There have been so many times that I will read a classic, like something from Jane Austin or Alexandre Dumas, and just think “How did they do it?”

It might be a horrible thing for a writer to admit, but I think if I had been living in those times, I wouldn’t have pursued a writing career. I am not a great writer off the top of my head. I can get a great idea and start to write it, but the book just doesn’t become fabulous until it’s been through at least five revisions. So when I think of Jane Austen writing by hand, I wonder how many drafts she had to write before she sent it to the publisher. (I should also mention here, that I have horrible handwriting and I’m not sure if I would have been able to read all of my own work. Sad, but true!)

So first off, kudos to all those authors that used to write with a quill, pen, and even a typewriter. I’m of a spoiled generation where I get to use my computer with spell check, copy and paste, etc. I really don’t think I could make it happen without these wonderful tools at my disposal!

Anyway, that was a really long rant, but while I was thinking about this, it also brought my mind to a fun question: what kind of writer are you? Everyone has a different writing process. Some have to write an outline of their story before they can start. Others just start writing and see where the story is going to take them.

I’m a little more like the latter, with a small exception. While the story isn’t concrete before I begin typing away on the computer, I do like to have detailed bios of my characters before I begin. For me, the characters are the ones who make the story move along the way it does. Sometimes I’ll have an idea of where the plot is going, but once I get there, I just know that my character wouldn’t do X. Therefore, X won’t lead to Y, then Z. Instead my character would do A, which will take the plot to B, and so on. It’s amazing how many times I have changed my story around just because I feel like my character wouldn’t take a certain action. But it always seems to work better than how I had originally thought it, so I stick with this method.

Feel free to leave a comment and tell me what kind of a writer you are. I know one person that draws a picture of each scene before he begins writing a story. I’m crap at drawing, and so could never adopt that one. However, I do like to write diagrams of the setting so I can better describe it. I don’t usually do that until my first revision. I know another author who embodies the word of organization. She will make an outline, draw pictures of the settings she’s planning to use, has notes of research about the settings, and complete character bios before she ever types the first word of her story. That’s probably the method I would have taken if I was living in the eighteen hundreds.

I should note that most authors are very good at doing research, but a lot of them tend to write as they do research or will write the story first, then do research to make sure it’s as realistic as possible.

Anyway, what is your method? I’d love to hear it!

I’m a writer. My debut novel, Dissension, is coming out in February. It’s book one of a trilogy and I haven’t finished book two or three just yet. My publisher has me on a schedule to have each book come out on an annual basis, so the other books will be finished soon enough. But is writing my life? I wish! I would love to be a full time writer and have nothing else on my plate. But I come from a world called reality, and things generally don’t work that way.

I have been blessed with my loving husband and two beautiful children. My husband makes enough that I get to stay home and take care of the kids while he works, so in that regard – I’m very lucky! However, staying home and taking care of young kids who aren’t old enough to go to school does take up quite a bit of my time. I’m also involved in helping out in my community through my church and I am working really hard to lose weight. So the majority of my time goes to my children, I make it a priority to workout Monday through Friday, and once a week I am doing something for my community.

So where do I find the time to write? I make time. My schedule is just one of many examples of writers and their busy lives. For those who don’t have a sugar daddy (just a joke, hubby, I promise!), they have a day job that takes up plenty of their time along with other commitments. But we all have one thing in common: we’re busy, and yet writing is a priority to us so we make time for it. I can’t give specific examples on other writers, but I can tell you little things that I do.

First off, nap time. When my toddler takes her nap, my older son has quiet time in front of a movie and I get some writing done. Sometimes, my son will require me to attend to him here and there, so it’s definitely interrupted, but it’s something. Even if it’s just fifteen minutes a few times a day – it does add up and you will benefit from trying. I also have my kids on a tight sleeping schedule, so they’re in bed by eight o’clock at the latest every night. This gives me at least two hours of work. You have to keep in mind that it’s not just writing that I’m doing. I also need to do quite a bit of social networking, writing content for this very blog, and other things like that. It’s pretty fun to do, but it does take up time, so it must also be factored in.

I spend my time with my online critique group on Saturdays. My husband gets to have special play time with our kids while I send out my work to be critiqued and then critique other people’s work. I also have a critique group that I meet with in person once a month and a writing group that has monthly meetings. So those nights that I am away, I just call my days off from writing. This usually works well, because after going to those monthly meetings, it gives me a lot of ideas and motivation to keep writing.

