Everything’s Not Fine by Sarah Carlson made me cry—in the best way that a book can. Carlson’s writing transported me so completely into the story of 17-year-old Rose that I was heartbroken over the messed up family situation she finds herself stuck in along with all of the extra responsibilities that really shouldn’t be placed on a teenager’s shoulders. It’s no secret that this story centers around Rose’s mom’s heroin addiction and the overdose that nearly kills her. Carlson handles this timely topic with an honesty that acknowledges that young adult readers can deal with tough topics and, indeed, need authors to cover them because (unfortunately) they’re dealing with impossibly difficult situations in real life. That alone would have made the story a winner for me, but Carlson adds in... Continue Reading
Reading, wRiting, and Roaming with Author Valerie Biel
Lake Fun for You and Me by Rinda Beach with digital images by Rick Starkey is a fun vacation story with fill-in pages for the young reader to document their own lake adventures. This is a unique book that is both a story to enjoy along with activity pages for the reader to fill in with their own details. The story also builds smart map-reading skills while giving the reader activity pages to fill in with drawings and descriptions of their own time on vacation. Kids will identify with the three siblings in the story as they compete for points in the Lake Hunt Fun game their mom has devised. Who will win? You’ll just have to read for yourself how it all turns out! This is a well-written story that gives the reader the chance to be a storyteller, too. Great concept!
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What Writers Have to Learn from The 10X Rule
3 Amazon Secrets Every Author Needs to Know
More encouragement for writerly projects during a pandemic.
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What Writers Have to Learn from the 10X Rule
Carmen Amato writes a helpful analysis of the book “The 10X Rule” by Grand Cardone on Jane Friedman’s blog. The premise of this book is to make your goals 10 times bigger than what you think you can achieve. Audacious? Perhaps. But there are some extremely solid points to back up this assertion. My favorite part is that there is no shortage of success: “Success is not a zero sum game, there can be many winners.” Worth the read at:... Continue Reading
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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Welcome to May, writers. In Wisconsin, it’s a month of flowers, sunshine, end-of-school events, Mother’s Day, and Memorial Day. May is a wonderful kick-off month to summer.
Not quite this year, however. If the month of May were writing a story about itself, its inner critic would be going wild. I envision May’s self-editor saying something like this:
I’ll begin by getting folks excited for the start of the warm season. I’m the intro to summer, after all. But wait, there have been frost warnings—and then there’s the pandemic. Scrap everything I was going to write about. The forecast calls for overcast skies and temps well below average for another few days. I’ve got it: I’ll email February and ask him... Continue Reading
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
How the Coronavirus Will Change the Publishing Industry
The Bakers and the Pot of Gold (An Allegory about Amazon Exclusivity)
How Reader Behavior is Changing
Free & Discounted Books!
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How the Coronavirus Will Change the Publishing Industry
Nathan Bransford interviews Mike Shatzkin (CEO of the Idea Logical Company) on how he sees the coronavirus crisis impacting the publishing industry. Interesting interview – you can listen here or read the transcript. One of the main takeaways is that he predicts that the supply chain for books will be permanently,... 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 our new normal, writers. April is a time for showers and flowers. Except this April, which has been a time for tears and fears, unfortunately. My heart goes out to those who have suffered directly from this terrible illness. I pray for those who have lost family members, friends, and neighbors. I extend a heartfelt thanks to the brave front-line warriors who are attending the sick, hungry, and suffering.
Writers write about moments like this. It’s cathartic to tap thoughts on the keyboard—and it’s okay to disregard structure, thesis statement, and plot outline. It’s one of the few times I advise my writing students to just write rather than have productivity or goals in mind. Get the fear, anxiety, and... 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
