Read What You Write

I'm sure you've heard the age old saying, "You are what you eat." My dad use to love saying it to me when I was eating "nerds". Most of us have heard it, yet we all know that it isn't true. Now if we change it to "You write what you read." It couldn't become more true. That's the reason that so many people - authors, agents, etc. - recommend reading the classics. They say that by reading the classics, you can improve your writing skills. And then 2 pages later they tell you not to write above a 6th grade reading level because that's the society that we live in. We have to write so that we are understood. So which is it? Do we want to mimick the classics, or write for 6th grade? It can't be both. Thus, I don't recommend reading Dickens. My recommendation is to read the books that your target audience reads - or at least books on that level. If you're writing for people who read the classics, then sure read the classics, but if you're writing for people who read modern-day writing, then read modern-day texts by authors who write in modern words (as apposed to modern-day writer's who are mimicking the classics).

Last year I started to go through a book study with some friends of mine. We were reading through Susan Hunt's "The True Woman", and everyone quit before we even got half way through it because they couldn't understand it. They had to read the same paragraph 20 times to figure out what the author was trying to say. We would have all gotten a lot more out of it if she would have just wrote what she meant in the first place... Another book that I reviewed for Tyndale house said that it was the Bible in plain English - yet I had to look up roughly one word on every page to find out what the definition of it was. That's not plain English. Plain English is using common, every-day words that the average reader will understand. My guess is that both of these authors read the classics - frequently. But their audience didn't. That's a problem. If you want your audience to understand you, read the books that they read. I'm not saying that you have to pick up the latest secular book that's full of word porn, but find books that are on the level of your target audience and read those. If you write for teens, go through the teen section at the Library. If you write for children, read children's books. If you write for average adult readers, read average adult books. If you are writing for the Puritans  then by all means, read books written by the Puritans - just keep in mind that there aren't many (if any) left to read what you're writing, but you might be able to sell it to other people who like their books.

To Do Lists

I love to do lists.

They totally work for keeping me productive and on task, however when I have over a dozen things on my list it can get overwhelming. Thus, I have started prioritizing my list by breaking it down into sections. "This Week" "This Month" and "General" are my three categories. I can work on all of the simultaneously, however I can at least make sure I finish my weekly tasks before the week is over, and don't sweat not getting the other ones completely finished.

To break it down even further, I have a daily schedule with set times for each task. Even though my work time is all lumped into one time block, I often (though not daily like I should) use Productivity Coach Software that allows me to keep track of how much time I have to spend on each task to get everything done each day that I need to. It helps me be productive by managing my time well and making sure that I work on everything I need to, but it also helps me realize where my time has gone and exactly how productive I have been.

Here's a picture of my to do list from last week so you can get a better idea of what I mean:

To do lists are probably one of my favorite author tools, and I can't imagine ever being successful without them - because honestly, I've tried and it didn't workout so well for me...

What about you? What is your favorite author tool? Leave a comment and let us know!

What's Your Book About?

While at the Colorado Christian Writer's Conference last month, I took a book marketing course by Rob Eagar. I was in the midst of writing "Book Marketing 101" and I thought it would be beneficial to ensuring it's completion. While I didn't learn anything new in that class, just hearing someone else confirm everything that I had already written was such a blessing. Rob has written his own book, "Sell Your Book Like Wildfire", which released the week after the conference, and while I have not had the chance to read it, just from listening to his lectures I would highly recommend it. Rob is very knowledgeable and a great speaker.

Now that I have officially introduce Mr. Eagar, the following are some of my notes from his workshop at the conference entitled "Book Marketing for the Promotionally Challenged" that relate to answering the question "What's your book about?":

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Everything we buy is based on what is in it for us - we don't buy things unless we believe that we will be getting something out of it. Whether that's enjoyment, education, enrichment, encouragement, or even just the satisfaction of helping someone else out - we only spend money when we get something in return. It's a fact of life. So when marketing our books, it's important to identify what people will get out of it, and to do that, we need to make sure we appeal to their logic as well as their emotions.

