Jen's Writing Journey

For years, I bought into the argument that romance novels support the notion that women can only be happy when they have a man in their life.

Those who make that argument typically don’t read romance novels, and I was definitely in that camp. After a brief flirtation with Harlequins and Silhouettes when I was 9 or 10, I moved on to sci fi and fantasy. Of course, my favorite sci fi and fantasy novels had strong romantic elements and typically the happily ever after that romance novels are known for. But because they weren’t actually romance novels, they seemed a better fit with my ideals.

Now that I’m firmly back in the romance novel fold, I understand that the stories do not argue that women are incomplete unless they are with a man. Instead, they  show the importance of companionship and love in all of our lives. Women and men can lead happy and fulfilling lives without a life partner, but we are always looking for that companion who will make everything seem slightly more meaningful than it would without them.

And that quest for love and companionship is the basic human need that romance novels speak to.

Related Posts:

• Guest Blogging at Love Romance Passion
• What Do You Think of Romance Novels?

Where has this month gone? How did you do on your goals? I got my spreadsheet going, and I’m using it. The two books are still in process, but I’ve got a whole weekend ahead of me! And I’ve gotten 3,000 words written on my novel.

The Business of Writing

Five Bonus Tips on How to Survive in Publishing
In this companion to the print article, Patricia Holt provides some tips to navigate the author-publisher relationship.

The Case for #RWAChange
The romance world is still reeling from the back-and-forth between RWA leadership and membership regarding e-publishers. Jane from Dear Author pulled together a nice collection of posts on the topic.

Pitching: Scoring a Home Run
Writer Jenn Bray-Weber gives good advice for preparing the elevator speech about your book and for how to comport yourself when you meet with an agent.

Low Publishing Salaries >===== Literature Suffers?
Moonrat gives an interesting take on who you will likely need to impress to get your book moved up the chain and published.

Writing a Synopsis Doesn’t Have to Kill You
Tips for pulling together the dreaded synopsis. It’s all about organization and understanding the structure of your story.

Craft

Good Reading Recipe
Another post from Dear Author, this lists the criteria they use when reviewing a book. It is an exhaustive list, and it can help you write a better book to begin with. When you are reading a draft, try to approach it using these criteria to decide how and where to revise.

Easy on the Hoopdedoodle
Elmore Leonard gives tips for creating gripping fiction. No, this wasn’t posted this week, but the editors at The Blood-Red Pencil did link to it this week.

I Do Not Have Time to Read This Crap
Author Anne R. Allen provides a quick and dirty list of writing don’ts.

Why You Should Not Write Your Novel
Andy Shackcloth shares an interesting opinion about the preparation a writer needs not only in writing but also in promotion and marketing before writing that first novel. I’m not sure I agree completely, although I enjoyed the concept of the post. We writers need to  be aware of the responsbilities we’ll have once we’re done with the book, but nothing teaches writing better than writing.

Fiction

How to Save Time and Money with Professional Editors
Jim Adams details the lessons he learned after getting his first novel edited by a professional. The second time around, he had his synopsis edited, and used the feedback to make changes to the complete work.

On Books: Gloating Villains
How many times have you read a book or watched a movie where the villain gloats over his or her victim, providing said victim with the time and opportunity to escape? And how many times did it make you want to pull your hair out? Elizabeth Moon reminds us that villains do often gloat; our job as writers is to make sure their actions are in character, not cartoonish.

Freelancing

Exposing Some Myths about Blogging Pay Rates
Jennifer Mattern provides some context to consider when setting rates for blog posts. There is such a wide range of price points, and beginning freelancers find it so hard to place appropriate value on what they do without pricing themselves out of the job.

Writers Never Run Out of Blog Topics
Victoria Janssen offers some guiding questions to help you jump-start your creativity when you just can’t think of a blog topic. The questions are also useful to freelancers looking for story ideas to pitch. You probably shouldn’t invite guests, unless they are your co-authors, but you can interview your friends for profiles in appropriate venues.

5 Places to Find Higher-Paying Freelance Writing Jobs
How to Attract the High-Paying Writing Jobs
These two posts are not from this week, but I am including them to help my visitors create strategies to find writing jobs that pay a living wage. Low-paying jobs are everywhere, and they are a good place to begin earning money while you cut your teeth on writing for clients. Use the lessons you learn in the lower-paying gigs to build your skill and portfolio so that you can go after the higher-paying jobs.

