K.V. Fischer’s diverse experiences as an attorney, certified civil mediator, registered dietitian, teacher, speaker, and published author with more than 20 years’ experience in the corporate, government, and private sectors have fueled her desire to assist people live fuller, richer lives. Although she is extensively published in nonfiction, with one book and more than 100 articles (the majority of which were ghost-written), her passion has always been writing suspense thrillers. Search Beyond Lies is the first in the Search & Recovery International Series and her second suspense thriller.
With 2 grown children, one a neurosurgeon and the other a radiation health physicist, she is fortunate to have go-to experts for some of her research. She lives in Colorado with her husband and their dog Brady; practices law in Colorado and Florida; and travels nationwide speaking and teaching.
In Tip #13 of my Publish Don’t Perish Series, I shared resources writers might find valuable. This article provides another great resource I wish to add to that Publish Don’t Perish resource list. One of my favorite authors, L.A. Sartor, started a YouTube channel for writers. Trust me, she is a wealth of information.
The Channel
Her channel is devoted to all things writers need to create better work (techniques). It also encompasses marketing their work, including mailing lists and how to make them work for the author; the ability to learn tips and tricks from other authors; and how to publish independently. She wants to challenge the viewer, praise them, and offer solutions.
L.A. Sartor as a Teacher
L.A. Sartor
I personally know how L.A. works and how she teaches. She works patiently, with enough detail in each lesson to make it palatable and heart felt. No harsh rules, just suggestions. Her preference is for people to try and see if they make a difference. L.A. thinks they will, which is why she is so excited about moving this channel forward.
Check It Out
If you are a writer, and are interested in a valuable resource, please subscribe to L.A. Sartor’s YouTube Channel. Since it is a new channel, she needs 100 subscribers to obtain her personal link. Until then, you can check out her subscription link at https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCeYEx2Ad2qSluFFbSgzuerw . Clearly, a personalized link would be easiest.
Search beyond lies update
A photo of Mount Meeker & Longs Peak by Jim Franckum
As for the promised update on my novel, Search Beyond Lies (inspired by Brian Perri and his friends who searched for him without giving up), I am just about ready to send it to my professional content editor, Candee Fick. Although my previous two books were traditionally published, my goal is to be in a position to donate a percentage of the profits of this book to the Humane Society and/or search and rescue training for dogs. The traditional route does not give me this option.
Tip #15 in the Publish Don’t Perish Series is to ask yourself, “Why?” Whether your work in progress are your memoirs, a novel, or nonfiction work, why do you want to write it? What do you want it to accomplish? Who is your audience? The answer to these questions will help provide you with direction in what you need to do to get to the end, whether it should even be published, and how.
The End
Who is your audience?
Before you start writing, the experts always ask you to identify your audience. Who do you want to reach? Your audience is key. To name just a few reasons for its importance, your audience dictates how you write your story, whether a traditional publisher would be interested in your story, and how you would market your story.
Who is your audience?
Answering this question, will also help you understand why you
want to write your story.
The inspiration.
A dear family friend had a very unusual and difficult life. She reached out to me for guidance on writing her memoirs. I am not an expert in that area, nor do I hold myself out as a copy editor or content editor. The service I provide authors is on the legal end – either forming and organizing their companies or providing a legal review of their manuscript to minimize their risk of liability. Her quest, however, is the inspiration behind this article.
Why do you want to write your story?
I happen to be a member of an incredible group of fellow writers. As
I reached out to my group on behalf of this family friend, the response I
received from one wise member sparked this tip. It is all about the why,
especially when it comes to memoirs.
Thyme for Writers
This fellow writer wrote his life history and found it to be a
good experience. He didn’t write it for publication, but for himself and his
family.
If you write it for yourself and your family, he offered these thoughts:
“1. There
are no rules you must follow. This is your story so you can do what you want.
It can be short or long. You can include stories that make you look near
perfect or those that are embarrassing.
2. The other thing that motivated me to write it was a friend who
said, ‘everyone should write their life history because if you do not, someone
else will tell your story for you … and it will be wrong.’ :-)”
If you are
writing for publication, I suggest learning the craft and obtaining the publishing
guidelines.
A Beacon for Life
When I wrote “A Beacon for Life,” it had a dual purpose. It was a
way for me to work through my grief and assist others in working through
theirs. To help others, I had to have it published by a traditional publisher. If
I helped one person, I met my goal. Fortunately, my goal was exceeded beyond my
wildest imagination.
