If you write mysteries or any type of police procedural, here’s a useful article for you. It provides examples of how the FBI and other law enforcement officials analyze a suspect’s written statement to see what it reveals.

For example, in a case of a missing person, it is normal to describe the person using the present tense. “Jenny always comes right home after school.”

Making a statement about the missing person in past tense may indicate that the suspect already knows what happened to the missing person. “Jenny always came right home after school,” might indicate that the suspect knows Jenny is already dead.

The numerous examples given in the article will provide realistic words you can put in your characters’ mouths to prove their innocence or guilt.

About a week ago I presented a workshop for the Iowa Romance Novelists group on using Twitter. Many of the ladies had heard of Twitter, but didn’t know what you do with it. They had lots of good questions and many signed up for Twitter that day.

Once you get started on Twitter, the question quickly arises… what do you “tweet”? If you’re using Twitter as a means to find readers interested in the genre that you write in, here are some tips about what to tweet.

1. Tweet about your writing and your progress on your novel. You don’t have to give away your plot, but share details on your process.
2. Limit very “personal” tweets. It’s okay to share commentary or opinions, but most of your followers will not care that you just had oatmeal and orange juice for breakfast.
3. Tweet about other writer’s books – what you’re reading, what you liked, new releases, especially if they are in your genre.
4. Followers want information and entertainment. Be interesting and entertaining, not totally self-focused.
5. Reply to all Direct Messages and @Replies sent to you. It’s polite and builds relationships.

What tips do you have for writers on using Twitter?

Sometimes you’ll find it necessary to take a break from writing your novel. Most people don’t realize that writing a novel is essentially another job. If you already have a job outside the home, are going to school, or are a full-time homemaker, writing a novel is like having a second job. And that job can be physically, mentally and emotionally draining.

Physical Exhaustion

Who would have thought that sitting at a desk, typing for a couple hours could be so tiring? We writers know this kind of tired first hand. Your hands cramp up, your back aches, your eyes feel dry and scratchy for staring at that darn screen for too long.

To keep yourself fit and ready to write your next ten novels try these steps to take care of your body:

• Take a stretch break every 30 minutes or so. This means getting up from your chair, so don’t just sit there.
• Focus your eyes on something in the distance periodically.
• Remember to breathe deeply. Oxygen does your brain good.
• Get some kind of physical exercise each day. Even taking a short walk around the block is good for you.

Mental Exhaustion

Trying to wring the perfect words out of your brain can also be exhausting. Pulling from your creative well day after day can run that well dry after a while. Restock it with these activities:

• Take a walk and try NOT to think about your novel. Immerse yourself in the sensory experience of your environment. Any physical activity will work for this, even cleaning the house or washing your car.
• Go to a play, visit a museum, or listen to a concert. Activities that stimulate your creativeness with things other than words are helpful.
• Be creative with something other than words, like coloring a picture, painting, scrapbooking (those this uses some words), woodworking, or knitting.
• Goof off. One of my favorite break activities is playing online role-playing games (MMORPGs). Interacting in a different world gives a much needed break from my story world.

Emotional Exhaustion

The third kind of exhuastion that can strike a writer is emotional. You live your characters’ lives with each word you type. That includes their emotional ups and downs. Riding that rollercoaster with them can drain you of energy.

Try these activities to get yourself back on an even footing:

• Meditate. You can use a specific meditation practice or just sit quietly by yourself and endeavor not to think. I like to do this outside in the sunshine.
• Get into your car, shut the doors and scream. Or cry. Or yell. Express the emotions that may be surging inside you.
• Take a nap. They aren’t just for small children anymore. A power nap or a long afternoon snooze can help restore your equilibrium.

Writing can be a lot more tiring than most people imagine, but using some of these suggestions you can help get yourself back into writing shape quickly.

What do you use to recharge physically, mentally or emotionally?

In my writer’s group meeting yesterday, we discussed how to write a synopsis. One of our members is working on one for her novel and was looking for advice on exactly how to do it. If you’re working on a synopsis as well, I’ve pulled together some resources from across the Internet to help you out.

How to Write a Synopsis Marg Gilks – Walks you through creating a basic synopsis and then gives advice on how to improve it.

Writing the Novel Synopsis by Sheila Kelly – Excellent example of how to write a synopsis and what to include. Provides examples of the way a synopsis is written (present tense, etc.).

How to Write a Synopsis by Nathan Bransford – This is an agent’s take on how to write a synopsis.

Me Write A Synopsis? by Vivian Teresa Beck – Terrific examples in this article.

Have you come across any great examples of how to write a synopsis? Please share them in the comments.

I read an interesting article today by Michel Fortin about Twitter and the debate over auto-following people who follow you. Some folks say that it is polite to do so. Others say that it is nonsensical–you wouldn’t give out your telephone number to a complete stranger, so why would you give a stranger the ability to Direct Message (DM) you, just because they “said” they were interested in you by following you.

Regardless of which camp you fall in, I think there is an important thing to note here for writers. We are all quite aware of the state of publishing today and how hard it is to get published. And the even harder task a published author has in finding and keeping enough readers to make his book sales look good to a publisher. Especially given the general lack of money and support that a publisher will put forth for a book in the midlist.

Two Jobs

For authors in the midlist, they have twin tasks now–writing a great book AND finding enough readers to buy it. I believe that an author’s promotional activities will continue to be of increasing importance if they want to remain a published author.

Twitter is one of the ways that a writer can seek out and find potential readers for her books. And that gets us back to the debate at hand on auto-following. Writers want the largest following possible because each follower represents a potential book sale, right? But can you really equate follower numbers with sales? I don’t think so.

If you spend your time auto-following every person who follows you, what kind of connection do you have with that person? They are essentially a stranger to you, unless you’ve taken the time to open up a conversation and get to know the person behind the tweets. And let’s not forget, how often have you bought something because a complete stranger recommended it? Not often, I think.

On the other hand, how likely are you to purchase something that a friend has recommended to you? In the case of a book, a friend’s recommendation is the #1 reason a person will buy a book that wasn’t on their radar previously. (I’m paraphrasing this a bit from the informal survey that JA Konrath did a while back, which I can’t find now.)

If you have a friend or someone you like and trust who just happens to be a writer with a book coming out, how likely are you to purchase it as a show of support? I buy books written by my friends for that reason. And also because I love the books they write.

Collect Friends, Not Faceless Crowds

The key to Twitter seems to be not how many followers you can accummulate, but rather how many new friends you can make. Real friends, people you like and want to talk with. For a writer, I can’t think of a better way to increase the potential for book sales, then by reaching out to other people to start conversations and get to know them. Twitter is one way to do that… one person at a time.