Tricia Drammeh's Blog, page 27
February 5, 2015
#Authors #Marketing Yourself and Your Work Part TWO
More great advice from Susan Toy in part 2 of her marketing series!
Originally posted on Chris The Story Reading Ape's Blog..... An Author Promotions Enterprise!:
The following is an extract from a talk delivered at the Calgary Public Library in Feb. 2011.
Part 2
The best time to begin building your readership is while you’re still writing the manuscript. The very first thing you need to do is create a web presence of some kind or another. This can be as simple as building a blogsite (always free) and writing posts for it on a regular basis. Encourage your friends to subscribe to this, and ask them to ask their friends to do the same. Then write something meaningful, as often as you can, even if it’s only once a week. You should never have to ask, “But what should I write?” You’re a writer; you’ll think of something! Write regularly, keep it positive and upbeat, and post, or repost, articles that will create a discussion in your comments. When people comment…
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February 4, 2015
#Authors #Marketing Yourself and Your Work Part ONE
It’s DAY ONE of Susan Toy’s excellent five-part series over on Chris the Story Reading Ape’s blog. Are you an author? Do you want to learn about establishing a platform and how to market your book? Look no further. Be sure to share the original post with all your writing friends. And be sure to check back tomorrow for more about marketing.
Originally posted on Chris The Story Reading Ape's Blog..... An Author Promotions Enterprise!:
The following is an extract from a talk delivered at the Calgary Public Library in Feb. 2011.
Part 1
Before I begin, please watch this video:
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I’ve named these two characters Wannabe Author (WA) and Real Author(RA).
How many of you have ever said any of the things Wannabe Author says in this video? Come on, be honest. Okay, then, how many of you have heard other writers say any of these things? And, like Real Author, haven’t you just wanted to put them and everyone else out of their misery by ignoring whatever they say? Obviously, Wannabe Author is the least promotable kind of author. First of all, Wannabe is never likely to be published, so will be of little worry to the publishing industry anyway. WA is not listening to an experienced author, knows nothing about the publishing business, and thinks the path to…
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February 1, 2015
Book Signing: The Good, The Bad and The Ugly!
Some excellent advice from Sophie Tallis on how to have a successful book signing. Please visit her blog for an excellent Do’s and Don’ts list.
Originally posted on Sophie E Tallis:
This is the second post I’ve written specifically on book signing, as this is a topic I have some experience with. So, I’d like to share what I’ve learnt and what the experience is like for authors embarking on this scary and exciting journey.
Back in 2012, I had a sell out book launch in prestigious ‘Bookseller Award Winning’ Octavia’s Bookshop, followed by a very successful Waterstones book signing tour. It was both exhausting and exhilarating and costly in terms of petrol/gas and parking, but I loved it and sold a lot of books! Yay! 
Fast forward to now. I’ve done my first book fair, my first reading and attended my first convention for my novel, White Mountain(published 1st Dec 2014 by Grimbold Books & Kristell Ink Publishing), and am embarking on yet more signing dates. 
Along the way, I’ve learnt things that work and things that don’t and have had invaluable advice…
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Sunday Surprise
I’m very excited to be on Barbara G. Tarn’s blog today! Thank you, Barb, for having me.
Originally posted on creative barbwire (or the many lives of a creator):
And it’s a guest! Again from Strange Portals, another fellow author! Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome Tricia Drammeh!
Where do you live and write from?
I live in New Hampshire with my husband, four kids, and two cats. I wish I could say I write from trendy coffee shops or from an office overlooking a beachside paradise, but the truth is I write from my living room amidst the noise and chaos.
Why do you write?
I can’t imagine not writing. Creating entire worlds and people to inhabit them is an incredible thing.
When did you start writing?
I wrote poetry in high school, but didn’t try to write a novel until I was in my late thirties. I guess I’m a late bloomer.
What genre(s) do you write?
I write a little bit of everything. My Spellbringers series is young adult fantasy. Better than Perfect is romance. The…
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January 31, 2015
#AUTHORS – DON’T MISS the upcoming series – #Marketing Yourself and your Work…
Attention all authors! Chris the Story Reading Ape is hosting Author Susan M. Toy for a five part series, “Authors – Marketing Yourself and Your Work.” Don’t miss this series! Hop over to Chris’ blog and check out the countdown on the right-hand column. While you’re there, check out some of the other informative articles about publishing, writing, and marketing. And, if you want to make sure you don’t miss out on the Five Day Series, you can subscribe to Chris’ blog and get updates sent right to your email.
