It's not easy trying to write two things at once. Obviously.

I write five days out of seven. Some weeks maybe more. Original prose no less; raw materials plucked from different vocabulary sets and arranged into a new word order.

But here’s my dark secret: I write for other people. What am I talking about? It’s not a poetry collection or a longed-for first novel that keeps me out of trouble most of the time: I’m a copywriter. Better out than in, folks.

I’ve been copywriting at a wonderful design agency for five years now and am in a position I’ve dreamed of since I was a wee thing, when I’d make my own miniature books like the Brontes did: writing for my living.

I have an open-plan desk of my own and more than £500 a year, a portfolio I’m proud of and but still one question haunts me: can I be a copywriter and my own woman? Can I write on demand and to deadlines all week then switch pens (well ok, PC to Mac) and craft a magnus opus in my spare time?

Of course, what we’re talking about here is the age-old creative’s dilemma: art won’t pay the bills, but it’ll keep your soul nourished and your practice keen.

Trust me, I’m a writer

And there are lots of us writers who make their living doing the thing they love; and yet as a result, don’t make their living in the way they’d really love.

Make no mistake, there are as many sorts of wordsmiths as there are doctors: witty folk are columnists, pedants are copy-editors, sparky types ad copywriters and nerds manual-writers …hang on a minute, maybe that last category expired in the seventies.

What I’m trying to say is that the writing skillset is like France: much bigger than you thought when you get there, and that if you’ve got talent, then hell, make like Simon Cowell and put it to work.

But let’s pause and think about the writer’s gentle soul awhile. Some of the copywriters I know have literary or non-fiction ambitions; others quite simply, don’t.

Some are lazy when it comes to that magnus opus, some think they’ll eventually get round to it, and others know their own creative practice is good for them, like greens are, but don’t want to participate.

A handful – and here’s the type that impresses me most – do both. They write copy in the day, and create worlds of their own by night.

The editor of this very blog falls into the latter category, dear reader, and he has my utmost respect for it (he’ll try and edit this sentence out, but I’ll exercise my creative temperament if he does).

Poetry please

Here comes the second confession: like a schoolgirl, I need pressure and deadlines to motivate me. I need the teacher to say ‘Hand your essay in tomorrow and no dog excuses’ to put pen to paper.

Does that make me a bad writer? I don’t think so, but it probably explains why I chose poetry over other creative writing forms when I first began to write.

I don’t know about you, but I like quick fixes, I like an immediate sense of completion, I like to see the end in sight. We’ve all done the clean the house/clear your desk trick to get an instant reward whenever something bigger and harder is looming.

Of course the poets among you will rightly cry: ‘poetry’s no walk in the park’ and you’d be right, but then my ill-assorted olla podrida of poems from the past 15 years ain’t going to win the TS Eliot in a hurry.

Peaking early

I did have a glimpse of What-Could-Be aged 19, when I came runner-up in a national poetry competition, got to meet Mr Roger McGough and record my poem for Radio 4.

Years later, when I with anxious heart sent a bundle of precious poems to my old tutor and esteemed poet himself David Constantine, and got told to work harder, I kind of put down my pen there and then.

Lucky for me, a group of us writers from work (including your goodly editor) set up a spoken word night in Sheffield, Words Aloud, which ran successfully for two years, a broad church that saw a crazy radio spectrum of writers bare their battered souls in a darkened room to like-minded ears.

Suddenly I had regular reason to write again, and I wasn’t the only one. But soon life got in the way, and I resorted to reading other people’s work and not my own. The ‘bad writer’ cloud reappeared again.

Spring clean

It lifted just in time for spring last year when I decided to enter the Harper’s Bazaar short story competition and produced a short story I was happy with.

That time of year’s come around again, and as sure as the crocuses are coming up, I’m stockpiling my tools and readying myself to knuckle down to it once again.

So where does that leave our copywriter conundrum, readers? The premise that what’s good for the wallet ain’t so good for the soul?

I sure know I need to eat my greens more often to dispel that damned cloud, but what about you? Is writing for someone else effectively ghost-writing or can it shape your practice and make you a better writer?

Or do you need to lock yourself in that garret and eat beans from a tin to hit the creative jackpot?

Order, order! Your comments please.

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Related posts:

1. Why you should always stay proud of your writing
2. Writing goals 1: Don’t expect the unexpected

Before I crack on, it’s worth pointing out that this post is a slightly adjusted transcript of a short audio clip I previously posted on AudioBoo, which you can listen to via the embedded player above.

The plan for the upcoming and very exciting update to Write for Your Life is to include more audio and video material. But I’m aware of the problems that might lead to for people who are partially sighted or hard of hearing.

