Tag Archives: a writer’s library

Fallen in the Line of Duty: A Crime Writer’s Lesson

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My Palm Springs Writer's Retreat ~ On the phone with a friend who's a retired LEO.

My Palm Springs Writer’s Retreat ~ On the phone with a friend who’s a retired LEO.

Talk about research. This round was heart wrenching and educational.

In my upcoming book, one of the detectives is shot and killed in the line of duty. At first I was going back and forth on whether or not to let her live. If so what would her life be like afterwards?

Then I thought about my protagonist. What would be one of the several things I could do to test her?

Finally, after writing a word or two and fussing with rewrites, I decided to make it difficult for my main character and add to her rollercoaster ride as she pushes to solve her case.

For the last two weeks I buried my head in books and had discussions with my friends in law enforcement to learn the proper way to pay tribute to a fallen officer. I even sent the chapter to one of them to see if he approved.

I didn’t want to be disrespectful, but I wanted the scene written correctly and he agreed.

If there is one thing that I’ve learned is that there is a brotherhood that exists among the officers who serve our country and cities; police, firefighters,  and military.

To the law enforcement officers all over, thank you for risking your lives to keep us safe.

Authors Must Learn to Sell What They Write

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I came across this article written by Yvonne Perry and she gave me permission to repost it here.

Many a writer aspires to be a published author-by any method whether self-publishing or being accepted by one of the “big six publishing houses,” such as Hachette Book Group, HarperCollins, Macmillan, Penguin Group, Random House, or Simon & Schuster, or one of their imprints (subsidiaries). What most new authors don’t realize is that once a book is published, it requires a lot of time, effort, and money to market it. The book, like any other product other than toilet paper, won’t sell itself; it has to be presented to its target market over and over.

Promoting a book can become a lot like owning a business. I learned this the hard way when I published my first book in 2005. I knew little about book marketing at the time, so the book didn’t start selling until two years later when I published my second book. That’s when I paid a publicist about $3,000 to do my book marketing for me.

The mistake many newbie authors make is becoming too attached to their book and not allowing others to critique it or suggest changes for improvement. Another error is not having a professional editor help them develop the book or at least provide a copy edit. Most authors assume this service is too expensive and will skip this very important step in bringing a book to the market. I’ve heard things like: “I had my friends proofread my book and they didn’t find any errors,” or “My cousin is a high school teacher and she said it is a great book.” That’s like going to the dentist to buy lip gloss! Even an English teacher cannot provide the same level of editorial assistance that a book editor can. Because an editor knows the book industry and the reader market, he or she can offer consultation about publishing methods and important tips about what makes a book appealing to readers. That’s in addition to having extensive knowledge about various style guides, acceptable word usage, character development, transitions, making dialogue work, formatting, and being able to assist with publisher query letters and book proposals.

A book is a product and must be sellable. It’s not just about packaging. A poorly-written book,with a so-so cover, or an ambiguous title/subtitle that lacks keywords is not as marketable as a page-turner that jumps off the shelf and causes the reader to say, “This is just what I’m looking for.” That reader becomes a fan and automatically starts helping you promote your book via word of mouth. If I don’t enjoy a book, I won’t write a review (at least not a positive one) or recommend the book to others.

I had a “first” last week when an author I am working with told me he wasn’t sure he was ready to be an author because of the time he would need to spend marketing his book. Usually, new authors have no idea of the amount of time and energy involved in successful authorship. I recommend authors do as many of the following things as possible:

• Create a marketing plan
• Maintain a blog specifically for the book
• Get domain names and build a Web site for the book
• Query to obtain radio and TV interviews
• Be available to record radio and TV interviews
• Create promotional videos and post them to YouTube and other social sites
• Conduct a book tour (in-person or online)
• Participate in the launch of other authors’ books
• Do an Amazon launch campaign
• Write and send media releases
• Write and post articles to online article directories
• Write and send articles to print magazines
• Participate in online forums pertaining to the topic of your book
• Social marketing such as Facebook or Twitter
• Comment on and link to other peoples’ blogs

In an age of social marketing, authors are able to befriend and interact with their readers. This allows an author to build the buzz while still writing a book. Many authors spend as much time writing and marketing their books as they do marketing them.

