Lisa Tener

Book Writing Coach

Writer's Block

Mini-Marketing Makeover Contest

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Take one small step to build your platform and enter to win!
Take one small step to build your platform and enter to win!

I’ve been busy going through all the exciting info gleaned from my three days at Harvard Medical School’s publishing course. I’m planning several blog posts on my private conversations with literary agents and publishers on what they’re looking for, the state of publishing, what authors can do, etc.

In the meantime, here’s  a quick post (and CONTEST!) inspired by a recent conversation with a potential client: a psychologist with a successful practice and several self published books. Here are 3 quick things she can do to market herself better and begin to establish a platform to build a case for her book to agents and publishers. Maybe one or two of these will resonate for you:

1. She signed her e-mails with an aol address. Use your website e-mail, such as Lisa@LisaTener.com  on all e-mails. This is free advertising and many people will look up your website based on your e-mail address. If you haven’t set up an e-mail address for your website, just ask your webmaster to do it. You should be able to view and respond to those e-mails in whatever manner you usually view other e-mails.

2. Her website received 150 visitors a month, but she had no way of continuing to communicate with those visitors. You need some way to convert visitors to followers, whether it’s having them subscribe to your blog, having them provide their e-mail address and first name in exchange for a free special report or tip list from you. You want to build a relationship with your visitors and have a way to communicate to them when you have something to offer them.

3. She wasn’t branding herself. In fact, she specialized in several diverse areas with both parents and children. If you want to be seen as an expert, it’s best to pick one area to focus on, at least on your home page, in order to send a clear message.
Can you find one idea from the above to implement in your marketing and platform-building strategy? Let me know what it is and when you’ve implemented it. Point us to your page. writing-in-zoneThe best implementation will receive a free CD of Writing in the Zone: Tap into Your Creative Genius: a Visualization for Writers, or a free e-kit: The Insider’s Guide to Writing Your Best Book in 60 Days.insider-guide

Listen to Your Writing Coach on Positive Living Radio

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Join me on WPRO FM second Sundays
Join me on WPRO FM second Sundays

I just got off the phone with Patricia Raskin. We were planning my monthly spotlight appearances on her show Positive Living which you can hear  Sundays from 12-2 on WPRO Providence (99.7 FM, 630 AM or live streamed).  We have six fun and informative 7-minute interviews planned:

Patricia Raskin, Host of Positive Living
Patricia Raskin, Host of Positive Living

  • March 8: Join the internet revolution and put your writing online.

  • April 12: Learn my 5 step system for Writing in the Zone.
  • May 10: Learn how several of my clients have transformed their lives through writing (a preview of my seminar on May 13 as part of Aspire Magazine’s Inspiring Women Speaker Series: Express Yourself in Writing and Transform Your Life).
  • June 14: Learn the steps you need to take–and the decisions to make–to become a published author.
  • July 12: Learn how to beat writer’s block.
  • August 9: Learn 5 of my best tips for becoming a better writer.

I hope you’ll join us this Sunday on the radio or by streaming internet broadcast.


How to Write an Introduction: Think Like Your Readers

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Read Your Reader's Mind
Can You Read His Mind?

Many aspiring writers meet their first challenge when they face the writing of their introduction. If you think like your reader, you should find the job much easier.

In the introduction your reader is trying to find out:

1.  Will this book help me solve my particular problem, challenge or goal?

2.  What kind of results can I expect to get by reading this book (for a self-help or how-to book) or What kind of experience might I expect in reading this book?

3.  Does the author have some kind of system to help me and is it something I can easily learn, use and incorporate into my life? (for a self-help or how-to book)

4. Will this book be fun to read? Will I enjoy the time I spend reading it? Is it entertaining? Moving?

Your reader also wants to know about you:

1. Has this author helped many people? or What are the author’s credentials?

2. What kinds of results have other people gotten with the author’s system or work?

3. Do I trust this author?

4. Do I like this author? Do I relate to him or her?

This is clearly a sophisticated reader

Your introduction should:

1. Motivate your readers to read the book

2. Inspire your readers to envision what they might get out of the book

3. Begin to develop a relationship between you and your readers

4. Help readers understand how the book will help them

5. Tell readers how to get the most out of the book (for a how-to book)

You want your book to come alive for readers starting on page 1: show your readers by providing details and actions that help readers draw conclusions. When you tell (“He was angry.” “I hate politicians.”), you’re not making your story real for your reader. The book is two dimensional. When you use the five senses to show your reader, the book pops off the page.

Fill your introduction with plenty of stories that make your points and your readers will become engaged.

Let’s hear from you:

  • Have any questions on writing an engaging introduction?
  • Any tips you’d offer others on writing an introduction?
  • Want to share something you did with your book’s introduction?
  • Or a writing challenge you’re experiencing right now?

Comment on the blog and let’s hear from you.

Writer’s Block

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I just ready Cathy Stucker’s blog on Writer’s block and she brought up a good point about fear being a common cause of writer’s block. And, of course, the thing to do to get rid of fear is to do it anyway.

