Be Seen #4 - Release Day

Many authors have many different ways of doing release days. None of these are wrong, they are what works for them and you will need to find what works for you. Every author has their own method, their own way of doing everything that involves their books and now it's your turn. The below are just some examples of the styles we've noticed over the years in the business. Again, none are right or wrong, they are what works for each individual author and the more power to them we say.

Please note, the terms we're using to identify each method are ours alone and are not meant to insult or upset anyone. In other words, you get pissy, we're kicking you out of here so fucking deal.

• Laid back - This author has an amazing following, one that pays attention to everything they do so they need only say "here's the link for my book" and their following is off to the races to start buying.
  
• Relaxed yet excited - This author too has an amazing following, one that pays attention to what they do but this author likes to pump some extra juice into their announcements that their book is out, sort of "guess what time it is? that's right, it's out! here's the link you wonderful people, go and get it!". This author may also add an extra little teaser beforehand to really help build the anticipation.
• Amped up - This author is the sort that starts building the anticipation to the release in the days or week prior to the release. A bunch of snippets, a few teasers and even a sinfully wonderful yet unfulfilling excerpt. Then they really drive it all home in the last minutes, maybe even offer up a prize like an early copy of the book to build the excitement even higher.
• Wildly enthusiastic - This author likely does something like a release day party. This would have prizes, SWAG and lots of fun tasks to keep the fans excited and in the mix, making them feel a part of the party and basically just having a great time.

Now, as mentioned, there is no right or wrong way to do a release. It's whatever works best for you, your life, your career, your books and your fans. Whatever it is, once you find it, do not deviate. You may have to try a few different methods but never fear, you will find something that works and gets the crowd happy and pumped. It could be just one of the ways above or it could be a combination that suits you. Don't worry right off if you're not hitting the mark straight away, no one ever does, it's all a little trial and error for most of us. Like all good things it just takes a bit of time to find the right fit for you.

The Moderator

Christmas and New Years 2013

As promised, here is our second heads up about this coming holiday season. We the moderators and our owner will be off imbibing to excess and stuff our gullets full of everything and anything we can lay our mitts on. So our posting will come to a near screeching halt.

We will be "off" from December 21, 2013 until January 4, 2014.

If you see a post during this time pray it was before the heavily laced eggnog - we may end up having to clean up all the posts that show up during this time frame, god help us all! So, we the moderators will apologize in advance for anything that we may post during this 2 week period - we're blaming the alcohol right here and right now.

For all our readers we would like to wish you a very Merry Christmas and a safe and wonderful New Years. May you have a chance to spend time with your loved ones, or at least the relatives, your friends and any you care for. DO NOT drink and drive during this season. There is absolutely no reason you need to be a statistic.

Lastly, before we sign off and start into our holiday spirits...

For all those serving in the military, be it American, Canadian, British, Australian, whomever. We salute you and pray you come home soon. No one should be away from their family during Christmas. But, if you aren't able to come home, know that we are all thinking of you and we thank you for sacrificing your time with family so we may have our time with our families. God bless and be safe.

June Smith, Owner & The Moderators

See everyone in the New Year!

Insider Info #4 - Publisher on-line groups

Many publishers in this wild and crazy digital age have "groups" that, as one of their authors, you can be a part of. These can be exclusive groups on Facebook, Yahoo! or any other number of places. These are literally places just for the authors of the publisher where no outsiders (readers, fans, stalkers) can be a part of.

While you may feel intimidated coming into a publishing house and their inner sanctum as we shall call it, this is only natural after all, do at least say hello to everyone once you join the group. All these authors are people who you will want to know to some degree. Be friendly, but do not over share, there is a fine line there that you will have to personally set for yourself. Every author has a line they won't go over, now you just need to find yours.

Chat with other authors but tread with care. You don't yet know these people so approach it as you would a first date (it's an example - chill!). Say "hi", give a little about yourself like your chosen genre and maybe a tiny bit about your personal life. For example: "I'm married, just celebrated our tenth anniversary and we have two darling if slightly exuberant kids, a boy and a girl". It's simple, lets everyone know right off you have a family that takes up some of your time and yet doesn't reveal too, too much.

Now if you make friends with another author or several others you can always chat, OFF-SITE please, about other things. This is why messenger programs were invented - use them. But your on-line presence in your publishers group should always remain professional yet friendly. On your personal page and fan site you can be a little more outgoing and giving of the information, but you need to remember that every author of the publisher is likely on the publisher site and doesn't want drama there.

These sites are for assistance, moral support and general information that the outside world doesn't need to know about. Even if your publisher doesn't have a direct presence on the site, there are some that are strictly author's only or no "parents" allowed, you still have to keep a professional face there. After all, do unto others as you would have them do to you. Remember it, live it, breathe it and don't forget it. 

So, quick recap. Be friendly, be polite and share just enough to make yourself a human being to these people. But don't go overboard - they needn't know every minute detail of your life - that's why you have a personal and fan page.

The Moderator

Submitting #4 - Getting an edge, the Synopsis

We will state straight off the top, this is not a guaranteed method but it doesn't hurt either. Unless your publisher specifically tells you NOT to do it. But really, anything that gives them insight into your work is not likely to be refused.

