Elizabeth Spann Craig's Blog, page 76

May 10, 2018

Follow Buttons for Your Author Website

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

I think it’s pretty easy for our readers to miss out on our releases. We all have very busy lives and all get bombarded each day by advertising and emails. I have several releases a year and know they must slip by a good number of readers.

Naturally, the first line of defense for preventing this from happening is to have readers join our email newsletter. Even then, though, emails can get lost in the tidal wave that hits our inboxes each day.

To help keep this from happening, I have a few other ways for readers to keep up with what I’m up to.

Obviously, readers who follow me on Facebook and Instagram will get updates as I release information on those sites.

But it’s also nice for readers to be updated without my having to send out notifications/spam. That’s why I’ve added some follow buttons to my site.

One of them is from my author profile page on Amazon. Readers who follow writers on Amazon receive notifications of their new releases. The process is automatic.

Another is BookBub. Even if you don’t advertise through their service, you can still set up an author profile there. Readers will be notified of your new releases (you must go on the site and add your new release…this won’t be automatic). To set up your profile, click here.

A third is a button that connects readers to my Goodreads profile. If readers follow me there (as opposed to friending me), they receive updates on my releases. Claim your author profile on Goodreads here.

I simply save the logos for the companies and then add the saved images to my site (linking the web addresses for my profiles as I add the media). It ended up looking like this:

Follow me for release updates:

It didn’t take long and made me feel as though I was giving readers another way to keep up with me and my books.

How do you keep readers updated on your releases?

Photo credit: hedera.baltica on Visual hunt / CC BY-SA

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Published on May 10, 2018 21:01

May 6, 2018

Goodreads Giveaways

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

I’ve read a lot about writers’ disappointment with the pricing for the revised Goodreads Giveaway feature (the changes started in January this year).

The feature had previously been free for writers, who could give away printed copies only of their books through the platform.

Goodreads opened up the giveaways to digital copies. But now giveaways cost $119 for either digital or print copies.

For me, the cost wasn’t as much of an impediment to participating in a giveaway. I’ll write it off on my taxes as a promotional cost of doing business. Also, whenever I did print giveaways, I found the process cumbersome and rather expensive. I’m happy to have Goodreads handle the digital distribution of the titles.

My purpose for the giveaways is just to generally gain visibility and awareness for the title/series being promoted, and possibly hook a few new readers. Whenever readers enter the giveaway, it adds the title to their ‘want to read’ list, which shows up in their friends’ feeds. Reviews are not as much of a priority for me, although Goodreads does send follow-up emails to readers after 8 weeks, reminding them to rate and review the title. Reviews obviously also help with visibility.

Although Goodreads has a page with best practices for the giveaways, I’ve read on various author blogs that there is a better approach than what Goodreads outlines.

Tips:

Instead of giving away as many books as you can, give away the smallest number you can (10) because the visibility you gain will be the same (unless your purpose is to gain more reviews for your title).

Instead of the recommended month for the giveaway, it’s important to know that you’ll be featured in Goodreads’ ‘recently listed’ and ‘ending soon’ alerts if you keep your giveaway short. I set mine for 10 days (with the giveaway ending one day after the book’s release). If you can afford it, the best approach is to set several short giveaways back to back for maximum exposure.

How to Set up a Giveaway:

Here’s a step-by-step guide for setting up a giveaway (via Goodreads):

Before listing a giveaway, you will need to connect your Amazon and Goodreads accounts here.
1. Click on “List a Giveaway” from the giveaway page or your Author Dashboard.2. Select “List a Print Book” or “List a Kindle Ebook.” If you want to create a Kindle ebook giveaway, select either “Publisher” or “Author using Kindle Direct Publishing.”3. Select your giveaway package: Standard or Premium.

4. Find your book by searching for the ISBN or ASIN, then fill in your giveaway details.

5. Click on “Pay with Amazon.” You’ll be prompted to sign in to your Amazon account and choose a payment method.

6. Confirm that your giveaway and payment details are correct, agree to the Goodreads Service Agreement, and click “Place order.”

Still on the fence about whether it’s a good investment? I can understand that. The money is nothing to sneeze at. David Wogahn wrote a guest post for me in January for good alternatives to a Goodreads giveaway.

May 5, 2018

Twitterific

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

Twitterific writing links are fed into the Writer’s Knowledge Base search engine (developed by writer and software engineer Mike Fleming) which has over 45,000 free articles on writing related topics. It’s the search engine for writers.

Have you visited the WKB lately? Check out the new redesign where you can browse by category, and sign up for free writing articles, on topics you choose, delivered to your email inbox! Sign up for the Hiveword newsletter here.

Business / Miscellaneous

What type of editor do you need? by Dana Isaacson @CareerAuthors

Piracy, Plagiarism, and Impersonation: @JohnDopp @IndieAuthorALLI

21 Ways to Network with Other Writers: @WritersCoach

Co-Writing a book with a loved one: @clairescobie @IndieAuthorALLI

Writing to Publish, or Spinning Your Wheels? @AnnalisaParent

1 Writer Tanked When Producing Her Memoir into an Audiobook: @LizbethMeredith

The Business of Tracking Lit Mag Submissions: @AaronGilbreath

Conferences and Events / Miscellaneous

Tips for Writer’s Conference Attendees: @cathychall @womenonwriting

Nigerian Publishers and IPA Hold Seminar in Lagos in Progress and Piracy: @Porter_Anderson @npaonline @rasmedpu

PEN Afrikaans Launches Translation Funding, Two Deadlines This Year: @Porter_Anderson @BettinaWyngaard @pubperspectives

