Riley Adams's Blog, page 100

Print is Still Important

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

I’ve found that, bottom-line, readers are still interested in purchasing and reading books in print.  My print income remains a stable monthly source of revenue.  If there is any lag in putting a new release into print format, I do immediately hear from print-loving readers.  Now I start putting a new release through the uploading process for print (which does take a bit longer to go live) before uploading the digital format to retail sites.  I’d recommend that everyone offer their books in this format.

A little more information about print options and costs:

Options for the self-publishing writer: CreateSpace (Amazon) and IngramSpark

CreateSpace: “We make it simple to distribute your books, music, and video through Internet retail outlets, your own website, and other bookstores, retailers, libraries, and academic institutions. Get started today! CreateSpace is a DBA of On-Demand Publishing LLC, part of the Amazon group of companies.”

IngramSpark: “IngramSpark is a new Publish On DemandSM platform. It’s an easy-to-use, online publishing tool that provides publishers with simple, cost-effective access to Ingram’s global distribution network for print titles and e-book content.”

What I’m doing: I’ve got my print formats in both CreateSpace and Ingram.  I have CreateSpace for US distribution, not expanded distribution (these will all basically be Amazon.com sales of printed books) and Ingram (for US and worldwide bookstores and worldwide book orders…it’s cheaper for non-US readers through Ingram than CS because of  cheaper shipping costs).  If a reader asks a bookstore to order my book for them, it will be less expensive for the store and the reader to get it through IngramSpark.

Worldwide distribution: As Giacomo Giammateo wrote for ALLi (you should read this entire article):

“Ingram has an edge on shipping internationally. It is fast, easy, and far less expensive. The reason is simple. Ingram has printing facilities in the UK, AU, and partner agreements in Germany and other countries. I can ship a book to a customer in Australia almost as inexpensively as I can other parts of the US using Ingram. Ingram does charge a $1.50 surcharge per order for shipping though, and CS doesn’t.”

About those ISBNs:

I recently received an email from a writer who had picked up on part of an issue, but didn’t get the full picture.  She believed she shouldn’t make her books available through Amazon’s CreateSpace because they would be listed as the publisher on record and she’d specifically purchased ISBNs from Bowker so that she could be the publisher on record.

However, there’s an option on CreateSpace to list your own ISBNs or to use their free ones. Using their free ones would mean that CreateSpace was listed as the publisher. This also holds true for other formats (for Smashwords, for example, if you use their free ISBNs).

At IngramSpark, there’s no choice–you must list your own ISBNs. Be prepared to visit Bowker‘s site if you choose to go in this direction.  Although…personally speaking…I’ve purchased my own ISBNs from the very start and feel it’s important that my sales are both counted via ISBN and that I have complete ownership in every way of my work.

About costs:

Design costs: You will need to have a PDF of the front and back cover and spine.  You could go back to your original cover designer and provide them with your back cover copy, etc.  You could also (if you have the rights to your design), take the cover image you have to a place like Fiverr to get a full cover.  Author J.P. Medved wrote about his experience there for Lindsay Buroker’s blog.  You end up with something that looks like this (this is from my book designer, Karri Klawiter who does all my covers in all formats):

Formatting:  You will need to upload a PDF of your book that matches the print size you’ve chosen on CreateSpace and/or IngramSpark.  There are formatters who can do this for you, including mine,  Rik Hall.  You could also use a free online conversion service (Reedsy, for instance).  If you use Draft2Digital to distribute your books, you can upload your Word doc to their site and they will allow you to download a PDF).

ISBN:  I buy these in bulk so the cost is minimized. As I mentioned above, you can use the free ISBNs with CreateSpace if cost is prohibitive. If you use IngramSpark, you’ll need to add the cost of an ISBN.

Production costs: With CreateSpace, there is no production cost involved.  IngramSpark has a $49 fee for each new title.

Print-on-demand is inventory-free.  Readers or bookstores order books and they are printed as they’re ordered.  There are no stacks of books in our garages or closets.  In fact, it’s so inventory-free that I would urge everyone to make sure we do actually have a few, fresh copies of our books in case an event pops up so that we don’t have to pay for rush delivery for a signing.

Are your books in print?  What service do you use?  Thought on print or anything that I left out?

Options for putting our books in print and costs of doing so:
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Twitterific Writing Links

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

A weekly roundup of the best writing links from around the web.

Twitterific writing links are fed into the Writer’s Knowledge Base search engine (developed by writer and software engineer Mike Fleming) which has over 30,000 free articles on writing related topics. It’s the search engine for writers.

Revising for Pacing:  http://ow.ly/T8C53034ebt @p2p_editor

Communication in our story world:  http://ow.ly/H3Po3034dSI by A.D. Shrum

10 Tricks for Getting Your Book Reviewed by a Book Blogger:  http://ow.ly/bipZ3034e1i  @sugarbeatbc  @annerallen

3 Cases of Complicated Parenthetical Punctuation:  http://ow.ly/Cy4Z3034dBX @writing_tips

12 Stages of Physical Intimacy: Info for Writers http://ow.ly/P7ih3034e82 @FionaQuinnBooks               

Is Your Character Considering Suicide? Info for Writers:  http://ow.ly/Rhvd3034dYH @FionaQuinnBooks

A Look at Plot Twists and Smoking Guns:  http://ow.ly/MBh83036fvv @CSLakin

Common Structural Problems in Manuscripts:  http://ow.ly/PJQU3036g7d @Book_Arch

3 Ways to Build a Better Plot:  http://ow.ly/QaZA3036gKg @Janice_Hardy

Dealing in uncertainty, the essay may be the perfect form for our time:  http://ow.ly/90HR3036gST @colindickey  @latimesbooks

Sister act: female friendship in fiction from Woolf to Ferrante and Zadie Smith:  http://ow.ly/HFPj3031Kcj @AlexClark3  @GuardianBooks

The Geek Writer: Using Technology to Self-Publish Your Novel:  http://ow.ly/8idE3031KAb @ProWritingAid

9 Essential Social Media Platforms:  http://ow.ly/ggTv3034dEs @Writers_Write

The Character/Plot Connection:  http://ow.ly/NYky3034ee9 by Art Holcomb @storyfix

How to Run a Contest on Your Blog:  http://ow.ly/eEzu3034dKu @DebraEckerling

Content Marketing Examples for Authors: Fiction & Nonfiction:  http://ow.ly/MRI33034ekp @iconiContent  @WritetoDone

How to Succeed as a Female Writer in TV & Film:  http://ow.ly/NeW03031LpV @RosanneWelch  @WritersDigest

Ted Hughes and Simon Armitage: How to get teenagers reading poetry: http://ow.ly/pC0h3031L3U @GuardianBooks

8 Tips on Writing Dual-Time Mysteries:  http://ow.ly/raTp303o0Au @MKTodAuthor

5 things 1st-time authors should have in place on launch day:  http://ow.ly/ZKgn303nZyT @stephfaris @MasonCanyon

The Benefits of Talking Through Your Scenes:  http://ow.ly/Qdyr3031Lyf @Janice_Hardy

20 Comics to Read at the Beach This Summer:  http://ow.ly/2wfY3031KXp @abrahamjoseph  @vulture

10 Writers Who Did Quit Their Day Jobs:  http://ow.ly/ZCuV3031KvQ @TheBookMaven  @lithub

8 Ways to Make Your Story Boring: http://ow.ly/guvW3031KV8 @ProWritingAid

In Praise of Minor Literature:  http://ow.ly/oY8V3031LgW by Matthew St. Ville Hunte @parisreview

