Have I mentioned lately how much I enjoy Chuck Wendig's take on writing and relating to an audience? Because I really enjoy it. He respects his audience, something that I think a lot of creative types tend to overlook. His 25 Ways To Earn Your Audience this week offered up ways you, as an author, can encourage your audience to be--and continue to be--your audience.
I have had a problem with over-editing in the past. Greta van der Rol posted this week about taking care when you "murder your darlings," something I think all writers should read. New writers are bombarded with so many rules to follow and told to never, ever break them. I think there's danger in becoming a serial killer of your darlings. You could lose your voice and eliminate all beauty from your work.
A Chick Who Reads reviewed Harlequin title Not Just Friends. (Her review makes me want to get the book, but that's not the point of this entry in today's post.) This is an excellent example of the usefulness of reviewing blogs to writers. You see how she mentions not trusting skinny pastry chefs and lamenting the lack of "real" women who are sexy in romance novels? This is useable. And it makes me glad I went through the extra trouble of finding a cover for Cass Gets Her Kicks that featured a woman with a little bit extra in the "wrong" places. Women generally read romance novels to escape their everyday life. Why not give them an extra touch of reality to really pull them in?
For her Tips on Thursday, Girl Who Reads wrote about the sound bite. If you review books at all, absorb the information she's giving. If you summarize your own work, or swap reviews with fellow authors, or just want to make your blog or book a little more accessible, that's a post worth reading.
James Killick favors the "treatment." Don't know what it is? Check out his post. The trouble with treatments, in my experience, is that they can be so much fun you don't get around to writing the actual story. If you do manage to get past them and start the story itself, they're incredibly useful. At least, they are to me. It's nice to have a reference in case I get lost.
One could argue that this post from Seeking the Write Life could just as easily be titled Top Ten Reasons You Need to Learn to Better Self-Edit, but that's just me. While I do agree that editors can be great things, there's really no replacement for learning to self-edit and for learning to actually think about what you're writing down.
Showing posts with label a chick who reads. Show all posts
Showing posts with label a chick who reads. Show all posts
Sunday, May 20, 2012
Sunday, April 22, 2012
Blog Roundup: April 16 - 22, 2012
Chuck Wendig shared 25 Things You Should Know About Transmedia Storytelling. Confession: I frequently have no idea what buzzwords mean. Transmedia looks like a buzzword to me. Guess it's time to get educated beyond Mr. Wendig. (Oh, that hurt to write. Chuck, if you stumble across this, I still love you!)
A Chick Who Reads pondered bookish things (erotica) this week. As an erotica writer, it's nice to find out what readers want--but it also goes to show that erotica is an intensely personal thing. Reading choices in general are an intensely personal thing. (I have a friend who is reading the Fifty Shades trilogy and I kind of want to break up with her over it.) I actually like my erotica a bit crude and dirty, so that's how I try to write it. However, I can't think of any instance in which calling female genitalia a "puss" is acceptable.
Erotic Romance reported on Forever Amber's plagiarism. I just don't understand what would drive someone who considers herself a writer to steal someone else's work.
A Girl Who Reads talked about user engagement in her Tips on Thursday post. User engagement is definitely something I need to work on--though my blog stats show me that a fair number of you make a point to visit regularly, even if you don't comment. Not that I blame you. I'm not a big commenter, either.
Paperback Writer had two great posts this week: one on a virtual storyboard, which is cool because sometimes it really can be immensely useful to work with index cards; and a paranormal romance pop quiz, which (because I am a terrible person) makes me want to write a story containing every single item on that list.
Aimee Salter shared a great post about giving yourself permission. I just love that post. I really do. It's astonishing how easy it is to be strict with yourself, as a writer, and how you can get lost in your own head. Sometimes it really helps to step back and remind yourself that this is a creative venture and it needs to be treated as such.
Stella Deleuze wrote about point of view in her Tip of the Week post. Picking the right point of view is absolutely crucial. Using it effectively doubly so.
