P.H. Solomon's Blog, page 281
October 9, 2015
Scrivener’s Multi-Function Feature & How You Can Start Using It
Scrivener is a powerful writing tool. I write about it weekly with tips and usage ideas. To read more of my posts click the Scrivener tag or category at the end of the page.
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Multi-Function Tool – photo licensed via iStockPhoto
Introduction
If you do any work around the house with tools you may have used a multi-function one before. These often have small versions of larger tools built into one handy gadget. These often include a few knife blades was well standard and Phillips screwdrivers among the many variations. It’s much like a Swiss Army knife but adapted more toward small fix-it tasks. Scrivener has one such feature that teams with the Binder to help you in any number of ways to organize all of the project content.
Scrivener’s Binder is a fantastic visual tool to organize your project. But suppose you wanted to play around with that organization without changing everything. Or maybe you have other ways you need to group the project content. Let’s say you wanted to change the order of several scenes. You could take snapshots and make the changes so you could revert back. But there’s a more efficient way to handle structural changes within Scrivener.
Collections are a way of re-organizing the binder without actually making changes to the current order in the binder. There are several ways to use collections so I’ll this topic in a series to cover the details well and let this post suffice as an introduction.
Collections
Think of the Binder as the main collection by which your project is organized. But if you need to consider different options for your structure then creating collections can be very useful. Items within a collection are like shortcuts to that in the Binder. What changes you make to the item are made in the Binder too. So be aware of what you are changing and make snapshots if you believe you may need to revert back to an earlier version.
However, a collection is really used for addressing structural issues, searches, saved searches, compiling, scheduling, sorting scenes that need work or even organizing for use with another author. So mainly think in broad terms when working with collections.
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Usage
So let’s take a look at applying the flexibility of collections to a real-life fiction project. I’ll soon begin editing my second novel, An Arrow Against the Wind. The first task that I’ll have is a structural edit. I’ve already identified what scenes and chapters I’ll need to edit. These can be added to a collection so that I can write each one and then remove it from the collection when completed.
Next, I’ll do an edit for deep POV style. For this kind of edit I could use two collections – one for all the chapters that need this stylistic attention, plus one that assigns a schedule for the work (I could also use this for the previous edit as well as subsequent ones).
After these more general edits, I’ll get into a deeper editing where I may need to search the content. For this I can create a collection for searches that cover overused words, searches for names that are misspelled, etc (it’s a fantasy so unique names can be a problem). Likewise, when doing line editing, I can also collect the chapters and scenes involved and use another one for scheduling the work.
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The Basic Interface
As already shown in the screen-shots, you can access the collections manager from the Project menu. You can add or remove tabs for sections of your project and click on the Binder tab to return to the Binder. You can then re-order the tabs for structural purposes or use them in the different ways already described. You’ll notice that you can name the collection and use searches.
Conclusion
If you find that you are using collections regularly with your projects, then you might consider adding your own set of them to your project template. Again, I’ll discuss the many variations over the next several weeks in depth, especially as I’m using them with the book I’m completing. Regardless, collections can be the all-purpose tool that improves your editing process.
Please share your thoughts and ideas in the comments section. Sign up for my Archer’s Aim Digest mailing list to receive the forthcoming edition of my newsletter with announcements about upcoming releases and events. You’ll receive my a SPECIAL coupon for The Bow of Destiny, the first novel of The Bow of Hart Saga. Speaking of which, it is now available on Barnes & Noble, iBooks Amazon – Kindle & Smashwords. Additionally, September’s FREE book, What Is Needed is available at Barnes & Noble, Kobo, iBooks and Smashwords & Amazon.
Just as a note: I am not affiliated with Scrivener in any official capacity. For support questions, pricing and other concerns please contact the vendor. However, I am working on becoming an affiliate for Scrivener ads since I like the product so much. I’m not required to write about Scrivener to be an affiliate; I just like it that much. For more about my FTC statement see my sidebar.
