The Fundamental Elements of Creative Writing [+ Examples]

Creative writing is an art form that allows expression through the written word. It is a way for individuals to craft stories, create characters, and convey emotions that can resonate with readers from all walks of life. Beyond its artistic value, creative writing serves as a powerful tool for personal reflection and professional development, sharpening communication skills and fostering empathy. While some may think this skill is innate, it can indeed be cultivated and refined. Enrolling in creative writing classes offers aspiring writers the chance to develop their craft systematically. These classes provide structured guidance, helping students explore various genres and styles, and encouraging them to find their unique voice. As we delve into the realm of creative writing, we’ll explore its various forms and showcase examples that illuminate the vibrancy and versatility of this expressive discipline.

Key Elements of Creative Writing

Creative writing thrives on originality and the power of imagination, inviting writers to explore the boundless landscapes of their minds. At its core is character development, where writers breathe life into their characters, bestowing them with quirks, desires, and complexities that make them relatable to readers. Setting and world-building are equally crucial, crafting a backdrop that can range from the mundanely real to the fantastically surreal, providing a stage upon which characters act and stories unfold. The plot and structure serve as the spine of creative writing, guiding the narrative’s flow and ensuring coherence and impact. Lastly, the chosen point of view and the distinctive voice of the narrative shape how readers connect with the story, whether it’s through the intimate lens of the first person or the broader perspective of the third person. Mastery of these elements is what turns a simple story into an immersive experience for the reader.

Types of Creative Writing

The umbrella of creative writing shelters a diverse array of genres, each with its own charm and challenges. Poetry stands out for its conciseness and emotional intensity, often using rhythm and metaphor to distill profound feelings and observations into a few lines. Short stories, by contrast, offer a brief yet complete narrative experience, demanding precision and economy in language while delivering a memorable impact. Novels expand this narrative scope, allowing for detailed character development and complex plots that can transport readers to other lives and worlds over many pages.

Plays and screenplays bring stories to life through dialogue and action, designed to be performed and visualized, thus relying heavily on the collaborative nature of the performing arts to reach their full potential. Lastly, creative non-fiction blends factual content with literary techniques, enabling writers to tell true stories with the same narrative tools used in fiction.

Each form presents unique opportunities for writers to experiment with and express their creative visions. Through the practice of these different types of creative writing, one can discover the most fitting medium for their voice and stories, and in doing so, enrich the tapestry of literary arts.

Examples of Creative Writing in Literature

Literature serves as a storied repository of creative writing, showcasing a wealth of examples that span centuries and cross cultural boundaries. In classic literature, the works of William Shakespeare stand as a testament to the enduring power of creative storytelling, with plays like “Hamlet” and “Midsummer Night’s Dream” offering complex characters and rich, poetic language. The gothic imaginings of Mary Shelley’s “Frankenstein” delve into the human psyche and ethical quandaries, underpinned by vivid narrative and emotional depth.

Contemporary literature continues this tradition, with authors like Margaret Atwood and Kazuo Ishiguro pushing the boundaries of genre and perspective. Atwood’s “The Handmaid’s Tale” presents a dystopian vision that explores themes of power and identity, while Ishiguro’s “Never Let Me Go” combines science fiction with a hauntingly personal narrative voice.

These works exemplify the key elements of creative writing: originality, character depth, immersive settings, and compelling plots. They demonstrate how point of view can be used to draw readers into the story, whether it’s through the unreliable narration in Charlotte Brontë’s “Jane Eyre” or the multiple perspectives in Faulkner’s “As I Lay Dying.”

Analyzing these examples reveals the techniques used by the authors to craft their narratives. Shakespeare’s iambic pentameter, Shelley’s layered storytelling, Atwood’s allegorical settings, and Ishiguro’s subtle emotional cues each contribute to the richness of their stories. These literary pieces not only entertain but also challenge readers to reflect, empathize, and question, embodying the transformative power of creative writing.

How to Get Started with Creative Writing

Embarking on a creative writing journey begins with simple steps. Start by setting aside regular time to write and using prompts to spark inspiration. Reading widely across genres also equips you with a palette of styles and techniques to draw upon. Begin with short, manageable projects to build confidence and momentum. Remember, the first drafts are about exploration and self-expression, not perfection. Over time, your voice will emerge, and your storytelling skills will sharpen. Above all, the key is to start writing—anything and everything—to turn the gears of creativity.

Improving Your Creative Writing Skills

To improve in creative writing, make a habit of writing regularly to refine your skills and develop discipline. Embrace the process of feedback, seeking out constructive criticism from peers or mentors to gain new perspectives on your work. Revising your drafts is where much of the writing craft comes to fruition, allowing you to polish and deepen your narrative. Engaging with a community of fellow writers can provide support, motivation, and accountability, which are invaluable for growth. By dedicating yourself to practice, seeking feedback, and remaining open to learning, your creative writing will reach new heights of excellence.

Creative Writing Classes: A Path to Mastery

Creative writing classes offer more than instruction; they are gateways to a community of writers and a wealth of collective knowledge. In these classes, you can expect personalized feedback, exposure to diverse writing styles, and the discipline of regular assignments. They provide a structured environment that encourages experimentation and risk-taking in a supportive setting. Whether you aim to write poetry, fiction, or creative non-fiction, these classes can be tailored to help you achieve your writing aspirations, ensuring you have the guidance to develop your skills and the inspiration to keep your creativity flowing.

