Elizabeth Spann Craig's Blog, page 187

Twitterific

by @elizabethscraig

Below are the writing-related links I tweeted last week.
The Writer's Knowledge Base search engine, designed by software engineer and writer Mike Fleming, makes all these links (now over 12,000) searchable. Sign up for the free monthly WKB newsletter for the web's best links and interviews:http://bit.ly/gx7hg1 .

A Storytelling Life: http://bit.ly/so13Q5 @canteenmag

There are no guarantees in writing. Be confident anyway: http://bit.ly/sryDGG @HopeClark

An agent on authors and book piracy: http://bit.ly/w4cyKw @RachelleGardner

On avoiding stereotypes in our writing: http://bit.ly/t01kNz

Tying the pieces of a chapter together: http://bit.ly/ugsgQD @JulietteWade

The Benefit of Selling at Craft Fairs: http://bit.ly/uBBNes

6 Meta Tips for Book Marketing Success: http://bit.ly/vhj7Qe @JFBookman

20 Synonyms for "Expert": http://bit.ly/urj4TT

Ideas For Authors Stuck on Superhero Names: http://bit.ly/voWv4Z

1 writer's favorite opening lines in SF and Fantasy: http://bit.ly/uqxpg1 @amsmibert

Brontëmania: Why the three sisters are bigger than ever: http://ind.pn/tkJzgO (The Independent)

Weekly roundup of links for historical writers by @2nerdyhistgirls: http://bit.ly/s6qnuE

Freelancer's Survival Guide--Giving up on Yourself: http://bit.ly/vQqtvK

Concise Internet Marketing Basics for Authors: http://bit.ly/u4Nx1E @ianirvineauthor

New entry on the character trait thesaurus: independent: http://bit.ly/sysPVM @AngelaAckerman

Go Farther, Faster, By Limiting Your View To Three Steps Ahead: http://bit.ly/vFymdI

95% of All Authors Will Never Indie Publish: http://bit.ly/s0Duhi @DeanWesleySmith

How Do You Know Which Rules to Break? http://bit.ly/uXvU37 @KMWeiland

Why you should submit your best blog posts as guest posts: http://bit.ly/w1Esuq @problogger

The Elevator Pitch: A Guide for an Internet without Elevators: http://bit.ly/rrE39m @GoodInkInc

11 NaNoWriMo Books That Have Been Published: http://bit.ly/rsvzTP

5 Ways To Self-Publish Your Way To Your Own "Cottage Industry": http://bit.ly/unOMLT @bradvertrees

Making our fiction more authentic: http://bit.ly/vVWf55 @Janice_Hardy

5 tips for writing what you don't know: http://bit.ly/u3itr5 @stephbowe

Freelancers: 5 Mistakes to Avoid When Writing Job Queries: http://bit.ly/s2ZG82 @freelancewj

An editor states that too many modern novels are assembled for a market: http://bit.ly/uns6dQ @guardian

The Business of Screenwriting: Weather vanes: http://bit.ly/rAKvWG @GoIntoTheStory

NaNoWriMo: Resistance: http://bit.ly/thbKKT

Losing Control of Your Books: http://bit.ly/tMBcPG @PassiveVoiceBlg

Treating the Pain of Rejection: http://bit.ly/sanRZ0 @AshKrafton

D-I-Y Publishing—New Tricks for an Old Dog: http://bit.ly/rAQxQJ @LawrenceBlock for @AnneRAllen

Why confidence is so important for writers: http://bit.ly/v1mXX7

A checklist for deep POV (in 1st or 3rd person): http://bit.ly/uN0y5R @JulietteWade

A synopsis critique: http://bit.ly/upr6az @nicolamorgan

An Agent on Query Personalization: http://bit.ly/tR30HX @Kid_Lit

3 tools for curation: http://bit.ly/rvu8Kp @JaneFriedman

How To Get Published In A Magazine: http://bit.ly/vDlr14 @mrsionsmith for @BubbleCow

The Value of Professional Copyediting: http://bit.ly/urLL0k @magicalwords

Writing Fantasy Gender Stereotypes: Writing the Opposite Gender: http://bit.ly/uJMLVR @FantasyFaction

Comparing E-Readers And E-Reader/Tablets: Kindles, Nooks, Sony, Kobo: http://bit.ly/vdIZs1 @sdkstl

3 Good Things About Writing Part-Time: http://bit.ly/utzugK @BookEmDonna

The Art of Staying Sane: http://bit.ly/rEkWRF

Confessions of a NaNo Newbie: http://bit.ly/uE0r8r @RC_Lewis

A cheat sheet for writers: http://bit.ly/sKlXLW @peter_halasz @litdrift

Why Developers Are Interested in Kindle Fire and What It Could Mean for Publishers: http://bit.ly/tscByv @JDGreenGrass

10 Famous Literary Characters and Their Real-Life Inspirations (The Atlantic): http://bit.ly/tIGVY3 @flavorpill

A writer rails against a dialogue rule: http://bit.ly/uKvF0R

3 Vital Steps to Creating Your Protagonist for NaNoWriMo: http://bit.ly/rVXrwC @VictoriaMixon

Goal Setting For You And Your Characters: http://bit.ly/rtfTrK @plotwhisperer for @thecreativepenn

What you have to (un)learn to be a writer: http://bit.ly/tSTy8z @jammer0501

The importance of adjustable writing goals: http://bit.ly/tD6dAq @DeeScribe

Best 11 Free Online ePub Converters: http://bit.ly/sJ3EDD @FreeNuts

Cover Trends in YA Fiction: Why the Obsession with an Elegant Death? http://bit.ly/sVmNLR @syntactics

Risky Business: Forces of Nature, Acts of God, and Other Reasons a Book Can Flop: http://bit.ly/tP53am @syntactics

An agent on confusing agent behavior: http://bit.ly/rOkkIg @RachelleGardner

A reminder to look at cliches in our writing: http://bit.ly/rqeiML @GalleyCat

Self-Publishing Strategies in 18 Slides: http://bit.ly/uZXraO @JFBookman

Whether to Use "Whether" or "If": http://bit.ly/sugtry

More on Criticism, Confusion and NaNoWriMo Nausea: http://bit.ly/rJHRyN @storyfix

Searching for the formula to deliver illustrated books as ebooks: http://bit.ly/vdfcww @MikeShatzkin

