"Where Does The Poop Go?" is The Most Basic (and Ignored) World Building Question

When we sit down to build worlds, we tend to focus on the big, sexy topics. How does magic work in this strange, new world? What forces power the drives that let the Astro Navy reach the outer rims? How many social orders are there within this great dystopia, and what led to their savage struggles for dominance in the decaying world?

All of that stuff is important, no doubt. It's fun, it's engaging, and you're going to spend a lot of time on it. But there is another question you need to answer before you start writing. A question that a lot of us tend to ignore.

Where does the poop go?

Because until you know that, you don't know shit.

Why Does It Matter?

If you find yourself flabbergasted, asking why it is important to your story that you know where your world's bodily wastes go, chances are that it isn't. Unless you're pulling an It and having a monster who lives in the sewers, or you're going for a musketeer-style underground infiltration, it probably doesn't matter all that much to the narrative that you understand where all that excrement goes.

But from a world-building perspective, it is one of the most important questions. And it's far from the only one.

Okay, I'll bite... why?

How we deal with our waste is one of the fundamental questions of society. Do we have big, public engineering projects that deal with it (whether we're talking New York or ancient Rome, doesn't matter), or is it just a mad free-for-all where everyone just tosses it out the window? If the former, is the system old and crumbling (which could symbolize break-down in infrastructure), or is it well-maintained and sort of taken for granted? If the latter, does all this waste cause sickness? Or is civilization significantly far-out in the wilderness that you have plenty of room to fertilize the fields, as it were?

The way your world deals with poop is just one of the many nuts-and-bolts questions you should have the answer to. Even if that answer is, "It's set in 2011, so they have whatever modern sewer systems we're used to," you still need to have that answer.

This applies to all those niggling, homely questions you may not want to make time with, but which you still need to answer in order to give your world that bedrock foundation it needs. Questions about what people eat, what their hygiene is like, and if they put their pants on one leg at a time just like the rest of us do. Questions about who trades with whom, what commodities are valuable, and how certain items made it to the other end of the world. Especially if your story isn't set in a world that has Amazon Prime shipping, and a massive global trade network that links one end of the planet to another.

The ho-hum, everyday matters need to be examined, and decided upon, just as much as the big, world-shattering ones that typically inspire you in the first place. Because you are going to nail down those big questions completely. But it's the bolt with the missing nut that's going to trip you up in chapter 12, and leave you shouting at your screen.

Every. Single. Time.

That's all for this week's Craft of Writing post! Hopefully it got some wheels turning. If you've got a foundation question that you feel is just as important as where people poop in your world, then leave it in the comments below!

If you'd like to see some more of my work, check out my Vocal archive, or head over to My Amazon Author Page, where you can find books like my sword and sorcery novel Crier's Knife!

To stay on top of all my releases, follow me on Facebook, Tumblr, and Twitter! And if you'd like to support me, you can Buy Me A Ko-Fi, or go to The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page to become a patron today!

5 Tips For Surviving Conventions As An Author

I just got back from Capricon, and like always it was a working vacation for me. I brought my newest novel Crier's Knife, I was on all sorts of panels, I spent some time at a signing table, shook a lot of hands, and refreshed connections with some folks whom I hadn't seen since... well, since last time we were at this convention.

And in case you were wondering, working vacations are the only variety I get.

As I said back in Can Authors Advance Their Careers By Going To Conventions?, these events are one of the best places to be if you're in the business of writing and selling books. However, if you're not a veteran of the convention circuit, it's really easy to make some rookie mistakes that can ruin your weekend. So while my latest endeavor is fresh in my mind, I figured I'd make a couple of recommendations for all the authors out there.

Tip #1: Wear Comfortable Shoes

Seriously, it matters.

For a lot of us, conventions are when we break out the super nerdy parts of our closets. And while you might be tempted to slip on your steel-toed Doc Martens that look like something out of a 90s comic, make sure they have the right inserts before you do. Because that is going to matter.

This tip applies to anyone who's showing up at a convention, but it goes double for authors looking to sell books and make connections. Because chances are good you're going to be on your feet all damn day, and you're going to do a lot of walking. The last thing you want to do is limp up to a potential contact, or lose track of your sales pitch because all you can think about is how badly your feet hurt.

Seriously, a $10 pair of Dr. Scholl's is worth the cost.

