Tip O'Day #419 - Baking a Book Brownie

Guest blogger Mary Fan on reading to escape.

I frequent the New York Times book section, mostly looking for industry news, and to pick up tips on how to write a good review. (I run a review blog, Zigzag Timeline). However, I don’t think I’ve ever picked up one of the books reviewed. Partially it’s because I have an extensive reading list and don’t really have time for their recommendations, but mostly because they like to review literary fiction, in which case, the reader in my head says, “No thanks, sounds too good.”

I don’t read to delve into the depths of real life drama, to examine or question moral principles, or to ruminate on the meaning of life. I read to escape. That’s why the majority of my reading list consists of speculative fiction. I want a book to take me away to a far-off land, where the impossible comes to life and the improbable is shrugged at. Who cares that there’s no possible way a light saber could work? If they’re part of the fabric of the story, they’re real enough for me.

I see enough real world problems just reading the news. When I read, I don’t want a mirror of what’s actually going on out there. I don’t want someone to “tell it like it is.” In fact, unless it’s dramatized historical fiction, I avoid stories “based on a true story” like my cat avoids a bath. Most of the stuff I read is, from a literary standpoint, transient. It will never be taught in classrooms, picked apart by teachers with microscopes and crammed down the throats of yawning school children. It will never be tied to an academic’s desk and tortured into confessing its underlying meanings. That’s precisely why I read it. It’s my literary candy, empty word calories that taste delicious.

Now, every so often, I’ll come across a piece of candy that has nutritional value, and those are the best. They’re like those gummy bear vitamins — you receive your nutrients in a tasty package. You get your far-off adventures, your wild escapes, your truer-than-life loves, and you get to feel a little smarter after reading.

When I wrote my sci-fi space adventure, Artificial Absolutes, I was basically baking brownies. A star-filled batter mixed with robots and sprinkled with virtual reality. It was, for me, a fun thought experiment: what would happen if you took an ordinary young woman, who could have stepped out of a contemporary romance or something, and put her in a space opera universe akin to Star Wars?

Then I began thinking a lot — perhaps too much — about the theme of man versus machine, the eggs that hold the batter together. I approached the great nutritious carrot that is the philosophical debate about the nature of free will, and I shaved off a few pieces to throw into my sci-fi brownie. Whether the nutrients survived the oven remains to be seen, and will likely be received differently by different readers.

Ultimately, whether they get their veggie bits or not, I hope to do for my readers what dozens of authors have done for me – take them away on a fun journey.

Mary Fan’s sci-fi novel Artificial Absolutes will be released in late February and the book’s website is http://www.artificialabsolutes.com

Tip O'Day #411 - Where's the NF Horror?

Guest blogger Anthony Servante visits from the Servante of Darkness blog to discuss “The Flowering Roots of Horror: Criticism and Creativity."

Ann Radcliffe was the first to argue that horror was not the object of the gothic novel (she wrote six of them and is considered the Mother of the Gothic form), that terror was the dutiful aim of such literature. When the gothic stories became gruesome and sensational (circa early 1800s), Radcliffe dropped out of the writing scene and her work “On the Supernatural in Poetry” was her last published critique of the romanticization of her beloved story form. To find any other literary criticism of horror, we’d have to look back as far as the Ancient Greeks, who argued that “horror vacui” was “a fear of empty spaces.” Thus artwork of the grotesque crowds every single space of the canvas with images, from the works of Dadd to Bosch to Crumb (and even Mad Magazine movie parodies where each caption is filled to capacity with absurd and sometimes horrific pictures and characters that backdrop the main characters of the movie being ridiculed).

Today, however, there is no longer any criticism of horror as art or literature. What I have been trying to do for the past few years under the pseudonym Anthony Servante (especially under the Servante of Darkness moniker) is to revive this critical spotlight on works of horror that meet the criterion established by critics of old and guide readers to new critiques of art, whether in horror, science fiction, fantasy, noir, or gothic forms.

