A.C. Louis's Blog

Making a Graphic Novel: 5 Lessons Learned from Failure

My debut novel, GOLIATH FALLEN, has gone through several phases during its long, long development history. Perhaps the most prominent one was the time I ditched the book outright and tried making a graphic novel instead. What triggered such a drastic measure? Honestly, burnout was a big part of it. Writing became a lonely and slow endeavor, and I was growing more and more desperate to finally get the book published. This fatigue apparently led me to be open to new ideas. The idea of a graphic no...

Book Cover Design With Award-Winning Illustrator Alejandro Colucci

This post is a follow-up to a prior post in my series about self-publishing my debut novel, GOLIATH FALLEN, where I detailed the process of finding an artist to design the book’s cover. The process was both exciting and stressful as the cover is possibly the most critical element of a book outside of the description. My novel must visibly shine over others published by big houses with hefty budgets and stunning, professionally designed covers. To further fuel my anxiety, this was my first experi...

What Are NFTs and How Can Authors Use Them?

If you’ve spent more than 30 minutes on the internet lately, you’ve probably already heard about NFTs. Stories abound of artists auctioning JPEGs for millions of dollars in the ever-growing community of crypto enthusiasts. South Carolina-based artist Beeple famously sold his EVERYDAYS: THE FIRST 5000 DAYS piece (a collage of 5,000 digital images from his collection of the same name) for $69 million at Christie’s, a sum so mind-boggling that it earned a rightful place in newspaper headlines aroun...

Budgeting for my self-published book (update)

Welcome to another entry in my series on self-publishing my debut novel, GOLIATH FALLEN! If you haven’t been following along, I previously documented my initial efforts to assemble the crew that will take my book from a modest draft to a bestseller list. This team includes the cover artist, book editor, and book description writer. Truth be told, it’s turned out amazing so far. I’ve gotten to know these incredibly talented individuals who I wouldn’t have otherwise met if I had taken the more tra...

5 Best Writing Tools in 2021 to Perfect Your Work

Let’s face it—for most of us, writing has never been easy. And with the pandemic raging over most of 2021 and our lives still upside down, becoming a productive writer has only gotten harder. Whether you’re trying to churn out a short story, a sci-fi novel, or anything in between, the process typically involves hours of sitting at our desk while staring at a blank page until the next bestseller appears before us. And until that big moment finally arrives, we want to make sure we count on the rig...

How Self-Publishing on a Budget Made Me Write a Better Book

I recently realized that my post about finding an editor for my novel, GOLIATH FALLEN, had skipped a crucial element of the journey: the fact that self-publishing on a budget helped me cut a third of my manuscript, which, unexpectedly, resulted in a better book.  Editors commonly charge by page or word count. As a result, total editing costs will depend on the length of the manuscript. With my book clocking in at a whopping 92,500 words, I’m facing editing costs of $2,700 at a modest $0.03 per w...

Worldbuilding Tips: Creating Immersive Worlds with a Wiki

Worldbuilding refers to the intricate art of constructing the world where our story will unfold. The more fleshed out it is, the more believable our stories will be. This is the key to creating something truly immersive. Sometimes, writers create the plot first and then develop the rest of the story elements (characters, setting, etc.) around it. However, this approach can compromise believability and immersion as the reader can often discern these elements exist simply to satisfy the plot. Even...

Using Scrivener Progress Tracking to Finish Your Novel

When I asked more experienced authors for advice, the most frequent tidbit I received was: focus on finishing your book. Writing a book, like every project, requires being consistent, keeping up a schedule, and progressing little by little every day. It’s about diligence and holding yourself accountable. But, how do you keep up the pace in the face of something so seemingly daunting? Setting daily reminders, tracking progress in an Excel sheet, or using other hard and fast methods doesn’t work w...

Using Scrivener progress tracking to finish your novel

When I asked more experienced authors for advice, the most frequent tidbit I received was: focus on finishing your book. Writing a book, like every project, requires being consistent, keeping up a schedule, and progressing little by little every day. It’s about diligence and holding yourself accountable. But, how do you keep up the pace in the face of something so seemingly daunting? Setting daily reminders, tracking progress in an Excel sheet, or using other hard and fast methods doesn’t work w...

The Final Frontier: Finding the Right Book Description Writer

Now that I’ve found a great editor for my self-published novel, GOLIATH FALLEN, the next step is to find a book description writer. Back when I started outlining the steps in my self-publishing journey, hiring a book description (aka book blurb) writer didn’t even slightly cross my mind. However, this individual, whoever they end up being, is as crucial as the editor and cover artist. Writing a solid blurb is no easy feat, and I have tried it before. How the heck hadn’t I thought of hiring an ex...