“Every child is an artist, the problem is staying an artist when you grow up.” – Pablo Picasso
Ever wondered why children are so much more imaginative? The answer is simple. They stress less and their minds aren’t bound by logic. Creativity is essential, and this doesn’t only apply to artists and professionals working in creative industries; creativity boosts problem-solving abilities and improves other vital areas of our lives like health, work and relationships. That’s why it’s important for you to stay creative in your adult years, even if it means doodling in your free time. But it’s getting harder to do so these days, and you’re not the one to blame – it’s the hustle of life. Here’s how you can tap your fountain of inspiration and innovativeness in today’s chaos ridden world.
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Escape it.
No, I’m not asking you to quit your job and run off to Bali. I’m talking about the art of detachment. When you’re in a busy environment, plug in your headphones and play some instrumental music, or what you usually listen to while creating. The next time you’re outside and catch yourself daydreaming, don’t stop. You can use it to develop your ability to detach from chaos when you need to. Go on a run before you get started with your activity; physical exercise gives you a break from the world and refreshes your mind. Find a place where you’re completely disconnected from the outside world. This is where you can get in rhythm. Build a space in your home and use it exclusively for creativity. You can go all out with setting up the ideal ambience. Use whatever you fancy – different kinds of lighting, posters of quotes and people who inspire you, even scented candles! Treat it as your special zone. As time goes by, simply being in this space can make you switch to “creativity mode”.
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Embrace it!
Sometimes, all it takes to change your relationship with the world is altering your perception. Observe the world’s chaos in all its disorderly glory. Look for patterns, themes and connections. Ask “why” and “how”. Find beauty in the chaos; write about it in your notebook. On days when chaos leaves you feeling frustrated or anxious, tune in to the emotions. Let your energy flow and channelize it to create something – it could be as simple as making pasta with your own twist, or something elaborate like writing a movie script. Do what comes to you naturally at that point; creativity is creativity no matter what form it takes! Embracing the world’s chaos to stay creative is a classic example of turning your stumbling blocks into stepping-stones. Try it and you’ll be delighted by how great it makes you feel.
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Takeaway Time
Because creativity is subjective and quite a personal affair, there’s no one-size-fits-all approach. Each solution may work differently on different days. So you need to give yourself ample time to try things out and find what fits you best. Most importantly, remember to have fun with creativity! Connect with your inner child more often, and you’ll soon find that you’re more in touch with your imagination, even in the midst of chaos.
Contributed by Christina Bird for Tangerine Online Reputation Management
As an author, you tend to drown yourself in questions at almost every stage of your career – when you’re wondering if it’s the right path for you; when you realise it’s time for an upgrade; more than ever, when you’re about to start penning down your best-selling book. While it’s natural to sometimes get overwhelmed, know this…it is questions that lead you to your answers.
Here are eleven questions that most frequently cross the minds of budding authors, answered:
How do I know if writing is the right career for me?
Nearly all authors begin their careers with this question. Look for these signs.
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Time flies when you write.
Because you enjoy it to the fullest. Few things lift your spirit up like a lovely session of writing…and it often lasts for hours at a stretch.
Books draw you in.
While this doesn’t necessarily qualify you as a writer, the love for reading is something writers of every kind share.
You’re easily inspired.
There are times when you don’t need much to trigger your imagination. Inspiration hits, words flow out and before you know it, you’re weaving a story!
But you aren’t easily pleased with your writing.
Wanting your writing to be flawless doesn’t merely indicate that writing is the right career for you; it also shows that you have the desire and potential to excel.
You love learning new words.
Looking up new words as soon as you read them comes to you naturally – you absolutely adore new additions to your vocabulary.
People admire your writing.
Professional writers’ success depends on how much their readers understand, love and value their words. If you receive appreciation for your writing, keep at it!
What are the qualifications for being an author?
You can find tons of degrees in writing at graduate and post-graduate levels, as well as formal training programs. While they certainly add value to your CV, none of them qualify you as an author. Writing is an art; there’s simply no one-size-fits-all way to master it. While some authors benefit greatly from a classroom environment, there are scores of others who can write brilliant novels or poetry just sitting under trees! Hundreds of painters, musicians as well as authors have made it to the top without college degrees. Writing is also a skill; at the end of the day, your flair, practice and experience count more than anything else.
