Advanced Fiction Writing Blog

We’re switching gears today to talk about various aspects of the craft of writing fiction. So . . . no more talking about marketing or branding for awhile!

I’ll start with a question Vennessa sent me last week by email. I’ll summarize the question here: How do you handle Scenes and Sequels in a multi-POV book?

Randy sez: That’s a good question. I’m going to define a few terms so that anyone just joining us will be up to speed on the language.

“Scenes” and “Sequels” are terms invented by Dwight Swain in his book TECHNIQUES OF THE SELLING WRITER. I give a quick summary of Scenes and Sequels in my article on Writing the Perfect Scene.

A “Scene” contains three major elements, a Goal, a Conflict, and a Disaster.

In Swain’s theory of fiction, a “Scene” should be followed by a “Sequel” which contains three major elements, a Reaction, a Dilemma, and a Decision. A “Sequel” is then followed by another “Scene” and they alternate through the story.

A “POV character” is a “Point of View character”–the character whose head you try to get inside when you’re writing a particular scene. It’s common to use a number of POV characters in a novel. But you should only have one in each scene.

The problem comes when you try to write Scenes and Sequels using multiple characters. If you write a Scene in your hero Jim-Bob’s POV, then it seems like you’re obligated to write a Sequel in Jim-Bob’s POV too, and then another Scene, still in his head, and then another Sequel, and so on. And if you do that, you can’t ever get out of Jim-Bob’s head and into the POV of his girlfriend Sally-Jane. Nor can you ever get into the POV of the villain, Wicked Willie.

What’s a novelist to do?

The truth is that fiction these days moves faster than it did in the old days. Maybe you like that, or maybe you long for the old days when it took twenty pages to explain why Lizzie Bennett’s family estate got entailed away. It doesn’t matter whether you like it or not, fiction moves faster. There is less telling and more showing. There is less family history and more exploding helicopters. There are fewer Sequels and more Scenes.

These days, it’s common to write a novel in which Sequels are played out off-camera, and then the result of each Sequel (the Decision) is reviewed briefly in a later Scene.

This doesn’t mean less work for the author. It means more work. You, the novelist, still need to know what happens in all Sequels. But you now have to figure out a way to just give the reader the meat of what happened in the Sequel (without “telling” it) and work it into a Scene somewhere.

So if you have a Scene from Jim-Bob’s POV, it’s fine to move into Sally-Jane’s POV and show a Scene that ALSO gives the high points of the Sequel for Jim-Bob that happened off-camera. Then you can move to a Scene from Wicked Willie’s POV. Maybe that Scene will just happen to be the Sequel for poor Sally-Jane (in which case you can show it). Or maybe it won’t (in which case you STILL have to know what it was and find a way to tell it).

I like to think of a novel like a braid. Each strand of the braid is the storyline for one of the characters. You could, in principle, show only one strand all the way down and it would all make sense. But you get a richer story by alternating, having one strand on top, then another, then another. The other strands can be seen (or felt) but they’re not always visible. The alternation adds interest and texture.

Does all this make sense? If so, I’ll pick another question tomorrow from the comments we got today (there were plenty to work on for quite a while!)

I think we could talk forever on branding, but there are many other things to discuss. Here are my thoughts on what we talked about yesterday:

For branding Bonne: Bonne has her genre and target audience well defined. (Mythic fantasy for teen girls.) For her tagline, I would look for emotive words. Note that “Dancing” carries a lot more emotive punch than “Choreography.” I liked Christophe’s suggestion of “Dances with Words” but in view of Bonne’s genre (fantasy) I wonder if it might be better to use “Dances with Worlds”. Or maybe “Dancing on Another World.”

For branding Karla: As I said yesterday, “Biker chick lit” might work, but only if that’s what Karla really cares about. And as I suspected, it isn’t. Karla would rather write fictional biographies for young people. As she said, she’s still early in her writing career, and she doesn’t have to decide immediately. But it’s getting time to make a choice. Pick a genre you love and stick with it.

Tomorrow, we’ll switch gears and talk about craft again. I know I haven’t answered every question that was asked on branding. But we’ve covered the subject enough for now. This isn’t the “branding blog,” it’s the “Advanced Fiction Writing Blog.”

If any of you have any burning questions on craft, post them here in a comment. I already have one that was emailed to my privately, and I’ll be tackling that tomorrow. But I’d like to get a feel for what sort of issues you all struggle with.

OK, folks, let’s apply our collective brainpower.

Bonne wrote:

My genre is (somewhat) literary mythic fantasy, geared to teen girls. I am a dancer and performer of many genres, and the common thread in what I do is personal expression (and worship) through beauty.

I want my stories to a) be a glorious escape from the cruelties of daily life b) stir their hearts to consider their own cosmic significance, that there is more to this world than what we see,and they are more important than they’ve ever dared to hope.

I can’t guarantee that b) will happen, but I do my best to tell a great story and pray it strikes a chord.

The two incarnations of the first tagline are:

Making words and worlds dance.

Choreographer of words and worlds.

The second tagline is:

Reflecting the greatness in girls.

Possible substitutes for “reflecting”: awakening, kindling

Randy sez: OK, to begin with, part of your brand is your genre and you’ve got that nailed down well. You’ve tied this in with your target audience very nicely: Mythic fantasy for teen girls.

That’s good! You’ve identified your genre and your target market very precisely. The target market is not a huge market, but it’s big enough and it’s renewable, because they keep making more and more teen girls all the time. And girls read more than boys do.

Your background in dance also ties in very nicely. Dance is something that is going to appeal to teen girls who like mythic fantasy. You might want to find a logo designer or graphic designer to put together some graphical elements that you can use on your business cards, web site, etc. Graphics, as Allison told us Monday night, are part of your brand.

As for your tagline, that’s where my blog readers can help. What do you all think? Do you like Bonne’s suggestions for tagline? I have my own opinions, but I’m going to withhold them for now, because I’ve learned that this group is smarter than I am and I want to hear your opinions.

Can anyone suggest a better tagline for Bonne?

Karla wrote:

The only ideas I’ve had for myself are:
“Biker Chick Lit” (because I ride a motorcycle and I could include bikers in my stories but that’s never been my emphasis)

Randy sez: “Biker chick lit” could work. The only question I’d have is whether that’s truly what you want to write. It sounds like you’re a lot broader than that, based on the rest of your comments. Do you read chick lit? Do you like it? Do you respect it? If so, then this might be your genre. But of course then you can’t do ancient historical fiction or biographical fiction, which you also say you like.

