Jason Matthews's Blog, page 21
June 6, 2012
Kobo Direct Uploads for Indie Authors Self-Publishing
Kobo ebook retailer just announced Kobo Writing Life, a direct method for Indie authors and self-publishers to upload ebooks to the Canadian store’s cyber-shelves. It’s still in beta-mode and scheduled to be widely available by the end of June. Presently, Kobo is most commonly accessed by Indies via Smashwords.com or another distributor.
From their website:
How’s it work?
Bring us your Word documents, your Mobi files, your Text files! We’ll run your manuscript through our advanced open-source conversion process, transforming it into an ePub in a snap so it’s ready for instant publication to hoards of Kobo readers.
Read Freely? Write freely, too!
Unlike some self-publishing portals we could mention, Kobo doesn’t bind you to us. Publish to Kobo and take your ePub to your adoring fans, no matter where they might be. You’re free to sell your eBook the way you want.
From your computer to the world
Set up your free Kobo Writing Life account and start publishing right away. You won’t have to wait long for the accolades (and royalties) to start pouring in! Kobo Writing Life is launching soon. If you sign up now, you’ll be the first to know and get your eBooks out! Sign up link.
Okay, Kobo takes a shot at Amazon’s KDP Select program by mentioning they aren’t requiring an exclusive agreement. While I don’t like the KDP Select program either, pretty sure Amazon isn’t too worried. After all, Indies have the choice at KDP Amazon and besides, what took so long, Kobo?
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June 4, 2012
Why Blog? Answers and How To Blog Like a Pro
Indie authors often ask me, “Why Blog? Is it really that important?” In a word, YES!
Blogging enables you to write frequently about specific subjects and reach a global audience via search engines. From the blog, visitors can find other articles, your books on Amazon, sites, social media links, etc. My blogs act as a home base or headquarters for everything else about me. Though many people have a blog, few use them optimally.
The video below will teach you how to blog, step by step from experts. Ruth Carter, a licensed attorney and author of The Legal Side of Blogging, manages The Undeniable Ruth and Carter Law AZ along with others. Watch this tutorial and gain loads of valuable tips.
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May 30, 2012
Win Kindle Touch June 25th
Win a Kindle Touch. Just buy a book by June 25th, 2012 and get entered in the Kindle raffle. Watch the video or read below for details.
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Easy Way – get automatically entered to win directly from these websites:
http://www.thelittleuniverse.com
for the novels The Little Universe or Jim’s Life. (pdf, epub, mobi)
http://ebooksuccess4free.webs.com/
for the how-to guides How to Make, Market and Sell Ebooks All for Free (pdf, epub, mobi)
or Get on Google Front Page (pdf, epub, mobi)
or How to Make Your Own Free Website: And Your Free Blog Too (pdf, epub, mobi)
(Some buyers outside USA will need me to send the download links after purchase.)
Other way – buy from Amazon or any retailer as ebook or paperback and email proof of purchase to jmmatthews (at) usamedia (dot) tv to confirm purchase and get entered to win.
How to Make, Market and Sell Ebooks All for Free
How to Make Your Own Free Website: And Your Free Blog Too
Winner chosen live June 25th at 7pm Pacific Standard Time on HangoutNetworks. The winner will be notified; no need to be present.
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Click here for the home page of How to Make, Market and Sell Ebooks All for Free.
Subscribe to this blog for updates on what Indie authors can do to sell ebooks.
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May 29, 2012
Rebecca Hamilton The Forever Girl – Rising Indie Star
Rebecca Hamilton is an author you may have heard about, and if you haven’t… that could change fast. Her full-length novel, The Forever Girl, appeals to lovers of paranormal romance, urban fantasy, witches, vampires, ghosts, paranormal mystery and horror. The book is doing very well, currently boasting a 4.7 star rating from an amazing 383 reviews in just four short months on Amazon. Believe me, getting reviews like this is a huge deal, and it only happens to great books written by talented authors.
Rebecca, The Forever Girl, is doing surprisingly well out of the gates. How have you combined elements of varied interests into one book?
