Author: Sarah Rexford

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Platform and Branding

Branding That Lasts

Platform and Branding

Creating a brand that lasts can be a bit of an intimidating process. As a writer/author, you want to reflect your writing well, while also doing so in such a way you can keep up with your brand.

Your brand likely encompasses some, if not all, of the following: Running multiple social media accounts, a website, writing books, public speaking at conferences, interviewing on podcasts and TV, attending writing conferences, updating followers with book promotions, talking with editors and publishers, engaging with fans, etc. Doing all of this well could easily become exhausting.

If you create a brand that does not reflect who you are naturally, but is more of a highlight reel or façade, you could easily burnout. Building a lifestyle brand can not only help you avoid burnout, but engage your fans more than other types of branding might.

Even if you are a credible professional but want to build a lifestyle brand, you can do so.

Think of a lifestyle brand as simply focusing more on your life than your products. Instagram doesn’t only need to be inspiring quotes from famous authors, going live about your creative process, and posting stories about your writing deadline. Those are all great to share, but what happens when you’re not on deadline or you don’t have anything writing related to post?

Enter, the lifestyle brand.

Fans love connecting with the person behind the brand. The humanity behind the celebrity. The personality behind the grid. So how do you build a brand you can maintain long term?

Base your brand on your personality.

Search through different social media platforms to find authors using their own personality as the platform for their brand. If you don’t have a specific author in mind, search hashtags such as #WritingCommunity or the genre you write to help you get started.

Once you find 10-15 authors, browse their social media sites, website, and Goodreads to see how they engage with their followers and what they post. Take note of what type of content they don’t post as well.

Then step back, assess your own writing goals, your personality, and what you feel excited to share. Choose different aspects from the different authors, add in your own, and do a trial run for two weeks. Assess your analytics on all social media platforms. Choose the platform that’s done the best and continue working on it. Consider trying new things on the platforms not doing as well.

As you grow, don’t worry if you need to fine tune your brand. This is healthy and allows your fans to grow with you.

Put the time and effort in, but don’t take yourself too seriously. Enjoy the process. You are a writer, and this is your journey.

Have fun with it!

Sarah Rexford

Sarah Rexford is a Marketing Content Creator and writer. She helps authors build their platform through branding and copywriting. With a BA in Strategic Communications, Sarah equips writers to learn how to communicate their message through personal branding. She writes fiction and nonfiction and offers writers behind-the-scenes tips on the publishing industry through her blog itssarahrexford.com. She is represented by the C.Y.L.E Young Agency.

Instagram: @sarahjrexford
Twitter: @sarahjrexford
Web: itssarahrexford.com

Categories
Platform and Branding

How to Create Branding That Lasts

Platform and Branding

Creating a brand that lasts can be a bit of an intimidating process. As a writer/author, you want to reflect your writing well, while also doing so in such a way you can keep up with your brand.

Your brand likely encompasses some, if not all, of the following: Running multiple social media accounts, a website, writing books, public speaking at conferences, interviewing on podcasts and TV, attending writing conferences, updating followers with book promotions, talking with editors and publishers, engaging with fans, etc. Doing all of this well could easily become exhausting.

If you create a brand that does not reflect who you are naturally, but is more of a highlight reel or façade, you could easily burnout. Building a lifestyle brand can not only help you avoid burnout, but engage your fans more than other types of branding might.

Even if you are a credible professional but want to build a lifestyle brand, you can do so.

Think of a lifestyle brand as simply focusing more on your life than your products. Instagram doesn’t only need to be inspiring quotes from famous authors, going live about your creative process, and posting stories about your writing deadline. Those are all great to share, but what happens when you’re not on deadline or you don’t have anything writing related to post?

Enter, the lifestyle brand.

Fans love connecting with the person behind the brand. The humanity behind the celebrity. The personality behind the grid. So how do you build a brand you can maintain long term?

Base your brand on your personality.

Search through different social media platforms to find authors using their own personality as the platform for their brand. If you don’t have a specific author in mind, search hashtags such as #WritingCommunity or the genre you write to help you get started.

Once you find 10-15 authors, browse their social media sites, website, and Goodreads to see how they engage with their followers and what they post. Take note of what type of content they don’t post as well.

Then step back, assess your own writing goals, your personality, and what you feel excited to share. Choose different aspects from the different authors, add in your own, and do a trial run for two weeks. Assess your analytics on all social media platforms. Choose the platform that’s done the best and continue working on it. Consider trying new things on the platforms not doing as well.

As you grow, don’t worry if you need to fine tune your brand. This is healthy and allows your fans to grow with you.

Put the time and effort in, but don’t take yourself too seriously. Enjoy the process. You are a writer, and this is your journey.

Have fun with it!

Sarah Rexford

Sarah Rexford is a Marketing Content Creator and writer. She helps authors build their platform through branding and copywriting. With a BA in Strategic Communications, Sarah equips writers to learn how to communicate their message through personal branding. She writes fiction and nonfiction and offers writers behind-the-scenes tips on the publishing industry through her blog itssarahrexford.com. She is represented by the C.Y.L.E Young Agency.

Instagram: @sarahjrexford
Twitter: @sarahjrexford
Web: itssarahrexford.com

Categories
Platform and Branding

Many Interests. One Brand.

Platform and Branding

As you dive further into platform and branding it may be difficult to determine exactly what you want your brand to be. For instance, if you’ve written fiction but now you want to write nonfiction, knowing exactly how to brand yourself can be difficult.

Thankfully, it’s not as hard as you may think. With some careful thought and planning you can be a writer with many interests and one brand. Follow the three steps below to learn how.

Who Is Your Audience?

Your audience is you unique followers: the people who follow you because they love your content and want more of it. If you’ve built an audience around one genre or one target audience, how do you rebrand yourself as your interests grow? This can get tricky when it comes to branding or rebranding, but simply do your research: Know who’s following you.

We are much more adaptable than we realize.

Life is a journey and just as everyone else grows and changes, so do writers. Know your audience enough to know which of your interests they will benefit from and which projects they’ll jump on board with.

How? Research. Or literally ask. Post a question box on Instagram and see what answers you get!

Lead Your Audience

Once you know who your audience is, their likes, dislikes, and why they’re following you, you are better equipped to know how to lead them.

If your audience is made up of a loyal fan base who fell in love with your first middle grade book, its sequel, and the third installment, and suddenly you want to transition to writing cookbooks, they might have a learning curve. Understand this, and move forward accordingly. It may take you a little more time, but move forward with purpose and lead them into your new interests.

Show Your Audience The Full Aspect Of Who You Are

Creatives often have diverse interests. Don’t allow your online presence to hold you back offline. Yes, your online presence is a powerful tool when used rightly, but don’t let a free app on your phone hinder your creative potential.

If you have a large following on your fashion blog and Pinterest but want to try your hand at writing a novel, go for it.

Life is short.

 It’s important to steward the talents we’ve been given and pursue excellence. While you may lose some of your audience, you will likely grow in other capacities (whether that’s your social media numbers, or as an individual).

As you move into the next stage of your personal branding journey, be cautious but be bold. The creative world is constantly evolving. Grow with it. Take your writing interests to the next level. Rebrand. Revamp. Present fresh content in a new way.

And remember, you’re more than a social media following or a singular interest. You are a person who grows and changes.

Enjoy the process!