The first thing is to figure out what you really want to write. Then build a brand around that.

I was pretty tired Monday after doing the teleseminar with Allison Bottke, and my brain fell asleep on me when it came time to blog Monday night. But I’m back now. There are still many questions to answer, so I’ll try to deal with some of them today. In a day or two, we’ll switch gears and talk about the craft of writing for a while.

Donna asked:

I see how branding is done and used when you have something going into print, have an agent and that already, but I’m still a bit confused on how to use a brand/promotion when you’re only still writing that first novel, freshman or maybe sophomore level. I guess what I’m asking is: how can you go about establishing it when you have nothing specific to promote yet?

Randy sez: Please bear in mind that YOU are part of your product. Readers don’t just buy books, they buy authors. Ever been to a movie just because it was a Harrison Ford movie? Or a Mel Gibson movie? Or a Julia Roberts movie? You’re not just seeing a movie, you’re seeing an actor.

Of course you have. Maybe you’ve popped into the bookstore and bought the latest Grisham or Clancy. You’re not just buying a book, you’re buying an author.

So no matter where you are in your career, you should be thinking about what it is about you that your readers are going to be buying someday. This is uncomfortable, unless you are an incurable egotist. But it’s part of branding.

I’ll mention Camy again. Part of her brand is her great big smile. I teased her a bit about the fact that she laughs a lot, but that’s part of her brand. As her editor once said about Camy, she lights up a room. She’s fun to hang out with.

Camille wrote:

My options, as I see them:
1.Toss the current baby out the window and begin fresh with something that reflects my “brand factors.”

2.Beef up the baby to include bits of my bf’s, so that it somewhat resembles the style of future stuff

3. Finish current wip all serious as first intended, count it as practice, cross my fingers and send it away. Then have a blast cramming my NEXT novel full of fun, twisted, provoking stuff.

Randy sez: Only you can make that decision, Camille. My advice is to work hard on whatever book you’re working on until the day comes when you decide that this story is never going to work and your heart is no longer in it. Then set it aside and work on something your heart is in 100%. You will know if and when that day comes and you’ll know what you’d rather be working on.

Camy wrote:

It took me all five manuscripts to figure out what I wanted to write. I had tried suspense, and while it was fun, I discovered I liked writing chick lit better. When I came up with my tagline, “Romance with a kick of wasabi,” I purposely made it applicable to both chick lit or suspense, depending on what I wanted to focus on. After I decided to pursue chick lit, I didn’t have to change the tagline. I wrote more chick lit manuscripts after that.

I guess what I’m saying is that it might take you several manuscripts to figure out what your brand is and how you want to focus your writing. You might write 2, 3, or 10 manuscripts before you discover that unique marketing angle that will become your brand.

Randy sez: This is typical, folks! It’s OK to take some time to figure it all out. We don’t all have to succeed instantly at everything we do. It’s common in publishing to say, “Joe took ten years to become an overnight success.”

Success comes and success goes. Pursue your dream, write what your heart is screaming for you to write. Whether you ever make megabucks or not, whether you ever even get published or not, you are doing what many people only TALK about doing. You’re writing a novel. You’re feeding your soul. If you make a few bucks or get famous for your allotted 15 minutes, that’s gravy. Be authentic to the writer you were born to be. When the money’s gone and the spotlights go out, you’ll still be authentic. That’s its own reward.

Val wrote:

I am really intrigued by the concept of branding as a writer and most interested in Camy’s story. I am from South Africa and writing Christian “teaching” books and ebooks on various topics, but especially end times. They are “easy to read” and understand, though full of doctrinal truth. Often devotional. Always challenging.

Randy, do you have some helpful comments? Right now I “brand” myself (if you can call it that) as “www.valwaldeck.com - reaching our generation one book at a time.”

Randy sez: Sounds a little vague to me. That could be about anything. I’ll toss you something off the top of my head. It sounds like you write “Truth For The End Times.” Please remember that these taglines are only a small part of your brand. Your name is part of your brand. Your genre. Your style. Your angle. Maybe your haircut. (Those of you who know Ted Dekker, wouldn’t you say his hair is part of his brand? And for sure, Einstein’s hair was part of his.)

The tagline can be useful, but it’s just a piece of it. Personally, I think authors spend too much time angsting over taglines and not enough thinking about consistency in their genre. I’ve certainly fallen down on that score, and I’m hearing a number of you who also want to write 3 and 4 different genres. Remember what Allison said Monday: A brand requires Quality, Uniqueness, and Consistency.

Mary wrote:

I don’t know if what I’m writing now could have such a specific brand. What about a tagline like, “Seeking to Satisfy the Searching Heart” or is that too vague.

Randy sez: It’s vague. Now I’ve got a question for everyone: What is Stephen King’s tagline? Quick, no cheating! No looking at his web site. Does anyone know?

Honestly, I have no clue if Stephen King even has a tagline. I don’t think his sales are suffering for it. Stephen King is the best in the world at writing horror fiction. And he’s a master character creator. Those are the things he’s known for. Not his tagline, if he even has one.

Bonne wrote:

Clearly I should spend more time on it, but I got a rough draft of the WHAT you do, WHO you are and WHY you do it settled down. Next was the nefarious tagline (Brand Identity Statement).

I came up with two that I actually like (room for improvement I’m sure) but now face a dilemma. One tagline expresses WHO and WHAT, the other deals with WHY and the target audience. As an unpublished writer, should I focus more on selling myself and my style or demonstrating who the publisher would sell it to?

Randy sez: Good question. Tell us what genre you write and a bit about yourself and then run your taglines past us and we can vote on it.

Crystal wrote:

This is a great series, Randy. I wish I could’ve done the teleseminar. Will you offer this in a downloadable format for later? Or offer it again?

Randy sez: It takes a lot of time and energy to put together a teleseminar. So we record them and never repeat them. By the way, the recording is already available. The engineers sent me the recording today, so I’ve posted it on the same page with the three handouts. If you missed the teleseminar, you can still get it here.

Lizzie wrote:

What about, like, a very strong theme/pattern that crosses genres, like, “Friendships tested in the face of terror” or something? That could be suspense, fantasy . . . It sort of narrows it down to a thriller-type thing, but could involve many different elements.

I’m still quite the freshman, but looking at my passions and tendencies, I enjoy writing about strong relationships with bouts of action. Perhaps it should be “Relationships tested by terror” or something. What do y’all think?

