Discovered Wordsmiths

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Overview

Have you been away from your writing? Missed some time and now not sure how to get started again?

JE and Stephen discuss just this problem in this author focused podcast episode.

YouTube

https://youtu.be/tEDzNSRjAms

Transcript

[00:00:50] Stephen: Okay. So let's talk some author stuff. Move on to that. You've written you're on your third book, you're working on a fourth and other plans. [00:01:00] So what are some things that you've learned that you're doing different now than you did at the beginning?

[00:01:04] JE McDonald: Probably the most the biggest thing would be consistency.

I used to just. When I felt like it, I would write. And I really literally started just like jotting things down in a notebook before bed. I would read write a few paragraphs and put it aside and fall asleep. But now consistency is my number one thing I write most days if I'm not, if I'm between projects, I need a head break or if I.

Just need a brain break. I'll still get up. I gave a five in the morning every day to write even if I need just that brain break, I'll get up at five in the morning and I'll read instead of right. But I try to always stay in the schedule of getting up at five in the morning. I think that's the biggest thing is consistency.

I just do it. I do it no matter what I mean, like everyone has life problems and things get wrenches, get thrown and all that sort of thing. It's important to me personally, to be consistent about it.

[00:01:58] Stephen: Okay.

And when you are [00:02:00] writing, what tools and services are you using?

[00:02:02] JE McDonald: I absolutely love Scribner which is a writing program, a heap.

All my projects are started in Scribner and then when I send them off to my editor that's in a word document. So unfortunately when the creative that makes. The start of the creative process is over. And I send it to my editor. That's where Scribner stays, unfortunately, because word and Scribner do not communicate that well, going back and forth.

Once I'm doing my edits at and back into word, probably the most used tab on my computer is the one look reverse directory, which is a third source. I am often blanking where. When I'm writing. And so I go to that and you can write a phrase in there or whatever, and it will give you like a ton of suggestions.

So I'll be like, What's that word. And I'll think of the word that I'm thinking of and I'll put it in and it's not the right word. It's not even the right definition, but it'll come up with a bunch of other [00:03:00] things that I can click through. And finally, that was the word I was looking for. So that's the most used tab on my computer, for sure, besides my email.

But,

[00:03:10] Stephen: And you mentioned. You've published through a small press. So you're doing a lot of the marketing. So what are you doing for marketing?

[00:03:17] JE McDonald: I'm trying to build my newsletter. And I feel like I was behind you. You had asked you to ask what I would do differently. What would you do differently?

Paid attention more to the marketing aspect of things instead of just going into my writer cave, because now I feel like I'm catching up, I'm on my third book and I'm just starting to feel like I'm getting my teeth into what needs to go into ...

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Overview

JE hails from Canada and was a great interview - twice! Sorry, forgot to hit record the first time. It was just practice.

She is a mother and spends time reading and making up stories with her girls.

She talks about using a new app to distribute her book along with the standard distributors. Sometimes taking chances on something new pays off.

Website

https://www.jemcdonald.net/books

https://www.jemcdonald.net/

Get It

http://stardust-h5.stardustgod.com/kiss/shareBookPage.html?bookId=614362080ae3211d0b4f9797&randomId=113005250_1632504155&type=1001&pushType=1

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0899HTB95/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B0899HTB95&linkCode=as2&tag=saschneider-20&linkId=31d6448ad3b1dd13d8715e42000a11bc

Favorites

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B09JVXLR24/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B09JVXLR24&linkCode=as2&tag=saschneider-20&linkId=320286b21b3fc5e862b74ddf6fddbec3

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/108785752X/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=108785752X&linkCode=as2&tag=saschneider-20&linkId=13cd00a0810d139df3ce08e38dd48a52

Bookstore

YouTube

https://youtu.be/AOJb7FR7ArM

Transcript

[00:00:32] Stephen: So welcome to discovered wordsmiths episode 71. This is a great episode because I forgot to start recording at the beginning. So we had to repeat some of it. I apologize. She was a great sport about it, and we got through it and pretty much said the same things, but luckily I haven't done that too much as I'm recording this right now, I just got back from a weekend [00:01:00] in new Orleans with a bunch of other great writers.

From J thorns author success mastermind group. We had a good time learning some vampire stuff. We got to talk to Dacre Stoker, who is the great grand nephew of Brahms Stoker. And he told us a lot of things about his research into his great grand uncles book. We got to explore the French quarter delve into a vampire speakeasy that we got to go to secret.

