Beth Barany's Blog, page 22
June 10, 2022
Q&A with Dr. Jeanne Powell
Please welcome Dr. Jeanne Powell to our Featured Author Q&A series at Writer’s Fun Zone. Enjoy!
***
If you’d like to be considered for an interview, check out our guidelines here.
***
About Dr. Jeanne PowellOn to Our Interview!Dr. Jeanne Powell is a published poet and essayist. Four collections of her poetry from Taurean Horn Press and a book of essays from Regent Press are in print. She has taught in the OLLI, CS and UB programs on college campuses.
Q: Tell us who you are and what inspires you to write.
A: In addition to poetry, I write flash fiction, essays and very short stage plays, with five books in print from Taurean Horn Press and Regent Press.
I am the facilitator for a weekly writers group at Mechanics Institute Library. My reviews of films and cultural events appear at StarkInsider.
And I’m a budding nature photographer.
Q: How did you get to this place in your life? Share your story!
A: I wandered lonely as a cloud for years, but eventually heard the Muse yelling at me and began writing, after several brilliant careers too numerous to mention.
Q: What are you most passionate about?
A: Passionate about individual healing — both spiritual and emotional — so that together we may save our planet from ourselves. There is still time.
Q: Can you tell us a little bit about your writing process, routine, and/or rituals around your writing?
A: Being alert to what is around me, what people say and do as I wander about the city, is important.
I take mental note and sometimes physical notes. From those inspirations I create.
Sometimes I see a documentary or read an article which sets ideas into motion.
Q: What are a few challenges you faced in creating, marketing, or publishing your creative work? And your solutions to them.
A: So many challenges when one does not know what one does not know. I struck out on my own 20+ years ago and learned as I went. How to get into print and how to market involved a lot of research.
Today there is so much info available including workshops and consultants and books.
Creating involved attending a hundred open mics and listening with an open mind and asking questions and sharing my work.
Q: What do you wish you had known before you started writing fiction?
A: Wish I had known not to limit my imagination, and not to worry about form.
Start with an idea, then an outline, then character development.
The sky is the limit from there.
Q: What’s next for you in your creative work?
A: Finding time to create another hybrid, like my book Word Dancing.
This book involves poems, essays and my photographs.
The hard part always is choosing a title.
Q: Is there anything else you wished I’d asked? Please share!
A: There is so much joy in allowing oneself to create, and in finding out one’s work resonates with others.
Life becomes less impossible.
And laughter flows.
Two Seasons by Dr. Jeanne Powell“Jeanne Powell’s TWO SEASONS must rank among her best work, either poems or essays. These poems are inspiring and inspired because of their uncanny ability to transmit genuine feelings of rage and love, justice and injustice, with an eloquence and power that few contemporary American writers can match.”—Dennis Dalton, professor emeritus
Connect with Dr. Jeanne Powell
Website: starkinsider.com/author/jeannep
The post Q&A with Dr. Jeanne Powell appeared first on Writer's Fun Zone.
June 7, 2022
Adapt Your Fiction to a Screenplay: A Conversation with Dan Calvisi and Beth Barany
Enjoy this post and video about “Adapt Your Fiction to a Screenplay: A Conversation with Dan Calvisi and Beth Barany.”
***
In which Beth interviews Daniel about his Infostack offer for Write Publish Profit 5.0 on his webinar to help fiction writers adapt their material for TV.
Do you have a novel, short story collection, comic book or true story that you think could make for a great series on a streaming network?
This short, simple course will guide you to make the big decisions that will lay the foundation for a great pilot script and a dynamic pitch document (the two things you MUST have to sell a show).
It includes a webinar, a worksheet, an essay on the difference between movies and television, a sample beat sheet and two sample pitch decks that were used to sell big, hit shows.
This is the best starter kit you can find to get you on the road to making your original TV series a reality.
***
In the same Infostack offer, Beth is offering 80% off a Clarity and Change work session to help you overcome writers block, develop a writing practice, or overcome resistance and overwhelm to editing your novel.
All the details here:
Write Publish Profit 5.0
Daniel P. Calvisi is a Script Doctor, writing coach and the author of Story Maps: How to Write a GREAT Screenplay and Story Maps: TV DRAMA: The Structure of the One-Hour Television Pilot. He is a former Story Analyst for major studios like Twentieth Century Fox, Miramax Films and New Line Cinema.
He coaches writers, teaches webinars on writing for film and television and speaks at writing conferences. Many of his clients have worked with the top networks and studios in the industry, such as HBO, Warner Brothers, Disney, Sony, ABC, Showtime, Apple TV+, Netflix and others.
He has been endorsed by Script Magazine and featured on Indie Film Hustle, Film Courage and L.A. Screenwriter. He holds a degree in Film and Television from New York University. He lives in Los Angeles.
