The Masquerade Crew

Designing a Book Cover or Jacket - Guest Post by @thewritershouse

2012-10-23T14:10:00.002-05:00

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The following is a guest post by Claire Pickering and Rebecca Richmond at The Writers' House UK.

Blog: http://www.writershouse.co.uk/blog
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/WritersHouseUK
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/pub/claire-pickering/25/7a8/200

Follow @thewritershouse

Things to look out for when designing a book cover or jacket

To coin a well-oiled phrase, the fact remains that people do judge a book by its cover. Covers, otherwise known as jackets, were originally designed to protect the pages within and to stop them from falling out. They have now become an essential part of crafting a book. Years ago, those bound in leather were statements about the owner, rather than the contents of the book. All sorts of selling tools have been used over the years when designing a book cover or jacket, include stamped and embossed scenes which were introduced in the 1870s and 80s.

A cover is one of the key aspects of success and can encourage a reader to pick up a book in the first place, so it is very important to consider all sorts of aspects when designing a book cover or jacket. As well as the title, they are designed to sell the book. George Orwell’s 1984 has sold in its millions and has had over fifteen different cover designs in its sixty years in print, each showing changes in fashions and society as a whole as it moved with the times each time a new print run was released and also for different markets, when it was rebranded.

When Penguin came along they introduced reputable authors to the mass market, establishing a brand readers could trust, and they employed a colour scheme to denote genres together with distinctive typography, thereby making them collectable.

Covers are designed to sell the book and people have experimented with them over the years as cover designers started to take risks. If a title sells well, authors found that they could afford to take more risks and rebrand as new editions were printed as soon as current stock sold out. But this is not a history lesson behind the covers of books, so we will now share with you what to look out for.

Book covers are the first thing we see and it can offer an interpretation of its contents. Even if you are producing your book as an e-book, the cover still has to look like something worth buying, and perhaps worth keeping. Online, the only distinguishing feature is the cover and with the increase in demand for e-books, cover design has become even more important. When choosing or designing a book cover or jacket there are all sorts of things that need to be taken into consideration:

§ White backgrounds cannot be seen very well as a thumbnail on Internet sites like Amazon

§ If you don’t want to employ the services of a designer, there are sites out there such as from stock photo websites which enable you to download images. You can either use one of theirs or create your own by putting several images together. If you intend to serialise your work, this way you can standardise your illustrations. While these may be free, once you have reached a certain limit of sales, you will have to pay an additional fee. It is still worth considering though, as cover artists/illustrators can set you back a lot of money. However, it is worth bearing in mind that you will risk someone else using the same cover.

§ Consider if you want to serialise your books. For instance, you may want the covers to have a similar layout so that they are easily identifiable on the shelves.

§ Do you want your logo to appear both on the spine and on the back cover?

§ Does it represent the contents of the book?

§ Does it sell the book, encouraging people to pick it up, rather than repelling them?

§ Is there a talking point?

With digital content, there are design limitations, but animated book covers are now creating new opportunities as they take advantage of interactive features like video, 3d modelling and Internet connectivity. So what if your book cover could interact with your reader? How would it feel to drag your mouse over the book cover and have the image transform and come to life? While these covers cannot be produced on black-and-white e-readers, they are entirely possible for the iPad with the digitised Wired app, created by Adobe.

When looking at various designs for our own book, it proved to be a big learning curve and many brainstorming sessions as we considered the pros and cons of different layouts:

A front cover which silhouetted itself onto the back cover behind where the blurb would appear could not be uniform, as the picture would change for each design.
Depending on where the wording would fall, it may interfere with the picture we wanted to use.
If the photograph or picture was dark, how would it look like on a black background?
If we chose a red background, how would it look if we had a pink picture, as the two colours might clash?
If the photograph was pale, it might be lost on a white background, how could we get over this?
For e-books, the cover has to work even in reduced format (for the Kindle it’s a thumbnail size). To do this you need a lot less detail, simpler, more effective colours and very clear fonts of good size for the title and author name, so they remain legible when reduced.

Don’t be tempted to take short cuts when designing your book cover or jacket as it can mean the difference between gaining sales or your book remaining undiscovered.

About the Authors

Author of Forget Fibromyalgia: Putting the Pieces Together and My Guide: How to Write a Novel, Rebecca Richmond has enjoyed a highly successful career within global organisations, later going on to become a coach. Having triumphed over adversity and cancer, as a qualified coach, master practitioner of NLP, hypnosis and Time Line Therapy, she is ideally equipped to help you achieve the success you deserve.

A qualified proofreader and editor, Claire Pickering knows her subject and has an amazing attention to detail. Having worked in the publishing industry for many years, My Guide: How to Write a Novel is her first published work – unless you can count the hundreds of manuscripts she has worked on over the course of ten years, which are now in the general market.

How to Write a Blurb - guest post by @thewritershouse

2012-10-23T03:00:00.000-05:00

Have you ever wondered how to write a blurb or indeed what one is?

A blurb is the text on the back cover or jacket of a book – or these days increasingly online – that gives an insight to what the book is about, like a summary describing the contents, and it is what sells your book and engages your audience. A synopsis is a summary of the entire story, beginning, middle and end. A blurb is much shorter and doesn’t give the game away.

Other than your title and the picture on the front cover, it is what will tell your reader that what they are expecting from the cover and title is what the book is actually about. They usually include a piece about the author as well and when you bear in mind that you will only have room for about 250 words, including the ‘About the Author’, it is an art form in itself. You may have taken many months, perhaps even years to write your book and now you are being asked to condense your work into just a small number of words! A daunting task for anyone! So have you ever wondered how to write a blurb? Well, below we have provided you with some guidelines and alternatives to help get you started:

1. Consider your target audience.

2. Use attention-grabbing action verbs, adjectives or phrases to promote your book, such as ‘sizzling’, ‘heartbreaking’, ‘heart-wrenching’, ‘spine-tingling/chilling’, ‘earth-shattering’, ‘mind-blowing’.

3. Comparisons to other, more established authors can be made, such as ‘ranks among great novelists such as Catherine Cookson’ or ‘has been likened to Andy McNab and Chris Ryan’. This can be especially useful for debut novelists.

4. A popular method is to omit the subject of the book and instead write a description, such as ‘A wild romp through the ages – must read’; ‘sweeping epic – not to be missed’.

5. End with a bang or a reason for the reader to buy or read the book, such as a repeated recommendation of the book, using words such as ‘must read’, ‘unputdownable’.

6. Describe the journey, such as ‘the author takes us through …’ or ‘warned that her husband would not survive the week, the author …’; ‘in this valuable reference book, the author shares …’; ‘this entertaining diatribe …’

7. Create intrigue, stimulate interest and pique their curiosity.

8. Introduce your hero/heroine/protagonist and any conflict or goals they may find themselves up against. What do they have to lose?

9. Consider your setting or era.

10. This is probably the only place where you can get away with using plenty of question and exclamation marks and are a must when compiling a blurb. An example of this would be: ‘it was love at first sight and they were lost in each other’s presence – or were they?’; ‘… but will the kids find out on time?’ You can also use ellipsis to great effect, leaving it to the reader’s imagination or leaving the reader asking questions.

11. Note down words, quotes and phrases from within the text that appeal or that create an atmosphere or sense of mystery.

12. Include a quotation from someone famous in italics that is displayed at the start of the blurb, before the actual text begins.

13. Ask someone famous or someone who specialises in the field in which you have written to endorse your work.

When considering how to write a blurb, there are certain things to avoid:

1. Using plot spoilers, where the author divulges something that the reader should be left to figure out for themselves.

2. Don’t reveal too much that there is nothing left to discover, but make sure you reveal enough to capture their attention.

3. Poor grammar, spelling and punctuation.

Who should write the blurb:

As the author of the book, you are invariably the most knowledgeable about the contents, so you are probably the person best qualified to write the blurb. However, you may also be too close to it. By this, we mean that you won’t be impartial and you will probably want to include more information than is necessary. While it may be cheaper to write the blurb yourself and there is an argument for the fact that it needs to be written in the same style as the book, to have another take on it can be a good thing, almost like a fresh set of eyes, which may mean they can even bring a certain vitality to your work.

The idea behind a blurb is to sell the book and to capture your audience, be that a reader or potential bookshop, so that they want to find out what it’s all about. And if you have been working on the book, living and breathing it for months, perhaps even years, you may be stale. If you don’t feel able to compile the blurb yourself, you could always ask your editor or publisher/agent. They will also know the book’s strengths and be able to capture this in the blurb. Failing that, you could also employ the services of a copywriter, who are dedicated wordsmiths who are able to get a message across using few words. Have a look at other blurbs, selecting from genres you have written in, and see what words, phrases and techniques they have used to capture their audience.

When considering how to write a blurb, keep in mind that blurbs are a way of showcasing your work with the promise of a good read, whetting the reader’s appetite and appealing to their self-interest, and it is not something you can put to one side and avoid doing altogether. Good luck and enjoy experimenting and playing with words!

About the Authors

Writing Tips from a NANO Survivor — guest post by @Ginagina7

2012-10-19T00:03:00.001-05:00

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The following is a guest post
by Gina Rossi.
Facebook: facebook.com/gina.rossi.7
Pinterest: pinterest.com/ginarossiwriter

Follow @Ginagina7

To all of you brave Nanoers out there, I’d like to have a go at structure.

“Structure?” I hear you cry. “We’re not supposed to worry about that! This is Nano. We’re allowed UN-structure, to write with absolute freedom and without censure.”

True, but a little structural discipline will go a long way to producing a solid first draft.

Here’s what worked for me:

1.) Any back story or flashback moments in your novel? Write them first. Knowing the past can only be good for your story.

