THE MAGICAL RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE WRITER AND THEIR NOTEBOOKS #AMWRITING – Written By Lucy Mitchell

Lucy Mitchell explains why there is a magical relationship between a writer and notebooks. Thanks so much for your post, Lucy! How many people don’t understand that bond.

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This weekend will be spent clearing out my dressing table and creating a temporary work desk. As I am working from home in my day job, the teenagers are off school due to half term, my husband is also working from home and we are in the middle of a strict lockdown, I cannot spend the next two weeks working from the living room. Not only will I have to put up with pyjama clad teens wandering about in the background while I am on Zoom calls, I will also have to listen to my loved one shouting at everyone to keep the noise down from his desk.

Underneath my dressing table there are three large boxes filled with notebooks. Some of my old stories were born inside these notebooks and some still reside between the pages. I have to write this post because I think my family believe this will be the weekend I finally clear out all my boxes of notebooks.

CONTINUE READING HERE

5 things you need to know about your characters before you write your novel – Written By M. L. Davis

Thank you, M. L. Davis on the ‘Uninspired Writer’ blog, for your article about characters.

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Creating characters is one of the most exciting parts of novel writing. Getting to know your heroes, your villains, your story’s main players is a lot of fun. You’ll learn more about them as you write, at that exploration is the best way to understand them completely. But before you start writing, there are five things you need to know about them. Take a look:

Names
Starting simply, it’s very helpful to have character names before you start. I can’t pretend I’ve not written ‘NAME HERE’ for minor characters in early drafts, but with your key players it’s easier to have the names early on. Baby name books/websites are great for this, as you have unlimited options and they tend to include origins and name meanings too.

Continue Reading Here

 

How to Write a Novel Synopsis – Written By Jane Friedman

Jane Friedman provides us with information on how to write a novel synopsis. Thank you for this very educational post, Jane!

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It’s probably the single most despised document you might be asked to prepare: the synopsis.

The synopsis is sometimes necessary because an agent or publisher wants to see, from beginning to end, what happens in your story. Thus, the synopsis must convey a book’s entire narrative arc. It shows what happens and who changes, and it has to reveal the ending. Synopses may be required when you first query your work, or you may be asked for it later.

Don’t confuse the synopsis with sales copy, or the kind of marketing description that might appear on your back cover or in an Amazon description. You’re not writing a punchy piece for readers that builds excitement. It’s not an editorial about your book. Instead, it’s an industry document that helps an agent or editor quickly assess your story’s appeal and if it’s worth them reading the entire manuscript.

Continue reading HERE

How To Survive Being Married To A Writer #WritingCommunity – Written By Lucy Mitchell

Lucy Mitchell published a very helpful post on her ‘Blonde Write More’ blog. The post is mainly helpful to a writer’s better half and I think she gets a few points that not only made me smile but nodding enthusiastically. See for yourself. Thanks so much, Lucy!

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It’s not easy being married to a writer. We are strange creatures.

Here are some useful tips on how to survive being married to a writer:

1. Accept the fact that you will spend a lot of your marriage talking about people, events and locations that don’t actually exist.

2. When your writer wakes you in the small hours with an amazing new idea for their next story you need to wake up, switch on the light and let them talk it through. Moaning about what time it is, how tired you are and what you have on at work is not going to help your writer. This is a big moment for them, it’s the birth of something wonderful. Your support is needed 24-7.

3. Marital relations and their writing ‘ups and downs’ will become interlinked. When their writing is going well you can expect good times, kisses and smiles. When their writing is not going so well you can expect tension, tears and tantrums.

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Six Superb Ways To End A Novel – Written By Lorraine Ambers

Lorraine Ambers provides us with six different was to end a novel, a blog post I immediately fell in love with and decided to share. Thanks for this article, Lorraine.

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The ending of a novel needs to leave the reader satisfied and should reflect the pace and tone of the rest of the story. The truth is, endings are hard. The writer must conclude all subplots and bring clarity and resolution to the conflicts the characters face.

I’m going to share six of the most effective methods for concluding your novel.

