Selectiveness When Choosing Alpha and Beta Readers is Essential

I’m sorry if my blog post today comes off as more of a rant but here’s what I’ve got on my mind concerning writing as of late. I can never tell you enough how grateful I am for Beta and Alpha readers. I think they are essential to good editing and it is a fantastic way to catch error and mistakes that we ourselves did not see. BUT and this is a huge BUT, Make sure as a writer that you are selective on whom you choose to be your Beta and Alpha readers. And make sure they have the time to do it.

For me personally, I want to get the editing finished up and get on with the process of submitting but I have been waiting for over 2 months for one of my readers to turn my MS back into me. Most of you would say move on without this reader. I have been tempted I must admit, but at the same time I really need the feedback and this person has some really good ideas. So here I sit waiting hoping that today will be the day I receive it back and can get on with my work.

So learn from my experience and make sure that the person you pick is really in it with their whole hearts. If not you may get stuck in a situation similar to mine.

Hope you all have an excellent day! Keep on reading and writing!

~Nikki

"Finding Sheba" and Some Of My Favorite Authors...

For years now I have enjoyed scanning the shelves of my local bookstore looking for some of my favorite Authors. I own just about every book they have ever written and I have read those book multiple times because I enjoy the stories so much.

Who are these amazing Authors, you ask? Let me name some of my top Authors for you.

1.     Annette Lyon
2.     H. B. Moore
3.     Sarah M. Eden
4.     Jennifer Ann Holt
5.     Rachel Ann Nunes
6.     Anita Stansfield
7.     Julie Klassen
8.     Jean Holbrook Mathews
9.     Frank Holdaway
10.  Gerald N. Lund
11.  Janette Oke
12.  Michelle Paige Holmes
13.  Krista Lynne Jensen.

Of course I am such a huge reader that this in no way includes all of my favorite authors but these are definitely at the top of my list. (Smile)
 

Anyhow, I've decided that not only will I use my writing blog to record my WRITING journey but also my READING journey as well.

The Gem I just read was a Novel written by H.B. Moore called "Finding Sheba". I can not even begin to tell you what an amazing author Heather is! Truly! She is one of my favorites for a reason, it is also why she is at the top of my list when I'm looking for new book to read. Her newest book does not disappoint. The thing you need to know about Heathers books, or at least a good majority of them, is that they are based on scriptural characters from the past. She does an amazing amount of research getting her characters just right and it shows in her writing. These books are fascinating as well as addicting.

“Finding Sheba”  is no different.  It is a suspenseful romantic thriller that will keep you on the edge of your seat while you flip page after to find out what will happen next. Although this book is written from multiple views, it is interesting to learn everyone’s stories and see them all come together in the end. I LOVED how you get so sucked in that it is very hard to put down, which is what killed me about this book because I was having a hard time finding the time to read it. The bible references and being able to learn about the Queen of Sheba just added to the intrigue of the book. Before this book I have to admit, I didn’t know much about her and now… I find her simply fascinating.

 

So if you haven't read this book already, I recommend you go pick it up as soon as possible and then set some time aside to read it. Trust me when I say you will not want to put it down!

Hope you are all being successful with your own writing Journeys as well as your reading ones.
Until the next time.

~Nikki  

Editing is HARD, plain and simple

Editing truly is one of the hardest things I have ever done. At times I doubt myself and get so frustrated I am near tears. At other times I wonder if all of this work is really worth it. But in the end my answer is always-- Yes, it is worth it! So I push through and keep trying to get something done everyday, even if it is just a little bit.

Today on Facebook an Author friend of mine posted about getting frustrated and discouraged over editing her book. There were so many fabulous responses to her post. I wanted to share my favorites  and also give a bit of my own advice on the subject.

