Pop over to read my Guest Post on the Nomad Novelists Writers’ Group site, on how ditching a novel you love isn’t always a bad thing.
http://nomadnovelist.wordpress.com/2012/04/29/moving-on-from-a-dead-novel/
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Sometimes, you just have to have a little fun with your MS.
And I say have that fun.
For this post I used WORDLE
http://www.wordle.net
I have created simple images of the Top 50 and Top 3 (non-routine) words of Disconnect. Routine words = The, His, In, At, As….etc….
Have a go 
Should I be worried about the word “Back” ???
00It goes without saying that a website, as a means to promote yourself, is a fundamental aspect of being a writer in today’s expanding digital-arena. Of course, you must socialise on platforms, like Facebook and Twitter, whether you like it not, but having somewhere to place your writing progress, wip, or a general blog is key to gaining an audience. And – most of all, to let the world know you are.
My website http://www.imranwrites.com is a means for me to promote not just my writing, but also any useful advice I gain from scouring the website. I am not an expert, but if I can simplify prepositions, show-not-tell, pov, conflict, character building, as well as a zillion other things, then I feel I have contributed to the writing world.
Does my site grab your attention? Now then, how much did it cost to set this site up? £2,000? £1,000? £500? Actually, it was lower than you think…
Stage 1 – Platform to Form Site Upon
There are dozens upon dozens of platforms you can use, though I used http://www.wordpress.org
I must make clear that there is an alternative called http://www.wordpress.com, which is commonly used as it is free to do so, however, unless you pay $99 you will have a site with the domain name of http://www.imranwrites.wordpress.com
I don’t know about you, but http://www.imranwrites.com looks a tad better than http://www.imranwrites.wordpress.com [But it is entirely up to you!]
Okay… so, if you do pay $99, you can have http://www.imranwrites.com, but the hosting package (relates to Stage 2) that you’ll receive is mediocre. My recommendation is that you use http://www.wordpress.org
Cost so far = £0
Stage 2 – Hosting of Site
Every site needs a host before it is available on the World-Wide-Web
Once you have signed up to http://www.wordpress.org, you will have the option of a hosting site. There are several available on wordpress. I opted to use www.bluehost.com
Great thing was that I got the choice of a domain – http://www.imranwrites.com – perfect!
And the cost? $3.95 per month if you pay up front for 24 months, or $4.95 per month, if you pay up front for 12 months.
There is an inbuilt Live-Chat process available on the site, so if you do get stuck with the signing up, or next steps process, there is always someone available to help.
I opted for 24 months, so in total, I paid $94.8 – which works out to £59 under current currency-exchange rates.
Cost so far = £59
Step 3 – Build your Site
Once you’ve followed the specified steps on Bluehost, you’re site will be ready for you to work on.
You will be introduced to a basic template with some pre-built content, just to help you get used to the interface. However, I found the pre-built theme and many of the free theme that you can load from the internet to be… boring…I wanted something with a little ‘oomph’.
I sourced out a theme site http://www.elegantthemes.com
For a charge of $39 (per year = £24) I can have the my pick of any of the theme they currently offer. And, I can change at any time as well. The theme are funky, intuitive and very different. They help to make my website feel a little more alive. When you download a theme… you can easily upload it onto your site by using the wordpress control panel.
Cost of far = £83
Step 4 – Protect your Site
SPAM and people trying to hack sites is common practice, and any additional security to what Bluehost offer is key…if you ask me.
Within your site, you will have the option of applying Askimet – an ever-present protecting piece of kit. For a simple charge of $35, I have made my site as secure as I can. I strongly recommend this.
Cost so far = £104
Step 5 – Populate your Site
Create your own images, photographs, blog posts, stories, thoughts, ideas, etc.
Be creative and build a name and a site for yourself that shows who you are and what you can offer!
TOTAL COST to set up http://www.imranwrites.com = £104 or $166
Not bad hey?
00On Saturday 15 October 2011, I attended the One-Day ‘Getting Published’ Event organised by The Writers Workshop (London, UK). The ever-present Harry Bingham (a great Crime writer) did a fantastic job as Chief-Presenter and Chaired the day admiringly.
I will admit that I prefer the 3 Day event – that was held in York March 2011 – because things felt less rushed and there was greater opportunity to mingle. A key observation on Saturday was the average age of attendees being rather high, so even for a 33 year old, I felt like a child lost in a bygone era. (Sorry – if I offended anybody)
Below is advice and comments gained from Literary Agents, Publishers, Self-Publishing companies and from the floor of attendees. Most of this, I already know, but stating that it has come from a professional, adds some Klout to it.
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So… discuss… does anything here touch a nerve, or does it make your willpower stronger.
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Me? I will persevere.
00Hell Yes!
You show your novel to a friend/relative and they announce; “This is the most fantastic novel I have EVER read!” At this point, your head implodes and you spend the evening picking up your remains. Illusions form in your newly constructed head, and with that you engage on a self-comitted drive to seek out an agent.