Mark your calendars for February 4th. I am!
Originally posted on Chris The Story Reading Ape's Blog..... An Author Promotions Enterprise!:
I’d like to draw your attention to the countdown clock to the right…
This series “Authors – Marketing Yourself and Your Work” has been specially created byAuthor Susan M. Toyin order to give as much insight and help to her fellow authors as possible, based on her own experiences in pursuing a writing career.
As many of you will already know, Susan actively supports authors in many ways including, but not limited to, having them as Guests and posting her reviews of their books on her own blog, writing and re-blogging interesting and helpful articles, sharing their promotions online wherever she can, and MUCH MORE.
SO – you not only have a Five Day Treat in store – you also have a lot of useful information being made available to you.
Please don’t miss it…
January 24, 2015
#Read #Authors: Keep It Real! by Jaq D Hawkins
Jaq D Hawkins talks about her publishing journey and her transition from traditionally published to indie. Please visit Chris the Story Reading Ape’s Blog to read this excellent guest post.
Originally posted on Chris The Story Reading Ape's Blog..... An Author Promotions Enterprise!:
Ever since the indie publishing explosion, I’ve been watching the adjustments in marketing that have tried to keep up with a rapidly changing industry.
To put things in perspective, I started out as a traditionally published author in the late 1980s and decided to cross the line into indie publishing in 2012. I was a little late to the party, which really started in 2009 and was going strong through 2010-11, but I came from a tradition where self-publishing was considered the realm of the unpublishable and old attitudes die hard.
I started studying the business of writing when I was very young and even in high school, I knew how to format a proper manuscript, what was expected when approaching a publisher and how to put together a press pack. However, the rules all changed with indie publishing. Even the definition of ‘publisher’ has changed. Once a small publisher…
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Without hard work, talent is not enough ~ Henri Mattise.
This article by Kate Jack is both inspiring and beautiful. Enjoy!
Originally posted on KATE JACK'S BLOG:
The title of this post is a quote from artist, Henri Matitise, and one that has always inspired me. Talent is a wonderful thing to have, but can be squandered by laziness, lack of enthusasim, and so on. Whatever a person’s talent is, it should be nurtured like a delicate plant, until it thrives and blossoms into a magnificent bloom.
Determination and persistance should be the keywords of every writer, artist, entertainer, and so on, until goals are either achieved, or it’s time to move on to bigger and better things. Anyone, or anything that holds the artist back, should be cirumvented or sidestepped. But it’s also important to remember that compassion and respect for others must be paramount in whatever journey is undertaken.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qFfUBqRHpdI
November 7, 2014
Forget selling. Focus on #writing.
“Forget about learning to flog books, instead concentrate on learning to write better and harder and with more soul.” Inspiration with a healthy dose of reality. This is a terrific post by M T McGuire!
Originally posted on M T McGuire Authorholic:
A while back, I read this post, on Chuck Wendig’s blog and it got me thinking.
The basic gist is that there are gatekeepers for every writer. While, with indie publishing, it’s fairly easy to get your book out there, it gets much harder after publication than it is for trad published authors because most of the gates indies must go through turn up after the book is published. So you get things like review sites that won’t touch anything self published; different gate, different place in the process but it’s still there. He explains how completely saturated the market is and links to an article from a fellow who has 150 books each day sent to his review magazine from trad publishers alone – which is why it only accepts trad pubbed books.
The message of Chuck’s article is, basically: there are gatekeepers in any part of the…
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November 4, 2014
IWSG: Writing Through the Rough Times
It’s the first Wednesday of the month and time for Insecure Writer’s Support Group members to share their monthly posts. If you’d like to learn more (or join) IWSG, please visit the following link: http://www.insecurewriterssupportgroup.com/p/iwsg-sign-up.html
Be sure to visit Alex J Cavanaugh (the fearless leader of the IWSG) and his IWSG cohosts, Donna Hole, Lisa Buie-Collard, S.L. Hennessy, and LG Keltner.
Last month, I didn’t post because I was in the hospital. This month, I’m slowly recovering, and I’m back to blogging once more. Being ill put a kink in my blogging and writing schedules, but despite feeling under the weather for weeks, I’ve managed to complete a rewrite and an initial edit of Unbound (Book 3 in the Spellbringers series). I’ve edited by uploading my book to my Kindle and then letting the text-to-speech feature read the book out loud. So, yeah. I’ve edited while lying down. But at least I’m doing it!