What are we talking about? Well, much like when you send out your resume you need to have a cover letter. This cover letter gives a general and slightly less formal overview of what your resume has in it as well as letting you expand on your goals for the short and long term.

In the world of writing it's called a Synopsis. A synopsis is, according to Merriam-Webster: a short description of the most important information about something; a summary or outline. In other words, it's basically a condensed version of your book. And no more than one page unless they specifically ask for more. But, like a cover letter, you do not want to be long winded. You wrote the book, you should be able to summarize it onto one page without too much stress and pain.

Our best advice is to think of your book, start to finish and remember all the high points and key details that make it amazing. Which, if you've been doing up your lists and such, you should have all that info right at your fingertips. Next start to write. Don't panic if you are suddenly on page two, you will be going back to whittle it down more. Write out the start, who your characters are very briefly, your pivotal moment and any conflicts. Write about the push and pull of the characters and what they must overcome and always end with a hint as to what the book tells. In other words, is it a HEA (Happy Ever After).

Now you have it down on paper, all two to who knows how many pages. You need to get it down to one. That is 1, uno, singular. Yes, scary, daunting, you're freaking out - take a deep breath. Read through it. Did you go off on a tangent about a section of the book that you're excited about? Why? You don't need to. You just want to point out this exciting point not tell them it in detail. Thin it the hell out. Did you put in descriptions of places and people? Why? Get rid of that stuff - they'll be reading it when they go through the manuscript. Did you get wordy because you were fighting to remember a single term? Not good, sit back and try to remember the word or, if you're stuck, ask a friend. It's not just for game shows you know, you can call up a friend who knows you're an author and say... "I'm trying to think of a word that describes this and this and oh! this too." And there's no time limit. Talk to them, bat the idea around, maybe you don't really need to have it in there in the first place.

Now that you've weeded this down you should be closer to a single page. If you still don't know what else to cut and are over the limit, send it to your friend and have them read it. Nothing else, just that synopsis. We will bet you good money that friend will a) come back with questions or; b) have some serious suggestions to thin it out for you.

There you go folks, our two cents of the evening. Hope you're having a good night and we'll chat again soon.

The Moderator

Rule #3.5 - Read your contracts (addendum)

People, we told you this right from the start - so pay attention cause here is another reason just why you must always READ YOUR CONTRACTS!

If you are ever given a contract that has something termed a" Life Of Copyright" - DO NOT SIGN IT! This is seriously shady from what we discovered and is beyond the lowest form of scum sucking organisms. Hell, this is an insult to scum sucking organisms. This will screw you over so many ways of Sunday you won't know if you are coming or going. If you read this or anything similar in your contract contact your lawyer promptly and let him/her know about your find. If you do not have a lawyer you call up your publisher and tell them you will NOT be signing a contract with that "Life Of Copyright" in it. You want a set number of years written up in a fully revised contract.

If they hem and haw and basically try to blow smoke up your ass tell them thank you but you will be taking your business (ie: your book and all the potential money it will make) elsewhere. And ensure that they send you a copy of your book back. With it being mostly electronic these days you have to have a record of some sort that they "returned" your book to you in the same condition you sent it to them in.

So, quick recap. If you receive a contract from your publisher without a very set time frame that they will own the copyright of your work(s), DO NOT SIGN! Also, don't be an idiot and sign for anything over 7 years. You can always renegotiate if you want at a later date but by that point you may hate the very air your publisher breathes so don't do it in the here and now. If they insist on something over the 7 years - talk to your lawyer and make the call. But our advice would be to walk away - something be smelling hinky in here!

The Moderator

PS - Unless of course you are Stephen King or JR Ward or someone of that awesome megastar level, and have lawyers to shred idiots who try to pull shit over on you, so do whatever you want. WE LOVE YOU!

The Scoop #2 - Beware the trap

No, we are not making fun of Star Wars - we like Star Wars, so heads in the game here. We're talking about the trap you never see coming until it snaps closed around you and you realize just how screwed you are. It can appear as literally anything and from anyone. The worst is from someone you trust, your publisher or another author. They ask for assistance with something, seems harmless enough and you end up sucked in and doing it all on your own.

Just like high school/college where you got to do the project because you were actually serious about getting good grades while your partner was more concerned with a boy/girl friend or a party. There you are scrambling to do the work of two, or more, people in the same time frame as everyone else. But this is so much worse. Yes in high school/college it meant a grade. But out here in your professional life it can mean your very reputation.

If anyone, ever, asks you to lend a hand with something tell them you want to see what they are proposing in writing. Like with anything else in your professional life you need to have something that clearly states the boundaries of the task. At which point you then start to ask questions of each detail and, do it in an email that they have to send back to you with any questions or concerns or general stupification clarified. This way you have a guide as to just what you are required to do, a clear list of details that need seeing to and what the end result needs to be. If they send you a short little piddle explanation that is more confusing than not, say no.

We will repeat that for those in the back row. If it sounds too good to be true or like they are trying to foist something on you no one else wants to do...

SAY NO!

All it will do is miff them but really, if they aren't going to give you guidance than fuck 'em. Yup, that's right, fuck 'em. Pass it on to some other sucker thank you very much. And that is all there is to that.

