Is Your Book Different?

Tell Me A Story

Book promotion - I hate it.

When promoting a novel, you must persuade readers and reviewers that your story is distinctive and unique. As an author, if you don't understand why your book is unique, then they won’t either.

Here are some things you might ponder on, before trying to explain your book:

• What makes you believe your story treats an old theme with a new twist
• In what way does your book serve a market that other books in the same category do not
• If your tale isn't different, why did you write it?

To become successful, your book needs to be innovative, distinctive, fresh, and stimulating - be sure to let people know just what those attributes are.

Your book needs to have a reason for being there. Undertaking that dreaded book promotion, is an ideal time to explain things. Make sure readers understand why they should read your story, and what they will get from it if they do.

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Publish Post

Looking for a good read? Try:-

Short Moments - collection of 10 short stories

or

Past Sins - Contemporary fiction 

Cheap Ad-Sponsered Kindle 3G

Tell Me a Story - Tech Bits


Those who have been wondering whether to purchase an Amazon Kindle e-book reader might finally be able to come to a decision with this particular model – an ad-sponsored Kindle 3G that will retail for $50 below the standard model, which is AT&T’s $139 Kindle 3G - with Special Offers of integrated Wi-Fi and 3G connectivity without being tied down to a monthly fee, data plan or annual contract.

Undeniably, most things in this world have a price, and to secure the advantages of this discount, you will be exposed to adverts from AT&T as well as other companies.

The college multitude might also look at the new ad-sponsored Kindle  since it will support the Kindle Textbook Rental service – that allows users to rent books for up to 360 days at up to 80% off the textbook list price. Anyone already latched on to this particular version of the Kindle?

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Looking for a good read? Try:-

Short Moments - collection of 10 short stories

or

Past Sins - Contemporary fiction 

 

Unique Help With Characterization

Tell Me a Story

Not only do characters have to overcome major and minor obstacles throughout a story, they have to grow in some way. Shortcomings are what make our central characters seem human; however, readers want those shortcomings made virtuous by the end of the book.

Each central character has to surmount some part of their personality in order for them to develop during the course of the story. In order to achieve this, writers need to understand what a character’s significant flaws might be. Sometimes it’s difficult to think of, and to balance these shortcomings.

It is convenient that enneagram philosophers have classified nine personality types, each with a distinctive strength, and flaw.  These strengths and flaws can build trouble for personality types and those around, especially if a strength or flaw is taken to extremes.

As writers, we can exploit those nine types to generate conflict between our central characters and use them as internal struggles they have to conquer.

• Type One is principled, purposeful, self-controlled, and perfectionistic.
• Type Two is demonstrative, generous, people-pleasing, and possessive.
• Type Three is adaptive, excelling, driven, and image-conscious.
• Type Four is expressive, dramatic, self-absorbed, and temperamental.
• Type Five is perceptive, innovative, secretive, and isolated.
• Type Six is engaging, responsible, anxious, and suspicious.
• Type Seven is spontaneous, versatile, distractible, and scattered.
• Type Eight is self-confident, decisive, wilful, and confrontational.
• Type Nine is receptive, reassuring, agreeable, and complacent.

So there you are. Someone else has done it for you. Keep this list in front of you as you build your character’s profile, and use it to advantage. It will serve you well.

Getting Your Book Published

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AJ, I haven’t written anything seriously before, although I’ve scribbled for a long time. However, I found myself writing a book and it seems to me it’s as good as a lot out there. How can I get it published?
I have looked all over the web, and there are many publishing sites, but I have no idea what's good and what's not. Can you help?

Alison, I'm afraid as a new author you need be not "As Good As" published authors, you have to be BETTER! The problem is publishing houses always go for the safe bet. They're in business to make money, not make you famous. They have a limited number of books they publish each year. If your book isn't outstanding, I'm afraid you'll not get in they'll reach for one of their stable of established authors.

To achieve this, you must first of all make sure your manuscript is as good as it can possibly be. Be absolutely certain you've tied up all loose ends and followed industry standards for presentation.

Cut away ALL unnecessary pronouns and adverbs - nothing screams amateur more than overblown descriptions. Most new writers feel they need to give full descriptions of everything. DON'T. Mostly, what's left out says more than what's in....