Crafting Your Own Creative Writing Piece

Now, it’s your turn. Use the inspiration from literary examples and the guidance of this article to craft your narrative. Let your imagination lead the way and remember, every great writer began with a single, brave stroke of a pen. Start writing, and let your story unfold.

Creative writing is not just an art; it’s a journey of self-discovery and expression. From the classics to contemporary works, literature offers a mirror to our own creativity. By engaging with different types of writing, seeking improvement, and considering creative writing classes, you can unlock your potential. Remember, every word you write is a step forward in your journey. The world is brimming with stories waiting to be told through your unique perspective. Keep practicing, keep learning, and most importantly, keep writing. Your narrative is a gift to the world—share it generously.

How to Write a Great Bio for Your Children’s Book

Whether it’s something that you’ve wanted to do ever since you were a little boy or girl, or it’s something you decided on during your adult life, you set the goal of writing a children’s book. After spending a great deal of time researching, investigating, reading published children’s books, spending time with members of the age group you wanted to gear your story toward, tons of hours writing, proofreading yourself and working with children’s book proofreaders – way too much coffee, you’ve finally done it! You’ve successfully written a children’s book and you’re ready to publish. 

First, let us start by saying congratulations! Writing a children’s book is so rewarding, but after all of your hard work, there’s one more thing that you need to attend to: your author bio. Writing your own author bio can be just as overwhelming and stress-inducing as writing the children’s book itself – especially if you’ve never done it before. 

What is an author bio? Why is it important? How do you write one? To find the answers to these questions and learn how to write a great author’s bio for your children’s book, keep on reading!

What is an author bio, and why is it important? 

Imagine putting all of that time, energy, and hard work into writing a children’s book, publishing it, and it’s well-received by your audience, but your audience doesn’t know anything about you? That’s where an author bio is for. 

An author bio, as the title suggests, is a short biography of a book’s author. It’s that little blurb that highlights important details about an author, as well as a photo, on the back or inside jacket cover of a book, on an Amazon page, and on marketing materials.  It provides readers with a snapshot of your life and introduces them to you, as a person. It helps your readers establish a connection with you, and in turn, it can help them establish an even stronger connection with your writing. 

An author bio is important for several reasons. As was pointed out above, it helps your readers establish a connection with you, which can also help them establish an even stronger connection with your writing. It also established your reputation as an author, which can help to influence sales. Believe it or not, an author’s reputation is one of the main factors that readers consistently state drives their decision to select the books they read. An author bio can help you establish yourself as an authority on the topic that you’ve written about, and because readers are more inclined to purchase books by authors who they view as authorities, well, it makes sense that your author bio can also help to drive sales of your children’s book. 

How to write a bio for a children’s book

Your author bio should accomplish a few key objectives. Below, we’ll highlight these objectives and discuss how to achieve them. 

Make it interesting and relevant 

Readers are more likely to read books that are written by authors they find interesting. It’s for this reason that making sure your author bio is attention-grabbing is important. What information can you include in your bio that will pique the interest of your readers’, or depending on the age of your audience, those who will be reading your book to children? Are there any notable accomplishments or achievements that relate to your experience as a writer or the content of your book that readers would find interesting? 

For example, if your book is about the underdog who finally became the start football player after his hard work and dedication paid off, if the story was inspired by actual events in your life, you could highlight that in your bio:

“After trying out for the football team four times and never being select, his hard work finally paid off when… “

Be informative

An author bio should be informative, as providing your readers with more information about you – the author  – is the main purpose of writing a bio. The information you share in your bio should help your target readers decide whether or not they should purchase your book. The information you provide should also encourage readers to learn more about you. 

Including markers that establish your credibility is beneficial for readers, as it allows them to see that you are an expert in the topic you have written about. It’s important to note that when we say “expert”, we don’t mean that you have a doctorate degree in a particular field of study; in fact, you don’t have to have any high-ranking degree or specific professional experience to effectively discuss a topic. By “expert”, we mean that you’re knowledgeable about or have first-hand experience with the topic. Credibility markers allow you to establish yourself as an expert. The following are just a few examples of some markers that you can include in your author bio to establish your credibility: 

  • You have worked with or still work with children 
  • You’re a parent of a disabled child
  • You were bullied yourself as a child
  • You lost your childhood home to a fire
  • You have been featured in the media 

Establish a connection with the reader

If you have not already established a connection with your readers with the informative details you provided, make sure that you focus on making that connection. There are several ways that you can achieve this; by showing your readers that you have a lot in common with them, or that you’ve endured the same problems as them, for example. Don’t be afraid to let your creativity shine, as doing so will only help to foster an even more powerful connection with your audience. 

While the title, the content, the illustrations, and the cover art are all vital elements of a children’s book, the author bio is another element that’s just as important, yet is often overlooked. With the tips shared above – and a little creativity – you should be able to create an author bio that will really help to make your children’s book shine. 



How to Become Visible as an Author – Developing Your Author Brand

You need to establish an author brand if you’re published or self-published. There’s no way around it if you want to be visible to the market and your target audience. Your branding is a vital component of marketing and a crucial aspect of reputation building. That’s right, authors must think of themselves as brands.

