How to Get Unstuck When You're Stalled In Your Writing (Beating "Writer's Block")

iStock © alvarez

This month I'm wondering who needs this article. (Maybe it's you. Maybe it's me!) Have you ever been stuck or stalled in your writing? Have you ever experienced "writer's block"? Here are some thoughts to help.

This is a rerun from my former newsletter from August 2010. It's a timeless topic and I know there's help here for someone who needs it. Maybe that will be you, if not now...then perhaps another time soon.

Getting Unstuck When You're Stalled

I had conversations with two different writers recently. Both talked about being stalled or blocked on big projects. We talked a little about why this might happen and what we can do about it when it does. (Tweet that!)

One fellow, when he learned I was a writer, asked me, "How do you get past writer's block?" (Tweet that!) He has a large project in mind and he's looking for help in getting it done.

As I tried to talk with this writer, he did a lot of talking and very little listening. He lamented that he couldn't get anything done. He was frustrated that he couldn’t get anyone interested in his project.

I asked him what he had written so far. He didn't answer, but went on about how the people in charge who should want his project wouldn't get on board with him. Hmmm. I began to wonder if this fellow has ever actually written anything.

What is Writer's Block?

Sometimes I think would-be writers try to write, find it extremely difficult, and conclude they have writer's block.

I’ll make a confession here that I've never made out loud before because I have the impression it could possibly be quite controversial. Here it is: I don’t know what writer's block is. (Tweet that!)

There. I said it.

Years ago I remember reading an article in a popular writer’s magazine where the author stated he didn't think writer's block existed. Oh what an uproar ensued! I was stunned such a statement would elicit such a strong, negative response! I'm still not sure I understand why. I just know a lot of writers were offended.

I've heard writers say when they are blocked they "can't" write. Okay, maybe so. I've never experienced that so I won't claim to understand it.

What I have experienced is that writing, for me, is really, really hard. (Tweet that!) It's work. It never comes easy.

I've heard some writers say their words flow so easily onto paper. Well, lucky them, I guess. For me, it's hard, physical labor to get my ideas out of my head and onto paper. I can say that I've had enough practice now that it's easier. I now understand my own process I must go through to get it done. But it's never easy.

Writing is clear thinking.

If you can't think a thought or idea clearly, then you can't nail it down on paper. (Tweet that!) Getting to the point of being able to clearly state what you're thinking is hard work. (Tweet that!)

I have to wonder if that writer who told me he was blocked really was blocked. Or did he discover how difficult it is to write and conclude something else was wrong?

What to do about it.

Recognize writing is hard.

If you're blocked or feeling stuck, the first thing to do, I think, is to recognize writing is very difficult. If it wasn't, everybody would be doing this. (Tweet that!)

Clarify what you want to say.

The next thing I would suggest is to clarify what it is you want to say. Remember that exercise we're told to do? Say it in one sentence.

Whether it's a book, an article, or a short story, say it in one sentence. If you can't, it's not clear enough yet in your own mind to nail it down on paper. (Tweet that!)

It will take time and effort and a hundred (or a thousand) failed tries before you're able to say it in one sentence. (Tweet that!) That's just the way it is. But once you start getting close, you'll sense it. And once you nail it, you'll know it. So don't quit prematurely.

Say it in one sentence. Just do it. Now.

[For help writing this one sentence, visit the December 2014 post, "Keep Your Eye on the Ball: One Sentence that Can Elevate Your Writing to New Heights."]

Some suggestions...

The second writer I talked with I know to be an accomplished writer. She said she was burned out. Boy do I understand that. She works a lot on other people's projects and really wants to work more on her own, but she's not getting going on those.

I asked her, "What's your passion?" She thought for a moment before she told me about a project she has wanted to write for years. But it's too big, she said. She doesn't know where to start.

We talked about some things she could do. Here are some of my suggestions:

• Break it down.

Figure out what you need to do. Make a list. List the items that would need to be done to accomplish (or even start) this project.

• Make a plan.

• Work the plan.

• Do what you can.

By the time you get to some of the things that can’t be done, you will have found the help you need or a way to do it. Start with doing what you can. The rest will work out.

Remember your passion.

And whenever you’re feeling burned out, stalled, or stuck. I suggest this:

• Return to your passion.

I think as writers we're asked to do more and more to please publishers, all with lower and lower pay. Or no pay. We're expected to start a blog, be a public speaker, market online, attend conferences, write on spec, take assignments… No wonder we’re feeling burned out, overwhelmed, and stalled.

But I fear that's a topic for another article. For now, ponder these questions:

• Why did you start writing? Or why do you want to write?

• What is your passion? What topics, projects, or type of writing are you passionate about?

• Are you working on what you're passionate about, or have other projects taken over and crowded out what you really want to be writing?

• How can you take steps to return to what you wanted to write when you started, to those projects you're passionate about?

There you have it. Get reconnected to your writing passion and takes steps to get back to that. I really believe when you do, you'll get unstuck.

* * *

I hope this rerun article has helped you get unstuck if you're stalled in your writing. If you're experiencing writers' block, I hope you've found some help here to beat writer's block.

If you would like more help with your writing, check out my ebooks for writers here:

• How to Get Published by Magazines & Book Publishers
• Cutting the Passive Voice -- Only $ .99!
• Have a print book out? You need Book Signings!

By the time we meet here again next month, I'll hope you're well on your way in writing your passion and your dream project! God bless you and your writing.

Help for Writers Dealing with Disappointment

Morguefile.com 

Have you had a great month writing? Or a disappointing writing month? I've had a disappointing month, so I thought this might be a good article to run...for me as well as for you.

For writers, dealing with disappointment is something we have to learn to do more than we ever wanted to. Or ever thought we'd have to.

