Publishing

• Most Topular Stories

• The Morning Coffee – 24 May 2013

  The Digital Reader

  Nate Hoffelder

  23 May 2013 | 9:47 pm

  Here are a few stories to read this morning.13 Lessons from Killing Our College Daily Paper and Pushing Digital (Mediashift | PBS)Adam Savage On Why Copyright And Trademark Holders Need To Get Over Their Obsession With ‘Control’ (Techdirt)Amazon: victim or aggressor? Issue will frame Apple ebook trial (paidContent)CC-Bye Bye! Some Consequences of Unfettered Reproduction Rights Become Clearer (The Scholarly Kitchen)Dear Yahoo: If you’d like us to read, clear away the clutter (KUEditing.com)The Last of the Great Chained Libraries (aka Medieval DRM) (medievalfragments)No-Return…

• 10 Steps to Creating an E-Book Based on Your Blog

  Mediashift

  Amanda Hirsch

  24 May 2013 | 4:00 am

  I recently self-published an e-book based on my blog, and I want to share what I learned. This post focuses on the editorial process; in subsequent posts, I’ll share tips on coming up with a design for your e-book cover, choosing a publishing platform (I went with Kindle, for now) and marketing your e-book. A [...] Please visit PBS MediaShift for the full story.

• Daily Must Reads, May 24, 2013

  Mediashift

  Julie Keck

  24 May 2013 | 5:11 am

  1. Guardian’s digital-first strategy paying off, guiding the future (Guardian) 2. Opinion: Obama’s war on leaks undermines investigative journalism (Washington Post) 3. Holder OK’d search warrant for Fox News reporter’s private emails, official says (NBC News) 4. Judge leaning toward U.S. in Apple e-books case (Reuters) 5. How publishers organize in the social era (Digiday) 6. Financial Times tech blog and Twitter hacked (WSJ) 7. ‘Twitter Amplify’... Please visit PBS MediaShift for the full story.

• Selling ads by time, not space

  BuzzMachine

  Jeff Jarvis

  15 May 2013 | 5:28 pm

  I just saw some mind-bending work Chartbeat is about to release about measuring the time users spend exposed to an ad online. As background, to quote Chartbeat CEO Tony Haile: “Chartbeat monitors activity by checking in with users every second and looking for signals (mouse movement, key strokes, etc) that show they are actively consuming the content in front of them. This means they can measure how long readers spend actively engaged on a page and what parts they’re reading. Because of this Chartbeat knows how long are actively reading while an ad is in view — both for an…

• Pinterest for authors and bloggers

  APE Blog

  Peggy Fitzpatrick

  18 Apr 2013 | 1:15 pm

  I had the pleasure of being the guest on #PinChat to talk Pinterest for authors and bloggers with Kelly Lieberman, the online expert on Pinterest. I have a section in APE: Author, Publisher, Entrepreneur — How to Publish a Book, called How to Pin your Way to Success — An Author’s Guide to Pinterest in which I discuss how and why authors can use Pinterest. When you’re working on the Entrepreneur part of your book process or just trying to get the word out about your blog, Pinterest is a great way to connect with readers. Pinterest takes less time than the other high traffic…

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  APE Blog

• Author interview with Bryant McGill

  Peggy Fitzpatrick

  19 May 2013 | 3:29 pm

  Who is Bryant? Bryant McGill is a best-selling author, speaker and activist in the fields of self-development, personal freedom and human rights. In this interview, we talked about Bryant’s twenty year plan of action, how he transformed his life by losing one hundred pounds and many things that will help APE authors with their own journey. I really enjoyed this discussion with Bryant and I know that you will too. Bryant McGill is a best-selling author, speaker and activist in the fields of self-development, personal freedom and human rights. He is an iconic personality and cultural…

• Pinterest for authors and bloggers

  Peggy Fitzpatrick

  18 Apr 2013 | 1:15 pm

  I had the pleasure of being the guest on #PinChat to talk Pinterest for authors and bloggers with Kelly Lieberman, the online expert on Pinterest. I have a section in APE: Author, Publisher, Entrepreneur — How to Publish a Book, called How to Pin your Way to Success — An Author’s Guide to Pinterest in which I discuss how and why authors can use Pinterest. When you’re working on the Entrepreneur part of your book process or just trying to get the word out about your blog, Pinterest is a great way to connect with readers. Pinterest takes less time than the other high traffic…

• New Google+ Hangout Series! Author Srinivas Rao joins Guy Kawasaki

  Peggy Fitzpatrick

  10 Apr 2013 | 4:43 pm

  This week the APE team, Guy Kawasaki, Shawn Welch and Peg Fitzpatrick, will be flipping the microphone on BlogCastFM host Srinivas Rao who has interviewed over 300 people for his show. Here’s Srini’s interview of Guy: Guy Kawasaki on Writing, Publishing and Entrepreneurship Srini’s story on Copyblogger by Beth Hayden: Case Study: How to Build a Vast Audience by Mastering the Art of the Interview. “Srinivas Rao graduated from business school in 2009, straight into one of the worst U.S. job markets we’ve faced since the Great Depression. But, instead of getting…

• Author Interview on Google+ HOA with Hugh Howey on May 1

  Peggy Fitzpatrick

  5 Apr 2013 | 6:35 am

  Hugh Howey is our second guest for the APE author interview series. Are we excited? Umm yes! We’ll be hosting the Google+ Hangout on Air on May 1, 2013 at 4 pm PT, 7 pm ET.  RSVP to the Google+ event here! If you’ve been living under a rock, Hugh Howey is a self-published author turned New York Times bestselling, publishing mega-star. More on his about page. From Wired “Hugh Howey is a self-described “bum,” who for the past twenty years has bounced from job to job — computer repair, roofing, yacht captain, bookstore clerk. In his spare time he wrote science fiction,…

• Meet Writer.ly!

  Peggy Fitzpatrick

  27 Mar 2013 | 8:54 am

  I hope that you can join us on March 27th at 4 pm PST/7 pm EST (or catch the replay on YouTube) to learn about Writer.ly. Co-founders Kelsye Nelson and Abigail Carter met at a writer’s group, began discussing the challenges of being a writer and Writer.ly was born. Writer.ly has been described as the “Elance for publishing” by GeekWire. Guy Kawasaki met the brains behind Writer.ly at the San Francisco Writer’s Conference and loved their idea so much that he joined their Advisory Board, putting them in the company of other fantastic start-ups getting Guy’s Golden…

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  Mediashift

• Daily Must Reads, May 24, 2013

  Julie Keck

  24 May 2013 | 5:11 am

  1. Guardian’s digital-first strategy paying off, guiding the future (Guardian) 2. Opinion: Obama’s war on leaks undermines investigative journalism (Washington Post) 3. Holder OK’d search warrant for Fox News reporter’s private emails, official says (NBC News) 4. Judge leaning toward U.S. in Apple e-books case (Reuters) 5. How publishers organize in the social era (Digiday) 6. Financial Times tech blog and Twitter hacked (WSJ) 7. ‘Twitter Amplify’... Please visit PBS MediaShift for the full story.

• 10 Steps to Creating an E-Book Based on Your Blog

  Amanda Hirsch

  24 May 2013 | 4:00 am

  I recently self-published an e-book based on my blog, and I want to share what I learned. This post focuses on the editorial process; in subsequent posts, I’ll share tips on coming up with a design for your e-book cover, choosing a publishing platform (I went with Kindle, for now) and marketing your e-book. A [...] Please visit PBS MediaShift for the full story.

• Mediatwits #81: Yahoo Snags Tumblr; DOJ Investigates Fox; Ben Huh Talks Cats

  Zach C. Cohen

  24 May 2013 | 4:00 am

  With Yahoo’s $1.1 billion purchase of blogging platform Tumblr, this week’s podcast will focus on the future of the two companies and how, or if, they’ll survive the transition. Will Yahoo become the youthful information hub it struggles to be, and will Tumblr finally become profitable without alienating its users? Then, in the wake of [...] Please visit PBS MediaShift for the full story.

• In a Fragmented Media Market, New Jersey Hopes to Thrive with Mobile, Collaboration

  Zach C. Cohen

  23 May 2013 | 10:07 am

  MONTCLAIR, N.J. — At a conference at Montclair State University titled, “New Jersey: A Laboratory for Media Innovation,” sponsored in part by the Knight Foundation, newsrooms large and small weighed the current problems and opportunities in New Jersey’s current media market, laying out a microcosm of the challenges facing the American news business and how [...] Please visit PBS MediaShift for the full story.

• Daily Must Reads, May 23, 2013

  Julie Keck

  23 May 2013 | 6:56 am

  1. After hijackings, Twitter adds two-step security feature (NYT) 2. Inside Google’s secret lab (Businessweek) 3. Objectivity and the decades-long shift from ‘just the facts’ to ‘what does it mean?‘ (Nieman) 4. Pilot program for digital measurement standardization announced at the Independent Magazine Media Conference (Folio) 5. BBC unveils experimental ‘Perceptive Radio’ that offers personalized content (The Next Web) 6. Nancy Lublin on capturing... Please visit PBS MediaShift for the full story.

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  Digital Book World

• Justice of the Future: Ebook Price-Fixing Judge Has Crystal Ball

  Jeremy Greenfield

  24 May 2013 | 5:44 am

  Please correct me if I’m wrong, but isn’t it grossly inappropriate for a judge presiding over a case to say that she’s pretty sure the plaintiff will win before the case has been heard?Last night, news came out that Judge Denise Cote, who is presiding over the U.S. vs. Apple ebook price-fixing trial set to start the week after next said, “I believe that the government will be able to show at trial direct evidence that Apple knowingly participated in and facilitated a conspiracy to raise prices of e-books, and that the circumstantial evidence in this case, including the…

• Amazon Gets Aggressive About International Expansion

  Jeremy Greenfield

  24 May 2013 | 5:21 am

  Barnes & Noble has been struggling to launch its digital business in the UK and other Western, English-speaking countries. Kobo has been executing a careful but aggressive international expansion plan that will have it selling devices in 24 countries by the end of next year. Apple’s hip products are sold in retail stores in 14 countries and are used all over the world.   Amazon has its sights set on besting them all. It announced yesterday that it would begin selling its Kindle Fire HD tablets in 170 countries around the world. It will start shipping to some of those countries on June…

• Diversion Adds Another Ebook Publishing Partnership

  DBW

  23 May 2013 | 2:16 pm

  [Press Release] DIVERSIONBOOKS Brings Working Partners Titles to International eBook Market Diversion Books has signed a deal with British fiction packager Working Partners to publish a number of YA and adult titles in digital formats. Diversion will release six books to start, ranging in genre from YA to chicklit to crime novels, with an expected launch date in July of this year. Diversion will act as a full-service publishing partner for Working Partners, handling all aspects of production, distribution, and marketing worldwide for the eBooks. “We couldn’t be more thrilled about this…

• StorySticker Wants Parents to Read Print Books to Their Children Even When Away

  DBW

  23 May 2013 | 11:48 am

  Perhaps inspired by Sourcebooks’ children’s customized story platform Put Me in the Story, software company stkr.it has launched StorySticker, a customized children’s audio book platform. StorySticker allows parents to record their reading of children’s books and then place a customized sticker in the inside cover of the book that forever links that recording with that physical book.While vastly different from the Put Me in the Story platform, which puts the child into a digital book, both aim at customizing reading experiences for children. And there are other…

• Shindig to Broadcast DBW, AAP and Workman Women in Publishing Careers Panel

  DBW

  23 May 2013 | 9:17 am

  Just two days after announcing Women in Book Publishing: Career Opportunities, Challenges and Advice, a cocktail networking event and panel discussion hosted by Digital Book World, the AAP’s Young to Publishing Group and Workman Publishing, the event sold out. The waiting list is now larger than the guest list.To accommodate all those people who wanted to attend the event but are unable to because of space considerations, DBW has partnered with Shindig to bring the event to an online audience. The Shindig video event platform will allow users to view the event, network with each other…

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  A Newbie's Guide to Publishing

• Hit

  22 May 2013 | 10:28 am

  Joe: So tell us about HIT, the 40,000 word prequel to the Codename: Chandler series.Ann:  Hit takes place before Exposed. Chandler is tasked with assassinating the CEO of a biotech company who is attempting to sell top secret technology to the highest bidder. Her biggest challenge is getting past the man's bodyguard, and when that bodyguard ends up being a sexy spy with skills comparable to hers, she realizes she has met her match.Joe: The character of Heath (the sexy spy) also appears in Three (coming June 25). I love this guy, and think he's among the best you've ever created. Coming…

• Haunted House

  10 May 2013 | 8:48 am

  Now available on Kindle for $3.99.BEYOND AFRAID...It was an experiment in fear.Eight people, each chosen because they lived through a terrifying experience. Survivors. They don't scare easily. They know how to fight back.BEYOND TRAPPED...Each is paid a million dollars to spend one night in a house. The old Butler House, where those grisly murders occurred so many years ago. A house that is supposedly haunted. BEYOND ENDURANCE...They can take whatever they want with them. Religious items. Survival gear. Weapons. All they need to do is last the night.But there is something evil in this…

• Blood Moon and Having Control

  6 May 2013 | 7:12 am

  Joe sez: I asked my friend Alex Sokoloff for a guest blog about why she decided to self-publish her latest novel, Blood Moon, which is currently free on Kindle. My thoughts follow hers.Here's Alex:Alex: I’m Alexandra Sokoloff, former screenwriter, former traditionally-published midlist author, new e publishing convert. Last summer I made the leap – I decided not to go for a traditional deal for my new thriller,Huntress Moon. I put it out as an e book instead.  Much as Ann Voss Peterson wrote about here, and Rob Gregory Browne and Brett Battles wrote about here, I made more…

• The Proteus Cure

  1 May 2013 | 6:25 am

  Joe sez: F. Paul Wilson is my favorite author. I've known him for years, and have had the pleasure of writing with him on a few occassions (see DRACULAS for an example).When I heard about his latest project, co-written with Tracy L. Carbone, I asked them about it. My thoughts following the interview.What’s THE PROTEUS CURE about?TRACY:  It’s a medical thriller that’s hard to talk about without spoilers.  It’s about a brother and a sister, Bill and Abra Gilchrist, who’ve developed a cure for cancer – all kinds of cancer.  That sounds impossible because there’s a…

• Konrath on Patterson

  24 Apr 2013 | 10:27 pm

  Perhaps you've seen the ad James Patterson recently ran in the NYT.If you don't want to squint at the jpg, here's what Patterson wrote:"If there are no bookstores, no libraries, no serious publishers with passionate, dedicated, idealistic editors, what will happen to our literature? Who will discover and mentor new writers? Who will publish our important books? What will happen if there are no more books like these?"Then there's a list of 38 books, including All the President's Men, Catcher in the Rye, The Color Purple, Fahrenheit 451, Catch 22, etc. I agree that many of them are great.Then…

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  Catherine, Caffeinated

• Sunday Coffee Reads: May 19

  catherineryanhoward

  19 May 2013 | 12:00 am

  As I said in my Plans and Goals and Stuff post, Sunday mornings is when I read my way through all the interesting tidbits I’ve come upon during the week: tweets I’ve marked as favorite, Google Reader posts I’ve starred and articles I’ve mailed myself links to while waiting out an ad break. Then I add the ones I think everyone else might find interesting to Buffer, so they get tweeted during the week. (Note: I tweet what I think is interesting, not necessarily what I agree with.) But I thought that this year, I would pick the cream of the crop for a little Sunday morning link fest,…

• Thank You, Commander

  catherineryanhoward

  13 May 2013 | 2:02 am

  I know this isn’t self-publishing-related, but being a NASA nut it’s Catherine-related and, hey, this is my blog. Today Commander Chris Hadfield returns to earth from the International Space Station. His stay there has been, I think, NASA’s biggest public relations win since Apollo 11 landed on the moon. He has just been amazing: tweeting images, recording videos and just generally reminding people, in a fun and inspiring way, that there’s not only a Space Station up there but people in it. The bad news for us—the good news for him, I’m sure—is that he…

• On Demand Video Self-Publishing Course: Yay or Nay?

  catherineryanhoward

  10 May 2013 | 12:00 am

  It’s Blog Reader Focus Group Time! Do you like answering questions? Do you love a good survey? Do you delight in being asked for your opinion? Then step right up! Because I have just the thing for you…. As you’ll already know, I don’t just blog and write about self-publishing: I talk to people about it as well. These speaking engagements are usually either a full day’s course, which is just me taking the participants through self-publishing from A to Z, or smaller, introductory style things, where I might aim to give an overview of the process in an hour and a…

• I Self-Published: What Next? A Guest Post from Devon Trevarrow Flaherty

  catherineryanhoward

  8 May 2013 | 2:47 am

  Today we have a guest post from Devon Trevarrow Flaherty, who’s just self-published her first novel, Benevolent, and is feeling the post-publication blues… ‘From last summer, when I officially decided to self-publish my first novel, Benevolent, until now, I have gone through many stages of publishing. You could label these stages logically, like “editing,” “cover creation,” or “launching.” You could also label them emotionally. The current stage is depressed. Yeah, yeah; publishing your first book and launching it is exciting. For about a second. Because what…

• Social Media: Have You Got It All Wrong?

  catherineryanhoward

  6 May 2013 | 5:21 am

  WARNING: This is one of them long ones. Better go get a fresh cup of coffee before you start… We all know I love publishers. I still hope, should I ever finish The Novel, to be published by one of them. Say silly things like legacy or gatekeepers, or use something as serious and tragic as the Irish potato famine—or rape or Stockholm Syndrome, for that matter—to describe the relationship between the author and the business that has risked its money to get that author’s book to market, and you go straight onto my Naughty List. (Well, there isn’t actually a Naughty List.

