“Cute, pithy” and for those “who are new to the publishing game and in need of some friendly, clever encouragement.”
My newest micro Ebook, Skipping the Tiramisu: Becoming the Writer You Were Born to Be, earned these words and a four-star review out of a possible four.
Have you downloaded your FREE copy yet? It’s quick, easy, and won’t bite! Promise!
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Up next: Why You Won’t Turn Into a Pumpkin if You’re Not Blogging Every Day (Part 1 of 2).
One of the great things about hosting author interviews and helping other writers is that I get to meet and connect with some truly fascinating and amazingly gifted folks. Speaker and life-long writer Donna C. Goodrich is a choice example. Donna has authored over 700 short stories, articles, devotionals, poems, and book reviews and more than 20 books including A Step in the Write Direction – the Complete How-to-Book for Christian Writers and The Freedom of Letting Go. Let’s get to know her:
Where do you live?
Mesa, Arizona
Tell us something about yourself:
Author and speaker Donna Clark Goodrich
I’m originally from Jackson, Michigan. Moved to Kansas City when I was 20 to take a job as secretary to the book editor (Norman Oke, uncle by marriage of Jeanette Oke) at the Nazarene Publishing House. Two years later, I met my husband-to-be while typing his seminary term paper, and we’ve been married 52 years. Have 3 children, a pastor son-in-law, and 2 granddaughters.
I only have one year of college, but have had a number of writing jobs—associate editor, reporter, etc. , so most of my writing education has been on-the-job training.
I’ve been writing most of my life. Wrote my first poem at the age of 9 for Mother’s Day, another one that year for soldiers (which our pastor put in the church bulletin), and one at 11 when my father left. Sold my first poem at 14 (for $1.40) and my first short story at 18 (for $12).
The three people who had the biggest influence on my writing are: my mother, our children’s librarian in my hometown public library, my 5th-6th grade teacher, and my book editor boss at the publishing house.
Hobbies are baseball (Detroit Tigers and Arizona Diamondbacks), music (mostly southern gospel), reading, and crossword puzzles.
What inspired you to write your two most recent books, A Step in the Write Direction – the Complete How-to Book for Christian Writers, and The Freedom of Letting Go?
1) A Step in the Write Direction—the Complete How-to Book for Christian Writers is taken from all the conference workshops I’ve taught over the years. I wanted something to offer all the people who called saying, “I want to be a writer. How do I get started?”
2) The idea for The Freedom of Letting Go came from the fact it took me 11 years to let go of my mother after she died. Then I realized it wasn’t just letting go of her, it was the whole principle of letting go of many things: grief, guilt, hurts, success, failure, children, material things, worry, doubt, fear, then the book ends with The Land Beyond Letting Go.
How did you choose the title?
The name of 1) is taken from classes and one-day workshops I’ve taught, and 2) from talks I’ve given over the years on that subject.
What obstacles did you encounter in getting this book published? How did you overcome them?
1) The publisher who accepted the “Step” book was a self-publishing house. However, the owner believed in the book enough to publish it on a royalty basis, and later, they also published my student book by the same title, but which has writing assignments throughout.
2) I only sent the “Freedom” book to three publishers. The first one accepted it, but I turned them down as they had only been in business for one year and had only one employee. The second one felt it covered too many topics, and the third one bought it. It was published in May 2012.
How did you know you wanted to be a writer? How did you get started?
I’ve been writing most of my life. Unlike most students, I loved the essay questions. I wrote my first poem at the age of 9 for Mother’s Day, another one that year for soldiers (which our pastor put in the church bulletin), and one at 11 when my father left. Sold my first poem at 14 (for $1.40) and my first short story at 18 (for $12). When I accepted the job as book editor’s secretary, I was near all our denominational publishers, so I sold a lot of articles and short stories those two years. At present, I’ve had 23 books published, and over 700 short stories, articles, devotionals, poems, and book reviews.
Do you have any writing rituals?
Not really. I do editing and proofreading for publishers and writers, and also care for a husband with 12 diseases, so my writing time is limited. But when something burns inside me long enough, I find the time to write it!
Did you learn anything from writing and publishing this book? What?
I had collected information for years, and some topics I had previously put out in self-published booklets. The one thing I did learn was to make my copy as professional as possible to send it in as, since I had copied whole booklets into the manuscript, I wasn’t consistent in my capitalization and punctuation, so I had to do a lot of proofreading when the galleys came.
On the “Freedom” book, it was like preaching to the choir as I used so many personal experiences, and it actually helped me to write the book.
