I’m pleased to announce that I’m lining up authors for the return of the Ask the Authors writing reference anthology series, with Ask the Authors 2027, and I already have a pretty impressive line-up, if I do say so myself. In addition to myself, we have Paul Martz, Chris Barili, Patty Fletcher, Mario Acevedo, Jordan Elizabeth, L. Jagi Lamplighter, B.H. Skelly, DL Mullan, David Dean Haskell, Jonathan Maberry, Jeff Mariotte, Roberta Eaton Cheadle, Todd Fahenstock, and Joseph Carrabis.
This writing reference series began as a monthly blog series, right here on Writing to be Read back in 2017, which I decided to convert into book form. When the time came to publish, Amazon’s requirement that none of the book content be available online for free forced me to pull down all the blog posts, so when I decided to do another volume in 2o22, I approached it a bit differently, and I used the blog series to whet readers appetites instead of a book blog tour, only publishing blog posts after the book was published. That method seemed to work quite well, offering readers a taste of the book content, so I plan to use that strategy again.
As with Ask the Authors 2022, each author will also contribute an essay or article on the writing subject of their choice to give us a wide variety of fresh and original content. I want to give my authors enough time to respond to the questions without feeling rushed, so I’ve been preparing the questionnaire already. Many of the questions will be the same, but with different authors and a rapidly changing industry, I have a feeling many of the answers will be different.
Because the publishing industry is rapidly changing, I want to be sure to offer some new questions and not just recycle the questions from the first two books, and I want your help. The subjects covered include: Writing Life, Pre-Writing Rituals & Research, Plot/Storyline, Character Development, Setting & World Building, Action, Pacing, Voice, Tense, P.O.V., Dialog, Editing & Revision, Publishing, Book Marketing. It can be anything related to writing and publishing. I’ll probably have some questions about the use of AI, and maybe some concerning reviews, that weren’t in there before, but I’d really like to hear what questions you have. Please let me know in the comments what questions you, as an author have, and would like to see answered. If they are questions which we don’t already have, I will add them to the list.
Did you know you can sponsor your favorite blog series or even a single post with an advertisement for your book? Stop by the WtbR Sponsor Page and let me advertise your book, or you can make a donation to Writing to be Read for as little as a cup of coffee, If you’d like to show your support for this author and WordCrafter Press.
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This post is sponsored by The Ask the Authors Writing Reference Anthology Series and WordCrafter Press.
I received a copy of Falling to Fly, by Todd Fahnestock in the 2024 Novel Writing Story Bundle, and it was so fortunate that I did. This book is a must read for all struggling authors who have fallen more than once, and brushed themselves off to continue forward in pursuit of their writing dream.
This book is essentially the story of the author’s writing journeyThere were so many things that Fahnestock talks about that I could relate to. He talks about the failure of academia to validate genre fiction as legitimate literature. I was fortunate enough to stumble onto Western State Colorado University, where there M.F.A. program deals directly with genre fiction, but it is a rare program. Fahnestock did not let educators rigid viewpoints deter him, but instead rejected the idea of letting educators shape his writing career.
I also related to his “Say Yes to Everything” policy of not letting any writing opportunity which presents itself pass you by. That is what led him to in-person selling at Cons, and sent him on the path to success in his writing journey. Although I have been fortunate to attend a few writing conferences, the only time I had a booth was at the beginning of my own writing journey, before I had any books to sell. If you follow me, you may know that I sold poems on pretty backgrounds at that conference, and was surprised to earn $100 doing it. While that first conference experience didn’t send me soaring up the ladder of success, it did prove that the possiblilities are there when it comes to direct selling. Fahnestock’s experiences just reinforced this for me, reminding me that I’m not going find my success from behind my laptop.
There are two parts to writing as a business, and in order to be successful as an author, you must school yourself in both craft, and in publishing and marketing, which make up the business part. When I graduated with my M.F.A., I was ready to write and create story, and they primed me to enter the world of traditional publishing, which at that point in time, 2016, was the way it was done. But, I was in my forties, and I didn’t feel like I had time to wait years for someone in the traditional publishing to notice how awesome my stories were. They hadn’t prepared me to delve into the world of independent publishing, which at that time, still left a bad taste in most author’s mouths and held stigma in reader’s minds, well. Like Fahnestock, I stumbled through the plethora of information, and misinformation that flooded the Internet, and muddled my way through the independent publishing arena. Unlike, Fahnestock, I didn’t find the answers I was looking for, and I turned back to academia to learn the necessary skills to navigate the independent publishing community.
The author talks about his attempt at the rapid release marketing strategy, and why it didn’t work for him. He surmised that he was only able to keep the hype going for a short period of four months, and that if he could find a way to keep it going year round, he would have seen better success from his efforts. Then, he went out and found a way to do just that, by collaborating on an epic fantasy series with other fantasy authors. I employ a similar strategy by publishing in volume, releasing 5 – 8 books per year, but they aren’t in a series.
I found this book at a serendiptous time in my life, when I’m trying to pull myself up from a period of failures and obstacles over the past two years, and Fahnestock reminds me that I must keep working to achieve my Dream. He reminds me that sometimes it’s necessary to fall in order to fly.
Glimpse the gritty, behind-the-scenes struggles of author Todd Fahnestock as he reveals his dreams, trials, and adventures through the creative swamps of writing and the hard-edged world of publishing.
Fahnestock dodges junior high bullies armed with needles taped to Bic pens, cracks into traditional publishing by hitchhiking to the middle of nowhere to meet writing legend Gary Paulsen, and nearly falls to his death hanging cables inside an oil tanker. All to follow the author’s dream.
Submerged in the treacherous, ever-changing ocean of art and business, Fahnestock paints an unforgettable portrait with honesty and touching vulnerability.
For Kaye Lynne Booth, writing is a passion. Kaye Lynne is an author with published short fiction and poetry, both online and in print, including her short story collection, Last Call and Other Short Fiction; and her paranormal mystery novella, Hidden Secrets; Books 1 & 2 of her Women in the West adventure series, Delilah and Sarah, and her Time-Travel Adventure novel, The Rock Star & The Outlaw,as well as her poetry collection, Small Wonders and The D.I.Y. Author writing resource. Kaye holds a dual M.F.A. degree in Creative Writing with emphasis in genre fiction and screenwriting, and an M.A. in publishing. Kaye Lynne is the founder of WordCrafter Quality Writing & Author Services and WordCrafter Press. She also maintains an authors’ blog and website, Writing to be Read, where she publishes content of interest in the literary world.
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Did you know you can sponsor your favorite blog series or even a single post with an advertisement for your book? Stop by the WtbR Sponsor Page and let me advertise your book, or you can make a donation to Writing to be Read for as little as a cup of coffee, If you’d like to show your support for this author and WordCrafter Press.
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This segment of “Review in Practice” with Kaye Lynne Booth is sponsored by The Women in the West Adventure Series and WordCrafter Press.