The Moderator

PS - We should mention that if someone sends you something and you've sent in questions but they are now ignoring you on all fronts. RUN!!

Helpful Tip #5 - Lists, lists and more lists

Check lists are not just for when you are submitting. They are great for when you are writing your story, after you've submitted it and while you are working on your next books while promoting the others.

Lists will save your ass. But you need to chose the method you do. Some people like doing it on a calendar where they can then set it to send them an alert about what is needed to be done that day. This is extremely helpful once you have your first book out and for each subsequent book. Others will put it into an Excel spreadsheet that they check each and every day, others like just putting it in a Word document. It doesn't matter how you do it but you should do it, especially if you have a full time job and writing is your secondary job.

During Writing

• Character name(s), description(s), job(s), key location description(s), and so forth

Prior to Submitting

• As mentioned in Submitting #2, it's pretty much the same as the above, but now your checking off these details for accuracy as well as any extras you may have thought of while writing

After Submitting

• Date of publication, estimated date for first (and second if you get them) edits, date to begin promoting, date to remind people about the book, date to provide link for book if it goes on pre-sale, and so forth
  

If you have more than one book out/coming out and are doing other promotions

• Blog tour dates and when they require their forms filled in and returned
• Advertising on Facebook, Yahoo!, Google, etc sites
• Newsletter promos, dates required to have Cover, Link, etc to the owner
• When are your edits scheduled for other books, required back to the publisher when, etc

For all of the above you need to allow yourself some time between things, especially with edits. Usually your publisher will give you a good chunk of time for round one of edits and, if they do a round two or three, they will tell you very firm dates that these have to be back in their hands. Allow yourself extra time to complete these. In a lot of cases you won't know your editing schedule right up front but you can normally guess, especially once you've done one or two books with the publisher, you start to figure out their rhythm of doing things.

With the advertising, especially on groups of any kind, set your schedule to theirs and stick to it, day, week or month in and out, be consistent. When you join you will have either read their restrictions or received a set of restrictions from them. Abide by it to the letter. If it's a bad day, you've got an appointment or plans, you can usually set up your email to auto send for a specific time. Now, be aware, not all emails have this feature so you will have to look into it. And test it out, oh for the love of god, test it out.

For things like the Blog tours and Promos in Newsletters and such, do that a little ahead of time. Find out what they're last day to receive things are and get it to them early. But not too early, they are human too and may misplace it - you don't need that. But give them time to a) format and; b) read it through to ensure that it meets their specific guidelines for their site. Some like to keep their stuff super clean and other like it naughty, but in most cases they will have already sent you the specifics and you'll know what is required by them personally.

So, there you have it. Lists will make your lives easier. Whether it's a calendar, Excel spreadsheets or scribbles on the wall of your writing space, whatever you do make sure it works for you. And if it doesn't, try something new. But, whatever you do, ensure you give it a could couple of months since it can feel awkward the first little while. Just remember that whatever method you end up going with it's all to ensure your professional life runs smoothly so you can have a private and home life.

The Moderator

The Scoop #1 - Author vs Author

As much as this sounds like a possible UFC match title, it's not actually. This is something that quite a few, but not all we will emphasis, authors have faced. It's a battle that rarely has a "winner", more often than not it's two losers pouting in their respective corners.

These fights tend to be public, usually on a social media site. The reason these happen you ask, because when you are typing or texting there is no emotion to your words. What you thought to be cute and amusing when you typed it, the other person could well see as an insult or slight against them. Unless this person knows you very well, as in they've met you in person often, you've done things together and they know you, they could very well misinterpret your message. It can also come across wrong depending on their mood when they read it. If they were having a bad day and read what you wrote, it could just rub them the wrong way.

There is only one stance to take in a situation like this. And it doesn't matter if you are the author that got the message that rubbed you wrong or wrote a comment to another author that rubbed them the wrong way - walk away.That's right, and because it's so important, we'll repeat it in all caps. WALK AWAY! Don't reply until you can either see it for what it was meant to be or until you private message the person to ask them what the hell. Whatever you do, DO NOT REPLY ON THE PUBLIC FORUM with your first instinctual response.

Why? It's actually very simple. Everyone -your audience of readers, your publisher and every person you've ever friended- can potentially see this interaction. If they see you getting into a pissing match with another author this doesn't reflect good on you. It doesn't look good for the other author but they can play the wounded party in this interaction and gain sympathy.

Don't think it can't happen, it can. We've seen it happen on more than one occasion. Especially if it's between you and, a term we've often coined, the Golden Ones of your publishing house. These Golden Ones are up on a pedestal because they have their noses so far up your publishers ass that you can't tell one from the other. Brown nosing if you haven't clued into our drift here.

When you say anything that this Golden One deems uncalled for, below the belt or any other number of clichéd sayings, you are at fault. Even though you know you're not, you are in the eyes of the publisher. Because this Golden One has run off to tattle and gain sympathy behind the scenes before you can even contemplate defending yourself. Which, by this point, is now useless. Anything you say from this point forward is now just another nail in your coffin.