Creativity and Inspiration / Inspiration

Writing and the Creative Life: Is the key to creativity “unlearning”? @GoIntoTheStory

A Writer’s Guide to Infinite Ideas: by Rainey Hall @RMFWriters

Stumped for Story Ideas? Try This One Tip: @monicamclark

Creativity and Inspiration / Inspiration / Reading as Writers

The Stories Behind 15 Poems We All Learned in School: by Jay Serafino @mentalfloss

Creativity and Inspiration / Writing Life

How to Lose Weight While Writing: @colleen_m_story

“PEN America takes on the problems writers face in online harassment with a new guide for protection”: @Porter_Anderson @pubperspectives

Rejections, Tragedy, Caregiving—What Resilience Means to this Writer: @LindaOsmundson @colleen_m_story

10 Killer Tips for Beating Writer’s Solitude: @VickieM_author

A Writer with Imposter Syndrome: @AuthorSAT

Paul Gauguin’s Advice on Overcoming Rejection, Breaking Free of Public Opinion, and Staying True to One’s Creative Vision: @brainpicker

Three Core Elements of 1 Writer’s Home Office: @jonathanballcom

The Agony and the Ecstasy of Taking Author Photos: by Tom Rachman @lithub

Creating a minimalist workspace: @zen_habits @unclutterer

Genres / Dystopian

Emily St. John Mandel on Station Eleven, Katrina, and Apocalypse Lit: @EmilyMandel @unboundworlds

Genres / Fantasy

What is Fantasy, Exactly? by Juliet Marillier @WriterUnboxed

Building Better Magic Systems: When Fantasy Fails: @davidfarland

Creating a fantasy map: making your fantasy world real: @Magpie_Richie @SchmidtJesper

Genres / Horror

A horror reviewer talks about effective horror: @ClowderofTwo @NightmareMag

Genres / Mystery

Crafting the Perfect Setting for Noir: @Brendan_Duffy @CrimeReads

The cozy mystery antagonist: @LauraDiSilverio

Prison escapes as an element in crime fiction: @mkinberg

Genres / Non-Fiction

How To Turn Your Non-Fiction Book Into A Workbook: @thecreativepenn

Genres / Romance

Writing Romance: the Midpoint: by Jax Hunter @RMFWriters

Genres / Young Adult

The Difference Between YA and MG Novels: @HeatherJacksonW

Promo / Blogging

6 treatments for a sickly blog: @LouiseHarnby

Does a Fiction Author Need a Blog? @annerallen @RomanceUniv

4 Ways You Can Make Time to Blog Right Now: @BadRedheadMedia

Promo / Book Descriptions and Copywriting

4 steps to writing your Amazon book blurb: @DeborahJay2

Promo / Metadata

How to Use Amazon Categories to Increase your Rankings: @Nicholas_Rossis

Promo / Miscellaneous

Writing Articles to Market Your Books: @LindaGilden @EdieMelson

11 Ways to Promote Preorder Books that Drive Real Results: @ThereseWalsh

How to plan a successful DIY book tour: @byJenAMiller @TheWriterMag

BookBub for Authors Who Don’t Run Ads:

Can Slick Marketing Sell Bad Books? @jamesscottbell

The Best Way to Promote a Book on Bargain Booksy: @WrittenWordM

5 Promotion Tips for Small Press and Self Published Authors: @JaceyCockrobin @LitReactor

What Are “Also Boughts”? And How Can They Help You Sell More Books? @ricwol

Collaborative Digital Marketing: @LPOBryan @IndieAuthorALLI

Promo / Platforms

5 Ways to Solidify Your Indie Author Brand: @Bookgal

Promo / Social Media Tips

How to Optimize Your LinkedIn Profile for Better Visibility: @LinkedInSpeaker @SMExaminer

How to Identify Social Media Influencers and Collaborate on Campaigns: @SproutAlexYork @SproutSocial

How to Build a Facebook Ad Funnel: @Mike_Stelzner @SMExaminer

Publishing / Miscellaneous

Blockchain for books – technology advances in publishing: @JosefPublica @IndieAuthorALLI

Lots of Spanish speakers in the US, but not so much of a book market for Spanish books: @MikeShatzkin

Publishing / News / Amazon

Eoin Purcell of Amazon Publishing UK: ‘Building Those Relationships’ @Porter_Anderson @eoinpurcell

Publishing / News / International Publishing

Stockholm Librarian Elisabet Risberg on Arabic Books in Sweden: @Porter_Anderson @Bokstigen

Initial North American Roald Dahl Licensing Rights Announced in London: @Porter_Anderson

“With more than 905,000 reads @wattpad to date…author Kara Barbieri’s ‘Permafrost’ trilogy could be the next…YA bestseller”: @Porter_Anderson @PandeanPanic

Industry Notes: Amazon Prime ‘Book Box’ for Children, Unicorn Acquires Ronquillo’s ‘Spellbound’: @Porter_Anderson @fatimaronquillo

Publishing / Options / Traditional Publishing / Querying

Writing the Query Letter Synopsis: A Step by Step Example: @aprildavila

Publishing / Process / Translation

“Promoting literature that would be ‘shipwrecked without a translator,’ Words Without Borders observes its 15-year anniversary”: @Porter_Anderson