If your goal is to reach others outside of your family and friends, stay tuned for Tip #16.
As we thankfully close the door on 2020, in Publish Don’t Perish Tip #14, we open the door to your exciting possibilities in 2021. Will those possibilities take us back to this world as we knew it prior to COVID – 19? No. The world will probably never be exactly how we knew it — we’ll have a new “normal,” but the possibilities will still abound in 2021 and beyond! As writers, let’s take a look at a few of those possibilities.
Possibilities Abound!
Take Your Passion to the Next Level
We write because it is our passion. It’s not easy — it takes courage. It’s a lonely road we often question. As writers, we want to make a difference in the lives of others. What we write can change a life, save a life, provide an escape from the difficulties of life … .
Persevere in your dream, your passion, and take it to the next level!
Persevere in your dreams, your passions, and take it to the next level!
Take Your Business to the Next Level
Writing is a business. As in any business, you need to gather your resources so that you have access to all the tools of the trade. Take it to the next level!
Have you set up a limited liability company or corporation? If you have, are you truly treating it as a separate entity so that there are no blurred lines from you personally? This is critical to avoid “piercing the corporate veil,” thereby increasing your exposure to personal liability.
If you have not set up a separate company and treat your writing business as a sole proprietorship, you may want to talk to your tax consultant to explore the tax benefits available with a limited liability company or corporation.
Karen VDH Fischer, MS, RD, JD
If you independently publish your work, you may want to consider setting up a company to limit your personal liability regardless. If you live in Colorado or Florida, I can help you, since I am licensed in both states and understand the passion of a writer and what’s needed to protect a writer’s interests. Feel free to reach out to me at kvdhfischer@gmail.com. My legal website, www.KVFischerLaw.com will be launched shortly. At this site, you will be able to find helpful articles for educational purposes among other things.
Get to the End
Amanda Cabot
Do what it takes to finish your book — get to the end. Amanda Cabot wrote an incredible series with the acronym APODS that will help you do just that. In Tip #5, Apply APODS to Your Life, I provide a brief summary of the articles in Amanda’s series along with a link to each so you can delve deeper. I can’t recommend this series enough for every aspect of your life!
I am excited about the possibilities that 2021 will bring! What possibilities do you see?
Without a doubt, we are all ready to turn the page on 2020. To say that there isn’t a soul who wouldn’t agree (except perhaps big Pharma and Zoom), would be an understatement. Although this year will be remembered for generations to come as the most difficult, trying time of our lives, there were and still are glimmers of hope and precious positive moments that soothed our souls.
Family
far from family
For those of us who live far from our family, we most likely missed visiting them. Such was the case with me. I usually make a few trips a year visiting my family in Florida, but that was inadvisable during these times. I had hoped to see my “children,” but, that was also inadvisable. My daughter is a first level trauma doctor as a neurosurgery resident, and she is extra careful not to “share” what she may have been exposed to. My son works for Johns Hopkins APL in Maryland, and visiting was not recommended.
Technically savvy.
However, we are all becoming technically savvy, even those born before the invention of the computer (my mother is amazing with technology), and although we may not be able to visit the traditional way, most of us are visiting virtually through FaceTime, Zoom, Google Meet, or other video conferencing tools. The fact is, I have probably “seen” and spoken to my family more than I do in a typical year where I have visited.
I miss my hugs though.
working remotely
The work environment has drastically changed. More are working remotely from home. As an attorney and writer, most of my working days were done remotely prior to 2020, so in that respect, I was not greatly impacted, however, others had to get familiar with the technology and self-discipline it takes to become efficient and effective working from home. Because of COVID-19, I had to get creative with estate planning signing ceremonies where a notary and two witnesses were necessary. Yes, I made house calls, like old-time doctors in years past — my father made house calls. After going over all the estate planning documents via phone, I visited some of my clients at their homes, and provided direction for signing and witnessing through windows and glass doors. All good exercises for thinking outside the box
leaps of faith
Karen Van Den Heuvel Fischer
Some of us made leaps of faith. I had been working for another law firm and decided it was time to hang my own shingle. For me, it was now or never. Quite a few of my clients came with me — they trusted me and was confident in my representation of them. I confess, it brightened my day and confirmed that my decision was the right one.
