Discover and read the best of Twitter Threads about #TenTweets
Most recents (11)
Okay, so I’ve been talking to a lot of people who are discouraged with writing and the industry right now. I get it: it’s not a great time for authors. So let’s make today’s #TenTweets about WHY WE KEEP GOING. Follow the hashtag to collect them all! #TenReasonsToKeepWriting
1. Because writing isn’t just about making money (though it’s nice when that happens). It’s also good for your mental health. And it’s cheaper than therapy. #TenReasonsToKeepWriting
2. Because writing impacts on your daily life and your interactions with others, making connections and building empathy. #tenReasonsToKeepWriting
#TenTweets about SEX (not the fun kind!). 1. Sex is real. Until six years ago everyone knew knew this. Now they still know it, but pretend they don't. (see alternative #tentweets on gaslighting). The question is Why? 1/11
2. If you pretend that sex isn't real and people have 'essences' that transcend material reality (just like in the olden days!) a funny thing happens. You become cooler, more popular and have access to more professional opportunities. 2/11
3. If you're a woman, you will find you receive approval where before there was probably just the dusty loneliness of real life, with its real sexism. Yawn. 3/11
We haven't had #TenTweets for awhile. People keep telling me this, so let's have #TenThingsAboutFinishingProjects. Follow the hashtag to collect them all!
1. So you've already got three unfinished projects on the go, and along comes another shiny new idea to lure you away from completing them. Why do you do this? Is it just you? (Spoiler, no: we ALL do this.) #TenThingsAboutFinishingProjects
2. But here's the thing. Just because we all do this doesn't necessarily mean we should. Part of being a better writer is knowing when to abandon a project that isn't working, and how to persevere with a project that is. Here's how. #TenThingsAboutFinishingProjects
Okay. Today's #TenTweets is on the timely subject of TITLES. Follow the hashtag to collect them all! #TenThingsAboutChoosingaTitle.
1. Choosing the name of your book is one of the big challenges for any author. I find that a work-in-progress doesn't quite have an identity until it has a name. #TenThingsAboutChoosingaTitle
2. Although it doesn't count as plagiarism to use the same title as another book, it can be hard to find something original. It's worth Googling your proposed title, just to make sure. #TenThingsAboutChoosingaTitle
Perhaps we should have #TenTweets about BOOK BLURBS next. It seems rather timely, somehow. Follow the hashtag to collect them all! #TenThingsAboutBookBlurbs
1. A blurb, as opposed to a cover quote (which is usually a one-line comment by another author, saying how much they liked the book) is a short synopsis on the back of the book jacket, summarizing the contents for the reader. #TenThingsAboutBookBlurbs
2. That said, its sole purpose is to represent the book in a way that will draw in potential readers, in only a couple of sentences. That doesn't often make for subtlety or nuanced, in-depth analysis. #TenThingsAboutBookBlurbs
Today's #TenTweets, by request, are about CREATING DISTINCTIVE IMAGERY. Follow the hashtag to collect them all! #TenThingsAboutStrikingImagery
1. Imagery can be a powerful weapon in your arsenal as a writer. But to maximize its effect, you first need to think WHY you need it, and what its role is in the scene you're writing. #TenThingsAboutStrikingImagery
2. Description usually exists to draw attention to something - a scene, a theme, a sensation. Decide what it is in each instance, and target your imagery appropriately. #TenThingsAboutStrikingImagery
Given we're talking about this today, let's make today's #TenTweets about PROTECTING THE ARTS. Follow the hashtag to collect them all - and feel free to add your own, because there are a hell of a lot more than ten...
#ReasonsToProtectTheArts
#ReasonsToProtectTheArts
1. The arts in the UK are a massive industry, earning billions of pounds for our country's economy, and employing millions of people. #ReasonsToProtectTheArts
2. The creative arts are very far-reaching, including all areas of publishing, design, music, theatre, film, dance, games, textiles, fashion, museums, crafts, architecture, and more. #ReasonsToProtectTheArts
Following various conversations about older women today and yesterday, let's have #TenTweets on #OlderWomeninFiction. Follow the hashtag to collect them all!
1. When looking at the arts in general, and the portrayal of women in particular, it becomes clear to anyone of sense that there's an elephant in the room. #OlderWomeninFiction
2. A great, big, middle-aged elephant, with the power of invisibility. Or so we might assume; because middle-aged and older women in the world of fiction are so rare that they might as well not be represented at all. #OlderWomeninFiction
Today’s #tentweets are on the always-topical subject of AUTHORS AND ANXIETY. Follow the hashtag to collect them all! #TenThingsAboutAnxiety
1. If you’re an author, chances are you’ve had anxiety symptoms at some time or another. #TenThingsAboutAnxiety
2. Whether these are mild or severe, it’s worth acknowledging and dealing with, because lots of non-writers assume that a writer’s life is easy and privileged, and that therefore those with MH issues are just being writerly and over-dramatic. #TenThingsAboutAnxiety
Today's #TenTweets, by request, are on DOS AND DON'TS FOR ASPIRING WRITERS. Follow the hashtag to collect them all! #TenThingsToDoAndNotToDo
1. DO: drop the word "aspiring," and write. Give yourself permission to be a writer.
2. DON'T: go around telling all and sundry. You'll find it hard enough without dealing with other peoples' comments and expectations. #TenThingsToDoAndNotToDo
2. DON'T: go around telling all and sundry. You'll find it hard enough without dealing with other peoples' comments and expectations. #TenThingsToDoAndNotToDo
2. DO: make time and space in your life. Book a regular slot for writing. Enlist the help of others, if needed.
DON'T set yourself tasks you can't achieve. Better to plan for three hundred words a day and succeed, than three thousand, and fail. #TenThingsToDoAndNotToDo
DON'T set yourself tasks you can't achieve. Better to plan for three hundred words a day and succeed, than three thousand, and fail. #TenThingsToDoAndNotToDo
RESOURCES FOR WRITERS: a list of organisations, opportunities & support, which you really ought to have on your writerly radar, and which I wish had been on my own radar earlier in my career. Hope you find them useful. #thread #amwriting #writer
If you're a writer, join @Soc_of_Authors. They're great advocates for writers' rights, & offer PDF guides on working as a writer, specific advice on contracts etc for members & discounts on books! They also offer grants for work in progress & run annual awards.
@Soc_of_Authors Anyone in the arts should be aware of @ace_national (or @CreativeScots / @Arts_Wales_ / @ArtsCouncilNI, depending where you're based). They support writers through fundings opportunities - for individuals & organisations.