Writing Craft / Beginnings

Inhabiting Our Scenes: Information Versus Experience: @peterselgin @JaneFriedman

Flog a Pro: would you pay to turn the first page of this bestseller? @RayRhamey

Writing Craft / Characters / Development

Occupation Thesaurus Entry: Real Estate Agent: @AngelaAckerman

Character Flaws: Key Types of Lovable Imperfections: @nownovel

Creating Characters: 6 Points to Get You Started: @TheWritingNook

Writing Craft / Characters / Emotion

Write Using Emotional Amplifiers: @AngelaAckerman

Writing Craft / Characters / Protagonists

Protagonists and Point of View (podcast): @chloekbenjamin @DIYMFA

Everything You’ll Ever Need For Writing Great Heroes: @Bang2write

Writing Craft / Common Mistakes

Purple Prose: What it is, How it Works, How to Get Rid of it: @SeptCFawkes

5 Reasons Readers Give Up On Books And How To Avoid Them: by Rebecca Langley

Writing Craft / Dialogue

The Problems with Quirky Dialogue Tags: by JM Williams

Writing Craft / Diversity

Romance so white? Publishers grapple with race issues amid author protests: @alisonflood @GuardianBooks

Writing Craft / Drafts

10 Tricks For Rocking Your First Draft: @StephMorrill

Writing Craft / Flashback and Back Story

How to Reveal Your Character’s Backstory Wound: @plotwhisperer @scriptmag

Writing Craft / Lessons from Books and Film

6 Important Writing Reminders From The Shape Of Water: @Bang2write

Analyzing a Masterwork: Knife of Never Letting Go: @rsmonterusso @StoryGrid

Four Lessons From Colson Whitehead: @AlpertMark @killzoneauthors

The Annotation Project: A Game of Thrones: @CockeyedCaravan

Writing Craft / Literary Devices

Discovering Your Theme: @ShanDitty

Back to Basics–Imagery: @SeptCFawkes

Writing Craft / Miscellaneous

10 Success Tips from J.K. Rowling: @JennyHansenCA

What’s the Emotional Core of Your Character? @Janice_Hardy

What Is Cinematic Perspective? When to Write It (and When to Avoid It): @TCKPublishing

How to Turn Real Events from Your Life into a Work of Fiction: @emilybelden @WritersDigest

On Writing Dark Stories: @VaughnRoycroft @WriterUnboxed

Writing About Death, Dying, And Grief: @spiritualmd @thecreativepenn

5 Ways to Take Risks With Your Writing: @KMWeiland

How to Write a Story from the Ending: Twisted Path to Mind-Blowing End: @KristenLambTX

Writing Craft / Pre-Writing / Plotting

Using Character Motivations in Plot Chains: @ml_keller @plotwhisperer

The Waypoint Writer — A Flexible Way to Plan a Story: by Rose Andrews @mythicscribes

Writing Craft / Pre-Writing / Story Beats

A Man Like You Beat Sheet: @NaomiBeaty @savethecat

Writing Craft / Pre-Writing / Story Concept

Mastering the 4 Key Elements to Support Your Novel: @LiveWriteThrive

Writing Craft / Punctuation and Grammar

9 Ways to Use a Colon: A No-Fear Guide to Correct Colon Usage: @TCKPublishing

5 Functions of Quotation Marks: @writing_tips

Writing Craft / Revisions / Critiques

5 Ways to Build Your Success Team: @SloanTamar @DIYMFA

Writing Craft / Series

Series Writing 101: Resources for planning and writing a series: @LisaPoisso

Writing Craft / Tension

Tension Techniques: The Sly Art of Stalling: @EditingWizard

Writing Craft / Voice

Masterful Voice in Novels: @LiveWriteThrive

Writing Craft / Word Crafting

Size doesn’t matter: why short words are better than long ones: @wearearticulate

Writing Tools / Books

Five Best Books about Writing: @metcalfwriter

Writing Tools / Miscellaneous

How to Use Headings in Microsoft Word to Organize Your Novel: @JillWilliamson

Writing Tools / Resources

Using an iPod Touch to Edit a Book: @alissagrosso

Uncategorized

On Teaching Creative Writing: @t_mcallister @The_Millions

The top writing links from last week are on Twitterific:
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Published on May 05, 2018 21:02

April 28, 2018

Twitterific

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

I’m going to be offline this week , so won’t have posts tomorrow or Friday. I’ll be back next Sunday. :)

Business / Miscellaneous

What Makes a Great Fiction Book Editor: @TessaShapcott @RomanceUniv

Top 8 Benefits of Freelance Writing: @TCKPublishing

How To Write High-Volume Fiction In A Sustainable Way: @tobywneal @thecreativepenn

Conferences and Events / Miscellaneous

The UK’s Women’s Prize for Fiction Shortlist Names Six Authors: @Porter_Anderson @WomensPrize @BananaKarenina @girlhermes @meenakandasamy

Ibrahim Nasrallah Wins International Prize for Arabic Fiction: @Porter_Anderson @i_nasrallah23 @pubperspectives

Greece Opens Athens’ Year as UNESCO’s World Book Capital: @Porter_Anderson @pubperspectives

A closer look at the new Bibliotopia festival in May: @Porter_Anderson @pubperspectives

Abu Dhabi International Book Fair Opens, a Professional Program at Its Center: @Porter_Anderson

Publishers Forum Opens Today in Berlin: ‘New Tech’ and Level Heads: @Porter_Anderson @wischenbart

Creativity and Inspiration / First Novels

How to Write a Novel: A 12-Step Guide: @JerryBJenkins

Creativity and Inspiration / Inspiration / Reading as Writers

PBS Announces ‘Its 100 Contenders for Best-Loved Novel’: @Porter_Anderson @pbsbooks @Nutopia_tv

