Alexander M. Zoltai's Blog, page 220

Taking Advice ~ Who's Experience Do You Trust? and Playing The Advice Game . . .

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Published on August 26, 2011 08:03

What Good Is Language?

Being an author, I find language quite handy and I'm sure folks who like to read find language a boon; why, even publishers can see value in language.

So, why in the world would I ask such a "silly" question in the title of this post?

First, I love speculative thinking. I've even written a number of posts that are gathered into the page, *What Are Words?

But, when it comes to language, knowing what words are and how they arise in the mind and find their way to the page or screen is one thing; contemplating why humans have language at all is quite another thing…

I've embedded a video below but, by way of introducing it, I want to harken back to two previous posts about advice:

Advice comes from a French phrase, ço m'est à vis, or "it seems to me".

And, like the caveats about advice in those two previous posts, I want you, as you enjoy this speculative video about why humans have language, to remember, no matter how interesting or helpful this man's ideas are, it's all as it seems to him :-)

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Our Comment Link Is At The Top of The Post :-)

Tagged: advice, How language transformed humanity, language, Mark Pagel, speculative thinking, taking advice, Ted Talks, writing advice

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Published on August 25, 2011 07:23

Playing The Advice Game . . .

Yesterday, I featured a post from Jane Friedman about determining if you're wasting your time trying to get published.

I also posted a teaser on Google Plus and used a link to her name that alerted her to the post.

She showed up here and commented :-)

I'd indicated that I was a bit ambiguous about her position concerning traditional versus self-publishing and she said I should feel ambiguous…

She then wrote another blog post called I Am Always Sincere, But Never Serious; and, though I can't be sure, I felt the new post was speaking to that sense of ambiguity.

Here's one snippet from the most recent post:

"…the truth about writing advice is that it's only helpful if you're the kind of writer who benefits from it. Not all writers do (or can). Plus there are always exceptions to each piece of advice."

That is the "ambiguous" truth of the advice game.

I read Jane with avidity. I take what she says and measure it against what I know, and can surmise, about my particular situation; then, I work to apply what continues to stick. I do this with all the writerly advice I explore.

Do read her post and roll around in the sweet ambiguity :-)

And for those who never click through links on blog posts, here's a great take-away from Jane:

"Every once in a while I like to remind people: Know that I'm sincere, but never serious. Forge your own path; write your own rules."

What's your take on writing advice?

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Our Comment Link Is At The Top of The Post :-)

Tagged: Ambiguity, Jane Friedman, publishing advice, There Are No Rules, writer's advice, Writers Resources, writing advice

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Published on August 24, 2011 08:06

A Certain Woman from Kansas…

Simone Benedict is a friend of mine. She's a writer who blogs and who I want to see published. She happens to live in Kansas.

Her wit is only exceeded by the wildness and whimsey of the tales she tells. Her commitment to writing is commendable.

Once, in the comments, I named her my Roving Reporter–out on the fringes of life's possibilities; bringing words of wonder to my readers.

Here's her first report:

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When Alexander asked me to write a guest post, a few of his words grabbed me. Roving, roaming, free and vagabond. Movement was my first thought.

My writing significantly improved when I heard:

Your writing must move.

I'd already heard show, don't tell and use active voice, not passive voice and the rest of those rules that are dictated to us. I needed to know the big picture and it was downright divine when I did. Writing must move.

How can we do that? At first it seems contradictory. Words on a page are stationary. The act of writing itself is mostly a stationary activity, as is the act of reading. So why is movement so important in writing? I don't have any pat answers. I do know it's a truth and good writing moves.

Depicting movement in writing is a part of the art, I've determined. There are some basics every writer can use to achieve it. Yet, it's a part of each writer's style. Movement involves speed and rhythm. I work on that while I write. I listen for the movement in others' writing. As I read, do I hear the "boom, boom" of a marching band or the gentle rocking of a lullaby?

Alexander has posted about the subject of imagery in writing. This too is a part of movement. Our words create visual images for the reader. When I read some writing, I see a series of snapshots. With other writing, I see a film.

If our writing moves as we're writing, I believe that means we're on the correct path. This quote by Annie Dillard vividly reveals movement while writing: "With your two bare hands, you hold and fight a sentence's head while its tail tries to knock you over."

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OK, now you get to ask Simone some really hard questions in the comments :-)

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Our Comment Link Is At The Top of The Post :-)

Tagged: Annie Dillard, Blogger, Kansas, reporter, Simone Benedict, writer, Writers Resources, writing tips

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Published on August 22, 2011 08:20

Too Much Advice Can Be Dangerous

Back in June I wrote the post, Taking Advice ~ Who's Experience Do You Trust? I featured advice from Joel Friedlander about publishing success.

