Elizabeth Spann Craig's Blog, page 55

Three Important Story Elements

by Hank Quense, @hanque99

To a new fiction writer, there are a bewildering number of story elements that are essential to the story and incorporated into the work.  To mention a few, there are character development, plotting, setting, point of view, and others.  These story elements are explained in depth in any number of books and are easy to research.

However, there are three other story elements that are just as vital, but are hardly mentioned in books on fiction writing.  When they are mentioned, the description is vague and hard to understand, let alone use in stories.

In this article, I’ll discuss these three elements which are: dominant reader emotion, the character arc, and the emotional arc.

Dominant Reader Emotion

This is the emotion you want (hope?) the reader will experience whenever a character is in a scene. For the story’s protagonist, you want the reader to have positive emotions such as empathy, sympathy, delight, or intrigue.  For the bad guy, the emotions can be animosity, irritation, pity, hostility, and anger.

When I’m developing a new major character, the DRE is one of the first characteristics I assign because it affects the way I develop and write about the character. For instance, if I want the reader to admire the character, then I can’t have this character kicking puppies or running away from a fight. The DRE dictates that I develop the character’s attributes so the reader won’t be turned off by the character.

Character Arc

In short, the character arc is how the character’s life changed as a result of the events in the story. If nothing changed then the story is a ‘who cares’ because everything after the story is the same as before the story.  So, nothing happened except the character got a bit older.

The character arc can be physical or mental but a mental change is more interesting to readers than a physical change.  In a mental character arc, the character learned an important lesson.  In a physical one, the character’s situation changed for better or worse.

Here are a few examples of character arcs.

A character starts out as a bigot, but during the course of the story, learns to be less bigoted and becomes more open-minded.
A proud or pompous (or both) character gets humbled as the story unfolds.
A lazy character gets motivated.
A character evolves from an uninterested bystander or a follower into the leader of a movement.

Emotional Arc

Most writing books don’t emphasize, if they mention it all, that the main character in a scene must undergo an emotional change.  To put this another way, whatever the character’s emotional state is at the beginning of the scene, it must be different at the end of the scene.

Further, in the next scene with the same character, the starting emotion is the ending emotion from the last scene.

In the case of the protagonist, these emotional changes are negative as his failures to solve the plot problem take a toll. Thus, the emotional arc can start at happy at the story’s beginning and change to annoyed, startled, alarmed, and desperate as the story progresses.  By the time the character is desperate, the story will at the climatic scene at the end of the story.

These three story elements are covered along with many other elements in my Story Design lectures.  You can learn more at: https://bit.ly/338UqjY

You can also find out more about my lectures on this webpage: https://padlet.com/hanque/rph7u51miayn

Hank Quense writes satirical fantasy and sci-fi. Early in his writing career,

he was strongly influenced by two authors: Douglas Adams and his

Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy and Joseph Heller’s Catch-22. Happily, Hank

has never quite recovered from those experiences.

He lives with his wife in northern New Jersey, a mere 20 miles from

Manhattan, the center of the galaxy (according to those who live in

Manhattan). They have two daughters and five grandchildren all of whom

live nearby.

For vacations, Hank and Pat usually visit distant parts of the galaxy.

Occasionally, they also time-travel.

Besides writing novels, Hank lectures on fiction writing, publishing and

book marketing. He is most proud of his talk showing grammar school kids

how to create a short story. He used these lectures to create an advanced

ebook with embedded videos to coach the students on how to create

characters, plots and setting. The target audience is 4th to 7th graders. The

book’s title is Fiction Writing Workshop for Kids.

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3 Areas Of Your Fiction Craft To Hone

by Angelica Hartgers, @SelfPublishing7

Are you taking part in NaNoWriMo?

As well as being a time to test your writing effort and output capabilities, it’s also a time to gain valuable insight.

When we practice our fiction capabilities so intensely, we inevitably find out where we are as writers.

Which parts of our craft are looking strong? Which are in need of improvement?

Regardless of whether you’re taking part in NaNoWriMo or not, the opportunity to evaluate our craft skills and find areas to work on shouldn’t be passed up.

Here is a selection of fiction craft resources to help you hone your skills.

Crafting Better Characters

The most memorable fiction characters live on in our hearts and minds, long after their book is finished.

On the opposite end of the scale, dreadful characters can cause reader rage. 

Spend some time reading through reviews and you’ll soon find people whose main dislike of a book is due to their impression of a character. 

Given the immense importance of characters, how can we assess and improve the way we craft them?

Reader Reaction. Perhaps the most important way to assess the state of your character craft is by gauging reader reaction. Even the best character on paper is totally pointless if readers don’t react well. 
Depth. Even characters with the most useful plot function will suffer if they come across as too basic, flat, or functional. Taking the time to really get to know your fiction character will help to avoid any problems with depth.
Necessity. What role does your character play in the story? Taking the time to think through this aspect of character development will help avoid adding anyone superfluous.

There isn’t a fiction genre out there that wouldn’t benefit from better characters. Why not take the time to assess and improve yours?

Improving Dialogue

Dialogue that sounds forced, unnatural, or outdated can ruin the rhythm of fiction. Pointless dialogue that does nothing for the story is also a waste of time. 

If you feel your conversational craft could use some improvement, what are some areas to focus on?

Purpose. For dialogue to be meaningful, it should serve a clear purpose in your story. Are your readers learning something new? Is the plot being advanced? Meaningless chit chat is likely to annoy and bore your readers.
Natural Sound. Often, dialogue that works well in our mind when we write it doesn’t sound as good as intended out loud. Read it through to make sure the rhythm is natural and you haven’t accidentally repeated anything distracting or annoying.
Consistency. Unless there’s a meaningful reason for their variation, you want your character to speak as consistently as possible. This adds to believability and character depth, allowing them to live on in the mind of your reader. 

Improving your dialogue will give your reader a really precious gift – a memorable character that lives on inside their minds. 

Expanding Your Fiction Horizons

Sometimes, the best way to refresh your writing craft is to expand its scope. 

It can be all too easy to get stuck in a craft rut, where we feel uninspired and unenergized. 

Signs that this might be the case include finding fiction tedious if you usually enjoy it and feeling burned out if you attempt something like NaNoWriMo. 

Looking to refresh your love of fiction writing?

Here are a few ideas.

Writing prompts. Using a writing prompt feels like a fun, low pressure way to get your fiction juices flowing again. If you need to restore your love of crafting fiction, why not try experimenting with writing prompts outside your genre? You’d be surprised by what you discover when you leave your comfort zone.
New collaboration. Sometimes, the best way to feel good about fiction is to work with someone new. Is there an exciting new collaborator you could seek out? An accountability partner for an upcoming craft project?
A change of scene. Your fiction writing environment influences your output. If you’re feeling stuck or uninspired, can you switch up where you write? This could be as simple as moving from room to room, or even switching writing devices and going to a new location entirely. 

