The little-known secrets for writing a bestselling book we’ve learned from AMA female authors
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Do you need a platform to spread your message to the world? If so, you’re in luck! We will make it happen, no matter whether you are traditional, indie or self-published, all authors need to promote their books, so welcome to the AMAfeed! There is always room in the marketplace for another good book…and another best selling writer. Your book reveals your voice. Your piece of art is filled with your own blood, sweat, and tears. So take action! Be the host of your own AMAfeed Event, tell your story and let your audience (and potential audience) to ask you anything. Speak so your audience listens (and buy your books)! Hosting an AMA Event is a great idea to keep up with what those people are talking about and taking the time to engage with them. Becoming an author can change your life — not to mention give you the ability to impact thousands, even millions, of people. Be inspired, be above classic copy-paste promotion and get closer to readers on a personal level.
Considering that this month we celebrate women, we have collected the wisest advice from the female authors from across the globe who hosted our AMA Events, from journalism to mass market books to literary endeavors, and beyond. In today’s blog, we will deal with practical tips for writing best-selling books including craft talks, information on publishing and editing, practical advice from experienced women writers on how to balance writing, work, and home life, and readings from creative works. Well, let’s start!
“Oh, really — what do you write?”
People often use the words author and writer as if they are the same thing but these two are both quite different. Many writers write for the wrong reasons — for accolades or awards — and they end up sorely disappointed when their art doesn’t “succeed.” Real writers don’t write for recognition or fame or notoriety. They write because they simply cannot not write. By their gifts and a higher calling, they are compelled to create. Gone are the days when new writers had to actually learn and hone the craft before having even a glimmer of hope of being published. And those days are never coming back. Being an author it is not easy, it can take years of writing — hard writing — to even find your real voice. Being an author isn’t all about glory. Dreaming of the glory is one thing, but what are you willing to struggle through to get it? What are you willing to fail at? Are you willing to sit in front of a computer from 5 am until 6 pm and maybe, just maybe, you’ll have a paragraph, nay, just a sentence that is salvageable? Those are most important questions you will ever ask yourself about your dream. If you’re not willing to struggle and endure the pain of failure, then do something else.
What’s the worst advice you hear authors give writers?
One of Indonesia’s most commercially-successful authors, in the early stage of her career, once said in a workshop (I was one of the participants) that a writer is a writer when he or she writes.
It was a catchy one-liner, I have to say, but as I put more thought into it, I believe a big part of writing happens when one is not writing. A lot is happening when you’re on the streets, looking at the people, buildings, and vehicles around you; or, when you’re in your study, can’t stop thinking about the children in dirty clothes selling flowers at the traffic lights; or, when you read the news; or, when you watch a Ghibli film with your child.
Such an advice could potentially be counter-productive, too. Especially when you live in a busy city like Jakarta and have to juggle a few jobs to make ends meet. Writing can be a privileged thing to do.
I’m aware I’m blessed with the privilege so I’d rather support aspiring writers with a safe place to express themselves and the network they need to converse and, hopefully, collaborate with other writers and/or artists so they can grow their art and cultivate their voices.
Gratiagusti Chananya Rompas — Poet, Writer, Editor, Translator
Basic writing skills matter — there’s no denying.
Whether you want to improve your writing skills as a creative writer or simply perfect your skills for schoolwork, you can take some steps to learn how to be a better writer. When we talk about writing skills, we usually think of the basics: the ability to write sentences and paragraphs correctly with proper grammar, spelling, and punctuation. But a lot more than that goes into writing well. What’s the one thing you need to do to master your writing skills? Practice, of course! Unfortunately, there are few shortcuts that can transform you into an amazing writer overnight, and even the most talented writers had to learn their craft over a period of many years.
How can a person who is just starting to write improve his/her writing skills?
Write every day, even if it’s just a sentence. You can set a timer for 10 minutes and just write whatever comes into your head (this is a good way to avoid filtering or letting your Inner Critic get a foothold).
