P.D. Workman's Blog, page 146

Social Networking Wins

Sometimes you wonder why you bother with social networking. And then you make a neat connection, and you’re smiling.

I tweaked my Twitter postings and the market segment that I am seeking a couple of weeks ago (focusing on readers more than writers, and on the specific areas of interest that I am publishing in). I’ve made some good contacts and will hopefully attract some interest for my free Kindle format giveaway of “Deviation” next Friday (I didn’t want to compete with all of the romance giveaways that I’m sure we will see this Friday!)

I got to make some connections with LinkedIn yesterday, and it was cool to see it all fall into place. I got a call from CB, who managed the publication of Glenbow Ranch Provincial Park: Grass, Hills and History while I was working for the Glenbow Ranch Park Foundation. She is now working with us on the publication of a book for Rotary Club of Calgary. She was looking for someone to do a historical accuracy proof of the book, and DM had been recommended to her, but she had no previous connections or contact information for him. She did a search and found that I was a second-degree connection with him on LinkedIn. I checked LinkedIn to see who my connection to DM was, wondering if maybe he was in one of the same writer’s groups as I, and found that he was connected to AM, who had organized a fundraising run for us at Glenbow Ranch Park Foundation. So I popped an e-mail off to AM, asking for an introduction to DM. The two of them were close personal friends, and AM immediately complied, and I hooked up DM to CB, and now he is doing the historical accuracy proof.

So this is great for CB, who got the expert she needed to do the proof, for DM, who got a contract, and for me. CB is firmly convinced that I am the go-to person if she runs into any problems on these projects, and that I “always manage to work miracles”. She is a publishing consultant, and I know that if I was to ever go to her asking for help with my writing/publishing, then even though I have only ever been involved with her through my day job, she would go out of her way to help me and make the connections that I needed.

I have been more active on Goodreads lately. I set up a giveaway for “Looking Over Your Shoulder” (which you can see in my sidebar if the giveaway hasn’t closed yet), which has garnered over 500 entries so far, and over 200 people have added it to their “to read” shelf. Not bad! I have also posted in some of my groups asking for beta readers (for “Stand Alone”) and reviewers (for “Looking Over Your Shoulder”). In doing so, I have met some lovely people who are very passionate about books, and are providing great feedback. What better place to look for readers? I now have four books posted to Goodreads (two released, one to be released next week, I hope, and the next projected for April,) and my profile is looking pretty good!

Of course, you can’t forget the original social network — word of mouth. My mom has been giving books away left and right. We gave some away for Christmas presents. I decided to give my boss a copy (in the twenty years we have worked together, I never told him that I was a novelist,) and his wife is going to take it to her book club. Family, friends, and acquaintances have come to me saying “I never knew you wrote!” Since I wasn’t publishing, and was just writing for my own pleasure, it wasn’t something that I shared about myself. Now it is a different story, and I have to push myself to get the word out there!

Because people can’t buy it until they know about it.

Images: Flickr CC

Zach Taylor, Victory shake

Hans Poldoja, Social network in a course

Daniel Iversen, social media, social networking, social computing tag cloud

Now on Smashwords

“Looking Over Your Shoulder” is now available on Smashwords. That means you can get it in epub, pdf, text, etc. And soon it will also be up on iBooks, Kobo, etc.

If you’ve been waiting for it to come out in other formats, now is your chance to buy!

 

Just because you’re paranoid, that doesn’t mean someone isn’t out to get you.

Things were going well for Abe.  Despite all of his past struggles with mental illness, he was happily married, had three wonderful children, a nice home, and a fantastic consulting business that satisfied his creativity and brought in a good income.

But you can never get too comfortable.  When Abe becomes a prime suspect in a jewel heist – one of the largest successful jewel heists in history – his schizophrenia becomes unmanageable and everything begins to spiral out of control.  Abe’s own investigation into the heist has the jewel thieves hot on his tail… but are they really, or is he just losing the battle against his inner demons?

 

“I was drawn in from the first page and couldn’t put Looking Over Your Shoulder down . . . [it] kept me guessing and on my toes.”

“An exciting ride that keeps you guessing right to the end.” 

“. . . a sensitive and uplifting look at one family’s efforts to triumph over the adversity of mental illness.”

