Lisa Betz is a writer, blogger, and occasional director who lives in an empty nest perched on a wooded Pennsylvania hillside. She loves to bring characters to life, both on stage and on the page.
Writers Chat, hosted by Jean Wise, Johnnie Alexander, and Brandy Brow, is the show where we talk about all things writing, by writers and for writers!
“Because talking about writing is more fun than actually doing it.“
Pinterest Jam with Patricia Tiffany Morris
Are you active on social media, like Pinterest? Whether you’re writer or a creative who is looking to increase your visibility and drive people to your website or other social mediums, then this is the episode for you. Patricia shares the basics of setting up a Pinterest account and how to use the same color schemes as your other social media platforms. If you’ve been unsure about how this platform works, Patricia breaks it down and brings clear instruction with her step-by-step presentation. Be sure to catch the replay for more great information.
Watch the July 20th replay.
Patricia Tiffany Morris sketches ideas while she sleeps, that is, when she sleeps. She encourages others to hope in Christ. An eclectic creative with a geeky-tech affinity and a poet with three names, Patricia adores Pinterest and hashtags, but finds Twitter quirky. She owns Tiffany Inks Studio LLC, publisher of Journaling Scribbles. TISLLC provides troubleshooting and artwork services for writers. You can connect with Patricia on social media or at www.patriciatiffanymorris.com
Strategies Every Writer Should Know to Create Short Videos on Reel & Tik Tok
Bethany Jett joins this episode of Writers Chat to share basic information on using Instagram Reels and Tik Tok for short videos, which engage viewers with entertaining and/or pertinent information on all kinds of topics. Writers can create content to build their brands and increase their name awareness using strategies presented by Bethany. We talk about the basics of beginning an account and about ways to grow our outreach on these platforms.
Watch the July 27th replay.
Bethany Jett is a multi-award-winning author, a ghostwriter, and marketer who received the Distinguished Scholar award for earning the top GPA in her Masters Program, where she focused on Communications: marketing and PR. Bethany co-owns Serious Writer and Platinum Literary Services and loves everything about the publishing industry…except the rejections! She is a military wife to her college sweetheart and a work-from-home momma-of-boys who loves planners, suspense novels, and all things girly. You can connect with Bethany on social media or at www.bethanyjett.com
Writers Chat is hosted live each Tuesday for an hour starting at 10 AM CT / 11 AM ET on Zoom. The permanent Zoom room link.
As much fun building characters in a fiction story is, the process is equally challenging. Trying to create memorable characters who incite a heartfelt connection with readers requires quite a bit of work. But you can start by developing them with emotional intelligence, also known as EQ.
You want your characters to have an authentic balance of emotional intelligence so their impact on your readers is lasting. Additionally, if your readers can resonate with your characters’ internal struggle and growth, they’ll be more inclined to finish the entire story.
So, let’s briefly define what emotional intelligence is and then explore three ways to incorporate it into your character development to create emotionally sound characters.
What is Emotional Intelligence?
Emotional intelligence is defined as “the ability to understand, use, and manage your own emotions in positive ways to relieve stress, communicate effectively, empathize with others, overcome challenges and defuse conflict.”
In terms of character development, this means you want to show your character’s understanding of their own emotions. Show how they use them in different circumstances and manage them in stressful times when they need to communicate effectively, overcome obstacles, and form relationships with others.
With this definition of emotional intelligence in mind, here are three ways to create emotionally intelligent characters in your fiction stories.
Three Ways to Create Emotionally Intelligent Characters
Defining emotional intelligence is just the beginning of creating emotionally intelligent characters. You want to ensure you’re striking the right balance of emotional intelligence in your characters to paint an authentic picture of who they are. Here are a few ways to help you do just that.
Work on your EQ
Creating emotionally intelligent characters who provoke genuine emotion and connection from your readers is a bit easier when you understand your EQ. An emotionally intelligent writer has gone through some of the things their character is going to go through. And that can be used to write better characters.
So, work on your EQ. Your characters can mirror the general flow of your emotional journey to make them that much more realistic.
Draw on real-life experiences
As you work on your emotional intelligence, you’ll likely learn how to be better from your involvement in other people’s journeys to a high level of emotional intelligence. And these encounters should be leveraged to create solid characters. One of the best ways to develop emotionally intelligent characters is to draw on real-life experiences.
For example, let’s say you have or are currently dating someone with depression or anxiety. Think about the nights of researching their disorder, the difficult discussions you had to have with them, how you overcame their attempts to push you away and self-isolate, or how you improved your communication to support their healing. If you’re creating a character living with either of these disorders themselves or in relation with someone who is, draw from your own emotional experiences.
Ultimately, considering how you navigated similar circumstances that your characters are going through will help you develop them with a realistic balance of emotional intelligence. Also, the genre you’re writing can help shape the emotional intelligence of your characters.
Consider what EQ looks like in different genres of fiction
To determine the right EQ for your characters, you’ll want to consider the genre of fiction you’re writing in. Your characters’ emotional intelligence journey should make sense not only for the character but for your chosen genre as well.
For example, let’s say you’re developing a character for a comic book. You decide the stories will involve fighting crime, and therefore, the comic will be placed in the action/adventure genre. The question becomes, what does the emotional intelligence of a comic book character in the action/adventure genre look like? If their goal is to fight crime effectively, what is their motive for doing so? Were they bullied as a kid? Was a family member the victim of a high-profile crime?
Ultimately, your character’s level of emotional intelligence and how it develops in the story, and the pace at which it does, should be informed by the genre they’re in.
Conclusion
Creating emotionally intelligent characters will make your story stand out among the many fiction pieces out there. Develop these characters by working on your personal EQ, using real-life experiences to inform your character creation, and considering what EQ looks like in your chosen genre.
Amanda Winstead is a writer from the Portland area with a background in communications and a passion for dynamic content. Along with writing she enjoys traveling, reading, working out, and going to concerts. If you want to follow her writing journey, or even just say hi you can find her on Twitter.
As I was editing my latest WIP, I ran across several instances where my plot followed one character on a busy day while entirely ignoring another one. This is a problem, since these are not characters who will sit idly at home for a day waiting for their chance to do something!
Once I discovered my mistake, I had to rethink my timeline and revise several scenes in order to give the characters a plausible activity to keep them occupied.
What did this teach me? That it’s easy to lose track of off-screen characters.
And losing track of characters can come back to haunt you. Intelligent readers may notice that you haven’t mentioned what Mrs. X or Villain Y are up to, and make (possibly incorrect) assumptions about why you aren’t mentioning them, which may lead to later confusion.
Or even worse, you suddenly realize that you have a minor character showing up in two different places at the same time. Oops.
Fortunately, there’s simple solution for this problem.
Create a comprehensive timeline
I write mysteries, so timing is critical. But whatever your genre, you need some way to keep track of what happens when.
The wise author creates a timeline to keep track of when each scene occurs. I’ve created timelines for all my novels, but what I’ve been doing isn’t enough. I was only keeping track of the characters who were in the scenes.
What I will be doing from now on is also keeping track of what the other characters are up to each day.
This doesn’t mean I need to invent stories for what every character is doing every day. But I will keep track of where I left each character. And that will help me spot gaps when I’ve been ignoring them, or when I forget to move them from one place to another.
Benefits of a comprehensive timeline
A one-stop resource to keep track of who is where when and what they’re up to
Highlights when you have too much or too little happening on a specific day. Or when you have a long time span between scenes.
Highlights when you’ve ignored a character for too long
Points out gaps in the plot when you’ve forgotten to give a major character something to do.
Forces you to pay attention to what the bad guys are doing while the good guys are busy trying to track them down.
Helps keep track of where minor characters are and what errand you last sent them on.
How to make a timeline
How you create the timeline is up to you. You don’t need to make it “to scale” with an even amount of space for each day. When things are happening rapidly, you might need increments smaller than a day. Or you might jump five years between scenes. Do whatever makes sense for your plot.
Here are some suggestions for different mediums you might use:
Find a large space like the dining room table and use sticky notes. When you’re finished, take photos.
Use fine-tipped dry erase pens to write everything on a large white board, window, or a full-length mirror. (True story: My son used the mirror on the door of his dorm room to study for tests. It works like a dry erase board.)
Tape notebook paper together until you have enough room to write in all the info. (Or use a roll of craft paper.)
Create a spreadsheet.
Create a table in your word processor. This is what I’ve done in the past. Like a spreadsheet, it can be color-coded to keep track of POV or whatever.
Whatever medium you use, here are some suggested types of information you may want to include:
Day. You can use calendar dates if you like. I keep track of days elapsed, with Day One being the start of the novel. If important events happen just before the novel opens, you might want to begin numbering there instead.
Time of day. If a lot happens in a short amount of time, you might need to keep track of the hour, or even the minute. (I know from personal experience that it’s easy to write scenes from two different POVs that were supposed to intertwine, but didn’t because I wasn’t keeping careful track of the minutes.)
Plot. A brief description of each scene. Just enough so you remember what’s going on
Setting. Keeping track of the specific room or area can help you notice if you’re overusing certain ones.
Key information revealed in the scene
Current theory or goal. In a mystery, the MC’s theory about the crime changes as she learns new information. It’s helpful to keep track of who she thinks is guilty as the plot progresses.
Where off-screen characters are and what they’re doing. You may want to make several columns to keep track of different types of characters, such as villains, suspects, servants, rivals, etc.
Important plot structure points such as inciting incident or point of no return.
This may sound like a lot of work, but it’s time well spent. When I’m editing my WIP, I frequently refer back to my timeline to check details, particularly how long ago something happened. My timeline also serves as a brief scene list that I can use to revise and rearrange the action.
Do you create a timeline for your novels? What tools help you stay on track with your story?
Lisa E. Betz worked as an engineer, substitute teacher, and play director before becoming an award-winning mystery writer. She brings her analytical mind, quirky humor, and positive outlook to all she writes. She draws inspiration from thirty-five years of leading Bible studies to create entertaining mysteries set in the world of the early church, and then she fills that world with eccentric characters, independent females, and an occasional sausage-snatching cat. Her first novel, Death and a Crocodile, garnered a gold medal in the Illumination Book Awards.
Why do you write? Do you have a theme, message, or goal for your books?
I write because I can’t not write. I’ve long been an avid reader and recorder of ideas, but writing for a Christian commercial audience had not occurred to me until 2012. I discovered a topic in an area which God had blessed me, while many others struggled. As a long time business and life coach as well as a leadership development professional, I believed I could meet a need by sharing what God had shown me.
How long have you been writing?
Since 2012
Tell us about one of your greatest joys in your writing career.
When my box of books was delivered by the publisher for my first book. I could hold the evidence of the work as well as God’s blessing in my hand.
Tell us about one of your darkest moments in your writing career.
Struggling to envision what was next after the first three books were published. I’d had vision and clarity for each of them. Once that was complete, I knew God wanted me to continue, and yet I had no clear direction. It meant motivation was in in short supply.
Rejection is a common experience for writers. How do you overcome rejection? How has rejection shaped you or your career?
I had 14 rejections on my first book before the “yes” came. My agent helped me understand two important things:
Rejection is a chance to gain insight into what must be shaped or changed to make the work better. “No thanks” can be a gift if you are willing to see it as an opportunity to learn. Perhaps the pitch needed to be strengthened. Or the proposal more thorough.
Ask for feedback, seek out critiques, and be open to learning.
In what ways has God led you to mentor other writers? Were you surprised when a certain skill or connection led to mentoring opportunities?
I’ve been a business and life coach for years. Mentoring / coaching writers has been a natural transition. I had so many experienced and talented writers who poured into me when I was starting out. I’m grateful beyond words and love paying it forward. You can’t outgive God.
Tell us about a facet of mentoring that particularly excites you.