Randy sez: This sounds like a good start. My one concern is to be sure that you know what genre you’re writing for. Crossing genres is all fine, but every book needs to have one main genre. A gothic romantic mystery western spy novel sounds cool in principle, but which shelf do they put it on??? So specify your genre first!

Jenness wrote:

Okay, Randy. You’ve got me actually thinking about maybe narrowing down my nine genres. LOL. My question is, WHAT am I supposed to do with all these story ideas that keep popping into my head?! Think we could set up some kind of story idea exchange forum where I could dump all these other genius ideas that don’t fit into my genre of choice? (Whichever that one turns out to be.)
And what if the genres are close? Like, romantic suspense, cozy-mystery w/ romance elements, and contemporary romance? Would that be narrowing it down enough?

Randy sez: LOL, like I was just saying . . . pick a genre, any genre. (I’m preaching to myself here. Those of you who’ve read my books know I’ve worked in about 3 different genres.)

Here’s what you do with those extra story ideas: Write ‘em down. I have a thick file full of story ideas, some several years old. When I need a story idea, I go riffle through that file. The first novel I published sat in that story idea file for probably five or six years while I worked on other things. Then one day, after getting some comments back from an editor on yet another rejected manuscript, something she said made me go to my file and pull out that story and start writing.

We’ve been talking about branding all week. One question that has come up frequently is whether a new writer needs to get branded. So I thought I’d ask a newly minted author, Camy Tang, whose first novel comes out in September. Camy took my Fiction 101 lecture series three years ago at a writing conference. She’s made rapid progress and now calls herself the “loud Asian chick” who writes “Romance with a kick of wasabi.”

Camy is great fun to hang out with, and she’s put up with a lot of razzing from me because of the fact that ANYTHING makes her laugh. No kidding, if you say anything remotely funny, she laughs.

I once bet her that I could make her laugh by reading something chosen at random out of the newspaper. She took the bet and put on her straight face, absolutely determined not to laugh. I opened the newspaper and started reading an ad in my “Kansas hick” voice. (I was born in Kansas.) She started laughing hysterically. I feel confident I could read an obituary and make her laugh.

Check out Camy’s web site here. Notice how well the design, colors, graphics etc. all fit together. Graphic design is part of a brand.

Anyway, I emailed Camy yesterday and asked if she’d like to talk about how she got branded (and maybe show us her scars). She was quick to respond.

Randy asked: Do you think branding is a “good thing” or a “bad thing?”

Camy said:

I’m going to go out on a limb and say branding is one of the writer’s most powerful weapons (outside of God’s timing and His orchestration of the universe).

As an unpublished, nobody writer, what made my senior editor (who was a senior marketing director at the time, something to take note of) sit up and notice me was my brand. Fun, romantic, Asian American fiction.

Here are my theories why:

1) No one else in Christian publishing was doing Asian American fiction–some Asian American NONfiction, some overseas Asian (non American) fiction, but not Asian American fiction. I was blazing a new trail.

2) I was writing ROMANCE, which is a well-selling genre in Christian publishing, so I wasn’t totally out in left field.

When I pitched to Sue Brower, she hadn’t read any of my writing, but she was intrigued by my brand. It made me stand out from the other appointments she’d been taking at that conference because I had a definite MARKETING platform (remember I said she was marketing director at the time?).

If a writer can make him or herself stand out from the pack like that, then stellar writing is just gravy.

Randy asked: Tell us all about your brand.

Camy said:

I write Asian American Christian chick lit, although it’s also targeted at romance readers (which is by far the larger reader demographic). More on that below.

My tagline is “Romance with a kick of wasabi.” Wasabi is an extremely powerful horseradish used with sushi. I chose my tagline because my novels are romantic, but they’ve also got strong, unusual Asian characters (that kick of wasabi).

Randy notes: My wife is Korean and sometimes makes sushi with wasabi. It’s always fun to watch people eat wasabi when they think it’s guacamole. That’s a real kick!

Randy asked: What was the process you used to develop your brand?

Camy said:

Several things happened at once.

Originally, I had written a chick lit with ethnic-neutral characters. But then I did some research.

I looked at the books published in both the Christian and mainstream market. I looked at chick lit and also romantic comedy and comedic women’s fiction, since those genres are closest to what I write. I read a few books, but mostly I took time to look at the back cover blurbs posted on Amazon.com and Christianbook.com.

Those were the best couple hours I ever spent. I discovered that out of the books already published, there were no Christian Asian American novels, just Christian Asian American nonfiction titles or nonChristian Asian American novels. The Christian Asian novels out there were either historical or set overseas, not in America. That’s when the lightbulb clicked and I realized I had a unique perspective that could translate into unique fiction.

At the same time, Brandilyn Collins prayed over me at a conference. I told her to just pray however the Spirit led her, and the strangest thing came out of her mouth–”write your heritage.” Talk about weird. Just as I’d been considering writing Asian American characters, Brandilyn prayed this very specific prayer over me. Well, who am I to argue with God?

I already knew that I didn’t want to be just like any other author already out there. I wasn’t out to become the next Amy Tan or Kim Wong Keltner. I wanted to be original and unique rather than being “just like so-n-so.” I deliberately set out to NOT copy what was already published.

I also didn’t want to shoot myself in the foot–I wanted to make sure I appealed to the VPs of Sales and Marketing at a publishing house. At the time, chick lit was starting to die as a genre, but romance sales were (and still are) strong. While chick lit readers will read romance, romance readers will not always read chick lit.

So while my writing was still essentially chick lit with those strong female characters, I deliberately wrote my novels in third person to appeal to romance readers. It was a good gamble for me–this was one of many things that made my writing appeal to the editorial board.

If I’d discovered that my brand didn’t quite intrigue people, then I would have tweaked it even more until I found a brand that did. I wouldn’t ever write something I didn’t want to write, but because I enjoy writing in several different genres, I could have branched out to other things without any kind of pain or suffering.

Randy asked: Did your publisher or agent help you in developing your brand, and if so, how?

Camy said:

Most definitely. My agent and publisher both encouraged me to play up the romance aspect of the stories so that the Sales Team would have an easier time selling the book to retailers. Well, I love romance, so that wasn’t a problem for me.

My agent also pointed out something I hadn’t even noticed myself–my books have a very strong theme of family running through them. I enjoy writing about Asian American families, and it’s fun because all families are essentially alike, no matter the ethnic background. I have friends and readers saying, “Oh, my grandmother does that!” or “My mom is totally like that.”

