There is a Point Behind Point of View #MFRWorg

We hear a lot about Point of View (POV) and how some well known authors seem to be able to ignore the rules with impunity. Since we are not those authors (yet) it’s a good idea to understand POV in all its glory.

From what I’m seeing in contest entries as well as writing sent to me for evaluation, POV isn’t clear to everyone. As I explained to a new author, when we’re in deep POV, all the character should “see” is what they would actually see with their eyes. We don’t “see” our emerald green eyes with a gleam of humor. Nor do we “see” our lustrous black waves pulled into a stylish up-do. After a few paragraphs of that I find myself waiting for the artificial “Don’t hate me because I’m so beautiful.”  In addition to a poor use of POV this also shows a character I find unsympathetic. Right along with the heroines who deplore their awful long blond wavy hair, overly large breasts along with tiny waists and legs just tooo long. At that point it takes a lot for me to keep reading.

We do see this kind of description in many books, as a short cut for authors to gain the reader’s attention. Far better to let the reader learn what the character looks like through the reactions of interaction with other people. “Inevitably, his eyes strayed to my right cheek, then he looked away, no doubt appalled by what he had seen.” What? What did he see? Tell me more! And you have another reader hooked, at least for now.

As far as ‘head hopping’ also known as ‘flying POV’ or in too many of my first books ‘feeling like you’re watching a tennis match,’ it can be a problem even for experienced writers, especially in first draft. Most of the time it’s caught during edits but every now and then it slips through and we find a published book with the heroine experiencing the hero’s excited libido. Does it matter? In my opinion, yes, especially if your goal is drawing in your readers with deep POV. It’s difficult to relate to thoughts and emotions when they keep hopping from character to character.

When the heroine tells the hero to get something from the refrigerator, she’s not going to be seeing the empty shelves or take out containers unless she’s standing right behind him. She can react to his muttered comment with a personal vision or memory of what he’s looking at, and remind herself next time she needs to go through those containers BEFORE they turn into science experiments. This gives you an opportunity to build more character depth: how is he going to react, how is she going to respond.

Deep POV, keeping your character limited to what they can personally see or feel, is much harder to write but Easy Reading, stories that draw a reader in, comes from Hard Writing, spending a bit more time on those pesky craft details so your great story shines through.

POST WRITTEN BY: Mona Karel
Mona Karel is the writing alter ego of Monica Stoner, who wrote Beatles fan fiction and terribly

earnest (read just not very good) Gothics in her teen years. She set aside writing while working with horses and dogs all over the US, until she discovered used book stores and Silhouette Romances.  Shortly after that she also discovered jobs that paid her for more than her ability to do a good scissors finish on a terrier, and moved into the “real” working world.  Right around then she wrote her first full length book.  It only took her twenty seven years to be published.  She writes looking out the window at the high plains of New Mexico, with her Saluki dogs sprawled at her feet. Distraction much? ?  Sometimes these silly dogs take over her life, but there is always room for one more set of characters in one more book.

Moderating the MFRW #Facebook Group - Screening Requests #MFRWorg

Back in May, shortly after I had joined the MFRW staff as one of the assistant newsletter editors, founder Kayelle Allen put out a request among the staff for someone to moderate the MFRW Facebook group. Of course it immediately occurred to me that since I seem to spend excessive amounts of time on Facebook anyway, I could fill that position, both to justify some of said Facebook time and also because, well, I’m already there.

FACEBOOK FACTOIDS

As part of our new series of blog posts from the MFRW staff, I’ll be posting about the ins and outs of moderating the MFRW Facebook group on the fifth of each month. In my first few posts, I’m planning to talk a bit about the behind-the-scenes responsibilities and practicalities involved in being a moderator. After I’ve covered that, I’ll chat a little each month on the group’s stats and/or notable goings-on during the month in question.

NOTE: You can use these posts to moderate a facebook group of your very own!