10 Authors Whose Best Work Was Published Posthumously: @knownemily @lithub

David Foster Wallace and the Horror of Neuroscience: by M.M. Owen @The_Millions

Creativity and Inspiration / Productivity / Fitting in Writing

Top 8 Online Time-Tracking Tools: @TCKPublishing

Writing Progress Does Not Always Equal Word Count: @annamarieobrien @losapala

Creativity and Inspiration / Productivity / Writer’s Block

Broken Fingers, NOT Writer’s Block: @jakazimer

Creativity and Inspiration / Writing Life

How to build a creative life that makes you happy and ALSO produces results: @jennifershiman @jccabel

After publication, 4 things to do to prepare for the road ahead: @tessaemilyhall

Re-reading your work: @evmysterywriter @killzoneauthors

Coping with Impostor Syndrome: @DanBlank

The Secret to Journaling: @Lizmugavero @WickedCozys

The Strange Magic of Libraries: @StuartKells @parisreview

Why the Term “Mary Sue” Should Be Retired: by Oren Ashkenazi @mythcreants

The Healthy Writer: @thecreativepenn @SarahRPainter

How did 18th century literary women relieve domestic distress? With opiates: by Vanessa Thorpe @GuardianBooks

Should You Make That Comment or Not? @Stepha_OBrien

How to Make a Writer Crazy: @LindaKSienkwicz

2 Steps to Your Writer’s Stance: @Beth_Barany

Truths About The Artist’s Journey: @SPressfield

Genres / Middle-Grade

9 Things Learned From Rewriting a Children’s Books Series: @Heather_B_Moon1 @ReedsyHQ

Genres / Mystery

Job trainees as an element in crime fiction: @mkinberg

Developing Your Cozy Mystery Story Concept:

The Traditional Mystery: A Roundtable Discussion: @CrimeReads @GigiPandian @MargaretMaron @medwardsbooks @Annette_Dashofy

Genres / Non-Fiction

Why Every Writer Has a Nonfiction Book in Them: by Jennifer Blanchard

How To Set And Track Goals For a Creative Nonfiction Writing Career: @kayladeanwrites @DIYMFA

How to Write a Nonfiction Book When Writing Is NOT Your Strength: @NinaAmir

Promo / Book Reviews

8 Tips to Get Great Amazon Book Reviews: @LisaTener

Promo / Miscellaneous

15 Reasons Why Your Book Isn’t Selling: @JFbookman

How to Connect with Book Clubs: by Tara Lynn Masih @hopeclark

4 Book Promotion Strategies That No Longer Work: @SmithPublicity @BookBub

Promo / Newsletters

Reach More Customers by Sending an Email Newsletter: by Campaign Monitor @hopeclark

Promo / Social Media Tips

How to Write a LinkedIn Profile that Stands Out: @Nelson81Kevin

How To Avoid Blocked Hashtags On Instagram: via Wordy Nerd Bird

Publishing / Miscellaneous

How to create an audio book: Distribution, editing and briefing a voice artist: @raygreenleyvo

Publishing’s Darker Stories: Focusing on Freedom to Publish in London: @Porter_Anderson @michielams

Publishing / Options / Traditional Publishing / Querying

6 Resources for Finding a Literary Agent: from Whynott Edit

Agent spotlight interview with @marchsoloway and query critique giveaway: @NatalieIAguirre

The Revise + Resubmit Request: @LaurieTomlinson

Publishing / Options / Traditional Publishing / Rejections

Make Rejection Your Motivation to Grow: @diannesalerni @TheIWSG

Publishing / Process / Formatting

How NOT to Format Your Manuscript: @KnowlesMarianne @WritersRumpus

Publishing / Process / Self-Publishing

1 Author’s First Couple Of Months Publishing Wide: @KhaosFoxe

Publishing / Process / Translation

Rights Roundup: Crises, Confidence, and Correspondence for Sale: @Porter_Anderson

Writing Craft / Beginnings

How Your Story Opening Foreshadows (Intentionally or Not) What’s to Come: @peterselgin @JaneFriedman

Can First Chapters Ever Be TOO Dramatic? @writeabook

Writing Craft / Characters / Antagonists

The Secret Sauce For A Menacing Antagonist: @LisaHallWilson

Writing Craft / Characters / Development

Ask the Editor: Character Motive: @writingrefinery @DIYMFA

The Island of Misfit Characters: @katmagendie @WriterUnboxed

Writing Your Character to Life: @Lindasclare

Writing Craft / Characters / Protagonists

Proving Your Protagonist Has What It Takes: @kcraftwriter

The Hero vs. The Secret Good Guy: @BetterNovelProj

When Your Heroes Could Become Villains: @VictoriaGHowell

Writing Craft / Common Mistakes

How to Spot and Avoid Self-Indulgent Writing: @KMWeiland

How to Avoid Info-Dumps in Your Stories: @TheRyanLanz

Writing Craft / Flashback and Back Story

How to write a flashback: @jasonbougger

Writing Craft / Lessons from Books and Film

Television Doesn’t Kill Writing: How TV Helps 1 Writer Write: @LisaLisax31

What You Can Learn About Writing from Cheesy Movies: by Jonathan Vars

Writing Craft / Literary Devices

How to Foreshadow with Flair: @EditingWizard

Foreshadowing in a Sentence: Connecting Story Events: @nownovel

Deepening Our Story: Theme It Like You Mean It: @JamiGold

Writing Craft / Miscellaneous

4 Timeless Writing Tips from ‘A Wrinkle in Time’ Author Madeleine L’Engle: @Kerrie_Flanagan @WritersDigest

John Grisham’s 8 Do’s And Don’ts For Popular Fiction: @writerswrite

5 Ways To Make Your Writing Stronger: @AnthonyEhlers

Distinguishing the Key Elements that Drive Internal Genres: @KimberKess @StoryGrid

