Tuesday Two Cents on Writing

Monday, April 15, 2019

Ian Bott: Tuesday Two Cents

Hello and welcome, dear readers. Today is Tuesday, and that means it's time for some "Tuesday Two Cents" worth of writing advice.

Welcome, Ian Bott, writer of page-turning Science Fiction, and fabulous scifi artist. A big thank you for so generously taking the time to answer this question: If you could share one piece of writing advice with new writers, what would it be?

Treat all writing advice with caution, and cultivate your own good judgment about what advice to pay attention to. Even when it comes from big name authors and industry pundits.

Note - I’m not suggesting to ignore writing advice, or to think you always know best. That’s kinda arrogant.

There’s lots of good advice out there, and you need to learn from people who’ve been through the mill before you, and some of it will be stuff you don’t want to hear. But then there’s also lots of bad advice out there. And conflicting advice. And advice that is a good rule of thumb when you understand the purpose behind it, but which can be damaging when taken blindly to extremes. Then there’s advice which may be really good in the right context but which is actually bad for you right now.

In other words, it’s a minefield. So listen to advice. Try it out. See what works and what doesn’t and most importantly try to fathom out why it works, or doesn’t. Then make up your own mind. After all, when your published work is up there for the world to see, it’s your name on the cover, not the person whose advice you followed.

Author bio

Ian Bott is a public servant by day, and a science fiction author by night when his dark side emerges to wreak murder and mayhem on unsuspecting imaginary worlds. He uses his lifelong love of both science and art to bring new worlds to life for readers to escape to. Back in the real world, he escaped from Britain fourteen years ago but still misses proper pubs, pork pies, and real bacon. He now lives in beautiful British Columbia with his wife, two children, and assorted pets.

Links

Website: https://www.iansbott.com/

Blog: https://thebaldpatch.blogspot.com/

Amazon link for The Ashes of Home: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07BVSLNDY

THE ASHES OF HOME

Shayla Carver, master assassin (retired) and planetary governor, has made more enemies than an Imperial tax collector. To atone for her murderous past, she’s now exiled and tasked with rebuilding her home planet, a planet which was burned to ashes many years before.

As if exile wasn’t punishment enough, she’s ordered to act as both jailor and protector of the two powerful and traitorous noblemen who destroyed her home world all those years ago.

But deadly ghosts from her past haunt her every step. One especially dangerous enemy is intent not just on personal revenge, but on assassinating her influential prisoners. While she wouldn’t shed a tear for those prisoners, their deaths will topple the Empire and plunge the galaxy into a devastating civil war. Suddenly, even her own survival is the least of Shayla’s worries.

Tuesday, April 9, 2019

Diane Burton: Tuesday Two Cents

This week, we have author Diane Burton on the Two Cents stage.

Diane, thanks for answering this burning question: If you could share one piece of writing advice with new writers, what would it be?

Thanks for asking Teresa. My advice is write. Yes, write. Write when you’re happy, and the words are flowing. Write when you don’t feel like it. Write when you’re flying high. Write when your world is falling apart.

It’s so easy to write when all the stars are aligned, when you can’t type fast enough to keep up with your mind. When you’re down in the dumps, even opening the file is hard. Writing is your job. Show up. Your first drafts, your first stories can be awful. Consider them practice. Just like piano playing, the more you practice the better you get. Set small goals—write a paragraph a day, or a page. Write something. When you feel really bad, read Julia Cameron’s The Artist’s Way and write morning pages. Whatever you do, don’t stop writing.

3 friends, a hidden starship, a quest

Her father is gone! Taken by the Queen of Compara’s agents. Fifteen-year-old Mara has to rescue him before the Queen tortures and kills him. Father is her only parent. She has to save him.

Amazon ~ Amazon UK ~ Kobo ~ B&N ~ Smashwords

About the Author:

The first time D.M. Burton saw Star Wars IV: A New Hope, she was hooked on science fiction and space travel. The Star Trek movies made her want to travel to other planets. Alas, she is still Earth-bound. D.M. and her husband live in Michigan, close to their two children and five grandchildren.