You're not alone. I have to remind myself that neither am I!

I hope this article helps you this month. What writer do you know who needs this today?

ReRun from the September 2010  Dianne E. Butts About Writing E-Zine, with certain updates

Dealing with Disappointment 

Writing and publishing (or attempting to get stuff published) can be filled with disappointments. Going in we know there will be rejections of our work, and most of us can deal with that. Those who can't don't last long in the business. But even when we've been in the business a long time, there are times when a rejection comes along that's just really hard to take. (Tweet that!)

Maybe it's because we really, really wanted this article or story published. Or it could be that we really, really wanted to be published in a particular publication or compilation book. (It would have looked great on our resume.) Maybe we're trying to break into book publishing, and so with every book proposal we send out we're hoping and hoping that this one will be the one the publishers loves and offers a contract for. Maybe we're finally a published author...but then our publisher takes our book(s) out of print. Or maybe we've just had a long string of "no's" and it's quite possible that if we get one more, it might well be the proverbial straw (or envelop, or e-mail) that breaks our back. (Tweet that!)

Sometimes it's easier to say, "Oh well. That's okay." But there are times when the disappointment in the rejection just seems bigger than we are. We really thought it would be accepted. Or we really hoped it would be accepted. Or we really hoped our success -- whatever that success was -- would last longer. So when the "no" comes, it hits us hard. And then the thoughts start coming... and escalating...and multiplying: "Well, maybe I'm not good at this. But nobody wants my work. Maybe I should find something else to do with my time and energy. Something that pays better. Or pays period. I'm never going to get anywhere in this business. Publishing contracts are for all those popular writers. I don't stand a chance. I should just quit." (Tweet that!)

What does the voice in your head say?

When I wrote this article back in 2010, I had experienced a discouraging event. At the time, it was pretty devastating. One of those disappointments that was hard to take. It kind of knocked the wind out of me, and it took me a while to catch my breath. Have you ever felt like that? (If you're a writer, I bet you have.)

So, it got me to thinking that maybe we need to talk about how to deal with disappointment. Which got me to thinking about why I was so knocked for a loop with this disappointment. Which made me start considering what I could learn from this. Which made me wonder what wisdom I could possibly share with you to help you through your disappointments? (Tweet that!)

Gleaning from that experience back in 2010, here are a few thoughts:

• Prepare to be disappointed. I don't know why but I totally neglected to prepare myself for this disappointment. It just never occurred to me the answer might be no. Was I cocky? Not intentionally. Was I over confident? I don't know--I don't think so. For some reason I just failed to anticipate that I might be told no, so I wasn't expecting it, so when it came I was extra super disappointed. Lesson learned? Note to self: Next time try to remember the answer could be no and be prepared for that, for goodness sakes. When we're prepared for the possibility of a disappointment, it's easier to take if it comes. (Tweet that!) 

[Of course now, in 2014, I realize that only applies to disappointments we can see coming, not disappointments that come out of the blue.]

• Try not to let the negative thoughts take over. Sometimes I think our own thoughts can start kicking us around. I believe writers are notoriously insecure. That's partly because we're so alone. We can't compare ourselves to anyone else, so we don't know if we're a good writer. And we don't know it when other writers get huge disappointments. When we get a "big" rejection, then we're in danger of letting those negative thoughts overrun us. Listen to me: The fact is you are not the worst writer in the world. You do have good ideas and good information to share that others need to read to help them in their lives. You're not stupid, dumb, or inept. You do have every bit of the same potential you had before this rejection. And everything you've ever written or ever will write is not trash. There.  (Tweet that!) Copy that to a Word doc. Put it in size 72 font. Print it out. Hang it on your wall. And the next time you get a "big" rejection that makes you want to quit, review. (And the next time I get a big rejection that makes me want to quit, please remind me to re-read what I just wrote and tell me this applies to me, too.)

[Interjecting a comment after experiencing a major disappointment last week in 2014: Did I write that? I think back in 2010 I wrote that for me now in 2014. Thanks me, I needed that.]

• Give it time. This is probably the biggest, most helpful thing I can tell you. I knew it at the time. I had to tell my husband (as the tears welled in my eyes. No, I'm not kidding.), "I'll be okay. I just need some time." If there's one thing I've learned after twenty years of writing for publication it's this: if you give a big hurt some time, it will eventually start to hurt less. (Tweet that!) Kind of like pounding your thumb with a hammer. Takes your breath away, but hang in there and you'll get your breath back. Sometimes a smaller disappointment only takes me a day to catch my breath; sometime I only need an hour. This one... This one took me about two weeks. For me, that's a big disappointment. Huge. Galactic. Univers... Well, you get the point.

• Failure is not the end. I'd just completed a class, and ironically this is something a faculty member told us in class. As I recall it, he asked when did we ever begin to think that failure means the end?  (Tweet that!) Many people fail. Many writers who write articles, books, and films fail. But that doesn't mean it was the end of those people, their career, or even their writing careers. Think of how many writers have written something that  failed. Then they wrote something else. Writers should take note. So you tried something and failed. So what? Try again.

• Catch your breath. Get your feet back under you. Take a look around. After about two weeks, I began to realize that I really wasn't any worse off than I was before. Sure, I didn't get to move forward in the way I wanted to. But I still have all my writing ideas. And I can still write them to the best of my ability. And as I write I will still be learning and improving. And I can still study more about writing. And I can still write those nonfiction ideas or story ideas as novels or screenplays. And I still have all my friends and contacts. And I can still ask them for help. And... And... And I can still continue on with the same plans to write I had before I received this "no." And I can still submit again. So what have I lost really? I'm no worse off than I was before I got this "no." What about you? Chances are that rejection you got wasn't the only project you had going or the only place you could send that project or the only idea you had. If it was, come up with another idea, project, or place to send it. You're creative. You'll come up with something.