While most writers veer toward fiction and fame, very few choose nonfiction in a field rich such genres as the supernatural, mystery, suspense, thrillers and, of course, gothics. As an academician, I specialize in works of the grotesque in art and literature, concentrating on German and English Romanticism. My interest extends to the Victorian Age because it spawned many a great monster (Dracula, Invisible Man, War of the Worlds, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, and Dorian Gray). As a reader, I peruse the monsters of today from new and old talents in film, art, and books. One day I decided to bring my academic writing to bear on my current readings. I decided to review today’s books the same way I critique the old literature. The only difference is that I don the Servante of Darkness garb for my reviews, but the result is still the same. I’ve had a hoot since I’ve been writing about the new wave in the grotesque.

I have followed the current trend in the Zombie Apocalypse and have interviewed authors on their views on the longevity of the genre. I have followed “cybernocturalism,” the self-publishing avalanche of horror eBooks. Some books are instant classics, while others are just plain bad, and the chasm between the two grows with no end in sight. The literature of Noir is being kept alive in the creative mind of Trent Zelazny. The Southern Gothic is alive and well with Ray Garton. Historic horror maestro Mark Rainey adds a dash of education to his works. Literature of the Absurd is modernized in the works of Gina Ranalli. The Weird Western, a new but important form of horror, has sustained new life with authors such as Ed Erdelac and Ian Rogers.

G.N. Braun has taken horror in a new direction with his work “Hammered” and my review of his book remains one of the top five read articles on my blog. The top three pieces in the Servante of Darkness are interviews with three rock legends: Roger Hodgson, the voice of Supertramp; Dave Lambert, guitarist and vocalist of Strawbs; and Tom Toomey, guitarist for The Zombies. That’s saying a lot about the staying power of Braun’s nonfictional biographic work.

Which brings us back to the lack of nonfiction writers in the field of horror and its neighboring genres. You don’t need to be a professor of literature to write a review or to point out a new trend. You simply need an opinion and a voice. There are plenty of avenues to get your opinion read: Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Goodreads, and so on.

Radcliffe would be proud that her view of terror is still being written about and critiqued, and that the gothic form lives on today in literature and even music and cinema. Even the horror vacui continues in the work of Park Cooper and Barbara-Lien Cooper. It’s a brave new world for horror. And it’s a braver new world for those who write about its branches and growth. I am proud to be amongst them.

Check out this writer at Servante of Darkness blog found at http://servanteofdarkness.blogspot.com/

Tip O'Day #395 - Where Ideas Come From

“What do I write about?” is a commonly heard plaintive question, whether from novelists, poets, essayists or short story writers. Often we start our writing career with a focus on things we are drawn to: our favorite literary works, character types, hobbies, sports, movies and TV shows. However, it doesn’t take long to exhaust those topics, or to feel we’re treading down a path already trampled by far too many authors.

Instead of the subjects that naturally attract you, consider exploring the abhorrent ones. What was it about the idiot truck driver during rush hour last week that made road rage seem justifiable? What is it about the other members of your critique group that makes you grind your teeth? What is it about a particular literary agent, political candidate, waiter, traffic cop, retail clerk or blind date that makes you wonder about the cost of a contract killer?

For example, look at Jen Campbell, a London bookseller, poet and writer. She loves her day job, and probably could write 25 pages or so about the joys of selling books before running out of steam. One day, she was surfing the ‘Net when she came across the question, “What are your pet peeves?” Having had occasional encounters with the customer from Hell, she thought the subject of wacky things said in bookshops had enough material to fill a series of books, and would appeal to retailers as well as writers, publishing professionals and book lovers the world over.

Jen wrote down all the goofy situations she could recall. She also started blogging on the topic, and contacting other booksellers about their experiences. The result is the recently published WEIRD THINGS CUSTOMERS SAY IN BOOKSHOPS in the UK (or …BOOKSTORES in the US and Canada). I’m an avid follower of Jen’s This Is Not the Six Word Novel blog, and the excerpts I’ve read are simply hilarious. I can’t wait for my hardcover edition to arrive in the mail. (Not sure if an eBook version is imminent.)

