Writing - Individual or Team Sport?

I never played team sports as a kid. I wished that I had. There are some life lessons that are gained from working (winning and losing) as a group. Writing is mostly a solitary endeavor. I research, write, and revise by myself. But I believe that authors need others, and here’s why…

• Relationships are key in life. You need those special people who will share your celebrations and help build you up after a bad day.

• You need a sounding board to ask questions or bounce ideas off.

• Others are in different stages of their writing careers. They can give advice or ideas.

• They can help motivate you and keep you on track.

• Authors who help promote you are invaluable. Treasure these people.

• You need some trusted early readers to give you honest feedback about your work.

• Find a writing group. The relationships you build are important. You will have access to information, people, and opportunities. The contacts are invaluable. I got my first mystery writing credit from my group’s anthology. And I can’t tell you how many contacts have led to book signings or special projects.

• It reminds you that you are not alone.

The best decision I made in my writing journey was to join a writing group.

Lookin' Good! Design Tips for Authors

You, as the author, are your brand. You need to have a consistent look and feel with your website, business cards, newsletter, blog, and social media pages. Here are some tips for making your presence look unified, professional, and planned.

1. Get a professional headshot. Selfies shouldn’t be used on websites or book covers. Make sure that you update it every two or three years (or if your look changes). Don’t be one of those authors who uses the same photo for twenty years.

2. When you make a graphic to be shared on social media posts, make sure to choose the size that fits that platform. I use Canva, and it has a series of templates for each site that are sized correctly. The templates vary whether it’s a post, banner, or event. You also don’t want to stretch or resize a post graphic for a banner. It won’t look good.

3. When you use a photo or graphic, make sure that it is sized so that it can be viewed. I’ve seen author bookmarks where you can’t see the book cover or title. Also make sure it is proportional. Some people stretch the graphic, and it’s too skinny or too fat.

4. Pick colors that are complimentary and match your style of writing. My first published work was a story in a mystery anthology with a black, white, and red cover. I used those colors on my website and social media pages. When I talked to a publicist about my author sites later, she recommended that I choose brighter colors since my mysteries were light and humorous. You can use a color wheel to help you choose complimentary colors. There are lots of free ones on the internet.

5. Make sure you use a quality, high resolution graphic or photo for print and web. If not, it will look pixilated or grainy and not professional.

6. You may want to consider getting a logo for your name. It is another graphic that you can use on your sites.

7. If you use a photo other than yourself on your social media sites, make sure to have something like a logo that identifies it as you. This helps people find you.

8. When you’re making graphics or bookmarks, LESS is better. Don’t cover the entire graphic with text. Focus on important things like title, URL, ISBN, and book cover. Too much, dense text is hard to read.

9. Some authors use business cards or postcards instead of bookmarks. It’s a neat give-away that doesn’t cost that much to produce.

10. When you create business cards, bookmarks, or postcards, make sure to use both sides. I tend to put my latest book on the front of the bookmark, but I put the other series on the back

11. I made notecards/post cards with my book covers. I put the covers on one side and left the back in white. I use these to write notes. And If you don’t want to use it as a postcard, it will slip into an invitation or other sized envelope.

How to Make an Author Smile

Everyone likes a bit of serendipity and a nice surprise — including authors. Here are some ways you can make an author’s day…

• Buy their book. Read it, add it to your collection, or give it as a gift.

• Recommend the book to your friends.

• Add the book to your reading list on Goodreads.

• Leave a review on Goodreads, Amazon, B&N. It doesn’t have to be a book report. You can leave one line about what you liked. Online retailers use reviews to determine book placement in ads and promos.

• Recommend the book to your book club.

• Invite the author to visit or Skype with your book club.

• Take a picture of the book when you see it in a store or library and tag the author on social media. It’s neat to see where your book pops up.

• Request that your library order the book.

• Pop in at an author’s book signing.

• Share the author’s posts on social media.

What else would you add to my list?

Happy New Year!

Wow! It’s a new year and a new decade! I hope your 2020 is fabulous!

Detours and Roadblocks in Your Writing Life

I drive the back roads through southside Richmond to my day gig in the mornings instead of taking the toll roads. This week, unexpectedly, I hit a roadblock when a downed light pole blocked the main road. I’m familiar with the way that I always get to work, but I was on my own in the dark yesterday in a neighborhood that I wasn’t familiar with (at 6:30 AM). (And if you’ve ever been to RVA, you’ll know that the streets often do not run parallel. They tend to meander.) With the help of GPS, I was able to navigate neighborhood streets and get back on my path.

Our writing life is often like that. We hit roadblocks and detours. It’s inevitable, but I believe you will be more successful along your journey if you can react and navigate around them.

