Writerās Group: to gather with others to read and critique excerpts of written work
Reading Group: to gather with others to read and critique books, drink and snack
When done correctly, a writerās group can operate as an auxiliary brain or a training ground to push a writer forward in her craft.Ā They can be fun, inspiring and incredibly helpful. They can also be a sucking hole of negativity and wasted time.
With that in mind, it was with some trepidation that I recently tested out a new group. The hostess had a dog (bonus points) and they had established a rule of positivity and compliments before critiques (nice).Ā They had a time keeper and a word count on the segments we read (organized!). Each writer was doing different genres and styles, but that had the benefit of bringing diverse points of view to the table.Ā In general, it was great. It provided very valuable feedback and I can only hope that I was equally helpful to the other writers.
However, in specific, it was wee bit disappointing as there were no beverages or snacks.Ā The reasoning ā that hosting the group was enough trouble and that we were here to do actual serious work, not carouse ā makes total, logical, absolute sense. Ā But in the sense of āitās been a long week, and Bethany wants a potato chip and a glass of somethingā it was less than I had hoped for.
I think, possibly what I was really hoping for was a Reading Group.Ā Every Reading Group Iāve ever attended came with crackers, cheese, and wine ā the three low effort food groups. Now, in defense of the writerās group, very few Reading Groupās Iāve ever attended actually stayed entirely on topic. Ā There was a lot ofā¦ uhā¦ digression, shall we say.Ā And time keeping was absolute disaster.Ā And learning was sort of ancillary by-product of reading a book I didnāt pick out, but gosh darn it, the artichoke dip was fantastic.
So next month?Ā Iāll be packing my own snacks to the writers group.Ā After all, that group comes with a dog.
https://bethanymaines.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/bella-new-critique-group.png364516Bethany Maineshttps://bethanymaines.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/Aug2016-Logo-op3-300x69.pngBethany Maines2016-10-27 12:30:032016-10-24 21:13:27Writers vs. Readers
This month at the Stiletto Gang we’ve been talking about transitions and how moving to a new stage of life can affect writing. But I have to admit that as I sat down to think about the topic all I found myself pondering was the actual literal transitions of writing. One of the primary tasks of a writer is to choose not just what to include, but what to leave out. There are very few (if any?) novels that are told in one long continuous stream of time. And every time the writer skips over the trip to the bathroom or the drive from point A to point B she must choose how to indicate that transition.
Chapter 1 The Hard, Fast Break
Some writers like to make each new location or time switch a new chapter.Ā It’s concrete. It’s self explanatory. And pretty hard for the reader to get confused. But others like to the soft break.
***
In the typography world those little asterisks are called dingbats. They come in all shapes and sizes and can be themed to the text. Karen Harris Tully‘s series The Faarian Chronicles is a sci-fi young adult adventure centered on a planet that was settled by Amazon warriors of Earth. This gives the featured culture of the planet a Greek historical context (and strong feminist heroines) and makes the transition dingbats of the omega symbol fun and appropriate.
blank space
The softest break of all is the extra space.Ā As a graphic designer, I’m not in favor of these. It’s far too easy, in a longer work, for the extra space to get buried at the end of the page. Then what does the designer do? Force the text to start lower down on the next page? That looks awkward and can lead to confusion on the part of the reader. Not to mention the fact that coding these for the e-readers and online is more than a little bit difficult. Ā In other words, if I see these in a book I immediately think the writer is a jerk who doesn’t care about how much extra work their designer has to do.
Foolishly, when I first got into the publishing biz I found myself incredibly surprised when my layout manuscript came back for proofing that the designer had kept all of my transitions as I had typed them. Somehow I genuinely thought that I would send off my MS and somewhere out in New York someone would do something clever with my transitions.Ā I was kind of sad.Ā I didn’t want to manage my own transitions – I wanted someone else to do all the work for me.
Which when I think about it, is about what I think about life transitions as well. How unfortunate that there’s no magic wand or designer to outsource those problems to.Ā I guess I’m just going to put my lifestyle setting on “dingbat” and see what I get.
Originally published at the Stiletto Gang on 09.14.16
As IĀ have been exploring the question āWho are you like?ā this month, Iāve also been exploring what other books in my genres look like.Ā This is sometimes gratifying on the base level of my fonts are so much better than yours and also sometimes mystifying on the level of why are there so many bared midriffs in contemporary fantasy?Ā On the topic of midriffs, and purely for exampleās sake, Iāll put the cover of Shifting Jock in Love here.Ā The cover is obviouslyā¦ uhā¦ fully functional, because I canāt stop staring at the uhā¦ weight lifting bar.Ā Now that weāve covered that topic (no, we havenāt covered anything?), let me move on to my point.
Market research, which is what I call shopping and (gently) making fun of book covers over a glass of wine, is important.Ā Itās hard to review my own book cover submissions if I donāt know what the trends are.Ā Not that trends should inform every decision, but I like to know how far out of the current Iām swimming. In addition to finding the occasional good idea that I could be copying, I also find really interesting authors.Ā Research shows that most people buy books based on word of mouth, but in this online age, that canāt ALWAYS be true.Ā From Facebook to google ads, to the wonders of Amazon, we get a lot of recommendations about authors and books online. Ā And without a person to ask, readers are stuck trying to answer āso who are they likeā question based on the marketing surrounding the book.Ā But as we all learned in grade school, you canāt always judge a book by itās cover.
