#WriterWednesday: 5 Tips to Get Your Book Done Quick

There’s this story burning inside of you. It’s a blistering kind of heat that you just can’t escape. However, you still haven’t completed your book. You’re somewhere between start and stuck. It’s time to move forward and get this book done quickly.

Use the 5 Tips I’m about to share with you so that you can go from start to finish. Because it’s time.

1. Sit your behind down and write. Stop thinking about writing. Stop talking about writing.Stop romanticizing writing, sit yourself in a chair and get to typing or writing.

2. Establish a concrete timeline for the publication of your book. The first thing I ask any of Publishing Pow-Wow clients is, “When would you like to see your book in the hands of the reader?” Defining this helps set all other goals. This timeline will become the basis and foundation for you to get things done quickly. When do you want to see your book on shelves–six months from now two months from now two years from now? This will inform your word count goal and the development of your marketing plan (yes, you have to market the book). Some say you have to write everyday and there are others who say it’s okay to take break between the words. This timeline will tell you whether or not you can afford to take a break.

3. Outline your book. I’m sure you’ve heard of the great debate by now–to plot or to pants. I am mostly a pantser. However, when you reach a point in your manuscript where you just can’t write, it’s time to put your pants on and plot it out. Here’s a lose plot formula you can follow:

Plot driven: Protagonist–goal+motivation+obstacle+pursuit+obstacle+motivation revisited+earth shattering obstacle/revelation+decision to fight or take flight+aftermath=the end

Character Driven: inciting incident +goal+flaw+confrontation or obstacle+character ignores flaw and keeps on going+confrontation or obstacle character admits flaw but doesn’t changes=death or change (the flaw begins to have a tremendous impact on character) it’s time for change or go down with sinking ship.

Resources for outlining your novel book:

–8 Ways to Outline a Novel

-11 Easy Steps to Outline Your Novel (this was way too much for me to absorb)

–Outline Your Novel in 30 Minutes (I really like this one)

–9 Questions for 25 Chapters (I’m going to try this one–I’m behind on several deadlines)

4. Use your technology to get it done. I get it you’re all over the place. You have kids. You have a full-time job or demanding career, so there’s very little time for playing with words, which is why you need to steal time and allow technology to work for you. If you don’t have time to sit down and write yet you see whole scenes in your head dictate it.

–Dragon Dictation

If you’re on the go a lot like me. Use the notes function, pages, or Evernote to type your story. I typed more than half of my second novel, Seasoned with Grace on my phone and I typed the draft of this blog post on my phone.

5. Deal with all of your contaminating thoughts.

When a river is polluted or contaminated nothing can grow there or live their. New life can’t be created (and all you science buff, who are thinking about mutations and all that jazz, don’t come for me save it for your book and let me just use this analogy). Your mind is the river and your book is the life form that is dying because of how polluted your thoughts are. This step is the most important, but had I started with this tip you wouldn’t believe me, because it’s not one of the things we really discuss when we discuss writing. Get out of your head and your feelings. Don’t let the fear of rejection block you or stop you. Rejection is going to come, “rejection is apart of the process”. Do not allow your credentials or lack thereof stop you either. For all the writing classes I’ve taken I have never taken a fiction writing class. That didn’t stop me from writing a novel and it better not stop you.

Get busy and if you need more help getting out of your head checkout the replay of the Working Writers Series Day 1.

If you’re interested in joining me for full on Working Writers’ Workshops please let me know in the comments.

 

Do you have any tips to help us get our books finished in a jiffy?

Drop them in the comments and fuel someone else’s greatness. 

#WriterWednesday: Time to Write

As a neophyte author or aspiring author time to write doesn’t exist. In our materialistic society there very often isn’t time built into our schedules for things that don’t bring income into the home. Now add to that the fact that we live in an microwave society where everything has to happen within seconds–it makes it almost impossible for a new writer with bills to find time to write if the words aren’t bringing in the cashflow immediately. 

Here’s what you have to do–the same way that you have created a whole world of people with a series of issues that you need to tend to you must create your time to write. 

There are some writers who will tell you that you must write everyday in order to call yourself a writer. 

This next statement is going to be very controversial. I don’t write everyday and I call myself an author (don’t look at your computer screen like that). It’s true I don’t write everyday. I’ve written everyday this week, but I don’t write everyday.

 I’m a one woman show in a sense. While I am traditionally published Actually, I am no longer traditionally published. Let’s

restate that–while my first two novels were traditionally published God and I have been my publicity team. With a full-time job as an educator in the classroom, a husband, two kids (who live with me unlike those girls on reality t.v. that get to leave their kids with their mamas while they pursue their dreams) writing everyday is really difficult. 

Now, when I do sit down to write here’s how I create time to write

• Nix lunch. Skip your lunch break at work. Brown bag it and bust out the laptop. That’s an hour of writing there. 
• Transform your down time–when I drop my girls off at dance class I tote my laptop with me and while their working the beat my fingers are flying
• Classic Early Bird/Night Owl–Either you rise before dawn and everyone in your house lets out their first yawn or you stay up while everyone in your household enters the early stages of REM sleep. 

I used to feel guilty about not doing what everyone else was doing, but with my second novel Seasoned with Grace scheduled to be released, July 28, 2015 and a novella, Tempted to Touch coming soon with Inheritance Books. The guilt has been assuaged because I do not write everyday that doesn’t make me any less of a writer than anyone else. There are teachers that I work with who teach night classes and Saturday school. I haven’t stopped calling myself an educator because I don’t teach eight hours a day six days a week. It would be foolish for me and any other new  other to discredit themselves because they haven’t found their footing yet.  I’m going to continue creating time to write when I am able to and recommend you do the same. 

How do you currently create time to write? Which one of the suggestions above might help you create more time to write and advance your goals. 

For more information about making time to write and publishing if you’re in the New York City are please join myself and author, Theresa A. Campbell at the Yonkers Public library for a workshop on the path to publication–where we share our experiences and tips and tricks to help you get past the dream stage and into the area of manifestation.