How to Create Twitter-sized Bites

Photo credit: Jason A. Howie on Flickr

I get this question a lot, so it seemed only natural that I should write a post about it.

A little while ago I started including fun and easy share options for Twitter, which I like to call “Twitter-sized bites.” They make it easy for people to share my posts, and I’ve noticed a definite increase in shares since adding them. So yay!

Making them is actually relatively easy to do, and since a lot of people have asked me how I create them, I’ve written up some easy steps. Enjoy!

1. Write the line that will appear on Twitter. Generally, you want this to be a short message because you need to leave room for attribution and the URL. Sometimes I’ll do a question, or a quote from the post, or a summarizing line. Experiment and see what works for you. 


2. Make sure you included attribution. I’ll either include it in the message (i.e.: “Writer @Ava_Jae…”) or I’ll add it at the end (i.e.: via @Ava_Jae). There isn’t a right or wrong way to do it, but don’t forget this step!


3. Find your permalink. In Blogger, this is under “Post settings” beneath the Scheduling option when you’re drafting your post. If it's not showing the link, just click the box that says "Permalink" and it'll show up. Copy it and move on to the next step. UPDATE: If you have Wordpress, check Margarita Morris's comment below for directions on this and the next step.


4. Go to bit.ly and shorten the permalink URL to a bitlink. Paste your permalink into the section at the top of the page that says “Paste a long URL here to shorten.” Once you do, a pop-up should appear with your new, shortened URL. Yay! Copy that and move on to the next step. 


5. Go to clicktotweet.com and choose “Basic Link.” You CAN sign in and make an account if you want to, but I don’t want to. “Basic Link” is in the top header next to “Downloads” and it’s all you need for making tweetable links.


6. Paste your bitlink and the message. If your message is too long, this is where you’ll see it. Edit it if you need to, make sure you have all three components (The message, the bit link and the attribution), then hit “Generate New Link.” 


7. COPY the ctt link it gives you. Clicking on the link they give you will NOT give you what you need—it’ll show you a preview of the tweet, which is fine, but not what you’re going to embed. Instead, highlight the link they provide you with and copy it. 


8. Go back to your post and make the section you want readers to click. For me, I stuck with a simple “Click to tweet” message in parenthesis. Highlight whatever text you want to use, then hyperlink it.


9. Paste your ctt link into the hyperlink settings and check “Open this link in a new window.” After you’ve done so, click done and you’re ready! Yay! Enjoy your new clickable tweets. 

That’s it! Pretty easy, right? Now go enjoy your very own Twitter-sized bites! :)

Twitter-sized bites: 

Wondering how to create clickable tweets for your blog posts? @Ava_Jae breaks it down here. (Click to tweet)  

Blogger @Ava_Jae shares 9 easy steps to creating clickable tweets for your blog posts. (Click to tweet)

Why Writers Should Participate in Twitter Chats

Photo credit: Matt Hamm on Flickr

As most of you know, I adore Twitter. It’s easily one of my favorite social media sites, and it’s provided me with wonderful friends, great posts, book recommendations, tips that have stuck with me and two internships. I also wrote a post about why I’m glad I joined Twitter, and some tips on Twitter for writers so there’s that.

What I realized I haven’t talked about, and really should have, are Twitter chats. 

Twitter chats are discussions that happen periodically and are marked under various hashtags. They’re often chock full of tips, publishing pros, wonderful writers and some really interesting discussions, so if you’re new to Twitter or just want to get more involved in the writing community, Twitter chats are the way to go.

Some other pros of fabulous Twitter chats include:

• Connecting with other like-minded people. (SO IMPORTANT. For real. Try Twitter chats for this reason alone).
• They’re fun. 
• Get questions answered. 

But where to begin? It can be hard to find Twitter chats if you’re not following the right people or you’re brand new to Twitter, so I’ve compiled a list of some writing-related Twitter chats I know of. If you know of others, please do let me know and I’ll add them to the list:

• #twdtopic: Tuesdays at 9PM EST—An open Twitter chat for writers run by The Writer Diaries. They discuss all sorts of publishing and writing-related topics. 


