Month: July 2017

How Authors Can Be Proactive with Indie Author Day

author hunter gardnerGuest Post
by Hunter Gardner

In March 2014, a dream of mine came true: I became a published author. Bitingduck Press, an independent press outside of Los Angeles, released my young adult novel SCHOOL. and though I had been writing since age sixteen, that was the moment when I felt like I could truly call myself a writer.

While the publisher was very good to me, it became immediately apparent that marketing the book would be primarily my responsibility. There was the Facebook page, of course, and family and friends ready to buy, but with the ever-growing mountain of content constantly piling up in front of the masses, I had no idea how to get my book to stand out.

What I didn’t account for was “on-the-ground” promotion and networking, or working with local libraries. That’s why I wish Indie Author Day had been around in 2014.

Indie Author Day is a great opportunity for authors to bring their ideas to their local libraries and collaborate in a way that builds local community while also putting a spotlight on indie authors and their works. Continue reading “How Authors Can Be Proactive with Indie Author Day”

How to PITCH a Guest Post to a Blog

seattle mariners pitcher COPYRIGHT KS BROOKS all rights reserved 3L0A2946Guest Post
by Ben Steele

So you’ve read through all the advice about how to guest post, you’ve got a lot to write about, and you’ve even researched a little bit of search engine know-how. You’ve learned that you can help the site out by putting relevant keywords in the title of your post and in the subheadings.

You pick your most brilliant idea, and you send it out to the site editor of your favourite blog (only do this one at a time!). But no one is replying to your emails.

It’s probably because you don’t write good emails. Hold on, hold on, I know. You write for a living. You’re an author, a blogger, perhaps an academic or a savvy marketer. You write damn well … But email pitches are a different beast from any of these skills altogether for one, simple reason: Continue reading “How to PITCH a Guest Post to a Blog”

Alyssa Devine Wins Flash Fiction Challenge

Alyssa Devine is the Readers’ Choice in this week’s Indies Unlimited Flash Fiction Challenge. The winning entry is decided by the popular vote and rewarded with a special feature here today. (In the case of a tie, the writer who submitted an entry first is the winner per our rules.)

Without further ado, here’s the winning story:

Continue reading “Alyssa Devine Wins Flash Fiction Challenge”

Flash Fiction Writing Prompt: Shadows

grand canyon flash fiction writing prompt 01172017 copyright ksbrooks
Photo copyright K. S. Brooks. Do not use without attribution.

Use the photograph above as the inspiration for your flash fiction story. Write whatever comes to mind (no sexual, political, or religious stories, jokes, or commentary, please) and after you PROOFREAD it, submit it as your entry in the comments section below. There will be no written prompt.

Welcome to the Indies Unlimited Flash Fiction Challenge. In 250 words or less, write a story incorporating the elements in the picture at left. The 250 word limit will be strictly enforced.

Please keep language and subject matter to a PG-13 level. Continue reading “Flash Fiction Writing Prompt: Shadows”