writer-blog

100 Top Videos for Writers List & Links

Wed, 13 Oct 2010 02:01:56 +0100

100 Inspirational, Instructional & Educational Videos for Writers

Being a writer can be an enlightening, wonderful experience when you’re creating work that you love, but it can also be incredibly frustrating when you get writer’s block or are struggling to find inspiration. There are plenty of places on the web, however, where you can find inspiration and instruction to help you overcome your biggest obstacles or help you to see writing in a new light. Here are 100 videos just for writers, many from well-known authors offering their help and guidance.

Fiction Author Talks

These videos can inspire you through the work of other authors who’ve been through the same process you’re going through now to create their masterworks.

Isaac Asimov on the Golden Age of Science Fiction: Listen as one of the most well-known science fiction authors discusses the peak of science fiction writing.
Jack Kerouac Explains On the Road: If you want to better understand this classic piece of literature, watch this video.
Will Self: Take a look at this video to hear a talk by English author Will Self delivered at Google.
Interview with Philip Roth: This American Pulitzer Prize-winning author talks about writing and his work in this video.
Sherman Alexie: See where author, poet and comedian Sherman Alexie finds his inspiration for his work here.
Salman Rushdie on Charlie Rose: In this video you can hear an interview between famous author Rushdie and Charlie Rose.
Haruki Murakami: Known for his often dream-like prose, this Japanese authors talks about his work, life and motivation in this video.
Jhumpa Lahiri talks about The Interpreter of Maladies: In this video, you’ll hear more about the work that won this author a Pulitzer Prize.
Maurice Sendak: Author, illustrator discusses his work: If you like children’s literature, you’ll appreciate this interview with the author of Where the Wild Things Are.
Stephen King on Writing, Scary Stories, and More: As one of the most well-known names in writing, Stephen King has made a definitely place for himself in the literary world as well as popular culture. In this video, you’ll get his take on why he does what he does.
Gore Vidal on writing: Gore Vidal is an American author, playwright, essayist, screenwriter and political activist perhaps best known for his work The City and the Pillar. Take a look at this video to get his insights on the writing process.
Amy Tan – Finding Meaning through Writing: While most people know Tan’s name from the movie made from her book The Joy Luck Club, Tan has written numerous fictional and non-fictional works. In this video she discusses how she finds meaning in what she does and what offers her inspiration.
Big Thinkers – Douglas Adams: Often regarded as one of the best humor writers, in this video Adams talks about his life and his work.
Interview with Author Yann Martel: Learn more about the motivations behind this author’s work, The Life of Pi, in this video.

Non-Fiction Author Talks

If non-fiction is more your style, then you can find some inspiration in these talks given by non-fiction authors about their work and their motivation for creating it.

Martin Amis Talks About Tony Blair: Check out this video to hear author Martin Amis discuss some interesting observations about Tony Blair.
Nicholson Baker: Here you can see writer Baker talk to Charlie Rose about gorilla killings in Virunga National Park, Congo.
Taylor Branch: The Clinton Tapes: Taylor Branch discusses the diaries that helped created one of the most complete records of a presidency in this lecture.
Kay Redfield Jameson: Nothing Was the Same: You can get inspiration on writing from your life experiences in this lecture from Kay Redfield Jameson.
Writing Political Satire in the 21st Century: This talk will address some of the issues that go along with writing satire in places all around the world.
Words and Rules: The Ingredients of Language: This MIT lecture will help you understand the finer points that go into constructing language.
Authors@Google: Peter Schiff: In this video, author Peter Schiff discusses his book Crash Proof: How to Profit from the Coming Economic Collapse.
Naomi Wolf Celebrated Author of "The End of America": If you want a more feminist perspective, check out this video.
"Marley and Me" Explained by Author John Grogan: Hear this author explain the events in his life that led to the writing of this memoir about a beloved family pet.
Richard Dawkins – The Selfish Gene – Meet the author: Listen to this video from noted biologic theorist Richard Dawkins.
Frank McCourt – Writing About Poverty: Frank McCourt won a Pulitzer Prize in 1997 for his memoir Angela’s Ashes, and in this video you can hear about what inspired him to write about poverty.

Journalism and Media

If you are hoping to make a break into journalism, try watching these videos for motivation.

When Doctors are Writers: Listen to this video to hear some of the challenges for doctors who write and the reasons they should continue to do so.
Fifty Years in Media: Changes in Journalism: Hear how the journalism industry has changed over the past decades in this lecture series from Harvard.
Principles of Good Journalism: Learn what elements should be central to your journalistic writing from this video.
The Quality of the Written Word: This video addresses the unique quality of the written word and the efforts of many newspapers to maintain it.
A Conversation with David Remnick: In this video you can hear from journalist and writer for the New Yorker David Remnick.
Vinod Mehta on reading and the craft of writing: Editor-in-Chief of the Indian weekly magazine Outlook, Mehta shares his advice for writers.

Poetry

Improve the quality of your verse and get inspired by other great poets in these videos.

Poetry and Perception: Here you can hear about Susan Stewart’s idea that poetry is a "slow art."
Chris Abani muses on humanity: Nigerian poet Chris Abani talks about compassion and humanity in this TED lecture.
Poetry at Noon: Susan Bullock: Listen to this moving poetry reading from Susan Bullock in this video.
Robert Hass, Poetry Reading: Here, Robert Hass reads some of his poems at Princeton University.
How to Write a Romantic Love Poem: Want to create a poem that will have your crush or loved one in tears? This video can help.
Bridgette Kriner reads her poetry: Watch this video to hear some of the work of Bridgette Kriner.
Poetry Interpretation:Want to get a leg up on understanding how your work might be perceived? This video can teach you.
Geof Hewitt’s Guide to Poetry Slam: If you’ve ever wanted to try this art form, learn how to do so from this video.

Screenplays and Drama

Whether you want to write the next blockbuster movie or sold-out play, these videos offer advice and help to get you there.

How to Write a Play: Learn the basics of how to put together a play from this video.
Writing Your First Movie Script: If you’re trying to tackle writing a movie script for the first time, this video, and others in the series, offer advice.
Drama Workshop: Script Writing:Get a great tutorial on writing a script here.
Writing A Great Script Fast In A Nutshell: If you need to pull together a script in a hurry, this video offers some pointers.
Writing Your Own Script for an Independent Film: Those who are part of an independent film team can learn to create moving scripts from this video.
How to Write a Screenplay : How to Start a Screenplay: You have to start at the start, and this video will explain how to go about doing that.

Classic Literature

These videos will show you new ways to approach old stories, inspire you with talks on beloved authors and even make you laugh at the misadventures of some of the best known writers in the world.

Beowulf: Get an interesting take on this centuries-old epic tale here.
The Pardoner’s Tale: Watch this video to see an interpretation on this Chaucer classic.
The Raven: If you love the Simpsons and Poe, you’ll appreciate this fun take on the well-known poem.
Don Quixote: This video offers a beautiful version of this Spanish story.
Tribute to John Updike: Here you can hear about the life and work of renowned author John Updike.
Truth or Fail!: Literature Edition:Take a few minutes to watch this video and learn about the lives of famous authors.

Advice from Authors

Who better to get writing advice and guidance from than writers themselves? These videos offer just that.