I like a lot of genres and I think reading widely has resulted in me having a lot of influences, from literary fiction to fantasy to horror and even a little mystery!
The Forever Girl has accumulated 383 reviews in just four months since publishing on Amazon Kindle. Obviously it’s a great book, but what else have you done to receive so many reviews?
1) Put a review request at the end of the book
2) Ran a month-long blog tour (you get pretty much 1 review per stop, and I asked them all to cross post to Amazon, and they did)
3) Ask! when someone says they finished your book and loved it, ask them to leave a review. I always try to be light about it–something like “I’d love an amazon review, too, if you don’t mind, but either way, thank you for sharing your thoughts!”
4) Give away free copies! The more copies being read, the more reviews that can be left. I’ve given away over 1000 copies. And not in an Amazon freebie (which can result in a lot of downloads but not necessarily a lot of reads). What I did instead was give the copies away to people directly. Not bloggers. Just regular people who have time to read without putting your book in a “queue”. Many of them don’t usually review books but will if they get to know you through social media and you ask and they get a free book out of it 
5) Appreciate your reviewers. I often offer my reviewers a free copy of my next book, if they are kind enough to message me to let me know they’ve reviewed!
I gave away copies through goodreads, library thing, facebook, and twitter. Even now I will randomly post on twitter, “Tweet me if you have time to read my book this weekend and I’ll send you a free copy.” I’d say when I do that, 90% of the people who offer to read do indeed leave a review. Of course, I have a lot of followers to send these requests to. I guess it would have been harder for me to do this a year or two ago.
You’re approaching 50,000 followers on Twitter. How long have you been on it and what tips do you have for amassing followers and making the most of Twitter?
I’ve been on twitter for a few years. I find the best way to use twitter is to 1) always reply to your @ messages, 2) follow people with similar interests, 3) retweet things from other people that you enjoy, 4) tweet things you think your followers will enjoy.
How often do you tweet and what kinds of things do you post?
I tweet every 20-30 minute sometimes. I tweet blog posts, book reviews, and general chat more than anything else.
Besides Twitter, what other social media sites do you like and how do you use them to promote your books?
Facebook, but I suck at facebook. In fact, my “Forever Girl” page was made by a fan. She made me an admin on it, and I try to use it, but I really suck at facebook. Have I mentioned I suck at facebook? I’m trying to get better at it with giveaways and stuff.
Your agent, Rossano Trentin of TZLA, is out of Italy. How did you make that connection?
He found me! And he’s awesome. He’s been working hard for me and so far things are looking good. Nothing set in stone just yet, but we’ve gotten some positive reactions.
How does Rossano help you the most?
Ross is helping me internationally. Right now we are working to woo publishers in Italy, Spain, Germany, and France with the super proposal he’s put together for me. The initial responses have been positive, but now . . . we wait!
When did you create Immortal Ink publishing and how did that come about?
I’ll try to condense this story as much as possible. My partner and I had talked about a lot of similar ventures: a small literary magazine, a platform for showcasing authors. We also wanted to self publish our own work, and I also ran a successful editing service (by successful, I mean I had a high number of clients move on to publishing deals or agent requests that they weren’t previously receiving). So, we sort of put it all together and created Immortal Ink.
What’s it like having your own publishing company?
I am the co-founder of Immortal Ink, so it’s a relationship with myself and my best friend. My best friend is awesome but I have a love/hate relationship with myself. I also have more confidence in the other books we are publishing right now more than I do in my own.
So Immortal Ink publishes other authors?
Absolutely! Not only does Immortal Ink publish our own titles (once our editors say they are ready) but we have since published Christi Goddard, have a novella coming out soon by Steven Katriel, and have several submissions on our desk right now that we are getting ready to send an offer to. We are open for submissions for the month of May. Everything a writer needs to know can be found here: http://www.immortalinkpublishing.com/writers.php
Your book has several editors listed. Are they a part of Immortal Ink?
Some of them are!
How did publishing your own book make you feel?