• Figure out your next move. Now that I've realized I'm not worse off than I was before, I realize I can keep moving along the same track I was on. Maybe a "no," a disappointment, tells us we should change tracks, or maybe we just need to back up to where we were last on track and move forward from there. Either way, figure out your next move and keep moving. (Tweet that!)

That's where I'm at now. My next move? Anything I want. I have ideas that are priorities and others that need further development. I've signed up for something new: the 168 Project's "Write of Passage" screenwriting competition.* I've got articles to write. In other words, I've got lots to do and lots to look forward to and lots of possibilities.

[*Update in 2014: Looking back, I realize I wrote this article for September 2010. The next month in October 2010 I participated in the 168 Film Project's "Write of Passage" for the first time, and my short film script ended up one of the top eleven finalists. See what can happen if you keep moving forward?]

What about you? As a writer, how do you deal with disappointment? (Tweet that!)

Or, what's your next writing move?

Your Writing and Publishing Career: Where Do You Want To Get To From Here?

I have some great news to share at the bottom of this post. I'm often asked how to "get there" - writers want to know how to be successful in their writing.

Okay, let's see what we can glean about how I "got there" (if I have) and how you can "get there" too. Here are some thoughts that I hope will benefit you:

Just Do It  One of the biggest factors, I truly believe, whether we're talking about writing, screenwriting, or any other kind of business, is the factor of "just doing it."At the risk of sounding like a shoe commercial, it really does come down to that: Just do it!

I cannot tell you how many people ask me how to become a writer and get published or how to write a book or how to write a magazine article. Some of these people have already written books and they have them sitting there on their desk or in their computer and they want to know what to do next. So I talk with them and tell them what they can do, what needs to be done, and what to do next. Then I tell them to contact me and I will help them. And I never, ever hear from them again.

You've probably heard the old adage: "90% of it is just showing up." Same with publishing. Show up. Show up for work. Do something. It doesn't matter a great deal if you put in full days at your writing desk or only an hour or two one day a week or a couple days a week. If you're systematically doing something, you're making progress and you'll get there. Be the hare. Or be the tortoise. It doesn't matter. Just get in the race.

Need some help getting in the race? Try these:

Join a Challenge

I'm a big advocate of National Novel Writing Month (write 50,000 words in November), but right now November is a long ways off. You don't need to wait to join the challenge. Do it on your own.

If you're up for the challenge of screenwriting, join ScriptFrenzy and write 100 pages of script in 30 days. If you're not into screenwriting, pretend it's November and write your 50,000-word novel in April. If you're not into novels, write 50,000 words of your nonfiction book in April. If you not into writing books, write 50 1,000-word articles, or short stories, or newspaper columns, or whatever it is you want to write.

Both NaNoWriMo and ScriptFrenzy are free to join. You don't have to make any preparations at all, but I find I do better when I'm prepared with a story idea, well thought out, and an outline to work from. Now is the time to start working on that so you'll be ready when April 1 rolls around. It's coming quickly! No joke.

There are also other challenges, such as book-in-a-month. Go find yourself a challenge or make up your own and just do it.

Join a Contest

I joined the Kairos Prize competition simply as a challenge. I was challenging myself to get a feature-length screenplay written by a certain date. I barley made it, but I did. Yes, I was expecting to write a screenplay that was good enough to not be embarrassing to enter it in a contest. That was part of my challenge. When I entered my screenplay last November I didn't really think I'd be on the semi-finalist list. I was just completing a project I had challenged myself to take on in order to push me forward in my writing. Now look what's happened! I'm on the semi-finalist's list and have a chance to be on the finalist's list!

I never expected that, but magic can happen when you just do it.

Do you need a contest to join? Contests abound. Some are free; some cost. Some are prestigious, some are worthless. Be picky. Find a contest that is well-known and valuable, at the very least valuable in moving you toward your writing goals, and take part in it.

Are you a book writer? Or do you want to be? My publisher, Pix-N-Pens/Write Integrity Press recently announced its 2013 book contests. This is the same contest I joined last year where I won the "Books of Hope - Nonfiction." This year their word is "Joy." They are looking for Christian books -- both fiction and nonfiction, both series of 3 books and single, stand-alone books. Click on the "Writing Opportunities" tab at the top of this page for more details. Or visit Write Integrity Press's "Books of Hope Contest" (or see the January 8, 2013, post at http://www.writeintegrity.com/) for all the details.

I never used to enter contests and I rarely do now. It's more about, "Will this contest get me closer to where I want to go" than "Can I win?" Winning or making a semi-finalist list is great, but entering something that stretches you toward your own goal and helps you complete a project is worthwhile in itself.

Make a Deadline...and Keep It!

I know so many writers who never make a deadline for themselves and never complete a project. But I know many more writers who do make a deadline for themselves and never keep it. The term deadline came about in the old newspaper days when you had to have your news copy in by a certain time or "drop dead." It's too late. Deadline means deadline. Make a deadline to complete a project, then keep it! (That's what Challenges and Contests like those mentioned above do for you.)


Remember the old adage I shared above, "90% of it is just showing up"?  I can tell you that so many people "never get around to it." Many people want to write or pursue something they've dreamed of, but few actually do it. By my guess-timation, if you do it, you'll be ahead of 90% of everyone else who never gets around to it. So don't be like them. Just do it.

Really Big, Majorly Distracting, Good News:

Semi-finalist in Kairos Prize for Spiritually Uplifting Screenplays

That's right. My screenplay is a semi-finalist in the Kairos Prize for Spiritually Uplifting Screenplays! You can see the Semi-Finalist List here.

