Tag: royalene doyle

Conversations with a Self-Publishing Writer, Royalene Speaks, Uncategorized

Conversations: 3/25/2016

WHAT IF… ALL iPhones, iPads, Nooks and Kindle Services Disappeared?

If you grew up in the 1960s—or are a youthful fan of classic TV—you’re probably familiar with THE TWILIGHT ZONE TV series. In stark black and white contrasts those 30 minute “short story dramatizations” offered viewers a wide variety of theories to ponder. My all-time favorite is titled: “Time Enough at Last.” It was adapted from a short story that appeared in a Science Fiction magazine in 1953. This fact alone should encourage all of us as we see what is written and published today can (and does) live into the future.

nonono

“Time Enough at Last” gave us the story of one man (Henry Bemis) who LOVED to READ. He carried a book with him wherever he went. However, he is surrounded by people who think he is foolish “reading all the time,” and they do all they can to prevent him having any time to read. Henry worked in a bank, and one day accidentally got locked inside. It was almost like a dream come true, because he had a book with him! Suddenly, there is an explosion! When Henry is able to pop the loosened door open, he finds the world had been decimated. He was all alone. As he stumbles through the rubble, he reaches some steps and sits down to rest. There is a hardbound book on the step below, and he realizes he’s sitting on the steps of the LIBRARY! BOOKS! ALL the books he could read in a lifetime! BOOKS! GLORIOUS BOOKS! And no one to stop him from reading each and every one!

Of course, there are multiple themes within this one short-story-episode—another one being to beware of our reliance on technology. Yet the one that continues to strike me is the possibility of a culture—a society—that no longer encourages reading. If fact, the societal attitudes toward books in this fiction story points a straight finger at those who attempt to keep people from reading as happens today in too many countries. This concept has stayed with me a whole lot of years, and as I look back I am so THANKFUL to that writer whose words watered the seed of writing—and getting my books published—deep within me.

So it is that I close this month of March with several quotes that have inspired and fortified me during times when I slouched at my writing desk.

  • First Lady, Jacqueline Kennedy, said: “There are many little ways to enlarge your world. Love of books is the best of all.”
  • From Charlie and the Chocolate Factory author, Roald Dahl: “So please, oh PLEASE, we beg, we pray, go throw your TV set away, and in its place you can install, a lovely bookshelf on the wall.”
  • Sci-Fi author, Stephen King said: “Books are a uniquely portable magic.”
  • Singer-songwriter, Taylor Swift says: “Books train your mind to imagine and think big.”

 

DO WRITERS face challenges? Of course, as do all people of every career and every generation. However, the blessing we have is the ability to use words that create mind-imaginings and allow Readers the opportunity to think big—and BIGGER. The words we choose to write on the pages of our manuscripts have POWER. We must take care to use them wisely as they will impact our own lives—and the world. ⚓︎

RoyaleneABOUT ROYALENE DOYLE: Royalene has been writing something since before kindergarten days and continues to love the process. Through her small business—DOYLE WRITING SERVICES—she brings more than 40 years of writing experience to authors who need “just a little assistance” with completing their projects. This is a nice fit as she develops these blogs for Outskirts Press (OP) a leading self-publisher, and occasionally accepts a ghostwriting project from one of their clients. Her recent book release (with OP) titled FIREPROOF PROVERBS, A Writer’s Study of Words, is already receiving excellent reviews including several professional writer’s endorsements given on the book’s back cover.  

Royalene’s writing experience grew through a wide variety of positions from Office Manager and Administrative Assistant to Teacher of Literature and Advanced Writing courses and editor/writer for an International Christian ministry. Her willingness to listen to struggling authors, learn their goals and expectations and discern their writing voice has brought many manuscripts into the published books arena.
Royalene Speaks, Uncategorized

Conversations: 3/18/2016

WHAT IF…Reading Became a LOST Art?

Have you communicated with the 30-somethings (or younger) populous by TEXT or TWEET or INSTAGRAM lately? My teacher’s heart cringes and my writer’s heart cries. The art of communicating clearly is taking a big HIT in these times when people believe their time is so limited that they cannot take the time to express themselves well and write out full thoughts and/or sentences. While our (yours and my) children continue to be readers many hold a lukewarm attitude toward the value of reading. They seem to have lost the understanding that their reading abilities will gain them access to the whole world of knowledge. Too many of our grandchildren and great-grandchildren are leaving books on the shelves and accepting “sound-bite” information as the basis for life choices. I have no big answer to this problem other than to encourage excellent writers to KEEP WRITING and KEEP PUBLISHING. Someday, the next generations will return to “the books” to expand their knowledge base beyond song lyrics and media clips.