Write the Right Dialogue And Dialect Into Your Women's Fiction: http://bit.ly/v0jdKM @AmySueNathan

Why readers may hate indie writers: http://bit.ly/sBxqsq @HickeyWriter

Build or Boost Your Author Platform by Reviewing: http://bit.ly/uicc5B @JanetBoyer

Tips for good author blogs and things to avoid: http://bit.ly/tk0wYL @SharlaWrites

5 Steps for Completing Character Arcs: http://bit.ly/uA9sDB @keligwyn

Dual monitors-- writing in a parallel universe: http://bit.ly/vgupzz @junglereds

20 tips for approaching agents and editors: http://bit.ly/ty8ZgJ @nicolamorgan

Using public domain characters in our writing: http://bit.ly/tI7sXa @fuelyourwriting

Writing Lessons from a Mannequin: Building Character: http://bit.ly/urJEaq @catewoods for @WriteAngleBlog

SEO Tips for Your Author Website or Blog: http://bit.ly/uZ4Lzh @CuriosityQuills

Signalling Viewpoints (using archaeology & artifacts to design stories): http://bit.ly/uKCpv6 @GeneLempp

Teacher/Writer Interface: http://bit.ly/tCKE3K @lesliesullirose

Facing Your Fears as a Writer: http://bit.ly/vma9Wy @danyelleleafty for @QueryTracker

5 Tips for Creating Shareable Blog Content: http://bit.ly/ug2aI6 @smexaminer

Contracts on Fire: Amazon's Lending Library Mess: http://bit.ly/tgbb1Y @PassiveVoiceBlg

5 Things to Know about Publicity Before You're Published: http://bit.ly/saVXaL @booksparkspr

Does age matter for writers? http://bit.ly/vgPf9f @RachelleGardner

Questions that readers ask writers: http://bit.ly/s7q5yX

Thanks @PassiveVoiceBlg: Writer's Knowledge Base – A Great Resource for Authors: http://bit.ly/w4gEAb

"Writing away madly, he made this fatal little mistake." : http://bit.ly/vA67AT @Storyfix

NaNoWriMo Tip #16: Consult a Plot Doctor: http://bit.ly/tF67e9 @galleycat

The Undercover Soundtrack – Nick Green: http://bit.ly/ufmrv6 @DirtyWhiteCandy

17 things 1 writer has learned: http://bit.ly/tfZv25 @artzicarol

The climax of a book is the whole point: http://bit.ly/t6SQDa @VictoriaMixon for @JamiGold

Making your characters fall in love on the page--avoiding "instabond": http://bit.ly/u1Bvdc @FantasyFaction

Should you translate your ebooks? http://bit.ly/tLNptm @rule17

Editing Your Manuscript... After Feedback: http://bit.ly/vsZ09W

Nanowrimo: The Good & The Bad: http://bit.ly/ucEaAB @magicalwords

Building a Global Business by Trusting in Translators: http://bit.ly/uj6E11 @Readuxreads for @PubPerspectives

Why Social Networks are Important for Writers: http://bit.ly/vsNtGo @Sarafurlong

Helpful tips for interviews: http://bit.ly/uNgQzw @BevVincent

Why Every Story Needs a Zombie: http://bit.ly/tFlxBz @JodyHedlund

9 Pieces of Bad Writing Advice it's Best to Ignore: http://bit.ly/u8Cbc0 @AnneRAllen

How to Give Meaning to Every Word You Write: http://bit.ly/uLZD6z @writeitsideways

3 Book Marketing Mantras: http://bit.ly/sW1qEE @FriesenPress

Your Inner Bad Guy: http://bit.ly/ttsOQb @JulieWuAuthor for @BTMargins

Research for writers--try getting help from experts: http://bit.ly/tAaEiW @swan_tower

An explanation of deep POV: http://bit.ly/uh0SFI @NovelEditor

Become an Expert – Write an eBook: http://bit.ly/vDWAis

10 Tips For Writing Better Dialogue: http://bit.ly/s99TE4 @BryanThomasS

Kindle Fire reviews, Klout doubt, publishing debates--@Porter_Anderson examines industry news/views for @JaneFriedman: http://bit.ly/sTyl5N

NaNoWriMo Tip: Fix your computer screen color to reduce eye strain: http://bit.ly/tTkjp8 @GalleyCat

How to speak publisher - D is for Delivery: http://bit.ly/vycd3W @annerooney

4 crucial steps for hosting a successful write-in: http://bit.ly/tBWy7I @curtrice

An agent on holiday gifts for agents: http://bit.ly/tDNgAI @literaticat

An editor's response to a query meant to wow her: http://bit.ly/s3vfbN @behlerpublish

The publishing type: http://bit.ly/uxmXfZ @JordynRedwood

A list of "-some" adjectives: http://bit.ly/uQyUd8

30 Writing Ideas for Writing Moms: http://bit.ly/vwNyBr

Conflicts Aren't all About the Punches: http://bit.ly/u4xYZI @Janice_Hardy

7 Simple Ways Writers Can Pay It Forward: http://bit.ly/rPsnvP @simplywriting

7 truths about writers, rarely discussed: http://nyr.kr/tkTa5C by Ann Beattie for @newyorker

Publishers adding value on the marketing side: http://bit.ly/uo9Atc @MikeShatzkin

8 Ways Freelancers Can Show Gratitude: http://bit.ly/uOLfCN @urbanmusewriter

How traditional publishers are making money: http://bit.ly/vky1ZX

Writing in waiting time for an investigation--crime fiction: http://bit.ly/vuwAvu @mkinberg

Do Indie Writers Need Editors? http://bit.ly/sGq9j0 @camillelaguire

A translation issue in some crime fiction novels: http://bit.ly/vZI9Jk @mkinberg

Examples of behind the scenes sleuthing in crime fiction: http://bit.ly/s17MzW @mkinberg

An agent's thoughts on the controversial no response= a no: http://bit.ly/rZ1xh1 @greyhausagency

Taking your novel from good to great: http://bit.ly/sx597F @KristenLambTX

Best articles this week for writers--11/18-11: http://bit.ly/uZyA1m @4kidlit

Marketing for the broke author: http://bit.ly/vhJgBj @FantastyFaction

Dropbox: A Primer for Writers: http://bit.ly/skz4YZ @inkpunks

Why Writing Category Romance Is A Huge Gamble: http://bit.ly/sNGyFF @greyhausagency

