Finding our way in the year ahead

 

And we are back into 2023…another year of watching the ups and downs of the publishing industry and trying to navigate its shoals and reefs.

The last post of 2022 had us going into the Christmas season with the news that PRH CEO Marcus Dohle was stepping down. That the USA Today list was on hiatus due to the editor being let go as a cost cutting measure. That some magazine subscriptions were uneconomic for Amazon and the Rise Of The Robots… or GPT3 Artificial Intelligence was about to change life as we know it. 

 

So, what is everybody talking about in January…

 

GPT3 is still the hot topic. 

How are publishers going to navigate books written by an AI?

How will the Amazon lists crash and burn when filled up with books written by an AI?

How will writers use this new tool or are they tools for using AI to generate ideas?

Gizmodo has an interesting article on how CNET has been using AI written article for months and nobody noticed. (You still need editors.)

The Hollywood Reporter has an article on how AI will be writing movies by 2025. (really?)

 

AI tools are here to stay and while it might be tempting to put your fingers in your ears and scream loudly it is probably better to figure out how the new technology can be used or abused and how this will impact on your own author career.

There are a few articles in this week’s roundup to get you thinking of possibilities.

First up Mark Dawson’s interview with Joanna Penn- which is wide ranging but interestingly he discusses using GPT3 for marketing ideas.

Kris Rusch looks at AI audio and discusses how it can help your readers. She links to lots of articles on the topic. 

Anna Featherstone talks about all the other tech writers should be getting a handle on in 2023. What else is out there to help the busy writer?

 

Laurie McLean of Fuse Literary, has her predictions for 2023 for the publishing industry.

Laurie mentions BookTok- The Rollingstone magazine has an article on how BookTok is changing publishing and what might happen when the influencers realise the power they have over publishers.

 

Just before Christmas- Harper Collins employees went out on strike over pay and conditions. They are still on strike and the publishing industry is looking at how long this might last and the impact on Harper Collins going forward.

In the New Year news broke that a writer who had been reported as committing suicide over bullying was alive and had a new book out with the plot sounding like real life. This did not go down well.

 

Fast Company has an article on the turn around of Barnes and Noble and how James Daunt’s experiment of putting books front and center has been instrumental in book sales going up. (Who knew that would work?)

 

I was looking at a list of books expected to come out in 2023 locally and I was struck by the covers all looking text heavy. 99 designs has an article on the latest trends for book covers for 2023. Font and Text are where the designers are playing this year.

 

The Alliance of Independent Authors has a great article on why Authors should publish Gift Books.

Penny Sansevieri has an in-depth article on the changes to A+ content on Amazon pages. There are some great take-aways in here so Bookmark this article.

 

Jenny Hansen of Writers In The Storm has a great article on Why You and Your Characters Deserve Some Ikigai – This is a good article to mull over before getting back into your writing stride for the year.

 

In The Craft Section,

Knowing the difference between all those dash’s

How to revise for deep POV- Lisa Hall Wilson

Sexy scenes -open door or closed door? - Jami Gold -Bookmark

5 ways to approach your novel like a trial lawyer- Marissa Graff- BOOKMARK

Writing Insecure Characters- Becca Puglisi- Bookmark

 

In The Marketing Section,

Why blogging is essential in the era of a fragmenting social media.- Anne R Allen BOOKMARK

Can a Facebook ad really sell books- Randy Minetor- Bookmark

2 great articles from Draft2Digital -What is Content Marketing and building your personal brand from scratch

23 successful marketing strategies in 2023- Penny Sansevieri- Bookmark

 

To Finish

After looking at all the predictions out there for 2023 this post gathered up a useful list to think about. It was written in November but the advice is evergreen.

Reedsy updated their Book Marketing mistakes post which they publish every year beginning. This is a reaffirmation that the same things need your attention year in year out.

 

This year looks like being an interesting one for the publishing industry. As you navigate your writing and author career through the shoals don’t forget to invest in relationships within the writing community. There is nothing so affirming as being able to moan to another writer who perfectly understands the ups and downs of the writer life. 

I’m off to 20Books Auckland- (if you are there too, come and find me. I will be wearing a scarf and behind a mask. That pesky virus isn’t over yet.)

 

Maureen

@craicer

 

Do you want the best of my bookmarked links in a handy monthly newsletter? You can subscribe here. 

If you like the blog and want to shout me a coffee, hit the coffee button up top or here. I appreciate virtual coffee love.

