best selling authors

Writer’s Wisdom 9

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“Inspiration is all around you.”

 When your ink well is running dry, look around you; you will find inspiration in the oddest of places.  Best selling authors are aware of this and practice it all the time.  Some observe and listen for ideas, others have dreams, others write about what they know; some use ideas that are already out, but modify them into a different story.  Caution should be exercised with this last one, as you have to be careful with copyrights – a lawyer should be handling these details – this applies in the case of modifying a story that has already been written, for example “A Lion Among Men” by Gregory Maguire, which is a different view of The Wizard of Oz. 

Sara Grwen saw a picture of a vintage circus, and that instance, she knew she would write a story about that (Water for Elephants), even when she had started a complete different story.  Christopher Paolini wrote about what he always wanted to read about, but there was just not enough of it around (Besinger).  Jody Picoult says that ideas come from all over the place.  For her, usually about an issue that she doesn’t have the answer to.

So, however you want to connect with your muse, inspiration is all around you, just be aware, or alert to your muse’s call.

Writer’s Wisdom 8

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Perseverance

This is one important characteristic that best selling authors have in common.  Their backgrounds are very diverse, but there is a constant – they persevere once they fall into writing, and they just keep at it for as long as it takes.  Some of them had hardship in their lives, or events that lead them into writing.  But once they wrote, they persevered.  Many aspiring authors love writing, but they are not willing to hang in there for the love of it.  Rejections are hard, but each one comes with a wealth of information attached to it.

The American Heritage Dictionary defines perseverance as:  “to persist in or remain constant to a purpose, idea or task in spite of obstacles.” 

According to this definition, not only do we have to be persistent, but also constant, in spite of obstacles.  Many writers stop, take a break, become paralyzed or frozen at the arrival of a rejection letter. They stop writing, they suffer, mourn, and disconnect themselves from their main purpose – writing.  But this is not what perseverance is.  While dealing with the feelings of rejection (the obstacle), a writer must continue to write, write, write.

Writer’s Wisdom 7

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Love of the craft – write, write, write.

Some best selling authors seemed to have writing in the back-burner, and somehow, fell into it as if by chance or destiny; others, did not even know if they were any good.  But one thing they have in common is that they write, write, write.  They have a discipline about writing, and they love writing.  It is their passion, as if a birthright.  However you feel about writing, if you want to become good at it, then you have to be disciplined about your writing and give it a serious place in your life.  There are many inspiring bios of best selling authors.  You may want to check out Stephenie Meyer, Janet Evanovich, Lalita Tademy, and Sara Grwen.  They had their very unique start in writing, and they will inspire you.

So, pick up your pen, wake up your PC, and write, write, write.

Writer’s Wisdom 6

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“Pick a genre and stick with it, at least at the beginning.”

For those who are planning on making a career out of writing, this is sound advice.  At the beginning, the excitement and inspiration is high, the ideas are floating everywhere, and you feel that you can write hundreds of books in different genres.  You may be able to, but you have to focus your writing.  Read best selling authors in different genres and have a feel for the genre that you identify with the most.  Stick with that genre and start writing.  Write everyday.  Once your first manuscript is finished, send your queries and keep writing.  If you get published, you will start establishing yourself in that genre, and then, later in your career, you may decide if you want to try other genres.  At the beginning of your writer’s career your efforts and focus should not be spread around.  You have a story to tell, and in the future, many readers that will want some more.  So, pick a genre and write, write, write.

How to Fight Writer’s Block

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With these easy to do techniques, you can say goodbye to the dreaded dark cloud – writer’s block.

  1. The dream approach – Dreams are a great source of inspiration.  Keep a notebook and pen next to your bed; and as soon as you wake up, write down your dreams.  Anything that you remember will become fuel for your writing.
  2. The word approach – Take a word, any word, and play with it in your mind.  Write down the ideas that the word generates.  These ideas will become themes for your writing.
  3. The “throw it out there” approach – This method is fun!  Utilize your email or better, your social networks for feedback.  Just put out a sentence and invite people to comment about it.  Limit their comment to a short sentence.  Their input can generate ideas that can in turn, become excellent topics for writing.
  4. The mind approach – Thoughts are bouncing all the time in your mind.  This process is non-stop, even if you are not aware of it.  Become a watcher of your thoughts, write them down, and use them for inspiration.
  5. The conversation approach – When you are running your errands, standing on line, at a restaurant, or any other place, listen to what people are saying around you.  This is a great source for writing material.
  6. The newsworthy approach – What is going on the news?  What do people seem to care about?  Write about that.
  7. The” from bad to good approach” – Listen to the news and pick up a sad story.  Now, what would that story look like with a happy ending?  Use the inspiration from the story to create your own.
  8. The “what I love” approach – This is simple; just write about themes that you love.  It should be effortless, since you have a passion for the subject.
  9. The “against my grain” approach – Write about subjects that you totally dislike.  This will force you to do some research, you will learn something in the process, and will have plenty of material to write.
  10. The sentence approach – Take any sentence, any, and develop a story from it.

