Chris Allen's Blog - Posts Tagged "writing"
WRITING FOR BUSINESS OR PLEASURE
OR: HOW TO START PUBLISHING YOUR BOOK
Recently, following a writers' talk at the Lake Macquarie Fellowship of Australian Writers, I received an email from one of the attendees asking me how long I should expect a book will take to write and publish.
My first thought is "how long is a piece of string?" It's a valid question though and one I'd like to address right here, on this blog, to spark thought and discourse with any other aspiring or practicing writers.
If you ultimately seek a successful writing career (and there's nothing wrong with that!) then you may need to do what I did after completing my first book, and drastically alter your writing approach - especially if you ever wish to enjoy the fruits of your labours. The idea? To embrace a shorter but more productive writing timeframe; learn the ropes of the digital revolution in full swing; and take control of your publishing destiny.
The following advice has been prepared on the basis of my personal experience and should be taken as my own journey and therefore may or may not be of assistance to you. The Boss - aka my Sar - suggested I add that particular disclaimer, as there is already a plethora of authors out there providing marketing and publishing advice, and while we all have learnings to impart, no one person is the holy grail. That said, Sarah has done a great course recently - led by one particularly cool fellow - that is worth checking as his advice was incredible and, importantly, based on success that was hard won.
Now, back to the basics.
PREPARING YOUR BOOK
There are a couple of approaches to consider.
Firstly, you may wish to self publish it as I did initially and, thereby, 'test the waters'. If you do, you can: (1) engage some of your writing colleagues and ask for their genuine feedback - this will help you get a sense of what's working or not, then either (2) find and pay for an editor who is experienced in your genre and will work with you to make the manuscript 'publishing ready' - many available online if you look hard enough, or (3) pay for a complete publishing/editorial package which will essentially give you a one-stop-shop to keep the process simple and, relatively, expedient. In this regard, I would recommend researching the Amazon publishing arm CreateSpace - the people I used when I self-published Defender of the Faith.
If you don't want to self-publish then you'll be on the look out for a publisher who specialises in your genre. That could be a mainstream publisher who is looking for writers producing work in that area, or it could be a genre-specific publisher. This will take research and I wouldn't limit your research just to Australia. Spend some time hunting across the internet and look for writing groups, bloggers, reviewers who are focused on that genre - listen for the buzz on whose work they are reviewing, what they are saying about the biggest writers in your space, and use your sleuthing skills to discover who publishes their work, who agents for them, and so on.
KEEP WRITING
Now, all of the above is something you should be doing while concurrently getting started on the next book!
Publishing is a business. Publishers are looking for writers/books that they feel will sell and that they can market and turnaround reasonably rapidly. Your work is a 'product for sale' in the big bad world. So, you need to be prepared to change your writing approach if you wish to be picked up by a publisher and see your books on shelves in stores or online.
These days, with the explosion of eReaders and eBooks and reading a plethora of stories on all manner of technological devices and (gasp) books, you've gotta keep writing to up your chances of success as an dollar-earning author. A publisher could be looking for a six month turnaround from you if they are looking to publish one of your books per year. That gives them time to undertake the full editing process - structural/copy/final etc, followed by the actual production process and then, obviously, marketing ahead of the release date.
THINK SERIES-LY
My experience has been in writing a series, so I'm going to stick to that. Map out your entire series so that you have the full adventure planned and organised into the various volumes i.e. Book 1, Book 2, Book 3 etc. Once you've done that, then get started on book two. That means planning your personal writing process around a certain word-count per day or week (up to you). To me, it's all about word count. Books in my genre of action / thriller / espionage normally average around 100,000 words. It would be wise to find an average word count for books in your genre so that you have an idea of what to aim for. Then, it's simply: creativity + maths = book delivered on time.