Yes, there are actually publishers out there with the moral code of a nest of vipers. And you will never be able to prove a damn thing - another fact you should know before engaging the enemy. Best to not let them get to you, best to just brush off their comments for the idiotic drivel it is and just walk away.

This is hard, we know it is, but it's the best advice we can offer. If you engage with another author in a verbal battle you won't be coming out all shiny and pristine. While it's hard to resist tossing back a comment to an author with the mentality of a spoiled three year old in the midst of a temper tantrum, it really is best to turn the other cheek.

Now, there is another side to all this. If they are attacking you in a manner that basically boils down to bullying or threats, report them to the site you are on and also to your publisher. But ensure you have a screen shot of the offending material to prove your case on the off chance they decide to delete the post because they just clued into what they've done. This screen shot will allow you to prove not only to your publisher and the site the acts of this person, but if it comes down to it, you can file it with your lawyer should further action be required down the road.

The Moderator

Submitting #3 - The dreaded edits

This is a step that all authors, no matter their claim to fame, get to do on their books. It has a number of purposes, the main one being that you've stared at your work for so long you can no longer see anything but the world you've created. Again, this is true of all authors out there from beginner to professional.

A few things to know about the editing process:

The Editor - You will either love or absolutely despise your editor. What they say about love-hate relationships are most true about this person. This person or persons has read your story and now they have begun to pick it apart. That first time you get edits is exciting and terrifying, you have no idea what to expect or what may have happened to your story all because of this one person, or in some cases, multiple people.

Edits - These are corrections to grammar, punctuation and general layout that you missed or just didn't know how to do. There will be things like bubbles in your edited work with comments in them. Depending on the editor and your genre these can be anything from helpful to devastating comments. We all pray for a smooth edit with the editor making cute comments and saying wonderful things. Sadly, more than not, this does not occur. Some editors are animals out to rend your flesh from bone until you are a pile of pulverised goo on the floor.

The Process - Each publisher and their editors have their own way of doing things. There is usually a FAQ page or something like it to help you understand their "house standards". Not that will always help you figure out what the editors are talking about but it is a general guide for you to better understand some of their comments. Your editor will read your story, start to finish and, generally, make punctuation changes in the document itself without much mention to you about them unless it screws up the construction of a sentence/paragraph in which case they will generally give you a solution - especially when you are new. It will be along the lines of "This may confuse readers as it is, why not something like this... or perhaps this instead...". Take such help to heart and work to understand just why they are telling you this and how their suggestions make the sentence/paragraph flow better and are more comprehensive to a possible reader. They are helping you to grow, use them for such.

Second Round - Not all publishers do a second or third round of edits. It's kind of a crap shoot which publisher you will end up with so ensure you know going in just how many chances to fix things you will get. Some only do one round, better make it count. But, if you do get a second or third round, in a lot of cases you will have a separate editor than your first. This person may have a different view on your story and on the publisher "house standards", learn to go with the flow on this, you're merely the author and these people are educated in the art craft that is the English language.

Most authors have trouble with punctuation, it's just a fact of life. Even if you majored in English and took writing classes and all that to ensure you craft a perfect story, your editor will pick that shit apart until you want to tear your hair from your head. Or plot the perfect crime with them in a staring role. Either case is just bad for you, one leading to ulcers and the other to an orange jumpsuit. And really, orange was so 2007.

We all have to deal with editors and the editing process during our tenure's as published author's. Best to just suck it up and learn as much as you can from these people to limit the number of bubbles and comments on your work. You won't ever learn it all so don't try, but do listen to the advice they give, 95% of the time, it's actually damned helpful.

The Moderator

Helpful Tip #4 - Planning your stories

Every author has their own method of how they construct a story. The below are the ones that are the most defined and show the best differences but there are as many variation as there are authors on all of the below. Each author has their own way of constructing their works, you just need to discover your own way.

• Detail Oriented - An author that is super detail oriented, maybe a little OCD too - but we're not judging cause we're like that as well to a point, will create a story structure. Another term is the Outline. It is basically how they see the story progressing from start to finish. For example:
• Introduction; character one (male) description and occupation + character two (female) description and occupation
• Chapter One; location description and background needed
• Chapter Two; character one and two meeting, sparks and a hint of what's to come
• Chapter Three; introduce conflict they will need to resolve or overcome
• Chapter Four; show two characters interacting and add some tension
• Chapter Five; have characters show some vulnerability, and push them further apart while building intrigue
• Chapter Six; throw the characters together in situation where the conflict is forefront
• Chapter Seven; resolve conflict and have characters discovering new things about one another strengthening their relationship
• Chapter Eight/Epilogue; give readers a HEA (happily ever after) ending or HFN (happy for now) ending with a twist
• Got Notes - An author who may do a layout a lot like the above, but not nearly as detailed. These are the authors that like to see where the characters take them in the writing process and they allow for extra curve balls to come their way.
• Character/Story Controlled - An author who has an idea or character pop into their head that they just start writing about. There is no real planning like in the Detail Oriented author, but they do make notes about other thoughts that come around. Like if they see their character being hurt, they'll make a note about that but it's not necessary if the story never leads that way. These authors really love it when an idea pops into their heads part way through writing that they can utilize as a zinger to wow their readers. Something usually out of left field but that totally works in the construct of the story.