Related Posts:

• Writing Roundup, October 23
• Writing Roundup, September 11
• Writing Roundup, September 4
• Writing Roundup, August 28
• Writing Roundup, Aug. 14

Twitter is all about connections and networking, right?

Well, here are some of the essential people to follow on Twitter to help you build your freelance career. (Listed in no particular order)

@DebNG: Deb is the founder of the Freelance Writing Jobs blog. She tweets about the freelance life and when she has new posts or job leads. Deb is an advocate for fair pay for freelance work.

@QueryFreeWriter: Jennifer Mattern runs this group and associated Twitter account. I’ve included quite a few of her posts on freelancing in my roundups. The goal is to clue freelancers in about career paths that focus less on a life of writing query after query and more on billable projects.

@FreelanceFolder: Tips and posts to help you lead a successful freelance life.

@FreelanceSW: Another great source for tips about leading a successful freelance life.

@WendyBurt: Wendy Burt provides information about contests, interviews with successful writers, and advice based on her experience as a full-time freelance writer.

@LFormichelli: Another full-time freelancer, Linda Formichelli offers training in various aspects of freelance writing.

@thewritermama: Christina Katz is the author of Writer Mama and Get Known Before the Book Deal, two essential components of any writers’ toolkit. Writer Mama provides advice for building a writing career around kids, but the advice applies for any writer who has limited time.

@TXWriter: Laura Spencer is a writer and blogger. She hosts a great blog and tweets about her new posts–and other topics.

@standoutcopy: Ellen Buchine is a freelance copywriter. She shares tips for creating clean, effective copy and using words wisely.

@JaneFriedman: Jane Friedman is the publisher of Writer’s Digest/

@bakercom1: Pam Baker is another freelancer. She provides a model of how to use Twitter to find writing gigs and sources.

@AnneWayman: Anne Wayman runs the About Freelance Writing blog.

@mariaschneider: Maria is a freelancer who used to be the editor of Writer’s Digest. She tweets interesting resources for writers.

@WritersDigest: Official Twitter account for the writer’s bible.

@MediaBistro: MediaBistro is a site targeted toward media professionals.

@AvantGuild: The members-only section of the Media Bistro web site. This account tweets about events and courses.

What about you? Who do you follow in Twitter? What blogs about writing can you simply not live without?

Related Posts:

• Agents to Follow on Twitter
• Book Review: Full Time Income in Part Time Hours, a Freelance Writing Book by Gretchen Roberts
• Writing Roundup, July 22
• Writing Roundup, June 24
• Writing Roundup, June 10

All of you who visit me know I’m a techie kind of girl. I like my computer. I like my iPod. I like my cell phone. But there are some other tools that help me with my writing.

1. Dave laptop desk from Ikea

This desk is super-cheap ($18) and makes it easy to sit on the couch and write without getting laptop burns on your lap.

2. Interlibrary loan

My local library has a good selection of writing books–there are a lot of writers in the Portland area, and we need a lot of books. Interlibrary loan makes the collection awesome. Check with your local library to see if they do interlibrary loan and how you can search the catalogs of other libraries to get access to the books you need.

3. My Circa Notebook

I love all of the little pouches and pockets and the interchangeable pages of different sizes. The best feature for me right now is the pocket where I can stow my receipts for business purchases immediately–no more scramble at the end of the year to find the receipts in my various purses and drawers.

4. Sugar-free Rock Star

I know this isn’t good for me, but it keeps my mind active so that I can use my evenings to make good progress. After a long day of writing at work and two hours of commuting,I need the kick to keep myself going.

What are your go-to tools to keep your writing life going?

Related Posts:

• Submissions Tracking Sheet Created!
• Cool Tools
• Why yWriter?

We’ve got some great resources this week–summer hasn’t slowed down any of the bloggers!

The Business of Writing

Money, Money, Money, Money
Author Lauren Dane shares her thoughts on the RWA president’s position on e-publishing. It is a well-thought-out argument that asks the RWA to put the focus back on writers and their needs rather than on the publishing medium. Also read parts 2 and 3 of this series to find out more about the nuts and bolts of book deals.

