Some of you have wondered why there’s been no update to CC (2015) in the book. Basically nothing was changed, I thought. So, I found no reason to update though I was using the new version for my production. It works very well. However, I’ve come to the conclusion that I need to temporarily go back to (2014) for InDesign. I’ve been working a very limited schedule lately due to other things I need to get done. … Continue reading →
Get off your lazy butt—it’s a jungle out there! The only way to beat the leader is to be better at what the leader does. I was reading yet another excellent article this morning from Mike Shatzkin about the current state of affairs in traditional publishing. He makes good points, which also apply to indies and self-publishers. We need to keep our head in the game. Amazon earned their place in publishing They are dominant in ebooks, not … Continue reading →
I read another interesting intro to an article to which I’m not subscribed about the possible excellent future for B&N. Smelly ears, by the way, is an old term for an entity with its head so far up its you know what that the ears stink. B&N is finally going to separate its college stores from the Nook and brick & mortar operation. Again it mentions the disastrous Nook. There’s a very simple solution. Provide the brick & … Continue reading →
As most of you know, I do not listen to or produce podcasts. The same is not quite true with videos, but I’m just starting there. But I found this link today and thought some of you might be interested. Like this infographic? Get proven online marketing advice from Copyblogger Media that will give you an unfair business advantage.
Continue reading →To the left, you see the cover of a book I wrote which includes some of this information. Marketing your book seems too difficult. One of the major problems is the book title. Many things go into writing a book title that works. But it is an issue I’ve been pondering recently. The basic questions are: Who are you & what is your book? If you are like the rest of us, you’ve discovered (or soon will) that your … Continue reading →
There’s a supposedly new player today: Gatekeeper Press I know very little about them—just heard about them. But, it’s an interesting concept. As you know, I am basically against paying publishers anything without a very good reason. My books teach you how to publish for free, and I still think that’s the best route to go—IF you are willing and IF you are able. So, why do I mention Gateway Press? This just seems like another competitor … Continue reading →
Joel rarely writes for his blog any more, but it is a treat when he does. Today’s article is an excellent example of why his blog is so good: clean, concise, and useful. We can boil down the advice to the following: Fiction authors are unknown Fiction is marketed to a much wider audience who is initially unknown by the author. The new author needs to work very hard on becoming known. Giving away books is essential as … Continue reading →
This has been an interesting question for the past decade. There are several things which enter into the equation. The two most important are defects and general quality. Aaron Shephard falls on the side of Createspace in a radical change this morning. He’s always taught that Lightning Source is necessary for quality. Defects are a normal aspect of printing Printing is an amazingly complex manufacturing process. Most people tend to think that on-demand digital printers are much better … Continue reading →
It’s hard not to be really disappointed. Joel has been a superb source of data and knowledge for many years. But there is no information here. This book is just a list of resources There is nothing here except a list of people I’ve never heard of. Of course, I live life in a relatively small niche. None of the people I know as resources in these categories are listed. I have no reason to think any of … Continue reading →
Michael’s comments are worth reading I didn’t ask his permission this time, but this is an excellent comment by Michael in reply to my posting about the probable need to go back to using Amazon’s Kindle Export plug-in in InDesign CS6. Michael’s comments are again right on target as far as I can tell. My only hope is that someone at Amazon reads them. Many thanks for such a detailed explanation. My main take-way is that Amazon … Continue reading →