Cate Russell-Cole's Blog, page 28

Facebook Groups for Indie Authors

There are many… here’s a starter list. Not all these groups are Indie specific. Try searching under Indie, Author and Writer on Facebook to find more.

I am not involved with many of these groups, as I simply don’t have enough time: so please use at your own discretion. I have left the full web address here so this page can be printed.

Publishing Talk  https://www.facebook.com/groups/publishingtalk/

Review Seekers  https://www.facebook.com/groups/reviewseekers/

Books, Books and more Books Where authors and readers can post to help promote their books and giveaways. https://www.facebook.com/groups/320356974732142/

Indie Authors Unite! See how you can earn free advertising on a site that gets over 8000 page views a day. https://www.facebook.com/groups/kindlemojo/

Marketing for Authors https://www.facebook.com/groups/146813612165228/

All About Books A group for all who love books for authors & readers. https://www.facebook.com/groups/9476163038/

Writers and Readers Unite Authors may post about their new books and readers may post review or comments. https://www.facebook.com/groups/69073710111/

BOOK PLACE A group for anyone who likes books or is in any way connected with books, including readers, authors, librarians, editors, agents.publicists, illustrators, and more. This includes both print and electronic forms. https://www.facebook.com/groups/bookplace/

Authors Promoting Authors https://www.facebook.com/groups/apablog/

Published Authors  A place for budding and experienced authors to share ideas about publishing and marketing books. https://www.facebook.com/groups/2358693096/

Writers who believe in supporting Writers Writers / Authors a place where you can post and or ask questions. https://www.facebook.com/groups/397758770282542/

Authors, Agents, and Aspiring Writers https://www.facebook.com/groups/204725947524/

AUTHOR’S BOOK REVIEW EXCHANGE https://www.facebook.com/groups/297123753127/

Author Meeting Place A place to meet and greet other authors. You might be able to share marketing ideas and/or events in your area if you meet someone close to you. Authors unite! https://www.facebook.com/groups/authormeetingplace/

Book Promotion A vast support network designed to help YOU get your work free publicity. Post your latest book releases, press releases, links, likes and WIP. This is your FAN club. https://www.facebook.com/groups/BookPromotion/

Women Writers, Editors, Agents, and Publishers The goal for this networking group is to become the largest WOMEN ONLY group in the writing arena where we can help each other succeed. https://www.facebook.com/groups/wweap/

How to Make, Market and Sell Ebooks – All for Free This group is for writers helping writers but not for all of us shouting “buy my book.” It is still okay to discuss topic-related blog posts, interviews, questions related to your book and cover, etc. https://www.facebook.com/groups/110604178950149/

Go Indie Discover indies. Discuss resources. Post about your books and projects. Your Promos & Announcements are welcome once daily for each individual item. For example, if you are promoting a particular book, please post no more than once a day. But if you are promoting multiple books, you are welcome to post each separately or create a promo thread for your day’s promos. https://www.facebook.com/groups/goindie/

Julies Book Review- Reviewers for Authors This Group is for promo and for Authors to submit books to Julies Book Review. We have several reviewers that will review most genre’s of fiction Please only Author and reviewer type posts! https://www.facebook.com/groups/JBRauthorpage/

Indie author accountability The Indie Author accountability group. Stating your intentions and getting support along the way. Talking about motivation, and procrastination, breaking writer’s block and getting on with the act of writing and marketing. https://www.facebook.com/groups/indieaccountability/members/

This blog post by Cate Russell-Cole is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License. You are free to share and adapt it.

Filed under: Independent Author Promotion Month Tagged: author, Facebook, hashtag, Indie, marketing, promotion, social media, writer

Independent Author Promotion Month: Memoir Authors Get Listed Here

Today we are supporting the authors of memoir, biography or autobiography Below is the Linky List where you can link directly to your books, author pages or blog so other authors and readers can find you. You can also use these lists as a blog hop to further promote yourself and gain traffic.

A different genre will appear each post, so please, wait for your genre and don’t spam the list. I will remove entries which do not belong. Plus please note: this is only for Indie authors: any work you have published through a publishing company which sells through book shops, chains or other traditional routes will not be eligible. Authors who have published multiple works through both traditional and Indie sources can list only their Indie works.

