Writing Mastery

I’m a first-time author and I’m looking to get my book published. As far as I know, no one has written a book like this before. I need to start looking for an agent, but I’m scared of somebody rejecting the book itself but ripping off the concept. Its highly-marketable and in this day and age, somebody could easily just take the idea and run. Any suggestions on how to get published while still protecting myself and my work?

My dear according to the latest version of the Federal Copyright Laws, you already own the copyrights the minute you write something. Save yourself the money.

I have posted this here probably hundreds of times but I guess I have to go through it once more. Persi’s Law #2 – NO Copyright is worth a darn without a badass lawyer to back it up. There are no Copyright Police. If your work is plagiarized, there is nobody at the Copyright Office who will help you. Your only choice is to hire a very expensive attorney. And that is assuming you even KNOW who the plagiarist is and where they are. Suppose all you have is their screen name? Suppose they are located in China? Then what? There is absolutely nothing you can do.

And as for the so called "Poorman’s Copyright" where you put your work in an envelope and mail it to yourself and them leave the envelope sealed, it is useless. All it proves is that on that date, you were in possession of those pages. It does not prove that you are the original author. I could put pages from Old Man and The Sea in an envelope and mail them to myself, but it doesn’t make me Hemingway. NO judge on earth would accept that as evidence. It is not worth the stamp. It is an URBAN MYTH made up by rank amateurs and spread by kids who do not understand copyright laws through sites like this. It is totally useless. Save the stamps.

There is only one safe copyright. Write your book, back it up and keep it in a drawer until you are through the rewrite and edit processes and ready to do something with it. The moment you post anything online, all bets are off. They are target for plagiarism. Anyone who wants to can steal them and unless you are willing to sue at great expense, you are out of luck.

As for your distrust of agents, that is completely amateur and unprofessional. Assuming you have gone through the standard Writers Beware channels, and know the agent to be reputable, accusing them of stealing is absurd. No reputable agent would do that. And to send them copyrighted material is terribly bad manners. It says to them "I want you to help me, but I don’t trust you." It annoys agents to no end, and they wouldn’t even bother to read your work.

You must also remember that the book most likely will be sent to many agents before one takes you on. Rejections are common. Then getting an agent is no guarantee of a sale. That agent is going to show your work to many people – editors at publishing houses – in order to get a sale. So a lot of people are going to look at your work. You have to put your trust in all of them. That is just the way it is.

In short, you have to advocate for yourself. You have to seek out agents and do the research to ensure yourself that the agent is reliable and reputable. The rest is a little bit of luck and a lot of faith. Quite honestly, the best agents generally deal on referral from other authors they represent.

If you go to my profile, you sill see I star all good Q and A on writing and publishing. Several very successful authors have posted here. Feel free to skim through and read.

Hope that helps. Pax-C

Tags: how to get a book published by admin
7 Comments »

I’m just teenager but I am writing a book and I was wondering what is the appropriate amount of words per chapter? If someone could help me, I’d really appreciate it.

Chapters are better split up not into a certain number of words, but as a kind of complete piece of the bigger puzzle. Starting a new chapter is a great way to convey the passage of time, to change a perspective (going from being a straight narrative, or from one character’s point of view, to another character’s point of view) or enhance a dramatic moment (the chapter before ends with a kind of cliffhanger, the next chapter continues the ongoing story).

Personally, I like when the chapters aren’t extremely long (more than about fifteen to twenty pages), because I tend to read to the end of a chapter I’m on before putting the book down. Overly long chapters often leave me no other choice but to put the book down mid-chapter, and that annoys me.

There’s no hard set rule about how long chapters need to be. Authors like Lewis Carroll, Roald Dahl, and (I think) C.S. Lewis wrote EXTREMELY short chapters occasionally, some barely more than a few words. I don’t have the book in front of me, but I think the moment when Alice falls down the rabbit hole is an example of one of the short, odd chapters.

If you’re writing a book for young readers (about eleven and younger), you probably should keep the chapters pretty short, at about seven pages. For teenagers and adults, it’s strictly a matter of preference, but I would use it as a way to organize and shape the story, as opposed to trying to aim for a certain number of words.

Tags: writing a book by admin
21 Comments »

I’ve been searching online for the best novel writing software that I can get for the least amount of money. I’ve looked at New Novelist 2.0 and others but, which do I choose being that I’m on a very tight budget?

I have been writing for many years. The only software I have ever used is Microsoft Word. Sorry but no software can make you a better writer. If you know how to use the advanced settings on Word, it does many things that will surprise you. Skip the software. It is the equivalent of buying a Humvee when all you need is a car. Instead invest in a couple good research books. A style book. A copy of The First Five Pages. A copy of On Writing. Writers Market. They will help you far more than any software ever will. Pax-C

Tags: writing a novel by admin
6 Comments »

What colleges in Canada have good, extensive acting and writing programs, I’m especially looking for school that would have specialized acting and writing classes, and any laces that offers comedy courses

definitely ryerson university they have a top theatre school

Tags: writing programs by admin
1 Comment »

I want to write a book that acts as a rebuttal to everything that Ann Coulter has ever written. I’m going to call it. "Godly: The Government of Conservatism"
So, if I write this book, how hard would it be to publish? I’ll be as wicked and acid-tongued as Ann Coulter, I’ll just back up my statements with facts and try to make a more flattering face on the cover of my book.
I’ve written books before, and I think that it would be really, really fun to actually get this book written.
So, how do I go about this? I’m very serious. I want to do this. I’ll do whatever it takes.
What should be my first step after writing this? How do you find a serious publisher? How do you get your book distributed?
Thanks for your help, guys!

