This post is part of a weekly series on YWP, aptly titled “The Writer’s Weekly Wrap-Up”.
Each Sunday, I will endeavour to provide you with a curated list of the best articles I have seen throughout the week that relate to building your platform.
The featured articles cover topics on book marketing and promotion, blogging, social media and self-publishing. (I may even throw in a few inspirational and fun posts, just so that it’s not all work and no play!)
Run Your Own Race
Have you found yourself stalled out of any forward movement, your inspiration and motivation for a project completely squelched, just because you happened to stumble across ‘better’?
A manuscript with a better plot, an article with a better angle, a book with a better cover, a colleague with a better network, a website with a better design, a marketer with a better strategy, an author with a better platform (a mother with better instincts, ugh! I hate that one).
At first, you’re inspired by the possibility, and if ‘they’ can do it, so can you, right?
Except, they’re just so much better, and you begin to realize how much time and effort -and fairy dust- it’s actually going to take to move you from here to there.
And then in your low-self-esteem-weakened state, you also realize that these people are, in fact, exceptional and realistically there is no way for you to compete with these gifted, intellectual giants. In your mind they have now moved from merely better, to unattainable.
So you stop.
And the world misses out on what you can bring to the table.
Don’t let yourself be ambushed by this sneaky comparison booby trap!
“Don’t compare your blooper reel with other people’s highlight reel”.
~ Dana DiTomaso
Do take the opportunity to learn from other’s who are finding success along the path you wish to take, but avoid comparisons where you can only catch a glimpse of what is really going on behind the curtain.
Featured Articles
The Science of Storytelling: How Narrative Cuts Through Distraction Like Nothing Else from Jonathan Gottschall at FastCoCreate.com
This is part one of a three-part series, where author Jonathan Gottschall discusses the science of storytelling – how stories grab our attention, hold our interest and “shape our thinking”.
The Strategy for Storytelling in Business That Will Spark Massive Engagement from Murray Gray at Firepole Marketing
Want to find out Murray’s secret to finding true engagement with your fans and even sparking them to “create a movement around you and your message?” Check out the post; it’s easier than you might think.
Why You Should Do It for the Money (and Stop Feeling Guilty About It) from Michael Hyatt at MichaelHyatt.com
Find out why Michael insists that going from ‘amateur to pro’ should not leave you riddled with guilt.
5 Tips to Improve Your Amazon Author Page from Savvy Book Writers
Some useful tips and advice on how to improve your appearance (and book sales) on Amazon.
Watch Me Write a Headline That Goes Viral from Carol Tice at Make a Living Writing
Want a behind-the-scenes peek at how a top blogger crafts a headline that knock it out of the park? Check out Carol’s post for her process.
The Power of Mystery from Demian Farnworth at CopyBlogger
Want to be more mysterious? Learn how to control what you reveal with these tips from Demian.
How to Sell Yourself Without Selling Out [RE-WATCH the Legendary Marc Ecko on chasejarvisLIVE] at ChaseJarvis.com
Artist and entrepreneur, Marc Ecko, shares his insights about what it takes to build a successful career as a creative in today’s world.
101 Ways to Make Money on Facebook from Kristi Hines at Monetize Pros
Another whopper from Kristi, with 101 ways you can make some extra cash with Facebook, including tips and links for book promotion.
Which Writers’ Conferences Are the Best to Attend? from Chuck Sambuchino at The Write Life
Chuck looks at the types of events, the cost, and the value writers will (potentially) receive from the experience, when choosing conferences to attend.
Maximizing StumbleUpon for Your Content Sharing Strategy from Peg Fitzpatrick at PegFitzpatrick.com
Are you using StumbleUpon to get the most out of your content sharing strategy? If you are interested in learning how, check out Peg’s informative post.
Rafflecopter: An Easy Tool for Author Giveaways and Launch Parties from Kate Tilton at BiblioCrunch
Kate walks us through the set up of a free Rafflecopter account as well as outlines the finer points of creating your giveaway. Super useful!
5 Mistakes Authors Make When Approaching Book Bloggers from Anne Chaconas at Molly Greene: Writer
Great tips from Anne to help us start off on the right foot -as well as develop mutually beneficial relationships- with book bloggers.
92 Social Media Hashtags for Book Authors from John Kremer at Book Marketing Bestsellers
Looking for a list of hashtags that are writer friendly, as well as how they are used on various social media networks like Twitter, Facebook, Google+, Instagram, and Pinterest? Look no further!
Why Every Author Needs a Google+ Account from Chris Robley at BookBabyBlog
Chris summarizes a recent article by Hypebot, explaining three reasons why authors should be using Google+.
How to Avoid the Self-Published Look – Part 1 from Pauls Krapf at Marketing Tips for Authors
A three post series on how to avoid the mistakes and ‘look’ of an amateur when self-publishing your work.
The Permission to Be Yourself from Jeff Goins at Goins, Writer
I so agree with this sentiment! Stop waiting to be picked; give yourself permission to do what you need to do, and be who you want to be.