If you were doing it all over again, what would you do differently?
1) As stated above, I’d proofread it better before submitting it, and 2) on the Freedom book I wish I had known earlier the size this publisher published, as after it was accepted, I had to write 15,000 more words on material I hadn’t collected information for.
What types of books do you like to read? Who are your favorite authors? Why?
In the secular market, Mary Higgins Clark; religious market, Max Lucado.
Are you working on your next book? What can you tell us about it?
I’ve had two more books accepted this year: 1) Rhyme-Time Bible Stories for Little Ones (Harvest House Publishers), and 2) Preparing Your Heart for Christmas, a 66-page devotional book (Lighthouse Publishers of the Carolinas; 10/15/12). I’ve also completed a contracted anthology manuscript of stories, poems, and recipes for mothers and grandmothers which will come out before Christmas this year (Hidden Brook Publishers). At present I’m looking for a publisher for a book for caregivers.
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What is the best advice you could give other writers about writing or publishing?
Find a local writers’ group and join. If there isn’t one in your area, start one. Read all the books you can on writing, and try to attend a writers conference. And let go of things you are doing that others can do so you can do what you’re called to do.
Who is the perfect reader for your books?
1) The “Step” book is good for the beginning writer as it gives all the information they’re looking in one book, and it’s good for advanced writers as there is so much encouragement in it.
2) The “Freedom” book is helpful for anyone who finds it hard to let go of something: children, grief, material things, failure, guilt, etc.
Find out more about Donna and her books at: The Writer’s Friend.
Visit Donna at her blog: Donna Goodrich
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Are you a writer? How do you know?
Find out! Grab a free copy of my micro ebook, Skipping the Tiramisu: Becoming The Writer You Were Born to Be when you subscribe to my monthly-ish newsletter, Wreal 8.
To thank you for reading and being awesome, both are FREE!
Put the kettle on or add some ice to that lemonade. Now’s your chance to get to know linguist, multi-published author and editor extraordinaire W. Terry Whalin, author of Jumpstart Your Publishing Dreams and over 60 other titles. Put your feet up and enjoy this an engaging, informative glance “behind the scenes” with this talented writer:
Author and Editor W. Terry Whalin.
Where do you live? Irvine, California
Tell us something about yourself.
In high school, I was introduced to writing. It’s a story I tell in the opening chapter of Jumpstart Your Publishing Dreams (available free here.) I wrote throughout high school and college. While studying journalism at Indiana University, halfway through my sophomore year, I had a life changing experience with a book. The full story is captured in a brief article called Two Words That Changed My Life. The direction of my life changed from journalism to linguistics. I spent 10 years in linguistics and 17 years with Wycliffe Bible Translators. I returned to my writing over 20 years ago and began to write for different print publications. I learned to write a query letter and I’ve written on assignment for over 50 magazines. In 1992, my first book was published—a little children’s book called When I Grow Up, I Can Go Anywhere for Jesus (David C. Cook). It is long out of print but launched my writing life into books. I’ve written more than 60 books for traditional publishers.
What inspired you to write Jumpstart Your Publishing Dreams?
For many years, I’ve been teaching and attending various writers’ conferences. I meet writers who have huge ambitions with their writing yet no idea how to achieve those writing desires. In today’s competitive marketplace to get published, you need three elements. First, you need the insider knowledge about how book editors, magazine editors and literary agents work. If you don’t understand their needs, then you will never be able to meet their expectations. Second, you need the skills to provide those publishing professionals with what they need. Finally you need to bring strong storytelling skills to your writing. You will find a mixture of story combined with practical skills and how-to information inside the pages of Jumpstart Your Publishing Dreams.
How did you choose the title?
I tested my title and subtitle in the marketplace. Many people guard their title as secret when I believe they need to test it and see if it resonates with their audience. I love the word Jumpstart because that’s what writers need to move forward with their writing. I used Publishing Dreams because many people have these sorts of ambitions but don’t even understand how the nitty-gritty of publishing works. I use the word publishing in the broadest use of the word inside my book. Finally I included a subtitle which emphasized a key benefit for my book: Insider Secrets to Skyrocket Your Success.
Do you have any writing rituals?
What a good question. In the computer world, I strongly dislike staring at a blank page. To solve this matter and simply get started, I’ve created a simple file that I call an “article header.” It contains all of the information at the top of a typical magazine article: name, address, word count, rights, and about halfway down the page: the title and my name. I pull this information into my file—and start revising it and almost instantly typing. It works for me and keeps me from getting stalled.