I’m glad I self-published. If I hadn’t, I might not have been found by my agent!
I like your YouTube video trailer (it’s pretty spooky). Who made it?
Me 
What is Autism Spectrum Disorder and how has it influenced your writing?
What is Autism? That’s a huge question. It might be easier to visit Autism Speaks and learn more there, but in short it’s a pervasive developmental disorder that begins in childhood. It affections social, emotional, behavioral, and cognitive functioning. My son’s autism has influenced my writing by inspiring me to write characters that aren’t as readily understood as those with more mainstream ways of thinking.
What advice do you have for writers hoping to be successful?
One word: Persevere.
Great advice, all of it. Thanks so much for your time, Rebecca. You’re the best. Follow her on Twitter.
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Click here for the home page of How to Make, Market and Sell Ebooks All for Free.
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May 25, 2012
Win a Kindle Touch, Amazon Kindle Giveaway Raffle
Want to win a Kindle Touch? Simply buy any of these books by June 25th, 2012 and be entered in the Kindle giveaway raffle. Watch the video for complete details or read info below to win Amazon Kindle Touch WiFi.
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Easy Way #1 – you will automatically be entered in raffle if you Buy a Novel or How-To Guide directly from these websites:
http://www.thelittleuniverse.com
to buy the novels The Little Universe or Jim’s Life. (pdf, epub, mobi)
http://ebooksuccess4free.webs.com/
to buy how-to guides How to Make, Market and Sell Ebooks All for Free (pdf, epub, mobi)
or Get on Google Front Page (pdf, epub, mobi)
or How to Make Your Own Free Website: And Your Free Blog Too (pdf, epub, mobi)
(Buyers from some countries outside USA will need me to send buyers the download links after purchase.)
Next easy way #2 – buy any of these books from Amazon as ebook or paperback and email the proof of purchase to jmmatthews (at) usamedia (dot) tv to confirm purchase and get entered in contest.
How to Make, Market and Sell Ebooks All for Free
How to Make Your Own Free Website: And Your Free Blog Too
Final way #3 – buy any of the above books from any retailer as ebook or paperback and email the proof of purchase to jmmatthews (at) usamedia (dot) tv to confirm purchase and get entered in contest.
You may enter multiple times buy buying more than one book. I will pay for shipping the Kindle Touch to the winner anywhere in the world. Raffle will be held live June 25th between 6 and 7pm Pacific Standard Time on HangoutNetworks. The winner will be notified; winner does not need to be present to win. Privacy policy – no spam will result from any emails provided.
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Click here for the home page of How to Make, Market and Sell Ebooks All for Free.
Subscribe to this blog for updates on what Indie authors can do to sell ebooks.
add me to your Google Plus circles.
+Jason Matthews author
May 22, 2012
Amazon Europe CreateSpace Now Better for UK, Germany, etc.
Indie authors in Europe have long complained Amazon and CreateSpace hadn’t done enough to promoted their paper books, plus the shipping costs from America made the price unreasonable. That just changed. From the press release:
Amazon customers in Europe now get immediate availability and local shipping costs on CreateSpace books enabled for distribution in Europe.
CreateSpace, an Amazon company, today announced that authors and publishers around the world can now use its independent publishing platform to distribute their books in Europe for free on Amazon.co.uk, Amazon.de, Amazon.fr, Amazon.es and Amazon.it. By using CreateSpace to distribute directly to Amazon, authors and publishers ensure that their titles are always in stock for customers to purchase. Books will be available for same-day shipping, and are also eligible for free shipping and Amazon Prime. CreateSpace authors and publishers will earn industry-leading royalties on each sale while continuing to own the rights and have creative control over their work. Additionally, CreateSpace authors and publishers can now receive their royalty payments by direct deposit in US dollars, British pounds or Euro.
Along with great distribution, CreateSpace provides manufacturing-on-demand technology, which means books are printed when a customer orders it so the author doesn’t have to make an up-front investment in inventory. If they need help at any point in the independent publishing process, they can also take advantage of CreateSpace’s English-language professional services and 24/7 member support.
