Blogging Basics: How to increase your followers and build your platform (Part 1 of 3)

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I've run these posts before, but they're so important I thought they might be worth a repeat.

My "How to increase your followers" series will involve:

Part 1 - Following blogs and making sure you can be followed
Part 2 - Ways to increase your followers and/or subscribers
Part 3 - Some essential blogging requirements.

And on October 1, I'm being interviewed at Laura Barnes' blog as part of her Saturday Savvy Sensation series, where I'm giving some tips about platform-building. I hope you can all join me there :)

In this post, I'll be focusing on making sure people can follow or subscribe to your blog (and giving you a few tips on ways to increase your followers in this respect). I'll also be giving you ways to follow other peoples' blogs, particularly where there's no “Followers Gadget". I’ll be focusing on Blogger, WordPress, and personal web pages.

Following/Subscribing

To a lot of people, “following” and "subscribing" means pressing the “Follow” button on this gadget:

But it’s a little more than that, so bear with me.

Following or subscribing is basically a way for you to mark the location of a blog and read new blog content as it is posted. Unless there was some way for you to do this, you’d never remember which blogs you visited, or find the blogs you wish to return to again and again. You’d also spend hours physically checking blogs to find out if they’ve posted anything new since your last visit.

Followers Gadget

The Followers Gadget was introduced by Blogger as a means of social networking, and was later merged with Google Friend Connect (I’ll just call it the Followers Gadget here). It’s a pretty handy gadget, because:

1. for followers - by clicking on the “Follow” button, you can be identified as a follower of a particular blog AND automatically subscribe to blog updates through the blog’s feed. See my post about Google Reader, which is a fantastic way to read the feed you’ve subscribed to as quickly and efficiently as possible.
2. for blog owners - you can see which (and how many) other bloggers are interested in your blog and what you have to say. It’s also a means of adding subscribers to your blog feed, which means more people are reading your posts.

If you use a Blogger platform (eg, if your URL is http://yourblogname.blogspot.com), you have the option to add the Followers Gadget (go to “Design”, then “Add a gadget” then scroll down the list until you can select the Followers gadget). I have seen some Blogger users who choose not to add the Followers Gadget, but by far the majority of Blogger blogs do have this.

Many WordPress users (eg, if your URL is http://yourblogname.wordpress.com/) are not able to add a Followers Gadget to their blogs (Wordpress does not allow this). If that is the case, you'll need to include other links/gadgets/buttons on your blog that allow people to subscribe to your feed (I discuss this more below). You can also add Networked Blogs, which operates in a similar way to the Google Friend Connect gadget.

Bloggers who use personal web pages are able to add Google Friend Connect to their sites.

How do I follow a blog that does not have a Follower’s Gadget?

If a blog doesn't have a Follower’s Gadget, there are other ways you can follow/subscribe to that blog so you can read its posts:

(1) subscribe using RSS

click on an RSS button (which often looks like the following). It usually has this orange square symbol and may be very tiny, so you might have to look around for it. In some blogs, the button is not actually labelled “RSS”.

You’ll then be directed to a page similar to this one – click on the correct button depending on which reader you use (“Google” if you use Google Reader)

Some WordPress blogs have both a “RSS – posts” link and a “RSS – comments” link, so click on “RSS – posts”

Many WordPress blogs don’t have the orange square symbol, so look for this instead:

Then click on “entries RSS”

(2) if you have Google Reader, copy the URL of the blog you wish to subscribe to, open your Reader, click on “Add a Subscription” on the top left, and paste the URL. This subscribes you to the blog's feed in the same way as if you subscribed by RSS

(3) subscribe by email (you’ll receive an email every time a new post is posted on the blog you’ve subscribed to, which may not suit some people. However, if you wish to read every post a person publishes, this can be a useful tool)

(4) click on Posts (Atom) at the very bottom of all the posts on the blog’s home page (for Blogger). This will usually take you to the same Feedburner page as clicking on the RSS button

(5) click on the Networked Blogs widget (if you have a Facebook account). It’s fairly similar in operation to Google Friend Connect though with a Facebook interface. It allows you to read the posts from the blogs you've subscribed to, in a similar way to Google Reader.

(6) on some WordPress blogs, when you make a comment you can tick the “subscribe to this site by email” button, which has the same effect as the dot point above this.

And there you have it, a number of different ways you can follow a blog.

Making sure your blog can be followed

If you want to make sure your blog can be followed:

1. add an RSS button or link (essential)
2. add a Followers Gadget (if your blog host supports it. This is the most common way of following in the blogging community among non-Wordpress users)
3. add a Networked Blogs widget (optional)
4. add a "Subscribe by email" gadget (preferable).

And keep an eye out for Part 2 of my Blogging Basics series, which will give you further tips for increasing your followers/subscribers in this respect.

How about you: Do you have any following or subscribing tips, or additional ways to follow/subscribe other than those I’ve listed above?

First Campaigner Challenge Wrap-up (and the Campaigner Notice-Board)

So, um, 352 entries in my First Campaigner Challenge so far. Wow!!! That's such an awesome response - I'm loving seeing you all so keen to join in and challenge yourself, even if the little task I set is outside your comfort zone. And the quality of entries is so high, well done to all of you. I don't know how the judges are going to decide!!!

The Challenge is still open, though the Linky List will close at 11.59pm EDT Friday, so hurry and get your entry in if you haven't yet. You'll be able to "Like" entries for the next week, to give you time to get through some/all of them. If you haven't started going through them yet, think about starting at the bottom of the list, where fewer people have read/commented.

I'll be announcing the winners on Monday, September 19th, so make sure you pop back then :)

And don't forget to come back for the Second Campaigner Challenge on Thursday, 22nd September!!!

