All Things Writing

Some of you are at home right now, listening to his podcast, making spaghetti sauce, trying to keep your three year old from terrorizing the dog, while trying to keep the dog from stealing the ingredients you have gathered to make the sauce.

So, when are you going find time and space to write?

Remember that creativity, to an artist, is as essential as air or water.

Find a spot in your house where you can focus. For me it’s essential that it’s not anywhere near a television. Currently, I am next to a television, and it’s driving me crazy. I notice that it is slowed my productivity way down. Frustrating, yes. However, it’s also only temporary.

Don’t overlook the places in your house that you wouldn’t normally consider. For example, some of your condos being built today have incredibly large closets. Really you don’t need much room for a laptop and could even build a little desk in that space. I even know of a few authors that work from local coffee shops rather than try and write at home.

If you have a 9-to-5 job there are other ways in which you can work and still have a life. I know one author who uses recording software on their cell phone and a microphone they bought online. While they’re driving to and from work, their speaking their narrative into their cell phone and then downloading that information when they get home.

You could also utilize a basement. Even if that basement isn’t finished, you could buy materials and any home improvement store to quickly turn that space into something usable. Just find yourself a small desk or stand put your computer on.

It is really important to have a conversation with your family about allowing you the space to work. If you don’t make it clear that writing is a priority for you, then it will never be a priority for them. I’ve made it clear my family that interrupting me while I’m working needs to be a very rare occurrence.

Look for times to work when your spouse and children are at home. And remember that although it would be great if you could sit down and write for hours at a stretch, that isn’t necessary. You could carve out several blocks of shorter time and get the same amount of work done.

You have to be willing to turn off that part of your brain that is calling for you to check your Facebook status every few seconds. It is far too easy to want to reach for that phone when you’re stuck in a particularly difficult sentence.

I don’t know what it is about the morning, but that is the time that I work the best. It seems that any time before noon I am at my most productive. Around noon I start to flag a little bit have to turn to doing something like going for a walk or maybe reading for a while recharge my batteries. Any time after 230, I just can’t write. Since I suffer from fibromyalgia, it can make working in the afternoons difficult.

I’ll tell you this, if writing is truly in your heart, and it’s meant to be a thing, then you will put in the time it’s necessary.

Next week, I am going to have New York Times and USA Today best-selling author C. J. Ellison on with me.

I want to particularly pick her brain about what attracted her to the genre of romance. I’m very curious what her journey was to bring her to this point in her career. She also has some wonderful tips as a writer on how to organize your project you’re currently working on.

So remember to tune in for that show, it’s going to be great.

Thank you for listening. Consider supporting an indie author by signing up to Patreon today. After you sign up, I will send you the book of your choice.

Welcome to Podcast #26!

On this weeks podcast, we are going to be talking about a bunch of different topics ranging from the attraction of anthologies, the attraction, essence, and nature of horror.

Join me and my friend Liam Bradley where we delve into these and lots of other topics on this week's episode of "All Things Writing".

I want you to take a moment and check him out on Amazon. You will also find a link to the book, Bizarre, which we worked on together along with tons of other amazing authors.

Check him out here!

Do you like what I am doing? Consider making a contribution so I can continue to do the work I do. I cannot do it without continued support from people like you. CLICK HERE!

Thank you for listening. Consider supporting an indie author by signing up to Patreon today. After you sign up, I will send you the book of your choice.

Start with a strong character. The true essence of a good story line is a strong central character. That character begins in your mind. Before you ever put pen to paper, you really need to think about how it is that that character is going to live in whatever world you’re going to create. What I mean is that who is that character as a person? For reference you may want to check out my podcast dealing with character sheets.

Remember that it has to be believable. There’s a little bit of confusion when writing fiction that you can just write something and your audience is going to believe it. Storytelling 101 really should include a short discussion on the importance of building believable fiction.

Don't forget your minor characters. So we understand the importance and storytelling of having compelling characters, but what about the minor characters. I’d argue that your minor characters play a very important role in that they help build the framework around which stories being told.

A good example of this is characters that people interact with in cases like stores, movie theaters, gas stations, and other places where they have to be in their world. Don’t ever underestimate the power of tangential characters to your story. It may just be that those characters provide some witty dialogue and interesting insight into your story.

World building is also very important in storytelling. Remember the five senses rule. Essentially, the rule states that we have five senses. Congratulations, now you know the five senses rule. What is your character smell, see, taste, or feel. How about the sounds going on around them. Perhaps your Romeo type character just came in off the street. If you go from a hot street in a city into an air-conditioned building what does that feel like?

