An easy book marketing hack to help you dominate Pinterest and rule the interwebz

An easy book marketing hack to help you dominate Pinterest and rule the interwebz

I’ve never really gotten into Pinterest. I’ve started a few times, but I just didn’t “get it.” But today on Facebook I saw a post by John Kremer about how one of his graphics had been repinned by 1,416,972 people and brings over 7,000 people to his website every month. That’s pretty damn amazing for The 3...

Cheating to win won’t help your book sales: Judging the Author’s Database 2013 Book Cover Design Contest

Cheating to win won’t help your book sales: Judging the Author’s Database 2013 Book Cover Design Contest

This month I was asked to be a guest judge on the Author’s Database 2013 indie book cover design contest. It was an interesting experience, both in seeing the quality of what’s out there, and becoming more familiar with my own guidelines for quality cover design. There was a wide variety, and I was supposed The 3 secrets to book...

The confusing double standard between indie and “normal” publishing (as it pertains to book cover design)

The confusing double standard between indie and “normal” publishing (as it pertains to book cover design)

Something interesting I thought I would bring up, because I encounter it often in my work with indie and self-publishing authors. If you do a search for “best cover designs”, you’ll routinely see covers that designers love – like on this page. And they are very clever, very clean and simple, usually “flat” or...

Book marketing secrets you need to know before you publish

Book marketing secrets you need to know before you publish

I’m writing a book on book marketing. It’s not exactly revolutionary, but after reading everything else available, I’ve realized a lot of advice for indie authors is outdated, disorganized or just plain wrong. Which is why most indie authors are terrible at promoting their own books. Since I’ve worked with hundreds of...

Can introverts be successful authors? How do you build a platform around your writing when you like to be alone

Can introverts be successful authors? How do you build a platform around your writing when you like to be alone

I have a suspicion, or maybe more like a prejudice, that all the best writers and artists are introverts. We are proud and independent, we like to spend time on our own with our own ideas, we excel at keeping ourselves entertained with the creative production of our own worlds. I distrust extroverted writers and The 3 secrets to book...