The Three Rs: Reading, wRiting, and Roaming

I often share writing tips and indie publishing shortcuts in the Writers’ Forum at the end of each month, but today I’m writing an entire article devoted to my favorite products and platforms that make my life easier. These are my secret weapons! (Well – not so secret anymore!) Some of these are free and some are well-worth the money, depending on where you are in your publishing journey/adventure.

I do have an affiliate relationship with a few of these products*, which means that at no cost to you purchases made using some of the links below give me a small fee. But please know that I never recommend products unless I feel they are useful and worthy of the investment, because we all work too dang hard at our writing to eat up our profits with bad products!

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The third installment of the Champion Chocolatier series (Champion Chocolatier: For Better or Worse) is as fun as the first two! I really loved Emmy from the first time we met her as she heads to Duluth to run a chocolate shop. In book two, Champion Chocolatier: Reality Bites, we join Emmy as she competes in a reality TV candy-making contest. That story had some fun twists and turns! Now, she’s getting married and convinces her fiancé to take part in a couple’s contest to win a honeymoon. This book is the perfect story to read while we are sequestered away from the world. The characters are well-developed (and we already know and love them from the previous books). The author writes dialog with an easy banter that makes the reader feel like they’re right there with the characters. She’... Continue Reading

Welcome to final article of a three-part series on the pros and cons of independent or self publishing. This is an honest discussion about what you need to consider before deciding which route is best for your publishing goals and skill set. We’ve already examined overall concerns by detailing the positives and negatives of each type of publishing in Part One. We analyzed royalties, earning potential and business concerns in Part Two. Now, in part three we'll look at the many decisions you must be prepared to make if you choose to indie publish your work.

Is Your Book... Continue Reading

Welcome to part two of a three-part series on the pros and cons of independent or self publishing. This is an honest discussion about what you need to consider before deciding which route is best for your publishing goals and skills. We’ve already examined overall concerns by detailing the positives and negatives of each type of publishing in Part One. Now, we’ll dive into potential earnings and royalties along with the business concerns you must address for successful independent publishing. In part three, I’ll detail the many decisions you must be prepared to make if you choose to indie publish your work.

One of the positives of publishing independently is that you can be... Continue Reading