Novel – search beyond lies
This change in direction did affect the timing and goals for my novel, Search Beyond Lies. In Publish Don’t Perish Tip #11 — Be Accountable, I set my goal to have my novel ready for my professional content editor (Candee Fick) by December 1, and to my copy editor (Elizabeth Fenton) by Christmas. Alas, I failed to meet those goals. In order to handle setting up my law firm as well as meeting my clients’ needs, I put my novel on hold until a week ago and am back to writing between 5 a.m. and 7 a.m. each morning.
Now, only one thing remains, getting my law firm’s website up and running. The Law Firm of Karen VDH Fischer LLC’s website will be launched on or before January 1, 2021 and may be found at www.KVFischerLaw.com. Let me know what you think after it’s up and running. My new target for Candee is the end of January.
The purpose of this article is to provide you with the comfort of stay at home recipes. During these difficult stay at home times, quite a few people who preferred to eat out, find themselves having to stay at home for their safety and well-being. Cooking may not be one of their strong points, but with simple, healthy, delicious recipes, anyone can overcome!
Below you will provide links to delicious recipes I have already shared to give you a head start. Then, my goal is to provide at least one or more recipes a month. Although most are low-calorie, not all are.
This soup is one of my absolute favorite low calorie dishes. Feel free to spice it up with Hot Italian Sausage (my preference is chicken since it is lower in fat).
A friend of mine shared this delicious soup recipe, but you’re in for an extra treat since this article gives you the skinny on carrots — a very versatile vegetable.
Colorful Carrots
easy baking
Healthy & Delicious 5 Week Muffins — Perfect as a Dessert, Breakfast, and Parties
When it comes to baking, my preference is definitely to make it easy.
Thanksgiving — Turkey
Dressing Through the Generations
Thanksgiving could never be the same without my mother’s heavenly turkey dressing. I only treat myself to this mouth watering pleasure once a year for obvious reasons — the calorie count.
As writers, it’s easy to get overwhelmed by the process of getting
that story from your head to “paper.” However, in the publishing environment we
find ourselves in today, it’s important to gather your resources. Authors need
to know how to edit their work, set up a business, get that book published
(traditionally or independently), and market their book, among other things.
The purpose of this article is to present you with a resource page
that will provide you with additional tools to make your journey easier. You’ll
find experienced authors and professionals who can coach you, assist you with
your writing, editing, technology, and business as well as marketing tips.
The Author Toolbox — Candee Fick
Author Candee Fick
Author Candee Fick accumulated over 100 of her favorite tools for authors and shared them in The Author Toolbox. She also provides mentoring, hands-on advice, and personal coaching in person for those in the northern Colorado area, or via Skype, or phone for those further away. Candee is also the acquisitions and content editor for a Christian press.
Watch your grammar – Amanda Cabot
Amanda Cabot
Since the mechanics of writing is critical, it’s essential to watch your grammar. Amanda Cabot’s R & R: Raves and Rants provides you with that essential tool that will help you avoid those inevitable mistakes. In my article, Publish Don’t Perish – Tip #12: Watch Your Grammar, I provide a brief description and link to each of Amanda’s invaluable articles which can be found on L.A. Sartor’s blog, An Indie Adventure — another invaluable resource.
Pageant Wagon Publishing — Kathryn Ross
Kathryn Ross
If you’re interested in a Christian writing mentor or an independent publisher who can help you develop your book idea into a print publication, you may want to reach out to Kathryn Ross, Author, Book Shepherd, Independent Publisher, Pageant Wagon Publishing, 856-205-9334.
Time management & the multifaceted solution to getting to the end -apods
Amanda Cabot’s APODS Series is an incredible must read for not only authors, but EVERYONE. In Publish Don’t Perish – Tip #5: Apply APODS to Your Life, hI provide a one stop post that provides a link with a summary of each of Amanda’s articles for your convenience. You won’t want to miss it.
legal advice for your business
Karen Van Den Heuvel Fischer
If you live in Colorado or Florida and need assistance with your
business, intellectual property concerns, or estate planning, see what Karen
VDH Fischer LLC has to offer or email me at kvdhfischer@gmail.com.
If you have any recommendations for our fellow writers, please feel free to share!
The
mechanics of writing are critical, so watch your grammar! It’s the way we
communicate, and your grammar can make or break your writing.