Now, these are sort of the three extremes, far left, middle and far right of the author world. There are hundreds of different variations and none of them are wrong or right. After all, what works for you may not work for someone else. Yes, try all the methods to see if they help you in your writing but don't worry if one method is not yours. We all have our own quirks and ways of writing, don't force yourself into doing something that just makes you miserable and your story suffer because it's what you're "supposed to do" according to other authors or your publisher. They do not know you, you know you and that is the only person you need to listen to and make happy, you.

What it all boils down to is working with what works for you. If you need to do an Outline to keep on track, do it. If you're more free form and let your characters lead you around, do it. All that matters is ensuring that your writing experience is the best for you and what you are sharing. Critics and naysayers need not approach.

The Moderator

Advertising Links

If you haven't yet noticed you will after this post. We've added a new page to our site, one fully and totally dedicated to places for you as an author, new or established, can advertise and promote your books. These include Google+ Communities, Facebook groups and Yahoo! Groups. One of our author friends uses these for all her promotions and advertising each and every month so thanks HJ for the help! We would never have found all of these lol!

Now, you need to remember to check the front page descriptions for these groups to ensure you are in a place you can actually advertise and promote your works in without worry of being in the wrong genre group. Also, read the rules and guidelines of each and every page before you start to advertise and promote and if you have ANY questions, contact the owner or mod off site with a PM (private message). Remember, if you don't know, ask. The owners and mods are willing to help those that ask and don't just assume. Assuming will get you tossed off the list and banned - not a good thing for your reputation.

Anyway, lots and lots of links for you to use. If we come across any more we'll put them up as they come along. Or if you have any you'd like to share with us please feel free to email them to us - sorry, no credit given for these. Our email is:  the-unvarnished-author@gmail.com

The Moderator

Submitting #2 - Create a check-list

While you may or may not be the sort who creates an Outline for their stories as mentioned in Helpful Tip #4 (above), you should always create a check-list. It doesn't need to be elaborate but it should cover a few important details of your story that you need to check off while you are writing and then during the read-through prior to submission.

It should include things like the below. Note, these are just suggestions and, depending on your story, you may need to do different ones or adjust them to suit the genre you are writing in and the book you've created.

• Character names - Are they spelled the same from front to back of your book?
• Character descriptions - Did you provide any and are they consistent throughout the book?
• Location descriptions - Did you, at any point, provide a specific location or locations and give details appropriate of the setting? Are these consistent - especially in any place repeatedly visited like an office or home?
• Story building - Do you have a plot twist or conflict to resolve?
• Resolutions - Were your twists and conflicts resolved? Did the resolution make sense for the book world you just created?
• The end - Did your story have a good solid ending? Are you going to leave your readers satisfied or frustrated and annoyed?

There you go, the most basic of check-lists for your story. You will likely have others that will make it on the list, and well you should, this shows that you are growing as an author and finding your stride.

But there are a couple other things you should do before submitting and these - oh boy are they ever - are a must.

• Spell check
• Grammar check
• Read through front to back to ensure the story flows and there are no odd leaps in time or changes in location. For example - you started a scene in bed but they suddenly end up in the bathtub halfway through the scene.
• No use of Trademarked (TM) or Registered Trademarked (R) product or item names - things like the Internet don't count, things like Pepsi and Coke do count and are no-no's to most publishers. Again, if you're unsure of your particular publishers restrictions on such things - ask. Some will put in disclaimers at the beginning/end of a book about the use of such Trademarked and Registered items for the purposes of the story. If this is a case you will need to make them a list of all of these items so they can properly cover their legal basis.
• No use of song lyrics, but the mentioning of a song name with the singer/group given mention in the same line is usually permissible - again, ask your publisher their stance on this to be safe.

That should, for the most part, cover a lot of things you need to attend to prior to your submission. It will also reassure your publisher that you are serious about your work and generally make them a little happier to deal with you. After this all you have to do is wait for the dreaded edits. The point in every author's life where they discover that they know next to nothing about the English language.

But that is a different subject for a different post.

The Moderator

A new category - The Scoop

We've tried to figure out where to put a few of the topics and tips we want to share but they really weren't fitting under the other categories so we came up with "The Scoop". This category will be a little more relaxed and should be taken as both a cautionary tale and some comic relief. It will basically cover all the categories we currently have with a twist, gossip darlings, gossip!

Okay, not really ... but sort of.

It's a category that will provide you, as a new author, with some interesting details and nuggets of wisdom that we all wish we'd had when we started out. Sadly we all had to learn the hard way, as with everything else we post on the site, just how naive we all were to begin with. It will cover topics that we just couldn't fit into a category or covered too many of them at once. It will hopefully give you the wisdom you need to never repeat our mistakes and hopefully allow you to step away just a little bit wiser than we weren't at the same point you're in now.

The Moderator

Helpful Tip #3 - Talk to the authors

You've chosen a publisher, out of the many out there, to settle down with. Or so you think.

As mentioned briefly in Rule #2, you should talk to the authors of the publishing house you've picked, especially now that you've narrowed it down. Always, always, always do this via private messages (PM's) to them and not out in the open on their Facebook pages or websites or, well, anywhere.