One of the advantages of being in a Story Bundle, is that you get a free copy of all the books included in the bundle. That means you get to read everyone else’s book. With the 2024 Novel Writing Story Bundle, for me, it, means I get to read a lot of writing reference books and I can discover from them, bits of writing wisdom which I can utilize in my own writing and publishing processes to improve my own work. For this segment of Review in Practice, I chose three books from this Story Bundle, with hopes of a few little nugets of gold that I can mine from them and share with you: Wit & Wisdom, by Craig Martelle, Romance Character Tropes, by Jessica Barber and Tara G. Ericson, and Steps to Self-Editing, by Jana S. Brown.
Wit & Wisdom, by Craig Martelle
An exclusive first release in this StoryBundle— chock full of quips and snippets to help authors stay focused on the right things to accelerate their business.
My Thoughts on Wit & Wisdom
I always wanted to attend the 20 Books to 50K Conference, but I never could make it. So, when I had the opportunity to review a book written by one of the founders, Craig Martelle, you can be sure I jumped at the chance. Wit & Wisdom is packed full of useful tips and advice to help make your writing business successful.
Romance Character Tropes, by Jessica Barber & Tara G. Ericson
In this one-of-a-kind resource, you’ll find more than a list of tropes or broad genre fiction advice.
The Romance Writer’s Encyclopedia Series breaks down our method for categorizing tropes into four types of framework tropes – Character Tropes, Situational Tropes, Setting Tropes, and Relational Tropes.
The Character Tropes Encyclopedia includes detailed entries on favorite romance tropes like Cowboys, Royalty, Law enforcement, and Athletes. And we didn’t forget popular modern tropes like Alpha Male, Cinnamon Roll, or The Grump!
But this is more than a trope list – it’s an encyclopedia!
Each encyclopedia entry includes an introduction to the trope itself, as well as information on why readers love the trope (including examination of what inner desire is being met by the trope), what expectations exist in the stories, common pitfalls that authors need to avoid, common characteristics and potential wounds.
Putting a cowboy hat on the cover of your book isn’t enough to have a Cowboy romance that readers will love – but we’ll tell you what will. And then we’ll do it for Pirates and Rockstars and Firefighters, too.
Romance Character Tropes is designed to be used at every stage of planning, writing, and publishing your books. If used effectively, it will help you write a romance that readers will love, but also help you market that book to get it into the hands of readers who will devour it.
We’ve studied thousands of books and movies, polled readers and studied the market to understand not just which Character Tropes work – but WHY they work. And knowing why they work means you can put them to work for you.Harness the power of Character Tropes to make your book marketable, multi-dimensional, and satisfying, so readers will come back again and again.
Tropes are something which have always puzzled me. They were touched on in my graduate classes, to say that you should be aware of them and know what they are, but it was left to the individual to figure it out from there, probably because there are so many of them, and they differ from genre to genre. Since then, I’ve learned that there are too many tropes, no matter the genre, that the whole trope thing seemed overwhelming to me, and I got tired of trying to figure it out , choosing instead, to just write.
I wish I’d had a resource such as this one back then, because Barber and Ericson made it so easy to understand. If someone had explained that internal character tropes were based on the archetypes that I studied in graduate school, it would have all made sense so much sooner. They give a clear definition of what tropes are and why we use them.
“Each of the internal character tropes in this chapter is derived from some of the most popular literary archetypes in fiction. They will carry elements of the universal symbolism, themes, and patterns that have transcended both time and history.”
When I was running my “Ask the Authors-” blog series, back in 2018, I inteviewed many authors, and one of the questions was about using tropes. Some said they used them, some said they avoided them, and still others didn’t have a clue as to what a trope was. But the fact is, we all use tropes, whether we do it conciously or not, no matter what genre we write in. Without character tropes, our characters would be flat, with no personality, and readers would have no reason to care whether our characters achieved their goals or not. If you have a character who is a firefighter, then you are writing with a Man in Uniform character trope. And if you do it conciously, which you should, there are certain things you need to be aware of which will make your character bigger than life for your readers.
I haven’t written much romance, so you might find it odd that I would choose to review Romance Character Tropes, by Jessica Barber and Tara G. Ericson. My thinking is that although this book delves into tropes which are specific to the romance genre, many of the character tropes can be found in other genres, as well.
This month, for NaNoWriMo, I’m writing the second book in my Time Travel Adventure series, the sequel to The Rock Star & The Outlaw, which has a strong romance element, and my male protagonist just happens to be a cowboy, which is a popular romance character trope, so I paid particular attention to what the authors had to say about the Cowboy trope.
I discovered that the cowboy hero I created for the first book, and I am now writing into the second isn’t a rodeo cowboy, a lone wolf or off the grid cowboy, or a law enforcement cowboy, but more of a cross between the cowboy and the reformed bad boy tropes. When LeRoy is introduced in the twenty-first century, in the first book, he is all cowboy, manners and all, and that fact is what attracts my heroine, Amaryllis, in the first place. But when he goes back in time, to an actual western setting, we see the reformed bad boy, who has done all the wrong things, but for the right reasons. Over all, I feel like I did a pretty good job on the first book, and I’ve gathered some ideas about where his character arc may lead in the second one, to make him a more well-rounded character.
I learned so much useful information from Romance Character Tropes that I know it will be a resource I turn to again and again. I have a couple of romance stories that have been trunked, and after reading this book, I’m tempted to pull them out and give them another go, so don’t be surprised if I had add romance to my list of genres I write in in the future.
Steps to Self-Editing, by Jana S. Brown
You’ve finished writing your rough draft! Congratulations!
Now what are you going to do?
Before going out into the world, every manuscript needs a little love from its creator in the form of self-editing and revision.
However, that can be a daunting task.
Plotlines
Character arcs
Continuity
Grammatical mistakes
Where do you begin?
Join author and editor, Jana S. Brown, at her virtual table and learn the Steps to Self-Editing from setting your structure, to rubbing out wordiness to make your manuscript shine.
I chose to read this book because I do self-edit, in spite of all the warnings that I’ve heard not to. I’ve always been told that self-editing is a big no-no, especially if you do it as you are writing, and guess what, I do that, too. But Steps to Self-Editing, by Jana S. Brown doesn’t make that judgement. In it, Brown actually discusses the reasons why you may want to self-edit and talks about the differences in self-editing as you write, and doing an overall self-edit when you’ve finished, (I do both types), and when you may want to do both, as well as when you may not. Brown also makes it clear that self-editing is not recommended to take the place of paying a professional editor. It’s just another step which can be taken to hone your creative child and polish it to look its best.
As I am currently undertaking the NaNoWriMo challenge, and I’m in the process of writing the second book in my Time Travel Series, so I’m already using some of the tips as I self-edit as I go. I am compelled to do this with my writing, as I find and fix plot holes, and go back to add foreshadowing where needed, but Brown has reminded me of other things that can be looked for and fixed early on.
When I have a completed manuscript, hopefully at the end of the month, I’ll be using it again to give my manuscript a complete once over, before sending it off to be scrutinized by another set of eyes. Brown also is a fan of reading your manuscript aloud as a part of self-editing, a step which I always employ, sometimes during the writing process, sometimes after. As she points out, reading your work aloud can help you find logic errors and inconsistencies in your story, as well as helping to smooth the rough edges.
