Artistry With Words

And here we are again, covering all things related to the art of writing.  Thank you for joining me on this adventure.

I hope you are all rested and ready to hit this week running hard.  I am about halfway through the final edit on “Resurrecting Tobias.”  No idea when I will be done with it but I’m still hoping for a publish date on the ebook of the end of May.

With the help of my friend Lizzy Davis, my new website is up and running.  You can find it below.

http://williamdhollandauthor.com/

I will be posting excerpts from the book from time to time prior to publication, and as soon as I film the videos you will find those as well on the website.

Now let’s get down to business, and we’ll start with a quote.

QUOTE OF THE DAY

“Without promotion, something terrible happens… nothing!”

P. T. Barnum
THOUGHT OF THE DAY

Although I certainly understand the quote above, and appreciate the benefits of promoting my own work, I still hate it.  Recently I mentioned my distaste for people on Facebook who constantly bombard their friends with advertisements about their new book.  I really do hate that, and I’m trying very hard not to do it….but…..

As writers, if we don’t promote our own works, then who will?  We are constantly walking this tightrope trying to find just the right amount of self-promotion without appearing to be egocentric.  It is hard for me because I really don’t like to draw attention to myself…but still….

TIP OF THE DAY

If you have written a book, start up a website for that book, or at the very least a website just for your “author site.”  That way you can promote on that website and everyone who visits it knows what they are getting into when they do visit.  Those of us who frequent Facebook often will be very appreciative.

WRITER OF THE DAY

Say hello to Lea, one of the nicest people in our writing community.  You can find her on HubPages as Sparklea here.

PROMPT OF THE DAY

Hopefully this picture will give you an idea for your next article.

THAT’S IT FOR TODAY

Never fear, I will be back, unless, well, I don’t want to think of the unless. J  Have a great day and I’ll see you again on Thursday.

Bill

“Helping writers to spread their wings and fly.”

And here we are with another Thursday staring us in the face and awaiting our accomplishments.  I hope yours will be a good one.

As for me, the editing continues.

I mentioned the other day that my new website, a work in progress, is up and running thanks to Lizzy Davis.  When I finally publish “Resurrecting Tobias” it will be available on that website….but my first novel will not be there.

Why?

Because I’m going to rewrite it, that’s why!  I’m not happy with it.  Oh, I’m proud that I wrote it, but I wrote it three years ago, and I am a much better writer today, so I want to see what I can do with it with my current skills.  When I am satisfied then I will put it up for sale again.

And that is the topic of today’s discussion…..perfection!

QUOTE OF THE DAY

“Perfection is not attainable, but if we chase perfection we can catch excellence.”

Vince Lombardi
And therein lies the quandary we all must face:  we will never be perfect, but we must aim for perfection anyway.

Sigh!

TIP OF THE DAY

Find someone in the writing community whom you trust completely.  Establish a friendship with that person, and use each other as sounding boards when an honest and objective opinion is needed about your writing.  You will never grow to your potential if all you hear is praise.

THOUGHT OF THE DAY

There is no doubt about it, I will never be perfect…..but that doesn’t mean I should accept imperfection, because once I do that then I have lowered my standards to a level that is unacceptable to me.

I don’t know how much longer I have on this planet.  Will I write one more book? Two? Three?  The books I do write between now and my last breath must be the best books I can write. Nothing else will do for me.  Those books will be a part of my legacy after I am done, and I don’t want my legacy dirtied by sloppy work and half-efforts.

Just sayin’

EDITOR OF THE DAY

I have to give a plug for my editor, Jaye.  You can find her on HP here if you should ever want someone who knows this business and is very easy to work with.

PROMPT OF THE DAY

This is my all-time favorite picture of Bev.  Do you know what she is looking at?  Unlimited possibilities, that’s what!

GOTTA GO

Have a great weekend my friend, and thank you always for being here and supporting me.

Bill

“Helping writers to spread their wings and fly.”

Happy Tuesday to you all!

Well, let’s see, what is happening with me?  Oh, that’s right, I’m still editing. Sigh!  But it is necessary and as much as I moan about it, I am happy to do it if it improves my book.  While I’m making changes to the manuscript, I am having a friend of mine, Lizzy, construct a new website for me, and I’m excited about that. It is in its infancy stages but you  can find it here.

I’m also working on the final tagline and logline, and of course the perfect query letter will also have to be written….and we took a bunch of pictures and one of them will eventually be the book cover.  What else? Well, you get the point…it seems to be an endless process, but it really feels like I’m on the homestretch heading for the finish line.

One of the photos I’m thinking of using as the inspiration for the book cover is here……..

Let’s see….what shall we talk about today?

How about fear?