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  Self-Publishing Review

• Review: Una’ria – The Vanguard Echoes by Daniel Cruz

  Avery Hurt

  21 May 2013 | 12:31 pm

  In this massive sci-fi adventure, Daniel Cruz takes readers to a thoroughly imagined world, far from Earth and three million years in the future, in an epoch known as Una’ria. Humans as we know them no longer exist. They have evolved into a new species known as Rytelios, a much more subtle creature with a sixth sense and an unusual relationship with small, winged creatures called Famixa. Each Rytelios is pair-bonded with a Faxima. This relationship is deep and intriguing, and becomes even more complex and fascinating as the novel progresses and we get to know the characters better.The…

• Review: Random Rationality – Second Edition by Fourat Janabi

  Catherine Tosko

  17 May 2013 | 3:11 pm

  When I reviewed the first edition of this book here on SPR, I wrote,” Unassuming, universally written with sharp wit and charm, the first pages catch and you want to read on. Although Janabi never professes to be an expert… ”In this, the special extended version of his book, I want to take that back. Janabi is something of an expert.In this reworked version of “Random Rationality”, the book has more meat, more substance, more catch – this second edition elevates what was an interesting and entertaining read to greatness – I cannot put my finger on what I…

• Review: Don’t Look Back by Rita D’Orazio

  Catherine Tosko

  13 May 2013 | 12:45 pm

  “Don’t Look Back”, the debut novel from Rita D’Orazio tells the story of Katerina Balducci, the youngest sibling of three children in an Italian-American Catholic family, and chronicles the ups and downs of family life during her childhood with a moody mother, slighting Katerina for her unplanned birth and throwing abusive diatribes at her which shape her as a person at such a young age, as well as recounting the challenging events that require her to grow up fast.Culturally intricate with lots of Italian heritage and detail, D’Orazio often gives the reader a feast of words,…

• Review: Tales Of Fantasy And Reality by Chinwe D. John, Illustrations by James Brown

  Avery Hurt

  2 May 2013 | 12:28 pm

  This small  book of narrative poems offers a mix of subject matter, from tales based on or inspired by traditional folktales, such as the River King from African folklore, to tales that provide modern social commentary. Some of the poems are disturbing: traditional tales of murder and revenge, and modern ones that deal with Internet predators, sexual tourism, necklacing (a form of vigilante execution in which a tire is filled with gasoline, placed around the torso of the victim, trapping hands and arms, and then set alight), and formal justice gone bad. But not all of the pieces are heavy.

• Review: Andy Smithson: Blast of the Dragon’s Fury by L. R. W. Lee

  tbmarkinson

  30 Apr 2013 | 12:36 pm

  Andy Smithson has never heard of the Land of Oomaldee and he has never met Imogenia. However, he’s soon to begin an adventure of a lifetime that involves both. Ten-year-old Andy has parents who are always harping about being respectful and responsible. Andy hates the lectures. It seems that’s all his parents do is lecture him when they aren’t too busy running their own companies. Fred and Emily Smithson are CEOs of multimillion dollar companies. His sister is Miss Perfect. Poor Andy is ignored most of the time by all of them, except when he’s in trouble. Andy’s father is…

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  Publishing Perspectives

• Crowdfunding a Niche Book on Two Continents Pays Off

  Guest Contributor

  24 May 2013 | 12:00 am

  When Liz Castro wanted to publish a book about Catalonian independence, she turned not to Kickstarter but to a Spanish crowdfunding site and to those who cared most.

• Is The Man Booker International Prize Not International Enough?

  Dennis Abrams

  24 May 2013 | 12:00 am

  Does the Man Booker International Prize lose credibility by overlooking works in translation while favoring books originally written in English?

• American Lydia Davis Wins Man Booker International Prize

  Edward Nawotka

  23 May 2013 | 9:53 am

  The judges of the Man International Booker Prize have done what recent Nobel Prize committees have refused to do: honor an American for 'achievement in fiction on the world stage.'

• Eagles vs. Dragons and the Battle for the Future of the Web

  Guest Contributor

  23 May 2013 | 12:00 am

  When it comes to the future of the internet, Chinese and American companies are facing off and taking very different strategies. Which is likely to be victorious?

• Matt Costello on StoryDrive China and the Future of Storytelling

  Guest Contributor

  23 May 2013 | 12:00 am

  Ideas not technology should lead story development in the digital age, says multiplatform creator Matt Costello, a featured speaker at next week's StoryDrive China conference.

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  The Book Designer

• Direct Marketing, Scottsdale Arizona, and Why a $10 Ebook Can Change Your Life

  Joel Friedlander

  24 May 2013 | 12:22 am

  One of the first things I did when I started my blog was write “foundation posts.” These posts—on basic concepts, terms, and processes in your field—are really important to build on as you continue to develop content for your blog. Along with the posts on book design and book construction, I wrote an article about what should be on your copyright page. It’s a simple topic but necessary for self-publishers to get right, and over the years I’ve linked back to that post on many occasions. That’s one of the great things about foundation posts—they…

• Wednesday Mailbag: Answers to 18 Self-Publishing Questions

  Joel Friedlander

  22 May 2013 | 12:01 am

  Once in a while I like to reach into the Mailbag and answer some of the many self-publishing questions I get every day. Here’s a representative sampling from the last few months. If this inspires you to ask your own question, go ahead and leave it in the comments where everyone will be able to profit from the exchange. Q: When typing my manuscript I have it double spaced, but when it’s in print or on Kindle, what’s the spacing? The reason I ask is I’m trying to decided on the size, so as not to make it too bulky. It appears to me that it looks like 1.5? A: We…

• Planning Your Book Launch, an IBPA Webinar

  Joel Friedlander

  21 May 2013 | 11:49 pm

  This is very short notice, but I’ll be giving a webinar this morning for the Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA). In this webinar we’ll take a look at the part your book launch plays within your marketing plan the multitude of ways you can leverage your launch my “sane survival” model for launching your book seven keys that will guide you through the launch However, this webinar is taking place this morning, Wednesday, May 22, 2013 at 11:00 a.m. Pacific time. If you can make it, check out the details and register here: Planning Your Book Launch, an IBPA…

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  The Future of Ink

• 21 Ways to Launch a Successful Virtual Book Tour

  Denise Wakeman

  24 May 2013 | 6:05 am

  Send to Kindleby Denise Wakeman Last week, Future of Ink expert author D’vorah Lansky, successfully demonstrated how to create and manage a virtual book tour. Lansky pulled off a 21 blog tour in the space of  two days for her new book, 21 Ways to Launch a Successful Virtual Book Tour. Ellen Britt and I (co-founders of The Future of Ink) realized every blog post on D’vorah Lansky’s book tour is important for online entrepreneurs to study so we’re publishing the full list of posts. Each article is a valuable tip for how you can create your own virtual blog tour to…

• Blog an Ebook to Gain Exposure and Successfully Promote Your Book

  Nina Amir

  22 May 2013 | 6:05 am

  Send to Kindleby Nina Amir Successful promotion of any ebook begins long before the book’s the release date. Those one-day bestseller campaigns you hear about—or participate in—don’t happen because an author asked everyone to purchase the ebook on that day. Those authors began telling people about themselves, their work and that book months, if not years, before their ebooks were released. They worked long and hard to get fans and followers to know, like and trust them—and purchase the ebook when they said, “Hey, my ebook is out! Purchase it today!” And if they did their job…

• Anatomy of an Ebook – The Bones That Hold Your Digital Content Together

  Sue Painter

  20 May 2013 | 6:05 am

  Send to Kindleby Sue Painter Many people say they want to create an ebook, an information product, or a special report – some type of digital content.  It’s similar to saying that one wants to become a writer – lots of people think about it but very few ever do. I often coach people through the process of creating digital content.  What I’ve realized is that if one has never actually created an ebook or some other type of content, one often really doesn’t know where to start or how to build one’s content. All digital content has bones – and these bones need to work together to…

• SlideShare: The Over Achiever is Under Utilized [tutorial]

  Kathleen Gage

  17 May 2013 | 6:05 am

  Send to Kindleby Kathleen Gage Using social media to market your digital products is a must do. This goes without saying for most people, but the difficult part for many people is knowing which social media to focus on and how to optimize what they are doing. We’ve all heard that for a good majority of people the standard fair works: Facebook LinkedIn Twitter YouTube Google+ One that’s been under the radar is SlideShare. SlideShare is the world’s largest community for sharing presentations. With 60 million monthly visitors and 130 million pageviews, it is among the most…

• Are There Different Types of Virtual Book Tours?

  D'vorah Lansky

  15 May 2013 | 6:05 am

  Send to Kindle by D’vorah Lansky, M.Ed. I’d like to thank Denise and Ellen for graciously hosting me, as a guest blogger, in celebration of the launch of my newest book, 21 Ways to Launch a Successful Virtual Book Tour. In answer to the question posted in the title of this article; “Are there different types of virtual book tours?” my response is, “indeed there are!” While there are popular virtual book tour formats that can be easily replicated, in truth, the format for a virtual book tour is only limited by your imagination! In this article I’d like to share with you…

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  The Passive Voice - Latest Updates

• Word of Mouth

  Passive Guy

  24 May 2013 | 8:00 am

  From Kristine Kathryn Rusch:Writers always panic. They finish a book and expect the world to fall at their feet. At the same time, they worry that no one will notice. And, because all writers who are writing today were raised in the traditional publishing model, they believe that if no one discovers their booknow, this minute, if no one hears of them the day of the book’s release, then that book is a failure forever and ever, amen.So panicked writers behave badly. They promote stupidly. They alienate the very people whom they want to read their books. Tweeting Buy My Book! Buy My…

• TradPub brings another literary masterpiece to the world!

  Passive Guy

  24 May 2013 | 7:00 am

  The title for this post comes from Meryl, who informed PG that Lea Michele is writing a memoir and style guide titled “Brunette Ambition” to be published by Random House, one of the guardians of our literary culture.Lea Michele? You must remember. She once spoke of her breasts.“These babies are great. They are my prizewinners.”From The New York Post:Lea Michele is adding “author” to her list of feats.The “Glee” star is penning a combination style guide, advice book and memoir due out in 2014.Michele, 26, has a deal with Harmony Books, a Random House…

• Copyright Implications of Yahoo Buying Tumblr

  Passive Guy

  24 May 2013 | 6:00 am

  From Plagiarism Today:The news came down today that, after nearly a week of speculation and rumors, Yahoo! has concluded its buyout of Tumblr, the popular blogging and social networking site. The deal, worth $1.1 billion, is one of the largest of its kind and represents a bold move for both companies.Yahoo!, for its part, promises “not to screw it up” but Tumblr users have responded with a great deal more skepticism.While the buyout doesn’t mean there’s new legislation or new technology to ponder, it does affect the practical realities of copyright on the Web so it’s worth taking…

• Potential Setback for Apple in E-Books Case

  Passive Guy

  24 May 2013 | 5:35 am

  From The Wall Street Journal:In a potential major setback for Apple Inc., a federal judge who will preside over a coming antitrust trial that will determine whether it engaged in a conspiracy to raise prices for e-books said on Thursday that the government is likely able to prove its case against the computer maker.The Justice Department sued Apple and five major publishers, alleging they colluded to raise the price of e-books in response to discount pricing by Amazon.com Inc. The publishers have all entered into settlements with the Justice Department and in a separate lawsuit by a…

• Amazon eyes Apple with massive Kindle Fire expansion in over 170 countries

  Passive Guy

  23 May 2013 | 11:22 am

  From The Verge:Amazon has opened pre-orders for its Kindle Fire tablets in over 170 countries and expanded its Android Appstore in nearly 200 regions . It’s the biggest device rollout the company has embarked on since it entered the tablet market, and sees it take on Apple in terms of availability and distribution. Before today, the Kindle Fire was available in only seven countries — including the US, UK, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, and Japan.Selling its Kindle Fire models at low margins, Amazon’s tablets have consistently topped the charts as its most popular product.

• 

  The Digital Reader

• Copyright to be Irrelevant After 2020? (Infographic)

  Nate Hoffelder

  24 May 2013 | 7:20 am

  If you’re wondering exactly when the publishing industry will meet its justly deserved end then I have the perfect infographic for you.The future trends website Now And Next has put together a timeline (PDF) that predicts when significant technologies, ideas, and customs will be obsolete. According to their best guesses, copyright will be effectively extinct by the year 2020.That might sound scary, but I wouldn’t read too much into it. First, I wouldn’t trust any technological or social predictions with that much of a lead time. I’m expecting the world to be turned…

• Google Play Magazines Updated With New Interface

  Nate Hoffelder

  24 May 2013 | 6:09 am

  Google rolled out a new update this past week for Google Play Magazines. Wednesday’s update brings the app to v2.0, and while the update doesn’t add any significant new features it does make the app easier on the eyes and easier to use.Google has completely redone menu layout. They’ve added the new slide-out navigation bar previously seen on the new Kindle for Android app last month as well as other apps. That bar is the new standard for Android, so you should expect to see it show up in more apps as time goes by.The updated app also includes a completely reorganized library…

• The Morning Coffee – 24 May 2013

  Nate Hoffelder

  23 May 2013 | 9:47 pm

  Here are a few stories to read this morning.13 Lessons from Killing Our College Daily Paper and Pushing Digital (Mediashift | PBS)Adam Savage On Why Copyright And Trademark Holders Need To Get Over Their Obsession With ‘Control’ (Techdirt)Amazon: victim or aggressor? Issue will frame Apple ebook trial (paidContent)CC-Bye Bye! Some Consequences of Unfettered Reproduction Rights Become Clearer (The Scholarly Kitchen)Dear Yahoo: If you’d like us to read, clear away the clutter (KUEditing.com)The Last of the Great Chained Libraries (aka Medieval DRM) (medievalfragments)No-Return…

• Blog Update

  Nate Hoffelder

  23 May 2013 | 9:08 pm

  This is just a brief note to let my readers know that I have updated this blog’s mobile site again. I only made a couple minor changes, both of which I think you’ll like.The first change is a simply alteration to a setting. You should now be able to use pinch-zoom to change the text size. Don’t ask me why it was disabled; the original designer of the mobile theme thought it was a good idea.Brow.siI have also added a new taskbar called brow.si. This taskbar gathers some basic functions like sharing, changing the font size, and search into a single location. Yes, I did already…

• Digg’s Google Reader Replacement Will be Called “Reader” (video)

  Nate Hoffelder

  23 May 2013 | 3:35 pm

  Digg CEO Andrew McLaughlin was at a conference earlier this week at Internet Week New York, and he dropped a few hints about the Google Reader replacement that Digg has been working on. Digg’s news reader is going to simply be called Reader, and it will be integrated into Digg’s existing platform rather and will not be a separate app.McLaughlin participated in a panel at Internet Week New York called “Life After Google Reader”, and his co-panelists included Bloglovin CEO Mattias Swenson and Buzzfeed’s Rob Fishman. The video is worth watching for its own sake, but most of…

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  The Independent Publishing Magazine

• 10 People Who Helped Shape The Future of Modern Publishing

  Mick Rooney

  24 May 2013 | 6:57 am

  This is by no means a complete list, but the ten people below have helped shape the future of modern publishing. Some may have played an active part in the construction and dialogue of where publishing is moving, others may have been completely unaware of the significance their role has played.     JONATHAN CLIFFORD Consumer activist Jonathan Clifford is the person who coined the term

• Bowker Finally Names and Launches Self-Publishing Service Portal

  Mick Rooney

  21 May 2013 | 3:33 am

  Over the past year Bowker has been expanding its array of self-publishing services for authors and yesterday marked its full entry into the self-publishing service provider market with the launch of SelfPublishedAuthor.com. Bowker is widely known to US-based self-published authors as the place to go to purchase a block of ISBN's (it is the official ISBN Agency for the United States and its

• Patchett Rallies Author Troops to Get Involved With Health of The Publishing Industry

  Mick Rooney

  19 May 2013 | 7:15 am

  Every so often authors immersed in the traditional world of publishing pop their heads above the precipice and make grandiose statements about independent publishing, the retail book trade, and, in particular, self-publishing and self-published authors. Garrison Keillor tried it prior to Book Expo 2010 with an article for the New York Times, and last summer Sue Grafton tried her hand at making

