Book Review – Creative Writing: The Essential Guide by Tim Atkinson

Published by Need2Know

Thinking of starting a career in creative writing? Then this book might be for you. It is easy reading and at just over 100 pages, not too long.

As an introduction to the world of creative writing, this book works well. The author writes with a light touch and self-deprecating humour, and his style is easy to read. He also has a taste for unusual similes which become more obvious after his discussion on stereotypes and clichés in Chapter Two which discusses the writer’s voice. It made me think more about the clichés I use without thinking because they have become such a part of our language.

There are chapters covering getting the writing habit, reading as a writer, fact and fiction and editing as well as a basic introduction to different kinds of creative writing such as short stories, poetry, playwriting and novel writing including genre fiction. There are other books covering these kinds of subjects in greater detail, but this book gives the reader an overview of creative writing and the kinds of avenues that they might like to explore further.

I like some of the quotes in the sidebars – they are always relevant and often funny in a true kind of way. The author takes some examples from his own work (well, at least he owns the copyright) and is not afraid to show the nuts and bolts of writing in that the examples can be less than perfect. I also like his advice about not deciding too soon which genre you would like to write in – as you develop you may find more than one genre suits you whereas if you limit yourself too soon to one particular genre then you may miss out on some of your best work.

There is a great list of resources at the back for aspiring writers to try, and they include both web resources and books so you don’t have to be online to find some of them. At the back of the book more published books by Need2Know will offer more in depth reading on some of the subjects.

As an introductory book for a novice writer I would highly recommend this book: the writer mentions the well-used saying that ‘everyone has a book in them’ and I know several people who would like to write who might enjoy reading this book as a way of inspiring them to begin.

Even for writers who have been writing for a while but are beginning to feel that they might like to try different kinds of writing, it might also be worth a read as it does offer a good overview of the world of creative writing.

Favourite Quote:

‘Basically, if you’re writing a novel (as opposed to, say, a short story) you’ve got to take the reader on a bit of a holiday: short stories are away-days; novels are the full vacation and War and Peace is the year-long round-the-world cruise.’

(Creative Writing: The Essential Guide: Chapter Six: The Novel)

This book review is entirely my honest opinion of the book. I have no affiliate links with Need2Know or Tim Atkinson.

Writing Forums

I recommend you take a look at this post by Sally Quiller. I must admit that I have not really joined writer forums, rather business forums as I prefer to frequent places where potential clients may hang out.

I know that some writers can be very bitchy and jealous of others' success. It can also seem easy to put other writers down because they are more successful, but what has made them more successful?

Could it be that they actually sat down and wrote that novel? Rewrote it several times? They've done the round of submitting it to agents and collected rejections that sit framed on the wall or lined a litter bin? They have worked hard to be published. Have you?

They have sent queries to magazines, contacted editors, written and rewritten articles. In short, they have got up off their backsides and done something about becoming a writer. They have written.

I look forward to the day when I can be so productive. Go Sally, and many others like you. Being published is not just the means to an end but can be a beginning to a beginning.

If you want to be published too, then never stop writing, never stop learning, always be generous to others and publication may one day come your way too.

Photo Credit: Pen and Paper by Mike (Inbet 1979)

Writing When Distracted

Today is the first day of school half term. There are two young people to be entertained as well as the usual house tidying, meal cooking and washing, washing, washing! The only bright side is the lack of a school run which usually severely cuts into my writing time.

There's no real answer to this - every family is different. I'm between jobs right now, but that doesn't mean I have plenty to do. I set up a strict blogging schedule on my own sites at the beginning of the new year and it's beginning to pay dividends in terms of increased traffic. I also write for Suite101 and Hubpages and would like to increase my articles at both places.

My answer is to leave the computer set up and write in short bursts. If I have a chance at night, then I might plan out the articles I want to do, leaving the actual writing until morning. Otherwise thinking time takes away from writing time.

One thing I do want to do is enjoy the children. We will still get outside every day (even when it's cold and wet) and do some interesting activities. I got into this writing life so that I could take time off and things will slow this week for this very reason. On the other hand, it's what keeps life interesting!

