Being a writer is like having homework every night for the rest of your life.
~~ Lawrence Kasdan, screenwriter,
Raiders of the Lost Ark, The Empire Strikes Back
Showing posts with label professional writing. Show all posts
Showing posts with label professional writing. Show all posts
Wednesday, June 20, 2007
Friday, May 25, 2007
My Jumble of Thoughts
Who ever said writing was easy? Right now I'm:
1. Reading through the galleys of my second novel in The Chronicles of the Spanish Civil War titled, "A Shadow of Treason."
2. I'm working on a non-fiction project ... writing the teen version of Max Lucado's next book!
3. Working on my third SCW novel, "A Whisper of Freedom."
4. And I have two possibilities to write fiction novels for publishers I've never worked with before, which means I need to come up with writing samples that are (to put it mildly) just plain brilliant so I can knock their socks off!
No wonder it's 1:33 a.m. and I'm having trouble sleeping. My brain is full!
But enough about me. I wanted to talk about some of your comments on the blog.
First, let's talk about self-publishing. My guest writer had some great comments, but I want to point out a few things, too.
1. Sometimes people consider self-publishing after they've received rejection after rejection. The rejections could come because they don't have a broad enough audience for their work. Personal histories or stories with local ties could fall into this category.
But ... sometimes the rejections come because the writing, "just isn't there yet." I'm thankful that years ago I didn't have the drive or the money to self-publish some of the things I wrote. I was a writer-in-training, and though I thought I was wonderful looking back I now see my writing still needed a lot of work.
I've had writer-friends who have self-published and honestly their books weren't bookstore shelf quality. So, now what? They have books they're trying to sell. Who is going to buy them? What bookstores are going to stock them? Why should the bookstores give these books space when there are thousands of new ones every month from publishers who are begging them to stock their stuff? (Just to get you thinking ....)
2. New topic. I've seen from your comments that some of you wonder if it's even worth trying. Should you be writing at all? I mean, there are some many people wanting to write books and the odds seem so slim. My answer?
What is God telling you? It doesn't matter the odds. What is God speaking to your heart?
When I attended my first writer's conference I was 22-years-old and pregnant with my 3rd baby. I had taken some college classes, but I had no degree. (Still don't.) After that, I worked on writing for YEARS with no success. Rejection after rejection after rejection came in the mail.
BUT deep in my heart I knew God called me to this. When I read my Bible He spoke to me. I clung to His promises. He who calls you is faithful, and HE will do it.
Yawn, enough of my rambling for now. I just wanted you to know I am around here, lurking, and thinking.
But ... as a good example to all of you ... I'm also making sure I get my daily writing goals done first. See, I'm only thinking of you :-)
1. Reading through the galleys of my second novel in The Chronicles of the Spanish Civil War titled, "A Shadow of Treason."
2. I'm working on a non-fiction project ... writing the teen version of Max Lucado's next book!
3. Working on my third SCW novel, "A Whisper of Freedom."
4. And I have two possibilities to write fiction novels for publishers I've never worked with before, which means I need to come up with writing samples that are (to put it mildly) just plain brilliant so I can knock their socks off!
No wonder it's 1:33 a.m. and I'm having trouble sleeping. My brain is full!
But enough about me. I wanted to talk about some of your comments on the blog.
First, let's talk about self-publishing. My guest writer had some great comments, but I want to point out a few things, too.
1. Sometimes people consider self-publishing after they've received rejection after rejection. The rejections could come because they don't have a broad enough audience for their work. Personal histories or stories with local ties could fall into this category.
But ... sometimes the rejections come because the writing, "just isn't there yet." I'm thankful that years ago I didn't have the drive or the money to self-publish some of the things I wrote. I was a writer-in-training, and though I thought I was wonderful looking back I now see my writing still needed a lot of work.
I've had writer-friends who have self-published and honestly their books weren't bookstore shelf quality. So, now what? They have books they're trying to sell. Who is going to buy them? What bookstores are going to stock them? Why should the bookstores give these books space when there are thousands of new ones every month from publishers who are begging them to stock their stuff? (Just to get you thinking ....)