The other powerful way to increase your writing skills at any time, not just if you’re a novice, is to read widely and as much as you can. Read different genres and authors. Read for pleasure and for research — analyze the writing and discern what works and what doesn’t work.
Close your eyes and let your story drift through your mind.
Scenes drive your story forward; without them, there would be no novel. Any story or novel is, in essence, a series of scenes strung together like beads on a wire, with narrative summary adding texture and color between. If this is something you struggle with, try mapping out your characters’ motivations visually. This process begins with the writer properly formatting the page with scene headings that describe whether it takes place interior or exterior, the specific location, and the time of day. As readers, we know this instinctively. But as writers, we can sometimes get so lost in the technical minutiae of the art form that we forget fiction’s visceral impact. To readers, a story is light and color, sensation and emotion. To writers, fiction is often words. Ideas. Themes. Plot. Structure. Scenes.
What is something you feel is important to remember when first sitting down to turn your conceptual world into concrete form?
Before I sit down, I try to always have a specific image or setting in mind that I want to incorporate in the scene I’m about to write. Especially when I’m beginning a new project, it can be extremely challenging to decide where and when to begin the story, and having a certain situation, or even just an image, in mind, acts like an anchor for my imagination.
I find it’s usually best to start with specifics when sitting down to write. Readers tend to respond to situations — characters placed in a set of circumstances where they have to act or make a decision. General information about the world or back-story can be layered in as I go, once the reader is hooked by the events unfolding on the page.
Close your eyes and let your story drift through your mind.
Scenes drive your story forward; without them, there would be no novel. Any story or novel is, in essence, a series of scenes strung together like beads on a wire, with narrative summary adding texture and color between. If this is something you struggle with, try mapping out your characters’ motivations visually. This process begins with the writer properly formatting the page with scene headings that describe whether it takes place interior or exterior, the specific location, and the time of day. As readers, we know this instinctively. But as writers, we can sometimes get so lost in the technical minutiae of the art form that we forget fiction’s visceral impact. To readers, a story is light and color, sensation and emotion. To writers, fiction is often words. Ideas. Themes. Plot. Structure. Scenes.
How do you manage your time when it comes to deadlines?
Basically, everything else in my life is ignored during deadlines. Laundry piles up. Food is ordered. I focus as completely on writing as I can, while still working my day job. This means early mornings and late nights, but I only face deadlines during edits. As far as turning in first drafts, I’ve always worked ahead and never have to stress about that aspect.
If you don’t know why you writing a book, your reader won’t know why they should read it.
Before you begin writing your book, you must know why you are writing it. Purpose is the goal or aim of a piece of writing: to express oneself, to provide information, to persuade, or to create a literary work. A book should have a purpose, a reason to exist. Touch lives with your stories, writing is the most undervalued of all artistic expressions.
What advice do you offer to people who want to write a book but are not clear about the purpose of it?
Brilliant question! I would say that it is imperative to get clear on your “why” before writing a book. This will set the stage for what you say, how you say it, and who ultimately reads it. A clear intention is a key ingredient to writing a book that is worth writing and worth reading. I would suggest starting out answering a few questions such as:
- Why are you writing this book? Why were you called to writing it at this exact time?
- What is your intention for the book? Do you desire to make money from it? (Either answer is totally okay!)
- Once the book is done, what do you want to “do” with it?
- How will you feel once you complete the book and deliver it into the world?
- Who do you want reading this book? Why do they need/want to read it?
- You and your readers will thank you for having a clear purpose for your book!
How did you get started with writing? Can you share your journey?
I always read but never really wanted to write. I was obsessed with ballroom dancing and would always tell people crazy stories about my times on the floor. So I started writing a ballroom book back when chick lit was big. I joined RWA and found a great editor who helped me with my craft. Then my agent, Jill Marsal, signed me and I’ve been writing full time ever since.
So, look at you — you’ve finished your novel!
