Trying New Things

 

In Publishing News this week,

 

The biggest indie author conference in Europe wrapped up this week in London.

For a roundup of topics discussed and great little ideas check out the YouTube video of one of founders of the Self Publishing Show and its podcast talking about the show…at the show.

 

Publishing Perspectives highlights a new tool for publishers created by the Green Book Alliance, a group dedicated to advancing sustainability in the publishing industry. The new tool helps publishers to calculate their carbon footprint. This could be a marketing win if used the right way.

 

The Alliance of Independent Authors has an in-depth article about Draft2Digitals new fees and what it means for authors. If you have been on the fence this might help. (I’ve just paid my fee, as a wide author I appreciate their global reach.)

 

What do you do when you have a big backlist? You make a portion of it available for film and television people to find new projects. Simon and Schuster have just put over 6000 projects onto the Blacklist search engine for screenplays according to Publishers Weekly. Placing books on this list is only a recent development.

 

A new court case hit the news this week. This time it's academic publishers going after a sketchy outfit which ‘publishes’ access to literary and scientific journals. Of course you can draw a direct line to skull and crossbones flag. The publishers are on a roll as they have already won a court victory against other pirates.

 

Javier Celaya has an opinion piece in Publishing Perspectives about going back to school to learn about AI. He is adamant that publishing professionals need to understand at a structural level what AI can and cannot do. It should be a requirement at management level he says.

 

Jak Bazino went down the rabbit hole into a Nigerian run Book Club Scam. It starts off very slowly and what looks legit then starts to unravel. This is play by play story of how these scams operate.

Meanwhile, over on Killzone blog Debbie Burke has the ABC’s of avoiding scammers. Required reading.

 

Lucy V Hay has a great article on Angela and Becca’s writing blog about overwhelm. Sometimes this writing business can get you down and when that happens your headspace can get screwed up. She has some helpful advice for getting you out of your own head. Overwhelm can also hit your inbox so check out Lisa Normans essay on managing the inbox deluge.

 

Agent Richard Curtis has some hard advice for writers who are dreaming about writing full time. Be very careful about what you are giving up and what you expect the life to be like. This is a dose of straight talking about the writing life.

  

The Publishing Industry’s Habit of Selling and Packaging Youth, and Its Wider Impact.

If you blinked when you read that line, you need to read the essay from Faridah Àbíke Íyímídé. She writes from personal experience.

Ines Johnson has written a great marketing essay in praise of libraries. But what is even better she writes it to her book fans and tells them that she loves it if they take her book out of the library. This is marketing by acknowledging that times are tough and books are expensive. There is another way!

 

In The Craft Section,

When your characters begin to breathe- Sarah Hamer- Bookmark

How to write mythic fiction- K M Weiland

Write stronger characters for a plot driven story- September Fawkes -Bookmark

Rediscovering Creative Joy- Podcast Joanna Penn and Austin Kleon

Writing the opening scene- Janice Hardy- Bookmark

 

In The Marketing Section,

If you are uncomfortable with book marketing- Sandra Beckwith- Bookmark

Building Local Reader Engagement- Written Word Media-Bookmark

How to check on KDP account health- Written Word Media- Bookmark

The scrapbook of publicity- Cassie Mannes Murray- Interesting essay

Learning about Book trailers- Linda Sienkiewicz

 

To Finish,

It was great to get out of the house this week and celebrate a local author at a book launch. It was a chance to catch up with my writing friends and find out what everyone is doing. 

Getting together with other writers can inspire collaborative projects that you wouldn’t do on your own. Dale Ivan Smith has a great article on Anthologies and contests. I’ve heard about fundraising anthologies and genre anthologies. Submissions to a poetry anthology are being asked for in my writing circle. I can’t write poetry for toffee but a project like this can be a low-risk way of stretching your writing or trying out a new genre. 

Dip your toe in.

 

Maureen

@craicer

 

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If you want the weekly blog in your inbox subscribe to the free Substack version.

 

If you like the blog and want to buy me a coffee, I appreciate the virtual coffee love. Thanks.

 

Photo by Krists Luhaers on Unsplash

Searching For A Market

This week in Publishing News,

 

This week Techcrunch published an article on how publishers will be able to opt out of AI searches due to new laws in the UK. The law states that AI search engines must offer a way to opt out, but with everyone using Chat GPT for search now, is that a good thing?

