Sudden Weight Loss: Put your prose on a diet with this free tool

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Is your manuscript weighing in far over your word count? Has your willpower to cut words weakened? Are you bothered by bloated scenes?

Try this: put your prose on a diet.

WritersDiet is an online tool to evaluate your writing on a scale from 'lean' all the way to 'heart attack territory'. Simply paste a block of writing in the box and click 'run the test'.

In seconds, the site analyzes your sample with an algorithm, grading different areas of efficiency. You'll see an overall grade, then an analysis of your use of five different categories: verbs, nouns, prepositions, adjectives & adverbs, plus those pesky words like it, this, that, and there.

The score indicates areas you could consider tightening. Here's an example of a score chart. Click the red 'see full diagnosis' for a printable pdf file of your sample, score, and suggestions for changes.

Below the ratings, the site shows your sample passage with individual words highlighted in each of the colors. I was surprised to see that I used the word 'up' three times. I'll definitely make some changes.

If you find you need to cut words, here are two tips to try:

Fantasy author Carol Berg challenges herself by looking at the end of a paragraph. Mine (above) has a 'tail' of four words at the bottom. Carol, who admits to wordy first drafts,  would find enough words to cut in the paragraph to eliminate that tail.

Agent Rachelle Gardner compiled a list of words to watch for. Use the 'find' feature on your word processor to locate and then eliminate excess verbiage.

Keep in mind that the WritersDiet site warns,

The WritersDiet Test is a blunt instrument, not a magic bullet. A stylish passage may score badly on the test, and a dull passage may score well. It is up to you to make intelligent use of the targeted feedback that the test provides.

What kinds of words add inches to your manuscript? Any additional tips for tightening?

Make Novel Timelines and More with Scapple

Yesterday we sat out in 75 degree weather. This is today.

For some time now, I've been searching for timeline software to help me visualize what happens before my novel begins. I've experimented with outlines and notecards, but I wanted to keep adding events without having my document look messy. Enter Scapple.

I've heard about Scapple for some time, but hadn't taken the time to try it out. Scapple comes from the same folks that make the amazing Scrivener writing software, so I knew the program was worth a look.

Since we're having a lovely snowstorm today (three inches so far on the first of May), I decided it was a great day for Scapple.

First, I watched the brief video that shows Scapple's features, and some of the shortcuts.

Then, I tested it with a writing problem I'd encountered. I wasn't satisfied with my current chapter,

and wanted to visualize what would happen if I changed some events. This is what I came up with. I think I solved my problem, though I only used the very basic Scapple options.

Next, I tackled my timeline issues. Some of the nice things about Scapple, are that you can:

• write notes anywhere
• move notes around
• connect notes with dotted lines, arrows, or contain them in boxes
• import photos, documents, etc.
• use color and outlines to differentiate notes
• export notes into documents (or into Scrivener, if you use that)

Here's a portion of my timeline, which is changing as I remember new details to add and connections to make. I'm using different colors for notes and borders of notes for different characters.

I'll definitely use Scapple to map out where new chapters are heading. It's also a great tool if you're writing a short story, and want to visualize what's happening. I can imagine using Scapple for non-writing projects, too.

Later today, I'll try Scapple for fine-tuning a query letter. I have a Word document with lots of query notes, and it's confusing to sort through which lines to keep, and which aren't strong enough. I'll import the document into Scapple, which will ask if I want to make individual notes from each paragraph. Once I've got that imported, I can slide the notes around, and link together the ones I plan to use.

Scapple is free to try for 30 days. That's 30 days of actual use, so if you only use it once a week, you'll have it for 30 weeks. Check it out and see if it might make sense for you.

What do you think Scapple might do for you?

Storytelling Tips from the Pros

 Wouldn't you love to see the credits roll--and there's your name? Most writers would consider it a dream come true to see their name on a book, much less on the big (or small) screen. What can make the possibility more likely?

