Five Writing/Publishing Tips You Should NOT Follow

                I have some bad habits. I’ll share some of them with you. These are from the Don’t ever do this and the If you’re doing this – stop right now files.

1.           Never write a book using the method I’m about to describe. Every time I sit down to scribble away at my work in progress I begin back at the beginning. I start from the first line and revise away until I catch up to where I left off last time. Sometimes I get sidetracked in deleting or adding to a section and it can take a long, long time to reach the point where I progressed to last time. After ten or fifteen sittings I leave the first couple of chapters alone and begin at the third or fourth chapter until I catch up. It’s time consuming and laborious and probably not the most efficient use of my writing time. I seem to be stuck with this method; I just can’t shake it. There may still be time for you though.

2.     If you plan on writing a trilogy of books don’t tell anyone, especially your readers. I released my first book at the end of 2011. I was lucky; it was quite successful. The plan for my next project was to write a story that I’d had in my head for many years. My readers had other ideas though. They wanted to know more about Gerald Hardly McDougall, one of the characters from my first book. This was a true privilege. So, I decided to turn my single, stand-alone novel into a trilogy and wrote the second book of the trilogy. I was able to release that book – My Name Is Hardly, during 2012. It is now 2015 and book three, the third book in this well-intentioned trilogy is still a work in progress. If you’re going to write a trilogy or any type of series of books that involves the completion of the last book – keep the information to yourself.

3.     Don’t respond to reviews. I’ve done this and it did not end in a nightmare scenario, but it could have. As the wise sage said, reviews are for readers, not for writers. Read them, take the hit or the glory and move on.

4.     Be prepared to listen to the truth. Do not surround yourself with other authors who are only going to tell you of your brilliance. You probably are brilliant; we all display brilliant streaks from time to time, but it takes work to become a better writer. It’s more important for me to hear what I’m doing wrong than what I’m doing right. I want to know that my story has plot holes or characters that are unnecessary, and I want to make those changes before I expose my work to my readers. I want to release the best work I can and that means I need to hear the truth.

5.     There’s kind of a mental no-man’s land that I fall into when I’m not working on a book. The longer I’m between creations the deeper I sink into this land and the less relevant everything around me feels. I need to make up stories and tell those stories. Without that I’m not only incomplete, I’m incompatible, inconsolable, incon…I just don’t fit in. So, I need to write. I don’t always do this though. I sometimes devote hours of time to networking (yes, this involves Facebook), as I try to determine the best methods of promoting my work. This is important, but as a professional writer and self-publisher I need to write more than perform non-writing related tasks. So, I created a spreadsheet that helps me balance the work so that the majority of my working day is devoted to writing. My readers want new books, and that’s where my efforts should lie. A wise writer commented on a thread recently and observed that self-published authors who have hit those top levels and connected with thousands of readers have produced lots of words. They turn those words into books and then repeat the same process. Readers have a short attention span. If we can’t provide them with product they’ll go elsewhere, and they’ll forget about us. If there’s one thing we’ve learned in the last few years it’s that there are a lot of great writers out there. And, they’re producing some fantastic work. So, keep writing.

I have other bad habits but I’ll keep those to myself for now. If you’d like a copy of the spreadsheet I put together that helps me balance my writing versus non-writing time email me and I’ll gladly send it on. And, good luck connecting with your readers they’re out there!

Martin Crosbie 

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PSYCHIC REALITIES: Writers and their Minds

Oh my God! I desperately wanted to finish that story. Look! I just abandoned it. I had been working on it for the past one month. It’d been six weeks since I hadn’t touched it. Would I be able to resume it? How could I do justice to the story, now, after such a long time of discontinuation? I did have some notes made from the times, while I worked on the stuff. I do not think those notes are of any help, anymore, though. 

It is clear to me how vague the classification of writers would be if I categorized them based on such feelings as above. A writer, at almost all stages of his or her growth feels this way. Most of those super-successful writers may not experience it the same way, because they have the ability to pursue writing without bothering much about another day-job, but apparently have other issues that affect them the same way.

