Random Acts of Kindness Day 5: Giving Back To Writers

WOW! The time has flown past and here we stand at the weekend’s doorway! Have no fear, RAOK Week is still underway, and will continue through Sunday. Every day we see more and more Random Acts of Kindness, and writers everywhere are realizing just how much they are appreciated by others.

As the industry helps to show their admiration for writers, Scrivener has led the charge and offered up their amazing software each day. We are so grateful for their support, and their excitement to partner with us to celebrate the community.

I think we can all agree by now that kindness is contagious so today I’d like to put the focus on the word RANDOM. Maybe you’ll see a tweet later from a writer who seems overwhelmed. Or in a forum, you notice a post from a person struggling with frustration or self confidence. These are things we all understand and have worked through ourselves, so why not send a bit of sunshine their way? A kind word or small gesture can mean so much. If you would like to steal our badge and surprise someone with an official RAOK, please add your blog to our link list at the bottom of this post!

Meet our Industry partners who want to show their appreciation for all you do. They are a part of our crazy, word-crammed world, and see the way writers strive and persevere. Read on to see what gifts they are offering today to celebrate you, and maybe win something that will make your writing path a bit easier.

Today, you have 3 chances to win, so read on!

Scrivener is billed as ‘your complete writing studio’ and it really is. This software, developed by a writer for writers, is the complete package. How many notebooks do you fill up as you research, brainstorm, outline, create character sketches and finally draft and revise your novel? Well, flipping through that stack of paper or set of binders is a thing of the past with Scrivener. Organize, storyboard, make notes and research all in the same place, and best of all, access it all as you write. The index card and cork board system is nothing short of brilliant.

Simply put, Scrivener is a writer’s best friend. I love how they evolve to serve writers in this new world of publishing, like using the compile feature to export manuscripts to Kindle or epub formats! You can even download a free trial to see if this tool fits your working style!

More good news: David and the crew at Scrivener loved the idea of RAOK for writers so much they are giving out software packages every day this week!

RAOK Gift # 2: Lecture by Agent Irene Goodman on How an Agent Picks a Client: From Query to Career.

Writer’s Digest is one of the most familiar names in the publishing industry. Their books on writing technique are best sellers and they run Writer’s Digest University, offering a legion of webinars, lectures, courses and critique opportunities. The lecture featured today will help writers to get a better idea of how an agent thinks, and understand what they need both from a manuscript and a potential client to take them on.

WD also produces the highly reputable Writer’s Digest Magazine and the yearly Writer’s Market. Their newsletter is full of great articles, insider information and bits of Industry news. Each year, they put on Writer’s Digest Conferences, which brings the biggest Agents, Editors and Authors in publishing together. (And what I love is that if you miss the conference, you can still buy the keynotes and workshop sessions, honing in on the topics that pertain to your own writing!)

Writer’s Digest has an entire Community where writers can share information and collaborate as they work toward publication. I’m cutting to the bone here as I describe in order to keep this short-ish, but snoop around the site to really see the full value. Make sure to stop in at Chuck Sambuchino’s excellent blog, Guide to Literary Agents,  and The Writer’s Dig, run by Brian Klems (who I hope is having a great birthday today!)

So…want to win these wonderful RAOK Gifts? Of course you do! Enter this FORM and consider spreading a bit of kindness in the Writing Community.