WAY back in the 1600s a French philosopher named Descartes wrote: “The reading of all good books is like conversation with the finest (people) of the past centuries.” And so it is! From his perspective only the “finest minds” wrote books, and he knew that from them we have the opportunity to learn great things on any subject! Plus he wrote with a passion “as if no one had written on these matters before,” and encouraged other writer/thinkers to do the same.

 rene descartes

IF YOU THINK that being a writer is just a job or a bit of a unique career let me share a few statistics with you…

  • There are almost half-a-million words in our English Language (the largest language on earth) and people (those folks who buy and read our books) really need to know them—their meanings—and usage which will improve their lives.
  • Just 15 minutes a day of reading can expose us to more than a million words in a year.
  • Teachers today can barely find 5 minutes a day to devote to reading with individual students—even those who need help.
  • For a person to participate fully in the world and workplace of 2020, they will need powerful literacy abilities that until now have been achieved by only a small percentage of the world’s population.
  • Currently, more than 20 percent of adults read at or below a fifth-grade level. This is far below the level needed to earn a living wage.
  • IF you’re thinking that the challenge of dyslexia is a major cause of the above statistic you’d be wrong! The majority of dyslexic individuals work harder and more creatively to “learn to read” and because of this have been noticed by some of the largest employers on the planet. At NASA, over 50% of their employees are dyslexic. They are deliberately sought after because they have superb problem solving skills and excellent 3D and spatial awareness.

So, HOW can writers make a difference in the midst of these facts? KEEP WRITING! Make each word you place on a manuscript page zing so that people will be drawn to it whether you’re creating Science Fiction adventures or developing a game to teach world history. With almost 50 percent of our Nation’s unemployed youth (ages 16-21) labeled as “functionally illiterate,” we need to write books (and blogs and vlogs and…) that interest them while teaching them the skills they need to obtain good jobs. AND…should a question about writing rules come up, we always have The Elements of Style by Strunk & White which will take us back to basics with the English language. Together we can save the arts of reading and writing! ⚓︎

RoyaleneABOUT ROYALENE DOYLE: Royalene has been writing something since before kindergarten days and continues to love the process. Through her small business—DOYLE WRITING SERVICES—she brings more than 40 years of writing experience to authors who need “just a little assistance” with completing their projects. This is a nice fit as she develops these blogs for Outskirts Press (OP) a leading self-publisher, and occasionally accepts a ghostwriting project from one of their clients. Her recent book release (with OP) titled FIREPROOF PROVERBS, A Writer’s Study of Words, is already receiving excellent reviews including several professional writer’s endorsements given on the book’s back cover.  

Royalene’s writing experience grew through a wide variety of positions from Office Manager and Administrative Assistant to Teacher of Literature and Advanced Writing courses and editor/writer for an International Christian ministry. Her willingness to listen to struggling authors, learn their goals and expectations and discern their writing voice has brought many manuscripts into the published books arena.
Conversations with a Self-Publishing Writer, Royalene Speaks, Uncategorized

Conversations: 3/11/2016

WHAT IF…ALL Books Were Banned?

Ray Bradbury (one of my favorite Sci-fi authors) says, “There are worse crimes than burning books. One of them is not reading them.” In 1953 he wrote a novel titled: Fahrenheit 451 (the temperature needed to ignite paper), which became a must read classic almost immediately. The future of America portrayed in these pages does, indeed, paint a sad picture. However, it ends with HOPE when the main character makes his way into the countryside and finds book lovers who live there—who have memorized books—for the time when people are ready to rediscover their value.

bradbury

IF you haven’t read this marvelous novel before, I won’t tell you the ending. Yet, as an author and writing coach, I will suggest you look for one of Bradbury’s main themes which is so beautiful written/woven throughout the book: the cycles of life and living. All writers of all genres can benefit from understanding this concept at greater and greater levels throughout their writing careers. The concept of “to everything there is a season,” is played out in real life each and every day—in our own lives and our Readers’ lives—and must be developed in the actions and events of our characters’ lives.

Another of my favorite authors, Dr. Seuss, offers a quote that should give all writers encouragement: The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more you learn, the more places you’ll go.” On the surface, these points may not seem to relate to Bradbury’s Fahrenheit theme. Yet relating reading (the great value of reading) to learning and going places IS the hope of all writers who develop their stories (either fact or fiction) with the heart of their Readers in mind—giving them the opportunity to GO where their feet cannot take them.

Last week I gave you the statistics of Readers who purchase fiction (53%) and non-fiction (43%) books. In the fiction category, fifty-five percent (55%) is bought by women and forty-five (45%) by men. Of all those who read fiction, their favorite genres are mystery/suspense (19%), leaving the remainder of the eighty-one percent (81%) to enjoy each of our preferred genres—which definitely gives each author/writer a strong foundation from which to promote our books. And yet, IF the day comes when banning books is the norm rather than the exception, HOW would be deal with it?