No one can tell you exactly how to execute this, especially the creativity part. However, I would advise against paragraph-by-paragraph perfection and stay focused on the entire story. Remember, the book will go through a very detailed (sometimes excruciating) editorial process once you have it finished. Honestly, just get the story down. It's your story and your characters that will win over an audience. They won't be too concerned with every single word and paragraph.
I'll leave it there for now. Do you have a view? Leave a comment below.
Best,
Chris
Recently, following a writers' talk at the Lake Macquarie Fellowship of Australian Writers, I received an email from one of the attendees asking me how long I should expect a book will take to write and publish.
My first thought is "how long is a piece of string?" It's a valid question though and one I'd like to address right here, on this blog, to spark thought and discourse with any other aspiring or practicing writers.
If you ultimately seek a successful writing career (and there's nothing wrong with that!) then you may need to do what I did after completing my first book, and drastically alter your writing approach - especially if you ever wish to enjoy the fruits of your labours. The idea? To embrace a shorter but more productive writing timeframe; learn the ropes of the digital revolution in full swing; and take control of your publishing destiny.
The following advice has been prepared on the basis of my personal experience and should be taken as my own journey and therefore may or may not be of assistance to you. The Boss - aka my Sar - suggested I add that particular disclaimer, as there is already a plethora of authors out there providing marketing and publishing advice, and while we all have learnings to impart, no one person is the holy grail. That said, Sarah has done a great course recently - led by one particularly cool fellow - that is worth checking as his advice was incredible and, importantly, based on success that was hard won.
Now, back to the basics.
PREPARING YOUR BOOK
There are a couple of approaches to consider.
Firstly, you may wish to self publish it as I did initially and, thereby, 'test the waters'. If you do, you can: (1) engage some of your writing colleagues and ask for their genuine feedback - this will help you get a sense of what's working or not, then either (2) find and pay for an editor who is experienced in your genre and will work with you to make the manuscript 'publishing ready' - many available online if you look hard enough, or (3) pay for a complete publishing/editorial package which will essentially give you a one-stop-shop to keep the process simple and, relatively, expedient. In this regard, I would recommend researching the Amazon publishing arm CreateSpace - the people I used when I self-published Defender of the Faith.
If you don't want to self-publish then you'll be on the look out for a publisher who specialises in your genre. That could be a mainstream publisher who is looking for writers producing work in that area, or it could be a genre-specific publisher. This will take research and I wouldn't limit your research just to Australia. Spend some time hunting across the internet and look for writing groups, bloggers, reviewers who are focused on that genre - listen for the buzz on whose work they are reviewing, what they are saying about the biggest writers in your space, and use your sleuthing skills to discover who publishes their work, who agents for them, and so on.
KEEP WRITING
Now, all of the above is something you should be doing while concurrently getting started on the next book!
Publishing is a business. Publishers are looking for writers/books that they feel will sell and that they can market and turnaround reasonably rapidly. Your work is a 'product for sale' in the big bad world. So, you need to be prepared to change your writing approach if you wish to be picked up by a publisher and see your books on shelves in stores or online.
These days, with the explosion of eReaders and eBooks and reading a plethora of stories on all manner of technological devices and (gasp) books, you've gotta keep writing to up your chances of success as an dollar-earning author. A publisher could be looking for a six month turnaround from you if they are looking to publish one of your books per year. That gives them time to undertake the full editing process - structural/copy/final etc, followed by the actual production process and then, obviously, marketing ahead of the release date.
THINK SERIES-LY
My experience has been in writing a series, so I'm going to stick to that. Map out your entire series so that you have the full adventure planned and organised into the various volumes i.e. Book 1, Book 2, Book 3 etc. Once you've done that, then get started on book two. That means planning your personal writing process around a certain word-count per day or week (up to you). To me, it's all about word count. Books in my genre of action / thriller / espionage normally average around 100,000 words. It would be wise to find an average word count for books in your genre so that you have an idea of what to aim for. Then, it's simply: creativity + maths = book delivered on time.
