I’m going to kill that man.

Revenge stories are a very specific sub-section of the thriller genre. And, similarly to the ‘hero journey’ in a fantasy novel, they follow a tried and true formula.

The Cast

To start any epic revenge story, you need to put together your cast. Obviously, your story will consist of many characters with varying degrees of significance, but the main cast of a revenge plot involves three players: the hero, the villain, and the victim. Your hero is the character who is exacting his revenge on the villain of the story. The law has failed to hold the guilty party accountable so your hero needs to take matters into their own hands. The hero can be varying degrees of good or bad or morally gray or an antihero–there are many options you can play around with as far as their degree of morality. The important thing is to make your hero likable; otherwise, your readers will be rooting for the villain, and who wants that?

Next, you need the villain or the antagonist of your story. This is the person who has done the act that has gone unpunished. The act itself can have varying degrees of severity and the hero could identify the wrong villain in the beginning of your story- only to find out the truth later in a shocking twist. But you’ll need someone at the beginning to which your protagonist assigns blame. Finally, the victim who exists to elicit sympathy from your readers. The victim should be connected to the protagonist in some meaningful, emotional way. It could be a friend, a family member, or even someone who went through a similar experience to the protagonist. Ultimately, they’ll need a strong enough connection that would justify your protagonist’s journey of vengeance.

The Crime

The next step to the ultimate revenge story is to choose and execute ‘the crime’. The more monstrous the act you choose (whether it be murder, rape, torture, terrorism, etc.), the more justified your hero will be in exacting their revenge on the perpetrator. Typically you want to present the crime as tragically as possible. You see cop dramas all the time where the victim’s family talk about how he or she was ‘so young’ or ‘such a good person’ or in the prime of their lives. That’s the same feeling that the crime you create should give your readers- that your victim was so pure and undeserving of the horror they were put through. A revenge story can still work if the crime is committed prior to the beginning of the story, but portraying within the pages will make the journey much more emotional and visceral for the reader.

Hero Turned Tracker

The third stage of your revenge thriller is the tracking portion. This will likely take up the most space in your book as it’s the section where the hero tasks him or herself to track down the villain of the story with the goal of exacting the proper punishment. This stage will involve research, looking for clues, and meeting a series of individuals who will lead your hero to the villain by the end. If your story involves more than one villain, the hero will start to exact their revenge on the various guilty parties in this section- culminating in the villain they deem most guilty. In addition, to add an extra layer of conflict, you can also use this section to introduce a party who is trying to stop the hero from exacting their revenge. This could be anyone from a law enforcement official to a close friend of the hero– but it’s someone who doesn’t believe the hero’s methods of justice are righteous.

The Final Confrontation

As you could likely infer from the title, this is the part of the story where your hero and your villain finally go head to head. If you choose to have your hero mistake the villain for someone else, this is also the part of the true villain of your story is revealed. There are three potential outcomes from this point: success, failure, or peace. If your hero succeeds in exacting their revenge, the question of your ending becomes ‘Was the revenge worth it? Did it give your protagonist the satisfaction they craved?’ Though your audience will likely be most satisfied if your protagonist succeeds in their quest, you can also choose for them to fail which would culminate in either their defeat, the villain escaping, or their death. Finally, your protagonist could reach the point of exacting their revenge only to realize that revenge truly isn’t the answer, thereby finally gaining the peace they needed all along.

The post How to Write an Epic Revenge Story appeared first on Dorrance Publishing Company.

Seeing Our Reflections

Though Science Fiction readers yearn for fantastical drastically advanced worlds, they want themes that are culturally relevant in the present day. So, when you’re preparing to write a sci-fi epic, think about modern issues you care about or even worry about in the world and how (if left untreated) those problems could escalate in the future or in an original species that you create. For example, the science fiction book Ready Player One focuses on a future where we immerse ourselves in virtual worlds and let our planet essentially crumble to ruins around us. Another classic sci-fi book, Red Rising, illustrates where extreme classism can take us- especially when we begin colonizing other planets.

