot of the same decisions she did, because she’s pretty lost as to how to address the issues going on and I wouldn’t know any better than she does, lol. And we respond to conflict we don’t know how to resolve in much the same way. So, yeah, I’d be Duyên.
8. Give us the first sentence or paragraph, then 2 (or 3!) favorite snippets!
Duyên’s hair was soft under her fingers as she completed her plait, tying it with a pale yellow cord before looking herself over in the mirror.
****
Duyên chuckled and took note of the calligraphers again. Po was nice enough, but not the person she would have chosen to talk with on an evening when she was already stressed. Most of the calligraphers were the same place they’d been, but Chaska was rounding up her boys. Duyên frowned. Her health must have been bothering her again.
Makio walked up to the stairs and set a hand against the post beside Po. “Is this guy bothering you?” Makio asked Duyên.
Duyên shrugged. “We were having a pleasant conversation. But I appreciate you looking out for me.” She smiled up at Makio.
Makio slapped Po’s shoulder and nodded toward the field. “Come on. Let’s shoot some hoops.”
Po glanced at Duyên. “Sorry to cut the conversation short.”
Duyên tried to smile. “Don’t worry about it.”
Po headed onto the field and Duyên mouthed a ‘thank you’ to Makio as he prepared to follow. Makio smiled before turning back to Po. “Race you to the hoop?”
The two ran off to the western hoop and Duyên took a deep breath. Makio always had her back. Duyên smiled as she watched Po and Makio play in the lantern-light. Tora was lucky to have Makio for a brother.
Ryuu walked over from a conversation with some of the younger boys and set one foot on the steps. “Are you doing all right?”
Duyên nodded with a soft smile. “Thanks for asking.”
Ryuu took a seat beside her, hands between his knees. “I saw Makio had to get Po away from you again.” Ryuu smirked.
Duyên chuckled. “It wasn’t like that. Po was actually being nice, he’s just… not the best company when my thoughts are heavy.”
“I hope I’m an improvement?” Ryuu wiggled his eyebrows.
Duyên laughed, head thrown back. Her expression faded to a grin as she turned back to Ryuu. “Yes.” She leaned up and kissed him briefly.
Ryuu grinned. “I’m happy to hear it.”
Duyên leaned on his shoulder and watched the lights dancing over the field a moment before closing her eyes and listening to the childrens’ laughter. She felt Ryuu press a long kiss to her forehead. Duyên released a contented sigh. “Can’t evenings like this just last forever?” she murmured.
“I wish.”
“Can we pretend?”
Ryuu rubbed her shoulder. “Absolutely.”
Duyên’s thoughts drifted and she fell asleep.
****
Lanterns on either side of the orphanage door swayed idly in a warm breeze and the bamboo door swung inward at Sairsha’s touch. The buzz of children’s voices filled Duyên’s ears, and she smiled as several of the kids looked up at the calligraphers from their groups on the floor. The sight of Sairsha, and the drawings in her hand, lit fires in several children’s eyes, and Sairsha offered a bright smile to everyone.
9. Share an interesting tidbit about the writing process so far! (For example: Have you made any hilarious typos? Derailed from your outline? Killed off a character? Changed projects entirely? Anything you want to share!)
I think I’ve pretty much shared everything interesting, between yesterday’s post and this one.
10. Take us on a tour of what a normal writing day for this novel looks like. Where do you write? What time of day? Alone or with others? Is a lot of coffee (or some other drink) consumed? Do you light candles? Play music? Get distracted by social media (*cough, cough*)? Tell all!