10 things 1 writer dislikes about your blog: http://bit.ly/tYnra2 @thestorysiren

What makes for a good book? http://bit.ly/uBANKA @LyndaRYoung

Character Beauty in Imperfection: http://bit.ly/sZXXf4 @Ava_Jae

3 Secrets to Not Getting Discouraged as a Blogger: http://bit.ly/tBkNc1 @jeffgoins

A night of rejection, New York style: http://bit.ly/rBGtwH @dmcsween

Confessions of a Guy Who Likes Twilight: http://bit.ly/tYiW2w @write_practice

Join the Typewriter Brigade: http://bit.ly/sLHT6n @GalleyCat

Paragraph power...at the end: http://bit.ly/upF4Pb @TheresaStevens

8 Counter-Intuitive Ways to Improve Your Well-Being & Creativity: http://bit.ly/sMHIo8 @the99percent

25 reasons readers will keep reading your story--by the brilliant/profane @ChuckWendig: http://bit.ly/v39l0U

Fathoming Amazon: 9 Things You Need to Know: http://bit.ly/s5h8wV @ebooknewser

An agent talks craft, social media, & branding: http://bit.ly/uXAx28 @LauraPauling

Promo--tips for finding readers by thinking outside the box: http://bit.ly/uN0KTC @LAGilman

Twitter---1 size doesn't fit all: http://bit.ly/t4Xxkq @JaneFriedman

11 Famous Writers Who Were Rejected Before Making It Big: http://bit.ly/uk1Zxd @BubbleCow

A Writer's-Conference Experience from a Presenter's POV: http://bit.ly/w3PCTf @RayRhamey

Aligning characters ambiguously (remember The Princess Bride?): http://bit.ly/sgYwPy @JulietteWade

Real Life Diagnostics: Writing for Younger Readers: http://bit.ly/vrvX4q @Janice_Hardy

Revamping a previously-published series: http://bit.ly/uxa5j6 @sharonhinck

The power of freewriting: http://bit.ly/uqDg0O @annegreenawalt

Writing power-ups: http://bit.ly/s4WDd8 @CherylRwrites

Stop apologizing for your art: http://bit.ly/uqfGb0 @JeffGoins

Principles of Plain English: http://bit.ly/vCHdFC

Should authors comment on book blogger reviews? A discussion in the comments: http://bit.ly/vgYceB @Enna_Isilee

1 writer takes a lifetime, plus a week to write a novel: http://bit.ly/ubvOe5

Kindle Touch vs. Nook Simple Touch: http://bit.ly/vcjHOU @PassiveVoiceBlg

Voices: the moment 1 writer realized she was a writer: http://bit.ly/sJgJKh

Writer Beware Alert: Light Sword Publishing, a.k.a. LSP Digital, Returns: http://bit.ly/sEXAQl @VictoriaStrauss

Fear of revision: http://bit.ly/rMzXE2 @JulieWuAuthor for @BTMargins

The Personal Story Arc: http://bit.ly/uR699t @StoryFix

10 Things To Help You Bust Through Writer's Block: http://bit.ly/tklo7k

6 Elements of Digital Marketing Success for Authors: http://bit.ly/sevdCw @FauzisBurke @AuthorCAWilson

A Writer's Guide to Developing an Online Voice: http://bit.ly/vrjG39 @SeanPlatt

10 Things You Should Never Include in a Crime Novel: http://bit.ly/vHZLUX @JeanHenryMead

3 Things You Can Leave Out of Your Query, and 3 Things You Should Include: http://bit.ly/uariWc @lydia_sharp

Including hooks in our story: http://bit.ly/rNIY6L

Famous Authors' Harshest Rejection Letters: http://bit.ly/ssmDTm @TheRealRomy for @TheAtlantic

Please remember I'm giving away a 1000-word critique from The Bookshelf Muse. Just send an email to me at elizabethspanncraig (at)gmail (dot) com with "contest" in the subject to enter. Entries accepted through November 21. The randomly-chosen winner will be announced here November 22. Thanks, Angela and Becca!}

9 Pieces of Bad Writing Advice it's Best to Ignore--Anne R. Allen

by Anne R. Allen, @AnneRAllen

Hope you'll join me in welcoming Anne R. Allen to the blog today. Anne's blog is a great resource for writers…check it out. This week she has a guest post from Lawrence Block.

Finding a beta reader or critique group is essential to any writer's development. We can't write in a vacuum. Nobody ever learned to be a good writer holed up in an attic with no one to review his work but the cat. (Cats can be so cruel.)

But it's good to be aware that not all the advice you'll hear will be useful. As Victoria Strauss said in her must-read Writer Beware blog "never forget that people who know nothing are as eager to opine as people who know something."

Even worse than know-nothings are the know-somethings who turn every bit of advice they've ever heard into a "rule" as ironclad and immutable as an algebraic formula. Follow their advice and your book will read like an algebraic formula, too.

Here are a few critique "rules" I find more annoying than useful.

1) Eliminate all clichés

Unless your characters are wildly inventive poets, space aliens, or children fostered by wolves, their dialogue and thoughts will include familiar expressions. Don't rob your Scarlett O'Hara of her "fiddle dee-dees" or deprive your Bogart of "doesn't amount to a hill of beans."

2) More! Make it vivid!

Would we really improve Casablanca with "a hill of Moroccan garbanzos, yellow-pale and round, of the kind the English call chick-peas"?

3) Avoid repetition

Not necessarily. Beware what H.W. Fowler called "elegant variation".

OK: "It was a good bull, a strong bull, a bull bred to fight to the death."

NOT: "It was a good bull, a strong animal, a male creature of the bovine persuasion bred to do battle..."

4) Eradicate the verb "to be," especially in the past tense: "was" is the enemy.

Yes, it's generally wise to avoid the passive voice, which uses "was" in the past tense:

"The cat was laundered by me," is passive and sounds lame.
"I laundered the cat," is active and stronger.

But sometimes the passive voice makes the clearest statement: "The cat was abused."

Real problems arise when amateurs confuse passive voice with the progressive tense, which also uses "to be" (with the present participle.)

"I was just sitting there when the cat owner punched me," means something different from "I just sat there when the cat owner punched me." Eliminating "was" changes meaning instead of "strengthening."

5) Put your protagonist's thoughts in italics. No. Don't. Unless your editor specifically asks for this, avoid it. Italics are harder to read.