The section that touches on punctuation and grammar rules assures I’ll be turning back to this book again and again, because there are too many rules to remember, making double checking a necessity. This is a quick and easy to use writing resource, which will be a valuable addition to my library.
The 2024 Novel Writing Story Bundle
Wit & Wisdom, by Craig Martelle, Romance Character Tropes, by Jessica Barber and Tara G. Ericson, and Steps to Self-Editing, by Jana S. Brown, are all offered in the 2024 Novel Writing Story Bundle, along with my own The D.I.Y. Author and nine other valuable writing references that every author should have at their fingertips. This bundle offers valuable writing advice from successful authors such as Kerrie Flanagan, Kevin J. Anderson, Mark Leslie Lefabvre, Wulf Moon, Joshua Essoe, Kerrie Flanagan, Matty Dalrymple and M.L. Ronn, Jessica Brawner, Todd Fahnestock, along with a year’s subscription to Indie Author Magazine. A percentage of every bundle sold goes to the Neil Peart Brain Cancer Research Fund from Cedars Sinai. These digital books are DRM-free and compatable with any digital reading device. And you get a lot of books for one great price.
For Kaye Lynne Booth, writing is a passion. Kaye Lynne is an author with published short fiction and poetry, both online and in print, including her short story collection, Last Call and Other Short Fiction; and her paranormal mystery novella, Hidden Secrets; Books 1 & 2 of her Women in the West adventure series, Delilah and Sarah, and her Time-Travel Adventure novel, The Rock Star & The Outlaw,as well as her poetry collection, Small Wonders and The D.I.Y. Author writing resource. Kaye holds a dual M.F.A. degree in Creative Writing with emphasis in genre fiction and screenwriting, and an M.A. in publishing. Kaye Lynne is the founder of WordCrafter Quality Writing & Author Services and WordCrafter Press. She also maintains an authors’ blog and website, Writing to be Read, where she publishes content of interest in the literary world.
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This post is sponsored by The D.I.Y. Author and WordCrafter Press.
Being an author today is more than just writing the book. Authors in this digital age have more opportunities than ever before. Whether you pursue independent or traditional publishing models, or a combination of the two, being an author involves not only writing, but often, the publishing and marketing of the book.
In this writer’s reference guide, multi-genre author and independent publisher, Kaye Lynne Booth shares her knowledge and experiences and the tools, books, references and sites to help you learn the business of being an author.
The exciting news is that The D.I.Y. Author is included in the 2024 Novel Writing Tools Bundle. You can get this great writer’s reference along with other great referencce books which should be in every author’s library for one really great price here: https://storybundle.com/writing. Here’s a guest post by bestselling author and currator, Kevin J. Anderson to tell you more.
THE 2024 NOVEL WRITING TOOLS BUNDLE
The 2024 Novel Writing Tools Bundle – Curated by Kevin J. Anderson This year’s Writing Tools StoryBundle, curated by bestselling author and publisher Kevin J. Anderson, is another treasure chest of vital handbooks covering aspects of the writer’s craft, business, and way of life. We have thirteen titles on a range of subjects, plus a 12-month subscription to Indie Author Magazine, your best source to stay up-to-date on the industry.
On writing craft, there’s The Illustrated Super Secrets of Writing, Vol. 1—Wulf Moon’s award-winning system on how to write stories and does so with creativity, fun, and humor. Tara Grace Ericson presents Romance Character Tropes—far more than your average trope list; this is an encyclopedia packed with info to help you use and leverage each trope successfully.Freelance editor Joshua Essoe teaches about Mood and Atmosphere in his series of special-edition writing guides, each examining the most-common issues he encounters from writers he works with. Word by Word by award-winning author Kerrie Flanagan, shows you how to unlock your creativity and transform your writing. This is an essential guide for writers that offers inspiration, genre-specific strategies, and practical tips. Jana S. Brown gives you Steps to Self-Editing. You’ve finished your novel! Now learn the self-editing steps to smooth off the rough edges and really make it shine! And in the new revised edition of On Being a Dictator: Revised Edition, by Kevin J. Anderson, Martin Shoemaker, and Greg Vose—available exclusively in this StoryBundle,—you’ll learn how to use dictation to increase your productivity. One of the foundational books on a popular writing method, On Being a Dictator will help you think outside the box and up your game in the fast-paced ever-changing world of publishing.
Now, on to the writing business. Dollar by Dollar by Kerrie Flanagan is a comprehensive guide packed with proven strategies to help writers boost book sales, increase income from writing, and succeed in both traditional and self-publishing. Mark Leslie’s Author’s Guide to Branding for Success shows you how to make your Author Brand into one of your best long-term Intellectual Property assets! Matty Dalrymple and Michael La Ronn provide guidance and inspiration to share your message with the world from the stage in Page to Platform: How to Succeed as an Author Speaker. And Booking the Library by Jessica Brawner is tailored for authors, speakers, storytellers, musicians, puppeteers, and all living-wage entertainers. This guide is your key to unlocking fresh markets, cultivating a dedicated fanbase, and revolutionizing your livelihood.
And finally, on the writing life, these titles will help you stay inspired and remain strong as a creative. The D.I.Y. Author by Kaye Lynne Booth shows you the ropes in the business of being an author. Wit and Wisdom by Craig Martelle—exclusive first release in this StoryBundle—is chock full of quips and snippets to help authors stay focused on the right things to accelerate their business. And Falling to Fly by Todd Fahnestock is a deeply personal exploration into the creative process and the publishing industry. This is truly the book to read before you give up on your writing dreams.
In addition in this StoryBundle, you will receive full year’s subscription to Indie Author Magazine, your go-to resource for news, tips, and advice on self-publishing. Stay up-to-date on the latest trends in the industry. A note on the designated charity for this StoryBundle, the Neil Peart Brain Cancer Research Fund from Cedars Sinai. In 2020 we lost Neil Peart, legendary drummer and lyricist for the rock band Rush, to glioblastoma. He was my mentor, friend, and collaborator on numerous books, and his loss affected me deeply. Neil’s friends and colleagues and fans worldwide have contributed to this glioblastoma research fund in Neil’s name, and we are proud to add our efforts on this Writing Tools StoryBundle as well. – Kevin J. Anderson
For StoryBundle, you decide what price you want to pay. For $5 (or more, if you’re feeling generous), you’ll get the basic bundle of four books in .epub format—WORLDWIDE. Romance Character Tropes by Tara Grace Ericson and Jessica Barber Dollar by Dollar by Kerrie Flanagan Essoe’s Guides to Writing: Mood and Atmosphereby Joshua Essoe Booking the Library by Jessica Brawner
If you pay at least the bonus price of just $20, you get all four of the regular books, plus 9 more books, for a total of 13 (with 3 StoryBundle Exclusives), plus a year’s subscription to Indie Author Magazine! Super Secrets: Illustrated by Wulf Moon Falling to Flyby Todd Fahnestock From Page to Platform: How to Succeed as an Author Speaker by Matty Dalrymple and Michael La Ronn A Writer’s Guide to Branding for Successby Mark Leslie Lefebvre (StoryBundle Exclusive) On Being a Dictator by Kevin J. Anderson (StoryBundle Exclusive) Word by Wordby Kerrie Flanagan The D.I.Y. Author by Kaye Lynne Booth Steps to Self-Editing by Jana S. Brown Wit and Wisdom by Craig Martelle (StoryBundle Exclusive) Indie Author Magazine: One Year Subscription by Indie Author Magazine
This bundle is available only for a limited time via http://www.storybundle.com . It allows easy reading on computers, smartphones, and tablets as well as Kindle and other ereaders via file transfer, email, and other methods. You get a DRM-free .epub for all books!
