Tag: writing tips

NaNoWriMo, Uncategorized

From the Archives: “4 Things NaNoWriMo Authors Should Never Do”

Welcome back to our Tuesday segment, where we’ll be revisiting some of our most popular posts from the last few years.  What’s stayed the same?  And what’s changed?  We’ll be updating you on the facts, and taking a new (and hopefully refreshing) angle on a few timeless classics of Self Publishing Advisor.

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[ Originally posted: November 7th, 2012 ]

It’s hard to believe the first week of NanoWriMo is behind us already! How are you doing so far? I hope you are enjoying the challenge and that your manuscript is coming along. As you’ve been writing your draft, you may have noticed that it is easy to get distracted or discouraged, but a few simple changes can help you succeed. Here are four things you should never do if you want to finish NaNoWriMo (and maybe even self publish your book someday).

1. Skip a writing session. Unless it is an emergency, you must always stick to your writing schedule. If you must miss a writing session for an important reason, make sure you reschedule it. Ideally, you should reschedule it for another time that day or week. You don’t want to have to play catch up at the end of the challenge because you missed too many writing sessions.

2. Become jealous. Connecting with other writers is a great a way to find encouragement and inspiration during NaNoWriMo, but don’t let their progress discourage you. Some people write faster or have more time to commit. Try not to compare word counts. Focus on your success, and trust that your approach to writing is best for you.

3. Worry about editing. As you write your first draft, it is tempting to think about all the things you need to go back and fix. You should not be worrying about editing right now. You need to focus on writing. There will be plenty of time to worry about editing later. If the thought of editing really discourages you, treat yourself to professional editing services  after you achieve your goal.

4. Give up. There will be days when you become frustrated and consider giving up. Don’t do it! You can and will succeed as long as you keep trying. If you need some motivation, talk to people who believe in you, read about other successful authors, or take some time to relax and come back refreshed.

Remember, your goal isn’t just writing 50,000 words this month. Your ultimate goal is to write a novel (and self publish it). That goal takes time, dedication, and possibly hundreds of cups of coffee, but it is an achievable goal. Stay focused and trust yourself, and you will succeed.

I’d love to know, what habits are interfering with your NaNoWriMo goals?

– by Kelly Schuknecht

 

nanowrimo

This post goes live the first day of the second week of NaNoWriMo, and I’m willing to bet that those of you who have decided to participate this year are beginning to find the cold hard facts of extended writing sessions unbearable. Or, perhaps, you’re the opposite: you feed on pressure, and deadlines. But no matter where you’re at and what perspective you take of NaNoWriMo—participant or abstainer—one thing certainly remains true:

Writing is Hard.

If you need any proof, just look at what some of our most respected writers have to say on the matter:

And:
writing is hard ernest hemingway

No literary blog is complete without a reference to Ernest Hemingway, right?

My point isn’t to make you feel depressed over the inevitability of struggles cropping up during NaNoWriMo and all other writing projects, but instead to remind you that even the great All Stars of creative writing face the same challenges, and they struggled too. Which means that you’re not doing anything wrong, even if the worst happens and you make one of the four mistakes I first wrote about back in 2012.

There is always a way forward, and we’re here to help you find it! Clue us in on where you’re at with NaNoWriMo and your other projects, and we’ll pull out all the stops to find you resources, advice, and those tangible actionable ways forward!

Thanks for reading.  If you have any other ideas, I’d love to hear them.  Drop me a line in the comments section below and I’ll respond as quickly as I can.  ♠

Kelly

ABOUT KELLY SCHUKNECHT: Kelly Schuknecht is the Executive Vice President of Outskirts Press. In addition to her contributions to the Outskirts Press blog at blog.outskirtspress.com, Kelly and a group of talented marketing experts offer book marketing services, support, and products to not only published Outskirts Press authors, but to all authors and professionals who are interested in marketing their books and/or careers. Learn more about Kelly on her blog, kellyschuknecht.com.
from the archives, Kelly Speaks, Uncategorized, Writing

From the Archives: “5 Online Tasks for Self Publishing Authors to Complete Before NanoWriMo”

Welcome back to our Tuesday segment, where we’ll be revisiting some of our most popular posts from the last few years.  What’s stayed the same?  And what’s changed?  We’ll be updating you on the facts, and taking a new (and hopefully refreshing) angle on a few timeless classics of Self Publishing Advisor.

