Where’s The Money?

In the publishing blogosphere this week...

The New Publishing Standard (TNPS) keeps an eye on the global news of publishing. Sometimes we forget that there is a whole world out there in publishing not just the UK or the US. This week they highlighted that many EU countries are dropping the high VAT taxes on ebooks. Good news for authors and readers. However, there is always a holdout. (Quick, guess who?) 
TNPS also reports that Big Bad Wolf has set up their tenth market in South Korea with 2 million English language books in an 11-day sale. (If you haven’t caught up with BBW they sell remaindered books from publishers, often reported as pulped.) 

A bookstore owner in New York wrote a plaintive open letter to the New York City Hall asking for assistance to stay in business. It is in the cities best interests to have bookstores because of the value to the community... therefore the city should subsidise them? Agree? Disagree? 

Meanwhile, over in the UK, the Guardian reports that print sales are down...but Audio Books are a runaway success. Of course, publishers are ready and able to take advantage of the new surge in the popularity of audio. (cue contract rights grabs...)

Anne R Allen has been blogging for ten years. Yes, it was a surprise to me too. Her fabulous blog is always a must read. She shares her ten takeaways over ten years. 
Colleen Story has an interesting blog. Recently she took a look at imposter syndrome. Do you feel you are a real writer?
I’m a regular listener of podcasts, Rose Ernst has rounded up the 29 best Indie publishing episodes of all time. All my favourite podcasts are in there and a few new ones I must check out. *Waves to the SPA girls- NZ’s popular publishing podcast who made the list!*

Kris Rusch continues her series of blog posts examining all the opportunities for authors at the recent licensing expo. This blog post is a must-read for authors. Please read it and think about the implications. I remember many years ago hearing a romance writer explain to me that she was in the entertainment industry. This blog post absolutely explains how writers have never understood what assets they actually have.

Kathleen McCleary often bases her characters on real people. Many writers shy away from doing this. Kathleen shares how you can do this successfully with her blog post-  Be Careful or You’ll End Up In My Novel.

In The Craft Section,

The most common mistakes- Nathan Bransford

Six mistakes that can kill a plot-Mythcreants- Bookmark

What does plot reveal character mean? Jami Gold Bookmark

Briefing your beta readers

Writing characters with personality- Writer Unboxed

Subplots – Scott Myers - Bookmark

In The Marketing Section,

5 ways to increase sales with Instagram

How to conquer Linkedin- Frances Caballo

Author websites with stellar designs- Bookbub- Bookmark for ideas!

How I helped this author grow her platform from scratch- Dan Blank

Bookmarketing- nonstore events- Penny Sansevieri- Bookmark

To Finish,

The Creative Penn is always a resource of interesting ideas. Lately, Joanna has been turning her blog over to some great guest posters. This weeks guest post is all about creative writing tools... and no it is not the fancy pen.
Another must-look-at tool is the Beginners guide to Indie jargon for Book Marketing. This is not just a glossary but is a fabulous link list to the best articles explaining what each jargon term means. If you have always wondered what a CTA is... 

Maureen
@craicer

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Thanks.

Running To A Standstill

This week around the blogosphere there was consternation as
a plagiarism scandal erupted and grew bigger by the hour.

As events unfolded the writer in question blamed the ghost writers that she hired to write books
with her name on it… and therein lies the problem. If you have your name on it then it must have
come from you and been approved by you. As the plagiarised writer,  an ex-supreme court lawyer,
said on Twitter… you picked the wrong person here.
Unfortunately she was not the only writer targeted... at last count 27 writers had been picked up.

Kris Rusch outlines the very reasons why this mess happened and why you should be very
clear in writing cooperatively, however you do it.  

If you have been on social media lately you will have seen all the hype around the new Masterclass
with Neil Gaiman. Actually Neil is everywhere… Good Omens is coming out, American Gods is in
a second season...  Masterclass must be rubbing hands all the way to the bank. So if you have been
on the fence about shelling out for this…you might like this article about
whether it is worth doing a class with Mr Gaiman...or Ms Attwood.

Are you a company of one?
Joanna Penn interviewed Paul Jarvis on how to approach your writer business if it’s just you.

It’s Book Fair season around the world.  The New Publishing Standard keeps an eye on
the international book fairs with India having record attendances lately but they aren’t the only ones.
Belgium has just racked up record attendances too Is print back?
Meanwhile London is expanding their offering and opening up to podcasts.
(It’s all about audio you know….)

Nate Hoffelder pointed out in his blog this week that there is a new wordpress plugin that gets
Alexa to read your blog for you as a podcast and if that isn’t enough to be going on with...
in Joanna Penn’s latest podcast interview with Will Dages of Findaway voices the discussion touched on
a future copyright IP- for your author voice.

