The Wednesday Word

Author To Author’s Newsletter                                                    

November 20, 2013

Writing & Publishing Tips

 

Time Management

When you're an author, the phrase "time management" can seem almost laughable. Especially if you have another demanding job that doesn't always allow you the time you wish to have for putting work into your writing. I have met many people along my writing journey who tell me that they would love to write a book and even have a few great ideas but simply don't have the time.  My response is always the same. Make the time.

If writing is something important to you and you hope to someday make a career out of it, you must dedicate yourself despite the numerous other demands that life presents to you. This can be a difficult task and at times seem impossible. I am here to tell you that it is possible.

My best ideas come to me when I am short on time. It seems that when that rare occasion comes along, a day in which I can completely focus on nothing but writing, I end up spending most of my time either staring blankly at a computer screen, or shuffling through the many interesting posts by my friends and followers on blogs, Twitter, and Facebook.

Perhaps it is because I work well under pressure? However, the reason doesn't seem to really matter. What matters is that most humans perform their work well when they have no other option but to simply get the required tasks completed.

When working a fulltime (or more) job, it seems there isn't any time left in the day for writing. After household chores, dinner, and family obligations, most of us desire nothing more than to simply let our heads hit the pillow and start again tomorrow. It is at this exact time that you need to discipline yourself. You will be happy you did.

Some days, I only have about a half hour or so to dedicate to my author career. Whether it be a quick 500 words typed into Microsoft on my phone while on break at work or scheduling blog posts for the next week, any work is good work and keeps your creative juices flowing.

Don't let time be an issue. Use every minute of every day to be as productive as you can.

Using tools to stay organized helps greatly in this area. Things like calendars, planners, social media schedulers, and email reminders will prompt you to keep working even when you're exhausted. Trust me, these assets make life a lot easier.

Another issue that can hinder your time management skills is a lack of belief that your work is important. From time to time I think that may of us authors question whether or not a certain task really needs to be completed. If you originally thought at one point in time that it was important, chances are it still is. Don't let your mood dictate your decisions. Fatigue and stress can greatly influence our choices. If it was put on your "to-do" list, do it.

Lastly, if you skip a day because you just couldn't accomplish one more ting, that's ok. Remember there is always tomorrow. Just don't give up.

 

By Author to Author Member and Contributor, Andrea Goodson. You can learn more about Andrea on her website, www.andreagoodson.wordpress.com

Exciting News for Author to Author Group Members

Sydney Logan's Giveaway & New Release

Sydney Logan is publishing another holiday story! The Little Drummer Boy is set for release on November 29th! In the meantime, visit Sydney's website to enter her giveaway for a $10.00 Amazon gift card and a hand-crafted bracelet! http://www.sydneylogan.com/2013/11/giveaway-little-drummer-boy-by-sydney.html

Ninety-Nine in November

Author L.V. Lewis has put her first book in the Ghetto Girl Romance Quadrilogy on sale for 99 cents the entire month of November! If you are a Fifty Shades fan and would like an exciting twist from a cultural perspective, then this book is for you! Check it out! http://www.amazon.com/Shades-Jungle-Ghetto-Romance-Quadrilogy-ebook/dp/B009ZL7DJQ

 

Author Lindsey Gray Celebrates New Release

Lindsey Gray's new release, Not The Same Season, went live yesterday! Download your copy today! http://www.amazon.com/Not-Same-Season-Lindsey-Gray-ebook/dp/B00GRGZMM2

 

Meet Up With T.M. Franklin in Seattle

T. M. Franklin will be at the Barnes & Noble at 600 Pine St. in Seattle, WA signing books, chatting with readers, and doing giveaways from 2:00pm-4:00pm on Friday, November 22nd! Make sure to pay her a visit if you're in he area!

