Write A Book Fast: The Busy Writer's Starter Pack: The Busy Writer

By M. R. McAlister

What you get in "WRITE A BOOK FAST - The Busy Writer's Starter Pack"

 

The Busy Writer's Starter Pack brings together FOUR of the most popular books in the Busy Writer Series:

• The Busy Writer's One-Hour Plot
• The Busy Writer's One-Hour Character
• The Busy Writer's Book of Checklists
• The Busy Writer's Kickstart Program

Armed with this collection of books for writers, you will be able to see your novel taking shape after just a few hours—and if you're having trouble organizing your life to find time to write, simply follow the eight easy steps in the Kickstart Program to get your novel underway!

 

Here's what other writers have said about the four books in this collection:

The Busy Writer's One-Hour Plot: "I have read many books about all aspects of writing during my writing years. None compare with this book - it's a winner for sure. It is clear, concise and to the point."

The Busy Writer's One-Hour Character: "I followed Marg's instructions and at the end of one strictly-timed hour, which she has divided into 7 segments, I had a cast of characters for my story. I was stoked!"

The Busy Writer's Book of Checklists: "Four years ago a friend introduced me to the Plotting Checklist you see in this book. My friend is a professional book reviewer, and she'd stumbled across it on Marg McAlister's website. We both thought it was marvelous... and instantly, we figured where we were heading wrong. I've been hoping for a fuller list of lists ever since. Wow. So here they all are."

The Busy Writer's Kickstart Program: "It's obvious that this author has been there. She has captured the essence of the busy writer's life and offered inspiration, but also practical tips to guide you through those challenging times. This book will help you to clear your physical as well as mental workspace. Once your creativity is pushing through those barriers again, you will find practical advice on developing plots as well as three-dimensional and believable characters. This book is well organized for easy reference."

 

If You're Ready to Write A Book, "Write a Book Fast" will Get You On Track!

• Language: English
• Publisher: Blue Gem Publishing
• Release date: Oct 7, 2012
• ISBN: 9798201492625

Book preview

Write a Book Fast

Write a Book Fast

The Busy Writer’s Starter Pack

M. R. McAlister

Blue Gem Publishing

Copyright Information Page

---

Copyright © 2012 by Marg McAlister. All rights reserved worldwide.

Updated 2013, 2014, 2015, 2019, 2021

This boxed set contains the following four books:

The Busy Writer’s Kickstart Program

The Busy Writer’s One-Hour Plot

The Busy Writer’s One-Hour Character

The Busy Writer’s Book of Checklists

No part of this publication may be replicated, redistributed, or given away in any form without the prior written consent of the author/publisher or the terms relayed to you herein.

Contents

Foreword

The Busy Writer’s Kickstart Program

Introduction

1. Clear the Decks

2. Give Your Writing Project Status

3. Roadblocks and How to Get Past Them

4. Support, Feedback and Rewards

5. Improving Your Style and Technique

6. Creating a Plot That Works

7. Characters: Real and Imaginary

8. Wrapping It Up: The Road to Success

The Busy Writer’s One-Hour Plot

Introduction

1. Prime the Pump

2. The 1-Hour Plot System

3. Tweaking the One-Hour Plot: The Law of ‘Cause and Effect’

4. The Role of Sub-Plots

5. Satisfying Endings and Surprises

6. A Last Word on the One-Hour Plot

7. Checklist: Does Your Plot Work?

The Busy Writer’s One-Hour Character

Introduction

1. Inspiration for Characters

2. Leads

3. The One-Hour Character System

4. Tweaking Your Characters

5. Give Your Characters a Distinctive Voice

6. Series Characters

7. Some Final Tips About Creating Characters

A Handy Character Checklist

The Busy Writer’s Book of Checklists

Introduction

1. How to Increase Your Efficiency by Creating Your Own Checklists

2. Six Foundation Checklists for Writers

3. Setting and Subplots

4. Getting Organized

5. Critique Groups/Partners

6. Social Networking & Websites

7. Getting Published

8. 8. Bonus Checklists

9. A Final Word – and a Bonus for You

Need More Help?

About the Author

Foreword

To get a book written, you need to have these things in place:

Interesting, vibrant characters that readers will enjoy and want to get to know

A well-paced plot that keeps the reader turning pages, eager to find out what happens next

A comprehensive set of checklists to ensure that you’ve left nothing out: characters, plot, pacing, dialogue, and more

A step-by-step program to get you out of the gate and running: a take-no-prisoners Kickstart Program for writers

This boxed set provides you with the tools for all of those things. The KickStart Program encourages you to take a good, long look at your lifestyle and writing environment (time, tools, hardware, commitments at work and at home) before you get started, to give yourself the best possible chance of success.

