WHY YOU NEED A DISTINCTIVE WRITING VOICE AND 8 WAYS TO FIND IT

Take, for example, Ernest Hemingway’s terse, economical writing style laced with simple direct language. Or Toni Morison’s writing—known for its poetic and lyrical qualities, and praised for its beauty, complexity, and profound insights into the human experience. Or even J.K Rowling’s voice, characterized by its witty, whimsical style and its ability to create richly imagined worlds and characters.

These are just a few examples of the diverse and wonderful writing voices that exist in literature.

The terms "writer's voice" and "writing voice" are often used interchangeably. While "writer's voice" generally refers to the overall persona or identity that the author projects through their writing, “writing voice,” on the other hand, implies more specifically to the author's writing style and technique. Going by the logic that writing voice leads to writer’s voice, let's refer to either term as “writing voice.” 

Why a Distinctive Writing Voice is Important For Authors

For first-time and self-published writers, developing a solid writing voice is crucial for several reasons.

A distinctive voice can capture readers' attention and make them want to keep reading. It helps the writer stand out in a crowded marketplace where there are many other books competing for readers' attention.

When readers identify with the author's voice, they are more likely to become fans and return to read more of their work. A unique voice can also make the reading experience more enjoyable for the reader, helping them to connect with the story and characters in a more meaningful way.

A distinct writing voice can help self-published authors establish a brand that sets them apart from other authors in their genre.

Improving Your Writing Voice

Your writing voice comes naturally from your own experiences, personality, and writing style. The more you write and assess your work, the more acquainted you’d be with your writer’s voice. And given the concept is unique for every writer, there is no one right way to go about improving it- but rather many things put together.

Don't worry too much about finding your writing voice or style; focus on writing passionately and honestly, and your voice will emerge naturally over time. That said, pushing yourself out of your comfort zone and experimenting with different styles, techniques, and genres can be helpful. Trying new things can help you discover unique strengths and weaknesses in your writing and can help you develop your voice in new and unexpected ways.

Here are eight tips to get you closer to finding your writing voice:

1. Stay True to Yourself

Your writing voice is unique to you, so don't try to copy or imitate someone else's style. You may draw inspiration, though. Stay true to your own voice, even if it means going against the norms of your genre or audience.

2. Reflect On Your Experiences and Perspectives

You might draw inspiration from your own life experiences or use your unique perspective to approach familiar topics in a fresh way. Think and self-influence on how your own experiences and perspectives might shape your writing.

3. Write From The Heart

Tap into your emotions and experiences when you write, and try to write with honesty and vulnerability. That said, try out different writing styles, genres, and techniques. This can help you explore your strengths and weaknesses as a writer and discover what feels most natural and authentic to you.

4. Read Plenty

Exposing yourself to different writing styles and genres can help you find inspiration for your own voice. Read a variety of authors and styles, both within and outside of your genre. Observe how authors use language, pacing, structure, and other elements of craft to create a specific voice or tone. Reading can also help you to build your vocabulary and language skills, which are essential for developing a strong writing voice.

5. Practice Makes Perfect

Writing regularly is essential to developing and maintaining your writing voice. Set aside time each day or week to write, even if it's just for a few minutes. The more you write, the more natural and authentic your voice will become.

6. Be Open To Feedback

Feedback from readers, critique partners, or editors can help you refine your writing voice and identify areas for improvement. Find trusted readers, writing groups, or beta readers who can offer constructive criticism and feedback on your work. Consider their feedback seriously, but don’t shy away from trusting your instincts and staying true to your own voice.

7. Edit Carefully

Take the time to edit and revise your work carefully. Ensure that your writing is clear, concise, and true to your own voice. Strive to identify patterns in your writing, refine them as required, play around with tonalities, and cut the fluff wherever possible.

8. Embrace Imperfection

No one's writing is perfect. Embrace the imperfections in your writing, and don't be afraid to take risks or try new things. Over time, you'll find that your voice becomes stronger and more refined.

Finding and refining your writing voice is a process that takes time and practice. Be patient and consistent with yourself, and trust the journey. You will soon develop a writing voice that is unique, authentic, and captivating.

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Content credit: K. Dinkin

Image credit: Shubham Dhage

BUILD CLOSENESS WITH READERS USING A DEEP POINT OF VIEW

Even if your book is about coding computer programs. Anytime you draw readers in deeper, you’ll keep them reading longer and enjoying the book on another level. The emotional level. With a technical book, you want to leave your reader with a better understanding of the topic while enjoying the words as they read. Using deep point of view in memoirs can place the reader in the author’s shoes as they read. This is the closeness that builds bonds with readers.

So what is deep point of view?

It’s a writing technique. And its purpose is to remove the distance between the point of view person in the book and the reader. It makes the story (fiction and non fiction) more personal and immersive. In fiction writing, deep point of view removes the distance between a character and the reader. In non fiction it removes the distance between the narrator and the reader. You can use it well with third person point of view or a more intimate first person point of view. Many people think writing in first person point of view puts you into deep point of view, but this isn’t true.

Deep point of view places the reader inside the character or narrator. Sound strange? It isn’t. And readers love it. Deep point of view will elevate your writing out of the ordinary. The best clarification is that it’s the difference between being told a story and living the story. This is a complex topic with many nuances, but you don’t have to master the entire subject to improve your writing.

Now that you know what deep point of view is, you need to know how to use it. And the best way to understand it is with examples. Some techniques apply more to memoirs than general non fiction. All deep point of view techniques applies to writing fiction.

The following examples show some simple ways to improve your writing through deep point of view. 

Use the correct article.

This is a small one, but it makes a difference. When you are writing about something specific that is already known by the narrator, the correct article to use is “the”. If something not specific is referenced, use the article “a”. At times, this is obvious. You will probably be more concerned with this in a memoir.

An example of this technique is:

• Known and specific to the narrator: She opened the cabinet and pulled out the file.

• Unknown and not specific to the narrator: She opened the cabinet and pulled out a file.

Eliminate words and phrases that act as filters.

These put distance between the narrator and the reader. These are “telling” words and phrases. Memoir authors should pay special attention to these. Watch out for words regarding the senses: saw, heard, felt, smelled, tasted. Using these words incorrectly adds distance.

• Don’t say something like: I saw the cleaning woman dust off the desk.

• Instead, say something like: The cleaning woman dusted off the desk.

Also of interest to memoir authors is the avoidance of words describing emotions. You don’t want to say someone is happy, angry, sad… Instead, show what the person is experiencing.

• Don’t’ say something like: I was happy to see the horse hadn’t broken out of his pasture.

• Instead, say something like: The fence was intact. Tension eased away, and my breathing slowed. I strolled to the gate and unlatched it.

Another group of words to avoid are thought words: thought, wondered, wished, knew, realized, recalled, remembered, decided, considered, noticed, noted.

• Don’t say something like: I wondered if I had enough money in my account.

• Instead, say something like: Hopefully, I had enough money in my account.

Be careful of denoting time with: before, after, immediately, suddenly. These words tell the reader what is happening rather than letting it play out.

Use cause and effect in the correct order.

The reaction cannot come before the action that caused it. This mistake is easier to make than you might believe. But it isn’t how things work in life. This mistake may seem small, but it makes a difference if you want to draw readers in as deeply as possible. These mistakes are easy to miss when it appears that two things are happening simultaneously.

• Don’t say something like: I jumped behind a tree when he turned right.

• Instead, say something like: He turned to the right. I managed to hide behind a bush.

• Don’t use “to phrases” with motivations. “To phrases” don’t show action. They tell why someone did the action.

• Don’t say something like: She went to the bookcase to grab the book and sat at her desk with the tome before her.

• Instead, say something like: She went to the bookcase, grabbed the book, and sat at the desk with the tome before her. 

Eliminating unnecessary words will bring readers closer as well. One of those words is the. Sometimes removing the will lead to confusion. Never confuse your readers. And sometimes, as mentioned above, it refers to something specific. But if you can remove it, do so. Examples:

• Don’t say something like: Her cat hated the wet grass.

• Instead, say something like: Her cat hated wet grass.

Related to unnecessary words is another class of words to remove when possible. While this isn’t classed as deep point of view, it partners well with it. These words have become known as weasel words. In most cases, they should be removed when possible. Some will need to remain for sentence readability, but if you can remove them, do so. Some of these words are: that, very, really, a bit, quite, just, seem, sometimes, then, so, began to, quite, probably, much, began, completely, basically, certainly, totally, rather, kind of, sort of, slightly, almost, merely, nearly, like, even, actually, usually, often, started to, absolutely.

This is a small part of using deep point of view. But these are the parts that can be helpful to non fiction writers. There are many more parts that apply primarily to fiction writing. But using even these limited pieces of deep point of view can elevate writing and give your readers a more immersive experience.

Using deep point of view draws readers into your work. Use it wisely. Are there times when deep point of view might not be the best choice? If your audience suffers from PTSD or other trauma, depending on your topic, this may not be the place to use every technique. While it could be used when expressing empathy, correct articles, action/reaction, etc., digging deep into painful material with deep point of view may not be a good choice. You do not want to subject your readers to emotional pain when reading your book. Keeping the distance could be more beneficial in this situation. Use your best judgment depending on your audience. 

