Elizabeth Spann Craig's Blog, page 115

Tips For Being a Writer

by Anne-Laure Thiéblemont,  @LeFrenchBook

I just wanted to write. How I dreamed of that when I had nothing but a day job. Yet, if I hadn’t had that job, how could I give my stories the same realism? What I do know is that writing means I lead a double life. It’s a job, it’s a craft, it demands do it regularly and alone. Here are some tips I have picked up from my life as both a reporter and a fiction writer.



– There is no writing without passion. If your drive comes from anywhere else—wanting to make a living or be recognized and admired—you had best do something else.

– Find the time—take it from your sleep, your vacation, your time with others, your family life. I recommend at least three hours a day.

– Writing is also reading, particularly at the beginning when you still have all the techniques to learn.

– Read to understand how dialogue works.

– Read to understand how protagonists evolve, experiencing some for of transformation or even initiation.

– Read to understand how stories are cut into chapters.

– Read some more to understand that everything has a meaning and nothing is innocent—a description of landscape or a décor is only interesting if it plays a role in the story and interacts with the characters.

– It is not writing that counts the most, but building.

– Take your time. Let the text sit for a week or a month or more. Get some distance from it and even start over again.

– Never get discouraged. Perseverance is part of a writer’s DNA.

An art reporter and trained gem specialist based in Marseille, France, Anne-Laure Thiéblemont is known for her investigations into stolen art and gem trafficking. Her art world mystery novel, The Collector, just came out in English, published by Le French Book. 

The Collector: 

Some people collect art, others collect trouble. Marion Spicer spends her days examining auction catalogues and searching for stolen works of art. She is a top-notch investigator when it comes to eighteenth-century art. But for her it’s just a job and her life is well ordered. All this changes when she inherits a prestigious collection of pre-Columbian art from a father she never knew. There are conditions attached: she must first find three priceless statues. Her father’s death sparked much greed, and Marion finds herself facing the merciless microcosm of Paris art auctions and galleries, with its sharks, schemes, fences, traps, scams, and attacks. Her quest draws her into a world where people will kill for a love of beauty.

 

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Reader Expectations for Genre

By Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

I just finished  reading Woman With a Secret  (released as The Telling Error in the UK) by Sophie Hannah.  I’ve read a fair number of unreliable narrator books lately.  This one definitely caught my attention and sustained my interest.

One thing bothered me, as a reader and a writer.  There were several points at the end where different police investigators of the murder (and it was a murder mystery, although it could also be called a psychological thriller…more on that later), clearly knew who the killer was.  They stated they knew who the killer was, but didn’t let the reader in on it.  It’s a quibble.  But I’m a mystery writer.

This technique is still, technically, fair play in a mystery.  The great Agatha Christie kept her readers on pins and needles as Poirot gathered everyone together in a room to disclose the killer’s identity.

But many modern mysteries allow readers to solve cases alongside the sleuth, letting us in on their thought processes.  Since this novel had alternating POVs, readers weren’t always with the sleuth solving the case.  We were also in the head of one of the suspects.  Readers did have access to the same information that the police did, especially one very clever clue, I thought. The teasers, to me, were frustrating.  One of the suspects said that they’d (trying to obscure plot points with a vague pronoun, sorry) figured out why the victim had perished the way he had.  Then a detective said the same.  Then another detective knew who the killer was.

It was just a little too much teasing for me.  I might have been able to overlook one tease, but not several. Because, ultimately, the book was a whodunit.  Or was it?

That’s what made me think.  If this had been set up as more of a psychological thriller (which some reviews label the book as), then I think I might not have had the expectation that I could solve the case alongside the detective.  If we’d had some short bits from the killer’s POV, maybe.  But it was set up enough like a traditional mystery/whodunit that I was frustrated by a declaration of the case being figured out—and then a break to an alternating POV.

But the thing is…Ms. Hannah could very well be genre-blending.  With thrillers, readers aren’t necessarily trying to solve the crime—frequently we know who the killer is at the beginning of the story.  This book had elements of a psychological thriller and elements of a whodunit.  Was the author trying to take on too much? Or are mystery readers’ expectations (and mine) too rigid?

As a writer, I strictly follow the tenets of my subgenre, cozy mysteries.  The books, honestly, could be read by children because aside from the gore-free murders, there is nothing particularly disturbing about them.  No profanity (well, none in all but the first couple of books), no sex, no descriptions of violence. Nothing very dark. The murders occur off-stage. The puzzles are (hopefully) clever and my use of deep-POV is intended to make the readers feel they’re solving the cases alongside the sleuth. My readers have certain expectations associated with the genre and I deliver what they’re looking for.   This pleases me too, since I like being especially creative while writing within the limits, within the parameters, of my subgenre’s “rules.”

But I’ve enjoyed books in the past that have done a bit of genre-blending.  Paranormal mysteries are fun.  Mysteries with a bit of romance offer something a little different.  So…is it just a problem when an author dispenses with such a large reader expectation—the almost interactive mystery experience?

I did enjoy the book.  It certainly made me think as a mystery writer.  My question is this: each genre has its own set of standards or conventions.  Should we always pander to reader expectations?  Obviously, from an artistic sense, we’re completely free to deviate from the framework. But when is it okay, from a commercial sense, to blur the lines a little with category fiction?  How far can we/should we go?  Any examples of bestselling books that have really colored outside the lines?

Should we always follow our readers' genre expectations?
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Twitterific Writing Links

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

Twitterific writing links are fed into the Writer’s Knowledge Base search engine (developed by writer and software engineer Mike Fleming) which has over 30,000 free articles on writing related topics. It’s the search engine for writers.