2. New topic. I've seen from your comments that some of you wonder if it's even worth trying. Should you be writing at all? I mean, there are some many people wanting to write books and the odds seem so slim. My answer?
What is God telling you? It doesn't matter the odds. What is God speaking to your heart?
When I attended my first writer's conference I was 22-years-old and pregnant with my 3rd baby. I had taken some college classes, but I had no degree. (Still don't.) After that, I worked on writing for YEARS with no success. Rejection after rejection after rejection came in the mail.
BUT deep in my heart I knew God called me to this. When I read my Bible He spoke to me. I clung to His promises. He who calls you is faithful, and HE will do it.
Yawn, enough of my rambling for now. I just wanted you to know I am around here, lurking, and thinking.
But ... as a good example to all of you ... I'm also making sure I get my daily writing goals done first. See, I'm only thinking of you :-)
Tuesday, May 8, 2007
To Answer your question...
Today's question is: How can you get over the feeling that what you are doing just isn't good enough to publish? I tend to get bogged down rewriting the first few chapters until I lose all momentum for my first draft. On my current project, I'm trying to just write the story all the way through without letting myself revise, but I wonder if that is the correct way to go about it.
A few authors answer that question!
Stephanie Higgins: If you ever figure this one out, you can write a book for Writers' Digest and probably never have to work again :-).
An Idea: When you sense this is happening skip ahead to another scene anywhere in the book that you are excited about writing. . .and work on that to refresh yourself mentally.
I don't think there is a "correct" way to write. There is YOUR way and the way that works for you. . . and it sometimes takes a while for a writer to figure this out. And then sometimes what works for one book doesn't work for another and once again, you find a way to make it work. I believe there are as many ways to write a book as there are published writers. We are individuals with different creative gifts and those gifts organize and realize themselves differently. I love Randy Ingermanson's writing, but even thinking about a snowflake makes me want to run screaming the other way.
Sharon Dunn: Great question, been there, done that. The biggest challenge writers face is not learning how to plot or create a character, but learning how to quiet the editor in our head. You know, that voice that says we are not good enough to write a book. Part of the problem is that we as writers have a vision in our head of how we “see” our book. What ends up on the page rarely matches the vision and that is what causes us to think what we wrote isn’t publishable. Most writers have to work toward that vision through rewriting.
First of all, turn off the editor by giving yourself permission to write a less than perfect draft with the understanding that you know you can go back and fix what is not working. My rough draft is a mess. All I am trying to do is get the big scenes in place and because I write mysteries I also have to make sure the clues are in the right place. Once I have scenes in place, I have something to work with. It is not until later drafts that description improves and character motives are clarified and bridge scenes are written. In that early draft, I make notes to myself in bold that says stuff like need more research here, better description, would this character really do that? My favorite thing that I write is, "ick this is not working" or "blah blah blah". I give myself daily page requirements. I only go back and revise if the plot stalls out so badly I can’t move forward.
This method may work with you and it may not. There is no correct way to write a book. All that matters is what the end product looks like. One thing that helped me was I read articles and books about how other writers worked and tried out different things. Adopting some advice and dismissing other things because it didn’t fit my personality. I use a journal where I write about my frustration and fear and brainstorm what needs to happen next. The journal sits beside my lap top. I write long hand rather than journal on the computer something about writing sloppy long hand frees ups creativity.
Take whatever advice I have given and see if it works for you. Throw out what doesn’t work. You’ll figure it out. Happy writing.
Sharon Dunn
www.sharondunnbooks.com
Author of Death of a Garage Sale Newbie
Deb Raney: Well, I’m working on Novel #17 and I still have that feeling with every book Usually after I’ve done the rewrite using my editor’s suggestions I begin to feel like there might be hope, but until the reviews start coming in, I always fear each book is the one that will end my career. My writing style is to write a few pages, go back and edit, write a few more, go back and read from page 1, write some more, etc. leap-frogging my way through the book editing as I go. But I’ve learned there comes a point where I have to quit going back to the very beginning or I’ll never finish. So once you’ve polished five chapters or ten chapters, move on and don’t look back until you’ve polished the next five. Then do a couple of final read-throughs, layering in new things you’ve learned about your characters and strengthening your plot and setting. I think that will keep your momentum going.
