I don’t post too terribly often on this blog, but sometimes I think on something that feels more important and requires something bigger than a short post on social media.
Today, I want to talk about quitting.
Cover Design: Some Quick Tips
So, I often see people posting on social media asking for feedback on their book covers. More often than not, I don’t respond to these publicly for a variety of different reasons. You never can tell who is receptive to honest feedback and constructive criticism, and typically I err on the side of caution and stay silent to avoid hurting anyone’s feelings or looking snobbish. My rule of thumb for all public postings is to keep it positive. I don’t want drama, but I do give feedback if asked privately. Not everyone appreciates my honesty, but… Anyway, I digress.
Guest post – Swimming Upstream: Telling the Story that Doesn’t Sell
I have a guest post for you! I’ve known Tee Morris (and his amazing wife, Philippa Ballantine) for many years, and have been blessed to have their support and wisdom at my fingertips whenever I needed it. So today, I’d like to share the thoughts of the Yodas I’ve had access to since the earliest days of my writing career. I recently posed a question that I think a lot of authors have asked themselves (or been asked by others): What makes you keep writing certain books when you’re made to question whether or not they’ll succeed?
Tee brings up some excellent points to consider here, so if you’re debating whether or not to write the thing you want to write, do keep reading. -SH
World Building at ZappCon!
I had a little adventure this weekend! I had the awesome opportunity to fly out to Fresno, CA for a great little convention called ZappCon. I’m still working through some of the awesome of the trip, but I’m feeling over my jet lag enough to address one of the happenings today.
On Sunday, I had a Q&A session with a small group of folks about world building in fiction. At first, I wasn’t really sure I was overly qualified to speak on such a topic (or anything, really, LOL), but there were some excellent questions raised that maybe others are curious about, in as far as my opinion on them exists.
Balticon Panel Review: Getting Noticed in the Self-Publishing World
So, this past weekend was Balticon 49, and, as always, it was a lovely (albeit exhausting) time. It’s great to catch up with old friends, but I had something else I took away this year from the experience. On Monday, the last day of the con, I had the extreme pleasure of being part of a panel on how to stand out as a self-published author when everyone is self-publishing. Now, I’m not sure I’m a foremost authority on this, but I think I’ve got a pretty good idea of some basics, and the other four people on the panel generally agreed with what I had to say and added bits of their own that left me nodding in firm agreement. So here’s the gist of the discussion distilled down for you.
Helpful Tips: Teaser Images
Occasionally I have conversations with people that make me think there’s maybe a need for me to post about certain topics. Yesterday, I had a rather in-depth discussion with an author friend who was attempting her first teaser images and was wondering if I had any advice (spoiler: YES I DO OMG). If you’re unfamiliar with the concept, teaser images are a quick impact way to promo your book, and typically include a very short excerpt of your story, an eye-catching image, and the title/author name. The conversation I had about teasers made me really stop and think about the subject, which leads me to believe maybe other folks might have the same questions my friend did. So, here goes. Here’s some things to consider when building a teaser image for your book:
Got Swag?
So, I’m way, way behind in posting this, but house repairs from a water leak, a sudden influx of design work, and a book release sort of piled on top of me all at once. But now, I’m back at it and am here to bring you another post in the indie author cost/recoup series. This time, we’re talking about physical promotional costs.
Shaking Your Digital Money Maker
Another week, another post. This time, we’re talking about the advertising costs associated with book sales. Admittedly, this is the part I hate. I don’t know many people that like the marketing part of selling books, honestly. I die a little inside every time I share a promo post on Facebook or tweet out a link to my book. Mostly, it’s because I don’t feel like being my friend comes with the requirement of buying my books. I know a certain portion of my social media network is there only to hear about my books, but… yeah. Really not my favorite thing to do, and I’m probably a terrible salesman, but I’m getting a little better with the not-throwing-up-in-my-mouth thing when I do promo.
So why do it? The things above are free. It doesn’t cost me a cent to tweet my book or post to my Facebook author page. I still do it, because how else will people find out about my books if I don’t tell them?
So You Want to Be a Writer…
The last week I’ve had a Facebook feed filled with authors responding to/venting about complaints they’ve received in reviews or emails from readers. To add to that, I’ve gotten many messages or questions over the last year asking about why I write and advice for someone just starting out.
I think I’ve come up with a way to address some of these things, but I can’t do it all in one post. So, I’m going to start a little series of helpful (I hope) blog posts talking about things people should know before diving into this business (or looking down on indie authors).