Did you learn anything from writing and publishing this book? What?
With each of my books, I have learned a great deal. For Jumpstart Your Publishing Dreams, much of the basic material began with a set of random blog entries at my blog, The Writing Life. I have over 1,000 entries in this blog. I grouped the contents together into different sections. It required drastic rewriting to take the random material from a blog and turn it into chapters in a book.
Also with this book, I learned to include cartoons throughout the book to lighten the contents and also break up the print. Finally with each chapter, I made a point to give the reader even more information than was in each chapter. The final pages of each chapter include a section called “Dig Deeper” which leads the reader to resources outside of the book on the same topic of the chapter. Also I included a section called “Awaken Your Dreams” which asks the reader several pointed questions so they can apply the contents of the chapter to their own writing life.
Are you working on your next book? What can you tell us about it?
Instead of working on another book, I’m helping others get their books published through my role as an acquisitions editor at Morgan James Publishing. Known as The Entrepreneurial Publisher, Morgan James is actively publishing nonfiction and has recently launched a fiction line. Learn more about the company here.
I’m actively looking for great pitches and proposals which writers can send to me directly at my work email: terry@morganjamespublishing.com. If you don’t know what is a good pitch or proposal, I recommend you learn before pitching and I have some resources for this as well at Ask About Proposals. Also I have an online course on the topic at, Write A Book Proposal.
What is the best advice you could give other writers about writing or publishing?
The majority of writers approach their craft backwards. They believe the best way to make an impact on their world is through a printed book—which from a traditional publisher who pays an advance and royalties—is one of the most difficult to attempt. Books take a long time to get into print. Even after you get a contract (which can take years), most publishers take 18 to 24 months to bring that book into the market. Writers labor over the long form without thinking about shorter writing.
My best advice is to write for printed magazines. These publications have a higher standard than online magazines for quality and good storytelling. Magazines have a much quicker turnaround of three to six months from when accepted. Plus you can reach many more people with your magazine work than you can with a book. A good selling book may sell 5,000 copies during the life of the book. You can easily reach 100,000 or 200,000 people with a short magazine article. Book editors and literary agents are looking for writers with experience—and one of the best ways to get publishing experience is in the magazine world. I continue to write for different magazines. You can learn my basics for this type of writing at Terry’s Basics.
Who is the perfect reader for your book?
My perfect reader is any writer who feels stuck in a place with their writing and wants to move to a new level of excellence. Or maybe they have been in the writing world for some time and want some fresh ideas. Check out this review: http://bit.ly/AiF0QF and it will show you that experienced and new writers alike gain valuable insight from my book.
Where can readers learn more about you and your book?
Jumpstart Your Publishing Dreams is available in bookstores all over the country. Check with your local bookstore to see if they have it. Or you can order it directly from me and get it autographed at Jumpstart Dreams. To learn more about me, I recommend you check out my personal website, or subscribe to my blog on The Writing Life. I have a lot of free resources and helps online for anyone who wants to learn more about writing and publishing. For example, check out Ask Terry Whalin.
Follow Terry on Twitter.
Download Terry’s free ebook, Straight Talk from the Editor.
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Ready to join our avalanche of writers helping writers?
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The rationale went something like:
I’ll just check my email lickety-split, be done with it and carry on with my day.
It’s rarely that simple. Or quick. It can suck you into a tentacly grip for hours. For a writer, “checking my email” can easily turn into a bottomless sieve funneling time and mental energy away from writing. It’s a distraction. A thin veneer of “working” when you’re really not.
It was a bad habit I needed to break.
So I made a decision. I raised my right hand and repeated after me: “Quiet time first. Read and write before email. Read and write before email. I will do something other than check my email first if it kills me!”
Know what? Not only am i not dead, but my days opened up when I re-arranged my morning priorities. There’s a spaciousness that wasn’t there when I was a slave to my dad blame email. I’m not as frazzled. That feeling of being tugged in 98 different directions at once is gone. Well, almost. (I still check, I’m just not chained to it anymore. Don’t look at me like that. If you’re reading this, I bet you know exactly what I mean.)
Why didn’t I think of this sooner?
What habits will you break that interfere with your writing? Share with us in the comments section.
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Are you a writer? How do you know?
Find out! Grab a free copy of my micro ebook, Skipping the Tiramisu: Becoming The Writer You Were Born to Be when you subscribe to my monthly-ish newsletter, Wreal 8.
To thank you for reading and being awesome, both are FREE!
I plopped onto the bed, laced up my sneaks and saw my screen saver slide into view. It shook me till my hair rattled.
