Whether new or seasoned, young or old, if you have a story in your head to tell, I beg you to tell it. Let the characters grow and shine and let that plot flow from your head and your heart through your fingers onto the page.
The question I get more than any other is ‘How do I start?’
Before I can answer that, I always ask what their end goal is. Do you want to write a story just to do it? Do you want to create a publishable piece to share with whoever wants to read it? Do you want this to be a business?
If the end goal is to just write the story to do it. Then I say start writing. Get as much out of your head as you can, then go back over it and over it until you are happy. Then move onto the next one. Or don’t. But be proud that you did it.
If you want to publish it online so others can enjoy your writing as well, then you write, rewrite, edit, and get a decent cover, then publish on as many formats as you can.
Now, if you want writing and publishing to be your business? That is a whole new ballgame. Publishing as a business takes time. It takes dedication. It is probably the hardest thing I have ever done and probably the thing I am most proud of in my life. I tell authors who want to publish that no matter which path they choose, self publishing, small press, or traditional, to do their research first. No matter which one you choose (or if you plan to be a hybrid author and do more than one) each path has pros and cons.
Spend the time to build an audience. Talk to people. Other authors, readers, bloggers. Everyone. Be professional online. Be professional offline. Comment on blogs, and not just to promote yourself. Interact with people. Have fun and be yourself.
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Have the dedication to write the best possible book you can, every time. Know your characters and your plot. Write. Edit. Edit like your life (or your business) depends on it. Rewrite. Get opinions from fellow writers. Get opinions from readers. But no matter what, stay true to you.
Market yourself and your book’s marketing will follow. If you built your audience the whole time you were writing, when you publish you will have a built in base to help you get your book out there. Consider hiring someone to help you if you can afford it. We can’t all be great at everything and if you need help with marketing there are some amazing companies out there who ARE amazing at marketing and they will help you. And the best firms will let you be you. They will let you write what you want to write without dropping you. They will tailor their process to make sure that you, the author, shines through.
If you have made it this far, I hope you see a common thread throughout this whole post. Be you. No matter which path you take, it is yours to take. Writing is a very personal thing for so many, so keep it that way. Let your voice shine through.
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But that was before.
Vi, Ashley, and Macy are just trying to make it through the school year without one more humiliation when they team up for a simple photography assignment: create a story through a series of photographs. Can’t be too much trouble, right?
Wrong.
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The shutterbugs happen upon Willowspring High School’s darkest secret. When everything around them starts to crumble after trying to do the right thing, their only hope is to stick together.
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