The Daily Port of Call: August 6, 2014

Photo by Alexander Lvov/bigstockphoto.com

In today’s Daily Port of Call, you’ll find thirteen golden lines from RWA14, the ultimate guide to beta readers, and the Liliana Nirvana technique for launching a successful self-publishing career.

Check out this collection of thirteen golden lines from the RWA14. The list includes a heaping helping of craft tips, the care and feeding of the social media beast, and how to keep your creative brain waves in optimal condition.

Avoid the info dump with an offhand remark. “If it takes 100 words to say something, figure out how to say it in 50. If it takes 10 words, say it in 5.”

Discover the ultimate guide to beta readers.

Lev Grossman shares how not to write your first novel. “I was trying to write about what I knew, which in itself probably wasn’t a bad idea, but I was mistaken about what that was. I thought that what I knew most about was myself, but I could not have been more wrong.”

Discover the Liliana Nirvana Technique for launching a successful self-publishing career.

Be in the game: Michael Noll shares his experience with rejecting rejection.

The Daily Port of Call: August 5, 2014

Photo by Alexander Lvov/bigstockphoto.com

In today’s Daily Port of Call, you’ll find how to get from the first draft to the second, the pitfalls of the character who is too self-aware, and how to increase revenue streams by direct selling.

How can you get from the first draft to the second draft? “[T]he transition from raw material to story-worthy narrative is what’s going to keep you interested in coming back time and again in order to get the story told.”

Sow the seeds of later actions in the beginning: “an element introduced only as it's needed unmasks authorial intent, reveals itself as a device.”

Avoid the problems of the character who is too self-aware. “That sly pitfall puts tension at risk, limits believability (I’ll tell you how), and inhibits the ability to show rather than tell. Read to the end to get some tools that will help you find the very things that your character won’t know.”

Become a better writer with one simple step. Be specific.

Increase your revenue streams by direct selling your books you're your readers.

“When you’re blocked in the present moment, you start brooding over the past and obsessing over the future.” Find out why pushing ourselves makes us less productive.