Some
writers find it easy to decide what to write about; it just comes
naturally to them and flows onto the page. Others (and perhaps the
majority) find that it takes a little longer to decide exactly what
they'd like to write about; this stage could include story plans,
character studies, and much more. The story may grow and evolve many
times before a final version is settled upon. Another influence may be
what is currently popular with the book-buying public: a fact that
brings us to our main point here - is it ever OK to choose your subject
matter and genre based on what is selling at the time, or is that
nothing more than 'selling out'?
It's the age-old debate between Money and Art. For more on this discussion go here.....
(This is the final serious writerly post before I get really STUCK in the ALPHABET, pursuing the theme of the Making and Selling of Books.)
Sunday, April 1, is THE DAY, and that's no fooling hehe
Friday, March 30, 2012
Monday, March 26, 2012
Three Ways to Give Your Self-Published Book the Best Chance of Success
Writing
an entire book is a huge achievement in itself, but as you likely well
know, promoting it and making it a success is a whole different ball
game. Thankfully, there are a few ways that you can ensure your book has the very best chance when it hits the virtual
bookshelves.
Follow a few simple tips and you’ll be able to have readers all across the globe glued to their leather sectional, just to get a glimpse of what happens next in your tale. Let's take a look at three of the easiest ways you can give your book a helping hand before and after you complete the writing process.....
(Please go here to read the rest of this article.)
Follow a few simple tips and you’ll be able to have readers all across the globe glued to their leather sectional, just to get a glimpse of what happens next in your tale. Let's take a look at three of the easiest ways you can give your book a helping hand before and after you complete the writing process.....
(Please go here to read the rest of this article.)
Friday, March 23, 2012
Becoming a Full Time Writer
It's a common dream -- the time and means to be able to write full time. I used to fantasize about it, and then one day it just kind of happened. And I realized I was living my dream.
Of course I do other stuff too-- my husband and I have a little cookie business but that only takes a few hours a week. I maintain my online presence-- again just a few hours a week. Editing for WiDo takes a lot of time, but it's rewarding and stimulating, not exhausting and demanding like a full time, 40 hour a week job would be. Plus it's flexible and can be worked into my schedule. Then there's housework, laundry, bla bla bla I'm even boring myself now....falling asleep....
Still, I am not a full-time writer. Not yet. And it's nobody's fault but my own.
My biggest obstacle comes from within. I have the time, desire and opportunity to write, but I don't put even twenty hours a week into doing it. I spend a lot of time NOT writing and telling myself I SHOULD be. Really, some days I can hardly stand myself for the evilness of my procrastination habits.
My second obstacle is the lack of social interaction. At a "normal" job, you have coworkers, people to talk to, bounce ideas off, new friends to make, a gossiping buddy to make the time go faster. But the full-time writing job is quiet, oh so quiet. The only other people who get what I do are here on the Internet, blogging about it like I'm doing right now. Sometimes the solitude of the writing gig gets to me and throws me off.
I'd like to claim full-time writer status but I'm still a hobby writer. Unfortunately, that's what I'll remain until I learn how to overcome my two biggest challenges-- Evil Procrastination and Too Much Solitude-- and just put in those hours. My goal is to spend a minimum of twenty hours a week on the actual writing.
Are you a full-time writer? A part-time writer? A hobbyist? A wanna-be? How many hours do you figure you spend writing? And what obstacles stand in your way?
Of course I do other stuff too-- my husband and I have a little cookie business but that only takes a few hours a week. I maintain my online presence-- again just a few hours a week. Editing for WiDo takes a lot of time, but it's rewarding and stimulating, not exhausting and demanding like a full time, 40 hour a week job would be. Plus it's flexible and can be worked into my schedule. Then there's housework, laundry, bla bla bla I'm even boring myself now....falling asleep....
Still, I am not a full-time writer. Not yet. And it's nobody's fault but my own.
My biggest obstacle comes from within. I have the time, desire and opportunity to write, but I don't put even twenty hours a week into doing it. I spend a lot of time NOT writing and telling myself I SHOULD be. Really, some days I can hardly stand myself for the evilness of my procrastination habits.