As a parent, grandparent and great-grandparent, I admit that I’ve essentially “banned” specific books from the shelves of my children. There is a safety zone needed when it comes to young minds that are not yet developed to the point of clear and logical thinking. However, in recent years I’ve come to wonder whether there really are some books—that promote ugly and dehumanizing ideas—that should never even be published. Many traditional and self-publishing houses are accepting the role of “parent” in this respect, and I applaud them!

As I close today, I will leave you with thoughts (quote) from Alice Walker, author of The Color Purple, who faced some hefty criticism: “Great literature is help for humans. It is medicine of the highest order…It can lift them [readers] into a new realization of their own power, beauty, love, courage.…[having] the best interests of all of us humans at heart. That we grow, change, challenge, encourage, love fiercely in the awareness that real love can never be incorrect.”

banned book week

Great authors will always receive censure—just look at the centuries of detractors who have tried to “ban” the Bible. When authors create works that are in “the best interests of all us humans,” their/your books will remain “until the end of time.” Go Forth! READ! Write! Publish!

⚓︎

RoyaleneABOUT ROYALENE DOYLE: Royalene has been writing something since before kindergarten days and continues to love the process. Through her small business—DOYLE WRITING SERVICES—she brings more than 40 years of writing experience to authors who need “just a little assistance” with completing their projects. This is a nice fit as she develops these blogs for Outskirts Press (OP) a leading self-publisher, and occasionally accepts a ghostwriting project from one of their clients. Her recent book release (with OP) titled FIREPROOF PROVERBS, A Writer’s Study of Words, is already receiving excellent reviews including several professional writer’s endorsements given on the book’s back cover.  

Royalene’s writing experience grew through a wide variety of positions from Office Manager and Administrative Assistant to Teacher of Literature and Advanced Writing courses and editor/writer for an International Christian ministry. Her willingness to listen to struggling authors, learn their goals and expectations and discern their writing voice has brought many manuscripts into the published books arena.
Conversations with a Self-Publishing Writer, Royalene Speaks

Conversations: 3/4/2016

WHAT IF…We Could Not Read?

 

Do you remember the times—sitting with one or both of your parents—as they read a story to you? Within my writing (and reading) group of friends, we’ve asked ourselves that question. Most remember turning the pages of their first Little Golden Books as someone’s voice “read the pictures.” A few recall pointing to an illustration on the page and then the word that matched it. Then, there’s me. I saved several of my early reading books—Little Golden Books: Three Little Kittens, Jack and the Beanstalk, and Tootle—and the children’s version of the Lassie and Tarzan series. Yet I don’t have any recollection of any reading to me. Both my parents were avid readers, but their books were their books and we rarely discussed them. Then someone gave me a copy of Annie Oakley, Sharpshooter! Yes, that was a Little Golden Book, too. I was reading on my own by then, and my imagination took flight! AND THAT IS WHAT WRITING—FOR READERS—IS ALL ABOUT! It never gets old to imagine the moment when someone reads what you’ve written and grasps the meaning.

communication

History tells us that humans are compelled to communicate—to tell their stories whether fact or fiction—thus the creation of writing (written languages) somewhere around 3200 BC. Just as the people of that ancient civilization found value in being able to share their thoughts, so it is that today, we find not only value but joy. Frederick Douglass, one of the most well-known African-American writers, statesmen and orators, said: “Once you learn to read, you will be forever free.” This also applies to the writer, who—once our skills are honed—enjoys a unique freedom with the completion of the last page of every manuscript! And, as Dr. Seuss says, “You can find magic wherever you look. Sit back and relax, all you need is a book!”

communication

Recent statistics tell us that over 120,000 books are published each year in the United States. Of those books, 53% of Readers seek out Fiction—and 43% select Non-Fiction. Does your genre of writing fit in one of these categories? Of course! So be encouraged! We are possibly the most blessed writing generation of all, because the majority of people on this planet are Readers.

DID you know that the whole month of March is National Reading Month? What are you doing to support this cause? An increased population of Readers will be an increased population of buyers for your books! The National Education Association will be hosting a 6-city Reading Tour. Check out their website for event schedules, planning tips, artwork, and more @ www.nea.org. The Scholastic teachers’ organization suggests selecting a theme (for yourself or your family, office friends, etc.). Some of their favorite themes include OUT of this World—Space, Wild About Reading—Jungles, and All American—Patriotic. For the writer in you, these themes should also inspire new projects!

