It’s graduation season and a time to reflect about our children growing up and moving on. Kelly Grettler shares her feelings on this emotional milestone.
What do they mean by “batching content?” If only I had known about this earlier.
There are times when I enter the “flow” as I’m writing. It’s a wonderful feeling, and afterward I feel as if I have accomplished something. The energy is just amazing and it just feels so good. But then the story is done. Everything has a beginning and an end. And it’s no different with the stories we are writing.
That’s when batching comes into the picture. I recently came across an article regarding batching content, and I just had to learn more about it. The writer said that thanks to the batching procedure, she is now saving time and yet can write more content now than ever before. That caught my interest.
We all have moments when our writing process is moving slower than we wished for, as well as faster than we can keep up with. So why not take the chance when we end up in the flow of things to batch some content?
Okay, down to business: batching is when you write several articles at the same time around a similar niche. Before now I have been writing down one project, posted it, shared it on social media, then sort of “put away the pen”. That’s so stupid! Yes of course when inspiration strikes, I have written down keywords for other ideas on my phone or sticky notes (somewhere). But that’s it.
Writing can sometimes be like going to the gym:
1: First you warm up by reading things on the internet. Checking in on a favorite blogger, do some research, etc.
2: Then you open up an empty page and write something (anything) down. Sort of beginning to lift some easy weight, just to remind you of how it feels, before moving on to the heavy stuff.
3: But then you are (hopefully) ready to go. That means: let’s do this! On a good day your fingers are flying over the keyboard or your pen is flying over the paper, as if there is nothing in the world that can stop it. Time flies by, and before you know it… Your stomach starts to reject and you notice how late it is.
It’s on those days batching would be a great idea! After all, you are already warmed up. At the same time you as you work on one project, you can work on another one, or when you feel that it’s done (at least for today), then you move on to the next one. Some work on several projects at once, thanks to this method. They make a couple of notes regarding the same subject, then at the same time write about it.
I don’t think this is for everyone. But it’s said to save time, so it might be worth a try. I remember last year when I went on vacation. A few weeks before we left, I wrote a couple of posts that could be published while I was away. All I had to do was (whenever I had time) to go out on media and read some. No pressure. And that’s what batching content is all about. By writing more than one content at a time you can spend more time researching and looking up content for another project. Some mix up long posts with short posts to gain even more time.
These are things I wished I had known from the beginning. But I guess the saying: “better late than never” says it all. Now that I know about it, I will certainly see if I can adapt it to my writing style. I’ve tried it out and in one go have already managed to write three articles! If you don’t believe me, then read these posts, maybe they can convince you to give batching a try:
Ashley O’Melia is an independent author and freelancer from Southern Illinois. She holds her Bachelor’s Degree in Creative Writing and English from Southern New Hampshire University. Her books include The Wanderer’s Guide to Dragon Keeping and The Graveside Detective. Her short stories have been published in The Penmen Review, Siren’s Call, and Subcutaneous. Ashley’s freelance work has spanned numerous genres for clients around the world. You can find her on Facebook and Amazon.
If you’ve ever been in a home that’s a little more than meets the eye, then you’ll definitely appreciate this ‘enchanted’ house. (And you even get to see a pic of the actual house!)
First of all I want to thank Ashley O’Melia for letting me guest blog post and giving me the chance to meet you amazing people! Let’s start with who am I?
Hi, I’m Janette Gellar. I am the author of the Cause World Series. Cause for Ruin is currently available on Amazon’s Kindle Vella and soon on Patreon at my $5 tier. I host the Romance and Carrying On Podcast which is currently on hiatus until May. And lastly, I am always on the hunt for my next good romance read so I discuss romance in all spice levels and subgenres, except for YA because I’m too cool for high school and bully romance because, hey, everyone’s got to have a line and this one is mine.
Since you’re taking the time to read this I feel like I should let you in on a little secret. I wasn’t always a romance writer. In fact, growing up I hated writing for school assignments.
Not because of some mishap with a discouraging teacher like so many authors I have read about (I mean seriously, is there an elective in teacher school that’s called ‘How to Crush Student Dreams and Piss on Kittens’ or something because so many authors seem to have a story of that one teacher who told them they were never going to amount to anything and it’s frankly making me want to homeschool). No, I had wonderful teachers growing up who encouraged me to write and I wrote many short stories, one even won a competition. (I’m still proud of that.) The thing was I wrote stories that were filled with action and adventure. I messed up my characters in ways that would make Wednesday Addams proud.
