HAPPY HALLOWEEN!
Hope you have a great day and here’s some more information from the Expo I attended:
First, Last clichés:
And then Some–More of the same, a great deal more. This is used in context like: “Your house needs new paint, a new roof, new pool, new yard work, and then some.” This phrase dates from the early 1900s.
Only used one cliché last time.
Another speaker at the Expo was JaNell Lyle on “The Nuts and Bolts of How to Create a Professional Book.” She is the owner of Truth Book Publisher, www.truthbookpublisher.com. If you want a book that does the trick, JaNell suggests a bright cover design. The most pleasing to the eye are books with yellow or red. Your back cover must have a good hook. You have about thirty seconds to catch a reader’s attention.
From the word go, JaNell gave us some pointers on writing your manuscript.
- Write every day
- Create 3 dimensional characters that have motivation – You should have a history of your characters
- Make Time for your writing – stay true to your beliefs
- Show and Tell – Your reader wants to visualize what you’re writing about
- No adverbs and adjectives – Paint a picture
- Don’t be passive — Be Bold
- Be direct
- Observation of your surroundings and others – This is a good way to learn about characters and scenes
- Know that the Magic is in You – Be daring and be excited. To convince people to buy your book you must have no doubts–Trust Yourself!
- Have your manuscript edited. Can’t afford much – try your local college English department and have a student edit it maybe for free.
- Don’t use a serif font. You can go to freefont.com to find out which do not have serifs.
I know our manuscripts are a labor of love, but if we following some of the above suggestions, maybe we can sell more books.
So, Keep Writing,
Julie
