Writers Abroad Magazine Issue 7 November 2017 | Page 22

WRITERS ABROAD MAGAZINE: THE THIRD SPACE WRITING TIPS BY Nigel Wild Idea If you’re a writer, then you’re going to have myriad ideas; the key is to record them so they’re not lost. We all know where our brain is at its most active – walking the dog, relaxing in the bath, lying in bed. Probably the simplest is to have a notebook by your side, because often, one word will recall that cerebral moment. A mobile phone can be handy to make a note, or even to email it to yourself. Writing a long work like a novel will involve generating thoughts, perhaps for years. Have a system for collating your ideas so that they fall easily to hand and don’t become buried. The latest software will allow you to keep track of things. Evernote, Google Keep and OneNote work across platforms and let you take notes, create lists and organise them. Notes can be text, documents or images. Don’t lose those inspirations! Synopsis Be it an article, a short story, a book, it’s going to need ‘shape’. If pitching to a magazine or a publisher, order your ideas and create a synopsis. Editors are busy people and a well-crafted synopsis will make the difference between grabbing their attention and being spiked. Target Audience Whatever you write, you need to define your target audience. Are you writing for children, young people, an older readership, primarily male or female? Your approach, the content, the style, all will pivot around that target. If you’re writing for a magazine or periodical, obtain copies, learn what they publish and get a feel for the style and length required. Many editors will give you a tightly defined written brief to which you must adhere. It can be a steep learning curve, teaching yourself to stick to a brief without losing your own style and flow. But if you wish to be successful commercially, it’s the first rule of marketing – give the customer what they want. The Writers’ and Artists’ Yearbook, published annually, is an invaluable source for the author, covering every genre from newspapers and magazines to TV and theatre. It also contains listings for agents, societies and self-publishing services. Articles by inspirational writers offer a wealth of advice to the budding scribe. Research Part of the fun of writing is the research. Meticulous research is the hallmark of professionalism. The internet has made research infinitely easier, but how do you keep track of all your sources? Social bookmarking offers an online solutio n that allows you to both mark, tag and share bookmarks of web pages and access them from any internet device. Delicious and Diigo are very popular. First, copy and paste the URL for any useful web page. Then add tags, keywords that describe the page 21 | NOVEMBER 2017