5 Guerilla Tactics for Promoting Your Debut Novel: http://ow.ly/bZ0g3031Lv7 @manzanitafire

Of Thee I Read: The United States in Literature:  http://ow.ly/sdkQ3031KrV @jennymedina  @nytimesbooks

Warning Signs that You Landed a Bad Agent:  http://ow.ly/TBH13031KD6 @katrinschumann  @GrubWriters

What do readers want in a good, old-fashioned whodunnit?  http://ow.ly/ido93031KRK @CalebPirtle

4 Classic Writing Techniques That Belong in the Past: http://ow.ly/bis23031KJR @DBlakeAuthor  @mythcreants

Criticism in YA Can Come From Within: http://ow.ly/MzVZ302ZAuX @KimSabatini

Heists as elements of crime fiction: http://ow.ly/7fKs303jxwY @mkinberg

Sharjah Pub. aiming to form ‘a bridge between Arab cultures and with the rest of the world’:  http://ow.ly/SWsQ303jyyZ @Porter_Anderson

3 Painless Ways to Exercise Your Writing Skills:  http://ow.ly/rZTz302ZAZe @sarahvmusgrove

Affect Versus Effect: Quick and Dirty Tips:  http://ow.ly/Se0C302ZAs1 @GrammarGirl

10 Steps to a Successful Book Launch:  http://ow.ly/QfoX302ZB46 @msheatherwebb

How To Get into the ‘Flow State’ and Be a Productive Writer:  http://ow.ly/CbdF302ZAzg @SukhiJutla

Social media: what to put ‘out there’:  http://ow.ly/Mx8E302ZAQ1 @jodimeadows

How to create an effective website:  http://ow.ly/z1YK302ZL9t @DanBlank

Adding wonder into your manuscript:  http://ow.ly/aP9K302ZAK4 @DonMaass

7 Forms of Emphasis in Writing:  http://ow.ly/3M0p302ZAql @writing_tips

5 Ways to Make People Hate a Hero:  http://ow.ly/XvaQ302ZAwG @mythcreants  by Chris Winkle

How Spotify Can Make You a Better Writer:  http://ow.ly/5y72302ZAi3  @MahinWriter

Adding Subtext with Dialogue Cues:  http://ow.ly/gkTc302ZB5a @MargieLawson

Authors on Short Stories, Novellas, and Write for Hire: http://ow.ly/8N3G302ZANB

After Years of Contention, Israel’s National Library Gains Kafka Collection:  http://ow.ly/7fCm303jytk @DennisAbrams2 @pubperspectives

Creating Believable Characters:  http://ow.ly/BpKE303jxrz @jerdipego @annerallen

Revive a scene with verbs:  http://ow.ly/WF3r302Zsfg @NovelEditor

You’ve Published Your First Story in a Pro Magazine…Now What? http://ow.ly/R4AO302Zse0 @chris_shultz81

Decoding Brazil’s Beleaguered Publishing Market:  http://ow.ly/WH5L303jyjQ @Porter_Anderson @sextante @pubperspectives

5 Steps to a Killer Book Talk:  http://ow.ly/IFxE302Zsoi @katrap40

Theme As the Engine Of Plot:  http://ow.ly/CbzB302ZsiJ @AnthonyEhlers

How to Write a Romantic Novel for All Genre Lovers: http://ow.ly/vh0E302ZsKS @nownovel

Narrative Distance and Deep POV: http://ow.ly/JcCt302ZshJ @NovelEditor

Heroes, Heroines, and Anti-ones:  Too http://ow.ly/wRa0302Zsqm @Margo_L_Dill

Why You Should Stop Selling Your Book (and Do Something Better): http://ow.ly/XVGQ302Zstd @AP_Fuchs

10 Steps to an Unputdownable Book:  http://ow.ly/GDxh302ZsHj @nownovel

12 Questions to Ask Your Character about the Setting She Is In:  http://ow.ly/f1Kf302Zsni @CSLakin

Blog to Book: What You Should Consider:  http://ow.ly/sBWY302ZsIZ @ZoeMMcCarthy

Exercise on Character and Story Development:  http://ow.ly/kWsE303iNgO @Roz_Morris

“When Are You Going To Write for Adults?” http://ow.ly/CKy2302Zsks @joypreble

Rejection isn’t Failure:  http://ow.ly/K7WK302XkOk @tamsinsilver

10 eye-opening tips to add impact to your storytelling: http://ow.ly/yXgQ303iNcr @Roz_Morris

Learning The Ropes As A Hybrid Author: http://ow.ly/ozUL302XjX2 @katieorourke78  @WomenWriters

The Fading ‘Romance of Publishing’: http://ow.ly/xQUj303eYgQ @pressfuturist @leenanorms @pubperspectives

What Makes Zombie Stories So Popular:  http://ow.ly/aD3r302Xkoq @DBlakeAuthor

How to Use a Photo Shoot for Character Development: http://ow.ly/SjyS302XfhF @hodgeswriter

Burn after Reading: On Writerly Self-Immolation:  http://ow.ly/Yr2S302Xfpu @nickripatrazone  @The_Millions

Story Structure Case Study of  “Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets”:  http://ow.ly/fX4A302XkqW @kylieday0

The Difference Between Character Habits And Quirks:  http://ow.ly/c8rO302Xf2M @paulawynne

How to Tap into Your Passion Every Time You Write:  http://ow.ly/kNdr302XkTb @CSLakin

128 Words Writers Can Use Instead of ‘Very’ :  http://ow.ly/M1fw302Xf88 @WhereWritersWin

Dialogue and Subtext: The Spoken and the Unspoken:  http://ow.ly/MX7O302XjMM @WomenWriters  by Joni M. Fisher

10 medical SF/F novels:  http://ow.ly/ysgm302Xk8L @tordotcom  by Stubby the Rocket

How to Find and Reach Influencers to Promote Your Book:  http://ow.ly/DhvX302UWUH @AngelaAckerman

President Obama’s Summer Reading List:  http://ow.ly/QdXV303gsb8 @SCBegley @TIME

Poland’s Sonia Draga on the short shelf life of Polish books and 3 other points of concern:  http://ow.ly/hDJM303eY4J @Porter_Anderson

Creating Sizzling Conflict Between Hero and Heroine:  http://ow.ly/foZx302UWMc  @lansi26

How to Create a Website That Works in 10 Easy Steps:  http://ow.ly/Or8E302UUxt @Bookgal  @BookWorksNYC

Does Fiction Actually Make Us More Empathetic? http://ow.ly/DFbf302UTUk by Miguel Conde @lithub

#Wordmongering and How it Made One Writing Career Possible:  http://ow.ly/zwSv303f3eu @MonicaMarieV for @allieburkebooks

10 steps to writing a book: 100 writing tips:  http://ow.ly/fqpp302UUMS @nownovel

Nuns who leave convents behind as an element in crime fiction: http://ow.ly/p9x5303eXAU @mkinberg

1 Writer’s Reasons for Self-Publishing http://ow.ly/3pvJ302UURt @lucindafwhitney

Writing For Digital Publication: The 3 Things You Need To Know: http://ow.ly/e51n302UUIG @standoutbooks

