Interview at Inception Radio Network, Chicago

In  about an hour, I'll be talking live with Heidi Hollis at Inception Radio Network in Chicago, Illinois! You can listen live at inceptionradionetwork.com.

We'll be chatting about Mammon and the paranormal ideas, issues and themes in the book (and the world at large).


JB x

One thousand words

Okay. I'm not about to say that this is a cure-all for writer's block, but I have a theory that may help some of you fellow writers who suffer, stare at the keyboard, contemplate literary suicide and bang your heads on the desk.

One thousand words per day (or in my case, per night). Do the maths and you'll figure out how long it will take you to meet your word count goal.

Then, write.

When you start off, it can seem like a huge hurdle when you're struggling to find one quality sentence. One thousand words? Seriously?

My solution is to puke on to the screen. Yucky, I know - but it's really a truthful way of describing the process. Typing the most crappy, basic, telling-style prose, just to get the skeleton down. Then, slowly, the puke turns into something a little more appetising (which isn't hard!) and suddenly I find myself enjoying what I write, because at some point, by relaxing and accepting the crappy first draft, I've relaxed my brain and allowed creativity to flow.

A lot of the time, the 1000 words consists of dialogue and some action. Easy! The descriptive prose often comes around when I go over the first draft.

Sometimes, by the time I've done 1000 words, I'm ready to stop. At other times, I can go on and do another 500 or 1000. The point is, getting it down is important. You can work with a lump of clay, as unattractive as it may be in its original form, but you can't work with thin air.

And yes, when I miss a night, it nags at me until I make up for it. Sometimes, I'll write double the nightly word count to compensate, or the nagging goes on. Does the nagging ever end? I think this is our curse, as writers. But the creative process and final product are worth it.

What do you think, fellow writers?

The Night Writer.....ooh! It sounds scary, huh? AND IT IS!!

Okay, so I am a Night Writer. This means that basically, I can't write anything decent before 8pm. From the literary sense, I mean - I can do real job-related stuff anytime, unfortunately.

I'm off work sick with a chest infection. While I am avoiding using my voice, I'm still trying to exercise my literary one. And it's failing!

I know that around 8pm tonight, it will kick in with all the......um... (hold on, and I'll give you a brilliant metaphor tonight).

Oh, I can throw lots of 'telling' style paragraphs down, like slapping on an undercoat before bringing out the Hawker's Gold...but I just can't click on that inspired switch in my head while the sun is hanging around. Good thing I'm not living in the extreme North.

This realisation lends itself to all sorts of paranoia - WHAT IF I BECOME FAMOUS? (Ha, ha! Please excuse me for a moment while I reach for the Robitussen). A jealous rival might try to sabotage me by making prank calls at night. Or, what the night voice goes away and I'm left with...well, THIS?
 
How about you? Is anyone here a certified Night Writer?

JB

News

I'm pleased to share that I am now represented by Leonie Tyle of Tyle and Bateson Publishing. It's wonderful news and Leonie has been a strong supporter of the Ferryman Chronicles from the start. I'll post news about the series' development in due course.

Review: Bird by Bird, by Anne Lamott



I don't write many reviews. I do rate books on Goodreads, but I tend not to review them on the blog.

My agent put me on to this book. I've tried out some writing guides before, and found that while they had great ideas, many of them could've been found on the web for free. The difference is, that this author suggests resounding, practical ways to write. She has an alternative word for 'writer's block' that I find delightful, and optimistic. No time is wasted in her world - so much of her daily experience helps inspire and contribute to her writing. If you've read my past posts, you'll know how agitating I find the statement that 'We must write every day,' because many proponents of this don't often suggest practical ways to ensure we can do this.

Lamott recommends going away from the computer and 'filling up' by doing other things. It's probably been said before, in some other form - but she explains things in such reassuring, funny ways that it's just inspiring.

Also, she nails the experience of being a first time published author.

Five stars.

JB

It's PR, darling! Branding an author, and other interesting pastimes

All-new, value for money, always satisfied...

Why do I feel like I'm...well, you know - SELLING myself?

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One thing I have learned over the past two years, is that I am responsible for my own PR. The key word of the moment is 'branding'. I'm not unfamiliar with the idea, having worked as a spin doctor for various organisations in my post-Uni years.

So, authors must work on developing their own brands. 

So, J.B. Thomas becomes a brand. How can I make it recognisable?

It's a challenging thought. I'm a person. Do I try to become well known in the way that someone like Obama has? I don't have millions to spend, nor do I have access to big media. And when J.K. Rowling comes to mind, all I can think of is wizards. It's hard to wrap my head around it, to see an author as a brand, as opposed to the books.

But I'm trying! My social media profile includes:
  
Facebook pages:

• Author page for J.B. Thomas
• Fan page (Ferryman Chronicles)
• Halloween Giveaway USA

Twitter account
Goodreads Author profile and discussion group, moderated by me (Writing for Young Adults) 
Mammon book trailer on my YouTube account
Amazon Author Central profile
Google Circles profile
Linked In account
Blog
Website (under construction)

These things all take time and dedication. I try to blog twice a week and list a new writing task on the Goodreads discussion group each fortnight.  It's good to try and link your blog posts to other accounts, such as Twitter, Facebook and Linked In.

I think this is how it works, but I'm still learning.

Question: 

What is your take on author branding? Should we do it, or just focus on writing? Am I right in what I am doing, or am I missing something?

And, if you have time: what are some essential items for an author website? 

Would love to hear your thoughts, sweetie darlings....

The former PR guru,

JB xx

Here we go again...should we write every day, or not?

I've discussed this idea before, but it's worth revisiting. Every now and then I come across authors who say that we MUST write every day. Some of these authors are flexible - and allow the definition of 'writing' to include blog posts, character bios, etc - but others insist that it be manuscript work.

Tonight, I've been looking over my latest work. It's obvious to me that some of this writing was done on a day when I didn't feel like writing, while another part was completed during an inspired three hours one night. The difference is incredible. The second part is much, much better, with vibrant, believable dialogue and character development. The first part is...dare I say - BORING!

I think I need to find a middle ground. I teach full time. In a high school. With some very challenging students. I'm tired at the end of the day. But to have a writing career, I need to commit to writing daily, or at least every second day. But there are some days when it's better for my writing health to back away from the computer, rest and dream a little.

JB xxx