By Helen Sedwick What do Shakespeare and Jane Austen have in common? Their works have spawned countless remakes and retellings. Characters have been transported to New York tenements and distant dystopian planets. Stately manor houses have been transformed into...
Pen names, also known as pseudonyms and noms de plume, are more popular than ever. Like brand names, they are designed to be catchy, memorable and suited to the genre. Writers switch genders and nationalities. Plain-Janes leap into exotic personas. X-gens with...
By Helen Sedwick When a writing collaboration works, partners inspire and complement one other. The creative process is less lonely. But when collaborations fail, the drama may be as ugly as a Hollywood divorce. For every successful writing partnership, there are...
By Helen Sedwick You understand the importance of an eye-catching book cover. You spend hours (and dollars) designing, tweaking, and testing. In the end, you, the self-publishing author, own your book cover, right? Then how does this happen? Or this? Or this? Don’t...
By Helen Sedwick First, I want to thank Joel Friedlander for the opportunity to write a monthly post on the legal issues of self-publishing. With wit and wisdom, Joel has helped many a writer (including me!) grow into an indie author. I am honored to be part of his...
I know that it’s challenging to navigate the waters of the book publishing business when it’s all new to you. There is so much to learn just to get an idea of how all the pieces fit together. And like in most fields, the same questions seem to repeat...