Textbooks: A Market Begging for Change
Students (and their parents) could benefit a great deal from the move from print to electronic publishing–their backs wouldn’t bend under the weight of their books, and their school expenses could be greatly reduced. Joe Wikert presents some ideas about why textbooks need to change their delivery model and what obstacles the change faces.

Straight from the Source: A Book Editor Helps You with Those Five Little Words
“It doesn’t fit our needs.” We’ve all seen those words, and we’ve all wondered exactly what they meant and what we could do to better meet their needs. Kristine Meldrum Denholm went to a book editor to find out more.

How to Write a Marketing Plan and Promotion Timeline
This is a two-fer from L.J. Sellers. As the release date for her new book looms, she is sharing her marketing info. These posts could serve as the skeleton as you plan your own marketing efforts.

Craft

Discipline
What strategies work for you when you write? Do you need to write at the same time of day? In the same location? Do you think a long time before you binge-write? Or do you chunk away at a project? Author Nancy Kress shares her thoughts on the discipline needed to write.

Internal Dialogue
Author L.J. Sellers shares a recent editing note she received regarding her use of internal dialogue. How do you treat your characters’ thoughts? Do you use internal dialogue narration? How do you handle editing marks or critique notes that you don’t quite agree with?

My Prediction Is…
Jennifer Hubbard gives tips to help you avoid being too predictable. You don’t want actions or choices to be completely out of character, but you also don’t want your readers to guess the end on page 2. Strike a balance.

Fiction

June Writing Tip: What I Learned from Movies and TV
Writers can learn a lot about pacing, character development, and narrative devices from tv shows and movies. Author Joe Finder shares the lessons he has learned and put into practice in his books.

The Vampire’s Influence on Teenage Self-Identification
I know, a lot of us are sick of vampires. But, this piece goes into some of the things current vampire stories are doing right when they target their audience. How are you targeting your audience with your stories?

There and Back Again: Five Reasons Tolkein Rocks
Author China Mievelle shares his admiration of Tolkein’s work. What can we learn from Tolkein’s techniques? How can we shake up familiar story archetypes?

Freelancing

Contacts Pay Off Again
Writer Sue Lick shares a recent tale of networking success. Knowing the right people–and making a favorable impression on them–is key to finding new freelance clients.

Reader Question: Specializing in Article Writing
Specialization typically equals higher pay, because the more you know about a topic area, the more valuable you become. But, it can be hard to break into a new field of specialization. Jenifer Mattern provides some ideas that will help you.

The Reckoning
Michelle Rafter discusses the changes she is making to her business model to compensate for the recession and for the changes to the landscape of publishing.

Freelance Tips
Lyndon Antcliff shares some of the realities of freelancing. Good for a laugh and a reality check.

Related Posts:

• Writing Roundup, October 23
• Writing Roundup, September 11
• Writing Roundup, September 4
• Writing Roundup, August 28
• Writing Roundup, Aug. 14

Well, Stephen King and quite a few other authors.

I was lucky, and I learned to read when I was 3. That meant the wonderful world of literature was open to me at a young age. As my reading skill grew, I began to read more and more, and at younger ages than many of my peers.

I learned to read phonetically, long before Hooked on Phonics, so I typically sounded out unfamiliar words. This served me well, causing only a few mispronunciations. The most notable was my firm belief that the spoken “awry” was a completely different word than the written “awry,” which I pronounced like oar-y. I did pretty well with books, and I was reading at a high school reading level long before high school.

I also developed a love for the macabre at a young age, before I had ever heard the word “macabre.” NBC used to have a series called Cliffhangers, which had three alternating serials. My favorite was The Curse of Dracula. For those of you doing the math, I was 6 when this show aired. Vampire stories quickly became my favorite of all paranormal tales, but I wasn’t too picky when it came to the scary stuff. My only criterion was that it needed to have a 90% chance of inducing nightmares.

I was huge fan of Stephen King in middle and early high school. I sped through his back catalog and moved on to other paranormal authors who also had good back catalogs and then began reading science fiction and fantasy, which were my big loves until recently when I was introduced to paranormal romances.

Stephen King was the writer who first introduced me to the word “macabre” and many other fun words to describe the things that go bump in the night. So, I was overjoyed to see a tweet earlier this week to a list of Stephen King’s favorite books. Hmmm, I have read a few of them, but not all. And I don’t love all of his faves. Lord of the Flies never spoke to me. But 1984? Amazing.

