I’ve always heard that it’s important to learn something new every day.
But lately, I feel like I’ve been learning fifty new things a day, trying to keep up with publishing and social media trends.
In many ways, it’s wonderful having so much information available out there. If we want to become traditionally published and need to learn how to write a query letter, polish our manuscripts, or pen a pithy synopsis, we can find resources online to help us.
If we want to learn how to self-publish a book, how to format for different platforms, or where to promote a self-published book, we can find that information, too.
This can result in information overload. When I joined a loop for self-publishing info and was encouraged by the moderator to read the archives, I saw a year’s worth of information on there. (And, with e-publishing, a year might be outdated. So you also have to decide what’s still relevant.)
I started reading the information. I had a moment there, though, when I really didn’t want to do it! Now, though, I’ve learned a lot more about e-publishing.
Here was my method for learning something new:
Know what information you’re looking for. It will take even more time if you’re just trying to read everything you can on a particular subject (although that’s definitely one way of learning something new!) In particular, I was looking for information on different e-publishing platforms, where the e-reading public hangs out online, insights on pricing, and how other writers balance self-publishing with traditional publishing.
Pace yourself. If you’ve already got a full schedule, cramming a bunch of information in at once is probably just going to lead to burnout. I found myself getting absorbed in the research, so I set a timer. When the timer went off, I stopped reading up on the subject. I’ve got lots of other things I need to do. Or, if you’re putting off your research on the topic, setting a timer for 15 minutes (or whatever your allotted time is) is a great way to remind yourself that you don’t have to study for very long.
Jot down anything you don’t understand. Sometimes I run across mentions of loops, groups, forums, and sites that I wasn’t familiar with. I also ran into some formatting terminology I didn’t know. I make notes of things to look up later.
Remember that you can contact primary sources for information. Anytime I’ve asked a writer or industry professional a question, I’ve always gotten an informative response back. If you have questions about something, email an expert.
If you have to take a break from learning the skill, make a date on the calendar for picking it back up. Because learning is time-consuming…and it would be so easy to just let it slide.
Don’t try to catch up with everyone else. Just jump in and start learning. No catching up is necessary. Again, pace yourself.
Keep a Word file of the most useful information. It’s sort of like having your own reference file.
Learned anything new lately? Got any tips? And—do you ever feel like you’re overloaded with information and resources?
Great list … I have a list of primary sources I can choose from when I need specific answers that really need to be right on. Research can be difficult if not overwhelming. It helps to have those sources available and ready to help. I give these sources credit in my acknowledement section of my books too.
This is excellent advice, especially the part about not trying to keep up with everyone else. That can get really overwhelming.
Elizabeth – There really is a wealth of new stuff out there, isn’t there? And it changes constantly, so even if you go back six months later, things might have changed. I would say the most important thing I’ve learned is focusing on what you want to learn. That is, ask yourself a narrow question (e.g. “What’s the accepted format for a query letter”). Then, you don’t get inundated with thing you’re not ready to learn yet. Once you’ve answered that narrow question, you can go on to the next one.
Hi Elizabeth .. excellent list and ideas. Personally we can only go forward .. so start at the now .. and do one thing that’s important to you at a time. We pick up snippets of information as we go along and sometimes that jigsaw will slot into place. Thanks – otherwise as Heather says it’s overwhelming .. Hilary
At 62, I am learning how to play the piano. It is not easy. The only way I can do it is to be very gentle with myself, keep my expectations low, and practice practice practice. Slow going, but also very rewarding.
karen
Great tips, and I wish someone had given me those tips when I was a pre-teen! I’ve had to write research papers since I was in the 6th grade, and I would always feel overwhelmed. As a result, I developed a habit of reading non-fiction voraciously so I could squeeze as much out of one source as I could. Definitely has its own advantages, but writing out- and admitting- what you don’t know might be a little more efficient :-)
I often feel overloaded – my brain won’t hold one more word. But somehow it does. I gave up trying to keep up with anyone a long time ago – at least as long ago as last week :) Wonderful advice here.
You can even learn from a blog about learning.
Thanks for the good advice.
Stephen–Always important to credit our sources and resources…I’m sure they all appreciated it.
Heather–I think it can immediately feel very overwhelming–especially when we’re starting out and trying to get information. Sometimes I visit blogs and websites that focus exclusively on epublishing…and everyone there seems to speak a different language. I keep reminding myself that I’m not playing catch-up.
Hilary–Comparing it to a jigsaw is very apt!
Deb–That’s definitely one way to to do–immerse yourself in information! I feel bad you were so overwhelmed with your assignments as a kid…such a terrible feeling, isn’t it? You’re right, though, the most efficient way, in terms of time, is to identify what we’re trying to learn.
Margot–I think that’s a good point. Otherwise, we end up going off in a million different directions instead of learning the one area we wanted information on.
LD Masterson–Thanks for coming by!
The truth is the pace of change is so rapid that you sometimes feel like you’re running as fast as you can to stay in the same place.
You feel like the publishing world does a complete 180′ every six months.
Learning is an ongoing process, but you also have to find a comfort level and build gradually or you’ll go nuts.
Karen–That’s so neat! My daughter is just learning how to play and I’ve always wished I knew how to. Being gentle with ourselves is so important.
Carol–I think my first instinct is to look at somebody doing something really well and feel like I’m behind. It’s good to get over it!
I have to find the balance: I will be depressed if I don’t keep learning new stuff but I have to learn to let go of the old or else I will become overwhelmed. I like the suggestions you put forth here.
I get overwhelmed when I read to many articles about how I should be writing. When I do I just shut down. No anything–reading about writing, writing or even reading writer’s blogs.
When my head clears I begin again in little bites.
I imagine since eBooks are changing so fast, the information is as well.
Maybe limiting Google searches to just information from the last month or so would be best. At least for stuff like that.