5 Tricks That Will Make You a Better Writer

Halloween is almost upon us, but I don't remember the last time one of my grandchildren was asked to do a trick at someone's door over getting a free treat.

With writing, however, tricks remain one of the greatest treats of creating your best work.

Allow me to share 5:

1. Getting out. Like the ghouls and boys at Halloween, you must venture out to get that well-craved treat. You can't expect to stay home (unless you're the parent) and receive your favorite chocolates. The same is true with the better writers who go out - not just to work or to the grocery store - but on a planned visit. Taking a walk is good, so is visiting the park, taking in a movie or dinner alone, or purposely planning a weekend at a favorite hotel or destination to write your heart out.

Our annual Halloween party. From left to right: Bekah as Nancy Drew, Chris as Neighborhood Watch guy, Me as Carmen Sandiego, Doug as Sherlock Holmes, Jacob as Scooby Do.
WE LOVE OUR GRANDKIDS!  

2. Writing when you don't feel like it. Writing, for me, is like breathing. Some days, all I can do is write in my journal, but I write every day. When it hurts the most is the best time to write. I have found when I write when I hurt I heal that much faster.

3. Reading what other writers have written. I know, I know, you've heard this for years, but it remains true. I still talk to writers who love to write but they never read. There is something life-changing about reading what someone else has written and paying attention to how and what they have written about, especially if the book is in the same genre as the one you are writing or wish to write. We can learn a lot about characters, setting, dialogue, and plot by reading someone else's work.

4. Editing! Editing, at least for me, is a dreaded task until I think about the end result. Always, always, the end result is a better representation of what I have written. Always! How many drafts does it take to get to the end of your [book]? The world may never know, but you should.

"How many licks does it take to get to the end of a Tootsie Pop?"

 Photo by Nagesh Badu on Unsplash

5. Taking in feedback. This is hard! I still struggle with this one! Especially after I've worked hard to make the work my best and there are still issues! Sometimes the feedback is someone's opinion. You hear it once and no one else makes the same comment. I take a look at these and often let them go. Then there are the times you hear the same comment over and over. That's when you really take a look! That's when changes for me are often made.

Becoming a better writer doesn't happen in a moment as you know. But a howling night, maybe five or ten years down the road, you'll look at your earlier work and really see something! The best treat of all...

Improvement.

5 Things You Might Not Realize About Writers and Writing

1. Writing helps writers to see the big picture as well as the small one. Writing teaches writers to notice life. A writer notices the striking sunset as well as the almost forgotten wildflower. They see because the best writing demands that they see.

2. Writing teaches a writer to listen. A writer hears the silence of a mountain walk. A writer hears children. A writer hears and takes note of disagreements across the room. The best characters come from their innermost memories and what they hear in a crowd or in silence.

My husband, Doug at a recent family wedding. Don't you just LOVE the flowers?

3. Writing promotes growth in other areas of a writer's life. Writers have the courage to speak what they feel because they have written what they've felt numerous times. Writers learn to speak one-on-one and in groups because they have shared their books in both settings through books signings and speaking engagements. 

It rained today. So beautiful.

4. Writers are connected with deep thinkers. Writers love those who can think deep. It isn't about sharing the weather. With them, it's about the color the weather creates. The moistness of rain on cement, traveling down gutters, droplets of dew on cars like kisses. Plants kneeling from the extra weight, grasses glistening, revealing their souls. Writers talk about what really matters. Hardships. Growth. Light.

5. Writing helps writers to stay on track. Writers are often journalers. And writing down their thoughts about their own life's curves and turns helps them to make better decisions and write a bit better present day.  

Why I decided not to stay with my local publisher - The PCM of marketing books

Upfront: This is not a traditional publishing bash. Many, many authors decide to go the traditional route. 

I began my journey the traditional way, at least the local traditional way. I didn't have to pay a cent to have my book published, and I was excited for a while at the prospect. After writing for many years, finally, someone was taking notice.

 

First cover

Here is what I discovered after the novelty of publishing wore off. 

1) After my family had purchased my middle reader for $18, it was hard to sell it. 

2) The cover really wasn't middle reader, and I wondered if the artist had read my book. The cover was nice but it really didn't work for my book. 

3) I was surprised that I was expected to do 99.9% of the marketing. Frankly, I had no idea how to do it. My publisher listed my book on their website. That was the extent of their marketing efforts.

Going the local publisher route was not a bad idea, I learned a lot, but in the end, with little control over my book, I felt as if I could do better. Frankly, I knew my book better than anyone else, and because I knew it, I felt I could sell it. 

Smile.

I wasn't necessarily right about that. I knew my book, but I didn't know how to market a book that was too expensive with the wrong cover. A few years of trying and failing to sell it proved to me that something else needed to happen.

Unfortunately, I didn't have the money to buy the rights back to my book. Fortunately, my brother did. It cost him $500. 

Smile.

Final cover

Life is about learning, and book learning doesn't come cheap, but I learned. 

1) Publishing on my own I could price my middle reader at $10, a far better price, and one that readers would pay.

2) I could create a new book cover, one that works for the genre of my book. 

3) I could do 100% of the marketing! Through the years I have actually learned something! What works, what doesn't. And change, boy does marketing change!

Price. Cover. Marketing. 

There you have it.