The 10 Things You Need to Publish a Beautiful Book

If you’re like most writers I know, you want to publish a book. But not just any book: you want to publish a book you can be proud of. A book you can confidently share with friends, family, and clamoring readers. A book that will prove to them with just one glance what an amazing author you are. You want to publish a beautiful book.

Of course, rarely do writers set out to publish books that aren’t beautiful. But despite their best intentions, not-beautiful books are uploaded to Amazon and offered for sale every day.

So how can you ensure your book is beautiful? That it’s a book you’re truly proud of?

How to Publish a Beautiful Book

A beautiful book starts with that most essential element of any book, the thing that keeps us coming back to a book and an author again and again: an amazing story.

An amazing story is the core of any book. You can make a book as pretty as you like, but if it doesn’t have a great story, you’re just putting lipstick on the proverbial pig. A captivating cover and fascinating description won’t stop a reader from putting a book down if the story isn’t strong all the way through.

But an amazing story isn’t the only thing you need. And in fact, authors who try to publish an amazing story without all the other elements that make a book beautiful actually end up more disappointed.

What else do you need? Let’s look at the ten elements beautiful books share.

1. A great idea

An amazing story starts with a great idea. Write your idea as a one-sentence premise, then share it with a few people you trust.

How do they respond? Are they interested, curious to hear more? Getting feedback on your idea before you start writing will help you ensure you’re committing to a great story.

2. An amazing story

Every story has a beginning, middle, and end.

Does your story hook readers from the start? Keep them turning pages as problems mount and stakes are raised? Reward them with a surprising yet inevitable conclusion? Wrap up with just enough resolution to leave them satisfied?

Your story is the reason you’re writing a book, the reason readers are interested, the part of your creation you’ll be most proud of. No, it’s not the only part of a beautiful book. But it’s arguably the most important, so invest time and effort to get it right.

3. Insightful feedback*

How will you know whether your story is amazing, or whether it still needs some more work? You need insightful feedback from savvy critiquers who will be able to recognize its strengths and weaknesses.

Look for insightful feedback from people like these:

From a writers’ group

Joining a writers’ group is a fantastic way to build connections with other writers and get valuable feedback. In this kind of community, you’ll be able to share your work and get honest feedback.

Plus, you’ll get to read and critique other writers’ work. You might be surprised at how much the act of critiquing someone else’s writing helps you grow as a writer, too.

From a developmental editor

The best way to get vital feedback about your story is to hire a developmental editor.

A developmental editor will read your entire story, evaluate what’s working and what’s not, and give you high-level recommendations about how you can improve it. You’ll get feedback on areas like characterization, pacing, story structure, key scenes, plot developments, subplots, and genre-specific elements.

A good developmental editor is likely to charge upwards of a thousand dollars. Investing in your book at this point is the best thing you can do to ensure you craft an amazing story.

If there’s one place you should spend money on your book, this is it.

4. Polished writing*

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: your story is the most important part of your book.

But you don’t just want readers to enjoy your story. You want them to enjoy every moment of the experience of reading it, every brilliant turn of phrase and humorous aside you weave in.

Once your story is set, refine your paragraphs and sentences until they shine, so your readers will enjoy reading your book at every level.

5. Meticulous proofreading*

If you’ve read more than a few book reviews on Amazon, you’ve probably seen comments like these:

“This author should have hired an editor.”

“Did an editor ever see this book?”

“I wanted to enjoy this book, but it badly needed an editor.”

Usually, when readers complain about a book’s lack of editing, it’s because they’re catching typos and grammar errors on page after page.

Are your commas all in place? Is each word spelled correctly?

Don’t give your readers reason to critique your book — proofread it to ensure all those pesky errors are cleared out.

6. Elegant formatting*

To this point, we’ve focused on refining the words inside your book, making sure each one is the right one.

But the words in your book aren’t the first thing your readers will judge.

When your readers open your book, before they read a single word, they’ll notice how well your book is formatted.

Good formatting enhances the reading experience, making it easy, smooth, and enjoyable. Choppy or inconsistent formatting will distract readers from your story, frustrating them or even making them put down your book entirely.

Use a tool like Vellum to design an elegant book, or hire a book designer.

7. A captivating cover*

“Don’t judge a book by its cover.” It’s well-intentioned advice, but admit it: we all judge books by their covers.

Your cover is the very first impression your readers will have of your book. It’s the first clue readers will use to judge whether this book is for them.

Of course, there’s a wide variety of great book covers in the world. A fantasy novel’s cover will look different than a summer romance, different than a murder mystery, different than a contemporary YA novel.

But no matter your genre, your cover should look professional and clear. Browse the bookshelves at a bookstore or local library to get an idea of what covers typically look like for books like yours.

Then, find a cover that will look fantastic on that shelf alongside books similar to yours. There are a few ways you can do this.

A great cover designer will give you the best possible cover for your book. You can hire a designer to craft a professional-looking cover custom designed for you.

If you have a small to moderate budget for a book cover, you can purchase a premade cover that fits your story.

Alternately, you can DIY it and design your own cover.

Regardless of the route you choose, remember that your book cover is your one chance to make a great first impression. Show your readers right away that your book is beautiful, inside and out.

8. A riveting book description

If your cover draws readers in, your book description is the next thing they’ll evaluate to determine whether yours is a book they want to read.

Your book description will appear in a variety of places. You’ll use it on your back cover, your Amazon sales page, your book’s page on your website, and anywhere else where you want to give people a quick introduction to your book.

The key here is to remember that your book description is not a synopsis. It’s sales copy.

Write your book description in such a way that the reader just can’t get enough — they’ll be so intrigued and excited, they’ll simply have to read your book. Not sure how? Check out this article on great book descriptions and this one on great book covers.

9. A compelling Amazon page

Think of the books you love, or popular books that made a splash when they were released. Take a look at their Amazon pages. What about those pages makes a compelling case that you should buy the book?

For starters, there’s the cover and book description, which we discussed above.

Then, there’s the number of reviews. The Fault in Our Stars has over 37,000 reviews. Even the 423 one-star reviews add credibility: this is a book that over thirty-seven thousand people have read. Seeing numbers like that for a book you’re interested in might make you think, if a book has that many readers, why haven’t you read it, too?

