Google+ for Writers Part 3: Customising Your Profile

with Dee Scully

There are four simple profile customizations you can do to maximize your Google+ exposure… (Tweet this)

**To edit your profile page, you must view your profile as yourself.**

1.  Improve Your Profile Tagline

In your Google+ profile About page, scroll down to Story and click edit (near the bottom of the section). Write a tagline that captures what you, your voice, and your writing is about. This enables viewers to quickly see what you are all about. Be specific. This is not the place to be frivolous. 

2.  Include Key Words

Google combines your tagline and the first two sentences of your introduction for their metadata search, so make the first two lines about what you want viewers--again potential readers--to know about you and your writing.

Google+ allows you to keep your points clear and easy to follow with bullet points. Use them to list your published books or awards that you’ve won.

3.  Claim Your Custom URL

https://plus.google.com/u/0/+DeeScullyRomanceAuthor/about

After you’ve had your Google+ page for a month and you have more than ten followers in your Circles, Google+ rewards you with a customized URL. Make sure to claim this URL and use it on business cards, on your website, your blog, and more.

4.  Add Links-To and From

When blogging or updating a webpage, be sure to add your customized URL. When inserting it as a hyperlink, tick the add ‘rel+nofollow’ attribute in the hyperlink box. This will enhance your posts search results and increase your click through rates.

How have you used this article to improve your profile?  Share your thoughts in the comments.  We love connecting with you!!

One lucky Australian commenter will win a writer's gift pack.  Be sure to check back next Monday to see if you're the winner!!

 I love to love...connecting with people through Google+!

I love to laugh...at all the funny pictures people Google+!

I love to learn...about others via Google+!

Newbie’s Corner: Viewpoint

With Sharon Burke

One challenge encountered by many first time authors is writing effectively in viewpoint. If you are not sure what viewpoint is, pick a novel you’ve enjoyed and reread it. Try to identify which character’s experiences, feelings and insights you are seeing each part of the story through. This character is the viewpoint character.

Modern romantic novels generally contain the viewpoints of the hero and heroine, though switching between them can present traps for the new author. Another trap for the unwary is writing in omniscient viewpoint where the writer sees everything and knows what every character is thinking in a godlike way. Readers frequently find this irritating, but may not be sure why they feel this way. Some new writers “head hop” from one viewpoint character to another – also frustrating for the reader and a result you certainly don’t want to achieve. If you recognise these problems in your own writing, take heart. Many new writers have made the same mistakes.

The viewpoint most often used in romance novels is third person subjective. Romance author Valerie Parv believes this is the easiest viewpoint for new writers to handle. The writing is in the third person, but everything is portrayed through the experiences and feelings of the viewpoint character.



Cassandra Samuels writes in third person subjective in A Scandalous Wager. The viewpoints of the hero and heroine are used. Sometimes a scene break (***) is utilised to show a viewpoint change. Each viewpoint character’s thoughts are written in a distinctive voice, helping the reader to effortlessly adapt to viewpoint changes.


For example, compare the following extracts:

“Lisbeth couldn’t give a fig about tea. Had Oliver read her letter yet?
She looked out the window. The rain was still falling and it was cold, but no amount of shawls or heated bricks could comfort her.”

It is easy to identify that this extract is written is Lisbeth’s viewpoint.

On the other hand, the following is clearly the viewpoint of the hero, Oliver.

“Last night he had been committed to leaving, to rusticating in the country, to being forgotten. This morning all he could do was think about how he would never see Lisbeth again. And it bloody-well hurt.”

Valerie Parv suggests authors try rewriting a passage replacing “she” with “I”, then reread it to ensure it makes sense. If it doesn’t, the author may have slipped out of viewpoint. She also recommends remaining in the one viewpoint for several paragraphs or pages to avoid confusing the reader.

Clearly, viewpoint is a huge subject. If these ideas are new to you, try reading with an eye for viewpoint then try rewriting your work with viewpoint in mind.


Has the heroine in a romance novel ever thought or said something that caused you to immediately identify with her? What was it?

Love to Love: Watching our children grow up. Our middle daughter is currently teaching in the UK. It's wonderful to be able to talk with her on Skype. We are so proud of how well she is doing.

Love to Laugh: Very few books make me laugh out loud, but to me The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion is the funniest book ever written.



Love to Learn: Reading the Saturday Herald over a coffee with my husband is so much fun. We split the newspaper then share what we find out.

Advice for Writers from the Wonderful World of Disney

Image courtesy of giphy.com

with Marilyn Forsyth

A lighthearted post this week in honour of the release, nearly ninety years ago on November 17, of Steamboat Willie, starring Walt Disney’s Mickey Mouse. For your inspiration this week, here are 6 quotes from Disney movies that I believe hold meaning for writers and their writing.

1. ‘Fairy tales can come true. You gotta make ’em happen; it all depends on you. So I work real hard each and every day, now things for sure are going my way.’ Tiana from The Princess and the Frog.

The only way to get that book written is to sit down and do it. Writing a book is damn hard work and ‘butt on chair’ time is what it’s all about. Are you participating in Nanowrimo? Good on you! (But what are you doing here? Taking a well-earned break? Okay then.) Even if you don’t reach 50 000 words during the month, and what you’ve produced is not of a publishable standard, at least you have something to edit. As the saying goes, you can't edit an empty page.

Image courtesy of giphy.com

2. ‘I was just scared. And the thing is I’m not scared anymore.’ Rapunzel from Tangled.

Fear can be a great motivator. Whatever your biggest writing fear is—success (yes, that is a thing), not being able to translate what’s in your head onto the page, that nobody will want to read your book—you won’t get anywhere unless you push past the anxiety.

Image courtesy of giphy.com 

3. ‘Why, sometimes I’ve believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast.’ Alice from Alice in Wonderland.

Like Alice, set your imagination free. If you let your ‘Goofy’ out (pun intended), those creative juices just might start to flow. Play the ‘What if…?’ game. Write by hand. Start your story in the middle if the opening is too intimidating. Have fun with it!

Image courtesy of giphy.com 

4. ‘Your identity is your most valuable possession.’ Elastigirl from The Incredibles.

‘Identity’ is another word for ‘voice’. Your writing voice - your style - should be unique to you; it’s what sets you apart from other writers. Ensure your personality comes through in your writing and it will help you to connect with your potential audience. Don't be like Elastigirl, here - let your voice be heard!

Image courtesy of gifsoup.com

5. ‘The flower that blooms in adversity is the most rare and beautiful of all.’ The Emperor of China from Mulan.

Rejection hurts, there’s no denying that, but if you accept it as a challenge to improve, your writing can only benefit from it. Pick yourself up and take heart from the fact that Walt Disney himself was rejected over 300 times before he got the financial backing to create Disneyland. And of course let's not forget J. K. Rowling's experience.

Image courtesy of giphy.com

6. ‘If you keep on believing, the dreams that you wish will come true.’ Cinderella from Cinderella.

Believe in yourself! Remember: Whether you think you can or think you can’t, either way, you’re right. ’Nuff said.

Image courtesy of gify.com

Do you have a favourite movie quote? Love to hear it.

Love to Love: Gabrielle Battistel's Trailermade Production. You'll find fantastic trailers for some of your favourite authors' books at http://www.trailermadeproduction.com/. Be sure to check it out!


Love to Laugh: at some of the memes I found when searching for gifs for this post (despite the spelling error :)).



Love to Learn: how long it's going to take me to read Kate Morton's The Lake House. A bit over 3 hours, according to the experts at http://www.howlongtoreadthis.com/. Follow the link to find out how long it will take you to read your next book.