Steve O’Keefe - 11 Jun

Praise for Steve OKeefe and Set the Page on Fire

Set the Page on Fire is another masterpiece by book-industry professional Steve OKeefe, author of groundbreaking text-books on online book marketing and pioneer of author interview videos. His latest book reveals strategies learned from decades in the field and is a captivating, informative, and humorous necessity for any budding or veteran writer. Gary Michael Smith, author of Getting Grease

Irresistible! Judith Appelbaum, author of How to Get Happily Published

A very well-composed work about writing. I am happy to say that, based on its merits alone, Set the Page on Fire is a book that all writers should read and reread. Jeff Herman, literary agent and author of Jeff Hermans Guide to Book Publishers, Editors & Literary Agents

A class actabout making a life as a writer. I would compare it to The Art Spirit by Robert Henri. Pat Hartman, editor of Salon and author of Ghost Town

Solid advice for finding an editor or agent. Alice B. Acheson,Literary Market Place award-winning publicist for Old Turtle, an American Booksellers Association Book of the Year

I want to thank Steve OKeefe for introducing me to his Four-Part Pitch. What an amazing tool. Dr. Jeff Jones

Steve OKeefes research-oriented approach helped me to identify the right agent for me, and then to zero in and just persist and have no mercy. I think the most valuable thing I learned from him was to never make it easy for them to say no never complain, always provide the action alternative. Thank you so much! Maggie Thrash, author of Honor Girl and Lost Soul, Be at Peace

Well, it worked. I did some research and sent a query to the senior editor of McGraw-Hills engineering department. The next day I received a phone call from him, and we have already begun talking contract. Chris Ortiz, author of Lessons from a Lean Consultant

Steve OKeefe taught me how to write a query that sells. His practical knowledge of publishing and online promotion is tremendous. Tim Bete, author of Guide to Pirate Parenting

Copyright 2019 by Steve OKeefe

All rights reserved. This book may not be reproduced in whole or in part, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means electronic, mechanical, or other without written permission from the publisher, except by a reviewer, who may quote brief passages in a review.

Text design by Tona Pearce Myers and Megan Colman

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication data is available.

First printing, June 2019

ISBN 978-1-60868-611-7

Ebook ISBN 978-1-60868-612-4

Printed in Canada on 100% postconsumer-waste recycled paper

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Dedicated to

Brian Thomas OKeefe,

who provided most of the words used here

thanks for the loan!

&

RoseAnn OKeefe

for teaching me how to cook!

CONTENTS

S et the Page on Fire: Secrets of Successful Writers will show you how to be a far more productive writer. When you set the page on fire, your writing takes off. Your readers catch fire, too, and keep reading as long as you burn.

This book will show you how to ignite a bonfire of writing and keep feeding it. Youll learn to recognize the writers warm-up and how to shift from your verbal brain to your writing brain. Youll learn tricks for getting hot fast, such as puffensprachen, in which you create a new word at the start of a writing session to ignite your massive written vocabulary.

Once you set the page on fire, the right words erupt effortlessly, like fireworks. You struggle to keep up with your thoughts instead of struggling to get started. You find yourself writing tweets, articles, emails, short stories, poems, screenplays, letters, and books! Your writing at work gets sharper, and even grocery lists start showing literary merit.

Youll want to find outlets for all this material, and this book will help you do that, too. Youll learn how to use the Four-Part Pitch to shop your writing to websites, newspapers, magazines, journals, newsletters, and periodicals. The same pitch will put your work in front of top literary agents and book editors.

Once you learn to set the page on fire, you will no longer dread writing assignments youll look forward to them! You will no longer have trouble coming up with written material, even on a tight schedule. Youll love the way you write, and youll want to write even more. Youll even look forward to the toughest writing assignment of all: pitching to editors and agents.

This book is based on interviews I conducted with two hundred and fifty successful authors and publishing professionals, and on my twenty-five years in the classroom teaching writing and publishing. It is also informed by my experiences as a freelance writer, the author of several textbooks, the editor of half a dozen newsletters, and the employer of dozens of successful writers.

Set the page on fire, and see how fast you learn to love what you write!

L ets start right off with the Top 10 Secrets of Successful Writers, which are based on my interviews with published authors and book publishing professionals. (You can find a complete list of the authors interviewed at the back of the book, as well as video clips of most interviews at the companion website for Set the Page on Fire.) The Top 10 List below is shown in reverse order, followed by a summary and discussion of each secret. The secrets I am about to divulge will serve as handy reminders when youre in the heat of composition.

10. Writing is discovery, not capture

Its something you kindle, not something you freeze.

9. Schedule time at the keyboard

two hours/day = a book in a month

one hour/day = a book in two months

fifteen minutes/day = a book never

8. Mechanics dont matter

Worry about writing quickly and getting across.

7. A thousand words before dawn

The kids are still asleep, and you can write around your job.

6. Write in Airplane Mode

The internet is designed to steal your time. Keep it turned off while youre writing.

5. Dont talk about your writing

Talking damages desire. Your writing never comes out the way it sounds when you discuss it.

4. Use the Four-Part Pitch

This is an effective short pitch for securing outlets for your writing.

3. Know the person youre pitching to

Pitch to people, not companies. Show that you know who youre pitching to.

2. Get it in writing

Get a commitment before you write.

1. Tenacity

It can take eight years to break out, but its worth it.