Sarah Rexford

Sarah Rexford is a Marketing Content Creator and writer. She helps authors build their platform through branding and copywriting. With a BA in Strategic Communications, Sarah equips writers to learn how to communicate their message through personal branding. She writes fiction and nonfiction and offers writers behind-the-scenes tips on the publishing industry through her blog itssarahrexford.com. She is represented by the C.Y.L.E Young Agency.

Instagram: @sarahjrexford
Twitter: @sarahjrexford
Web: itssarahrexford.com

Categories
Platform and Branding

What Do You Want to Say, and How?

Platform and Branding

There’s a reason that one day you sat down at an empty screen or in front of a blank sheet of paper, and started writing. Maybe you had a character’s story burning inside you and just had to write it down, or maybe you wanted to express your own story.

But for whatever reason, that one day when you sat down to write, you started an incredible journey. You had something to say, and you wrote it down.

Great branding is a huge part of platform, and for today’s writers, platform can make or break your writing journey.

You’re here because you love writing. You have something to say. Now it’s time to determine what exactly it is you want to say, and how you want to say it.

As a writer in 2021, you have multiple avenues for communicating via writing, and choosing the best one for you can help take your writing from your desk to hundreds, thousands, and even millions of readers.

So, what do you want to say?

When determining this, think big picture. If you write young adult books, there’s likely a theme you want to communicate. For example, let’s say your work-in-progress is about a teenage girl growing up during the California gold rush and the bravery she must learn traveling west with her family. You likely want to communicate the theme of bravery, resilience, teamwork, etc., to your readers.

Now, other than your book itself, how do you want to communicate these themes?

You may want to consider creating a Tik Tok account and using those short videos to continue communicating these characteristics. Maybe you love the outdoors and your Tik Tok is full of videos of your summer hikes and camping adventures. Perhaps revamp your Instagram and post photos of your camping trips with captions talking about these topics.

If you write adult Romance, the themes you communicate will likely be love and other similar topics such as sacrifice, service, loyalty, etc. You may want to continue communicating these themes through inspirational quotes posted on Twitter or paired with a graphic and posted to Instagram. You could refocus your Tik Tok or YouTube channel by creating video content that reinforces this theme.

Being a writer today doesn’t just mean sitting down at the keyboard and writing books. That’s a big part of it, but writing and communicating stretches to social media and public stages.

As you continue to pinpoint exactly what your brand is and grow your platform, focus on why exactly you are passionate about writing the genres and characters you write. Use these insights to help establish your online presence with clarity. Then post regular, quality content, and enjoy the process.

Building your platform is often a slow and steady grind, but the resulting ability to communicate your passions to your audience is worth it.

Best wishes out there!

Sarah Rexford is a Marketing Content Creator and writer. She helps authors build their platform through branding and copywriting. With a BA in Strategic Communications, Sarah equips writers to learn how to communicate their message through personal branding. She writes fiction and nonfiction and offers writers behind-the-scenes tips on the publishing industry through her blog itssarahrexford.com. She is represented by the C.Y.L.E Young Agency.

Instagram: @sarahjrexford
Twitter: @sarahjrexford
Web: itssarahrexford.com

Categories
Platform and Branding

How to Speak…Before You Say a Word

Platform and Branding

At some point in your writing career you’ll probably step on a stage and be expected to speak. It can be an intimidating prospect.

Many writers prefer to sit behind the screen at the keyboard. But stories are meant to be told. Audiences love to hear from the writer, and sometimes being onstage is the best way to communicate your message.

But nerves are understandable! To help you get over those nerves, leverage your personal brand to help you communicate before you even say a word.

Published or not, you have a brand. What you wear is part of that brand. So yes, let’s talk fashion.

Your fashion is the first impression your audience receives as you step onstage. What you choose to wear speaks for you before you ever say those first words. It communicates something about you: Are you laid back, professional, artsy, creative, relaxed?

Here are a few tips to help communicate your brand, while making you feel more at ease in the process:

Wear Something You’re Comfortable In

This is not the time to follow the old adage, “no pain no gain.” You want to put your audience at ease and you can’t do that very effectively if you yourself aren’t comfortable. A few days (or weeks, if you’re type A!) before your speaking engagement, look through your closet and notice the types of styles you usually wear and feel most comfortable in. Base your outfit off these styles.

Reflect Your Writer Brand

If you write books on how to be a standout business leader, you probably don’t want to show up in a multi-colored sweater with a mismatched scarf. However, if you write fantasy, this isn’t the worst choice you could make. Take note of what you write and who your audience is, then choose your fashion accordingly.

If you write children’s books and are going to speak in a classroom, maybe pass on the business suit and choose the teddy bear sweater instead. But imagine showing up to a conference to talk to CEO’s wearing the same outfit. Choose your fashion based on what you write and who your audience is.

Don’t Leave Your Personality Behind

While your fashion should reflect your writer brand and enhance rather than detract from your message, at the end of the day your brand is based on you, the individual. At the risk of being cliché, there’s only one you. Don’t let assumptions or your own nervousness keep you from being yourself. This doesn’t stop at fashion. Wear something you’re comfortable in so you can set your audience at ease, let your clothing reinforce your brand, and choose something you simply like wearing.

And then enjoy!

Enjoy the opportunity to share your passion with a live audience. Enjoy capturing the room. And enjoy vocalizing what you’ve worked so hard to take from your head, to the page, to the stage.

Best wishes out there!

Sarah Rexford is a Marketing Content Creator and writer. She helps authors build their platform through branding and copywriting. With a BA in Strategic Communications, Sarah equips writers to learn how to communicate their message through personal branding. She writes fiction and nonfiction and offers writers behind-the-scenes tips on the publishing industry through her blog itssarahrexford.com. She is represented by the C.Y.L.E Young Agency.

Instagram: @sarahjrexford
Twitter: @sarahjrexford
Web: itssarahrexford.com

Categories
Platform and Branding

Creating Your Launch Team: Tactics to Help You and Other Writers

Platform and Branding

Marketing your book can be as difficult as writing it, but equally as important. If you don’t write the book you won’t have readers, and if people don’t know about it, you won’t have readers. A book launch team is a great way to help get your book off the ground and also give back to the other writers helping you. Incorporating a few easy tactics can help your book succeed, while taking your launch team to a whole new level.

Invest in Social Media Ads

Create a short application process, target ads to those you want to help promote your book, and wait for the applications to come in. Side note, make joining your launch team free. You’re asking people to promote you, so it’s probably best not to ask them to pay to do so.

Offer Tiers of Investment

Tiers will help your members know what they’re signing up for as well as what they’ll get in return. For instance, if members join tier level one let’s say they commit to do seven activities to launch your book, and you give them the standard level of free content such as going live within the Facebook launch group, or sending them a free PDF of free book study questions.

Level two requires a bit more investment from members, but with their added investment, you provide additional free content: PDF’s that will help them on their own book, a workshop maybe you usually sell but provide for free, etc.

Tier three members get an all-access pass. Along with the benefits of tier one and two, tier three members could also benefit from special live Q&A sessions with you, exclusive content about your book, free gifts like t-shirts or bookmarks, and anything else you think would benefit them. But, to have this exclusive membership they also invest in you and your book with pre-orders, reviews, and social media promos. The more they help you, the more they get out of it.

