Rob Bignell's Blog, page 289

Writing Inspiration: Writers��� lifestyles

Reflect upon writers��� lifestyles that you���ve heard about on television/radio programs or read about in books. Did those writers possess a compassion for life and others? In what ways? How are their compassions similar to yours?

Need an editor? Having your book, business document or academic paper proofread or edited before submitting it can prove invaluable. In an economic climate where you face heavy competition, your writing needs a second eye to give you the edge. Whether you come from a big city like Nashville, Tennessee, or a small town like Turkey Creek, Louisiana, I can provide that second eye.

 

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Editor reading from novel at arts festival

You���ll be able to catch me reading from my books at the U-Fest arts festival in Rice Lake, Wis., on Friday, Aug. 14, and Saturday, Aug. 15. The event, which features live music, an arts and crafts fair, and a writer-related events, will be held on the UW-Barron County campus.

I���ll read from my novel Windmill Friday night at the Stories Under the Stars event held outdoors on the main stage. The event runs from 8 to 10 p.m.

On Saturday, I���ll read again from Windmill on the main stage between 12:30 to 1 p.m. 

Earlier that day, I am offering a presentation on ���How to Self-Publish a Book��� at the Student Center. The session runs from 8:30 to 9:15 p.m.

In addition, you���ll be able to purchase my books ��� which include a hiking guide to Barron County ��� at the Writers Row on the north side of the gym. I���ll be available to sign any purchases through the day.

Need an editor? Having your book, business document or academic paper proofread or edited before submitting it can prove invaluable. In an economic climate where you face heavy competition, your writing needs a second eye to give you the edge. Whether you come from a big city like Washington, D.C., or a small town like Truth or Consequences, New Mexico, I can provide that second eye.

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Writing Inspiration: Why do you write?

What is the purpose of your writing? That is, why do you write? What do you hope to accomplish? Now ask if your writing is true to that purpose.

Need an editor? Having your book, business document or academic paper proofread or edited before submitting it can prove invaluable. In an economic climate where you face heavy competition, your writing needs a second eye to give you the edge. Whether you come from a big city like Columbus, Ohio, or a small town like Ricketts, Iowa, I can provide that second eye.

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For God���s sake, gods sake, god sakes, god sake

I���m not certain what the devil has got into some writers, but there���s a lot of confusion and inconsistency regarding this phrase.

Part of the problem is that there are a number of regional variations in its use. Given this, God���s sake, god sake, and god sakes all are correct.

The odd man out (gods sake) is wrong because God is not capitalized and the apostrophe is skipped. In this specific instance, God is a proper noun, referring to a specific supernatural being, and sake belongs to God, requiring than an apostrophe to show possession.

So for Heaven���s sake, start capitalizing and punctuating this phrase correctly!

Need an editor? Having your book, business document or academic paper proofread or edited before submitting it can prove invaluable. In an economic climate where you face heavy competition, your writing needs a second eye to give you the edge. Whether you come from a big city like Las Vegas, Nevada, or a small town like Accident, Maryland, I can provide that second eye.

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Writing Prompt: Grow a seed from your journal

Suffering from writer���s block or need to add some spunk to your writing? The problem may be that you need to change up your routine.

To that end, try this tip: Do you keep a journal? If so, identify a kernel of a story idea that appears in it. Spend 15 minutes writing that story.

Need an editor? Having your book, business document or academic paper proofread or edited before submitting it can prove invaluable. In an economic climate where you face heavy competition, your writing needs a second eye to give you the edge. Whether you come from a big city like Kansas City, Missouri, or a small town like Truth or Consequences, New Mexico, I can provide that second eye.

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Make tables readable in your self-published book

When self-publishing a nonfiction book, you probably will want to include tables of some sort. If writing a book about rock climbing, for example, you might include a list of the National Climbing Classification System.

The problem with tables created in Microsoft Word is that they don���t resize well. In Word parlance, a table is a ���fixed format element.��� So if you create a table that is six inches wide, the text likely will be unreadable if you shrink it to fit on a paperback page that���s only five inches wide or look at it on an ereader screen that���s only three inches wide.

You have a couple of solutions.

One option is to create the table only after you know the paperback���s size and then limiting the table���s size to those measurements. So if the book size ��� discounting the gutters and margins ��� is 5 inches wide by 6.5 inches tall, the table must be no larger than that. To ensure it fits an ereader, you���ll want to make the table even smaller, say 3 inches wide by 4 inches wide. Doing this ensures there is no shrinking of the table at all, as it���s designed for the page or screen.