Tip #2: Volunteer For Programming

Even if you're not sure you should be on this panel, volunteer anyway.

When you go to a convention, your goal is to make connections. Connections with fellow authors are just as important as connections with potential readers. However, there is a divide between those who are on panels, or behind signing tables, and the sea of attendees who gently lap against that shore.

You want to be on the professional side of that divide, and that's why you should always reach out to programming a few months before the event to volunteer.

To be clear, it isn't that there's anything wrong with being an attendee, but that guest of honor you want to network with is a lot more likely to remember you if you were on a panel with them for an hour and a half than if you were one of a few hundred people they met and talked to for a couple of minutes. And if you're part of programming, then other attendees are going to look at you as a cut above; your opinions will be listened to, and your status seen as larger than it is. Not only that, but if people in the audience think you made some good points, they're a lot more likely to buy your book.

Which you should have on a stand next to your name tag, just to drive home who you are.

Tip #3: Stay Fed, and Hydrated

Find the green room, if you can.

Again, this is something for everyone, but it is super easy to lose track of when you last had a glass of water and a sandwich when you're at a con. Especially if you're really rolling when it comes to selling books, or shaking hands. So make sure you actually eat breakfast, and that you keep a granola bar or two on your person as you tour through the convention.

Also, something for folks who followed my second tip. Most conventions have a designated green room, which is a sort of lounge where programming participants, convention staff, and guests of honor can go to get some food, and relax in a place that isn't open to the general public. Which means that stopping to rest for a bit, and to pop a top on a diet coke, might also mean you get a chance to share a table with the Big Names attending that year so you can strike up a conversation. It's a great way to get that natural, organic conversation with someone because they have their guard down, since they aren't being beset by the public.

Tip #4: Get Your Game Face On

Hey! Did I tell you about my book?

If you're going to a convention, you should stand out. Be memorable. Have a schtick people recognize, and which makes an impact.

What does that mean? Well, it can take a few different forms. As an example, Paul A. Erickson is a fellow author I met at Capricon many years ago who wrote The Wobbit. As you can probably guess, this book is a Tolkien parody, so Paul showed up to con in full Bilbo Baggins attire, complete with fuzzy feet slippers. That got people's attention, and everyone who commented on his look got a card, letting them know who he was and what he did.

You don't have to go that far with it, if you don't want to. If you're more of a jeans and tee shirt kind of author, that's fine. But if that's the case, make sure you have your pitch down to a fine delivery, and that you have something people can latch onto when they try to remember you. Myself, I have a green leather beret that I always wear to events so that people can pick me out of a crowd... it works, and goes with the Literary Mercenary theme.

As long as people remember you, and can easily associate you with your business card, bookmark, etc., then you've got a solid schtick.

Tip #5: Act Professional

Don't squee... don't squee... deep breaths...

It is shocking how far you can get by just acting like you're more important than you are (in a good way). I talked about this in Why "Fake It Till You Make It" Is Great Advice For Authors, but all of that goes double when you're at a convention.

Now, don't confuse acting professional with being cool and unflappable all the time. You want to be relatable, and you're not going to lose all of your credibility if you geek out about something. This is a con, geeking out is what everyone is here to do. But remember that when you're at a convention, all eyes are on you. And there are probably cameras and recorders all over the place. If you get into a heated argument with someone over nothing, or you start losing your grip on your adult words with kids in the audience, that's an impression you're going to have to work hard to scrub out.

So remember, get plenty of sleep, make sure you're not cranky, and ask yourself if what you're about to say is the impression you want your potential fans and business contacts to have of you. Because those moments we wish no one had seen tend to come around to bite us when it hurts the most.

That's all for this week's Business of Writing installment! Hopefully it helps folks out there who've decided to start hitting conventions this year, and it helps remind my fellow veterans of some things that are all too easy to forget. For more work by yours truly, check out my Vocal archive, or head over to My Amazon Author Page where you can pick up books like my sword and sorcery novel Crier's Knife!

To stay on top of all my releases, follow me on Facebook, Tumblr, and Twitter! And if you'd like to help support me then consider Buying Me A Ko-Fi, or going to The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page to become a regular patron today! Even a little donation can go a long way.

