Writing 101: Juggling Multiple Projects

Many readers like to read more than one book at a time. So is it okay for writers to work on more than one book at a time? Should you be juggling multiple projects, instead of focusing on just one book? 

Balls in the Air

I had to face this question myself, recently. As my Facebook followers know, I've been stuck on the last three chapters of my current project for quite some time now. I started re-reading the manuscript in an attempt to get the creative energies flowing again...and somehow found myself looking over all the research I pulled together for a different book project that I started and stopped (in favor of my current work, ironically). 

As I looked over the materials, I got all excited about the project all over again. I started thinking about the ending, a sure sign that I'm looking forward to working on a project, and had to keep reminding myself that I already have a book to work on. 

Which is exactly why I say no to juggling multiple book projects. As an indie author, I've already got a lot of stuff to do. Blogging, book promotion, forum reading...it takes me over an hour every day just to erase all the Twitter and Wattpad spam from my inbox.  If you self-publish, you're already juggling. Why try to juggle separate casts, settings and plots while you're at it? 

Working on two books at once is a good way to confuse yourself, stretch yourself way too thin...and keep yourself from completing either project. Hey, we've all been there. You get stuck working on a story, so you start another (or go back to an old project you quit long ago). You get into the writing groove again, and you get a lot of progress made on the new story. Then you feel guilty, and go spend time on the other. You pingpong back and forth until you exhaust yourself, finish neither, and start on yet a third story. 

When you get used to juggling, it starts to become easy. You begin with simple, round balls. Then you get really good at it. So you add some bowling pins, which have to be tossed and handled with a bit more finesse. But then you master that, so you decide to turn things up a bit. You throw in something a little more dangerous. Before you know it, you're juggling four chainsaws at once and standing in a flaming ring of fire. It was all so simple in the beginning. All you wanted to do was entertain. Now, you're one wrong breath away from totally severing your hands. 

Juggling multiple projects doesn't work. If you get stuck on a story, it doesn't mean you should immediately abandon that story. Take a break from it -- and from writing stories -- and see how you feel then. Re-read a little of it, and see if you feel like continuing the plot after all. Staying focused on that world is the most effective way to get the project completed. 

But if you do get excited about your next project or a different story idea, use it. I looked over my materials for a different book, and I'm really eager to start writing it. This gave me the motivation I needed to sit myself down and get to work on my current project...and I'm happy to report that I now only have two chapters to complete. I am going to write that next story...but I've got to finish this one first. Juggling has a way of getting really dangerous. 

Writing 101: Success as an Author

I've been thinking a lot, lately, about success. As a writer, it's my job to define words and think about what they mean. Sometimes, I'll agonize over a single word in a sentence for so long it's the only one I get to write that day. As a person, it's easy to get overwhelmed by bills and living expenses and big emergencies and all the rest. And as an author, I've realized that I have no idea what success actually is. 

Are You a Success? 

Are you a success? Before you ask yourself the question, figure out what the heck that word means to you. Because every writer knows that words contain shades of meaning within different shades of meaning. The word opulent may have personally negative associations for me, while to you it just means extra lavish. 

So you get to find your own definition of success (and maybe you'll share yours with me). 

Does it mean that you're financially comfortable? That you have no worries? That you don't panic when you get an unexpectedly enormous bill to pay? To some people, that's exactly what success means.

But are you still a success if you hate what you do in order to earn that money? Suppose you're a killer for hire making a cool 50 grand for every life you take...and your last target was a 20-year-old soldier? Or a mother of three? Or maybe you just make a ton of money standing in a room and filing all day (because that might be possible somewhere), but your mind is turning to mush and you're bored silly. Are you still a success under these circumstances?

By that measure, are you a success if you're happy with what you do? If you enjoy your days, but every night you have to worry about where your next meal is coming from...are you a success then? 

And let's not forget the factors that are unique to authors. Are you success if you get a lot of 5-star reviews...or even just one? Are you a success if you get a real, bona fide fan letter? Or are you only a success if your book becomes a bestseller?

I don't have the answers, because I don't get to judge whether or not you are a success. That's the real secret of the question: you're the only one who can ever answer it. Don't let someone else answer that question for you. You define your own success, and you make it happen as best as you can. Success as an author means shutting out every one else's opinion...and just figuring out your own. 

Writing 101: Paper or Plastic?

Are ebooks better than paper books, or just more convenient to store? As an indie author, it's important for you to understand your medium...all the mediums you use. So it's time to really get an answer to that eternal question: paper or plastic? 

Reading on Screens

It's a lot easier to carry a cell phone, a tablet or an ereader than to haul 20 books with you everywhere you go. But when you read on a screen instead of on the page, you may be missing out on some of the story. 

By what gauge does one judge the relative merits of reading on a screen versus reading a paper book? As an author, my biggest concern is reading comprehension. 