Once your book is launched you can still use your launch group to give back to the writers within it:

  • Change the group description and create a writing community for these writers to connect, network, and perhaps promote their own books. (You can make it private or public, depending on the goals you have for the group. If you do decide to keep the group going, don’t forget to have someone monitor the page.)
  • Host monthly interviews with other writers through a giveaway that involves members following each other and posting about your book on their social media (you can track posts by asking them to use a specific hashtag).
  • Run a poll asking members what would be most helpful to them, and go from there.

Launch teams can help with presales and influence the success of your book. But they’re also a great way to invest in those who invest in you—have fun with it!

Sarah Rexford is a Marketing Content Creator and writer. She helps authors build their platform through branding and copywriting. With a BA in Strategic Communications, Sarah equips writers to learn how to communicate their message through personal branding. She writes fiction and nonfiction and offers writers behind-the-scenes tips on the publishing industry through her blog itssarahrexford.com. She is represented by the C.Y.L.E Young Agency.

Instagram: @sarahjrexford
Twitter: @sarahjrexford
Web: itssarahrexford.com

Categories
Platform and Branding

The WHY Behind Building Your Platform

Platform and Branding

Have you lever listened to Simon Sinek’s TEDx Talk, Start With Why? If not, I’d highly recommend you do. Sinek explains the importance of understanding why you’re doing what you’re doing. And when it comes to platform building, your WHY is just as important.

I’ve said it before but I’ll say it again: If you’re writing for the sake of great success and fame, I’d highly recommend that you pursue it through something other than writing. That said, from my interactions with writers, most of us write for love of writing. Assuming that’s the case with you, let’s continue.

Author platform is hugely important for writers today. It can also be hugely frustrating. You may be feeling like you’re trying to sell something that doesn’t even have a contract yet. Here’s the secret: Don’t build a platform to sell a book.

What?

Just as it’s important to think reader-first when writing, it’s essential to think reader-first when building your platform. People don’t like getting sold to. It strips individuals of their humanity and reduces them to a conduit for a cash flow that has nothing to do with them. So how do you build a platform? Share what’s important to you. Share your passion, specifically, the passion that has something to offer your reader—your book.

If you write nonfiction, sharing your book could look like sharing bullet points on social media that will directly help your reader’s pain point, whatever that is (baking, self-help, wellness, etc.). Maybe it’s creating a shortened work book eBook that readers get for free when subscribing to your email list. Maybe it’s a short video series of you talking through each chapter (I’d probably save this until the book is out).

If you write fiction, sharing your book could look like offering giveaways if readers subscribe to your email list or follow your other social media platforms. It could be going live on Instagram and talking about your process for writing your book, and giving away a free copy for whoever asks the most interesting question at the end.

In all of these instances, you’re giving readers free content, streamlined for their interests and needs, while engaging them as individuals and as a bonus, building your platform.

At the heart of writing is storytelling, not sales. If you want to make sales, there are many, many jobs out there that will help you succeed much faster. But if you want to bring helpful content to individuals, share your passion, and influence people for the better, an author platform is a great place to start.

Set aside the idea that building a platform is about self-promotion and making sales, and instead think reader first. You’ll be off to a great start. Just as your book isn’t about you but rather about your readers, so is your platform. Best wishes out there!

Sarah Rexford is a Marketing Content Creator and writer. She helps authors build their platform through branding and copywriting. With a BA in Strategic Communications, Sarah equips writers to learn how to communicate their message through personal branding. She writes fiction and nonfiction and offers writers behind-the-scenes tips on the publishing industry through her blog itssarahrexford.com. She is represented by the C.Y.L.E Young Agency.

Instagram: @sarahjrexford
Twitter: @sarahjrexford
Web: itssarahrexford.com

Categories
Platform and Branding

Hey, Writer. Let’s Talk About Your Brand!

Platform and Branding

Now more than ever, personal branding is important. Whether you’re scrolling through Instagram looking at the latest influencers’ posts, or on Twitter engulfed in a sea of book promotions, it may seem like everyone is pushing their personal brand.

Maybe you attended a writing conference and were declined representation due to your lack of platform. Maybe your book made it through pitching and garnered the interest of a publisher, only to have the marketing team squash your hopes of landing a contract. I’ve been there too. If you’re only here for writing, that’s ok. We have numerous articles on the writing craft. If you want to write for yourself, you can skip this article and go read another. However, if you want to write and build a career then keep reading.

Branding is a cornerstone to a solid writing career. That’s why we need to talk about it.

Writers embody their writing. Think of J. K. Rowling—a giant in her genre. But she is both known for what she writes and also who she is. The character of Harry is so endearing partly because we know Rowling’s past. To be an author with a career is to open yourself up to the public and show who you are.

That’s where branding comes in.

We don’t need to share every detail of our lives to get published, but we do need to share select details.

Notice the word select there. Brand comes down to what you choose to share.

What are you passionate about? What colors do you love? How do you decorate? Believe it or not, this all influences your brand. As a writer you will likely do some speaking and promoting. What you talk about hopefully comes from what you’re passionate about. How you dress when you speak hopefully is inspired by the colors you love. How you decorate will likely influence the type of photos you post on Instagram or your author Facebook page, or what you pin on your author Pinterest board.

We’ll continue future, in-depth discussions of author branding (as well as platform) but for now, can I assign some homework?

Look up your favorite authors and notice what they’re posting, tweeting, and blogging about. Notice trends. Notice recurring themes. Colors. Topics. Questions. Ways they engage with their followers.

Then look at your own social media and writer website. Notice trends, recurring themes, colors, topics, questions, and how you engage. Take note if there are discrepancies between your social media bio and what you’re posting about.

For now, that’s all you need to do—notice. Next time we’ll take it a step further.

Until then, happy writing!

Sarah Rexford is a Marketing Content Creator and writer. She helps authors build their platform through branding and copywriting. With a BA in Strategic Communications, Sarah equips writers to learn how to communicate their message through personal branding. She writes fiction and nonfiction and offers writers behind-the-scenes tips on the publishing industry through her blog itssarahrexford.com. She is represented by the C.Y.L.E Young Agency.

Instagram: @sarahjrexford
Twitter: @sarahjrexford
Web: itssarahrexford.com

Categories
Platform and Branding

Where You Are and Where You Want to Be

Platform and Branding

When it comes to building a platform, numbers fly around conversations like flies on leftovers. Some may say you need 50k followers on a single social media outlet to have a platform, others may say platform isn’t as important for fiction as it is for nonfiction. Others may say 30k on one platform is sufficient.

For a moment, set aside those numbers and listen to one freeing reality: Where you want to be is not where you need to be right now.

Yes, you need a platform, but if you write fiction crime novels your platform in this moment does not need to consist of fiction crime novel readers.

In some capacity, everyone is more talented in one area than another. When you’re looking to build your platform, start with where you are, not where you want to be.

Let’s say you are a stay-at-home mom and love cooking healthy dishes. Recently you’ve taken to learning the craft of writing—you’re working on your first romantic fiction and trying to build a platform.

You might think you need to start a blog on your romantic fiction, but I would urge you to think again. Instead, start using Pinterest to share your favorite recipes, or start a blog with a similar focus. As you naturally build a following around this passion, you’ll gain loyal fans.

How does that translate into a following for your book?

During the time it took you to write your manuscript and land your first contract, you’ve shared quality content on a regular basis for your followers. You’ve shared the best recipes you have and other than the usual requests of subscribing, sharing, and liking, you’ve never asked for a thing from your followers. You’ve provided free, quality content again and again.