This isn’t the only time deep point of view should be avoided. While showing and not telling is the hallmark of good deep point of view, there are times when telling will be the best option. You wouldn’t want to draw out something that would slow your writing and bore your reader. In that case, a summary is a right choice. Using deep point of view does add to your word count and will slow down the writing. However, if used correctly, it will place readers into the narrator’s shoes. Adding some deep point of view techniques would be valuable for any writer’s craft toolbox.

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Content credit: J. Coy

Image credit: Silje Midtgård

15 STRATEGIES TO HANDLE WRITER'S BLOCK

Take a Break
One of the best ways to overcome writer's block is to step away from your writing project for a while. Give yourself permission to do something else you enjoy. Many authors, including Neil Gaiman, Jhumpa Lahiri, and Hilary Mantel, suggest taking a break in one form or another. It can help you recharge your batteries and return to your writing with a fresh perspective.

Experiment With Your Workspace
Maybe your current writing space does not inspire you anymore. If you usually work from a home office, working out of a cafe might just get the creative juices flowing. Alternatively, experimenting with different lighting and seating arrangements or even scents can help create a change or break the monotony. Many times a change in ambiance is all that may be needed to get you unstuck.

Write Every Day
You may have heard it far too often, but here goes — if you are serious about writing, write daily. Done right, it can do wonders for your writing practice. It is not about compelling yourself to write a certain number of words each day. It is more about consistency — showing up and strengthening your writing muscles. This gets your ideas and words flowing with much more ease and is extremely helpful in keeping writer’s block at bay.

Try a Different Writing Method

If you typically write on a computer, try switching to pen and paper or vice versa. Maybe you prefer typing out your work on a typewriter or a keyboard, but when you are blocked, switching to a voice-to-text tool could help. You can also try dictating your ideas out loud into a voice recorder and transcribe or review them later. Changing your writing method will bring a change of pace, help you break through your writer's block, and stimulate new ideas.

Change Your Approach 

Working on a long-term writing project can feel tedious and impact your creativity. Try changing your approach when that happens. For example, if you've been writing in a linear fashion, try writing out of order or from a different character's perspective.

Read More 

Reading is a source of inspiration for even the greatest writers. But don’t only read books in your preferred genre. Step outside of your comfort zone and go for something new. This can help you gain new insights and ideas for your own writing.

Use Prompts 

Jumpstart your creativity with writing prompts. Many websites and books offer writing prompts. Use those or create your own. For inspiration, check out popular hashtags such as #writingprompts or writing communities on social media.

Connect With Other Writers

Sometimes, advice from someone who’s been in your shoes can be just what you need. You may seek advice from a mentor, or a writer friend, join a writing community, or attend a workshop. Connecting with other writers, knowing you are not alone, and listening to them discuss what ails them or how they deal with their writer’s block can take the edge off an otherwise grueling schedule.

Share Your Woes With a Non-Writer 

There are times when writing may just refuse to happen, no matter how hard you try. Speaking to a friend with no writing background could be just what you need. Bonus points if the person is an avid reader. This way, you can gain some outsider perspective on why you’re stuck. You never know where and how inspiration can strike.

Don't Be Too Hard on Yourself

Writer's block is a common experience, an occupational hazard even. It's okay to take a break or make mistakes. Judging yourself harshly may only make things worse. Perfectionism is often what causes writer’s block, and so does anxiety. Remember to be kind to yourself and enjoy the writing process.

Use Visual Aids 

If you find it difficult to visualize your story or characters, consider using visual aid. Mood boards, mind maps, story cubes, or character sketches can help you come up with new ideas or refurbish existing ones.

Physical Activity 

Many writers, including acclaimed authors like Haruki Murakami and Stephen King, swear by the benefits of physical activity. Exercise releases those feel-good hormones, endorphins, which boost your mood and improves the oxygen supply to your brain.
It is also a much healthier way to take a break, as opposed to watching television. Physical activity doesn’t necessarily have to mean hitting the gym or jogging. It could include dancing, walking in a garden, or any other movement-based activity that allows you to rejuvenate.

Practice Freewriting

Not to be confused with auto writing, freewriting is a powerful tool for a writer. Write whatever comes to mind without any specific goal or topic in mind. Even though it may seem nonsensical initially, you’ll find that it can help you break through any mental blocks and get your writing flowing again. Practice freewriting every day, multiple times a day, or any way you see fit.
There are no rules and no expectations, and therein lies the beauty of this technique.

Change Your Literary Perspective

Sometimes, being too close to your work can lead to writer's block. Taking a step back and looking at it from a different point of view might give you that much-needed push. Do you have an ideal reader in mind? Then try reading your work from that reader’s perspective, and adopt a different approach to the problem.

Celebrate Small Victories

When you are too deeply involved in a project and working hard toward accomplishing your writing goals, you risk getting into a rut. Sooner or later, you’ll likely face the dreaded writer's block, and nothing can be more frustrating and demotivating.

What do you do then?

Find a way to stay motivated by celebrating small victories. Look back at how much you have already achieved. Take pride in the little things, like if you’ve written a paragraph or verse you're really proud of. Or that you show up and write every day, even if it is for 10 minutes. Acknowledge your progress and give yourself credit for your efforts.

Can writer’s block be cured? That is debatable. However, writer’s block is certainly not your greatest enemy; not unless you choose to give up because of it. Use these strategies whenever you find yourself in a fix.

In addition, you’ll find plenty of other resources, online and offline, such as books, writing classes, or a writing coach or mentor, for advice and guidance. Remember to be patient with yourself, stay consistent, and enjoy the writing process.

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Content credit: K. Dinkin

Image credit: Vonecia Carswell

WRITERS NEED TO NETWORK, TOO!

By networking, you increase your chances of success and reach a wider audience. It gets you in the frame of mind of not just being a writer but of getting on the road to referring to yourself as an author. Here’s how:

Building Relationships

Networking provides endless opportunities to build relationships with other writers, published authors, editors, and industry professionals. These professional connections will lead to collaborations, mentorships, learning opportunities, and many opportunities for success and career growth in the future.

Finding Beta Readers and Reviewers

When you connect with others in your industry, you will quickly find the best audience to help you with your book. Networking done right can help you find beta readers and reviewers who can provide valuable feedback before publication and improve your final product.

Marketing and Promotion

What better way to promote your book than by connecting with bloggers, podcasters, and influencers, and engaging in synergistic networking?

Additionally, attending events and conferences will help you meet potential readers, and you can promote your book in person.

Keeping Up With Industry Trends

Through networking, you will learn about fresh marketing strategies, publishing options, and industry news that can help you make informed decisions about your publishing journey.

Networking Avenues for Writers

There are plenty of networking opportunities for writers, and your strategy depends on what you are comfortable with, your niche, and the type of audience you want to pursue.

Here is how to network as a writer:

• Join online writing communities such as forums, Facebook groups, or Twitter chats, where you can meet other writers, ask for advice, and share your experiences.

• Writing groups and organizations focused on publishing are communities that can help unlock resources, advice, and networking opportunities.

• Collaborate with other writers on a project, guest post on each other’s websites, or even promote each other’s works on social media.

• Attend publishing events and conferences to learn about the industry, meet other authors in your niche and out of it, and connect with industry professionals.

• Reach out to book bloggers and reviewers who specialize in your genre or niche—they can help you promote your book and reach new readers.

• Attend writing workshops to build relationships and connect with others in the industry.

• Create a book club or podcast related to your genre or niche. Invite readers and other writers and authors to join, and use this as an opportunity to discuss your work and others in your genre.

• Participate in online writing challenges and connect with fellow writers. Use this opportunity to network and build relationships.

By thinking outside the box and exploring various avenues, you can build relationships and expand your reach in unique and creative ways.

Making the Best of Your Networking Opportunities

The essence of networking is about synergy and building relationships. Approach networking with an earnest intent to provide value. Then, the exposure your work seeks will naturally follow. Go at it with the focus of selling books, and your networking efforts may end up futile, especially in the long run.

Here are some networking tips for authors and writers to help you maximize your networking opportunities. These are some networking basics that you can use.

Be Proactive

Don't wait for opportunities to fall into your lap; seek them out. Don’t hesitate to reach out to other writers, industry professionals, and potential readers to build relationships and expand your network.

Be Prepared

Before attending events or connecting with people, ensure you have your elevator pitch ready and your promotional materials in order. This can accelerate your networking intent and leave a better impression on those you connect with.

Be Genuine

Don't approach others with the sole intention of promoting your work. Focus on making genuine, meaningful connections. Instead of focusing solely on what others can do for you, see how you can also be a giver. Offer to provide feedback on their work, promote their content on social media, or collaborate on a project.

Follow Up

After meeting or connecting with someone, make sure to follow up. Send a personalized email or message thanking them for their time, and continue to engage with them on social media or other platforms.

Stay Organized

Keeping track of your contacts—i.e., their names, contact information, and how you met them—is essential when building and maintaining a network. Use a spreadsheet or a contact management system for the same.

Also, it’s good practice to organize your networking activities, such as attending events or sending follow-up emails, in a calendar or planner.