When you write in the third-person-limited viewpoint, it's read like first person: no italics or "he thought/she thought" necessary.

"I walked away from the 'In Crowd'. They were just a bunch of ill-bred alley cats," can be changed to third person with just a switch of pronoun/noun: "Pufferball walked away from the 'In Crowd'. They were just a bunch of ill-bred alley cats." See? Just the same.

6) Characters must behave predictably
Don't let anyone tell you a character "wouldn't" behave in a certain way. Only the writer knows if this particular truck driver would read Proust; this bride would run off with the florist's mother; or that Maine Coon cat would pee on your Christian Louboutins.

7) Describe characters' physical appearance in detail.
When your English teacher told you to beef up that "What I Did on My Summer Vacation" essay with long, colorful descriptions of your new kitty, she was looking for a complete page, not preparing you for publication. Brevity is now and ever shall be the soul of wit. The only thing Jane Austen told us about Elizabeth Bennett's appearance was that she had "fine eyes." Let your reader's imagination do the work.

8) Protagonists must be admirable
Saints are boring in fiction, unless they liberate France and get burned at the stake, and that's been done.

9) If we don't point out everything wrong, we're not doing our job
Newbies make a lot of mistakes. (You did too, remember?) But if you list them all at once, they won't hear what you're saying.

They'll hear a personal attack. When a person feels attacked, the brain shuts down.

A critiquer should tell you what's right with a work as well as what's wrong. When I was directing actors, I discovered the "sandwich" method is the most effective way to help someone improve: praise/criticism/praise.

All-praise-all-the time does nothing to help a writer's work, of course, but neither does rigid thinking, power tripping, or misinformation.

My new mystery novel GHOSTWRITERS IN THE SKY was sparked by a particularly snarky and unhelpful critique workshop I witnessed at a writers conference many years ago.

GHOSTWRITERS is set at a Z-list writers' conference in the wine-and-cattle country north of Santa Barbara CA. where a young writer appears to have committed suicide after a savage critique.

I couldn't help the young man who was humiliated in that long-ago workshop, and I'm not sure I ever knew his name (I hope he's a bestseller now!) But I wrote the novel partly for him—and every other fledgling writer who has been the victim of a nasty, misinformed critique.

Anne R. Allen is the author of five romantic-comedy/mysteries debuting this fall with two publishers, Popcorn Press and Mark Williams international Digital Publishing: FOOD OF LOVE, THE GATSBY GAME, GHOSTWRITERS IN THE SKY, THE BEST REVENGE and SHERWOOD, LTD.

GHOSTWRITERS IN THE SKY is available in ebook from at Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk and will debut in January in paper. You can read more about Anne's "chick lit noir" mysteries on Anne R. Allen's Blog or her author page at Amazon.com.

Talking to Readers

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

Lately, I've been interacting with readers quite a bit. This, honestly, is pretty rare for me. I usually speak to writers twice as often as to readers.

Speaking to writers is easy. I talk about promo or the writing craft, or something specific about writing mysteries.

But I'm frequently uneasy when I'm speaking to readers. I'm more worried about being boring. And I'm more aware that I'm supposed to be promoting the books that are on the table against the back wall.

I also find that I need to really brush-up on my books before I do the talks. The readers have usually read my books more recently than I have.

Lately, I've done a lot of reader-targeted programs. I spoke to a group of mystery readers, spoke to a local service organization, and participated in a chat with mystery readers online. In addition, I've been on several book blogs.

I actually put a good deal of time into preparing for these events. What I was most interested in finding out was, what do readers want authors to talk about? What's interesting to them?

So here's a roundup of the questions I got from readers, in case it helps you prepare for a talk or online chat:

What made you choose to write your genre?
How did you come up with your protagonist?
What kinds of books do you like to read now?
What kinds of books did you like to read as a child?
Is your protagonist based on someone?
Where is your book set?
Have you lived in the place where your book is set?
What made you decide to write a book about ______?
Who is your favorite character?
Who is the victim in your new book?
What are you working on now?
What is your writing day like?
How fast do you write?
Do you write more than one series?
Why do you write under a pen name?
What other writers inspire you?
Do you know ______? (names a writer)
When did you decide to become a writer?
Do you have an English degree?
Do your books have recipes?
Who helps you with your recipes?
Are your books available on Nook? Kindle?
Where can I find your books?
Are your books at the library?
What's your last release about?
Do you put people you know in your books?
Can I be in your book?
Did you have to do a lot of research to write your books?
Are you on Facebook?
Are there other kinds of books that you'd like to write?
Have you thought about putting your protagonist into (names a scenario?)
How many more books will be in this series?

Hope this helps a little. Want to add to it? If you speak to readers, what questions are you usually asked? As a reader, what would be interesting to you?

Through the generosity of Angela Ackerman and Becca Puglisi at The Bookshelf Muse , I'm giving away one of their insightful 1000 word critiques. Just send an email to me at elizabethspanncraig (at)gmail (dot) com with "contest" in the subject to enter. Entries accepted through November 21. The randomly-chosen winner will be announced here November 22. Thanks, Angela and Becca!

And—Anne R. Allen will be here tomorrow, with a post entitled: 9 Pieces of Bad Writing Advice it's Best to Ignore. Hope you'll come by!

Why Confidence is So Important for Writers

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

Confidence is incredibly important for writing, but it's hard to come by.

There have been plenty of times when I've wanted to just throw a manuscript in the trashcan when I had a crisis of confidence in it—or in my ability to tell the story. One of the last times was for the book that launched November 1. I got 1/3 of the way through it and seriously considered starting over with a new concept.

There are so many times when we rely on confidence in this business. We have to:

Believe in ourselves enough to finish the draft. Believe enough to spend the time to edit the crappy draft we've finished.

Be self-confident enough to have the courage to reach out to others for feedback.

Believe enough in our writing to spend hours researching agents and publishers or, alternately, epublishing options, formatting, and cover design.

Believe enough in our story that we aren't defensive about it if we get negative reviews.

Of course, there's hubris too, and that's not helpful. We've got to listen to folks who are trying to help us improve our manuscript or future manuscripts. But it's also true that it's important to listen to our gut and carefully weigh the advice we get from others.

It's the confidence that gets us through the whole process. Or maybe…it's stubbornness. I'm not sure. :)

How do you talk yourself off the ledge when you're writing?

