Use Your Time Wisely - Tips for Writers

“Use your time wisely,” was the mantra of my fourth grade teacher, Mrs. Wells. Make sure you use available time to work ahead and complete tasks. I can still hear her voice in my head. This applies to writers, too.

There is a lot of downtime or waiting time in the writing process. When you send queries to agents or publishers, you could wait weeks or months for the response (if there is one). If you’re traditionally published, there is also a lot of time between signing the contract and getting your box of books.

Use your time wisely. Write your next book. Many publishing contracts are for a series. If you’ve only written the first book, you will suddenly have a series of deadlines. There is also a lot of downtime after you send the manuscript to your editor and before you get proofs.

It took me close to five years from when I started my first Delanie novel until it was published. I’ve gotten faster over the years. I have a daily quota now when I’m writing a novel. I try to hit my word count during each writing session. It does make a difference. I wrote two novels, one novella, and three short stories last year. I also did revisions and edits to two other books.

Writers need to build their social media platforms when they start writing. Start a blog or podcast. Find ways to grow your email list. Build up followers on your sites. Agents and publishers do look at your sites to see how active you are on social media.

You need to balance your life and your writing time, but make sure you’re taking advantage of the downtime.

Getting Focused - Staying Focused

I’m not sure about you, but since the pandemic started, I’ve had days where I had trouble focusing on writing. I call it COVID brain. I get distracted by life, Zoom meetings, social media, horrible news, you name it. Here are some tips that have helped me focus, refocus, and stay focused.

• Take a break from the news and news sites. It’ll still be there when you go back to check it. Constant bombardment of bad and depressing news takes its toll on you, your attitude, and motivation.

• Try to schedule your writing time as work time and have tasks that need to be completed (e.g. writing, editing, revising, etc.). I stay on task when I know there’s a deadline.

• If you’re writing, set goals for daily word counts. This helps me stay on track and to see progress.

• Find your team. The writing life is often lonely. Make sure you have writer friends to share celebrations and bumps in the road with.

• My critique groups keep me motivated. I’m in two groups, and we meet once a month. I know I have a deadline to provide pages to them. I also like hanging out with my writer friends to see what they’ve been up to lately.

• Turn off the streaming, TV, internet, or other distractions when you’re working. I’ll check my social media sites, but I close the browser after a set time. It’s too easy to get lost in puppy or kitten videos.

• Limit your research time. It’s important when you’re plotting, but if you stop writing to research something, you often don’t get back to your rhythm. Make a note in the margin and save your research tasks for another time.

• Don’t edit or revise while you write. Get your first draft down. Then go back to do your polishing.

• When you can’t get motivated or the words don’t flow, take a break. Exercise, do something creative, take a walk, or take a nap. Use the time to refocus your thoughts. Sometimes, when you relax your mind, you’re able to solve the plot holes and get around the roadblocks.

• If you get off track, don’t beat yourself up. Assess where you are and start your writing process again.

I hope you’re doing well and being productive during this crazy time. Watch out for the distractions! Be safe!

Counteracting Disappointments - Tips for Writers

Disappointment often dots the landscape of your writing journey. Rejections, unfavorable reviews, and long periods of waiting are just a few bumps that writers encounter. Here are some ideas to help you navigate and turn disappointments into something more productive.

A Harsh Critique - It takes a lot of courage to share your work with others. If you have a good critique group or partner, they will give you honest feedback. Take a day or two to get past the angry or hurt emotions, and then look at the comments. What can you improve? The goal is to make your book the best it can be. When you query it with agents or publishers or release it to the world for sale, you’ll be competing for attention with all the other books.

Rejection - The writing life is full of rejection. Look at all the stories from famous authors who have received hundreds of rejections. Prepare before you start querying. You often only have one shot. Make sure your manuscript is as polished as it can be. Work on your query. Make sure that you target agents or publishers who are open to submissions and who represent your genre. Do your homework. Also make sure that you follow all the submission instructions.

Unfavorable Reviews - I’ve heard stories from authors about receiving one-star reviews because Amazon shipped a damaged package. It’s going to happen. Not everyone is going to like your work, or the review may have nothing to do with you. We received a one-star review one time for a MYSTERY anthology because the reader didn’t think there was enough horror in it. Holler, eat chocolate, or whatever you do to cope. Then take a deep breath and see if there is anything to learn from the reviews. Are there patterns or trends that you need to think about? If not, move on.

The Never-ending Wait - Authors spend a lot of time waiting. Waiting on responses to queries, submissions, and contests. Like your elementary school teacher said, “Use your time wisely.” Make sure you’re working on your next project.

Find Your Group - My writing friends are my support. They know the trials and joys. They celebrate my victories with me and provide a shoulder to cry on when it feels hopeless. Writing is a solitary effort. Make sure you have a peer group. They can share ideas and provide advice.