Take these steps….
1) Write your book…re-read…edit…edit again. Publishers want lines double spaced.
2) Get copy rights to your book before sending it out….Library Of Congress…cost approx. $30.00. Never send work out without a copy right.
3) Buy a book called "Writer’s Guide", it is a must if you are serious. That book will list contact information to publishers, what genre they accept, if they accept 1st time authors, what format they accept and their guidelines.
4) Follow submission guidelines to the letter or you are wasting your time.
5) Again, before sending work…re-read and edit…do not waste their time by sending sloppy work.
6) From there it depends on the market and publishers you submit to.
BEST OF LUCK TO YOU!!!!

MOST IMPORTANT MAKE SURE YOUR QUERY LETTER AND SYNOPSIS SELL THEMSELVES! IF A PUBLISHER DOES NOT GET PAST THAT YOUR MANUSCRIPT WILL NOT BE SEEN. DO NOT SELF PUBLISH UNLESS YOU ARE DESPERATE! THAT IS CALLED VANITY PUBLISHING AND A REAL PUBLISHER WILL NOT TAKE YOU AS SERIOUS! A real Publisher pays "You". Rarely does a first time author make a lot of money….however, after your first book is out it is easier to submit to a larger publishing house.

Tags: how to write a book by admin
12 Comments »

In today’s highly competitive internet universe, the importance of attracting highly targeted traffic to your website cannot be overemphasized. Routing web traffic to your site can be your only means of survival, especially in the cutthroat world of ecommerce. Getting a high search engine ranking can be very difficult. Fortunately, there is plethora of website promotion strategies you can use to drive traffic to your website.

There is a wide variety of strategies you can adapt, from paid advertising to affiliate marketing. However, most of these techniques require payment. Nevertheless, there are ways to promote your website and increase your web traffic without spending anything. Writing articles is one of the best web site promotion strategies you can use, and they can be very effective. How, you may ask, can writing articles help improve your web traffic? Here are the top seven ways in which it can help explode your business.

1.Reach more people

When you write good articles, it would be a shame not to share them with other people. You can post your articles in your website or you can submit them to other sites such as e-zines and online publishers. By submitting your articles to these sites, you give exposure not only to your ideas but also to your website. Simply include a link back to your site or include your information in the resource box. With this, you get exposure and free advertising as well. Submit your articles to popular e-zines and take advantage of their popularity. Other sites who find your article relevant may also link back to you. Thus, you increase your link popularity, which is one of the most important strategies in the internet world. Remember that most people are looking for information online and by filling this need with your quality article; you may reap the benefit of more exposure and higher web traffic.

2.Free Advertising

Submitting your articles to other websites presents an opportunity to advertise your website without paying exorbitant fees. Although you should avoid marketing language in your articles and make it informative and useful to your readers, you can always include your site’s link in the resource box. In addition, by making your article relevant and helpful to your readers, you are making a good impression for your website, which could ultimately lead to a visit and hopefully a purchase. Good quality content in an article is far better and more effective than a few lines of ad space. You have a very special opportunity to presell your product or service to your prospective customer.

3.Gain High Search Engine Ranking

Create a new web page for your article in your website. Optimize your article to make it search-engine friendly. Use top-ranked keywords and Meta tags that can give your website a high search engine ranking. As soon as you upload your new webpage to your server, search engines will spider through it and you can gain an increase in search engine ranking. Remember that search engine optimized content is a very effective strategy to gain a high ranking in search results.

4.Increases Link Popularity

Instead of looking for other sites who would want to establish reciprocal links with your site, you can simply submit an article to other sites. Just do not forget to include a link to your site in your resource box. When these websites pick up and publishes your article, you automatically get a link partner. Try to get as many link partners as you can. Link popularity is one of the factors used by search engines in determining search engine rankings. Make your article especially useful and appealing, so that more websites will be encouraged to publish it.

5.Optimizes your site for improved search engine ranking

By making your site keyword rich, you can greatly improve the search engine ranking of your site. Remember that keyword density is one of the most important factors that search engines use when determining the search engine ranking of site. However, you should always provide relevant, useful and pertinent information. Avoid the temptation of overusing keywords just to gain a high ranking as this may turn off most web surfers. Relevance and quality is still the most important things to consider when writing articles and it will be doubly useful to your site if you make these articles search-engine optimized.

6.Establishes a Good Impression and Reputation

By writing excellent, original and relevant articles, you not only give your site exposure, you are also creating a good impression on your prospects. Encourage more people to visit your site and do business with you by establishing an impressive reputation through your articles. Be seen as an expert in the field and your will ultimately gain more customers eager to do business with you.

7.Enhances your credibility through references and testimonies

Certainly, your articles are going to receive feedbacks and testimonies when you publish them in e-zines and free article sites. Record these positive feedbacks and comments and use them as promotional material in your website or in any of your advertising efforts. Your credibility will be greatly enhanced by these feedbacks, as it will create a good impression on your prospects as well as your existing customers. In this highly competitive world, excellent credibility and trust may be the only things you need to attract new customers or make loyal patrons out of your existing customers. Original, relevant, useful and pertinent articles are important tools you should utilize to improve and explode your business

John Ugoshowa
http://www.articlesbase.com/advertising-articles/how-to-use-article-writing-to-promote-your-affiliate-programs-63852.html

Tags: writing programs by admin
No Comments »