There is No Such Thing as Forced Diversity

I've written fairly often about what people would term "social justice" issues in fiction. From Asexual Awareness in Fiction, to What Would A Woman Do?, or even my fairly recent post from late last year Avoid Back-Handed Inclusion in Your Book, I've had a lot to say about representation in fiction. While a lot of the response has been positive, there has been one, consistent complaint used as a push-back whenever I (or someone else) talks about these topics. A line of reasoning that those embracing it seem to feel is the perfect counter-thrust to completely derail the conversation.

They simply say that they are all about diversity, but that "forced diversity" can ruin a book.

I don't know if you realize it, but those words are literally meaningless together.

I'm not the first person to say this, but I am going to re-affirm what other folks have said. There's no such thing as forced diversity. No one is forcing you to do anything. Either make your book more diverse, or don't. But if you choose not to, don't pretend it has something to do with a purer expression of your craft when it's just that you can't be bothered to swap up the color and gender palette.

Diversity And Representation Are Marketing Concerns

If your book has an all-white, all-heterosexual cast, that isn't going to stop it from selling. Those kinds of books have been selling for literal centuries with no problems. Also, this cannot be overstated, no one is going to make you change that roster. There isn't some kind of quota at publishers that say you have to have X number of black characters, Y number of strong female characters, and Z number of trans or genderqueer characters. Readers don't keep those checklists, either. It isn't going to be held against you.

However, it's not going to earn you any points, either.

This is the point where we talk about numbers.

You know that point I made above about how all-white, heteronormative casts have been the norm in books for literal centuries? Given that there are thousands of other books out there who made the same casting decision, how is yours going to stand out?

Because, and this is a little-known fact that some folks seem to miss, if you include an under-served group in your cast then members of said community are a lot more likely to actually check out your book. Why? Because getting the chance to see yourself in a work of fiction, and to have the issues you struggle with represented on the page, the screen, etc. is a huge selling point. And the more underserved a demographic is, the less competition you'll have in that area.

So, if you wanted to take a purely capitalist approach to things, then yes having a prominent trans character in your main cast would immediately put your story on some people's radars. From asexual strippers who hunt vampires, to a burly black cop comfortable in his gay sexuality hunting down serial killers, you would raise eyebrows, and get people to pay attention. Even if these characters aren't your main lead, just having them featured as part of the major cast of characters will generate buzz.

They're Story Concerns, Too

If you're one of those writers who just wants to be realistic in their casting (assuming you write fiction set in the real world), then you should also be interested in having a more diverse cast... because that's the world we live in! That isn't a new fact, either; people of all skin tones, a wide variety of sexualities, and all kinds of genders have existed in different cultures all over the planet without regard to where lines are drawn on modern maps for most of recorded history. From gay friars who were happily devoted to one another in medieval England, to Japanese mercenaries fighting the Dutch in the 1600s, our real-world history was a pretty diverse place.

But we're not even on Earth!

And if your story is set in a fantasy or sci-fi world that has no bearing on our Earth? Well, let me ask you this... does your story have humans in it? Because if it does, and they're supposed to be humans we can identify with, then you can only improve your setting by adding more options to it. Because it might seem easier to make fantasy or alien races a stand-in for a certain religion, ethnicity, sexuality, etc., but it just makes more sense to be genuinely diverse in your casting.

Again, remember, no one is forcing you to do this. If you think it's just easier to leave Buck Manwell, Space Force Captain and rugged, womanizing adventurer exactly the way he is, it's your book. You can do, or not do, whatever you want with it. And if you're just writing that book for your own pleasure, then that's fine... but if you're writing that book with the intent to sell copies, build an audience, and increase your professional reach, then diversifying your cast just makes sense.

Not only that, but it's a fairly easy habit to get into. Just look around, and ask why you've made certain characters in your cast the "default" setting. Then change them, and see what happens. You might be surprised at the results you get.

That's all for this week's Craft of Writing installment! Hopefully it got the wheels turning for some folks. For more work by yours truly, check out my Vocal archive, or stop by My Amazon Author Page where you can find books like my sword and sorcery novel Crier's Knife!

To stay on top of all my releases, follow me on Facebook, Tumblr, and Twitter. And if you'd like to support me, consider Buying Me A Ko-Fi, or going to The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page to become a regular monthly patron. Every little bit helps!

"The Rule of 10" or "Why Numbers Are Deceptive in The Writing World"

Despite the fact that authors deal in words, it is numbers that rule our lives. Everything from page count, to margin size, to cover image dimensions, to how many re-tweets our book release announcement gets are the determining factors in whether our careers rise or fall.

