Vlog: You Asked, I Answered 3!

You've asked me questions! And while I can't answer all of them, today I've answered some of the most popular ones. Enjoy!

RELATED VLOGS:

• Elements of a Great Book Ending
• How to Get an Agent
• On Realistic Expectations & Adjusting Goals
• Self vs. Traditional Publishing

Twitter-sized bite:

How do you balance writing & life? Or avoid procrastination? Gabe (@Ava_Jae) answered these questions and more in today's AMA answers! (Click to tweet)

On Compartmentalizing

Photo credit: Alex Abian on Flickr

Like many writers, I juggle a lot of things at once.

Right now I have grad school. A part-time job. Freelance editing. And I'm an author with an active social media presence.

This month, alongside my regular responsibilities (the part time job, freelancing, social media things, everyday life stuff, etc.) I also had my third book due to my editor, as well as two essays. I tackled the book three revisions by doing what I know my brain does best: binge editing, in which I literally dedicated an entire day to revisions until it was done. That worked really well and allowed me to get that major responsibility out of the way so I could then focus on...everything else.

I won't pretend it's perfect—the stress has literally made my chronic illness flare up multiple times this month. But as I'm nearing the light at the end of the tunnel I'm feeling as though it might just be possible to do everything I need. Hopefully.

I still have all the other things due. But I've been realizing, as of late, the way I have to handle things is one at a time. I feel a little lighter knowing I got one major deadline down, and now I'm tackling the rest with new energy. And I'm thinking that maybe I should handle the some of my responsibilities the same way.

I compartmentalize a lot, but as I'm often juggling A Lot, I've found that it's really how my brain works best. If I can focus on one aspect at a time, and ignore the others while I'm getting one thing done, then I don't get overwhelmed with the mountain of things I need to tackle. And with each completed compartment, I feel even more prepared to handle the next.

This isn't going to work for everyone, obviously. But it's how I've been handling what is essentially four jobs, this semester, and I think I'm going to implement it even more as I go on. Because figuring out what strategies work best for your brain can go a long way toward not dropping all the balls at once.

Do you compartmentalize?

Twitter-sized bite:

How do you juggle multiple, major responsibilities while still meeting your deadlines? @Ava_Jae shares their experience. (Click to tweet) 

Vlog: Writing a Synopsis Before First Drafting??

What is a synopsis, why do so many writers hate it, and why in the world would I write one *before* the first draft? Today I'm sharing the plotting tool I never expected to like.

RELATED VLOG: 

• How I Plot

Have you ever tried writing a synopsis before the first draft?

Twitter-sized bite:

Writing a synopsis before the first draft is a thing? @Ava_Jae vlogs about the plotting tool they never expected to like. (Click to tweet)

Resources for Revision

I'm currently in the middle of revisions for both The Rising Gold and my #ownvoices project, so to say I have revision on the brain is an understatement. I use a couple programs to keep me on target and keep track of my progress, including:

• Scrivener. I do all my first drafting and a big chunk of my revisions—any revisions before I send my project to my agent and/or editor, basically—in Scrivener. I like how I can visually track what I've added with different colors, so I can watch the unfolding development just through the colors in my manuscript. Plus Scrivener makes big picture edits—edits that involve moving scenes around or deleting them entirely—a lot easier because you can edit through the cork board.







• myWriteClub. I still use myWriteClub to track my revisions! I enjoy having progress bars so I can see how much I've done, and it helps particularly on those days when I feel like I've worked hard but made little (or not enough) progress.



• Tide. This is a new app I've added to my arsenal thanks to Katie Locke! This app basically has a timer and focus mode, where you work while the timer is going and then take a break when the time is up. If I'm having trouble focusing, it sometimes helps me shut out the distraction of my phone and focus on my work in snippets. Unrelatedly, I've started using the sleep mode too that has calming sounds to lull you to sleep then wakes you up with birds singing, which is kinda nice.

What programs do you use to revise?