Scroll down a little further, and you’ll probably see professional reviews from major book review outlets like Kirkus or Publishers Weekly, as well as blurbs from other authors endorsing the book.

You’ll see a bio of the author explaining why they are the type of person to write a fantastic book.

You’ll see other books like this one, and categories defining the book’s subject and genre, both ways to determine whether this is the kind of book you would like to read.

Finally, the big, yellow “Add to Cart” button right at the top of the page makes it quick and easy to buy.

From top to bottom, a book’s Amazon page is designed to convince you that this is a beautiful book. Each element gives readers one more reason to believe that you’re a great author, you’ve written an amazing book, and if they buy it and read it, they’ll definitely love it.

Start off with adding your cover and book description. Then, once your book is published, ask your readers to review your book on Amazon, giving you credibility and social proof.

10. A professional author website*

At first glance, this might seem a little odd. You don’t need an author website to make your book beautiful, do you?

Let’s go back to that original goal. A beautiful book is one you’re proud of. It’s a book you can share confidently with friends and family. It will make all those doubters say, “Wow, you are a professional author.” It will make readers believe in you and your stories.

If you want people to believe in your books, you need to present yourself as a professional author.

Because let’s face it: readers don’t want to read any old book by Nellie Sal down the street. They want to read books by the next great author, someone who demonstrates that they’re an author they can trust to write amazing stories.

And one of the best ways to demonstrate that you are that author is by creating a professional-looking author website.

Your author website is your home on the internet. It’s where you’ll connect with readers, where you’ll announce new developments in your writing, and where you’ll display all the books you write.

Take time to create an author website that reflects who you are as a professional writer (because that’s what you are!). You can build your website yourself, or hire a web developer to build it for you.

Then, update your website at least once or twice a month to stay in contact with your readers.

*The Asterisk: Hiring Professionals

You might have noticed that six of these ten elements have asterisks next to them. These are the elements where you have the option of hiring professional help.

A developmental editor will give you high-level feedback on your entire story.

When it’s time to polish your writing, a line editor will comb through your story sentence-by-sentence to smooth out your prose and make sure each word reads beautifully.

A proofreader will examine each word, letter, and punctuation mark to ensure there are no typos or errors in your book.

A book formatter will format your manuscript for print or ebook publication.

A cover designer will design a professional-quality cover that matches your book.

A web designer will build and/or design your author website.

All of these can help you take your book to the next level. But you don’t necessarily need to hire each one.

If you’re on a tight budget, you might prefer to line edit your book yourself, ask a grammar-savvy friend to help you proofread, and learn to format your book, design your cover, and build your website yourself.

Remember, the most important part of your book is your amazing story. So if you have any money to invest, focus on developmental editing to make your story the best it can be.

Traditional or Self-Publishing?

If you’re publishing your book through a traditional publisher, there’s good news: they’ll provide the editors and designers for you. (You’ll still be responsible for building and maintaining your website.)

If you’re self-publishing, you’ll have to find and hire the professionals you need. While this means a greater up-front investment for you, it also means you’ll have more control over the process of creating your book from start to finish.

Remember, beautiful books are traditionally published and self-published all the time. (Not-beautiful books are traditionally published and self-published all the time, too.)

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Beautiful books are traditionally published and self-published all the time.

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It’s not the publishing route you choose that will make your book beautiful, but each of the ten elements above.

This Takes Time

This is a long article. Publishing a beautiful book is an even longer process.

It takes months to write a book. It takes more months to edit and proofread a book. And it takes even more months to prepare a book’s packaging: the formatting, cover design, description, and web presence that will put your book on display and show people that it’s worth investing in.

But the end result is so worth this time and effort. If you persevere, if you commit to making each element of your book beautiful, you’ll produce a book you’re truly proud of.

Your friends, family, readers, and even doubters will be amazed to see your name on the cover.

And your book will look right at home alongside all your favorite books on your bookshelf.

Will you commit to not just publishing a book, but publishing a beautiful book?

Which of these ten elements do you tend to focus on in your writing and publishing journey? Let us know in the comments.

PRACTICE

Turn to your bookshelf and choose a book you like. Then, examine it to see if it has all ten elements of a beautiful book.

Check the copyright page and acknowledgements for the names of the editors and designers who contributed to it. Take a look at the cover: what about the cover design makes you want to read the book? Read the book description, and flip through a few pages to see the interior formatting.

Look up the book on Amazon. What elements on its Amazon page demonstrate that it’s a book worth buying? Read the author’s bio, then see if they have an author website. What information do they share there

Take fifteen minutes to study the book. Then, share your observations in the comments below. What element most convinced you that this is a beautiful book, one you’d love to read?

Be sure to leave feedback for your fellow writers, too!

The post The 10 Things You Need to Publish a Beautiful Book appeared first on The Write Practice.

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First Look: Mizuno JPX Hot Metal Pro Irons and JPX FLI-HI

When OEMs release a pro version of an iron, it’s typically accompanied by a price hike, some aesthetic enhancements (chrome plating) and a well-spun story justifying the price increase.

That’s not exactly the case with Mizuno’s Hot Metal Pro, though it could leave better players wondering how much is too much given Hot Metal Pro’s relatively compact frame.

Those who keep track of typical release cycles know Mizuno generally unveils product in the fall. As per usual in late August 2018, Mizuno launched the JPX 919 family, which included the 919 Tour, 919 Forged and 919 Hot Metal.

Bucking Mizuno’s trend, the JPX 919 Hot Metal Pro is a mid-cycle addition which amounts to little more than a spec change to the standard 919 Hot Metal, which is why Mizuno hasn’t made any significant amount of noise over the release. The Hot Metal Pro carries the same Chromoly 4041 cast frame, which is stronger and more responsive than 1025 mild carbon steel, Stability Frame construction (for class-leading forgiveness) and re-engineered sound ribs to enhance feel. True to its name, the Hot Metal Pro has all the requisite design, material, and mass property requirements to fit the description of a max-distance iron.

The rest is what one should expect from an iron with the Pro designation. Thinner sole, narrower topline, less offset and a more compact footprint are what separates the Hot Metal Pro from the standard version.

