L. Diane Wolfe's Blog, page 25

Marketing Outside the U.S. with Author Stephen Tremp

In the past I’ve made the mistake of going solo with KDP Select (through Kindle Direct Publishing) for my e-books. KDP Select is an optional program that allows you to reach more readers and gives you the opportunity to earn more money in addition to sales of your book. The downside is it’s an exclusive program, meaning your book(s) cannot be sold digitally with any other publisher, including you and your blog, as long as you are enrolled in the program.

If you live in the U.S., you may not k...

The Insecure Writer's Support Group and Anthology Contest

It’s time for another edition of The Insecure Writer’s Support Group, founded by Ninja Captain, Alex J. Cavanaugh.

A quick note to any of you who joined the Realms Faire Thunderclap - we had to redo it and couldn’t save all of those who’d pledged. Please take a moment and sign up again HERE.
And in case you missed it, author and powerhouse promoter, Randi Lee, did a guest post here on Monday, Marketing to Your Readers, Not to Yourself, that was packed with great information.
On the writing fron...

Marketing to Your Readers, Not to Yourself

I’d like to welcome author and powerhouse promoter, Randi Lee!
There’s a new trend in the publishing world: both traditional and independent publishers are looking more and more toward authors to market their own materials. It is becoming increasingly normal to find a request for an author’s marketing plans on agent and publisher submission guidelines sites. Thus, it is not only self-published authors who are tasked with the precarious job of self-promoting these days; more and more traditiona...

The Truth About Ebook Sales, Oyster’s Failure, and Apple Goes to the Supreme Court

Karen Jones Gowen is visiting the Insecure Writer’s Support Group today with tips on how to query a small press.

Fortune ran this article last week: Apple Will Ask Supreme Court to Hear its Ebooks Price-Fixing Case. That’s right, Apple is taking this thing all the way to the top. Do you think they have a chance?



Book Business Magazine ran an article about why Oyster failed:

“But mostly, it is the publishers that killed Oyster, because there was never much interest in seeing it succeed as it c...

Google Books, Realms Faire, IWSG Anthology Contest, and Birds

Wonder what ever happened to Google Books? Between lawsuits, settlements, and issues, the project sits in limbo right now. Read the full story at the New Yorker


Can anyone identify these birds?
Yes, they’re cute. But they and their mom have been snacking on my tomatoes. Not cool.

The IWSG Anthology Contest is open until November 1st.

You don’t want to miss this opportunity!

Ten winning stories will appear in a royalty-paying anthology next year.


The Realms Faire is coming!

November 9 - 13 - games...

Beware the Blog Leeches, Barnes & Noble Issues, and Japanese Book Chain Defies Amazon

Beware the Blog Leeches

After blogging for 10 & 1/2 years, I’ve seen my share of trolls, flaming, and bloggers behaving badly. I’ve also witnessed leeches - people who attach themselves to you for selfish reasons. They can even come off a super nice, but they’re still out to get something for themselves.

Who are these leeches?

Those who follow just to get you to follow back. They follow just to build up their own following, not necessarily because they want to interact with you. Sometimes...

EPub Formatting at the IWSG

I’m at The Insecure Writer’s Support Group today with EPub Formatting and Beyond.





Don’t forget our IWSG Anthology Contest is open to members until November 1, 2015.


Writing, Publishing & Promoting Tips from SpunkOnAStick!

The Insecure Writer’s Support Group Anniversary Announcement

It’s time for another edition of The Insecure Writer’s Support Group, founded by Ninja Captain, Alex J. Cavanaugh.

I took the month of August off to work on the final story in my Four in Darkness manuscript. Naturally, August turned out to be really busy with more parties and bridal showers and events than you could shake a stick at. However, I did manage to write a ton and the story is almost done.

In the middle of this, another story I’d outlined ages ago called to me. I realized it would b...

The Insecure Writer's Support Group and Links

It’s time for another edition of The Insecure Writer’s Support Group, founded by Ninja Captain, Alex J. Cavanaugh.

I’m now working on the fourth and final story for my next book. It’s coming together really well. There have been some pauses while I do some quick research. (The story is set just outside of London.) I should be able to finish it off this month.

I’ve also created boards on Pinterest for each one if you’d like to get a feel for the stories:
Four in Darkness I
Four in Darkness II...

Audio Book Sales Increase and Realms Faire is Coming

Last week there was an article at Library Journal about the increase in audio books and audio sales.

Audio book sales were dipping these past few years in a trend rivaled only by the decline of the mass market paperback. But sales last year were $1.47 billion, an 13.5% increase from the previous year.

Audio Publishers Association (APA) credits the rising popularity of the digital download and the fact the number of titles available have increased in the past five years:

Year   ...