• Guest Post: Appearances Can Be Deceptive - Vincent Flannery

  Mick Rooney

  15 May 2013 | 8:31 am

  The word appearance has two meanings: one literally means to appear; the other describes what something looks like. Let’s talk about the first meaning, which is the first thing a writer thinks about: how am I going to get this book to readers? Most writers will have gone through the arduous task of sending work out to agents or, in some cases, directly to publishers. (Though very few

• Publishing Service Index - May 2013

  Mick Rooney

  9 May 2013 | 10:42 am

  This is the PUBLISHING SERVICE INDEX for MAY 2013. This update reflects some review updates and the review of Llumina Press. TIPM continues to receive a regular feedback on services since the last index at the end of March, both positive and negative, and this is also reflected in the latest index ratings. CLICK TO ENLARGE  (KEY) DIY - Do-it-yourself bespoke sevices ASS - Author

• 

  The Creative Penn

• Self-Publishing: Who Says Your Book Isn’t Real?

  joanna@TheCreativePenn.com (Joanna Penn)

  23 May 2013 | 11:10 pm

  Increasingly it feels like self-publishing is becoming more accepted in the publishing environment. But as authors, we still come up against the stigma in the general public, even if those readers couldn’t tell the difference on a book sales page. In today’s article, author and coach Corrina Gordon-Barnes tackles the issue of what is considered real from other people’s perspective and how we can deal with that. A man and I are chatting in the conference tea break. We know each other from a while back and now he asks what I’ve been up to the last couple of years. Proudly, I…

• Writing Fiction: Bring Your Characters To Life With Roz Morris

  joanna@TheCreativePenn.com (Joanna Penn)

  20 May 2013 | 11:26 pm

  Plot will carry you through a book as a reader, but the characters are usually what sticks with you after the book is finished. But how do you ensure your characters are memorable enough? Podcast Sponsor: Get a free audiobook and 14-day trial today by signing up at AudiblePodcast.com/thecreativepenn Podcast Interview: In today’s interview, I talk to Roz Morris, author of Nail Your Novel: Bring characters to life . Roz is the author of over a dozen novels as a ghostwriter and has also written ‘Memories of a Future Life’ under her own name. She has a series of books for…

• What Writers Can Learn From Dan Brown’s Inferno

  joanna@TheCreativePenn.com (Joanna Penn)

  17 May 2013 | 11:10 pm

  Back in 2000, Dan Brown changed my life. I have a Masters in Theology from the University of Oxford and religion, art history, architecture and spirituality are just some of my obsessions. Up until 2000, I thought that the only option to be a successful author in that arena was to follow in the footsteps of Umberto Eco’s The Name of the Rose. But then Dan Brown made the religious thriller mainstream and commercial and it now has a great niche all of its own, with Steve Berry, James Rollins, Scott Mariani and others writing in the genre. There are now so many options for readers like me…

• Let’s Get Visible. Cracking The Amazon Algorithms With David Gaughran

  joanna@TheCreativePenn.com (Joanna Penn)

  14 May 2013 | 11:45 pm

  There are two main ways that people will find your books. (1) Through your book This is all about your book retailer sales page, targeted email marketing and promotions and other things that have nothing to do with your “platform”. After all, how many books do you pick up where you know nothing about the authors at all? Quite a few I’d imagine. (2) Through you This is all about your platform and how you reach people in the world. This includes content marketing, social, multimedia, PR and anything that relates to you. One thing to keep in mind when weighing up how to spend…

• 5 Ways Writing Short Stories Can Boost Your Writing Career

  joanna@TheCreativePenn.com (Joanna Penn)

  11 May 2013 | 11:35 pm

  Until a few months ago, I had never written a short story for publication. But then I was commissioned to write three for the Kobo Descent competition based on Dante’s Inferno for the launch of Dan Brown’s new book, also called Inferno. I read about 50 stories and lots of information on how to write them and then I jumped in. You can get all three stories here. It was a LOT of fun, and I experimented with a genre I haven’t written before. I wrote two dark mystery stories and one post-apocalyptic story which was something very new to me. So I know personally that short…

• 

  Backspace: The Writers Place

• Brenda Novak Online Auction for Diabetes Research – bid on manuscript critiques, and more!

  KLDionne

  10 May 2013 | 5:28 am

  Every year, beginning May 1 and continuing through the end of the month, New York Times and USA Today bestselling Author Brenda Novak runs an online auction for diabetes research. The auction takes a full year to plan and pull off, but it’s a labor of love—an effort to help all the people who, like her youngest son, suffer from diabetes. This year, the Salt Cay Writers Retreat has donated a long list of items to the auction, including a full scholarship to the retreat, a cocktail party for 4 at Folio Literary Management’s New York City office, signed books, and homemade salsa and…

• Why Literary Agents Attend Writers Conferences (It’s Not What You Think) by Karen Dionne

  KLDionne

  2 Apr 2013 | 5:48 am

  As co-founder of the online writers community Backspace, I’ve been organizing the Backspace Writers Conferences held twice-annually in New York City for the past 9 years. Recently a writer who is considering attending Backspace’s newest offering, the Salt Cay Writers Retreat taking place this October on a private island in the Bahamas, wondered how we’re able to assemble such a high-level group of bestselling authors, editors, and agents for a week-long workshop. “Other than the locale and swimming with dolphins,” she asked, “what do you think the faculty members hope to get out…

• Faith and a Box Full of Clock Parts by Karen Dionne

  KLDionne

  26 Mar 2013 | 4:03 am

  I’m ten years old. My Big Ben-style alarm clock has stopped working. Maybe I wound it too tightly, maybe it’s just worn out. Whatever the reason, the alarm hasn’t gone off in days. I know I can fix it, if only I can get a look inside. When I tell my parents, they don’t laugh. Instead, my dad gives me a set of miniature screwdrivers, my mom gives me an empty shoebox, and on that day, my writing career is born. Okay, technically, I didn’t take up novel writing until I was in my mid-forties. But by encouraging me to go ahead and try to fix that clock, even though they knew full well…

• Announcing the Salt Cay Writers Retreat – a unique opportunity from Backspace for advanced literary fiction, memorists, and nonfiction writers

  KLDionne

  18 Mar 2013 | 6:43 am

  Did you know that William Styron put the finishing touches on Sophie’s Choice while vacationing on Salt Cay, Bahamas? Or that Anne Morrow Lindbergh worked on Gifts From The Sea during a visit to Salt Cay as well? Now you too can practice your craft on this beautiful private Bahamian island. While the Salt Cay Writers Retreat curriculum is particularly suited for advanced literary and upmarket commercial fiction writers, memorists and narrative non-fiction writers, any author who wishes to take their writing to the next level is welcome to join us for a memorable week of writing and…

• 10 Tips for Launching A Book Without Losing Your Mind by Randy Susan Meyers

  KLDionne

  27 Feb 2013 | 12:11 pm

    Randy Susan Meyers will be on the faculty at the 2013 Backspace Writers Conference May 23-25, New York City Unmitigated panic. Unrelenting fear. Ulcer-inducing worry. Two years ago my book was launching and I should have been on cloud nine. I was realizing a life-long dream at a time when many my age popped Lipitor. I was edging close to a sedative habit. Looking back to my novel debut, terror defined my anticipatory state-of-being. How would I bear bad reviews? (Weeping. Definitely weeping.) What if I got no reviews? (More weeping) What if no one came to my book launch party? What…

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  GalleyCat

• Turn Your Favorite Kid’s Book into an Audiobook

  Jason Boog

  24 May 2013 | 4:07 am

  If you want to make a personalized audiobook for the kid in your life, StorySticker can help you with the transition. Created by stkr.it, the tool will be unveiled at BEA next week. AppNewser has all the details: StorySticker lets you do create audio recordings of yourself reading their favorite book so that they can listen to your voice at bedtime. The StorySticker audio book works through the combination of an app and a unique coded sticker that attaches to the inside of any children’s book. You can buy the stickers at a book retailer and paste it into your child’s book. Then you can…

• Rick Atkinson To Write American Revolution Trilogy

  Jason Boog

  24 May 2013 | 3:15 am

  Pulitzer Prize-winning author Rick Atkinson will publish a narrative history trilogy about the American Revolution with Henry Holt and Company. The former Washington Post staff writer won the Pulitzer Prize for An Army at Dawn: The War in North Africa, 1942-1943, part of his bestselling trilogy about World War II–a 15 year writing effort. The American Revolution trilogy will begin with 1775 and 1776; volume two will cover 1777 to 1779 and volume three will cover 1780 to 1781. Macmillan editor at large John Sterling acquired and will edit the books. He has edited all of…

• How to Share Books & eBooks with Our Troops

  Jason Boog

  24 May 2013 | 2:23 am

  As you celebrate Memorial Day this weekend, take some time to remember all our soldiers stationed overseas. If you want to help these men and women far away from home, we’ve collected five different ways you can share books with our troops. For instance, E-Books for Troops will help you send an eReader to our troops overseas. Army Sgt. Andre Corbin explained at the site: When soldiers deploy, they have a mandatory packing list of equipment/clothing which must be fitted into a rucksack and a duffel bag – and it takes good packing to get everything required stowed. Any personal items…

• ‘Tiger Eyes’ Official Trailer Released

  Maryann Yin

  23 May 2013 | 10:23 am

  An official trailer for the Tiger Eyes film adaptation has been released. The trailer includes a first look at Willa Holland as Davey and Tatanka Means as Wolf. We’ve embedded the video above–what do you think? According to The Hollywood Reporter, Tiger Eyes will be the first time a Judy Blume title has been adapted into a feature film. Lawrence Blume, Judy’s son, directed this project. He worked on writing the screenplay with his mother. continued… New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

• Shakespeare Apps Coming for Students

  Jason Boog

  23 May 2013 | 10:00 am

  Simon & Schuster and Folger Shakespeare Library will release a set of interactive apps aimed at helping students explore the work of William Shakespeare. AppNewser has more about the upcoming apps: Coming this November, the joint effort will release app versions of Hamlet, Othello, Macbeth, Romeo & Juliet, and A Midsummer Night’s Dream. They will continue to release plays thereafter until the entire collection is available. The app versions will include audio recordings, videos and photos, which are designed to help teach the texts. This includes audio performances produced…

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  Publishing News

• Drone clampdown as Obama rethinks US terror strategy

  24 May 2013 | 8:03 am

  BARACK OBAMA has insisted that the US can no longer mount "a boundless global war on terror" and has sought to redefine the country's counter-terrorism strategy as it prepares to withdraw from Afghanistan, declaring that "America is at a crossroads". In a speech on Thursday Obama pledged to cut back on drone attacks and reaffirmed his desire to ... (more)

• Roger Ailes' letter to Fox employees

  24 May 2013 | 3:53 am

  Dear colleagues, The recent news about the FBI's seizure of the phone and email records of Fox News employees, including James Rosen, calls into question whether the federal government is meeting its constitutional obligation to preserve and protect a free press in the United States.

• Major highway bridge collapses in US

  23 May 2013 | 11:39 pm

  LOS ANGELES: A bridge carrying a freeway over a river in the northwestern US state of Washington partially collapsed on Thursday, sending cars and people plunging into the water below, police said.

• Those who survived a sex scandal. And those who didn't

  23 May 2013 | 7:34 pm

  News about Seattle City Hall, Seattle Mayor Mike McGinn, Washington Governor Jay Inslee, Seattle and King County government and more As he launches his run for Mayor of New York, former Rep.

• Lawyer: NY man at center of HIV scare not positive

  23 May 2013 | 3:20 pm

  Nushawn Williams, a New York drug dealer imprisoned amid accusations he infected 13 young women with HIV in the 1990s, does not have the virus that causes AIDS, according to his attorney, who said he arranged for a new blood test as part of efforts to get him released from prison.

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  Commercial Printing News

• Atlas Supports Headwaters Conservation Partnership

  24 May 2013 | 5:18 am

  The Headwaters Conservation Partnership has announced that Atlas Resource Partners LP, an E&P subsidiary of Atlas Energy, has again supported the efforts of Headwaters regional conservation efforts.

• Deal Alert: EDA software firm SoftJin sells Photomask, Lithography units to US-based Mentor Graphics

  24 May 2013 | 1:18 am

  SoftJin Technologies Private Limited , a Bangalore-based company providing "EDA" software and design solutions enabling semiconductor design and manufacturing, has sold its Photomask and Lithography related Software Products business to Mentor Graphics Corporation of Oregon, United States.

• MDC Partners Expands Global Footprint with China Offerings

  23 May 2013 | 7:09 pm

  "MDC is designed to nimbly and efficiently support the ambitions of our clients, driving innovation wherever they aim to grow their businesses," said represents a significant opportunity for global marketers, and we have seen great demand in the market for the exceptional talent and transformational approach to business our agencies offer.

• Mentor Graphics Reports Fiscal First Quarter Results and Announces Dividend

  23 May 2013 | 2:55 pm

  Mentor Graphics Corporation today announced financial results for the company's fiscal first quarter ended April 30, 2013.

• Girl killed in Oklahoma tornado has Wisconsin ties

  23 May 2013 | 10:45 am

  Nine-year-old Sydney Angle was among the children who died on Monday, after a twister ripped through their elementary school in the Oklahoma City suburb of Moore.

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  Packt Publishing | Feed

• Designer Friendly Templates

  24 May 2013 | 4:51 am

  In this article by Torsten Uhlmann, the author of Instant Lift Web Applications How-to, we will see Lift's way of cleanly separating the HTML view from server-side logic.

• Get the most out of SymPy’s functionalities with Packt’s new eBook.

  24 May 2013 | 4:45 am

  About the author: Ronan Lamy has been a core developer of SymPy since 2009 and is an open source developer and Python consultant. He spent four years analyzing data in a proprietary computer algebra system to obtain his Ph.D. in physics, where he learnt the power of symbolic computation. Instant SymPy Starter is a practical guide to setting up development environments to integrate SymPy into workflows for both symbolic and numerical computations inside IPython Notebook.

• HTML5 Presentations - creating our initial presentation

  24 May 2013 | 2:09 am

  In this article by Davi Ferreira the author of Instant HTML5 Presentations How-to, we will cover the following recipes: Creating our initial presentation Using reveal.js JavaScript API

• Magento Performance Optimization

  23 May 2013 | 9:56 pm

  In this article by Nayrolles Mathieu author of Instant Magento Performance Optimization How-to [Instant], we will help you learn Magento's built-in caching system for saving frequently asked requests. It also introduces you to the slowest component of a computer, the hard drive, and how Magento makes massive use of it. This lets you use your available RAM. It will show you how to configure a set of loosely connected computers working together for handling more and more customers.

• Master AutoCAD’s third dimension with Packt's new book and eBook.

  22 May 2013 | 11:08 pm

• 

  Thad McIlroy - Future Of Publishing

• A Publishing Education

  Thad McIlroy

  14 May 2013 | 7:00 pm

  The courses that convey traditional publishing knowledge are well-established. They’re mainly the Masters of Publishing courses at various universities around the U.S., Canada and the U.K. They’ve been turning out employable graduates for years now, women and men well-versed in publishing as we’ve understood it in the modern era. With the pace of change now so rapid it’s a great challenge for the educators responsible for these courses. In getting to know some of them I see their constant concern with keeping their curriculum up to date.<!–more–>…

• Microsoft Won’t Save Barnes & Noble

  Thad McIlroy

  12 May 2013 | 10:33 pm

  After a vague but vaguely credible report earlier this week from TechCrunch there’s no end to the discussion about whether Microsoft really intends to purchase the portion of Nook Media still held by Barnes & Noble and what that could mean to both companies. As a journalist I tend to default to the assumption that people and their employers make big plans for good reasons. As a consultant I know just how rarely that’s true. Sure, Microsoft can buy the rest of Nook Media. Microsoft has over $74 billion in cash and short-term investments. It can buy just about anything it…

• Money Makes Metadata Sexy

  Thad McIlroy

  10 May 2013 | 12:48 am

  On day two of the Music Industry Metadata & Information Summit held in Los Angeles this week (run by NARM and DigitalMusic.org) Rob Weitzner laid it on the line in evoking the ever-elusive appeal of metadata. “Metadata is sexy,” he said. “because if you get paid, that’s sexy.” 5 men discuss how royalties drive metadata “Building Efficiency & Transparency in Royalty Reporting” was the topic for Weitzner’s five-man panel and it provided essential clues for those who seek to understand how music metadata really functions. Follow the money. Or at least try to find…

• Music Industry Metadata & Information Summit

  Thad McIlroy

  6 May 2013 | 6:03 pm

  The conference brochure copy captured the event very well: A never-before seen collection of high-level working sessions and talks about very practical issues, this 
two-day summit is designed to both inform newcomers about the importance of managing information 
through metadata — the “plumbing” that ensures digital tracks are labeled correctly in online music 
stores — and provide a forum for music industry executives and associated technologists to discuss and hash out solutions to key issues in the information systems of the future of the music business. “Maintaining…

• BOOKISHNESS Fail: The Case of Hugh Howey’s “Wool”

  Thad McIlroy

  29 Apr 2013 | 8:34 pm

  When did the excitement begin? It was long before the print book. Volume 1 of Hugh Howey’s Wool appeared on July 29, 2011. Towards the end of 2012 a “real” publisher, Simon & Schuster, the fourth largest of the current big six, insinuated itself into the ebook bestseller ecosystem by awarding a hunk of cash to this tremendously successful self-published author. All of this cash was awarded just for what some see as the detritus of the current publishing process: the print version of a hugely successful ebook. Hugh Howey describes his backward saga to conventional…

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  Self Publishing Coach Blog

• Why Does An Author Need to Have a Blog?