2.) Forget about structured chapters of equal length for now, but, each time you type a sentence that offers a cliffhanging moment – suitable for a chapter ending - make a note in the text. Do the same when you find yourself creating good chapter-opening lines – lines that will hook your readers and keep 'em reading. Mark these places so they will jump out when you get to the edits.

3.) Have a go-to-in-a-blocked-panic list of topics. Revert to it when you are stuck and let it lead you. Some examples:

- A quick 100 word paragraph on the physical appearance of your hero in the opening scene
- Ditto on the hero’s personality. What makes him/her uniquely him/her?
- Describe a room in your story.
- A list of 100 good words to describe the seasons/one of the seasons in your book.
- Describe a meal eaten by one of the characters.
- Is anyone travelling? Write 10 sentences to convey the mood.
- Is there a villain? Is he / she a cliché? Turn him/her upside down. Describe the most unlikely villain you ever saw.
- A list of 20 memorable smells. Why are they memorable?

And so on...

Remember, it never gets easier - but you can get better.

Good luck to each and every one of you, and happy writing in Nanovember and beyond.

Check out Gina's Book

Writing Tip: There Is an Easy Fix — syndicated post from @MarnyCopal

2012-10-18T20:51:00.000-05:00

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The following is syndicated from Marny Copal's blog and is posted here with permission.

“There is” and “there are” are commonly used in the English language. What some people may not know is that there is a clutter word. It’s indirect and doesn’t convey much meaning other than indicating the existence of something. This leads to another problem: a boring verb.

“Wait a minute,” you might be saying. “Sometimes using there is the only logical way to express an idea.” You’re absolutely right. For instance, the phrase let there be light would sound weird written in any other way. What would be the alternative? Let light commence? Allow the presence of light?

Most of the time, however, we can come up with a more dynamic sentence without the use of there. Here’s an example:

There was gunfire in the stairwell.

Although gunfire would normally evoke a strong emotion, the way this sentence is written is no more interesting than saying that a meeting took place in the conference room. Consider these alternatives:

Gunfire popped in the stairwell.
A shot rang out in the stairwell.

These sentences zing with energy. Rang and popped activate our sense of hearing and bring us into the action.

When searching for a way to fix this problem, it helps to identify the subject of the sentence. It isn’t there. In the first example, “there was gunfire in the stairwell,” gunfire is the subject. Once you’ve identified the subject, you can rework with a new verb—or even a new subject and verb if your tinkering leads to something you like better.

Here’s another example:

There he stood, waiting, slouched against the windowsill. There was a cigarette in his hand, smoking itself to a slow death.

Better:

He slouched against the windowsill, waiting, the cigarette tucked in his hand smoking itself to a slow death.

Nonfiction benefits from this kind of revamp as well. Sometimes we don’t want to state the subject because it amounts to pointing fingers, but you don’t have to name names to come up with a more interesting turn of phrase. Consider the following example:

There was a budget deficit in 2011. There will be an attempt to make up for it in 2012.

Ah, the dull plod of bureaucratese. You may not want to say who is responsible for the budget deficit, but you don’t have to. Decipher the gist of the information and rewrite:

This year’s greatest challenge lies in securing funds to make up for 2011’s budget deficit.

Go ahead and give it a try. Turn on the find feature on your word-processing software and see if you come up with a there or two in your latest writing project. Then enjoy the metamorphosis as your language becomes more active and dynamic.

Remember, if your passages are sluggish, there is an easy fix.

Follow @MarnyCopal

About Marny Copal

Marny Copal reads and writes supernatural fiction in Oregon's Willamette Valley.

Blog: marnycopal.wordpress.com

Creating a Magic System, Part 1 — syndicated post from @thefourpartland

2012-10-18T12:46:00.002-05:00

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The following is syndicated from The Four Part Land and is posted here with permission.

In my eyes, what sets fantasy apart from any other setting is magic. How it is handled, the strength, the interactions, but mostly its very existence. Magic is the glue that holds a fantasy setting together, because it reflects the characteristics of the setting and the people within it. Very often this includes the main character. Goodkind, Jordan, Brooks, Rowling, all of them have their primary character(s) wield magic.

Given magic’s importance to the setting, it is incumbent upon us as fantasy writers to make sure we get it right. This is not an easy challenge, because of the myriad roles that magic plays within fantasy stories, and the way that it provides a background that holds every other facet of the story together. In this series of blog posts, I will attempt to answer some of the questions surrounding designing, building, and using magic in a fantasy setting. This is by no means a final answer, for there are as many ways to do magic as there are stars in the sky. There is only the choice that fits your novel best.

That said, I’ll begin with a few choices that arise regarding the design process of magic.

Choice #1: Strength – How strong is the magic in your world? Think carefully before answering this, for it affects every other aspect of the creation. If the magic acts like it does in the Dungeons and Dragons world, it rapidly becomes the most powerful and overwhelming aspect of creation. Every fighter has a magic sword, every powerful wizard can change continents, every creature has some aspect of magic to them, and every item is a magical artefact.

At the other end are worlds where casting a single spell requires great preparation, and may kill the caster; where it is not the first resort, but the last, and that with great cost. Settings with this type of magic often tend to have a post-apocalyptic or dystopian tinge, for resources are scarce. That, or the world looks more like medieval times in Earth’s history, when we didn’t have magic for our activities.

There is one exception to the “magic dictates power” rule – when magic is balanced by technology. This is often called “gunpowder fantasy”, and can be seen in novels such as L.E. Modesitt’s Saga of Recluce. Steam and gunpowder have created forces nearly as powerful as magic, and often the two are in opposition, although not always. Make this choice carefully, for it will dictate much of the believability of the setting. If mages are on every street corner and magic items are sold in pawn shops, the rest of the world must be altered to take that into account, otherwise there will be a disconnect that the discerning reader will discover.

Choice #2: Prevalence – How common is magic in your setting? This goes hand in hand with Choice #1, and plays an equally important role in determining the world. If everyone has magic, especially powerful magic, there would likely be no poverty, and wars would be especially devastating, for each soldier could wield power far greater than their arm. But if magic is restricted to a few gifted individuals, the situation is much like one where the power of magic is very low – only a tiny proportion has access, and for those lacking the gift, the cost of acquiring magical aid is likely extremely high.

Likewise, it can help determine the fate of a gifted main character. Are they sought after for having a unique talent, or are they one amongst many, to be tossed to the side if they fail to meet some goal? In a multi-character story, this is also something to consider, for if magic is extremely rare, yet four of the five main characters possess it, that seems at odds with the setting.

Now that we as authors have made these first two choices about the magic in our world, we can move on to other aspects that are equally important, but are guided in certain directions by the choices made above. I hope you enjoyed this, and will be back for the next instalment, wherein I will discuss Style and Powers.

About

Bringing life to a new captivating world of literature, James Tallett is the innovative author behind the fantasy series, The Four Part Land. The first installment of this provocative new series, Tarranau, was published by Deepwood Publishing in July 2011.

Delving into the trenches of a perplexing world far beyond our imaginations, James also created the Splintered Lands anthology project. The fantasy realm of the Splintered Lands takes readers on a mythical adventure and introduces readers to an assortment of colorful and endearing characters. Bringing together four outstanding writers, James Tallett led the birth of a dynamic literature collaboration for the Splintered Lands project.

James Tallett, an avid global traveler, infuses his passion for hiking and cultural exploration within his writing. He whimsically incorporates his most beloved travel destinations into his vivid storytelling.

Follow @thefourpartland

Blog – www.thefourpartland.com
Twitter - @thefourpartland
Facebook – HERE

How To Avoid The 50-Page Burn-Out — syndicated post from @eThrillerWriter

2012-10-18T08:12:00.000-05:00

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The following is syndicated from Thriller Writer: the website of author Eric J. Gates and is posted here with permission.

I’ve spoken to hundreds of people over the course of the years, all of whom had one thing in common. OK, two – they were all frustrated and they all classed themselves as ‘aspiring’ writer. Why aspiring? I would ask. Those of you who read my occasional blogs know that my position on this is either you write or you don’t. I think it was the Bengali philosopher and poet Rabindranath Tagore who said “You can't cross the sea merely by standing and staring at the water.”

Their confusion with my posture is that they confuse ‘aspiring writer’ with ‘published writer’ or ‘famous author’. Hey, wake up! While they’ve be lamenting their lack of writing success, the World has moved on. This is a different paradigm. Many of the ‘traditional’ obstacles in ‘Traditional Publishing’ have ‘traditioned’ themselves out of the game.

But wait; this is not yet another rant against the Old Way of publishing. No, today I want to provide you with a tip. Before I expound on this, remember my often-quoted martial art Master’s words: “use what is useful, throw away the rest.” So if what I’m going to tell you helps, then go for it; if not, then you’ve lost nothing by reading this blog other than a few minutes.

The above mentioned ‘aspirers’ usually have great ideas for a novel, sit down at their keyboards and peck away furiously as they race to force their creativity onto the page before the well runs dry. But then, about the 50-page mark usually, the tale they are writing just fizzles out.

Writers’ Block, they say! It happens to all of us, they say. But this isn’t writers’ block, my friends. It’s something far more insidious. I call it the 50-page Burn-out.

Hello, my name is Eric and I have always had the 50-page Burn-out.

What! you say. You write 90,000 word thrillers. That’s one hell of a lot more than 50 pages!

Yes, I respond, but I found the answer.

Over my strange and rather unconventional life I’ve done quite a lot of training in survival techniques and put much of it into practice. One basic technique for survival in any environment is that you need to have your priorities clear at all times. Is it shelter, fire, water, food etc.? But from a psychological standpoint you always need to have an objective! Always! And just getting through the day isn’t it. That gets you ‘aspiring’.

The objective is a medium to long-term goal that you need to make steps toward every single day, whilst you are ‘surviving’ (or writing). The survival tricks then have a context and a purpose.