Comparatively, the Hot Metal Pro has a wider sole and thicker topline than the 919 Forged, albeit with less offset. The sweet area of the Hot Metal Pro and 919 Forged are nearly identical, but the Pro has a deeper CG and marginally stronger lofts. This is, after all, a players distance iron.

Regarding COR area (the portion of clubface with a COR of .80 or higher), Mizuno contends the Hot Metal Pro has entered uncharted territory. Citing internal tests, the Hot Metal Pro retains more ball speed on toe-side shots than the standard model; however, the converse is true on heel shots, where the standard model should lose a bit less ball speed. Mizuno’s testing indicates both models have a COR area which surpasses that of competitors such as TaylorMade M3, Ping G400, and Callaway Rogue Pro.

How it fairs against the 2019 crop is TBD.

JPX FLI-HI

Also included in this release is a JPX FLI-HI, which features the geometry and mass properties of a hybrid with the hosel blend and topline of a long iron.  The chief purpose of the JPX FLI-HI is to give players the option of a blended set, without having to pay an upcharge for it. Often the addition of a hybrid as a DLR (direct long-iron replacement) comes with an increased cost. So rather than put golfers in a financial quandary, Mizuno opted to keep the FLI-HI pricing ($125/club) consistent with either Hot Metal model.

When should a player think about dropping the Hot Metal (or Hot Metal Pro) in favor of the JPX FLI-HI? When the native swing speed isn’t fast enough to generate launch conditions which maintain ideal distance gaps between irons. To this end, the JPX FLI-HI features a lower center of gravity (resulting in higher launch), stronger lofts (1° less than the iron each model replaces) and longer shafts (¼” longer in 6 iron and ¾” longer in the 4 iron) to help golfers attain proper gapping. Also, the JPX FLI-HI utilizes Wave Sole Technology which allows the front of the sole to flex more to retain ball speed on thin shots.

The patented Drop Down Crown might be what golfers first notice, but as is typical with Mizuno design, there’s a reasonably obvious purpose (alignment aid and CG manipulation) as well as one which isn’t so evident – that it fits comfortably in a Mitchell Loft/Lie bending machine so builders can precisely match specs to the rest of the set.

The JPX FLI HI is offered 4-iron through 7-iron to allow golfers multiple transition points, which are best identified via a professional fitting. Mizuno also has a pre-selected combo set with JPX FLI-HI 5-6 irons and 7-PW in Hot Metal Pro.

JPX 919 Hot Metal Pro Specs, Pricing, and Availability

The JPX 900 Hot Metal was Mizuno’s best-selling game-improvement iron ever and to date the 919 Hot Metal line owns a 4% market share in the iron category. If we separate the iron market into two basic categories – players irons and game-improvement irons – players irons account for roughly 10% of the overall retail market.  To create some perspective, Mizuno would need a 40% share in the players category to have an equivalent presence.

Mizuno understands Hot Metal Pro is likely to cannibalize sales of the 919 Forged and standard Hot Metal to a degree, but the hope is to garner a bit more real estate in the largest part of the market with the greatest potential for growth.

If so, it would be a cast, not forged, iron from Mizuno leading the way.

What do you think about that?

Retail price for an 8-piece set is $1000. Available now.

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What Exactly Makes a Women’s Golf Club a Woman’s Golf Club?

In my last post for MyGolfSpy, I discussed how club manufacturers and club fitters need to stop gendering golf clubs and start looking at female customers more holistically. It sparked an interesting discussion amongst golf club enthusiasts and MyGolfSpy members about what exactly constitutes a women’s club.

Generally, when we think of women golfers, we envision them hitting from the forward tees and barely poking it down the fairway. According to a USGA report, women who are 6 handicaps or better average 196 yards or more, while women with 13-20 handicaps average 150 yards. This is in comparison to men who at a 6 handicap or better average 236 plus, while 13-20 male handicappers average 198 yards.

There is no question that men are typically stronger than women and can swing the club at faster speeds on average, but there are outliers that need to be taken into consideration when labeling clubs. A woman who may naturally swing the club at a higher speed and who is just starting out may find that women’s clubs aren’t actually the right fit for her.

First, what often happens with women’s clubs is that already weaker shafts are cut down to accommodate presumably smaller golfers. That changes the club, making it feel noticeably different at the bottom in terms of weight compared to a men’s club. Secondly, the grips on women’s clubs are smaller; often too small, leaving some women feeling like they’re gripping something little more than the width of a pencil.

The typical LPGA player swings her driver 95mph. Any good club fitter would never hand her a driver from a “woman’s” set simply because she’s a woman. Nor would a good club fitter hand someone on at the Champions Tour a senior set simply because of his age – at least he (or she) shouldn’t.

The gendering of golf clubs creates a couple of problems: for starters, it creates an environment that can lead sales associates to classify customers by category, like age or gender, rather than as unique individuals. Additionally, it can cause unknowing golfers to buy clubs based on these labels, which despite their age or gender, may not be the proper fit for them.

What you can end up with are disgruntled beginners who may decide not to continue playing.

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What Makes a Woman’s Club

So when it comes to women’s clubs, the question remains, what exactly makes them “women’s clubs”?

Is it because the shaft may be pink or purple? Is it the smaller grip? The weight of the head? Is it the length of the shaft?

Truthfully, I don’t know because I have never played a “ladies” club, just as I didn’t use Bic’s “Pens for Her” when they first put them out on the market. A regular pen will do just fine, thank you.

But in all seriousness, while they may be lighter, shorter, and outfitted with smaller grips, women’s clubs really aren’t women’s clubs at all. Most are just modified versions of what’s already in the lineup. The truth is, egos aside, women’s clubs are a great fit for some men and an absolutely terrible fit for some women.

As one of the commenters wrote:

“I see this with my girlfriend all the time- and she’s 6-1 and athletic! We were at a demo day last year, and the Callaway guy (first booth) foolishly handed her a Rogue Draw with a ladies flex shaft, even after I warned him not to. Within a few minutes she was swinging a Rogue Standard in regular at around 9.5°, baby fades about 265 all day, and all the reps were lining up to have her try their gear. I hope they learned something, but alas…”

And herein lies the problem: everybody is different. Even though Charles Barkley was an incredible basketball player, and at first glance might look like he can whip the club around him, we know from video evidence, that’s not true.

