Advice for newbie writers

Hello void!

Someone on Instagram asked me through the week if I have any advice for them as an unpublished author. They were looking for a little direction.

Now, I ain't no famous writer, but I have had some minor successes so far in my career and seeing as though I am still only a newbie myself I think any success is great. So, that being said, I am going to give you my top ten tips newbie writers.

1. Write! This may seem pretty stupid and simple, but writing everyday can be harder than what it seems. You need to get some sort of writing routine in place. Start out with small goals, say write for half an hour a day, and then you can build from there. And keep this routine every day. The only times I don't write are when I am too deathly sick I can't even get out of dead or if, you know, life happens and I can't do it. But if I miss days then I do try to make up for them.
   
2. Read! I love reading, but when I first started writing every day, I told myself that I was a writer now, not a reader. I didn't have time to read. This was wrong. And my writing suffered for it. You can't make a good coffee if you don't know how it tastes, you can't write a good story if you don't read. Reading gives you tools that you can use when writing your own books. It also lets you keep up to date with what has been done. There is nothing worse than being so engrossed in writing your own stuff and then going to submit/publish it only to find out then that someone else has just had huge success with something similar. (EL James, I'm looking at you)
3. Get a writing buddy. I think this is so important. You need someone that you can show that all important first draft to. Someone you can trust and someone who will be honest without being a dick. This person is not a Beta reader, this is that person that is your first reader. They could be a friend, a partner, a parent or someone you meet through writing groups or book clubs. But you need someone to bounce ideas off and to read your work and to even give you a little boost when the old hag in your attic (mind) comes down to tell you how bloody horrible your writing is.
4. Social Media. Get on that shit now. I mean get yourself on author page on Facebook, Twitter, whatever and start using them. Don't spam your writing stuff though, that's not cool. But post stuff that is interesting to start building that fan base. Some people say you should do everything. Get on Pintrest and Youtube and tumblr and anything else that has just come out. I think this is wrong. You should pick the ones that you want to do. The ones that you will be able to keep up-to-date on. If you have all these social media and never post anything because there are so many and goes into the too hard basket then what is the point? If you can keep up with all of them then go for it. If you think you can handle only a couple then I suggest the trinity of social media. Facebook. Twitter. Instagram. And if you can squeeze Google+ in there then that would be awesome. (Cause Google controls everything)
5. Freebies. About four/five years ago I started writing short stories as well as novels. But I give away most of my short fiction away for free. I have them on Smashwords, on my website, I even had them on Wattpad for a while (argh) I had them published in magazines/newspapers and it just got my name out there. People love free stuff. Who doesn't! And giving your stuff away is only going to help build your fan base. Even if it is giving away sample chapters for your novel away on your website, it is all helping towards getting new fans.
6. Learn how to self market. If you can go do a short marketing course, that would be great, but not all of us have this sort of time. so do your research and learn how to market yourself. As much as us artists don't like it, we are selling a product. And you can't sell it if people don't know it exists. And they find out by marketing. Start saving your money too because some things (like Facebook ads) can cost money. This is applicable for whether you are going to self-publish or traditional.
   
7. Dream Big! Someone once told me that I should start dreaming big. And by this they meant that I should start thinking and preparing myself to have a fan base. Get yourself a website and an author email and business cards and whatever else that you will need as an author. You want to be an author? Start acting like one now.
8. Make a decision. These days we have it easy, kinda. We have two main choices when it comes to publishing. We can go the traditional routine and submit to agents/publishers or we can self publish. Both have their advantages, so do your research. But you have to decide which one you want to do. It is okay if you change your mind (I did. A Lot.) but it is good to have some sort of goal that you are striving for. Either way you choose, start developing a thick skin. Rejections and bad reviews are coming your way and everyone of them hurt. It is up to you to decide how deep the wound is.
9. Research. This more of an actual writing one. There is nothing worse than reading a book that has factual flaws. well, there is. And that is publishing a book with factual flaws. I speak from experience. Although my main character in Dead Bunnies is very poorly treated when it comes to her mental disorder and that was part of the point, I still had her on medication, which is not what happens at all with DID. Now, I still stand by that her doctor is a D bag, which is why she is on meds, but still, I should have made more of a point in the story showing that it was not normal practice. I had planned on pointing it out in the sequel, but I didn't emphasize it enough in the first book. Of course this has since been pointed out to me... Do your bloody research.
10. Edit!!! Oh for the love of sweet holy fuck, edit. Edit until you know the words off by heart. Edit until your fingers and eyes bleed. Edit until you hate your story. Edit until you recite the words in your sleep and you freak out the people you live with. And then edit again. This includes, but is not limited to, first reader phase, Beta reader phase and PAID editor phase. Yes, you MUST pay someone to edit your work. Do your research and pick someone good. My very last editing phase, normally done the day before print day, is the read out loud phase, where I read the story out loud to my first reader or (even better) they read it to me. Soooo many things get picked up in this phase! Even after all this, Gaiman's Law will always apply ...