Back to my ‘aspiring’ friends. How do I usually respond when they manifest their 50-day fizzle? I usually ask them one simple question: how does your tale end? I’m not looking for a generic answer either. I want to know if they could write the final chapter NOW. Okay, it will be a draft, and will almost certainly evolve, change, mutate as the preceding pages are produced. But that’s not the point. Are they just going to make a primitive home in the jungle, somewhere to stay until the water runs out and they die? Or… is the plan to find a way out of the dense vegetation, venomous snakes, crocodiles, wild pigs and whatever and back to ‘civilization’?

This is how I write my 90,000 word thrillers: I start at the end!

The King of Hearts in ‘Alice in Wonderland’ is often referred to, by me, as the World’s first computer programmer. Why? Do you remember his advice to Alice when she was asked to testify in the trial scene? “Begin at the beginning and go on till you come to the end: then stop.” While this may be great advice for a witness, and a computer programmer, it is useless for most writers: it will lead to the 50-page Burn-out as sure as Hatters are mad! (Note: the mad hatters are an historical fact – they used lead-based glue in the manufacture of their headwear and this resulted in poisoning which produced their occupational hazard – so if you’ve stuck with this blog up to here, you’ve learnt two new things! Don’t say I don’t give value for money!)

Alright, so you now have an ending. Should you now do a Cheshire Cat and start disappearing at the tail to end with just an incorporeal smile? My answer is yes and no.

Once I can write the ending, I figure out the beginning (forget the feline form in between for the moment). I write thrillers and I firmly believe these should start more with a bang than a whimper. They need to grab the attention of a potential reader whilst raising questions, creating intrigue and laying hooks so they will keep reading. That gives me the broad parameters for the start. The content must always have something to do with the main storyline; otherwise you are cheating your readers. Okay, it may not be evident initially – for the novel I’m working on now, ‘the CULL’, many who have read its opening chapters have commented that the first chapter is written using a style and tone that contrasts sharply with the following chapters, which are more fast-paced; it’s almost as if the first chapter came from a different book.

Why did I do this?

The opening chapter is about the main story line – exclusively. In the following chapters there are no other references to that story line because we shift to follow what happens to one of the protagonists, but not the one featured, albeit very briefly, at the start, and her first bloody encounter with the novel’s prime antagonist. (I should have yelled SPOILER WARNING – I’ve just given away one of the novel’s early secrets). I wanted to make the first chapter the ‘Intrigue’ chapter – Who the hell is this? What’s going on here? Who’s that under the bed and why? Plus, I couldn’t resist including a ‘Wink’ (my name for the hidden secrets in my novels) right on the first page this time. [What’s the Wink about? Sorry, you’ll have to wait to read the explanation on my web when the novel’s published. (More intrigue!).]

To highlight this brief opening, it’s a little more than half a page on my word processor screen, I used a marked style/tone change so the reader won’t forget it. But if all you are reading is an extract, it does look strange, that I will admit. So, put yourself out of your misery and buy the novel when it’s published in December.

But the important issue is that I had the opening clear, shorty after having the way it’s all going to end equally defined.

Now you have a start and a finish. Filling in the middle depends on your genre, your story arcs, your tale structure, the message you want to convey. But the good news is, as though by magical artifice, the 50-page Burn-out problem has disappeared. You are no longer surviving from day to day but now you have a clear objective: write that last scene or a version of it, at least.

It’s a simple trick, as most good tips are. It works for me and has done so for many years. I’ve applied this trick not just to my fictional output, but to the innumerable presentations, seminars, articles etc. that I’ve written in the last thirty-five years.

So as Tagore says, don’t aspire to cross the sea, imagine what you’ll do on the other side and stick your foot firmly in the water!

About Eric

Eric J. Gates is an ex-International Management Consultant who has travelled extensively worldwide, speak several languages, and has had articles and papers published in technical magazines in six different countries as well as radio and TV spots. His specialty, Information Technology Security and Cyberwarfare, has brought him into contact with the Intelligence community on several occasions. He is also an expert martial-artist, holding 14 black belt degrees in distinct disciplines, as well as several International ratings in Self Defense. He has taught his skills to members of various Police, Military and Special Forces units, as well as Private Security firms and Bodyguards. He started writing as a teenager, and in his own words, "has never stopped since". Author of '2012', 'Full Disclosure', 'the CULL' (December 2012), and 'Leaving Shadows' (May 2013).

Follow @eThrillerWriter

Twitter Handle: @eThrillerWriter
Website: www.ericjgates.com
Blog: http://my-thrillers.blogspot.com.es

1 Piece of Advice About NaNoWriMo — guest post by @martieKay

2012-10-17T08:07:00.001-05:00

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By Kelly Martin
Follow @martieKay

Last November, I decided to participate in my very first NaNoWriMo. Some thought I was crazy (they might have been right), but I did it none-the-less. I ‘won’ NaNo before Thanksgiving much to the happiness of my family and my poor, worn-out fingers.

What I ‘won’ was a very horrible first draft with multiple points of view, head hopping, run-on sentences, and characters with multiple personality issues.

In short, I won myself a mess.

Chances are you will too.

The thing about NaNo is it allows you the opportunity to be free, to write, to live in that book without worrying about messing up, to make those ‘mistakes’ (though mine weren’t really mistakes. They made me realize I needed a two point of view book which worked so much better).

If I could give you one piece of advice on how to make it through NaNo it would be to not stress about your plot, your characters, any of it. Don’t worry if you forget names of secondary characters or even what your main character’s eye color is. Just write. Freely. Write. Have a direction in mind, but let your imagination go wild.

Then, when you are finished and you have that jumbled story. Sit down with a notebook. Figure out the plot points (and yes, exactly what color your main character’s eyes are). Get it going in a certain direction. It will get there in time. I promise you that.

Last year was my first NaNo. I re-wrote it three times total and edited it numerous times before I sent it off to the agents/publishers. In July, I signed a contract with Astraea Press and my sweet little NaNo was published in October. June was my first Camp NaNo. That novel has been re-written, submitted, and contract signed with the same publisher.

Folks, winning NaNo is very doable. Will you have a stellar novel? Nope. But you will have excellent backbones to work off of so you CAN have a terrific novel when it’s all said and done if you are willing to work at it.

Be free with NaNo. Let your imagination run wild and don’t worry about anything. NaNo is the most freeing month for me, personally, as writer. I hope it is the same for you.

Kelly's first book
(from NaNo 2011)
CROSSING THE DEEP
is available now.

Author Bio

Kelly Martin is a southern girl who lives with her husband and three rowdy, angelic daughters. By day, she is a teacher. By night, she is a crazy-haired, multi-tasker who writes with a two year old standing on her shoulder while watching PBS Kids. She loves God, is addicted to chocolate, and would rather write than sleep.

Find her online

www.kellymartinstories.com (author blog)
www.encourage365.com (daily devotional blog)
Twitter: @martieKay
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Kelly-Martin-Author/136506059763138F

Writing Tip: The Risk of Being a Good Student — guest post by @AnthonyOtten

2012-10-16T07:46:00.001-05:00

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By Anthony J. Otten

Follow @AnthonyOtten

You remember the sacred writing process from grade school. Prewrite. Outline main topics and supporting details. Rough out a draft with intro and closing. And so on. For a first-time writer, these training wheels often prove helpful. But if we later decide to tackle a creative work like a novel, this prepackaged formula may hamper the joy of art rather than stoke it.

When we begin a complex piece in the thrill of creation, our first instinct is often to outline each event, each setting, each character – sometimes so obsessively that we strain to foresee what will happen late in our novels before we’ve even written the opening passage. If satisfied, this urge to sketch out everything beforehand usually makes it feel as if you’re writing your book twice.

I’ve experienced this issue myself. Once, I was writing down my ideas for the scene in my current novel, the core event that would sear a lasting image of the book in my reader’s mind – in this case, the burning of a mountain church by a mob of coalminers. My error was that I mapped out each twist in the scene down to the smallest nub – where each character stood at a given time, when the flames spread, when the antagonist arrived on horseback and entered the fray.

By the time I actually started typing, the details that had made me proud now seemed stale and perfunctory, as if someone else was dictating them to me. I finished it, but my creative muscles didn’t get the pleasure of being tugged into the story’s flow. I found myself resisting changes to the plot’s preset course. I rejected wordplay that might’ve turned out great, but wasn’t in the plan.

Here’s a real plan for you: don’t be the Honor Roll student this time.

Don’t do your homework a week ahead of time.

Don’t think you have to outline every nook and cranny of your story because you’re terrified you’ll drop off the end of an unfinished sentence. Plunge into the messy joy of not knowing what will happen. Remember, messes are the reason that revision exists. If inspiration for a scene strikes prematurely, then note it down as I should have with my book: “church burning.” But don’t yet reveal to yourself who’s holding the match. Or who’s trapped inside.

A little more about Anthony

Anthony Otten has published work in the Louisville Review, the Short Story America anthology, and the freelancer newsletter Funds for Writers. His novel Cedar of Lebanon was a finalist for the Southwest Writers Literary Novel contest. His fiction has won first prize in contests held by Columbia College Chicago and the Appalachian Heritage Writers Symposium. He lives in Erlanger, Kentucky, and attends Thomas More College.

We are looking for writing tips ... got any?

2012-10-15T04:30:00.000-05:00

Buffer

With National Novel Writing Month (NaNo) starting in just a few weeks, I thought it would be a good time to run a series of posts about writing, specifically tips that would benefit writers before, during, and after NaNo; thus, tips for writing that first draft.

It could be tips about any of the following:

Characterization
Plot
Dialog
Pacing
Brainstorming
Structure

Of course, I'm open to almost anything writing related, even if it doesn't fit into the above categories.

If you would like to offer a guest post or a syndicated post with the above theme, send me an email with the subject line of Writing Tips Post. If you label it anything else, especially "Syndication," I may not even open it, shelving it with the other syndication emails.

