Over the past few weeks, I’ve identified a few important items that I need to take care of, starting with. . .
Google Adsense
A few weeks back, I wrote that most bloggers (& webmasters) don’t do very well with Google Adsense.
But. . . I might have been wrong.
Since writing this, I’ve read that some of my peers are averaging $50+ per day with it. That’s about $1500.00 per month.
Filed under ePublishing Blog
Guest Post By Anabelle J Paisley
Are you an aspiring author who would like to know how to write a mystery novel?
Read on for 5 really great tips to get you started on your way.
1. Read all the time in your genre, but also read on a wide variety of subjects as well. Read magazines and newspapers. You’ll be really surprised at the great ideas you will get just from reading articles in the paper, especially for mystery novels. There are tons of things going on all the time that could be turned into a novel. Keep your eyes and mind open.
Filed under Writing Fiction
We often think that the best way to become more productive is to actually spend more time doing something.
So instead of working 20 hours on a project, we increase that amount and spend 40 hours on a project.
Almost every start-up entrepreneur has a feeling of guilt gnawing on the inside when they’re working less than the standard 40 or 50 hours week.
In fact, it’s common to see most entrepreneurs work 60 to 80 hours week (or more!), with often a sense of pride that they’re working “hard.”
They should consider that a lot of that time is actually wasted, and that working “more” is never the answer.
Filed under Productivity Tips
I’ve always loved a mystery. And not just books either.
Along with my well-worn copies of mystery novels by Chandler, Block, and the Macdonalds (Ross and John D.), I also treasure my videos of old “Columbo” and “Magnum, P.I.” episodes, and I always stop to watch “Murder, She Wrote” whenever I’m on the couch, channel surfing.Though she’s around when so many murders occur I haven’t decided whether she’s the world’s best amateur detective or the world’s most cunning serial killer.
So, for my first novel, the natural choice for me was to write a mystery. Of course, starting any large piece of writing like a novel can be frightening. It can even paralyze you, as you look at the blank screen (or blank piece of paper in your Royal typewriter) and think, “I have to come up with around 70,000 or so words?!” I know that before I started my first novel, I thought that I wasn’t up to the task, that novels were something that “other,” “real” writers did.
But I eventually started. Though I don’t pretend to know all the answers (I believe a writer should never stop learning), by reading all the how-to books, reading a few hundred mystery novels, and talking to a few other mystery writers as well, I think I can help you, too. This isn’t a definitive guide, but it will certainly help you as it helped me. Little by little, the entire process begins to make sense, becomes less daunting, and, believe it or not, becomes more fun.
Tip #1: Just start the novel.
That’s the big secret. You have to actually start the book, even if you don’t know where it’s going or what’s going to happen.
Filed under Writing Fiction
Guest Post by Judy Cullins
Did you know that your back cover information is, after the cover, the best way to sell more books? And, that most authors, emerging and experienced, miss this opportunity to engage more potential buyers?
Your book’s front cover and sizzling title must impress your buyers in four-eight seconds.
If they like it, they will spend ten or so seconds on your back cover—a great opportunity to convince them that your book is necessary for what they want.
Does your back cover pass the test?
Filed under Marketing Your Writing
“Every writer I know has trouble writing.”
- Joseph Heller
In This Issue:
Filed under Marketing Your Writing
Perhaps best known for his Jack Keller novels, THE DEVIL’S RIGHT HAND and GOOD DAY IN HELL, North Carolina-based thriller novelist J.D. Rhoades has now struck out on his own with the much talked about title, GALLOWS POLE.
In this Q&A, mystery/thriller novelist, J.D. Rhoades discusses GALLOWS POLE, his work habits as a writer and how he arrived at the decision to join the thousands of novelists who have left traditional publishing to strike out on their own as indie novelists/publishers.
THE FIRST TIME I READ THE SYNOPSIS FOR YOUR NEW RELEASE, GALLOWS POLE, I LITERALLY GOT CHILLS! I JUST STARTED GALLOWS POLE (THE FIRST NOVEL I’M ACTUALLY READING AS AN EBOOK) AND IT HOOKED ME FROM THE VERY FIRST PAGE.
Well, thank you!
PLEASE TELL READERS A LITTLE ABOUT IT.
GALLOWS POLE is about Melissa Saxon, an FBI agent investigating a particularly grisly set of murders in which fathers are somehow forced to hang their own families, then themselves.
She’s contacted by Bishop, a mysterious ex-soldier who tells her that he thinks the killer is part of his former unit, a secret anti-terrorist team called Iron Horse. Bishop’s been in prison for years as penance for some of the things he did as the commander of Iron Horse–a prison he built with his own hands and locked himself in.
Now, with one of his own running loose and killing people, he and the few surviving members of Iron Horse have to ally themselves with Saxon and her team to try and stop the killer who calls himself The Hangman.