Unfortunately,
grammar mistakes are easy to make; however, Amanda Cabot’s Series, R&R:
Raves and Rants, provides the perfect tool to help you avoid making those
inevitable mistakes. She provides tips and tricks that will keep you in the
clear in an entertaining manner.
R&R: Raves and Rants by Amanda
Cabot
This article will provide you with the links and a brief summary of each article that can be found on L.A. Sartor’s blog, An Indie Adventure. You may want to spend time on this blog. Not only does An Indie Adventure provide great writing tips from pros like Amanda Cabot, but it’s a great source for getting the most out of your creative journey. As for your grammar tips and tricks, check out these invaluable articles!
This final rant is filled with a potpourri of items, some of which include mismatches, improbable dialogue tags, misplaced clauses, anachronisms, and others. Enjoy!!
Thank you, Amanda! I hope to see a future rave or rant!
Last week, I republished the article, An Inspiring Rare Friendship in anticipation of Publish Don’t Perish Tip #11 – Be Accountable. It’s so easy to be pulled away from your writing when “life” interferes. Sometimes you need a break, as I discussed in Tip #10 , however, sometimes while the break is helpful, it may extend longer than intended, and you can move farther and farther away from your goals. This slippery slope is especially easy for the writer, an often lonely profession. However, when you set yourself up to be accountable, important goals are likely reached. Today’s article will share ways in which you can make yourself accountable.
Accountability Partner
The Best Partner — Joni & Karen
Find yourself an accountability partner. This is someone you can share your daily or weekly writing goals with and who will check in with you to see if you’ve met them. This doesn’t necessarily have to be another writer, it can be anyone willing to see you succeed.
Writers’ Group
.Join a writers’ group. I have been blessed by one of the most incredible, supportive groups imaginable. We meet monthly, although during these times of social distancing, we missed a few until we found our rhythm with a new venue — Google Meet. It’s not quite the same as being together in person, but it’s almost as good and still provides motivation to write. These amazing people have the ability to fill my soul.
At the start of each meeting we pray together and provide a 90 second update on where we are with our writing. It’s amazing what that 90 seconds can inspire us to accomplish during the month.
Writing Retreat – Donna Wichelman, L.A. Sartor, Sandi Rog, Karen Fischer, Audra Harders, Candi Fick
Critique Group
Join a critique group where like minded
writers set writing goals and provide regular drafts to other members for
critique. Each group will have its own set of “rules” and “guidelines” the
members need to follow. But each member is held accountable to participate and
write.
Go Public
When you go public with your readership, family, and friends, you don’t want to let them down. Search Beyond Lies is a very important project for me, and by going public with An Inspiring Rare Friendship, I want you to hold me accountable. My goal is to have Search Beyond Lies ready for my professional content editor (Candee Fick) by December 1, and ready for my copy editor (Elizabeth Fenton) by Christmas. I will check in with you regularly.
An Inspiring Rare Friendship
What suggestions do you have to help us be accountable?
Tip #10 in the Publish Don’t Perish Series is — TAKE A BREAK, when you need one. Sometimes the process of making lemonade from life’s lemons requires a break for whatever reason. When it comes to the life of an author, sometimes a break will do wonders for writer’s block. However, sometimes different aspects of our lives must take a priority, whether it’s children, your spouse/significant other, day job, a family member who needs assistance, or …
The last post
Karen Van Den Heuvel Fischer
The last post I published was the last Thursday in April, thanks to Candee Fick. The last post I wrote, was two weeks prior. Friends, I took a break from writing. Not all writing, I am an attorney with the law firm of Karen VDH Fischer LLC and I write legal documents all day, whether for businesses, estate planning, probate, Employee Handbooks, or … . I took a break from writing my articles and working on my book, Search Beyond Lies. That break is over, and I am charging forward.
Search beyond lies
My latest novel (a work in progress) is titled, Search Beyond Lies. It’s very important to me, as it was inspired by my son’s close friend and mentor, Brian Perri, who lost his life on Mount Meeker on June 30, 2018 and those who would not give up on his search — my son, J.C. and Brian’s close friend from his army days, Kimo, who is now a part of our family. Although inspired by these incredible people, the book is a work of fiction and will have a happy ending.
Brian Perri
An inspiring rare friendship
After the 3-week search for Brian, I wrote an article titled, An Inspiring Rare Friendship. Although I posted this article on my website, it was subsequently lost when my website “crashed” and a number of published articles could not be recovered. Next week, I will republish this article, as it will be instrumental for the next tip.