I used this clip to see how long it would take me to transcribe and adapt the recording (30 minutes, since you’re asking). And then I thought I might as well post it. So here you go…

Back to the beginning

Should writers help other writers? I’ve sometimes heard (or rather seen) the question asked amongst the online writing community, and I’ve heard it said by people in ‘real’ life too.

Personally, I’m not really sure what harm can come from helping other writers. In fact, I’m not really sure what harm  can come from helping other people in general.

And here’s why.

You scratch mine

I believe that what goes around tends to come around. If you’re prepared to do another writer a favour, whether it’s for someone that you know from your local writing group or someone who comments on your blog, and whether they’ve asked you to read their short story for them or have a look at their latest blog article, you should consider doing it.

Because one day, you might have to ask someone for a similar favour yourself.

It might be you that wants your blog article commented upon, or your short story read. Writing is not the solitary pursuit it’s often made out to be. Especially not these days, what with the internet making it so darn easy to have a good cyber-chinwag.

Frankly, us writers would do well to forge as many meaningful relationships with other writers as we can. Sometimes that means helping each other out.

Of course, if it’s a huge favour, like ‘Please will you edit my novel for me,’ then that’s something that you might have to consider slightly differently. But for smaller tasks, I don’t see the problem with helping out as much as you can.

Help yourself

It will also help you learn more about your own work. If you just concentrate on your writing and your little writing world, your work can become slightly stale and you may be missing out on potential new ideas by helping or collaborating with other writers.

It’s surprising how often a quick favour for someone else can in turn help you learn and improve as well.

But remember…

My one caveat of course, is that you must make sure you have the required time available to help another writer. Above all, you have to put your own writing first.

If you end up in a situation where you’re behind with deadlines or your sacrificing any element of your own work, then that’s the time that you simply have to say no.

But in general, I say yes, writers should definitely help other writers. Aside from all the benefits, I can’t see how there can possibly be too much wrong with the notion.

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1. Why AudioBoo is a terrific tool for writers

Jean's book, Himglish and Femalese, was published in 2009

Before we start, some quick disclaimers: I used to work in publishing, and I keep up to date on the industry for my blogging purposes (and personal interest), and I do a little critiquing of new writing on an ad-hoc basis (and have introduced a handful of writers to their now-agents). But I’m not, of course, the absolute last word on the topic. OK? OK.

Rule one: write something extraordinary

Yes, I know that you think your book is good, but it has to be REALLY good – by which I mean well-written and original and something that makes people want to turn the page.

When I worked for a literary agency, we read dozens of submissions every week, and the vast majority of them were terrible – not just OK, or mediocre, but really astonishingly awful. Before you start submitting your work, get several objective opinions on it. By ‘objective,’ I mean not from your friends or your mum.

The good news is that thanks to the flourishing communities of writers on the web, it should be easy for you to find someone who is interested in the kind of writing you are doing, who doesn’t know you, but who is someone whose opinion you will respect – and whose criticism you will take on board to make your writing better, rather than a reason to shout, ‘you don’t understand me!’ and sulk. Websites for writers is a great portal for key writing sites.

And yes, you might be inclined to argue that there are lots of books being published that are not extraordinary. That is true. But producing something mediocre is still not going to increase your chances of getting a book published.

Rule two: research the business of publishing

Yes, you should research your book, but you also need to research the business of publishing. Which literary agents are most interested in your kind of writing? What books have been published that are similar to yours, with which your book will compete? Who published them? How were they published? What market are they aimed at?

Some aspiring writers think that they should just submit their work to everyone under the sun, until someone bites, but that’s a waste of your time (and theirs) – you want to identify the people who may be genuinely interested in your project and target them carefully.

Trade websites are a good place to start – if you’re in the UK, The Bookseller and Booktrade.info and BookBrunch are the must-reads. And, of course, book blogs – Nathan Bransford, Bookslut, the Guardian books blog and Book Ninja are my top four go-tos, but there are many more as well, particularly for specific genres.

Check Twitter for directories of publishing professionals, too, and start following them. You’ll learn a lot.

Rule three: network

There’s often a lot of complaint on writing blogs about how people who get books commissioned have ‘connections’ in the world of publishing, but how many other industries would you expect to crack in to without having some contact with the people who are already in?

This doesn’t mean that you have to get a job in publishing (though it undoubtedly helps – I would certainly not have published a book at this stage if I hadn’t worked in publishing) but it does mean that you should look for ways to engage with publishing professionals to learn from them about the industry, about what they are interested in publishing, etc.