Sometimes, the best way to keep your fiction craft as fresh and fun as possible is to mix things up. By re-energizing your fiction as a whole, you improve every individual part at the same time. 

Which Craft Area Are You Working On This NaNoWriMo?

NaNoWriMo is something to be celebrated, no matter how much you’re personally participating. 

Even if you’re not intending to become a winner, it’s still an invaluable chance to get swept up in the atmosphere, analyze your fiction craft, and consider some areas for improvement. 

What’s your personal approach to assessing your craft? How do you go about it, and which exercises do you find most helpful? 

What’s your take on NaNoWriMo in general?

Thank you everyone, and good luck!

SelfPublishing.com is committed to educating authors on how to successfully navigate the self-publishing industry. With over 105,000,000 books in print, SelfPublishing.com is your go-to resource to learn how to become a self-published author.

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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 50,000 free articles on writing related topics. It’s the search engine for writers.

Have you visited the WKB lately?  Check out the new redesign where you can browse by category, and sign up for free writing articles, on topics you choose, delivered to your email inbox!  Sign up for the Hiveword newsletter here.

Business / Miscellaneous

How can I write an engaging bio? @pubcoach
Licenses Are Not The Ends of Roads: @DeanWesleySmith
Co-writing for Indie Authors: @WillcocksAuthor @sacha_black

Conferences and Events / Miscellaneous

ALTA Names Its 2019 US National Translation Award Winners: @Porter_Anderson @LitTranslate
Sharjah Book Fair Draws a Record-Breaking 2.52 Million Visitors: @Porter_Anderson @pubperspectives
FutureBook Live 2019 Ramps Up: ‘The Cultural Caché of Books’: @Porter_Anderson @mollyflatt @TheFutureBook @pubperspectives
On Book Launch Parties: by Chris Vick
The UK’s CILIP 2020 Carnegie and Kate Greenaway Medals: Diversity Aware: @Porter_Anderson @pubperspectives
‘Maoism’ Author Julia Lovell Wins Canada’s $75,000 Cundill History Prize: @Porter_Anderson @CundillPrize
East of England: A Call for Under-Represented Writers: @Porter_Anderson

Conferences and Events / NaNoWriMo

5 Myths About NaNoWriMo: Busted: @PenPaperPad @NaNoWriMo
How to Have a Proper NaNoWriMo Mentality: @the_writing_pal
5 Tips for Staying Motivated during NaNoWriMo: @SavyLeiser @NaNoWriMo

Creativity and Inspiration / First Novels

How to Become an Author: @thecreativepenn @joebunting

Creativity and Inspiration / Goal setting

The 25/5 Rule Applied to a Writing Career: @aprildavila

Creativity and Inspiration / Inspiration

Are You Struggling to Be Creative? This Might Be Why: @KMWeiland
Writers, Remember: The Wand Chooses The Wizard: @AngelaAckerman
Serious Writers Never Quit: 5 Strategies to Win at Writing: @Frank_McKinley

Creativity and Inspiration / Inspiration / Reading as Writers

Five Books About Surprisingly Supernatural Teens: @cloudy_vision @tordotcom
Nancy Drew for Adults: Great Amateur Sleuth Series for Readers Over Twenty: by Karen White @CrimeReads
7 Lesser-Known Cyberpunk Novels to Help You Prepare for Our Horrible Future: @ElectricLit

Creativity and Inspiration / Productivity / Fitting in Writing

Squeeze More Writing Time from a Busy Day: @SusanSpann
The Pratchett Principle on Writing: @RuthanneReid

Creativity and Inspiration / Productivity / Writing Quickly

Extreme Productivity: How to Write 20-Plus Books a Year: @SelfPubForm

Creativity and Inspiration / Writing Life

Should you do your MFA in writing? @manzanitafire @pubcoach
What Happens When Readers Rebel? @elizagreenbooks @IndieAuthorALLI
On the Writer’s Quest for Authenticity: @lithub @mirajacob @JenPastiloff @landaudeborah @gracet09 @hannahtinti
Writing Isn’t the Hardest Part About Being a Writer: @MegDowell
Impostor Syndrome? Telling Signs of a Serious Writer: @Peter_Rey_
How Committed are You to Being a Successful Author? @KristenLambTX
How to write around children: @pubcoach
Writers are Courageous: by J.U. Scribe @TheRyanLanz
Challenging Our Assumptions About Writing: @RachelleGardner
Is It a Good Idea to Write When You Don’t ‘Feel Like’ Writing? @MegDowell
So You Want to Be a Novelist: @JonSealy @The_Millions

Genres / Memoir

Opinion: Can Writing a Memoir Change Your Life? @cassandrafarren @IndieAuthorALLI

Genres / Mystery

How to Research and Write a Detective Series (podcast): @ArcherMayor @DIYMFA

Promo / Ads

Are you ready to try Facebook Ads? (podcast): @BirdsOAFpress @davidpenny_
How to Write Ad Copy for Authors: Softening Your Book Ads: @WillowWoodford @BethBarany

Promo / Book Reviews

9 places to look for readers who write reviews: @sandrabeckwith

Promo / Miscellaneous

Content Marketing for Fiction and Nonfiction: by Rachel McCollin @IndieAuthorALLI
Tips for making better use of your endorsements: @Wogahn
Market Your Product: by Deborah Lyn Stanley
6 Tips for Pitching to Local Media + How to Do It Effectively: @Bookgal

Promo / Social Media Tips

“You Too Can Have a Viral Tweet Like Mine”:Demystifying Poetic Meter: @frankie_jay_tho @parisreview

Publishing / Miscellaneous

How to Evaluate Your WIP and Figure Out Your Next Steps: @Kid_Lit @TheIWSG

Publishing / News / Amazon

It’s now five years since Amazon last opened a Kindle store: @TNPS10

Publishing / News / International Publishing

Hay Festival’s Cristina Fuentes La Roche Awarded the OBE in Peru: @Porter_Anderson @pubperspectives
Amazon bookstores embrace spine-out shelf-stacking. Indigo sales fall again. And two sides to the Macmillan digital library boycott saga: @TNPS10
Authors Weigh in on Politics: ‘Words Make a Difference’: @Porter_Anderson @pubperspectives
Emirates Airline Becomes IPA’s Exclusive Carrier in New Sponsorship: @Porter_Anderson @IntPublishers @pubperspectives
Words Without Borders November: Hope in the Philippines @Porter_Anderson @wwborders @kristinemuslim @daryll_reads @johnbengan
Rights Roundup: Purpose-Driven Reads on the International Rights Market: @Porter_Anderson @Ramqvist @JennyJagerfeld , more.
Sellout in Beijing: Why Albatros Media Won’t Be in Shanghai: @Porter_Anderson @pubperspectives
Russia’s Glukhovsky Follows Rights Sales With Stage, Film Editions of ‘Text’: @Porter_Anderson @glukhovsky @pubperspectives
Ken Follett Opens Brexit-Inspired Friendship Tour This Weekend: @Porter_Anderson @pubperspectives

