Subscribe to Newsletter

Get news, updates, bonus content and pre-order information delivered directly to your email inbox by clicking HERE.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

How to Hire a Cover Designer

Image
There are a thousand ways to get cover art for your book. Here is just one: Fiverr.com I considered 99designs and Behance, but you can't beat the prices at Fiverr. Graphic design jobs starting at just $5! You'll probably get what you pay for so I don't necessarily recommend hiring a $5 job. I set my sights between $15 and $50 and scoped out a huge array of designers. Check out designers' portfolios and make sure you read their reviews.  In addition to perusing designers' ads, you can post your gig like a Wanted Ad and request for sellers to approach you. I hired a designer and waited with bated breath, only for the deadline to come and go with not a single word from them. I messaged them thrice and still no answer. Luckily, you can cancel the order at any time and get a refund (in Fiverr store credit). But I got a special 20% off coupon from the site for the designer's no-show. The second designer I hired for $35 for an ebook + print cover packa...
Read more

Writing Contests & Novel Awards

Writing contests are a fun way to stretch your skills and maybe win some clout. It's great to add to your bio in a query letter and some of the prizes aren't too shabby either. Many writing contests cost a small fee to enter, which can be a deterrent to a lot of starving artists. But the small fee can return great benefits and the extra incentive to not waste your money ensures you work your ass off on your entry. But you'll be pleased to hear, as I was, that the first short-story contest in the list is FREE to enter! Support Indie Authors FREE to enter. Enter multiple times, if you like. 3,000-word limit, has a Halloween theme and a couple of requirements. WriteMichigan Sorry, this one's only for us Michiganders. $10 entry fee, 3,000-word limit. Indies Unlimited Flash Fiction Challenge Every week, IU hosts a 250-word flash fiction challenge. FREE to enter. Writer's Digest Short-story & poetry contest with lots of categories to enter under. $30 f...
Read more

Persistence in Publishing

I'm reading Ryan Holiday's The Obstacle is The Way . (And of course applying it to my own life as I send out queries to literary agents in hopes of getting my novel published.) It's not as engaging as his book  Ego is the Enemy , which literally made me cry, but still thought-provoking. It speaks of the obstacles, the roadblocks, the problems we all face when we have a goal we're striving toward. The tagline: The Timeless Art of Turning Trials into Triumph. Some people have overcome seemingly insurmountable odds to achieve extraordinary feats, such as General Grant in the Civil War and of course Thomas Edison testing six thousand filaments to invent the light bulb. We're not shooting for such grand heights as reuniting the United States of America (even if it needs it right now) but we all have obstacles and goals too. My goal is to make a living as an author. The self-published route to that hasn't been panning out, so I've returned to the traditional...
Read more