HANDY LINKSDOWNLOAD THE TV PILOT WORKSHEET:
https://actfourscreenplays.com/tv-drama-book/1-hour-tv-pilot-story-map-worksheet/
SITE:
https://actfourscreenplays.com
ABOUT BETH BARANY
Beth Barany is an award-winning novelist, master neurolinguistic programming practitioner, and certified creativity coach for writers. She specializes in helping writers experience clarity, so they can write, revise, and proudly publish their novels to the delight of their readers. Her courses are packed with useful hands-on information that you can implement right away. Her change work sessions help you step into the author life you want with ease and joy.
She runs an online school for fiction writers, Barany School of Fiction, including a 12-month group coaching program to help them develop an editing practice and get published.
She’s the author of Plan Your Novel Like a Pro, co-written with her husband and novelist, Ezra Barany. This book is based on a 5-star course that over 300 students have taken.
For more resources on publishing, book marketing, and novel writing, go to her blog, for and by creative writers, Writer’s Fun Zone.
To book a one-on-one clarity change work session, go here.
When she’s not helping writers, Beth writes magical tales of romance, mystery, and adventure that empower women and girls to be the heroes of their own lives.
HANDY LINKSDOWNLOAD “7 Essential Keys to Planning Your Novel: Story Preparation for Pantsers” EBOOK:
https://BookHip.com/FKMSBJR (sign up required)
Creativity Coaching for Writers site:
The post Adapt Your Fiction to a Screenplay: A Conversation with Dan Calvisi and Beth Barany appeared first on Writer's Fun Zone.
When Should I Copyright My Work? by Kelley Way
Let’s welcome back monthly columnist Kelley Way as she shares with us “When Should I Copyright My Work?” Enjoy!
***
I am often asked, when should I copyright my work?
Whether you have authored a book or created a piece of art, the good news is that you automatically have copyright.
Specifically, as soon as the work is “fixed” (i.e. written down, recorded or in some other format that others can perceive), it has a copyright.
However, you still want to register your copyright with the Copyright Office, for the reasons I went through in last month’s article, 3 Reasons to Register Your Copyright.
Following are some considerations for when to register your copyright:
Registering After a Work is CompleteRegistration is not legally required, so you can register at any time.
However, if someone infringes on your copyright and you haven’t registered the work yet, you’ll have to wait for your registration certificate to arrive before you can sue them in court.
If you won your case you would only be awarded the amount of money the infringer cost you– in other words, you would be reimbursed for lost sales and, if the court thinks it’s justified, your court fees.
In most cases the court would only order the loser to pay court fees for the winner if they felt the loser was a bad actor – or if they really didn’t like them.
If your work was registered before the infringer used your work, your case would be heard more quickly. And you could get additional fines imposed on the infringer because the court assumes the infringer acted in bad faith if the work was registered when they started infringing.
For all these reasons, it’s best to register early, ideally no later than three months after the work has been “published,” i.e. put on the market.
Registering Before a Work is CompleteI’m often asked if it makes sense to register a copyright before the work is published, or even before the work is complete.
Registration is absolutely allowed before a work has been published, and you can register an incomplete work if you want to.
However, the Copyright Office does not encourage this– they prefer to have the “final” version.
In addition, any changes to the work between registration and publication will be considered a “derivative work”– in other words, you’ll have to get a separate copyright that only covers the substantive changes.
There are sometimes advantages to this approach, but most of the time it’s just an extra hassle.
To summarize, you can register your work at any time, but the best time to do so would be just before or just after publication.
If you have any questions about when to register your copyright, or would like any assistance with the registration process, please feel free to reach out to me at kaway@kawaylaw.com.
***
Want to read more articles like this one Writer’s Fun Zone? Subscribe here.
***
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Kelley Way was born and raised in Walnut Creek, California. She graduated from UC Davis with a B.A. in English, followed by a Juris Doctorate. Kelley is a member of the California Bar, and an aspiring writer of young adult fantasy novels. More information at kawaylaw.com.
Also by Kelley Way
https://writersfunzone.com/blog/2022/04/05/can-i-use-a-trademark-in-my-book-by-kelley-way
https://writersfunzone.com/blog/2022/01/21/the-copyright-claims-board-is-coming-soon-by-kelley-way
The post When Should I Copyright My Work? by Kelley Way appeared first on Writer's Fun Zone.