Getting back to our pet peeves, those are merely situations. How do you turn one into a story? Take a look at the first example: the pickup-truck-driving moron who cuts you off in traffic and nearly forces you into a ditch. Did his father mock him when he played with his Hot Wheels? Did a pint-size neighborhood terrorist enjoy knocking him off his trike? Did the school bully hold his bike hostage for lunch money? Or did he truly emerge from the birth canal angry and aggressive, elbowing his more passive twin out of the way?

As for the victim in your story, what is her reaction to nearly getting road rash? Does she storm after the idiot, honking the horn while she scribbles down the truck’s license number and scans traffic for a police car? Does her reaction change when she notices the rifle in the truck’s Easy Rider gun rack? What if she loses sight of the truck, but then notices it three vehicles behind her, following her home? What if she catches up to the reckless driver, who turns out to be her son’s schoolteacher?

Every decision fleshes out the situation into something closer to a story, and each unique decision you make moves it away from every other road rage incident you’ve read about or seen in the media. With each decision, you will see more scenes taking shape further up the road. As E.L. Doctorow once wrote, “Writing is like driving at night in the fog. You can only see as far as your headlights, but you can make the whole trip that way."

Jen Campbell’s book is available through Constable (UK/Commonwealth) or Overlook Press (US/Canada), as well as Amazon.com and Amazon.UK. Her This Is Not the Six Word Novel blog can be found at http://jen-campbell.blogspot.com/.

By the way, popular and prolific author Scott Nicholson has been kind enough to provide a guest post about the changing publishing environment for my humble Wredheaded Writer blog, and it will appear here tomorrow (Monday, September 17th). Mark your calendar.

Tip O'Day #391 - An Author's Blog Tour

Guest blogger Malika Gandhi on Writing Her Novel – the Past, Present and Future.

Dixon says: Some aspiring authors have only a vague idea what a blog tour is. With more and more book stores vanishing, and some of the remaining ones being hostile to Indie writers, online blog tours have taken the place of "real" book tours in which newly published authors would travel from store to store, reading excerpts from their works and signing copies for purchasers. In this case, Malika Gandhi has arranged to appear in writers, readers and reviewers blogs each day during this month. (US readers may notice a few different spellings, as the author is British.) I was flattered to be asked to participate, and I hope you enjoy the following.

In Freedom of the Monsoon, I wrote about India and its history, spurred on by the violence during British colonisation. As I researched the subject and read accounts of Indian citizens who survived that dangerous and frightening era, I felt anger and frustration. I felt fascination too.

I wanted readers around the world to know what happened during the time of the Quit India Movement and how it affected the Indian population.

Looking into the details. Details were searched for this book. Emotions and actions were a large part. I looked into the souls of these people as I read what they went through, how they were treated and how they saw the British Empire. Some took life as it was and were satisfied, if not happy about the way they lived. They didn’t see or chose to ignore the bad treatment of their fellow neighbours and carried on life regardless. But there were people out there who wanted to see the British out, to see justice done.

I was lucky to stumble upon a website where real experiences of the riots and killings were told. These people told of their fear.

Writing Freedom of the Monsoon. I began to write Freedom of the Monsoon. I portrayed the violence, the romances and the day-to-day life through five individuals, whose lives were very different from one another. These five were Rakesh, a freedom fighter, Dev, a griever and confused man, Pooja, a head strong girl who was dealt a worse than death fate, Amit, a lovely soul who fell in love with the wrong girl and Sunil, an engaged young man who tried to deal with what he witnessed.

Freedom of the Monsoon was published but I had another job to do. I had to carry on writing – I needed a sequel, which told of the aftermath of Indian Independence – the partition of India which became India and Pakistan. Book two is currently being written.

Publication. News of the book’s publication travelled throughout Leicester’s Indian community, to India and to Canada and the States. As both Indian and non-Indian citizens read the book, it led to more research for some. I was delighted with the response and so I began a blog. This site was to be the base of Freedom of the Monsoon, which then evolved into more. It began to carry more information in article form about the period of colonisation; it told of India’s history in detail. It brought culture to the readers.