In contrast, Anne Van Dam, a rookie on the LPGA tour, is averaging 306 yards off the tee this season. Take a look at her swing (below). Would you hand her a woman’s club?

 

Now, while the gendering of golf clubs likely won’t go away any time soon, there are some things the golf industry can do on its own to make the space feel more inclusive for women, such that we don’t feel singled out simply because of our chromosomal makeup. In fact, the solution is pretty simple: every club fitter and sales associate should give women options and treat them as valuable consumers. Give women the opportunity to show you what type of club they should have in their bag, rather than assuming that a woman’s club is one-size fits all situation.

We don’t buy our jeans that way, and we certainly shouldn’t be forced to buy our clubs that way either.

Got Questions? Ask Anya.

If you have a question about issues affecting women in golf (or women who golf), leave a comment below or hit us up on Twitter using hashtag #AskAnya.

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Writers Are Readers: Here’s Why the Books You Read Matter

Writers are imitators. At its heart, our job is to watch the world, listen to it, feel it, and then reproduce it using the tools of language. We writers are readers, too.

That is why we tend to “write what we know.” Human beings are built for input, and what we put into our minds likely comes out in our writing.

That is why it’s important to choose our reading carefully. Choose the right literature and you’ll be infinitely inspired to create wonderful work.

But choose the wrong reading material and you’ll find yourself struggling to an audience.

Writers Are Readers

There’s a cliche that “writers are readers,” and it exists for good reason. Writers are people who love the cycle of storytelling. It goes something like this.

Person reads a story and loves it. Person imagines a similar story in his or her own head. Person sits down to write that story. New person reads the new story. Repeat.

If you are a writer, you are probably a reader, too. And most writer-readers look to their literature for inspiration.

But you must be cautious when choosing inspiration.

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Every book you read will influence your writing, so read a lot, and read carefully.

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When Pleasure Reading Affects Our Writing

Most writers flourish within a specific genre, or small group of genres. Yet they often like reading outside these genres. I know I do.

And while pleasure reading can extend to any form or genre, business reading needs to be focused and specific. Again, human beings are creatures built on input, and whatever goes in tends to come out in some form.

Here’s an example.

As a younger writer, I fell in love with the work of Cormac McCarthy. The first book of his I read was The Road, a desolate, heart-breaking story of a father and son trying to find somewhere to call home. I was amazed at the quality of McCarthy’s prose, and before long it began to appear in my writing.

Unfortunately, I had no idea how to grow a career with desolate, heart-breaking stories!

I wanted to write books that readers couldn’t put down because they were so immersed in the stories. But by mimicking The Road, I focused instead on the beautifull stark prose and McCarthy’s long-form style, two storytelling elements that I would never recommend to a new author trying to build an audience.

(On a side note, The Road contains a beautiful story. But I was so impressed by the “shiny objects” of his limitless vocabular and gutsy “one long chapter” choice that I neglected to study the core relationship and journey that makes the book so special.)

So instead of becoming the next Cormac McCarthy, I just produced moody material that didn’t take readers on a journey.

This is a great case of my pleasure reading interferring with my writing. I was much younger then, and reading a wildly talented author made me want to be just like him.

But I didn’t know what genre I wanted to write in, nor did I appreciate just how important genre was to building a trusting relationship with my readers.

When Business Reading Affects Our Writing

I recently read a book that also affected my writing. But this time, I sought out a book I knew would help my writing. I read it as a thrilled reader and attentive student-writer.

The book was Star of the North by D.B. John, a white-knuckle thriller the centers on North Korea and its secretive regime’s dirty deeds. Paired with what I’ve learned from Shawn Coyne and The Story Grid, my reading of Star of the North was like taking a masterclass on structure.

One might think that because D.B. John’s story is a thriller, the kind one will buy in an airport or at the front of Barnes & Noble, that the prose suffers. This couldn’t be farther from the truth. In addition to being an example of great macro and micro structure, Star is beautifully and powerfully written. I read each page, my heart thumping with same jealousy I felt when I read The Road. 

So what’s the difference between The Road and Star of the North? Should you immediately download one on Kindle and shun the other? Of course not!

It all has to do with why you read one and the other.

What to Read for to Help Your Writing

Knowing your genre is essential. It’s the first thing editors look for, according to editor and author Shawn Coyne. If you don’t know your genre, and how to fulfill it and innovate its conventions, then your book probably won’t work.

With this in mind, you must approach your reading with the same considerations. Is the book you’re reading in your genre? Is it in a different sub-genre? These similarities and differences make a big difference.

Because what you put inside your head is going to come out somehow — unless you choose to compartmentalize it.

If you want to write something imagistic, grinding, and literary like The Road, then dig right in. Study it. Analyze it. And do your best to tell your own story, complete with its own three-act journey, in the same genre-specific way.

And if you want to write something thrilling, fast-paced, and similiarly vivid like Star of the North, then dig in all the same.

But know why you are digging in.

Are you digging in as a detached reader? Is it like being a professional tennis player, marveling at the talent of a professional football player?

Or are you diving deep to apprentice a master? Are you reading to soak up as much skill knowledge as possible, and to practice replicating it in your own work?

As an avid reader, and a passionate writer, it’s important to know why you’re picking up a book and putting its words in your head.

Read With Caution, but Read a Lot

Don’t let the message of this article mislead you. Writers are readers, so keep reading, and read a lot!

But always be of two minds when you read, sorting everything you read into two categories: Pleasure and Business.

And as you mature as a storyteller you’ll find yourself able to use more and more for Business than ever before. This is a sign of wisdom, recognizing the interrelatedness of ALL stories, and using those similarities for the good of your readers.

Happy (careful) reading, and happy writing!

What book have you read that has most influenced your own writing? Let us know in the comments.

PRACTICE

Today, your challenge is to let your reading impact your writing.

First, pick up a nearby book, preferably one you’re currently reading or have read before. Take five minutes to read a few pages. Notice how the scenes progress, how the language flows, and all the elements that draw you into the story.

Think of one element you want to emulate. It might be the prose, the dialogue, the characters, or something else entirely. Then, take ten minutes to write your own scene, inspired by the author you just read. Try to recreate that element as much as possible.

