Post your questions for the Business Behind your Book

Do you have questions about the four stages of your book’s development? The guest for our WDRS segment: The Business behind your Book will come back to check on questions. If you post your question, you may win an ebook from expert author, book coach and publisher Shelley Lieber.

Post your questions for Shelley using the comment box below.

This offer expires soon, so do it now!

To hear the entire radio segment, go here:

http://www.writetodream.com/radioshow/no4.htm

To read a summary of the show, go here:

http://writetodream.wordpress.com/2008/10/29/the-business-behind-your-book/

The Business Behind your Book

Dear beautiful women authors,

If you missed this segment of the Write to Dream Radio Show, you MUST hear the recoding. This is what the audience is saying:

“This was like a 101 Course on Book Publishing, and for free.”

“I wish I had heard this show several years ago, when I was beginning. It would have saved me a lot of headaches.”

“This was a great topic. Thanks for a great show!”

So here’s the link right now:

http://www.writetodream.com/radioshow/no4.htm

Here’s a summary:

The show started with an inspirational and experiential exercise provided by Maria Mar. You can enjoy it at this blog, and post your comments or questions:

http://writetodream.wordpress.com/2008/10/29/building-you-book-like-a-bridge/

Then author, book coach and publisher Shelley Lieber, proceeded to fire an incredible amount of information, knowledge and resources that gave an amazing power journey to any beginning writer. Shelley is knowledgeable and her experience as an editor and book coach allows her to go directly to the most useful information. She packed an empowering show that you don’t want to miss. In fact, I recommend that you listen to it several times, arm with pen and pad. This show can open the doors to your book success or place you in the right track to plan a successful book.

Here are some pointers about the Business Behind your Book offered by Shelley Lieber:

BOOK PLANNING STAGE

Maria Mar: When does the book planning stage begin?

Shelley Lieber:

• Book Planning starts the minute you have the idea for the book. Don’t think you are not writing just because you are not writing your book draft yet. I strongly recommend that you use journal writing at this stage to develop your ideas.
• One of the best things you can do during your book planning stage is setting up goals. Get clear on your intentions for the book.

Maria Mar: What are the three best things authors can do for their expert (non-fiction) book at the planning stage?

Shelley Lieber:

• Know your unique positioning in the market for your book topic and genre.
• Answer this question: Who will read my book?
• Establish how you will reach your audience.

Maria Mar: What are the three best things authors can do for their fiction  book at the planning stage?

Shelley Lieber:

• Get your book premise clear: Who is the protagonist? What is the predicament?
• Identify the characters. Make a character list and describe each character physically and psychologically. Write a few dialogue lines. Give them each a unique voice.
• Read your manuscript aloud to get a feel for their voices.

PRODUCTION STAGE

Maria Mar: What is involved in the production stage?

Shelley Lieber:

• At the production stage, you are producing the manuscript. You are developing your skills and honing the writing. At this stage you are also keeping your writer’s discipline.
• Beginning writers often ask me that that they don’t have time to write. My answer: You don’t have time. You MAKE time.
• I recommend that you set a page or word count goal for each writing session. If you say that you are going to write for 30 minutes, you may find yourself with an empty page at the end of the 30 minutes!
• I strongly recommend that you join a writing group.
• If you are an expert, but do not necessarily want to be a writer, you can work with an editor or ghostwriter. They can take your knowledge and give it shape and style.

Maria Mar: How can women writers can use an online presence and new technologies to present their content in different or new ways, and when in the book development process should they plan for this?

Shelley Lieber:

That’s a great question because there are so many new technologies now that can help writers present their book. I recommend that they do this even before or as they write their book. Here are a couple of ideas.

Start your blog. If you are a fiction writer, you can write the blog from the protagonist’s point of view.

Create your newsletter. Start with a monthly newsletter. Newsletters are a lot of work, but they help you cultivate a relationship with your readers.

Network: Think of the topic, the readers and the places in your book, and network with people who have those passions or in those areas. If you are talking about race car driving, then connect to car racing associations and events, for example.

PUBLISHING STAGE

Maria Mar: What criteria should an author examine in order to establish if she should seek a POD publisher, do self-publishing or go to a traditional publisher?*

Shelley Lieber:

A writer needs to be clear on her goals. If you want to write a book for an intimate audience, let’s say to sell to friends and family, or to a small niche, then you may want to go the POD or self-publishing way.

If you are publishing the book to increase your business or position yourself as a visible expert, you may also use these publishing means because going to a traditional publisher may take 3-4 years to get the agent, sell the book to the publisher, and then get it published. To use the book within your business goals and timetable, POD or self-publishing are the best options.

But if you are a fiction writer who has polished her craft and wants her book to be a best-seller, then you may want to go to a traditional publisher.
______________________________

* NOTE: We were packing so much information, that I forgot to ask Shelley how she differentiates POD from Self-publishing. Here is my take:

POD Publishing means Print-on-demand publishing. There are many publishers that offer this service now. They charge the author a basic fee, plus the cost of printing and other services. They may also have editing, proofreading and other services, usually for an additional fee. Many of these POD publishers now offer distribution services, and the best ones offer a book return program so that your book can be distributed by the main distributors and sold at Barnes and Nobles, Amazon, etc. For a comparison on these services, go to:

http://www.publishondemand.net/

Self-publishing means that you publish your book yourself. The ISBN is yours. You may publish using print-on-demand or offset printing. The main element that differentiates whether you are a self-publisher is that the book’s ISBN is yours. Whoever has the ISBN of a book is recognized as the legal publisher and owns the rights to sell and market that book. Many POD publishers call their service self-publishing. But if they hold the ISBN, then you are not self-publishing. You may retain your copyright, and may (though be careful here) retrieve this copyright at any time to go with a traditional publisher or publish yourself. But you will –in most cases– have to start all over and get the book formatted again, and get another ISBN.

For a list of printers (digital and regular printing), as well as pointers in choosing your printer, go to the website of the Aeonix Publishing Group, by Pete Masterson:

http://www.aeonix.com/bookprnt.htm#anchor362837

Here is John Kremers’ list of publishers and editors for novels:

http://www.bookmarket.com/newnovels.htm

______________________

PROMOTION STAGE

Maria Mar: How much time does a writer need to commit to the promotion of her book and for how long?

Shelley Lieber:

Whether you go the POD, self-publishing or traditional publishing route, you as a writer are responsible for promoting your book. According to John Kremer, it takes about 3 years to position your book after it is completed. You should reserve 75-80% of your time to promote your book at the beginning of that stage. After your book is selling well, you can then reduce that time.

And that’s just a sample. There’s tons more information in the radio recording.

Listen to the entire radio show at:

http://www.writetodream.com/radioshow/no4.htm

We give a big thanks to Shelley Lieber for her generous, clear answers and sharing her knowledge with us. You can visit Shelley at: http://www.shelleylieber.com

Light and love,

Maria Mar

The Dream Alchemist

Building you Book Like a Bridge.

Dear beautiful women authors,

A couple of days ago, I was riding on the crowded New York city bus. It was a typical rush hour ride: impersonal, straight-faced strangers pretending not to be inches from each other. Suddenly the driver stopped violently. The people standing up fell forward on top of each other, like dominoes.

In a second, the people where no longer strangers. They were helping each other up, holding each other so they would not fall. They were standing up and offering their seats to elders and children. They were asking each other if they had been hurt. Their previously cold, uncaring faces were alive with love, warmth and concern.