~Logic makes people think.
~Emotions make them act. 

Both are essential in getting them to purchase our books. If they don't think they need it, they won't buy it. But even if they know they need it, they won't buy it unless they want it.

Therefore, when describing your book, you want to appeal to both their logic and their emotions. Here's how:

~Fiction: When describing your fiction book, describe what they will feel or experience through your book.
~Nonfiction: For nonfiction, describe what the positive outcome will be, or how it will benefit them. 

The best way to accomplish the above is to find out what your readers want. You can do this through surveys or focus groups. Personally, I have had success just by following my readers on Facebook and/or Twitter and engaging in conversation with them. But I can't imagine how much more successful it would be to sit down in a focus group with them as Rob suggested. It could make the difference between Amazon bestseller and N.Y. bestseller...

The next thing Rob discussed was how to talk about our books. When people ask us what we write about, they aren't asking "What's your book about?" They are asking, "What's in it for me?" The sooner we realize this, the better our marketing endeavors will be. Rob gave three steps to figuring out how to effectively answer that question:

1. What drove you to write the book in the first place?
2. Sample a test audience and ask them what result they experienced.
3. Read the reviews that your book is generating.

The more effectively you can answer people when they ask what your book is about, the more likely they are to turn into "word of mouth warriors." For example - I have never read Rob's book, but I'm willing to recommend it to you because when he described it, he made it sound worth while. 

Here's a personal example of how to answer (and not answer) the question: "What's your book about?" in reference to my "Teen Devotionals... for Girls!"series: 

What I use to say: 

"I write devotions for teen girls." 

Are you dying to go out and buy a copy? No? Hmmm... 

I said this because the people who ask are never teen girls. However, I'm sure they all know at least one, and had I answered the question differently they might have been excited to recommend it. Let's look at a different way to answer the question when thinking of what's in it for them instead of just what I write:

"I write encouraging devotions that help today's teen girls find their true beauty in Christ by applying God's Word to every aspect of their daily lives."

Are you a bit more interested? It was still only one short sentence, but it leaves the listeners with so much more - and that means that they are more likely to remember it and tell others about it. I might just have created a "word of mouth warrior" - someone who tells others about my book, and we all know that people are more likely to purchase a book that someone they know and trust recommends. 

The best way to create a "word of mouth warrior" is to give them something to talk about. Make sure that you involve their senses if possible. If you have a copy of your book on hand, show it to them. If not, try to leave them with a bookmark or flyer about your book. And make sure to repeat the title more than once so they are more likely to remember it. Let them know what your book is about, but also give them a reason as to why someone (even if it's not them) would want to buy it. 

A Book is Born

Publishing books never gets old. The excitement that occurs each time a new one comes out always catches me by surprise (don't ask why). It doesn't seem to matter if it's a book that I've worked on for years or for weeks, it's still exciting to see it go live on Amazon and to read the reviews that people write about it. I got to experience that again last week. My latest book "Book Marketing 101" came out last Friday, and the funniest thing happened. In the introduction, I had written about how publishing a book was like child birth. Because they really are quite similar. Let's look at it together:

An author usually spends quite sometime writing, planning, and developing a book. This is like the time a woman spends pregnant and even trying to conceive. While it might look easy to outsiders, any woman can tell you that pregnancy is work - just like authoring a book. Next comes the tedious labor of giving birth. For women, that can amount to some of the most painful hours of our lives. Likewise, the publishing process for authors is probably one of the most painful parts of being an author. Editing, formatting, re-writing, etc. And then of course when all of that is over, the real work has just begun - whether you are raising a child or marketing a book doesn't matter.

So the funny part? Even knowing all of that, I never even considered the emotional side of things. Author's love their books even before they are born, and it's so thrilling to see others enjoying them as much as we do. And we're proud. Not necessarily sinfully prideful, but we are proud of our books when they do well, just as a mother is proud of her children when they achieve great things. There truly is an emotional bond between an author and their book, that I would never be able to put into words.