“Picking up your first copy of a book you wrote, if there’s one typo, it will be on the page that your new book falls open to the first time you pick it up.” – Neil Gaiman

Happy writing, annonymous void. I hope this has helped! If there is anything you would like me to ramble about, feel free to leave a comment or you can contact me on the social media.

Hugs 

AMC xxx

Still not home ...

Hello anonymous void that is the internet!

If you have ever read any of my blogs then you might know that I normally try to give you writing advice and things of the like. You may also know that, back in November last year, my house kind of got a little burnt. Yeah ... We still have not been able to move home.

This is why there have been no posts in the past seven months. We have been hotel hoping (which is not fun with children) and now we are living in a house closer to my children's school, but work has not even begun on our house.

So, this is mainly just a bitch post. 

I hate insurance companies. I don't understand why they can't just pull their fucking socks up and fix our damn house already! Anyway, Enough of that.


I got published! Yay!

So, my book Dead Bunnies Make All Eight Of Me Cry is an actual book, with a cover and pages and shit! Holy cow, right? (Insert shameless plug for own book right here: GET YOUR COPY TODAY!)

So, what is it like being a published author, you might want to know? Yeah, pretty much the same as being unpublished except for the fact that you are not just stressed about one agent or publisher liking your book baby. You are know completely anxious about the entire world and what they will think of your book baby.

Have I already done a blog post about marketing? If I have, I might have to go back and read it myself because I don't remember a thing!

This is also something that I debate with myself. Is it really necessary for new authors to go crazy on marketing? Because if your book is good, then it will do well, right? Word of mouth is probably the best form of advertising, so if it is good people will tell others and eventually you will sell books. But I guess first you have to tell people about your book... 

These are the problems we face today as authors. No matter how you end up publishing. Whether it be through traditional or self-published or small indie publishers, we still have to take care of our own marketing. 

Anyway! I am open to themes you would like me to discuss on here again. I will try to post regularly, but at the moment there are no guarantees! #sorrynotsorry Or I will just utilize this space as a cheap form of therapy and come and vomit my emotions all over you once a week. I'll leave that in the hands of the void.

Hugs 
AMC xxx

Fire, Water, Burn ...

Just a heads up I might be taking a break from the blog for a while. I am currently living in a hotel. There was a fire in my house and the damage has rendered the house unlivable. We have lost a lot of our belongings, but everyone is safe. I am so lucky.
Hugs
AMC xxx

How to write a book - Routine

Writing a book is hard. Don't let anyone tell you otherwise! 

I know that it is an artistic process and you want your muse to guide you and the energy has to be right or whatever ... But I think the best thing I ever did was establish a routine. A strict one.

Photos from Pixabay

It's no good wanting to have your muse guide you if that moody little being doesn't know where you are going to be and when!


Time

First thing to do is decide when your best creative flow comes. Do you work best first thing in the morning? Are you a night owl? Are you better suited to lunch-time breaks at a coffee house? Find a time during the day that works and stick to it. 

I work best first thing in the morning, when everyone is still asleep. I can sit there in my PJs at 4am and happily type away.

How long?

In the beginning I suggest setting realistic goals. If you have a day job or kids, I would suggest a time limit. Try out small ones at first. I started with 30 minutes and now I have worked up to almost 3 hours.

You could also go for a word count goal. Once again, start low. Go for a couple hundred words or less in the very beginning and work your way up. If you find that you are able to pump out the words like a machine (go you!) then up your word count. But keep it reasonable otherwise you may find that you just can't keep up with it.

What days?

Every day.

Without fail. 

Sometimes it is hard to stick to your routine in times of high stress or sickness, but try to do something. Anything. Even if you cut back, you have to keep doing something. Stephen King famously says that he used to tell interviews that he writes every day except his birthday and Christmas day, but this was a lie. He writes everyday. Just like you should!

But what about ...

So, your novel is about a thirteenth century plumber with the bad habit of skinning people alive and this requires a lot of research? Research is not writing.

