Ask the Author: Tom Payne
Answered Questions (4)
Tom Payne
If you pursue the indie route, then work extremely hard at editing your book to make it clear and concise.
As William Zinsser wrote, "Writing is hard work. A clear sentence is no accident. Very few sentences come out right the first time, or even the third time. …If you find that writing is hard, it’s because it is hard. It is one of the hardest things that people do."1
So, if you find your love of writing does not extend to the hard, but critical editing part of the process, then maybe writing is not a good use of your strengths.
I believe the Reformers (Luther, Calvin, etc.) were on to something when they proposed that all work--sacred and secular--is a calling. Just as pastors and priests need to inspect their heart and motivation about shepherding a flock, so also do people like you and me.
Finally, before you publish your work, read several books about how to market your work. Nothing happens with your book, no matter how well written, without marketing. Okay, there are exceptions. Someone's book is read by an influential person in the book publishing world and boom! The book takes off because it is backed by a powerful person. But that is extremely rare. So, plan on doing a lot of marketing and that is true with books published by respected publishing houses as well.
1. William Zinsser, On Writing Well: An Informal Guide to Writing Non-Fiction (New York: Harper & Row, Publishers, Inc., 1985), p. 12. My emphasis.
As William Zinsser wrote, "Writing is hard work. A clear sentence is no accident. Very few sentences come out right the first time, or even the third time. …If you find that writing is hard, it’s because it is hard. It is one of the hardest things that people do."1
So, if you find your love of writing does not extend to the hard, but critical editing part of the process, then maybe writing is not a good use of your strengths.
I believe the Reformers (Luther, Calvin, etc.) were on to something when they proposed that all work--sacred and secular--is a calling. Just as pastors and priests need to inspect their heart and motivation about shepherding a flock, so also do people like you and me.
Finally, before you publish your work, read several books about how to market your work. Nothing happens with your book, no matter how well written, without marketing. Okay, there are exceptions. Someone's book is read by an influential person in the book publishing world and boom! The book takes off because it is backed by a powerful person. But that is extremely rare. So, plan on doing a lot of marketing and that is true with books published by respected publishing houses as well.
1. William Zinsser, On Writing Well: An Informal Guide to Writing Non-Fiction (New York: Harper & Row, Publishers, Inc., 1985), p. 12. My emphasis.
Tom Payne
I shared this question with my wife and she amusingly said, "I am your writer's block." She meant, "I interrupt you while you are working," and she does. But somehow I manage.
I don't really experience writer's block. I research a project to write something interesting and hopefully original and the writing flows from the research. I write down my initial thoughts and then, during the editing process, the idea becomes clearer with each editing pass.
I don't really experience writer's block. I research a project to write something interesting and hopefully original and the writing flows from the research. I write down my initial thoughts and then, during the editing process, the idea becomes clearer with each editing pass.
Tom Payne
"The Path to Job Search Success" followed a developmental path that was different from any of the other books I've written. I was putting together a 90 minute seminar for the CTC on how to prepare for a job interview. The seminar kept morphing into something different. Then the non-verbal component of the class grew and grew until it took up the entire 90 minutes. I allowed this to happen because my experience and research indicates that the non-verbal component is the most important element of the interview. But how do you control your facial expression, tone of voice and body language? After all, these are subconscious expressions of our emotional state. When we are happy we do not need to consciously remind ourselves of the need to smile.
I amassed seven techniques that lead to non-verbal mastery and they appear in my book. In fact, the first eight chapters of my book were developed in the seminar before they were written down for the book.
That said, the verbal component is also important and it takes too much time to cover this in a seminar.
If you are in the Chicago area, then feel free to attend this seminar. It is free and open to the public. It takes place on the first Tuesday of each month, 10:30-noon, at the Career Transitions Center of Chicago, 703 W. Monroe St; if you can make it, then go to www.ctcchicago.org, click Calendar, then click Full Calendar of Events, locate the session "The Interviewing Edge: Mastering Non-Verbal Communication" and sign up. I hope to see you there.
I amassed seven techniques that lead to non-verbal mastery and they appear in my book. In fact, the first eight chapters of my book were developed in the seminar before they were written down for the book.
That said, the verbal component is also important and it takes too much time to cover this in a seminar.
If you are in the Chicago area, then feel free to attend this seminar. It is free and open to the public. It takes place on the first Tuesday of each month, 10:30-noon, at the Career Transitions Center of Chicago, 703 W. Monroe St; if you can make it, then go to www.ctcchicago.org, click Calendar, then click Full Calendar of Events, locate the session "The Interviewing Edge: Mastering Non-Verbal Communication" and sign up. I hope to see you there.
Tom Payne
Helping people. One of my greatest thrills is coaching jobseekers who are on the verge of giving up, and then giving them a real hope by reconnecting them with who they really are. After multiple job interviewing failures a jobseeker can begin to feel like they are a loser, a burden, a problem seeking a solution. I convince them that they are solutions to a hiring authority's problems. Then I watch them grow in confidence until they finally land a job that might end months of anxiety. They are so thrilled and their feeling of joy is felt by me and is my most satisfying payment.
My book on job search, The Path to Job Search Success, is enabling me to help those who are struggling with this difficult job search process, and who I cannot meet with personally. It extends my coaching reach. I am just now starting to market this book and I hope it will generate many positive reviews from people who have read the material, applied the lessons they've learned and have received great job offers as a result.
My book on job search, The Path to Job Search Success, is enabling me to help those who are struggling with this difficult job search process, and who I cannot meet with personally. It extends my coaching reach. I am just now starting to market this book and I hope it will generate many positive reviews from people who have read the material, applied the lessons they've learned and have received great job offers as a result.
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