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[ Originally posted: October 22nd, 2012 ]

There is a little more than a week until NanoWriMo begins! If you’re like many self publishing authors, you’ve been spending the month of October preparing for the challenge. You’ve probably started brainstorming and outline and cleaning off your desk, but there are a few online tasks that you should complete before the official beginning of NanoWriMo. Here is your to-do list.

1) Make sure you are registered.

Before you start all the fun tasks below, make sure you are registered for the event. You can do so by visiting NanoWriMo.org. This will ensure that you have access to all the benefits and resources the challenge has to offer.

2) Create social media pages.

Social media is a great way to market yourself and your book, and many readers, agents, and publishers expect you to take advantage of this marketing tool. You could create social media pages for yourself, your book, or your characters. Be creative, and have fun with social media. This is also a great time to start a blog.

3) Connect with other authors.

Of the greatest benefits of  NanoWriMo is the opportunity to connect with other authors. They can encourage and support you during this project. You can connect with authors by visiting the NanoWriMo website as well as by searching social media sites for people who are participating.

4) Download some music.

Music is a great way to become inspired. Download a few songs that you can listen to when you need some inspiration. Listen to songs that your characters would be interested, or search for music that reminds you of your setting or plot.

5) Play on Pinterest.

Pinterest is a great way to find inspiration as well as promote your book. Create boards for your characters, setting, or plot. Be creative, and have fun with this. What outfits would your character wear? What food would your character eat?

I’d love to know, what are you doing to prepare for NanoWriMo?

– by Wendy Statina

Most of the time, we like writing.

Or don’t we?

Sometimes, writing feels like writing. And sometimes—not just because of Halloween, but for other reasons too—writing feels like one long protracted scream into the void. (My scream? “WHY ARE WRITING OUTLINES SO DARN HARD??” Yours might be different.) It’s realistic to expect that at some point during an intensive writing spree—whether you’re doing NaNoWriMo or not—you’ll face insurmountable obstacles and unstoppable forces and immovable objects. Or at least, you’ll face challenges that seem like all of the above: Writer’s Block, characters gone haywire, plot holes, inconsistencies, and that one thing you really really want to edit but shouldn’t yet because it’ll totally torch your forward momentum. You know, those things.

nanowrimo inkygirl will write for chocolate

If I’ve learned anything from my many attempts at NaNoWriMo—mostly unsuccessful insofar as word count is concerned—it’s that preparation and a little foresight goes a long way towards keeping November (or, again, any intensive writing spree—especially if you have to meet some sort of deadline) fun. Thus, I thought it worth reviving Wendy’s wonderful 2012 blog for both your benefit and mine. Her suggestions still hold true today, four years and many gray hairs later, even though social media and even relationship-building is a moving target (So long, Vine. You’ll be missed*sob*).

Better still, the principle underlying Wendy’s post holds true:

Think ahead.

Spend a day or two setting yourself up for success and you’ll not need to spend thirty-odd days obsessing over the details. Look for your inspiration and put together that inspiration board on Pinterest. Spend a few hours building an architecture for your piece. Take a moment to either hop on social media and give warning that you’ll be scaling back your presence to help with focus—or to lay the groundwork for increased involvement, predicated on the knowledge that doing this thing in community is so much nicer than doing it solo. Register with NaNoWriMo if you think that might give you a little extra motivation, or register with a local writer’s club for something in your own backyard. Swing on by your libraries for writing sprints! (Those things are wonderful.)

Whatever you do, don’t wait to do it! This post goes live the morning that NaNoWriMo gets started, but it’s worth doing all these things even if it takes away from one day’s word total. After all, you’re laying the groundwork for everything that follows.

Thanks for reading.  If you have any other ideas, I’d love to hear them.  Drop me a line in the comments section below and I’ll respond as quickly as I can.  ♠

Kelly

ABOUT KELLY SCHUKNECHT: Kelly Schuknecht is the Executive Vice President of Outskirts Press. In addition to her contributions to the Outskirts Press blog at blog.outskirtspress.com, Kelly and a group of talented marketing experts offer book marketing services, support, and products to not only published Outskirts Press authors, but to all authors and professionals who are interested in marketing their books and/or careers. Learn more about Kelly on her blog, kellyschuknecht.com.
NaNoWriMo, news from the self publishing world, self publishing news, Uncategorized

Self-Publishing News: 10.31.2016

And now for the news!

