Let's Write A New Novel Titled: The Dead Candidate

On March 31, 2011, in Current Readings, Wilfried F. Voss, Writing & Publishing, by Editor

I believe, it would be pure fun to write about the background activities of the MYMN (Maybe Yes, Maybe No) party waiting for their candidate, who lies in a coma, to either die or run for election, while the KEA (Kill ‘em All) party is having a ball raising funds for their candidate.

For Authors: Is Your Platform Big Enough to Land an Agent?

On March 17, 2011, in Business, Marketing, Writing Tips, by Editor

You might be surprised how big your author’s platform might be already. There are many different types of platforms, but they all basically mean that you have a built-in audience or fan base of people who are poised and ready to buy your book as soon as it comes out.

Character Development For Your Novel: The Protagonist

On February 23, 2011, in Ariel Ceylan, Guest Writers, Writing & Publishing, by Misc. Contributions

Protagonists are people, people with drama, tragedies, monetary concerns, health concerns, and the like. Spend time with the trivia of your characters, but the deeper you go into it, the better a character you will make. Developing the Protagonist into a person, not a character, will make your Protagonist believable.

Lorem Ipsum – I Couldn't Have Said It Any Better…

On February 17, 2011, in Lifestyle, Neurotica, Writing & Publishing, by Editor

Lorem Ipsum is simply dummy text of the printing and typesetting industry. Lorem Ipsum has been the industry’s standard dummy text ever since the 1500s, when an unknown printer took a galley of type and scrambled it to make a type specimen book. It has survived not only five centuries, but also the leap into electronic typesetting, remaining essentially unchanged.

Fans, Friends, and Followers: How to Build a Solid Author Platform that Sells More Books!

On February 17, 2011, in Marketing, Writing & Publishing, by Editor

There’s a lot of information out there on the “how” of social media: How to set up a Twitter account, how to tweet, how to build a Fan Page, etc. But there isn’t a lot of information on why you’d want to use social media.

Smart Self-Publishing: How to Get Published Without Getting Scammed

On February 3, 2011, in Marketing, Writing & Publishing, Writing Tips, by Editor

Something I learned early on in this industry is that publishing, like any other industry, is full of scams. Not everyone is unethical; however, there are a certain number of people who prey on someone’s desire for success by offering them pie-in-the-sky promises they can never fulfill.

Upcoming Show on Smart Self-Publishing – Part 1: Print On Demand

On January 20, 2011, in Blogging, Marketing, Writing & Publishing, by Editor

These days, there are more choices than ever to get published, but publishing – like any industry – is full of scams. Most publishers are not unethical but how can you avoid predators with pie-in-the-sky promises that can’t be fulfilled? Our special guests, Grael Norton, acquisitions manager for Wheatmark, Inc., and Mark Coker, founder of Smashwords, will show us how to see through the hype and discuss the how-to’s of contracts, publication costs, royalty statements, book covers and much, much more.

Contacting Literary Agents and R-E-E-JECTED

On January 3, 2011, in Guest Writers, Lorelei Bell, Writing & Publishing, by Lorelei Bell

This post is not meant to discourage anyone. This is merely to give those of you who have stumbled to my blog and are part of the writing community, a look into a portion—just a portion—of what I have gone through (like every writer out there), trying to get a publisher, or an agent. I hope you can laugh along with me now.

12 Things Authors do to Sabotage Their Success

On December 9, 2010, in Marketing, Writing & Publishing, by Editor

Writing, publishing, promoting, publicizing. It all seems quite daunting, doesn’t it? Well, it doesn’t have to be. First you need to start out by doing the right things and knowing what can help, or harm, your success. Keep in mind that while there is always a creative element, publishing is a business. It’s important to know your business to be successful. Here are a dozen ideas that I hope will help you on your journey from writer to successful author.

Something Nebulous Within

On November 13, 2010, in Guest Writers, Lorelei Bell, Writing & Publishing, by Lorelei Bell

We as writers have what I like to call something nebulous within, and when we begin some new writing project we only partially know what we want to do with it. It’s fun, and at the same time a little scary. We don’t want to fail, we fear we will. Fear of failier, fear of not finishing something that we started. Just plain old fear of not being able, after all the work, get it published.