My second obstacle is the lack of social interaction. At a "normal" job, you have coworkers, people to talk to, bounce ideas off, new friends to make, a gossiping buddy to make the time go faster. But the full-time writing job is quiet, oh so quiet. The only other people who get what I do are here on the Internet, blogging about it like I'm doing right now. Sometimes the solitude of the writing gig gets to me and throws me off.
I'd like to claim full-time writer status but I'm still a hobby writer. Unfortunately, that's what I'll remain until I learn how to overcome my two biggest challenges-- Evil Procrastination and Too Much Solitude-- and just put in those hours. My goal is to spend a minimum of twenty hours a week on the actual writing.
Are you a full-time writer? A part-time writer? A hobbyist? A wanna-be? How many hours do you figure you spend writing? And what obstacles stand in your way?
Tuesday, March 13, 2012
A to Z Themes
As I've been visiting signed up blogs, I notice quite a few are choosing themes for April. As an unorganized pantser, I'm rather impressed by this. My theme was going to be the alphabet.
There's a few ideas swirling around in my foggy brain. Last year I did literary terms, which was fun and simple, lending itself to short posts. (one of my requirements for A to Z'ing it)
What do you think of A to Z themes? Yes? No? Do you like blogs that stick to a theme for the month, or do you find it tiresome? And if you're participating, do you have a theme yet for April?
I'm leaving for Houston in two days, and when I return next week, I hope to bring back a theme!
There's a few ideas swirling around in my foggy brain. Last year I did literary terms, which was fun and simple, lending itself to short posts. (one of my requirements for A to Z'ing it)
What do you think of A to Z themes? Yes? No? Do you like blogs that stick to a theme for the month, or do you find it tiresome? And if you're participating, do you have a theme yet for April?
I'm leaving for Houston in two days, and when I return next week, I hope to bring back a theme!
Saturday, March 10, 2012
Change: A Permanent Condition
Just when you expect things to settle down, something happens to kick it into high gear. Lately there's some changes going on over at WiDo Publishing that are moving and shaking the organization.
Among other things, our managing editor Kristine Princevalle is leaving, and I will be taking a larger part in the day to day operations of the business.
A year ago, we took on an intern, who is now working as a paid editor. With all of this, I am looking to find one or more new editing interns.
This is a part-time, unpaid internship, with the work and communication done electronically, requiring skills in proofreading, copy editing, formatting a manuscript for typesetting, and familiarity with Microsoft Word's editing features.
Anyone who's interested can email me at Karen@widopublishing.com and we'll talk from there. It's a great opportunity to learn more about the publishing business and to possibly work into a paid editing position with an up and coming small press with big plans.
I'm excited about these changes. Feeling a lot of pressure some days, but that's what keeps us kicking, right?
Among other things, our managing editor Kristine Princevalle is leaving, and I will be taking a larger part in the day to day operations of the business.
A year ago, we took on an intern, who is now working as a paid editor. With all of this, I am looking to find one or more new editing interns.
This is a part-time, unpaid internship, with the work and communication done electronically, requiring skills in proofreading, copy editing, formatting a manuscript for typesetting, and familiarity with Microsoft Word's editing features.
Anyone who's interested can email me at Karen@widopublishing.com and we'll talk from there. It's a great opportunity to learn more about the publishing business and to possibly work into a paid editing position with an up and coming small press with big plans.
I'm excited about these changes. Feeling a lot of pressure some days, but that's what keeps us kicking, right?
Tuesday, March 6, 2012
Made My Peace with Marketing
If anyone wants a quick education in how writers should market themselves online, go to this post. But it's not the post, it's the comments. When I posed the questions, my awesome, amazing and incredibly good-looking followers gave over fifty intelligent, well-thought out opinions on the conundrum of online promotion.
Seriously, whatever marketing answers you need are in these comments. I've pondered them at length and have finally made my peace with marketing.
It's my blog and if I want to talk about my books, my writing, my editor, my publisher, my pet projects like Celery Tree or the maple trees I planted last summer, then I can and I will. However, I like to consider your feelings. After two and a half years, I've got a pretty good idea of what you like and what you don't, so I try to respect that.