This week in the world of self-publishing:

Just a quick reminder: It’s NaNoWriMo time! As we mentioned last week, you’ll be seeing the buzz over this annual tradition–National Novel Writing Month–begin to cascade through your literary networks, then build to a crescendo over the month of November. We’ll be following its progress–and your progress–here on Self Publishing Advisor, in hopes that we can provide yet another resource to assist you in reaching your writing goals, even if they have nothing at all to do with NaNoWriMo itself and the nonprofit organization which has brought it to such international acclaim. After all, the same tips and tricks which help NaNoWriMo participants are the same tips and tricks that all authors need to brush up on every now and again!

I’ll give you a hint: the answer is YES! and Care2‘s Zoe Eisenberg is all about showing you how to make good on that jubilant answer in her October 28th article. She speeds through a quick bit of history (“Since 1999, over 2 million writers have participated in NaNoWriMo, with an average of 15 percent hitting their goal of completing the first draft of a novel in the allotted month.”) and then plunges into the really important nitty-gritty bits, the bits that might keep you going through NaNoWriMo or any other lengthy writing spree. She interviewed NaNoWriMo’s Executive Director, Grant Faulkner, who says “The number one reason people think they can’t do NaNoWriMo is because they’re too busy […] Everyone says that. We’re all busy. But part of that is reality and part is perception. A lot of people want to write a novel, but it’s hard to get it into the number one spot on your to-do list.” Ain’t that the truth? And for self-publishing authors, self-starting on writing is just the first in many steps to making it from Point A to Point Z. But Faulkner’s tips, coming to us via Eisenberg, might just help overcome that first hurdle: they run the gamut from “Scan your schedule,” to “Plan for lapses,” and all of them circle back to the larger point that prioritizing and time management are an author’s greatest obstacles. For more of Faulkner’s fine points (and Eisenberg’s excellent reporting), follow the link!

Did you ever think you’d be getting serious writing advice from Bustle? I sure didn’t—but I’m very, very glad to have stumbled across this excellent October 24th piece by Bustle contributor Stephanie Topacio Long. Says Long, “The countdown to National Novel Writing Month is now down to single digits”—or in our case, less than twenty-four hours—”so it’s understandable if your excitement or anxiety about the annual writing challenge is off the charts already. Luckily, there’s still time for last-minute NaNoWriMo prep. Taking certain steps in the lead-up to November could make for a more successful month of writing.” While we’ve written about this subject here on Self-Publishing Advisor before, it’s always good to hear affirmation (and perhaps, receive more fleshed-out advice) from other writers whom we admire. Like Faulkner and Eisenberg, Long emphasizes the importance of preparatory tips like setting a schedule and establishing a support system (my personal favorite), but she goes a bit further in pushing for authors to get pumped up for the days to come. (And her well-selected gifs to illustrate each point definitely don’t hurt her argument.) As Long says, “Get psyched for NaNoWriMo now. Win or lose, the experience will be valuable for you. You’ll either come out the other side with the first draft of a novel (fingers crossed!), or you’ll learn a host of valuable lessons.” Hear, hear, Ms. Long! For the rest of her fabulous piece, click here.

Look, everybody needs a little humor headed into a long hard project, right? And right at the perfect moment, along comes Adam Forsgren with this glorious October 29th article for East Idaho News! “This will be my sixth year participating in NaNoWriMo, and over the years, I’ve noticed that the whole experience can be broken into different stages of dealing with the ‘burden’ of writing a 50,000 word narrative in 30 days,” he begins: “Think of it kind of like the stages of dealing with death, only with more caffeine and less crushing despondency.” First off, I’d like to take all of our collective hats off to Forsgren. SIX years of NaNoWriMo? That’s incredible. Secondly, he’s in a privileged place to deliver to us his theory of the 5 Phases of Dealing With NaNoWriMo:

  1. “Total Stokage” (AKA enthusiasm)
  2. “The Weight Hits” (oh no)
  3. “The Drag” (it doesn’t get worse than this, does it?)
  4. “The Despondency” (oh … it does ….)
  5. “The Glorious Morning!!”