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Privacy Policy
This blog does not share personal information – including email addresses – with third parties nor do I store any information about your visit to this blog other than to analyze and optimize your content and reading experience through the use of cookies (which is a WordPress.com function and not mine).
You can turn off the use of cookies at any time by changing your specific browser settings.
I am not responsible for republished content from this blog on other blogs or websites without our permission.
This privacy policy is subject to change without notice and was last updated on July 2nd, 2015. If you have any questions feel free to contact me directly here: ph at phsolomon.com (replace the “at” with @, it’s written that way to avoid spammers).
Filed under: An Arrow Against the Wind, Blogging, Creativity, Editing, Fantasy, Fantasy Fiction, Fiction, Goodreads, Indie Publishing, Mailing List, Marketing, Pinterest, Planning, Scrivener, Self-publishing, Short Fiction, Short Stories, Social Media, Tech Tips, The Black Bag, The Bow of Destiny, The Bow of Hart Saga, Tips, Twitter, Writing Tagged: An Arrow Against the Wind, Collections, Coverart, Editing, Epic Fantasy, Facebook, Fantasy Fiction, Indie Publishing, Multi-function Tool, P. H. Solomon, Scrivener, Self-publishing, Swiss Army Knife, The Black Bag, The Bow of Destiny, The Bow of Hart Saga, Tips, Twitter, writing
Scrivener & Revision Strategies For Projects
Scrivener is a powerful writing tool. I write about it weekly with tips and usage ideas. To read more of my posts click the Scrivener tag or category at the end of the page.
I received my edited manuscript back from my editor a few weeks ago. I’ve been working on the suggested structural changes. But one of the immediate questions I had was how to incorporate this back into my Scrivener project.
Back in January, I wrote about how to compile a manuscript. My purpose in compiling at the time was for my editor and I successfully turned a Word document over to her. But this leads to a slight problem. If the changes are in Word how do I get the content back into Scrivener?
Several options presented themselves when I considered the problem:
1. Create a whole new project and import the edited version into Scrivener.
2. Copy content back into the project one chapter at a time.
3. Within the project, create a whole new folder and import the new revision into it.
I’m using the third option. It keeps the book in one project and allows me to refer to the previous revision easily. I could also import one chapter at a time if I need to do break my changes up more.
Fortunately, Scrivener allows choosing what to include/exclude while compiling so I can include only the newest revision. This is a simple process which is covered in my post about compiling.
Here’s a poll so you can choose your best choice:
What are your thoughts on these choices? How would you address importing edited content for a new revision? Please share your thoughts and ideas in the comments section.
Please share your thoughts and ideas in the comments section. Sign up for my Archer’s Aim Digest mailing list to receive the forthcoming edition of my newsletter with announcements about upcoming releases and events. You’ll receive my a SPECIAL coupon for The Bow of Destiny, the first novel of The Bow of Hart Saga. Speaking of which, it is now available on Barnes & Noble, iBooks Amazon – Kindle & Smashwords. Additionally, September’s FREE book, What Is Needed is available at Barnes & Noble, Kobo, iBooks and Smashwords & Amazon.
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Just as a note: I am not affiliated with Scrivener in any official capacity. For support questions, pricing and other concerns please contact the vendor.
Privacy Policy
This blog does not share personal information – including email addresses – with third parties nor do I store any information about your visit to this blog other than to analyze and optimize your content and reading experience through the use of cookies (which is a WordPress.com function and not mine).
You can turn off the use of cookies at any time by changing your specific browser settings.
I am not responsible for republished content from this blog on other blogs or websites without our permission.
This privacy policy is subject to change without notice and was last updated on July 2nd, 2015. If you have any questions feel free to contact me directly here: ph at phsolomon.com (replace the “at” with @, it’s written that way to avoid spammers).
