Hello
and welcome to the J.Q. Rose blog!
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| Romance and Mystery Authors on Writing |
This
series on writing tips, Romance and Mystery Authors on Writing, has been a
fantastic opportunity to pick up helpful information from talented authors. And
it has been a wonderful way to get to know writers and their books.
The
good news, “it ain’t over yet.” Originally
planned as a fall series, the
blog posts on writing tips continue into February.
I'm
looking forward to welcoming the following mystery authors:
FEBRUARY
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5
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Heather Haven
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12
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C. Hope Clark
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19
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Resources for Writers
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Please
be sure to return for more writing tips in February AND more giveaways!
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Tips on Editing
Wouldn’t
it be wonderful if we could just write the first draft and be done with it? Actually,
no. I look forward to re-writing my
sentences. I derive a certain joy and heart flutter as I chop out words and
shorten sentences. And behold, at times, I have a revelation about the plot or
the characters.
After saving the file, I sit back a minute to rest my eyes and breathe. At that time, I realize how fulfilling it is to play in my fictional world.Some days I do flounder for words. If it’s too much of a struggle to get anything on the paper, I put away the story and ignore it. But that story creeps into my brain. Whether I am in the shower or on a walk, my mind still turns over the what-ifs in the chapters. When I finally see a way out of the mess I”ve created, I feel triumphant.It is so much better to have a crazy mess of a story written for your first draft, than to have a blank page. You cannot edit a blank page.
After saving the file, I sit back a minute to rest my eyes and breathe. At that time, I realize how fulfilling it is to play in my fictional world.Some days I do flounder for words. If it’s too much of a struggle to get anything on the paper, I put away the story and ignore it. But that story creeps into my brain. Whether I am in the shower or on a walk, my mind still turns over the what-ifs in the chapters. When I finally see a way out of the mess I”ve created, I feel triumphant.It is so much better to have a crazy mess of a story written for your first draft, than to have a blank page. You cannot edit a blank page.
Tips on Marketing:
Include
your profile on Facebook, Pinterest, Good reads, etc. Use the same author photo
on each site for instant recognition. Articles suggest you use a photo of you,
not your book cover or avatar, so readers can “meet” you.
Be sure
your photo and bio are on your blog/website “above the fold” because people are
naturally curious to know more about you. Make it easy for them to find you.
While
you are writing your bio, go ahead and write a tagline with just a few lines,
a short one with fifty words, a medium one hundred words, and a long bio of 300
to 500 words. Place all of these on your media page on your
blog/website so when you are a guest on a blog, radio show, podcast, webinar,
or TV, your host can choose what works
best for his/her event.
# # # #
The
quotes graphics were made using quozio.com
Find
more quotes on marketing at Training Authors.com
About
J. Q.
After writing feature
articles in magazines, newspapers, and online magazines for over fifteen years,
J.Q. Rose entered the world of fiction. Her published mysteries are Sunshine
Boulevard, and Coda to Murder
released by MuseItUp Publishing. When J.Q. isn’t
writing, she enjoys photography, playing Pegs and Jokers board games, and
traveling with her husband. They spend winters in Florida and summers up north
camping and hunting toads, frogs, and salamanders with her four grandsons and
granddaughter.
Connect with J.Q.
Rose online at
J.Q. Rose blog
# # # #
Please
leave a comment to enter to win the drawing for an e-book, Sunshine Boulevard or Coda
to Murder or the first three chapters of my WIP, Deadly Undertaking. Winner’s
Choice.
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| Mystery, Romance--Coda to Murder |
Pastor Christine Hobbs never
imagined she would be caring for a flock
that includes a pig, a kangaroo, and a
murderer.
Back of the Book: Pastor Christine Hobbs has been in the pulpit business
for over five years. She never imagined herself caring for a flock that
includes a pig, a kangaroo, and a murderer.
Detective Cole Stephens
doesn't want the pretty pastor to get away with murdering the church music
director. His investigative methods infuriate Christine as much as his deep
brown eyes attract her.
Can they find the real killer
and build a loving relationship based on trust?
Buy Links:
and major online booksellers.
Remember to leave a comment to enter to win the giveaway! Follow this blog to get alerts about new blog posts about the series and more articles about writing, publishing, marketing. Thank you.
Remember to leave a comment to enter to win the giveaway! Follow this blog to get alerts about new blog posts about the series and more articles about writing, publishing, marketing. Thank you.
11 comments:
Wonderful advice, J.Q. And I totally agree about writing your first draft from your heart.
This has been a great series about authors' writing tips. I've really enjoyed it.
Thank you.
Susan
You're so right about it being fun to play in our fictional worlds. I never looked at it that way, but it's spot-on. Great marketing tips, too!
All good ideas. Definitely keep the same picture. Sometimes people have pictures up of their grandparents or their child. Too strange.
Great tips! Thanks for posting this series. I totally agree about just getting the story down and then going back in to edit.
Thanks, Susan. Glad you're enjoying the series. So good to meet new and already-known authors and their books too.
Hi Heather. Thanks so much. Love being "spot-on." !!
Hi Suzanne. I guess some authors don't want to be known publicly and they use a book cover or a grandkid in the photo with no sign of the author. Otherwise I don't see any reason why not to use your photo. Thanks for stopping in.
Hi Janie, I made a mistake in sharing my first draft with my crit group before actually finishing it. I got so many good suggestions, I was paralyzed and couldn't figure out which way to go!!! I should've given that as a tip. Thanks for stopping by.
Great advice, JQ. I've really enjoyed this series. I like the editing process, too. It feels more satisfying sometimes than the torment of getting that first draft down. Maybe because edits are more under our control. The heart is a more wayward organ than the brain! Thanks for presenting such a great series of posts.
Helena, the hard part of writing is getting down that first draft for me. Re-writing is when you get to make the writing sing!! Fingers crossed. Thanks so much for visiting and leaving a comment.
Congratulations to Janie Franz! She is the winner of the drawing and she has her choice of the prize.
Thanks everyone for stopping in and leaving your comments. I had fun being a guest on my own blog!!
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