1- Edit in layers. It's like taking baby steps. Make yourself a list of everything that needs done and then start working your way down the list. You may have to go through your MS several time but it eases some of the stress of having to make it perfect right off the bat. I currently have a list that looks something like this.
    Plot holes
    Pet words
    Punctuation

2- Persevere. Keep going. It's like all hard things in life. When you are stuck in the poring rain it is hard to see the sunshine behind all those clouds, but if you keep on walking you will eventually find it.  Writing a book is no different. At first it might need a lot of work but if you hang in there it will keep on getting better and better until finally it shines.

3- Sometimes you have to do some studying and learning to figure out all those grammar and punctuation errors and how to fix them. I had the amazing experience of attending the 2013 LDStorymakers Conference in Utah this year and all I can say is WOW! I learned so much! There were so many classes and helpful information taught by some of the most amazing authors ever.

So my first advice is find a writers guild or conference you can attend. I promise it will be worth it!

My second piece of advice; Buy Annette Lyons book "There, Their, They're: A No-Tears Guide to Grammar from the Word Nerd", Second Edition http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/1484820665

 

I can not even begin to describe how helpful this book is. It breaks down the rules of editing in a way that is so easy to understand. I love how you can practically hear Annette talking to you through it, in a fun and cheerful way. It takes the boringness out of the "textbook" so to speak. It's laid out in a way that makes it easy to reference things and its the perfect size to keep beside your computer. In fact that is exactly where I keep mine so that I can reference it while I'm editing my MS. So if your struggling with editing go out and get this book. I promise you won't be disappointed. It truly is a 5 star book!

 

So there you have it! My advice on editing for the day. Hopefully it was helpful. Good luck with your work and remember to always keep writing!

~Nikki

    
   

A little about me . . .

A little about me. Hmmm . . . Well I suppose writing has always been a passion of mine. In high school I either had my nose glued to a book or my fingers to a keyboard.  I started dozens of stories that I never finished because another great idea would come along. I became pretty frustrated with myself and put writing away for awhile.

A few years ago I found it again. It was during a time in my life where I was very low and I needed a reality escape. And at first that's all it was, an escape but pretty soon my dream of becoming a published Author began burning within me once more and I started writing again, little by little, more and more. After my first novel was complete I thought "That's it! I'm officially an Author now!"

 I began sending out Query after Query and receiving back rejection after rejection. Once again I became very discouraged and put my writing away again.

Then last fall after I couldn't stand not writing anymore, I picked up it once again. But this time instead of writing a fantasy novel/ paranormal romance I decided I needed to change my genre. I started thinking about how in church we are encouraged to use our time and talents to bring forth the kingdom of God. After all that is where our gifts and talents come from and we need to use them for his purposes. So I picked one of those high school stories that I began writing so long ago. It was a topic that I have always been very fascinated with and have grown to love very dearly . . . The LDS Pioneers.

By December my book was well on it's way but I was still very discouraged because of my first attempt at getting published. I wasn't sure I could bring myself to go through all of that again. That's when I had the privilege of meeting Jennifer Ann Holt in Deseret Book. She was there selling her own book Delivering Hope. I asked her what the trick to getting published was and explained that I was also an Author. She was very kind and told me to never give up. She explained more about the Query/ Submission process and gave me a lot of good advice in the few minutes we talked. I of course bought her book which is just fantastic, just so you all know, and then went home to ponder what she had told me. 

I started with about 20 pages or so and have since turned those 20 pages into 233 pages. It's been a long process and I'm still in the editing process but I hope to be able to start submitting my book to publishers in the next month or so.

You may be asking why on earth I've decided to start a blog in the midst of all of this. My answer is easy. I have learned so so much and I am still learning. I will be the first to admit that editing is my biggest weakness. Because editing it is so hard for me, I have really had to push myself and study hard to learn what I need to know in order to complete this book. I just want to share what I've learned and hopefully help and encourage someone else who may be struggling with their own writing. I've had a lot of help along the way and I hope that I can provide that same kind of help to someone else.

I'm not certain how often I will post but I already have a lot I want to share. So make sure to check in every once in a while to see what's new. I wish you all the best of luck with your own writing journeys and pray that we may be able to become successful writers together.

~Nikki