Kerouac’s 30 Rules for Writing: @Writers_Write

10 Tips For Writers From Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy Author Douglas Adams: @Writers_Write

3 Tips to Hook Your Reader’s Emotions: @anna_elliott @WriterUnboxed

Storyteller’s Rulebook: Writing for Reluctant Readers: @CockeyedCaravan

Writing Craft / POV

How Many POVs Are Too Many? @Ava_Jae

Writing Craft / Pre-Writing / Naming

5 Tips for Naming Your Characters: by Nicole Pyles @womenonwriting

Writing Craft / Pre-Writing / Story Concept

Is Your Concept Really More Scene Than Story? @storyfix

How to Choose the Right Path in Your Story When There are So Many Possibilities: @enhughesiasm

Writing Craft / Punctuation and Grammar

How to Use a Colon: @debluskin

Essential and Nonessential Clauses: @writing_tips

Writing Craft / Revision

A revision checklist: @HankPRyan

Writing Craft / Series

Planning Out a Series: @JillWilliamson

5 Sequel-Writing Secrets From Jessica Jones: @Jffelkins

Writing Craft / Subtext

Create Layers of Tension With Subtext To Surprise Readers: @LisaHallWilson

Writing Craft / Synopses

How to Write a Synopsis— Without Turning Homicidal: @SarahSallyHamer @EdieMelson

Writing a Working Synopsis: @ShanDitty @GoTeenWriters

Tips for writing a synopsis: @pintipdunn

Writing Craft / Tension

Raise the Stakes By Making It Personal: @AngelaAckerman

Uncategorized

“Keep writing no matter what.” and 11 other tips for successful writers: @EdieMelson

The top writing links from last week are on Twitterific:
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Published on April 28, 2018 21:01

April 26, 2018

BookBub for Authors Who Don’t Run Ads

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

Although I haven’t run a BookBub ad, I have an author profile on BookBub. It’s free and there are excellent reasons for having a presence there, whether or not you ever intend to run an ad.

Perhaps the biggest reason is that BookBub will update your followers when you have a new release. This is what my readers received from BB on the 23rd:

BookBub also can help us connect with new readers by emailing subscribers and suggesting authors to follow.

Tom Corson-Knowles of TCK publishing points out that linking your author profile on BookBub to your website also is a huge SEO boost for your site.

I wondered, when I set up the profile there if my readers were BookBub subscribers. But with absolutely no effort on my part, I have over two hundred followers there. So…the answer is yes. :)

There are also ways that you can increase the number of followers that you have on the site, according to Diana Urban on the BookBub site. Among her suggestions are adding a link to your email signature, including a BookBub follow button on your website, and linking to BookBub in your books’ back matter.

For step-by-step instructions on setting up your author profile, see Jamie Ferguson’s post, “Claim and Configure Your BookBub Author Profile.”

A relatively new feature from BookBub offers authors the opportunity to connect with readers (and gain visibility on the site) by recommending books that you’ve enjoyed (for US authors only right now). From BookBub’s blog:

Sharing a recommendation on BookBub helps authors:

Stay top-of-mind with their BookBub followers in the US
Cross-promote fellow authors and help each other get discovered
Engage with BookBub’s community of enthusiastic power readers
Boost visibility to readers visiting BookBub.com

BookBub recommends that authors post a recommendation 1-3 times a month and respond to any comments that readers make.

Author Assistant Mel Jolly reported in her newsletter that BookBub offered a workaround for non-US authors:

“Login to Your Account

Go to this link and update your retailer preferences to USA.

BookBub recommends that you keep your author account as a US-based account to ensure access to new features as they’re rolled out.

NOTE: Changing to a US based account this will also update the deals you see to US based.”

Do you have a profile on BookBub? Have you made any recommendations?

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Published on April 26, 2018 21:02

April 22, 2018

Developing Your Cozy Mystery Story Concept

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

One of the questions I’m most asked when I speak is how I come up with my ideas. This, of course, is probably the number one question that all writers are asked when they’re public speaking. At least I usually am asked a variant of the question because they want to know how I come up with mysteries.

I usually say that I start with the victim. And that’s true … about 75% of the time. It’s an easy way to start out a cozy mystery. You can develop someone who’s either really hateful and has plenty of enemies or create a character who seems too good to be true…and is.

Once I have a good idea who my victim is, it’s easy enough to come up with my suspects. Who would most want this person dead? An ex-wife? A neighbor he’s had disputes with? The husband of the woman he’s having an affair with? The suspects come together naturally when you really know your victim.

Sometimes, though, I’ll start a different way. I’ll have an idea about the type of mystery I want to write or some element that I want to explore. A couple of times I’ve wanted to do a ‘road trip’ mystery where I took my characters away from their usual setting (on a cruise, for instance). Once I wanted to try my hand at a traditional ‘manor house mystery’ where the characters were all trapped by weather in a house with a murderer. Once I wanted to give a go at writing a cold case murder. Or I’ll want to write a book with two different killers, working alone. With these books, I’ll start with the setting or style of murder and then start figuring out my victim and suspects.