That's bad enough, but I've talked about this before in posts like Authors Live Under The Tyranny of Numbers (Here's How You Can Help!). Today I'd like to talk about something else, though. Namely about how frustratingly deceptive numbers can be for all the creative professionals out there.

Come on baby... papa needs a bestseller!

There's Lies, Damn Lies, and Statistics

Figuring out how well your book is or isn't doing can feel like reading tea leaves. The reason for this is that it's easy to get caught up in numbers that look good for you, but whose true import is difficult to determine. Even if you have access to all the necessary metrics, authors are often just as surprised as anyone when a book does well. Or, worse, they might think their book is doing really well, when it actually isn't.

How does that happen?

Well, if you're solely focused on your sales, you're never going to get confused. More sales equals more success, and as long as those numbers are good, you're doing great. The problem is that there's so many other numbers out there, and they're easy to reach for if you don't have those reassuringly high sales figures.

No, I only sold 5 copies. But there were THOUSANDS of free downloads!

For example, say your book is enrolled in the Kindle Unlimited program. That means you get credit for members who read your book, and you earn a fee per page. Since that's the case, it's only natural that you'd get excited when those numbers start climbing. 300 pages here, 250 pages there, hey, looks like you're doing pretty good! Even if no one buys your book outright, if enough KU members just read it, that won't matter, will it?

Well, that depends. Because the per-page value of a read will fluctuate based on the number of members in the program in a given month, as well as the total number of pages being read that month. Not only that, but what looks like a lot of page numbers to you might, in fact, be nothing more than a drop in the bucket. You won't know that until the month is over, though, and you find out that what you thought was going to be a few hundred bucks in your pocket is just a single Jackson and some change. All because a bunch of members cancelled their accounts, and those who were left read more books, thus lowering the value of every individual page that was read that month.

This is just one example of how numbers can be deceptive for authors, especially if you don't have any concrete idea of what those high numbers really mean.

As another example, I recently hosted a free download for my sword and sorcery novel Crier's Knife. It did fairy well for me, with exactly 700 downloads over the weekend. That's a pretty solid number, and something to be excited about... or is it? Because if I'd sold 700 books over the weekend, sure, I'd be over the moon. That would probably be over $2,000 in my pocket! But I gave away 700 free copies, hoping that it would generate buzz through people telling their friends, leaving reviews, etc. The problem is that while more downloads is always good, it is not at all indicative of the amount of buzz your giveaway is generating. Because 100 people who tell all their friends, make social media posts, and leave reviews are exponentially more valuable than 100,000 people who read the book, and then tossed the file in their recycle bin never to be mentioned again.

The Rule of 10

As a way to avoid getting caught up in false excitement over things like social media shares, free downloads, and other metrics whose impacts are difficult to track, I find it's easy to implement the Rule of 10. While not a scientific term, it helps you keep things in perspective, and gets you asking important questions about the value of the statistics you're looking at.

More goddamn numbers.

Imagine you're going to move, so you ask your friends to help you pack up and haul stuff. Chances are good you'll get help from 1 in 10 of the people you ask. Some may tell you they can't because of work, or say they'll help only to be mysteriously absent on loading day, but motivation doesn't matter here; you can expect a 10% rate of help on your request.

The same thing is true when it comes to your numbers as an author. Some people might really wish they could help, and other people assure you they'll be there to help you get the job done, but only 1 in 10 of those people is going to actually show up when it matters.

Take that giveaway I mentioned. 700 people downloaded the book, and of those 700 people I'd bank that about 70 people actually read it. There might be more, or there might be less, but that's a number I think is fairly realistic. Then, of those 70 people, I predict that 7 of them will actually give me some return on the freebie investment (go buy another book of mine, follow me on social media, leave a review on the book they read, etc.).

You can apply this rule to most other promotional efforts that are difficult to track, too. A blog post about your new book is blowing up? Cool. So of the 10,000 people who read the article, maybe 1,000 people actually checked out your book's page. Of those 1,000 people, you might get 100 of them who read your free sample, buy the book, or save it for later.

Now, 100 sales is still 100 sales... but it's important to remember the connection between, "This piece of promotion is getting really popular!" and, "Holy crap, my sales are through the roof!" is a nebulous one at the best of times.

