Picking Out a Place for Your Book

No, not for vacation spot, altho’ who doesn’t want to take their book to some tropical place on the beach. Or even better, have their book take them there, literally. Wouldn’t we all like to be making enough from our books to be doing that?

Course that means getting published first.

Which brings up this post.

We’ve been told as writers that when we pitch an agent one of the things we need to know is where our book fits in on book store shelves and sections.

Great.

Except when it’s not as easy to categorize into those categories / genres. I’m still trying to figure where mine fit. Yes, granted I need to actually finish them first. That would be the first thing. But then comes the question of where does it actually fit. And some believe we should know that as we write, because that would very possibly change how we are writing.

What do you think?

Do you know / have clear ideas of where the books you are writing fit in?

How did you determine that?

If you are still searching to where you fit in, here’s an interesting blog post that has genres and sub-genres you might want to take a look at.

Thanks to :

WriterThesaurus

Dec 01, 8:21am via TweetDeck

Wonder what Sub-Genre your book falls into? Check out this resource: bit.ly/sC3874 #writing #screenwriting #MyWANA

Retweeted by Quotes4Writers

Then it would be nice if you came back here to help me with mine.……if that's even possible.

And if you look around on their blog and find interesting things it would be nice if you came back and shared them with me. After all, I’m always sharing with you here.

It does look like it’s got some great info’ there. But I’m in the midst of stuff too you know. So it would be nice if we all shared here. Just sayin…. Tis the season.

Talking Too Much????

If it’s you, then you should know who you are. Don’t you?

Not sure these ideas would really help you but maybe….. I did come across this great post that will help you look at and determine if your characters are talking too much.

Might help you in other ways other than just your writing.

And since fellow writer and I were just talking about this recently will definitely help him.

While you are there looking, check out the rest of the blog. There’s some Good stuff there!

And do Please come back here and let me know what you find! I haven’t had time to look through it much either.

[Do I Really Need to tell you how behind we are with Holiday stuff??? No decorations up. No cards done. Still have baking / presents to do. Wrapped ones needed for this weekend…. Mostly. And so on and so on …. Sigh…..]

I send Great Thanks to for finding this:

PCrutcher Paige Crutcher

Hints that you have too much dialogue and helpful fixes: bit.ly/vPLCmE @NovelEditor #writetip @elizabethscraig

Holiday Writers Party / Get Together

Hey, it is the Holidays. And tomorrow is the 2^nd Wednesday of the Month. That means Writers Wednesday.

Where James River Writers Members gather to talk all things writing.

Or, since it’s the Holidays, talk writing and holidays.

Or just enjoy the atmosphere at the Capital Ale House downtown.

Of course that’s what we do. ;)

And if you show up it Could be a Party!

Come toast the holidays with us. And encourage the writer within us all.

Great Practical Writing Tips

I Especially like #3 and #4 of this one -

Cory Doctorow
Author of With a Little Help, For the Win, Makers, and Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom

1. Write every day. Anything you do every day gets easier. If you’re insanely busy, make the amount that you write every day small (100 words? 250 words?) but do it every day.
2. Write even when the mood isn’t right. You can’t tell if what you’re writing is good or bad while you’re writing it.
3. Write when the book sucks and it isn’t going anywhere. Just keep writing. It doesn’t suck. Your conscious is having a panic attack because it doesn’t believe your subconscious knows what it’s doing.
4. Stop in the middle of a sentence, leaving a rough edge for you to start from the next day — that way, you can write three or five words without being “creative” and before you know it, you’re writing.

But there’s Lots more Terrific ones -

Thanks to :

RoyalePine Dave Bale

Practical Tips on Writing a Book from 23 Brilliant Authors blogs.plos.org/neurotribes/20…

What’s your favorite?

How Do You Define Yourself?

‘You can’t define yourself with negatives. You have to choose adjectives.’ Stacy London, What Not to Wear

While Stacy was talking about a particular woman’s very low self image it occurred to me it could also apply to writers.

Especially given all the the pressure going on now with NaNoWriMo. Especially for those people that feel they have no hope of really finishing it.

And so they feel they have failed.

I’ve heard that from a few friends recently and I was surprised. Not at the feelings of being upset or disappointed, but the fact they used the word Failed. In regard to something like NaNo.