Ray Bradbury on Writing: Check out this video from renowned author Ray Bradbury as he delivers his advice for young writers.
Ray Bradbury on Writing Persistently: Not everything you create will be an instant success, and as Bradbury points out here, persistence pays off.
John Irving on the Writer’s Craft: Get advice on writing and publishing from John Irving in this short video.
Advice for young writers from Neil Gaiman:Sometimes you just have to write, as this video advises.
Inspiring Advice from Authors: This video collects advice from several authors on what it takes to be a successful writer.
Advice from Stephen King: In this question and answer segment, King offers his advice on what he thinks young people should do to be successful writers.
Garrison Keillor: Finding your voice as a writer: In this short video, you’ll hear some advice on finding your own point of view in your writing.
Reading History and Writing Fiction: Here, Penelope Lively discusses what a difference reading history can make in the work of an author.
Writing a Novel: Cory Doctorow offers his advice to writers as well as shares his process and favorite tools in this video.
Joyce Carol Oates on Character: Watch this video to get some great tips on creating memorable and believable characters.
Vonnegut Advice: Short Stories: Here you can see a video collection of Vonnegut’s now-famous tips for writers.
Michael Eric Dyson & George Weigel on Writing: Give this video a try to see what these two authors do as part of their writing process. Who knows, it might work for you too.

Creativity

These videos will help you embrace and foster your creative side.

Amy Tan on Creativity: Here Amy Tan talks about how her creative process evolved.
Elizabeth Gilbert on Creativity: Learn why we all have a little genius in us from this inspiring video.
The Writer: This funny (and NSFW) video shows what inspires and motivates science fiction writer Lucas Reed.
Monty Python Talks About… Writing:While Monty Python’s writing might seem effortless, Eric Idle shares stories about the difficulties of working collaboratively.
Writing Fiction & Poetry : How to Generate Short Story Ideas: Check out this video to get some tips on coming up with good ideas for stories.
Edward de Bono on creative thinking: This video will inspire you to think outside of the box when it comes to writing.
Bob Moresco of Crash on Writers Block: Learn what this writer does when writer’s block strikes in this video.
3 Step Formula for Creative Success: Follow these steps to find a way to open yourself up to creativity.
Consciousness, Creativity and the Brain: Famous director David Lynch and professor of quantum physics John Hagelin talk about the creative process in this video.
Toni Morrison Talks About Her Motivation For Writing: Watch this video to find out what inspires this well-known author to write her works.
Creative Writing Masterclass 1: Ideas & Inspiration: Get some fresh ideas on where to come up with your own motivation and ideas in this video.
Writer’s Block: This video will give you some tips on battling writer’s block.

Basics

Check out these videos to review the essentials of good writing.

How to Become a Writer: Learn how to start out your career as a writer from this video.
Novel Writing Made Easy: For many, the thought of writing a novel seems overwhelming, but this video helps put it into perspective.
On Writing: This video breaks down writing a novel to the absolute basics in a humorous way.
Writing Fiction Lesson 101: Get an introductory lesson on the essentials of good fiction writing here.
Spice Up Your Writing! Write to Entice: Learn how you can make your writing more engaging for the reader here.
Book Writing: Here, Chris Pirillo offers some tips on writing a good computer book without incurring the wrath of critics.
Easy Tips to Improve Your Writing: Watch this video to get some great pointers on improving what you’re producing.
How to Edit Your Writing: This video will teach you how to go back and tweak what you’ve written until it’s perfect.
Janet Angelillo: Revision Is Not Punishment:While intended for writing teachers, this video is still full of great advice for writers as well.

Business

Most writers are working with the aim of getting published, and these videos offer information on how to best make that happen.

Publishing Advice for Writers: If you’re struggling to get your work recognized, you may want to give this video a listen for helpful advice.
Internet Marketing for Writers: Check out this informative video to become an expert at marketing your work online.
Book Trailers for Authors: Learn how creating a book trailer could help you sell your book.
How to Become a Freelance Writer: If you want to write on spec, this video will explain the best way to go about getting jobs.
How to Write & Publish a Non Fiction Book: If you’re a non-fiction writer, you can find some helpful tips here on getting your work out there.
Novel Writing Tools: Learn about some great tech tools that can help you write from this video.
How to Become a Professional Writer: This video offers a guide to working as a professional writer.
Book Launch 2.0: Take a look at this satire to see the perils of modern day publishing.
A Day in the Life of a Writer: This humorous video shows what it’s really like to be a writer.
Gaining Self-Confidence to Write & Publish a Book: Many people never finish writing a book, or never even start, because they believe they don’t have the talent. This video explains how to overcome those negative thoughts.
Three things that helped me finish my novel: Learn what things might motivate you to finally finish your work from this video.
Advice From A Literary Agent: Even if you don’t have your own literary agent, you can get advice from one here.

Miscellaneous

These videos focus on a range of different writing topics for any unanswered concerns you may have.

The Writing of Fantasy: Get a few pointers on how to write great fantasy work here.
Writing Fiction and Non-fiction: Here you can learn some ways to go about writing both fiction and non-fiction.
The Blog as Writing Tool: Learn why blogging can be a big help to writers from this video.
Kurt Vonnegut and Joyce Carol Oates at The Connecticut Forum: Take a moment to watch this video on censorship to get some great commentary from two legendary writers.

Source: onlinecollege.org

Inspiring Authors give Practical Advice [video]

Sun, 26 Sep 2010 19:54:37 +0100

Inspiration from Author Magazine video with 13,538 views to date.

The secret to making decisions that lead to success is to first go to work on your beliefs. If you do not already possess the essential beliefs, you can adopt them by surrounding yourself with those who do.

“The secret to success in any field is to find what successful people do, think about and act on, and do the same.” – Anthony Robbins

For more interviews, inspiration, and writing advice, go to: http://www.authormagazine.org

Thanks to John Grisham Lulu Authors Sell More Books

Sun, 19 Sep 2010 15:37:48 +0100

The Lulu Marketplace of 700,000 Published Titles includes the works of Bestselling Author John Grisham!

You too could be a Lulu success story!

Lulu is not just for print on demand books, it's also a widely-respected ebook publisher. For ebook writers who don't want to start and market their own website for their ebook, using Lulu is a viable option. The requirements on formatting are strict, but the commission fees are reasonable and Lulu gets a lot of traffic from interested ebook buyers.

Selling a Book through Lulu

Lulu publishes both books and ebooks, and ebooks are priced by the writer at whatever price point he chooses. So as you can see, you hold all the cards. You pull the strings. You make the decisions.

No Fees

There are no fees charged to the writer by Lulu to host the book or set up the account. Hosting is free! There is only a commission fee for sales.

Writers have the option of giving away free ebook downloads for promotional purposes. For some writers, this is a valuable for their portfolios. Lulu charges no commission for such cases!

Writer Sets Price

When a writer sets a price for an ebook, Lulu charges the industry standard 25 percent commission fee. However at Lulu, there is also the option of making the ebook available on a print-on-demand basis! This is not required, but it’s nice to have the option to also be able to offer your book in a “hard-cover”, printed version if need be.

What to Publish on Lulu

There are no requirements when publishing a Lulu book, as to what you may or may not write. Lulu publishes fiction, nonfiction, reference materials, calendars, photo or picture books. To get a feel for what ebooks are popular through the site, take a look at the Lulu best sellers.

There is no minimum page length, so it is possible to publish short stories, novellas, essays, even series through Lulu.

Marketing a Lulu Book

Lulu does wide-range, extensive marketing to bring in book and ebook buyers, however to elevate sales, many writers engage in their own marketing. This can be anything from blog and social media postings, to article marketing, to search engine marketing. Some writes even use Google pay-per-click ads to draw interested buyers to the purchasing page.

Lulu is quickly becoming a publishing name associated with major players like Amazon and Barnes & Nobel, even taking 1st Place at the Web 2.0 Book Awards*

You Owe it to Yourself to Take a Closer Look… There is NO OBLIGATION

Check out the Lulu Difference, HERE!