This is also a blog hop. You can place the links on your own blog to keep the goodwill flowing.

The rules are as follows: you only get to list two sites per author. Please visit three or more authors on the Linky List, leave a supportive comment and buy a book if you can. I will also say it again, wait for your genre and don’t spam the list. I will remove entries which do not belong. You can always write a blog post listing your books, blogs, social media links etc. and post that. The lists will close as of 31st December, 2013.

Click here to enter your link and view this Linky Tools list…

Filed under: Independent Author Promotion Month, What's On Tagged: author, autobiography, biography, blog, blog hop, encouragement, goals, Indie Author, Indie publishing, memoir, novel, promotion, publishing, writer

Creative Freedom or Selling Out for Profit: Which is Your Choice?

This is Johnny Depp’s journey to creative freedom, and as he played Captain Jack Sparrow, the perfect post to celebrate Talk Like a Pirate Day. Be yourself, be encouraged! 

Most days are like all of the others,

Go to work, come back home, watch TV,

But, brother, if I had me druthers,

I’d chuck it and head out to sea,

For I dream of the skull and the crossbones,

I dream of the great day to come,

When I dump the mundane for the Old Spanish Main

And trade my computer for rum! ARRR!

(Written by http://www.tomsmithonline.com)

I am being asked more and more, “how do I sell my work?” “How do I write when I have no money for editing and book covers?” “How can I get my out-of-print books up and into circulation again?”

Writers seem to be getting lost in the market, thrown around my poorly deduced statistics and seduced by the demands of one-sided advice. It appears at times, that almost everyone that has e-published then has an urge to write a book on how they did it, as a self-proclaimed expert! Often, the advice is at best, partial; at worst, downright dangerous to a writer’s mental health! As I’ve look at some of the advice in the books, then look at a poorly written sample of that writer’s actual published novel, I’ve quickly developed an allergy to these ‘experts.’

What is really bothering me at the moment, is how often I see the same messages being repeated which are dictating how we are to blog, how we are to write, how we are to publish. We are being assimilated to a manageable norm. So are we having our creativity and originality juiced out of us? It concerns me that we are. If I read one more four character based novel with a predictable ending, I am going to scream. The writers are stuck in a formula rut. At times, it makes me stop reading. I’m bored with the same old thing.

So I decided to watch a few out-of-the-box movies, such as “Finding Neverland,” which is magic for writers, and “The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus.” I’ve always been intrigued by Johnny Depp’s performances and surprised at his ability to chameleon into roles. He is original and outstanding. I don’t watch a Johnny Depp movie to see him. The character always overtakes the real Johnny in appearance and personality. Depp is that character, rather than appearing as another reincarnation of “Star X now depicting the character Y.”

Reading more about Depp, I quickly discovered that he is his own man, takes his own path, frustrates the Hollywood norms… and wins. Labelled as frustrating, eccentric, unusual and odd, he won’t do the standard cliched blockbuster films, that enable the financial wheels of the movie industry to safely spin along their predictable path. Yes, he is also a writer. Just at the moment, that is the kind of role models many writers need… so much so, it is at least rumoured that Harper Collins has started an imprint of books which are “authentic, outspoken, and visionary,” a project initiated by the “bookish”  Johnny Depp. The Imprint title is characteristically him: Infinitum Nihil” (“Nothing is forever.”)

Johnny has reminded me:

You can still be successful by being yourself, rather than filling the mold;
Reflect your own interests in your choices, not what’s popular now and thus liable to make the most money;
If instinct says so, disregard the ‘shoulds’ from the experts: there is always more than one formula for success;
Write for the love of writing, not the money, you’ll stifle your real self;
Don’t be afraid to write outside your standard genre, step out of your comfort zone and do something completely different;
If others raise an eyebrow at your work and call you ‘unusual’ that’s good! Negative criticism can be a long term positive.
Never compromise yourself.

So “do a Depp.” Seriously consider where you are conforming to the norm in any way that is not you. Find your way back to your genuine creative self. Take a few risks: write something in a new genre and see where your journey takes you. The satisfaction of the creative journey is worth more than any payment or popularity. Plus, it can also become a winner for you too.