Twitter-sized bites:

What programs do you use to revise? Join the discussion on @Ava_Jae's blog. (Click to tweet)

Writing Plans for 2018

Photo credit: aescoba on Flickr

So it's 2018! Now that I've done a semester of grad school I have—shall we say—a more realistic understanding of what I can accomplish while juggling grad school, part time work, and freelance work, which is to say, not a whole lot. But! I still have writing goals for the year, and given that I'll be starting a writing mentorship in the fall for school, I think grad school may even help me along.

With all of that said, here are my writing plans for 2018:

1. Revise & turn in The Rising Gold. This one I'm actually nearly done with. I have the MS out with sensitivity readers and a CP one last time before I revise it again and then send it off to my agent and editor. After that of course will be more edits from my editor, but I'm actually nearing that stage where it's not just in my hands which is...wow. This is the year I finish my first published trilogy.


2. Revise my #ownvoices af YA Thriller. I've been working on this book for well over a year now, and I'm actually going to try to dive back into it this weekend to give it one major revision before I send it to CPs, revise it again, and then send it to my agent and also sensitivity readers. Ideally, I'd like to get this on sub this year so fingers crossed.


3. Draft one new book. I have two very real possibilities with lots of potential and I want to do both eventually. I'm not sure which I'll prioritize this year, but I imagine one of them will be the book I draft this year. I'll be delighted whichever one it ends up being.

So those are my plans! I think they're all manageable, especially with said aforementioned mentorship meaning I kind of have to draft something new this year ha ha. But you know, two birds, one stone, and I'm pretty psyched to see where this year goes both in my professional and personal life. I think it's gonna be a good one. 

What are your writing plans for 2018?

Twitter-sized bite:

What are your writing plans for 2018? Join the discussion on @Ava_Jae's blog. (Click to tweet)

Vlog: On Writing and Music

Another question asked, another question answered. Today I'm talking about what I listen to while I write and edit—and why.

RELATED LINKS:

• My Writing Habits
• How to Finish a WIP
• Do You Have to Write Every Day?

What are your music preferences while writing?

Twitter-sized bite:

From bands to soundtracks to headphones and more, @Ava_Jae shares their music preferences while writing. (Click to tweet) 

What Should You Focus On While First Drafting?

Photo credit: Brian Stetson on Flickr

I've frequently talked about how first drafts are meant to be terrible, and how I worry about nothing while first drafting except getting the story down. I've said time and time again that anything messy in the first draft can be fixed with revisions, but you can't edit a blank page, so getting the words down first is the most important thing.

But what's involved in "getting the story down"? What should you focus on getting on the page, rather than saving it for later?

As is the case with many things in writing, this answer is going to vary writer-to-writer. But after completing sixteen first drafts, this is what I've learned to focus on while getting the story down for the first time:

• The plot. Technically I worry about this while plotting, not first drafting, but the first draft is where I take note of whether or not the plot is working as it should be. A lot of times I can't really tell for sure whether the plot is working the way I wanted it to until the first read through and revisions, but while first draft I at least get a sense of the flow and the way one scene leads into another and how they stack up together.


• The characters. The first draft is really where I get to know the characters for the first time. This is where their personalities start to shine, where their interactions with other characters tells me about them, where I get glimpses into who they are and what makes them tick. By the end of the first draft, I don't have a full picture of my full cast of characters, but I usually have a pretty good idea of how the main cast behaves and how they get along (or don't). 


• The story. Ultimately, the first draft is where I follow a lot of gut feelings. It's not uncommon for my plotted scene card to say one thing and the scene itself to turn out another way entirely. Arguments happen where I didn't plan them—and so does kissing—flirting crops up between characters I didn't expect, and sometimes new plot ideas hit me along the way. I pretty near always follow those gut instincts and go wherever the story takes me, regardless of whether or not I'd planned for it before. And sixteen first drafts later, I've yet to regret going with what felt right as I wrote rather than with what I'd originally planned.

So those are the main things I try to keep in mind when putting words on the page for the first time. What do you focus on while first drafting?