A couple hundred words would be a good minimum to shoot for if you are writing it from scratch. You are also welcome to turn in more than one. Please send separate emails in that case, in order that you don't confuse me. (Hint: I'm easily confused.)

Include the following in your email:

Name
Twitter Handle
Link to post (for syndication)
Guest Post text (no need for this with syndication of course)
If you would like me to promote a book on Amazon along with the guest post, please provide a link to the book on Amazon.com.
If you would like to include an author bio, that would be fine.
Same thing goes for a pic of yourself.
Any other links you would like listed with your bio, such as Facebook or your blog.

msl_007@live.com

How To Blog An Interactive Novel

2012-09-21T06:00:00.000-05:00

Buffer

We no longer live in the 20th century when authors and readers were separated so much that communication between the two almost never occurred. The line between the two has nearly been eradicated. There is, however, one barrier that still exists. Most of the time a reader can not dictate how a story will progress.

Sure, there's beta readers who might offer suggestions for a later draft or reviewer comments that might influence what happens in the next book, but rarely do readers experience the journey of writing alongside the author.

In the world of blogging and digital publishing, there's no reason this has to remain the case.

Use a Novel Blog to Write an Interactive Story

One of my favorite types of books when I was growing up was the Choose Your Own Adventure series. It provided a quick read or a long one depending on my frame of mind. It was also great to be a part of the story in a way, though the second person narrative style didn't fool me even back then.

A similar paradigm could be used to write a novel, be it a Choose Your Own Adventure style or a traditional novel. A portion of the story could be posted to a blog. It ends with a survey, asking the readers what they think should happen next. Several pre-arranged plot points could be offered to choose from.

A place for comments (open ended plot points) would make it a little more difficult for the writer but all the more interactive.

I have no data to back this up, but I think some readers would enjoy reading a story that they have a say in what happens.

50 Weeks to a Completed Novel

Pick a day to post a new chapter, and post a new chapter each week. Let's say Monday is a good day for you (and for your readers). A 2,000 word chapter is posted each Monday. At the end of each chapter is a survey and comment box to give readers a chance to weigh in on the next chapter.

If this is done for 50 weeks out of the year (leaving 2 weeks for a vacation/holiday), the writer would have written a 100,000 word first draft. If the posts are an average of 1,500 words instead, a 75,000 word novel would be the end result.

Would you enjoy reading a story like this? Would you ever write one?

Do you have marketing advice for your fellow writers?

2012-08-29T07:42:00.000-05:00

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A lot of writers dread the thought of marketing their book, but in this new age of publishing, all writers need to market their books (unless your name is Stephen King). Whether you're traditionally published, self-published, or somewhere in between in one of the various levels of Indie, you will most likely have to market your book. Otherwise, it will not sell.

But how?

There's not a shortage of marketing advice floating in cyberspace. The problem is that not all advice is created equal. Just like with any self-help, do-it-yourself advice, results are not typical, and not all suggestions work for every single situation.

The best solution I can come up with is throwing everything together into one location. Bring all the great suggestions together and compare them against the experience of everyone in the group, from published writers and marketing bloggers to anyone else who has an opinion.

I don't exactly know what form this will take. It could mean a series of blog posts here at the crew. In fact, if you have blogged about marketing, I'd be happy to syndicate your posts here.

If you have marketing advice but have not blogged about it, I'd welcome a guest post. You are more than welcome to post it on your own site as well. I'm not looking for original content.

If you aren't interested in guest blogging but still have a suggestion or two, I'd be happy to collect them and blog about it once I get enough material.

Send me an email: msl_007@live.com

Books and Blogs on Marketing

Do you have a favorite book or blog that deals with marketing? I'd love to hear about it. If you are the author of said book, I'd be happy to review the book for you (even though at the moment we aren't accepting public book review requests).

Here are a few blogs/sites I recommend:

Bad Redhead Media
Write Non-Fiction Now!—though she deals mostly with non-fiction, much of her advice would probably work for any writer.
Fostering Success—if you're active on Twitter, you have probably heard of Melissa Foster. She has paid online courses for authors.

Indies, create your One Percent.

2012-08-26T03:22:00.000-05:00

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Usually we read the differences between Indie and Traditional Publishing, and there are some very stark differences. But that doesn't mean we as Indies can't learn from the big guys. They do some things right. Otherwise they wouldn't have lasted as long as they have.

Perhaps this isn't a revolutionary idea, but it was kind of a brainstorm for me, and I don't think I've read this tip quite expressed like how I'm about to put it.

The One Percent Factor

Traditional publishers do well because at the end of the day, they make money, and despite the intrusion of Indies into their realm, this is likely to continue. Why?

Because of the 1% factor.

A publisher knows that not every book is going to sell. In fact, some books they lose money on. But occasionally if they can get a best seller, the One Percent out there, they'll be fine.

It may be a while before the next one comes along, but as long as they have their star authors, they'll float above water. Of course, that explains why the average author—even the tradionally published—doesn't make enough money to live off royalties.

The Indie One Percent

Even if Indies group themselves together and publish as a group, they'd have to share royalties in order to support the books that don't sell well. I don't know anyone who would put up with this for long, for the weak authors would be feeding off the backs of the Indie One Percent.

However, each Indie author can have his own One Percent.

Sometimes writers get the idea that all they need to do is write that one awesome book. Once the right person sees it, they will become the next Stephen King. Oh, how many dreams are smashed when reality sets in!

So, how are Indies to create their own One Percent?

By writing more books and not stopping. Of course, time and effort need to go into not only the writing of each book but also into the editing and marketing of each book.

If writing is what you love to do, and you want to make a living off of it, improve your craft, and keep writing ... every day. If you are destined to be a world class Indie writer, you will create your One Percent, the books in your backlist that sell and sell ... and sell some more.

Have you had this experience? Have you seen sales of books rise with the release and marketing of a new book?

I'd love to hear about your experiences, maybe even share them on the blog. Contact me: msl_007@live.com ... or leave a comment below.

Will your blog take the Internet by storm?

2012-07-13T00:32:00.001-05:00

The Masquerade Crew is about ten or eleven months old (depending on how you're counting the days), and I've learned a lot in this short timeframe. Since part of my goal is to promote authors and their blogs, I tend to visit a lot of them. I've noticed a few trends that make some blogs not as great as they could be.

There are a lot of tips about how to turn a fizzling blog into a hurricane, but I'm going to narrow this post down to four tips about your actual blog posts.

Write a Killer Headline

Your headline or post title is the first thing most people will see, and oftentimes it is the reason they visit ... or not. I share a lot of content through Triberr, and based upon that content as well as my own posts, it's clear that a good headline makes all the difference.

Your goal is to attract people's attention. You have to give them a reason to check out your blog post. Otherwise, your fanbase will not grow beyond your most loyal readers.

Here are a few types of headlines that attract attention:

Ask questions. "Will your blog take the Internet by storm?"
Use a number. "4 tips to create better blog posts."
A call to action. "Calling all writers! Take your blog to the next level."
How To. "How to write a better blog post."

Your post should be the proper length

Although short posts can be effective, longer posts tend to do a better job (as long as the post is engaging throughout). However, if it's too long, you'll be putting a heavy weight on your readers, encouraging them to move on (and possibly not come back).

There is no magic number of words to shoot for; however, depending on the topic, 300 to 500 words is a good range to shoot for. If it's longer than that, you'll need to do certain things to further engage your readers (which I may blog about another time).

Use images, especially one at the top

Images are a great way to engage your readers. They give your readers something to look at beyond your words, which will encourage them to stay longer. If they are browsing your post titles, an image at the top might give them enough interest to click on the post and read more.

Tag your posts to assist navigation

Not every post will interest every one of your readers. You should be tagging your posts to assist them in finding what they want to read, especially if you blog about a variety of subjects. For Blogger users, tags are called labels. For Wordpress users, there are two versions: categories and tags, giving Wordpress an extra advantage.

What blog post tips do you find helpful?

The Secrets Behind Buried Dialogue — syndicated post from @LynnetteLabelle

2012-06-26T09:20:00.001-05:00

The following is syndicated from Lynnette Labelle's blog with permission.

Buried or hidden dialogue, both terms mean the same thing, but what is that exactly? Buried dialogue happens when you bury the dialogue between the narratives. The paragraph will look like this: narrative, dialogue, narrative. Still don’t know what I mean? Don’t worry. Some examples are coming up. Keep reading.

As a freelance editor, I can say very few unpublished writers realize what buried dialogue can do to their story, especially its pace, but this is something even published authors, including indie authors, should understand.

While buried dialogue isn’t a technical term nor is there a rule that says you can’t use it, editors often suggest you eliminate as much of it as possible. There are two basic reasons behind this.

1) Buried dialogue slows the pace.
2) Dialogue can lose its oomph when squished between two narratives.

Let’s look at some examples, so you can see what I mean.

Example 1:

With Buried Dialogue:

Toni opened the door. “What are you doing here?” She crossed her arms, determined to show him she meant business. “I told you to stay away.” Why was he there anyway? Didn’t he know what was good for him?

Without Buried Dialogue:

Toni opened the door.

“What are you doing here?” She crossed her arms, determined to show him she meant business. “I told you to stay away.”

Why was he there anyway? Didn’t he know what was good for him?

Example 2:

With Buried Dialogue:

Marnie wrapped a ringlet of her hair around her finger. Maybe she could convince him yet. “Surely, there must be something I could help you with.” She batted her eyelashes and puckered her lips. Swaying her hips, she circled around him. If there was one thing she knew about men, they couldn’t resist a good tease.

Without Buried Dialogue 1:

Marnie wrapped a ringlet of her hair around her finger. Maybe she could convince him yet. “Surely, there must be something I could help you with.”

She batted her eyelashes and puckered her lips. Swaying her hips, she circled around him. If there was one thing she knew about men, they couldn’t resist a good tease.

