Ruth Ann Nordin's Blog, page 110

Kindle: A Waste of Time or Worth It?

The biggest argument I've come across when I decided to put my books on Kindle was that people would take it in its electronic form and rampant piracy would occur. While I concur that putting my books into electronic formats does open the door to making piracy easier than if I only did paperbacks, I have come across a surprise: my sales have been steadily increasing. And my books that are on Kindle way exceed paperback sales. Now, I set my books at $0.99. Why? Well, for me, I just want to mak...

Reasons to Self-Publish, One Reason Not To, and Tips for Marketing to Increase Sales (last part based on the writer's conference)

The question on whether or not to self-publish depends on your goal as a writer.

Here are some good reasons why you might want to self-publish:

1. Your manuscript will not fit into the industry. My romances don't fit either the Christian market or the secular market. I did my research for the stories I want to write, and there isn't a fit. I have Christian themes in my work but I also write sex between the husband and wife. The secular market doesn't want the Christian themes and the Chri...

More Thoughts on Bad Reviews

Ironically, just as someone told me not to fear criticism (someone who hasn't read my stuff at all and really doesn't know me), I saw a google alert pertaining to some ranking I got on Shelfari or Good Reads. I started a "Google Alert" to see if it really works. So far, I'm not getting much out of it except my own posts. I will explain it in another post.

Anyway, in a google alert, I saw my name so I did a quick check. The good news is that I actually wasn't shocked or dismayed when I saw ...

How Your Personality Affects Your Writing

This is an experiment I did in making a video blog. I did the audio about four times before I gave up and let the final one take. This is why at the end, you hear one of my kids crying because he and his brothers got into a fight. I didn't feel like doing a fifth take. :-)

An Unexpected Benefit to Self-Publishing: Add More Whenever You Want

Wow. I never expected the emails I got. They were all supportive and encouraged me to remember that there is still joy left to be had in life. :-) So thank you. And I have decided that everyone is right about not giving up on things I do enjoy. Okay. So I'll keep posting, but I am going to aim to keep a better balance between writing and posting and my family.

*****************************************************************************

This morning, I got an email from one of my readers...

I'm Taking a Break From My Posting and This is Why

*I will read books that I said I would and review them.

I'm going to cut back on a lot of my online time. I will keep my website up and email, but I don't think I'm going to be doing much else for awhile.

To be honest, I'm not optimistic about how things are going in this country and the world. Among my research, I've discovered some scary things. I didn't want to believe it at first, but the more research I did to disprove what I found, the more I realized that what I have believed all along...

Self-Producing Music--Also Viewed as a Negative (Just like in Self-Publishing)

They may already be doing this for all I know. I just stumbled on an online article. I love Muse. I just discovered them last month and have already bought a couple of their songs. I just read something tonight that made me think of the trend that seems to be emerging.

Let me quote here:

"In July 2007, Bellamy (lead singer) confirmed that he has begun to work on a new studio album and new songs, some more in line with electronic or "dance" music and others more with classical or symphonic music...

Interview with Julia Dudek on Self-Editing -- Part II

[image error] Julia Dudek's website

4. If someone wanted to edit their own book, what advice would you give them?

I would tell them not to get lazy. I would tell them to expect it to be the most daunting process of writing, especially for a first novel. I would insist that a writer print out "The Ten (Comma)ndments" and tack it to his or her wall! And I would also suggest that if an answer to a particular style or grammar question doesn't seem to exist, then there is probably more than one right answer.

5...

Interview with Julia Dudek on Self-Editing -- Part l

Part II will be posted tomorrow.

[image error]


Julia Dudek is the author of Pieces, a psychological thriller with a twist of mystery and a wonderful blend of romance. She takes us inside the mind of Angelique "Angie" McCourt who has a perfect memory of everything--except for the murder of her best friend. As she struggles to put the pieces of the killer's identity back together, she ends up traveling down a dark path that threatens to alter who she is forever.

This was an excellent read, but what most impres...

Blogging: Part III -- What I Learned at the Writer's Conference

We are finally at the last part for blogging. :-)


3. How often should you blog?


Frequency in posting is a key issue here. If you don't blog, then why would they keep coming? There's nothing new to read.


Some people like to build an audience who will both agree and disagree with them. I prefer to keep it pleasant all the time. I don't want to get into arguments, so I won't put up with that. However, I have seen some authors who love a good argument. So it depends on your personality and h...