QUOTE OF THE DAY

“Fear stifles our thinking and actions. It creates indecisiveness that results in stagnation. I have known talented people who procrastinate indefinitely rather than risk failure. Lost opportunities cause erosion of confidence, and the downward spiral begins.”

Charles Stanley
THOUGHT OF THE DAY

I see this every single day, writers who are afraid to try things because they think they will fail.  My, my, my goodness, folks, it’s now or never in my humble opinion.

So what if you fail? The best hitter in baseball fails seven out of every ten times he steps to the plate….how’s that for a sucky percentage of success?

If you don’t know how to do something in this business then learn.  Reach out and ask for help. That’s how we all learn.  If you are afraid of negative comments then surround yourself with positive people. If you are afraid of being rejected then get over it.

If you are a writer then the only way to succeed is to risk it all.  There are no instant winners in this lottery.  We all have to go through the process, and the process at times can be uncomfortable and demoralizing, but it is necessary if we are to grow in our craft.

TIP OF THE DAY

Step out of your comfort level.  I recently accepted a challenge from two writing friends and wrote two poems.  They were less than great (LOL) but I did it and I’m a better writer because I tried.

Big fish in little ponds never experience the freedom of open waters unless they take a risk.  You can quote me on that since I just made it up. J

WRITER OF THE DAY

If you want to know anything about marketing your product (your writing) then pay attention to my friend Heidi, a marketing specialist. She has been helping businesses to advance for years now and her suggestions can help you as well.  You can find her on HubPages here.

PROMPT OF THE DAY

I’m in a summer state of mind. I hope this picture puts you there as well.

I THINK THAT’S ALL FOR TODAY

Back to the editing I go.  I hope you all have a fantastic and productive day.

Bill

“Helping writers to spread their wings and fly.”

And a very happy Thursday to you all!

Guess what I’m doing…go ahead, take a guess.  That’s right, I’m working on corrections made by my editor.  I know this is going to sound egotistical, but I think you know me well enough to know I don’t mean it that way….but I’m amazed by the number of grammatical mistakes I made.  I think the years are finally taking their toll on this old man.

I was reading through the manuscript yesterday for the umpteenth time and found some new mistakes regarding consistency in the story.  In one chapter I had the main character with a leg wound and in another chapter it was a shoulder wound.  How many times do I need to read this before all the mistakes are caught and corrected?

And that is my message again for all of you.  If you are going to be your own editor then I wish you luck because you will need it.  Writers cannot be their own editors. It is a kiss of death.

But that’s not what I wanted to talk to you about today.  Let’s start with a quote and then I’ll finally get to my point.

QUOTE OF THE DAY

“Creativity is just connecting things. When you ask creative people how they did something, they feel a little guilty because they didn’t really do it, they just saw something. It seemed obvious to them after a while. That’s because they were able to connect experiences they’ve had and synthesize new things.”

Steve Jobs
I love this quote and I so get it!  I have had people ask me where ideas come from and I honestly can’t answer. They just pop into my head. Sometimes they are the result of a prompt of some sort, but more often than not they are just random thoughts that appear.  Let me give you an example.

I had started a novel about six months ago, but that novel was put on the back burner while I worked on “Resurrecting Tobias.”  Anyway, this other novel is about a stone-cold killer named Eli Baker and I had written something like 10,000 words on it before giving it a rest for six months.  Last night I was reading a book before going to bed, and it dawned on me that my approach to Eli Baker was all wrong, so I got up and erased 9,000 words of the novel.  I just knew, in some unknown way, that my initial approach was wrong, and then the right storyline came to me in an instant.  Now I am so excited to start writing again on that novel.

So don’t knock creativity, and don’t ignore that little voice inside of you that knows better than you do which direction to take.

I don’t know about all of you, but I love being a writer.

PROMPT OF THE DAY

Hopefully this prompt will kickstart your creative juices.

THAT’S ALL FOR TODAY

Sorry, but I have to get back to editing.  I hope you find what you are looking for today, and I hope you trust your inner creative voice enough to follow it.

Bill

“Helping writers to spread their wings and fly.”

I received an email from a new writing friend today.  She had found some of my articles about writing online, and she noticed that I offered to help any writer who needed it….so she wrote me for advice.  She lives in Serbia and her name is Milena.

Good morning to you all and Happy Tuesday. How rude of me to not start out with that greeting.  Now, back to the story.

So this young lady is a novice to the freelance game, and she didn’t know what to do to begin….and that is the topic we will discuss today.

QUOTE OF THE DAY

“Learning is the beginning of wealth. Learning is the beginning of health. Learning is the beginning of spirituality. Searching and learning is where the miracle process all begins.”

