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I talked last Saturday a little about setting reasonable goals to encourage ourselves to stay motivated.

I think it’s also important to find intrinsic rewards from writing. 

I was away most of the day yesterday, chaperoning the state’s middle school band competition at a North Carolina university.

For weeks, the kids’ lives have been dominated by band.  They’ve had extra practices after school and taped their individual practices at home for their teacher’s review.  They’ve mastered a rigorous program for the competition.

The school had won the state competition for 11 years in a row.  The teacher is very talented, but drives the kids hard.  And the kids, including my son, were complaining about it.  They all seemed completely burned out and were talking about not continuing band into high school.

We listened to the other bands all afternoon yesterday.  I know little about music, but I thought the bands sounded very good.  Their playing was strong, clean, lively.

Our band was last and when they played, I  could tell a difference.  It was remarkable, actually.  Their songs were complex, each piece several times longer than the other bands.  They played the selections expertly, effortlessly, drawing us into the music.

They won for the 12th year in a row.  Of course, they were absolutely ecstatic.  They’d worked incredibly hard for weeks on it, plus the months in class.

I could see that their wells had been filled again.  The work had been worth it.  Their success had justified the means.

To me, though, the push was a little too hard.  If it had been me, I’d have wanted to have a little more moderation…some daily successes to keep me going.  Because the big wins can’t be counted on.

Writers give up so much to write.  The only way to really improve is to work at it—work hard at it.  Frequent practice is crucial. 

The rewards are not always a published book and critical acclaim. In fact, many of us might not end up published until years down the road.  There are so many things that drain our creative wells—day jobs, family demands, setbacks, hectic schedules.  We’ve got to find some sort of reward in the writing itself to make us continue, despite the hard work.

For all the days when writing is a grind for me, there are the days that really keep me going.  Days when I’ve been really happy with a great turn of phrase, or a fitting subplot, or even just a nice word choice. 

There are days when everything I’ve written is total crap…I think.  Even on those days, though, I’ve found that there’s something I can salvage from the day…an insight into a character, a decent bit of description, a nice word choice. Or even, the fact that I wrote at all—even though I clearly wasn’t in the right frame of mind.

It’s an odd time to make a resolution, but after each writing session, I’m planning to note something positive from the experience…something that worked. It’s too easy to get burned out while writing.  A little positive reinforcement is a great motivator.

What keeps you motivated with your writing?

HarperCollins announced that it would only allow 26 borrows of its ebooks at libraries.

This, naturally, ignited something of a firestorm.

The point of libraries, of course, is to lend books to readers for free. The libraries buy a certain number of copies of a book or video or CD and then lend them out until the thing falls apart. That’s what it’s all about.

In addition, as Eric Blank at Pimp My Novel put it:

E-books don’t take up physical shelf space, so the limiting factor that once forced a librarian to choose between replacing a popular title that’s worn out and purchasing a different title—that is, space—no longer exists. More titles sold is good for everyone.

HarperCollins’ response to the concerned patrons and librarians is:

Twenty-six circulations can provide a year of availability for titles with the highest demand, and much longer for other titles and core backlist. If a library decides to repurchase an e-book later in the book’s life, the price will be significantly lower as it will be pegged to a paperback price point. Our hope is to make the cost per circulation for e-books less than that of the corresponding physical book. In fact, the digital list price is generally 20% lower than the print version, and sold to distributors at a discount.

But librarians contend that a print bestseller can be borrowed over 26 times before it starts self-destructing.

An article by Martin Taylor on the TeleRead blog supports HarperCollins’ policy:

Ebooks don’t wear out, they’re easy to find and hard to lose, so chances are libraries will need fewer to service the same level of borrowing. And new technology is making the effort required to borrow minimal. These facts underpin concerns about how the paid ebook market will be affected if borrowing (especially from public libraries which are open to anyone) offers few disadvantages over purchase. Borrowing ebooks can be made as easy and accessible—24/7 from anywhere—as buying them.

To me, this is the sort of wrangling that goes on when changes occur in any kind of industry. But I hate that it’s happening for libraries. I mean—come on. Libraries are getting absolutely shafted right now in every possible way…cut-backs, layoffs, closures—you name it.