How do you organise your writing life?

Five Top Blogs to Help You with Your Writing Career

Here are my top five blogs that helped me when I was starting out on my writing career.

1. Anne Wayman About Freelance Writing

This is a superb blog which publishes jobs every day and offers some great articles on starting freelance writing to boot!

2. Copyblogger

The information on this website is truly staggering. To learn how to write great copy, then follow this blog and get involved in the great discussions following the posts.

3. Lis Sowerbutts Passive Income Online

Lis lives in Australia and tells it like it is! She has some great tips for making passive income and for using Hubpages as a way to make money.

4. Felicia Williams No Job for Mom

A feel-good blog about making passive income by writing online. Felicia leads by example and always has some interesting posts about the writing life.

5. Carol Tice Make a Living Writing

Carol is up and coming and very informative about how to approach editors and find writing jobs. She offers interesting discussions and has done a couple of webinars with Anne Wayman.

One more that I couldn't resist:

6. Ken Crawford - The Freelancer Today

Again fairly recent on my radar, but Ken's website offers all the information you need to know about setting up a website and making money from it. He also offers perspectives on writing for upfront income.

These are bloggers who are bookmarked and I go back regularly to read their new content.

Who are your favourite bloggers? Have you found any other really informative posts? Let me know.

Photo Credit: Photo on Flickr by 2careless

Should Apostrophes be Scrapped?

I need you to know what kind of a nutter you are dealing with here when it comes to things like apostrophes. When Lynne Truss brought out her book, 'Eats, Shoots and Leaves' complete with an apostrophe repair kit, I could have applauded! For years I have been using apostrophes correctly and have really disliked the current problem where it appears that people who write pub signs and use chalk boards have absolutely no idea what to do with them!

The discussion was posted on a writers' and editors' group on Linked-In and the general consensus of the writers was that we would hate to see them go. However we are writers and in general understand how to learn and use them.

My six year old came home with two words using apostrophes for his spelling test this week: he had to learn 'I'm' and 'don't'. He did very well, although I had to explain to him that he did not need to make his apostrophe as big as the letters!

The twelve-nearly-a-teenager year old looked over his shoulder and remarked that she always gets 'I'm' wrong.

"What do you mean?" I asked. "Surely you know how to use apostrophes?" (I would like to point out that we go over them several times in the year!)

"The problem is I use a small 'i'," she explained, "and forget to put the apostrophe in!"

I was speechless! She knows how to do it when she thinks about it, but the teachers don't seem to care and let so many spelling mistakes go by. It sends a wrong message to the pupils and this is from an ex-teacher!

So what do you think? Should we give in to the masses and let apostrophes go? I can't help it - it would always look wrong to me without apostrophes.

I have written three articles for my other website on using apostrophes and they can be found here:

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Photo Credit: Photo on Flickr by mag3737

Do You Want to be a Writer in 2011?

I still do!

I've had a mixed year with some work through most of the year which had trailed out by the end. 2011 has started well and I hope to apply some of the lessons I've learned over the last year. I've earned a little money through Suite101 and Hubpages but I'm not going away to the Caribbean yet! I've had a great time, however and feel that my job is something that I am good at.

So, what about you? Do you want to be a writer in 2011? Have you got a burning desire to write a novel? Do you want to see your tagline in a publication or do you just want to share your online ramblings in a blog?

Here are my top five tips for writing more in 2011:

1. You ARE a writer! If you love to get your ideas and thoughts down on paper then you are a writer and don't let anyone disagree! If you start to see yourself as a writer, then you have more chance of becoming a writer. Of course you have to take some steps too.

2. Join a writing class. Colleges all over this UK are offering creative writing classes which give you the chance to meet with other writers, share your work and get some constructive feedback. The courses are usually general content with all kinds of writing covered. It's a great way to try out different types of writing.

3. Find time to write. When is your creative period? Is it early in the morning before the family get up or is it after the children have gone to bed. It can be embarrassing to admit to your spouse or partner that you want to do some writing, but offer them some of their own TV time and they won't care what you're doing with it.

