Self-Publishing Questions and Answers, Round Two

self publishing question-1500086_960_720I wrote a post back in March answering some of the questions I most often see asked in writing groups and discussion forums. It seemed to be helpful, so after coming across more questions with iffy answers, I thought I should go for round two.

The first question is one I actually addressed in a post about book formatting back in May of 2016, but I’ve seen it asked so much lately, I thought it couldn’t hurt to repeat it.

Q.  No matter how many times I accept track changes in Word (or remove my header/footer), everything is still there when I upload to KDP. Do I have to retype the whole thing? Continue reading “Self-Publishing Questions and Answers, Round Two”

Style Guides: Which Ones, Why Bother?

Chicago Manual of Style Ornament
Yes, grammar fiends, you can make your own Chicago Manual of Style holiday ornament. Click on the photo and scroll down to the bottom of the page.

If you’re a writer, you might have heard the names of different style guides bandied about. Or maybe you’ve wondered if “Chicago Style” is what the well-dressed gentlemen of the Windy City are wearing this season. As an indie author, you might mutter about why these rules are being foisted upon us, because if you wanted rules, you would polish up some query letters and try to snag an agent and a big publisher. Turns out a decent style guide can be a big help for all writers who want to share their work with readers. Continue reading “Style Guides: Which Ones, Why Bother?”

Best Resources For Fiction Writers

Search the Internet, and you’ll find hundreds of books and websites about how to write and sell fiction. I’ve scanned many over the years, but there are very few I go back to again and again. Here’s a cross section of what I’ve found to be among the best. As usual, your actual experience may vary.

1. The Art of Fiction by John Gardner
Meant for beginning writers, The Art of Fiction contains insights even experienced authors may find helpful. Among other valuable tidbits, Gardner offers good insight into plot structure and fictional time versus real time. Although it was written some thirty years ago, the advice is still current.
Continue reading “Best Resources For Fiction Writers”