Tag: insecure writers support group

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#IWSG The Countdown to Publication: When is Your Story Ready?

Jennifer Lane

Welcome to October’s Insecure Writer’s Support Group, hosted by Alex Cavanaugh. Join us HERE. 


This month’s question:

When do you know your story is ready?

My answer is simple: WHEN MY EDITOR FINISHES! 

I’ve worked with the same bomdiggity editor–Jessica Royer Ocken–for all seven of my novels, and I absolutely trust her ability to polish the manuscript. Then my amazing book designer, Coreen Montagna, swoops in to make it pretty. 

I’m lucky I met Jessica and Coreen, along with my astute critique partner, Nicki Elson, through my publisher. Now that I self-publish, I feel so grateful for the team that readies my story for publication.

I manage to publish one book a year, and 2016’s book launch (Spiked) happened October 1st. Once your story is ready to be published, how do you market your novel? I’ll share a couple of strategies I’ve tried.

Facebook Party. My zesty marketing assistant Mitsy Princell convinced me to host an all-day Facebook release party with over twenty author takeovers. Twelve hours later, with eyes glazed over and butt-cheek imprints on my sofa, I emerged scathed from the experience. But I so appreciate all the support from my fellow insecure writers! And the readers are way awesome, too.

Blogs and Goodreads. I hired a company (Raven Publicity) to run a cover reveal and ARC distribution to bloggers. Seems like book blogs are not as involved as in the past, but Create Space shares some tips for working with book bloggers. I’m gifting review copies at Goodreads’ New Adult Book Club and hosting two Goodreads giveaways. 

Ads. Last year I landed a Book Bub ad that was successful, but this year’s Riffle ad didn’t seem to help sales.

Giveaways. I’m also hosting a $25 Amazon gift card giveaway (feel free to enter HERE.)

What marketing strategies work best for you?

Happy writing!


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#IWSG Finding Time to Write in a Busy Day

Jennifer Lane

Welcome to September’s Insecure Writer’s Support Group. Join us at Alex Cavanaugh’s BLOG.

This month’s question…

How do you find time to write in your busy day?

My answer?

I don’t. I don’t write on the weekdays because my psychologist job takes too much out of me. Today I trained a new employee followed by seven straight psychotherapy clients, and combined with a workout, I barely have the energy to write a blog post, much less a book chapter!

But the weekends are another matter. I try to write a 4,000-word chapter each weekend. Therefore it takes me about 8 months to complete a novel. Some weekends I devote to other fun and enriching activities like travel.

Since I finished my latest novel SPIKED (Blocked #3) in late July, I’ve been chilling on the weekends. It’s been low-key but also a tad boring. I’m jonesing to start writing a new project soon.

If you’d like to share a release post for Spiked on 10-1-16, please email me at jenniferlanebooks at gmail and I’ll send you the html. 

Happy writing! May we all eke out more time for our craft.

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#IWSG Pinterinspiration #Pinterest #Writing #Inspiration

Jennifer Lane

Happy May, writers. Time to discuss our hopes and fears. Join us at Alex Cavanaugh’s blog. The amazing co-hosts for the May 4 posting of the IWSG will be Stephen Tremp, Fundy Blue, MJ Fifield, Loni Townsend, Bish Denham, Susan Gourley, and Stephanie Faris!


We writers find inspiration in the strangest places. For me, Pinterest is top on my list. I’m addicted to Pinterest, I must admit.

I like to create a Pinterest board when writing to collect images and websites that relate to the story.

For my work in progress SPIKED (Blocked #3), I’ve pinned these images:

1) Volleyball T-shirts (the heroine from Blocked has quite a collection)




2) Bad pickup lines (How Mateo gets Jessica to laugh)




What inspires YOUR writing? What’s the worst pickup line you’ve heard?

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#IWSG The Best Negative Reviews

Jennifer Lane

Welcome to April’s Insecure Writers’ Support Group. Hop over the Alex Cavanaugh’s blog to join us!

Recently a reader friend asked, “How do I write an honest, helpful, negative review?”

Let’s discuss negative reviews. I don’t want to censor reader opinions, but merely state how I can learn best from reviews. I definitely know how frustrating and disappointing the reading experience can be. It has also become so clear to me that no author can please every reader.

As an author, I appreciate negative reviews that 1) offer specific constructive criticism, 2) make me laugh, and/or 3) acknowledge how personal preferences affect reactions.

I suggest getting specific about what’s not working for the reader. The tightness of the writing? Grammar? Pacing of the plot? Realism of characterization? Chemistry between the characters? Too many characters? Implausibility of plot?