Do you remember the first time you held your book in your hands? I still remember opening the package that mine came in. It's an amazing feeling. But once again, just like with child birth, it doesn't matter if it's your first book or your third, each book is special and holding each one for the first time is a beautiful experience.

*My new book "Book Marketing 101" is now available on Amazon.com - Get your copy today!

SEO - in Plain English

I have been trying to learn about search engine optimization (SEO) for longer than I care to admit. However, it seems like all of the mounds of information that I dig up online are always written in some foreign language that I can barely understand and the possiblity of applying it... well, there isn't one.

Until now!

At the Colorado Christian Writer's Conference I attended an amazing workshop with Megan Breedlove who's website in #1 on Google for her keywords, and I finally had SEO explained to me in a way that I understood and feel like I can put into action. So I wanted to take what I have learned and share it with you (after all, my mission is helping other authors!).

Drive 'Em to Your Site: 
(my notes from Megan Breedlove's workshop at CCWC)

The first thing that you need to make sure of is that your site is designed to meet peoples needs - otherwise, they simply won't care what you have to offer and will click away. You have roughly 5 seconds to meet their need before they decide to look elsewhere.

• Men are more likely to stay on a site because of the information provided - so if your target audience is men, you will want to be as informative as possible as quickly as possible.
• Women are more likely to stay on a site because they feel a connection - if your target audience is women, you will want to make sure that you connect with your audience as quickly as possible.

To put this into practice, you will want to identify your target audience and their needs. Then identify how they will want to connect with you - are they looking for an expert or a peer? 

• Expert - someone with superior knowledge that can help them solve their problems or explain something to them.
• Peer - someone who is going through, or has gone through, the same thing/s that they are going through. Someone open, honest, and real.

The Technical Side

There are two important techincal things that you will want to do to optimize your site. 

1. Read Google SEO Guide - This guide won't give away any secrets, but it will give you a firmer grasp of SEO and the basic knowledge you need to get started.
2. Submit Your XML Site Map - I'll blog more on this after I actually do it.

Identify Key Search Terms:

1. If you haven't already, write down who your target audience is. Narrow it down as much as you can, and then make a list of the needs that they have that you will meet. - Please note that they won't be looking to find out what they need, they already know. You just have to identify the needs that they already have.
2. Write down a list of possible search terms that they might use when looking to have those needs met.
3. Use Google's Keyword Tool to identify which terms are searched for the most often, and will be the most effective to optimize your site for. - Keep this list small. You cannot effectively optimize your site for a dozen keywords. Start with one or two.
4. Use Google Analytics to find out where your current traffic is coming from, what search terms have been used to find your site, and to analyse whether the majority of your visitors are unique or returning. This information should help you figure out where you are, give you a better idea of where you want to go, and let you know what you need to change.
5. It's time to start adding in the keywords. You want your keywords to be in your website, page and post titles, subtitles and headings. The web-crawlers - or spiders - love repetition. The more you can use your keywords, the higher they will rank you. Just keep in mind that ultimately you are making this website for people, not robots, so don't get too carried away.

The Skinny on SEO:

When all is said and done, SEO isn't just one thing. Here is a list of things that all work together to optimize your site:

• Whether or not you are meeting the needs of your websites visitors
• Whether or not you continue to meet their needs
• Keywords
• How often your homepage is updated - keep it fresh changing links, content, etc. monthly
• How often your website content is updated - updating content weekly gives you a boost
• Linkbacks - having other people link to your site is the #1 way to raise your Google ranking
• Website contents - be sure to include contact info and an about you section
• Google SEO and XML site map

Do you feel better about SEO? I know I do!



-On a side note: I just finished writing a book about book marketing and I am looking for some people to review it for me. If you're interested let me know, and I'll get you a free PDF copy.

Hacked!

I had the horrible experience last week of having my e-mail hacked. I was rather surprised when I saw an e-mail from myself in another e-mail account that I have. Moreover that I was supposedly in London and begging for money so that I could get home. :( 


These things happen sometimes. But how do you handle that professionally? How do you reassure your clients that their information is safe, when obviously yours wasn't? I have no idea how they hacked my e-mail, I just know that someone did. 


