Celebrating Independent Authors
The time is once again upon us to begin voting for this week’s Writing Exercise extravaganza. On behalf of the IU staff, I want to thank all the entrants for doing such a great job with the writing prompt and the merciless constraints of the exercise.
Review the entries HERE, and vote for your fave in the poll below. Continue reading “The Polls Are Open: Week #3 Writing Exercise Competition”
Today we get a sneak peek of author TJ Perkins novel Art of the Ninja, Shadow Legacy:
Growing up ninja in a modern world with ancient customs is difficult, but the Japanese government still has need of them. Training in the Chaio village, home of the best ninja, Duncan Kimura dreams of one day being chosen for the elite special forces–the Black Dragon Squad. But his dreams won’t become a reality if he can’t control his destructive rage that threatens everyone around him.
Faced with a foe unlike any other, Duncan must overcome his own fears and the raging anger bursting within him to save the woman he loves from certain death. Follow him through his trials and challenges as he will either lose himself to his rage and become a threat to all he knows and loves, or triumph and become the ninja his people expect of him.
Shadow Legacy is available on Amazon.com in print and for Kindle. Continue reading “TJ Perkins’ Art of the Ninja, Shadow Legacy”
Did you know nearly 3 million books were published in 2010? That’s a lot of noise to get through, especially for indie authors. To get an edge, many hire freelance editors to review and edit their manuscripts. But with individuals and companies offering everything from rewriting to reviewing, how does one choose the right editorial service?
First, identify which service you need.
Book doctoring: With this editing/rewriting hybrid, a pro dives in and “fixes” your manuscript rather than showing you how to fix it, as editors do. This is best for those unable to write a publishable book (for lack of time or skill), and who want to get their book out ASAP.
Developmental/substantive editing: This service examines issues such as plot and character development, use of dialogue and setting, conflict/tension and pace, and audience suitability. You’ll get the big-picture feedback you need to tackle your revisions and enrich your story. [Some consider “substantive editing” the same as “line editing” (see below).] Continue reading “Choosing the Right Editor for You By Ally E. Peltier”
Many authors write in multiple genres. That can pose a problem when trying to address an audience. K. S. Brooks chose to have a montage made for her Amazon.com Author’s page which highlights all her genres and titles. One drawback to going with this method is that if you’re as prolific of an author as she is (generating between 2-4 titles a year), the video can become outdated pretty quickly. So, be especially vigilant for things that might give your video away as dated. Ask yourself a few questions. Does anyone in the video use the terms groovy, totally rad, gnarly, or tubular? Are you wearing a lime-green leisure suit and puka beads in the video? Simple stuff. Get with the program, people!
You can visit K. S. Brooks’ Amazon.com Author Central page here, and find out more about her on her website, on Facebook, and on Twitter. [subscribe2]