Again, thanks to the internet, this doesn’t mean you have to live in London or New York – but you need to get stuck in to the dialogues about publishing that are flourishing online. Yes, this wasn’t necessary ten years ago, but book publishing is not as old-fashioned as it seems: it does move with the times, and writers have to as well.

Email people and ask them for advice. Sure, some will never write back, but many will be happy to give it.

Rule four: get an agent

There’s been a lot of debate recently about the usefulness of agents in a digital world, but I think that’s because most people don’t understand what an agent’s real job is. I didn’t either, when I started in an agency – I imagined I would drink coffee, read manuscripts, wear tweed and occasionally shout things like, ‘I’ve discovered the next Philip Roth!’

In fact, the bulk of the agent’s work happens after the book has been sold – negotiating the contract, making sure that money flows through to the writer, negotiating sub-rights deals, arguing with editors when they try to make writers do things that they don’t want to do, administering a hell of a lot of paperwork.

You’re a writer; you don’t want to spend time handling complex contractual issues when you could be writing. Get. An. Agent.

How to get an agent? You’ve already done your research and your networking, so contact the people who you think will be interested in your book, and contact them according to the instructions that they set out on their website – if they don’t have those instructions, they’re not a very good agent (or agency) and you don’t want them representing you.

But if you ignore the instructions – sending the whole book when they ask for a synopsis, or sending an email when they ask for a hard copy – they’ll ignore you or reject you outright, not because they are jerks, but because they work very hard and need submissions to fit into whatever system they have for dealing with them.

They don’t have time to take out to deal with someone’s alternative approach not because they are jerks, but because they are working so hard for the authors they’re already representing. That’s good, because you want an agent who works hard for his or her authors.

There’s no need to load up your submission with bells and whistles: your work should speak for itself, and if you feel the need to write things in your submissions letters like, ‘my book starts off slow, but becomes interesting on page 74’ you’re not ready to submit; if you feel the need to attach sexy photos of yourself to the submission (more common than you’d think), you’re not ready to submit.

An agent won’t take on a project that he or she can’t sell to a publisher, so it’s your job, in submitting, to help the agent see how your book is sellable.

Rule five: be patient and manage your expectations

Publishing is a slow, slow business. Decisions aren’t made quickly; everyone experiences a lot of rejection; sometimes people write fantastic books that aren’t right for the market at the time (because, yes, the market does matter, annoying as it is) and their books prove to be unsellable.

Even if you do get a book deal, it is unlikely to be for the kind of money that will mean you can retire to the French Riviera with your typewriter – these days, most advances are very small indeed (mine included, which is why I have a secret, unglamorous copywriting job).

There are few things more satisfying than holding a book in your hands that you wrote yourself, but it is unlikely to set you up for life.

This article first appeared on Jean’s personal blog and was written in response to Rachel Hill’s question to several published authors on how to get a book deal.

Hire Jean!

As she says in her opening paragraph, Jean often provides critiques on pre-submission work for aspiring authors. If you’d like her to take a look at your writing, why not send her an email and get in touch.

Share your thoughts

If you didn’t find that post by Jean Hannah Edelstein extremely interesting and useful then there must be something wrong with you. But what’s your take on the process of getting a book deal? Is there anything you can add? Maybe you disagree with something? Let us know in the comments section!

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Related posts:

1. An interview with Jean Hannah Edelstein (Part one)
2. This is how you get a literary agent or publisher
3. An interview with Jean Hannah Edelstein (Part two)

AudioBoo is still fairly new, but has huge potential for writers

AudioBoo has been referred to as an audio version of Twitter. I’d say it’s got quite a long way to go in that regard, but it’s certainly a handy little tool for publishing actual words and sounds with barely any effort at all.

Much like Twitter, I first used AudioBoo not long after it launched and thought, ‘Nah, can’t see it catching on.’ It was only after seeing/listening to someone else use the service well that I changed my mind to, ‘Hmm, that’s got some potential.’

So in this post I’m going to give you a short explanation about what AudioBoo is, get you thinking about how you can use it as a writer and invite you to listen to what I’ve done with it so far.

What is AudioBoo?

AudioBoo’s homepage describes itself as ‘the iPhone audio blogging app’, which is true, but also a little misleading because you don’t need an iPhone to use it. Not any more, anyway.

Not just for iPhone users

The service started out as a way for iPhone users to record short messages through their handset and upload them direct to their AudioBoo page. But it’s no longer quite so exclusive.

Late last year, the AudioBoo team added the ability to record direct through your browser or even upload an existing audio file. So basically, anyone can now use AudioBoo. All you need is some sort of microphone and, well, a computer.