Publishing / Options / Hybrid Publishing

What is Hybrid Publishing and Should I Consider It? Questions Answered: @OrnaRoss @MichaelLaRonn @agnieszkasshoes @IndieAuthorALLI

Publishing / Options / Self-Publishing

Pros and Cons of Self-Publishing: @MegLaTorre

Publishing / Options / Traditional Publishing / Querying

The View from the Editor’s Desk: by Rachel Craft @RMFWriters
Writing the Query Letter: Dos & Don’ts: @msheatherwebb @WriterUnboxed

Writing Craft / Beginnings

First Page Critique: Singularity Syndrome: @SueColetta1 @killzoneauthors

Writing Craft / Characters / Antagonists

How to create a great villain: @NathanBransford

Writing Craft / Characters / Development

How Blood, Phlegm, and Bile Can Produce Compelling Characters: @FredBobJohn @standoutbooks

Writing Craft / Devices / Repetition

Effective Repetition in Writing as Demonstrated by A Song of Ice and Fire: by Gavin Hurley @WritersDigest

Writing Craft / Endings

Finding Your Book’s Ending from a Beginning: by Bucket Siler

Writing Craft / Flashback and Back Story

Backstory: Avoid Info Dumping by Making It Essential: @RomWriteLab @JamiGold

Writing Craft / Literary Devices

What is a theme, and why does nobody agree? by T.L. Bodine

Writing Craft / Miscellaneous

How Predictable Should a Story Be? by Chris Winkle @mythcreants
The Crucial Setup Scene in Your Novel:
The Difference Between Topic and Theme: @Sara_HeartStory @DIYMFA
What Makes a Good Novel Plot? 6 Insights: @nownovel
3 Critical Storytelling Elements: @AndreaMerrell
When Characters Meet Technology: @PhilAthans
Let the reader diagnose your characters: @NathanBransford
Using Reincarnation in Fiction: @cyallowitz
Writing Your Story’s Fictional Body: @Lindasclare
Turning Points: @davidfarland
Writing with Confidence about Uncertainty: @AnneJanzer
Editor Roundtable: Cause and Effect Relationships in Stories: by Leslie Watts @StoryGrid

Writing Craft / POV

The Ultimate Guide to Tense and Point of View: @shaelinbishop

Writing Craft / Pre-Writing / Outlining

Writing into the Dark: Write a book without an outline: @MichaelLaRonn

Writing Craft / Pre-Writing / Plotting

Write A Road Trip To Help You Plot A Book: @Writers_Write
Don’t Let Your Plot Hijack Your Story: @Janice_Hardy

Writing Craft / Pre-Writing / Research

Choosing Naval Tactics for Your Pre-Gunpowder World: by Oren Ashkenazi @mythcreants

Writing Craft / Pre-Writing / Story Concept

How To Become A Creative Writer and Figure Out What You Should Write: by Syera

Writing Craft / Revision

7 Tricks to Refresh a Scene You’ve Edited 68345.27 Times: @SeptCFawkes

Writing Craft / Revisions / Critiques

The Up and Down Sides of Critique Groups: by Lori Freeland

Writing Craft / World-Building

Story Elements and Worldbuilding: @JulietteWade

Writing Tools / Apps

Comments & Footnotes in Scrivener: @aprildavila

Writing Tools / Miscellaneous

Books and Tools to Help With Writing and the Writing Life:

The Top Writing Links From Last Week Are On Twitterific:
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Writing Resources

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

Today I thought I’d share some of the different tools and resources I used this year to make my writing and writing life go a little smoother. Maybe some of them will make it on your Christmas lists this year.  :)

I spent a little more time on story development this year than I usually do, with the start of a new series (my first new series since circa 2010).   That’s why you’ll see craft-related books on the list.

Sparkling Story Drafts by H.R. D’Costa, who’s guest-blogged here, is a great book for helping writers plan their books.  Glancing through the guide, I’ve written the most marginalia in these chapters:  Enhancing Cohesion With Overarching Principles, Increase the Emotional Resonance of Your Ending (Without Breaking a Sweat), and The Ideal Cast Size (and How to Achieve It).  This book was so useful to me that I wrote an endorsement for it.  :)

Also by H.R. D’Costa is her Sizzling Story Outlines.  Although I have a template that I use for outlines, I needed more for the new series. I had so many things to consider, to create.  With my other series, everything always just falls into place…not so much for a new project.  My marginalia is heaviest in these chapters: Getting Started via the Story Kernel, Shaping Audience Experience Via Smart Goals and the Protagonist,  Conjuring Conflict to Entertain Audiences Via the Antagonist, and An Overview of the Outlining Method.

For my older series, I wanted something to help me move my mind in different directions in terms of brainstorming.  When I heard about Plotto by William Cook (originally published in 1928), I was intrigued.  When you first look at the book, it seems to be written in code. I’m not using the book as systematically as it’s intended, just to keep my stories fresh.  Despite the fact the book was written nearly 100 years ago, it definitely helps generate new ideas.  Read this article on NPR for more about the book.

I also leaned heavily on Angela Ackerman and Becca Puglisi’s Positive Trait Thesaurus, Negative Trait Thesaurus, and Emotion Thesaurus. I’d recommend these books to anyone taking character development and expression seriously.  Character development seemed easy enough to me…until I started a new series, ha.  I’d forgotten how tough it can be.

Now for a few tools I use daily.  Google Keep helps keep me straight with both reminders and story notes on the go (free).  Google Drive gives me a free place to backup my work (which I do daily).  The Canned Responses extension for gmail helps me save time by creating email templates for common responses.  Evernote is where I store my favorite writing-related articles (as well as recipes, etc.)  And I recommend that every writer keeps a story bible of all the minutiae in their stories (I couldn’t make it without mine).

That’s what’s given me the biggest help in 2019.  What are some of your favorite resources?

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You Got Your Endorsements, Now What?

by David Wogahn, @Wogahn

Let’s say you’ve followed Elizabeth’s advice about asking for endorsements—and your endorser(s) came through. Congratulations! Now what?

Endorsements, or what’s been traditionally called a ‘blurb,’ are essentially marketing tools. Here are ten ways they can be used, not all of which are appropriate for all types of endorsements.

On the front and/or back cover of your book
At the very beginning of your book
In media kits and on collateral such as bookmarks
On your book’s sales page on online stores (on Amazon this area is called Editorial Reviews)
In your website and social media postings
In your bios, including those used for social media accounts
In your email signature
In email newsletters to your mailing list
In letters or emails to potential partners, retailers, wholesalers
In emails to other endorsers when you ask them to blurb your book! (In fishing, this is called chumming the water.)

