Essay Online

Have you ever had anyone criticize your writing? Maybe they were just having a bad day. After all some people just can’t seem to say anything nice.

Not everyone is comfortable with criticism, but there may be times when it provides just what you need to move forward in your writing.

There is a man that’s been called the “Simon Cowell of Christian Publishing”. A few quotes from Chip MacGregor might allow you to see that he’s far from being the touchy-feely type. The following quotes were part of a July 2006 interview with Chip MacGregor who is the Associate Publisher with Hachette Book Group USA. The quotes are part of a lengthy interview conducted by the staff at Novel Journey.

“The reason most wannabe authors remain unpublished is because they just aren’t willing to put in the time, to do the hard work and become better at the craft of writing. In other words, laziness will keep you from being a great writer.” &ndash Chip MacGregor

“Some people (many people) seem to be fans, and send me nice notes on occasion, like when they’ve gone off their meds or had too much to drink. Others clearly do NOT like me. Especially nice church ladies who can’t understand why I’d say that a book is bad or a writer has done a terrible job.” &ndash Chip MacGregor

“The only way I could finish the stupid thing was to tear out the pages I’d read and light them on fire, in hopes that occasionally sticking my hand into the flames would keep me awake. Mourn the trees that died so this tome could see print.” &ndash Chip MacGregor

“I’d suggest that many of the Old Testament prophets helped the culture make strides not by being nice, but being honest &ndash even blunt. Ditto Paul. Ditto Jesus, for that matter (take a peek at his criticisms of the upstanding church leadership of His day).” &ndash Chip MacGregor

“So what’s the harm in being honest? Even brutally honest? Can’t we all admit we’ve got stuff to learn?” &ndash Chip MacGregor.

“90% of the stuff I reject is rejected for one reason: it isn’t good enough.” &ndash Chip MacGregor

MacGregor does have advice for writers that may make them cringe a bit less, “I think writer’s conferences are a great way for newbies to get educated in the process of writing. Hanging around a bunch of experienced people in your chosen field is ALWAYS an excellent idea… It’s nice to find somebody a bit further down the path.”

It is safe to say that the thrust of MacGregors ‘honesty’ it to try to challenge writers to be the absolute best they can be. This often means forcing ourselves to work harder at our craft and refusing to use a specific genre as a crutch for mediocre writing.

A debate is taking place on the worldwide web in connection with the use or overuse of content. Everyone seems to agree that the use of quality content is important, but how much is too much and what ways are best for the distribution of your content?

Please note that this issue is not related to write-for-hire or contract content writing.

Close to the Vest

Some writers in this camp indicate they feel there is an integrity issue at stake when a writer makes their work widely available and used on multiple sites.

In this line of thinking the author should only use the article on their own personal site without the ability of other sites to use the work.

Many authors feel that the use of the article in a singular location provides more weight to the article when viewed by online guests.

Free For All

In this camp the mantra is “Everyone can use it!” The motivations for allowing the use might be different for each author, but there are many that use this strategy.

For some writers, the allowance of article use is tied to their interest in making a certain point of view widely available. This may be tied to religious or political thought. For other writers, the use of free-to-use articles has more to do with a wealth of online marketing potential.

In either case, these articles do tend to be widely used.

Which is the right perspective?

I suppose the answer to that question lie in what it is you are most interested in accomplishing with your article. It could be that the tie to the article is so intimate that it would be a violation of conscience to allow it to be used elsewhere. However, it could be a message of such importance that it makes sense to make it available to a wider audience.

There are obvious benefits to making at least some of your work available at no cost through an online article submission service. In many cases the body of free articles represents a voice of authority for those interested in using the articles. It is also safe to say that there are numerous publishers with limited budgets for the purchase of material. These individuals rely heavily on free-to-reprint articles to meet their content goals. In turn, you have another publishing credit to add to your portfolio.

So, check your motivation and career objectives and see which direction best suits your specific writing objectives.

“U.S. consumers purchase approximately 7 billion greeting cards each year, generating nearly $7.5 billion in retail sales.” *

Have you ever wondered who actually writes all of those greeting cards you purchase? Sure there are staff writers who may develop themes and specific greeting cards. However, there are numerous freelance writers who have received checks for the use of one or more of their greeting card ideas.

