The Self-publishing World

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The New International Author Fair

Geri Clouston
  The Business Of Books The first of the International Author Fair series organized by Authoright kicked off in London Friday February 28th. Its mission: to equip authors with the commercial, technical and political knowledge of where things are in the business of books and where they are going. The event is a sure sign that the industry is coming to terms with change and realizes it needs to create some kind of structure amid the new trends led by Amazon and indie publishing. Indeed, according to the panel chaired by the genial Porter Anderson around 75% of books could well be self-published by the year 2020. But this is not 2020 and the real challenge in today's changing world for both for writers and readers, is recognizing and sorting out the junk from the good stuff. There is apparently an awful lot of self-published books that really are not up to standard, consequently much of the discussion was about means of professionalizing indie publishing. I was surprised, though, that nothing was said about book approval platforms such as indieBRAG, which constitute a filter for the reader and a pedestal for the writer who is serious about their work. Workshops,…

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Don’t Quit Your Day Job…Yet!

Geri Clouston
    According to an article by Alison Flood in theguardian (see link below) writing is a very hard way to make a living. She points out that while we often hear about the eight-figure deals that a few fortunate authors (very few) are able to secure, the vast majority of authors, both traditionally and self-published barely scrape by on their earnings. However, her article concludes with a quote by successful indie author Hugh Howey that holds out hope for the future of self-publishing. "...The simple fact is this: getting paid for your writing is not easy. But self-publishing is making it easier. How much easier? We don't have sufficient data to know. But a conservative estimate would be that five to 10 times as many people are paying bills with their craft today as there was just a few years ago. And that should be celebrated." So hang in there and keep writing! Bob The Guardian

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A LAST SHOUT OUT!

Geri Clouston
Saturday, November 9th We're just weeks away from the 2013 Self-Publishing Book Expo and the excitement is contagious! This year we are proud to report that C-Span's Book TV will be attending and filming the event! Some of the amazing incentives offered this year include: • A terrific line-up of 18 workshops, lectures and panels, led by some of the biggest and brightest names in publishing, including: a Keynote speech on how a leading traditional publisher views the rise of self-publishing, panels on crowd-funding and social media, workshops on creating ebooks, uploading and creating image-rich books, how to make money from audiobooks, the importance of good book design, and much, much more. indieBRAG will be presenting - The Good, The Bad and The Ugly of self-publishing Stop by ouR table in the exhibition hall and enter to win a Kindle or Nook! • FREE professional author photos for every attendee. • FREE 15-minute publicity consultations for all ticket holders. • A chance to win an Amazon Kindle Fire HD, an iPad mini and a Nook HD. • A chance to win a publishing package valued at $1,999. The Exhibition room will showcase the many goods and services available to all,…

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The Self-publishing World

The Wild West of Self-Publishing!

Geri Clouston
  I like the phrase used by Husna Haq from the Christian Science Monitor- "The Wild West of Self-Publishing"! As you all know, self-publishing has opened a door to a whole new world for aspiring independent writers, but there is a dark side to this opportunity. Pornographers have slipped through the door and now book sellers are trying to walk the fine line between banning such material outright and selective censorship. One immediate outcome is that this week I tried to send a self-published book to a Kobo reader and found their store shut down. They have removed all self-published titles until they can get a handle on this problem. And apparently Amazon and Barnes and Noble are also reviewing their titles, looking for any offensive material. Of course, there are those who feel we should be able to buy and read what we want; and who balk at such censorship. The enormous success of Fifty Shades of Grey has fueled a firestorm of copycat writers who are trying to out-shock readers and produce the next big money maker. But there is a difference between erotica and pornography; with the former having at least an element of artistry to it,…

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Join us at SPBE in November!

Geri Clouston
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 9TH Come join the fun as we celebrate five successful years as the only exclusive home forself-published books and authors.The Self-Publishing Book Expo is celebrating our 5th Anniversary! This year, in addition to an all-star line-up of some of the most knowledgeable speakers in the business, the Expo will feature some inter-active sessions, and some extended sessions allowing for attendees to have more access to the information they need to successfully publish. We are also introducing a special coffee hour for attendees to mix, mingle, compare notes, and askone-on-one questions of some of our speakers, sponsors, exhibitors and partners. At 12 noon, be sure to join us to discuss- THE GOOD, THE BAD, AND THE UGLY: What Makes a Good Self-Published Book?indieBRAG represents a group of 150 readers who have reviewed 1,000+ self-published titles. They are not editors, publishers, or literary experts; they are simply ordinary people who love to read. Members of the indieBRAG staff will uncover what they have learned in the process of choosing their B.R.A.G. Medallion winners. What does a book need in order to make it worthy of the reading public's time and money? What are the important things to weed out of…

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Top Ten Things A Self-Published Author Hears At A Cocktail Party

Geri Clouston
    10. "You're an author? ... Really!?" 9. "What have you written? ...Never heard of it!" 8. "Who's your publisher? ... Oh. I see." 7. "So what's your book about? ... I never read that stuff." 6. "What else have you written? ...I don't like that either." 5. "How come I haven't seen your books in Barnes and Noble? ... What's an eBook?" 4. "Is there any money in this? ... That much? Wait...that's what you've spent!" 3. "Then how much have you made? ... "You're kidding, right?" 2. "Why're you still doing this? ... Have you ever tried root canals?" 1. "Well, good luck. ... Even a blind squirrel finds a nut once in a while."