A Chick Who Reads pondered bookish things (erotica) this week. As an erotica writer, it's nice to find out what readers want--but it also goes to show that erotica is an intensely personal thing. Reading choices in general are an intensely personal thing. (I have a friend who is reading the Fifty Shades trilogy and I kind of want to break up with her over it.) I actually like my erotica a bit crude and dirty, so that's how I try to write it. However, I can't think of any instance in which calling female genitalia a "puss" is acceptable.
Erotic Romance reported on Forever Amber's plagiarism. I just don't understand what would drive someone who considers herself a writer to steal someone else's work.
A Girl Who Reads talked about user engagement in her Tips on Thursday post. User engagement is definitely something I need to work on--though my blog stats show me that a fair number of you make a point to visit regularly, even if you don't comment. Not that I blame you. I'm not a big commenter, either.
Paperback Writer had two great posts this week: one on a virtual storyboard, which is cool because sometimes it really can be immensely useful to work with index cards; and a paranormal romance pop quiz, which (because I am a terrible person) makes me want to write a story containing every single item on that list.
Aimee Salter shared a great post about giving yourself permission. I just love that post. I really do. It's astonishing how easy it is to be strict with yourself, as a writer, and how you can get lost in your own head. Sometimes it really helps to step back and remind yourself that this is a creative venture and it needs to be treated as such.
Stella Deleuze wrote about point of view in her Tip of the Week post. Picking the right point of view is absolutely crucial. Using it effectively doubly so.
Wednesday, November 16, 2011
Book Reviewing: Blogs, Directory, and Tips
Despite the fact that I follow several book review blogs, I don't include their posts in my blog roundup on Sundays. So I thought that it was time to talk about them. If you're looking for a book reviewer, or you're just looking for some solid book recs, these blogs can help.
Is there a Prettiest Blog award? This one deserves it. She reads romantic fiction (including erotica), YA, and paranormal. The blog has its own rating system (flowers instead of stars) which look just beautiful with the rest of the blog design. Reviews I've read on her blog are short and to the point without sacrificing anything. Several of the books on the first page of reviews alone are now in my to-read pile. She also hosts the occasional guest post.
Paul reads fiction, mostly crime fiction. I like his sense of humor and I like the way he cuts his entries so that we can decide which reviews to read. I even kind of enjoy his political and other off-topic posts, but that's probably because he discusses UK politics and not US politics. Mostly, I check his blog for ideas of books to recommend my husband, who is a fan of James Patterson and John Grisham.
Her reviews are less critique, more personal, and her taste in books seems to be all over the place. I like her weekly video updates. I think it's nice to see something different on a blog, and video on a blog about reading is neat enough to catch my attention. Bonus: she works in a publishing house, so she sometimes offers insight to that end.
I confess that I first started following this blog for the kitschy horror factor. I love zombies and The Nightmare Before Christmas and this blog channels both. She reads and reviews a lot of paranormal/horror-type books, but she also offers book blogging tips. Like this Book Blogging 101 post. (This blogger also pointed me toward this Etsy store. Their Halloween stuff was adorable!)
Book reviews and author interviews with--as far as I can tell--an emphasis on "indie" books. Like Girl Who Reads, there doesn't seem to be focus on any one genre, which is nice for those of us who don't stick to a single genre and who frequently scout recommendations for our loved ones.
Check out the Book Blogger Directory for more book blogs.
If you have a book you would like reviewed, remember these things:
- Always check the blogger's pages/about me/FAQ/submission policy before asking for a review.
- If a blogger only reads/reviews historic crime novels, don't ask for a review on your contemporary romance short story. Find a blogger who reviews in your genre.
- If the blogger agrees to review your work, accept the review, even if you think it's unfavorable. Be graceful and don't embarrass yourself.
- Always say thank you.
Especially that last one. Good manners can take you a long way.
Sunday, October 9, 2011
Blog Roundup: October 3 - 9, 2011
November is National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) and it's kind of a big deal. If you're considering participating, check out the official site and check out Chuck Wendig's blog post on the 25 Things You Should Know.