Should authors read a lot?
Keep reading, and read passionately – this is what most accomplished authors tell aspiring ones. Read all sorts of books, blogs, magazines and newspapers. Putting yourself in the reader’s place gives your mind a much-needed change of perspective. Reading is best way of picking up new words; you don’t merely come across new words like in a dictionary, but can also learn how to use them cleverly. Exploring the works of other authors lets you build and refine your own. Read them slowly and attentively. Study the author’s strategies, delve into the characters and learn from the plot twists. Grasp the intricacies of the author’s style, observe how they use words in their own distinct way… and when inspiration strikes, write.
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What are the most common mistakes authors make?
Using long sentences
As an author, your language should be as lucid as possible. Long sentences confuse most readers. As much as possible, break them down.
Using words that sound “sophisticated”
It’s counterproductive to use words to sound “advanced”. It comes across as pretentious, unnatural and often reduces clarity. This is especially so when you don’t completely understand their usage.
Telling, not showing
Instead of writing, “Rita was angry”, let her express her fury through dialogue, action or both. It adds drama and makes your stories interesting.
Building shallow characters
For readers to be able to connect with your stories, build characters they can relate to. Your characters should have a personality, a combination of virtues and vices. And it’s always a good idea to reveal parts of their personality as the story progress.
Not doing enough research
As an author, credibility is crucial – even if you write fiction. When your writing is based on a thorough understanding of relevant cultures, characters, places, science and historical events, it’s much more gripping. Make research an indispensable part of your writing process.
How can I improve myself as an author?
We love this one. It’s among the most important questions you could ask in your career. Writing is a skill; there is not aspect of yourself, as a writer, that you cannot improve.
Read
Scroll up to question three.
Spot your spots
Begin with introspection. Every author has strengths and weak spots. What are yours? List them down. Then, pick each weakness and practice, practice, practice! Pick each of your strengths and develop it more. Make sure you focus on one thing at a time. And when it comes to benchmarks, all that matters is how far you’ve come from yesterday.
Find your voice
With a voice of your own, you’re authentic and distinct. While it’s something that writers develop as they grow, it’s a fantastic idea to keep an eye on your tone and style early on. This makes you more in touch with yourself as an author.
Seek Inspiration
Inspiration fuels an author’s mind. It’s what keeps you going in the toughest times of your writing career. With an open mind, figure out what makes you click. And don’t wait for it; seek it everywhere you can – in nature, people, books, movies, on the Internet, in friends, experiences, places, love, science…
Look at it as a job
If you want your writing to work, treat it like work. This means following a routine, grabbing every opportunity to learn more, getting guidance through books and blogs, and becoming more disciplined.
Write
You’ll only keep getting better as you write!
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What process should I follow while writing my book?
Most writers follow the four-step process of developing their ideas, writing their books, revising and finally, editing.
Develop your ideas
This is when you lay down the foundations for your book. Begin by putting down all your thoughts and ideas (without judging). Consider it your personal brainstorm. Next, select your best ideas and flesh them out. Let your imagination run wild. Then, look for connections and narrow your options down to the ones that fit together best.
Write
When you write your first draft, let the words flow naturally. Pick a place that gets you “in the zone”. Reserve the most productive times of your day for writing your book, and write at these times everyday. This helps you build a routine and maintain rhythm.
Revise
Time to be your harshest critic. This stage is where you make major transformations by adding, deleting and rearranging your content. Check, re-check and ponder over anything that catches your attention. When you’re satisfied with how your book looks, go out and ask for opinions.
Edit
It’s best to edit your book yourself, and then by a professional. Carefully eye every detail. You can break sentences down, change their structure, rewrite a whole lot and polish your book up in every way possible. Do at least three rounds of editing before you’re ready for publishing.
P.S: Feel free to print this out.
What should I figure out before I begin writing my novel?
Ask yourself some basic questions:
Why am I writing this book?
What is the main idea?
What is the theme?