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The Self-publishing World

A Theft of Opportunity!

Geri Clouston
  This is a very interesting article on an unknown author making it big but, the real story is the damage to publishing being done by this mega merger between Penguin and Random House. As the New York Times Editorial Board states, the more opportunities to get your book before a publisher and the more diverse the publishing, the better chance an unknown author has of getting his book before the public. They are limiting the competition, lessening the opportunities for authors and robbing the reading public of some really good books! 47 Rejections, Then the Booker Long ListBy THE EDITORIAL BOARDPublished: July 31, 2013 Donal Ryan, a civil servant from Limerick, Ireland, wrote two novels. He sent them to agents and publishers and got back 47 rejections over three years. Finally an intern at Lilliput Press in Dublin fished "The Thing About December" out of the slush pile. Around the same time, an editor at Doubleday Ireland took interest in "The Spinning Heart." Suddenly Mr. Ryan had a two-book deal, and from there his fortunes only improved. The Booker Foundation announced last week that "The Spinning Heart" had made the cut for the Man Booker Prize long list.Such things…

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The Self-publishing World

SELF-PUBLISHING: MAKING LITERATURE BETTER!

Geri Clouston
    "Self-Published Authors Are Destroying Literature" cried one blogger recently. And he is not alone in his thinking: the vast majority in the traditional publishing world agree with him. But while this view is an over-simplification of a complex issue, there is a bedrock of truth beneath this topsoil of hysteria.The literary world is undergoing an upheaval unequalled since the invention of the printing press. For nearly five hundred years following its first appearance in the fifteenth century, only those authors whom the gods of publishing deemed worthy ever saw the fruit of their labors printed, bound and made available to the reading public. And while the appearance of so-called 'vanity presses' in the mid-twentieth century made it possible for others to have their books published, the enormous expense associated with this approach placed it beyond the reach of all but a privileged few. However, the advent of print-on-demand technology in the late 1990's changed everything, and from that point on nothing will ever be the same again in the world of book publishing.The good news is that now literally anyone can publish a book. The bad news is that now literally anyone can publish a book. And the…

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IndieBRAG Virtual Blog tour!

Geri Clouston
    Traveling the country to make appearances and doing book signings is just not economically feasible for most of us today. On top of the cost, most self-published authors aren't able to get into many books stores. A blog tour enables an author to reach out to their fans through a different blogger for a certain number of days. These varied and different bloggers speak with the author and review their books; in some cases they offer book giveaways – all from the comfort of your home and computer! Today we begin our very first indieBRAG Blog Tour. Bloggers will be visiting with Paula Lofting to discuss her book Sons of the Wolf. Each day a different blogger will share their discussion with Paula and their thoughts on her wonderful book (a B.R.A.G.Medallion Honoree!). Without getting out of your PJ's or kicking off your bunny slippers, you can visit with Paula and become a fan, leave your thoughts on the discussion and order a book! How easy and how much fun is that? An author gets the opportunity to meet their fans and gather their thoughts, reaching many more readers than they could by spending thousands of dollars traveling…

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The Self-publishing World

Harlequin Fail

Geri Clouston
Joe Konrath kindly permitted us to share this article with you that he posted on his blog in 2012. It is a great follow up to Bob’s May 28, 2013 post on indieBRAG’s Blog Harlequin Fail This is a guest post by my friend Ann Voss Peterson. But it's more than that. It's a call to arms, a cautionary tale, and a scathing exposé. Don't believe it can be all those things? Read on... Ann: In this world, there are a lot of things I can't afford to do. A trip around the world, for instance, although it would be amazing. Remodeling my kitchen. And until recently, sadly, braces for my son. There's one more thing that I find valuable and enjoyable that I can no longer afford to do, and that is write for Harlequin. I published my first novel with Harlequin's Intrigue line in August of 2000. My twenty-fifth was released in November, 2011. I had a lot of fun writing those books--taut, page-turning, action-packed romantic suspense staring a myriad of different heroes and heroines and a boatload of delicious villains. I had four editors during that time, and all of them were great to work with. The…

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