One of the main responsibilities I have as a moderator is screening requests to join. MFRW is a working group geared toward helping authors and others in the literary community learn more about promotion and marketing. While the Facebook group notably allows promotion, the main MFRW channel, its Yahoo Group, does not; members of MFRW, as I interpret it, are considered to be peers in learning rather than a main audience to which to actually market.

Given this orientation of MFRW, we want members of the Facebook group to have some connection to the writing/publishing/literary community. My job is to check the profile of each person who requests to join to see if there is evidence of such a connection. Something as simple as listing “Author” in the employment section suffices; we’re not screening for a particular number of publications or level of proficiency or any such criteria. (I will admit I love it when this evidence is there, as it makes my job considerably easier and more efficient…all I have to do then is approve the request. ;) )

When I check a profile, I first look at the employment section to see if something relevant (such as “Author” or “Writer”) is listed there. If not, I next move on to the “About” section and look for a website I could visit to find evidence of a literary connection. If that’s not there, I look at the profile pictures to see if they happen to be book covers with the requestor’s name on the cover.

As soon as I encounter evidence of a sufficient connection, I check the number of groups the person is in. If it is fewer than several hundred, I approve the request. I do this because membership in hundreds or even thousands of groups is considered to be a warning sign that a profile may be a spam account, simply seeking to join groups indiscriminately to post bogus or questionable links in as many places as possible. (This is also why I don’t use the other groups a requestor is in as evidence of a literary community connection; if a group doesn’t moderate join requests, there’s no reason any member of such groups couldn’t be a spam account.)

For a number of understandable reasons (such as having a pen name), some people do not display indications of their writing on their Facebook profiles. Many authors have also noticed that Facebook does not allow one to join a group via a “page,” including an author page (which I personally find perplexing, but obviously I’m not in charge at Facebook). And of course, some people have their profiles set to mostly private viewing in general, which I also find understandable. Thus, if none of the aforementioned indications is on a profile (and the requestor is not in hundreds or thousands of groups), I move to the next step of the process: sending the prospective member a message, which I’ll talk more about next month. :)

Thanks for following along, and happy new year to all!
Em
Emerald is an erotic fiction author whose work has been featured in anthologies published by Cleis Press, Mischief, and Logical-Lust. She serves as an assistant newsletter editor and Facebook group moderator for Marketing for Romance Writers (MFRW) and . Find out more at her website The Green Light District.

Understanding YouTube Upload Options for Authors #MFRWorg

MFRW Author Blog 

This is the first in a series of posts by Marketing for Romance Writer staff members. The staff consists of volunteers who give their time to help others learn how to market their books.

Authors who want to upload a video to YouTube often face a confusing array of choices. Here are the basics you need to know for each section. Choosing the options listed below may net you better results than using the default settings.

YouTube Basic Settings Section

Title

Name your video something catchy (a default like "wmv46" is not very attractive). The name of your book is fine.

Description

Use your book's blurb here. We suggest you also add any licensing info (such as your music) and a link to your author site.

Tags (for Book Trailers)

Do not use commas. Separate with simple blank spaces. For tags that consist of more than one word, use quotation marks. Below are tags recommended for book trailers. Use these exact words, substituting "Author Name" for your name (in quotes), your publisher name, your title, and your genres. Try to pick one word genres. It is better to have paranormal and romance than to have "paranormal romance" -- because it will gain you a wider readership.

• Author
• Novel
• Reading
• "Author Name"
• Publisher
• Title
• Genre1
• Genre2

Category

Entertainment

Privacy

Public (anyone can search for and view - recommended)

License and rights ownership

Standard YouTube License

A sample YouTube video

YouTube Advanced Settings Section

Comments and responses (select the following)

• Allow comments: Approved
• Users can vote on comments
• Users can view ratings for this video
• Allow video responses: Approved

Syndication

Everywhere

Caption Certification

Choose: This content has never aired on television in the U.S.

Distribution Options

Allow Embedding

Video location

Leave blank unless you want your address listed online

Recording date

Today or the day you finished the video

3D Video

no preference is fine

YouTube Monetization Section

This section may not be visible to you unless you have monetized your channel. If you have, follow your guidelines.