It’s also super easy to give the gift of reading with StoryBundle, thanks to our gift cards – which allow you to send someone a code that they can redeem for any future StoryBundle bundle – and timed delivery, which allows you to control exactly when your recipient will get the gift of StoryBundle.
Why StoryBundle? Here are just a few benefits StoryBundle provides.
Get quality reads: We’ve chosen works from excellent authors to bundle together in one convenient package.
Pay what you want (minimum $5): You decide how much these fantastic books are worth. If you can only spare a little, that’s fine! You’ll still get access to a batch of exceptional titles.
Support authors who support DRM-free books: StoryBundle is a platform for authors to get exposure for their works, both for the titles featured in the bundle and for the rest of their catalog. Supporting authors who let you read their books on any device you want—restriction free—will show everyone there’s nothing wrong with ditching DRM.
Give to worthy causes: Bundle buyers have a chance to donate a portion of their proceeds to The Neil Peart Brain Cancer Research Fund!
Receive extra books: If you beat the bonus price, you’ll get the bonus books!
StoryBundle was created to give a platform for independent authors to showcase their work, and a source of quality titles for thirsty readers. StoryBundle works with authors to create bundles of ebooks that can be purchased by readers at their desired price. Before starting StoryBundle, Founder Jason Chen covered technology and software as an editor for Gizmodo.com and Lifehacker.com.
For more information, visit our website at storybundle.com, tweet us at @storybundle and like us on Facebook .
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This post is sponsored by The D.I.Y. Author and WordCrafter Press.
Being an author today is more than just writing the book. Authors in this digital age have more opportunities than ever before. Whether you pursue independent or traditional publishing models, or a combination of the two, being an author involves not only writing, but often, the publishing and marketing of the book.
In this writer’s reference guide, multi-genre author and independent publisher, Kaye Lynne Booth shares her knowledge and experiences and the tools, books, references and sites to help you learn the business of being an author.
Many of you know me, but for those who don’t, I’m author Kaye Lynne Booth. Through Writing to be Read and WordCrafter, I’ve been able to do some pretty cool things, WordCrafter Book Blog Tours, the annual short fiction contest, and the annual short fiction and poetry anthologies published by WordCrafter Press. But along with that comes the operational costs and the annual fee for this blog and domain name will be due in July, and I have discovered that I’m not making enough writing full-time to cover everything. So I got to thinking about other ways that this blog could start paying off, as I struggle to make all of this work.
I got an idea from watching what is working for one of my fellow authors, Patty Fletcher. She produces a sponsored newsletter, which seems to get the desired result. You may know that newsletters are not my strong point, especially if you are already a member of my readers group. Sorry about that guys and gals who are signed up. I promise to try to do better in the future.
I’ve decided to take on book related sponsors only for Writing to be Read. Sponsors will have a mention in the post of your choice, or for a little more you can have a full color ad for your book. Prices can be found on the new Sponsorship page which will be up soon.
So if you follow Writing to be Read and you like the content you find here and find it to be of value, or if you have contributed to or enjoyed any of the annual anthologies published by WordCrafter Press, please consider advertising your work here and becoming a sponsor, and contact me at KLBWordCrafter@gmail.com. I will have sponsor page up soon.
The D.I.Y. Author
Being an author today is more than just writing the book. Authors in this digital age have more opportunities than ever before. Whether you pursue independent or traditional publishing models, or a combination of the two but being an author involves not only writing, but often, the publishing and marketing of the book.In this writer’s reference guide, multi-genre author and independent publisher, Kaye Lynne Booth shares her knowledge and experiences and the tools, books, references and sites to help you learn the business of being an author.
This writer’s reference is must have for upcoming authors aspiring to build an author business and sell books. The D.I.Y. Author releases on June 4th, 2024, but it’s available for pre-order now at the purchase link above. It contains tips and advice on building an author business, from learning to be prolific, to publishing, to marketing and promoting your book.
I’m also hosting a virtual release party right here on Writing to be Read to give this book a proper send off into the world, and I hope you will come and join me. There will be exclusive offers available just for the event, where you can purchase them direct from the author: discounted eBooks, signed print copies, and discounted author services from WordCrafter. So, drop by on the 4th and join in the fun as we launch The D.I.Y. Author.
Here’s the link for the release party but it won’t work until the party goes live on Tuesday morning, June 4th: https://writingtoberead.com/?p=33911
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Want exclusive content? Join Kaye Lynne Booth & WordCrafter Press Readers’ Group for WordCrafter Press book & event news, including the awesome releases of author Kaye Lynne Booth. She won’t flood your inbox, she NEVER sells her list, and you might get a freebie occasionally. Get a free digital copy of her short story collection, Last Call and Other Short Fiction, just for joining.
Get all your favorite WordCrafter Press books today!
If there are WordCrafter Press books on your TBR list, now is the time to buy them. All WordCrafter Press Books are 50% off for the Smashwords 2024 Read an Ebook Week. That’s right. All titles in the WordCrafter Press catalog are on discounted 50% this week only on Smashwords.
Titles Included:
Ask the Authors: Writing Reference Anthology, by Kaye Lynne Booth, et. al.
Ask the Authors 2022: Writing Reference Anthology, by Kaye Lynne Booth, et. al.
Behind Closed Doors: A Collection of Unusual Poems, by Robbie Cheadle
Delilah: Book 1 of the Women in the West adventure series, by Kaye Lynne Booth
Feral Tenderness: Poetry & Photography, by Arthur Rosch
Hidden Secrets: Paranormal Mystery Novella, by Kaye Lynne Booth
Last Call and Other Short Fiction: short story collection, by Kaye Lynne Booth
It’s Halloween! My favorite time of year. This year, you’re invited to come join WordCrafter and Sonoran Dawn Studios in the All Hallow’s Eve – The Web We Weave Autumn Cider Book Event on Facebook. It is today from 12 pm MST, so come join in the fun by clicking on the link below. There will be lots of treats and maybe even a few cool tricks.
All Hallow’s Eve – What Web We Weave Book Event
WordCrafter Press is offering several giveaways and you can vote on the best audio story or excerpt from stories featured in all three 2022 WordCrafter anthologies: Once Upon an Ever After, Refracted Reflections and Visions, each narrated by the story’s author. Pick up a copy of your favorite WordCrafter paranormal anthology for the special Halloween sale price of .99 cents. Find out how to get a copy of any of the 2022 WordCrafter releases and get a sneak peek at what’s in store for 2023.
With author takeovers by Robbie Cheadle, Joseph Carrabis and myself. And don’t forget to check out the offerings from our gracious host, Sonoran Dawn Studios. Plus lots of good music and other entertainment. It will be a hauntingly good time, so I hope you will join us. See you there!