Be That 10%

I said this in 10 Concrete Ways You Can Help The Authors You Like, but it bears repeating; if you can be the activity in an author's career, then you are that 1 friend in 10 who said they would help, and actually showed up on moving day. So tell your friends, buy a copy, leave a review, and see if you can ask around to find other 10% people who have the follow-through to help authors move books.

Trust me, if only 1 in 10 folks is helping, we need all the help we can muster.

That's all for this week's Business of Writing entry. If you'd like to see more of my work then check out my Vocal archive, or head over to My Amazon Author Page!

To stay on top of all my latest releases, follow me on Facebook, Tumblr, and Twitter. To help support me and my work, consider Buying Me A Ko-Fi, or going to The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page to become a regular, monthly patron today!

Remember, It's Okay To Be Expansive When Writing A Novel

Folks who've been following this blog for the past few years know that, until fairly recently, most of my published fiction was short stories. In fact, I spent the first few years of this latest leg of my writing career doing nothing by churning out short fiction to get into as many collections and anthologies as I could. And while I feel I learned a lot during that period, as I said in What I Learned Writing Short Stories For Two Years, I did pick up one, tiny, problematic habit.

I forget that I have 100,000 words to tell my story, instead of 10,000.

Shit... I'm almost to the denouement and I'm just rounding 30k...

While anyone (myself included) will tell you to ax unnecessary words, there's another side to that coin. Namely that you should feel free to spread out, and give your story a little elbow room while you're writing when you want to have a fully-realized novel.

Breathe Deep, Dive Deeper

One of the best things about writing short stories is that you learn to think in word count... unfortunately, the word counts you write to tend to be on the shorter side. 10k words for a short story is pretty long, and I've never submitted anything longer than 13k for publication. So when you train yourself to keep it short and sweet, you tend to focus on hitting the high points while not spending a lot of time on the events in between.

But if you're writing a novel, you have at least 50k words to play around with. And if you're writing sci-fi or fantasy, then 100k words seems to be more the speed folks are looking for.

Einarr, we're short words. Time to pillage again!

Don't just toss in scenes just to have them; that's just as bad from the other direction. At the same time, though, feel free to include stuff you would normally cut from a manuscript because you didn't have the words for it. As an example, say your protagonist is on his way to have words with the local mob lieutenant. Rather than just giving us a brief, inner monologue of what the protagonist knows about that mafioso, turn it into a conversation with a contact of his. If he's a police detective, he should talk with an informant, or his partner. If he's a private eye, hash out the details with another gumshoe who's had run-ins with this person before.

You could go a little further than that, too. Show our hero tracking down the place, and put him through the rigmarole of going into the meeting. Have him meet some of the goons, and find out one of those goons is a long-nosed switchblade by the name of Sal, and his nephew is a big bruiser from Jersey named Jeffrey. People gave him shit about the name until he busted a couple of chops over it. Show our hero getting the pat down, have him chat with the secretary, mention the shotgun she has rigged up under her desk, etc., etc.

Those details are what's going to help decide the flow of your story. They're going to suck the reader in, and they're going to reveal a thousand little things about your protagonist, and their world. Things that may not be completely necessary to your telling, but that doesn't mean they aren't doing their job.

You don't need to add scenes to pad your word count. But remember that you have plenty of room to breathe when you're writing. So take a look around the room. Mention the weather. Give that bartender a name, a face, and some dialogue. Go through the ritual of sharpening a sword, building a campfire, or reconnoitering a place before an assault. Talk about what your protagonist is cooking while reviewing their case, or mention some of their carousing before things go sideways at the bar that fateful night.

You've got the space. Use it so that your story doesn't feel rushed.

That's all for this week's Craft of Writing post. Hopefully it helps folks out there who struggle with overcoming an anemic word count. For more of my work check out my Vocal archive, or head over to My Amazon Author Page to find books like my sword and sorcery novel Crier's Knife!

To stay on top of all my latest releases, follow me on Facebook, Tumblr, and Twitter. And if you want to support me you can Buy Me A Ko-Fi, or go to The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page to become a patron! Every little bit helps.

10 Concrete Ways You Can Help The Authors You Like

A few weeks ago I put together a list of 10 Things You Can Do To Sell More Books. However, that list is pretty much only talking to the authors out there about all the things they can personally do to increase their sales... problem is, that's only half the equation.

The other half is your readers, and the actions they take on your behalf.

Every, single one of you beautiful people.