You have a blog and social media to keep up with? Neither of those is writing, in the sense of what we are talking about anyway. 

I know have set in place that each day I have time set aside for other "writing" commitments, like blogging, social media, research, cover design, editing, etc. 

So, if you have similar commitments then maybe you can do what I have done.

Monday is set aside for Blogging. Tuesday is for writing my book reviews. Wednesday is the day that I blitz the crap out of social media and set up what I am going to post for the next week. Thursday is when I do Market research and plan marketing strategies. Friday is when I work on editing or cover designs that need doing. I work on these until I am done or 6.00am rolls around. Then it is straight back to writing till 7.30am.

If you don't have anything like these commitments then don't worry about it. Just focus on writing.

If you do, I find setting an alarm in my phone reminding me what I have to work on is the best thing to keeping to my schedule. 

But I don't have the time!

I remember when I used to drag myself out of bed at 7.30-8.00 every morning and just start getting the kids ready. I used to rush around the whole day and then crawl into bed and realise I didn't get to write again that day. 

You have to make the decision. How much do you want to write? How much do you need to write? What are you willing to sacrifice in order to write every day?

In the beginning, I decide I was willing to sacrifice 30 minutes. So I started waking up half hour earlier. I would set my alarm for 7.00am instead of 7.30am.

Bam! I just made time! Look out world.

It is that easy. If you want something you have to make room for it.

Writer's Block

Writer's block is one of those myths, along with the muse. You have to tell these mythical creatures that you are the boss. 

When Writer's Block hits the best thing to do is to write! Write gosh darn it, write! 

 "stopping a piece of work just because it's hard, either emotionally or imaginatively, is a bad idea. Sometimes you have to go on when you don't feel like it, and sometimes you're doing good work when it feels like all you're managing is to shovel shit from a sitting position.” - Stephen King

So, go get writing!

Hugs, AMC xxx

Dead Bunnies

Hello Void!

I would like to invite anyone who reads this blog to enter the comp I have been running on social media. 

So, my novel will go to print in the new year and I am getting a lot of people giving me sketches of dead (or just cute) bunnies. I would love it if you guys submitted some too!

Originally, I was going to use them on the cover, but I have received too many, so I will be using them on the chapter pages. Everyone that enters will be in the acknowledgments. And I might even throw in a free copy of the book!

Entre via my email a(dot)m(underscore)cullens(at)yahoo(dot)com(dot)au 

Hugs
AMC xxx

How to write a book - Idea Generation

After all my crazed ramblings about publishing and such, I thought I should go back to the beginning. How do you actually write a whole book?

Images thanks to Pixabay

It seems daunting and in some ways it is, but mostly all it takes is persistence, a little ink and paper and love/hate. But what are the actual steps you need to take to write a book, you ask? Worry no more, I'll try to shed some light on the subject! I will not put these in any particular order because, realistically, you need to find what works for you.

Today I am going to talk about coming up with ideas. "Where do you come up with all these ideas, Adelise?" I am actually asked this all the time. And I am sorry to say that they just pop in there! Don't get me wrong, I have used tools before, but nothing beats my imagination.

A huge part of "writing" includes sitting and just thinking. Quite often my husband will see me sitting there staring out a window and he will ask what I am doing. "Writing," I always respond, even if there is not a pen in sight.

“The scariest moment is always just before you start.” 

― Stephen King, On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft

Daydreaming

Do you ever just sit there and daydream? What do you day dream about? Write that! Yes, that! If you enjoy something so much that you sit there in a daze, ignoring life over it, then you would probably buy a book about it. And others probably would too. 

If you are still stuck or you are just not a daydreamy type of person, try some music (movie score are really good) - something without lyrics so you don't get tempted to sing along. I find that music can really help get those creative juice flowing.

Stationery

Sometimes, if I am in a bit of a writing slump, getting some nice stationery can really help. I love writing long hand and there is not much that gets me more excited than a blank notebook. Go out and treat yourself. By a new notebook, some nice pens and/or pencils and just start writing words down. They don't have to end up in the final draft. There are some really good online stores for stationery too. Typo is probably my favourite!

Meditation

I know that may seem a little hippie of me, but I find meditation to be a great catalyst for idea generation and a nice way to snuff out doubt. If you haven't tried any meditation before I would suggest guided meditation. Do it while no one is around. Just give it a go, it won't hurt!