New Release!
Visions
I don’t know how you coud have missed it, with the extensive blog tour we just ran, but in case you did…
Visions is available now!
18 talented authors share their Visions with you. Get your copy from your favorite distributor today: https://books2read.com/u/49Lk28
Valuable Writer’s Toolkit!
Ask the Authors 2022 will be available in the Writer’s Career Toolkit Bundle, currated by Kevin J. Anderson, throughout the month of November. The intitial 5 book bundle is $5, but for $20, you can get all 15 writing references, including Ask the Authors 2022. It’s a great deal for authors! just in time for NaNoWriMo this year. Pick up your bundle of valuable writing tools today.
Having Ask the Authors 2022 as a part of the writing tool bundle this year, just in time for National Novel Writing Month and being able to peruse all the other wonderful writing references which are included has given me the urge to try to do the NaNoWriMo thing once more. I tried this challenge once before, back when I still really had no idea how to write a novel, and I failed miserably.
Since then, I ‘ve learned a lot about writing and a lot about this writing challenge that I hadn’t yet realized back then. For one thing, this challenge isn’t inteneded to produce publishable novels, but rather very rough first drafts. For another, although the goal is 50,000 words, which is probably not a full novel anyway, you don’t have to start from square one. I know of writers who are right now plotting out their story, with no intention of writing by the seat of their pants. (Of course, back then, that was the only way I knew how to write.) When Tuesday, the 1st of November roles around, they will be locked and loaded and ready to write.
That one realization is what made me change my thinking, because I have a novel already started, which I hope to realease in 2023, and this writing challenge could be a good way to help that happen. So, with partial novel in hand, I prepare to take the NaNoWriMo writing challenge once again.
Can I do it this time? That’s left to be seen, but I think changing my goals a bit to adding 50,000 to what I already have, and by following some of the great time management strategies found in Aisley Oliphant’s Booked to the Gills, which is also included in the Writer’s Career Toolkit Bundle, (see my review here), I might be able to meet this challenge head on now. For this challenge, I plan to work on my Time Travel Romance, The Rockstar and the Outlaw, which is based on the music of The Pretty Reckless and has been sitting on a back burner while I worked out a few obstacles that I ran into with it. Any of you out there who are feeling the urge are, of course, welcome to join me, as I set goals, block out writing time, and probably drive myself crazy writing an awesome story, (or at least a bad first draft). If you do plan to participate in NaNoWriMo, let me know in the comments, so I won’t feel so all alone.
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Join Kaye Lynne Booth & WordCrafter Press Readers’ Group for WordCrafter Press book & event news, including the awesome releases of author Kaye Lynne Booth. Get a free digital copy of her short story collection, Last Call and Other Short Fiction, as a sampling of her works just for joining.
We finished up the WordCrafter Once Upon an Ever After Book Blog Tour on Saturday, and I do hope you all joined in. It was a great tour and we held a giveaway for three digital copies of Once upon an Ever After, and every comment earned an entry.
Now, I am pleased to announce that the three winners of the anthology giveaway are Liz Gauffreau, Annette Rochel Aben, and Sara W. McBride!
(I need to make contact with each of you to find out which digital format you prefer. If you don’t hear from me, please contact me at Kayebooth@yahoo.com.)
Ask the Authors 2022 has received a lovely review from Alex Norton on the Likely Story blog.
” I found it to be both interesting and useful, answering questions I didn’t even know I had and giving me different perspectives to ponder as I move forward on my own writing journey.”
You can find Alex’s full review here. I hope you will check it out.
.The first review is out on Goodreads, from Madelon’s Reviews. Madelon does a nice job of making a brief statement about each story, as well as a review of the overall anthology, which states in part:
“Overall, REFRACTED REFLECTIONS provides a glimpse into the writing styles of authors you may want to read again.”
Welcome to the final segment of the “Ask the Authors 2022” blog series. This week, a final introduction for Middle Grade & Y.A. author, L. Jagi Lamplighter, whose essay contribution is titled “The Trouble with Troupes” and a Q & A session on book marketing will be finishing off this wonderful series.
I want to thank all the readers who chose to spend their Saturdays hanging out with us for the past ten weeks, as we give this unique writing reference a send off, and let all the authors out there see why they need the plethora of writing wisdom contained between the covers of Ask the Authors 2022 writing reference anthology. And now it’s time to get started with this final segment.
Meet L. Jagi Lamplighter
L. Jagi Lamplighter is the author of the YA fantasy series: The Books of Unexpected Enlightenment, the third book of which was nominated for the YA Dragon Award in 2017 and the fourth book of which won the first YA Ribbit Award. She is also the author of the Prospero’s Children series: Prospero Lost, Prospero In Hell, and Prospero Regained.
She has published numerous articles and short stories. She also has an anthology of her own works: In the Lamplight. She also edits for Superversive Press and teaches “The Art and Craft of Writing”. She was also a presenter and panel member for both the 2020 Stay in Place Virtual Writing Conference and the 2021 New Beginnings Virtual Writing Conference.
Mario Acevedo: Here are my thoughts on Book Marketing.
I never thought much about branding myself and wrote what I wanted. Fortunately, everything tended to be in related genres. As for book marketing, if I knew what the magic lever was that you could pull and hit the jackpot, I would keep it to myself. I’ve tried all kinds of methods and gimmicks, some which worked okay, others which never moved the needle. What works for someone else, might not work for you. What works now may not work tomorrow. Remember, those masters in branding and marketing, Disney and Coca-Cola, have their share of million-dollar flops. What I recommend is to keep your name out there in a variety of streams: social media, newsletters, conventions, interviews, podcasts.
Good book covers are essential. Whatever you do, don’t have one that looks Photoshopped by someone who didn’t know what they were doing.
Websites are necessary though really fancy ones (read expensive) are not worth the money unless you have a lot of traffic and sales. You want something catchy and one that you update regularly.
Everyone loves great reviews and people who leave one-star reviews tend to be acting out an agenda not related to your work. Don’t hate them for it, instead pray that they either find Jesus or a competent therapist.
Once upon a time, book trailers were the cat’s pajamas. And about as effective. Two of my book trailers got tens of thousands of views, which is extraordinary for book trailers, but I can’t say how significant they were to sales. Book trailers work best when you play them at a signing booth as when people ask, “What’s your book about?”
Keep in mind that the world doesn’t revolve around you so don’t be a dick to others. Don’t be a doormat either; and in all cases, keep yourself a class act.
How do you brand yourself and your works?
Paul Kane: I think that changes depending on what book it is. So the Paul Kane ‘brand’ – whatever that is – would be more tied into horror, post-apocalyptic fiction or whatever, so I might get invited to a horror convention to talk about that material. While the PL Kane ‘band’ is pure crime fiction, and you’re more likely to see me talking about that at a crime fiction event. But it’s all still just me, when all’s said and done. I try not to cross the streams if I can help it, and I haven’t really ‘branded’ myself as much as the publishers who’ve put my stuff out there have done it for me.