No one can tell you exactly how to execute this, especially the creativity part. However, I would advise against paragraph-by-paragraph perfection and stay focused on the entire story. Remember, the book will go through a very detailed (sometimes excruciating) editorial process once you have it finished. Honestly, just get the story down. It's your story and your characters that will win over an audience. They won't be too concerned with every single word and paragraph.
I'll leave it there for now. Do you have a view? Leave a comment below.
Best,
Chris
THE IMPORTANCE OF MUSIC IN BOOKS
This post first appeared on Bookd Out: http://bookdout.wordpress.com/2013/07...
Music has always been in my bones. I grew up in a musical family: My mum and sisters played strings and piano, I was a jazz and rock-obsessed drummer, my younger brothers each played bass and guitar respectively while my Welsh father had a beautiful voice. I remember having sing-a-longs with my Pop and listening to our uncles play guitars and sing with their lilting Northern English accents. They were from Durham – Bryan Ferry territory. As a result of these influences and having an eclectic taste in rock and jazz, it was inevitable that music would find a way of infusing itself in my writing.
In writing international crime and espionage thriller novels then, music assists me in helping to reflect an element of a character’s personality, in that musical choices are a reflection of a person’s individuality and tastes. Alex Morgan – the star agent of the black-ops Interpol agency– and General Davenport – Intrepid’s Chief – will always echo certain elements of my own taste in music, in some shape or form, because aspects of their personalities reflect parts of me (albeit at different stages in my life). For example, while head honcho General Davenport appreciates the jazz classics, with Morgan’s vocation he’s a heavy rock guy who enjoys softer music on occasion (it sounds like a cliché, but Enya soothes him) as well as the blues, which brings out his predisposition for melancholy.
Another way I use music is to help paint a particular mood for a scene. That way, I’m using the tune to create the atmosphere or disposition of the characters at that point in the story. When Alex Morgan is driving in the car towards London in Defender, with his blood up and frustrated by the fruitless search for rogue agent Lundt, he listens to Aussie rock band, The Living End. But if a character is – just say – feeling a bit lucky, maybe relaxing with a gorgeous woman and having enjoyed a bowl of pasta and a glass of red, they might be enjoying some Eric Clapton orMiles Davies. Varying soundtracks for different types of action…!
That said, when I’m through the research stage and am into actually writing the books, I hardly ever listen to music. As a drummer, whether I like the track that is playing nearby or I can’t stand it, I click into the rhythmic beat and it distracts my thinking. But ever so occasionally, if I’m right into writing an action scene I might put a driving drum beat and that’ll help me to type quicker (even though I only use two fingers).
Reviewers have commented that I have a cinematic writing style, in that it’s very visual and shows readers what’s in my mind’s eye for the stories. One of my favourite recent film series, Iron Man, takes the heavy metal concept literally by using a lot of ACDC throughout the scenes. There’s no reason you can’t evoke the same reactions when writing a story by suggesting musical tracks and styles throughout the novel.
In my second Alex Morgan adventure, Hunter, the heroine Charlotte-Rose Fleming is one of the finest classical pianists of her time. I wanted her to have substance, to have a special talent, to be adored for it, and being an internationally acclaimed musician is one of the highest accolades I could bestow. I researched a very glamorous and flamboyant musician called Sonja Kahn to help me think about Charlie’s gift (as she is nicknamed in the novel) and her unique performance style. There is a description of Charlie in Chapter 11 of Hunter:
“Her mastery of the instrument was indisputable, showcased via a repertoire only the finest players at the absolute pinnacle of their careers could ever attempt. But it was the showmanship, a combination of unbridled energy, passion, humor and seduction, that beguiled her audiences. The atmosphere and physicality of her performances were more akin to a rock concert than a classical music recital.”