3 Steps To Developing A Solid Author Brand: http://ow.ly/Qx1aA @NikkiWoods

Create a Plot in 3 Easy Questions:  http://ow.ly/QwZlP  by Rebekah Lee

What YouTube Can Do for Writers:  http://ow.ly/Qx1pM by Teymour Shahabi @pubperspectives

11 Steps to Turn Your Plot Bunny into a Full-Fledged Novel: http://ow.ly/Qzj7i @shesnovel

The Passion to Teach, the Courage to Write:  http://ow.ly/QzhNB @LindsayDetwiler @womenwriters               

3 Rules on Writing About Your Family:  http://ow.ly/QziVG @hollyedexter

Envision Your Author Success with a Vision Board:  http://ow.ly/QziIj @wherewriterswin

Completing a Novel: A Look At Various Writing Methods:  http://ow.ly/QzhZ4 @Margo_L_Dill

Dear writer with countless half-finished stories:  http://ow.ly/Qzint by Jim Woods

Be Well, Write Well: Do A Character Study on Yourself:  http://ow.ly/QwYHJ @sowulwords @DIYMFA

How to be a Better Writer: Get a Running Partner:  http://ow.ly/QwZep @ErinMFeldman

Amazon’s top 10 best-selling Kindle authors: http://ow.ly/Qx1hW @Telegraph

Who Is Your Audience in Writing?  http://ow.ly/QwZ7o @McgannKellie

7 Writing Rules For Fiction:  http://ow.ly/QwYtj  @winellroad

How to Use Subplots:  http://ow.ly/QwYQM @Savage_Woman

Misspelled and Misused Foreign Phrases:  http://ow.ly/QwZ2b  @Jen_328

Can a Virtuous Character Be Interesting?  http://ow.ly/Qx0Hr @nytimesbooks by Thomas Mallon and @alicegregory

How to Find Your Novel’s Path: http://ow.ly/QwYXu @kelsieengen

10 Tips for Writing Fight Scenes:  http://ow.ly/Quba2 @robinrwrites

4 Tips to Craft a Killer Novella:  http://ow.ly/Qu9Yi by E. M. Denning

5 Tips To Deal With Internet Trolls and Bullies:  http://ow.ly/Qufo1  @_LexiScott

4 Ways to Fail as a Writer (And One Way to Succeed):  http://ow.ly/Qu8D7 @hodgeswriter

Quick Writing Fix: Improving the Flow:  http://ow.ly/Quas9 @lindasclare

From the Notebook of a Spying Writer:  http://ow.ly/Qu8yA @wordsxo

The Practice of Success:  http://ow.ly/QudGg @sarahrcallender

The Terrifying Benefits of Public Speaking for Writers:  http://ow.ly/Qudn5 @MaryVeeWriter

Can digital community support writing, really? #FutureChat 11a ET/4p BST (now) @Porter_Anderson

Keeping Informed Through Podcasts:  http://ow.ly/QC5Kj

How to Go Viral on Tumblr: 5 Steps:  http://ow.ly/Qu8Ms @BookshelfOfDoom

Can digital community support writing, really?   http://ow.ly/QC5TG @Porter_Anderson @LASbauer

How To Avoid “Episodic” Writing:  http://ow.ly/QuaBi @patverducci

Tighten Your Scenes: http://ow.ly/QuaKm  @patverducci

Avoid implementing our culture on our historical/fantasy novel:  http://ow.ly/Qua8V from You’re All Write” tumblr”

Emotional Wounds Thesaurus: Making a Very Public Mistake:  http://ow.ly/QrkXP @beccapuglisi

Platform Building for Beginners: Where to Start? http://ow.ly/QrlVi @ava_jae

Using Scrivener Collections to Organize Your Novel Project:  http://ow.ly/QrlFh @shesnovel

‘The Elements’ Of Good Book Apps:  http://ow.ly/Qzfs4 @Porter_Anderson @TheodoreGray

How to Avoid the Novel Slump:  http://ow.ly/Qrlsj @AJHumpage

You Can’t Please All Readers:  http://ow.ly/QrcZ5 @noveleditor

5 Ways In Which Sketching Inspires Writing:  http://ow.ly/Qrm8K @rsmollisonread

How To Write A Great First Scene:  http://ow.ly/QrlZL @StephMorrill

“Wasting Time” on a Practice Novel:  http://ow.ly/Qrd24 @noveleditor

Online Anger Among Crusading Writers: “Why Wasn’t I Consulted?”:  http://ow.ly/Qzfgd @Porter_Anderson @ThoughtCatalog

Getting Your Book Ready For Discovery: http://ow.ly/Qrm5h  @amcbooks

How to Nail Your Novel Pacing: http://ow.ly/Qrly1 @shesnovel

Cover Design: Book Covers Need to Grab Your Reader’s Interest:  http://ow.ly/Qrd6R by Sue Bradford Edwards

What is Your Character’s Fatal Flaw?  http://ow.ly/Qrl3U @KelsieEngen

5 Step Recipe to Create Your Protagonist’s Inner Circle: http://ow.ly/QrlJB @sacha_black

How to Punctuate Dialogue:  http://ow.ly/QqUnu @noveleditor

Do readers fall in love with your voice?  http://ow.ly/QqTRH @CalebPirtle

10 Things Best Sellers Don’t Do:  http://ow.ly/QqUVF @AmyMilesBooks

The Writer’s Delusion and Telling it Slant:  http://ow.ly/QqTAw by  Charity Singleton Craig @EDayPoems

What 1 Writer Learned Sending Her Novel Out Under a Male Name:  http://ow.ly/QwZMM @passivevoiceblg @clnichols6

What is Your Character’s Internal Struggle? http://ow.ly/QqUae  @Margo_L_Dill

Hiring a Freelance Editor:  http://ow.ly/QqU32 @c_vandenhende

Ebooks and the ‘2nd Disruptive Wave’ of Publishing:  http://ow.ly/QqUH7 @Porter_Anderson @PhilipDSJones

Balancing Dialogue and Description in Your Story:  http://ow.ly/QqUhg @RidethePen @JaneFriedman

7 Reasons Why a Writer Needs Heroes:  http://ow.ly/QqT5y @colleen_m_story

9 Ways To Ensure An Unforgettable Read:  http://ow.ly/QqUwJ @writers_write

21 Proofreading and Editing Tips for Writers:  http://ow.ly/QqSZx @WritingForward

5 Ways to Improve Your Writing’s Flow: http://ow.ly/QqSS0 @mrJRPatterson @thePenleak

Pros and Cons of Using a Pen Name:  http://ow.ly/QotHm @mariamurnane

Making Monsters:  http://ow.ly/QotPC by Naomi Richards @GothImagination

Using lists when writing:  http://ow.ly/Qotny @rodriguez_linda

The Pronoun Predicament:  http://ow.ly/QotEW by Annie Tucker @shewritesdotcom

What to Do When You Start Doubting You’ll Finish:  http://ow.ly/QuaUF @patverducci

When Friends and Family Read Your Book: Survival Tips:  http://ow.ly/QotyI @KateBrauning

Tips for Expressing Thoughts:  http://ow.ly/Qu99X  @RMNSediting

Character Development & Movement In Fiction:  http://ow.ly/QotqY  @tennessee_love

Mysteries Don’t Need Murders:  http://ow.ly/Qou2f @GerrieFerris

Give Wattpad Another Try:  http://ow.ly/QotV8 @RonEstrada

Contractions List: When To Use and When To Avoid:  http://ow.ly/QotpO @joebunting