It was a good time, a lot of good people. So look for a book next year, a vampire anthology that I will have a story in and so will several other great authors. And as usual, Jay puts Jay and Zach, not just J I apologize, put the book up for a charity and that's super great because you get some authors that get published.

You get. Book of stories on vampires. If you like that, you've got something new to [00:02:00] read. Plus a charity is getting benefited. So I encourage everybody to go grab that book when it's available. So before I ramble on too long, let's go here. JE McDonald. Welcome to discovered wordsmiths our second take. So let everybody know yet we started talking and totally forgot that record.

Luckily with me, I have someone is taking it all in stride. I've got Jay McDonald.

Here are a couple chapters from Jim Irvings award winning book - B2B Selling Guidebook.

Chapter 1 - Service Led Selling

Chapter 19 - Focus on Your Priorities

Kevin reads a poem that he had published and a chapter from his short story collection - The Enduring Mage.

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Overview

Kevin is back to give us an update on how his writing life is doing - and his health.

Kevin has been working under another pen name and has worked in the new Kindle Vella. He also has written a short story collection:

Previous episode - https://www.discoveredwordsmiths.com/2021/02/24/episode-38a-kevin-fellows-at-the-end-of-the-world/

Get It

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B09D6CFDLM/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B09D6CFDLM&linkCode=as2&tag=saschneider-20&linkId=41837b88cd71d66461160f36dfabcfcf

YouTube

https://youtu.be/-HyEi2GQPIQ

Transcript

[00:00:50] Stephen: Hey, welcome to discovered wordsmith episode 70. And I wanted to say real quick, last week's episode with Jim Irving was the [00:01:00] first, second interview I've given. So if you haven't listened to that one, it's worth going back to listen to, he has a great book to help a business to business leaders. Last time it was business to business sales.

It's nice to hear from Jim. And he was from Spain instead of Ireland this time. So it's a good little talk. Today I've got another second interview with Kevin J fellows talking about his book and of the world and the new books coming out. And following this episode, we have a chapter read from that book.

Give that a listen. And just a quick update. It is the week that I am going to new Orleans to join some other writers in a world-building event. This is one of Jade thorns mastermind, world-building events, Jay thorn, and Zack Hannah, I should say. And we are going to. Go right into new Orleans, right into the French quarter dive into the culture the fuel, the smells, everything, and [00:02:00] we're going to recreate a world to write vampire stories and all the authors there are going to have.

Vampire stories. We're going to collect into an anthology and then any money will go to charity. It's something I'll tell everybody about, you should check out when we're done. So I'm very excited that we are doing that this week. It was supposed to be last week or sorry, last year, but because of COVID had got pushed off to this year.

So luckily we are doing. Before I ramble on too long I will turn it over to Kevin and stay tuned for the next episode for his reach. I have to read Kevin, welcome to discover the wordsmith podcast again. And I see you this time. This is great. I love the technological improvements. COVID has bestowed upon us.

So how are you doing. I'm good.

[00:02:48] Kevin: Actually today it's a, it's a weird day, a day after a holiday. It feels like a Monday, but it's not so

[00:02:54] Stephen: Yeah. I feel like I've got a million things I got to get done and get caught up with, I know when we [00:03:00] talked clear back, oh, a year ago, About your book.

You had said you got into writing because you had heart attack. How's that going? How's your health then? Oh,

[00:03:09] Kevin: my health has actually been really good. I've I was doing some work last year. That was extremely stressful and that wasn't so good for my health and my heart and I could feel it. So I stopped doing that work.

Really? Just focus more on the writing. I did have I had a checkup.

Overview

Jim was on Episode 17 (B2B Sales Guidebook), and he's back to talk about his new book - B2B Sales.

Jim is talking to us from Spain this time, and the weather looks beautiful.

He does writing in both Ireland and Spain, and even runs his business while traveling. His new book deals with these types of issues.

Jim updates us on how things are going with his first book and the impact the 2nd book has had on his sales.

Previous episode - https://www.discoveredwordsmiths.com/2020/09/14/episode-17-jim-irving-b2b-selling-guidebook/

His Book

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08PJQ3DMW/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B08PJQ3DMW&linkCode=as2&tag=saschneider-20&linkId=f7d3b20c444a8bfb0b5060da5a3897ce

Transcript

Episode 69 Jim Irving

[00:00:00] Jim: Are you working on your author career, but struggling to get that first book published, does the goal of being an author seem too lofty or thoughts of having multiple books and making a full-time living are as fantastical as living in Cinderella's castle. Welcome to discovered wordsmiths a podcast where aspiring authors can be.