Taking this approach to your business pushes your career and reputation to the next level of success. Your author brand is a key element in decision-making when a prospective reader assesses your work. A well-constructed author brand could mean the difference between them buying your book or leaving it on the shelf.

Beyond closing the sale, your author brand assists with industry promotions. Publishers and agents review it to get a feel for your career and writing. Industry publications look at your author’s brand when considering publishing your work on their site, magazine, or newspaper. You create an industry reputation by branding yourself and setting yourself apart from the competition.

So, what are the elements of a successful author brand? How do you design a website that catches the reader’s attention? How do you write a bio that jumps off the page, capturing the attention of publishers, agents, industry organizations, and readers? How do you connect with your target audience and bolster your reputation in the market and industry?

Understand Your Audience

The first step in developing your author bio involves understanding your target audience and what they expect from you. You’ll need to drill down into the demographics of your readership to understand what they want to know about you and your work.

Your target reader persona includes what they find attractive about your writing style, tone, voice, and character development skills. Defining your unique selling point (USP) helps you narrow down why readers are interested in your work and your author brand.

If you write in the thriller genre, you compete with thousands of authors writing on similar topics. What separates you from the competition? Pick two or three aspects of your writing where you excel and use them to promote your bio. For instance, if you write great plot twists, include that USP when writing about why people should read your work.

Set Up a Website and Develop a Logo

Every author needs a website to connect with their audience and field interest from publishers, agents, and industry professionals. Your website forms the foundation of your brand, where people can connect with you and understand what they can expect from your work.

Craft a logo for your website to further the branding message. You want a design that’s simple but bold, attracting the reader’s attention when they land on your page. Think of the Nike “Swish.” It’s simple, but everyone remembers it; it’s marketing genius. Now try and think of a complicated logo. Chances are, nothing comes to mind. If you’re self-published, a website enables you to set up an online store to sell your work.

Build an Author Bio to Connect with Readers

Your website must include an “about me” page where you write your author bio. The bio gives you a place to showcase your accolades, achievements, and education. You’ll use the author bio to present your audience with your award-winning work and personalize it to your interests.

Every website needs a blog. You’ll use it as a branding tool to keep your target audience up to date with your projects and showcase your skillset. Use a bio box plugin for your website allowing you to place your bio in the footer of every post you write on your blog.

The website, blog, and bio give you an online presence and home. These tools give you a space that’s uniquely yours, allowing you to funnel new readers to your work.

Start an Email List and Present a Value Offer

A website does little for building your author brand if you’re not using it as a component of a marketing strategy. Research plugins for opt-in pages that capture the details of people who land on your site. If prospective readers open your site, they might not be willing to buy your books.

Adding an opt-in page turns your site into an inbound marketing machine. The reader might not shell out cash for your books, but they’ll gladly leave you their name and email address if you present them with a value offer. For instance, you could offer them a 5% discount on your book for joining your mailing list or gift them a chapter from your book or a complimentary novella.

Presenting a value exchange allows you to build your list and spread your brand message. The next time you release a book, you have a list of fans you know are interested in your work, ready to pull the buying trigger.

Promote Yourself on Social Media

Besides your website, social media presents you with the biggest brand-building tool in your marketing strategy. The digital era allowed self-published authors to sell their work through platforms like Amazon and your website.

Understanding how to work social media and push prospects to your website and Amazon listings will supercharge your sales and bolster your brand. Platforms like Facebook and Instagram give you access to built-in ad campaign tools to reach your target audience. You get to push your posts into their feed for a few bucks, promoting your work for an affordable cost.

Platforms like Twitter connect you with your target audience. They let you discuss your work and social issues with users, giving you a voice in the market. LinkedIn hosts your author bio and professional brand, giving publishers and agents a place to connect with you without using less-professional sites like Instagram and Facebook.

 

Network with Other Authors

Your network is your net worth; remember that saying because it’s the truth when building your author brand. Social media is a great brand-building and networking tool, but you must get to industry events to meet new people face-to-face.

Print yourself business cards to present to publishers and agents at industry gatherings. Research the biggest conventions in your market and attend them with the goal of pushing your brand deeper into the industry and into view of movers and shakers that change your publishing career.

10 Benefits of Hiring a Professional Editor for Your Blog or Writing Project

Are you a writer or blogger? When was the last time you made an editing mistake? If you find yourself missing typos or finding structuring errors in your work after publishing, you need an editor. Collaborating with a good editor makes a world of difference.

The results are night-and-day between self-editing and working with a professional. Let’s unpack the benefits of hiring an editor for your next blog post or writing project.

#1 Benefit from an Editor’s Professional Experience

A professional editor or editing service edits for a living; it’s how they build their career. When you hire an editor, you’re accessing the talents of an individual that spent thousands of hours developing their skill set.

Professional editors have years of experience revising, reworking, and polishing other people’s work; it’s all they do with their time. You need a professional editor or service, not a hobbyist. A part-time editor might be more affordable, but you’ll get partial results.

The difference is the part-timer has fewer hours of editing work. A professional might spend 60 to 70 hours a week reviewing up to 100,000 words. A part-time editor might only achieve 25% of that. Which one of the two do you want for your writing project? Choosing the professional makes sense, right?

#2 Fresh eyes on Your Work

If you’ve spent hours writing a blog or years building a manuscript, you need fresh eyes on the content to gain a new perspective on your work. It’s common for writers to miss mistakes in their work. It’s also surprising how many writers fail to re-read their work before publishing a blog post, magazine article, or manuscript. 