6 Easy Steps to Planning Out Your Novel:  http://ow.ly/QmQB302UXxr @LMacNaughton

Poetry in contemporary art:  http://ow.ly/f6Pf302UTOV  @newinquiry  @dwpenny

Use Pinterest to Boost Your Website’s SEO:  http://ow.ly/DuFA302UUsB @CaballoFrances  @BookWorksNYC

Delay the Gratification of Launching Your Book:  http://ow.ly/7HkI302UUuO from Fix My Story

115 words for ‘walks’ and 90 words for ‘looks’:  http://ow.ly/UQFg302UX8R @GoIntoTheStory

The Process of Editing: 4 Versions of a Paragraph:  http://ow.ly/wydp303eWVj @Book_Arch @TheIWSG

10 Low-Cost Ways To Market Your Book:  http://ow.ly/j2uo302RAO9 @jckunzjr

Indie Success M. Louisa Locke With Tips for Writers: http://ow.ly/Qmm5303dGBV @mlouisalocke @IndieAuthorALLI

Getting a Big Name to Write Your Book’s Foreword:  http://ow.ly/2JS4302RARd @jckunzjr

Let Go of Perfectionism:  http://ow.ly/M3zR303b4PD @woodwardkaren

International Publishing Notes: Canada, Turkey, UK, USA:  http://ow.ly/1dhV303aWyv @Porter_Anderson @pubperspectives

3 Things a Writer Stopped Doing That Got Him Writing Again:  http://ow.ly/EJbb302RB24 @J_ToddScott @writersdigest

4 Places to Find Your Best Story Conflict: http://ow.ly/3GLP302RAM5 @KMWeiland

Book Cover Redesign as Marketing Tool:  http://ow.ly/igut302RAK6 @AlexandervonNes

5 Top Benefits Of Being An Older Writer: http://ow.ly/bAPN302RBll  @RobinStorey1

4 Truths and 4 Myths That Every New Novelist Should Know: http://ow.ly/xnY9302RAYK @FlorenceOsmund

The best writing links of last week are on Twitterific:
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The post Twitterific Writing Links appeared first on Elizabeth Spann Craig.

8 Tips on Writing Dual-Time Mysteries

by M.K. Tod, @MKTodAuthor

What do The Ashford Affair by Lauren Willig, The Labyrinth by Kate Mosse, The Light in the Ruins by Chris Bohjalian, The Muralist by B.A. Shapiro, and The Lost Sisterhood by Anne Fortier have in common? Answer: they are all dual-time mysteries. I love reading stories like these. But writing one proved to be a significant challenge and demanded a different approach from my previous historical novels.

So what did I learn? Below are eight tips for crafting this type of story.

Are you telling two stories or one? You need to be clear on whether you are telling two stories or one. In other words, the links between each timeline, the character arcs, and essence of the mystery need to integrate seamlessly into one satisfying read. Each timeline must enhance the other. If you conclude that you are telling two stories, you really should write two books.
Both timelines have to engage the readers – finding the balance is critical. I once read only the present day portion of a novel because the historical portion was confusing and added almost nothing to the story. In another instance, my review suggested that the present day story was very thin and could have been eliminated.
Whether separated by fifty years or five hundred, your novel will have two protagonists, one for each time period. Readers must care deeply about both of them. Furthermore, the present day character should be more than merely a narrator for a story set in the past.
Each protagonist must have a distinct voice. Your readers should never be confused about who is in charge of the story at any given point. The thinking, inner dialogue, and perspective of each protagonist should set them apart.
Beyond the distinct voices of your protagonists, readers must be clear about which era they’re in at any point in the novel. This requires careful attention to setting, dialogue, behaviours, events of the time period, possessions, attitudes, and other elements that alert a reader to the era.
Plotting a dual-time mystery is even more complicated than a regular mystery. Clues will emerge from each time period. I developed a table to track every clue regardless of time period and its relevance to the overall mystery. And if you want your readers to puzzle out the mystery as they read, be careful that the earlier storyline doesn’t reveal too much of the mystery too soon.
Avoid jumping back and forth too frequently. Readers need to engage sufficiently in each story before you change the characters and time period. This piece of advice is particularly important in the early chapters when you are establishing characters and setting, creating hooks, and revealing the central questions the story will answer.
The rules of excellent historical fiction still apply. In a 2013 reader survey I conducted, readers said that the top three reasons they read historical fiction are: to bring the past to life, because it’s a great story, and to understand and learn without reading non-fiction. To augment that data, in 2015 readers chose immersed in time and place, superb writing, characters both heroic and human, authentic and educational, and the dramatic arc of history as the top 5 factors in favourite historical fiction. (You can find more survey insights on www.awriterofhistory.com.)

Mysteries are a favourite for fans of historical fiction; 40% of participants in a 2015 survey chose mysteries as one of their top three types of stories to read. Write your dual-time mystery well and it will appeal to mystery lovers as well as lovers of historical fiction.

M.K. Tod writes historical fiction and blogs about all aspects of the genre at A Writer of History . Her latest novel, TIME AND REGRET will be published by Lake Union on August 16, 2016. Mary’s other novels, LIES TOLD IN SILENCE and UNRAVELLED are available from Amazon , Nook ,  Kobo ,  Google Play  and iTunes . She can be contacted on Facebook , Twitter and Goodreads or on her website www.mktod.com .

8 Tips on Writing Dual-Time Mysteries from @MKTodAuthor
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Pre-orders: An Update

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

As I wrote in this post in April 2015 (a post which landed me immediately on a couple of different podcasts to elaborate), I have not been much of a fan of pre-orders.

Why I originally set-up a pre-order

I started a pre-order experiment last October.  At the time, I had every reason to expect that the experiment would be a success.  I’d heard good things about setting up pre-orders on podcasts and from distributors like Mark Coker at Smashwords and Draft2Digital.

Problems during my pre-order

However, I’ve learned I’m apparently too high-strung  to have a ten-month pre-order. I fretted over delivering the book on time during an unusually busy 10 month period (and as I wrote two other books to keep on schedule).  Plus, I was receiving very little income during the pre-order period, despite having a lower price on the release as a pre-release.

It also bothered me that readers seemed confused by the pre-order. I received emails from readers who didn’t understand why they couldn’t yet read the book and why it wasn’t available for pre-order on Amazon.

The reason, FYI, that it wasn’t available on Amazon is because they mark each sale toward the title’s ranking that day instead of allowing the pre-order sales to accumulate and positively impact visibility/ranking on the release day.

The pre-order directly before the release

I never know exactly how long it will take me to write a book, but for some reason it took me very little time to write Cruising for Murder.  It was done in slightly over two months. And, as I suspected, I immediately became antsy once the betas and freelance editor were finished with the manuscript; I was ready to release it.

That was on August 6th. The release date was set for August 20th. I wasn’t sure if I could set the release earlier on Draft2Digital.  I was delighted to discover that I could. I immediately changed the release to August 11th.  I got urgent notices that they needed the final copy right away, so I quickly uploaded the manuscript and back matter.

I abruptly decided to try to set up a pre-order on Amazon for that same five day period. I figured that whatever sales I made in that short pre-order period wouldn’t be enough to mess up my ranking for the first day.

But I wasn’t sure I even could set up a pre-order on Amazon in such a short amount of time.  The final version, according to Amazon, must be uploaded ten days before publication: “Your final version must be uploaded and republished at least 10 days before the release date you set, with the last day for upload starting at midnight, U.S. Eastern time. For example, if you were releasing a book on September 20, you would need to upload and republish it by 11:59 PM Eastern time on September 9 (4:59 AM UTC the following day).”

