Stacey D. Atkinson's Blog, page 7

How to schedule creative work

I've had a schedule imposed on me since I was 5 years old. It started on my first day of school and carried through into my adult life with a series of 9-5 jobs. Wake up, get ready, commute, spend the day working with tasks defined by my teachers/boss, commute back home, eat and enjoy myself, then go to bed to start it all over again the next morning. So when I finally left my day job to focus full time on writing and publishing my debut novel, it was a wake-up call in time management.

During the past year, I've accomplished some great things, but it wasn't until last week when I finally asked myself if I was being efficient in my work? Was I making smart choices with my time or was I taking on too much? And why did I always feel like I didn't get enough done at the end of the day?

In an effort to make a bigger impact on the many project I was working on, I decided to schedule my time. I know it's a crazy concept for someone who'd finally broken free from the 9-5 shackles only to voluntarily wear them again, but I had to come to terms with the fact that my brain and work ethic was formed on scheduling, and the structure actually helped me achieve my goals and earn those feelings of accomplishment.

Even more importantly, making a schedule helped ensure I was getting "me time" instead of working all the time as new entrepreneurs tend to do. Also, being a huge fan of Dragon's Den helped me stumble upon top dragon Arlene Dickinson's new venture called YouInc, an online community of entrepreneurs, where I read a great post by a doctor about scheduling exercise into the day.

So in an effort to help writers and entrepreneurs out there with their own time management, here's a look at my new schedule which carves out equal time for sales (selling my debut novel), new business (writing my next book), branding (social media), learning (course work/seminars), and new business ideas, while also leaving ample space to fit in me time and exercise. 

Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Saturday
Sunday

Sales/Marketing

Social media

Writing

Course work

Social media

Writing

Sales/Financials

Social media

Writing

New business development

Social media

Blog

Social media

Open schedule

 

Course work

Social media

 

 

 

 

 

May your days be filled with happy scheduling!

 

Stacey D. Atkinson is the author of the newly released novel Stuck, which she published via her independent company Mirror Image Publishing. 

 

The value of free books

Last weekend I ran a Riffle campaign to promote a "free" book giveaway. Actually, I didn't have to reduce my book all the way to free; I could have gotten away with 50% off, but I was curious about the true value of a free book. I wanted to know if a giveaway would increase my visibility (e.g. Facebook page likes, Twitter followers)? Increase book downloads? Result in spill-over sales after the promotion ended?

I first started thinking about the "free book" concept when I heard a talk by Hugh Howey, author of the indie WOOL series, where he mentioned that when he was starting out he gave away his book to anybody and everybody who would read it. He simply wanted his stories to be read and enjoyed by as many people as possible, which I think is a desire of most authors. Eventually his books peaked so much interest in readers that he became an international best-selling author!

But for as many people who say there's value in a free book, there are just as many who say art is not free and that giving it away only serves to devalue the work. Furthermore, there are many authors signed to big publishing houses who still have prices like $14.99 on an ebook--an extremely high value for a digital file, considering there are no printing or distribution costs.

I have to say I sit squarely in the middle of the two camps: I certainly don't want to give my book away for free on a regular basis, nor do I want to ask people to pay a high price for an ebook just so I can make more money. I think the answer lies in a hybrid pricing strategy that goes something like this.

1. Set a price for your ebook that compares with other authors in your genre. For example, in my case, if indie authors of new adult fiction are selling their ebooks from $2.99 - $4.99, then my price should be somewhere in that realm.

2. Develop a pricing strategy with well-timed promotions throughout the year, just like any retailer would do. For example, consider the Kindle Matchboook program (a free ebook with the purchase of a paperback), or changing your book pricing through Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP), KDP Select, Smashwords or Bookbaby.    

3. Use "free" book giveaways strategically throughout the year. For example, set short giveaway periods to create buzz and generate interest in your book. Promote, promote, promote, and also ask people to share on social media. You'll also benefit from spill-over sales the following week(s).

As for me, my Riffle promotion weekend went relatively well. I received about 150 downloads and some residual sales throughout the following week, which almost paid for the Riffle fee. I also gained about 10 new Facebook followers and a handful of new Twitter followers, too. Whatever you decide to do, just make sure you constantly monitor your book sales and look for opportunities to run promotions to gain new readers. The worst thing you can do with your book price is set it and forget it. Give people incentives to read your book...and sometimes that's going to mean free.