A professional editor gives you a fresh perspective on your writing. They’ll ensure they correct any typos and grammar mistakes. The editor reviews your work for inconsistencies and poor sentence structure, returning a finished product ready for publishing. Editors spot any missed errors, ensuring you get an optimized finished product and securing your reputation as a writer.

#3 Find Your Writing Voice

Beginner writers often struggle with finding their voice. Your writing voice helps you present an authentic reading experience for your audience. Your writing voice combines the elements of storytelling, tone, and perspective.

Your writing voice should be as authentic and unique as your real speaking voice. Many writers find this the most challenging aspect of storytelling. Editors can change this for you. Editors identify inconsistencies in your narration attitude and how you relay information to the reader.

#4 Smooth Cadence and Pacing

Do parts of your writing drag? Do areas of your storytelling see you speeding through without adding enough context or content? Editors review your work for cadence, ensuring your writing has a consistent pace.

The editor evaluates the story, ensuring your readers get the best experience possible. They’ll identify where you explore characters in-depth or elongate scenes. Editors help you improve your writing to progress the story at an engaging pace, keeping the reader interested.

#5 Create Consistency in Your Work

Inconsistency in your work costs you reader engagement and loyalty. Hiring an editor or editing service creates consistency in your writing. You get dependable results for your writing voice, tense, characterization, and point of view. Professional editors take the inconsistencies out of your writing projects.

#6 Impress Your Audience

Whether you’re self-publishing a manuscript, entering a writing contest, or looking for an agent to help you break into the conventional publishing market, you need professional editing to help you achieve your goals. 

Professional editing gives you a world-class product for your audience, agent, and publisher. It shows you’re serious about your writing and gives your readers a positive first impression of your work.

#7 Editors Cut the Waffle Out of Your Work

Editors cut the waffle out of your work. Editors remove the redundant or extraneous parts of your manuscript. You get a manuscript or article that enhances the reader experience, presenting a strong story. Editing improves reader engagement, building your reputation with your audience.

#8 Professional Editing Offers You Return on Your Investment

It’s worth spending the money on a professional editing service. The improvements to your writing help you climb the search rankings flawlessly, presenting your work to your audience for optimal results. How much is it worth to you to receive and publish work you can be proud of? Great editing is simply priceless, wouldn’t you agree?

#9 Your IP is Safeguarded

When you hire a professional editing team or service, you get complete peace of mind over your intellectual property. There’s no way the editor will steal your work and publish it under their name. Professional editors aren’t freelancers or hobbyists; they edit work for a living. 

Most of them don’t have the time in their day to consider stealing your manuscript. A good editor is ethical and trustworthy and won’t dream of sending it to third parties. They value their reputation and their career as a professional.

#10 Learn from Your Mistakes and Improve Your Skillset

Working with a professional editor improves your writing skillset. When you re-read your work after the editor has their way with it, you’ll see where you’re making mistakes with your writing. The result is an improvement in your writing.

The next time you’re writing a vlog post or project, you’ll stop and think about where you made your last mistake, improving your cadence, sentence structure, word choices, and grammar. For example, if you always mix up ‘affect’ and ‘effect,’ and you know that the problem recurs, you can work to eliminate it from your writing. Live and learn.

Where Can I Find an Editing Service?

If you’re looking for book editors in New York, you have plenty of options. Before hiring a firm or independent editor, it’s important to realize that not all editors offer the same results. Hiring someone off a gig site like Fiverr will give you access to a different level of talent than you get from a professional firm.

The reality is you get what you pay for with your editing team. If you want the best results for your writing projects, you’ll have to invest in hiring a professional editor. It might seem expensive, but the results are worth it. 

How to Supplement Your Income With a Side Hustle

The cost of life has skyrocketed, and many families struggle to meet because the main job does not sufficiently cater to everything. You likely have heard about hundreds of side hustles out there, but your needs, skills, and preferences set the difference between you and the rest and inform what you will settle for. That said, here are some excellent side hustle tips that will help supplement your income, especially during this quarantine period when nuts are tightening everywhere.

 

  1.   Sell items online

Most of us have some junk item(s) in the house that are no longer used. Why not turn such into a few bucks to supplement your income by selling them through online platforms like Amazon, Craiglist, and eBay? If you don’t have much to deal with, you could try drop shopping, whereby you work as a sales agent for such platforms and earn through commission. 

 

  1. Drive other people

Do you have a car with four doors? If yes, then you have a chance to supplement your income quickly. In the morning, you might use it to travel to your place of work and in the afternoons and evenings, use it for driving people around. Not everyone has a car, and that’s why companies like Lyft and Uber now make money by driving people. You could register with them and supplement your income with your vehicle. 

 

  1. Run errands for people

If you have a fixed work schedule, you likely know which days or what time of the day finds you free, and you can use them to supplement your income. For instance, you could run errands for people in the afternoons and evenings after concentrating on your primary source of income. 

Arranging a house, putting up picture frames, doing shopping, moving furniture, and doing dishes are some of the errands you can do and earn extra cash. In fact, most college students who work a few hours a day run errands for people as their main side hustle and use the money to pay off their student loans.