Through the generosity of Angela Ackerman and Becca Puglisi at The Bookshelf Muse , I'm giving away one of their insightful 1000 word critiques. Just send an email to me at elizabethspanncraig (at)gmail (dot) com with "contest" in the subject to enter. Entries accepted through November 21. The randomly-chosen winner will be announced here November 22. Thanks, Angela and Becca!

Why Confidence is So Important to Writers

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

Confidence is incredibly important for writing, but it's hard to come by.

There have been plenty of times when I've wanted to just throw a manuscript in the trashcan when I had a crisis of confidence in it—or in my ability to tell the story. One of the last times was for the book that launched November 1. I got 1/3 of the way through it and seriously considered starting over with a new concept.

There are so many times when we rely on confidence in this business. We have to:

Believe in ourselves enough to finish the draft. Believe enough to spend the time to edit the crappy draft we've finished.

Be self-confident enough to have the courage to reach out to others for feedback.

Believe enough in our writing to spend hours researching agents and publishers or, alternately, epublishing options, formatting, and cover design.

Believe enough in our story that we aren't defensive about it if we get negative reviews.

Of course, there's hubris too, and that's not helpful. We've got to listen to folks who are trying to help us improve our manuscript or future manuscripts. But it's also true that it's important to listen to our gut and carefully weigh the advice we get from others.

It's the confidence that gets us through the whole process. Or maybe…it's stubbornness. I'm not sure. :)

How do you talk yourself off the ledge when you're writing?

Through the generosity of Angela Ackerman and Becca Puglisi at The Bookshelf Muse , I'm giving away one of their insightful 1000 word critiques. Just send an email to me at elizabethspanncraig (at)gmail (dot) com with "contest" in the subject to enter. Entries accepted through November 21. The randomly-chosen winner will be announced here November 22. Thanks, Angela and Becca!

Twitterific

by @elizabethscraig

Below are the writing-related links I tweeted last week.
The Writer's Knowledge Base search engine, designed by software engineer and writer Mike Fleming, makes all these links searchable. Sign up for the free monthly WKB newsletter for the web's best links and interviews: http://bit.ly/gx7hg1 .
Recent news: the 3rd book in the Memphis Barbeque series released November 1—Hickory Smoked Barbeque.

Ghostwriting: Does It Matter If You Don't Get The Credit? http://bit.ly/uuDUp4 @shurleyhall

Why Bloggers Should Be Stalkable: http://bit.ly/w3aPqu @charissaweaks

5 Ways to Stay Motivated While Writing a Novel: http://bit.ly/sU8JHo @nathanbransford

Speaker Tips for Authors: http://bit.ly/uuMjxN @sparrowgrp for @Bookgal

50 Quick, Dirty, and Cheap Ways to Improve Your Social Media Presence: http://bit.ly/vkKGT2 @smartwoman

11 Ways to Improve your Writing: http://bit.ly/urCf6G @soulofaword

Correct use of commas: http://bit.ly/ueQbTn @FantasyFaction

Smashwords to Start Accepting More eBook Formats in 2012: http://bit.ly/vDWdyU @ebooknewser

10 SEO Optimizations That Make A Difference: http://bit.ly/vndJXO @danny_cooper for @seanplatt

Chekhov's Gag Tropes for Brainstorming Humor: http://bit.ly/sipyH7

Twitterific--my week in tweets: http://bit.ly/umy50a

1 indie author's October sales report and analysis: http://bit.ly/s9btQK @DavidGaughran via @PassiveVoiceBlg

Getting the most from your Facebook fan page: http://bit.ly/vCI1Pn @curiosityquills

How to Write a Cover Letter That Is Both Modest and Confident: http://bit.ly/vAuqeE

7 things to remember when writing for young adults: http://bit.ly/u5AE7Q

How to Download Ebooks onto an Ereader from Project Gutenberg: http://bit.ly/u4svFI @PassiveVoiceBlg

10 reasons why pursuing your creative work is actually highly productive: http://bit.ly/rN3ggk @justinemusk

Keys to self-pub success: http://bit.ly/vvQ0r8 @TweetTheBook

How to Query a Book Review Blogger: http://bit.ly/sdG0xK @AnneRAllen

Do Readers See Your Characters the Way You Want Them To? http://bit.ly/vcZXW9 @KMWeiland

Tips for readings and signings: http://bit.ly/ukyK1A @marthawells1

Tips for book promo from @Janice_Hardy: http://bit.ly/vWmqeZ

10 resources for educating yourself on contracts: http://bit.ly/sgKpvL @/BryanThomasS

Structure-Getting Primal & Staying Simple: http://bit.ly/tTSmmt @KristenLambTX

5 Mistakes Writers Make When It Comes to Virtual Book Tours: http://bit.ly/rG9Cdv

6 Strategies To Help Get Your Family On Board With Your Passion: http://bit.ly/ugDLpz @OllinMorales

Barnes & Noble Introduces $249 Nook Tablet; Calls Kindle Fire 'Deficient' : http://bit.ly/vpOaJ7 @laurahazardowen

Writing memoirs – meeting the burden of marketability: http://bit.ly/tmgyKD @behlerpublish

10 Steps to Writing Mindfully for Your Blog: http://bit.ly/ugO8af @SeanMMadden

HarperCollins to pay $200 mil for Thomas Nelson: http://bit.ly/vsqqtv @GalleyCat #publishing

The Art of Performance = Not Wasting Your Audience's Time: http://bit.ly/tO8f3u @kameronhurley

Why moving on to our next book is a good tactic: http://bit.ly/teKMJM

Inspiration vs Perspiration in Writing: http://bit.ly/tUjH0P @FaeRowen

1 agent's concerns with NaNo: http://bit.ly/sSNsol @greyhausagency

5 writers with great Twitter bios: http://bit.ly/sSh8g7 @MarianSchembari

Download Seven Free Writing eBooks from @WritersDigest: http://bit.ly/urhVI8 @galleycat

The Challenges of Editing an Anthology: http://bit.ly/vrQCXk @Colin_Barnes

What 1 writer has learned about improving plot: http://bit.ly/sW0wzD @@Kathy_Crowley

Konrath releases his ebook v. print sales numbers: http://bit.ly/tcwV2O @jakonrath

Author Blogging 101: The Blogging Mindset: http://bit.ly/s9h6L9 @JFBookman

YA writers--a reminder of the many 1sts that kids face: http://bit.ly/u3MMrK @CherylRWrites