Stacey D. Atkinson is the author of the newly released novel Stuck, which she published via her independent company Mirror Image Publishing. 

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The cure for writer’s block is gratitude (or Britney Spears)

If you follow my blog, you know I’ve written on the topic of the critic voice verses the creative voice, and how one can overpower the other and slow your writing to a snail’s pace. But writer’s block is something entirely different, where you can’t even bring yourself to type anything meaningful at all on the page. Now mix that with a dreary, cold January winter and you have a perfect recipe for disaster. But thankfully, there’s a cure for that.

To begin with, let’s turn to our friend Wikipedia for a simple, clear definition of writer’s block: “a condition, primarily associated with writing, in which an author loses the ability to produce new work.” Now many people have written about writer’s block and have shared their many cures, but I thought I would dedicate this blog post to one simple concept: gratitude. 

Two weeks’ ago, after all the Christmas brouhaha was over, I recognized a potential “block”. Once I had an inkling of it, I told myself not to panic because I still had plenty of time to complete my next novel, which is only scheduled for release in fall 2014. But the next day, I received by mail the Independent, a monthly magazine published by the Independent Book Publishers Association, with a feature story on the book publishing cycle. I scanned the article and was reminded of just how much work it takes to publish a single book and how you have to start the process 9 months out—which is basically now!

I knew I had no time to waste and had to find a way to overcome this lack of motivation and loss of control over making my fingers type a sentence on the keyboard. I had to start writing every day again if I was ever going to finish my book on time. So what did I tell myself to get over my writer’s block? How did I get my motivation back? I know it might sound too simple to be true, but I turned to gratitude, and it worked like a charm. I reminded myself how lucky I was to be doing what I love to do, and to have the time and space to think about characters and plots and to write it all down, and that I shouldn’t waste one single day of it because it really is a privilege to be a storyteller.

But to be fair, I realize this concept of gratitude may not work for everyone, so I'm providing you with another solution that is guaranteed to motivate the pants off you. Let’s turn to the sage words of Ms. Britney Spears, which go something like this:

You wanna hot body
You wanna Bugatti
You wanna Maserati
You better work bitch

You wanna Lamborghini
Sip Martinis
Look hot in a bikini
You better work bitch

You wanna live fancy
Live in a big mansion
Party in France
You better work bitch

Copyright Britney Spears song title “Work Bitch”

Okay, I was going to provide the video link to Britney’s video, but decided I’d spare y’all and instead give you this very special treat. Here is a super, fantastic indie short film featuring our favorite chemistry teacher Bryan Cranston, entitled “Writer’s Block”.

Bryan Cranston in the short film “Writer’s Block.” (Youtube)

Also, for your reading pleasure, here are a few interesting articles on writer’s block. No shame, people. It happens to the best of us.

13 famous writers on overcoming writer’s block, Flavorwire

7 ways to overcome writer’s block, Writer’s Digest

Happy writing, everyone!

Stacey D. Atkinson is the author of the newly released novel Stuck, which she published via her independent company Mirror Image Publishing. 

 

Pinterest for authors

Well folks, I bit the bullet and finally started my Pinterest author account. I'd been debating it for almost a year now, ever since I returned from the Digital World Books conference in New York last January, where I learned that other social media platforms, such as Facebook and Goodreads, were much more effective in gaining new fans and readers. Alas, Pinterest remained in my thoughts, and as I saw other authors using it, I decided it was time to join. And I'm happy to say that I now see a place for Pinterest in my future.

As with any social media platform, it's been my experience that you need to get in there and mess around in order to really understand the practical purpose of each site. Here's a basic rundown of what I use social media for, showing how I have a unique intention for each platform. 

Facebook: tell personal stories to engage with friends, family, and fans
Twitter: share self-publishing industry news with like-minded people 
Instagram: share photos of things I find interesting and funny
Blog: talk about my experiences and lessons learned as a self-published author
Tumblr: syndicate my blog, post my Instagram photos, and be inspired by other visual blogs
LinkedIn: build my professional network as a freelance editor, join discussion groups
Goodreads: share book reviews and engage with other readers about books
Shelfari: share book reviews and engage with other readers about books
Google+: connect with other self-published writers and indie publishers, join discussion groups
....and now, introducing

Pinterest: share photos that help visualize my novel, and share my favorite books and book cover designs

I'll be honest with you, I didn't plan on being active on so many different social media sites. It kind of happened organically as I learned about where readers were spending their time learning about books, and I wanted to put myself in front of those readers. Plus, I gained from being on these sites, too. Both Twitter and Facebook have let me know about cool events happening in my area, like the Square meeting for Ottawa business start-ups, and LinkedIn has allowed me to follow some interesting discussion groups on publishing. Plus, I found my editor on Twitter!

