Writing... The End Result

So we finally faced our fears, wrote through all of our terror and end up with a finished book!

#woot #woot

But then what?

In the olden days (read three years ago), you shopped this manuscript around to agents and publishers and crossed your fingers that it sold. If it didn't... um... #crap That manuscript was dead in the water. You might as well stash it in a drawer, weep softly then start writing the next one (whose fate more than likely would be the same).

Oh sure, you could VANITY PRESS. But, um, with a name like that and the stigma attached to it, who wanted to do that?

Then the digital revolution happened. Amazon.com opened wide its 'doors,' inviting anyone to publish.

At the same time readers began flocking to digital books and avoiding the traditional brick and mortar stores (hence why Borders is practically out of business and Barnes and Noble is being sold).

The shift in the publishing world cannot be overstated.

And the biggest beneficiary, beyond the reader who now can shop from the comfort of their living room and start reading within moments of purchase? The indie author.

Me. You. All of us.

Now I know there are a lot of stiff backs right now and hackles up, and sure last year we could have argued the merit of self-publishing, but now? Now that the houses are clamping down on purchasing ANY books by new authors? Now self-publishing is nearly your only option.

The Big 6 and every small publishers is hemorrhaging right now. Privately they talk about "catastrophic" declines in sales.

There has never been a worse time to try and sell a book. And try to get a house to fork out any advertising money? Darlin', they just don't have it.

So indie it is... or... you know... store your manuscript's file on your harddrive and start writing the next one.

Luckily, many have gone before us though and shown the way and I have had a pretty good run of sales the last year (far better than the VAST majority of published (even mid-list authors) I know ($20,000 and counting this year so far).

And this week the book I wrote with my fellow Indie Book Collective's Co-founders, Amber Scott and Rachel Thompson...
"Dollars & Sense: The Definitive Guide to Self-Publishing" is launching.

"Dollars & Sense" can take the indie publishing neo-phyte from manuscript to publication, using a step-by-step method. The book walks you through making sure your work is in publishable shape, to formatting, to learning social media, to how to potentate your book sales.

And the best part? Thru June 29th it is just 99 cents! Crazy right? A total blue-print for indie publishing success for less than a buck!

So if you have any hopes and dreams about publishing (even if you go traditional publishing, you are going to need to know all this info since your house EXPECTS you to know how to use social media etc to gain name recognition), hop on over to Amazon and pick up your copy! #now #Imeanit :-)

Beating the Drama of Writer’s Block

To create better drama in your writing, you need to beat the drama of writer’s block.

This may be obvious. But when your curser is sitting on a blank page taunting you with the repetitive blinking and your mind spins and lurches, sifting through everything and settling on nothing, writer’s block can be debilitating.

So, how do you beat it?

I’ll tell you a secret that may make you hate me.

I never get writer’s block.

Now, don’t get me wrong, I definitely get lazy, or distracted, or addicted to tweeting. I have many things that keep me from writing. But I never get blocked.

How?

I shall fill you in on my dirty little secret.

The Games We Play As Children

My brother and I have this game we play. I now play it with my fiancé, who is also a writer. (And no, not THAT kind of game. Get your minds of the gutter!)

How does it work?

1. Pick a subject, any subject.

2. Then pick a genre. (poetry, short story, scene, essay, anything you want!)

3. Now, TIME IT! You and your partner (or partners) decide on a short time (1-3 minutes) and write about what you picked.

4. Finally, share and laugh.

A real life example.

The Subject: A woman in a living room, naked with a gun.

The genre: scene

The results…

My brother Neil wrote a scene about a woman who was using her gun for some special time when… oops! It went off!

I wrote a scene in which a woman was pregnant, trying to give herself an abortion in a very unlikely way. #itdidntwork

Now, say what you will about our mental stability, we rocked those stories and went on to write more. Poems about cigarettes. The alphabet as a story. A Dear Mom letter from camp. (You DO NOT want to know what my bro did with THAT one!)

You get the idea!

Why this works.

These games free up your creative muse. They get you thinking about things in a new and fun way and force you to write from a new perspective.

They also break you out of any block.

These games stood me well when I went to college and had deadlines for papers.

They saved me when I wrote professionally for newspapers. When you are on deadline of a few hours to get a front page news story in, you don’t have time for blocks.

The truth is, we don’t really get blocked at all. We just get trapped in our own minds, over-thinking what should be a creative process.

By playing with our muse, rather than forcing it, we free ourselves to be the creative genius we most desire.

So get out there and play! If you don’t have a partner, play with yourself. #again #mindoutofgutter

Your muse will thank you. And so will your readers.

Kimberly Kinrade is a Young Adult fantasy author whose first book, "Bits of You & Pieces of Me," was not YA, but rather a collection of short stories, poems and essays that tell the tale of a young girl in love with love who discovers the demon of a splintered heart when that love turns violent.