 

  1. Blog about your interest

Blogging is increasingly becoming rewarding, especially because information and technology have advanced, and people have access to the internet like never before. Suppose you choose your niche well and deal in relevant content. In that case, you will heap traffic, and the site will pay, primarily through affiliate links and advertisements. All you need to do is a few bucks to get a domain name and web hosting. Some hosting providers like Bluehost charge as little as $2.99 per month, and you can always upgrade as your site grows.

 

  1. Deliver packages

You might have a car, but you don’t like ferrying people around. Still, you can supplement your income by delivering goods and packages to the owners. As you get more clients, you will be earning more. Try companies like Shipt, InstantCart, and Amazon Flex and register to deliver packages after your introductory course of the day.

 

  1. Walk dogs and sit pets

If you love pets like dogs, cats, and birds, you could try pet sitting or dog walking as a side hustle to boost your income. What’s more, many companies specialize in connecting pet owners with people who can sit and walk them for pay. For instance, Rover connects people to pet owners who want someone to walk their dogs. So imagine that by walking a dog for 20 minutes only, you can earn as much as $30, making them one of the lucrative side hustles.

 

  1.   Edit and fix people’s resumes 

People are seeking jobs every other day, and most, if not all, need their resumes fixed to look better and help them stand a chance before their potential employers. Therefore, you could edit and restore such documents as a side hustle and even help individuals better their LinkedIn profiles. Start by posting your skills on Facebook while charging low, and as you improve, do Fiverr listing and attract better charges.

 

  1. Teach English or any international language

Learning a new language is fun. More people are interested in learning and practicing English, French, Chinese, German, and many other languages. Why not try doing so during your free time and earn from $10 to $25 per hour? What’s more, there are many companies out there that can connect you to clients, including iTALKI, iTutorGroup, VIPKID, QKIDs, and DaDa. Some even have bonuses which you will qualify for as you earn more experience and get good ratings from students.

 

  1. Be a tutor to students in college and schools

Whether in elementary and high schools, college, or university, you will find students who struggle to understand a particular subject or lack basic study skills. Why not become a tutor and help such students boost their grades as you increase your income? Chegg app has helped many people connect with such students, and you can be among the fortunate guys. What’s more, such apps allow flexibility, meaning that everything will fit into place with proper planning.

 

  1.               Offer people professional services 

Are you good with accounts, numbers, designs, or Microsoft Windows packages? You could use these skills as a side hustle by using them to offer people professional services. For example, you could create an account with Thumbtack or TaskRabbit and advertise yourself locally, standing a chance to win local gigs. It doesn’t have to be technical; you could even fix people’s drainages and sinks or offer plumbing services.

 

  1.                 Explore virtual assistance

Research requires virtual assistance, and you could make this your side hustle to supplement your income. For instance, are you versed in email services, data entry, SPSS skills, and the likes? Register with Upwork or Remotask and get a side hustle of your niche to sustain yourself and a family if you have one.

 

The bottom line

As the economic situation keeps changing and the living cost skyrockets, you might find it appealing to try a side hustle to supplement your income. Since there are so many options, you might get confused about what to do. However, your needs, skills, preferences, and schedule will help you decide what fits you. 

Rose Rosie is a writer for the personal finance website, Joy Wallet, which provides readers with useful information, resources, and tools to help maximize their financial fitness. 

 

 

 

 

How to Self-Publish a Children’s Book

Do you love children’s literature and have decided that you’d like to instill a lifetime love of reading in little ones with some silly and fun titles or informative and engaging topics? Have you already written up a manuscript geared toward young readers, are impressed with the results, and have decided that you would like to share it with the world? Whatever the case may be, if you’d like to contribute texts that children can add to their libraries, you’re going to need to publish your work. 

While working with a publishing house is the traditional route, doing so can be tough. Children’s literature is a large, highly competitive niche, which means that catching the attention and getting a contracting with a publishing house can be tough – no matter how incredible your book may be. Rather than go through the stress and hassle – and potential heartache (there’s no guarantee that a publishing house will accept your manuscript) – forego the conventional route and self-publish your children’s book instead! 

One of the biggest benefits of self-publishing your children’s book is that you’re guaranteed to have your book published. Plus, it can be a lot less stressful; that is, if you know what you’re doing. So, how do you go about self-publishing a children’s book? Here are some suggestions that you might want to consider using.  

Use an Online Printing Service

Perhaps the easiest ways to self-publish a children’s book is with an online printing service. Not only is this method very accessible, but it’s also pretty self-explanatory. Examples of some highly respected online printing services that you can use to self-publish a children’s book are Blurb, Book Baby, and Art Bookbindery. All three offer complete publishing services, such as pay layout, book design, printed proofs, promotional posters, and even shipment of the finished product. 

If you choose this option, consider getting price quotes for your children’s book from several online printing services, then compare those prices to determine which one best suits your needs. Do note that some options may cost an additional fee, such as cover design and page layout. 

Online-Only Publishing

Another option to consider if you want to self-publish a children’s book is online-only publishing. The upside is that the results are pretty rapid, but the downside is that, as the name suggests, the book will only be accessible online. With that said, however, given the increased use of e-readers – even with children – online-only publishing may be a great way to share your story with readers. Amazon and other online book sellers offer online-only self-publishing options. You’d pay a fee to the seller, and they will then sell your book online, in an eBook format, for you. The seller will pay you a set amount for each eBook sale. 