Writing prompts

There are SO many websites and Facebook pages and Tumblr feeds and Instagram accounts out there for writing prompts. Like a few of them and check them out. Find a prompt that sparks something (or one that doesn't) and have at it. There are also writer's wheels, but I personally don't want to get into them because I do not understand how they work! #shame

Reading

Yes. Reading. Reading other peoples work is often great for coming up with your own ideas. Plus, if you don't know what is out there, what is being written and how it is being done, how can you expect

to be able to come up with your own masterpiece? Writing without reading is like a painting not seeing colour. You must read. Now, I am a very slow reader. I manage to read maybe twelve books a year, but at least something is still going in, something is still being fed into my imagination.

Questions

Ask questions about everything. Do like Stephen King Do. (lol sorry I had to write that. Go watch Zefrank on YouTube. So many laughs.)

Anyway ... Yes, ask questions. "What if" questions, like: What if I had a pet helper monkey and one day I came home and he was baking a cake and chatting on the phone to my mother using my voice? (don't ask yourself that question. There is no story there... or is there?) Or What if I woke up one morning and realised my consciousness had bee swapped with my dog's? These sorts of question can lead to a story.

There are so many ways to come up with ideas, but when it boils down to it, you have to find a way that works for you. If you get totally stuck you can always just ask your friends what to write. or you can always take this great advice: 

“If there's a book that you want to read, but it hasn't been written yet, then you must write it.” ― Toni Morrison

Hugs

AMC xxx

To edit or to not edit ...

This is the week I am finally sending my manuscript off to the editors. 

For any author (noob or expert) I think this is a daunting task. This will most probably be on of the first times a professional would have read your baby. This is not like giving your book to your mum to read ... My nerves are shot.

So, I am going to answer a few questions to shed a little more light on the dark underground of the editing world. Well, there is really no "dark underground" most of the editors I have spoken to have been super nice people. Once again, they are just people.

When I spoke to editor recently about how nervous I was/am she said something really sweet that I want to share with the void. "Think of me as an old friend who has your best interest at heart. My intentions are good: to support you while you bring your MS up to the best level it can be ..." And that is exactly what you want to find.

Can't I just edit myself?

By all means, please do! Multiple times. I have rewritten my manuscript at least fourteen times, not to mention all the additions, subtractions, character changes, etc. that have been done. But this doesn't mean that your MS is "publish ready."

All manuscripts MUST be edited by a professional. If you can't afford the prices (which can be expensive) try to work something out with your editor. I have worked out a kind of payment plan with mine, something that works well for both of us. 

What about editing software?

No. Just ... no. Computers are good, but nothing will ever replace or replicate the flow human writing. 

When should I have an editor look at my work?

As soon as you haven't fiddled with it in a few months and you are starting to think about self-publishing it. 

If you are going to go for traditional publishing, DO NOT get your MS edited. You can get it assessed or get a mentor, but do not have it edited. Agents and publishers like it a little bit raw, because they have their own editors there waiting to have at your MS. 

If you are self-publishing, this will be one of the last things you do. Think of this moment as "time." Time to get your cover art done. Time to organize your marketing campaign. Time to get all your social media up and out there. Time to work on your website. (Yes! You MUST have a website!)

In this time, I am working on my cover and organising myself. I am working out a better schedule to optimise and balance my writing vs my other authorly duties.

Which type of editing should I use?   

There are a few different types of editing, but mostly they boil down to two main types: Copy Editing/Proofreading and Structural/Developmental Editing.

Copy Editing and Proofreading is the bare bones of editing. It generally includes fixing spelling errors, punctuation, grammar, style, omissions, repetitions, repetitions, typographical errors. Sometimes a CE or PR will include one revision, but not always.

Structural/Developmental Editing is the meaty edit. This is where the editor evaluates the novel as a whole. They look for plot holes and problems in the structure and organisation. They pull you up on logical/illogical consistencies. They may also do their own reconstructing. 

This is the one that we fear. The one where (we have all heard the author horror stories) they tear your MS apart. But if you have a look in most successful author's acknowledgements, you will often see a thank you to the editor. A good author knows that their work needs work. We are too close to it. It is our baby and we always look at our children with rose coloured glasses on. 

But it is the one a MS must have before being published. 

Who or which editor should I use?

My main suggestion for this on is to shop around. Send out emails and see who you seem to have a little rapport with. You need to feel comfortable with your editor as you may be working with them for a long time. 

It is also a good idea to go with someone that has been recommended to you. That way you know that they are good at their good before you spend all the money.


I hope I have helped. 

Hugs
AMC xxx