How to Write a Book

....and Film, Album or Website

1 Have your own original idea. Competition among aspiring writers is fierce. A respectable publishing house like Matichon Books receives 30 submissions per month. How do you make your story stand out? Parnbua Boonparn, executive editor at Matichon, says, “At Matichon, we only consider stories with originality. If a new writer has a similar tone to other writers in the market, we recommend he find his own style.”

2. Come up with an outline. An outline helps you generate ideas, focus on what you really want to write and come up with the ever-important beginning and ending.

3. Keep Writing. You can’t be a writer if your ideas never come out on paper. “You can start by writing a diary and seeing what kind of topics you like to write about. This process will help you figure out your style, as well,” the Matichon Book executive editor advises.

4. Edit. “Reread your work. If even you don’t think it’s interesting, nobody else will,” offers Parinda Manusmonpri, editor of Naew Kwam Roosuekdee at Jamsai Publishing.

5. Get feedback and rewrite. “One of the best ways to get feedback is to post your writing online,” Parinda says. Popular websites include pantip.com and jamsai.com. After receiving comments from readers, you can reread your story and rewrite it.

6. Never give up. After receiving negative feedback, many aspiring writers decide to give up on writing as a career. Don’t. A key trait if you want to be a writer is patience. If at first you don’t succeed, edit and rewrite your story until you’re happy with it.

7. Whatever it takes. In Thailand, the best-selling books are written by celebrities. No-name writers have to find other ways to get published. The Matichon Book editor suggests sending an article or a feature to one of the Matichon publications. If your work is published, your next step is to try to be a regular contributor or even a columnist. Then you have a chance of being a pocketbook author. Another way to get published is to enter a writing contest—of course you’ll have to win something to attract the attention of publishers.

How to Sell a Book

1. Approach the right publisher. Figure out which publishing house is right for your book. For example, Feature Publishing and Matichon Publishing focus on informative books. “We don’t publish any books written by celebrities. We are looking for content that can entertain and inform. Aspiring writers should know a publishers’ culture before sending manuscripts to them,” says Parnbua, Matichon Book’s executive editor. On the other hand, Jamsai of Pearl and Bluebell Publishing look for light content such as romantic novels.

2. Prepare a pitch. Make an appointment with an editor of your choice and think of a good pitch to sell your book. “Be prepared. A writer must be able to tell a publisher why he needs to publish the book,” explains Parnbua.

3. Promote yourself. If you get a contract with a publisher that is a part of a big empire like Amarin Printing, Matichon or The Nation, you don’t need to worry about promotion because you will get interviewed by media in the empire. But if you release a book with a small publisher, a good way to receive coverage is to send your book to media that has book review columns. Also, find interesting angles about yourself and your book and create a press release. Send them to media outlets that match with your book. For example, if your book is about your adventures abroad, send it to travel magazines and travel sections in newspapers.

Directions

Information update

www.yes-wedo.com/publishing.htm A complete list of publishing companies and contact numbers

www.thaiwriter.org Updated news for those in the writing business by Thai Writer Association

www.praphansarn.com/new Updated news about writing contests

www.pantip.com/cafe/library Online community of readers and aspiring writers

ONLINE PUBLISHING

www.jamsai.com
www.bluebell-press.com
www.pearlpublishing.co.th
www.emotionway.com
www.yayee-yajai.com

Aspiring Writer Workshop

Four-day workshop taught by experienced editors and writers. B3,500. See details at amarintraining.com.

