ROBERT J.R. GRAHAM: writer resources

Showing posts with label writer resources. Show all posts

Thursday, 3 April 2014

6 Tips For Your Writing Journey

by: Laura Hickey

So, you’d like to be a writer? Congrats! Writing not only is a great way to express yourself, but can provide an income. Keep in mind not all writers make a fortune, some still cant quit their day job. Below are some tips to start your writing journey.

1. Start Writing

Okay, so this tip is obvious. For some, it’s a question of what to write about, for others how to write. Write how and what you want. What kind of books do you like to read? Fiction, Mystery, science fiction, how to books? How about articles, reports, maybe you’re interested in journalism. Whatever the case may be, to get your creative juices flowing, start writing! Don’t worry about how it sounds, grammar or other mistakes, you can go back to fix these.

2. Join online and offline groups/message boards and chats

If you already know what you want to write about, consider joining writer groups at your local library, or online groups, along with message boards and chats. It’s a great way to network with other writers and published authors. It’s also a good place to share your work and receive feedback. Many places online are free to join, some require a membership which usually consist of a user name, e-mail address and password for your user name. Some request more information such as a name, address and sometimes phone number.

3. The Library

You’ve probably heard about some books that writers refer to, this could be writer markets, e-book publishing, self publishing and generally how to improve your writing. Bu what do you do when you can’t afford to buy these books from your local bookstore or online? A trip to your library is the key. Many libraries carry writer resource books, which if you have a library card, are free. If you’re living out of the area, the library may require a fee for membership. The book you’re looking for may not always be at your local library, however libraries borrow from other libraries in and out of state. The method of receiving outside books is called Inter-Library Loan. Later on, if you find the book to be a great resource, you may be able to purchase a used copy online.

4. Researching

The Internet is also another good resource for information. Keep in mind that not every resource you find online is going to be an honest good resource. It will take time to sort out which websites are useful. Most information is free, so you can sit back and research in the comfort of your home. If you don’t have a computer with Internet access, check your local library and see if you can use one of theirs.

5. Workshops

Workshops taught by experts is a great way to learn from the professionals, but only if you can afford it! Make sure the topic of the workshop is based around your interest. For instance, if you love fiction..it wouldn’t be a good idea to go to a workshop based only on non-fiction. It’s a good idea to register early to ensure a spot at the event. Bring a new legal pad, plus a few writing tools to take notes.

6. Contents

After writing a while, you may want to enter contents. Some require an entry fee. I suggest staying away from the entry fee contents until you’ve entered some other free ones. That way you can get a feel for how contests work. Spend some time writing and re-writing your entries. If you’ve written your entry in 5 or so minutes, th judges will notice it immediately. You wouldn’t want a reputation for sloppy work.

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Welcome to the World of Writing: My Advice for New Writers

How to Run a Writing Group: Gathering Members

After the convention, a prospective writer’s report

A Guest Post: What I’d Change About My Writing Journey

50 Writing Tips

Tips from the Pros: Stephanie Reed

AME Blog Carnival: Tips and Tricks for Writers and Authors, January 21, 2013

Five essential qualities writers need

London Book “The Best in International Publishing” Awarded Lynn Cook Henriksen’s “TellTale Souls Writing the Mother Memoir” 2nd Place Honors in the “How-To” Category

Guest post: Understanding the Writing Journey by S J Wardell

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The post 6 Tips For Your Writing Journey appeared first on Robert JR Graham.

Monday, 31 March 2014

An Author’s Guide To Publishing A Book

by: Brian Scott

Ask any published book author about writing a book, and they will tell you it’s a monumental task. The process is long, drawn out, and grueling. Even if you enjoy writing – and don’t mind writing on the same subject for an extended period — the writing process will, undoubtedly, exhaust you. Getting your book published, however, will take even more time and effort than writing the thing in the first place.

Are you thinking about writing a book? Have you already written one? Do you wonder how to get your book published? If you so, read on. Here are some hand-picked tips on how to publish your book.

WRITING YOUR BOOK

To write a successful book you need to start out with some original thought. You probably have plenty of originality, but you may have trouble creating a coherent flow of ideas and information that the public will digest. The first step is to create the skeleton (or blueprint) of your book. You need to organize your thoughts into a progression of chapters.