Filed under: Blogging, Cover Reveal, Creativity, Editing, Fantasy, Fiction, Indie Publishing, Planning, Scrivener, Self-publishing, Social Media, Tech Tips, The Black Bag, The Bow of Destiny, Twitter, Writing Tagged: blogging, Coverart, creativity, Editing, Facebook, Fantasy Fiction, Indie Publishing, P. H. Solomon, Scrivener, Self-publishing, Social Media, The Black Bag, The Bow of Destiny, Twitter, writing
October 8, 2015
Preparing for NaNoWriMo with Scrivener
Scrivener is a powerful writing tool. I write about it weekly with tips and usage ideas. To read more of my posts click the Scrivener tag or category at the end of the page.
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As I recently wrote, I’m on time to be ready for NaNoWriMo this year and, of course, I’ll be using Scrivener as my development and writing platform. As many current users know who have also written in NaNoWritMo, when it comes to the upcoming month Scrivener is the ideal tool to have.
NaNoWriMo takes some preparation since you need to do what it takes to develop your upcoming book so you can write on day 1 without hesitation. Need to outline? Scrivener makes that easy since development is one of the main strengths. Developing characters? The novel template has pre-set folders to write character sketches. In fact, the Research folder is chocked full of resources to help you get jump started.
If you are new to Scrivener and think you don’t have time to learn it and be effective, never fear. Scrivener has some great video resources for learning the software. But today is the day to start using Scrivener so you can get ready for day 1. It’s just essential for a writer.
Are you a steady user of Scrivener but this is your first time to write in NaNoWriMo (like me)? Here are some tips on some features that you can use to be more efficient:
1
. The Layout Manager is important to use. You can set the appearance of your Scrivener application just how you want it to best suit your writing style. And remember, it’s time to write so stick to your layout day after day.
2. Use document templates – this is important as you develop your book. Before creating your documents, make a document template once by configuring a template folder. Then create all your planned document containers from your template before you get started. Don’t know what to include in a document template? Here are some suggestions.
3. Use the Outliner and Binder as part of your development process. These are great tools to prepare for your month of book writing. When it comes to the binder you can re-organize those document containers to best suit the structure you want. Move them around as part of your preparation to get to the best order of scenes and chapters.
4. Need to keep your muse going? Set a writing background each day that helps you stay creatively focused.
5. Track your overall and daily progress – it’s simple, use the Project Targets tool to help you.
6. Use the Inspector bar to see the Index card while you write. There are other tools that can be handy on the Inspector bar. The Notes tool can be handy to remind yourself of ideas you thought of to use for the next day or thoughts about what you were doing and thinking when you stopped. Hey, things are a blur when you’re writing this much so help yourself out!
7. Make sure to keep your novel project in development open even if your writing in a journal. If you start having developmental ideas, keep writing where you are rather than breaking your concentration. Then use the Scratchpad to transfer your idea(s) to the project wherever you want it to land.
I’m beginning my organization of the final book in my fantasy series, The Bow of Hart Saga. I already have much of my work organized since it’s part of a series. However, I will be doing a creative outline using Scrivener as well as getting my Scrivener skills honed for optimum usage each day. I’ll write several more posts related to my preparation and project development in the coming weeks. As I have time, I’ll share my experiences in short snippets during the November. After it’s all over, good or bad, I’ll share more of my thoughts during December about using Scrivener for NaNoWriMo as well as how I critique myself on the usage. Don’t wait! Get your Scrivener on!
Please share your thoughts and ideas in the comments section. Sign up for my Archer’s Aim Digest mailing list to receive the forthcoming edition of my newsletter with announcements about upcoming releases and events. You’ll receive my a SPECIAL coupon for The Bow of Destiny, the first novel of The Bow of Hart Saga. Speaking of which, it is now available on Barnes & Noble, iBooks Amazon – Kindle & Smashwords. Additionally, September’s FREE book, What Is Needed is available at Barnes & Noble, Kobo, iBooks and Smashwords & Amazon.