The Present and Future? What does the present hold for Freedom of the Monsoon? Great reviews and comments and recognition are brilliant. The future will hopefully bring more awareness of India’s crucial and horrendous history.

There have been great novels on the Independence of India in different contexts. May Freedom of the Monsoon join those ranks.

Malika’s book is available as both eBook and paperback, and you can find it at Amazon.com or Amazon.uk. She blogs at http://malikagandhi.wordpress.com/.

Tip O'Day #378 - Listen to that Voice!

Guest blogger Vicki Elam on writing a book for children.

There seems to be a tiny voice (which somehow overpowers the owner of this voice) that urges me to write a children's book. It never stops telling me to put my ideas, emotions, and you-name-it onto paper.

This voice says to explore the significance of writing and it haunts me daily. I realize that writing has no boundaries. It is the guiding voice that would show me the path, a road that I've been hesitant to go down for several years now.

The strange thing, though, is that this inner writer never stops urging me to write, even for one as inexperienced as myself. It is inevitable for an inborn writer to turn away from his or her gifts. The voice may be silent for some time and it will let you know when the time is right to pursue. Inspired by my 6 year old granddaughter, I finally took the plunge. I'm now working with an illustrator and hope to have my book ready to be published in the next few months.

Becoming an author is something I've dreamed of doing. I had an idea for a great children's book and I'm passionate about creating and writing, and committing those ideas to the page. The path to becoming a published author can be difficult but I'm up for the challenge!

Learn about Vicki’s thoughts on writing and her journey of writing a children’s book at her blog.

Tip O'Day #366 - Embrace the Unexpected

Guest blogger Mary Ann Loesch on “baby steps to help you walk the path.“

Like a lot of you, I've been doing the writing thing for a long time. It started when I was a kid and my dad took me to see my first play. Not only was I hooked on the idea of pretending to be another person, but I totally loved the thought of being able to create a new world. I immediately went home, wrote the worst play imaginable, and then made the neighbor kids act it out.

Yep. I had it bad from the beginning.

As I got older and honed my skills, I never entertained the thought of becoming serious about writing. Sure, I had hopes of publishing a short story or two, but a whole book? C'mon. Get serious. I couldn't do that…

Ha! Here I am--three books later and with a zillion projects under way. However it was by no means an easy or conventional road that got me here. There weren't any classes or writing conventions that I would credit with helping me get started. It was the things I learned in my writing group and from doing freelance assignments that put me on the path to publication.

If you don't have a writing group, find one! You'll be surprised at how much you get out of interacting with your own kind. It's almost like being a Trekkie, only you don't have to wear a uniform--unless you want to! Be particular though. Think about where you are at as a writer. What would you want from a group? Do you want manuscript critiques? Or are you more interested in sharing resources about agents and editors? Knowing these things will help you make a decision about what group is best for you. I've been in one really excellent online group that helped me re-write short stories and taught me how to critique the work of others. I've also been in a terrible online group where people did nothing but tear each other apart!

For me, the best group I've joined is the one where I get to sit down face to face with the other members and really chat about the business. This is my All Things Writing group. We were so inspired by each other that we've started a successful blog called All Things Writing that is geared towards helping writers, and we created an anthology of short stories together called All Things Dark and Dastardly.

Freelance writing is something I never expected to really learn anything from. Heck, I just wanted to make extra money so I could forward my advertising campaign for my first book! That's not what fate had planned, though. Working as a freelancer, I discovered the importance of deadlines, how to write tight, that being able to write in different styles is an important tool to have in your tool belt, and how to deal with difficult and annoying people who don't actually know anything about writing. All of these things have benefited me enormously when it came to finally getting published, and I consider them the best on the job training I've ever had!

Were there other things that helped me get published? You bet, but writing groups and freelance writing were definitely what gave me more opportunity to get there!

Mary Ann Loesch is an award winning fiction writer from Texas. Her urban fantasy Nephilim was published in 2011 by Lyrical Press. An avid blogger for All Things Writing and Loesch’s Muse, her latest book, Bayou Myth, was released this June. Check out her website or Bayou Myth on Amazon.