My author website contains plenty of information about my books, so I don't need to use my blog for that purpose. It simplifies things, and I like the arrangement--having my website for my book information and my blog for random whatever. I maintain the Celery Tree blog but this one gets the most traffic, so I'll occasionally write a post here featuring Celery Tree. Why should anyone care if I do that?
I'm involved with day to day operations with WiDo Publishing, and from time to time I post about publishing/editing/submitting information. I think writers enjoy those kinds of posts. Not that I'm promoting WiDo. A publishing company doesn't really need to be promoted. Submissions pour in just by the fact of its existence.
I no longer believe that blogging sells books. WiDo has authors who blog endlessly and others who don't at all. People buy what they want to read whether the author is blogging or not. It's more the cover, title, genre, quality, themes and story that sell a particular book, not the writer's online presence. I'm not saying blogging hurts, unless the blogger comes across as a big jerk, and it MAY help, but it certainly is no guarantee! It may not even be necessary.
This relieves a huge amount of pressure. I can now blog for fun and enjoyment and camaraderie rather than for promotional purposes. I've worked hard to develop an online presence and have benefited in countless ways, but selling books isn't top on the list.
Really, the way to sell books is to write the absolute best books you can write. And then write some more and more. I believe this with all my heart. One of these days, I'll write a novel that shoots to the bestseller lists and stays there for a really really long time. And it won't have anything to do with my online presence. It will be simply because I happened to write something that resonated with a whole bunch of readers and the word spreads and the rest is history. Or rather the future. Because it hasn't happened yet. But when it does, it will be about the writing not about the marketing.
Have you made your peace with marketing?
Seriously, whatever marketing answers you need are in these comments. I've pondered them at length and have finally made my peace with marketing.
It's my blog and if I want to talk about my books, my writing, my editor, my publisher, my pet projects like Celery Tree or the maple trees I planted last summer, then I can and I will. However, I like to consider your feelings. After two and a half years, I've got a pretty good idea of what you like and what you don't, so I try to respect that.
My author website contains plenty of information about my books, so I don't need to use my blog for that purpose. It simplifies things, and I like the arrangement--having my website for my book information and my blog for random whatever. I maintain the Celery Tree blog but this one gets the most traffic, so I'll occasionally write a post here featuring Celery Tree. Why should anyone care if I do that?
I'm involved with day to day operations with WiDo Publishing, and from time to time I post about publishing/editing/submitting information. I think writers enjoy those kinds of posts. Not that I'm promoting WiDo. A publishing company doesn't really need to be promoted. Submissions pour in just by the fact of its existence.
I no longer believe that blogging sells books. WiDo has authors who blog endlessly and others who don't at all. People buy what they want to read whether the author is blogging or not. It's more the cover, title, genre, quality, themes and story that sell a particular book, not the writer's online presence. I'm not saying blogging hurts, unless the blogger comes across as a big jerk, and it MAY help, but it certainly is no guarantee! It may not even be necessary.
This relieves a huge amount of pressure. I can now blog for fun and enjoyment and camaraderie rather than for promotional purposes. I've worked hard to develop an online presence and have benefited in countless ways, but selling books isn't top on the list.
Really, the way to sell books is to write the absolute best books you can write. And then write some more and more. I believe this with all my heart. One of these days, I'll write a novel that shoots to the bestseller lists and stays there for a really really long time. And it won't have anything to do with my online presence. It will be simply because I happened to write something that resonated with a whole bunch of readers and the word spreads and the rest is history. Or rather the future. Because it hasn't happened yet. But when it does, it will be about the writing not about the marketing.
Have you made your peace with marketing?
Friday, March 2, 2012
Sneak Peek into My Next Novel
The opening chapter of "Lighting Candles in the Snow"(to be released by WiDo Publishing, Fall 2012) is now posted on my website. What's this novel about, you ask?
Summary:
Newly divorced Karoline London needs to find her normal again, as older sister Suzie keeps reminding her. But what does Suzie know about normal? After all, she has Rob, the perfect husband, and seven gorgeous children, while Karoline had six years married to a man tormented by addictions
.