As you might have guessed from the double exclamation point, Forsgren is a huge advocate for sticking it out through thick and thin to finish your writing projects (“It feels like I’ve actually accomplished something. It’s as close as I’ll ever get to fatherhood. And what’s crazy is that once you feel that feeling, you can’t wait to do it all over again.”) and he’s incredibly persuasive. If you needed the combination of realism (he does face up to the incredible challenges this project entails) and a powerful pep talk, this is the article for you. Read the full thing online at EastIdahoNews.com!

spa-news

As a self-publishing author, you may find it helpful to stay up-to-date on the trends and news related to the self-publishing industry. This will help you make informed decisions before, during and after the self-publishing process, which will lead to a greater self-publishing experience. To help you stay current on self-publishing topics, simply visit our blog every Monday to find out the hottest news. If you have other big news to share, please comment below.

Kelly

ABOUT KELLY SCHUKNECHT: Kelly Schuknecht is the Executive Vice President of Outskirts Press. In addition to her contributions to the Outskirts Press blog at blog.outskirtspress.com, Kelly and a group of talented marketing experts offer book marketing services, support, and products to not only published Outskirts Press authors, but to all authors and professionals who are interested in marketing their books and/or careers. Learn more about Kelly on her blog, kellyschuknecht.com.
from the archives, NaNoWriMo, Uncategorized

From the Archives: “Last Minute To-Dos for Self Publishing Authors Participating in NanoWriMo”

Welcome back to our Tuesday segment, where we’ll be revisiting some of our most popular posts from the last few years.  What’s stayed the same?  And what’s changed?  We’ll be updating you on the facts, and taking a new (and hopefully refreshing) angle on a few timeless classics of Self Publishing Advisor.

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[ Originally posted: October 29th, 2012 ]

There are only a few more days until NanoWriMo begins. To help you prepare, I’ve prepared a last minute to-do list for all self-publishing authors participating in NanoWriMo. Check it out below.

  • Read a few pep talks, which are available on the NanoWriMo website. They are sure to give you the motivation you need to succeed.
  • Add a web badge to your website. Not only will you help promote the event, but it is a fun way to let everyone know that you are taking the challenge.
  • Get inspired. Spend some time before the writing begins listening to music, watching strangers, drinking coffee, reading books, or doing any other activity that gets your creative juices flowing.
  • Relax. The next month is going to be hectic, so prepare your mind and body by practicing relaxation techniques such as exercising or meditation.
  • Remind your friends and family. You will need they their support during this process, so remind them of your goals and writing schedule.
  • Have fun. NanoWriMo is a fun process, so just enjoy it.

Good luck to all of the self-publishing authors who are participating in NanoWriMo. I can’t wait to see your books in print!

I’d love to know, what is on your last minute to-do list?

– by Wendy Statina

There’s no improving upon Wendy’s list from 2012, to be perfectly honest. (It’s perfect!) Like many of her fellow SPA contributors (including me!) she has participated in past NaNoWriMos, so she really knows what she’s talking about. Or she knew, at the very least, back in 2012 when she wrote her timeless recommendations–recommendations which are relevant, frankly, for every writer, no matter when you decide to plug away at your next novel.

As you’ll probably be beginning to realize, given the trend of several of our most recent posts here on SPA, we’re going to be writing our way through NaNoWriMo again this year, and we invite you to join with us. This isn’t just a vanity project for those of us who actually intend on participating in the event; this is us making a serious attempt to tackle many of the thorniest issues related to writing and authorship, specifically as self-publishing authors, that emerge when we settle into a long and sustained attempt to generate material. These issue include (but are not limited to) finding inspiration, maintaining motivation, vanquishing writer’s block, and navigating our complicated relationships to editing. (Do we do it before, during, or after we write? Or all of the above? Stay tuned to find out!) NaNoWriMo is simply the experiment–or the thought experiment, for those of you not participating this year, which is more than fine!–which helps us examine the issues.