I got a black and blue from the accident. But I got something priceless. An experience that love is our basic human Essence. An experience of our Oneness.

I want you to open your heart right now, breathing in deeply this truth: Your book is a nudge that helps your readers to awaken, to connect to themselves, and to each other. Your book shakes up the readers. It may be a gentle nudge or a slap on your face wake-up call.

Whether it is through a magical story, through your memories or through facilitating your readers’ connection with others or with themselves, your book is a nudge that your readers need to awaken and connect.

When you see your book as that special nudge your readers need, it becomes a bridge. Your book, then is a bridge that connects your readers with themselves and others. Building your book like a bridge is best done from the beginning, at the planning stage. But you can start this task at any point in your book path, even at the end, when you are already selling your book. Building your book as a bridge means ensuring that it will be there when your readers need that nudge, and that it will be at the right place and time to build the right bridge your readers need, whether that bridge is to knowledge, to themselves, to resources or to others in their community.

In this post, I include an exercise to help you build your book like a bridge. The exercise involves answering three simple questions. As the Dream Alchemist, I teach that questions are Psychic Keys. Use these three Psychic Keys to open the doors to your book’s success.

Some of you are beginning to write your book. You are worried about getting a publisher. It is good to think ahead, but I recommend that for the next several weeks, instead of worrying about when you should send your book to publishers, you focus on these three questions I will share with you.

Other authors reading this today are focusing on promoting your book or building a platform. These questions can generate creative, unique ideas for you, too.

Here I offer two examples on how you can answer these questions if you are a fiction writer or a non-fiction writer, and how your answers can help you build your book like a bridge.

EXERCISE: Building your Book like a Bridge

Question 1
How does your book connect your readers to each other, to themselves, to their humanity and to their community?

Question 2

Where are your readers gathering right now? What is the best place to build them a bridge?

Question 3

When should that nudge happen? When is the best time to build that bridge?

Why ask these questions? As you will see in the examples I provide below, your answers may allow you to build a sizable readership, find target markets, alternative sales and distribution partners for your book, and even get publishers to request for your book, instead of you chasing them to get it published. Are you listening now?

Two sample cases:

FICTION: Let us examine a case in which a fiction writer has written a novel about a woman who falls in and out of love and is dealing with her emotions, her grieving process and her relationship patterns.

NON-FICTION: Let us examine a case in which an expert in personal growth has written a book about conquering depression. The non-fiction book includes case studies, resources and practices.

Answer examples to question no. 1

Question 1

How does your book connect your readers to each other, to themselves, to their humanity and to their community?

Fiction sample: My novel takes the women readers into a journey that helps them see to what degree do they love themselves and the patterns of love relationships they hold. They also identify with the feelings of the protagonist as she rages and grieves. this helps them  laugh at themselves, forgive and accept themselves and move on to a better relationship.

Non-fiction sample: My book connect the reader to deeper levels of themselves and to others who are suffering and have overcome this condition. I also give resources, like book, programs and daily practices.

If you look at these answers you will immediately see, three things:

1. You are defining your readership. Knowing your market is the first step in finding your readers.

2. You are defining the benefits they will get from your book. Defining these benefits translates to gold in copyrighting your book promotional material and your web pages. The first thing your potential readers want to see is what benefits they will get from the book.

3. You are pointing towards places or partners for your promotion. By knowing your readers and the benefits they enjoy in reading your books, you now know where to search for these readers and can identify potential partners for your book promotion and sales. In the fiction case, the places where women meet to talk about love or to work-out relationship problems is the ideal bridge building place. In the non-fictional case, the places where people go to seek resources for depression is the ideal place.

Answer examples to question no. 2

Question No. 2

Where are your readers gathering right now? What is the best place to build them a bridge?

Fiction sample: ONLINE: Dating services. Websites teaching the Law of Attraction, in the pages for Soul Mates. LOCAL: Relationship programs. Could you work with non-profits, self-help groups, single women groups, and local therapists? Perhaps you could do an entertaining soiree for these groups at local cafes or restaurants, in which case they may offer a discount. You read the book and have an informal talk with the attendees.

Non-fiction sample: A possible association with 12 steps, non-profits and clinics addressing depression seems a good idea. You could do a free reading and Q&A and sell the book at the events, or offer an activity in which the book is bought as the material. Another possibility that comes up is to address college courses and events for social workers and psychology students. Again, your book can be part of the event, pre-sold as course material. ONLINE:  You can post entries in blogs addressing depression, giving short tips and linking back to your book page.

Question 3

When should that nudge happen? When is the best time to build that bridge?

Fiction sample: The obvious answer is Valentine Day. How about offering an event in Bares and Nobles for that day? In your local restaurants and Cafes? Other excellent times: Women’s History Month. Offer an mp3 audio of you reading an excerpt from the book, as a gift for women who register in the dating service during March.

Non-fiction sample: How about scheduling a series of speaking engagements for colleges? If you seek a chapter or angle that can help young people under pressure, you may then offer this speaking event to colleges that have a high level of suicide or depression rate among the students, and you can target these events for the beginning of the course.

As you can see, three simple questions can lead to power-packed answers that can help you find your readers, establish strong partnerships, choose the right place and time to promote your book. Armed with this marketing plan, it will be much easier to attract a traditional publisher, if you choose to go that route.

Light and love,

Maria Mar

The Dream Alchemist

For a book coaching session with me, check the Book and Ebook Writing Programs and the Book Clinic I offer at writetodream.com

PS. I offered a short version of this exercise at a segment of our Write to Dream Radio Show, where you can hear author, book coach and publisher Shelley Lieber in a power-packed, information-packed segment about the 4 developmental stages of your book. Go here:

http://www.writetodream.com/radioshow/no4.htm

Read a summary of that show here:

Next Radio Segment: The Business Behind Your Book

HTML clipboard

The Business Behind your Book

with your hostess

Maria Mar

The Dream Alchemist

GUEST: Shelley Lieber

When: Monday, October 27, 2008

Time: 8PM EST (5PM Pacific)

To get on air, call:

712-432-3000

Then enter BRIDGE 376861

SUMMARY

Question:
How is your book like a child?
Answer:
It goes through developmental stages.

Find out how to bring your book to term. In our next Write to Dream Radio Show segment, The Business Behind your Book, Shelley Lieber, author of 4Ps to Publishing Success: Get Your Manuscript Off Your Desk & Into Print, will help women writers to consider the four stages of book development: planning, production, publishing and promotion.

Author and publisher Shelley Lieber combines her background in writing, editing, marketing and public relations to help writers communicate their message via writing articles, blogs and books. She leads seminars and publishes the free weekly ezine “The Wordy Woman” to educate aspiring writers in the craft of writing and the business of publishing.

This is a power-packed radio segment, so make a point on being there LIVE, to get the best out of it.

About the Guest’s books
4Ps to Publishing Success: Get Your Manuscript Off Your Desk & Into Print is an easy-to-follow, step-by-step publishing guide for aspiring fiction and nonfiction authors. The workbook gives beginning and intermediate writers an overall picture of how to begin with an idea, develop it on paper, approach editors and agents (or self-publish), and promote themselves and their work. It includes exercises, resources and many, many tips.	2 books will be donated to the first women who submit their questions and are present in the live show! Subscribe and post questions now!

