Friday Five: Advice for Writers
This will be a recurring series for the next several Fridays in which I give you the best advice for writers that i've come across.5. Writing is art and publishing is business. Just because you're the 'artist' doesn't mean that you can ignore the business side of things. Save the creativity for your writing, not your query. Always appear professional and courteous.
4. Don't skip the agent. 15% is a small price to pay for all the expertise and bargaining power agents bring to the table. They are very much worth having.
3. Know when to listen to the experts. If you want to be the best writer you can be, listen to the editors when they talk about sentence structure. Listen to the agents when they talk about query writing on their blogs. The more you know, the better you'll be.
2. Know when to ignore the experts. You don't have revere your desk like Stephen King does. If all you've got is a lap, you've got a desk. If you're not a morning person, you don't HAVE to write at the crack of dawn. Write in the afternoon, or late at night. Just be sure to set a schedule and stick with it, whatever it is.
1. Create rituals. If you make coffee before every writing session, or sit and meditate for five minutes (don't fall asleep!) your mind will start to associate these things with writing and will get into writing mode when these actions occur.
If you'd like to contribute to a Friday Five post, email me at camarshallwrites@gmail.com
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8 comments:
Great advice. I particularly like your distinction between creativity and professionalism. Although I'm at risk of teaching my grandma to suck eggs, I'd better explain why I agree :)
So many people making their first queries seem to think it's about grabbing attention - when in fact agents read beyond the gimmicks and look at the standard of the storytelling and the idea.
Moral? You will never lose out by looking professional.
Yes, when new writers hear "grab the attention of the agent" they think gimmicks and clever phrases. What people really mean is that you should write so well that the query reader has no choice but to run to the agent and demand that they sign them.
You will never lose out by looking professional, that's absolutely right!
Absolutely agree with each of the steps you mentioned. BUT as to step 1, I feel that although you mentioned coffee - you forgot to mention chocolate!!! Now is THAT an incentive to write or not?
Great post. Thanks.
Believe it or not, Ann Marie, but I don't like chocolate all that much! I adore dark but even then I can only eat a few squares at most.
But for you, go ahead and have some chocolate too :)
!!!GASP......You ARE kidding? Ok I tend to write after 11 at night until 3-4 in the morning so I need it to boost me up - I can't drink coffee as it gives me the shakes.
Kidding aside, I have recently started to read your posts and am enjoying them. THANKS
Thanks, Ann Marie!
Just hopped over to your blog via Kirsten's tweet.. loved this post!
Thanks to Kirsten for the link and to you, Liz, for following it!
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