• #YALitChat: Wednesdays at 9PM EST—A Twitter chat for YA writers covering many aspects of writing and publishing.


• #NALitChat: Thursdays at 9PM EST—“Ongoing discussion of all things in New Adult literature.” (Taken from their Twitter)


• #K8chat: Thursdays 9PM EST—“A publishing related chat where we discuss topics relevant to readers and authors.” (Taken from their site)


• #askagent: Random times. Follow agents on Twitter to catch a session!—An extremely valuable impromptu chat in which literary agents take and answer questions from writers. 


• #askTBA: Once a month, announced via TBA agents—Similar to #askagent, except it’s a scheduled Twitter chat in which a bunch of agents from The Bent Agency answer questions from writers. 


• #ukyachat: A periodic chat for UK writers that takes place periodically between 4-7PM GMT. (Thanks, Margarita!)

Do you participate in Twitter chats? Why or why not? 

Twitter-sized bites:

#Writers, do you participate in Twitter chats? Here's why you should consider it. (Click to tweet) 

Writer @Ava_Jae talks the importance of Twitter chats and why you should participate. (Click to tweet)

Discussion: What’s the Best Writing Advice You’ve Heard?

Photo credit: coolio-claire on Flickr

Seeing how this is a writing blog where I share loads of tips and things I’ve learned along the way, I’ve started thinking lately about the best writing advice I’ve ever received. 

There are a lot of tips out there that I know have helped me tremendously, which I’ve posted about. But the tip I keep coming back to and repeating most often to other writers, particularly new writers, is a simple one. 

Finish the book. 

I repeat this pretty often here at Writability, because it’s so insanely crucial. It’s ridiculously easy to get discouraged or sidetracked while first drafting—whether it’s getting caught in an editing loop or being distracted by a shiny new idea or losing interest altogether. But the thing is, if you never finish the book, you’ll have nothing to edit and work with to begin with. 

I have no shame in saying that my first drafts are messy. I knock them out quickly and go through them over and over and over again later to root out the problems and replace it with fresh, stronger material. But if I didn’t get through the first draft to begin with, then I wouldn’t be able to do that, because the story wouldn’t be complete. 

If you’re working on a first draft and you think your writing sucks and you’ll never get published, finish the book. 

If you’ve got an awesome idea that you love but every time you try to write it, you lose inspiration or get distracted—finish the book. 

There’s a secret to first drafting and it’s this: you don’t stop writing until it’s done. Even when you think it sucks, even when you start to wonder if you’re wasting your time, even if you suspect it’ll never get published, you finish the darn book. 

Worry about the other stuff later. While you’re first drafting, all you have to worry about is finishing the book. 

What’s the best writing advice you’ve ever heard? I’d love to hear it! 

Twitter-sized bites:

Writer @Ava_Jae shares the best writing advice she's ever heard. Do you have any tips to share? (Click to tweet)  

What's the best writing advice you've ever heard? Join the discussion on @Ava_Jae's blog. (Click to tweet)

Fixing the First Page Feature #1

Photo credit: Nic's events on Flickr

Note: I'm over at Amy Trueblood's blog where she's graciously featuring me in her WOW series! If you have the top, feel free to stop by and say hi!

So I’m going to borrow from the brilliant Nathan Bransford on the format of these critiques, by first posting the full 250 excerpt, then sharing my thoughts, then sharing my redline critique. If you’d like to share your own critique, I totally encourage that, just make sure it’s polite, thoughtful and constructive. Any rude or mean comments will be deleted.

Here we go!

Title: BONEWOOD 

Genre/Category: Dark YA High Fantasy 

First 250:  

A clan of stubborn bastards lives inside the Bonewood. Their stupidity is fortified by the river that forks around their island. They’ve lived there for six hundred years, and they’ll live there for six hundred more.  

At least, that’s what Da told me when we first came to town nine years ago. Then he fell head over heart for a mousey-faced schoolteacher and suddenly we were those stubborn, stupid bastards too.  

It’s a beautiful little town if you don't stay too long. Quaint and quiet, like something in a painting, with its windmill and thatched roofs and fields. 