Guest:

Shelley Lieber

Author, publicist and South Florida regional representative/ National Association of Women Writers, Shelley Lieber has held a variety of positions from senior editor to marketing director to associate publisher in her 30-year career as a writer, editor, publicist and consultant. Today, she plans art exhibits, book signings, and creativity workshops for Visual Impressions Gallery of Arts and Letters where she also teaches writing classes and publishing seminars. She helps writers hone their craft, contact markets, and promote themselves and their work.

“Although I researched every top POD publisher on the market, I could not find one that met my standards of excellence for editing, design and personal attention to the customer. So, I started my own POD publishing company, Visual Impressions Publishing, a premium POD service,” affirms Shelley.

Learn from a woman that has excelled on all stages and aspects of book publishing from being a writer herself, to publishing and promoting books.

“I’m asking Shelley all the questions that you’ve been asking me, so don’t miss the live interview. That’s when you can really get your unique answers to your unique questions… not to mention win a free book… or even a mini-coaching session!” hostess Maria Mar reminds you.

Find inspiration, motivation and information in this session of Write to Dream Radio Show.

Special Win a book

Visual Impressions Publishing is donating prizes for this show!

From the pool of women present in the live show who submit a question, Maria Mar will select 2 questions for the book prizes. 2 other women will obtain the ebook prizes. And two very lucky women will earn the mini-coaching sessions, who go the first posted, best questions. To win, all you have to do is:

1. Reserve your seat and post your question.

2. Show up at the live show.

3. When Maria Mar calls you, ask your question in your own words.

4. Remember: you must be there to win the prize.

Subscribe and post questions now!

It only takes 2 minutes.

Shelley will be answering Maria’s questions to help you plan, produce, publish and promote your book. Maria will be asking questions that are key to your book success. Learn the back stage skills you need to make your book a star!

This segment goes on air at:

October 27, 2008

8PM EST (New York Time)

5PM Pacific Time

To get on air, call:

712-432-3000

Then enter BRIDGE 376861

Book Prizes for first women to subscribe and post questions!

Reserve your seat or post questions now!

Click here.

http://www.writetodream.com/radioshow.htm

Your Book Success: Upcoming Show- Your Expert System and your Book

Hello, beautiful sisters,

We are getting ready for our next radio segment. An update notice before I tell you about this exciting interview with our guest.

________________________________________

UPDATE

Write to Dream Radio Show has now divided our program into two different programs. This improvement allows us to serve the reader and writer markets better. Readers will be able to concentrate on what they love most: reading and meeting the authors. Writers will be able to benefit from expert advise. The two programs are:

Your Book Success: Hostess Maria Mar interviews women experts who can help you write, publish, market and make money from your book and other products and services. Innovative ideas and new trends, resources and inspiration for fiction and non-fiction women writers and experts. This will air live every second Monday of the month.

Meet the Authors: For women who love to read. Meet women authors personally. Ask questions. Hear them reading an excerpt from their book. Enjoy inspiration and win book prizes. This will air live every last Monday of the month. This program starts on November, 2008.

Okay. Now to our upcoming segment:

___________________________

TOPIC: Your Expert System and your Book

GUEST: Denise Coates

Law of Attraction Coach and Author of “Feel it Real!” published by Atria Books, imprint of Simon and Schuster

When: Monday, September 29, 2008

Time: 8PM EST (5PM Pacific)

Do you have an expert system or body of knowledge that you could pour (or are planning to express) in a book? This segment is dedicated to helping you, the women expert, to organize and express your expert system in a book quickly and easily.

Your goal is to help others and send your message into the world. After all, that is your life’s purpose and dedication. Yet, you need to understand and receive the benefits that this book can bring to your life and career.

Creating a book or ebook with your expert system instantly positions you as an expert, opening the doors to many opportunities, allowing you to attract coaching and consulting clients, giving you extra credibility and visibility and allowing you to charge better fees as a speaker. (Not to mention the extra income from selling your book at the events.)

Denise Coates, Law of Attraction coach and author of “Feel it Real” will reflect on her own experience expressing her knowledge and expert system in a self-published ebook and a book published by Atria Books (Simon and Schuster), one of the top publishers in the USA. She will also comment on creating easy, quick audio products, bundling products and creating your own style and organizational system to create your products.

To this, hostess Maria Mar, author, CEO of ShamansDance Publishing and Productions and a book coach herself, will add some tips on quickening the organization of your expert system while you write your book. This is a power-packed radio segment, so make a point on being there LIVE, to get the best out of it.

Denise’s publishing story is also an amazing tribute to the Law of Attraction.

A few short months ago, Denise Coates was living in a hotel after an environmental health issue forced her to suddenly flee her home in the polluted Central Valley of California for the coast of Santa Barbara. She and her husband ended up in a hotel for several months as they tried to rebuild their lives. Coates was already a successful Law of Attraction coach with a self published book on the subject. One day Coates thought. “Why don’t I use the Law of Attraction to manifest my own book deal with a big publisher?”  And she did! Find all about it.

Find inspiration, motivation and information in this session of Write to Dream Radio Show.

Subscribe and submit your question now.

It only takes 2 minutes.

Special Win a book

Atria books is donating books for the first women who:

• Subscribe for the show

• Post a question

• Show up at the live session.

Subscribe and post your question.

Click below.

http://www.writetodream.com/radioshow.htm

The Role of Emotion in the Law of Attraction

Hi, beautiful sisters,

Before we go on the air this Monday, I hope you take a little while to reflect on an aspect of the Law of Attraction that is frequently ignored. Denise Coates, our guest for the next show (Your Expert System and your Book) is one of the few Law of Attraction coaches addressing this issue. So here is some food for thought. I’d love to hear your comments.

Emotions are the fuel for the Law of Attraction.

What does this mean? Emotions are energy-in-motion in your energy system, your Human Energy Field. This is also known as the Energy Bodies, the Subtle Body or the Aura.

While this may sound esoteric, it is the essence of the Law of Attraction. We have from 7-10 Energy Bodies. These Energy Bodies are the templates that build your physical body. See them as a bridge that goes from your physical self into the Universal Field of Possibilities. The first Energy Body is a blue grid of energy lines called the Etheric Body. Here you are working with acupuncture and the meridians.

The second Energy Body is the Emotional Body. Here you are working with emotions and the creative energy, with passion. The Emotional Energy Body is fluid, like a rainbow cloud. The great thing about fluid Energy Bodies is that they are very malleable. They can shift easily. They can be dissolved, cleansed, re-textured, re-shaped, released or nurtured. You nurture emotions through giving them attention and holding the thought patterns associated with them. The difficult thing about emotions and the fluid Energy Bodies is that they are cumulative. In other words, like water, every drop adds to the others and unless you dissolved them, they can become very dense. Of course, this density can be a blessing. Feed gratitude and every drop forms an ocean of gratitude in your being!

The third Energy Body is the Mental Body, again, this is a yellowish grid-like template made by your thoughts.Take a minute to let this sink, sister. Your thoughts form a template that then shapes your body and your life. That’s deep, don’t you think? Thoughts are fed by emotions. They are also fed by repetition and attention. Feed them and those lines solidify until they become reality. That is why so many spiritual teachers throughout time have said ” You are your thoughts.” Most Law of Attraction experts focus on this level. As you can see the emotions are essential in feeding your thoughts. But because emotions are linked to the Female Way of Knowing, or your Female Shield, they have been neglected until recently.