Tip O'Day #365 - Accept Only the Best

Guest blogger Robert Medak asks whether quality writing has become outdated? (Appeared in his blog on March 16, 2012 – repeated with permission.)

Recently I’ve read posts about quality writing in today’s publishing environment. Another point mentioned is the greed of publishers for the lower quality writing published today. Is the problem self-publishing, vanity publishing, or print on demand (POD)?

The ones I blame are writers and readers. I will tell you why.

I’ve reviewed over 100 books from various publishers, mostly Outskirts, Lulu, Xlibris, and personal publishing by authors. This is because publishing houses can’t handle the amount of books submitted, including manuscripts that are not what publishing house print.

Now on to the books I’ve read, many of which break some fundamental rules of grammar, punctuation, spelling and word choice. There are two quotes by Mark Twain that bring this home for everything I write, they are, “The time to begin writing an article is when you have finished it to your satisfaction. By that time you begin to clearly and logically perceive what it is that you really want to say.” And also, “The difference between the almost right word and the right word is really a large matter–it’s the difference between the lightning bug and the lightning." These two quotes speak volumes to me as a writer, as they should every writer.

It’s my position, no matter what, that writers should always write their best to get the words down, then edit the work or have someone they trust edit it for them, be they professional or not. Only with honest feedback can writers improve. Writers need to write to improve their art as Mary Heaton Vorse said, “The art of writing is the art of applying the seat of the pants to the seat of the chair.”

Readers should never accept less than excellent writing from authors.

There might be a problem created in the printing or formatting of the book or eBook. It is up to the author to look at a finished copy of their book and ask for any errors corrected before it is ready for public consumption.

Learn more about Robert (a freelance writer/editor/reviewer) on his writing blog.

Tip O'Day #317 - Writing is Personal

Guest blogger Malika Gandhi on Life Writing.

You may have heard that writing is a personal thing. It truly is. People write for different reasons - for recognition perhaps, out of passion, or it could just be their job. It begins with a thought, maybe written within the pages of a diary, and a “why not?” The creative energy flows when you write something you feel strongly about. Emotions come into play - anger, sadness, happiness. The pen and paper become your friends.

Writing is about seeing. It’s about noticing what happens around you. Just walking down the street and watching what goes on around you will bring ideas. We live in a fascinating world and there is never enough to write about, but the hard part is what to write? What makes people want to stop browsing and start reading? Research is the answer, and then to go by that trend.

But this is not always necessary. If you simply want to express yourself, then there is no stopping you. Just blog. In your own site, you can put down anything that fascinates you. You can talk about photography, your life, your hobbies...the list is endless.

I began to write when I was in junior school and I was told to write book reviews in a log book. I was an avid reader and still am. I loved reviewing books by my favourite authors, C.S.Lewis and Roald Dahl. Sometimes I got carried away and filled two or more pages than was necessary! As I grew older, I moved on to writing diaries. Years later, I began to write my novel and as all authors, established or not, I had to overcome many hurdles. I attended writing courses, read many articles, and subscribed to writing magazines to get where I am now.

I still have a lot more to learn but being self-published, opened me up to the world of blogging. The site is based on my novel Freedom of the Monsoon. Also, I have the chance to showcase other works. I can talk about my personal life, my art, and my culture. Each time I post something, I feel I have achieved and so will you. It is a personal satisfaction.

Learn more about Malika at her blog.

Dixon says: Malika, I like your book title - very lyrical. One thing I disagree with is following trends. At the moment, gay, conflicted werewolves may be all the rage, but in the 2-3 years it takes to write, edit and publish your book, the public will have suffered through a deluge of stories about gay, conflicted werewolves and will not embrace another one. I believe the 'trick' is to figure out what universal themes make people flock to Harry Potter, James Bond, Hunger Games, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, and so on. Then find ways to express those themes through your own original characters, plot and settings.

