#186 Tinkering

Sales have dropped drastically for my first novel Exchange Day.  I've read time and time again that there are three major factors (that combine with luck) to the success of an indie published novel.  Those are: the quality of the novel, the cover, the blurb.  What will it take for a new reader to take a chance on a writer he or she has never heard of?  What will it take for a new reader to spend his or her hard-earned money on an unknown novel?

As an indie published writer I MUST be willing and able to tinker with all the variables that could potentially lead a reader to my work.  So, as I publish my second novel Hand In The Dark this week, I have decided to tinker with my first novel.  I have changed the blurb to focus on one main character instead of trying to cram the premise into two short paragraphs.  I have also dropped the price from $2.99 to 99¢.  And finally, I have a graphic designer working on a new cover.  I am tinkering.  I am changing the things I can to see what is going to make a difference.

I know there are other writers out there facing the same problems.  I encourage all of them to remain positive and to focus on the variables.  Be willing to tinker.  And with a little luck readers will find your novels.

#185 Professional Proof Reader

My first novel came out in May of 2014, and no matter how I tried to read and re-read, grammar issues still arose.  Took me back to my junior high days when I swore my papers were perfect but I would still receive a grade of 83.

So I decided to hire a proof reader for my second novel.  It's an added step in the process and an added cost, but it should help eliminate those pesky grammatical errors that could label me as an amateur writer instead of the professional that I aspire to be.

I can't report yet on how successful this decision proved to be.  Once my second book is out, we'll see how many emails I get.  But I must say professionalism is extremely important when self-publishing novels.  One criticism I read over and over again is that traditionally published writers put out a superior product.  When someone catches a mistake in a print book they say, "Oh, the editors must have missed one."  When an indie published writer makes a mistake the same person would likely say, "Well, it's just a self-published book.  What did you expect?"

For that reason, indie writers must be especially careful when publishing their own work.  And for that reason, I am happy I hired someone to proof read my second novel.

#184 Craft (Post 1)

I have decided to devote time and energy to improving my craft.  Sounds like a no brainer for any writer.  I've been writing for awhile now, but my focus was always on the story.  I assumed my craft would develop over time.  If I could tell an intriguing story, then I could keep readers interested.  Now that I have been a full time writer for almost a year, I've noticed that I NEED to improve.  I NEED the writing to get better!

The first step was realizing the need.  The second was figuring out how to dedicate my efforts.  I decided to read a book titled "On Writing Well" by William Zinsser.  I am 40 pages in.  This is only the beginning to a long and difficult journey.  But as Confucius say, "A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step."  At least, I think he said that.

Here are keys to improvement Zinsser outlines early on in the book:

• Write what you are passionate about.  This allows your energy and enthusiasm to shine through the writing, which is enough to carry readers from one page to the next.
• Eliminate the clutter.  Avoid unneeded words and phrases.  This speaks to being genuine.  Don't try and be something you are not.  Write your message in the simplest possible way.  Keep your writing strong and succinct.  Style will follow.  But when you TRY to write with style, your readers will recognize that you are trying instead of succeeding.
• Write for an audience of one.  Don't worry about what others will think of your writing.  Only YOU matter.  Impress, engage, entertain yourself, and others will be impressed, engaged and entertained.  

#183 Robin Williams

I've been struggling with Robin Williams' death this week just like many others across the world.  For me, the struggle stems back to my childhood in the early to middle 80's.  At that time in my life, my dad and I did not live in the same city.  I only saw him one month out of the year, and he did not know what to do with me.  He hoped to use our limited time to instill in me a sense of discipline and respect.  He was a Captain in the US army, and it pained him to see me growing up a spoiled child accustomed to getting anything I wanted.

Obviously this caused friction between us.  I was 8, 9 and 10 years old, and I wanted nothing to do with discipline.  I wanted to play Super Mario Bros.  And Kung Fu.  And RBI baseball.  He wanted me to learn chores.  At night he wanted to watch old WWII movies.  I wanted to watch anything with Arnold in it.

We found our common ground with stand up comedy.  Stand up comedy emerged in the 80s with stars like George Carlin, Steven Wright, Eddie Murphy and Robin Williams.  I didn't understand half of the things these guys said, but every time my dad erupted with laughter, I would erupt with laughter.   We laughed at all the HBO specials, the young comics like Bill Maher, Pete Townsend, Bob Nelson trying to make names for themselves.  I recorded several bits so that I could reenact them for family at night after dinner.

And the highlight of every year was Comic Relief hosted by Robin Williams, Billy Crystal and Whoopi Goldberg.  This was my favorite time of year.  My dad and I never missed it.  We had so much fun together during this time in our lives that he retired from the army so that he could move to Houston to be closer to me.

So when Robin Williams passed away, we lost an artist, a performer and an enthusiastically unique personality.  But we also lost someone who meant more to others than he could possibly understand.  He will truly be missed.

#182 Selling Yourself

One aspect to my writing adventure that I still struggle with is the art of selling myself.  I attend parties, lunches, or talk with friendly people in waiting rooms, and I have trouble selling myself as a writer.  I know this stems from confidence, but it also stems from my desire NOT to be pushy on people.  But, how do I expect to spread the word about my awesome books if I don't tell anyone?  So, I've decided to work on this aspect of my career.

This weekend I went to a birthday party.  In attendance were several intelligent people who I learned LOVE to read.  Perfect opportunity, right?  Well, I took advantage.  When the inevitable question came up, "What do you do?",  I answered triumphantly, "I'm a writer!"

We discussed my book, my writing process, publishing, genres, great writers of the past and present, and ultimately had a grand ole time.  At the end of the night I made a point to direct everyone to my website.  This is the easiest and best place to find information on my writing and myself in general.  And it is easy to remember.  www.alexandermori.com.  But you already knew that!

