Let’s Be Careful Out There

The Covid 19 virus has started spreading across the world and the media are spending more time on the sensationalist aspects and ramping up the hysteria instead of the facts.

In the publishing world, the big conferences that are the tent poles of the publishing year are looking very shaky. London Book Fair has just been canceled due to many big publishers pulling out. Already we have book launches canceled or delayed. China is the world's largest printer for publishers. Due to travel restrictions, books are being delayed. If you can’t get your books out to the stores what can you do?

The latest Bond movie is delayed due to worries about audiences in theatres staying away because of contagion concerns.

Kris Rusch talks calmly of what happened to book sales in moments of crisis. Are you prepared for business disruption?

The news was out today, Simon and Schuster are up for sale. Among the reporting of dire predictions was the whimsical, what would you do with a book publishing company? 

Will Amazon buy it to get print legitimacy? Just think of all their backlist. (Stephen King… Judy Blume… Cassandra Clare…)

While you are contemplating owning a big publisher, Anne R Allen has a great blog post on the clueless ways people who know nothing about publishing offer advice. How many of these have you fielded at parties when someone finds out you write?

The Guardian recently published an opinion piece from a writer about the guilty secret many of us have. We are sponsored by someone rich to write. This is a truthful piece on what it is really like to be a writer these days. Sadly, it doesn’t look like it is going to get any better.

Audiobooks are going from strength to strength in the publishing world as the new format to get into. Joanna Penn has a great interview with Michele Cobb on all the opportunities in audio publishing.

I’ve been experimenting with writing sprints lately. They are lots of fun and you can get a surprising amount down if you don’t stop to edit your words in the middle. (Note to self!) The Pomodoro technique does work. If you don’t know how to do it check out this nifty post.

Do you belong to a writing group? This week I was thrilled to see the last person in a writing group I have been keeping an eye on for a long time finally have her book published. Writing groups can be your best cheerleaders. -There are many different types so search around to find your cheerleading tribe.

In The Craft Section,

Tips for revising your work- Amanda Zieba

9 Types of Narrative Devices- Joe Bunting - Bookmark

Your Subconscious speaks a different language- Cathy Yardley

Screenplay structure simplified- Scott Myers- Infographic- Bookmark

How to power your novel through the second act- Wendy Heard- Bookmark

Tips for writing a cozy mystery- Elizabeth Spann Craig

3 steps to writing diverse characters- Lucy Hay - Bookmark

In The Marketing Section,

Looking Good -Design tips for authors- Heather Weidner- Bookmark

Panel Best Practice- Penguin Random House

How to make your author future reality- Angela Ackerman- Bookmark

How to add extra categories on Amazon- Deborah Jay

How To Grow Your Author Social Media platform- Frances Caballo - Bookmark

Anatomy of a Bestselling Amazon Book Promotion- Penny Sansevieri – Bookmark

To Finish,

What do you do when you find out that your work has been plagiarized - but worse… they won a prize with it. You could go up in flames or you could doubt yourself or you could write an interesting thoughtful piece of how you deal with this. 

Take a breath, people. Innnnnn. Ouuuuut. Don’t use hysteria as your default emotion. Check out the facts. Make considered decisions. (I’m looking at you people in the back overstacking your shopping trolleys with toilet paper and bottled water.) 

Just a note- One of my nurse friends reported today that people are stealing bottles of hand sanitizer from the hospitals. Surgical masks, sanitizers, etc are needed by medical professionals. The mask does not work if it gets wet- One cough and it’s done for. 

Please use soap and water (20 seconds) and dry your hands. It works just 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: 

Tricky Questions. Big Consequences.

This week everyone in publishing has been talking about whether the Book Fairs are on or off or postponed or delayed or canceled altogether.

With restrictions on movement and fears about Covid19 and a potential pandemic, the Book Fair season is looking shaky.

Bologna, the biggest children’s book fair has been postponed until May 4^th-7^th. 

London is going ahead but organisers are noting there will be restrictions in place and a smaller fair. There are still going to be plenty of good discussion along with lots of hand sanitiser. LBF are warning about shaking hands. 

With the postponement of major book fairs, there is a knock-on effect happening. May looks like it will be very busy with make-up book fairs. Already publishers are delaying publication because they can’t get books printed in China in time as restrictions on movement slows down the industry.

Ingram Spark are tightening up the rules on what gets printed through them. In their sights are Indie Publishers with badly copied PDF’s, journals with blank pages and anything they think looks dodgy like workbooks. This could catch writers on the hop especially those who publish reading copies and workbooks to go with their books

Jami Gold has a quick rundown on the RWA where we are now report which was just released. Can something rise from the ashes? The bulk of Jami’s post is on how to cope with disappointment. Do you use it to spur yourself on or wallow with chocolate cake?

Kris Rusch has a great post on challenging your comfort zone. Have you been writing the same old thing, book after book? When did you last live on the edge creatively?

Ruth Harris has an excellent post on the five mental traps that the writer can get caught up in. Yes, your writing brain is out to sabotage you. How can you recognize the signs? 

Fae Rowen sat down and wrote a list of things she wanted to achieve in her writing in the next decade. They all have to do with craft. This is a great list to mull over and steal from.

In The Craft Section,

How To Rewrite Your Whole Darn Book- P J Parrish – Bookmark

Thoughts on how to be critical of stories- K M Weiland – Bookmark

5 mistakes to avoid if you want to finish your book- Colleen Story - Bookmark

What writers can learn from bodybuilders- Dave Terruso

In The Marketing Section,

Unique marketing ideas for March – Penny Sansevieri- Bookmark

5 tips for your author bio – DIYMFA

Professional Writing Resources- K M Weiland – Bookmark

How to put together a strategic editorial content calendar

How to start a writer YouTube channel- Michael La Ronn 

To Finish,

During the Christmas/Summer break I went to the movies. I was keen to see Knives Out for various reasons. The cast, and the premise. An old fashioned whodunnit mystery. It seemed so fresh again to be in an audience that were treated as intelligent. After I got used to Daniel Craig’s accent, I enjoyed being surprised by the twists and turns. Excellent storytelling. Is this genre making a come back? How are your sleuthing skills?

Pic: Angela Lansbury- Murder She Wrote- TV Series 1984-96 IMDB.com

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.