Surprisingly enough, I’ve written mostly at my desk. I was expecting to work on my laptop in bed a lot, but I think all of my writing this month has been at my desk. I generally procrastinate until mid-afternoon, when I finally force myself into Scrivener and get writing, and then I write for 1-3 hours (depending on how well things are going) and write around 2,000 words. Although if I have to go out in the evening then I generally don’t meet my word count until around 11. This week I’ve been fueled by cinnamon Coca-Cola, but when that runs out I’ll probably switch to hot cocoa. (Aren’t I so healthy…) I listen to music incessantly, whether I’m writing or not, lol. Usually I have a story playlist I listen to for a specific project, but I don’t have one for Calligraphy Guild so I’ve been listening mostly to my Writing Inspiration playlist and sometimes just to whatever I feel like putting on. If I don’t have music on, I usually don’t work as well. (And yes, social media distraction has been a real thing. ;P)
What does your normal writing day look like? What’s been your biggest victory so far?
November 7, 2019
NaNoWriMo Week 1 Check-In
I was fully intending to keep up my normal blog schedule this month, since I knew what I was going to write for the first two weeks and I could brainstorm further topics later, but… I then just didn’t get around to actually writing my first post. And since I’m really getting focused on my writing (which hasn’t happened in a long time, so I’m really happy!), I think that’s likely to be the case for the rest of this month. So I’ll be taking a hiatus for November, except NaNoWriMo updates, and hopefully I’ll be able to arrange a working balance of tasks as the month goes on and I learn to write consistently again, lol.
Anyway, every Thursday I’ll plan to put up a NaNoWriMo update (and tomorrow I have a bonus, because I’ll be doing part two of the Know the Novel Link-Up!), and I’d also love to hear how your NaNo (or whatever project you’re currently working on) is going for you!
This week’s current word count: 11,425
Favorite snippet from this week:
Duyên chuckled and took note of the calligraphers again. Po was nice enough, but not the person she would have chosen to talk with on an evening when she was already stressed. Most of the calligraphers were the same place they’d been, but Chaska was rounding up her boys. Duyên frowned. Her health must have been bothering her again.
Makio walked up to the stairs and set a hand against the post beside Po. “Is this guy bothering you?” Makio asked Duyên.
Duyên shrugged. “We were having a pleasant conversation. But I appreciate you looking out for me.” She smiled up at Makio.
Makio slapped Po’s shoulder and nodded toward the field. “Come on. Let’s shoot some hoops.”
Po glanced at Duyên. “Sorry to cut the conversation short.”
Duyên tried to smile. “Don’t worry about it.”
Po headed onto the field and Duyên mouthed a ‘thank you’ to Makio as he prepared to follow. Makio smiled before turning back to Po. “Race you to the hoop?”
The two ran off to the western hoop and Duyên took a deep breath. Makio always had her back. Duyên smiled as she watched Po and Makio play in the lantern-light. Tora was lucky to have Makio for a brother.
Ryuu walked over from a conversation with some of the younger boys and set one foot on the steps. “Are you doing all right?”
Duyên nodded with a soft smile. “Thanks for asking.”
Ryuu took a seat beside her, hands between his knees. “I saw Makio had to get Po away from you again.” Ryuu smirked.
Duyên chuckled. “It wasn’t like that. Po was actually being nice, he’s just… not the best company when my thoughts are heavy.”
“I hope I’m an improvement?” Ryuu wiggled his eyebrows.
Duyên laughed, head thrown back. Her expression faded to a grin as she turned back to Ryuu. “Yes.” She leaned up and kissed him briefly.
Ryuu grinned. “I’m happy to hear it.”
Duyên leaned on his shoulder and watched the lights dancing over the field a moment before closing her eyes and listening to the childrens’ laughter. She felt Ryuu press a long kiss to her forehead. Duyên released a contented sigh. “Can’t evenings like this just last forever?” she murmured.
“I wish.”
“Can we pretend?”
Ryuu rubbed her shoulder. “Absolutely.”
Duyên’s thoughts drifted and she fell asleep.