Twitter-sized bite:

What do you focus on while first drafting? @Ava_Jae shares some experience and thoughts. (Click to tweet)

Guest Post: The Author Portrait by Rachel Linn

Photo credit: María Garrido on Flickr

Be honest, when you sit down at your computer to compose your magnum opus, there’s a lot of knee-jiggling, nail-biting, and an alarming amount of palm-sweating. You want to experience the joy of putting words on the page, but the weight of actually writing things down keeps you poised on the edge of creation-- sometimes for months. This chronic paralysis develops because you’ve conflated who you are with what you create. It won’t resolve until you understand you are not The Author.

Margaret Atwood felt “the act of writing comes weighted with a burden of anxieties. The written word is so much like evidence—like something that can be used against you later.” And she wrote The Handmaid’s Tale for goodness sake! If anyone has a body of evidence to show off, it’s Atwood.

But the woman who wrote that quote in 2002 isn’t the same woman who wrote The Handmaid’s Tale in 1985. Yet she’s expected to be THE AUTHOR OF THE HANDMAID’S TALE all the time. While eating lunch. While brushing her teeth. While meeting rabid fans. Another Atwood gem applies here: “Wanting to meet an author because you like his work is like wanting to meet a duck because you like pâte.”

You can’t meet The Author because that person doesn’t exist. The person sitting there watering the keyboard with overmoist palms is not The Author. But it becomes impossible to separate yourself from the looming mythos you’ve create when you believe every sentence is a piece of your soul. So instead of getting anything done, you wait for The Author to show up and do it right. Aaaaany day now.

To cope with this paralysis, I’ve borrowed (stolen) Michel Foucault’s concept of the author function. Since “author function” sounds like a car part, I call it the author portrait instead. The author portrait’s not a person, but a curated accumulation of writing/performance that happens to be attached to a person. Namely you. It’s both an invention and a reflection: your ever evolving professional portrait. So your current draft doesn’t have to be profound any more than your grocery list does. They are just things you write down. When looking through your draft, don’t ask “Will readers like me?” Ask “Does this work enhance the author portrait I’m painting?” When critique partners criticize your work, realize they are critiquing your author portrait, not you as a person.

It’s dangerous to imagine you and your work are one entity, because your writing is meant to be consumed by others while you most certainly are not. Sometimes we fill ourselves with beautiful books and forget what we see is someone else’s author portrait. Behind that finished pâte was a grisly process where a person sweated over a keyboard (or quill pen) until they got over their own mythos and wrote. You and your author portrait are not the same, (and thank goodness) because you are so much more than The Author.

What do you think?

Rachel Linn is a dramaturg/librarian/writer in Atlanta who is passionate about novels, manga, gaming, and fan studies. She has a PhD in Interdisciplinary Arts and and MA in Theatre specializing in critique and critical analysis. On the side she writes a blog with her filmmaker husband called MarriedtotheAuthor.com.

Twitter-sized bite:

On Margaret Atwood, the Author Portrait, and more, @Married2tAuthor shares her guest post on @Ava_Jae's blog. (Click to tweet)

Managing a Writing Career When You're Sick

Photo credit: freestocks.org on Flickr

Most of you know I have rheumatoid arthritis, a degenerative autoimmune disease. I was diagnosed over a year before I got my agent and roughly three years before my debut published, which is to say, I've never not been a professional writer who wasn't chronically ill.

Managing a writing career when you're sick has, well, a lot of ups and downs.

In many ways, I consider myself fortunate. I started a new medication in January that at last, five months later, has started to have some positive effects, including less frequent flares and lessened swelling in my hand. I can still walk without assistance (up to a certain distance, anyway, which unfortunately is less than it was five years ago), and all in all I know I could be in a worse position with my disease.

But I'd be lying if I said being chronically ill hasn't intersected with my writing career.