Life will always get in the way of writing. We either learn to write through the rough times, or we give up. That’s basically what it comes down to. There are times we must take a break. There are times it’s impossible to find writing time. But there are other times we have to push through it and get things done.
Over the years, I’ve made dozens of excuses for failing to write. Some of these excuses were valid. Others were just excuses. I’m sure there will be times I’ll have to re-prioritize or push my writing to the back burner. It happens. But one thing I’ve learned over the past month is this: If you want something badly enough, you’ll find a way. It might not be easy, but you can do it.
What problems have interfered with your writing? How do you write through the rough times?
Tagged: authors, challenges facing writers, insecure writer's support group, IWSG, rough times, writers, writing
November 3, 2014
Editors: It Takes One to Know One
Editors. We all need one. Or do we? I know a few authors who successfully self-edit, but for the most part, authors rely on editors to perfect their books prior to publication. But how do authors find the right editor for their book? Some rely on references from friends, other carefully review samples of the prospective editor’s work. Some sift through the tons and tons of advertisements and websites of those who edit professionally. I’d say most authors use a combination of these three vetting methods.
If you’re an author who doesn’t know the basics of grammar, or if you’re an author who doesn’t do a lot of reading, how can you be certain the editor of your choice knows what they’re doing?
You can’t.
If you don’t know the basics of grammar, you can go ahead and write your book. I’m not here to tell you not to follow your dream. I’m not going to tell anyone to give up. But I am going to tell you this: If you don’t know the basics of grammar and sentence structure, you won’t have any clue as to whether or not your editor does good work. You won’t know if you’re getting a well-edited finished product. Until the bad reviews come rolling in, you won’t know you’ve been ripped off. Taken for a ride. Betrayed by a wannabe editor who pocketed your money in exchange for a substandard editing job.
Same with reading. If you don’t read (a lot!) you won’t know whether or not your book has a decent plot. Good characterization. If you don’t read, how will you know whether or not your book is readable?
I’m seeing this more and more often: Authors who list editors in their acknowledgments, but then publish a book that is clearly poorly-edited. Authors who pay good money and expect (and deserve) a well-edited book, but end up with a barely readable mess-terpiece instead of a masterpiece.
Do you know what all these authors have in common? They don’t know any better. They don’t know their book is a mess. They took the ‘editor’ at their word. Until their dream was crushed under a mountain of bad reviews, the author didn’t know anything was wrong.
Am I saying these authors deserved to be scammed? Absolutely not! No one deserves to be victimized by an incompetent editor. No one deserves to have their dream crushed or their money stolen. Because that’s what it is. Someone who claims to be an editor and then subsequently takes money without producing an acceptable finished product is nothing but a thief. These authors are victims and do NOT deserve to be treated in such a way.
How can we be certain we’re hiring a reliable, experienced editor? Clearly, relying on recommendations from friends is helpful, but not enough. Perusing advertisements on blogs and other writers’ sites is not enough. We have to do our own research. Authors must be able to rely on their own instincts. An author who doesn’t have basic editing and writing skills is at a distinct disadvantage. An author who lacks basic writing skills is not able to make an informed decision when hiring an editor.
A savvy author who knows some basic editing and writing skills can tell after one glance at an editor’s website if there’s a major problems. Errors on the editor’s website should raise a big, red flag. Authors who don’t know the basics will miss the glaring errors on the prospective editor’s website, whereas author’s who know some basic editing skills will give that bad editor a pass.
As authors, we have to know the basics. Some people will try to convince you the story is king and that readers these days don’t care about grammar. I’m sorry, but this simply isn’t true. If you want to be a writer, but don’t know the basics, go ahead and write. Get your story down on paper. Read as much as you possibly can because this will teach you more than any creative writing class ever could. If you can’t afford to take a basic grammar course at a community college or distance learning center, there are free courses you can take online. (ESL online lessons are particularly helpful. Even if English is your first language, these courses really break it down into bite-sized, easy-to-understand portions.)
Write your story. Don’t EVER let anyone tell you not to write. But before you hire an editor, make sure you know what you’re looking for. Make sure you know the difference between a real editor and a scammer. Know what a well-edited book looks like. Brush up on your editing skills and you’ll be better equipped to make a solid decision when it comes to hiring an editor. Take control of your writing career.
Tagged: authors, editing, editing basics, editing scams, editors, grammar, scams targeting writers, self-editing, self-publishing, writers, writing