Gayle Laakmann McDowell is the author of the best seller “Cracking the Coding Interview,” which is independently published through CreateSpace. “When I launched my book on Amazon via CreateSpace two years ago, I saw my sales increase by 10 times, eventually becoming Amazon’s best-selling interview book,” said McDowell. “Europe has always proven difficult for me to enter though–how do I print, distribute, and ship my book in the multitude of countries there? I’m so excited to see that CreateSpace is launching European distribution. In 30 seconds and just a few clicks, this has enabled me to tap a whole new market and resolve a problem I’d been laboring over for months. This is huge for me–huge.”
“We are very excited to offer our members the option to distribute their books on Amazon sites in Europe. By doing so, they will make their books available and in stock to millions of European readers,” said Libby Johnson McKee, Managing Director, CreateSpace. “We are continually working to deliver exceptional value and world-class customer service to our CreateSpace members worldwide, and European distribution is yet another great example of our commitment to helping our authors succeed.”
CreateSpace authors can visit www.createspace.com/international today to enable distribution in Europe for their books. To start a new title or to learn more about CreateSpace, independent publishing and manufacturing on-demand, visit www.createspace.com .
Authors can also make their books available digitally in Europe and around the globe using Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP), while earning up to 70% royalties and continuing to own the rights to their books. To get started authors can visit http://kdp.amazon.com .
About CreateSpace
CreateSpace seeks to be the world’s easiest and most comprehensive independent publishing platform for writers, filmmakers and musicians. The company is the leading provider of independent publishing tools that enable content creators to produce, polish, publish and distribute their work to customers around the world. CreateSpace offers industry-leading royalty rates, broad distribution to thousands of sales channels, an engaged peer community and complete creative control while content creators continue to own the rights to their work. CreateSpace is also a leader in manufacture on-demand for Books, CDs and DVDs maintaining “in-stock” availability for titles without inventory risk. CreateSpace is a brand of On-Demand Publishing LLC, a subsidiary of Amazon.com, Inc…
…Amazon and its affiliates operate websites, including www.amazon.com , www.amazon.co.uk , www.amazon.de , www.amazon.co.jp , www.amazon.fr , www.amazon.ca , www.amazon.cn , www.amazon.it , and www.amazon.es . As used herein, “Amazon.com,” “we,” “our” and similar terms include Amazon.com, Inc., and its subsidiaries, unless the context indicates otherwise.
SOURCE: CreateSpace
I remember how exciting it was when my first shipment of CS books arrived, had to make a video.
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Click here for the home page of How to Make, Market and Sell Ebooks All for Free.
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May 17, 2012
New Enable Distribution with Amazon Europe for CreateSpace Books
CreateSpace has just added a new distribution option for paper books: Amazon Europe. If you already have POD versions of your books for paperbacks and/or hardcover with CreateSpace, you’ll want to check this distribution option through your CS dashboard.
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Click here for the home page of How to Make, Market and Sell Ebooks All for Free.
Subscribe to this blog for updates on what Indie authors can do to sell ebooks.
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May 16, 2012
D’vorah Lansky Interviews Jason Matthews
Author and book marketing wizard, D’vorah Lansky recently interviewed me on the subject of How Authors Can Benefit by Publishing Their eBooks on Multiple Platforms. It’s an hour video packed with info on this topic including questions on publishing with Amazon Kindle, Barnes & Noble Nook, Apple iPad, Smashwords, selling pdf files from your own sites, teaching a Udemy video course and more. If you don’t have an hour, read the cliff notes below. You can also learn about D’vorah and her work at both http://www.bookmarketingmadeeasy.com/ and http://DigitalPublishingVirtualSummit.com.