The fourth Energy Body is the Astral Body, a fluid cloud of pink-green pastel feelings and soul’s wisdom.This are feelings that vibrate at a more refined level than the raw emotions in the Emotional Body. Like the emotions, these feelings are malleable. They also feed your thoughts and your voice and words.

The fifth Energy Body is the Ketheric Template, which responds to the Throate Chakra and is connected to how you use your voice and words to create your world. This is a bluish grid that is used in spiritual surgery to affect the physical body deeply, such as extractions of tumors and so one.

Are you seeing the pattern here?

There is one fluid Energy Body and then one grid-like template. What you are seeing is the dance of yin and yang in your Aura. The fluid bodies interact with the environment and are the creative, receptor, connectors, interactive, relationship builders. (They are the Yin force in your Human Energy Field). Once they hold on to an emotion or feeling and it becomes localized or intense, due to your attention and acceptance of it, this emotion begins to penetrate the grid-like bodies. These are the Yang force in your Aura. They organize energy patterns to facilitate these patterns in taking localized physical form.

When an emotion penetrates the grid-like Mental Body or Ketheric Template, it becomes less “cloudy” and more “linear”. It’s becoming solid, sisters! Feed that thought with your attention, and it becomes fully solid and manifests in your body as your body shape, weight, presence, personality, voice and words.

If this still sounds esoteric, let’s take an example.

You are sharing an apartment with two roommates. You are staying there temporarily because you want to manifest your perfect home and you are saving money to buy it. One roommate is a slob and has negative attitudes that create a negative environment. The other is adorable and you get along fine with her. Every time you interact with the less likeable roommate, you get angry, frustrated and resentful. This is translated into your Emotional Body in dark-red smoky clouds of toxic emotion. You could let it go and concentrate on what’s right in the house, including the relationship with your loving, positive roommate. This would lessen and dispel the toxic cloud. But you don’t. You dwell on it, complaining and brooding. Why can’t you let it go?

The underlying truth is that the feelings this roomate provokes in your go right into a toxic emotional marsh you already have, based on your relationship with your alcoholic auntie who used to live with you in your childhood house and did nothing except be a slob. This emotional marsh is the Emotional Undertow that drags you away from your dream of a beautiful home where you live in harmony and keeps you stuck in feeding the same old frustration. The new frustration is like the last drop in the old glass of your emotions.

What do you think will happen?

You got it. Your Emotional Body gets dense and charged with frustration, anger and resentment. As it is not cleansed, it becomes more solid. It joins the old Emotional Undertow. Fed by your old line of thoughts, this immense cloud becomes solid lines of energy, like wires that constantly crisscross the neurons in your brain, fed by your attention and emotions. What do you think you are attracting?

Let’s say that you are NOT attracting your harmonious home. In fact, you are repelling it. Your Emotional Body is very powerful. Like the moon, it is magnetic. Have you ever felt the presence of a very charismatic person? That’s the power of the Emotional Body.

It will attract that which resonates with your Primary Emotions (read habitual or stronger). It is also highly permeable, interactive and shifting. This means that it either attracts or repels, sucks-in or rejects other vibrations, and that it vibrates strongly and is mobile, creating motivation and passion and literally moving you.

Your Astral Body is even more powerful in a way. It deals with your heartfelt, more subtle feelings. The heart, known to the ancient alchemists as the Alchemical Rose, is the Seat of Manifestation. In order for your dream to take form, your desire most be fully planted and bloom in your heart.

But if you are using your attention to feed frustration, resentment and toxic anger, your heart will close to defend itself. Your Soul will experience hunger: hunger for love, connection, company, love and Oneness. This dries the power of the Alchemical Rose. You will instead feel abandoned, orphaned and alone in the world.

You are NOT the victim of your environment. You are a creatress. If your environment, your past or your fears are sabotaging your desire, you can shift that pattern. The emotions are the key to that shift. Emotions can be released, they can be cleansed, they can be re-textured, they can be fed or starved. Here are a few things you can do. Let me know how they work for you.

• Feed the emotions that attract what you desire: gratitude, joy, harmony, serenity and creative passion.
• Starve the emotions that repel what you desire: hatred, frustration, impatience, resentment, and toxic anger.

• Shift the anger you feel by cleansing it of toxins. Then you can use your anger to move you into positive action.
• Re-textured emotions such as envy, jealousy and feelings of insufficiency or abandonment. Re-shape them as you do with clay. See that what you envy is what you desire. This will transform the object of your envy into an inspirational model. See that your feelings of insufficiency are just your Little Orphan Self. Become a mother to that Inner Child. Let her know how good she is. By mothering yourself, you feed your self-love and self-esteem.

Now you begin to see how powerful the role of emotions is in the activation of the Law of Attraction. By feeding, starving, cleansing, re-texturing and releasing your emotions you can create the powerful alchemy that attracts what you desire into your life.

If you want to know more about this, then tune in to our next show:

On September 29, 2008 at 8PM EST/5PM Pacific, I will be interviewing Denise Coates, Law of Attraction life coach and author of “Feel it Real!”

This interview will focus more on writing your expert book, but Denise welcomes any Law of Attraction question, and you can post them when you subscribe to the event.

http://www.writetodream.com/radioshow.htm

So, what do you think now of the power of emotions as fuel for the Law of Attraction? And more importantly… what do you feel?

Light and Love

Maria Mar

The Dream Alchemist

Summary and Audio link to “Who are your Writing for?”