So at the suggestion of my agent and editor, I’ve also tweaked my brand a bit even more, and I delve deeper into the Asian American culture to explore Asian American families. I’ve been reading Asian American studies books and also Asian American women’s studies books.

I have a feeling my brand will remain essentially the same, but there might be little “tweakings” here and there along the road.

Randy sez: Notice what Camy did. She thought about who she is and looked for things that were unique about her. She researched the market. When she talked to editors and her agent, she listened to what they had to say. (Other people often see things in us that we don’t see in ourselves.) Then she put it all together into an angle that she felt comfortable with–something she could feel excited about writing for the next several years.

You go, Camy! I’m hoping your book really takes off.

Today, I’ll answer a few more questions on branding. Then tomorrow, I’ll post some comments by another author I consider very well branded, Camy Tang. And Camy is not even published quite yet. I wish I’d known as much about branding when I was just starting out as Camy does. I was hoping to get her interview pasted in here tonight, but it’s late and I’ve got a few good questions from you all left to answer:

Lynn wrote:

Okay, I’m sold. I realize I need to be branded (fortunately this won’t be done with a hot iron - right?). But as an author starting out on her career I have no idea on which genre I need to focus. I read nearly everything (except chicklit - sorry but that genre just can’t get me past the back cover). This I believe is going to take a lot of research and trial and error. And to be quite frank - and please correct me if I am wrong - a great deal of rejections until some literary agent and editor decides one of my novels is publishable, whatever the genre. At that point I am assuming I will have a pretty good idea where my niche will be, but will that be enough to satisfy the animal in me that wants to explore all genres and the adventures they entail?

Randy sez: We can arrange the hot iron, for those who want one. But normally, it’s more painful than that, because you have to think about who you are and define yourself. That’s something we all struggle with. It took 3 folks from Zondervan to hold Brandilyn down long enough to brand her!

It is normal, Lynn, at your stage in your career, to want to branch out and try different things. There’s nothing wrong with that. As is well known, I spent about 10 years as a pre-published writer, trying various things. Eventually I found the things I loved to write most. Unfortunately, there were two or three different genres that I loved to write most. I’d have done much better if I’d settled on one.

So try stuff! Experiment! That’s great when you’re a freshman and sophomore level writer. But when you get to be a senior level writer and ready to graduate, you’ll help your cause immensely if you show those agents and editors that you know who you are and what you write.

Gina wrote:

I guess I’m a little nervous about getting branded and then not liking what I’m stuck with. I’ve got this “thing” going with being an interrupted writer, but I don’t see that translating into my fiction branding. I don’t see how that fits in to WHAT I write, just HOW I write.

Randy sez: You are more likely to be stuck with a brand you don’t want if you FAIL to brand yourself effectively. Because other people will decide what your brand is, and they’ll feel no responsibility to decide the way you want them to. That has been my problem for years and years. But if YOU choose your brand, then you get to choose what you LOVE writing and be who you really want to be.

I think the theme of being “interrupted” might play into your brand as a novelist. Not sure how it would work, but it could be unique and different. Some brands capitalize on “coolness”–for example Apple, which is mightily cool. Gina, you might be able to turn being an interrupted writer into a cool factor. But your genre will also play a role. And your personal style.

My personal style includes offbeat humor and a strong analytical streak. Not everyone appreciates those traits, and that’s OK. The fact is that both of them are authentically me. So I’ve woven those into my Advanced Fiction Writing site as part of my brand. When I say on my site that I was “both class nerd and class clown,” that’s fair warning of the kind of person I am. That’s part of my brand.

Judith wrote:

I’m not sure I understand about “branding.” Is it “what I want to be known for?” I started a web site to start building a platform about my main focus or message as a writer. Perhaps that will brand me.

Randy sez: Yes, that is part of branding. One of the questions you ask in brand development is “How do I want people to perceive me?” Or sometimes it’s even simpler–”How do people already perceive me, and is that a valid picture of who I really am?” That was part of the path Brandilyn took. She listened to her readers and they told her things that she then took and turned into her brand. There is a give and take in the brand development process.

Kathryn wrote:

I think a brand isn’t what you WANT to be known for so much as what you ARE known for. The trick seems to be in finding a way to make the wanted brand and the known brand one and the same.

Randy sez: Yes, it seems to be a bit of both. You can’t completely control how people perceive you. But you can give them guidance. And if you listen to them, sometimes they know things about you that you don’t know about yourself. Branding is a two-way street, and being authentic is a big part of it. Communicating that to people clearly is another part of it.

From the comments today, it’s clear that many of you are starting to get the hang of this branding thing. I’m going to email some of you privately to answer questions you asked today.

Next Monday evening, Allison Bottke and I will be doing a teleseminar on “Branding for Writers.” Allison knows ten times what I know about this subject and we’ll hopefully be able to clarify things a whole lot more. Branding is a tough subject to learn, so I expect that those of you who’ve been reading this blog will get more out of the teleseminar than those who come in cold.

Yesterday, I emailed my friend Brandilyn Collins with a few interview questions about how she developed her brand. Brandilyn is very well branded and very successful.

She got back to me today with the answers. A few links:
Brandilyn’s web site
Brandilyn’s Forensics and Faith blog (has many articles on the craft of writing)
Brandilyn’s Kanner Lake blog

Here are my questions and Brandilyn’s answers:

Randy asks: Early in your career, you wrote suspense AND women’s
fiction. At a certain point, you had to make a hard decision to focus. Tell us a little about what went into that decision.

Brandilyn answers:

Okay, but some backstory is required here. I was writing for Zondervan, a division of HarperCollins (who remains my publisher). I had a three-book women’s fiction series (Bradleyville) published and four suspense novels on the shelves, two more in the pipeline. (I was in the middle of my Hidden Faces series, featuring a forensic artist.) Basically I wrote two books a year—one suspense, then one women’s fiction. My women’s fiction was popular, won myriad national awards, and one of the titles (Color the Sidewalk for Me) hit the bestseller list. Out of the four suspense titles, two were bestsellers.

I was MPD big time. Half the year I ensconced myself in deeply characterized, relational-type sagas. The other half I killed people. Sent my suspense readers on roller coaster rides (their typical adjective for my books), and snatched away their breath with twists (also their words, not mine.) All this was OK by me. I LIKED my dual personality. The women’s fiction writing urged me to more deeply characterize my suspense. My suspense writing taught me how to ratchet up tension in my women’s fiction.