*2007 Web 2.0 Awards

50 Best Young Adult and Children's Book Blogs

Fri, 17 Sep 2010 20:22:10 +0100

It’s nice to see that even during a time when technology rules all, tweens and teens are still reading, and young adult literature is the genre of choice. YA literature is written for readers in the 12-to-18 age group, but there are plenty of adult readers who can’t help themselves from reading about vampires, high school crushes and the trials and tribulations of teenagehood. YA books continue to grow in popularity, and it shows by the number of YA blogs circulating the Web today. Here are 50 young adult book blogs you need to check out:

Adults

These blogs are written by adults, who can’t get enough of YA literature.

Young Adult Books Central.
Here, a team of reviewers blog about tween and teen books, and share author interviews, industry news and basic YA info.
Between the Lines.
Check out the latest YA author interviews, book reviews and suggested readings on this Penguin book blog.
The Cybils.
This blog rewards the top-rated children and YA books, based on several factors such as literary merit and community appeal among bloggers.
Love YA Lit.
These avid YA readers are dedicated to reviewing books and introducing adults to YA lit.
Voracious YAppetite.
Here you’ll find a wide variety of YA book reviews, specifically speculative fiction, debut releases and POC titles.
I was a teenage book geek.
This self-proclaimed teenage book geek reviews YA books, especially her favorite genres: sci-fi, fantasy, paranormal and horror.
Persnickety Snark.
This Australian teacher reviews YA literature and interviews Australian authors.
Pure Imagination.
Here you’ll find a variety of YA book reviews, author interviews and book giveaways.
Young Adult Literature Lover.
This aspiring young adult author shares her collection of book reviews and her current YA projects.
Yesterday’s Young Adult Novels.
This blogger has a specific interest in reviewing YA books from the past, specifically romance and career titles from the 1950s and 1960s.
Book Chic Club.
This blogger shakes things up from a male perspective, and features author interviews and guest blogs on YA novels.
YAnnabe.
This aspiring YA author writes book reviews and shares writing tips with fellow YAnnabes.
The Book Smugglers.
These avid YA readers review at least 4 books a week, and do a joint review of the same book every month to shake things up.
Steph Su Reads.
Check out this YA blogger’s awesome collection of book reviews and cool giveaways.
The Page Flipper.
This blogger features her own YA book reviews and reviews from author to author.
Young Adult Books Reviewed.
Find a variety of YA book reviews, especially paranormal and romance titles on this blog.
Confessions of a Bookaholic.
Get a glimpse of this blogger’s collection of YA book reviews, author spotlights and guests posts.
Becky’s Book Reviews.
This blogger reads and reviews everything from YA fiction, YA supernatural to YA sports titles.
Forever Young Adult.
This group of bloggers adds comic relief to the YA blogosphere with lighthearted reviews and posts.
The Story Siren.
This ‘young at heart’ adult has an extensive collection of YA book reviews and featured authors on her blog.
Extreme Reader Book Reviews.
This mom and pre-k teacher has a solid collection of YA book reviews on her blog.

Teens and Tweens

See what these youngsters have to say about YA books.

Flamingnet Young Adult Book Blog.
Here, preteens and teens share YA book reviews and their favorite reads of the year.
Y.A. Reads.
This blog is a collaboration of YA readers, who review books, conduct author interviews and keep YA readers up to date on literary news.
Reading in Color.
Reading in Color is written by a black teenager whose goal is to expand the demographics of teens who review young adult books, particularly those about people of color.
Princess Bookie.
This blog has a variety of author interviews and YA book reviews, using a cupcake-rating system.
The Book Scout.
This high school student loves to scout out good YA books and review them from a teenager’s perspective.
Girl’s Without a Bookshelf.
Check out this sisterly YA blog, where two sisters, ages 12 and 20, review young adult books.
Hope’s Bookshelf.
This 16-year-old blogger has a wide variety of YA book reviews, author interviews and book contests, here.
QueerYA.
This blog reviews YA fiction books that are geared for LGTBQ teenagers.
WORD for Teens.
Check out this young adult’s blog, which has an impressive collection of YA book reviews and author interviews.
YA Book Queen.
You can find a bunch of YA book reviews, reading suggestions and interesting author interviews on this 19-year-old’s blog.

Authors

Get a glimpse of what YA authors are writing, reading and thinking at this very moment.

Janette Rallison’s Blog.
This teen fiction author blogs about her books and offers writing tips to aspiring authors.
YA Authors You’ve Never Heard Of.
Despite the blog name, you may have heard of these authors, who blog about anything and everything YA.
Carrie’s Procrastinatory Outlet.
This author’s blog features reading announcements and news about her upcoming book release.
Diana Rodriguez Wallach.
Here you’ll find author interviews, book reviews and discussions about YA literature from this YA author.
Amanda Ashby.
This YA author shares interviews and the inner workings of her current projects.
The B-log Blog.
YA author Cyn Balog shares writing tips and announcements of upcoming contests and opportunities to meet her.
Holly Black.
This author of teen and children contemporary fantasy novels blogs about her books, upcoming projects and fan art, here.
Meg Cabot.
Check out Meg Cabot’s blog, where she dishes about her books, other authors’ books and random topics.
Cynsations.
Here, YA author Cynthia Leitich Smith blogs about other YA authors and their cynsational series.
Jeri Smith-Ready.
This award-winning author reviews YA books and interviews other authors on her blog.
Book-lover Carol.
This YA author dishes about her books, her inspirations and writing tips for younger writers and readers.

Librarians

These librarians can teach YA a thing or two from their literary blogs.

Hip Librarians Book Blog.
These librarians keep it hip by reviewing the coolest young adult books out there.
The YA YA YAs.
This blog is written by three YA librarians, who love to yap about the latest young adult lit.
GreenBeanTeenQueen.
This tween and teen librarian knows good books and loves to review YA novels with her own rating scale.
Librarina.
Check out this school librarian’s thoughts on a variety of YA books.
A True Reality.
These three librarians share their opinions of the YA books they read on here.
YA Librarian Tales.
Find a wide collection of YA book reviews on this amateur YA librarian’s blog.
Reading Rants!.
This middle school librarian has been reviewing and rating her favorite YA books here for more than 10 years.
YA Book Nerd.
This YA school librarian shares her love for reading and reviewing YA books here.

The Most Common Fiction Writing Mistakes and How to Avoid Them (including video)

Sun, 26 Sep 2010 18:51:22 +0100

Here is a very intertaining tutorial about fiction writing, better said, on how not to write fiction... this is part 1 of 3 videos. Stay tuned for the other two videos which will be publishing here soon as well.

Are you wondering why your short stories keep coming back with polite rejection letters? It could be that some of the easy to correct mistakes from the video, or as discribed bellow, are standing between you, your publication and your success!

Bellow you will find a list of the most common, easy to correct mistakes, so you can go over your work and see if you're ready for the big leauge.

No Shape or Structure

All fiction, but especially the short story, works best when it concentrates on one person in one situation that takes place in a reasonably short space of time. A short story expresses a moment of change and charts the journey through this change and shows what happens at the far end. Begin the story as close as possible to the moment of change. Don't waffle on once the change and its aftermath has happened. Don't allow yourself to be sidetracked. Learn how to pace a story, when to give and when to withhold information, when and how to create tension, speed things up, slow things down. This is done by carefully choosing words, not only for the sound they make but the length of syllables etc. Writing is a craft as much as an art. If a writer needs to introduce flashback, it should be carefully sign-posted in and out, to avoid confusion. Shifts in viewpoint should also be carefully introduced.