This may not sound like much, but you gotta understand that this Mount Rainier screen saver has been sashaying across my screen since shortly after the discovery of fire. Stunning flower fields, glistening rivers, snow-capped peaks and jaw-dropping alpine vistas skip across my screen whenever I’m away from the keyboard for a few minutes. Like I said, it’s been up for eons. And I was really seeing it – connecting, appreciating, taking time to consciously enjoy the slides – for the first time in months.
Then it struck me: How many printed pages have I done the same thing to? Seen or read, but not really “registered”? How ’bout you?
I read five books in the past two weeks: The Hunger Games series (three) and Notes from a Midnight Driver. The fifth? No idea. I read a fifth, but I couldn’t tell you the title for all the tea in China. It didn’t register.
How do you as a writer craft your work so your words “register”? Or is that totally up to the reader? Chime in on the comments section.
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Grab a free copy of my micro ebook, Skipping the Tiramisu: Becoming The Writer You Were Born to Be when you subscribe to my monthly-ish newsletter, Wreal 8.
To thank you for reading and being awesome, both are FREE!
Facebook. Tweets. Status updates. Micro-blogging.
Everyone who’s anyone is all over social media these days. To hear pundits tell it, social media is the best thing since sliced bread. And if you’re an author or an inspiring author, “don’t leave home without it.”
Fine. Now take a closer look. “Social media” may be media, but is it really “social”?
Really?
“Social” means community. Relationships. Connecting, sharing, collecting, mutuality. Give and take, as opposed to isolation “flying solo.” Some of that does exist on the more popular social media channels. You may even share links, retweet and reciprocate. And you should. But using social media to “build relationships”? Really? I’ve had occasion to rethink this lately.
What kind of “relationship” can you build with a status update? Do you really get to know a person, what makes them tick, keeps them up late at night, or their favorite dessert in a 140-character tweet? Oh, and one other thing. Social media lends itself to full-blown narcissism like ugly on an ape. Don’t go there.
Choose
Now, there’s nothing wrong with using social media to “get your message out” or “connect.” But let’s realize it for what it is: a mile wide and a quarter inch deep. A springboard, not the whole pool. Let’s not confuse status updates with a genuine conversation. Choose face-to-face over online whenever we can.
If you’re burying yourself in “social media” rather than having dinner with the fam, playing catch with the kids, or talking to gramps on the phone, you’re giving yourself and your relationships short-shrift. If checking your email has turned into an addiction, see that for the red light it is. If you’re more intent on blog stats than connecting with real flesh-and-blood humans, figure out what’s real and realign your priorities.
That old country/western tune got it right. If you’re looking for real relationships with real people via a keyboard and an electronic box made for one, you’re “looking for love in all the wrong places.”
Go the extra mile
IMHO, writers need to go the extra mile in cultivating “social.” Writing is a solitary endeavor. It’s easy to “roll back the sidewalks,” close the door, burrow into your writing world and then fool yourself into thinking you’re “connecting” in any substantive manner through social media alone.
If you’re tweeting and blogging and Facebook-ing, great. Just don’t stop there. Get out and meet some new people. Acquire a new hobby outside your own four walls. Join a book discussion group. Invite a neighbor to dinner. Pick up the phone and connect with that friend you’ve “been meaning to call.” You’ll not only gain some friends, but you’ll probably harvest a bumper crop of fresh story ideas and inspiration, too!
Don’t wait. Do it today.
How do you balance “social” with “media”?
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Grab a free copy of my micro ebook, Skipping the Tiramisu: Becoming The Writer You Were Born to Be when you subscribe to my monthly-ish newsletter, Wreal 8.
To thank you for reading and being awesome, both are FREE!
Uncanny, isn’t it? Try though I might to set aside an ho
ur a day to write, the “interruptions” flood in like Hurricane Hugo. The doorbell. Phone. Dog. Kids. Laundry. Raspberry white chocolate cheesecake.
The computer where I do most of my brilliant blogging is in the bedroom. This works pretty well for that coveted “quiet spot” – until sibling rivalry in the living room breaks into a three-alarmer. Or the dog wants to go out. Or dinner is burning. Or a sink full of dirty dishes awaits.
I’ve learned to stuff my pockets with 3 x 5-inch spiral bound notebooks. They’re small, lightweight and portable. They also don’t require an outlet or Wi-Fi, so I can readily jot down any inspiration that may strike on the hiking trail, in a canoe, at the beach or on a mountain top. I scribble down my impressions and try to decipher the hieroglyphics at the keyboard later. Sometimes it even works.