Biggest challenge this week: I’ve been struggling with both lack of motivation and the knowledge that my writing isn’t as descriptive as I want it to be. I’ve been able to push through the lack of motivation, for the most part, and I’ve learned over the week that momentum is a better friend than motivation anyway, lol. But, even telling myself I can fix it in editing, it’s frustrating to know my writing isn’t where I want it to be. :P
Biggest success this week: Probably learning that momentum is more helpful than motivation. I’ve gotten in a bad habit of writing only when I feel motivated, and NaNo has helped me break out of that and consistently write 2k per day regardless of how I feel when I start. And setting my goal a little higher than necessary gives me some buffer for the days I really don’t feel like writing. (I only wrote 500 words on Tuesday, but I had buffer room from hitting my goal the previous days, which was really nice.) I’ve found that shooting for 2k gives me a manageable goal to strive for, I can get started and get some momentum, and then it allows me to not feel like I’ve failed on days when I can’t reach it, as long as I’m meeting the goal most of the time.
How is writing going for you so far? Have you learned anything new about your writing process? Have any of your characters surprised you?
October 22, 2019
Book Review: Strange Waters by Phoenix Fiction Writers
The Phoenix Fiction Writers released a new short story anthology on Saturday, and I was fortunate enough to get to read an ARC! If you follow me on Goodreads you’ve probably already seen this review, but I’m super excited to share my thoughts on the collection here, as well. So without further ado, the review!
The Backpack Boy
This story was so well-written and endearing. It so perfectly captured the imagination of a little kid, the interactions between the elephant and the backpack boy were so sweet, and the twist was wonderfully executed.
Finer Things
This is one I struggled to connect with. Judging by what I understood from this story, the world Frank has created is really complex and interesting, but I felt like I didn’t get enough of a glimpse into the world and characters of the story to be fully invested. The writing was well-done, I just wasn’t able to personally connect with this story.
Roanoke
While this story is full of action and suspense, I found it difficult to connect with and didn’t really feel invested in the conflict going on. Though I wasn’t able to engage with it personally, it’s well-written and probably more enjoyable to a reader who enjoys high-stakes situations more than I do.
Kamynosa’s Labyrinth
One of my favorite things in Child of the Kaites was the way Wangler portrayed the relationship between the two main characters, and she’s written a similar relationship in this story. I loved the characters individually, and then their relationship was also extremely satisfying and ended exactly how I’d hoped it would. Plus, the worldbuilding in this story was really enjoyable and I loved the peek into a new culture in Wangler’s world (or at least new-to-me).
Barnaby Brown and the Glass Sea
The characters in this story were so quirky and fun to read. I loved watching them interact with each other. I was so ready to just keep reading this story forever… and then it ended. My only complaint is that it ended too soon, lol. I’m hopeful there will be more to this story in the future, but this was a delightful short.
Through the Lens
It took me a bit to get into this one, and I still didn’t feel fully connected by the end, but the general relationship dynamics between the characters and the glimpse into Dion’s culture was cool. I feel like things could have been fleshed out a little deeper, but I also understand the restrictions of short fiction, so overall this felt like a fairly solid short story.
Ric Vayne and the Curse of the Ghoul Nebula
Something I always enjoy about Shultz’s writing is his ability to use language to fully support the tone and content of the story he’s writing and to vividly paint his characters, and Curse of the Ghoul Nebula is no different. The characters were easy to engage with, Ric himself was a compelling protagonist, the imprecision of Ovo’s translator was really fun, and the whole adventure was perfectly paced.
The Underground
I was initially confused by the shift in POV and struggled to figure out who the second POV character was, but once I sorted that out I was able to follow the story fine. I didn’t connect with the characters very strongly and the plot felt like it didn’t really do much (I didn’t feel like Kef served much of a purpose, and they didn’t really change anything except to discover the Dragons and the Deep, and then that knowledge was only used to help them once and that was the end), but the Dragons and their ship were interesting and I’d be curious to learn more about them.
This Pain Inside
I was so fortunate to get to beta-read this one, so I already knew it was going to be awesome, but YES, IT’S AWESOME. While usually the first thing I gush about when I read Heath’s stories is the worldbuilding–and the worldbuilding in this one was good, also–what shines the most in This Pain Inside is the main character: Charlie. She’s a very authentic character with very real struggles and flaws, but also very real strength, and watching her journey through this story was amazing.