If you came by boat you’d probably be from Abandir, and the tiny little village would seem so peaceful after the war you just fought. You’d spend the day in town shopping and walking and talking and then you’d get back on your boat and sail out of the forest before finding a town with an inn, because Twopoint doesn’t have an inn and there are no other towns in the Bonewood. You’d think it’s because we’re so small, so quaint and the forest is too big, too wild. 

That’s not why we don't have an inn.  

If you came by land you’d never get here. It’s a two-day ride in any direction to the nearest town so you’d never make it to Twopoint and its cute windmill before nightfall. And the moment night fell, the Nightmares would eat you. 

That’s why we don’t have an inn.

Okay! So Emmy mentioned to me that this is actually the entire first chapter, and it is expository, but she’s torn because it sets up her protagonist’s voice really well. I agree that it definitely has a wonderful voice (great job, Emmy!) however, I would actually cut this entirely.

This little snippet reads as a prologue to me, and because it is all exposition, I honestly think it would be much more effective to spread this information and backstory out gradually throughout the first part of the manuscript, rather than telling us all at once in a mini first chapter.

To me, the issue is nothing is happening. This is a nice little aside about the setting, and it is nice, but we don’t really know who the protagonist is or what (s)he is doing or anything beyond that (s)he has a father and they came to town nine years ago.

This is purely subjective, but I am, and always will be partial to openings that are in medias res (aka: start in the middle of something happening). To me, those kinds of openings are much more attention-grabbing and also show us a lot more about the protagonist through showing rather than telling.

So while I agree the voice is great here, I suspect the same voice is evident throughout the manuscript, and therefore this information would be better conveyed in snippets rather than all at once before the action.

Now for the in-line edits:

A clan of stubborn bastards lives inside the Bonewood. This is a great example of how to show voice in the very first sentence, and I love it. Their stupidity is fortified by the river that forks around their island. They’ve lived there for six hundred years, and they’ll live there for six hundred more. 

At least, that’s what Da told me when we first came to town nine years ago. Then he fell head over heart for a mousey-faced schoolteacher and suddenly we were those stubborn, stupid bastards too. Love this! Again, the voice is brilliant. From “mousey-faced schoolteacher” to the “stubborn, stupid bastards” I am totally digging the protagonist’s voice.  

It’s a beautiful little town if you don't stay too long. Quaint and quiet, like something in a painting, with its windmill and thatched roofs and fields. Great imagery.  

If you came by boat you’d probably be from Abandir, and the tiny little village would seem so peaceful after the war you just fought. You’d spend the day in town shopping and walking and talking and then you’d get back on your boat and sail out of the forest before finding a town with an inn, because Twopoint doesn’t have an inn and there are no other towns in the Bonewood. You’d think it’s because we’re so small, so quaint and the forest is too big, too wild. I’m not sure how I feel about the second person shift here. It stuck out to me a little and I didn’t really connect with it, but others might feel differently.  

That’s not why we don't have an inn. While I understand wanting to mirror this line with the last line, this felt unnecessary to me. I found myself thinking, okay, but I don’t need to know what ISN’T a reason the inn isn’t there.   

If you came by land you’d never get here. It’s a two-day ride in any direction to the nearest town so you’d never make it to Twopoint and its cute windmill before nightfall. And the moment night fell, the Nightmares would eat you. This is excellent. I love the foreboding end to the chapter and this little tidbit intrigues me.  

That’s why we don’t have an inn.

Overall, the writing is solid. There’s great imagery and voice and I can tell straight off the bat this is a strong writer. If I saw this in slush, I’d most likely keep reading, but recommend that this prologue was lopped off and the information was incorporated into the rest of the manuscript, like I said above.

Thanks for sharing your first 250, Emmy!

Would you like to be featured in a Fixing the First Page Feature? Keep an eye out for the next giveaway!

Twitter-sized bite: 

Writer @Ava_Jae talks exposition in openings in the first Fixing the First Page critique. (Click to tweet) 

Thoughts from the Intern Slush Pile: Common Issues

Photo credit: Klaus M on Flickr

So as some of you who follow me on Twitter know, I semi-recently became an editorial intern at Entangled Publishing. Yay! The experience has been completely wonderful so far and I’m loving it.