Dull or Boring

Too many new writers don't give their imagination full rein. They seem afraid look beyond and beneath the surface. Their characters are dull and lead dull lives. Above all, fiction must intrigue and entertain. Avoid stereotyped characters and situations. Why can't a rich business man be kind and compassionate? Why are unemployed men always lazy and sit around in their vests swigging out of cans? Why can't one or two learn Latin or take up line-dancing?

No Attention to Language

Too many writers are so busy "telling a story" that they fail to choose their words carefully enough. All writers should try to increase their vocabulary; not by using fancy words just for the sake of it -- writing should always be clear -- but by using intriguing language in new ways. Wind doesn't only blow. It can rip, roar, strangle, whip. Be imaginative. It's not only what you say but the way you say it.

Absence of Imagery and too many Cliches

Too much fiction is flat because it lacks vibrant images. Cliches are similes and metaphors that have been so overworked they cease to mean anything and sound limp and stale, like as cold as ice, as black as coal. Don't say, "she sighed with relief"; think of another way someone might show relief. Match your imagery to the story and character. If your main character is always rushing about, use imagery relating to speed. Send him to the greyhound track to act out his scenes or place him by a railway line where express trains thunder past. If your character is depressed then send her into tunnels, underpasses, cellars and basements. Reinforce the prevailing mood, but avoid the obvious. Don't draw the reader's attention to what you're doing. Just do it.

No Sense of Place

People are not only the result of their genes, but are shaped by their environment. Show the readers where your characters live and work. If it's the sprawling suburbs, then show us. What does a suburban avenue, sound and smell like? How does the light shine on it? Show us its life -- a man delivering charity bags from door to door, wheelie bins standing by gates. If someone lives in a filthy hovel behind the gasworks, let's see, hear and touch it. Too many writers let their characters float around in a vacuum. Don't forget to engage all the senses. Most writers describe how things look, but how does fear taste? How does anger smell? What does beauty sound like? Be adventurous.

Poor Dialogue Skills

Dialogue in fiction isn't real but it must sound real. Keep it sharp. Don't allow your characters to make long confessional speeches or engage in too much cozy chit-chat. Use it to provide essential information and above all to show character.

Little Technical Knowledge

All writers should learn or brush up their grammar by learning why things are so. The most common mistakes, such as confusion of "it's" and "its," "your" and "you're" mark you as a beginner. Learn the reasons behind the rules and you can't possibly get it wrong. Only when you know the rules inside out can you be brave enough to break them. The best way to learn how to do it is to read as much published fiction as you can. If you read plenty by a variety of authors you cannot possibly "pick up" their style. It will, on the contrary, help develop your own.

Too Much Detail

In short fiction especially, include information only if it furthers the plot, aids characterization and provides a sense of place and time. Too much background information makes a story all tell and no show. Don't go into detail about characters if they have no significant part to play in the fiction. Never give bit part players a name. If all a postman has to do is deliver the all-important letter, don't say he's Stan, the postman whose wife nags him and has a bad back after falling off his bike in 1976. His function is just to be a postman. Don't lead up to an event. Jump in straight away. Drip-feed vital information subtly. Don't drop in heavy indigestible chunks of history or description. Make it a central part of the current action.

Lack of Editing

The best writers re-write and re-write. New writers tend to think that editing merely means a brief read through for typos and spelling errors. That's the very last thing to do. The first draft of a short story is like a lump of wood. Removing unnecessary waffle, sharpening up images and choosing the exact word will reveal the beauty of the grain.

Most importantly, when you think your story is the best you can make it, put it aside and leave it for as long as possible, then read it out aloud. Your errors will jump in your face like a drill sergeant! Just rewrite it.

25 Unusual Ways to Sell Lots of Books

Sun, 26 Sep 2010 18:45:29 +0100

You may have written or published the greatest book ever, but if people don't know about it, they can't buy it. Whether you are the author, publisher, promoter or all three, it is your job to create excitement about and interest in your book.

Use the ideas in this article to create a buzz about your book without breaking your budget. While some of them won't be right for you, many ideas will be a good fit. The more ideas you use, the better. People often take their time before making a decision to buy, and the more often they hear about your book, the more likely they are to buy it. Keep coming at them in different ways with the message about your book and what it can do for them.

Don't be too quick to discard an idea, thinking that you can't do it or it won't work for you. Just because you've never done something before, don't assume that you can't do it, whether it's making a speech, doing a TV or radio interview, or staging an outrageous stunt.

These ideas are also good brain food: think about them, and see what else you can grow. Can you put a twist on one of them or combine two of them in an interesting way?

Pick a few ideas that appeal to you and put them to work right away. Time to see results will vary. Choose a good mix of ideas to start generating book sales and to keep selling for a long time to come!

1. Teach a class

Colleges, community centers and continuing education programs are always looking for interesting classes. If you were to become an instructor, information about you and your book would be printed in every catalog. Plus, you could offer your book as a required or optional text. I've sold hundreds of copies of The Mystery Shopper's Manual and other titles this way.

2. Declare a holiday

A holiday does not have to be declared by Congress to get attention for your book. If you wrote a book about finding your prince and living happily ever after, why not create "Kiss a Frog"? Get your holiday listed in Chase's Annual Events (you'll find it at your library), and the media will call you. Even if it's not listed in Chase's, you can still send out press releases announcing the holiday and any related events you schedule. How do I know this works? Take a look in the Chase's index for Solo-preneuring Week, and note that the contact is . . . yours truly.

3. Create a booklet

Excerpt a portion of your book into a booklet. (This article originated as a booklet/handout for a speech I gave.) Give it away as a promotion or sell it. Paulette Ensign has sold more than 500,000 copies of her small booklets about organizing. Not only do the booklets promote her organizing business, they have become a profit center themselves.

4. Make friends with the "competition"

Are there other publishers with the same audience? If your books are not in direct competition, you might make a deal to promote each other's books. For example, they might include your flyer or catalog in their mail outs, and you do the same for them.

5. Throw a party

Hold a book signing party. It may be at a bookstore, but why not try someplace different? If your book is about animals, hold it at a pet store or the gift shop at the zoo. For a beauty book, why not try a salon? Invite everyone you know, get the shop owner to help promote it, send press releases, etc., to get lots of people there.

6. Exercise your right of free speech

And give free speeches all over. Lots of organizations are meeting in your town every day, and most of them need speakers. Check the newspaper for meeting notices, and ask your friends about their groups. Then call and offer your services. You won't get paid, but they usually feed you and you'll get to sell books after your talk.

7. Write articles about your topic

Offer the articles to newspapers, magazines and newsletters read by the people who would be interested in your book. You may get paid for the articles, but even if you don't, make sure information about your book (and how readers can get their own copies) is included. Even easier, excerpt portions of your book and offer them as articles.

8. Put your book in unusual outlets

Don't just think bookstores. Where will you find the people who should read your book? Don't overlook doctors' or veterinarians' offices, truck stops, souvenir stands, restaurants and coffee shops, etc.

9. Help yourself by helping others

Offer your book as a fundraiser to schools, charities or other organizations. Sell them to the organization in quantity at a discount. Members sell the books at the retail price, and the organization pockets the difference.

10. Offer your book as a premium

Does your book have a natural relationship to a product? The manufacturer of that product may buy thousands of your books to give away or sell to their customers. Contact the brand manager to see if they are interested (and be prepared for any decision to take a while). Also approach local merchants to see if they would like to buy premiums. Would the local car dealer give everyone who buys a car a copy of your book on car care? Come up with a good connection, then sell some books!