A lot of it is attitude. If you hit a disappointment or a pitfall, allow yourself some time to react. Scream, cry, mope, or eat chocolate for a little while. But then figure out how you are going to get around the obstacle. Sulking doesn’t fix the problem. Bad reviews, cancelled contracts, and rejection letters hurt. You can give up, or you can make a new plan.

Always have a plan B. It’s helpful to have a strategy for what you’re going to do if you hit an obstacle. It’s often easier to deal with if you know you have a backup plan.

Get organized. Keep your files straight (and backed up). Know where you put things. If you cut down on the clutter and the junk, and you can work efficiently, you’ll minimize  some of your self-made roadblocks.

If you mess up, own it, apologize, and do your best to fix it.

Other people are going to disappoint you. They’re going to back out of commitments, forget to do things they promised, or say mean things. You need to decide what and who you’re going to spend your time on or with. Figure out what is important to you, and let go of what brings you down.

Make sure you take care of you. Eat right and exercise. You need to have a balanced life. Make sure you have some fun. And hang around people who make you laugh. My day gig is in IT, and it’s often serious. I love that the new PMO manager moved in the office next to me. She is fun, and she laughs a lot. (The crew nicknamed her Giggles.) I love that I can hear the laughter through the walls. It always makes me smile.

It’s almost a new year. And that’s always a great time to make resolutions or plans. I challenge you to make a plan for your writing life in 2020. It’s a new year and a new decade.

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas from this little corner of Central Virginia. I hope you and yours have a wonderful and joyous celebration!

Me and My Post-it Notes

I love office supplies. I get excited every summer when the school supplies come out. And besides gel pens, sticky notes are probably my favorite. I use Post-it notes for everything. I’m an 80s girl, and that’s when my addiction to these sticky notes started. I love the neon-colored ones. The ones with little sayings are fun, too.

The adhesive was invented by Spencer Silver in 1968 at 3M, and the actual notes were invented by Arthur Fry in 1974 because he needed bookmarks for his hymnal at choir practice. When he used scraps of paper, they would fall out of the book. He needed something to stick to the page, but not damage the paper. He knew of Silver’s invention and tried it on some of the scrap paper in the lab. (Legend has it that the original Post-its were yellow because that was the color of the lab’s scrap paper.)

Here are my favorite uses. What would you add to my list?

• A handy bookmark

• Sticky tabs for reports and documents that need review/signature

• For plotting mysteries - You can move them around on a wall or white board

• For jotting notes (duh!) - I have them stuck to my monitor, laptop, desk, and refrigerator - I even stick them to the dashboard of my car when I really need to remember something. (My purse is always full of balled up notes/lists.)

• Keeping character traits organized when I’m writing

• I like the Post-it flipcharts when I’m brainstorming or facilitating meetings

• Lists (usually for shopping, but they could be honey-do lists)

• I daisy chain them together when stuff is related and I need more space to write

• Tally sheets to keep a running total of my WIP’s word count

• I mark issues or plot holes in my writing with them. It reminds me to tie up loose ends.

• Marking stopping points in editing/writing projects - It helps me pick up where I left off

Always Be Professional: Tips for Writers

In my day gig, I work in the IT world in Richmond, VA. Even though it’s the state capital, it’s still a small community, and it’s not a good idea to burn bridges. It’s the same in the writing world. Here are a few ideas that will help along the writing journey.

1. If you commit to a deadline, ensure that you meet it. Someone is counting on you. (Now, if you’re sick or it’s an emergency, that’s another story, but give the person plenty of time to reschedule or come up with a plan B.)

2. If you’re asked to do something and you can’t, be up front and say no. You can say “I can’t do that right now” in a professional way.

3. Strive to be on time. Again, someone is counting on you.

4. If you can’t make an appointment or commitment, get in touch with the person as soon as you can. (When I book something, it’s usually by email. I always make sure I have a contact number for emergencies.)

5. Be prepared. Do your homework and be ready.

6. Be present. when you’re at a meeting or event, participate, listen, and be part of the conversation. Don’t be that person who can’t put his/her phone down.

7. Treat your writing as a business. If you go into partnership with someone or hire someone for a task, make sure you have a contract or formal agreement.

8. Pick your battles. We’ve had new writers on anthology projects who refused to be edited. If you choose not to follow the rules/guidelines, you’ll need to be prepared not to participate. And think twice before you fire off that email or text in anger. It could come back to haunt you.

9. Avoid social media battles. It’s okay to have a good conversation, but trolling and attacks will earn you a reputation. And even if you delete posts, there still out there somewhere. You are your brand, and you need to think of that as you build your social media platform.

Writing is a solo activity, but you do need to interact with others. It’s always best to be the professional who is easy to work with. Your reputation (good or bad) will always precede you.