Who are you writing for? Summary and Audio This program was pure magic! We created an intimate, relaxing environment to address topics that usually stress women authors, like marketing and publishing. The feedback from the women, as you will read below, is that they were energized and inspired. “I was so uplifted by the call, and thank you for the book gift! Really. I’m searching for a good novel right now and the best ones are always gifts. Best of luck in your program, I think it’s a great thing to do.” Nancy Marmolejo Visibility Expert Award winning business woman Write to Dream Radio Show is able to present in a fun and interesting manner, ideas and tips for publishing your books. The program host, Maria Mar, invites professionals with knowledge and sensitivity that address the possibility of marketing and publishing at a large scale. I realized, after listening and participating in two programs, that their interactive format and open dialogues are eliciting new ideas and potential for my books. I highly recommend Write to Dream Radio Show to all women, especially Latinas, who are writing and want to reach more audiences. Myrna Nieves Award winning writer and professor It was such a delight to be on your wonderful show. I felt an INSTANT connection with you, too. I learned so much from your wisdom. One of my favorite thin gs you said (and I’ve quoted you twice today) was “Obstacles are arrows.” Wow! Denise Coates Author of “Feel it real” Law of Attraction coach Free ebook for all subscribers! I (hostess Maria Mar) created a FREE ebook to help women develop their Book Marketing Strategy. You can get “30 Marketing Points to get your Book Published by Top Publishers or Sell Tons of Books Yourself” at this blog, under the post “Get your Free Ebook on Book Marketing and Publishing Here.” The ebook contains true stories of authors who have managed to use internet resources to become instant celebrities, raise a platform and get top publishing contracts, as well as ideas that can help you see if and how you have or can readily build a platform. It also contains 9 steps to turn the marketing points into a marketing plan, plus resources. Enjoy! Subscribe to get the ebook. If you already subscribed, we’ll send you the password. Amy Tannenbaum Amy Tannenbaum, associate editor of Atria Books (Simon & Schuster) talked about three important aspects of capturing the attention of the publishers. 1. Build your platform. A platform, according to Amy, is an author’s network. If you are a famous person with a large following, that would be at the high end of the spectrum. But if you are not, then two things can help you: make sure you have a story that is strong and interesting and that can appeal to a large audience, and BUILD your platform. 2. Use online resources creatively. Amy mentioned Tila Tequila, who raised 2.7 million MySpace friends and got a role on the A Shot at Love reality TV show. NOTE: We have many similar stories in the free ebook. Download yours and start creating your marketing plan right away! 3. Know the trend. Scan the shelves. Amy recommended that you see the trends that are emerging. You don’t want to write just about trends, because you need to write about something that you are passionate about, as Anjanette commented (See below). But you can see what’s on people’s minds. What’s catching the public eye, and work with that. Scan the shelves of books in your genre and see what is being sold and read to get a sense of the content, quality and style. 4. Know your audience BEFORE you begin your book. “Being clear on who your audience is affects your style, your voice and your content,” Amy reminded us. Anjanette Delgado Anjanette Delgado, author of The Heartbreak Pill, revealed her secret for getting published. Her publishing story “I was doing my job at Univision, training a group of writers, when this woman, who turned out to be the editor of Atria Books, told me that I should write a book. I said I had a book. At that time I had been rejected by an editor, and my book was in a drawer, where I had put it after lots of tears. Johanna Castillo told me to send it to her after I got over the funk. I dug out the book, dried my tears, and sent it. One day I received a call. ‘We want to buy your book.’ That was it.” The power of availability Anjanette revealed that she uses this availability approach for connecting to readers, events and venues. She is available for activities. She goes to events, no matter how many or how few people there are in the audience. “You never know who is in that audience. You never know who knows who in that audience. I have gotten really good opportunities and invitations because I went somewhere and someone heard me and invited me to an amazing event.” Angling: be creative with your book promotion Another thing that stroke me was her creativity for marketing tactics. She told a story about wanting to be in one of those literary parlors that gives instant glamour to the writers who attend, but not being able to get in. Everything was booked. Then she came up with this idea. Why not do a Heartbreak Night? We’ll prepare a Heartbreak cocktail, read the book, and create an entire environment to address heartbreak. The curators loved it, and they opened the space in a day it was usually closed, just to get this event going. Anjanette is a great example of what I said in my opening inspirational meditation. Authors need to release the fear, negative attitudes and assumptions about book marketing. We have to see it as an Act of Power. We need to re-define it so that we can find a path to our readers, our people. Ironically, there lies the strength of our appeal to publishers. Persistence and commitment Anjanette also personifies the persistence and resilience we must develop as artists and authors. We cannot afford to take rejection personally. We need to persist and maintain our self-esteem intact. The way to do this, Anjanette showed us through her acts and choices, is an open attitude of learning and improvement. “The first editor who rejected me was right in doing so,” Anjanette reflects. “I read the feedback and worked the manuscript, and that is why it was ready to be accepted by Atria Books.” Passion keeps you going Many women in the audience have called me to comment on Anjanette’s presence. Simply put, they love her! She is a passionate, people-loving author, and it shows. Another important message that Anjanette gave to writers is to write about what you are passionate about. “You will have to write for a long time. Then you will need to do one or more revisions. Then you may need to do or review the translation. And then you have to read your book. Talk about your book. Sell your book. This is not a month-long event. This is an event through many years. You have to be passionate about your topic.” Have a clear vision of your reader While Anjanette says that she writes about what she is passionate about, she also says that she has a clear vision of her reader. She sees this ideal woman reader to whom she writes, and that helps her to find an intimate voice, a connection. What do you think? See question below. Honored Women in the Audience Myrna Nieves Award-winning writer and educator Myrna, who has dedicated 20 years to the Boricua College Poetry Series, bringing 243 Latino poets to an audience of 8,500, congratulated the Write to Dream Radio Show for opening a space where women authors, experts and readers can find inspiration, support and insights. Myrna is an advisor and supporter of WRDS and I was honored that she highly recommended the experience. For more information about Myrna, please see the post. Session 2: Women experts and writers in the show- Who are you writing for? Nancy Marmolejo Award-winning business woman Nancy Marmolejo, Visibility Expert at http://www.vivavisibility.com, was excited to share with creative women. She observed that each of us has a Medicine and that we need to express this Medicine in the world. Nancy encouraged all women writers and experts to express their “Medicines” and become highly visible. Writers and experts need to find coaches like Nancy who can help them develop skills and strategies for presenting and marketing themselves, getting noticed by the media and using social media and networking to create a strong platform for their books. “There are too many unpublished authors out there and you need to come out and become visible, so that you can share your unique Medicine with the world,” Nancy prompted. Denise Coates Law of Attraction Coach Author of “Feel it Real” The surprise guest for the show was Denise Coates, the author of “Feel it Real”, recently published by Atria Books. Denise teaches the most powerful secrets of the Law of Attraction: your emotions. Denise will be the guest to our next show, and she made a cameo appearance to say hi. My encounter with Denise shows the Law of Attraction at work. I had read her story earlier in the week in connection to another research I was doing. When I was preparing the ebook, I decide that I wanted to include her story and contacted her to confirm that the story was true. I also invited her to the show. She responded saying that not only the story was true, but Amy Tannenbaum, the woman I was interviewing in the show, was her editor at Atria Books! To find out how Denise used the Law of Attraction to attract a publisher for her book, visit the post Next Show: Your Expert System and your Book. Writer of the Month Award goes to: Annecy Báez Author. Artist. Annecy Báez writes poetry and fiction. Her most recent literary work, “the Red Shoes”, was translated by Ruth Herrera and appeared in Spanish as “Tacones Rojos”  in Caudal, a literary journal in the Dominican Republic, “the Silence of Angels” appeared in. Callaloo, an African American Literary Journal from John Hopkins University, other works have appeared in Vinyl Donuts an anthology from the National Book Foundation, Brujula and in Tertuliando/Hanging Out, a bilingual literary anthology published by Hunter Caribbean Studies and Latinarte. She is the member of Daisy Cocco De Fillipis Latina writer’s group, “La Tertulia”.   Annecy Báez is the winner of the 2007 Miguel Mårmol Prize for her collection of short stories, My Daughter’s Eyes and Other Stories. My Daughter’s Eyes and Other Stories, winner of the 2007 Mármol Prize, is a collection of fourteen interrelated stories about young Dominican women living in the Bronx as they deal with the choices they make in their daily life. These stories span three decades, beginning in the 1970s, and their topics range from mother-daughter struggles, father-daughter betrayal, family, and child abuse, to emerging sexuality, love, loss and healing. Reminiscent of Sherwood Anderson’s Winesburg, Ohio, My Daughter’s Eyes contains stories about various compelling neighborhood characters so that collectively these stories have the impact of a novel, characterizing the dramatic changes that can occur in an immigrant’s life. Annecy Báez’s daring treatment of taboo themes, such as sexual child abuse and the struggle of the individual against restrictive traditional values, makes this book unique in Dominican fiction. Annecy receives these awards: Spotlight on the live show and in this blog. Gift copy of Anjanette Delgado’s novel The Heartbreak Pill 30 minute consultation with Maria Mar. Visit Annecy at: http://www.annecybaez.com http://annecybaez.blogspot.com Audio. Listen to this radio program. A new window will open to the program archive. Scroll down and click on menu to hear the recording. Related posts: Who are you writing for? (Introduction and about the guests) Who are you writing for?/Questions and Answers Features award winners and their questions, as well as posted questions and answers. Who are you writing for/Links, events and resources Links events and resources mentioned in the show, and more! 13 Marketing Points to get your Book Published by Top Publishers (Preview of free ebook) Get your free ebook on Book Marketing and Publishing here (Free ebook. Subscribe to get your password.) Questions for you… Writers: Do you have your readers in mind when you start writing? Amy recommends this, while Anjanette says that you got to write about what you are passionate about. But then Anjanette adds that she has a clear image of her reader when she writes. Can you reconcile these statements? How do you feel? Readers: What compels you to buy a book? What makes you put the book back on the shelf and walk away? Let your writers know! Best Post for this question gets a gift of Anjanette’s novel delivered to her home! Go for it! To post your comment, click on the “Comments” link at the end of the tiny blue string of words at the bottom of the post.