11. Centers of influence

Are there people who could influence others to buy your book? Might doctors recommend your book on stress relief? Would teachers suggest parents read your book on helping children excel at school? Get copies into the hands of those who can reach your audience.

12. Get listed in catalogs

Most of us receive hundreds of catalogs with all kinds of things in them. When you find one that seems to fit your book, contact the catalog company and ask about submitting your book.

13. Talk it up

In marketing classes, I teach a technique called The 10-Second Brag. The Brag is a quick way of introducing yourself in a way that is interesting to your audience. If you tell someone that you are a consultant, there reaction may be "So what?" (Although they may not ask that to your face!) Instead, tell them about the problems you solve, and they will be interested. The same applies to your book. No one (other than your mother) cares that you wrote a book. But if your book contains secrets that will help me make my dreams come true, then I care! The secret of the Brag is remembering that people care about the world as it relates to them and their needs. Remember that, and they will care about you and your book.

14. Hold a contest or survey

If you wrote a book about organizing closets, give a prize for the messiest closet in town. Have entrants send in photos of their messy closets, write a short essay about how disorganized they are or do a survey related to your book topic, then announce the results. If you wrote a book about managed health care, survey people for their opinions on managed care and what they like/dislike about it.

15. Launch a Website

Put a site on the World Wide Web where people can get more information about you and your book. And I'm not just talking about a little blog about your book, do book reviews for other authors, do autobiographies (including your own) and post articles about writing (for exampl; how YOU wrote YOUR book).

16. Exchange links

At your web site, offer links to other sites of interest to your audience. Contact the webmasters of those sites and ask if they would consider offering visitors to their sites a link to yours.

17. Be active online

Show your expertise by getting involved in discussion groups on your topic. While sending purely commercial messages about your book is generally not acceptable, you can answer questions and offer information and include a sig file with more information about your book and how to get it.

18. It's for a good cause

Announce that you will give a portion of the proceeds from book sales to a particular charity or advocacy group. Then, let interested groups know about it so they can help publicize your book.

19. Get others to sell books for you

Many speakers make money selling books in the "back of the room" (BOR). Speakers who don't have books of their own, or who wish to expand their product lines, may be interested in selling your books. Structure a discount schedule which allows both of you to make money.

20. Get a business card for your book

Business cards are cheap. Get one made up especially for your book, then put it around wherever you can leave business cards. I had some made up for The Mystery Shopper's Manual. When I return a library book, I stick one in the book as a bookmark. Know what? I've gotten calls as a result!

21. Make a flyer

Make up a simple flyer about your book, and get it copied onto colored paper. The flyer may be one side of one page, or just a portion of a page. Put it out when you speak, leave it on literature tables at meetings and conferences, etc.

22. Get on the Air

Do radio interviews, locally and across the country. By sending out short press releases, I've gotten interviews for my clients and myself on stations all over. A radio show may need three or more guests per day, five days a week, 52 weeks a year. They want to hear from you. News/talk stations run lots of interviews, but don't overlook the drive time and public affairs shows on music stations. And the best thing about radio is that you can do many of your interviews over the phone from the comfort of your own home.

23. Alert the media

Are you and your book newsworthy enough to make the nightly news? Whatever you do, send press releases to make television, radio, newspapers, magazines, etc. aware of you. Make it newsworthy. Local news shows run a lot of features about local people and events. Let them know about your book signing, seminar, outrageous stunt, whatever. While there is no guarantee of media coverage, when you get it, it can sell lots of books.They don't care that you wrote a book, but they will care that you can give their audiences information they want or need.

24. Be outrageous!

Don't be afraid to try something new or unusual, even odd. Ask yourself, "Will this attract/appeal to the people I want to reach?" and "What will it cost me in time and money to try it?" If the first answer is "yes," and the second is "not more than I can afford," then go for it!

25. Reach for the Stars

Think about what you can do beyond these ideas. Do you want to be on Oprah? Would a celebrity be willing to endorse your book? Would your book be perfect for a home shopping network? Or an infomercial? Could you develop a whole line of products related to your book? Sometimes it is easier to sell several related books/tapes/etc. than just one title.

What is your wildest dream of success? Imagine it, and then take steps to make it come true. Don't be afraid to think big and aim for the stars! That's what they're there for.

Written By: Thomas "Tom" Retterbush

Self-Publishing: Tips, Tricks & Techniques

Wed, 04 Aug 2010 03:23:45 +0100

If you've chosen to publish one of your own books, you know you're in for a challenge, and lots of work, and lots of fun. For most of us the process starts out as an idea, then ripens into a dream. It takes hold of our lives, dictates how we spend our time, compels us to capture our thoughts on paper, and tests our ingenuity in a hundred different ways. But a dream without action is like a car without gasoline. It can't go anywhere. To move our book from inception to completion we must fuel ourselves with education and study; we must conquer the craft of writing and publishing.

The undertaking is complex. The subject mater must be widely appealing -- or tightly focused. A snappy title must be created. Sloppy writing must be sharpened and honed to a fine edge. A myriad of business procedures must be mastered: pricing, discounts, invoices, licenses, and taxes all clamor to be reckoned with. Unfamiliar numbers and listings must be conquered. The fine points of design and production seem infinite and incomprehensible. Typesetting decisions, paper weights, and binding options pull you in a dozen different directions. You will feel as though you are drowning in a sea of details.

Then (for the successful self-publisher) one day it all begins to fall into place and you gain a sense of how the whole process fits together. The mysteries of advertising and promotion begin to clear up. Your news releases find their mark. Requests for review copies pop up in each day's mail. A prestigious national magazine asks about first serial rights and an expert reader gives you a great blurb for the cover.

Finally comes THE DAY. Your books arrive from the printer. The dream has been given form. You had a goal and you reached it. And as your publishing venture matures, you'll mastermind merchandising techniques you never thought possible. Thousands of people have done it successfully. So can you.

As a writer you can be self-published, subsidy-published, or commercially-published. Self-publishers are sometimes called private publishers, independent publishers, small presses (though usually this denotes a publisher of several titles), or alternative publishers.

According to the R.R. Bowker Company there are on average 1,200 new publishers coming into the marketplace ever quarter, an average of just under 5,000 new publishers starting up each year.

Statistics show that of all the titles published annually (665,000 books currently in print, with some 53,000 more being ground out each year) by the established, commercial publishers, only about three out of ten are financial successes.

Unknown writers are hurt by the fact that a disproportionate chunk of advertising dollars is spent for authors with established track records or those with celebrity status and a "name."

Repeated rejection slips can smother the hopes of ordinary men and women who feel that their manuscript, their book project has something important to contribute to the reading public. For the courageous, for the entrepreneurial, for the dedicated, self-publishing is a practical and profitable way for them to launch their own work. They become self-publishers.

But without planning, without forethought, the odds against success for the self-published are overwhelming. Indeed, the risk of capital is about that of putting your stake down on a Las Vegas crap table.

But if you carefully prepare, if you follow a methodical, step-by-step coherent plan, you can succeed as a self-published author, and even prosper.

With computer technology becoming cheaper and easier to use, there's an exciting revolution going on in self-publishing.

Tom & Marilyn Ross' trade paperback THE COMPLETE GUIDE TO SELF-PUBLISHING (Writer's Digest Press, $16.95) is literally everything you will ever need to know in order to successfully write, publish, promote, and sell your own book. It is the basis for this workshop and indeed, even this introduction.

You can minimize risks and maximize profits by learning exactly what you need to know and the order in which you need to act to get your book from the idea stage through the production process and into the hands of consumers.

You will learn how to create and control your work every step of the way, with complete explanations and plenty of professional advice on book production and business procedures, publicity and marketing strategies, plus invaluable tips on negotiating with regular publishers and agents for secondary sales.