Writing Contests

Boondham Boonpring Award. Categories include feature stories, young adult stories and illustrated books for kids. Contact Thai Wattanapanit Publishing, 905 Soi 49 Rama III Rd., 02-683-3333

Crime & Mystery Fiction Contest. A contest for crime, mystery. Nanmee Book, 11 Sukumvit Soi 31, 02-662-3000 ext 4323

Nation Book Award. A contest for scientific books. Contact Nation Books 02-325-0432 or 02-325-5555 ext 3302. www.nationbook.com

Nai In Award. Categories include short story, novel and poetry. Contact 02-422-9999 ext 4141-4147. www.nain.com

Phan Waen Fah Award. Categories include political essays and poetry. Contact Thai Writer Association, 02-421-2302 (Applications accepted until August, 2006)

How to Make Movies

1. Focus on short film. Unless you’re filthy rich, you’ll have a tough time making a full-length feature film—the kind that is screened in theaters. Making a short (and low budget) film is a realistic way to show studios what you can do. Pakpoom Wongpoom (The Shutter), Chukiat Sakweerakul (Khon Pi Pisaj) and Kongdej Jaturanrasmee (Cherm) are well-known directors who made short films before they hit the big time. “Making a movie requires a large amount of money, and nobody wants to risk their money on a no-name director. A short film is another way to add to your credits and at the same time demonstrate what your style is,” says Kongdej.

2. Play by the rules. There are many short film contests. Decide which one you want to enter, because each contest has different rules. For example, for the Fat Short Film Contest, you need to produce a film related to a song; for the Thai Film Foundation Short Film Contest, your film can’t exceed 30 minutes.

3. Create a script. A good script is the base for a good film. Be original. Don’t copy foreign films like many professional filmmakers like to do. (You can do that later after you’re famous.) Also, remember that later your script can be extended to become a feature. For example, Kongdej’s Sayew was originally entered in a short film script contest.

4. Write with a low budget in mind. Be realistic. Figure out which locations and which actors you can use for free or pay little money. Kongdej spent a measly B2,000 on his 19-minute short Jeng and received an award from the Thai Film Foundation in 2000.

5. Decide your role. Who do you want to be? Director? Scriptwriter? Cameraman? If you don’t know how to use equipment, get a crew to make it work.

6. Cast. You don’t need to go through agents. Look around. Select talented people you know and see if they can act.

7. Go digital. Learn how to compose, control and edit on digital video—or hire a cameraman who can.

8. Shoot the film. A filmmaker is a storyteller. You don’t need complicated techniques or fantastic lighting to tell a story. Especially when you have a tight budget. “You can limit the number of locations or cast members. Shoot with natural light. Just use your imagination and make the film naturally,” Kongdej suggests.

9. Edit. Use editing software such as iMovie and Adobe Premier. (But not a pirated copy, please.)

10. Hand it in. Meet the deadline! Some contests like Fat Short Film screen all films, whether they receive awards or not. So even if you don’t win, you can see your work onscreen and get audience feedback.

11. Don’t give up. Every successful director worked very hard before anyone knew who he or she was.

Directions

Kantana Film School 02-690-6141 ext 102-104. www.kantana.co.th/edutainment/enter_media.htm. Complete film courses.

www.bioscopemagazine.com Updated news about short films and contests.

www.thaifilm.com Updated news about short films and contests by Thai Film Foundation.

www.thaishortfilm.com Updated news about short films and contests as well as info on short film courses, equipment rental, etc.

How to Cut an Album

1. Know your strengths. Figure out what you do best and stick with it. If you’re just starting out, choose rock or rap or R&B—but don’t try to do them all.

2a. Form a band. You bandmates should be people who are comfortable to work and be with. “My bandmates are my friends. It’s important to have bandmates who can get along together and have the same goal. We formed our band, Apartment Khunpa, to have fun. Finances aren’t our primary concern,” says frontman Tul Waitoonkiat.

2b. Decide to be a solo artist. If you decide to be a solo artist, go for it, but you have to be that much better. “We are interested in both bands and solo artists, but a solo artist must have a great voice, and he should be both a singer and songwriter. We also look for people who can produce their own albums,” Rungroj Uptampotiwat, managing director of indie label Small Room, says.  

3. Practice, practice, practice. Practice makes perfect. “Apartment Khunpa rehearses every Tuesday. If you can rehearse twice a week or more, all the better. A lot of practice helps us to be strong and play smoothly when we’re live,” Tul explains.