Take a break
Take a break with a culinary work of art.
Take a break if you need it, and please don’t feel bad about taking it. Do something fun if you can or a task you enjoy, perhaps painting, gardening or culinary works of art, whatever your pleasure (mine is culinary since I have no talent with a paint brush or with the garden — although I enjoy others’ creations). These are unprecedented times and it’s important to take care of yourself.
Writing is both a solitary and community activity.
On the one hand, as a Christian romance author, I
spend countless hours inside my head and staring at a computer screen as me,
myself, and I brainstorm plots, characters, and themes before pouring rough
words onto a page and then rewriting them into some sort of logical order.
On the other hand, what good is a story if there’s no
one to read it? But before sharing my words with the book-loving community of
readers, I also work with my critique partner and editor, not to mention
multiple other people-run businesses for graphics, cover design, marketing,
advertising, and my amazing review team. What started as a solo project soon
includes a much bigger group all connected through the power of the internet.
A BOOK IS MORE THAN A STORY
My introvert-perfect work process took on a unique
element when I was invited to be a part of a multi-author boxed set releasing
on Mother’s Day.
For those unfamiliar with boxed sets, they are
essentially a collection of ebooks by various authors packaged together and
sold as a single unit. Readers get multiple stories for one low price and can
discover new-to-them authors in the process. While authors can multiply their
marketing budget and social media reach by pooling their resources.
It’s a win-win situation for both authors and readers.
But, working with other authors to create a boxed set is not without its
challenges. So, if you’re considering working with someone else in a co-author
or collection opportunity, here are a few logistical items to consider.
Communication
Like most things in life, communication is key. For
us, we created a secret group in Facebook where we could hold discussions, document
our decisions, add to shared files, and hold each other accountable. We also
set up a shared Dropbox folder to collect the stories and graphics images. As
we grew closer to the launch, weekly updates were posted with short lists of
things to do.
Another thing we did very early was create a
comprehensive list of tasks and internal deadlines for each step in the
process. Then, team leadership naturally emerged as we discussed our prior
experience and thankfully nobody had to learn a brand-new skill in order to
pull this off. Some were familiar with blurb writing, formatting, and uploading
to publishing platforms. Others were good at editing, regularly shared in
multiple other Facebook groups, or had leads to marketing outlets. A few already
had paid access to graphics programs and were able to create our cover, 3D
image, and other promotional images. Every task on our list was given a “point”
person.
Deadlines Met!
Even with plenty of advance notice, as those internal
deadlines approached, a few of the authors in the group had to bow out for
various reasons leaving us with five that were ready to move forward. So, if
you’re creating new stories for a set instead of recycling previous work,
either have a flexible release date, build in time for “life” delays, or bring
more authors onboard early to leave you with a solid group in the end.
Last—and this will make Karen’s lawyer brain
squirm—were the legal and financial agreements. By bundling our stories, we
were creating a single unique product and splitting the profits. The same
person who uploaded the files for publication would also be the one responsible
for receiving, splitting, and paying out our earnings with full transparency.
In addition, by publishing “wide” to a variety of international retailers
beyond Amazon, we all had to agree to restrictions about when and where we
could publish our individual stories later. And while we didn’t draw up a
formal contract, all of these decisions are documented within our group.
Love is in the Air
Our collection releases on Mother’s Day 2020 so while it’s
too soon to know how effective our marketing efforts have been, early reviews
have been very positive. And I’m sure there will be plenty of lessons to apply
to the next time I participate in a collection.
Because collaborating with other authors has been an invaluable experience both personally and professionally.
(c) 2020 Candee Fick
———-
Love is in the Air: 5 Contemporary Christian Romances
This collection of five brand new romances is
sure to send your heart soaring. Journey from Canada to Georgia and Colorado to
Paris by way of Michigan as these couples find love is in the air. All they had
to do was look up.
Author Candee Fick
Candee Fick is a multipublished, award-winning author. She is also the wife of a high school football coach and the mother of three children, including a daughter with a rare genetic syndrome. When not busy writing, editing, or coaching other authors, she can be found cheering on the home team at sporting events, exploring the great Colorado outdoors, indulging in dark chocolate, and savoring happily-ever-after endings through a good book.