From Depp’s Point of View:

“The challenge for me is still to do something that hasn’t been beaten into the moviegoing consciousness. Otherwise what am I in it for?” 

As an undercover cop on 21 Jump Street, Depp emerged into the spotlight as a teen idol in 1987, but a future as a lunch box icon and not having any control over his own image, scared him. “I waited and waited to do a movie, because I wanted to do the right one. I wanted to go as far away from the series (21 Jump Street) as I could. The first film I did after Jump Street was Cry-Baby with John Waters. That was a great experience. After that I did another season of the series, and then I did Edward Scissorhands. During that movie I got the phone call saying I was out of the show. I felt like, Ah, possibilities. I was freed up. I swore to myself that I would never again compromise to the degree that I had. I swore that I wouldn’t just follow the commercial road. I wouldn’t do what was expected of me or what was necessary to maintain whatever it is –a popular or financially rewarding career. I promised myself that I would do that.” 

After the success of Pirates of the Caribbean he has been considered less of a non-conformist risk and more of a bankable movie star. However, his change in status has not changed the way he maintains his career path. Depp: “I’ve always been some distance from that game. I guess there have been times when I was on the brink of being bankable. But that’s all so weird. All these weird lists – top five star, top 10, “Let’s get this guy because he’s bankable.” I don’t think about that. You’re on the list two weeks and then – poof – you’re gone. It never jarred me that I wasn’t on the list. If I’m considered bankable this week, that’s great. Next week I’ll be totally off. I’m used to that. I’ve never had an allergy to the idea of commercial success. When you put a movie out and it’s successful, that’s great. I just wanted to get there in the right way, in a way that’s not too compromising or demeaning or ugly. Whether I’m there as a bankable movie star or not, I don’t know. If I stay there, who knows?”

“It’s just an odd game. I mean, I may want to do dinner theater. Maybe it’s not so bad. I’ve always said I might end up being forced to do McDonald’s openings dressed as Edward Scissorhands. You never know.”

Aside from Mr Depp’s quotes, this article / blog post is Copyright Cate Russell-Cole 2012, updated 2013. All rights are reserved Internationally. You may not reproduce it in any form, in part of whole, without Cate’s prior written permission. That includes usage in forms such as print, audio and digital imaging including pdf, jpg, png etc. A fee may be requested for re-using her work if it is for a commercial venture. Link sharing and Pinterest pins are most welcome as long as Cate is the attributed Author.

No images on this blog may be copied, captured, or altered for your own purpose without the consent of the originating owner. 

Filed under: What's On, Writing Resources Tagged: 'shoulds', blogging, books, challenge, creativity, e-book, failure, fear, formula, freedom, genuine, goals, growth, Indie publishing, inspiration, Johnny Depp, originality, plot, publishing, rut, success, writer, writing

Thank you to all the book bloggers out there who support Indies…

As authors, we are indebted to the readers who take time to leave a review. I’ve noticed there are many book bloggers on Twitter and I have listed as many as I can for both readers and authors alike. This video from Simon and Schuster, representing the views of the authors published under their Atria imprint, gives them a thank you that they truly deserve.

If you are looking for a book reviewer, please raid my Twitter list. Please also tell us in the comments, who your favourite book blogger is.

Filed under: "Dose of Inspiration" Video, Independent Author Promotion Month Tagged: appreciation, author, blogging, book bloggers, Independent Author, Indie, Indie publishing, support, writer, writing

Independent Author Promotion Month: Young Adult Authors Get Listed Here

This post we are supporting the authors of young adult fiction, regardless of what it is… however, no mature adult content please. Below is the Linky List where you can link directly to your books, author pages or blog so other authors and readers can find you. You can also use these lists as a blog hop to further promote yourself and gain traffic.

A different genre will appear each post, so please, wait for your genre and don’t spam the list. I will remove entries which do not belong. Plus please note: this is only for Indie authors: any work you have published through a publishing company which sells through book shops, chains or other traditional routes will not be eligible. Authors who have published multiple works through both traditional and Indie sources can list only their Indie works.

This is also a blog hop. You can place the links on your own blog to keep the goodwill flowing.