Okay, all that being said, I wanted to have a little fun with this horrid experience. How? Because the hacker had very poor grammar! Here's the message:

Hello,      I'm sorry I didn't inform you about my traveling,I'm writing this with tears in my eyes as i write to you..My family and I came over here to London United Kingdom for a short vacation,Unfortunately my worst fears came true. As we  were headed back to the hotel, we were robbed buy a crazy man with a gun. He took our bags,  wallets, and phones. We have no credit cards or cash. Thankfully, we had left our passports in the  safe at the hotel We've been to the Embassy and the Police here but they're not helping issues at all and our flight leaves in few hours from now but we're having problems settling the hotel bills and the hotel manager won't let us leave until we settle the bills. We just need ($1,500) so we can settle the hotel bills and fly back home..As soon as we get back home, I can repay you. If you can help, send me an email back, we have internet access from the  lobby in the hotel. I'm Sorry to bother you, I just didn't know .how else to contact you quickly. Am freaked out at the moment!! Thanks, Heather Okay, so anyone I correspond with regularly would know that this wasn't written by me. Honestly. #1 I don't even have a passport. There's no way I could be in London! But onto the actual writing of this message... The first thing I noticed was the spacing and punctuation is whack! No spaces after commas, but there are spaces after periods, double periods, random periods, double spaces, no spaces, and capital letters after commas... it makes me wince just reading it! The double use of the word write (and writing) there are so many better ways that I would have worded that! There is no flow there. London United Kingdom: okay, I already mentioned that I don't even have a passport, but who says "London United Kingdom"? Not me. I might say "London" or "The United Kingdom" but never "London United Kingdom" - especially not without a comma... "My worst fears came true": I'm sorry, being mugged is not my worst fear. I'm not saying that I would happily welcome a guy with a gun robbing my family, but I'm not living in fear of it happening. Just sayin'. Buy vs by: really?  P.S. I don't own a credit card, so it would be really hard for someone to steal one from me... Wait! Did I mention that I don't even own a passport?! How could it be in the safe if I don't have one? Um, I don't freak out easily. I have extreme faith in my God to provide. If that ever actually happened, I am confident that I would turn to Him. Finances are one of the things that just never freak me out, no matter how rough it gets, God makes a way. Oh, and I wouldn't contact random people on my e-mail list. I would contact my mom - that's it. :) My advice to this hacker? Get an editor. PLEASE! But wait! There's more! Message #2: Oh no...l know this sounds weird and you wouldn't believe me...Yes, am really stuck out here in the UK and it's so devastating at the moment i really need your help l wish l could cal but l don't have access to phone at the moment , I really need your help to get myself out of this mess. The hotel management has been kind to let have an access to a library to get across to anybody to help me since my luggage's was also taken away.Hope to hear from you soon.....I don't really have much time I'm in a Local Library right now please get ME out of here. This one just makes me laugh. Am I in the hotel lobby, or the public library? Aparently I'm not sure. Maybe the robber stole my brain along with my non-existant credit cards? Okay, but back to the original question. When things like this happen, how do you reassure your client base that everything is okay? I'd love to hear from you!

From the archives: Self-Editing

*This post is a post that I am transferring over from the archives of my old WordPress blog. It was originally posted on Oct. 14th, 2011: 

I am in the process of putting together a writing submission for a website. I believe one of the most important parts of submitting writing, is the editing. While they aren't looking for a polished master piece, self-editing work is extremely important. As an editor, I know that most writers will never catch all of their own mistakes. Because we know what we meant to say, we often read it the way we wanted to write it, and not the way we actually wrote it. Nobody is perfect, everyone does it (sorry if I burst your bubble). So, as I am going through this process, I thought that I would share a bit of what I'm learning.

~The number one thing that I have found is that you should take a break between writing and editing. Whether you wait 5 minutes or 5 days, you need to take a break. Separate yourself from what you have just written. You can write about something else, read a book, run to the grocery store, whatever, just put some space between you and that piece of writing for a bit.