Engage Regularly

If you haven’t gauged it yet, networking is not a one-time event. It requires ongoing effort and engagement. Check in regularly with your connections, share relevant content, and comment on their social media activities. The goal is to be consistent and authentic in your interactions to build trust and rapport with your contacts, which ultimately translates to the exposure you seek. Call it karma.

Networking Isn’t An Overnight Affair

Networking is an essential component of self-publishing success, and it does not happen overnight. Building and maintaining a network requires ongoing effort, authenticity, and a willingness to contribute selflessly. The key to successful networking is not just about promoting yourself, but also about genuinely connecting with others and providing value to them.

So, take the time to build your network, be genuine and authentic, and focus on providing value to others. With patience and persistence, you can network your way into publication and achieve the success you deserve.

As far as publishing is concerned, networking is both the force and the mover: a cyclical machinery that ferries you forward in your self-publishing journey and career. Reach out to Press 49 to add the essential oils of perpetuity to the machinery.

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Content credit: K. Dinkin

Image credit: Jonathan Borba

HERE’S YOUR STARTING POINT

The first place to start is knowing to whom you are writing. Who is your audience? Knowing your audience will help you write at the proper level of the person you expect to be reading the book.

Next is to set up a schedule, especially if you have a lot of things brewing. Balancing life and work is hard, and throwing in writing a book is not always easy. However, give yourself one or two days a week for an hour or two each scheduled day to do something toward the book. Treat these days just like you would any other appointment, IMPORTANT! Don’t forego writing because your favorite show is on. Don’t make dinner plans or afternoon plans when you are scheduled to write. Writing this book is important to you, so make your writing schedule a priority rather than an option. If you do this, my guess is that you will have the book ready for editing before you know it.

When you are finally sitting down to your first schedule writing time, start by organizing the basic thoughts. How are you going to put it all together? Just like I did here, I started with the audience, then scheduled time, then I wrote. It is what is making sense. Your topic has to make sense to your readers, so start planning out the major sections or chapters. This will not only keep your writing organized but you’ll be also able to see how it flows and if it makes the most sense. There is nothing worse than finishing up a writing session just to realize it is off base of the topic. Organize first, then write the manuscript.

As you write, research as needed. Maybe you know a lot about most of the topic, but there is one or two areas that you have less information about or aren’t as knowledgeable. This is when you research and strengthen your work. Don’t lessen your value by doing shoddy work or devalue the manuscript because key areas are incomplete. Research when you need it, and let your readers know where to find more information. It builds your credibility and expertise at the same time. Look at most non-fiction books. They have references to show where the supporting evidence came from. The ideas are yours; the research just proves you’re right.

Once you’re done writing, editing starts. Do not edit the manuscript yourself. Do not let family or friends edit the manuscript. Hire an editor or ask a colleague that will be honest with you to edit the manuscript.

Why not yourself?  

Because you know what you think you said, and that is what your brain will see. You are less likely to find errors because your brain automatically fixes them.

Why not family and friends? Mainly because, believe it or not, they will be less likely to be honest with you. They will not want to hurt your feelings, and they may give you some feedback. But often, they will tell you it is great even when it isn’t. They aren’t trying to sabotage you. Family and friends do it out of love, but as an author, you can’t afford love—you need polish. Hire a good editor. A good editor is worth their weight in gold, and if you hire an experienced editor, they can give you insight into the manuscript and publishing industry that you may not get from family and friends. Even if you are going to try to get picked up by a big publisher, you need to hire an excellent editor.

If you want to submit to a literary agent and try for the big boys in publishing, go for it. You have to give them the best product you have, which is why you need a wonderful editor. It needs to be nearly perfect. The more publish-ready it is, the more likely your manuscript will be picked up.

Going the literary agent and big publisher route is a long process but don’t give up. Most traditional publishers only pick up books from literary agents so you have to follow the industry standards, do the research, and make your pitch. If you don’t want to wait, self-publish. So many brilliant authors self-publish. You get full creative freedom in your cover and manuscript, and normally, you get all the royalties. You can always try a traditional publisher with your second or third book but get that first book out now.

Breaking down the steps makes this process look a whole lot easier, right? Think you can do it? I know you can.

First step—decide it’s time and do it.

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Content credit: C. Storm

Image credit: Nik

7 SIGNS IT'S TIME TO WRITE YOUR BOOK

You’ve seen others in your circle who wrote and published their books.

You’ve been kicking around the idea.

You wonder if the time is right for you to well … write!

Here are seven signs that it’s time to put pen to paper—or fingertips to keyboard.  If any one resonates with you, then it’s time to write your book.  If more than one resonates, then it was time to write your book ... yesterday.

1.  People already love everything you say and do.

Your social media posts are blowing up!  Your email inbox is blowing up!  Your DMs are blowing up!  You could—not that you would—post a picture of a head of lettuce, and everyone would eat it up. (No pun intended.) Your posts and responses are filled with content that’s fresh, challenging, funny, or no-nonsense truths that others won’t dare utter.  You keep it real, give encouragement, and share innovative thinking.  You have exciting plans, a powerful personal perspective, and motivation that screams “Get up. Get out. Get to it. You can do it!”—you name it!  Your posts consistently garner all kinds of attention, reactions, and responses from your followers, and all the better if you are able to effortlessly crank out material, not having to think twice about what you’re writing. And it's gorgeous!  Your content flows from your heart, and others find it to be down-right irresistible.  

2.  Others have written on your topic, but you see gaps or are simply unimpressed.

You know that your solution is just as good if not better than what’s already in the marketplace.  You find yourself regularly referencing your methodology or your process in conversations.  You read, watch, or listen to others who are in the same space and say to yourself “I can do that. Hell.  I can do better than that!”  You give your opinion on a matter, backing it up with what you have experienced, learned, or created as well as what you have tested and that you know works.  You wish for that one source you can direct people to that you know will unequivocally give the advice and answers that are superior to the content that's already out there.  

3.  You’re tired of seeing people make mistakes.

It is so hard to watch people make missteps that you know are 100% avoidable if they simply put in place what you’ve been practicing, teaching, (even preaching at times!), and coaching others on.  You want to give them a proven plan or take them under your wing to show them what’s possible and how it’s done.  You know if they had your system or your method—if they knew what you know—then they could be a success.  You just know it.   

4.  Your ideas are too big for the current platforms you’re using to get them out.

Blogging is not enough.  A LinkedIn post is not enough.  A Facebook reel is not enough.  A selfie on the ‘Gram is not enough.  Moreover, not everyone who needs your expertise is on your mail list, subscribed to your blog, or sees your content on social media. Plus, there’s only so much you can put in any of those posts, and you have a new idea that comes to you what seems like every few seconds.  Your brilliance is outgrowing the current space you're using to publish it.  It's a big bubble that's just getting bigger and bigger and is about to burst! It needs a new home where all of it is beautifully organized and in one place for easy consumption by all.

5.  You’re damn good at what you do.

You’re always being asked to solve a specific problem.  You are called upon for a certain skillset, and the best part is you consistently crush it!  Simply put, you’re phenomenal at what you do, and what you do helps people.  Your business makes good money at helping people with a specific challenge, and you have become regarded as a thought leader in a niche with industry peers even looking to you as an authority.  The bottom line is you’re exceptional at what you do.  You know it, and others know it.

6.  You’re looking for the next big thing.

You are ready to dominate and stand out from your competition because you already know you are different from others who do the same thing, but you need something that will make it crystal clear that you’re not more of the same.  Plus, there's a “been there, done that” résumé that you're working with; it’s time to go where you’ve never gone before.  Yes, a book is scary and opens you up to scrutiny and judgment; but you’re tough, and you’re ready for it.  Only the best are willing to put themselves out there—to take risks.  And weren’t you told that to be a success, you must do what scares you?  You’ve checked off everything else and mastered them all.  This is your next big thing. Feel the fear and ... you know the rest of the statement ... do it anyway.

7.  You are getting signs from everywhere else that writing your book just makes sense.

You attend events, see others with their own books, and you think to yourself “That could be me.” Or you are constantly told you by family, friends, colleagues, and clients that you should write a book.  You give great advice.  Friends reach out with questions.  You’ve heard the phrase “pick your brain” more times than you care to count.  And if only you had a dollar for every time you’ve heard someone ask you if you have a book.  The signs are all around you.  All that's left to do is to do what makes sense.

For me, the signs came ...

... from people asking me how to give great presentations.  During my time in Corporate America, I was constantly called upon to give presentation skills trainings, webinars, workshops, and advice.  Peers, managers, and even company VPs would ask, and I would oblige.  After exiting Corporate America and launching my own speaking business, I effortlessly blogged on the topic of presentation skills (and still do), finding inspiration in almost any mundanity.

By pulling content from my blog and organizing it into four categories, I created REAL TALK: What Other Experts Won’t Tell You About How to Make Presentations That Sizzle, which won a Best Indie Book Award and is now in its second edition.

A few weeks after the book published, I delivered a presentation at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in Washington, DC at a conference where more something like 14,000 were in attendance and where Oprah was also one of the speakers. 

Once I finished my presentation, several people raced out of the room while several others lined up to chat with me. Then, a few minutes later, several of those attendees who had made dashes for the door returned to the room and said, “Your book’s not in the store.”