Finding your voice

Much like Twitter, you have your own AudioBoo profile where your ‘boos’ appear in chronological order. The AudioBoo site has an ‘all boos’ stream as well as pages for ‘featured’ and ‘popular’ boos.

When you record and upload your audio file, you can include your location, a feature that fits with the original mobile ethos of AudioBoo. This isn’t essential, but could have it’s uses for writers, like if you were posting from a literary festival or working as a journalist on location.

Say Boo to your friends!

Of course, as is the fashion these days, you can choose to follow other people using AudioBoo and in turn, you can gain followers of your own.

AudioBoo also makes it easy to integrate the other personas that form your online life. You can adjust the settings so that when you post a boo, it automatically posts messages on Twitter and Facebook to let people know.

Same goes for Tumblr, which could be useful if you followed my previous advice to use the ever-growing microblogging platform as an online scrapbook.

Boo on your blog

Finally, you can also post your latest boos on your blog and style them how you want. I think this is quite a handy feature and something I’m looking to incorporate into the upcoming redesign of Write for Your Life.

In a nutshell

I’ve given you a lot of bits and pieces to think about there. Essentially, AudioBoo is a mobile and web service that allows you to record short audio clips and publish them direct to your own dedicated AudioBoo page.

It’s a fledgling service that’s a little rough around the edges, but the creators promise some exciting updates. Even in it’s current state, I can think of plenty of ways that we writers can use AudioBoo to progress and accompany our work.

How can writers use AudioBoo?

Now, I’ve had a quick search of and general peekaboo at the AudioBoo community and to tell you the truth, I can’t see many writers using it. But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be doing one or more of the following.

Publish your work

It seems obvious I suppose, but AudioBoo offers a simple, inexpensive way for you to get your writing out there, whether it’s poetry, short scripts or non-fiction. All you need to do is record and upload. AudioBoo does the rest.

Supplement your existing blog or website

This is how I think I’m going to use AudioBoo in the long run. I only post here a few times a month, but that doesn’t mean I don’t have marvellous writerly thoughts on a regular basis (honest!). AudioBoo gives me a way of producing quick, easy to digest advice with little fuss.

Create audio notes for any writing project

I prefer a notepad and pen, but I know a lot of writers who carry a dictaphone and like to voice their thoughts and ideas for later use. AudioBoo is as convenient and searchable place as any to store those sparks of inspiration.

Express your personality

The written word is a wonderful thing and it’s certainly possible to convey your personality accurately through your writing, but it isn’t easy. With AudioBoo, you can offer your readers a glimpse of the real you. Or whatever bits of you you’re happy to reveal. So to speak.

Podcast on the cheap

Plenty of bloggers also podcast and a lot of authors are starting to serialise their work in podcast form. However, it can be an expensive business to get that professional sound and really, it’s the content that matters most, isn’t it? AudioBoo is great because it let’s you connect with your readers/listeners almost instantly.

Listen to me, listen to me!

I recorded my first few boos just before Christmas and found them quite good fun to do. You can listen to them via the audio players in the sidebar here or you can go over to my AudioBoo page and have a scout round there.

My boo titled ‘Should writers help other writers? Why the heck not?!’ even got featured on the AudioBoo featured list, which I think means it was officially brillopads. Well, I was excited anyway, especially considering I recorded it in the kitchen while I was waiting for the kettle to boil.

Here it is:

I’m going to use AudioBoo more often in the coming months and publish regular titbits, including stuff you might find useful and maybe some updates about my own writing. I think you should give it a try too. Just make sure you come back and let us know how you get on.

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Of course, you’re more than welcome to follow me on Twitter, if that’s your kind of thing. And if you like what you’ve seen so far on Write for Your Life, why not subscribe for free updates?

Related posts:

1. Should writers help other writers? Why the heck not?!
2. What do you keep in your writer’s tool belt?

Well doesn’t time fly, eh?

This time last year I finally got round to launching Write for Your Life. It was something I’d talked about for ages, but always put off because I was worried about how much time I could devote to it.

And actually, that’s proved to be a fairly legitimate concern, as the second half of 2009 has seen me need to concentrate on editing my novel after acquiring a literary agent for it in the summer.

However, that hasn’t stopped people, you very kind people, visiting Write for Your Life, reading posts and being altogether wonderful and supportive.

At the time of writing, this blog has over 600 subscribers and a regular flow of traffic. And while I know that we’re hardly breaking any records, those figures are far beyond what I expected 365 days ago.

So thank you. Thank you for taking an interest in this blog and leaving your comments. Thank you for all the tweets and retweets. I genuinely appreciate all the support.