So when I decided to take my first stab at writing romance I made the worst mistake I could have and killed off my male protagonist because, well, he had it coming. And with that fatal pen stroke my first adult work was kicked out of the romance genre. Instead it joined the bastard genre cousin of romance we call women’s fiction. Some would have tossed the story out and hoped no one saw it but I decided that I could fix it. I rolled up my sleeves, pulled out my editing pencil, read some craft books on what I did wrong, and the Cause world was created.
Have you noticed that the self-proclaimed grammar police are always quick to point out mistakes in social media posts, emails, and even book manuscripts? I must admit that there are grammar mistakes I find cringeworthy. However, determining the right way to write is not as easy as it seems.
Know Your Audience
Sometimes, I think back to those long-ago days sitting in an English class, learning about punctuation, word usage, and parts of speech. I can hear Mrs. Swift stating unequivocal rules about commas, contractions, and writing a paper. I sometimes wonder how she would feel about my novel with its quirky sentence structures and unusual word choices – which brings me to the most important rule I’ll share today.
Know your audience. When I wrote papers for Mrs. Swift, I followed her rules because she was my audience. If I wanted to do well in her class, then I needed to write something she would want to read. For her, it was formal, grammatically correct, and formulated.
The same holds true for business writers, authors, and even texts. Effective communication begins with knowing your end reader. This will help you determine if you need to be formal or informal, can use technical terms, should add persuasive speech, and more.
For example, it’s perfectly acceptable to use LOL in a text but not when writing a formal letter to a business executive. It’s also fine to start an email to a group of friends with “Hey, guys,” but I wouldn’t recommend doing so when writing an email to a potential publisher.
Where You Live Matters
“Punctuation ALWAYS goes inside the quotes,” stated Mrs. Swift over and over again. She took off a full point whenever someone in class put a period or comma outside the quotation marks. I’ve learned, however, that ‘always’ doesn’t apply outside of the United States.
It’s true! In the UK, the punctuation goes outside the quotes. So, if you are writing for a UK audience, you should keep that in mind. (Remember the first rule – Know Your Audience.)
Writing dates correctly also depends on location. In the United States, one writes January 1, 2022 – the comma goes after the day. Those in the UK write the day before the month and eliminate the comma altogether like this – 1 January 2022.
When a Rule Isn’t a Rule
Mrs. Swift also didn’t let on that some rules change over time or are controversial. Let’s talk for a moment about the Oxford comma. This is the comma placed before the ‘and’ in a list. If I said, “I’m going to the store to buy pens, pencils, paper, and an eraser,” the Oxford comma is the one after ‘paper’ and before ‘and.’
However, some people and organizations, like the Associated Press, no longer require the use of the Oxford comma. The missing Oxford comma has even led to court cases resulting in dairy having to pay their drivers $10 million in overtime pay. To this day, the debate goes on.
Another controversy is whether a sentence can start with a conjunction or not. Mrs. Swift would be resolutely in the ‘no’ camp. However, today’s rules state that you can. And that is the real truth.
Tricks For Deciding
Of course, there are rules that we follow because they have become standard. Yet, some are difficult to remember. To this day, I rearrange a sentence to avoid using lie or lay. Here are a few tricks for helping you decide what to use.
Less/Fewer
Use less when something cannot be counted. Use fewer when something can be counted.
Example:
I wrote less often. (You can’t count often.) I read fewer words. (You can count words.)
Who/Whom
Answer the question you are asking with he or him. If you would say ‘him’ with an M, then you would use ‘whom’ with an M.
Example:
To who/whom will you send a free book? Since you would send it to him, the sentence should have ‘whom.’
Who/whom will read the book? Since he will read it, the sentence should have ‘who.’
I/Me
Should you say, “Bruce and me read a good book” OR “Bruce and I read a good book.” To decide, take out the ‘Bruce and’ and read the sentence again. Obviously, you wouldn’t say “Me read a good book,” so in this case, it should be ‘I.’
What about “She gave the book to Bruce and I” or “She gave the book to Bruce and me?” Once again, take out the ‘Bruce and’ and read the sentence. In this case, use ‘me.’
Lay/Lie
Lie means to be in a recumbent position. Lie has an ‘I’ in it. If you were to lie down flat, your body would have the shape of an ‘I.”