4. Play live. There are many places around town where they’ll let you audition, and that’s your chance to play live in front of an actual audience. “Playing live is important. It’s the best way to get close with audiences. Playing our music again and again in public helped people get used to it,” Tul explains. 

5. Make a demo. A demo is your resume to record labels. “We listen to every demo and let bands know our comments. Almost all of the artists who released albums with us we knew from demos,” Rungroj says. There are computer programs that can make it easy: Try Logic Express, Cubase or TurboDemo. If you aren’t sure what to do, go to a studio and let a professional help you out.

6. Find the right label. Figure out which labels suit your style of music. Many indie labels such as Small Room, Panda Records and Hualampong Riddim welcome artists who don’t come in cute packages, but you will get to produce your albums yourself. If you go for major labels or indies under big labels such as Giraffe Records and Sanamluang, you might have to change your outfit—and sometimes your music—to fit their style.

7. Be persistent. Many artists have to wait for years. “A band called Lemon Soup will release their first album with us just this year, and we heard a demo from their frontman four years ago,” the Small Room managing director recounts.

8. Get a job. It ain’t gonna happen overnight, and even if it does, “overnight” could mean months, even years. Suggests Tul: “Artists must have a financial plan. Our members have other jobs to support themselves. Even though people know us, music is not our main source of income.”

Get Your Music To The Masses

Accepting Auditions

Ashley’s Rumor 1/F, Liberty Plaza, Soi Thonglor, 02-714-7861/-4: pop and rock music

Brick Bar 1/F Buddy Lodge Building, 265 Khao San Rd.,02-629-4702: blues, jazz and big band music

Jam Bar 1/F Liberty Plaza, Soi Thong Lor, 01-832-0675: pop and rock music
Khao San 3/F, Dutchess Plaza, Soi Thong Lor, 02-381-0865/-66: retro pop and rock music

Noriega’s 106/108 Soi 4, Silom Rd., 02-233 2813-14: jazz, indie, metal, and acoustic pop and rock music

TCDC 6/F The Emporium, 622, Sukhumvit Rd., 02-664-8448, www.tcdc.or.th

Indie Labels

Indie music labels like Bakery, Smallroom, Love is, and Panda have really been making waves lately. Some of their websites have info on where and how to submit demos (2-3 examples of your band’s music on a CD). Check out an extensive directory of these and other independent labels contact info at www.cityblue.net/connect/viewcat.php?cat=Label.

Music Schools

Gen X Academy 23/26-29 RCA, Rama 9, 02-2031-001. www.genxacademy.com. Offers advanced and modern music lessons.

Mifa Music School 02-259-4545. www.mifah.com. Music schools owned by Grammy in various locations.

Trinity School 4/F Vanit Building 2, 403, Phetchaburi Rd., 02-655-7770. www.eduprogress.com. A music school with rehearsal rooms, a recording studio, a stage and a computer music lab.

www.formumandme.com/article.php?a=188. A list of music schools.

Music Studios

BNG 02-466-3615 and 02-465-4675. www.bngmusicthailand.com. Rehearsal studio for bands to get loud in without disturbing the neighbors.

Music Boom 02-252-5364. www.musicboomstudio.com. Rehearsal studio where you can also record demos.

Music Farm 02-914-9514 and 02-914-8668. www.music-farm.co.th. Music recording studio.

Prach Music 02-203-0423. Rehearsal studio where you can also record demos.
Sexy Pink Studio 06-604-7344. Music recording studio. Sex not included.

Radio Stations

Fat Radio 104.5 FM “Entrance” program (Fri, 4pm-midnight) and “Bedroom Studio” program (Mon-Fri, midnight to 12:30am) play demos from unsigned artists.

Size Doesn’t Matter

The small label Small Room has helped artists like Armchair, Montonn Jira and Superbaker achieve stardom. Managing Director Rungroj Uptampotiwat gives us a few tips.