Urm… stop right there Starbuck.
Just because you ran your document through spell/grammar check, does not mean it picked up everything further than the basics each Cyberdyne T-100 would perform. I knew, from the moment I started writing that I would need an Editor to aid me in understanding millions of issues; like:
(note – not all apply to me, but these are common issues)
+10Wikipedia; the subjective encyclopedia that is audited rarely, states that a Plot is a literary term defined as the events that make up a story, particularly as they relate to one another in a pattern, in a sequence, through cause and effect, or by coincidence.
In any form of story-telling and in thought-out images, a plot is kept to gripping your viewer’s attention. If there is not plot, then we might as well watch paint dry. A plot should inform of the central characters and the journey that they take with all of the twists and turns that impact on the success or failure of them achieving a key aim.
When I write, I form a plot that is made of three sentences.
Usually, this is all on the back of an envelope (a used one). Then, my secondary-usually is to sleep on it, because that is when I form the movie in my head. Visualising the scenes and their dramatic twists gives me the basis of part 2 of my plot-forming; the actual journey.
A bigger envelope comes into it’s own as I detail on the left hand side the Protag’s actions from start to end, and on the right hand side, the Antag’s actions. Where they should meet/converse, I add a red line, and where their actions impact on the other, I add a blue line.
By this point a pathetic web will form that most spiders would abandon, but for me, looking down on that paper of two halves, I see the plot take shape. The storyboard is there.
Part 3 then sees me jotting numbers from 1 to 50, and for each one I add a part of the journey from the part 2 page. In some ways, I am now the scriptwriter, who determines when and what. I prefer to bullet-point the basics of what will take place in each chapter.
FInally, comes part 4, the director’s angle, the actual writing, and let me tell you… I stick to my script 50%… because as I write another subplot or a new devious character may emerge that must be thread into the plot. And that is the beauty of writing. The plot is a framework, but how you make it, is entirely up to you.
No two directors would make the same movie from the same script in the same way.
Summary:
00Before December 2008, I never used any Social Media platform. It wasn’t because I did not know how to, but rather that I tend to wait to see if something is worth pursuing before I jump head it.
Okay, scratch that last part, because I do jump in gung-ho all of the time, and sometimes regret not planning carefully. But, Social Media took a while to grip me. I suppose it was because not many would openly declare that they used it, and I wondered if I would be the only person on there without any friends.
[Violin music cuts in]
So, after some prodding, I signed onto Facebook – and – suddenly, getting excited when my Email Inbox pinged “You have 1 New Message” was a thing of the past. Now, i could interact with some and many, and go on wild adventures of random words and images that made texting oh so yesterday.
Glory days.
Using Facebook never affected my other work lifestyle at the desk as you rarely had a continuous exchange with lots of people. There were moments, but never hours.
Well, ever since I started using Twitter, that has changed… Don’t get wrong, I love Twitter and the interaction (albeit virtual) with people who i may never hear from or meet, but they are people and the sharing mechanism of Twitter is awesome. Meeting other writers and sharing in their joy and pangs is something I won’t get on Facebook alone.
Because Twitter can be a roller-coaster from the moment you start it up, you may find yourself tweeting more than doing other work…like writing. There have been days when I have struggle dot notch up 300 words in a 3 hr session, because I am more interested in Twitter.
[Shame on me]
So is there a solution? Yes, and it may feel harsh, but I now turn Twitter off for 2-3 hrs, and in that time, i can easily notch up 1.5 to 2k words. Then, when I return to tweet, I don’t feel as guilty.
Moral: Enjoy the Social Platforms, but don’t be afraid to switch them off. If you forget to do what you must, it will get left behind.
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The simplest novels start with a back story of elegance then comes the mishap that must be overcome and eventually all ends well. Well, that is not so different from general life. Why would we need a book to tell us that?
If a book was going to be worth my time, it has to open with a bang, and keep that bang or other bangs that supersede the initial one to keep me reading.
But why do I need conflict in a book? Why do any of us? Deep down, under the caveman exterior and the conditioned hairstyles we have (or not in some cases), there is a shadowy desire to see others falter. In reality, I never want to see anything bad come to anyone. I want us all to have wonderful lives but I have to admit that I am drawn to the TV or radio when I hear of a situation arising where the conclusion is ???
Conflict does not have to be run-of-the-mill weapon in your face, you are about to die, what do you do, where will you go?
Conflict can be many things and having several at key moments in your plot, especially when there have been dry or mediocre moments. They will engage the reader and drive them to keep reading.
A classic example of conflict at work are TV serials, like LOST. There was conflict all over the place and a cliff-hanger at the end of each episode just exaggerated the previous conflict or added another layer. We, the viewer were gripped to tune in to find out more.
But… in novels we can not leave the reader hanging on for an answer until the third book in a series. If you do add conflict, try to resolve it within that book. Bring some closure.
Below are examples of conflict;
Be creative like circumstantial conflict
[facebook]
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