Category Archives: Writing Tips

Today’s Writing Tip

Posted on by

computer- copy

Writing is a skill & the only way to learn it is by doing. Like any sport, you can read and study all you want, but you won’t master it until you do it and practice, practice, practice. There are no short cuts. Some people are born with incredible talent and may need less, others may never get good enough no matter how hard they work, giving ghost writers a living.

More often than not, a talent is no more than having sufficient interest and desire to pursue a particular activity. This implies that if you want to write, you can learn to do so. Just be prepared to work hard.

Today’s Writing Tip

Posted on by

coffee- copy

Yesterday I went on a bit of a rant about book spamming. On a more positive side, engaging with your fans and other authors is your best bet for gaining sales. The personal touch makes all the difference. Selling yourself as a person is likely to sell your book(s) more effectively. Once you build a fan base and people know and love your stories, then you can start gathering some momentum, but this often starts one person at a time.

Today’s Writing Tip

Posted on by

blogging-copy

Have you ever bought a book from an author you only know via social media who privately messages you with a book ad? I haven’t. I find that almost as annoying as robocalls. While we want to be noticed, being too pushy can be a turnoff. Another annoyance IMHO are those who spam their book, often several times a day, as if repeating their message enough times will work.

When I have time to look at my Instagram or Twitter feed nothing annoys me more than seeing repeated plugs for the same book(s). I want to reply something like “Alright, alright, I saw it already!” Any interest I may have had goes up in smoke with spamming. Think about that when you’re promoting your book. Think quality as opposed to quantity.

Today’s Writing Tip

Posted on by

blank copy

Since ebooks are so popular and, in most cases, comprise the majority of your book sales, be sure to include links to your other books in the end. Including excerpts is another option. Making it easier for your readers to discover your other books and possibly sample them can help build your fan base as well as encourage sales. If they liked your story there’s a good chance they’d like to see more.

Today’s Writing Tip

Posted on by

alphabets-copy

Cliffhangers are one of those reader lures that can backfire if they’re so abrupt they annoy the reader and the sequel is not yet released. One way to mitigate this frustration is to include the first chapter or so of the sequel at the end. This is particularly easy to accomplish in an ebook. That way your reader might feel less abandoned, used, or manipulated and hopefully make it more likely they’ll buy the next one in the series.

Today’s Writing Tip

Posted on by

woman-2 copy

In most cases, it’s unnecessary to use phrases such as “he knew”, “he thought”, or “he saw” when dealing with your viewpoint character. Just dive right in and say it as it would be going through his or her head. This is something to definitely watch for during your final edit.

For example, instead of saying, “He saw that it had started to snow, covering the mountain peaks in the distance” you can simply say, “It had started to snow, covering the mountain peaks in the distance.” See how simple it is? One advantage is that this helps pull readers in, as if it’s happening to them. Saying he saw/she saw or thought or heard can act as a subtle bump out of the story. Besides, you want to eliminate unnecessary words, anyway, and this is one place to start.

Today’s Writing Tip

Posted on by

typewriter-2 copy

Many authors note that writing the book blurb and slug are as difficult as writing the book itself. I certainly agree. These are extremely important, since they introduce and hopefully lure potential readers to your story. Give it all the time necessary to do the job.

It’s a good idea to have your book blurb in several different lengths. What you include on the back cover can be fairly long. However, when you post your book on certain sales or promotional sites, they may have a word limit, sometimes as short as 100 characters! Thus, it’s handy to have them already written so when you’re in the middle of posting your book somewhere you don’t have to stop and edit it down on the fly. Thus having one ready that is full, medium, and super-short in length will save time and frustration as well as assure top quality.

Today’s Writing Tip

Posted on by

technology-3 copy

Have you ever thought of what your protagonist’s (or other characters’) favorite music genre or even favorite song might be? Think about how old s/he is and what type of music was popular when they were in their teens & early 20s.

This is particularly useful in character development since it helps define the person. For example, if someone prefers Beethoven to acid rock it clearly tells you something about them. When you’re getting to know a character yourself, listening to “their” favorite music an help you get in their zone as well. When your character comes to life it makes writing so much easier.

This is also a way for readers to relate to a character, especially if they share a favorite song with someone in your book. Just be aware that you can’t include lyrics of a song without permission, but the title works if it’s a popular song with which most of your fans are familiar.

Today’s Writing Tip

Posted on by

paper-copy

Here’s another tip for you serial writers: Don’t forget your minor characters!  You never know who might be your readers’ favorite. Believe it or not, they often get attached to supporting characters as much or more than the protagonist. Thus, if a minor character goes away, they’ll be disappointed if they disappear from subsequent stories.

Another thought is that popular minor characters make good fodder for spinoff stories, whether as a short story or another novel. When my fans told me how much they loved Thyron, the telepathic walking plant in my Star Trails Tetralogy, I wrote up his background in a short story that I give away. In addition, I eventually wrote an entire novel with him as the central character, which in the beginning I’d never thought I’d do.  However, his popularity warranted the effort.

Today’s Writing Tip

Posted on by

blogging-copy

If you’ve written a series, consider packaging them as a boxed set when it’s complete. This is a chance to revitalize it with all the push of a new release and it also eliminates the cliffhanger issue. While pricing may be a challenge since you probably won’t have much success by making it the same price as if they’d bought each one separately, they do tend to be popular, especially for those who are familiar with the story or your work.

Including bonus material is another way to lure in readers. As far as I know, none of the POD paperback suppliers make it easy to do this as an Indie writer as far as packaging. However, you can do so yourself for signing parties and book fairs.