Category Archives: Rory C. Keel

Meet the Author – Melanie Miller

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Meet the Author

 

Since the creation of WordsmithSix as a critique group, we have evolved in many ways. While every member is like family and brings their own valuable insights to the group, sometimes there are changes. Some of our members have moved on in their life’s journey, however their contributions continue to influence our writing forever. Others have filled the empty chairs and have started their journey into the world of writing.

Each member of WordsmithSix is excited about our writing journey. For the next few weeks we will dedicate a Sunday blog to letting our readers know a little more about who we are. Each author will be asked a few questions to help you understand their desire to write and what motivates them. Maybe their answers will influence you in your writing.

This week we want to highlight a young writer who has been a recent guest at our critique group. She has a great talent and we are sure that you will be seeing her writing in the near future.

Please welcome Melanie Miller.

Hello!

  1. When did you start writing?

I started writing in High School. My first attempt at writing a novel began when I was only a sophomore.

  1. Why did you choose the genre you write?

I write Young Adult Fiction because I love reading it, and I want to write something that my younger brother will enjoy.  Young Adult has some of the most fluid and dynamic characters–seeing how these characters grow and change makes me happy.

  1. What’s the best thing you’ve done to help your writing?

I went to the West Texas Writing Academy in 2015. Being there connected me with a bunch of writers and help me see that my writing aspirations were fully within my grasp.

  1. What’s your writing routine like?

Procrastination. I find that I am most inspired to do creative writing whenever I have something else that needs to be done. Like taxes. But normally, I will drag my self out of bed at six in the morning and write until I have to go to class.

  1. How do you reach that personal place that allows the writing to flow?

I usually go somewhere where I put on my headphones and sit with no distractions or friends trying to talk to me. After ten to thirty minutes of gutting out the words, things start to flow.

  1. Are you an outliner?

I don’t think I can be impartial when answering this. Whatever answer I come up with would be muddied by by own egocentric bias. Still. I would like to think that me and my writing style are different, but then again, who wouldn’t?

  1. What has been your biggest writing challenge?

Finding the will power to actually write. Actually sitting down and writing is the hardest thing in the world. There are a hundred-thousand distractions, especially if you work on a computer.

  1. What are you working on currently, future?

I am currently writing the first draft of my first novel. I also have tentative plans for two more books using this same world and main character. I also have several other commenting worlds and storylines that I plan on exploring in the future.

  1. What advice would you give to new writers?

Forge connections with writing groups. Once you get yourself in a strong writing group, it gives you reason and motivation to writing, even if that motivation is only to not be embarrassed by bringing in shoddy work or no work at all.

  1. What’s the most positive thing you could tell writers today?

The publishing business is becoming more and more accessible. With ebooks and online publishing, it is increasingly likely that your book will be published in some form or manner.

9 Helpful Tips for writing:

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9 Helpful Tips for writing:

  • Avoid difficult words, which the reader might have difficulty in understanding
  • Avoid moralizing
  • Don’t force your point of view on the readers. In other words, let the characters say what you want to say
  • Don’t inform, show
  • Include the five senses (hear, smell, touch, see, speak) to rouse the reader’s emotions
  • Avoid unnecessary details
  • Be innovative
  • Use active tense, not passive
  • Read your text aloud and listen for jarring notes

Roryckeel.com

What if I Fail as a Writer?

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What if I Fail as a Writer?

Rory C. Keel

 

So you want to be a writer but you’re afraid of failure. Perhaps your dream is to write a novel, publish an article in a magazine, or write a famous screenplay but the idea of failing keeps you from ever starting. Putting the “cart before the horse,” as they say, can skew a person’s thinking.

Here are five steps to help realign your thinking so you can achieve your dream of success.

  1. Realize success comes in steps.

Achieving any goal is like walking up a staircase, it has to be one step at a time. Honestly assess where you are in your writing skills. Do you understand grammar and sentence structure? Perhaps you’re farther along and need to work on story telling or plotting?