Thanks.

 

Pic: Photo by Jamie Street on Unsplash

 

 

Giving Gifts

 

In Publishing News

Penguin Random House CEO Marcus Dohle is stepping down after ten years at the helm of the biggest publisher on the planet. Publishing Perspectives looks at the impact Marcus has had on the Traditional Book Publishing Industry. Meanwhile, Mark Williams gives a less glowing report on Marcus Dohle’s tenure. Ouch! The fallout from that court case is still ongoing.

 

The USA Today Bestseller list is on hiatus. The news broke leaving writers in consternation. The USA Today list was a fair stab at the real numbers of the bestselling books as opposed to the *curated* numbers from The New York Times. The editor of the list was let go as a cost-cutting measure. This could be an early warning of Christmas layoffs in the publishing business.

 

Publisher’s Weekly reports that Amazon is tightening its offerings by cutting magazine and newspaper subscriptions. Also on the block is Textbook print rentals. What will be next?

 

It is looking like an AI wild west out there. The big news has been GPT3’s chatbot which has shifted the game of AI text generation. This morning I saw an article written about a particular indigenous cultural practice in our country written by the GPT3 AI that was lyrical, informed, and accurate. That an AI wrote it was mind-blowing. So where do we go from here? If you are a publisher it could be useful says Nieman labs. If you are an Artist or using AI Art, strap in for Chuck Wendig’s take on it. Techcrunch reports that OpenAI is experimenting with watermarks for AI art. After this morning’s article, I think text might need this too.

 

Kris Rusch continues to look at the publishing year in review. This week, the relevance of Traditional Publishing.

 

Richard Charkin has written an opinion column in Publishing Perspectives about the three gifts he would like to see under Publishing’s tree. I’ve got to agree with all of them! What About You?

 

Judith Briles has an interesting series of 3-minute focus YouTube videos on writing and marketing. Check out this one on organizing writing files.

 

In The Craft Section,

Foreshadowing- Jami Gold – Bookmark

How to write a thriller- Reedsy- Bookmark

Where to start developing a story- Scott Myers

Dealing with multiple drafts during revisions- Janice Hardy- Bookmark

Mining Abandoned Projects – James Scott Bell

 

In The Marketing Section,

Video Camera shy tips- Amy Rodgers Nazarov- Bookmark

Creating single author box sets- Janice Hardy- Bookmark

Updating Amazon Book and Author pages- Elizabeth S Craig - Bookmark

Holiday promotion tips- Bookbaby

How to create a newsletter- Sendinblue

 

To Finish,

The Dream Team Angela and Becca have a great Christmas gift for writers – A free webinar on secrets to engaging readers. 

This is the last blog for the year. 

It has been a challenging year on the home front and I am ready for some downtime over Christmas and New Year. The blog will be back mid-January.

In the meantime, you can read past blog posts for great craft and marketing tips.

Leave reviews for other authors (Feel free to share the top image around.) 

Check out the First Book (Ebook) in the Circus Quest series for FREE or get any of my children's Ebooks for HALF PRICE. 

 

Wishing you all a peaceful holiday break.

Maureen

@craicer

 

There is a bumper newsletter with goodies coming to all subscribers soon so don’t forget to subscribe.

If you like the blog and want to shout me a coffee or eggnog for Christmas, hit the coffee button up top or here. I appreciate all the virtual coffee love. Thanks.

 

Controlling The Books

In Publishing News this week…

 

As a teacher by trade, I have a special interest in encouraging children to read. Reading widens their horizons and can unlock the most amazing movies in your head. Reading can be a safe way of exploring a different world environment from your own, an escape, a comfort, and a learning opportunity. I have been watching the book banning in school libraries in the US with concern. My heart goes out to teachers trying to do the best for their students. This latest attack on teachers fills me with despair. Banning children’s books is a slippery slope to banning education for some children and then you become just like… ( Pick your repressive regime.) 

 

Brandon Sanderson went back on Kickstarter yesterday. He was only looking for $50,000 to fund figurines. Of course, he blew by that figure in the first hour or so. Brandon explains what he has learned about Kickstarter from earlier in the year and how he will be using it in the future. 

Kris Rusch also talks about Kickstarter and how you can structure it for your own author career. She has a free course for authors if you want to learn more about it.

 

Spotify announced that they are beginning audiobook trials and have some exciting things lined up. Audio streaming is going to be shaking up the audiobook world. I think we may be at the tipping point from nice to have new format to necessary to have new format. 