I also shared some of my experience in learning how to take advice–basically, weigh it against the giver's experience.

Regular readers of this blog know I've left Facebook and Twitter behind and am utilizing Google Plus as my social media platform.

I got a share from Sue Van Fleet yesterday that led to a post from the literary agent Rachelle Gardner, How To Market Your Book.

Lo and Behold, it contains links to 33 blogs posts by writers about marketing and promotion. Whew!!

I've already spent over a year reading and digesting advice from more sources than I can remember; but, I will read through all those posts. Even though I know enough from my previous studies that I won't find much new. Even though most of the advice will be things I can't or won't do. Even though much of that advice will contradict itself. Still, I will read them.

Why?

Because, my experience of marketing and promoting my writing is only a little over a year old and I may just find something brilliant that actually fits my situation and temperament :-)

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Our Comment Link Is At The Top of The Post :-)

Tagged: book promotion, Google Plus, How To Market Your Book, Joel Friedlander, Rachelle Gardner, social media, Social network, Sue Van Fleet

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Published on August 20, 2011 07:08

Social Media and Authenticity

Many might disagree that a blog can be part of the social media landscape. Many blogs aren't written to fit into that terrain–they're personal outlets, sales tools, or showcases.

I consider blogging a social endeavor and I'm working to integrate it into my activity on Google Plus.

Certainly, I've written my share of (mild) rants that contain no hope of reader response–though they've still gotten that response.

Yes, I've written extremely serious and somewhat technical posts–even gathered a number of them into their own group called, * What Are Words ?–not expecting much social interaction but hoping to illuminate, wishing to uplift…

Still, most of my posts do want readers to interact; in fact, are written as "incomplete" unless commented on.

Reader comments can spur new posts and often contain information more important than the post they append.

Amy Sundberg has a blog called The Practical Free Spirit and recently wrote the post, Social Media: Do What You Love (or at least like).

If you blog or like to read blogs, you'd be doing yourself a favor to read that post. Let me share a couple nuggets to peak your interest:

"I've been hearing a lot in the past year about the craving we as a society have right now for authenticity, to the point that it has become something of a buzz word among certain circles. But jargon or no, I think it's relevant to the conversation. We can tell when someone cares deeply about what they're saying or doing, and their authenticity draws us in.

"We can talk about how much we love blogging all we want, but it is our actions that show whether we're being genuine. Do we post regularly or do we tend to find excuses to avoid it? Do we write about subjects that we obviously care deeply about? Do we engage in the comment section with thoughtful discussion? Do we approach the writing of a blog post as though it is one of the most important things we could be doing right now?"

Do read the rest, leave Amy some feedback, then come back here and tell me how I can improve your experience of this blog :-)

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Our Comment Link Is At The Top of The Post :-)

Tagged: Amy Sundberg, blog, Blogger, blogging, Google Plus, Notes from An Alien, social media, Social network

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Published on August 19, 2011 08:45

Traditional vs Self-Publishing ~ Is The Promotion/Marketing Different?

There's much to read about the "war" between traditional and self-publishing–most of it quite hyped.

I'm always happy when I find an article about the traditional publishing world that's rational and fair.

Jane Friedman recently had an interview with Amy Stolls, traditionally published and so honest about her experience it made me Whoot :-)

The post, How Much Has Book Marketing Changed Since 2005?, has shown me that some of the "hype" about the traditional route is true but there still are benefits to be had.

Do, please, read the whole, fascinating article but to entice you (and, fulfill the needs of those who won't go read it) here are a few nuggets:

"The Ninth Wife…was published by a large commercial house as a paperback original and was lucky enough to be chosen as one of the publisher's lead titles for the season, meaning they actually put a respectable amount of marketing muscle behind it."

"…my experience with the first book taught me this: getting all or mostly all good reviews doesn't translate into sales….But here's the good news, and where, I feel, everything has changed between then and now: more and more readers are finding ways to speak up and be heard and create buzz!"

She talks about author signings, Goodreads, Facebook, Twitter (which she's still trying to embrace), and Blog Book Tours.

And, while talking about poor experiences with author reading events, she said this:

"A literary center in my area asked me to do a reading this winter or next spring, long after the book has been out. I wrote back a counteroffer: how about something completely different? How about, for example, a fun Q&A with another author friend of mine, about the writing life, in which we talk about our books but also try to stump each other? That way, it's more fun for us because it's different, more fun for the audience because it's different, and we can cross-pollinate our fan base. I don't know why writers don't do more of this sort of thing."