  13 May 2013 | 8:20 pm

  by D’vorah Lansky, M.Ed. I’d like to thank Shelley for graciously hosting me, as a guest blogger, in celebration of the launch of my newest book, 21

• 3 Free Tools

  10 May 2013 | 3:11 pm

  Dropbox Submitted by John Maxwell Feilding, New Zealand Online storage that allows you to save your files in the cloud and work on them from multiple

• Advertising

  29 Apr 2013 | 7:19 am

  Advertising on Self-Publishing-Coach.com

• What Is A Book Launch And Why Do I Need One?

  18 Apr 2013 | 2:19 pm

  A book launch is just one way of introducing a new book into the public market. The goal is to let as many people as possible know about your book at the

• Be Original and Win Loyalty

  8 Apr 2013 | 7:40 am

  In the publishing and writing field, you have to be original in literary output only then you can think of winning the loyalty of the readers which is

• 

  Self Publishing Advisor

• Weekly Self Published Book Review: The Hummingbird Garden

  selfpublishingadvisor

  23 May 2013 | 4:00 am

  Book reviews are a great way for self-publishing authors to gain exposure. After all, how can someone buy your book if he or she doesn’t know it exists? Paired with other elements of your book promotion strategy, requesting reviews is a great way to get people talking about what you’ve written. When we read good reviews, we definitely like to share them. It gives the author a few (permanent) moments of fame and allows us to let the community know about a great book. Here’s this week’s book review by Midwest Book Review: The Hummingbird Garden Evelyn Schwarz Publisher: Outskirts Press…

• 4 Ways to Bring New Life to Your Manuscript

  Kelly Schuknecht

  22 May 2013 | 4:00 am

  Sometimes writers hit a dead-end in their manuscript, and they need help bringing the project back to life. While you might think writing would be the solution, it may be best to save the manuscript and take a break. But don’t completely forget about the project. Instead try these four tips to help bring new life to your self publishing book project. 1. Do some research. To write about an event, type of character, or location, it is often helpful to be very familiar with it. When you aren’t knowledgable on the subject, you can’t always write believable scenes or dialogue.

• Self Publishing Week in Review: 5/21/13

  Kelly Schuknecht

  21 May 2013 | 4:00 am

  As a self-publishing author, you may find it helpful to stay up-to-date on the trends and news related to the self publishing industry. This will help you make informed decisions before, during and after the self publishing process, which will lead to a greater self publishing experience. To help you stay current on self publishing topics, simply visit our blog every Tuesday to find out the hottest news in self publishing this week. The Real Costs of Self-Publishing a Book A lot of authors considering self publishing want to know how much the entire process will cost. This article breaks…

• 5 Self Publishing Mistakes You Can Avoid

  Jodee Thayer

  20 May 2013 | 4:00 am

  Unfortunately, some people have a negative perception of self publishing. This is because some self publishing authors make detrimental mistakes that prevent their books from being taken seriously. If you want to be seen as a professional author with a successful book, be sure to avoid these five self publishing mistakes: 1)Doing the interior yourself -  You’re a writer; not a book designer.  Leave this task to the professionals and focus your time on writing and promoting your book. 2)Using a template cover -  Most readers judge a book by its cover, so having an eye-catching, quality…

• 5 Pinterest Marketing Tips for Self-Publishing Authors

  selfpublishingadvisor

  17 May 2013 | 4:00 am

  When used appropriately, social media sites such as Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn can be effective tools for book marketing.  The hottest social media trend right now is Pinterest! Like the other social media sites, it can help self publishing authors  facilitate communication with current and potential readers, generate sales, and increase awareness of their books. This photo sharing site enables users to “pin” images and videos to virtual pinboards, or “Boards,” and share them with others.  Users can organize their pins based on their interests; a few popular…

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  Self Publishing Team

• 5 Must-Have Apps For On-The-Go Authors

  Shannon (the Author)

  15 May 2013 | 4:00 am

  I have a new best friend, y’all. Her name is Siri. (Sorry Toni!) I know I’m really late to this party, but I just got an iPhone 5 last week and we are officially operating as one unit. It’s the first thing I reach for when I wake up and the last thing I check before bed. But enough about my and my obvious technological dependency issues (my therapist and I will have plenty of time to talk about that down the road, I’m sure). What I really want to share with you is how much time I’ve been able to save with my marketing efforts by using a handful of awesome (and…

• Gut Check: How Bad Do You Want It? (Publishing Success, That Is!)

  Toni (the Geek)

  8 May 2013 | 5:00 am

  I think my husband is a little bit weird. I don’t think I’m the only partner to think this way about her significant other (am I right?), but it wasn’t until very recently that I  started to figure out what makes him so (adorably) socially awkward. Back when I was in college, I spent my Tuesday nights taking advantage of Domino’s Two for Tuesday deal and watching American Idol in my dorm room. When Michael was in college, on the other hand, he spent Tuesday nights at the computer science lab, working diligently on his current coding assignment and studying his butt…

• Book Layout Made Easy with a Professionally Designed Word Template [Guest Post]

  Guest Poster

  22 Apr 2013 | 5:00 am

  The following is a guest post from Tracy Atkins who (along with The Book Designer, Joel Friedlander) has developed a series of book design templates just for indie authors. Read to the end for a discount code that’ll save you almost 50%! Layout is for the birds. As a self-published author, one of the hardest parts of getting my book to print was converting my manuscript into a fully formatted book. I came to find that laying out a self-published book correctly is one of those jobs that seems simple at first, but can take an incredible amount of time. Getting all of the pagination right,…

• Feeling Stuck? End Book Marketing Paralysis in Just 5 Minutes

  Toni (the Geek)

  18 Apr 2013 | 5:00 am

  Last night, I jumped out of bed after having one of THOSE dreams. You see, wacky dreams are kind of my thing, but they (luckily) usually keep to the neutral/non-scary end of things. Every once in awhile, though, I’ll have one like this: [Harp-y Dream Sequence Sound Effect] I’m laying in bed, watching a bit of TV before bed. The next thing I know, I’m in my bedroom closet, hiding from the Daleks, these Doctor Who villains who attack you with weapons that look like a whisk and a plunger (I know). Anywho, they’re barging into my house yelling…

• The Justin Timberlake School of Rocking Your Book Launch

  Shannon (the Author)

  10 Apr 2013 | 5:00 am

  In addition to charming you with his suave style, sweet dance moves, and amazing falsetto melodies, Justin Timberlake can teach you a thing or two about how to rock your book launch. Teach us, oh master. Seriously. For those of you under-the-rock-dwellers, Mr. Timberlake recently released his third album, the 20/20 Experience, and sold 968,000 copies in the first week. That’s a lot. Even for Justin. Most of the agencies that project numbers for these sorts of things estimated Justin’s third album in seven years would move about 500,000 copies at best, given the market for music…

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  The Book Deal

• How winning a literary prize can change your life

  Alan Rinzler

  14 May 2013 | 7:47 am

  “First, it got my book published,” says Kirstin Scott, whose novel Motherlunge won the 2011 Association of Writers and Writing Programs Award. “And with that, the prize gave me readers.” There’s no doubt that winning a well-respected competition can help validate your work with agents and publishers. It proves someone thinks you’re good and helps build a more credible platform. The best of these prizes include cash awards and book publication. I recently interviewed four writers each of whom has won a well-known contest. Here’s who they are and how their prizes changed their…

• Having trouble writing? Try this famous author’s technique

  Alan Rinzler

  2 May 2013 | 10:54 pm

  “Sometimes in a nervous frenzy I just fling words as if I were flinging mud at a wall,” says Pulitzer Prize winner John McPhee. “Blurt out, heave out, babble out something – anything – as a first draft,” he says  in an article called Draft No. 4 now in The New Yorker magazine where he’s been appearing regularly for 48 years. McPhee, the author of 32 books, says he first wrote these words of advice in a letter to his daughter Jenny years ago when she was starting out as a writer herself. “The way to do a piece of writing is three or four times over, never once,” he…

• Market sizzles for debut authors

  Alan Rinzler

  22 Apr 2013 | 9:49 am

  “Editors still love a chance at debut fiction,” says Manhattan literary agent Michelle Brower. “If the book is unique and meaningful, the debut author doesn’t yet have a bad sales track record so we can look at their book with all of the rosiness of potential rather than reality” Good news That’s some of the good news for first-time authors from agents out there on the front lines. The news is backed up by recent deals with major publishers for first novels, like Mango Bride by Marivi Soliven, an immigrant tale of two women, two cultures, family secrets and the fight to find a new…

• Writing a memoir: Intersecting memory and story

  Alan Rinzler

  11 Mar 2013 | 1:10 pm

  Writing a memoir is one of the most stimulating but difficult literary challenges an author can undertake. Nevertheless, it’s a hugely popular genre. Five of the top ten hardcover nonfiction books on the NY Times bestseller list this week are memoirs. Aspiring memoir writers can find help in books and by searching online, but there’s nothing like a live workshop with a master teacher. One highly recommended instructor is Tamim Ansary, the Afghan-American author of the critically acclaimed literary memoir West of Kabul, East of New York (Farrar, Straus & Giroux). This spring, Ansary…

• From spark to story: How books get started

  Alan Rinzler

  4 Mar 2013 | 8:41 am

  Where do stories come from? Are writers inspired from deep within the unconscious psyche by forces beyond their control? Or are they compelled by external cues that resonate without invitation – unexpected and accidental? As an editor, I’ve seen the muse arrive in surprising and mysterious ways. The creative spark, a blessed event to be sure, can arrive at any moment in time. Whether the source is mundane or magical, the author fans the spark into a fully realized story. From spark to finished story I asked two authors about their original impulses and how they developed into the books…

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  Bad Redhead Media

• What’s the 3-Step Process to Marketing Your Book?

  Rachel Thompson

  16 May 2013 | 8:08 pm

  What’s the 3-Step Process to Marketing Your Book?    I’m often asked, ‘When is the ideal time to start marketing my book?’ It’s a good question, but let’s go a bit deeper today.   The question should not only be that, but also: how do I ensure I get the most sales when I do release?   Sales vs. marketing. Marketing vs. sales. In corporations, they are often diametrically opposed in technique and vision. As authors, we are both, and it’s that inherent conflict that can create issues.   Today we’ll look at your book release from a marketing perspective.

• Why All Authors Need Target Practice

  Rachel Thompson

  8 May 2013 | 10:43 pm

  Please welcome my favorite hottie (and brilliant marketer in real life), author Jim Moorman to the blog. He gives solid, practical advice for any author. Sit, Grasshopper. Learn from the marketing ninja dude. Oh, and purchase his book, Jamaican Flowers, on Amazon!  One of my favorite people, the late Stephen Covey, said, “If the ladder is not leaning against the right wall, every step we take just gets us to the wrong place faster.” The independent author surge has given rise to dozens of “how-to” books and articles on publishing, promoting, and marketing. With so much information…

• What Is #MondayBlogs and Does It Work?

  Rachel Thompson

  2 May 2013 | 5:02 pm

  What Is #MondayBlogs and Does It Work?   ’Looking at millions of retweets and millions of non-retweeted ‘normal’ tweets, I found that non-retweets tended to contain more self-referential language than retweets. Not only does self-reference not lead to more followers, it also doesn’t lead to more retweets.’  ~Dan Zarrella, The Science of Marketing: When to Tweet, What To Post, How To Blog, and Other Proven Strategies   I started the #MondayBlogs meme late last year for one simple reason: to give bloggers and writers a dedicated meme on a dedicated day. I…

• Top Tips To Creating A Dynamic Twitter Account

  Rachel Thompson

  26 Apr 2013 | 12:34 pm

  People ask me lots of questions each day about how best to use Twitter for selling their books.  You can probably guess my answer: DON’T. The hard sell never works (and I know: I was a pharma rep and sales trainer for fifteen years). Twitter is an excellent marketing tool, however, and the best way to use it to ‘sell’ is by establishing relationships with readers, being an expert in whatever it is that you know by providing blog posts, information, resources, etc., and interacting with people who could be potential buyers of your book (or whatever it is you are selling).

• Interview with @LornaSuzuki, Indie Author of Movie-Optioned ‘The Imago Chronicles’

  Rachel Thompson

  18 Apr 2013 | 10:26 am

   I am honored to have bestselling indie author Lorna Suzuki here today! She’s not only a terrific author, her books have been optioned and are currently being made into a Hollywood movie. I couldn’t be more thrilled for her. Here’s her story:    1)    Lorna, please share with us a little background about your bestselling (and now movie-optioned!) books, The Imago Chronicles. First of all, thank you for inviting me here, Rachel! Second, only in my dreams are my novels considered to be ‘bestsellers’! In all honesty, you’ll notice most of my followers on Twitter…

• 

  Joe Wikert's Digital Content Strategies

• Screwpulp: An exciting new startup (that I'm part of!)

  Joe Wikert

  22 May 2013 | 6:55 am

  One of the benefits of my previous job is that it brought me much closer to the content startup community. I've met a lot of outstanding organizations but one that really grabbed my attention is a self-publishing startup called Screwpulp. I mentioned them briefly in an earlier article after I introduced them at an investor event in Memphis. What's so special about Screwpulp? First of all, it's the people. I've spent time with each of the founding members of the company and I'd stack them up against any other startup team I've met. Every single one of them is…

• Memphis startup community rocks

  Joe Wikert

  20 May 2013 | 7:00 am

  For the past couple of years I've had the pleasure of working with a variety of startups in the content space and most of them are located on one of the two coasts here in the U.S. Last week was an eye-opening experience for me when I traveled to Memphis to take part in the Seed Hatchery Investor Day. I was there to help represent a terrific startup I'm now part of, Screwpulp, but the opportunity to mingle with investors and the other startups was priceless. In the span of 3 hours Thursday afternoon I had the pleasure of listening to the investor pitches from six highly innovative…

• Direct sales and community building

  Joe Wikert

  15 May 2013 | 11:41 am

  If you’ve been anywhere near publishing recently, you’ve probably been hit by the shrapnel of an exploding business model, a narrowing distribution network, or mind-numbing cutbacks. It’s fashionable for people who aren’t pouring their daily energies into words and stories to compare the changing ebook environment to the music industry. But it’s different.  Much more simple and complex at the same time. And I believe--even without gulping down an alcoholic beverage--that publishers and authors can come out on top when the dust settles.   But it will require change. And…

• Bringing democracy back to digital

  Joe Wikert

  14 May 2013 | 7:39 am

  By exposing us to diverging viewpoints, fostering dissent, broadcasting scientific discoveries, and stretching our imagination beyond its sensory frame, books have promoted the rise of our modern social conscience. The many societal and technical revolutions of the 20th century have often been ascribed to a unique combination of readily available literature and high schooling rates. High-speed printing presses, global distribution, and the excellent editing work of our forebears, enable publishers to sell authoritative, if slightly outmoded, versions of classic works for a few pence a pop.

• Micro-consulting projects

  Joe Wikert

  13 May 2013 | 7:40 am

  Last week's article about my search for new full-time or consulting work generated a lot of interest. It was also nice to see the resulting surge in views of my LinkedIn profile. Thanks to everyone who tweeted and help spread the word. I now have a few short-term consulting projects underway and several more longer-term ones are also being discussed. I've spoken with quite a few prospective clients over the past week and it's clear there's a significant need for consulting help but budgets are tight; not exactly surprising given all the cost-cutting and cutbacks taking…

• 

  SlushPile.net

• Slate Says “Ignore Inspiration”

  Scott

  6 May 2013 | 4:52 pm

  Slate has been running a series on the rituals and techniques of great artists. Today’s article, focuses on ignoring the idea of waiting for inspiration. “Waiting for inspiration to strike is a terrible, terrible plan,” Mason Currey writes. “In fact, perhaps the single best piece of advice I can offer to anyone trying to do creative work is to ignore inspiration.” It’s not necessarily earth-shattering to most serious writers, but it is a useful reminder. The people who can most obviously benefit from this type of advice are the — for lack of a better…

• Should You Pay to Make a Book About Success a Success?

  Scott

  2 May 2013 | 7:50 am

  Finances are rarely as they seem. The sports media blasts $100 million dollar deal headlines on an almost daily basis. But it’s only been in recent years that they began drawing the distinction between the guaranteed portions versus the purely imaginary Monopoly money the player will never actually receive. While basketball and baseball contracts are locked in, football contracts can be broken at any time by the team. The entertainment media reports huge recording contracts, without referencing that the deal also covers merchandising and tour support. A band might “receive”…

• Square Books Named PW Bookseller of the Year

  Scott

  1 Apr 2013 | 9:16 am

  During my time in graduate school at the University of Mississippi, I was lucky enough to work at Square Books in Oxford. So I was particularly pleased to see the news today that Publishers Weekly named the store as Bookseller of the Year. Check out the full article here. Congratulations to all the gang down there on a well-deserved honor!

