Would You Buy This Book?

Story Empire

Hey, SE Readers. Joan with you today. We’ve already reached the end of January, but I hope your year is off to a good start.

It goes without saying that all authors, Indies in particular, must promote their books. Although many authors hate this part, marketing is an essential part of the writing process.

Fellow SE contributor Jan Sikes has a fantastic series on marketing. If you haven’t read her posts, I highly recommend doing so.

Several months ago, we SE authors had a behind-the-scenes discussion about promoting books. It all stemmed from a tweet Staci read where an author posed the following: “If you like (popular author’s name) and (another popular author’s name), you’ll love my books.” He went on to ask if that would make a reader take a closer look at that author’s work.

Most of the responses on Twitter weren’t positive. Our reactions weren’t either.

Very…

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Writing Magic in a Real-World Setting – By Liz Keller Whitehurst…

Chris The Story Reading Ape's Blog

on Writers Helping Writers:

For centuries, people have been spellbound by magic and the supernatural. Ghosts, curses, talking creatures, portals to alternate dimensions…there’s just too much creative fodder for authors not to plumb those depths. Over time, mainstream fantasy has given way to many other genres—particularly those where magic is being used in a real-world setting.

Melding the fantastic with the everyday definitely has its challenges, but it can be done. Whether you’re writing magical realism, fabulism, or an undefined genre in a similar vein, you’ve got to thread the needle when it comes to blending magic with the real world. Here are some tips on how to do that.

Continue reading HERE

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Let Go – Stream of Consciousness Saturday #SoCS

Let go.

Let go of Fear.

Let go of Doubt.

Let go of Anxiety.

Let go of Anger.

Let go of Pain.

Let go of the feelings

That keep you

Holding onto the Darkness,

And instead Trust.

Trust that I will be there

To catch you

And help you

Hold onto the Light.

This post is part of the Stream of Consciousness Saturday prompt, “let go”:

https://lindaghill.com/2022/01/28/the-friday-reminder-for-socs-jusjojan-2022-daily-prompt-jan-29th/

What Can be Done If the Desire to Write is Missing.

Story Empire

Photo by Luca Bravo on Unsplash

Hi SEers, John is with you today. I hope you are looking forward to a great weekend. I know I am. Today’s post is all about providing some perspective on those times when no matter how much a writer knows they should get to their writing, they just dread it. I have had those moments. It’s that awful time where writing sounds like it will be a miserable experience.

These times may not last long, but while they are there, they become a cause for unreasonable concern about the future as a writer. I mention unreasonable since, like most things that go bump in the night, these concerns under the white-hot light of reality tend to fall away.

So, what kind of white-hot light can be switched on to expose these feelings of not wanting to write to a reality check. The title of…

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Positive – Tuesday Use It In A Sentence #tuesdayuseitinasentence

They crouched behind the stack of crates and peered around the side at the guarded bunker. Nick frowned. There were more guards than expected.

“I don’t know, Dan. Are you positive this will work?”

“Of course I am. Have I ever been wrong before?”

Nick gave him a sidelong look.

“Ok, ok.,” Dan conceded. “Aside from those times. But this will work, Nick. I’m sure of it. Think positive!”

Nick sighed and readjusted his weapons, getting ready for when the signal came.

A few moments later, a loud noise sounded from near the bunker and the guards left to investigate. A whistle sounded from nearby. That was their signal. No time for second thoughts now.

Nick and Dan broke their cover and charged the bunker.

This post is part of the Tuesday Use It In A Sentence prompt, “positive”:

https://stephaniecolpron.wordpress.com/2022/01/26/tuesdayuseitinasentence-positive/

WRITING AND WHAT YOU KNOW

Story Empire

Hi SEers! Denise here to talk about writing what you know.

This may be advice you’ve received as a writer. I know I heard it in writing classes and applied that idea to my settings. I live in a forest and have spent a lot of time at the ocean, so I am familiar with this.

Then there are stories set in places I’ve never visited that require research. Does that qualify me to know a city or town from research? If I dig deep, I think it does.

But what about when writing about serial killers, adventure, mystery, science fiction, or fantasy?

I’m pretty sure I haven’t met a serial killer, or a fictional parasite-type creature, the evildwel. Yet, I write about them. I can’t prove if I’ve seen or spoken to a fairy or angel, so I’m no expert on them, but they show up in my work…

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How to Improve Your Writing Skills: Take Your Writing from Good to Great – by Nicole Dieker…

Chris The Story Reading Ape's Blog

on The Write Life:

Soooo… you’ve been writing for a while. Maybe you seriously got into writing fiction a year ago; maybe you’ve been a freelance writer for three or four years now. Maybe you started writing a book and it didn’t go anywhere.

You know you want to improve your writing, but you don’t know HOW. What do you need to do to take your writing to the next level? Are there practical, actionable steps you can take to get your writing from GOOD to GREAT?

YES. Writing, like everything else, can benefit from what is called deliberate practice — a focused, disciplined attempt at identifying areas of improvement (and then, of course, improving them).

Here’s how to improve your writing skills — in three (or maybe four) easy steps.

Continue reading HERE

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How to Write Point of View, Part 9, The Unreliable Narrator and POV

Story Empire

Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay

Hi SErs! It’s a day of Harmony here at Story Empire 🙂 Today, I’d like to talk about how to write Point of View (POV), and how to use your chosen lens, when employing an unreliable narrator in your story.

The First Person lens/POV choice has often been touted as the only point of view for employing an unreliable narrator. However, as this post will explore, us writers have alternative options we can choose to use.

What is an Unreliable Narrator?

The term ‘unreliable narrator’ was first coined by literary critic Wayne C. Booth in his 1961 book,The Rhetoric of Fiction.

An unreliable narrator is a character or commentator in the story who can lie to the reader, and often, themselves. Such a person presents facts, opinions, and conclusions that aren’t, necessarily, consistent with the actuality of the world and events in…

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Expansion Pack: Story Engineering

Story Empire

Hi, Gang. Craig with you again today with another one of my Expansion Packs. I stole the idea from some video games who offer additional levels, or new scenarios for download. In this case, I’m throwing back to my series on Three Act Structure.

I have two lessons for you today, and the first one is pretty simple. Make friends in this business, and don’t be afraid to reach out to those who know more about something than yourself. The second lesson is for my guest to present.

Sue Coletta is a dear friend, and the author of some incredible Crime Thrillers. She’s even branched out into true crime and it’s well worth checking her wares out. She commented on one of my series posts, and it piqued my interest.

Sue commented about how she uses Story Engineering and Milestones to craft her tales. There is a lot of…

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13 Ways to Convince a Literary Agent to Represent You – by Rachelle Gardner…

Chris The Story Reading Ape's Blog

on The Write Life:

You’ve been trying to crack the code for getting a literary agent’s attention, whether in a query or a face-to-face meeting, right? You’ve been searching high and low for the secret to making an agent sit up and say “Wow!”

Well, since I’m in a good mood, I’m going to risk ostracism from my colleagues by breaking the Agent Code of Secrecy.

Continue reading HERE

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