Be relatable to your target audience. I recently read a movie script which was written by somebody who is not an American. The problem with the movie script is that it uses a lot of comparisons that American audience just isn’t going understand. You need to make sure that you are using metaphors which were target audience is going understand. Your descriptions need to be able to resonate with your target audience as well.

The ending. You’ve got to be careful not to rush from climax resolution to quickly in your storytelling. It’s critically important that you don’t abandon the basic principles of keeping this story believable at this point.

It is true, this is fiction, and you do have the ability to make things up but that doesn’t necessarily mean you should. That is it for this week’s podcast, thank you very much for joining me.

Next week, make sure you definitely tune in as I am going to be interviewing author Liam Bradley who I got to know when we work together on the anthology Bizarre: 14 Horror Stories.  

Thank you for listening. Consider supporting an indie author by signing up to Patreon today. After you sign up, I will send you the book of your choice.

Podcast #24

There is no easier way to clear a room of writers than telling them you want to sit down and dissect their marketing programs. Truth be told, most of us do not have a program, but that is something that needs to change. And I gotta be honest, for me, it is a very hard thing to do. But I have some great news. 

Last week I told you how freaking excited I was to have the author of the book, “The Golden Toilet” on my show and finally that wait is over! In this week's episode Steve and I discuss: 

• Do people that talk themselves out of marketing and why?
• How do we, as authors, move beyond just being able to sell individual books into a world where this is our sole occupation?
• Walk me through the steps in how to build a bridge between myself and my customers.
• What marketing outlets excite you right now? What are the marketing outlets you see shaping the future?
• In “The Golden Toilet”, you are kind of hard on the way websites are traditionally used. Tell us why. 
• So, in a nutshell, describe to us how to make this marketing system work.

After you are done listening to the podcast, check out his website here: https://thegoldentoilet.com/

Check out ROI Online at https://www.roionline.com/

And if you are interested in more great content from Steve, you can check out his podcast here: https://www.roionline.com/podcast

See you next week and thanks for listening!

Thank you for listening. Consider supporting an indie author by signing up to Patreon today. After you sign up, I will send you the book of your choice.

So you’ve written the greatest book, the cover looks great, the editing is top-notch, and you’ve posted it to Amazon, drafted 2 digital, or wherever. Now what? Rest on your laurels and let that sweet, sweet, author cash flow in, right? Well, no.

The convention circuit is something that you can do which puts you into direct contact with your readers. I would highly encourage every author who is looking for a way to meet individual readers in the real world to consider this route.

https://www.buymeacoffee.com/BryantheWriter

I can highly recommend attending Scares That Care. Every year we have an amazing group of people gathered to talk about scary stuff and we raise a bunch of money for an amazing cause. Check them out here! https://scaresthatcare.org/

Recently I finished reading a book entitled “The Golden Toilet; Stop Flushing Your Marketing Budget into Your Website and Build a System That Grows Your Business” by Steve Brown. This a marketing book. I usually don’t review non-fiction books, but here goes.

Well written, and delightfully unapologetic in word choice, I found a real connection with the way the information is laid out.

The thing I really appreciate is that Steve is not just telling you to buy his product. As a matter of fact, he actually talks about resources and ways of doing things which are not only free, but also findable in your local library. He is truly sticking to the old adage that you should only sell 20% of the time and then use the rest of your time to provide something useful. Which strongly suggests to me he is the real deal and not some guy who only talks about something rather than actually applying it.

The book also offers plenty of other free resources from his website which will help you put into practice what he is talking about in the book and that is something I can totally get on board with.

I really enjoyed reading the Golden Toilet and I really hope you will too. Find it here. https://www.roionline.com/ or https://www.amazon.com/Golden-Toilet-Flushing-Marketing-Business-ebook/dp/B082VKW99Y Check it out. It may not completely fit your situation, but take what you can from it and you can adapt it to make it your own.

Safe to say that I highly recommend this book. Quick read and well worth the time. But that is not just enough for All Things Writing, ladies and gents. Nope, I want to take this book review one step farther. I want to get Steve on next week’s show! Yep, Next Saturday, check out the show to hear me interview Mr. Steve Brown of ROI. I am going to press him on marketing for the indie author. Actually, just based on my interactions with him and reading his book, I suspect it should be a fun interview and I am really looking forward to it.

So that’s it for this week on all things writing. Thank you for joining me, this is Bryan the writer signing off.

https://www.buymeacoffee.com/BryantheWriter 

Thank you for listening. Consider supporting an indie author by signing up to Patreon today. After you sign up, I will send you the book of your choice.

In this week's show I mention how to develop your own character sheets.  Although I borrow much from other writers, I am taking the discussion farther by walking you through one of mine. I admit up front that my sheet structure was borrowed from Jenna Moreci. If you want to take a look at her videos (and I highly suggest you do), look her up at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wQcQ-As2BU0.