Opening up to nature can transform writer's block.
Opening up to nature can transform writer’s block.

However, As a writer and writing coach, I find that stress and depletion are two very big reasons that my writing clients and students experience writer’s block. When you come to your writing refreshed and in an open frame of mind, the writing can often flow with ease. But if you’re still breathing shallowly, thinking of the 10,000 things on your to-do list, you’re not very present.

Writing is about being present. When you’re present, you make your writing come alive for your reader. You paint a picture. You make it real. Which, oh-my-gosh, I’m not actually doing right now. I’m generalizing, pontificating, but I’m not showing (I’m telling). So I might not be blocked, but I’m not knocking your socks off, either.

Truth is, I just finished packing for a trip to my parent’s house in Sag Harbor early tomorrow morning. My husband loaded the boys into his Toyota Corolla for a quick trip to Home Depot. We’re due to go to a party in about a half our and I need a shower, a wardrobe adjustment, and time to turn my hair into something other than Medusa on a bad day. So I think I fell into category two–not blocked but not much fun either.

By now, I hope I’ve painted a picture and that brings me to some of the cures for writer’s block due to stress or fatigue.

1.  Take a walk in nature and allow the autumn smells and cool, crisp air to replenish you. Breathe deeply.

2.  Listen to your favorite music. You can lie down and take it in, dance or sing out loud–whatever it takes to energize you.

3. Bust through it by sheer will–write a bunch of blah until it turns into something else.

4. Do a few yoga postures, chi gong or even jumping jacks.

5. Meditate for a few minutes. You can even close your eyes and just picture yourself as the stress melts away. Then picture yourself writing with ease and feeling the exhilaration of inspired writing.

The challenge with my third suggestion is that sometimes it doesn’t turn into something else. In that case, those rejuvenating exercises are a whole lot better. Have fun with my suggestions and see if they get rid of writer’s block. I bet they will.

I also have a visualization I often take my writing coaching clients and students through. At my clients’ request, I’ve made a free recording of the guided visualization–so you never have to suffer from writer’s block again.

Create Your Own Low Budget Writer’s Retreat

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This is where I teach my Bring Your Book to Life classes in Narragansett. Peaco and I also created a home-grown writing retreat here when working on The Ultimate Guide to Transforming Anger

The last two posts have been in anticipation of my personal writing retreat next week. Carol posted a comment saying she’d never been on one and can’t wait for her own turn.

This post is for Carol and anyone else who thinks they have to wait for their turn. I will attempt to address every concern that may prevent you from getting your writing retreat…NOW. If I don’t address what’s stopping you, make a comment and tell me what it is. I’ll do my best to find a creative solution for you, so that you don’t have to wait for your personal writing retreat. By the end of this post you should have your own writing retreat planned.

What’s stopping you?

* Money: If money is holding you back, don’t worry. There are tons of solutions for a free or cheap retreat house:

*  Hold your retreat at a friend’s house: Is your friend going on vacation? Or do they have a private guest room where you can retreat from the world?

*  Turn your home into a sanctuary: Unplug the phones. Disable your e-mail. Clean your office, sun room, guest room, or wherever you plan to retreat, the day before, so it’s conducive to flow. Light a few candles for ambiance. Hang a few affirmations up about writing flow.

* Network: Ask friends and family if they know of nearby vacation cottage that might be available for a day or two at free or low cost for your retreat. When you have a whole lot of people working on the “problem” you’re much likelier to find a solution.

*  Time: No one really has time to write their book, but those who succeed find the time anyway. The key is to schedule the time in your calendar and make it sacrosanct. You can:

* Take a weekend away: If you have children, ask a  relative or babysitter to help out.

* Take a vacation day: What a great way to spend a vacation day or floating holiday. Your retreat doesn’t have to be long. Even one day once in a while can have an impact.

* Try a mini-retreat: Even a few hours at a time can serve as retreat with the right frame of mind.

* The Right Place: Oh, look. We addressed that one already above. You can turn any space into a retreat sanctuary with a little forethought–post “do not disturb signs” if others will be in the house; use candles and aromatherapy for ambiance and inspiration; go for a walk in nature before writing.

* Afraid of Writer’s Block: Creativity usually comes from a combination of gestation, or quiet time, and creation, or time in the flow. Make sure you create some quiet time with yoga, a walk in the woods or on the beach, tai chi, meditation, dancing or anything else that feeds your right brain. Then you’ll come to the writing refreshed and your mind will have been able to work subconsciously before you even begin the writing. If you still feel stuck, you can find some great tools for writer’s block, including my audio Writing in the Zone.

I hope I’ve helped you see how you can have your own writer’s retreat or mini retreat with just a bit of planning ahead. Your retreat is really a state of mind that will allow you to write with inspiration and ease. Have fun. Schedule it now and start planning. And if I haven’t addressed your concern, post a comment and I’ll try my best to find you a creative solution.

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