I’ll try anything twice. Once to thoroughly mess it up, and then a second time to give myself a chance to learn from my previous botched attempt (hopefully) before I assess how effective something is, whether that be a story, a way to connect with readers, or a way to market my books. As of last week I tried my first group promotion, banding together with 6 other authors who have a bit of romance in their books, for a […]
Read postWelcome to the first podcast for 2014! If the thought of public speaking makes you feel like you’ve swallowed a litre of tequila, then I’m assuming the thought of approaching radio or TV shows to promote your book is the most horrifying thing you could think of short of chopping off your ears and sewing them to a mouse. No one wants to sound the fool, and when you’re not in charge of the questions being asked that can be […]
Read postThe days of writing in a garret and passing on your words, never to look a reader in face, are done. Overdone. Well done. They may quite possibly be charred beyond recognition and masquerading as a black hole. Or charcoal. In fact if you’re a writer, and you get a stocking full of charcoal for Christmas, then they are your old writing garret days. Sorry. Because the fact of the matter is, if you want to make it as a […]
Read postBy Claire Johnson Guest Post Note: I have been known to poo-poo Apple. Sorry, (well… not really…) but I’ve always been a PC person. Android phone and tablets give me everything I need without making my head explode from frustration. I had an iPod once, but it just didn’t play nice with the other tech kids in the sandpit. But after sitting in on a couple of sessions at the State Library of QLD on iPads for educators, I realised […]
Read postI’m pretty sure I’m not the only one out there who thinks scrolling script, stock images, or god forbid, a PowerPoint presentation that zooms in on those images, is not a trailer. Not even close. If I wanted to be bored for 2 minutes I could watch the political debates. Or grass grow, or paint my toenails. No, a trailer is meant to entertain, excite and intrigue. Frankly when I think trailer, I think dynamic movie trailers with minimal words, […]
Read postMy parents tell me that when I was a little girl, I use to insist that the same book be read to me ten times in a row. Frankly, I can’t remember anything that happened before high school, so I’m not sure whether or not it’s an exaggeration. But it does make me wonder if some unconscious memory of these readings has contributed to my recent discovery and love of audio books and podcasts. Hearing stories of the followings authors […]
Read postFirst of all, apologies for making this a short written post today. My body, in short, hates me and I’m in my 6th day of beating off a cold with a combination of drugs (legal – I’m my pharmacist’s best customer this week) and lemon & honey tea. My writing is still being done, but all other tasks have fallen to the wayside including the post I had originally intended for this week. Luckily I had a back-up plan thanks to the […]
Read postWith print on demand, self-publishing and global writing opportunities it’s no wonder a new breed of writer is emerging. No longer are we restricted to traditional publishing, to shipping books from overseas, to just writing prose, or even to being in the same room as your fans at a signing. Even with ‘new’ pathways to publication you are no longer restricted, Amazon certainly isn’t the only big fish in town. In particular I am thinking of Kobo, a fantastic company […]
Read postTypically, my memory is atrocious. No really. A family member will ask me to help with some exceptionally mundane task and my memory seems to hit the snooze alarm, like I have a black hole in my head that stops me from linking into the real world. This quirk turned into a bit of a self-hate/productivity nightmare during my first two months of this year as a ‘full-time writer’. Well, I was going to be a full time writer for […]
Read postWhy is it that every time I talk to writers ‘new’ to the digital world I end up feeling like I’ve volunteered to be a crash-test dummy for a dozen cars? I’ve just come back from the Adelaide Writers’ Festival with a bit of a bee in my bonnet. Even after all the studies, the blog posts, the infographs and pie graphs, authors and publishers are still under the impression that only the few elite will ever be writers and […]
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