“There are an estimated 3,000 greeting card publishers in the U.S., ranging from small family-run organizations to major corporations. GCA-member publisher companies account for approximately 95 percent of industry sales.” *

With so many greeting card publishers it is easy to see that this may be a market worth looking at. Many freelance writers who have sold ideas to greeting card companies find the idea a profitable means of using their downtime.

When these writers find themselves without a pressing deadline or if they have a few moments to spare, they will often jot down a few creative ideas. When they accumulate dozen or so ideas, they send them onto a greeting card company for consideration.

“The exchange of greeting cards is one of the most widely accepted customs in the U.S. There are cards for virtually any occasion or relationship, and they are widely available. Approximately 100,000 retail outlets around the country carry greeting cards.” *

Greeting card companies often pay $25-300 for accepted original ideas. One of the best ways to match your idea with a publisher is to conduct some research of your own. For instance some card companies only accept non-rhyming poetry while others only accept humor. Some want inspirational thought while others deal in the clich

“Give me a stock clerk with a goal and I’ll give you a man who will make history. Give me a man with no goals and I’ll give you a stock clerk.” - J.C. Penney

Country recording artist Tim McGraw confided in an interview that there was a guy at a 7-11 that could sing him under a table. So, why is that guy serving up Slurpees while Tim is performing to packed stadiums?

The reason is the same for writers as it is for singers. There are many incredibly gifted writers who will never have a book published. The reasons are many, but it often comes down to their willingness to follow a dream or to shelve the dream for other reasons &ndash some noble and some steeped in fear.

“The young do not know enough to be prudent, and therefore they attempt the impossible — and achieve it, generation after generation.” - Pearl S. Buck

There is something about the idea of writing without fear. The dreams we may have once had do not need to remain a simple reference point for ‘what if’s’ and ‘might’a beens’.

The good news about writing is that the more real-life experiences you have the more you may be able to relate. It is never too late to pick up a pen and began to compose something extraordinary.

Sometimes the only thing that will set you apart from a better writer is simply your willingness to write &ndash then share it with others.

“Self-trust is the first secret of success.” - Ralph Waldo Emerson

The noble art of writing allows a wordsmith to venture into the hearts of humanity and welcome others to the exploration. Unlike certain other entertainment fields, becoming an author is something that can and is done at any age.

Success

Bessie Anderson Stanley

He has achieved success

who has lived well,

laughed often, and loved much;

who has enjoyed the trust of pure women,

the respect of intelligent men

and the love of little children;

who has filled his niche and accomplished his task;

who has left the world better than he found it

whether by an improved poppy,

a perfect poem, or a rescued soul;

who has never lacked appreciation of Earth’s beauty

or failed to express it;

who has always looked for the best in others

and given them the best he had;

whose life was an inspiration;

whose memory a benediction.

Perhaps its time to dust off a dream.

There are two specific, yet lofty goals writers strive for every time they commit words to paper. That goal is to write in such a way as to draw their readers into the written word.

If this goal is in fictional writing the author wants the reader to become so absorbed in the story that they are both satisfied, yet sad to see the story end.

If this goal is in non-fiction the writer accomplishes the objective by relating details in a way that leaves the reader interested in the subject and with a desire to learn more.

For the successful fiction writer the term most often applied to this principle is Active Participation. When a consumer steps up the book display they are looking for certain things such as cover design, color schemes and just enough information to allow them to make their choice in thirty seconds or less. Once the reader has the book in hand they desperately want to be an active participant in the work. They want to identify with your characters and involve themselves in the plot line. They want stay up till 2 o’clock in the morning loosing themselves in a world you created. They simply want to know if you are going to be able to make that possible for them.

For the non-fiction writer the goal is to connect the reader to Active Learning. This process has seen non-fiction books include bullet points, ‘did-you-know’ segments and a link between facts and famous individuals that were involved. School textbooks are full of color and sidebars as they try to connect with students to bridge the gap between factual information to innovative ways to encourage active learning.

It is possible for both Active Participants and Active Learners to approach the written word with an inborn desire to learn and/or participate in the storyline. In this scenario the majority of the work is already done.