Most authors for the different publishing houses are more than willing to give you a boost and help you settle your nerves. But not all. We say this as a warning as we've run across the breed of author we like to term the Stick-Up-Their-Ass author. This is an author that is, to use a phrase grandma often pulled out, too big for their britches. They sell a lot of books because they are in a very specific genre that a lot of other authors just can't, or won't, write in. They see themselves as being too good for the mere likes of you.

Don't take it personally, they are assholes and you'll be dealing with more of those as your career progresses. It's to be expected, not everyone can manage to keep their heads on straight and their egos in check. Been there, dealt with it.

They are relatively rare in the semi-professional field of writing. So you may, or may not, hit one of them with your questions. If you do, just thank them for any response they send, no matter how caustic, and then don't poke that bear any more. You need to focus on the authors that came back to you with some reassuring thoughts and information. If they have replied to you once they likely will again, but ensure that in your very first email you flat out ask if you can contact them with some follow up questions. If they say yes, do it, if they say no, shoot them a thank you note for what they did provide and move on. Don't take this personally, not everyone has the time to hand hold a nervous first time author, after all - you do not know what is going on in their personal lives outside of their public persona. Don't judge too harshly.

Email the author and let them know that you are thinking of signing with the publisher, that you've been in talks with one of the reps there - give a name in case the author is looking to verify this detail, and that you're nervous and scared and looking to get a little reassurance if they are willing. Give them a list of thought out questions that allow them wiggle room to answer - you don't want to just ask them straight out if their publisher has ever screwed them over (for example) because that gets a big old bullseye on your back. You do not want that.

For example here's an idea for an email to the authors. We are using our site Owners name since she wasn't here to veto our plan - HA! The publisher is one we made up, we think - with them springing up all the time, god only knows if it's a real one or not. If it is, we apologize in advance!

Dear Author,

My name is June Smith and I'm in the final stages of deciding to sign with your publisher, Too Many Words Publishing. I was hoping I could have a moment of your time and perhaps ask a couple of questions as I'm extremely nervous of signing with them. This is my very first book and I'm unsure of what I am doing. If this has caught you at a bad time I'd like to apologize and please, do not feel the need to reply.

If you do have a few moments I was wondering if you'd tell me a bit about your personal experiences with the publisher. But please, if any of these are too personal, do not feel obligated in any way to answer them.

• If it's not too impertinent to ask, how long have you been with Too Many Words Publishing?
• Would you mind sharing your impressions on the team behind the name? ie: The editors, artists and management.
• Could you share what their process is after a books been submitted to them?
• Would you share what sort of timeline from submission to published final product do you normally see after your first book? I realize the first book can sometimes take longer.
• Do you happen to know if the publisher assists with promoting of the works or should I ensure that I'm doing that myself?
• If I may ask, does this publisher offer the author's ARC's or is that against their policies?
• Any advice you could offer me in my time of absolute panic and terror would also be welcome if you wouldn't mind terribly.

Thank you for the opportunity of contacting you. Would you be willing, in the future, to allow me to contact you if I have any other questions as I get started with the company?

Yours sincerely,

June Smith

Now, as you will see, all the questions are formed very generally. There are only a couple of direct questions but even those we've phrased in a way that the author you're sending this too, won't feel pressured to answer. It's a very subservient type of message - you being the lowly newbie while they are the established author within the midst of this publishers realm. It will also likely piss off at least one out the group you send it too but, as mentioned previously, just roll your eyes and move on.

There you have it. We'll be continuing with the Tips as they come to us or as you bring them to us.

The Moderator

Submitting #1 - Things to know

Whether this is your first book or your fortieth, you have to submit it into your publisher. Unless you are a professional author by trade with different ways of doing things, in other words highly paid and among the ranks of Stephen King, Sue Grafton, Truman Capote or Nora Roberts, this is a fact of life.

If this is your first book you are submitting to a publisher ensure you check their website for their Submissions Guideline. They all have one and it has to be followed to the letter. Information most include will be your legal name and physical address -this is for tax purposes for you and them- as well as a daytime phone number and a few other details about you. Then they want to know about your book, including the name you want to write under, the title of the book, your best guess at the genre -this is just to give them an idea so do not stress too badly if you're not 100% sure-, word count, brief synopsis and some character details. Now, each publisher is different so these details will vary slightly, these are the ones that are most common between them all to give you an idea of what is required of you.

Some publishers also require a full page synopsis or story board (something we've also heard it called) of your book. This gives them a better idea about what they are getting and whether they want to offer you a contract and proceed with editing and publishing. These are very hard to write for some authors. After all, you just pumped out a book of, for example, 50,000 words and they want you to break it down into approximately one to three hundred words? Are they insane? The answer is no, they do this for a purpose and usually it's to see if you can break your story down into such a tiny amount of space for them. Plus, it allows them that twenty seconds of reading to figure out if it's a story that will fit into what they already sell.