Authors get a lot of credit for their hustle, but the truth is that without readers doing their part, we're just screaming into the void. That's why, if you want to support an author, do the things on this list. Some of them will cost money, others will only cost you time, but all of them will help give that pen monkey more visibility so they can get you their next book in record time.

So, without further ado, if you want to help the authors you like you should...

#1: Buy Their Books

A lot of you out there already are, and bless you for that.

This is the most basic, fundamental way you can show your support for a creator. If they wrote a book, go buy a copy of that book. If you want a hard copy, buy that. If you're more of an ebook reader, get an ebook. If a holiday is coming up, ask your friends or family to buy you copies of this book that you like. Alternatively, gift a book you love to other people.

The main part of an author's income is from sales, but there's more to it than that. The more you sell, the more power you have when it comes to getting noticed. If you sell a thousand copies, no one's really impressed. But 10,000 copies? 100,000 copies? That's when big publishers start knocking on your door and offering contracts because you are doing something right.

On that note, if you've got a couple of bucks floating around, why not head over to My Amazon Author Page and grab yourself a copy of my sword and sorcery novel Crier's Knife, or my steampunk noir collection New Avalon: Love and Loss in The City of Steam?

Or, if you're more of a tabletop RPG fan, take a look at my work on Drive Thru RPG. I'm sure you'll find something that fits your tastes.

#2: Leave A Review

Seriously, the numbers add up here.

I mentioned this back in How Many Book Reviews Do You Need Before Amazon Promotes You?, but it's worth repeating here. If you want to help an author then review their book, plain and simple. It doesn't matter if you read the physical copy, a digital copy, or you downloaded it for free during a giveaway; leave a review, and it can be the pebble that starts the avalanche.

The more reviews a book gets, the more attention it receives from website algorithms (especially on Amazon). That means it shows up in the recommendation boxes, and that it will have a much stronger signal so other people can find it. Not only that, but people who are thinking about buying a book trust reviews. So the more reviews you have, the more likely people are to purchase your work.

It takes a few minutes of your time, but it is an action that sets the gears in motion; don't neglect it!

#3: Follow Them on Social Media

Again, a lot of you are already here.

One of the recurring themes for this list is going to be numbers. The more numbers an author has, the easier it is for them to get found. Social media is no different.

Whether your author has a Facebook page, a Twitter page, a Tumblr account, or something else entirely (all the links go to my pages, by the by, so feel free to follow if you haven't already), the more people they have, the more they'll get noticed. The more people an author has following them, the more likely their posts are to get seen, spread, and to reach people who aren't already reading their work. So even if all you do is click "Like", you've done something to help.

To increase your signal boost, though, interact with the posts your authors make. Leave comments (algorithms love comments), and share the posts you like with your own audience. Because whether your social media pool is big or small, that one interaction can be like ripples in a pond. Don't underestimate the impact you can have.

#4: Talk To Your Local Library

Now we're getting into the new stuff.

Chances are good you already knew about the first three points on this list. They are pretty obvious, after all. However, there are a lot of people out there who still use the public library, and these institutions can help boost an author's signal to a wider audience.

So if your local library doesn't carry the authors you like, ask if you can fill out a request form. A certain amount of money is allocated every year to getting new books (digital and physical, since lots of libraries offer the ability to check out ebooks now), and if folks request that a certain indie or small press title be included in the catalog then you have just helped an author make a sale. Not only that, but there's a chance that more people will read that book, leave reviews, buy their own copies (or get that book for friends as a gift),  etc. Sometimes more than one person has to make the request, though, so don't be afraid to get a petition going among your friends.

Little things add up over time, especially if there are a lot of fans across the country who all submit this paperwork to their local institutions.

#5: Tell Your Friends and Family

You know them, so you'll know what they like.

We talked about part of this with the social media section above, but we don't live in a cyberpunk dystopia just yet. Especially when you consider that you've likely configured your social media settings so that only certain people see the things you like, comment, and share.

But your in-person life? Your lines of direct communication between you and all the other people you know? Tossing a few comments here, and a recommendation or two there, can have a bigger impact than you think.

Before you protest that you're just one person, stop and think for a second. Who do you know that you could slip a book suggestion to? Your aunt Richanne who has always had a thing for sword swinging fantasy? Your roommate's boyfriend Geoff who goes through books the way locusts go through crops? What about that work friend whose name you can't quite recall, but you have lunch together sometimes?