I love to watch the lightbulbs go on. I solicited 22 not yet published writers to be part of a compilation book organized around a specific theme. I loved educating them. I edited their work and coached every writer. It was exhausting, but I’d do it again in a heartbeat. They now have the knowledge, enhanced skills, and confidence- along with a soon to release publishing credit – they did not have prior. Release is scheduled for late July 2021.
What venues/methods have you found most effective for meeting and mentoring writers?
I’ve taught at conferences – both large and small. I’ve participated in online conferences as well. I’ve build a writing group in North Texas and I’ve mentored authors in every genre from non-fiction to dystopian in one on one coaching sessions.
Have you organized or led groups to support writers? How has that experience helped you to mentor writers?
Living Write Texas is the name of the writing group I founded three years ago. We keep our group small to support trust for critiques and genuine investment in the success of the group members. I was the only published author in the group when we began. Today seven are published. Five have received a variety of awards from the BRMCWC Selahs to AWSA’s Golden Scrolls.
Have you organized or directed a writers’ conference? Tell us about that experience, and/or share an anecdote that illustrates how you saw writers being mentored and encouraged through the event.
As mentioned above, I’ve organized a couple of writers’ conferences. One for a group located in another state that lacked local learning opportunities. In the other I created the content for the annual AWSA (Advanced Writers and Speakers Association) conference for their protégé program for new writers. Regardless of the gap between the abilities in these two disparate groups, the outcomes were similar.
These programs created quick connection and the openness of attendees. We created a positive environment to learn in a safe place. A thorough but supportive style of critique was presented to them as to how we’d support one another’s growth. When the guard is down, the willingness to hear helpful and appropriately delivered insight about their work was simple and quickly embraced.
If you speak at writers’ groups or conferences, what are some of your favorite topics to speak about?
Writing well / craft essentials. Nothing is more important. Great ideas, poorly written will remain on the aspiring author’s hard drive alone. And it’s a huge category.
Mind Mapping. If you don’t know where you’re going, any path will do. But it won’t lead to publication. Whether it’s fiction or non-fiction, publishers want books that may have surprise twists and turns for the reader. But the writer must always be the guide that leads them through the story.
One Sheet Design and the essentials of the proposal process. The nuts and bolts of the stuff nobody loves.
Confidence Boosters. Many write well but struggle to represent their work effectively when speaking with agents, editors, and publishers.
What advice do you have for writers as we interact with our peers? What can we do to be better supporters and mentors of our fellow writers?
Comparison is a thief; resist the urge to engage in it with other writers. Resist the urge to let the good work of others diminish, discourage, or derail you from continuing to write. Turn that “I’ll never be as good as he/she is. Who am I kidding? I can’t write” response into: “Wow I’ve found a great resource who might help me with a suggestion, a resource, or simple encouragement. Gold mine!”
Taking that critique partner down a peg. Offering a less than positive (or less than truthful) comment or critique is small, petty. Be honest and offer suggestions, resources, brainstorming time. And it won’t make you feel better about your own.
Do you have a favorite resource or two that you recommend to beginning writers?
The Christian Writers’ Market Guide – if they are writing in that world.
Local writing groups or national organizations like AWSA, Word Weavers, or others. Great opportunity to find a one-on-one coach or mentor.
Do you have a favorite resource or two that you recommend to writers who are struggling with discouragement?
For those who write from a faith basis, the Bible.
One-on-One personalized work with a coach. Full focus on the writer’s individual needs.
Groups like those identified above.
What are common mistakes you see aspiring writer’s make?
Inattention to the details – failing to proofread, dismissing the need for learn to self-edit. “The editor will fix those details. That’s their job.”
Closed to feedback.
Focus on the writing alone with little interest in learning to market, build platform, etc.
What advice can you give aspiring writers that you wished you had gotten, or that you wished you would have heeded?
I have to admit that once I made the decision to write, I read voraciously on the craft and business side both. I searched for online resources and engaged a coach. I took online courses and found a writer’s group. I didn’t ignore a single avenue of learning. However, some of those avenues were superior to others, and some a waste of time and $$ altogether. I do wish I hadn’t tried to take in so much at once. Learn how to write well. Without that, nothing else matters.
Deborah DeArmond is a recognized leader in the fields of performance development, facilitation, and executive coaching. She is also an award-winning author.
She is the author of Related by Chance, Family by Choice, I Choose You Today, and Don’t Go to Bed Angry. Stay Up and Fight! All three books focus on relationship dynamics, communication, and conflict resolution. She has published more than 200 articles in print and online, including a monthly column in Lifeway Magazine with an international circulation of 300,000.
Deb helps clients achieve success in becoming the coach others desire to work through through her engaging inquiry, humor, and straightforward approach. Her clients have described Deb as “candid but kind” and skilled at asking the questions that help “guide others to discover their answers and solutions to success.”
Deb’s education is in the field of communications, California State Polytechnic University
Deb holds numerous professional certifications as a master facilitator/trainer including: Conflict Resolution from the Center for Collaborative Solutions, Development Dimensions International, Situational Leadership, and several style/personality profile assessments including Strengths Finders and DiSC. Deb also holds a coaching certification for authors/speaker from AWSA – Advanced Writers and Speakers Association.
Writers Chat, hosted by Jean Wise, Johnnie Alexander, and Brandy Bow, is the show where we talk about all things writing, by writers and for writers!
“Because talking about writing is more fun than actually doing it.”
WordPress Tour and Demonstration with Rhonda Dragomir
Creating a website can be challenging, but Rhonda’s tour, tips, and ideas make it easier. In today’s episode she demonstrates how to create a web page using a versatile theme and different plug-ins. Rhonda also shares the importance of page colors (hex codes), fonts, and images. For more information check out this week’s replay.
Watch the July 6th replay.
Rhonda Dragomir, website designer extraordinaire, is a multimedia creative who treasures her fairy tale life in Central Kentucky, insisting her home is her castle, even if her prince refuses to dig a moat. She has published works in several anthologies and periodicals, along with numerous Bible studies used weekly by more than 10,000 women around the world. You can connect with Rhonda on social media or at rhondadragomir.com.
Conquering Query Letters with Tracy Crump
You’ve written a riveting article or come up with a fascinating idea for a book. You’ve identified which market will be the perfect fit for your writing. Now all you have to do is convince a busy editor who receives thousands of submissions every month to publish your work. Tracy Crump, demonstrates how you can master the art of writing a one-page query letter that will get editors’ attention and persuade them to publish your projects.
Watch the July 13th replay.
Bio
Tracy Crump, author, editor, and speaker has more than a hundred published pieces and leads workshops at writer’s conferences. Her passion for the written word led her to help other writers improve their craft and is co-founder the Write Life Workshops, where she conduct workshops and webinars. You can connect with Tracy on social media or at www.tracycrump.com.
The foundation of today’s marketing campaign for brands is content marketing. The kinds of content that can effectively reach the target audience online include emails, case studies, infographics, white papers, articles, and blog posts.
Blogs account for a large portion of content used on digital marketing today because they are relatively affordable. Using content for sustainable content marketing success is viable as long as you use the right approach. This article highlights processes and steps that can guarantee marketing success.
Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
Blog marketing is built on SEO and so to attract the audience, you need to create informative and SEO-optimized blogs. One of the ways to achieve this is by having killer blog intros that can prompt the audience to read and minimize bounce rates. SEO is a way of boosting the volume and quality of your web traffic.
An effective process and area to boost SEO include the keyword usage of the blog content. Keyword usage offers a system of allowing blog content writers to include particular relevant words in the blog posts. Since the keywords are relevant to the blog topics, it will be easier for the readers to find the posts by simply conducting an internet search.
SEO is sustainable because it is an effective kind of digital marketing that increases traffic and promotes brand awareness. The ability of SEO to yield tangible results is what makes it an ideal digital marketing strategy. There is also an increased demand for SEO as many brands are appreciating its value.
One of the brands that have successfully used SEO is Etsy. Etsy has focused on creating a strong content strategy to drive organic traffic to its site. The company’s marketplace for dealing with hand-made goods is known for its content and it lures people to keep on coming back.
Set clear goals
Goal setting is an important aspect of any project. It is important to define your direction and track progress as you move towards goal achievement. Have a specific and measurable target when designing and implementing a blog content strategy.
Avoid value goals such as wanting to make sales but instead specify how much your sales target is. Having specific content marketing goals can allow you to plan well and increase the chances of success.
Your content marketing goals could be to boost brand awareness and web traffic, grow your email list, get more followers on social media, or boost conversion rates.
Your value as a marketer is gauged on results and not productivity or activities. For your content marketing initiatives to be meaningful, they should be in line with the measurable business objectives.
Aligning content marketing goals with business goals entails talking to relevant executives to clarify the goals. When you know what your business is set to achieve, it will be easier to plan for content that can facilitate the achievement of those goals.
Wistia, a professional video hosting provider, has been successful in creating marketing content.
The company embarked on a campaign aimed at driving quality leads to its site. They used a TV series referred to as the Brandwagon with humorous content to provide insights into the brand growth.
Know the target audience
The purpose of content marketing is to gather leads and make them long-term buyers. To achieve this, you need to understand the buyer persona well. Developing and identifying a buyer persona offers the benefits of lead identification, exceptional brand experience, good customer segmentation, and cross-marketing alignment.
Creating a buyer persona entails getting data from the existing customers and gathering the persona data based on research. It also requires aligning the buyer’s personal data with the appropriate marketing approaches. Knowing your target audience is a big step to creating a blog strategy that can lead to continuous lead generation and conversion.
Initially, MySpace directed its marketing efforts to every person who desired to be connected on Facebook. After Facebook offered a useful and robust tool for reaching the target audience, MySpace created a better strategy by starting with the target buyer persona and started focusing on the most ideal persona; the musicians. MySpace got a reprieve after the musicians started posting songs on MySpace.
Publish premium posts only
A well-planned blogging strategy may not guarantee content marketing success. You need to regularly create and publish quality articles. Readers are interested in educational, stylish, and informative articles all the time. Extremely short blogs may not impress an online audience and so you need to publish comprehensive content with well-analyzed topics.
Try to enrich the blog posts with alternative formats like animations, images, GIFs, and more. This is a good approach because people are more attracted to content backed by visual elements. Visuals enable the audiences to enjoy modern content experiences because the blogs are well-structured to boost readability.
Deciding on an appropriate way to deliver valuable content to your target audience should be a top priority. Brainstorm the various ways to add value to the readers and don’t be discouraged if you are not professionally trained in a given niche. The kind of content that is likely to be more attractive to the audience depends on the unique characteristics of that audience.
Instead of identifying the audience by general demographics such as income, gender and age, you could focus on how knowledgeable the audience is in a topic. HubSpot has strongly leveraged the quality of content for its blogs.
The company has built an excellent customer journey to help convert prospects into buyers as soon as they are ready. HubSpot uses a variety of funnels to create blog articles for broad and attractive topics. After every post, they have CTA to test their free software and this attracts readers to collect emails with popups.
Promote your content
Famous and influential blogs regularly promote their content to maintain some level of popularity. Explore various ways of promoting your content online, such as sending new content digests and posts to subscribers’ emails.
Since social media boasts millions of daily users, it is one of the most effective tools for content promotion. Add icons for social sharing to your posts to encourage the readers to share the posts on their accounts.
Another promotion tactic is to create guest posts for other websites. By doing so, you will attract a new audience and encourage people to follow your blog. Q/A websites can also be great blog promotion platforms to boost online authority and place you as an industry leader. Promoting content is important in the following ways:
It is a way of attracting new clients and increasing web traffic
Promoting a blog can build your brand reputation in a particular niche
It can help you to advertise more effectively in a modern business environment
It boosts your trustworthiness in the eyes of clients
Promoting a blog can help to maintain a marketing strategy and create well-structured content.
