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January Seminar…
FEAR AND PRODUCTIVITY SEMINAR Preparation for the New Year January Seminar January 5th through January 30th Here is the post again for the January Seminar… Kris and I have been looking forward to doing this for most of the year, but knew that January would be the perfect time. January everyone is excited about the new year and moving forward, making the new year better than the last. So we want to help. And to do that, sometimes all it takes are a few small changes, a focus on a certain mindset, an understanding of what it takes to move past fear and be more productive. That’s what this seminar…
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Write More In the New Year!
FEAR AND PRODUCTIVITY SEMINAR Preparation for the New Year January Seminar January 5th through January 30th Kris and I have been looking forward to doing this for most of the year, but knew that January would be the perfect time. January everyone is excited about the new year and moving forward, making the new year better than the last. So we want to help. And to do that, sometimes all it takes are a few small changes, a focus on a certain mindset, an understanding of what it takes to move past fear and be more productive. That’s what this seminar is all about. It is about craft, publishing, mindset,…
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Discoverability…
So Many Things… Now, I admit, I suck at Amazon book searches unless I know the author’s name. I didn’t realize just how bad until tonight when, on a lark, I searched for “science fiction” and nothing else. Found a few and a ton of “sponsored” books. I searched for a while, following rat holes of so much trash I could hardly believe it. I clicked on one “sponsored” book that said clearly it was science fiction, had a fantasy cover, and an author name so tiny that even on my large mac screen I could not read it. This poor guy had spent money to get me to see…
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Three Mentorships Available…
Craft, Kickstarter, and Sales Mentorships… Get yourself really going in the right direction in 2026. Kris has one spot open in her six-month craft mentorships. One-on-one with Kris, working on what you really need to take your stories to the next level. Only one available… Write me if interested and I will hook you up with Kris for her to decide if you would be a good fit. Kickstarter Mentorship… I have done 59 successful Kickstarters and I will walk you through every step and make sure you fund and also help you fulfill the campaign when over. And then do it again. Two campaigns. More information every Friday on…
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Examples R’Us…
Three Examples in Four Days of Mindset Issues… This just had me shaking my head. Now granted, most don’t know we just started a Mindset workshop, and even if they did, many flat can’t afford it. Totally understand that. But three different writers wrote me with very serious questions. And every one of the questions was based on faulty mindset. Two said they could not afford someone to do their covers and had no artistic skill to do it themselves or afford the art if they could. Mindset totally off combined with total lack of research and a wealth of bad information. — Professional art licensed standard for book covers…
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Quitting Comments and Some Learning Sales
Seems I Touched a Few Writers… I got a bunch of email, but two letters were from writers who had quit as well as the other ones I mentioned. Both had less than 20 books discoverability and both didn’t understand why their books didn’t sell more than a few copies. Both had even bought into the myth of doing ads. They had no branding on the covers, dull plot-filled sales copy that no buyer would get past, and the two I looked inside at had no depth of openings at all. Alas, they wrote, but never bothered to learn how to get their books to readers. Sadly, both of them…
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Writers Quitting…
Three Letters… In the last seven days, I have gotten not one, not two, but three letters from writers about ready to quit. Now I get these letters occasionally, I think all professional writers do. Sort of a last gasp before letting the dream float away. Not sure why three this week. Maybe the way the world is right now, I don’t know. All three had clearly spent some time. None of them were published wide, seeming to think Amazon was the be-all and end-all. Real bad information there. Two of them had in the ten-or-more-book range before discoverability, but one had 24 books. No sales at all, or just…
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Going For It!!!
Starting Two New Challenges for Myself… Actually, three. And I will be doing every detail of everything all myself. No help from anyone. That’s right. I will be doing my own covers and my own interiors with Vellum or InDesign. I will be listing them all electronically and with Ingram for paper and hardbacks. And I will be working on my store and getting all of them there as well. So what is my challenge? From November 10, 2025 until November 9th 2026… Challenge #1… I am going to write and finish a new novel every two weeks. So 26 novels, but in the actual year I will more than…
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Quitting is Forever…
Writing and Publishing Can Be Frustrating… But quitting is forever. I honestly have no idea looking back how I made it 51 years in this business. I went over (in a full 9-week class on WMG Teachable) about what I learned from my mentors in 50 years and another class I covered the mistakes I made in 50 years. And I have failed at things in publishing more times than I want to count. I’ve had horrid days and great days. When I am writing, I love it and the feeling of writing. When I am not writing, I wonder why I am not writing. Looking back on that first…
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Caution on Emails With Praise…
They Hit You With Praise and Then Ask for Money… For some reason, lately, this ploy has been happening. This is my third in three weeks. These folks never research who they are sending to, but do at least pretend to have read the book they are trying to get money to promote. The most recent for me was tonight… Here is the letter I got on a book that has been in print for 12 years and just reprinted this last spring with new covers. Ready for this??? Dean, My name is (Deleted) . I came across The Slots of Saturn, and it struck me as more than a…