What is my tone of voice?
What is my point of view in the story?
Why should my readers appreciate it?
Then, put together your story’s building blocks. Write down:
When and where your story takes place
Sketches of your main characters
Sketches of the supporting characters
Detailed descriptions of your protagonist, antagonist and their goals
The points of conflict
The stakes: The things and people your protagonist considers most precious and risks losing
How the setting influences your characters
It’s common to feel muddled before you begin writing your novel; your thoughts and ideas are raw. Once you write these down, you’ll have a clear idea of your core concept. Rewrite them as many times as you need to, and when you’re confident, begin writing.
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How can I make my characters more interesting and unique?
Characters are crucial. When writing fiction, starting from scratch and building characters who exude personality can be a daunting task. Do this:
Build backgrounds
When they’re from various walks of life, characters naturally take on personalities of their own. Let them hail from unrelated parts of the world, have different pasts, lead contrasting lifestyles, develop opposing world-views and belong to separate social classes.
Motivate your characters
Motivations form the basis for differences. Characters driven by greed act differently from those driven by love. Get into the details; personalities will bloom.
Assign voices
Speech is a wonderful way of creating dissimilarities among characters; assign a unique voice to each of them. Let one be eloquent, soft spoken and polite, and another, harsh and crude. Let their language reflect their intelligence, motivations, backgrounds, weaknesses and virtues. Give them favourite words, expressions or figures of speech. Use slang and dialects. Don’t forget non-verbal cues like body posture, expressions and gestures – they convey personality excellently.
Is it important to have a large vocabulary?
As an author, you need to connect with your readers. Use language they understand best, which often means writing simple sentences made of simple words. Most words can be replaced by easier-to-understand ones that express exactly the same thing. But when it comes to choosing between a word that is plain and another that paints a richer picture and evokes stronger emotions, pick the latter.
With a larger vocabulary, you’ll have much more choice between simple words and words that are simply more apt. You see, authors must build their vocabulary not to throw around lesser-used words, but to be able to narrate their stories more vividly by selecting the best from a vast range of words.
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I am more comfortable with writing in my own mother tongue, which is not English. Can I still become a popular author?
The task of an author is to tell stories in the most clear, compelling and mesmerising manner. You’re likely to do this best in the language you’re most comfortable with. A large number of Indian writers rose to fame with books, songs and poems that they wrote in their own languages.
In today’s world, language is never a barrier when it comes to writing. Plus, there’s a growing market for books in regional languages like Marathi and Bengali. You can stick to your language and later, have your book professionally translated to English. This way, you’ll write better books and be known among a wider audience – both of which increase your chances of becoming popular.
How can I build my brand as an author?
Building your brand as an author takes a lot less as compared to the old days. Network offline as well as online, start a blog and share your work with the world. Talk about it with your friends and post about it on social media. Most importantly, get published!
Contributed by Christina Bird for Tangerine Online Reputation Management
The profession of writing can be exceptionally rewarding. Before delving into its vibrant world, let’s first address the question of what it is to be a writer. While the
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answers vary, writers across the globe would agree that it means finding pure joy in pouring your heart, mind and soul out through words that combine to form something beautiful. Few things make you feel as alive as when bursts of inspiration fuel your creations. Such zeal, combined with skill and self-determination, lays the foundation for a flourishing career in writing.
Writing for a Living in Modern Times
For a writer, India of the 21st century is quite an exciting place to be. More than ever, companies value content that can reach out to people and inform, help, entertain, comfort, motivate, provoke and inspire them. And there are so many forms your writing can take – poems, short stories, essays, scripts, lyrics, one-liners, blogs, web content, taglines, reviews, product descriptions…the list goes on! As a young writer, you’re valued for your fresh perspective on things and your eagerness to experiment. If switching from your current field of study/specialisation to this one sounds like a possible disaster to you, think again – you can use this knowledge to carve your own niche.
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By transforming the way people connect with each other, the Internet has largely transformed the profession of writing. So far, its boom has been a boon. Social networking sites have created new job titles and countless opportunities. Blogging is a realm in itself and it’s one of the most sought after ways to make a living. Digital magazines are all the rage, and writing eBooks is now a viable career. Let’s not forget the thousands of gaming companies seeking writers to bring stories and characters to life.
