Blogging - am I wasting my time?

In a recent series of blogs I described my experience of taking the James Patterson master class on writing.  This was triggered by the simple fact that I’m not selling many books, despite the fact that those who have read them have enjoyed them.  And yes, taking that master class has changed the way I think about my writing and book construction.  So having, I feel, made positive progress in that direction I am now looking at the other activities surrounding my writing.  Top of the list is marketing and part of that is blogging i.e. this blog.

For three years now I have blogged every week on writing, science and science fiction and a few other things.  Recently though I have read other blogs that are making me question what I’m doing and why.  

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My monthly science highlights - 10)

I can’t believe I have now been producing these monthly blog round ups of what’s caught my eye in science for 10 months. From the feedback they 
seem to be appreciated. So here we go with this month’s selection:

• Space missions to look forward to

• More earth like planets found

• Umbrellas in the sky,

• A little hope for a long and healthy life

• The GM crops argument

• Some weird facts and more:

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Go on, try it - read some science fiction

I write science fiction, I read science fiction and I watch science fiction.  That’s not all I do I hasten to add.  If you’ve been reading my blog recently you’ll know I’ve been reading a number of detective stories / thrillers and that I’m writing a sort of detective story (OK with a supernatural element to it).  I also enjoy good historical fiction.  In my mind the divide between this and scifi/fantasy is not so great i.e these are about worlds that can seem totally alien to us.  I’ve also watched some great non-scifi movies recently such as:  The Eye in the Sky, Bridge of Spies and the Water Diviner.  Yes, at the same time I’ve seen the new Star Wars and The Martian and I’ve Childhood’s End recorded (the book being the one that got me hooked on science fiction in the first place).  However, in no way do I see myself as a science fiction ‘geek’.

But then you try and talk to most people about science fiction and you get that sympathetic/superior look/reply as if you’ve just admitted you’ve got all the Spice Girl records (I haven’t, not one, honest). 

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My writing - back to basics 5)

I’m nearing the end of the James Patterson Master class set of videos.  I have a routine for them now, I watch them in two’s.  I watch the second one I watched the previous time and a new one.  The first time I watch one of them I take notes, yes to refer to, but for me it also helps plant what I consider those important nuggets in my head.  The second time through I try to just listen and it’s amazing how you then latch onto new words of wisdom.  I’m now onto his thoughts on the thing that we writers must consider besides the actual mechanics of writing (some are perhaps more relevant than others – you’ll understand).  I’ll skip over working with a co-author, only because at the moment I’m not even remotely considering it.

The next three are all things that are perhaps the most difficult for the new/self-publishing author: Getting Published, Book titles and Covers, Marketing i.e. marketing yourself and your treasured work.   

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My writing - going back to basics 4)

For those that have been following my blog recently you’ll know that I have signed up for the on-line master class series by the best-selling thriller writer James Patterson.  Now, thrillers are not my thing but the guy has sold millions of books world-wide so knows a thing or two about writing successful commercial fiction.  I’m nearing the end now so what’s changing.

Well I never was a great planner, I tended to write and then see where it took me, which I know works for some people.  However, I think especially for the self-publisher that planning of every scene can add real value.  We perhaps can’t afford the luxury of in-depth and repeated editing.  So working on those scenes, the order, the twists and the impact, in detail before you start the writing I think is a winner.

For more follow the link to my blog: http://wp.me/p3ycbY-1mC