Are you worried about finding your ideal reader- The Superfan who will
buy all your books, shout your name to the heavens, and leap to do your every bidding?  
Anne R Allen has the blog post for you... Should writers despair if they don’t have superfans?
It must have struck a chord… there are a pile of comments.

Penny Sansevieri has an interesting post on 4 common book marketing complaints.
Check them out just in case you are doing something wrong and don’t know it.

Reedsy is getting into the book review business… which surprised me.
They have trusted book reviewers for a price… but then you are just marketing to other authors…
Maybe I’m missing something.

Scott Meyers has a great post on his screenwriting blog about writing sprints…
Yes you can achieve much when you write against the clock especially with others…
but don’t forget that a writing walk is just as good… you’ll need your running shoes tho.

In The Craft Section,

2 great posts from Angela Ackerman- When character flaws go too far and Exploring the dark side of your hero - Bookmark Both.

Creating an easy habit of writing- Write to Done

Kill your darlings - editing- Write for Kids

How to write authentic injuries- Scriptmedic

What the 'Friends' pilot can teach writers- Bang2Write- Bookmark

Should you join a writing group?- Leigh Shulman

10 steps guide to the likable hero - Captain America -K M Weiland- Bookmark

In The Marketing Section,

5 tips to spice up your Amazon Profile- Chrys Fey- Bookmark

5 powerful ways to market your book using Pinterest- Bookbuzzr

How your reader profiles informs your book marketing- Bookworks- Bookmark

Is distribution of your print worth it- LM Preston

How to cut down on your business expenses- Creatifwriting

What’s in your signature- Judith Briles

Using Twitter for your author platform- No wasted ink- Bookmark

To Finish,

If you are really in a hurry for that book… check out the Book Espresso machine.
They are becoming more common in book stores in the U.S. Walk in… order the book…
it gets printed while you wait…
Print can be almost as fast as buying an ebook.

Maureen
@craicer

It's nearly time for my monthly newsletter. I round up the best of the bookmarked craft and marketing links as well as some other bits and pieces. When you subscribe you also get a nifty book crammed full with marketing notes. If you like the blog and want to shout me a coffee- hit the coffee button up top. Thanks.

Pic; Flickr Creative Commons - Victor Navarro

Gazing Into The Crystal Ball

Over the last week I have been watching agents trying to figure out on Twitter what kinds of books might be popular in the upcoming few years based on the political upheavals in the U.S.

If you type in #MSWL in the Twitter search bar you can get a snapshot of what they are looking for. It got me thinking about what people read in times of political upheaval. Do they read safe stories or stories about how to cope when a society is disintegrating?

Kris Rusch has a great blog post on writing in difficult times. I think it’s a must read for every author.

Tara Sparling takes a different tack and screams for Book Heroin from Publishers who are playing it safe.

Slate has an interesting post on using sensitivity readers. These are readers representing the various communities you may be writing about to give your MS a beta read. But can their wishes change the story too much.

Litreactor has decided that we all need to take a deep breath and not post on Social Media about certain things. The list is not long but it is very pointed.

Getting a book distributed is a tricky thing if you are a self publisher. Jane Friedman has written a quick guide to get you started. New distributor on the block, Pronoun, has one upped Createspace. Looks like interesting times ahead.

Jeff Goins has a few words to say about book launches and he should know... He is one of the fastest selling non fiction authors around.

Simon Owens talks about using Patreon to support various writing projects. This is an interesting alternative to crowdfunding. Build your own paying tribe... which may be what's needed as The Guardian reports that Award winning writers are forced out of full time writing.

In The Craft Section,

Effective ways to make memorable characters- Dean Elphick

How to use schedules to write- Scott Myers- Bookmark

Formatting interiority- Mary Kole

What does an agent look for- Chip McGregor

Does your character description work?- Michael Hauge- Bookmark

Conflict between protagonists- Chris Winkle - Bookmark

Story hooks- K M Weiland- Bookmark

How long should your series be- Rachel Aaron- Bookmark

In The Marketing Section,

7 essentials for your book launch-Keely Keith- Bookmark

Content marketing and Selling Non Fiction Books Two great posts from Joanna Penn Bookmark

DIY Marketing tools – IngramSpark

But I don’t want to blog- Indies Unlimited

Online education as book marketing- Publishers Weekly

What’s new on your marketing list – Molly Greene

Are indie authors following the music script- Interesting article from Bookbaby

Going from launch to 1000 sales in 3 weeks- Kboards- Bookmark

Social Media Marketing myths- Bookmark

To Finish

A few years ago Anne R Allen published this great blog post which is still relevant. 12 signs your novel isn’t ready to publish. This checklist is always a good wakeup call. If you can tick all the boxes you might have the next book answer to that difficult question, what to read to escape from real life.

Maureen

@craicer

I’m nearly ready to send out my first newsletter of the year. If you want to get a monthly roundup of my best bookmarked links and other goodies... Subscribe.

Pic: Flickr Creative Commons Mr Muggles