If a student comes to a textbook with a refusal to learn, then the best textbooks available may not be able to break through the student’s self-imposed learning barrier. Similarly, if an individual purchases a novel with an ‘impress me’ mentality and are only interested in finding any inconsistency or flaw they may have difficulty participating in the work of fiction. Then again, they didn’t really come to participate.

Ultimately what this means to the writer is there is a need to work hard in the removal of any stumbling block in an effort to allow your readers to become the active participant and active learner they want to be.

One of the ways many writers can successfully add credentials to their portfolio if to participate in a variety of literary contests. This type of contest encourages writers to put their best foot forward in both creativity and attention to detail.

It is true that there are some contests that provide a cash award for their top finishers, but there are also publishing scams that will accept your work regardless of quality. When you receive notice that your work has been accepted for publication it can be a real boost, however, a quick look at many writer’s websites can help you define the contests that are essentially vanity publishers willing to print just about anything if they believe you will purchase copies of the book for friends and family.

Many cash award writing contests cover the cost of prize awards by charging an entry fee. This factor often discourages many writers who may not feel confident enough in their writing to pay a fee to submit. This allows those who do enter a better chance at placing.

There are also writing contests that present the opportunity to have their work published online, in a magazine or in an anthology. As a rule this type of contest does not require a purchase of the publication the work will appear in nor will they assume full rights of your work. The best writing contests only require a one time non-exclusive print right. This is important because it allows you the opportunity to sell or place the work in other venues.

Beware of forfeiting full (exclusive) rights in any writing contest. When this right is given the ownership of the work is no longer yours. You will have no right to use the material in any form without permission from the publisher. It is possible to pay to enter a contest, forfeit the rights to your work and allow a publisher to gain long-term financial benefit from your work.

Quality writing contests have the bonus feature of allowing you to fine tune your skills by reading the work of others. Reading can make a good writer even better. If you pay attention you can learn what works and what doesn’t while using writing contests as a means of gaining valuable insight into unique styles and structure.

On a positive note, there have been numerous incidents in which individuals who entered a submission for a writing contest were able to use that same work for publishing in other book anthologies and magazines. The key is making sure to participate in writing contests that preserve your right to control the reuse of the piece.

A writing exercise that is helpful in learning a very specific style of writing is called Emulation. This is done to match the style of a specific author.

In essence, you create an entirely new passage using an existing passage as your guide.

For example if you wanted to try to write in the same manner as the Psalmist you might copy a passage of Scripture…

Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth. Worship the LORD with gladness; come before him with joyful songs. Know that the LORD is God. It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, the sheep of his pasture. Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name. For the LORD is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations.

This would be an emulation example…

Lift your voice to the Lord, everyone. Sing to the Lord with triumph; come to His throne with humility. There is none like our God. It is He who sustains us, and He knows us; we follow Him as the least in His Kingdom. Gratitude arrives before us as we proclaim His greatness; show honor by singing praise because the Lord is awesome and His love does not diminish, He will be faithful to your grandchildren’s grandchildren. (Modeled after the Psalmist in Psalm 100).

While this may not be a perfect example, the idea remains intact; stay as close to the form and function of the passage you are emulating as possible so anyone familiar with the work will quickly recognize the similarities.

This is an exercise that is easy in concept, but somewhat difficult in execution. In a perfect emulation you would replace every word with another word. In a perfect emulation a noun is replaced with a noun and an adjective with an adjective and so on.

Emulation teaches you to creatively rewrite and reexamine the mechanics of what was written. In my emulation sample, I used a thought for thought emulation style, not word for word. Emulation doesn’t need to be about the same topic either; it simply needs to match up with the literary style of the original author.

If you are a looking for a writing exercise that is a challenge and remains a great learning tool, consider the use of emulation as a means of discovering more about the structure the author used and, secondarily, how you respond to that structure today.

Writers are an interesting breed of humanity &ndash they can make us feel joy, sadness, anger and empathy. Sometimes they can cause us to feel all these emotions simultaneously.

There are certainly more lucrative methods of gaining an income, yet everyday thousands of individuals will sit down at their keyboard pounding out a story that may never actually be published.