Got any highlights?

Well thank you for asking, yes I do actually. I’ve picked out three posts that I think have helped set Write for Your Life apart a little and that sum up what the blog is about.

1. Writers, abandon your muses – they’re a work of fiction!
This was my first journey into the blogosphere and remains one of the blog’s most commented on and most visited posts. It wasn’t written to court controversy, but it seemed people were a little more attached to their muses than perhaps I bargained for!

2. How CCTV can help improve your productivity
This post seemed a bit silly when I first came up with the idea. But actually, it turned out to be a real (if slightly off the wall) productivity trick. And it was, I think, a realtively unique writing tip.

3. Ignore anyone who tells you to write, write, write!
Tired of reading all the posts and tweets that told me I couldn’t call myself a writer unless I spent every ounce of energy writing, I put together a few thoughts on the subject. The following day this post appeared on the front page of Delicious and I was left rather agog.

Of course, I must also thank those people who kindly provided guest posts when I was even more up against it with my novel than I am now! Especially as Sophie Johnson’s post on story structure continues to pick up ‘best of’ mentions!

So what now?

Well there’s actually a lot going on behind the scenes at Write for Your Life towers. The blog is being redesigned and looks absolutely gorgeous. I’m also about to start writing the much-promised e-book explaining my post-it note system for planning and editing my novel.

There’s other stuff too, but I’ll reveal more in the new year. For now, feel free to raise a glass and help me celebrate a year in the blogosphere. Here’s to an exciting, writerly 2010!

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Related posts:

1. Write for Your Life nominated for best writing blog in ‘Creativity’ category
2. Welcome to Write for Your Life
3. Ignore anyone who tells you to write, write, write!

The magnifying glass - international symbol for 'looking properly'

Fact checking allows you to separate fact from fiction.

If you do not want to be fooled by inaccuracies that you read or hear then you need to know what to do and where to go to find the truth.

Otherwise, you will be forced to wonder if what you hear is true but may never know for sure. Here are 7 tips to be a better fact checker.

1. FactCheck.org

To find the facts, you need to know where to look. FactCheck.org helps you to clarify the truth when it comes to political issues. This is often an area filled with questionable claims and bold declarations so you need a way to separate the wheat from the chaff. This site is one way to do that.

2. Politifact.com

Politifact.com is another website for confirming or disproving claims made in political forums such as debates, speeches, interviews, or even press releases. Politics is an arena known for its widespread deceit and half-truths so the ability to discover the truth in all the posturing is essential. This website is a valuable tool to this end.

3. Snopes.com

Snopes.com contains a collection of information on popular myths. These myths may be inaccurate news stories, urban legends, or even celebrity gossip claims. This website is a great source to discover the truth on a variety of subjects. Whether you want to check on something that was recently stated or that has been a widely held belief for years, there is a good chance that this website will be able to clear up any misinformation surrounding the issue.

4.  ScamBusters.org/ScamCheck.html

ScamBusters.org is the place to go when you want to know if something is a scam. From credit card scams to computer viruses this website educates you on the nature of these scams, how to avoid them, and what to do if you fall victim to a scam.

5. UrbanLegends.About.com

This website seeks to clear up the untruths that accompany or that make up urban legends. UrbanLegends.About.com helps you to understand the difference between a hoax and a rumor and to spot each one. Covering a wide range of topics, this website will make you a better fact checker in that you gain access to topics that may be difficult to locate anywhere else.

6. Be a better fact checker using any search engine

You also have the option of beginning with the search engine of your choice. You merely type in the keywords for the topic that you wish to know the veracity of and also type in words to check its truthfulness. You may try using myth, hoax, scam, fact check, or fraud as words alongside your main topic to see if your main topic is true. While this is not always the best way to search, for widely known falsities a simple search such as this can quickly uncover many hoaxes.

7. Take your time

In the end, the best fact checking tip is to take your time. There is no substitute for thorough research methodologies. This is the most important of the 7 tips to become a better fact checker. Even as you use all these tips for great fact checking resources, you need to remember that you must do whatever it takes to find the truth.

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Big thanks to Mary for submitting this post. If you like what you’ve read so far on Write for Your Life, why not subscribe for free email updates and get new posts delivered straight to your inbox?

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Left: The first of many devices used to write my novel. Right: Reading at Hay in 2004.

You know when you spend a couple of weeks thinking about and planning an awesome blog post? And then just as you sit down to write it you find someone else has done an equally awesome job elsewhere?

Yeah. Well that’s happened.

But it’s okay. It’s not a competition. So I heartily recommend you head over to BubbleCow right now and sign up for their free five-day guide on writing a book proposal.