At the very least, I think all authors should engage with readers and industry folks on a few different social media platforms, and spend at least fifteen minutes each day interacting with people. There's no sense setting up an account and forgetting about it--it's not called "social" media for nothing. Plus, for all you writers out there working home alone, you might just find that you really enjoy the company!

Keep writing and enjoy all your "posting", "sharing", favoriting", and "tweeting"!

Stacey D. Atkinson is the author of the newly released novel Stuck, which she published via her independent company Mirror Image Publishing. 

 

  

 

 

Bookkeeping for indie authors

Now that we've closed out 2013, it's time to ask ourselves, "Did I make any money this year selling my books?" Sure, of course, I think so. But how do we really know the impact of our income and expenses? We track it. 

Why track expenses you ask? Because it lets you see exactly where you're leaking money. For example, I thought I was overspending on shipping expenses because I seemed to always find myself at the post office mailing out books to customers, writing contests, media, etc. But when I looked at my end-of-year report, I could see that postage didn't add up to that much at all--it was more of a perceived expense. What actually ate up my funds was business travel. So now I have more solid information to make future decisions about where to spend my time and money as an indie author and publisher. 

Thanks to the advice of my sister who's been running her own social media company Cyber PR Army for years now, I've been using Quickbooks software to track my business activity. Until I pull the plug and hire a bookkeeper or accountant, it's up to me to keep track of my business finances. Thankfully, I'm a pretty organized person so it's not too much of a stretch to handle my own receipts, plus the payoff of organizing all business activity lets you create some really cool end-of-year reports (oh la la, colourful bar charts).

 

So today I thought I'd share with y'all my lessons learned from handling my own financial management this past year for Mirror Image Publishing. I was lucky enough to attend some accounting workshops offered by Invest Ottawa and the Ottawa Public Library, whose presenters gave me invaluable tips on how to prepare for tax time.

Here are some tricks I learned this year that should help you out with your own money management.

1. Reserve some time every week to update your books. I chose Wednesday mornings as my day for entering receipts, paying bills, and checking accounts because it just seems to work best for me (Friday was a total disaster). You could also choose to update your books monthly, but I guarantee that the work will increase exponentially the longer you wait to do it, and you'll soon find yourself spending an entire day or two just trying to catch up when you could have just spent a couple of hours a week.

2. Spend time setting up your chart of accounts. If you carefully think beforehand about all the possible categories of business income and expense (e.g. office supplies, travel), then you'll be good to go for the rest of the year, making only small tweaks to the categories as needed. Again, I mention Quickbooks because in my experience it's been amazing to work with. They've now moved to cloud-based accounting and I just saw on their website a 50%-off sale. Make sure you get the "Plus" version so you can track your book inventory. 

3. Receipts fade so scan them. Your records are subject to audit for about seven years, and your flimsy store receipts just won't hold up. So in the meantime, scan your receipts so you can safely store them electronically on you computer, then put the original paper version in a folder and stick it in a drawer and hope for the best.  

4. Tracking last year's activity lets you plan better for next year. When I click on the "reports" tab on Quickbooks, it offers all kinds of different ways to analyse my year's worth of expenses. I can see my ratio of spending for marketing versus equipment purchased versus editorial and publishing costs. Then I can print off the report, take a seat in my worry chair, and ponder the ways to do better for next year.

5. Get a good book to tell you what you can and can't claim. I received a free tax planning guide from a local accountant, and I reference this guide all the time (as well at the Canada Revenue Agency website and their 1-800 line for small business and GST). You definitely don't want to make a mistake on your tax return if you can help it (i.e., gym memberships are not tax deductible, even if you do go there to network) because it will just come back to haunt you with compounded daily interest if you are ever subject to an audit.   

6. Keep track of your car travel log monthly. Seriously, it just makes life easier to track activity when you still remember what the heck you actually did, instead of trying to recall details from 12 months ago. 

These are my personal lessons learned. Obviously, I am not a trained accountant or tax planner, but I think there are some useful tips here that will help you out in the coming year.