What kind of music are you looking for?

Different from the mainstream but not complicated. A demo should stand out from the rest. The music should have good melodies. Appearances don’t count. Just be yourself. Be natural.

Does an aspiring artist need to study in a music school?

If that person doesn’t know the basics, he might need to take some courses. But if he can play a guitar, to get to the next level is a matter of creativity. At Small Room, only a few artists have degrees in music, but everyone is a keen listener of music.

How to Create Your Own Website

1. Create original content. To gain market share online, a website creator should create content that targets niche users. “A new creator should provide content that he has special interest or knowledge in and aims to reach a specific group, such as content for violin lovers or Honda Jazz drivers. These can get you noticed easily because they’re rare,” Wanchat Padungrat, a founder of Pantip.com recommends.

2. Use free websites. For a beginner who has no idea about web language, free websites are a good option as they are easy to use and, of course, they’re free. You have nothing to lose. “I would recommend a new creator to start with a free website,” the founder of Pantip.com said. “Spend your time and money developing content and providing services until the website has a lot of users. You can always decide to create a new website or hire a web designer later on if you want.”

3. Register a domain name. Though it’s free, a free website has downsides including the fact that search engines usually ignore it. Some sites have names too long to remember. If you have financial support, get a domain name. Pick a short name that’s easy to remember and spell it out. Then, register the name with ecomsiam.com, thaizone.com or hosting.co.th. Prices starts around B600 per year.

4. Select web hosting. Web hosting is a service providing a space for your website on a server so Internet users can access it. Prices differ from one Internet Service Provider (ISP) to another and depend upon the amount of space you take up. While servertoday.com offers 2GB with domain name at B2,006/ year, siamnow.net has 150MB with free domain name at B1,500/year.

5. Create your website. You have choices. The easiest way is to use templates available on line. If you like doing it the hard way, learn how to do it yourself. There are many courses available in a variety of schools or you can learn it yourself from books. “Some easy books to read are Flash for Dummies (Gurdy Leete and Ellen Finkelstein), Dreamweaver MX for Dummies (Janine Warner and Irena Berkowitz) and Photoshop CS for Dummies (Deke McClelland),” Klaus Fruchtnis, the artistic director of Duran Studio recommends.

6. Promote the site. To get web traffic to your site, you have to get on the web engines. Go to addme.com/submission.htm and add you domain name for free. There are a variety of books out now on how to get listed on Google searches. The best way to promote your website is through word of mouth. “Most internet users know a new website through word of mouth, but that site must be outstanding in service,” Wanchat explains.

Help in Setting Up your Online Presence

Free Website Services

www.meeweb.com
www.powersite4you.com
www.sitepackage.com
www.taradquickweb.com

Web Design School

The International Art School of Bangkok (29 South Sathorn Rd., 02-670-4233.
www.alliance-francaise.or.th) provides classes teaching web design basics.
Net Design (02-642-1100. www.netdesign.ac.th) is a design school with branches located throughout the city.

Raffles Design Institute (5/F, Silom Center, 2 Silom Rd., 02-632-7666. www.rdi.in.th) provides fundamental knowledge of web design.

Blog and Podcast

In online communities, the terms blog (a short form of weblog) and podcast have become very popular, but what are they? Klaus Fruchtnis, the artistic director of Duran Studio, explains:
“’Blog’ and ‘newsletter’ are the same thing. It’s an online journal that is updated as frequent as the information needs to be changed. A podcast is a method of publishing information (files) to the Internet or a method through which this information is delivered to the user. This method is very common on websites with music/audio files.”

As they’re so popular, do we need to use these techniques on our websites?
“To create a website you can use simple programs or even programs with templates that teach how to do it step-by-step. A blog or a podcast would only be useful if you really need to update or send information to the users, but it is not the only way to set up information online. Designing websites is not just limited to placing the files in a page but also to analyzing the needs of the site and finding the right tools that suit your ideas.”