by L Dalton White So, my first novel was self-published—almost self-everything—and nothing happened. The second time around, I got a new editor, professional book cover and formatting. Nothing happened. The little I knew from an online course on book marketing wasn’t helping. Do it yourself wasn’t getting it done. I wanted something to happen. Spoiler… Continue reading Publishing with a Side of Self-Sabotage
At forty-two, I herniated my L4/L5 disc and life as I knew it was over. Prior to that, I had been that person…THAT MOM. You know the type: the go-to, never-say-no, initiator-and-follow-through-er, full-of-energy-and-ideas, you-can-count-on-me type of person. I wrote course curricula for a start-up camp at church (my brain child), then was director of the… Continue reading My Herniated Disc Prepared Me for the Overwhelming World of Self-Publishing
You know that feeling when you hear a song on the radio and even though you have never heard it before, you know straight away who is singing it? Perhaps you don’t even need to hear the voice—the music is so distinct, it could only be them. That same unique element exists in most professionals,… Continue reading Find Your Writing Voice – “Speak up, I can’t hear you!”
Having spent many long, sometimes frustrating, months writing that epic, what happens when it is finally done? You had it professionally edited and proofread—maybe—and now it is time to unleash it on unsuspecting readers. It feels good to have the thing behind you, and you can now put to bed all those characters that haunted… Continue reading How to Get Over Writing Depression
So, you are a newbie author and you’re awaiting the release of your book in the next three or four months (heaven forbid, if it’s a longer wait!) After you have wrung your hands and vented to your significant other about why publishers can’t seem to get their act together, you come to a major… Continue reading “Keep Calm and Promote!” by Adite Banerjie
I am sure someone famous once said that genius is one percent inspiration and ninety-nine percent perspiration. Not sure about the genius part, but in writing, the rest is certainly true. When I wrote my first novel, and I use the term ‘write’ loosely – good thing it will never see the light of day… Continue reading “Turning that Inspiration into a Book” by Stefan Vucak
I’m fond of quoting this advice from André Gide: “Throw away my book: you must understand that it represents only one of a thousand attitudes. You must find your own. If someone else could have done something as well as you, don’t do it. If someone else could have said something as well as you,… Continue reading “Write the Book Only You Can Write!” ~ by Bruce Hartman
Is it the idea, the imagination of the thing? Is it the author’s style of writing, crisp and concise to intricate and elegant? Is it the polishing work that should happen once the writing is done, from editing, proofreading, cover design, formatting, etc.? Is it a combination of all of the above or some other… Continue reading What Makes a Book a GOOD Book?
It’s a well-worn phrase, so often heard that it is cliché: “You should write a book.” Have you? Is writing and publishing a book on your “Things to Do Before I Die” list? For some people, the first book–whether fiction or nonfiction–is a ghastly beast, a monster that rages to be born but gets stuck.… Continue reading “The First Book Is the Hardest” by Lori Stephens
I think balance is the thing many people struggle with, especially women. Society expects women to be the caretakers of the family and home. But in today’s world, women usually have to also hold a job, whether it be outside the home, or like the lucky ones, working from home.
Strong or soft? Loud or quiet? Fast or slow? Like romantic pursuit, tailor your writing for those who will be seduced. You bring a dozen red roses or a bottle of Jack Daniels. You whisper “sweet nothings” or shout vitriol. You go prosaic, fluid, meandering, effusive, grandiose, or torrential or terse. Is this courtship or… Continue reading “Romancing the Audience” by Lori Stephens
In fact, he once said, “The most important things are the hardest things to say. They are the things you get ashamed of because words diminish your feelings – words shrink things that seem timeless when they are in your head to no more than living size when they are brought out.”
If I had more time, I would have written a shorter letter.—Cicero Our culture is so saturated with information that we can literally make ourselves ill (and crazy) from it. We are drowning in pictures, TV, billboards, books, magazines, the Internet…you get the picture. Do you know there are rehab treatment centers where people go… Continue reading “Bombard with Simplicity” by Lori Stephens
The first challenge of becoming a writer for me was the whole idea of becoming a writer. That was for clever people, I used to think. Where to begin? With a pen and paper – all right, here goes. Then came the second challenge, what was I going to write about? And the third, where… Continue reading “The Teething Problems of Becoming a Writer” by Laura Graham
Oh, the things people say to writers! “What do you do?” “What do you write?” “Is there any money in that?” “Where have you been published?” “How’s the book coming along?” (Alt: “When will you be done with that thing?”) “Why don’t you just sit down over a weekend and just finish it?” “You should… Continue reading “A Writer’s Guide to Coping with Clueless Questions, Crass Comments, and Crazy Conjectures” ~ by Hillary Rettig
For years I had a story line in mind for my first book. ‘Re-write the legends’ I thought, ‘it will be easy!’ I was very wrong. I would constantly stumble, falter over what colour whose eyes were. To stop forgetting minor details I tried writing them in a file titled Notes, but before I knew… Continue reading “How A First Time Author Overcomes Writer’s Block” ~ by Susan Hatton
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