There is computer desktop publishing advice including publishing software (some of which I will be updating), laser printers and word processing programs.

Guidelines for business matters and production basics that explain everything from designing the book to getting it printed.

Appendices list important marketing contacts, clip art sources, the publishing timetable, bookstore chains, reprint publishers, wholesalers and distributors, and a great deal more.

Actual samples of sales letters, ads, catalog sheets, cover designs, invoices, copyright applications, and virtually every form you'll need are provided.

Proven marketing techniques including free publicity, advertising guidance, and dozens of innovative ideas to boost sales are given, and I will be adding some more based on my own 20+ years of experience in the field both as an author, a self-publisher, a retail bookstore owner, a reviewer, a consultant/advisor for small presses and independent authors, the producer/host of television's BOOKWATCH, and the editor-in-chief of The Midwest Book Review.

Self-Publishing requires two kinds of investments: investments of capital (money) and investments of yourself. As in any business you will require start-up capital. There must be enough money to print the book, send out review copies, sustain an advertising campaign, and so forth. How much depends on many variables. How long will your book be? Will it have photographs inside? Will the cover be full-color? Will you type it, do it on a computer, or have it typeset? How many copies will you print and on what quality of paper?

You might skimp by on a few hundred dollars for a booklet on which you do most of the work yourself. You could spend over $30,000 on a coffee-table book with lots of color photographs. Generally speaking, to produce a professional-quality book and promote it properly, you'll be in the range of $10,000 to $15,000 in today's marketplace.

But be forewarned! Lack of market analysis, careful planning, budgeting, and persistence has caused some people to lose their investments.

You must be willing to devote a substantial block of time to your publishing project. While this can be spread over a long period, there is no getting around the fact that to have a dynamite book, you must spend much of your time writing, revising it, producing it, and promoting it.

A self-publisher is all of the following: writer, editor, designer/artist, typesetter/compositor, printer, financier/accountant, marketeer, shipper/warehouser, legal adviser, financial underwriter, and business manager.

The motivations to self-publishing can be many and varied. Some are in it to make money. Others because they yearn to see their name in print and to leave some sort of literary legacy behind, still others have a cause to serve, a dream to realize, a hobby to have fun with and pass the time of day. Still others see self-publishing as an adjunct of something else. A "how to" book on dating helped one man's dating service prosper; several of my acquaintances found that self-publishing got them more paid lectures, consultancy clients, seminar programs, and tenure application success.

Before you move ahead on your self-publishing venture, establish concrete goals. Over and over, it has been proven that those who take the time to think through and write down the desired results in terms of specific steps are the people who achieve success. Lay out the course. Write the steps involved. Break down the overall process into easily digestible chunks. Chew on them. Spit out those that don't work. Take more generous bites of those that are satisfying. Set your goals and plan carefully for a successful journey. The first leg of your trip has to do with developing a winning manuscript. Your book is your product. The rest is salesmanship.

Written By: James A. Cox

Tips for Writers, from Writers

Thu, 22 Jul 2010 08:23:08 +0100

The entire writing process is fraught with perils. Many writers would argue that the hardest part of writing is beginning. When asked what was the most frightening thing he had ever encountered, novelist Ernest Hemingway said, “A blank sheet of paper.”

Other writers believe that ideas are easy, it’s in the execution of those ideas that the hard work really begins. You have to show up every day and slowly give shape to your ideas, trying to find just the right words, searching for the right turn of phrase, until it all morphs into something real.

Then comes the wait to discover how your writing will be received. Chilean author Isabel Allende once said that writing a book is like putting a message in a bottle and throwing it in the ocean. You never know if it will reach any shores.

So just how do you go about facing an empty page, coaxing your ideas into the world of form, and steering the end result toward shore? You can start by studying the tips and advice from writers presented below.

photocredit: visualpanic

Stephen King – Read A Lot and Write A Lot

“If you want to be a writer,” says Stephen King, “you must do two things above all others: read a lot and write a lot.”

King, who has written over 50 books, emphasizes that writers have to be well-read. He adds that he has no patience for people who tell him that they want to be writers but they can’t find the time to read. The answer is simple: if you don’t read, you can’t be a writer. You have to read just about everything. In addition, you also have to write in order to develop your own style.

When it comes to the reading part of it, King explained during a lecture at Yale that if you read enough, there’s this magic moment which will always come to you if you want to be a writer. It’s the moment when you put down some book and say: “This really sucks . . . I can do better than this . . . And this guy got published.” So go ahead, read all you can, and wait for that magical moment.

“On Writing”–published in 2000–is both a textbook for writers and a memoir of King’s life. Here’s an excerpt from “On Writing” in which King offers advice on pacing:

“Mostly when I think of pacing, I go back to Elmore Leonard, who explained it so perfectly by saying he just left out the boring parts. This suggests cutting to speed the pace, and that’s what most of us end up having to do (kill your darlings, kill your darlings, even when it breaks your egocentric little scribbler’s heart, kill your darlings)…I got a scribbled comment that changed the way I rewrote my fiction once and forever. Jotted below the machine-generated signature of the editor was this mot: “Not bad, but PUFFY. You need to revise for length. Formula: 2nd Draft = 1st Draft – 10%. Good luck.”

John Grisham’s Advice

John Grisham–a former lawyer best known for his legal thrillers–advices young writers to find their career, and adds that at first it won’t be writing. He explains that before you can be a writer you have to experience some things, see some of the world, go through things–love, heartbreak, and so on–, because you need to have something to say.

You also need to have something to fall back on. Once you’re secure in life and you have a regular paycheck, then you can think about becoming a serious writer. (This is basically “The Survival/Sacred Dance” theory which I write about in my blog post,

He goes on to say that at first you have to treat writing as a hobby; you write a page a day in your spare time. Grisham explains that he created spare time to write, although he had a full time job. He adds that he always tells young aspiring writers that if they’re not writing a page a day, then nothing is going to happen. But if they make sure to write a page a day it becomes a habit, and before long they have a lot of pages piled up.

Erica Jong – Fear of Flying

“The hardest part is believing in yourself at the notebook stage. It is like believing in dreams in the morning.” – Erica Jong

Erica Jong–who in “Seducing the Demon” defined a writer as “someone who takes the universal whore of language and turns her into a virgin again”, and who created compelling female characters such as Isadora Wing and Fanny Hackabout-Jones–tells us that she writes to get her life down on paper so that it can never be extinguished. She also writes to keep from going mad.

Jong admonishes aspiring writers not to expect approval for telling the truth, reminding them of Dante, Voltaire, Cervantes, and Swift. Then she adds: “Few are the great spirits who did not at one time or another write in jail, in exile, in the madhouse, or at the foot of the gallows.”

Ernest Hemingway – Papa Hemingway

Ernest Hemingway–winner of the Nobel Prize in 1954–advices that each day’s work should only be interrupted when one knows where to begin again the next day. This helps the writer avoid the morning agony of facing the blank page. (From “Gabriel Garcia Marquez Meets Ernest Hemingway”).

Hemingway–knicknamed Papa–offers more invaluable writing tips in a rare interview he did with George Plimpton, original editor of “The Paris Review”, the magazine credited with inventing the modern literary interview. Here are some of the insights he offered during the inteview conducted in the Spring of 1958

Interviewer: How much rewriting do you do?

Hemingway: It depends, I re-wrote the ending to “Farewell to Arms”, the last page of it, thirty-nine times before I was satisfied.

Interviewer: Was there some technical problem there? What was it that had stumped you?

Hemingway: Getting the words right.