Boohoo Group has managed to thrive amid the coronavirus pandemic. One of the factors that have led to the company’s success is the social media strategy. Boohoo Group has been promoting its content on social media using the influencer marketing strategy. The influencer endorsements have helped the brand to reach out to the young audience on Instagram, where it has many followers.
Conclusion
Developing a blog strategy for sustainable marketing success should be a priority for every digital marketer. Blog content can yield positive results for your brand if you follow the above processes and guidelines. You need to be persistent and patient to see the results of your content marketing efforts, including conversions.
About the author:
Tiffany Harper is a training guru who’s been working in the corporate sector as the technology expert for several years now. She is a management graduate and loves to share her experience through blogs and expert articles. For her love of writing, she provided online consultations for the dissertation writing service department, while working with EssayMama. Please do not hesitate to contact her onLinkedIn.
My most recent book for children is Grumpy the Gator. I wrote this book as a follow up to my other book for children, Licky the Lizard. In Grumpy the Gator, we are reminded to stay away from gators. If a gator is seen, please tell an adult.
Why do you write? Do you have a theme, message, or goal for your books?
I write inspirational messages sometimes laced with humor. I love sharing the message of God’s love and glory. In each book, article, devotion, blog post, and more…I hope the reader will draw closer to God. Our family motto is “It’s Always A Story With The Hendersons”, because something funny is always happening to us. God gives us many opportunities to find joy in the simple things in life.
How long have you been writing?
I have been writing since I was a young girl. I’m sixty years old now, and love reading and writing more every day. The love of reading and writing was given to me by my parents. As a young girl, my parents often took me to the local library or the local bookmobile. I was never good at math skills, but, always excelled in writing and reading.
And how long did it take you to get your first major book contract? Or are you published non-traditionally? How did that come about?
I wrote my first book in about four months and published that book through a local company. I chose a non-traditional route for Grumpy the Gator and Licky the Lizard because I wanted to have the books published as soon as possible for our first grand child. Now, there are two grandchildren. I plan to write more stories for children.
Which of your books is your favorite?
Both of my books for children are my favorites. Licky the Lizard and Grumpy the Gator are great stories for children. The stories are wonderful to read together or to read alone. Grandparents often purchase the books to give as gifts.
Do you have a favorite character or scene in one of your books?
One of my favorite scenes in Grumpy the Gator is when the children see the alligator and decide to name it “Grumpy”. In Licky the Lizard, one of my favorite scenes is when the lady sees the lizard and her hair stands straight up in the air because she is afraid.
Tell us about an award you won that was particularly meaningful.
I won the 2019 “Wright Medal” 3rd place for Licky the Lizard. That was my first award and was very meaningful.
How long does it take you to write a book?
Each story is different. Since I write a ton of articles, devotions, blog posts, etc. for online and in print magazines and sites, every piece of writing takes a different amount of time. As for books, each one is different. I pray before writing. I have a note taped to my computer that says “PRAY FIRST”.
What’s your writing work schedule like?
I write everyday. Pray and then, write. Sometimes, my writing is all day and other times, for only a short period of time.
Do you have an interesting writing quirk? If so, what is it?
My writing quirk is that my computer is next to a window, which allows me to enjoy God’s creations as I write. I’ve been known to talk to the hummingbirds as they drink from the feeder.
What has been your greatest joy(s) in your writing career?
One of my greatest joys in my writing career is to have two books published for our grandchildren. I want Rowan and Eden to know the love of reading and writing.
Could you tell us about a dark moment in your writing career?
I have learned that dark moments in my writing journey will come if I don’t go to God first. When I try to write for myself and not include Him, the words won’t come. When I pray and ask God to help me share words He wants me to share, I feel at peace.
How many times in your career have you experienced rejection? How did they shape you? W
Writers must learn to handle rejection. Some of our writing will be published and other pieces will not. I believe there is a purpose for each word we write. We may not know how our writing affects another person. Yet, even with rejections, we have the opportunity to grow as a writer and to share a powerful message.
Where do you get your ideas?
Most of my ideas come from everyday experiences. God gives plenty of opportunity for laughter in my life. I’m glad to be able to laugh at myself and the silly things that happen.
Who is your favorite author to read?
I can’t name just one. If I tried to name all my favorites we would be here all day and night.
What advice can you give aspiring writers that you wished you had gotten, or that you wished you would have heeded?
As for advice, I encourage all writers to join a writing group, if possible. The fellowship and knowledge to glean from being a part of a writers group is amazing. Also, attend writers conferences, whether in person or virtual. Remember that writers, editors, and publishers are people, too. They want you to succeed and will encourage you along the way.
What are common mistakes you see aspiring writers make?
One common mistake aspiring writers make is being too hard on themselves. Let the love of writing flow. Don’t accept the word “failure”. If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again.
Where/How do you recommend writers try to break into the market?
One way to break into the market is by making connections at conferences, online, writers groups, and social media. When you make a contact, follow up quickly. Send an email. Jot a note and send via snail mail, if possible. Keep your name out there in the writing world. Encourage and support other writers.
Award winning author Melissa Henderson writes inspirational messages laced with a bit of humor. With stories in books, magazines, devotionals and more, Melissa hopes to encourage readers. Melissa is the author of Licky the Lizard and Grumpy the Gator. Her passions are helping in community and church. Melissa is an Elder, Deacon and Stephen Minister. Follow Melissa on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and her website melissaghenderson.com
Writers Chat, hosted by Jean Wise, Johnnie Alexander, and Brandy Brow, is the show where we talk about all things writing, by writers and for writers!
“Because talking about writing is more fun than actually doing it.”
Critiquing Our Work
On June 8, 2021 Eva Marie Everson joined us to share about Word Weavers International and the critique method they use. This is a follow up to that episode. Five brave souls submitted one page to be critiqued by Johnnie Alexander, Brandy Brow, Jann Martin, Norma Poore, and Melissa Stroh. The insights gained from these critiques may prove to be valuable to you. Check out this week’s replay and see how to critique another person’s writing.
Watch the June 15th replay.
Open Mic Book Discussion: Unleash the Writer Within by Cecil Murphy
In this episode, we share insights from several chapters in the great book. Really a must have for writers. One point he repeatedly makes is to be transparent in your writing. We also discuss voice, waiting for inspiration, and being true to yourself, just to name a few topics from his book. We ended with the question Cecil poses in the opening of his book, “Why do you write?” Check out this week’s replay to learn more.
Working for yourself has its own set of rewards and can be extremely lucrative. Being self-employed means being responsible for the money that you make and the amount is dependent on your ability and the kind of work which you’ll do.
Since the pandemic, many individuals have turned into freelancing to earn an extra income. In this article we’re going to give you several important tips on how to boost your career as a freelancer.
12 simple tips on how to become a successful freelancer
Becoming a freelancer isn’t an easy task. It’s like managing a business only your employee is you. The money you make will depend on the kind and amount of work that you do.
1. Plan of action – As a freelancer it can be very easy to take long breaks and blame it on not being able to find work. When you have a detailed plan of action in place, you will likely work according to that. Create various plans of actions based on your daily goals, your weekly, monthly, yearly and 5 plans. It’s also important to set realistic expectations and plans otherwise you’ll be disappointed when your plans don’t come to fruition.
2. Build your own brand – Building a brand takes time and requires resources before people start recognizing you for your work. As a freelancer, look for ways to enhance your CV. Ask yourself questions like is this the best way to build my website, how do I make my blogs better, how do I gain more visibility. Everything you put online is a means of acquiring more business and hence more money as a freelancer. Clients are more likely to hire those who have a proven track record so get those positive reviews so that you can gain clientele even through word of mouth advertising.
3. Be wise when quoting your price – When it comes to freelancing work there are mainly two types of payments that are done. Hourly and per project basis. You know the amount of work that goes into the completion of a project. The opportunity for a client to nitpick and negotiate an hourly rate and for the client to make comparisons about the work and the time it takes in its completion. Having said that, you know what works best for you as a freelancer so decide on a payment method that’s comfortable to you.
4. Setting up a system that works for you – Throughout your freelancing career, there’ll come many obstacles which you’ll have to overcome and things become 10 times more difficult if things haven’t been organized properly. Set up systems such as an invoice system, mark dates on your calendars, track your work record and find a filing system that works for you and makes your life that much easier. Use calendars to mark important meeting dates or to mark work events. These things will help you keep a track of the work that you’ve done and will also help when it comes to filing taxes.
5. Networking – As a freelancer, the onus of finding work rests on you. The more you network with your industry professionals the chances of you getting work increase. It’s also important to network with fellow freelancers as you can get many important job leads through them. While some of you may want to stay away from other freelancers from your industry, it’s a better strategy to work with them, build on their contacts and share the success rather than doing everything alone.
6. Learn to say no – It may be tempting to say yes to every work offer than comes your way but know your limits. It’s better to say no to a project while already working on something and giving it justice rather than taking on multiple projects and giving none of them any justice. Also, try to visualize how you want your work to be and focus on doing work related to that. You’ll have to adapt and change a few things along the way, however don’t completely stray off topic because it’s difficult to achieve success when being pulled towards multiple directions.
7. Make sure to have the terms and conditions written down – This point is often overlooked by freelancers when it shouldn’t. When you get on board with an agency or a client, make sure to have the terms and conditions of the work written down tight down to the payments. One problem many freelancers face is the issue of payments. A lot of the time payments are delayed or employers give less amount of money that was agreed upon. To save yourself from situations like these, it’s always better to have a written contract rather than a verbal one.
8. Create an LLC – While this may sound extreme, here us out. LLC or a limited liability company is a business structure wherein owners aren’t personally responsible for their companies debts or liability. An LLC will separate your business finances from your personal belongings and finances. This is just a precautionary step freelancers must take incase you get sued by the client. Another advantage of creating an LLC is that it makes taxing things much easier and also manageable.
9. Attend networking events – One way you can get more work is by attending networking events in your field. You can attend seminars, conduct seminars where you get to interact and connect with those from your field. Be on the lookout for events where you can meet potential clients. Once you are at these networking events, don’t shy away! Your main purpose of being there is to talk to as many people as possible, getting them interested in your work and making an impression.
10. Do a thorough research on your competitors – Spend as much time as you can getting to know your competitors. How they brand themselves on social media, how they find work and while you’re at it, also do thorough research on the kind of clients you want to work with. Getting an idea of what they’re looking for may give you ideas on how to better market your work and will eventually help you in acquiring new projects and clients to work with.
11. Set boundaries and take care of yourself – As freelancers it can be tempting for it to take over every aspect of your life and ignore the other essential things. Don’t let freelancing and overworking ruin your physical and mental health. Working up until the point of exhaustion won’t help you or your loved ones. One great thing with working as a freelancer is that you decide your own working hours and can therefore take breaks whenever necessary.
12. Don’t quit your day job immediately – If you’ve just started work as a freelancer then right now isn’t the right time to leave your day job in pursuit of becoming a full time freelancer and the reason behind this is that freelance work doesn’t guarantee you money every month like a day job does. Day jobs provide stability and a regular income source. You can only quit a job on good terms once you feel completely settled as a freelancer.
In Conclusion –
As with new things there will be a certain amount of getting used to this lifestyle. Working as a freelancer has its own set of advantages and disadvantages as does any other line of work. Freelancing will give you the freedom a regular 9-5 job won’t provide and it’s probably one of the reasons why more and more people are opting to be working as freelancers rather than just full time employees.
Ruby Smith is a career and productivity copywriter who believes in the power of networking. She’s passionate about blogging and writes web content for a variety of clients. She is currently dedicated to Online Jobs Academy as a gig worker, she understands the benefits and challenges of the industry. Blogging about education and career regarding ideas to grow is something that she loves doing.
Audiobooks are gaining popularity. I have always loved audiobooks and am a bit picky when it comes to narrators. Authors may not be aware of some pitfalls of producing narration. June is audiobook month, so I thought I’d have a chat with Tara K. Ross, narrator, YA author, and podcaster, asking about her experience.