My long-term strategy is to develop a relationship with my readers and increase my reader base as much as I can. One of the ways I do this is by making sure that my book is in as many public libraries as possible. I feel like the library is the #1 place for a reader to discover a new author or series. There’s absolutely nothing to lose when you check a book out. It’s risk-free. That means that you might be tempted to read something you ordinarily wouldn’t buy at a store. This opens an opportunity for authors to find new readers.

The publisher’s take on this, to me, seems to be a knee-jerk reaction to financial anxiety. And I know publishers are worried right now—I think most of us are. Bookstores are going bankrupt, libraries are closing, and it’s a brave new world out there with ebooks (and one where we haven’t figured out all the kinks yet.) But I just can’t see where these types of policies are going to ultimately be good for the reader (or, by extension, the writers.)

What do you make of it? Have any ideas on strategies that can make both parties satisfied? Feel free to leave any thoughts or ideas on ebook library lending here in my comments, or to email HarperCollins, who is inviting discussion: library.ebook@HarperCollins.com

March is the 14th anniversary of Small Press Month.

The organizers of the Small Press Month events state:

Held annually in March, Small Press Month raises awareness about the need for broader venues of literary expression.

That particular statement did make me curious. I’d actually like to see a little data to back it up. How much of a small publisher’s catalog does consist of strikingly different material? On average, do they have a higher percentage of notably original work than larger publishers?

I’ve written for both small presses (Midnight Ink might qualify as midsized) and large publishers. I wrote traditional mysteries/cozies for both. Small presses do publish genre fiction, obviously, just like the bigger publishers.

I tend to read more about the differences between small and large publishers…which surprises me. I think small publishers and larger ones actually have a great deal in common. My personal experiences at both the big and small publishers were basically the same. These are just my own observations…obviously, others will have different opinions based on their own experiences.

Copyediting/editing?—Excellent for both publishers.
Contract?—The contracts were both of equal length and complexity (it wasn’t as if the contract at the smaller press was simpler or less-convoluted.)
Amount of personal contact? I’ve had more contact with my editor at the larger press, but that could be due to the personalities of the individual editors involved. The editors are absolutely slammed with work at both publishing houses—regardless of the size of the publisher. This means there really isn’t much time for chatting.
Willingness to work with debut writer? My contract with Penguin occurred soon after I’d signed my contract with Midnight Ink. Both were happy to work with a new writer.
Their passion over the job and my book: The same.
My input on cover art? The same. (Although that’s an area where I’d rather the art department and marketing folks take charge…not my forte.)
Marketing plan? Mmm….probably the same. Obviously on a much bigger scale with the bigger publisher.

The biggest differences between the two? The amount of the advance (larger at the big publisher…which might not be fair for me to say, considering that I did negotiate my contract with the smaller publisher and my agent would have, clearly, done better) and the distribution and placement in bookstores (obviously much better with the larger publisher). But—the distribution aspect is changing, since the popularity of eReading is increasing daily.

The biggest argument in favor of a small publisher, I think, is the ability of an unagented writer to obtain a publishing contract. For me, it was harder to find an agent than it was a publisher. When Midnight Ink contacted me about buying Pretty is as Pretty Dies, they didn’t mind a bit that I didn’t have an agent at the time. They offered to give me a week to look for one…and when I still came up empty-handed, they worked directly with me to negotiate a contract. And Midnight Ink is a larger independent press.

I love the idea of giving readers variety and choices in their books. But I’m not convinced that most small publishers have a ‘broader venue of literary expression’ than the big boys. And my efforts to find data on the subject fell flat.

What do you think? If you’ve also been with a big pub and a small pub, did your experience differ from mine? Which did you prefer and which would you recommend to writers? At the bookstore, do you notice a huge difference in the catalogs of big and small presses?

If you missed yesterday’s post, I’m running a short series on useful tools for writers. The nice thing about writing is that it can be a nearly free activity. But there are tools that can make writing (and promo) easier. Many of the tools are free, too, if you already have a computer and internet connection.

Promo is a necessary evil for any writer who has a book on the shelves. Fortunately, some of the promo has to do with author branding—and I find blogging fun. I make my blogging easier by using Windows Live Writer. It’s a free download from Microsoft and is a whole lot easier to use than Blogger’s program. It looks a lot like a Microsoft Word page. You can upload your posts to any blog provider.