Pros & Cons of Collaboration:  http://ow.ly/Qotww @ChristaDesir

Conferences: Advancing Your #Writing Career:  http://ow.ly/QotZj  @robincaroll

Diversity in Children’s Books Is Hard to Find —But Important:  http://ow.ly/Qotku @whet

Powerful Dialogue: Shorter Is Often Sweeter:  http://ow.ly/QnWGd @AnnetteLyon

7 ways to promote your book while watching TV:  http://ow.ly/QnX1h @sandrabeckwith

The Importance of Crediting Book Illustrators’ Work: http://ow.ly/QqNxf  @Jabberworks @Porter_Anderson

How to Personify the 7 Deadly Sins:  http://ow.ly/QnWKn by David Mesick @mythcreants

Why Your Non-Disclosure Agreement Is Probably a Bad Idea:  http://ow.ly/QnWTZ @JaneFriedman

5 Ways to Improve Your Email Newsletter Performance:  http://ow.ly/QnWUR @JaneFriedman

Multiple Points of View: Good or Bad? http://ow.ly/QnWMu by Melinda Brasher

Do you write to write? Or write to sell?  http://ow.ly/QnWW6 @OrlyKonigLopez

Authors Guild Calls For Time-Limited Contracts:  http://ow.ly/QqNgV @Porter_Anderson @ThoughtCatalog

Writing a Short Story vs a Novel:  http://ow.ly/QnWIW by Chris Winkle @mythcreants

4 ways to revive a stale book:  http://ow.ly/QnX0n @bookgal

Writing in the First Person: Pros and Cons:  http://ow.ly/QnX4L @DebbieYoungBN

How to Blog to Readers:  http://ow.ly/QnX3e @AtulyaKBingham

Interesting but apathetic characters in crime fiction: http://ow.ly/Qq4Ic @mkinberg

5 Tips To Becoming A More Conversational Writer:  http://ow.ly/QnWYi @RogerDColby

3 Step Method to Finding and Fixing Plot Holes: http://ow.ly/QnWZf @RogerDColby

How trials are more like plot-driven movies than character-driven novels:  http://ow.ly/QnhcJ by Philip N. Meyer

6 Magic Phrases to Sell More Books:  http://ow.ly/QngLP @WhereWritersWin @sandrabeckwith

Thrillerfest: Industry Experts on Platforming:  http://ow.ly/QngEP @EmilyWenstrom @DIYMFA

What a Synopsis is Not:  http://ow.ly/QnhfG by Michael Kim

Kill Characters with Purpose:  http://ow.ly/QngH9 @artofstoriesAB

Top writing links from last week:
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Keeping Informed Through Podcasts

By Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig                   

I’ve never been much of an audiobook listener due to my impatience.  I know I’m an extremely fast reader and I get frustrated by the slower pace of narration.  I thought the same would be true for industry podcasts. Recently, however, I’ve gotten into them.  This has surprised me, since I’d usually rather skim a transcript over listening to anything.

I still do like the transcripts to remind me of salient points.  But now podcasts are helpful resources that I enjoy listening to.  I think that’s because I’ve now got a system for making them useful for me.  I know some of you are light years ahead of me on this stuff.  I thought I’d blog my revelations  in case any of you out there are where I am in the discovery process.

I tend to listen to them when exercising (to forget that I’m exercising, since it’s my least favorite activity) or driving.

It took me a while to realize that I could subscribe to and download podcasts.  I’d thought it would be some painstaking process of pulling websites up on my phone, clicking play, and then watching my data minutes get used up.

Instead, I use free podcast apps,  Stitcher and Podcast Addict to subscribe to different podcasts.  Once I’m subscribed, I’m alerted to new episodes. Then I download the episodes to my phone. That’s key to avoid those nasty data charges when the wifi is horrid at the YMCA (i.e., all the time).  I plug in my earbuds, and learn.

And learning is what it’s all about for me. I wish I had time to be entertained, but I’m really just in search of helpful industry news and information.  And forgetting that I’m at the gym.

In the car, I have Bluetooth enabled and listen to podcasts while I’m driving (and driving and driving) my daughter to different activities.  The podcasts play through the car speakers. And entertain my nearly 14 year old! Or not. :)

I can still be an impatient listener.  Still that person who’d rather skim the transcript.  But the nice thing about Stitcher and Podcast Addict and all those other apps is that we can speed up the recording.  Which, sometimes, results in a hilarious effect, but frequently just means that I can skim the audio.  And then slow it down during parts where I really need to absorb the information.  I follow up by reading show notes on the various websites or the transcripts.

I follow a fair number of shows, but there are some I listen to more than others:

Joanna Penn.  She’s always so professional and seems to be a couple of steps or more ahead of me.  I tend to be cautions and I like following people who are experimenting.

Rocking Self Publishing Podcast.  Genial host Simon Whistler with interesting guests.

Science Fiction and Fantasy Marketing Podcast.  Several hosts here. One is Lindsay Buroker, and I’m a fan of her blog, as well.  Useful for all genres.

Sell More Books Show.  Nice news wrap-up.

Self Publishing Podcast.  This is one that’s frequently NSFW, so heads-up on that. I believe they’re revamping their show now to make it more business, less social. A good deal of useful information and an interesting look at the way the men do business as writers.

The Author Biz. Stephen Campbell’s guests always have interesting things to talk about.

Hope this helps for anyone else who is as clueless about podcasts as I was.  They’re a nice, free way to learn more about writing and marketing. And listening to voices does, somehow, evoke more of a personal touch.  It can help me to absorb the information more easily.

Do you listen to podcasts?  Which ones? I’m always looking for something new.

Keeping informed through podcasts:
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Improving Traditional Publishing

By Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

Recently, I was asked if I’d ever consider writing for Penguin or another publisher again.  I never like to say never because never is a long time in publishing.

But things would have to radically change for me to go back.  The amount of income that I bring in by self-publishing is far greater than the amount I bring in with trad-pub (although I have fewer self-published titles).  There would have to be some real incentive.

After some thought, this is what I came up with:

Better royalties.  Much better royalties.

No non-competes (don’t get me started on the last contract I saw).

No rights grabbing.  Allow me to retain rights to audio and foreign sales.  Allow me to get my rights back if things don’t work out between us (incidentally, this hasn’t been a problem for me, but I’ve heard nightmare stories from other authors).

Monthly payments.  Royalty statements that I can understand and access online (the online part is rolling out now).

More input into cover design, if I want it.

I’d like my books to be competitively priced in the market.  The market as a whole, not just the traditionally published market.

Marketing.  And I don’t mean catalog listings…a modern approach to marketing/getting the word out.

