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writers

Guest Post: Where to Find the Best New Authors; 5 Online Writing Communities To Explore

Monday, April 10, 2017 by Sabrina Ricci

By Allison Phillips The environment is changing for authors. What once was thought to be a solitary pursuit is evolving into an interactive process with the introduction of new technology. As we move from the printed page to the screen, it invites readers and writers to engage and share the experience through online writing communities. Writers now have access to networks … [Read more...] about Guest Post: Where to Find the Best New Authors; 5 Online Writing Communities To Explore

Guest Post: Top 7 Famous Literary Bars You Should Visit (Infographic)

Monday, February 1, 2016 by Sabrina Ricci

By Linda Craig Writing is often thought of as a solitary activity, but thanks to this infographic, you can visit your favorite author's watering holes. Throughout history, it has always been the case that with every famous writer, there is a pub or bar that becomes equally as famous thanks to their connections as the favoured drinking establishment of said famous writer. … [Read more...] about Guest Post: Top 7 Famous Literary Bars You Should Visit (Infographic)

From Bid 4 Papers: Thoughts Behind Habits of Famous Writers (Infographic)

Monday, December 28, 2015 by Sabrina Ricci

Hope you're enjoying the holidays! I thought I'd keep today's blog post light and share with you this interesting infographic from Bid 4 Papers, which displays famous writers habits. The idea is to be able to analyze how other people established their writing routine, and then figure out how it benefitted them, and possibly apply it to your own writing. Opposite Habits of … [Read more...] about From Bid 4 Papers: Thoughts Behind Habits of Famous Writers (Infographic)

All About Literary Magazines: Reading, Submitting, Publishing Your Own

Monday, August 17, 2015 by Sabrina Ricci

Literary magazines are wonderful. They often publish new and established writers, are increasingly become more mobile, and for the motivated, are fairly easy to publish. For readers, there are a number of great literary journals out there. Some examples include Glimmer Train, Narrative, and Strand Mag. (Also magazines that take submissions, for writers looking to get … [Read more...] about All About Literary Magazines: Reading, Submitting, Publishing Your Own

Indie Authors: Book Rights

Monday, June 9, 2014 by Sabrina Ricci

By Kasharp (Own work) [CC BY-SA 4.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

This month I've started working seriously on my passion project, I Know Dino. One of my goals is to get a few dinosaur ebooks out, starting with a picture book I've been working on for a while about how Brontosaurus is not a real dinosaur (even though it used to be my favorite). Last weekend, I found an amazing illustrator on Fiverr and have started work on actually … [Read more...] about Indie Authors: Book Rights