“Oh! No-no! That cannot be!” I proclaimed with outrage. “I got off a plane yesterday and went STRAIGHT to the bookstore to ensure it was on the shelf. It’s there!  That. Book. Is. THERE!”

They let me get out me spiel, then they told me “No, Bridgett. The book was there. It’s sold out.”  And they were wondering if I’d packed a few extras that I could sell to them.

*jaw drop* 

That was May of 2019. I still submit proposals to present at that conference and am fortunate to get accepted and met with packed rooms of enthusiastic conference-goers. And because of the success of my sessions and the success of my book’s debut, the conference regularly sells my books at a number of its events and hosts sold-out book signings for me.

Now, when someone asks me how to start a speaking business, how to be dynamic on the stage, or simply how to stand out, I don’t have to search for a great source to point people to.  I invite them to get a copy of my Own the Microphone, Real Talk, or Show Up and Show Out. (Or if I happen to have a copy on me, I autograph it and give it to them.)

Your takeaway? Get to writing. Your readers are waiting for your book. What are you waiting for?

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Ready to publish? CLICK HERE to schedule your complimentary, no-obligation consultation today!

Content credit: B. McGowen-Hawkins

Image credit: Alexas_Fotos

NEW YEAR'S RESOLUTION: I'M GONNA WRITE A BOOK!

We are told that we have to change ourselves to have a better year. We go into it full force, no holding back. We jump into the deep end instead of making plans or taking smaller steps. This sets us up for this supposed failure.

This doesn’t mean you shouldn’t set a New Year’s resolution. It means that you have to be smart about it.

Put the project or activity into perspective and have a plan. The plan will also alleviate the lack of time. Will you still be afraid and doubt? Probably, but having a plan makes it easier to proceed.

So, what does this have to do with writing a book. Everything! These last several years have made many people think about taking a leap and writing a book. Some people have been thinking about it even longer. The new year is a great time to write a book, but don’t jump into it feet first expecting to write every day and make major progress every week.

The success of writing a book for most authors (new or seasoned) is making a plan. The plan includes answering some questions, making outlines, creating writing schedule, and setting a due date that is reasonable for you and your life.

1. Writing Schedule. This is the first thing you need to do. You need to carve out specific days and times you will work on your book. Maybe it is every Tuesday and Thursday from 7:00 pm to 10:00 pm. Maybe it is Saturday mornings from 6:00 am to 12:00 pm. Make this a reasonable schedule that does not interfere with your normal life—kid’s athletics or events, social events, relaxation, etc.—it should be a part of your schedule but not a replacement for other activities.

2. Questions. This is the task you will complete on your first day of your writing schedule. Before you do anything else, think about who will read your book. You don’t want to write a book for executives that sounds like a child's fairy tale. You have to write for your audience. You also have to know if it is a “how-to” book, an anthology, or a technical manual. No matter what, the topic should be something that you have experience.

3. Outlines. You can do this the first day or next or maybe next several writing days. The outline is pretty important for any book. Yes, it is just a plan of how you want to organize your book but it can cut hours off your actual writing time. It can be a one-page sketch of a sentence or two for each chapter, or it can be a 40-page detailed outline that gives all the references, quotes and everything. It is up to you and what works for you.  

4. Due Date. This is the last thing you do before writing. I call it a due date because the goal is to be finished the manuscript—not the editing or other parts of publishing—by this date. Some fear the due date, but this one is not set in stone. Some days you will be on task and writing up a fury of words. Other days you may get a bare minimum or less out. However, a due date helps you keep to your schedule and keeps you motivated.

These four tasks can help you navigate the “New Year, I’m gonna write a book” resolution. You will not only finish writing the book but will be on your way to publishing it possibly in 2023.  

While many New Year’s resolutions are never finished and some are barely ever started, knowing that you want to write a book and creating a plan to do it will help you fulfill your dream of being an author and fulfill a resolution that may feel impossible.

Good luck, and happy writing!

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Ready to publish? CLICK HERE to schedule your complimentary, no-obligation consultation today!

Content credit: C. Storm

Image credit: BoliviaInteligente

GET YOUR BOOK DONE IN 30 MINUTES

Every year you put it off until you….

• Have time

• Have extra money

• Research the topic more

• Get more confidence in yourself

• The United States wins the World Cup

• And so on – the list can go on forever.

Whatever is holding you back is not helping you. It is literally holding you back from reaching your goals and fulfilling your dreams.

Would you let someone do that to you? Would you let a friend, parent, or spouse, hold you back?

Of course not.

You’re doing it to yourself.

You read that right.

We do to ourselves something we would never let someone else do to us. We hold ourselves back. So, break the cycle of holding yourself back. Get ready to write your book in 2023.

It is really not that hard and doesn’t take up much of your time. Let’s talk about how you can take you lunch break or 30 minutes of time instead of watching a TV show to set yourself to be a published author in 2023.

You have 30 days to do it, so let’s get started.

1.     Decide on the topic you are going to write about. If you are like most people who want to write a book, you have several ideas. Some may be fiction; some may be nonfiction. The best one to start with is the one you know the most about – in either genre.

2.     Decide this month what your writing schedule will look like starting the week of January 15, 2023. Don’t rush this. Get through all the awesome holidays of December and the beginning of January. Most of us use an electronic calendar that we can see on our computers, phones, pads, and watches. Use one of your 30--minute stints and set up a recurring day and time or days and time to write each week through 2023 until you finish your book. Have the dates automatically set for the whole year. If you finish before the end of the year, it’s easy to delete the remaining ones. Of course, you can keep them and just start writing your next book.

3.     Look at the publishing options. You definitely want to go with an eBook, but do you want a print option too? What about types of publishing: traditional, hybrid, vanity, or self-publish? All are valid and all can give you a best-seller.

4.     Once you have all this, if you really want to, you can start outlining and organizing the chapters of your book. Then organizing the content of each chapter.

These 4 things can be done in a 30-minute lunch or instead of watching a 30-minute television show over several days. It doesn’t take much time at all, and then on January 15 or whatever day you choose for that week, you start your new endeavor—becoming a published author.

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Ready to publish? CLICK HERE to schedule your complimentary, no-obligation consultation today!

Content credit: C. Storm

Image credit: Kelly Sikkema

WILL YOU BE A NANOWRIMO WINNER!

To win NaNoWriMo in November, you have to write at least 50,000 words between November 1st and November 30th. Yes, you read that right. There is not an extra zero. It is 50K words in one month.

That is an average of 1,667 words a day during the month of November.

A great reason to try to reach that goal is you can win some great prizes and get discounts on writing aids such as scrivener, babble, and lots of other software and apps that help you write faster and better, saving you time and in the end making you money.

In addition, you can meet other great authors and learn from those who write for a living. There are live and virtual events to help keep you motivated and writing throughout the month. Whether you just keep track of your state group or if you find a local group to work with, the motivating factors abound during the month of November.

But the best thing you can do is brag and say you won NaNoWriMo because you wrote 50,000 words in one month, which brings you that much closer to publishing your book.

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Ready to publish? CLICK HERE to schedule your consultation today!

Content credit: C. Storm

Image credit: Giorgio Trovato

SHOULD YOU WORK WITH A GHOSTWRITER?

A book coach can be very helpful in guiding an author through the planning and development of a book, but the author will still write the words themselves and likely manage several other pieces of the project on the whole. In contrast, if an author hires a ghostwriter, there are a number of benefits to the author which we explore here. 

Holistic Partnership & Guidance 

Working with a ghostwriter is working with a dedicated and collaborative creative and business partner. They are bringing their writing expertise and understanding of story/book development to the project. This is their creative expertise. Because they are familiar with a book’s lifecycle (or development stages), the publishing process, and in some instances, book marketing, they can also look at your book project through a business lens. 

This combination of creative and business acumen makes a ghostwriter a holistic—and invaluable—partner for the author. They are able to see the book from a variety of perspectives and comprehensively guide their client through the various stages of book development.  

Logistical Facilitation: Project & Process Management 

Not only will an experienced ghostwriter lend their deep understanding of a book’s development and publishing phases, they’ll command both project and process management to ensure the book is brought through planning to completion. The ghostwriter will identify the way they work (process management) and establish the respective tasks and milestones required to write the book by a set deadline (project management). 

Given they are serving as the project lead, the ghostwriter will communicate what they need from the author according to the process and project management. In short, the author has little administrative responsibility to facilitate the project or dictate next steps. The author can rely on the ghostwriter to manage these pieces and communicate with them when it’s time to weigh-in, review, and/or provide feedback. 

Writing a Great Book: Story & Manuscript Development 

Many people have wonderful ideas for a book or are avid readers and aware of what makes a good book, or at least know one when they read one. Not everyone, however, knows how to write a book, tell a great story, and/or organize their ideas. And not everyone has the time or energy they want to spend actually figuring out how to do those things. They want to author the idea, the story, the concept, etc. but they don’t want to write the words or don’t feel they’re skilled enough to do so well and do the book the justice it deserves. 

A ghostwriter can support and guide the author in the story development or book outline and planning to ensure that the book holds together. They can ensure that their is cohesion and a solid organization of ideas and concepts with nonfiction genres or keep a watchful eye on story arc development with creative nonfiction (such as memoir) or fiction genres. 