Campaigner Notice-Board

Check out these great blogfests, contests, and other announcements:

1. From Sangu at Echoes of a Wayward Mind: I'm having a contest to get to 300 followers and would love it if people stopped by and entered! I will be giving away prizes like critiques and Amazon vouchers. Detail here. 
2. From Nadja Notariani at Nadja Notariani: An Author's Adventures: My first novel, Claiming The Prize, is now available, and for this week, I'm offering a free coupon on my blog page! Stop by here to celebrate with me and grab up a free book!  
3. From Leah at Leah Writes Pretty Fierce: Campaigners can choose to join up in a fun little tag to stretch their writing muscles a little and get to know each other at Leah Writes Pretty Fierce. Campaigners can participate by filling out the "Don't Be a Stranger" tag, participants are listed up at the blog every Friday. Check out the details here.
4. From Clar at clarbojahn: Contest for free signed copy of book give away by commenting on book review post of "Another Bad Dog Book" by Joni Cole. Contest starts September 13th ends September 23rd, winner announced September 24th on my blog. Other contests coming up soon. Stay tuned.
5. From Dafeenah at Finding the Hidden Treasure Within: Inviting all those in my groups (memoir, nonfiction, short story1) to do guest post on every Friday during the entire Campaign challenge. Email me if you're interested in doing a guest post on my blog. My email is dafeenah (at) gmail (dot) com or here’s my contact link. 
6. From K. M. Walton at Some Things I Think: Starting this past Thursday I did a post called “Campaigner Spotlights.” I plan to do one each week of the Campaign. I will spotlight five of my fellow Campaigners from either of the groups I'm in. I put up a photo, a little bit about the blogger and link to their blog - all in an effort to shine the spotlight on some new bloggers.
7. From Juliana at Aspire to be: Mid-October I will be hosting the Warm Fuzzies blogfest. For four weeks we'll celebrate being a writer! Check it out here. 
8. From Ruth Schiffmann at Out on a Limb, Shy Writer Goes Social: In celebration of my daughter launching a brand new book blog, I'm giving away YA & MG books. Check out the details here.
9. From Alex J. Cavanaugh at Alex J. Cavanaugh: The Insecure Writer's Support Group - posts the first Wednesday every month. Connect, encourage, and share with other writers! Check it out here.
10. From Jess Byam at Jest Kept Secret: Jess Byam runs a feature on her blog called "Before They Were Published" (BTWP), where she interviews unpublished authors. If you are interested in being interviewed, please email her at jestkeptsecret at gmail dot com and let her know. Details here.  
11. From Alana Garrigues at writercize: In celebration of my 100th writing exercise post, I'm inviting people to invent a fun pizza name and topping for a chance to win a family meal from a local Los Angeles pizza chain (L.A. area residents) or Starbucks giftcard (out of L.A. - U.S. residents). Contest open through Tuesday, Sept. 13. Check it out here. 
12. From Theresa Milstein at Substitute Teacher's Saga: I'm hosting a contest, where you can win 1 of 4 books. 2 books are signed! Details here.  
13. From Cristina Dos Santos at Once Upon a Time...: To celebrate my 100th post and all the amazing writers I'm meeting through the Campaign, I'm doing a giveaway, writerly style. Enter here to win a copy of "Plot and Structure" by James Scott Bell.  
14. From Melodie at rewrighter: This Friday-Saturday, I'm hosting a Twitter pitch/two-line pitch event with debut YA author Jolene Perry. Leave your pitch in the comments for others to marvel at/critique and by doing so, enter the drawing for a critique by Jolene. Check it out here.  

If you have a blogfest, a contest, or a something-or-other you want me to let people know about, fill out this form and I'll run your announcement in the following Friday's post. Make sure you include all the details please.

Happy Campaigning!!! :)

First Campaigner Challenge

The time has come for my First Campaigner Challenge, woot!!! The Challenge is:

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Write a short story/flash fiction story in 200 words or less, excluding the title. It can be in any format, including a poem. Begin the story with the words, “The door swung open” These four words will be included in the word count.

If you want to give yourself an added challenge (optional), use the same beginning words and end with the words: "the door swung shut." (also included in the word count)

For those who want an even greater challenge, make your story 200 words EXACTLY!

Once you’ve posted your Challenge post on your blog, pop back here and link directly to it in the Linky List below (please make sure you include the direct link to your post, not just the link to your blog!).

Entries in the First Campaigner Challenge will close on Friday, September 9th (at 11.59pm EDT), so make sure you get your post in the Linky List before then if you want to be eligible for a prize! As usual, while everyone is very welcome to take part in this Challenge, only Campaigners will be eligible for prizes.

Thank you so much to all the Campaigners who have volunteered to judge one or more of the Challenges. I'm amazed by your generosity—you all rock!!! In terms of judging,Michael Offutt from SLC Kismet will be in touch about that very soon (and if you don't hear from us this Challenge, it's because we're hoping you'll judge the Second or Third Challenges instead). I'd love you all to take a moment to pop over and follow Michael, to say thanks for all his hard work in co-ordinating the judging.

There will be a stack of prizes awarded this Challenge (and future Challenges), both for the entries that are judged the best and through Random.org. We're talking ARCs, books, critiques, and other items galore! My thanks go to everyone who has volunteered to donate prizes. You're all awesome!!! Either I or someone in my team will be in touch over the course of the Campaign.

I've also set up the Linky List so you can "Like" entries, so make sure you come back here and vote for the People's Choice Awards!!!

I'll hopefully be announcing the winners on Monday, September 19th (the same day as my Campaign Beta Match post).

So, all that remains is to enjoy. Leave a comment to let me know you're doing the Challenge. Have fun writing your post, then pop round to the other entrants, check out their posts, follow and comment, and decide which entry or entries YOU like the best!

And don't forget to add your name and post link to the Linky Link below before 11.59 pm this Friday!

IMPORTANT: DON'T PUT YOUR NAME IN THE LINKY LIST UNTIL YOU'VE WRITTEN YOUR POST - THEN LINK DIRECT TO THAT POST PLEASE (ie, insert the complete URL to your Challenge post, not your blog address/URL)


"Like" voting is now over, please don't vote any more, thanks!

Where to from here? (and the Campaigner Notice-Board)

Now that sign-up is over, the official part of the Campaign has begun, woot!!! First, I want to say a huge welcome to the Campaigners. I can't wait to get to know you over the next two months, and I know you're all looking forward to getting to know each other. I'm sorry I haven't been able to respond individually to/visit each and every one of you, but I've been buried under all the admin and thousands of emails I've received since the Campaign started :(

I'm sure you've been wondering how many Campaigners there are, after that huge list of comments (Is it a record, do you think?). Anyway, I'm pleased to announce that the final number of Campaigners is...wait for it...480!!! Wow. That's 480 people who want to network together and support each other as writers. And that, I think, is amazing!

I didn't make the cut-off/I'm not on the List of Campaigners :(

To all those who didn't quite make the cut-off, I'm so sorry you can't take part this time around. But I'll be holding my next Campaign in February next year, and I'd love to see you all on board then.

If you did fill out my Campaigner Form before 11.59 EDT, then you're still a Campaigner, even if you didn't manage to get your name on the Linky List on time. Send me an email with the name you want on the List, your blog url, your picture, and the Group(s) you want to join, and I'll add you to the List. Please do this quickly though, otherwise you'll miss out when your fellow Group members get to know each other.

First Campaigner Challenge

The First Campaigner Challenge is on Monday, so pop back here then if you want to take part in the fun!