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Just as a note: I now have a marketing affiliation with Scrivener. For support questions, pricing, licensing and other concerns please contact the vendor. As such a buy ad for Scrivener appears on the sidebar. I’ve started this program since I like the product so much and want to offer readers the chance to obtain this software. I’m not required to write about Scrivener to be an affiliate; I just like it that much. You can also find my FTC statement on this site’s sidebar.
Filed under: Blogging, Creativity, Fantasy, Fantasy Fiction, Fiction, Indie Publishing, NaNoWriMo, Planning, Scrivener, Self-publishing, The Bow of Destiny, The Bow of Hart Saga, The White Arrow, Tips, What is Needed, Writing Tagged: blogging, creativity, Indie Publishing, NaNoWriMo, P. H. Solomon, Planning, Scrivener, Self-publishing, The Bow of Destiny, The Bow of Hart Saga, The White Arrow, Tips, writing
October 7, 2015
Bring It & Make Your Best Pitch!
You’ve agreed to do it. But now you’ve got the shakes. Maybe you feel like your going to faint. You’re going to do a LIVE interview. What were you thinking? What are you going to say?
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If you’re like most of us, you’ve never been asked for an interview – certainly not one live. But if you are going to publish books then you should get used to being interviewed on the web, internet radio and regular radio.
Don’t let that initial flash of panic scare you. There are ways to prepare for an interview. It’s good for you to start thinking about what you will say. Michael Hyatt has shared some great tips on making just such preparation and it’s not so difficult.
Last month, I did my first live podcast interview – on camera – with Shawn Griffith via Downhome Thoughts. Here’s how I did:
But how do I grade myself? Well, for starters I think I was better prepared for an interview in general so I think I did generally well with most of the questions.
Shawn and I had a great conversation about The Bow of Destiny. We discussed fantasy and the various elements I used for the book and how I developed it. That part of the interview was great.
However, in critiquing myself, I find there are some things lacking in how I did. Let’s get the most obvious out of the way first – looking down.
When you doing a podcast on camera you naturally want to look at the person appearing on your screen which means on a laptop your eyes are not on the camera. It’s hard to keep focused on that little lens so I probably should have put a piece of paper over my screen. One other detail that added to the affect was that my laptop (and the camera), even after raising it, was still below my eye level. I should have elevated it further.
So here’s the next negative – the end where I give a short pitch. I had down all the elements of the interview up to that point but stumbled for words to share about my book. You don’t really want to read your blurb verbatim so in this instance, I needed to share the book with listeners. But I wasn’t as prepared for this pitch-type ending.
Here’s how to fix this problem. Like my first interview where I probably didn’t share enough about the book, this time I just stumbled for pitch material. I needed to write down what I wanted to say – in general, not to read – and become familiar with it enough to make my pitch.
Deliver your best pitch at a writer’s conference. Photo courtesy Morguefile.com free section.
If you were a reliever and entered a baseball game with the need to make one pitch count and end the game then you need a very good pitch. The same is true when you are expected to end the interview with a pitch about your book. Know what you will cover while avoiding spoilers. I think I ended strongly – “Join the Hunt!”
Just to re-cap: when doing a camera interview, cover your laptop screen and elevate it sufficiently. Know what type of interview your doing and if you’ll be asked to go it alone with a pitch or anything else. If so, try to spend time on what you need to say with some practice.
Next week, I’ll discuss my third interview on Tell Me a Story and how I felt it went so check back for more tips! Have you done an interview on a web-camera? Do you avoid interviews as a writer? Why or why not?
Please share your thoughts and ideas in the comments section. Sign up for my Archer’s Aim Digest mailing list to receive the forthcoming edition of my newsletter with announcements about upcoming releases and events. You’ll receive my a SPECIAL coupon for The Bow of Destiny, the first novel of The Bow of Hart Saga. Speaking of which, it is now available on Barnes & Noble, iBooks Amazon – Kindle & Smashwords. Additionally, September’s FREE book, What Is Needed is available at Barnes & Noble, Kobo, iBooks and Smashwords & Amazon.