Watch for her YA fantasies, Death by Destiny and The Reluctant Familiar this fall! Find her on Twitter, Facebook, or her website. She also writes a blog for Lifarre, the new women’s network, and is a staff member for the Indie Book Collective

Setting with Feeling

A Guest Post By Dmytry Karpov

Things to Remember

A setting isn’t a place, it’s a character. Too often, writers describe what a location looks like and move on. The prose, if beautiful, may be memorable, but the setting will be flat and forgettable. Even action scenes deserve arenas, so locations deserve word count. With these three tips, make your settings three dimensional.

Add Drama

Atmosphere: You’ve probably learned about it in English class. (And no, it’s not the thing that floats around our planet. Homonyms, people!) It is the feel of a setting. It is the sum of sensations it creates. In order for a setting to have atmosphere, its descriptions must hint at mood.

If the room is dark, the walls peeling and covered in webs, feelings of decay and darkness are achieved. Add a little blood, and an atmosphere of horror is created. Mention a sunny day, and sensations of warmth arise.

Every detail helps create or destroy atmosphere. If present, it will pair your setting with an emotion, be memorable, and enhance your scene. It will draw sensations from your characters and readers. Atmosphere gives setting emotion. History gives it depth.

Dig Deeper

History: (Not the tedious heavy textbook kind.) Every location, unless absolutely and unrealistically untouched, has it. There are coffee stains on the table within a family’s home. There are pictures on the wall within a child’s room. Castles are built upon old ruins, marked in a language long forgotten. Space ships are covered in posters put up by the crew.

Such details make setting a character. They create interest, mystery. They allow the setting to change and grow. Not only can it have feelings and depth, it can affect people.

Don't Forget Action

Life: Most settings are filled with it. Drunks cheer at a bar. A spider crawls across the floor. Engines roar. Children laugh. A bird sits on the windowsill. A mouse sits in the corner. In fantasy, trees and rock may come alive. In Science-Fiction, computers may beep and talk.

Settings can move. They can change. They can affect characters and demand responses.

Don’t make your setting a place.

Make your setting a character. Make it important.

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Dmytry Karpov is an Adult Fantasy writer tired of cliches and girl-meets-vampire plots. His first book, The Nemean Lion, is set in a post-apocalyptic world where both zombies and fairytale creatures exist. And Ann, a fierce girl trying to return home, sets out on a quest with a leprechaun. Of course, she would have preferred a vampire, but not everyone's that lucky.

Dmytry is also the editor of numerous published short stories. Find him on Twitter and Facebook

Losing yourself in your writing

A Guest Post by Nai'lah Carter...

As a writer, you have to become one with your story but also know when to step away from it. You have to give yourself time to write but also time to be, you. Even though the writer and individual are two in one, each needs breathing space.

When you write,

• Live your characters—know who they are, their likes, dislikes and the way they would react in different circumstances.
• Write the story the way it comes to you.
• Don’t stop writing to edit or worry about logics. Allow your characters to tell their story.

Now, the story is completed and you’re excited to see the final product. Find something to do—knit or delve into a new book then return to your story. As you read it, even though you’re the author you are bewildered at the turn of events. Edit your story and assure that all dots are connected. If possible, have someone else read it.

What’s worst than a writer being his/her own critic? A writer trying to change the story their muse presented to them. “I don’t like the ending…let me change it.” STOP! Let your story breathe. This is the hardest task to ask a writer to perform but—remove yourself from your work and allow your story to, be. I can guarantee you, you will see how wonderfully flawed your characters are and they way they took control.

Often times the individual is broken into greater sub-sections: spouse, sibling, daughter, friend, and so on and the writer struggles to find time to devote to his/her work. The solution is simple in theory but not practicality. Every writer should:

· Schedule writing times.

· Give yourself deadlines

· When life’s emergencies come into play, your writing becomes secondary. In order to adhere to your deadlines, utilize your next ‘writing hours’ to make up for lost time.

· Pay attention to what you’re doing as opposed to what you didn’t get a chance to do. No matter how minute it may seem; you’re being productive.

If this is your dream, fulfill it by executing! Here’s where support comes in. Your family and friends should understand your goals—long and short term. However support should be reciprocated, just as your friends and family support you, you have to allot time to be there for them. Just as you find time to write, you must find time for them. Do not allow yourself to become so enthralled into your work that you lose yourself in it.

When you’re writing, write. When you’re working, work. When you’re spending time with your family, be there in action and thought. In addition you also need, ‘you’ time. Allow your, self to serve precedence over, The Writer. Hard work pays off but everyone needs time for him/herself. Ample rest is as important as producing material. It is critical to make time for each role you play to preserve sanity.

Wishing you all the best,

Nai’lah.

Nai'lah Carter is a full-time mother and wife attempting to make my dream a reality. I'm a passionate writer--focused and dedicated to my gift. With hard work, results are show to follow. I believe in creating opportunities as opposed to waiting for them.

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