In Pursuit of an Idea by Kim Smith

Kim Smith is currently on a virtual book tour with Pump Up Your Book Promotion to promote her new romance novel, A Will to Love. This is an article she wrote for my book blog, The Book Connection, which will host her on July 24th. I liked this article so much, that I decided to feature it here first. Would be and novice writers could gain a lot from this article.



If you would like to follow Kim on her virtual book tour, please visit http://virtualbooktours.wordpress.com/ during the month of July to see where you stops next.

In the Pursuit of an Idea by Kim Smith

Recently, I was out of town on a business trip. No great thing but for the fact that I had horrible trouble with the airlines that was supposed to move me from point A to point B. The long wait times (two different days!) gave me plenty of opportunities to think about situations and writing and what worked and what didn’t.

For most beginning writers, the pursuit of an idea wide enough to carry an entire book is a big deal because many agents and publishers say “make the story universal, make it something that is timeless”. Most beginners (some who are not as well) take this advice seriously. They want to do everything right straight out of the gate.

I know many established, multi-published authors who take the idea that flashes through their mind and keep building on it “off the paper” for extended periods of time. Some have even developed their characters, their settings, or their plot for years in their pre-planning. But, for some of us, this simply won’t work. I happen to be one of these other writers, the fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants sorts. This post is not for the writer who can create for extended periods before writing their first word, but rather the ones who cannot.

As I sat in the airport contemplating writing something (anything!) because my heart felt that I had put it off too long trying to make it into something useful not wasted, I remembered William Faulkner.

He is quoted as saying, "Let the writer take up surgery or bricklaying if he is interested in technique. There is no mechanical way to get the writing done, no shortcut. The young writer would be a fool to follow a theory. Teach yourself by your own mistakes; people learn only by error. The good artist believes that nobody is good enough to give him advice. He has supreme vanity. No matter how much he admires the old writer, he wants to beat him"

So I am here to tout the news that it is okay to write out the idea on paper, not carry it around in our heads, go forward, dive right into the story by writing a few thousand words. It is okay to turn those few thousand into a few thousand more in an attempt to see if it will go anywhere, only to discover that you do not have a story. Yes, I am an advocate of broken beginnings, saggy middles, and books with no hope.

Why, you ask, would I do such a thing? Why would I encourage writers to write anything less than their best, and most well-thought out work? Waste paper, muddle a mind?

Because writers write. That’s what we do, that’s who we are!

Beginning writers (especially) need to keep poking the muse to see what she has to offer up. When we censor our writing mind, and toss out ideas before they have a chance to be developed (because someone says “that won’t work” or “that’s been done before”), we get into a mind-set that hobbles our creativity.

Let that weak idea flow! You may have a short story, not a novel. You may have a character sketch, or a mood piece, not necessarily a short story, but that is perfectly fine. You still have something to write. Something that moves your writing life forward a little bit more than yesterday. Along the way, you will know when it is right, when it is something that can be stretched, or developed, when it will go into a bigger piece of the puzzle, and who better to know such as that? It is your story to tell, your character to develop, your plot to pursue.

After returning from my business trip, I walked the grounds of Rowan Oak, Faulkner’s home in Oxford, Mississippi. I smiled when I felt the urge to write hit me. I didn’t tarry either. Maybe ole Will was standing somewhere under one of those huge, old trees in the avenue, waving at me—(laughing, probably) telling me to go, go, go at my fierce determination to wrestle something out in the name of writing. Telling me to be free in my methods, my failures. I had a small amount of success, churning out one small story. Thanks, Will.

Kim Smith is the hostess for the popular radio show, Introducing WRITERS! radio show on Blog Talk Radio. She is also the author of the zany, Shannon Wallace mystery series available now from Red Rose Publishing and also the new romance novel, A Will to Love. You can visit Kim’s website at www.mkimsmith.com.

The Dos and Don'ts of Virtual Book Tours

Social media consultant Angela Wilson interviewed me recently on the topic of virtual book tours. The virtual book tour is a relatively new online promotional tool for authors. You can read The Dos and Don'ts of Virtual Book Tours at Angela's Market My Novel blog.

One thing that I didn't address in this article is the advantage of being a tour host. If you are a blogger who would like to draw more traffic to your blog, hosting virtual book tours might be the way to go. You can email me if you're interested in talking about it.

Marta Stephens Gives Tips to Writers

The following is an excerpt from another of Pump Up Your Book Promotion's December clients. Marta Stephens if the author of Silenced Cry and The Devil Can Wait--the latter of which I will review at The Book Connection on December 10th.

You can find Marta on the web at www.martastephens-author.com.

"You’ve written an amazingly brilliant novel. Your tension is excellent, the suspense is fantastic, your subplots are beautifully woven together--every word, every phrase is sheer perfection.

In the begin, the reaction from your friends and family to your writing may range from curious amusement to mild enthusiasm. Months pass, your family begins referring to you in past tense. You friends call less frequently -- eventually they quit, your kids stop setting your place at the table, and dog you’ve raised as a pup begins to bark and growl every time you shuffle your feet from your desk into the kitchen for another cup of coffee. The only television you “watch” are the infomercials at two in the morning only because you’re so wound up from working out complex plots that you can’t go to sleep. But that’s okay, because this is your goal, right? You’ve raised the bar a notch higher and now you have to roll with the punches. You have no choice but to push yourself to the brink of exhaustion and push you will!"

