Angela Booth's Writing Blog

NaNoWriMo QuickStart 1: Pick a genre

If you're participating in NaNoWriMo on November 1, starting off with nothing -- no characters, no plot, no nothing except a willingness to write -- is certainly possible, and perhaps for you, it will work.

If you'd like a safety net, that is, some idea of WHAT you'll be writing in November, I'll be presenting some "quickstarts" for you over the next couple of months. Primarily, these will be exercises.

Are you breaking the NaNoWriMo rules by doing some exercises first?

No. According to the FAQ:

Does that mean I can't use an outline or notes? Outlines and plot notes are very much encouraged, and can be started months ahead of the actual novel-writing adventure. Previously written prose, though, is punishable by death.

So you can do all the preliminary exercises you wish -- just don't start the actual writing until it's November 1, 2012 in your time zone.

The first thing you might want to do is to choose your fictional genre. Will your novel be:

* a romance

* a Western

* a mystery

* a thriller

If you have a favorite genre (I love mysteries), then that could be the genre you pick. OTOH, if you feel you could easily write a romance, choose that genre. Knowing the genre you'll be writing in helps you, because it limits your choices, and helps you to structure your novel, even as you're writing it. There's nothing more dispiriting, even in NaNoWriMo, if you feel that you're not developing a story -- that you're just typing. :-)

You could read a few mysteries, romances etc over the next couple of months to help you to decide, if you don't know instantly what genre you'll pick.

October 26, 2012 Update

I wrote this blog post way back in 2006. It's still good advice, but of course you don't have months before NaNoWriMo starts -- you have days. 

The advice stands however: pick a genre before November 1.

Write your novel in November: get ready for NaNoWriMo

If you're a new novelist (or an established one who needs zapping with a cattle prod to get you to work), you're probably thinking about NaNoWriMo, National Novel Writing Month, this November.

Haven't heard of NaNoWriMo? From the site:

National Novel Writing Month is a fun, seat-of-your-pants approach to novel writing. Participants begin writing November 1. The goal is to write a 175-page (50,000-word) novel by midnight, November 30.

Valuing enthusiasm and perseverance over painstaking craft, NaNoWriMo is a novel-writing program for everyone who has thought fleetingly about writing a novel but has been scared away by the time and effort involved.

Because of the limited writing window, the ONLY thing that matters in NaNoWriMo is output. It's all about quantity, not quality. The kamikaze approach forces you to lower your expectations, take risks, and write on the fly.

If you'd like me to create a framework for NaNoWriMo -- some exercises and other material that will get you ready for liftoff on November 1, let me know. Leave a message in the Comments to this post.

Technorati Tags: be more productive, Planning, plotting fiction, practice your writing, productivity, publishing, write novel, writing

New Write More ebook available later this week

The most popular post ever on this blog was "The Top Ten Writing Tips To Help You To Write More". Over the months since I posted that entry, I've had lots of requests for more tips on how to write more.

Therefore I've written a new ebook, the "Top 70 Writing Tips To Help You To Write More". It will be available later this week. If you enjoyed the original post, you'll love this ebook.

These are 70 tips that I've used to develop a prolific writing style, and the tips are all EASY. Whether you're a new writer, or an experienced pro, these tips will help you to be prolific too.

.

Technorati Tags: 100 ways to be more creative, ebook, freelance writing, productivity, writing, writing ebook, Writing Tip

Final Sale: Writing for Online Cash

Been wondering whether you should buy Writing for Online Cash?

I've got a couple of new ebooks coming out, so I'm withdrawing Writing for Online Cash on September 8. This brilliant ebook has been very successful and has had a great response among from professional writers as well as novice writers.

If you've been waiting to buy this ebook, make sure to buy it before September 8. Until then, it's at the special price of just $39.99 (previously $97.)

Technorati Tags: ebook, get started freelance writing, make money writing, marketing your writing

Podcasts: Learn more about an area of writing that interests you

Podcasts have become hugely successful online. A podcast is just an audio file, in MP3 format, that you can listen to on your computer, or save onto an MP3 player (or a CD) to listen to whenever you have a spare moment. iTunes popularized podcasts in a huge way.

