Hillary DePiano's Blog, page 31

What people are saying about The Whine Seller’s latest books

Two new reviews appeared on Amazon for my books in the last few weeks.

First there was this very nice one on Sell Their Stuff:

And then this great comprehensive review of eBay Marketing Makeover:

And wouldn’t you know that sales of both books had a little uptick as soon as they went up!

One of the things readers don’t always realize is that reviews can make or break a book. The more reviews a book has the better it will sell so the very best thing you can do for an author whose work you lik...

State of the Writer: Updates on NaNoWriMo, my ankle & various other ways I have injured myself

Winning at feet. So, remember how I told you I had a Class Two sprain on my ankle? Well, we later found out it was a Class Four sprain. Then I dropped three large folding tables on my toe on the same foot at our NaNoWriMo kick-off party. When I went to get that x-rayed, the doctor was basically like, yeah, yeah, toe whatever but OMG what is wrong with your ankle?!?! So, they x-rayed both and while I do have a bad crush injury on my big toe, my ankle is still far from better so I’ve got it bac...

Controversial opinions: the exploding Twitter hearts are better than the stupid favorite stars ever were

Twitter changed the favorite stars to little animated red hearts a few days ago and, of course, users lost their minds.

What is this CHANGE? they asked, readying their pitchforks hashtags and torches of trending topics.

Why have you taken this thing that was familiar to us and made it ever so slightly different? they railed, as if the very fate of the free world somehow rested on a minuscule change of icon that didn’t actually effect the functionality of the button in any way.

Won’t someone...

Rethink how you think about your writing time and give yourself permission to write

Give yourself permission to write. Sounds simple, right? Sometimes it’s the hardest thing of all. If you’d rather read than watch, the original pep talk can be found here.… Read more

This post appeared first on Hillary DePiano.

The 8 questions you must ask yourself before you start selling on consignment

Sell Their Stuff: Selling Summary

Let’s take a minute to review your selling situation with a few quick questions.

Where will you sell? What platforms would be a good fit for the kind of items you sell and also fit your selling needs? Will you be selling across multiple channels? Will you set up a storefront or standalone website or just use a selling account on an existing marketplace? How will you sell? Have you practiced selling items as if they were for a client? Will you sell from your...

Collectible NaNoWriMo Stickers: What are they and where can you get them?

If you’re new to NaNoWriMo or if you’ve only ever participated online and haven’t gone to the in-person events, you’ve missed out on one of the coolest National Novel Writing Month traditions. Collectible stickers!

Every year, there’s a limited run of a new design which matches the theme of the contest. These are a hot commodity and having one from every year you’ve participated is a matter of pride for many participants. In the past, they’ve also done sets where there were multiple sticker d...

My November: 17 productions. 6 different plays. 15 states. 3 premieres.

I’m having a kind of crazy year and I think it’s probably easiest to just show you what I mean rather than try to explain. Not counting all the events I’m running (and fundraising stunts I’m coordinating) for NaNoWriMo or family holidays and other obligations, this is my November 2015…

SHOW PERFORMANCE DATES PRODUCTION GROUP LOCATION Weak Days November 7, 2015 The Chameleon Theatre Circle Burnsville, Minnesota The Love of Three Oranges NOV 5, 2015 – NOV 15, 2015 Baines Middle School Missouri...

Ask a NaNoWriMo ML: What is a NaNo rebel? Are you one?

This is another Frequently Asked Question I get every year. What is a NaNoWriMo rebel? How do you become one? What are the rules of being one?

Simply put, anyone who is creating their own version of the NaNoWriMo challenge instead of following the official contest rules is a NaNoWriMo rebel.

Any of the following examples could make you an NaNo rebel:

Writing anything other than a novel (such as a screenplay, memoir, comic book, multiple short stores,etc) Writing with a partner Counting words...

Let yourself hit the sour notes

Is it me or do I look incredibly stupid in every thumbnail? This one might be the worst yet! Anyway, if you’d rather read than listen, you can find the original here.… Read more

This post appeared first on Hillary DePiano.

Should I have a designated selling account for my Selling Assistance consignment service?

Sell Their Stuff:

Should you create a selling account or webstore for your SA items that is separate from your main selling account?

If your designated SA account or store is new and doesn’t yet qualify for volume selling benefits like increased search exposure, it can mean lower sale prices for your clients’ items than you enjoy on the items listed in the main store. Just as when you sell through the client’s account, selling from a separate account means that your other items for sale won’t...