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Filed under: Author Platform, Blog Tour, Blogging, Fantasy, Fantasy Fiction, Fiction, Goodreads, Indie Publishing, Mailing List, Marketing, Pinterest, Planning, Rave Review Book Club, Reviews, Self-publishing, Social Media, The Bow of Destiny, The Bow of Hart Saga, Tips, What is Needed, Writing, YouTube Tagged: Amazon, Author Interview, Barnes and Noble, blogging, Coverart, Epic Fantasy, Facebook, Goodreads, Indie Publishing, Launch, Marketing, P. H. Solomon, Pinterest, Planning, Podcast, Rave Reviews Book Club, Self-publishing, Smashwords, Social Media, The Bow of Destiny, The Bow of Hart Saga, Twitter, What is Needed, writing
October 6, 2015
Goodreads Reviews from My Shelf
Here are a few more of my reviews posted on Goodreads. If you haven’t read some of the fantasy and science fiction perhaps my thoughts will help you decide what to read soon.
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Rogues by George R.R. Martin
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
A good collection of short fiction from top authors. The book covered a wide range of entertaining rogues as its theme. I would have preferred the anthology to be only speculative fiction in nature but I found a few of the real-world stories to be entertaining. The anthology was well edited but I would have also rather seen a story from Martin that was a bit different than a history of a GOT backstory. While informative about the history of the Seven Kingdoms in GOT it was rather dry and distant.
The Gypsy Morph by Terry Brooks
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
This was a tense tale with several gripping scenes. A great effort from Brooks that had me turning pages late into the night. Read and enjoy.
On Basilisk Station by David Weber
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
I never really read much military Sci-Fi until I picked up this book. Weber spun a good tale around the back-drop of setting as Honor Harrington is assigned to captain her first ship at a back-water location. The science and military aspects of the book are well-detailed and tightly woven into the plot. Honor is a well-written main character. Overall, I read this book well after bedtime for several nights and I found it very entertaining.
View all my reviews
Writing Fight Scenes by Rayne Hall
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Rayne Hall shares great reference material for writing fight scenes as well as tips to improve your technique. This is a must read for those writing anything from historical fiction to fantasy.
Waylander by David Gemmell
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
This was a great read that I’ve enjoyed several times over the years. It’s hard to go wrong with Gemmell in general if you’re in the mood for old-fashioned fantasy adventure. Read and enjoy!
The Way of Shadows by Brent Weeks
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Brent Weeks opening book of the Night Angel series was an engaging, page-turning adventures with well-developed characters and lots of twists. You won’t go wrong with this series.
Look for more of my reviews in the coming weeks! Please share your thoughts and ideas in the comments section. Sign up for my Archer’s Aim Digest mailing list to receive the forthcoming edition of my newsletter with announcements about upcoming releases and events. You’ll receive my a SPECIAL coupon for The Bow of Destiny, the first novel of The Bow of Hart Saga. Speaking of which, it is now available on Barnes & Noble, iBooks Amazon – Kindle & Smashwords. Additionally, September’s FREE book, What Is Needed is available at Barnes & Noble, Kobo, iBooks and Smashwords & Amazon.
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Filed under: Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Blogging, Creativity, Fantasy, Fantasy Fiction, Fiction, Goodreads, iBooks, iTunes, Kobo, Mailing List, Marketing, Pinterest, Reviews, Science Fiction, Social Media, The Bow of Destiny, The Bow of Hart Saga, Twitter, Writing Tagged: Barnes and Noble, blogging, Brent Weeks, Coverart, David Gemmell, David Weber, Facebook, Fantasy Fiction, George R. R. Martin, Goodreads, Marketing, On Basilisk Station, Pinterest, Rayne Hall, Reviews, Rogues, Terry Brooks, The Bow of Destiny, The Gypsy Morph, The Way of Shadows, Tips, Waylander, writing, Writing Fight Scenes
The Bow of Destiny Release Re-Cap
The release of The Bow of Destiny went well and the release week sale has ended. However, there is a special coupon offer for $0.99 on the book for those who sign-up on my mailing list: Archer’s Aim Digest mailing list.