Then, with a well developed outline in place, the ghostwriter can move to drafting the manuscript. Using their writing skills–command of language, word choice, syntax, sentence structure, sensory details, dialogue, etc.–they’ll actually put words to the page, making the outline live and breathe until it becomes a full draft of the book. The author won’t write a word, but they’ll have a well-developed book. 

These Benefits Equate to Time & Energy Savings 

All these aforementioned benefits equate to a huge time and energy savings for the author. Yes, the author will spend their time in interviews or reviewing pages of the manuscript and offering feedback. Yet in comparison to the number of hours the ghostwriter will spend combing through interviews to capture key details and information; creating a book brief or outline; drafting the manuscript; and then revising the manuscript (an unpredictable number of times) until it’s considered finished, the author’s contribution in time is minimal. 

Additionally, since the ghostwriter is controlling the logistics (process and project management), the planning, and the development (multiple drafts and revisions), the author is also saving a lot of energy they would have otherwise spent managing all of these pieces themselves. In many ways, while the author is a collaborator once work begins, there’s a good majority that falls in the purview of the ghostwriter’s roles and responsibilities. This leaves the author to be a far more passive participant than if they were writing the book themselves.  

Ready to publish? CLICK HERE to schedule your consultation today!

Content credit: Ally Berthiaume, ghostwriter, writing guide, and girlfriend at The Write Place, Right Time and author of Dear Universe I Get it Now: Letters on the Art and Journey of Being Brave and Being Me

Image credit: Kelly Sikkema

WRITER’S BLOCK IS A REAL THING!

It is all about visualization.

I know many of you are thinking something to the effect of “visualization is meditation” or “visualization is just mumbo jumbo.” But, some of you are thinking, “tell me more” because when it comes to getting over writer’s block, you are willing to try anything.

So let’s look at my four foot-tall, seven-foot wide, three-foot deep cinderblock wall again. Sometimes when writer’s block plummets between me and my computer keyboard, I’ll visualize it as a wall of megalithic bricks. I think about what this wall is made of. Yes, megalithic bricks, but what do they symbolize? For each megalithic brick, I visualize writing one task or reason for the blockage on each brick.

For example, one may be that you’re hungry and trying to work instead of eating. One may be guilt for worrying about a deadline to the point of pushing my partner, children, friends away. One may be that you haven’t responded to an email from a colleague, editor, or some other person in my work or personal life. One could even be that you haven’t paid my WiFi bill.

We all have these and other everyday events that can build up and create a wall. When we are worried about them, then it is hard to write. Our minds keep going back to that wall, and that in and of itself can make the wall wider, taller, and deeper than before.

This time I’m going to say the answer is simple because it is, but—and this is a big BUT—it is not simple to do. In fact, I can guess that most of you know what to do, BUT doing it is the hard part. We want to work, not worry, but we worry so we can’t work. We don’t want to stop working to fix the worrying because sometimes what we are worrying about is not something that is easily remedied. Yet, I’m still going to say removing or lessening this wall is easy in concept but hard to accomplish in reality.

So how do we do this? How do we remove those bricks or at least make the smaller?

You are going to chip away one block at a time.

For example, if you have the bill to pay, tell yourself that as soon as you pay this bill, you are allowed to write for two hours or 20 pages. Something like that. Do a task that is worrying, then give yourself a reward of writing.

It sounds too easy, and it may be harder the first time you try it. I’ll be honest about that. But the more you do it, the easier it becomes.

If the brick is megalithic, like guilt over sitting here looking at a blank screen for three days instead of spending time with your family or friends, stop looking at the screen. Contact your friends and make plans. If it is your family, tell them you all are going out for dinner or a movie tonight. Make plans to spend time with them. This will lessen the guilt and you may get a few pages out of it.

Even if you don’t get as much done on your manuscript, article, or web content, it really doesn’t matter. Getting started helps. Then tomorrow, you pick another brick, complete whatever task that brick has written on it, and write even more.

Using this type of visualization doesn’t mean you will never have writer’s block again because I guarantee you will. We all slip, especially when deadlines are looming. We can ignore a bill or task that needs to be completed for just a few more pages or a few more hours of writing. But remember these worries and ignored tasks are building this wall that we are calling writer’s block.

Just do the tasks and watch how much easier it is to write.

In all honesty, with all the authors I’ve worked with, guilt or procrastination has been the biggest issue when it comes to writer’s block. That is not saying this is the only reason for writer’s block, but it is one of the most prevalent. Creativity is another, but that will be discussed next month.

Ready to publish? CLICK HERE to schedule your consultation today!

Content credit: C. Storm

Image credit: Kenny Eliason

TELL THE WORLD YOUR STORY

You have life experiences that only you have lived the way you have lived them.  There were funny moments as a child, unbelievable (or even wild and crazy!) moments as a young adult, and exciting or possibly scary ones as a professional trying to find your way.

And the truth is every story deserves a life, deserves a moment in the spotlight, deserves to be published. And I mean every story!

So, what’s holding you back?

Are you worried there is no lesson to be learned from your story?  Think again.  If you pause for a moment, each of your stories taught you something; I’m sure of it. Are you still trying to tell me you’re not a storyteller?

Well, have you ever used examples that you made up—even if they were loosely based on an actual event—during a presentation? That’s a story in the making.

Have you ever been asked to tell a story at a campfire or to a child as they were falling asleep?  Then you have a story that is waiting to get out.

What about a client success story?  Read that one again.  Yes.  It’s a ... story!

And did you know that J. R. R. Tolkien only wrote down the Lord of the Rings stories to keep them straight when he messed up during story time one night while putting his son to bed?

That’s right. All the Lord of the Rings stories were bedtime stories Tolkien told his son.

Maybe you are really great at telling a story orally, but when you sit at a computer, the story shrivels up and dies. This happens more than you know.

If this is the case, then you have two options. The first option is to use speech to text software, which is part of many computer operating systems now. The second is to hire a ghostwriter or a writing coach. You could orally narrate the story to a recording, and the ghostwriter takes your oral story and writes the version to be published.  Or you can do the writing yourself but work with a coach who helps your story shine.

A good ghostwriter or coach will make your story better in terms of filling in gaps and editing it. However, they won’t change it to be their story; they will only enhance what you told them or what you’ve written. Another thing they will do is give you the reasons why they changed something or, in the instance of a coach, why you should change something. A ghostwriter will keep working on the content until you are satisfied with it. They don’t just write something and end the contract. They work with you in a type of partnership until you get the story you want. The same goes for a coach.

If you don’t have a problem sitting at a computer writing a story, if you used speech to text software, if you worked with a writing coach, or if you worked with a ghostwriter, then it’s time to move on to the editing. Even people who have hired a ghostwriter or a coach should hire an editor. You may not need a developmental editor, but editing is important no matter what.

Next, it’s time for the work of a line editor or copy editor. They do the line-by-line edit and make changes that help engage the reader and keep the cohesion of each chapter.

Once these edits are done and corrected, the proofreader gives the manuscript a once over for any typos and minor errors that can be distracting to the reader.

Are you thinking “All of this just to publish a story?!” For the most part, yes. However, some of the steps can be avoided in some circumstances. But in essence, getting the story on a piece of paper or computer screen is the hardest part. The rest is just polishing it up so people will want to read it.

Don’t want to do all of that yourself?  Then, it’s time to talk to our team.  We take care of everything, and all you have to do is sit back and marvel at the fact you did the thing!

Now I’ll ask. Are you ready to get that story out of your head and on to paper or a computer screen? Are you a storyteller?

You still may not think you are, but my guess is that you are really thinking about it now because deep down, you know you have a story.

Ready to publish? CLICK HERE to schedule your consultation today!

Content credit: C. Storm

Image credit: Social.Cut

ARE YOU LEAVING MONEY ON THE TABLE?

Most coaches, consultants, and professional speakers love what they do—or they wouldn’t do it. They love what they do because they help people solve problems and often teach them to achieve more in life.

However, there are only so many hours in a day. This means that while most of them wish they could help more people, they can’t without burning themselves out … or can they?

Sometimes, these coaches and consultants start offering group sessions and become professional speakers. Sometimes all these professionals decide that creating courses to spread their ideas is the best option. There is an avenue that many haven’t breached for a variety of reasons, but it is not only a viable and strong option but is also a source of income in the long term … and many coaches, consultants, and professional speakers do not even consider it!

If they are working with clients one-on-one or in groups, speak at conferences, and have online courses and webinars, what avenue are they missing? How can they reach more people and create another income stream?

They are missing the avenue that can be scary and may even be scarier than speaking to a crowd to some people. It is an avenue that is also a great marketing tool and can be extremely profitable.

Still not sure what it is?

These professionals haven’t published their books!

This is one of the best ways to reach potential clients and get in front of people who haven’t heard about you or your ideas!

Publishing a book keeps your ideas flowing to those who have worked with you directly, taken your online course, or heard you speak and want more!

Publishing a book can open up a whole new world of possibilities.

If you are just starting as a coach or consultant or if you haven’t had many speaking engagements, you need to build a client base.

Maybe you have been in business a while, and right now, you have enough clients and speaking engagements are being scheduled; but you want to expand your client base.