A second option is to make the table a picture. This is useful if there���s no way to make the table fit the page���s actual size, usually because there are too many rows or columns in the table to make that viable. You still can create the table in Word. When finished, take a screenshot of it and then save the screenshot as a jpeg. You may need to do some cropping to make the screensheet show only the table.

Need an editor? Having your book, business document or academic paper proofread or edited before submitting it can prove invaluable. In an economic climate where you face heavy competition, your writing needs a second eye to give you the edge. Whether you come from a big city like Atlanta, Georgia, or a small town like Atlanta, Idaho, I can provide that second eye.

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Five Great Quotations about the Writing Process

���I get up in the morning, torture a typewriter until it screams, then stop.��� - Clarence Budington Kelland

���...I discovered that if I trusted my subconscious, or imagination, whatever you want to call it, and if I made the characters as real and honest as I could, then no matter how complex the pattern being woven, my subconscious would find ways to tie it together - often doing things far more complicated and sophisticated than I could with brute conscious effort. I would have ideas for ���nodes,��� as I think of them - story or character details that have lots of potential connections to other such nodes - and even though I didn't quite understand, I would plunk them in. Two hundred pages later, everything would back-fit, and I'd say, ���Ah, that's why I wrote that.������ - Tad Williams

���In many cases when a reader puts a story aside because it ���got boring,��� the boredom arose because the writer grew enchanted with his powers of description and lost sight of his priority, which is to keep the ball rolling.��� - Stephen King

���Writing a book is a blood sport. If it doesn���t hurt when you���re done, you���re probably doing something wrong.��� - Kevis Hendrickson

���Writing is a lot like making soup. My subconscious cooks the idea, but I have to sit down at the computer to pour it out.���- Robin Wells

Need an editor? Having your book, business document or academic paper proofread or edited before submitting it can prove invaluable. In an economic climate where you face heavy competition, your writing needs a second eye to give you the edge. Whether you come from a big city like Springfield, Massachusetts, or a small town like Burnt Corn, Alabama, I can provide that second eye.

 

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Writing Inspiration: Seek another���s advice

Have another person read a manuscript that you have been working on for some time. Use their advice to revise the piece.

Need an editor? Having your book, business document or academic paper proofread or edited before submitting it can prove invaluable. In an economic climate where you face heavy competition, your writing needs a second eye to give you the edge. Whether you come from a big city like Orlando, Florida, or a small town like Beer Bottle Crossing, Idaho, I can provide that second eye.

 

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Four ways to write a great tweet that sells books

One of the best social media outlets for promoting your book is Twitter. That���s because you can target a specific audience of readers who would be interested in your book, and many of those who are interested likely will retweet it to others who you haven���t yet reached. Ironically, though, a lot of writers pen poor tweets and miss out on this promotional opportunity.

By following a few simple guidelines, though, authors can write great Tweets that attract attention to your book and grow your list your followers (Note: The following advise presumes you include a link in your tweet to a blog post you wrote or to a web page that sells your book):
��� Focus on what���s in it for the reader ��� Saying that you have a new book out is ho-hum (Read my new book about plumbers!). Lots of people have new books out. What the reader wants to know is why your new book is entertaining to read (What if your plumber were a serial killer?) or that there���s an obvious benefit to them (Five ways to stop a plumber from ripping you off).
��� Be specific ��� If you���re too vague (The surprising truth about plumbers), you won���t grab the reader���s attention. Instead, tell exactly what the link in your tweet is about (Plumbers are poisoning your tap water!).
��� Dump the smoke and mirrors ��� Some writers make over-the-top promises (The secret to selling a million ebooks in 24 hours!). No one trusts these tweets. Honesty (How to boost your ebook sales via Twitter) works much better.
��� Ask a question ��� Especially with fiction, posing a question that briefly states what the story is about works well for arousing a reader���s curiosity (What if a widower met the spitting image of his deceased spouse?).

Need an editor? Having your book, business document or academic paper proofread or edited before submitting it can prove invaluable. In an economic climate where you face heavy competition, your writing needs a second eye to give you the edge. Whether you come from a big city like Boston, Massachusetts, or a small town like Boston, Georgia, I can provide that second eye.

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Writing Inspiration: Who are you?

Being authentic requires that you be in touch with yourself. Ask yourself who you are (That is, how how do you define yourself?). What makes you happy? What are your passions (beyond writing, of course!)? Does your writing reflect who you are and what you feel most strongly about?

Need an editor? Having your book, business document or academic paper proofread or edited before submitting it can prove invaluable. In an economic climate where you face heavy competition, your writing needs a second eye to give you the edge. Whether you come from a big city like Portland, Oregon, or a small town like Papa, Hawaii, I can provide that second eye.

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