What most of you don’t know is this is actually my second internship. My first was at a literary agency, and that was awesome. My job during both internships has been basically the same: reading and evaluating submitted manuscripts or partials and writing up reports for each.

Both internships have been wonderful experiences and I’ve learned a lot from each—particularly about what makes a good opening.

I’ve found that 75% of the time, I can tell within the first fifty pages whether I’m going to recommend a rejection, R&R or acceptance. There have been a couple instances where I was able to tell within the first ten pages, but I always read the first fifty just in case.

So all of that said, here are five common issues I’ve seen that tend to lead to my putting the manuscript down after the first fifty pages:

1. Too much telling. I see this all the time. All. The. Time. And I get why—it can be pretty tough to learn how to spot and fix overtelling. But 9/10 times, when I see an overabundance of telling, the MS also has other issues that are a sign of a new writer or manuscript that needs more work.


2. Too much (or not enough) explaining. The thing with backstory, is there has to be a balance. Too much backstory and the plot drags and the readers become overwhelmed—too little and we don’t understand what’s going on or why things or important or what all these terms mean, etc. Both are problematic.


3. Flat voice/characters. Like many aspects of writing, this one is pretty subjective. To me, a flat voice or character is one that doesn’t stand out. If I don’t find a voice or protagonist memorable, it’s not necessarily an insta-killer, but combined with other issues and I’m likely to put it down. Conversely, if a manuscript has a fantastic voice or really interesting protagonist, but also has other issues, I’m more likely to fight for it.
   
   Related to this is a voice that doesn’t sound right for it’s age group. I read a lot of YA submissions, so this commonly means a voice that doesn’t sound like a teenager, but like an adult trying to sound like a teenager—and this is more likely to be a killer than a less than memorable protagonist. The best remedy for this, is to read a lot of YA. Loads and loads of it. It’ll help, I promise.


4. Stiff/unrealistic dialogue. Bad dialogue makes me cringe, which isn’t really a reaction I want to be having while reading. Like part of the last point, this isn’t an insta-rejection point (unless it’s consistently really not good), but combined with other issues and it definitely factors in. (Related: here's a post on writing realistic dialogue). 


5. Not enough happening. Unfortunately plot issues like this are a big deal. If I reach page fifty and I still don’t know where the story is going, it’s an enormous red flag. In an average manuscript, fifty pages is around 20% of a novel, give or take. By 20%, the inciting incident should have definitely happened, and the point of no return should be hinted at, if not already passed.
   
   For me, page fifty is my evaluation point. It’s when I take stock of my reactions of the manuscript thus far and decide what decision I’m leaning towards. If nothing significant has happened by then, chances are I’m going to be leaning toward a rejection, which makes everyone (including me) sad.

So what can you do to make sure these aren’t issues in your manuscript? I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again—find excellent critique partners and beta readers. Evaluating your own manuscript is tough, and outside feedback can definitely help point you in the right direction when time comes to edit.

So those are my interning observations, now I want to hear from you: what makes you put a book down when reading? 

Twitter-sized bites: 

Editorial intern @Ava_Jae shares some common issues seen in the slush pile. #pubtip (Click to tweet) 

Intern @Ava_Jae talks the importance of the first 50 pages & common issues. Do you have these problems in your MS? (Click to tweet)

Fixing the First Page Feature Giveaway Winner!

Photo credit: Creativity+ Timothy K Hamilton on Flickr

Super short off-schedule post to let you guys know I have a winner for the First Page Feature
giveaway! Are you ready?

The winner is...

EMMY NEAL! 

Yay! Congrats, Emmy! I'll be e-mailing you shortly to let you know the next steps.

Thanks to all who entered! If all goes well, I'll be doing this more often. :)

Hope you're all having a wonderful Easter/Passover/general weekend!

A Note to New Writers

Photo credit: William Arthur Fine Stationary on Flickr

Deciding you want to be a writer is scary. It’s also exciting, depending on the day of the week, and difficult, and fun and sometimes overwhelming. On especially interesting days, it’ll be all five.