The information you’ll receive is absolutely spot on. It’s not too detailed, but it covers enough to make sure you have what you need to get started, including:

• researching similar books in your genre
• writing and pitching a query letter
• developing an appropriate synopsis.

So once you’re done here, pop your coat on, head over to BubbleCow and sign up. It’s good quality, free advice.

More than that, it’s how you get a literary agent or publisher.

Is that it?

Well no, not quite. The information provided in BubbleCow’s guide comes recommended because it gives you the conventional approach to writing a book proposal and acquiring an agent or publisher.

The route described and the advice offered is exactly what you should be doing. And, more or less, it’s the route I took to getting an agent for my novel earlier this year.

But before then I’d been on a more unconventional journey. As there’s no point in me repeating BubbleCow’s excellent guide, I thought I’d share a little of that journey with you here.

Finding my voice (for free!)

In late 2004 I’d been a copywriter for a year, working at Sheffield Hallam University, the same university where I’d completed the taught component of my MA Writing course.

At the time, I was also 24 and struggling to put together my final thesis, a collection of short stories.

The truth is, I only started writing my novel instead because I found out that, as a university employee, I could take any postgraduate course module for free. Well, so long as the module would help me do my job more efficiently.

Copywriter. Writing a novel. The university bought it.

Person I’m indebted to #1 of many

My novel tutor was Simon Crump. He was on a temporary contract and only ever taught that one group of students. Me and 10 others. We were a large group – my short story group had been half the number – and a real mixed bag.

But with a tutor who believed in my writing, and in this new, longer format, with a year’s professional copywriting experience behind me, my fiction was transformed. My voice appeared out of nowhere.

I loved novel writing. And still do.

Secret agent man

Four months later, including 12 seminars and a stiff deadline, I had the first 10,000 words of a novel and some fantastic feedback.

When a visiting editor from that-there-London came to give us a master class, I was asked to supply the first three pages of my novel for her to ‘crit’ in the session.

Naturally, I was very excited, but sadly, her ‘crit’ consisted of a ‘yeah, this was good, I wouldn’t change much’, and that was it.

Pah! I thought. Sign me up. I’m brilliant!

Then, a couple of months later, I received a letter, completely out of the blue, from an agent at Curtis Brown. The visiting editor had passed my three pages on to him and he wanted to see some more.

Holy wahoozers!

Much to my excitement

I sent off my first (and only) 10,000 words and waited for the feedback. It came. And it was great.

There was a meeting in that-there-London and all I had to now was write the remaining 50,000 words and hey disco – shades on, I was to be an author!

I was 25 years old, had performed alongside Sean O’Brien at the Guardian Hay Festival the previous year, and now I’d written the first part of a novel and got an agent ready and waiting for the final manuscript.

There were no guarantees, naturally. But still.

It was a thoroughly exciting, all be it unconventional, position to be in.

Three years later

Have I ever told you how difficult it is to be 25, have an agent interested in your novel but only have the first part of it written?

What I’d assumed (in my naivety) would take a couple of months to complete, in reality took roughly three years. Life, and all manner of writerly difficulties, got in the way.
But mainly life. New jobs. Being young. That kind of thing.

Throughout though, the agent from Curtis Brown, who had since moved to AM Heath, kept in touch. And when I’d finished the novel, he still wanted to see it.

An unconventional book proposal

To go back to the start of this post, I recommended BubbleCow’s guide to writing a book proposal because it gives you the conventional route to getting an agent or publisher.

In 2008, my proposal, as professional as I tried to present it, was effectively, ‘Erm, you know that book that I was writing? The one I’ve already told you all about? Well here it is.’
I waited an agonising, and it turns out unusually long, six months to hear back. When it did it was a polite no. A nearly, but still a no.

I was upset for a while. Not because I hadn’t been successful with the agent who’d been interested from the start. But because mentally, I’d been writing with the weight of that interest on my shoulders.

I was obsessed with the notion that this one person just had to love my novel. He’d waited so long. I had to get it right.

This, dear readers, is an unconventional way to write a book and unconventional way to get an agent or publisher. So unconventional, in fact, that it didn’t actually happen.

Back to the future

So here I am at the end of 2009. The same novel has had more blood, sweat and tears invested in it. It’s significantly better than it was 18 months ago. And it has literary representation, with the tremendous Tibor Jones, achieved in a much more conventional manner.

It went like this: A recommendation from the sort of writer that makes writers marvellous people. A book proposal just like the one in BubbleCow’s guide. And an agent with the necessary passion and belief in my work.

Simple as that.