The rules are as follows: you only get to list two sites per author. Please visit three or more authors on the Linky List, leave a supportive comment and buy a book if you can. I will also say it again, wait for your genre and don’t spam the list. I will remove entries which do not belong. You can always write a blog post listing your books, blogs, social media links etc. and post that. The lists will close as of 31st December, 2013.

Click here to enter your link and view this Linky Tools list…

Filed under: Independent Author Promotion Month, What's On Tagged: author, blog, blog hop, encouragement, goals, Indie Author, Indie publishing, novel, promotion, publishing, writer, young adult fiction

Sharpen Your Poetry Writing Pencils: OctPoWriMo Starts October 1st

“If you love to write poetry, you love a good poetry challenge, and you are missing April’s NaPoWriMo then you are in the right place. There are now multiple Novel writing months it is past time we added another Poetry month. October is a great time to challenge poets to a poem a day for thirty one days.

It is easy to sign up, all you have to do is add your Blog where you will share your poetry or you can share it on Facebook in the Writing Poetry Group. You can grab the badge on this page and link it back to here to let others know about the challenge.

If you are needing inspiration you can check out our Daily Poetry Prompts that we will share on the OctPoWriMo blog but you can write from your own inspiration as well. Visit at least a few of your Poetry neighbors (a couple links before and after your links on the link up page) and you can share the link up on your page because we have set it up to be a blog hop. Make sure you tweet with the hashtag #OctPoWriMo to let everyone know when you have a new poem posted!

It is that simple. The challenge begins October 1st, and goes through October 31st.”

Filed under: What's On, Writing Resources Tagged: author, blogging, challenge, goals, motivation, OctPoWriMo, poetry, success, writer, writing

Writing Toxins: Optimising A Fully Functioning Mind

Image from Flickr under a Creative Commons Licence. Image from: http://www.flickr.com/photos/-cavin-/

Like all writers, I have days where I just can’t get work done. I have goals, deadlines and a schedule I try and follow, but it can be easier to plan than to write. If I have failed to nurture my mental energy, I just want to fall asleep on my keyboard, achieving nothing. One of the biggest source of this problem comes from the mind – body connection we all have. Brains need fuel. The most critical components are oxygen and sleep.

We have heard it all before… but it is true. You can’t think if you’re:

tired,
dehydrated,
living on junk food,
drunk,
drugged (including the damage done by smoking which starves the body of O2),
getting by on caffeine,
or haven’t moved from your chair for a long stretch.

Sitting at a desk for hours can be as toxic as living on fast food. It is not just your eyes that need a break from the computer screen. You need to get up and move around periodically so that oxygen gets pushed through your body tissues and is able to refresh and power your brain.

Image and great information available from http://www.signs-of-stress.com/symptoms-of-stress.html

The other great killer is stress. It will do harm to your body and your creative mind. Any time we are out of balance, we risk damaging our physical health and our creative minds. I see writers who work all day, rush home to care for families and then stay up late at night writing.

I understand time constraints, however, when you push yourself to do too much on a continual basis, you will run dry both physically and mentally. Ideas will not come; ability to see mistakes when editing will go astray and you will start to feel like a failure.

So take a deep breath; be realistic and work out how to take care of yourself properly. If you aren’t taking care of you, then you won’t be caring for your writing. The body and mind go hand in hand. Love them both.

If you are having a hard time as a writer, check out Phoenix Rising: Conquering the Stresses of the Writer’s Life. The ebook is available from Amazon Kindle: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00A9NJ9FA

Chapters Include:

Measuring the Value of Your Work in a Digital Age
Healing Creative Injuries
Creative Dark Matter: Clear Out What’s Holding You Down
Bomb Proofing Your Writer’s Ego
Handling Criticism
Moving Ahead in Small Steps: Why Revolutions Rarely Work
Fat Free, Guilt Free Blogging Goals
Escaping Mental Quicksand: Your “Time of Readiness”
Is Your Writing Life Stuck Under Your Mouse?
Balancing the Blogging Load
Writers and Depression: Debunking the Stereotypes
Writers Should Be Bathed in Blue: Boosting Your Productivity
Which Wins? Creative Pleasure or Word Count?
Petwrification: A Health Warning for All Writers

This article / blog post is Copyright Cate Russell-Cole 2013. All rights are reserved Internationally. You may not reproduce it in any form, in part of whole, without Cate’s prior written permission. That includes usage in forms such as print, audio and digital imaging including pdf, jpg, png etc. A fee may be requested for re-using her work if it is for a commercial venture. Link sharing and Pinterest pins are most welcome as long as Cate is the attributed Author.

