Out of control characters: Do You Work For Free?

Out of control characters: Do You Work For Free?: In recent years, a trend has begun in the book buying community. People no longer see it as wrong to download a book for free. I don’t ...

Radio interview!

Hi, readers! Catch me in a radio interview tomorrow at 7PM Eastern on Cover 2 Cover with Jami and Michele!

We'll be talking about writing full length novels or serial shorts. It should be a fun interview with very talented authors, Jami & Michele! I look forward to it!  :)

What Does Success Mean?

What Does Success Mean?

I stumbled across this question while reading a blog post yesterday, and it was unrelated to writers. This question, which clearly had the blogger stumped, was just as thought-provoking for me. I thought I would turn it on all of you. 

“Success” is a complicated word. Writers at any level of their careers can struggle with this problem of properly defining “success”. So, what is success, in your opinion? Now, before you jump in and tell me that success is a house in the Hampton’s and a summer home in France, which are worthy goals, to be sure, perhaps you should give yourself time to ruminate on this question. I posit this question to you, and then dare you to come back to it five years later. I bet your answer would change. 

The truth is that we’re all in the same crazy boat, whether we’re just starting out as writers, or whether we’re self-published or traditionally published. The competition is fierce, forcing us to get rather creative in our author journeys. Both indie and traditionally published authors have to work their butts off, and anyone who thinks it’s simple is just plain wrong. So, I urge you to consider the following questions carefully.

1.     How do you define success?

2.     What are your goals as an author?

3.     Why do you write?

4.     Is there a moment that has made you especially proud? Or more than one?

5.     What do you require to be happy?

“Wait a minute, Marie. This is getting deep. Aren’t you going too far?”

Not really. As authors, we must constantly reevaluate our goals, and shape them as trends change. We evolve as writers, just as we grow as people through our experiences. And I sincerely think these questions can help anyone, even if you aren’t a writer.

What does “success” mean to you? Is it measured by a steady paycheck and food on the table? Or do you have loftier goals in mind? What is your passion? Have you pursued it? If you haven’t, why not? And what will satisfy you in the long run?

As an author, is it enough to see how far you’ve come? Maybe not, but it should weigh into your goals on some level. Why not take a moment and recognize it? Did you imagine you’d be here five years ago? Well, heck, I certainly didn’t! I was just trying out the self-publishing fad after years of writing and actively working on my big manuscript. Fast forward five years and now I’ve published twenty books, I run three blogs, moderate several discussion groups on LinkedIn and Facebook, I’ve had numerous author interviews, both on blogs and on the radio, written countless articles, and the story ideas just won’t quit. I’m just plugging away, steadily working on my goals. Instead of thinking, “Well, gee, I’d love to be a millionaire someday”, I am thinking of specific projects, and what kind of progress I’d like to make on those.  

So, what is success to you, and how do you go about defining it?  Maybe you have a role model you look up to, someone you know has gone through a lot to get where they are today. Well, that’s great! Is that person your idea of “success”? Or could you also be just as inspired by a mother of three who works a day job, manages to get a promotion, and still carves some quality time out of the day to spend with her children? 

No matter our goals as authors, we can’t forget that we are human beings as well. How do your goals fit into your life? Life will go on regardless of whether we write. The clock will keep moving, and the people who depend on us will still require our attention. Being an author can feel like a solitary, juggling journey at times, but it’s not exactly lonely. A whole community of writers who’ve been through the same thing, who are going through the same thing, are out there as well.

Despite all of that, it’s good to define your idea of success, and answer some important questions for yourself from time to time. Your answers may change as you grow as an author.

So, what is “success”? I’ll give it a go. To me, it is pursuing your dreams and taking the risks to achieve them.

What are my goals? I don’t ask for the moon, and I don’t really care for being a millionaire. My ultimate goal is to make it into a bookstore, and I don’t mean just walking into one. LOL. I’d like to see at least one of my titles on the shelves. 

I don’t know how it will happen and I don’t know when, but there it is. I think the goal is achievable, and I will continue to work towards it while enjoying the crazy journey along the way. Do I have other goals? Sure, I do, but they are smaller goals, as aforementioned. The great thing about being an author is that you can reshape your goals as publishing trends change. Will bookstores go out of style? Will ebooks take over entirely? I don’t know, but honestly, I am satisfied with where I am right now.

Why do I write? I am answering the call inside of me, the urge to put pen to paper, and I am honoring the characters who need their stories told.

A proud moment, or moments? There have been a few. Receiving a book contract was one, and I can’t even describe how it felt to see my book in print for the first time. Amazing! And third? Well, I think I feel a wonderful thrill every time that I finish a manuscript. There’s just something about knowing the world you’ve created has played out to the best of your ability, that you’ve told your story and honored your characters. 