Study what your readers are watching.

What shows are the ones talked about on Facebook (the virtual water cooler)? What movies generate the biggest crowds? Which dvds get snapped up the moment they hit the shelves?

These are the shows that become a writer's text book. No, they don't do everything perfectly, but they're doing something that grabs viewers and encourages them to spread the word.

It would be a nice thing to happen to your book, right?

So I've done a little of the work for you. Here are links to posts where others have analyzed what works for particular movies and TV shows. If you want more, just do a search for "storytelling tips from _____", and you'll find lots more. 

Storytelling tips from Pixar:  

one of their own examines what makes them successful.

Storytelling tips from Alfred Hitchcock: 

find out what a 'mcguffin' is, and how it can transform your plot.

Storytelling tips from Walt Disney

Storytelling tips from Dr. Who: 

This one is a book. The writers of the show carried on an email correspondence, and compiled their conversations in a book called The Writer's Tale. Fascinating.

Storytelling tips from Grimm 

Storytelling tips from The Hunger Games: 

And may the odds of a bestseller be ever in your favor.

Storytelling tips from The Twilight Zone

Storytelling tips from Downton Abbey

Which movies or shows do you cull writing tips from?

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Free Online Storage

The always-encouraging Jim Maxwell.

My dad is amazing. He's always passing on great ideas that help in my writing endeavors. Having been a journalism major, he loves the idea that several of his children and grandchildren write. So he definitely wants us to save our words in a safe place.

As writers, one of our biggest tasks is getting the words onto the page. But the next job is to make sure they stay there. Back in January I wrote a post about backing up writing, which listed several ways to get the job done.

Dad first encouraged me to sign up for Dropbox. It's an easy way to make sure my novel is saved automatically every few minutes, and it's free. Click here if you want to give it a try.

Just the other day, Dad sent me another great link. SkyDrive offers free online storage with greater amounts of cloud storage that's easy to access from anywhere. Users get up to 7GBs to ensure documents (and your amazing manuscripts) are safe and easy to access from any computer (and devices, too).

Quite a few companies have joined the online storage market. Many offer a certain amount of space for free, with paid options for more space. Check out this comparison chart to see how SkyDrive stacks up against Google Drive, Apple iCloud, and Dropbox. The nice thing is that you can take advantage of the free space from all these vendors--just be sure you know what you've stored where. Oh, and make sure that's not the only place you've saved your documents.

And after you've written the words, and saved the words, it's time to share those words. Whether in a critique group, with your family, with an agent or editor, or online to the world. Don't just keep them holed up in the cloud.

Do you spend more time writing, saving, or sharing your words?

Allergy update: So many of you have been so kind (and patient with my sporadic blogging!) during this transition into feeding my son with multiple allergies (if you missed the story, you can read it here). Things are getting better, but I'm sure getting a workout in the kitchen. This morning I've got three crockpots of different soups going, and I pulled three veggies from the dehydrator. On tap today is making 'gummies' and snack bars, and perhaps some cookies. Maybe I'll get to write in between!

How to Describe Your Characters Well

After talking about dialogue last week, here's a reminder about character's looks.

Writing a novel is hard enough without having to invent your character's features. Some things are hard to make up. Take the guy to your left. His name is Torbar. He's a Croatian peddler in the middle ages ('Torbar' is the Croatian word for peddler, by the way--creative naming on my part, right?).

I found this guy on a photo-sharing site, doing a search for 'Croatia' and 'old man'. I love how one of his eyebrows curves normally, while the other is shaped like the letter 's'. If you cover one side of his face, he looks sleepy, but if you cover the other side, he appears stern. These are details I would never have come up with on my own.

Of course, I had to describe the rest of him, too. The wonderful internet came into play again when I spent a relaxing hour perusing the image files at the New York Public Library. I was thrilled to discover a series of drawings detailing the costumes of fifteenth century Croatians, from peasants to soldiers. And in the middle of it all was a Croatian merchant.