There is a creative energy required to create a meaningful story. It is hard to invest that energy into a story if there is a feeling the story has no chance of success, yet writers will do so.

What motivates a writer to spend their time and talents on something that may bear little fruit?

The answer is found in a quote from author Isaac Asimov, “I write for the same reason I breathe — because if I didn’t, I would die.”

For many writers the reason stems from the fact they have a story in their mind that won’t leave them alone until the story is drained onto the written page only to be replaced by a new story that requires telling. The story might be for the author alone or it might be for a larger audience.

Many writers are not in the market to be famous, they simply agree with the sentiments of Fran

Those who venture into fiction writing often fall prey to certain avoidable, yet highly normal faux pau’s with their first book.

Many of these novels are grand experiments. Often chapters unfold without advance direction or character notebook, sometimes there is a multitude of point of view shifts and there is often a desire to try to pack as much into the story as possible.

One of the key difficulties for new novelists is to track down inconsistencies in their work. For instance if you mention that your character grew up in Ohio it is bad form to mention Chicago as their hometown later in the novel. This can be a somewhat innocuous detail in the book and most people will probably missed it, but the inconsistency is there nonetheless and may detract from the flow of the story is the reader questions the veracity of the claim.

Most authors believe that because the work is fictional the details are less important, but as an author you are creating an entire world for your readers and that world has to become as real as the world in which they live. Since novels have a unique escapist quality to them the last thing you want is to shut down your reader’s link to the book because they are stumbling over inconsistencies.

Another point where first time novelists get into trouble is the addition of gratuitous violence or other points of gratuity. The author often wrongly believes that if they can shock the reader it will cause the book to be more memorable for the reader.

Many readers simply see this as a means to mask a weak storyline. This is not to say that there is no place for violence in a novel, but it must be in context of a superior storyline - not as a means of increasing the chances that your reader will recommend the book to their friends.

Most readers see gratuitous elements in a novel for what they really are and this knowledge provides an instant ‘turn-off’ factor. If you have someone who is willing to read through your manuscript ask him or her to check for anything they consider gratuitous and any inconsistencies they may encounter.

Avoiding a couple of significant potholes on the road to publishing your first novel will provide an advantage with both publisher and reader alike.

One must be drenched in words, literally soaked in them, to have the right ones form themselves into the proper pattern at the right moment. - Hart Crane

Some of the best advice for writers in the 21st century comes from those who have seen their successes and offer advice from their own experience. Let’s draw from that brain trust.

On Writing Well

Show don’t tell. - Henry James

Don’t say the old lady screamed — bring her on and let her scream. - Mark Twain

Cut out all those exclamation marks. An exclamation mark is like laughing at your own joke. - F. Scott Fitzgerald

First drafts are for learning what your novel or story is about. - Bernard Malamud

Usually, when people get to the end of a chapter, they close the book and go to sleep. I deliberately write a book so when the reader gets to the end of the chapter, he or she must turn one more page. When people tell me I’ve kept them up all night, I feel like I’ve succeeded. - Sidney Sheldon

Don’t mistake a good setup for a satisfying conclusion — many beginning writers end their stories when the real story is just ready to begin. - Stanley Schmidt

On Inspiration

Nighttime is really the best time to work. All the ideas are there to be yours because everyone else is asleep. - Catherine O’Hara

I know writers who write only when inspiration comes. How would Isaac Stern play if he played the violin only when he felt like it? He would be lousy. - Madeleine L’Engle

If you wait for inspiration, you’re not a writer, but a waiter. - Anonymous

You can’t wait for inspiration. You have to go after it with a club. - Jack London

The best way to become a successful writer is to read good writing, remember it, and then forget where you remember it from. - Gene Fowler

Read, read, read. Read everything — trash, classics, good and bad, and see how they do it. Just like a carpenter who works as an apprentice and studies the master. Read! You’ll absorb it. Then write. - William Faulkner

The best time for planning a book is while you’re doing the dishes. - Agatha Christie

So this is always the key: you have to write the book you love, the book that’s alive in your heart. That’s the one you have to write. - Lurleen McDaniel

In the second part in this series we will look at a few words of wisdom from authors regarding writer’s Block, motivation and editing skills.