 

Big Bad Wolf has entered Africa. This is the first time they have moved to another continent. Mark Williams talks about their potential impact. They are only bringing 500,000 books for 12 days. (That’s books in the English language- ‘rescued’ from being pulped by publishers who won’t be paying a royalty to the author for ‘destroyed’ books.) So if there is such a demand for these books how come they don’t get sold in these regions in the first place?

 

Mark has been looking at the ongoing mess, now in its second month, that is the distribution arm of the UK’s biggest chain bookstore, Waterstones. Waterstones is trying to climb out of the pit by asking publishers for help. Their plea to publishers to send books to individual stores has not gone down well. That’s 300 stores x post and packing and inventory etc. Smaller publishers are going to the wall over this.

 

Meanwhile, one children’s publisher in the UK is looking further afield. Nosy Crow have been around for 12 years but is about to invade the US. Publishing Perspectives has the details on how they will be shaking up children’s publishing.

 

The Alliance of Independent Authors has been talking about author overwhelm. They have a great article where many authors were asked how they deal with this very real problem in the writing community.

 

Suzanne DeFreitas has a guest post over on Jane Friedman’s blog on Writerly Grit and how it leads to publishing success. Writerly Grit does not mean ploughing on alone, in fact it’s the opposite. 

 

In The Craft Section,

Is deep POV always the best choice- Jami Gold- Bookmark

Do you know the central conflict of your story?- Becca Puglisi- Bookmark

400 story ideas from Scott Myers

10 important don’ts to think about- Lucy Hay

Understanding the 7 types of Archetypes- Now Novel Bookmark

 

In The Marketing Section,

How to email a press release- Sandra Beckwith

Back cover copy tips from Judith Briles- Bookmark

5 self-publishing mistakes writers make- Bang2Write

15 clever book promo ideas- Servicescape- Bookmark

How to choose best colours for graphics and branding- Infographic- Frances Caballo- Bookmark

 

To Finish,

There has always been a fascination with finding out how other writers write. Are you a Plotter or a Pantser? Is one better than the other? Do you kill creativity with plotting carefully? Recently Ada Plamer wrote an interesting article on Tor.com on how the plotting pantsing divide has been greatly exaggerated. It’s not all in on one side or the other but something in the middle.

Once you figure out your process the books will be easier to write, won’t they?

 

Thanks for the kind words for last week's post -Number 700. Cake was eaten for breakfast as the news broke. R.I.P. Queenie. We will not see your like again.

 

Maureen

@craicer

 

Do you want the best of my bookmarked links in a handy monthly newsletter? When you subscribe you will also get a nifty mini book crammed with marketing notes as a thank you. 

If you like the blog and want to shout me a coffee, hit the coffee button up top or here. I appreciate the virtual coffee love. Thanks.

 

Pic Photo by Freddy Kearney on Unsplash

 

The Danger of Words

 

 

In Publishing News This Week

 

The news that Salman Rushdie was stabbed at a literary event shocked the world. The death threats against him had faded from the public mind. Rushdie spent ten years in hiding and when the death threats weren’t actively being promoted it seemed that he was being left alone. Not So. His plight highlighted author safety, the problems authors face when they speak out, or up, or hold dissenting views. The right to Free Speech is held up everywhere as a feature of a functioning democracy. You have the right not to agree with their views, but you can’t deny them a voice. This week The UK Society of Authors chair Joanne Harris has been accused of not sticking up for authors who hold dissenting views, which she denies. The argument is being reported in the media and there is an open letter in support of Joanne from authors in the UK. While all this is playing out the recent survey on writers’ safety is warning that threats against writers are on the rise.

 

Frankfurt Book fair looks like it is back to the old numbers of pre covid days. 4000 exhibitors have registered to display their books and I note that Spotify and TikTok are among them. Publishing was changing fast before the Pandemic, but I don’t think anyone predicted that either of these two influencers would be at Frankfurt Publishing Fair.

 

Cory Doctorow has a new book out that shines a spotlight on punitive contracts in the creative economy. Chokepoint Capitalism- How Big Tech and Big Content Captured Creative Labor Markets and How We’ll Win Them Back. Cory has many popular writers supporting this book and because he names Audible as one of the worst for contract terms, he is having a Kickstarter to get the book recorded outside of that ecosystem. 

