If there is one major thing that I have learned whilst being published, especially so young, it is that you have to be your own number one fan and your own publicist because certainly the percentage of other people who will be those things for you is very small.

If you are published, I highly recommend contacting book reviewers online, even if they aren't well known, because this will definitely get your name out there if they do write you a review, and you will have a new fan as well if they are impressed with your book.

I sent my book out to a reviewer a month or so ago and I just received a review from them on their website.  It was the best review I could have ever imagined and definitely kept my hopes up that people will continue to read my book and fall in love with the characters I created, just as much as I myself am in love with them.

To read my review, please click on the link to the left titled "My First Book Review!" or click on the URL below!

http://www.themindpalace.net/the-indie-pub/4576795387

My review is the fourth book down, and if you click on the cover photo it will bring you to my author page :)


 
I came across a great article today.  At first I assumed it was going to be an article against authors who self publish by calling them lazy and unwilling to take rejection, but it surprised me by being one of the best articles I have read.  It talked about how traditional writers from traditional publishers have seemed to really be against indie authors who self publish and how just because some authors self publish, that doesn't mean that their work is bad.  Some indie authors, in fact, have better novels and writing out their than a few published writers whom I have read.

I read one book recently, which I will not mention in order to not offend the author or their followers, but it was published by Random House and had a huge following and even an upcoming movie, but it was one of the worst books I have ever read.  The plot had been done countless times before and the writing was amateur.  I couldn't finish the book and I was livid that a traditional publisher would have allowed this author to be published and create such a huge following for it, when the book clearly promoted relationship violence.  

I have come to find that more unknown books have had the best writing that I have ever read, or heard.  A writer I just met self publishes his own audio books, and listening to those books astounded me.  He used flawless detail and painted a picture for the reader of which I had never experienced before.  I thought, if lesser known writers can come up with great pieces of work like this, than why aren't they getting published?

When I told him he should try to get published he said that he didn't want to, because he has heard from a number of writers that publishing can crush your soul.

In this I agree.  People can tear you apart, including a lot of other authors, and you lose sight of the passion that you had to begin with sometimes.  

But the purpose of me saying all of this is that I want to encourage writers to go the self publishing route.  As a whole you will earn more money and you won't have to deal with publishers wanting to change your work entirely.  You will have to work harder, marketing wise, and you may have to spend your own money to get an editor or other forms of help, but you will be able to sell your own work without changing it.  

Don't let people make you feel bad if you go this route.  This route is NOT lazy as most commonly believed, it is much harder and you have to work your way up even more.

 
Criticism for writers can be quite daunting.  And yes, some criticism you should listen to if it is constructive and meant to help you better your writing.  But if people are saying negative things about your story without any constructive criticism, I would tell you to not listen to what they say.  Some writers take what other people say to heart and end up not continuing their writing because they feel that it isn't good enough or it isn't worthy continuing.  One of my favorite quotes is as follows:

"It is impossible to discourage the real writers - they don't give a damn what you say, they're going to write." ~Sinclair Lewis

Don't listen to what people say about your writing, never lose the passion that you had for your writing in the first place, and always keep at it.  The only important thing is that you are happy with your writing and if you are, nothing else matters.

Just always keep writing and don't listen to the insults of other people!  People have gotten a lot pettier in our lifetime and it is our responsibility to not let them get us down.  Keep writing and keep your head up!  I ha
 
One thing that I can tell you is that in this day and age publishers really look at how your writing does online before they even try and publish you. The publishing business IS a business and though most of us wish it wasn't that way, we have to be realistic.  Publishers won't publish you if they think your book won't sell.  Therefore, I would suggest that you not only put your writing on a writing site but also work feverishly by commenting on other people's stories and in the forums constantly to gain awareness for yourself. 

I used to just post stories on writing sties without really reaching out and I hardly generated any readers.  However, after I started commenting on other stories and posting in forums and in the online clubs, readers started coming my way faster than ever before.  Marketing is a major tool, even if you are just posting online, because it will help you be a bigger asset to publishers in the future.

But even though all of this is very important I can't stress this enough: DON'T EVER LET THE PROCESS OF TRYING TO GET NOTICED AS A WRITER TAKE AWAY YOUR PASSION.  I have seen this happen to many writers just on writing sites and it is soul crushing.  You become so obsessed with trying to get readers and get noticed that you forget why you liked to write in the first place.

