I know Goodreads is a hot discussion topic all around. Everyone feels strongly about how to use it. Do you chat with reviewers? Do you even read your reviews? A friend of mine has teenagers (trust me, this is going somewhere.) She once said that their rooms were like this magical place that while, somehow being INSIDE the house, aren’t really part of the house. That’s how I’ve typically treated reviews. I know when I used to write reviews, I {Read More}
People Want To Know
April 17, 2013 by 2 Comments
First off, I’ve written and deleted about 9 posts on what happened here in Boston on Monday and my love and disgust for different reactions from my fellow writers. For me, it became important to just delete those drafts and get back to the week as “normal” even as continued reports roll in. Thanks to everyone who sent their best wishes. ~*~ NOW, back to our regular scheduled blog post! ~*~ People are starving for information about entry-level Indie publishing. {Read More}
The Anti-Marketer
April 10, 2013 by 2 Comments
That’s me. The anti-marketer. Maybe I should cap it like a title: The Anti-Marketer. Everytime I try to do some type of marketing thing, it turns into a big fail. I mean like, zero sales for that period. Obviously, not the point of marketing. I actually bought a fairly large ad on a big romance site and was put on a page with some heavy-hitters…. sales drop to zero. I did an interview with someone who focuses on hand selling {Read More}
When It’s Embarrassing to be Indie
April 7, 2013 by 4 Comments
I know most of you are guessing the answer is: When people ask who your publisher is. Nope. Although, I always think that’s funny because how many people can name the publisher of the last ten books they’ve read? Right. No. Lately I’ve been embarrassed to be an Indie because of all the anger and arguing. I really don’t care who has what opinion about each topic. Personally, I like to look at things from every angle and make my {Read More}
Going Indie: What They Don’t Tell You
April 5, 2013 by 3 Comments
This is one of those posts that’s going to tick off a large majority of inde writers. I seem to write a lot of them. Anyway, I’m gearing up to go on a fairly large publishing sprint (New Theories in Love stories and a surprise series coming out this summer.) But, with all that going on, it’s kind of a game changer. My expenses are going up (paying editors for each series and proofers. A new cover artist. I’m going {Read More}
What It Looks Like From The Inside
March 27, 2013 by Leave a Comment
There’s a weird thing about writing — or more, about being an author. Very few people know what your writing life really looks like. Sure, your close friends know your process and cycle, but everyone else… probably not so much. Don’t get me wrong, a lot of writers talk daily on twitter or their blogs about where they are and how things are going, etc. It doesn’t work for most writers. Outside of people who can do it with wit {Read More}
It’s Not Fair VERSUS Get Over it
March 25, 2013 by Leave a Comment
One thing you see a lot of in the publishing world is the whole “It’s Not Fair” thing. Okay, you see it a lot in life, but since I have no life, only books, let’s talk about it in the writing world. The list of things that aren’t fair is insanely long. It’s not fair that: people give your book 1 star without reading it some books get front page ads just because editors invest more time and money on {Read More}
It’s A Business, People
March 14, 2013 by Leave a Comment
Two things happened in the last 12 hours to get this post twirling about in my head. The first was last night talking to Roomie who didn’t understand the amount of money I was considering slapping down to begin the next project (It’s not Ben & Jenna LOL – but please feel free to keep asking!) The new project is a Super Secret I’d hoped to announce next month, but because of my own incorrect expectations about how long it {Read More}
What Indie Authors Should Really Be Worrying About
February 26, 2013 by 2 Comments
If you didn’t read my post What I Don’t Understand Right Now, you may want to consider it before joining the conversation. Not necessary, but just a little more background info. What it discusses is my view on the “good enough” situation we’re seeing with a lot of indie publishing. I won’t rehash the whole thing, but I think it’s one of my posts that’s definitely worth reading if you’re a writer and maybe if you’re a reader. I’ve put {Read More}
What I Don’t Understand Right Now
February 15, 2013 by 5 Comments
I’m going to kick this off by admitting I realize the irony of the next paragraph. Just because someone has published (trad or indie) a book, has a blog, or is even making a living as a writer, does not mean their advice is valid, worthwhile or even safe to your career. If you want to go it alone as an indie-pub’d person, you absolutely need to learn the difference between “someone with an opinion” and a “topic expert.” Now, just to be {Read More}