Bobby Nash: Bobby Nash is my brand. I am usually the first point of contact with readers, so I want to make sure meeting me makes you want to read one of my books. I also brand the books. My BEN Books crime thrillers share a universe, so they have similar branding. It helps. I also use branding on title and cover design in series. You know that the Snow books are part of a series, for example.
Robbie Cheadle: My children’s books are primarily a series about a little man called Sir Chocolate who lives in a world where you can eat everything. Each book contains a rhyming verse story for small children and 5 recipes for children to make under adult supervision. It is in essence a first baking book series and I market it that way.
My adult books are all historical and paranormal in nature and I am at this market. I use hashtags for my books on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook. I write under my own name, using different variations to clearly separate my children’s and my adults’ books.
Nancy Oswald: I haven’t paid much attention to branding, but I think a brand is evolving based solely on my writing interests. With that said, the next book I want to write doesn’t fit the historical category, but I don’t want “branding” to stop me from doing it. I guess I’d prefer to write what my interests are than to worry about a brand.
What’s the most effective method of finding followers?
Paul Kane: I have no idea! I just keep doing the writing, promoting it on my social media accounts and seeing what happens. I think using humour on those is a good way to spread the word about yourself, and posting about other people’s work or what you might be reading, watching and so on, breaks up the sameness of just talking about yourself and what you’ve got out or coming out. I think genuineness comes across massively to people and maybe that gets you followers? I’ve only ever been myself online or at events, and I think people can see that. They can spot it a mile away if you’re fake.
Bobby Nash: Beats me. It seems to change from week to week. I try as many methods as possible to attract new readers.
Robbie Cheadle: A lot of my readers have come through my blog. I have two blogs: Robbie’s Inspiration which is for my baking, art work, and poetry, and Roberta Writes which is for my reviews of classic, horror, drama, science fiction, and other adult books. I also do a weekly prompt called Thursday Doors when I share pictures of my travels around South African and other places. I am an active blogger and have a lot of blogging friends who I have discussions with. Many of them have become friends who I email and correspond with.
Other social media I use are Facebook which is great for reading and writing groups, Twitter, and Instagram. I have a YouTube channel which I post to from time to time. I think being an active part of the writing and reading community is the best way of getting followers. Writers are also often reviewers while other readers usually don’t think to write reviews.
I understand that newsletters are a good way of staying in contact with your readership outside of social media. I have not as yet had the time to pursue developing a newsletter following or committing to a monthly or bi-monthly newsletter.
Have giveaways or social media book events been effective in bringing in followers?
Paul Kane: Publishers tend to handle all that side of things for me, so I can’t really say. You do see a spike in numbers when you do a giveaway I guess, or do a blog tour, so I guess they work. But if people don’t like your stuff, they won’t keep coming back no matter what you do. Keeping readers or followers is just as important as attracting them in the first place.
Bobby Nash: Short term, yes. Long term, not really. Some sign up for the giveaway then leave when it’s over. I do have a small fanbase and I try to grow it.
Robbie Cheadle: I do giveaways when I do book tours for the launch of new books. Living in South Africa, which is not a country of big readers due to the excellent weather, I market mainly to Australia, the UK, and the US and rely on social media to get the word out.
Giveaways certainly help bring in some reviews although not every free book has the desired outcome, enough winners do read and review the book to make giveaways a useful undertaking.
Social media events are generally not that well attended, in my limited experience, so I don’t think I pick up many followers that way. I am an opportunist though and will usually grab an opportunity for promotion even if a return is not guaranteed. I enjoy sharing about my books and the anthologies I’ve participated in.
Can you share your logo and the story of why you chose this to represent your brand?
Paul Kane: I don’t really have a logo as such. My main site is called Shadow Writer, after a story I wrote back in the late 1990s, and I chose that because it fits the kind of dark fiction I do as Paul Kane.
Bobby Nash: BEN Books is the name of my indie press. The name is simple. BEN is my initials. Bobby Edward Nash. I designed a simple design with a book and scratched metal half-moon coming out behind it to signify book pages flipping. I liked it. Years later, my friend, Jeffrey Hayes redesigned it for me and made the BEN Books logo look much more professional. I also use branding by putting genre under the logo. A BEN Books Thriller. BEN Books Pulp. That sort of thing. Now that crime thrillers is BEN Books’ main focus, I added a criminal’s mask to the logo. I like it.
Do you have a blog or website where you drive traffic? How effective do you feel it is?
Paul Kane: My SW site’s been going years and we’ve built up a good following on there. We get many unique visitors a month. One thing I did to help with that was to have a ‘Guest Writer’ slot; it was something I ‘borrowed’ from Simon Clark’s site. As with the social media posts, this stops things being just about me all the time, helps promote other people’s work that I like and also crosses over our readerships. People who are fans of their work might have a look around my site, while people who are fans of mine are reading whichever Guest Writer’s work is on there this month. It usually takes the form of a short story or extract from a novel. We’ve had some huge writers on there over the last couple of decades, including Stephen King, Charlaine Harris, Lee Child and Martina Cole.
Bobby Nash: I have a website for all things Bobby. It’s www.bobbynash.com and it has all of my books, art, acting, news, blogs, etc. It’s the hub for all things me.
I like having dedicated websites. Websites are an easy to find way to keep up with things. Posts can easily get lost in the sea that is social media.
Do you have a blog or website where you drive traffic? How effective do you feel it is?
Robbie Cheadle: My blogs are my most effective marking tools, and my blogging friends often promote my work and posts by sharing them on other social media platforms and even on their own blogs. I also write posts for other bloggers sites, including 3 monthly columns for Writing to be Read. I always take opportunities to guest post and try to write engaging posts. I have enlarged by readership of both my books and my blog this way.
Can readers buy directly from you on your website, or must they go through third party venders such as Amazon, B&N, etc…?
Paul Kane: Through a third party. I don’t sell books through my site; as I say I’m not really a bookseller myself. The only thing I do sell on there is remarques, which are unique drawings I do inside the books sometimes for readers. I did a lot of those when Servants of Hell came out, drawing black & white pics inside the books of Sherlock Holmes and my Cenobite creations.
Bobby Nash: In addition to Amazon, Barnes & Noble, etc., I have an on-line store where readers can buy autographed books, art commissions, book box sets, etc. It’s located at https://bobbynash.square.site. Please check it out.
Robbie Cheadle: Readers can buy the majority of my books from TSL Publications in the UK. Anne sends my books to readers in Australia, Europe, and the USA. My books are also available as ebooks from Lulu.com and as print books from Amazon and Lulu.com. Only select books of mine are available as ebooks from Amazon. My poetry books are available from Amazon and other outlets as well as the ten anthologies I have participated in.
Nancy Oswald: Website, Amazon
How do you get reviews for your books?
Paul Kane: Usually the book is sent out via the publisher, or it appears on NetGalley, although I have been known to contact bloggers directly if it’s to set up a blog tour. Most people are quite friendly and open to being approached, though you do get the odd one or two who don’t care for it.
Bobby Nash: Not easily. I sometimes beg on social media, but that rarely works. Most of the time, you just hope for the best.
