After a full year of Writer’s Spotlights, there have been some fabulous authors and books come our way. Each of them brought something to the table for the budding and established authors in the M3 Readers. Let Claret fix you a cuppa while we have a recap. Let’s go sit by the front windows and watch the birds.
Your Job
The most common piece of advice was to just write. Whether you are scribbling on the back of a receipt or pounding a keyboard, write every single day. The authors who deviated from this advice only veered slightly left to say: Schedule a time to write and keep it.
The bottom line to this advice is treat writing as your primary profession. You want to make a living from your writing. Do you expect someone to just arbitrarily begin sending you checks? If you are not committed to doing your job of writing your (story, manuscript, screenplay), you will never get it finished and sell it. When you need a table, are you more likely to buy lumber or furniture? How about your reader?
Just so you know, this advice is the difference between writers and authors.
A Close Second
Get an editor. More than three-quarters of the spotlight writers mentioned the necessity of editing. Spell check is not editing. There are a number of editors which manuscripts need.
Story editors are first. These are your beta readers. They will overlook the typos (read find them for you), but they will tell you if your story derails. Beta input it crucial to the development of your story, fictional or factual. Beta input can easily turn a novel into a series once you realize how many questions you left unanswered.
Line editor comes next. Most authors feel like they have been bloodied after line edits. If they do not, the editor failed to point out where the changes were made. Line edits include nuances the beta reader may have missed being caught up in the story. When your line editor is done, the note pad beside the book may be as long as the book with elements to check on throughout the script.
Do not be surprised if you have to go through line edits more than once. Regardless of how many times you do it, realize the most important fact of line edits: Corrective measures for your script are not a character assassination.
Regardless of how much of yourself your poured into your script, your editor is not telling you personally you are (a failure, inadequate, needing improvement). Your editor is going to make your script the best it can be for the reader. Did you write your script for yourself or your reader?
Copy editor is next. Remember all those typos everyone who read the story overlooked? They really are not a bad sign. Your story was engaging enough for the typos not to trip the reader hard enough for them to stumble from the book to grumble. Your copy editor has not read your story.
What? How do copy editors find mistakes? They cheat. They skip to the end to read it first. Did I mention? They read in reverse sentence by sentence.
Last is your layout editor. All of the pretty formatting you did to have the chapter headings and page numbers precisely right is all exactly wrong. Your word processor was not designed to format for print. It has no idea how to format for ebook. These two facts are the reason why some publishing houses still require paper manuscripts. It is often easier to scan them and let software handle the problems than it is to try to undo what you have done to them.
You may think, when you submit it, your manuscript is perfect. There is an entire team of editors who was not at any of the staff meetings of your characters in your head. They are going to tell you all the things you have assumed you made clear, which mysteriously never made the manuscript. Without them, it is still just a draft.
Marketing
What good is writing a book if no one buys it? It is the equivalent of it remaining in your WIP folder until your hard drive crashes. Publicists gave you really good ideas this year about how to market your books.
Press releases need to be targeted to the publication distributing them. Play to your audience. Define your audience. Every time possible, expand your audience.
None.
Social media campaigns are not the equivalent of begging. Interacting with your social media audience is as important as interacting with your blogging audience.
Reviews can make or break you. Having a few under your belt at release time is a great thing. Never getting another one is not. Having four and five stars is terrific. Having three one stars in a row, not so much. Having friends and family give glowing reviews is great. Only having friends and family give reviews is not. Reviews make good social media links.
Doing it all yourself is possible, but chances are you will never write anything else in your career except tweets and status updates. Networking with other authors is crucial to the success of your marketing. Networking with book sellers is just as good, but only if your book is actually in print and available through trusted sales channels.
Reciprocity is a way of life. If you are not reading and reviewing, your name is not in front of enough potential readers. Giving good reviews entices readers to click on your name to see why they should trust you. What better way than having a book of your own for them to peruse?