I've been thinking about creating some podcasts, and have found a way which will let me combine a PowerPoint presentation with audio and make the combination easily available to you as a podcast. The podcasts will be free, of course.

What writing area would you like to know more about? Please tell me in the Comments to this post.

Here are some ideas that I have:

* Writing markets (online and offline)

* How to write more

* How to write __________ (an article, a book, for a Web site, etc)

* How to get started writing

* How to promote yourself as a writer

* How to get a job as a writer online

If there's an interest in any of the above, I'm happy to create a podcast on it. Or on any other writing topic you want to know more about.

So please, feel free to ask. :-)

Use the comments, or send me an email message, with PODCAST TOPIC in the subject line.

Technorati Tags: get started freelance writing, podcast, practice your writing, writing

Use Google's Writely word processor: it's fun, easy and useful

I'm writing this post in Writely, Google's online word processor. Writely is full-featured, and it's easy to forget that you're not writing in a "normal" word processor.

How do you use it? From the site:

* Upload Word documents, OpenOffice, RTF, HTML or text (or create documents from scratch).
* Use our simple WYSIWYG editor to format your documents, spell-check them, etc.
* Invite others to share your documents (by e-mail address).
* Download documents to your desktop as Word, OpenOffice, RTF, PDF*, HTML or zip.

One of the benefits of using Writely is that your documents are stored online. This makes it easy to work wherever you happen to be, using any computer that's available. You can also collaborate with others on documents.

I've tinkered with the application for just a day, but I can see myself using it often. Amazingly, it's almost as fast as working in MS Word. Since you can save your docs as blog posts, HTML documents (you can publish them online too), and PDF files, Writely should be very popular. Give the program a try.

Writely is free, and Google has opened it to general use. Be aware however that the program is still in beta, so you should expect some bugs -- I tried to post this document to my blog directly, and hit some snags.

Technorati Tags: be more productive, software, Web software

Fab Freelance Writing Blog: branding yourself

I've just published "Branding Yourself As A Freelance Writer" on the Fab Freelance Writing Blog.

If you're looking for freelancing info, add that blog to your bookmarks and feed reader -- I'll be posting freelance writing information there from now on.

(Mac software) Writers can write more, with FlexTime

For me, a timer is a vital writing productivity tool. It helps me to be much more productive in my writing day.

If I set time periods, and give myself 20 minutes or half an hour to complete a task, whether it's writing, research or making phone calls, I get more done. I also time my free writing sessions -- I free write or create a mind map for five or ten minutes.

Usually I use Egg Timer, but I've recently started using FlexTime, which lets you create entire timed sessions -- it's wonderful.

From the site:

Choose Your Own Cues Play a sound, show a message, or speak out loud. FlexTime lets you choose the mechanism for all of its timed cues. It's your time, make it personal!

Repeat as Necessary
Life is repetitive. For the routine activities that fill your work and leisure hours, this amazing timer will keep you in the groove.

A World of Uses
Schedule regular breaks. Practice yoga, tai chi, or dance. Combat attention disorders. Improve your rhythm. Follow a recipe. Meditate. Remember the laundry! About the only thing FlexTime can't help you do is list the possibilities.

Technorati Tags: 100 ways to be more creative, be more productive, practice your writing, procrastination, productivity

Press release: Freelance Writers Are In High Demand To Write For Web Businesses

Competent freelance writers are finding millions of exciting new freelance writing opportunities on the Web because Web businesses are starved for good writers. Angela Booth's new ebook "Writing For The Web" shows freelance writers how to get started writing for hot new Web markets.

August 20, 2006 --The image of freelance writers starving in garrets is out of date. In 2006, competent freelancers are switching their attention to the Web, and are commanding high hourly rates for their writing skills. Established Web writers' hourly rates range upward from $120 to $200 an hour. Angela Booth's new ebook "Writing For The Web" at http://www.abmagic.com/Web_Write/Web_write.html shows freelance writers how to get started writing for hot new Web markets.