Overall, I really enjoyed this anthology, I look forward to reading more by all of these authors, and I highly recommend checking out their work. ^-^
Add on Goodreads | Buy on Amazon
October 18, 2019
Know the Novel Part 1 – Introduction
Christine Smith is hosting a link-up each month for the next three months (October through December) that’s mainly created for NaNoWriMo authors to share about their NaNoWriMo novels before, during, and after the writing process. (Though you can enjoy the link-up even if you’re not participating in NaNoWriMo!) This month’s link-up is all about introducing your project, so without further ado… an intro to Calligraphy Guild! :)
1. What first sparked the idea for this novel?
I know there were two big sparks that came together to create this story, but now I can only remember one. That’s going to bother me. But the part I do remember is that one night I had a dream about a magical, edible ink that would allow you to rewrite time if you drank it but would make you crazy irritable as a side-effect. The idea got adapted into a magical ink that allows you to rewrite time but that is used like a normal ink rather than ingested.
2. Share a blurb!
Dragon ink allows writers to set history in stone–or to change it. Only the most skilled and trustworthy are allowed into the ranks of the calligraphers, and no one is ever to change the past or the future. But when the Hairen calligraphy guild is set upon by ancient dragons demanding a time-changer be destroyed, Duyên Lai is left to wonder which of her guildmates has broken their oath and altered time.
3. Where does the story take place? What are some of your favorite aspects about the setting?
Ooooooooh. I like this question. Calligraphy Guild mainly takes place in the small Virilen village of Hairen (though they leave partway through… but the exact circumstances of that are a secret), and I adore this little village. Close-knit communities are some of my favorite to read and write, where everyone knows and supports one another, so I love that aspect of the village. And since it’s such a small village, it’s not terribly difficult to develop how things work and who knows who and how and let that color the setting and the story, which is super fun. And the weather is great. Weather is something I don’t play with enough in my stories, but Virilia is in a tropical climate and Hairen is right next to a rainforest, so I’m playing up the temperature and weather more and I’m really excited to explore that as I write.
I could ramble on about the setting forever, so I’ll stop now before I just write a whole post about it. XD (Although if you’d like a post of just me fangirling about my world, I would be happy to provide one. XD)
4. Tell us about your protagonist(s).
There are five of them… You’ve been warned…
Duyên Lai is the “official” main character and first POV character. She’s fairly new to the guild, since she’s only recently come of age, but she’s known everyone in it for ages so she’s super comfortable with everyone. While Duyên is pretty quiet and prefers to let others do the decision-making, she’s always ready to help the others around the guild and when things get tense she does her best to bring everyone back together.
Sairsha Kincaid is the character that the plot revolves around (though I won’t say how because… spoilers). We don’t see a lot from her POV because she has a more flowery voice that doesn’t suit the story as well, but she’s a significant part of the calligraphy guild. If you’re having a bad day, Sairsha will be the one to come ask if you need anything and offer to listen if that’s what you need. She’s super compassionate and sweet, and she adds more beauty and happiness to the guild through her art.
Zen Manh is the guildmaster, and he’s like everyone’s protective, encouraging big brother (or more like a dad, in the case of Ryuu and Duyên). He’s fiercely dedicated to his guild and those in his charge, and he does everything he can to keep the other guild members happy, motivated, and taken care of. When it’s learned that someone has betrayed the guild, he is NOT happy and goes into full protective mode. While he’s very deep and passionate about what he does, he’s also fun-loving and usually able to cheer up anyone having a down day.
Ryuu Tăng is just a little older than Duyên, and he’s the jokester of the group. He’s a little immature and struggles to show that he takes things seriously, but his heart is in the right place and he really does care about the people around him, so he’s often frustrated that people don’t see that. He’s always able to make his guildmates laugh.
Tora Lôi is fairly young, but she’s been part of the guild for nine years and she’s deeply ingrained in the working of things. Though she’s very independent, she’s also a firm believer in the need for community and does everything she can to encourage and spur on her guildmates. She’s the type to tell you you can’t do something to get you to do it (likely because that’s what motivates her to do something ;) ).