The internet is a fantastic place to inspire character descriptions. Some writers peruse the head shots of modeling agencies. I might do that if I was writing a romance, but I don't want my characters to look perfect. I want my characters to have some character.

So here are a few resources to help you get inspired. You may want to bookmark the page, since I'll be adding resources as I find them.

There's a huge amount of stock photography sites out there. While it's not the biggest, I'm partial to Stock.xchng, because the photos are free. I usually find just what I need.

Photo-sharing sites are another place to check. Websites like Flikr and Photobucket are just two spots to start with. And don't forget about Google Images. Do a Google search like usual, and then click the 'images' button on the side. You'll be amazed at what you come up with.

I've done searches for 'eyes' and 'hairstyles'. There's even a blog by a guy who is growing (and documenting) every conceivable beard type! If you need it, it's probably out there.

How do you come up with character descriptions? Any resources we should know about?

The best New Year's resolution: back up your computer

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The new year starts with all kinds of promises. This will be the year that you finish your novel. Or land that agent. Or self-publish another book. The biggest problem is just finding time to do it all, right?

But what if your computer crashed?

Do you have a back-up system in place to keep you from tearing your hair out, or holding a wake in honor of your digitally-departed novel? Here are a few ways you can ensure your peace of mind. We'll start small and move up.

Flash drive. These handy and inexpensive gadgets can hold quite a bit of information. Besides backing up your latest work in progress, they can be used to transfer a copy from one computer to another, so your novel is safe in several locations. Drawback: they can be lost or damaged.

Email. Many writers email their latest chapter to themselves, so they have a copy 'in the cloud'. Drawback: If you send multiple versions of a document, it can be hard to keep track of them all. Read how one author experienced a nightmare using email.

GoogleDrive. If you have a Google account, you've got this already (find it in your header). You can upload whole copies of novels, or group individual chapters in folders you create. There's lots of space, and the assurance that you can access your files from any computer. Drawback: it's not an automatic save. You'll have to go to the site, choose your files, and upload them.

Dropbox. This is one of my favorites so far. You download the free Dropbox application. A Dropbox folder appears on your desktop. Any files you place in the Dropbox folder gets automatically resaved in the cloud any time you make changes. I keep my Scrivener file for my novel here. As soon as I change one letter in my novel, it gets updated. Drawback: A decent amount of space is available for free. For more storage, you can invite other users, or pay for a membership.

Evernote. I'm just learning more about this organization and filing system (look for a post on Evernote soon). I think it could work well for copies of chapters. Drawback: you'll have to drag in a new copy of your file for it to be saved in the cloud.

External Hard drive. These can be purchased for less than $100, and can hold a huge amount of information (like backing up your whole computer). Most work in the background, saving your information whenever something gets changed. Drawback: as with any device, it can break down, get damaged, or stolen.

Online back-up system. These services act like the physical hard drive above, but your information is stored remotely. Most can restore your computer if it crashes. Drawback: Each charge a monthly or yearly fee. Check out this post on Five Scribes to read how several of them compare.

I'm sure there are many possibilities I haven't even touched on. The best idea, though, is to choose more than one so your words are saved in several places. That way, no natural disaster or tragedy can stand in the way of publication.

How do you back up your writing? What works the best for you--and is easy to keep up with?

WordHippo

It's nice to start the year with the resources you need for the writing you want to do. Word Hippo is one of the resources writers can turn to for all kinds of information.

A quick visit to Word Hippo will answer the following questions:

What's another word for ____?
A thesaurus is a huge help for writers. How many times have you edited a passage and found you've used the same word over and over? Though we operate in a world of words, sometimes our brain only generates the generic ones.

What's the opposite of ____?
Yes, you can say what you mean. But sometimes (oops, used that above!) occasionally it's interesting to come at an idea from the other end of the spectrum. Instead of letting your character go on about what she loves, why not have her list the things she hates?