Where to from here?

Where to from here, you ask? I gave you some suggestions in my previous post. Basically, take advantage of all the networking opportunities the Campaign is providing you. You can:

• meet and chat with other Campaigners on Twitter at #writecampaign
• join in the Campaigner Yahoo Group
• visit the Campaigners' blogs
• and above all, get to know the members of your Group(s) and see what fun activities you can come up with together

If you haven't already, now's the time to go around to your fellow Campaigners and meet those in the same Group(s) as you. Make sure you follow and leave a comment and tell them who you are. Some awesome blogging connections have been made this way in the past. Try to visit them as much as possible during the Campaign, and make sure you leave comments as this is one of the key ways Campaigners can show their support.

This post about organizing Google Reader may help.

As you may have seen, I've assigned numbers to each of the Groups in my List of Campaigners. Find your name and double-check which Group(s) you're in, because I have moved some people around to make the Group sizes more even. I have to make a few more tweaks to the Groups over the weekend and add those people who were late putting their name down on a list (so make sure you check back next week), but basically these are the Groups you'll be in for the rest of the Campaign.

Campaigner Notice-Board

Check out these great blogfests, contests, and other announcements:

1. Cynthia at Random Thoughts: Synopsis/ Query critque posted on Mondays. I'll comment and everyone else can add help in the comments as well. The side link on my page shows how to submitt  Also I'm hosting a Labor Day blog fest. It's planned to run on September 6th.
2. Gwen Gardner at Run Gwen, Run! Write Gwen, Write!: Lady Gwen is celebrating her first blogoversary with a Judge and Jury Blogfest beginning On September 5th through September 10th - the first 12 to sign up will be the PAID jury. Be prepared to defend yourself with a scene of less than 300 words, and if you're accused of having the best scene, you win! PLEASE JOIN FOR LOTS OF FUN AND PRIZES!  
3. Kristy Tate at Kristys Stories: "August 29th- 30th I'll be hosting a contest and two novels, Angela Morrison's TAKEN BY STORM and my own debut novel, STEALING MERCY are up for grabs. Keep posted, because in September I'll be running Kristy's Incredibly Kindle Kontest and one lucky winner will take home a Kindle e-reader.
4. J. Gunnar Grey at Sweet Saturday Samples: Sweet Saturday Samples is a sort of weekly mini blog hop, where writers post a brief excerpt from a published masterpiece or work in progress, including the genre and a movie-style rating for both the excerpt and the novel. On Saturdays, readers (and writers) hop from blog to blog in search of new-to-them books and writers. All genres are welcome, including erotica. The book doesn't have to be sweet, just the excerpt. Check it out here.
5. L'Aussie at L'Aussie Writing: Romantic Friday Writers: participate in a fun weekly blogfest where members write 400 words of flash fiction to a different theme each week. Stories must have an element of romance. @RFWer (twitter homepage) #RomanticFridayWriters (twitter hashtag). It's open to all writers of romance. You can showcase your WIPs and ask for whatever level of critique you want. Francine (from Romancing the Blog) and L'Aussie choose a Featured Writer each week. Check out our dedicated website for all the info you need.
6. Sarah P. at The Restless Writer: Chance to win a $12 Amazon giftcard for tweeting to @NaiaUnderwood or commenting on her FB page the answer to this question: "What would you do if you came face to face with an alternate version of yourself?" Winner will be announced on Sept. 5, 2011. Check it out here. 
7. Enid Wilson at Steamy Fantasy is hosting a drabble challenge in Sept for fellow campaigners. Send her a drabble of no more than 200 words with the word "love", "constant", "savage", "prejudice" or "impression" in it and your blog detail. She will post your entries and blogs in the corresponding Friday.  
8. Michele Helene at A Wanderer in Paris: Each Monday I will be running a series of interviews with fellow MG/YA campaigners called: Getting to know you. So if you would like to find out a bit more about the other writer's, pop along each Monday until the 31st Oct. The first week's interview is already up.  
9. Lisa L. Regan at Lisa L. Regan: I am running a Hook for Your Book Contest for the following genres on the following dates: Fantasy October 10th through October 17th, Romance December 12th through December 19th, Historical Fiction February 13-20, 2012. The contests will be judged by my agent, Jeanie Pantelakis of Sullivan Maxx Literary Agency. Entrants must follow my blog, tweet or blog about the contest, have a finished novel in the applicable genre, post their 50 word pitch with email address into the comments section of my blog after the contest commences. Three finalists will be chosen to send synopsis and full manuscript to Jeanie. She will choose one of those three to give a full read and possible contract with Sullivan Maxx. See my blog post on Contest dates.
10. Elizabeth Briggs at Liz Writes: To celebrate 500 followers I'm having a huge giveaway, with 2 prize packs (1 YA paranormal, 1 adult urban fantasy)! Ends September 12. Check it out here. 
11. Susan Kaye Quinn at Susan Kaye Quinn: Summer Breeze, an anthology to support breast cancer research, will be available until September 30th! It's a collection of sweet romance stories by a group of Omnific Authors (including myself).  Buy it here. 
12. Michelle at Oh! For the LOVE of BOOKS is looking for people who want to be part of a book hop. Its from Sept 26 to Sept 30 and you donate or give whatever you want! Email her at mf060784 at gmail dot com
13. Jessica Aspen at Jessica Aspen Writes: I’m running a round robin story on my blog on Thursday,
14. September 1st. Check it out here if anyone wants to jump in! 
15. GlitterLady at Glitterword: #tuesdaytales is a 100 word flash fiction contest held well, every Tuesday! New judge every week great way to prompt your writerly prowess and earn a blog badge while you're at it! Join the fun!
16. Doreen McGettigan at They say Everyone Has a Story: On my quest to reach 1000 followers; I have a contest running from now until the release of "BRISTOL bOYZ STOMP" see website for easy details and great prizes...(secret clue...follow the book trailer link to 'you tube' and leave a comment)  
17. Rebekah Loper at Black & Dark Night: A trivia contest is happening today for $10 (USD) in Amazon.com gift cards! Deadline is Sunday to submit answers (specifically, 48 hours from the time of post). Must subscribe to be able to win, and read the blog for all the details! 
18. Damyanti at Amlokiblogs: J.C. Martin, Lisa Vooght, Stuart Nager and Damyanti are organizing a month-long blogfest for fiction writers. Sign up for some great prizes, and for the unique experience of writing a short story with a lot of writers in a shared world, following the fictional Rule of Three.  
19. Ruth Hartman Berge at Ruth The Writer: I'm looking for entries in a "Just Who Was This Jones Guy Anyway?" contest. We're having fun with Jones Creek in Jupiter, Florida - no one knows who Jones really is. Runs through 9/07/11. Check it out here. 
20. A.J. Mullarky at Magpie & Pen: I'm hosting a Hidden Gems Blogfest over on my blog. If you've read a book that you thought was fantastic but seems to be unknown/underrated by other readers, talk it up on your blog and see what other people are recommending! Check it out here.
21. Elizabeth Varadan at Elizabeth Varadan aka Mrs. Seraphina: My MG fantasy, The Fourth Wish, is out on Kindle. I'm holding a contest.for a free copy -- winner's choice, either paperback or Kindle version. Check out the rules on my blog. Contest ends Friday, September 9th.
22. Jennifer Hoffine at YA Audiobook Addict: Friday will be my monthly, How Many Have You Read/Heard Contest where I list the YA audiobooks I listened to that month, and those who comment will get an entry for every one they've read. Prizes will be five Oct pub date ARCs, including FROST, by Wendy Delsol and THE SCORPIO RACES by Maggie Stiefwater.
23. Aimee at A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Woman: In 2001 The United Nations unanimously adopted 21 September as International Peace Day. I am hosting a blogfest the week of Peace Day to help spread the word and promote peace. 
24. Meradeth Houston at Write Stuff: The YA & MG authors at the ebook house MuseItUp are holding a giant blogfest throughout the month of September. There will be lots of fun books showcased, including giveaways, contests, and all kinds of fun! The schedule of all the interviews can be found here.
25. Sarah Ketley at The Precocious Scribe (new Wordpress address): Published authors in the #writecampaign can sign up to the linky with a link to where i can buy their book. During the camapign i will buy as many as i can. I will probably do a little promotion for them and leave reviews.

