On the weekend I went into Fireside Books in Parksville (BC) to buy a tee shirt. I asked the woman at the cash register about how self-published authors can get their books into their store. After she explained it to me, she told me that the biggest problem they encounter as a bookseller is that indie publishers come in and ask them how much to sell the book for. She correctly pointed out that is not the booksellers decision. And…
In my last post, I explained what the different platforms are and their markets. But we cannot overlook the benefit of aggregators. These types of platforms have a large marketplace and can put your e-books into markets that you didn’t even know existed. Just what is an aggregator? Book aggregators bridge the gap between authors and online retailers. Think of it as a distributor for e-books. An aggregator does not have a single market like Amazon or Kobo. They upload…
The writers group that I belong to published a volume of short stories with a holiday theme. Writing these types of short stories had been a tradition for years. We would read them the last meeting in November because we did not meet in December. Someone suggested we put them together in a book and The 12 Tales of Christmas came to life. Eight other authors learned the steps of writing, editing, planning, decision making, marketing, more planning, and finally…
Last weekend I gave a webinar presentation to the Federation of BC Writers. The topic was about how there are more platforms for self-publishing your books than just Amazon. Each platform has its own marketplace and there can be benefits to uploading your book to more than one. Let’s take a look at the most popular and useful platforms. Amazon KDP The best known of the platforms for self-publishers, Amazon is the largest online marketplace in the world. Of course…
Do you need a business plan to succeed as a writer? The New Year is a good time to look at how much writing you did last year and decide if it was adequate. It is a time to take stock and organize yourself and your writing. Are you happy with your writing? One way to do this is by writing a business plan. A good plan can help you set writing goals and meet your targets. It doesn’t have…
A lot of my readers ask me what an ISBN is and why they need one. It’s actually a very important part of your preparation to publish. An ISBN puts your book on to lists and into data bases. It makes sure your book doesn’t get lost in the millions and millions of books in the world. It is used by booksellers and libraries to find, identify and order books. The International Standard Book Number (ISBN) identifies your book as…
Last summer I got an Error Message about my WordPress site and I could not access the dashboard to update posts. It was going to cost me a lot of money to have it dealt with. Then in October my harddrive crashed and the ensuing drama that comes with that. I now have set up a new look for my site, renamed it, and am ready to start posting on the blog. I hope you like the clean look and…
https://canadacouncil.ca/collab-bc If you have been thinking of applying for a Canada Council writer’s grant, these information sessions might be useful. If you are interested in registering for the workshops, contact the FBCW at membership@bcwriters.ca and we will connect you to the organizers: The Canada Council for the Arts will be hosting Collab sessions in January and February in Vancouver and Victoria. The Vancouver sessions will take place January 27-30, while the Victoria sessions take place February 1-2. The sessions are…
How to Get Your Book Published If you have finished writing your book, the next step is getting it published. You will learn how to find a publisher, craft a query letter, write a proposal, and what an agent does for you. Suzanne Anderson is the co-owner of Half Acre Publishing and the author of three books. Sunday, October 6, 9-3 pm at Beban Park Social Center in Nanaimo. Cost $80 Register at recreation.nanaimo.ca or 250-756-5200 Sunday, October 27, 9-3…
I am presenting 2 new workshops this fall on Vancouver Island! Sign up, learn new writing techniques, and meet other writers. My workshops are always fun. Developing Memorable Characters Readers fall in love with characters in stories. Learn about the different types of characters, how to develop them, and how to make them memorable. There will be in-class exercises to develop your own characters. Suzanne presents writing workshops throughout BC. Sunday, September 29 9 am – 12 pm at Beban…