When you've cut, cut, and cut; when you've polished it until it glistens, write a short query letter to your chosen agent. Explain any experience you may have, the genre of the work, the word-count, and present a VERY short synopsis of about 100 words (see book blurbs for examples). Only present a full synopsis IF the agent asks you to submit the first three chapters.

You'll find lists of reputable agents and publishers in several trade oriented books such as Writers and Artist's Yearbook http://www.writersandartists.co.uk/ .

Creating A Successful Book

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What makes a successful book? If publishers knew the answer to that, they would turn out a never-ending string of best-sellers. They don't of course, so there is no real answer, but we do know some of the things that should be in place.

• The plot must have structure and proportion. The story must be in equilibrium. Stories that are in balance are beautiful, when they aren’t, they start to feel ugly.
• A story should never turn into a diatribe of desolation and emotional distress. Readers soon get tired of things like that, they become worn out.
• Readers should associate with characters. You make this connection possible by ensuring events COULD happen in that type of situation.
• The pace of the story should vary. Some scenes should be calmer than others.
• After a chapter containing an important incident, give readers chance to recuperate by writing a more leisurely scene.... Not a dull scene of course, but one with fewer disparities, fewer ups and downs.
• Make your plot congruent with life but LARGER than life.

Give your readers interesting and believable variation and if you're lucky, they’ll give you time.

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The Accidental Best Seller

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RJ Rowlings eat your heart out -  

Lynn Serafinn is a transformation coach, book promotion coach, radio host and bestselling author of the book The Garden of the Soul: lessons from four flowers that unearth the Self, as well as the upcoming book The 7 Graces of Marketing: how to heal humanity and the planet by changing the way we sell. She also works as a campaign manager for mind-body-spirit authors and has produced several #1-selling book campaigns.

In a recent article - http://t.co/OuD1FLO - Lynn Serafinn says, “If your book sales are amongst the Top 100 in any category on Amazon, you are technically a “bestseller.” You don’t have to be in the Top 100 of all books. There are dozens of categories and sub-categories on Amazon, and if you achieve a sales ranking in the Top 100 in any of these, you can say you are a bestseller.”

Yehhhh! According to this criterion, I’m already an Amazon Best-Seller with no less than three of my books hitting the lists - well at least in the UK - and I didn’t even know.

The only problem is no one else knows either… My grocer won't accept it, my car is still a wreck, I'm still broke...

This best-selling stuff isn't what they make it out to be... I think someone is kidding me...

30^th July 2011:

Short Moments: A collection of 10 heartwarming stories:

Amazon Bestsellers Rank

•  #9 in Books > Fiction > Women Writers & Fiction > Short Stories
• #74 in Kindle Store > Books > Fiction > Short Stories

Yesterday: A collection of 10 heartwarming stories:

Amazon Bestsellers Rank:

• #49 in Books > Fiction > Women Writers & Fiction > Short Stories

Just About Write: A masterclass in creative writing:

Amazon Bestsellers Rank

• #11 in Kindle Store > Books > Nonfiction > Reference > Words & Language > Slang & Word Lists
• #33 in Books > Reference > Language > Slang & Jargon
• #36 in Kindle Store > Books > Nonfiction > Reference > Publishing & Books

I wish it meant my coffers overfloweth, but someone forgot to tell the bank manager...

The Amazon category-ranking system is a laugh. Why not leave it at plain old numbers-sold to determine overall ranking for best-seller. Categories mean bog-all. I only sold 6 copies of Just About Write in the UK - how the hell does that make it a best-seller...

Come on Mr Amazon - you're surely taking the p*** or is it people like Lynn Serafinn who shift the goal-posts to make something out of nothing to make it seem like they are good at their job.

Maybe I'm a little too cynical...

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Creating Story Appeal

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AJ, how do I make my book more interesting to readers. I've invited friends to read it, but they went vacant afterwards. I realise they didn't think much of it, even though they made the right 'noises' about it.

Oh dear, Annie. You need to hook your reader’s from the opening paragraph. Look at books by successful authors to see how they achieved it and why you found them interesting. 

Remember, characters are the most important ingredient in any story. Adventure means nothing if you don’t care what happens to characters. You should burrow into each of your protagonists until they become 'real' to you. How can they feel real to others if they aren’t real to you? Develop them so they exist as people in your mind. Know everything about them, all their faults, assets, likes and dislikes, their favourite music, food, films etc.