We strongly recommend, rather than trying to tackle several issues at once, that you hone in on one specific problem you see in the world or with humanity and flesh that out as much as possible. If you try to think about all of the different problems in the world it can be a) overwhelming, b) depressing as heck, and c) hard to trace into a possible future or species. In addition, sci-fi readers are all about detailed and intricate concepts where every possible question has been answered. It’s much easier to create a detailed species, world, or future for the human race if you’re focusing on all the in’s and out’s of one issue rather than hundreds. Ultimately, think about what you believe to be the biggest problem facing society or human nature and bring that into your story as a central theme.

Technology & Techno-babble

The main difference between science fiction and fantasy writing is this category right here. Rather than gloss over the inner workings of different pieces of technology you include or cultural concepts you create- sci-fi readers want to hear all of those details. They want to be thoroughly convinced that you did your research as an author and that the technology, medicine, medical procedures, government structure, etc. that they’re reading about is entirely possible and mapped out. While you shouldn’t go into these rants without character context and they shouldn’t be happening on every page, don’t shy away from those long explanations- for sci-fi readers, the devil really is in the details.

Exploration/Discovery

Another big theme that sci-fi readers all want to see is some form of exploration or discovery. Whether that be a character discovering that their world is bigger than they thought or characters discovering a big concept like time travel or parallel worlds- these readers long for those ‘aha’ and ‘oh my gosh’ moments that true scientists and innovators experience. So don’t make the mistake of revealing everything about the world and the trajectory of the story early on. You protagonist should get to grow and change as the scope of their world and its capabilities does the same.

Suspense

While not technically a suspense novel, sci-fi readers want to see a certain level of the suspense genre brought into these novels. Typically in science fiction books, we see one of two tropes: either the world is in danger (or put into danger) and in need of saving or the world is already in a bad place and needs rescuing. For example, in the acclaimed sci-fi novel 1984, George Orwell creates a very dystopian totalitarian world that the protagonist slowly becomes aware of. And if one of these two suspense tropes isn’t employed, science fiction writers will find other ways to create suspense. For example, in the novel Station Eleven, the reader knows an apocalypse of some kind has occurred in this world, but the ‘what’ and ‘how’ is withheld from us. Instead, the novel jumps back and forth in time and POV, slowly cluing the readers in on what happened. Ultimately, sci-fi readers want high stakes, drama, and to be at the edge of their seats. They should feel like they’re strapped into a spaceship flying at hyperspeed (even if they’re just curled up on their couch with their cat).

The post Writing For Your Audience: Science Fiction appeared first on Dorrance Publishing Company.

STEP ONE: GET THE WORD OUT

The first step to successfully starting a Writers’ Group is to send out the bat signal to some fellow writers. Community websites like meetup.com or NextDoor are great ways to find local writers who may be interested in joining your group. Also, more obviously, check with any of your friends who are interested in writing. They may know people who would also want to join a potential group in the area. In addition, if you went to college for writing, don’t be afraid to reach back out to some of your old classmates. It may feel like a long shot, but they may be just as starved of a way to consistently practice their craft as you. Prior to reaching out to people, however, make sure you have a clear mission statement or goal for the group– whether it be focusing on a specific genre or improving a specific part of the writing craft. This way, potential group members will know what they’re getting into right away and whether the group is the right fit for them.

STEP TWO: ESTABLISH A LINE OF COMMUNICATION AND MAKE A SCHEDULE

Once you’ve collected a list of people who are interested, you’ll need to create a clear line of communication for the group. Whether that’s by starting a group text or creating a private Facebook group, you’ll need an easy way for everyone to talk to each other, share ideas, schedules, etc. Once you’ve created this and everyone is on the same page, it would probably be smart to gauge their level of availability for the group. For example, if you’re trying to host a group to write short fiction, ask your group how often they’d be able to write a new piece. In addition, ask what their availability would be for meetings. Depending on their responses and how you’re planning to structure your workshop, you will be able to determine how often it would be prudent for the group to meet.