Greta van der Rol talked some about targeting your audience. I think that if you're planning to publish or share your writing in any way, you really do need to think about your audience.
Amelia James had a nice personal post on why she's happy being self-published. I have to agree with her assertions there. I love the freedom and the total control of my career self-publishing allows.
The A Chick Who Reads blog is so pretty. It's like a bright Tim Burton landscape. She writes pretty good reviews, too. If you're looking for a book review blog, this one is a good place to start.
Cover design was on my mind this week, so I think this post over at Do Some Damage is worth reading. Good cover design is important whether you're working with print books or ebooks or both, but each medium needs something a little bit different. A print book has to grab your attention in the store. An ebook has to look good as a thumbnail. But print book covers need to look good as thumbnails, too, because more people buy their books online.
Diana Cosby wrote a guest post for Isis Rushdan's blog about believing in yourself. Insecurity is a serious affliction for writers so it's a good idea to build up an arsenal against it.
Rik Davnall's post about his marketing strategy actually encouraged me to comment. (Fourteen years of fandom trained me to be terrified of commenting on anything online.) I think any writer pursuing self-publishing needs to come into it with reasonable expectations.
I enjoyed James Killick's "Three Little Words" post. The ideas are the easy part. It's the making the idea big enough to make a story, stringing the words together, and making the whole thing compelling that's tough. (Writing is hard. Why am I doing it again?)
Keystrokes and Word Counts moved.
Rob on Writing featured a post about his $0.99 novel. About the price, really. I was talking to my mother about pricing earlier this week and how I thought $0.99 for my current books was fair, but that I'd probably charge $2.99 for the novel (I'm also planning considerably more promotion and marketing for it). It will still be cheaper than most traditionally published books and it still falls within the "impulse buy" range. My mother remarked that she doesn't feel like she's losing anything if she spends up to $2.99 on a book, even if she doesn't read it. I think most people feel that way.
Sirra has done it again, this time with a post on show vs. tell. Even if you think you've got that particular aspect of writing down, a refresher is never a bad thing.
Greta van der Rol talked some about targeting your audience. I think that if you're planning to publish or share your writing in any way, you really do need to think about your audience.
Amelia James had a nice personal post on why she's happy being self-published. I have to agree with her assertions there. I love the freedom and the total control of my career self-publishing allows.
The A Chick Who Reads blog is so pretty. It's like a bright Tim Burton landscape. She writes pretty good reviews, too. If you're looking for a book review blog, this one is a good place to start.
Cover design was on my mind this week, so I think this post over at Do Some Damage is worth reading. Good cover design is important whether you're working with print books or ebooks or both, but each medium needs something a little bit different. A print book has to grab your attention in the store. An ebook has to look good as a thumbnail. But print book covers need to look good as thumbnails, too, because more people buy their books online.
Diana Cosby wrote a guest post for Isis Rushdan's blog about believing in yourself. Insecurity is a serious affliction for writers so it's a good idea to build up an arsenal against it.
Rik Davnall's post about his marketing strategy actually encouraged me to comment. (Fourteen years of fandom trained me to be terrified of commenting on anything online.) I think any writer pursuing self-publishing needs to come into it with reasonable expectations.
I enjoyed James Killick's "Three Little Words" post. The ideas are the easy part. It's the making the idea big enough to make a story, stringing the words together, and making the whole thing compelling that's tough. (Writing is hard. Why am I doing it again?)
Keystrokes and Word Counts moved.
Rob on Writing featured a post about his $0.99 novel. About the price, really. I was talking to my mother about pricing earlier this week and how I thought $0.99 for my current books was fair, but that I'd probably charge $2.99 for the novel (I'm also planning considerably more promotion and marketing for it). It will still be cheaper than most traditionally published books and it still falls within the "impulse buy" range. My mother remarked that she doesn't feel like she's losing anything if she spends up to $2.99 on a book, even if she doesn't read it. I think most people feel that way.
Sirra has done it again, this time with a post on show vs. tell. Even if you think you've got that particular aspect of writing down, a refresher is never a bad thing.
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