What's the translation for ____?
I've found this to be really helpful, since my novel takes place in Croatia. I translate all kinds of words so my characters have names that have a connection to who they are or what they do.

What words start with ____?
Alliteration can be a powerful writing tool (in moderation, of course). The tool on Word Hippo is searchable in several ways. You can find words that begin with, end with, or contain a certain letter or letters. The results are customizable so users can specify how many letters long they want their results. I imagine poets (and those who write rhyming picture books) could make use of this feature.

Find sentences with the word ____?
Sometimes you think of the perfect word, but you might not feel comfortable using it in context. Use this aspect of Word Hippo to see how others have used the word around the web. It might inspire you, especially for words you're not familiar with.

Find words that rhyme with ____?
Like the alliteration feature above, this one might appeal to poets and writers of rhyme. The results are grouped by syllables.

Find the tense of ____?
This aspect takes the guesswork out of finding the plural or singular of a word. It also identifies the past or present tense. If I ever have to take my present tense novel and rewrite it in past tense, I'm sure this would be helpful.

Pronounce the word ____?
Most writers grew up as huge readers, and as a result, have quite a big vocabulary. However, one of the drawbacks is that we sometimes imagine a pronunciation that's not quite right. I've had more than a few embarrassing moments as a result! This feature will say the word out loud for you as many times as you need.

What's the meaning of the word ____?
Most of us have a dictionary function in our word processing program, but Word Hippo has a great definition feature, along with all the rest.

Do you have any reference websites you've bookmarked? Let us know in the comments.

Writing Roulette: All the Generators You'd Ever Want, Part 1

Note to readers:
I've gone through all the links and have fixed all the broken ones. If you're found some good generators that I don't have, leave a note in the comments and I'll be sure to add that in (and credit you for your efforts!). And if you find broken links, please let me know. Thank you so much!

While I'm still getting back on my feet, this week I'll post a couple of my most popular posts. The generators in this post and the following one are some of the most-searched for through Google. If you've got other generators to suggest, leave a note in the comments. Here's hoping one of these generators will give you the inspiration you need!

Continuing the series of resources from the NaNoWriMo forums, I discovered all kinds of threads with links to generators for writers. What's a generator? It's kind of like playing roulette with story ideas.

Let's say you need a name for a particular walk-on character. It's a man, who hails from Brazil. You could spend all kinds of time researching, or you can click over to a random name generator that is specific by country. Voila! Your character is no longer nameless.

You may not need all these generators, and admittedly, some are more frivolous than others. But there may be a few you want to bookmark that will come in handy in the future.

Plot
Terrible Things Generator: helpful if you can't think of more trouble for your character.
Plot Generator: a beginning, middle, and end to get you started.
Plot Scenario Generator: try these ideas on for size.
Random Story Generator: a complete plot in a paragraph.
Story Idea Generator: similar to the one above.

Titles
Random Title Generator: gives you six random titles that are actually pretty good!
Abstract Art Title Generator: uses art to come up with titles, and links to Google so you can see if that title has ever been used.

Characters
Appearance Generator: choose either a simple or detailed description.
Motive Generator: what makes your character do what they do?
Quirks Generator: Give your character an unusual twist.
Bulk Character Generator: need lots of walk-on characters? Let this generator do the heavy lifting.
Everyday Problem Generator: helps make your character feel real.
Character Generator: gives you a character flaws and weaknesses.
Assorted Generators: particularly fairy tale names

Names
Fantasy Name Generator
Steampunk Name Generator
Elf Name Generator
Fake Name Generator: includes lots of details like height, weight, occupation, and birthdate
Random Name Generator: this one includes many ethnicities to choose from, plus the name's history and meaning.
Favorite Name Generator: choose names you like, and the software comes up with new ones.

Random Establishment Name Generator: find a tavern name.