STEP THREE: ESTABLISH A MEETING FORMAT

There are a few different ways you could format a workshop group. The first would be to have everyone bring a piece of writing to each meeting (whether that be a short story, chapter of a book, etc). If you want the group to encompass multiple genres, the type of writing doesn’t need to be specified, but you should put a limit on the relative length of the piece so the critiques don’t take up too much time. For a group working in 1-2 hour increments, pieces should be roughly between 20-30 pages. Have the group break into smaller groups of two or three, passing their work to the person next to them. Give the group a period of 30 minutes to read each other’s work and make notes. Then have them pass the work back to the person who wrote it and give them any critiques or notes they had.

Another possible format would be for the whole group to focus on 1-2 pieces per night. In this format, you’ll have 1-2 of the writers send their pieces to the members of the group a week in advance of the group meeting. The members are expected to prepare a few paragraphs of notes and critiques to present, giving the group more of a round table discussion format for 1-2 hours. We recommend, at least for the beginning, starting with this format simply because when you start a writing group you have no idea what each person’s critiquing style will be. This way, rather than relying on one person to give each writer an unbiased critique, they get the opinions of the whole group. However, with this format, you’ll likely want to meet every 2 weeks instead of once a month; otherwise, it will take a while to get to each person’s work depending on how many members you have.

STEP FOUR: USE FRAMED CRITIQUES

Regardless of which format you choose, there’s one thing that’s absolutely crucial: frame your critiques. What really sets Writing Groups apart from something like a book club is that the author isn’t some famous person who will never hear your opinions…they’re a human being sitting right there in front of you. And, as a writer, you know how personal the art is and how easy it is to be sensitive about your work. Therefore, the best way to critique is to frame each criticism with a positive comment at the beginning and the end. For example, “I loved the characters in this piece, they were really unique and made me laugh a lot. I thought the piece got a bit confusing toward the end, but I liked the narrator as well.” That’s obviously a shortened version of what you’ll be doing. You can get more in-depth into the criticism side of things, just make sure you’re framing it with positive statements. In addition, when you’re voicing a criticism, make sure you’re using ‘I’ statements. For example, saying, “I thought the middle section could be shortened,” instead of, “The middle section should be shortened.” Remember, you’re not the ultimate authority on what each piece should look like so the writer should know that your statements are solely based on your educated opinion– which they can take or leave.

STEP FIVE: MAKE SURE EVERYONE IS HEARD AND STAY ORGANIZED

Similar to Book Clubs, one of the most important aspects of the group is to make sure each and every member is heard. In order to do this, it helps to designate a host for each session. This could be you each time because you are the founder of the group or you could rotate. Either way, make sure the host is asking questions to get the group talking and calling on any members who haven’t made their opinions heard.

As the founder of the group, you’ll likely be the one in charge of staying organized and keeping everyone on task. For example, if you decide to go with the group discussion format, you’ll want to make a clear schedule in terms of a) when each person has a piece due, b) when each person’s piece will be discussed, and c) when each person will be hosting the group discussion. This way each person will know when to bring their critiques for specific pieces, when to prepare discussion questions, and when their own work is due.

The post How to Host a Writers’ Group appeared first on Dorrance Publishing Company.

1) Pick a subject

The first step to writing a How-To book is honing in on a subject. When it comes to this genre, the more specific you are with your subject the better. There are a lot of How-To books out there so you need to make yours stand out. For example, there are a lot of different books to teach you how to play guitar, but Mastering Jazz Guitar in Three Easy Steps is both specific and simplified version. If you have a broad idea, try to take it one step further by narrowing it down. This may even lead to several book ideas.

2) What makes you an expert?

When you’re choosing a subject, make sure its one that you have some experience with or some expertise within. If you’ve spent your life as a woodworker, for example, then writing g a how-to book about woodworking makes sense. People want to get advice on a subject from someone they feel is an expert. No one wants to read a how-to book on building rockets by someone that’s never built one.

3) Who is your audience?

This step should be relatively easy to figure out. When choosing your subject, think about who you envision as your audience. Because, while you do want to be specific with your subject matter, you don’t want to be so specific that there is virtually no audience for your book. For example, a book about how to play basketball will have a market, but a book about vegans who play basketball likely won’t.

4) Outline

Next–and this is crucial–make sure you outline your book before you start writing. Outlining is merely a suggestion in most cases, but when it comes to How-To books, it’s essential. This book should be a step-by-step process regarding the subject matter where the reader gradually gets better at the task as they go. This means your book needs to be ordered perfectly so that it’s not taking large leaps in the level of difficulty, leaving frustrated readers in its wake.