Also, I’ll leave the links up for the release events for a while so feel free to review those if you wish. There are free sample postings of The Bow of Destiny on Wattpad, Goodreads, Kindle, etc.
Last Friday, I appeared on Tell Me a Story on Blog Talk Radio with host Annette Rochelle Aben where she interviewed me about The Bow of Destiny. The interview is archived and still available.
Past interviews include:
Beyond the Cover with Beem Weeks.
Downhome Thoughts with Shawn Griffith.
Here’s the book trailer on YouTube:
Please share your thoughts and ideas in the comments section. Sign up for my Archer’s Aim Digest mailing list to receive the forthcoming edition of my newsletter with announcements about upcoming releases and events. You’ll receive my a SPECIAL coupon for The Bow of Destiny, the first novel of The Bow of Hart Saga. Speaking of which, it is now available on Barnes & Noble, Filed under: Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Blog Tour, Fantasy, Fantasy Fiction, Fiction, Goodreads, iBooks, Indie Publishing, iTunes, Kobo, Mailing List, Marketing, Pinterest, Planning, Rave Review Book Club, Self-publishing, Smashwords, Social Media, The Bow of Destiny, The Bow of Hart Saga, Twitter, Wattpad, What is Needed, Writing, YouTube Tagged: Amazon, Annette Rochelle Aben, Barnes & Noble, Beem Weeks, Beyond the Cover, Blog Talk Radio, Book Release, coupon, Downhome Thoughts, Fantasy Fiction, Goodreads, iBooks, Kindle, Kobo, mailing list, P. H. Solomon, Rave Reviews Book Club, Shawn Griffith, Smashwords, Tell Me A Story, The Bow of Destiny, The Bow of Hart Saga, Wattpad, YouTube 
October 5, 2015
Goodreads Usage for Authors Pt. 1: Make Your Profile Visual
If you have a Goodreads account as an author there is one important aspect that you should use effectively. Well, actually the most important thing to do on Goodreads is be a reader. But just behind it is make your profile speak well of you.
A profile is undoubtedly an important part of every type of social media. But since Goodreads is THE social media of readers, then an author’s profile is doubly important. But what can you do to create a profile that attracts a potential reader on Goodreads?
I recently took a Writer’s Digest webinar that featured Michael J. Sullivan discussing his usage of Goodreads strategically. Users on Goodreads can be rather sensitive to how authors interact in the format. As an author, you don’t want to just leap into groups and shout about your book. It takes a deft approach. But when you do gain some attention your profile should clearly communicate your brand as an author.
First of all, if you are an author then be an author. If you have a book published, join the author program and add your book(s) to your profile. It’s simple and gives your profile page some added visual content.
If you have a blog, link it to your Goodreads account. Post a sample of your writing for your book and make sure a reader views your content.
However, what everyone sees on your profile is what you post in the main section. Most of us just type in some sort of background information under the basic information. Some authors may even write a longer piece of background information. However, there’s a better way to populate this section with content: add links and visual content with html.
If you’re not experienced with html that’s fine you only need to use a little to do this. There are plenty of resources on the internet to learn some basic html but Goodreads has instructions for what to use and how on their service. The main thing is to reference links so you can add graphics to your profile.
Why is it important to add graphics to your Goodreads profile? Depending on the placement it adds more visibility to your profile. By adding a graphic of your books visitors can see more about you and your work. Adding buttons for your social media links is just as important so people can easily follow you as an author.
Take a look at mine to see what I mean. I’ve got a graphic for available books and buttons for my social media links which enlarges what you see of my profile. It’s better than that small bit of text with the “more” link to see the rest. The visual impact is greater and gets visitors more involved and increases you visibility. What’s more, when you have a new release coming you can create a graphic to change what’s visible and keep the upcoming book in front of visitors.