Real support with my own marketing: in particular, website help/design help, help with social media.

But even then…I’m still not sure I’d go for it.  I’m not sure exactly what I’d be using them for.  I’ve done all this stuff myself with better financial results.  Maybe what I really need is a virtual assistant and less stubborn determination (pigheadedness?) to do it all myself.  I’ve already started outsourcing some of the things I really dislike (accounting), so maybe it’s smarter for a self-starter author to just outsource more than to go through a publisher.

Just a note here that others will choose differently.  I know some writers state they have no time for learning self-publishing and no money to be able to pay a cover designer or formatter upfront.  I totally understand that.  But maybe there needs to be another option here…traditional publishers that take cover design and formatting costs out of the advance or initial royalty payment.  Publishers sometimes use the argument that business costs involving book design necessitate the royalty plan. But we all know excellent covers aren’t worth having low royalty rates for our lifetimes (and they certainly don’t cost that much for publishers).

What reforms would you like to see traditional publishers make?

Ideas for improving traditional publishing:
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Twitterific Writing Links

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

Twitterific writing links are fed into the Writer’s Knowledge Base search engine (developed by writer and software engineer Mike Fleming) which has over 30,000 free articles on writing related topics. It’s the search engine for writers.

5 Ways To Check If Our Ending Suits Our Genre:  http://ow.ly/QmHVG @AnthonyEhlers

How to Develop an Outline for Our Novel:  http://ow.ly/QmI0i @farrtom

An author’s views on marketing can change over time:  http://ow.ly/QmI5D

Groundhog Day: Streamlining the Story:  http://ow.ly/Qn7Mf by James Napoli    

The 4 Types of Productivity Styles: http://ow.ly/Qn7Sf €@thecarsontate

10 Beginnings That Authors Should Avoid:  http://ow.ly/QfGyo  @selfpubreview

How to Revise a Novel:  http://ow.ly/QngQU @AnneGreenawalt

Why Talented Writers Fail: 4 Roadblocks:  http://ow.ly/Qnh2V by Michael Kim

6 Tips for Writing an Epistolary Novel:  http://ow.ly/Qnghg @TracyMarchini

6 Tips on Writing for Children:  http://ow.ly/QngCX @katytowell

How To Write A Novel In 30 Minutes Per Day:  http://ow.ly/QngJD  @writersedit

How to get the most out of a writers’ conference:  http://ow.ly/QngYA @sandrabeckwith

8 tips for using foreshadowing in the middle of our book:  http://ow.ly/QmHO0 @plotwhisperer

9 Tips to Make Your Next Writers’ Conference Awesome:  http://ow.ly/QmHIL @bookgal

Advice for Authors from a Bookseller’s Perspective:  http://ow.ly/QmHHl @THahnBurkett

How The Rules Of Screenwriting Can Improve Our Prose Fiction:  http://ow.ly/QmHEP @chris_shultz81

How a Scene List Can Change Your Novel-Writing Life:  http://ow.ly/QmHyi @monicamclark

Tips for Dealing with Depression as a Writer: http://ow.ly/QmHrR  @Lexirad

Horoscopes for writers: WriterScopes. August’s is up at:  http://ow.ly/QmAez @JanetBoyer

The Blogger’s Guide to Telling Stories That Win Hearts and Minds: http://ow.ly/QmAbu @RidethePen

Translating Criticism into Practical Tasks:  http://ow.ly/Qigwv by Shawn Coyne

Truth and Fiction: Girl Cliques:  http://ow.ly/QigpC @beccapuglisi

Get Out of the Serious Writer” Trap with 10 Ways to Laugh:  http://ow.ly/Qig4L @colleen_m_story”

How to Punch Up Your Action Scenes:  http://ow.ly/QigKs  @RidethePen

One-Starred: The Importance of Criticism and Why We Should Take It: http://ow.ly/Qih5J  @CEMcKenzie1

Story Development: 3 Keys:  http://ow.ly/Qiftd  @michaelschilf

4 Lies of Storytelling:  http://ow.ly/QifAd  @berkun

Train Your Mind for Writing with Great Books:  http://ow.ly/QiglR by Julia Reffner

#FutureChat: Enhanced ebooks: ‘Is That All There Is?’ 4pBST / 11aET / 8aPT (now): http://ow.ly/Qk20D  @Porter_Anderson

How to Ignore Pessimistic Family and Friends:  http://ow.ly/QifP3 @berkun

Bird watching in crime fiction:  http://ow.ly/QkoAK @mkinberg

5 Tips on Pitching an Agent In Person: http://ow.ly/QigaG @TraceyAfter50

10 Tips for Memorable Minor Characters:  http://ow.ly/QifZR  @SKouguell

The Best of Twitter’s ‘10 Things Not To Say To A Writer’:  http://ow.ly/QigP8 @iamthehiggs

1.1 Million Copies Later: Go Mock A Watchman: http://ow.ly/QimmG @Porter_Anderson @ThoughtCatalog

Making the Leap from Blogger to Book Author: http://ow.ly/QfGW4 @JFBookman

Deconstructing the Differences Between Thrillers & Mysteries: http://ow.ly/QfF7q @authorkendrick

On Writing And Mindset For Indie Authors:  http://ow.ly/QfGHy @thecreativepenn @susankayequinn

5 Quick Fiction Writing Tips:  http://ow.ly/QfGal @angee

8 Bad Reasons To Be a Writer: http://ow.ly/QfH1y @deborahdeetales

2 New Efforts In Publishing Diversity: http://ow.ly/QilyT @Porter_Anderson @ThoughtCatalog

Use Tension to Keep your Readers Hooked:  http://ow.ly/QfGg1  @WriteToSell

How to Write a Series: 8 Mistakes:  http://ow.ly/QfEFY @nownovel

Literary Consolation Prizes:  http://ow.ly/Qieam by @grantdraws via @AuthorCrush

6 Clues We’re Overusing Internal Dialogue in Our Fiction:  http://ow.ly/QfH9q @MarcyKennedy

10 Ways to Kick Writer’s Guilt to the Curb:  http://ow.ly/QfGsd @colleen_m_story

5 Things to Know About Querying:  http://ow.ly/QfFTw @carlywatters

10 Beginnings That Authors Should Avoid:  http://ow.ly/QfGyo  @selfpubreview

How to Use Song Lyrics in Your Book: http://ow.ly/QfFHp  @KathrynGoldman

Why We Should Sell Your Books on Apple: http://ow.ly/QbOAp @amcbooks

How to Negotiate Like a Pro (Part 1):  http://ow.ly/QbO97 @susanspann

Indie Author Pep Talk:  http://ow.ly/QbOqS @larin20

10 Writing Mistakes that Kill Our First Chapter:  http://ow.ly/QbONY @MarcyKenned

3 Reasons to Review Our Grammar Often:  http://ow.ly/QbOic @artofstoriesAB

How to Use Our Logline, Tagline, and Pitch to Create a Stronger Story:  http://ow.ly/QbOZ6 @MarcyKennedy