When you’re done, share the book you read and your writing practice in the comments. Be sure to leave feedback for your fellow writers!

The post Writers Are Readers: Here’s Why the Books You Read Matter appeared first on The Write Practice.

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This is How Imbalanced Gut Bacteria Can Affect Your Body

The bacteria in your body can get off balance. This can be caused by the intake of antibiotics. This is because antibiotics don’t just destroy bad bacteria, they can also destroy good bacteria. Taking probiotics can help to keep the bacteria in your body balanced. Parts of Your Body Affected by Bacterial Imbalances Here are …

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In your body, you have a large number of bacteria. Ever since you were born, bacteria have had a place to call home inside of your body. They have colonized your body and they live there happily with everything they could ever need. There are both good and bad bacteria in your body. They all …

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The Best Keto Friendly Beverages High In Fat Low in Carbs

When planning out your low-carb high-fat diet, it is easy to pour all your energy into meal planning. However, a great way to support your diet is to also think about what you drink. The great news here is that lots of beverages are definitely still open to you, provided that you avoid adding sugar. …

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How to Best Use Probiotics to Improve Your Health

Probiotics have been shown to be amazing for your body, especially your gut. Here are some tips to ensure that the probiotics you’re consuming aren’t going to waste. How to Best Use Probiotics to Improve Your Overall Health and Well-Being 1. Seek Out the Fermented Foods Fermentation concentrates the vitamins in plants, such as B …

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How to Grow Stronger Muscles with Fruit

No one wants to waste time during their workouts, so why would we waste time eating something that won't fuel our muscles to become stronger and leaner?  Muscle building foods are a great way of getting a strong, healthy body you desire. They are nutritious with high-quality proteins making it a great way of meeting …

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Around Morecambe Bay: Furness Peninsula from Ulverston to Broughton #followpye

The pepper pot loomed overhead, a shaft of February sunlight lighting up its whitewashed walls. Across the Furness Peninsula, Morecambe Bay glittered enticingly and the quaint little town of Ulverston bustled away below the hill. I sat on the bench letting a sliver of warmth seep in as one man...

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How to Improve Your Gut Flora with Probiotics

It’s important to have the perfect balance of both good and bad bacteria in your gut. Here’s how you can make sure that you keep the good kind of bacteria where it should be. How to Heal Your Gut If you are eating a lot of sugar, you are feeding the wrong kind of bacteria …

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The Best 5 Prebiotic Loaded Food for a Healthy Gut

Prebiotics are indigestible food ingredients that stimulate the growth and maintenance of the gut. They also feed and support the growth of beneficial bacteria, also known as probiotics, in your large intestine. What are Prebiotics? And What are their Benefits? Fructooligosaccharides are prebiotics compounds that are used to manufacture prebiotic supplements, for example, inulin and …

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Top 20 Ways to Avoid Bloating

Nobody likes that bloated, miserable feeling you get after eating certain foods. Many of us find ourselves asking, ‘What causes bloating in the stomach?' And, sometimes this bloat is simply caused by temporary gas. And infrequently it can be a sign of a much more dangerous problem. Since bloating usually occurs because of the way …

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How to Create Problems for Your Characters

Are your stories feeling slow and boring? You might be making things too easy for your characters. So how do you create problems for your characters, make them uncomfortable, and challenge them?

Most of us try to avoid hard things. We have traffic apps to help us steer clear of wrecks and construction on the roadway. We espouse slogans like “work smarter, not harder.” We love hacks, apps, and tips to make most anything easier or more comfortable.

But what if the hard thing is the best way to become the people we want to be? What if we’re avoiding the very thing that holds the key to our growth?

Sometimes as writers, we let our characters settle for the easy life. What is the default state for your main character? Where is he most comfortable? You’ve got to get the character out of that state as quickly as possible.

Sources of Discomfort

Discomfort is a quick way to get your character out of stasis, and it can come from any number of sources. It can be internal, where the character’s insecurities, fear, or flaw cause intense discomfort.

Discomfort can come from a relationship or another character who makes your protagonist uncomfortable through a break up, an unethical request, or just plain rudeness.

It can come from difficult circumstances beyond the character’s control — an illness, a storm, or an accident.

Or discomfort can come through a character’s poor choices, which can amplify any of these other sources. Mix and match to see what stresses your character out most.

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What stresses your character out the most? Don’t make their life easy—force them to face it.

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The Hardest Thing

Once you have a good list of uncomfortable situations or choices that complicate your character’s life, you can turn to the larger obstacles. What would be the hardest thing for your character to do? What does he avoid at every turn?

Make a list of the hard things he or she avoids. It probably isn’t climbing Mount Everest or running an ultramarathon (although it could be — those are both hard things). For some characters, quitting a job might be their Mount Everest. For others, it might be crossing the street. Use that difficult action to push your character out of the status quo.

You can also challenge a character emotionally. What is the emotionally difficult thing for your character? Being vulnerable? Honest? Is it difficult for her to be humble or does she refuse to ask for help?

Explore what makes those things so difficult for the character. Then, exploit them.

Force Your Character Grow Through Action

Now that you know the complications and hardest thing your character could face, you can help your character grow. Put your character in a situation that requires at least one of those challenging choices. Better yet, make them choose between the two hardest things, and make them struggle through it.

In a short story or novel, the hardest thing is likely near the climax, and it might even be the crisis. Build to it using the smaller complications and discomfort, letting your character fail and make small strides as you go.

Bonus Benefit

At the very least, recognize that as you struggle to figure out what the hardest things are for your character, you yourself are persevering through the writing practice that will make you stronger over time. Stick with it. Writing is often hard, but you can do it!

What are some of the worst (best?) complications you’ve seen characters face that forced them to grow? Share in the comments.

PRACTICE

Ready to cause problems for your characters? Take fifteen minutes to think about the protagonist in your work in progress.

Make a list of everything you can think of that makes them uncomfortable, big or small. If you have time, brainstorm a scene in which they’re forced to face the thing that makes them most uncomfortable.

Don’t have a work in progress? Create a new character based on this prompt: she really hated getting caught in the rain. Take fifteen minutes to list out what else makes her uncomfortable, and why.

When you’re done, share your practice in the comments, and be sure to leave feedback for your fellow writers!