My biggest take-away from the article (which was deeply fascinating) was that even with what Amy called, "a respectable amount of marketing muscle", she still has a significant amount of work ahead in promoting her book–as all writers do :-)

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Our Comment Link Is At The Top of The Post :-)

Tagged: Amy Stolls, Blog Book Tours, book marketing, book promotion, GoodReads, Jane Friedman, publishing, The Ninth Wife

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Published on August 18, 2011 07:05

7 Reasons Self-Published Authors Know Best

I self-published Notes from An Alien because it's such a niche novel and deserved to be in readers' hands sooner rather than later. I didn't have to go through a long, confusing soul/Internet searching to decide.

I didn't really learn all the advantages of self-publishing till after my book was published and I was doing regular posts on this blog.

In my scanning of my Google Plus Stream, I clicked-through a link that Mick Rooney shared. The author was Mary Louisa Locke and the blog post was, Why Self-Published Authors Know Best.

There are still reasons to go with a traditional publisher but I doubt any of those will ever apply to me.

I feel traditional publishing houses will still exist in the future but in such a transformed shape that we'll have to find a new way to classify them.

Go read Mary's post and then, do please, come back and let me know what you think, ok?

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Our Comment Link Is At The Top of The Post :-)

Tagged: author, book, M. Louisa Locke, Mary Louisa Locke, Mick Rooney, Notes from An Alien, publish, self-publish

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Published on August 17, 2011 07:48

Author Interview ~ Karla Telega, Part Two

I've done a number of interviews with yet-to-be-published writers and, back in February, I had great fun talking with Karla Telega. That was before her book, Box of Rocks, was published. I was ecstatic when she asked me to be a beta-reader of the book and now I feel a teensy bit like one of the midwives of that novel :-) And, now, I get to share her wonderful humor with you in this post-publishing interview:

Karla, what genre do you write?

My first love is humor. My first book is a mystery. Go figure.

Was there a defining moment when you felt that you were an author?

When I finished writing my first six pages, I realized that a) I wanted everyone to read it, and b) I wasn't finished writing yet. I had no idea then that I would one day be sweating through the Shelfari help menu for two hours, trying to figure out how to add an "author" flag to my avatar.

What was your favorite part about writing a novel?

I was terrified at the prospect of making up a whole world, when I can't even remember if I changed my underwear this morning. Turns out, that's what I love most about writing fiction, and yes, I'm wearing clean underwear.

Are there things that you feel you could have done better?

Always. The secure writers are doing shots with honest politicians and unicorns.

What's in store next?

Next is a humor anthology that I'm editing. My partner and I have compiled a really impressive line-up of cut-ups for the book. I'm so excited to be able to get attention for some deserving and talented humor writers. My Funny Valentine will be coming out the beginning of January, 2012. Meanwhile I'm promoting Box of Rocks, editing my humor book, and working on the next book in the mystery series. Sleeping is not an option.

How do you promote your book?

Here's where I feel like a newbie right now. I just wrote my first press release, I'm having my first book signing Saturday, and I'm trying to figure out how to look interesting enough so that people will want to interview me. And by "interesting," I don't mean I can open a jar of pickles with my toes.

Can you give a short description of Box of Rocks?

At the advice of her psychiatrist, Maggie confronts her fear of failure, small designer dogs, and an uneventful future by embarking on a series of hobbies that will test the limits of good sense. From hunting a fabled Lizard Man, to panning for gold, she and her friend, Cher, tempt the fates with one ill-conceived adventure after another. In a small gold mining town, their paths cross with an archaeology student, a bumbling killer, and a hidden goldmine. It is here they learn that the first step to surviving a mid-life crisis is: don't die.

Now that you've completed a novel, do you feel like you have particular strengths as a writer?

I love writing snappy narrative. I get to use all the comebacks and one-liners that I wish I could think of when I'm talking to someone. I also think I do a good job with character development. The people in my book come alive for me. I think I'm able to convey that pretty well to the reader.

What do you know now that you wish you'd known then?

Actually, I'm glad that I was naïve when I started writing. If I'd known the obstacles involved, I'd probably be stocking shelves at the grocery store right now, instead of sitting up at 3:00 AM dinking around on the computer. Did I mention the no-sleep part? Writing has been a rewarding and therapeutic ride. I can't imagine doing anything else.

Karla, thanks, so much, for gracing us with this return visit!

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For a regular dose of Karla's unique humor, do visit her Telega Tales Blog :-)

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Our Comment Link Is At The Top of The Post :-)