The finalists will be announced the first part of February, so I guess that means any day now. Which is why I'm so distracted. I'm waiting for that news.

Winners will be awarded at the 21st Annual MOVIEGUIDE® Awards and Report to the Entertainment Industry on February 15th, 2013, in Los Angeles.

If you're interested you can find a bit more information on my Deliver Me blog.

Help! How Do I Sell My Book?! - Helpful Tips

Exciting News!

My new book just launched! Prophecies Fulfilled in the Birth of Jesus is now available just in time for the Christmas season. You can order it from your favorite bookstore. Just request it by title and my name. Or you can order it from Amazon. It's making its way to Barnes and Noble.com, but it wasn't there yet last I check so I don't have a link. But it is available right now for Kindle and Nook.


Cover Story:

One thing I love about being a writer/author is that people come up to me all the time saying either that they, too, are a writer and/or author or they want to be. That happened again this past month. At a church potluck my Pastor couldn't wait to introduce me to his friend who has a children's book out. It was fun to meet her. She asked a question that is another thing I hear a lot: Now that I have my book out, how do I sell it?

This is a huge deal for authors. No matter how big of a company you've published with, you're going to have to do most of the selling. If you self-published, you're going to have to do all the selling. Even if you don't have a book out yet, you need to figure out how you're going to sell it when you do and actually figuring that out before you publish it is good and before you write it is even better. That's because if you'll start thinking about it before you write it, you may find you need to tweak it to make it easier to sell. That tweaking may also make it more attractive to a publisher.

Many writers think that all they need to do is put their book on Amazon and it will sell. That is so not true. There are over 8 million books on Amazon. When someone goes there, how will they know to look for your book? If they walk into a bookstore, how will they know to look for your book? Or more likely, your book won't be on the shelves so they'll have to order it. How will they even know to ask for it? The answer is they won't if you don't get the word out and let people know your book exists. So how do you do that?

Here's a short list for you to begin thinking about and working through to help you sell your book:

1. Who is your audience? Who is your reader and/or book buyer? This is the first question you need to answer, and you'd do well to answer it before you write your next book.

2. Where is your audience, reader, or book buyer? Where do they hang out? Where can you go and find them? Especially, where are they online? Do they frequent blogs or forums? For example, if you've written a nonfiction book for Moms, they are probably hanging out at blogs for Moms and organizations for Moms, don't you think? If you've written fiction for suspense readers, where are they hanging out? My Deliver Me book has stories of unplanned pregnancy, giving a child for adoption, and more. People interested might be reading blogs about pregnancy or adoption. My new book about Christmas prophecies would interest Christians, people who like to study the Bible, people looking for a Christian devotional book to read with their family this holiday season, people curious about Christianity who wonder what we believe and why we believe it, and possibly book clubs.

3. Go there and join in the conversation. Read the blog. Leave a comment. Join the conversation in  a forum. But do not try to sell those folks your book! Instead, here's what you do:

• Offer them something of value. Maybe it's an encouraging word. Maybe it's a piece of advice.
• Offer a free give-away of tips from your book that they can print from your web site.
• Listen to what they're saying.
• Care about them. Don't just care about selling to them.

Once they know you care, and when they know you have something of value to offer them that will help them in their lives, then they'll be interested in what you have to sell.

I offer this ezine/blog because I truly want to help you meet your publishing goals and dreams. I also hope that you will like me and will buy my book, but I don't come here and write nothing other than BUY MY BOOK, BUY MY BOOK! If I did that, you wouldn't come back. Here I hope to offer you something of value, something that helps you in your life. If I can do that, I'm happy. Then if you buy a book from me, well, that's all gravy.

We've talked about it before in this e-zine (before it became a blog): Be a servant. Remember to always serve your reader. Give them what they need, what will help them. Don't always be asking for something from them. The people who are your readers/book buyers are more important than selling books. Keep the right perspective and the selling will take care of itself.

While you're doing the above, here are some more ideas that can keep you busy marketing your book:

1. Write up five guest blog posts based on your book. Make them from 150 to 500 words. Add a brief bio at the end telling you are the author of your book and give the title, add links to your web sites and buy links to purchase your book. I've done this already with my new book and have had two appear this week so far with two more coming! Want to see some examples? Here is my guest post on Kathi Macias' Easy Writer blog. Here is my guest post on Christian EBooks Today.
2. Go looking for blogs that use the kind of information in your guest posts. Contact the blog owner and ask if they'd like a guest post from you. You won't get paid for your writings; your payment is letting their entire audience know about your book. Do this enough times and your book will start selling.
3. Write down what are the "features and benefits" of your book. Features are special things that you put in your book. For example some features in my new book Prophecies Fulfilled in the Birth of Jesus are: a Christmas story reading in the Bible, where the prophecy was originally given and how it was fulfilled, where to go to read more on the topic, a prayer, and application questions. These are included in every chapter. Features give your reader a reason to buy your book. What features are in your book? If fiction, did you include recipes? In your nonfiction, is there an index? Statistics? Resources? Book club discussion questions work for both nonfiction and fiction. If you haven't written your book yet and you don't have any features, what features can you add?
4. What are the "benefits" of your reading your book? What will it do for the reader? How will it help them? How will it improve their lives? Will it save them money? Make them healthier? Make life more enjoyable? Help them with a problem? Inform them of something important? Will your fiction make them think or teach them about a time in history? The benefits of reading your book will give your readers another reason to buy it.

