Getting Your Writing Out

I've been blogging about writing in a more literary fashion.  This is more about the other end of things, when you have already edited it yourself, taken it to a writers' group and edited it using the feedback, possibly paid a freelance editor to give you feedback, which you've employed, and you're ready for exposure.  There are many ways, more than I could detail here, to get exposure for your stuff.  

A lot of people are happy with getting readership through general writer's websites or specifically teen writers' websites like Wattpad or Inkitt or even a blog site like this one.  Some view these as websites as enough, especially for those who work with fanfiction, while others view them as a place to get further feedback toward publishing their writing elsewhere.  One concern about this is some publishers won't accept work that has received any kind of general exposure.  It's something to research before any decisions are made.  

Another option is self-publication, through Amazon or some other route.  Many modern writers ignore mainstream publishers and both start and end here.  Some mainstream publishers will even search among the successfully self-published works to offer a contract.  A lot of writers start to get a following by publishing short stories or other short works, offering them for free, then sell their later pieces for a small fee.  This route will require a lot of research to know how to self-publicize and get a readership.  A lot of writers go the hybrid route, following more than one path to getting a readership.  

If you decide to publish with a regular publisher, the first step is still to research.  Writer's Market, either the book form or the website, is a great resource.  It does cost money up front, but many find it well worth the cost, especially the access and ease given by a year's subscription to the website.  Writer's Market lists information for those seeking publication in one of just about every genre, along with publishers' and agents' contact information, guidelines, and instructions.  If you don't want to go with a publication like that, you can simply use Google to find lists of publishers and agents in any genre imaginable.  

There are many routes to sharing your works with others.  It depends on what you're seeking.  Any which way you go, I recommend you start by researching and getting a feel for the market, publishers, and expectations.  I wish you the best.  

Your Writer's Platform

I've been blogging about how to write in a more literary fashion.  Last time, I mentioned I would soon talk about starting a writer's platform.  A lot of publishers today are looking for you to already have a writer's platform in place.  This includes as much social media as you can manage (a FaceBook page, Instagram, Twitter, a WebPage, Linkdin, etc.)  Basically, you'll want to show the publisher you have a following, that you have a ready readership that can help a good writer show they're a worthy investment to a publisher.  It also helps you advertise to your following when you have something published.  

I started blogging about thing that meant something to me about three years ago.  I am a mother to an angel, a mother of fur babies, and a writer, so I started a free blog on blogger about child loss, this one about writing, and one from the point of view of my daughter's cat.  They have a modest number of readers every week, enough to make it worth doing.  On a writer's blog, it helps to have a theme or niche.  I started just writing about how I write, then it evolved to a specific kind of writing.  Play to your strengths.  Read other blogs to get an idea how they work.  I go to Pixabay.com for free images and use a lot of images to make my blogs more visually attractive and engaging.  It really is ideal to write in a blog once or twice a week, though I don't generally have time for more than once every other week for any but my cat blog.  

I started on Twitter a few years ago.  I started small, just reaching out to other writers, small publishers, and others, basically those eager to follow anyone who would follow them.  If possible, it helps to have more followers than you follow.  It would be good to start posting meaningful tidbits, links to your blog posts, etc, so your followers know you're worth following.  Make sure your profile is complete.  I have had roughly 15,000 views of just this writer's blog alone.  

Having a full Linkdin profile is critical to any professional, especially someone who is self-employed.  Employers and publishers can all check this profile to get a sense of who you are and what you can do.  

It's also a good idea to have a strong and regularly-updated website.  People can find your blog via your webpage and your social media through your links on  They can also get to know you as a person and a professional.  FaceBook pages can help fill in the gaps and make for easy postng. 

All of this (unless you choose to make an expensive web domain not in the name of Wix, Weebly, etc.) is free.  It can be time-consuming at first, but it can help you jump-start your writing like nothing else.  I wish you the best as you pursue your dreams to writing and publishing success.  

 

Setting Writing Goals

I've been blogging about how to write in a more literary fashion, though this post is more general.  'Tis the season most people set goals for the next year.  Many of us forget about them soon after, but a goal not written, as they say, is just a dream.  If you write your goals where you can see them and refer to them often, you're more likely to keep them.

A lot of people have heard about SMART goals, goals that are specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound.  SMART goals can help one achieve many things in life, but they may be particularly useful for writers.  For instance, if you simply want to get around to writing and just never find the time, sit down and write a goal right now, something alone the lines of "I will write poetry every day at 9 am for 30 minutes/5 pages/whatever for the entire year."  This goal specifically names what you'll write, is measurable, achievable (most days), relevant to a poet's career, and time-bound.

Say, you have a pile of writing already but need to edit, as I do.  Then, you may set the goal to edit your short stories for an hour every day at 10 pm for a month or until they are done.  If you need help with editing but don't have a writers' group yet, you may write that you will find a writers' group that works online by the end of the month by researching and talking to fellow writers.  Alternatively, you may set a goal to create your own writers' group by the end of the month then set out a plan to do it.

You may have a pile of writing you have already vetted through a writers' group and have already edited.  You may set goals to create a writers' platform (including a webpage, an email, a blog, a FaceBook page, a Twitter account, and any other social media platforms you can find).  Research how to do that and set a goal.  It's always a good idea for any beginning writer.  Then, you can tell an editor/publisher/agent you have a platform and a following.  In a blog soon, I'll be writing about how I went about doing this.  It would also be a good idea to set SMART goals about actually sending your materials out to agents or publishers as well, something along the lines of "I will send one short story per week out to a publisher."  I will also talk about this process as well.

Whatever your aim, you can focus better, know exactly what your plan is, and follow that plan through SMART or other kinds of goals.  But it's not a goal until you write it down.  Don't overwhelm yourself with too many goals, or you'll just get frustrated and walk away.  Go ahead and set 1-3 right now as a next step to achieving your dreams.