The Bridesmaid Blues |
Angel Falls |
Today I'm delighted to be handing over to author Tracey Sinclair. Tracey is a freelance
writer, author, and editor. Her books include the romantic comedy The
Bridesmaid Blues, and the paranormal series Dark Dates, the latest of which is
Angel Falls.
Photo courtesy of Tracey Sinclair |
Ten Things I Learned
I’ve been writing – and earning my living as a wordsmith of
one sort or another – for well over a decade. So here are some of the
occasionally hard-earned lessons I’ve picked up on the way.
There’s never a right
time to write…
I spent years putting off writing a novel until I ‘had the
time’ – only to discover, surprise surprise, I never had the time. Most people
write their first big project in the corners of their days, and even
established writers have to juggle numerous responsibilities. Now I actually
can dedicate big chunks of time to writing, I often find they are my least
productive periods. 15 minutes a day adds up to a novel faster than a whole
year of ‘sometime’.
But some things can’t
be rushed
Some projects need a decent gestation period, and no matter
how much you want to progress them, they come at their own pace. I carried my first novel, Doll, around
for about four years before I felt ready to write it, with only the first and
the last page perfectly formed: then I wrote the whole thing in a few short
months.
People will be
incredibly supportive…
When you commit to writing, or get published, you’ll be
astonished by how supportive some people are, even people who you don’t know
well. There’s a village out there to help you – find it, and cultivate it.
But maybe they won’t
Some people – even people who are close to you and care
about you – just won’t get it. They won’t understand why it’s important. Or
they’ll be too busy, or they’ll think it’s a pie in the sky fantasy, or they’ll
be jealous or they’ll genuinely think you are a terrible writer and they
shouldn’t be encouraging you. Don’t waste time trying to figure out which of
these it is, just focus on your own work and spend time appreciating those who
ARE being supportive.
Build a team
Whether this is other writers in a writing group or class, a
beta team to read your first drafts, a community of bloggers, or even just a
few supportive friends who’ll take you for a beer to drown your sorrows or
celebrate your successes, assemble people to help you on your writing journey.
Every first draft is
terrible
Don’t let that stop you.
Done is better than
perfect
No book is flawless – and trying to be the first person to
reach perfection will be your undoing. Putting out an imperfect book is better
than having a constantly tinkered with masterpiece that nobody ever gets to
read.
But it should be as
good as you can make it
Write. Rewrite. Get feedback. Rewrite again. Edit, edit and
edit again.
Not everyone will
like your book
And that will hurt your feelings – but you might also benefit
from it. Learning to differentiate between constructive feedback that you can
utilise to make yourself a better writer and criticism (even valid criticism) that
you need to ignore is one of the hardest skills to learn but it will stand you
in good stead. This is especially tough when someone offers a perfectly valid
critique of your work and you have to go ‘you’re right, and that might make it
better in a way, but doing that will turn this into something I don’t want it
to be’.
It’ll all be worth it
Even if you don’t end up rich and famous. Even if you never
publish – or even finish – a book. Exploring your own creativity is one of the
most rewarding things you’ll ever do, and though it might occasionally drive
you crazy, you won’t regret it.
There's some great advice and tips for all you aspiring authors there from Tracey. I hope that you found them as interesting to read as I did.
To take a look at all of Tracey Sinclair's books you can visit her author page on Amazon here. I think The Cassandra Bick Chronicles sound particularly intriguing as I love a good feisty female character and I've never wondered until now how vampires find love. Take a look at the blurb:
But if vampires aren't your thing then why not take a look at The Bridesmaid Blues which has been described as "A smarter, funnier Bridget Jones" which sounds and looks like a perfect read for the beach or a sunny day just relaxing in the garden.
You can also connect with or find out more about Tracey using the links below:
Facebook
Twitter
Blog
I'd like to say a big thank you to Tracey for stopping by today and sharing her knowledge and experience with us, it's been a pleasure.
There's some great advice and tips for all you aspiring authors there from Tracey. I hope that you found them as interesting to read as I did.
To take a look at all of Tracey Sinclair's books you can visit her author page on Amazon here. I think The Cassandra Bick Chronicles sound particularly intriguing as I love a good feisty female character and I've never wondered until now how vampires find love. Take a look at the blurb:
It isn't easy to surprise Cassandra Bick. When you run a
human-vampire dating agency, your colleague is a witch who is engaged to a
shifter and your business partner is one of London's most powerful (and
sexiest) vampires, there's no such thing as a normal day at the office. But
when a mysterious Dark Dates client brings a dire warning of a new threat to
the city's supernatural community, Cass and her friends realise they are up
against their deadliest foe yet – and that this time, the danger is far closer
to home than they could ever have imagined. Sexy, snarky and with more bite
than a crypt full of vampires, Angel Falls is the latest in the Dark Dates:
Cassandra Bick series.
But if vampires aren't your thing then why not take a look at The Bridesmaid Blues which has been described as "A smarter, funnier Bridget Jones" which sounds and looks like a perfect read for the beach or a sunny day just relaxing in the garden.
You can also connect with or find out more about Tracey using the links below:
Blog
I'd like to say a big thank you to Tracey for stopping by today and sharing her knowledge and experience with us, it's been a pleasure.
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