Tips for Using a Plot Board to Plot: http://bit.ly/vowoU6

An agent on Amazon Kindle Owners' Lending Library: http://bit.ly/w3wdrA @RachelleGardner

Why story beats character: http://bit.ly/vjYugd @jammer0501

Create, Publish, Market, and Sell Your Own E-Book: http://bit.ly/rzIjJS @TheCreativePenn

How to hire the right website designer: http://bit.ly/rC8gq1 @JaneFriedman

The Nook tablet's target audience: http://bit.ly/ujV9kj @laurahazardowen

Fantasy stories in a non-fantasy world: http://bit.ly/ugLGTo @DirtyWhiteCandy

Using Character to Fuel Momentum: http://bit.ly/tkF6Px @VictoriaMixon for @jan_ohara

How to gain perspective on your work: http://bit.ly/tS61KE @writersdigest

A Pulitzer-winning biographer with 6 writing lessons: http://bit.ly/vXImSq @michellerafter

Good Writing Habits & Motivation: http://bit.ly/u1MVXg

Authors can't skimp on cover design or editing: http://bit.ly/vXc8Nd @novelpublicity

A Better Way Of Managing Your Author Website: http://bit.ly/sbc3GE

How to Recognize and Recover When You've Started Believing Your Own PR: http://bit.ly/se97vU @lizstrauss

8 rules for developing a good plot: http://bit.ly/vMsmih

5 Ways to Take the Ickiness Out of Marketing Our Books: http://bit.ly/uh2Grd @JodyHedlund

1 writer explains how his focus and motivation: http://bit.ly/tsthsH @RobertSharenow for @Janice_Hardy

Using The 12 Stages of Physical Intimacy To Build Tension In Your Novel: http://bit.ly/sIfqiI @JHansenWrites

Best self-publishing sites: http://bit.ly/v5Hdex @rule17

Tips for marketing your novel from @Janice_Hardy for @AngelaAckerman: http://bit.ly/vDSsqo

Using triggers in our writing: http://bit.ly/ssAr9W @authorterryo

Publishing in literary journals--an endangered rite of passage: http://bit.ly/vKtr90

A Love Affair...With Index Cards: http://bit.ly/vdFbfw @JulieMusil

True "do-it-yourself" publishing success stories will probably become rare? http://bit.ly/rQKY8o @PassiveVoiceBlg

An agent with "Submissions 101": http://bit.ly/uUun06 @BookEndsJessica

Be a More Confident Writer: 5 Choices That Might Be Hurting Instead of Helping: http://bit.ly/siaqvS @AnnieNeugebauer

10 phrases freelancers hate to hear: http://bit.ly/vmB4lD @michellerafter

How movie money works: http://bit.ly/sre3qG #screenwriting

10 Intensifiers You Should Really, Absolutely Avoid: http://bit.ly/vyks5u

Attaining the impossible: http://bit.ly/tF0MiB @HP4Writers

Indie publishing is professional suicide? Authors respond: http://bit.ly/tPfDkc @PassiveVoiceBlg

Kobo Acquired by Japan's Rakuten for $315 Million: http://bit.ly/sPbZ0q @GalleyCat #publishing

Tips for writing dialogue: http://bit.ly/slMVWY

How To Succeed At Screenwriting… By Really Trying, Part 2: Watch Movies: http://bit.ly/tgA5qr

Thoughts on what pages authors should sign books: http://bit.ly/t1lQ0p

Magic Bullet: The WISE Screenwriting Method: http://bit.ly/t0peDn @scriptmag

8 Ways Writers Cause Trouble: http://bit.ly/toSt3s @dollycas

The Creation of an Agent's TBR Pile: http://bit.ly/t4Am91 @SaraMegibow

10 tips for getting published: http://bit.ly/tVrENb @nicolamorgan

1 writer's experiment with Facebook ads: http://bit.ly/satEYq @LizzyFord2010

Tips from a self-pub success story: http://bit.ly/rVDxoG @JFBookman

3 Essential Guidelines for NaNoWriMo: http://bit.ly/uUSaMT @VictoriaMixon

When to Modify Your Name Due to SEO Concerns: http://bit.ly/sVMZM3 @JaneFriedman

7 More Fixes for Dangling Modifiers: http://bit.ly/rp1Fyi

Ebook as artifact: http://bit.ly/u8DKvI @camillelaguire

Crime fiction writers: 1 way to write sleuths that readers identify with: http://bit.ly/s8AaRA @Mkinberg

Creepy houses in crime fiction: http://bit.ly/s7NEhw @mkinberg

Save The Bookstore Day: http://bit.ly/uJUa4L @NicholeBernier

Why indie authors need to produce professional products: http://bit.ly/szDyls @joebeernink via @p2p_editor

The Brit Writers Awards: Questions and Threats: http://bit.ly/ue4dYg @VictoriaStrauss

The Art of Receiving Criticism: http://bit.ly/ttk36a @storyfix

Understanding Advances And Royalties: http://bit.ly/ssHVBy @HeatherMcCorkle

Social media--1 size doesn't fit all: http://bit.ly/vdXKWP @KristenLambTX

The Secret to Writing While Driving: http://bit.ly/rq1iDn @christi_craig

5 Things To Consider When Turning Real Life into Fiction: http://bit.ly/rvkVlX @ProcrastWriter

Thanks to @AngelaAckerman & @beccapuglisi for making me a hero! http://bit.ly/vOG89f . Ck out their sidebar resource for writers.