If you have a blogfest, a contest, or a something-or-other you want me to let people know about, fill out this form and I'll run your announcement in the following Friday's post. Make sure you include all the details please.

I think that's it for now. Happy Campaigning everyone!!! :)

And so the Campaign begins!!! (plus the Campaigner Notice-Board)

All I can say is wow!!! What a fantastic response we've had from so many awesome people. The internet has been buzzing and I'm overwhelmed by everyone's interest and enthusiasm in my Third Campaign. To all Campaigners, welcome! I'm so glad to have you on board, and I can't wait to get to know you all as the Campaign progresses.

Can I still join?

Yes. The list is open until August 31st, 11.59pm (EDT). Just go to my original Campaign post and follow the directions.

Where to from here?

The Campaign has begun, so once you've added yourself to one (or more) Linky Lists on my List of Campaigners page, feel free to dive right in. Please note, however, that the Campaigner Groups are not yet finalized, and it's possible I'll have to move some people around depending on numbers in Groups. I'll be doing my best to finalize the Groups by next Friday (after the List of Campaigners closes on Wednesday).

I gave some suggestions in my original post for the type of things you can do now. Basically, I've asked that you follow the Campaigners in your Campaigner Group, but after that everything else is voluntary.

You can connect on Twitter at #writecampaign, in our Yahoo Group, on Campaigners' blogs, on Google Plus (Sarah Ketley has started a Campaigner lists here), or anywhere else you can think of. You could also see what you can come up with in your Groups - I know some people are already starting to interview their fellow Group members.

For those of you who are planning to follow heaps of people, this post about organizing Google Reader might come in handy :)

My first Campaigner Challenge will be on Monday, September 5th, so make sure you come back here for that if you want to take part. I rather think it will be massive!!!

A few people asked me about this, so I thought I'd better clarify. Outside of the events I'll be organizing, it's all up to you. This Campaign is all about giving you guys the opportunity and means (and a bit of encouragement) to network with your fellow writers. I cannot, unfortunately, do the networking for you. Basically, you'll get out of the Campaign what you put in (if you just put your name down in a Linky List and don't now go out there and meet other Campaigners, you won't get the full Campaign experience). So I hope you have fun with your networking and make heaps of great connections with all the awesome writers out there! :)

Beta Match for Campaigners

In the past I've done a beta match on Rach Writes, to help everyone find critique partners and beta readers. I'll be doing one during the Campaign, on Monday, September 19th. So mark that in your calendars and come back then if you're looking for somebody to help out with your writing. (You don't need to have a completed WIP to put your name down, as CPs help during the writing process as well).

Campaigner Notice-Board

Check out these great blogfests, contests, and other announcements:

1. From Christine Tyler at The Writer Coaster - Come join the Sparkfest and let us know what book or author inspired you to write. Give a little back, make some blogger friends, and be entered to win an Amazon gift card!  The Sparkfest runs from August 22-26th. Late entrants are welcome. 
2. During my last Campaign, Kerri Cuev at Craft Junkie organized a Choose Your Own Adventure bloghop for the Group 9 Campaigners. She would like to organize another one this Campaign and is calling for anyone who'd like to be involved. Participants would write their own "part" of the adventure, and then post them in a bloghop for others to read. Check out the details here.
3. From K. M. Walton at Some Things I Think - I need daily votes for the Philly MVB (most valuable blog) award - now through September 9th. Click here for details. Thank you, thank you, thank you for your help!!  
4. From Heather McCorkle at Heather's Oddysey - To celebrate the release of my debut novel, The Secret of Spruce Knoll, I'm doing a Tour Of Secrets where you can learn all about me and my novel. There are great prizes to be won! Check out the details here.
5. From Kelda at Kelda Crich - My blog for horror and dark fantasy short stories is here. This is a new site under my new pen name. Some of you might know me as Deborah Walker.
6. From Rebecca Ryals Russell at Under the Hat - MG/YA Author September Blogathon/Giveaways. Discover new authors and win prizes throughout September. Looking for blogs to promote MG book, Zarena, and YA book releasing Sept, Prophecy.
7. From Deana Barnhart at Deana Barnhart Writing and Publishing Simplified - Everyone in their writing journey experiences firsts. I spotlight that each Friday by interviewing debut authors, new agents, editors, fresh platform builders as well as pick the brains of some old hands in the business and take them back to some of their firsts as a way to inspire us newbies to be better and always strive for greater things. This meme is called Firsts Fridays.
8. From Kimberly Zook at Zook Book Nook - Hooked on Hooks? Get the first 1 - 5 sentences of your WIP ready for the first weekend in October! Starting on Friday Sept. 30th you can post a link to your blog through the Hooked on Hooks linky that will be available on my blog, Zook Book Nook. From Sept. 30th to Oct. 2nd you can link up to have your Hook reviewed by fellow campaigners. The only requirement is to stop by at least three other campaigners blogs to give them comments about their hooks. The WIP may be any piece of writing (short story, essay, fiction, YA, chic lit, fantasy, article, blog post, etc) that you are currently working on.F
9. From Susanna Hill at Susanna Leonard Hill  KidLit Writers: I run a weekly feature on my blog on Wednesdays called Would you Read It. Check out the details here. Participants can enter their working title (if they have one), the genre they're writing (Picture Book, Early Reader, Chapter Book, MG, or YA - this is for children's books only) and their one sentence pitch and then get valuable feedback from objective sources who are knowledgeable about children's books (parents, teachers, librarians, and other writers.) One pitch is posted each week. At the end of the month, readers vote on which pitch they thought was best and that pitch is evaluated by an experienced freelance editor! (one who has worked for Little Simon and Scholastic!) If you win the editor evaluation, not only will you get great advice from her, she might even ask to see your partial or complete ms!  Even if you don't have a pitch to submit, please consider stopping by on Wednesdays and lending your expertise to those brave enough to post their pitch! 
10. From Angela Yuriko Smith at Dandilyon Fluff  Sept 2nd - Live Goodreads Q&A session with author Angela Yuriko Smith on her new release No Money Marketing: All You Need Is Like. Learn how to sell your book without going broke! Check out the details here. 
11. From Christa Desir at Christa Writes "Christa Talks to The Teen"-- My teen beta reader answers questions from adult writers. Friday, August 26. www.christadesir.com
12. From Lorelei Bell at Lorelei - I'm having a birthday bash, and a contest. Winner gets an autographed copy of my novel, Vampire Ascending. Easy to enter, just leave a comment, your name and contact info. Details, and how to win can be viewed on August 27th, at my blog Lorelei's Muse Contest will runc until September 1st" http://loreleismuse-lorelei.blogspot.com/
13. From T.B. McKenzie at Magickless My first book is coming out this Christmas. The Dragon and the Crow, published by Dragonfall Press in Australia. http://www.dragonfallpress.com/F
14. From Shelley Koon at Shelley Koon - Dark Writes Contest to name my Monday feature showcasing blogs pertaining to writing (writers, agents, book reviewers and so on). Can submit up to three entries - winner, picked by me, will receive a $25 gift certificate to the online book seller of their choice. Check it out here.
15. From Ellen Goodlett at Word Thief  Win a SIGNED advance-read copy of Maggie Stiefvater's The Scorpio Races, coming October 18th. All you have to do is comment on this entry post!
16. From Marcia Richards at Marcia Richards' Blog - Author interviews at Marcia Richards' Blog: L isa Rivero 8/31, Jody Hedlund 9/7, Kim Wright 9/15. Please join us!

If you have a blogfest, a contest, or a something-or-other you want me to let people know about, fill out this form and I'll run your announcement in the following Friday's post. Make sure you include all the details please.

I think that's it for now. Happy Campaigning everyone!!! :)

Third Writers' Platform-Building Campaign

There are so many of us out there. Aspiring authors, bloggers (whether established or beginning), industry peeps, even published authors, all of whom want to build their online platforms. We write insightful posts and articles, actively blog within the blogosphere, take part in challenges, competitions, and contests galore.

We have the passion and the drive to make it, but…we could all do with a bit of support.

So I started thinking. What if we link all these people together? What if we create a way to meet people in a similar position, people who genuinely want to help build our online platform while at the same time building theirs? People who want to pay it forward in the spirit of writerly writerness and blogging beautificity (and see it come back to them in turn).

And so, my Writers’ Platform-Building Campaign was born.

What is the Campaign?

Basically, the Campaign is a way to link those of us in the writing community together with the aim of helping to build our online platforms. The Campaigners are all bloggers in a similar position, who genuinely want to pay it forward, make connections and friends within the writing community, and help build each others' online platforms while at the same time building theirs.

I originally referred to my Writers' Platform-Building Campaigns as "Crusades", but I've recently changed that name for reasons including this one. So we'll be referring to ourselves as Campaigners rather than Crusaders from now on (and I hope you can all get behind the new name as strongly as you did behind the original one).

In 2010 we had 55 people take part, many of whom have become great blogging friends. We saw our followers skyrocket and the comments on our posts increase, and had fun taking part in the Challenges as well (kartofflepuffer anyone???).

In February 2011, we had 217 people take part before I closed the List, and many more who wanted to join. I made so many wonderful friends, and heard of some awesome connections and friendships being made between other writers. The new Group concept worked very well, and we saw Group interviews, get-to-know-you sessions, a Choose Your Own Adventure bloghop, among other things. The Challenges were again heaps of fun - I think we'll all remember the goldfish bowl flash fiction for a long time! And the Show Not Tell Challenge in April (linked with Arlee Bird's A-Z Challenge) was a ball of fun too!

I can't wait to see what fun comes out of this Third Campaign!

As the Campaign kicks off, you'll have the names and blog addresses of the Campaigners on my List of Campaigners page (above), so you can keep in touch with the other Campaigners. That way you’ll have a list of bloggers in the same position as you, who genuinely want to help you succeed. And you'll be able to meet those who have the most in common with you. You can visit their blogs and other places they haunt, follow along, leave comments galore, and share your highs and lows as you journey through the blogosphere and build your online platform. And they'll be doing the same for you.

Length of the Campaign

This Campaign will run from August 22nd to October 31st. I'll be closing the List of Campaigners on August 31st, so join up before then if you want to come on board!

Organized Campaign Events

During the Campaign, I'll be running Campaigner Challenges and the Campaigner Notice-Board. Other than that, go for your life! I've set up a Campaigner Yahoo Group here, for you to chat among yourselves, and there'll be lots of Twitter-talk at #writecampaign.

Mark these dates in your diary now:

1. First Campaigner Challenge - Monday, September 5
2. Second Campaigner Challenge - Thursday, September 22
3. Third Campaigner Challenge - Monday, October 17

Each Friday I'll be running a Campaigner Notice-Board, where you can announce blogfests, book launches, things you'd like to share with your other Campaigners, etc etc. You'll need to send me the information in advance, and I've made up a form to make things easier. If you want me to include your details in this Friday's post (August 26), please fill out this form.

How to join?

If you’d like to join the Third Campaign, here’s what you’ll need to do:

1. follow me if you haven't already, so you can check out the Campaigner Notice-Board on Fridays and take part in Campaigner Challenges 
2. comment on this post, to let the other Campaigners know you’ll be coming on board
3. blog about the Campaign to help spread the word (include a link to this post and encourage your followers to join)
4. tweet about the Campaign if you're on Twitter, and include a link to this post. Follow me here if you wish
5. pop a link to this post on Facebook (if you’re a Facebook fan) and/or on Google Plus if that's your favorite haunt. Or anywhere else you hang out, it's up to you. My links to Facebook, Google Plus, and LinkedIn are on my sidebar if you want to find me there
6. and fill out this form.

