Think

Opinion pieces offering commentary on various aspects of book culture, publishing and self-publishing.

Quick Links: Self-Publishing Success Stories: How I Do It – with John Nicholl

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Quick links, bringing you great articles on writing from all over the web.

Another success story in the world of self-publishing! Check out the interview with the bestselling author of three dark psychological thrillers, John Nicholl at the Alliance Of Independent Authors.

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Self-Publishing Success Stories: How I Do It – with John Nicholl

By This week in our series celebrating super-successful indie authors, we talk to former British police officer and child protection social worker John Nicholl, bestselling author of three dark pyschological thrillers. Read on to find out how he does it, and to be inspired for your own self-publishing career, whatever genre you write in. 

What is the secret of your success?

I sometimes think more luck than judgement!

Writing my first book, White is the Coldest Colour, was a steep learning curve. I was contacted by Sue Ward, a popular blogger, shortly after publication. She loved the book, and it progressed from there.

Within fifteen days of release, it was flying up the Amazon UK bestseller chart. Not everyone liked the book, of course, but I think that writing from real life experience contributed to its success.

I’ve been extremely fortunate in that the book blogging community has been supportive of all three books. That makes a real difference.

What was the single best thing you ever did?

I think deciding to become an independent author in the first place.

The publishing world has changed, and it’s never been easier to get your work out there. Let the public decide if your books are worth buying. Being an indie gives the author control of the entire process, and for me that’s a plus. Never say never, but I’ve chosen to remain independent up to this point despite offers from publishers, with the exception of foreign rights deals. I’m always open to offers, of course, but I think it’s a mistake to accept a deal if it’s not right for you.

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Quick Link: The blank page – conquering your fears. And a couple of writing prompts

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Quick links, bringing you great articles on writing from all over the web.

Sometimes the hardest thing to do is to start. Roz Morris at Nail Your Novel understands and has kind words to help you overcome.

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The blank page – conquering your fears. And a couple of writing prompts

By Roz Morris

Hum the theme from Rocky if you need to.

‘So you don’t find the blank page worrying?’

Creative writing teacher Jane Jones was interviewing me as part of her women writers’ summit (watch this space). Actually, we recorded it multiple times because of tech catastrophes so a lot of our discussion never got saved. (Moral: don’t use untried software. Also, Zoom helpdesk are the embodiment of patience.)

Anyway, one of Jane’s topics was how we start writing. I said I’d always felt at home talking to the page. When I was a kid, I simply loved to write – letters, stories, reactions to books I’d read. At the age of 13 I discovered science fiction fanzines and sent them articles and reviews, which I really hope have fallen into landfill. Why science fiction fanzines? Chiefly because they accepted copy from teenagers writing in their bedrooms. I was shy and awkward in real life, but in manuscript I was a right chatterbox. I could think in ways I didn’t in verbal time; be inventive, confident. The page was a welcoming place.

Which is when Jane brought up the subject of the scary blank page.

The young me, typing to the world, never had a moment’s stage fright. Because I always started with a purpose in mind.

And this is where we pinned it down. The frightening thing is not the blank page. It’s the blank mind. And I find the blank mind as paralysing as anyone.

So what can you do about it? Here are some suggestions.

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Quick Links: Embrace Your Boundaries

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Quick links, bringing you great articles on writing from all over the web.

There is something so right with Amanda Palmer and Neil Gaiman being together.  So stay happy you crazy kids. That bit of randomness was brought to you by at Writer UnBoxed and his post about setting boundaries to help your writing. Read the post and you will see what I mean.

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Embrace Your Boundaries

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Today I want to talk about how having clear boundaries can HELP you gain momentum in three key areas:

  1. Your writing and creative work
  2. Publishing and sharing
  3. Engaging an audience

Boundaries are a gift to your creative work. Embrace your boundaries. Let’s dig in…

Why Boundaries Help

I’m sure you have very real boundaries. You may care for kids, have responsibilities to loved ones, work a day job, support an ailing family member, work through bouts of anxiety, and struggle to make ends meet. These challenges are real.

It’s easy to look at others and assume that they have the following things that you don’t have at the moment: money, resources, time, physical energy, mental space, confidence, and skills.