~Run the spell check. Seriously. Before you start exhausting yourself over little details, just run the spell check and get the little stuff out of the way. This is not the end all, but don't skip the simple stuff.

~The next thing, and I believe that this is HUGE, is to read it out loud. You will catch so many more mistakes that way, and ironically, I have thought that my writing needed thrown out before, and read it to my husband to show him just exactly why I needed to start over, and it was actually pretty good. There is something about hearing the words that really helps you to get a feel for what you wrote.

~Print your work. Having the paper in your hand vs. looking at the computer screen can help you look at your writing differently. I always see more mistakes on paper, and I would rather that paper be my rough draft then a final printed copy later on...

~When editing it's important to look at your work from the intended audiences point of view. You didn't write this for yourself (or maybe you did), try to picture yourself as your reader, and decide if what you have written is really something that they will want to read.

~Don't be redundant. Check for words that you might use to frequently. When possible, try not to use the same noun, verb, or adjective twice in the same paragraph. How many times it is acceptable to use it in your document varies with the length of your document. You should be able to tell if you are favoring a word and over using it.

~Be your own spell check. Go back through and look for typos. Check your spelling, grammar, formatting,  details, and other things that are just little mistakes that can make a huge difference.

~Last, but not least, whenever possible ask someone else to read your writing, or listen to you read it. Even a little, unprofessional feedback is better than none. I do recommend doing this last, because you don't want to waste their time. However, if you need to go back through the process, then do so.

What about you? Do you have any self-editing tips?

If you want to read some other great posts about self-editing, check these out:

Three Simple Stages of Self-Editing by Author, Jody Hedlund

Proofreading at Purdue Online Writing Lab

10 Steps for Editing Your Own Writing at Daily Writing Tips

Busting Blocks

Writer's block is something that every writer has faced or will face at one time or another. From something as simple as not knowing what to put as your Facebook status, to more complex issues like what comes next in your novel, writer's block can be busted. I read an amazing book a few weeks back called: "The Freelance Success Book" written by David Taylor. Mr. Taylor suggested that writer's block is usually caused by one of four things, and therefore, can be cured once you figure out the cause. I would like to share those causes and solutions with you now in my own words, and adding a few of the things I have learned during my writing career as well. 


4 Types of Writer's block:

The author is...

Not ready to write- authors simply have no idea's or don't know the form of their writing (where the idea is going/ structure of the piece)

Afraid to Write- caused by humiliation from others, comparing themselves to famous writers, or fear of failure.

Head Writing- instead of writing down ideas, authors simply think stories, or thoughts through, not putting anything down until it is first perfected in the brain.

Starting in the Wrong Place- perfecting the first paragraph (which is the most important) before moving on.

Writer's block busters:

Speed Writing - start writing and don't stop for X amount of time even if you can't think of anything to write write that you can't think of anything to write.

Copy and Rewrite- take a paragraph or section of writing from one of your favorite authors and re-write it in your own words.

Take Notes - go through research, inspirational piece or something related to what you are writing and simply write down the thoughts that come naturally as you read.

Write a Letter - Write to one of your friends or a family member about the piece you are writing. Explain it to them. You don't have to send it, just writing normally about your idea can help you move past your writer's block

Write Dialog- Similar to writing a letter, write down a pretend conversation between you and the person you are writing for about the piece. How would you describe it and what would they ask or give you feed back on?

Invisible Writing - write without looking at what your writing. You can tape a piece of paper over your computer screen, or just adjust the dimmer. This forces you to keep writing without fixing your mistakes.

Write about Writing- describe how you feel about writing, writer's block, or people who have critisized or encouraged your writing.




What are your thoughts on writing, writer's block, and solving the dilemma?

Word of the Week: Proceed vs. Precede

For this week's word of the week, I thought I would focus on two very similar yet entirely different words. Proceed and precede.

Do you ever proceed to get the words proceed and precede confused?