4. Realise that it doesn't matter how you write or what you write. Some writers love big notebooks and smooth pens, others prefer a laptop or computer for speed. Actually I think there is a time and place for both. I love my notebooks for planning out or just scribbling down ideas, but computers allow fast writing and easy editing.

5. Keep going. There is a point in Nanowrimo (National Novel Writing Month), at about day 10, when you are struggling. The first flush of enthusiasm has gone, the inspiration is a distant memory and the ideas refuse to flow. You feel as though what you have written is rubbish and should be consigned to the nearest fire. Then you get an email which explains that you are not alone, that actually many other people who started writing the same time as you are feeling the same way and that it is not unusual.

The only way to overcome this feeling is to keep writing, word by word, sentence by sentence until you have reached the end. It may be rubbish, but today you are not editing, you are writing and you will find your inspiration again. You just need to keep going.

In 2011, there is no excuse for writing on your own, locked in your room. Explore the web, search for creative writing and connect with other writers. Share work, share ideas and improve your ability to write.

If you want to be a writer then make 2011 the year that you started to write for yourself and, who knows? One day you might make your dreams come true.

Photo Credit: Essays in Idleness by tonyhall on Flickr

Ten Top Tips to Get Started in Online Writing

This article is just an overview. All of these ideas require much more reading before you carry them out. The tips are for a UK writer.

Here are my tips for getting started in online writing.

1. Read blogs. Most of them out there are American, but there is some great information out there. Here are some of the most helpful:

http://www.makealivingwriting.com/

http://www.aboutfreelancewriting.com/

http://allfreelancewriting.com/

http://www.nojobformom.com/

http://diaryofamadfreelancer.com/

http://loriwidmer.blogspot.com/

http://menwithpens.ca/

http://www.thefreelancertoday.com/

but there are many, many more!

2. Learn how to do it. I learned by joining Suite 101 which helps teach you about SEO and writing style. You write on topics that suit you, but you have to apply and please an editor. You get some revenue share from ads on the site. Please let me refer you if you would like to do this.

www.suite101.com

3. Check out www.guru.com and www.elance.com to see writing jobs and bid for them. Be warned - sometimes these sites are a bit low paying!

4. Sign up to newsletters containing good information.

5. Spread the word around your friends.

6. Decide how you're going to handle tax. The moment you're self-employed, you start owing National Insurance.

7. Join Linked-In at the very least. Twitter is good too.

8. Google 'copywriting jobs' and similar descriptions.

9. Set up your own website

10. To promote your website, leave appropriate comments on other similar blogs.

My First Guest Post

I have guest posted on the #customerlove website and it went live on 21 November. This is my first experience of guest posting and I enjoyed it. The site is a Wordpress site like my professional blog and so it was really easy to upload my work in drafts for LaVonne to check before it went out. Unfortunately I was on a two post day, so my post didn't really get the full 24 hours' exposure, but I was pleased that I managed to do it.

I had such writers' block when preparing the post! I don't normally struggle with writing, but somehow the right tone just would not come on this! I must have started the post three times before finding the right voice! What broke it for me? This brilliant post by James Chartrand of Men with Pens explaining how he writes a post. It was great to read how one of the great post writers of the Internet was able to write so succinctly. I took his advice and worked out my three points and from there it got easier.

So, if you're interested, here's the post for #customerlove: Customer Focus is King.

Enjoy and I hope it's the first of many.

Finding Jobs

I've come close to getting two jobs this week but no!

Close isn't good enough - and yes I did apply for them properly this time! This freelance writing life isn't all roses that's for sure.

So, what am I going to do about it?

Well, I'm not going to do much today - there's house things to be done. But I'll be back next week and marketing harder than ever. Never give up!

Have You Any Hubs?

I had a bit of a Hubpages moment last week. I am now fully recovered, although I could have another attack any minute!

Hubpages is an article site which offers revenue sharing, mainly through Amazon and Ebay although there is Kontera too. Although I have been on Hubpages for about 10 months, I have not done a lot with it and have consequently not earned a lot either. Usually I ignore the weekly emails, but this week for some reason I chose to read it and found myself taking part in the Hubmob activity.

