Weekend in Snowshoe, West Virginia: The things I did and saw...

My long weekend in Snowshoe...

It has been an enjoyable weekend of writing for me. I have been warm and cozied up in the condo, which happens to reside on top of a mountain. It has snowed and has been below freezing, but I have gotten thousands of words written for novel number four!

On the way, I observed:

A rooster coup? There were at least fifty roosters, and each had their own little house. Something I have never seen before.

A man, riding a bike, talking on his cell phone, riding the wrong way down the highway. This was also a first for this New Jersey girl.

And last, but certainly not least... as we were driving literally THROUGH a mountain, this psycho in a compact Chevy car, rode our bumper so closely we could not see his headlights in our rear-view mirror! I kid you not. We drive a Jeep and were taking the curves pretty nicely, but it wasn't fast enough for this guy. Talk about stress. Finally he passed us and we then enjoyed the windy roads once again.

Talk about a jam packed weekend!





More from Author Deanna Martinez:

Using owned media as an author

Social Media course reveal

Using owned media as an author AND my book giveaway...

Check out my latest YouTube video where I discuss owned media, what it is and how to utilize it as an author.

I will also talk about my book giveaway! I have always said, after I hit 5,000 followers on Instagram, I will give away a signed copy of one of my books. Well, the time is here! Please listen to learn how you can participate in my book giveaway.

To follow me on Instagram: Writer_Deanna
And PLEASE sign up for my email list! There are 2 ways you can do this:
1. Add your email address into the pop up right here on this blog
2. Email me and ask me to add you to my list: book.writer.deanna@gmail.com
Thank you!

Please click the book photo above to read about Stephanie and her plan on transforming her life from a domestic violence victim to a domestic violence survivor!

More from Author Deanna Martinez-Bey:

Social media course reveal

To outline or not to outline

What is the first draft?

Raleigh bloggers group: Self publishing

I am a member of the Raleigh, NC Bloggers group. Today was my second time attending. Three weeks ago, I had the privilege of attending for the first time. This group is amazing. It is filled with smart, kind individuals who love to share their knowledge.

Today, we had a speaker who talked about self-publishing. It was informative and helpful. I took about a page and a half of notes and came home and immediately applied a couple of things to this blog and my website. www.deannamartinezbey.com 

We met at a local private school and today, I took a few pictures of the pristine campus to share. Enjoy the pictures from today's meetup...

Anna Marie Jehorek spoke 

Missy (Midlife Margaritas) gave me new specs...

For those of us who are directionally challenged

The long hall....

More from Author Deanna Martinez:

Raleigh NC Bloggers Group

Social media course reveal

To outline or not to outline

My latest YouTube video: Social Media reveal

Social media course reveal...

Hello, everyone! I have some exciting news to share...

Guess who wrote an online social media course? This girl. It took me months to write it and complete all the videos. However, it took YEARS of research to obtain all the information I share in the course.

As a published author, I had to learn how to successfully network myself online. The course is written, NOT just for authors, but for everyone who needs to network themselves, their business or their brand online.

All you have to do, is email me: book.writer.deanna@gmail.com and I will send you pricing and details about the course. I can tell you this: the course contains videos, PDF documents and on screen tutorials...everything you need to network!

Check out this video I made on Facebook live when I revealed my course:

More from Author Deanna Martinez:

Should you follow your heart when writing?

To outline or not to outline...

Coming up with new story ideas

What is the first draft?

Preparing your writing environment 

Should you follow your heart when writing?

Do you think that a writer should follow their heart when writing books?

Have you ever got that feeling way down in your stomach that made you know that you must do something? I once heard it referred to as knowing in your knower.
Some call it listening to your heart, and others say it is following your gut. Whatever you call it, refer to it as or have heard it called, we all know that feeling. It is almost like you just can not carry on with anything else in your life until you give in to that nagging feeling or those persistent thoughts.