Thanks to JYS at A Writerly Pensheep
for designing this - you're awesome!

Once you’ve joined the Campaign:

1. Go to my List of Campaigners page and put your name down for a Campaigner Group (or more than one if you want to get to know more people)  
2. pop round and introduce yourself to all the Campaigners in your Campaigner Group. If you wish, pop round to some or all of the other Campaigners and introduce yourself as well
3. follow the Campaigners in your Campaigner Group(s) (and others if you wish). Due to the size of the Campaign, there's no need to follow all Campaigners!!!
4. put this Campaign badge on your sidebar and link it back to my Writers' Platform-Building Campaign page. Don't forget to take down the old "I'm a Crusader" Badge
5. keep an eye out for posts/comments/tweets by other Campaigners (and particularly those in your Campaigner Group) and do your best to comment on as many as you can, as often as you can. Also consider following your fellow Campaigners on Twitter and liking them on Facebook, mentioning their blog posts and re-tweeting their tweets, and otherwise supporting them
6. get to know your fellow Campaigners at #writecampaign and/or at the Campaigner Yahoo Group
7. see what fun you can come up with in your Campaigner Groups
8. join in my Campaigner Challenges if you wish. They're a great way to get to know the other Campaigners and have fun at the same time.

I can't wait to have you on board!

Third Writers' Platform-Building Campaign - Campaigner Form

Third Writers' Platform-Building Campaign - Campaigner Notice-Board Form

What's involved in being a Campaigner?

For those of you who haven't taken part in a Campaign (previously called "Crusades") before, I thought I would write a post letting you know what to expect before my Third Campaign kicks off on August 22nd.

In a nutshell, my Writers' Platform-Building Campaign is a way for you to meet your fellow bloggers and get to know them better, while at the same time getting support in your blogging. It's also a way for you to increase your followers (though please don't join just for that, this is about networking and platform-building rather than increasing follower numbers). 

The Campaigners are people who genuinely want to meet others, pay it forward, and make connections with other bloggers. This therefore gives you a pool of bloggers (some starting out, some established) who you know are in the same position. You can make friends, find critique partners, get support in your writing etc etc - basically, it's up to you. For those bloggers who are just starting out (and even those who've been blogging for a while), the Campaign gives you a head start in finding other like-minded bloggers to connect with.

Campaigners will join Groups based on genres (and a few other fun things), and there will be Campaigner Challenges for everyone to take part in as well. And there'll be a badge (with a new design, woot!) to put up on your blog as well.

If you want to become a Campaigner:

Keep an eye out for my post on Monday August 22nd and follow the directions. Remember to join between August 22nd and August 31st, because I'll be closing the List of Campaigners on August 31st so Campaigners can get to know each other better.

Once you are a Campaigner:

• follow other Campaigner in your Group(s), pop round to their blogs, and introduce yourself
• if you wish, pop round to some or all of the other Campaigners and introduce yourself as well
• join in on the Twitter chat at #amcampaigning
• join in on the Yahoo Campaigner Group
• keep an eye out for the Campaigner Notice-Board on Fridays, where I'll post about blogfests and other announcements concerning Campaigners
• put the Campaigner button on your blog sidebar and link it back to my Writers' Platform-Building Campaign page at the top of Rach Writes...
• keep an eye out for posts by other Campaigners in your Campaign Group, and do your best to comment on as many as you can, as often as you can. This is one of the key ways Campaigners will help each other out and pay it forward
• join in the Campaigner Challenges if you wish. It's a great way to get to know the other Crusaders and have fun at the same time, and there'll be prizes too!

Can't wait to see you all in the Third Campaign!!!

Only three weeks until my Third Writers' Platform-Building Campaign!!!

I can't believe how fast this year has raced by. Which means in *checks calendar* three weeks exactly, my Third Writers' Platform-Building Campaign* will begin.

If you haven't heard about my Campaigns (formerly called "Crusades"), pop over here and check them out. Basically, I run them twice a year, and they're a great way to network with and get to know writers in the community, including those who write in your particular genre.

My Campaigns are open to all writers, whether published or unpublished, adult or kidlit. At the start of the Campaign, you'll signing up for Campaigner Groups via Linky Links. The groups are based on the genre(s) you write, and this lets you develop connections with those you have the most in common with.

I'll be encouraging you to follow those Campaigners in your own Group(s) (NOT all Campaigners as was the case last time, as the numbers have simply grown too big).

The Third Campaign will begin on Monday 22nd August (the week after WriteOnCon for all those kidlit writers), and will run until October 31st. I'll be closing the List of Campaigners on August 31st, so only those who join between the 22nd and the 31st will be able to become Campaigners - this will let you get to know the people in your Groups better.

I'll be running some Campaigner Challeges during my Third Campaign, which should be heaps of fun. And there'll be the chance to win prizes as well!

If you haven't taken part before, next Monday I'll tell you all about what you can expect if you sign up for the Campaign. If you're keen to know right now, here's the post I wrote about it for the last Campaign (though remember the part about following all Campaigners no longer applies).

I'm so excited about this - can't wait to see you all on board.



* If you missed my announcement about the name change, see here.

Regarding the name (an important announcement to all Crusaders (both past and future))

While I don't normally become involved in political issues, the recent massacre in Norway has caused me to reconsider the name of my Writers' Platform-Building Crusade. While I fully stand behind the intention and aims of my Crusade (which are to provide an ongoing networking opportunity for all writers), and while I still intend to run my next Crusade in August as planned, I would hate to think that, by using the word "Crusade," I'm in any way being seen to support the actions of someone with such a radical and despicable viewpoint. Or anyone else who uses that word in a negative way.

In light of this, and out of respect for the people who've so recently lost their lives, I'm planning to "rebrand" my Crusade - and change it to the Writers' Platform-Building Campaign. I'll be taking down my "I'm a Crusader" badge, and replacing it with a new badge, which I'll unveil when my newest Campaign begins on 22 August. I'll no longer be referring to you as Crusaders - I rather think Campaigners has a nice ring to it! Or do you have any other suggestions for an alternative name for us?

I must say, it makes me really sad as a writer to feel I have to question if a word is used because of negative connotations associated with it. But in this case, I believe it's necessary.

ETA: I'm not by any means saying I now believe the word "Crusade" can't be used in a positive way. Nor am I trying to impose a taboo on the word or responding to others who may be trying to make the word taboo. I'm simply saying that, for me and in this instance, I've made the decision to change the name.