Lay means to place something. Lay has an ‘a’ in it, just like place.
A Few Tidbits for Better Writing
Finally, here are a few things to consider that may make your writing better.
Try to use active voice (subject + verb + object) rather than passive voice (object + verb + subject). ‘Historical fiction is loved by readers’ is not nearly as captivating as ‘Readers love historical fiction.’
Boring sentences start with ‘there is’ and ‘there are.’ Consider starting with a subject instead.
A cliché is an overused expression. Instead of using an overused phrase, create something fresh and exciting.
You have 15 seconds or less to capture the attention of your reader. Make sure your headline, first sentence, and sub-headlines are strong and enticing.
Finally, I always recommend reading what you’ve written out loud. This will help you find the mistake you miss when reading it to yourself. You wouldn’t believe how many repeated words, missing letters, and odd punctuation I have found when doing this.
The bottom line is this: language matters, but language is not static. As the writer, it is up to you to determine which rules matter to your audience.
About the Author
Born in Athens, Greece as an Air Force brat, Teri M Brown graduated from UNC Greensboro. She began her writing career helping small businesses with content creation and published five nonfiction self-help books dealing with real estate and finance, receiving “First Runner Up” in the Eric Hoffman Book Awards for 301 Simple Things You Can Do To Sell Your Home Now, finalist in the USA Best Books Awards for How To Open and Operate a Financially Successful Redesign, Redecorate, and Real Estate Staging Business and for 301 Simple Things You Can Do To Sell Your Home Now, and Honorable Mention in Foreword Magazine’s Book of the Year Award for Private Mortgage Investing. In 2017, after winning the First Annual Anita Bloom Ornoff Award for Inspirational Short Story, she began writing fiction in earnest and recently published Sunflowers Beneath the Snow. Teri is a wife, mother, grandmother, and author who loves word games, reading, bumming on the beach, taking photos, singing in the shower, hunting for bargains, ballroom dancing, playing bridge, and mentoring others. Teri’s debut novel, Sunflowers Beneath the Snow, is a historical fiction set in Ukraine. Learn more at http://www.terimbrown.com.
Is there anything more exciting than a cover reveal? Nah, not really! Author Mallory Wanless was kind enough to share the cover for her upcoming book, Storm and Flame. Are you ready?
Elena has always been a disappointment. Her magic is practically non-existent and now, on her sixteenth birthday, she is expelled from magic school by the strict headmistress–also known as her mother. Cast out into the world of the magically inept with only her familiar for company, Elena feels lost and alone until she meets a strange boy in the woods.
Quinn is a thief, a hunter, and a hothead. His unexpected friendship with Elena awakens a fiery side in him–quite literally– and uncovers new and surprising magical abilities. Except men aren’t supposed to be capable of magic.
With Quinn’s help, Elena carves a safe new life as a barmaid, but when she is attacked, her powers awaken with shocking ferocity. Elena’s explosion of magic creates a power surge that attracts the attention of magical investigators, sent to uncover and contain the source of the power surge.
But the awakening of their powers kickstarts an ancient prophecy. Will they be able to escape those that hunt them? Can they fulfill the prophecy, destroy the turmio and save magic from being destroyed once and for all?
About the Author:
Mallory lives near Houston with her husband and their two boys, 5 & 7. She spends her days homeschooling and full-time parenting. Her nights, and any free time she manages to carve out during the day, are devoted to reading and writing.
Ashley O’Melia is an independent author and freelancer from Southern Illinois. She holds her Bachelor’s Degree in Creative Writing and English from Southern New Hampshire University. Her books include The Wanderer’s Guide to Dragon Keepingand The Graveside Detective. Her short stories have been published in The Penmen Review, Siren’s Call, and Subcutaneous. Ashley’s freelance work has spanned numerous genres for clients around the world. You can find her on Facebook and Amazon.
As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Please consider using my links to do your shopping and help me out at no extra cost to you!
I’ll come clean. Straight away. I’m a copy editor (also known as a line editor). But honestly, I’m not scary!
I work primarily with independent authors, many of them writing their first novel. Every time I connect with an author for the first time, I ask them a series of questions.
These start with questions about their book: – what’s the genre? – who’s your target audience? – what’s the current word count?
And go on to questions about themselves: – have you been published before? – have you written before? – are you a member of a writing group?
These questions about the book and about the author help me to target my feedback at an appropriate level. They help me to get an overview.