T.M. Franklin Hosts Giveaway & Blog Tour

Author T.M. Franklin is on tour and hosting a giveaway! Visit her blog for details- www.tmfranklin.com and enter the giveaway here - http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/share-code/YWY2YzM5YWI0MWE1NWIzOGZhNzVjMDg5MTliMGJkOjE1/

Andrea Goodson to Reveal Cover for To Be Loved

Join author Andrea Goodson on Thursday, November 26th as she reveals the cover to her upcoming YA new release, To Be Loved! You can also enter for a chance to win a signed paperback! All bloggers are invited to participate. Contact Andrea via her website for more information. www.andreagoodson.wordpress.com.

Wednesday's Weird Word

Atrabilious

Definition: referring to somebody who is gloomy, morose, irritable or bad-tempered.

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Thank you for reading this week's edition of Author to Author's, The Wednesday Word! Visit us again next week for more news and savings to refresh your bookish pleasures! As always, feel free to share and spread the word!

COVER REVEAL!!! Sandi Layne

At the end of Éire's Captive Moon, many of my readers were still on

Well, in the second book in the Éire's Viking trilogy, Agnarr is the hero.

Cover art by Megan Dooley, to be published by The Writer's Coffee Shop

Summary:

It’s been years since Agnarr met his wyrd on the Green Island. Years since he left Charis, his former trell and medicine woman, with her new husband in her new village. Even though he lost her, he cannot help but feel his destiny lies with her people of Éire, so he returns with his final raiding party. Once there, a chance encounter strikes him speechless and without his memory, alone in a foreign land. He is taken to Aislinn, a physician who is serving in Bangor Monastery. Born in Ragor, the village Agnarr destroyed when she was a child, she is now the adopted daughter of Charis and Cowan, and has herself trained in healing. Drawn to her tall, blond patient in a way that she never has been to a man before, she is horrified and angry to find that he is the one responsible for the loss of her home. These are turbulent times in Éire, and there are volatile tempers all around. Still, Agnarr Halvardson would stay on the island, wed, and sire sons to live in strength and plenty in his adopted home. He wants Aislinn to be his wife and the mother of his children, but she won’t marry without love. He worships Thor and Odin; she worships Jesu the Christ. Can two from such opposing backgrounds find happiness with one another? Might they even find a love that will change both their worlds?

This title will be available via NetGalley in October for reviewers, with a January, 2014 book release.

The first book of this trilogy, Éire's Captive Moon, is available here:

Amazon Kindle, Paperback

Kobo

Barnes and Noble

iTunes

The Writer's Coffee Shop Publishing House

Author To Author’s Newsletter                                                    August 21, 2013

Writing & Publishing Tips

“I have this great idea! See, there’s a villain, and he’s got a hideout in a gravity-shelter underground on this other planet. And there’s a hero, right? And he’s got psychic abilities and then they fight and a war breaks out and they hide from nuclear fallout and then the villain dies. Isn’t that a great story?“

Believe it or not, I have been approached with…a variety of scenarios over the years. Not this one precisely, but others that have been outlandish, disorganized and most enthusiastically presented. The hopeful writer is generally convinced that their idea is amazing and original and mind-blowing. And indeed, it may be. But it lacks … well… It lacks discipline. I tell authors about self-discipline often. To me, this is one of the KEY MUST-HAVES if one wants to work as a writer. DISCIPLINE. It does not mean spanking or whips or chains…so just tug your mind out of the gutter. Discipline means a structure for growth. For development. A writer needs that. So does her story.



Do you think this kind of artwork happens without a plan? By no means. The macrame artist has a plan. She monitors the tension in each strand of string, braiding and designing and crafting knots at the appropriate intervals. She does this knowing there will be a support, or that it will hang “just so” and works to make sure the structure of the creation will work. The pattern is secure. There aren’t a bunch of oddly spaced loose ends dangling without form or function. This is a work of art and it requires discipline to achieve. Just like a novel. There are many ways to achieve the balance of tension necessary to achieve a work of fiction that is coherent and comprehensive. One way is to outline. Another is to put different pieces together – like a quilt – and work the pieces into a glorious whole. But both ways require some planning. Some idea of what the final product will look like.

For me, I HAVE TO KNOW where I will end up before I get much beyond chapter one when I write. I might write one chapter just because an idea won’t let me go. But if it goes much beyond that…I want to know where my story is stopping. Then, I make a plan to get there.