 

The recent US Book show examined the big movers in publishing, AI and Audio. Publishing Perspectives reports on some of the discussions and the importance of data when making decisions.

 

Publisher’s Weekly reports on an Author Guild survey on why author incomes are in decline. It’s all subscriptions fault, and libraries. People are still reading. So how do we get people to pay us for our stories?

 

Reading is a social activity. That’s the latest trend. (I can hear introverts screaming right now.) Publisher’s Weekly reports on a Frankfurt Bookfair virtual event discussing the global trend of reader social engagement that is bypassing publishers.

 

Kobo’s CEO Michael Tamblyn has a feature article on Publishing Perspectives about the office discussions on whether they would publish AI books. As he writes “This AI moment… is revealing a lot about what we believe to be important.” This is an inside look at what publishing companies are wrestling with.

 

If you want to lure a kid into the library, give them Manga. That’s the popular opinion of librarians according to Publishers Weekly who went out and surveyed them. From being very niche, it is now mainstream. It’s all down to librarians who nurtured those weird kids, giving them space to read, and now Manga is for the cool kids. 

 

Mark Williams calls out the hypocrisy from publishers as they publicly bemoan the use of AI while using it in their offices. I have some sympathy for the argument. He rightly calls out the double standard and how people are losing their jobs because of AI. It’s not, our office is more efficient as our staff are using AI tools. It’s our office replacement for staff are AI tools. 

 

Which type of Social Media is best? If you have been struggling with this question the latest article from the Alliance of Independent Authors is for you. Some social media brands work better for different genres. 

 

Alexa Bigwarfe has an interesting article on writing for AI search engines. How Is Your Next Reader Finding You? The Economist is already writing articles just for search engines. She explains about new marketing search and how authors can make their book findable in all the search noise.

 

Rachel Thompson has a great article on marketing. The Absolute Best Time To Market A Book Is Before It Exists. If you are scratching your head over that, you need to read the article. Do you want your readers to remember you?

 

The Indie Author magazine has an interesting interview with Deborah Wilde about the transition from screenwriter to books, navigating the publishing world, and reinventing yourself. 

 

In The Craft Section,

Meeting reader expectations- Jami Gold- Bookmark

Do you know Why?- Kathleen McCleary- Bookmark

How to choose the right character arc- K M Weiland -Bookmark

Writing the best twist- Janice Hardy- Bookmark

Interiority vs Visceral reactions-Susan Watts- Indepth article

 

In the Marketing Section,

Sending merch with ARC’s- Sandra Beckwith

A pitch is not a strategy- Kathleen Schmidt

Three leaks that are costing you- Alexa Bigwarfe- Bookmark

10 tips for setting up Direct Sales- Indie Author Mag- Bookmark

Give readers a clear way into your writing- Dan Blank- Bookmark

 

To Finish,

The shortlist for the New Zealand Book Awards for Children’s and Young Adults is out. I’ve judged these awards and it’s always a thrill to see what my peers have been up to and how creative our industry is. I’m especially noting how many great books are in the Te Reo section. Ka pai. It’s going to be another tough call picking the winners!

 

I’ve been thinking about the many hats that Writers wear. We can be cheerleaders for others, marketing apprentices with our own products, researchers of obscure things, and the biggest imposter syndrome badge holders. And we write as if we are separate from all those other identities. Recently I read Mark Leslie Lefebvres essay on trying to reconnect the different sides of his author life at Stoker Con. He writes so well about our dual lives and how sometimes one life takes over and crushes the other life. Food for thought. 

May you crush all your writing demons this week!

 

Maureen

@craicer

 

It’s nearly time for my monthly newsletter. If you want the best of my bookmarked links and other tidbits, you can subscribe here to join our happy band.

 

If you want the weekly blog in your inbox, subscribe to the free Substack version.

 

If you like the blog and want to buy me a coffee, I appreciate the virtual coffee love. Thanks.

 

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It’s All In The Algorithm

 

In Publishing News this week,

 

Over the years when Summer hits the Northern Hemisphere and the publishing world goes on holiday, I have noticed that’s when publishing companies start buying each other. First up this month, Wiley have bought UK based Emerald Publishing group. Ho Hum you might say but close reading of the Publishing Perspectives article points out why they did this deal. Content, and Archive. What would need access to trusted scholarly information across the world?