Of course, I still need to spend some time with my husband. I love him and like having quality time with him, so we always make sure we can spend Saturday and Sunday nights together (after the kids have gone to bed). There are times when I can’t stick to this schedule due to extended family commitments and whatnot, but as long as I stick to this as much as I’m able to, I am productive enough to generally meet my writing commitments.

I’m not saying this kind of a schedule works for everyone. Some people are a lot more busy than I can imagine, and they still find a way to sit down and work on their novels. The point of this blog is not to tell you what to do or how to find time to write. It’s just to simply say that if you want to write, you can make that time to do it. You can be successful in whatever writing goals you may have in mind for yourself. There may be some sacrifice involved – maybe you will have to lose an hour of sleep each night to get your writing in. But you can do it.

So a little funny that I have two blogs in a row that have to do with self publishing since I’m getting published traditionally, but there you have it. The following is by a highly esteemed author friend, Jessica Bradshaw. Enjoy…

At some point every writer has to decide whether or not they wish to become an author. The difference? An author is published. A writer is not. First off, a writer must decide if they are writing for themselves, or to share. Those writing for themselves may never pursue publishing, but those who want to share MUST share…and there are a thousand different ways, from blogging and tweeting to printing books. If, however, the writer wants to make money, the game changes…entirely. A decade or two ago, things were simple…and limited. Today, even though things are a bit more complicated, our options are OPEN. For those of us who want to share our stories with the world – whose sole intent is NOT to make money, our options are limitless. That said, the avenue I originally selected – traditional publishing – ended up a non-option. Not because I’m not competent, or because I lack plot, imagination, and decent characters, or because my query letters suck. It turns out my trilogy is too outside the norm, and therefore is not marketable. Intense, fascinating, and beautifully-written, (according to half a dozen agents and a few editors,) but not marketable. I am not alone in having written an unmarketable manuscript, and I have learned that my manuscript does indeed have a niche…just not one a traditional publisher is willing to persue. Let me be clear: I’m not looking to profit. I just love to write. My first novel cost me six months of my life…just in research. 40 typewritten pages of research, actually, all stored on my hard drive. It also cost me two more YEARS of writing, revising, editing, editing, editing…and the end product is completely different from the beginning. I LOVE to write. I confess, I’m also being selfish: I want my children to grow up seeing their mom’s books on the shelf, knowing that their mother defines herself as someone – authentically Jessica Bradshaw – instead of something: “Mother,” “Wife,” “Homemaker.” Their mother is a real person, creative, intelligent, passionate, eager, imaginative…and capable of more than dishes and laundry. I wanted – NEEDED – to see my book(s) in print. And if traditional publishing wasn’t an option, self-publishing was the avenue I had to pursue. I confess, too, that I had NO IDEA what I was getting myself into. It’s rather like child-bearing: Had I known exactly what I was in for, I’d probably still have done it, but I might have given it a little (or a LOT) more consideration. What does self-publishing really entail? Why is it such a challenge? Allow me to elaborate. You write. You edit. And edit and edit and edit and edit and edit, and find beta readers to slap you with the occasional “THIS BITES” and edit and edit and edit some more until you have a book you can be proud of. Both practice and patience make perfect. But then there’s “ready” for publishing, and “perfected” for publishing. Proof time. With traditional publishing, a typo is their fault. You’re perfect. With self-publishing, a typo is ENTIRELY YOUR FAULT, and EVERYONE KNOWS IT. So you proof and proof and proof, and maybe hire someone to do it so you have a fresh set of eyes on the manuscript you’ve been poring over for years. Once perfected, you choose a self-publisher. Then a binding and size and paper type and color and layout and font type and size. If no template is available, you must create one, and then move your manuscript to it. But when you do that, something will get screwed up. Something always gets screwed up, and you have to perfect it. You’re in charge of title pages, pagination, author notes…even figuring out where to put blank pages, and how many. Then you create a pdf from the template and upload it.