The Ins and Outs of Blogging as a Professional Writer

Monday, April 28, 2014 by Sabrina Ricci

Social media is a big part of indie author marketing strategies these days. But for those just starting out, it may seem daunting. When I first began using social media for platform building, I felt slightly overwhelmed. But now, after lots of practice and just incorporating social media into my daily routine, I've come to embrace it. And instead of seeing it like a chore, I see it as another way to connect and interact with people, and I've been able to build real relationships through it. Here are a few things I've learned along the way. (And if you want guidance on how to overcome the feeling of being overwhelmed, read Your Writer Platform's "Are You Building Your Writer Platform at Gunpoint?") Don't use social media just to sell books Kristen Lamb's "Social Media, Book Signings & Why Neither Directly Impact Overall Sales" goes into depth on why this is not a good strategy, but basically you don't want to spam people/just make noise, and you will not develop any real relationships this way (meaning, you won't attract real fans). Rachel Thompson suggests spending more time online finding people who may be willing to review your books, and she gives a list of suggestions in her article "Why ‘Read My Book!’ Doesn’t Work…And What To Do Instead" Focus on one or two platforms first, then build from there Facebook. Twitter. Instagram. Pinterest. Google. Youtube. Goodreads. LinkedIn. Tumblr. The list goes on and on. You can be active on all these channels, but it's probably best to pick one or two and work on growing an audience there first. Every social media channel works a little differently, caters to a different audience, and has savvy users who expect others to use the network a certain way. The Book Designer's "Do You Make These Online Marketing Mistakes?" offers tips, such as establishing one audience per channel and using landing pages. Social Media Just for Writers also recommends researching your target market and then choosing your social media platform based on that in "How to Stop Wasting Time and Focus Your Book Marketing." For advice on Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, Pinterest, and YouTube, read DBW's "The Book Marketing Social Media Hierarchy: Which Sites to Use for Which Purposes." Business Insider broke down the demographics of some of the social media platforms. According to them, the 45- to 54-year-old demographic is growing, "27% of 18 to 29-year-olds in the U.S. use Twitter," LinkedIn and Google+ are mostly male, Pinterest is mostly women on tablets, and Tumblr is mostly teens and young adults. Eventually you can expand into other platforms. For a case study on why, read Kate Tilton's "Why I Use Different Social Media Networks (And You Should Too) by @K8Tilton." For help determining which platform is best for you, read these articles: "Instagram: Should You Be On It?" on Indies Unlimited "How Tumblr Turned a Book Into a Bestseller" on GoodeReader "Pinterest Unveils Buyable Pins, A Way To Purchase Things Directly Within Pinterest" on TechCrunch "Pinterest Update: More Ways Authors Can Use Pinterest!" on Writers Win "Indie Author Marketing Guide: Pinterest" on Musings and Marvels "How I Made it to the Front Page of BuzzFeed Twice, and How You Can Too" on Matthew Barby "Surprising News in Social Media – And a Twitter Tip" on Social Media Just for Writers "Indie Author Marketing Guide: Twitter" on Musings and Marvels "Guest Post: 8 Secrets to Increase Your Twitter Followers" on Musings and Marvels "Guest Post: What Everybody Ought To Know About Facebook Account Management" on Musings and Marvels "Guest Post: Want to Step Up Your Facebook?" on Musings and Marvels "Indie Author Marketing Guide: Goodreads" on Musings and Marvels "Indie Author Marketing Guide: LinkedIn" on Musings and Marvels "Indie Author Marketing Guide: Google Plus" on Musings and Marvels "Which Social Media and Marketing Tools Are Publishers Actually Using Successfully" on DBW Strategize how you will build your platform Erindor Press's "Platform Building Primer" is a good start, and advocates setting expectations and figuring out the best way to share content, either via blogging, email newsletters, or something else (and you can use social media to promote that content). The Loneliest Planet shared a post, called "One Writer's Platform (Part 2) Events and PR," which goes over techniques of marketing offline (such as doing public readings and lectures) but also adds that it's worth taping these performances and uploading them to Youtube to share. Use lots of images/visuals People tend to engage more with posts, tweets, etc. that are visual. According to Rebekah Radice's "5 Steps to Get Massive Engagement With Your Visual Content," "43% of social media users share pictures." She recommends having consistent colors, using templates, appropriate fonts, and to create infographics, images, and videos. Build Book Buzz recommends creating different types of images, including picture quotes, tipographics, and infographics. For tips on how to actually create these images, read Social Media Just For Writer's "Writers: Use Visuals to Market Your Books." Make use of social media tools Here's a list of resources, along with helpful tips and links to additional tools: Kate Tilton Social Media Resources Kate Tilton Authors on Instagram Kate Tilton Book Bloggers on Instagram Social Media Examiner Storyfinds Momentum RelayStation Magnolia Media Network Books Go Social Keep up to date on new platforms and tools Lastly, the social media landscape is constantly changing, so it's good to stay up to date. One example of a relatively new tool/platform is Aerbook, which according to PW turns social media into a virtual bookstore. Earlier this year, Social Media Just for Writers wrote about how indie authors can use Aerbook, which allows you to share previews and even sell ebooks on social media networks, as well as see analytics on your shares. According to the article, there are three product plans to choose from: Aerbook Retail is free, no credit card required. It gives you the social look inside the book, email capture popups within the sample, stats on how the book is used, and the ability to share the link and also get web page widgets that launch the Aerbook. This plan lets you sell the book directly through Aerbook, and our service earns 15% of the purchase price after credit card fees are deducted. Aerbook Plus gives you everything Aerbook Retail delivers, plus lets you add links to other retailers, like Amazon, iBooks, or even your own purchase page. Aerbook Plus is $49 per year. Aerbook Flyer includes everything above, but there’s no direct sale through Aerbook’s commerce service. You’ll add links to other retailers. Flyer also lets you do book giveaways, and includes 500 directly delivered, complete books annually. Flyer is $99 per year. Got any social media tips? Please share in the comments!

Blogging is one of the best ways to build a platform, both as a book author and as a freelance writer. I plan on posting more about the specifics of being a freelancer, now having done it for a while, but blogging seems a good place to start, since it applies to both types of writers. There are a lot of benefits to blogging, especially if you do it regularly. In the past few … [Read more...] about The Ins and Outs of Blogging as a Professional Writer

A List of Writing and Publishing Conferences

Monday, February 24, 2014 by Sabrina Ricci

By Andrew Mager from San Francisco, CA, USA (Flickr) [CC BY-SA 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

Electronic Bindery wrote that self publishing needs a Sundance. But until then, there are many conferences that substitute it. Conferences are a great way to meet people in the writing and publishing industry, and to learn about new trends and techniques. Here is a list of conferences happening this year. Most of these are annual, but some of them change locations. They're … [Read more...] about A List of Writing and Publishing Conferences