Then, use the One-Hour Plot and the One-Hour Character to create your outline and flesh out your story world with interesting people—and start writing!

As you go, use the Checklists to ensure that you haven’t forgotten anything while you’re writing and editing—and to help you market your book when it’s published.

Good luck!

Marg :-)

The Busy Writer’s Kickstart Program

Introduction

Over the many years that I've been mentoring writers, I've realized that one of the biggest hurdles is simply getting started. After that, the question becomes: How can I motivate myself to keep writing regularly? 

Well, guess what? Motivation only lasts a short time. Ongoing success comes from forming new habits: finding the determination to establish a routine and then sticking to it.  

Let me ask you this: how often have you felt that you'd finally finish that book… if only you could shut yourself away from the world with nothing to do but write?  

How often have you blamed your family, your job, or your health for not being able to write as often as you want? How often have you berated yourself about your lack of motivation, wishing you could wave a magic wand to generate more enthusiasm?  

None of these outside influences are really to blame. Yes, they might be part of the story—but the truth is, success in achieving any goal is all about a single-minded focus on what you want. It's about establishing a system and sticking to it. It works for losing weight—and it works for writing a book.  

This KickStart Program is all about establishing a workable system. It offers guidelines that you will need to adapt for yourself. Everyone has different circumstances; different challenges. Setting up a workable strategy to help you achieve your writing goals is not easy—but it is incredibly worthwhile.  

There are eight steps in the KickStart Program. You can follow them over eight weeks or compress the time to suit yourself. Some parts of it you may be able to skip because you've already got it covered. Tweak the program to suit your situation—as long as you TAKE ACTION. 

Remember, writers don't just think about writing. 

They don't just talk about writing. 

They sit down and WRITE.  

So let's get started!

1

Clear the Decks

Did you think I would start by telling you to sit down and work out a daily timetable for writing? To set some goals? To just write and see what happened? All of these things have a place in this program, but that's not your starting point. 

To set worthwhile new habits, you have to get rid of the clutter in your life—mental, physical, and emotional. That's what this week is all about. You can tackle these three areas in whichever order you like. You might find that the physical effort of creating a writing space (or cleaning up an existing one) gives you time to think about how to prepare yourself mentally and emotionally for your new regime. 

On the other hand, if you're over-committed, you may need to start phoning around and saying 'no' to people before you get started. Here's what you need to do to clear the decks. At the end of Week 1, you should be ready to embark on your writing program. 

Physical Clutter

A: Your Writing Space

Do you have a quiet space to write? Most writers work better with a place that's just for writing. If you work well with family chaos all around you, then, by all means, go ahead. The main thing is that you establish a writing space that's right for you. Some points to consider: 

Computer time: you don't want other family members constantly harassing you because they want time on the computer. To write, you need only a very basic computer, and you can use Google Docs, a popular word processor, completely free of charge. A laptop is probably the best choice since you can easily take it to a quiet room and with you when you travel.

Comfort: You don't have to spend a lot of money to get a good office chair and desk these days. Check out office supply stores, second-hand stores, or Facebook marketplace. You need to be comfortable during the time you spend at the computer. 

Reference & Computer: Have some shelves within easy reach of your writing area. You're sure to want to keep reference notes and drafts somewhere. A few shelves and a small filing cabinet should serve your needs. Most research (and communication with other writers) is done on the Internet these days. If you have a paperless office, organize the files on your computer, in the cloud, or both.

If you already have a writing space, use this week to clear the clutter and make sure you have everything you need at hand. If you have old reference books and files that you never look at anymore, get rid of them. To increase your efficiency, you need to make sure that your surroundings work for you.

B: Your Wider Surroundings

After you have secured your writing space, take a look around you at other areas that need de-cluttering. If you can live with a messy house and a car that has so much junk in it that it's virtually a spare closet, fine. Ignore it all. BUT—if you feel that the mess around you will constantly prey on your mind (how can I write when all around me I see evidence of how much there is to do?), then use this 'Clear the decks' week to attack the house. Be ruthless. If you haven't used something for years or don't like it, throw it out or give it away. 

You don't have to do all the work yourself, either. Co-opt others who live in the house to help. If they're going to make your life difficult by complaining non-stop, then lay down the law. Either they help, or everyone puts in for a professional cleaner. (It's amazing how soon kids will change their tune if it's a case of give me a hand or put this week's allowance towards a cleaner—your choice.) 