Here's a homework assignment for you. Keep some paper and a pen next to the chair you watch TV from. Don't watch TV? Then get some magazines or a newspaper. Or save some pieces of sales literature that come in the mail. Now study the ads. What are they doing? They are first telling you what their product is, then what it's features are, then what the benefits are and what those benefits can do for you, then finally a "call to action" or what to do to get it: "Click here." "Call now." "Find it in the dairy section."

Now you take your book, which is your product, and go and do likewise.

October 2012: Are Print Magazines Making a Comeback?

NEWS!

Write for Love Inspired Suspense!

"Love Inspired Suspense is looking for new authors, and we're running a fast track submissions period..." 

If you've ever dreamed of writing for the Christian Romance side of Harlequin Romance, this may be your chance. They are having a "Fast Track Event." For this event you don't need an agent to submit and you'll hear back on your proposed novel within a month: by November 26th. But hurry! You only have a couple of weeks to get this done: you need to submit your first chapter and short synopsis (two pages or less) between October 15 and 26. For more details, click on the "Writing Opportunities" tab above.

~ ~ ~

Cover Story: Are Print Magazines Making a Comeback?

Do you know what showed up in my mail box this week? A copy of Today's Christian Woman magazine.

Yeah, I mean it showed up in my MAIL box -- that metal box on a pole out by the street in front of my house. Not my inbox -- that overstuffed cyber thing that collects more digital magazines and other stuff every day than I can read in a lifetime.

I was shocked. Why? Because Today's Christian Woman magazine went out of business a few years ago.

Are print magazines making a comeback? It seems all the world has been going digital. Newspapers are going under. It seems print-anything is so...so last century. And yet . . .

I think it was earlier this year, or late last year, that I started seeing commercials on TV for new magazines. I wish I would have made a list of them. Okay, it wasn't really a lot -- maybe three or four magazines -- but still I remember saying to my husband that I thought print was on its way out. And suddenly "everybody" (okay, well three or four organizations) were starting new print magazines.

(Please, don't anybody tell the environmentalists! All that paper and ink and stuff.)

Personally I love print magazines. As a reader, when I want to relax with a magazine the last thing I want to do is read it on my computer or any other reading device. I spend pretty much all day everyday working on my computer. My eyes are dry and tired. I'm dry and tired. And I just want to take a magazine out on my back porch in the sunshine, or near the fireplace on a cold day and enjoy it. Honestly, taking my computer just ain't the same. I can't see the screen in the bright sunlight, especially with sunglasses on or when my photo-grays turn dark.

I love print magazines as a writer too. I've built most of my writing career on writing for magazines since 1990 or so. This is how I made my income. When print magazines started dying, the little income I made went with them. Sure, there are still some print magazines, especially within denominational churches. I'm very grateful for them. But many have either gone out of business or gone digital. With the digital versions, many take content from freelancers like me but almost none pay. (Please don't get me started on the whole "why does everyone expect writers to work for free?" thing.) Gratefully, I've found some online markets are starting to pay a little now.

With so many print magazines ceasing publication, I began looking for other avenues to make income and for my writing, including self publishing, e-books, screenwriting, and books. Now that I'm starting to get some huge balls rolling in those ares, wouldn't you know the opportunities for print magazines are coming back?! So many opportunities -- so little time and energy.

While I didn't make a list of the magazines I saw starting months ago (darn it -- still wishing I had), here is an interesting list of new magazines:

Mr. Magazine

I'm pleased to see the resurrection of Today's Christian Woman. The former magazine was owned by Christianity Today and the web site shows it still is. If I remember right, someone on staff at the former TCW (was it Ginger Kolbaba?) started an online magazine called Kyria after TCW ceased publication. Kyria existed since at least 2009. I don't know if Kyria was ever printed. Now it seems Kyria has turned into the new printed Today's Christian Woman (of which Ginger Kolbaba is the editor).

I have no information on the inside scoop on how all this came about and I'm not seeing any explanation in the issue that just appeared in my mail box. I'm curious because I try to keep up on things, so how did I miss the magazine was making a come-back? I see some friend's names on bylines of this first issue, so obviously they knew about it! But I didn't. (Insert sad face here.) Nevertheless, I'm pleased to see the magazine miraculously appear in my mail box.

If you're interested in writing for the new printed Today's Christian Woman, you can find their Writer's Guidelines here.

Interestingly, I'm wondering if we're also seeing signs of increase in book publishing. I'm sure you recall the manuscript contests earlier this year from Pix-N-Pens Publishing and its sister imprint Write Integrity Press, when they were looking for book-length manuscripts to publish about "hope" and for Christmas. And now Harlequin's Love Inspired Suspense is searching for new authors and manuscripts (see top of this post). (Just please, please, please be careful if you pursue any book opportunities so you don't get taken by a self-publishing company that looks like a traditional publisher (like Thomas Nelson's WestBow Press).

I don't think the national or world economy is improving, and I don't see any reason for it to improve in the future unless the coming presidential election makes a difference. So I can't explain why there seems to be a sudden upswing in print magazines and print books. Perhaps it's simply that everyone cut back so much for so long that now there's a hole and a hunger that needs filled. Whatever the cause it's good news for writers. I hope you find ways to take advantage of it and get your own writings out there. If you're writing good, positive content, the world surely needs it.

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Get Ready for NaNoWriMo

Sign up now for National Novel Writing Month and get a lot done in a short time. Whether you're the outlining type or not, get your story line in order during October: make notes, make an outline, or get the story worked out in your head. But don't write a word of it! That has to wait until November 1.

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Next Month:

I'm not sure. Maybe we'll talk about the benefits of National Novel Writing Month and how to not only survive it but and thrive.

September 2012: Make Your Own Book Trailer - Easy and Free!

Announcement: My new book is out!

I'm so pleased to show you my newest book! Grandparenting Through Obstacles: Overcoming Family Challenges to Reach Your Grandchildren for Christ released in August from Pix N Pens Publishing.

