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Writing Books Faster—Without Compromising Quality

January 17, 2014January 20, 2014Uncategorized

By Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

These days, it seems as though everyone is talking about writing faster. And there’s definitely a link between the number of books we have available for sale and sales rank…if our books are good.

But that’s the problem. How do we ensure quality while turning out books as fast as we can?

I could write more or faster than I do now. But I don’t want to risk compromising my writing.

Instead, I’ve worked on ways to streamline and fine-tune my process to make the most of the writing time I have. And I’ve become more organized to provide more opportunities to write.Continue reading

Best Practices for Self-Publishers

January 15, 2014January 15, 2014Uncategorized

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

Today I’m guest-posting at the Insecure Writer’s Support Group blog with seven best practices for self-publishing success.

The Insecure Writer’s Support Group was founded by writer Alex J. Cavanaugh to support and encourage writers and to provide resources for everything from the writing craft to marketing a book.

Hope you’ll pop over and visit.

A Switch from Writing Standalones to Continuing Story Arcs

January 10, 2014January 9, 2014Publishing Changes, Uncategorized

By Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

I used to be a big fan of writing each book in my different series as a standalone. I liked the fact that readers could pick up any book in my series and understand what was going on. If you have continuing stories throughout your series, then obviously the reader has to find the first book in the series if they want to make sense of the subplots.

And, with mysteries, you really don’t need to have a continuing subplot or continuing plot. Each book is a single mystery—a murder or two for the sleuth and reader to figure out together.Continue reading

For Those Who Write Multiple Series

January 6, 2014January 5, 2014Uncategorized

By Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

One thing about the holidays is that I’m always around people a lot more than I usually am. In fact, I really can’t think of a time in the last couple of weeks when I was alone in the house. I did really well, actually, keeping up with my modest writing goals, but part of me is glad that school is back in session today.

I definitely socialize more during the holidays than I do any other time of the year—and yes, it’s exhausting. But it’s interesting, too. I always get a different perspective when I’m talking with people I barely know about my writing.Continue reading