 

Dan Holloway reports on the recent post from Writer Beware about Indie authors being cut out of AI copyright class actions. The new META case specifically excludes ASIN’s. It’s worth reading the full post from Writer Beware as well as Dan’s commentary.

 

After recently celebrating a win for the US Institute of Museum and Library Services, the beleaguered Institute responsible for funding libraries and museums across the nation is still battling to stay alive. Publisher’s Weekly reports on the ongoing saga to keep information services free.

 

Staying with libraries, Publishers Weekly reports on five public library organisations who are pleading with the big five publishers and digital publishing platforms to overhaul their library prices for books. Publishers have long charged an exorbitant price for a book to be in a library, and they continue that practice with eBooks. The costs have ramped up so much that libraries can’t afford the licensing fees.

 

Publishing Perspectives recently interviewed the editor of Clark’s Publishing Agreements about their latest edition. This is the bible of publisher’s legal departments, as it contains publishing contracts and legal advice as well as information on international agreements. This edition includes AI information for contracts for the first time. An edition comes out every 5 years. With the speed of change at the moment. they may want to speed up their editions.

 

I have heard of duo’s writing books, but when six young adult authors get together to collectively write a book that’s news. Publishers Weekly interviewed one of the authors to find out why and how they did it. 

 

App Sumo has its Deposit Photo deal on at the moment. This does not happen very often so if you need photos for any marketing or book covers etc, jump on this. It’s a lifetime deal for very cheap!

 

Dale Roberts pointed me in the direction of this interesting company. Spoken have just released a turnkey model to do full cast audio recordings. If you are thinking about audio books, check out their press release and pricing. They pay their voice actors and charge by project, so you don’t have to have a subscription. $20 per 5000 finished words is amazing!

 

James Blatch has an in depth essay on metadata and how this is becoming the most important way you can get your book noticed. This is an essay every author should read. Metadata doesn’t have to be put in the too hard basket. Understanding how to use it with the new search algorithms can give every author an advantage.

 

Many moons ago I had fun writing a serial novel with a group of writer friends. They pushed me to write well and ever since I’ve thought about serial novels as a fun flashback to the good old days. However, serial novels are very much alive on various sites. Matty Dalrymple has written a great essay on why she’s about to dip a toe into serial publishing. She also has great tips on how to go about it.

 

Do you remember what it was like to write your first story? How in touch are you with the writer you were then? Mark Leslie Lefebvre has a great essay on The Slow Pilgrimage To Author Success. Don’t forget why you started to write in the first place. 

 

Donald Mass has a great essay on Writer Unboxed about what makes human written fiction human?  In the age of the machines “being able to write” how do you cut across the noise and show human qualities in your fiction? He has a series of qualities to look for with prompts to help you explore your own writing.

 

In The Craft Section,

Sex scenes and curse words- James Scott Bell -Bookmark

Omniscient POV- Anne R Allen

How to write Mythic fiction – KM Weiland- Bookmark

Dealing with backstory- Janice Hardy

How to generate better story Ideas- Lisa Poisso- Bookmark

 

In The Marketing Section,

Facebook ads- Ines Johnson-Bookmark- (Great series on this subject)

29 whimsical Book promo ideas for July- Sandra Beckwith

Publishing online- Gale Leach- Bookmark 

The tiny detail that ruins a book- Nuria Corbi-(Important info)

Marketing, algorithms, and tropes- Terry Odell- Bookmark

 

To Finish,

There are some meaty topics in this week’s roundup. As I came to summing up the weeks theme, the word algorithm, defined as “a finite sequence of step-by-step instructions or rules designed to perform a specific task, solve a problem, or complete a computation,” got the blog title prize.

Writers need readers. Finding those readers, nurturing them, and hopefully inspiring them to become true fans of your work is the bedrock of your writing career. You can write for one person- yourself, and it’s a bonus if others follow along.  Search is changing, AI has seen to that. Understanding algorithms is now important for writers. How will your readers find you? What do you want from a Book Launch by Alexa Bigwharfe is a great reminder of when to think about your launch plan. Written Word Media’s essay on Building Local Buzz is a timely reminder that you can control the algorithm in your favour.