By knowing where you are on the staircase of writing, you can know what your next step is. That next step is success.

   2. Reaching the next step can be difficult.

Famous authors such as Stephen King, Charles Frazier, Larry McMurtry, J.K. Rowling didn’t reach fame in one day. It takes hours of putting one word next to another, days of sitting in a chair, months of research and rewriting, and sometimes years of waiting for a project to be noticed. Take one step today and another tomorrow and you will be successful.

   3. You will run into obstacles.

Have you ever walked through the house in the dark to get a drink from the kitchen and stubbed your toe on the coffee table? Immediately you scream OBSTACLES!

Understand there will be hindrances to your writing such as finding time to write, family members that need attention, or even the need to make a living and pay the bills.

That’s life. These things still exist for famous authors, they have just learned to prioritize and deal with them.

   4. Surround yourself with other writers.

By surrounding yourself with other writers, you set yourself up to succeed. Learn from others who have what you want. Success is a level small or great not a final ending. So when you associate with those who desire to write and have a mindset to accomplish goals, you become motivated to move along with them.  Famous authors haven’t reached the pinnacle, they only have a greater level of what you can achieve in a small step tomorrow – SUCCESS!

   5. Never, ever, give up on your dream.

“Lots of people limit their possibilities by giving up easily. Never tell yourself this is too much for me. It’s no use. I can’t go on. If you do, you’re licked, and by your own thinking, too. Keep believing and keep on keeping on.” — Norman Vincent Peale

roryckeel.com

General Tips on Using Social Media

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General Tips on Using Social Media

By Rory C. Keel

roryckeel.com

  

Now that you have jumped into the deep end of the pool of social media, here are a few tips to keep you afloat.

Double–check content, editing errors

Before hitting the enter button, check your writing for content and editing errors. Bad grammar and incorrect content will cause the reader to lose interest in what you post.

Be consistent

Keep your online presence active for your readers. By posting regularly, you develop your brand and credibility in your writing.

Reply

When you begin to build a platform on your social media, participate with them by replying to questions, offer helpful content, “LIKE”, “Share”, “follow”, “Plus” others to build your fan base.

Keep tone positive, uplifting

Nobody likes a grouch. Readers will become weary if every post is a gripe or complaint. While you may be frustrated, agitated, or you’re just plain mad, keep your writing positive.

Politics, social issues & religion

Talk about hot topics. Nothing creates a fire more than politics, religion or a social issue. If the focus of your work is in one of these occupations it’s a given that your focus will necessitate writing about them. However, you need to understand that by getting involved in a debate online you could limit your followers. You have the right to post on any topic, but others have right to block your writing.

Roryckeel.com

How Do I Manage My Social Media?

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How Do I Manage My Social Media?

By Rory C. Keel

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As we have already discovered, social media will help the writer in building their brand, platform or fan base for their writing. Social media is expected in the modern world of technology.

We previously explored the large variety of social media applications available to the writer such as blogs, business-to-customer avenues like Facebook, Twitter and Google+. We also looked at business-to-usiness focused applications such as LinkedIN. And let’s not forget the use of picture and video oriented social media venues such as Pinterest, Instagram, and YouTube.

Managing Social Media

Now that we have a social media presence on the web, how does the writer manage the avenues he or she has chosen?

First, you must understand that social media is NOT FREE.

Are you surprised?

While you may not have pulled out your credit card to set up an account, you will pay by investing either time or money. Your time equals money and unless you are a professional blogger, the hours you spend managing your social media accounts are hours NOT spent on writing projects.

Secondly, you need to understand the different ways to manage your social media accounts.

Individual App Management

This will require you to log on to each application and enter information, reply to messages or requests for followers and manage the account yourself. If you have several different applications this can be time consuming.