 

Writer Beware shines a spotlight on the scammers who prey on authors. If you suspect an offer is too good to be true check the website to see if your fears are realized. The latest scam to come across their desk is offers from agents whose identity has been impersonated. If the offer comes from an agent out of the blue…check into it. Your email query for legitimacy might be a heads up to an agent whose name and reputation have been targeted by scammers.

 

The dreaded writing critique workshop has scarred many a participant. For many prestigious creative writing courses, the Iowa method or the Milward method is the way to conduct a critique workshop. Tor’s guest editor S L Huang found out that this method was pioneered by a deeply flawed poet deeply immersed in the cold war rhetoric. There are other ways to critique creative writing and ripping the author to shreds as some sort of rite of passage is based on warped thinking. If you are interested in workshopping read the article and send it on to your writing tutors.

 

Kris Rusch brings a dose of common sense to the writer who believes other writers are competition in her latest post in her series on how writers fail. 

Sandy Vaile brings hope in her excellent post on how to have an enduring career.

 

Two interesting posts caught my eye this week. A Youtube channel that compiles writing music for authors and an interesting post on toxic productivity that afflicts writers.

 

Joanna Penn interviewed Becca Puglisi on the new Conflict Thesaurus that Angela and Becca have just released. This is volume two. Becca has some great ideas for levels of conflict in your writing. It doesn’t have to be a huge conflict but it does have to be there.

 

In The Craft Section,

Two great posts from Angela Ackerman. Does conflict belong on every page and How to build a flesh and blood character- Bookmark Both

The What When and How of character backstory -Cheryl Burman

Four steps to create perfect plot twists- C S Lakin- Bookmark

How to do a scene by scene breakdown- Scott Myers

 

In the Marketing Section,

How to create a book publicity tip sheet- Sandra Beckwith -Bookmark

How to get book reviews with special promotions- Penny Sansevieri- Bookmark

Do you need to copyright a character or title- Anne R Allen blog – Bookmark

How to make your book newsworthy- Reedsy

What makes a book cover work- Ingram Spark

 

To Finish

Last month everybody was talking about the rise in AI picture creation. There was speculation about whether AI scraping pictures was breaching copyright. Derek Murphy decided to look into an AI Picture generation site as inspiration for his characters. The results are stunning. Derek discusses the moral ambiguity of using AI images. As a cover designer himself, he sees it as another tool but not a replacement. AI hasn’t taken over yet. 

 

Maureen

@craicer

 

Do you want the best of my bookmarked links in a handy monthly newsletter? When you subscribe you will also get a nifty mini book crammed with marketing notes as a thank you. 

If you like the blog and want to shout me a coffee, hit the coffee button up top or here. I appreciate the virtual coffee love. Thanks.

 

PIC Photo by Clem Onojeghuo on Unsplash

Running Up That Hill

In Publishing News this week,

The social media platform Tiktok has changed the face of bookselling with the viral recommendations of Booktok influencers. This was accidental. However this week TikTok is starting a bookclub… with its biggest influencers. (I sense monetization in the works.)

 

Censorship in schools seems to be gathering momentum. It seems every week another school district is doubling down on books in school libraries. Bookriot has been looking at ways that the publishing industry is fighting back. 

 

Recently Dall-E, an AI image generating system, was in the news for making the first magazine cover for Cosmopolitan. Other media companies are looking at this creative use of AI. However, Techcrunch is sounding a warning over the indiscriminate use of copyrighted materials that the AI is learning on/scraping. What about the poor freelancer who has their image used by the AI?

 

Joann Penn was interviewed over on Author Media by Thomas Umstattd on diversifying income streams. You can listen to the podcast or read the transcript. I was interested to find out that Joanna has more than 50 income streams. Joanna has recently published a long-form guide on using Scrivener writing software for fiction and nonfiction. If you want to learn tricks and tips of this powerhouse software check it out.

 

Kris Rusch has an interesting post on Kate Bush and the power of holding onto your copyright. Who knew that RUTH would be a number one hit 36 years later?

 

Kelsey Allagood has an article on Writer Unboxed on diagnosing writer’s block and then what you can do about it.

 

Becca Puglisi has written a great article on the Revision Roadmap as a guest post over on Anne R Allen’s blog. There are some great tips here to mull over.