I’ll give an example for those of you who might be new or just starting out with cozies. I recently wrote an outline for book 10 of the Southern Quilting Mysteries (and a caveat here–this is book 10. I am using backstory more at this point in the series and this may or may not be great for a book 1 in a series). I decided that I wanted to bring in a newcomer to the small town I set the story in…someone from my sleuth’s past. I also wanted my sleuth to be considered a suspect by police. This was the story spark for the whole outline. Once I’d decided that, I brainstormed a character who might work well in that role: a past friend? Boyfriend? Coworker? I settled on coworker because I didn’t really need any story conflict between my sleuth and her new husband (an annoying friend or boyfriend wouldn’t have served my story as well). Then I created a character that had caused my sleuth stress in her past and moved her into town…where she was promptly murdered. Hey, it’s a murder mystery. :)

Then it was easy enough to come up with a list of suspects for the death of this annoying character. Then I filled in my cozy outline.

So that infernal question, where do you get your ideas from, sometimes provokes a little thought. Obviously starting with the victim doesn’t always work for me…it’s good to know how else I can effectively brainstorm a cozy mystery.

Where do you get your ideas from. :) What’s more, do they come to you in routine ways?

Two Ways to Develop a Cozy Mystery Concept:
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Published on April 22, 2018 21:02

April 21, 2018

Twitterific Writing Links

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

News and Cool Stuff

I have a book coming out tomorrow. :) Book 9 of the Southern Quilting Mysteries, Rest in Pieces releases April 23.

Interested in reading free translated books? AmazonCrossing has 9 translations available for free in celebration of World Book Day…only through April 24, so be quick. More information in this Publishing Perspectives article by Porter Anderson.

Business / Miscellaneous

Jane Friedman talks about the business of being a writer: @ChicagoManual @JaneFriedman

Grants for Writers and other Funding Options: @JaneFriedman @IndieAuthorALLI

5 Reasons It’s Time to Call In An Editor: @rsmonterusso

With Fewer Debut Novels Selling, What Do Editors Want To Tell Authors? @oliviasnaije @pubperspectives

The 8-Step Guide to Starting a Freelance Writing Business: by James Johnson @thewritelife

Conferences and Events / Miscellaneous

Man Booker International Prize Announces 2018 Shortlist: @Porter_Anderson @pubperspectives

Tips for considering conferences: @cathychall @womenonwriting

‘Man Booker 50’ Celebration Features Stars, Commentary, Workshops: @Porter_Anderson @pubperspectives

Abu Dhabi International Book Fair Includes 25 Translations from French, English, and German: @Porter_Anderson

Industry Notes: The US Publishers Association and BookExpo Announce Panels, the UK’s Sunday Times Prize Opens for Entries: @Porter_Anderson @pubperspectives

Creativity and Inspiration / Inspiration

10 Things to Remember When Writing Brings You Down: @jasonbougger

Creativity and Inspiration / Inspiration / Reading as Writers

Five Threequels That Really Make The Series: @tordotcom @Spencimus

15 of the Creepiest Children in Literature: @lithub

10 Great Small Press Books Worth Picking Up: @lithub

The Annotation Project: Holes: @CockeyedCaravan

Creativity and Inspiration / Motivation

If You Want to Write, You Have to Get Started: @annkroeker

Creativity and Inspiration / Writing Life

Tips for Writing Through the Tough Times: @Annette_Dashofy @WickedCozys

Stay Safe Online While Building Your Author Platform: @EdieMelson

Tips for Writing During a Life Change: @AuthorSAT

6 Tips for Remembering Story Ideas: A List for Writers: @KathySteinemann

Doomed by Depression? @LesleyVos @RomanceUniv

What Physics Can Teach Us About Writing Fiction: @theariellewis @The_Millions

Genres / Fantasy

Making Better Magic Systems: The Heart of Your Tale: @davidfarland

Genres / Horror

Reading Horror Novels Helped 1 Reader Deal with OCD: by Sara Harrington @ElectricLit

Genres / Mystery

Lingerie as an element in crime fiction: @mkinberg

Department stores as an element in crime fiction: @mkinberg

Eye Witness Testimony for Writers: @SloanTamar

Tips for Better Suspense Writing: @SueColetta1 @MTW_2018

Narrator Dick Hill on His Career Bringing the Work of Famous Mystery Writers to Life: @MTW_2018

Warehouses and Storage Facilities as Elements in Crime Fiction: @mkinberg

Genres / Non-Fiction

How to Write a Killer Book Introduction: @kellyexeter @copyblogger

Genres / Picture Books

The 5 Elements of an Unforgettable Children’s Book: @DaveChesson @WritetoDone

Genres / Romance

Why it’s so hard to find fiction that doesn’t focus on love and sex—and why that’s a problem: @chengela @ElectricLit

Genres / Screenwriting

20 Little Things That Make Script Readers Hate Your Screenplay: by Brian O’Malley @scriptmag

Top 10 Lessons from the TV Writers’ Room: @ellenbyronla

Promo / Blogging

Four Essential Elements to Writing a Great Blog Post: @JeffGoins

Promo / Book Descriptions and Copywriting

How to Write a Killer Amazon Bio and Sell More Books: @Bookgal

Promo / Miscellaneous

What Book Marketing Is – and Isn’t: @GlennJMiller

Collaborative Book Marketing – Joining Forces with Other Authors (Video): @LPOBryan @YourNewBooks @IndieAuthorALLI

5 Reasons To Promote Your Book: @JL_Campbell @TheIWSG

10 Platform-Building Strategies for Writers on a $0 Budget: @shaylaleeraquel @ADDerWORLD

Branded Short Links: @jvlpoet

Three Ways to Revive the Fortunes of a Dying Book: @DaveChesson @theindiepubmag

Promo / Newsletters

Best tips for authors to build an email list and grow their audience: @Nick_Stephenson @IndieAuthorALLI