• Will Finishing a Book Change Your Life?

  Scott

  11 Feb 2013 | 1:15 pm

  GalleyCat referenced an interesting post by Arthur McMahon in which he expresses a bit of amazement at the fact that “Completing a novel didn’t change my perception of life like I expected it to.” Some commenters at GalleyCat claimed they didn’t expect completing a novel would have any change, they write for themselves, not riches or fans or feedback, and all that. But I totally understand what McMahon is getting at. In his full post, available here, he writes that it’s a long-haul proposition. The completion of the first book is but a step towards the next one. And…

• A Laugh at Lousy Book Covers

  Scott

  10 Feb 2013 | 4:32 pm

  A reader passed along this Tumblr account, dedicated to Lousy Book Covers. Now, obviously, beauty is in the eye of the beholder and all that, so yeah, maybe this one shouldn’t be included or that one isn’t that bad or whatever. But it’s at least a pretty humorous gaze through the results of ten minutes with Photoshop. Also, while enjoying this one, I stumbled across a blog dedicated to Bad Book Covers. Like record covers, some of these are so bad as to be almost cool.

• 

  Beyond the Book

• Penguin Pays Up

  rob@burstmarketing.com (BurstMarketing)

  23 May 2013 | 11:01 pm

  At a famous trade book publishing house, they say, “the monkey pays the bills.” What they mean is that a perennially successful line of children’s books earns its keep and more. This week, though, we learned that a Penguin has a bill to pay, and it’s a whopper – perhaps as much as $90 million to settle a Dept. of Justice price-fixing lawsuit only weeks before a trial begins. “The deal is substantially similar to other publisher settlements, except for the hefty price tag. Penguin is paying more than three times what Macmillan had paid, and more than Hachette, Simon and Schuster…

• Universities Face Open Access Challenge

  rob@burstmarketing.com (BurstMarketing)

  19 May 2013 | 11:00 am

  As the demand for Open Access (OA) journals and articles increases, so has the frequency with which academic institutions are submitting payments for APCs (article processing charges) to publishers. As a result, universities face a number of challenges new to the academic community. Rob Johnson, founder of the UK-based Research Consulting, tells CCC’s Chris Kenneally what administrators should know when tracking funding sources, submitting multiple payments, and responding to compliance mandates. Most recently, Rob Johnson served as Head of Research Operations at the University of…

• Apple Readies Book Case

  rob@burstmarketing.com (BurstMarketing)

  17 May 2013 | 8:32 am

  The digital dynamo prepares to stand its ground in the ebook price-fixing case coming next month to a Manhattan courtroom. Meanwhile, book industry insiders discover they will have to settle for double-digit growth in ebook sales, after years of triple-digit jumps. “E-books in 2012 accounted for over $3 billion is sales, with a slew of new ventures and and innovative devices coming to market,” notes Andrew Albanese, Publishers Weekly senior writer. “However, a lot is being made about that 42% figure because it is the slowest growth ever for e-books,” he tells CCC’s Chris…

• More Than Books For BookExpo

  rob@burstmarketing.com (BurstMarketing)

  12 May 2013 | 11:00 am

  What to expect at BookExpo America for 2013? Books, of course, from the Big 6 publishers to the growing ranks of the indies. Authors, too, naturally – often seated at the end of long lines of autograph-seekers, and this year, as part of UPublish U, they’re sharing insights on self-publishing with other authors. For a preview, Steven Rosato, BEA Event Director, tells CCC’s Chris Kenneally about what’s new for this year – notably, a new “date pattern” (Thursday through Saturday), and “BEA Selects,” featuring presentations by independent publishers. Wait a minute, one…

• Books Make Good Listening

  rob@burstmarketing.com (BurstMarketing)

  9 May 2013 | 11:01 pm

  The idea is often advanced that the rise of video on the Web will undermine reading habits – and that in a contest of pictures over words, the words will come out the loser. The jury is still out, but the spoken word has long enjoyed a warm relationship with books, and in 2013, that remains true. Indeed, driven by advancements in technology and distribution, audiobooks are surging. According to the Audio Publishers Association, reports Andrew Albanese, Publishers Weekly senior writer, audiobook production rose in 2012 17% over 2011, and has jumped 57% since 2009. “Freed from the need…

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  TeleRead

• Judge Cote Expresses an Early Opinion on Apple E-Book Case

  Juli Monroe

  24 May 2013 | 8:15 am

  Wow, talk about a surprise in my Feedly this morning. From Reuters: In an unusual move before a trial, a federal judge expressed a tentative view that the U.S. Justice Department will be able to show evidence that Apple Inc engaged in a conspiracy with publishers to increase e-book prices. I know what my personal [...]The post Judge Cote Expresses an Early Opinion on Apple E-Book Case appeared first on TeleRead: News and views on e-books, libraries, publishing and related topics.

• Open Road: Under the Hood

  Paul St John Mackintosh

  24 May 2013 | 7:15 am

  Noted GigaOM staff writer Laura Hazard Owen has just run a piece in paidContent on Open Road Media, the pioneering all-digital publishing house founded in 2009, also picked up here in TeleRead. After my previous pieces on the marketing and promotional firepower now being directed at e-publishing, I decided to take a closer look at Open Road. First [...]The post Open Road: Under the Hood appeared first on TeleRead: News and views on e-books, libraries, publishing and related topics.

• Morning Roundup: 10 steps to creating a book based on your blog

  Joanna Cabot

  24 May 2013 | 6:09 am

  10 Steps to Creating a Book Based on Your Blog (Media Shift) I recently self-published an e-book based on my blog, and I want to share what I learned. This post focuses on the editorial process; in subsequent posts, I’ll share tips on coming up with a design for your e-book cover, choosing a publishing platform (I went with Kindle, [...]The post Morning Roundup: 10 steps to creating a book based on your blog appeared first on TeleRead: News and views on e-books, libraries, publishing and related topics.

• My Reaction to John Scalzi’s Reaction to Kindle Worlds

  Juli Monroe

  23 May 2013 | 5:53 pm

  Just in case you’ve been living under a rock, yesterday Amazon announced Kindle Worlds, otherwise know as authorized, paid fan fiction (sort of). In response to one of my comments on that post, our own Joanna Cabot linked me to John Scalzi’s initial thoughts on the move. I have tons of respect for Scalzi, and [...]The post My Reaction to John Scalzi’s Reaction to Kindle Worlds appeared first on TeleRead: News and views on e-books, libraries, publishing and related topics.

• Six Book Publishing Lessons From Open Road Media

  Joanna Cabot

  23 May 2013 | 10:00 am

  Laura Hazard Owen of paidContent brings us this great story about Open Road Media, an e-only publisher that specializes in backlist republications of titles which were not yet available in e-book form. Along with the history lesson on the history of this unique publisher, the article offers six ‘lessons’ other publishers can learn from what Open Road [...]The post Six Book Publishing Lessons From Open Road Media appeared first on TeleRead: News and views on e-books, libraries, publishing and related topics.

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  BuzzMachine

• Selling ads by time, not space

  Jeff Jarvis

  15 May 2013 | 5:28 pm

  I just saw some mind-bending work Chartbeat is about to release about measuring the time users spend exposed to an ad online. As background, to quote Chartbeat CEO Tony Haile: “Chartbeat monitors activity by checking in with users every second and looking for signals (mouse movement, key strokes, etc) that show they are actively consuming the content in front of them. This means they can measure how long readers spend actively engaged on a page and what parts they’re reading. Because of this Chartbeat knows how long are actively reading while an ad is in view — both for an…

• Apologies

  Jeff Jarvis

  5 May 2013 | 9:52 am

  Howard Kurtz screwed up, yes, but he also just showed an admirable example of accountability in apologizing on his CNN show Reliable Sources — saying that as a media critic he should be held to a higher standard of media trust — and then submitting to grilling by David Folkenflik of NPR and Dylan Byers of Politico. The video is here. Our first mistake in journalism is to pretend that we don’t make mistakes. That hubris has gone before many a fall. Now, of course, our imperfection is no excuse, no cover to make mistakes. But knowing they will be made, the real question is…

• Advice

  Jeff Jarvis

  3 May 2013 | 5:09 am

  I didn’t know until this week’s Howard Kurtz kerfuffles that I was even listed as a member of the advisory board to his Daily Download. I did indeed give some advice to Kurtz and Lauren Ashburn a few years ago, before the site’s launch, in a half-hour phone call as I headed to JFK one day. I can’t even remember the topic. Since then, I think I was asked one question and emailed an answer. I know nothing more about the site. The same thing happened to me at Patch. Before it launched, I was asked to come in and give some advice. I was offered remuneration to join the…

• And now the news: Here’s what we *don’t* know at this hour…

  Jeff Jarvis

  22 Apr 2013 | 5:48 am

  I often tell my students that where they see a problem, they should find the opportunity. Well, we’ve been told over and over this weekend that we had a big problem with misinformation after the Boston Marathon bombing. Breaking news, haven’t you heard, is broken. So I see an opportunity, a big journalistic opportunity. I also tell my students this: * Journalism should add value to a flow of information that can now occur without media’s mediation — verifying facts, vetting witnesses, debunking rumors, adding context, adding explanation, and most of all asking and…

• A media attack

  Jeff Jarvis

  15 Apr 2013 | 6:35 pm

  The attack on the Boston Marathon was designed to maximize media coverage: a popular event with cameras everywhere and a narrative that will be sure to follow about innocent enjoyment henceforth ruined by danger. For years, we’ve been told to fear this: an attack on a football game or at Disneyland or in a mall, someplace without fear before. Instead, it happened at the marathon. No matter who committed this crime, a precedent is now set for those that unfortunately will follow. Now every time there is a popular event with many cameras that is open — not easily contained like a…

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  Eco-Libris blog

• Eco-Libris is collaborating with Complete Test Preparation to balance out their study guides

  23 May 2013 | 11:21 am

  We're happy to announce on a new collaboration with Complete Test Preparation Inc., a Canadian publisher of test preparation books. We will work with Complete Test Preparation to plant 100 trees for many of the helpful books they publish!  Here are the first four books we'll be working to balance out by planting trees - 100 trees will be planted for each of the following books: Pass the TEAS!    Complete Study Guide including hundreds of pages of Tutorials, Self-Assessments, 2 sets of practice test questions, Complete guide to multiple choice strategy, Complete guide to taking…

• Green book review - The EcoMind: Changing the Way We Think, to Create the World We Want by Frances Moore Lappe

  18 May 2013 | 3:56 am

  It's always a pleasure to have on our weekly green review book series a book of a great environmental thinker, and today we have the honor of reviewing a new book of one of today most thought-provoking leaders of the environmental movement - Frances Moore Lappé. Frances Moore Lappé has written so far 18 books, including the best-seller Diet for a Small Planet. Her latest book which was released last month is: The EcoMind: Changing the Way We Think, to Create the World We Want by Frances Moore Lappe (publisher: Nation Books) What this book is about? In…

• Green book review - The Last Train to Zona Verde: My Ultimate African Safari by Paul Theroux

  10 May 2013 | 12:14 pm

  Africa is dear to our heart, which is why we're so proud to have one of our planting partners  RIPPLE Africa, operating in Malawi, Africa. This is also why we're so happy to review a special book on a special journey in this troubled and beautiful continent. Our book for this week is: The Last Train to Zona Verde: My Ultimate African Safari by Paul Theroux (publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt) What this book is about? Following the success of the acclaimed Ghost Train to the Eastern Star and The Great Railway Bazaar, The Last Train to Zona Verde is an ode…

• Green book review - Vegan Secret Supper: Bold & Elegant Menus from a Rogue Kitchen by Merida Anderson

  2 May 2013 | 3:50 am

  A vegan dining club? Yes, it does really exists and it is run by chef Merida Anderson in Vancouver  Montreal and New York, where she proves that sophisticated dinner parties can be fun, tasty and vegan too! Don't believe it? Have a look at her book "Vegan Secret Supper", which is the green book we review this week! Vegan Secret Supper: Bold & Elegant Menus from a Rogue Kitchen by Merida Anderson (publisher: Arsenal Pulp Press) What this book is about? The art of the convivial, joyful meal shared with friends and family has evolved in recent years. The growing popularity of…

• Sustainable green reading in shcools

  26 Apr 2013 | 3:33 am

  This is a guest post by Joyce Del Rosario. Perhaps some of the best learning children do in school and at home is read books. From children’s stories to text books, kids everywhere gain invaluable knowledge from opening the pages of these crucial learning and development tools.  But for as beneficial as reading is to children, each book that is opened up and used in a classroom and in the home is created using the help of our natural resources.  Students are ripe for learning. From their young age and throughout their teen years, their minds are under development, absorbing every…

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  Intentional Leadership

• 5 Reasons I Switched to Scrivener for All My Writing

  Michael Hyatt

  24 May 2013 | 2:00 am

  As a full-time writer, I take my tools seriously. With a blog, a podcast, speeches, and a new book in the works, I have to maximize my productivity. I have a daily word count goal, and I can’t afford to let the tools get in the way. But, unfortunately, they often do. Until a month ago, I had nearly half a dozen word processors in my active tool kit: I wrote my blog posts in ByWord and then transferred to MarsEdit for tagging and uploading. I wrote the “show prep” for my podcast and my speeches in OmniOutliner. I wrote my e-books and other shorter documents in Pages. I wrote my books in…

• #055: How to Read a Non-Fiction Book [Podcast]

  Michael Hyatt

  22 May 2013 | 2:00 am

  It’s been said “leaders read and readers lead.” If that’s true, then reading is one of the most important things you can do to grow your leadership. But how do you get better at it and retain more of what you read? Photo courtesy of ©iStockphoto.com/Neustockimages Recently, my wife, Gail, and I had dinner with some close, neighborhood friends. As we always do with this group, we soon began discussing books. Click to Listen Podcast: Subscribe in iTunes | Play in browser | Download A few minutes into the discussion, Gail asked, “So how do each of you read a book? What are your…

• Nothing to Writing [Quote]

  Rebecca Livermore

  21 May 2013 | 2:00 am

  There is nothing to writing. All you do is sit down at a typewriter and bleed.” Ernest Hemingway

• What I Learned from a $300,000 Product Launch

  Michael Hyatt

  20 May 2013 | 2:00 am

  We launched Platform University back in January. I wasn’t sure how it would turn out. I didn’t have any experience launching a membership site. If you can’t see this video in your RSS reader or email, then click here. Fortunately, I had some really smart people helping me. As a result, we exceeded my 90-day membership goal by more than three hundred percent—the first week! (Oh me of little faith.) I shared the backstory with our Platform University members earlier this month in our “Backstage Pass” segment. Usually, this is members-only content, but I thought it might be…

• The Easiest Way to Get Started Podcasting

  Michael Hyatt

  18 May 2013 | 10:57 am

  Because of the success of my own podcast, I am often asked, “So how can I get started podcasting?” I have a very short answer to that question. If you can’t see this video in your RSS reader or email, then click here. Listen to my friend, Cliff Ravenscraft, the Podcast Answer Man, and do everything he says to do. This is how I got started. His practical, down-to-earth advice is the primary reason my podcast is consistently in the iTunes top 10 for Business. Cliff has that rare ability to make complex things simple. He breaks podcasting down into its component parts and then walks…

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  Mequoda Daily » Articles

• Is EatingWell’s Subscription Website Teaching Meredith a Lesson?