To read the rest of this article, please visit The Writer's Life.

Lloyd Lofthouse and My Splendid Concubine

Lloyd Lofthouse is the author of the historical fiction novel My Splendid Concubine.

In the video below, Lloyd discusses the challenges of research for historical fiction writers. If you're considering writing an historical fiction novel, you'll want to listen to what Lloyd has to say.



About the book: No Westerner has ever achieved Robert Hart’s status and level of power in China. Driven by a passion for his adopted country, Hart became the “godfather of China’s modernism,” inspector general of China’s Customs Service, and the builder of China’s railroads, postal and telegraph systems, and schools.

But his first real love is Ayaou, a young concubine. Soon after arriving in China in 1854, Hart falls in love with Ayaou, but his feelings for her sister go against the teachings of his Christian upbringing and almost break him emotionally. To survive he must learn how to live and think like the Chinese.

He also finds himself thrust into the second bloodiest conflict in history, the Taiping Rebellion, where he ends up making enemies of men such as the American soldier of fortune known as the Devil Soldier.

During his first years in China, Robert experiences a range of emotion from bliss to despair. Like Damascus steel, he learns to be both hard and flexible, which forges his character into the great man he is yet to become. Full of humanity, passion, and moral honesty, My Splendid Concubine is the deeply intimate story of Hart’s loyalty and love for his adopted land and the woman who captured his heart.

You can visit Lloyd's website at www.mysplendidconcubine.com.

The MY SPLENDID CONCUBINE VIRTUAL BOOK TOUR '08 will officially begin on December 1 and end on January 30. You can visit Lloyd's blog stops at www.virtualbooktours.wordpress.com in December and January to find out where he is appearing!

As a special promotion for all our authors, Pump Up Your Book Promotion is giving away a FREE virtual book tour to a published author or a $50 Amazon gift certificate to those not published who comments on our authors' blog stops. More prizes will be announced as they become available. A winner will be announced at the end of every month!

Karen White's Article on Promoting Wisely

Southern fiction author, Karen White, is on a virtual book tour with Pump Up Your Book Promotion to promote her latest release, The House on Tradd Street. She wrote an article that appears at The Writer's Life about promoting wisely. Here is an excerpt:

"Once upon a time, I was a voracious reader. I was never without a book in my purse, in my hand, on my bedside table or all of the above. And in all the times that I went to a library or bookstore and saw all of those books on the shelves, it never occurred to me that I could be one of those authors.

Fast forward twenty-some years. While staying at home with my babies, I sat down one day and just started typing. I wanted to write the kind of book I like to read—characters who are real and emotional stories that mix a woman’s journey with a little romance and mystery thrown in. I entered that first manuscript in a writing contest, and I ended up winning. The finalist judge was a literary agent in New York and she offered to represent me. I signed an agreement and she sold the book to the second publisher she sent it to. And then it was all clear sailing, right? Wrong!"

Read the rest of the article here.

Now, you might be asking yourself why an aspiring author needs this information when she doesn't have books she's promoting. It's elemtentary my dear Watson, if you follow great advice, write a good book, and actively work toward your dream of publication, you won't be an aspiring author forever. So, read Karen's words and tuck them away. Then when you're ready to begin promoting your first book, you'll remember Karen's advice and be able to approach promoting your book wisely.

On another note, I reviewed The House on Tradd Street at The Book Connection. It is one of the best books I've ever read. Read my review here.

Cody McFadyen on Self-doubt and Writing a Good Book

International best selling author Cody McFadyen is on a virtual book tour this month with Pump Up Your Book Promotion. I wandered out to the first blog on his tour, The Tome Traveller's Weblog and found an excellent article that provides a look into the daily routine of a best selling author and that will be a great source of inspiration to all aspiring authors.

Check out Cody McFadyen's article and follow along on his virtual book tour to promote his latest thriller, The Darker Side at virtualbooktours.wordpress.com

As a promotion for all our authors touring in October, Pump Up Your Book Promotion is giving away a FREE virtual book to a published author with a recent release or a $50 gift certificate to Amazon.com to anyone without a recent release who comments at any of our author's blog stops all month long. Follow our authors on tour at virtualbooktours.wordpress.com. One lucky winner will be announced at pumpupyourbookpromotion.wordpress.com on October 30th.

What the Aspiring Author Can Learn from the Business World

Before I left the corporate world to raise my growing family and concentrate on my writing career, I spent nearly twenty years in business. While we writers hate to admit it, writing isn't only about creating; it's also a business. We must perform market research to find the best place to submit our work. We have to pitch our ideas to overburdened, stressed out editors. We must network with other writers and people within the industry. And, we have to know how to promote ourselves to make sure we stand out amongst the thousands of other aspiring authors doing the same thing.