One great resource Iāve found in my wading around the internet is a great website – www.literature-map.comĀ Simply type in an author you like and it will produce of an animated cloud of similar authors aka a handy new To Be Read list.Ā And you can click on the question mark in the corner if you want to add authors to the database to improve results.Ā And now if youāll excuse me, Iām going to go enjoy a little more market research and a Riesling.
Originally published on 8/24/16 at the Stiletto Gang
https://bethanymaines.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/Aug2016-Logo-op3-300x69.png00Bethany Maineshttps://bethanymaines.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/Aug2016-Logo-op3-300x69.pngBethany Maines2016-08-25 08:24:132016-08-22 23:27:14Market Research
One of the most common questions a writer hears is: Who are you like?Ā In other words, what (famous, more talented, richer, that I would have heard of) author are you like?Ā Of course, as authors we would always like to respond ā I am like no one! I am a unique snowflake of infinite genius!Ā Bow down before my staggering work of novelistic achievement!Ā Possibly at this point is where we also start investing in a parrot, flowing robes, and a pencil thin moustache to twirl.Ā Iām not saying all authors would go full Disney villain. Clearly, the eyebrows and make-up require a more high-maintenance lifestyle than most of us are cut out for.Ā Iām just saying, nobody likes to think of themselves, as ājust likeā somebody else.
However, temper-tantrums and eyeliner aside, it is a useful question.Ā It does let people know where they should look for you in the library and where you fall on their reader spectrum.Ā For the record, I usually answer this question with ā Janet Evanovich.Ā My series Carrie Mae Mysteries is female centered spy series, with plenty of hunks, humor, and huge action scenes.Ā However, I also write in another genre ā contemporary fantasy.Ā I write modern day fairy tales about fairies, vampires, and what happens when a mermaid meets a SEAL.
Writing in multiple genres used to be very ānot doneā because the publishing houses found it hard to market.Ā The prevailing wisdom was that readers donāt read multiple genres (uhā¦ say what?), Self-publishing has opened the door for authors to write whatever their unique snowflake heartās desire, but itās still a risk, and a challenge for those doing the marketing, to figure out what to say to the question ā who do you write like?
I guess for now, Iāll have to go with this answer ā I write like my fingers are fire with sheer greatness and my mascara is totally, totally on point.
***
Originally posted on 8.10.16 at The Stilettog Gang
https://bethanymaines.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/jafar.jpg499640Bethany Maineshttps://bethanymaines.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/Aug2016-Logo-op3-300x69.pngBethany Maines2016-08-11 23:44:552016-08-09 23:47:45Who are you like?
Writers vs. Readers
/in General WritingWriterās Group: to gather with others to read and critique excerpts of written work
Reading Group: to gather with others to read and critique books, drink and snack
When done correctly, a writerās group can operate as an auxiliary brain or a training ground to push a writer forward in her craft.Ā They can be fun, inspiring and incredibly helpful. They can also be a sucking hole of negativity and wasted time.
With that in mind, it was with some trepidation that I recently tested out a new group. The hostess had a dog (bonus points) and they had established a rule of positivity and compliments before critiques (nice).Ā They had a time keeper and a word count on the segments we read (organized!). Each writer was doing different genres and styles, but that had the benefit of bringing diverse points of view to the table.Ā In general, it was great. It provided very valuable feedback and I can only hope that I was equally helpful to the other writers.
However, in specific, it was wee bit disappointing as there were no beverages or snacks.Ā The reasoning ā that hosting the group was enough trouble and that we were here to do actual serious work, not carouse ā makes total, logical, absolute sense. Ā But in the sense of āitās been a long week, and Bethany wants a potato chip and a glass of somethingā it was less than I had hoped for.
I think, possibly what I was really hoping for was a Reading Group.Ā Every Reading Group Iāve ever attended came with crackers, cheese, and wine ā the three low effort food groups. Now, in defense of the writerās group, very few Reading Groupās Iāve ever attended actually stayed entirely on topic. Ā There was a lot ofā¦ uhā¦ digression, shall we say.Ā And time keeping was absolute disaster.Ā And learning was sort of ancillary by-product of reading a book I didnāt pick out, but gosh darn it, the artichoke dip was fantastic.
So next month?Ā Iāll be packing my own snacks to the writers group.Ā After all, that group comes with a dog.
Halloween Contest!
/in An Unseen Current, General Writing, Wild WatersThe Dingbat Approach
/in General Writing, Graphic Design, LifeThis month at the Stiletto Gang we’ve been talking about transitions and how moving to a new stage of life can affect writing. But I have to admit that as I sat down to think about the topic all I found myself pondering was the actual literal transitions of writing. One of the primary tasks of a writer is to choose not just what to include, but what to leave out. There are very few (if any?) novels that are told in one long continuous stream of time. And every time the writer skips over the trip to the bathroom or the drive from point A to point B she must choose how to indicate that transition.