However,  when I pulled up the window for arranging the pre-order, it allowed me to set the 11th as long as I went ahead and immediately uploaded the final manuscript.

Sales

At Draft2Digital in the week leading up to the release, I had zero sales until the 10th (the day before the launch), when I saw 16 sales.  The next day I had 43 more (these are non-Amazon retailers…Nook, iBooks, etc.)

At Amazon, it was a similar story. Zero sales until the 10th, when I had 33 and then I had 121 on the release day.

So…do readers procrastinate? Would they rather buy a book when they can actually read it?  I can’t blame them because I think I’m that type of reader, myself.

The good things I can say about pre-orders:

Everything was in place on release day.  The retailers were simultaneously ready to sell. Once I upload the final manuscript, I have time to do all the other pre-launch things that I need to do.
When the book released on Amazon, the ‘also-boughts,’ the list of recommended reads that Amazon provides readers populated immediately.  So my book was showing up as a suggestion right away.
I had 3 reviews within 3 days of release. I think that may speak to the fact that the books were delivered on launch day which may have given my most avid readers the chance to read it right away.

Additional notes:

If I had to do it again, I’d make the pre-order period much shorter.

I’d set it about a week out and I’d upload it to both Amazon and Draft2Digital/Smashwords.  Then I’d announce the pre-order in my newsletter.

Not only that, but I’d upload the book to both PODs CreateSpace and Ingram the week before the release and allow them to (usually slowly) go through pre-production approval and become available for order, even prior to the release of the digital copies.

Have you tried pre-orders?  How did they work for you?

An update on how pre-orders worked for one author:
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Twitterific Writing Links

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

A weekly roundup of the best writing links from around the web.

Twitterific writing links are fed into the Writer’s Knowledge Base search engine (developed by writer and software engineer Mike Fleming) which has over 30,000 free articles on writing related topics. It’s the search engine for writers.

The Fastest-Growing Format in Publishing: Audiobooks:  http://ow.ly/tzrX302QUaY @maloneyfiles

3 Book Marketing Shots in the Dark:  http://ow.ly/lapU302QRJY @DebbieYoungBN  @IndieAuthorALLI

Pros and cons of Smashwords:  http://ow.ly/sYce302QUkk @LaurieBoris

Taking the Misery Out of Book Marketing:  http://ow.ly/xEvp303cDvQ @rxena77

A Hobbit’s Guide to Launching Your Book:  http://ow.ly/vr3E302QRdG @DanBlank  @WriterUnboxed

Women Crime Writers Are Not a Fad:  http://ow.ly/agGn302QULq @lithub  @RealLiveCritic

Reading Burroughs’ (Tarzan author’s) Biography as a Writer: http://ow.ly/5feJ302QRR4 @DerekKunsken  @BlackGateDotCom

7 Questions Authors Need to Ask About Copyright:  http://ow.ly/6XAV302QUfr @AshKrafton

5 Tips to Master the Perfect Character Arc:  http://ow.ly/Nzzf302QU41 @sacha_black

NetGalley Book Review Program: A Case Study: http://ow.ly/kdCO302QRo5 @dkudler

How to Use Facebook to Reach Niche Readers:  http://ow.ly/SQKW302QR1u @BarbMorgenroth  for @annerallen

Global Reach for Self-published Books:  http://ow.ly/c7UR302QRx2 @HollowLandsBook  @IndieAuthorALLI

Resting Your Writing:  http://ow.ly/VXo1302RAWR @Lindasclare

International Publishing Notes: Canada, Turkey, UK, USA:  http://ow.ly/1dhV303aWyv @Porter_Anderson @pubperspectives

The Holiday Season Is Looming. Will Your Book Be Ready? http://ow.ly/4QBr302RBtk @BookWorksNYC  @rcutlerSpark

What Should We Write Next?  http://ow.ly/TtfD302RAVD @JamiGold

Let Go of Perfectionism:  http://ow.ly/M3zR303b4PD @woodwardkaren

The benefits of aspirational goal-setting:  http://ow.ly/CJZx302RB8c  @zara_quentin

Use Calibre to Create EPUB & MOBI Versions of Your Book:  http://ow.ly/Oqm7302RASd @carlaking

Getting a Big Name to Write Your Book’s Foreword:  http://ow.ly/2JS4302RARd @jckunzjr

Poland: Bookstores Struggle to Survive:  http://ow.ly/wvTa303aWkY @Porter_Anderson @Polishrights

Publicity stunts as an element in crime fiction: http://ow.ly/ElI0302Vaue @mkinberg

15 Princess Bride Quotes That Explain A Writer’s Life:  http://ow.ly/CNEF302QPYN @LZMarieAuthor

Tips for pitching at conferences:  http://ow.ly/6wxe303aVsg @TerriBischoff

Tips for long-term blogging: http://ow.ly/4Fqt303b4zt

Sisters in Crime on Diversity in Publishing:  http://ow.ly/wA2h303aW9m @Porter_Anderson @pubperspectives

Creativity has its seasons:  http://ow.ly/nm3K303aV6u @austinkleon

Symbols & Context:  http://ow.ly/wJic302QPTg @LZMarieAuthor

10 ways to fall back in love with your art:  http://ow.ly/MLIj302QPOA @gigirosenberg

Addressing the Unanswerable Questions About Writing A Novel: http://ow.ly/twXd302QQ2y @storyfix

Power-up your writing in 5 steps:  http://ow.ly/vLgM302QPDM from Write Track

5 Signs Your Character Is Fully Developed: http://ow.ly/ZNXC302QPnm @mythcreants  by Chris Winkle

On Reading, Imagination, and Pokemon Go: http://ow.ly/FwNf302QPiI @p2p_editor

A Guide to Sparkly Storytelling:  http://ow.ly/AkOb302QPxp by Sheila Wisz Ellayn @mythicscribes

7 Tips for Better Book Swag:  http://ow.ly/6Qui302QQbz @RobinRWrites

6 1/2 Harsh Truths About Publishing:  http://ow.ly/Z09F302QPkP @p2p_editor

5 Essential Elements Every Fantasy Novel Needs:  http://ow.ly/cEcd302QQ6g @ClaireABradshaw  @WritersEdit

Pinterest for Authors:  http://ow.ly/a9zs302QPs5 @WhereWritersWin

How To Get Rid Of Books: the Life-Changing Magic of Thinning the Herd: http://ow.ly/oqvo302QWvo by Nell Beram

Flashbacks: When They’re Not Appropriate and Tips for When They Are:  http://ow.ly/upKj302QWrj @ZoeMMcCarthy

The Difference Between Beta Readers and ARC Readers:  http://ow.ly/qJ4V302QWlP @MelissaFlicks @BadRedheadMedia

Getting Good Feedback From Beta Readers:  http://ow.ly/q5bG302QW6w @BookBaby @fiedawn

Self-Publishing Companies Through a Legal Lens: http://ow.ly/luhF302QVPJ @HelenSedwick @BookWorksNYC

Are blog hops worthwhile? http://ow.ly/I58K302QVJB @HelenHollick @IndieAuthorALLI

The Office Politics of Workplace Fiction by Women:  http://ow.ly/b6Kp302QVvP @lydiakiesling @pageturner @The_Millions