They don’t. These other people struggle with their own unique set of boundaries. It is helpful to remember that nearly all creative work is crafted this way: amidst limitations, lack of resources, and incredible amounts of pressure.

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Quick Links: Staying Organized While You Write–and Finish–Your Book

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Quick links, bringing you great articles on writing from all over the web.

What tools do you write with? I use both MS word with track changes on and Scrivener.  At How To Plan, Write, And Develop A Book, owner Mary Carroll Moore gives her professional advice on how she stays organized while writing.

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Staying Organized While You Write–and Finish–Your Book

By Mary Carroll Moore

No matter where you are in the book-writing journey, at some point the sheer volume of material begins to overwhelm and it’s time to look carefully at how to organize yourself.

A private client recently wrote me about this.  She’s been trying to locate some “islands” (snippets of writing, or scenes) that she’d written a while back, but she couldn’t remember how she’d titled them.  They were virtually lost in the mass of material on her computer.

She asked:  “I’d appreciate your advice on how to save my islands on Word.  Should I title them? Date them? How will I handle revisions? As separate documents or just edits of the original?  Confusion reigns on this front!  Also, in your book (Your Book Starts Here), you mention saving work in files.  What are these exactly and how do I create them?”

I work in both Scrivener and Word.  I find Scrivener easiest for organizing, but I do end up using Word quite a lot for final drafts before submitting.  Here are the methods I use in each, plus some low-tech organization tools learned along the way.

Favorite Tools for Organizing Your Book-in-Progress

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Quick Links: One Way to Form Habits That Lead to Success

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Quick links, bringing you great articles on writing from all over the web.

They say it takes three months of doing something to make it stick as a habit. The esteemable Shelly Hitz has a post and a podcast that gives you more tips on how to succeed with great habits.

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One Way to Form Habits That Lead to Success

By Shelly Hitz

Do you want to form good habits that will help you reach your goals? In this training, I share with you three steps to form good habits that will lead you to success.

Good Habits are Key to Success

What we’re going to talk about now is about habits. This is on my mind because, to be honest, I have some habits that need changing. So I’ve been working on this and I’ve seen some things that are helping me. That’s why I wanted to share them with you.

As an author, there are so many ways that consistent small habits can lead you to success. It could be a habit of having a power hour every week. Or it could be working on writing your book a couple of times a week. This habit can eventually allow you to finish your book.

The small habits of doing marketing every day can lead to more sales. In fact, one of my Author Audience Academy members, Kim Steadman, was just talking in the group today. She shared about how she had been busy and stopped posting regularly on social media.

For everyone it’s different. But for her, Facebook and I think, Pinterest is her thing. She observed that when she stopped posting, her sales stopped. And she was getting consistent sales.

Then when she started posting again, she started getting sales again. There are so many small, consistent actions and habits that can lead to success. And that’s what I want to talk to you about.

Honesty is a Start

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Quick Link: 6 Attitudes of Highly Productive People

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Quick links, bringing you great articles on writing from all over the web.

Writing is hard, we all know this. And sometimes it is beyond hard. So with that in mind I have a great article from C.S. Latkin about how highly productive people manage to do what they do so well.

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6 Attitudes of Highly Productive People

 by C.S. Latkin

We’ve been exploring the power of positive thinking for a few weeks. It’s such an important topic because one of the biggest roadblocks to becoming a super-productive writer is poisonous negative thinking.

Writing for life is a hard road, with lots of curves and bumps and giant walls that suddenly appear on the horizon. if writers can’t learn to change the self-talk and transform negative thinking into productive, positive thinking, all the free time in the world won’t help a writer crank out great books.

Positive attitudes have been called “the undo effect” (Barbara Fredrickson, Positivity). They help us to quickly recover from negative emotions. When we generate a positive perspective, it helps us bounce back. And that “bouncing back” brings motivation or impetus. Which is what we need to be productive. Wallowing never got a book written.

Think of it this way: negativity is like a vise grip that squeezes and constricts our creativity. Negative emotions such as fear, anger, blame, and resentment narrow our focus in a way that obscures options.

Worry, especially, paralyzes us. We worry our books will get bad reviews. We worry that our plot is stupid. We worry that we’ll never sell a copy, so why waste all this time.