—————————————————-

Interviewer: Who would you say are your literary forebears, those you have learned the most from?

Hemingway: Mark Twain, Flaubert, Stendhal, Bach, Turgeniev, Tolstoi, Dostoevsky, Chekhov, Andrew Marvell, John Donne, Maupassant, the good Kipling, Thoreau, Captain Marryat, Shakespeare, Mozart, Quevedo, Dante, Virgil, Tintoretto . . . Goya, Giotto, Cezanne, Van Gogh . . . I put in painters, because I learn as much from painters about how to write as from writers . . . I should think what one learns from composers and from the study of harmony and counterpoint would be obvious.

——————————

Interviewer: Does the title come to you while you’re in the process of doing the story?

Hemingway: No, I make a list of titles after I’ve finished the story or the book–sometimes as many as 100. Then I start eliminating them, sometimes all of them.

————————————————-

If you enjoy reading writer interviews, The Paris Review’s Writers at Work interview series has elicited many of the most arresting, illuminating, and revealing discussions of life and craft from the greatest writers of our time.

Kurt Vonnegut – Find a Subject You Care About

Kurt Vonnegut was a prolific American author known for works blending satire, black comedy and science fiction. He offers the following advice to aspiring writers: “Find a subject you care about and which you in your heart feel others should care about. It is this genuine caring, and not your games with language, which will be the most compelling and seductive element in your style.”

In the book “Bagombo Snuff Box”–an assortment of his short stories published in 1999, Vonnegut listed eight rules for writing a short story:

1. Use the time of a total stranger in such a way that he or she will not feel the time was wasted.

2. Give the reader at least one character he or she can root for.

3. Every character should want something, even if it is only a glass of water.

4. Every sentence must do one of two things-reveal character or advance the action.

5. Start as close to the end as possible.

6. Be a Sadist. No matter how sweet and innocent your leading characters, make awful things happen to them-in order that the reader may see what they are made of.

7. Write to please just one person. If you open a window and make love to the world, so to speak, your story will get pneumonia.

8. Give your readers as much information as possible as soon as possible. To hell with suspense. Readers should have such complete understanding of what is going on, where and why, that they could finish the story themselves, should cockroaches eat the last few pages.

Anne Lamott – Bird by Bird

Anne Lamott once received a rejection letter from an editor that said: “You have made the mistake of thinking that everything that has happened to you is interesting.” That, however, didn’t discourage her from writing; she’s the author of several successful novels as well as a book on writing, which a lot of people are familiar with, entitled“Bird by Bird”.

As for the title of her book, she explains that when her older brother was ten years old he was trying to write a report on birds which he’d had three months to write. The day before the report was due he was sitting at the kitchen table at the family’s cabin surrounded by unopened books on birds, immobilized by the huge task ahead of him. He was close to tears when his father walked up, put his arm around his shoulder, and said, ‘Bird by bird, buddy. Just take it bird by bird.’”

As can be expected from the book’s title, Lamott explains in “Bird by Bird” that the secret of writing is to get started, and in order to get started you need to break the complex, overwhelming task of writing into small manageable tasks. Then you simply get going with the first task.

From Lamott’s “Bird by Bird” comes her concept of “the shitty first draft”. Here’s an excerpt from “Bird by Bird” which explains that concept:

“For me and most of the other writers I know, writing is not rapturous. In fact, the only way I can get anything written at all is to write really, really shitty first drafts.

The first draft is the child’s draft, where you let it all pour out and then let it romp all over the place, knowing that no one is going to see it and that you can shape it later. You just let this childlike part of you channel whatever voices and visions come through and onto the page. If one of the characters wants to say, “Well, so what, Mr. Poopy Pants?,” you let her. No one is going to see it. If the kid wants to get into really sentimental, weepy, emotional territory, you let him. Just get it all down on paper, because there may be something great in those six crazy pages that you would never have gotten to by more rational, grown-up means. There may be something in the very last line of the very last paragraph on page six that you just love, that is so beautiful or wild that you now know what you’re supposed to be writing about, more or less, or in what direction you might go – but there was no way to get to this without first getting through the first five and a half pages.”

The Writing Life – Annie Dillard

Annie Dillard has written eleven books, including “An American Childhood” and “Pilgrim at Tinker Creek”. In “The Writing Life” she goes into her life as a writer, and explains the ins and outs of what a writer needs to do to have a successful book.

“One of the few things I know about writing is this: spend it all, shoot it, play it, lose it, all, right away, every time. Do not hoard what seems good for a later place…. Something more will arise for later, something better.”

“Write as if you were dying. At the same time, assume you write for an audience consisting solely of terminal patients. That is, after all, the case.”

“It is no less difficult to write sentences in a recipe than sentences in Moby-Dick. So you might as well write Moby-Dick.”

“When you write, you lay out a line of words. The line of words is a miner’s pick, a wood carver’s gouge, a surgeon’s probe. You wield it, and it digs a path you follow. Soon you find yourself deep in new territory. Is it a dead end, or have you located the real subject? You will know tomorrow, or this time next year.”

“A work in progress quickly becomes feral. It reverts to a wild state overnight. . . it is a lion growing in strength. You must visit it every day and reassert your mastery over it. If you skip a day, you are, quite rightly, afraid to open the door to its room. You enter its room with bravura, holding a chair at the thing and shouting, ‘Simba!’”

Maya Angelou – I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings

Maya Angelou is best known for her series of six autobiographies, which focus on her childhood and early adulthood experiences. In 1971 she was nominated for the Pulitzer Prize for her volume of poetry, “Just Give Me a Cool Drink of Water ‘Fore I Diiie.’”

“What I try to do is write. I may write for two weeks ‘the cat sat on the mat, that is that, not a rat.’ And it might be just the most boring and awful stuff. But I try. When I’m writing, I write. And then it’s as if the muse is convinced that I’m serious and says, ‘Okay. Okay. I’ll come.’”

Beginning with “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings”, Angelou has used the same writing ritual for many years (from: “Conversations With Maya Angelou”):

“When I’m writing . . . I get up at about five . . . I get in my car and drive off to a hotel room: I can’t write in my house, I take a hotel room and ask them to take everything off the walls so there’s me, the Bible, Roget’s Thesaurus and some good, dry cherry and I’m at work by 6:30. I write on the bed lying down–one elbow is darker than the other, really black from leaning on it–and I write in longhand on yellow pads. Once into it, all disbelief is suspended, it’s beautiful.”

Advice for Authors From Seth Godin

Seth Godin–marketing guru and best-selling author who’s been called “the ultimate entrepreneur for the Information Age”–generously offers nineteen pieces of advice for aspiring writers. Here are the first three pieces of advice:

1. Lower your expectations. The happiest authors are the ones that don’t expect much.

2. The best time to start promoting your book is three years before it comes out. Three years to build a reputation, build a permission asset, build a blog, build a following, build credibility and build the connections you’ll need later.

3. Pay for an editor. Not just to fix the typos, but to actually make your ramblings into something that people will choose to read.

To read all 19 tips from Seth, visit his blog post “Advice For Authors”.

Seven More Tips For Writers, From Writers

Here are seven more tips from writers, for writers:

William Stafford, explaining how he managed to be so prolific, said: “Every day I get up and look out the window, and something occurs to me. Something always occurs to me. And if it doesn’t, I just lower my standards.”

Neal Bowers was told by his first creative writing teacher, Malcolm Glass, to “Trust the process and the reader.” His teacher also had a colorful metaphor of grabbing the tail of a wild hog as it runs by and letting it drag you through the thicket. Back when he first heard it, that metaphor didn’t help Neal much. However, he adds the following: “These days, though, I often look back at those unplanned and unpredictable trails my writing makes through the brush, with me hanging on, and I think of Malcolm’s wild hog.