Deb Raney
NEW! from Howard Books/Simon & Schuster: REMEMBER TO FORGET
Now updated and expanded: A VOW TO CHERISH (Steeple Hill Books)
The novel that inspired the award-winning film from World Wide Pictures
Visit my Web site at: http://www.deborahraney.com
A few authors answer that question!
Stephanie Higgins: If you ever figure this one out, you can write a book for Writers' Digest and probably never have to work again :-).
An Idea: When you sense this is happening skip ahead to another scene anywhere in the book that you are excited about writing. . .and work on that to refresh yourself mentally.
I don't think there is a "correct" way to write. There is YOUR way and the way that works for you. . . and it sometimes takes a while for a writer to figure this out. And then sometimes what works for one book doesn't work for another and once again, you find a way to make it work. I believe there are as many ways to write a book as there are published writers. We are individuals with different creative gifts and those gifts organize and realize themselves differently. I love Randy Ingermanson's writing, but even thinking about a snowflake makes me want to run screaming the other way.
Sharon Dunn: Great question, been there, done that. The biggest challenge writers face is not learning how to plot or create a character, but learning how to quiet the editor in our head. You know, that voice that says we are not good enough to write a book. Part of the problem is that we as writers have a vision in our head of how we “see” our book. What ends up on the page rarely matches the vision and that is what causes us to think what we wrote isn’t publishable. Most writers have to work toward that vision through rewriting.
First of all, turn off the editor by giving yourself permission to write a less than perfect draft with the understanding that you know you can go back and fix what is not working. My rough draft is a mess. All I am trying to do is get the big scenes in place and because I write mysteries I also have to make sure the clues are in the right place. Once I have scenes in place, I have something to work with. It is not until later drafts that description improves and character motives are clarified and bridge scenes are written. In that early draft, I make notes to myself in bold that says stuff like need more research here, better description, would this character really do that? My favorite thing that I write is, "ick this is not working" or "blah blah blah". I give myself daily page requirements. I only go back and revise if the plot stalls out so badly I can’t move forward.
This method may work with you and it may not. There is no correct way to write a book. All that matters is what the end product looks like. One thing that helped me was I read articles and books about how other writers worked and tried out different things. Adopting some advice and dismissing other things because it didn’t fit my personality. I use a journal where I write about my frustration and fear and brainstorm what needs to happen next. The journal sits beside my lap top. I write long hand rather than journal on the computer something about writing sloppy long hand frees ups creativity.
Take whatever advice I have given and see if it works for you. Throw out what doesn’t work. You’ll figure it out. Happy writing.
Sharon Dunn
www.sharondunnbooks.com
Author of Death of a Garage Sale Newbie
Deb Raney: Well, I’m working on Novel #17 and I still have that feeling with every book Usually after I’ve done the rewrite using my editor’s suggestions I begin to feel like there might be hope, but until the reviews start coming in, I always fear each book is the one that will end my career. My writing style is to write a few pages, go back and edit, write a few more, go back and read from page 1, write some more, etc. leap-frogging my way through the book editing as I go. But I’ve learned there comes a point where I have to quit going back to the very beginning or I’ll never finish. So once you’ve polished five chapters or ten chapters, move on and don’t look back until you’ve polished the next five. Then do a couple of final read-throughs, layering in new things you’ve learned about your characters and strengthening your plot and setting. I think that will keep your momentum going.