Join Stephen Schneider is he finds and talks to authors. You may not know, but authors that have gotten their book on the author career path here, what they've done to get there and where they want to go. Now, settle back. It's time for a bit of inspiration and advice. Come listen to today's discovered wordsmith.

[00:00:44] Stephen: So today discovered word Smiths. I've got Jim Irving with me and I'm very excited about this because Jim is the first person I've interviewed for the second. It's been about a year since we talked. And it sounds like a whole lot has happened with you. So [00:01:00] real briefly you were living in Ireland.

If I remember right. And now you're in Spain. So tell us what's going on with you a little bit. There I'm one of those lucky people let's go to a certain age. We live in Northern Ireland and right in the middle of some beautiful country. Six years ago, we decided we wanted to have a bolthole somewhere to go.

That would be easy to get to. We're not that far from an airport. So we chose Spain in case some Russian mafia is coming after you or something. Yeah. Which is very late. Yeah. So you're reading the wrong books. So we've got a place here. We've had it for five years, but of course, with cool.

[00:01:40] Jim: We hadn't seen the inside of it for over a year, so it was locked up. So we got here two days ago. There was a lot of dust. But now we're back and functioning and touch the technology seems to be working. Yeah so we just moved back and forth between the two and I work between the two as well.

[00:01:58] Stephen: Nice, good. I'm [00:02:00] not as lucky to have two houses and especially not lucky to have houses between different countries. What's that going between different cultures and, just changing your life like that. Every now I have to get slightly political, of course, because two things have happened.

[00:02:15] Jim: First of all, we would come, we would move location every six or eight. Flights for low cost walk on, walk off apart from security, of course.

Katherine discusses how difficult marketing is after you publish. Even though she has a publisher, they rely on her to do most of the marketing.

Planning her second book, she is taking into account what she'll need to do for marketing. Our talk centers around thinking outside the box and marketing efforts that authors can do which aren't normally though about.

Overview

Katherine is local to me - she's from Cleveland. Her interests lie in the horrific - or creepy. She is a member of the Dracula society, Horror Writer's association, and she loves Dark Shadows.

Those interests have combined in an interesting way. Katherine likes to travel to destinations that are related to her horror interests. She has visited the house they used for Dark Shadows. She's visited museums and statues for Edgar Allan Poe and H.P. Lovecraft among others.

Her book - Creepy Cat's Macabre Travels - is a travel memoir detailing her trips. She takes us along on her journey to these fantastical places and shows us creepy locations.

Website

www.creepycatlair.com

Her Book

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1952474256/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=1952474256&linkCode=as2&tag=saschneider-20&linkId=07c29008e61cac7f3990d2af8cad7742

Award

Katherine's book won an award from Literary Titan! Check it out:

https://madmimi.com/p/105b531

Favorite Books & Shows

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0486411095/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0486411095&linkCode=as2&tag=saschneider-20&linkId=dc3ce08b7a3130a73d40aeb4d2e5a55f

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0143JWDK8/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B0143JWDK8&linkCode=as2&tag=saschneider-20&linkId=52810773e6c2080fe9371b5d0023eb8f

YouTube

https://youtu.be/NkO3eUiX1Es

Transcript

Overview

Diana is a full time author. She lives in L.A. with her husband and 4 kids. She was a cartoonist when she decided to write.

She is the author of the popular historical romance Kaitlyn and the Highlander.

She has been writing for over 7 years and used NaNoWriMo to help her keep writing. We discuss her process to write such a successful series.

Her Books

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1982991267/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=1982991267&linkCode=as2&tag=saschneider-20&linkId=901617e93eb75fa384071784f76b0c74

Website

http://dianaknightley.com/

YouTube

https://youtu.be/OjGqFlyVYqw

Transcript

Sandy discusses how difficult it was to publish her book and what she's learned about publishing. The publishing was a steep learning curve and she compares that to writing for paid articles.

We talk about editing and getting people to read your book and why it's important for a new writer.

She got help for her book launch with Author Media Book Launch Blueprint. Also recommended is the Rubart Training Academy.

Sandy also used a book launch team and discusses how she formed hers to help with the book launch.

YouTube

https://youtu.be/KqEiTsH7z-A

Transcript