July 15, 2019- Today I’ll be reading an excerpt from the middle-grade adventure novel, Unfrogged by Tamara Botting! https://www.podbean.com/eu/pb-73cja-b7ef1e Check us out on Google Play, Podbean, and iTunes to tune into all of our podcasts. Also, to order your very own copy of Unfrogged, just click on the link! https://pandamoniumpublishing.com/product/unfrogged/
https://www.podbean.com/eu/pb-73cja-b7ef1e
July 5, 2019– Check out the question for this week!
Q: “Lacey, how do you manage to keep positive when people tell you they don’t like your work? I wrote a short story and my colleagues didn’t care for it. They were nice enough, but I could tell that they weren’t being completely truthful so I pressed them and they told me the truth finally. I was pretty upset and hurt. Maybe I should quit writing…”
A: “This is a good question! I get hate mail all of the time telling me that I’m a terrible writer, that people don’t like my books, and that I should stop writing because I have no talent. It’s something that comes with the territory and this business has given me a thick skin!” Here’s how I manage to stay positive:
The point is, keep writing because you want to write. Who cares what anyone else thinks? The only person’s opinion that matters is yours.
X LLB
July 3, 2019- This is a really cool graph about travel that will serve our historical fiction writers well! If there are any vessels that you are unsure about, Google them to find out more information and the time periods in which they were used. Remember, just because you’re writing fiction, doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t be credible in your research. Happy writing! X LLB
June 26, 2019-Check out this Youtube video about finding your calling! What are you supposed to be doing with your life?
June 24, 2019- Check out my newest podcast about Twisted Tales! Click on the link below:
June 21, 2019– Wow, this is an excellent question! Let’s dive right in.
Q: “Lacey, my family doesn’t support my dream of becoming a writer. They tell me that I won’t make any money and that I should focus on getting a real job. Writing is something I love, but I understand that I will need to pay my bills at the same time. How do I convince them that I’m doing something that I love and that this will pay off?”
A: Whoa…for a second after reading this, I was at a loss for words. I’ll break it down because there are a couple of hidden questions in here and I don’t want to miss them.
Keep your head up. If you don’t believe in yourself, who will?
If you have a question you’d like answered, please send us an email to pandapublishing8@gmail.com.
X LLB
June 19, 2019– It was in the Harvard Business Review magazine where I read that employers are starting to (finally) hire people who are of different abilities. The publication called it Neuro-Diversity and the article featured a young man named John who is on the autism spectrum. Many people with ASD are of higher than average intelligence and possess special skills that relate to exceptional memory and pattern recognition among many other things. (https://hbr.org/2017/05/neurodiversity-as-a-competitive-advantage)
I recently had the pleasure of meeting with a gentleman who is on the Autism Spectrum. During our meeting, he was witty and super intelligent; his knowledge of a specific topic was staggering. He told me that he had written a book and he wanted me to take a look at it. I happily agreed and now we are working on the publication of his work. His suggestions will change the way that we format books going forward! I was in awe of his attention to detail and his ability to remember stats and facts; he was a more skilled writer than many I have come across (including myself) with his technique and I admired his ability to write with such flow and ease. He taught me so many things in a matter of minutes and has forever changed the way that my company will create books in the future.
The point is, we need more neuro-diversity in our lines of work. There are gifted people out there who are not given a fair chance to display and use their gifts because perhaps they lack social skills or they don’t make eye contact or they have what some people would call obsessive behaviours. Those with different cognitive abilities have amazing work ethics, they are laser-focused and extremely creative and innovative. They see the world in a different way, in a way that we may not be able to see. But, if we give them a chance to join us in our line of work and at our workplaces, we’ll have a new perspective on creativity, friendship, abilities, and Neuro-Diversity.
X LLB
June 14, 2019– Let’s check out today’s question!
Q: “Lacey, I’m working on a couple of novels at the same time and I’m having a hard time keeping things straight! I’ve mixed up my characters and plots in a couple of points during the story and am driving myself crazy. How do I fix this?”
A: Well, kudos to you for working on not one, but two novels! That’s very exciting. Yes, it can be difficult when working on multiple projects to keep things in order. I can’t tell you how many manuscripts I’ve edited that have had the wrong name (or the previous name) of the character written down in later chapters. The good news is that it happens to everyone. The other good news is that it’s easy to fix!
Keep the questions coming! I love helping out fellow authors and answering your questions:) X LL B
June 12, 2019– This is a question we ask ourselves that changes over time and certainly as we get older. The question of what exactly do you want also is based on what matters most in our lives at that moment and is shaped by the experiences we’ve had.
As an author, I ask you this question! You have to define what you want before you can ever succeed in getting it. People who don’t have goals (especially written down) are like rudderless ships adrift at sea…they’re going nowhere, fast.
It’s important to write down exactly what you want for your life and to be as specific as possible while making your list. This list is very personal so please don’t filter yourself and don’t ever think that anything you want is too big to consider. The bigger you dream, the better. Don’t box yourself in by thinking small!
After you’ve made your list, STOP doing all of the things that WON’T get you to your dreams. For example, if one of the things on your list is to finish your novel, then stop wasting time, stop playing on your phone, stop getting distracted.
If we all just took five minutes a day to work on each item on our list of goals, imagine where we would be in a year, I bet a lot of those dreams would be accomplished!
So, get started on your list; What Exactly Do You Want?
X LLB
June 7, 2019– This is an excellent question that a reader asked me over the phone. He had written a book about baseball and had a couple of questions regarding copyright. Let’s check out what he had to say, below:
Q: “Lacey, I’ve written a book about the history of baseball and want to use photographs throughout my book, what do I need to know and is this possible?”
A: Great question! This whole copyrighting issue can get a bit messy at times, so let me explain how it works when wanting to use images.
In all cases, except for the first two on the list, you must give credit to the person who owns the photos. Please remember that copyright is very important and not something to be infringed upon. All artists deserve to be recognized for their work. It’s up to them to say no attribution required, so always check beforehand what the case is. You’ll save yourself a lot of trouble this way and be able to give credit where it is due. X LLB