And here's a new one: a fantasy language generator. There is a paid version, but feel free to use the free version to test it out.

Come back tomorrow for generators on setting, fun stuff, and sites that have collections of even more generators.

Do you have any favorite generators to add to the list? Leave a link in the comments.

Other posts in the series:
Resources for plotting a novel.
Generators, Part 2.

30 Free Resources from Writer's Digest

I don't know how I missed this, but Writer's Digest has been giving away free resources all month, in honor of NaNoWriMo. And it's pretty cool stuff. Most of the free downloads are worksheets and excerpts from some of the fantastic books Writer's Digest puts out.

Among the resources are:
A great excerpt from the book 20 Master Plots, with descriptions of each plot. 
50 writing questions to consider if you're stuck.
Tips on how to write fast.
How to create powerful conflict in your novel, from writing teacher James Scott Bell.
A chart to help you map your novel.
How to pace yourself, from the book Beginnings, Middles, and Ends.
How to maintain energy to write (even when you're working full time). This is a 43-page excerpt of interviews with successful authors who write and work another job, and are willing to share their secrets.
A subplot tracker.
A Q&A from Orson Scott Card's book Character & Viewpoint.
A worksheet to help you write the perfect climax.
From the author of 45 Master Characters, comes a 46th character archetype.
From the Writer's Compass, a fantastic chart to help you map your story.
And many more.

All these resources are available on the Writer's Digest NaNoWriMo page. I don't know how long the links will be live, so you may want to grab the ones you want right away.

A writer can't have too many resources. Which of these appeal to you?

Join now! Operation Agent Ink

Fantastic things are going on over at Ink in the Book, and it's not too late for you to join in. It's called Operation Agent Ink, and it's a great way to work on your WIP and possibly nab an agent, too!

The event runs from November 1st through February 8th, with breaks for the holidays. It's a workshop-style event, and culminates in February with a pitch session with some amazing agents. Best of all, you'll know what the agents are looking for.

Check out all the details of what Operation Agent Ink will do for you so you can decide if it's a good fit for your needs. It doesn't matter if you're starting a new novel, in the editing stage, or all finished.

The workshops running through the event include:

Novel Writing From the Beginning
Novel Writing: Wading Through the Middle
Creative Inspiration
Revisions and Edits
The Submission Process
Agent Interviews and Thoughts

Check out the links to workshop downloads and a list of literary agencies already committed to participate.  And here is the first wish list from some of the participating agents.

If you're interested, you can sign up now, until November 7th. Only those who sign up will be able to pitch to the agents in February. This is a great opportunity that goes hand-in-hand with NaNoWriMo, for those participating. Since it's spread over several months, it won't eat all your time.

Are you up for Operation Agent Ink?

Free Resources to Help Encourage Writing Every Day

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 This week I've been focused on writing every day. I highlighted two free resources to help: 750Words and Ommwriter. And I really have written every day--an average of 1200 each day. Hopefully, I can keep it up on the weekend!

To close out the week, I thought I'd share what other writers say about writing every day--even one who says it's not needed. Here goes:

Linda R. Young at W.I.P. it shares six benefits of writing every day. I think number three is especially valid.

Joel Falconer at LifeHack has ten more reasons to write every day. I'm partial to number 10.

Daily Writing Tips posts how to write every day and why you should. I like her tip on ending in the middle of a scene. I did that last night, and it did two things. Kept me thinking about my characters in a perilous situation, and made it easier to pick up the scene today.

 Jeff Goins in why you need to write every day, explains what makes a real habit, and how to learn to fail. Both great lessons.

Jessica Strawser at Writer's Digest asks the question: Do you really need to write every day? Maybe you'll find a system that works better for you.

You might have the thought like Ali Luke at Write to Done: How much should you write every day? I like her no-guilt approach to determining the best goals.

And if you need an angle from the opposing point of view, check out Nathan Bransford's opinion in It's not necessary to write every day. He writes on the weekends only. Find out how that's working for him.

