Looking for Rainbows!

 

In Publishing News this week,

Microsoft launched a non-fiction publishing arm publishing original research, ideas and insights from the intersection of science, technology, and business. Publisher’s Weekly reports on this venture that looks like a mashup of a research journal and a vanity imprint.

 

Sharjah International Book Fair clocks up nearly 2 million visitors. Publishing Perspectives looks at the huge impact of the fair.

Bologna is starting to ramp up its planning and guests five months out from the big children’s book fair scheduled for the end of March. With the roaring success of the Chinese Children’s Book Fair will they be implementing any new ideas?

 

There is a lot of comment around the news of the HarperCollins AI deal that has publishers and writers talking. Publishers Weekly looks in depth at the implications for agents and writers. Under the terms HC want to split 50/50 the pot of cash for allowing AI to scrape the book. Everybody has an opinion. Authors Guild has come out with their recommendation. Don’t take the money. Publishers have a different view, it looks so sweet and backlists are just sitting there.

 

Joanna Penn commented on her podcast that in the space of a year the mood of authors has changed around using AI tools. She is just back from Author Nation – the rebranded 20books Vegas conference (also known as the biggest writers conference in the world.) AI can offer shortcuts and great tools to help with mundane tasks but it shouldn’t be used to create the content. 

Josh Bernoff writes about how his developmental editing business is being impacted by AI writing. It’s harder to edit AI generated content because it is inconsistent, repetitive, and a grammar mess. AI shouldn’t replace your own writing voice.

 

Meanwhile, after the election, the publishing industry is trying to make plans or sense of what might be coming down the track in the brave new world after January. Mark Williams of The New Publishing Standard details the lawsuits that face publishing from the president elect already and how this might be a sign of things to come. It looks like a lucrative time to be a lawyer.

Kathleen Schmidt from Publishing Confidential points out where publishing can learn from the election.

 

Jennie Liu writes about the authors note… that’s the page in your novel where you write about your influences. Readers love them… authors struggle.

 

Michelle Baker has a post on the five fears of writers and how to defeat them. (Don’t reach for the alcohol just yet.)

James Scott Bell reassures a young writer that writing can be good again in his excellent piece on writing past discouragement. 

Ellen Buikema has a great post on Writers In The Storm about Writing Anxiety and how to overcome it. 

Look after your mental health- give yourself healthy writing challenges, check in with your writing friends. Remember, you write so your readers can escape from stressful lives. You are vital to each other and the general population. Be the rainbow after the storm!

 

In The Craft Section,

How to trust yourself as a writer- K M Weiland- Bookmark

What are the stakes- how to find out- Becca Puglisi- Bookmark

Nailing teen dialogue in YA Fiction- Kris Maze

Humorous scenes  – Dale Smith- Bookmark

Balancing showing with telling- C S Lakin

 

In the Marketing Section,

18 book marketing tips from the trenches- Sandra Beckwith- Bookmark

Harnessing the power of AI for author branding- Kimberley Grabas- Bookmark

Identify your most successful marketing paths- Emily Enger- Bookmark

Colleen Story on Selling at Craft Fairs- YouTube video

The best concepts of Write to Market-Karen Whiting

 

To Finish

Look Rainbows!

 

It’s Black Friday sales time so here are some writer focused deals. Some of these are time sensitive so don’t wait around. 

 

The Dream Team – Angela And Becca have a roundup of some great writer deals for software and craft books.

 

Don’t forget Storybundle still has their collection of writing craft books up until the end of November if you are looking for good cheap craft books. 

 

Katie Weiland has 25% off all her courses and books. (I snapped up her new revised expanded edition on structure. I loved her first edition!)

 

David Gaughran has links to the EXCELLENT AppSumo deal from Deposit Photos. This is a total no brainer if you do your own book covers or ad images. $49 lifetime deal on 100 stock photos or videos- limited time! Dave also has a video showing how to use two stock images to generate a whole ad campaign. 

 

Amid the depressing news there are little gems to make you smile. And these deals might just help with that.

 

Maureen

@craicer

 

It’s nearly time for my monthly newsletter. If you want the best of my bookmarked links 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 Agustin Gunawan on Unsplash

Writing Resistance

 

In Publishing News this week,

 

AI is back in the news in publishing, specifically how big the international petition calling for a halt to unlicensed use of creative work for training AI is. Publishing Perspectives looks at the big players that have signed and how critical this is to put a stake in the ground for creative livelihood.

 

Frankfurt has wrapped up. One of the interesting sessions which reflects the uneasy feelings of global politics was the session on Storytelling as Resistance. This article has some great statements which could be important to reflect on in the coming months. This one caught my eye. “Storytelling is a tool for human rights…”

 

Publishers Weekly has an article on a new imprint from Penguin partnering with John Green- Crash Course. This builds on the popular Crash Course YouTube channel that he started with his brother Hank over a decade ago. These books are aimed at young adults/students non fiction. The first book on tuberculosis has a 500,000 print run ordered. Just contemplate that last sentence again. If you haven’t investigated Crash Course and you have a teen getting ready for exams point them in this direction. My PHD student child swears by the physics courses which helped her at Uni.

Rachel Thompson has an in depth article looking at the prevailing scams targeting authors at the moment. Facebook scammers are quite prevalent. Scammers are getting more sophisticated so check out this article. Rachel has quite a few tips to show you what to look for. 

 

Publishers Weekly also has an article on Lit RPG becoming a mainstream genre rather than an interesting niche genre for gaming aficionados. Lit RPG is Literature based on Role Playing Games. Ready Player One was the crossover hit. But it now includes anime and other big interests of today’s young adults.

 

Thomas Umstattd has a deep dive into the two act chiastic storytelling structure that is used in anime and manga. He looks at best sellers over the years that have used this eastern form of storytelling. Dracula fits this storytelling structure as does Goodnight Moon.

 

Kim Bullock shares her journey of Promoting Literacy with a side of Activism on Writer Unboxed. This is a subtle form of putting a stake in the literary ground without confronting or using a loud hailer to get your point across.

 

Stephen Pressfield, known for his popular books on creative resistance has been writing a really interesting series of posts on how to get to the 'I love you stage' in your writing. This is not just for romance writers. There is an I love you stage in all genres. Check out this post and then deep dive into the series.

 

Marissa Graff has an interesting article on when you start to lose your readers trust. 

 

In the Craft Section,

How to master story rhythm- Sue Coletta- Bookmark

2 elements you need to catch readers- C S Lakin

Types of POV head hopping- K M Weiland- Bookmark

5 plot hacks that can save your novel- Susan DeFreitas- Bookmark

9 ways to craft the perfect opening line- Ryan Lanz

 

In the Marketing Section,

7 ways to promote your book on Goodreads- Rob Bignall

Book marketing on a budget- Jenn DePaula- Bookmark

How to write a book press release- Fussy Librarian- Bookmark

Master consistency to promote an indie published book- Penny Sansevieri

The must have author success checklist- podcast from Penny Sansevieri- Bookmark

 

To Finish,

Joanna Penn has a great interview with Rachel McLean about scaling your author business. This interview had me thinking about all the possible ways to spin off stories, work with different tools and ways to work differently. If you are wondering how to scale the next mountain in your author journey this is a must listen or read. Absolutely fascinating.

 

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 all your kind virtual coffee love, 

Thanks.

 

Pic Photo by ALEXANDRE DINAUT on Unsplash

Reaching A Milestone

 

In Publishing News this week

 

It’s Frankfurt Bookfair time and publishers are showing off their booths on social media.

Publishers Weekly has a report on the first of the big stage moments – the CEO’s of 3 of the biggest publishing houses talking about aspects of modern publishing and the challenges to change the industry.

 

Publishing Perspectives has an in depth chat with Philippians publishers who are guests of honour at Frankfurt about their publishing business and the challenges of a western publishing model. 

 

Amazon has released a new Kindle according to GoodEreader. Spotify have expanded their audio book business into Belgium, France, Luxembourg, and The Netherlands. The numbers of books in these languages are growing all the time. 

 

Nielsen Book data have released their half yearly global report on which countries are reading and what they were buying. Fiction was more popular than non fiction. Many countries sales were staying the same or dipping slightly except for New Zealand which has had a nearly 10% decline in book buying. (Come On Kiwi’s- buy a book!)

 

The Guardian has an article on why bookshops are the new cool place to shop. It seems everyone is looking for the curated experiences and community that bookshops bring to the shopping experience.

 

While bookshops might be the place to hang out, this is not so true for the writers who provide the books. The income of writers has been steadily declining. In a recent article many writers who in the past would have been receiving a modest income are now struggling. ‘It’s a hobby not a profession anymore.’

 

Joanna Penn has been celebrating a milestone with her podcast. It has racked up over 10 million downloads. She examines the highs and learnings she has gained from having a popular podcast.

 

James Scott Bell has a great post on how writing can sometimes feel like trudging over the tar pits. It’s a wry look at the writer’s dilemma – when the book is not working where do you cut. 

 

Katie Weiland has made it to the end of her Structure series with a close look at resolution. This has been a super series and if you have been following along you should definitely check out her book on Structure. (It’s really good!)

 

In The Craft Section,

6 cheats to tell well- September Fawkes- Bookmark

Clues to a great story- The Pixar talk- Bookmark

Using Chekov’s gun strategically- Kevin Tumlinson

How to write a short story- ProWritingAid

Murky middles and how to strengthen them- Kristen Melville- Bookmark

 

In The Marketing Section,

Authors are assets not competition- Angela Ackerman- Bookmark

Finding Readers who write reviews- Sandra Beckwith- Bookmark

When you need an author website- Grace Bialeckie

How to make a book trailer- Reedsy 

We are all marketers- Ann Marie Nieves Bookmark

 

Finish

This is my 800^th blog post. I feel like I have been talking publishing and writing forever. 

The blog has given me into some interesting insights into the publishing world. I think we can say that the experiment of the Kindle as not killed publishing. It is continually evolving. It has been interesting to see the rise of audiobooks and the changes that Indie Publishers have forced the traditional publishing houses to take. 

Staying nimble in this business is the key to success. I hope that you have learned along with me and that I have not bored you. 

A huge thanks to those who have been with me from the beginning. I’m still interested in this world, so I’ll keep going for a little while longer.

All celebrations should have cake… I’m off to find one.

 

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, or celebratory cake, I appreciate all your kind virtual coffee love, 

Thanks.

 

 

Accessing your Fearless Superpower

 

 

This week in Publishing News

Coming soon are the new European Union laws on accessibility. This matters as digital books, if they are being sold in Europe, will need to comply with the accessibility guidelines. Publishing Perspectives reports that publishers are already asking for more clarification. Meanwhile Dan Holloway of The Alliance of Independent Authors has written a quick breakdown of what you need to do. First, use the Epub format.

 

Frankfurt Bookfair is ready to start, and Porter Anderson interviewed the fellows in the Special Program. They are all publishers who are near or in war zones. This is an interesting article that shines a light of the problems of publishing in a war zone.

 

Mark Williams looks at how Korea is managing to be nimble as they stay ahead of trends. This is interesting as smaller publishers can quickly pivot into new genre trends. It’s all about Horror right now but Happiness is around the corner.

 

Written Word Media has a comprehensive guide to Tax Deductions for authors. Even though the article is skewed towards the American tax system there are still items that go across all taxed nations. Take a look you might be able to claim back some tax.

 

Kevin Anderson has curated another StoryBundle of Writing Craft books. StoryBundle is a great way to get books – You pay what you think they are worth- The Author gets the money- A charity gets a slice, and everybody is happy. Don’t forget that reference books can be claimed on Tax as professional development.

 

Joanna Penn interviewed Ariel Curry on non fiction writing and marketing recently. If you have some non fiction projects that you want to dig your teeth into, check out the podcast transcript.

 

The Alliance of Independent Authors has a comprehensive guide on the Ethical and Practical use of AI for authors. This is a very useful article to help you understand how to use AI tools. Publishers are already getting on the AI train. You don’t need to use it for creativity but it could speed up those mundane challenging jobs that are part and parcel of the authors world.

 

Colleen Story has a great post on How to identify your writing business relationship type. She uses 5 well known stories to help you pinpoint where your writer business is and how you could help it get better.

 

The dream team of Angela Ackerman and Becca Puglisi have ticked over nine years with their great website One Stop For Writers. Take a look at all their resources and take advantage of the birthday discount. 

 

Greer McAlister has an interesting post in Writer Unboxed about ideas and how you can have many of them but they aren’t necessarily book ideas. Figuring out which ones are book ideas is the hard part.

 

Katie Weiland is up to the climax in her story structure series of posts. This is where the story lives or dies.

In The Craft Section,

All the different words for hard- Kathy Steinemann

Vulnerability in fiction- Angela Ackerman

The book in your head vs the book you write- Kathleen McCleary - Bookmark

Beta reader options- Lisa Poisso- Bookmark

7 tips for perfect character names- Becca Puglisi- Bookmark

 

In The Marketing Section,

Writing good bio’s- Bang 2 Write- Bookmark

How to be a great guest blogger- Sandra Beckwith

Lessons in Business Cards and Bookmarks- Debbie Burke- Bookmark

How Substack is revolutionizing writer careers- Jaime Buckley

How to get your book into libraries- Penny Sansevieri- Bookmark

 

To Finish

Sometimes the last thing you want to do is admit that you are an author. Aside from the inane comments like – have I read anything that you have written, or I’ve got an idea for a book, you write it and we’ll split the money, writers can feel shame that they have written something that didn’t quite work. Jennie Case writes about these feelings on Jane Friedman’s blog. It is natural to feel hesitant when you put your writing out there. But you do it. This is what Bridey Thelen-Heidel calls Fearless Writing. How to look the world in the eye and write and live fearlessly.

 

Maureen

@craicer

 

It’s nearly time for my monthly newsletter to go out. If you want the best of my bookmarked links 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 James Healy on Unsplash

Reading The Small Print

 

 

In Publishing News this week

 

Lately there has been much discussion online about students arriving in University to study who have never been assigned a whole book to read at their high school. When questioned by professors they hear that students have been assigned excerpts or handouts to read and mark up but never a whole book. You might dismiss this as a socioeconomic problem if the Atlantic hadn’t canvassed professors at elite universities to find that their students lack the reading stamina to complete one course novel in humanities. An open letter from authors and teachers to the UK Prime Minister is being circulated in the UK to highlight this problem. 

 

Many authors have websites powered by Wordpress which is the most popular website builder and host of author websites.  Lately there have been some problems with their websites and it is all because of a stoush between the founders of Wordpress and WP Engine which hosts the websites. Techcrunch explains the drama.

 

The Frankfurt Book Fair is fast approaching and Publishing Perspectives has an interview with the Director on all the reasons Frankfurt Book Fair wants to stay out of international politics.

Richard Charkin writes in his monthly column about preparing for Frankfurt and why he thinks the Frankfurt Book Fair is the best.

 

Publishers Weekly has an article on whether POC representation in publishing is going down in real terms. After the push to highlight that lack of diversity in Publishing and efforts to rectify this in recent times, has anything changed?

 

Mark Williams highlights an article in The Hollywood reporter on AI being the new darling of the film industry. After the writer’s strike you would think they would be pushing it away with a big stick. Not So.

 

Joanna Penn has a great interview with Dave Cohen on writing humour. Can you make them laugh? Where is the line between comedy and offense and how careful should you be when crafting humour.

 

 A few years ago, publishing pundits wondered if print books would become collectable items as the world embraced digital editions of books. I couldn’t help but think this as I read the news that Macmillan Publishers have launched a new imprint. Think finely crafted handmade papers, limited numbered editions, full colour illustrations etc. Yes, they are a trade publisher. 

 

Robin Henry has a guest post on Jane Friedmans blog about structure. She takes a deep dive into Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen. After 250 years what makes her novels stand the test of time? A great read.

 

Katie Weiland continues her great series on structure this week she looks at the beginning of the third act with the third plot point that builds the story to the climax. 

 

In The Craft Section,

Character ideas- Fictionary- Bookmark

Crafting a killer motivation- Laurel Osterkamp

Writing flawed characters- Angela Ackerman

Using tropes- Becca Puglisi- Bookmark

How to use setting to reveal character- C S Lakin- Bookmark

Write fight scenes the comic way- Carla Hoch- Bookmark

 

In The Marketing Section,

November Book Promo ideas- Sandra Beckwith

Author newsletter data- Infographic

Getting more reader reviews- AJ Yee- Bookmark

Amazon Central Author pages- Clayton Noblit

How to optimize wide digital sales- Kelley Mc Daniel- Bookmark

 

To Finish,

A cautionary tale from Donald Maass who aside from writing great craft articles is also the founder of a well known Literary Agency. He writes about a WFH (Work For Hire) contract that set all the red flags flying. This is an article all writers should read. WFH contracts are increasingly being offered to tie up multimedia deals for streaming. Donald even references Rock Bands asking for WFH book tie ins. Do you know the flags to look for? Do you even know that your WFH is not yours even if they make a movie and franchise out of it? Always be clear on who owns your IP. Is it you?

Maureen

@craicer

 

It’s nearly time for my monthly newsletter to go out. If you want the best of my bookmarked links 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 Scott Graham on Unsplash

Choosing Your Words

 

In Publishing News this week

 

It’s Banned Book week in the US and there are many different ways authors and publishers are drawing attention to the rise of challenged books in school sysyems. For the second year Penguin Random House are touring states with their Banned Book Wagon handing out banned books everywhere. Publishing Perspectives has a great article on what they are doing including the whopping number of books they are donating.

 

Following the bankruptcy of United Book Distributors a few months ago in the UK, the ripples are being felt throughout the UK book community reports Publishers Weekly. Verso publishers are running a Kickstarter campaign just to get their books from the distributor warehouse to another distributor. With 1 million pounds owed in book sales they are very pessimistic about receiving any money back.

 

Publishers Weekly also reports on the latest statistics on the publishing industry. Over the last 30 years, jobs in the industry have declined by 40%. Where have they gone asks Publishers Weekly. Amalgamations, bankruptcies, declining reading populations, digital publishing, rising printing costs… take your pick.

Bucking the trend is Poland who have reported rising demand for books. What are they doing right? 

 

The publishing industry in the US is crossing their fingers that TikTok lives past the US ban in some form or other… or rather Booktok. Super book girl Sam Missingham has put together a new platform connecting Booktok influencers with publishers. Dan Holloway has all the details. 

 

Recently Draft2Digital ran a survey asking authors how much they used AI tools and for what parts of their writing and editing. One of the survey questions asked whether authors would license their work to AI companies. I was surprised at the results.

 

Anne Handley has an interesting blog post on How To Write Like Robots Can’t, it’s all in the little details, like metaphor and word play. 

 

Chloe Gong was interviewed by Elle magazine on what it was like be an author online. Booktok influences had a hand in turning Chloe into a phenomenon but it’s not all Booktok. Chloe sees being online differently. Her books are great too- Shakespeare stories set in 1920’s China- addictive reading according to the teen in our house. 

 

Joanna Penn has a great interview with Mark Leslie Lefebvre on selling books at live events. He has some nifty tricks up his sleeve. Check out the podcast /transcript.

 

Kelley Way looks at the five most important clauses in a publishing contract. This is a must read for anyone who has or wants a publishing contract. Inside the very fine print after how much money you might get is some important information that often gets overlooked.

 

If you had to start your publishing career all over again, what would you do? Recently Craig Boyack published an article on what he has been doing starting a new genre and pen name. Everything completely different to what he wrote before. Interesting insights into what is useful now for starting up a new brand.

 

Russel Nohelty has an interesting article on How to Market Myself without Feeling Gross About It. This is a topic that every author struggles with. A great read.

 

Cynthia Swanson writes about how she went from debut New York Times bestseller to Publishing her 3^rd novel herself. There is a name for this, Orphaned Sequel Syndrome. When the career you thought you were going to have gets cut short and what you can do about it. 

 

In The Craft Section,

Layering your romance scenes- C S Lakin

5 pitfalls to avoid with protagonists- Savannah Cordova- Bookmark

Vulnerability not likeability is the key- Susan De Freitas- Bookmark

Why you lose motivation- Suzanne Lieurance

Story Structure the 3^rd act- K M Weiland- Bookmark

 

In The Marketing Section,

7 secrets to make your Manuscript stand out- Top Author

Social Media for authors-Evergreen authors- Bookmark

7 simple steps to build your brand- Draft2Digital

Creative reader magnets – Bang2Write- Bookmark

3 things you can do to get amazing blurbs- Sandra Beckwith- Bookmark

 

To Finish,

Sometimes events get up your nose and you find yourself on a rant. But should you write about it? James Scott Bell has an interesting blog post on writing while you are angry. Does the writing calm you down or rev you up even more? James has some great tips for when you are just burning to say something and putting it in a novel feels like a good idea.

 

Maureen

@craicer

 

It’s nearly time for my monthly newsletter. If you want the best of my bookmarked links 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 Johnson Wang on Unsplash