5) Research

Even if this is a subject that you know a lot about (and it should be at this point) make sure you do additional research. This involves factual accuracies as well as field testing. The last thing you want is for another book to be doing exactly what you’re doing, but better. Make sure you’re telling your readers the best methods. In addition, once you’ve finished your first round of writing, grab a friend or two and see if they can learn the required subject matter from your book. If not, they may be able to point out areas that need reworked.

The post Genre Focus: How-To Books appeared first on Dorrance Publishing Company.

So, how do we get to know people? Well, we talk to them. We listen to them. We observe them. We ask them questions. Just as you would with a real person, the best way to get to know your characters is to actually create spaces and scenarios where you can get to know them in different ways. In other words, write your character into a few specific scenes.

1) Therapy Session

Therapy can be a good setting to get to know your character because that’s a setting where people tend to be more open and vulnerable. And, if your character doesn’t become more open and vulnerable when placed in this setting, that can say a lot about them, too.

Essentially, what you’ll write here is a therapy session between you and your character where you act as their therapist. So, yes, you’ll be writing yourself in as a character in this scene. That can make some writers a little uncomfortable, but one of the main struggles for writer’s is differentiating their character’s voice from their own voice. This is a great exercise to help with this problem because you’ll literally have yourself written into the story to compare.

Have your character walk into the room, sit across from you, and say to them something along the lines of, “Thanks for coming in today. What did you want to talk about?” Like a real therapist, make sure you’re trying to get to the heart of their concerns without putting words in your character’s mouth. Say things like, “So what I hear you saying is…” and “How does that make you feel?”

It’s best to begin this exercise by solely focusing on the dialogue, but if you start to notice mannerisms or interesting body language, go ahead and note that, too.

2) Morning Routine

Now, do not for a second think we’re suggesting that you begin a book with your character waking up. Please don’t- hundreds of books do this already. However, part of getting to know your character is seeing how they act in different circumstances under varying conditions. How do they act when they’re alone and unobserved?

Write a short scene about your character going through their morning routine. Are they a morning person? What do they do when they first wake up- do they jump out of bed or hit the snooze button a few times first? How do they react to their reflection? Are they the type of person who prepares a full meal or grabs a protein bar before quickly rushing out the door?

Walking yourself physically through your character’s morning in-scene will help you get to know them better in a myriad of ways. A person’s living space can say a lot about who they are. So, noticing what kind of books they have and how messy their room is can say a lot about them already. Also, a person is arguably the most honest version of themselves when they aren’t being observed. What does this bring out in your character? Is it good or bad?

3) Compare and Contrast

For this last exercise , you’ll need to create two short scenes. The first you’ll create is a scene between your character and a person that they care for. This could be a parent, a close friend, the mailman- anyone for which your character has a natural affinity. Put them in a setting where your character is comfortable. That could be their own house or a park that they often went to as a child. You want to create a very comfortable environment for your protagonist.

In the next scene, your protagonist is having a conversation with a stranger, in a foreign environment. It doesn’t have to be somewhere where your protagonist has never been before, but it has to be somewhere where they aren’t particularly comfortable or at ease.

This exercise will help you discover how your character reacts to different environments, settings and people. Your protagonist could be the type of person who is just as sweet, kind, and at ease with a stranger as they would be with a close friend or family member. Or your protagonist could be the type of person who pulls back and becomes more guarded in the scene with the stranger.

It’s also a great opportunity to get to know your character’s mannerisms and gestures. What position do they sit in when they’re comfortable vs when they’re uncomfortable? What do they do with their hands? How does their expression differ?

Depending on how the scene unfolds you need to ask yourself- how and why is my character different between these scenes? Is their willingness to be kind to a stranger good or is it naive? Is their hesitation toward the stranger born of a past experience or trauma? It’s very rare to find someone who will act exactly the same way in every interaction and setting, so adding this layer to your character will help you get to know their voice in different settings and levels of comfort.