Why writers aren’t as sophisticated as readers. http://ow.ly/QbNHo @CalebPirtle

The Writer’s Game Plan:  http://ow.ly/QbNP5 @angiedicken

Tips for Writers Who Don’t Work Well With Outlines:  http://ow.ly/QbO2v @stephmorrill

Nonfiction Writers: Speak Your Way to Successful Authorship:  http://ow.ly/QbNzK @NinaAmir

Are you writing as much as you’d like to be? Help banishing your doubts: http://ow.ly/QbNe7 @KBullockAuthor

When We’re Stuck in the Writing Process:  http://ow.ly/QbOJP  @monicamclark

How Not to Get Sued When Writing about Real People:  http://ow.ly/Q9o7y @edsikov

Emotional Wound Entry: a Role Model Who Disappoints:  http://ow.ly/Q9p6u @angelaackerman

5 Top Tips for Writing Chapter One:  http://ow.ly/Q9n4w @sacha_black

Top 10 Things to Consider If You Want to Write Comedy:  http://ow.ly/Q9ove from A Writer’s Path

Archaic Procedures: Book Returns:  http://ow.ly/Q9nuI @111publishing

Genre, Story Tips And Getting A Film Deal:  http://ow.ly/Q9nYU @chasharris @thecreativepenn

Does Poor Word Choice Kill a Story? http://ow.ly/Q9oXS @AJHumpage

What agents want…and don’t want (pitches on Twitter).  #MSWL  http://ow.ly/QbM7X @Porter_Anderson  @thoughtcatalog

The 7 Narrator Types: http://ow.ly/Q9pqQ by Stephanie Orges

The 9 Best Apps And Tools To Help Writers Boost Productivity:  http://ow.ly/Q9mOB @writers_write

10 Things to Do Before Editing Your First Draft:  http://ow.ly/Q9ogk @ShesNovel

The Puzzling Prologue Problem:  http://ow.ly/Q9oQe @CVDalcher

20 tips for creating relatable –and lovable –protagonists: http://ow.ly/Q9pyh by  Stephanie Orges

Creating Your Own Sell Sheet: http://ow.ly/Q68GH @SouthrnWritrMag by Annette Cole Mastron

Looking for crit partners/beta readers? http://ow.ly/Q68Pr @KMWeiland

Using ‘Free’ as an Incentive:  http://ow.ly/Q7oYZ

Twitter Is Now A News Medium:  http://ow.ly/Q69qA @Porter_Anderson @thecreativepenn

5 Top Tips on being a more resilient writer:  http://ow.ly/Q68gR @ActivePatience_

How to Deal with Book Piracy:  http://ow.ly/Q68JS @Nicholas_Rossis

Romance Writers, You’ve Got to Own it:  http://ow.ly/Q69l3 @womenwriters @dlwebb

Story Equation: Applying the 4 Variables:  http://ow.ly/Q698e @michaelschilf

The unexpected effect of the €œperma free€ strategy on 1 writer’s productivity:  http://ow.ly/Q8Ony @mlouisalocke

Success Feels Better, But Doesn’t Necessarily Make You Better: http://ow.ly/Q68T2 by  Susannah Grant

The Sprint Method of Writing:  http://ow.ly/Q7nxt @ramonadef

Character Creation: Personality Core:  http://ow.ly/Q691B  @michaelschilf

The role of the village policeman in crime fiction: http://ow.ly/Q7qit @mkinberg

Audio Book Sales Increase: the Rising Popularity of the Digital Download  http://ow.ly/Q7njC @SpunkOnAStick

Wired in Series:  http://ow.ly/Q68Bj @EButlerBooks @SouthrnWritrMag

Boulevard: A Great Lesson on Torturing Your Protagonist:  http://ow.ly/Q68XG by Douglas Soesbe @CreativeScreen

The Art of the Pitch and Synopsis:  http://ow.ly/Q69dM @northerain

Productivity Methods for Writers:  http://ow.ly/Q69ck @northerain

Surviving the Space Between: A Writer€™s Journey:  http://ow.ly/Q4XPV @MSHeatherWebb @WriterUnboxed

Tax Tips for UK Authors: http://ow.ly/Q4Wu1 by Natalie Butlin

Podcasts as content: is it right for your marketing strategy? http://ow.ly/Q4WqW @wearearticulate @KatelynPiontek

Lessons Learned from Foreign Sales:  http://ow.ly/Q4WkX @lnelsonspielman

How to Build a Book Audience:  http://ow.ly/Q4Wos @nownovel

The Plot Hole That May Not Be A Plot Hole:  http://ow.ly/Q4WnC @vgrefer

Put Blog Readers First:  http://ow.ly/Q4WKC @robertleebrewer

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A Changing Marketing Mindset

By Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

My firstborn will be leaving home for college in a couple of weeks and it’s put me in a reflective mood.  This is unusual for me, since I’m ordinarily not even reflective at the end of the year.

My first traditionally-published book was Pretty is as Pretty Dies in 2009.  At the time, Kindle wasn’t even really making a ripple in my consciousness.  I had an author friend of mine at a signing to tell me that he had a Sony ereader and it seemed sort of Star Trekkish to me. I couldn’t imagine wanting to read on one or what the potential benefits might be.

I’d thought the same thing about personal computers when I became introduced to them in the 80s. The contraption looked like an unwieldy typewriter to me and I couldn’t conceive how it could be useful to me.  Then the internet came into play and suddenly computers were life-changing for me in every way…ingraining themselves into my routines and habits.

Before my first book came out, I had an actual teleconference with the publisher, my editor, a book designer, and in-house marketing people on cover design and a marketing strategy! This was 2009 for Midnight Ink.  This never happened again for me, with any other imprint or publisher.

My feelings toward marketing went through several different iterations.  There was the moment when I realized the burden of promo was actually on me, not the publisher.  I obediently jumped into action…sort of.  I did the suggested blogging and social media, even signing up for a course on how to get started.  But I retained a sense of shyness around readers and decided to stay within my comfort zone of sharing resources and interacting with writers.  I remember in early 2010 I was at a conference and a fellow author said, “Penguin has got to love you.  You’ve got so many followers on Twitter!”  And I said, “I don’t think they have the slightest idea that I’m even on social media.”