They know all this time you’ve loyally provided what you said you would, and they’ve benefited. You’ve built a loyal following. At this point, they most likely won’t mind if you mention you’ve written a book and just signed your first contract. In fact, they’ll likely want to know!

And as an added bonus, maybe one of your characters loves cooking and you can mention he or she uses your most popular recipe as a second-date dinner in your romance novel. Now they’re really intrigued!

Whatever your current passion or talent, focus on building your following there. Once you have a loyal fan base and your book is about to be published, let them know. You’ll probably be surprised how many fans of your cooking blog turn into fans of your book.

With this type of platform, you don’t need to overmarket yourself or spam your followers with promotional material. They’re loyal to you, and if you have a new passion, they’ll likely want to support it as well.

Best wishes out there!

Sarah Rexford is a Marketing Content Creator and writer. She helps authors build their platform through branding and copywriting. With a BA in Strategic Communications, Sarah equips writers to learn how to communicate their message through personal branding. She writes fiction and nonfiction and offers writers behind-the-scenes tips on the publishing industry through her blog itssarahrexford.com. She is represented by the C.Y.L.E Young Agency.

Instagram: @sarahjrexford
Twitter: @sarahjrexford
Web: itssarahrexford.com

Categories
Platform and Branding

How to Market Your Book in 2020

The difference between filing your carefully edited pages on your computer and readers reading those pages, is marketing.

Books come alive when readers read them, but in order to read them, they must know it exists. It’s the imagination that puts skin on characters and personalities in dialogue. Without readers, your book is a black and white stack of words.

One of my writing friends once said: “The brutal truth is you may have the greatest book ever written, but if you cannot pitch it, no one may ever know.”

Swap the word pitch with market, and you get a similar result.

So, how do you market your book, especially when life looks quite different now than it did a year ago?

Start with your pitch.

Online marketing can help you so much right now. You can do it from home, but still reach hundreds if not thousands of potential readers. However, just as every word counts in writing, every word counts in marketing. For someone to be willing to stop their scroll, it’s important to be succinct and catch their attention.

If you’re on Twitter, try formatting your pitch to target potential readers (and don’t forget to hashtag #WritingCommunity!). This will hopefully pique interest and if you leave it with a question, opens the door for comments.

Market your protagonist’s character arc.

Readers connect with the human side of characters, and often the humanity of characters means they have flaws. You want to keep the ending a surprise, but give enough to engage their desire to find out what happens. What’s your inciting incident, how does your protagonist respond, and what does this say about him? These can be good questions to ask when considering how to portray character arc.

Note: Keep your target audience in mind, because you want to remember not just what you’re pitching, but who you’re pitching to.

Shine a spotlight on your theme

              Your theme is what holds your book together. It’s the current that carries your protagonist, and your readers, from the first page to the last. It’s what makes them pick up your book instead of the one next to it on the shelf, or add your book to the cart instead of one in the customers-also-bought list on Amazon.

Let your passion for your book overflow as you market, but remember readers often purchase not just because of the genre, but because of the story in the genre. Your theme is what sets your story apart and your character arc helps hold up your theme, whatever it is.

Best wishes as you spread the word on your project!

Sarah Rexford is a Marketing Content Creator and writer. She helps authors build their platform through branding and copywriting. With a BA in Strategic Communications, Sarah equips writers to learn how to communicate their message through personal branding. She writes fiction and nonfiction and offers writers behind-the-scenes tips on the publishing industry through her blog itssarahrexford.com. She is represented by the C.Y.L.E Young Agency.

Instagram: @sarahjrexford
Twitter: @sarahjrexford
Web: itssarahrexford.com

Categories
Platform and Branding

Author Brand Crash Course

Platform and Branding

Personal brand is a big factor for writers today. Do you have one? If so, what is it? And how do you, through your brand, portray yourself to the world? These are some questions to ask if you’re newer to this thing called writing or simply focusing on your platform for the first time.

First things first: Do you have a brand?

I put brand into two categories, active brand and passive brand. Passive brand is the brand you don’t think about. It’s what you wear to buy groceries, the posts you share without considering your writing platform, the people you follow because you just like seeing their posts. Active brand is much different. It’s what you choose to wear to the writers conference, it’s the blog you work on for a week before sharing on Twitter, it’s the people you follow on Instagram so you can work on your platform.

Whether you realize it or not, everything you say, share, do, wear (the list goes on) communicates something to your followers. When considering your brand, focus on a few key areas.

I can’t tell you what areas those should be for you, that’s up to you as the writer, but here are some bullet points to get you thinking:

  • Social Media — Are you always consuming or do you engage and give away good content? Neither is right or wrong, but one establishes you as more of a student in the industry while the other establishes you as an expert in your field.
  • Style — When people meet you for the first time, what does what you wear tell them about who you are? Are you a casual person? A professional? Again, neither is right or wrong but it is important to be aware of how you come across.
  • Website — Is your website about you or your reader? Are you inviting your target audience to read about the topics you enjoy, or are you bringing fresh content that will help them in whatever niche you’ve chosen to write in?
  • Writing — If people follow you on social media or subscribe to your site and then go read your books, they expect it to align with the rest of your brand. Ask, does my writing align with who I’m showing the world I am? (Imagine if Stephen King had a blog strictly focused on cat memes. As amazing as that would be, it would be rather confusing for the reader.)

If this feels like a lot, don’t be discouraged. Start small and grow from there. The good thing about a personal brand is it grows and changes as you do. Enjoy the journey of discovery and connecting with your readers along the way. If you’re a writer, you’re here for the long game. Personal brand is part of the process. And if you can write a book from scratch, you can definitely build your brand from what’s already started. You got this!

Sarah Rexford is a Marketing Content Creator and writer. She helps authors build their platform through branding and copywriting. With a BA in Strategic Communications, Sarah equips writers to learn how to communicate their message through personal branding. She writes fiction and nonfiction and offers writers behind-the-scenes tips on the publishing industry through her blog itssarahrexford.com. She is represented by the C.Y.L.E Young Agency.

Instagram: @sarahjrexford
Twitter: @sarahjrexford
Web: itssarahrexford.com

Categories
Platform and Branding

Platform Starts with Your Mindset

When you hear the word platform what comes to mind? A mountain between you and getting published? One more thing to add to your to-do list? An elusive goal you’re not sure how to chase?

Thankfully, while platform is important for today’s writers, it’s not impossible to build. You probably have more of a platform than you realize.

Platform isn’t just social media followers.

Platform is potential readers.

Followers and reader are two very different things. Sometimes they’re the same, but often followers and readers are different. Put simply, the people you interact with, online or in person, who may purchase your book, that’s your platform.

This is where mindset comes in.

1. Share Your Passion

What we do with our lives often shows the areas we are interested in. You probably won’t write a how-to guide on rock climbing if you don’t love rock climbing. But if you love it, you’ll also probably join clubs or Facebook groups that focus on rock climbing. There’s an audience there.

To continue with this example, find people who reviewed movies on rock climbing (Free Solo, for instance) and find out what social media they like best, and what kind of content they engage with. These are the type of people you want to engage in your daily life because of shared interest. Naturally, they become potential readers.

2. Refuse the Scarcity Mindset

Platform is built off relationship, and relationship is born out of mindset.

Last year I attended a writing conference. I met a lot of great writers and made some great friends. Over lunch one day some of the writers started asking me questions about writing and platform. I could’ve answered vaguely and kept all my answers to myself. After all, the more writers working to build their platform the more competition, right?