  Mary Van Doren

  23 May 2013 | 5:00 am

  Subscription website publishing demands an audience and EatingWell demonstrates how to get one to its new owner We talk a lot about the Online Magazine Index – OMI – that’s a fairly accurate measure of a publisher’s Internet savvy. In subscription website publishing, you should easily have more unique visitors to your website than you have print subscribers. If you’re not driving more Internet traffic than you are selling paid subscriptions, something’s desperately wrong with your audience development program. And if you don’t have an audience on the Internet, you’re going to…

• Tablet Study Shows 62% Read Email Daily on Their Tablets

  Amanda MacArthur

  22 May 2013 | 5:00 am

  Tablets begin to replace laptops when it comes to simple tasks like search and email Everybody checks their email daily. I’m one of those millennials who stereotypically uses my phone as an alarm clock and checks my email before I even roll back the blankets and crawl out of bed in the morning. Personally, I find urgent morning emails a great incentive to wake up! But once I’m out of bed in the morning, my phone loses second place to my tablet, an iPad mini. I spend the day with the tablet because it has my morning news (via FlipBoard), my digital dayplanner and editorial…

• Why Millennials Love the Men’s Health Digital Magazine

  Mary Van Doren

  21 May 2013 | 5:00 am

  When it comes to digital magazine publishing, Men’s Health is quite robust This digital product is hot, hot, hot It’s always a good time when a woman gets to read a men’s magazine as part of her job. I swear I was researching whether Men’s Health advertises their digital edition on their website when I got sidetracked by the “100 Hottest Women of All Time” feature – I just had to know what millennials know or care about anyone not currently starring in primetime TV or the latest action movie. (Quite a lot, it turns out: silent star Clara Bow, 1950s glam Hollywood hottie Rita…

• Digital Magazines Dominate by 2020

  Don Nicholas

  20 May 2013 | 5:00 am

  Tablet users will prefer digital to print in the next seven years Did you ever think that consumers would prefer digital magazines over print magazines? We do, and we think it’ll happen within the next seven years. And that judgement isn’t even based on speculation. We just completed our first annual 2013 Mequoda Tablet Study, which revealed that in 2013, 55% of internet users own or have access to a tablet. If growth occurs at the same rapid pace we’ve been witnessing thus far, we predict that market penetration will be at 85% by 2020. And to align those numbers with the…

• Your Subscription Website is Not a Magazine

  Mary Van Doren

  16 May 2013 | 5:00 am

  How every piece of content you’re already producing can be repurposed and cast into different roles As Don likes to say, your magazine is not a website. And your website is not your magazine. In fact, your subscription website isn’t even a website. It’s actually three websites: a portal, a magazine and a store. And the Mequoda Method, which is utilized by successful niche publishers both large and small, calls for deploying a single piece of copy across all three to maximize your unique visitors, subscribers and buyers. Some of you may be familiar with our fun, fictitious publishing…

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  WritersDigest.com

• WD Poetic Form Challenge: Senryu

  Robert Lee Brewer

  23 May 2013 | 11:42 am

  It’s been two months since our last poetic form challenge and the April PAD Challenge is over, so let’s get another one started.This time around, the challenge is to write senryu, which is a variation of the haiku. As with haiku, senryu are most often 3-line poems containing 17 (or fewer) syllables–often in a 5-7-5 pattern. Senryu does not include a cutting or seasonal word, and it’s usually about human issues (not nature, as is the case with haiku).In fact, many people write poems that they call haiku that are really senryu. So in a way, it’s a form of poetry…

• Literary Agent Interview: Linda Epstein of Jennifer De Chiara Literary

  Chuck Sambuchino

  22 May 2013 | 9:05 pm

  “Agent Advice” (this installment featuring agent Linda Epstein of Jennifer De Chiara Literary) is a series of quick interviews with literary agents and script agents who talk with Guide to Literary Agents about their thoughts on writing, publishing, and just about anything else. This series has more than 170 interviews so far with reps from great literary agencies. This collection of interviews is a great place to start if you are just starting your research on literary agents.This installment is with Linda Epstein of the Jennifer DeChiara Literary Agency in NYC. Before joining the…

• Agent Katharine Sands Teaches “From Pitch to Page One: How to Get an Agent from the Get-Go” – New May 23 Webinar With Query Critique

  Chuck Sambuchino

  22 May 2013 | 9:04 pm

  Getting a literary agent is no easy feat. It requires crafting a query and pitch to get their attention — without making any “querial killer” mistakes that will get your submission rejected. Cutting through the slush is hard work. That’s why we’re lucky to have agent Katharine Sands (Sarah Jane Freymann Literary) to teach “From Pitch to Page One: How to Get an Agent from the Get-Go,” a new webinar on Thursday, May 23, 2013. The webinar starts at 1 p.m., EST, and lasts 90 minutes. Katharine is one of the most in-demand agents at writers conferences…

• Your Story 51: Submit Now!

  Tiffany Luckey

  22 May 2013 | 1:51 pm

  Prompt: Write a short story, of 750 words or fewer, that begins with the following line of dialogue: “Heads, we get married; tails, we break up.”Use the submission form below OR email your submission directly to yourstorycontest@fwmedia.com.IMPORTANT: If you experience trouble with the submission form, please email your submission directly to yourstorycontest@fwmedia.com within the body of your email (no attachments please).Unfortunately, we cannot respond to every entry we receive, due to volume. No confirmation emails will be sent out to confirm receipt of submission. But be assured all…

• Wednesday Poetry Prompts: 220

  Robert Lee Brewer

  22 May 2013 | 12:31 pm

  Sorry for the late prompt today. Was finishing up some edits on Writer’s Market all morning.For this week’s prompt, write a late poem. I know, I know–how original! But seriously, write a poem in which someone or something is late. Yeah, there are a LOT of directions to take this prompt, whether you take it there on time or not.Here’s my late poem:“meeting”he slides in under the door and floats silently beneath the conference table and up into his seat (previously empty and making only the slightest squeak) so that no one realizes he was never even…

• 

  FishbowlLA

• Morning Media Newsfeed: Obama ‘Troubled’ By Leak | Four Bidding on Hulu | Martin Joins NYT

  James Crugnale

  23 May 2013 | 10:41 pm

  Click here to receive Mediabistro’s Morning Media Newsfeed via email. Obama: Leak Investigations ‘May Chill Investigative Journalism’ (HuffPost / The Backstory) President Obama said Thursday that he is “troubled by the possibility that leak investigations may chill the investigative journalism that holds government accountable.” In a major speech on national security, Obama said that the “Justice Department’s investigation of national security leaks offers a recent example of the challenges involved in striking the right balance between our security…

• Amy Wallace Revisits Her Iconic Peter Bart Profile

  Richard Horgan

  23 May 2013 | 3:00 pm

  For geeky followers of the Hollywood trades, it doesn’t get much more Memorial fun than this. In Nieman Storyboard’s latest “Annotation Tuesday!”, The Awl’s Elon Green and reporter Amy Wallace line-item annotate her famous September 2001 Los Angeles magazine profile of then-Variety editor Peter Bart. It says something about the wily Hollywood industry skills outlined by Wallace in her cover story that today, improbably, Bart has weathered a storm of change at Variety and cranks out a weekly column alongside three new editors-in-chief. Green asks at one point how…

• Mother Jones Reporter Comes to LA, Assembles AK-47

  Richard Horgan

  23 May 2013 | 7:05 am

  Heading into the holiday weekend, this is a magazine article many will be talking about and numerous sites, like us and the Daily Mail, picking up on. The Mother Jones feature starts out with Bryan Schatz (pictured) taking receipt in the desert near Los Angeles of the parts needed to put together an untraceable AK-47 assault rifle. It then moves on to the fun of a so-called “build party:” Among those ready to get going (none of whom wanted their names used) are a father-son duo getting in some bonding time and a well-bellied sixtysomething with a white Fu Manchu who…

• Hearst Summons Bay Area Reinforcements

  Richard Horgan

  23 May 2013 | 6:40 am

  Kara Swisher got the jump today on a big announcement about the San Francisco Chronicle. In an aggressive move to revive the fortunes of both the paper and website (SFgate.com), the parent company has hired a pair of media execs who will be very familiar to SoCal readers. Demand Media’s Joanne Bradford is the Chronicle‘s new president, while former Los Angeles Times CEO Jeffrey Johnson has been tapped as publisher. From Swisher’s AllThingsD post: While the Chronicle and its website is the largest for local news in the Bay area, it has lagged a lot in aggressively covering…

• San Francisco 49ers Social Media Playbook Includes Profitability

  Richard Horgan

  23 May 2013 | 5:50 am

  On April Fool’s Day 2013, San Francisco 49ers social media manager Scott Kegley decided to have a little fun at the expense of coach Jim Harbaugh. He joke-tweeted that a new clothing line was coming called the Harbaugh Collection. Part of of the gag is that Harbaugh rarely deviates from a sideline uniform of khakis, fleece and black cap. However, per an interview of Kegley by Silicon Valley Business Journal technology reporter Preeti Upadhyaya, that’s when something really funny happened: “People started saying that if the Harbaugh Collection was real, they’d…

• 

  Personanondata

• Pearson Reorganizes their Business Operations: Will Ethridge to Leave

  PersonaNonData

  23 May 2013 | 6:19 am

  Pearson announced a significant change in the way their business is organized and perhaps the most interesting aspect of this reorganization is that the FT Group will be subsumed into their new "Professional" business unit together with English Language learning and their electronic testing business.  The conclusion could be this is a catch-all for units the new executive management no longer has confidence in.  That speculation could be counter minded given the level of acquisitions and investment the company has recently made in language learning and testing.  Time will tell…

• Ingram VitalSource and Blackboard announce Platform and Content Deal

  PersonaNonData

  21 May 2013 | 10:12 am

  Last year Blackboard announced several high profile content deals with publishers however this deal with Ingram Vitalsource could be more significant if it encourages faculty to really engage with content creation and aggregation on the Blackboard site.   Question is: Is this an exclusive deal for Ingram? Ingram and Blackboard announced an integration of the Ingram Vital Source platform onto the Blackboard learning management system. From their press release: Blackboard Inc. and Vital Source Technologies, Inc., an Ingram Content Group company, have launched pilot programs with a…

• MediaWeek (V7, N21) Online College?, Society Publishing, Georgia Tech Online, Copyright Revision + More

  PersonaNonData

  20 May 2013 | 3:47 am

  Nathan Heller in The New Yorker: Is College moving Online? When people refer to “higher education” in this country, they are talking about two systems. One is élite. It’s made up of selective schools that people can apply to—schools like Harvard, and also like U.C. Santa Cruz, Northeastern, Penn State, and Kenyon. All these institutions turn most applicants away, and all pursue a common, if vague, notion of what universities are meant to strive for. When colleges appear in movies, they are verdant, tree-draped quadrangles set amid Georgian or Gothic (or Georgian-Gothic) buildings.

• Flagstaff Arizona 1992

  PersonaNonData

  17 May 2013 | 5:25 pm

  At a sales conference in January 1992 I got to see some of the scenery around Sedona and Flagstaff Arizona.  I've always wanted to go back there.  It's some amazing landscapes.

• Skip Prichard Named to Succeed Jay Jordan at OCLC

  PersonaNonData

  16 May 2013 | 5:27 pm

  From their press release: Mr. Prichard has led multi-national organizations that serve libraries across the full spectrum of library services and content needs. Most recently, he was President and CEO of Ingram Content Group Inc., which provides a broad range of physical and digital services to the book industry. Prior to his service at Ingram, he was President and CEO of ProQuest Information and Learning, a respected global publisher and information provider serving library, education, government and corporate markets with offices around the world. Mr. Prichard will succeed Jay Jordan, who…

• 

  Editors Only

• Ten Tips to Write Better

  29 Apr 2013 | 8:46 pm

  "Sweet tips for creating nonfiction confections." By Peter P. Jacobi Candace Fleming was a faculty colleague at...

• Discharge Summary vs. Tips and Instructions

  29 Apr 2013 | 8:45 pm

  The importance of what it says and how it says it. By Jan V. White First they carved up and rebuilt...

• The Fog Index

  29 Apr 2013 | 8:44 pm

  Assessing the readability of a NYTimes.com excerpt. This month, we calculate the Fog Index in an April 27, 2013, article...

• Magazine Content at the Movies?

  29 Apr 2013 | 8:43 pm

  In the news: Magazine publisher Condé Nast is making a play for the silver screen. Recently, Condé Nast...

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  Password Incorrect Blog

• The Verge comparisons: iPad Mini vs Kindle Fire HD 7″

  24 May 2013 | 12:18 am

  The Verge is an influential technology blog that runs also a very informative, but somehow underestimated, product section. You can find here product news and reviews for most popular electronic devices, including tablets and e-readers. What’s even more useful, these devices can be pulled together into comparisons. You can compare up to six devices at once. When 1st generation Kindle Fire was launched, everybody called it an “iPad killer”, while the comparison between devices with different screen sizes was not making a lot of sense. Now both Apple and Amazon have tablets…

• Tablet and smartphone usage is exploding [infographic]

  23 May 2013 | 11:59 am

  It’s pretty clear that multi-purpose mobile devices, tablets and smartphones, are taking over the world, but what figures stand behind it? Check out this infographic freshly released by Illuminas, a global market research company. The chart is based on recent Illuminas study conducted for the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA). The study explores the multi-device lifestyle and provides insights on how and why consumers are using mobile devices. It’s interesting to see that as much as 61% of tablet owners use their devices to read ebooks, only 5% less than watching videos. It…

• Kindle Fire HD 7″ and 8.9″ International – country list

  23 May 2013 | 10:12 am

  The news hit today that Kindle Fire HD 7″ as well as Kindle Fire HD 8.9″ are available internationally from  Amazon.com site. Even today you can pre-order the tablets, but will have to wait at least three weeks as shipping starts on June 13. The 7-inch Kindle Fire costs from $214, the bigger one is $284 for 16GB version (32GB is $314). What about apps? Good news is that Amazon Appstore for Android already opened for international users. Today’s Free App of the Day is “Fruit Ninja.” Tomorrow you’ll get for free another bestselling app “Cut the Rope:…

• Kindle Fire HD available for pre-order in almost 180 countries, Appstore opened

  23 May 2013 | 2:53 am

  Following international launch of Kindle Paperwhite in January, Amazon has just announced that Kindle Fire HD 7″ and Kindle Fire HD 8.9″ are also available for Amazon.com users living outside US. You can pre-order the tablets today, shipping will begin in three weeks, on June 13. Customers in Ireland and Gibraltar can pre-order Kindle tablets from Kindle Store UK. Kindle Fire HD 7″ costs from £159. The bigger 8.9-inch Fire is from £229. If you live in Austria or Luxembourg you’ll be able (“forced” is a better description) to pre-order the…

• Is the last bastion of the paperback 40,000 feet above?

  22 May 2013 | 1:33 pm

  Stories for Every Journey – book covers by Paul Belford Ad agency Droga5 Sydney won last year Australian airline Qantas account. One of the projects they managed to create is called “Stories for Every Journey”. It’s a collection of novels, in a paperback form, tailored to each flight’s duration, so that passengers will manage to finish them just as their plane lands. The project was prepared in cooperation with publishing house Hachette, to “create a push geared toward Qantas’ most traveled passengers.” Droga5 Sydney Creative Chairman David…

• 

  LISNews:

• Houston’s ‘murderous’ bookstore thriving in an e-book world

  Blake

  24 May 2013 | 7:04 am

  It’s the case of a small neighborhood bookstore that’s thriving in Houston. Yes, people still read books and they’re not just using their Kindles or e-readers to do it. They’re seeking out specific books -- especially those books about murder and mystery. At Murder by the Book in Rice Village, it’s a real “who-done-it.”

• NYC Librarian Uses "Tilda Swinton In A Box" Method To Raise Awareness

  Blake

  24 May 2013 | 7:04 am

  Kristy will be behind the glass tonight, and tomorrow afternoon, and plans to return whenever she is able to. NYC Librarian Uses "Tilda Swinton In A Box" Method To Raise Awareness

• Geek Pride Day Is May 25: Here's How To Celebrate

  Pete

  24 May 2013 | 6:58 am

  Read Write asks, "Ready to embrace another arbitrary holiday - or just looking for an excuse to slack off and eat cake? Who isn’t? This Saturday, May 25, is internationally known as Geek Pride Day." A holiday "that works overtime as a general celebration of all types of geekery." How will you celebrate?