Studies were done with highly stressed students about to give speeches. In under a minute, their cardiovascular system relaxed (heart rate down, blood pressure lowered, artery constriction lightened) when these students were shown a movie clip of peaceful ocean waves and puppies frolicking. Other studies show that the more people entertain positive emotions, the quicker they can let go of negative ones.

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Quick Link: The Secret of a Successful Mystery: Making the Reader a Participator

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Quick links, bringing you great articles on writing from all over the web.

Although this article on Writers Helping Writers is geared towards the mystery genre, the wisdom that is shared really applies to all types of stories. The best reads are the ones that suck you in and won’t let you out until you find out what happens because you are rooting so desperately for the protagonist.

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The Secret of a Successful Mystery: Making the Reader a Participator

by Writing Coach

A lot of great stories have a mystery in them. The mystery may not be the primary focus; it might be the secondary, or the mystery might be so minor it lasts only a few chapters. But whatever the case, it should draw readers into your story and keep them turning the pages. That only happens, though, if it’s done right.

As an editor, I see a lot of unpublished work. One of the most common problems I see when an author includes a mystery is that the whole mystery seems to happen on the page. The author plants “clues” of course, but then focuses too much on them, making sure the reader “gets it,” or she has her character wonder for paragraphs upon paragraphs, with speculation that is often vague, uninteresting, or leads to conclusions that are far too predictable.

In cases like this, the reader becomes a spectator.

But just as emotion is more powerful when the reader experiences it himself, mysteries are more powerful when the reader is a participator.

The narrator (which in some cases is the viewpoint character) is the readers’ guide. The narrator draws focus to certain aspects of the story, and leaves others in the background. The narrator offers an emotional tone that helps the reader interpret a scene. The narrator suggests themes and ideas and judgments on the story and characters.

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Quick Link: Which Option is Better, Traditional or Self-Publishing?

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Quick links, bringing you great articles on writing from all over the web.

Jeffrey Monaghan, guest posting on Writers And Authors, shares his thoughts about tradition vs self-publishing.  Give it a read and let us know if you think traditional publishing or indie publishing is better?

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Which Option is Better, Traditional or Self-Publishing?

by Jeffrey Monaghan

The actual publishing of your novel is an exciting time. You’ve spent countless hours writing, editing, re-writing, re-editing, doubting, writing some more, feeling like you’ve written the best chapter ever, feeling like you’ve written the worst chapter ever, and on and on. But you are finally finished and are now prepared to send your novel out to the world. So what’s next?
There are really two options, traditional publishing and self-publishing. Both are good options for different reasons. I spent a lot of time looking into both and decided self-publishing was the best option for me. But it may not be for everyone. Below is an overview of what I learned so you can decide which is best for you.

Traditional Publishing

This is the way things have always been done. It’s the option we all dream of. What author doesn’t want one of the Big Five publishers buying the rights to their novel and publishing it? But to publish through a Big Five publisher, you first need a literary agent because you can’t pitch your novel directly to a publishing company. This requires you to write query letters to agents, hoping for a reply requesting a partial or full manuscript. Then you wait for them to read it and let you know if they are interested in representing you and your novel. It’s a long, time-consuming process, but a process that needs to be followed if you want to be published the traditional way.

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Quick Links: Author Blogs: 5 Bad Reasons for Authors to Blog and 5 Good Ones

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Quick links, bringing you great articles on writing from all over the web.

I LOVE this post by In my day job, you know the one that pays the bills, I develop WordPress sites for people.  I still get people who think that if they put a post or two, the world will throw money at their feet. I feel bad and I try to explain to them that a blog is like a baby. It needs constant feeding and care for many years before you see any results. Alas, there are a lot of people out there that will tell you differently. So go check out Anne R. Allen‘s post on her blog and see if you agree!

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Author Blogs: 5 Bad Reasons for Authors to Blog and 5 Good Ones

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5 Bad Reasons for Author Blogs

1) Getting Rich Quick

Nothing infuriates me more than those books and blogs promising writers they can make a gazillion dollars of “passive income” with a blog in the next month if they take this overpriced course or buy that book of rehashed advice from 2005.

