Project Management Tool

Excellent Authors’ Project Management Tool

When an author works on a project her mind swirls with details. “Did I keep the color of the heroines eyes the same throughout the story?” “Are the details of the setting consistent in the beginning chapters with those in the end?”  

Instead of keeping ‘Post ‘em’ notes scattered about or random notebooks, there is a software package that could help save a great deal of time and frustrations.

Microsoft OneNote provides easy, organizational tools that works well in managing research, character development, plot outlines, etc.? All notes are made on pages which are the smallest unit in OneNote. Pages are shown on tabs down the side. Pages can have subpages shown by smaller tabs under the page tabs.

Each section is a separate OneNote (.one) file and are shown by tabs across the top.  A section (.one file) is stored in the My Notebook folder in the My Documents folder on your hard drive.

A folder is an optional level of organization, that contains sections and other folders. Folders are shown by blue tabs with folder icons across the top.  

Advantages of using OneNote over a Word Processing Program:

1. Easier to have everything in one file so you can flip back and forth with a simple click.
2. It automatically saves everything without the extra step of ‘yes, save this’.
3. It automatically records the web address from where a section is copied.
4. Words are searchable throughout all the OneNote files.
5. Pages can be added within each section. 

Ways authors have used OneNote include:

1. Record audio or video notes.

2. Use a business template to track expenses.

3. Each work-in-progress (WIP) is maintained as a separate notebook.

4. Within each notebook, a separate section (tab at the top of the screen) is used for Characters, Setting, Plot.

Tips on Writing One-Liners

 Preparing Author One-liners  

One-liners for authors is similar to the elevator speech used in the business world. The sales world claim they only have the time of an elevator ride to pitch their idea or product. Likewise, the author only has less than thirty seconds to pitch their book idea to an agent or editor.

The short, snappy description of a project can be used as the ‘hook’ in a query or cover letter and also provide guidance in keeping the author focused on the main intent while writing the story.  One-liners need to be well-crafted sentences that convey the central idea, and the conflict that the main character(s) will attempt to resolve in the course of the book.

Word selection is critical in crafting one-liners that catch the listener’s or reader’s attention. Words must be exact and specific. Long words should never be used where a short one will do. Another way to strengthen a one-liner is to place the emphatic words of a sentence at the end. The last words spoken are generally what remains with the listener or reader.

While authors may only have one chance to pitch their ideas, research reveals that people have to be exposed to a message three times before it will start to sink in. As a result, authors will need to have different versions of the same idea tailored to the interest of the agent or editor at the moment.  

Practice makes perfect. One-liners need to be practiced before a mirror, a best friend, or a spouse. With each trial a different word may come to mind, a different emphasis may appear. And most importantly, the story line will become more focused in the author’s mind.

Amazon.com Sales Rankings and Book Reviews

 

Sales Rank and Reader Reviews

Is there value for authors or readers to follow the Amazon sales rank or reader reviews?
  Every author likes to read positive reviews of their work, but if the reader reviews on amazon.com are unmonitored, their value becomes nebulous. On the Amazon pages, the readers may assume they are reading reviews by professional reviewers or impartial readers, while in fact, the author of the book may have made an asserted effort to have their friends and family submit raving reviews on their behalf.

 On the other hand, some elementary teachers encourage their students to submit amazon.com book reviews as a class assignment. As in many book reports, the actual book is merely scanned and the review becomes more of a work of fiction than an honest evaluation of the book.

The sales ranking system of amazon.com is often not used in the way it was originally intended. On Amazon’s FAQ page they claim that the Sales Rank is “interesting.” From Amazon’s perspective users are not supposed to find the sales rankings informative or helpful, just interesting. A decade after book-sales rankings were introduced, it remains an object of obsession for many authors. Because brick and mortar bookstores are restrained by shelf space, the Web stores such as amazon.com give millions of books a ranking. These are updated hourly and displayed on the book’s sales page and on best-seller lists. Little is known about the reliability of Amazon’s ranking system even though scores of scholars and publishers have attempted to reverse-engineer the system to determine how a sales ranking translates into actual sales. The Amazon ranking system is useful for potential authors to useful to determine the need for a book on a particular subject matter. However, forget writer’s block — many authors put their manuscripts aside because they cannot stop checking their rankings.

To make life easier for the compulsive Amazon-Sales-Ranking authors, there is now a website design specifically for them: Aaron Shepard’s Sales Rank Express.

Using this website, authors can obtain their current sales ranking and be back working on their manuscript within seconds. Authors can then say, ‘that’s interesting’ and concentrate on the blank screen before them. What a great time saver!

The Key to Good Writing

What is one of the most important key to good writing that is common for both fiction and non-fiction writing?

Authors and writers spend a great deal of time discussing the differences between the different genres and sub-genres of fiction and the differences of each category and reading level of non-fiction writing, but little time is spent discussing one of the most important requirements of all good writing; that of knowing how to use your local library and librarian. 

Even a contemporary fiction book set in an area in which the author is familiar, still requires detailed research. Yes, the Internet and Google can help, but its results are often limited and subject to error. Thousands of hits can be obtain with varying levels of validity. Hundreds of hours can be wasted trying to verify the source of that information for accuracy. There is no need to waste time or become frustrated. There is help around the corner, at the end of a telephone line, or via e-mail or instant messaging. That help is free of charge.  

The librarian at your local public library or school library will have received a Masters degree and spent years studying how to locate information, evaluate its source, and determine its relevance for particular circumstances. The next time you hesitate and ponder over a writing question, contact your local librarian; she’s waiting to work with you and will help with your research regardless of how important or small it may be.