Here’s my question. Are you deliberate about setting time aside in your day to write? This may include journaling, jotting down notes or ideas for future development, outlining a short story or your next great work of fiction, or rewrites on a current writing project.
Do you discipline yourself to practice writing on a regular basis? If so, how, when and where? What obstacles or interruptions have you overcome? Share it with us in the comments section.
Aw, phooey.
The envelope arrived in the mail with the self-addressed label I’d affixed some weeks prior. Inside was a nice tri-folded typed note that read:
“Thank your for submitting your book proposal to ____ _____ (unnamed publisher). We have reviewed the materials and have decided that the book is not quite right for our current publishing program.”
What does “not quite right” mean? Is it within a millimeter of being “right,” or a mile and a half? And if a publishing program isn’t “current,” what is it? An antique? In the future?
It’s okay
Alright. So I’m in a bit of a blue funk. Know what? I’ve decided blue funks are okay. For a time.
If you’ve poured heart and soul into a manuscript and slaved long weeks over just the “right” turn of a phrase, agonized over pacing and rhythm, polished dialogue and plot to a bright sheen only to have “The Editors’ reject your magnum opus, there’s a word for the experience: disappointment. Aka: Aw, phooey.
And that’s okay. It’s okay to admit that something hurts when it does.
What’s not okay is to let it take you out for the count. To get so discouraged that you give up.
The territory
The truth? If you’ve been writing for more than ten minutes or so, you know that rejection letters come with the territory. Don’t take them personally. And don’t let them stop you from doing what you were born to do: write!
Now, if “the editors” have specified how or why your latest sparkling masterpiece isn’t “quite right” for their “current publishing program,” listen up and learn. Avoid making the same mistakes twice.
More often than not, however, such letters offer little or no useful advice in the how or why departments. When that happens, you might:
– Submit elsewhere
– Rewrite and re-submit
– Rework a current manuscript for a different publisher
– Pare down a manuscript into an article or an article series and sell it to a magazine
– Set aside the rejected mss. and start something new
– Treat yourself to another slice of raspberry white chocolate cheesecake with double hot fudge
– Pack your bags and head to Tibet.
A win-win
Before you dive into that last one, try offering your writing skills to a non-profit. Volunteer to write for and/or edit their newsletter and other publications. This can be a great opportunity to network. It may even turn into a paying gig. If it doesn’t, you’re still building relationships, polishing your skills and helping someone. It’s a chance to turn an “aw, phooey” into a win-win.
Have you received a rejection letter? How did you turn it into a “win-win”?
If you’re a blogger, you’re bound to hit The Wall sooner or later. If you’re reading this, you know what I mean: the “blank screen” bloggers hit when they’re fresh out of ideas.
It’s not unusual. Skim the blogosphere for any length of time and you’re bound to snag posts like, 20 topic suggestions for writing blog posts, or 10 ideas for awesome blog posts. A lot of people spill considerable ink telling other people how to come up with fresh ink.
Keeping up a blog is hard work. Let’s face it: sometimes the well runs dry.
So rather than regale you with more brilliant ideas or suggestions for writing winning blog posts, let me offer a suggestion you don’t hear much:
Take a break.
Take a Vacation
That’s right. Take a blogging vacation. Let your readers know that while you appreciate their loyalty, you need some time to recharge the ‘ole creative batteries. You might let them know how long you plan to be away and when you plan to return. Then disconnect. Really.
Instead of blogging, go for a walk. Play with your kids. Eat a banana split. Take up line-dancing, a watercolor class, or wood carving. Find a new author. Make a new friend. Change the oil in your car. Quit stressing about your next blog post or series. There’s something therapeutic and bracing about shifting gears, trying something novel, exploring new territory. Whatever it takes to replenish the well.
Productive ‘Down Time’
I know, I know. This may seem counter-intuitive for some, especially you Type-A personalities. Trust me on this. You’d be surprised at how productive “down time” can be, or how a chance of pace, fresh perspective, or renewed energy pays off in the long run. I’ve found then when a “rested” mind is a more creative mind. Some of my best ideas and creative bursts have come after I’ve turned off the computer and gone “on vacation.”
How long should your blogging vacation last? That’s up to you. Running on fumes isn’t doing you or your readers any favors. You’ll both be better off when you can hit the blogosphere fresh. When you start feeling like blogging is fun again, you’re on the right track.
So turn off the computer and take Nike’s advice: Just do it.
Pages & Paws 