Read their Q&A or FAQ pages as well, this will often help you figure out what it is they need and want from you. And, if you get really stuck and confused, email them at the appropriate email address with your question. But ensure it is the right email as publishers tend to have a great many of them and, if you send it to the wrong one, you'll end up with a deleted message and no answers. Plus it shows you can't follow the simplest of directions which puts up warning flags at their end.

The Moderator

The coming holiday season

As most of you will be doing we, the moderators and owner of the site, will be spending time with our families. There will be a two week period - December 21, 2013 until January 4, 2014 where our posting will be spread out quite a bit. Don't worry, we're just off drinking heavily, eating too much and sleeping really late as we try to survive the annual family get together's and too many activities packed into too few hours. But come the New Year we'll be back in full force to give you more insight into being a new author and how to avoid all the pitfalls we may have found during our first years.

We will post a reminder just before this time period for those that may have missed it this go around. Until then, keep writing and keep reading. No matter what you read or by whom, you can always learn something new about the art that is writing.

The Moderator

Insider Info #3 - Advertising

No matter who you are, or how big you become, you need to advertise. This is both to get your name out there and promote your work. For the purposes of this post we are focusing on you and your first books.

There are any number of ways to advertise and promote your work. For your first books you need to find the free sites that you can join and post on about it in the coming weeks and days leading up to the release. If you are not independently wealthy, these sites are your friend. Facebook has tonnes of them. But make sure you read the descriptions before joining to ensure you are in the right ones. Some are for all genres and others are very genre based. In other words, posting fantasy in an erotic site when your book isn't classified as erotic, will have the owners likely giving you a smack on the knuckles - not always but be wary. If you're unsure ask.

Yahoo! Groups are another way to do this, there are some great sites out there for you to utilize where, for the most part, genre plays no part. Just make sure you are on sites for promoting and NOT RPG advertising, nothing pisses those mods and owners off more than you posting about a book on their RPG based sites. On these promo sites you will get an email or ten from them, it's an automatic thing, with things like rules, posting days and so forth. Pay attention to their rules, some mods and owners are big sticklers while others are a bit more relaxed about things. And definitely don't forget to check out Google Groups and, we think, there might be even a few on Wordpress and other such sites as well.

Blog spots are another way to get your books out there to a different audience. This is where a fellow author or blogger for authors does an "interview" about you and your new work. They post it up a few days before the book is to come out. Not only can you send your readers over to read all about you and your book but the author or blogger's audience is also getting to learn about you. This is, most times, a free thing as well.

There are also, for when you can afford it, sites out there that will do the promoting for you for a fee. They hit all the hot spots as well as put you and your book into their newsletters or popular newsletters out on the Web. These are great because you hit a wider audience than most of us of semi-fame could ever manage. Yes we all have our following, readers who love our works and will pretty much buy anything we put out. But it's great to hit a wider range of readers, readers you might not normally have caught the attention of. And, potentially, bring more readers into your particular fold.

That's it for this round, hope we've given you a few more things to think about. Remember, if you have questions shoot them off to us. We do check the site regularly but we might miss a question in the comments section so feel free to email us.

The Moderator

Be Seen #3 - Get their attention

Because you are an, yet, unheard of author out there you need to get people's attention. Especially when it comes to your very first book. A great way to do this, hold a contest. Now, unless you have money on the side, try to think FREE prizes. What is a great FREE prize? What about copy of your book, or rather an ARC (Advanced Reading Copy)?

Most publishers out there, though not all - so you are aware, send the author ARC's of their books. They can come in a number of different formats and are for you to give away. Now, note how many copies your publisher says you can give away and try to keep it under that number. No, they can't track the copies and figure out you gave everyone in your family, all sixty of them, a copy of it - that we know of. But you also want people to buy your book so just handing it out willy-nilly is not good for your bottom line. The ARC's are also good for review sites, you can upload them to their sites and get a review done of your book.

Two things here, don't ever put up a book on a review site before it's actually out. We say this for a few reasons, but the big one is - your publisher will shit on your head if they find out you put up an ARC for review a week before the release. At least those we know would. They are very, very particular about this, don't argue, just nod your head and go with it. Second thing, do not give your ARC's away (contest or otherwise) until the day before it's to be released without getting your publishers okay on that.

You can hold your contest in any number of ways, whatever is easiest for you. We have used Rafflecopter on Facebook a number of times and found it extremely useful. But whatever method you go with on whatever site you do it, ensure you read the Terms and Conditions of the site about announcing winners (putting up names) - or contact their customer service people. Some sites, like Facebook, are pretty strict about such things so approach with caution but don't let it deter you from have fun doing it.

And that's it for tonight's post - let's chat again soon.

The Moderator

Be Seen #2 - Building the anticipation

Once you've got your first book turned in you need to start thinking two things, the next book and getting the word out about the one to be published. This post will be about getting the word out about your first published book.

There are a number of ways to build interest and intrigue about your book:

• The cover reveal - pretty simple, you post up your cover art on your website, Twitter and Facebook feed
• Snippets - these are a couple of sentences from your book that are a tease
• Teasers - these are slightly longer glimpse into your book than a snippet but shorter than an excerpt
• Excerpts - these are a couple paragraphs or around 100 - 150 words of your story

When you get your cover ensure you let people see it by posting it up on your sites. Give a brief, very short, synopsis of the book and give the artist you used for the cover, or was provided to you by your publisher, their due as well. You have to thank those that help you out. In the days to come do little snippets of the book, this will help build interest in the book and the story you've written.