Without Buried Dialogue 2:

Marnie wrapped a ringlet of her hair around her finger. Maybe she could convince him yet.

“Surely, there must be something I could help you with.” She batted her eyelashes and puckered her lips. Swaying her hips, she circled around him. If there was one thing she knew about men, they couldn’t resist a good tease.

Notice the difference between the “with” and “without” buried dialogue examples. The dialogue is lost in the narration and doesn’t have the effect it could have on its own. Also, if you look at the last example, you’ll see there can be more than one way to fix buried dialogue.

Come back Tuesday for The Secrets Behind Buried Dialogue Part 2, where we’ll look at the unofficial rules, so you’ll know how to avoid or correct this issue.

Do you ever use buried dialogue?

The second part of this series can be found on Lynnette Labelle's blog.

About Lynnette

Lynnette Labelle is a romantic suspense writer who injects a dark edge into romance. Considering her morbid curiosity about serial killers, it’s not surprising she’s able to get into the minds of psychopaths and portray her villains in a realistic manner. Yet, the interaction between her heroes and heroines tends to be light and flirty, allowing readers a chance to catch their breath.

Lynnette is a member of Romance Writers of America, RWA Online, Savvy Authors, Writers on Writing, and Editorial Freelancers Association. She lives in Minnesota with her husband, twin daughters, and pets. Despite her love for fictional blood and gore, she gets weak at the sight of real blood. And spiders give her the creeps!

Find her on Twitter: @LynnetteLabelle
Find her on Facebook: HERE

99¢ Ebooks—Good or Bad?

2012-05-06T03:05:00.001-05:00

That’s a loaded question. I don’t think there is a simple answer, but let me give you my take. When I first heard of the 99¢ ebook, I thought it was a good idea from the reader’s standpoint, but I’m beginning to change my opinion. Not completely though! Let me explain.

One of my favorite bookstores is Half Priced Books. A brand new book is just that—half priced, so a $25 hardbound book usually sells for around $12. But I don’t buy those. I stick to the clearance, used books that haven’t sold, which are going for a few bucks. I’ve bought several hardbound books for $3, paperbacks usually for $1.

That explains why I thought 99¢ ebooks were a good thing. They matched my spending habits in regard to printed books. These situations don’t match one another, though. When you buy an ebook, you aren’t buying secondhand.

99¢ Ebooks Are Not Evil

What I’ve read about the issue: a lot of it I agree with (or can at least acknowledge), but much of it I don’t agree with. For instance, I’m not convinced that 99¢ ebooks are going to hurt the industry. Readers are smart; they aren’t going to expect that price all the time. The backlash has already started. Some people stay away because of the known quality issue with cheaper books, especially with the self-published.

There will always be a way for people to get ahold of cheap or free books without resorting to pirating. Before the digital age, there was the library and lending from friends. Those that refuse to buy ebooks priced higher than 99¢ need an outlet, and free Kindle books provide yet another option. They are not your targeted, paying audience. I wouldn’t worry about them.

How To Use 99¢ Ebooks

I believe 99¢ ebooks possibly have a place in a marketing strategy. They can provide a needed fan base, encouraging people to buy your other, higher priced books. However, if you are going to go with Kindle Select, there’s no need to go with a 99¢ price tag. The promotional backing of a 99¢ ebook is accomplished with Free Kindle Days. There’s no need to double dip.

There’s one other situation where I would possibly use a 99¢ ebook—short stories. Publish a 5,000 word short story and price it at 99¢. With enough of a fan base, I can see where it would be possible to come out ahead if you wrote enough short stories. You could write 50 a year, although with that much effort, you might do just as well writing longer novels.

Why I Wouldn’t Price My Books At 99¢

You may have noticed that I used the word “possible” (or its equivalents) several times in the preceding section. That’s because I would NOT use the 99¢ price tag.

If you use Kindle Select, the 99¢ promotion strategy doesn’t make sense to me (as described above). If you aren’t using Kindle Select, I would use coupons via Smashwords. Or a combination of the two: run a 90 day Kindle Select promotion period, using your 5 Free days to build traffic, a fan base; after that, put your book everywhere, using Smashword coupons to continue building traffic.

Pricing a few short stories at 99¢ is a good idea in my mind, but don’t think of it as a money maker. It’s simply a promotional tool. Although I don’t like the idea of overpricing any story, I also see the need to NOT under value yourself. Because the percentage of return is so much higher once you get to the $2.99 level (on Amazon), that’s where I would start my actual pricing.

$2.99 is too much for a 5,000 word short story in my opinion, but it’s a workable price—perhaps even a great price—for a collection of short stories (depending on the collective length).

Here’s the bottom line: if your goal is to make money, every pricing/promotion decision should support that, especially the 99¢ price tag. If you’re making enough money, great. If not, change your strategy. If you aren’t out to make money (writing is more of a hobby), 99¢ is great for the casual reader.

I’d love to hear from both sides. Just remain civil!

Did you miss any of our guest post writing tips in April? #AtoZChallenge

2012-05-01T00:14:00.002-05:00

I would like to thank everyone who participated in the A to Z Challenge this year and especially those that offered guest posts on our site. There were only two letters that I had problems with: R and W. We had an extra O, so that turned into Repeating "O", and I turned to a crew member to supply the W. All in all, I think we did a great job.

I'm listing all of the tips here for those that may have missed one here or there. Also, if you wanted to bookmark the entire series, this would be the page to do it.

Remember: visit some of the blogs of our guest posters. Follow them on Twitter (if listed). That's what guest posting and networking are all about.

A to Z Writing Tips

Z is for Zest #AtoZChallenge

2012-04-30T05:28:00.000-05:00

Post by Guest Blogger
Donna B. McNicol

We're writers. We often have a love hate relationship with blogs. We put words together to create something with meaning, something we hope others will want to read. That means we sometimes take ourselves too seriously. We write about our books. We write about others books. We write about writing. We write about others writing. We report news of interest to writers. We interview authors. We write about interviewing authors. Oh, and sometimes we even write stories/articles/poems.

See a trend here? Yup, we're taking ourselves too seriously. While our readers enjoy our blog posts, or they wouldn't come back, they may not be getting a sense of who we are; they don't get to see the personality behind the words.

"But I need to be professional," you say. "I need to watch the image I project." Yes you do, but you also need to show that you are human. Don't be afraid to inject a little humor, be a little zany, yes - show your ZEST for life and writing. You don't need to do it for every blog post, just enough to let your personality shine. Here are a few ideas to get you thinking:

Post a cartoon or joke [especially about writer/writers].
Talk about funny things that happened during your day.
Post a favorite memory.
Find good videos to repost.
Post a list of your top ten songs.
Upload photos of your pet(s).
Talk about your hobbies.
Link to your Pinterest boards.

Still not convinced? Remember, you are marketing your best product - YOU. And you are much more than just your writing so let your readers get to know you better. According to Noah Brier of Percolate, a blog needs a balance between “stock” and “flow” content. Stock content is what we talked about above, back when we were taking ourselves too seriously. Flow content is the fluff, the posts that showcase your personality. A good mix of content will keep readers coming back for more, and in the end that's your goal. Plus you get the added bonus of "word of mouth" referrals.

So take some time to insert some ZEST into your writing and your blog. You might find you've reduced some of the stress you feel when it's time for a new blog post. You might even post more often while you gain more readers. Life is too short...enjoy it!

Wake me later, I'm napping...

Here are some good examples of blogs with ZEST:

Angie Richmond: Write Me happy
Jo-Anne Teal: Going for Coffee
Toby Neal: Toby Neal
Angela Goff: Anonymous Legacy

For more tips on inserting ZEST into your blog, check out "Inject Yourself into Your Content – Principle # 7 of Creating Compelling Content."

Donna McNicol is a retired IT professional with many years of freelance writing. She has recently started dabbling in fiction and especially enjoys writing flash fiction. She currently lives and travels in an RV along with her husband, their pup Sadie and two Harley-Davidson motorcycles.

She has two works in progress, a romance novel set in Montana and a cozy mystery set in Pennsylvania. You can see excerpts on her website and read her blog, My Write Spot.

Follow her on Twitter: @DonnaBMcNicol

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Y is for Yikes #AtoZChallenge

2012-04-28T05:17:00.000-05:00

Common Errors Writers Make

Post by Guest Blogger
Elizabeth C.

The most common mistake I see writers making is substituting one homonym for another. English is full of pairs of words (sometimes three or even, very rarely, four words) that sound the same but have different meanings. The most common set is two, too, and to (meaning a pair, also, and towards).

Homonyms are often swapped in cliches where the expected word is a less used English word. The most common switch is in the phrase 'sneak peek' when 'peak' is substituted for 'peek.' A peek is a glimpse or a quick look, or in the case of a movie or play, a showing. 'Sneak peek' makes perfect sense – an early showing of an upcoming movie or a quick look at an upcoming event. 'Sneak peak,' on the other hand, is quite confusing. Is there a mountain hiding behind me?

I also see peak (or peek) and pique switched. 'A fit of pique' is a temper tantrum, not a sudden rain of mountains (a fit of peak) or a lot of blinking (a fit of peek).

The second most common homonym switch is cites and sites. Cites means refers to, while sites means locations or websites. “My English teacher cites Shakespeare as saying, 'Brevity is the source of wit.'” is very different from “The most important sites in Shakespeare's life were his hometown, Stratford-upon-Avon, and London.”

Changing vowels changes words. In complement and compliment, 'e' is changed for 'i'. Complement means enhance or bring to perfection and has a secondary meaning of allotment. 'Purple and pink complement each other.' Compliment is a statement of approval or beauty. 'I compliment my sister by telling her she has pretty hair.'

Another pair of easily confused homonyms changing 'e' for 'i' is counsel and council. Counsel means advice, and council means a group of advisers, as in this sentence: 'The council gave counsel to the king.'