James Patterson’s method is simple: “I’m always pretending that I’m sitting across from somebody. I’m telling them a story, and I don’t want them to get up until it’s finished.”

“The art of writing is the art of applying the seat of the pants to the seat of the chair.” — Mary Heaton Vorse

“You don’t start out writing good stuff. You start out writing crap and thinking it’s good stuff, and then gradually you get better at it. That’s why I say one of the most valuable traits is persistence.” — Octavia Butler

“If I waited for perfection, I would never write a word.” — Margaret Atwood

“I constantly retype my own sentences. Every day I go back to page one and just retype what I have. It gets me into a rhythm.” — Joan Didion

Conclusion

Another common piece of advice from successful writers is to write about what you know. Hemingway was an avid hunter and fisherman–two activities which feature prominently in a lot of his writing–and he lived within walking distance of the fishing village in Cuba from which “Santiago” from “The Old Man and the Sea” hailed.

Isabel Allende–author of “The House of Spirits”–recalls that when she was growing up every Thursday there was a seance at her house, and that it was widely rumored that her clairvoyant grandmother could move objects with her mind. She adds that her family was very strange, and that she didn’t have to invent anything for her stories: everything was given to her. While the magical realism in her novels may be something new for the reader, Allende is simply writing from experience.

Written By: Marelisa

About the Author: Melisa has her own successful, Abundance Blog at Merelisa Online, with focus on everything Zen, Good and Positive.

For Original Article, click on 54 Tips For Writers, From Writers, where you will also find souce information and attributes.

All Materials are Creative Commons Attributes

Book Writing Tricks of the Pros

Thu, 22 Jul 2010 08:21:52 +0100

7 Book Writing Tips that Stamp Pro On Your Book

Have you picked up a book to read and noticed a wall of text or a confusing order? Did it inspire you to read on? Or did it cause you to lose heart and put the book down?

The truth is poor organization is a turn off to most book readers. Chances are the author does not get a second chance. Not many will wade through sloppy book writing and organization to get to the real message.

Excellent book organization pulls your readers in for the read. Whether you are writing solutions for your clients in the work field or inspirational tips for the volunteers in a cause, your well organized words will work powerfully for you.

Ready to write a book your readers love to read? Start with this short checklist to translate your professionalism to more profits. Then write your ticket to success through a well organized book.

1. Write attention grabbing chapter titles. Do your chapter titles do their job? I mean do they help explain what's in your book? Do they capture the interest, engage, or shock the senses of your potential reader. Chapter titles set the stage for your potential audience. They work to grab your potential reader by the collar and pull them in for the read.

2. Craft easily noticed headlines. Add magnetic pulling power and punch to every chapter that will help get your message read. Use your headlines to create excitement, anticipation and enthusiasm for more. Express the heart and passion of your message through your headlines.

3. Write body copy that aids readability. Aim for short sentences and paragraphs. Slash your sentences to under 15-17 words. Don't bog your readers with complex sentences. Remember multiple phrases slow your reader's comprehension. Make it easy. Get to the point fast.

4. Use sub-headings and bullets to further organize. Don't forget to use your title writing skill for your chapter sub-headings. Even bullet points will have pulling power if they are developed correctly. Take every opportunity to keep leading your reader along with attention keeping sub-headings and bullets.

5. Insert graphics that explain not distract. Choose your graphics carefully. They must flow with the theme of your book. Make them further explain your topic. If you choose graphics poorly, they end up distracting your reader. Distracted readers may fall asleep and miss your important message.

6. Develop pull quotes that summarize. Use pull quotes sparingly but do use them. To make an important point in your chapter, put it in the pull quote. Many times your readers will read the pull quotes first. Then you get to emphasize the point again when they're reading the regular part of the chapter.

7. Apply white space. Never make your book look like a wall of text. You will frighten lots of readers away and they may never read your message. Most readers start out as skimmers. Your job is to snag their attention with your well organized copy including white space and attention grabbing headlines throughout your book.

Are you ready to stamp pro on your self published book? Remember to write sizzling chapter titles, craft easily noticed headlines, write body copy that aids readability, use sub-headings to further organize, insert graphics that explain, develop pull quotes to summarize important points and don't forget white space. Now go; write a book your readers will love to read and make us all proud!

Written By: Earma Brown

About the Author: Earma Brown, 12 year author and business owner helps small business owners and writers who want to write their best book now! Earma mentors other writers and business professionals through her bi-weekly ezine "iScribe." Send any email to iscribe@bookwritinghelp.com for free mini-course "Jumpstart Writing Your Book" or visit her at http://www.bookwritinghelp.com

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/non-fiction-articles/7-book-writing-tips-that-stamp-pro-on-your-book-276665.html

Write a Book Now! 14 Steps in 14 Days to Write YOUR Bestseller

Thu, 22 Jul 2010 08:02:18 +0100

As you may know, writing a book is one of the things that just about everyone wants to do. But they just don't have the time, or the skill or the direction that will make it possible for them. They know they can use it as a profit center, or as an outlet for their creativity, or to write their life story. Heck, maybe they just see themselves as the next Stephen King, or Danielle Steel.

What does this have to do with you?

If you have ever, even for a brief moment, thought about writing your own book and getting your share of the very lucrative rewards for being published...

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A man I respect a great deal has just released the most incredible, step-by-step tool I have ever seen on the subject of writing your own book... and getting it done and published while you're still *young enough* to enjoy it!

Steve Manning, a master writer and journalist, has authored what I believe will totally revolutionize the publishing world.

The name of his manual? 'How to Write a Book on Anything in 14 Days or Less... Guaranteed!

This master writer holds your hand through the entire writing and publishing process! He has sold literally hundreds of thousands of books and he's arguably the most prolific magazine writer on the continent as well. And when it comes to writing a book, he lays everything out for you. He leaves nothing to chance... no stone unturned as he takes you
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Get an agent in just 36 hours
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Unleash the power of your own creativity so you write better than you ever thought possible
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One journalist in southern Ontario stated this single strategy was so effective, it was scary!
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The simple technique that will create any mood imaginable in just seconds. Professional writers struggle for years to learn how to do this. You'll be able to do this in just seconds.
How to ensure that your book is a best-seller
How to make sure the reader is involved in every page
Step by step instructions for copyright registration. Even the forms are included!
How to turn your book into a client magnet so it becomes the source of an unending stream of prospective customers.
How to know exactly when you'll be finished writing your book no matter how much, or how little you want to write each day.
How to blue-print your book in just hours so you instantly know exactly what will be in your book and where it will be. You will never write even one sentence that isn't used in your book.

And there's still so much more I can't even begin to write about it here!

Steve is the kind of person who raises his prices frequently because of demand.... but I practically begged him to keep the price down long enough to let me send you this email so you can check it out.

If you have the least bit of interest in writing your own, highly profitable book and all the prestige and accomplishment that goes with being a 'best selling' author... you owe it to yourself to get more FREE information.

I don't want you to miss out on this spectacular opportunity to not only create your own book as quickly as 14 days from now... but to take advantage of the tremendous price savings as well.

I know you've been thinking about writing a book some day. Well, where will you be in 14 days? If you get this new information kit, 14 days from today you can brag to your friends that you wrote one of your own---and show them the money you made, too! For heaven's sake, AT LEAST go look at the FREE details!

Remember, this package has unbelievable information and bonuses that will simply knock your socks off.... don't delay in taking a closer look! Click here now! WriteABookNow.com

By Thomas A. Retterbush