Writing is My Way of Life – Inventing Reality’s Newsletter for Dec. 17, 2024

Writing Motivation: Writing is My Way of Life
Begin each day by reminding yourself who you are: You are a writer, and writing is a way of life for you. Maybe you’ll need to scribble that on a piece of paper and tape it to your bathroom mirror so you read it every morning when you brush your teeth (What? You don’t brush your teeth every morning? For shame!). After all, if you remind yourself daily to do something, you likely will do it, and soon it becomes habit. READ MORE

The Ultimate Guide to Self-Publishing Your Book
You’ve written a book that’s languishing on your computer hard drive. You don’t have time to pitch it to a literary agent or a major publisher … work or school is hectic, the house needs to be cleaned, the kids demand your attention … But we bet you can find just seven minutes a day to achieve your dream of getting it published. If you can, my book 7 Minutes a Day to a Self-Published Book is for you. This practical, how-to guide takes you step-by-step through the self-publishing process – with just seven minutes of work required a day. You’ll complete short, skillful exercises that allow you to self-publish your novel or nonfiction title as you read the book, all the while getting the encouragement and motivation needed to keep you going. SEE BOOK

Writing Tip: Ways to Show a Character’s Personality
All too often, novice writers make the mistake of telling us a character’s personality. Rather than tell her personality, the writer can more successfully raise reader interest by showing it – that is, inferring the character’s personality through concrete details. Authors generally tell a character’s personality in one of four ways – motivations, emotions, thoughts, and age. READ MORE

Self-Publishing Tip: Try “Taster Book” if New to Self-Publishing
If new to self-publishing, consider doing a “taster book” first. A taster book has a low word count (and subsequently few pages) that you can use to learn the self-publishing process. If a fiction writer, it might be a collection of two or three short stories; if a nonfiction writer, it might be a three or four brief articles. READ MORE

This Week’s Podcast: Use Bait-and-Switch Device Carefully in Stories
One common and time-honored way to make your plot more interesting is to employ a bait-and-switch device. This occurs when the author guides and encourages readers to invest their attention in some suspenseful situation but then is substitute for a payoff that has little to do with what occurred before. LISTEN TO PODCAST

Book Marketing Tip: Tips to Ensure a Successful Book Reading/Signing
The day has finally arrived: Your first book reading and signing! No doubt your stomach is aflutter, not just with excitement but with a little apprehension. What if you mess up in the reading? What if you can’t think of what to say when someone answers a question? What if the crowd finds you boring and starts to leave? Don’t worry. None of that is likely to happen at all. And with a little preparation, you can take the edge off these fears while decreasing the chances of something going wrong. READ MORE

Client Spotlight: “The Adventures of Bob the Beagle: Discovering the True Meaning of Christmas” by Sarah Lambert Barham
Looking for a good Christmas children’s book? Sarah Lambert Barham, an editing client from earlier this year has released his first kids picture book, The Adventures of Bob the Beagle: Discovering the True Meaning of Christmas. Through yet another amazing adventure, Bob and his adopted human family discovers the true meaning of Christmas as this adventure teaches him God’s love once again through discovery that Jesus was born in a manger on Christmas day. As Bob curls up under the Christmas tree with the beauty of the lights, he is reminded about the real meaning of Christmas. CHECK IT OUT

$25 Off Your Next Edit!
For being a newsletter subscriber, please take $25 off your next edit with Inventing Reality Editing Service. When scheduling your edit, be sure to mention you’re a subscriber and give the email where you received this newsletter. Minimum order of $200. Offer expires Dec. 25, 2024. SCHEDULE EDIT

My name is Rob Bignell. I’m an affordable, professional editor who runs Inventing Reality Editing Service, which meets the manuscript needs of both aspiring and published writers and offers a variety of self-publishing services. During the past 15 years, I’ve helped more than 400 novelists and nonfiction authors obtain their publishing dreams at reasonable prices. I’m also the author of a novel, the Storytelling 101 Quick Read series, four children’s books, more than 25 bestselling hiking guidebooks, and even a book of poetry. Several of my short stories in the literary and science fiction genres also have been published.