You're starting to feel like nobody is going to even like your writing. You're losing faith in your work. This is normal, and I think it's a form of writer's block. Don't let this feeling get you down. In this post, I'll explain why you're likely feeling this way, boost your confidence, and give you some methods to try to remove this feeling, like taking a break or changing your mindset. You've been writing or outlining your work for a while, but now you're starting to think it's not even any good. You are not alone. It's normal to have doubts about your ideas or works, but if we were to dwell on doubts instead of reach for goals, would we really accomplish anything? Get rid of this pesky Writer's Impostor Syndrome!
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Do you fear publishing your writing? Do you worry about the judgement you might receive as a young adult? Don't let your fear hold you back any longer. In this post, I'll show you why you should self-publish, asap. I'll show you all the experiences and wonderful moments in life I've gained from doing so. Your own moments are waiting for you. Here is the mindset that helped me reach mine. As a young writer, you may fear publishing and readers' high expectations. Your fears are misplaced. Fear never getting self-published; fear never having the experience. The more experiences you have young, the wiser and more successful you'll be when you're older. Strive for wisdom, not perfection. Using my personal experiences from publishing at 17 years old, I'll show you why this is a motto to live by.
Need help organizing the notes on your characters? Need ideas for creating a more fleshed-out character? I have created a Writer's Character Sheet inspired by character sheets for role-playing games. It contains sections for Basic Info, Appearance, Traits, Personality, History, Flaws, Weaknesses, Ideals/Goals, Character Role, Relationships, and Timeline in Your Work. This post can be paired with my "Creating Characters" post as the information there can help you fill in these sections. Feel free to download this file and share it with others. It is a front and back sheet, black and white.
If you're publishing on a small budget or just for personal goals, there are options for cheap cover art! While I will always recommend paying a designer and/or artist (even if it will take you a while to save up), I also know that's not reasonable for some. For a more professional look, try premade covers. I explain all that is premade covers for you. To have the experience and bragging rights, teach yourself to do it! I recommend programs and methods for teaching yourself cover art, and give you some general rules. Your cover art should be special to you first. How do you picture your book? Is it for you or your readers? Do you want it to sell? Fit in? Or be unique? If you want a more professional look, be prepared to spend a lot of time learning or pay for a premade color. If you have a specific look or logo in mind, set time aside for practice and Google searches and #DIY!
You've got a general idea for your cover, now you just need the artist! There's more to consider than searching and accepting your first find. In Part II: Picking your artist, I'll explain all the steps up to making your choice: where to look, quotes, pricing, and a contract. Each of these steps are important and should be taken into your consideration! And then finally you can pick away! Your cover art should be handled like a baby, carefully and lovingly. You need to give yourself multiple choices and think thoroughly about your decisions. Not only is the cover art important to you, it's very important for marketing.
Judge your book by its cover! Good cover art catches passerbys' attention! Cover art may seem challenging, but I'm here to lay it all out for you. From the general idea, cover dimensions, to artist's quotes, expectations, and more! The process of cover art will be broken down into two parts: before you search and picking your artist. This is Part I: Before You Search. Before you even start looking for an artist, there's plenty you need to do! Mainly, you need a general idea for the artwork. This'll be its main elements, dimensions, medium, and due date. All these will influence your artist search and the decisions of the artists you find.
Writer's Block always seems to come when I'm overwhelmed by other duties. Most of the time I experience small writer’s blocks, but this was a big one. College and holidays brought a month and a half long writer's block. But, I was finally able to get rid of it with three things: breaking the schedule, positive reinforcement, and just practicing. I experience two types of writer's block: Minor and Major. Minor comes around often, but he's easy to get rid of. On the other hand, Major occurs once or twice a year, and he's hard to get rid of. Major made me feel like I just couldn’t write. I’d sit down and stare at that blank page for minutes, and would easily let myself get distracted by other things. And if I did manage to write, Major made it feel like the writing was awful. Sound familiar?
While "fantasy" seems pretty straight forward, and its definition quite simple, the word in the writing world is actually quite B R O A D. There are many different types of fantasy out there, and knowing which subgenre category your writing falls into will help you write and market! But, Erin, why do I really need to know about the different types of fantasy? Well, reader, that is a great question! When you learn about the specifics of fantasy, it can help your writing and marketing. You can read other works in the genre you write or plan to write in in order to get a feel for your book, and maybe even some ideas. When designing, you'll know how to make your work fit in but also unique! Furthermore, knowing the type of fantasy your work is will help you market to a more specific audience, which can help sales! So, without further ado, here's a list:
Whether it be a book signing, book fair, festival, or something related where you've been granted a table, you're going to need some important items! You'll need to grab passerby's attention, and stand out from the rest! While all you *technically* need for an event is yourself and your books, when you have only these items you will likely not reach your full sales potential. Without additional steps to grab people's attention, your booth will look bland and consistent, and you'd have to work extra hard to reel people in.
This list will help you decide what to bring to your event, and while the more the merrier, sometimes you won't have the space, money, necessity, or time to bring it all. Maybe you have a great idea for the plot of the story, but you have no idea what kind of characters should belong in this plot. Maybe you’re just looking for ways to spruce up your character. Whatever the reason, when making a character, you need to consider your character's role in the story and what makes them human, unique. In this post, I give you lists on information to help you form your "children"! Characters need to appeal to your reader; they need to be human. Humans are unique, complicated, but also defined by purpose. They have a reason for their actions, usually anyway. And so, your character's reason is not just defined by their personality but also their role in your story. These are the two things you must consider when making characters: role and humanness. Making a very detailed character can take time, as there are many things to consider. Let's start with their role in your story:
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More InfoErin blogs because she wants to help other young adult writers and new writers. It's aimed to educate others on the writing and self-publishing process. If there is anything you'd like to know that she hasn't covered yet, please contact her! |