By the time my imprint, Obsidian/NAL had a presence on Twitter, I was about 20,000 followers ahead of them.  And then they were very aware of social media and its use in promo.  I was asked to retweet them or plug my book.  This made me uncomfortable because it wasn’t my M.O. on Twitter.  I don’t promote there. I reluctantly sent a couple out, but the whole time I was thinking…why are they even on Twitter?  For the most part, that’s not where their readers are found.  They’re on Pinterest and Facebook.  Even I knew that, and I’m not even big on either platform.  The reason I’m on Twitter is because that’s where writers and industry people are.

So there started to be, for me, a little tension there.  Not ever between my editor and me—she was always fantastic. But between me and the publisher.  I felt a lack of support in the marketing arena and then a sort of resentment that I’d had to learn every darned thing myself…the blogging,  copy writing, social media, finding authors to blurb me.  Even searching up reviewers was sometimes on my plate when I’d end up with a box of ARCs. I hooked up with email loops to figure out what I was doing. I signed up for classes, studied blogs,  read articles, and lurked a lot.

In response to what I was reading on everything from traditionally-published author email loops and boards to Yahoo Groups to blogs, I did market the new release in 2010.  With some reluctance since I had just accepted an additional series with another imprint…bringing my total to three.  I went on a book tour with a group of trad-published authors.  I participated in blog tours and giveaways.  I emailed people I knew about the release. I went to reader conferences like Malice Domestic (photo above).  I felt my efforts did little and were personally draining.

Then I had an epiphany in early 2011. I had way too many releases to treat each one as a major event.  This realization also served to make me feel alienated from other trad-published writers. Some of them also had multiple releases in a year, but they worked the system really well…knocking themselves out with countdowns, giveaways, blog tours, and networking with other authors for coverage/promo/Facebook mentions.

I couldn’t do it.  But not doing it made me feel guilty because the other writers were doing it.  I came across an article in a now-defunct blog that stated: author publicity makes better sense than book publicity.  I even blogged about it at the time. I should just be working on making myself visible and accessible to readers.  That I should continue doing what I enjoyed, build my profile online, and stop doing things I didn’t enjoy.

That worked really well for me, too.  But this year, four years later, I’ve decided I could stand to be more thoughtful in my outreach to readers.  Because, to be perfectly honest, readers had not factored into my strategy at all.  And, with 18 book out, it was about time to start targeting them a little more. This year I’ve tweaked my book description and keywords, built up my email list, sent newsletters and set up autoresponders, created Facebook ads, and explored translation.  But I’ve still made the time to write several books.  It’s helped that I’ve set myself timers when learning and implementing marketing strategies.

I’m sure I’ll adapt and change and hopefully grow more as time goes on.  But right now I like the balance I’ve created.

Have you changed your opinion of marketing?

An author's views on marketing can change over time:
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Using ‘Free’ as an Incentive

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

Free book promos aren’t for everyone.  Some writers are passionate about receiving payment for their hard work.  Other writers don’t yet have enough published work to offer one of their books for free. It’s possible, also, that writers of standalones might not find as much value in a free promotion as series writers.

For me, I’ve found that free book promos do have their place.  I use them often.  In fact, at least one of my books is always free.

I don’t like the idea of Kindle Unlimited (KU), because I don’t like putting all my eggs in one basket.  I’ve also found that anytime I cut back on any platform, I hear from readers.  And I hate making readers upset.

Instead, I use Amazon’s price-matching policy to make my books free.  In the past I’ve used Smashwords (a book distributor) to make my book free on other retailers (Kobo, etc.) and then Amazon has rapidly matched the price.  I’m now experimenting with Draft 2 Digital (another distributor), which I’ve really enjoyed dealing with so far.  You can make your book free on Nook with Draft 2 Digital, which does put pressure on Amazon to match the price quickly.  Also (and I’m straying slightly off-topic here, sorry), Draft 2 Digital seems much easier to work with.  More on them on their FAQ page.

Ways I use free book promos:

To introduce readers to my books.  They’re more likely to take a chance on a new-to-them author if the book is free.  The free book functions as a sort of ‘loss leader,’ using grocery store parlance. The hope is that the promo funnels readers to my other books.

As an incentive for signing up for my newsletter.  (I wrote about the mechanics of getting the free books into the hands of the readers in  last Monday’s post).

To elicit reviews for a new book.  Goodreads giveaways provide an easy way of doing this, if you’ve got a print edition of your book.  But I’ve also found that reviews follow a free book promo on Amazon…usually several weeks after the promo has ended.  It’s true that sometimes free books can result in lower ratings from readers.  That’s because some of these readers aren’t our intended audience.  But, for me, this strategy for gaining customer reviews has worked well, despite the occasional bad review.

To introduce my books to a younger demographic.  Wattpad‘s users are mostly 30 and younger (with a heavy concentration of teenage readers).  Since many of my readers are seniors, I’m trying to ensure a future for my series.

Do you use free book promotions?  What other promo have you used successfully?

Image: MorgueFile: DodgertonSkillhause

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Twitterific Writing Links

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

Twitterific writing links are fed into the Writer’s Knowledge Base search engine (developed by writer and software engineer Mike Fleming) which has over 30,000 free articles on writing related topics. It’s the search engine for writers.

For any curiosity seekers, I released my ‘cozy zombie’ book last week. :)  

How to Polish Your WIP Before Sending:  http://ow.ly/Q2lRG @ava_jae

Mini Writing Retreat:  http://ow.ly/Q2lV1 @JulieMusil

No More Love Triangles, Please:  http://ow.ly/Q2mxf @srsharms @bookriot

5 Things To Remember When Building A Blog Tour:  http://ow.ly/Q2lH5 @MistyMassey

5 World-Building Tips for Writers of All Genres: http://ow.ly/Q2mga  @SaraL_Writer           

The Plotting Grid: a Tool for Plotters and Pantsers:  http://ow.ly/Q4Wgl @ChrisMandeville @KoboWritingLife

Writing Selfishly:  http://ow.ly/Q4WBr @kristaphillips

Casting the Thriller:  http://ow.ly/Q4WDO by Shawn Coyne

Setting alerts for our name and books:  http://ow.ly/Q4WFe @cathychall

10 Ideas for Descriptive Writing: http://ow.ly/Q4Wxu  @WritingForward

4 Hidden Dangers of Writing Groups:  http://ow.ly/Q4WyD @jennienash @JaneFriedman

What Secret Does Your Character Keep?  http://ow.ly/Q2lZV @angelaackerman

How NOT to Publish a Picture Book:  http://ow.ly/Q2lqi by Val Jones @2writingteachrs