If writing gives a person immense pleasure or joy, and the person is forced to work in a bakery in order to make a living, the resulting conflict could damage the mental equilibrium of that person. Those person(s) who have no aptitude for working in a bakery, when forced to compromise their psychological ecosystem with the sophistication of an altogether different system of things, creative writing suffers. This is when one feels; “Oh my God! I desperately wanted to finish that story. Look! I have abandoned it.”

The fear for being not able to do justice to one’s work of a lifetime deserves wise handling. If not, it will consume the writer, wholly. The totality of all fears has their common grounding in the unknown. In the case of the above-mentioned writer (let us call him Paul), the unknown part is the quality of his work. Paul does not know and fears this fact: how would it all turn out to be. How could I do justice to the story now, after such a long time of discontinuation?

In order to undo the fear of the unknown, the simplest method can be the Jungian concept of assimilation of psychic realities. Carl Gustav Jung (1875–1961) was a German psychoanalyst, whose groundbreaking theories on human mind, guided the world into a modern-renaissance. He argues about a specific course of action through which a human being can bring out the contents of his unconscious and experience it in the conscious level in order to alleviate the pressure from the unconscious side.

This same method is useful in undoing the fear for the unknown in Paul’s case. If Paul is uncertain of the results his work could bring him after a considerable gap in the process of writing, he should first, look at the results. There is only one way he can get the result—by completing the work. Paul just needs some gut feeling to cross the initial fear.  

Image Courtesy: meetville.com

If one is stuck with the fear of how the work would turn out to be, the possibility of writing a book or a story is obliterated entirely. It is up to you to take that step courageously. Your work deserves to be born, simply because you have such strong feeling for it. Let your fears not obligate the stopping of your creative work.

If you liked this article, you might like my book too. Take a look.

Anu Lal is the author of Wall of Colors and Other Stories. His latest book is Clenched Hands, Bloody Nails. 

You can catch up with him in Facebook too.      

Book Covers & Spines

Book Covers & Spines

by

Valerie Allen

The front cover can sell your book. It must invite the readers’ attention, encourage them to select your book, get them to hold it in their hands, move them to flip through the pages, and help them decide to buy. A daunting task!

Browse in bookstores, and observe patrons as they scan a book cover. How long do they view the cover before placing the book back on the shelf or carrying it to the checkout? Research shows it is about 30 seconds or less.

     The front cover must be clear and convey the theme of your book. With non-fiction, this is usually straightforward information and often has a sub-title to provide details that are more specific. A fiction title can be misleading; for this reason, the book cover is even more important to convey the story concept.

The two most prominent parts of your book cover are the book title and your name. The title should be easily read from a distance of three feet.

     The cover of your book is the first step in getting a buyer’s attention. Unless you are an expert in graphics or photography, it is well worth your time and money to hire a professional to design your book cover or allow the publisher to do so.

If your book passes the front cover test, the reader will turn the book over to scan the back cover. This is a good sign.

The back cover should continue the color scheme and story theme. It should have the book title, your name, reviews or quotes. Additionally, the back cover displays the ISBN, price, bar code, and key words for display and marketing purposes.

     The back cover is also the place to add something significant about yourself, your experience, awards, and your credentials to boost your credibility as an author.

This is the place for your photo. Unless it is a memoir, use a current picture. The background in the photo can lend itself to further you or your book’s theme. Try not to date yourself with clothing, jewelry or hairstyle. These will make an impression on the reader as well, so choose carefully.

     Books with the front cover facing out attract more attention; however, most books are displayed spine out toward the prospective buyer. The wider the spine, the easier it is to read. The spine should have the book title, your name and the publisher’s name and/or logo.

     When designing the outer parts of your book, remember, white space sells. It’s easier for the reader to find details about you and your book if the information is widely spaced between each paragraph and block of text. An exterior crowded with text, graphics, and bright color can create visual overload.

Excepted from: Write, Publish, Sell! Quick, Easy, Inexpensive Ideas for the Marketing Challenged 2nd Ed.by Valerie Allen 

Valerie Allen is a long-time member of the www.NLAPW.org (Pen Women).

Keep your sentences ACTIVE!

