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Tips for LGBTQ+ Aspiring Authors

 

I'll never forget my first phone call with a major literary agent.  My TEDx talk had been selected by Global TED to be featured on their YouTube channel for the day and boom! The phone began ringing, mostly because I had seeded some pretty incredible relationships while waiting for the talk to premiere. 

I'll also never forget a year later when that same literary agent said "Your proposal is great, your sample chapters are amazing. But. The game has changed.  Instead of needing 15k followers to get a book deal, you need 50k.  And I don't think you can get there.  We're done."

Wait, you're saying my marketing plan is on point AND I have a great product, but because I don't have a billion followers (which can be bought for goodness sake! so it's a BS metric), I can't publish my book?!

Watch me.  I went on to form my own publishing company and I've started to publish other LGBTQ+ authors in the realms of memoir, business, self-help, and other nonfiction.

But I still haven't written my own book. With a full on nonprofit to run, summits to plan and a publishing company in full swing, producing my book seemed like just one more overwhelming to do I wasn't quite ready to tackle alone. 

Enter Suzette Mullen.  Suzette is an LGBTQ+ writing coach.  She's helping me create my "inside outline" which takes all the terror of "How the hell do I turn alllllll of this crazy story into a cohesive book?" 

Her help is creating a reality in which I know exactly what I'm writing and why.  Is editing still involved?  Of course.  But what felt like a monumental (and frankly, lonely AF) task now feels fun, rewarding, and actually manageable.  

Suzette and I are going to host a free workshop for other LGBTQ+ authors on January 16th, 2022 at 4PM EST and we'd love to have you join us!  But in the interim, enjoy some great tips from the expert herself!  


Make a plan. For the most part, writers without a plan are people who dream about writing and think about writing but don't actually write.

Tips to getting your novel or memoir written

  1. Pick a consistent time of day to write.

    Are you a morning person or a night owl? There's no one perfect time of day to write. Pick one or two times a day that you know you can consistently show up and write. A second time of day gives you some wiggle room in case something prevents you from writing earlier in the day. 

2. Decide on a container for your writing. 

You can keep it simple: Google Docs or Microsoft Word. Either a single document or organize your writing in folders (label scenes, characters, big ideas.). Consider a free trial of Scrivener or Dabble to up level the organization of your writing. Both writing systems offer free trials.

 3. Choose one story or one big idea to write about.

You don't have to know the whole plot or have a detailed outline or any of that, but having clarity about the main thing you want to write about is key. Otherwise, you risk ending up with 50,000 random words that you won't know what to do with.

4. Make a list of small pieces you can write.

Key scenes. Big moments. Characters in your novel or memoir. Settings or worldbuilding. This will help you avoid the "what should I write about today" dilemma and will also free you up from thinking you have to write your book "in order."

5. Pick one piece to start with each day and at the end of your writing session, make a plan for the next session.

You can waste so much time thinking about what you want to write instead of writing. This tip helps you write during your writing time!

 6. Seek support and support others. Writing is largely a solitary pursuit and can be lonely.

Take advantage of the writing community the Pride and Joy Foundation is building. Reach out when you need help and when you want to, share an "aha" or celebrate meeting your daily word count. And do the same for others.

7. Celebrate the small victories. Every day you put your butt in the chair and write.

Every day you meet your word count. Every day you discover something new as you write. Every day that you move from being someone who wants to write to someone who is a writer.

8. And celebrate the big victories.

Whether or not you reach your word count goals, there will be much to celebrate. Now you know that you can put your butt in the chair and write whether you "feel like it" or not.

 

To join our FREE workshop, please register at:
https://www.prideandjoyfoundation.com/outwrite-authors-webinar

 
 
 
 
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