Watch this spot–and our blog in general–over the coming weeks as we dive into November with our pens and notebooks at the ready!

last minute rush nanowrimo

Thanks for reading.  If you have any other ideas, I’d love to hear them.  Drop me a line in the comments section below and I’ll respond as quickly as I can.  ♠

Kelly

ABOUT KELLY SCHUKNECHT: Kelly Schuknecht is the Executive Vice President of Outskirts Press. In addition to her contributions to the Outskirts Press blog at blog.outskirtspress.com, Kelly and a group of talented marketing experts offer book marketing services, support, and products to not only published Outskirts Press authors, but to all authors and professionals who are interested in marketing their books and/or careers. Learn more about Kelly on her blog, kellyschuknecht.com.
elizabeth speaks, in your corner, Uncategorized, Writing

In Your Corner : Summer Goals (Pt 3)

Two weeks ago, I started my blog series on summer goals by talking about writing goals–or at least, by talking about a few of mine.  And while I think it’s important not to slavishly apply another author’s goals to your life without first taking into account the very important fact that you probably live very different lives and face very different challenges.  Which is why, in the end, the goals I shared were both few and fairly general:

  1. Write, and
  2. Structure my writing … loosely.

Anything more specific would automatically render my goals into something else: A how-to guide for success at writing that assumes every author shares the same background and experiences, the same struggles and schedule…and the same lifestyle.

This last point provided a segwey into the second post in this series.  Last week, I talked about energy and energy budgets–how we wake up each moment with a finite amount of the stuff and have to use it and conserve it much as we do other finite resources.  That is, with care and restraint, with an eye for treating our bodies well.

Which brings me to today’s topic:

A Writer’s Lifestyle

And look, this is dangerous territory as well.  I couldn’t possibly project my own lifestyle onto yours without recognizing that A) you’re a very different human being, that B) I am not exactly anywhere near perfect myself, and that C) there are a million different ways to live healthy lives, and claiming any one of those ways is the *BEST* or *THE ONLY* way is in fact a complete and utter lie.  A tabloid-worthy lie.

Bear with me a moment:

Let’s consider for a second what might happen if we try to be authors out of the context of our bodies–if we, like Plato and many of the Ancient Greeks, divorce the workings of the human mind and the human body.  We can try to perfect each of these things separately from the other, but our minds and our bodies make up parts of a whole–and neuroscience is constantly revealing just how interconnected the mind’s activities and the brain’s physical structure are, and if we place work of an author within the realm of the mind then we must also recognize that it is affected by the physical structures of the brain, which are in turn affected by the other physical structures of the body.

Conclusion: If we don’t keep our bodies healthy, our writing will suffer.

Common sense, right?  Healthy body >> healthy brain >> healthy mind >> healthy work.

lifestyle

The real struggle is how to get there, and how to sift through the tabloids and the magazines and the blogs and the Pinterest boards and the well-intentioned advice we’re constantly stumbling into.  And as a woman, I also have to recognize that it’s easy to confuse “beauty standards” advice with “health and wellness” advice.  But those two things are not the same.  Attaining 18-inch waist isn’t the same thing as eating right and eating food that feeds the brain, for example.  But low-impact activity three to five times a week–say, walking down to the park or mowing the lawn–is a great way to stimulate brain and body alike.  Anything that gets your heart rate up, gets you breathing, and breaks up the monotony of sitting at home.

Three things show up as common threads to every respectable writer’s advice column when it comes to lifestyle:

  • eating well
  • sleeping well
  • getting out and about

If any one of these components presents a challenge for you, it may be time to try something new.  Play around with integrating more protein-rich foods into your diet, like avocado and pinto beans.  Move things around in your schedule for a week or two to try out some new sleep hygiene habits or some new activities out and around the neighborhood.  Nothing dramatic–nothing drastic–just a little short-term experiment.  You’ll find out pretty quickly if one of these changes is sustainable and makes a difference to your writing.  I promise!

You are not alone. ♣︎

ElizabethABOUT ELIZABETH JAVOR: With over 18 years of experience in sales and management, Elizabeth Javor works as the Manager of Author Services for Outskirts Press. The Author Services Department is composed of knowledgeable publishing consultants, pre-production specialists, customer service reps and book marketing specialists; together, they all focus on educating authors on the self-publishing process to help them publish the book of their dreams. Whether you are a professional looking to take your career to the next level with platform-driven non-fiction or a novelist seeking fame, fortune, and/or personal fulfillment, Elizabeth Javor can put you on the right path.