Actually, not really. The world is full of readers, and there are plenty to go around.

Believing someone’s success lessens the possibility of your own is a scarcity mindset. Instead of choosing a scarcity mindset, I gave them my tips, helped them as much as I could, and then went on with the rest of the conference. Today, I keep up with some of them and we support each other in our writing.

3. Engage with Those Around You

If you can’t attend a conference this year, start small. Although writers are often viewed as introverts, even introverts talk about what excites them. When you’re in line at the coffee shop and the barista asks you what you’re working on today, tell them about your book. You just talked with a potential reader.

Remember, people talk about what excites them, and there are plenty of readers to go around. Share your passion, refuse the scarcity mindset, and engage with those around you. You’ll be surprised where it takes you!

Sarah Rexford is a Marketing Content Creator and writer. She helps authors build their platform through branding and copywriting. With a BA in Strategic Communications, Sarah equips writers to learn how to communicate their message through personal branding. She writes fiction and nonfiction and offers writers behind-the-scenes tips on the publishing industry through her blog itssarahrexford.com. She is represented by the C.Y.L.E Young Agency.

Instagram: @sarahjrexford
Twitter: @sarahjrexford
Web: itssarahrexford.com

Categories
Fantasy-Sci-Fi

How Genre Impacts Your Character Development

Sometimes it’s easy to think character development looks similar across genres. And for the reader, it usually does. Even in the best-selling books, character development is often very relatable. As it should be. Readers need to relate to the characters, after all. But when we use genre as an outside force influencing our characters, we take character development to a whole new level.

Let’s take Harry Potter. Harry lived in the cupboard under the stairs until he went to Hogwarts and discovered who he really is. This is a typical young adult character arc. But if we look deeper and notice the influence of genre, we see Harry’s development from a whole new perspective.

What makes Harry such a standout character is his very normal personality thrust into extraordinary circumstances. The normalcy of Harry contrasted with the unexpected and surprising details of Hogwarts and its professors acts as a dichotomy, highlighting just how much Harry needs to overcome. Yes, Rowling could have put Harry into a normal school with no magic and fleshed out his character, but not as deeply.

As you create your world, take note of your protagonist’s weaknesses. Harry repeatedly says “I’m just Harry!” which goes to show 1) how little he knows about himself, 2) how he’s in way over his head, and 3) just how much he will grow.

What is your protagonist’s view of himself or ideology of the world? Create a villain who undermines that in every way. Harry doesn’t think he’s important. But the villain sees his seeming unimportance, his innocence, as something that destroyed his agenda.

How do the rules of your world push against your protagonist’s views of right and wrong? Harry wants to free Dobby the house elf, but the rules of the Harry Potter world are strict about how a house elf can be freed. Harry has to play by the rules to help Dobby.

How do the rules of your world’s culture impact your protagonist’s interpersonal relationships? Harry wants to be friends with Hermione, but Hermione is looked down on for not having a magical family. Harry wouldn’t have had this interpersonal struggle if his character hadn’t been created in a magical world. The genre Harry was thrust into massively impacted his character arc, even at the interpersonal level.

As you create characters and decide what type of world to plunge them into, ask yourself some of the above questions. Based on their personality, fears, dreams, views of right and wrong, etc., would science-fiction or fantasy best reveal their character arc?

Put Harry in a public school somewhere in England and he probably would’ve stayed relatively insignificant. But put him in a wizarding world and he grows so much he defeats the dark lord and becomes not “just Harry” but Harry Potter, the boy who lived. As the author, it’s your job to make your characters shine, and much of that comes down to choosing the stage to put them on.

Sarah Rexford is a Marketing Content Creator and writer. She helps authors build their platform through branding and copywriting. With a BA in Strategic Communications, Sarah equips writers to learn how to communicate their message through personal branding. She writes fiction and nonfiction and offers writers behind-the-scenes tips on the publishing industry through her blog itssarahrexford.com. She is represented by the C.Y.L.E Young Agency.

Instagram: @sarahjrexford
Twitter: @sarahjrexford
Web: itssarahrexford.com

Categories
Fantasy-Sci-Fi

Your Protagonist: The Eyes to Your Story

Choosing a perspective character is one of the biggest choices when it comes to writing your novel. There are usually several great options, but as the writer it’s up to you to choose the best option.

And that’s where the difficulty comes in.

Your perspective character is often referred to as your camera. To stay in line with point-of-view rules, your reader can only see, hear, taste, touch, smell, and know whatever your scene’s perspective character sees, hears, tastes, touches, smells, and knows.

For the sake of this post, let’s assume you’re choosing one perspective character for the entire book, rather than several and switching perspectives scene to scene.

Your perspective character sets the tone of your story.

Imagine if the classic Pride and Prejudice was re-written and told from Mr. Wickham’s perspective. The tone would not have the romantic, at times light-hearted feel the classic is known for. What if J. K. Rowling had written Harry Potter from only Hagrid’s point-of-view? It would likely have felt a little more comedic.

Ask: What tone do I want in my story? Then choose the character that will best represent that tone.

Your perspective character reveals your story.

Going back to the Pride and Prejudice example, we don’t find out what’s happened to Mr. Darcy’s little sister until quite a way into the book. Trying to discover who Darcy is and why he’s so mysterious keeps us turning the pages. But if Jane Austen had written it from Mr. Wickham’s perspective the mystery of Darcy’s character wouldn’t have been a mystery.

Decide: What do you want to hide from your reader, and when do you want to reveal it? Then choose the character whose journey of discovery matches the journey you want your reader to have.

Your perspective character learns a lesson.

Good stories have good character arcs. Lizzie’s character arc in Pride and Prejudice is one that goes from judgmental to loving. Again, if Wickham had been the perspective character the reader likely wouldn’t have walked away changed. Not in a meaningful way.

Consider: What lesson do I want to teach, and which character will learn the lesson?

Choosing a perspective character is a big decision. He or she will set the tone of your story, experience a specific journey of discovery, and learn specific lessons other characters won’t learn in the same way.

As you consider which character to tell the story through, take your time. But once you’ve made the decision move forward with boldness. It’s your story to tell, and after all, you’re the writer!

Sarah Rexford is a Marketing Content Creator and writer. She helps authors build their platform through branding and copywriting. With a BA in Strategic Communications, Sarah equips writers to learn how to communicate their message through personal branding. She writes fiction and nonfiction and offers writers behind-the-scenes tips on the publishing industry through her blog itssarahrexford.com. She is represented by the C.Y.L.E Young Agency.

Instagram: @sarahjrexford
Twitter: @sarahjrexford
Web: itssarahrexford.com

Categories
Fantasy-Sci-Fi

How to Make Readers Feel At Home From Page 1

Have you ever walked into someone’s house as a first-time dinner guest and felt out of place? Ten other people are there and it’s a laid back, serve yourself kind of dinner.

You grab your food, spilling some ketchup on the counter in the process, and clean it up with a napkin. You don’t know where the garbage is although you know they have to have one. Dessert comes around and you want a clean fork but you don’t know which drawer to open and don’t want to look through every one.

By the time you leave you’re flustered. You KNEW there was a garbage can and a drawer full of forks, but because you didn’t know the layout of the house you couldn’t find them.

If you’re reading this post it’s because you’re writing fantasy or science fiction, which means by default, you have other-worldly elements in your writing.

When readers open to page one you want them to feel at home, not confused as they figure out how the world is set up and what goes where.

