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Want Someone to Do It For Me…
I’ve Run Into This Lately A Few Times… Some writers are dead set on going to traditional publishing because they want someone to do the work for them. They believe their job starts and stops with writing. And back in 1990, that was the case. You wrote and the publisher published. Writers had no control at all and honestly in 1990 should not have asked for it or tried to get it. But that was thirty years ago. Writers now control everything, but beginning writers still come into writing wanting someone to do all the work for them. I’ve been trying to figure out why, since indie publishing is so…
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The True End of Trade Publishing…
At Least As Anyone Knows It… Trade publishing is what I call traditional publishing. The reason for the word “trade,” very, very, VERY simply put, is that the publishers don’t sell directly to readers, they sell into the trades. The trades in publishing are a distribution system that is an old-fashioned channel to get books from an old-fashioned printing presses to warehouses to distributors to bookstores and then into the hands of readers. (By the way, three of the major trade printers have filed for bankruptcy or shut down. That is another really bad sign that causes books to be extremely delayed.) Trade publishers do not care about readers and…
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Two New Classes… Two New Storybundles
All Kinds of Fun Stuff… I have three books in nifty StoryBundles right now. The first one is the Space Opera Storybundle and my collection, A Billion Earths is exclusive to the bundle, so you can get it along with some other really nifty books by great writers. The second book is an anthology I edited called A Twist of a Knife (best mysteries from Pulphouse Magazine.) It is in the Twist of a Knife Storybundle along with some other wonderful mystery books. I also curated this bundle and I also have my Cold Poker Gang novel Bad Beat in there. Three books in two Storybundles. How much fun is…
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A Problem I Am Just Starting to See…
Submissions to Major Magazines… I flat believe that everyone writing short stories and who wants a writing career long term should get into the habit of sending short stories to major magazine markets. I have gone over the reasons may times. All upside when your stories start to hit. And I have just assumed it was some fear thing that stopped writers from submissions of stories to major magazines. Fear caused by baseless critical voice issues that I just assume that if a writer can’t get past the fears, they will never be a long-term writer. And I think all of the above is true still. No opinion change on…
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A Challenge For Everyone for 2021…
My Challenge of 70 While I Am 70 Pushes Me… So I got a comment about structuring a short story publishing challenge for 2021 for others, especially writers just starting out. And I think it’s a great idea for a bunch of reasons for most writers. So I thought I would go into the reasons and the idea here. Challenge: Publish 52 Short Stories Stand Alone In 2021 Note, I did not say write, I said PUBLISH. Stories would have to be stand-alone, most selling for $2.99 electronic and $4.99 paper. (Under 3,000 words sell it for $1.99… never 99 cents.) A lot of writers I know have collections published…
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Book #1 of 70 Book Challenge
This Came Out On the First Day of the 70 Book Challenge… That’s right. On my birthday. TWIST OF A KNIFE: Best 10 Mystery Stories from the First Year of Pulphouse Fiction Magazine. Well, it is not officially published yet, but you can get it in the Twist of a Knife Storybundle. So it actually is published and available. It is exclusive there for another two weeks or so, then it will go on sale around the world and be sent to everyone who supported the Pulphouse Kickstarter campaign. It was the 4th stretch goal. The book was a fun one to put together, actually. And I had help from…
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Some Fun Thoughts…
And A Warning… As many of you know, or might have guessed, I spend a great deal of time reading news and information about the industry, both the traditional side and what can be found among all the promotion myths on the indie side. Some of it I pass along, some of it Kris and I talk about, some of it I just file away as information to see trends and so on. I consider this part of my job. Not for you folks, but because this is how I make my living and if I am not aware of my industry, I will make mistakes. Now some of you…
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Making a Fortune
An Old Belief or Myth… I had two people repeat a bad myth to me today. The myth is that writing is NOT the fastest way to make a buck. I suppose over the very short term, that is true… sort of. Say you want to be a lawyer. Your first buck will come in around year eight. Doctor around year nine. Plumber, after some training, as an apprentice, maybe the first year. Architect, year six. Being a waiter or tending bar, or a janitor, or any other hourly job, you get paid in two weeks after you start, so I suppose those are the quickest way to making a…
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IP Earnings
Cash Streams Most Don’t Know About… Kris and I try to help writers understand IP, in one way or another, through blogs, through workshops, and many other ways over the years. But two things happened today that just made me shake my head. First off, I read an article on Facebook that I now can’t find (but I am sure Google will help you) on how much actors make from residuals of old shows like Mash, Cheers, Friends, and so on. The amount for those who signed good contracts is staggering. Sometimes up to 20 million a year. That’s right, for work they did years ago. (see where this is…
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Well, Next Week…
Kickstarter Seems to Have Forgotten Us… Said our campaign would be approved by the 15th. Nope. It is now the 16th. I don’t think there is a problem, just they seemed to have gotten busy or something. First time in 15 times that has happened. So now the 2020 Holiday Spectacular will launch next Tuesday, if they approve it. Not sure why they wouldn’t, but you never know these days. It is 2020 after all. (grin) So I’m going back to finishing up some writing and editing this weekend plus exercising. Turned in a book yesterday to WMG, like to finish up a couple more. Did seven miles today, even…