The Role of Short Private Print Runs:  http://ow.ly/jTZ6302QVcG @DebbieYoungBN @IndieAuthorALLI

When you don’t have a story to work on:  http://ow.ly/MSmC302GSFB @OrlyKonig

5 Easy Ways to Fight Writer’s Block in Your Second Language:  http://ow.ly/zURK302GSBh @ESLWriteAway

Creativity Vs Consumption:  http://ow.ly/1sM0302GSxx @SukhiJutla

Tips for story conflict: http://ow.ly/Xqsl3032BEQ @p2p_editor

Remembering the Worst Book Signing Ever:  http://ow.ly/PoFt302De7g @lorijakiela @lithub

5 Tips for Writing Dialogue:  http://ow.ly/38aK302Dbin @Margo_L_Dill

Parasites: A Primer for Writers:  http://ow.ly/tyK0302DaYU  by Codey Amprim @mythicscribes

Shelters featured in crime fiction:  http://ow.ly/Veie302VakE @mkinberg

Story Structure in Harry Potter Results in a Satisfying Ending:  http://ow.ly/lNv0302DcPD @RiteLikeRowling

Do Ebook Preorders Work?  http://ow.ly/Apds302DcYe @jakonrath

12 Memorable Closing Lines:  http://ow.ly/M4k1302DbxU @TomBlunt

Writers: 6 Red Flags Telling You To Stop And Take Care Of Your Wellness:  http://ow.ly/7kph302Db62 @eahaltomauthor  @colleen_m_story

What Should Fiction Do? The Limits of Cinematic Storytelling: http://ow.ly/FnST302DdKw @bonnienadzam  @lithub

5 Books In Which Superpowers Have Unfortunate Side Effects:  http://ow.ly/RIFQ302Ddrl @finesarah  @tordotcom

Rewriting the 7 Rules of Dialogue:  http://ow.ly/mxxV302Ddwi @readstevenjames

Cliches 101: Links and Resources: http://ow.ly/XHcY302Dd5z @ceciliaedits

Enhancing Argument Scenes:  http://ow.ly/q9sF302DdAl @RayneHall

The Gothic Secrets Every Steampunk Writer Should Know: http://ow.ly/cdwQ302DbfU @standoutbooks

How Genre Categories Can Make or Break Your Book: http://ow.ly/yBFU302DcE2 @RiteLikeRowling

How To Succeed as an Author:  the Secret You Already Know: http://ow.ly/IzGV302C2W7 @BadRedheadMedia

Why Perfectionism Is Holding You Back and How to Fix It:  http://ow.ly/vW2Y302C3AX @SukhiJutla

On the Scarcity of Apocalyptic Fiction in Chinese Literature: http://ow.ly/qLWG302VboB @DennisAbrams2 @pubperspectives

Filtering: HD for your writing:  http://ow.ly/tWCw302y6Ze @emma_darwin

11 Essential Ingredients Every Blog Post Needs [Infographic]:  http://ow.ly/clsX302C3fG @demianfarnworth

13 Questions to Ask Before Submitting to a Literary Journal : http://ow.ly/Cgyo302C3Eu @erikadreifus  @lithub

Making your Character Shine From Page One:  http://ow.ly/3JiM302C2hZ @winellroad

3 Writing Lessons Learned from Hamilton the Musical:  http://ow.ly/G8ck302C38y @JennyBravoBooks

5 factors to consider when choosing your primary social media channels for promo: http://ow.ly/CYAf302C2KV @cksyme

How to Write a Binge-Worthy Book Series:  http://ow.ly/RP5v302C2Zu @JennyBravoBooks

Regionalisms in Writing:  http://ow.ly/4Nid302C3qH @lisajlickel

Violence 101 and How it Differs for Men and Women:  http://ow.ly/Cd8j302C2HC @FionaQuinnBooks  with Rory Miller

The 5 Key Turning Points in Your Novel:  http://ow.ly/mP8n302C3yd @CSLakin

6 Steps to Build the Opening Scenes of Your Romance Novel: http://ow.ly/VLY53033esz @lornafaith

Brazil as featured in crime fiction stories:  http://ow.ly/EBWh302Vaak @mkinberg

Telephones as elements in crime fiction: http://ow.ly/965o3031FfD @mkinberg

The Arab and Latin American Connection: A Trade Delegation Prepares: http://ow.ly/g1Oe302VaR9 @Porter_Anderson @pubperspectives

4 Steps To Get More Social Media Engagement On Fewer Channels:  http://ow.ly/GR2f302B03Z @cksyme

Writing the First Chapter of a Novel:  Tips and Fixes:  http://ow.ly/r3eQ302B26o @RuthHarrisBooks

The subtle art of translating foreign fiction:  http://ow.ly/oeLc302B2sb @MsRachelCooke

Revising for Pacing:  http://ow.ly/hOOi302B0jw @p2p_editor

How to Use Fear to Beat Resistance:  http://ow.ly/BxMB302B1iv @timgrahl

On Gendered Book Covers and Being a Woman Designer:  http://ow.ly/UoZF302B2IN @JenHeuer  @lithub

Coming to Grips with Subtext:  http://ow.ly/YmHt302B08X @AJHumpage

4 Resources to Help You Brainstorm Your Next Blog Post:  http://ow.ly/Srjh302B0rJ @TheCoolestCool

Facing the Harsh Truths About Publishing:  http://ow.ly/W0Tm302B0ha @p2p_editor

7 Tips for Paranormal Writers:  http://ow.ly/uGvO302B0e8 @WordDreams

An Experiment in Fostering Creative Flow:  http://ow.ly/ybDw302B1qY @barbaraoneal

The Fastest-Growing Format in Publishing: Audiobooks:  http://ow.ly/A8ps302B2CU @maloneyfiles  @WSJ

New Universal Links from Draft2Digital:  http://ow.ly/e9Bn302Uaj4 @IndieAuthorALLI @Draft2Digital @DanWoodOk

Too Distracted to Write? Here’s Your Next Step:  http://ow.ly/D9rv302yxXG @RosanneBane

Making a living from writing books: what works, what doesn’t:  http://ow.ly/ly4l302y6Xa @emma_darwin

Chasing the Clouds of Rights Issues: Ixxus’ Steve Odart http://ow.ly/auhm302SouK @steveodart @Porter_Anderson

The Difference Between Trying and Doing:  http://ow.ly/pALb302yy7D @MichaelHyatt

Making the Black Moment in a Novel Even Blacker:  http://ow.ly/3CED302yxQI @RayneHall

3 Painless Ways to Patch Plot Holes:  http://ow.ly/mu4n302yy6d by Chris Winkle @mythcreants

10 Writing Ideas to Help You Get Creative:  http://ow.ly/EEqq302yxTs @jesslaw

Before You Try to Write a Book, Complete These 3 Tasks:  http://ow.ly/qt9A302yy94 @JerryJenkins

How to DIY Your MFA:  http://ow.ly/tUMq302yy4z @WritersDigest  @DIYMFA

Don’t Wait to Build Your Potential Book-Buying Audience: http://ow.ly/UwIJ302yxZ1 @crystallyn

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Long-Term Blogging, Part II

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

In part one  of this series, I covered setting up a blog and maintaining a blogging schedule.  But that’s only part of the process. Today I’ve got ideas for post content (since our writing is the most important part of our blog) and finding/connecting with an audience (since no one wants to blog to thin air).

