I was at a conference this weekend talking to a lot of smart people; many of whom wanted to write a book. They’d inevitably ask, “are you self-publishing?” and then scowl, because they “want a real, physical book, not just an ebook.” I explained that print on demand has been around for a decade and makes physical paperbacks and hard …

I started listening to positive affirmations/motivational mp3s and recordings years ago; my favorites are Kelly Howell and David McGraw. But I wanted something that was just for authors and writers, so I made my own. I made this first video to help authors struggling with finding time for their writing. Sometimes subconscious fears are the things that are really slowing …

I’ve been working with authors for a long time; as both book editor, book designer and sometimes even publisher. I’ve helped thousands of them try to improve their book enough to sell – either to an agent, or to self-publish and actually be successful. During all that time I’ve met a lot of authors whose books will fail. They’ll fail …

Yesterday I went for sushi with a friend of mine who’s clever and tongue-in-cheek witty. She loves Haruki Murakami and has dark humor. Today I read a blog post from another friend – a simple scene about relationship conflict (who’s going to pay the bill) but written in a fun, engaging style. I don’t doubt that both are better writers than …

UPDATE! I no longer recommend Thunderclap or similar programs – if you want people to support you by taking one action, there are better things to ask of them (like leaving a review of your book, sharing your book on their blog or website with links, etc). Social media isn’t really the place to sell books and promotional content doesn’t work …

Today I received this email: Sorry to intrude, I know you are very busy, but you are the best person to ask. I have recently placed my first book on Amazon.com  MERLIN 2035. Recently a Chinese book fair sent an email. No one has bought my book so far. Would it be worth $245 USD to submit my book to the Chinese …

I met a lot of people this week with excellent book ideas, they’d been sitting on for a year or more. I told them to get it done, so they can use it to build their platforms and traffic. And that they should finish this week. It’s much easier than you think, doesn’t have to take much time and effort, and …

I made this for an event recently, it was a handout – decided to post it here in case it’s helpful… #1 Write a book people want to read. #2 Connect with influencers or other authors in your genre/topic. Review their books. Share their stuff. Comment on their posts. Get noticed. #3 Set up a website that catches emails. Run …

For the last few days I’ve been hitting 5000+ words a day writing fiction. It’s exciting to think what that kind of habit will mean if I keep it up for a few months. But there are times my brain hits a wall and I get stuck. This is probably especially true because the book I’m focusing on right now …

Today I saw that Hugh Howey had posted an article on book cover design. “That’s cool,” I think. Hugh Howey is one of the most successful self-publishing authors in the world. He started out with pretty unprofessional book covers that embody the design tastes of most indie authors (they focus on scenes and symbolism and details, instead of being simple …