The attributes I use are as follows.
Character Name:
Category 1: Basic Stats

• Sex (Physical)
• Gender
• Age
• Race
• Ethnicity
• Culture
• Lineage
• Physical
• Height
• Weight
• Body Type
• Lifestyle
• Where are they from?

Category 2: Relationships

• Family
• Friends

Category 3: Sexual

• Orientation
• Attraction
• Why the Attraction?
• Experience
• Romantic Experience

Category 4: Skills

• Training
• Hobbies
• Schooling
• Occupation

Category 5: Personality

• Intro/Extrovert
• Right/Left Brain
• Strengths
• Weakness
• What makes them Heroic or Evil?
• Fears/Insecurities
• Beliefs and Values
• What do they Honor
• What would they die for?
  
  

Thinking about starting your own podcast? Hit up the following link to find the best way to get your show up and running from a group just as passionate about podcasting as I am. https://www.buzzsprout.com/?referrer_id=909964

Thank you for listening. Consider supporting an indie author by signing up to Patreon today. After you sign up, I will send you the book of your choice.

I want to talk about writing a quick and easy review of a book. But more importantly, I want to tell you why you should.

Reviews should be simple and easy and not take much time. A while ago, I did a youtube video about it. You can find it here.

But the bigger question is why should you? Fair question.

It doesn’t matter how many books I’ve written, or how much money I spent in advertising, ultimately the algorithms rely very heavily on the information provided by the purchasers themselves. There is a difference between books that get one review an books that get 20 reviews. If you have a book that gets 20 or more reviews, it is more likely that this book will be picked up by the advertising algorithms that Amazon or any other book seller uses. At the end of the day, it is all about sales. This is indeed significant, because when it’s picked up by the algorithms it gets in front of more faces.

Reviews don’t necessarily only amount to a monetary reward. In fact, many authors will tell you that a good book review will float their boat for many weeks. I don’t mind telling you that there is been times that have been tempted to give up writing completely only to have a really nice review sent to me. The review can make all the difference in the world.

So, it could be that those kind words you wrote are the kind words that keep your favorite author at their keyboards.

A simple review includes the following three elements:

• State if you like the book. Ex. “I just read book X, I really enjoyed it.”
• State what you liked about the book. Ex. “It is really well written, and I love how the characters came alive on the page.”
• State an intent. Ex. “I can’t wait for the next book in the series.” or “I can’t wait to read the rest of his/her works.”

Here is an example of something similar. An actual review of my novel, Riapoke. “Very entertaining for sci fi lovers. Quick enjoyable read.” 

Quick, concise, and easy. It didn’t take them more than a few seconds to write that and then hit submit.

Next we will move on to what I consider more of a mid-level review. Mid-level reviews are little bit more in depth, they’re typically the ones I leave when I write a review. They consist of the following.

• A little bit about the beginning part of the story. 
• Some of the aspects of the book that I like. 
• A recommendation about what to do next.

Here's an example of one from my book Riapoke.

Stories of ‘strange’ neighbourhoods and remote towns have existed for years and will continue. The premise of something being ‘not quite right’ is a superb vehicle for a tale of terror. Mr Nowak draws the reader in with a rapidly evolving plot which all sounds very normal, and then things start to go wrong for a few of the characters, and in a bad, almost irretrievable way.

The sense of foreboding is related well and feels like the stuff of nightmares. I was impressed that when the pace picked up the action rarely eased, which if not done well can be exhausting.

Paranormal activity in such a story is fitting, rather than added as some auth

Thank you for listening. Consider supporting an indie author by signing up to Patreon today. After you sign up, I will send you the book of your choice.

 On August 3rd, 2020, my wife and I celebrated our 24th wedding anniversary. So I thought it might be fun if, this week, I bring her on the show to talk about being the spouse of a writer. We talked about what she likes to read, things that surprised her about my writing, and what she enjoys about being the souse of a writer. 

I asked her to talk a little bit about how important patience is when you are the spouse of a writer. Turns out, you need a healthy dose of patience when dealing with me (her words not mine).

So, without further ado, here is my wife and I in a conversation about what it is like living with a writer.

-Bryan the Writer

Thinking about starting your own podcast? Hit up the following link to find the best way to get your show up and running from a group just as passionate about podcasting as I am. https://www.buzzsprout.com/?referrer_id=909964 

Thank you for listening. Consider supporting an indie author by signing up to Patreon today. After you sign up, I will send you the book of your choice.

I think we often underestimate how our silly little jobs impact us. I tell my kids, well not really kids anymore, to value the first jobs they had since those jobs are the ones which will set the tone and flavor of what they will do the rest of their lives.