Perhaps I don’t take NaNo as seriously as some people do, but hey, they aren’t paying me for that writing. They aren’t giving me any particular benefits for doing it. The benefits that we get from participating - whether we finish or not - only come from us. And our expectations of ourselves.

So to go along with Stacy London - but paraphrasing - Don’t define yourself - or your writing - with negatives. Choose adjectives. I say Choose Good Adjectives. You are a Writer. You can do it!

As for Failing at NaNo … You only Fail if you allow yourself to feel you did.

And if you didn’t learn a darn thing from it.

Have there been times I didn’t finish NaNo - you betcha. Did I feel I failed. NO. Because I learned invaluable things about my writing, my story, my characters, my scheduling….my voice. I learned all kinds of things, writing and not writing.

So if you are feeling a bit down right now - you don’t have to give up. There are NaNo get togethers going on all over town for ‘write in’ kind of things to get as much done as you can.

If you have already given up, don’t feel like you failed. Sit down and figure out what all you learned this month. Maybe you learned how much time you really need, or don’t need, to really get some writing done. Perhaps you learned you hate these characters, you need new ones - So, get some. Maybe the story needs new characters. Or a new angle. Maybe it’s really a short story or novella, not a novel.

If you sit down and think about it, even a bit, you can find all kinds of things you learned from what you did do. Or even what you didn’t do. Perhaps your heart just isn’t in it. Or in the story.

Whatever your experience you can learn from it.

If you want to. If you choose to.

If you need more thoughts or ideas, I can help with that.

But you have to choose what words you are going to use to define your experience this month.

Choose good ones.

Lost the Ability to Write?

Having gone through a Major slump, funk, or writers block recently, and still trying to come out of it, I started hunting around for help. The great thing about living in this time is the invention of google.

And I came across this great blog. I was caught by this title of course, since I was wondering things along the same lines.

Can You Lose the Ability to Write?

So if you are in a slump, or a funk, and you are wondering the same thing, go over and read this blog.

And then it would be nice if you’d come back and let me know if it helped. So we all have even more things to be thankful for this Thanksgiving Day.

Something in the Air? Or Funks and Writers Block

Or funks and slumps and …. well, some people don’t believe in writer’s block. But when you’re experiencing a funky slump, or whatever you want to call it when no words are coming to your mind at all for writing…. And you aren’t even reading. That’s definitely not a happy dancing place.

So how do you get out of it?

As I’ve tried to get out of the deep trench of emptiness that seems to have taken over my brain I have stumbled across interesting information that I needed at this time.

And I found not only that I wasn’t the only one that had been in an awful funk, so had the Editor of Writer’s Digest - just check out this part of the recent free e-newsletter -

Letter From the Editor

Lately I've been in a funk. Personal funk. Professional funk. Writing funk. And, as many of you probably already know, I don't tolerate funks well and will go to great lengths to get out of them. One article that helped me was 4 Ways Inspiration Helps You Beat Writer's Block, which helped me learn that instead of looking for inspiration, sometimes it's better to let it find you. I also found comfort after reading Your Job Is To Write, Not Worry, a piece designed to remind you what is really important when your heart and soul is devoted to being a writer.

Also, I wanted to introduce you to one of my favorite members of the WD team, Marielle Murphy, in my latest installment ofWD Editors Are Writers Too. If it weren't for her "Friday Fun Fact" e-mails, I wouldn't have known that slugs have 4 noses! I'm eternally grateful for that.

Okay I’m not saying that misery loves company, and that info’ on the slugs….. Ewwwww.

I’m saying it is nice to know that I’ve not been the only aberration in the writing world these days. Especially with NaNoWriMo in full swing and there’s clacking of keys to be heard all over, even in the next chair.

It wasn’t just the felt commiseration, it was the articles of inspiration and encouragement.

Like this one:

4 WAYS INSPIRATION HELPS YOU BEAT WRITER’S BLOCK

Hmmmm, maybe I can convince key-clacker in chair next to me that while he seems to be cranking out the writing for NaNo, the inspiration suggestion of going away and changing the scene might really help me and be what I need right now. I guess maybe the Thailand elephant suggestion might be a little much? But he might think a change of scenery might help him as well. Elephant or not.

So what do you do to get out of your slumps? Especially writing slumps.