The only people making a lot of “passive income” from blogging are the people selling the overpriced courses and worthless advice. Pyramid schemes always provide “passive income” for the people at the top of the pyramid. That’s not going to be you at this point. The boom is over.

Blogging is work. Writing is work. There’s nothing “passive” about it. Anybody who tells you otherwise is lying.

I used to subscribe to a couple of hype-y “how-to-blog” blogs, but I had to unsubscribe because these people are getting so desperate. One blogger now sends an email 15 minutes after you click through to read his post saying, “You’ve had enough time to read my post. Now share it to Facebook.”

Creepy!! I’d just shared his post to Twitter, but I deleted the Tweet and unsubscribed. You’re not the boss of me, dude. And I’m not responsible for your bad life choices. If you really were making the fortune you claimed to be making a decade ago, why didn’t you invest it?

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If you liked this article, please share. If you have suggestions for further articles, articles you would like to submit, or just general comments, please contact me at paula@publetariat.com or leave a message below.

Quick Links: Self-Publishing Success Stories: How I Do It – with Joseph Alexander

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Quick links, bringing you great articles on writing from all over the web.

It is always nice to see how other people are managing their success and maybe getting a tip or two for your own success. At the Alliance of Independent Authors, guest author Joseph Alexander shares his thoughts on how he has been successful as an indie author.

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Self-Publishing Success Stories: How I Do It – with Joseph Alexander

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This week in our series celebrating super-successful indie authors, we talk to guitarist Joseph Alexander who has established the terrific Fundamental Changes series of non-fiction books about playing guitar, though a non-stop, single-minded focus on his goals, collaboration with other musicians and an enviable email list of over 25,000. Read on to find out how he does it, and to be inspired for your own self-publishing career, whatever genre you write in. He also shares great advice for those who run small indie imprints publishing other authors’ work.

What is the secret of your success?

I wish I knew! I guess it’s constant output. I’ve written 30 books about playing guitar myself and published about 15 more by some other very talented musicians. For the last four years I’ve been working about fourteen hours a day and making sure that everything I write is to the highest possible standard. I try to go above and beyond every guitar guide out there. I add as much value as I can and cram in a huge amount of freebies, such as audio downloads and videos. These downloads help me to grow my email list.

To be honest, having a 25,000+ email list helps tremendously as all out email marketing is automated now.

This results in a constant trickle of sales across all titles and helps to keep my books at the top of the best sellers lists.

What was the single best thing you ever did?

Can I pick three things?

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Quick Links: How to Cope with Anxiety and Overwhelm using Fractals by Nina Harrington

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Quick links, bringing you great articles on writing from all over the web.

There are a lot of tasks that can become overwhelming, not just with writing.  But it is like the old saying “How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time.”  By focusing on the first bite, then the next bite before you know the elephant is gone. Nina Harrington from Romance University deals with anxiety-inducing tasks by breaking them down into fractals.

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How to Cope with Anxiety and Overwhelm using Fractals by Nina Harrington

Betcha thought we’d lost our marbles. Fractals? Romance writing? Carrie, you’ve gone over the deep end! Hang on, before you send me to the rubber room read Nina Harrington‘s post first!

Imagine that you are building up the courage to submit your romance novel to a literary agent.

This is your first full length novel and until now the only people to have read it are your two pals who agreed to be beta-readers.

Suddenly the whole submission process spins into overwhelm and takes over your life.

You had no idea that you would feel physically sick with emotional turmoil at the thought that someone else is going to judge this book you have slaved over and cared about for years.

What if it is rejected? What if they ask for a full manuscript? And how long will you have to wait for a reply?

This is driving you crazy! Submitting this book has been on your New Year resolution list for two years running. You have rewritten the text through two NaNoWriMo sessions, edited the third draft and incorporated the feedback from all of your pals.

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No Post Today

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Sorry, no post today. I had to put my 17-year-old blind kitty down for kidney failure and I just can’t. I will be back on Monday. Thank you for your understanding.

 

Paula

Quick Link: This is Why Authors Shouldn’t Do it All

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Quick links, bringing you great articles on writing from all over the web.