The Surefire Way To Attract New Readers With Every Blog Post You Write from Peter Sandeen at Write To Done
In this article, Peter urges us to consider writing a guest post (rather than posting to our own blog) to help grow our blog’s readership.
Who Else Wants to Be Prolific from Carlos Cooper at The Write Practice
Aside from drawing me in with the PERFECT post image (seriously, check it out), this article also directs us to establishing a ‘prolific’ habit by jumping in with both feet.
The ABC’s of Self-Publishing from Mark Evans at Catherine, Caffeinated
Everything from planting the seeds to tackling tax issues, Mark gives us a quick run-down of the self-pub process.
Just For Fun
With National Novel Writing Month right around the corner, I thought I’d add a few inspirational and educational NanNoWriMo posts for those of you with the gumption to participate this year:
- 25 Things You Should Know About NaNoWriMo from Chuck Wendig of TerribleMinds [language warning]
- NaNoWriMo Success Tips (Any to Add?) from Lindsay Buroker at LindsayBuroker.com
- NaNoWriMo Tips For Success from Rob Diaz at Today’s Author
- How to Participate in NaNoWriMo on WikiHow.com
- Scrivener NaNoWriMo 2013 Special Trial Edition – discount for NaNoWri-mians!
- NaNoWriMo’s Young Writer’s Program – I’m trying to get my older boys interested in this…
Remember…
Run your own race and stay focused on what will build your career as a writer. And if compare you must, at least try to make it apples to apples! 😉
Share your comments and thoughts below, and if you’re participating in NaNoWriMo this year, let me know that too!
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Top photo by taliesin
Thanks again for a great weekly wrapup!
You bet, Michael! Glad you enjoy them! 🙂
Kim,
Your comments about running your own race are so directly on target! I remember reading a remark that Margaret Mitchell . the author of Gone With the Wind, once made. She was almost finished writing her magnificent novel, when Stephen Vincent Benet published John Brown’s Body, his book length epic poem about the Civil War. Mitchell read it, she said, and got such a “bad case of the humbles” she put her book in a drawer and didn’t touch it for quite a while. We should learn from her–she got over her comparison-driven writing fear, finished her novel, and the rest is a best seller (and a great movie as well).
Well said, Yehudit! Thank you for sharing that story; I’m sure this idea resonates with a lot of people struggling to come into their own.
Yep, I’m going for NaNo this year, even though very few of my friends are doing it. Almost everyone in my circle (except me) did it last year. But I’m ready to submit my first MS to publishers and -now that I’m blogging- I don’t devote the time to my 2nd MS that I should. So I’m hoping NaNo will help get me back into the writing habit. Even if I don’t make the 50K, I’ll be spending time on the MS daily, which is my real goal. Wish me luck. 🙂
Woohoo, Jess! You are a rockstar just for making the commitment to try! You have my respect as well as my well wishes!
Shoot me an email in December and let me know how it worked out for you – I find it fascinating what people can accomplish when they set their mind to it. 🙂
I am terrible for comparing myself with others! Thanks for the article links – I’ll be doing some reading.
I’m doing NaNo this year. It’s a sure fire way for me to have a first draft in 30 days. Normally I procrastinate too much.
Good for you, Debbie! Good luck and let me know how it goes! 🙂
I’m also going for NaNo this year for the 2nd time. Last year was the first time I did it, and I won. I found that it gave my writing a tremendous push and made it easier for me afterwards to find the time to write. Something along the lines of: If I can do 50K in November, surely I can do a more normal number regularly in December, January, etc. It teaches one discipline, as well a lot of other surprising things about oneself and the writing process…
That’s awesome, Mirel! Completing something so outrageous does change your perspective, doesn’t it? What can’t you accomplish if you can write 50,000 words in a month? 😉
I’d be very interested to hear the surprising things you learned about yourself, Mirel, as well as your tips for getting it done!
Thanks for mentioning The Write Life!
My pleasure, Alexis! Just found your site recently, and am really enjoying it!
Another fantastic weekly wrap-up! Thank you!
I’m hoping to do NaNoWriMo again this year. I did it 3 years ago, when I was already about half-way through a story, and it’s the best thing I’ve ever done! I wrote some great stuff, got my story finished, and I’ve never felt like I’ve come that close to being so incredibly brilliant with my writing again. It created a lot of discipline for me, and I found inspiration and ideas in the smallest, and usually most overlooked, things in my daily life. I’ve tried every year since then, but I’ve always tried with a brand new story, and I couldn’t ever seem to get going. I know it’s usually about writing a new story, but I think it’s a great way to push through that dreaded middle. It worked brilliantly for me!
Thanks for taking the time to share your experience, Angela! I really hope you give it a another go; it sounds like it helped you to get in the zone 3 years ago.
Chris Baty (NaNoWriMo founder) has a pep talk/survival guide available (the Kindle version is less than two bucks), titled: No Plot? No Problem!: A Low-Stress, High-Velocity Guide to Writing a Novel in 30 Days. It might be worth a read to get you pumped up for this year’s word marathon.
Good luck! 🙂
I enjoyed reading this article. I will continue on this race with the great points that are shared!. Thanks, Yvone
Good luck, Yvone! Thanks for stopping by! 🙂