GTO features twenty true stories which depict challenges grandparents face in influencing their grandchildren with their Christian faith plus how they are overcoming those challenges. Includes stories about when the grandkid's parents are not walking with God; long-distance relationships; non-traditional, blended, or single-parent families; and partnering with the parents.

Includes resources, discussion questions, "Grandparents in the Bible," "Points to Ponder," "Steps to Take," "Scriptures to Study," and "One Way to Pray."

306 pages. $15.99. Order from your local bookstore. Also available now at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and all online outlets. On Kindle and Nook.

A great resource for Christian grandparents. Makes an excellent gift for National Grandparent's Day on September 9th, 2012.

Cover Story: Make Your Own Book Trailer - Easy and Free!

With the release of a new book, I was thinking I needed to have a book trailer for it.

If you don't know what a book trailer is, it's a short advertisement and teaser, like a movie trailer. You can find lots of them on YouTube.com if you want to see some examples.

I'm constantly thinking when I'm writing this e-zine/blog that a large portion of this audience may not think the topic of the month applies to them. But I hope you think otherwise. Even if you're not writing books, use your imagination (You're creative! You're a writer after all...) and think how you might use this idea or technology to get you closer to your own writing goals. Or use it just to have fun. For example, this month even if you're not a book author and have no desire to be one, you might use this same idea to make a video of your photos for your family. Or if you're a magazine writer or blogger, use it to "advertise" where your writing can be found so readers can find you! If you're a magazine editor (and we have some of those in our readership), why not make a video to advertise your magazine and draw in more readers? Anyway, on with the topic...

My first book trailer was for Deliver Me, and I had it professionally made. See my Deliver Me Book Trailer here. It cost me several hundred dollars, and that's with me doing my own voice-over. I'm not at all sure it has helped sell enough books to be worthy of what it cost. However at the time book trailers were a lot newer idea and making them yourself wasn't as easy. So with a thousand other things to do, and no idea how to make one myself, I forked out the bucks.

Recently, in and article titled "5 free and easy ways to promote your book" by Erika Dreifus in the September 2012 issue of The Writer magazine (page 37), I read about www.Animoto.com. I'd never heard of Animoto, but I checked it out.

Like most things these days, you can have a free account and do limited stuff. You can do more if you pay. I decided I would sign up for the free account and make a trailer (a short video) for each of my three books before I paid anything. It took a couple of hours to read and play and figure things out, but by then I had a short trailer for my new Grandparenting book. I also had partly made a second trailer for my first book, Dear America. The next afternoon it took me no time at all to make a third trailer, this one for Deliver Me.

Here's the first trailer I made for Grandparenting Through Obstacles. It runs about 30 seconds, so if you want to take a moment to watch it please do. But then keep reading below it because I want to tell you more...

With the free account at www.Animoto.com you are limited to about a 30-second video. If you want a longer video, you'll have to pay. But really, you can buy the next level for $30 for a whole year, so that still sounds like a deal to me. (It says $5 per month, which is $60, but then offers half off for a year.) (BTW, I'm not getting any commission from them. I just think this is a good and useful--and FUN!--web site and wanted to share it with you.)

I'm sure you're probably thinking I'm a genius for building all that fancy stuff with all the boxes flipping around and the pretty colors, but--though I hate to dash your image of me--Animoto did all that for me. They have a bunch of 30-second videos all set up and waiting for you. You just choose some photos and text and music and it's all done!

The tricky part is that with the free account and only 30 seconds, you only get about 7 or 8 "slides" (meaning a slot for a photo, video, or text) and then you're done. So while I set out to tell what was in my book, I found I didn't have the time or slots for that. I ended up simply saying basically my book title, buy it here! This will take all the tight-writing skills that you've accumulated.

I know what you're thinking. I just mentioned you can insert photos, text, and video. Yeah! Cool, huh? I used a piece of Animoto's stock video in my Dear America trailer. This one runs 34 seconds. Watch it here:

The video clip originally 5 seconds and bounced two of my other slide out because it took up so much time. But then I discovered I could edit it to 3 seconds and fit my photos back in.

While Dear America has been out for ten years, it was just released on Kindle for its tenth anniversary in March 2012. I've never had a trailer for it. Because it was written after September 11, 2001, and has that theme running through, I really wanted to let people know about it for this anniversary of September 11th. The book talks about getting through grief, knowing God in the hard times, and more that are timeless topics. I really wanted a trailer for it to advertise it this September, and now I have one.

The first thing you choose with Animoto is the style of video you want. (The colorful unfolding boxes in the Grandparenting trailer. This Dear America style is called "Air.") After that you get to choose your music. After I signed up for the free account and began making my first video, I was delighted to discover the large selection of Christian music available. All three of my short videos feature Christian songs.

Once of the nicest things about Animoto is that they've already taken care of all the licensing for you. Unlike royalty-free music sources on the web, I could use some very popular music through Animoto.

The last step in making a video on Animoto is choosing your photos and inserting your text. Like the music, they have a selection of photos you can use, or you can upload your own. I found the upload process a little temperamental, but I was able to upload my book covers from Facebook. I didn't want to mess with trying to find royalty-free photos, so I used what Animoto has on their site. These were quite limited. For the Grandparenting trailer I would have liked to have photos of grandparents with grandchildren but they didn't have any so I ended up using baby pictures. It works, though it doesn't fully communicate the theme of the book as I wanted it.

I also used some of the same baby photos in my new Deliver Me trailer which you can see here. It runs 38 seconds.

I was also able to upload the "2012 Book of the Year" logo for this video, which I thought was a good way to let people know the book won that award.