Tip O'Day #312 - A Book Journey

Guest blogger Jack Scott on “From blog to book, start to finish.”

Within the last fifteen months, I’ve been mad enough to create a blog, design my own personal website and write a book. For most of my meandering expedition, I had absolutely no idea what I was doing. A combination of trial and error, intuition, gentle encouragement from an inspirational publisher and not so gentle cajoling from my partner, have turned an unplanned and uncoordinated series of chess moves into the production of a well-received book that I am proud to have created. My probation has been illuminating - about writing, plot content and construction, network building, promotion and engagement. The list is endless. If you’re thinking of writing a book about your life as I have done, you may find some of these tips useful:

1. Just write - Okay, there are some amazingly talented writers out there. Every word, every sentence and every nuance is described with perfection and beauty. There’s no way you can compete, right? Wrong. All writers have their own style, and most people have ability. It’s a matter of flexing your writing muscles first before finding that creative Nirvana. Just start writing. It doesn’t matter if it’s imperfect. You have to begin somewhere. The more you write, the better you’ll get.

2. Be yourself, be unique - Each of us has our own back story. In theory, this means that we all have the potential to write something unique - and interesting enough to engage readers. Putting that theory into practice is the hard part. Think carefully about what will make your writing stand out from the crowd. How is your message different? What’s distinctive about your angle? Who will your writing appeal to? Writing beautifully about a glorious sunset may well get some admiring comments but won’t necessarily help you rise above the ordinary. Are you prepared to reveal the real you?

3. Think about ‘form’ - This is one of the biggest lessons I learned when turning my blog into a book. A story, even a real-life story, must have order, pace, plot, a compelling blend of highs and lows and a sense of purpose. I created a story-board for my book (much like creating a film script). It changed everything. I instantly saw the gaps and inconsistencies in the storyline, the flabby narrative and superfluous characters. A straight chronological account of your life may not be absorbing enough. Introduce some dramatic tension. Write as if it’s fiction. Get that reader to turn the page.

4. Think visually - Set the scene and describe your characters and situations colourfully. Help your readers visualise your story in their mind’s eye. Use dialogue to break up the narrative and keep the speech realistic. Don’t over-egg the pudding with dense, old-fashioned diction. You’re not writing Pride and Prejudice.

5. Edit, edit, edit and when you’re done, edit again - Be bold and decisive. If something adds little to the plot or message, cut it. Unless you are absolutely confident about your writing skills, re-examine long, flowery sentences and make sure the reader doesn’t get lost in the prose. I made an early decision to keep my book extremely tight and fast-moving. That involved some painful and dramatic pruning.

6. Share your writing - Sharing something you’ve just written is a brave thing to do. If you’re a new writer, as I was, it’s the only way of getting a real feel for how you are doing and how your written style will be perceived by others. You can start gently by asking those close to you for an opinion, though a critique from somebody completely independent is, in my view, more useful. Ask for feedback. Then take a deep breath. Take the comments on board. Some of them will be rubbish but some of them won’t. Try not to take things personally and never spit back.

7. Start a Blog - Blogging is a great auditioning process for writing, and the best way to experiment and grow your fan-base. There are many blogging platforms out there (Wordpress, Google, Wordpad, etc) and most are easy to set up and use - providing a range of professionally designed templates to select from. For a small consideration, these applications will also set up your own domain name linked to your blog. I use Wordpress.com linked to my own domain.

In the crowded blogosphere, content is king and the best content is fresh, new and frequently updated. My blog became popular because I wrote little and often around a small number of specific themes that quickly found an audience. Break up your words with interesting and relevant images. Keep your blog clean and uncluttered. Fussy, multi-coloured fonts and busy designs can hurt the eyes and discourage the reader from continuing.