As writers, we need to pay close attention to this feeling. There may be something that we need to add to our book or delete from our book. If you get the feeling that there are changes that need to be made to your book, go with it and make the changes. Chances are it will make for better reading and an all around better book!

It is important that as writers, we pay attention and listen to our thoughts and feelings. If we want to write the best book, we need to make necessary changes at the exact time they are needed. If we ignore the feelings, it just may keep us from getting offered a publishing contract or that offer to write another book from our publisher!

Tip: Listen to those persistent thoughts and/or feelings that you need to make changes to your story and/or book!

More writing articles:

To outline or not to outline

Coming up with new story ideas

To outline or not to outline

Should writers write books by following an outline? This seems to be a great debate among writers. Some writers swear by using outlines and others would rather fly by the seat of their pants.

I prefer to make and use an outline when I am writing my books. I like to form a basic outline that lays out the gist of what the book will be about and the character’s names and personalities. I also prefer to lay out the basics of each chapter. I do feel that if the outline contains too much information, meaning details, that it will constrict the writer. We still need to have the freedom to add characters and events as we see fit. Often times if an outline contains too many details, it prevents us from being able to be creative with our book.

Let’s compare the two options. Reasons to outline:
Gives us direction
Helps us glide through writing the chapters
Gives us a goal
Helps us remember character names and details (we can refer back to our written outline)
Keeps us on track
Reasons not to outline:
I can’t think of any
I don’t know
Oh, here is one: It can be fun not to have clear direction?

The bottom line is I recommend a simple outline. They are helpful to me and I think it would be helpful to you as well. Let me give you an example of what an outline can consist of:
Basic details of the book (What it is about, the character details, certain points you want to be sure to touch upon, each chapter name (this will guide you what to write in each chapter) and any other details you want to include.

Details you may not want to include in the outline:
Every detail as to what the character says, does and feels.

Let me tell you about outlining....

Coming up with new story ideas...

How do you come up with twists and turns and new story ideas?
Use your own life!
Use problems you have overcome or some that you haven’t and use them in your book. The best part about using your own obstacles in your book is that you can have the outcome turn out however you would like.

If you are happy with the way you have overcome obstacles in your life, then use it exactly how it played out for you. If you are not happy with the outcome of certain events, change them and write them to end the way you would have liked them to. This can also be therapeutic for you, the writer.

You can also take a slight twist or turn in your life and enhance it to become something major! For example, you changed your major in college…something fairly minor, right? Now, enhance it. You started with a major in computers, your Grandmother came down with cancer and you love her so much you will do whatever you can to help her get and stay well. You change your major to chemistry so that you can work on strains of cancer treatments. Sounds much more involved and interesting, right?
Basically, take lemons and make lemonade!

Another great way to find ideas for your novel would be to take a trip to Barnes and Noble. Go to the section of the store where they sell the same genre books that you are writing. Read the backs of the books in search of an idea that can spur you to a story idea or plot twist of your own.

More from Author Deanna Martinez:

Preparing your writing environment

Resolutions Vs. Goals

Self publishing: yes or no?

Preparing your writing environment

Something I do each night before I head to bed is clean my kitchen! My mom always used to say, “If the kitchen is clean, the whole house looks clean”. Depending on the layout of your house, this can ring true. I have an open concept in my house, meaning the kitchen is open to the dining room and the living room. So, if my kitchen is clean, it really does make the rest of my downstairs look clean too!

Why have I gone on this clean kitchen tangent you may ask; it is also true when it comes to our writing environment. If we have a special routine we create when it comes to writing it will help us look forward to it and feel comfortable and at ease when we do it.
Just as waking up to a clean house can make you feel good, creating a special place to write can make you feel good too!

A few things to try:

• Create a clean work space
• Make it comfortable by using a comfortable chair
• Decorate with pictures and items that bring you joy
• Keep it clutter free
• Make a space separate from other spaces in your home