When Karoline meets handsome Zac Kline, things just might be looking up. And then she discovers something about ex-husband Jeremy that changes everything.
Lighting Candles in the Snow is a story of hope and redemption, about new beginnings and fresh starts. It is about the weak finding courage, and how tragic events can create unbreakable bonds within families. Above all and despite everything, it is a love story.
Curious at all? I hope so! I invite you to go here and preview Chapter One. The comment section is open, meaning feedback is welcome. *grins happily*
Summary:
Newly divorced Karoline London needs to find her normal again, as older sister Suzie keeps reminding her. But what does Suzie know about normal? After all, she has Rob, the perfect husband, and seven gorgeous children, while Karoline had six years married to a man tormented by addictions
.
When Karoline meets handsome Zac Kline, things just might be looking up. And then she discovers something about ex-husband Jeremy that changes everything.
Lighting Candles in the Snow is a story of hope and redemption, about new beginnings and fresh starts. It is about the weak finding courage, and how tragic events can create unbreakable bonds within families. Above all and despite everything, it is a love story.
Curious at all? I hope so! I invite you to go here and preview Chapter One. The comment section is open, meaning feedback is welcome. *grins happily*
Tuesday, February 28, 2012
Working through the tough times to find success
Lisa Dayley's YA historical fiction book, The Frozen Trail, has sold thousands of copies since its publication in July, 2011, in both print and e-book format.
And the funny thing is that this book almost never got published. I asked Lisa to share her experience-- how she almost gave up, and what kept her going.
"The Frozen Trail resulted from a college creative writing assignment in 1991. It had proven popular with my class and family members, so I kept it and worked on it here and there.
And the funny thing is that this book almost never got published. I asked Lisa to share her experience-- how she almost gave up, and what kept her going.
"The Frozen Trail resulted from a college creative writing assignment in 1991. It had proven popular with my class and family members, so I kept it and worked on it here and there.
"I was very busy working and raising children so the
manuscript went neglected for years. About ten years ago I suddenly found myself
with a lot of time on my hands. The newspaper I worked for downsized, and I
needed something to do. I dusted off my old manuscript and started writing
again.
"Thanks to
the Internet I was able learn more about my
great-great-grandmother Emma Girdlestone and her trek across the country. She
was the basis for the story. I put
together a book of about 44 chapters that went from what I call the Rocky
Ridge Experience, the most harrowing part of her ordeal, and ended with her
second husband, my great-great-grandfather Ralph Smith, being called on a
Mormon mission.
"I self published the book and sold
quite a few copies on my own. I was just thrilled to sell one!
"One day I got an email about a BYU Publishing Fair and decided to go. I took
down three copies of my book and handed them out to publishers. I just wanted to say that I
had done it but convinced myself that no one would give me the time of day.
"About six
weeks later I got the shock of my life. WiDo Publishing wanted the first 14 chapters of my book! I thought I was seeing things and
when I realized somebody had accepted my book I started screaming and crying.
Everybody at work thought somebody had died, and one co-worker threatened to
slap me silly.
"I started
the long rewrite process. I had no idea
what I was doing. I sent the manuscript back and forth to WiDo for about two
years. During that time I spent a considerable amount of time on my knees
praying to get the story right (or is it ‘write’?).
At one point
I was so discouraged I came just a mouse click away from asking WiDo out of the
contract. I felt I just couldn’t do it anymore. I had been a journalist for 25
years and this creative writing was about to do me in. Creative writing is
hard!
"I don’t know what changed my mind other than the fact that I had spent my
entire life dreaming of becoming a published novelist, and I wasn’t about to
let the opportunity go.
"Finally, I
decided to let the Spirit take over. After doing
some research to see exactly what happened on Rocky Ridge and
those involved, I would sit at my computer and write whatever came.
"Whether that
was Emma herself, the Holy Ghost, or some other divine being, I just wrote what
I believe was dictated to me. I had had a similar experience with this
“dictation” with the first two chapters that seemed to really capture
everyone’s attention. Some people refer to that as “channeling” where an unseen
being is doing the writing, and you’re just the instrument being used to type
it all in.