There are three other members of the calligraphy guild, but since there are so many, total, I’m only counting the characters that get POV moments at some point in the book. (Am I going overboard with the POVs? Time will tell.)
5. Who (or what) is the antagonist?
Well since the antagonist is a secret, I’ll go with the antagonistic situation, which is the distrust sown among the guild members when they find out someone has rewritten time. The guild members try to work through it, but it really strains things and it’s sad.
6. What excites you most about this novel?
…All of it? Not so much the plotting, because that’s something I always struggle with, but I love the premise and the characters and the character relationships and the atmosphere and the village dynamics and the music and the fact that it centers around writers and… I just really love this book, in case you couldn’t tell. XD
7. Is this going to be a series? Standalone? Something else?
The current plan is for it to be a standalone, but I love this setting and these characters so much that I’ll probably end up writing spin-off stories in the future, lol. (I’m already writing bunches of bonus scenes for writing class assignments, and they’re so. fun.) And since it’s in the same world as Kersir, it’s technically tied in with those, even if they’re not sequential like most series.
8. Are you plotting? Pantsing? Plantsing?
Plotting. Which kind of stinks, because I hate plotting, but I know that without it I’ll just end up with a jumbled mess, so plotting it is. XD I’ve currently finished outlining six chapters out of a (currently) predicted fifteen, so I’m getting there, but I really need to buckle down in these last two weeks and get my outline finished.
9. Name a few things that makes this story unique.
Well… there’s an ink that rewrites time and the balance of the universe is (partially) enforced by dragons, which I think is pretty cool and unique. That’s the main thing. Most of the rest of it I’ve seen in some form in other stories, this is just a new combination of things that have already been done.
10. Share a fun “extra” of the story (a song or full playlist, some aesthetics, a collage, a Pinterest board, a map you’ve made, a special theme you’re going to incorporate, ANYTHING you want to share!)
Pinterest boards! :D I have one for Calligraphy Guild and one for Virilia, and I’m really happy with both of them. (I was going to embed them, but I’m having technical difficulties so I’ll have to just link to them instead. :P)
What are you most excited for in your current project? I’d love to hear about it down in the comments!
October 15, 2019
NaNoWriMo Resource Round-Up
NaNoWriMo is a significant undertaking, and it can help a lot to have some resources to fall back on both during prep for November and during the event itself. Here are some of the resources I’ve found helpful in past years.
Programs
Fighter’s Block
Fighter’s Block is a sprinting tool that’s great for cranking out words. You select a character, set a word count to beat, and hit start. You type directly into the site, and as long as you’re typing: 1) you’re lowering your opponent’s health points, 2) your opponent can’t hit you, and 3) you’re building up your own HP. If you stop typing, though, your health starts to deteriorate. Fighter’s Block has settings for monster speed (how quickly your HP fades if you stop), monster strength (how much HP disappears at a time if you stop), and the look of the word processor (font, size, background color, etc.). It’s a really handy tool, and it’s helped me out a lot over the years since I discovered it.
Scrivener
Scrivener is not a necessary tool for NaNoWriMo by any means, but if you have the money to invest it can be a great tool for November and beyond. It allows you to keep all of your planning notes and all of your actual draft in the same file, so they’re all easy to access and you don’t have to keep switching between windows, and even allows you to see them in the window side-by-side (which I’ve found helpful when referencing an outline). And if you’re participating through the NaNoWriMo site, you can get 20% off Scrivener, or 50% off if you win the event, so it might be worth investing in after NaNoWriMo instead (which I think is what I did a few years ago). But I do highly recommend the software, either way.
Community
Christian Teens Together!