8. Think about Search Engine Optimisation - Don’t be spooked by this. Search engine optimisation (SEO) is just how a page is ranked on search engines and by this I mostly mean Google. If your blog doesn’t appear in the first few pages of Google then you might as well not be on the internet at all. There are many companies that claim they will increase your ranking for a fee. Don’t waste your money. Follow these few steps and you’ll soon by up there with the pros:

• Publish a post at least once a week
• Engage with your blogging peers with comments and guest posts
• Add share buttons to your posts so your readers can spread the word
• Create reciprocal links by listing other similar blogs on your blog
• Join blog directories. Most are free and some specialise (women bloggers, ex-pat bloggers, for example).

9. Get Yourself Interviewed - Online interviews are a great way to increase your profile. For instance, many ex-pat sites are always looking for interesting people to interview. It provides them with content and you with exposure.

10. Exploit Social Networks and Forums to Grow Exposure - Join social networks and make friends. Facebook and Twitter are the most popular and influential. Create a Facebook page for your blog (and for your book when your masterpiece is done and dusted). Autopost your blog posts to both Facebook and Twitter so you don’t have to add them manually. Again, this really helps with SEO.

If forums exist for your area of interest, join them and participate meaningfully. Engage gently and be careful not to over-promote. People will catch you out.

11. Create a Personal website - Your work of genius is written but unless you want to be stuck with a box full of books propping open a door or languishing unloved and unread in the attic, you need to make sure people know about it. Use your blog to get the message out. Plaster the good news everywhere, particularly your social networks. Create a personal website. This isn’t the expensive faff it used to be. There are a number of free or inexpensive website platforms available that require very little expert knowledge. I use Weebly for my site. It’s a free service that’s easy to use with all the widgets you could want.

And finally - Exhausted? You will be. This book lark takes hard graft. I know. I’ve never worked so hard.

About Jack Scott’s recently published and well-received memoir, Perking the Pansies – Jack and Liam move to Turkey, is a bittersweet tragi-comedy that recalls the first year of a British gay ex-pat couple in a Muslim country. For more information, please click here.

Tip O'Day #203 - "The Dead File"

Guest blogger Madison Woods on publishing stories that previously appeared in your own blog.

Earlier this year I learned a valuable lesson. I have a 'dead file' where I put the short stories that didn't gel for some reason. A couple years ago I posted one of these stories to my blog in weekly segments to get feedback from readers. Did a little rewriting on it but still wasn't satisfied so I put it back in the dead file and forgot about it.

This past summer I found out about a new magazine that was going to pay professional rates (5-6 cents/word). Browsing through my dead file brought me back to that story I'd given up on. I realized what was wrong with it and made changes that revived it and made it sale worthy. The magazine bought it. Contracts signed.

Then one day, I found the posts on my blog. Oh boy. I knew I had to tell the editor that the story had been 'published' on my blog. A writer friend of mine, K.d. McCrite, had warned about this but I didn't listen. Some editors wouldn't care because it's not likely any of the magazine's readers would have read the story on my blog. This editor did care, and it cost me the sale.

Madison blogs at http://www.MadisonWoods.wordpress.com/

Back to Blogging

I've been writing like crazy for the past year. Finished novel #1 - a thriller titled "Montana is Burning" - and queried it for a few months, and got a few "positive rejections" from literary agents, saying the writing was good but my Voice wasn't quite compelling enough. So I put it on a shelf while the publishing industry is in the toilet, and decided to work on a more powerful Voice in novel #2.

Surprise, surprise, novel #2 started being about a serial killer in 1970, but another one horned in as well. So now "Assassin's Club - Doing Good by Being Bad" has two serial killers. One is a twenty-something guy in NW Montana who became a murderer "by accident" and is struggling to reconcile himself with his deadly new hobby.

The other is a 30ish man who walks out of the ocean near Ensenada, Mexico, with no memory of who he is, or how he got there. He is christened Jesus by the first person he meets (and murders), and walks up the West Coast toward Seattle, picking up a Manson Family assortment of losers along the way, and leaving behind a trail of corpses.

Obviously, these two will eventually meet, and only one will like to kill again. At about 200 pages, I'm roughly two-thirds of the way through.

Unfortunately, I've let the passion for my novels divert me from blogging. I'm sure my imaginary fan has been quite distressed and so I am determined to climb back on the horse and re-start my blog.