Now let's look at 'a' and 'e'. Our first example is affect and effect, although I don't think of them as being strict homonyms, but I think it probably depends on your accent. (Using phonetic symbols I pronounce them i-fect (effect) and æ-fect (affect), but dictionary.com tells me that affect should be pronounced Λ-fect (uh-fect).) They are included here because they are so often confused.

Affect is the action. A is for Affect, A is for Action. 'The mood of the boss can affect the whole office. If the boss is happy, everyone is happy.' Affect can also mean emotional appearance, as in 'Her melancholy affect upset the child.' Effect is the result. 'The effect of the strong wind was many trees blew over.'

Another example of 'a' and 'e' mixing things up is stationary and stationery. Are you standing still? Then you are stationary. Are you writing a letter on pretty paper with a matching envelope? Then you are using stationery.

Last but not least, an extra 'e' goes a long way to change a letter. Take grill and grille. A grill is for cooking, and a grille is for keeping people out. A hamburger is cooked on a grill. A barred door is covered with a grille. These two are usually not confused, except by the owners of hamburger places who are striving to be cute.

Always be sure to use the correct homonym, and you will avoid some common mistakes of writers. Your writing will seem much more professional and polished.

A little about Elizabeth C.

She is a writer and an artist. She writes occasionally for her local newspaper. She sells her handmade crafts in her Etsy store, Lizbeth's Garden. Her beaded tassels are carried in a local gallery.

Follow her on Twitter: @lizbethsgarden

Check out her website HERE.

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X is for Xylophones #AtoZChallenge

2012-04-27T04:59:00.000-05:00

Post by Guest Blogger
Ian Roberts

Xylophones—simple instruments that parents dread their children getting but can't resist trying for themselves—bear comparison with the process of plotting, characterising and writing a book. All of these require a willingness to release the inner child's curiosity and risk making something interesting from it. Whether the way you write is carefully planned or not—and I've tried both approaches—researching a possible framework provides an instrument and the keys to what might become a story.

Just as, if you aren't musical, working on the plot and characters for a new book by selecting the keys to strike - and in what order - is a matter of trial and error: the more you do it, the more you become familiar with the possibilities and pitfalls. Gradually, you learn how to pick out the kind of sounds you want and—just as important—develop a tempo that is appropriate to them.

Since it's a matter of trial and error, the rhythms and melodies have to be revised—or redrafted—and doing this is the means by which the different sections and eventually the whole piece lodge in your mind sufficiently to be able to play them in your head; in my case, visualise and re-read them. At that point, you have the luxury of being able to focus your thoughts on specific parts of what you have done and the way they relate to others without actually being engaged in playing or writing and, thus, to be able to reshape or reorder them somewhere else entirely.

Out walking, for instance, listening to music or watching something. Part of the mystique of this, in my experience, is discovering the truth in the saying that characters and stories can start to write themselves. Instead of simply playing the instrument or writing the book, the process becomes a dialogue in which the characters themselves show you possibilities you hadn't previously considered, and different paths through the plot—even to the point of refining the whole. It's as exhilarating for me as the point of take-off in an airplane is for people who don't share my doubts about the wisdom of being thousands of feet above the ground.

The first three books I wrote were based on general ideas which I drafted out in full and the process of editing and remoulding what I had delivered plots and characters which were different than those I'd envisaged. Not a million miles from them but, I am confident, far better.

I planned the one I'm writing at the moment in more detail and decided to write it in scenes which would fit into the story at different points for two reasons: shorter sections would make it easier for me to proof-read each more effectively—I can't afford to pay someone else—and make it easier to ensure that the historical content didn't drown the story—or the reader. Interestingly, both methods have led me to that same sense of lift-off.

Over time, I hope this will lead to improvement, particularly with feedback. At present I feel certain that my fourth book will be better than the others, although I know progress isn't necessarilly linear. Either way, the moment when you feel that you have pushed what you have as far as you can is like the feeling of liberation that is reflected in children's faces when they bring their efforts to a conclusion, be it a mighty final series of strikes or a flourish which runs over all the keys.

A little about Ian Roberts

Grizzled 61 year old teenage ageing bluesman with three historical fiction novels on Kindle. All 4/5* reviewed. Sometime hospital porter, croupier, antique dealer's warehouseman, research asst. and, in the end, career teacher, now retired. Writing for five years now—first three books simultaneously. Now 40,000 words into a new book about the fine lines between different types of driven behaviour, self-deception and the psychotic spectrum through four key characters in 1880s and 1890s East Texas.

Check out his website HERE.

His books: Henry and Isaac, To the End of the Trail, and Old Bones.

Follow him on Twitter: @DonQuixote43rd

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W is for Writer's Block #AtoZChallenge

2012-04-26T03:52:00.000-05:00

A Novelist's Nightmare

Written by Charlotte Parr

Don't you just hate that fuzzy feeling you get with writer's block? The feeling like you're scrambling around in your brain for ideas but your fingers touch nothing but soft fluffy nothingness. Me too. There are loads of ways people tell me how to get rid of writer's block. Some of them make sense; others are just stupid. Here are my ways for getting rid of writer's block. Try them and see if they work for you!

1) Write Through It

I think this is one of the hardest techniques I use, but I always give it a go before I try anything else. Sitting down and forcing yourself to write the chapter can be a painful and demoralising experience, especially when you read it back and think 'why on earth did I write that?' But I find it's one of the best ways of conquering writer's block and showing it who's boss. Even if you end up having to go back and re-write the section you've just written, it's worth it just to prove you can do it.

2) Try Writing Something Different

Been writing the same story for weeks and just can't think where to take it next? Try writing something new. Maybe revive an old story you never finished or do a bit of flash fiction, something to clear your mind of the story you've been writing for so long. When you come back to that chapter you've been struggling with, it should all feel a lot easier.

3) Try Writing By Hand

I find writing with pen and paper quite soothing, especially if you have a favourite pen that's really nice to write with. Or if you can use different colours. I also find it makes the words come easier, and it feels very satisfying when you've written four or five pages when it would only have been one and a half on a computer.

4) Take A Break

This can often be a very frustrating thing to do, especially if you really want to finish the section you're struggling with, but sometimes you just have to indulge yourself by getting up from your computer, making a cup of tea and watching some rubbish on TV. If you're tired then take a nap, even if it's in the middle of the day. Sleep can really help to clear your mind and give you more focus.

5) Change Of Scenery

If I've been cooped up in one room for too long, I start to go completely insane. Get outside if you can. If it's sunny sit on the grass and write in the sun; it's a much nicer environment than sitting in a stuffy room staring at a screen.

6) Talk To Someone

Writing is a solitary pastime, so picking up the phone and having a chat with a friend or going and finding someone else in the house to talk to is really nice. If they write too, tell them about the problem you're having; they might have an idea to help you solve it.

Did any of these techniques help you? Do you have any others that you think are better?

Charlotte Parr is an English and American Studies student and part-time online writer on the writing site Protagonize. She writes mainly young adult, fantasy fiction. She finished her first novel, An Imperfect Fairytale, during NaNoWriMo in 2010, a novel inspired by the Rapunzel fairytale. In between lectures she finds time to write the sequel to An Imperfect Fairytale, as well as writing the occasional review for The Masquerade Crew.

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V is for Voice #AtoZChallenge

2012-04-25T03:16:00.000-05:00

Glen is the only one to write two posts for this series, so to thank him for all his hard work, I encourage you to check out his links at the bottom of this page.

A guest post by Glen Robinson

I belong to a group of Adventist Authors on Facebook, and someone recently brought up the question: "How do you go about finding your voice as a writer?" As the others discussed it, I will have to admit that I wasn't quite sure what they were talking about. Were they talking about point of view? Perspective? Writing style?

Fast forward a month or two, and I am at Writers@Work conference in Park City. Voice was one of the buzzwords that was bandied about that week, and eventually I caught on. What's funny was that when it got time to critique my manuscript for the fiction class, many were enamored with the "voice" I had chosen for the opening pages.

Suddenly the skies parted and the light began to dawn on me. I had written my manuscript as part of the National Novel Writing Month held online each November. The first bit of advice they give you is just write—don't edit—just write as fast as you can. When you take out all the self editing (at least on the first go-around) it is liberating. With that new state of mind, I took on a tongue in cheek, Raymond Chandleresque style told in first person. And it worked.

Now obviously you can't use the same voice for every book you write. Unless you are writing a series told first person by the same character. But it shows how the characters you choose have a direct relationship on how you tell the story.

It's like building a car from scratch. You may be the world's greatest engineer, auto mechanic, upholsterer, welder, etc. You may create a vehicle that works like a dream. But will people buy it? Only if it is esthetically pleasing. That's where the designer comes in. Another way to look at it is this: You're taking a trip from San Francisco to New York. You can take the most direct route, or you can take the most scenic route. Those who take the most direct route are reading a textbook or encyclopedia. Those who take the scenic route are reading good literature. And those who take the enjoyable route that never gets to New York are reading a literary novel (sorry, just had to interject that).

Voice—and characterization—I have learned, are the essence of what makes reading interesting and significant. Of course, this can go overboard, and that is the danger of many literary novels. You still have to go somewhere with your story. As I tell my students, you have to have conflict to have a story. But conflict is often what demonstrates and builds a character. The story ends when the conflict is resolved one way or another.

All of this may seem pretty basic to many of you, but it was like a light bulb turning on for me. And it took me from being a good word mechanic to a student who is trying to write excellent literature.

A little about Glen Robinson

He is a professor of communication with 10 published books in multiple genres. He is presently delving into the exciting and frightening world of independent publishing under the pen name of Jackson Paul. I have just self published two books with four more on the way in coming months. My most recent are an apocalyptic novel entitled The Kiss of Night and a steampunk adventure entitled Tom Horn vs. The Warlords of Krupp.