Embedding Options (suggested)

Choose: This video may be shared in a G+ Hangout. On the YouTube channel, after selecting the video, click Share, and look for the orange G+ Hangout button.

Don't forget to select the Share link and add it to other information you keep about your book.

Kayelle Allen

To share just the video, press play, and click the share button. Uncheck the "share with playlist" option and copy the video link provided. That will be your url for sharing your video.

That's all there is to it. Once you have uploaded your video, share it everywhere. Put it in your newsletter, on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and any other social media. Add it to your blog and webpage. You'll find many uses for it. Good luck!
===
Post by Kayelle Allen, found of MFRW, owner of The Author's Secret, an author support company.

Pitch To - AMBER QUILL PRESS, LLC - MFRW's 29th Publisher SPOTLIGHT

Marketing for Romance Writers.Org is excited to announce our annual “Write-place, Write-time” Submissions event scheduled for September 8^th and 9^th, 2012.

We have an amazing panel of Publishers and Editors ready to give YOU, aspiring authors or seasoned authors, an opportunity to “pitch your dreams” to a listening audience.

BUT…that ever tricky timing can be a slippery little rascal. So, for you - MFRW is providing a platform of:

“Write-place, Write-time”

Let's say you are on an elevator when...

...the publisher/editor of your dreams steps through the door. Your heart is pumping, your hands are clammy and you know you have a limited amount of time to tell this person about the next New York Times Best Seller for which you have just assigned those coveted words "the end".

MFRW brings you that elevator moment.

OUR TWENTY-NINTH SPOTLIGHT OF THE MANY PARTICIPATING PUBLISHERS/EDITORS: AMBER QUILL PRESS, LLC.

For this event, AQP will take sub pitches in all genres for all our imprints. We are rarely open to subs....occasionally have a call in our Amber Allure line....so this is a chance for those who're interested in pitching to us for AQP and Amber Heat as well, since they haven't been open for literally years!

CLICK HERE!! For more information and detail to submit your manuscript to this publisher click here for further instruction on this event.

Pitch To - ASTRAEA PRESS - MFRW's 28th Publisher SPOTLIGHT

Marketing for Romance Writers.Org is excited to announce our annual “Write-place, Write-time” Submissions event scheduled for September 8^th and 9^th, 2012.

We have an amazing panel of Publishers and Editors ready to give YOU, aspiring authors or seasoned authors, an opportunity to “pitch your dreams” to a listening audience.

BUT…that ever tricky timing can be a slippery little rascal. So, for you - MFRW is providing a platform of:

“Write-place, Write-time”

Let's say you are on an elevator when...

...the publisher/editor of your dreams steps through the door. Your heart is pumping, your hands are clammy and you know you have a limited amount of time to tell this person about the next New York Times Best Seller for which you have just assigned those coveted words "the end".

MFRW brings you that elevator moment.

OUR TWENTY-EIGHTH SPOTLIGHT OF THE MANY PARTICIPATING PUBLISHERS/EDITORS: ASTRAEA PRESS

Astraea was formed in 2010 when Stephanie Taylor saw the need for a non-erotic e-publisher that offers wholesome reads but still maintains the quality of mainstream romance. The first titles for Astraea were launched in February 2011 and they now house some of the biggest names in the e-publishing industry.

With over six years experience and an avid reader, owner Stephanie looks forward to working with her authors, having fun, and bringing you the best books available.

Astraea is a royalty paying publisher, NOT a vanity press.

What can Astraea offer you as an author? Here's a few highlights:

• Working one on one with our cover artist to develop a cover you can be proud to display
• 50% royalties on AstraeaPress.com site sales
• Individual, customized marketing plan for each author to help your sales that combine with our own marketing efforts for your book
• Direct communication lines between owner, editors, cover artist, and authors. No middle man here!

CLICK HERE!! For more information and detail to submit your manuscript to this publisher click here for further instruction on this event.