 

In The Craft Section,

Indicating time passing in stories- Jami Gold Bookmark

Writing the dreaded synopsis- Michelle Barker- Bookmark

Why first person POV is not deep POV- Lisa Hall Wilson- Bookmark

7 tips to help you write- Writing and Wellness

4 clever tricks to transform scenes into high stakes- Zena Dell Lowe- Bookmark

 

In The Marketing Section,

What makes a book cover work- IngramSpark- Bookmark

Get better book launch results- Sandra Beckwith- Bookmark

5 success strategies on marketing -Penny Sansevieri- Bookmark

Selling books with email- Roland Denzel- Bookmark

Reach readers- podcast transcript from Joanna Penn and Becky Robinson- Bookmark

 

To Finish,

Recently the Writing and Wellness blog had an article on how to recognise if you have gone from amateur writer to pro writer. It’s a state of mind. As I was reading it I was wondering if the 3 open manuscripts I’m revising at the same time was too much. 

(Yes. I can hear you shouting at me.) 

Lisa Betz has an interesting article on being intentional with growing your writing craft. 

I’m being intentional, as I revise… honestly. 

 

Maureen

@craicer

 

It’s nearly time for my monthly newsletter. If you want the best of my bookmarked links come on over and subscribe. You will also get a nifty mini book crammed with marketing notes as a thank you.

If you like the blog and want to shout me a coffee, hit the coffee button up top or here. I appreciate the virtual coffee love. Thanks.

 

Pic: Photo by Jeremy Lapak on Unsplash

Reality Bites

 

 

In Publishing News this week,

 

The fight by the big 5 publishers against the Internet Archive has passed the two year mark in the courts. The publishers are filing for a summary judgement- AKA Hurry up and decide on this will you. At stake… whether the Internet Archive is ‘masquerading as a not-for-profit library…digitising in-copyright print books on an industrial scale and distributes full-text digital bootlegs for free’ or not. 

 

Publishing Perspectives reports that Ingram Spark has set up their Lightning Sources Print On Demand installation at Publishing City Sharjah and they are open for business. They are sparing no expense because they expect to make pots of money from their 24-hour/a day printing business in the Middle East. 

 

Meanwhile, Mark Williams is looking at the moves in audio in Europe. He has some sharp observations to make about the constant buying and selling of audio producers and audiobook retailers. It’s a scrap for unlimited streaming.

 

In the You Have To Be Kidding files- Publisher Weekly reports on the new reality TV show coming to you soon- America’s Next Great Author. A big brother style show where 6 charismatic would-be authors live together and try to write a novel in a month… DRAMA.

Do they really want to film NaNoWriMo realistically?

 

Thomas Umstattd takes a critical look at Hybrid Publishers and where they can be a useful publishing partner. I agree with one of his main points, you should familiarise yourself with how publishing works before spending any money. It will save you money in the end- especially when the offer is too good to be true.

 

Writer Beware has an article on a copyright clause that raised my eyebrows past the hairline. This clause is beginning to show up more and more. Publisher content- or the right to make up extra content for your work. Read and take note!

 

Kris Rusch continues her How Writers Fail series – This week she is looking at words and how they can trip up a writer so badly they can’t finish their work.

 

Lithub recently had an article about the weird shame writers have when they publish a book. If this is you, you aren’t alone. Lithub talks to 5 writers who really struggled with this feeling on book publication day.

 

Anne R Allen recently wrote the 10 things a beginning writer should do before trying to publish a book. This should be required reading for every writer. Those of us who have been around the block a few times will be nodding emphatically to this list.

 

 

In The Craft Section,

How Theme and false theme affect your character- September Fawkes

Character talents beyond the superficial- Becca Puglisi- Bookmark

Beginnings and endings – Scott Myers- Video- Bookmark

How to write a sequel- Now Novel

What is high concept- Robin Currie- Bookmark

 

In The Marketing Section,

Author bio mistakes- Sandra Beckwith- Bookmark

6 tips for a successful marketing plan- Masterclass

What does your amazon book detail page look like- Barb Drozdowich- Bookmark

How to promote your book- Reedsy

Tofu for novelists- Randy Ingermanson- Bookmark

 

To Finish,

DIYMFA has an interesting post on writing goals that fit your enneagram number. At first, I was skeptical but the more I read the more I thought, hmm that fits with me. So if you are a student of personality types and trying to figure out how to effectively work with your writing goals, take a look. You could start a positive writing reality show for one.  

 

Maureen

@craicer

 

Do you want the best of my bookmarked links in a handy monthly newsletter? When you subscribe you will also get a nifty mini book crammed with marketing notes as a thank you. 