And what about a cover? If you’re writing YA, like me, it needs to be a photo-realistic cover, so you’d better have experience with photoshop (AND images licensed for your use!) or a VERY capable cover artist. (I’ve got one for you, in case you’re interested, and she’s VERY reasonably priced. Check out here site HERE and tell her I sent you.) Covers take time and money, of course, so be prepared…and make sure you have rights to the images used, or you could wind up in court. And while you are working on the cover, you’ll also need back cover text. More likely than not you’re a writer, not a marketer, so plan on that taking a while.

Now, cover done – lord-willing, it meets the specifications of your publisher! – you upload it, wait for your book to process, order (at your expense) a proof copy and…WAIT. When it comes, REVIEW IT. Something will be wrong, you’ll correct it, re-upload your brand new pdf, wait for processing, order another proof, and if the planets are properly aligned, you can release your book for publication and order your own copies…after you “sign” agreements and submit your ssn for tax purposes and set your pricing and choose your distribution lines. And of course, you’ll want one of those distribution lines to be your website. You have a web address, found a host, and paid a web designer, right? (And an author site? Facebook fan page? Twitter account? A professional headshot, writer bio, excerpts, etc?) Now hook up your paypal account to your website so people can buy directly from you…at the price you agreed to in your contracts. Order enough copies to cover people who might buy from your site, because it’s actually YOU selling and shipping them. You’ll also need your book in ebook form. (I highly recommend smashwords for simplicity and ease of distribution.) You have to RE-reformat your manuscript in ebook style, but after two or three hours of major frustration you’ll get it…eventually. Oops! I forgot about press releases, marketing., SEO, a writer blog, RSS feeds, merchandising, arranging your own appearances, signings, and offering your self-published book to major bookstores on commission. Did I say challenging? I meant nearly impossible…unless you’re REALLY motivated. I am. I’m tired, but motivated. Out hundreds of dollars, but thrilled. Oh, and still enjoying my day job: motherhood. Good luck, all, and if ever you consider self-publishing, I’m here with you!

The following review is a guest post from a fellow author named Lauren Elizabeth:

As I am getting ready to self-publish my book soon, I came across the book The Fine Print of Self-Publishing. It was worth every penny and more. Mark Levine is a Lawyer, so he has analyzed publishing contracts telling you what you should watch out for. It’s everything you need to know about the costs, contract, and process of self-publishing, don’t miss this opportunity to get an insight. He reviews the following companies in his book: Arbor Books, AuthorHouse, Aventine Press, BookLocker, BookPros, CreateSpace, Dog Ear Publishing, Dorrance Publishing, iUniverse, Llumina Press, Lulu, Magic Valley Publishing, Outskirts Press, PublishAmerica, Trafford Publishing, Wasteland Press, Xlibris, Wordclay, and more in each new addition. Mark has gone through the companies and placed them into five categories: Outstanding, Pretty Good, Ok, Publishers to Avoid, and the Worst of the Worst. If you’re new to self-publishing, before you even touch your checkbook, buy this book. It was a lifesaver for me.

About a month ago, I began researching different self-publishing companies, unsure about which were actually good or not. Certain companies were doing a 50% off special on their packages but it only lasted for less than a week from when I found out about it. I had to work fast. Spending virtually all my time researching many different companies, reading reviews taking notes, and asking questions. Ten pages of notes later and I still hadn’t found the company which I felt would truly be a good fit for me. That was until I stumbled across the book The Fine Print of Self-Publishing by Mark Levine. The book was an eye opener, as it showed me what I was about to get myself into and instead directed me to a more reliable publisher. Thanks to Levine, I will be spending half as much money and will be confident with my choice. I can take the money I saved and put it into other funds like marketing and getting a nice set of business cards, etc. When publishing, every penny counts and it all adds up. Don’t make the mistake of spending too much.

Deciding which self-publisher to use is a difficult one, don’t just choose one uninformed. Take the time to read this eye-opening book. It only took me a day – it’s not that long but heavily filled with information. It comes in harback or ebook, so if your bookstore doesn’t have it then download it. I think it’s worth every penny!

Lauren Elizabeth is an aspiring young adult author, who writes fantasy/sci-fi fiction. She will begin the process of self-publishing her first novel,Looks of an Angel, a manuscript which takes you out of this world and into a completely different one, Pluto. After Aly (the main character) is taken captive by the Neptwainians (Neptune people) and taken to Neptune, she is put through a series of painful tests, which change her appearance and test her strengths. To learn more about her and this book you can visit her blog.