PLEASE, PLEASE, never lose that passion and try to keep it strong as you climb up in the writing world.  Make sure to write every day, even if it is just a little one shot to keep your imagination flourishing.  This is my most important tip of all.
 
Getting published is a magnificent feat!  However, it takes a lot of hard work to get your book out there.  One good tip I can give you if you want to get published is to first post your novel on a writing website.  It is preferable if you do this as you are still writing so that you can post a chapter a week and gain a larger audience over time.  However, you can also do this if you have finished your book by just posting a chapter a week.  One good writing site I can suggest is wattpad.com.  This site allows you to post your writing while also talking to other writers and advertising your story in the different clubs that are offered.  Many writers have gained a large fan base due to this site.  
But posting your story is only the first part and it is optional.  The major step to trying to get published involves writing a query letter and sending it many different writing agencies.  If you do not know how to write a query letter, there are many sites online that can help you write a superb one.  Just go to Google and type in "how to write a query letter".
Once you have sent out a query letter, you must be prepared for rejection.  The publishing business is a very competitive one and I was probably rejected ten times before I had my novel accepted and published.  
But you should make sure to really talk up your novel in your query and talk less about yourself.  The agencies won't be interested in that, unless you have been published before.  
Getting published is quite a process and can take many years, but if you really work hard and believe that you can get pub
 
This is probably one of the best tips that I have ever received.  So many novels out there are bland because they lack the pizzazz that is ever present in movies and on TV.  But some novels are wonderful because they are filled with details which makes them easy to picture and play out in your mind.  When you are writing you should always add a lot of details because this will help to hook in your readers better and leave them thirsting for more!  

Here is an example: 
First Version - Henry went to the market and someone hit his car.
Second Version - When Henry drove to the market on a cloudy morning, begrudgingly going to get his wife a quart of milk.  He made a point to park farther down the parking lot so that he wouldn't have any trouble pulling into a tight space.  Once he made it into the chilly market and fought through the crowds of busy shopping moms and eventually purchased his milk, he felt a sinking feeling in his stomach.  He had always been good with his intuition, but he waved it off as though it didn't matter.  However, as he marched across the crowded parking lot, a rock somehow managing to get in his shoe and worsening his mood, he saw from a distance a clumsy teenager trying to pull into the parking spot next to his car...but they didn't make it.  Instead they rammed their souped up corvette into his station wagon, causing their airbag to erupt.  Henry stopped in his tracks and dropped the milk to the cement with a thud, the carton opening and spilling all over his shoes.  He knew that his day could now not get any worse.

Doesn't the second version sound much better?  You can completely picture the scene and it doesn't leave the reader responsible for imagining up the scene themselves.  Remember this tip in every writing piece that you pursue and you are sure to have a winner every time!  
 
When I was in school an author came to talk to my class and she gave me one of the most important tips that I still continue to use today.  

Keep a journal with you always and write down observations that you have and can use in writing later. 

This tip is probably one of the most important aspects to my writing success.  When we remain observers wherever we go and take notes on things that we see we can come up with great ideas for stories or even aspects that could change the entire basis of our novels!  This is a great way to add the real world into your writing fantasies and it helps you to continue adding in those ever important details!  If you have not started doing this already I would advise you to get a small, pocket size notebook and carry it with you wherever you go, may it be in a purse, backpack, or even your pocket!  Having that notebook with you will not only allow you to collect notes, but it will also allow you to have a notebook near by if you have a sudden inspiration for a story and need to write it down.  

Always keep your eyes open and ears alert and you will surely grow as a writer and an observer and be a
 
If anyone asked me the most important thing to writing my answer would be "always rewrite".  Writing is a process and rarely what you write is perfect the first time around.  I have found that when I rewrite something that I have written over and over again I tend to like my writing and characters more because I am better able to describe the situations clearly and with more description than what I started with.  I also find that when I rewrite I can take out unneeded information that would only burden the reader.
When I first started rewriting I found it to be a very terrible task and I honestly hated it!  But over time I have found that it is the most enjoyable part of writing because you are able to not only rewrite a better piece of writing, but you are able to read your own writing over and over again and in turn become accustomed to yourself as a writer.  Reading and writing go hand in hand and if you take time to reread your writing over and over and rewrite it you will find that you have taught yourself to become a better writer all on your own just by becoming more acquainted with your own work.

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    I am the author of the Dystopian novel "Beautiful Nightmare: Some Dreams Become Your Reality".  I also am an author of numerous novels on Wattpad.com.

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