Jim Rohn
THOUGHT OF THE DAY

I began as a freelance writer a little over three years ago.  I’ve come a long way, baby, but it is important for newcomers to realize that when an established writer begins their journey they are starting at square one just like everybody else.

When I quit my teaching job three years ago, I had no backup plan.  After a week of contemplation I decided I was going to follow my dream and my passion and become a writer.  I knew next to nothing about freelance writing, so that meant I had to learn on the fly.  I devoured all of the information I could about the writing business and then about two weeks later I declared myself to be a professional freelance writer.  Yes, it is all about perspective and believing in your abilities.

I learned early on that I needed to build a platform for my writing business. This meant starting a blog, and building a website, and it also meant I needed a body of work that would reflect my writing abilities.  Thus my marriage to HubPages began.

Just like everybody else, I had to prove that I “had game” in writing.  There are no shortcuts in this business, and there are no guarantees.  You work hard, you build upon successes, you learn from failures, and you always keep moving forward.

WRITER OF THE DAY

Because I firmly believe in supporting new writers, I want you to meet my new friend.  Her name is Milena and you can find her blog here.

CONTEST OF THE DAY

The Nano Fiction Prize is now taking submissions of 300 words or less through September 1^st. I believe the entry fee is $15.  Check it out here.

WRITING TIP OF THE DAY

Learn patience!  Nothing in this business happens overnight. I am encouraged by that because I am a plodder when it comes to long-term goals.  I like having the goal in front of me. I like breaking down the task into manageable chunks that I can do daily.  I do not expect success today, but I know if I keep learning my craft that success will come.

PROMPT OF THE DAY

Yes, it is spring, and I’m thinking sunshine and warmth and gardening and all things outside.

UNTIL NEXT TIME

Thanks as always for the visit.  I hope you found something you could use.  For those curious, I am now working on the corrections fed to me by my editor Jaye.  If I had to guess I would say that “Resurrecting Tobias” will be ready for ebook publication by the end of May.  That’s one month later than I had planned but oh well.

Bill

“Helping writers to spread their wings and fly.”

Happy Thursday my friends!  Let’s get right to it, shall we?

QUOTE OF THE DAY

“Perfection is not attainable, but if we chase perfection we can catch excellence.”

Vince Lombardi
I love quoting football coaches and applying it to writing. Don’t ask why because I know not.

THOUGHT OF THE DAY

I chose a quote about perfection for a fairly good reason.  Let me explain.

As you know, I’m on the homestretch with my new novel “Resurrecting Tobias.”  The editor has it now and is doing a line edit of it.  She does twenty pages and then sends them to me so I can work on them while she does the next twenty pages, and so on.

What happens when the edit is done?  Well, I had originally planned on publishing the book immediately as an ebook….but now….

I don’t think the book is ready yet.  I have to be careful here, because we walk a tightrope in trying to make a book the perfect book, when in fact it will never be perfect….but….

This book is very important to me, and I want it to represent my finest writing…..so I’m going to tweak it some more until I’m satisfied.  In the final analysis, I’m the one who has to be completely satisfied with my effort.  It may not sell…it may sell a ton….but no matter what happens, I don’t want to look back at it a year from now and wish I had put in just a little more effort on it.

So the process continues.

TIP OF THE DAY

Never….Never….settle for second best just to be expedient.  Remember, always, that writing is a craft…an art form…and it is representative of you as a writer.

HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND

Since I’m typing this at seven p.m. Wednesday night, I’m going to make this short.  It is officially time to call it a day.

Bill

“Helping writers to spread their wings and fly.”

What day is it? Tuesday? Perfect!

How was your weekend? Mine was restful. I did absolutely no writing and it showed on Monday when I was a writing machine.

On the novel front, I have one more day of tinkering to do with it and then I will return it to the editor (my good friend Jaye Denman) and then she will do her magic.  Once she finishes then I will make final corrections and it will be done…..finished….and then it will be time to publish and market.

I read a fascinating article about Pulitzer-prize winner Gilbert King.  In fact, I wrote an article about it which will be posted later this week, but I wanted to touch on it now.

In the article, King explained that writing the best novel possible was his total focus. He gave up on the social media; gave up on his blog; all he did was concentrate on making his book the best it could possibly be.  That way, when he was finished, he could look himself in the mirror and know that he had done his best, win or lose.

It took him four years to write it, and then he was rejected by the first thirty publishers he queried….but he didn’t give up.

Even after it was published it received good reviews but lukewarm sales…..

And then he won the Pulitzer!

QUOTE OF THE DAY

“The will to win, the desire to succeed, the urge to reach your full potential… these are the keys that will unlock the door to personal excellence.”