Check out his website HERE.

Follow him on Twitter: @glenchen

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U is for Unfulfilled #AtoZChallenge

2012-04-24T03:48:00.000-05:00

Post by Guest Blogger
Eric Sipple

It sucks when you don’t get what you want, doesn’t it?

You know what else sucks? Reading about characters getting everything they want. No, no! Don’t feel selfish admitting it. It’s true. You might not want to see the characters you love being denied their desires, but most of the time? It’s way better than the alternative.

A disclaimer: I’m not being a grump about stories writing happy endings. In fact, I’m not talking about endings at all. Don’t get me wrong. I could go on for hours about endings. Why do you think I’m not talking about endings? So I can be brief.

George R. R. Martin likes to quote William Faulkner when he talks about writing. I don’t have the patience to look up the actual quote (lie: I did, and it turns out GRRM misquotes it, and I don’t want to go down that rabbit hole), but the essence of it is this: The only thing worth writing about is the human heart in conflict with itself. Though I can quibble (writing about people stabbing other people through the heart can be quite satisfying), it’s a good place to start.

The human heart does crazy things when it’s denied what it wants – or what it thinks it wants. Its demands grow louder, forcing it into an escalating series of bad decisions in pursuit of its goals. It begs for substitutes, even poor ones, to spackle over the hole in itself. It goes crazy, mad, irrational, destructive. It finds hate in what it once loved, and failure where it once saw success. It goes, dare I say, into conflict with itself. In other words, the human heart gets downright dramatic.

If characters are the engine of your story, denying them their desires is your fuel. The worst thing you can do to a character (and thus to your story) is to jerk them around on strings, forcing them into actions to push your story forward. It’s boring, frustrating and it’s what happens when you don’t give your characters a reason to act on their own. A satisfied, happy character is a static one, and has no reason to learn to dance, go on that quest, risk her life, or whatever it was which you were hoping to write. When the world hasn’t denied your character something she really, truly wants, you’ve got no choice but to hook them by the nose and drag them into your story. Like I said: that sucks.

This goes doubly for your antagonists. As dull as a satisfied, emotionally fulfilled protagonist being dragged around a story can be, an antagonist who doesn’t really want something (besides showing you how evil he is) is never going to be more than a frustrating obstacle, like a car in front of you that won’t go the speed limit. An antagonist doesn’t have to be villainous to give your main character grief; he just has to want something that he can only get by going through her. It’s the wanting and not having that gets you out of your chair, into the world and into uncomfortable, risky and dramatic situations. It’s what makes you angry enough to fight, to hurt those you love and those you despise. If your antagonist is a problem because he wants something denied to him, he’ll drive the story to unpredictable places. When his needs and your protagonist’s needs collide…that’s the kind of friction that’ll cause a fire.

There’s no formula to getting this right. Some writers work backwards (starting from where the story might go and thinking really hard about what type of person would run in that direction) or forwards (starting with a character they can’t get out of their head and figuring out where she wants to run). Most do a mix of both. The point is to really understand the heart of a character and what it’s missing. From there, you’ll see what prods, whips and pokes will get them to do interesting things.

How I go about it changes from story to story. I spend a lot of misunderstanding a character before they click. For me, it comes down to writing down a lot of words about what they want and why (in a journal, on a napkin, whatever) until things sound right, as if I’m tuning a radio until the words stop being static and start being music. I’ve learned that when I’m pushing a character, it feels like work. When I’ve dangled the right thing in front of them and they push me to write, it doesn’t. It feels alive, exciting and out of control. It feels like drama.

Don’t get me wrong. I’m not saying your characters need to be miserable, unsuccessful wretches. Not at all. In fact, a character who’s mostly happy except for that one, unignorable thing has so much more to risk and lose in their pursuit. What I’m saying is that a character striving for something out of reach – or gaining what she thought she wanted only to learn she misunderstood her own desires – doesn’t need to be begged, coaxed or forced into your story. She’ll plow into it on her own and make it something real in the process.

Dig into your character’s heart and find out what they’ve been denied. What it is they’d throw the rest of their lives away to gain or to become? When you’ve found a need so powerful that your characters will help you write your story to achieve it, you’re on the right track.

Eric Sipple is a writer. He does other stuff too, like directing films and making websites. This is his writer's bio, so he'll try to stay focused on that. His most recent short story, "She Says Goodbye Tomorrow", was published in Hot Mess: speculative fiction about climate change. If you want to give something of his a read, that's a great place to start. He also writes the films he directs, like for "Tomorrow" and "co workers". You can see those on vimeo. He's currently in mortal combat with his second novel and collaborating on a webseries with Rachel Brody. Find him on twitter as @saalon or on his blog, Saalon Muyo!

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T is for Tyops #AtoZChallenge

2012-04-23T02:35:00.000-05:00

Post by Guest Blogger
Katie Anderson

“I typed fish instead of fist and the scene just went downhill from there.”

That’s a real quote from my housemate. She was merrily typing along when one character slammed his fish into another character’s jaw. The second character wondered aloud where the first character had gotten such a large salmon, especially since they were standing in the bowels of a castle in the middle of a land-locked nation. The first character replied that their story’s plot no longer held water. More aquatic puns ensued, and the writing project never really recovered.

I bet we can all cite at least one moment where our eyes came to a screeching halt on the page and the spell of the story was broken. For me, it was when Dumbledore used the word “ancestor” instead of “descendent” to describe Voldemort’s relationship to Salazar Slytherin at the end of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. I just stared at the page, astounded that the author, the editors, and the publishers could have all missed such a thing. (Note- this was fixed in later editions of the book.)

The fact is, typos happen. They happen a lot, actually, and they tend to fall into one of three categories: incorrect spelling, incorrect usages, and incorrect facts. Each of these has their own sets of problems, but the good news is that they are all easily fixed. So without further ado, I present: How to Avoid the Fish Fallacy, or a Guide to Finding and Fixing Typos.

1. Incorrect Spellings

How to identify: This is a typo in its purest state. Somewhere along the line, a word has picked up a few extra letters, dropped some, switched a few around, or any combination of the three. Usually these are minor errors; poeple for people, Carribbean for Caribbean, etc. Sometimes people get way off track though, and we have to wonder what they meant to say in the first place. Don’t fall into that second group.

How to find and fix: If you’re using a computer to write, use Spell-check. Pure and simple, that red squiggly line can be your best friend. If you are writing by hand or using a typewriter (hey, whatever works for you), then you are going to need to be your own Spell-check. Proofread each page carefully, and keep a dictionary handy. There is no shame in double-checking a word, but there is a little bit of shame in your work ending up on the Google Images page for typos.

2. Incorrect Usages

How to identify: This is when a word is spelled correctly, but it is not the right word for the context. The Harry Potter example above is an incorrect usage. The classic their/ they’re/ there and it’s/ its confusions also fall into this category. The rules of the English language are confusing, and they change as our language evolves. The same is true for the connotations of words. Make sure you know what your word choice really means.

How to find and fix: These errors are harder to catch, since Spell-check doesn’t catch grammar mistakes, and the Grammar-check isn’t a reliable tool for English. For these kinds of typos, make sure you are having another pair of eyes read over your work. As writers, it’s very easy for us to miss our own mistakes. We see the words repeatedly as we write and rewrite, and our brains become numb to what’s actually on the page. Like I said before, there’s no shame in double-checking.

3. Incorrect Facts

How to identify: These are the sneakiest types of typos. All the words are spelled correctly, all the grammar rules are followed, but things just don’t quite add up. I once read a book that listed orange as a color on the Jamaican flag, and another that claimed the Empire State Building has 110 stories. I’m not trying to infringe on artistic license here, but if your story is set in the real world (realistic fiction or nonfiction), make sure that your words reflect that. If you are changing facts around, explain why. (Jamaica decided to redecorate, or aliens came and parked an eight-story spaceship on top of the Empire State Building.)

How to find and fix: These are the hardest typos to fix, simply because they are the hardest to catch. No digital writing tool is going to help you find these errors. You are going to have to proofread, have others proofread, and become proficient with an internet search engine or a set of encyclopedias. Also, don’t assume that your editor is all-knowing and will catch everything. Take the time to fact-check your own work. As always, there’s no shame in double-checking.

It all boils down to this: double-check everything. Run spell-check, run grammar-check, Google every last detail, have your best friend read over your work, and do it all without fear. You may not catch everything, but each small correction shows that you care about how your work is perceived. You’re proud of your writing, because otherwise you wouldn’t be writing, so take the time to show it and go squash some typos.

And quit proof-reading this blog.

Katie Anderson:

I write a blog called Losing My Cents, detailing my quest to pay off nearly 12k in student loan debt this year while working five part-time jobs. The blog currently averages around 300 hits a month, and is growing quickly.

When I'm not blogging about finances, I'm working on edits to my fantasy novel, posting inane thoughts on Twitter, or working at least one of the aforementioned five part-time jobs. I also enjoy catching typos, unless they are my own.

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S is for Self-Publishing #AtoZChallenge

2012-04-21T06:17:00.000-05:00

Post by Guest Blogger
Rachel Lynn Brody

Writing this blog has been killing me, because I don’t feel like I have the authority to tell an audience “This is self-publishing.” What I can do, having just self-published Hot Mess: speculative fiction about climate change, is tell you the things I wish somebody had told me at the beginning:

1. You’re setting your own schedule. Set a schedule that’s flexible, and works for you.

From day one, I knew that mid-March, around the vernal equinox, was a time when I wanted to be bringing this book to the anthology. There were times when working with so many different personalities was daunting, and when this happened, I reminded myself: I was working on my own schedule. The important thing was to put out a product, not adhere to an artificial deadline. (Don’t mistake me – the deadline is important, and letting people know when to expect your work is something every author should do.) When live overwhelms you, change your plans. When it became clear that meeting the full release slate was simply not something I could do on my own by the announced release date, we scaled back. Even having an extra five days to breathe as I worked to get versions on Smashwords, PubIt, CreateSpace and other more independent sites made all the difference in the world, letting me focus on one individual product after the other.