While I haven't yet thankfully had to cancel an event because I was too sick, I did just recently go to an event while flaring, and I have had to cancel writing days because a flare knocked me out, which has been frustrating. The most important thing for me, I think, has been to learn to be flexible and gentle with myself. I am undoubtedly a workaholic, and having to take days where I honestly didn't have the energy to do anything but watch Netflix and drink tea has been hard. But I've had to remind myself that if I tried to force myself to work on those days, the work I would've gotten done would've been half-assed and not nearly as well thought-out and effective as I would need it to be.

Being sick has also forced me to learn my patterns. I know I'm much more likely to flare mid-day or later in the day than I am in the morning, so getting up early and getting right to work helps me get some work done even on my bad flare days.

I'm not going to lie, being a writer would be easier when I didn't have to deal with frequent flares or the constant worry of lessening ability. But the good thing it's done is shown me the startling lack of positive chronic illness representation in children's lit, and reminded me not to judge someone based off their appearance—after all, people who look at me have no idea when I'm in pain or my knees or hips are getting stiff.

Managing a writing career is different and sometimes difficult when your body is actively working against you. But it's not impossible—it just requires figuring out what strategies work best for you and above all, being gentle with yourself.

Twitter-sized bite:

What's it like to manage a writing career when you're chronically ill? @Ava_Jae shares their experience. (Click to tweet)

On (Needing?) External Deadlines

Photo credit: dgoomany on Flickr

So I recently started part-time work again to help me save for a thing, and when I initially started and got my hours I was a little worried about how I was going to be able to squeeze everything in. Between being on deadline (and not a self-imposed one!), and working on my freelance projects, and now the extra work, I was genuinely concerned there might not be enough hours in the day for me to get everything done that I needed to—and that's even with starting work around 6AM most days, and working on Saturdays.

That concern is still there for some days, but on my first super-packed day where I had a long shift and had to work on my deadline project and had to work on my freelance project, I found that squeezing it all in actually wasn't as terrible as I thought it might be. Largely because I wasted a hell of a lot less time on Twitter and random apps when I knew I had to stop working in a couple hours to go to work.

"I have less than 4 hrs left to work before I have to get ready to go to work" is a thought I just had.

Relatedly, time to get off Twitter.

— Ava Jae (@Ava_Jae) April 13, 2017

It kind of surprised me how easy it was to ignore distractions when I didn't have unlimited time throughout the day—I hunkered down and edited, and read, and did everything I needed to, and on the day that I tweeted, I ended up finishing with time to spare. Go figure.

Which got me thinking...maybe I kind of need less hours in the day from time to time? Even on the days that I don't go in to the day job, I had a renewed appreciation for the full hours I had available to me, and I ended up getting more work done than I needed to so I'd have less work to do on days I had less hours available. And really, getting my butt in gear was as a simple as just having five to six hours less on certain days of the week.

It's something I hadn't really thought about before—and I am still more actively worried about burnout, because understandably, I'm working even longer days than I used to. But it's been interesting, at least, to see how much easier it is to focus when my days are less flexible.

Maybe I work best under external deadlines after all.

What do you think? Do you work best under external deadlines or limited time?

Twitter-sized bites:

Do you work best under external deadlines or limited time? Join the discussion on @Ava_Jae's blog. (Click to tweet)

Writing First vs. Third Person

Photo credit: shaylamyst on Flickr

My NaNo novel this year is in third person. This is a pretty unusual shift for me—I haven't written a book in third person since literally my first novel ever, over a decade ago. But somewhere along the way, as I've read more third person that has become perma-favorites, as I decided to write a book with three POV characters, I decided it was time to experiment with third person again.

I like it.

In a way, writing first person helped me learn how to write third person better. With my very first book, I saw narration as a sort of separate thing, something tacked on to explain what was happening. But as I began writing first person, I learned how to meld narration with character, how every word mattered. I learned to think about whether this POV character would use this specific word, and whether they'd notice that detail, or how the way they saw a room or character would be different if it were narrated by someone else.

Now I'm bringing all of those lessons back into limited third person, and I'm pretty delighted with how seamless it's been to switch over. Because when making the switch from first person to limited third, the truth is while it does have a very different feel to it, the mechanics are basically the same. You filter the narrative through a single character's perspective and consider how that character experiences the events around them.