That’s some basics for improving your Goodreads profile as an author. Take some time to work on it and you may see more engagement from the reader social media. It’s an important part of you author platform to develop.
Please share your thoughts and ideas in the comments section. Sign up for my Archer’s Aim Digest mailing list to receive the forthcoming edition of my newsletter with announcements about upcoming releases and events. You’ll receive my a SPECIAL coupon for The Bow of Destiny, the first novel of The Bow of Hart Saga. Speaking of which, it is now available on Barnes & Noble, iBooks Amazon – Kindle & Smashwords. Additionally, September’s FREE book, What Is Needed is available at Barnes & Noble, Kobo, iBooks and Smashwords & Amazon.
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Filed under: Author Platform, Blogging, Creativity, Editing, Fantasy, Goodreads, Indie Publishing, Marketing, Planning, Self-publishing, Social Media, The Bow of Destiny, The Bow of Hart Saga, Tips, Twitter, Writing Tagged: blogging, creativity, Editing, Fantasy Fiction, Goodreads, Indie Publishing, Marketing, Planning, Social Media, The Bow of Destiny, The Bow of Hart Saga, Tips, writing
October 4, 2015
What I’m Working on Next
With the publication of The Bow of Destiny it’s time to get back to work on the other writing projects. I’ll continue work on The Bow of Hart Saga but what else am I doing and when will new books come out? Here’s my upcoming projects and writing schedule:
Next up in The Bow of Hart Saga is book 2, An Arrow Against the Wind. I’ll complete my initial structural edit within a few weeks. It will go to my editor during November for her initial edit. Meanwhile, I hope to have a a few alpha readers also take a look at it. After it comes back I’ll work on it more until the final round of editing in February 2016. After that, it is scheduled to be completed and released on 4/18/16.
While An Arrow Against the Wind is away during November, I’m going to throw my hat into the ring with NaNoWriMo. My book project will be book 3 of The Bow of Hart Saga, The White Arrow. I’ll work on an outline in the latter half of October to be ready for November. I hope to complete most of the rough draft during that month of writing so I can go to serious work on it during February 2016 and again in May 2016 so it can be ready for publication by this time next year.
But that’s not all for my plans. I have numerous short stories just lying around gathering dust (figuratively since they are on my computer). So, I’ve decided to compile them into at least 2 anthologies. I should have the first one ready in time for the holidays and the second one by March. I’ll announce the release plans for those over the next few months.
That’s not all! I’ve got a parallel series for The Bow of Hart Saga in the works. It’s three novellas and the rough draft for the first one is pretty much complete. I’ll start working to edit it for a release during the 2nd or 3rd quarter of the year around all the other projects.
Let’s see, I count five books in the works over the next year. It sounds ambitious but three of them are largely done. Another book is in progress so that leaves one that needs to be entirely written. Most of my work will be editing over the next year. I’m looking forward to addressing so many book projects. I’d like to clear them out so I can move onto some other projects that remain on the back-burner. Look for more details soon!
Please share your thoughts and ideas in the comments section. Sign up for my Archer’s Aim Digest mailing list to receive the forthcoming edition of my newsletter with announcements about upcoming releases and events. You’ll receive my a SPECIAL coupon for The Bow of Destiny, the first novel of The Bow of Hart Saga. Speaking of which, it is now available on Barnes & Noble, iBooks Amazon – Kindle & Smashwords. Additionally, September’s FREE book, What Is Needed is available at Barnes & Noble, Kobo, iBooks and Smashwords & Amazon.