June 3, 2022
Too Busy to Breathe: Are You Being Productive or Just Busy? by Catharine Bramkamp
[[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]
May 31, 2022
Mindset Shifts for Authors: New Ways to Look at Writing by Dave Chesson
[[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]
May 27, 2022
Why Is No One Buying My Novel? Part 2 by Janelle Riley
[[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]
May 24, 2022
Q&A with Cindy Kehagiaras
[[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]
May 20, 2022
Inspire Your Comedy with Old Photos by LA Bourgeois
[[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]
May 17, 2022
Facing Rejection and Asking Yourself: Are You Ready For the Yes? by Lisa Towles
[[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]
May 13, 2022
Applying Accounting Concepts to an Author’s World by D. F. Hart, MBA
Today we welcome a new guest writer to Writer’s Fun Zone, D. F. Hart who is stopping by to chat with us about “Applying Accounting Concepts to an Author’s World.” Enjoy!
***
As an accountant, I get asked a lot of questions from fellow authors once they realize that my ‘day job’ and background deals heavily with numbers.
Below are two common questions I’ve fielded over time. Hopefully, at least one answer here can help you on your author journey.
Q. What types of data should I be tracking?A. While you want to track production costs (cover design, editing, proofreading, formatting, etc.) you also need to keep track of your overhead costs (website build/domain, newsletter list builds, any money you spent to set up your business structure, etc.).
I call these things ‘the costs of doing business‘. The things that you’re going to spend money for, regardless of how many books you publish and sell, even if you don’t publish and sell any.
You’re also going to want to allocate that overhead against your books.
By “allocate” I mean, make each title ‘carry its fair share’ of the overhead cost by portioning out that expense across your revenue streams. If you like, you can take each title’s portion and split it out even further against each of that title’s formats. Such as applying a portion of expense against Z title’s eBook, paperback, large print, and audiobook.
As your number of titles and formats increases, the ‘overhead’ costs assigned to each will go down.
The Allocation ExampleI spend $300 per year for my website, and I currently have sixteen titles out on the market.
$300 / 16 = $18.75 per title
Let’s say for each title, I offer them in eBook, paperback, and large print. So, I could take that $18.75 per title, and put one-third toward each format of each title:
$18.75 / 3 formats = $6.25 per title’s format
In other words, each of my 16 eBooks would be responsible for helping me recoup $6.25 of my annual website costs.
Then, when you run a break-even calculation, you can be more comfortable knowing that once that title (or title’s format, if you broke it down to format level) reaches that # of units sold, it’s operating in the black (absent any recurring ad spend specifically for that title, that is).
Q. What’s a good way to help me decide how to spend my budget dollars? Where should my focus be?A. I believe first and foremost in running a break-even point calculation for every revenue stream that I do or am considering.
Once I know the number of sales past which something would become profitable for me, then I compare results to help me decide where best to focus my budget dollars – and my time.
The break-even formulaBreak-Even Units = Total Fixed Costs / (Sales Price per Unit – Variable Cost per Unit).
Or in plain language:
How many units I need to sell = My total costs to produce / My net royalty per sale
For example, I have book one of my thriller series out in eBook, paperback, large print, and audio formats.
I know the break-even ‘magic number’ for each one and I can tell you that by far, eBook is the best performing with regards to how quickly it surpassed its break-even point (no big surprise). But large print’s second place ranking did surprise me, as did audio coming in dead last.
Those trends tell me that right now, I’m better off not worrying so much about audio for other books in that series just yet.
In addition to different formats, some authors also have things like merchandising in place. And once again, break-even point calculation is a good place to start.
MerchandisingA custom-designed pin costs you $500 for a set of 100, and you sell each pin for $7. You’d only have to sell 72 of them to recoup your $500. (Formula: X units = $500/$7, or, X=72). The other 28 out of the 100 you bought would be 100% profit for you when they do sell.
But you also need to ask yourself: what is the demand for that pin versus a custom bookmark, or mouse pad – or hardcover, or translation, or audiobook?
And that’s going to vary from audience to audience.
Scented candles might work well for a romance audience.
Urban fantasy? Maybe not so much. Hardcover formats might be a better investment.
So, learning your genre’s fan base matters just as much as knowing your break-even numbers.
Want more accounting knowledge to add to your business toolkit? Grab D.F. Hart and Mark Leslie Lefebvre’s book Accounting for Authors today!
***
About the Author
D.F. Hart holds an MBA with accounting concentration and has worked as an accountant for over twenty-five years. When she’s not helping her fellow authors become better business owners, she’s writing mystery/thriller as D.F Hart and contemporary and suspenseful romance as Faith Hart.
You can find her at:
Her main website: www.2ofharts.com
Her accounting page: https://2ofharts.com/welcome-to-accounting-for-authors
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/D.F.HartTx
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/18999540.D_F_Hart
Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/d-f-hart
The post Applying Accounting Concepts to an Author’s World by D. F. Hart, MBA appeared first on Writer's Fun Zone.