Ultimately, the difference between, "I stared at him; what was he talking about?" and "She stared at him; what was he talking about?" isn't all that large. But when a manuscript calls for one over the other, you'll know because it'll fit the tone the story in a way the other tense couldn't.

Have you played with first and third person? What has your experience been like? 

Twitter-sized bite: 

Author @Ava_Jae shares her thoughts on switching from first to third person. (Click to tweet) 

On Creating (Flexible) Schedules

Photo credit: RHiNO NEAL on Flickr

So a couple days ago, I tweeted a realization I had about just how incredibly busy I'll be in November. I suppose I already knew that logically, but after picking up a part time job, remembering NaNo is days away, and booking editing clients for next month, it all started to sink in. But it was a good realization—because while my schedule will be, let's face it, a lot, it's all stuff I really enjoy doing.

The tweet, however, inevitably led to people asking me how I plan to manage it all, which got me thinking about scheduling, yes, but more specifically flexible scheduling to make the most of my time every day.

I've written before about how I'm a morning person and get most of my writing done then. This worked well when I had afternoon classes or worked nights as a waitress—I got all my writing done in the early morning hours then tackled whatever commitments I needed to get done. Looking at my schedule for the first week of NaNo, however...I can already see that's going to be a little more challenging.

Right now, out of the first six days of NaNo, I have commitments in the morning on three days. I'm getting the sense this is probably going to be a common thing next month, so I've already started making necessary plans to fit everything into my schedule. The building block for busiest days next month will probably look something like this:

5:15 AM: WAKE UP (I've been getting lazy with this and pushing this closer to 6AM, but next month I need to be stricter about it because I'm going to need the time.) 

5:30 - 7:15 AM: Write, blog/vlog stuff 

7:15 - 8:30 AM: Get ready for day's commitments 

[Do day stuff] 

2:00 PM - ???: Editing work, work out, whatever else I need done for the day.

This of course is a really rough sketch and will need to be adjusted daily depending on my needs for the day, but I find that it helps to plan out my busiest days, so that on days I have extra time or more flexible hours, great, but if not I know I can still squeeze in what I need to. I'm also thinking it might be a good idea to plan my blog topics in advance because it tends to take me longer to figure out what to write about than to actually write the post. Maybe I'll even write some posts in advance...hmm.

Then, of course, there's a very important second component to this: built-in breaks. Traditionally, I've established Sundays as my day off, in which I don't allow myself to do any work. This will remain true next month, though I've already decided if I fall behind on my NaNo writing, Sunday is the day I'll allow myself to make it up, mostly because it's work I find the most enjoyable, so I wouldn't stress too much over it. Even if I manage not to fall behind, I'll likely NaNo on a Sunday or two to give myself wiggle room for those days where I just can't squeeze the writing in.

The keys to flexible scheduling, I find, is to plan for the worst (i.e.: least time), take minutes where you can, and be kind to yourself. That last part means don't forget self-care, because when you're in the grind, forgetting self-care can be pretty disastrous. For me that means Sundays (mostly) off. For you it may mean something else—just make sure you don't neglect it.

I'm wishing you guys all the best next month, whether you're NaNoing or not!

Do you use flexible schedules? 

Twitter-sized bites:

Tight on time but want to get some writing done? @Ava_Jae shares tips on making flexible schedules. (Click to tweet)

On NaNoWriMo and Finding Time

Photo credit: bitslammer on Flickr

As NaNoWriMo approaches, I've been seeing more and more writers consider whether or not they'll join in this year. And one of the top considerations for whether or not that answer will be yes or no is, understandably, time.

So far, I've done NaNoWriMo twice (though I've done my own write a book in a month challenges much more often). The first time I was at my first year of art college, and my classes and assignments were rigorous and time-consuming. My homework involved detailed projects that required many hours multiple days a week to finish—and that's without the frequent trips to art supply stores downtown to get what I needed for those projects.

