When you’re setting out to launch your book into the world, you will be faced with a lot of competition. There are millions of book titles available today, which means that book categories are jam packed. Before you begin to formulate your marketing plan, you should first define who it is you want to reach. […]
This week we asked our community on Facebook to answer this question: For authors who’ve already been published, what would you do differently next time? Here’s what they had to say: David Evans: When I published my first books, I didn’t really have a clear, single message. Also I didn’t have a good venue to […]
Lady Luck smiles on writers who play their cards right. These five hearts guarantee you a winning hand: YOU ARE THE ACE: Heartwork: Make reading, writing, and communicating a labor of love. Headwork: Learn about books, writing, publishing, technology, and your field. Goals: Have literary and publishing goals and a plan to achieve them. CONTENT […]
One of the most common questions I hear from self-published authors is whether or not it makes sense to pursue brick and mortar bookstore placement for books. In most cases, it’s rarely worthwhile, but it’s important to understand how the process works. When self-published, in order to get major bookstore placement, you have to sign […]
This past November, I was among the many indie authors disrupted by the news that Pronoun was shutting down. If you aren’t familiar with it, Pronoun was an ebook distributor run by Macmillan Publishing. I was using it to distribute the ebook versions of my three nonfiction books on non-Amazon retailers. I set off to […]
Writing * Now is the best time to be a writer, but you have to know more and do more than ever. * Books are usually either prose-driven or promotion-driven, story-driven or idea-driven. Because the fate of story-driven books depends on whether readers tell other readers to read them, content is king for prose-driven books. […]
Lack of Editing – Hands down, one of the biggest mistakes self-published authors make is cutting corners on editing. Unfortunately, just because your cousin is a high school English teacher, it doesn’t mean she’s qualified to edit your manuscript. Professional editing is essential to the success of your book. Not only can editors make your […]
Have you ever dreamed of a writing career? The dreaming will never be enough to reach your goal. If you want to write nonfiction professionally, you need to start working on your writing skills now. Of course, you will never learn how to write until you start to practice your skill. So if you want […]
1. Test-market your idea: Try it out on trustworthy writers, authors in your field, booksellers, and book buyers to gauge its potential against past and future competition. 2. Test-market your book title, chapter titles, and content: a blog, a website, articles, talks, videos, podcasts, and social media will provide feedback and help build a community […]
Visibility is Salability: Making the World Ready for Your Book * Register your name as your website asap. If your name is taken, tweak it by, for example, adding your middle initial. * Use your name for your email address: [your first name]@[your first name followed by your last name].com. Keep your address clear, simple, […]
Member Book Announcement: To Cast A Reflection: The Henry Family In Their Own Words
Member Name: Laura Suchan Book Title: To Cast A Reflection: The Henry Family In Their Own Words Synopsis In the summer of 2013 a box stuffed with old papers was donated to the Oshawa Museum. The Thomas Henry Correspondence Collection, as it became known, contained 520 individual documents including personal letters, receipts and business correspondence of […]
Some Favorite Books for Writers
We asked other nonfiction authors what some of their favorite books for writers are. Here are their responses: Sanjida Kay I’d recommend The Story Grid by Shawn Coyne, an editor who describes how to develop one’s craft as a writer. There’s an accompanying podcast, Story Grid Podcast with Shawn Coyne and aspiring novelist, Tim Grahl. […]
Giving Back to Your Writing Career by Carolyn Howard-Johnson
Consider Writing Professional Reviews as Part of Your Marketing Plan Excerpted and expanded from the recently released 415-page book in Carolyn Howard-Johnson’s multi award-winning How To Do It Frugally Series of books, How to Get Great Book Reviews Frugally and Ethically Because you are a writer, you’ve always known that a review is the best kind […]
Before you begin to write your book, it is important to know WHO you’re writing for. Identifying your audience will help you not only develop your manuscript, but you will be better able to choose marketing methods for your book. Are you writing a book for: Single moms with young kids? Single moms […]
Some Favorite Books for Writers
We asked other nonfiction authors what some of their favorite books for writers are. Here are their responses: Sanjida Kay I’d recommend The Story Grid by Shawn Coyne, an editor who describes how to develop one’s craft as a writer. There’s an accompanying podcast, Story Grid Podcast with Shawn Coyne and aspiring novelist, Tim Grahl. […]
Giving Back to Your Writing Career by Carolyn Howard-Johnson
Consider Writing Professional Reviews as Part of Your Marketing Plan Excerpted and expanded from the recently released 415-page book in Carolyn Howard-Johnson’s multi award-winning How To Do It Frugally Series of books, How to Get Great Book Reviews Frugally and Ethically Because you are a writer, you’ve always known that a review is the best kind […]
Before you begin to write your book, it is important to know WHO you’re writing for. Identifying your audience will help you not only develop your manuscript, but you will be better able to choose marketing methods for your book. Are you writing a book for: Single moms with young kids? Single moms […]
Authors! Embrace these Three Tips and Get Ready for Success!
To say our world is changing quickly is cliché. In fact, quick change is the new norm, so we must be willing to learn new things and change quickly, too. Never has this been more true when it comes to book publicity and visibility. If you have a book, before you reach out to a […]
Last week we asked our community on Facebook to answer this question: If you were beginning your author career today, what would you do differently? Here’s what they had to say: David Evans: When I first start writing, I had some good indications that writing was the thing I was good at, and should seriously […]
Better Writing: When to Use “Like” vs. “Such As” by Barbara McNichol
Have you ever wondered about the distinction between “like” or “such as” in your writing. Here are two phrases to consider: . . . the answers that so-called geniuses “like / such as” Newton seem to embody. . . . centuries of innovations “like / such as” the airplane and space shuttle have resulted. In […]
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