Confucius
THOUGHT OF THE DAY

So here’s the thing:  Don’t give up!  Believe in your writing….be the best writer you can be…and then don’t give up.

WRITER OF THE DAY

From Sweden I give you my friend Linda.  You can find her on HP by following this link. By the way…Linda is quite the accomplished photographer as well.

PROMPT OF THE DAY

From this past weekend…our brand new urban farming center. So exciting!

CONTEST OF THE DAY

Mason’s Road Literary Prize is now accepting blind submissions to their literary journal contest. Check them out here.

AND THAT’S IT UNTIL THURSDAY

Thanks for stopping by. Remember, don’t give up….don’t quit before the miracle happens.

Bill

“Helping writers to spread their wings and fly.”

Happy Friday!  We made it and it is time to celebrate, rest and relax for two days.

I’m not blogging as much these days. My novel has my full attention, so if you don’t hear from me as often as in the past, you now know the reason.

Today let’s talk about editing….but first….

QUOTE OF THE DAY

“I don’t think anyone is ever writing so that you can throw it away. You’re always writing it to be something. Later, you decide whether it’ll ever see the light of day. But at the moment of its writing, it’s always meant to be something. So, to me, there’s no practicing; there’s only editing and publishing or not publishing.”

Steve Martin
 THOUGHT OF THE DAY

I’m in the editing stage of the novel now.  I edited the novel myself….twice….and then did the smartest thing I have done in a very long time…I turned it over to an editor.

My friend Jaye is now editing the book for me.  You can find her as JayeWisdom on HubPages right here.

Why do I say it was a smart move on my part?  As writers, we become too close to our book.  It is only natural.  Even after self-editing twice we miss things….things that are so obvious to another reader.  I’m not just talking about grammar mistakes.  I’m also talking about voice, character development, scenes, and on and on.  We have the story in our minds, and we think we have done everything properly, but it takes a new set of eyes to actually see our book for what it is.

If you have the money then hire an editor.  It will be money well-spent.

PROMPT OF THE DAY

You know what to do.  Hopefully some ideas will be born from this picture.

CONTEST OF THE DAY

Moon City Poetry Awards is accepting submissions right now, with a deadline of May 1^st. I believe the entry fee is $25 for those interested.  You can find the guidelines right here.

THAT’S ALL FOR THIS WEEK

But never fear, I will return next week with more information, thoughts, ideas and tips. Have a great weekend and thank you.

Bill

“Helping writers to spread their wings and fly.”

And a very Happy Tuesday to you all! I hope you are rested after the weekend….and hey, it’s April!  Where the heck did March go to?

Well, let’s get busy, shall we?

QUOTE OF THE DAY

“All men dream, but not equally. Those who dream by night in the dusty recesses of their minds, wake in the day to find that it was vanity: but the dreamers of the day are dangerous men, for they may act on their dreams with open eyes, to make them possible.”

T. E. Lawrence
How about you? Are you a dreamer?  Or are you a dreamer willing to do anything to make your dream a reality?  Big difference!

THOUGHT OF THE DAY

I sent my manuscript to the editor this morning.  She will do a line edit and then return it to me, and then the final re-write will occur.  I will listen to her suggestions, and the suggestions of those who have previewed my manuscript, and I will make changes where I think they should be made.

And then what?  Well, then I’ll make an ebook out of it, and then I’ll start contacting agents and publishers and see if we can’t get someone to give it the attention I think it deserves.

That I think it deserves!

This is what we do….we write, with no assurances that we will ever see financial success from our efforts.  Six months of my life are invested in this novel, and there are no guarantees.  And do you know what I’ll do once this novel is an ebook and I’ve done everything I can to find success?  I’ll write another one and start the whole process again.

This is what we do!  We are writers, and writers write despite the odds.

There are many ways to make money in the writing game.  We can freelance and write for magazines, or we can succumb to the content mills, or we can write books, or we can do a little of them all…but this is what we do.  Few of us will ever be rich….most of us will still be chasing our tails years from now….all because of a dream.

What kind of dreamer are you?

PROMPT OF THE DAY

It’s gardening time.  You don’t need me to explain this picture.

CONTEST OF THE DAY

The Saturday Evening Post Fiction Contest is accepting submissions.  The deadline is July 1^st and entry fee is ten dollars.  Not a bad contest to enter; stories must be between 1,500 and 5,000 words.  Find about it here.

WRITER OF THE DAY

Allow me to introduce you to Ms. Dora.  This lovely lady is a good person who works daily to improve her craft, and most of her articles have an important message worth reading.  You can find her here.

AND THAT IS QUITE ENOUGH FOR TODAY

I hope you all have a marvelous day following your dreams. I know I will.

Bill

“Helping writers to spread their wings and fly.”