However, when I started the Hidden Faces series, we decided to publish all those books in a row to gain momentum with my suspense readers. Then I’d turn to a new women’s fiction series.

So, at the time two Hidden Faces books were out, my publisher starting getting ideas.

In early January 2005 the Zondervan folks set a “marketing meeting” for me. They flew two editors and an outside marketing consultant from the east coast to my home in California to meet with me and my husband all day. Topic: direction of my career and how to market my books for the future. In that meeting it soon became clear that my split personality was presenting a real challenge marketing-wise. My suspense sales had gone up since I started writing the Hidden Faces series, even bringing a former suspense (Eyes of Elisha) back on the bestseller list. At the same time, my sales of the Bradleyville books were suffering because they didn’t figure into the current promotion of my suspense persona. My editors showed me the hard numbers. To build my suspense readers, then turn around and do another women’s fiction series would mean we’d have to start the momentum all over again with this different set of readers. Then, by the time I returned to suspense, all my readers in that category might be gone.

I loved writing in both genres, but I am a focused person when it comes to my career, and I’m practical. Looking at the hard data I could see it was far less likely to hit the numbers my publisher thought I could hit if I retained my dual personality. I needed to focus on one genre and really work on building a name in it. Because my suspense numbers were already higher, and I was in the midst of a series—voila. By the time we were a few hours into that meeting, my choice was made. I would kill people full time.

Randy sez: That was a tough decision, because you excelled in both genres. I liked the women’s fiction series and was sorry to see you abandon it. At the same time, I thought it was a wise decision. It’s hard to split your energy in two genres when your career is still rising.

Randy asks: What are the main components of your brand?

Brandilyn answers:

My trademarked brand is “Seatbelt Suspense.” I also have a registered tagline: “Don’t forget to b r e a t h e …”

Randy asks: Can you tell us the process you went through in developing your brand?

Brandilyn answers:

We went on to discuss my brand at that marketing meeting. We discussed the kind of suspense I write for the Christian market. What made me unique among my colleagues? What should a reader expect when picking up a Brandilyn Collins novel? This was a fascinating discussion. It’s a real trick, taking everything an author is known for and narrowing it down to one creative phrase. We talked a long time about this issue. Eventually in follow-up weeks after the meeting, I came up with my “brand descriptor” of “Seatbelt Suspense.” This came after reviewing all the fan letters and e-mails I’d received for my suspense novels. (Yes, I keep them all—they can be very useful.) I want to emphasize this point. The brand came not from HOW I SAW MYSELF, but HOW MY READERS SAW ME. I kept seeing the term “roller coaster” and “twists” come up in these letters. Also my suspense was known for starting hard out the gate. First page, BAM, you’re into the story. All of this together led to “Seatbelt Suspense.”

The tagline “Don’t forget to b r e a t h e …” I already had. Again, this came from reader letters, which referred again and again to breath snatched away while reading my stories, whether suspense or women’s fiction.

Randy asks: How do you see your brand evolving in the future? Or will it stay pretty constant for the foreseeable future?

Brandilyn answers:

Yes, it will stay consistent for now. Since that marketing meeting two and a half years ago, I’ve written five more suspense novels, three of which are now on shelves, two in the pipeline. I am now moving away from writing series to writing stand-alones. This will give me more flexibility book to book.

One more thing needs to be said—on the creative side. This branding decision wasn’t easy. At first I truly mourned the loss of half of my writing identity. However, I found I could mix things up a little. In the very next series I went on to write (Kanner Lake), I took some women’s fiction elements (large list of eclectic supporting characters) and worked them into the little fictional town in which I created havoc. So there are creative ways in which I can satisfy the “women’s fiction” side of me.

Meanwhile, business-wise, the branding decision has absolutely been the right one. All three suspense novels published since that meeting have hit the bestseller list, and sales numbers are climbing. I have a long way to go to get where I want to be, but I can certainly see the progress.

Randy sez: Bottom line here is that branding is hard work. It’s a process. Brandilyn didn’t fully commit to a brand until she had seven books out (if I counted correctly). Before that, she had two brands going.

Note that Brandilyn had five books written and ready to go when she broke in. This is a bit unusual. Also, she has many years of experience in marketing. Both factors made it possible for her to write in two genres early on. But that wasn’t sustainable, and she made a hard decision to commit to a single brand.

I’d like to emphasize a couple of points today:

1) You don’t need to sell to EVERYONE in the whole world to be a successful writer. The Harry Potter series sells something like 40 million copies per book (give or take 10 million). There are 7 billion people on the planet. Doing the math, poor J.K. Rowling is ignored by more than 99 percent of the population. How tragic! But she scrapes by. If you sell to 1 percent of 1 percent of the world, that’s still 700,000 people! If you sell to 1 percent of 1 percent of 1 percent, that’s still selling MORE COPIES than 98% of all books sell.

2) US readers will consider just about any spot on the globe exotic, if the story is made to FEEL exotic. GORKY PARK was set in Russia. THE SPY WHO CAME IN FROM THE COLD was set in East Berlin, among other places. (Many great spy novels have been set in Europe.) WHALE RIDER was set in New Zealand. THE NAME OF THE ROSE was set in Italy. The James Bond movies are set just about anywhere.

Whoever you are, wherever you are, whatever you are–that’s what you are. Use that as part of your brand.

Now to some of today’s questions:

Cristophe wrote:

I live in Brussels, Belgium. My native tongue is dutch, then french. English is only my third language. I know I want to write novels in english, so I can just about forget publishing a book in Belgium.

It will be hard for me - probably harder dan most people - to get published in the USA. But I’m thinking now that branding could seriously help me here. Am I wrong to use my home country as part of the brand? It might scare people of instead of attract them.

Randy sez: Yes, use your European location to your advantage. It depends exactly what you’re writing, of course. If you were writing a World War II novel, for example, being on location in Europe would be a huge help. Or a contemporary spy novel. Or a novel about international banking. Tell us more about what kind of novel you write and we’ll pool our brains to come up with a brand for you. This is a great group of brains here!

Steve wrote:

Can you have a brand that crosses genres? My biggest problem is that I can’t seem to narrow what I write because I read anything that looks good regardless of genre ( I’ve even read literary novels -gasp-). This is probably me still being a rookie but I’m cool with that ( the part about narrowing down my genre not about literary novels :)).

I guess this is just a long winded way of saying how specific do you have to be and is there a process to go through?