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THE BEST STAND BAGS OF 2019

How to Choose the Perfect Probiotic Supplement for you

Finding the right type of probiotic for your body is very important. But unfortunately, it’s not as easy as you want it to be. There is a large range of probiotics, all with different ingredients and different things they do for your body. Just try Googling ‘probiotics' and you'll find yourself in a rabbit hole …

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9 Simple Ways to Feel Younger at 60 Years Old and Beyond

This year ushers in another year of wear and tear for our minds and bodies. But watching another tick by doesn’t mean you have to feel any older. There are plenty of things older adults can do to turn back the clock and make another year older feel like another year younger. If you’re 60 …

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5 Reasons Why You Should Write Short Stories

You’re a writer. But do you write short stories? And is there any reason why you should write short stories?

“Writer” is an extremely broad term; after all, there are dozens of genres in which you might write. Poetry, novels, memoir, historical fiction, picture books, cookbooks, instruction manuals, fan-fiction, all of these barely scratch the surface of what you can do with your talents. No matter what you write, though, there are significant benefits to writing short stories that will help you learn and grow within your craft.

5 Reasons Why You Should Write Short Stories

If you’re a novelist or someone who focuses on longer works of writing, short stories may seem strangely daunting to you. I know I’ve definitely felt restricted at times when it comes to how much space I had to tell a story.

But trust me, there are so many ways that writing a short story can help you as a writer. Here are just five benefits.

1. It keeps you in a regular writing habit

It can be so much easier to sit down at your desk knowing you only have to write a little bit of a short piece than it might be if you were faced with the daunting task of continuing a 300-page novel. No matter how much—or how little—progress you make, progress is progress. As long as you’re getting your butt in the chair and typing away, you’re strengthening those creative muscles.

2. You finish more projects

The curse of most writers is having all of those half-finished, abandoned projects taunting you from the edges of your mind. Sometimes you might return to a project to finish it, often times only to abandon it again. This is especially common of longer works, like novels.

With short stories, though, it’s an easy practice in learning how to finish a draft, and then later on in how to revise it. Plus, finished projects are great for contest submissions! You can’t exactly win a contest or be in a publication with an uncompleted draft.

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Want to finish more writing projects? Try writing short stories.

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3. The stakes are low

If you do decide to trash a piece you’ve been working on, with a short story, you haven’t thrown out all that much. It can be disheartening to leave a story behind and feel like all of that work was for nothing, but don’t be too hard on yourself. Anything you’ve written can only help you learn how you can take on another piece in a more prepared way.

4. It lets you practice storytelling

Of course any form of story is a good practice in storytelling, but short stories are an excellent crash course in every single element of fiction. In just a few thousand words, you have to develop characters, a setting, a plot, dialogue, and polish your prose, along with several other aspects I didn’t even mention.

Once you’ve finished your short story, it’s also an easy piece to reread to figure out which elements of storytelling you might need to brush up on. By glancing at a few pages, you can pinpoint which parts are the weakest and why.

5. It eases you back into writing

If you’ve gone through an especially bad bout of writer’s block, you may not feel like going back to your creative work at all. Getting back in the saddle after an extended break is one of the hardest things you do as an artist. But short stories are a good way to do that.

Listen to some advice from Anne Lamott and take things “bird by bird.” Short stories are a gentle way to ease yourself back into writing. By the time you start one, it’ll be over before you know it. And once you’ve tackled one story, the rest will come so much more easily.

Other Short Forms

Though I focused on why you should write short stories here, I should also mention that short pieces of any kind can be beneficial to you: flash-fiction, articles, poems, anything that only lasts for a few pages. All of those apply, as well. What matters if that you’re writing, anything, that lets you continue to practice.

What has writing short stories done to help you as a writer? Let us know in the comments.

PRACTICE

For fifteen minutes, write the beginning of a short story. It can be about anyone, set anywhere, so long as you commit to those fifteen minutes of writing. You have no obligation to keep your work afterwards, but this is a good way to practice writing for writing’s sake, as well as the various elements of storytelling.

When you’re finished, share your work in the comments, if you’d like. Don’t forget to give your fellow writers some love, too. Have fun!

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How Bad Bacteria in Your Guts is Making You Sick

If you are experiencing digestive problems along with some discomfort, you could have an imbalance of good and bad bacteria in your gut. Many ongoing health problems are overlooked, and the health problems the person is having can be related to many different things. And sometimes those things can lead to worse things if not …

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How to Treat Chronic Pain with Medical Marijuana

A medical marijuana doctor says that chronic pain is characterized by pain lasting for at least 12 weeks and maybe even longer for some patients. It can make you feel a dull or sharp pain that leads to an aching or burning sensation in the affected areas. To understand the condition better, let’s discuss its …

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Am I Too Young to Write? 6 Tips for Young Writers

“I’m a teenager. Am I too young to write a book?”

I get this question a lot. The answer is no, you’re not too young to write.

The fact is most writers wish they had started younger. If you can string sentences together, you can write.

If you’re asking if you’re too young to write, you’re probably already a writer.

I technically started writing when I was five or six. I’d make illustrated books out of construction paper and my mom would fold and staple them together. I kept writing on and off throughout my teenage and early adult years while I was on a track to do something else with my life.

Writing was more of a pastime for me at that point. Not something I took seriously. And definitely not something my parents took seriously. Writing isn’t what a lot of people would call a “real job.” I didn’t put a lot of effort into my writing until I was twenty-five.

I’d been writing for twenty years at that point. I was already a writer and had been most of my life, I’d just never realized it before. Looking back, I wish I had been more serious about it at a younger age.

6 Tips for Young Writers

If you know you want to be a writer now, here are some tips and realities to help you get going:

Tip #1: You need to read. Even the boring stuff.

This is a tip for all writers, but even more so for those younger aspiring novelists. You have to read. Read widely. Read every book you can get your hands on. Those books are your writing classes. Study them. Pay attention to sentence structure, flow, dialogue, everything. The more you read, the more natural writing will come to you because you’ll already know the basic idea of how to write a story.

Some books are boring, like probably everything your English teacher is assigning you. Read them anyway. Those books are classics for a reason. And you never know, you might just end up liking one of them.

Tip #2: Write all the time.

