Tag: writing tips

You Don’t Need More Crayons

With sharpener!!

Back when I was a kid, Mom would drag me along with her to get school supplies. Most of the stuff I didn’t care about. Crayons, however, were a different matter.

I wanted the big box, the 64 count. The one with the gold and silver crayons, and the sharpener on the back.

Mom smiled and told me we could only afford the small pack.

I fussed. I pouted. But I still didn’t get my mega-crayons. So I resigned myself to failure as a creative, and at so early an age, too!

School came, and when it was time to color, we pulled out our Crayolas. I remember how we looked this way and that to see who, if anyone, held the Holy Grail of Crayons. Most clutched the small size like mine. Except for the girl in the front row. We stared goo-goo eyed at her box with the silver and gold ones…with the built-in sharper…with colors we couldn’t even pronounce!!

“That’s NOT FAIR!”

“How come she gets it and we don’t?”

“Why is she special?”

No, we didn’t really say those things, but I know we all thought them. Instead, we shook our heads–discontent with our lot–while Little Miss 64 flashed a smug smile.

The next day, we walked into class and marveled at our drawings taped to the wall. Even as a kid, I learned a valuable lesson that morning. Those of us with just the basic colors had been forced to be more creative, while the girl with the countless colors wasn’t creative at all.

As an adult, I still have moments when I get jealous of other creative’s artistic or financial success. I become that kid who whines about not having so-and-so’s proverbial Box of Crayons,  convinced, like so many of us, that it is the secret to success. I sometimes even think I deserve it more than they do. Boy, that sure sounds nasty when out in the open, doesn’t it, but it’s the truth!

So today, I’m going to use the crayons I’ve been given, even the broken ones. I’m going to smile, keep my eyes on my own paper, and let adversity spark my creativity.

Still Alive

I blinked.  At least that’s what it feels like.

Life this summer has been crazy which is why I haven’t posted in some time now.

The primary reason is that I’m focused on the notes from my publisher per Tears of Min Brock.

Say good-bye adverbs.  Say hello “show don’t tell.”  Add some back story here.  Toss in character depth there.  New cover to ponder, proof, tweak…

I hope you’ll be patient as we remodel; it’s taking a wee bit longer than anticipated.  I’m biased, but I think it will be well worth the wait!

Gotta go…characters are calling!

I’m Getting a New Look!

A friend recently asked me, “So how do you re-release your book?”

It was a great question, so I thought I’d take time this morning to explain.

First, per my new publisher’s recommendation, I re-visited Tears of Min Brock.  I edited it to make it read and flow faster, sprinkled in some description, and added a bit more expressiveness with the characters.  I finished this portion last week and now the publisher and editor are going through it.  Once done, they’ll pass it back for me to tweak.  I love the fact that I get the opportunity to make my writing (and storytelling) even better.

Next, we’ll meet to discuss the cover.  Now to be honest, I like what I currently have, so it’s difficult for me to “see” anything else.  But I’m going to the meeting with an open mind and hoping to catch the vision.  After all, this is to discuss the plan for all four books, all of which are written (but unedited.)

After that, it’s in the hands of the publisher and I do the most difficult of tasks.

I wait.

I’m hoping we’ll have this turned around by end of summer, maybe sooner.  But I know how life can bog down the most prudent of plans.

So there you go!

I’m excited to get a new look and hope you will be too!

 

Perception, Reality, and the Eagles.

Back when I was a touring musician out of Nashville, I had a funny experience in which perception wasn’t reality.

Our custom tour bus was parked one morning in a shopping mall.  Needing breakfast, I donned shades, ball cap and joined a fellow musician for the short jaunt across the parking lot to McDonald’s.  Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a couple making a bee-line for us.

“Please!” she waved, “Can we get your picture in front of your bus?”

We hadn’t showered, were groggy and thus were totally bamboozled why this woman would want a picture of two scraggly  musicians.  Nevertheless, we shrugged and posed arm-over-shoulder as she snapped away.

Thanking us profusely, she jogged off with her husband, giddy with excitement.

“What was that all about?” my friend asked.  I glanced over my shoulder at our tour bus.  Air brushed in large letters across the back side was, “Hotel California.”

I burst out laughing.  “She thinks we’re the Eagles!”  We laughed all the way to the golden arches.

In marketing one’s product, whether it’s a book or an idea, you want the public to “see you” (perception) in a way that makes you larger than life.  After all, you need to stand out from the pack.  Take the story I just shared.  The fact that this poor woman has our picture pasted & labeled in her scrapbook as, “The Eagles: On Tour!” isn’t our fault.  It’s actually hilarious!  Does she point me out as Joe Walsh?  Don Henley?  But I digress.  The point is this: We didn’t lie to her (she never asked us who we were!) nor did we falsely promote ourselves.  She merely perceived us to be someone else based upon our image (i.e., tour bus, logo, etc.)

So as you begin the process of selling and promoting, don’t worry if people misunderstand or perceive you as someone you’re not.

It may be the very thing that will help you succeed.  Who knows, maybe you too will be an Eagle!

 

 

Are you one of these?

Courtesy Microsoft

Maybe you’re already aware.  Maybe your friends have said, “That’s you!”  Maybe you’re like so many who avoid self-analysis at all cost.

No matter which category you fall into, I’m here to help you find, discover, and embrace the truth of who you are!

So, in the spirit of Jeff Foxworthy: “You may be an author if you…”

Walk into a bookstore, see the amassed talent and mumble, “I suck!”

Walk into a bookstore, see the amassed talent and mumble, “They suck!”

Eavesdrop on a spicy conversation to get some “nuggets” for your story’s upcoming dialogue.

Consider your Christmas letter proof that you’re published.

Love replying to every email in order to sharpen your writing skills.

Get excited when your teacher states, “Write about what you did for the summer.”

Think C-Span’s Book TV is exciting to watch.

These are but a few indicators that you may be an author. 

Have any to share?