And then I ask them the most important question: – what concerns do you have about being edited?
And every time, I hear the same answer.
They are worried that their writing is bad. They are embarrassed. They don’t want to feel attacked, or defensive. They’ve spent a year, two years, ten years writing a manuscript. It’s their baby. And they don’t want anyone telling them their baby is ugly. They don’t want to feel judged.
hand working on paper for proofreading
I get it. I totally do. I’m an editor who has been edited. It’s scary, daunting even, to hand over your manuscript to a stranger. Someone who is going to critique it. To scribble on it in red pen.
And this is why it’s so important to pick an editor who is right for you.
From an editor’s perspective, sometimes it’s hard to understand exactly what support an author needs. Some authors want “no-frills” feedback. They want it straight. They want to learn. They want their manuscript analysed in microscopic detail. They don’t want flannel or flattery.
But other authors need a gentler approach.
What can you do to make sure that you find an editor who is right for you?
Firstly, let your editor know how you are feeling. Are you scared or defensive? Have you had a horrible editing experience in the past? If so, what did you not like about it? Tell your editor if it’s your first book. Tell them that no one else has read it. Let your editor tailor their service to suit your emotional (as well as your editorial) requirements. After all, you are paying them. You are in charge.
A sample edit is a great way to work out whether an editor is a good fit for you. Most editors will do a sample edit for free, or for a small charge, and it will demonstrate the type of editor they are. When you get your sample back, have a proper look at it. Most editors will pick up the issues – they will find the points of grammar, spelling, punctuation, pace, sentence structure etc. – but you should be looking at HOW they communicate this with you.
Are they simply highlighting something and saying that it’s wrong? Or are they also making suggestions for alternatives, for improvements? Are they insistent, imposing their amendments? Or are they clearly and gently explaining their suggestions? The editing process should be a learning experience. Read their comments. Are they using a language that you understand? Do you feel encouraged, supported, inspired?
If a sample edit isn’t available (for example, developmental editors rarely provide a sample edit as they need to digest the entire manuscript to provide feedback), then just look at how your prospective editor is communicating with you. Get a sense of whether they are asking you questions to work out your requirements, to gauge the level of support you need. Or are they just talking about themselves, their services and how great they are?
Have a look at their website – is it friendly? Does it clearly display how the process works? Can you see their fees?
Are they on social media? What kind of posts do they make?
A wise colleague of mine once said, “An author’s success is an editor’s success.” We genuinely want you to succeed. We don’t care about mistakes – if you didn’t make them, we wouldn’t have a job. Feedback can be honest AND kind. The author-editor relationship should be a team. And the author should be firmly in the captain’s seat.
About the Author:
Manda Waller is a fiction editor from the UK, working with independent authors from around the world. She specialises in romance (including chick-lit), women’s fiction, eco-fiction and fantasy and works on adult novels, YA and MG. She is a Professional Member of the Chartered Institute of Editing and Proofreading (https://www.ciep.uk/) a Partner Member of the Alliance of Independent Authors (https://www.allianceindependentauthors.org/) and a member of Contemporary Romance Writers. She is a mum to three teenage daughters and two black Labradors. And most of all, she is kind.
Ashley O’Melia is an independent author and freelancer from Southern Illinois. She holds her Bachelor’s Degree in Creative Writing and English from Southern New Hampshire University. Her books include The Wanderer’s Guide to Dragon Keepingand The Graveside Detective. Her short stories have been published in The Penmen Review, Siren’s Call, and Subcutaneous. Ashley’s freelance work has spanned numerous genres for clients around the world. You can find her on Facebook and Amazon.
As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Please consider using my links to do your shopping and help me out at no extra cost to you!
As Remembrance Day approaches each year, I am reminded of a November about ten years ago. I was in a mall in a big city in a province in Canada. I had grown tired and had finished all the shopping I wanted to do that day. I decided to rest on a bench for a few minutes before I headed to the car to go home.
As much as I do not like shopping, I do love people-watching. So, I enjoyed ending my time at the mall sitting watching the people around and walking by. Within a few minutes an older gentleman asked if the empty seat beside me was taken. I told him no, and he sat down.
I looked over at him, and I noticed the poppy he was wearing first. Instead of the usual poppies that are readily available at this time of year, his was different. It was bigger, and it was crocheted with a tiny black pompom sewed in the middle. It also had some green stitching ever so subtly placed as leaves around the poppy.