In that same vein, opening your social media to the promotion of others ensures you are not pounding your followers with nothing but plugs for your work. You are not really a spammer, are you?
Consistency is the key to a writing career. This is your profession. Ply your trade. Blogging is one of the easiest avenues to keeping your name appearing before readers. Come close. Here’s a secret. Blog readers read books. If your blog is professional, stays on some target and appeals to your audience, in time, readers will take the plunge from the free reading they get on your blog to the books which pay you for what you do.
Freebies are a matter of debate. Everyone wants something for free. If you are only blogging the excerpts from your book, you are giving it away, just as much as offering a free download. Experience proves giving it away increases total number of downloads. Free downloads water down the profit of the book offered for free.
If your free book is good, readers will be enticed to buy the other books you have to offer. Hence begins the debate. What good is giving away your book for the sake of total downloads if you have nothing else for readers to buy? Consider this carefully.
Would you rather be a best-selling author with millions of copies of free books floating around or a successful author selling a modest (or obscene) amount of books to support yourself? Discuss it with someone you trust who has business experience… not your mother, unless your mother is in the publishing industry.
Future
Over the course of 2013, the Writer’s Spotlight will continue to shine the light on authors with new books on the market. You may see a shift in the questions to better represent different information from the 2012 interviews. The line up of authors is very different from those you saw in 2012. In that diversity, M3 hopes you will find answers which would have otherwise eluded you behind the industry cloak.
What was the best piece of information you picked up from an author this year? Is there a question you would like to ask an author? How many books did you read this year? Are you looking forward to the new books coming out for the new year?
Hashtags: #marketing #books #amwriting
Ben Woodard
/ December 26, 2012What a great post! Thanks Red.
Red
/ December 26, 2012We are going to embark on getting more marketing into the hands of the authors here.
Gail Thornton
/ December 26, 2012This post is fantastic and informative! I’ve learned from other authors that writing every day is a must, actually either writing or reading. The best advice I ever followed was to join a writer’s group. The one I belonged to met in a coffee shop, and I was a member for twelve years. I’ve always wanted to ask a published author about writer’s block. Does it exist for them? How might they work through it. You’ve answered much of this in your post, Red, thanks!
Gail Thornton recently posted..Poem – Crescendo
Red
/ December 26, 2012We may just do a Q&A on writer’s block.
Bo Lumpkin
/ December 26, 2012Great words of wisdom. I wish all this technology had been around longer. I used to read about 1000 pages per week. I would have made a great reviewer. Writing reviews might have inspired me to write more.
Red
/ December 26, 2012This sounds like it may be something which could take up some of your time these days, Bo.
Bo Lumpkin
/ December 27, 2012Believe it or not I am still stayin’ busy. I got a new drawing program I am trying to learn, I still plan on makin’ jewelry and I have to have my nap every afternoon. I am afraid that I am realizing that time is more of a luxury than I ever thought it wa before.
Bo Lumpkin recently posted..THE REVELATIONS OF YOUTH
Red
/ January 1, 2013I have been fortunate enough to have always known that. Perhaps, you could preface the nap with a few pages. I know it helps me to doze off 😉
Carrie Rubin
/ December 26, 2012Great post–I really enjoyed your bit on marketing, since that now comprises the bulk of my day. Am off to share your post on Twitter. 🙂
Red
/ December 26, 2012Thank you for the share, Carrie. Most authors think the hard part is getting through line edits. It is the sharing afterward which is the hard part…as you well know! 😉
Androgoth
/ December 26, 2012As always you have covered every facet and given everyone that reads your postings food for thought, the writers of this grouping especially and what superb guidance you offer my great friend.
I was thinking what the last book that I read was and unbelievably it was Mort by Terry Pratchett, I read that in one day and thoroughly enjoyed it. I write all the time and yet rarely read anything apart from whatever my blogging friends write, which is odd when I come to think of it as I used to read all kinds of books years ago, I guess I just got lazy.