Here are some reviews that have taught me to write better:

“There was head hopping in the third person omniscient perspective. Sometimes the same paragraph had perspectives from two different characters.”
(Thank you to two authors for sharing this wisdom about my debut novel With Good Behavior.)

“Grant is a wuss.” (This made me LOL)

“Grant cries too much.” (These reviews informed my characterization of beta men–I don’t want to make them too weak.)

“It was too depressing and covered too many issues.” (I’ve tried to lighten up later books with more humor.)

“It just didn’t work for me because…” (I like when reviewers state how their personal preferences affect the reviews, acknowledging that others might enjoy it but it just didn’t fit for them.)



Some negative reviews are not as helpful:

“This is YA, not NA.” (I get frustrated with this critique of Blocked because the age of the characters is indeed New Adult. Though it’s also my fault for choosing a sexy cover then not delivering the horizontal refreshment.)

Reviews that spoiler the reader or attack the author as a person are also not my cup of tea.




How about YOU? Which negative reviews are the most helpful?
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#IWSG Balancing Writing with the Day Job

Jennifer Lane


Happy February Insecure Writer’s Support Group!


IWSG is the brainchild of Alex Cavanaugh. Join us HERE.

How’s your writing? I’ve been making good progress on book three in my college sports romance series Blocked. Too bad I came to a standstill due to a psychology conference I’ve attended the past few days.

Check out the gorgeous Montana mountains where I’ve learned more about psychology and interacted with lovely colleagues. 


I’m itching to get back to my writing when I return home to Ohio, though I have so many emails and messages to plow through that it may take a while.

Do you have any tips for writing while traveling? Or for balancing writing with your day job?

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#IWSG: Extrovert Writer Seeks Social Interaction

Jennifer Lane


Time for the first 2016 Insecure Writers Support Group, the brainchild of Alex J. Cavanaugh. Join us HERE. Because it’s a party every month!

Are you extroverted? Introverted? Somewhere in between?

Extroversion = an outgoing personality style involving thinking out loud, excelling at small talk, and drawing energy from social interaction

Introversion = an internal personality style involving deep, creative thinking and recharging by spending time alone or in small groups


We often stereotype writers as introverts–off alone typing their stories. But not all writers are solitary souls. Read about the benefits of both styles for writers HERE.

I’m more extroverted according to this brief, free version of the Myers Briggs Type Indicator. (Check out your personality styles HERE.) I talk to people all day long in my day job as a psychologist. I never intended to become a solitary writer…until I found the social world of fan fiction.

In 2007 I was struggling in my psychologist job and came across the TV show Prison Break. The dark themes and conspiracies mirrored the darkness in my career at the time. I binge watched season one, then found a fan forum as I searched for season two episodes I’d missed. One section on the forum was for fan fiction. “What the hell’s fan fiction?” I thought. “What losers are writing stories about the TV characters?”

You guessed it–soon I joined the ranks of losers and started writing my own fan fiction. My early writing sucked, but readers were so encouraging. Every time I posted a chapter online, readers would comment and cheerlead.

Fast forward 9 years and I’ve published six novels. Without fan fiction, writing and publishing can be a lonely venture for this extrovert. Thank goodness for:

1) my critique partner Nicki Elson. I send her one chapter at a time, just like my fan fiction days

2) the wonderful writers I’ve met through Insecure Writers Support Group

3) the amazing readers I’ve met in person and online

Another social writing outlet is writing challenges where writers see how many words they can complete in an allotted time. One Facebook Author Sprint group I’ve joined is HERE.

What about you? If you’re an introvert, how do you handle social media marketing and book signings? If you’re an extrovert, how do you find more social outlets? Or are you more of a flexible ambivert?

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#IWSG: Impatience!

Jennifer Lane

Welcome to November’s Insecure Writers Support Group, where we share insecurities and bolster confidence. Join us at Alex Cavanaugh’s blog HERE.


How goes the writing battle?

My struggle recently has been my impatience. I have a new release ACED (Blocked #2) on 12-2-15. I wanted to get the ARC out to readers earlier, but life doesn’t always cooperate.

Fortunately my awesome editor and book designer kicked into overdrive and the ARC is now ready. (Contact me if you’re interested in a copy!) And we were able to get an excerpt from the third book in the series (SPIKED) at the end, happily.

Some things were out of my control but I tried to communicate as best I could to resolve misunderstandings that delayed the process, and that seemed to help.

What helps you deal with the waiting game?

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#IWSG This is the EXCITING Stuff! #BookSigning #CoverReveal

Jennifer Lane


Happy October to All Writers.