Perhaps you have enough clients and even have a waitlist of people who want to work with you, but you want to reach more people!

If any of these situations resonate with you, then why haven’t you written and published a book?

Some common excuses are “I don’t have the time” and “I wouldn’t know where to start.” There are others, but you get the idea.

Yes, publishing does take time, and there is a process to writing and publishing a book; but let’s go back to the scary part for just a moment.

First, publishing a book is scary. Whether you know about the publishing business or not, putting your work out to the world can be scary. What if no one buys it? What if it is a flop? What if the writing is no good? What if? What if? What if?

If you listen to the “what if’s,” though, would you have picked your current career? Probably not. Maybe you didn’t have any “what if” moments when you decided on your current path. Either way, you took a risk, and you are now doing something you love.

Yes, publishing a book can scary, but it can also be exciting. Think of it as just another risk you are taking to enhance your career and grow your business.

There is no better way to share your knowledge and ideas with potential clients—which could be anyone in the general population—than publishing a book!

Let’s get back to those other excuses. Those who say they don’t have time or don’t know where to start need to think about and answer this question: How hard would it be to take that course, presentation, your coaching plan you use with individual clients and change it into a book?

Did you just have an ah-ha moment?

Well, you should have because you already have the basis of the book within your grasp. All you need to do is rework the content into a book. The best part is that book coaches and publishers will help you move that course, business or coaching plan, or presentation into a book format.

If you really don’t have time or worry about your writing skills, you can work with a writing coach or a ghostwriter. He/she will take your information and turn it into a book. Many publishers work with ghostwriters, so you wouldn’t even need to worry about finding the right one. 

I trust you can see that publishing your book is within your reach. So now, what is the excuse?

Every day you wait on writing and publishing your book, you are leaving money on the table quite literally. You could have this book in the hands of potential clients in less time than you imagine, and you could be building your client base and reaching more people. This is why you expanded to group sessions, created that course, or started scheduling speaking engagements at conventions and workshops.

Not to mention you will continue to receive money every time someone purchases the book and get new clients or speaking engagements from it. That’s limitless marketing for you!

Publishing your book is the next logical step.

Even if you’re not sold on the idea of publishing a book, it can’t hurt to consider it. Talk to people you trust and ask them what they think about the idea. Ask your current clients what benefits you have provided to them to give you an idea about the content of the book. Your trusted colleagues, family, and clients will love the idea.

Take a minute and think about how publishing your book could change your life. Are you ready to take that next step? Then do it! Publish!  Your!  Book!

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Ready to publish? CLICK HERE to schedule your consultation today!

Content credit: C. Storm

Image credit: Andre Taissin

YOU HAVE A COURSE ... NOW MAKE IT A BOOK!

If you have been online for a while, maybe your course has stalled with new enrollments, and you want to give it a new and improved, updated look. Now is the time to not only update the course but to also use the course content to write a book based on the course. Yes, you read that correctly. You have the content. It’s time to use it for maximum impact.

But so many online teachers forget (or don’t even think about the fact) they have the ability to sell the content in book form. And for every month you don’t think about it and take action, you essentially lose money.

Update the course, and at the same time, modify each unit of the course so it can be used as a chapter in a book. And here’s the cool part: when you re-release your course, you can offer a discount code in the course to purchase the book. Once the book is published, you can offer a discount code in the back of the book for the course. Did you see that? The thing is you will have so people whose first inclination is to read a book before they will purchase a course and yet others who will purchase a course before they will consider purchasing a book. When you offer both, you cast a wider net. Have the re-release date of the course and the release date of the book on the same day. That way, you can promote both in your marketing efforts and get more bang for your advertising buck.

So, that seems pretty easy, right? But why would someone who just released a course immediately change it just because they want to write a book?

The truth is you don’t have to.

Just take the content from the course and reformat it, updating language and making it more cohesive for readers, then turn it into a book. You can add a quick snippet at the end of the course to tell the students about the book once it is released, but it is not that important yet. Focus mainly on getting the book published, then you can add info about the book to the course description. 

If you ever go in and change the content of the course, you’ll want to update the book too, but when just starting out, it is not that big of an issue. Just put the information for the course in the back of the book.

The important factor in either scenario is the marketing aspect. When you have more than one platform for your information, you will reach more people in your specific audience. We touched on this earlier … let’s explore it more.

For example, some people want to read the book, highlight passages, and take notes in margins. That is how they learn.

However, some people like to hear lectures and see visuals of a course. They may take notes on paper or a different device, but they want and need the auditory and visuals to learn.

Then, you will have the people who want to hear and see everything in the course but who also want to read the book when they are away from the computer or to enhance their understanding more. They enjoy and want the best of both worlds and will pay for both.

The fact is that having an online class is only a part of making money from your expertise. Having the book to go along with the course can help add revenue to your monthly baseline and let you reach more people in your audience.

Now, how do you turn the course content into a book?

There are many ways to do this, but here is a quick look at how to do this.

1.    Move the content to a transcribed file. You likely have notes you worked from or maybe a transcript that you provide on the teaching platform. This is the basis of your book, so get it into a Word or Google Doc format.

2.    Change each unit from “unit” to “chapter.”

3.    Add any tables or graphs in the chapters—just pull them from the course.

4.    Now read each chapter and rework it from a speaking presentation to a reading presentation.

a.    Remember that you have visuals and emotion in your voice when giving an oral presentation. You do not have this in written words.

b.    Remove all jokes/sarcasm and such. Be very detailed without being obnoxiously detailed. Find a happy medium.

5.    Have people you trust to tell you the truth about gaps in the information or have the content go through a developmental editing process.

a.    The developmental edit will help you find the areas that need more detail. (Don’t underestimate the value and importance of editing. If you need developmental editing, reach out to BMcTALKS Press. We can get you squared away.)

b.    Remember, you know this content better than a lot of your readers, so you may assume they know something they don’t. The developmental edit helps you find these areas and fix them so you get excellent reviews.

6.    Revise and have the manuscript edited professionally and then professionally proofread. (Again, if you work with BMcTALKS Press, we take care of editing and proofreading for you.)

7.    Now you are ready to either query agents or self-publish, or work with a publishing company to get your book out on the market.

Never query an agent with a draft manuscript. You won’t get far. Always provide them a copy of the manuscript that you would self-publish with pride. This is how you get an agent, but more about that in another blog.

Now, set up your writing schedule. Give yourself time every week to work on this until you are done, and the manuscript is ready. Then open the new revenue outlet so you can start working on the next class and book combo.

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Ready to publish? CLICK HERE to schedule your consultation today!

Content credit: C. Storm

Image credit: Lacie Slezak

DO YOU REALLY NEED TO HIRE A PROFESSIONAL EDITOR?

Hiring an experienced editor will lend credibility to your manuscript—credibility that is gained through a strong, error-free manuscript that is written in accordance with publishing standards and that is written in a way that meets readers’ expectations. This is what the professional editor provides.

But let’s look at some questions authors have about editing.

Why can’t I just use my neighbor’s son who is an English major at the local university? My niece, Jane, who is getting an “A” in high school English, can edit it, and she’d love $100 to do it.  My former Freshman Composition professor loves redlining papers, and he told me he’d be happy to edit my manuscript.  Do I really need to hire a professional editor?

Let’s start with the first two questions.

The reason you can’t use just anyone to edit your manuscript is fairly simple. As with any industry, the publishing industry has standards that are expected of all manuscripts. It uses the Chicago Manual of Style, which is rarely used in schools, especially not in high school or undergraduate studies. It doesn’t matter if you are publishing with one of the Big 6 traditional publishing houses or if you’re self-publishing. The readers expect publishing industry standards.

If you have Johnny edit your manuscript, then nine times out of ten, he will edit academically rather than by publishing standards. If you let Jane edit the manuscript, you are getting a high school paper—at best. And as for your former college professor—out of the three options, he’ll be the most ideal, but it’s more than likely that he’s not well-versed in the Chicago Manual of Style.  You can tell any one of them to edit for publishing, and unless they have been in the field, they may not get it. They can research how to edit for publishing, but that takes time on their part; and the turnaround may take longer.

So yes, you can use Johnny, Jane, or Professor Jackson, and you are getting your editing done for a much cheaper cost than that of a professional editor. However, you are probably not getting the work you actually need done and that your manuscript deserves. You would still need to hire an editor who is experienced in publishing industry standards if you want to ensure the integrity of your book.

Now, let’s answer the question “Do I really need to hire a professional editor?” The answer is “yes.”

These are people who have knowledge of and experience in the publishing industry. They can give you recommendations and often do on how to make your manuscript better. For example, they tell you where you have gaps in your information or plot line, they help you word things better to help your readers understand your concepts or story better, and they catch and correct grammatical and mechanical errors.  (Make sure you are clear on the type of editing you want/need:  substantive, developmental, or mechanical.  Don’t hesitate to ask an editor which she/he performs and the differences among the three, or research the differences on your own.) You are paying editors to help you make your manuscript shine!

Professional editors charge more because of their knowledge and experience. But just like with anything, you pay for what you get. If you want your plumbing fixed fast and within code, then you hire and pay for an experienced plumber. If you want your manuscript to shine, then you hire an experienced editor.