And then there’s that tricky question…

What do you require to be happy as a writer or author? For myself, just give me the ability to write (a keyboard, or a pen and paper), maybe some fresh air and a good drink like hot tea or water. Then I am set! I don’t need anything fancy, just that connection to the page, to the story and I know I can’t lose. Writing is who I am. To take it away would be a personal tragedy. If I ever get stranded on a deserted island, I'm probably screwed because I'd have no creative outlet. Although if I could find a way to create a makeshift pencil, I guess I could write on palm leaves. LOL. But, I digress. Back to the topic of success.

So, is that enough for you? Can you content yourself with how far you’ve come as a writer or author (remember that those successes should be celebrated too!), and knowing that you are still working towards your ultimate goals? An even if you’re not a writer, these questions can be just as thought-provoking. Let me change it up a bit in that case.

1.     How do you measure success?

2.     What are your professional/personal goals?

3.     What is your passion? Why do you do it? If you haven’t pursued it yet, why not? What’s standing in your way?

4.     Think about some of the proudest moments in your life.

5.     What do you require to be happy?

Wow! See how that completely changed everything? Why shouldn’t we take a step back from our busy lives, and try to define “success” for ourselves? It will mean something different for everyone. Maybe your definition of success is that mentor you’ve always looked up to. 

Perhaps it’s one or both of your parents. Just because that person isn’t in your industry doesn’t mean you don’t admire their trials and successes, big or small. Or maybe success for you is defined by a specific item you’d like to earn or acquire.

So, what does success mean to you? Think about it. I dare you.

Major giveaway on two blogs!

Hi, readers! Don't miss a great opportunity on Friday! We will be having a HUGE, and I do mean huge, multi-author book giveaway this Friday, February 13th. And it's romance themed, just in time for Valentine's Day. 

The post will be placed on two different blogs, and we hope to bring in lots of participants for this contest!

Please stop by the following links on Friday and follow the instructions to participate in the giveaway. You could win some awesome books! 

http://marielavender.blogspot.com/2015/02/multi-author-romance-book-giveaway-Valentines-Day.html 

https://iloveromanceblog.wordpress.com/2015/02/13/can-you-resist-romance-multi-author-book-giveaway/ 

So, drop by Writing in the Modern Age and the I Love Romance Blog this Friday, leave a comment about your reading preference as well as a way to contact you (your email) and you'll be entered into this big contest!  How exciting, right?

I know I'm thrilled! With 77 titles, 42 participating authors and over 150 donations, it should be a very riveting giveaway with lots of free books! Come on by if you get a chance. We'd love to have you there. :)

The Trouble with Titles

The Trouble with Titles:  A Look at Creation

by Marie Lavender

I wrote an article recently about the varied methods authors use to write their books. That should be published soon on Publishing Addict. In the article, I likened each method to a unique fingerprint. For this article, we’ll go a step further and establish that constructing a title is like a thumbprint. Your thumbprint is unique, separate from anyone else around you.

Everyone knows what a title is. It summarizes your topic, and it draws attention. We’ve seen them on movies, music, books, essays, poems, even blog articles. But, it’s hard to find something that just pops, that is apart from the other zillions of titles in the publishing sphere, right? There are even articles out there, advising us how to making a winning blog title and, more often than not, they encourage you to throw a number in. (i.e. 13 Reasons You Should Get Out of Bed in the Morning). That last one was my poor attempt at humor. LOL. Let’s back on point though, shall we? 

You don’t often seen articles advising you how you should title your book. Why? I imagine that it’s partly because finding a title is so darn difficult, and if the author has managed to achieve it, they don’t use the same method for every book. Or, perhaps the creation of titles is a far too complicated creature to break down into an executable plan. It’s true that dealing with titles is a double-edged sword, a necessary evil yet the process of finding the right one can actually be fun! It may end up being a very satisfying experience for you.

“Have you gone off the deep end again, Marie?”

No. Allow me to explain.

When a new author, or perhaps we should say “aspiring author” if he or she is not published yet, looks at the number of titles on Amazon, it can be incredibly daunting. 

“Oh, man. That’s a really good one. Why can’t I come up with something like that?” 

Well, you can. But, the truth is that some titles get recycled. Not on purpose, of course, but because one person can’t own a word, so to speak. There are many words in the dictionary, and so many get added every day. So, someone is bound to use them. Would you title your book Disestablishmentarianism? Probably not, unless you were writing about that concept. But, even then, a string of words paired along with it is a bit catchier, right? Consider this. Let’s say your book is about female pirates, or at least one of them. 

“Really, Marie?”