To be continued…

This method is often used to entice the reader into continuing on with a series. So that the ending creates anticipation instead of resolution. I think this works best when the overarching plot remains and the characters continue onwards with their journey, for example, a looming war.

Warning: Conclude the subplots and character journeys set out for this particular story or the reader will feel cheated.

Continue reading HERE

Public speaking tips for writers (putting a bag over your head is not one of them..)

Graeme Cumming published a guest post on Louise Jensen’s blog. Thank you very much Graeme about your tips and tricks on public speaking.

fabricating fiction

I am a writer. I am an introverted writer. The thought of public speaking makes my skin prickle and my head swim and yet it is something writers are often expected to do, and to be honest, despite the fear, it is something I am eager to do. The chance to meet readers. To talk about my books. A couple of weeks ago, on World Book Day, I gave my first ever talk to 250 primary school children on reading, writing and following your dreams (you can read about that here.) Beforehand I was lucky enough to get some tips from my good friend and fellow author Graeme Cumming who is so adept at public speaking he belongs to a Speakers Club (for fun!!!). Thankfully I got through my own talk without fainting/vomiting/crying/all three and I’m delighted to welcome Graeme onto my blog today to share his wisdom with you. 

Getting…

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12 Things Writers Need To Pack For Their 2017 Writing Journey #SundayBlogShare #Writer #NewYear

Lucy Mitchell of Blonde Write More has published a list of things writers should pack for their 2017 writing journey. Thanks so much for the humor Lucy!

How Much Should You Spend On Self-Publishing Your Book?

Jen Owenby, Author, has provided us with an interesting infographic on how much we should/could spend on a self-published book. In particular for new authors this is so valuable! Thank you very much Jen!!

Jens Thoughts

I received an article with this information and wanted to share. Although I didn’t use Reedsy for editing and my book cover, I found I fell within most of the pricing ranges.

One thing I didn’t see on this infographic was the Q&A time with the editor. I certainly had questions as I moved through the process and the last thing I wanted was to be left hanging if my editor said, “this doesn’t work in the plot.” I’ve worked with previous editors who would make a comment and instead of being able to ask a few questions you had to make the changes, submit, and pay again. I’m not clear what Reedsy offers, but if you’re looking for an editor, it’s an important topic to ask about.

By Maryann Yin on May. 2, 2016

Until Next Time…

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The Top 50 Sites for Indie and Self-Published Authors

Jennifer Owenby shared an amazing and enormously useful list for self-published and Indie authors. Thank you so much for your support, help and efforts, Jen! You’re great!

Jens Thoughts

I stumbled across this fantastic resource and wanted to share with you. I’d love to hear any feedback.

#	URL	Category
1	KBoards – Writers’ Cafe	ALL
2	The Newbie’s Guide to Publishing	Self-Publishing
3	Amazon KDP & Author Central	Resource
4	The Passive Voice	Industry/News
5	Dean Wesley Smith	Self-Publishing
6	TerribleMinds	Writing Process
7	The Creative Penn	Self-Publishing
8	No Rules Just Write	Self-Publishing
9	Self Publishing Podcast	Self-Publishing
10	David Gaughran	Self-Publishing
11	The Book Designer	Self-Publishing
12	BookBub	Resource
13	Nook Press / PubIt	Resource
14	Goodreads	Social
15	Copyblogger	Marketing
16	Jane Friedman	Self-Publishing
17	Seth Godin	Marketing
18	Scrivener	Resource
19	TED Talks	AWESOMENESS
20	Hugh Howey	Self-Publishing
21	Lindsay Buroker	Self-Publishing
22	Writer’s Digest	Writing Process
23	The Self Publishing Team	Self-Publishing
24	Kristine Kathryn Rusch	Self-Publishing
25	KOBO	Resource
26	Digital Book World	Industry/News
27	Storyfix.com	Writing Process
28	Karen Woodward	Writing Process
29	Publisher’s…

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Ten Vital Novel Writing Tips Infographic

These are incredible writing tips. Essential and very useful.

Chris The Story Reading Ape's Blog

To see the article related to this infographic,

click on it or the link under it.

http://themarshallplan.net/tenvitalnovelwritingtips.htm

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