And to conclude…

My point in all this, apart from receiving a little cathartic word-massage, is that yes, unusual things happen in the publishing industry and you may well find yourself with an agent or book deal via unconventional means.

But generally, unusual things don’t happen. There are rules and regulations. You have to be willing to do work hard and do whatever it takes. Be prepared to learn and get better.

You must never, ever look for short cuts. Stumble upon them, fine. But never look for them.

All this is why you should read BubbleCow’s guide to writing a book proposal. And because I couldn’t have said what it says better myself. Even though I was about to try.

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Related posts:

1. The five rules of getting a book deal
2. Why bloggers should perform their writing
3. How to find your perfect writing partner

Back in May, Write for Your Life spoke to Jean Hannah Edelstein, author of Himglish and Femalese: Why Women Don’t Get Why Men Don’t Get Them, published by Preface, about the research process and putting a book proposal together.

Read the first part of the interview here.

This second interview was carried out a couple of weeks ago. While it’s not entirely intentional to post the second part so long after the first, it’s actually quite interesting to find out what’s happened in the intervening months.

Enjoy…

So Himglish and Femalese has been out a few months now – how’s it going?

It’s going well, I think, but of course ‘well’ is quite relative. What I’ve found quite interesting is that everyone asks me how many copies I’ve sold, which is kind of a veiled way of saying, ‘how much money have you made?’

Hilarious. While it’s not on the bestseller list, I’ve gotten very warm feedback from many readers, developed a good blog following and had some good press, including internationally.

So overall, while I have not yet achieved my dream of retiring to a Mauritian beach village, I think this has been a very good experience for a first book.

How have you found the process of ‘marketing’ your work?

The marketing process has been interesting – to a large extent it’s been very personality-driven, and I think that’s interesting – the extent to which authors now have to be personable and approachable and selling themselves as well as the book, so to speak.

It all feels very personal, which I don’t mind because I’m quite extroverted, but I think it must be quite a challenge and a frustration for writers who aren’t.

Have your efforts to publicise the book generally been web-based?

My personal efforts have been very much web-based, particularly with my blog and Twitter, but also in terms of answering interviews via email (ha ha!) and direct emailing.

And of course my brilliant book trailers – we’re going to make another one for the paperback release and I am very excited to work with the actors and director again.

And traditional marketing?

Traditional marketing has also been important, particularly coverage in print and broadcast media.

The great thing about the internet, of course, is that people who read about the book in, say, the Sunday Times or heard me on the radio could promptly Google the title and order it on Amazon.

I imagine that in days of yore before this was possible, good intentions to buy a book might have fallen astray in the time between someone hearing about it through traditional media and then actually getting to a bookshop.

Basically, traditional media is still very important but it may well have met its match in the digital world.

Tell us more about what you’ve done to market your book online.

I think the thing that I have found most interesting has been establishing a web presence.

My book absolutely is targeted towards people who are heavy web users (e.g. women between the ages of 18 and 35, approximately) so it was very important to put myself out there.

It’s been trial and error as well, of course. One thing that I’ve found interesting is that my personal blog remains more popular than my Himglish and Femalese blog.

I think that this may be because it is a bit more natural and off-the-cuff and to whatever extent my readers are interested in finding out about me as a person, they get it there.

So though I temporarily shut that blog down when I launched the Himglish and Femalese one I think that was actually a mistake (which happily I quickly rectified).

What’s next for Himglish and Femalese?

Well, first of all I think it’s important to note what an excellent gift it makes for Christmas. And then the mass-market paperback edition will come out in early February, just in time for Valentine’s Day – which is handy, of course, because there’s no time like Valentine’s Day to highlight confusion between the sexes.

Hopefully we will be mounting a suitably romantic event to tie in with the launch of that edition – keep your eye on www.himglishandfemalese.com for details.

Share your thoughts

Have you had to go through the process of marketing your book? Is there something we should all be doing to prepare for such and event? Or do you think it’s all a load of tripe and the quality of your work will shine through? Let us know in the comments section below!

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Related posts:

1. An interview with Jean Hannah Edelstein (Part one)
2. The five rules of getting a book deal

There are lots of alternatives when it comes to writing software. From simple but well-thought out text editing programs like WriteRoom to comprehensive all-in-one affairs like the highly-rated Scrivener.

However, I suspect the majority of writers still use Microsoft Word. And though it’s not always popular opinion, I believe that there’s nothing wrong with that.

Because the fact is, Microsoft Word is an excellent word processor, especially when you use it correctly. Yes, it’s packed with tools and bits and bobs that are generally pointless for the many users who just want to, you know, write.