Deb Raney
NEW! from Howard Books/Simon & Schuster: REMEMBER TO FORGET
Now updated and expanded: A VOW TO CHERISH (Steeple Hill Books)
The novel that inspired the award-winning film from World Wide Pictures
Visit my Web site at: http://www.deborahraney.com
Thursday, May 3, 2007
Thursday Tip...Your Writing Portfolio
Today's tip is from Mary Ann Diorio.
Artists compile portfolios to display their work when presenting it to an editor. Writers can do the same thing.
What Is a Writing Portfolio?
Most simply put, a writing portfolio is a vehicle for presenting or displaying one's written work. For the professional writer, a portfolio is a marketing tool for presenting writing samples, commonly called clips, to editors or employers.
A portfolio can be as simple as a notebook or a loose-leaf binder with clear plastic page covers for inserting clips. If you prefer something fancier, you can purchase a small, standard artist’s portfolio at a stationery or art supply store.
Whatever you use to display your clips, make sure that it looks professional. The reason for this is that you will be showing your portfolio to editors at writers’ conferences or, perhaps, at their offices. You may also be showing your portfolio to a prospective employer. In either case, you don’t want to carry a shoebox full of unorganized clips. An organized portfolio will say a good deal about you as a writer. Remember: you have only one chance to make a good first impression.
It is important to keep your portfolio up to date. One way to do so is to clip your article, story, or poem as soon as it is published and place it directly into your portfolio. Be sure to write the name of the magazine and the date of publication at the top of the clip. If possible, insert the clip in a plastic page protector. This will prevent the dog-earing and soiling that often result from frequent turning of pages. Using a plastic page protector will also mark you as a professional who respects his work.
For your best articles, I suggest lamination. Because paper, especially newsprint, tends to yellow and tear over the years, laminating your best work can keep it presentable and readable indefinitely. Laminating also allows for frequent handling without damage to your clip. Laminated articles can be hole-punched for direct insertion in your portfolio or slipped into a page protector.
Why Keep a Writing Portfolio?
There are several reasons for having a writing portfolio. Here are some of the most common:
· A writing portfolio serves as a professional way of introducing yourself and your work to editors at writers' conferences. Having a portfolio makes it easier for editors to assess your writing ability. It also demonstrates that you take your writing seriously. Moreover, a portfolio of several clips shows an editor that you are a consistent, working writer.
· A writing portfolio can be presented during a job interview as a visual résumé of your writing skills. It can show your interviewer that you are an effective communicator, a skill that many employers consider a high priority.
· A writing portfolio can serve as a means of publicizing your writing. Writers' conferences often provide a space for displaying one's writing portfolio. Such a practice makes fellow conferees and participating editors aware of your work and may even result in an assignment.
· A writing portfolio provides a single location for the storage of your best clips. No longer will you frantically have to search through files or piles to fulfill an editor's request for a clip. You can simply retrieve one from your portfolio, photocopy it, and send it off. Also, you can carry your writing portfolio with you so that you will always be ready for those serendipitous opportunities that present themselves to those who are prepared.
· A writing portfolio provides a valuable archive that can be passed on to future generations. It can serve as a primary source record of an era and as a presentation of your worldview about that era. In this sense, a writing portfolio provides an original historical document that will influence generations beyond your own.
How to Format Your Writing Portfolio
The first page of your writing portfolio should be your title page. Place your name about one-third of the way down the page, in a large font or in all caps.
Following the title page, include your résumé. If you are presenting your portfolio to an editor, emphasize in your résumé the writing you have done, whether free-lance or job-related. One caveat: Never leave your portfolio with an editor or employer. Instead, photocopy samples of your best writing and attach them to a copy of your résumé. Then leave this packet with an editor or prospective employer.
Your writing portfolio can serve as a major tool in the furtherance of your writing career. Make sure that you assemble it with care and balance. For example, choose writing samples that reflect both your strengths and your versatility as a writer.
In order to have a portfolio, you must have clips. So now that you know what a writing portfolio is, get busy filling it!
_______________________
Copyright 2003 by Mary Ann Diorio, Ph.D.
www.maryanndiorio.com
Mary Ann is an award-winning writer of short stories, articles, and poems. Her published clips include The Saturday Evening Post, Decision, and Human Events. She is currently working on her first novel.