Questions and Answers-Who are you Writing for?

Questions and Answers These are the questions submitted by women for this radio session. We include the award-winning questions and feature the readers, writers or experts who posted them. These questions were answered by the experts featured in the program: Anjanette Delgado, author of The Heartbreak Pill Amy Tannenbaum, Associate Editor, Atria Books, Simon & Schuster To hear other questions and answers, listen to the audio. Here we also post the questions of women who were not able to attend the live show. I answer them to the best of my abilities and offer additional resources. Some expert guests come around a couple of days after the show and give more detailed answers. You are welcome to post more questions or give your own answers. QUESTION NO. 1 Writer of the Month Award* Annecy Báez Author. Artist. Annecy is a published fiction writer Annecy Báez writes poetry and fiction. Her most recent literary work, “the Red Shoes”, was translated by Ruth Herrera and appeared in Spanish as “Tacones Rojos” in Caudal, a literary journal in the Dominican Republic, “the Silence of Angels” appeared in. Callaloo, an African American Literary Journal from John Hopkins University, other works have appeared in Vinyl Donuts an anthology from the National Book Foundation, Brujula and in Tertuliando/Hanging Out, a bilingual literary anthology published by Hunter Caribbean Studies and Latinarte. She is the member of Daisy Cocco De Fillipis Latina writer’s group, “La Tertulia”. Annecy Báez is the winner of the 2007 Miguel Mårmol Prize for her collection of short stories, My Daughter’s Eyes and Other Stories. My Daughter’s Eyes and Other Stories, winner of the 2007 Mármol Prize, is a collection of fourteen interrelated stories about young Dominican women living in the Bronx as they deal with the choices they make in their daily life. These stories span three decades, beginning in the 1970s, and their topics range from mother-daughter struggles, father-daughter betrayal, family, and child abuse, to emerging sexuality, love, loss and healing. Reminiscent of Sherwood Anderson’s Winesburg, Ohio, My Daughter’s Eyes contains stories about various compelling neighborhood characters so that collectively these stories have the impact of a novel, characterizing the dramatic changes that can occur in an immigrant’s life. Annecy Báez’s daring treatment of taboo themes, such as sexual child abuse and the struggle of the individual against restrictive traditional values, makes this book unique in Dominican fiction. Annecy receives these awards: Spotlight on the live show, radio web page and in this blog. Gift copy of Anjanette Delgado’s novel The Heartbreak Pill 30 minute consultation with Maria Mar. Visit Annecy at: http://www.annecybaez.com http://annecybaez.blogspot.com Annecy Asks: Does a large press ever purchase a published book from a smaller independent press? How does this transaction happen? Thanks. Amy Answers: It does not happen a lot, but it does happen. It happens when a book is selling extremely well, but the small press does not have the capacity to cover the demand. The large press has to buy out the book from the small press. * The Reader/Writer/Expert of the Month award goes to the person who first posts the best question and responds promptly to our email announcement, committing themselves to be present in the show to receive the answer. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ QUESTION NO. 2 Winner of Smart Question Award* Migdalia is both, a writer and an expert writing her first book NAME: Migdalia Santiago Writer, poet, social worker, counselor and activist “After a long battle with depression and domestic violence, one day I got up from bed. I had spent months on that bed, unwilling to live. That day I got up and walked out of the darkness into the light. I won the battle against depression and was able to transform my pain into a foundation stone that sustains me. I stepped on to that stone to rise above depression, violence, meaninglessness and crisis. I now walk in peace. I love myself and I am making my dream come true, one day at a time. I currently help people find the strength to move out of depression. I help those who want to make a positive change in their lives. In my writing I seek to touch pain until it becomes a healing stone, a stepping stone to your dream. I am a healer. My voice awakens in you the memories of you own perfection, bringing you to wholeness. Like a Fairy Godmother, I extend my magic wand to transform your old, raggedy dress into a magnificent gown. Wear it to dance away your wounds and make your dreams come true.” Migdalia writes in Spanish. She is now writing her first book: Creadores de Suenos Encuentra la fuerza para realizar tus sueños Self-help with storytelling “In ‘Creadores de Sueños,‘ you will find a story that is not only mine, but yours. It is the story of many people who are battling against depression, domestic violence or the wounds left by dysfunctional families. It is the story of those who seek solutions, who want to find a deep and productive meaning in their lives. In this self-help book, I weave my simple, but successful recovery principles and useful advise with magical stories that inspire you and quicken your healing process. Journey through this book in quest of the treasures hidden inside the rusty trunk of your memories.” * To win the Smart Question Award, you must submit the question and be present in the live show to hear the answer. Migdalia receives these awards: Spotlight on this blog. Gift copy of Anjanette Delgado’s novel The Heartbreak Pill Migdalia asks: How can I keep my customers interested in my books and products? Anjanette answers: Angling. Think of different angles to your story and use these angles to connect to the media, venues and occasions. For example, I really wanted to get my book read at a very prestigious local saloon. But they were all booked. I came up with an angle of the Heartbreak Night, with a special heartbreak drink and the reading of an excerpt. They loved it so much that they opened the saloon on a day it was usually closed! In my novel, I have found three angles: romantic scientific female humor Posted Questions Question NO. 3 NAME: Monica Dennis FROM: Connecticut Monica is an expert writing her first book Monica Asks: 1. How long is it expected for a person to take to write a book proposal? 2. Is life experience enough when it comes to “expertise” in an area? 1. How long does it take to write a book proposal? Maria Mar Answers: That depends on several things: Length and complexity of your book. Your skill to come up with an appealing angle and convincing cover letter. Elements or partners in your marketing strategy that you need to bring together in your proposal. Your book proposal writing experience. Whether you hire a book proposal expert, editor or other consultants who will review your proposal. How many revisions you need to make. If it’s your first book proposal, I recommend that you allow several months, get a book proposal coach or consultant and/or book proposal templates. Once you get experienced, you can probably write a book proposal in about a week, including a day or two ~to let it simmer and then revise it. It is always good to get an expert reading and feedback, specially if you want a juicy contract from a top publisher. For non-fiction, you can write the book proposal once you have the following: Full clarity of your topic, angle, audience and style. Chapter outline and summary of all chapters. 50 pages or 1-2 well written chapters. Make sure that you know your audience and market niches. Make sure that you can offer a good platform, and Present a strong Book Marketing Strategy to the publishers. For fiction, it is usually expected that you have already finished the novel or book. This said, there are always exceptions, but usually they are exactly that: the exception to the rule. Don’t count on it. Here are some resources. Book Marketing Strategy For help assessing your strongest Marketing Points and weaving them into a Marketing Strategy, subscribe to Write to Dream Radio, so you can get the password to obtain the FREE EBOOK, 30 Marketing Points to get your Book Published by Top Publishers or Sell Tons of Books Yourself. Once you subscribe, visit the post: “Get your Free Ebook on Book Marketing and Publishing Here” You will be able to download the FREE ebook. Get help with your book proposal I highly recommend the services of a professional for your first book proposal, especially if you are submitting it to top publishers. Here is my favorite consultant. Marcela Landrés Helping writers get published http://www.marcelalandres.com/home.html Marcela has tons of free resources on her website, including Book Proposal Basics, Writers’ Groups, Contests and more. http://www.marcelalandres.com/resources.html You can also purchase her book: How Editors Think, by Marcela Landres This ebook will help you get a sense of what editors are looking for. Inspired by her experience as a former Simon & Schuster editor, How Editors Think: The Real Reason They Rejected You, reveals what it really takes to get published. If you want to understand why editors choose to publish certain writers and reject the rest, learn how they think. Topics discussed include: the three most common mistakes writers make when trying to get published; the two most important jobs of an editor (editing isn’t one of them!); and the number one quality editors look for in a writer. Based on the popular workshop of the same name, How Editors Think offers 33 pages of no added filler, just frank advice. http://www.marcelalandres.com/E-book.html Guidelines for book proposal and book production Cambridge University offers detailed, downloadable guidelines for creating a book proposal, book production and more. It offers criteria for Cambridge, New York and Melbourne authors or publishers. Here’s the link: http://authornet.cambridge.org/information/proposaluk/ Monica Asks: 2. Is life experience enough when it comes to “expertise” in an area? Maria Mar Answers: The very meaning of expertise presupposes life experience. A recent graduate from a profession could not, for example, claim to be an expert. Being an expert entails: You have at least 5 years of experience in the topic. You have discovered unique solution(s) to a particular problem(s) in that topic You have used these solutions in your own life and/or to help a considerable number of people. You have enough consistent feedback from these people to know that your solutions work. You do not need to have a college degree to be an expert. It helps to have some accreditation, as a coaching training or business degree, but it is not necessary. What is important is that you: Build up your credibility as an expert. Collect testimonies and feedback from your clients and publish them in your website. Insert them in your ebooks and media room. Network with expert peers and get some endorsements. Feature their photo, name and title with their quote in your website, media room and brochures. Collect success stories from your clients and from other sources that enforce your message and principles. Include in your literature and website any scientific evidence, current studies or news that reinforce your message and unique solution. Submit your name, your website, ezine or book to an award nomination contest. Awards lend high credibility to your expertise claim. Position yourself as an expert by writing an ebook or book (Visit this page to understand why: http://writetodream.com/magazine/article1-yourexpertbook.htm Become visible as an expert.To become visible as an expert, I recommend this coach. She is one of my Dream Team members, which means we have screened her, worked with her and highly recommend her. Nancy Marmolejo Visibility and Zizzibility Expert http://www.vivavisibility.com QUESTION NO. 4 NAME: Christina Francine From: New York Christina is a fiction writer Christina asks: How can a person learn what is wrong with their manuscript aside from being in a writer’s group? Maria answers: Submit it to a specialist. See information about Marcela Landrés above, or visit her website. Read excerpts in public readings for the appropriate audiences. Ask for feedback. Start your own Book reading Soiree. They are fun. I do them with my clients. A group of writers or experts writing their books get together at a house. They each invite a couple of potential readers. You have wine and cheese and whatever else you want. Each writer reads an excerpt, and then you do a round of feedback. Be sure to write the feedback down as it’s being told! Contact me for the Feedback Hand Out for Book Reading Soiree. There is a science to what to ask in order to get not only the information you need, but excellent testimonies to use later. Question No. 5 NAME: Donna Sorensen FROM: Texas Donna likes to write for self-development Donna asks: Writing has always been a passion and journaling is part of it. I would like to step out of my comfort zone. How do I know when I’m ready to really write a book and how do I find a good story to tell? Maria answers: If you have a passion for writing, have been writing for many years, and you are beginning to ask THE question about writing a book, my instinct is that the time is NOW. Here are some questions to ask yourself to get going. What is stopping me from beginning my story? (For an article that helps you check any procrastination issues, visit this page: http://writetodream.com/magazine/article4-thebookthatyouarenotwriting.htm What are my three core values, that which gives meaning to my life, and what is the message I would like to give to my children or loved ones about this values in life? What experience from my past or present can I use as the seed to tell a story that conveys this message? Then set aside a special week-end or time, clear your writing area and desk, put some flowers and music, get out your best red wine bottle, and romance that story until it embraces you fully. That’s all for today. If you find this discussion useful, make sure to subscribe to Write to Dream Radio Show, post your question and be there to hear the answer! The synergy of women coming together to support each other cannot be communicated in the blog. You can also read more articles about book writing at the Write to Dream Magazine. Light and love, Maria Mar The Dream Alchemist Audio. Listen to this radio program. A new window will open to the program archive. Scroll down and click on menu to hear the recording. SUBSCRIBE It only takes 3 minutes. Related posts: Who are you writing for? (Introduction and about the guests) Who are you writing for?/Questions and Answers Answer to posted questions and award winners and their questions Who are you writing for/ Links, events and resources Links events and resources mentioned in the show, and more! 13 Marketing Points to get your Book Published by Top Publishers (Preview of free ebook) Get your free ebook on Book Marketing and Publishing here (Free ebook. Subscribe to get your password.) Engage! You are welcome to share other answers and resources that can help the writers and experts in this post. To post your comment, click on the “Comments” link at the end of the tiny blue string of words at the bottom of the post.