Writing is a business, and it’s work. Agents, editors, and publishers are looking for books that they can sell. Yours needs to be the best it can be. Learn from the hard times and keep at it. Edits and revisions take time and energy, but they’re worth it in the end.

Get Rid of the Mundane - Revision Tips for Authors

Too much mundane or routine bogs down your story. It slows the pacing, and it gives your reader a good place to stop. You don’t want that. You want them to read past their bedtimes.

Here are a few hints that I’ve learned from some great editors through the years.

Back Story - Avoid too much back story or history. People get confused about the timeframe. It it’s important, weave it into to your story.

Data Dump - Get rid of data dumps of descriptions when you introduce characters. Pick one or two interesting things to share. Sprinkle the rest in later. You don’t need to tell their entire life story when they first appear.

Chitchat - Cut the chitchat. Make sure your dialogue gives your readers insight to your characters and moves the story along. All of the “Hi, how are you? It’s nice to meet you. I am fine. Thank you for asking. How are you? It’s a lovely day. Yes, I love the weather. Would you like to sit down” needs to go.

Telling Parts - Get rid of the “telling” parts. Show your reader how the character feels. Use dialogue and action. Don’t have long sections of play-by-play commentary like a sports announcer.

Unnecessary Dialogue Tags - Remove any unnecessary dialog tags. The reader needs to know who is talking, but you don’t need to put “she said” after every part that is spoken.

Dump the Mundane - Cut the mundane, every day tasks. We all know how to tie our shoes or make a sandwich. Only include these when it’s key to the story. We don’t need to see your character’s entire trip for groceries or all his morning grooming habits.

Take an Umbrella - Please get rid of the lengthy weather reports. You can show us that it’s raining without long paragraphs that make you sound like the guy on the six o’clock news.

Watch Your Endings - Don’t wrap up all your chapters neatly with the character going to bed. That gives the reader an excuse to stop there, too. Add some suspense. You want them to keep turning pages.

Captain Obvious - Don’t tell the reader about the character’s feelings. Show it in her action, reaction, or dialogue.

The Uncle Bob Syndrome - When two characters are talking about someone else, make sure their references match the situation and how they would refer to the person. For example, if two sisters are talking about their Uncle Bob, they would probably call him that. They wouldn’t say, “Susie, remember Bob Jones, our rich uncle who left us that huge inheritance?”

What else would you add to my list?

Showing Not Telling - Tips for Writers

We’ve all heard, “Show; don’t tell” as a writing tip. It is so easy to slip into the telling part. I’ve been working on some edits for critique group and others, and here are some things you can look for in your next round of revisions.

• Did you do a huge data dump to describe a new character? Did you include too much backstory in your introduction or description? Some of this information is important, but you need to sprinkle it in. A character introduction shouldn’t look like a police report.

• Look at your paragraphs. Are they chock full of “be” verbs (is, was, were)? This is often an indicator that you have a lot of sentences that are telling the reader facts.

• Do you have a lot of references in your paragraphs to she/he or the character’s name. This is another indicator that there is telling going on.

• Don’t be Captain Obvious. Your reader can pick up on feelings by actions and reactions that your characters have. You don’t have to tell the reader that your character is happy, mad, sad, or angry. Demonstrate feelings through action or dialogue.

• Avoid being a sports commentator by giving your reader a play-by-play description of events.

• Leave out the mundane stuff. You do not need to tell the reader about every bite or every step that it takes to do something. And please leave out the weather reports. Readers get bogged down and bored with the routine stuff.

What else would you add to my list?

Things New Writers Need to Know

I had coffee this weekend with a twenty-something who wanted to talk about writing. Here are some of the things we talked about and some of the lessons I’ve learned along my writing journey (that I wish I had known at the beginning).

1. You may be very fortunate, and your book is the next international best seller that takes the world by storm. But for every one that tops the charts, there are thousands or millions of other books that don’t. Dream big, but be realistic in your planning.

2. If you are going to go the traditional route of publishing (querying an agent, submitting to publishers,…), you will find that it is a slow process with a lot of waiting. Use your time wisely and write your next book in the down time.

3. Writing is a business. It’s work. If you want to be an author, you need to put in the time to learn/hone your craft and market your book. But don’t get too bogged down in reading “learn to write” books that you never actually start writing. I have found two books that have been really helpful, Stephen King’s ON WRITING and Janet Evanovich’s HOW I WRITE. (I donated all the other ones that I bought to the Friends of the Library.)

4. Rejection, bad reviews, and negative comments are part of the process. They stink. Nobody likes them, but you need to be able to learn from mistakes and keep trying if you believe in your work.

5. Your book needs to be the best that it can be before you start querying agents/publishers. It is rare that you get more than one shot at an idea.

6. Read everything you can get your hands on. Read books in the genre that you want to write. Make sure you know the conventions (rules/traditions) and word/page counts for your genre. Follow readers that you like on social media and watch what they do.