Robbie Cheadle: I have been fortunate and some of the purchasers of my books have written and posted reviews to Goodreads and Amazon. Some readers can’t post to Amazon because of their reviewing policies, but I am happy to receive reviews on Goodreads and also on TSL Publications’ website.
What are your thoughts on paid reviews? Have you ever used them?
Paul Kane: No, never. And never will. I think if you’re paying to have your book reviewed it kind of defeats the object of it being an objective review of your work. You’re paying for a service, rather than offering the book to reviewers for their honest opinion – good or bad – of it.
Bobby Nash: I do not like paid reviews. I do not use them. How can I trust them?
Robbie Cheadle: I have never paid anyone to review one of my books. I do include a paragraph at the end of my books asking readers to leave a review and share their opinion. I have had readers approach me on Twitter and Goodreads offering to review my books for a fee, but I haven’t accepted any such proposals as it is disingenuous.
Nancy Oswald: Yes, a couple of times. I don’t think they drive more sales, but there are times when a good quote or two is needed for publicity materials and they come in handy.
Different book formats appeal to different audiences. How do you market differently for the different formats your books are available in?
Paul Kane: I’m not quite sure what you mean here, do you mean do I market audios differently to print or whatever? I suppose you have to look at what prices are being charged for the product and that affects how your promote it, for example ebooks are quite cheap so you’re reaching a different kind of reader to the ones who buy a limited hardback because they want something special as a keepsake or to increase in value. Again, that’s more in the realms of bookselling than what I do.
Bobby Nash: When looking for places to market, I research. As a small press publisher, I try to make my BEN Books titles as easy to find in as many different formats as possible so readers can get the books in the way that works best for them.
Do you prefer online advertising or face-to-face events for marketing your books? Why?
Paul Kane: I think there’s a place for both, and if the pandemic has shown us anything it’s that we can also do events via Zoom and reach audiences that way. So sometimes it’s the only way you can reach people, because face-to-face is out. For me, personally, though I prefer getting out there and meeting readers who’ve enjoyed your fiction and signing copies of books for them. There’s no feeling like that in the world.
Bobby Nash: Both work, but I have found that I have better success with face-to-face events in terms of introducing my work to new readers.
Robbie Cheadle: I enjoy face-to-face events, but I haven’t found them to be particularly useful for books sales locally in South Africa. South Africans are not big readers as they prefer sports and outdoors activities, and our weather is good all year round which facilitates an outdoors lifestyle. In addition, there are 11 official languages in South Africa and the English-speaking community is a minority.
As a result, I mainly market my books through on-line advertising and marketing events and initiatives. I believe the face-to-face marketing is better if the environment is conducive to readers and I would do more in that line if I lived in the UK or USA.
Nancy Oswald: Face to face by far. It’s where I seem to sell more books, but it might be because I haven’t taken advantage of online marketing opportunists. I’m trying a few, now, but the jury’s out.
Do you use paid advertising or stick to the free channels? How effective have they been?
Paul Kane: I always stick to free. If it’s a paid advert, then it’s been paid for by my publishers – for instance I know there was a fair amount of promotion online on Facebook or Instagram for the PL Kane books, but that was down to HQ/Harper rather than myself.
Bobby Nash: I have a low budget, so I used paid advertising sporadically, but targeted. I try to take advantage of free promotion channels as often as possible.
Robbie Cheadle: I have run paid advertisements on Facebook, but I’ve not had a lot of success with them. I haven’t tried any other paid avenues for book sales.
Which book advertising platforms have you used: Bookbub, Fussy Librarian, Booktopia, Facebook, Amazon, etc…? Which have you found to be most effective?
Paul Kane: I’m on Bookbub, mainly because one of my publishers told me I needed to be on it to promote a specific book. And I’m on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and so on. I think they all have their place and if I push a book through one, I tend to do it via all of them, so there’s no real way for me to see which one is working for the best. I just promote through them all.
Bobby Nash: I’ve used Facebook, Amazon, BookBub, and a couple of others. Effectiveness varies.
Do you have a newsletter? How effective do you feel it is?
Paul Kane: I do have a PL Kane newsletter, which has helped me reach more readers. It’s a place where I can share more of my news on a personal level, plus offer recommendations for things I’ve enjoyed reading or watching. To entice people in, I also write new fiction that’s exclusive to the newsletter so I feel like it works both ways. Readers are getting something out of it as well as me.
Bobby Nash: I do have a monthly newsletter. You can subscribe to Nash News at http://www.subscribepage.com/NashNews. I have about 230 subscribers. I don’t get a lot of feedback so I can’t say for certain how effective it is or how many sales result from the newsletter.
Do you use book trailers to market your books? How effective have they been for you?
Paul Kane: I haven’t personally used them, but some of my publishers have and obviously I’ve shared the trailers as and when. There was a great one for The Rainbow Man, which was my first YA novel, and I got a friend of mine Brad Watson to come up with one for Arrowhead when that came out. But generally speaking, I have no idea how much of an impact they have on sales or anything.
Robbie Cheadle: I have tried book trailers to market my books, but I don’t believe they have been at all effective. I don’t think many people bother to watch the video, even if it is short. I can tell from the average viewing time of the video that few people have watched until the end.
Have you ever tried using press releases for your books? How effective has that been for you?
Bobby Nash: I write press releases for all of my books, even if I am not the publisher. I want to get the information about the book out to the word, as well as how to contact me in case of interviews, quotes, etc.
Nancy Oswald: I typically get a press release out to all the local papers. Hard to relate to sales, but they’re free and add to reader recognition.
Do you have a street team or reader group that you use to get reviews? How well does that work?
Bobby Nash: I don’t have an official street team. I have some fans and friends that share my news and I appreciate each and every repost, retweet, and shout out.
Robbie Cheadle: I have a few blogging friends who always offer to read and review my books and they always post reviews. It is kind of them, and I am grateful for the support. I never ask people to read and review my books as it goes against my upbringing to ask people to things like that for me. I had a very strict and conservative upbringing, and some things are very difficult for me as a result. I read and review over 100 books a year and I beta read books for certain individuals too. I always try to help other writers when I can.
Nancy Oswald: For many of my books, I’ve asked other authors with a track record to read and write cover blurb material. I’ve also swapped Amazon reviews with other authors.
How do you handle marketing for multiple genres, since each one appeals to different audiences? Can a single brand encompass multiple genres or should they be marketed separately, with a different brand or pen name for each one?
Bobby Nash: I tailor my marketing based on the book’s genre. I don’t promote my crime thriller at the same sites where I promote my sci-fi epic. As an author, I only have the one brand. I don’t use pen names.
Robbie Cheadle: As mentioned previously, I market my children’s books and poetry separately from my horror, paranormal and historical adult fiction. I have two blogs, two Twitter accounts, to Facebook pages and I try to keep them as separate as possible. I have different followers on the two profiles and only a few follow me on both. That is what I was aiming for when I created the second profile. I wanted people who were interested in my children’s writing, art, and poetry to enjoy that aspect of my creativity without having to filter out my adult orientated interests and vice versa. I do believe it has worked quite well.
Do you use a pen name? Why or why not?