If you aren’t interested in distributing hard copies of your children’s book, online-only publishing may be a great way for you to self-publish your title. 

Print-On-Demand

This self-publishing option involves advertising the book for sale on the internet and a copy is printed and sent to the buyer only when a book has been ordered. Amazon is one of many companies that offer print-on-demand publishing services. With Amazon, you’d upload your children’s book via a third-party publisher, the book would be sold through a third-party publisher, and it would be sold through Amazon.com. When a consumer places an order, a copy of the book will be printed and sent out. 

If you want to avoid having to pay publishing fees out of your own pocket up-front so that you can have a collection of hard copies printed, print-on-demand publishing may be the right choice for you. 

My Top Tips for Writing a Book!

Do you love the written word? Have an affinity for sharing your thoughts, ideas, inspirations, and knowledge via writing? Have you always aspired to become an author but the idea of writing a book just seems too overwhelming? If so, then you’ve come to the right place!

For some, writing a book comes naturally and they exhibit no difficulties whatsoever; however, for even more, the process is a daunting one that can be wrought with aggravation, a lot of questions, and some pretty intense headaches. To help simplify the process, we’ve compiled a list of handy tips that you can use to make writing a book an easier, more enjoyable, and more successful experience. 

Set Clear and Attainable Goals

Whether you plan on creating an outline before you write your book or you’ll be skipping the outline process and will be jumping right in, whichever way you go, make sure you start by setting clear and attainable goals. Examples of goals that you might include in a simple, yet effective action plan include specific, attainable, measurable, relevant, and timely goals. To further explain, here’s a breakdown of what each of these goals might look like: 

  • Specific – Write a draft of the first page of your book, or self-publish a children’s book
  • Attainable – Dedicate time to writing before retiring for the night
  • Measurable – Draft at least 700 words
  • Relevant – Complete the first chapter of the book
  • Timely – Write for at least 1 hour at least 4 days this week

Develop a Solid Plan of Action 

There are endless sayings about making plans, and many of them are super-clever; examples include “Failing to plan is planning to fail”, said by Alan Lakein and “If you fail to plan, you are planning to fail”, uttered by none other than Benjamin Franklin. 

There’s a good reason why there are so many sayings about plans: It’s because it’s true! If you have a goal in mind, in order to achieve that goal, you really need to make a plan. In the case of writing a book, developing a plan of action is a must, otherwise it could end up in draft form forever. So, how do you create a solid plan of action? Well, we suggest starting out by deciding when you’d like to have your manuscript finished and ready to be sent out to publishers. Of course, the date may be subject to change as you never know when writer’s block could set in or if an emergency may arise that could set you behind schedule; however, starting out by establishing a rough estimate for completion will serve as inspiration to keep you on-track. Once you’ve decided when you’d like to have your book completed by, break things down into smaller chunks.

Develop Your Voice

In writing, the term “voice” refers to the style and tone of the writing that conveys the subject matter and the intended goals of the books. How do you develop your voice? Before you start writing, consider how you’d like your intended readers to describe your writing style. Do you want readers to associate the voice of your writing with warmth, comfort, and wisdom? Would you like to be viewed as witty, cheeky, and lighthearted? Are you hoping to convey inspiration, encouragement, and creativity? 

By being aware of what message and/or feelings your voice is conveying, you’ll be able to highlight and enhance your strengths, and put your own unique stamp on your writing. 

Summing It Up

By keeping the above-mentioned tips in mind, you will be able to keep yourself inspired and achieve your goal of writing a book and becoming an adding your voice to the literary world. 

 

Looking for Creative Writing Contests?

Creative writing is a vast niche that offers plenty of opportunities for up-and-coming writers to get their stories in front of readers. While writing a manuscript and getting a book published may be the end goal for many creative writers, there are other options for publicity to be found along the way. Creative writing classes or contests are some of the best methods of getting your stories in front of the public and potential editors while winning prizes at the same time. You may be wondering how to go about finding such opportunities, well, thankfully we have a few suggestions to help you get started.

What To Avoid

Before we get into writing contests that are worth your time, we want to cover a few important signs that indicate a contest scam. While many contests may have a nominal entry fee per submission, contests that charge excessive fees or reading fees are likely just out to make a quick buck. There are plenty of no-cost creative writing contests out there to choose from, so avoid paying out of pocket if you don’t have to. Make sure that any content that you enter doesn’t ask you to sign over the rights to your work if you win, or even simply by entering the contest. These types of scams seek to gather work products from various sources without actually choosing the winner at the end. Now, on to the good stuff, here are some great creative writing contests that are actually legit.

Ron Hubbard Writers of the Future Contest

Of all of the creative writing contests out there, Ron Hubbard’s writing contests are among the best. They host a contest every quarter, or three months, and offer a cash prize for the top three submissions. The contest is open for novelettes and short stories that are a maximum of 17,00 words. It does not matter how long you have been writing, only that your stories are in the fantasy or science fiction genre.

Drue Heinz Literature Prize

For this contest, you are allowed to enter any of your manuscripts that have never been published. The entries can be a selection of short stories or novellas, or, it can be a combination of both. The winner will have their submission published in the University of Pittsburgh Press in addition to receiving a cash prize. The main caveat with this particular contest is that you must already be a published author with at least three novellas or short stories in print.