Tips for content:

Comments on your blog posts can inspire other posts.  Many times my blog commenters have either asked questions or suggested future posts.

Expand on topics other bloggers have covered (giving credit to the original source). Sometimes I’ll run across interesting posts that inspire me to experiment with a writing or promo approach.  I post on my results and how they might have differed from the original writer’s.

Update older posts (with an eye to not wrecking your SEO).  For those of us with years of posted content on our blogs, there’s always the option of updating older posts with fresh content.  Since it’s not a good idea to repost blogs from an SEO standpoint, it’s probably best to use the older content as the basis for a mostly-new post.

Break longer content into shorter posts.  This approach certainly helps fill up a blog’s editorial calendar. I’ve gone back and forth on this through the years, but now my posts are usually pretty short.  If there’s a complex topic, breaking it down into a couple of different parts can help.  I keep reading that most blog readers prefer short posts since they’re skimming on their phones. I don’t mind long posts, myself … what’s your own preference?

Blog to themes. Personally, I don’t do this, but many of the blogs I follow have themed days: something on the writing craft one day out of the week, a link roundup on another, and something promo-related on a 3rd.   Sort of like Taco Tuesdays or Meatless Mondays for blogs. I think this likely helps with blog planning.

Respond to industry news. If you follow the publishing business (and we all really should), the rapidly changing industry provides much to comment on.

Share resources. This is a favorite of mine, as a blog reader.  I love to hear about the newest apps that are helpful for writers, free courses, and interesting articles.

Readability.  While not related to the content itself, the formatting of posts can impact how widely they’re read and shared.  Many blog readers have tight schedules and are skimming articles on their phones.  It’s important to make posts easy to read by using plenty of white space, bold lettering, and/or headers.

Engagement: 

Share online.  You can reach a wider audience if you share your posts on Facebook, Google Plus, or Twitter

Respond to your comments.  Responding to comments creates a discussion group and can lend almost a forum-feel to a blog. I try to respond to every comment as soon as I can.  I’ve set up the blog so that readers can be notified of replies to their comments.

Visit the blogs of those who comment on your posts.  This is especially important when  building a readership, but is vital later on, too—when we’ve established relationships with our blog readers.

End your posts with questions.  This is a well-known tactic to increase engagement on a post, but I’ve found it’s a great way to learn from others’ methods.

Finally, benefits to blogging: 

Is it worth it?  For me it is.  Blogging has helped me share ideas with other writers and establish online friendships. It’s also given me a chance to thoughtfully consider my own writing and promo approaches and what’s worked and what hasn’t.  Blogging also provides discipline and a nice writing warm up.   It brings in traffic to my website, raising the site’s ranking on search engines. What’s more, it’s given me a platform from which I get public speaking opportunities.

What have you learned about creating better blog content or engagement?  What do you see as the benefits to blogging?

And, as a note to my readers, I did have a release yesterday.  :)  Book ten in the Myrtle Clover series,  Cruising for Murder , launched. 

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Long-Term Blogging, Part I

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

My first post on this blog (which started out at Blogger) was on August 9, 2008.  Tomorrow marks 8 years of blogging.

When I first started blogging, I don’t think I really had in mind how long I would be blogging.  Mostly, blogging was something that my publisher had indicated that I should be doing.

At the beginning, I was blogging with my readers in mind.  That almost immediately shifted since I felt more comfortable writing to writers.  Also, I was trying to work out my writing process as I worked on book three, and talking it out was helpful to me.

In the last eight years, I’ve seen a lot of blogs come and go.  I’ve missed bloggers who have passed away and I’ve missed the ones who stopped blogging.

I’ve picked up  tips along the way…practices that were helpful to me, mistakes I made that I needed to correct, and tips from other bloggers.  Today I’ll share tips for setting up a blog or making a blog serve its purpose better, and tips for maintaining a blogging schedule.  On Friday, I’m covering tips for content and engagement and benefits to blogging.

Tips for setting up your blog:

Host the blog on your website as a page.  This was something I didn’t completely understand the importance of eight years ago.  When we write strong content, we’re bringing in readers.  Why send those readers somewhere other than our website?  I’m pretty sure cost probably played a role in my original decision (I can be frugal), but the yearly cost of this website isn’t cost-prohibitive.

Use your own name in the blog/site domain name.  It builds SEO (helps search engines like Google locate us and our content and books).

Similarly, make it obvious whose blog it is.  I visit many blogs that list only the author’s first name.  I understand wanting to be private, but if  we need to promote the name we plan on writing under.

Share your posts on social media (automation can assist in this).  You can set up your blog so that it posts automatically on your Facebook page or sends a tweet on Twitter.

Think hard about blog post titles.  Using titles that accurately reflect the content of the post pull in readers who are searching for posts on that topic.  It’s a great way to find new blog readers.

Make it easy for readers to share your posts.  There are many plug-ins that can help blog readers to share our posts easily on social media. Click to Tweet is one of the ones that I use.

Don’t obsess over the design.  I’ve noticed an odd phenomenan over the years where bloggers who overhaul their blogs, implementing sophisticated design elements sometimes stop blogging altogether soon after.  I’ve often wondered if that’s a result of their feeling as if their content needs to be as good as their design. The most important thing is the writing on the blog.

Tips for maintaining a blogging schedule:

Editorial calendars can really help with keeping up with our blogs.  If we know what we plan to write about, that’s half the battle.

Having an emergency post in our drafts section is also a good idea.  Life always throws curve balls.

It’s a good idea to have some quick, go-to sources for blog images.  Finding an image to accompany the blog post can be time-consuming. It’s nice to have a bunch of copyright-free stock images in our media library that we can quickly access. Kirsten Oliphant recently listed good sources for images in her post on Jane Friedman’s blog.

Blogging breaks are fine. I usually take two breaks a year and the occasional odd day off when my schedule gets hectic near deadlines.  But I think it’s good if we can say exactly when we plan on returning.  Consistency is important in blogging…probably even more than our frequency.

What have you learned about successfully setting up a blog or maintaining a blogging practice?

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Twitterific Writing Links

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

A weekly roundup of the best writing links from around the web.

Twitterific writing links are fed into the Writer’s Knowledge Base search engine (developed by writer and software engineer Mike Fleming) which has over 30,000 free articles on writing related topics. It’s the search engine for writers.

The 3 Golden Rules Of Writing A Western:  http://ow.ly/NElh302xhCV @robertwood  @standoutbooks

6 Tips for OrganizingYour Novel’s Edits:  http://ow.ly/XWK9302xhEz @KMWeiland

Write Your Novel In A Year: Your Mid-Year Analysis: http://ow.ly/jmXl302xhdB @AnthonyEhlers  @Writers_Write

Harry Potter Ebooks Arrive in China, in Both Chinese and English http://ow.ly/VzEN302Sor6 @Porter_Anderson  @pubperspectives

Character Archetypes:  Prophet, Oracle, and Wise Old Man:  http://ow.ly/pygK302xhw2  @HunterEmkay               

9 Steps to a Self-Hosted WordPress Blog in Fewer than 15 Minutes:  http://ow.ly/grVS302xhtZ @lornafaith

Writing: just don’t lose the magic:  http://ow.ly/CFJM301Q4s8 @austinkleon

Zygmunt Miłoszewski on Translation and his Latest Novel, Rage:  http://ow.ly/rkxX302Sokl @Porter_Anderson  @pubperspectives