Numbers can be fuuuuuuuunnnnnnnnnn!

Stacey D. Atkinson is the author of the newly released novel Stuck , which she published via her independent company Mirror Image Publishing .

2014 predictions for book publishing

With 2013 coming to an end, it's time for authors and publishers to take a moment to think about their priorities for the coming year. I know for me, things haven't exactly turned out the way I expected them to with regards to publishing my first book. I had both successes and failures--planned and unplanned! This just goes to show that we should always be looking to understand the market, research trends, and analyze our book sales data. I believe there is an audience for every book--you just need to know where to find it.

To help you determine new opportunities for the coming year, here are a few interesting articles from people in the know, sharing their bold predictions about the future of book and ebook publishing. They discuss everything from tapering ebook prices, increasing popularity of ebook subscription services, and the need for publishers to continue to experiment with new ways of reaching audiences. 

1. Ten bold predictions for ebooks and digital publishing in 2014 by Digital Book World

2. Digital publishing predictions for 2014 by exploreB2B

3. Predictions for book publishing in 2014: The cutting room floor by Forbes

 

 

Wherever you are in your book writing and publishing journey, take this time to think about the year ahead to determine exactly what you want to get out of it. Then go and make it happen! Happy New Year everyone.

Stacey D. Atkinson is the author of the newly released novel Stuck , which she published via her independent company Mirror Image Publishing .

What really happens during a writer's retreat

Wow. WOW. I just finished a week-long writer's retreat and it wasn't at all what I expected. In some ways it was amazing, but in other ways it was a harsh reality and an emotional roller-coaster ride.

I set myself up at a Canadian-log cabin in the woods, overlooking a frozen lake surrounded by a snow-covered forest--a true winter wonderland! I couldn't have asked for a more perfect environment to inspire my writing. However, even though I was set for a productive week, I still had some setbacks as a result of my own flawed expectations. I went into the retreat wanting to complete a minimum of 20,000 words of new content, when clearly my body and mind had other priorities. Here's a recap of how it all went down.

Hits and misses of my writer's retreat

- I didn't come close to the amount of actual "writing" I thought I could accomplish with all of my free time, so in a way that's disappointing. But I did write a lot of content in a non-linear sequence. So even though it doesn't appear as if I've accomplished that much, I actually strengthened the structure of the entire novel from beginning to end.

- I came down with a bad cold a couple of days before arriving at the cottage, so I was constantly coughing, sneezing, and blowing my nose, as well as fighting off mental fog and a sinus headache. But I couldn't have asked for a more comfortable, warm, relaxing environment to recover in, and since I worked at my own pace, my sniffling didn't really get in the way too much. 

- It was quiet in the woods--like really quite--so when I actually heard a noise outside (or in the pipes), I got super paranoid at what it could be (think Abominable Snowman). Of course, this would take me away from my writing as I peeked out the windows and paced around the rooms to work off nervous energy. 

- I ate delicious, healthy meals but I snacked like crazy on chips and chocolate cake...like everyday! I can't remember a time when I've eaten so much chocolate cake. It's amazing how important food becomes when you're all alone with it! So this meant I had some crazy sugar rushes to deal with while trying to focus on my computer screen.

- I worked at the dining-room table, which wasn't entirely ergonomic, but it gave me lots of space to spread out my papers. It also forced me to put on my snowsuit and go outside for much needed stretch breaks and fresh air. 

- I had moments of panic when I thought I'd never make it as an author because I was writing too slowly, so I spent a couple of hours on my Elance.com account bidding for editing jobs. Then I got mad at myself for wasting my precious writing retreat on the Internet, and forced myself to write some more pages even when I was clearly losing focus.

- On the sixth day, one day before the end of my retreat, my ink well runneth dry. I literally had nothing left in me to write, partly from the fatigue of the cold and partly from simply writing and thinking about my book morning, noon, and night.

Finally, instead of forcing myself to keep writing, I decided to leave the cottage a day early. I showered (finally, ha!), packed my things, and drove to Kingston to spend the afternoon with my friend Patricia, who's the real-life inspiration for my new book about her amazing life as a British midwife to Aboriginal and Inuit families living in coastal Labrador (NL) in the 1970s, and how she became a doctor to work with Parkinson and dementia patients, only to succumb to the diseases herself. After a week of being alone, I can't tell you how much I enjoyed her company. Plus, I learned that sometimes just being with people, especially brave and interesting women like Patricia, can offer the best kind of writing inspiration of all!  