Young Lions Fiction Award

If you are a writer under the age of 35 and looking for a legitimate creative writing contest, this one is sure to pique your interest. There is a cash award for what is classified as young authors if your submissions are chosen. The maximum age for submission is 35 years old and you are able to submit short stories and novellas that were published or will be published in the same year you enter the contest. The genre you can submit is broad, but kids’ books and YA stories are prohibited.

New Voices Award

Kids’ books are a great genre that gets far less recognition than it should. This contest targets authors who have submissions written for children and who are either Indigenous people or writers of color. The maximum length is 1500 words for each submission with pictures and the stories must not have been published previously. In addition to the cash award, the first-place winner will also receive a publishing contract.

Getting Your Stories In Front Of Readers That Matter

Creative writing contests are a great way to break into the world of publication without the hassle of chasing down a literary agent. There are many contests to be found, just make sure that you check the history of the contest before you pay a fee or submit your manuscript for consideration.

 

What is it Really Like to Work with a Literary Agent?

You will, at some point between starting your book and deciding that you would like a serious shot at having it traditionally published, begin informing yourself about the essential role literary agents play in selling your manuscript. When you do, you’re bound to hear some variation of the trope that literary agents are everything to authors, from advocates and expert negotiators to financial managers, emotional support people, marketers, and editors. 

 

While there is no question that excellent literary agents can dazzle you with their versatility, new and unpublished authors can easily form the wrong impression about what literary agents do, what they don’t, and what it’s truly like to work with one. 

 

What role do literary agents play?

 

When a literary agent takes you on as a client, they become nearly as invested in the success of your book as you are — their paycheck depends, after all, on matching you with the perfect publishing house. A literary agent is, as such, not a personal assistant or a cheerleader who will worship your every word, but an essential collaborator.  A literary agent will do their very best to get your book published, to secure favorable terms, and to bring your shared vision to fruition. Before you get to that stage, editorial agents will absolutely want to be involved in the developmental editing that is going to make your book better, and therefore more marketable.

 

Because literary agents live and breathe manuscripts professionally, and have to stay current on the ever-fluctuating market trends, new authors should see their literary agents as guides, and take their advice extremely seriously. 

 

What don’t literary agents do?

 

Even so-called editorial agents aren’t going to do any line editing or proofreading for you — they’ll only assist you with the broad strokes that they believe will make your already excellent book successful. Literary agents expect you to send them finished manuscripts that have passed through tireless rounds of self-editing as well as a professional edit. If your manuscript is a “diamond in the rough” filled with immediately-apparent typos and grammatical faux pas, a literary agent isn’t the right person to fix that for you. By the same token, literary agents aren’t beta readers, critique partners, or ego boosters. As business partners, literary agents work with you because they genuinely believe that your book will sell. 

 

How often do authors talk to their literary agents?

 

A literary agent’s job is all about communicating — but since they are ultimately trying to sell your book to a publishing house, you are far from the only cog in the wheel! How often an author is in touch with their literary agent, and how, ultimately depends on what you agree. You might ask your literary agent to tell you every time a publisher passes on your book, you could decide to opt for periodic updates, or you could choose to only be informed if your book has gotten an offer, and your agent, too, will have their own working style. Making these sorts of agreements in advance will prevent authors from pestering their literary agents and adding unnecessary stress to the relationship.

 

Because you will be in close contact with your literary agent, particularly once your book is on submission or you have reached the negotiating stage, however, it’s important that author and agent don’t just respect each other, but also find a good flow together. 

 

What’s it really like to work with a literary agent? The relationship between author and agent should be one of mutual respect for each other’s professionalism, skill, and time. When you get that all-important email to set up a call, and you’re pretty sure you will get an offer, you know that you could be a whole lot closer to seeing your book in stores. This is your chance to ask them essential questions that address how they see your book, where they think they might be able to place it, and how far away it is from the submission stage. 

 

In the process, you’ll get to know the literary agent’s professional vision for your manuscript, but also begin to get a vibe for their personality, communication style, and approach to their work. That means you should have a good idea of what it will be like to work with the literary agent in the exciting case that you end up accepting their offer of representation!

 

The Best Thing New Writers Can Do For Practice

A while back, I posted a survey on Twitter. In the poll, I asked the people on my timeline (maybe you are included among them) what they thought about fanfictions, fanfics, fics or whatever you want to call them.

Today I share the analysis of all the results, the conclusions, the reflections (both mine and those of the people who responded to the poll and the mentions that were made about it) and some real cases about the relationship between fanfics and the original authors of the stories.

Shall we begin?

The results of the survey

High school science class taught me that before getting some results you have to say what has been analyzed and how (what in a scientific article come to be the materials and methods).

In total, the opinion of 122 people who voted for or against the fanfics in the Twitter survey was analyzed. Of the 122, 90 voted for and 32 against.

Analysis of the results obtained

The first problem I’ve had is that I think some people didn’t understand the question (I say this because of the comments they left me). When I speak of “good” or “bad” I don’t mean the quality of the texts, but whether they should be able to be done. That is, whether they were for or against their writing regardless of the reason why they were written.

But the truth is that the comments making reference to this were the minority and therefore I believe that the results of the survey are still valid (although the population taken as reference -122- is not very large, so I do not know how significant it is, but given the huge difference in votes, I’d say it’s pretty conclusive).