 

Writing Research and Resources

I use Google. A lot. And I find it invaluable when writing. Although, it is easy to pursue rabbit-trails, and I have to be careful to set aside writing time in which I am not allowed to switch to my web browser, if my word counts are low or I am having problems tackling the next scene. Sometimes Google searches are related to writing mechanics – how to format a manuscript properly, a tip or trick for Scrivener (such as “Scrivener search and replace tabs”), images for a cover, how to use a masking layer in Photoshop, or a shortcut key for Mac OS. But research related searches can get interesting when you write crime fiction! I often think about what an investigator or unsuspecting bystander might think if they saw my Google history. Some of my more provocative searches over the last few days have included:

burner phones
smoking with pneumothorax
negotiating with a psychopath
oxycodone
weight of brown heroine
how to block caller I.D.
prison slang
can you get contact high from crack

Research articles that I Googled and clipped while drafting the book that I just finished included also included things like:

DIY tattoo ink
_____ County Juvenile Detention Rules
Stories by Foster Youth
Sociopath Story and Experience
Juvenile Probation Officer Job Description
Terms and Conditions of Probation
What life’s like in Juvenile Detention

I suspect that one of the reasons that authors are able to write several novels a year now, where the norm used to be only one per year, is the ease of research. How long would it have taken me to pull together all of the information that I gathered through Google if I had to get it all from the library, reference books, or personal letters/interviews? Some of the novels I have written have required close to a hundred research articles, and those are just the references I saved. I don’t bother to save the “quickie” answers to searches like those listed above while I am in the process of writing. The details that I need are just inserted into the text and I continue on.

Combine the time savings of Google with other writing tools – using Scrivener instead of writing longhand or with a manual typewriter like I used when I first started writing, enabling me to quickly move from outlining to writing, to editing, to compiling into manuscript format for reviewers/editors and then to ebooks or paperback in a few minutes/hours (depending on how proficient you are!) Processes that used to take months can now take just days. The ability of an author to produce one novel per year can easily jump to three, four, or more.

Images: Flickr CC

SEO, Google

Pat David, Underwood No. 5 Keys

Tattooed Teardrops

I just finished the first draft of a new YA novel, “Tattooed Tears” tonight. This is a book that I started on a while ago, seat of the pants, no plot or outline. Unfortunately, I got stuck writing backstory and didn’t know where the main book was going. So I sat down in December and worked through the Snowflake Method to get a basic plot outlined, set up a beat sheet with the main action, and dove back into it, much more excited! I aimed to get it done by the end of January, at a casual pace, but it came together a bit more quickly than that!

So without further ado, here’s a bit of a teaser for you:

Tattooed Teardrops

YA novel

77,000 words

“I don’t plan on getting in any trouble.”

Tamara had thought that when she got out of juvie, things would be easier. But before long, it seems like her life is spiraling into chaos. If she can’t prove to her probation officer that she is innocent of the allegations against, she’s going back to prison, and she just can’t let that happen.

Tattooed Tears

I just finished the first draft of a new YA novel, “Tattooed Tears” tonight. This is a book that I started on a while ago, seat of the pants, no plot or outline. Unfortunately, I got stuck writing backstory and didn’t know where the main book was going. So I sat down in December and worked through the Snowflake Method to get a basic plot outlined, set up a beat sheet with the main action, and dove back into it, much more excited! I aimed to get it done by the end of January, at a casual pace, but it came together a bit more quickly than that!

So without further ado, here’s a bit of a teaser for you:

Tattooed Tears

YA novel

77,000 words

“I don’t plan on getting in any trouble.”

Tamara had thought that when she got out of juvie, things would be easier. But before long, it seems like her life is spiraling into chaos. If she can’t prove to her probation officer that she is innocent of the allegations against, she’s going back to prison, and she just can’t let that happen.

Paperback now available!

 

The paperback edition of Deviation (Breaking the Pattern #1) is now available.  Get it at Amazon or through my web store or have your retailer order it in!

I am wondering if the title might be scaring some people off of this one. Please read the synopsis below; it is a young adult novel, and not explicit.

 

“You’re a good kid, Henry.” 

Everyone knew that he was a good guy; geeky, responsible, hard-working. Henry has had a lot to deal with in the past. Now, as he should be focusing on his schooling and preparing himself for the future, he is hindered by abuse, the challenge of raising his baby brother while dealing with his mother’s deep depressions, and the return of a ghost from the past Henry has tried his best to forget.

But it seems that Henry can’t avoid the nastiness of life. As hard as he tries, it’s one more disaster after another as his life spirals out of control.

Can Henry escape the darkness, or is he doomed to be consumed by it?

I was caught up in the twists and turns of the plot from the beginning of “Deviation” and was still surprised at the end. 

This book could actually happen. That is what makes it so scary! I am really looking forward to the next book in the series. I am thoroughly intrigued and want to see what happens next. 

“Deviation” will play on your emotions and feed your doubts as you follow Henry though his many troubles and trials.

To resolve or not to resolve, 2014

So Christmas is over (we just had our Christmas dinner yesterday, thanks to a bout of the flu for Christmas itself,) and here we are in the new year, first day of 2014. Some people find New Year’s depressing, some exciting and invigorating, and some just plain don’t care. Whichever you are, hopefully there will be something in this post that interests you.