2. Respect the roles you’re playing on your project.

Editors make certain kinds of decisions. Writers make different kinds of decisions. And sometimes, each approaches a situation and comes away with a different idea of what should be done. Respect the role you’re playing in respect to your project, and try to only play one role at a time. When the editor makes a decision the writer doesn’t like, remember – the editor’s job isn’t to make the writer happy. The editor's job is in service of the final book.

3. Take the time to be proud of your accomplishments.

I’m exceedingly proud of HOT MESS. The business we’ve done since “Upload Day” has been steady and feedback has been largely positive. Through a twist of fate, as many as four of our authors may be in New York City this May for a reading, signing and discussion. It’s difficult, as all this happens, to remember that it really just comes down to a book about what happens to human beings when the climate changes. Then I look at my bedside table, where the proof copy we released last week now holds place of pride, and I smile. I made a book. And it’s good. And I’m proud of it.

What else?

Most of the rest of what you need to know about self-publishing can be found around the internet: Guido Henkel writes a terrific guide to formatting your e-books, Stunk and White have a guide you can buy that will teach you how to put words together. Stephen King’s On Writing is still one of the best books about the practice of writing I can recommend. Amazon Kindle Direct and Author Central, PubIt, and Smashwords are the places to start for e-publishing, while CreateSpace and Lulu are options for print-on-demand publishing. Build your social media platforms, connect with people who care, and write about things that are important to you.

I guess that’s all I’ve got to give you on self-publishing.

Rachel Lynn Brody is an award-winning playwright, as well as an author, blogger and theater critic. Plays include Post, Playing it Cool, Mousewings and, in late 2012, Millennial Ex, a ten-minute play about marriage equality premiering at Glasgay 2012. Later this year, look out for original web series Unfamiliar Lives, co-written with and directed by Eric Sipple. Connect with Rachel on Twitter at @girl_onthego, or check out (and subscribe to) her blog at rlbrody.com. Hot Mess: speculative fiction about climate change can be purchased at Smashwords, Amazon, CreateSpace and Barnes & Noble.

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R is for Repeating "O" #AtoZChallenge

2012-04-20T08:14:00.000-05:00

Due to mismanagement on my part, I did not get an R post, but thankfully I received two "O" posts. This one was going to be originally run in May. I bring it in early as a REPEAT.

"O" is for OMG
Will This Never End?

Post by Guest Blogger Susie Moloney

I’ve been a writer all my life. My first novel, “Blackie the Beetle,” was written when I was just seven. It’s not my best work. For one thing, it’s derivative, very much like what I was reading at the time--things like Dick and Jane Go To The Store--so the characterization is simplistic, with little layering. The ending was probably too short and abrupt.

It’s fully illustrated. Hand bound.

The narrative, however, in spite of being simple and an obvious rip off of other insect books of the time, was very well structured, with a clear arc and a slam bam ending, however abrupt.

I beautifully followed the rule of a having a well-stated beginning, middle, and ending. There are even a few stylistic surprises in the middle that really keep you reading to the end. It’s a good, basic story, with a solid plot:

Set up: I have a water beetle, his name is Blackie. He lives in a jar. There is water in the jar, with rocks at the bottom, and a stick.

Middle: Blackie swims all day. He likes his stick.

Slam, bam, (if abrupt) ending: Blackie is a good beetle.

Completely believable, that little bit in the middle about how he likes his stick—pure fiction, by the way, because as far as I remember he never went near that stick—that bit brought him into our hearts, and so that by the time we were at the end, we had entirely bought into the idea that Blackie was a good beetle. Of course he was, we know that because he liked that stick.

Obviously, story set up is instinct and at seven, like every little kid, I followed my instincts and used the middle to sell my ending.

My stories are substantially longer now, and a little more complicated (sadly, not much). I’m also writing for a tougher audience than my sister and my mom, an audience that expects more bang for the buck, so to say.

(I’m not really making as much in the long run, however, since I used to make my mom pay me a nickel for my books, and I was getting all my expenses paid, including papers, pens, staples, crayons, etc. Sucker.)

But it also means that the middle of my stories carry more weight. And they’re long. Oh God, how long they are.

I’m currently writing a new novel, a story I’ve had in my head for awhile. When I started writing it—last October, actually, I had already been thinking about it for almost a year, and I thought I really had it ready to go. I stabbed out an outline, very rough, almost literally a beginning, middle (“he likes his stick”), and end. Called it a day. Started writing. The fun, sexy, can’t-wait set up took me about three months. Great start.

Now I’m in the long, gosh-darn, oh my heck, middle and my story has to come from the set up, and speak to the ending. And here I am, writing all the fun and games and trying to make it work. My day goes something like this:

Excellent, that character can punch that one in the nose. Good start up. Can bring that back up towards then end, sets up that she was violent.

Wait! I said in the beginning that she had been in juvenile hall for six months. And her mother was violent. That won’t work, I’ll have to up the ante. Hey! She uses … A CROWBAR. Yeah.

Crowbar scene.

WAIT! Crowbars are out of season. Damn. Can I change the season? Does it matter? Just has to be a season when it rains. So it could be … well sort of has to be early spring …

And there you go.

When I was writing my break out novel, A DRY SPELL, I was under the most undoable deadline you can imagine. I was writing five hours a day and getting out about 2500 words. I had an outline, but really, I flew by the seat of my pants. That one was written on adrenaline, cigarettes and fear. In other words: instinct. When I was writing THE DWELLING, I had copious storylines and so had copious notes pinned up on the bulletin board, one following the other, in rows. They juggled and changed, but I followed them carefully because the book was about three families, all with different stories. My currently-on-the-market book, THE THIRTEEN was written while I was homeschooling my son. So that one was written at night and kept light and simple (it’s one of my better ones, actually).

This book that I am writing now, the one with possibly the worst working title I’ve ever used, has so far been a mix of all of those techniques, including fear. Fear’s a pretty good motivator and I’m on the clock again. My board is full of little notes that keep changing and evolving, I know my ending and now it’s a matter of getting there.

If you count my biography of Blackie the Beetle, and two bottom drawer books that will never see the light of day—god willing--this is my seventh novel. Why isn’t it easy? Why haven’t I figured out how to get this right from the start? You know why?

Because the middle is where the real story is told, and that story is different every time. Those characters are new people and I owe them a substantial, believable story. I have a new point to make, and I’m writing from a new point of view, because I’m a different writer with every new story.

Beginnings and endings are appies and dessert. Coq au vin is the middle. You don’t want to screw that up or they won’t come back the next time.

God help me. This will never end, or get easier, and neither of those things even hint at why I can’t wait to sit down in the morning and get started again, just to prove to someone that I can do it right again, just like in that first book. Blackie was a good beetle.

He loved that stick.

Susie Moloney is the author of Bastion Falls, A Dry Spell, and The Dwelling. Her novel The Thirteen is available now, in bookstores everywhere.

Follow her on Twitter: @Susiemoloney

Friend her on Facebook: HERE

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The Masquerade Crew

Designing a Book Cover or Jacket - Guest Post by @thewritershouse

Things to look out for when designing a book cover or jacket

About the Authors

How to Write a Blurb - guest post by @thewritershouse

Have you ever wondered how to write a blurb or indeed what one is?

About the Authors

Writing Tips from a NANO Survivor — guest post by @Ginagina7

Check out Gina's Book

Writing Tip: There Is an Easy Fix — syndicated post from @MarnyCopal

About Marny Copal

Creating a Magic System, Part 1 — syndicated post from @thefourpartland

About

How To Avoid The 50-Page Burn-Out — syndicated post from @eThrillerWriter

About Eric

1 Piece of Advice About NaNoWriMo — guest post by @martieKay

Author Bio

Find her online

Writing Tip: The Risk of Being a Good Student — guest post by @AnthonyOtten

By Anthony J. Otten

A little more about Anthony

We are looking for writing tips ... got any?

msl_007@live.com

How To Blog An Interactive Novel

Use a Novel Blog to Write an Interactive Story

50 Weeks to a Completed Novel

Do you have marketing advice for your fellow writers?

Books and Blogs on Marketing

Indies, create your One Percent.

The One Percent Factor

The Indie One Percent

Will your blog take the Internet by storm?

Write a Killer Headline

Your post should be the proper length

Use images, especially one at the top

Tag your posts to assist navigation

The Secrets Behind Buried Dialogue — syndicated post from @LynnetteLabelle

About Lynnette

99¢ Ebooks—Good or Bad?

99¢ Ebooks Are Not Evil

How To Use 99¢ Ebooks

Why I Wouldn’t Price My Books At 99¢

Did you miss any of our guest post writing tips in April? #AtoZChallenge

A to Z Writing Tips

Z is for Zest #AtoZChallenge

Y is for Yikes #AtoZChallenge

Common Errors Writers Make

A little about Elizabeth C.

X is for Xylophones #AtoZChallenge

A little about Ian Roberts

W is for Writer's Block #AtoZChallenge

A Novelist's Nightmare

1) Write Through It

2) Try Writing Something Different

3) Try Writing By Hand

4) Take A Break

5) Change Of Scenery

6) Talk To Someone

V is for Voice #AtoZChallenge

A little about Glen Robinson

U is for Unfulfilled #AtoZChallenge

T is for Tyops #AtoZChallenge

1. Incorrect Spellings

2. Incorrect Usages

3. Incorrect Facts

Katie Anderson:

S is for Self-Publishing #AtoZChallenge

R is for Repeating "O" #AtoZChallenge

"O" is for OMG Will This Never End?

"O" is for OMG
Will This Never End?