Join D.M. Burton's readers’ group on Facebook.

For more info and excerpts, visit D.M.’s website: http://www.dmburton.com

She writes adult fiction as Diane Burton, where she combines her love of mystery, adventure, science fiction and romance into writing romantic fiction. Besides writing science fiction romance, she writes romantic suspense, and cozy mysteries.

For more info and excerpts from her books, visit Diane’s website: http://www.dianeburton.com

Connect with Diane Burton online.

Blog: http://dianeburton.blogspot.com/

Twitter: http://twitter.com/dmburton72

Facebook: http://facebook.com/dianeburtonauthor

Goodreads: Diane Burton Author

Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/dmburton72/

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Tuesday, April 2, 2019

Hywela Lyn: Tuesday Two Cents

Today we welcome Hywela Lyn, author of "out of this world romance" to the Two Cents stage. A big "thank you" goes to her for answering the burning question: If you could share one piece of writing advice with new writers, what would it be? Take it away, Hywela!

When I first started writing, I wrote to Anne McCaffrey, who was my ‘idol’ and told her I wanted to write and asking if she had any advice, I didn’t really expect a reply. However, to my delight I received a handwritten postcard from her with a few kind words followed by “Write what you would like to read."

I realized this was actually what I was already doing, but it was nice to have it validated by such a prestigious author, and it’s the same advice I’d pass on to other would-be writers.

What I wish I’d known at the time though, was that writing that first novel is not the most difficult part of being a writer. Once your novel is published and ‘out there’ the really hard part is the ‘promotion’. Not being fortunate enough to have a large marketing budget, I spent far more time than I should on ‘Social Media’, and my blog, trying to get the word out. I felt I had to join every author loop, and every writing site I saw, and that meant my writing time suffered – and I’m not the fastest writer at the best of times. It takes me a long time to get to know my characters and plot out the highs and lows of the adventures that befall them.

I would say to anyone starting out, get that book written, but carve out an allotted time to promote yourself on Facebook, Twitter, and one or two writing groups, but don’t overstretch yourself , and make sure you leave enough time to write the next book. If Tweeting or blogging doesn’t appeal to you, don’t think you absolutely have to do it. Facebook is massive, and frequented by both other authors and potential readers, and does not need to take up a huge amount of time, and for me is worth doing. I would also say a website is a must, even if you’re not yet published.

I still tend to spend too much time updating my ‘profiles’ on various sites and of course one has to interact on sites one belongs to and just ‘chat’ about something other your own books. (People will just ‘switch off’ if all you ever do is promote your own stuff, so you have to be careful, although of course if you have a new release or win a contest or award you can be forgiven for ‘shouting it from the rooftops.’) However I’ve tried to cut out the sites I’m not so interested in and concentrate on the ones I really enjoy being part of.

BIO

Hywela Lyn spent most of her life in Wales, whose beautiful landscapes and wealth of myths and legends inspired her to write. Together with fantasy tales, she weaves romantic Science Fiction adventures set in the future, and on distant, mysterious worlds, with characters who overcome great odds to find deep and enduring love: Stories she hopes will truly take you 'out of this world' and beyond. She writes under her real first two names which reflect her Welsh ancestry.

A keen animal lover, she has 'mare with attitude, called Flying T'pau, a 'feral' stable cat, Dusty, and a rescued terrier, Choccy, who manages to twist her round his little paw. When she is not writing, she can usually be found enjoying the outdoors with the horses and dog - or just eating chocolate!

She is a member of The Romantic Novelists' Association and Chiltern Writers, her local writing group. Lyn loves to hear from readers, who can write to her at Hywelalyn@hywelalyn.co.uk and she will always reply if you leave contact details.To know a reader enjoyed her books and was able to escape for a little while 'out of this world' makes her happier than words can express.