A simple, reader-friendly way to do so this by dropping in elements humanity relates to no matter where they’re from.

Just as ever house is designed in a different way but with similar features, every world has certain elements that are similar and will feel grounding for the reader.

You might be writing science fiction but the protagonist still can feel lonely. That’s relatable. You might write fantasy but your characters still eat. In The Lord of the Rings Tolkien makes meal time a very important part of hobbit lifestyle. This is something we can all relate to, even though his books are about dragons, magic, and rings of power.

Here are some questions to ask that will help your reader feel at home when plunging into a world they’ve never been to:

  • Where do my characters sleep?
  • Do they eat food from the ground? How is it grown?
  • How many seasons are there?
  • What does personal hygiene look like for my characters?
  • How are friendships made?

As you answer these questions you may feel like you’re brainstorming, and to an extent, you are. However, including personal, daily occurrences like eating and sleeping will ground your reader and make them feel more comfortable as they dive into your hero’s journey.

Remember, the more your reader can relate to your world, the more believable your fantastical elements will be. The more believable your story, the more memorable.

Happy writing!

Sarah Rexford is a Marketing Content Creator and writer. She helps authors build their platform through branding and copywriting. With a BA in Strategic Communications, Sarah equips writers to learn how to communicate their message through personal branding. She writes fiction and nonfiction and offers writers behind-the-scenes tips on the publishing industry through her blog itssarahrexford.com. She is represented by the C.Y.L.E Young Agency.

Instagram: @sarahjrexford
Twitter: @sarahjrexford
Web: itssarahrexford.com

Categories
Fantasy-Sci-Fi

How to Write Tactful Fantasy and Science Fiction During COVID-19

Writing during a global pandemic is probably not something you thought you’d be tackling. Writing is hard enough by itself!

But handling history well, whether you’re living it or researching it, is part of being a writer. Recently I saw an article that stressed how one publisher is not particularly focused on dystopian writing because of the current state of the world.

They stressed the importance of finding hope through historical events. Fantasy and Science-fiction can be used to build that hope, if done rightly. Here are a few ways to use the current global crisis for the benefit of your readers:

Enforce your writing with historical moments.

Countless moments have shaped history, and therefore storytelling, as a whole. This is one of them. Going back often helps us move forward.

As you plan, draft, or edit your current work-in-progress, focus on historical moments that looked bleak but ended in a brighter future. Draw inspiration from these moments and allow them to influence your writing. Readers need hope, and you’re one of the best people to give it to them.

Use history to teach.

The Civil War brought tension between family members and friends. The Great Depression was a drastic life change for many. COVID-19 is a different circumstance bringing similar emotional responses. Research those who lived during historical moments, look up their stories, and choose different aspects of these very real people to influence your characters.

For your protagonist, consider drawing different character traits from figures who experienced global moments in different centuries. Combine some of these characteristics into a fictional character, add your own twist, and use your character to bring hope to your story. This will show readers what characteristics still bring hope today.

Look to the future.

History shows us how to interact with the future, what to do, and what not to do. Science-fiction in particular points to the future. As you craft your story, pour yourself into world-building and research that will make readers want to escape into your world. Layer in supporting characters and scenes that will inspire your readers to return to their own world wiser, and with more hope, in how to handle their present circumstances.

Writing is a powerful tool. While writing for entertainment may not be our primary focus right now, it can be used to teach, inspire, and bring hope. Now more than ever it’s important to write powerful stories and strong characters. Let’s be the writers who encourage readers in a dark time. Write on!

Sarah Rexford is a Marketing Content Creator and writer. She helps authors build their platform through branding and copywriting. With a BA in Strategic Communications, Sarah equips writers to learn how to communicate their message through personal branding. She writes fiction and nonfiction and offers writers behind-the-scenes tips on the publishing industry through her blog itssarahrexford.com. She is represented by the C.Y.L.E Young Agency.

Instagram: @sarahjrexford
Twitter: @sarahjrexford
Web: itssarahrexford.com

Categories
Fantasy-Sci-Fi

Tropes: How to Make Them Credible, Not Cliché

You could probably name tropes from your favorite books and movies without hardly thinking about it. There’s the Reluctant Hero, the Chosen One, the Mentor, and the list goes on. As you read that list, characters probably came to mind.

But what goes into creating a trope that’s not cliché? Fantasy and Sci-fi are so popular it’s easy to fall into cliché’s without even realizing it. Today we’ll focus on two tropes and how to use backstory to make them compelling, rather than cliché.

The Reluctant Hero:

Frodo Baggins is a standout example of a reluctant hero. He never intends to take the ring to Mordor. But he ends up doing so and saving Middle Earth. Here are some questions when considering his backstory:

  • Why was Frodo reluctant to start on his heroic journey?
  • What about his character, prior to starting his journey, foreshadowed his heroism?
  • Did his reluctance show strength, or fear?

From the start, we know Frodo dreams of leaving the Shire. He spends hours in the woods, dreaming of other places. But when it comes down to it, he realizes what he has and wants to keep it.

However, he’s willing to sacrifice for his family, which is foreshadowed very well in his interaction with Bilbo. His reluctance makes him empathetic.

The Chosen One:

Harry Potter is a quite literal example of this, as the prophecies in the series talk about a “chosen one.” He was marked by He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named and from infancy, his life is set on a path to heroism. Here are some questions to ask when considering whether his backstory makes his trope credible:

  • Does Harry live as if he is a chosen one?
  • Do his family connections lay a strong foundation to uphold him as a chosen one?
  • How does he mentally accept or reject his trope?

What’s so endearing about Harry is he doesn’t realize how famous he is. He doesn’t know he’s important, and he doesn’t realize his family backstory. A lot of his character arc is him working through his reality and trying to embrace it. This makes it credible.

When it comes to your trope…

Before deciding on your trope, ask yourself if your plot and characters lay a credible foundation. To do so, feel free to use the following questions:

  • Will your protagonist look like your chosen trope because he or she is created as one by you, the author, or as a result of their life situation?
  • Do their natural mannerisms reveal them as your chosen trope (reluctant hero, chosen one, etc.)?
  • Do secondary characters play into the credibility of your trope?

Best wishes, and happy writing!

Sarah Rexford is a Marketing Content Creator and writer. She helps authors build their platform through branding and copywriting. With a BA in Strategic Communications, Sarah equips writers to learn how to communicate their message through personal branding. She writes fiction and nonfiction and offers writers behind-the-scenes tips on the publishing industry through her blog itssarahrexford.com. She is represented by the C.Y.L.E Young Agency.

Instagram: @sarahjrexford
Twitter: @sarahjrexford
Web: itssarahrexford.com

Categories
Fantasy-Sci-Fi

World Building: What publishers Want

There’s something immersive about opening a fantasy or sci-fi book and feeling like there were hundreds of pages of history that happened prior to sentence one, page one.

It’s hard to pull off.

It’s also important to pull off.

Let’s do a quick case study on two well-known trilogies: Divergent and The Hunger Games.

Case Study 1: Divergent

The first book of the trilogy starts with the main character in front of a mirror, glimpsing her reflection as her mother cuts her hair in preparation for her aptitude test.

As a reader, some questions quickly arise. Why can’t she look in mirrors on a regular basis? What’s an aptitude test? Why is she so nervous to take it? Why is Beatrice’s world sectioned into factions? What’s the Choosing Ceremony?