Hubmob chooses a subject about which Hubbers can choose to write about. The resulting Hubs are brought together on rss feed which hopefully raises your exposure a little and brings people to your hubs.

I wrote four on the Hubmob topic which was on the subject of top ten gift lists and added an extra one for good measure which was all linked in nicely. I also did some work on my existing Hubs, finding that some of the ads had not been working on them properly! No wonder I made no money from them! So I've decided to keep an eye out for the Hubmob activity this week and see if I fancy taking part in them again.

The Hubpages writing tools are relatively easy to use and you can add pictures, rss feed, comments and the ads as you wish. They send you regular emails on your stats and there are some very interesting people writing on there. There are people who use Hubpages regularly as a source of passive income. I am not one of them, but I may be writing a little more for them over the next few weeks if work continues to be slow.

My Job Is...

I love getting the email newsletter from IttyBiz. If you haven't subscribed yet, then I highly recommend it.

The most recent post was a challenge and it has got a huge response. In her post, What Do YOU Do - The Reductive Meme Redux, Naomi suggested that small business owners need to make it clear on their websites what they actually do.

Here are my responses below:

What’s your game? What do you do?

I am a copywriter, editor and proof reader. I have written short stories, two unpublished novels, blog posts for four websites, articles for local magazines, web content articles and product descriptions.

Why do you do it? Do you love it, or do you just have one of those creepy knacks?

I love to write! I enjoy researching a new product, I love to plan out what I’m going to write and I enjoy the actual process of writing. I have no problem writing to a certain length and I even enjoy proof-reading afterwards and paring down the language so that it makes sense and does the job that you want it to.

Oh - and my deep dark secret is that I have a creepy knack with spelling and grammar - I can tell if a word looks right or not!

Who are your customers? What kind of people would need or want what you offer?

My customers are people who appreciate well-written articles, which are interesting to the reader. I prefer to write content that draws readers in; articles that they want to read. My work adds value to a website, not just filler. My customers also appreciate my professional approach, the fact that I keep contact with them during a project and that I turn my work in on time or even before the deadline.

What’s your marketing USP? Why should I buy from you instead of the other losers?

I take pride in my work. I enjoy each new challenge when it is presented to me. Buy from me because you appreciate the power of good writing and what it can do for your business.

What’s next for you? What’s the big plan?

I would love to move into ghostwriting because listening to people’s stories intrigues me. I don’t need a byline to get satisfaction from my work. I want this business to expand and grow and I want to be in a position to help other people fulfil their dreams too.

Are You Planning to do NaNoWriMo?

Just one month to go until NaNoWriMo...

I'm starting to think about ideas. My mind is thinking fiction and it won't stop! Improbable plot lines are flitting through my head like wind through leaves. Characters are waving at me and appearing in my dreams.

I'd like to be more prepared this year. I'd like to have an idea of what I'm going to write about, the audience I'm aiming for and a rough idea of period.

I first took part in NaNoWriMo in 2008. I chose to write a story that had been roaming around my head for a few years. I was surprised how easily the words came to me.

For NaNoWriMo you have to write a 50 000 word novel during the 30 days of November. It's a great discipline and in order to achieve it, you need to write 1,666 words a day. I found 2000 words to be well within my capacity and could achieve 4000 if I needed a day off.

The good folks at NaNoWriMo cheer you on with emails and guest posts from authors. There are forums to chat in and even local moderators who sometimes organise get-togethers or 'write-ins' local to you. It is by no means a solitary writing experience and if you are a young person, then they run a Young Person's programme just for you.

So many people feel they have a novel in them and never get it down on paper. Why not take some time out of this November, turn off the TV and write your novel?

At worst you'll have a first draft. Some people have gone on from NaNoWriMo, entered their November novel and won prizes!

What have you got to lose?

How to Learn More About Sales

After telling you how not to do sales yesterday, it's time to share a link that will help you learn how to sell yourself.