I read your e mail regarding the FTP’s being almost completed and to be completely honest I never even thought about them being published, it simply never occurred to me even though I have seen a number of prompts, in actual fact I have only written mine for your M3 Space Red, just to help out towards the development of your new Space. I must admit though I have rather enjoyed writing them, and this from me who never even liked the idea of Flash in the Pan 🙂 lol
You have succeeded and your sites are flourishing, I know that you are well on your way and you deserve it with all the very hard work and commitment, the many hours trying to perfect your art, and you have definitely triumphed as your readership grows every day and that is something to be really proud of Red 🙂
Well done you 🙂 🙂
Andro xxx
Red
/ December 26, 2012Oh, my word. I have not thought of that book in ages. I have a copy of it on the shelf by my desk. You were one of the most staunch anti-flash in the beginning. You were in good company, as I saw no inherent value in them…until I began writing them. I have to say it has helped my writing. I have used portions of the flash idea in one of my novels to create suspense, and I am rather pleased with the outcome.
Thank you, Andro. Both for the compliments and for your help in making these ventures a success. Were it not for readers like you, I would just be takling to myself 😉
Androgoth
/ December 30, 2012I know that you are getting ready for a nice relaxing break and you truly deserve it Red 🙂
BTW – I noticed one of your darker books amongst the many offerings that you have produced so good luck with the sales on that one, I am sure that it will be deliciously successful 😉
Be good now, if you like? 😉 🙂 lmao
Andro xxx
Red
/ December 30, 2012Aye. It is far darker than most who know me expect. It is something methinks might raise the hair on Penelope’s neck 😉
raymond alexander kukkee
/ December 26, 2012Your typical thoughtful offering of great advice at it’s best, Red! This is wisdom–and wonderful, timely advice. Consistency, and write, write write. I think we creative types may tend to forget the nuances of the best approach to the profession of writing and marketing, thank you for covering this subject so well. “:)
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Red
/ December 26, 2012You are very welcome, Ray. You know I am going to be prompting everyone to get their next projects into the grindstone 😉
Binky
/ December 26, 2012That all sounds like much too much work. Can’t I just bribe some people instead?
Once upon a time I used to read real books, too. Now it seems I spend most of that time online.
Binky recently posted..Wombie Christmas 2012
Red
/ December 26, 2012Of course.
SpammersMarketers take those bribes all the time. Have you converted any of your online time to reading ebook time?Binky
/ December 27, 2012Not very much of it, no. The world keeps speeding up and I keep slowing down.
Binky recently posted..Wombie Christmas 2012
prenin
/ December 26, 2012Explains all the hard work! LOL!!! 🙂
I guess we’re not done yet… 🙂
Thanks for this post Red – it helps to know what to expect! 🙂
Love and hugs always!
Prenin.
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Red
/ December 26, 2012Oh, Pren, by no means are we done! We are at the beginning. I have loved to hear writers tell me they wrote the book which was the hard part. I told them authors know the hard part is after you write the book! {HUGZ}
RLB
/ December 27, 2012Writing the books was the FUN part. I even loved the revisions, for those made me feel I was getting closer to the IDEAL. Kind of like Michaelangelo cutting away all the parts that were NOT David. I *thought* I hated marketing, but what I hated was banging my forehead against closed doors. Real marketing the way it’s done now is as much fun as writing and revising were, as I meet such fascinating people, both writers and readers. And a few in between who don’t claim to be either, but tell wonderful stories.
Red
/ January 1, 2013That is a terrific attitude. That is how I look at editing as well. I like less and less fluff in my old age. I would rather get to the point and get moving.
Deb
/ December 27, 2012Great post as always, Red.
Seems like I do all my reading online these days.
♥ xxx
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Red
/ January 1, 2013I am still mixing it slightly. I like the feel of a book in my hand. Also, I do not have to worry about cracking the screen if I drop it out of bed. 😛