How did you come to audiobook narration?
I’ve always loved reading aloud in any capacity, whether it be an animated rendition of my kid’s favorite stories, reading scripts in theatre auditions, or sharing a YA novel excerpt on the Hope Prose Podcast. Across all of these experiences, I was told that I had a knack for bringing stories and characters to life. With these words of encouragement, I began exploring what it would take to start narrating … and not just at bedtime.
What are some tips for those wanting to get into narration?
1. Practice reading aloud often, and learn how to scan ahead while reading.
2. Record yourself and get used to hearing your own voice.
3. Research recording equipment and ensure that you are willing to make the upfront investment in a good quality microphone, computer, and recording space.
4. Become familiar with editing software and good recording practices. As a beginning narrator, you will likely be responsible for editing and producing your own sound files. A great way to do this is by starting your own podcast!
Many! Learning to record and edit for audiobooks requires a greater level of attention than recording a podcast episode. My first few recordings were filled with distant dog barks and kids screaming, chair creaks, loud mouth sounds, and deep inhalations. I also needed to learn how to read and edit sound files. I have learned a ton through the ACX website and their acxuniversity.com .
Oftentimes, authors aren’t sure if they should narrate their own books or seek help. What makes a good narrator?
That is a great question. A good narrator will have enthusiasm and passion for the story, which all authors should have for their own stories, but good narrators also bring experience and acting skills to support that enthusiasm.
Some of my favorite audiobooks have been narrated by the author. However, those authors are often narrating their nonfiction books, where there is little need to switch between characters and exposition, or, in some cases, the author happens to have acting experience in their background.
If you are considering narrating your own book, try out your reading on others and see how they respond. Honest family and friends are great, but finding a few willing beta-listeners will be more revealing.
Authors also should keep in mind that narrating their own book will require a fairly substantial time commitment. The average 80,000-word audiobook will have a finished recording time of around ten to twelve hours. That’s finished recording time. Between recording, editing, and mastering, this time can triple! And sometimes, authors find that reading their novel and then having to listen to it in detail after years of editing is just too much. That’s when partnering with a narrator through sites like ACX and Findaway Voices might be the better option!
These are great tips! Thanks so much to Tara for sharing her insight with us.
Tara K. Ross is the author of the YA contemporary novel, Fade to White.
She narrated the recently released YA novel by Amy Michelle Carpenter, Becoming Human available on Audible or Amazon.com.
Aspiring to become a writer as a college student may seem retro from a certain point of view. With so many modern occupations related to IT, AI, and digital industries, becoming a writer can seem antiquated.
However, book publishing is still on an upward trend despite eBooks and audiobooks becoming more popular. As a college student, you are in the perfect position to shape your writer’s career into something truly special. Before you jump into it, here are a few things to keep in mind as you start your writing career.
1. It Might Take a While Before you are Published
Before you devote yourself to a writer’s career, you should know that getting published isn’t easy. Take Brandon Sanderson, a giant of modern fantasy literature, as an example. Sanderson wrote 13 novels before he managed to sell even one, after which publishers took notice of him and the rest became history.
His story serves to drive an important point home – you will need supplementary income to live off of before you go big as a writer. While he was developing his literary universe of interconnected works, Sanderson worked full-time in a hotel. Becoming a writer takes passion, dedication, and discipline. If writing is your calling, this bump in the road won’t stop you in the slightest.
2. Look for Inspiration in Contemporary Writers
While you can look for your writer’s muse in the literary geniuses of the past, it might be better to look to contemporaries for inspiration. Depending on the literary genre you feel drawn to, and whether you gravitate toward prose or poetry, there are dozens of writers to look to. Haruki Murakami is a writer whose surrealist writing is juxtaposed with existing historic facts about art, philosophy, and music.
He is the prime example of how pouring “yourself” into your writing can result in mesmerizing, world-renown writing. Research their careers and look for the roots of their writing career to see how they came to be where they are now. Taking “writing” from a pedestal and seeing it objectively will allow you to get a much better perspective on how to succeed going forward.
3. You will have to Dedicate Time to Develop your Writing Voice
When it comes to the subject of writing, originality isn’t as important as much as your writing style and voice. Take Dan Brown, the renowned author of Angels & Demons, and many other Robert Langdon books. His writing style is far from beloved by literary critics. However, each book he publishes is a best-seller almost immediately – why is that?
It’s not so much about “what” you write about as it is about “how” you write it. This is why you should also look for admission services help if you are writing your admission papers as a future freshman or college student. Put in the effort to hone your writing skills and a style unique to your personality – that’s what publishers and readers enjoy about authors.
4. Set your Daily Writing Schedule and Stick to It
Discipline is a major component of becoming a successful writer. While it is true that you cannot create art under pressure, writing a book is a monumental task that will take months, if not years. For a good example of a disciplined author, we need to look no further than Stephen King, who needs no introduction.
His writing habits consist of working on new materials four hours a day, each day. This has resulted in King producing writing materials for his publishers at an unprecedented pace. As you begin to develop your career as a writer, you will have to create a strict schedule and abide by it. Writing a few sentences here and there won’t help you reach the point of looking for a publisher any time soon. Put in the time to express your ideas in writing every day, and the results will speak for themselves.
5. Consider Freelance Writing as a Professional Exercise
Lastly, there is a way for you to both work on your writing style and earn an income while developing your career. Platforms such as Upwork and Fiverr offer a plethora of projects in a variety of niches for writers such as yourself.
You can work as a blog writer, ghostwriter, or content creator for websites in need of different types of writing. This will help you manage your financial situation until you reach a point where you are ready to present your work to a local publisher. Freelance writing is also flexible, meaning that you can pause or quit if a better opportunity arrives, making it a good choice for college students.
Getting from Here to There (Conclusion)
If becoming a writer is what you are passionate about, there will be no stopping you once you hit your stride in writing new materials. Be mindful of the reality that writing isn’t easy and straightforward. However – it is a battle with yourself to remain focused and dedicated enough. If you can manage that, you will build a successful career as a writer straight out of college, doing what you love.
Author’s bio. Jessica Fender is a professional writer and educational blogger at Bestwritingadvisor, an aggregator for useful college resources and websites. Jessica enjoys sharing her ideas to make writing and learning fun.
One of the trends in writing today is the use of deep POV. As writers, we tend to use deep POV to get into a character’s head and stay there so that we can actually feel the character’s emotions as the story unfolds. We take away the things that remind the reader there is an author behind the story. Sounds easy, right?
There are many options to the technique. While one writer might use them all, another uses one or two of the techniques. And then, again, there are authors who don’t care for it one bit and stick to their method of simply letting the story evolve without considering deep POV. Let’s take a look at some of the ways we can incorporate it into our novels and up the level of reader takeaway. You know, the good stuff. The stuff that leaves your reader digging into a huge box of tissues.
So what are these techniques and how do we utilize them: removing a lot of unnecessary dialogue tags, telling … telling … telling, and filter words.
Each time we tell the reader, he said or she asked, we remind the reader there is an author behind the dialogue. “I love you,” Steve said. Okay, so we get that he loves her, and the reader is reminded that the author is telling you this. But if you show who’s talking using action instead of the tired old tags, you get: “I love you.” Steve nuzzled her neck as his words landed against her skin. Now we get that it’s Steve talking, but the author doesn’t intrude on the private moment by telling the reader that Steve is the one who said it. We let his actions show us.
Also, as authors we just love to tell our readers about how our characters feel, but can the reader get a true idea of the character’s emotion just from the tell? Cassie was cold. Okay, I get it … maybe. But what does that really mean? To someone from Alaska, it might mean it’s 50 degrees below 0. To someone in Florida, it might mean it’s 55 or 60 above. See how that can offer a different meaning to readers? So how about: Cassie shivered and rubbed her arms. If only she had a hot cup of coffee. Do we get a better grasp of how cold she is without ever using the word cold? Of course, we do.
There are also a lot of filter words we use that tell the story. He thought, she pondered, he knew, she wondered. Do we need them? If we are solidly in the head of our character, we rarely need to add them. I’d really like a hot cocoa, she thought. Well, if we’re in her head, of course, she’s the one thinking it. When the author adds on she thought, it’s merely a reminder that there is a writer behind the story. Let’s look at this one: She knew he’d be angry once he found out. She knew it? If we’re in her head, of course she’s the one who knows it. So let’s just say: He’d be angry when he found out. She thought the chair would look good pushed against the wall. Instead: The chair would look good pushed against the wall. We simply do not need she thought to introduce the sentence. We’re in her head. Naturally, she’s the one thinking this.
Each time we give the reader a reminder that there is an author writing the story for them, we pull them out of the character’s head. Out of his or her POINT OF VIEW. And the more we stay in it, the more emotion we feel from that character and pull from our reader.
Must we use deep POV? No. But you can see the advantages when we get into the feelings of our characters and stay there, taking the reader on an emotional roller coaster. Readers love to laugh and cry with the characters, and deep POV helps the tears flow, and the laughter reach deep into the belly.
Don’t think about whether you need to use deep POV, just ask yourself: What would you rather read?
Linda S. Glaz is an agent with Hartline Literary Agency, and also the author of eight novels and two novellas, so she “gets” writers. She represents authors in both the Christian and secular communities. She speaks at numerous conferences and workshops around the country each year. Married with three grown children and four grands, she lives in a small town where everyone is family.
How user-friendly is your website? Could a stranger understand at a glance what kind information you offer and where to find it? Can people easily navigate to what they’re looking for?
How about those with impaired vision? Is your website user-friendly for those with vision challenges, or haven’t you given that issue a thought?
I know I’ve been guilty of that omission in the past. But I recently attended a webinar about this issue and I’m passing on some of what I learned to you.
Tips to make your posts and pages more accessible for users, in particular the vision impaired.
Make sure everything is readable.
We’ve all been frustrated by a badly designed web page that is difficult to read. You don’t want that for your website! Common readability errors include:
Font size too small. Many people find small print difficult to see. Be kind to your readers and make your default font size large enough to read easily. Consider a 14 pt or 16 pt size for body text.
Hard-to-read fonts. Script fonts, handwritten fonts, and ornate fonts are often difficult to read. Save those fonts for invitations and other fancy stuff. Even standard fonts can be challenging when some strokes of letters are very thin. For best readability on a screen, choose a sans serif font like Arial, Lato, or Verdana. (There’s a good reason they’re so popular. They work!)
Insufficient contrast. Low contrast between font and background can make the text difficult to read. If you suspect your contrast isn’t good, you’re probably right. Here is a website that allows you to analyze your contrast. You can enter hex values for the foreground (ie text) and background colors, or just use the sliders to play around. The boxes on the top right indicate whether the contrast passes or fails various standards.
Help users see what you want them to see and do what you want them to do
Createwhite space. When you try to cram too much into the page, it becomes confusing to the reader and they may miss the great content you want them to read. Spread things out so it’s easier for someone to see each important thing you have to say. Break long paragraphs into smaller ones. (Read a long paragraph on a phone and you’ll see why this makes a difference.)
Provide useful subheadings. Subheadings help users navigate through your posts and let them know at a glance what the key points are. Many readers scan the subheadings before deciding whether to read the post. If there aren’t any subheadings, they may move on immediately.
Make it easy to take the next step. After reading the page, what do you want the user to do next? Have you made your call-to-action obvious and simple to use? Can they easily find links to related posts, the comments section, or the search box?
Clarify what clicking a link will do. Don’t assume that every user will understand buttons or links that say vague things like “I’m in!” or “Show me.” Instead, be very clear about what will happen when a user clicks a link or a button.
Design for screen readers
Many vision-impaired users rely on a screen reader to navigate websites. Here are tips to make your site more user-friendly for audience members using a screen reader:
Include alt text on all images. Screen readers can’t interpret images. By filling out the alt text for each image, you can include an explanation of the image for the screen reader to read. This could be a simple description of the image, or an explanation of what the image is intended to illustrate. (Also, many email browsers default to not showing images. In this case, the alt text will show rather than just the “an image goes here” icon.)
