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Share via E-mailErica Cosminsky and I meet every week at the coffee shop to work on our books. Having an accountability partner is great! Now if we could just get our books finished… lol!
About Lynn Terry
I'm best known online for my Internet Marketing Blog and my Low Carb Diet blog (where I also talk about my fun travel adventures). But there is SO much more to me than work, food & travel. Which is why we're here. ;-) So let your hair down and let's have some REAL fun! *cheers*
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How nice to have a buddy to share with! I’m jealous!
Some suggestions re: book writing (from someone who has written a book, has many published friends, and works with a publishing company).
[If you already know the information, below, then ignore this post - LOL!]
1. Don’t write from beginning to end – unless it’s fiction and you have to keep the storyline moving. You’ll forget things and end up going back over your work, causing a major distraction. Even biographies can jump around, which allows you to write in bits and pieces.
2. Spend most of your time working on the outline (which, hopefully, you’ve already done). Having an outline offers a goal to work towards. Jot down some things initially, think about it, make a few changes, etc. Sure: you may have to make changes to chapter titles, but the crux of the content is there. You also need suboutlines for each chapter. (See #4, below.)
3. As you write, have an editor review your content – typically as you get each chapter done. You’re too close to the information; thus, someone else can find the lack of continuity, inconsistencies, etc. (BTW: I read/edit/review books free of charge and would be happy to do this for either one of you.)
4. Just write and don’t try to make it perfect. Have the message of the chapter in mind, outline the main points, and then build from there. Again, this will keep you on track and allow you to remember important points. (How often have you said, “Oh what was I going to say about that”?)
5. Realize it’s ok to go in spurts. Sometimes the “real” world gets in the way. Just do what you can, when you can.
Would you like to share the topics of your books?
~C :}
Hi Cindy,
Awesome tips! In our writing group we have done, or do, utilize most, if not all of what you say.
It simply works.
Can you share which publisher you work with and the book that you wrote?
Thanks so much for sharing.
Gary
It was a book my husband and I wrote in the late 90′s related to God. It was rather controversial so we opted to pull it from the market. (We were afraid – at that time – that Jerry Fallwell would come after us with a vengence!) We have contemplated putting it back out on the market as we feel it will be met with more acceptance. Still thinking about that.
The publisher I work for/with is Square One. (They were not the publisher of our book: that publisher is no longer in business.)
~C :}
P.S. I just sent you a message on Facebook.
Thanks!
Great tips, Cindy!
Thanks for sharing those!
The topics of the first two books are business, and they are both digital guides. The third book is also business, but will be published as a paperback or hardcover (still to be decided).
My non business related books are a work in progress to be published later in my 40′s, and I’m keeping those under my hat for now.
Hey Lynn and Erica,
Great video!
Sounds like you two have lots of fun on your weekly meets. D
It is hard to stay focused. Especially if you are working on a “full out” hard cover book.
We had our writers group meet yesterday afternoon. We had six writers show up which is about our usual number. The faces change around from meet to meet. ( there are between 25 and 30 on our email list, 27 I think)
We meet every two weeks on Saturday afternoon. We do a three meeting rotation. The first meet, we read from our work and have the others critique. The second meet, we explore the tools and techniques for writing. Publishing and marketing our ideas and stories. The third meet, we try to have an interesting guest come in and present to us.
This approach appears to work very well. We have a wide variety of writing styles and products being produced. e-books that sell for up to $50.00 US to hard and soft covers (short stories to novels) selling on Amazon along with a selection of children’s books. Technical books and high end magazine articles. Health related booklets and brochures and even a number of books of poetry.
I have been a member of the group for about five years now and I love how it helps me to share, learn, grow and network within the literary arm of our arts community.
On Friday afternoon we will be hosting a two hour “writers workshop” with refreshments, readings and an open mic after.
I live in a very small town too but our writing, music and artisan community is very active and a lot of fun to be a part of.
I hope you both are having an AWESOME writing a book day!
smiles,
Sounds like a beautiful place to live, Gary!
That is one of the very reasons Chattanooga appeals to me so much. It’s full of creatives!
Thanks! It IS and creatives do ROCK!!!
Great video, Lynn (and Erica). I’m jealous, too! I go to a Panera Bread one morning a week to work, and it would be great to have someone to keep me in line … sometimes I am very productive, but other weeks I spend most of the time surfing the net and people watching. Either way, it’s nice to get out of the house.
And I agree with the pet comments. Our cats get along just fine alone, but when I’m here they can be quite needy. And I really hate it when I hear a crash from another room!
Erica and I are usually on task, and get more done there than we would at home. That wasn’t the case this week for some reason, lol.
We people watch sometimes too – usually when we’re less than focused.
On this particular day it was a very handsome employee, an older couple that met for the first time (seemed obvious they were meeting from an online dating site – and fun to watch!), and a man that we thought was someone else. LOL.
Hopefully next week we’ll get more WRITING done.
I love that you two do this every week, and I’m jealous that you have such a cool hang out spot.
Erica is the one with all the cool hangouts. It’s a two hour round trip for me, lol. I so wish you lived closer and could join us!!
OK girls, you are NOT working, that is plain to see! Too many laughs going on for you to be working. So now we know what you REALLY do during that 3 hour accountability session! LOL
Gee, I’m feeling pretty good after listening to the video though. I wrote my book in 2009 (all day and nights until about 1 AM for 4 months straight). Now, if I would just release it…… Is there an accountability session for that? LOL
Seriously, I need to tweak the wording of the guarantee, then I’ll be ready to let ‘er go. I really should get that done, shouldn’t I. Guess I can’t tease you gals about accountability anymore then!
Yes, get it out there!
You have so much invested. Why not, right? 
We do usually get more writing done than talking. Usually. LOL.
LOL… looks like a product placement ad for Allstate.
There’s no way I could get any work done there. I’d end up watching people instead.
We do that sometimes. But usually we’re nose down and writing.
It’s a really cool little coffee shop, and they have a lot of “product placement” like that. On their mugs, on little stands on the tables, etc. It’s kind of nice because you see all kinds of other local small businesses “advertised” that would be cool to check out.
I am so jealous that you have someone that understands what you are doing! BUT I have no idea how you could work in that environment. I could see curled up on couches in a Panera, in front of the fireplace in the winter, BUT I would be so distracted in your location (as another truck ROARS by in your video) that I don’t think I would get anything done. How the heck do you conentrate???
We shot the video outside so we wouldn’t disturb the other people working inside, but it’s not so bad inside. The background noise inside doesn’t bother either of us… but then, we’ve both raised children while working from a home office, lol.
Yup… I’m about 75% done with a book I’m publishing to Kindle, and lately I’ve gotten distracted and have stopped making progress. (Though a coffeeshop with jazz music and a friend would definitely NOT help!)
I’m hosting a tele-class Tuesday with best-selling author Patrick Snow about publishing a book and using it to promote your business (or mission) – he’s the guy who has inspired me to get as far as I have! Lynn and Erica and readers, join us if you can: http://biznik.com/events/writing-and-publishing-a-best-seller-how-your-book-can-better-promote-your-business
And I completely agree with Cindy that an outlines is very important!
We tend to get a lot accomplished when we meet up! We aren’t usually so chatty, and we work inside where it’s a little less distracting – so generally we sit together but focus and work separately.
Thanks for the link & invite!