Having clarified this detail, we take it for granted that 74% of people are in favor and, evidently, there is a relationship between being in favor and writing fanfics. Of those who commented, 66% of those in favor have ever written a fanfic (33% have not).

This is logical. It’s easier to find people who are in favor among fanfic writers and it’s more logical to have written some fanfic if you’re in favor of them, isn’t it?

However, that a third of the people who are in favor don’t write fanfic is also an important fact. It means that there are a lot of people who are in favor even if it doesn’t influence them at all.

Why are you in favor of writing fanfiction?

Here I am very grateful for some very long comments in which they were explaining why they were in favor of fanfiction being written (even if they didn’t write them). And since we’re on graphics today, I also put this with a cool image.

Fanfics are a fantastic tool to practice with, so that our writing ability doesn’t atrophy. If this is your goal, you should think carefully about prepping your story as you would a normal novel. Think about outlining your story and strategizing how you want to approach it. While it is a great exercise, you want to take it seriously if it’s being used as practice. You don’t need to create characters or a world or relationships between them if you want. Someone has already done it for you! All you have to do is put them in a situation and write. It’s much easier to write something when everything else has been created, it’s like writing a scene in the middle of a novel. What I find most difficult are the beginnings (and endings), but an intermediate scene is easy.

Why? Because we don’t have to stop to present anything, we don’t need to describe the appearance or the place. Worldbuilding is already done in the original story, so the fanfic focuses on action. Everybody reading already knows the characters and worlds giving the write a head start. Pair that with some writing prompts (maybe this list is helpful) and you have yourself a fun, great writing exercise.

On the other hand, fanfics are usually published on platforms like fanfiction.net, where you register and have a username, an alias. That alias is your shield against the world: you don’t have to give personal data if you don’t want to and therefore you can publish without fear of criticism. It is much easier to hide behind a pseudonym than to show your face directly.

Different sites are good for different fandoms and have different benefits from the community and more. There are great lists online for that so I won’t go into much detail, but I will point out a few fandoms that caught my eye and where I found them. There are many great site for Klance from Commaful.com to Wattpad, but for more specific fandoms, some live on very specific sites. Like Pixelfance on Fanfiction.Net or B Monkey on AO3.

Why are you against it?

There were very few people here who ventured against fanfiction publicly. I suppose it is easier to defend something than to criticize it. Basically, those who are against it think that writing fanfics is taking advantage of someone else’s work and that it’s much more productive to write your own original stories.

It’s something like Diana P. Morales’ final conclusion about writing stories based on real facts. Why write based on something when we can create something new and original?

It’s true that it’s more productive (and profitable) to write a short story or a novel if it’s original rather than a fanfic. In the case of stories, you can send them to contests; novels can be edited and corrected and try to publish/self-publish them. A fanfic, on the other hand, can only be published on platforms of this style, unless you modify it so much that you turn it into a totally original story.

However, I think that writing fanfics is a bit devalued. Last week I was talking about how the publishing world had begun to notice these fan focused websites. Following the success of Fifty Shades of Grey, which started out as a Twilight fanfic. Examples like these have caused people to think that fanfics are of worse quality than novels.

The problem with websites where fanfics are published is that there is no filter at all: everything is published, the good and the bad. And of course it’s easier to find bad texts than good ones. But today, with self-publishing, Amazon is also full of low quality texts that have not gone through a correction (let’s not say by a professional proofreader), so the fact that it is a novel does not ensure that its quality is higher.

In fact, today many publishers publish books even though they know their quality is low. And is that we must not forget that a publisher is a company and therefore looks for its economic benefit. So if a famous Youtuber signs a book that lacks quality (or even history and are only his phrases placed in a corner of the page wasting a whole page of paper), they publish it. Why? Because if you have 3 million followers, you will most likely sell quite a few copies.

But just as many of these things are published, good stories are also published. And they also write good fics that have a lot of planning behind them. On whether or not it is easy to write, I refer to the words of Dalila Cabrera

Is it easy to write fanfiction?

Important this last detail because it was something that was also mentioned to me in the comments. The fanfics (at least in which you don’t invent half a universe and completely change the personality of the characters) serve as training to know how to maintain the personality of someone when you write, that doesn’t fluctuate, that looks natural and coherent with the one that appeared in the book. And this is complicated.

So, are fanfiction good or bad?

Well, the answer, as always, depends. In my opinion, as long as the author agrees, fanfics can be a very good tool to start writing, create a habit and even as practice over time.

I also see as a positive point the fact that they increase and expand the world/universe on which a story is based. This for fantasy or science fiction novels is fantastic. Can you imagine J.K. Rowling sifting through stories based on the Harry Potter universe and expanding the story in the Star Wars Expanded Universe style? We would have stories from magic schools in other parts of the world, from before the appearance of Voldemort, the creation of Hogwarts… Of course, everything would pass through her first, so that she could approve or reject it.

I have nothing more to add. The truth is that creating a survey and seeing the results and comments has been very interesting. Would you like it to be repeated? Did you vote and comment on this one?

You can leave me your opinion in a comment or by means of a message in Twitter (that you see that I have them very much in account as much as others).

Now go and get a pencil and a piece of paper. Or a keyboard and a screen.

Write original things, write fanfics.

It doesn’t matter, but write and marvel us all.