How and why 1 writer changed his book's title: http://bit.ly/v6IF4c @AuthorGuy

Create Visibility Before Getting Published: http://bit.ly/uD3IV5 @KarenCV for @spunkonastick

5 levels of slush pile manuscripts: http://bit.ly/sp0VLv @camillelaguire

5 Mistakes Virtual Book Tour Mistakes: http://bit.ly/tJjPKM @Working_Writer

Tips for organizing information: http://bit.ly/tfWY2D @CherylRWrites

How to Keep Writing When the Honeymoon is Over: http://bit.ly/vrEOxk @JodyHedlund

Indie pub drama, Amazon's library, book piracy, con-confusion. Great wrap-up by @Porter_Anderson for @JaneFriedman : http://bit.ly/uAI8PI

An agent on the stages of an edit: http://bit.ly/tNgtf3 @BookEndsJessica

8 Press Kit Elements for Your Author Website: http://bit.ly/suQt8H @sandrabeckwith for @FriesenPress

The trouble of calling ourselves writers: http://bit.ly/smxWxs @writeitsideways

Keeping your writing interesting to keep yourself engaged: http://bit.ly/uLjmXW @originalimpulse for @fuelyourwriting

How to speak publisher - D is for Design: http://bit.ly/uDYwLM @annerooney

Great covers--tips from 4 design pros: http://bit.ly/sTxzoa

'Every Book is a Leap of Faith': Int'l Lit. Publishing: http://bit.ly/tXkBKs @pubperspectives #publishing

The different types of plotting writers: http://bit.ly/s2tNo6 @C_Herringshaw

Author platform--it's not about you: http://bit.ly/sDkqyC @JFBookman

Book Bloggers: The New Publishing Gatekeepers: http://bit.ly/sjNc0M @jenniecoughlin

Faking It – acting like you know what you're doing: http://bit.ly/sosm0N @behlerpublish

A Get Out of Jail Free Card for Some Authors: http://bit.ly/uPwXGN @PassiveVoiceBlg

What Makes a Story Feel Unrealistic? http://bit.ly/uGLflu @JamiGold

Survey of Low Fantasy Subgenres: http://bit.ly/sygKZp @FantasyFaction

When Characters Betray Other Characters: http://bit.ly/vR4glj @janice_hardy

Tips for using a storyboard for revision: http://bit.ly/vYUQHU @joanswan

When, in your drafts, to add the details of your worldbuilding: http://bit.ly/rAGXtw @HP4Writers

Examples of description used in novel openings: http://bit.ly/v0c0yL @KarenMusings

How to feel miserable as a writer: http://bit.ly/viq2Sm @JamesScottBell

Writing Adult Vs. YA Titles, one author's experience: http://bit.ly/uNvBaB @LeannaRenee

Build a questions list to keep writing fresh: http://bit.ly/sKbq2U

Song structure and plot (what novelists can learn from songwriters): http://bit.ly/s3LVVW @JLeaLopez

Best articles for writers--11/11/11: http://bit.ly/uLsMkN @4KidLit

3 tips for giving readings: http://bit.ly/vOxXJB

10 Phrases to Purge From Your Speech & : http://bit.ly/rLsacn @nancyragno for @JaneFriedman

15 Tips for Writing a Murder Mystery: http://bit.ly/ua2ran @JHansenWrites

Write the beginning last: http://bit.ly/vsAL1E @elanaj

Indie v. traditional. Choose according to your project: http://bit.ly/vYNVu6 @LAGilman

Character v. trait: http://bit.ly/tSoOgo @TheresaStevens

Myth-Busting About Uncertainty: http://bit.ly/upfaaq @Later_Bloomer

Backstory: A Lesser Known Reason Not to Dump it Upfront: http://bit.ly/tHOUah @jeanniecampbell

1 writer admits to not being totally present with her family: http://bit.ly/rFfssC @tessgerritsen

15 Words for Household Rooms, and Their Synonyms: http://bit.ly/sTuyOY

How to Be a Better Parent AND a Better Writer: http://bit.ly/svLRxY @write_practice

Why Would You Ever Want to Outsource Your Voice? http://bit.ly/vBYbRN @chrisbrogan

Juxtaposition of relationships: http://bit.ly/rvgdQC @RavenRequiem13

A free directory of #ebook pros--for covers, editing, formatting, & more: http://tinyurl.com/3mxg5zt

Introducing Writer Beware's Small Presses Page: http://bit.ly/tiaTKk @VictoriaStrauss

Why 1 writer has been happy with his decision to self-pub: http://bit.ly/vC4SzI @DavidGaughran for @jakonrath

YouTube Video Marketing Tips for Authors: http://bit.ly/sM2MA8 @curiosityquills

4 Ways to Fix a Stalled Story: http://bit.ly/vIHz3U @Janice_Hardy

Why an author's early works are usually most original: http://bit.ly/rYFCxr

Tips for writing book proposals: http://bit.ly/rUJ2qK

An interesting interview with Stephen King: http://nyti.ms/v3lENZ (NY Times): @errolmorris

10 point website checkup: http://bit.ly/vU1x7m @Bookgal for @KarenCV

Hook your reader from the start: http://bit.ly/vUkcnv @HowToWriteShop

Generating Story: Develop The 6 Core Parts, Start Anywhere: http://bit.ly/tFL0LZ @authorjohnbrown

How The Kindle Fire Will Attack The iPad: Newsstand: http://rww.to/vPJx6Q @JonMwords

How to Write Fast and Well: http://bit.ly/v4hp1J @gatekeeperspost

5 Great Websites for Thriller Writers: http://bit.ly/tYPj8X @worddreams

The Art And Craft Of Story With @VictoriaMixon for @TheCreativePenn: http://bit.ly/rT1D2l

How to Style Compounds After the Noun: http://bit.ly/t2vWqY

3 Hidden Benefits of a Controversial Guest Post: http://bit.ly/rZMzMT @webtrafficcafe

5 Ways to Make More Time to Read: http://bit.ly/tHUZBh @robertbruce76 for @michaelhyatt

Writing for Middle Grades: Voice: http://bit.ly/tMlaeX @magicalwords

1 writer's lessons learned after 20,000 tweets: http://bit.ly/vPVqqn @JeffGoins

Treating characters as if they were real: http://bit.ly/tkIWeM

The subconscious shelf: http://nyti.ms/tWWeMV (NY Times)

The Pleasures and Perils of Rereading: http://bit.ly/sdCOT9 @RealLiveCritic

Speed bumps on the road to publication: http://bit.ly/ryOtVd

5 features to help you grow your ghostwriting business: http://bit.ly/vMuZXI & http://bit.ly/ttqyzU @KarenCV

How Independent Bookstores Sell E-Books: http://bit.ly/vvBDvy @laurahazardowen

Romance in fantasy: http://bit.ly/tOSTb0 @FantasyFaction

15 Tips for Writing Mysteries

Hi everyone! Today I'm over at the Writers in the Storm blog with tips for writing mysteries. If you've ever thought about writing one, or if you're a mystery reader, I hope you'll slide by.

