Stimulate Your Sensebuds...and wave goodbye to writers cramp!Written by Linda Gray
When you get stuck for ideas, and words won’t flow, invariably it’s because one, more or all of your senses aren’t being stimulated.Staring at a blank screen or sheet of paper really doesn’t help. The best way to stimulate all your senses in one hit is to provide an inspirational space you can work with. Lots of Feng Shui arrangements appear in western homes these days, and they’re great, but outside those four walls of your writing space, there is another world bursting with enlightenment and inspiration. Of course you may have to work at it a little, but hey, we all need some exercise sometimes! Whether you have a balcony or a backyard, you can very simply build a natural living world to plunge into whenever you choose. If you have neither, consider renting a small patch of land or sharing a garden with someone. Gardening conjures up all sorts of hard work images; tools, backache, blisters etc;. but it’s only as hard as you make it. Start small and design your garden on paper first. Decide where you want herbs, flowers - and even vegetables, if you have space and inclination! A tiny balcony or back yard can be bordered with herbs and flowers. If you’re staring at several square metres of concrete, don’t despair. Plant your sensory stimulators in pots. Paint pots different colours if you like.
| | 7 Steps to Successful PublishingWritten by Joni Hamilton
The decision to publish a book is very exciting! It causes creative juices to flow and eyes to light up. But wait – before you begin publishing process, know about seven most important steps you need to know before publishing your book. Make sure that you take every step into careful consideration so that your road to success is an easy one:1. Know why you are writing a book. Are you writing your memoirs for family, are you writing a community cookbook, are you writing a book of regional interest or are you writing a national bestseller? All of these goals are valid, but each goal has different implications for your business plan. Know why you are writing and know that you can create that bestseller if that is your goal. 2. Treat publishing as a business. You are passing beyond realm of author into exciting world of publishing. You are not just a writer, you are about to become a publisher who wants to produce a profitable book, and you want to keep profits for yourself. 3. Write a business plan. Being aware of business aspect of publishing is not an end in itself – you need to formally write your plan. It does not need to be a fifty page document with every accounting possibility recorded, but it should outline all of costs that you will encounter from obtaining necessary funds to knowing price of mailing a book. The business plan needs to account for future expenses as well as pre-publication expenses. 4. Plan for publicity and marketing. You must plan for publicity and marketing of your book. You can have best book in world, but if no one knows about it, no one will buy it. You don’t want to print books that sit in your garage. You want to print books that will sell, sell, sell!
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