I came across Peter Shallard while reading Men With Pens yesterday, followed the link and found a really great site.

He's a psychiatrist who helps entrepreneurs and some of his stuff looks like it's going to be really useful. Having not long started up myself, selling is one of the hardest bits of my job and I was glad to find some really interesting articles and a free Ebook.

I recommend that you go over and check it out if you are looking for some some useful information on how to keep your business going.

When you are trying to run your own business, then you are automatically going to need to market yourself. This blog might just help you do that.

How Not to Apply for a Job

This blog has been up for three days and I'm already enjoying it. It's good to be separated from my business blog because I can discuss things that perhaps my clients might not want to read!

That's not as bad as it sounds - I promise not to badmouth anyone, but I will be a little more forthright.

Business is a little slow at the moment. One of my clients has gone offline and has given my big project a break, the other has recently offered just a short piece and no more. So what is a girl to do? All dressed up and no work to do!

I've been checking out some job boards and found a couple of jobs to apply for. Both were UK-based, but for the one, I had no experience and the other was WAY below my usual rates. It's a Friday afternoon, I fancied chucking my CV into the mix, but with very little hope of getting the job.

What would you do?

What did I do? I applied!

The first job I had no experience for. I tried to explain why I thought I could do the job as best as I could, but upon reflection, I doubt that I will be considered. My lack of experience disqualified me for the job.

Point number 1 Never apply for a job that you don't have some experience for. It's a waste of your time, the client's time and is unlikely to bear fruit. I really wanted to go for it: it's an area that I'd love to move into and I think I could do a good job or I wouldn't have applied for it. Unfortunately I doubt the client will agree. By the way I probably won't know for another week.

The second job was even worse! Not only did I apply for this job, quoting a rate above the client's stated rate, but I also stated that I would like to see them qualify the comment that they had made about the rates going up as time went on. I suggested that they put in a time frame for the rates to go up if they wanted to hire me.

Even I know that there are plenty of low cost writers out there. By applying for this post I dropped my usual rate just because I was looking for some regular work. Now, I regret it and await with interest to see if I will get a response. I don't think I will or if I do, it probably won't be polite!

So there you go: two ways not to apply for a job. I am going to continue to talk to past clients and email new prospects to try and bring more work in. I am also working on an Ebook to release on my business site some time soon.

What would you do? What have you done? Is work plentiful right now, or like me did you leave a gap in your marketing causing a fall-off in work?

Leave your (helpful) advice in the comments below.

Photo Credit: Found on Flickr and taken by _StaR DusT_

How to Tell if Your Writing is Good

Note: This post first appeared on my business blog: The Creative Writer There will be some crossover while I establish my personal blog.

You've written a story. It may have flowed easily from your pen, or it may have come in fits and starts. You have got it in front of you: on a laptop, a notebook or a piece of paper. Now what?

Leave it for 24 hours. Or 48, or for a reasonable amount of time. You want to lose the immediacy of having written the story and to have forgotten some of the details. Then read it through again, trying to read it as a reader rather than the author of the piece. You will pick up on annoying phrases, repeated words, spelling mistakes. Ignore them for the moment and read through the story as a whole. Jot down impressions, ideas. Did it all work or was the thinking behind it a little woolly?

Go through the story again and pick out the weak points. Mark them out. Check out discrepancies, spellings, grammar. On a computer this can be easy as most desk top publishing packages will help you pick out any glaring errors. Make sure that you are working in the correct language so that the spellings are correct as English and American spellings can vary.

Your story is as good as you can make it? Now what?

Some people are happy to leave it there and just keep their stories in a file on the computer or in a drawer. Others want to know: is it any good?

The easiest way to know is to ask someone else to read it through. Did I say 'easy'? Actually that is one of the hardest things to do! We all own our writing and can be very sensitive about it. Choose someone you trust and who knows you well. You may find that they have something that they would like you to read as well. The main thing when critiquing someone else's work is to be kind and gentle, but fair. It is a difficult thing to learn.

