In Publishing News This Week,
In a surprise move this week Small Press Distribution closed its doors. This came as a shock to all its clients who just 24 hours earlier were being told of their great new partnership with Ingram. Publisher’s Weekly reports on the news and what clients can do now to save their books.
Also making surprise moves is the Indigo Books and Music chain in Canada. They have sold the publicly listed company back in house and are taking it off the stock exchange. Indigo has been losing money and got hit with a cyber-attack that crippled them for months. Publisher’s Weekly reports that they are going back to the basics of bookselling which means selling books, not merchandise.
Spotify is continuing to roll out its premium audiobook service to customers. This week Canada, Ireland, and New Zealand are being wooed to sign up.
Publishing Perspectives reports that China’s publishing industry looks in good shape with kids’ books leading the way. Also, they have been experimenting with short form video to drive sales. I wonder where they learned that trick….
Italy has had a great culture card that they gifted to their 18 year olds to spend on books and theater experiences for a year. This propped up their publishing industry through Covid. Now Italy is tweaking the eligibility criteria and publishers are nervous.
Fast Company magazine examines how Harper Collins has become more sustainable by tweaking their font and saving paper.
Joanna Penn has been updating her Book Launch Blueprint and she shares the chapter on Book Marketing. Meanwhile, Penny Sansevieri has some interesting thoughts on how to navigate book marketing when there is a tsunami of books being published.
Ruth Harris has a great post on listening to your subconscious. The muse has a thousand faces. But sometimes you have to get out of your own way to tap into that story telling gold.
Angela Ackerman is talking psychology this week. We are all hardwired for stories. Angela explains that writers need to tap into reader psychology and cognitive dissonance to write an unforgettable story.
Kristen Hacken South writes an interesting article on Writer Unboxed about emotional resonance. How much emotion is too much. How do you find the balance between flatline and melodrama. A great article.
In The Craft Section,
How to write a gripping inciting incident- Angie Andriot- Bookmark
Vonnegut’s rules for writers explained- James Scott Bell - Bookmark
How to choose story settings- K M Weiland - Bookmark
What are pinch points and where do they go- Sue Coletta- Bookmark
Set your intention first.- Sarah Hamer
In The Marketing Section,
Booktips to save money- Penny Sansevieri
Connection over promotion- Katie Sadler- Bookmark
Pros and cons of book giveaways- AJ Yee- Bookmark
Lead generation landing pages- Convertkit- Bookmark
How effective is social media?- Rachel Thompson
Easiest way to get Book Reviews- Bookmark
To Finish,
A couple of times a year Kris Rusch curates a writing craft book collection on Storybundle. You pay what you like to get access to some great ebooks. If you pay over a particular threshold you get the whole bundle with exclusives, extras, and support a worthwhile charity. The money goes directly to the authors, so this is a win/win/win. It is a limited time offer so check it out and score some bargains. I have filled up my Kindle with great craft books from these bundles over the years. Don’t forget, you can claim writing craft books on your tax.
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 Substack version.
If you like the blog and want to buy me a coffee, I appreciate the virtual coffee love. Thanks.
Pic: Photo by Eduardo Soares on Unsplash
