Writing Diva Blog

Hi everyone,

Over the past few weeks I’ve been hard at work revising my latest manuscript, while revamping the www.tanyafreedman.com site. I’ve decided - with so much of your great help, my dear writing buddies and savvy websters - that I’ll create another separate website for my fiction, under a different name. It’s very exciting, but extremely time consuming. So I’m pacing myself. Here are a few blogs and links to articles that I’ve come across in my journey of discovery, regarding pen names also called pseudonyms. More in the next weeks. Feel free to forward this page to any of your friends. All the best, Tanya

http://www.likesbooks.com/273.html - A couple of my writing contacts (through Toronto Romance Writers: Claire Delacroix/Deb Cooke and Eve Silver were interviewed by AAR about pseudonyms back in 2007. I also really liked (at the end of the interview) the questions we should ask ourselves about pen names. 

Also this is from Claire Delacroix/Deb’s blog: These are a series of three posts on her blog about writing for two houses which addresses pseudonyms a bit :
http://www.delacroix.net/blog/?p=87
http://www.delacroix.net/blog/?p=86
http://www.delacroix.net/blog/?p=85

And another interesting link to an article I found helpful from many aspects - regarding the pros and cons of pseudonyms: A Rose By Any Other Name:

http://www.mbbp.com/resources/iptech/pseudonyms.html

Hi friends,

So, I’m back with more energy and verve, and am curious about your comments on my new revamped website. Visit it now: www.tanyafreedman.com My difficulty has been trying to include information on both my published business book, Start & Run an Art Teaching Business, while concentrating fully on my full-time obsession on writing passionate women’s fiction. I would love to hear any of your comments that may help me improve my website-in-progress.

Here are some of my thoughts and questions as I divide my time in revising my latest manuscript, as well as enjoying the fun part of playing Goddess on redesigning my website:

- I understand that many writers waiting to have a publishing contract before committing to have a website regretted leaving it so long; because then they panicked about not being ready or even knowing what they wanted their ideal website to look like; what it should say about them, the author and their brand.

- I don’t want to create two separate websites - because of the effort and cost that entails. 

- What are your thoughts about including/sharing blurbs and even excerpts of any of my current works in progress? Some of my writing friends have successfully included these on theirs. I feel reticent about doing this, because I want my queries and partials to be fresh to the literary agents and editors I plan to approach.

- I’m happy to prepare an article about my particular love of international /cross cultural love stories, and share this. So let me know your opinions - the pros and cons.

- The time spent on creating my own website from templates vs having one customized: the cost is what dictates it for me, at this stage. I’d rather spend the time to design and update it myself, rather than spend the money on what admittedly could well showcase the brand and the author so much better. The other disadvantage in this is spending less time developing and improving the work, the actual manuscript. I do so enjoy this, though <g>.

- Any suggestions on the taglines (two separate ones for business book and the rest of the site)? I’m happy about the “Tales of Passion Without Borders” but have my reservations about the one on the business, which is a previous one.

So let me have any of your suggestions, leave comments and also email me.

Thanks,
Tanya Freedman
Writring Diva Blog