If you’re a Christian teen participating through the NaNoWriMo site, come join us in this forum thread! It’s full of super supportive, kind, open people, and I’ve found it to be a really edifying atmosphere. We pray for each other all the time, we cheer each other on, we have respectful theological debates… It’s just a really cool group, so definitely come join us. :) (Fair warning, though: We talk a lot and it can be difficult to keep up sometimes. XD)
Story Embers
Story Embers is a website that was created with Christian authors–of all ages–in mind. The blog provides awesome faith-based writing advice, and the forums are a fun and encouraging place to talk about the craft, share our stories, and cheer each other on. We tend to be fairly quiet on the forums (at least from what I can tell, but I don’t check the new topics very often), so if you’re looking for something more fast-paced this probably isn’t a great fit unless you join it and another group.
Go Teen Writers
Teen writers in general are welcome to join the Go Teen Writers Facebook group, which is a great place to ask for writing advice and feedback. There are often word wars hosted in the group throughout November, which I’ve found super helpful.
Prep
Preptober Prompts
Preptober Prompts is an event I created last year and I’m trying to improve upon this year. Each day, there’s a prompt to get you thinking about your NaNoWriMo project in a different way than you might have before. If you haven’t been following it up to this point, you can catch up at the post above (there are links to all of the prompts so far), or you can just jump on this week over at Saver of Memories.
Articles:
5 Benefits of NaNoWriMo – Scribes & Archers
Why Bother With NaNoWriMo? – Pen of a Ready Writer
NaNoWriMo Prep Tips – Briana Morgan
Writing for NaNoWriMo: Making October Count – The Sprint Shack
Checklist: 30 Things to Do for NaNo Prep – The Road of a Writer
How to Rock NaNoWriMo This November – Well-Storied
November Tips
Articles:
Writing Tips for NaNoWriMo – A Tea With Tumnus
NaNoWriMo Tips: 9 Ways to Hit 50k in Less Than 30 Days – A Tea With Tumnus
How to Survive + Conquer NaNoWriMo – Jenny Bravo Books
6 Tips and Tricks for NaNoWriMo Success – Scribes & Archers
Side Note
For those of your participating in Preptober Prompts, today is the last day I’ll be accepting prompt submissions! If you want your blog to be featured at the end of this month, submit a NaNoWriMo prep prompt below!
October 14, 2019
Preptober Prompts Day 14 – 2019
The end of the week has arrived, and with it my answers to this week’s prompts. :)
Day 8 – How does your main character feel about music?
All of my main characters love music. Since they live in the lower villages music is a big cultural thing, but they also just love making music and find it a lot of fun. Almost all of them sing around work.
Day 9 – Does your antagonist have a song that’s special to them? What is it and why does it matter?
Seeing as my antagonist is a secret, if I told you then I’d have to kill you. ;)
Day 10 – Do any of your side characters play an instrument? What kind?
Yes, they do. Zen plays the pipa (a Chinese stringed instrument), and both Tora and Sairsha play the Đàn tranh (a Vietnamese instrument similar to a lap harp).
Day 11 – What song takes your MC back to their childhood?
There’s probably a Virilen lullaby that always makes Duyên think about her childhood and her family. She sometimes misses hearing it, now that her siblings are both too old for it.
Days 12 & 13 – Write about a memory your main character has about music
Music, loud and clear, traveled in from the village field to breach Duyên’s window. She looked up from her dolls and listened for a moment to identify the instruments and guess who was playing. Pipa, Đàn tranh, ocarina, dizi… Aside from the ocarina, which was played either by Dai or Diem, anyone could be playing.
Duyên snatched her own ocarina off the dresser and rushed into the kitchen, braided pigtails flying out behind her. Her parents were already in the kitchen, Alachi tuning his ruan and Meuma situating Sakura in the sling on her back. Duyên’s eyes lit up. “We’re going?”
Alachi chuckled. “Of course we’re going.”
Duyên squealed and rushed to the door to tie on her sandals, small fingers fumbling with the straps. By the time she finished, Alachi and Meuma were coming to the door. Duyên hopped up and pushed out the door, following the sound of multiplying instruments as she ran down the dirt road. Duyên pulled up short when she reached the edge of the kyang field and her eyes widened. It had started with only four musicians, but now half the village was playing! Duyên rushed over to Dai, whose colorful scarves made her easy to spot, and hopped up on the porch stair next to her.
