My renewal notice for the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America membership came to me in my email and with mixed emotions I decided not to renew. I wanted to explain why I didn't continue being a member and warn other writers so they don't waste their time and money as well.
Why I Like to Read
Please welcome book reviewer, Megan Monell, of the Love, Literature, Art and Reason blog to my website. She was kind enough to agree to writing a blog post about why she likes to read. Do you have similar reasons? Leave a comment below to let her know.
Write What You Know: Writing about the Hard Stuff
People might wonder why I decided to become a writer and I have a simple answer: If it weren't for reading and writing, I don't believe I would have survived. My story is similar to many others: My father beat my mother and abused drugs and alcohol. Anger, fear and uncertainty litter my childhood memories. My most vivid memory of my father's violence is of being at the kitchen table trying to eat dinner and him coming home from work in an angry mood. He saw what my mother had made him for dinner and said, "I work all day outside in the sun and this is what you make for dinner?"
A Writer’s Life: Morgan Silver
I'd like to welcome guest blogger Marijke Westhoek (her English name is Morgan Silver) to the site. She's recently finished her first novel, The Chess Club, about a chess club that solves crimes, for which she's currently seeking an agent.
Writers are a special kind of breed. They observe the world and its inhabitants, they notice things normal people don’t and they explore worlds that normal people wouldn’t even think of. They don’t miss anything, in fact, they see more than there is to see. Normal people will never understand them and the writer does not mind. The writer pities the normal person for not seeing the array of colours they get to see, which are far more than the colours of the rainbow.
What is the Hardest Part of Writing a Book / Getting it Published?
I'd like to welcome guest blogger T. Michelle Nelson to the site. She's the author of the Lily Drake vampire series and her first two books in her series, Life and Death of Lily Drake and 'Til Death Do Us Part, are currently available for sale. Read on and learn what she thinks is the hardest part of writing a book and then getting it published. It's a fun read and I couldn't agree with her more!
There isn’t a set answer that every author will tell you. Many might say writer’s block, marketing their book, editing or publicity. As a newly published author, I was shocked to find out all of the work that went into getting my novel out there and being able to sell books. Fortunately, I really enjoy most of the background work. Most of my life I’ve been employed in sales, human resources, customer service fields, etc. I like working with people. I also love to learn every aspect of an industry, and the publishing industry is like no other. It has been interesting, fun and rewarding. And yes, at times exhausting. So to answer the question, “what is the hardest part of getting a book published?” - You may laugh. To me the most difficult part of the process is writing the dreaded query letter.
Blog Tour Promotions: Do They Help You Sell Books?
Back in November 2011, I participated in the Indie Book Collective's Blog Tour de Troops promotion that consisted of several dozen writers who gave Smashwords coupons for a free ebook version of your book to readers who left comments on our blogs in support of U.S. troops. I had stumbled across a tweet advertising that the IBC promotion would be starting in a few weeks and I decided to sign up. The $25 entry fee would be put toward a Kindle that would be given away in a drawing to one random reader who had signed up for the IBC newsletter during the promotion or left a comment on one of the participating author blogs.