Don’t use images when text will work. Since screen readers can’t interpret images, all the data the image provides to those with able vision is lost to those who can’t see it. Screen shots, quote memes, and infographics are examples of images that offer text that is inaccessible to screen reader users.
Don’t open a new window unless it’s necessary. Screen readers get confused when they have to deal with multiple windows. Users may get lost or unable to navigate back to the page they want. To avoid this, don’t set hyperlinks to open in new windows, and if you do, clearly state that in the hyperlink. For example: Click here to open ThisAwesomeWebsite in a new window.
Create helpful hyperlink descriptions. Screen readers read everything literally. If you include the whole web address in a hyperlink, the screen reader will read out every letter and symbol. Who wants to listen to that? Long links aren’t nice to look at anyway, so it’s better to offer readers a clear description of what the hyperlink will do.
Consider color-blindness.
Color can make a certain image pop.
Unless the viewer is colorblind.
There are several different kinds of colorblindness, and each will see an image with varying degrees of impairment. I have listed two sites (below) that show examples of how images might look to colorblind viewers. (In both of them, clicking the various types of colorblindness will change the image) Both sites also allow you to upload your images to see how they would appear.
If differentiating colors is critical for understanding your images, you should use a resource like the one above to ensure your message will still get across. Colorblindness is also a factor to consider for contrast between text and background.
Here are links to two websites that simulate colorblindness:
I hope these tips help you make your website even more awesome! Have other tips to make user-friendly websites? Let me know in the comments.
Lisa E. Betz worked as an engineer, substitute teacher, and play director before becoming an award-winning mystery writer. She brings her analytical mind, quirky humor, and positive outlook to all she writes. She draws inspiration from thirty-five years of leading Bible studies to create entertaining mysteries set in the world of the early church, and then she fills that world with eccentric characters, independent females, and an occasional sausage-snatching cat. Her first novel, Death and a Crocodile, garnered a gold medal in the Illumination Book Awards.
As a book author, you must be able to market your book. It may be hard for you if it’s your first book because you don’t have previous experience, but it is not impossible. Authors either go through the route of a traditional publisher to get their books out, or they self-publish.
Self-publishing is a viable option for many authors who don’t have the resources to work with traditional publishers. Thankfully, it’s easier to self-market your book now with the internet and social media, and one effective tool to use is videos. Video marketing works like magic to market your book, even if it’s the first one. You need to know what to do and how video marketing works which is what we’ll be discussing now.
In this article, we’ll be dishing out tips for video marketing your first book.
1. Run social media video campaign
One of the best ways to get people on your video is to offer them something for free. According to some essays help online, the best way to accomplish this is through social media. This is because you’ll get people willing to share your post and put the word out about you and your giveaway. This will invite more people to you, and you’ll have a lot of traffic on your video.
2. Add a smile to your video thumbnail.
You may not take this seriously, but your video thumbnail is essential too. It’s one thing that can make people either play your video or pass it by. So it’d be best if you used a thumbnail that is appropriate for your video. Use a compelling image that makes the video play-worthy, and the best way to do this is by using a smiling image, especially one that makes direct eye contact. This is because humans relate to other humans.
3. Make sure your video has a share button.
Knowing how powerful social media can be and how quickly information spreads, it’s a wise decision to enable the share button on your video. Making it possible for others to share the video means that it’ll get to more people quickly. The more people get to watch the video ad about your book, the more buyers you’re likely to get.
4. Prompt people to share the video
Adding a share button is sometimes not enough for people to share the video. They could watch the video, get the information that you’re passing and then move on from it. That’s why it’s important to prompt your video watchers. Also, don’t leave out your friends and families. Stick your video to their faces and ask them to share it with their network of friends.
5. Use email marketing
Email marketing remains one of the cheapest and most effective marketing strategies. It doesn’t matter that you’re trying to market a book and not some commerce items. Combining email marketing and video marketing makes both even more effective. Create an email list, and be sure to send your book marketing videos to them.
6. Put your money where your heart is
It’s okay not to want to spend a lot of money marketing your first book. You probably made a DIY video for marketing and have spent very little in your marketing. However, according to professional essay writers, if you want to reach many people and have a higher chance of making many sales, you need to spend some money. Your best bet would be to promote your video on social media. This ensures that it reaches multiple times more people, and you have a higher chance of selling your book and making your money back.
7. Pin the video on your Twitter feed
Twitter allows its users to pin a tweet to their feed. The reason for this is so that the tweet isn’t lost in the sea of several others on your feed. The fact that you’re constantly tweeting and sharing other tweets makes it easy to lose an unpinned tweet. Pinning means, it’ll always be at the top of your feed and will help you drive more engagement to the video.
8. Post the video to online communities platforms
There are many platforms with online communities composed of people of like minds. If you’re on these platforms, then it’s likely that these people are on the same frequency as you and are likely to resonate with your book. So you’ll be doing yourself a disservice not to post your video on such platforms. It doesn’t matter if it’s a LinkedIn group, Twitter Chat, Reddit, etc. They’ll be more open to your book than you think they are.
9. Play it at events
If you have your first book to market and you’re speaking at an event, then you have the perfect opportunity to get your work out to people and convince them first hand. At events like this, playing your video is beneficial to both you and the audience. They get a break from listening to you give a long (probably boring) speech, and you also get to market your book and get the word out. It’s a win-win situation.
Conclusion
Video marketing is an effective marketing technique, especially if you’re a first-time author and are marketing your book. However, it’d be best if you found your way around it. The tips in this article will help you do this effectively. Remember that the more people that see your video, the more sales you can make.
Eliza Sadler is a professional journalist with extensive experience for four years. She also works as a freelancer, writes a lot of articles, and provides the best dissertation help. She always focused on doing quality work to achieve her goals and objectives. Eliza is fascinated by the ability to create original works that meet high standards. Feel free to connect with her by email.
Is there anything more fun than being in the library Children’s room at story time? I was the lucky librarian who did that for 30+ years, reading to kids from birth to kindergarten. I also selected thousands of books for the library to purchase and chose from those the ones to highlight and share at story time.
When the publishers’ seasonal announcements are made, how do professional librarians know what to choose?
Librarians are less swayed by Big Name and Big Author Following. We will buy a good book by an unknown author. We do not buy from Amazon, or care about number of stars. We do not have time to follow blogs. Our job is to spend community tax dollars on the best for kids.
What DO librarians want in a picture book?
1 We want a book that fills a need. All day long we get questions:
Where are the books on Dinosaurs?
Trucks? Princesses? Ponies?
And harder ones like Telling a 4-year-old about a divorce.
Or a toddler about a new baby.
And the ever requested: toilet training.
2 We want a child focused book. And in the format for the right age.
Board books for age 0-2.
Picture books naming objects for ages 1-4.
Simple stories for ages 3-5.
Often, we find a concept above the child’s comprehension in a board book or simple picture book.
3 Most important we want a read aloud!
Page turns
Rhythm
Repetition
Word usage
Illustrations
All these must work together in that perfect read aloud. They only arrive on our library desks about twice a season, but they are the books that get checked out and read over and loved for generations!
PICTURE 2
Now how can you position YOUR book to be on the shelf and purchase lists for the library?
1 Spend time looking at books at the library. Note publishers who sell to picture book collections. It is a very different set of publishers than for school age. It is different publishers than for book sales at big box stores. See what topics have empty shelves, or what books are dogeared from rereading.
2 Check the library newsletter for the perennial story time topics: holidays, friends, silly stories, and, of course, dinosaurs!
3 Ask the librarians what subjects are most popular. More important what are the needs they see in the market. That may be your subject to write!
BUT WAIT: when you send out a query letter or a proposal for your picture book, mention that you have done this research and what your results were. It will not represent double blind data but will go a long way in getting your story to the page and onto the shelf!
Award winning author Robin Currie led children’s departments of Midwestern public libraries before being called midlife to ordained ministry. She has a special love for children’s literacy and Bible storytelling. She serves in Chicago area parishes and annually volunteers teaching English in developing countries. She and her husband actively grandparent 5 wonderful kids!
Robin has published seven library resource collections of creative ideas for library story times, and more than 20 Bible story books for children.
PICTURE 4
Tuktuk: Tundra Tale
Kansas NEA Reading Circle Catalog Selection 2017.
The Very Best Story Ever Told
WINNER: 2020 Serious Writer’s Book of the Decade, Focus on Family Top 10 Family Friendly Picture Books 2019, First Place, Wright Medal, North Carolina Christian Writers Conference, 2019, Finalist: 2019 Selah Award
She is excited to reveal the cover of her next book, How to Dress a Dinosaur, coming in March 2022!
Writers Chat, hosted by Jean Wise, Johnnie Alexander, and Brandy Brow, is the show where we talk about all things writing, by writers and for writers!
“Because talking about writing is more fun than actually doing it.”
7 Ways to Destroy Your Speaking Career with Lucinda Secrest McDowell
It’s often been said that some speakers are writer, but all writers must speak. Whether you dream of speaking before large audiences one day or know that you have to speak as part of promoting your book, this episode is one you’ll want to watch. Lucinda shares seven tips on what NOT to do as well as seven positive things you should do to have event planners asking for you. Be sure to check out the replay and get tips on how to become a good speaker.
Watch the June 1st replay.
Lucinda Secrest McDowell is a storyteller and seasoned mentor who engages both heart and mind while “Helping You Choose a Life of Serenity & Strength.” She is an award-winning author which includes the Mt. Hermon “Writer of the Year” award. Whether coaching writers and speakers, pouring into young mamas, or leading a restorative day of prayer, Lucinda is energized by investing in people of all ages. As a communications teacher, she has served on the faculty of many writing and speaking conferences. You can connect with Lucinda on social media or at lucindasecrestmcdowell.com.
Word Weavers International: Why Critique is Vital to the Growing Writer
With Eva Maria Everson
Are you part of a critique group? Or are you like so many who shy away because they feel like they don’t know how to critique someone else’s writing? In this episode Eva Marie shares with us about the three pillars of Word Weavers International, community, critique, and conferences. In a critique group you are in a community that understands you and will encourage you. Critiquing the “cold sandwich” way helps and encourages writers to put their best foot forward at conferences. Whether you’re a fellow Word Weaver or in not, this episode is packed full of great advice and you will want to catch the replay for sure.
Watch the June 8th replay.
Bio
Eva Marie Everson is the multiple award-winning, bestselling author of both fiction and nonfiction. She is the president of Word Weavers International, the director of Florida Christian Writers Conference, the managing editor of Firefly Southern Fiction, and the contest director for Blue Ridge Mountains CWC (the Selah Awards/The Foundations). Eva Marie and her husband make their home in Central Florida where they enjoy their children and grandchildren. They are owned by one sassy cat. You can connect with Eva Marie on social media or at evamarieeversonauthor.com.
Why do you write? Do you have a theme, message, or goal for your books?
I write because I can’t not write. Writing is like breathing for me. It has always been the best way for me to communicate my ideas. The theme of all my writing is for everyone to live significantly. The goal and message of my books is to move us toward authenticity in our faith and practice thanks to God’s love for us and our love for Him.
How long have you been writing?
As far back into childhood as I can remember I have always been a writer. Songs, poems, plays, and musicals were my first genres. Professionally, I have been writing since 1991, 30 years now.
Tell us about one of your greatest joys in your writing career.
The greatest joys in my writing career come when someone says he or she was changed, touched, encouraged, or motivated by something I have written.
Tell us about one of your darkest moments in your writing career.
The darkest moment in my writing career happened when I pitched my work to a certain literary agency, and they said my platform was much too small for them to represent me. It wasn’t so much what they said, but the way they said it that made me feel insignificant and made me feel my work had no value.