Meanwhile, print is still alive; publishers are on the look out for new authors and young minds. You don’t have to write a best-selling book or struggle with funds to get published – printing on demand and crowd funding are growing trends.
Another avenue worth exploring is publishing platforms whose concepts revolve around providing a launch pad for authors of various kinds. One such platform is Pblishing. Pblishing carries out the process of publishing your work right from the stages of designing to distributing, and you get a chunk of the earnings. Your part is to pitch your idea to the audience and get 300 people to pre-order the book.
Freelance writing is now a full-fledged profession with a whole bunch of perks, allowing you to write for anyone from any part of the world. While all you need is a computer and an Internet connection, the scope for earning is undeniably endless.
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Making your way to the top, as a writer, requires patience, persistence and hard work…just like in any other job. Nevertheless, when you embark on your journey, know that you’re in for a delightful experience filled with lessons, discoveries and pleasant surprises. Apart from being a hobby for some and a job for others, writing is a way of life; and that’s what sets it apart from most other careers.
When I switched careers to move from Human Resources to writing, I did not yet appreciate how difficult it would be to get published. My relocation at the same time, from India to Africa, did little to help, especially since my books are meant primarily for Indian readers.
I did find an easy way out initially. I self-published my debut novel as an e-book on Amazon. This meant that my book was available for the entire world on their e-readers and I would receive royalties on a monthly basis straight into my account. I was quite delighted and this sufficed for a while.
However, I soon began to realise that a large section of Indian readers are not yet into Kindles and e-readers. They still prefer ordering a paperback online and reading it with the feel of paper between their fingers. Many well-wishers on various occasions assured me that they would love to read my book, but in print!
This meant that I needed to get my book out in paperback form. Publishers today function very differently from the way they did just a few decades ago. Earlier, a publisher would evaluate your manuscript and if he felt it had potential, he would place his bets on you and print a batch of books, getting them out into the market. Today, a publisher puts the onus right back on you.
You want to get published, he asks. Well, just pay us a big sum of money to cover our costs and risks. If your books sell, great! You will eventually earn. If not, the loss is yours. With such half-hearted commitment, they don’t put in the best of their sales and marketing efforts behind your book. After all, they have nothing to lose. They minted money from you right in the beginning and care no longer.
I know of some fellow authors, who went down this route, paying sums ranging from Rs 30,000 to Rs 80,000 as one-time, non-refundable fees. In today’s Indian market, books sells for only about Rs 150-300. Profits were mere dreams, these authors lost money in getting their books to readers. At least, I thought, through Amazon, I earn money on each book without having paid a penny to get my e-book out there. However little, I was seeing pure profits.
My quandary though, wasn’t resolved. I wanted nothing more than to see my book out in print on the bookshelves of India. I wanted to hold and feel my book in my own hands. I found a solution, more than a year later, in crowdfunding.
Pblishing has offered me a contract, where if I get a crowd to fund me, they would bring my books to shelves in India. Essentially, if you believe in me and what I’m doing, you place an order for my book, paying Rs 250 in advance to the publisher and when 250 people do so, they print the first batch of my books! The first set of copies is delivered straight-away to these 250 patrons, who showed their confidence in me and backed me up.
I have 45 days to meet this target and will know at the end of this time period if crowd-funding is going to work for me. But on the face of it, it seems like a win-win for all. The author gets her book published, the reader gets a book they believe in at their doorstep through an online purchase and the publisher gets an assurance that he will recover the costs incurred in print.
Best of all, it is all out there, transparent and for all to see. You can follow my book’s journey on the link below, tracking the number of pre-orders I’ve received so far against my deadline. If I meet the target, you get my book; if not, you get back your money (it is refunded in full to your account).
If yes, place an order for your copy of In Search of Love today. Also, feel free to share this blog with friends and family who may like to help turn a budding author’s dream into reality!
Alone, I am one; but with you, I am many. Let’s see if there’s power in crowds.
Contributed by Piyushi Dhir (Author, In Search of Love)
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