Basically, I was the busiest I'd ever been, but I also knew I really wanted to participate in NaNoWriMo for the first time even though finals were happening. So I did.

This required stealing time wherever I could find it. I did the bulk of my daily writing in the early morning hours, sipping blearily at my tea, and on the bus on the way to my classes. When I didn't get enough words in during those slots, I wrote before class started at my desk, or after I got back between homework assignments and final projects. It was challenging for sure—and doubly challenging when I realized thirteen days in I was writing the wrong manuscript and scrapped the whole thing—but it was also rewarding. I proved to myself that even when I was tackling the end of the semester I could get the words I needed down.

Of course, the last few weeks when I was home from school on my extended winter break were much easier. But it was still rewarding to know I could manage to keep my head above NaNo water at the end of a busy semester.

The point is, time is absolutely a factor when it comes to whether or not you should NaNo—but it's not the only factor. Because like writing at any other time of the year, if time is the only issue it's not often impossible to overcome. As writers, we have to learn where we can best squeeze in our writing time, whether that's on the commute to work, getting up extra early before school, while kids are at school or napping, or after a long work day into the late night hours.

There will always be reasons why we won't have the time to write a book, or participate in NaNoWriMo. But if time is the biggest factor for you, it might not be a bad idea to sit down and really consider where you could steal enough minutes from your day to slap down 1,667 words. You might just be surprised by how a couple minutes here and there of quickly jotted down words can add up.

How do you fit writing into your schedule? 

Twitter-sized bite:

Concerned about time when considering whether or not to #NaNoWriMo? Author @Ava_Jae talks finding time to NaNo. (Click to tweet)

Vlog: My Writing Habits

Someone asked, so I answered: today I'm talking about my writing habits when I'm first drafting a manuscript.

RELATED VLOGS: 

• 4 Fast Drafting Tips
• Do You Have to Write Every Day?
• On Finding Time to Write

What do your writing habits look like? 

Twitter-sized bite: 

Music? Snacks? Writing sprints? What do your writing habits look like? Join the discussion on @Ava_Jae's blog. (Click to tweet)

Vlog: How to Write a Book

YouTube asked, I answered. Today I'm vlogging about the (simplified) steps to writing a book.

RELATED LINKS: 

• Writing a Novel in 15 Steps: From Initial Idea to Querying
• How I Plot (vlog)
• On (Terrible) First Drafts (vlog)
• 4 Fast Drafting Tips (vlog)
• On Writing the Perfect Project (vlog)
• How to Finish a WIP (vlog)
• On Editing (playlist)
• All the NaNoWriMo (playlist)

Twitter-sized bite:

Want to write a book but not sure where to start? Author @Ava_Jae vlogs about the simplified steps to writing a book. (Click to tweet)

On Traditional Publishing If You Don't Live in the US

Photo credit: jbachman01 on Flickr

So one question I get asked with surprising frequency is whether or not international authors can get published within the US. These questions often come from writers who live anywhere outside the US and worry that they can only be agented by the tiny pool of agents in their country, or published by publishers in their country, and thus won't really be able to get a fair shot at traditional publishing.

As this has been a frequently asked question, I figured I'd write a post about it.

The easy answer is this: agents and editors within the US work with people from all around the world all the time. It's absolutely not a requirement to live in the US to get traditionally published by a US publisher, or to be represented by an agent living in the US. Most of the work that gets done between authors, agents, and editors is all done either via e-mail (where contracts and manuscripts get sent back and forth) or on the phone to discuss all manner of things. A lot of American authors haven't even met their agent or editor in person—or don't for several years—because the truth is not much really needs to be done in person.

This also works the other way—there are agents who don't live in the US but work with US clients and publishers all the time. This probably happens less often than the other way around, but just off the top of my head I can think of several agents who do this, and again, it's not a problem.