It was very unique and quite pretty. I smiled at the man. “I am admiring your poppy.”
The man nodded his head and looked away. After a brief silence he said, “There is a story to it. If you want to listen, I will tell it.”
He cleared his throat dramatically and moved ever so slightly closer to me on the bench. He began…
“I am the youngest of 14 children. We didn’t have much more than our basic needs met as we grew up. There was just not enough income to afford more than that for 14 kids. My mother made everything we wore by hand – and yes, for all 14 of us. She was quite handy with a needle and thread. Of course, there were lots of times that clothing was shared. Unfortunately for me, I rarely had anything new being the baby, but I had plenty of hand-me-downs. I was about eight when this special poppy surfaced.
“Every Remembrance Day, our whole family would gather at the cenotaph in the center of our village for the service to pay our respects to the soldiers who fought for our freedom and gave their lives as sacrifice. Back then, poppies worn on your breast pocket were not common. Unlike today, where we see them available in numerous places, yours for a donation. Back then, it was the odd person who wore one of those. My mother made poppies for each of us to wear. They were hand sewed and she always added in that they were made with love.
“We were very proud to wear them. They were beautiful, a new version of this one. Wearing the poppy was extra special as our father fought in World War II, and we were always serious about showing our appreciation and respect for his service. So, year after year, we wore the homemade poppies with pride.
“They did wear out after time had passed, and some got lost along the way. And eventually, we didn’t have any left. Mom passed on years later and it seemed that the tradition had been lost. Some of our sisters tried to replicate them but couldn’t quite get it right. We appreciated them trying, but it just wasn’t the same. Several years after Mom’s death, the family homestead was being sold and we worked together to empty a lifetime of memories, collections, and junk to clear the house for the sale.
“One afternoon as we were working away in various parts of the big house clearing it out, Charlie came running up from the basement. He yelled, ‘Simon, come quick! You gotta see this!’ He held out a wooden box in his hand. It was tied with a bright red ribbon. It said ’To Simon’ on the top of it on an old piece of material in our mother’s handwriting. I untied the ribbon excitedly. When I opened the box, it brimmed over with my mother’s homemade poppies.
“These ones were brand new and so beautiful. I gasped. I looked closely at the pile of poppies so perfect and made with love and felt my heart just ache for my mother’s hug. I looked again and notice the corner of a yellowed piece of paper sticking out under the poppies. It had some writing on it that said, ‘Dear Simon, these are for you. Share them if you like, or keep them all for yourself. I made them for two reasons. One, it was a great way to keep my hands and mind busy as I worried whether the crops would yield enough to get us through winter. And the second reason is knowing how much you seemed to love these poppies the most out of the whole family. I want you to have enough of a supply that you will never run out. Love, Mom.’” The old man stopped talking.
I sat looking at him, my eyes brimming with tears. Tears for the love in his voice as he told the story, and tears for the feeling I could only imagine him having each time he pinned on one of his mom’s poppies. I was barely able to get a whisper out of my mouth. “Thank you so much for sharing that story with me. It’s beautiful.”
“Thank you for listening, and thank you for the gift you gave me: your time and attention. I will never forget it. Not many have time these days to listen to an old man’s ramblings.” He looked away briefly, then suddenly he jumped up from the bench. “There’s my bus. I better be off.” He looked back as he was walking away. “God bless you, Elizabeth.”
I hadn’t told him my name.
***
Elizabeth lives in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, but growing up she lived in five different provinces in Canada. She is from a family of seven kids. She fell in love with writing when she realized that she wanted to keep doing it and it brought her joy. She won a provincial-wide short story contest in high school, and she writes on an on-going basis. Everything from lists to memoirs. Mother of three, favourite colour is green. Grandmother to two girls. And, avid stand up paddle boarder.
Ashley O’Melia is an independent author and freelancer from Southern Illinois. She holds her Bachelor’s Degree in Creative Writing and English from Southern New Hampshire University. Her books include The Wanderer’s Guide to Dragon Keepingand The Graveside Detective. Her short stories have been published in The Penmen Review, Siren’s Call, and Subcutaneous. Ashley’s freelance work has spanned numerous genres for clients around the world. You can find her on Facebook and Amazon.
As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Please consider using my links to do your shopping and help me out at no extra cost to you!
Ashley O'Melia, Author 