On the Editorial Freelancers Association’s website is a guide of reasonable rates for editors. It shows the hourly, per work, and pace of work rates so you can see how your editor works.

For example, an editor who has less experience will charge approximately $41/hour for copyediting a nonfiction book, whereas an experienced editor will charge approximately $45 an hour and will edit four to six pages an hour. If you have 100 pages in your book, then you’ll pay as much as $1,025 for editing by a newer editor. For the more experienced editor, you’ll pay approximately $1125. Yes, professional editors charge more, but they have a faster turnaround and can, thereby, save you a little money too.

If you don’t want to use a private editor or agency, the other option is to find an editor on a freelance site such as Fiverr or Upwork. You can offer your project to a beginner who may charge even less than $41/hour or less than $0.03/word, but you will have a longer turnaround time, which can add to the cost, especially if they work by the hour.

One other factor you should consider is the industry standard for the error rate. Most professional editors guarantee a 95% clear error rate by industry standards. Your neighbor’s son may be 95% error free, but it may not be to industry standards. The standard states that a manuscript with 5% errors will still be readable and the errors will not distract the reader. However, most professional editors prefer to have a higher clear error rate and often meet their own personal error-free rate.

This doesn’t mean you will ever have a perfect, error-free manuscript, but it does mean that you will have the best manuscript with the least number of errors.

When you realize that hiring that professional editor may cost a little more but the end results are what you are looking for, then the choice is simple. You hire the professional editor and have the comfort of knowing it is the best manuscript you can give to your readers.

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Content credit: C. Storm

Image credit: Clem Onojeghuo

13 AI TOOLS TO GENERATE YOUR MANUSCRIPT ASAP!

Here are 13 current free and for-fee AI tools you can use to help write your manuscript in a grammatically accurate and fast way. Check with each tool to see the full array of options and plans.

But keep in mind that these tools are there to support you with writing your manuscript. They do not lead to a final manuscript. AI can save you time, but it cannot put into a manuscript your stories and personal experiences that are inside of your heard and heart—the kind of content that is what draws in readers. Use it as a tool and as a starting point to get past your writer’s block, but add elements to the writing that make it undeniably you. In the end, that’s what will make a great manuscript—passion and personality.

1. Speedwrite not only creates new content from any content on the internet, but it also uses Grammarly and Unicheck to ensure that your new content is error- and plagiarism-free in just a few minutes.

2. Jasper creates SEO friendly, original content in a flash that also guarantees grammar and proofreading before it is finished. It is available in 25 languages, so you can scale up your content quickly.

3. Paraphraser is best known for its rewriting and paraphrasing abilities. Not only does it change the content, but it ensures sentence structure is different and uses synonyms; so no original content is duplicated. Plus, it makes sure the original meaning stays intact.

4. Grammarly helps you ensure your grammar, sentence structure, and writing style are plagiarism-free. In addition, it can be used in real time in emails, word processing applications, and a myriad of other software to ensure your writing is always top-notch.

5. ChimpRewriter can be used for multiple languages and is an SEO tool that is fast and reliable. It has a built-in thesaurus, grammar checker, and spell checker. It can pull content from the internet and recreate quickly to publish new content faster.

6. Rytr not only rewrites new, accurate content for you fast, it includes cases and templates for you to use as you need. It has an SEO analyzer to ensure you have the best content for search engine algorithms. In addition, it is available as an extension rather than a software download and is seamless, so you are able to use it in multiple ways.

7. WordAI is a true AI-powered article rewriter. By using machine learning, it is one of the fastest and most accurate paraphrasing AI tools available. They even guarantee that no duplicated content will remain in the new product. To top everything else, it incorporates SEO friendly content as well.

8. ProWritingAid focuses on style editing, grammar, and copywriting. It ensures that your writing is comparable and better than other content available. It is a writing assistant you can use in real-time or as a proofreader before publishing.

9. Wordtune supports multiple languages and is a plagiarism checker, grammar checker, and style editor that autocorrects and formats sentences perfectly.

10. SmallSEOTools is a plagiarism checker, SEO scorer, and is 100% reliable and free. It is full of analytical features that ensure your content reads the best on the different online platforms.

11. QuillBot rewrites, paraphrases, and refines the content you want to use, turning it into completely new content. It checks for grammar and enhances vocabulary to allow for fresh content without redundancy.

12. Spinbot completely rewrites content into new content. It can rewrite and paraphrase any content and ensures grammar is correct. The best part is that it also reviews current SEO trends and incorporates them into your new content.

13. OutWrite is completely free, but you can upgrade to a paid service. It supports English, French, and Spanish languages. Its primary focus is grammar and punctuation, but it has a paraphrasing tool as well.

Now, as with any AI tool, double-check everything. While these tools make it easier to get our writing ready for the world, they can still make mistakes—just fewer of them.

Read your content aloud to ensure all the information is correct and the words are the best choice for what you are trying to convey. Add the details and color that come only from you and your voice. If the finished product is a manuscript, then have an editor or proofreader review it one time before you publish.  Remember, you’ve saved a ton of time already, so this slow down with inserting your personality and anecdotes unique to you plus engaging an editor will not affect your timeline much. It ensures you have the best possible article or manuscript ready to be published. Plus, you want your name on only the best, so take the time and don’t skip this step.  (And when you work with us, BMcTALKS Press takes care of both mechanical editing and proofreading for you!) 

Give the best to your readers, and they will keep coming back for more.

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Ready to publish? CLICK HERE to schedule your consultation today!

Content credit: C. Storm

Image credit: Markus Winkler

WHAT’S THE BIG DEAL ABOUT AUDIENCE?

Writing a book is more than just putting words on paper and getting everything printed. You have to know who is going to read your book. If you don’t consider this, then you will not reach your intended reader and it will appear that your book is a flop.

This is not the case.

Most books that are not doing well in the marketplace are having this issue because the author is not promoting the book; the author simply wrote it without thinking about promoting it beyond the publication date, or the author subconsciously thought it would promote itself or that people would somehow find out about the book without the author having to talk about it. Another reason a book may not do well is the author has not been promoting it to the correct audience, or the author wrote the book without considering who would read it.

Let’s look at understanding the audience before you write first.

We have our topic, and we have created our writing schedule. Now, to ensure we present our information in the best possible way, we have to figure out who will read our book.

If you are writing a book that gives basic information to teach people a new concept, skill, or such, then you are writing at an entry or foundational level. This means you will use some jargon but will include definitions and explain the jargon. In addition, you will give detailed instructions and information, so the person who is new to your topic feels that they have a much better understanding of the topic when they finish the book.

This is where most people start their writing careers—writing the foundation or introductory book. They do this hoping to write more books that delve deeper into the topic and teach more. Or maybe they read a book that was supposed to be a beginner’s level, but for some reason, they felt the book didn’t do the basic level the best service so they wrote one instead.

In any case, the writer has to know to whom they are writing and at what level the reader already knows the topic. Once the writer has identified the audience, they are ready to write.

Another Reason to Know Your Audience

The other reason it is important to know our audience is so that once we have written the book, we can start a targeted promotion to sell our book even before it goes to the printer.

That’s right. When you know your audience, you can start promoting the book even before it is published.

Part of the promotion is the buildup of excitement. You show the targeted audience why this book is so important to them; building excitement with the book's description; explaining why this book gives more, better, or new information; and using excerpts of some content from the book. You can even use the lack of a cover to build excitement by promoting the cover reveal date. These actions not only create excitement. They help get your audience invested in all the events surrounding our book, making them want the book.

All these actions are well and good, but where do you do these promotions?

Everywhere!

We use every social media outlet available to us to run ads and boost posts. However, when you boost posts or run an ad, make sure you have created your targeted audience list because those will be the people who see the boosted post and ad. Not all platforms have this option, so if it does, use it. Leaving the audience completely open gives you a wider base, but it also is more than likely going to be shown to people who would never read your book. Creating the targeted audience ensures your audience sees the book.

Mention Your Book Whether You’re Presenting or Not

You also want to mention the book during any speaking engagements you attend, either as a speaker or an attendee. It may be obvious to do this when you are the speaker. You may be speaking on the topic of the book, so it is the perfect time to promote. You may be speaking on a topic closely related to the book, so again, it’s a great time to promote.

If you are only attending, not a problem. Network! When you go to a conference, you network and meet people, right? Same idea. Network and meet people, then tell them about your book. It doesn’t have to be a long, drawn out explanation, but get the information to them in casual conversation. Make it feel natural, not forced.

The more people that know about your book, the better because they will check it out and hopefully tell friends.

Another option in promoting to your audience is to send a copy of the book—either pre-publication or after publication—to someone who is well-known in the industry and have them review it. If you received a stellar review of your book from an expert, this will definitely help boost your book sales.

These are the main reasons that knowing the audience is so important from the conception of the book idea through the sales and beyond.

If you know your audience, you have the tools to write an incredibly informative book, and you are already prepared to market even before the first word is written, which can lead to best-selling author status!

So, who is your audience?

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Content credit: C. Storm

Image credit: Oleg Laptev

WHY CAN’T I JUST WRITE WHEN I WANT?