Obviously if you have one, or very few, the decisions are easier. Also, you don’t have to include endorsements in all ten of the applications in the above list and you can always add them as they become available.

How to use endorsements (editorial reviews) on Amazon and IngramSpark

In the list of ten possible places to use endorsements, you’ll notice that it is in order of permanence. That is, adding endorsements to books is usually done before they are published and then rarely updated due to the work involved.

For purposes of this article, I want to focus on number four, putting these endorsements to work on your book’s online sales page.

Amazon and IngramSpark are notable because they allow self-publishers to add editorial reviews directly to a book’s sales page in selected online stores. Traditionally published authors can also do this on Amazon (via Author Central), but you need to ask your publisher for help with other online stores.

 

Adding editorial reviews on Amazon

The reviews listed under the Editorial Reviews section for a book’s listing on Amazon appear there by manually entering them using Author Central or are placed there automatically by select review businesses (for example, Publishers Weekly, Booklist, and School Library Journal).

You can add or edit Editorial Reviews for each format that is listed for sale or on pre-order. For example, my client Jill Thomas’ book Tales from the Trance was traditionally published. Her hardcover was available for pre-order, but not the Kindle edition. I was able to add editorial reviews for the hardcover before the release date but had to wait for the Kindle to be available before adding editorial reviews to that edition. It works the same way for self-published books.

Pre-release view, hardcover only book format

Hardcover only: Pre-release view of a book’s Author Central page

Live-release view, Kindle and hardcover formats

Here is the view of Jill’s Author Central page five days later. You manage Editorial Reviews for each format separately.

Additional notes about editing Editorial Reviews using Author Central

In a few instances I’ve found it necessary to ask Amazon for help in formatting Editorial Reviews. When that happens, they turn off your ability to make further changes. I think this is because their HTML editor is a little wonky—at least that’s my experience. Be prepared to experiment, or just give up and ask for help.
As previously noted, some reviews are placed here automatically. In fact, those are added under their own heading under the top-level heading of Editorial Reviews. If that is the case with your book, you won’t be able to edit or remove those. Amazon states: “In order to keep Editorial Reviews objective and informative, we rely on many sources to provide content for this section. We work to create a diversity of opinion on our site, and this may include negative reviews, when they arise.”
Managing your Author Central profile for other country-specific Amazon stores isn’t as easy as it is for the U.S. store. In my experience you need to use their contact forms to have the changes made by Amazon staff.

Adding editorial reviews on IngramSpark

If you are using IngramSpark to distribute your book to stores such as Barnes & Noble, they too have a field where you can enter editorial reviews. In their system these are called Review Quotes.

Login to your account and select your book. You will find the field to enter Review Quotes in the section titled Categorize Your Book.

It usually takes a couple weeks for these to appear on BN.com (Barnes & Noble) and Indigo.ca, the large Canadian book retailer. Whether the reviews appear on other retailer websites that IngramSpark distributes to is up to those retailers and is not something IngramSpark guarantees. For example, my books on Books-a-Million and Powell’s do not show Review Quotes even though they are entered in IngramSpark.

I’ll close with this excellent and concise advice from IngramSpark:

Include two to eight positive review quotes. These should be from a variety of sources and should highlight different aspects of the book. Ideally, reviews will come from people and publications known by and influential with potential buyers.
Each quote should be brief (no more than fifty words each). Provide excerpts from longer reviews.
List the most powerful or effective review quote first.

 

David Wogahn is the author of five books including The Book Review Companion, My Publishing Imprint and Register Your Book, and he is a LinkedIn Learning author. He has worked for the Los Angeles Times, the Los Angeles Olympic Organizing Committee, and was co-founder and COO of the first online publisher of sports team branded websites known today as the CBS College Sports Network.

He is a frequent speaker and trainer, including presentations for Publishing University (IBPA), the Alliance of Independent Authors (ALLi), the Independent Writers of Southern California, and the Santa Barbara Writers Conference.

David is also the president of AuthorImprints, an award-winning professional publishing services company that publishes books for authors and businesses using their own publishing imprint. Learn more at AuthorImprints.com and DavidWogahn.com.

How to Use Endorsements on Amazon and IngramSpark by @Wogahn
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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 50,000 free articles on writing related topics. It’s the search engine for writers.

Have you visited the WKB lately?  Check out the new redesign where you can browse by category, and sign up for free writing articles, on topics you choose, delivered to your email inbox!  Sign up for the Hiveword newsletter here.

Business / Miscellaneous

Business Musings: Money: 3 Deal Memos (Contract/Negotiation…and…Rethinking The Writing Business): @KristineRusch
3 Ways to Get Your Dream Endorsement: @sandrabeckwith @JFbookman

Conferences and Events / Miscellaneous

Finding Inspiration at a Writing Conference (Or Any Conference): @jcwalton24 @DIYMFA
Four Debuts Shortlisted for UK’s Times/Warwick Young Writer Award: @Porter_Anderson @pubperspectives
Jean-Paul Dubois Wins France’s 2019 Prix Goncourt: @Porter_Anderson @pubperspectives
The UK’s Women’s Prize and Germany’s NonFiction Prize Name Jurors: @Porter_Anderson @pubperspectives
DSC Prize for South Asian Literature Announces 2019 Shortlist: @Porter_Anderson @pubperspectives
France’s Arab Literature Prize to Egyptian Author Muhammad Abdelnabi: @oliviasnaije @pubperspectives

Conferences and Events / NaNoWriMo

Tips for *Unofficially* Participating in NaNoWriMo:

Creativity and Inspiration / First Novels

12 Essential Reminders for Anyone Getting Ready to Start Writing a Book: @MegDowell

Creativity and Inspiration / Goal setting

Different Options for Writing Goals: by Leslie Watts @StoryGrid

Creativity and Inspiration / Inspiration / Reading as Writers

8 Novels Featuring Atypical Amateur Sleuths: by Sarah Lotz @CrimeReads
Five Fantasy Books Steeped in History: @cephiedvariable @tordotcom

Creativity and Inspiration / Productivity / Fitting in Writing

7 Steps to Developing a Daily Writing Practice: @NinaAmir

Creativity and Inspiration / Writing Life

How To Find Health Insurance For Authors: @LisaLatteBooks
What Does it Take to Be a Real Writer? @sara_crawford @LiveWriteThrive
The US Tour That Made Gertrude Stein a Household Name: by Roy Morris Jr. @lithub
Burnout – What It Is and How to Prevent It: @Peter_Rey_
Focus on Writing the Best Book You Can: @RachelleGardner
How to Write Regularly Without Getting Sick of It: A Quick Guide: @MegDowell
Make Writing Easy On Yourself: @aprildavila
The Hack’s Guide to Breaking Up With Your Book: @BillFerris @WriterUnboxed
An Ode To Walking: @AuthorTracyRees @WomenWriters
Don’t be Afraid to Go There in Your Writing: @jamesscottbell
Writing Retreats: Why They’re Productive: by Heather Dyer
Trust Your Creativity And Choose Yourself: @jenlouden @thecreativepenn
10 Ways Perfectionism Kills the Writer (And 10 Ways it Doesn’t): @KelsieEngen @TheRyanLanz

