Writing and publishing in the digital age

Writing Books Instead of Writing Blogs

April 12, 2012 By Leave a Comment

I think somewhere in my past I had the idea that I should be a blogger. I was kicking around the idea of writing for a living, and making money from one or more blogs would fit the bill.

Turns out it wasn’t a fit for me. Blogging didn’t come naturally. The writing comes naturally, but not being a professional blogger. What I really love about writing is the story. I love reading a great story, and writing a story (that at least I think is great) is fun. While I do blog and write things in various pockets of the Internet, it’s more incidental than the goal.

I like making crap up. So I write fiction, and it’s fun. Since I enjoy doing one more than the other, I’ve decided to focus on one more than the other. Writing books is what’s going to pay the bills for me. I’m not saying blogging can’t pay the bills, as it does for many people. But it’s not how I want to use my writing to make money. At least not initially.

I’ve always got some business plans rolling around in the vast cavity that is the back of my skull. Likely it will be some free and not-quite-free how-to content for young indie writers wanting tips from someone who succeeded. But that’s in the future, and definitely not right now.

Oh, and I know I’m a little late to the game, but I’ve created a Goodreads account, so if you’ve got one, friend or follow me here.

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Sleeping More to Write Better

April 5, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Last week I talked about rising an hour or more early each day so I could get more quality writing done. I wrote about the experiment here. The plan was to take all of this week and see how I did waking up at about 5am and writing once I shower and grab some coffee (otherwise I would fall asleep standing up).

The experiment was an absolute failure. I rose early, because I am disciplined, and wrote. After three days, I noticed a problem. I AM GOING TO DIE.

I don’t mean that in the sense of we all have to deal with our own demise sometime. I mean that my brain was so foggy, I was going to die in a car accident. By itself, that’s bad enough, but the lack of sleep was also affecting my writing. I had the same problem I faced when I write after an exhausting day. The output kind of stinks.

I was so tired, I didn’t get much done. There was some weeping and gnashing of teeth, and many blank stares at my computer screen. The most productive and creative thing I did was come up with an official word for zombies that a professional necromancer would use. So the experiment wasn’t completely fruitless.

“But you didn’t give yourself enough time to adjust.” Is that what you’re thinking? Well…screw that, because it’s not going to happen. When I was younger, I had to get up well before dawn every day for work. I never got used to it. I’m talking over a year solid of getting up every weekday at 4:30am. I did not get used to it.

My circadian rhythm is that of the night owl. I am not an early riser. Despite my recent efforts to go with the natural order of life and living well, I tried to go against nature and rise before the sun. My writing suffered, and I’ve had a hell of a time these last few days.

The experiment is closed, and it reminded me that I can be a real idiot sometimes. Now I’m going to sleep more, so I can write better. My brain functions quite well on sufficient sleep, and that’s what I need.

 

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The Usefulness of a Free Promotion for Amazon KDP Select

April 3, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Today (well, yesterday, by the time you read this) was the first day of a five-day promotion where you can get my Kindle book, Deka – A Short Story Collection, for free. It’s normally $0.99, but you can get it free this week.

I’m not writing this post to get you to download it (though you should). I’m writing it to describe the kind of results I’m getting. In less than 24 hours, I’ve hit the top 100 free Kindle ebook list. Currently, in the main category of Fantasy, the book is listed at #95. In the Contemporary Fantasy subcategory, it’s listed at #26.

That’s just awesome. I wasn’t expecting such a big jump in just one day. Right now, I don’t really have a fan base. I don’t have 34,000 Twitter followers, and I’m not in 5500 Google+ circles.

Regardless, at the time I’m typing out this sentence, 116 people have downloaded the book. I know that’s not a lot when you compare it to best-selling author sales, but I’m pretty excited about it. It happened fast enough to get me on the top 100 list (two of them), which is just going to mean more downloads.

Check out the screenshot I captured for the main Fantasy category. I’m curious how it will do the rest of the week. Will it fizzle out, or pick up steam?

And just because, here’s a little promo video I shot for the book:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pTOtLgKFMsU

If you haven’t already, download the book and read it. If you want, I would also really appreciate a review. Here’s the link: Deka

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Just Be Yourself

April 2, 2012 By 1 Comment

It’s tempting to mimic successful online entrepreneurs. Don’t do it. If it’s not you, just don’t do it. Here’s what I mean.

You start following an online persona, and you want what they have. You want the success they’ve described, the sojourning lifestyle, and the wealth their efforts have generated. The question is how. How can you create that kind of success? The first, and possibly the most obvious, response is to do what they did.

The problem comes when you become a copy. I’ve been there, and it’s not an enriching life experience. I have attempted to emulate at least four different online business brands over the years, and each effort fizzled out into a bland demise. Each time, it just wasn’t me.

