“I can’t afford to hire a professional editor,” you say. But you can’t afford not to hire one. The quality—or lack thereof—of your story directly impacts your ability to land a traditional publishing contract. If you publish indie, it impacts your sales. And who doesn’t want lots of sales? I don’t say this just because…
Lately, I’ve been reading Tim Grahl’s Book Launch Blueprint: The Step-by-Step Guide to Launching a Bestseller. Making a bestseller list woos authors like the cry of the mythical Siren. It carries status and puts oomph behind the sales of future books. But do you have a true understanding of what it takes to make those…
Today, I welcome back author Marie Wells Coutu. My first interview with Marie was shortly after her debut novel, For Such a Time, which won the Books of Hope contest. Thirsting for More, the second book in her Mended Vessels series was a finalist in the 2016 Selah Awards Contest and a semi-finalist in the…
When I went to high school, teachers taught us to underline book titles. With the advent of all things digital, that changed. In fact a lot got changed. What I’m talking about is the stylized treatment of text. In the world of publishing, there are two style books that pull most of the weight. In…
Today’s my birthday, so I decided to take the day off and have my friend Donna Wittlif guest post. I first met Donna through an online group I belong to and then had the opportunity to edit one of her books—fascinating sci-fi. She is a retired special education and English teacher who loves writing. Her…
I don’t know about you, but during the long dark days of winter, I can get a bit down and unmotivated. Doctors call it seasonal affective disorder (SAD). I counter this gloominess with white Christmas lights in my bedroom that come on at 5 a.m. to simulate sunrise. I also take extra B complex during…
I’m happy to have novelist Elaine Marie Cooper joining us today. She’s not only an award-winning author, but she also consistently publishes with two different publishers. That gives her a unique perspective on the publishing world, so I’m excited to have her share her experiences here. Elaine describes herself as a history geek. Her bookshelves…
Punctuation. I can visualize readers cringing as they read that word. “I don’t understand all those rules and I don’t want to.” “Let editors worry about the correct punctuation.” “I just want to write, not worry about where to put a comma.” Do you see yourself in the above sentences?