I love this time of year! I’m not sure what it’s like where you’re living, but here the days are sunny and warm but the nights are cool and crisp and the leaves on the trees are changing into that beautiful, almost magical display of oranges and yellows and reds—perhaps the perfect setting for your next novel? Speaking of novels, if you are writing a novel, or even a nonfiction book, this week’s selection of articles and newsie bits might be of interest.
John Doppler on Self-Publishing Advice Center
12 Self-Publishing Services Authors Should Beware
“The following twelve services are commonly used to pad self-publishing packages, either as an add-on service or a bundled feature with questionable value to the author. Please note that these services are not inherently bad. However, they deserve extra scrutiny when their price tag is concealed among other bundled services.”
Melissa Bowersock on Indies Unlimited
Editing — Not for the Faint of Heart
“You’ve put your heart and soul into this and now you’re going to hand it over to someone who might well tear it to shreds. It’s frightening. But necessary. Here are a few things to remember that might make it a little easier for you.”
Jael McHenry on Writer Unboxed
Do Authors Owe Us Their Whole Selves?
“Big news from the New York Times this weekend! Oh, maybe not the news you’re thinking of. A totally different outcome of deep investigative reporting that excavated long-held secrets…”
Anne R. Allen on Anne R. Allen’s blog …with Ruth Harris
Fear of Success: 5 Signs You May Be Secretly Afraid of Publishing Success
“So how do we define a successful writing career today? You don’t have to quit the day job and move to Paris to call yourself a success. But you do have to publish your work regularly (indie, trad, or both) and get paid something for it.”
Chris Syme on Jane Friedman
Are You a Push Marketer or a Pull Marketer?
“When selling anything from books to refrigerators, we need to be an advocate for the buyer, not for our product. We want to draw people to a conclusion to buy, not push them. We want to be a pull marketer.”
Self-Publishing News You Can Use
By Amy Collins
Amazon.com scared a LOT of publishing this week by announcing that they were no longer going to allow reviews on Amazon for any product not purchased and verified through Amazon.
The announcement said that the updated community guidelines would only allow reviews for free or discounted products if it was facilitated through their VINE program. They state that this change will be a continuation of their work to combat manipulated reviews and “incentivized” reviews. But be aware that Amazon is pulling more and more of the control over reviews under their VINE program at the same time that it is offering manufacturers the opportunity to pay for submission to the VINE reviewers.
But here is the kicker. THIS DOES NOT APPLY TO BOOKS! For now, the books on Amazon will still be able to be offered to reviewers in exchange for honest reviews.
Links of interest:
www.amazon.com/p/featuer/abpto3jt7fh5oc
www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html?nodeId=201929730
Photo: pixabay.com