Jason, how did you get involved in the digital publishing / eBook world? In 1992 I wrote a screenplay and eventually signed with a film agent. Then I watched a decade pass with no deals. I finally rewrote the screenplay as a novel and also wrote a sequel, but both of those tasks took seven more years. By that time I had little patience for agents or publishers, so after a few rejections I decided to self-publish. I remember the exact moment it occurred in 2009, watching a college football game with a player named “Kindle” and the proverbial light-bulb turned on in my head. I knew then that my novels must be made available for Amazon Kindle owners and began the investigation of how to do that.
Why do you feel it is important for authors to publish their book digitally? Whether the author is traditionally published, or a newbie Indie or something in between, she/he must make those stories available digitally because ebooks are growing exponentially while print publishing is a flat industry. It’s also been shown that people who read ebooks are far more active readers and buyers. Ebooks enable an enormous portable library for people to read anywhere, even from their cell phones (you’d be surprised how many do).
In addition to Amazon, what are the top publishing options authors should consider, and why? This is currently the big question, and the answer isn’t the same for every author. In my experience Amazon is the king—Amazon is all that matters to me since they sell about 90% of my ebooks. Amazon even has a program called KDP Select, which requires a 90 day exclusive clause that the ebook is only available at Amazon and literally nowhere else including an author’s website. KDP Select offers special promotions and can really help spread an author’s name within the e-reading circles. Surprisingly, I’ve opted not to do KDP Select to keep my ebooks available everywhere possible. Because I teach these methods, my books must be available at Barnes & Noble, Apple, Smashwords, Kobo, Sony, directly through my own websites and even as paperbacks via CreateSpace. Incredibly, all of these things are possible to do at no cost. For other authors, Amazon might be all they need although I would recommend having print copies available at CreateSpace, Lightning Source or Lulu. Print copies do not violate the terms for KDP Select.
If an author has published to Amazon, what benefits are there to also publishing to Barnes and Noble’s Nook? I know some authors who have great sales at Barnes & Noble. A small number sell more there than at Amazon and some sell with reasonable amounts like 25% of what they sell at Amazon. My ratio used to be about 15%, but lately it’s plummeted to 3% for Barnes & Noble sales compared to Amazon. However, that could change at any time so it makes sense for me to keep my books on their shelves. It’s really difficult to pull books from a retailer when they have sold well in the past. Anything could happen in the months ahead.
I know you have a video series in progress where you talk about how you take great care to publish and harness the marketing tools for both Kindle and Nook but your Kindle sales still overtake your Nook sales at a rate of 39:1. What can you share with us about your findings? Some of that is my venting to Barnes & Noble, meaning I wish they were doing the same business for me as Amazon. I find the entire platform at B & N less reader/author friendly including how their search engines operate, a lack of categories, lack of tags and how they recommend books to readers based on demonstrated preferences. Part of it is also this—I believe B & N got into the e-reading game reluctantly and a bit too late. They resisted the initial digital surge until finally realizing the brick and mortar design alone could not stand afloat, and so they introduced the Nook in Oct. 2009, well after the Kindle was established in Nov. 2007. It’s a great product and B & N was a great store, but why did it take them so long to get on board digitally? In the past week Microsoft invested heavily in Barnes & Noble with a pledge of $600 million to help the company compete with Amazon and Apple. Okay, we knew Microsoft didn’t like Apple, but it doesn’t take much now to see Microsoft and Amazon aren’t in bed either. Personally, I think Bill Gates may have just dumped over half a billion dollars. I wonder if Barnes & Noble is a doomed company still relying heavily on brick and mortar sales. If that’s true, it’s a good thing for Mr. Gates that he can easily afford the $600 million.
Are you familiar with publishing aggregates such as Lulu.com and Smashwords.com and what can you share with us about these companies? I’m a huge fan of Smashwords, a company that’s done more for ebooks and Indie authors than anything outside of Amazon. I met the CEO, Mark Coker, at the 2010 San Francisco Writers Conference and got his autograph (first one he’s signed). Smashwords helps new authors in more ways than I can list here. It does a dual publishing job of converting documents into multiple formats to be read on many devices while also distributing ebooks to companies like Barnes & Noble, Apple, Sony, Kobo and Diesel for sales. Smashwords does a tremendous amount of work while taking a smidgeon of profits (around 5%). Lulu, in my opinion, used to make more sense than it does now. For publishing ebooks, just upload directly to Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Apple (if you’re a Mac user) and Smashwords for distribution to the rest. For paper versions, I recommend CreateSpace or Lightning Source over Lulu, but Lulu is not a bad platform either. CreateSpace is owned by Amazon, which makes the integration of ebook and print versions on their site seamless.