Artists compile portfolios to display their work when presenting it to an editor. Writers can do the same thing.What Is a Writing Portfolio?
Most simply put, a writing portfolio is a vehicle for presenting or displaying one's written work. For the professional writer, a portfolio is a marketing tool for presenting writing samples, commonly called clips, to editors or employers.
A portfolio can be as simple as a notebook or a loose-leaf binder with clear plastic page covers for inserting clips. If you prefer something fancier, you can purchase a small, standard artist’s portfolio at a stationery or art supply store.
Whatever you use to display your clips, make sure that it looks professional. The reason for this is that you will be showing your portfolio to editors at writers’ conferences or, perhaps, at their offices. You may also be showing your portfolio to a prospective employer. In either case, you don’t want to carry a shoebox full of unorganized clips. An organized portfolio will say a good deal about you as a writer. Remember: you have only one chance to make a good first impression.
It is important to keep your portfolio up to date. One way to do so is to clip your article, story, or poem as soon as it is published and place it directly into your portfolio. Be sure to write the name of the magazine and the date of publication at the top of the clip. If possible, insert the clip in a plastic page protector. This will prevent the dog-earing and soiling that often result from frequent turning of pages. Using a plastic page protector will also mark you as a professional who respects his work.
For your best articles, I suggest lamination. Because paper, especially newsprint, tends to yellow and tear over the years, laminating your best work can keep it presentable and readable indefinitely. Laminating also allows for frequent handling without damage to your clip. Laminated articles can be hole-punched for direct insertion in your portfolio or slipped into a page protector.
Why Keep a Writing Portfolio?
There are several reasons for having a writing portfolio. Here are some of the most common:
· A writing portfolio serves as a professional way of introducing yourself and your work to editors at writers' conferences. Having a portfolio makes it easier for editors to assess your writing ability. It also demonstrates that you take your writing seriously. Moreover, a portfolio of several clips shows an editor that you are a consistent, working writer.
· A writing portfolio can be presented during a job interview as a visual résumé of your writing skills. It can show your interviewer that you are an effective communicator, a skill that many employers consider a high priority.
· A writing portfolio can serve as a means of publicizing your writing. Writers' conferences often provide a space for displaying one's writing portfolio. Such a practice makes fellow conferees and participating editors aware of your work and may even result in an assignment.
· A writing portfolio provides a single location for the storage of your best clips. No longer will you frantically have to search through files or piles to fulfill an editor's request for a clip. You can simply retrieve one from your portfolio, photocopy it, and send it off. Also, you can carry your writing portfolio with you so that you will always be ready for those serendipitous opportunities that present themselves to those who are prepared.
· A writing portfolio provides a valuable archive that can be passed on to future generations. It can serve as a primary source record of an era and as a presentation of your worldview about that era. In this sense, a writing portfolio provides an original historical document that will influence generations beyond your own.
How to Format Your Writing Portfolio
The first page of your writing portfolio should be your title page. Place your name about one-third of the way down the page, in a large font or in all caps.
Following the title page, include your résumé. If you are presenting your portfolio to an editor, emphasize in your résumé the writing you have done, whether free-lance or job-related. One caveat: Never leave your portfolio with an editor or employer. Instead, photocopy samples of your best writing and attach them to a copy of your résumé. Then leave this packet with an editor or prospective employer.
Your writing portfolio can serve as a major tool in the furtherance of your writing career. Make sure that you assemble it with care and balance. For example, choose writing samples that reflect both your strengths and your versatility as a writer.
In order to have a portfolio, you must have clips. So now that you know what a writing portfolio is, get busy filling it!
_______________________
Copyright 2003 by Mary Ann Diorio, Ph.D.
www.maryanndiorio.com
Mary Ann is an award-winning writer of short stories, articles, and poems. Her published clips include The Saturday Evening Post, Decision, and Human Events. She is currently working on her first novel.
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