Google Documents: I’ve jumped on the Google Docs bandwagon kind of late, but I do like it a lot. You can access your document anywhere and you could share it out with others, if you wanted to (critique groups, agent, editors come to mind…you can edit in real time with other users, too), or mark it as a private file. It could also be considered a nice way to backup your files by using a cloud and not having the manuscript located only on your computer (that’s where we run into problems.) It’s a free application.

OneNote: You might have OneNote on your computer and not even realize it’s there. It comes with Microsoft Office if you operate Windows on your computer. Having OneNote is like having a binder-style notebook with tabs right there on your computer. So you could have a notebook titled “My Book.” One section of your notebook could be Research, another could be Characters another could be Settings, etc. You can use it to organize notes (even handwritten ones) create tables, or organize brainstorming scribbles.

Here’s a post I wrote that describes how I use OneNote. And this is an excellent post on Writers Alley on the program.

4×6 notecards and pencils: Notecards and pencils are the ultimate low-tech tools for me. I like the slightly bigger notecard size so I won’t lose them as easily, but they still store nicely in my purse or laptop bag for those ideas that strike when I’m away from home. I’m a fan of pencils and I buy them in bulk at Costco. They’re everywhere. Pens just seem to bleed too much for me.

Voice recorder: I do use voice recorders, especially when I’m driving on trips. (I tend to get lots of story ideas when driving.) You can buy voice recorders inexpensively (they’re digital now), but I simply downloaded a free one on my phone. One touch of a button and it’s recording my thoughts for later.

Evernote: I’ve also used Evernote on my phone, which does have a voice recording component, too. But I mostly like the way that I can take pictures with my phone, save it to Evernote with story notes, and then have those notes shared out onto my PC. (Yes, I’m a fan of surreptitiously taking pictures of people who look like characters. :) I also take pictures of settings (landscapes, old buildings, houses with interesting architecture, etc.) It’s free.

Hope you’ll continue to add to this list—I got some great suggestions on tools to try from yesterday’s post! Have any other favorite tools?

I came across this article a few days ago on the WordCount blog on tech tools for writers, and it got me thinking about the tools that I use every day.

The nice thing about writing as a hobby/career is that it really doesn’t have to cost very much (which is nice because writers don’t really make very much.) :)

But there are the extras. And it’s fun to have them. These are the tools I use frequently:

Microsoft Word: MS Word and I have had rocky times in our relationship, I’ll admit. But I do like some of its features. I use their highlighter to mark areas of my first draft that I realize are disasters. This helps me to move past the disaster and finish my first draft. Half the time I don’t even analyze the troublesome section—I just mark it to figure out later.

Word’s Track Changes is a necessity when revising with an agent or editor and shows who made what changes or suggestions. I use Track Changes, myself, in my daily writing—clicking ‘review,’ then ‘new comment’ and adding comments in the margins where I have a question: ‘”Is Beatrice’s dog male or female?” is one comment I’ve got in my current WIP because I’m aware I’m being inconsistent. But it would have been time-consuming to chase down that detail during the first draft.

Not sure how to use Track Changes? Here is a link that shows you how to use Track Changes.

Countdown Timer: This timer is what I use to keep myself on track. What do I time? Everything. I give myself ten or fifteen minute intervals for checking in on social media, replaying to emails, or visiting blogs. I also set a timer for my writing time and make sure I keep working at least until it goes off.

Google: I have some sort of Google application up on my computer most of the day. I use Google’s free Gmail program (I reserved my name pretty early in the process so that I could have an email address that made sense and sounded professional…so I’m Elizabethspanncraig(at)gmail(dot)com.)

I also like Google’s calendar which I can update online. I frequently will copy/paste reminders to myself from actual emails I’ve gotten and just stick it on the Google calendar. It syncs with my phone and then I’ve got all the info I need when I’m out of the house, too.

I also use Google Reader to organize and read all the writing blogs I subscribe to. Here’s a post I wrote, explaining a little more about how I use Google Reader.

This post is getting long, so I’ll pick up tomorrow with some more tools—like One Note, Windows Live Writer, and even my favorite low-tech tools. :)

What are some of your favorite writing tools?