Resolutions

Do you make New Year’s Resolutions? Do you love the chance to “start fresh” with a new year, love writing down your goals and aspirations for the year? Or do you find New Year’s Resolutions to be something of a joke, approached by so many with so much vigor and then broken by the third week in January? Some people intentionally avoid setting goals in January just to avoid the whole New Year’s Resolution mindset/curse.

Sticking to it

Whether you make resolutions, set goals, or make a business plan in January (or any other time of the year), what are some ways to make them “stick”? Here are some strategies:

Simplify Your New Year’s Resolution Process: Reflect, Select, Remove

What Are Your Goals Up To Lately?

Top 10 Strategies for Making Your New Year’s Resolution Stick 

9 Immediate Tips To Stay Focused on Your Goals

Writing

And a few that are specific to goals about writing:

What is your 5 year writing plan?

Five Year Writing Plans 

How to Reassess Your Freelance Writing Goals for the Year

Not resolving

And for those who are anti-New Year’s Resolution:

Why You Shouldn’t Bother with Writing Resolutions this New Year

How Goals and Good Intentions Can Hold Us Back

Setting Weekly Writing Goals

What is your goal?

Here are some ideas for reading or writing related goals.

Reading

Have you ever made a resolution with regard to reading? Read more classics? Read a certain amount in a year? Here are some ideas:

Why Have a Yearly Reading Goal?

A New Year’s resolution you can’t afford to miss — read with your kids

Reading Resolutions for 2014 Get Smarter, Read Great Poetry and More

Blogging

Here are some ideas for bloggers who want to take a step back from the day-to-day or week-to-week routine of blogging and look at the big picture

Once-a-Year Blog Maintenance–Are You Up to Date?

How to Write a Year’s Worth of Posts in 30 Days

Starting writing/writing a book

Do you have a book in you? Have you always wanted to write, but didn’t know how or when to start? Have you been saying every year that this will be the year you will write your book? Did you start a book but lost the thread and didn’t finish? Or you’ve been working on the same one for ten years? Here are some thoughts.

For the Resolute at New Year’s: Promises, Process, and Progress

The Foolproof Method to Writing Your First Novel This Year

How to Write a Book This Year

4 Ways to End Your Writing Year Right

(And don’t forget my blog post on finding time to write. I am going to add an addendum to it today.)

Already a Writer

If you are already a writer, what are some of the things that you could try to improve your craft or your career this year?

New Year’s Resolutions for Marketing Your Book: Say Yes to New Things

Writer’s Cramp: In the E-Reader Era, a Book a Year Is Slacking

10 New Year Resolutions For Writers (that might actually stick)

Your Writing Goals: DARE to Reach Them

Images: Flickr CC

Dan Moyle 2014 calendar

Jonathan Lin my ultimate n3rd New Year Resolution

Celestine Chua Goals

Writer’s 12 Days of Christmas

This song idea came to me on my morning run. You all know the song, so I’m going to short form this, and you can sing all twelve days for yourself:

On the first day of Christmas my muse it gave to me…

A plot idea and a setting
Two Scrivener licenses*
Three act structure
Four Facebook likes
Five star reviews
Six characters
Seven stock graphics
Eight blog posts
Nine inspirations
Ten twitter retweets
Eleven sticky notes
Twelve index cards

 

*one for Windows, one for Mac – Mac is better

Merry Christmas readers and writers!

image: Flickr CC Alpha Sticky Note Christmas Tree – UX Team

 

“Deviation, Breaking the Pattern #1″ now live!

Deviation, Breaking the Pattern #1 is now live on Kindle:

“You’re a good kid, Henry.” 

Everyone knew that he was a good guy; geeky, responsible, hard-working. Henry has had a lot to deal with in the past. Now, as he should be focusing on his schooling and preparing himself for the future, he is hindered by abuse, the challenge of raising his baby brother while dealing with his mother’s deep depressions, and the return of a ghost from the past Henry has tried his best to forget.

But it seems that Henry can’t avoid the nastiness of life. As hard as he tries, it’s one more disaster after another as his life spirals out of control.

Can Henry escape the darkness, or is he doomed to be consumed by it?

– I was caught up in the twists and turns of the plot from the beginning of Deviation and was still surprised at the end. 

– This book could actually happen. That is what makes it so scary! I am really looking forward to the next book in the series. I am thoroughly intrigued and want to see what happens next. 

– “Deviation” will play on your emotions and feed your doubts as you follow Henry though his many troubles and trials.

 

[The paperback will probably be ready next week.  I just need to order a proof to make sure that everything is in order first.]

 

A fantastic read

One of my friends suggested that I should read some of Kristen D. Randle’s works, so I started with “Breaking Rank”:

This was a great read and it really hit my sweet spot. Intense, engaging, good characterization. Reminiscent of S.E. Hinton. I really enjoyed it. And I will definitely be getting some more of Kristen D. Randle’s books! Actually, I already downloaded another one…