I often get e-mails from new writers asking for tips—something to help them write their book, whether they’ve just started, haven’t started, have tried and failed to finish several times, or are just stuck with a particularly challenging WIP. So I’m going to share with you the advice I repeat most often: finish the book. 

IMO, the first book is the hardest to finish. It’s the one where you fight the most doubts about your ability to finish a novel, where you haven’t yet figured out the process that works best for you, where you question whether or not you’re really an actual writer. (Those doubts, struggles and questions never really go away, but they’re often the loudest when writing that first ever book).

Finishing a book isn’t easy. There are going to be days when you seriously doubt your ability to reach the end. There will be days when you think your writing completely sucks, days when you hate your characters or your plot or you think your dialogue is stupid. There will be days when you start to wonder if maybe you should give up and try something else.

Don’t give up. Don’t stop. Don’t look back.

The truth is, your first draft will probably suck. Many published writers will tell you that their first drafts are laughably bad, but here’s the thing to remember: it doesn’t matter. The first draft isn’t about getting it right, it’s about getting it done. That’s it.

Next, you need to be reading. This isn’t optional. Read the popular and obscure, read whatever you can get your hands on, and most importantly, read the genre and category that you’re writing in. You need to know what’s out there in order to be able to write a book that’ll fit on the shelf. Not only that, but you’ll discover so much when reading—for example, I never would have learned how much I love dual-POV novels or Sci-Fi if I hadn’t read Beth Revis’s Across the Universe.

Read read read read read. You won’t regret the time you take to keep aware of what’s on the market (but I promise you, you will regret it if you skip this step).

Now you’re writing and reading. Awesome. The next thing you need to accept is you have to edit. A lot.

One of the best things I’ve done for my career thus far is to learn to love to edit. That’s right—I didn’t always love it, in fact, I kind of skimped on it with my first couple WIPs (learn from my mistakes, writers: do not skimp).

But even if you don’t learn to love to edit, you need to accept that it’s going to be a part of your life if writing is truly what you want to do. And yes, for those of you editing while first drafting, you will still have to edit again. Most likely several times.

Related to this note, you need critique partners that aren’t close friends or relatives. You need feedback from other writers, and not only that, you need the experience of critiquing someone else’s work. Make the effort to find some good critique partners, because they are truly invaluable to the writing process.

The next unfortunate truth is you’re going to get rejected. This doesn’t apply to just new writers—you’ll face rejection throughout your career, regardless of where you’re at. You’ll be rejected by agents, by editors and by negative reviews.You’ll learn the difference between a form rejection and a personalized rejection (and you’ll learn that personalized rejections are a thing to be cherished).

You may hear a lot of no’s for many many years before you hear your first yes (for me, it took eight years to hear the yes that landed me an agent). You may have to trunk manuscripts and write book after book that you then have to put away, but I promise you, this is normal and it’s okay. It’s not a waste of time—you’re learning and growing and beginning to get a feel for the tough part of the writing life.

The good news is this: the writing community is wonderful. I can’t encourage you enough to get involved—start a Twitter and follow other writers, read writing blogs, check out forums, whatever you have to. The writing community is full of people in all stages of their journey, people who understand the rejection and the tough days when you want to give up on this writing dream. People who are there to help you when they can and encourage you when you’re feeling down. People who will dance with you when good things happen and beam when you share good news.

If you don’t listen to anything I’ve written, please please please do this: get involved with the writing community. You’ll learn so much from that alone.

Finally, know that you are, actually, a writer. It doesn’t matter if you don’t have an agent, or a book contract, or a published book. It doesn’t matter if you don’t write every day, or you’re not getting paid, or no one knows your name. If you write and you love to write, you’re a writer. Embrace it. Love it. Live it.

Twitter-sized bites: 

.@Ava_Jae shares an open letter to new writers, with truths, tips and encouragement. (Click to tweet)  

Writer @Ava_Jae shares a letter on the hardest aspects of writing & some encouragement for those just starting out. (Click to tweet)