If you are writing a non-fiction book, start with a table of contents. Write chapter headings and sub-headings. Organize your chapters so you build each chapter upon one another. If you can brainstorm more chapter headings than you will use, you will find it easier to fill your book with a series of short articles that flow into one another.

If you are writing fiction, you will need more of a storyboard. You will need to create cause and effect as well as character sketches. To make your story coherent your characters will need to react to events. Their reactions should become predictable as your readers get into the story. You may need to create some situations for your characters to introduce their traits to the reader.

These are general guidelines on how to construct your book. The complete process will be much more involved as you move closer to finding out how to get your book published. Even after you are finished with the bulk of the content, your goal to publish your book involves a lot more work.

GETTING YOUR BOOK INTO PRINT

The next step to get your book published is finding a publisher. Both the Internet and your local library have many resources. You can tap into these resources to find the best publisher to publish your book. After a series of queries and correspondence with potential publishers, you may get an invitation to submit your manuscript. Then the work begins.

A publisher is very experienced in finding marketable books. He knows what it will take to get your book to sell. Don’t be offended when a book editor tears your writing apart, as this may be a positive sign that the publisher is interested in your book. Expect to enter into a close relationship of compromise and change with the editor as you rework what you have already painstakingly written. When you are finished, you will have a readable, clean, and correct manuscript, ready for print.

The road to getting a book published is a long one, but it is well worth the effort. Trust yourself, and trust the publisher to create a beautiful masterpiece. Don’t be discouraged if several publishers are not interested in your book. You may have to self-publish your first book, and then again, your book may eventually get accepted right away. Good luck and enjoy the process.

Source

How to Run a Writing Group: Could You Give Me a Jump?

Book publishers who want your manuscript

Hey guys – I’m thinking of trying fiction writing… Really, Tim Ferris?

Keeping the dream alive of writing a book

On the Inside, Looking Out

Do you have the write stuff?

Non-Fiction Writing

International PenCraft Books to Assist Writers Become Published

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Don’t Give Up On Writing That Novel

Publishing Options For Freelance Writers

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6 Tips For Your Writing Journey

How To Write And Publish Your Autobiography

5 Powerful Article Writing Tips

The post An Author’s Guide To Publishing A Book appeared first on Robert JR Graham.

Get Your Creative Writing Published

How To Get Your Creative Writing Published

by: Writers Bureau

Creative writing is a field which is coming to the forefront with more and more people showing an interest. There are many people who have an inclination towards creative writing from their schooling days, and they take it up as a profession later in life. It is a very interesting field and helps you to display your own creativity. It does not have the mundane routine of going to an office and doing the same work, the same calculation each day. The creative writing industry gives you a scope to explore various topics and thus keep brushing your creativity each day.

Perhaps this is the very reason that there are many aspiring students in this field. In fact many people looking for a job change, too, desire to become a part of this industry. Just being creative is not enough to shine bright in the field of creative writing. If you want to build a future in this field, you should be aware of the fact that the competition is very stern in the creative writing industry. To make your presence felt and get all your works published, you have to have a talent and genuine interest for creative writing. Apart from creative instincts, a proper presentation of your idea is very important, for which you need expert guidance.

If you are looking forward to building a serious career in the field of creative writing then you should ideally opt for a professional creative writing course. Being a part of such a course will help polish your talent as a writer, and help explore various techniques that can assist you write better. Many creative writing courses include, article writing, fiction writing, non-fiction writing and copywriting.

You might not have the time to regularly visit an institution for such courses, or you may not have a good institution close to your home. You can still learn the skills of creative writing by enrolling for an online creative writing course. The online courses shall train you in the same way as does a traditional institution. The difference is you can learn from the comfort of your own home and at times that suit you best. Well-trained faculties are often employed for distance learning creative writing course, so that aspiring writers get well-prepared. As a beginner, you need to know how the creative writing industry works. At the same time you should know what skills you need to have to get your creative writing published.

There are many websites that offer you creative writing courses. You should first go through each of them properly and then select the one, you think would help gain the right skills to build your career in the field of creative writing. Creative writing too has various options; you may specialize in one or may even write for various genres. Depending on your interest, you may specialize in article writing, fiction or non-fiction writing and more. An online creative writing course has the potential to make you an expert in each of these fields. The creative writing industry is growing year on year, why not join it.

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