The Motivational Editor

Helping Writers Go from Unpublished to Published

Thank You, Dear Readers

by 2 Comments

With Thanksgiving next week, I’d like to take this opportunity to thank all my readers. You’re the reason I’m here writing blogs each month and weekly emails so I can help you on your writing journey, be it with writing tips or simply encouragement and motivation.

My first foray into the blogging world was with a site I called Glory and Strength. It was an outreach of my book Help! My Husband Has Sexually Abused my Daughter (the second edition is titled Carried by Grace). I don’t know what year that site began, but I published the book in early 2007, so I guess I started blogging in 2007 or 2008.

I’ve learned many things over the years and shifted my focus to writers. I’ve been blogging about writing since 2012 and love it. I started freelance editing in 2010, and somewhere around 2014/2015 began learning about book interior and cover design. I love doing it all.

But I can spend hours writing and not notice the time slipping by. Now that I’ve launched my 3rd fiction book, I’m searching for my next project.

TrainingAuthors.com named TheMotivationalEditor in the top 50 tools and resources for Chrisitian writers.

Last month, my blog TheMotivationalEditor.com was named in the Top 50+ Tools and Resources for Christian Writers in 2024 on Shelley Hitz’s website TrainingAuthors.com.

Wow! Such an honor and I have you, my readers, to thank for that.

I love being able to share my knowledge and expertise to guide others. We’re on the same writing path; I’m simply a little ahead of you and glad to shed some light for you on the many aspects of writing.

I may take a break from blogging during December, though at this writing, I haven’t fully decided yet. My Tuesday Tips will still go out, and I’ll let you know there.

Thank you, all, from the bottom of my heart for making The Motivational Editor what it is. Without you there would be no reason for me to blog.

Happy Thanksgiving

How Much Do You Know About Your Ideal Reader?

by 4 Comments

know your ideal reader so you can hit the target with your book

Updated November 4, 2024.

Knowing your target audience or ideal reader—today’s term is avatar—is important in many ways. As the term implies, you are aiming at a target, so knowing as much as you can about it will enable you to hit the bull’s-eye.

Often the message you hope to convey through your fiction or nonfiction dictates a lot about who the audience is. For example, I wrote Carried by Grace because I wanted to help women…who were Christian…with children…who had been sexually abused. Additionally, I narrowed the age range to mothers who were 28 to 40.

Before you start to write, gain as much clarity about your ideal reader as possible, all the way down to their needs and struggles (this is critical if you blog). People read to meet a need in their life. What need are you meeting?

[Read more…] about How Much Do You Know About Your Ideal Reader?

10 Email Ideas for Writers

by

Let’s face it, coming up with email ideas to engage our subscribers is often a hurdle for writers, especially fiction writers. So today, I’ve got some ideas to share for both fiction and nonfiction writers.

5 Email Ideas for Fiction Writers

Share your writing process is one email idea.
[Read more…] about 10 Email Ideas for Writers

8 Steps to Overcome the Dread of Writing Emails

by

8 steps to overcome the dread of writing emails

Writing mails can generate a sense of dread for many writers. Maybe they see it as marketing. It is, but it is essential to building a following and is much more than “selling.”

The typical questions include, What do I write about? How long should it be? How often should I send one? What if they unsubscribe? The list goes on, but if you don’t get past asking questions, you’ll never get any emails written.

Make the decision to write emails and the how and ideas will show up.

So let’s look at things you can do to reduce your apprehension and dread about the task.

[Read more…] about 8 Steps to Overcome the Dread of Writing Emails

3 Simple Steps to Create Unforgettable Characters Workshop

by

This live interactive workshop happens Wednesday, Sept. 25, 2024, at 1:00 Central time.

3 Simple Steps to Create Unforgettable Characters

Characters that captivate the reader are essential to all good novels. This workshop discusses a 3-step method to build your characters as well as utilizing elements outside the norm such as cultural communication differences and temperament devices like Myers-Briggs and Keirsey. Then putting it all together into a character profile as a guiding document while writing.

Invest in yourself and grow your writing skills.

Register today.

6 Steps to Prepare for Holiday Shopping

by

6 steps to prepare for holiday shoppers

Early last month I talked about a selling mindset. I encourage you to read that post again (or for the first time, if you missed it) since today’s post discusses preparing for holiday shopping.

We are approaching a big buying season, and now is the time to prepare. But if you dread marketing and selling, then this season is going to pass you by and your sales will continue to be dismal. Instead, learn what’s behind your dread and learn to overcome it.

Let’s take a brief look at some definitions.

[Read more…] about 6 Steps to Prepare for Holiday Shopping

Budgeting for Publishing Expenses

by

Budgeting your money for publishing expenses.

Budgeting—not a task that many like. And I’ll be the first to admit, I’ve always struggled to make a budget work.

The most important part of budgeting is establishing what things cost. We do it in our personal lives by knowing how much the rent, the utilities, groceries, car payment, etc. is each month. Those numbers tell us how much money we need to bring in each month.

And we need to do the same for our author business. Yes, your writing is a business. If you’re just starting out, it’s likely that money you spend toward getting your book ready for publishing is going to come out of your own pocket. That’s exactly how I started.

[Read more…] about Budgeting for Publishing Expenses

What Is Your Selling Mindset?

by

Are you excited about selling your books or afraid?

Most writers are thrilled to see their books earn big sales on Amazon. But I can count on one hand the number of writers who’ve said to me, “I enjoy marketing.” For many writers, marketing, aka asking people to buy your book, makes them cringe. Why? This is a question on which you want to spend some serious time to discover the answer.

This dread (or excitement) is what I term your selling-mindset.

Possible Reasons of a Negative Selling-Mindset

Reason number 1: Selling often means getting in front of people in some way, and you’d rather not be seen.

Why not? Are you afraid of something? If so, what? It might be you’d feel rejected if they say no. I want you to dig deep for an answer. If you don’t, that fear is going to continue to control you, and you’ll always struggle with selling your books.

[Read more…] about What Is Your Selling Mindset?