Tip O'Day #413 - Three Bits of Advice

Guest blogger Lesley Ann Sharrock says you need to “be yourself, find your own voice, and write for yourself.”

What does it take to be published? Damned if I know, even though I have achieved that honor.

It seems to me that it’s a bit of a lottery.

When I finished my first novel, The Seventh Magpie, I tried going down the traditional route of finding an agent. No luck there, lots of “it’s not for us but another agent may feel differently.” They didn’t. We all know that the large publishers will only look at work that is submitted to them via an agent, so that door was firmly slammed in my face. I finally went directly to a smaller publishing house and they accepted it. Phew!

I have just finished my second novel, Truth Lies Buried, and am back on the old agent hunt because I feel that this one is far more commercial than the first as I have now shifted genres to crime thrillers. I may well be wrong, but only time will tell.

The advice I would give all writers is to be yourself, find your own voice, and write for yourself.

Not everyone will like your work, not even your nearest and dearest. Don’t be deterred. There will be lots of people out there who are just like you and who will tune in to your story, given half a chance. Have your final manuscript edited by a professional, experienced editor before submitting it. This is essential, no matter what route you decide to take, be it the traditional one of finding an agent for your work, submitting directly to small publishers or self-publishing. Make it as perfect as it can be.

You can view the book trailer for The Seventh Magpie here. Check out this author's website at http://lesleyannsharrock.com.

Tip O'Day #370 - Succeed by Helping Others

Guest blogger Terri Marie on almost living the dream.

Giving up a profession to write full-time as an Indie author was a scary step. Even so, I refused to let the dream inside me slip away. I had to climb so many mountains, make plenty of mistakes, shed lots of tears, and threaten my computer many times. Luckily, I never threw it! My mountains have decreased in size, but I still continue to climb them, just not by myself.

Doing everything on my own was my biggest mistake. I'm not talking about self-publishing. Writing was the easy part. I realized I had no idea what was involved in marketing, which is extremely important. I searched the Internet daily and found great information, but that wasn't the complete answer either. My sales barely crawled. Doing everything on my own wasn't getting me anywhere. It wasn't until I reached out to, and celebrated with, other authors, that things began to change.

Promoting the work of other writers is one of the most rewarding things I do. I have a core group of very successful author friends that give me insight, their experience, and tons of courage. Watching my friends rise in the ranks is so much fun! If you don't help other writers, you're really hurting yourself. Eventually, I found my work being cross promoted. My success began to grow, and my enjoyment in this venture skyrocketed.

Never give up on your dream. Connect with an author if you loved their work. Be a writer, but don't forget to be a fan. I love to communicate with and get to know my readers, and they love it when I bring great books to their attention. I started out with one reader and one author friend. Now I have many. What a wonderful and talented group of people. If you want success, carry other authors with you on your journey and never hesitate to go on theirs with them!

You can find Marie’s books at her Amazon author’s page.

Tip ODay #198 - "You Can't Do THAT!"

Guest blogger Anna Alexa on helpful advice.

Throughout your life, people will tell you how to write. They will make a point to show you what you can’t do. Your job as a writer is to do those very things and show the world how your techniques work and why. Few things are concrete if you take the time to dive into them, and even those you can’t pass through, are likely to bend with enough force. The only way to make a career out of writing is to be a constant innovator - move people’s feelings the way a parent late in picking up a child weaves through traffic.

To learn more about Anna, check out: scribblesofastoryteller.com

Dixon says: What should we do with you-can't-do-that-if-you-want-to-get-published advice? (1) Ask for it in writing, and save up for a huge New Years Day bonfire. (2) Save them for your biographer. (I wonder if Grisham saved the rejections he got for his first novel from pretty much every NYC publisher?) (3) Wallpaper your den, or wherever you write. Any more ideas?

Tip O'Day #197 - Believe in Yourself & Get Published

Guest blogger Shah Sight on getting published.

I never lost hope of getting published, and always believed in myself and in my work. I got many rejections from publishers but they never affected me in a negative way. If there was anyone in the whole world of writing to have given up on writing, it should have been me, because I dared to write in a different language, which I had much less knowledge about, concerning the war in Afghanistan, a most difficult subject.

Now, I am published by a very good, small publisher, and I am very happy because they did not alter any of the important things. They just polished the work and it reads fantastically good. You may want to check my book, The Interpreter, and see it for yourself.

Tip O'Day for Authors #192

Guest blogger Rebecca Fyfe has concise advice.

I think it is really important for writers to believe in themselves and in their ability to write. Nothing holds you back more than the fear of not being good enough.

Dixon says: Books have been written containing less wisdom than these two sentences.