“Did you help start this?” Duyên asked.
Dai shook her head and lowered her ocarina. “The Tăngs started it.” She pointed over at a quartet.
The quartet was composed of an alachi, a meuma, and a daughter and a son. Vinh, Sakae, Diem, and Ryuu. She knew Vinh because he’d made her ocarina, and she knew Sakae and Diem because they made a lot of the village’s clothes, but she only knew Ryuu from the few times she’d seen him walk past her house on his way to school.
The first song ended and the Tăngs launched everyone into a new tune that Duyên immediately recognized as a common folk tune. Unfortunately, she couldn’t sing all the words without getting her tongue tied up yet. Ryuu started the singing, and anyone not playing a wind instrument joined in. Duyên decided it was better for her to play along on her ocarina than try to sing it.
The music lasted probably two hours before Dai stood up and announced a break for lunch. As everyone filtered off the field, Alachi and Meuma walked over to Duyên, Meuma bouncing Sakura in her arms.
“Ready to head home?” Alachi asked.
Duyên‘s face fell. “No.”
Dai chuckled. “Would you all like to have lunch with me?”
Duyên lit back up. “Yes!”
“Only if it’s not too much trouble,” Alachi said.
Dai grinned, deepening her wrinkles. “Not at all.”
After lunch, Meuma headed home with Sakura while Alachi and Duyên stayed to enjoy more music. Duyên sat on Dai’s porch step as people started returning to the field, watching for the Tăngs. When they arrived, she jumped up and ran across the field to them, pulling to a stop just before she would have run into Diem.
“Hi,” Duyên said.
All of the Tăngs looked over at her and Diem smiled. “Hi, Duyên. How are you?”
“Good!” Duyên grinned. “I wanted to thank you for starting all this. It’s so fun.” Duyên looked over at Ryuu. “You sing really well.”
Ryuu tossed his dark hair and put on the most arrogant smile ever. “Thanks.”
Vinh, Sakae, and Diem wandered off to talk to other neighbors until everyone had returned.
Ryuu looked down at the ocarina in Duyên‘s hand. “What’s that?”
Duyên lifted it up. “It’s an ocarina.”
Ryuu frowned. “No it’s not.” He pointed to the round ocarina that Diem had set on the stair, in contrast to Duyên‘s nearly triangular one. “That’s an ocarina.”
“They both are.”
Ryuu snorted. “Two of the same instrument can’t look that different.”
“Yes they can.” Duyên frowned and placed her hands on her hips. “Ask your alachi. He made them both.”
“I don’t have to ask.” Ryuu snatched the ocarina from Duyên and ran off.
Duyên shrieked. “Hey! That’s mine!” She ran off after him, pumping her little legs as fast as they would go.
Duyên caught up to Ryuu and tackled him, grasping for her ocarina. As they both fell to the ground, there was a crack and Ryuu yelled. Duyên scrambled out of the way as he rolled over, nearly rolling on top of her, and her eyes widened as she saw that a shard of her precious ocarina had embedded itself in the middle of his chest. Panic flooded her mind.
“Help! Help!” Duyên frantically cast around, and a handful of villagers ran to the rescue. Duyên looked back at Ryuu, eyes wide. “I’m so sorry.”
Ryuu simply grunted with pain as Vinh scooped him up.
Sakae set a hand on Duyên‘s shoulder. “What happened?”
“He stole my ocarina and ran off and I chased him and… I didn’t mean to!” Hot tears began streaming down Duyên‘s face.
“Oh, sweetheart.” Sakae wrapped Duyên up in a hug and stroked her hair. “It’s not your fault, sweetie.”
Day 14 – What song describes your MC/What is your MC’s theme song?
I actually have no idea. :P
What was your favorite prompt this week? Don’t forget to follow Saver of Memories for the coming week’s prompts!
If you want to submit a prompt for the end of this month and get a chance to have your blog featured, you only have two days left! I’m closing submissions tomorrow night, so get your prompts in now! :)