How about you? Are you (or do you long to be) an 'every day' writer? Or do you have a system that fits your schedule?

Write every day with Ommwriter

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The other day I featured a free site called 750 Words, where writers can find the motivation to get in the habit of writing every day. But sometimes, I don't want to be connected to the internet to write. It's far too easy to click over to Facebook or Twitter or a friend's blog.

So here's another option, for those who want to write unplugged. It's also free, but you download it to your computer for use any time. It's called Ommwriter Dana. Like the name implies, Ommwriter is a product designed to foster peaceful writing without distraction.

The program can be used with a Mac, PC, or iPad, and uses a full-screen mode that keeps writers from being distracted by the buttons at the top of the screen. A peaceful picture and soothing music (enhanced when used with headphones) keeps the focus on writing, not singing along.

Writers can choose from several fonts and sizes, and can fade the photo to a blank screen if they find it easier to write with no visual stimuli. Once writing is done for the day, the text can be exported as a .pdf or .txt file to your hard drive.

As with many free programs, Ommwriter offers a paid version, as well. Version I, which is free, comes with three audio and three visual 'experiences', while the paid version (suggested price $4.11) offers seven audio and eight visual experiences. Each audio and visual effect is selected for color and sound to "promote tranquility and stimulate creativity".

I've used both Ommwriter and 750Words for several days now, and I like them both. I appreciate the 750Words email I get each morning, reminding me to get busy, and the way my points add up when I am consistent. Ommwriter, on the other hand is nice to use when I'm trying to focus in a busy environment. What I've done is use 750Words to empty my brain in the morning of extraneous ideas and thoughts, and then switch to Ommwriter for working on my manuscript. 

Two other posts with links: combat distractability in writing and more distraction-free writing resources.

Which program do you think would help you more?

Write every day with 750words.com

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Gearing up for NaNoWriMo, I'm working on getting back into the habit of writing every day. After a busy summer, and a crazy fall so far, my writing has gotten more or less sporadic. Sometimes I wish there was someone to give me a push.

Well, I've found one.

The brainchild of Buster Benson, a Seattle-based writer, 750words.com is a site to get your creative juices running freely.

Unlike a blog, what you write is completely private. Unlike writing on your computer, you have some accountability.

Here's how it works. Users set up an account, and a blank screen pops up where you can write your 750 (or more) words. Your writing gets auto-saved every minute or so. When you reach 750 (about 3 pages), a pop-up box will let you know you've hit your goal.

Benson was inspired by the advice in The Artist's Way to write "morning pages".  These pages (either longhand or on the computer) can be about anything that enters the writer's mind. There's no pressure to be creative, just to empty out concerns, ideas, and extraneous thoughts. The process can free writers to tap into their creativity by emptying out the static. Benson calls it his daily brain dump. He explains more of the reasons for trying it on his blog.

Benson's site gives you the reminders and the motivation to actually write morning pages. You can choose to get an email (at the time of your choice) with a gentle reminder to get it done. Writers who use the site get points for 1)writing anything, 2)completing 750 words, and 3)consecutive days of writing. Users receive animal badges for achievements like writing quickly, or without distraction, or for multiple days of success.

If that's not enough, writers can sign up for a monthly challenge. Completing 750 words every day for a month gets your user name on the "Wall of Awesomeness", while slacking off tags you on the "Wall of Shame".

For the more nerdy writers, you'll find stats on how fast you wrote, a computer-generated rating of the mood you may have been in while writing, and all kinds of other information. However, what you wrote is still completely private.

I've tried the site for the last couple of days, and it's been very motivating to me. On Wednesday, I'll highlight a similar site to this one and let you know how it compares.

Would something like this make you more likely to write every day?