Case Study 2: The Hunger Games

Page one starts with the main character wondering where her little sister is. Seems normal. But then we find out her little sister has bad dreams about the reaping that will take place in their district today.

Why is this world separated into districts? What’s a reaping? Why would a little girl have such bad dreams about it she’d leave the comfort of her big sister?

From paragraph one I realize I’m immersed in a dystopian society that’s been around for a long time. Long enough to establish rituals that implant themselves in a little girl’s nightmare.

When you or your agent submit your manuscript to a publisher, it’s important to pay attention to these examples. Note the themes. In both books, the reader is:

  • Plunged into a life-changing event from page one
  • Wondering how the main character will survive in a world that’s against them
  • Deeply entrenched in years of destructive customs  

Note these themes, but create your own. The important thing to remember is that from the first sentence the reader knows they’re entering another world.

Divergent begins, “There is one mirror in my house.” A simple statement that begs the question, why?

The Hunger Games, “When I wake up, the other side of the bed is cold.” It makes you keep reading, and by the end of the paragraph the reaping has already been introduced.

Here’s the point.

As a reader, you feel like you’ve just jumped into the middle of a massive, historical event. You want to discover why there’s a Choosing Ceremony and a reaping. Questions leap off the page with nearly every sentence.

Write this way.

Drop hints that your world has been around for ages. Show your reader that what’s happening now, on page one, is the most important part to jump in on.

Happy writing!

Sarah Rexford is a Marketing Content Creator and writer. She helps authors build their platform through branding and copywriting. With a BA in Strategic Communications, Sarah equips writers to learn how to communicate their message through personal branding. She writes fiction and nonfiction and offers writers behind-the-scenes tips on the publishing industry through her blog itssarahrexford.com. She is represented by the C.Y.L.E Young Agency.

Instagram: @sarahjrexford
Twitter: @sarahjrexford
Web: itssarahrexford.com

Categories
Fantasy-Sci-Fi

Three Ways to Use History to Build Your Fantasy

Margaret Atwood is well-known for her novel The Handmaid’s Tale, a dystopian first published in 1985. Her novel covers the story of a handmaid living in what’s known as the Republic of Gilead. The catch?

Most every, if not all, major plot points were written based on reality. I imagine this was a large contributor in making Atwood’s novel a TV show. Why?

It was relatable.

The Republic of Gilead is not a real place, although to readers, it might seem to be. The same is true of your work in progress. Whatever country you create is not real, but it can seem real to readers when you create it using details that aren’t fiction.

When building your fantasy world, pull details from existing countries.

One of my first novels takes place in a country much like Australia — but only in shape and location. I mixed the layout of Australia with the topography of the US. I haven’t lived in Australia, but I have lived in the US. I know the US. And as the old adage goes, write what you know.

Secondly, I incorporated aspects of US history into my story, but pulled different aspects of Australian government into my fantasy government. This way the reader will never say, “Oh, this world is based on the history of the United States but set in Australia.” Pieces are pulled from both countries, but it’s not based on either.

Use details of historic figures to put skin on your characters.

When researching my characters, I looked up many historic people who’d had a big impact on either their country or the world. I pulled details of their personality and made them characteristics of my own characters.

Readers know names like Frederick Douglass, Mary I, Joan of Arc, and Adolf Hitler. It’s likely they also know more about them then they may remember learning in high school history. Pulling different details from each, a hair style, a personality trait, a character flaw, etc., then combining them to create one specific character, adds the ring of truth.

Mix customs.

If your book does well, you will likely have readers from around the country and possibly the world. Part of the fun of writing fantasy and science-fiction is the freedom to make things up. When it comes to the customs of the characters in your world, this freedom continues.

However, to really make your world come alive, research customs from centuries ago to present day. After you have ten to thirty customs, assign several to each of your characters. This will round out your characters, provide you with centuries of backstory to draw from, and use reality to strengthen your fantasy.

Don’t forget to add your own creative ideas to the mix. After all, that’s what writing fantasy and sci-fi is all about. Happy writing!

Sarah Rexford is a Marketing Content Creator and writer. She helps authors build their platform through branding and copywriting. With a BA in Strategic Communications, Sarah equips writers to learn how to communicate their message through personal branding. She writes fiction and nonfiction and offers writers behind-the-scenes tips on the publishing industry through her blog itssarahrexford.com. She is represented by the C.Y.L.E Young Agency.

Instagram: @sarahjrexford
Twitter: @sarahjrexford
Web: itssarahrexford.com

Categories
Fantasy-Sci-Fi

How Setting Can Be a Worthy Villain

It takes a spell-binding plot and evocative characters to create a memorable story. Some writers meticulously plan each plot point, others put their characters into interesting situations and write to discover what happens.

Regardless of your personal writing style, using setting as a pivotal character, even a villain, can take your story to a whole new level.

As an example, let’s break down two lines of dialogue, both in different settings.

Setting one: A sunny beach in the Bahamas, filled with tourists and vendors. Two characters are laying on towels reading their favorite book (possibly yours?), surrounded with half-eaten snacks. They overworked the past year, and this is vacation time their boss told them to take. Their dialogue goes like this:

Person One, “Before we have to go, you promised to tell me about that time you were working in London but were forced to step down.”

Person Two, “Maybe a different time? This isn’t exactly an ideal situation to revisit that.”

As a reader, what mental images did you conjure? Did you feel a sense of urgency? Probably not. They’re on the beach, after all. Reading. You may be able to understand why Person Two doesn’t want to ruin a perfect vacation day revisiting the past, but you’re probably more irritated they won’t share than empathetic with why they may not want to.

With that in mind, let’s look at the following situation.

Setting Two: A dark, abandoned warehouse. Our two characters are handcuffed to chairs, surrounded by members of the gang they’ve been undercover with for a week and a half. They’re about to be transported to a ship where they will be tossed overboard and left for dead. Their dialogue goes like this:

Person One, “Before we have to go, you promised to tell me about that time you were working in London but were forced to step down.”

Person Two, “Maybe a different time? This isn’t exactly an ideal situation to revisit that.”

As a reader, what dialogue was most captivating? In both settings, the dialogue is the same, word for word. But the setting was much different. The setting added an urgency for the characters by taking on a personality of its own.

By swapping sunlight for darkness, a beach for a warehouse, and tourists for a gang, we upped the stakes in a just a few sentences.

In both situations, we want to discover what happened in London, but as readers, we’re more likely to turn the page based on setting two.

Not only do we want to figure out what happened, but we want to find out if they’ll live long enough to allow us to find out. The setting is a villain in the sense that it’s keeping us from our goal of finding out what happened in London.

Using setting as an added villain for your characters’ will captivate your readers and keep them turning pages until the very last one.

Sarah Rexford is a Marketing Content Writer, working with brands to grow their audience reach. She studied Strategic Communications at Cornerstone University and focused on writing during her time there, completing two full-length manuscripts while a full-time student. Currently she trains under best-selling author Jerry Jenkins in his Your Novel Blueprint course and is actively seeking publication for two books.

Instagram: @sarahjrexford
Twitter: @sarahjrexford
Web: itssarahrexford.com

Categories
Fantasy-Sci-Fi

The Stage for Your First Page

There’s a video floating around somewhere online (numerous, probably!) of J.K. Rowling reading her first pages to eager readers. I remember listening and thinking how naturally the words flowed, how it seemed like if she’d written the page any other way it would be wrong.