Genres / Fantasy

A Quiet Hero’s Journey: Processing Trauma in Fantasy: @cloudy_vision @tordotcom

Genres / Horror

Finding Original Locations to Set Your Horror Stories: @richardgthomas3 @LitReactor

Genres / Miscellaneous

Can Climate Fiction Be… Hopeful? @DiFantastico @millcitywriter @lithub
Mystery Novelist @mike54martin on Writing a Christmas-Themed Book:

Genres / Romance

Anatomy of a Romantic Comedy: Seven Essential Story Beats: @lynsaymccaulley @kristen_kieffer

Genres / Science Fiction

Why the YA Sci-fi Market Sucks: @alexadonne

Genres / Screenwriting

Tips for Adapting Your Novel Into a Screenplay: @NaomiBeaty @savethecat
The Ultimate Story Checklist: Get Out: @CockeyedCaravan

Genres / Young Adult

Five Ways to Handle Parents Without Killing Them: by Oren Ashkenazi @mythcreants

Promo / Ads

6 Book Ad Design Tools Authors Can Use: by Mena Hassan @BookBub

Promo / Blogging

Tips for Better Blog Post Headlines: @amabaie

Promo / Book Reviews

How to Deal with a Negative Book Review: @ReedsyHQ

Promo / Newsletters

How to Use MailerLite (So You Can Dump MailChimp): @CaballoFrances

Promo / Platforms

Three Tips for Successful Platform Building: @INwritergirl @A3writers

Promo / Social Media Tips

How to Create an Instagram Stories Content Plan: @jenns_trends @SMExaminer
Social Media: Don’t Do it Wrong: @LauraDrakeBooks

Promo / Video

Digital Pubbing – Resources for Making Videos and Marketing With Them: @sabsky

Promo / Websites

The 30 Scariest Author Website Mistakes And How To Fix Them: @PaulineWiles @BadRedheadMedia

Publishing / Miscellaneous

7 ways book publishing will change over the next few years: @MikeShatzkin
The UK’s Tom Fickling, a ‘Sudden’ Publisher of Philip Pullman: @MarkPiesing @pubperspectives @DFB_storyhouse

Publishing / News / Amazon

Amazon Literary Partnership Is Open for 2020 Grant Applications: @Porter_Anderson @pubperspectives

Publishing / News / International Publishing

China Bestsellers for September 2019: Patriotism and Back to School: @Porter_Anderson @pubperspectives
Agent Stephanie Barrouillet: Nonfiction Leads Global Children’s Book Scene: @Porter_Anderson @pubperspectives
US Justice Department Gives Hachette a Warning about ‘A Warning’: @Porter_Anderson @pubperspectives
Acclaimed novelist Ernest Gaines dies at 86: @NPR
The PublisHer Women’s Network, at Frankfurt and Sharjah: @Porter_Anderson @Bodour
Fixed Book Prices in Germany: Two New Studies Are Introduced in Berlin: @Porter_Anderson @pubperspectives

Publishing / Options / Traditional Publishing

3 Critical Things You Won’t Learn in an MFA Program: @manzanitafire @JaneFriedman

Publishing / Process / Book Design

Design Mistakes to Avoid: @NewShelvesBooks @JFbookman
Use This Checklist to Evaluate the Brilliance of Your Interior Designer: by Mary Neighbour @BethBarany

Publishing / Process / Contracts

How to Navigate Publishing Contracts and Writing on Deadline: @MegLaTorre @MichaelMammay

Publishing / Process / Formatting

How to Make Trim-Sized PDFs for POD Publication: by Tracy Atkins @JFbookman

Writing Craft / Beginnings

Real Life Diagnostics: Does This Scene Work? by Maria D’Marco

Writing Craft / Characters / Antagonists

The Villain Never Says He’s Sorry: @SPressfield

Writing Craft / Characters / Development

5 Tips For Making Your Characters Distinct: @KMAllan_writer
How to Fix a Mary Sue Character: @themaltesetiger

Writing Craft / Characters / Protagonists

The Hero Checklist — How to Create a Truly Epic Hero: @LexicalForge @CareerAuthors

Writing Craft / Common Mistakes

Don’t Make This Common Characterization Mistake: @Janice_Hardy

Writing Craft / Conflict

Conflict Thesaurus Entry: Being Sabotaged: @beccapuglisi

Writing Craft / Diversity

How Do I Show That a Character Is Trans? by Chris Winkle @mythcreants

Writing Craft / Endings

Writing Tips: Unforgettable Endings With James Scott Bell: @jamesscottbell @thecreativepenn

Writing Craft / Lessons from Books and Film

What Writers Can Learn from Dante—Seriously, From Dante: @MatthewPearl @CrimeReads
5 Ways Anne Tyler Can Help You Improve Your Writing: @FredBobJohn @standoutbooks

Writing Craft / Miscellaneous

The Power of Myth in Stories: by Katie Price @NaNoWriMo
What Is A Vignette & How Do I Write One? @Writers_Write
How Long Should A Chapter Be? @HankPRyan @CareerAuthors

Writing Craft / Revision

4 Ideas To Help Authors Revise A Book’s First Draft: @HDemchick @thecreativepenn

Writing Craft / Revisions / Critiques

Critique: 10 Ways to Write Excellent Dialogue: @KMWeiland
Top 5 Tips For Surviving a Content Edit: @AneMulligan @EdieMelson

Writing Craft / Series

Issues When Writing Series: @Virgilante @StoryEmpire
10 Rules for Writing a Sequel: @woodwardkaren

Writing Craft / Settings and Description

Avoid a Tasteless Scene: Introducing Tastes into Stories: @ZoeMMcCarthy
Novel Scene Description: @Kid_Lit

Writing Tools / Resources

8 Writing and Researching Tools You Might be Ignoring: @Gabino_Iglesias @LitReactor

The Top Writing Links From Last Week Are On Twitterific:
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And Now for Something Completely Different: Writing a Christmas-Themed Book

by Mike Martin, @mike54martin

Christmas in Newfoundland: Memories and Mysteries was the longest book to write. Over a period of 10 years I wrote a Christmas themed story for my family. They started as memories from my early days but later morphed into mini-mysteries featuring the characters of my Sgt. Windflower Mystery series. I also included a story that was told to me about Christmas in a long-ago Grand Bank, Newfoundland where gifts were few and love was plenty.

Those were days when the plentiful snow and a home-made sled were a child’s entertainment and nights were filled with songs and kerosene lamps and laughter. And the 12 days of Christmas were a time for family, friends and roving bands of mummers. Those are people who dressed up in outrageous clothing and for a drink of rum would sing and dance in your kitchen.