Platform for pre-pubbed authors

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 Platform and marketing go hand in hand. But when you're a lone writer, searching for that elusive contract or interested agent, marketing can seem like something far off down the road. However, establishing a web presence and a platform can give you a head start in the marketing game.

In the past, I've blogged about some helpful books for authors thinking ahead to establishing their platform. 

Platform: Get noticed in a noisy world, by Michael Hyatt

Get Known Before the Book Deal, by Christina Katz

So along with those books, here are a few links to give you a better understanding of platform in the pre-published world:

Rachelle Gardner: Should unpublished novelists be platform building?

Amanda Luedecke: Why unpublished authors need websites.

Jess at Falling Leaflets: What agents are saying about your role in publicity and marketing.

If you're unpublished at this point, what are you doing right now that could help with publicity and marketing down the road? What do you hope to do in the near future? If you're already published, what do you wish you had done earlier on in your writing career?

Writing Tips for Everyone

The winner of the Writer's Retreat Kit from Friday's post is Jarm Del Boccio, who blogs at Making the Write Connections. Congratulations, Jarm! You'll be getting an email from me.

Today I have several posts to share with some great writing tips. They come from Eric over at Pimp My Novel, a great blog by a publishing insider. The blog has earned a spot on the Top 50 Creative Writing Blogs.

Part 1: tips on how to establish discipline as a writer

Part 2: tips on novel revision

Part 3: tips on networking for writers

Part 4: tips on dealing with rejection

Browse around on Eric's blog. There's a lot of great information over there.

 What would be your biggest tip for new writers?

Back-to-life Motivation

Just a quick post today. We're celebrating my daughter's 21st birthday, and her return to college. We'll head out to a drive-in movie with a huge cheesecake to share.

I'm all about motivating myself to write these days. With a summer full of family activities, home renovation, fires, and mudslides, it's hard to find the same energy to write that I had in the spring. One of the reasons is that I haven't met with any of my critique groups for a while. It's time to get those meetings back on the schedule.

For today, here's a fantastic post from author and writing teacher Les Edgarton's blog. He's the author of Hooked, a great writing book focused on hooking the reader. In this post, Edgarton shares the story of one of his writing students, where she realizes she has really become a writer. It took hard work, and she has an incredibly busy life, but she did it. And now she has an agent and a multi-book to go along with her work ethic. 

How's your motivation during these back to school days? Did you get more writing done during the summer, or are you looking forward to a solid fall schedule?

Market your novel with an audiobook

Having always been a huge reader, I gravitate towards the written word. But guess what? The majority of the world does not? How does a writer reach those who prefer not to read?

Audio books.

Think about it. As our world becomes more technologically dependent, more visual, and more hurried, audio books can fit an important niche. Not only that, but many people are not fluent readers, or don't read at all, and they miss out on the worlds the rest of us readers get to enjoy.

I've always loved to be read to, and my children enjoyed it, as well. Whether you write fiction or non-fiction, audio books are a convenience for readers, especially those with a long commute, or boring workouts.

Besides offering your book to a whole new market, audio books can be a way to help readers take the chance on your book. Similar to free sample chapters, free audio books, or free audio chapters can be the key to garnering new fans.

Make it. You can hire a company to produce your audio book, but it's not all that hard to do it yourself. Joanna Penn posted a comprehensive article with ten tips on how to create an audio book.

{thanks for the link, C. Hope Clark!}

Distribute it. Authors today have the option to sell the  Author Jill Williamson posts free audio files of her first two novels. She puts them up one at a time, alerting her fans via Facebook that a new chapter is available.

Publishing pro Michael Hyatt lured readers to buy his marketing book, Platform, by offering a host of goodies for those who purchased the book in the first week, including an audio edition of the book (which I listened to on my Kindle).

And using a service, such as Gumroad, it's easy to sell audio files without having to tangle with a site to collect the money.

Do you listen to audio books yourself? How do you feel about offering your own to readers?

