Dana Sitar's Blog, page 10

CoSchedule: The WordPress Editorial Calendar that’s Gonna Rock My 2014

Here’s why youhaveto justify (if still moderate) the time you pour into networking on Facebook: Resources,resources,RESOURCES!

I’m a member of too many Facebook groups, but I won’t leave them, because just when I think I don’t have the time, I revisit one and find a treasure trove of conversation and resources that answers my questions before I have a chance to ask them.

Case in point: I’ve been a quiet lurker in Carrie Smith’s Careful Cents Cluband decided to pop in recently to reconnect....

Get to Know Yourself Before Sharing Your Story with Your Audience

When you join a conversation to share your story, are you sharing to contribute your lessons learned or are you seeking validation for your emotions?

After I left my verbally abusive house where I spent a good part of my “growing pain” years, I couldn’t stop talking. It was as if all the years of pent-up anger just had to burst forth from me at once. But what I soon came to realize is that it wasn’t the right time for me to share my story.

I was still so emotionally attached to the situati...

Writing Therapy to Overcome Life’s Traumatic Events

Three months into my eighth grade year, my mother experienced a stillbirth. My family was sharing a house with my grandparents while our new home was being built, so this was a painful time for my family that also lacked privacy.

To cope, I took to writing. I filled notebook upon notebook with my thoughts, feelings and fears, and I allowed myself to express my darkest thoughts, as well as what they might mean. While I kept up a strong front on the outside, when it came to writing, I let it all...

A New Home and a Better Blog Strategy

Image from sodahead.com (Creative Commons)

Yes! As I settle comfortably into my new apartment in my hometown*, I’m so happy to finally settle intoone, cohesive home for all my work, as well.

I’ve been such a scattered dummy about my blog strategy in my attempt to figure out myself, my business, my creativity, my audience, etc. I had danasitar,com, then moved for a fresh start to this blog at WritersBucketList.com to focus on the community, instead ofDana. Then I decided I wanted to write my own...

3 Ways to Turn Your Blog Posts into a Rockin’ Ebook

When I sat down to write my own ebook for ManiWriMo, I was somewhat petrified. I’d been thinking of doing an ebook for a while — I had a whole outline written and everything — but when it came to actually writing the darn thing, I had no idea where to begin. This was going to be my first paid product, so the pressure was on.

Then a wise friend asked, after hearing my ebook idea, “You’ve already covered a lot of this stuff on your blog, haven’t you?”

Touché.

If you have a blog, you have tons...

Crowdfunding Lesson #2: The Personal Appeal

Of all the mistakes I made planning my first crowdfunding campaign, this was the greatest:

I didn’t want to ask for money.

Alright. It sounds stupid, but hear me out.

I hate begging for money, and I wouldn’t want to run my business simply on charitable donations from coerced friends. That’s how some crowdfunding campaigns feel — and I know; I see a lot of them in my Facebook feed of comedians, writers, artists, and other such out-of-the-boxers.

My vision for the campaign was a “pre-order” campaig...

One Word That Can Change Your Freelance Writing Career

You read that right. There’s a magic word floating around that can make or break your freelance writing career.

Interested?

That one word is… Confidence!

Illustration by Ramiro Roman, Jr.

If you let out a sigh and felt your shoulders slump as you read the answer, you probably need to work on this attribute a bit. And that’s okay. Most of us do! (I’ve been freelancing for a few years now and I still need to give myself the ol’ “pep talk” every once in a while… Or, you know, once a week…)

Women...

Navigating the Trickier Parts of Self-Publishing Ebooks

Need more guidance getting your ebook from idea to launch? Register now for E-Pub Bootcamp for up to 50% off through our pre-order campaign!

Photo by Kim S (Creative Commons)

I am a planner and a little bit of a control freak. My major events are usually planned within an inch of their life.

Yet, when I started writing my first ebook, I was concerned about writing and marketing, but I had put little thought into how I would actually self-publish. As crazy as that might seem, I was intending...

4 Mistakes I’ve Made (So Far) in My Crowdfunding Campaign

Photo by Freddie Peña (Creative Commons)

Seven days in, and I’m biting my nails about the pre-order campaign for E-Pub Bootcamp and Co-op. At a fundraising pace that feels like trudging through molasses, weare on track to raise $2,500 by the campaign’s end on December 31st. But I’m still scared.

On the day of the launch, the campaign was looking great. I didn’t expect explosive results, because I’m just not an explosive marketer (know thyself). So when I’d gotten five contributions to total 12....

On Ebooks this Week: What You Should Know Before Publishing + more

Huge thanks to everyone who has already supported our E-Pub campaign this week! Your shares, kind words, and contributions mean the world to me :) A special shout-out to these fantastic blogs that let me stop by to talk about ebook publishing with your readers:

What You Should Know Before Publishing Your First Ebook

at The Write Life (@thewritelife)

Publishing an ebook is a daunting task — so daunting many writerskeep their brilliant messages to themselvesrather than attempt to navigate the publ...