Tag: author resources

Free Resources for Writers

FreeSelf-publishing involves so much more than simply writing a book. Whether you contract with various experts for help or go it alone, once you make the decision to self-publish you’re responsible for graphic design, accounting, marketing, formatting, and so much more. A person could go broke wearing all those hats.

A couple of months ago I wrote a post outlining several places to obtain free music and photographs under a Creative Commons license. Today, I want to introduce a few more sites that offer free resources for writers. As always, it’s good practice to give proper attribution even if the site doesn’t require it. See the aforementioned post on ways to do this. Continue reading “Free Resources for Writers”

Thrilled to Join Indies Unlimited

melinda typingMarch 5, 2013: I remember it well. That was the date I officially started stalking Indies Unlimited. I was already familiar with the site and had periodically checked in, but that was the day IU got its own folder in my email account.

I had spent a great deal of the previous winter struggling with the decision to terminate contracts with my publisher and join the world of self-publishing. By spring, I knew that was the path I needed to take, but how? Kindle, Smashwords, Lightning Source, CreateSpace: It was all so confusing. Ultimately, I did the first thing I always do when starting a new venture: I made a list.

Then I did the second thing I always do when starting a new venture: I researched, Googling everything from, “What’s the difference between Lightning Source and CreateSpace?” to “What the heck is a Smashwords Meatgrinder?”

Indies Unlimited came up in the search results time and time again. Continue reading “Thrilled to Join Indies Unlimited”

No Names, No Jackets

Today I am interviewing John Rickards who has recently launched a new website dedicated to the discovery of good books merely (and I use that term ironically) by the writing. From the website: No Names, No Jackets (aka 3NJ) is a book discovery service with an innovative twist: all you see here is one chapter from a story without knowing who wrote it, whether it was self-published or traditional, its synopsis, its title, or what its cover looks like. We all say that good writing should be the only thing that matters, not good salesmanship or high profile. 3NJ aims to make that a reality … Continue reading “No Names, No Jackets”