All About Book Trailers

Because a friend of mine asked a question about book trailers, I decided to resurrect this post from the past, with a few new additions. Enjoy!

We all love movie trailers. They provide a sneak peek into an upcoming movie, often giving the viewer a sense of whether the film will be a must-see, a might-see, or a no-see. Books have trailers, too. It's a growing trend, though the jury is still out as to whether they translate into more books sold.

If you'd like to see a few book trailers, you can type "book trailer" into YouTube's search box, or go to a book trailer site, like this one. Alternatively, check out the websites, blogs and Facebook pages of your favorite authors.

You do need to be careful about using your own photos, or copyright free photos. This site has information on how to find them.

There are many companies and individuals who are happy to make a book trailer for you. However, the cost will be anywhere from $3000 to $10,000. Here is a list of resources if you'd like to make one on your own. If you're not ready for a trailer yet, bookmark this page for the future.

Writer's Digest's article on how to create a book trailer.

A how-to site with 31 links to other book trailer information.

Simple instructions on eHow.

An article on Suite 101.

Making a trailer with Windows Movie Maker.

Making a trailer with iMovie.

Making a trailer with PhotoStory 3.

Forty-five links about book trailers.

A how-to on agent Nathan Bransford's blog (also using Movie Maker).

And finally, a YouTube video how-to.

Instructions from romance author Brenda Coulter.

And here's a new idea: how about a pitch trailer? That would be something to send agents or editors to explain the idea of your story. Amanda Luedecke explains the benefits of pitch trailers, book trailers and vlogs.

Do you have a favorite example of a book trailer? Maybe even your own? Post a link in the comments. Do you think you'd ever make one yourself, or hire someone else? Is there truly a direct benefit to trailers, or will you choose another avenue for your marketing dollars?

Free writer's magazine: Southern Writers Magazine

Fire update: The Waldo Canyon Fire is still burning, but firefighters are well on their way to getting on top of it. Just today, our area was released from pre-evacuation orders. Now it's time to put away all the photos and important papers, but I feel like we should keep them in one place in case of another fire. The smoke is thick today, but hopefully the wind will shift so we can open our windows.

Today's resource is a free digital magazine. Southern Writers Magazine is celebrating their anniversary by giving away the July issue. It looks like this may be available only through the end of July.

I had not heard of the magazine before, but I paged through the free issue (which only requires an email address for access), and found several articles I'm looking forward to reading. Things like:

Book Signing Success
Taking My Blog from Good to Great
Multitasking Mysteries
Word Count Sweet Spot
Where Do I Begin?
The Lasting Legacy of William Faulkner
Book Proposal Boot Camp

Those are only a few of the many articles and features. There are author interviews and columns on craft. Take a look at it while you can. Information on subscribing is posted, as well.

What are your favorite writing magazines to read? Or do you rely on online content?

How does a writer evacuate in an emergency?

Kind of a weird week here. A new fire was started on Saturday afternoon much closer than the one I mentioned last week. My son works not far from the spot where the fire began and he saw the fire start up. 

If you want to see what I see when I look out the window, check this webcam from time to time.

There is a possibility our family could be ordered to evacuate. Just a few streets away, homes are on pre-evacuation orders. We're gathering what we'd need in case that happens.

So what does a writer bring in an emergency? 

I live in Woodland Park, at the top of the image.

Laptop. The obvious choice for keeping posted on news, it also holds copies of my manuscripts (though not the only copies!). I also use the free DropBox service to back up all my manuscripts. It's a painless way to ease my mind about my writing.

Flash drives and backup hard drive. These hold stories and manuscripts from the last several years.

Notebooks. I have binders of story ideas, character 'bibles', and other writing-related records. 

Kindle. Rather than take up room with my favorite writing books, I can make use of the ones on my Kindle, and I can always add more.

Computer and Kindle charging cords.

That's all I can think of right now. How about you? If the unthinkable happened, what would you grab along with your important papers and photos?