Thursday, November 23, 2017

Deadlines Deadlines




This week I have been putting all my energy into another project... that has a deadline like an approaching iceberg. Far away it doesn’t look daunting...

While I was flailing, Kris Rusch published this little gem on her blog- It’s not about us. This gives me hope that my ideas will come across even though I feel my writing might get in the way.

I was also struggling with not-being-a-superhero syndrome. At the beginning of the month... I thought sure I can do this big speech and write my NaNo novel. Ummm something has to give... Then I came across this wonderful post and it put this month into perspective. A must read!

Nate Hoffelder always has his fingers on the publishing pulse. This week he looks at how Amazon is rank stripping authors ... for the crime of being... successful?
Nate also looks at KDP print who have upped their cheap author copies. It could be handy if you are selling at Christmas fairs.

Kristen Tsetsi has a guest post on Jane Friedman’s blog about the choices one has to make to get published.

Publishing Perspectives has an interesting blog on the ASEAN summit in publishing. People down under should be keeping an eye on this emerging market.

Janet Reid answered a letter from an author whose day job company owns everything they create. A lively discussion ensued about how much of your time a company can own... Can they really take ownership of your novels...

A few weeks ago I had to have an author photo taken... I looked at all the different shots and decided they weren’t really me. I was trying to be serious and author-ly.-It didn’t work. It’s Murphy’s law that after you do something the universe will send you the right information.

Along with the picture, I had to write a bio.  Again The Universe provided after the fact, with a great post by Anne R Allen.

Reedsy has a nifty little blog of what should be going in an author media kit...  got that in time!


In The Craft Section,

Details in writing- Bookbaby- Bookmark

The conflict box- Bob Mayer- Bookmark

Choose the right sentences- K M Weiland – Bookmark

Rhythm and pacing – Jennie Nash- Bookmark



In The Marketing Section.




The reason branding confuses you- Rachel Thompson- Bookmark


How to get on bestseller lists- Alicia Rades. Bookmark

Indie Author Mistakes- Write to Done- Bookmark

To Finish,

Angela Ackerman and Becca Puglisi have a comprehensive list of writing tools on their website... You should check it out.
The NaNo Storybundle of writing craft books is still available... this is the last week you can get this. I have been enjoying delving into the great books on offer.
 Christmas decorations are going up in the shops... so if you are thinking about gifts for writers check these out.
See you next week when I will be sane, the deadline will have been met and it will all be over....

Maureen
@craicer

I round up the best of the bookmarked craft and marketing links as well as some other bits and pieces every month. When you subscribe you will also get a nifty book crammed full with marketing notes. Feel free to hit the coffee tab. I need another cup....
 


Thursday, November 16, 2017

Catching Our Breath


November Halfway...
I told myself this year I would do it... and I started with good intentions... and I have over 10,000 words done... but it has been a struggle. Anne R Allen’s blog post on Why NaNoWriMo is liberating for some writers and dangerous for others was a welcome breath of sanity this week.

The Traditional Publishing Industry is also breathing a sigh of relief. They have had an increase in sales over the last quarter and there is still Christmas gift giving to come.

Nate Hoffelder mentioned on Twitter today that to combat scammers Google went to manually up loading books. This shut out new authors from selling their books through Google Play but there is a small light shining amongst the angst of Pronoun shutting down...

Joanna Penn has had an amazing run of great content on her podcast this month. But her latest podcast demands serious attention... She detailed the discussion topics at the Oregon Coast Business for Authorsworkshop. Indie publishing has stabilised but the next disruption is coming down the track...

Belinda Griffin has a guest post on Joanna’s Blog that takes an in depth look at Author Brand. If you have ever wondered exactly what it is and why authors need to understand it ... this is the post for you.

Agent Kristin Nelson wrote this week about the perils of the Hollywood buy in on your book... because Hollywood wants to own the novelisation rights... um

Kris Ruch has written a knockout post on letting other voices into your head to screw with your writing... namely fame and fans. This is a must read post for every writer but especially for those writing series.

The 7 Secrets of Power Persuasion Writing for writers. Are you using the right emotional hooks in your writing?

In The Craft Section,


Make characters distinct- Michael Hauge – Bookmark





How to pick the right editor- Lisa Polisso- Bookmark


In The Marketing Section


Gumroad for authors- Joanna Penn- Bookmark

Ways authors can cross promote- Bookbub- Bookmark


Authentic Personal Brands for Authors- Writelife


SFF Marketing Podcast- Newsletters- A Serious Must Watch!

How to talk about your book – Paul Geiger- Bookmark

To Finish,

In my list of One-day-I-want-to-own-these-books... is a book on Writing Imaginative Fiction – Wonderbook by Jeff Vandermeer. I was excited to see the lecture notes of a workshop by Jeff on the Electric Literature site.  This is one of those Read, think about, read again posts... and the illustrations are just wonderful!
A nice pick me up in the middle of November.

Maureen
@craicer

I round up the best of the bookmarked craft and marketing links as well as some other bits and pieces every month. When you subscribe you will also get a nifty book crammed full with marketing notes. Feel free to hit the coffee tab. I’m living on it this month!



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