E: Every Day

Look at this! Already more than 1/6 of the way through the A to Z Blogging Challenge. Here on the IWSG blog, our theme is encouragement for those writers out there battling through the challenges of being a writer. Feel free to share your own encouragement and advice in the comments.

Write Every day is advice commonly given to writers. Even if it's only a few words. My amazing local writer's group has a little contest they do a few times per years called the 50-50. The idea is to write at least 50 words for 50 days in a row. Then you report in a yahoo group and tell everyone how you did.

Most writers, once they sit down at the keyboard, spew out a lot more than fifty words. It's too easy to think of reasons not to sit down. One of the most common reasons is duty the list of chores waiting for all of us. Or you know you only have a ten minute slot until you have to do something else. The idea with 50 words is that you don't need even ten minutes. And if you get those fifty words down, it might turn into a couple of hundred words in ten minutes.

The other part of the contest is the fifty days. Recently on my blog I mentioned the average time it takes to make something a habit is doing every day for three weeks. Fifty days if a few more than three weeks and hopefully will help develop that writing habit of every day.

My local group is starting the newest 50/50 contest today and those who complete the task will receive a very nifty magnet designed by our talented president, Misty Simon. The sheer volume of writing that gets accomplished when you had every one's words together is astounding and well into the six digits.

Life will get in the way of writing every day and some writers pick a day to take off from the desk chair. The important thing is developing those habits and exercising those writing muscles to create a good habit. Kind like the A to Z Challenge is exercising those blogging habits and making us all better at it.

Do you write every day? Is it habit for you to write or do you mentally force yourself to get to work? Have you tried a writing challenge similar to this one, such a NaNo or another?

Susan Gourley writes epic fantasy and science fiction romance. Find her at her blog Susan Says.

Whose Story Is It?

A friend of mine recently decided to redo an entire manuscript and change it from first person to third person. I normally prefer reading third person and always write in third person. One of the advantages of third person is being able to tell the story from the viewpoint of various characters within the novel, including the antagonists. That can make for really interesting reading.

Sometimes third person novels are still written only from one person's point of view. Many YA novels take this approach. The POV character is usually the 'main' character in the novel. They are the one doing something or having something happen to them. And usually, we think of them as the 'good guy.'

But if you're just plotting out your novel and perhaps filling in that character profile sheet, maybe you're unsure of who your main character or characters are. How do you decide? You might not know until you've plotted out some of your novel. But here's a short test.

Who is suffering the most? Which character is in the most pain? That suffering will draw the reader's sympathy and interest as they hope for and watch this character take action. A character in pain wants to enact change. This character also needs to be in a position to act and have the power to do so. They have the freedom to try and change their situation. Don't make the mistake of making your main character too powerful.

Even in medieval fantasy, unless it's a very small kingdom or the castle is under siege, the king won't be actually be wielding a sword. The captain of a large space ship with hundreds of people serving under him, will not go down to explore a mystery on a strange planet as Captain Kirk did so often. The chief of police in a big city isn't going out on routine calls.

Do you have other ideas of how to decide which character in your story should be the 'main' character? Have you ever changed your mind after which character will play the lead? Do you agree that the main character should be the one suffering the most?

(I might be late responding to comments as I'm spending most of the day driving home from Boston)

Susan Gourley writes epic fantasy and is multi-published in science fiction romance writing as Susan Kelley. Find her at Susan Says.

Virtual Friends

I belong to two writing groups where I actually get to meet people in person. One meets monthly and the other one holds a big yearly conference I'll be attending in May. Some of the people in those groups I've known for years. Maybe I should say I met them years ago. But do I know them?

In the last two years or so of blogging, I've made a number of Virtual Friends and an even greater number of Virtual Acquaintances. Those faithful blogging friends might know me better than the writers I've met in person. They certainly are more up to date on where my career is. Writing can be a lonely business but even if all your contacts with other writers in online, you can make some very close Virtual Friends.

Virtual Friends can support you by regular visits to your blog. By liking and commenting on your Facebook posts. By retweeting your tweets. By mentioning your successes on their blogs. Friends who will empathize with your failures and cheer your victories. And you don't have to wait until monthly meetings or yearly conferences. You can 'see' them everyday even when you don't know what they actually look like.

Have you met some Virtual Friends during the A to Z Challenge? Have you joined the IWSG Facebook page where you can find more friends? Do you think Virtual Friends can be as close as face to face friends?