No images on this blog may be copied, captured, or altered for your own purpose without the consent of the originating owner. 

Filed under: Writing Resources Tagged: author, blogging, goals, health, motivation, oxygen, problem solving, resource, sleep, success, thinking, toxin, writer, writing

Independent Author Promotion Month: Crime & Suspense Authors Get Listed Here

This post we are supporting the authors of crime and suspense. Below is the Linky List where you can link directly to your books, author pages or blog so other authors and readers can find you. You can also use these lists as a blog hop to further promote yourself and gain traffic.

A different genre will appear each post, so please, wait for your genre and don’t spam the list. I will remove entries which do not belong. Plus please note: this is only for Indie authors: any work you have published through a publishing company which sells through book shops, chains or other traditional routes will not be eligible. Authors who have published multiple works through both traditional and Indie sources can list only their Indie works.

This is also a blog hop. You can place the links on your own blog to keep the goodwill flowing.

The rules are as follows: you only get to list two sites per author. Please visit three or more authors on the Linky List, leave a supportive comment and buy a book if you can. I will also say it again, wait for your genre and don’t spam the list. I will remove entries which do not belong. You can always write a blog post listing your books, blogs, social media links etc. and post that. The lists will close as of 31st December, 2013.

Click here to enter your link and view this Linky Tools list…

Filed under: Independent Author Promotion Month, What's On Tagged: author, blog, blog hop, Crime, encouragement, goals, Indie Author, Indie publishing, novel, promotion, publishing, suspense, writer

Walter Mosley on Productivity & the Writing Life

“Walter Mosley is one of the most versatile and admired writers in America today. He is the author of more than 37 critically acclaimed books, including the major bestselling mystery series featuring Easy Rawlins. His work has been translated into 23 languages and includes literary fiction, science fiction, political monographs, and a young adult novel. His short fiction has been widely published, and his nonfiction has appeared in The New York Times Magazine and The Nation, among other publications. He is the winner of numerous awards, including an O. Henry Award, a Grammy and PEN America’s Lifetime Achievement Award. He lives in New York City.”

Filed under: "Dose of Inspiration" Video Tagged: author, books, creativity, fiction, goals, growth, Indie publishing, motivation, novel, passion, success, Walter Mosley, writer, writing

Indie Author Hashtag List

Try these hashtags at the end of your posts on Facebook, Twitter and Google Plus to draw attention to your work. Please note that hashtags such as #row80, #MyWANA, #wylsblog and #writemotivation are for community chat, never for promotion. If you see a new hashtag, check it’s origin before you use it and risk being blocked for spamming!

The other pet peeve which seems to be going around, is using hashtags in blog post titles. If you’ve used tags in your tweets and posts, you don’t need to double up and it looks unprofessional as an author. Hashtags can also be used to denote the topic such as #pets, #cooking, #health etc. They are incredibly effective mini search engines. Don’t neglect to use, or undervalue them. You do need these tags to be found amongst the masses.

The Basics

#Indie

#indieauthor

#author

#writer

#writing

#books

#novelist

#novels

Promotion

#pubtip – publication tips

#selfpublishing

#publishing

#promotionalmarketing

#bookselling

#interview

#review

#promotion

#blog

#bloghop

Publication Types / Sources

#amazon

#ebook

#kindle

#nook

#paperback

#kobo

#smashwords

Genres

#horror

#thriller

#romance

#ya

#crime

#suspense

#fantasy

#scifi

#fictionfriday

#fridayflash – flash fiction on a Friday

#poem

#poet

#poetry

#vss – very short story

#webfic – web fiction

#weblit – web literature

Generally Useful Tags

#writequote

#writetip

#writing

#askagent – agent questions and answers

This blog post by Cate Russell-Cole is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License. You are free to share and adapt it.

Filed under: Independent Author Promotion Month Tagged: author, Facebook, Google Plus, hashtag, Indie, marketing, promotion, social media, Twitter, writer