Crime Writing: Determining Time of Death: http://ow.ly/Q2mpS @SueColetta1

A look at social class in crime fiction: http://ow.ly/PQ4U6 @mkinberg

When we’ve written ourselves into corners: http://ow.ly/Q2m4F @glencstrathy

3 Ways To Use Inverted Dialogue In Our Story: http://ow.ly/Q2mbm @AnthonyEhlers

Website Ranking: –5 Basic Metrics:  http://ow.ly/Q2laD @karencv

Print Vs. Ebooks: Does It Pay To Do Print?  http://ow.ly/Q2mlI @mollygreene

How To Write a Story 101: Character:  http://ow.ly/Q0se0  @hodgeswriter

Writing Tighter Sentences:  http://ow.ly/Q0rZ5 @lindasclare

How to use quizzes to promote a book:  http://ow.ly/Q0rN4 @OramStephen

Audiobooks: Getting Started with ACX:  http://ow.ly/Q0sxL @AmyPatrickBooks

Trad Authors, Do You Know Where Your Money Is? http://ow.ly/Q3pTH @angiehodapp

Why Podcasting Interviews Are Essential:  http://ow.ly/Q0rHh @AudioMktgExpert @bookbaby

Increase Writing Productivity: 7 Tools: http://ow.ly/Q0sjr @nownovel

Estate Planning Basics for the Self-Published Writer:  http://ow.ly/Q2gV4 @KathrynGoldman

Free Online Resources for Self-Publishers:  http://ow.ly/Q0rTs  @AuthorMelindaC

What to Include in Our Backmatter:  http://ow.ly/Q0sRd @ceciliaedits

5 Reasons Smart Authors Love Instagram:  http://ow.ly/Q0sHe @LauraMcNeillBks

Are book prices too low?  http://ow.ly/Q1XAa  Discussion at #FutureChat: 4pm BST, 11 am ET (now) @Porter_Anderson

The type of reader you write for may determine your writing process:  http://ow.ly/Q1T4Y @BarryKnister

9 Ways to a Faster Book Deal:  http://ow.ly/Q0s9L @susanshapironet

Why We Don’t Need to Worry About Protecting Our Idea:  http://ow.ly/Q0s3a @BookEndsJessica

Authors’ Top 10 Misused Phrases:  http://ow.ly/Q0sn5 by Annie Tucker Morgan

Create a Niche for Your Blog:  http://ow.ly/PW6NH @RobertLeeBrewer

Political dissent in crime fiction:  http://ow.ly/PQ4vy @mkinberg

The Brain on Storytelling: The Reader-Character Connection: http://ow.ly/PW6Zf @writerolody

Seating solutions for authors:  http://ow.ly/PW79e @DebbieYoungBN

Why Your Novel’s Hero Should Fight a Good Guy (in 11 Uncontrived Steps):  http://ow.ly/PW7cz  @betternovelproj

Character Voice Consistency:  http://ow.ly/PW6IJ @AmberSkyeF

5 Ways Writers Get Lazy:  http://ow.ly/PW6fx @jodyhedlund

The joy of reading role-playing games:  http://ow.ly/PW7zk @damiengwalter @guardianbooks

Want a great character? Find a loser.  http://ow.ly/PW6Dg  @CalebPirtle

Will Readers Find Our Protagonist Worthy?  http://ow.ly/PW5yb @angelaackerman

11 Ways to Optimize Your LinkedIn Profile for More Exposure:  http://ow.ly/PW6mv @kikolani

Author Epiphany: “I Film-Track My Novels”:  http://ow.ly/PW64s  @SarahMMcCoy”

Commonly Confused Words: – One Word or Two? http://ow.ly/PW5Wu by Melissa Gilbert

10 Costly Mistakes Authors Make:  http://ow.ly/PTeQN @bookgal

4 Revision Goals: Conflict, Emotion, Surprise, Enrich:  http://ow.ly/PTfGp @fictionnotes

Main Character Level: Expert!  http://ow.ly/PTers @artofstoriesAB

What A Writer Learns from Facebook Partying:  http://ow.ly/PTfta @angiedicken

Mistakes that 1st-Time Self-Published Authors Make:  http://ow.ly/PTg6w @miralsattar @BiblioCrunch

11 Secrets to Writing Effective Character Description:  http://ow.ly/PTcwQ by Rebecca McClanahan @writersdigest

How Expressive Writing Can Improve Our Emotional and Physical Health: http://ow.ly/PTfbC  @paisleyhansen

Why Horror is Good For You (and Even Better for Your Kids): http://ow.ly/PTe2v  and http://ow.ly/PTe7L @GregRuth

5 Fundamentals of Great Author Newsletters:  http://ow.ly/PTbZn @cherylrwrites

Continuity Goofs: Avengers, Hunger Games and Our Novel:  http://ow.ly/PTfQG @fictionnotes

Fishing Out Our Manuscript Hook:  http://ow.ly/PTeGK  @katemoretti1

Domestic Noir in Crime Fiction:  http://ow.ly/PQ4f3 @mkinberg

How to Write Your Characters’ Thoughts: http://ow.ly/PTceh @cherylrwrites

Will We Ever Be Able To Trust Online Reviews?  http://ow.ly/PSJKl @Porter_Anderson

Find Motivation To Complete Your Novel:  http://ow.ly/PQaU3 @angee

Diversity in Our Characters: Economic Inclusion:  http://ow.ly/PQeG1 @stacey_cochran @FionaQuinnBooks

Write between the soft edges of summertime: http://ow.ly/PV1E8 @JELindholm

Crutch Words:  http://ow.ly/PQe07 @JessicaPMorrell

The importance of relationships in fiction:  http://ow.ly/PQeeZ @shalvatzis

What authors think of Amazon’s Pay-Per-Page model: http://bit.ly/payperpage @ReedsyHQ @OrnaRoss @annerallen

6 Bad Reasons to Write a Novel …and 6 Good Ones:  http://ow.ly/PQf6x @annerallen

Crime fiction where police have a presence but aren’t protagonists:  http://ow.ly/PQ383 @mkinberg @kbowenwriter

Book Returns: What they Mean For Publishers and Authors:  http://ow.ly/PSF4V @SpunkOnAStick

Tips for when we’re stuck when writing:  http://ow.ly/PQfw3 @SarahLaddAuthor

On Time Transitions and Flow:  http://ow.ly/PQaE7 from Black Crow Calling

During writing setbacks, remember it’s all about communication with a reader:  http://ow.ly/PSEIH @megwolfewrites