Jason, what else would you like to share with our community of authors, coaches, and speakers, regarding publishing their eBooks? This question could be answered in an entire book, or several–believe me because I’ve written them. If I could only impress one idea to a new author getting a book released, it would be this; experiencing success as an Indie author is most likely to happen if you do three things well. First, your book must be fantastic. It must be well-edited and make people want to read it entirely then share it with others who might benefit. Second, you must do everything possible to get the word out about your book, and this is probably wiser with free methods like blogging, participating in forums and using social media. Third, you must have thick skin for the nay-sayers while also having devout persistence when the weeks turn into months and the months turn into years. These things typically don’t happen overnight. There are a million Indie authors releasing ebooks, but only a tiny fraction will succeed. To be successful, you must have those three attributes to rise above the masses.
What one thing would you have our listeners do, in the next 24-hours, to take action on what you shared with us today?
Build an Internet Platform or Internet Presence list and identify your strong areas and those that need work. Think of it like a checklist or an outline or even a marketing plan, whatever works best for you. Items on the checklist don’t need to be worked on in a specific order, all can be done simultaneously in bits and pieces. These should include:
Writing the book
Editing the book (and this can be done in a several ways)
Cover design
Formatting the ebooks for Amazon, Smashwords, Barnes & Noble, and your own sites
Formatting for print versions (CreateSpace, Lightning Source, Lulu)
Building social media presence (Facebook, Google Plus, Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube)
Building a blog and/or website
Identifying the best forums for your subjects and participating at least occasionally.
Once you have the list (checklist, outline or marketing plan), refer to it monthly to identify which elements need the most work and stick with it.
Succeeding as an author today is perhaps equally as difficult whether one attempts to get published traditionally or enter the world of self-publishing. In both cases, the author will be required to market her/his books. The main benefit in choosing the self-publishing route is bypassing the waiting game; getting a book out there in little time and working on sales is a rewarding momentum boost for many Indies.
If that sounds like you then I recommend my book, How to Make, Market and Sell Ebooks All for Free. It’s a guide for learning everything it takes to make and sell books in a digital world on a budget everyone can afford. There is also advice for those who’d like to spend money wisely.
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Click here for the home page of How to Make, Market and Sell Ebooks All for Free.
Subscribe to this blog for updates on what Indie authors can do to sell ebooks.
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May 9, 2012
Selling Ebooks on Amazon vs Barnes and Noble: Why Search Engines Matter
Why do some authors sell ebooks at Amazon so easily yet struggle to sell ebooks at Barnes and Noble? The answer might be since the search engine at Amazon works properly, while the search engine at Barnes and Noble is junk. This little experiment indicates book buyers who search by subject matter will have a much easier time finding what they are looking for at Amazon than at Barnes and Noble. (It also explains why I sell 39 Kindle ebooks for every 1 sale on the Nook.)
Did Microsoft just waste $600 million by bailing out Barnes and Noble? Perhaps so. Hopefully they have the brains to fix the search engine for buyers who want to find my books by subject matter. Get on that please, Bill Gates.
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Click here for the home page of How to Make, Market and Sell Ebooks All for Free.
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May 6, 2012
11 Great Writing Tips and Overcoming Writer’s Block
It was a dark and stormy night… then what?
You might be thinking, “The first sentence flows nicely—now time drags deathly slow as I stare at a blank page.”
Ever felt this way when starting a writing project? If so, you’re in good company. About 80% of people want to write a book yet less than 1% will actually complete and sell a book. There are many reasons for this, and it leaves me wondering how much of it has to do with writer’s block.