• Author Marilyn Johnson (& a few others) Weigh in on Print v Digital

  birdie

  23 May 2013 | 1:25 pm

  From USA Today: A recent survey found that half of all readers had no interest in buying e-books and that the vast majority of people who buy e-books continue to buy print books as well. Among them are author Marilyn Johnson, who's written books about libraries (This Book Is Overdue) and the art of obituary writing (The Dead Beat). She says that "if you took my (physical) books away, I'd go crazy, but now that I've gotten hooked to readers (first a Kindle and now an iPad), I can't imagine doing without that (digital) library." She finds her e-reader is essential when she's traveling. She even…

• Judge: Unredeemed Borders Gift Cards Are Worthless

  Bibliofuture

  22 May 2013 | 8:01 pm

  If you were hoping to cash in that Borders gift card for the latest Dan Brown novel — or at least hoping to get some cash for it — you're too late. A Manhattan federal judge on Wednesday ruled that the bankrupt and defunct book chain owes nothing to the roughly 17.7 million people who hold $210.5 million in unredeemed gift cards. Full story

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  David Gaughran

• Let’s Get Visible: How To Get Noticed And Sell More Books

  davidgaughran

  12 May 2013 | 4:08 am

  As you might have guessed by the new lick of paint, Let’s Get Visible is out! Grab your copy at: Amazon | Apple | Barnes & Noble | Kobo | Smashwords | $4.99 Here’s the blurb: Take your sales to the next level! The author of the award-winning, bestselling Let’s Get Digital is back with an advanced guide for more experienced self-publishers. There are over 1.5 million books in the Kindle Store, with thousands more added every day. How do you get yours noticed? Visibility isn’t a challenge that can be bested once – it requires continual work. But there…

• The Author Exploitation Business

  davidgaughran

  4 May 2013 | 9:04 am

  Writing is a glamorous occupation – at least from the outside. Popular depictions of our profession tend to leave out all the other stuff that comes with the territory: carpal tunnel syndrome, liver failure, penury, and madness. Okay, okay, I jest. I love being a writer. Sharing stories with the world and getting paid for it is bloody brilliant. It’s a dream job, and like any profession with a horde of neophytes seeking to break in, there are plenty of sharks waiting to chew them to bits. Publishing is a screwed up business. The often labyrinthine path to success makes it much…

• Lazy Literary Agents In Self-Publishing Money Grab via Argo Navis

  davidgaughran

  22 Apr 2013 | 6:19 am

  I was at the London Book Fair last week – and I’ll be blogging about that soon – when the news broke that David Mamet is to self-publish his next book. His reasons? ”Publishing is like Hollywood—nobody ever does the marketing they promise.” While I think it’s great that someone as high-profile as David Mamet is self-publishing, I was very disappointed to find out the way he’s doing it. Self-publishing is big business. By my estimates, self-publishers have captured 25% of the US ebook market. It can be lucrative on the individual author level too,…

• Self-Publishing Grabs Huge Market Share From Traditional Publishers

  davidgaughran

  12 Apr 2013 | 7:53 am

  Barnes & Noble re-launched PubIt! this week as Nook Press, a largely superficial makeover which failed to address some fundamental problems, like restricting access to US self-publishers only, and introduced new howler: updating existing titles causes the loss of all ranking, reviews, and momentum. There were only two noteworthy things, to me, about this launch. First, the PubIt! brand had been closely associated with Barnes & Noble. This re-launch seems like an attempt to tie the Nook Press brand to their subsidiary Nook Media, probably in advance of a sale (Barnes & Noble…

• A List of Things Scott Turow Doesn’t Care About

  davidgaughran

  10 Apr 2013 | 5:05 am

  Scott Turow woke up from his slumber recently to bark nonsense about Amazon’s acquisition of Goodreads on the Authors Guild blog, before being thoroughly eviscerated in the comments. Undeterred, Turow sought out the considerably larger platform of the New York Times’ Op-Ed pages on Monday to decry The Slow Death of the American Writer. On reading the latter, my first thought was: if Scott Turow didn’t spend so much time hating Amazon and pretending self-publishing didn’t exist, maybe he wouldn’t be so depressed. It’s easy to poke fun at Scott Turow’s views. A child could…

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  800 CEO Read

• Hidden in Plain Sight

  Sally

  23 May 2013 | 12:16 pm

  Tweet It must be a lot of pressure to live up to the billing of “James Bond of design research” and the “Indiana Jones of technology for the developing world.” I mean, what do you wear? A tux with a dusty brimmed hat? Action adventure movie references aside, Chipchase takes us on a rollicking global adventure in his new book, Hidden in Plain Sight: How to Create Extraordinary Products for Tomorrow’s Customers, which hit the bookshelves in April. Design research, Chipchase explains in his first chapter, “Crossing State (of Mind) Lines,” concerns itself…

• Ctrl Alt Delete

  Jon

  22 May 2013 | 7:59 am

  TweetThere’s a certain urgency to the new book by Mitch Joel, Ctrl Alt Delete: Reboot Your Business. Reboot Your Life. Your Future Depends On It. Its sentiment has also been expressed by authors such as Gary Vaynerchuk: Business is changing and if you don’t keep up, you’ll be left behind. And that’s putting it nicely. What Joel is saying is that if we don’t change, our companies will go out of business, and we ourselves will become unemployable. Scary stuff, yes, but the good news is the book has the answers to avoid these problems. Both Joel (and authors like…

• KnowledgeBlocks Giveaway: The One Thing

  Sally

  21 May 2013 | 7:25 am

  Tweet If I were to ask my husband to make a “to-do” list of the things he wants to get done over the weekend, the list would top out at around 20 items. On it would be anything from cleaning out the garage and going to the bank…to moving our garden to the east side of the yard and building a new set of stairs. Over the 16 years we’ve been married, I’ve been a witness to his inability to whittle that list down to something manageable many times, and the inevitable result that he gets none of those 20 things done because he is overwhelmed and distracted. He wants…

• Reinventing You

  Michael

  20 May 2013 | 10:39 am

  Tweet“What do people think of you? What do they say when you leave the room?” Maybe you don’t think you have a brand. Hopefully you don’t think that. As Dorie Clark demonstrates in her new book, Reinventing You, taking control of your professional future hinges on your acceptance and understanding of your current brand, and your ability to take control of where that brand is going. OK—we can call it a reputation, if that makes you feel better. As Clark points out early on, we simply can’t afford to disregard the impact that our personal brand has on our success. The idea that you…

• Friday Links

  dylan

  17 May 2013 | 12:38 pm

  TweetFor your weekend perusal, here is another installment of Friday Links ➻ Calvin Ried’s coverage of the BISG’s MIP (The Book Industry Study Group’s Making Information Pay Conference) 2013: A New World of Big Data, Complexity and Collaboration for Publishers Weekly yesterday was a treasure of interesting insights: BISG executive director Len Vlahos gave an overview of “The Digital Consumer” using data from its “Consumer Attitudes Towards E-book Reading Survey,” in particular looking at the behavior of “Power Buyers” or consumers who buy at least one e-book a…

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  Infopreneur Network | Blog Talk Radio Feed

• Creating Creating a Legacy Lifestyle - May 07,2013

  Infopreneur Network

  6 May 2013 | 8:00 pm

  What is your Legacy? Join Antonio L. Crawford in an interview with Entrepreneur and Best Selling co-Author Lane Ethridge. Lane shares his strategy for turning your lifestyle into a winning legacy and 5 things you can do now, to move from survival mode to Thrival mode!Entrepreneur | Business | Purpose | Lane Ethridge | Antonio L Crawford

• Marketing Your Book in the Christian Marketplace - May 26,2011

  Infopreneur Network

  26 May 2011 | 3:00 pm

  Infopreneur Network: Antonio interviews Kevin Wayne Johnson, author of the award winning, Give God the Glory! series. ncwcfr.com; www.writingforthelord.orgWriters Conferences | Book Marketing | National Christian Writers Conference | Publishings | Writing for the Lord Ministries

• Building a Stronger Brand that Stands Out Among Others - Jan 19,2011

  Infopreneur Network

  19 Jan 2011 | 9:00 am

  Infopreneur Network: Antonio interviews branding and designing expert Chris Collins. Listen as Chris shares key branding stratigies and how to avoid Top mistakes experts make in branding their organizations. Business Branding | Brand Image | Brand Strategy | Chris Collins | Antonio L Crawford

• How to Grow Your Startup Business Online Using 5 Easy Steps - Jul 21,2010

  Infopreneur Network

  21 Jul 2010 | 10:00 am

  Infopreneur Network presents 5 Steps to Grow Your Startup Business Online. Our special guest "The WordPress Queen & Dynamic Programmer" Ms. Kim Beasley. Listen and receive tips to help you start your organization the right way. http://yourpassionatebusiness.com Antonio L Crawford | Kim Beasley | wordpress website | Social Media for B2B ecommerce | blogging to drive traffic

• Virtual Summer Business Camp for Business Owners - Jul 02,2010

  Infopreneur Network

  2 Jul 2010 | 11:00 am

  Antonio L. Crawford on the Infopreneur Network: Did you know websites enhanced by social media technology attracts the most customers? Learn how to increase traffic to your business using YouTube, LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter. Listen in as Antonio interviews Kim Beasley, the social media expert, on the Infopreneur Network. Get your Free resource guide. http://websitesocialmediaplan.com/smpAntonio L Crawford | Facebook | YouTube | Social Media | Kim Beasley

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  Folio RSS

• Hanley Wood Acquires Conference and Expo from U.S. Green Building Council

  Bill Mickey

  23 May 2013 | 3:27 pm

   

• I Want Media Panel: Top Trends in Digital Publishing

  mrondon

  23 May 2013 | 1:50 pm

  NEW YORK—From Tumblr to live events, a few of those who are shaping the future of media discussed what they see ahead at a panel discussion Thursday.

• Why Your Brand Should Consider LinkedIn

  traphael

  23 May 2013 | 12:10 pm

  There’s an opportunity for increased brand awareness with this social platform.

• Digital Revenues Rise, Print Continues to Fall for Future plc

  traphael

  23 May 2013 | 11:19 am

  Overall earnings stayed relatively flat in the fiscal first half for Future plc, but the company's sources of income changed considerably.

• No Surprises: ABM BIN Numbers Show Print Declines, Digital Gains

  traphael

  23 May 2013 | 10:50 am

   

• 

  Ashly Lorenzana

• My Four Favorite Marketers From the Warrior Forum

  Ashly Lorenzana

  21 May 2013 | 6:36 am

  If you’ve been reading my blog for a while, you probably know that I sometimes hang out over on the Warrior Forum and that I’ve blogged about it on more than one occasion. While there are definitely mixed opinions out there about the legitimacy of the site and the entire concept it’s built around, I know for a fact that it doesn’t mean there are no legitimate people who you can find there. Maybe I’ve just been lucky or something, but I’ve learned a lot from the Warrior Forum members mentioned below (in no particular order, of course). Paul Coleman Paul is…

• How to Turn Your Life Into a Book

  Ashly Lorenzana

  28 Apr 2013 | 1:41 pm

  If you’ve ever entertained the idea of publishing a book and yet you haven’t done so yet, then you’re making excuses. The good news? Those excuses are no longer valid, thanks to the rise of self-publishing and big players like Amazon who have made it possible for anyone to do this. In the past, you would have had major obstacles keeping your book from being published. While authors were expected to have a finished manuscript when they contacted literary agents, their chances of getting published were still overwhelmingly slim. That meant a lot of work and writing…

• How to Start Making Money Online for Beginners

  Ashly Lorenzana

  26 Apr 2013 | 6:38 pm

  When I first set out to make money online back in 2010 or so, I had no clue where to start. I had zero experience and basically figured shit out as I went, hoping for the best. Along the way, I learned a lot about the different methods of making money online that require no upfront investment. I’ve blogged about many of them to share my experiences with others, so this post is kind of a roundup of all the 100% newbie friendly methods I’ve personally tried in the past.  Paid Surveys Take surveys online for stupidly small amounts of money, usually as low as fifty cents per survey…

• My First Paid Gig Writing a College Essay

  Ashly Lorenzana

  22 Apr 2013 | 8:23 pm

  Okay, so this post might get me some pissed off responses but I’m fine with that. I’m pretty much used to those, so before you go wasting your breath I think it’s only fair that you are made aware of how unheard your voice will be and how little I care. That being said, I was recently asked to help out a friend of a friend from out of state (who shall remain anonymous, of course) by writing a college essay for one of his journalism classes. What was the catch? I was asked if I was willing to do this and how much I would charge at approximately 8:00 p.m. When was the paper…

• Free eBook Marketing Course for Kindle Authors

  Ashly Lorenzana

  10 Apr 2013 | 5:22 pm

  I am totally excited to invite you to my Kindle Authors membership site. Actually, there are two very sweet offers and I want to give you a heads up so you can get the most out of each one. Email Course First, you can find the main site here. I recommend first signing up for the email course, which was written by me for all Kindle authors who are interested in promoting, marketing and selling their eBooks. The email course will help you with all of these things and more. It offers tips on many different forms of promotion, including radio and podcast interviews, social media, content…

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  Random House Publishing Group » Bantam Dell

• Acclaimed YA author Deb Caletti makes her adult fiction debut with HE’S GONE.

  clynch

  2 May 2013 | 7:18 am

  From National Book Award finalist Deb Caletti comes an intensely gripping story about love, loss, marriage, and secrets—perfect for readers of Jodi Picoult, Kristin Hannah, and Anna Quindlen. “One of the best books I’ve read all year.”—Barbara O’Neal, author of The Garden of Happy Endings “What do you think happened to your husband, Mrs. Keller?” The Sunday morning starts like any other, aside from the slight hangover. Dani Keller wakes up on her Seattle houseboat, a headache building behind her eyes from the wine she drank at a party the night before. But on this particular…

• HIS MAJESTY’S HOPE by Susan Elia MacNeal!

  clynch

  2 May 2013 | 7:16 am

  For fans of Jacqueline Winspear, Laurie R. King, and Anne Perry, whip-smart heroine Maggie Hope returns to embark on a clandestine mission behind enemy lines where no one can be trusted, and even the smallest indiscretion can be deadly. World War II has finally come home to Britain, but it takes more than nightly air raids to rattle intrepid spy and expert code breaker Maggie Hope. After serving as a secret agent to protect Princess Elizabeth at Windsor Castle, Maggie is now an elite member of the Special Operations Executive—a black ops organization designed to aid the British effort…

• The book that sparked the international doping controversy: THE SECRET RACE, now in paperback!

  clynch

  2 May 2013 | 7:14 am

  “The holy grail for disillusioned cycling fans . . . The book’s power is in the collective details, all strung together in a story that is told with such clear-eyed conviction that you never doubt its veracity. . . . The Secret Race isn’t just a game changer for the Lance Armstrong myth. It’s the game ender.”—Outside NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • WINNER OF THE WILLIAM HILL SPORTS BOOK OF THE YEAR AWARD The Secret Race is the book that rocked the world of professional cycling—and exposed, at long last, the doping culture surrounding the sport and its most iconic rider, Lance…

• The New York Times bestselling novel: now available in paperback and eBook!

  clynch

  2 May 2013 | 7:12 am

  A reclusive billionaire invites Odd Thomas and his traveling companion Annamarie to his mafinificent West Coast estate, Roseland. Fresh from a harrowing clash with lethal adversaries, they welcome their host’s hospitality. But Odd’s extraordinary eye for the uncanny detects disturbing secrets that could make Roseland more hell than haven. Soon enough the house serves up a taste of its terrors, as Odd begins to unravel the darkest mystery of his curious career. What consequences await those who confront evil at its most profound? Odd only knows. Don’t miss Deeply Odd, the next Odd Thomas…

• Odd Thomas returns in an all new adventure from #1 New York Times bestselling author Dean Koontz!

  clynch

  2 May 2013 | 7:10 am

  Odd Thomas is back! How do you make sure a crime that hasn’t happened yet, never does? That’s the critical question facing Odd Thomas, the young man with a unique ability to commune with restless spirits and help them find justice and peace. But this time, it’s the living who desperately need Odd on their side. Three helpless innocents will be brutally executed unless Odd can intervene in time. Who the potential victims are and where they can be found remain a mystery. The only thing Odd knows for sure is who the killer will be: the homicidal stranger who tried to shoot him dead in a…

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  Book trade news from Book2book

• Breakthrough Breast Cancer Launches New Reading Campaign With Penguin And WH Smith

  24 May 2013 | 12:12 am

• Amazon: Victim Or Aggressor? Issue Will Frame Apple Ebook Trial

  24 May 2013 | 12:01 am

• Granta Rocked By Spate Of High-profile Resignations

  23 May 2013 | 11:56 pm

• Manila Less Than Thrilled At Dan Brown's Inferno

  23 May 2013 | 11:53 pm

• The Book Clubs That Try To Find The Next Bestsellers

  23 May 2013 | 11:48 pm

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  Self-Publishing Tips | How to Publish a Book

• The Surprising Truth Every Published Writer Must Face

  Flora

  13 May 2013 | 4:08 am

  Kindle version puts the 2nd edition in your hands fast Writing is a passion, but publishing is a business. This catches many aspiring authors by surprise. When they discover that writing their manuscript was just the start, many authors resist doing the marketing required and others resent it so much that they neglect it entirely. Disappointing book sales result. Like it or not, writing is a home based business where you must face the same challenges as every other entrepreneur: managing time, avoiding isolation, resisting distractions as well as organizing and balancing work with family and…

• How to Conquer Your Fear of Screwing Up the Book You Want to Write, Part 2

  Flora

  7 Apr 2013 | 11:37 pm

  (This is the second in a series. Check out Part 1 here.) So, let me guess. You’re reading this because you want to write your book, but you are paralyzed with the fear that you’ll screw it up. As one radio psychologist often said to her callers, “Somebody has to tell you and it might as well be me.” YOU WILL SCREW UP YOUR BOOK. . . . the first draft of your book, that is. Come on. Do you really think Stephen King rolls out a compelling novel from beginning to end in one fell swoop? Every word in place, every scene painted in vivid colors? Grow up! Of course not. To…

• How to Conquer Your Fear of Screwing Up the Book You Want to Write, Part I

  Flora

  14 Mar 2013 | 3:57 pm

  When you start to write your book, you will feel some fear. Guaranteed. We all do. It goes with the writing process. You worry about adding to the trite prose that already clutters the market, and becoming the victim of searing criticism in the process. All this worry paralyzes you, rendering you too scared to get started or get past the inevitable writer’s block. You may even engage in the fruitless task of editing as you write. This is like running on a treadmill. You’re burning energy but not really going anywhere. We will cover some of the ways to conquer this fear in this…

• The New Print on Demand: Want a Book with that Coffee?

  Flora

  13 Feb 2013 | 2:23 am

  Print on demand ushered in an era of speed and changed our expectations forever. You can upload a manuscript and book cover to a publisher’s or printer’s website and within days get the print copy. The Espresso Book Machine has stepped it up to another level. Now you can get a full book printed while you wait, before you finish your latte. It’s the only digital-to-print-to-retail process available so far. Major publishers and printers are already using this machine to service their clients, but now you can print your own self-published book and take out another middleman.