Paul Kane: I have a few, as you can probably guess from some of the other answers. I think it helps to differentiate between the kinds of fiction I write. So if you pick up a Paul Kane you’re likely to get horror, dark fantasy or the like, while PL Kane books are straight crime. Detectives or domestic noir. There can be some scope for crossover here, because I have fans of all my different kinds of books, and sometimes there are elements from my other work that slip over – The Family Lie is a crime book, but also deals with cults and has elements of folk horror too – but for the most part I try to keep things separate. It just makes it clearer for myself and my readership.
Robbie Cheadle: I do not use a pen name. I was going to because of my professional life, but my husband didn’t like the idea of my not using my married name. I publish my children’s books and poetry under Robbie Cheadle and my adult books under Roberta Eaton Cheadle. The names are linked, but sufficiently different for people to be able to differentiate between them and the different genres of my books.
Nancy Oswald: I used a pen name for my very first published book, but when people started asking me how they would remember and find my book under a different name I gave it up. This book went into a reprint, so I switched mid-stream. It was published by Scholastic Canada, so in this case it made very little difference in sales.
Are your books available in brick-and-mortar stores and libraries? What are the challenges with having your books in these outlets?
Paul Kane: Yes, certainly. At the moment, the challenges seem to be down to distribution, all the knock-on effects of Brexit and such, but I’m hoping that calms down in the future. I know some stores and libraries have had shortages lately because of all this. Luckily, I think most of my publishers are doing okay on that score. There always seem to be plenty of copies available to ship out to stores at any rate, which I’m very grateful for.
Bobby Nash: My books are available to them, though they are rarely shelved there due to the print on demand nature of my small press. You can order them in any brick-and-mortar store, but it’s doubtful they will be on the store shelves. Some libraries have stocked my books though.
Nancy Oswald: Libraries, I usually donate copies. Brick and mortar is a lot of leg work and there’s a difference in percentages and how you get paid—a lot of record keeping. But I do get sales through these outlets, so it’s worth it, and they collect tax which saves another headache or two. I like craft fairs for face-to-face sales, but I’m choosy about where I go.
Covers are important. They can be one of your best marketing tools. How do you come by your covers: DIY, hire professional cover designer, buy pre-fab covers?
Paul Kane: That’s all handled in-house by the publisher. An indie might ask me if I have a preferred artist, or I might say to them I like a particular image that fits the contents of the book – like Les Edwards’ painting for my Body Horror collection Traumas from Black Shuck Books – but more often than not I might not get a vote at all, especially if it’s a bigger publisher. I have to say I’ve been very lucky with them, though. There’s never been one I’ve absolutely hated in my entire career, and I hope there never will be. There have been some that have grown on me over time, but all in all I’ve been very happy.
Bobby Nash: I prefer to work with professionals because they know what they are doing and do it far better than I can. I do some design work, but not all covers are created equal. Evil Ways, Suicide Bomb, and the upcoming Evil Intent had a simple, design element. I handled those myself. Deadly Games! has a photo cover. I took the photo and designed the cover. The Snow and Sheriff Myers series have covers by Jeffrey Hayes and Dennis Calero. I’ve not used any pre-fab covers. I prefer to have the cover designed to fit the story.
Robbie Cheadle: I design the covers for my children’s books myself because I use my own fondant and cake artwork. I tried using a professional photographer, but that didn’t work that well for me, so I invested in a better camera and I take my own pictures.
I use a professional designer for my adult books. Tim Barber of Dissect Designs designed the covers of While the Bombs Fell, Through the Nethergate and A Ghost and His Gold. Teagan Riordain Geneviene has designed some of my newer covers. I worked well with both designers and am always very happy with my covers.
Nancy Oswald: I’ve been spoiled by my publisher who used an artist for most of my books. I hired the same artist for my latest book that I self-published to stay consistent with the covers in the rest of the series. I know it cost me more money to do this, but felt it was worth it.
Which marketing strategies do you use: rapid release, perma-free, reader magnets,.99 cent promos, etc…? Which have you found to be most effective?
Bobby Nash: Yes. I try everything. Some things work. Some don’t. I don’t know until I try. Plus, I’ve discovered that an effective method for one book might not prove effective for another. It’s an on-going, evolving experiment.
Nancy Oswald: I used to do postcards, but they were expensive, and to mail them was expensive. A few years ago, I switched to bookmarks only—two sided with general info about me on one side (contact info, bio, etch) and images of all my books on the back side. My newest bookmark only has the Ruby and Maude Adventure images with a list of my other books. (Space consideration.)
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That was a great final Q & A session, with so much information. Of course, book marketing is a topic that could fill an entire book and then some. But that wraps up this week’s segment – and it wraps up this Saturday series.
Thanks to all of the contributing authors for their willingness to share their writing wisdom with us in both blog and book. They are who made this wonderful reference possible. I couldn’t have done it without them.
Thanks to all our readers for joining us. I do hope you readers gleaned some useful advice in this series, and if you missed any of the segments, you can find them all here:
Segment 1: Introductions for Kaye Lynne Booth & Kevin Killiany/Writing Life Q & A session.
Segment 2: Introduction for Bobby Nash/Pre-writing Rituals Q & A session.
Segment 3:Introduction for Roberta Eaton Cheadle/Plot & Storyline Q & A session.
Segment 4:Introduction for Paul Kane/Character Development Q & A session.
Segment 5: Introduction for Mario Acevedo/Action, Pacing and Dialog Q & A session.
Segment 6: Introduction for Nancy Oswald/Tone: Voice, Person, Tense & POV Q & A session.
Segment 7:Introduction for Chris Barili/ Setting & World Building Q & A session.
Segment 8: Introduction for Jeff Bowles/Editing & Revision Q & A session.
Segment 9:Introduction for Mark Leslie Lefebvre/Publishing Q & A session.
Segment 10: Oh, wait… This is Segment 10.
Well then, I guess that’s about it for this segment… And for the series. Again I thank you for sticking with us through all ten weeks.
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Where can you find publishing industry experts willing to share their secrets?
Ask the Authors 2022is the ultimate writer’s reference, with tips and advice on craft, publishing and book marketing. Eleven experienced and successful authors share what works for them and offer their keys to success in traditional publishing, hybrid, and indie. You’ll learn industry wisdom from Mark Leslie Lefebvre, Kevin Killiany, L. Jagi Lamplighter, Bobby Nash, Paul Kane, Nancy Oswald, Chris Barili, Jeff Bowles, Roberta Eaton Cheadle, Mario Acevedo and Kaye Lynne Booth.
This book offers tried-and-true ways to improve your craft and explores the many options in the current publishing and book marketing worlds. Take a peek inside and find out what works for you.
Ask the Authors 2023
“Ask the Authors is an up-to-date and broad-based compendium of advice from today’s working writers, to help you with understanding your own writing career. Great information!”
—Kevin J. Anderson, New York Times bestselling author of Spine of the Dragon
The special promotional price of 3.99 is good through today, since this is the last blog segment in the series. Tomorrow, it goes back up to the regular price of 4.99. If you’ve been following, you may have already gotten a copy of Ask the Authors 2022. If not, be sure and grab your copy today.
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