My own early Christmas memories come from the streets of St. John’s, Newfoundland in the 1960’s when downtown was the best and only place to shop and the store windows held a young child in rapture with their Christmas toy display and Christmas music blaring everywhere. There was even a live turkey raffle to raise money for the local orphanage and one special night was spent on a hot, sticky bus to see the wondrous lights all over town.

It was easy to bring Sgt. Windflower and his friends and new family into the Christmas story tradition. He loved Christmas, of course, as well as the enduring traditions of caring and sharing that he found in Grand Bank. Windflower, Sheila and Eddie Tizzard all had new adventures across Christmas time each year as they found their way into trouble and back out again. Always in time to enjoy the most magical time of the year.

Why did I decide to publish these stories now? That’s a good question. I have an active writing life with a new Sgt. Windflower book each year (Book # 8 Fire, Fog and Water is just released) and lots of other freelance and contract pieces to keep me busy. Why did I venture outside my comfort zone and want to share these personal stories and memories with a wider audience?

I think there are two main reasons for doing it. One, is that I want to keep some of those stories and memories alive. That is the ultimate job of a writer, to be a storyteller, to take small pieces and scraps and memories and keep them from fading away. Secondly, and maybe more importantly is to bring a little joy, a little more Christmas magic, into the world. It’s hard for many people these days and we have lots of problems and worries and concerns and very real issues to deal with. But if we can think about a happy memory from a Christmas long ago or dream about a new memory we can create with our own children and grandchildren, all those worries may pass for a few moments.

Then we can all be that little boy or girl with our nose pressed up against the window of the toy shop or trying to fall asleep so that Santa can finally come. I hope you can find some of that Christmas magic in these little stories and if you do, please take the time to spread it along around your family, friends and neighbours. We could all use a little more Christmas.

Mike Martin is the award-winning author of the Sgt. Windflower Mystery series.

You can follow him and Sgt. Windflower on Facebook.

 

Here are some online links for Christmas in Newfoundland: Memories and Mysteries

Amazon: United States

Amazon: Canada

Chapters/Indigo: Canada

Amazon: UK

Amazon: Australia

Mystery Novelist @mike54martin on Writing a Christmas-Themed Book:
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NaNoWriMo. . . Unofficially

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

Although I’ve never officially participated in NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month), I’ve fed off of the productivity of others and increased my own for the month.  If you’re American and have Thanksgiving in your future, this is no small feat!

In the past, my approach has been to hang out in some of the forums on the site.  You can look up general categories or a specific genre to find helpful advice and motivation (you’ll need a login to do so).  These are very active threads, I’ve found, so make sure to set yourself a timer or it may be a time suck.

This year, I’m trying a couple of new things. One of them is the NaNoWriMo writing sprints on Twitter, @NaNoWordSprints .  They run all day long and are hosted by different writers.  From what I’ve seen, there are 10 minute, 15 minute, and 20 minute sprints. If you’re feeling a little stuck, or are hesitant about your manuscript, the sprints can provide a good way to make progress.

The other thing is a virtual write-in sponsored by NaNoWriMo on YouTube. It looks like they have different hosts for these events, but have the same basic structure (which they mention below). Might be another good way to run through a sprint and get a little inspiration at the same time.  Find these on the NaNoWriMo channel. 

If you are looking for more of a local writing connection, you can search regions on the NaNo site, here.  And, depending on where you live, your local library may have regional events, like mine does. 

As I mentioned, I’m not officially participating…I’m simply upping my daily goals in different areas: an outline I’m working on and a new project I’m starting to write (that’s already outlined). In the past, I’ve even used the NaNo time period to write blog posts or research writing-related tasks. I made a list a couple of years ago of other ideas for productivity during NaNoWriMo:

Ideas for rebelling:  

Write nonfiction, or write your nonfiction outline/table of contents

Write essays (or freelance articles), a memoir, etc.

Work on several projects that need completing

Revise a project that you’ve already drafted.

Finish a work-in-progress

Write an outline for a project.

Write and send queries, if pursuing traditional publishing or freelance writing

Research and upload your existing books to aggregators  like PublishDrive, StreetLib, Draft2Digital, or Smashwords in order to expand your reach.

Research and upload your books to a POD distributor like IngramSpark.

Set a smaller goal.  Instead of shooting for the 50,000 words of NaNo, shoot for 30,000. Or just 15,000–whatever you think you can manage and that represents an increase of what you’re doing now.  Or plan on finishing a novella for your email newsletter list or as a free book

Write a blog post every day for a month (think how far you’ll get ahead on your editorial calendar, if you don’t post every day).

The idea is to set a writing-related goal and meet it.  What’s something that you need to make quick progress on?

Are you doing NaNoWriMo…either officially or unofficially?

NaNoWriMo . . . Unofficially:
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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 50,000 free articles on writing related topics. It’s the search engine for writers.

Have you visited the WKB lately?  Check out the new redesign where you can browse by category, and sign up for free writing articles, on topics you choose, delivered to your email inbox!  Sign up for the Hiveword newsletter here.

Business / Miscellaneous

Licensing Out (Rethinking The Writing Business): @KristineRusch
How to Quickly Land a Freelance Writing Job: @WritersCoach
The Five Myths of Crisis Management for Authors: @cksyme @annerallen
How to Deal with an Unresponsive Publishing or Self-Publishing Company: @JohnDoppler @IndieAuthorALLI
Before You Hire an Editor, Do These 4 Things: @KPickett_Editor

Conferences and Events / Miscellaneous

Emirates Publishers Association Opens Educational Publishing Seminar: @Porter_Anderson @sharjahbookfair @SharjahWBC @UNESCO @epa_publishers
Today at Sharjah’s Publishing Conference: Writers, Digital and Freedom: @Porter_Anderson @sharjahbookfair @SharjahBookAuth @SharjahWBC
At Sharjah: Seven African Projects Share in $170,000 Innovation Fund: @Porter_Anderson

Conferences and Events / NaNoWriMo

NaNoWriMo 2019 Survival Tips + Pep Talk: @alexadonne
Getting Ready for NaNoWriMo 2019: @tinthiaclemant @BethBarany
Preptober for NaNoWriMo: Encouragement for Your Future Self: @courtagonist
Last Minute NaNoWriMo Prep: @ReedsyHQ
Should You Do NaNoWriMo? @shaelinbishop
Find NaNoWriMo Word Sprints at @NaNoWordSprints More Information:
5 Tips to Help You Write a Novel in a Month: @thecreativepenn @KoboWritingLife

