How’s the Writing Going? The Question all Authors/writers dread by T.J. Deschamps How’s the writing going? An easy question to ask but a difficult question to answer. I always wonder how to answer this question. Sometimes people ask when I’m in the middle of editing or promotion and haven’t written in days or weeks. Do[…]
Tag: #writingadvice
Marketing Monday: 5 Things I Did to Successfully Launch My Book
This is howI ended up with almost two-hundred preorders and twenty reviews before I even released my book.
Marketing Monday: Swag to Sell Your Books
If you write in a particular genre, that genre usually has conventions. The conventions can range from a small local one of a couple thousand people to tens of thousands (San Diego Comic Con). Newer authors might not be able to afford a table at a con, but there are ways you can market your[…]
Marketing Monday: Subgenre as Marketing Tool and Why Honesty Matters
When readers go to the bookstore, whether virtually or walking the aisles of a brick and mortar, rarely do they have no idea what they want.
On Writing: 5 Things I Do after I Receive Feedback
In movies, the writer has a typewriter or laptop click clacking away, drafting until they write the words “The End”. The author sends the book to their agent who instantly sends it to the publishing company and voila, a book is printed and on the shelf of every bookstore ever. The novel becomes a best[…]
Antagonists: Mental Illness is an Overdone and Ableist Trope
I recently had a fellow writer comment that Roi, the antagonist for Warrior Tithe, gave them “Ramsay Bolton vibes”. I took it as a compliment. A character readers love to hate. However, I want to say this. Cu Roi mac Daire is a legendary figure from The Ulster Cycle, not someone suffering from mental illness.[…]
Writer Talk: Planning 2021
These are my goals. What are your plans for 2021?
On Genre: Where Does My Werewolf Story Belong?
Traditionally, a werewolf in a story earned a book a spot on the shelf of the horror section of a bookstore. However, today there are many genres that include supernatural, potentially monstrous creatures that are not inherently cursed or evil. Categorizing a werewolf story is depends on the plot, not the supernatural creature. For example,[…]
Back Up Your Work: A Cautionary Tale
Writers like to use different programs to get their work down. Microsoft Word being the most common. I personally switch between Word and Google Docs, but I own Scrivener. I use Scrivener for the planning stages of a book, the notes, the outline, little character cards, etc. It’s a lot better than my wall looking[…]
Writer Talk: Multiple Projects
Currently I have three documents open: Eastside Faerie, Warrior Tithe, and a new short story called Galactic Emporium of Delight. I’m working my way through, writing a chapter at a time on each. I have no prescheduled time dedicated to any of them. I do, however, have a time I sit down to write every[…]
Struggling with Imposter Syndrome? You’re Not Alone
After dickering around writing and doing nothing with it for years, about five years ago, I decided to take writing seriously. I started attending classes and workshops to improve. I had the audacity to assume that I could put out better work than what was out there. I thought I could be like Toni Morrison[…]
Opening Lines
When I was new to writing, I’d read that an author should make the first line the best. It’s your hook, so make it memorable. Another book said an author should sum up the entirety of their book in the first line. I thought that the second was absurd and you couldn’t possibly do both….then[…]
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