Susan Gourley writes epic fantasy and also writes romance as Susan Kelley. You can read her A to Z posts on world building at Susan Says.

Stand Out

If the A to Z Challenge is going well for you lots of new people have visited your blog. What have you done to make sure your blog Stands Out?

People will come back again and again to your blog if you offer them quality content. Are your posts helpful in someway? Is your content entertaining? Do you write with a unique voice or is your content something different? What reason have you given visitors to return to your blog?

What are some other ways to Stand Out? Perhaps you provide lots of links to great sites. Perhaps you do a mix of announcements, reviews and other interesting tidbits. You might offer expert advice on promotion, finding reviews or the writing process.

What kind of things make a blog Stand Out to you? Have you found some outstanding blogs during the challenge you intend to visit again and again? How does your blog Stand Out?

Don't forget to visit the IWSG Facebook page and enjoy the links. You can find my blog at Susan Says where I'll be sharing world building tips.

Susan Gourley writes epic fantasy and also write romance as Susan Kelley.

Litmus Test

Do you have a Litmus Test to measure your success? Will you feel you've 'made' it as a writer when you've had a book published or sold your first short story? Will it be when you've sold a certain number of books and raked in an expected amount of money?

I first felt successful not when I signed my first contract but when my sons bragged about my fledgling career to their teenage friends. If my boys thought of their mother as a successful author then I was able to also.

What is your Lofty goal to measure your success? What is your own personal Litmus Test to measure your success?

Don't forget to visit the other bloggers participating in the A to Z Blogging Challenge. And you'll also find lots of easy links on the IWSG Facebook Page.

Susan Gourley writes epic fantasy and also writes romance as Susan Kelley. Read her world building A to Z posts at Susan Says.

10 Signs You Might Be a Professional Writer

This post started out with a five in the title but once I started outlining it the list grew with a mind of its own. Then I tried to rank them in order of importance and found the task impossible. Each one's importance varies depending on where you are in your writing and publishing career. So check your sign. Are you a professional writer?

1.  You continue your education in the field. There is so much to learn and so many sites available. Check out our links here on IWSG. And today, our very own Alex J. Cavanaugh is guesting on How to Write Shop, hosted by Lori Devoti. You know how helpful Alex always is.

2. Make a plan and then work your plan. Professional writers know what they intend when they sit down at their keyboards. Some of us call it setting goals and all businesses do it. Do you have a plan?

3. You're the boss. Even if you work under contract, you are the one who determines your hours and how hard you're working each day. There are no sick days or calling a temp agency for a substitute.

4. Know your field. Read within your field. If you write creative non-fiction then you should be reading it. If you write fantasy and read a fantasy book that you didn't care for or that you loved, figure out what worked or didn't work for you.

5. Network with others. All businesses network. Not only does it help with promotion, but it connects you with others you will learn from and perhaps some that can learn from you. And be reciprocal. If someone hosts you, do you offer the same back? Build a network of friends who will help you when you need it and help them back.

6. Always be professional and courteous. Unfortunately many of us have witnessed disagreements spiral upward into hurtful flames online. Stay out of it. Receive a bad review, let it go. Avoid politics unless that's the genre you're writing about.

7. Meet your deadlines and obligations. When your manuscript is due back to your editor in seven days, do you make the date? If you are writing a guest post for someone, do you get it to them in a timely matter?

8. Be alert for opportunities. Want to increase your blog's reach? Join a blog hop like the A to Z challenge or the IWSG monthly posting. Is your library hosting author appearances? Get in on that. Does one of your fellow bloggers do weekly book reviews? Maybe they'll do one for you. Some of these things take effort and work but put them in your plan.

9. Keep records of your work. Have you submitted to a publisher before? Is there a certain reviewer you want to use again and again? Did a certain promotion work or was it a bomb? Have you received timely payments for articles you wrote? Lists. I'm a big fan of lists.

10. Manage your money. Most writers don't earn a living from the craft though some do. Are you tempted to spend your money on a paid blog hop or cover reveal? Do your research first to make sure you're spending your precious dollars to their best advantage. Do you really need to purchase aprons with your book's cover on them?

And in between all that, you write, write and then write some more.

Don't forget to visit Alex at How to Write Shop today. You're sure to find something useful to you on Lori's site.

What would you add to my list of 10 signs? Any you would delete? Any of these you learned the hard way? Please share.

Susan Gourley/Kelley writes fantasy romance, epic fantasy and is author of the bestselling science fiction romances, The Recon Marines Series.
You can find her at:
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