Day: February 17, 2014

The Oddville Press Goes Live

Last year, we ran a guest post from Lorraine Sears, Managing Editor of The Oddville Press.

Lorraine was facing the task of re-launching an eZine that had enjoyed 400,000 downloads in its first life.

She wanted to reach out to writers to make them aware of the opportunities presented by having work published in a well-crafted online publication.

Lorraine contacted me to let me know The Oddville Press is now live. She included a nice hat-tip to Indies Unlimited and thanked us for our assistance in connecting her with some talented writers:

“After our article was published on your site submissions went through the roof.”

OddvillePress_v2_i01In this edition, you’ll see a short story contribution from IU stalwart, Shaun McLaughlin. We encourage you to check it out.

Most of us have a few short stories lying around collecting dust. Maybe they just don’t fit in anywhere within the bodies of our existing work, or maybe we were saving them for an anthology that got put on the back burner. Publications like The Oddville Press present an interesting way to introduce yourself to new readers and to build your portfolio.

You can download your copy here. If you are interested in submitting a short story to the Oddville press, you can find submissions information here.

Developing the Perfect Author Newsletter

Developing an author newsletterNow that you’ve perfected your email list … okay, it takes more than a week … let’s talk about what goes in your author newsletter. I feel that your author newsletter is, or will, become one of the greatest marketing tools you own. Let’s jump in and see what a good author newsletter should look like.

One of the big misconceptions about newsletters is that it needs to be a multipage “book” about you and your writing. Remember, these are the days of 140 character tweets! Keep it simple. Linking your newsletter to your blog or website will allow the reader to access deeper, more extensive content. The number one rule is “The Reader is King.” It’s difficult to do, but you need to think about what the reader wants and design the newsletter for them.

With that in mind, the following are a few ideas to help you design your newsletter. Continue reading “Developing the Perfect Author Newsletter”

Book Brief: Return to Crutcher Mountain

Return to Crutcher Mountain- Melinda ClaytonReturn to Crutcher Mountain
by Melinda Clayton
Genre of this Book: Southern fiction, general fiction Word count: 71,000

As recounted in Appalachian Justice, Jessie is an adult survivor of horrendous childhood abuse. At the age of thirteen, she was rescued by reclusive mountain woman Billy May Platte.

Now forty-seven, Jessie is outwardly successful but inwardly struggles to reconcile the broken pieces of her past. In honor of Billy May, Jessie has offered Crutcher Mountain as a location to build the Platte Lodge for Children, a wilderness retreat and respite program designed for children with disabilities. Everything comes together beautifully until a series of strange events threatens to shut down the retreat.

To save the lodge, Jessie must open her heart to the truths she discovers and place her trust in a lonely little boy.

This book is available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Smashwords. Continue reading “Book Brief: Return to Crutcher Mountain”

The Local Book Launch

unnamedOn January 18th I held a launch party for the final book in the Earth’s Pendulum trilogy, The Dreamt Child. I think it was a success. You may decide if you agree with me when this is finished. No, no, you are not required to tell me where I messed up. It’s OK. Others already have. Just kidding.

As this was the third book, I have presumably learned a few things along the way. Now I’d like to share that vast wealth of knowledge with the rest of you. No, seriously I hope that this post will help some newbies get there more quickly than I did and possibly add some new thoughts for those who are on this same journey with me. Continue reading “The Local Book Launch”