I don’t think I’ve ever been as busy as I was when I was in school. With homework and friends and extracurriculars, there’s not a lot of time for hobbies.

Writing takes practice. The younger you start, the more practice you’ll have and the younger you’ll be when you get good.

I wrote in the margins of notebooks. I wrote on weekends. I wrote on the bus. Any time I could, I wrote something, even if it was only a couple lines.

Which brings me to a side point: always carry something to write with. A notetaking app on your phone will work. Just make sure it backs up somewhere.

Tip #3: Keep everything.

Right now, you’re most likely writing random lines and anecdotes. You might start something and never finish it. That’s okay! You’re learning.

Don’t throw that away. You’re gathering life experiences and tidbits that you can possibly use later.

Tip #4: Write like your favorite author.

This does not mean plagiarize them. You like their writing for a reason. Study your favorite author’s books even more than others and figure out why you like them so much.

Is it their style? Is in the genre? Try to reproduce what you like so much about them in your own work.

R.L. Stine was the writer I emulated. I wrote about half a dozen Fear Street-type books when I was between nine and twelve. I finished not a one, but I got the feel for writing by stealing his style. Not his words, mind you. Don’t plagiarize. Ever.

Tip #5: Learn to take criticism like a champ.

If you choose to show your work to your friends or teachers, you’re probably going to get some criticism.

Criticism is a big part of this industry and it’s something you need to get used to. Learn how to make it work for you. Don’t ever let it depress you. (Okay, sometimes it depresses me, but I have a pout for a bit and then get back at it.) Use it to improve your writing.

If someone says they don’t like your work, ask them what specifically they didn’t like. Don’t be defensive about it; be open and sincere. You want their help so that you can improve. At this point in your writing career, improvement is the main goal.

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Think you’re too young to write? Write anyway. You don’t have to publish a bestseller right now. Improvement is your main goal.

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Tip #6: Do it anyway.

Like I said earlier, writing isn’t what a lot of people would call a real job. And for the most part, it doesn’t pay the bills. There’s a chance you might not be able to take expensive writing classes or buy a ton of books on writing.

Write anyway.

There are books at the library and tons of tips online about writing (like right here on The Write Practice). There might be a club or writing competitions offered through your school. You don’t need to fork out a ton of money to learn how to write. Reading is the best teacher out there.

You probably won’t get published right now. Odds are you’re going to write at least two books before you get published. And that’s the best-case scenario.

You’re going to get rejected. It’s a fact of the profession. Rejection happens to us all. I’ve had half a dozen rejections from anthologies already this year.

When you’re first starting out, you’ll get rejected constantly. Don’t let that deter you. It’s not personal. It doesn’t mean you shouldn’t write.

Keep practicing. You’ll improve and you’ll get those acceptances.

Writing is not a glamorous career. It’s hard. It’s emotionally draining. It’s a lot of work for often very little reward.

So if you want to write to be famous, get that out of your head right now. Odds are you won’t be. I hope you will, but the chances are slim.

The overwhelming majority of writers have a full-time job doing something other than writing. They have to fit in writing time between working and family time and running errands.

That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t write. Do it anyway.

You CAN be a writer right now.

You’re never too young to start practicing writing. It may be an uphill battle, but everything is. All careers take work: schooling, sacrifice, internships, practice.

All of the realities I listed above aren’t meant to discourage you. They’re meant to put things in perspective. You have to ignore those things and keep moving forward.

Here’s my most important tip for young writers: Keep writing. Stick to it, and the fruits of your labor will pay off in the end.

At what age did you start writing? Let me know in the comments!

PRACTICE

Today, take fifteen minutes to write a scene where the main character is a teenager. If it’s been a while since you were that age, take a few moments to really think back before you start writing. Think about the emotions, the wants and needs, and the disappointments. This should be a very heartfelt prompt, so dig deep.

Share your writing in the comments and don’t forget to comment on your fellow writers’ work!

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7 Benefits of Working Out in the Morning to Lose Weight

When it comes to living a happy and healthy life, it’s increasingly easy to spend a lot of time making the wrong choices. For example, most of us prefer to do exercises in the evening, treating it as the last ‘job’ of the day. While that might sound like inspired advice, it’s actually anything but. …

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2019 Brand Perception Survey

In December of 2017, we asked you to complete what we called the One Word Survey. As surveys go, it’s simple and doesn’t leave much room for nuance. Despite its simplicity, the results of the original caught the attention of the industry. It came up more than once at the 2018 PGA Show which took place shortly after we published the results.

More than a year removed from the original and with 2019 shaping up to be an excellent year for golf equipment, we thought it was time to do it again.

This time around, not only will we get a sense of how our readers perceive the brands we cover, the results should provide some sense of how those perceptions have changed over the last year.

Which brands are trending up? Which brands are trending down? Those are the questions we hope to answer.

For the sake of consistency, we haven’t changed the survey questions. Some of the words are unquestionably positive; language that golf companies want consumers to associate with their brands. Others words are unquestionably negative; language golf brands prefer you associate with their competitors.

The thing is, we’re not interested in how brands position themselves, we want to know what you think about the leading brands in the golf equipment market today.

Give us just a tiny amount of demographic information, then, for each word presented, choose the brand you most associate with that word. We’ll share the results in a few weeks.

Thanks in advance for helping us out with this study.

Take the Survey

Click here to take the survey.

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Why Adding Probiotics to Your Lifestyle is a Good Idea

Have you thought about adding probiotics to your diet? You create a good and healthy lifestyle for yourself when you add probiotics to your life. Luckily, probiotics come in many different and delicious foods. Some of those foods include pickles, sauerkraut, Kombucha tea, and yogurt. On top of eating healthy probiotic foods, supplementing with a …

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TED Talks for Writers: 6 TED Talks That Will Revive Your Storytelling Spirit

Looking for a boost in your writing? We all need something to rekindle our love of story. These TED Talks for writers might be just the inspiration you need.

In your work as a writer, have you ever succumbed to the pity party? Why am I laboring away at something only a handful of people will ever read? Why am I spending all my time on something no one else cares about? Is it worth it? Can I go on?