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Filed under: An Arrow Against the Wind, Blogging, Creativity, Editing, Fantasy, Fantasy Fiction, Fiction, Goodreads, Indie Publishing, Planning, Self-publishing, Short Fiction, Short Stories, The Bow of Destiny, The Bow of Hart Saga, The White Arrow, Writing Tagged: An Arrow Against the Wind, blogging, creativity, Editing, Epic Fantasy, Fantasy Fiction, Indie Publishing, P. H. Solomon, Planning, Self-publishing, Short Stories, The Bow of Destiny, The Bow of Hart Saga, The White Arrow, writing, Writing Schedule
Kindle Scout Tour with Stevie Turner #RRBC
PHS:
A Kindle Scout tour for RRBC member Stevie Turner – good luck!
Originally posted on Fiction Favorites:
I NEED YOUR VOTE!!!
This third blog on Stevie’s Kindle Scout tour focuses on Chapter 2 of ‘The Donor’.
Previously a Kindle Scout campaign was only open to authors in the U.S. Now, however, it is open to writers internationally. Stevie Turner took advantage of this and submitted her 53,500-word manuscript ‘The Donor’, which was accepted into the programme. Her campaign runs until October 11th, 2015, so there is still a week left if you would like to cast your vote by clicking on the link below.
https://kindlescout.amazon.com/p/39QH2DL8AQE7R
Also, Stevie is giving away a boatload of prizes to visitors on her tour. Here is the Rafflecopter link http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/4af5be7f26/
For those unfamiliar with Kindle Scout, the rules are as follows:
Kindle Scout is reader-powered publishing for new, never-before-published books. It’s a place where readers help decide if a book gets published. Selected books will be published by Kindle Press and receive…
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October 3, 2015
Wattpad: How You Can Begin Reaching Your Audience
I’ve been enjoying Wattpad recently. If you haven’t, maybe you should give it a try.
Last week, I wrote about what Wattpad can do for you now and I’m following up today with more information. As mentioned last week, I uploaded a prequel short story to The Bow of Destiny entitled, What Is Needed to my Wattpad. Today, I’ll share some a bit of what I’m doing with it and other content as well as some pointers and ideas from other blog sites and news articles.
What Is Needed has done well in the last week with a number of reads, several votes and some nice comments. One thing I did during the past week is add it to a fantasy genre club that allows weekly posts of content. When using one of these clubs, keep in mind that there may be rules on posting (how much) as well as how to do so. My experience was very good.
This week I’ve added another story to my Wattpad, Trading Knives. This is another short story prequel to my upcoming book that I’m giving some play on Wattpad before it goes to online retailers for free in a few weeks. Give it a look but remember it’s still being edited so there will be changes, however, comments are helpful. As just a hint, this story is about one of the main antagonists in The Bow of Destiny so enjoy a little darker story.
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As promised, here are some links that may help you figure out how you may want to use Wattpad for your writing:
1. Joanna Penn hosted a guest post by Ashleigh Gardner, head of content with Wattpad. The post details aspects of marketing with Wattpad.
2. Indies Unlimited has also posted a blog entitled, Wattpad for Writers, which is very helpful as well.
3. Suw Charman-Anderson wrote an article for Forbes that discusses serializing your writing on Wattpad to attract an audience.
4. Molly Greene shared on her blog about how to get started on Wattpad – it’s a nice guide to make a quick, effective start.
5. Publisher’s Weekly also weighed-in on how Indie authors can build an audience using Wattpad.
These are all wonderful pieces that can help you puzzle out what you can do on Wattpad with your writing. Remember, Wattpad now has over 40 million readers – yes readers. It’s not just for writers and it’s proving to be just as important a social media outlet as Goodreads, the former being for more direct interaction with your content in progress and the latter more for book reviews.
Please share your thoughts and ideas in the comments section. Sign up for my Archer’s Aim Digest mailing list to receive the forthcoming edition of my newsletter with announcements about upcoming releases and events. You’ll receive my a SPECIAL coupon for The Bow of Destiny, the first novel of The Bow of Hart Saga. Speaking of which, it is now available on Barnes & Noble, iBooks Amazon – Kindle & Smashwords. Additionally, September’s FREE book, What Is Needed is available at Barnes & Noble, Kobo, iBooks and Smashwords & Amazon.
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