Based on the music that appears in my novels, we’ve released two Spotify soundtracks so you can listen to the music that features in each book. InDefender, there’s more rock, jazz and pop, whereas there’s more of a classical bent in Hunter, which reflects the storyline with its principal character, Charlotte Rose Fleming is a world-famous classical musician. You can listen to each of the Spotify soundtracks from my first and second Alex Morgan adventures on the IntrepidAllen website.
www.intrepidallen.com
Music has always been in my bones. I grew up in a musical family: My mum and sisters played strings and piano, I was a jazz and rock-obsessed drummer, my younger brothers each played bass and guitar respectively while my Welsh father had a beautiful voice. I remember having sing-a-longs with my Pop and listening to our uncles play guitars and sing with their lilting Northern English accents. They were from Durham – Bryan Ferry territory. As a result of these influences and having an eclectic taste in rock and jazz, it was inevitable that music would find a way of infusing itself in my writing.
In writing international crime and espionage thriller novels then, music assists me in helping to reflect an element of a character’s personality, in that musical choices are a reflection of a person’s individuality and tastes. Alex Morgan – the star agent of the black-ops Interpol agency– and General Davenport – Intrepid’s Chief – will always echo certain elements of my own taste in music, in some shape or form, because aspects of their personalities reflect parts of me (albeit at different stages in my life). For example, while head honcho General Davenport appreciates the jazz classics, with Morgan’s vocation he’s a heavy rock guy who enjoys softer music on occasion (it sounds like a cliché, but Enya soothes him) as well as the blues, which brings out his predisposition for melancholy.
Another way I use music is to help paint a particular mood for a scene. That way, I’m using the tune to create the atmosphere or disposition of the characters at that point in the story. When Alex Morgan is driving in the car towards London in Defender, with his blood up and frustrated by the fruitless search for rogue agent Lundt, he listens to Aussie rock band, The Living End. But if a character is – just say – feeling a bit lucky, maybe relaxing with a gorgeous woman and having enjoyed a bowl of pasta and a glass of red, they might be enjoying some Eric Clapton orMiles Davies. Varying soundtracks for different types of action…!
That said, when I’m through the research stage and am into actually writing the books, I hardly ever listen to music. As a drummer, whether I like the track that is playing nearby or I can’t stand it, I click into the rhythmic beat and it distracts my thinking. But ever so occasionally, if I’m right into writing an action scene I might put a driving drum beat and that’ll help me to type quicker (even though I only use two fingers).
Reviewers have commented that I have a cinematic writing style, in that it’s very visual and shows readers what’s in my mind’s eye for the stories. One of my favourite recent film series, Iron Man, takes the heavy metal concept literally by using a lot of ACDC throughout the scenes. There’s no reason you can’t evoke the same reactions when writing a story by suggesting musical tracks and styles throughout the novel.
In my second Alex Morgan adventure, Hunter, the heroine Charlotte-Rose Fleming is one of the finest classical pianists of her time. I wanted her to have substance, to have a special talent, to be adored for it, and being an internationally acclaimed musician is one of the highest accolades I could bestow. I researched a very glamorous and flamboyant musician called Sonja Kahn to help me think about Charlie’s gift (as she is nicknamed in the novel) and her unique performance style. There is a description of Charlie in Chapter 11 of Hunter:
“Her mastery of the instrument was indisputable, showcased via a repertoire only the finest players at the absolute pinnacle of their careers could ever attempt. But it was the showmanship, a combination of unbridled energy, passion, humor and seduction, that beguiled her audiences. The atmosphere and physicality of her performances were more akin to a rock concert than a classical music recital.”
Based on the music that appears in my novels, we’ve released two Spotify soundtracks so you can listen to the music that features in each book. InDefender, there’s more rock, jazz and pop, whereas there’s more of a classical bent in Hunter, which reflects the storyline with its principal character, Charlotte Rose Fleming is a world-famous classical musician. You can listen to each of the Spotify soundtracks from my first and second Alex Morgan adventures on the IntrepidAllen website.
www.intrepidallen.com