A guide to sentences, part 2

STOP WHAT YOU’RE WRITING. Go back to the beginning, read it carefully and change every passive sentence into an active one. This is the easiest and quickest way to make your writing more engaging.

Why? Passive sentences are longer and less interesting than active sentences. Let’s take a first-grade example: 

Passive: The lazy dog was jumped over by the quick brown fox.

Active: The quick brown fox jumped over the lazy dog.

The active sentence is shorter, takes less room, consumes less energy and paper but contains no less information.

Quick definition

For those who, like me, don’t want to count the number of years since junior-high grammar lessons, an active sentence is one where the subject of the sentence performs the verb. In the example above, the fox performs or does the action—it jumps. The dog in the example is the object of the verb.

In the passive version, the subject of the sentence is the dog, but it is still the recipient or the object of the action.

Make “active” your default setting. While there are examples where a passive sentence is more appropriate, such as when the “do-er” of the verb is unknown or irrelevant. Here’s one from a novel I read recently:

“The sergeant moved to the living room window, where the screen has already been removed.”

Passive voice also makes sense in most lab reports, where the focus should be on the objects of observation. We write “the contents of the beaker were decanted into test tubes,” instead of “I poured the contents of the beaker into test tubes.”

But most of the time, passive voice is not only unnecessary, it’s dull. It deadens interesting topics. Take these examples, which twist together active and passive clauses into horrifying tangles:

Some companies use high-pressure sales tactics to offer what is perceived to be a buoy to those who may feel they are drowning in debt.

2014 will be characterized by a cacophony of trends that will converge, explode and create outstanding opportunities for organizations and individuals ready to thrive in velocity.

Action is better because audiences respond to it. Action keeps us interested. Passive sentences are like passive anything: not very interesting. Don’t believe me? Which zoo animal gets more attention: the monkey swinging on the bars, or the lizard soaking up the sun?

What kinds of movies have the biggest audiences? Which had a bigger box office last year: On the Road or The Avengers? What was the difference: the intricacy of the screenplay? The sensitivity of the acting? The artistry of the directing?

Action works. Action puts bums in seats. Action sells.

Activate these

Here are some examples from the real world. I have changed some details just to protect myself from ire:

Rising household debt is of growing concern for many.

Who’s concerned? Economists? Mothers? Debtors? Loan sharks?

The idea of segments of the supply chain being developed elsewhere was also brought up.

Who brought it up?

Tenants are urged to be wary about companies that claim they can negotiate a better deal with landlords so that only a part of their rent will need to be paid.

Who’s urging?

Solution

Experts urge tenants to beware of companies that claim they can negotiate a better deal with landlords ...

 Suggested times for starting each content section are shown in Slide 1: Agenda.

Solution:

Slide 1: Agenda suggests starting times for each content section.

By effectively controlling the supply chain, costs can be notably curtailed.

Solution:

Controlling the supply chain effectively can curtail costs.

This one is easy to fix just by removing unnecessary words:

The Windows-based Superdyn software can be used for setting parameters, and control and monitoring of DDw-789 motors. 

The Windows-based Superdyn software can set parameters, and control and monitor DDw-789 motors.

From fiction:

If she didn’t get out, she was going to be mauled to death by the dog.

If she didn’t get out, the dog would maul her to death.

Their whereabouts are only known by the religious caste of the Flarconeans.

Only the Flarconeans’ religious caste knows their whereabouts.

Watch for it

Watch your writing for passive sentences. One giveaway: count your use of the word “by,” as in “the dog was jumped over by the fox.” When you proofread your work, watch for long phrases and dependent clauses. In general, try to make sure that the subject of every sentence is what’s performing the verb.

Scott Bury 

Scott Bury is an editor, author and journalist living in Ottawa, Canada. For more writing tips, as well as interview with independent writers and reviews of their books, visit his blog, Written Words. You can also connect with him on Facebook and follow him on Twitter @ScottTheWriter.

Avoid writing badly: make the sentence your unit of expression

Sentences, Part 1

What’s the difference between good writing and bad? To me, one sure sign of bad writing is bad grammar.