It happens to everyone sometimes, even prolific authors. The important thing is to get past it. When you find yourself feeling blocked, do what I do and force some typing even if the sentences are utter garbage, only to be tossed later after serving the purpose of warming up fingers and getting creative juices to flow. Don’t edit anything, ignore typos, just keep going even if it’s junk. You might be pleasantly surprised what it morphs into within a few minutes.
Although there are no rules in love or war or writing, there are common sense guidelines. Writing advice abounds with tips like “show, don’t tell,” “use true-to-life dialogue” and “beware of too many adverbs.” Okay, that’s good stuff, but writing is still an art form—there’s no way to define in a nutshell what makes for good or bad writing. Plus there are genre nuances for thrillers, romance, biographies, young adult, etc. However, some books please lots of people and get read in bunches while other books are duds, so I’d like to focus on what seems to be common factors for authors who produce works that sell.
Here are 11 great writing tips and general guidelines I find important:
Have something to say. It sounds incredible but many writers begin manuscripts because they always dreamed of being an author. There’s nothing wrong with that dream; it’s just not as effective a motivator for telling a fascinating story as having the idea for a fascinating story. When inspiration strikes, write! When it doesn’t, feel free to do other things. Once you have a story concept and characters, make an outline and start writing anything that comes to mind.
Commit to a schedule. The hardest part is sitting at the computer and turning off distractions. Set a timer for 30 minutes, or make a goal to write a little bit every day for one week. You’ll be amazed how many pages will pile up quickly.
Find your voice and trust it. No need to emulate Stephen King or J. K. Rowling; just be you.
Hook the reader early. New writers don’t have long to impress so make your first few pages draw the reader in. Dump your main character in an awkward spot, or create conflict right off the bat, or present a fascinating concept.
Bring in the five senses. Help the reader feel, see, hear, smell and even taste elements of the story. These are tidbits that make huge differences, like adding spices to a meal.
Trim the fat. Find excessive words and delete them. Less is more.
Know your characters and show them. You might be more plot-oriented, but spending time getting to know your characters will help immensely. Write pages on what they were like as children, their habits, who they’d argue with, even choices for ice cream. Knowing them better will generate ideas for the plot.
Learn the craft. This was especially needed by me because I began my career with exciting story ideas and limited writing experience. I had no idea how to tell it in ways which would enable others to see the same beauty that I saw. Learning the craft means so much more than understanding grammar; it’s all about presenting the conflict to engage the reader, maintaining a pace, not dumping info all at once, creating a flow to keep the pages turning.
Read paragraphs aloud. Do they flow easily or sound as good as they look? This little trick does wonders for discovering bad habits. Go one step further and ask friends to read a paragraph out loud. Can they do it smoothly, or do they have awkward moments?
Once the book is written–rewrite, rewrite, rewrite. Each time is an opportunity to trim fat, add spices, perfect the dialogue and make it better. Don’t rush to publish until you know it’s ready.
Join at least one critique group. There are dozens online. Read other’s first chapters, critique them, and then they’ll read yours. Take comments with an open mind; you’ll probably learn many bad habits that might be repeating throughout the manuscript. Here’s a short list of sites with critique groups:
http://www.goodreads.com/ – all about books.
http://redroom.com/ – where the writers are.
http://www.authonomy.com/ – where writers become authors and more.
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/critical_writing/
Now comes the scary part; what if readers have complaints or simply don’t like it? Learn to listen without getting defensive (this can be extremely difficult). Maybe they mention grammar errors, not feeling connected to the characters or that the story just didn’t appeal to them. This has happened to me plenty of times. In some cases, rewriting must be done to make issues better. Often little additions can help a lot. However, not everyone likes all of my books and that’s okay. This will probably be the case for you too.
The most important thing is to keep writing; do it for yourself first and then with others in mind. Hopefully they’ll discover the same beauty within your story that you see.
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Click here for the home page of How to Make, Market and Sell Ebooks All for Free.
Subscribe to this blog for updates on what Indie authors can do to sell ebooks.
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