Another way to find out if your writing is any good is to join a local writing class or group. Many local colleges offer creative writing courses these days and it can be a good way to get to know people with similar interests and a way to have your stories read. It can be a real confidence booster when you come up with a story that everyone enjoys.

There are also online groups which allow you to post stories to be critiqued and to give you the opportunity to critique someone else's story. Be warned, however that the anonymity offered by some of these sites can be seen as an opportunity to be blunt.

It is good to take risks. Sometimes the result is a pleasant surprise. If you want to get serious with your writing, then seeking others' advice is a good way to take. It can be difficult to get your confidence at first, but can also become addictive.

Try showing someone else your writing today and add in the comments if you were brave enough to do so.

What Do You Write About?

Note: This post first appeared on my business blog: The Creative Writer There will be some crossover while I make the transition between business and personal blog.

There are many different kinds of writing. The first division is between fiction and non-fiction. When people think of writers, the automatic job description is of a fiction writer, a story teller, an author. The other ways of writing for a living can also bring you satisfaction.

Where do you use writing in your everyday life? Do you tell stories to your children or grandchildren? Do you write articles for small, local magazines? Do you write letters to your local newspaper or reviews on Amazon? Every piece of writing helps to build your confidence and if it is accepted by others, then that confidence is worth it.

Writing Stories

This is the obvious one, I know! But have you thought about short stories? Women's magazines accept short stories, there are plenty of short story competitions on the Web or for collections of short stories. There are lots of opportunities to create short stories for and if you search, there are websites that will give you story starters and a reason to write.

Writing Poems

Who hasn't written an angst-filled teen poem when they were younger? Yeah, ok, yes I did! And it wasn't much good! Some people can really express themselves through poems, though and find that they can end up with lots of scribbled poems in battered notebooks. Just as there are short story competitions out there, there are also poetry competitions. There are poet websites, and small poetry publications if you look. So Google, Yahoo or Bing or whatever Poetry today and see what you can find.

News Stories

These days everyone's a journalist! Well, maybe not everyone. I'm sure that professional journalists deserve their money, but again, some websites are actively seeking news stories written by ordinary people. Including photos can help your story to be used.

Letters

The power of the written word can inform newspaper editors, be offered in council meetings and complain of unfair practices. Go, write and make a difference!

Reviews

When you have really liked something, or really disliked something, then you might review it. The review is there to inform other potential customers and can be a really useful tool.

Writing Articles

You might contribute to a small newsletter or local publication. This is good experience for paving the way to being a more established writer.

Take a moment to think through what you write and the reasons you write. From your writing experiences, what do you think you could do as part of your writing career? What would you not wish to do? Note down your strengths and weaknesses and search the Web for your chosen forms of writing. See what others are doing and take inspiration from them.

Assessing Your Writing Goals

Note: This post was first written on my business blog, The Creative Writer There will be some crossover while I make that blog exclusively business.

You've written down some goals in a notebook, but then what did you do? Close the book and go do the washing up? Have you taken any steps towards realising those goals? Or have they lain forgotten in the hustle and bustle of daily life?

It is not enough to write your writing goals down. It's a good start. You've given the matter some thought. Now you need to think it through a bit more.

Go back to where you've written your goals. Rewrite out the first goal again. Now, underneath it write out two or three actions that you need to take in order to make that goal happen.

For example, you might have a goal to have a piece of your own writing printed in a magazine. In order to achieve this, you might:

Write in to an Editor on a Letters' Page for a local or national magazine

Decide to write two queries a week to magazines that you read and are interested in

Decide to buy a book on querying magazines and read it through, acting on two pieces of advice.

You will notice that my ideas for acting on your goal are quite specific. Breaking it down into small steps will help you have an incentive to act towards achieving your goal.

The initial goal was vague, just a possibility. The ideas for achieving that goal make it more likely that you will achieve your goal and gives you not just one, but three different ways of making your goal happen.

Give yourself a time frame where you will come back to your goal and assess where you need to take it next. Queries to magazines take time to compose and many are rejected. In order to increase your chances of being accepted, then you will need to keep sending them out.

Now, go. Write!