Protected: Get your FREE Ebook on Book Marketing and Publishing here.

This post is password protected. To view it please enter your password below:

Password:

Questions and Answers-Writing from your Authentic Voice

Questions and Answers for the radio program: Writing from your Authentic Voice

The questions posted by people who attended the show can be heard in the recording at:

http://www.writetodream.com/radioshow/1-writing_from_your_authentic_voice.htm

The questions posted by people who are not present during the show cannot be answered in the show, in consideration to those who do show up. As a courtesy, Maria Mar answers as many as we can here in the blog. Some expert guest may also visit the blog to leave answers. Bottom line? Make this blog the stop to visit for several days after the show. If you subscribe, you will be informed when a new entry is posted.

Question: Posted by Glorya

Letting go of self-doubt when writing.

Answer: By Maria Mar

We talked a lot in the show about the place that we need to go in order to tap into our Authentic Voice. Corazon Tierra described this place beautifully as a center of silence where your heart is open and you are connected to the reader because you are in Oneness. She described it as a conversation. You are having a conversation with your reader, and you need to keep honest by keep your own connection to your heart.

When you are there, in that silent, core place within you, you are listening to your Soul. That is the place of your Authentic Voice.

When self-doubt enters, you have disconnected from that place. Self-doubt comes from your Ego-mind, that tries to control how things “should” be instead of connecting and being present to what is.

