Street Smarts 101 by Mike Lantis

As a publisher, we do like to promote our published authors. Check out our authors and their wonderful books here: http://www.omnibookpublishing.com/store/.

This week, we are promoting Mike Lantis who wrote Street Smarts 101. His book focuses on proper decision-making and learning how to figure out the reasons behind making a good decision. We all know what leads to a bad decision, but making that key decision at the right moment and figuring out how to get there are always harder to ascertain. Mike helps the reader determine these things logically as well as provides the different situations in order to think properly so when we actually come across these things, we are more prepared to handle them.

Mike Lantis grew up in Jackson, Michigan, and currently resides in that area. He received his BA from Spring Arbor University and majored in Management and Organizational Development. Throughout the course of his career, Mike has held several key sales positions in different arenas, and was Director of Operations at an employment firm located in the Midwest. Over the years, he has volunteered service to the Catholic Church and to the development of young men through the community recreation department. Mike is most proud of his two sons, Zachary and Jacob. Contact Mike through his official Web site here: http://www.streetsmarts101thebook.com/

We recommend you read Mike's pertinent book.

We welcome you to try our services. We know you will be pleased. Welcome to OMNI Book Publishing.

De-Stress Yourself before You Write

Funny... I wrote the title of this week's blog and shook my head in disbelief. Look who's talking!.  I write my stories and blogs at my desk while waiting for reply emails or for telephone calls, and I can assure you that it doesn't work well. 

Then I look at my desk and groan. What do I see on it? Piles of papers, folders, pens (the same ones that I cannot find when I look for them), and many other items that form the clutter I hate. Sometimes I say that I must clean my desk so I remember the color of the wood it's made of...

First.  If I lived in an ideal world, my desk would be completely clear of clutter, with my computer and my glass of water handy, and all the reference books would be neatly tucked in the bookcase at my back.  I'd find the right picture and place right in front of me. That picture would be a photograph taken at some unforgettable place when I was visibly happy and relaxed. I'd want to trigger my memory of that experience on my subconscious mind, breaking the circle of stressful thoughts.

Second.  I'd add a living thing to my desk. A flower in a cute little vase, a small plant, such as a miniature ivy, or a goldfish.  Just looking at any of those living creations can be effective and subtly override a stressful mind. 

Third.  I'd have handy a meaningful souvenir. An item like a rock, a crystal, some small item purchased during a significant visit to some place that has remained in your mind, or an item given to you by someone wonderful.

Fourth.  Try your best to clear your mind of other stressful thoughts and just concentrate on your writing. Try to BE there at the scene with the characters; try to picture in your mind their surroundings during the scene being written; focus on their dialogue so that it sounds realistic and not artificial; and most of all, re-read after you write.  It may happen to you as well, but when I write what I'm thinking I sometimes skip a word if I'm going too fast therefore I have to go over and see that the idea is complete before I move to the next paragraph.

Of course, the above works for me and I cannot assume that it will work for you as well. Maybe I should add a fifth point... I need silence when I write. Sometimes I can't even have music playing (soft, 'elevator' music, never the noisy kind), but not every one is like me, obviously.  Like those teenagers who need a blasting stereo to do their homework, some grown ups fit that category – but that's something that I cannot understand.  Do whatever YOU feel to make yourself at home writing and creating... but DO IT!  Don't wait for a miracle to see your novel finished because, trust me on this one... it ain't going to happen.

One more point:  don't copy my English grammar either...

Practice Makes Perfect

The most important aspect of publishing that aspiring authors fail to understand is that writing a publishable book takes practice. Lots of it. Yes, once in a while an author will sell a first novel to a print publisher. A vast majority of them, however, have been working on that book for years, revising and rewriting scenes, changing characters and story lines, learning from each change that they make.

A pianist doesn’t sit down and play a Beethoven sonata without lessons. A surgeon doesn’t operate on a patient’s heart without years of study. A lawyer doesn’t defend a client without attending law school. Writing for publication is no different. It’s a profession and has to be learned. It takes practice, practice and more practice.

A writer must know the basics of a good story - how to create goals, motivations, conflicts, character arcs and the ever important hook. How to handle transitions, point of view, dialogue, plot points, gray and black moments. Most important of all, a writer must develop a voice, for without that, the greatest story in the world will have trouble catching the eye of an agent or editor.