Proceed is when you proceed with a plan. You can proceed to write a book or proceed to climb a tree.Proceed would mean the same thing as 'go ahead' or 'move forward'.

Synonyms would include: 
Carry on, go on, continue, come, move, start, stem, grow, have at, progress, push on...

If you proceed with caution you likewise move forward with caution, start with caution, progress with caution...

Precede is when something comes before something else. The band preceded the horses in the parade. A mans words precede his actions.

Synonyms would include:
Anticipate, usher in, lead, go before, set the pace, pioneer...

To precede something is to go before it, to lead the way, or to blaze the trail.

If you use proceed or precede in your writing, I suggest you proceed with caution to ensure that you use them correctly...

Formatting

Is formatting your absolute favorite part of writing? No? Mine either, however I have I must admit that the more I do it, the less I loath it (okay, it actually doesn't bother me at all anymore). Half the battle with formatting is knowing how to do it, and not just how to do it, but all the short cuts that make it work with as little effort as possible. I personally use Microsoft Office, and while I love this program, it defiantly takes some know-how to get from basic user status to proficient at using it.

I think my number one tip to formatting is to utilize the "Style Gallery". When I first started using Microsoft Word, this tool was so foreign to me. I thought that it was predetermined by Microsoft and we had no say in the matter. Yet, that is just entirely not true! You can update, rename, and/or remove the default settings to match each document that you work on, and then create any other quick styles that you might need or want. This makes formatting changes as simple as one click. When you are using the quick styles, you no longer have to highlight the section that you want to change, then choose your font, size, spacing, and/or text style. All you have to do is highlight the text and click your quick style.

The style gallery is probably my number one formatting friend. Here are a few more helpful tips on the quick style gallery:
Word 2007 Style Tricks
Quick Style Gallery
How to apply a style in Microsoft Word

Note: I use Office 2007, and most of the links provided cover that as well.

Another tool that I am learning to use is the automatic tables of contents which is a beast of it's own burden.

What about you? Do you have a favorite formatting tool that you can share with us? Or any tips on using one?

I.e. and e.g.

While I was working today I learned that people often miss use i.e. and e.g. in their writing. I was actually looking for the correct way to write i.e. (caps vs. no caps, periods vs. no punctuation, etc.), however I ended up learning so much more!

I.e. stands for the Latin words "id est". In English that would translate to "that is" or "in other words", an easy way to remember it's meaning would be to think of it as saying "in effect" or "in essence". You would use this abbreviation if you were modeling what something should be like or what it is; i.e., when you want to clarify something. E.g., She wore a sapphire scarf; i.e., her scarf was blue.

E.g. on the other hand, stands for the Latin words "exempli gratia", or in English "For example". An easy way to remember this abbreviation would be to remember e.g. means "example(s) given". You would use e.g. when you wanted to give one or more examples of something; e.g., My kids like to play board games; e.g., Battleship, Risk, and Chess.

Other tips:
*I.e and e.g. do not need to be put in italics, but they should be separated by periods.
*In the U.S. they should be followed by commas, but in Europe they would consider that double punctuation and the comma should be left off. I know several people that follow them with a colon, but can find no references of that being correct (or incorrect for that matter).
*Most people believe that putting i.e. or e.g. inside of parentheses is redundant, but there are a few who say it is okay. If the abbreviation follows a complete sentence it is better to use a semicolon after the sentence then add the abbreviation and added comment, ending with a period. If the abbreviation is given mid-sentence, you would just separate it by commas.
*Many people believe that you should not use "etc." when using i.e. or e.g. as they both indicate incomplete lists. However, I do not believe this is a solid rule (more of an opinion really); i.e., if you were saying to someone, "Many animals swim in water, to name a few, fish, sharks, turtles, and so on and so forth." you could shorten that to, "Many animals swim in water; i.e., fish, sharks, turtles, etc."
*I.e. and e.g. should be in all lowercase letters, unless they start a new sentence.

This is just the information that I learned today, if anyone has any added information on this topic, I would love some more input!

Happy writing!