Randy sez: It’s good to read multiple genres. I do. Most writers do. It’s OK to mix genres. A mystery with romantic elements, for example. Or a thriller with a coming-of-age subtheme. But a novel should be clearly definable as ONE MAIN GENRE. Reason: Suppose you score big and Barnes and Noble orders 100,000 copies for its chain. And then all those books arrive at the store, and the stockers open them up and say, “Um, where do we put these? The mystery section or the romance section?” That’s a problem. They have to know what to call it. They have to know where to shelve you.

I would say it’s good to be quite specific when you define your brand. A brand is a combination of the genre you write, the person you are, and the angle you take on your writing.

Colleen wrote:

Well, now there are three of us! Although I was born in the United States, I have lived more than half my life in Chile, South America. I also plan to get my work published in the United States, but I want my books to have a Latin flavor.

Randy sez: Yes, that makes sense. Just make sure the publishers know that your book is set in the EXOTIC country you live in. For those of you who are not in the US, an idea that may play well is to bring a US citizen to your country and then immerse them in your culture. But that’s not necessary. The novels and movies I mentioned above were mostly non-US characters.

Remember that readers read to escape their everyday lives. Some of us want to escape to another country. So give us that option. Just don’t treat your country as if it were a boring, everyday place. Show us how cool it is where you live.

Mary (RelevantGirl) finally told us her brand:

Communicating Truth from the Inside Out

Randy sez: OK, that is Mary’s tagline, which is an important part of her brand. But it’s not the whole hot dog. The tagline, in fact, is merely the ketchup. Mary’s brand is far more than that. Let’s start with genre.

Mary writes contemporary Christian fiction that tends toward the literary end of the spectrum. Her books are set in Texas and feature dark, heart-wrenching stories of children who are victims of abuse . . .

I won’t finish this, because it’s Mary’s job to finish it. But a good branding strategy would highlight why Mary writes about abused children and then would give a tagline that captures all of the above in one short phrase. A branding strategy would also include a lot more, such as how to encapsulate all of the above with graphics and a color scheme for her web site that suit her brand. (You can check out Mary’s web site here.

Jannie wrote:

Let’s make it four! I’m a born South African, served as missionary in several African countries for a huge part of my life, but chose to marry Mr. Perfect in Houston 7 years ago. I was told by an editor, a well-known one, that I will not get a novel with an African flavor published, because most readers are not interested in foreign stuff. I believed him, because I didn’t know better. This novel never wanted to leave my heart, though. Now I’m getting so encouraged… Randy, do you think it could work?

Randy sez: I think the book you’re most likely to sell is the one you’re most passionate about. Jannie, one thing that would work very well for you would be take an American character for an adventure into the heart of Africa. I don’t know what you write, so let’s take some examples.

If you write romance, then send an American woman off on safari and meet a mysterious, exotic man. If you write mystery, send her on vacation to somewhere Africa and have her implicated in the murder of her tour guide (or someone else). Does this make sense? If you’re writing for the American reader, it’s good to connect to that reader via an American character, but you really only need one.

My first novel had a young American female archaelogy student (from my hometown of San Diego) on a dig in Israel. I had one other American character, but he could have been any nationality and the story would have worked just as well. Everyone else in the story was either Israeli or born in ancient Jerusalem (it was a time travel novel). The moral here is that you only need one American character for your reader to connect.

Mary H. wrote:

Do you think eclectic reading is beneficial or possibly detrimental in helping writers develop as Steve implies?

Randy sez: I vote for being eclectic. That’s what I do. My bookshelves contain a truly bizarre collection of books. I have read something in practically every genre known to man. Yes, I even have read a few romances. I love Diana Gabaldon’s first few in her OUTLANDER series.

Camille wrote:

So, if I understand this branding thing (and I doubt that I do) it seems we want to define our purpose as a writer and our unique flavor or style? That doesn’t sound easy, but seems more freeing than being confined to a genre.

Could someone share some examples of “brands” or taglines, like RelevantGirl’s…(I’d like to see someone try to top that one)…some you’ve heard of or come up with yourself?

What’s your line, Randy?

Randy sez: For this site, my brand is extremely well-defined and is everything a brand should be. For my novels, my brand has been very bad. So I’ll talk about this one right now and my fiction brand another day.

A brand should always start with a target audience. For Advanced Fiction Writing, my target audience is very simple: novelists. That’s a well-defined niche market, neither too broad nor too narrow.

What do I have for this target audience? Information on how to write fiction. I define that to mean three things: Organizing, Creating, and Marketing. If a writer excels at all three of these areas, he or she is going to succeed. It would be very hard to fail. So the entire goal of my site is to provide info in these three areas. Period. No Amway ads. No editorial services. No ads even for writing software. Of course I have some ads, but so far only for products I’ve personally created and that therefore match my vision of what information I think writers need to know.

But a brand also has a personal element to it. My online persona is “zany physicist writer.” That is exactly who I am, so it’s not hard to create a site that captures that persona. I am also known around the world as “the Snowflake guy” on account of my famous Snowflake article. Recently, I have encapsulated all of the above in the phrase “America’s Mad Professor of Fiction Writing.” I’m not entirely certain that this is the best tagline for me, but I’m experimenting with it.

A branding strategy should also explain WHY. In my case, I never intended to become a writing teacher. It just happened. People asked me to speak at conferences. I tried it, stumbled some, but generally enjoyed the process. And I got enough encouragement that I kept doing it and learned better how to present information. And I discovered something I never expected–I LOVE teaching. I don’t know why, but I do. I think that oozes through into my brand.

I only wish that my branding strategy for fiction had been as well defined when I started writing fiction 19 years ago. But I’ve learned my lesson. I’ll talk more about my fiction brand in another post, maybe in the next few days.

Laura wrote:

Okay, I’m not trying to start an argument or anything, but aren’t there exceptions to this? Nora Roberts comes to mind, with her J.D. Robb books.

And I know an author who’s written over 90 books under a variety of pennames and genres. He’s quite successful.

So did these people ignore branding?

Randy sez: Nora Roberts/J.D. Robb is one of those amazing people who are incredibly productive. I don’t know her publishing history, but I’ll bet she established herself first under one of those names, and then branched out. And the reason she chose a pseudonym was precisely to preserve her existing brand. It’s a good strategy and it works for a few people with way more energy than most of us.

Every pseudonym gives you an opportunity for a different brand. These people don’t ignore branding–they are simply multiply branded. As I look at the landscape of writers today, virtually all the really successful ones are very well branded.

