Always plan to revise your first draft. Don’t send out your fiction manuscript until you make the following four separate reviews.

1. Review your story arc:

a. Who are your characters and what are they like at the beginning?
b. What is the situation that provides the conflict/tension?
c. What are your characters like at the end?
d. How has the protagonist/situation changed?
e. Your plot should provide a cohesive journey from the beginning to the
end. This is your story arc. Is it interesting and compelling enough to
justify reading the story all the way through? If not, analyze what is
missing and start your revision at that point.

2. Review your story scene by scene (yes, every one!) and decide:

a. Do you need this scene? (If it does not move your story or character
forward, the answer is no.)
b. Are you missing any scenes? Does the action jump ahead without
explanation or transition?
c. Is each scene clear as to who is present, when it takes place and how long
since the previous scene?
d. Can any long expository descriptions be converted to action or woven into
the action?
e. Does each scene come to life with vivid detail, dialogue or description?
f. Does each scene come to a satisfactory end—a rise in emotion, tension, a
new insight or story element revealed?
g. Does each scene have something to compel the reader to turn the page?
h. Are there proper and plausible transitions from scene to scene?
i. Rewrite each scene as necessary.

3. Review your manuscript paragraph by paragraph, looking for the following:

a. Is dialogue natural and consistent with the character?
b. Does each character have her own voice? Your characters’ voices must
match their personalities—distinct from each other (and from you).
c. Is there a flow and evenness of description and action? Are the paragraph
transitions smooth?

4. Review your manuscript sentence by sentence. Check spelling, grammar and
facts. Be nit-picky and don’t skip this step! Question everything and check twice.

a. Review for spelling and grammar errors, including sentence construction,
agreement of noun/verb and noun/pronoun usage.
b. Double check your facts—everything should be accurate. (For example, if
your heroine drives a ‘55 Mustang, you’ve created a vehicle that didn’t
exist yet.)

A  post I read today in Small Business Trends by guest blogger Yvonne DiVita gives the Top 10 Ways to Promote Your Business Book, but the advice can work for all genres. Many of the tips involve tapping into Internet resources such as Amazon, social networking, video trailers and virtual book tours.  But DiVita also includes valuable tips you may not have considered including creative ways to use sponsorships, press releases and just plain “being remarkable.” If you’re working on your book promotion or marketing plan for 2009 (and why aren’t you, if you’re not), this article may help spark some life into the old formula of book signings, reviews and broadcast interviews.

Many writers make the mistake of sending out work before it’s ready. As the publishing market continues to tighten, it’s more important than ever to look at your manuscript and make sure you not only know the fundamentals, but that you have created a strong enough plot, that your idea is both original and timeless, that you have weeded out all the rookie mistakes that virtually guarantee a rejection. Joyce Sweeney, author of 13 young adult novels, has worked with hundreds of authors on all types of manuscripts. She will discuss mistakes made by beginners, intermediates and even advanced writers, who can’t get past that dreaded…”I love it but it’s not for me”…rejection.

This is one conversation you don’t want to miss. Mark your calendar now for this free event*. Here’s how to get on the call:

What: VIP Author Talks with Guest Joyce Sweeney

When: Wednesday, February 25, 2009, 8:00pm to 9:00pm Eastern (7:00pm Central, 6:00pm Mountain, 5:00pm Pacific)

Call-In Details: To get on the call, please dial 1 (218) 339-4600, and enter Access Code 992777# when prompted.

*The presentation will last one hour and is free to attend, but long distances may apply. Please note that anyone may call in and listen, but the audio recording will only be available to VIP Author Inner Circle members. If you are not yet a member and would like a recording of this call, find out more about all the benefits of VIP Author Inner Circle membership here>>>

Life coach Paula Holland De Long is offering a free Life Balance Assessment Teleseminar on Wednesday, January 21, 2009 from 7pm to 8pm EST.

How balanced is your life now? Take your own custom life balance assessment here>>>

During this seminar you’ll learn about what your balanced life will look and feel like in 2009.

You will:

• Gain clarity about what’s most important to you now
• Receive tips and expert advice you can use right away
• Ask your own specific questions
• Create a starting point for change

RSVP via email. Conference instructions will be emailed to you next week.

Change is probably going to be the key word of the year 2009–and possibly the next four years. Whether you are facing change by choice or by chance, you can use new circumstances as a catalyst for growth–or better, a book.

VIP Author Talks kicks off the 2009 tele-series on Wednesday, January 21 at 8:00pm ET with someone who knows how to make change work for you in your life: Marlene Chism, author of Success is a Given: Reading the Signs While Re-Inventing Your Life (www.successisagiven.com).