Contributed By Author to Author Member, Contributing Writer, and Author, Sandi Layne. Originally posted on her blog, http://sandyquill.com/2011/05/02/its-like-macrame/ on May 2, 2013.

Exciting News for Author to Author Group Members

New Release from A2A Author, Savannah Leigh!

With This Ring
A Novella

Synopsis: Lily is a thirty-two year old single woman who owns Wedding Dreams. She spends her days planning weddings for other people. She is a realist, and knows that marriage is not in the cards for her. Drew Hamilton is a thirty-six year old lawyer who has no desire to have a wife or family. But, he is plagued by his desire to grant his mother’s only wish. When Drew meets Lily at a wedding, he thinks he has a solution to both of their problems. If only Lily sees it the same way.

With This Ring is only 99 cents on Kindle!

You can’t beat that price!

http://www.amazon.com/With-This-Wedding-Dreams-ebook/dp/B00EHMXUW2/

Congratulations to Savannah on her new release!

A2A Author N.K. Smith goes on blog tour with Are You Mine?

Synopsis: Human connection? Who needs it? Ever since she can remember, wealthy but weary Saige Armstrong has felt different from her peers in Pechimu, New Jersey. With only one good friend to her name, she has navigated the complicated halls of high school and is now faced with the timeless question: Now what? Fox Harrington, a fun-loving, socially charismatic graffiti artist uses his passions to color his world how he wants it. He knows exactly where his life is headed. That is, until he meets Saige. A summer project links the two together, making a tentative friendship bloom into romance, but despite their affection for each other, fundamental beliefs and ways of thinking threaten to destroy all they have built.

 "These moments in life are the best there are. They’re heavy with emotion, messy with the what-ifs, and frightening with the unknowns."

Visit N.K. Smith’s blog and view the full schedule here: http://nksmithauthor.blogspot.com/2013/08/are-you-mine-blog-tour-schedule.html?zx=14a4f7adba85412a

Are You Mine? may be purchased on Amazon here: http://www.amazon.com/Are-You-Mine-ebook/dp/B00CSVPBGC/

Author Lindsey Gray's Redemption Series I-Spy Game

For all you readers and writers out there who love to play online games and enter contests, here's a good one! The winner will receive an ebook of their choice published by The Writer's Coffee Shop! Take a look!

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1WoqCjX55BmRPnEkJ0pLwac7xt_jU63fEfo6Ye71WURg/viewform

Wednesday’s Weird Word

Acersecomic

Definition: A person whose hair has never been cut.

Origin: Greek- kome /Latin- acersecomes

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Thank you for reading Author to Author's first edition of The Wednesday Word! Visit us again next week for more news and savings to refresh your bookish pleasures! As always, feel free to share and spread the word!

Sneak Peek with Olivia Linden

The SUBCLUB Spring Giving Event

The SUBCLUB is extending their first ever Spring Giving Event for another month. Over 30 authors to try and raise money for their various charities.

 

Each author participating has their own page which includes the charity of their choice, why they chose it, and the rafflecopter for their giveaway for you to enter.  Please donate to these amazing causes!

Below is a list of all the participating authors. Click on their name to be taken their page. Please send proof of all donations to Thesubclubbooksgirls@gmail.com

A. Meredith Walters        Amber Belldene           Andrew Shaffer          Cassia Leo
CJ ROBERTS                  Debra Anastasia            Ella Frank                   Emily Snow
Hannah Fielding             Heather Huffman        Jamie McGuire           Jennifer Probst
Jodi Ellen Malpas           Kahlen Aymes              Kelli Maine                 Kendall Grey
Kendall Ryan                  Laura Kaye                    Luke Young                M.A. Stacie
Madeline Sheehan          Michelle Leighton        Mina Vaughn          Nicole Andrews Moore
Portia Da Costa              Rachael Wade              Rebecca Donovan       S.L. Jennings
S.L. Scott                         Sherri Hayes                 Sophie Morgan          Sylvain Reynard
Tammara Webber           Tara Sivec                     Tiffany Reisz           Tracey Garvis Graves