"I found that
this giving in – rather than relying on suggested writing tools (and they are
only suggestions) – really helped me get the job done. FINALLY.
"I am so very
glad I stuck with it as the book has proven a best seller on Amazon. While it
was written for everybody, children seem to really enjoy it. It is also
catching on in the adult market.
"If anyone
would like to talk to me about my experience, they’re more than welcome to
contact me at lisawdayley@gmail.com."
Lisa, thank you so much for stopping by today and sharing your inspiring story!
About The Frozen Trail:
The Frozen Trail is a novella set in the American West. It is written in a simple, clear style, making it suitable for younger readers as well as adults.
In 1856 the Mormon pioneers trekked across the Great Plains in wagon trains and pulling handcarts, to find a new home safe from persecution. This is the story of one 18-year-old young woman, Emma Girdlestone, of the Willie Handcart Company, who faced starvation, frostbite, and death so she and her family could join their fellow Latter-day Saints in the Salt Lake Valley.
This work of historical fiction is dedicated to the members of the Willie Handcart Company. These courageous pioneers displayed commitment and heroism in the face of unbelievably harsh and brutal conditions while en route to Zion.
It is especially dedicated to Willie Handcart member, Emma Girdlestone, who left behind a legacy of bravery, fortitude, and faith; and who, 155 years later, managed to change the life of her great-great-granddaughter Lisa Dayley, the author of this book.
"The winter of 1856 was an intensely bitter one, and wind nipped cruelly at the pioneers of the Willie Handcart companies as they trudged their way across the frozen plains. The experiences and hardships faced by the pioneers of those companies is something difficult to put into words, and even more difficult to understand, but Lisa Dayley has somehow done just that." --Weekly News Journal, Mini-Cassia, ID
"A thrill to read, Lisa Dayley crafts a genuine pioneer story with just the right mix of fact and fiction. You’ll find this book hard to put down." ~Jay Lenkersdorfer, newspaper publisher and columnist
About The Frozen Trail:
The Frozen Trail is a novella set in the American West. It is written in a simple, clear style, making it suitable for younger readers as well as adults.
In 1856 the Mormon pioneers trekked across the Great Plains in wagon trains and pulling handcarts, to find a new home safe from persecution. This is the story of one 18-year-old young woman, Emma Girdlestone, of the Willie Handcart Company, who faced starvation, frostbite, and death so she and her family could join their fellow Latter-day Saints in the Salt Lake Valley.
This work of historical fiction is dedicated to the members of the Willie Handcart Company. These courageous pioneers displayed commitment and heroism in the face of unbelievably harsh and brutal conditions while en route to Zion.
It is especially dedicated to Willie Handcart member, Emma Girdlestone, who left behind a legacy of bravery, fortitude, and faith; and who, 155 years later, managed to change the life of her great-great-granddaughter Lisa Dayley, the author of this book.
"The winter of 1856 was an intensely bitter one, and wind nipped cruelly at the pioneers of the Willie Handcart companies as they trudged their way across the frozen plains. The experiences and hardships faced by the pioneers of those companies is something difficult to put into words, and even more difficult to understand, but Lisa Dayley has somehow done just that." --Weekly News Journal, Mini-Cassia, ID
"A thrill to read, Lisa Dayley crafts a genuine pioneer story with just the right mix of fact and fiction. You’ll find this book hard to put down." ~Jay Lenkersdorfer, newspaper publisher and columnist
Tuesday, February 21, 2012
Marketing Overload
Back when I began blogging, writers got online to:
Build a platform
Find camaraderie among others of their own kind
Learn about the industry
Attract readers who might buy their books
Procrastinate working on the novel
Impress agents and editors that they're serious about the business
Avoid face to face interactions with actual people
And in the last few years, it's morphed into must get online to:
Promote our books
Market our books
Tell everyone about our books
Put links to our books on our sidebar
Brag about our book sales
Not that there's anything wrong with that in moderation of course but it does get tiresome. And don't even get me started on the kind of feeding frenzy that Twitter and FB have become for those with books to sell. Still, these are our books and if we aren't passionate about them, then who will be? I guess.