The Authors Guild’s Stab at Reform and the Schism it Revealed: http://ow.ly/PSJnY @Porter_Anderson

Novelists that have woven together SF and crime fiction: http://ow.ly/PQ3OQ @mkinberg

30 Blog Post Ideas For Writers:  http://ow.ly/PQeo4 @writers_write

Starting a Story: Don’t Mention the Weather:  http://ow.ly/PQb2z

Embracing Discipline and Accountability:  http://ow.ly/PQffV by Brian DeLeonard @mythicscribes

Supporting an author’s or illustrator’s new book:  via @inkyelbows http://ow.ly/PQfMi

6 Methods to Build a Book Audience:  http://ow.ly/PNOg7 @nownovel

12 Secrets to Selling More Books at Events:  http://ow.ly/PNOtE @bookgal

4 Real-Life Starting Points for Story Ideas:  http://ow.ly/PNOlZ @WanderfulWorld1

Good Screenwriting is About GREAT dialogue: http://ow.ly/PNODL @storiesin2light

Best Poems from the 21st Century Offer 3 Book Writing Lessons: http://ow.ly/PNO83 @nownovel

Emotional Wound Entry: a Role Model Who Disappoints: http://ow.ly/PNO5K @angelaackerman

The Brain on Storytelling: The Reader-Character Connection:  http://ow.ly/PNOck @Writerology

How to Write a Short Story from Start to Finish:  http://ow.ly/PNOhT @joebunting

What to do When Amazon Pulls Reviews: http://ow.ly/PNOni @bookgal

The Difference Between Genre and Category:  http://ow.ly/PNOpH  @brooke_warner

Make Book Trailers with YouTube’s Free Editor: http://ow.ly/PNOrq  @RJCrayton

5 Ways the Hero’s Journey Affects Writing Process:  http://ow.ly/PNOBi @ShannonGiglio

The Email Marketing Trap Fiction Writers Must Avoid:  http://ow.ly/PMD3h @storyrally

Writing a Series – 6 Secrets:  http://ow.ly/PMDri @nownovel

Is AutoCrit a Good Fit for Indie Authors? (Review): http://ow.ly/PMDyX  @jenn_mattern

Tips for How To Show, Not Tell: http://ow.ly/PMDuk @SueColetta1

The ‘Bi-literate’ Brain: The Key to Reading in a Sea of Screens: http://ow.ly/PMDkK @manoushz @brainpicker

Publishing Contracts Matter To Indies Too: http://ow.ly/PMDNw @JaneSteen

Who Is Your Audience? http://ow.ly/PMDdc @McgannKellie

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Pantsers, Outliners, Savor Readers and Fuel Readers: Writer Beware

by Barry Knister, @BarryKnister

“Pantser” and “Outliner” are terms used by writers to describe different approaches to writing novels. The CEO of the very good website you’re visiting, Elizabeth Spann Craig has written effectively in personal terms on the subject.

In over-simplified terms, pantsers write as inspiration dictates, by the seat of their pants, whereas outliners do advance planning in the form of outlines before they begin writing their work.

Outliners are often both envied and pitied by pantsers. Outliners strike pantsers as drudges, people better suited to accounting or shredding documents. To a committed pantser, the very idea of outlining drains all the joy of discovery from the act of creation by approaching the job of writing as just that. A job, work.

At the same time, pantsers often experience bouts of wistful regret about not outlining. They don’t impose order and system on what they do, thus leaving themselves at the mercy of inspiration, alcohol, controlled and not-so-controlled substances, the muse, metabolism, and shifts in barometric pressure.

Outliners ignore all such crutches or empediments to “getting the work out.” Sick, bored, exhausted—no matter. They forge ahead like weary horsemen bent on reaching Dodge City by nightfall. The seat of the outliner’s own pants is glued to the chair in front of a computer. She or he bangs out each day’s chunk of carefully outlined material, then gets a little double-entry bookkeeping done before bed.

How about readers? Do they approach books in different ways? I think they do, and I would characterize the two polar-opposite styles of reader as Savor Readers and Fuel Readers.

The word “savor” is most often applied to food, wine, scenery, art. We speak of “savoring the moment” when a pleasurable experience draws from us a heightened level of attention and appreciation. In similar fashion, a savor reader gives her focused attention to what’s on the page, to be open to nuance and novelty.

Readers who—for whatever reason–have a special interest in language are more inclined to savor what they read, to delight in subtle observations, turns of phrase, insights into character, thought-provoking themes. They often favor stories that glorify the ordinary, that  apply fresh lipstick to the commonplace.

On the other hand, the reader who fuels herself with fiction consumes novels voraciously. She usually wants Big Canvas characters and stories, with lots of movement in time and space, geo-political high stakes and, often, lots of technology, paranormal this-and-that, or galaxies far, far away. Bodice rippers, not frail young poets coughing into scented hankies are what supply her with literary nourishment.

The point of reading fiction for such readers is to be hustled along, transported through action and emotion. The idea is not for the book to make time slow down, but to make it fly, either before the next business appointment, or to escape the tedium of ho-hum domestic existence.

Just as with pantsers and outliners, there is no “good” or “bad” involved here, just the personal needs of readers. But for writers, these distinctions are worth keeping in mind.

The writer who doesn’t plan ahead and develop outlines for her books is almost certainly going to produce less work. That’s okay, provided the books she writes are targeted for savor readers who like to stop and smell the prose roses as they read.

But those writers who write for the darting eyes of fuel readers, for those who fan the pages and quickly move on to the next book, outlining is a necessity. Otherwise, the reader–looking up as the book she’s just tossed over her shoulder lands on the conical mound behind her chair–will not be a happy camper. She doesn’t read for subtle touches of wit or delicate shadings of emotion. She reads for escape, and she has no intention of waiting around while the writer dithers over details.

“Stop gazing out the window!” she shouts. “Get back to work!” Writers would do well to keep her in mind.

Author biography:

After a career of college teaching, Barry Knister returned to fiction writing. His first novel, a gritty thriller about Vietnam Vets titled The Dating Service had been published by Berkley.

Knister’s third novel, The Anything Goes Girl, is the first installment in the Brenda Contay Suspense series (Kindle ebook and  CreateSpace paperback).   Book Two in the series—Deep North— released July 21.

Barry invites readers to visit his website, BW Knister – Author of Just Bill and the Brenda Contay Mysteries   Please use the site’s contact page to write directly to him. He would truly like to hear from you.

 

Outliners' and pantsers' books may resonate with very different types of readers (via @barryknister):
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