When we got home I began undressing and realized the silliest thing in the world.  There is only one picture of me on my website.  I did this by design.  It is the same picture on my twitter and kboards account.  As I removed my blue, button down shirt I realized that was the exact same outfit I wore when my one photo was taken.  Everyone at the party (who ventured to the website), thinks I LOVE that outfit!

Here's the moral of the story: when you take your one photo for the website, burn the outfit you wore so that you don't look like a fool.  Either that, or buy six more of that same outfit and just wear it every day of your life.

#181 Iconic Films From My Youth

Growing up in the late 80s/early 90s there were some bad ass iconic films that helped shape a generation of artists.  Me included.  I'm not sure if this is what all old guys do, but I look back fondly at some of these films, remembering how important it was to see them in the theater as soon as possible because all the other kids would be talking about it at school on Monday.  Following is a list of the big name movies that came out when I was younger.  For some, this will line up nicely.  Let me know what movies made your list of Iconic Films From Your Youth!

• Batman - The original one with Michael Keaton.  Before this, Batman was seriously lame!
• Jurassic Park - This movie truly changed visual effects forever.  I saw it twice in the theater, and still get the chills when the T-Rex is introduced for the first time.  The effects in this movie, though 20 years old, still stand up.
• Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure - Holds up surprisingly well.  But I think that is because Rufus is cool and Bill's mom is so hot.
• The Ghostbusters - No explanation needed.  Roller skating rinks were never the same afterward.
• Back To The Future - This movie blew my mind.  I think this movie and its sequels is actually responsible for Stephen Hawking's understand of space and time.
• Total Recall - Think this is the best action movie of all time.  If not, the only rivals I can think of are T2 and Die Hard.  
• T2 and Die Hard - May be the best action movies of all time.  If not, it's probably Total Recall.
• Basic Instinct - This movie was SO scandalous that I remember my parents (who do not care about movies) needing to see it.  They would not let us watch it.  So we bought tickets to some other movie and then snuck in and watched it anyway.  The interrogation room scene still haunts and intrigues me to this day.
• Return of the Jedi - Third installment to the most important trilogy ever.  So good!  So important!  And I saw it so many times in the theater.
• The Karate Kid - For a school talent show me and a friend devised a karate routine to "You're The Best Around" song.  It was super cool.  All my elementary school pajamas were karate outfits.

Others that just barely did not make the list.  There are great films, but I do not remember NEEDING to see them in the theater like the others:

Waterworld, Robocop, Who Framed Roger Rabbit, Aliens, The Goonies, Lethal Weapon, The Lost Boys

#180 Editing

I started writing full time nearly nine months ago.  I'm in the third trimester and have learned a lot about writing and myself.  With my first novel, the most difficult part of the process was revision and editing.  I'm not detail oriented in general, and combing through line after line of text I just wrote proved to be more difficult than I imagined.

I am nearly done with my second novel.  THANKFULLY, editing for the second novel has been MUCH easier.  I don't know the exact cause, but I feel it is probably due to a combination of factors.  I am getting slightly better at writing, so there are fewer areas of the novel that need complete overhauls.  I think I am getting better at reading my work critically.  The improved attitude allows me to comb through the text with less frustration.  And I think it's possible that I simply like this book better.

If you are like me and have trouble with editing and revision, then you will be happy to know that it DOES get easier.  Keep pushing on and don't let this essential part of the writing process be the reason you do not finish projects.

#179 Spinning Wheels? Change Direction

My brother has been with me as I've embarked on my journey to become a self-sustaining writer.  My struggle has inspired him to pursue a similar dream.  He wishes to write comics, graphic novels and movies.  He LOVES superheroes and revamped comic book stories from Grimms Fairy Tales to Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.  Recently he told me he wants to write a new Power Rangers movie.

For the past several months he has focused on this genre.  He has produced a rough draft to a novella, a handful of comics and a couple of short stories.  I have read most of his work and believe in my heart the work is not quite ready to be sold.  I want him to improve his craft on two major levels 1) Grammar 2) Composition.  The first level is self explanatory.  Words, punctuation, grammar are tools the writer must understand in order to build a story from the ground up.  My brother works well with some tools.  Others he has little to no experience.  Composition is a different animal. Composition includes character development, pacing, description, dialogue and the overarching strategy used to reveal and advance key aspects to plot, conflict, climax and resolution.  There are no rules for composition.  Its all fair game.  A writer can do whatever he or she wishes, which makes this extremely difficult to teach, learn, cultivate, improve and judge.  This is the area of writing my brother has the most opportunity for improvement.

To become a better writer, one must read and write.  Seems obvious, doesn't it?  I've encouraged my brother to keep writing, hoping that practice, practice and more practice would be his path to improvement.  However, after 8 months of writing, I have seen little improvement in his grammar or composition.

So recently, I decided to explore a different strategy.  I am trying to get him to write outside of his preferred genre.  He's been stuck in the same conventions that make up superhero stories so long now that his writing has not advanced.  He is spinning his wheels.  Staying in the same place.  I have him doing two things:  1) Writing beer reviews.  2) Creative writing exercises you might see in a high school classroom.  He has been at it for a few days and I can already see how his approach to writing has shifted.  We are still early in this process and have not seen immediate improvements in his writing, but I believe we have taken a good first step.

The moral of my story is this:  If you find yourself stuck, your wheels spinning needlessly in place, try writing something completely different for a change.  Break out of your chosen genre just to see what comes out.  You may be surprised to discover that you are not as good of a comic book writer as you thought.  You might just discover that you are an excellent beer reviewer!