The very creative and wild-idea-man, Walt Disney, once said: “There is more treasure in books than in all the pirate’s loot on Treasure Island.” Are you writing something golden? Have you started the project and find yourself stumped? READING one (or two) of those treasure books written by your favorite author—or a new author—just might inspire your next chapter(s). Reading IS the “pause that refreshes” and, as one of my writing mentors told us (constantly), “Passionate readers make skillful writers, and skillful writers become published authors of books that sell.” ⚓︎

RoyaleneABOUT ROYALENE DOYLE: Royalene has been writing something since before kindergarten days and continues to love the process. Through her small business—DOYLE WRITING SERVICES—she brings more than 40 years of writing experience to authors who need “just a little assistance” with completing their projects. This is a nice fit as she develops these blogs for Outskirts Press (OP) a leading self-publisher, and occasionally accepts a ghostwriting project from one of their clients. Her recent book release (with OP) titled FIREPROOF PROVERBS, A Writer’s Study of Words, is already receiving excellent reviews including several professional writer’s endorsements given on the book’s back cover.  

Royalene’s writing experience grew through a wide variety of positions from Office Manager and Administrative Assistant to Teacher of Literature and Advanced Writing courses and editor/writer for an International Christian ministry. Her willingness to listen to struggling authors, learn their goals and expectations and discern their writing voice has brought many manuscripts into the published books arena.
Conversations with a Self-Publishing Writer, Royalene Speaks, Uncategorized

Conversations: 2/26/2016

IMPASSIONED VISION TIMES TWO—Plus

Collaborative, creative development of one book and/or series is an exciting adventure that can benefit both authors and the readers who follow their work. If you are a Science Fiction/Fantasy reader/writer, you will remember The Halfblood Chronicles by Andre Norton and Mercedes Lackey and The Talisman by Stephen King and Peter Straub. If you’re a detective/mystery buff, you may know that the Ellery Queen mysteries were written by cousins Daniel Nathan and Manford Lepofsky. On today’s recently released shelves, you’ll find the true story/journey of Patricia and Alana Raybon (mother & daughter) titled: Undivided: A Muslim Daughter, Her Christian Mother, Their Path to Peace.

Whatever the genre, whatever topic, the old adage that “two heads are better than one” is also quite accurate when writing the best possible work of fiction or non-fiction. When you start working with a writing-partner, you’ll discover that one person’s idea spawns connecting thoughts in the other person and the book becomes better in the process. Much like film-making, where writer and director join forces, collaborating authors bring their own unique histories to the project. Here are three criteria for finding—and enjoying—that perfect partnership:

  • Vision: When you (the author) have formulated your core statement about your book—what it is, what it brings to the Reader—your co-author must share that vision. Both you and your teammate should see that picture and be passionate about developing it.
  • Adaptability: Some authors think they want a “helper” who will enhance their book by following the concepts “exactly” as the author has written it. If that is your position, you’re actually looking for an Editor who will correct grammar, punctuation, sentence structure; without creative input.
    • However, the author who wants to actually explore enhancing their manuscript will be as adaptable and flexible in listening to ideas offered by their co-author. Their life experiences will improve plot, character, and setting. This is especially true for authors in the Inspirational genre: fiction and non-fiction.
  • Passion: Both authors must be passionate about their topic and share that impassioned vision that literally drives them to complete the manuscript. Every book on every bookshelf was written to “tell something important.” If the level of commitment is weak, so will be the finished product.

making connections

These three criteria also hold true after you’ve written the words: THE END. Then the search begins for the right publisher. Notice I’ve used the word right. There are several quality self-publishers out there (and some not so great). The self-publishing staff will become your book-making-crew—the cameraman, format editor, printer, marketing director.

  • Search their bookstore for two or three books in your genre, then ask for referral/contact information for those authors.
  • LOOK at the books they’ve printed—at your local bookstore and on the Internet.
  • Compare their publishing packages. This is a competitive business, so don’t be swayed by the first dollar-difference you see between companies.
  • LISTEN to the Author Representatives. It won’t take you long to discern whether they have a true passion for their work (helping authors like you)—or not.

Bottom line:  As the author and co-author, you are creating an alliance of experts that starts with you and ends when you hold your finished book in your hands. “Two are better than one” and a team that brings all their talents and skills together to produce your book is best. ⚓︎

RoyaleneABOUT ROYALENE DOYLE: Royalene has been writing something since before kindergarten days and continues to love the process. Through her small business—DOYLE WRITING SERVICES—she brings more than 40 years of writing experience to authors who need “just a little assistance” with completing their projects. This is a nice fit as she develops these blogs for Outskirts Press (OP) a leading self-publisher, and occasionally accepts a ghostwriting project from one of their clients. Her recent book release (with OP) titled FIREPROOF PROVERBS, A Writer’s Study of Words, is already receiving excellent reviews including several professional writer’s endorsements given on the book’s back cover.  

Royalene’s writing experience grew through a wide variety of positions from Office Manager and Administrative Assistant to Teacher of Literature and Advanced Writing courses and editor/writer for an International Christian ministry. Her willingness to listen to struggling authors, learn their goals and expectations and discern their writing voice has brought many manuscripts into the published books arena.