Celebrating Independent Authors
I have it. I hear that you have it. In fact, the buzz is that it’s pretty all writers have it. It’s the beast, that saps your inspiration, pulls the rug out from under you, makes you want to go hide somewhere in a dark hole, tells you no one would ever want to read anything you write. You know the one I mean – self-doubt. There, it’s out. Continue reading “Good Enough?”
This past Tuesday night, I had the pleasure of attending a book signing by one of my favorite authors, Randy Wayne White. Known for his “Doc Ford” novels (over twenty and counting), he has been writing for over thirty years.
What made this event possible is an Independent bookstore, Books and Books, just two or so blocks from a Barnes and Noble. Randy started his talk by remembering the beginning of his career. He had just published his first novel and the publisher had set up a book signing at a bookstore in Ft. Myers, FL. The bookstore had stocked SIX books for the signing. Continue reading “Getting Started in this Business”
One of my favorite fantasy authors, Brandson Sanderson, once imparted some wonderful advice for writers. Just five simple words. Five words that could possibly be the best writing advice I have ever heard: “Don’t be afraid to suck.”
When I write, I sometimes find myself wondering, “What will readers think about this? What will they say?” Before I know it, I am questioning every word, every sentence, and every paragraph that emerges on the screen before me.
Doubt worms its ugly presence into my brain like a bad pop song with crippling intensity, turning my productivity dial to 0. I realize that I am afraid to suck. Continue reading “Conquering Self-Doubt (Don’t be Afraid to Suck)”
This is the second of two posts in response to the topic raised by Melody Stiles for discussion here at Indies Unlimited, to wit:
“Why is there still such a stigma, even among writers, about self-publishing?”
Last week I opined about the manner in which the self/vanity publishing scams of olden tymes (a few years ago) have left a legacy of sleaziness that is still applied today to “Indie” publishing, even by some writers. Continue reading “You Asked For It: Melody Stiles (part 2)”