How about you: Would you change the name if you were in my position? Have you ever had to use a different word/change a word because of its negative connotations?

Do you use the Writer's Knowledge Base?

Do all of you know about the awesome Writer's Knowledge Base that Elizabeth Spann Craig has put together? In her words, the WKB is "a free resource for writers to find the information they need for their particular stage of the writing journey…with 9000 links to search (and more added every day.)"

Jami Gold recently interviewed Elizabeth here, and it's fascinating to read about the process Elizabeth went through to (1) realize that we as writers need a dedicated knowledge base, and (2) put one together. For free, and in her own time too!!! As she says:

"[W]riters need different information at different times.  When they’re writing a first draft, they need plotting help.  When writers hit a wall, they want inspirational posts. When they revise, they’d like editing tips.  When they’re querying…well, you get the idea.

These writing links needed to be searchable.  It was crazy for writers to have a thousand bookmarked sites—and bookmarks for information that they don’t currently even need."

I don't know about you, but just as Elizabeth says in that interview, I've collected hundreds of bookmarked posts. So I was pretty chuffed (do you use that word in the US?) to find this amazing resource, and I thought I would share it with you. Happy researching!

How about you: Do you know about the Writer's Knowledge Base? Do you use it? Are there any other writing resources you know of/use regularly that you'd like to share with us all?

I'm being interviewed...

I'm braving Cally Jackson's hot seat today, so pop over and wish me luck. Anybody have a fire extinguisher?

Also, did you read my interviews on platform-building over at Deana Barnhart's blog recently? Make sure you check out Part 1 and Part 2.

Conquering writer's block (one paragraph at a time and with an Arthur Boyd painting as inspiration)

I hit a wall in my revisions the week before last. Hard. Critiques I'd received suggested I needed to rewrite a large part of my manuscript AND completely re-characterize one my MCs. A slight blow, when I was hoping to start querying this month (well, a huge blow actually!).

Anyway, once I got over that and accepted this was what I needed to do, I sat down and opened a new document. But. Try as I might, I couldn't make the words come. I sat and stared at my computer screen, tried plotting the new Part, downloaded Scrivener (and procrastinated while I learnt how to use it), drank too much tea, started wasting my time on YouTube, ate too much chocolate, anything except writing really.

I suspect many of you have been in that situation yourself. Not a nice place to be, especially when you've a deadline breathing down your neck, even if it's only a self-imposed one like mine.

(Painting by Arthur Boyd hanging at Parliament House, Canberra )

I did (mildly) stress for a while, but a couple of days later I got over my writers' block, all because of three things that happened in the same day:

1. I took a break from my writing (a proper full-day break, not just an hour away from the screen);
2. I took my relatives sightseeing in my city and saw a painting I fell in love with (Actually, I decided it would provide the color scheme for my dream house, and I spent a lot of time planning how I could buy a large print of the painting, and use this, this, and this color in the living room, this in the kitchen, etc etc); 
3. I started thinking about my beginning scene of the Part in a new way. 

I'd been stuck on the big-picture issues, you see, and had so many different things running in my head I couldn't find any space just to start writing. Plus I was stressing about how big the task was, how I'd never get it finished, what if it was as "bad" as the first attempt, etc etc.

Finally, after my day of inspiration (that same night, actually!), I managed to shove my negative and stressful thoughts aside and think only about the first sentence and the first paragraph. Where were my main characters? What were they doing? How could I ground my reader in the scene before I even dived into dialogue/action/etc. Those were the questions I asked myself. And I told myself just to sit down and write one paragraph to describe and set up the scene. Just one paragraph.

Before I knew it, my words were flowing again, and I couldn't wait to dive into my re-write. Using Scrivener, which I've fallen in love with as well by the way (I might do a separate post on that one day, to share my thoughts) :D

And I breathed a huge sigh of relief.

How about you: Do you get writer's block very often? How do you get yourself out of it? Do you find looking at a scene a different way helps you to write it? What do you think about basing the color-scheme of your house on a painting? :D

Stories for Sendai - Guest Post by J.C. Martin

Today I'm hosting J.C. Martin of J.C. Martin, Fighter, Writer. As you may know, during the Japan Disaster a couple of friends and I organized and ran Write Hope, an online charity auction of all things kidlit. At the same time, J.C. came up with the wonderful idea of putting together an anthology of stories, with the intention of selling these and raising money for the people of Japan. She's been hard at work ever since on STORIES FOR SENDAI.

In her words,

Stories for Sendai is a collection of 20 uplifting and inspirational short stories and poems about the strength of the human spirit. All proceeds from sales will be donated to charity in aid of victims of the Japan earthquake and tsunami.

Take it away J.C.

***

Thank you, Rach, for hosting today’s leg of the blog tour!

Seeing as Stories for Sendai is a charity anthology dedicated to the brave people of Japan, I thought I’d write a post about one of the country’s most popular forms of literature: the haiku.

In its original form, the Japanese haiku, despite its apparent simplicity, has to contain several elements: apart from the syllabic content that we are familiar with, a Japanese haiku should also contain:

• A season word intrinsically associated with a certain season, that will immediately give the reader a sense of time and place.

• An ‘aha’ moment, when the haiku invokes a sudden and profound realisation in the reader.

• A sense of connectedness to nature. Haikus are naturalistic poems that connect the reader to the natural world. Any poems in the haiku form that does not refer to nature are called senryus.

• A sense of sabi, or solitude.

A contemporary haiku in English does not strictly follow any of these rules. In fact, some English haikus do not even conform to the traditional 5-7-5 syllable rule. A total of 13-17 syllables is generally accepted.

Now I’m no poet, but here’s a haiku I attempted:

Stories for Sendai,
Only seven ninety-nine,
Buy and help Japan!

Do you write haikus? Feel free to share your favourites!

And don’t forget, Stories for Sendai is on sale now at these links:

Amazon US:

Amazon US (Kindle):

Amazon UK (Kindle):

CreateSpace eStore:

And send a copy of your receipt to storiesforsendai (at) ymail (dot) com, and you’ll be entered in a draw to win cool prizes, like gift vouchers, books, and critiques! One entry per purchase, ends July 15th!

***

Thanks for the intriguing info on haikus J.C. I didn't actually know any of that (beyond the syllable requirement)! Everyone, don't forget to buy your copy of Stories for Sendai to help support the people of Japan. And it would make a great gift as well!

Finding your writing niche

(Source)

Finding my writing niche has been an important step in my writing journey, and it’s taken me a number of years and “drawered” manuscripts to do so. Important, because I’ve found I need a niche of my own to focus on and learn all its intricacies, in order for me to become a better writer.

