Fiverr for writers

Have you tried Fiverr yet? It’s a fantastic sight where you can buy or sell gigs for just $5 (approx. £3.10). 

As a writer you may want to outsource some of the jobs you need or want to get done; for instance these might include cover design, proofreading, creating a promotional video, maintaining a website, and illustration to name but a few. As a writer you may also be looking for additional sources of income from activities such as writing web content, copywriting, and even song writing.  

Now you may think that you are not going to get much for $5 however think again. Some people offer services in order to get their business started after all $5 is better than $0; it also gives them the opportunity to build up excellent reviews, which then only get if the work is of a high standard, and develop a client base.

Let’s say you are looking for a cover design for your next book, or indeed perhaps want to change the cover of an existing book. Why not select 3 people to design you a cover - $15 – and select the best. Much cheaper than using a professional service and it leaves you more time to do what you love – writing.

What about proofreading? You can have 5000 words proofread and/or edited for $5, and this is by someone who has received excellent ratings.

Looking to increase traffic to your website? For $5 someone will write a blog post with a link back to your site.

Thinking of a promotional video on You Tube? Yes you can have that too for just $5. Perhaps you’d like a short audio extract from your book. You could even be creative a have a song or rap recorded to use on your website.

Of course you can also offer your services on Fiverr; this can be an excellent way to get your writing business started or to generate some extra income.

Take a look on http://fiverr.com/and see what’s on offer.

Happy writing.

Developing effective writing habits

Habits are those acquired behaviours that we repeat regularly, subconsciously and often in response to a cue or stimulus.

If you want to become a productive and successful writer who completes their writing projects, meets deadlines and produces quality work then you need to acquire habits that support these aims.

Acquiring a new habit generally takes between three weeks and two months before it becomes automatic and subconscious. It may require conscience effort at the beginning as your mind will what to do what it usually does when faced with the cue or stimulus for example if when your alarm goes off you usually make coffee, shower and get dressed and now you plan to write between coffee and shower you will have a desire to shower first – don’t give in.

Acquiring new habits is a choice so first you need to make a decision to develop a new habit; to be a productive writer the only habit you need to acquire is to write regularly. This habit has three main aspects:  

1. Write every day
2.  Be prepared to write  
3. Actually get some words down during your writing times.

You can create a list of habits you want to acquire over a period of time, it is however important to only develop a maximum of three new habits at a time, only start to work on the fourth and fifth habits when the earlier habits have truly become automatic.

In order to successfully develop effective habits you will decide on one major habit and then select supporting habits e.g. writing in the morning might be your major habit and, to support this, every evening you will clear the dining table (your workspace), put your laptop on charge, make a brief note about what you are going to write (car chase scene, paragraph about hamsters for your suitable pets for children article) and note what your ten minute warm up writing exercise will be (describe the yesterday’s weather).

You’ve decided on your new writing habit, you know what you need to do to support this habit, you now need to decide on the cue or stimulus that will prompt you take action. The first cue will be for the evening preparation, the second will be for the morning writing session. The morning session is probably the easiest as you are likely to use existing cues, e.g. alarm (although you will need to set it earlier), coffee and then writing; you just need a reminder which could be a note by the bed or set an event with an alarm on your phone. You could also use an event with alarm to prompt and remind you to do the evening preparation – ensure you have a list of what you need to do as you don’t want any barriers to getting your writing done in the morning.

Finally you need to do it. As soon as you hear your prompt or cue you must take action; if you don’t you will not develop new habits. Never think that you don’t need to do the evening preparation as this will stall you in the morning. Never think that you will have just five more minutes in bed doing nothing; if you do then staying in bed after the alarm will become the new habit.

What are you waiting for? If you want to increase your output, meet those deadlines and, ultimately, increase your income, then start developing new habits today.

Happy writing.

Why not write a novella?

If you find yourself with an idea that is too complex for a short story and yet not long enough for a novel then maybe what you have is a novella. Some years back novellas were particularly popular however, somewhere along the line, it seemed that someone dictated that printed novels should be at least 100,000 words.

Well things have changed. There are publishers who publish novellas, for example The People’s Friend novellas which are around 45,000 words and, of course, you have the option of self-publishing.

If you are intending to write for an established printed collection then it is important to study the publisher guidelines and research the type of stories they publish. If you intend to self-publish then you have more options; it is still useful to research your market if you want to maximise your chance of success however you can choose to write in any genre and to any length.

One of the great advantages of writing and self-publishing a novella is that you can write your story to its natural length. You do not need to add or delete characters and story lines in order to produce a piece of work that meets word count requirements.

Typically a novella will have shorter chapters that a novel; it will also have fewer characters and conflict situations. There will be few, if any, sub-plots that involve characters other than the main character and viewpoints may be confined to one or two. Of course these points are only general guidance and you should tell your story in the best way possible.  

If you have an idea then why not start writing today. Complete your 20,000, 30,000 or 50,000 words and get them in front of your readers.

You may be interested in my book – Write it! – which covers how to write and complete a 20,000 word book in 30 hours or less.

Happy writing.

5 Story Starters

Use these story starters to fire up your creative mind. They can be used as warm up exercises before you start on your major work however you may find you produce a piece of work that you call sell.

Have fun when using these story starters, don’t censor your writing or think to hard; just write what comes into your mind. You don’t even need to edit unless you intend to market your work.

1. Jason gritted his teeth, yet again he would have to finish the job himself...
2. Jack slowly opened the door to the kitchen cupboard; it was the smell that hit him first...
3. Ruby ran down the steps into the public toilets; she looked at her face in the mirror. Not too much work needed this time she thought as she took out the bright red lipstick from her purse...
4. The car keys had been left on the kitchen table...
5. The pale figure appeared translucent as she walked up the stairs...

Happy writing.

Ignite your Creativity

As a writer being creative is no doubt important to you. You look for innovative ways for characters to solve problems, create worlds for you characters to inhabit and use words to create just the right atmosphere. If you write non-fiction you will also be looking for innovative ways for your readers to solve problems and use words to inspire others.

When you are writing, planning your writing or editing your work you are being creative. It is, however, important to develop and practise your creativity in other ways to ensure this part of your mind remains healthy and keeps providing you with thoughts, ideas and nuggets of wisdom that enable you to be a productive and successful writer.

Here are some ways you can ignite your creativity:

• Take on a new challenge - learn something new or solve a problem. You might learn a new craft or do a crossword.
• Play – as we get older we often forget to play. This is about having fun; you could purchase some modelling clay and just mess around with it or you could kick a ball around with friends, anything that is not too serious, not too competitive and provides the opportunity to make it up as you go along.
• Make or create something – a meal, a painting, a hat.
• Rearrange a room, or a shelf, in your home – get creative with space and objects.
• Relax – give yourself some time to just lie back and allow your mind to wander, you never know what it might find.

Try new things, have fun, break the rules and ignite your creativity.

Happy writing.