Many would-be writers never finish their first manuscript. They start it with a determined passion that seems unending and write every day. However, they often either burn themselves out very quickly trying to write six hours every evening after working all day, or so much is going on in their lives, that they keep putting their writing aside and never get around to finishing it. When they finally have time, the passion and excitement are gone, and so is their dream of being an author.

Whether you are writing for fun as a hobby or are trying to get started as a professional author, you have to take that passion that is currently driving you and spread it out.

What does that mean?

It means you can’t do it all quickly and burn yourself out or end up with a horror of a manuscript that is disorganized but done. It means you can’t ignore your writing and let other things pull you away and take your time.

It means you need to create a writing schedule.

When we set a deadline for the completion of a project, we are saying we have this many days, weeks, months to complete this project.

This doesn’t mean we leave the writing to the last day before our given deadline, even if we were the one to set it.

When you want to write, whether as a hobby or career, you have to create a sustainable writing schedule.

Factor in the Crazy Variables

Let’s say we want to write a non-fiction book on backyard ponds. We suspect it will be about 30,000 to 50,000 words. The deadline we set for ourselves is 12 weeks.

Some of you may be asking yourselves, “Why are you pushing this out 12 weeks? Why not four weeks?”

The answer is “variables of life.” If we want to write a book of 50,000 words in four weeks, then we have to write 12,500 words a week. If you get sick and can’t write for two weeks, then what happens? You stress about the four-week deadline. Then, instead of taking the time to feel better, you work your normal job and write and actually wear yourself down more because you are trying to write 25,000 words a week. This means you will probably feel sick longer, but you’ll have gotten that book done in four weeks.

However, if we say 12 weeks, we are looking at about 4,100 words a week. This means if we get sick, have to work overtime at our regular job, or if any other event interrupts our writing, we can miss two weeks and still be done on time without much stress.

If there are no crazy variables, we can easily write 4,100 words a week and still have a life. There would be no burnout. Or we can decide to write more each week and be done when we are done, as long as we meet our deadline.

Know How Often You Will Have Time to Write

Another factor you have to consider when creating a deadline is how often you will have time to write. You need to pick a day or two or three and the hours on those day or days that you will write. Block that time out on your calendar for those 12 weeks, so that you use it only for writing.

If you know you only have two hours a week on Wednesday nights to write, then a four-week deadline would be almost impossible unless you can write 12,500 words in two hours.

Few people can do this, so a short deadline is not realistic. When setting your deadline, be realistic and consider the time you have to write on a weekly basis. Write on the same days and times each week. Get into a routine, which will not only give you time to write, but will help you be more creative during those times, since they will be your designated writing times.

This is the third step to becoming an author if you haven’t figured it out yet. Your writing schedule has to be consistent and work for you. Only then can you continue to thrive as a writer and not lose the momentum to do frustration or burnout.

You know your topic and your audience. Now go create your writing schedule.

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Content credit: C. Storm

Image credit: Towfiqu barbhuiya

THE SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORM PERFECTLY MADE FOR AUTHORS

Goodreads is a social media platform all about books and reading. While it is perfectly made for authors and provides for great promotional and feedback avenues, it is often underutilized.

Giveaways

In terms of promotions, you can create giveaways of your book in either eBook or print form! This is a paid service, but you have complete control over how it works. You decide how many books you are giving away. Three, five, twelve, or more—and for eBooks, you can give away up to 100 downloads; it doesn’t matter. It is up to you.

There are different levels in the giveaway. Every level is a different cost, so you get to decide how often your giveaway is promoted based on your budget. You can start a Goodreads giveaway for as little as $119. Pre-release giveaways can build possible purchases or pre-orders while post-release giveaways will give your book new traction with audiences. Both options are great. If you decide to release a second book as a follow-up, having giveaways for both will increase your audience!

The readers see the book and enter the giveaway. The book is then placed in their Want-To-Read section and continues to come up on their feed. Also, these Want-To-Read books can be seen by Goodreads friends, so you are reaching a larger audience.

Get Your Book Seen

There are also free options to get your book on more pages and in front of more readers. Have those who read your book, including beta readers and ARC readers who read the book before publication, post a review and remind them to post it to the Goodreads platform, not to just the Goodreads book page. These reviews can be done anytime but are also available pre-release most of the time so you will already have reviews when the book is officially released. Still, they are a great way to get the book on the main post page after publication. These reviews let people on Goodreads know that others have read the book and what they thought of it.

Get People Talking About Your Book

Goodreads doesn’t allow for posts like Facebook or Instagram. You can only post reviews and information about books. However, they do have a “Discussion” section where you can start discussions about topics in your book or about your book itself. The discussions are a little harder to get engagement on, but getting your current readers to go into the discussions and reply or ask questions will keep the discussion going helps and brings more readers to the discussion.

Using Goodreads is an easy way to ready a larger audience, so what are you waiting for?! Go now and check out how Goodreads can help you sell more books!

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Ready to publish? CLICK HERE to schedule your consultation today!

Content credit: C. Storm

Image credit: Volodymyr Hryshchenko

GET REVIEWS ... BEFORE AND AFTER YOU PUBLISH

Many authors have reviews on books before it’s released thanks to ARC Teams.

ARC stands for Advance Reader Copy. This is a book that is still in final edit, usually doesn’t have the cover finalized yet either. The ARC Team consists of people who are interested in the subject and will give a review on several platforms for a free advanced copy of the book.

Pre-release reviews can be found on sites such as Goodreads and Bookbub as well as several others. ARC Team members can also give reviews on their own social media pages, especially if they have a strong following. Getting pre-release reviews on Goodreads guarantees these reviews will be transferred to Amazon on the day the book releases since Amazon owns Goodreads.

When you send your book to the ARC Teams, make sure they agree to not only provide pre-release reviews but also reviews on other site, such as Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and other bookstores on the day of release. This ensures you have reviews immediately.

But how do reviews really help sell your book?

Pre-Release Reviews

Think about it this way: Have you ever looked at a book—nonfiction or fiction—and looked at the reviews. If there are no reviews, you are probably less likely to take a chance on the author. If there are a few really bad reviews, you won’t be interested. However, whether there are 10 or 1000 semi-good to great reviews, you will more than likely buy the book. This is why reviews are so important and needed.

However, there is another aspect of reviews and their ability to sell your book.

They can help you make best-seller status without a lot of work on your part.

Remember, if you see a book that has great or even good reviews, you are more likely to buy that book. Best-seller rankings are based on book sales each week. The most important week is release week!

Wouldn’t you love to be on a best sellers list on the week you release your book?

The easiest way to do this is pre-release reviews. People see those pre-release reviews on social media sites and book review sites, and they pre-order the book. This means your sales increase even before the book is available. This is how people make the best-seller list immediately upon publication!

Great! You now have one of the formulas for gaining best seller status early on, but you probably want to know how to build an ARC Team.

Build an ARC Team

There are many ways to build an ARC Team. One way is to use your following. Put a call out to your social media followers saying you’re assembling a special group to read your books first before publication. You will be inundated with responses, but you don’t have to pick everyone.

Pick 10, 25, 50, or 100 people to be on your team. Just remember this is a two-edged sword. The more people on your team, the more reviews, but it also means there are fewer people who will need to buy your book. You normally don’t want more than 50, so base it on your following size and know your max is 50 people. Have them sign a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) saying they will give a specific number of reviews on specific platforms but that they will not give the book away. Some people won’t want to sign the NDA. That’s fine; either choose not to move forward with them, or if you move forward with them being on the ARC Team, they don’t need to be on the ARC Team for the next book. Some people will not give reviews even though they promised. That’s fine; again, they don’t need to be on the ARC Team for the next book.

This is your team, and you have control. If they don’t live up to their promises, they don’t get early access next time.

Don’t Have a Large Following?

However, many authors, especially first-time authors, don’t have a large following yet. Not a problem. Bookbub, Bookfunnel, and similar sites can actually help. They have a large audience of ARC readers that are volunteers who are willing to not only read your book but also give reviews. These websites do charge for this service, but your work is protected and you don’t have to do anything but provide your manuscript. If you don’t want to do all the work of building a team yourself, then this is the way to go.

So, consider getting those reviews before you even release your book because they can only help ensure you have a strong start for your book upon its release.

Post-Release Reviews

Have you already released your book? Still get reviews. Yes! You read that correctly. Still get reviews.

Reach out to your community the same way you would during the pre-release phase and ask for reviews in exchange for a copy of your book for free or for a copy at an extremely reduced rate. (I've seen some authors indicate they will send a free copy, and the reviewer only has to pay $6.95 in shipping and handling or something to that effect.) Tell them once they receive the book, they have until XYZ date to post the review on Amazon (give them about a month from the date you ship the book), providing them with the link to your book on Amazon and directing them to scroll toward the bottom of the page to the area where they can post their review. Approximately two weeks out then again a day or two before the target date, send a reminder email, thanking those who have posted reviews and asking others not to forget to do so by the due date. Again, you will have those who do not follow-through. Expect it, and make a note.

Keep in mind that getting post-publication reviews can position you to see a spike in interest in your book and a subsequent spike in sales.

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Content credit: C. Storm

Image credit: Towfiqu barbhuiya