Rejection is a common experience for writers. How do you overcome rejection? How has rejection shaped you or your career?
I overcome rejection by realizing every no is getting me closer to yes. No just means that particular company doesn’t need what I have right now, it doesn’t mean my work is unworthy. I wear a t-shirt from time to time that sports a quote from Nelson Mandela that says, “I never lose; I either win or I learn.”
In what ways has God led you to mentor other writers? Were you surprised when a certain skill or connection led to mentoring opportunities?
I mentor other writers by teaching them how to think through their book projects the way a publisher would think about them. I help them build their ideas into publishable products with the readers’ felt needs in mind and a marketing strategy. God gives me discernment. As I listen to my clients tell me about their book ideas, I can mine the gold and diamonds from their thoughts enabling them to clearly see what they are really trying to communicate. I’m grateful every time God opens another vein in the rock, so He’s surprising me at every meeting.
Tell us about a facet of mentoring that particularly excites you.
The facet of mentoring that particularly excites me is what I mentioned in the above answer. I’m excited whenever I see the Holy Spirit move in a meeting. The ideas that blossom as I talk with clients are so awesome that I know they are sparked by Him.
What venues/methods have you found most effective for meeting and mentoring writers?
Like everyone else, I pivoted to teaching virtually because of the COVID pandemic and that has caused my business to thrive. I also teach at writers’ conferences virtually. Now that the country is opening back up to in-person events, I’m being scheduled at those now too. I am a conference junkie and I love to teach writers and join them on their journey to publication.
Have you organized or led groups to support writers? (Retreats, ACFW chapters, etc.) How has that experience helped you to mentor writers?
I own AuthorizeMe Consulting, Coaching & Editing Firm, and Literary Agency through which I (obviously) consult, coach, edit, agent, and teach masterclasses helping writers reach the publishing goals. My company mentors writers because my clients experience hands-on help making sense of how to implement all they learn from me and from writers’ conferences they attend.
Have you organized or directed a writers’ conference? Tell us about that experience, and/or share an anecdote that illustrates how you saw writers being mentored and encouraged through the event.
Yes, I have been assistant director and director of the Sandy Cove Christian Writers’ Conference, Northeast, MD. I started the first ever teen major track at a writers’ conference at the Mount Hermon Christian Writers’ Conference, where I served on faculty in various capacities for 20 years. I am currently co-director of the West Coast Christian Writers’ Conference.
There are so many examples I could share. Let’s see. I remember one woman who wanted to write her memoir and I asked her the question I ask all memoir writers, “Who cares? As an unknown, why would people want to read your story? What’s in it for them?”
She returned to the next portion of my workshop the next day realizing that her story was about her release from shame. That was it! The title and table of contents how to focus on release from shame which was the felt need of her audience. We were all excited for her to have had that breakthrough and she was able to finish storyboarding and outlining her book knowing her new direction.
If you speak at writers’ groups or conferences, what are some of your favorite topics to speak about?
Some of my most popular topics for workshops and keynotes are:
“Starting Strong and Maintaining Momentum,”
“Getting Started as a Professional Freelancer,”
“From God Through You,”
“Excuses, Excuses, Excuses,”
“The Magic of Storyboarding,”
“You’re in the Right Place,”
“Branding Your Ministry,”
“Move to the Excellent Level: The Ten P’s of Your Writing Success.”
What advice do you have for writers as we interact with our peers? What can we do to be better supporters and mentors of our fellow writers?
Pray for each other.
Support each other’s work.
Purchase each other’s books.
Write reviews.
Share posts.
Do you have a favorite resource or two that you recommend to beginning writers?
The Bible.
My Utmost for His Highest by Oswald Chambers.
The Synonym Finder by J. I. Rodale.
The Soul at Rest by Tricia McCary Rhodes.
Scribbling in the Sand by Michael Card.
Do you have a favorite resource or two that you recommend to writers who are struggling with discouragement?
The Bible.
What are common mistakes you see aspiring writer’s make?
Giving up on traditional publishing too soon.
What advice can you give aspiring writers that you wished you had gotten, or that you wished you would have heeded?
I heeded advice I was given. I knew nothing about publishing, so I actively did what I was being taught to do. I’d tell aspiring writers to listen to the experts. Do what we tell you to do, the way we tell you to do it, until it does not work for you anymore. Don’t try to reinvent the wheel. “In the multitude of counselors, there is safety.” Avail yourself to as many writers’ conferences as possible. Do a little at a time, but just keep at it. Do not settle for mediocrity; reach for perfection.
Sharon Norris Elliott Bio:
“Live significantly!” That’s the inspiring message of Sharon Norris Elliott: author, speaker, Bible teacher, editor, consultant, and literary agent. She writes challenging yet encouraging books in several genres including women’s non-fiction, parenting, devotional, and children’s literature. Her most recently published title is A Woman God Can Bless (2020, Harambee Press). Her 13th book and 3rd parenting book, Didn’t See That Coming: When How They’re Living’s Not How You Raised Them is due to launch from Elk Lake Publishers in late 2021; Elk Lake has also contracted her 7-book children’s I Really Need to Know series.
God’s goodness has brought Sharon from Compton, CA, to standing before great audiences. She’s a cum laude graduate of Biola University, holder of an honorary Doctor of Divinity Degree, member of ACE, AWSA, and SCBWI. She is also a religious broadcaster on HSBN.tv, CWWN.tv, Spotify, and other social media outlets. She is Founder and CEO of Life That Matters Ministries; AuthorizeMe® Consulting, Coaching, & Editing Firm,and Literary Agency LLC; and Milk & Honey Life Retreats. Sharon serves as co-director of West Coast Christian Writers’ Conference.
She and her husband James live in Southern California and enjoy their church, their children, and their grandchildren.
All books can be purchased via Amazon, BarnesAndNoble.com, and Sharon’s website.
Ever heard someone say, “I love a good mystery!” That’s more likely than hearing “I love a good suspense story.” What they may mean is they love a good thriller. It turns out the technical definitions of what makes up a story categorized as mystery, suspense, or thriller can be way off from a reader’s understanding of the words.
So, who cares?
All authors should! A greater understanding of what your book means in the eyes of the greatest number of readers can make a significant difference to your sales.
From the industry and technical standpoint, each term has a definition, albeit not agreed upon by everyone. Here’s a stab at the definitions.
Mystery has a main character who may not realize there is danger ahead at first. Once they sense something, they are preoccupied with getting to the bottom of the truth about an event. This can be a murder, but not always. The reader is exposed to the same information as the detective or crime solver.
Thriller’s cause what the names says- supplying a thrill to the reader because the protagonist is in danger, usually from page one.
Suspense has the main character possibly unaware of the danger in the beginning, but the reader is clued in on things that are unknown to the protagonist. The reader may know someone is lurking in the home or see a bomb planted and live with the suspense of wondering what will happen. The argument could be made that suspense must be an element in most books, so the reader doesn’t close the book with a yawn!
After reading those simple definitions, you may strongly agree or disagree. Why? Your preference as a reader is bubbling to the top!
And, what about when the genres cross? This is especially true in mystery and suspense.
Another authority in the book world may have a different definition – the library. Some books with word counts under 75,000 automatically go to the mystery category.
What if you were forced to describe each category in six words or less?
Mystery: Solve the puzzle of what’s happening.
Thriller: Keep the heart pounding on high.
Suspense: Creating tension of what could happen.
What would your six-word description look like for each category?
The truth is, people read books because they like them, not because they understand the genres assigned by the publishing industry. One thing every author and reader can agree on is the need for pacing. Too fast, and you could lose your reader. Too slow, and you could lose your reader! Hooking and keeping your reader is crucial. Definitions become problematic when you think you’re one genre, but your readers use a different moniker to describe your books. This is more common between mystery and suspense. When that happens, readers rule!
To further complicate the genres, sub-categories such as the cozy mystery are a big hit. Usually more light-hearted, involving a small town and an amateur sleuth solving the crime opens up the door to more personal definitions. You know what that means. Soon there will be another new sub-category that doesn’t exactly fit the mold. Readers have a love-hate relationship with genre deviation, but when done well, they will get on board.
So, where are we left when it comes to solving the mystery of mystery/suspense/thriller writing? Right back where we started with everyone having their own opinion.
Here’s what we know for sure:
The industry can make definitions, but none of them is the definitive answer for everyone.
Be sensitive to what your readers are telling you are the “descriptive words” they like over time and adapt to what they say.
Good pacing, hooks, and writing will always keep readers reading no matter the category or labels assigned to a book.
So, go ahead, how would you describe these genres?
Michele Olson writes stories set on Mackinac Island in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan filled with suspense, romance, friendship, faith, and quirky characters. A top seller in Mackinac Island Fiction to the million people who make a trip to the island every year to experience life with no cars, amazing scenery, and the glorious Grand Hotel, she enjoys opening up this incredible island to even more visitors. Incorporating her work as an artist and a voice professional into her writing whenever she can, she enjoys creative endeavors of all genres and fueling faith with fiction.
Michele lives in the shadow of Lambeau Field in Green Bay, WI with her husband and thoroughly enjoys being a wife, mom, and “Gee Gee” to two adorable grandsons.
You’ve dreamed of becoming an author for years, and now, you’re preparing to submit your first manuscript to agents and start offering additional writing services through your new small business. And while you’re excited, you might also feel overwhelmed; after all, you have a lot to learn about being an author and an entrepreneur! The following resources can guide you through everything from tackling writer’s block to marketing your book, and these tips will help you master the best practices for managing a thriving writing business.
Shift Your Mindset
It’s important to shift from thinking of yourself as a freelance creative to thinking of yourself as a small business owner. This means that you need to uphold professional standards in all of your communications, set up organized systems that help you stay productive, and make decisions with your future reputation in mind. Have confidence in your writing abilities!
Establish a Payroll System
Eventually, your business might grow to the point where you need a couple of employees to keep everything running smoothly. When that time comes, it’s best to set up an organized payroll system so that you can manage your 2021 payroll calendar and make sure everyone receives their paychecks on time. Using a payroll template can be a good choice if your business is too small for an automated payroll system. Payroll template software can also include helpful functions like time tracking, invoicing capabilities, and employee scheduling.
Paying Taxes
You will need to pay taxes on the earnings that you make through your writing business. Yes, this means setting aside a chunk of your income from book sales and any other services you offer through your business! Paying your taxes late — or neglecting to pay them at all – can have serious consequences down the road. It can be a good idea to work with an accountant for guidance in this area. Wealthfront recommends looking for an accountant who has relevant experience working with businesses similar to yours, so see if you can get any recommendations from other writers you know!
Join Your Chamber of Commerce
As an author, you want to spend lots of time networking. You never know when those connections with other authors will come in handy! If you have a writing business, you could consider joining your local chamber of commerce. Founder’s Guide recommends joining your chamber because it allows you to have a voice in your business community, make new contacts with people in your industry, and promote your business. You’ll be able to attend events with entrepreneurs you might not have met otherwise!
Ongoing Marketing
Naturally, you’ll want to spend most of your time writing and editing, but you also need to leave room in your schedule for marketing. Even if you’re working with a publisher, maintaining a public presence and letting your readers know where they can find your book is important! And if you provide other writing services, you have to make an effort to get the word out. When you’re busy, it’s all too easy to put marketing on the backburner, so automating social media posts is one simple way to ensure that you’re always promoting your business.
Starting your journey as an author can be difficult. Every author’s career is unique, and building your professional writing business will involve lots of highs and lows. But with these tips, you’ll start taking your business seriously from day one so that you can invest in your future success.
Are you ready to become an author and publish your first book? Almost An Author can help you navigate your new career path. Check out our resources for aspiring and new authors today!
As a former banker, Jim McKinley uses his background and skills to provide advice and valuable resources to anyone who needs help with their financial literacy. In his spare time, Jim spends time with his family and his dogs and he maintains his website Money with Jim.