I am fortunate to work with an awesome group of people at Pump Up Your Book Promotion, and if everything our founder, Dorothy is telling me is true, I have a knack for the biz. Dorothy asked me one day how I quickly came up with ideas for a guest article that I wanted from one of our clients who is promoting a business book. I sarcastically replied, "You do remember that I started working when I was 16 and I'm almost 40, right?"

The ideas I gave her seemed like common sense...but maybe they aren't to a lot of people. That got me to thinking, what can the aspiring author learn from the world of business?

Here are five things that I thought of right away:

Number 5: You never get a second chance to make a great first impression.

Well, this one applies to more than just writing, but it applies to the aspiring author in so many ways. Think about the books that you've read. What are some of the adjectives that come to mind: outstanding, fabulous, mediocre, good, atrocious, and god awful. I'm sure there are others, but I want you to think about those books you liked and those you didn't really care for.

What did you like about the book? Were the characters well-developed? Did the hook draw you in right away? Did you stay up late at night reading it until the last page was turned?

Why didn't you care for that book? Were the characters portrayed in an unrealistic light? Were the good guys just too good to be true? Did the villian have no redeeming qualities at all--nothing to make him seem human? Did it take you until page 5 to get hooked into the storyline? Did you pray for the darn thing to end?

You only get once chance to win over a reader. Don't waste it. Make that first impression the best it can be.

But it starts much earlier in the process than with the reader. How about the publisher? Did you polish your manuscript until there wasn't a thing you felt you could improve upon? Did your critique group and editor give it the green light?

Did you pitch it to the right publishing house? You didn't send your romance novel off to a nonfiction publisher in the hopes you can convince him to start a new line, did you? And that query letter--was it your best stuff? Did you keep it brief, but still provide what he asked for? Did you check the query over and again for typos? Did you follow all their guidelines?

Get it right the first time.

Number 4: Listen more than you talk.

This has always been a tough one for me, because I love to talk and I like to provide my opinions. Active listening skills are crucial for an aspiring author. Those skills will allow you to listen to a good critique of your work without defending your position. Active listening will allow you to silently decipher which feedback is valid and will give you the time to fully understand what the person providing constructive feedback is saying. Those skills also make the critiquer feel that you truly value his opinion.

Number 3: If at first you don't succeed, try, try again.

Have you ever pitched a good idea and see it not implemented? I sure have. Did I let that stop me? Hell no! I used appropriate opportunties to pitch my idea again and again. I finally found the right person who thought it was just as good as I did. It was certainly a big thrill to get the recognition I deserved.

As long as you know that the manuscript you've put together is the best it can possibly be, then don't let rejection stop you. Do more market research and query more publishers and/or agents. There is bound to be someone who is as excited about your manuscript as you are.

Quitters never prosper.

Number 2: Build strong, healthy relationships within the industry.

At my last job, I had a real hard time...and it was my own fault. I had just left my position as Office Manager at a local manufacturing firm. I had subordinates and was used to being in charge. I came into an entry level position expecting to control things, just the way I used to. I alienated my co-workers who felt threatened by my ambition. And worse, I blamed them for my troubles.

It would take 18 months before things began to improve. It took me that long to realize I was sabotaging my success. Once I started acting like more of a team player and recognized the talents of those around me, I was able to network easily and be appreciated by my co-workers, my superiors, and others in the department.

The same thing goes for writers. We need to build strong, healthy relationships with other writers, editors, and publishers. Without networking, our struggle is an uphill one on both sides.

Many of the authors who tour with Pump Up Your Book Promotion ask what else they can do to promote their book. I stress the importance of networking. The more people who are impressed with you, the more likely you are to catch someone's eye. This writer always knows someone, who knows someone, who knows someone...

See what I mean?

And the most important thing that an aspiring author can learn from the business world is...

Number 1: "No one can make you feel inferior without your consent." - Eleanor Roosevelt

I can't say it any better than this former First Lady, so I won't even try. I've had bosses who demeaned me because of my sex or my age. I've had superiors who haven't liked me because of what I stood for. I've had co-workers who disliked me for reasons I never even knew. But in the end, if I knew what I was doing was my best work, I was okay.

The same logic can be applied to aspiring authors. I've read some of the rejection letters my fellow writers have gotten and there are times I want to shoot back an email to the editor asking him what crawled up his butt. I've also read some heavy-handed, overly harsh critiques from writing groups.

Writing isn't for the faint of heart. I think we all know this going in. But, don't our own feelings of self-doubt and anxiety fill up enough of our time without us being made to feel like someone else thinks we stink?

There is only one way to deal with tough rejections and critiques. Walk away from them for a few days. Then approach them with a fresh set of eyes and a prepared heart. Can you find something useful to take out of them? Probably. Maybe your characters were as flat as a cardboard cut out. Perhaps the point of view is as shallow as the trickle of water running through an almost dry stream.

That doesn't mean you can't take that feedback and improve your manuscript before you send it out again.

I know I've concentrated on aspiring authors but any writer can put these five points to good use. The business world is ripe with ideas that writers and aspiring authors can use to make the business side of a writing career almost as enjoyable as the creative side.

Good luck and keep writing!

This post originally appeared at my old Aspiring Author blog on 3/29/08.