There are people out there who say you can self-publish an ebook for free. And it is true you can. But if you want anyone to actually read your book you have to compete against a lot of other titles, and they will have taken the time to hire professionals. It doesn’t matter how good your story is, or how important your information is. No one will read it if it isn’t professionally done. Just because you can make a cover in MS Paint doesn’t mean you should. Please don’t.  During my day job, I see a lot of books and I can tell instantly which ones did their own cover, and they don’t sell. Margery Walshaw posting at Bad Redhead Media has a great post on all the different experts you will need and why it is a good idea to use them. 

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This is Why Authors Shouldn’t Do it All by guest @evatopialit

By Margery Walshaw

What’s better? To be a jack of all trades or to specialize in a particular skill? Naturally, there are arguments for either choice depending upon the circumstance. Let’s say you’re an athlete and have suffered torn cartilage in your knee; you’ll want to consult with an orthopedic surgeon. After all, they’re experts at what they do. So why is it as authors, we don’t seek out experts? Why do so many of us try to do it all?

Assuming that the writing is in place, let’s examine all of the jobs or tasks that are required to bring a book to market.

Publishing Requires Juggling  

  • Editing/Proofreading
  • Cover Art
  • Digital and Paperback Formatting
  • ISBN Registration
  • Synopsis Writing
  • Keyword and Category Research
  • Distribution / File Uploading
  • Marketing and Public Relations
  • Social Media

Phew…what a list! Considering that today’s reader has an abundance of choices available to them, it makes sense to give your audience what they crave….more books! Many authors have learned that one of the secrets to building a loyal fanbase is to release their books in rapid succession. Some debate the pros and cons of doing this with a series versus a standalone novel.

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Quick Link – The Aspiring Writer: Impostor Syndrome

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Quick links, bringing you great articles on writing from all over the web.

What makes someone a “writer”? Do you sometimes feel like a fake and are just waiting for people to notice? J.F. Gibson has a great piece about dealing with imposter syndrome as a writer. Check it out! You will feel better!

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The Aspiring Writer: Impostor Syndrome

Impostor syndrome isn’t a new concept, it’s something most people will encounter during their life. For a writer, impostor syndrome manifests itself in our psyche, laying a veil of self-doubt over our thoughts and actions. We continually feel our writing is inadequate and rubbish, and that nothing we write will be good enough. Ever.

In severe cases, impostor syndrome will cause writer’s block that will make you cry with frustration, causing your creativity to disappear when you need it most. In the worst of cases, some writers even stop writing.

So how do you deal with impostor syndrome? How do you get past the feelings of feeling like a fraud and a phony who will be soon found out, embarrassed and publicly shamed?

Call yourself a writer, and believe it

The first hurdle is actually believing you are worthy of calling yourself a writer. The impostor syndrome loves this stage, citing phrases in the back of our minds such as:

‘You have the audacity and arrogance to call yourself a ‘writer’?’

‘What have you ever achieved to warrant the title ‘writer’?

The truth is, it’s pretty simple: if you write, you are a writer. Are you a successful writer? Are you a published writer? Well, maybe not yet, but you are still, by definition a writer. So own it.

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Quick Links: Ultimate Guide: Structural Editing For Your Novel

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Can you over edit a manuscript? I mean I am sure it is possible but most of the time the problem is not enough editing, and not enough of the right kind of editing. Author Helen Scheuerer from Writer’s Edit helps with the ultimate guide for structural editing.

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Ultimate Guide: Structural Editing For Your Novel

If you’re an author who has finished a manuscript, chances are, you may have seen the term ‘structural edit’ floating around. Perhaps you’ve even been told to have an editor look over your book for ‘structural’ issues.

In this extensive guide, we’ll take you through: what is a structural edit, why your book needs one, and what you can do yourself to identify and address structural issues in your fiction.

What is a structural (or developmental) edit?

It may come as a surprise to those of you who are new to the industry, but there are actually three different types of editing: structural (or developmental) editing, copy editing (also sometimes called line editing), and proofreading.

In this article, our focus will be the structural edit.

The structural edit is the process that comes first, after a manuscript is completed. It involves looking at the ‘big picture’ elements of the narrative and characters, and examining which of these elements are working and which could be improved, cut or changed altogether.

A structural edit focuses on literary devices such as:

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