Reaching Out To Readers

 

This week publishers are watching the Maryland State Legislature who have passed a law giving libraries the ability to license eBooks and other digital content for their consumers. Great news for libraries but what about publishers? Amazon does not license books into libraries so this directly affects them. Other states are watching carefully. Meanwhile, Passive Guy put his lawyer hat on and delved into the implications of this law for writers.

 

I have been mulling over online workshops and meetups that have been such a feature of the 2020’s so far. This week my husband had invitations to three back-to-back international meetings. (All in the middle of the night, our time, after his usual work-day.) If he had attended all of them, he would have put in almost a 24-hour workday. On one hand, the tyranny of distance to attend international meetings has dropped to the distance to your computer Zoom call. On the other, the one-to-one networking and socializing at such an event has disappeared completely. Mark Williams comments on changes in the future for publishing conferences.

 

A few years ago, I delivered a speech on the changes that will happen in publishing when blockchain becomes more mainstream. A few people listening blinked as it seemed so far in the future that they couldn’t conceive of a time when this would be a thing. This week Joanna Penn spoke to a company that is pioneering publishing on the blockchain. The future is hurtling towards us and we are only about five years away from another infrastructure change. (Think Internet in 1999.) Banks are already dipping their toe into blockchain. If you want to understand how the blockchain will change publishing check out the interview.

 

Another week, another company launching an audiobook service. The future of audio publishing is gathering pace. Findaway Voices has an interesting article on the trends for authors to watch. Meanwhile, Scribd has launched a subscription service for audiobooks.

 

Kris Rusch has been doing a Kickstarter for a new book in her Fey series. She writes about the mind shift she has had recently on advances and how Kickstarter is filling this gap.

What if your fans Kickstarted the next book in the series? Like pre-orders with extra bonuses.

 

Ali Luke has a great post on motivation. Nine powerful ways to motivate yourself to write. If you have been struggling with the muse check out Ali’s tips.

 

In The Craft Section,

All the sub-genre definitions you didn’t know- Writers Digest

How to rescue a book in danger of dying- Jennie Nash

3 things to think about before you start your book- Lucy Hay- Bookmark

7 plot structures for pantsers- John Peregine

What makes a great villain- Scott McCormick- Bookmark

Grounding your reader- David Farland- Bookmark

 

In The Marketing Section,

Author Websites- follow these tips- Frances Caballo- Bookmark

2 posts on Instagram

Instagram Book clubs -SheReads and 8 tips for Instagram Authors- Penny Sansevieri

Sell books in your Amazon bio- Penny Sansevieri

Choosing the best Amazon categories- Jay Artale

8 critical bookselling mistakes- Penny Sansevieri- Bookmark

How to grow your social media platform- Frances Caballo - Bookmark

 

To Finish,

As you know, writing your epic novel can be fraught with peril for the unwary novelist. How do you leave out the things that the readers will hate? Anne R Allen has written a great blog post on a recent survey of Readers Pet Peeves. This list of peeves is a writer’s cautionary tale. Are there any peeves you would add to the list?

Maureen

@craicer

 

It is nearly time for my monthly newsletter with the best of my bookmarked links. 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 –  GregWest98

 

The Right Mindset

 

 

In publishing news this week,

 

Mike Williams of The New Publishing Standard recently had an interesting opinion piece on audiobooks. As you know audiobooks have been the hot new thing in publishing and the audio wars are about to begin with Spotify aiming to be the one-stop-shop for audio subscription.

 

Another Mike has also been looking into subscription models. Mike Shatzkin takes a look at some of the innovative ways Amazon raised the subscription bar. 

Meanwhile The Washington Post takes Amazon to task about its lack of support for libraries. Just what is going on here. Do Amazon think the subscription model of Kindle Unlimited is better than putting books in libraries? This is an interesting story from the Washington Post given that Jeff Bezos owns the paper. 

 

Recently David Gaughran reposted the comprehensive article on Author Solutions he wrote a few years ago. The Author Solutions company is a predatory publishing entity with many different names and imprints, some of which are owned by big five publishing houses. Their “boutique” publishing arm demands huge sums of money to newbie authors for minimal publishing services. Just because you haven’t heard of them lately means they haven’t gone away. Some of their scams get a new twist every year. Recently there was an agent promising a bestseller list placement for $10,000 as part of a package deal. Forewarned.

 

Mindset plays a big part in the creative process. Being in the right headspace to create. Being in the right mindset to plan a project. Being open to criticism, rejection, and disappointment are all part and parcel of living the creative life. Recently I was reminded by a friend that imposter syndrome was insidious. I had let it take over my thinking. Instead of seeing the opportunity, I was seeing the failure before I had even tried. I didn’t trust myself. These two posts on mindset resonated with me today.  3 traps that subvert our ability to accept feedback by Lisa Cooper Ellison and The Book Promotion mindset by Penny Sansevieri. Penny takes a good look at the mindset that stops you from giving your book, good promotional love.

 

Co Authorship anyone? If you have been thinking about sitting down with someone to write a story check out this little series on how to do it from Story Empire. It could be the start of a beautiful friendship…

 

In The Craft Section,

How to write genre story- Karen Woodward

Archetypal character arcs – The Queen- K M Weiland – Bookmark

Two great posts on editing -25 editing tips – Alexis Grant and  Trimming your word count- K M Weiland- Bookmark Both

5 pieces of writing advice- Lauren Sapala

 

In The Marketing Section,

The Authors guide to ebook preorders- WrittenWord Media- Bookmark

Amazon algorithms for authors- Reedsy-Bookmark

Best day of the week to discount ebooks- Bookbub

5 ways to solidify your branding- Penny Sansevieri

Develop your book sales strategy and tactics- Brian Jud

 

To Finish,

How often do you find yourself scrolling down your social media feeds and feeling despair. You have to be seen to be engaging… because your fans want you or your publicist told you or the publishers said establish a media presence. Sometimes we can get wrapped up in the social media whirlwind and not see what it is doing to us. Judith Briles offers some very good advice in her Bashing the Myths of Social Media.

Colleen Story also examines the hit creativity takes when you fall into a doomscrolling loop.

Let’s be careful with ourselves and our mindsets. 

Look for all the kitten and puppy pictures to give us the right mood boosters. 

 

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 – Johnathan Kritz