Category: Guest Posts

Sound Advice to Writers from Inknbeans Press

Making the Word Count – by Jo, the Boss Bean

Artist's conception of Jo reviewing manuscript

As long as there has been human history, there have been writers. They are our archivists and our entertainers. They began with charred sticks on the walls of caves and today they’re using pixels and the walls of Facebook to record their ideas, their observations, and their imaginations.

Of course, right behind our first writer and his burning sticks came someone to correct him, monitor him, establish his legal right to write upon that wall, and claim a portion of his profits – probably communicated with a club. And ever since, the publishers and editors have been clubbing writers over the head with rejection letters, requirements, rewrites, restrictive contracts and royalties. Continue reading “Sound Advice to Writers from Inknbeans Press”

Getting Romance Right: by Special Guest, Author Victoria Howard

Author Victoria Howard

The term ‘romance’ encompasses nearly every existing novel genre and writing romance has long been known as the best place for aspiring writers to enter the writing field. Today’s readers don’t just want boy meets girl romances. They want to read a novel where the author skillfully weaves the love story between the protagonists with conflicts, misunderstandings, and obstacles. A story which will keep them glued to the page, desperate to know how the heroine will solve her problem and finally have a meaningful relationship with the hero. Continue reading “Getting Romance Right: by Special Guest, Author Victoria Howard”

Quality is Job #1 for Indies by Special Guest, Author Terra Harmony

Author Terra Harmony

With the surge in self-publishing over the past couple years, aided and abetted by e-readers, the industry has shifted considerably. The “middle-man,” or at least one of them, has been judiciously removed from the buying chain. Within the entertainment world it is now a phenomenon, not just a trend. It happened with iTunes® in the music industry  and with Netflix®  in the movie industry.  It was just a matter of time before it happened with books.

But with publishing now available to virtually anyone with a computer, has the quality of what we find out there been downgraded? Any book review blogger will say yes. Most Kindle and Nook owners would probably say yes. Continue reading “Quality is Job #1 for Indies by Special Guest, Author Terra Harmony”

My Strange New World by Special Guest, Author K.S. Brooks

Author K.S. Brooks

It is a strange new world. Self-published authors are ganging up on me, even picking on me because I’m with a publisher. It’s a small, independent publisher, one which actually cares about its authors. But still — if you knew where I came from, you’d know why this leaves me feeling like someone tasered me and left me in an alley.

I started writing Lust for Danger in 1986. I tried for years to get it published, following the traditional route – as that was all there was at the time (vanity publishing was never a consideration). I received plenty of rejection letters that were kind and regretful, stating that they couldn’t take a chance on me because I was a first-time author. Some of these letters were so good that I saved them so I could quote them once the book would finally be published – some day, some how. “Lively and entertaining,” “fine and creative storyteller,” “I liked the pace of the story and the strong female heroine,” and “great plot, well written” were just some of the comments made to me while being told “no thank you.” That was what kept me going. Continue reading “My Strange New World by Special Guest, Author K.S. Brooks”