Happy writing everyone! May you find a time and place for your own writing retreat, even if it's in your spare bedroom.

Stacey D. Atkinson is the author of the newly released novel Stuck , which she published via her independent company Mirror Image Publishing .

A bird outside my window

Heard this guy just a given'r outside my window. Decided to take a break from writing and go photograph him.

Essentials for a wintry writer's retreat

If you have the opportunity to get away to someplace inspirational to work--do it! It doesn't have to be fancy or expensive, it just has to remove you from your home office and put you into a refreshing change of scenery. For example, I rented a log cabin in the Canadian woods in an off-season week, and I have to admit, just the thought of it has already invigorated me to be super productive and committed to coming home with pages and pages of new material for my next novel.

Naturally, I have put quite a bit of thought into what to pack for the week, since the cabin is secluded and it will be a pain driving in and out to the store for supplies. So besides the obvious food, drink, and comfy loungewear required for a week in the woods, I thought of a few other not-so-conventional items to help you plan your own wintry writer's retreat.

1. Snowshoes and/or skates are necessary equipment for those much needed exercise breaks to counterbalance that kink in your neck from looking down at your laptop and typing all day.

2. Baking supplies let you step away from the buzzing computer screen and binging social media apps for an hour in the kitchen baking chocolate cupcakes, while offering a much needed midday sugar high.

3. Your KOBO is filled with classic books to bring you much needed inspiration during your writing dry spells. One of my personal favorites is Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes.

4. A shovel and a flashlight to appease those of you like me who worry about being storm-stayed alone in the woods!

5. Decaf coffee, herbal tea, and hot chocolate as an alternative to fully loaded coffee, so that you’re not jacked up the whole time on caffeine when all you really want is a nice, hot drink.

6. Advil for the days when you stare at the computer too long and actually give yourself a headache

7. Good music from your iPod, phone, or laptop with speakers; or better yet, your guitar if you play one.

8. A camera to snap both your candid Instagram moments and the beautiful wintry wonderland outside your door.

9. A pair of slippers since you never know how reliable the heat is going to be.

10. Binoculars let you gain new perspective on the world which will help with your writing. Is there anything more inspirational than seeing the close up face of a red cardinal perched on a snow-capped fence? 

Happy writing wherever you find yourself this week!

Stacey D. Atkinson is the author of the newly released novel Stuck , which she published via her independent company Mirror Image Publishing .

Words of leadership

The past 48 hours have been a revelation for me in humanity and heroism. I met a young woman who is going blind and writing a book about it, I talked to an old friend who's penning a witty memoir about living with a painful bone disability, I spoke with the co-author of my next book as she struggled to find her words through the thick mind fog of Lewy body dementia, and then this morning I woke to learn of the passing of Nelson Mandela, one of the great leaders of our time.

The stories of all four of these wonderful people have affected me deeply, and in honour of all of them I have assembled some leadership quotes to live by. Whether you're an author trying to find the courage to write about the struggles in your life or the President of South Africa trying to lead people in dangerous times, we all have it in us to change the world with our actions and our words.

Here are some leadership quotes to live by. 

1. Leadership is the capacity to translate vision into reality. —Warren Bennis

2. A leader is a dealer in hope. —Napoleon Bonaparte

3. A leader is one who knows the way, goes the way, and shows the way. —John Maxwell

4. Leadership is influence. —John C. Maxwell

5. A leader takes people where they want to go. A great leader takes people where they don’t necessarily want to go, but ought to be. —Rosalynn Carter

6. Do what you feel in your heart to be right–for you’ll be criticized anyway. —Eleanor Roosevelt

7. If you would not be forgotten, as soon as you are dead and rotten, either write things worth reading, or do things worth the writing. —Benjamin Franklin

8. If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader. —John Quincy Adams

9. Leaders aren’t born, they are made. And they are made just like anything else, through hard work. And that’s the price we’ll have to pay to achieve that goal, or any goal. —Vince Lombardi

10. Whatever you are, be a good one. —Abraham Lincoln

 

Have a happy and inspired weekend everyone!

 

Source: Forbes 100 Best Leadership Quotes

 

Stacey D. Atkinson is the author of the newly released novel Stuck , which she published via her independent company Mirror Image Publishing .