Helen McKenna
  • Home
  • About
  • Bookshelf
  • Bookstore
  • Contact
  • Blog
  • Life Story

Lessons Learned Between Book One and Book Two

17/4/2016

0 Comments

 
Writing a book is not an easy undertaking, in fact it took me ten years to complete my first novel. Like anything though there were many lessons learned along the way which saved me a lot of time, sweat and aggravation when writing my second. So if you are an Indie author still struggling to get that first one done, persevere and the next one will not hurt nearly so much, I promise! For those still writing your first maybe some of these things can save your sanity and get your book done sooner.

  • Definitely release in both e-book and paperback. Print on Demand (POD) through companies like Createspace and Lightning Source allow you a cost effective alternative that does not require a large print run. Before committing to a print run order a printed proof and go over it with a fine tooth comb and get someone else to as well. You will be amazed at the number of small errors that have slipped through despite the hours you have spent editing.
  • Plan for your e-book when writing with Word - don't put in page numbers, headers or footers and absolutely no tab stops (use first line indent instead). It's much easier to put page numbers, headers/footers in later for the paperback than painstakingly remove them for the e-book. Removing tab stops makes stabbing your eyes with a pin sound like fun!
  • Familiarise yourself with correct layout and use it right from the first draft. Just get a traditionally published book and follow the paragraph style. Deciding to "just type" now and fix it later is beyond painful. Note too that fiction and non-fiction have different styles.
  • Despite what you may have learned in high school typing classes you don't need two spaces after a full stop.
  • The Australian standard for quotation marks is single ( ' ) for normal dialogue and double ( " ) for all other uses. Despite your personal views on this it is better to go with what the industry does. Also it is much easier to insert the single as you don't have to hit shift each time. It also looks much less cluttered on the page.
  • Don't think you have to get your first sentence or even chapter perfect before you write the rest of your book, you can always come back later and fix it. Spending hours editing the same paragraph won't get the rest of your book written.
  • In the same vein, do edit as you go where possible. If you're having a slow writing day, go back over previous pages and tidy up what you can. Of course you will go back and do a more thorough edit after you've finished the manuscript, but it will be nowhere near as painful if you've made a start.
  • Don't worry if you haven't got your title sorted, it will come to you along the way.
  • A professional editor is not an optional extra, it's a necessity. If you can't afford it come up with a way to raise the funds - run a lemonade stand, mow lawns, cut out that morning coffee, hit up your family for a loan or max out your credit card - its money you have to spend. Don't look at it as an expense, think of it as an investment in your book's success.
0 Comments

    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture

    Picture
    Join the Australian Women Writers Challenge
    AWW Book Reviews
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture

    Previous Posts

    • The Universality of Writing
    • Now In Paperback!
    • What's In A Title?
    • The AWW Challenge
    • The Value Of Editing
    • Words That Inspire
    • Write That Life Story!
    • Why I'm Sold On e-books
    • Meet My New Book
    • Why Reviews Matter
    • The Value Of Entertainment
    • AWW 2017 Sign Up
    • To Give Away Or Not?
    • Finding The Positive In The Challenge
    • Don't Forget The Wave
    • Lessons Learned Between Books
    • Documentaries That Make You Think
    • Finally Book No 2 Is Here!
    • The Urban Myth of Anti-Fog Goggles
    • Quick Update
    • Awesome Reading Volunteers
    • Reviews Have Moved
    • Why Amazon.au Is Good For Aus Authors
    • Amazing Community Libraries
    • The Kindness of Kids
    • Getting the 2nd Book Finished
    • Thanks Fellow Authors
    • Dear Amazon, Please Explain
    • The Importance of A Review
    • Amazon
    • Choosing Your Genre
    • The Way We Write
    • Love The Feedback!
    • Beach Magic
    • My Blog Begins
    Tweets by @helenmckenna_

    Helen McKenna's books on Goodreads
    Room 46 Room 46
    reviews: 17
    ratings: 80 (avg rating 3.98)

    The Beach House The Beach House
    reviews: 30
    ratings: 77 (avg rating 3.86)

    The Perfect Proposal The Perfect Proposal
    reviews: 6
    ratings: 12 (avg rating 3.75)

    How Do I Write My Life Story? How Do I Write My Life Story?
    reviews: 4
    ratings: 9 (avg rating 4.11)

    The Perfect Proposal And Other Stories The Perfect Proposal And Other Stories
    reviews: 5
    ratings: 9 (avg rating 4.22)

    Archives

    November 2019
    July 2019
    April 2019
    January 2019
    September 2018
    April 2018
    February 2018
    November 2017
    September 2017
    May 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    August 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    February 2016
    December 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    July 2014
    February 2014
    November 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    November 2012
    June 2012
    May 2012
    April 2012
    January 2012

Contact:

Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture



© Helen McKenna 2019