Your character must feel as real as you are, but also entirely different from you. It’s an incredibly challenging feat, which is why great writers receive such high praise. But, when you get it right, your readers will love your characters, laugh with your characters, and mourn your characters as though they truly are real.

The post Character Development appeared first on Dorrance Publishing Company.

I before e, except after c

Or when sounded as ‘a’ as in ‘neighbor’ and ‘weigh’

Unless the ‘c’ is part of a ‘sh’ sound as in ‘glacier’

Or it appears in comparatives and superlatives like ‘fancier’

And also except when the vowels are sounded as ‘e’ as in ‘seize’

Or ‘i’ as in ‘height’

Or also in ‘-ing’ inflections ending in ‘-e’ as in ‘cueing’

Or in compound words as in ‘albeit’

Or occasionally in technical words with strong etymological links to their parent languages as in ‘cuneiform’

Or in other numerous and random exceptions such as ‘science’, ‘forfeit’, and ‘weird’.

Did you get all of that?  Us either.

While it’s great to know we will always have spell check on our sides, it’s also great to be a good speller. Here are a list of 50 of the most commonly misspelled words. You may not have any issues with any of these words, but keeping a list of words you do commonly misspell isn’t a bad idea.  Let’s face it–sometimes seeing the dreaded spellcheck underline can get you out of your writing flow before you really had a chance to get started.

1. Absence
2. Accommodate
3. Achieve
4. A lot
5. Amateur
6. Atheist
7. Believe
8. Benefit
9. Buses
10. Calendar
11. Cemetery
12. Changeable
13. Colonel
14. Conscience
15. Daiquiri
16. Embarrass
17. Exaggerate
18. Existence
19. Foreign
20. Guarantee
21. Harass
22. its/it’s
23. Judgment
24. Knowledge
25. License
26. Loneliness
27. Marshmallow
28. Mathematics
29. Memento
30. Millennium
31. Misspell
32. Noticeable
33. Occasion
34. Pastime
35. Peculiar
36. Pigeon
37. Prejudice
38. Probably
39. Publicly
40. Queue
41. Receive
42. Recommend
43. Restaurant
44. Sacrifice
45. Separate
46. their/they’re/there
47. Until
48. Vacuum
49. Weird
50. Whether/weather

Another way to become a better at spelling? Read. The more you read, the more your vocabulary improves. You can also take up crossword puzzles, subscribe to word-of-the-day emails, and become familiar with common rules for prefixes and suffixes.  If you want to be taken seriously as a writer, you need to be able to spell.  Putting a little time and effort into developing this skill will only help you earn more respect in your field.

The post Spelling appeared first on Dorrance Publishing Company.

From building credibility to increasing your visibility, Pinterest is a viable tool for authors to use to spread the word about themselves as an author, and for their work as well.

In this blog, we’re taking this topic a step further and giving you some helpful tips on how to make your Pinterest page pop!

The idea of Pinterest is to share visually appealing content via images and video with other users on the site. Because of the site’s social nature, it’s not just about pinning pictures and linking back to your book or your website. It’s also important to curate boards of pins from other users – pins that speak to your personality, and will help you connect with potential readers. The more you connect and increase your exposure, the more likely you will be to grow your following, eventually giving you a larger potential audience for pins that are about you and your book.

To help you grow your Pinterest audience, below are three ideas you can implement immediately!

Offer value.

Though it’s great to create a compilation of aesthetically pleasing content, if you begin to repin every single pin that you find to be interesting, you’ll have a board of images that don’t offer a lot of value to your users. So, rather than going on a pinning spree, do your research and look for popular pins that have a lot of engagement and curate those pins to add to your boards.

Tip: Before you share, be aware of the popularity of the pin. This will help keep your boards interesting and provide value to your followers.

Spruce up your boards.

Social media sites are constantly being revamped and adding new algorithms into the mix. So, what worked at one point, might not work anymore. Though this might sound scary, there’s a simple solution for this problem. At the end of each month, go through your Pinterest boards and identify pins with less than five repins. From there, you can delete this content. This is done so that you can increase the likelihood of Pinterest recommending your pins to other users – thus potentially expanding the reach of your content!