But there are shadowy forces behind the scenes who have other ideas.
Filed under Interviews with Novelists
Want to sell more books? If so, here’s some valuable information that you can share with your fans before they head to Amazon to review your book.
Good reviews are a necessity these days.
However, there are a few other features at Amazon that your fans might have missed until now. Features that can really help expand your fan base.
Larger fan base = More book sales!
Filed under Marketing Your Writing
As a literary manager, Dr. Ken Atchity has launched many illustrious careers for novelists, writers of nonfiction and screenwriters.
He’s also produced 28 films and authored 14 books, including “A Writer’s Time: Making Time to Write” and “Writing Treatments That Sell.”
With credits like these and over 40 years experience in publishing, it’s safe to say that Ken knows the business.
This is precisely why I wanted to speak with him about the radical changes in the publishing environment and what it means to today’s writers.
Filed under Interviews with Literary Agents
“Even if you’re on the right track, you’ll get run over if you just sit there.”
- Will Rogers
In This Issue:
Filed under Weekly Update
With more than 500,000 ebooks sold, self-published mystery, thriller & horror novelist JA Konrath is a huge writing/publishing success by anyone’s standards.
The devilishly handsome JA Konrath
The loudest and most controversial voice in self-publishing, Konrath has had his share of detractors (namely those, in some way, invested in New York publishing houses) over the years, but for every one of his detractors, he has several hundreds of fans who respect his advice and hang on to his every word.
He’s impacted many writing careers, including my own, with his blog, A Newbie’s Guide to Publishing, where he shares his views on the publishing industry and explains why the typical book contracts with New York publishing houses no longer make sense for writers who hope to make a decent income from their efforts.
Filed under Interviews with Novelists, Self Publishing
I know it’s been awhile. . . about 4 weeks since I posted the last update.
As I explained at that time, I was in the process of launching my novel, NEVER SMILE AT STRANGERS, and needed every spare minute to focus on the millions of loose ends that are involved in getting a new product on the market.
But it was time well-spent.
Filed under Never Smile at Strangers
By Lynette Rees
Certain genres are renowned for being more suspenseful than others: horror, crime fiction and romantic suspense, but each and every book, no matter whether it’s an Historical Romance or a Paranormal Fantasy, HAS to have a level of suspense interwoven between the pages!
All stories need to have this element, otherwise the reader isn’t going to want to turn the page, it’s as simple as that.
So if you’re interested in what makes a suspenseful page turner, then please read on…
Filed under Writing Fiction
“The world always seems brighter when you’ve just made something that wasn’t there before.”
- Neil Gaiman
In This Issue:
Filed under Marketing Your Writing, Productivity Tips, Weekly Update
“You can do anything, but not everything.”
- David Allen
In This Issue:
Filed under Weekly Update
We all suffer from a lack of inspiration or motivation from time to time.
Any writer worth their salt has had to battle through writer’s block at some point to fill that blank page staring back at them. If you’re suffering from a bad case of writer’s block, don’t worry — the fact it is so common also means there is lots of advice out there to help.
Here I share some of the quick and easy things that have helped me both ward off writer’s block and overcome it when it strikes…
Filed under Productivity Tips, Writing 101
For years, I’ve been fascinated by Frederic Patenaude’s newsletters. From writing about common misconceptions in the raw foods movement to making a great living on the Internet, I’ve found his writing style to be both entertaining & persuasive.
To date, Frederic has written over 20 books–both physical and digital–and has enjoyed remarkable success from his ebooks and related writing.
I recently had the pleasure of interviewing Frederic. During our conversation, we discussed the craft of writing, his process and why most writers don’t succeed at creating lucrative writing careers.
Here’s the interview.
Filed under eBooks
“Don’t believe everything you think.”
- Wayne Dyer
In This Issue:
Filed under Marketing Your Writing, Weekly Update
THE BOY OPENED his eyes and turned to the window. It was late, and the screen door to the back of the house had just slammed shut.
Thunder rumbled and raindrops struck the glass in loud, maddening beats. He clutched the wool army blanket that reeked of urine, and brought it closer to his body; then, wide-eyed, watched the downpour through his tiny bedroom window.
A burst of lightning streaked across the sky, illuminating the branches and the Spanish moss that clung to them. As quickly as it arrived, the beam disappeared, and the world grew pitch black.
A branch from the giant oak outside scraped the dingy glass, and the screen door to the back of the house banged shut a second time. A restless energy filled him. Something wasn’t right, and it wasn’t the door or the storm.
Filed under Never Smile at Strangers
“People often say that motivation doesn’t last. Well, neither does bathing – that’s why we recommend it daily.”
- Zig Ziglar
Filed under Weekly Update