Amy wrote:

So Randy, here’s my quandary: I write romantic suspense about Crimes Against Children FBI agents with my target audience being moms. I have a website dedicated to the Defenders of Hope series. But I don’t have a brand that encompasses my suspense. At least I don’t think so.

My brand that I established through my author site is “Heart Chocolate~ words to enrich heart and soul.” The site is full of chocolate and heart chocolate, which lots of people seem to love~ moms especially. This brand covers my heart as a writer and my non-fiction stories. And in my suspense I talk about heart chocolate both in the novel and in my author letter.

Then I read all of your blogs about branding and methinks I’m in need of some help. So, help!

Randy sez: Hmmm, I looked at your web site. The main page and most of the pages are effectively branded as gritty cop stories. They have that look and feel. It seems like your books would appeal to men too, not just moms. The heart chocolate theme on your discussion board seems to be a whole different personality. That’s definitely targeted at moms. So I’m not sure what to say here. Just how much romance is in these books? Does the heart chocolate theme fit the books? I can’t tell without reading them.

Vennessa wrote:

Randy, I though about your comments on a possible branding, and came up with a rather lame one last night. “Kiwi Scenic Suspense.”

Randy sez: That’s a start. That’s a tagline, and it might work or it might be just one stepping stone on the way to where you eventually want to go. There are questions to ask. What type of suspense do you write? Targeted to men or women or both? Guns? Intrigue? Spies? What kind of personality do you have and how does it tie in to your fiction? What drives you to write this kind of fiction?

All of these questions will help you create a branding strategy that is much more than just a tagline.

I’ll try to answer some more questions on branding today.

First, let me thank those of you who jumped to my defense today, when Strephon took a shot at me. Honestly, I just laughed when I saw his comment. And I laughed harder when I read all your responses.

I’m reminded of the scene in PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN where the British commodore tells Captain Jack Sparrow, “You are without a doubt the worst pirate I’ve ever heard of.”

And Sparrow gives him that wicked-crazy grin and says, “Ah! But you HAVE heard of me.”

Enough said on such silliness. I think we all saw a lesson today in the power of negative branding.

Now let’s get to your questions:

RelevantGirl asked:

I’m getting dangerously close to a brand. Here’s my question: I’m using the word “writing” in it, but since I’m wanting to beef up my speaking ministry, I’m considering, instead, the word “communicating.” Is that okay or should it always be “writing”?

Randy sez: Yes, that’s a commonly used word. My corporation is “Ingermanson Communications, Inc.” My literary agent is “Alive Communications, Inc.” And there’s the publishing house “Cook Communications, Inc.” Of course, your name is only part of your brand. (A big part, but it’s not the whole enchilada.)

So, RelevantGirl, do you want to elaborate on your brand a bit more? I think it’s fair to say that part of your brand is your reputation for gut-wrenching honesty. That’s something many attempt, but it’s something you’ve succeeded in doing. So tell us more!

Donna asked:

Ok, I think I’m still having a little trouble understanding how to pin one down. Can it be as general as just fiction? As I said before, I’m currently working on two: one is a real-life sort of romantic-type but not like a Harlequin romance, and the other a fantasy-type with a historical background that also will have a bit of romance but not as centered on it. Both probably will have some comedic points as I can’t seem to keep that out of any of my writing. But I don’t want to say I’m a romance writer. How specific does the brand need to be? Especially when starting out.

Randy sez: “Just fiction” is a bit too generic. Just about all of us here write fiction (we do have nonfiction writers here too, and they’re welcome, but this site is about writing fiction). The question is what kind of fiction? That generally means, what genre and what’s your angle on that genre?

If I can give an example, Stephen King’s brand is “master of horror fiction.” But it’s more than that. You expect him to have great characters.

Tom Clancy’s brand is “technothriller”. He in fact invented the genre. But it’s more than just technothriller. You expect lots of characters, an intricate plot, and guns, ammo, explosions, helicopter crashes, and maybe the stray nuclear bomb. And American military men who are dedicated to doing their job. I think that’s what appeals to Clancy’s readers–his solid, hard-working military guys–Clark, Chavez, and especially Ryan.

Ron wrote:

You mention to Debra that disabilities can be a part of your platform. I’m dyslexic (I’ve compensated for many years and wasn’t diagnosed until last fall) and I would like to make this a part of my platform but, not sure how to work it in. Thinking something along the lines of being dyslexic and being successful.

You could do this by having a dyslexic character as your main character for a series of novels. Then in your promo materials, you could mention that you have dyslexia and tell what you’ve had to do to overcome it in order to write fiction. The character would need to be a really good character, but the dyslexia (and yours) would help make him/her memorable. And you could do this no matter what genre you write. So your brand could be “the dyslexic detective story writer” (if you write mysteries) or fill in the blank for whatever genre you write. Part of branding is to put your personality into your writing.

Christopher wrote:

But here’s my problem: I have 2 other novel ideas worked out a little bit, and I’m looking forward to working those ideas out in the future. However, all three novels will be 3 different styles.

The novel I’m working on is gothic horror, the other ones are technopunk and detective. I know I’m a weird person for having such diverse interests, but as you said yourself, being a Novelist I’m not Normal. So I guess I can be forgiven.

Anyway, here’s my question: I can find a way to fit both my cyberpunk and my detective novel into the gothic horror genre without a problem. The question is, should I do so? Wouldn’t it seem like a stretch to fit them all into the same brand?

Randy sez: Hmmm, tough question. My gut feeling is that you CAN blend these genres someday, but it might be best to start with three novels that are all in pretty much the same genre. So choose the one you like BEST and do a few novels in that genre. Then you can start bending it a bit. Your readers won’t expect you to stay in one place forever. What you want to avoid is yanking them all over the place. Give them some continuity.

On a personal note, I’ve written in multiple genres and tried to stretch them all to fit, and I don’t think it’s worked. I love ancient history, whereas I merely like contemporary suspense a whole lot. So I’ve made the tough decision to not do any more contemporary or futuristic suspense for the immediate future. Instead, I’m going to focus on ancient history, (but it will have a stronger suspense element in it.)

It’s hard for me to focus on one thing, but my feeling is that I need to do that. So I’ve chosen to focus on what I love best. Of course, I discussed it with my agent to make sure I wasn’t going to paint myself into an unmarketable corner. He’s in favor of this move.

Darcie wrote:

How about target readership? How does that fit in with branding? I am currently working on contemporary YA (young adult). Would I someday be able to transition to adult/suspense or am I locking myself into YA?

