The Content Warehouse

In publishing news this week....

Google has often flirted with opening up the Google Play store to ebooks. It opens for a few months then closes then opens, getting everyone's hopes up again, then closes. Many authors go through a third party like Draft2Digital or PublishDrive trying to get their foot into the Google Books door. But in publishing news this week Google is kicking the aggregators to the curb, cutting out the middle man and going direct to authors and publishers. But with nothing special on offer Nate Hoffelder has to ask why?

Remember when Patreon decided to stop the small micropayments to creatives? When the bulk of your Patreon income comes from those $1 a month supporters the outcry across the creative sector was loud and strong. Pateron backtracked in 24 hours. Now they have been doing some thinking and consulting with creatives and they have a new tier structure. 

Reedsy has launched a new epub to mobi converter. This is a big deal if you struggle to get your mobi files small enough not to incur a transaction charge. If you are a children’s book author with internal illustrations this is a huge cost that cuts into your royalty. 

Storytel has been making waves again. This time Publishers Weekly has noticed them quietly offering Harry Potter in Arabic and beginning to make inroads into audio publishing. But they are not offering royalties by the listen, as other audiobook publishers do. They are offering royalties by the minute.

Many authors who use Mailchimp as their email provider were dismayed when Mailchimp changed the rules on them this week. David Gaughran, fearless knight defending the little author, asked them to explain. They did. David eviscerated them. This is a must read for any author with a mailing list.

Back Matter... I never thought about how varied it could be. Anybody used a colophon? This is an interesting post on how to use back matter properly. And how even the smallest things in the back matter can enhance or destroy your reputation. 

In the Craft Section,

Style that doesn’t go out of fashion- Anne R Allen

Showing scene through character senses- C S Lakin- Bookmark

500 writing prompts- Bookmark

Creating unforgettable settings- Becca Puglisi

What makes an epic story- Vaughn Roycroft

Avoiding the cliched emotional response- Becca Puglisi- Bookmark

In The Marketing Section,

How to set up your website foundation- Tyler Doornbos- Bookmark

The equation for marketing success- Ingram Spark Interesting!

Defining our brand- Jami Gold- Bookmark

10 book cover design trends in 2019

I’m boring- the author bio – Janet Reid- Bookmark

10 critical book marketing strategies- Penny Sansevieri

To Finish,

Inventory. Have you got one? Kris Rusch is preparing to go to a licensing fair with her husband Dean Wesley Smith. Between them, they have more than 1000 pieces of inventory that could be licensed. If you are wondering what this is, it’s Intellectual Property. Read Kris Rusch’s post on how they are selecting and preparing IP rights for sale. 

Maureen
@craicer

My monthly newsletter is due this weekend. I round up the best of the bookmarked craft and marketing links as well as some other bits and pieces. When you subscribe you will also get a nifty mini book crammed full with marketing notes. If you like the blog and want to shout me a coffee, hit the coffee button up top. I appreciate the virtual coffee love. Thanks.

Pic; AllAmericanContainers.net

For Sale; Creativity

With the screenwriters on strike from their agents, there has been a shuffle in Hollywood surrounding how projects get writers attached. Some interesting developments... Word of mouth, writers lifting up other writers, and some innovative websites that have sprung up have resulted in studios suddenly seeing more and varied kinds of projects. Will it last? Should the agencies be worried?

Ruth Harris writing on Anne R Allen’s blog recently had an interesting blog post on creativity. How do you go from a mediocre idea to a brilliant one? There is new research out that says all you need is a little frustration.

Many authors use Patreon to reward their fans. The idea is a good one... A monthly ongoing payment to support the writers' work. However, Kris Rusch looked at the small print and saw a rights grab in the first sentence. So... what do we do when we love the service but it has a fish hook? This is a great post on understanding copyright and what is your own bottom line.

I was interested to read that Findaway, the new kid on the Audio block disrupting Audible, is introducing hardware. They have developed the Wonderbook. A Playaway audio player designed for the school and library market. Back in my teaching days, we had Listening Post which the children loved. Earphones on, storybook in hand, and read along with the narrator. One of my plays was produced in this format. I was thrilled because I knew kids loved listening to stories. This old technology (cutting edge when I was a child) has largely disappeared but now every child seems to own headphones and we have a boom in audiobooks....

Yesterday I listened to a mammoth post by Joanna Penn on Exclusivity versus Wide- the conundrum that faces the Indie author. Joanna broke down the arguments for each side by format, Ebook, Print, and Audio. Joanna posts a transcript of her podcasts... if you want to quickly scan for the main points but if you have the time to listen, it's well worth it.
Staying with Joanna, She recently interviewed Ruth Ware on self-editing and contracts. This is also a must listen/read for a quick primer on best practice.

While you are contemplating selling your own books... spare a thought for your website. Career Author has an interesting article on viewing your author website as a hub and the spokes going out always bring your reader back...


One of the things that struck me recently is how many people seem to think it is OK to wander into a bookshop, look at a book and then search it up and buy the book online, sometimes while standing in the store. When you know how the margins are squeezed for bookshop owners, the showrooming model that Amazon has adopted for their brick and mortar stores is not a great customer model for the Indie bookstore owner. If you want to get your books into stores you also need to support them. A bunch of children’s bookstore owners hilariously turned this on its head this week to make a point.

How productive are you when it comes to writing? Could you do it better? All authors will be nodding because it’s always a guilt trip for us. Joanna Penn has an excerpt from her recent book on productivity which has some great tips.

In The Craft Section,

3 act arc for showing shame in fiction- Writers in the storm

What will you sacrifice to be better- Beth Cadman

The circle theory of story- Go Into The Story- Bookmark

Tricks and tips for catching errors Janice Hardy- Bookmark

Writing prompts- a waste of time? Savannah Cordova

How to end the story, questions- Writepractice- Bookmark

World building is for every story- Jami Gold

In The Marketing Section,

5 ways to stand out as an author on social media- Eevi Jones- Bookmark

A tool to format book descriptions- Kindlepreneur- Bookmark

Twitter for authors – Bookbub

Author engagement-build brand and fans- Bookworks

Cheatsheet on how to write a logline- Bang2write- Bookmark

To Finish,

The act of writing is the act of creation. Sharing your creation is the tricky bit. If you are tempted to  Indie publish you need to understand how to be an Entrepreneur. Some might say that writing and entrepreneurship are opposites. But they both need a passion for the project. Jami Gold has an excellent post on looking at entrepreneurship from a writers point of view.

I have some Advance Reader Copies of my middle-grade novel, How To Lose A Rockstar to give away on my Facebook page. Drop in and take a look.


Maureen
@craicer

In 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 will also get a nifty mini book crammed full with marketing notes. If you like the blog and want to shout me a coffee, hit the coffee button up top. I appreciate the virtual coffee love. Thanks.

Pic; Flickr Creative Commons – Studio Sarah Lou

The All You Can Eat Buffet

In the publishing blogosphere this week...

Mark Coker had an interesting article in Publishers Weekly about the commodification of books and how publishers must fight the dragging down of book prices.

Patreon has changed the way artists get paid. It is crowdsourcing funding directly to the artist, like the art patrons of old. Patreon has increased its fees but not by much. They have some other irons in the fire that will be interesting for artists.

The EU has passed new copyright rules. Essentially you now have to vouch for all the content on your website. Academics have not been happy with the proposed law with many signing open letters of complaint that it will hurt authors.

Apple is getting into subscription-based content starting with the news. They had their big announcement this week. The question is are they going to take on the Zon subscription service and extend it to books...

Writers can suffer from extreme loneliness. Stuck in a room all day crouched over a computer never seeing the sun... The Guardian recently had an article looking at the home office work lifestyle and made some practical suggestions for a healthy balance.

Jane Friedman recently had a guest post with four Kidslit authors who related their experiences of straddling a trad published and indie published life. Go in with your eyes open.

Staying with Kidlit. Mary Kole has an interesting article on how to get literary themes into your writing for children.

Kris Rusch has an excellent post on grammar. Kris explains how your use of punctuation directly feeds into your author voice. This is a fascinating deep dive into just what constitutes author voice.

Middle Grade Ninja has a great post on how to write fantasy quickly and Anne R Allen has a fabulous post on using Mary Sue’s or Gary Stu’s. If you don’t know what either of these terms mean you MUST read the post. Your readers will thank you.

In The Craft Section,
4 pacing tricks- K M Weiland- Bookmark

6 mistakes that can kill a great plot- Mythcreants- Bookmark

British vs American English- dictionary- Bookmark

When should I enter or exit a scene- Seth Myers- 

Creating Compelling Cadence- Writersinthestorm- Bookmark


In The Marketing Section,
Using video marketing- Frances Caballo

Using exclusive content to market- Bookfunnel- Bookmark

Using map artists- Alli blog

13 copywriting tips to help write a better novel- Writers Digest

Self Publishing Formula podcast- The necessity of mailing lists- Excellent show!

To Finish,
Janice Hardy has rounded up all the story archetypes in one big master plot article. This is where you decide if you are writing a quest plot with a revenge motif using a golden fleece style adventure. If you have been wondering about where your story fits read this. 

Maureen 
@craicer

Yes, I’m really late with 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 will also get a nifty book crammed full with marketing notes. I promise I will get it done soon because I want to share some interesting projects with you. If you want to shout me a coffee hit the button up top. Thanks 

Pic: Flickr Creative Commons - A canvas of Light

Present and Future Plans

We are rapidly coming to the end of the year. Thoughts turn to finishing up projects before Christmas, the ideal Christmas presents and what projects to start 2018 with.

In the publishing blogosphere Patreon decided this week that increasing charges to people who were only paying a small sum to artists was the way to position themselves for the coming year. They could not have got it more wrong. Artists value their Patrons. Most creative’s have a lot of small donor patrons. These people often support many artists by sharing a couple of dollars a month around a lot of people. It all adds up. The backlash was swift. Patreon realised its blunder today. However the whole experience has left a sour taste in many peoples mouths.

Mark Coker of Smashwords has begun a podcast. He has launched with a few episodes that everyone is talking favorably about. If you listen to podcasts about the writing business you should check it out.

Rachel Thompson has a post about the end of year clean up of your Social Media. Just what does this kind of clean up entail? Rachel lists all the things you should be thinking about with the different social media accounts.

Publishers Weekly reported on the Global Kids Connect panelheld in New York last week. What is selling globally at the moment? Trends were discussed and predictions made...

Orna Ross examines the role of the entrepreneur and discovers that being an author ticks all the boxes. However there are some mindset adjustments for authors. Do you believe in yourself?

Kris Rusch has a great blog post on Sustainability. Are you prepared for it? Do you know what it looks like to sustain a career over the long haul? This is a must read post.

Joanna Penn has a great interview with Andy Bromley on selling print books through Ingram and why what they do is so interesting. (P.S. You can always find a discount code to use so it won’t cost you anything.)

The wonderful Tara Sparling has a great post on the 12 days of Christmas for writers except that hers deals with the 12 writing cliches. This is a read and must share with your writing buddies.

Christmas presents for authors... I go into my local stationery shop and spend ages in the journal and pens section... filing boxes are so pretty... Can I justify a new desk... Dream about an office... Build Book Buzz has a list of gifts for readers and writers... and check out thisgift guide from the Millions website... of course you need book wallpaper.

Some bright spark has compiled all of J K Rowling’s writing advice. It's good advice too

In The Craft Section,

Story Immersion – Improve your reader’s experience- Jefferson Smith- Bookmark

Q & A on Coming of Age stories- Michael Hauge- Bookmark

Mastering Showing vs Telling- Meg Latorre Snyder Bookmark

The power of writing groups- Writer Unboxed- Bookmark

Piller 2 for the writer – Mentoring- Art Holcomb- Bookmark

Adapting a novel into a screenplay- Alex Bloom- Bookmark

Digging Into Deep Revision- Beth Camp- Bookmark

In The Marketing Section,

640 killer Book Marketing ideas... Bookmark

How to find your ideal audience- Kimberley Grabas

Creative ways to boost reader engagement- Bookbub- Bookmark

How to sell more paperbacks in December- Selfpublishing Advice blog

36 best blogs on the business of writing- The Digital Reader

eBook distribution- Reedsy

10 major areas Authors must focus on- BookMarketing Buzz- Bookmark

To Finish,

Book Covers... They make or break your book. I always try to drop into Joel Friedlander’s Book Cover Monthly Design Awards

Lindsey Vontz from 99 designs has a look at the Top trends in Book Covers for 2018. Typography is the in thing... Lets go crazy with font...

And while we are playing with letters... Take a look at this Fantasy Pseudonym Name Generator...

You could plan a whole writing career for a pseudonym over the Christmas break....

Maureen

@craicer

I round up the best of the bookmarked craft and marketing links as well as some other bits and pieces every month. When you subscribe you will also get a nifty book crammed full with marketing notes. My last newsletter for the year is coming soon. It’s Christmas lucky dip time!

Pic: Flickr Creative Commons Just Album

https://www.flickr.com/photos/justdigital/13984474798/in/photolist-niL69s-7MG5UL-

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 

Content Collaboration

I’ve been thinking about content lately. 

Content is the new word for story. Container is the new word for form that the story comes in. It could be digital or print or images or audio or interactive game… 

A creative project I’m involved in is creating a found artifact which takes the form of a journal. This is to be part of a larger art project looking at different ways artists and writers collaborate together. I seem to be coming across content collaboration everywhere.

Porter Anderson reports on an opening keynote speaker at the recent Publishers Forum held in Berlin. Author Kathrin Passig gently told the publishers that they were using outmoded technology when they worked with authors. Had they ever heard of collaboration?

Joe Wikert has been thinking about content too. Specifically how he thinks publishers could improve the e-book sample and be better at converting samplers into buyers by working with authors.

Joanna Campbell Slan talks about serialising a novel on her website and what she has learned. Is this controlling your content or letting it go? I know of other authors who do this in other canny ways.  (If you can’t wait for the next installment you can go buy the whole book...)

The latest Author Earnings snapshot is out. You may have heard that e-book sales are declining. Author Earnings gurus Hugh and Data Guy have discovered that this is happening only to Trad publishers who raised their prices after negotiating new deals with Amazon. Check out the Author Earnings website for other interesting news from the 6th snapshot.

Joel Friedlander has an interesting guest post up. Short is the new black- your shrinking reader attention span. This is spinning your content in another way.

Mandy Hager recently had to give a lecture on Dystopian Fiction so she posted it on her blog. What does an author have to think about when constructing a dystopian world.

With the suspension of NZ Book Month... A group of writers have taken to Twitter to promote NZ Books. #NZBookMonthMay A lot of us are posting a NZ book a day so check in for your next great read.

Tinderbox 2015 has a website. We are getting ready to post delicious tidbits about the conference.

In the Craft Section,

Is your prologue destroying your subtext? K M Weiland

7 secrets of highly persistent writers

2 great posts from the Emotion Thesaurus team. Moving Beyond 

the Face to Show Emotion and Key elements to help you evolve as 

a writer.

Screenwriting tricks has a story elements checklist.

Tips for novelising true events.

Why you should put your book on Wattpad (this is a quick intro to Wattpad.)

In the Marketing Section,

Making a living from your writing – Joanna Penn (Bookmark)

7 email marketing secrets for Fiction Authors

Spine out - Design tips for your Book Spine.

Good Font choices for books (Bookmark)

Preparing your Author Business for Failure.

Kameron Hurley (popular sci fi author) has posted an in depth article on why Patreon is better than Kickstarter for writers. If you are interested in crowd funding this is a must read!

Helen Sedwick has crunched the numbers on the cost of Author copies 

Website of the Week

Last week I linked to Dave Gaughran talking about Author Solutions. Indie Publishing Magazine has a link to the class action depositions (testimony from the other side) and what I read had my eyebrows achieving liftoff. I am honestly amazed that Random Penguin would be associated with this outfit.

SFWA, who sponsor Author Beware, have a link to the list of DISREPUTABLE publishers out there.

To Finish,

Brian Pickings always has interesting long form articles. This week they look at Delacroix’s journal notes about the need for writing in solitude. If you had to go away to collaborate on content, how about going to a castle which is a dedicated library and hotel...

maureen

Pic from Flickr/ Creative Commons- Butch Delisay