The Coco Chanel Guide to Sample Pages: http://ow.ly/jHQu302y5z1 @DGLM

Finding your voice through letter writing: http://ow.ly/bUJG302y5OE @MLConklin

Creating depth by using juxtaposition in our writing:  http://ow.ly/BZUB302y5Mi @sacha_black

Mapping Your Book to Ensure it Works:  http://ow.ly/JLuk302y5SK @MartinaABoone

How to Get the Story Out of Your Head and Onto the Page:  http://ow.ly/ROGB302y5wg @jennienash

15 Expert Tips to Increase Reader Comments on Blog Posts:  http://ow.ly/jUG8302y5x9 @NinaAmir

5 Steps To Take When The Writing Gets Tough:  http://ow.ly/4ef4302y5HG @WritersRelief

Internal Dialogue: The Greatest Tool for Gaining Reader Confidence: http://ow.ly/q1d5302y5Q9 @ESimsAuthor

7 Aspects of Writing from Screenwriter Aaron Sorkin: http://ow.ly/l6m1302y5Jy @VictoriaMixon

Dos and Don’ts for writing Book Reviews:  http://ow.ly/qAF4302y66q by Gillian Hamer

Why Authors Running a Featured Deal Should Claim Their @BookBub   Profile:  http://ow.ly/mHLB302y6lW @rickburnes

The Benefits of Talking Through Our Scenes:  http://ow.ly/EehK302y6EK @Janice_Hardy

Avoid the Back Story Swamp:  http://ow.ly/6PCZ302y6P7 @Lindasclare

Your words and your story live in your head: how to stay there:  http://ow.ly/DIYS302y6sI @emma_darwin

A basic guide to plotting:  http://ow.ly/m8Ci302y6hH @kseniaanske

Master Outlining and Tracking Tool for Novels:  http://ow.ly/92Bf302y6A8 @iulienel

10 Ways to Add a Spark of Fire to Our Writing: http://ow.ly/Eqnx302y6Ht @kcraftwriter

The Best Place to Reveal Your Story Secrets:  http://ow.ly/Jow1302y6le @Janice_Hardy

Creativity: Think Long Term. Create A Body Of Work.  http://ow.ly/Gzju302y6Mf @thecreativepenn

Writing Composite Characters:  http://ow.ly/aHyY302y6O6 @Lindasclare

The 5-Part Authorpreneur Action Plan: http://ow.ly/8f08302y6KP @InkyBites

Blurbs, Taglines, Endorsements:  http://ow.ly/PC9E302y69l @JJMarsh1 @TriskeleBooks

Story Fundamentals Exercises:  http://ow.ly/9VOo302y6nf  @emma_darwin  @TriskeleBooks

Showing and Telling: cooperation not competition:  http://ow.ly/F17B302y6UX @emma_darwin

Plot and structure exercise:  http://ow.ly/W4u3302yqFc @TraceyWarr1

Using Fiverr for Affordable Book Covers:  http://ow.ly/t5tl302RAbs @BookWorksNYC @stapilus

10 Basic Steps To Setting-Up Your Blog:  http://ow.ly/lLdU302RAgv @jckunzjr

How To Create An Ebook Boxset Or Bundle And Why You Should:  http://ow.ly/t0JF302RAkj @thecreativepenn

How to evaluate contests:  http://ow.ly/XZ7T302RAo9 @Janet_Reid

In the US, UK, and Canada, Harry’s on Another Roll With ‘Cursed Child’ : http://ow.ly/R4S2302VaE8 @Porter_Anderson  @pubperspectives

Why Stories Need Redemption:  http://ow.ly/kMID302RAvN @Lindasclare

Grammar Rules: Split Infinitives:  http://ow.ly/E2Cw302RAzf @WritingForward

How Indie Authors Can Get Their Books Into Libraries:  http://ow.ly/R0Su302RADm @rcutlerSpark @BookWorksNYC

How To Train Your Person (First or Third) to do everything the story needs:  http://ow.ly/Deqd302y6Wn @emma_darwin

Where Does Your Story Actually Begin? http://ow.ly/e9bV302yxqE @vscotttheauthor

How to Write and Stay Sane When You Have Little Kids At Home:  http://ow.ly/AS9s302yxcc @katekrake

3 Things To Remember About Dialogue:  http://ow.ly/RZot302yxiT @AnthonyEhlers

7 Common Novel Writing Tips to Be Wary Of:  http://ow.ly/Aiep302yxvx @nownovel

6 Tips for Accents and Dialects:  http://ow.ly/cUvM302yxup @nownovel

Two Critical Novel Writing Skills:  http://ow.ly/xdzW302yx8F @Chris_Kokoski

What if your plot, or characters just aren’t working?  http://ow.ly/v7hH302yxsg @AnthonyEhlers

38 Resources for Writers:  http://ow.ly/fKNw302yxef @katekrake

Turning the Negativity Train Around:  http://ow.ly/Iape302yxkd @smckelden

Starting a New Authors’ Group: Working Toward the Future:  http://ow.ly/DG0j302yxou @queenskeys

Word-Hacking Emotion:  http://ow.ly/TvV7302yxWz @artofstoriesAB

Making a living from writing books: what works, what doesn’t:  http://ow.ly/ly4l302y6Xa @emma_darwin

Too Distracted to Write? Here’s Your Next Step:  http://ow.ly/D9rv302yxXG @RosanneBane

How To Finish Your First Draft Quickly:  http://ow.ly/dw2L302yxO7 @SukhiJutla

Tighten your writing by getting rid of dialogue tags: http://ow.ly/kg4V302yxPv @RayneHall

10 Mistakes (Almost) Every Rookie Writer Makes:  http://ow.ly/xEyE302yy2G @manzanitafire  @LitReactor

Don’t Wait to Build Your Potential Book-Buying Audience: http://ow.ly/UwIJ302yxZ1 @crystallyn

Too much to do? Prioritizing for the overwhelmed: http://ow.ly/GpLn302RBgb @zara_quentin

Busting Myths about Book Reviews:  http://ow.ly/QEDA302xhN1 @DanaLynnSmith

Roald Dahl’s Twisted, Overlooked Stories for Adults: http://ow.ly/ymNv302xhId by David L. Ulin @NewYorker

10 Popular Tropes in the Historical Romance Genre:  http://ow.ly/DOOP302xhn0  @lornafaith

Don’t Just ‘Put Your Book on Amazon’:  http://ow.ly/avnU302xhg8 @MillCityPress  @amshofner

Writing mistakes to avoid:  http://ow.ly/qU44302xhyY @rxena77

On Literary Plagues:  http://ow.ly/yh7m302xhL2 @TobiasCarroll

Don’t Make This Crucial Branding Mistake In The Name of Growth:  http://ow.ly/wnkZ302xhH1 @taragentile

What Literary Fiction Can Teach You About Genre Fiction:  http://ow.ly/JUJR302xhAn @wickerkat  @LitReactor

Great Scene:  “Double Indemnity ”:  http://ow.ly/SHBM302xhBU @GoIntoTheStory

The Science of Protecting Your Creativity:  http://ow.ly/BQNA302y6gA @Rachel_Aaron

5 Steps to Developing More Discipline:  http://ow.ly/wCjq302y6fU @MichaelHyatt

The Essence of Character and 3 Exercises for Writers:  http://ow.ly/1UlR302y62P @Jo_Furniss