Promo / Platforms

Four Ways to Create Your Author Persona: @DonnaGalanti

Promo / Social Media Tips

Facebook Algorithm changes and the impact on authors: @SelfPubForm @IndieAuthorALLI

Identify Your Authentic Social Media Voice: @EdieMelson

Promo / Video

How to Use Live Video in a Product Launch: 7 Ways: @LuriaPetrucci @SMExaminer

How To Produce a Killer Book Promo Video: @wildboundpr @WritersDigest

Promo / Websites

5 Features of Effective Author Websites: @Bookgal

Publishing / Miscellaneous

How Long Should a Book Be? Word Count Guidelines: @annerallen

What Authors Need To Know About Voice Technologies Such As Amazon Alexa And Google Assistant: @SelectaStory @thecreativepenn

Storytelling Competition from Film and TV: What Can Publishers Do? @Porter_Anderson @BytetheBook

Video demonstration of audiobook editing in Cubase Pro: @Its_CCHogan

The Association of American Publishers’ Allan Adler Testifies on the Hill About the Marrakesh Treaty: @Porter_Anderson @pubperspectives

Choosing an Audiobook Narrator: @annacastl @IndieAuthorALLI

“What it Means to Publishing that ‘Everything We Touch’ is Competing for Our Attention”: @everythingpau @Porter_Anderson

Publishing / News / International Publishing

China Literature Sees France, UK as Key Rights Buyers at London Book Fair: @Porter_Anderson

Industry Notes: Bogotá’s Book Fair Second Pro Program; Amazon UK’s Second Kindle Storyteller Award: @Porter_Anderson

Macmillan’s Second Major Political Book of 2018: James Comey’s ‘A Higher Loyalty’ Goes to Market: @Porter_Anderson @pubperspectives

Industry Notes: Nurturing Publishing Startups at ContentShift, and Honoring YA Translations at GLLI: @Porter_Anderson @pubperspectives

BIEF’s Nicolas Roche on French Publishing in the World: ‘Meetings All Year Long’: @Porter_Anderson @pubperspectives

Publishing / Options / Self-Publishing

5 Important Things Authors Need To Know About Self-Publishing: @thecreativepenn @SelfPubForm

10 Reasons 1 Writer Became A Self-Publisher: @jckunzjr

Publishing / Options / Traditional Publishing / Querying

How to Write a Book Proposal (and why you should read this whether you’re writing one or not): @PaulaSMunier @CareerAuthors

Publishing / Process / Book Design

Create the Perfect Book Design with Tips from Joel Friedlander: @JFbookman @IndieAuthorALLI

3 Inspirational Design Ideas from Bestselling Book Covers: @DaveChesson @JFbookman

Publishing / Process / Translation

Readers Enjoy Free Prominent Translations from Amazon Crossing (Free through April 24): @Porter_Anderson @amazonbooks

Writing Craft / Arc

The One Big Thing That Most Manuscripts Lack: by Chris Winkle @mythcreants

Writing Craft / Beginnings

5 Elements of a Great First Chapter: @TCKPublishing

Writing Craft / Characters / Arc

Why A Compelling Emotional Arc Means Your Character Has To Lose Something: @LisaHallWilson

5 Turning Points of a Character Arc: @Janice_Hardy

Writing Craft / Characters / Development

Writing Characters: Digging Beyond Life: @KathyEdens1 @ProWritingAid

The Risks of Character Neglect: @MaryGillgannon @RMFWriters

Getting to Know Your Protagonist: by Steven-John Tait @LiveWriteThrive

Writing Craft / Common Mistakes

4 Mistakes to Avoid When Building Suspense in Your Novel: @LMacNaughton

Writing Craft / Drafts

Asking Yourself These 5 Question Can Help You Write Better First Drafts: @kristen_kieffer

Writing Craft / Humor

6 (More) Ways to Improve Your Book by Writing Humor: by Usvaldo de Leon @KMWeiland

Writing Craft / Miscellaneous

Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Professional Obituary Writing: @knownemily @suntimesobits @Linnea_Legacy

Crafting the Reader Experience to Sell More Books: @KateWritesBooks @IndieAuthorALLI

How to Write a Brilliant Twist Ending: @DavidHSafford @write_practice

Reel in Readers With a Devastating Choice: @ZoeMMcCarthy

3 Reasons to Write Imitations of Your Favorite Authors: by Karen Krumpak @WritersDigest

How Should a Character Say Nothing? @jamesscottbell

How to Expand Your Novel Idea into a Stronger Story: @nownovel

Writing Craft / POV

Keeping Your Entire Scene in Deep POV: @LisaHallWilson

Writing Your Character’s POV: @Lindasclare

Writing a Limited 3rd Person POV: @DN_Bryn

Writing Craft / Pre-Writing / Naming

4 Methods For Creating Character Names: @TheRyanLanz

10 Tips for Choosing the right Character Names for your Fiction: @annerallen

Writing Craft / Pre-Writing / Outlining

How to Plot Your Story and Create a Loose Outline: @JillWilliamson

Writing Craft / Pre-Writing / Plotting

Brainstorming Isn’t Cheating, It’s an Author’s Secret Weapon: @LynnHBlackburn @EdieMelson