The optimum average time one should spend managing all accounts should be no more than 15-20 minutes in the morning and the same amount of time in the afternoon.

Basic Simple Links

Basic simple links in the applications offer the user shortcuts to link them together. By linking these social media platforms, one entry can be made and it will be posted on all applications, saving time and money.

Management Programs and Services

When you achieve your fame as a writer, management services are available to manage these accounts for you. They range from free limited services to different levels of service for various monthly charges.

Next week we will discuss some general tips in using social media.

 Roryckeel.com

Which social media platforms should a writer use?

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Which social media platforms should I as a writer, have a presence on?

By Rory C. Keel

roryckeel.com

As we discussed on my blog post last week called Basic Social Media for Writers, that Social media for business has become the norm. For a writer it is no different, you are a business and your customers are your readers.

With literally hundreds of options to choose from such as Facebook, Twitter, Pintrest, LinkedIn, Google+, and YouTube, it could drive a person mad. Before deciding on which social media venue to have a presence, you need to do your research.

RESEARCH

First, you need to develop a platform of readership. Choose a B2C social media platform. B2C simply means a business–to-customer platform that will allow you as a business, to focus on your genre and connect with your readers, the customers.

Second, understand what the venue is and how it works.

A Blog is a place to publish thoughts, tips, ideas. Regular blogs provide keyword-rich content for search engines and can help create you as an expert in your field.

Facebook, Google +, Myspace and other similar platforms, are used to connect and interact with your audience with personal and/or business pages

Twitter allows you to follow and connect with a target audience.

Tweeting about your writing with excerpts, answering questions, and offering helpful insights can help to build loyal readership.

YouTube is the top site for user generated video content. It’s a place to share your business by how-to videos, video readings, discussions, or simply a video introducing YOU.

Other social media sites use the medium of photos to share ideas and communication, such as Instagram and Pintrest.

Another type of social media platform is a B2B platform. B2B simply refers to a Business-to-Business platform. In another words a wholesaler to you as a business.

As a writer, you need access to editors, publishers, or agents. You might even need connections with an ink cartridge and paper supply company. You as a business can connect with others who offer services you need.

LinkedIN is an example of this type of platform and has a business focus.

Having the proper research and information, you can begin to formulate an idea of which social media platform to focus your attention.

With that in mind, next week we will discuss how to best manage your social media so that you will still have time to write.

 

Basic Social Media for Writers

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Basic Social Media for Writers 

By Rory C. Keel

 

After mountains of research, hours of keeping my rear end in the chair and wearing out the keyboard, they expect me to do what?

Yes, that’s right, as a writer you need to have an internet presence on social media.

Recently, I was asked to present some basic materials about social media, to the Ranch House writers, a group of writers who occasionally gather for a meal and encouragement from others in the writing community.

This blog will be the first in a series of four, dealing with the basics of social media for writers.

What is Social Media

Simply put, social media is a varied group of internet based applications that allow YOU to create and share content.

Early in the development of the internet, most websites were static. In other words, much like a billboard on the highway, it was costly to change and no had ability to interact with consumers.

Today, social media platforms give writers the ability to create, share, discuss ideas, and publish user-generated materials.

These applications are often categorized into groups such as networking sites, blog sites, video Sharing sites and even photo sharing sites. There are hundreds of applications and Facebook, Twitter, Google +, YouTube and Flickr are just a few examples.

Will Social Media benefit me as a writer?

While there are many reasons an individual might use social media, for the writer it’s as simple as Business 101.

Writing is a business

Have you ever read the reviews of a restaurant before going out to dinner? Have you ever researched someone on Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIN, before meeting for an appointment?

It is estimated that in 2015, 93 percent of all businesses will use some form of social media. For both consumers and businesses it has become the norm and is expected.

Using Social Media

Using social media as a writer allows easy communication between you and your readers. It is a medium that allows the ability to develop relationships by having accessibility to groups where individual time is not possible.