Plot and structure exercise:  http://ow.ly/lqra302y5Zv  @TraceyWarr1

How to Choose the Best WordPress Themes:  http://ow.ly/FXIi302y5Vq @NinaAmir

6 Tips For Getting More Traffic on your Author Blog:  http://ow.ly/IPJv302tcwA @annerallen

If Writers and Poets Billed By the Hour http://ow.ly/5EHT302tkKi @mcsweeneys

3 Things ‘House’ Can Teach Us About Writing:  http://ow.ly/k8bM302tcRb @crisfreese

Chasing the Clouds of Rights Issues: Ixxus’ Steve Odart http://ow.ly/auhm302SouK @steveodart  @Porter_Anderson

Painting Verb Pictures:  http://ow.ly/Uaa5302tcDe @Lindasclare

How to Tell a Murderer’s Story:  http://ow.ly/KDGX302tcap @latillman  @lithub

How to Promote Your Blog Posts: 27 Experts’ Proven Methods:  http://ow.ly/SbK8302G0Ua @wisestartupblog

When to String Words Together With Hyphens: http://ow.ly/Lsv5302tdfA @writing_tips

On the Journals of Famous Writers: http://ow.ly/X4Km302tc4j @BelaborThePoint  @lithub

Distribution, Competitiveness: The Philippines’ Andrea Pasion-Flores: http://ow.ly/LCkT302SnYO @Porter_Anderson  @pubperspectives

Writing Worthy Protagonists:  http://ow.ly/ao5K302tcnS @Lindasclare

How Do You Write a Poem? http://ow.ly/TKI2302qItU @GigglingStream

6 Tips for Defeating Writer’s Block:  http://ow.ly/g9EO302qI1E @LouiseMatchett8

How to Create Striking Similes:  http://ow.ly/mMOR302qI6x @ProWritingAid

How to Write Dialogue in a Narrative Paragraph:  http://ow.ly/jK3H302rXjD @ProWritingAid

How To Use Story Archetypes To Subvert Expectations: http://ow.ly/a8vF302rXge @kayladeanwrites  @DIYMFA

Crime fiction writing: why innocent people confess:  http://ow.ly/4Uhr302sFQ4  @drjuliashaw  @sciam

11 Novels That Take Place During One Summer:  http://ow.ly/Y0B0302rXDZ @carrievasios  @ElectricLit

5 Overlooked Pixar Storytelling Tips:  http://ow.ly/K5wb302sGc5 @RobinRWrites

Sourcebooks Expands Book Personalization to Business Training: http://ow.ly/FviE302SnIb @Porter_Anderson  @pubperspectives

The real truth about writing nonfiction:  http://ow.ly/1xgZ302V5MB @CalebPirtle

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Productivity and Intentional Free Time

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

I mentioned in April that I was trying a new approach to my free time.  I actually had very little free time and found that the little time I did have was quickly used up as I’d check emails and social media.

Even the longer breaks at the end of the day weren’t being maximized.  I’d be trying to remember what great book I’d heard about and look online for books until I fell asleep in the middle of searching.  Or I’d be aimlessly looking for something to watch on Netflix or PBS.org or Amazon Prime movies (we’ve mostly unplugged, so channel surfing doesn’t really happen anymore, but it’s still a long browsing process).

After reading a post by Emily Tjaden called “4 Reasons to Be Intentional With Your Free Time,” I decided to be more thoughtful about my approach to free time.  Whenever heard about an interesting title, I’d either buy/download it then, or I’d add it to my wish list on my account at the local library.

I discovered that each month, sites like Digital Trends, Slate, and  Vox list the best streaming movies for that month.  I’d scroll through, find films that sounded interesting, and add them to my watchlists on Netflix and Amazon (even PBS offers a watchlist now).  There’s also a site called Documentary Addict that is, indeed, proving addictive.

For the past few months, I’ve found that I’ve felt a lot more relaxed in my downtime.  Checking email and social media just isn’t something restful for me.

What’s more, having more relaxing downtime has resulted in less overall stress.  It’s not that my stress is completely eliminated, only that it’s not overwhelming for me.

How has less stress impacted my productivity?  I’ve been a lot more focused and have written more and faster.  My 21st book is finished early and is with my editor.

Is it easy for you to immediately relax during downtime?

Productivity and intentional free time:
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Newsletter Signup Tactics

 

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

Writers read a lot about the importance of our author newsletter.  Industry expert Jane Friedman explains it well in her post “Email Newsletters for Authors: Get Started Guide“:

“Emails can’t be missed like a social media post that disappears in readers’ feeds as more posts follow it. You truly own your email list, unlike Facebook or Twitter accounts. And if you use people’s email addresses with respect (more on that in a minute), those addresses can become resources that grow more valuable over time.”

I was a slow adopter to email newsletters, unfortunately.  I couldn’t believe that readers really wanted to hear from me in their email inboxes.  Once I finally realized the value of newsletters and that readers were volunteering to hear from me, I had a good deal of catching up to do.

There are a variety of different ways of getting readers to sign up for our newsletters. Some of them, I think, are more obnoxious than others.   Here are some various methods and my opinion on their pros and cons:

The website popup:

Pros: popups boast a high success rate in converting readers to subscribers.  They can also be modified–you can set the time when they pop up on your site. Recently, the most popular trend has been to use ‘exit popups’ that appear when readers are about to click away from your site.  Cons: Many readers will find popups of any kind annoying.  As a curator, I’m not actually leaving when the popups appear:   I’m pointing my cursor up at the Hootsuite extension to share the post.  The popup covers the material I’m curating, and I have to either rely on my memory for a good headline or else close the popup. I’ve also heard from sight-impaired writers (there are at least two who follow me on Twitter) that the popups make blog reading very difficult for them as it’s not easy for them to figure out how to close the popup to read the blog article.

Facebook ads: 

Another method, popularized by author Mark Dawson, is using Facebook ads to generate newsletter signups.  Mark gave away a starter library in return for newsletter subscriptions and grew his list significantly. Pros:  If done well (Mark teaches a course on doing it well), authors can find quick success in growing their email subscription lists.  Authors have the ability on Facebook to target a very particular audience on the site and reach users that they couldn’t otherwise reach. I had success with this method and quickly added subscribers.  Cons:  Obviously, when running ads, there is cost involved, although we can set parameters for that cost through Facebook.  Another con, for me, was the time-sucking aspect…it’s important to monitor results so we can quickly pull ads that aren’t effective.  The process of creating an effective ad and monitoring results did impact my writing time.

Group giveaways/newsletter signups: 

I’ve been asked several times to participate in group giveaways with other cozy mystery authors.  I’m participating in one even now. This tends to work well–all the participating authors share the giveaway opportunity with their lists and social media contacts.  The readers sign up for the authors’ email lists in exchange for a chance to win a book or other prizes. My results have been good with this approach.  Pros: You’re much more likely to end up with readers who will actually buy and read your books since authors in your genre are targeting their readers with the giveaway. Cons: You must share the giveaway info with your readers to make this successful and fair to the other authors participating…but must tread the thin line to avoid spamming. Important: Need to make sure that readers understand they’re giving permission to be on authors’ email lists for newsletters.

Email tagline:

Here you merely add a signup link to your newsletter signup page as a tagline or signature for your emails.  Pros: Incredibly passive.  Cons: Might annoy friends and relatives with whom we frequently correspond?  If it does, they haven’t told me. :)

How do you find newsletter subscribers?

Newsletter signup tactics and their pros and cons:
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