If you’ve been doing it long enough, you’ll have had those moments of doubt. My intention with this article is to provide help and inspiration to push through those barriers and restoke the fires of determined storytelling. What I found in my forays for fuel to ignite that flame met—and exceeded—my expectations, reaffirming one of the fundamental truths I hold most dear: there is extraordinary power in story.

6 Inspiring TED Talks for Writers

A favorite resource of mine when looking for inspiration is TED Talk territory. There’s a wide variety to choose from, they’re short, full of provocative viewpoints and stimulating ideas.

I perused the offerings pertaining to story this week and chose six TED Talks for writers, presentations worth watching when you need a boost or a reminder about why you’re doing this.

1. The Mystery Box

J.J. Abrams, creator of Lost and producer of countless major motion pictures, presents a wonderful tribute to his grandfather and teaches us a lot about creating compelling stories at the same time. He speaks about his childhood obsession with magic, and the magic shop he used to visit in his youth.

That’s where he got the Mystery Box, a cardboard carton, still sealed with tape, a fifteen-dollar bargain containing fifty dollars worth of magic. Unopened, to this day. Still a mystery, still inspiring stories.

Full of fun clips and sage advice on storytelling, Abrams shares the power of mystery and how to keep the questions coming. He also points out what to rip off when stealing from a story and how to help the audience suspend their disbelief. Also, a little-known Hollywood secret regarding Tom Cruise’s nose.

For a wondrous sampling of magic and creative genius, watch The Mystery Box.

2. Beware the Single Story

Nigerian novelist Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie delivers a beautiful and moving reminder about the realities and dangers of seeing only a single perspective. In her talk, The Danger of a Single Story, she speaks of the influence stories had for her as a young girl growing up in Nigeria. The majority of books available to her were British and American children’s books in which she read about people with different skin and hair from hers, unfamiliar food and climate, experiences poles apart from her world.

These formed a “single story,” a one-sided perspective on which she based her knowledge and opinion of British and American people. She shares her experiences as she left home for a university in the United States, encountering many instances of that single-story-influenced thinking.

My favorite example is when she was a guest speaker at a college campus and one of the students, having read her novel which featured an abusive father, remarked that it was a shame that Nigerian men are abusers. She replied, “I just read a book called American Psycho, and it is such a shame that young American men are serial murderers.” It made her point beautifully.

Her presentation emphasizes the power story has to resonate with an audience and spread ideas. She says, “The problem with stereotypes is not that they are untrue, but that they are incomplete. They make one story become the only story.”

She also highlights how important storytellers are, because how the story is told can make all the difference.

3. Amy’s Quantum Theory of Creativity

Amy Tan, author of numerous books including The Joy Luck Club and Where The Past Begins, explores the origins and eccentricities of creativity in her TED Talk, Where Does Creativity Hide? She is wonderfully funny and frightfully forthright, sharing her personal journey in pursuit of creative fulfillment.

Are writers afflicted with brain abnormalities or personality disorders? What insanity drives us to do the things we do?

Amy posits some answers fashioned from her own brand of quantum mechanics as she takes a writer’s look at what happens, why things happen, how they happen, and so on. Serendipity, coincidence, and a queer sort of string theory come into play as we each develop the cosmology of our own universe in our role as writers.

4. Making a Case for the Introvert

Susan Cain, author of Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking, speaks about the bias toward extroverts in today’s world, and the increasing amounts of stimulation in our society. Her TED Talk argues that some of us are introverts, and thrive in a quieter environment. She says solitude is often a critical ingredient for creativity.

She does not denigrate or disapprove of group activity, collaboration, or social interaction, but points out that people have varying degrees of preference and tolerance for these things. Many, if not most, writers are introverts and she remarks that the irony for writers is that they indulge their preference for solitude while writing, then must overcome it in order to market the book.

She advocates for more freedom for introverts in the schoolroom and workplace, stating that we can benefit from unplugging and getting inside our own heads. And that doing so will boost our creative output.

5. An Interesting First Impression

Cover designer Chip Kidd delivers a unique first impression on his talk about the importance of imparting a sense of the story in your book cover. He shares a couple of little-known tricks of the trade, couching them in comic and illustrative anecdotes.

I especially enjoyed hearing his experience in designing the book cover for Jurassic Park and Michael Crichton’s reaction to it. And I found his discussion and examples of “typography in denial” fascinating.

6. My Biggest Surprise

As I mentioned, I enjoy TED Talks, especially TED Talks for writers. I visit YouTube now and then to browse through what’s on offer, but I have rarely been hit by one with such massive impact as Frank Warren’s presentation, Half a Million Secrets. Frank started an off-the-wall project that spawned a viral response from the public—and from me. Had me going through half a box of Kleenex while watching his amazing story.

Frank handed out 3,000 pre-paid postcards to random strangers on the streets of Washington, DC. The cards were blank on one side and printed with simple instructions on the other: Anonymously share an artful secret you’ve never told anyone before. What he got back was an overwhelming number of postcard-sized stories that reminded me of Hemingway’s six-word gem—For sale: baby shoes, never worn.

Talk about a gold mine of writing prompts! Each one of these cards has a story behind it that we’ll never know. They’re secrets. But an innovative writer could find worlds of inspiration reading between the lines. Frank posts a new selection every Sunday on his website, postsecret.com. Real secrets, shared by real people equals real opportunity to tell a story that resonates with real readers.

Storytelling Is an Important Job

Each of these TED Talks for writers presented a different aspect of the art and impact of story in our lives. But they all agree that Story is part of being human—it is critical to our success as a global society, as families and communities, as individuals. It’s an important job, and somebody’s got to do it.

Aren’t you glad it’s you!

How does story affect your life? Do you have any other TED Talks for writers that you love? Share your thoughts with us in the comments.

PRACTICE

Ready to take a few anonymous words off a postcard and write the story behind them? Here’s one Frank shared in his TED Talk: “I found these stamps as a child, and I have been waiting all my life to have someone to send them to. I never did have someone.”

If that one didn’t light your fire, here’s another of Frank’s examples: “Inside this envelope is the ripped up remains of a suicide note I didn’t use. I feel like the happiest person on Earth! (now)”

If that one didn’t spark a story for you, try visiting postsecret.com and choosing your own prompt.

Write for fifteen minutes about your chosen postcard. When you are finished, post your work in the comments section, and be sure to give feedback for your fellow writers!

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