C: Your Physical Condition

It's all too easy for writers to become unfit and unhealthy. You sit for hours at a time at the keyboard. Your back aches, your neck aches, your eyes get sore, and that sciatic nerve can kill you after a day at the computer. The worst side-effect is a growing unwillingness to sit there, which leads to procrastination, which can mean the end of your writing dreams. 

Make an effort to stay fit, and your energy levels will rise. More energy means clearer thinking and higher motivation, and it is SO worth it. 

It's more than likely that you're just skimming over this bit because you've heard it all before. In principle, you agree that it's a good idea to get up from the computer every hour or so and do stretches and walk around—but when you're engrossed in a scene, you don't want to! 

Please, don't just read this and forget it. You do need to look after your health, and you do need to take breaks during a writing session. If you write all day, it's essential to incorporate some exercise into your day to keep your blood circulating and maintain the energy to write.

Choose Your Exercise 

If you already play a sport or do regular exercise, you don't need to be too concerned. Probably all you need to consider is doing a few stretches as a break from the computer or taking ten minutes to hang out the washing or vacuum the floor. Everyday household tasks often involve bending and stretching, so why not get those tasks out of the way during your computer break? 

If, however, you are a complete couch potato, then it's time to bite the bullet. Choose any form of exercise you can live with, and work it into your day. Try for half an hour a day—more if you can. The easiest and cheapest exercise is simply walking. The bonus is that you can download writing podcasts and listen while you walk. Some writers choose to record ideas or scenes onto their phones while they walk. 

If you have access to a treadmill, you might be surprised to find that increasing the incline can burn more calories than increasing the speed and is easier on the joints. 

Other options: join a gym, hook up with a local swimming group, take dance lessons! The list is endless once you start mulling over the possibilities. Just get moving! 

Eat Wisely 

If you're one of those writers that finds herself at the fridge or the pantry looking for consolation when a scene won't work, then stock up on yummy HEALTHY food. If you're going to resort to comfort eating, then you might as well make sure that it doesn't do too much damage. Prepare for your day before you sit down to write. Fruit or veggie snacks are always good. Cut an orange into eight pieces, ready to snack on; prepare a fruit platter (whatever is in season: cherries, strawberries, cantaloupe, watermelon, apples, bananas, etc.). 

If chocolate is a 'must', have a snack-sized bar ready (and don't eat the whole packet!). Buy low-fat dips and cut up carrot sticks. 

This is all pretty basic stuff—but everything in this writer's KickStart Program will have a common theme: being prepared and committed. You aim to make sure that you don't self-sabotage because you don't have a plan.

Mental Clutter

By 'mental clutter', I mean anything that is competing for space in your mind. Don't confuse this with emotional clutter; we'll come to that in a moment. Mental clutter is usually caused by: 

Worrying too much about other people (apart from responsibilities to those who are genuinely dependent on you like small children or aged parents). Anyone who's old enough to make their own decisions should take responsibility for their life. You can be there as a backup and a sounding board, but you have your own life to lead. 

Taking on too much. This one is widespread. Your head is spinning because you're on a committee for this and a workgroup for that; you're on the canteen roster and belong to two different social clubs, and you play a sport... and you have to remember where all the kids are at any given time and what they're doing next... The solution here is to write down the things you LIKE. Keep those. (You may even have to cut down on some of those if there are too many. You can't do everything!) Be ruthless with the rest. 

People will likely beg you to stay on—but you have to be firm. Just tell them that you're over-committed, and for your sanity, you have to cut down. Don't be wishy-washy and say you'll think about it. Just say something like: Sorry, but my mind's made up. I've enjoyed the time so far, but it's time to let someone else take over. You will feel an incredible sense of freedom when you cut loose! 

Mental clutter can also be caused by your not knowing what you want to write. You may have too many ideas or three books in various stages of development (all of which you like). You may also have other writers pressuring you to write what they write. If you have too many writing projects (or opportunities) and it's doing your head in, use this checklist as a filter: 

If you really need to earn an income and one project will pay more than another, choose that first. 

If you have several ideas for a book, then: 

Choose the one with the main character you like best; or

Write a scene for each and choose the one that flowed most easily or 'felt' right, or 

Choose the one that seems to have the best chance of selling.

If you have several books or projects already started, then: 

Pick the one with the characters you like best, or 

Pick the one with the clearest or most appealing plot, or 

Pick the one that's the furthest advanced. 

Emotional Clutter

This might be the most challenging obstacle of all. Emotional problems can manifest as procrastination, depression, or ill-health (or all three). Only you can know what is affecting you emotionally. If you feel sad, depressed, or angry, you need to get at the underlying reasons. Sometimes your anger at the world can originate from having no time to yourself. If that's the case, you need to look at every possible avenue for getting some time. If others take you for granted, you're the only one who can