Tip: Here’s how to delete a pin: Click on the image – Edit – Delete Pin – “Are you sure you want to delete pin?” – Delete Pin. Voila! Say goodbye to that content!

Put yourself out there.

One way to gain more traction with your boards is to adjust the visibility settings. If you think that a particular board could be performing better, one way to increase the views on your boards is to change the title. When changing the title of your Pinterest board, you’ll want to make it something that will resonate with people. Use words and phrases that people use in everyday life, and keep it simple!

Tip: Here’s how to change the title of your board.  Click on the board you want to change – Click Edit Board button – An edit screen will appear where you can change the name (title) and other variables – Rename your board – Scroll down and click the red “Save” button.

Be sure to monitor the newly named board and adjust if necessary.

Remember that social media as a whole, Pinterest included, is a game of trial and error where you’re constantly testing new ideas to see what works and what doesn’t. So, take these three ideas in stride and use them to promote your content and make your page pop!

The post How to Make Your Pinterest Page Pop appeared first on Dorrance Publishing Company.

Today, we’re delving into an additional social property, Pinterest, and giving you three reasons why this social media platform can help bolster your promotional efforts.

But before we dive into today’s topic, let’s take a step back and give a brief overview of this social network. In short, Pinterest allows users to share content such as images and videos with others. When people see something that they like, they “Pin It” to their board. These boards are essentially a collection of “pins” – videos/images that fit into a common theme. For example, a Pinterest board could be named Favorite Books, and your book could find its way onto that board!

Now that you have a general idea of what this social site’s all about, let’s move on to our three reasons why you should start a Pinterest page!

Builds Credibility

As an author, Pinterest will give you an outlet to show your personality, as well as your knowledge and expertise in your specific genre. Let’s say that you’re a mystery novel writer and you create a Pinterest board titled,Whodunnit? that features your favorite mystery novels and mystery-writing tips. Not only will this type of board attract other people who are interested in this genre, it has the potential to reach people who might be interested in buying your book, too. This tactic helps increase your credibility as an author and your value to readers as well.

More Visibility

Pinterest is a very visually inspiring site, and each category, whether it’s books, favorite quotes or even writing tips, offers the user what seems to be an endless scrolling experience of engaging content. There’s more than meets the eye when it comes to this content, because through the images and videos that you upload to Pinterest, you can actually add hyperlinks –clickable links that will take the user to another page. For instance these links could lead users back to your website, blog or social media profile. Adding hyperlinks to your pins will help you introduce users to more of your content and to help expand your reach.

Adds Regularity

When building a following on Pinterest, one of the most important aspects is to consistently update your boards. One way of doing this is by creating a pinning schedule that will keep you on track when it comes to updating your profile. Regularity keeps your presence on Pinterest known. If you’re unsure about what to post, take some time and do your research. Scour the site to see what other authors are doing. (Maybe even pin some of their posts that inspire you to your boards!) From there, you can get a better understanding of what sort of content resonates with your target audience.

Always remember to create and consistently update boards with visually engaging, relevant content, and odds are Pinterest will become a great promotional tool for you and your work!

Stay tuned in the coming weeks when we give you tips on how to make your Pinterest page pop!

The post DIY Social Media: Pinterest appeared first on Dorrance Publishing Company.

You have a book idea in your mind, and now it’s up to you to extract those ideas from your imagination and put them on paper. Sounds easy, but for some it can be rather difficult.

In today’s blog, we’re going to offer you some helpful tips on how to write the first chapter of your book.

Every book requires certain touch points in order for the story to unfold in front of the readers’ eyes. With that said, keep these tips in mind and consider them a jumpstart to your novel-writing journey.

Attention grabber

The first few pages of the first chapter serve a vitally important purpose to the survival of your book. These pages will either reel your reader in or have them close your book and move on to the next one. In your first chapter, you’ll want to set the scene, mood and the tone of your story. Introduce your protagonist, provide details – paint the picture of this person. Write in a way that your reader feels as if they’ve been put right into the protagonist’s shoes. Once you’ve done that, it’s time to introduce the problem, the focus of your story. It’s this issue that will drive your story’s plotline further.

Got a problem?