So if you're a writer living outside of the US and you're worried about your location complicating your ability to get a US-based agent and publisher, don't be. It's a pretty common scenario and shouldn't be an issue at all. :)

Twitter-sized bite:

Live outside the US and worried you can't get a US-based agent or publisher? Author @Ava_Jae says don't be. (Click to tweet)

Vlog: On Branding

On branding yourself as an author, particularly if you want to write in multiple genres and categories. Is it possible to write in more than one genre/category? I answer that an more in today's vlog.

RELATED LINKS: 

• About The Call (vlog)
• How to Get Traditionally Published (vlog)
• 5 Things to Know Before Getting an Agent (vlog)
• On Querying (playlist)

Do you write in multiple genres/categories?

Twitter-sized bite: 

Is it possible to publish multiple genres/categories as an author? @Ava_Jae answers that and more in today's vlog. (Click to tweet)

Vlog: Self vs. Traditional Publishing

What's the difference between self and traditional publishing? Is one choice better than the other? I answer these questions and more in today's vlog.

RELATED LINKS: 

• On Writing and Income (vlog)
• Self vs. Traditional Publishing: STOP ARGUING (vlog)
• Do You Need Connections to Get Published? (vlog)
• Do You Need a Degree to Get Published? (vlog)
• How to Get Traditionally Published (vlog)
• Why Does it Take So Long for Books to Get Published? (vlog)
• What Authors Control (vlog)
• 5 Myths About Authoring (vlog)
• Self-Publishing: Not a Plan B (vlog)
• Self-Publishing: It's Not for Everyone (vlog)
• My Publishing Path is My Own (vlog)
• 5 Publishing Myths That Need to Stop (vlog)
• Failing Forward: The Leap from Indie to the Big Five by Danika Stone (vlog)

What differences (or similarities) would you add to the list?

Twitter-sized bite:

What are some differences between self & traditional publishing? @Ava_Jae breaks it down in today's vlog. (Click to tweet)

On First Drafting Again

Photo credit: Design Feast on Flickr

So in the past couple weeks, I've started first drafting again, for the first time since 2014. The first project was a short thing that didn't take long to knock out, but this week I started my first WIP experiment in a long time.

For those who aren't familiar with my process, I call all my new writing projects WIP experiments until I've hit 10,000 words. Usually at that point I feel fairly confident I'm not going to walk away from the project and work on something else (though I have on two occasions walked away from a project after hitting the 10,000 word milestone, so nothing is guaranteed). As of this writing I'm about 6.5k in, but I'm aiming to hit the 10k mark the day this post goes live, so fingers crossed.

After spending a full year focused entirely on revisions for various projects, however, first drafting has been...interesting.

I've written about how first drafts are not meant to be perfect and how you don't have to get (anything) right the first time, but the last year or so I've gotten much better at revising plot and recognizing big picture issues which means while first drafting my brain has been more nitpicky than usual. Plus the first full first draft post-publication thing probably is complicating matters too.

The good news is I recognize it, and I know to remind myself that it's fine. It doesn't matter how many issues I recognize while first drafting. It doesn't matter if the pacing is off, or characterization isn't quite right, or subplots are jumbled, or ending fizzles. It doesn't matter if the writing itself is less than spectacular, or the dialogue is corny, or there are seven characters with names that start with S. Everything will be fixed later, but first the story needs to be written down so there's something to fix.

First drafting again is a relief, because last year I was feeling pretty not great that I hadn't written anything new.

First drafting again is scary, because I have no idea if I'll actually get through this WIP, even though I really want to.

First drafting again is helpful, because it's a great distraction from other things I'd be obsessing about right about now without it.

First drafting again is hard, because I've gotten used to working already-written words, and getting to the already-written stage can be challenging.

First drafting again is exciting, because I've got new characters to discover and situations to explore.

Regardless of whether or not this first draft actually makes it to The End, it's nice to be getting new words down on paper again. And with any luck, it'll become a project I'll actually get to develop and grow.

What writing thing are you working on right now? 