I'm not the only one who cares about it. The Nielsen Norman Group conducted several studies regarding reading speed and comprehension. According to their findings, it takes readers longer to finish a page of text on the screen. Specially, reading from a computer screen is 25 percent slower than reading a printed page. Reading from a Kindle is almost 11 percent slower than reading a paper book. Reading on the iPad is a little faster -- just 6.2 percent slower than reading on paper.

But that's not all. Reading from the screen isn't just slower, it's harder. Readers who participated in the study using an iPhone-sized screen understood only about half of what they were reading. Compared to those who read from a monitor, iPhone users comprehended around 48 percent less of the text they scanned.

Nielsen asked readers to share their opinions about reading from screens, while they were at it. Surprisingly, many readers said they found it more relaxing to read a paper book. Those who read from their computer screens were uncomfortable, because it reminded them of being at work.

What should indie authors do with the information? They should keep publishing across as many mediums as possible in order to satisfy the biggest possible group of readers. Publish your books so they can be read on the Kindle, Nook, iPads and other tablets...and in paper. As screens grow more sophisticated and technology more advanced, reading from a screen soon may be even better than reading from the page.

Until then, keep printing...just to be on the safe side.

Writing 101: Regard or Regards?

Adding an s to a word may be enough to completely change that word. With other words, however, the change is not so big. When it comes to regard and regards, does that little s make a difference?

To S or Not to S

I'm writing to you in regard to a book review. 

Regard is sort of an old-fashioned way to say about or concerning. Or is it regards? Use it in the sentence, and it still makes a lot of sense.

I'm writing to you in regards to a book review. 

In the example, the correct usage of the word is regard. You're talking about a book review, a singular object. This means that any modifier of that noun should also be singular -- so leave off the s.

But in the plural, you want to add the s to regards. Let's look at an example.

With regards to the book review requests I've been sending...

Now you're talking about more than one object -- requests. That means now you add the s to make your sentence technically correct. 

However, this is an extremely fine grammar point that most people ignore altogether. Regards and regard are used pretty much interchangeably. Use the one that sounds best to you for the particular sentence you're writing, and you should be okay. Remember that when you doubt your grammar, just read it out loud. If it sounds weird, it's probably wrong.

Guest Post: Cost-Cutting Editing

by Leti Del Mar

Everything I have ever come across in regard to self-publishing says I should get my work edited.  Even those who don't self-publish are still urged to have their manuscript edited before submitting it to agents or publishers.  It makes sense to have your work edited, but it can also be incredibly expensive. I asked around for someone to edit my 82,000 word manuscript and the price range was $500 to $1,500!  ...And that was people just getting started in the business, not those who come highly recommended.

What if you're just starting out and uncomfortable with spending that much money on editing?  What is an aspiring writer to do?  Fortunately, I've got some cost-cutting suggestions!

When it comes to editing for content, you absolutely need another pair of eyes looking over your work.  A free way to do this is to ask a beta reader to read your book.  A beta reader is someone who will read your work and then give you their opinion. It is a good idea to have some questions in mind you want to ask about plot, characters and setting. A good beta reader will give you his or her general ideas and point out inconsistencies or troubled areas.  I've had great success connecting with beta readers on message boards. Try Goodreads groups, World Literary Cafe and the Kindle boards.

• Sway students. If you want a more personal touch and are willing to shell out some cash, try your local college or University. It is amazing what $50 will buy you. Post a notice asking for English students to critique your work.
• Swap edits. Use those message boards to find other authors willing to swap edits. Ask for a thorough edit and have them consider grammar, spelling and punctuation.
• Swap services. Are you handy with graphic design? Swap a cover design for an edit with another author. Are you super duper organized and have contacts with book bloggers?  Perhaps you could swap organizing a blog tour in exchange for an edit.  Hit those message boards and advertise what you can do in exchange for a good manuscript edit.

There are also some great websites out there to help you edit your work.  Grammar Girl answers all sorts of grammatical questions for free. Auto Crit will assess your work and search for things like overused words, spelling mistakes and some grammar issues. You can try it for free, but their packages start at about $50 a year. I love Grammarly! It does a wonderfully thorough job of searching your work for all kinds of grammatical mistakes.  Again, you can try it for free. Ttheir packages start at around $20 a month.

Are these options as good as hiring a professional editor? No.  However, if you are just starting out or if your books have not sold enough that you can justify investing $1500, these suggestions will help you put together a more professional product -- whether you are self-publishing or submitting to agents and publishers.

Want more cost-cutting advice? Check out my book, How To Self-Publish: A DIY Approach. It is available on Amazon for just $0.99.

About the Author

Bio: Leti Del Mar lives in sunny Southern California with her husband, daughter and abnormally large cat. When she isn’t writing, reading or blogging, she is teaching Biology and Algebra to teenagers. Leti is also a classic film buff, passionate about Art History and loves to travel.