My book 50 Life Lessons for Grads: Surprising Advice for Recent Graduates (Worthy/Hachette) was a Christian bookstore bestseller. It shares what recent college graduates learned through real struggles, opportunities, and the fears they faced.
Why do you write? Do you have a theme, message, or goal for your books?
I write to teach others how to have a rich, purposeful life through the study of God’s Word and prayer.
How long have you been writing?
God called me to write for him in 1986. I began writing articles for Christian magazines, then started writing books a few years later. I wrote while also working full-time as a high school English teacher and raising four kids.
And how long did it take you to get your first major book contract? Or are you published non-traditionally? How did that come about?
I wrote 13 children’s books for David C. Cook, then got my first major book contract in 2000 for PrayerWalk, which became a bestseller. My agent challenged me to “write about that prayerwalking thing you’re doing.” My first response was, “I don’t think that’s a book. It’s five words: ‘You walk and you pray.’” Clearly, since it’s been in print for 20 years (WaterBrook/RandomHouse), it was indeed a good book idea.
Which of your books is your favorite?
My favorite is The Complete Guide to the Prayers of Jesus: What Jesus Prayed and How It Will Change Your Life Today (Bethany House). When I started prayerwalking in 1998, I went on a journey to read everything I could about prayer, including reading the Bible all the way through each year to note textual references to prayer—centering on what Jesus taught about prayer, his prayer practices, and his actual prayers. I wanted people to have a resource that had everything in one volume about his prayer life.
How long does it take you to write a book?
I’ve written a complete book in as short as three weeks.
What’s your writing work schedule like?
I work on marketing and social media tasks in the morning (including my daily blog), then shift to writing.
Do you have an interesting writing quirk? If so, what is it?
I’ve learned that when I’m a bit blocked, that mowing the lawn or doing the laundry or going for a prayerwalk will help my left and right brains make friends again, so the words can find themselves dropping onto the page. Also, popcorn and Coke Zero can help.
What has been your greatest joy(s) in your writing career?
(1) Meeting a reader I had not known who tells me my book changed her life (typically the book PrayerWalk).
(2) A few awards: Mt. Hermon Christian Writers Conference Writer of the Year (1993), 2020 Jennifer Kennedy Dean Award (AWSA), and AWSA Member of the Year (2004)
What has been your darkest moment(s)?
My darkest moment was the day my husband Craig was falsely convicted of six felony animal abuse charges related to the deaths of six young calves in a two-day snowstorm; we took on the appeal ourselves, and the case was overturned in the California Court of Appeals two years later in 2007. We had 5-1/2 years of struggle related to that criminal case that should never have gone to trial. I am planning on writing a memoir related to that unjust experience. I didn’t have a published book from the 2006 to 2015; the experience really was tough, and it still hurts.
How many times in your career have you experienced rejection? How did they shape you?
Good grief, I have no idea. Hundreds, probably—compared to the 24 books I wrote under contract with traditional publishers.
Where do you get your ideas?
Titles just come to me. I wrote headlines for a daily newspaper for years. A whole book concept will come to me as a title first.
Who is your favorite author to read?
Fiction: Cynthia Ruchti and Jan Karon Nonfiction: the late Jennifer Kennedy Dean, who wrote books on prayer that will become classics some day
What advice can you give aspiring writers that you wished you had gotten, or that you wished you would have heeded?
Learn how to study the form of the genre you wish to write. While I heard that expression many times when I was beginning, I really didn’t know how to do that. I taught myself, and I now teach that analysis skill for writers conferences and my own Sierra Valley Writers Retreat.
What are common mistakes you see aspiring writers make?
I often see aspiring writers just sit down and start writing. They really need to create a proposal first, even if they’re going to self-publish the book. My agent, Janet Grant, says a proposal is basically a business plan, but it also is a vehicle for creating a much better book. It will focus the content, better meet the needs of the potential audience, and create a product that is unique.
Where/How do you recommend writers try to break into the market?
Beginning writers should find their tribe so as to have a ready-made audience for their book. They should also attend as many different writers conferences as they can—so as to make connections in the industry and to learn the craft. I attended THREE major Christian writers conferences within that first year after God called me to write for him, and I kept going to one (Mt. Hermon) nearly every year thereafter.
A national speaker, Janet McHenry is the author of 24 books–six on prayer, including the bestselling PrayerWalk and her newest, The Complete Guide to the Prayers of Jesus. She is also the creator of the masterclass Prayer School, a certified writing and life coach, and the host of the Sierra Valley Writers Retreat. Janet and her husband Craig raised four children in the Sierra Valley in northern California, where he is a rancher and where she taught high school English and served as an academic advisor. She loves connecting with readers and writers: janetmchenry.com.
Every writer wants to write in an inspiring and captivating way. Whether it’s poetry, novels, personal essays, or blog articles, every writer wants to have a unique writing style and voice. Texts without a voice are empty of meaning and sterile. So, how can your audience sacrifice their time reading a voiceless text? They’ll have no way to associate themselves with the plot or characters.
Defining writer’s voice
What is a writer’s voice? To help you clear your mind, I’ll tell you what it’s not:
It’s not the technique
It’s not the writing style
It’s not the brand
It’s not originality
The writer’s voice cannot be measured. However, you can easily define and identify it. The writer’s voice does not entail grammar, structure, or wording. It’s a unique way that the writer sees the world. And how they translate it. For instance, everyone sees an orange the same way. However, everyone has their approach when it comes to describing its taste, color, and texture. According to the literary writer, Rachel Gardner, the writer’s voice is an expression of you.
You are the person who gives life to your writing by offering emotions to characters. Every reader wants to have a connection with the characters. And to see things through them. Your voice is the only door that they can use. Adding voice to your writing involves writing with your emotions, passions, dreams, attitudes, fears, and believes.
Elements of your writer’s voice
As we said earlier, your voice reflects who you are and what inspires you. Your readers should feel your presence as they read your pages. However, you should avoid being an intruder in your piece. You are developing your characters but you are not them.
Unlike technical or scientific texts, your writing needs to be humanized. Your personality plays an integral role in influencing your voice. Your personality needs to breathe out emotions about your topic of interest. You need to trigger the sensations that you want your readers to feel. And you can achieve this goal through your voice.
Tone
Your tone is an important part of your voice. Talking allows you to reveal more about yourself and how you feel. And this happens largely because of your tone. Communicating through writing creates special effects. How every element of your writing connects helps in developing a unique voice. How you say things is just as important as the message you want to share. You can adopt several voice tones in your writing such as jovial, humorous, intimate, ironic, drama, and sophisticated to name a few. The tone that you use will have a huge impact on your brand. You need not use the same tone all the time. You can always adjust it to fit the message you want to communicate.
For example, you can write your blog posts straightforwardly and informally and short stories in a slow-paced and intimate tone. Several factors such as time, narrator, and content influence your voice. The most important thing is being consistent throughout the text and within your writing style.
Rhythm
Rhythm is another essential element of your voice. Rhythm determines the pace of your text. Rhythm is delivered to your writing using phrase structure, alliterations, paragraphs, punctuations, and rhymes. Rhythm is technical, unlike subjective tone.
Mutable writing voice
Writers are versatile by nature. They can write using different styles, delve into one matter or choose to scratch the surface in other topics. They can write short stories, novels, poems, and short articles. Regardless of what they write, their voice is a key ingredient. Unlike other writers who think that voice is created from the ground up, I think it’s inborn.
Writing voice cannot be transmitted because it’s personal. While it’s improved with inspiration and practice, it’s always been within us. Being unique and personal doesn’t mean that your voice is not mutable. You can change the writer’s voice and adjust it depending on what you’re writing about. For instance, writing a story about an incident that happened centuries ago cannot be narrated like something that happened yesterday. The writer needs to transport themselves to the time they are writing about.
These elements don’t make up your writing voice on their own. However, they do as a whole. Each of them affects the writer in one way or another.
Finding your writer’s voice – 8 reasons why it’s important
With high content turnover, it’s important to create and refine your writing style. Being original is great because you don’t want to replicate the findings and experiences of others on your platform. However, it doesn’t guarantee that people will read and enjoy your piece. To succeed as a writer, you need to find your voice.
You can use your experiences: When you find your writing voice, you’ll always start with what you know. You’ll have an easy time slipping into the shoes of your characters and immersing yourself in the story. You’ll be inspired by real events, emotions, and people.
It allows you to be conscious of your observations: We all see the world through unconventional lenses. However, only a handful of people are aware of the existence of these lenses. When observing people, you’ll start taking note of the dialogue, silences, and interruptions. Your observational skill will determine how you describe events to your readers.
Awakens your senses: All readers want to feel something when they immerse themselves into writing. They want to immerse themselves beyond the bare description. To achieve this, you’ll need to awaken all your senses.
You’ll start avoiding clichés: Most writers easily fall into the trap of clichés especially during uncertainty and doubt. Since you’ll be using your experiences, you’ll naturally avoid clichés.
Your details will be intimate: Intimate details are essential in the enhancement of vivid writing quality. You’ll be specific in describing and characterizing the setting. Subtle movements can help in building the mood of your poem or story.
Creates authentic and strong voices: By using an authentic and strong voice, your reader will become submerged in your story.
You’ll understand the writing rules: You’ll not be afraid of experimenting and bending writing rules. To find your voice, you’ll need to understand the writing rules completely.
You’ll write every day: To master the art of writing, you need to practice. The more you write, the more you’ll be conscious of your writing style and improve on it. Finding your voice will make writing an enjoyable activity.
Conclusion
Writing is a skill. And like all other skills, you can master it through practice and consistency. Don’t be afraid to try new things and bend the rules.
Leon Collier is a blogger and academic writer from the UK who has vast experience working with Topbritishessays and essayontime.co.uk. He loves to take on every challenge thrown at him and has the ability to deliver outstanding work regularly. When he’s not busy writing, he loves reading books and playing tabletop games with his friends. Follow him on Twitter @LeonCollier12.
Writers Chat, hosted by Jean Wise, Johnnie Alexander, and Brandy Brow, is the show where we talk about all things writing, by writers and for writers!
“Because talking about writing is more fun than actually doing it.”
Sell Your Personal Essay this Year! With Windy Lynn Harris
Do you or have you considered writing and publishing personal essays? Windy joins Writers Chat to share her unique knowledge about personal essay writing. With energy and enthusiasm she explains the difference between creative personal essay and personal essay. This episode is packed full of such great tips, you will know how to write a successful essays and where to sell them.
Watch the May 18th replay.
Windy Lynn Harris is the author of Writing & Selling Short Stories & Personal Essays: The Essential Guide to Getting Your Work Published (Writer’s Digest Books/Penguin Random House). She’s a prolific writer, a trusted mentor, and a frequent speaker at literary events. Her long list of short stories, flash, and personal essays have been published in magazines like Brevity,The Sunlight Press, and JMWW, among many other journals. You can connect with Windy on social media or at www.windylynnharris.com.
Summer Beach Reads and Write In
Brandy Brow, Jann Martin, and Norma Poore lead this open mic episode on summer reads and writing prompts. They discussed various genres including YA and children’s books, followed by two writing prompts, one on travel and the other about the beach. If you’re looking for suggestions on good books for the summer or want some fresh writing ideas, check out the replay of this episode. Warning: this episode may cause an increase to your book collection and an urge to travel.
Girl meets boy. Even though it’s obvious to the reader that they would make a perfect couple, they don’t like each other. Somehow they’re forced to spend time together. They gradually fall in love but then they have a big argument and break up. Eventually they come to the conclusion they can’t live apart. They reunite and live happily ever after.
This is a basic romance plot structure. I want to address your immediate instinct which is to roll your eyes and complain, ‘It’s so predictable.’
When it comes to stories, predictability is generally considered a bad thing. Would you read a book if you knew the ending? You said no, right?
