In conversation. GH = Grasshopper VA = Veteran Author GH: Soooooo, I hear Bookbub is all the rage, but is that site even open to us indies, because I submitted my book once, and they didn’t want it. VA: *loud belly laugh* You submitted ONCE? Mwahahahahahahaha!!! GH: But they didn’t…
In my last post I spoke about how I spend about $1500 average on each book. That includes editing, proofreading and formatting and the cover. Sometimes it’s more, sometimes less. The biggest variable is the cover. Some covers I can make, others I leave to someone else. I find it…
I came across this post in my Twitter feed. TL;DR: an author lamenting how much it costs to produce a book, and how little she has sold. The expenses side in her post looks fine. I tend to budget about A$1500 per book for editing, cover design and formatting. I…
General warning: as soon as you decide to self-publish, a certain section of the population decides that you are a cow to be milked. Some will be blatant about it by sending you emails soliciting your business. Usually, it’s to buy into some form of marketing. Mostly, you’ll be marketed…
Listened to the Marketing SFF people’s podcast with Elle Casey this morning. I love Elle and the nice, unassuming way she treats her career and the success she has had. She said a lot of things that I agree with. But she went on a little bit of a crusade…
This advice is often phrased as “mistakes made by new writers”. I don’t like the word “mistakes” and I like to express thoughts in positive advice that people can do something with. So what is the most important thing writers should be doing? WRITE Well, duh, I can hear you…
Listening to another podcast by Joanna Penn this morning. I found this one particularly inspiring. Both Joanna and Michaelbrent Collings, who was interviewed in the podcast, appear to have the attitude towards writing and publishing that I happen to share: When you write a book, this adds to an inventory….
This morning I was listening to the Creative Penn podcast in which Joanna talks to Mark Levefre, the director of Kobo Writing Life. Kobo has a special place for me, because it was the first platform where I started selling more than coffee money. That was pure luck, but lately…
Starting as a writer can be very bewildering, and books, blogs, workshops and classes are full of advice. It can be really hard to figure out what is important. Here are some things I wished someone had told me in 2005. 1. DO finish your story. If you have no…