Jobs Bryan the Writer has Had:

1. Paper delivery boy
2. Golf Caddy
3. Burger King 
4. Old Country Buffet
5. Excelo Bakery
6. Lightly Epicurean Deli and Catering
7. Pizzahut Delivery Driver
8. Famous Footwear as a shoe salesman
9. Sheriff’s Department Uniformed Volunteer
10. Morries Subaru as a parts driver
11. Fire Fighter
12. Hilltop Family Restaurant as a cook/dishwasher
13. Mankato State University as his assistant
14. School Bus Driver
15. City Bus Driver
16. Taco Johns restaurant in Mankato
17. Correctional Officer
18. Geographer at a bible camp
19. GIS analyst
20. Gas Main Inspector
21. Car Salesman
22. Concrete laborer
23. U.S. Army soldier
24. Analyst
25. Author
26. Podcaster

Now I am sure I have missed a few jobs in there someplace. Before you accuse me of not being able to hold down a job for very long, I think I should explain that every case where I left a job it was to seek out something better. I am not a huge fan of staying in one place too long as I like to try different things and indulge in my intellectual curiosity.

Those voices and experiences speak to you in a way little else can. It is because those experiences form the building blocks of who you are and who you will be in the future.

So, if you are young, and just trying to find your voice, I tell you to not give up too easy. The bumps and the bruises ahead of you will add to your personality and tell that little bard inside of you what to put on paper.

If you are not quite what might be considered young … or a more experienced writer, as it were … dig deep into yourself. Think about things that have happened to you in your life and draw upon those things in your life that bring you the pain the joy of yester year.

Writing is as much about feeling and emotion as anything else so if a memory brings a tear, then use it. Dive into that feeling and get it out on paper. Equally, if something made you smile, get that down on paper as well. It will result in the most genuine of stories.

Let me just give you a sneak peak of next week. You are going to get to hear from my beloved wife! She is going to be my guest and will talk about what it is like to the wife of an author and maybe offer a few tips and tricks to help your spouse or significant other deal with this crazy writing life we are all participating in.

-Bryan the Writer

Thinking about starting your own podcast? Hit up the following link to find the best way to get your show up and running from a group just as passionate about podcasting as I am. https://www.buzzsprout.com/?referrer_id=909964

Thank you for listening. Consider supporting an indie author by signing up to Patreon today. After you sign up, I will send you the book of your choice.

In this week's episode I try to convince you that having several good dictionaries, thesaurus, and other reference material by your side is critical to your success as a writer. Yes, looking up things on Google has its advantages, but you miss out on a ton of things like related words which have similar roots.

Take some time and explore your dictionary and thesaurus. If you don't have a good set, hit up you used book store and poke through their reference materials. Don't be afraid of older volumes, you will be amazed what words have fallen out of usage which could fit perfect with what you are writing.  

Thinking about starting your own podcast? Hit up the following link to find the best way to get your show up and running from a group just as passionate about podcasting as I am. https://www.buzzsprout.com/?referrer_id=909964

Years ago I started to compile books for reference. The reason behind this task is that at the end of the day the power could fail and the world could come to an end, but the books would still be around. 

Here is a good list of books you really should have on your shelf

The Chicago Manual of Style Mine is a 16 edition. When I am in doubt, I consult it. But here is why you need a hard copy. If you look at mine you will se notes in the margins, highlights, and all kinds of other things. I have added these over the years to remind myself of things that are either interesting or things I really need to spend more time learning. My editor is good about telling me where I can find the information on in the CMS. And any editor worth their salt will use it.

Business Writer’s Handbook I don’t know about you, but I am not actually sure how to do that, but I am willing to bet that if you got it wrong, someone is going to skewer you over it.
There are also tons of things in there about determining which kind of pronoun to use and the meaning or words in a business setting. Trust me when I tell you that if you are in your favorite used book store, try and pick up a copy. Well worth having on the shelf as a resource.

Elements of Style is important to have around as well. If you have this around only for the section on misused words, it is a good one to have access to. Well worth the read, it is a fun little book to look at on occasion. Not terribly long, it has been required reading for master’s students for years. Again, this is something you can find in a used bookstore or just order on Amazon, it is cheap enough.

For Dummies books produced by Wiley. My personal favorite is forensics for dummies and I turn to it every time I am looking at writing anything about poison. Before you dismiss a resource like this, I want to point out one very salient point. They are written by experts in their field.

Everday Life in the 1800s. When I write, I like to put in some antiquated phrases fo

Thank you for listening. Consider supporting an indie author by signing up to Patreon today. After you sign up, I will send you the book of your choice.