Copywriter and writing teacher Angela Booth says: "While novice freelancers are still targeting traditional writing markets like magazines and books, experienced freelancers are plunging into online opportunities, and earning top dollar for their writing skills. The big benefit of writing for online markets is that writers can cherry-pick the projects on which they want to work."

Web writing includes writing entire Web sites, as well as writing specific Web pages, like Web landing pages, and sales pages. Angela says that blogging for businesses is the hottest of the new Web writing opportunities for freelance writers. Companies are catching on to the benefits of creating a blog, and usually don't have the skills in-house to write their blogs. Enter the freelance writer. The freelancer blogs for businesses under contract, usually for periods of three to six months.

Traditional freelance writing skills are easily transferable to the Web. While established freelancers already have most of the skills they need, Web writing is different from writing for print. The instant-downloadable ebook "Writing For The Web" includes Web writing examples, which shows the techniques of writing for the Web medium. Angela says that most writers can easily pick up Web writing skills like search engine optimization and search engine marketing.

"Writing For The Web" is offered as an ebook in PDF format, so that writers can download the ebook instantly and use the information at once. Angela offers a special bonus with the ebook: 15 minutes of coaching time, to answer any questions. Angela says that the ebook is packed with information which helps writers to get Web writing jobs: "So far, I've had two writers who got the book, read it, went to a job site and got a job on the same day they bought the book. I'm thrilled with this, because I know that many writers are struggling to find paying work -- this book lets them get the work they need and make the money they deserve."

Visit http://www.abmagic.com/Web_Write/Web_write.html for more information about "Writing For The Web".

About Angela Booth:

Angela Booth is a veteran copywriter, marketer and writing teacher, who is based in Sydney Australia, and has clients all over the world. She has been writing for the Web since 1994.

Technorati Tags: freelance writing, make money writing, write for the Web

New site, new blog: Fab Freelance Writing

The world of freelance writing is changing fast. As you may know, we already have a subscription site for professional writers, Pro Write, which is very popular with professional writers who want to diversify their skills and take their careers in new directions.

I want to cover more of the new freelancing scene, but the only non-subscription "writing" site I have is this blog, which covers "how to" and motivational material for writers. Cramming extra freelance writing information onto this blog is difficult. This blog isn't meant for that, and if you're not interested in writing for money, then the new freelancing info won't be relevant to you. Therefore I created Fab Freelance Writing to cover freelance writing in a Web 2.0 world and beyond.

A new site for new (and established) freelance writers
Fab Freelance Writing won't be your average freelancing site. Over the past few days I've scanned freelance writing sites to see what's available. Most sites cover traditional freelancing areas: magazine/ newspaper articles, basic copywriting, how-to-sell-or-self-publish your book and so on -- pretty much Freelancing 101.

The challenge with Freelancing 101 is that it's very, very, difficult, even for established freelancers, to make money from their freelancing career.

Look on Fab Freelance Writing as Beyond Freelancing 101 -- as a site which will offer you info on how to freelance without pain in a world that's changing rapidly for everyone, including writers. :-)

In conjunction with the new site, I've just set up the Fab Freelance Writing Blog. It's empty now, but I'll be posting freelance writing information on that blog in the weeks to come, so add it to your bookmarks and feed readers.

Enjoy.:-)

Technorati Tags: freelance writing, get started freelance writing

This week's writing technique: an article a day

Last week's technique was free writing. This week, my technique will be to write an article a day.

I'm doing this to create content and links for my Web sites, but also to get into the habit again of writing as a practice. In other words, just to write because I know it's good for me. :-) It's very easy to become a lazy writer, and only write on commission, but you can't grow as a writer if you're not pushing at your own boundaries, and forcing yourself to act and write in new ways. You need to set yourself a regime, and that's what I'm doing.

I'll be posting an article I wrote in 2005 to my new freelance writing site later today -- "Write An Article A Day: The Real Secret Of Writing Success", which may help you if you're going to try this technique for a week too.

(Aside: why a new freelance writing site? For various reasons. This blog is becoming large and comprehensive, which is good, but not so good if you're looking for freelance writing help: you'll spend a lot of time mining the blog for a few nuggets. So a freelance-specific site is the way to go.)