Grammar isn’t that hard. The first step is to understand that the sentence is your basic unit of expression.

Consider this example:

An analysis of survey results conducted by GHI concluded that different groups of consumers face different kinds of challenges, this includes unemployed and underemployed as well as low-income groups.

This example from fiction demonstrates the opposite problem:

The chattering of Will’s teeth, as loud as the cold north wind that blew down through mountains.

The problem in the first case is a comma splice: joining two separate sentences with a comma, rather than separating them with a period (or maybe a semi-colon).

The problem in the second example is an incomplete sentence. The verb is missing.

This is how a grammatically complete sentence would read:

The chattering of Will’s teeth was as loud as the cold north wind that blew down through mountains.

That’s not a particularly creative solution, but it’s correct.

Another example, with some light surgery to hide the actual source:

But back to the economy, all three projects expanded simultaneously and required capitalization, no wonder the organization’s bottom line was depleted.

The unit of expression

A word may be a unit of meaning, but a single word by itself does not usually express an idea.

Back when I was in grade school, after cleaning the sabre-tooth tigers’ litter boxes, we all learned that a sentence expressed a complete thought. To do that, it needs two elements: a verb or predicate — action — and a subject, which is usually a noun or a pronoun.

The quick red fox jumps.

The action word, the verb, is “jumps.” “Fox,” of course, is the subject. The rest of the words describe the subject.

Sometimes, you don’t need the subject to be written out: “Duck!” The subject is “you, implied” — a concept that caused all sorts of confusion when I was in school (but was not as distressful as the hungry velociraptors in the back of the cave).

Noun and verb. Other words describe the subject or complete the action.

A wave of lust slammed into her body.

“Lust slammed” would be a grammatically complete sentence.

The subject can also be a phrase or a clause: a group of words that function together as a noun.

Resisting the temptation to crush her body against his and tear off her clothes took all his willpower.

The subject in that example did not end until after “clothes.” (“After clothes” is one of my favourite places.)

That’s all there is to it. To write clearly, write about something doing something.

Joining complete thoughts

To join two complete thoughts — sentences — you have to have the right kind of link. Usually, it’s not a period, but a word or a group of words. Instead of boring you with grammatical logic, I advise you read good writing until you develop a sense of what “sounds” right.

Here are some examples of what not to do, and corrections, again taken from real sources.

Run-on sentence

The run-on sentence happens when one complete idea follows another without any punctuation or joining phrases.

She got up and went into the bathroom and got a wet washrag and came back and laid it across her mother’s forehead.

The succession of clauses joined by “and,” while grammatically correct, is tedious. There’s also too much detail. You don’t need to describe every single action: your reader can figure it out.

She wet a rag in the bathroom and laid it across her mother’s forehead.

Comma splice

She took his hand again, “how are we going to keep them safe?” She whispered.

Again, there are more than one problem here:

She took his hand again. “How are we going to keep them safe?” she whispered.

“If we move quickly we could be off in front of the soldiers, we’ve got fast horses and money.”

“If we move quickly we could get ahead of the soldiers — we’ve got fast horses and money.”

Does grammar matter?

As long as the underlying meaning comes across, does it matter that you follow every little rule?

Yes. First, correct grammar is a sign of professionalism. Whether you’re writing fiction, advertising or technical reports, if you don’t come across as professional, no one will take your document seriously. If the audience doesn’t believe you, why bother writing?

Second, grammar ensures clarity:

For hospitals seeking increased profitability in the operating room (OR) it is essential to streamline the movement of materials from suppliers to the hands of doctors efficiently acquiring and moving supplies critical to OR procedures are measurable ways to reduce costs, increase revenue capture, optimize labour and improve process management.

What’s efficient: doctors’ hands, or moving supplies?

When the subject is medical care, I think clarity is pretty darn important.

Scott Bury Scott Bury is an author, editor and journalist based in Ottawa, Canada. His blog, Written Words, publishes writing tips and guidance, reviews of independent books and interviews with their authors, samples of his fiction and opinions on the state of the communications industry. 

Follow him on Twitter @ScottTheWriter.