It may change in the future, of course, but for the moment I can’t imagine writing anything other than Young Adult fiction. It feels funny to reason out and explain something I just know instinctively to be the case. But I thought I would give it a go.

I love writing in the teen voice, which is a very different way of viewing the world. I have more success creating 3D characters who are teens rather than adults. In addition, my writing voice (see here for my post on writing voice vs character voice) comes naturally in first person – for me, third person comes out wrong when I write it, too stilted and with no feeling. Nathan Bransford has just written a post on first vs third person if you want to check it out here. And (except when my verbosity gets the better of me) I have a “short and sharp” sentence style, according to my CPs. Both of which lend themselves to YA.

In terms of genre, Horror works best for me. I love to delve into the inner workings of the mind and of human nature, and because of that my stories tend to come out “darker” than usual. I also love writing paranormal elements, the scarier the better. Light and fluffy my fiction ain’t.

Thus, YA Horror.

How about you: Do you think it’s important to have a writing niche? Have you found yours or are you still experimenting? Do you cross over into different genres, and between adult/children’s fiction? Do you think your writing niche will change in the future, and if so, what might make it change?

Are you a tortoise or a hare in your writing (or a strange hybrid of both)?

(Source)

I've realized lately that I may be a hybrid of a tortoise and a hare when it comes to my writing. I'm not sure what it should be called though: a hortoise? a tortare? (though they both have a certain ring to them, *grins*).

Anyway, before I get distracted with names, and thoughts of what a tortare would look like...

I wrote my current WIP, FROM THE OTHER SIDE, in less than 3 months, and probably closer to 2. I pantsed the whole thing, I must admit, something I doubt I'll ever do again. But the words flew off my fingers onto the computer, the characters came to life before my eyes, and my plotline sprang into shape with remarkable ease (even if it did require some heavy shears/clippers/cutting implements/dynamite to prune it afterward).

I was a hare, and proud of it, and I didn't stop once until I'd crossed the finish line. I didn't even stop to rest under that nice shady tree along the way.

Then came revisions!

And I became a tortoise.

(Source)

I've been plodding along in revision hell joy for 9 months now (and I won't draw any comparison to the pregnancy thing *grins*). Not a particularly long time in the scheme of things, but it feels long to me after such a quick first draft turnaround. Especially when I see others (including certain awesome CPs who shall remain nameless) who seem to whiz through writing AND revisions, with a speed and efficiency that leaves me amazed.

I've been thinking through the reasons why my revisions are taking me so long:

• as mentioned above, I pantsed rather than plotted with FTOS, so I've spent a lot of time fixing things, getting the structure of the manuscript right, tweaking the plotline, getting to know the characters, and making sure I'm happy with the way the story reads
• I have a limited number of hours during the day to write/revise, and those hours are eaten into by things like critiquing for my CPs, my Crusades, blogging, reading, and all the "daily life" stuff
• I'm a perfectionist, and I want my manuscript to be the best it can be before I query (there are different schools of thought on this, and I may well do a separate post on this soon)
• I want to give myself my best shot at getting an agent by learning as much about writing as I can before I query
• my health has been very bad the last few months, and unfortunately this has impacted on my revision time (and my time for anything else, for that matter)
• simply, I don't want to rush

I'm not quite chafing at the bit--not yet--and I'm taking comfort from posts such as this one from Mary Kole, which gives great advice about being patient. And I am enjoying my revisions, believe it or not. With querying in sight for me, it's all good in the end. It does make me wonder about the tortare though, and how it is for all of you.

How about you: Are you a tortoise, a hare, or a tortare (or do you prefer hortoise)? What's your experience with revising your manuscript versus writing it. Do you like writing or revising best? What things impact on the time you spend writing/revising?

My one year blogiversary!!!

It's my one year blogiversary today, woot!!! I just wanted to say a huge thanks to everyone who's come with me on this awesome journey - you guys rock!

I can't wait to see what the next year will bring.

Do you take breaks when you're revising?

(Source)

It's a long weekend where I live, and I've decided to take some time off my revisions. A huge step for me, as I've been working on the same document most days for what feels like forever now! And it's hardly taken that much arm-twisting from my critique partner either *grins*.

I guess that's made me wonder, how do you do it? Do you sit down for a solid chunk of time and finish all your revisions in one go? Do you have breaks between each revision-draft of your manuscript (and if so, for how long)? Does the whole revising process work better if you come back to a document fresh from some time at the beach/snow/wherever? Or does taking some time off actually break your train of thought, making it hard to get back into the manuscript when you start?

The same questions apply to drafting too, so drafters feel free to weigh-in :) I'm a huge fan of letting a first draft "rest" before you dive into revisions, but do you take breaks at other times as well?

Beta Match - Are you looking for a critique partner or a beta reader?

It can be hard (and I mean H.A.R.D) to find a critique partner or beta reader (and even harder to find a great one!). Some of you have found critique partners and beta readers through those you know in person, while others have found them in bloggers you met online, through online conferences such as WriteOnCon, through forums such as Verla Kay's Blueboards, Absolute Write, and in other ways. But time and again recently I’ve seen people commenting that they don’t know where to look. So I thought I’d help out (*grins*).

Today I'm running a Beta Match (and don't let the name fool you, it's for critique partners too!). If you’re interested, there are two options:

OPTION ONE: Put your details and what you’re looking for in the comments below, using the following template:

Name: (your name, pen name, or blogging handle)
Email: (your email address OR write "address with Rach" - this option is only if you don't share your email address online. If you want me to pass your email address on to anyone who is interested in becoming your CP or beta reader, you'll also need to send me an email to let me know)
My current WIP: (give a few details)
I'm looking for: (a critique partner or beta reader or both. Plus give info about the critiquing style/focus/etc that you want from a CP/beta reader, and whether you have work ready to be looked at now or are looking for a long-term partnership)
Some info about me: (anything you think a potential CP or beta reader will need to know)

AND/OR

OPTION TWO: Read through other comments in the post to see if someone who’ll suit your needs has commented. Then contact them directly. (If their comment says "address with Rach", email me to ask for their details - please include their original comment in your email so I can work out who you're talking about. If you've left a comment as well, please include that too)

Depending on interest, I might make Beta Match a regular feature of Rach Writes…, so let me know if it has been helpful for you.

Please note: Beta Match isn't only for those who have a piece of work ready to be critiqued right now. It's intended to be a way for people to find critique partners who can help them with their writing/revisions/etc over the long-term. Even if you're after a beta reader, you can still connect with someone now and swap work at a later date :)