Chapter 1
The Hard, Fast Break
Some writers like to make each new location or time switch a new chapter.Ā It’s concrete. It’s self explanatory. And pretty hard for the reader to get confused. But others like to the soft break.
***
In the typography world those little asterisks are called dingbats. They come in all shapes and sizes and can be themed to the text. Karen Harris Tully‘s series The Faarian Chronicles is a sci-fi young adult adventure centered on a planet that was settled by Amazon warriors of Earth. This gives the featured culture of the planet a Greek historical context (and strong feminist heroines) and makes the transition dingbats of the omega symbol fun and appropriate.
blank space
The softest break of all is the extra space.Ā As a graphic designer, I’m not in favor of these. It’s far too easy, in a longer work, for the extra space to get buried at the end of the page. Then what does the designer do? Force the text to start lower down on the next page? That looks awkward and can lead to confusion on the part of the reader. Not to mention the fact that coding these for the e-readers and online is more than a little bit difficult. Ā In other words, if I see these in a book I immediately think the writer is a jerk who doesn’t care about how much extra work their designer has to do.
Which when I think about it, is about what I think about life transitions as well. How unfortunate that there’s no magic wand or designer to outsource those problems to.Ā I guess I’m just going to put my lifestyle setting on “dingbat” and see what I get.
Originally published at the Stiletto Gang on 09.14.16
Market Research
/in General Writing, Marketing, The Stiletto GangAs IĀ have been exploring the question āWho are you like?ā this month, Iāve also been exploring what other books in my genres look like.Ā This is sometimes gratifying on the base level of my fonts are so much better than yours and also sometimes mystifying on the level
of why are there so many bared midriffs in contemporary fantasy?Ā On the topic of midriffs, and purely for exampleās sake, Iāll put the cover of Shifting Jock in Love here.Ā The cover is obviouslyā¦ uhā¦ fully functional, because I canāt stop staring at the uhā¦ weight lifting bar.Ā Now that weāve covered that topic (no, we havenāt covered anything?), let me move on to my point.
Market research, which is what I call shopping and (gently) making fun of book covers over a glass of wine, is important.Ā Itās hard to review my own book cover submissions if I donāt know what the trends are.Ā Not that trends should inform every decision, but I like to know how far out of the current Iām swimming. In addition to finding the occasional good idea that I could be copying, I also find really interesting authors.Ā Research shows that most people buy books based on word of mouth, but in this online age, that canāt ALWAYS be true.Ā From Facebook to google ads, to the wonders of Amazon, we get a lot of recommendations about authors and books online. Ā And without a person to ask, readers are stuck trying to answer āso who are they likeā question based on the marketing surrounding the book.Ā But as we all learned in grade school, you canāt always judge a book by itās cover.
One great resource Iāve found in my wading around the internet is a great website – www.literature-map.comĀ Simply type in an author you like and it will produce of an animated cloud of similar authors aka a handy new To Be Read list.Ā And you can click on the question mark in the corner if you want to add authors to the database to improve results.Ā And now if youāll excuse me, Iām going to go enjoy a little more market research and a Riesling.
Originally published on 8/24/16 at the Stiletto Gang
Who are you like?
/in Carrie Mae, General Writing, Life, Marketing, The Stiletto GangOne of the most common questions a writer hears is: Who are you like?Ā In other words, what (famous, more talented, richer, that I would have heard of) author are you like?Ā Of course, as authors we would always like to respond ā I am like no one! I am a unique snowflake of infinite genius!Ā Bow down before my staggering work of novelistic achievement!Ā Possibly at this point is where we also start investing in a parrot, flowing robes, and a pencil thin moustache to twirl.Ā Iām not saying all authors would go full Disney villain. Clearly, the eyebrows and make-up require a more high-maintenance lifestyle than most of us are cut out for.Ā Iām just saying, nobody likes to think of themselves, as ājust likeā somebody else.
However, temper-tantrums and eyeliner aside, it is a useful question.Ā It does let people know where they should look for you in the library and where you fall on their reader spectrum.Ā For the record, I usually answer this question with ā Janet Evanovich.Ā My series Carrie Mae Mysteries is female centered spy series, with plenty of hunks, humor, and huge action scenes.Ā However, I also write in another genre ā contemporary fantasy.Ā I write modern day fairy tales about fairies, vampires, and what happens when a mermaid meets a SEAL.
Writing in multiple genres used to be very ānot doneā because the publishing houses found it hard to market.Ā The prevailing wisdom was that readers donāt read multiple genres (uhā¦ say what?), Self-publishing has opened the door for authors to write whatever their unique snowflake heartās desire, but itās still a risk, and a challenge for those doing the marketing, to figure out what to say to the question ā who do you write like?
I guess for now, Iāll have to go with this answer ā I write like my fingers are fire with sheer greatness and my mascara is totally, totally on point.
***
Originally posted on 8.10.16 at The Stilettog Gang