Unless YOU feel your character's problems are real, no one else will. 

Before you start to write, go over the story in your mind until you're in the correct mood. Feel the emotions you want to generate in the story, be at one with your characters and the problems they're facing. Have empathy.

You must also make sure you have a central problem running throughout the story. It must be a problem that can't be resolved until the very last few pages of the last chapter of the book. Make the problem one that is of paramount importance to the central characters, something that affects them if it cannot be

resolved. Criss-cross this major problem with minor problems that are resolved within a few chapters.

In this way, reader's keep turning those pages to find out what happens to the story people they have come to care about.

Hope you found this useful.... and keep writing. 

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Finding New Writers

Tell Me A Story

How do you find a new writer? Most of us are quite loyal to authors we are familiar with. If you’re anything like me, I tend to devour all their work, and become disappointed when they run out, and I have to seek out a different writer.

I used to find new writers by browsing book stores. It was one of life’s pleasures to glance through pages of random books especially if I discovered a new treasure. However, in the world of ebooks, it isn’t quite the same. There are so many, the choice has become difficult. You can’t browse all of them.

What method do you use? How do you come across new writers? Is it by word of mouth? Does the cover draw you in to read more? Have you ever purchased an ebook because of an advertisement or because something caught your eye on Facebook or Twitter? Do you visit book forums, or find new writers in newsletters? Do you indiscriminately surf online stores?


I hope you share your thoughts, because these are things writers really do need to know.

Your knowledge is important. Please share it.

First Book Giveaway

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Well, that's it then - done and dusted. My first book giveaway for WITHOUT REPROACH has been conducted on Librarything, 40 winners selected, and ebook coupons sent out.

I had a panic when I couldn't see the emails in the 'sent' folder, but it seems they all went. It's something to do with the same wording in the 'subject' line was the problem. Once I put a different subject line wording for each one, they appeared in the 'sent' folder - the bugs are at it again...

I wish Goodreads would allow ebook giveaways as well. It seems a shame that my friends over there weren't included - but for some reason, Goodreads only allows giveaways on deadtree books...

I hope  out of the 40 winners, at least some of them offer a review, preferably on Amazon.

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Book Giveaway on Librarything

Tell Me A Story

This the last chance to enter the Librarything Giveaway of WITHOUT REPROACH. It is drawn later today - http://t.co/IEV7nlk You can still enter a request if you're quick about it.


It's totally unbiased - conducted by Librarything. I send free copies to the winners. There has been a surge of requests, so I have upped the numbers of review copies to 40 - so you REALLY do stand a chance of winning.

It would be great if winners would leave a review, especially on Amazon, but it isn't obligatory.

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12 Important Points For Creating Story Characters

Tell Me a Story

Characters are central to your story and you must get them right or your story will never work.

1. In my early days I received advice from an established writer that stood me in good stead - cut out magazine pictures of people who suit your story and build characters around them. I followed it ever since. I stick mine above my workspace so I never forget who they are and what they look like. Be warned, never tell readers who your characters might look like - use your descriptive powers instead.
2. I spend a fair bit of time developing a complete profile of all the physical qualities, mental traits, mannerisms, education, backgrounds, friends and family, for each of my main characters before I start to write. I know what music they like, what food, what drink, what taste in clothes, what makes them laugh, smile, and cry. My characters become people, before they hit the page.
3. In order for readers to believe in your characters, you must believe in them first. You must know everything about them in order to understand how they will react in a given situation.
4. To capture reader’s attention, it is essential your characters come across as real people.
5. In a novel, ‘real’ is not tantamount to run of the mill. We're all run of the mill. Run of the mill is boring. However, bear in mind the most mundane person can turn out to be exceptional under pressure.
6. Your readers should always empathize with your main characters.
7. You should always empathize with your main characters.
8. Actions and situations influence people. Your characters must develop with the story, and should be different at the end than the beginning; they must have ‘grown’ in some way.
9. You must never allow protagonist to behave out of character just to fit in with the plot. Nothing in your story should feel contrived.
10. You must demonstrate all attributes of your central people by showing not by telling, and this includes aptitude, looks, strengths, intellect, and emotional qualities.
11. Eccentric personalities can help differentiate characters, but keep it low key or it will seem out of place. Remember, Less Is More.
12. Create unforgettable characters, and readers will think it is an unforgettable story.