 

Maureen

@craicer

 

It’s nearly time for my monthly newsletter. Ifyou want the best of my bookmarked links and other tidbits you can subscribe here to join our happy band.

 

If you want the weekly blog in your inbox, subscribe to the free Substack version.

 

If you like the blog and want to buy me a coffee, I appreciate the virtual coffee love. Thanks.

 

Photo by Florian Olivo on Unsplash

Choosing Your Own Path

 In Publishing News This week,

 

James Daunt, CEO of the biggest Bookstore chains in the UK and USA ruffled everyone’s feathers when he stated that Barnes and Noble would sell AI generated books. Then he quickly walked that back. “What he meant to say was much more nuanced”- Publishers Weekly interviewed him to find out how nuanced.

 

Remember Fan Fiction on Amazon? The fan writers got to play in the author worlds and Amazon paid the original author a cut. It got dropped because the trade publishers wouldn’t join in. Music publishers have just done this deal with Spotify. Does it open the way to a whole new world in copyright? Mark Williams examines how it could work for authors.

 

The numbers are out and audiobooks are hot. Spotify are rubbing their hands as revenue is soaring. Publishers Weekly interviewed Spotify to find out all the new goodies that are coming to ears near you. Translation, narration, and curated playlists are in the mix for authors.

 

Eleven labs are introducing seamless audiobook creation inside their Spotify partnership reports Dan Holloway of The Alliance of Independent Authors. Meanwhile, the voice actors have launched a court case over scraped voice prints. If you are thinking about narration, consider cloning your own voice to avoid this problem.

 

Accessibility issues were the topic this week on Joanna Penns’s podcast.  She chatted with Jeff Adams on how AI tools are helping authors with disability issues.

 

Mark Lefebvre wrote an interesting essay on choosing the harder path this week that got me thinking. How often do we just pick the first idea that comes off the rank? Sure, it’s a shiny new idea, but have we looked deeper? Are we really stretching our writing chops?  This year’s Pulitzer Prize fiction winner is Danial Kraus for Angel Down written in one sentence. Mark’s essay is a timely reminder to push further, reach deeper. It’s a great read!

 

Rachel Thompson continues her series on Author Visibility. This week she talks about creating trust for your readers before they buy. Have you put yourself in your readers shoes? This is another great essay from Rachel. Check out the whole essay series.

 

Nuria Corbi has a great little article on the ten things that she wished someone had told her when she started self-publishing. One of the important lessons is Don’t Rush. Take your time. Do it right. After 18 years watching this business, I can agree. If you rush you burn out. 

 

In The Craft Section,

Why research is important for fiction- Ellen Buikema

Hone your focus sentence- Joshua Dolezal- Bookmark

8 ways to show fear- Amgela Ackerman- Bookmark

How to create stronger scenes- Gabriela Pereira- Bookmark

When revisions feel flat- Lisa Hall Wilson- Bookmark

 

In The Marketing Section,

Your audience might not be who you think- Ines Johnson -Bookmark

Typesetting rules every author needs to know- Alliance of independent authors- Bookmark

When to think about publicity-Cassie Manners Murray- Bookmark

Being a cheerleader for others- Sandra Beckwith- Bookmark

Author Bios when you can’t write about yourself- Rebecca Forster

 

To Finish

This is a skinny blog because I’m traveling again, literally, as I type this. 

Back to normal next week. 

In the meantime, there are some juicy articles to contemplate, especially the trade off on disability help and AI and Mark Lefebvre's article on choosing the harder writing path. It's nearly time for the monthly newsletter so if you want to get a roundup of the best bookmarked articles from the last month you are welcome to subscribe here.

Maureen

@craicer

 

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

If you want the weekly blog in your inbox subscribe to the free Substack version.

If you like the blog and want to buy me a coffee, I appreciate all virtual coffee love. Thanks.

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Knocking Over Those Productive Writing Goals

In Publishing News This Week

 

The Commonwealth short story prize was awarded last week and already the knives are out as people study the story and conclude that AI must have been seriously used to write it. The author isn’t commenting but The Guardian has plenty to say after prestigious magazine Granta published the winning story.