That’s how our every page needs to be, but especially our first page. So, other than impersonating J.K. Rowing, how do we do so?

Start in the middle of a scene.

For instance, in Harry Potter, readers don’t need to wait more than a few sentences to realize they’ve been thrust into something “strange or mysterious.” Rowling doesn’t start with Harry waking up (a cliché we should all avoid), but tosses us straight into learning about the boy who lived. Another term for this would be starting in media res. Dare to start in the middle of a scene, trust the reader to pick up the details you layer in, and you’ll be surprised how fast you captivate your audience.

Mesh the Unknown with the Known 

A reader is always a little disoriented when starting a new book. That’s the nature of plunging into a new setting with no warning about what’s going on. (Tip: A location tag can help lessen readers’ disorientation.) To combat this and draw a reader in, combine your unique story idea with concrete details readers can connect with.

For instance, if you’re plunging your protagonist into terrible trouble, maybe include their friend offering help in a way that’s relatable to your target audience. This will give readers an anchor point as they dive deeper into your story idea.

Even in the Harry Potter movies, the director included a scene where Harry draws himself a birthday cake and candles in the dust and blows out the candles. Birthday cake is something most readers can connect with, even in a wizarding world.

Give Your Protagonist a Distinct Voice

Readers want to connect with a character in a personal way. The faster you can make readers connect with your protagonist, the more likely they’ll hold on for the whole ride. A good way to do this this by giving your character a distinct voice.

Creating a distinct voice demands knowing your audience and what type of voice they’re most likely to connect with. This takes effort, but it’s effort well spent. One reason Harry Potter did so well is because Harry had a distinct voice. He was just a school kid put in a very unique situation. But school kids around the world connected with his voice because it was their voice.

If you want to write a gripping first page, start in the middle of the action (in media res), mesh the unknown with the known, and give your protagonist a distinct voice.

Do this, and you’re well on your way to success!

Sarah Rexford is a Marketing Content Writer, working with brands to grow their audience reach. She studied Strategic Communications at Cornerstone University and focused on writing during her time there, completing two full-length manuscripts while a full-time student. Currently she trains under best-selling author Jerry Jenkins in his Your Novel Blueprint course and is actively seeking publication for two books.

Instagram: @sarahjrexford
Twitter: @sarahjrexford
Web: itssarahrexford.com

Categories
Fantasy-Sci-Fi

The Tightrope We Must Walk

Your main character stands on the edge of a cliff, a five hundred foot drop to jagged rocks below. The villain steadily creeps up, but as a reader, I haven’t connected with your MC yet. I might keep reading because I’m curious to find out what happens, but my heart isn’t involved.

Curiosity doesn’t drive story, heart does.

So, what makes a story compelling? How well we balance tension and character development.

If I don’t care about your MC, the tension won’t matter.

If I care about your MC but there’s no tension, I’ll put the book down.

For fantasy and science fiction, it’s especially important to establish an empathetic main character before bringing in too much tension.

Fantasy and science fiction require good amounts of world building. If I’m a reader trying to both 1) connect to a character from another world and, 2) understand the world the character is in, I’m going to need some help.

As the writer, this is where you shine.

Weave in backstory to reveal the heart of your main character.

Say your first scene starts with a battle. Your reader has no idea who your main character is as a person, what his/her desires are, or what brought them into this battle. Your reader might be curious to see if your MC survives without getting injured, but their heart isn’t in your story yet.

Time to drop in backstory! Have them save a child right before the dragon gets to him (commonly called a pet-the-dog moment), and then have a secondary character say something that reveals a growth in character arc: “I couldn’t have done that if I was her, not after_____.” Please don’t be that obvious, but for the sake of example, bear with me!

Reveal a weakness and why it’s a weakness.

I bet if you’re afraid of something today, it’s because you had a negative experience with it previously. Same goes for your main character (or any, for that matter). Let’s say your MC is a pirate from centuries past who’s turned over a new leaf and now helps ships lost at sea, saving the passengers. He’s brave and daring but terrified of the dark.

Your reader’s likely curious why he’s afraid, but we need to grab your reader’s heart. Instead of leaving it at “he’s afraid of the dark,” drop in some dialogue where your MC and a secondary character chat about how your MC and his family were caught in a huge ocean storm, his daughter was swept overboard, and because it was dark he couldn’t find her.

Now your MC is someone your reader can empathize with. Now your reader has some heart in your story.

Maintaining the right balance between tension and character development is a tightrope all writers have to walk, but done well, it draws readers in not just out of curiosity, but because their heart is invested in your story.

That’s a story worth writing!

Sarah Rexford is a Marketing Content Writer, working with brands to grow their audience reach. She studied Strategic Communications at Cornerstone University and focused on writing during her time there, completing two full-length manuscripts while a full-time student. Currently she trains under best-selling author Jerry Jenkins in his Your Novel Blueprint course and is actively seeking publication for two books.

Instagram: @sarahjrexford
Twitter: @sarahjrexford
Web: itssarahrexford.com

Categories
Fantasy-Sci-Fi

How Writing Blind Will Take Your Fantasy to the Next Level

When it comes to writing, some of us like to picture it in our head and write what we see, while others like to plot every scene before ever sitting down to the keyboard. No matter if we’re a “plotter” or a “pantser,” writing well requires something we often overlook but learned way back in kindergarten–the five senses.

Recently I asked some beta readers for feedback on the first page of my WIP. Many of the comments were positive. They loved the action and felt drawn in from the first sentence. But while many felt intrigued in the story, several also said they didn’t feel like they understood the world.

They couldn’t see where the action was taking place.

As a writer, that’s on me. I could see it all in my head, but I hadn’t communicated the location well enough to my readers. What had I missed? Some of the five senses.

Readers want to see where the story is taking place. They want to hear the wind in the trees and feel the snow crystalizing on their skin. They want to taste the last drops of water your MC shared with his fellow traveler.

A good way to do this is write with your eyes closed.

If you’ve ever tried to take a nap in a crowded room, you can relate to just how much your sense of hearing works overtime. The same is true with sight. When one sense is dulled, others heighten. New writers are often great at describing what things look like, but not what they smell, taste, or feel like.

Smelling the remains of a carcass on the dragon’s breath is much more evocative than telling a reader the dragon has scales.  

It’s easy to forget one sense when focusing on the others. In my example, I’d focused so much on smell and touch I’d mostly forgotten about sight, one of the most important senses when it comes to orienting a reader in the first paragraphs (especially in fantasy and sci-fi!).

Feel free to steal these tips when writing sensory details:

One: Write the first draft focusing on sight only.

Two: Write the second draft focusing on hearing.

Third: In the third draft work in touch.

Fourth: Don’t forget the all-important sense of smell!

Fifth: Finish it off describing the taste of fear, the salty tinge of saltwater on the tongue, etc.

The more you incorporate this exercise into your writing, the more likely it’ll become second nature to you and you’ll find yourself combining steps one and two, or three and five, etc.

Everyone experiences different struggles when it comes to incorporating the senses, but keep at it. After all, all writing is rewriting!

Sarah Rexford is a Marketing Content Writer, working with brands to grow their audience reach. She studied Strategic Communications at Cornerstone University and focused on writing during her time there, completing two full-length manuscripts while a full-time student. Currently she trains under best-selling author Jerry Jenkins in his Your Novel Blueprint course and is actively seeking publication for two books.

Instagram: @sarahjrexford
Twitter: @sarahjrexford
Web: itssarahrexford.com