 Leti's blog    Amazon    Goodreads     Facebook   Twitter

This book is for anyone who has ever considered publishing their own work but has either thought the process seemed too complicated or too expensive. My newest book will hold your hand as it guides your manuscript from your word processor to a formatted e-book and paperback. It will show you how to launch and market your book, get reviews, and use social media to establish an author platform. I promise to show you how this can all be accomplished for less than you would spend on a week's worth of lattes!

My Do-It-Yourself Approach is full of useful advice and practical tips any author new to the world of self-publishing can easily implement.

The best news? I am not alone in this endeavor. I have teamed up with 6 other authors who represent a wide variety of writers including; Craig Hurren, Victoria Sawyer, Carmen Stefanescu, Clancy Tucker, Melissa Wray and Lee Zamloch. They have each contributed their insight on topics like the importance of research, coping with bad reviews, creating a brand, utilizing feedback and much more!

Writing 101: Unsolicited Advice

Once you've been an indie author for a while and published a few books, you begin to gain a certain amount of wisdom and experience. You know, for example, how to format an ebook, where to go for cover art, which Goodreads groups to use to find reviews. The indie author community is largely a place for sharing information, and there are times when it all feels friendly. And one day, you may be compelled to take some other indie author under your wing and share your valuable experience with them. You may, one day, feel the need to give out a little unsoliticed advice -- with the best intentions in mind, of course.

I warn you not to do this...no matter how tempting it might get. 

Everything You Can Do...

Say you're hosting an indie author on your blog, or you're being hosted on their blog. Suppose, during the course of getting all of this organized, you notice something on their blog or Twitter profile or Amazon page or whatever. Something...that's just wrong. Maybe the blurb is all wrong, or the cover is crazy-looking, or they're just misunderstanding Twitter all to hell and back. 

You know better. In fact, you made a similar mistake and learned all about it. You know exactly how to fix the problem...and it would be fairly easy to do. So do you tell your indie author colleague, and grace them with the value of your knowledge and insight? 

Absolutely, unequivocally, no. It doesn't matter how nicely you phrase it or how well-intentioned you mean it. If you give you unsolicited advice to another author, it's going to be interpreted as a criticism 9 times out of 10. Of those 9 times, 8 of them are going to go poorly when that other author tells you off (or worse, points out your own flaws). It's just a bad situation for everyone. They won't take your advice any way except the wrong way, they certainly won't follow it, and you're just going to wind up feeling bad and frustrated. It could even lead to an argument and it could very easily ruin the opportunity to work with this author in the future. 

Wait until they ask. If they ask you what you think, they're opening the door and they expect to get some criticism back. When you give unsolicited advice, it very often feels like an attack to indie authors -- who are, generally speaking, a little nervous and unsure of their art in the first place. If they don't ask, they don't ask -- and it isn't your place to give them the help they need. If they're not asking you, it's because they don't want your help. 

So make it easy on yourself, and simply don't give out unsolicited advice. It's almost never received well, and you have lots of other stuff to do.

Writing 101: A Labor of Love?

Do you get crushed by every negative review? Feel a deep pain in your gut if someone doesn't absolutely adore your book? As an artist, it's natural for you to love your creations...but it's something you've got to avoid. Loving your books is dangerous. 

Love's Labor Lost

I wrote, once, about falling in love with one of my books...and how it nearly destroyed me. Now I know that I should never love one of the books I write....I should love writing itself. 

There is a difference, believe me. If you love your book, you're going to be sensitive about it. You're going to find it much harder to listen to criticism that may help you, and you're going to struggle to read and absorb those reviews you work so hard to receive. 

What I'm saying is this: that book isn't going to love you back. Don't give your heart away to something that can't return it or even reinforce it. Don't love your books, love the work. If you love writing itself, rather than the stuff you create with it, you'll always be a writer. If you fall in love with a book, you may get your heart broken. And you may come really close to never writing again, which is exactly what happened to me.

Writing a book is a labor of love, but that doesn't mean you should love the book. You should like the book. You should enjoy reading it (because if you don't, no one else will). And you should definitely put a lot of labor and love into it...just don't fall in love with it. Keep your distance, and stay professional as a writer. This way, you'll always get better as an author...and you'll always be able to move on to your next book project. 

Indie News: Indie Authors Want to Rule the World

Self-publishing is spreading, like a word plague, across the globe. Amazon has launched the Kindle Store and their KDP program in Mexico. Tears for Fears said that everybody wants to rule the world...but Amazon may actually do it one day.

The two launches mean that indie authors in Mexico will now have the option of self-publishing their work through the online giant. Stateside authors enthusiastically embraced the KDP program upon its launch, unleashing a tidal wave of indie titles. The availability of the Kindle Store in Mexico means that US authors will now have the option of selling their books to Mexico, and vice versa. 

Self-publishing has spread so far so fast, many have questioned whether it signals an end to traditional publishing. If self-publishing and ebooks become the norm, Amazon really could rule the world one day.