When you stop being yourself, and you try to emulate those you find successful, you’ll just be one more guy (or girl) saying the exact same thing a thousand or so other people are saying. Copycats are everywhere, and I know from experience that it won’t get you very far.

If you want to create a personal brand that is genuine, effective, and true, just be yourself. If you cuss every other sentence, then cuss. If you want to write about something that many consider unpopular, go for it. Who cares what anonymous people online think anyway?

When you’re true to yourself, you’re being honest with the world.

When you are who you are, you’ll find an audience.

When you stop lying about what really makes you tick, you’ll find a life’s pursuit worthy of your time.

Just be you. As Pink said, “You’re fuckin’ perfect…”

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Experimenting with Morning Writing

March 30, 2012 By Leave a Comment

I am going to experiment with getting up early and writing before my day begins. I know many writers have success with this, but I’ve never been a morning person. So this may be a complete disaster.

There’s a really simply reason I’m doing this. When I write at night, it’s not always so great. I’ve been working all day at my day job, my brain might be exhausted, and I’m physically tired. Sometimes, my writing suffers a lot when you throw all this together.

But I’m an adaptable guy, and I’ve even had two different jobs where I had to get up at 4:30am for work. Getting up around 5am and writing for an hour or so is not outside the realm of possibility.

Even though I like to sleep until around 9, I can’t. I don’t have that luxury right now. So I’m going to try this out — an experiment of time, rest, and output — to see what happens.

What works for you? If you write (or any kind of not-your-day-job creative pursuit) would you drastically change your schedule to potentially increase output or quality?

I’m going to give it a shot and see what happens. I will be consuming large quantities of coffee (with heavy cream, naturally) during this experiment.

On a slightly related note, the author of one of the first writing books I ever read suggests practicing the craft in the morning, right after waking. I’ll have to re-read it for the specifics, but the basic idea is that you are coming out of a night full of dreaming, even if you don’t remember, so you’re naturally more creative. I’ll re-read and talk about that book later on, because it’s good.

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Finding Time to Write

March 29, 2012 By Leave a Comment

When you’re trying to get a writing career going (or even just a part-time gig), it’s hard to find time to work on projects. You have a job. You have a family. You work out, and have book club meetings on Google+ with Felicia Day. You have to shower from time to time. Shall I go on…?

There are many things that can get in the way of your writing. It’s up to you to make time. The thing you’ve got to realize is that you can’t always just cut everything out and focus on your writing. Sometimes you have to work, you have to sleep, and you have to spend time with your family (assuming you have one, of course). Some people can just drop everything and focus on their writing, but not everyone has that convenience.

So I suggest two approaches: Prioritize, and squeeze writing in whenever you can.

To prioritize your writing, just give it a higher mental priority than other things. You write before you drink morning coffee, or you write before you play any video games — whatever works for you. These are just two examples, but you can apply the concept to whatever obstacles you face. If you want to write, you’re going to have to prioritize it above nearly everything else.

My other suggestion is to write whenever you can, even if it’s in small batches. My favorite tool for this is to use my phone. I have an iPhone, and used to use the Notepad app to write all kinds of things any time I could. I would write while taking a crap, while waiting in slow moving lines, or if I was just sitting around waiting for anything.

I’ve graduated beyond the Notepad app and now use Pages for iOS. It’s great, because it works more like a full-featured word processor. And it saves to iCloud, so I can pull my work down onto a laptop or desktop computer. It’s handier than having to email documents to myself and then copy and paste into Word or Scrivener.

These are just two suggestions that I used (still use) to get work done despite whatever other obligations I had (still have).

It can be hard to find the time to write, but you need to make the time if you want to get good. Prioritize, and write little bits and pieces whenever you get the chance, and you’ll find your skills improving. And with that comes more motivation, a sense of accomplishment, and maybe even readers.

The key to finding the time to write is to make the time.

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On Slamming Plot Details into the Keyboard

March 24, 2012 By Leave a Comment

I think better in writing. I figured this out in college, when I was studying for tests. If I just studied notes or outlines, I would either fail or do OK. If, however, I wrote out my notes and thoughts and what I was studying, I retained more and performed better.

So that’s how I’m working out the plot elements for my next book. Well, I guess it’s my current book, since I’ve already started working on it. Here’s a basic rundown of how I got the ideas flowing.

I had the end-game in my head. It came to me while driving, just popping into my thought stream like some wayward muse entity floated by and shoved something awesome into my brain. I had that, but didn’t know how to get there. I also had four characters in my head, but only two of them knew each other. So I had to get all four to team up, and then figure out a way to get them to that end-game without the reader (you, because you’re going to buy it) rolling their eyes and aggravating a bee hive out of frustration. I had to get there, and it had to be good, so it was time to write.