If you like the blog and want to shout me a coffee, hit the coffee button up top or here. I appreciate the virtual coffee love. Thanks.

 

Pic: Photo by Donald Giannatti on Unsplash

 

 

Reflecting, Educating, Planning, and Celebration

 

 

In Publishing News this week,

 

Those pesky kids books. How dare they have dubious morals. 

Writer organisations are watching the lawsuit in Virginia, filed by Republican lawyers on behalf of a Republican Congressional Candidate who claims obscenity, against two authors and their publishers. The two books in question, Gender Queer by Maia Kobabe, published in 2019 by Oni Press, and A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J Maass, published by Bloomsbury in 2016. It doesn’t matter how old the books are…. Will other states follow suit? First they came for….

 

Mark Williams notes that the Shanghai Children’s Book Fair has been postponed again. While everywhere people think the shocks of Covid 19 lockdowns are over. They are not. Is the publishing world ready for another China lockdown?

 

The Guardian looks back on how The Costa Book Awards changed reading in the UK. With the shock withdrawal of the awards what is left to fill the gap?

 

Spotify finally closed the deal over Findaway’s acquisition and took the moment to announce what they have in store for the future. It’s going to be very big!

 

Cory Doctorow always has interesting things to say about Tech and Big Business and shonky companies and he is generally out there trying to educate people on their rights. This week he pointed the finger at magazine writers contracts. Oh boy do they not make good reading. So if you are a writer just what are you having to sign in the fine print and how much are you liable for? Once you read this, you will be more educated than most. 

 

Rolling right after Cory was Kris Rusch who detailed just what is happening her in her town about Elvis and Intellectual Property. And then there is the Top Gun potential lawsuit where the heirs of the writer, whose original article the movies are based on, did everything right. Will Big Business blink?

 

Joanna Penn had a great podcast this week with guest Katie Cross on selling books direct from your website. What are all the things to be aware of? Tax? Currency? Getting paid immediately?

 

Dean Wesley Smith has a huge library of teaching videos and courses on his website for writers. Recently he was looking at gaps and came up with a whole new list of potential courses which are now in the pipeline. If you are looking to upskill in any area check out the new courses.

 

In The Craft Section,

2 Great articles from Becca Puglisi-Subterfuge in dialogue

and Character talent skills- Bookmark Both

Character Arcs in the Karpman Drama Triangle- K M Weiland – Bookmark

What does authenticity mean anyway- Lucy V Hay- Bookmark

Creating conflict and resolution in your novel- Now Novel - Bookmark

 

In The Marketing Section,

Should authors use video to promote their books - Transcript Alli Twitter chat

Get more author and book publicity-Sandra Beckwith

Top 5 social media strategies- Penny Sansevieri- Bookmark

Sell Sheets- Carolyn Howard Johnson- Bookmark

Free ways to build an author platform- ALLI podcast transcript.

 

To Finish,

It’s Matariki weekend. It’s a big deal here in NZ as it is the first indigenous holiday weekend for our country. The first time in law that the whole country will celebrate the New Year according to Maori tradition. Everybody is talking about how to celebrate it- what traditions should we have - what does it mean for us as family or communities. Matariki celebrates the rising of the Pleiades- which happens around Winter Solstice which makes much more sense for big family dinners and planning New Year’s resolutions. In the Northern Hemisphere around Winter Solstice you celebrate with big family dinners and New Years resolutions while Down Under it’s Summer, it’s hot and we just want to go to the beach. We’re in the middle of Summer holiday’s trying to figure out New Year’s Resolutions at late night BBQ’s which means they will all be broken by January 3^rd.

So here’s to a New Year in Winter. May it be fruitful, blessed, and full of Joy for your family and your writing community.

Kua haehae ngā hihi o Matariki.

The rays of Matariki are spread.

 

The rays of its stars are thought to carry messages for the people. Matariki is a time to share stories, reflect on the past, and plan for the future.

 

Maureen

@craicer

 

Do you want the best of my bookmarked links in a handy monthly newsletter? When you subscribe you will also get a nifty mini book crammed with marketing notes as a thank you. 

If you like the blog and want to shout me a coffee, hit the coffee button up top or here. I appreciate the virtual coffee love. Thanks.

 

Pic Matariki- or The Pleiades – Fraser Gunn 

How to Find Matariki

Look on the Dawn horizon. Find Orion’s Belt.

Look left to Aldebaran (red star) and left again to Matariki/Pleiades cluster of stars.