All of these are viable people you could talk to, and maybe give a nudge to check out a particular author.

You don't need to pound the pavement and go door-to-door. But when you find yourself in small talk with people, feel free to talk about books. You might plant a seed, and that seed might get passed from person to person until your one, casual conversation has grown dozens of new fans this author wouldn't have otherwise had.

#6: Use Your Position

Networks are complicated things.

Most folks out there are probably thinking, "I don't have a position that would help an author." Trust me, you do. You just need to think about it for a second.

For example, do you have a friend who writes for a website dedicated to genre news? Got an aunt who has a radio show? A cousin with a YouTube channel that has a decent following? All it would take is a request from you to re-direct some of those resources to help boost that author's signal with a review, an interview, or any other kind of coverage.

Sometimes all you need to do is look at what groups you belong to, or even where you work, to find opportunities. As an example, say you're a high school teacher. Does an author you want to support write YA books? Well, recommend them to your students. Or if you have a personal connection with that author, and they happen to be local, invite them to speak to your class. Maybe introduce them to your creative writing club. This gives the students a chance to ask all those questions they might be curious about, and to get insight from an industry professional. It also means at least a few of them may become regular readers.

Do you volunteer with a local theater? Are you part of a Renaissance Faire cast? Are you a member of a book club? Chances are you do something, or know somebody, that would be a help if you used your noodle.

#7: Tip Them

Like I said, every little bit helps.

While selling books is one income stream for authors, it usually isn't enough to pay their bills with. As such, we tend to do other stuff to supplement writing books. We run YouTube channels, we write blogs, we post articles, we put together reviews, and so on, and so forth. Most of the time, those things are free to you, but we ask that you leave us a tip if you can.

This goes a lot further than you might think when it comes to keeping landlords off our backs, and tacos in our bellies. So if an author you like has a Patreon or a Ko-Fi (The Literary Mercenary's Patreon and Ko-Fi pages are at these links), consider contributing to them if you can. Even if it's just a little bit every month, we notice, and it helps a lot.

Also, if an author you like happens to write for a website like Vocal, there is often a tip icon there as well. Keep your eyes peeled, and ask if what you just read was worth the same handful of change you would leave in a barista's jar.

#8: Be Persistent

Hey, did I tell you about this great book?

Authors who make it are the ones who don't give up, like I mentioned in Successful Authors Are Persistence Hunters. However, the same is true for folks just like you who want to help boost their signal. Because while it would be great if people listened to you the first, second, or third time you made a recommendation, you sometimes need to tell people to do something five times or more before the idea finally takes root in their heads.

Now, don't spend all of your time and effort trying to boost our signals (you're fans, not interns). But if an author you like updates their blog once or twice a week, share that link. If there's a giveaway going on, mention it once or twice to make sure everyone hears about it. You don't have to be so frequent that you annoy the folks on your list, but think of your signal boosting efforts like water. A single raindrop isn't going to do much, but even a slow and steady trickle can wear a track in the hardest stone.

#9: Show Up

Seriously, just being there does help.

Whether it's a book signing, a con appearance, a reading at a local open mic night, or any other kind of event, sometimes just being a warm body can make a difference.

Picture this; you walk into a library, and there's a door leading off to a side room. Are you more likely to investigate what's going on if you see an empty room with only a table and someone sitting behind it, or if there's the buzz of conversation, laughter, and a dozen people in there?

Probably that second one, right?

People are drawn to crowds, even if that crowd isn't really all that big when it comes to the numbers. But that magnetism can make a difference, and pull other people into your orbit. It might only be for a moment, but a moment is long enough to plant that seed, and perhaps get a business card or a bookmark into their hand even if they don't choose to buy an actual copy of the book(s) at that moment.

And I can tell you from experience, there is nothing that slaps you across the ego harder than an event where no one shows up, except for the janitor wondering if it's okay to sweep since it's just the two of you.

#10: Reach Out

Trust me when I say it's like water in the desert.

The other items on this list are all about how you can help your authors reach a bigger audience, sell more books, and generally excel at the business half of their career. However, it's important to remember that sometimes what they really need is a piece of fan mail to get them through the day.

I'm serious about this, and the smaller the author is in terms of reach, the more vital I guarantee you this is. Because they can't just look at their sales figures and be satisfied that a thousand people that week thought their book was worth dropping a couple of bucks on, or that fifty new reviews went up.