Some people make mind maps, and others start with a linear outline, and still others draw circles and scribble all over a white board. There are many ways people work through details and make cohesive ideas. I like to write it all out.

I know where I’m going, but not how to get there, and I just start writing. It all works itself out. The connection is that the act of writing gets my creative brain firing, and then I end up stringing ideas together into something not-entirely-stupid.

The key to creativity in my writing is writing. I suppose it’s a recursive methodology. But…whatever works.

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Introducing Deka – A Short Story Collection

March 20, 2012 By Leave a Comment

It’s been really busy the last few days, but I got it ready and published my short story collection on the Amazon Kindle platform.

This book contains ten short stories, all in the urban fantasy (aka contemporary fantasy) genre. It’s a quick read, and hopefully entertaining. Some of the stories introduce characters who will be protagonists in the story series I mention here.

The book is a whopping $0.99, so you have to buy it, tell everyone you know to buy it, and then give it a stunning five star review, even if you hate it. Remember, I’ve got kids to house, feed, and educate. Here it is.

And if you really, absolutely don’t have a dollar, you can borrow it for free if you’re an Amazon Prime member. If you’re broke and not a Prime member, subscribe or follow on Google+ for updates because I’m going to be doing a free promo at some point.

Anyway, here are the story titles and a brief description of each.

Suck the Life Right Out of You – Meet Zoe, the friendly psychic vampire who faces down something unexpected.

Under the Harlow Estate – Something odd is under the mansion.

The End of Writer’s Block – This guy doesn’t really know what’s going on, but it’s definitely something.

Instruction for Magical Practitioners – A powerful mage writes some notes on his deathbed.

The Den Escape – Jonathan is the last living member of his freshly killed monster hunting squad.

Tarin’s Choice – Does he leave his dying world?

Recollections of a Haunted House – Craig Millburn recounts what drove him from his home.

Caged Monster Hunter – Captured by a tribe of nasty, drunk goblins, the monster hunter has to escape.

The Intruder – Is Barry paranoid, or is someone really in his house?

Undead Assault – Meet Nellis and Suzanne, who are stuck in a cabin surrounded by zombies.

Buy it here: Deka

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My Book Launch Day is Set for March 20, 2012

March 13, 2012 By Leave a Comment

I’m starting to wrap up my edits, work on output formatting, and I’ve got the cover worked out. So it’s time to set a launch date. Why not the first day of Spring? That’s when life starts to bloom again in the annual cycle, so I figure it’s a good time to bring life to my first Kindle book.

The book is called Deka – A Short Story Collection. I don’t have the cover ready yet, but when I do, I’ll post it to Google+. The book fits into the urban fantasy genre. For those of you unfamiliar with that, Wikipedia explains it well. “Many urban fantasies are set in contemporary times and contain supernatural elements.”

The stories were a lot fun to write, so I hope at least some of you will find them fun to read. The plan is to release them with Amazon’s Kindle Select Program. That means it will be exclusive to that platform for a while, but I’ll figure out a way to get some free samples into your hands. You might be able to get the whole book for free, if you want. More details on that later.

And if everyone hates it, I’ll cry all the time and then start working on my short novel series.

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The Editing Process – A Necessary Tedium

March 9, 2012 By Leave a Comment

How many rewrites before you push your work out the door? One? None? Seven? The editing process can be a big headache, but it’s something you’ve got to pay attention to, because it’s where your work is going to develop value.

Do you do blacksmithing? I don’t, either, but I’ve seen it done. Here’s an analogy. When you’re making a knife out of a horseshoe, it’s not complete when you hammer out the basic shape. The basic shape isn’t enough to make a knife. You’ve got to create the edge, temper the blade, sharpen the edge, polish it, and so on. Maybe you need to carve magical runes into it, too.

The same is true of your writing (not carving magical runes into your MacBook Air). Your initial idea, however good or bad it might be, is never the finished product. A simple blog post like this one is going to get a simple one-pass edit to fix typos or reword awkward sentences. Informative articles (regardless of publication medium), short stories, novels, etc., all need multiple phases of editing.

Those phases can be a drag…I know. I’m editing my story story collection right now to prep for publication. After I finish this pass, I’ll need to make at least one more complete pass to polish it up, tighten it up, and make it suck less. It’s a long and somewhat redundant process.

I once read an interview with Michael Crichton where he related going through his seventh rewrite. I don’t remember the exact phrase, or even where I read it. What you should take away from this is that once your novel draft (or whatever) is written, the real work starts.

You might feel like you’re going around in circles, doing the same thing over and over again. With each iteration, however, your writing will get better. If you take the time to edit, edit, and then edit some more, your final product will be better.

Push through the tedium, and then you’ll find the quality work you’re really after. Or you can go work in a clothing factory in a developing nation.

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