Randy sez:

A good branding strategy does ask the question, “Who is going to like my kind of writing?” (Besides my mother.)

The answer should never be “Everybody.” Even J.K. Rowling only sells to about half of one percent of the world population. Figure out who will like your writing, and then write a book that your target market will love. If they do, they’ll talk it up to their friends, and some of those will like the book too.

As for “locking yourself in,” the answer is no. A brand doesn’t lock you in. It’s just a promise of consistency for delivering a particular quality of product. Yes, that puts certain constraints on you. (Sue Grafton is pretty much committed to getting through the whole alphabet.) But you can always evolve your brand in a new direction.

Gina wrote:

Is it wrong to kick back and let your branding find you?

I’m dabbling in different genres, but my passion and focus is suspense/mystery. Yet, what if I’m not a suspense writer and instead I’ve got a voice for women’s fiction or momlit? How will I know if I don’t dabble?

Just because I love to read suspense doesn’t mean I’ll have a knack for writing it. So what is a unpublished writer to do? Genre jump or narrow in on a specific genre?

Randy sez: It’s OK to dabble, but do dabble in the things you love. If your passion is suspense/mystery, then go for it! You’re most likely to have talent for the thing you love. There’s no guarantee, of course. But we tend to like the things we’re good at. And we are most willing to spend the thousands of hours developing skills in the things we love.

One thing I love doing is writing software. And it turns out I’m pretty good at it. Do I like it because I’m naturally good at it, or am I good at it because I like it? I don’t know. But there’s a correlation, one way or the other.

Pursue your dreams! It beats the heck out of pursuing your nightmares.

Vennessa wrote:

It seems to me that genre plays a big role in this, but genre alone isn’t enough. Am I right so far?

If that is the case, and I need something a little more specific than genre, would “fiction with a kiwi flavour” work as a brand?

Randy sez: I would say that genre is a part of it, but your style or your angle or your special sauce is another part of it. “Fiction with a kiwi flavor” is a start, but it needs more. Think of Camy Tang, who calls herself the “loud Asian chick” and who writes “Romance with a kick of wasabi.” That’s enough. Camy is well-branded and is going to do great when her first book comes out.

So Vennessa, my suggestion is to add the kiwi to your genre, and throw in an extra twist if you’ve got it. Remember that a lot of US people consider New Zealand pretty exotic, especially after seeing so much of it in Lord of the Rings. A suspense novel set in NZ, with the land itself as a part of the story–that could be strong. Or a kiwi romance. “Kiwi Suspense” or “Kiwi Love” or “Kiwi Chainsaw Surferpunk”–any of those could work.

Mary wrote:

Re branding, I have written 100s of articles and short stories, among other things, and am now working on a YA novel. If/When this book gets published, I will then be known as a YA author. Does that mean I should forget trying to market my picture books?

Randy sez: No, not at all. It means, however, that you should focus on one thing at a time. Don’t just do one YA novel. Do a series. Three or four. Then see where you want to go next.

Wow! A lot of questions came in over the weekend. I’ll try to answer a few of them today:

Vennessa wrote:

I’m not sure I like this branding thing.

Randy sez: Nobody likes branding. It is hard work, and it forces you to think about things you’d rather not think about, such as what makes you special. I’ve resisted the whole branding thing for years. And unfortunately, it’s caused me to diffuse my efforts in way too many directions. I’ve had to some serious soul-searching lately and make a hard, hard decision to let one of my genres go.

Christina wrote:

Can I get away with two different styles if one type is written with a co-author and the other, written on my own, has a different “flavor?”

Randy sez: Yes, you can. But that’s going to double your workload. Do you really want to do that? Imagine you’re training for the Olympics in, say, diving. But you’re also interested in going out for the Olympics in a team sport–synchronized swimming?

Can you do both of them? Yes. But you’ll be splitting your training into two sports and competing with people who are focused. It’s hard enough to excel in anything. To excel in something that you’re only doing half-time is a LOT harder.

Debra wrote:

If I am writing in the area of disability, could disability be my brand,allowing me to write about it in any genre? I like magic realism for example but I also like drama, mystery, thrillers etc.

Randy sez: Yes, disability could be part of your brand. But genre is another part of it. My own experience has been that doing multiple genres is a problem, because readers won’t necessarily come with you as you cross those pesky genre boundaries. And if they don’t come along with you, then you’re starting over with every book. For how many books do you want to have the sales of a first-time author? And why?

Judith wrote:

Is using a pseudonym a good way to allow yourself to write in diverse genre?

So should I use my name for my non-fiction and a pen name for my women’s fiction?

Randy sez: A pseudonym can definitely help if you’re writing fiction in different genres. Evan Hunter wrote his police mysteries as “Ed McBain” and he had several pseudonyms. Other authors have written successfully under multiple names. But that really complicates your life.

As for writing nonfiction and fiction under different names, you could do well writing under the same name if they were perceived as being in the same general brand. For example, James Swain is a professional magician who writes mysteries about gambling cheaters. I assume he also writes nonfiction (on magic). If not, he could do so and it would be fine, because his brand would still be “the magician who writes about illusions.”

MLE wrote:

Can you imagine a business plan for one person starting three separate, unrelated businesses being approved by a lender? It’s hard enough for one brand to get a foothold in the overcrowded brain of the consumer without breaking it into many fragments.

Randy sez: This is Xtremely true. For those of you who want to write with multiple brands, why not FIRST try succeeding with one of them, THEN branch out (under a pseudonym or not) to another brand. Publishing is a hard game. Why make things harder?

Karla wrote:

I think I’m beginning to see that I need to narrow down my passions (I have many) and figure out which one I am the most passionate about.

Randy sez: I wish I had learned to do this earlier in life. I have learned it in the last few months, and am constantly having to remind myself to focus, focus, focus. I’ve hobbled my writing career by being too spread out. I hope you won’t ALL insist on making the same mistakes I have.

Donna wrote:

My question is when are we to pick out a brand?

Randy sez: The sooner the better. Please remember that a brand does not pigeonhole you for life! You are free to extend your brand or move it around and launch a new brand, AFTER you have established it. Nothing is written in stone forever. But having a brand will make it far more likely for you to get some early success.

OK, that’s enough for today. I’ll answer more questions tomorrow.

PS: Imagine if this blog were about fiction writing AND linear algebra AND ancient history AND cats AND theoretical physics. All of those are interests of mine. But how many of YOU would stick around to read it? This blog is read because it’s focused on writing fiction.