This week’s comprehensive post is by successful indie author David Rothstein. His Civil War novel, Casualties, is based on a true story about a woman who set out with a horse and wagon to rescue her husband from a Confederate POW camp. Besides being a compelling story told in a powerful, lyrical narrative voice, the novel has benefited from its…
Here’s a brilliant visual comparison of the costs and profits of traditional vs. self-publishing, courtesy Alex Nolan. Click on the image to see the full-size version on his site. Highly recommended.
I’ve said here and elsewhere, many times before, that it takes a lot of money to self-publish a book. You can write one for only the cost of your time, but to involve professional editors, designers, printers, and possibly even marketers is to commit several thousands of dollars of your own money to do it right. I make a living…
Have you ever tried to thaw a frozen chicken breast 30 minutes before dinner? Or fix the plumbing in the guest bathroom the Friday before your in-laws arrive? Then you know that rushing is a bad idea. If you are going to publish your own manuscript in a professional way, you need t-i-m-e, and lots of it. Twenty weeks, to be…
Agent Nathan Bransford says it’s a great time to be an author and entrepreneur. I’m cheering in the same crowd. Having worked with some remarkable, professional authors who self-publish their work, I know that a savvy writer can put out a book and at least break even. It makes me wonder what would happen if literature became more local, and…
Graphic designers are expensive. In my years as an editor, however, I have learned that they don’t charge half of what they are worth to authors, and that a $700 book cover or $500 layout job ought to buy them a pair of angel wings. In an increasingly savvy indie marketplace, an ugly book will embarrass you and hurt sales….
In today’s LA Times, author Dani Shapiro laments the failure of the midlist. The emphasis is on publishing, not on creating. On being a writer, not on writing itself. The publishing industry — always the nerdy distant cousin of the rest of media — has the same blockbuster-or-bust mentality of television networks and movie studios. There now exist only two…
Typographical errors are more difficult to get rid of than cockroaches. Never, never, never assume you can do it alone. “Indie publishing” means “not a Big Six publisher.” It does not mean, “I am an island of astounding writing, editorial, graphic design, technological, and business savvy.” At first you will feel like you’ve just been given twenty dollars in change…
I have begun an unscientific experiment in publishing. It’s unscientific because the sample size is statistically insignificant, and I am comparing a nonfiction guide to a novel. But bear with me. Participant A is my yet-unpublished novel, THE IDIOT’S TALE. I know you won’t take my word for it if I told you it’s a good book, so I’ll just…
Why do people hire editors? This is a bit like asking why people travel to California; there are as many answers are there are tourists. However, it’s fair to say they have a common destination. My clients hire me to be an expert partner in their writing projects. I believe that my obligation is to not change a thing until I understand the writer’s…
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