Many of the wisest and most successful human beings in history have preached the importance of these qualities and many incredible books have been written to accompany that belief. From convenience, the first people that many authors turn to for an opinion are their friends and family. So, if you do want people to give you feedback and critique your work, first you’re going to have to look beyond your friends and family. Second, if you are getting strangers to review your work then you have to prepare yourself for the fact that some of them aren’t going to like your work. In fact, some of them are going to hate it. Getting feedback is not for the faint-hearted, reviewers can be brutally honest, and of course, no one can write something that everyone loves. You have to be thick-skinned.
Yelena Calavera — Dreampunk Author and Pagan Witch Turns Corporate Banker
Do you have any final words of encouragement or wisdom or warning for young writers?
Writing should be something that you enjoy. Like anything, it takes practice, and your skills will improve over time. Don’t get caught up in competitive thinking or self-doubt, and don’t worry if you never make one dime from your writing. I don’t think that added pressure is helpful when you are starting out.
Never allow your passion to be squashed. Sometimes people will give you unsolicited feedback; tell those people to stick it. If you’re at a dinner party at the time, it will be awkward. But, it is worth it. I speak from experience. Find people you trust and whose opinion matters to you, and use their constructive feedback to take your writing to the next level — even when it is hard to hear. Be rebellious, and believe in yourself. Refuse to internalize any form of negativity that is directed towards you or your precious art.
The biggest mistake that writers make is sending out a query letter that’s way too long.
A query is a snapshot of your project that should entice an agent into reading your manuscript. It’s also an opportunity to show the agent who you are and assure him or her that you’ll be professional and pleasant to work with. To agents, a long query appears amateurish and doesn’t reflect the kind of professional and developed writing skills they’re looking for in a client. Plus, agents receive hundreds, if not thousands of queries every week. They simply don’t have time to read a long letter.
Laura Heffernan — Romantic Comedy author
What are the common mistakes committed by writers that cause them to fail?
One of the most common mistakes — and easiest to avoid — is not following directions. Most agents have a website that lists:
- Whether they’re accepting unsolicited queries
- What type of books they represent
- How to query them/what materials to send
Sending a query to the wrong email address will get deleted. Sending a query when the agent is closed will get it deleted. A query for the genre the agent doesn’t represent will get deleted. Sending the entire manuscript instead of the requested number of pages will usually get deleted.
Along with that, it’s important to send a basic query letter. The letter should primarily talk about the book’s plot, not the author. It shouldn’t insult other books in the genre with statements like “This book is way better than the other YA out there.” There are a lot of sites that talk about how to write a query, and with a bit of research, it’s easy enough for writers to draft a letter that will get their book noticed by agents in the right way.
Many writers get little support from their friends and family members.
At some point, everyone feels like they aren’t getting enough support. Whether it’s support from their friends, from their family, or from someone whose opinion really, really counts. The urge to scream, “You don’t understand what I’m doing/feeling/going through!” can be absolutely overwhelming. One of the most difficult things to admit is that we all sometimes give good advice but understanding how, when, and who to approach for help is important to getting the support you need to achieve your goals!
Lauren Smith — Traditional and Self-Published Romance Author, Amazon and BN Best Seller
How do your friends and family feel about your writings or venture in general?
Everyone is really supportive. I know many romance writers find they aren’t supported by friends and family. I’m very lucky. But I also think that if a writer is outspoken about what they write, and show no shame for writing “bodice rippers” etc, and they demonstrate to people it’s a business and not a hobby, that people are more inclined to support you and take it seriously rather than make fun of you or judge you. It goes back to that age-old “smell of fear” situation. If you act ashamed or downplay it as a hobby, then people will follow your lead and view it negatively. So even if you are just starting out to write, and aren’t published yet, still treat it respectfully, be brave and proud of what you’re doing and people will respond positively.
Written by our genius blogger Tina based on advice from our great Hosts in www.AuthorsAMA.com and originally published on www.AMAfeed.com