And finally, social media allows you multiple mediums to develop your brand as a writer. By blogging, posting, tweeting, google plus-ing, you can establish yourself as a writer and build a large readership.

Next Tuesday we will discuss which social media platform to use. See ya’ then!

roryckeel.com

What if I Fail as a Writer?

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What if I Fail as a Writer?

Rory C. Keel

 

So you want to be a writer but you’re afraid of failure. Perhaps your dream is to write a novel, publish an article in a magazine, or write a famous screenplay but the idea of failing keeps you from ever starting. Putting the “cart before the horse,” as they say, can skew a person’s thinking.

Here are five steps to help realign your thinking so you can achieve your dream of success.

  1. Realize success comes in steps.

Achieving any goal is like walking up a staircase, it has to be one step at a time. Honestly assess where you are in your writing skills. Do you understand grammar and sentence structure? Perhaps you’re farther along and need to work on story telling or plotting?

By knowing where you are on the staircase of writing, you can know what your next step is. That next step is success.

   2. Reaching the next step can be difficult.

Famous authors such as Stephen King, Charles Frazier, Larry McMurtry, J.K. Rowling didn’t reach fame in one day. It takes hours of putting one word next to another, days of sitting in a chair, months of research and rewriting, and sometimes years of waiting for a project to be noticed. Take one step today and another tomorrow and you will be successful.

   3. You will run into obstacles.

Have you ever walked through the house in the dark to get a drink from the kitchen and stubbed your toe on the coffee table? Immediately you scream OBSTACLES!

Understand there will be hindrances to your writing such as finding time to write, family members that need attention, or even the need to make a living and pay the bills.

That’s life. These things still exist for famous authors, they have just learned to prioritize and deal with them.

   4. Surround yourself with other writers.

By surrounding yourself with other writers, you set yourself up to succeed. Learn from others who have what you want. Success is a level small or great not a final ending. So when you associate with those who desire to write and have a mindset to accomplish goals, you become motivated to move along with them.  Famous authors haven’t reached the pinnacle, they only have a greater level of what you can achieve in a small step tomorrow – SUCCESS!

   5. Never, ever, give up on your dream.

“Lots of people limit their possibilities by giving up easily. Never tell yourself this is too much for me. It’s no use. I can’t go on. If you do, you’re licked, and by your own thinking, too. Keep believing and keep on keeping on.” — Norman Vincent Peale

roryckeel.com

Pressing on Update

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Pressing on Update

Rory C. Keel

 

Earlier this year, I posted the blog Pressing On in which I discussed a few things I would do to move forward in my writing. I must confess, today is the first day of March and I find myself struggling to find the time to write as much as I would like. I have added a few more words to my novel. Sometimes I write only a sentence, and at other times as much as a page or two. The novel is moving slowly, but it’s moving forward everyday.

One of the goals I made was to submit smaller pieces of writing for publication. Today I received my copy of The Secret Place magazine, spring 2016 edition published by Judson Press. You can read my devotional called Being Courteous in the April section.

Scan

Just keep pressing on!

Roryckeel.com

Comma, Comma, Comma, Comma, Comma Chameleon

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Comma, Comma, Comma, Comma, Comma Chameleon

By Rory C. Keel

For me the correct place for using a comma seems as elusive as a chameleon. Hidden somewhere between subordinate clauses, independent clauses and coordinating conjunctions, the comma hangs out waiting for a slight pause.

Here are five basic rules to help in using a comma.

  1. Never place a comma between a subject and its verb or between a verb and its object.
  2. When a subordinate clause introduces an independent clause, separate the two with a comma.
  3. Don’t use a comma to separate the clauses when a subordinate clause follows an independent clause.
  4. Use a comma before the appropriate coordinating conjunction to join two related sentences.
  5. When in doubt, leave it out.

Remembering these basic rules will help you put them where they belong and leave them out where they don’t.

 Roryckeel.com