Resources and tips for the self-published author.

Publishing News Roundup Series: New Year, New Author Relations

by Maureen Crisp •  January 30, 2018  •   Follow

Published in News  •  4 comments

 

Happy New Year, bibliocrunch fans!

As the new years begins, publishing starts off strong. New information has been released regarding publishing with Amazon. The new data has some interesting finds that are particularly helpful to self-pub authors.

 

Looking After Ourselves

 

This week after a long time away Author Earnings came back with a roar. They have sharpened up their spider bots and have delved deep into the data and have found more interesting things about all things publishing with Amazon… and they are sharing some interesting data finds with authors.

Because they are so much better at combing the data, Passive Guy was moved to sound a warning that they have to be careful as they know more about the industry of publishing than some big publishers do and this might open themselves up for lawsuits.

 

Mike Shatzkin has also been looking at the publishing business and he checked in with Data Guy about some key things in the book selling industry. Data Guy backs up most of what Mike has been pointing out over the last few years. There are some interesting points about Romance books and bestseller lists. (If you want a sneak preview about where we all might be heading with retail stores check out Amazon Go – Its newest bricks and mortar store.)

 

Agent Laurie McClean has been crystal ball gazing about what is going to be hot around the publishing offices. (If you want to get a quick glance at what agents are calling for type #MSWL in theTwitter search bar.)

 

Have you checked out the sexism in children’s books lately? The Guardian has and made a special study of it too. I was surprised to see such high figures of gender imbalance. Did you know that most main character animals are male?

 

Publishers Weekly has a great post by Jane Friedman on the value of free content… no, it’s not valueless, It is all in how you use it.

 

The book industry got together recently in Tunisia to look at finally doing something about piracy. Publishing Perspectives reports on the conference and the piracy discussion. It might be a case of too late…

 

WriteOnCon is back! The free online 3 day children’s writing conference starts in a few  weeks. Check out the schedule and book some time to soak up the great posts on your calendar. (If you write for children you really should check it out!)

 

Are you a healthy writer? I’m not at the moment. Moving anywhere in this heat wave is exhausting. However over the years I have been looking at standing desks and dictation. I finally got my computer to accept dictation… Unfortunately that computer is heading problems with my excellent stop it doesn’t speak clearly- (Translation; Unfortunately the computer is having problems with my accent. It doesn’t speak kiwi.) Joanna Penn has a great excerpt from her latest book on the healthy writer on dictation.

 

Joanna has also interviewed Alex Anders on writing diverse characters. Are you doing this correctly or are they all cardboard cutout cliches…?

In The Craft Section,

 
Writing a Novella- Mythic Scribes- Bookmark
 
 
7 steps to plotting a novel- Martha Alderson- Bookmark
 
Learn How to write as you read– Now Novel – Bookmark

In The Marketing Section,

 
Book Promotion tips – The Book Designer- Bookmark
 
How to rock a free day promotion– Jane Friedman- Bookmark
 
 
 
Facebook changes their news feed… what does it means for authors? A must read on how the changes affect you.

To Finish,

With all the planning for the year underway… Writers need to take care of themselves too. Sometimes we find it hard and we wonder why. Lauren Sapala has a great article on mental attitudes that trip us up, and how we can trick our brains out of sabotaging us.

 

Maureen
@craicer

 

About Maureen Crisp

Maureen Crisp has been writing her weekly publishing roundups for over seven years. She is a traditionally published children's author as well as indie-published. She lives in New Zealand and is heading the team organising the 4th National Conference of Children's Writers and Illustrators. She is currently trying her hand at writing a children’s book series if she can drag herself away from forever tweaking her Mars novel or obsessing over space.