Twitter-sized bite:

Author @Ava_Jae talks first drafting again for the first time in over a year. (Click to tweet)

Getting Published in 15 Steps: From Post-Book Deal to Release Day

Photo credit: -MRGT on Flickr

So wayyyy back in 2013 I wrote a post on 15 steps to writing a novel, then back in 2014 I followed it up with 15 steps to getting published, up to the book deal. Now, with just two weeks and a day to go to Beyond the Red's release, I've got enough background info to finish off the series. :)

Do note that the orders to these steps varies wildly publisher to publisher, and even book to book. For most, all of these steps (or at least most) will happen at some point or another as long as there is a print release, but everyone's timeline is a little different.

That said, here we go. Fifteen steps from post-book deal to release day:

1. Join a debut group. This is, by no means, a mandatory step, but I very highly recommend it if you're a debut. For me, The Sweet Sixteens and Team Rogue YA has opened up the door for a ton of opportunities (like conferences! and mini book tours!), introduced me to so many wonderful people I now consider friends, helped me feel sane during this crazy publishing process *and* given me access to amazing books early. And honestly, the support alone is so very much worth it. :)


2. Talk blurbs. As I said before, when this happens varies, but eventually your editor will ask you if you have any ideas as to who you'd like to ask to get some blurbs. This is a terrifying and exciting thing that eventually leads to people you admire hopefully saying nice things about your book. 


3. Share ideas for covers. This is such a fun part of the process. At some point, your publisher will start thinking cover ideas, and often the first step is asking you, the author, about what you had in mind for the cover/what covers you like that you'd like to emulate. Mood boards are a very fun (and useful!) thing to put together.


4. Cover mock ups. Self-explanatory—eventually you will see versions of your cover! And it is exciting! And amazing! And YAY! 


5. Pre-orders open. At some point, your book will magically appear on Amazon, B&N, BAM!, etc. online. And people will be able to pre-order your book, which is a surreal and amazing thing. 


6. Cover reveal. After you've seen several mock-ups and changes are made and everyone is happy, it's time to reveal the cover to the world! This is the first time people start to associate an image with your book, and it also allows you to start thinking about swag, and daydreaming about holding your book. Woot!


7. First pass. This is the time when you will finally get your first edit letter. For some, this is a time of wailing and gnashing of teeth. For others, it's scary, but exciting. For some especially lucky, it's both. How much work is involved, and how much time you have will depend on your book and your editor, but rest assured, changes will be made for the better. 


8. Second, Third, Fourth, Final, etc. Pass. How many passes there are and when they happen, like many of the steps, will vary. But there will be plenty of passes, and you will read your book so many times you can recite passages in your sleep, and there will come a time when you feel as though you'd rather pull your fingernails off rather than read it again. This is normal. Probably. And this too shall pass. (Get it, pass? *clears throat* Anyway...)


9. ARCs! And then the day will come when you will get to hold your book in your hand because the ARCs have arrived! This is a super exciting/nerve-wracking time because not only do you have a book-shaped thing but many other people will get to read it too, for the first time. Ahhhhh!


10. More blurbs. If you didn't get blurbs earlier, probably you will start to get them right about now. And even if you did get blurbs earlier, you are likely to get more around now too. So more admirable people saying nice things about your book. Yay!


11. Early reviews. Now that ARCs are in the world, reviews will start trickling in. This is where you start to decide if you're the type of author that reads your reviews. There isn't a right or wrong answer, really—just make sure you take care of yourself during this kind of terrifying time.


12. Book jacket comps. At some point, if your book is publishing in hardcover, you will see the comps for your book jacket, and now you'll really get a sense for what your book will look like. It's a very, very cool thing that I totally loved.


13. Final copies printed! RED ALERT. YOUR BOOK IS REAL. 


14. Final copies distributed! YOUR BOOK IS IN YOUR HAND. AND ARRIVING AT BOOKSTORES. AND SOON PEOPLE WILL BUY IT. AHHHH!


15. RELEASE DAY. Self-explanatory and holy wow it's real. Everything is real! HAPPY BOOK BIRTHDAY, YOU! 

Twitter-sized bite:

How to get published, from post-book deal to release day, condensed into 15 steps. (Click to tweet)