Once you have a few photos selected, you have precious little room for text so you're going to have to be brief! But it's a good exercise in figuring out how to communicate what's really important quickly and powerfully. The text boxes limit you to just so many characters, so it can be a challenge to make things fit.

The Animoto program will limit you to how much you can add to your video (unless you pay--then you can make longer videos). When you have too many photos or text slides to fit with the 30 seconds of music, it tells you. You simply drag and drop the pictures and text to move things around. Then you can play it to see how it looks. Then you can edit and drag and drop and rearrange and then play it again. When you're satisfied, you "publish" it. At that point you can put it on YouTube.com and other places.

So once you have a book trailer, what do you do with it? You can get links to put in your e-mails or Twitters. And you can embed it in your web site and blog. Next I'd like to figure out if I can put all my videos on a thumb drive and have them play continuously on my netbook computer. If I can figure out how to make that work, I'd like to have my little netbook sitting on my book table at signings. Wouldn't that be fun?

One more tidbit of information that will help you: You may noticed I've put all three of my new book trailers on this blog at the right, but they are much smaller. When I embedded them there, they were too large for the column I had them in. What to do? Here's the answer: When you embed the code into your blog, you can see the HTML code. (That's what you copy and paste.) I know enough about HTML code to have recognized the "height" and "width" numbers. Those are pixels. I simply changed those numbers to reduce the size of the video so it would fit in the column. You want to reduce the height the same amount as the width to keep it proportionate. How? First I divided each number by four and put those numbers into the code. That made it really tiny (one fourth the original size). So I tried making it one third the original size (divide each by 3) and that fit pretty well. It makes the text really small, but what can you do? If the video catches their attention, viewers can see the larger ones elsewhere on this site.

I hope you'll stop by Animoto.com and trying it out. I had a lot of fun with it and I know I'll be making more videos there. I have new books coming out--one for Christmas! (Please visit my new "Coming Books" page!) So I'm looking forward to making videos for those!

Have fun with Animoto! And if you make a trailer, share the link to it in the comments section below so we can all see what you've created!

Resource:

I know there are other ways to make book trailers too. After they saw my Animoto efforts, somebody shared this article with me, but then you have to get your own photos and find royalty-free music. Still, I may give this a shot sometime when I have the time and energy: Create Your Own Book Trailer Free

Please Check Out:

• My new "Coming Books" Page. (Click the tab at the top.)
• My new "Dianne's Events" box in the column on the right at the top.
• And don't forget to check out the "Writing Opportunities" Page. There are some exciting opportunities there.

August 2012 - Twitter and Paper.li

The Zine/Blog article is late! That's because I've been excruciatingly busy working to make a July 31 deadline for two projects. I made the deadline (even around a wonderful vacation), but I didn't get this e-zine (now a blog) article written. I burned out yesterday. So, it's August 2 and I'm just now getting to the Zine. Sorry to keep you waiting.

(Maybe in a future article I should address excruciating deadlines. Or burnout.) Anyway, here's the article for this month.

August 2012 Cover Story: Twitter and Paper.li:

Last month we talked about Making the Most of Twitter including how to write effective Tweets, the 3 Parts every good Tweet needs, and programs that will schedule your Tweets for you.

Another exciting program I've learned about since then uses your Twitter Tweets to create an online newspaper! Some of you many already know about Paper.li. (http://paper.li/).

I had seen a few Paper.li's, but I didn't know much about them. Then recently author and speaker Linda Evans Shepherd set up a few of these papers and taught me more about them. I so appreciate Linda! I've known her since my very first writer's conference more than twenty years ago. Linda has written more than thirty books and has been a mentor to me for all those twenty years I've known her. Let me tell you what I've learned from Linda about Paper.li in the past couple of months, and I'll use her Paper.li's as examples.

Paper.li is a daily newspaper system that picks up links off of Twitter to create the newspaper. I haven't set one up yet, but it seems you can put in the Twitter handles of the people whose Twitters you want to include. So, for example, Linda set up The AWSA Daily and included the Twitter handles of the members of the Advanced Writers and Speakers Association. That includes me! ;-)

So now, Paper.li searches the Tweets from AWSA members searching for links, and when it finds them, it compiles them into a newspaper!

Is it legal? Yes. Is it plagiarism? No, because the paper doesn't use your whole article, it only picks up the first few sentences (within fair use) and then links to your article. So people who want to read your article are taken straight to the source.

How to get in: Just a Tweet will not do. You must include a link to an article to get into the Paper.li newspaper. It will pick up photos in the articles you link to also.

Please note that the creator of the Paper.li newspaper has absolutely no control over which Twitter links of yours get picked up. And when they are picked up, they cannot be removed. So don't put a link in your Twitter that you might find embarrassing later and you'll have nothing to worry about. (But, honestly, you shouldn't be doing that anyway, right?)

You don't have to be informed that you're Twitter handle is in some one's Paper.li. I first started seeing Paper.li's a year or so ago when my articles starting showing up in one about Colorado writers. I think maybe someone sent me a link to the Paper.li. Yeah,I was surprised. I had no idea why...or how...I got in that paper. Now I know!

You can subscribe to Paper.li's. They're free. Here's another one of Linda's. Look for the "Subscribe" button in the upper right corner: The Shepherd Post. As a matter of fact, why don't you subscribe for a while so you can see how this works? You can always unsubscribe if you don't want it any more.

You can choose whether you want your Paper.li's to come out daily, twice daily, or weekly. I believe all of Linda's are daily papers.