But there are also some features that, once you get to grips with them, can genuinely change the way you work.

Document Map is one of those features.

It saves you time and helps you format your writing quickly and easily. Even better, it lets you move around your document with barely any effort at all.

What is Document Map?

Document Map is effectively an interactive contents page. You can use it to jump between the various sections of your Word document without having to endlessly scroll or make a separate note of page numbers.

I say contents page because that’s how it appears in a pane to the left of your document, and because it’s a sensible analogy. But it’s not really a contents page, because it doesn’t form an actual part of the document.

In truth, Document Map is for your eyes only. It’s a functional route around your writing.

Here’s how it’s described on the Microsoft Office site:

The Document Map is a separate pane that displays a list of headings in the document. Use the Document Map to quickly navigate through the document and keep track of your location in it.

So don’t think that by using Document Map you’re adding things to your document that you don’t want. You’re simply creating a system for formatting and moving around your writing.

How does Document Map work?

Document Map only works when you assign styles to your headings and sub-headings. It recognises those styles and transforms them into the contents page-type list mentioned above.

Again, here’s some extra info, this time from the very unsexily titled MS Office Tutorial Training:

When you use [Document Map], Word will create a list based on its heading styles (Heading 1, Heading 2, and so on). The headings must be formatted using one of the built-in heading styles.

Now I know that sounds a little complicated, but I promise it’s not. Once you get into the habit of assigning styles to headings you’ll never look back.

In the video at the top of this post I show you how to assign styles to your headings and how they then appear in Document Map. I also show you how I’ve implemented this method with my novel using just one style (Header 1).

My novel is effectively a 220ish-page document that allows me to get to any specific part of it in a split second. Watch the video. It will all make sense.

I’m a writer, please put this in context

Okay, I will. If like me you’re working on a novel you may well have written your various chapters in separate Word documents.

It makes sense to do that because it’s easier to print sections out or send them to someone for feedback. Plus you’re likely to change things regularly and to do that in one document is a bit of a pain.

However, there will come a time when you need to see the thing as a whole. And then you’ll want to make small edits. If you go back to the individual documents and re-paste your amends into your single document. Well, you can see, it’s complicated.

Seriously, once you’ve got to the stage when you’re working from a single document, Document Map becomes your best friend. It’s an incredible time saver.

And not just for novelists either. I know people who keep all their blog posts/articles in one long document. Frankly, it doesn’t matter what you’re working on, Document Map is basically completely brillo pads for any writer that works with several pages of text and any number of headings.

Where are Document Map and styles on a PC version of Microsoft Word?

In the video above I’m using my Mac version of Word, where Document Map and styles are in a different place to the PC version.

In Word 2003 I believe you’ll find styles in the default toolbar and Document Map by going through the menu thus: View > Document Map.

In Word 2007 it’s very similar.  Styles are right there in front of you in the default toolbar, which you can expand to look like the Mac version in my video. Document Map is switched on by selecting a tick box in the ‘View’ tab.

Here’s a screenshot of that:

For more information

In writing this post I’ve discovered loads of tutorials on the web about how to use Document Map. I hope that here I’ve shown you how it can be used by us scribes to make our lives simpler and to make our writing easier to manage.

I seriously recommend giving it a go. You can retrospectively organise your old documents too – it’s not just for new projects. If you find yourself going back to old work to find something or other, Document Map could shave minutes of your search.

Anyway, here’s some useful links with more information:

• Official stuff on Document Map from Microsoft
• The Magical Document Map
• Tools for writers on Websites for writers
• How the Document Map works in Microsoft Word
• Organizing your story using Document Map

Share your thoughts

So that’s it. I hope this post was useful to you and I’d be really interested to hear from any other writers who have used Document Map. What was your experience? Can you explain things any clearer than I have here? Do you think this whole thing is a waste of time? Let us know in the comments section.

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There’s all sorts going on here at Write for Your Life towers and I thought it might be nice if I gave you a quick overview about, well, what’s going on.

So watch the video and feel free to leave a comment below. I’m particularly interested in what you think about using short, sharp calls to action to help people navigate the web. I’m all for it, personally. I don’t think it’s necessarily rude or bad manners, but you may disagree. Let me know.

Here are some links to the bits and pieces I mention in the video:

• You should follow me on Twitter | Dustin Curtis
• iainbroome.com (You should subscribe)
• Three things that helped me finish my novel | Iain Broome (.com)
• Put Things Off and Wordprezzie by Nick Cernis

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Whether you enjoyed this post or not, you should subscribe for free and get updates delivered straight to your inbox. You should also follow me on Twitter. You should, you should, you should.

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