Having successfully transitioned from factory worker to speaker, coach and author. Marlene will share the insights, tips and resources she used to fashion her circumstances into a successful career. Based on what you hear in this presentation, you can learn how to:

• Choose the topic and title for your book
• Organize your material
• Use your book as a tool to build and expand your business 
• Use writing, speaking and coaching to build an audience (readers)

Bonus Content!

Marlene will also

• Reveal what she would do differently so you can learn from her hindsight (mistakes)
• Answer questions from the audience

This is one conversation you don’t want to miss. Mark your calendar now for this free event*. Here’s how to get on the call:

What: VIP Author Talks with Guest Marlene Chism

When: Wednesday, January 21, 2009, 8:00pm to 9:00pm Eastern (7:00pm Central, 6:00pm Mountain, 5:00pm Pacific)

Call-In Details: To get on the call, please dial 1 (218) 339-4600, and enter Access Code 992777# when prompted.

*The presentation will last one hour and is free to attend, but long distances may apply. Please note that anyone may call in and listen, but the audio recording will only be available to VIP Author Inner Circle members. If you are not yet a member and would like a recording of this call, find out more about all the benefits of VIP Author Inner Circle membership here>>>

VIP Author Nancy Kaiser has taken a leap of faith (on some good advice) and started a blog to serve her clients and readers. Although many of her clients are cats, dogs and horses, she offers something for humans, too. Her book, LETTING GO: An Ordinary Woman’s Extraordinary Journey of Healing & Transformation, showcases her talents as an animal communicator as she shares her story of personal discovery and empowerment. 

Just getting started is a big accomplishment and we applaud Nancy for her willingness to do new things and challenge old comfort zones. Visit Nancy at her website and blog Nancy Kaiser Animal Communicator for great insight and information. While you’re there, write a comment and offer your support as she begins a new journey in the blogosphere!

Open coaching calls with Shelley Lieber are scheduled the third Thursday of each month for VIP Authors Inner Circle members. This month’s call will be held January 15 at 2pm Eastern (1pm Central, 12 Noon Mountain, 11am Pacific). The session will last one hour. Call-in number and instructions are on the Members-Only Page. 

Members can call in with questions or email questions in advance if they are unable to attend the call. The session will be recorded and the audio file will be posted on on the Member-Only page for download after the call.

See all VIP Author Inner Circle member benefits here>>>

Barbara Dinerman has been invited to participate in th Delray Library’s 10th Annual Author’s Showcase, along with eight other authors with a book published this year. 

Her novel, “H,”  a comedy about the taboo but timely subject of herpes –yes, you heard right–was published by iUniverse and won the “Publisher’s Choice” designation. It was displayed on the “New in Paperback” table at the Barnes & Noble in Boca Raton. It sold out (14 copies), and  was then reordered. The term of the display was 8 weeks.

The showcase at Delray Library will be held on Sunday, 1/11, from 2 - 4 pm. Each author will give a brief presentation and then sign/sell books at his/her special table.

The Delray Beach Public Library is  located at 100 West Atlantic Ave. in Delray Beach, FL. For more info, call 561-266-0194. Or visit the author’s website, www.barbaradinerman.com.

I have declared 2009 “The Year of The Author.” The current trends in the publishing industry are signs that more change will take place in the next year(s) than have occurred in the past 50 years, and it’s all good for authors.

For example, we may never again have to hear an agent or editor say how only one (1) percent of what comes across his or her desk gets accepted. Guess what? Those editors and agents are now out trolling the Internet, looking for authors who have made a success of their work on their own because while the “professionals” were arrogantly dismissing the unknowns, the “accepted” authors turned out to be frauds (memoir liars), bad bets (celebrity stories that didn’t sell) or such big draws via huge advances that sales couldn’t catch up and turn a profit. A recent story in Publisher’s Weekly describes how some self-published authors have attracted some very hefty advances for their books because they have proven results.

Yes! Now is the best time in the history of publishing to be an author if you are willing to step up to the challenge of being a bit of a pioneer. I have my wagon packed and I’m ready for the new frontier. You are invited to come with me if you want to mine the gold, too.

Many of you already have joined the movement by enrolling in VIP Authors Inner Circle. If you have, your welcome package is on the way with your copy of 4Ps to Publishing Success. And by now, you’ve received an email with a link to the free reports and bonus audio recordings.

If you are not a VIP Inner Circle member yet, find out about the benefits and how you can join here>>>

If you still have questions, listen in on my free teleclass, “How to Make 2009 The Year of The Author,” on January 7, 2008 at 2pm ET. I’ll answer questions at the end. Here’s the dial-in information:

Free Teleclass: How to Make 2009 “The Year of The Author”
When: Wednesday, January 7 from 2pm to 3pm ET (11am to 12 noon PT)
Call: 1-641-715-3300 and enter code 171279#