Chances are, you’ve read a romance novel. You’re probably thinking about ‘Twilight’ or ‘Cinderella’ right now. What do these two stories have in common?
‘Nothing. One is about vampires and one is about fairy godmothers.’
Wrong. They both end with a romantic happily ever after. You knew (consciously or subconsciously) when you started reading that the girl and boy would end up together. It was predictable. Did it take away from the story?
‘Twilight’ and ‘Cinderella’ follow the same basic plot structure but originality is still achieved through characters and context. Even though they fall into the same genre, these stories attract different audiences. ‘Cinderella’ is for little girls who like dressing up as fairies and princesses. ‘Twilight’ is for edgy teenage girls with weird types. (No judgement.)
One of the benefits of using a basic plot structure to craft your story is ease of writing. Girl meets boy is a good place to start if you’re stuck. And that predictability we were talking about makes it easier to read as well. There’s a clear beginning, middle and end. That makes a story.
You can edit it into a good one later.
Many writers don’t decide to use plot structures but they emerge naturally as the story evolves. The truth is, plot structures are a good place to start if you’re suffering from a bad case of writers’ block.
In the words of Jodi Picoult,
‘You might not write well every day, but you can always edit a bad page. You can’t edit a blank page.’
Deborah Rose Green is the author of ‘Dragon Pearls’ (2019) and ‘Crown My Heart’ (2020). She’s the Contributing Editor for the ‘Hey Young Writer’ blog and starting her Creative Writing degree in September.
I am easily overwhelmed when I think about all the things I should be doing to market my book and increase my platform. Grow social media following, SEO research, lead magnets, guest posts, ad split-testing, etc. (Not to mention working on my next book and dealing with the rest of life.)
I work on one thing for a day or two, then I hear I should be doing that other thing, so I switch to working on it instead. And at the end of the week I feel like a failure because I haven’t made any significant progress in any of them.
Does this sound familiar?
Then read on…
A simple strategy to avoid feelin project overwhelm
Stop trying to do it all!
Really.
It’s impossible to focus on every marketing tactic at once, anyway. Not only is is impossible, it will lead to poor results and lots of frustration. Instead, focus on one area at a time.
Big projects like marketing a book—or writing, polishing, and submitting a book—are marathons rather than sprints. The overall success is an accumulation of efforts over a long time span.
This allows us to prioritize one aspect for a period of time and then switch to another. The key is choosing a long enough time period to allow for success.
Try the quarterly approach
Break your year into three-month quarters. Assign a different marketing focus for each quarter. Plan out at least four or five quarters, so that you can cover all the important bases.
An example of using the quarterly focus strategy:
Quarter
Marketing focus
April-June:
Grow email list
July-Sept.:
Grow social media following on one or two accounts
Oct.-Dec.:
Run ads and offer a discount to boost sales
Jan. – March:
Get spots on podcasts or radio shows
April-June:
Learn how to use a new platform effectively (such as Facebook Live, or YouTube, or TikTok)
This quarterly focus strategy helps you:
Stay focused
Stay motivated
Manage time wisely
Avoid feeling overwhelmed and giving up
Have more time to really do something well
Assess how your area of effort affects book sales (because you aren’t trying five things at once.)
Of course, you shouldn’t completely ignore other marketing tactics in the meantime, but you can give yourself permission to do the bare minimum to maintain them while keeping the chosen area the priority.
I hope this quarterly focus strategy helps you face your next big project with more confidence and less stress.
Lisa E. Betz worked as an engineer, substitute teacher, and play director before becoming an award-winning mystery writer. She brings her analytical mind, quirky humor, and positive outlook to all she writes. She draws inspiration from thirty-five years of leading Bible studies to create entertaining mysteries set in the world of the early church, and then she fills that world with eccentric characters, independent females, and an occasional sausage-snatching cat. Her first novel, Death and a Crocodile, garnered a gold medal in the Illumination Book Awards.
I was pegged an expressive analytic in a personality test I took through my company. I know it sounds like an oxymoron, but it’s true. I couldn’t survive without expressing my creative imaginings. Yet, I’m a retired, introverted actuary who receives her energy from being alone in her home office, spewing words into my laptop to expand my story ideas.
Do you have a theme, message, or goal for your books?
I write from a Christian world view.
Through my romances, I hope to entertain, spur laughter, and touch hearts. My heroes and heroines are Christians or become Christians and do what Christians do, such as enjoy a quiet time with God, read the Bible, and make mistakes.
From my blogs posts and my published book on writing, my passion is to share what I learn about writing principles and techniques with others.
My purpose in re-self-publishing my two books of Christian allegories (second book releasing soon) is to share the funky stories I wrote to explain to myself Biblical principles I’d heard or read as a new Christian.
The speculative fiction I’m working on takes place sixteen months after the rapture. This two-book series grabbed me and stretched me. My hope is it will do the same for others.
How long have you been writing?
Does my cowboy story—a whole paragraph—count? I was nine. Since then, I stored many uncompleted manuscripts under my bed. Then came the two books of short allegories I self-published before the self-publishing craze. After an agent signed me and publishers rejected four romances, I received my first contract at age sixty-four.
Tell us about one of your greatest joy(s) in your writing career.
I learned a colleague accepted Christ after reading the first allegory I wrote. After publishers rejected four completed manuscripts, I sat in a workshop led by an agent. He said it takes writing four completed manuscripts to learn to write, and usually the fifth one receives a contract. At that time, I was working on my fifth manuscript, and it was the novel that received a contract. The joy was realizing those rejected manuscripts had great worth. They prepared me to write a novel that merited a contract.
Tell us about one of your darkest moment(s) in your writing career.
Before I received my first contract, I’d labored many months on a manuscript. I went through the first pages one more time and changed a word or two. After I sent it to my agent, I looked over the first pages again. To my horror, the word shift was missing the f. I shot off an email to my agent. She emailed all was fine. She and the editor enjoyed a chuckle. I realized agents and editors weren’t statues whose alabaster fingers were ready to chop my manuscripts to pieces.
Rejection is a common experience for writers. How do you overcome rejection? How has rejection shaped you or your career?
I had worked about a year on each of my four rejected manuscripts. But just like for the contests I entered, rejections or low scores never depressed me or made be angry. I entered the contests for the feedback and was happy to have it. True, I sent manuscripts hoping for a contract, but I took in both the good and the need-improvement comments to learn to do better on the next manuscript. Editors told me in their rejections they liked my ideas. Some invited me to submit another project. I learned I naturally have good story ideas, but I needed to learn how to write them into a readable story.
In what ways has God led you to mentor other writers? Were you surprised when a certain skill or connection led to mentoring opportunities?
God made me to be expressive, but I dislike being chatty on social media. When I knew I had to have a blog, I wrote on how to be creative—something I understood. As I learned writing techniques, I excitedly shared what I’d learned in my blog posts. This fit my gift of teaching. I learn from applications, so I always included lots of examples. This led to presenting writing workshops to writers’ groups, at conferences, and on Zoom.
My blog posts sparked an editor and an agent to encourage me to write a book on writing from my posts. Not wanting to dump blog posts into a book, I took a workshop on how to write a book from blog posts. I wanted to aid beginning writers who had or were starting manuscripts to avoid repeated rejections. I structured the book to help writers transform their manuscripts to shine in thirty days so they could pitch their manuscripts to agents and editors or to self-publish. My surprise came when I asked writing and publishing professionals for endorsements. I hoped for two or three. Nine professional agents, editors, conference directors, award-winning authors, and aspiring writers sent me wonderful endorsements. I believe in that book’s ability to help new writers.
Tell us about a facet of mentoring that particularly excites you.
An editor friend arranged an opportunity for me to teach a four-day, two-hour class to eight participants at a writers conference. I based the class on the teachings in my book on writing. Participants’ “aha” cries thrilled me. One had signed up for a critique. My heart slumped when I saw how far her writing was from workable. I prayed and prayed for guidance to help her without discouraging her away from writing. I poured many hours into the critique. I presented the critique as gently and honestly as I could. She seemed to eagerly accept my suggestions, but I worried discouragement might crush her writing spirit back in her room. The following day during personal writing time, she handed me a revision of her critique’s pages. How joyful she and I were when I told her, she understood what was needed and was on her way to writing a readable story.
What venues/methods have you found most effective for meeting and mentoring writers?
For me, teaching workshops and webinars using slides and many examples works best.
Have you organized or led groups to support writers? (Retreats, ACFW chapters, etc.) How has that experience helped you to mentor writers?
I’ve dreamed of having retreats in our cabin on a lake. I’ve held a few small spiritual and writing retreats so far. I recently retired from a two-year stint as the treasurer for ACFW Virginia. I’ve taught workshops for our monthly webinars and for our conferences.
Have you organized or directed a writers’ conference? Tell us about that experience, and/or share an anecdote that illustrates how you saw writers being mentored and encouraged through the event.
While on the ACFW Virginia chapter’s board, I helped organize two conferences. At two conferences, I held mentor appointments. Not having done much of this type of mentoring, I wondered if I was qualified to help anyone. I prayed. A young woman told me the trouble with an aspect of her story. Immediately, a suggestion came to me and I shared it. She said, “That’s it!” I became more relaxed as we brainstormed together.
If you speak at writers’ groups or conferences, what are some of your favorite topics to speak about?
I enjoy presenting:
Make a Scene of Your Scene: 4 Improvements to Make Your Scene Stand Out
Help Your Reader Commit Identity Theft with Your Character: Learning to Write in Deep Point of View
Make Your First Five Pages Shine: Avoid Mistakes New Writers Make
For Whom the Edits Toil: 7 Edits to Create Reader-Charming Paragraphs
Share Your Writing Journey as Part of Your Marketing Plan
What advice do you have for writers as we interact with our peers?
Find a critique group that works for you. I suggest you keep the group small, or you’ll spend more time critiquing than writing. Work on thickening your skin so you can hear suggestions. I say to myself, “I may not agree with a partner’s (or judge’s) suggestion, but if this sentence stopped the reader from reading on, I need to discern whether:
the sentence (paragraph) is necessary or
I can improve it.”
What can we do to be better supporters and mentors of our fellow writers?
Share titles of writing books we found helpful.
Write honest book reviews.
Share writing tips that improved our writing.
When critiquing, speak truth in a way that is non-threatening.
Help fellow writers understand we are God’s co-author. (See Allen Arnold’s book below.)
Do you have a favorite resource or two that you recommend to beginning writers?
Tailor Your Fiction Manuscript in Thirty Days by Zoe M. McCarthy
Hooked by Les Edgerton
Do you have a favorite resource or two that you recommend to writers who are struggling with discouragement?
The Story of With: A Better Way to Live, Love, & Create by Allen Arnold
What are common mistakes you see aspiring writer’s make?
Starting their books in the wrong place.
What they are imagining is not making it to the page.
Failing to ground the reader.
Dumping the backstory they need to know, but the reader doesn’t.
The protagonist is unlikeable or whiny.
Misunderstanding the difference between suspense and creating confusion.
Not writing scenes, and the paragraphs within them, linearly.
What advice can you give aspiring writers that you wished you had gotten, or that you wished you would have heeded?
I wish I had heard the agent’s wisdom earlier that it takes completing four manuscripts to learn to write. I would have been energized in an additional way to write those four manuscripts.
Zoe M. McCarthy is a full-time author and speaker. She has seven contemporary Christian romances involving tenderness and humor. Believing opposites distract, Zoe creates heroes and heroines who learn to embrace their differences. She’s the author of a book of Contemporary Christian allegories. Her non-fiction, Tailor Your Fiction Manuscript in 30 Days, helps writers write their stories or ready their manuscripts for publication. She teaches a community Bible study and writing workshops. Zoe and her husband live in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia. They enjoy canoeing the New River, spending time at their lake cabin, and entertaining their six grandchildren.