Save the teasers and excerpts until at least your first round of edits have been completed. The fewer spelling mistakes and grammar troubles in these that you put up on your sites the better. The Facebook grammar Nazi's are brutal, don't give them any more fuel than they already have on that site. But if you do decide to post a teaser before you've done the edits, make sure you put up a disclaimer letting everyone know that the post is pre-edits and to excuse any mistakes or something to that effect. Most of your readers won't care if a comma is in the wrong place or if you misspelled something - they are just excited to see something more than those three sentence snippets that have been driving them insane with want and need.

As soon as your publisher gives you a date of release for you book, post it. If your publisher says the date is tentative, make sure you mention that as well. Readers, especially loyal ones, can be raving lunatics when you say a book is to be out on such and such a date but it gets bumped and you don't tell them. Trust us, we've had messages from fans before because we forgot to have our calendar updated by our web person when a book ended up delayed and our schedule rearranged at the whim of our publisher.

Publishers often have hundreds of authors they are all trying to keep happy and give spots to for releases. It can be a very complicated process to keep that all straight so keep on top of what they are telling you but do not harass them about it. They will usually tell you the official date of release when you get your first batch of edits if it's changed at all from the date in your contract. If not, when you turn in your first round of edits you can ask for confirmation of the release date, especially on your first book. They will understand you are nervous and have never been through this before so they will be willing to bend and help out more at this point. Just know that this love fest won't always continue.

But that, and more on publisher's - the good, the bad and the ugly - will be another post down the line.

The Moderator

Be Seen #1 - An on-line presence

All authors should have an on-line presence. This lets your audience follow you, learn about you and your works and, another good thing, lets others discover you.

Facebook and Twitter are two of the easiest ways to do this. There are, of course, other ways but these seem to be the most popular just because of sheer numbers on each site. With so much of the population of the planet on Facebook you will be amazed by the sheer number of "friends" that will sign up just because you are an author. Then there is the fact that your friends and "friends" will also share you with all their friends and "friends" and so forth. Twitter also has a huge population and it's super easy to find authors on there, mainly because it's very geared toward your likes. It will give you suggested friends to follow and, over time, seems to learn through various algorithms what to suggest the most of. Plus, if you follow authors they will most likely follow you in return. Beyond that, Twitter and Facebook (though rivals) actually play pretty well together for the most part.

Start a Blog. Depending on your website you may have the option of adding this right onto it, or is it - into it? Either way, you can have everything all in one spot. Or you can do up a separate Blog - but remember, that's another password you'll have to dredge out of the memory banks each time you want to sign in. Just a word of warning is all. With your Blog you will want to post frequently. It doesn't have to be everyday or even every second day, but try not to let more than about 4 or 5 days pass between each posting. Unless you're on holiday or something comes up - but let your audience know this. Say "I'm off for the next two weeks on vaca! See you all when I get back." or something to this effect. Don't say if you're going somewhere and definitely never say where you are going or how you are getting there. That falls under too much information on the Net for potential no-gooders to use to their advantage. Come on, we've all seen the commercial for Farmers Insurance (well, maybe you have) warning about too much information out there for everyone to see.

Just remember, whatever you put up on Facebook, Twitter, your Blog or wherever you post should be at least 60% work content. In other words, your books and what you are working on. But, and don't forget this, do have a bit of fun as well. And a sexy mostly naked man never hurt either for female readers, just sayin'.

That's it for this round - see you on the flip side.

The Moderator.

Have a voice

Here at The Unvarnished Author we want everyone to have the opportunity to have a voice. So, if you have a topic you'd like us to discuss or have a tip you'd like us to share here on our page, feel free to email us. We're open to ideas for our posts as we sometimes end up stumped for something to talk about. We know, authors who get stumped, shocker right? But it's true. We all hit points where the blank page haunts us and the cursor seems to say "write, write, write!" in a very taunting undertone over and over again and yet, nothing comes out.

Topics and tips should be emailed, not posted in the comments. While we will read each and every comment on the board we're not on here constantly so we might miss something without meaning to. If you are emailing us a topic, let us know your interest or questions about that specific topic so we make sure to cover it fully and not leave you hanging. If you have a tip, make sure you write it out exactly how you want it to appear. All tips will appear as you sent them to us, down to the last period. Let us know the tag you'd like to appear - be it your real name or a pseudonym. We're cool with either but we do want to give credit where credit is due.

We only have one rule for your tips, keep it polite and make sure it's not a rant against ... whatever or whomever. We're here to provide help and perhaps spark conversations that lead to more discussions. Not to goad anyone into an on-line slap down. We do not mention names in the posts, we do not point fingers, we keep everything as general and broad as possible.

So, do you have a tip to share or a topic you want to see written up here? Send it to us at:  the.unvarnished.author@gmail.com and remember to let us know how you'd like to be identified for credit for it. Make sure your subject lines are marked accordingly - Tip to Share or Topic to Discuss depending on what you're sending us.

The Moderator