Time for an informal poll!
Have you purchased books based on a blog, blog tour, Twitter or Facebook announcement?
Ever been tempted to unfollow someone due to excessive promotional content?
Are authors the new spammers?
Am I overreacting, and should I just chill and accept that online marketing and promotional activities are an essential part of being a writer?
Time for an informal poll!
Have you purchased books based on a blog, blog tour, Twitter or Facebook announcement?
Ever been tempted to unfollow someone due to excessive promotional content?
Are authors the new spammers?
Am I overreacting, and should I just chill and accept that online marketing and promotional activities are an essential part of being a writer?
Friday, February 17, 2012
"Free on Amazon" Should you or shouldn't you?
Is Free the new .99? .99 ebooks don't get the attention they did a year ago since so many are listed at that price. With zillions of ebooks flooding the internet, how does one little book get noticed?
Recently WiDo Publishing did free promotions on their titles that are in the KDP Select program, which allows a book to be offered free for five days during its 90-day cycle on the program. In WiDo's experimentation with price adjustments and free promotions, it's the Free that makes the most money, while .99 is the throw-away.
How can "free" make money? Free for five days in a row, which is how WiDo did it, can be quite profitable. Once the free promo ends, the exposure brings downloads well beyond the book's previous sales levels.
For instance, my book Farm Girl, which wasn't selling well on Kindle, had 18,588 downloads during its five free days. It got ten new reader reviews, all positive (yay!) and then continued on to 500 sales in the two weeks following the promotion.
It may continue selling well, it may not; but at least the little farm girl got some exposure and sales that she wouldn't have gotten otherwise. Since she was lucky to get five downloads a week before, we're talking 100 times the traffic. For an e- book that's not doing much, you have nothing to lose and everything to gain by doing a give-away. Print sales of Farm Girl also increased, as did ebook sales of Uncut Diamonds.
WiDo found similar numbers with its other free promotions, although not as extreme. Sales and rankings increased with the end of every free cycle. While some continued to climb, others returned to their pre-promotional ranking numbers. Price didn't seem to matter. Two books that were given the .99 price tag didn't sell any more after the promotion than those priced at $3.99.
Should you or shouldn't you take advantage of KDP Select's five day free option? I would say "Most definitely." Because Free can make money for a book that isn't making any, and it can make even more money for one that is.
Has anyone else taken advantage of Free on Kindle? I'd love to hear your experiences.
Recently WiDo Publishing did free promotions on their titles that are in the KDP Select program, which allows a book to be offered free for five days during its 90-day cycle on the program. In WiDo's experimentation with price adjustments and free promotions, it's the Free that makes the most money, while .99 is the throw-away.
How can "free" make money? Free for five days in a row, which is how WiDo did it, can be quite profitable. Once the free promo ends, the exposure brings downloads well beyond the book's previous sales levels.
For instance, my book Farm Girl, which wasn't selling well on Kindle, had 18,588 downloads during its five free days. It got ten new reader reviews, all positive (yay!) and then continued on to 500 sales in the two weeks following the promotion.
It may continue selling well, it may not; but at least the little farm girl got some exposure and sales that she wouldn't have gotten otherwise. Since she was lucky to get five downloads a week before, we're talking 100 times the traffic. For an e- book that's not doing much, you have nothing to lose and everything to gain by doing a give-away. Print sales of Farm Girl also increased, as did ebook sales of Uncut Diamonds.
WiDo found similar numbers with its other free promotions, although not as extreme. Sales and rankings increased with the end of every free cycle. While some continued to climb, others returned to their pre-promotional ranking numbers. Price didn't seem to matter. Two books that were given the .99 price tag didn't sell any more after the promotion than those priced at $3.99.
Should you or shouldn't you take advantage of KDP Select's five day free option? I would say "Most definitely." Because Free can make money for a book that isn't making any, and it can make even more money for one that is.
Has anyone else taken advantage of Free on Kindle? I'd love to hear your experiences.
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