How to Frame a Novel
By: Ginger | Posted on January 31, 2020
Whether you consider yourself a plotter or a pantser, starting a new novel can be daunting. But before you even put pen to paper, it’s a good idea to think about the overall framework of your novel. The building blocks of your book are what give it an air of familiarity to readers of your genre, and making sure you’re meeting expectations is a great place to get started. I was recently having dinner with another writer, and she complained about how difficult she was finding writing her novel because she wasn’t sure how long the chapters should be. It was a comment that took me by surprise – because I have spent years writing chapters however-long-they-turn-out-to-be, with my only length criteria being the advice from Chris Fox that they should be ‘potato chip’ length, so that after one is finished the reader keeps promising themselves “just one more.” However,… Read More >
Why Your Back Matter Matters
By: Ginger | Posted on January 24, 2020
With any luck, the final page of your book has left your reader eager for more. But how do you make sure they find that next fix immediately, before their attention is pulled away to something else? This is why back matter – the material in the final pages of your book – is so important to the organic growth of your writing career. But you can’t, and shouldn’t, drop just anything back there. The trick is including the most effective content needed to achieve your publishing goals without breaking any rules. There’s a long list of things I wish I’d known before I started trying to launch a self-publishing career, so even though I worry that I’m explaining the obvious when I make posts like this, I’m hoping somebody finds value in them – I know I would have, a few years ago. Today, I want to talk about… Read More >
Writing in the Third-Person Perspective: A Guide
By: Ginger | Posted on January 17, 2020
Over the last couple of weeks, we’ve published a couple of articles on first-person perspective in writing – which can be a fun and productive exercise even if you ultimately choose not to pursue that style of writing in your work. But there is more than one way to tell a story, and many authors prefer writing in the third-person perspective. So today, Ginger is giving the details on writing in that style, and some of the common issues to keep in mind while doing so. When I wrote my blog post Defending First-Person POV, I didn’t anticipate the number of people who disagreed with me – and while I might not share their opinion, they all made valid points – and I think it’s a point worth discussing. For a start – don’t listen to me! If you want to write your story in third-person, go right ahead. I… Read More >
Writing in the First Person Perspective – A Guide
By: Ginger | Posted on January 10, 2020
If you read last week’s post advocating for writing in the first person and have never attempted it before, you may be wondering what goes into it and where to start. In fact, a few authors contacted us about that specifically, which inspired us to dig a little bit deeper into the subject. This time, instead of just suggesting you give it a try, Ginger has put together a quick guide on writing in the first person perspective in the most compelling way possible. So, you read my blog post advocating for writing in the first person perspective – and you’ve bitten. But, how does one go about writing from the first person perspective? Especially in the most compelling way possible? Last week, I wrote about the often underappreciated value of writing in the first person perspective. Not everybody agreed with me, with talented author Edita A. Petrick making the… Read More >
Defending First-Person POV
By: Ginger | Posted on January 3, 2020
Many authors are so used to writing from one particular point of view (POV) that they never give any consideration to switching things up. But while there is something to be said for writing in the style you’re most comfortable in, limiting yourself means limiting your ability to tell your story in the most effective way possible – so it’s worth understanding the merits of alternative styles. For example, if you always write stories in third-person POV, then you may not be aware of some of the benefits to writing in first-person. Describing things through your character’s eyes can be an incredibly powerful narrative technique. The more time I’ve spent editing and reviewing other author’s books, the more I’ve come to differentiate the storytelling aspect of a novel, and the writing part of it. The story is what grabs people – hooks them into the lives and fortunes of your… Read More >
5 New Year’s Resolutions for Writers
By: Ginger | Posted on December 27, 2019
Sticking to a plan is essential when you’re an author, especially if it’s not your full time job and you’re finding you need to juggle writing with all sorts of other things in your life. So start 2020 off right by prioritizing what it is that makes you a successful writer, and resolving to actually do those things regularly and consistently! The end of the year is, to most of us, a time of reflection. We see what aspects of our year went well, and which went badly, and a lot of us write a list of ‘new year’s resolutions’ to follow to give the upcoming year a better outcome. For me, 2019 saw a dip in my overall book sales, but a more consistent outcome to the books I published. I had a good period of book sales which was directly attributed to a process I stuck to –… Read More >
Give Your Audience What They Want
By: Ginger | Posted on December 20, 2019
Santa may only bring gifts once a year, but as an author, your job is delivering what your readers want all year round. That’s why it’s important to understand your market and your genre, and meet the expectations of your audience. That doesn’t mean selling out or having to change your actual story, just making sure you’re telling it in the most effective way. And to help make our point, we have a few popular examples of where this has gone wrong, and when it’s been done right. Readers expect something from you – so, successful writers don’t disappoint. The other day, I half-watched The Mandalorian, on Disney+, since my wife was watching it while tidying up. To her annoyance, I kept predicting what would happen next – even down to the specific lines of dialogue – and eventually she switched it off and snapped: “Well, you might make fun… Read More >
5 Tips for Social Media that Sells Books
By: Ginger | Posted on December 13, 2019
The most successful authors I know have one thing in common, they not only spend time on social media, but they do it right. For some, social media comes easy but for others, it’s a grind. There are ways to make it easier, though, and even if you just do a little it’ll be better than doing nothing at all. But you can’t just spam them with links to buy your latest book, there’s more to it than that… There’s a lot of money in social media… apparently. But a lot of authors I speak to don’t seem to be seeing any of it, or don’t know how to leverage their social media platforms to generate engagement and sales. One common refrain is: “I don’t really know what to post” and for that reason, they don’t post anything. Other authors spend time and effort posting links to their books and… Read More >
How to Use Time in Your Stories
By: Ginger | Posted on December 6, 2019
You’ve likely heard someone discussing whether a book had a good or bad flow often enough that you understand how important the concept is to get right – but there are many factors that contribute to it. Stilted writing, repetitive ideas, even word choice can all break the flow of your story, as can grander things like pacing. You want your reader to be able to move easily through your story, be drawn in, follow along, and ultimately arrive satisfied at the end. So while it may seem risky, even counter-intuitive, to write a story that doesn’t flow through time in that same straightforward, linear fashion, when done right it can be a fabulous technique to add to your author toolbox. Books and movies are full of examples of non-linear timelines used to enhance their story, and today we’re going to explain the whys and hows so that you can… Read More >
Are You Getting Your Categories Right?
By: Hidden Gems | Posted on November 29, 2019
Which category your book is listed under can have a massive influence on how well your book sells, so it’s worth making sure you get it right. Understanding how Amazon organizes their virtual bookstore – and more importantly what factors they use to determine what goes where – can help increase your sales by making sure more of the right customers are seeing your book. Before I write any author blogs, I’m always struck with a dilemma: Is what I’m going to write about too obvious? Does everybody know about it? Normally, if I take the plunge and write the blog anyway, it all becomes worthwhile when I receive an email from a reader saying: “Thank you! I never knew that before.” I face a similar dilemma with this blog post – which addresses the topic of categories. Categories are the silo your self-published book falls into in Amazon’s systems… Read More >