So if you have a moment, and you want to do something nice for the authors in your life, shoot them an email, or just leave a post on their social media. Tell them that they're doing good work, and you can't wait to see more of it. If it's not too personal, talk about something they made that really stuck with you.

We need to hear that.

That's all for this week's Business of Writing post. Hopefully folks out there find it useful, and if you've been trying to tell your audience how they can help you stop sinking, just shoot them this list!

Your Book Is Probably Never Going To Be Perfect (And That's Okay)

Most authors out there are under the impression that a book must be flawless if it is going to be for sale. From plot holes, to spelling errors, to aberrant commas, everything needs to be ship-shape and squared away before the readers lay eyes on the work. Because if they spot so much as a single semicolon where it isn't supposed to be, then that's it for you. You had your chance, and now you've been condemned to the bin, written off as a hack for all eternity.

Ah, but then the twist!

Have you heard of Raymond Chandler? You know, the guy who wrote The Big Sleep, which gave us private detective Phil Marlowe and has been adapted into half a dozen films, and homaged in god only knows how many different works by now? Well, do you know what he said when he was questioned about who killed the chauffeur in that famous novel? The character who was intricate to one of the early plot arcs, and whose actions set several aspects of the case in motion?

He didn't know. He didn't know, because it had completely slipped his mind.

This isn't an isolated event, either. The more books you read (even books considered classics by today's standards, and titans within their genres), the more you realize that even the greats can screw it up. Sometimes it means that plot threads get left to dangle, other times they misspell things, and every now and again an artifact that was meant to be deleted during the editing process remains, sticking out of the rest of the prose like the top of a pyramid jutting out of a sand dune.

These aren't one-man-shows or fly-by-night operations; these are serious creators with a lot of mojo. And even they still miss the mark from time to time. Those mistakes usually get fixed in later printings and editions, but the earlier ones still show that errors were made.

They made mistakes. You will, too. Nobody is perfect.

Had Some Mistakes, But Not Enough To Lower The Rating

This is an actual review someone left on my novel Crier's Knife. They front-loaded it with praise, but added toward the end that though they noticed a few spelling mistakes, it wasn't enough to lessen their experience reading the book. So even though it got me a 5-star seal of approval, it also meant I had to track down those errors and repair them ASAP.

Which sent me into something of a blind panic trying to find and correct them all.

Now, this book was put out through Amazon, and I was working on a shoestring budget for it. Still, these errors made it past several review sweeps from me, and past all of my beta readers as well as the folks who helped with more substantive editing. In case you're wondering, there were 6 mistakes that were found and corrected.

This isn't unique to self-publishing, though. Take my other book, the steampunk noir collection New Avalon: Love and Loss in The City of Steam. I did three separate editing passes on this manuscript before I sent it in. It was then accepted by one publisher, whose editors did a sweep, and gave me corrections. My contract got cancelled, and it was then picked up by another publisher, who reviewed it prior to publication.

And there were still a few niggling errors in the text when all was said and done. Hell, in one story a character has a completely different last name by the end... give it a read, see if you can figure out which tale it was.

Stop Sweating: The Little Things Aren't Make or Break

Are there readers out there who won't tolerate a single misused apostrophe, or who indignantly close a book when they find their third grammar mistake? I'm sure there are... but I can also assure you they are a tiny portion of your overall audience.

If you have a good story, compelling characters, and a narrative that will not let go of the reader, they won't notice the occasional bump in the road. As long as those bumps are only occasional, it's even possible that some of your readers won't notice them at all! What's even better is that, in the modern age of publishing tools, you can fix mistakes like this relatively quickly once they're pointed out.

Don't skimp on your editing. By all means, try to make your story the best you possibly can before you submit it to a publisher, or throw it out onto the market. But don't drive yourself mad trying to figure out if you should or shouldn't put a comma before that conjunction; most people aren't here for that. Put the bulk of your effort into the story, the cast, and the experience, and you'll be able to survive a few little missteps.

That's all for this week's Craft of Writing installment. For folks who'd like to see more of my work, check out my Vocal archive, and stop by My Amazon Author Page where you can get any (or all) of my books!

To stay on top of all my latest releases, follow me on Facebook, Tumblr, and Twitter. And if you'd like to help support me, consider either Buying Me A Ko-Fi, or heading over to The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page to become a patron! Every little bit helps, trust me on that.