How to Make Your Mystery Paranormal; Or, Solving a Mystery With Help From …Whatever

Mystery Writing Tips

By Sandra Gardner

First a definition: Merriam-Webster: Definition of paranormal: not scientifically explainable: supernatural

If you want to write a story — any kind of story — with a paranormal element, it has to have believability. Whether you’re world-building — say a story set in a mythical time or place – or just adding a ghost or two, the reader needs to be able to suspend disbelief.

An example of a classic ghost story is The Turn of the Screw, a 19th-century novella by Henry James. Set in a real setting — a country house in southeast England — it’s populated with real people, a governess and two children. There also appears to be not just one ghost, but two, out to do harm to the children.  The governess tries to protect them from the malevolent spirits, but fails, and in the end, there is a death. The novel is known as a ghost story and a gothic mystery.

Then there are mysteries with “good” ghosts. The Aunt Dimity books by Nancy Atherton are examples. In the first novel, Lori Shepherd discovers an old journal written by her mother’s friend Aunt Dimity, now deceased. Aunt Dimity begins talking to Lori through the pages of the book. More than that, it turns out that Aunt Dimity is an excellent guide in solving crimes, including murder.Continue reading

Using IngramSpark for Print Preorders

Business of Writing

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

There are several reasons why I have my printed books available through print on demand distributor IngramSpark.  For one, it’s a cheaper option for international readers than KDP Print (formerly CreateSpace).  For another, I like to have a print distributor for bookstores (if a reader requests a book from Barnes & Noble, for instance).  I also like a print distributor for libraries (and the option for my books to be in hardcover). Here’s an excellent article from Debbie Young on why authors should use KDP Print and IngramSpark together.

There’s another reason why I like using IngramSpark.  They offer the ability for a printed book to be available as a pre-order on Amazon.

KDP Print doesn’t offer a pre-order option, but you can set your release date on IngramSpark and, if the release date is in the future, it will show as a pre-order on Amazon (and the book will be delivered at the release).Continue reading

Twitterific Writing Links

Twitterific

Bluebird with beak open and 'Twitterific Writing Links' by ElizabethSCraig superimposed on the image

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

Twitterific writing links are fed into the Writer’s Knowledge Base search engine (developed by writer and software engineer Mike Fleming) which has over 48,000 free articles on writing related topics. It’s the search engine for writers.

Have you visited the WKB lately?  Check out the new redesign where you can browse by category, and sign up for free writing articles, on topics you choose, delivered to your email inbox!  Sign up for the Hiveword newsletter here.

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Skip Those Writing Speed Bumps

Writing Tips

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

There are a variety of things that can slow you down as you write.  I’m not sure how many writing sessions in the past have been derailed by really simple things.

Here are some of my most-likely culprits and how I manage to move past them:

Timeline.  I just used the word ‘yesterday’ to refer to something earlier in the story.  Was it yesterday, or was it earlier?  Solution: Note it in one separate document.  I call mine “Things to Fix in ______ (Story Name).”  It’s a completely separate Word document that I keep in the same folder as the manuscript.  One entry for my current WiP is this simple: page 95….was it yesterday morning?

Names.  Oops.  This character doesn’t seem to have a last name.  Solution: put an asterisk in the manuscript to point out the issue and fix  later.  When you’re ready to work on the second draft, just do a search for asterisks in your document.

Loose ends that I suddenly remember.  Did Myrtle leave a casserole dish with Nell?  Solution: note it in my ‘Things to Fix’ document.

Plot holes.  Myrtle left a car dealership driving a car.  How did she get there (she doesn’t currently own a car)?  Solution: note it in my ‘Things to Fix’ document.

Ideas that I want to incorporate into past chapters.  Solution: Again, this goes into that ‘Things to Fix’ document. Or, sometimes, I’ll note the ideas in Word’s Track Changes.

Veering off the outline.  Or a POV change.  Any major departure for the story.   Solution: mark it with an asterix (or put a comment in Track Changes) and start writing from the new POV, etc., from that point in the book, on.  Make the changes after the first draft is finished.

Issues realized.  I don’t have enough clues to point to the murderer.  Solution: note the fact in the ‘Things to Fix’ doc.

Although the temptation is to fix the problem immediately, I’ve found that I stay focused on my story and make more word count gains if I just note the issue and keep going.

Do you run into these types of speed bumps in your story?  Others?  What’s your approach toward them?

Speed Bumps that Writers Encounter and Tips to Deal With Them: Click To Tweet

Photo credit: davidseibold on VisualHunt.com / CC BY-NC

How to Calculate Amazon Fees for Printing Paperbacks Using KDP Print

Business of Writing, Uncategorized

by David Wogahn, @Wogahn 

It is simple to figure out eBook royalties because there are no “manufacturing” costs. But the formula for calculating your royalty for a paperback book printed by Amazon KDP Print is another matter. That’s because we have two mouths to feed:

  1. The printer, in this case Amazon KDP.
  2. The retailer—online and brick and mortar—adds their mark-up or selling commission.

The retailer’s commission is relatively easy to figure out because it hasn’t changed much over the years. It is typically 40% for the retailer and in fact that is Amazon’s share when you use KDP Print.

(As an aside, you give up an additional 20% when or if you make your book available for expanded distribution, which for KDP Print is handled by Ingram. Meaning, you receive 40% of your book’s retail selling price less the cost to manufacture it.)Continue reading

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