UPDATE

I've just posted "Freelance Writing: Write An Article A Day To Boost Your Career" to the new site - the article is updated and revised from the original.

Enjoy. :-)

Technorati Tags: 100 ways to be more creative, be more productive, freelance writing

(Mac software) Yep, Kip is now Yep

The software formerly known as Kip, is now Yep.

It's excellent software, and works as advertised (iPhoto for PDFs); let's hope they choose a name and stick with it.

(First it was Kip, then Pik, and now Yep...)

Technorati Tags: Mac, productivity, software

Book blogs: can your blog sell books -- or anything else?

MJ Rose has an interesting post "This Just In: Flogging vs Blogging" about Holtzbrinck developing a group blog project and looking for authors for the group blog.

She also discusses the time and energy it takes to create a blog that's worthwhile -- never mind trying to sell anything via that blog:

This post took 55 minutes to write, 5 minutes to proof and I’m still sure there are typos in it, 5 minutes to find the links and 5 minutes to post  - total time 70 minutes and I’d bet not a single reader of it will hop over to Amazon or stop in their favorite indy  - just to hightlight one of my favorites - today to buy my latest novel because of what I’ve written here.

Yes, it takes time, energy and commitment to blog. If you're looking for quick fixes to problems via your blog, you're quite possibly headed for heartbreak. Blogs work best when you use them to enhance your visibility.

Over time, an author (or writer, or copywriter) gets benefits from visibility. When I visit Amazon.com, MJ Rose's posts appear on my plog, and on the plogs of many others who buy books vaguely related to MJ Rose's publications. Of course this has no immediate effect, but it has an effect over time.  It sells books. Over time.

I've just done a Google search on "MJ Rose", and this was the result:

Results 1 - 10 of about 249,000 for "MJ Rose". (0.34 seconds)

This is search engine visibility.

So, you might be thinking, how does this search engine and other visibility translate to money?

It translates to money because it helps to make the author a brand.

An author with this kind of visibility can leverage her brand in many ways, not least in the ability to guarantee an audience for his/ her next book, and for both current and future projects. It also gives her a platform as well as a brand. In an increasingly competitive world, a platform is vital to any writer's survival.

Technorati Tags: blog your writing, brand management, branding, marketing your writing

Writing brain dumps: you know more than you think

"7 Idea Dumping Tips (How To Manage Diarrhea of the Brain)" has some great ideas on capturing ideas -- always carry paper, and so on.

I use brain dumps** when:

1. I feel restless. I've learned that this means that I've got an idea (for a project I'm not working on, or for a new project), and the idea is trying to hatch;

2. At the start of a project. Whenever I get a new commission, whether it's from a copywriting client or an editor, I do a brain dump. I give myself 20 minutes to just write anything and everything. This is always useful immediately because it gives me confidence, and often later in the project -- I can go back and mine the brain dump for ideas;

3. At the end of a project -- this is always when I get ideas for new projects, based on a nugget in the project I've just completed;

4. When I'm frustrated with a project that's in a rut.

** Brain dumps = literally writing what's on your mind -- even though you don't know what's on your mind until you write it. Give yourself around 20 minutes just to write on a topic. A brain dump isn't free writing, where you just keep writing: with a brain dump you stay on the topic.

Technorati Tags: 100 ways to be more creative, be more productive, creativity, information work, Motivation, Planning

Freelance Writing Success: Five Tips To Help You To Write Faster And Write More

If you want to be a successful freelance writer today, you've got to write a lot. This is not only because the competition for freelancers is intense, but it's also because much of the writing that you do every day won't be writing that you can sell -- it's extra promotional writing that every writer needs to do.

Here's an unpleasant freelance writing truth: if you don't promote your work, you don't sell.

Therefore, you can look on your freelancing career as having two parts: creation, and promotion. You promotional writing includes building a name for yourself, by creating a Web site, or a blog, which gives you visibility. When an editor or publisher types your name into Google, he or she will be looking for some examples of your writing. Building this visibility takes time, however it's essential. No one is going to hire you if they have no idea of what you can do.

Here are five tips to help you to write faster and write more so you can achieve the freelance writing success that you want: