Data is The Answer

 

In Publishing News this week…

A slow week on the publishing front unless your last name starts with T and ends in P.

Publishers Weekly reports on a lawsuit to stop Simon and Schuster from publishing a memoir from a criminal prosecutor who believes a criminal lawsuit has to happen against the former president. As PW reports anytime Trump throws lawyers at a book… it ends up a bestseller.

 

Techcrunch reports on the Shutterstock and Open AI deal. This is an ongoing story to keep one eye on. How the artist community picks their way through the minefield of AI assistance will inform how the writing community can do the same, notably around plagiarism. Interestingly, after Gizmodo outed CNET (see last weeks blog) the policy of using AI to write articles quickly changed. Gizmodo tries out the AI tool on Shutterstock with mixed results. Meanwhile a content writer for Buffer has conflicted feelings about using the AI tool for her job.

 

If you are battling against book pirates or other plagiarists, Knight in Shining Armor, Nate Hoffelder has a great post which you should bookmark on how to file a DMCA takedown notice. He’s done the hard work for you as this article is chock full of links and advice. 

 

Mark Williams of The New Publishing Standard has an interesting post on the uncounted book industry which is worth half a billion dollars last year from KDP alone. So exactly how many books are being published out there?

While Mark is looking at the big picture Draft2Digital has an interesting blog post on how to track all your own sales.

 

Joanna Penn is launching her latest book on Kickstarter. In this interesting post she talks about using Kickstarter like a book launch pad and how she approached her first time Kickstarter project. Her Kickstarter was for a modest amount that has already exceeded expectations.

 

Kathy Steinmann has a post on going down the KDP rabbit hole when your book is unexpectedly pulled from the site and what you can do about it. 

 

Over the last few years the word on author websites is that at the very least you have to have a landing page that you own somewhere. 

The Alliance of Independent Authors has a comprehensive post on how to get people coming back to your website again and again.

Nate Hoffelder writes in a guest post on Anne R Allen’s blog about the 10 website mistakes new authors make and how to fix them.

Penny Sansevieri has a great post on how to sell books from your website. Penny breaks down the various partners you can use and what is involved.

 

Colleen Story has a great post on permission and how you have to give it to yourself.

 

Kris Rusch has the last in her 2022 in review series and this week she muses about estate planning- something our wider family has been focused on since halfway through 2022. When a near relative has an extensive literary estate and their health is not good… you realise the importance of a literary executor and what life of copyright really means.

 

In The Craft Section

7 ways to decide what story idea should come next- K M Weiland

How to use ProWriting Aid- Sue Coletta

Build suspense with secrets- Christina Delay- Bookmark

Character sketch template – Shayla Raquel

6 lessons learned from 4 years of writers block- K M Weiland- Bookmark

 

In The Marketing Section,

No one wants to hear you breathe- Tips on narration – Gabbi Coatsworth

Tips to get people to your book signing- Michael Gallant- Bookmark

How to write a blog post people read- Rachel Thompson- Bookmark

Infographic on marketing to different generations- Barb Drozowich

What do literary agents want you to know- Amy Collins with Sandra Beckwith

 

To Finish

Last week I was preparing to go to the first author conference in a very very long time. I had a great day and met some great people. Among them was Nat Connors, a data scientist who runs Kindletrends- a deep dive weekly newsletter of analysis in any of your chosen categories. Everywhere I went people kept telling me I had to talk to Nat. He was an interesting chap and his service is praised by lots of writers- a great endorsement. 

One of the guest speakers was another lover of data and analysis, Deb Potter. She has a great book on Amazon Ads for writers trying to figure out how to do them. Here she is being interviewed by the Spa Girls podcast. These were just two of the many awesome writers who came from around the country and overseas for a one day conference. 

It is always beneficial to your writing soul to meet up with others in this crazy industry. You never know what you may learn.

 

Maureen

@craicer

 

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

If you like the blog and want to shout me a coffee, hit the coffee button up top or here. I appreciate virtual coffee love.

Thanks.

 

Pic:  Photo by Lukas Blazek on Unsplash

Looking For Happy

 

 

This week in publishing news,

Mark Williams of The New Publishing Standard reported that Storytel was having a shakeup with their founder and visionary leader Jonas Tellander stepping down unexpectedly. With uncertain times in Europe at the moment- finding a comfort book to read or listen to maybe a priority. 

 

Publishers Weekly is confident that Bologna will be back in person…however they are expecting a smaller turnout. To compensate they are expanding the children’s book fair to focus on independent publishing and educational publishing. Congratulations to the shortlisted publishers around the world for International Children’s Publisher of the year. Huia has been named in the Oceania shortlist along with Beatnik.

 

Anne R Allen has another timely look at scammers in the book industry. They keep changing their shonky practices. Please keep an eye on Writer Beware… if you get an offer of any sort, treat it with caution. Agents have been burned too.

 

Joanna Penn interviewed Craig Martell this week on tips for author success. If you have heard of the Facebook group 20 books to 50k then Craig will be a familiar name. If not, Craig runs the biggest writers conference in the world. Read /listen to this extraordinary man and his mission to empower writers.

 

Kris Rusch is another extraordinary resource for the publishing community. Her longevity in the industry and her ability to see through the murk to the realities of the publishing business make her a must-read resource. This week she looks at exclusivity deals- when they are a good thing and when they go horribly wrong.

 

Author newsletters can be a wonderful marketing tool but they often give writers a headache as they try to figure out what to put in them. Nate Hoffelder shares 8 things he learned from the Newsletter Ninja, Tammi Labrecque.

 

Colleen Story wrote this week on author mindset when it comes to book marketing. How do you approach marketing your book? Colleen writes about some easy changes that will change your marketing mindset.

 

In The Craft Section,

4 steps for second drafts- D Edwin - Bookmark

When to kill a character- Angela Ackerman- Bookmark

How to develop content for a workbook- Nina Amir- Bookmark

Flat character arcs- Lewis Jorstad

3 tips for a time bomb plot device- Becca Puglisi

 

 

In The Marketing Section,

Promote your book while watching TV- Sandra Beckwith- Bookmark

Book Marketing Burnout- Dave Chesson Bookmark

Unique branding for March- Penny Sansevieri- Bookmark

Promoting with a limited budget- Bookbub

Facebook ad images- Written Word Media

110 book marketing ideas- Smith Publicity

 

To Finish,

I’m in the last quarter of my current book and trying to tie up all the loose ends. This week I read an interesting article from Mythcreants on keeping the readers happy with your novel series. You don’t have to always follow the main character. Write an anthology series like Discworld or spin-off books or prequels. This article opens up a whole new drawer of ideas which is a writer’s happy place.

 

Maureen

@craicer

 

It is nearly time for my monthly newsletter of the best bookmarked links. When you subscribe you also get a nifty mini book crammed with marketing notes as a thank you.

 

If you like the blog and want to shout me a coffee, hit the coffee button up top or here. 

I appreciate the virtual coffee love. Thanks.

 

Kia Kaha Ukraine. 

Playing Catch Up

 

In interesting news for writers from The Guardian, a couple of second-hand book merchants have been working on a scheme where writers can get a small payment if their books get on sold. Hopefully, the idea gains traction and goes worldwide. 

 

Mike Williams of The New Publishing Standard takes a look at the German acquisition of Print On Demand business Bok2. Lessons learned from the pandemic – The Backlist keeps your publishing business afloat and this means Print On Demand is important. 

 

When you read Kris Rusch’s latest post on fear in publishing and how, even with credible data on backlist, it's hard to believe that publishers are still hoping a magic reset button will be pushed and everything will go back to the way it was before. The pandemic is changing entertainment. Now it is all about subscription- How many subscription services do you pay for? 

Diana Urban of Bookbub has just published the key Marketing and Sales takeaways from the virtual U S Book show hosted last week by Publishers Weekly. It’s all about the power of the backlist. – There’s gold in there and some savvy publishers are now putting dedicated teams on to mining it. 

Writer’s Digest has an excerpt from a new book, Book Wars by John Thompson, on 3 crucial changes that have impacted the book industry. John sees a publisher move to a reader-centric model as being the next big change in publishing-but have the publishers left it too late? 

 

Publishing Perspectives has an interesting article on how the Arab world is changing its book buying. Most books are sold in big book fairs but with the pandemic Arab booksellers have had to develop online stores.

 

Dave Chesson has been working hard on an interesting and comprehensive article on How To Format A Book. It is chock full of information (A mini book's worth!) This is the go-to article for anyone who wants a little bit more information before dipping their toe in. Dave’s site is full of other great resources so take some time to check it out.

 

Briefing a beta reader- Brenda Pollard has an interesting blog post on how to educate your beta readers to get the most out of them. Beta readers are the readers who get the book before it’s published when you still have time to fix any errors.

 

In The Craft Section,

A beginners guide to structure- writing cooperative

Archetypes- The King Arc- KM Weiland – Bookmark

When to break the rules – Karel Segers

Rewriting your novel - Linda Clare- Bookmark

Tips on writing the boring stuff- Jenna Harte-Bookmark

 

In The Marketing Section

Ten ways for authors to waste money- Nate Hoffelder

The ultimate guide to selling children’s books- Karen Inglis – Bookmark

What is a soft book launch- Sandra Beckwith – Bookmark

Book marketing- 14 tips- Bewrit

5 types of video for social media marketing-Joe Forte

100 Facebook promotion groups for writers – Kathy Steinemann- Bookmark

 

To Finish,

Sandra Beckwith has reviewed Ricardo Fayet’s book - How to market a book. Ricardo is one of the founders of Reedsy and has had a ringside seat to the changes in the book industry over the last five years. Reedsy has a lot of free courses and resources and this book is Free as well. 

 

Maureen

@craicer

 

Do you want the best of my bookmarked links in a handy monthly newsletter? When you subscribe you will also get a nifty mini book crammed full with marketing notes as a thank you. 

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 – Steven Pisano

 

Moving Quickly

In Publishing News This Week,

Audio – the hot growth area for publishing. When the news broke of a potential move by Spotify into the audiobook business, there was a collective gasp. One of the biggest music subscription services taking an interest in audiobooks, how would it change the audio publishing landscape? Today, Storytel one of the fastest movers in this area partnered with Spotify. If you have an exclusive with Audible… you may want to reconsider.

 

The Alliance of Independent Authors has some great podcasts/ transcripts available. This week they looked at non-disclosure agreements and how these are being used as a weapon against authors' free speech.

 

Hugh Howey has put together a Self Published Science Fiction Competition. It’s all about eyes on books. 300 books to make the cut… and then the competition is on.

 

Anne R Allen has been fielding some plaintive emails from concerned friends on what to do when someone they know looks like they have been sucked into a publishing scam. Anne points out that friends don’t let friends do this but we all know how tricky it is. No one wants to burst their bubble. Read Anne’s excellent blog for tips on how to have these awkward conversations.

 

Roz Morris is a super resource for great writing advice. This month she wrote a great post on why writers have such difficulty ‘killing your darlings.’ If you haven’t come across this phrase it means when you have written a fantastic scene or dialogue and find that you have to cut it and you just can’t. She followed it up with a great post on the 7 steps to a long-haul novel.

 

Jessica Conoley has an excellent post on Jane Friedman’s site on creative stewardship. What do you owe your story when it goes out into the world? This is where many writers feel paralysed. Sometimes all you need is to make a tense change from My story to The story. 

 

Kris Rusch is writing a new series of blog posts on decisions made from fear. What do these decisions look like? This week it’s fear vs growth. How can you navigate through the emotional minefield to make a good publishing decision?

 

Have you ever read fan fiction? That is a story set in a familiar fictional world. These stories are written by fans of popular books. C M McGuire has an interesting blog post about using fan fiction to experiment and try new styles without pressure. It is an interesting idea.

 

In The Craft Section,

How to outline a series – K M Weiland

Character building - Angela Ackerman- Bookmark

Editing down your words- Kathy Steinmann- Bookmark

Know your audience- Melissa Donovan

The multi-layer book edit- Michael Gallant- Bookmark

 

In The Marketing Section,

Two posts from Sandra Beckwith - 9 things you wish you knew before the TV interview and Author branding

Four rules for designing your book cover- Nate Hoffelder- Bookmark

How to promote your seasonal read- Penny Sansevieri

Two interesting posts from New Shelves- Using a Dear Author letter for marketing  and Market your book in 10 minutes a day – Bookmark Both

 

To Finish,

Michael Lucas has a book in the Storybundle curated by Kris Rusch. He wrote an entertaining roundup of the books in the bundle and why you should buy the collection of writing business books. If you have been meaning to check out one or two of the books on the list grabbing the bundle will get you some bonus exclusives and it pays the authors directly with a cut for charity if you want. The Storybundle is available only for another week so don’t miss out.

Maureen

@craicer

 

Do you want the best of my bookmarked links in a handy monthly newsletter? When you subscribe you will also get a nifty mini book crammed full with marketing notes as a thank you. 

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 – Brian

 

And We're Off...

 I’m Back…

Yes, this blog is one day late. It will not be a trend for the year. (Way to go, Maureen, starting 2021 with an apology… OTOH isn’t that how we feel about 2021? It is supposed to be better than 2020.)

 

Over the Southern Hemisphere Summer, I tried to take a complete media and screen break. It worked some of the time…

This week I’m back in the swing of things researching, writing, and twiddling with my current WIP. I was on a roll yesterday with Pomodoro sprint writing so didn’t stop to get the blog done.

The posts that caught my eye over summer were the usual, what will 2021 be like for writers, what can we learn from 2020, and wow, what a great idea. 

 

Written Word Media has a post on the top ten trends authors need to know about 2021.

If you have been keeping an eye on publishing news, the shrinking of the Big Publishers is on that list. Let’s buy up publishers screamed accountants. (Obviously, they know where the money is- authors backlist IP) Publishing Perspectives reports that Aussie Illustrator Robert Ingpen’s backlist of titles, owned by one publishing house has been on-sold to a new publishing house. 

In other acquisitions, over Christmas, a hedge fund bought Overdrive the Ebook library service and now there are rumours that Wattpad may be on the block. If you haven’t checked into how big Wattpad has become, Mark Williams of The New Publishing Standard has all the info and the rumoured price tag. (Eye-popping.) And just in, Nate Hoffelder reports that The Book Designer site has been sold to a dubious operator…. 

 

Looking back at 2020, Writer Beware had a rundown of all the scammy behaviour that popped up over 2020. Some of these scams are still ongoing. Don’t forget to familiarise yourself with the bad actors out there. Fore Warned is Fore Armed. I have just seen a reference to a new scam this week, Negative reviews on your books, which will be taken down by the reviewer… for a price. (Don’t engage… coz then they know you are a soft touch.)

 

Paula Munier has a handy roundup of writing lessons learned over 2020. These are timely reminders. Also, no idea, however weird, is too weird. Just think over the real-life plotlines of 2020 for a moment. (Or even the first two weeks of 2021…)

Nothing is to ‘out there’ anymore. 

 

Colleen Story thinks writers should take more risks this year. She has five reasons why this is a good thing. 

If you are wanting a challenge for 2021, the 12x12 Picture Book Challenge is open for the next month. Every year I vow that one day I must do this challenge. I’m in awe of my fellow writers who can write picture books... It is a special skill.

 

The Alliance of Independent Authors has a great roundup of Tech resources for authors for you to bookmark and investigate over the year ahead.

 

If you have been following the blog for many years. (12+) you will know I am a fan of author collectives. There is nothing like a group of authors to cheer you on. Recently Bookbub profiled a group of authors who got together to write a series set in a joint world. They are having a lot of fun. I know a couple of authors who are doing this with writer buddies- Cue writer envy- Such a cool thing to do. Check out how they make it work.

 

Alison Williams has a guest post on Jane Friedman’s blog. This is a must read for a great tip to get your manuscript from first draft to second draft to ready to publish. (Everybody cue your movie trailer voices.)

 

In The Craft Section,

Write yourself a bad review- K M Weiland- Bookmark

Editors share their top tips- Emma Lombard

The vital importance of your writing community- John Peregine

10 quick tips to make your writing craft better- Diane Glazman- Bookmark

Inner conflict- reflecting the inner struggle - Janice Hardy - Bookmark

 

In The Marketing Section,

10 Smart book promotion services- Penny Sansevieri – Bookmark

How to price your self-published book

Book Promotion a marathon, not a sprint- Sharon Bially- Bookmark

How to declutter your book marketing- Pauline Wiles

How to market your Kindle book- Penny Sansevieri

Extra,

Video on marketing on YouTube- This is by musician Mary Spender- It deals with musician income, however, this could be a heads up for the future as the book industry is following the music industry- (Subscription streaming services anyone?)

 

To Finish,

The Fabulous Spa Girls are back with tips on how to set goals for your writing year. They have a series of Golden Questions to answer which then make setting goals for the coming year so much easier. Then you can drop into Michael Hyatt’s website to learn about SMARTER goals, to put them into place.

 

2021… Here we come.

 

Maureen

@craicer

 

Do you want the best of my bookmarked links in a handy monthly newsletter? When you subscribe you will also get a nifty mini book crammed full with marketing notes as a thank you. 

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.

 

 

 

Escape Writing

 

It is November! Outside I hear fireworks… inside, everyone wants to know who has won the US Election. Meanwhile, there are writers around the world trying to block out all distractions to get on with NaNoWriMo. Don’t forget to check out the NaNoWriMo Storybundle of craft books available until the end of November. (Early Christmas present to yourself. There are some great books in there!)

 

This week the big news was the arrival into the UK of Bookshop.org just in time for the UK lockdown. This initiative has made news in the US and surpassed all their projections in the first week in the UK. This is a way for indie booksellers to sell books that keeps the money in their pockets. Great for shop local campaigns. Meanwhile, Passive Guy takes a look at Indie Bookshops that have started Go Fund Me pages just to stay afloat.

 

Across the channel, the European publishing industry is fighting a campaign of cultural awareness. Books are essential to the well being of a community and therefore bookshops should stay open. Some countries agree- others not so fast, Monsieur.

 

An ugly rumour about Audible has been doing the rounds among authors. They are promoting trading in your audible book credit for another book. Surely not, said authors. That would mean authors would never get paid for their audiobook under the subscription model. Nate Hoffelder found out the rumour was true and Audible is promoting this. This is a despicable thing to do to authors stuck in this program. 

 

Kris Rusch had a great blog this week on how much writing and storytelling is an escape for the writer as well as the reader. How often are you diving into your manuscript with relief as you escape from the outside world?

 

Writing and Wellness has an article on ways writers can benefit from silence and how to build it into your busy day.

Joanna Penn has an interesting interview with Wendy H Jones on writing and marketing in multiple genres. How do you market yourself when you tackle such widely different markets?

 

Ev Bishop has a must-read post on Branding 101 for Authors. This is a really interesting article on mindset. For instance, what do you want your readers to take away from your stories? The answer is your brand. Sounds simple but that is only the start. 

 

Litreactor has a great article on story openings. What are the five things to keep in mind to wow the socks off anyone reading the first page.

 

In The Craft Section,

Incidental Characters that make your novel zing- C S Lakin- Bookmark

Love triangles that work.- Roz Morris

Top 5 mistakes writers make with police characters- Stuart Gibbon- Interesting

How to develop your character- and writing exercises on tense - Now Novel- Bookmark

10 ways to get a stuck story moving- Janice Hardy- Bookmark

12 tips to write tight- Debbie Burke- Bookmark!

How to spill strong emotion on the page- Laura Drake

 

In The Marketing Section,

Selling books internationally – Dave Chesson- Bookmark

20 tips to rock your Social Media- Frances Caballo

5 Book Launch prep essentials- Sandra Beckwith- Bookmark

Email marketing – Julia Evans- Interesting

5 reasons authors should email market- Rachel Thompson

 

To Finish,

With the word count of 1667 per day to crack in the month of November for NaNoWriMo, many writers look for ways to avoid distractions. One of the biggest distractions is the internet… and the US Election. I have a nifty Neo keyboard that doesn’t connect with the internet and runs on batteries. But this week Techcrunch unveiled a little beauty of a keyboard The Freewrite Traveler- a clamshell, take anywhere keyboard and screen. Of course, you don’t need a dedicated unplugged device. You can write anywhere if you have the tools, on your phone, dictation, message yourself, or good old pen and paper. Get those words down. Escape into your writing!

 

Maureen

@craicer

 

Do you want the best of my bookmarked links in a handy monthly newsletter? When you subscribe you will also get a nifty mini book crammed full with marketing notes as a thank you. 

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 – Eden Janine and Jim- Magician Cardone

 

Book Love

 

 

In Publishing news this week,

The Frankfurt Bookfair goes virtual following all the other book fairs around the world. They are opening up their virtual fair free to anyone who is interested. Publishing Perspectives details what virtual sessions are on offer.  

 

Meanwhile, Publishers Weekly reports that the book industry took a hit in sales over the last quarter. Was anybody surprised? The ongoing size of the contraction has some concerned. If you factor in the huge amounts of books being released this month and up to Christmas, there could be desperate times ahead for booksellers.

 

This week Amazon quietly announced a new service, Bookclubs. It seems kind of odd when they already have Goodreads. Nate Hoffelder reports, although their new idea sounds good it is missing some important features going forward, namely the club feature. It is still in Beta mode though.

 

This week Joanna Penn interview Erin Wright about publishing wide and the mindset you need to cultivate to do this successfully. It is a fascinating interview, well worth the listen/read.

 

This week Kris Rusch wrote about dealing with the effects of the wildfires along the west coast of the U.S. Do you have a Go Bag for your business? In the event of a sudden calamity could you access your passwords… your files… your finances… If you haven’t thought about it – time to make it a priority.  

 

Have you heard of Booktubers?  These are YouTube book reviewers that are influencers. Wired has an interesting interview with one. I checked out the site and lost an hour watching entertaining book reviews. 

 

Ruth Harris has an interesting article on imposter syndrome. We all suffer from it. Ruth mentions that sometimes it can be a good thing. 

 

Dave Chesson has an interesting guest article on changing up keywords in your metadata. If you regularly do this, it can make the book more relevant in the Amazon store.

 

In The Craft Section,

Antagonist motivations- K M Weiland- Bookmark

Structural Editing- Iris Marsh- Bookmark

How to write a synopsis if you hate writing synopses- Roz Morris- Bookmark

10 things you don’t want when naming characters- Katherine Grubb

How to put your reader into the scene- Sean Platt

Managing your cast of characters- Writer Unboxed

 

In The Marketing Section,

Building a long term career- Jane Friedman

2 great posts from Penny Sansevieri- Get creative with Bookbub and Promote with creative collaboration- Bookmark Both

Maintaining a reader mailing list – Alli Blog – Bookmark

The hidden potential of audiobooks- Tina Dietz

 

To Finish,

Being a book nerd, I can waste a lot of time on font sites. Their design fascinates me. Did you know that many of the fonts you read now were designed or based on fonts developed 400 years ago with the printing press?  The Ingram Spark blog looks at the best fonts for books and if you love jacketed books, Ingram are now offering this plus hardback books with embossed covers. FANCY! Meanwhile, check out the Alliance of Independent Authors blog on the guide to the perfect book cover.

 

Maureen

@craicer

 

Do you want the best of my bookmarked links in a handy monthly newsletter? When you subscribe you will also get a nifty mini book crammed full with marketing notes as a thank you.

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- Rulenumberone2