 

James Pattison rides to the rescue of children’s literature with a new institute dedicated to early adolescent reading skills, reports Publishers Weekly. James has pledged $10 million dollars to the cause. He has a philanthropy history of growing readers through programs targeting reading, libraries, and bookshops. All power to him! 

 

Once upon a time, when a printer had made a serious snafu on a print book, the copies would be pulled and the print run replaced. Not so at Minotaur. They recently had a special print run for independent bookshops of the hotly anticipated thriller The Last Mandarin. Then something went wrong. Publishers Weekly reports that the bookshops have been told that 6 pages are missing and to direct customers to a QR code to read the missing pages. You can imagine the reaction.

 

Publishing Perspectives reports that the Anthropic settlement has gone through its final fairness hearing. At the hearing, objectors were allowed 2 whole minutes to explain why they objected to the settlement and the objectors have good points. It is US centric, it leaves out other countries, and there is no compensation for authors whose publishers never filed copyright. How is that fair? In my recent article on Literary Estates I commented on the amount of money that publishers have missed out on by not filing copyright.

 

After a period of consolidation, Storytel are back out acquiring audio book sites. Publishing Perspectives reports on their latest acquisition, the Dutch publishing company Overamstel. And they are paying cash…so they have some serious money to spend in Europe.

 

Are you looking for royalty software? Publishing Perspectives reports on a new venture that will do everything for the publisher regarding rights, royalties, workflows and liaising with authors. Crealo is a one stop shop. They aren’t saying it’s AI but….

 

Mark Williams likes to point out where AI might be of benefit to the publishing community. He reports on the new  president of the Korean Publishing Association and their conceptual shift of seeing AI as a reader. It’s an interesting article which examines how we might go forward in licensing content.

 

Tanya Anne Crosby, the CEO of Oliver Heber Books, recently wrote an article on what she is seeing with the changes over at Amazon. She writes about being hopeful that the changes are going to benefit the reader. She has great advice for how you can jazz up your marketing on Amazon and get those eyeballs.

 

If you are writing romance and need some high-level workshop learning check out the Writing Romance Mastery Summit says Alexa Bigwharfe. She breaks down what is on offer, 25 sessions over 5 days. It’s free but only if you show up. So those outside the US set your alarms. 

 

For some reason Anne R Allens inbox is the place to be for a scamming email. Anne has seen it all, often every day. her article Writers- Don’t Let Yourself be Groomed By Book Publicity Scammers is a must read for what to look out for.

 

Katie Weiland has a thoughtful post on How The Marketplace Is Shaping The Stories We Tell. She examines the role of the storyteller and offers some great advice for balancing the commercial with the creative.

 

Jenn Windrow has written a fantastic article on voice. Your Voice Is The Point – Stop Toning It Down. Writers often second guess themselves and edit out the very thing that makes their writing unique. Embrace your authenticity.

 

In The Craft Section,

Showing or telling- Tiffany Yates Martin-Bookmark

A great weird editing habit to get into-Alison Hammer-Bookmark

Round vs flat characters-Rapid Reads Press

The art of withholding information-Michelle Barker - Bookmark

Defeating the next book willies- James Scott Bell

 

In The Marketing Section

Mating signals on your bookshelf- Mark Lefebvre

Trade Book Reviews- Sandra Beckwith

Author Case Study – Kindlepreneur- Bookmark

How to turn your readers into your marketers- Penny Sansevieri- Bookmark

What happens after your KDP account gets terminated- Useful information!

 

To Finish.

 

Don’t look now but it’s nearly the middle of the year. Aaargh. If you have been thinking you have plenty of time left, you may need to revisit your publishing calendar, reprioritize your goals, or have an existential crisis. Dan Blank has a great essay on mid-year creative goals using clarity cards. He has a made the clarity card visual process available as a free PDF to help you. 

Liz Talley also looks at the mid-year blues. She shows how you can use business goals to help you get organized for the next half of the year.

 

Go forth with renewed purpose and crush those productive blocks!

 

Maureen

@craicer

 

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

If you want the weekly blog in your inbox subscribe to the free Substack version.

If you like the blog and want to buy me a coffee, I appreciate the virtual coffee love. Thanks.

 

Photo by Michelle McEwen on Unsplash