• Have You Been Fooled by These Most Misunderstood Words in English?

  Flora

  29 Jan 2013 | 4:21 pm

    Enjoy this infographic from Grammar Net. Then confess in the Comments which of these commonly misunderstood words have fooled you.   [Infographic provided by Grammar.net]

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  Writer Beware

• An Honor For Writer Beware Co-Founder and Chair, Ann C. Crispin

  24 May 2013 | 8:41 am

  Posted by Victoria Strauss for Writer Beware I'm thrilled and extremely proud to announce that my friend and colleague, Writer Beware co-founder and Chair Ann C. Crispin, has been named the 2013 Grandmaster by the International Association of Media Tie-In Writers (IAMTW). The official announcement is here. This annual honor, the highest awarded by the IAMTW, is given only to the most accomplished and successful authors in the field (previous Grandmasters include Kevin J. Anderson, Peter David, and Keith DeCandido). Ann's outstanding media tie-in achievements include best-selling novels in…

• Outrageous French Copyright Grab: ReLIRE Goes Live

  16 May 2013 | 7:37 am

  Posted by Victoria Strauss for Writer Beware Just over a year ago, I wrote about a new French law that, under the guise of dealing with the pressing issue of orphan works, implements a truly massive rights transfer. The law empowers the Bibliothèque Nationale de France to create an online database of works published in France before 2001 that are currently out of print (this includes not just works by French writers, but foreign works translated into French). Once a work has been listed in the database for more than six months, the right to digitize it transfers to a collective management…

• Class Action Lawsuit Filed Against Author Solutions Inc.

  1 May 2013 | 8:56 am

  Posted by Victoria Strauss for Writer Beware In March, I wrote about New York law firm Giskan Solotaroff Anderson & Stewart LLP, which had opened an investigation of Author Solutions Inc. (ASI). Well, now the other shoe has dropped. On April 26, Giskan Solotaroff filed a class action complaint on behalf of three plaintiffs against Author Solutions Inc. and Penguin Group USA (ASI is part of Penguin) in US District Court for the Southern District of New York. Allegations include breach of contract, unjust enrichment, various violations of the California Business and Professional Code, and…

• ASJA Annual Conference 2013, Plus Tidbits

  29 Apr 2013 | 9:57 am

  Posted by Victoria Strauss for Writer Beware I was in New York this past weekend for the 2013 ASJA Annual Writers Conference. I participated in two panels with Writer Beware-er Richard White: a Writer Beware panel (of course) on schemes, scams, and pitfalls in the publishing industry; and a panel on breaking into science fiction and fantasy publishing. We had a good and engaged crowd for the Writer Beware panel. Rich and I presented on Writer Beware, what it is and does, and the kinds of schemes and scams we track and warn about. The Authors Guild's Jan Constantine spoke about poor contract…

• Tidbits

  19 Apr 2013 | 7:35 am

  Posted by Victoria Strauss for Writer Beware It's spring! Here in chilly New England, climate change seems to be taking a break, and it felt as if the warm weather would never arrive. But daffodils and primroses are blooming in my garden, and it's almost--almost!--mild enough to sit outside. My family emergency situation is still ongoing, and my book deadline is only three months away--so it'll be a while before I can return to a normal schedule. However, I'm still following the news (and answering email), so I can at least share with you the publishing stories that caught my eye over the…

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  Dear Author

• REVIEW: CADE: A MacKenzie by Liliana Hart

  Jane

  24 May 2013 | 6:00 am

  Dear Ms. Hart: I have to start out by saying that those abs look faker than a Louis Vuitton knock off sold on Canal Street. Ahem. Cade is one of the MacKenzie brothers and I think I bought it because it was on sale. From the website, it appears that Cade is the last of the brothers’ books to be written although I wasn’t clear where he fell genealogically speaking, other than the middle. Cade has a troubled past. As a Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) agent, he went undercover to infiltrate a drug lord, fell in love with the daughter, and then lost her in a violent attack. He was saved…

• Daily Deals: Freebies and Nathan Fillion (ha, have your attention don’t I?)

  Jane

  23 May 2013 | 12:00 pm

  Devil in Texas by Calista Fox. $ Free From the Jacket Copy: New Yorker Liza is in desperate need of a fresh start—and libido CPR wouldn’t hurt either. Taking Fate into her own hands, she relocates to Wilder, Texas, on a whim. Her first night in town, she meets a devil in blue jeans named Jack. A sinner who willingly hands over a ticket for the most erotic ride of her life.Jack doesn’t date Wilder women and he certainly doesn’t need another complication in his life. He’s running for City Council and trying to keep the morality crusaders in town from shutting down the last-standing…

• REVIEW: The Coincidence of Callie and Kayden by Jessica Sorenson

  Jane

  23 May 2013 | 10:00 am

  Dear Ms. Sorenson: They first introduction to work with the self published title, “The Secret of Ella and Micha.”  I found the writing to be a little problematic and thus I didn’t pick up The Coincidence of Callie and Kayden when it was released or when it was purchased by Grand Central for republication. However, Mandi from Smexybooks began reading New Adult and fell in love with this book.  Because of her endorsement, I requested this title from NetGalley. Callie and Kayden are two high school students who are on the precipice of graduation and none too soon. Kayden with…

• Giveaway for Bella Andre’s Look of Love

  Jane

  23 May 2013 | 8:00 am

  Back when January reviewed for us, she really enjoyed the Bella Andre Sullivan family series.  Andre was one of the first self publishing successes.  She went on to sell the print rights to Harlequin and Harlequin is working hard to get the paper copy into readers’ hands. They are sponsoring a fun giveaway. Summertime is right around the corner and we are so excited to soak up some sun, especially because Summer 2013 is the Bella Andre Summer of Love! Help us celebrate this spectacular summer of hot reads and the release of the first three books in Bella Andre’s sizzling Sullivans…

• REVIEW: It Had to Be You by Jill Shalvis

  Dabney

  23 May 2013 | 6:00 am

  Dear Ms. Shalvis: I suspect you could write your Lucky Harbor books in your sleep. That is as much a testament to their sameness as it is to your skill. Every book in the series–with the exception of the second, The Sweetest Thing–features a young woman either facing a problem or needing to reboot her life, a super-hot guy who struggles to with the marriage and babies are your future thing, good female friends who constantly tell the heroine how great she is, paeans to the beauty of the Northwest Coast, feisty old people, and well-written sexy love scenes. I’ve read all…

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  TNBBC's The Next Best Book Blog

• Where Writers Write: Kevin Haworth

  22 May 2013 | 5:00 am

  Welcome to another installment of TNBBC's Where Writers Write! Where Writers Write is a weekly series that will feature a different author every Wednesday as they showcase their writing spaces using short form essay, photos, and/or video. As a lover of books and all of the hard work that goes into creating them, I thought it would be fun to see where the authors roll up their sleeves and make the magic happen.  This Where Writers Write is part of CCLaP's Famous Drownings in Literary History blog tour. Check it out: This is Kevin Haworth.  Kevin's first novel, The Discontinuity…

• Where Writers Write: Eric Hudspeth

  22 May 2013 | 2:00 am

  Welcome to another installment of TNBBC's Where Writers Write! Where Writers Write is a weekly series that will feature a different author every Wednesday as they showcase their writing spaces using short form essay, photos, and/or video. As a lover of books and all of the hard work that goes into creating them, I thought it would be fun to see where the authors roll up their sleeves and make the magic happen.  This particular Where Writers Write is part of the Quirk Books blog tour to celebrate Eric's new novel/art book The Resurrectionist! Check it out: This is Eric…

• The Indie Ink Runs Deep: Christy Fearn

  21 May 2013 | 2:00 am

  I'd been tossing around the idea of blogging a tattoo series for nearly a year. I know there are websites and books out there that have been-there-done-that already, but I hadn't seen one with a specific focus on the authors and publishers of the small press community.  After hoarding the photos and essays I've been collecting from these guys since July of 2012, and with the promise of spring peeking its deliciously sunny head out through all of this winter gloom, I decided there was no better time than now to finally unveil THE INDIE INK RUNS DEEP mini-series! Today's indie ink comes…

• The Audio Series: Alina Simone

  20 May 2013 | 2:56 am

  Our new audio series "The Authors Read. We Listen." is an incredibly special one for us. Hatched in a NYC club during BEA week, this feature requires more work of the author than any of the ones that have come before. And that makes it all the more sweeter when you see, or rather, hear them read excerpts from their own novels, in their own voices, the way their stories were meant to be heard.Today, Alina Simone reads an excerpt from her upcoming novel Note to Self, which releases June 4th. Alina is a critically acclaimed singer who was born in Kharkov, Ukraine, and…

• Indie Spotlight: Chris Dietzel

  18 May 2013 | 4:54 pm

  How hard can gaining an audience for your book really be? Surely, the biggest battle is getting it signed by a publisher, right? Well, as a long-time blogger and newbie to the marketing and publicity side of  publishing, I'm here to tell you that, as an author - whether you self published or were picked up by a small press - the hard work is only just beginning... And Chris Dietzel, author of The Man Who Watched the World End, agrees with me. Heck, this former MMA cage fighter has a pretty cool analogy about fighting vs writing for you to sink your teeth and fists into.... Check it out:…

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  AuthorCulture

• Letting Your Characters Lead

  Sophie Dawson

  24 May 2013 | 1:00 am

  I've just finished two novels and am writing this to delay starting the editing process. I'm still a relatively new author and have discovered letting your characters lead helps me avoid the dreaded writer's block.Each of the novels I've written has started out with me pretty much knowing where the plot is headed. So I think. I'm a sort of half plotter - half panster. I'm becoming more of a plotter by outlining the events I want in the book. I'm a panster by taking an idea that comes along in the middle of my writing and going with it. The combination seems to work for me.I've found that I…

• 22 May 2013 | 2:00 am

  Donn Taylor

  22 May 2013 | 2:00 am

  The Magic of Transitional Words and PhrasesbyDonn Taylor             Long, long ago and in a universe that no longer exists, my high school basketball coach taught me a simple offensive technique that paid off handsomely on the ball court. It was truly simple: just lean and look one way while placing the opposite foot outside and somewhat behind the defender’s foot. That put the defender at a disadvantage when I pivoted past him on that pre-positioned foot. This is not to say that I was ever a particularly good basketball player. Nor…

• James Patrick Riley — Becoming a Scriptwriter

  Elaine Marie Cooper

  19 May 2013 | 10:30 pm

  James Patrick Riley as Silas Rhodes in "Courage, New Hampshire"The blast of a shotgun that fired too close to his ear did its damage and, for a time, writer/creator/producer James Patrick Riley could barely hear.Nearing the end of the first episode of the mini series “Courage, New Hampshire,” a critical scene was still being filmed. But the hearing loss incurred from that blast left Riley unable to adequately hear the final words between the series lovers.“I had to ask Drew Ganyer (Director of Photography) if it went well and he assured me it did.”But it wasn’t until he could…

• Friday Book Review, Halftime

  ................................ Kevin Parsons

  17 May 2013 | 9:30 am

  Halftime, by Bob P. Buford“The real test of a man is not when he plays the role that he wants for himself, but when he plays the role destiny has for him."~Vaclav HavelWhat if the second half of your life could be more effective and successful than the first? Bob Buford explores how we can assess, regroup and direct our lives from success to significance. No matter our financial condition or cultural stature, we can possibly become more of what God intended us to be in the second half of our life than the first.Halftime is that period just like during a sporting event where we can stop,…

• Indie Pub Part 4

  Michael J. Scott

  15 May 2013 | 12:49 am

  We're continuing in our look at Independent Publishing. So far we've covered the changes in the publishing world, how to format your book for print and for e-publishing, and how to make an eye-catching cover. Today we're going to look at where to sell what you write. Where to Sell What You Write If you were publishing through the traditional, legacy publishers, this would be less of an issue. The advantage that the legacy publishers have typically had over the independent author is the issue of distribution and marketing. That being said, many legacy and boutique publishers, facing rising…

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  Wordplay: Helping Writers Become Authors

• 3 Ways to Add Repetition That Pleases Readers

  24 May 2013 | 5:00 am

  This guest post is by Elizabeth S. Craig. We all know to avoid “bad” repetition—our overused pet words, unintended echoing phrases, and repetitive sentence structure. But there’s also useful repetition that we can use to enhance our stories. Repetition can be used to reinforce a sense of unity or to supply readers with a satisfying feeling after tying up loose ends. Lets look at three examples of useful repetition. 1. Having the closing image mirror the book’s opening image. This is a literary bookend technique, frequently used by scriptwriters. Writers can repeat elements from the…

• Are Your Multiple POVs Killing Your Story’s Suspense?

  22 May 2013 | 5:00 am

  This week’s video cautions against sharing too much information with readers at the expense of their investment in the protagonist. Video Transcript: A trend I’ve noticed among writers—myself included—is that we tend to love writing multiple POVs. We have all these characters that we just adore, and we want the opportunity to explore the mindsets and the activities of as many of them as possible. But something rather interesting that I discovered during one of my Writing Questions of the Day on Twitter (#WQOTD) is that readers actually prefer a minimalistic approach to POVs. This is…

• 5 Reasons You Should Stop Writing

  19 May 2013 | 5:00 am

  Sometimes the best thing a writer can do is not write. There are going to be times when our brains are fried, our imaginations are dried up, and our lives are demanding we put non-writing priorities first. In these situations, is it ever acceptable to just surrender and throw down the pen for a while? My answer is absolutely. In fact, sometimes it’s wise to deliberately plan to stop writing. Let’s consider a few instances in which not writing is not only acceptable but important. 1. To let a story breathe By the time we finish writing a novel, our objectivity will have packed its…

• A Powerful Storytelling Tool: Getting Readers to Fill In Your Character’s Blanks

  17 May 2013 | 5:00 am

  This post is by Roz Morris. You know that moment when you’re reading a story and you know what a character is thinking? You’re so in touch with him that you feel it yourself? Wonderful, isn’t it? But this has to be handled with care. There are times when readers are eager to fill the blanks; just as many times, though, they are not. If you can work out when they will and when they won’t, you have a powerful writing tool. Two instances in which readers wont know what your character is thinking  1. Establishing characters When writers introduce a protagonist, they often want to get…

• Are Your Bad Guys Dying in the Right Order?

  15 May 2013 | 5:00 am

  This week’s video talks about the proper sequencing for the defeat of your antagonists in your story’s climax. Video Transcript: When it comes to the climax, we’re always intent on giving readers the biggest bang for their buck, and that would seem to mean always saving the biggest explosion for last. But there’s actually another consideration to keep in mind when ordering the events of your climax. Now, before I get any farther, let me just stop to clarify that when I talk about climactic explosions or killing bad guys, I’m just applying these terms generally to antagonists. There…

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  30 Day Books

• Lessons learned from a magazine launch – use them in your book promotions

  LPepWu

  9 May 2013 | 10:43 am

  I haven’t been blogging much about book marketing recently, mostly because my head has been consumed with the launch of The Write Life Magazine. Here’s a few updates from our launch this week, which surprisingly enough does have a lot of book marketing and promotional lessons in there. I hope you can use them! 1. Monday – Wake up early and see the magazineRead more »

• Craziness update + where I’ve been hanging out this week

  LPepWu

  3 May 2013 | 3:26 pm

  With 3 days to go until the launch of The Write Life Magazine, things have been jam-packed in our little world this week! Here’s a quick peek into what we’ve been up to: - On Tuesday, my article was published on Forbes.com. Total dream come true! You can check out the article ‘Why Every Entrepreneur Should Have a Daily Writing Practice’ here. - OnRead more »

• Ideal Reader Exercises and why you should do one (A New FREE Resource)

  LPepWu

  18 Apr 2013 | 10:39 am

  I’ve been working on the marketing plan for The Write Life Magazine, and just like when I start any campaign, the very first step for me is to complete an ideal reader exercise.   Why? Because writing for one person – and one person only – means that all of your marketing efforts will be much more compelling and engaging. You’ll be connecting withRead more »

• Why I’m Totally Okay with Giving My Book Away Free

  LPepWu

  15 Apr 2013 | 2:12 am

  Today’s guest post comes from the lovely Dana Sitar of DIY Writing. Dana recently moved to Seattle, and so we met for coffee a few weeks back at my favorite neighborhood writing spot. Now she’s contributing to the first issue of The Write Life Magazine and guest posting here. I don’t remember how we connected in the first place, but I’m guessing it wasRead more »

• Six Powerful Ways to Market Children’s Books

  LPepWu

  10 Apr 2013 | 6:03 am

  Today’s guest post is a great one, and courtesy of Gail and Penny from To Press & Beyond - a full-service book shepherding company that specializes in children’s and juvenile titles. I invited them onto the blog to give us some actionable tips on how to market a children’s book. And boy did they deliver! I think you’ll love these 6 powerful ways to spread theRead more »