I can hear that questions you're asking: So how can I use this to benefit my writing? Here are several ideas:

• Getting more exposure for your online blogs and articles in an obvious answer, but there's more.
• You can make your own Paper.li's. Create one for your organization, a topic that is your passion, or the topic you write on. Then your own writings will get featured in your own Paper.li.
• Create a Paper.li that serves people on an issue that is close to your heart. Another one of Linda's Paper.li's is all about suicide prevention: ThinkingAboutSuicide.
• Do you need ideas or resources for your writing? Then subscribe to Paper.li's on topics that interest you and have a daily feed of resources.

When you find you've been included in a Paper.li, use it's Twitter link to Tweet a link to that issue. Retweet when other's Tweet your favorite Paper.li or one you're featured in. And use the Facebook share button to send a post to your Facebook account.

Remember, for Paper.li to pick up your articles, you must Tweet it and include a link to your article. Paper.li searches for links, and picks them up at random.

Whether you want exposure for your own writing, need information coming to you to use for your own writing, or see other uses for Paper.li, it is a great resource and it is great fun to see your articles featured in them! Start a Paper.li...and have fun!

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NEW TWITTER RESOURCE:

Since my last article I came across another program to help you with your Twittering. I haven't used this one myself yet, so I can't vouch for it, but you can check it out on your own. Manage Flitter identifies Twitter Followers who only Follow you for a short time (perhaps to get your Follow) and then drop you.

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Helpful Article:
I recently read this article and thought you might find it helpful: "Are You a Rookie or Professional [Writer]?"

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Follow Me here:

• @DianneEButts
• @GParentObstacle

Next month for September:

I have no idea. We'll see.

Welcome to this new Writing Blog that Used to be a Writing Zine!

In May of 2007,  I started the Dianne E. Butts About Writing e-zine (electronic magazine) as a free service to subscribers, delivered by e-mail. The subscription list has grown to almost 500 subscribers. While the zine was for all writers with an emphasis on how to get published, it is especially geared toward writing for Christian magazines and book publishers because that is where my expertise is.

I've been writing for Christian (and occasionally general market) magazines since 1989 and was first published in 1991. I currently have around 300 articles printed in addition to many online articles. I've contributed to nineteen books by other folks and have published two books of my own. My third book will be published less than two months from now in August 2012 and I've just won a publishing contract for a three-book series--probably to begin releasing in 2013.

Besides writing, it seems I have always had a knack for being able to share what I've learned with others in an understandable way. A teacher at heart, I love helping others get started--whether in writing to be published or in knowing the Bible and Jesus Christ. I had so many people asking me about how to get published, and I was repeating the same information so many times, that rather out of "self-defense" I started this e-zine called Dianne E Butts About Writing.

For a delivery service and e-list service, I used the very affordable (read "free"), e-list service, http://www.bravenet.com/,  for the past five years. However their needs have changed and there is less support for free users like me. I've also encountered more technical problems uploading and delivering the zine in recent months. In addition, because Bravenet is supported by ads, the ads in my zine have caused many e-mail programs to reject delivering the zine, and so I've received 40 or 60 bounces each month while my subscribers did not receive the e-zine they wanted. So with my thanks to the kind folks at Bravenet.com for their many years of service, I feel it is time to make a move.

I've decided to "go blog"!

Moving my private zine to a public blog will mean a lot of wonderful things:

• While the e-zine has been provided free to subscribers via e-mail, it has been, in a sense, a private list since people had to subscribe to receive it. 
• On a blog, more people can find us and benefit from this zine.
• I expect to have fewer technical problems and more support should I run into problems.
• I'll have more flexibility in updating columns, such as the "Writing Opportunities" and "Dianne's Writing News." Rather than having to wait for the first-of-the-month zine, I can update immediately. And you can visit and look for updates any time.
• All the columns will be available to you at any time that you need them, including "Writers Conferences," Writing Opportunities," and "Dianne's Products for Writers," (and you won't have to go searching through your inbox for the latest zine or wish you still had one you deleted).
• You can still have this zine delivered to your inbox if you wish by using the e-mail subscription box. (It may take me a while to figure out how that works. Please be patient with me!)

For the past five years, I have published the Butts About Writing zine monthly, near the first of the month, and I expect to continue posting the main zine only monthly. In the past I have rarely published another notice, and only when some piece of news, such as a writing opportunity, couldn't wait until the first of the next month. While I will continue to do my best to respect your time and not fill your inbox with frequent postings, I do think I will enjoy posting a little more often when I find a new "Writing Opportunity" or have "News" that I would like to bring to your attention.

Each month you can expect to find:

• one main article usually on a publishing or book marketing topic, although I occasionally veer into other areas such as film, for those who desire to see their written stories on the screen.
• possibly one or more shorter articles called "Sidebar(s)"
• plus many other columns posted on Pages at the tabs along the top or in the columns to the right.

Pages and columns include:

• "Writing Opportunities,"  
• what's happening with my writing in "Dianne's Writing News,"
• quotes,
• links,
• products to help you in your writing,
• and more.

The products I offer include pamphlets that I've created (soon to be e-books) to help writers and workshops I've taught, such as:

• the "Basics for Beginners" pamphlet
• "Conquering the Dreaded Query Letter" pamphlet
• "How to Market Your Reprints" for article writers
• "Ten Tools for Marketing Your Book" workshop on CD
• "Writing for Publication" taped seminar

Plus much, much more--so be sure to poke around the site.

Whether you're a long-time subscriber to the previous private list or a new friend that just found this blog, I welcome you and I hope you will find many useful posts here to help you in your writing journey and pursuit of publication.

Please feel free to invite your writing friends or writing groups to discover this blog and subscribe to receive the posts by e-mail. You'll be able to Tweet or post to Facebook your favorite posts, and I hope you will.

I'm looking forward to this new and continuing adventure with you!

May God bless your writing endeavors!

Sincerely,
Dianne