After spending several years in a corporate setting, Yvonne Perry decided to make a brave move and start her own freelance writing company. Leaving her full-time position as an administrative assistant in the sales and marketing division of a Fortune 500 company, she started her new career in 2003 with very little business experience. Today, she is the owner of Writers in the Sky Creative Writing Services where she serves as a freelance ghostwriter and editor for individuals and businesses.

By aligning herself and her company with other writers and experts in the field, Perry has networked her company to the top as a premier ghostwriter and editor in Nashville, Tennessee. She and her team stay busy on client projects such as writing media releases, ghostwriting and editing books, article writing, creating ad copy, and producing business documents. The team provides writing and editing services to individuals while offering a logical way for large corporations to outsource their writing needs. Thanks to the Internet, the company’s reputation has reached international status. With her wide variety of writing experience that includes impressive résumés, personal and professional bios, high-quality press releases and articles, as well as case studies, proposals and marketing pieces, Yvonne is ready to work with you on your next project.

For more on Yvonne Perry and a list of her books, please visit Writers in the Sky.

A Writer’s Library: Researching our Craft

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Writing The Breakout Novel by Donald Maass

Oh gracious. I’ve been waiting two years to get my hands on this book written by Donald Maass. He’s a well-known literary agent and has written other books geared toward writers.

FYI, Mr. Maass will be at the Pikes Peak Writers Conference in April.

What can I say? I read and reread the book. Although on the second round, it was a lot faster. It was more for highlighting and rereading sections that I somehow missed. Not sure how that happened, but I think that my two little ones helped with that.

This book is filled with good information. I laughed and took many notes. The laughter came when I read a part of a chapter and realized, “Oh yeah, I’ve done that.” 

The book deals with the essentials of writing your novel but it also focuses on the reality. The reality that surrounds you as a writer, your protagonist and your manuscript.

Chapters three and four are my favorites. One is titled Stakes and the other is Time and Place. In chapter three, he talks about public, personal, escalating, and your own stakes.

Out of all the books I’ve read, so far, I have never seen anyone touch on that subject in such detail. It was new for me. At the beginning, he poses a question that makes one think.

Now, on to chapter four. He discusses how to deal with the setting for your novel and that details in a manuscript is the secret ingredient of breakout settings.

I could go on, but then I would probably tell more than I should about the book.

BTW, after each chapter there is a Breakout Checklist. It was a great tool for someone like me who is a compulsive note-taker.

“Thank you, Mr. Maass for writing this.”

You can find the book at Writers Digest and Amazon.

A Writer’s Library: Researching Our Craft – Making the Perfect Pitch

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How to Catch a Literary Agent’s Eye by Katharine Sands

This book covers both the fiction and non-fiction genres, and enables you to hear from a variety of literary agents. In the interviews, conducted by Katharine Sands, the agents express what they would like to see and what they do not.

It also discusses written and verbal pitching techniques—including pitches that fail and those that are successful. If you bristle at rejections, literary agent David Vigliano talks about not putting too much weight behind rejection letters.

Another important topic covered was building an author platform; something that every author needs.

It was quick read for me but worth the purchase.

A Writer’s Library: Researching Our Craft.

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The Criminal Investigative Function: A Guide for New Investigators by Joe Giacalone.

I loved reading this textbook. It was straight and to the point, and it provided a lot of information.

From reading this book I have learned about the protocols on handling a crime scene, conducting interviews and interrogations, search and seizures, but most of all, the real challenges that face investigators and their responsibilities to a case.

Not only is this a good tool for new investigators to use; it is also a helpful resource book for us crime writers.

Feel free to find out more about the author by visiting his website at JoeGWrites.com. There you will also find a link to order his book.