Creativity and Inspiration / Goal setting

“Why Word Count Goals Suck & I’m No Longer Using Them”: @LisaLatteBooks

Creativity and Inspiration / Inspiration

Why All Aspiring Novelists Need A Vision Board: @hollieivyblog @Writers_Write

Creativity and Inspiration / Inspiration / Quotes

120+ Inspirational Writing Quotes By Famous Authors: @ScottAllan2
14 William Faulkner Quotes for Writers and About Writing: @robertleebrewer @WritersDigest

Creativity and Inspiration / Inspiration / Reading as Writers

Ten Problems Only Booksharks Have: @Gabino_Iglesias
A Very Short List of Very Short Novels with Very Short Commentary: by Alice McDermott @parisreview
Words Turning 100 In 2019: @br8ybrunch @mental_floss
Top 10 culinary memoirs: @isareport @GuardianBooks
10 Best Dystopian Novels for Writers: @robertleebrewer @WritersDigest
Favorite Classic Haunted House Novels: @dongillette @gjkendall
Learning From Other People’s Writing: by Doug Lewars @TheRyanLanz
Folk Horror Novel “Starve Acre”: Published Twice in 6 Months, by 2 ‘Authors’ With Different Endings: by Tony Jones @InkHeist @DeadInkBooks
11 Forgotten Books of the 1920s Worth Reading Now: @CultPopCulture @lithub
Five Ridiculous Organizations From Popular Stories: by Oren Ashkenazi @mythcreants

Creativity and Inspiration / Productivity / Fitting in Writing

Making a Writing Practice Work for You: @10minnovelist

Creativity and Inspiration / Writing Life

Full-Time Writing: 3 Months in: @sacha_black
The Side Effects of Being an Author: @EstelleMaher @WomenWriters
Trouble Staying Focused? Try Making a List: @cleemckenzie
How to Overcome Self-Doubt and Actually Write: Podcast: @reafrey_author @joebunting
What Can a Hashtag Do? by Elizabeth Losh @lithub
5 Reasons Everything That’s Easy To Read Involves Some Hard Writing: @EllieCoverdale1 @A3writers
List: Horror Movies for Introverts by Maggie Phenicie and @chrtucci: @mcsweeneys
Quitting Your Day Job for Your Creative Work (podcast): @activemelody @WeGrowMedia
10 Daily Top-up Tasks for Aspiring Career Writers: @brotzel_fiction @hopeclark
Librarians Are Secretly the Funniest People Alive: by Jo Lou @ElectricLit
How To Get Organized To Write Your Book: @kwistent

Genres / Horror

The Role of Cats in Horror: @EssayLarson @JSTOR
Josh Malerman on Post Bird Box Success, Life Stages, and Horror Trends (podcast): @JoshMalerman @ThisIsHorror
How to Write a Horror Story: by Tom Ashford @pbackwriter

Genres / Mystery

The Long, Proud Tradition of Jazz-Infused Crime Novels: @alex_segura @CrimeReads
The Crime-Solving, Plant-Savvy Scientists at the Cutting Edge of a New Forensics: @PEJWiltshire @CrimeReads
Tips on Writing Psychological Thrillers: @writingandsuch
How To Choose A Cozy Mystery Pen Name: @LisaLatteBooks
Challenges of Writing a Long Running Series: @BakeshopMystery

Genres / Picture Books

What it Takes to Write Children’s Books: @journeytokidlit @Rhys_Keller

Genres / Romance

The Structure of a Love Story: @woodwardkaren

Genres / Science Fiction

How to Make Time Travel Logical: by Sofia Jeppsson @mythcreants

Genres / Young Adult

How to Publish a Young Adult Novel: @robertleebrewer
5 Common Traits of Successful Young Adult Novels: @ReedsyHQ

Promo / Blogging

How to Craft a Guest Blog Pitch (with Free Template): @SmartAuthors @BookWorksNYC
Why Do Folks Subscribe to Your Blog? @crsmihai

Promo / Miscellaneous

Planning Your Book Launch: @JudithBriles @JFbookman
Your Writing is a Gift: @DanBlank
Book Marketing Timelines: How Early to Get Started: @Bookgal
Your Book Isn’t For Everyone, And Your Marketing Strategy Shouldn’t Be Either: @losapala
The One Marketing Tip Staring You in the Face: @ph_solomon @StoryEmpire

Promo / Newsletters

How to Convert Book Readers into Email Subscribers: @DaveChesson @JaneFriedman

Promo / Platforms

How do you build an author brand? @DeborahJay2

Promo / Social Media Tips

The Definitive Guide To Pinterest Hashtags: @ukwordgirl @bloggingwizard
5 Ways To Use Voice Search To Sell More Books: @ZaraAltair @thecreativepenn

Promo / Video

Don’t Ignore YouTube Just Because You’re Not 8 to 16: @Margo_L_Dill @womenonwriting

Publishing / Miscellaneous

Choosing the Right Narrator for your Audiobook: by Thomas A. Burns, Jr

Publishing / News / International Publishing

Nitasha Devasar: ‘Indian Publishing Has a Vital Role To Play’: @Porter_Anderson @pubperspectives
Three Authors on the Impact of Lebanon’s Political Unrest: @oliviasnaije @pubperspectives
IPA’s Bodour and Setzer Lead African Focus in Conference Closer: @Porter_Anderson @pubperspectives @Bodour @IntPublishers
Toby Green’s History of West Africa Wins £25,000 Nayef Al-Rodhan Prize: @Porter_Anderson @pubperspectives
Scottish Books International Targets New German-Market Opportunities: @Porter_Anderson @PublishScotland
From Frankfurt’s Audio Summit: Valérie Lévy-Soussan of France’s Audiolib: @Porter_Anderson @pubperspectives @Audiolib1
Ghana’s Deborah Ahenkorah Wins Canada’s Global Pluralism Award: @Porter_Anderson @missahenkorah @pubperspectives @GlobalPluralism
Yang Hongying: One of China’s Bestselling Children’s Book Authors: @Porter_Anderson @pubperspectives

Publishing / Options / Self-Publishing

7 Steps to Self-Publish Your Book: @createastorylov

Publishing / Process / Book Design

Book Cover Trends Through the Decades: by Chandler Bolt @JFbookman

Writing Craft / Beginnings

First Line Generator: Everything You Need to Know + Great Examples: @DaveChesson

Writing Craft / Characters / Antagonists

2 Minute Writing Help: Antagonists: @JustinAttas

Writing Craft / Characters / Development

7 reasons your characters feel flat: @NathanBransford
The 7 Qualities Of Compelling Character Motivations: @Writers_Write
Are Your Characters Too Nice, Controlled, Predictable? @writeabook

Writing Craft / Characters / Emotion

How to Evoke Emotions in Characters and Reader: by Rachelle S. Ramirez @StoryGrid

Writing Craft / Conflict

Conflict Thesaurus Entry: Being Given Bad News: @AngelaAckerman

Writing Craft / Diversity

Writing People of Color: 3-Part Series by Colette Aburime and Alexa White @WritingwColor : https://t.co/2Dh0QZm3qG , https://t.co/M2g8PTSWfc ,