What are your favorite books? Which authors shaped who you are as a writer and a reader?

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I haven’t set up my website yet, but I do have a shiny brand-spanking-new web domain at jennifer-roland.com. I set up my email address as jennifer@jennifer-roland.com.

Of course, this means I have one more goal for the month of June…

Related Posts:

• Web Host Recommendations
• More on Writing in the Cloud
• Writing in the Cloud
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• Portability

The Business of Writing

Making Time for Real Life
As the lazy days of summer approach, many of we writers are looking for balance between our work and home lives. (Some of us work at home, making it even more confusing.) L.J. Sellers posts her short-term, non-writing to-do list. What’s on your list?

Self-Publishing
Is it a wise choice or a big mistake? Agent Jessica Faust would prefer that authors not go the self-published or POD route before querying her.

The Desire to Be Published
Writer Victoria Janssen explores her own need for validation (aka publication). Why do you want to be published? Or, do you write just for the fun of it, never seeking publication?

Rescuscitating the Muse
Nothing like a reminder that even writers who have received that golden carrot of publication get bogged down in the mire of despair that we call writer’s block. Minnette Meador gives her “Why I Write” list, which is one way to bring back the love of writing if you’ve lost it.

This Is a Blog
Oh, agents and their quirky desire that we writers use words correctly. Nathan Bransford gives a little tip about how to personalize letters to him–describe his blog correctly, for starters.

Craft

First Draft in 30 Days…Recommend or Not?
Rebecca isn’t quite sure what to make of the book First Draft in 30 Days. It’s author claims that it is possible to create a compelling first draft that will require little editing–and to do it in a tight time frame. Do you buy it?

Top Ten Things I Know about Editing
Alexandra Sokoloff stops by The Blood-Red Pencil to share her wisdom about the editing process. She offers some great tips. (For more on editing–because, who doesn’t want to read more about editing–see Rebecca’s 12-part series, which begins here.)

Fiction

The Link
Author C.J. Lyons explores the missing link between cave drawings and modern stories. Turns out people have always looked for stories that illuminate the human condition and provide a little entertainment. But we all knew that, right?

Plot Progressions
Elle Scott provides an example of a plot progression that helps keep your WIP moving.

Cross My Genre
With all of the cross-genre works out there, how do you decide which genre is your best fit?

Freelancing

Who Sets Your Freelance Writing Rates?
Many freelancers, especially those just starting out, wait for the client to quote a rate. I mean, you don’t want to turn them off by quoting way too high or way too low for their expectations? Unfortunately, many of us are shooting ourselves in the foot. I added rates to my freelance writing and editing page, and I suggest that you do the same. Figure out how much you need to earn and then look at other freelancers to see what they charge. Then have a firm set of starting rates that will allow you to enter negotiations on solid footing.

How to Get Freelance Writing Referrals Even If You’re New
Jennifer Mattern again provides excellent advice. We all know that word of mouth is the most effective form of advertising, and Jennifer gives tips to help get that all-important WOM.

Related Posts:

• Writing Roundup, October 23
• Writing Roundup, September 11
• Writing Roundup, September 4
• Writing Roundup, August 28
• Writing Roundup, Aug. 14

One June goal down. I just finished creating my submissions tracking sheet and getting it up to date.

Related Posts:

• Cool Tools
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• More on Writing in the Cloud
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These are the three things I can’t live without.

1. Google Reader

I feel like I’m a little late to this game, but I’m absolutely in love with Google Reader. It’s free, and it gathers all of the blogs I follow into one handy place that I can read no matter which computer I’m working on.

It automatically gathered the blogs I followed in Blogger, and it lets me easily add new blogs I come across

2. Merriam-Webster Online

Why waste my time flipping through a paper dictionary when I can go online and search for correct spellings and synonyms and antonyms?

3. Text messaging

Inspiration strikes in strange places. Usually when I am nowhere near my computer. When I’m in the grocery store or walking down the street or (don’t tell the policeman) driving, I can capture it in a quick text message and send it to my personal email account. That way, the idea is there next time I turn on the computer.

I have a texting plan on my phone, so I’m not charged for each message. If you are charged per text, you can save each text as a draft, then set a reminder on your phone to check your drafts folder when you are back at your computer.

What are your favorite tools, technological or not?

Related Posts:

• More on Writing in the Cloud
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