I heard a rumor that some authors were wondering about the rules regarding quoting reviews of their books. Whether you’re doing this in a tweet, a post on Facebook or your blog, or using the quote as a blurb in an advertisement or on the back cover of a paper book, the same basic rules apply. The considerations fall into two groups: those that are legal issues and those that are more a matter of etiquette. Continue reading “Book Reviews: Can You Quote Me on That?”
Category: Staff Articles
Writing advice and insights from the staff of Indies Unlimited.
Createspace: One Author’s Opinion
Createspace, for the uninitiated, is a paperback creation and distribution platform – currently owned by Amazon. With little understanding, and as cheap as free, you can design and publish paperbacks. By free I mean they will even provide you with ISBN numbers. Which is something, as far as I know, no other company currently does. They do provide a rather basic cover creator if you’re in a pinch, but I’d recommend finding other means for a cover. There are plenty of premade covers out there for cheap. Many of them will come in correct dimensions, including spine depth. This is an important thing to consider when publishing a paperback for the first time, because it’s also the single most difficult part of the process. Continue reading “Createspace: One Author’s Opinion”
Indie Author Newsbreak 8-17-2018
Thank goodness it’s Friday. Of course, you know what this means – it is time once again for your weekly booster shot of news serum! So, roll up those sleeves and hum a happy little tune while we affix this ginormous needle of enlightenment. It’s for your own good and there’s no copay!
Is your writing plagued with bloat? The word doctor is in. This week, grand rounds include a case study on the signs and symptoms of redundancy in writing.
Joanna Penn has a prescription for enriching your writing through travel. She states, “Even a trip to the other side of town can infuse your writing with new and exciting energy.” Not sure about that. For some of us, a trip to the other side of town may involve gun-play.
It can be frustrating to take the pains to set your characters apart in physical description and voice, only to realize you didn’t use a very rich palette in making their mannerisms as distinctive. If you’re up for a little exploratory surgery on that manuscript, here’s a neat post on crafting a body language voice.
Finally, Joel Klettke has some great advice on diagnosing and treating problems in writing. An ounce of prevention, people!
That’s it for this visit. Be sure to stop by desk to schedule your appointment for next week. We may have your test results in by then.
From Bigfoot Erotica to Racist Rantings: When Author Life Affects the Rest of Your Life
Just recently, a big story that ran in national publications (People, Vanity Fair, Rolling Stone) saw Virginia congressional candidate Denver Riggleman accused of authoring Bigfoot erotica. (He was outed by his opponent, aptly named CockBurn). While the details aren’t super important, the story brings to the forefront what can happen when your author life slams into your real life. While the two generally happily coexist, sometimes they bleed into each other in bad ways. Since we’re living in an age of social media, it’s a good time to examine the ways in which your writing life can impact the rest of your life.
It Can Get You Fired Continue reading “From Bigfoot Erotica to Racist Rantings: When Author Life Affects the Rest of Your Life”