There are certain items in your writing toolbox that are the basics you need to have to build on so you can communicate to your reader and be believable. What to keep, what to subtract and what to add.

The first thing you want to do is write out a contract for yourself about your desire to begin writing.

Write out a contract on nice paper – not scrap paper. Why a contract? Because it acknowledges the difficult times to come and it puts your intentions in concrete terms. Every time you’re tempted to stray, quit and/or encounter a difficulty, it’s easy to refocus by pulling out that contract and recommitting yourself.  I’d suggest handwriting it out on nice paper and framing it to put someplace where you can view it every day.

It takes this type of intense focus to achieve your dreams.  Call it “My Creative Writing Commitment Contract”

You can do it, you have been talking about it for years, so why not make this the year you actually get started?

Like anything, book marketing takes time. I see authors all the time who start to grow impatient after a few months, wondering where their success is. How long will it take?

That depends. But you might not be the best person to determine that. If you’ve been marketing your book for a while and can’t figure out why nothing has taken off, spend an hour with a professional who can tell you if you’re on the right track.  The people at the print on demand publishing companies in your area have great insight into the marketing and steps that you need to take to see success so make an appointment and speak to them about what you could do to improve your results. It may be that you are right on track and do not need to do anything.

Do this before you decide to throw in the towel. You might be inches away from success; don’t give up before you do your research.

Making headway in marketing is as much about the good decisions, as it is avoiding the bad. Best success in your publishing  journey!

Now that you have all of the steps that might cause a problem and know what to do to correct them you can rinse and repeat the process on your next book. It will go so much faster when you have a straight line to your goal.

Remember that applied knowledge is power so now it is time to put these steps into action.

When someone asks me if all authors should have a website, I respond: does your book need a cover?

Every author should have a website and when possible get a domain name of your title so it can be a direct match to the content you are delivering in hard copy or online. It is the best way to build credibility online and it is a 24/7 sales tool for you.

In addition to building your credibility, you can have an ebook of your manuscript that can be delivered after you receive payment for the book. The person making the purchase can have access to your book immediately which many readers like.

You can also allow them to order a hard copy for those readers who prefer to hold a real book while they are reading it. Set up a way for the shipping to be added to the price and send the book to their address when the payment is completed or have a fulfillment house do the shipping for you.

Stop back by tomorrow for the next step.

What kind of experience do you want to give your reader? If the answer is a great one (and it likely is) make sure the work you do on your book mirrors that. Your book is like your resume; not only that but it’s your reader’s experience of you as a writer as well.

Your work should always be professionally edited, no excuse. But, before you turn it over to an editor, you can learn from an editor about the things to address and do a preliminary self editing yourself of the draft before you give your manuscript to the experienced professional editor.

If you don’t have enough money to get the self-editing ebook or have your writing edited by a professional, then ask yourself if publishing this book is really a good idea. Perhaps waiting until you have the funds to get the book released the right way is a better idea.

Stop back by tomorrow for the next step.

If you were going to open up a store in a mall, let’s say a bead shop, would you ever consider opening a store without doing the proper research? Probably not. Yet every day authors publish books and haven’t done market research.

This research, while it can be tedious, could save you hundreds of dollars in promotion and/or cover design.

It is so easy to do with your online tools, the search engines, keyword tools, and traffic for your topic that you can check in the search engines. Visit forums online and get an idea of interest in your topic.

Do an ask campaign and get information from potential readers about their area of interest in the topic you are writing about. Take a poll locally and get feedback about what kind of questions people have about your topic and then in your writing answer those questions.

See what is on the best seller list for your area of writing and topic.

Stop back by tomorrow for the next step.

Who else is writing about your topic? If you’re not sure, then you should do your research.

Getting to know your fellow genre authors is not only important, but it can really help you with your marketing. How? Because most readers don’t just buy one self-help book, or one dating book, they will generally buy in multiples.

So getting to know others within your market can not only help you market your book, but it could also help you connect with fellow authors.

Who else might be looking for information about your topic?

Do research in the search engines and see what is coming up when you type in different words or phrases that describe your topic. There may be things that you find that you want to add more information about in your book.

Google keyword tool will also give you how many people are typing in the words or phrases that are what are most often used that describe your topic. It will let you know how many people might be looking for your new writing.

Stop back by tomorrow and get the next step.

Now if you do not have any children in your life-borrow one from a family member or neighbor. Not literally, but talk to the parents and see what appeals to their child and see what you could create. There are many software programs that let a person read a story to a child. See if you might be able to do the same thing. Write then record the story you want to test on the child and let them listen to it. Get the feedback about their response to the story line.

While you might not be interested in childrens writing as a long time project, it can give you some connections to the stories that appealed to you when you were younger and help you unravel what about those stories that you liked that still makes you remember them.  Adding that insight to your writing can change how your reader will connect with you and your stories. Besides it can be fun once in a while to get nostalgic and remember the romance of those old stories and some of the other things that were happening to you and your family during that time that were positive influences on you that still impact you today.

I recently saw a movie and the teacher was contrasting the way fairy tales started and ended and how that often was different than in real life. However, I have had some of those happily ever after results and I’d guess if you really put on your thinking cap you might be able to connect with some of those results too.

Hey, it’s just a bit of time and a few sheets of paper if you are writing manually or a few pages of copy in your word processor. Give it a shot.  It could be great fun and the benefit to your reader will be huge because it makes your writing more believable.

No limits here to things to write about so get those pencils sharpened-do finger exercises so your fingers can fly across the keyboard as you type and if that doesn’t work-look into voice recognition software so you talk and it types what you are saying. You have got to get these ideas floating around in your head down on paper. You can do it!

If you need help, the resources area in the navigation bar is packed with tools to assist you at any place you need extra help or how to information.

* If you normally see surface details, notice all the visual and sensory details: the colors, the shine, the feel.
* If you normally see things in relation to your relationships, notice who is on your yacht with you and how they interact and the part that your yacht plays in that relationship.
* If you normally see how things are connected, notice where your yacht is anchored, what you are doing there, how you got there and where you are going next.
* If you normally see concepts and “the big picture,” notice how the yacht represents YOU and the role that it plays  in your journey of self discovery.

The more “real” you can make your visualization, the more impact and power it will have.

You are your own best coach in this because the first thing you have to do is recognize how you see the world around you.  By bringing those elements into your visualization they will become more alive and “real” for you.

So, right now, what do you see? What do you feel? What is real to you? And what is unique in the way you are experiencing it?

Now, it starts here with what you are going to write down. Just jot down the description of the pictures you are seeing as if you are trying to describe them to someone else in writing instead on verbally. They are your pictures and the way you explain them is unique to you.

The people who see what you are seeing as they read your words will become your readers. It is just that simple to start writing.

A search engine may deliver readers to some point in the middle or end of your document. If you have written a coherent and cohesive piece then those readers may well move back to the beginning to read properly.

In response to the scanning readers, as many internet readers are, it is best to break longer documents into several stand-alone pieces that can work together as a whole or as separate documents if approached in that manner.