Join us for the Insecure Writers Support Group, hosted by Alex J Cavanaugh HERE. We vent about our worries and support each other through the lonely journey.

After writing for nine months, I’m excited for the fun part: releasing a novel!

We are editing ACED (Blocked #2), a New Adult volleyball romance. We hope for a release date in November of 2015. The cover for Aced showcases hot Latino med student Alejandro Ramirez, and I’m eager to share it with the world.

Want to help me with the cover reveal on 10-21-15? Sign up HERE.

Over the weekend I attended the book signing, *Sassy in Savannah*. There was a huge turnout despite the rain plaguing South Carolina, and I had a blast meeting readers like Becca.


What’s your favorite book swag? I have bookmarks, of course, but I like to offer something more creative. I decided to buy volleyball key chains and print them myself, and they were a big hit.


After the book signing, we headed south for some sunshine in St. Augustine, Florida. It was beautiful visiting America’s oldest city. I am covered in mosquito bites. *itches*


Hope you have an opportune October!

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#IWSG The Voices, the Voices! #writing #ILoveWriting

Jennifer Lane


Feeling insecure? Need support? Join us for the Insecure Writers Support Group, created by Alex Cavanaugh and co-hosted by Julie Flanders, Murees Dupé, Dolorah at Book Lover, Christine Rains, and Heather Gardner! 


If you’re like me, sometimes the negative voices get you down. Here’s a helpful post for writing: Five Negative Voices and How to Shush Them.

A more positive voice:


I love writing–I really do! Let me specify, though, that I love FICTION writing. The past two weeks I’ve slaved over writing a psychology book chapter for a textbook, and it was hell. No wonder I gravitate more toward therapy than research. One small consolation is that writing five fiction novels has improved my academic writing, too.

I’m almost done with my sixth book ACED (Blocked #2), yahoo! 



76000 / 80000 words. 95% done with Aced!
I’m hoping for a November or December release, depending on the editing timeline. Have you released a novel in December? I’m nervous the holiday rush might be a bad time to launch my baby.

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Five Tips for #Writing #Therapy Scenes #IWSG

Jennifer Lane


Time for August’s Insecure Writer’s Support Group. Writers, learn more HERE and join us.


Hey, everyone. I’m Jennifer Lane, psychologist/author (psycho author). I do therapy on the weekdays and write on the weekends, and I can’t decide which is more fun.

Character growth is essential in any story, and I often help my characters develop through psychotherapy. Finding the balance between authentic therapy and engaging storytelling can be tricky. Here are some tips:

1) Empathy. Otherwise known as validation or good listening, empathy is reflecting the speaker’s emotion. It’s a key therapy skill, regardless of the therapist’s theoretical orientation. Here are some examples of empathy:

Client: “What’s the point?”
Therapist: “You’re feeling hopeless.”

Client: “He’s such an ass!”
Therapist: “You’re really angry at him.”

Sounds simple, right? It’s not. A lot of times we want to give advice or solve problems, when all people need is validation. Empathic listening is quite therapeutic.

2) Boundaries. Therapists’ ethical codes discourage multiple relationships with clients. If I’m your therapist, I can’t be your friend, lover, business partner, babysitter, etc. Hollywood often shows therapists shagging their clients with no negative consequences. Not realistic.

3) Diagnosis. Though some therapists don’t put much stock into psychiatric diagnosis, it’s helpful to have a somewhat accurate diagnosis for the character. I giggled when I read Christian Grey’s initial diagnoses as haphephobia (fear of being touched) and parasomnia (sleep disorders). Fortunately Ms. James did her research for a later book, diagnosing him with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. Here’s a good website summarizing mental health disorders.  I also like the Writers Helping Writers Emotional Wound series. 

4) Progress. Is it common for a huge therapeutic breakthrough to occur? An insight that changes everything for a character? Not really. While I adore this scene in Good Will Hunting, it’s not characteristic of therapy.


Change tends to be difficult and gradual, and clients are unique in their responses to therapy. Some clients feel better merely by naming or reframing the problem. Others just benefit from a private, nonjudgmental space to talk.

5) Character Development. Therapy is a wonderful vehicle to develop your characters. Is your hero funny? Write dialogue for him that makes the therapist crack up. Does your heroine try to mother everyone? Perhaps she brings tea for the therapist, or knits the therapist a hat in the winter. Character interpersonal dynamics will unfold in the therapy relationship just like any other relationship, inserting some fun into the drama.

Have you ever tried to write a therapy scene? Hopefully these tips will help.