CornerScribe

Archive for August, 2007

Both of these sites list multiple markets, and they’re both great resources. I saw them mentioned recently on Paperback Writer, and I thought you’d be interested in them as well.

The first is Ralan.com.  He lists paying and non-paying markets for speculative, horror, sci-fi, fantasy and humor. There are LOTS of market listings here, and he keeps them up-to-date.

The second is Duotrope.com.  It also lists lots of markets, and in most genres too. As a bonus, duotrope offers a free submission tracker if you register.

Are you writing a novel this November? If you’re interested in participating in the National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo), then that’s exactly what you’ll be doing.

Specifically, you’ll write 50,000 words (at least) on a novel that you haven’t already started. You can outline it beforehand, but not start writing until November 1.

This year will be my fourth, and I can tell you that it’s a challenge, and a blast!

If you’re planning on participating, then the first thing you’ll need is an idea. Over the next weeks, I’m planning a series of novel-building posts to help you ramp up for NaNo. I’ll be using the same ideas to get ready myself.

Where do you get your ideas?

Yep, a stereotypical question, but you have to get them somewhere. If you’ve been keeping an idea journal, then you have some material (maybe lots) to start with. If not, then now is a perfect time to start. Go through your journal and see if any ideas sound promising.

Another idea is to grab a general plot idea and start with it.

• Two people fall in love who shouldn’t.
• Someone gets murdered, kidnapped, raped, etc.
• Someone discovers a something or some place.
• A character goes through a life-altering discovery or change.
• A marriage falls apart.
• A person’s life falls apart.

You can turn any of these into any genre you like.

Another approach is to start with a character, instead of plot. Again, this all depends on your writing preference. I tend to do a bit of both, depending on the work. Think about who your main character will be and jot down some notes.

• Describe your character’s physical characteristics
• Describe your character’s personality
• What does your character want? What does she fear? Frustrating these can make for good story lines.
• See my character building worksheets for more exercises for developing your characters.

Post your NaNo ideas below.

Here are some interesting links you might want to check out.

Reading Habits  I couldn’t believe how few books most people read. How many do you read a year, approximately? I’m guessing I read two to four books a month, roughly.

Here’s another blog about making money online. Oh yeah, it’s written by a 13 year old.

Freelance Switch has an article about making passive income.

For those who might have missed them, here are some recently popular posts you might want to read.

Short Story Markets 

Markets: Non-fiction 

Finding Blog Post Ideas

Use Trackbacks to Build Blog Community

We were out of town unexpectedly, so that’s why there haven’t been any recent posts. My cousin isn’t expected to live, and we went to see her. As you can imagine, I haven’t exactly been in a blogging mood.

I’ll try to get some posts up soon. You’ll also see some more theme tweaks in the next few days. Thanks for your patience!

NPR is running a story on an American Idol style writing contest.

You can read about it here as well, on Gather’s site.

If you’re interested, I believe they’re starting a second round.

If you’re reading this blog, I assume that you have at least some interest in making money from your writing. Maybe you’re very optimistic and hoping to support yourself completely or simply looking to supplement your income or buy dinner once a month or so.
So, what are you doing about it?

I know quite a few writers, both online and in the real world, and many claim to want to publish and make money writing. However, very few even manage to make anything, let alone enough to live on. Why is that?

The Artist

The artist won’t compromise his work for anyone or anything. To complicate matters, proofreading, editing, and rewriting all seem to fall under the large umbrella of “compromises” that he won’t make. Forget working with an editor, this person refuses to change the most egregious errors. None of the really great writers are appreciated until after they’re dead anyway, right?

The Chaser

The chaser will compromise her writing for nearly anything. What’s the latest bestseller? She’ll start a novel that’s similar. She reads that children’s literature is booming; she’ll write a children’s book. Never mind that she has no interest or background in the genre, she wants in on the action. When asked about her “voice,” her most honest answer is “Whatever you want it to be.”

The Perpetual Novel

This is the novel that sits in the writer’s drawers (not those drawers!) and gets pulled out occasionally. A paragraph is tweaked, a sentence is labored over, the novel is stroked, loved, admired, and slipped back in the desk. It must be perfect before going out in the world. As everyone except the writer knows, nothing is perfect, so this novel is doomed to be admired by one.

The Almost Writer

These are the folks who sit down and scribble on a poem or story for a few minutes, and then weeks or months go by with no writing. Still, they hope to one day write full time or publish. They’re sure they can do it, when they get the time.

The Sprinter

These writers start strong on a work and then fizzle out. Sometimes it’s the work that doesn’t quite make it, but often it’s the writer’s stamina that’s at fault. Novels are a marathon, not a sprint. Persistence and stamina count.

Fixing it

Okay, maybe these are a bit tongue-in-cheek, but I bet most writers can see a bit of themselves in the descriptions. I know that I can. What do you do to fix it? How do you get on the path to writing success?

1. The Artist. Get over yourself. If you want to publish and/or make money, then what you really want are readers. If you’re writing for yourself, it’s one thing. Be as attached to your work as you like. However, if you’re writing for someone else, you need to take others’ opinions into consideration.
2. The Chaser. Don’t look at the bestseller list. Skip those articles that talk about the next hot genre. Write only what you’d enjoy reading. Given time, you’ll develop your own voice. Besides, you can’t predict what’s going to be popular, and by the time it IS popular, you’ve missed out on the trend.
3. The Perpetual Novel. Finish it. Set a deadline, and declare it finished as of that date. Send it out to an agent on that very day, and absolutely resist the urge to rewrite until an agent or editor tells you to. Then, start another novel!
4. The Almost Writer. Write every day. Not a couple days a week, not most days, every day. When you’ve really developed a strong writing habit, you can take a day off here and there, but not until then. At a bare minimum, write every day for thirty days.
5. The sprinter. Do you have a novel that’s partially finished, AND that’s promising? Dig it out, and spend time every day finishing it.

In short, stick with it!

As you’ve probably noticed, I’ve tried out a couple themes, and I think I’ve settled on this one. Unfortunately, it needs quite a lot of work, so the site will be a little funky for another day or so.

My husband actually chose this theme. Since it wouldn’t be quite fair to give him the prize, I just chose someone randomly from those who submitted themes.  The winner is Sharonda. I have your email; just let me know if sending your Amazon certificate there is okay.

Thanks again to everyone who submitted themes, and thanks for your patience as I get the kinks worked out of this one.

I have to confess, this is one that drives me nuts. I hate to see it misused, and I see it all the time, unfortunately. Hardly a day goes by when I don’t see this one on someone’s blog, and often on big-name blogs that are drawing lots of readers. Some may argue that it doesn’t matter, but I’d disagree, but of course, you knew that already.

First off, lose ends in a “z” sound. Loose ends in an “s” sound.

Loose means to be not tight. Lose is to misplace something or to not win.

Examples.

1. I don’t want to lose my investment.
2. I would have entered, but I was afraid I’d lose.
3. I can’t keep these shoes on because they’re too loose.

I’m looking through the suggested themes, and I’ll be trying them out over the next couple days. If the site looks odd, that’s why.

Once I’ve settled on one, I’ll announce the contest winner. Thanks for all the suggestions!