#GrammoWriMo: The Largest Group of Authors to Collaborate on a Novel

Monday, October 21, 2013 by Sabrina Ricci

NaNoWriMo is coming up, and for those who don't know, it stands for National Novel Writing Month. During the month of November, writers pledge to write at least 50,000 words. I've done it in the past, and it feels great to finish! This year, Grammarly is participating in NaNoWriMo, but with a twist. They're launching project #GrammoWriMo, which aims to "publish a book that … [Read more...] about #GrammoWriMo: The Largest Group of Authors to Collaborate on a Novel

BookExpo America 2013

Thursday, June 6, 2013 by Sabrina Ricci

By Heffloaf (Own work) [CC BY-SA 4.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

I attended my last BEA as a resident of the east coast (though I'm sure I'll find a way to get back there next year). Although I was pressed for time and unable to make any of the panels this year, I met some really amazing people, publishers, and startups. One of my favorite booths was Indie Bestsellers, where six indie best-selling authors talked to fans and signed … [Read more...] about BookExpo America 2013

Trends in Publishing (Part 3)

Friday, August 24, 2012 by Sabrina Ricci

Part 3 of 3 of my Trends in Publishing post, which covers trends in metadata and collecting  publishing data. From the original post: "While researching my thesis project for my M.S. in publishing at NYU, I came across several interesting trends that I think will affect publishing. In fact, I've already seen some of these at work in the three months since I wrote the report, … [Read more...] about Trends in Publishing (Part 3)

Trends in Publishing (Part 2)

Thursday, August 23, 2012 by Sabrina Ricci

Part 2 of 3 of my Trends in Publishing post, which covers subscription websites and gamification trends. From the original post: "While researching my thesis project for my M.S. in publishing at NYU, I came across several interesting trends that I think will affect publishing. In fact, I've already seen some of these at work in the three months since I wrote the report, and … [Read more...] about Trends in Publishing (Part 2)

Trends in Publishing

Wednesday, August 22, 2012 by Sabrina Ricci

While researching my thesis project for my M.S. in publishing at NYU, I came across several interesting trends that I think will affect publishing. In fact, I've already seen some of these at work in the three months since I wrote the report, and I plan on using this information for my own startup, Write or Read. I've broken up this post into three parts. Read parts two and … [Read more...] about Trends in Publishing

The Reader Revolution: Recap of How the “Publishing Game” is Changing

Wednesday, June 13, 2012 by Sabrina Ricci

By Scott LaPierre from boston, ma, usa (city of readers) [CC BY-SA 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

BEA offered an education series, where many experts participated in panels about a wide range of topics relating to publishing. One of the most interesting panels was called "The Reader Revolution: Changing the Game for Readers, Writers, and Everyone in Between." … [Read more...] about The Reader Revolution: Recap of How the “Publishing Game” is Changing

Getting Support for Your Projects

Friday, June 24, 2011 by Sabrina Ricci

By FBI Buffalo Field Office (http://buffalo.fbi.gov/images/c3.jpg) [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

I've been researching ways regular people like me might be able to get their projects off the ground. One of these ways is via Kickstarter. The site is a funding platform where people can post their ideas for projects--anything creative involving Art, Comics, Dance, Design, Fashion, Film, Food, Games, Music, Photography, Publishing, Technology, and Theater--and ask people to … [Read more...] about Getting Support for Your Projects

BEA Day 2: Book Country

Wednesday, May 25, 2011 by Sabrina Ricci

Book Country is an online community for writers of romance, fantasy, sci-fi, thriller, and mystery novels. The name gives the website a sense of being a real place. The site opened its beta site to the public one month ago, and already it has 2,500 users. That's a lot, especially considering the site is run by six tech guys, and four editorial staff--only two of which work … [Read more...] about BEA Day 2: Book Country

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Your First 1000 Copies: The Step-by-Step Guide to Marketing Your Book
Your First 1000 Copies: The Step-by-Step Guide to Marketing Your Book
by Tim Grahl
tagged: indie-publishing and to-read
The Author Training Manual: Develop Marketable Ideas, Craft Books That Sell, Become the Author Publishers Want, and Self-Publish Effectively
it was amazing
The Author Training Manual: Develop Marketable Ideas, Craft Books That Sell, Become the Author Publishers Want, and Self-Publish Effectively
by Nina Amir
Other reviewers have called The Author Training Manual a must-read, and I have to agree. Nina Amir has compiled a great amount of research, experience, and real-life samples that can help any other, self-published, traditionally publishe...
tagged: indie-publishing

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