Inspiration is everywhere; you just have to attune your senses.  So, wake up your pen (or your PC), and start writing!

Writer’s Wisdom 5

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“It is a huge honor to have your book made into a movie; but, it is a totally different animal.”

I heard a best-selling author say this in an interview; I wish I remember who. Many best selling authors have had this honor.  This is one of the best things that can happen to you as a writer (besides being published for the first time).  Some writers are actively involved in the process, while others are completely disconnected, by choice.  Most of them agree that making a movie out of a book is a totally different animal, and that you should let the “movie makers” work their magic.  Others agree that the integrity of the story should be kept, they welcome instances where the magic of the movies has made the story dynamic, or a particular part, better.

For us fans of best selling authors, we can’t wait for the movie to be made.  We got a good taste of a good book and now, we wait for the dessert.

Writer’s Wisdom 4

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“The characters will take a life of their own; they will lead you, but you are in control.”

As you get deep into the story, each character will start interacting with you in its own way.  Sometimes, a character will refuse to do what you want them to do, and will suggest other ways.  It is up to you to listen to that character, feel what he/she is feeling, get a better understanding of where he/she is coming from.  Sometimes, characters will surprise you, they will step forward in the story, or they will stay back.  Sometimes, characters will help you in a story dilemma; you might be stuck with an issue, and suddenly, a character jumps out with the appropriate answer.  So, listen to your characters, talk to them.  However, you are still in control of the story.  You choose to accept or refuse their input, and you certainly have the last written word.

 

Writer’s Wisdom 3

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Send hundreds of queries!

Don’t take no for an answer, keep at it.  Eventually you will get a yes!

That is the advice of many seasoned published authors, unless you plan to become an independent or self-published author. It may sound obvious, but many will stop short of that.  If you love writing, but also intend to become a published author, then you have to send hundreds of queries if you don’t get answers right away.  Perseverance and focus are of the essence here.  For some, it goes faster than others.  It took Janet Evanovich, ten years going at it.  It took Stephenie Meyer, a few queries (less than 20).  Both of them are exceptional best selling authors.  However, if you love writing, are passionate about it, and can’t see yourself doing anything, but write, then approach each day with a smile, exercise your keyboard (or pen), arm yourself with the latest copy of the Writer’s Market (or go to writersmarket.com), and keep at it, eventually you’ll get a yes.

Follow these series.  New tips everyday.

Writer’s Wisdom 2

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Accept Rejection

As hard as it sounds, this is part of being a writer.  No one likes rejection, but in the end, it can only make you better, that is, if you embrace it instead of letting it affect your self esteem and work.  By looking for honest feedback on rejections, you will grow in your craft, resulting in more doors to open for you.  So, look at rejections as something that can help you, in a positive way.  When feedback is denied or very unclear, then it is time to ask yourself, am I wasting my time with this individual?  Time is precious, especially for writers.  A minute waste is an idea gone.  So, don’t waste your time back and forth with someone who won’t give you clear and specific critique about your work.  Your goal is to get better at writing, and that can only be done by accepting rejection, listening to honest critique and improving your work.

Rejection will only make you grow; will only make you better .

Writer’s Wisdom – first of a series

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After sitting down for hours, drinking coffee and watching best seller authors on You Tube, and many others being interviewed, I was able to compile their best advice for aspiring writers.  Although, these writers have many different writing styles, they all seem to converge on some important basic points that I intend to share with you.  So, let’s see what they had to say.

The recommendation that they all seem to stress as most important was:  Write, write, write.

The advice is to write every day.  It doesn’t matter if you stare at a blank screen (or page), for a few minutes (or hours), just sit down and start writing whatever thoughts cross your mind.  If you are writing a book, write something everyday; no matter if it is for a few minutes, just write.  As long as you start hitting the keyboard or scratching the paper, something will come out.  Ideas come an go, maybe some of them for another book, or another article.  At its worst, there will be plenty of material to ponder over.

Follow me tomorrow for more of their tips.  Happy Writing !