Self-doubt also comes from self-sabotaging MOs that bring with them your Inner Enemies, carrying the negative scripts you internalized from your childhood or society. The Perfectionist, the Inner Critic and the Controller live there. They are enemies of your creative writing.

To address self-doubt, you need to return to the place where your Authentic Voice lives. You need to return to the silent place of soul. Here are some tips.

1. Listen to all the doubts, put downs and self-deprecation. You can even write them. Then acknowledge that these are simple Inner Enemies, your Shadows and their negative scripts. Release them and use the next step to go back to your Soul connection.

2. Practice the Breath of Life. Seat or lie down comfortably. Rotate your shoulders and release all tension in them. Begin breathing softly. Inhale and feel your whole body, especially your belly, filling up with air, like a balloon. Exhale slowly and release tension, fear and control as you do. Practice the Breath of Life until your heartbeat has slowed down and you have entered silence. Do this for at least 5 minutes.

3. Listen to music, poetry or a song that brings you to your Soul and opens your heart and that brings peace to your mind.

4. Include the doubts in your writing, keep digging into them, writing through them, writing through the fear, writing through whatever, incorporating everything into the writing, until you release it and reach the place of Soul, where you will feel your Authentic Voice, “like a river running without obstacles,” to quote Corazon Tierra.

You can access the recording for this show at:

http://www.writetodream.com/radioshow/1-writing_from_your_authentic_voice.htm

Light and Love,
Maria Mar
The Dream Alchemist
http://www.writetodream.com

Question: Posted by Gabrielle

How to assemble the skeleton of my story. How to find the heart of my story, and how to recognize the archetypal roles that my characters played in the story.

Answer: By Maria Mar

Wow! That’s three questions, and more like a writing course. ): But I’ll do my best.

Corazon Tierra talked a lot about developing a central image. This was a good resource that we discussed for a while. She starts by finding a central image that comes from her body and guts, from her Soul, and that conveys the “movement” or substance of what she wants to write. The example she gave was from her novel-in-progress, Almost Disappearing: Reclaiming the Territory of the Body. The central image for this work is a spiral. Because the work is about anorexia, and Corazon feels this condition as a spiral rotating inwards, constricting and trying to control, the spiral in her central image is unraveling. Therefore, she has a central image, an action and a movement. With that, the chapters flow, and there you have a skeleton.

Another advantage of this central image is that it generates great visuals around the book. Here I include the book cover I created for Corazon, and you can see that her image gave me all the clues I needed.

Corazon also talked about her central image for No te hagas pequena, her upcoming book. It is the shrinking body of a woman, a body that is being cut-off in parts: the voice, hips, breasts, to diminish and fragment her power. Each part of the body, then, becomes a section or chapter in the novel. As you can see, the central image comes from your Soul, guts or heart and carries within it the bones of your book or script.

In this sense, the central image is about cohesion, integrity, integration and bone marrow. It is the heart of the book and pumps the blood, keeping it alive. If you are going off, the image weakens, and the body sounds its alarms.

For me, in Catch the Dream Express:Alchemical Journey to Manifest your Dream (Self-help novel and Dream Kit), the central image came from my intention of taking the readers on a female quest. My book is a journey. I often describe the compulsive rush in which we live, that takes away self-time for women, as a train that is out of order and cannot stop. I went for that image to create the journey in my self-help novel.

The character is taking a train in her ordinary reality, where she is trapped in her limited beliefs and her emotional baggage, and winds up in a different dimension, in the Dream Express. There she meets her own Dreamscape and must quest to retrieve her DreamSelf. The train gives me not only the central image, but the structure. I have stops. Where does the train stop? I had my chapters.

To determined what where the stops in this journey, I looked at my expert system and my own journey. Well, first is the moment when guidance comes and you are unaware, trapped in your trance, so you don’t see it. That’s the first chapter. Then comes your fear of change and your need to stay in your comfort zone. Chapter two is there. Then opportunity comes, but you miss it because you are not listening to your Inner child, your innocence, your faith. There is a third chapter. By following a route I know, because I have walked it and I have helped other walk it, I was able to come up with chapter after chapter, and finish the book and workbook in six months. I didn’t even wrote on off-course draft. That’s how focused the image kept me!

In this approach, the central image depicts the movement, the journey, the transformation process. It helps you see time frames, stages of growth or change, progression, resistance and regression. It has something of the heroic quest.

As you can see in the cover I created for the book, the key feature is movement, and the movement seems to leap towards the reader. Again, the central image offers the substance, bones, progress, sections, movement and visuals for the book and its marketing. In your case, the visual suggestions are even more important, because you are writing a script for a movie.

One clue to find your central image is to look at the images that keep repeating themselves in your mind, the recurrent memories, the dreams in connection to your story, the verbs and words you keep using in your journal entries or conversations, and the moments or places that evoke specific emotions or scenes from your story.

As for archetypal roles, don’t get mental. If they come, welcome them. Otherwise, don’t push. Archetypes come from the deep well of our unconscious and cannot be produced by your will. They emerge from listening to Soul and honoring the mystery of what is happening in the present. Dive into the empty page, land in your soul and let them come if they will.

Hope this helps.

You can access the recording of this show at:

http://www.writetodream.com/radioshow/1-writing_from_your_authentic_voice.htm

Light and Love,
Maria Mar
The Dream Alchemist
http://www.writetodream.com

QUESTION: Luz Maria

Has there been any evolvement there in the respect for honoring author’s rights? I ask because XXX Press recently violated my copyrights and I want to get a feel if this is something that is happening to others?

Note: Mention of the specific press has been ommitted for legal reasons.

ANSWER: By Maria Mar

Since you do not explain the specific case, I can’t tell if this is something happening among other writers and experts. Here’s what I’ve experienced, heard through the networks of women writers or learned in workshops with copyright lawyers.

The first thing you need to do when signing a contract with a publisher, is get a lawyer! Seriously. I was just talking to a writer who would not hear of this. She thought that the publisher had been so generous that she didn’t have to, and besides she couldn’t afford one. While I sympathize, the consequence can be fatal.

Can you afford losing thousands of dollars, perhaps millions because you signed a contract that forfeited some marketing rights, foreign publishing rights, co-products rights, even workshops or lectures rights?!

It is not the publisher’s role to look out for YOUR rights. They are offering contracts that are either standard or in THEIR best interest. This is not because they are bad. This is because they are business. And if you are publishing a book, so are you. Get a lawyer who specializes in copyright law. Go over the contract with her. Ask questions. Visualize future scenarios and what you could want to do with your book and ask her about other scenarios. There are so many technicalities and possibilities involved! You need help.

Here’s a good site to start:

http://www.copylaw.com

Do online research. Go to Writer’s guilds and Professional Associations.

Intellectual Theft
Is well and alive in the USA, thank you very much. That is why we need to do our copyrighting, trademark, etc. I’ve had friends whose whole translations or articles have been stolen and published under a different name. Sometimes they go to court and win. Sometimes they let it be because it’s not worth the hazard and your health is worth more.

Go to the site above to find out your options. Prevention is the best tactic, which is in your hands.

After the damage, a good lawyer can tell you if you have a good case to fight. If not, call it a lesson and move on. There is a rich well of creativity within you and there’s plenty more to come.

I hope this helps.

You can access the recording of this show at:

http://www.writetodream.com/radioshow/1-writing_from_your_authentic_voice.htm

Light and Love,
Maria Mar
The Dream Alchemist
http://www.writetodream.com