7. Self-publishing and book marketing (even if you are traditionally published) can be expensive. You need to set your budget and plan your strategy and spending.

8. Publishing is a business. Make sure you have a statement of work or a contract if you hire someone to do work for you (e.g. editing, formatting a book, designing a cover, planning a marketing promotion).

9. Agents/Editors/Publishers receive a lot of queries. They are looking for fresh ideas that will sell. Your manuscript needs to stand out in a pile of others. You need a unique hook that draws readers in. They are also looking or quality work. If you don’t follow submission guidelines, have something that’s riddled with typos, or doesn’t follow the conventions of the genre, you make it easy for them to move it to the reject file.

10. Make sure you read all of your contracts and royalty statements and understand them.

11. There is no other feeling like typing, “the end” on your manuscript. Celebrate. But this is really just the beginning. You need to make this work the best it can be. Editors, proofreaders, critique partners, and beta readers are invaluable. It is a rarity that anyone’s first draft is in a state ready to be published.

12. Watch out for scams on social media. You will be bombarded with offers. If they seem too good to be true, they probably are.

13. Find a writers’ group, preferably in your genre. You need a network who can help with ideas and advice and celebrate your victories. My membership in Sisters in Crime, Guppies, and James River Writers has been invaluable.

I Have News!

My agent received three offers on my new series, the Jules Keene Glamping Mysteries. And over the Independence Day weekend, I signed a three-book deal. The first one launches October 2021.

Guard Your Writing Time!

24 Hours - 1,440 Minutes - 86,400 Seconds - That’s what we have each day. Life is busy and hectic, and there are lots of obligations and distractions. Writers, you need to guard your writing time. It is so easy to fill up time with other things. If you’re going to be a productive writer, you need to write. Here are some ideas that help me.

1. Schedule your writing time. If it’s on my calendar, I am more likely to do it. This also keeps me from filling the space with other tasks.

2. Being a published author requires writing, editing, revising, book marketing, book promotions, blogs, websites, and events. The list goes on and on. It is easy to get lost in all the tasks. Your job is to write your next book. Make sure you balance all your writing work with life.

3. When I’m working on my first draft, I track my daily word count (on a Post-it). This helps me hit my daily goals. For me, the daily number is enough to keep me motivated.

4. I now schedule time in the mornings to do other writing tasks likes blogs, emails, website updates, and social media posts. I was blending this with my writing time, and I was doing more “other stuff” than writing.

5. When you get off track, don’t beat yourself up. Life happens, and it’s often messy. Just figure out how to get back on track.

6. Set goals for each day. They don’t have to be lofty. I attended a workshop recently by Dana Kaye and Sisters in Crime. She recommended that you have daily goals to keep you organized and focused.

7. When you don’t feel like writing, try to write something. When I hit a brick wall, sometimes, it’s easier to schedule social media posts or write a blog. If not, I do something else. Usually physical activity helps me clear my head and my roadblock.

Are You Growing as a Writer?

The pandemic has turned everything upside down, and nothing is quite as we expected it to be. I’m trying to keep a regular routine for my writing life. Lately, I’ve also attended a lot of classes and conferences online. As a writer, you need to keep growing and learning. You need to stay relevant. Here are some things you can do to improve your craft, build your platform, and boost your name recognition.

1. Make sure that you are writing. If you can’t or don’t feel like writing every day, write when you can. Set small goals to help you stay on track. Celebrate your successes.

2. Take a class or a workshop. There are lots of free or low cost events out there on every topic. You need to hone your writing skills, but don’t limit yourself. There are online tours of interesting places and things to see. You never know what might become research for a future story.

3. Find a podcast that you like. There are some really good ones out there on writing and marketing. My favorites are the true crime and weird history ones.

4. Get a writing partner or critique group. This gives me a deadline each month for new pages. Plus, interacting and chatting with others is a good break from the craziness of the world we live in right now.

5. Make sure that you take the time to revise and rewrite. This is often the hardest and most time consuming part. You need to fix plot holes and character inconsistencies. You also need to look for repetitive words, fluffy content or dialogue that doesn’t move your story forward, and too many dialogue tags.

6. Make time to work on your social media platforms. Share, like, and comment on others’ posts. Build your following.

7. Decide where you want to go as a writer. Find others in that genre and look at their websites, blogs, and interviews. See what they did or didn’t do in their writing careers.

8. If you’re stuck on your current WIP, put it down for a little while and do something else. Sometimes, all you need is some space.

9. Start a new writing project.

10. Stay current with the publishing trends in your genre. Know what’s popular (at the moment) and see what’s selling.

If you want to improve and grow as a writer, you need to be resilient and adaptable. It’s hard work. There are a lot of disappointments and celebrations. The publishing industry is in a constant state of flux, and you need to be aware of what’s going on in the industry and the book world. Try something new today. You may be surprised.