What? LOL. I couldn’t come up with anything better, and it’s one of my future story ideas. Yes, they did exist in the past, but I digress. Let’s look at the competition. Here are some pretty cool titles:

Seafaring Women: Adventures of Pirate Queens, Female Stowaways, and Sailors' Wives

Sea Queens

Anne Bonny: The Legend of a Female Pirate

Under the Black Flag: The Romance and the Reality of Life Among the Pirates

Hen Frigates: Passion and Peril, Nineteenth-Century Women at Sea

Not too shabby, huh? How did they come up with such amazing titles? And that doesn’t even count the fiction books about piracy.

Tread Carefully on the Sea

Scarlet And Gold

Malcolm's Return (The Highland Renegades Book 4)

Charlesgate

Blood and Treasure

Across A Moonlit Sea (Pirate Wolf series Book 1)

The Iron Rose (Pirate Wolf series Book 2)

A Pirate's Prisoner

“Hmm. This is getting complicated. With so many choices, how can I possibly compete with that?”

Well, it’s not really about competition. You figure out your title in your own way, and go with it. Most likely, you didn’t write the book as a sales tool or to compete with anyone else, but rather because you actually enjoy writing and your characters (or topic) compelled you to write. At least I hope you did. That’s not to say that you shouldn’t try to create a unique title that will stand out. 

If you’re like most writers, you’re probably at one end of the spectrum or the other by now. If your manuscript is finished, you’ve both brainstormed and found a few possible titles, or you are still wondering what to call this masterpiece you’ve just written. Here’s the rub. You’re the only person who knows your story in and out, upside down, through and through; at any angle you come at it, you know your story the best. Unless the editor at your publisher or your agent makes a title suggestion, you’re on your own. And even if that is the case, they will want you to have established a title firmly on the manuscript whether it’s great or not. In essence, this title-making thing is on you as the author.

“Oh, great! That makes me feel a whole lot better.”

Well, it should. Regardless of how hard it is, once you do find a title, you will feel that much prouder of the work you accomplished. So, take your time and give it a shot.

Do I stress over titles? Of course. Who doesn’t? In fact, with some books, I actually struggle with them. But, that doesn’t mean that the final sense of pride doesn’t come about. I just have to be patient while I’m figuring it all out.

“So, what’s next?”

Good question. Now we have to decide what stage you’re at as a writer. Have you written the book? No? Well, maybe you should know your story and your characters a little better before you try to come up with one. 

Perhaps you’re in the process of writing the manuscript, and we can fully term it, as writers often do, a work-in-progress. Yay for you! You’ve made some headway, and I’m so proud of you for getting this far. If you want to throw a title on your work-in-progress, then by all means brainstorm to your heart’s content. If you’re struggling, however, you can use my fallback technique. Throw a temporary title on it until you can find something better. I do this a lot. Even Second Nature, my newest release, had the temporary title of Love or Blood until I came to my senses. 

“Really?”

Yep. Coming up with a temporary title relaxes you, and frees up your focus for you to exclusively write your book. Who knows? Somewhere in the process of writing your manuscript, you may find the perfect title. If you check out my website here, you can see a list of my works-in-progress. Most have temporary tiles because I am not certain of a title until I’m fully focused on a book. Some titles like my series books are more permanent, but if they aren’t, I’ve clearly indicated that it’s a temporary title. Writing is work, and title creation is no different. But, I can’t tell you how much easier it is to slap a temporary one on, however silly, in order to free up space in your mind to focus on the book. Remember that temporary titles can still be applied before you even tackle writing your book. Just for fun, here is a little tool that tells you how successful a title would be. Now, if I relied on this tool, I would never publish or sell a book, but it is kind of amusing to see what they come up with. 

Let’s say your book is finished, but you’re still struggling with that elusive title. Are you writing a standalone book or is it part of a series? Nine times out of ten, that will have a significant impact on a title. For example, when I came up with Upon Your Return for a title, I wasn’t aware at the time that there would be sequels. A year later when I knew for sure, it took me awhile to come up with titles that not only honored the books’ themes, but also tied back to the first book in some manner. Hence Upon Your Honor and Upon Your Love, which I am writing now. Not every series book, of course, must have a related title. Even J.R. Ward, one of my favorite paranormal romance authors, has begun to stray away from her original titles in the Black Dagger Brotherhood Series. Consider the following titles:

Dark Lover

Lover Eternal

Lover Awakened

Lover Revealed

Lover Unbound

Lover Enshrined

 Lover Avenged

Lover Mine

Lover Unleashed

 Lover Reborn

 Lover At Last

The King

The Shadows (coming soon)

Do you see how the final two are completely different? The book tells the author which road to follow. Even the sequel to my book Second Nature is different, titled Blood Instincts, but it fits the storyline well. The final book in the Blood at First Sight Series will be called The Bloodseer Legacy. 