A problem is necessary in order to move your story along, and this problem cannot be easily solvable. This challenge is what will set your story into motion, so it shouldn’t be something that can be stopped immediately. It’s the fuel that keeps your story going. Focus should also be placed on your protagonist’s internal and external struggles while dealing with the issue at hand. Now, you don’t want to be all gloom and doom with your writing. There are myriad ways to introduce a problem in your story. One of which may be your main character having everything only to have it taken away. Or you could deny your character of his deepest desires and have him chase after it to obtain it. Your problem is contingent on your main character’s personality. What makes him tick? It’s up to you, the author, to decide that.

A change of heart

Through your character’s journey, he might make a discovery that changes the course of the story. It’s this fork in the road that will ultimately lead your character to the change that we mentioned previously. When you start writing the first chapter of your book, your character will be one way, and it’s your goal to make your character malleable so that the readers can see a full transformation by novel’s end.  As the author, it’s your job to be the instigator, to add fuel to the fire. You already stoked the fire by introducing a problem into your protagonist’s life. It’s important to note that your main character must be malleable. When the problem is introduced, his or her personality must change. Your character will start one way, and through the trials and tribulations of your story, your character will take a different shape by your book’s final page. As we mentioned in the last point, you’ll want to meld together your character’s external struggle with an internal struggle. Your story’s progression will either provide a resolution or add fuel to the issue. Just think of a caterpillar emerging from a cocoon as a beautiful butterfly. In your book, it’s up to you, the author, to make that butterfly emerge right in front of your readers’ eyes.

So, if you’re ready to begin the first chapter of your book, take note of these tips to help get you started!

Sometimes however, partnering with someone else can help you as the author stay on track and motivated to complete your novel. If this sounds like something that interests you, learn more about our available Writing Coach services!

The post How to Write the First Chapter of Your Book appeared first on Dorrance Publishing Company.

In blogs past, we’ve focused on promoting your book via Facebook, Google+, and Twitter. But there are some common best practices that apply across all of these. So today, we’re going to offer you five tips on how to promote your book on social media, no matter what the platform!

Have Fun –The moment you think of social media as a chore is the moment you should reconsider your approach. Social media is a fun way to interact with other authors and potential readers alike. Don’t force yourself to engage in social media, or your efforts will feel contrived and likely go unnoticed. Rather, find a social network that you like and enjoy posting to, and work to develop your content to serve your audience!

Be Authentic – When it comes to networking on social media, it’s up to you to choose the platforms that you feel best fit your message. It’s in these cases where you should listen to your gut and don’t let the fear of failure ruin your efforts. Take social media in small doses. Doing too much too soon can quickly lead to burnout and frustration. Focus on one platform at a time; master that platform and then move on to the next!

Blog About it – Don’t forget that blogs are also considered part of the social media puzzle. As an author, writing is obviously something that you enjoy. That’s what makes blogging the perfect platform for authors who want to continue to write long after their book(s) have been published. Think of your blog as a collection of short stories. You can write and share short essays, promotional announcements or even provide your take on new books and other industry news! From there, you can cross-promote these blog posts on your other social media profiles. Just pay attention to how your audience receives certain posts. If one post is more popular than another, try your best to recreate what you did with that post again and again (without being repetitive, of course).

Be an Expert – As an author, you know a thing or two about the genre in which you’ve written your book. After reading countless books, and referring to our informative blog posts for inspiration and help, you’ve become a sponge of sorts, soaking up as much information as possible. This knowledge can be translated to your social media posting schedule. It’s only natural to feel shy when crafting a post.

After all, you don’t want to seem like a know-it-all. Just craft posts that are informative and offer your audience the benefit of your insight, or an angle that may not have occurred to them previously. Putting yourself out there can be intimidating, but if you share insight on the topics that you know and invite others to join in on the conversation, over time, you’ll become more and more comfortable in the world of social media.

Ask for Help – Getting started on social media can feel intimidating. Don’t be overwhelmed! If you’re not sure where to turn, don’t forget about the Social Media Services package available from Dorrance Book Promotion Products. We’ll help you get started and coach you on how to use leading social media platforms.

So, as we embark on a new year, keep these four social media tips in mind when working to promote not only your book but you as an author in 2016 and beyond!

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