Also, I want to thank Angela Ackerman and Becca Puglisi for featuring me as one of their Writing Heroes on The Bookshelf Muse blog. It's a huge honor for me, since I really respect the resource they've established for writers there— fantastic writers' thesauruses. Look in their sidebar to check out their thesaurus for character traits, emotions, settings, symbolism, weather, and more. They've opened up a giveaway for one of their wonderful critiques, which I'll be passing along to a reader very soon.

I also wanted to thank Sharon Galligar Chance at Sharon's Garden of Book Reviews for her kind review of Hickory Smoked Homicide.

Thanks!

How And Why I Changed My Book's Title—by Marc Vun Kannon

@AuthorGuy -- Authorguy's Blog

What a difference a Date makes.

When I first started my latest novel (the latest one to be released, not my WIP) I was standing in a book store, looking at the spine of a book with the title Blood Moon. I say 'started' here because just looking at this title gave me the idea for a novel in which a werewolf attack occurs on the Moon. The story as originally envisaged in that flashbulb moment, that 'Aha' moment for which all of us writers live, was supposed to be a mystery, with a hideous monster in the middle of it.

When I started actually writing the story, the title was (you guessed it) 'Blood Moon'. Hey, why not, can't copyright titles, right? Well, no, you can't, which is not always a good thing. We want our books to stand out, don't we? We want people to find our books, don't we? Well, have you ever tried googling the title 'Blood Moon'? There are lots of books with that name. It's really rather shocking. I hope the authors had better names for their books, but it's amazing that so many publishers couldn't be bothered to check! I suppose there might be title generators or SEO algorithms that recommend titles with Blood and Moon in them, but if you want that book to shine don't hide it under a bushel of other books with the same name.

When I was in the middle of writing my story, I grew dissatisfied with the title. It seemed rather ordinary to me, and more important, it didn't actually tell me anything about the book. Worse, what it did tell me was wrong! You see, Blood Moon didn't stay a mystery very long. I think I was in chapter two somewhere when I realized that I had no aptitude for writing mysteries. Or Horror. I'm a character-based novelist, and I usually discover the plot as I'm following my characters around. Blood Moon is a great title for a mystery (or a paranormal, or a romance, or a...) but it's not a great title for whatever this story was shaping up to be.

Sometimes we authors realize it ourselves, and change the title to something more useful. Sometimes we don't, and it falls to the editors and even marketing people to say that our book just doesn't feel like a 'Blood Moon' sort of book, and then where are we? The title influences the book as we're writing it, at least it does for me. As Blood Moon moved farther away from anything mystery-like, the name became more of a straitjacket. So I went on the web, googling the phrase 'Blood Moon' to see if there were any useful alternatives. It turns out there are. Blood Moon is an actual name, the name of a particular full moon, one of the 13 that occur throughout the year. It never occurred to me that people would name them but they do. (Possible series idea there.)

One of those names was 'St. Martin's Moon'. So I thought, 'Hey, sounds like a cool title', but it was much more than that. St. Martin is the patron saint of many things, including beggars, innkeepers, and geese. More important, St. Martin's Moon is the full moon in the sky shortly after Halloween. And here's me, writing a werewolf novel.

And just like that (well, not really, nothing about this book was 'just like that') the book got a bit of a makeover.
Some details got a whole new significance. Because of the title, the time and place of events suddenly shifted. It's Halloween, and I discovered Joseph Marquand, my MC, hates Halloween. Why? Well, let's find out.
Some details were added. Because of the title, I noticed a church sign one day and worked it into the story. Minor, I'll admit, but good for flavor if nothing else.
When I got around to writing the end (I'm very linear) I found that the whole ending had been changed. I discovered Joseph Marquand didn't like psychics either, but that's for next book.
Even the genre was different, and I don't say that lightly. I didn't just change the genre from mystery to paranormal romance, although for a long time that's what I thought I'd done. I ended up inventing a new genre, because the story morphed to fit the title.

The Feast of St. Martin is November 11th. St. Martin's Moon is November 10th this year. My wife is planning a party, just because.

Happy Martinmas!

Like many writers, I started when a story came along and decided that I should write it. Don't ask me why. Others followed, until now I'm afraid to go out of the house with a recorder or notebook in my hand. But I show them, I refuse to write the same story twice!

*********************************

8 Ways Writers Cause Trouble

Hi everyone!  Today I'm over at the book blog, Escape With Dollycas Into A Good Book.  I've got a guest post explaining why it's dangerous to unleash writers on an unsuspecting public. :)

There's also a giveaway of one copy of Hickory Smoked Homicide.

Hope you'll pop by!

Why Moving On is a Good Tactic

First of all, thanks to Mason Canyon at the Thoughts in Progress blog for her review of my recent release, Hickory Smoked Homicide.  I appreciate it, Mason!

I was talking to another writer the other day and they asked me how I handled the pressure of promo and reviews.  I thought about it for a second, then I said, "I write."

But it wasn't always that way.  After I wrote my first book, I treated it like a child that needed its hand held.  I walked it to kindergarten, I anxiously watched what people said about it. Was it being bullied?   I worried over it.  I was a helicopter parent for the book.

Then I noticed that I kept getting the same advice from the other writers that I knew. "You should write another book."  Some of the writers didn't even realize they were giving advice.  "When's your next book coming out?" they'd ask.  As if that was just the normal approach.  It was, actually, an annoying refrain.

I didn't want to think about the next book.  I wanted to focus on the fact that I'd just written a book! It made my head hurt to think about moving on to another one.  I wanted to just celebrate my accomplishment.

Since I continued to hear the same advice, though, I wrote another book.  I started obsessing over it the same way.  At that time, I was trying to move from a regional press to the big guys.  I wrote queries and synopses and cover letters, and tracked them carefully.  And I wasn't writing.

I discovered that it was very discouraging to get rejections.  That was probably because querying was my sole focus.  The rejections really stung.  I hated going to my mailbox.

And still I continued to hear the refrain.  "So what's your next book about?  What are you writing now?"

Was there no resting on your laurels in this business?  Even after a couple of books? 

That's when it all started clicking for me.  Write, edit, submit, brainstorm, repeat.  That's the cycle.  That's how we get better, that's how we start a writing career, that's how we sustain a writing career--that's it.

That's how rejections and reviews won't sting.  We keep writing. 

If we write a real stinker?  We keep writing, keep improving.  We'll have a better or more successful book the next time.  Or the next.

If all our writing dreams are hanging on one or two books, we'll nurse the dickens out of them. It's so much better, so much healthier, to keep being creative. 

What's your next book about?