“But, how did you know, Marie? Especially if you’re not done writing those books?”

The titles just came to me one day, and everything began to make sense. I’ll get into ways you can jumpstart title creativity in a bit. Now, if you’re writing a standalone novel, the sky is truly the limit. You can use a temporary title, and then figure out a better one later. I can’t stress enough that the better you know your book, the easer a title will come. If you understand the plot, the characters and any inner themes, you’re more likely to create a very good title.

“But, how do I get there?”

All right, you’re trying to pin me down to one method. The truth is that every writer’s journey is different, and he or she may use separate techniques for every book that is written. Having said that, every writer will, at some point, have a “Eureka!” moment. The lightbulb will pop over their heads and they’ll know they have the right title. If you are lucky, this “Eureka!” moment will happen many times during the writing of a manuscript, and it’s a particularly satisfying experience to know that the plot is falling into place, the characters are well-developed, your setting is sound, and the ending provides a good resolution. But, I digress. How do you find your “Eureka!” moment with a title?

1.     Rely on instinct. Always, always trust your instincts as a writer. If your inner calling is saying, “Nah, that’s not it,” then maybe it’s right. But, that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t use that option for a temporary title. I encourage you to trust your instincts with your book and titles. 

      I have an author pal who was encouraged to change her perfect title in order to get published. In the end, however, she followed her heart, found a different publisher and that title has given her great success. You can check out her book, The Scale, here. The moral of this story? Trust your instincts, capiche? LOL.

2.     Brainstorm. Word association can truly work wonders, but I hope you know your story well enough to do this kind of session as well. Here are some tips on brainstorming for writers.

3.     The plot or topic. Knowing your basic plot can help you create a title at any stage of writing. The more you know about your book, the better. But, if Character A seeks revenge upon Character B, and does, in fact, achieve it, then maybe something in that storyline can give you your title. What elements stand out to you? Revenge, vengeance, vendetta…well, there are all kind of words for what the character aims to accomplish. Make a list of major plot elements. Merge them into a whole if you must, or scramble the words around until they appear senseless. Then pick some random words out of the bunch. Maybe that can lead you to the right title.

4.     Pay special attention to themes. As you work on your book, themes will start to arise. Perhaps a theme came from the plot, or even from a character’s determination for something. Maybe it came from a strong personality trait. But often a book will carry themes. Make a list of these themes or concepts, and decide if playing off of one of them will lead you to your title.

5.     Be ready for anything. Keep yourself open to random acts of brilliance.

“What, Marie? I think your arrogance is showing.”

LOL. Not really. If you’ve struggled long and hard for a good title, having that “Eureka!” moment can be powerful. 

Keep your mind open and allow the creativity to flow through you. This may drive you straight to your perfect title, and who doesn’t like closure?

6.     Don’t be afraid to ask. Ask your potential readers, even your family and friends what they think of the title, and if they saw it on a book, would that make them pick it up? 

      

      Don’t base your entire decision on this, but it’s not a bad idea to take that into account.

7.     Nothing is permanent. This can really help you in the long run. Even though you might think you have a good title, there’s still room to create something better. Now, I’m not saying you should change it, just that you should be open in case fate and the “Eureka!” moment happen again. It may be even better than you thought. You have plenty of time to come up with a great title.

Now, I imagine that some of you may say, “This article is great and all, but you still haven’t helped me create a title.” Well, I can’t create the title for you. I can only push you in the right direction. Every author is different, using entirely separate methods. Some use music for inspiration; some brainstorm in the shower. I have done both. If that makes me weird, oh well. Authors are strange creatures. 

The number one thing I want to stress is patience. 

 

Don’t let the need to create a title keep you from writing your book. And even if you’ve left the title-making until the last possible moment, don’t fret. It will come to you, even if it happens after rounds and rounds of brainstorming. Or, maybe it will come to you during the editing process, after you’ve done a final read through of the book. That “Eureka!” moment will possess you, and the wait will seem worth it. Keep your mind open, know your story, and that title will come to you, I promise. 

Barring that, here are some other links that might help with the title creation process:

http://publishing.about.com/od/BookAuthorBasics/ss/Good-Book-Titles-The-Recipe-For-A-Better-Book-Title.htm

http://www.publishedandprofitable.com/public/92.cfm

http://www.amazon.com/gp/richpub/syltguides/fullview/R38Q3IW6ARBMFE

http://www.yourbookpublishingcoach.com/picking-a-best-selling-title-a-scientific-tool/ (this one refers to the fun tool I mentioned earlier)

In any case, I do hope I have steered you in the right direction at the least. Your thumbprint, or title, should be as unique as you. As always, happy reading…and writing! :)