Resources and tips for the self-published author.

Publishing News Roundup Series: The Misleading Aspects of Author Income Surveys

by Maureen Crisp •  July 16, 2018  •   Follow

Published in News  •  No comments

 

Every author’s dream is to be able to live off of their writing. But is this possible?

And was it ever possible? With all these surveys of author income, how accurate are they really? It asks the famous question: can authors really make money strictly off of their writing?

 

Show Me The Money

Pic: Flickr Creative Commons- tax credits

 

Jane Friedman took a look at the Guardian Article on Author income last week and has written a thoughtful response to it. Are Author Income Surveys Misleading? This is a comprehensive look at data and reports… Have authors ever earned enough to live on from their books in the past…?

 

David Gaughran has written a great article on granular targeting of advertising for authors. He pulls out some of the gems from his recent book Strangers to Superfans. If you are trying to make sense of your ideal reader… it is a must read.

 

Are you responsible for your own decisions? If you write a book everybody loves, can you say I write a damn fine story? Kris Rusch has a great post on why writers find it so hard to own up that they made great decisions…

 

Australian Dixie Carlton has written a case study on how the changes in the publishing industry over the last decade have affected her business. This is an interesting reflection on how much has changed in a short time.

 

Elizabeth Spann Craig has a great article on how to use Goodreads giveaway’s and widgets effectively on your website. Goodreads have recently changed their Giveaway rules and now it costs… but it can still be effective.

 

If you are a picture book writer… or know one… point them in the direction of this one day conference just for them. It’s online… so you can attend from anywhere.

In The Craft Section,

 
 
 
 
 
Formatting a book for large print– Excellent resource- Bookmark
 
 

In The Marketing Section,

Taking control of your metadata- Joel Friedlander- Bookmark
 
Ebook formatting using MS Word– Molly Greene- Bookmark
 
Sell your books with collaborative marketing– Alli- Bookmark… Must Read!
 
 
Universal Book Links – Draft2Digital… Very useful
 

To Finish,

Rejection. All writers deal with it. If you are smarting under the rejection sting… Read Nathaniel Tower’s plea to publishers about why different types of rejection drive author’s nuts.
If it all gets too much… change your name. Have fun with this pen name generator.

 

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.