Writing Craft / Literary Devices

Motif in Literature: Definition and Examples: by Kaelyn Barron@TCKPublishing

Writing Craft / Miscellaneous

Past and Present tense: which, why, when and how: @emma_darwin
What is a non-linear narrative, and should my story be one? @emma_darwin
Writing’s Secret Formula: How to Write Stories That Matter: @KMWeiland
The Perverted Character: An Anime/Manga Staple? @cyallowitz
Five Questions for Reviewing Your Train of Thought: @KatyKauffman28
Fix Weak Style in Writing: 9 Tasks: @nownovel
Writers: Are You A Puffer Or A Fluffer? @ChrisLukeDean @Writers_Write
How to Write Constructive Criticism: from Writing is an Art
How to handle acronyms and initialisms: @pubcoach
Every Novel Scene Should Contain a Death: @LiveWriteThrive
How to write for skimmers: @pubcoach
When You Should Read Book Reviews: @katiemccoach

Writing Craft / POV

How to Write Omniscient POV: @WriteToSell
Deep POV: What IS It & Why Do Readers LOVE It So Much? @KristenLambTX

Writing Craft / Pre-Writing / Plotting

Save the Cat! NaNo Prep Webcast: @JessicaBrody @NaNoWriMo
The Hero’s Goal: Heroes, Dragons and Treasure: @woodwardkaren
How to Write a Short Story Cycle (and what is a short story cycle anyway?): @katekrake

Writing Craft / Pre-Writing / Research

History for Fantasy Writers: Shoemakers: by E.L. Skip Knox @mythicscribes

Writing Craft / Revisions / Critiques

The Dos And Don’ts Of Being A Good Beta Reader: @KMAllan_writer

The Top Writing Links From Last Week Are On Twitterific:
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Choosing the Right Narrator for your Audiobook

by Thomas A. Burns, Jr.

OK, you’ve decided to enter the audiobook market, currently the fastest growing segment of the publishing industry, with your novel. What’s next?

Once you’ve decided which company will produce your audiobook, you must find a narrator. This may be the most important choice you’ll have to make.

As a writer, you determine your story’s tone. If it’s a mystery, is it serious (traditional mystery), light-hearted or off-beat (cozy mystery), or does it take the reader on a breakneck ride (thriller)? You’ve chosen the structure of your story and the right words to convey the desired tone, but if you choose the wrong narrator, all of that may be for naught.

I suggest you go to the audiobook section of Amazon and listen to narrators of books in your genre. Identify a tone that you like, and more importantly, learn to recognize that tone from a different narrator than the one you’re currently listening to. You can always try to hire a narrator that you’ve heard, but that person may not be available.

Another important consideration is the gender of the voice. If you have a female protagonist, you don’t necessarily need a female narrator, but you’ll probably want the narrator’s voice to at least sound somewhat feminine. Yes, there are men who can do a believable female voice. How old is your protagonist? Again, you’ll probably want the voice to suggest the proper age. Finally, for dialogue, you’ll want the different characters in your novel to sound like different people. Do any of your characters have an accent?

You can always choose to narrate your book yourself, but think twice. Do you have experience in public speaking, story-telling, or voice acting? Do you have a soundproof area in which to record, and professional recording equipment, or access to a recording studio? Can you envision yourself producing an audiobook that’s 8 to 10 hours long? If the answer to any of these questions is no, I suggest you go with a professional.

I chose ACX, Amazon’s audiobook production company, to produce the audio version of my first novel, Stripper! ACX has nearly 100,000 narration samples on their site, but you don’t have to listen to all of them. You can narrow the list with filters such as genre, gender, language, accent, vocal style and age, as well as how the narrator wishes to be paid. The more filters you choose, the smaller the pool of narrators is.

Each narrator has posted one or more samples of their work for you to listen to. If you have a clear idea of what you’re looking for, you can go through them rather quickly, and send a message to each narrator whom you think might fill the bill.

ACX suggests that you create an audition script to post on your site for prospective narrators to download. It should be roughly 10 minutes long, and be a representative sample of your novel. You can include a descriptive passage, dialogue, especially with your protagonist and any other important characters speaking, or characters with accents, and maybe a thrilling or climactic excerpt. Once a prospective narrator has recorded an audition, you can review it to see how well the tone of your book has been captured. If a narrator is good but not quite perfect, you can suggest changes to bring the narration more in line with your vision. The thing to avoid at all costs is a narrator who drones, never changing their tone, like that college professor you hated. You want your readers alert and involved in your story, not going to sleep.

If you’re working with ACX, once you’ve approved the audition, the narrator will record the first 15 minutes of the book for your review. Up to this point, you can reject a narrator for any reason with no obligation incurred. You can make another round of suggestions, and disapprove the 15-minute sample asking for revision. But remember, if you come off as too demanding, the narrator may decide not to work with you.

Once you’ve approved the first 15 minutes, you’ve entered a contract with the narrator to produce your work.

Depending on how you’ve decided to pay the narrator, that contract may be broken. Mutual agreement always is appropriate. For Stripper!, I had my first narrator quit because of personal issues. Luckily, it took me only a couple of weeks to find someone else, whom I think is even better than the first narrator.

I can’t begin to describe the feeling that I had when I heard my story and my characters come to life for the first time. You’ll know it when it happens, though, and you’ll know that you’ve found the right narrator!

Thomas A. Burns, Jr. is the author of the Natalie McMasters Mysteries.

 

 

Natalie McMasters is a detective for the new millennium.

In the first book, Stripper!, Nattie is twenty, short and blonde (OK, it’s bleached!), way cute, and a pre-law student at State. She’s also straight, or at least she thinks so. To put herself through school, she’s moonlighting as a private detective trainee at her uncle Amos Murdoch’s 3M Detective Agency, where the most exciting thing she does is sit in a car, staking out people who’ve claimed workers’ compensation to be sure they’re hurt as badly as they say. It’s the perfect gig for a college student, because she can study on the job. But one day she directly confronts a subject on a stakeout, and Amos fires her.

Then she meets another student who bears an uncanny resemblance to her, and everything in her life changes. When her new best friend is brutally murdered and Amos is critically injured, Nattie immerses herself in the seamy world of webcams and strip clubs to hunt the killer. Her investigation forces her to reassess many of the ideas that she’s lived by her whole life and do things she’s never considered before – strip on a stage, question her sexuality, and rediscover the meaning of love itself. Nattie eventually exposes a drug ring, police corruption, and an assassin-for-hire online. Then she stumbles upon the true face of evil, and her encounter does not leave her unscathed…

The audio version of Stripper!, narrated by Lisa S. Ware, will be released on Amazon, Audible and Itunes in November, 2019.

Writer Thomas A. Burns, Jr. with tips for choosing your audio book's narrator:
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