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Fun Fridays – October 27, 2017

By Steve Laubeon October 27, 2017

Today is our grandson’s 2nd birthday. (Hooray Caleb!) Someday he may enjoy math, or science, or business, or the arts, or just rule the world like he does now (hah!).

This video is for those who are fascinated by math and statistics. Who would of thought that sorting books could be so hard? (Do you shelf your books by color? Please say no.)

In my years as a bookseller we did variations of this exercise every day when new shipments arrived. They had to be sorted and placed in the right section of the store. I never thought something like this would be a factor in computer programming, as this video points out.

Enjoy!

The next time you receive 1200 books in one shipment, you will know what to do.

Beyond the Hook: Writing Sympathetic Characters

By Tamela Hancock Murrayon October 26, 2017

The first page may be promising. The opening chapters may be engrossing. But a reader might still abandon your book if it doesn’t deliver. How can you keep your readers going? Sympathetic Characters Some writers are talented in creating sympathetic characters from page one. Perhaps Page one occurs during a fire, when the characters have lost everything. Or the heroine has been abandoned by a …

Category: Craft, Creativity, Editing, Romance, Romantic SuspenseTag: Characters, Craft, Reading

Your First Writing Assignment

By Bob Hostetleron October 25, 2017

If your writing doesn’t start with this practice, you’re cheating yourself. Lauren Winner, author of the wonderful memoirs, Girl Meets God and Mudhouse Sabbath, tells about an experience she had when a writing student of hers showed her part of a memoir that was astounding, far better than this student’s usual writing. Winner asked the student what had transformed her writing over the course of …

Category: Career, Faith, The Writing Life, TheologyTag: Faith, Prayer, The Writing Life

An Author Knows They are Having a Bad Day When…

By Dan Balowon October 24, 2017

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“I went to sleep with gum in my mouth and now there’s gum in my hair and when I got out of bed this morning I tripped on the skateboard and by mistake I dropped my sweater in the sink while the water was running and I could tell it was going to be a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day.” (First lines of Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day by Judith Viorst, Simon & …

Category: Humor, The Writing LifeTag: Authors, Humor, The Writing Life

Variety is the Spice in an Agent’s Inbox

By Steve Laubeon October 23, 2017

The other day a writer asked me, “Describe a typical work day for you.” I choked back a laugh and said, “There is no such thing as ‘typical’ in the day of a literary agent.” There are many things that repeat. Royalty statements, new deal negotiations, contract evaluations, reviewing client proposals, and the unsolicited inquiries. But within those is a constant variety. I wrote down a sample of …

Category: Agency, Agents, Book Business, The Publishing LifeTag: Agency, Agents

Fun Fridays – October 20, 2017

By Steve Laubeon October 20, 2017

A change of pace today. Do yourself a favor. Set aside 10 minutes. Turn up your speakers. Quiet your mind and heart. Close your eyes. Then play this video. The song “Alleluia” by Eric Whitaker is performed. (There is nothing to watch, only the album cover is displayed.) While you let the music wash over you, pray. Lift your burdens before the One and Only One who can help you carry …

Category: Encouragement, Fun Fridays, Personal

Yes, It’s Personal

By Tamela Hancock Murrayon October 19, 2017

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We’d all like to think everyone will love all our books. But it just won’t happen. It’s personal, and that’s okay. Based on past posts, regular followers of this blog might conclude that I don’t like any book I start. That’s not true, but I’ll admit I’ve ditched a couple more books lately. One is a classic, but I didn’t like spending time with a protagonist mixing copious amounts of drink and …

Category: Book Proposals, Book Review, Get Published, The Writing LifeTag: Agents, book proposals, Pitching

Be Published? or Be Read?

By Bob Hostetleron October 18, 2017

Is your goal “being published” or “being read?” What pieces of writing and publishing advice do professional agents and editors wish would go away…forever? I asked that question of some of my friends in the industry (yes, I have friends, and most are much smarter than me). The last two weeks I have posted (here and here) some of their responses. But I’ve saved one more for last. One savvy, …

Category: Book Business, Book Sales, Career, Marketing, Platform, The Writing LifeTag: Book Business, Book Sales, Get Published, Marketing

The Damaged Reader

By Dan Balowon October 17, 2017

Not like I am some overly sensitive guy, but often when I hear a sermon in church or some Christian presentation, I cringe when a pastor or speaker might say something to the effect, “Raising a family is the most important thing a married man and woman do in their lives.” I agree it is very important, but I also think about the middle age couple four rows in front of me who had multiple …

Category: Marketing, Reading, TheologyTag: Audience, The Writing Life, Theology

10 Publishing Related Facts About Winnie-the-Pooh

By Steve Laubeon October 14, 2017

Winnie-the-Pooh turned 91 years old today, Saturday, October 14, 2017! The book, Winnie-the-Pooh by A.A. Milne, was first published on October 14, 1926. Our family celebrates the day each year. Even with our kids all grown up and married, my wife still bakes Pooh cookies and decorates them. Here are some fun publishing related facts about Winnie-the-Pooh: ‘Winnie-the-Pooh’ was …

Category: Humor