Ryan P. Freeman's Blog

As a kid I used to tell stories to my siblings, mostly scary stories to keep them awake at night.They loved my tales and encouraged me to keep telling them. They even had a favorite story and still ask me today when will I write that one.Probably never!But just telling stories wasn’t enough. I wanted to be in print. So, I began writing my stories down, putting words on paper and sending them out to potential publishers. For a long time there were only rejection letters even though a few actua...

I'm sick today.I thank my lovely wife for passing along this nasty cold with a kiss to me. How ironic.So, in honor of being sick I'm binging movies. Harry Potter it is! As I write, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban is playing in the background. I've been doing my #Potterwatch tweets all day too, which you can check out on my Twitter Profile.One of my wonderful writer friends, @Gurru_Says asked if I'd write a blog post on the guy side of romantic chemistry, so. Here we are.First off, a...

Chapter Nine:Now Go WriteAnother OneSometimes, we think by making to the end of a book we’ve made progress. On the one hand, we have. We’re already anticipating the satisfaction of finishing. Somewhere in the height of our ecstasy, fingers and eyes and brain tingling with mounting pleasure the unspoken notion of YES! WE’RE SO CLOSE! Screams our name. We’ve made it. We’re arriving any moment now. But one book can’t do it. Not unless you’re a one-hit-wonder. And who knows? Perhaps you are. But...

Ch 8: But That's Like WHOLE Months Away... The more and more I ply this street corner trade, the more and more I come to the conclusion that this is all about working hard for your money. For your imagination. For yourself, really. I help market for the aforementioned Gateway to Publishing Conference and Convention in St Louis. There, I’ve not only been able to be a part of a wonderful, talented group of passionate writers, but I’ve also been able to take a sneak peek at the professional writ...

Ch 7: Catch & Release:Planning Your Big Day Before, During & AfterRemember back during the early days of writing – or hell, even reading this book, when story ideas would flash like lightning in your mind. You’d get the urge, and writing was the only way to alleviate it? You’d stroke those keys for hours. Maybe scribble one scene out… then another and another. What a rush. So now that you’re so close to finishing try and stay focused, ok? It’s still not enough that you wrote a book. I’m sorry...

Ch 6: Pitchy Pitches, Lit Agents, & Writing ConsYou’ve been there. You’ve done that. You’ve written the book on it. Now, it’s gonna get hardcore. I’m talking specialty items for a, hem, discerning clientele. Whether you want to submit work on www.fundsforwriters.comor figure out first hand how your story fits in what publishing hole, you’re going to have to learn this essential skill: the art of the pitch. Wait, what is a pitch? A pitch is a specific oral request by a writer to a literary age...

Chapter 5: She's as good as I can get her! Now what?At the time of this writing, despite all my tawdry banter, I’ve actually had the inestimable pleasure of officiating two weddings. Messing around is fun and all, don’t get me wrong, but you can find the right one eventually. Things… click. They work. You find something in someone. Something you never quite could name, but oh how they drive you crazy in all the best ways. There’s something there, and continuing to only date them won't cut it....

Chapter 4: But No Really, EditingShine, Polish, Repeat - then ProsGo online sometime when your parents aren’t home and just look at it all. You know what I’m talking about. Go online. Find the bad stuff. I mean the really nasty, like oh my God, why? Stuff. No need to troll. Just be aware. Beware too. That could easily be you. Every crappily done book should be a cautionary tale. (I mean, if you think about it, they often literally are). If you go to writers cons or comic-cons or whatever it i...

CHAPTER THREE - BABIES & BETASWhat do you mean I wasn’t amazing the first time?! The bitter truth is, everybody is awkward the first time writing. Everybody. Your mom, George R.R. Martin, everybody. Writing is as much a creative act as it is one of ego. Hey, hey! No judgement here. This is a judgement-free zone. However, I am pointing out a cold hard truth: your first time around is going to be terrible.In Bird by Bird, Anne Lamott eloquently puts it this way, “Almost all good writing begins...

CHAPTER TWO Writing: Training & WinningIn the middle of your next writing frenzy, your addled brain might be tempted to think, this is it. Oh yes, this is it. It feels so good. One word after another pounding relentlessly down onto your keyboard. Stroke after stroke from pen to page. Let it never stop. Oh, let it never stop.But stop it does.Someone walks in on you. Your mom calls. The cat sits on you, tail obnoxiously flouncing as only the insolent feline race can. Trust me when I say, interr...