Writing Craft / Punctuation and Grammar

This Is How to Correctly Use Commas in Your Writing: @Grammarly

13 Common, Clunky Sentence Structures That Weaken Your Writing: @danasitar

Hyphenation Help: @editoreditorial @IndieAuthorALLI

Writing Craft / Revision

Self-editing Checklist: @karldrinkwater @IndieAuthorALLI

5 Quick Fixes To Make Your Essay Better Right Now: @GuerillaMemoir @brevitymag

Does Your Writing Need a Paramedic? by Marlene Caroselli @ProWritingAid

Writing Craft / Scenes

3 Exercises To Help You Create The Flow From Scene To Sequel: @AnthonyEhlers

Writing Craft / Special Needs

9 Tips for Writing Physically Disabled Characters in Fantasy: @_HannahHeath

Writing Craft / Word Crafting

Master List of Ways to Describe Happiness and Joy: @BrynDonovan

Avoiding Transition Words in Writing: @Kid_Lit

Tools to help us with word choice: @writerstevens @RMFWriters

Writing Craft / World-Building

The importance of world building to any genre: @KC_Norton

Writing Tools / Apps

How to set up Scrivener for a series rather than a single novel: @JeremyJmenefee

Writing Tools / Resources

A Search Engine For Writers: @MTW_2018 @thewritingtrain @Hiveword

Uncategorized

How to make a living as a writer:

The top writing links from last week are on Twitterific:
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Published on April 21, 2018 21:02

April 19, 2018

Recaps in Mysteries

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

Recently, I was looking over my customer reviews on Goodreads (I know…I rarely read my reviews there, although I always read them on Amazon) and one of them stood out to me. A reader said that he especially appreciated the way that I handled recaps because he was able to catch back up when his Kindle malfunctioned and skipped ahead.

The Best Way to Recap:

I think the best way to handle recaps (especially in a cozy mystery) is to have them between the sidekick and the sleuth. Otherwise, you end up in a situation where you have a lot of interior dialogue. That makes your sleuth engage in too much thinking and not enough doing. Even for the slower pace of a cozy mystery, that can slow the story’s pace down a little too much.

Although:

I find it’s also helpful for the sleuth to think private editorial comments while interviewing suspects. Especially if something a suspect says directly contradicts something that another suspect said. I keep it very brief and keep things moving in the interview. It’s the sleuth registering contradictions (which helps the reader notice them, too).

How Often to Recap:

I don’t have my sleuth and sidekick together questioning every suspect because some of the interviews are impromptu. Maybe the sleuth and a suspect ran into each other at the grocery store or at the park while walking their dogs. It makes it very natural for the sleuth to catch up his or her sidekick soon after.

I also recap at regular intervals whenever they sleuth and sidekick are just hanging out together, trying to relax from the stress of the case. I feel as though it’s normal for them to hash the case out between the two of them. I’ll frequently have the sidekick stuck on a particular suspect while the sleuth favors a different person. Neither one will usually be the right killer, or, if they are the right one, it will be for a different reason, etc.

Always Being Careful Not To:

Draw too much attention to clues. And don’t beat the red herrings to death.

Don’t be too repetitive with the recaps. Briefly state a reminder of old points and spend longer fleshing out newer bits of information.

As a Nice Bonus:

Recaps serve a great purpose for the writer, too…keeping it all straight in the writer’s mind. Mysteries can be convoluted.

As a reader, do you like recaps? How do you handle them, as a writer?

Tips for better recaps in your murder mystery:
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Published on April 19, 2018 21:02

April 15, 2018

Consistency

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

Some of you may not know this because I do have a culinary mystery series and was on a food blog for a long time…but I don’t consider myself a good cook.

My problem is that I’m not consistent. And my inconsistency in the kitchen has a lot to do with focus (or lack of it). I’ll cook something that everyone in my family likes and then cook it the next month (differently) and everyone will be forcing it down.

When I first started writing, I didn’t find consistency important. If I’d continued on this track, it would have meant for some really uneven writing in later books. I wasn’t jotting down small facts for later books in the series, for instance. I wasn’t necessarily consistent with characterization, although I managed to smooth that out in later books.

Recipe for consistency in my books:

First off, I keep a story bible. Anytime that I throw out any details about a recurring character or setting, I make sure to keep track of it. Otherwise, it’s all too easy to mess up in later books and ruin that continuity. That’s sure to pull readers right out of a story when they spot it.

I make sure that characters behave in ways that are consistent with who they are. If they don’t, there need to be good mitigating circumstances to explain it. If I change who a character is to make the story work, I’m cheating the reader.

I ensure that the style is consistent. When I worked with Penguin, they would create style sheets for my series to make sure that if I’ve chosen a group to be called the Cut-Ups, that they aren’t called the Cut-ups in other books.

I’m consistent in terms of what I’m delivering in my chosen genre. I’m not throwing in any surprising gore or endangering children because that’s not what readers have come to expect from me or from cozy mysteries, generally.

I make sure settings and characters are consistently familiar to readers, but described in different ways (no copy-pasted descriptions) for the books.

For further reading:

Making a Series Bible Using Excel by Heidi Hormel on the IWSG site

How to Create a Series Bible for Your Fiction by Lorna Faith

A Free Consistency Checker (for Style) as a Google Docs Add-On

Keep Characters Consistent by Shay Goodman

How do you ensure consistency in your writing?

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Published on April 15, 2018 21:01

April 14, 2018

Twitterific Writing Links

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

News and Upcoming

If you’re in the Anderson, SC area, I’ll be speaking at the Friends of the Anderson County Library’s Annual Meeting next Sunday, April 22 at 3:00. The topic will be mystery reading and writing. More information can be found here.

Struggle with your author bio? The folks at Reedsy have a free template to help out.

The Alliance of Independent Authors had their online conference yesterday. You can watch their recorded panels here. The full agenda is here.

If you are a mystery reader or writer, check out Mystery Thriller Week. I have a post there today on the WKB search engine.